[NymPHONOmaniac]

Tempotec Sonata HD II
Need to praise this small dongle, I have been on a hunt for a while to get silent output from my Pixel 6 phone. I have tried more expensive dongles also, all of them has picked up clicks and pops from the phone. This is the first dongle I have tried that's completely silent. Before this only some battery driven DAC/AMPs where able to remove the noise.

It also has a clear and powerful sound considering the price point and the size.

yes its good bro...in fact, anything from Tempotec is great. especially E44, HD V and V6 DAP.
i still adore my Moondrop Dawn 4.4 too...but i hope 2023 will finaly bring something better in sub-70$ price range...(perhaps theres some too, im not Andy, i havent test every dongle on planet earth lol!)
single ended, HD V seem logical upgrade power output and soundwise.c 120mw. between lush and bright tonality with W shape dynamic, lively with thick rich layering. headroom is average, but bass isnt roll off like lotta cs43131 dongle. nor too bright like lotta es9219 or9038q2m dongles.

 

[zenki]

e44 is crack

 

[ToneDeafMonk]

yes its good bro...in fact, anything from Tempotec is great. especially E44, HD V and V6 DAP.
i still adore my Moondrop Dawn 4.4 too...but i hope 2023 will finaly bring something better in sub-70$ price range...(perhaps theres some too, im not Andy, i havent test every dongle on planet earth lol!)
single ended, HD V seem logical upgrade power output and soundwise.c 120mw. between lush and bright tonality with W shape dynamic, lively with thick rich layering. headroom is average, but bass isnt roll off like lotta cs43131 dongle. nor too bright like lotta es9219 or9038q2m dongles.

AKM and Cirrius Logic in for World Domination for me!
Geshelli AKM J2 I love you. Shio & iBasso DX160

 

[w111]

Still love my Gumiho

What would you say are the strengths and weaknesses of the Gumiho? I feel like I've read so many differing opinions on this set.

 

[Carpet]

What would you say are the strengths and weaknesses of the Gumiho? I feel like I've read so many differing opinions on this set.

Look at reviews of Celest Panndamon and TRN Xuanwu. Those are more recent release of SPD and usually include comparisons to Celest Gumiho as a benchmark.

 

[ToneDeafMonk]

Here is my Khan Impressions.
Love the 2 DD different tuning. Great value for someone who like tah more Harmanish Sub bass tuning.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/qkz-x-hbb-khan.26267/review/30044/

 

[ToneDeafMonk]

Here is my C3 review , It didn't Trump the Candenza for me as I really was hoping it would with the better shell but unfortunately not.
I have the comparison with the Cadenza and Hola there as we..
Cheers J. TheToneDeafMonk

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/tinhifi-c3.26242/review/30042/

 

[NymPHONOmaniac]

What would you say are the strengths and weaknesses of the Gumiho? I feel like I've read so many differing opinions on this set.

only SPD to avoid is the TRN Xuan Wu imo, Gomiho strenght is fast beefy rumbly bass which keep its layering even if resonant, very unique and addictive bass, mids are bright and fowards while treble is cover by fast BA that is well balanced enough...its not the most refined but differing opinion might be due to capricious source pairing, i only enjoy those with Moondrop Dawn 4.4 balanced. imo, those are basshead IEM, thus the hate/love reception too....i love the head shaking rumble of those. Pandammon is better balanced and have fuller more present and natural mids. but bass isn't as well extracted-layered. Gomiho are more fun sounding as we say....

 

[superuser1]

Here is my Khan Impressions.
Love the 2 DD different tuning. Great value for someone who like tah more Harmanish Sub bass tuning.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/qkz-x-hbb-khan.26267/review/30044/

In other words, non-existent?
My apologies I was imagining the truthear zeros

 

[ToneDeafMonk]

Thought it was time to share my thoughts on a old one. I am also out of money and running of stuff to review LOL.

