[Nimweth]

I'm loving the **** **** with Spiraldots. It's a worthy buy. I was on a review website and they gave them 3 stars and the **** Pro 2.5 stars. I guess upgrading isn't worthwhile?

I have both and prefer the **** Pro. To me it is improved in all areas. Bass is tighter, mids are very natural and treble is cleaner than before with no (occasional) odd timbre. Soundstage remains expansive. Amplification helps and of course I use Spiral Dots (L)!

 

[baskingshark]

Disclaimer: I don't think anybody should count my opinion in on their choice to buy the EA3, while I can do advanced research pretty well, I don't have the listening experience which would make my opinion to be taken into account. I'm am no audiophile and just enjoy good stuff : ) This hobby and platform is new to me, and I am not trying to give an image of a professional.

My EA3 has arrived today. It took them 25 days.
I think it's too early to write any official and serious impressions, however I do think that the bass doesn't satisfy me on a level which I wanted it to, that being said, they are far from bass light. They actually have a pretty impressive amount sub-bass.

My only previous earphones were the ones which came stock with my Samsung S8, and Brainwavz Delta earphones. I'll give these some break in time, and I'll give them more listening time, however I don't see any major difference between these and my previous earphones... which doesn't sound right, I must be doing something wrong. Maybe it's the fit or something else, but these didn't blow me away. Besides the soundstage which is noticeably bigger, I'll have to give them time to notice and hear other qualities of their sound.

They are definitely a bit bright, but I didn't find any major issues with that. I didn't feel any discomfort in my ears at 5:05 mark in "Stop trying to be God" from Travis Scott, which features the highest peak of Stevie Wonder's mouth harmonica.
The build quality is pretty good, I truly didn' find anything which made them feel cheap.
Sound isolation is pretty good, especially when you play music. I usually listen at extreme and unhealthy high volumes, and recently I have decided to tone it down since I'm pretty sure I caused some pretty nice hearing damage I didn't hear neither the vacuum in the house, nor anybody speaking to me. And this is just with the stock tips (the medium black ones which come with them as a "default").

I have major problems with getting them to sit comfortably in my ear. HOWEVER, this shouldn't discourage anybody from buying them. Why is that? Well, simply because I never owned an angled over-ear IEM before, so I am having issues positioning them in my ears. I don't know how to position the nozzle comfortably, I keep fidgeting around with them and pushing them in.. which I am not sure is doing any good. For me it is very awkward that the shell itself is just kind of floating around and isn't "fixed", but this might be a consequence of my previous straight nozzle, top-drop earphone style (like the KZ ED9 for example, or any stock phone earphones). The reason I keep pushing them in is because of the very awkward feel they have in my ears, it's like something is off, or I am just too paranoid about the fit

I am not sure which tips I like the best, I'll have to play around with them. The smallest ones seem to go the furthest, however I tested them dry (without the cable or music, just the shell). I have a pair of Comply T-400 (med), and another smaller pair of Comply tips.. I don't have the package around so I'm not certain of the model (both came with my Brainwavz Delta). One problem I have with Comply tips is that I have a hard and very awkward time taking them off. I am afraid of pulling them by the memory foam part since they squish to an extreme amount, and I'm also worried about ripping them. The only solution I found to this is to take a plastic, smooth pen cap and push the silicone off.

Edit: I just realized that my T-400 are not the same size, one is smaller than the other. idk if they came like that or whether I messed them up. I'm not sure if it's possible to mess them up this much, even the shape is slightly different

Overall seems like I'm facing some new things with IEM's, probably none negative, just need time to get used to them and how to use them. I need to listen to the EA3's closer, I am by no means an audiophile.. I have an average pair of ears and I don't seem to be able to realize the extreme detail of sound. I leave the audiophile information and listening to other people, which I have a very high amount of respect for.. but as much as I respect them, I will always give my average pair of ears opinion. And I'm pretty young, so it's not like I have the listening experience some of you guys have. I think I'll be able to get a better shot with them once I figure the out the fit.

The EA3's stock cable has pretty stiff earhooks, almost similarly stiff as the BLON BL-03, it tends to pull the EA3 shells out of the ears if your eartip fit is not optimal (that may reflect your shell floating in the ear issue you highlighted here). I think you may benefit from trying one size larger stock silicone tips than what you are using now as it seems your fit is not the best to allow the IEM to move in the ear.

