[project86]

Quote:

Ah thanks for your informative reply!
Phil has taken a look at the measurements, and they looked fine, no obvious peaks below 2khz. Although the lower mid hump doesn't really sound like a peak, more like the bass boost that extents to about 600-700hz and then sharply goes down again. But it sounds exceptionally thick around 500-600hz, it's really quite invading sounding. This could have something to do with my small ear canals, or the smaller bore size. Anyway, they sound amazing when EQ them. But I'd rather not obviously. 
 
I used them with the Audinst hud-mx1, would you say this combo is comparable with the leckerton dac-amp? 
I did liked them on the audinst, there was big improvement compared to some of my daps. Do you think pairing the audinst with something like the O2 would help the sound more?
 
The monitors have been sent back, and Phil has already started making the new shells.

 
It's been a while since I had the HUD-mx1 (but I still have the mx2 around somewhere). I'd say the Leckerton is a bit better than the mx1 overall. But it's not a fair fight - the Audinst is primarily a DAC with bonus headphone amp capability. The Leckerton is the other way around, with the focus on amplification and then a DAC thrown in as an extra. Both are good units though. 
 
The only potential issue I can think of - the mx1 has an output impedance of 5 ohms. If the BA4 has some wild impedance swings, it could be causing interactions and messing with your resulting sound. I haven't seen an impedance plot for the BA4 so I don't know if that's the case or not. 

 

[Marleybob217]

Quote:

 
It's been a while since I had the HUD-mx1 (but I still have the mx2 around somewhere). I'd say the Leckerton is a bit better than the mx1 overall. But it's not a fair fight - the Audinst is primarily a DAC with bonus headphone amp capability. The Leckerton is the other way around, with the focus on amplification and then a DAC thrown in as an extra. Both are good units though. 
 
The only potential issue I can think of - the mx1 has an output impedance of 5 ohms. If the BA4 has some wild impedance swings, it could be causing interactions and messing with your resulting sound. I haven't seen an impedance plot for the BA4 so I don't know if that's the case or not. 

I did forgot that it had an output impedance of 5 ohms. But I don't think this was causing it, I also used the BA4fs with the fiio e6, which has an output impedance <1. 
 
At some point I will buy the O2 amp, or something with the same price-performance ratio.

 

[fabian005]

The prefit service is a good idea if you are at all nervous about whether CIEM's are going to be for you, or you want to take any worries you might have, out of the entire custom moulding process. However, for most people, good quality impressions done at an audiologist will be sufficient to ensure a good fit of the finished product.

And yes, I listen to trance style EDM. If you are looking for a recommendation for a particular model from Cosmic Ears that suits EDM, then I can say the HY3 works very well indeed. That said, the sound I like from headphones isn't necessarily the same sound as you will like, so I would strongly suggest you discuss your preferred sound with Phil at Cosmic Ears before deciding on a model. He will be able to advise which of his products best suits the sound you prefer. 

Awesome, if I may inquire what are some artists you enjoy and the particular ciem you mentioned is the one I intend to. Personally I'm going to try out the pre-fit service because I'm so tied up at work(I get 1 day off every 13 days :O) and because I can quite surely follow instructions quite well . Thanks for your help everyone.

 

[Marleybob217]

Quote:

Awesome, if I may inquire what are some artists you enjoy and the particular ciem you mentioned is the one I intend to. Personally I'm going to try out the pre-fit service because I'm so tied up at work(I get 1 day off every 13 days :O) and because I can quite surely follow instructions quite well

. Thanks for your help everyone.

I'm not so sure what you mean by the pre-fit service? In general it means you send the impressions to the ciem manufacturer, they make the shell, but before they implant all the electronics they send the shell to you to make sure it actually fits. 
Now if you want to make your own impressions, I strongly advise you not too. It might work out, but there is a huge risk involved. I actually made my own 'molds' with some putty, purely for sound isolation. But these did not look at all like the impressions I had made with an audiologist. It's very hard to get the putty deep into the earcanal. 
Also, the appointment doesn't take too long, it's about a 15 minute procedure, so you should be able to schedule it into a lunch break. 
Btw, why do you only have one day off every 14 days!? :s

 

[blueangel2323]

Yeah it's a £40 option where they will send you the empty shells for you to try, and you will go back and forth if necessary until the fit is perfect, then they put in the drivers and electronics.