I have owned the Obsidian the longest in my IEM journey.
IKKO Obsidian OH10 - A Value Classic

Pros:
- Shell is special. FULL STOP The
Copper alloy shell is damn heavy
like two meteorites! This does
something to the Bass in a very
nice way!
- Excellent Isolation and fit for me.
- Very good cohesion with the DD &
BA and I get no BA tambour with
OH10
- L&R are clearly marked with Right
having a Red 0.78 receptacle that
just slightly elevated. Nice touch
and rare in the sea of IEM’s
- Holographic Sound stage, Very
good Width just on the outside of
my ears, Nice depth & Great
Height. Stage is a mix of very
Stereo mix
separation & wide open concert
hall
makes it fun and non fatiguing
defiantly the stage of the OH10
gets
strong marks here for the
Obsidian.
- Micro Dynamics is nicely portrayed
on the OH10 and it replays with
tons of emotion to make the OH10
super fun.
- Bass and sub bass (see point #1)
are one reason the Obsidian is
special. Wicked low sub bass like
very low and with that copper shell
man it does something special.
Very fast punchy bass only slight
bleed but still pulls off some great
note weight and hits with authority.
- Rock / Jazz OMG YES!
- Mids are silky smooth and I think
has to do more with the tonality
and character of the DD doing the
heavy lifting here. Male and
especially female vocals sound
natural not warm not forward just
well done.
- Highs are not sibilant though the
Obsidian does push my boundaries
as I am treble sensitive and find
myself turning up the volume more
than wanting to turn it down! I think
for me that speaks volumes.
- Can be bought when on sale at
some crazy good deals some people
were reporting at $100 or less!

Cons:
- Ok this IEM is OLD if it was a dog it
would be 14 years old in the world
and sea of new releases and product
development. I think it was $349
when it came out.
- Cable is 3 years old trending
garbage a afterthought to actually
throw a cheap cable in. Who cares
cables are cheap.
- Took a while to get used of the
weight for me and I almost gave up
until I started tip rolling then
fantastic.
- Still expensive not on sale
Now let’s get into it a bit deeper.
Completely Subjective Audio Review - IKKO Obsidian OH10
Hello all: I hope my subjective audio impressions help you determine if this IEM might be for you.
I share my impressions as I hear them with my ears.
As all our ears are different shapes & sizes so what I hear as bright or bass heavy -you might hear as dull and Vise-Versa; just something to be mindful of.
What makes my ears happy as a sound signature is slightly more aggressive U shape. I love my Bass Sub and Mid Bass love it all actually; and in large quantity. With the Bass I prefer a faster decay the faster the better as to not bleed into the mids., I am treble sensitive and prefer a darker warmer replay with good extension and a more relaxed high end with enough sparkly details for fun.
I prefer the fast speedy bass of the Beryllium Coated Driver of my Xenns Mangird UP and KiwiEars Cadenza. Of course there are exceptions in the market - as I also find the bass of the Bio Diaphragm used in the Yanyin Canon special - has some special sauce like a 8" subwoofer that feels like a 12" Has the slam and some serious sub bass! And the super cool Copper Alloy Shell IKKO Obsidian OH10 does some magic to the bass.
My music Library is widely varied from; Poncho Sanchez, BB King, Jimmy Smith, Metallica, Great White, Cowboy Junkies, Pink Floyd, Adelle, Melisa Ethridge, Hania Rani, Vivaldi, Fleetwood Mac, Five for Fighting, Manskin, Poncho Sanchez, Jimmy Smith, Chopin, The Crystal Method just to name a few.
That dripple being said:
And as such here is my take on the: IKKO Obsidian OH10
Sources: E1DA SG3 (ES9038), Shanling UP5 (ES912), TEMPOTEC Serenade X (ES9219) Geshelli JNOG J2 with AKM4493 chip. iBasso DX160 (Cirrus Logic CS43198)
DAP/TRASPORT: From Lenovo Laptop with Amazon Unlimited ULTRA HD, iBasso DX160 ,Samsung S22 Ultra with DSD Files.
Amps: LoxjiP20 tube amp and Topping A90D
Tips Used for Best Result for me and completely subjective: Short Wide Bore are my go to and I wanted to bring forth as much vocals as possible with maximizing stage. On the Canon I have the KBEAR 07 Yellow L tips.
Cable after rolling I used is the KBEAR Hazy 6N Graphene I got on sale for $30. I could NOT hear a difference with the other cables I have but did not try a pure silver one as I didn’t want to emphasise the highs.
COMPARISIONS:
YANYIN CANON
The OH10 looks like it shough have the more energy up top but it does not present itself this way. Kind of like the highs on the Xenns Up don’t look they would be present in the mix either but they certainly are.
Stage on the Obsidian is better for my preference not as wide but vocals are more forward in front of you and less in the middle of your head vs the Canon. I find the OH10 so much smoother in vocals as they are a tad recessed and my personal preference.
Bass is more thumpy with the Canon but after that the OH10 again shines with a special sauce that the Canon does not pull off for me as much as the Obsidian. Sub Bass the Obsidian devastates the Canon in quality and quality.
Overall I would have to say the OH10 bass is cleaner with less bleed and hits harder.
LETSHOUER EJ07M Resin Custom Tuned w +3db Sub Boost.
Not a quite a fair comparison with the price and driver count.
That being said how does the OH10 stack up?
Very well actually , Vocals are very clean and clear on the OH10 , The EJ’s still play a bit warmer in the vocals, and Instruments is spot on both . The stage is as wide on the Obsidian’s but not as 3D as the EJ’s but again look at the cost and driver difference. Sonion in the LetShuoer baby!
Bass between my boosted re-tuned EJ07M are damn close but the award still goes to the OH10 hands down I know its that shell at play again.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
I think the OH10 still is talked about a lot and recommended by so many different people you know something is special if it can stand the test of time for more than 8 months . I believe the OH10 came out in 2019 JUST WOW!
Give this IEM some serious burn in please it does make a difference in the Obsidians overall tonality and bass.
Still expensive when not on sale- but shows how this classic IEM holds its value like a Toyota. I bought mine used 2 years ago for $150 and as I have said before the IKKO Obsidian OH10 is one IEM - I WILL NEVER SELL.
Cheers TheDeafMonk.

