Went to camjam since the morning had a chance to try quite a lot of good stuff and picked up a mass Kobo 475 for myself as well. Just some impressions
1) Campfire audio
Andromeda 2023 - Compared to my own older Andros, the treble doesnt
sparkle like it used to. There is actually some weight to the bass now but does sound a bit muddy. It also has
more air compared to my own old Andros, similar for the Solaris compared to my Solaris SE.
Solaris Stellar Horizon - Nice air, very good for live recordings and orchestral music. Nice thumb to the bass but controlled such that it doesnt bleed into the mids, doesn't have the detail in bass texture like the Odin's does but it's still quite enjoyable. For an all rounder I prefer my Solaris SE but I can see how the new Solaris would do better in certain genres like live recording especially since there is better air and wider staging.
Trifecta - Being all BA, standard BA bass problems, doesnt have the heft and weight of DD bass but since I listen to Jpop and some songs are mastered / mixed such that some BA only IEMs can still produce pretty good bass so not too much problems. Pretty nice detail, and again there is air and quite wide staging.
Overall Solaris > Trifecta > Andros for me. Really sad the Andros don't sparkle like they used to... Although I also understand it was that sparkle that could be come sibilance in some cases.
2) Vision Ears
VE7 - Very well balanced, slightly colored sound with some nice energy .The bass still had a nice thump but still a bit away from my Odin's. Overall an enjoyable sound.
Red Anniversary - Very safe and laidback sound. A bit too boring for my taste, the bass was lacking on some of the music I was listening to despite having DD for Bass.
Blue Anniversary - More energy overall, in the bass and slightly in everything else. A more exciting and musical pair of IEMs compared to reds. Bass can get a bit much on bass heavy genres.
VE7 > Blue > Red
3) Empire Ears / Collab with A & K
Odyssey - I get where ppl are saying it is somewhere btw the EVO and Odin's,bass is
tamed a little bit more but can still give a massive thump, mids and treble are still very resolving like both EVO and Odin's just that they aren't as much in the background as compared to EVO. Bass is more meaty and has weight comparative to Odin's which is focusing a bit more of subbass.
Raven - Somewhere in between the Odyssey and Odin for me I think.....
4) Fatfreq
Maestro SE - Surprisingly not as bassy as the frequency measurements may suggest. Boomier compared to my Odin's but still has nice bass texture, and definitely not trying to be the star of the show like the EVO. Overall quite an enjoyable listen.
Grand Maestro - Has a default and vocal mode switch. In default mode the vocals and treble a too recessed for my liking and in vocal mode are a little too bright. For those who want to have the 2 in 1 option for laidback and energetic iem. Too much of each for me with no middle ground
Maestro SE > Grand Maestro
5) Unique Melody
MEST Mk 3 - Overall very coherent and nice sounding pair
6) Elysian
Annilator - Similar to 2021 version, just some improvements in the internal wiring etc. Good resolution, nice weighty yet textured base, wider staging compared to Odin's with just the right amount of air. Really good IEM, my favorite among all that I heard.
7) Zeppelin
ZMF Atrium Open & Closed - Tried them both on the Cayin 6A Amp, Open very natural sounding with longs of air very good for old live recording, like old jazz music. Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong sounded lovely. Louis Armstrong was a bit too much for the closed as his Ss were quite sibilant.... My focal Utopia did not like the 6A unlike it's younger brother the 3a, bass is definitely weightier compared to it's supposed usual leaner and punchy bass but seems to be muddied in a weird way.
AT WA2022??? (The nice japanese laquer one) - Paired with the DCS Lina stack, very clean and resolving but too bright for my liking. Lina delivering a clean sound as usual. The headphones, not too excited about it....
8)Mass Kobo
Susvara and 465 - flawless, enough said. Really good pair that does well with everything I threw at it from hip hop, j pop, orchestral, mando pop. Best pairing for good reason.
475 - From my RS6 to the 475 to my Utopias. My Utopias are very agreeable to this set up, definitely helps it to showcase everything it has to offer out from the RS6. I was then told to try my Odin's on it too. I thought it would be a bit much since my Odin's honestly really didn't need an amp to drive but I was pleasantly surprised that it helped the Odin's open quite a bit. And thus, I whaled on this 2300sgd monster of a portable amp. Definitely worth it.
That pretty much wraps up camjam for me. Happy and poorer haha.