 

[neozecat]

I used it.

Once you pay the 40£ for the service, you just have to pay each you send it back to Phil

 

[eonsend]

Anyone know what the cheapest way to ship to CE from the US?

 

[nokcha]

So I received my BA4F yesterday and although I am somewhat new to the audiophile world, I have never enjoyed music so much since receiving these.
I paired these up with my Sansa Clip+ (Currently waiting to try these on the iBasso DX50 when they ship out).
 
The type of music I listen to is mostly kpop and some electronic music.
 
As far as SQ goes these are quite literally one of the most clearest sounding earphones I've ever experienced.
I'm noticing details in most of my songs that I never actually realized in the past.
The Bass is not as strong as I thought it would be(may not be good for bassheads) but it sure as heck is clear and very punchy.
Overall I feel everything is very balanced and listening to any type of music is gratifying(especially classical).
The name suits it perfectly and I honestly think these really are FUN earphones.
 
I've also tried plugging them in my desktop rig through my Essence STX and music will never be the same anymore. It's extremely gratifying to listen to songs you've been listening to for years only to discover an extra beat or sound in the background.
 
I do have some concerns to point out but not sure if they are valid because these are my very first custom in-ear phones.
-The sockets where I plug in my cables are not exactly flush. You can see this particularly well in my right earphone(Red).
The left earphone(Blue) does not sit flush either but is not as noticeable. 
-The stock cable that came with my earphones seems a bit thin so I'm worried about it's build quality.
-I was under the impression that plugging these in without music on would almost completely isolate all outside sound. Instead I can hear quite a bit with them on but once I turn on some music at a normal level(not high), I can't hear a thing. This is not so much of a concern but more of a shock because upon reading about other CIEMs, I was under the impression that they would cancel out any outside noise.
 
Here are some pictures~

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
Overall the entire ordering process from the day I submitted my ear impressions(I'm from LA), to the day I received them was about 4.5 months.
Phil was so helpful throughout the entire process except when I tried contacting him a week or two ago about any tracking number. I couldn't get a reply from him so I just patiently waited and was rewarded. I'm sure he was very busy though.
 
Overall I'm very glad I ordered these! I apologize to anyone if my short review wasn't helpful to some but hopefully it'll be of some use to anyone interested in ordering them.

 

[project86]

nokcha - thanks for the pics and info! Very cool stuff. About your points:
 
*About half of my CIEMs have a slightly less than flush fit where the cable attaches. Not sure there's much to be done about it, and it's never caused me trouble.
 
*Same deal with flush fitting in the ear - some do, some don't, it really depends on the shape of your molds and how the drivers need to fit. I tend to think the company would make it only as large as needed, rather than just arbitrarily extra protruding for no reason. But this also has to do with the shape of your molds I guess.
 
*Not sure what cables Phil currently has in stock - some of my stock cables are thicker than others, but I've never had one fail yet unless I reallt beat it up.
 
*Isolation - people have wildly different expectations and experiences here. If you are used to Etymotic deep fit triple flanges, most CIEMs will be disappoint. If you normally use a mild insertion IEM like HiFiMAN then you'll find them very good at isolation. 
 
Anyway, glad you like them, they really look nice with the contrasting colors. Good choice. 

 

[Marleybob217]

Quote:

Spoiler: Warning%3A%20Spoiler!

Originally Posted by nokcha /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
So I received my BA4F yesterday and although I am somewhat new to the audiophile world, I have never enjoyed music so much since receiving these.
I paired these up with my Sansa Clip+ (Currently waiting to try these on the iBasso DX50 when they ship out).
 
