Quick take on the VE8…I didn’t spend much time with this one, so I am reserving detailed impressions.
VE8 - sounds very good…intimate stage and musical as most people have said. For me, biggest issue is that the high-end is somewhat subdued and less-extended compared to the Elysium (and the A18, which is my primary reference.) I am always looking for ultra-wide end to end extension, so a subdued high-end is generally not a preferred sound signature for me. So, I rather quickly moved on to the Elysium, which was the one I was most looking forward to spending time with anyway.
On to the Elysium.
To be honest, I have traditionally not been much a fan of hybrid designs, as nearly every one I’ve ever heard I perceive to have some kind of coherence issues. Empire Ears legend X is my favorite hybrid iem to date, though it’s not an all-rounder by any means…but what the W9 dynamics do to breath warmth and life into the overall signature, and how well integrated it is, is fantastic to my ears.
Indeed, my main issue with most hybrid designs is the lack of an overall coherent signature. I am generally sensitive to the sound variations when different types of drivers are producing different frequencies. I hear a somewhat uneven and disjointed overall sound. Plenty of people either don’t notice or don’t mind this and won’t be bothered by it. With that in mind…
I would say that the Elysium is one of the best multi-driver sound sigs I’ve heard to date. And it’s a tribrid design. Getting three different types of drivers to sound coherent must be quite a challenging task. To my ears, I still do perceive a slight difference in the way the ethereal and somewhat smooth highs are presented by the estats vs. the lushness and fullness of the dynamic driver-powered mids in the Elysium. To be honest, it’s tough for me to ignore this. To be sure, this is a personal issue related to my sensitivity, and to many, it will simply not be of any consequence.
As far as technical capabilities, I think the Elysium is definitely up there with the best of them. 64A’s A18 is my favorite IEM for my preferences and in many ways, I feel it has been relatively untouched. The Elysium is the first IEM I have heard that reminds me of the A18, which is impressive.
The Elysium treble coming from the estats is no doubt, excellent. Compared to the frequency extension and detail of the tia in the A18 that I am accustomed to, I find the Elysium treble to be somewhat similarly extended. Where the A18 treble is presented in near dead-evenness with the rest of the frequency spectrum, I find the estat treble on the Elysium very well-extended, though noticeably more laid back and somewhat smoother. This may be a product of the ethereal nature of estat drivers or a tuning choice by VE…I’m not sure. Either way, it’s a difference I hear between the tia treble specifically on the tuning of the A18 vs. the estat tuning on the Elysium.
Bass on the VE is interesting, specifically, the choice to use just one BA driver. If you examine the difference in philosophy between Noble’s K10, which I own in custom form, and the A18, you’ll see where my curiosity stems from. Noble went for a powerful and fun bass with the K10. In order to accomplish this, 2 very large BA drivers were used. Here, less regard was given to speed and accuracy, and priority was given to overall warmth. Compare this to the A18: 64A went straight bonkers dedicating 8 BAs to bass response. The aim here was to achieve fun, power, and speed, and it worked. So, back to the single BA bass driver on the Elysium…to get the kind of bass response out of just a single BA driver is a testament to the tuning on VE’s part. It’s very fast and generally well-textured. I do find at times that I wish there was a bit more presence down low, but again, this is based on my personal preferences. While bassheads may want to look elsewhere, I am confident that nearly everyone else will be more than happy with the bass on the Elysium. I agree that impact is actually very strong on the Elysium.
Lots of people have spoken about the mids being the star of the show with the Elysium. I agree they sound very, very good, and probably “stand out” a bit more than any other frequency on the Elysium. I like the idea of using a dynamic driver for the mids, vs. the lows as we often see. I find this to be a very interesting tuning choice. The mids on the Elysium are very organic, well-textured and smooth. There is a clear slant towards musicality vs. outright detail as we find on the A18. The midrange on both the Elysium and A18 are fantastic. It will simply be a matter of preference which you prefer or which one you want to hear at a given time.
The Elysium is a transducer with a very smooth, unique, and well-extended frequency response. If you’re a fan of the multi-type driver approach, and want a mid-centric and detailed sound, you should definitely give the Elysium a try.
Thanks for the opportunity to hear these, Barra and VE!