I personally prefer the red stock silicone tips over the black default ones as they smoothen the treble for me. But we all have different ear anatomies, so YMMV.

Also try to burn in at least 10 hours, it sounded much better in the bass and treble for me after that.
I initially had issues with sibilance and a harsh treble, which smoothed out around the 15 hour mark. The EA3 is also extremely volume sensitive in the Fletcher Munson curve, at louder volumes, it sounds too V shaped and sharp in the lower treble/upper mids for me. At moderate volumes I like it the best in terms of balance (becomes more U shaped).

 

[voja]

The EA3's stock cable has pretty stiff earhooks, almost similarly stiff as the BLON BL-03, it tends to pull the EA3 shells out of the ears if your eartip fit is not optimal (that may reflect your shell floating in the ear issue you highlighted here). I think you may benefit from trying one size larger stock silicone tips than what you are using now as it seems your fit is not the best to allow the IEM to move in the ear.

I personally prefer the red stock silicone tips over the black default ones as they smoothen the treble for me. But we all have different ear anatomies, so YMMV.

Also try to burn in at least 10 hours, it sounded much better in the bass and treble for me after that.
I initially had issues with sibilance and a harsh treble, which smoothed out around the 15 hour mark. The EA3 is also extremely volume sensitive in the Fletcher Munson curve, at louder volumes, it sounds too V shaped and sharp in the lower treble/upper mids for me. At moderate volumes I like it the best in terms of balance (becomes more U shaped).

Hmm, idk if that is it. I used all kinds of tips. I used the largest red ones the most tbh. But then decided to try all of them out.
I was convinced the ear hook was flexible and not hard... I just took some time to bent it in different directions so it loosens up a bit, but of course not too extremely (I hope that this is safe to do *fingers crossed*)

 

[baskingshark]

Hmm, idk if that is it. I used all kinds of tips. I used the largest red ones the most tbh. But then decided to try all of them out.
I was convinced the ear hook was flexible and not hard... I just took some time to bent it in different directions so it loosens up a bit, but of course not too extremely (I hope that this is safe to do *fingers crossed*)

Well if u can hear the subbass frequencies well, it means you do have an adequate fit at least. But it shouldn't be moving a lot in the ears though. I personally like spinfits and KZ starlines with the EA3 in terms of sound and fit, but YMMV as we have different ear anatomies.

Some folks in the BLON thread who faced a similarly stiff earhook cut the earhooks or used a hairdryer to heat and mould the earhooks, that's an option with the EA3's cable, but it's at your own risk.

 

[voja]

Well if u can hear the subbass frequencies well, it means you do have an adequate fit at least. But it shouldn't be moving a lot in the ears though. I personally like spinfits and KZ starlines with the EA3 in terms of sound and fit, but YMMV as we have different ear anatomies.

Some folks in the BLON thread who faced a similarly stiff earhook cut the earhooks or used a hairdryer to heat and mould the earhooks, that's an option with the EA3's cable, but it's at your own risk.

Weirdly enough the hairdrier option came up in my had even before I had the EA3 in my hands. After bending it in the opposite direction (gently) the fit seems a bit better. Now I'm trying to figure out which tips are the best (the ones I have in hand). I had the medium red filter in one ear, black in the other. The black ones definitely are brighter and don't sound as nice as the reds. I did figure out that the biggest tips aren't comfortable for me, so now I'm playing around with the reds and the Comply ones.. tbh it's very hard to make out any difference between the two.

I'll see if I will get any aftermarket tips.

 

[Slater]

I have major problems with getting them to sit comfortably in my ear. HOWEVER, this shouldn't discourage anybody from buying them. Why is that? Well, simply because I never owned an angled over-ear IEM before, so I am having issues positioning them in my ears. I don't know how to position the nozzle comfortably, I keep fidgeting around with them and pushing them in.. which I am not sure is doing any good. For me it is very awkward that the shell itself is just kind of floating around and isn't "fixed"...

Make sure when you wear them, that you have them in the correct orientation.