 

[Lobarkaine]

Thought it was time to share my thoughts on a old one. I am also out of money and running of stuff to review LOL.

I have owned the Obsidian the longest in my IEM journey.
IKKO Obsidian OH10 - A Value Classic

Pros:
- Shell is special. FULL STOP The
Copper alloy shell is damn heavy
like two meteorites! This does
something to the Bass in a very
nice way!
- Excellent Isolation and fit for me.
- Very good cohesion with the DD &
BA and I get no BA tambour with
OH10
- L&R are clearly marked with Right
having a Red 0.78 receptacle that
just slightly elevated. Nice touch
and rare in the sea of IEM’s
- Holographic Sound stage, Very
good Width just on the outside of
my ears, Nice depth & Great
Height. Stage is a mix of very
Stereo mix
separation & wide open concert
hall
makes it fun and non fatiguing
defiantly the stage of the OH10
gets
strong marks here for the
Obsidian.
- Micro Dynamics is nicely portrayed
on the OH10 and it replays with
tons of emotion to make the OH10
super fun.
- Bass and sub bass (see point #1)
are one reason the Obsidian is
special. Wicked low sub bass like
very low and with that copper shell
man it does something special.
Very fast punchy bass only slight
bleed but still pulls off some great
note weight and hits with authority.
- Rock / Jazz OMG YES!
- Mids are silky smooth and I think
has to do more with the tonality
and character of the DD doing the
heavy lifting here. Male and
especially female vocals sound
natural not warm not forward just
well done.
- Highs are not sibilant though the
Obsidian does push my boundaries
as I am treble sensitive and find
myself turning up the volume more
than wanting to turn it down! I think
for me that speaks volumes.
- Can be bought when on sale at
some crazy good deals some people
were reporting at $100 or less!