Like this:



NOT like this:

 

[jeejack]

Hello guys!
If I want to upgrade my KZ AS10 what do you recommend? I want to keep this sound signature because I like it. CCA 12, ZSX or TRN BA5 will be better? All I want si a little big bass

 

[yorosello]

Lol, one vendor on my local online store is selling the diamond around $78, not bad. 7 days of pre order

 

[Barusu Lamperouge]

I have both and prefer the **** Pro. To me it is improved in all areas. Bass is tighter, mids are very natural and treble is cleaner than before with no (occasional) odd timbre. Soundstage remains expansive. Amplification helps and of course I use Spiral Dots (L)!

Very much agree with this. I've been using them with wide bore foam tips and it helps with isolation to an extent. It's a genuine upgrade to ****.

 

[harry501501]

It's just my taste. The A6 mini is very good, but the Semkarch has a more organic sound to me and at the moment they are the IEM I use daily. The highs on the A6 are really good for certain music but the Semkarch has a generally better timbre and tone to my taste. Both have solid bass.

Wow, from what I'd read the A6 Mini would be the much better-sounding earphone when compared to the CNT-1... tho I keep forgetting the introduction price was WAY cheaper than the current one.... not that price is the ultimate guide when comparing. CNT-1 is a great set though (and I've still to try the other filter lol).

I keep going to buy the A6 Mini and then something else always comes up. Got the BQEYZ Spring 1 just there for £60 (used) and the Final E2000 for £12... which I actually forgot I bid for a few days ago lol. My birthday is coming up so deserved a treat... or two.

 

[PhonoPhi]

Hello guys!
If I want to upgrade my KZ AS10 what do you recommend? I want to keep this sound signature because I like it. CCA 12, ZSX or TRN BA5 will be better? All I want si a little big bass

AS10 have a pretty unique signature. I loved them from the first sound and still enjoy them quite a bit. It is the only IEM I have a second pair of.

If anything all-BAs and a "bigger bass" than AS10 would be KZ AS12.
C12 are very good, to me one of the best IEM for the money, but definitely different in DD bass and more developed upper mids and treble.

 

[524419]

d

 

[Synthy]

for some reason the left ear of my TRN BA5 are going quiet sometimes. that's NOT the side that has the banged up shell. i check each time it's happened (only twice so far) and it's not the cable. it's back to sounding normal after just a couple of minutes, but i have no idea what's going on.

the Hisenior B5+ i ordered still hasn't shipped yet, which seeing as im pretty sure they are all made to order i can't be mad about, but still, im used to things being fast.

got a set of sedna ear fit light, and they're my new fave tips, i had trouble with spiral dots due to them being not quite long enough and being almost too soft, and the sednas fix both of those issues.

 

[Slater]

for some reason the left ear of my TRN BA5 are going quiet sometimes. that's NOT the side that has the banged up shell. i check each time it's happened (only twice so far) and it's not the cable. it's back to sounding normal after just a couple of minutes, but i have no idea what's going on.

got a set of sedna ear fit light, and they're my new fave tips, i had trouble with spiral dots due to them being not quite long enough and being almost too soft, and the sednas fix both of those issues.

Sounds like typical TRN quality.

I love the Sedna earfit light

 

[dharmasteve]

Wow, from what I'd read the A6 Mini would be the much better-sounding earphone when compared to the CNT-1... tho I keep forgetting the introduction price was WAY cheaper than the current one.... not that price is the ultimate guide when comparing. CNT-1 is a great set though (and I've still to try the other filter lol).

I keep going to buy the A6 Mini and then something else always comes up. Got the BQEYZ Spring 1 just there for £60 (used) and the Final E2000 for £12... which I actually forgot I bid for a few days ago lol. My birthday is coming up so deserved a treat... or two.

Hi there Harry
Of course it's personal taste. I'm glad to have the A6 mini. My real preference though is for a very cohesive rhythmic sound. The A6 mini ticks many boxes, has good detail, but has a slightly demanding quality with weight on sub and mid bass and a slightly unusual but present treble area which suits certain music. The Semkarch is way more musical, cohesive and natural. To me it is in the Blon 03 category so for those who do not like the Blon the they may feel the same way about the CNT1. I use the Semkarch 80% of the time now. But one man's meat is another mans poison. We are all so different and, like food taste, sound taste is so variable. I do understand why BGGAR has them in his top three though and I think most would like the CNT1 with the gold filter and the right tips.