Cons:
- Ok this IEM is OLD if it was a dog it
would be 14 years old in the world
and sea of new releases and product
development. I think it was $349
when it came out.
- Cable is 3 years old trending
garbage a afterthought to actually
throw a cheap cable in. Who cares
cables are cheap.
- Took a while to get used of the
weight for me and I almost gave up
until I started tip rolling then
fantastic.
- Still expensive not on sale
Now let’s get into it a bit deeper.
Completely Subjective Audio Review - IKKO Obsidian OH10
Hello all: I hope my subjective audio impressions help you determine if this IEM might be for you.
I share my impressions as I hear them with my ears.
As all our ears are different shapes & sizes so what I hear as bright or bass heavy -you might hear as dull and Vise-Versa; just something to be mindful of.
What makes my ears happy as a sound signature is slightly more aggressive U shape. I love my Bass Sub and Mid Bass love it all actually; and in large quantity. With the Bass I prefer a faster decay the faster the better as to not bleed into the mids., I am treble sensitive and prefer a darker warmer replay with good extension and a more relaxed high end with enough sparkly details for fun.
I prefer the fast speedy bass of the Beryllium Coated Driver of my Xenns Mangird UP and KiwiEars Cadenza. Of course there are exceptions in the market - as I also find the bass of the Bio Diaphragm used in the Yanyin Canon special - has some special sauce like a 8" subwoofer that feels like a 12" Has the slam and some serious sub bass! And the super cool Copper Alloy Shell IKKO Obsidian OH10 does some magic to the bass.
My music Library is widely varied from; Poncho Sanchez, BB King, Jimmy Smith, Metallica, Great White, Cowboy Junkies, Pink Floyd, Adelle, Melisa Ethridge, Hania Rani, Vivaldi, Fleetwood Mac, Five for Fighting, Manskin, Poncho Sanchez, Jimmy Smith, Chopin, The Crystal Method just to name a few.
That dripple being said:
And as such here is my take on the: IKKO Obsidian OH10
Sources: E1DA SG3 (ES9038), Shanling UP5 (ES912), TEMPOTEC Serenade X (ES9219) Geshelli JNOG J2 with AKM4493 chip. iBasso DX160 (Cirrus Logic CS43198)
DAP/TRASPORT: From Lenovo Laptop with Amazon Unlimited ULTRA HD, iBasso DX160 ,Samsung S22 Ultra with DSD Files.
Amps: LoxjiP20 tube amp and Topping A90D
Tips Used for Best Result for me and completely subjective: Short Wide Bore are my go to and I wanted to bring forth as much vocals as possible with maximizing stage. On the Canon I have the KBEAR 07 Yellow L tips.
Cable after rolling I used is the KBEAR Hazy 6N Graphene I got on sale for $30. I could NOT hear a difference with the other cables I have but did not try a pure silver one as I didn’t want to emphasise the highs.
COMPARISIONS:
YANYIN CANON
The OH10 looks like it shough have the more energy up top but it does not present itself this way. Kind of like the highs on the Xenns Up don’t look they would be present in the mix either but they certainly are.
Stage on the Obsidian is better for my preference not as wide but vocals are more forward in front of you and less in the middle of your head vs the Canon. I find the OH10 so much smoother in vocals as they are a tad recessed and my personal preference.
Bass is more thumpy with the Canon but after that the OH10 again shines with a special sauce that the Canon does not pull off for me as much as the Obsidian. Sub Bass the Obsidian devastates the Canon in quality and quality.
Overall I would have to say the OH10 bass is cleaner with less bleed and hits harder.
LETSHOUER EJ07M Resin Custom Tuned w +3db Sub Boost.
Not a quite a fair comparison with the price and driver count.
That being said how does the OH10 stack up?
Very well actually , Vocals are very clean and clear on the OH10 , The EJ’s still play a bit warmer in the vocals, and Instruments is spot on both . The stage is as wide on the Obsidian’s but not as 3D as the EJ’s but again look at the cost and driver difference. Sonion in the LetShuoer baby!
Bass between my boosted re-tuned EJ07M are damn close but the award still goes to the OH10 hands down I know its that shell at play again.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
I think the OH10 still is talked about a lot and recommended by so many different people you know something is special if it can stand the test of time for more than 8 months . I believe the OH10 came out in 2019 JUST WOW!
Give this IEM some serious burn in please it does make a difference in the Obsidians overall tonality and bass.
Still expensive when not on sale- but shows how this classic IEM holds its value like a Toyota. I bought mine used 2 years ago for $150 and as I have said before the IKKO Obsidian OH10 is one IEM - I WILL NEVER SELL.
Cheers TheDeafMonk

Great review of a great iem!

I fully agree with you.

 

[ShakyJake]

Blast from the past.

I decided to clean my drawers today and chanced upon the 4th CHIFI IEM that I bought in 2019: the Toneking Ninetails. IIRC it was about $100 USD when I got it.




Back in those heady days, CHIFI were just picking up steam and were still wrestling with boutique/western brands for supremacy in the budget IEM segment. Time really flies, and nowadays, most CHIFI give much better price to performance ratio to some of these boutique brands at the budget/midFI segment. Never thought I would see the day that planar IEMs retail at sub $100 USD, which seems to be the norm nowadays!


The Ninetails is named after an Asian Fox Spirit, which has nine tails: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fox_spirit. This spirit can metamorphize to various forms and mimic humans also. They can be benevolent or naughty.



So anyways, the Toneking Ninetails lives up to its namesake, it indeed has 9 tuning signatures, via 2 tuning nozzles per IEM housing - 1 on the rear, and 1 on the front.

Took about 30 minutes to graph what the various filters do, and the various permutations:


Graph of the various filters with the Toneking Ninetails, via IEC 711 coupler. 8 khz area is a coupler artefact peak.

So the Ninetails IEM can give a spectrum of tunings from V-shaped to neutral, to basshead. Very versatile little beast as such. Trebleheads to bassheads to mid lovers all will find something suitable for them. Even the basshead setting is no misomer (unlike some other IEMs with "bass" switches eg TRI Starsea that have anemic bass) - the Toneking Ninetail's basshead config can really rattle the jaw and cause a headache!

The Ninetails has an organic timbre, as per its DD roots, huge holographic soundstage due to its open backed design. This is a double edged sword though, as the isolation is poor. Technically, the Ninetails shows its age, and perhaps isn't as good in micro-detailing, imaging and instrument separation as some modern day single DDs at the $100 bracket.

The housings look weird, it is some gourd shaped design. Took me a few minutes to figure out how to wear them, but once angled at 45 degrees anteriorly with the gourd base at the bottom, the Ninetails is actually pretty comfortable.

Too bad it is no longer available for purchase, but nowadays we are inundated with clone sidegrade Harman or waifu or collab budget sets, and stuff like the Toneking Ninetails are a very special breed. K they will be in my rotation for this year!

Thanks for taking me down memory lane. I have these and loved them. Unfortunately, the right side stopped working so it has been a while since I used them.

 

[w111]

Been listening to Gumiho for two days now. Really like this one so far.

Lovely combination of warm midrange and bright treble. Good clarity and soundstage. Bass is really fun, tight, and thumpy. Timbre is fairly unnatural, but I don't mind it at all (kind of adds to the musicality tbh). If I had to pick a weak spot, vocals sound fuzzy and lack detail.

 

[nhitnho]

Hi folks,
I am using thie oracle mk2 and KZ PR1 hifi and dongle Shanling UA2 plus to drive both.
They are good to my taste but am still looking for a better pair.
I found out that KZ PR1 delivers very fast and punchy bass but thin mid and much sib
while Oracle provide warm and thick, forward mid but slow bass and still sib
So can you guys help to suggest any other iems that give something sound like Thie Oracle but faster bass please
Thanks in advance

 

[Carpet]

Hi folks,
I am using thie oracle mk2 and KZ PR1 hifi and dongle Shanling UA2 plus to drive both.
They are good to my taste but am still looking for a better pair.
I found out that KZ PR1 delivers very fast and punchy bass but thin mid and much sib
while Oracle provide warm and thick, forward mid but slow bass and still sib
So can you guys help to suggest any other iems that give something sound like Thie Oracle but faster bass please
Thanks in advance

Try the IKKO OH2, you can pick it up for about $35 on sale ATM. Non-sibilant, mid-centric and bass is well controlled and only slightly boosted. One that only attracted a brief flicker of excitement and was then passed over. Very good for vocals and instrumental music. It's now one of my daily drivers. Came in a range of bright colours and was targeted at female listeners, the only one still availible seems to be the gray one (well black really). Well constructed windowed, small metal shell and comfortable. It was a "What the heck, it's really cheap, why not?" purchase. It gets more use than a lot of more expensive IEMs, the spiritual successor to my CVJ CSA.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004810261520.html

Store is reliable, they have same contact information and business licenses as IKKO Official Store. Apparently this is their secondary outlet for clearing overstocks.