The type of music I listen to is mostly kpop and some electronic music.
 
As far as SQ goes these are quite literally one of the most clearest sounding earphones I've ever experienced.
I'm noticing details in most of my songs that I never actually realized in the past.
The Bass is not as strong as I thought it would be(may not be good for bassheads) but it sure as heck is clear and very punchy.
Overall I feel everything is very balanced and listening to any type of music is gratifying(especially classical).
The name suits it perfectly and I honestly think these really are FUN earphones.
 
I've also tried plugging them in my desktop rig through my Essence STX and music will never be the same anymore. It's extremely gratifying to listen to songs you've been listening to for years only to discover an extra beat or sound in the background.
 
I do have some concerns to point out but not sure if they are valid because these are my very first custom in-ear phones.
-The sockets where I plug in my cables are not exactly flush. You can see this particularly well in my right earphone(Red).
The left earphone(Blue) does not sit flush either but is not as noticeable. 
-The stock cable that came with my earphones seems a bit thin so I'm worried about it's build quality.
-I was under the impression that plugging these in without music on would almost completely isolate all outside sound. Instead I can hear quite a bit with them on but once I turn on some music at a normal level(not high), I can't hear a thing. This is not so much of a concern but more of a shock because upon reading about other CIEMs, I was under the impression that they would cancel out any outside noise.
 
Here are some pictures~

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
Overall the entire ordering process from the day I submitted my ear impressions(I'm from LA), to the day I received them was about 4.5 months.
Phil was so helpful throughout the entire process except when I tried contacting him a week or two ago about any tracking number. I couldn't get a reply from him so I just patiently waited and was rewarded. I'm sure he was very busy though.
 
Overall I'm very glad I ordered these! I apologize to anyone if my short review wasn't helpful to some but hopefully it'll be of some use to anyone interested in ordering them.
 

 

First off: Congratulations! It's very rare to be fully satisfied!
About the isolation, they isolate very evenly. Lower tones are isolated at about the same rate as all the other frequencies. Closed headphones however, isolate pretty much only in the middle and higher frequencies, that's why it might not seem like extreme isolation right now. But let me assure you, the bass that you don't hear makes All the difference.
 
In my pair the cable doesn't go in fully either. 
 
The sound seems the be completely different in your pair, mine did Not sound balanced at all. That upper bass-lower mid boost completely ruined the sound in many songs. Apart from that particular issue, and the rest of the bass boost it did sound very balanced.
But I seem to be the odd one out. Luckily Phil is incredibly awesome, and agreed to let me switch the BA4F for the BA4R, without cost. Noted that they needed a complete rebuild anyway

 

[project86]

Yeah, I find this interesting how different his sounds compared to yours. Everyone has their own interpretation of what "neutral" really sounds like, so I can see some minor disagreement on that, but major differences like you report must mean something else is at play. Good thing Phil is on the case!

 

[Marleybob217]

Quote:

Yeah, I find this interesting how different his sounds compared to yours. Everyone has their own interpretation of what "neutral" really sounds like, so I can see some minor disagreement on that, but major differences like you report must mean something else is at play. Good thing Phil is on the case!

You don't even know half of it!
 
He's sending me the demo models of BA4F and BA4R, to see which one I like better. He is pretty sure that the BA4R has too little bass for me. They also managed to fit the full size bores into the shell, to exclude more variability.
The strangest thing is, this problem did not show up in the measurements. So the cause must lie outside the device. It might even be purely psychological, expectations and personal preference etc.
 
Edit: I completely misread a sentence of Phil, and thought this problem has occurred before. Just to be clear, this problem has never happened before to anyone.

 

[fabian005]

I'm not so sure what you mean by the pre-fit service? In general it means you send the impressions to the ciem manufacturer, they make the shell, but before they implant all the electronics they send the shell to you to make sure it actually fits. 
Now if you want to make your own impressions, I strongly advise you not too. It might work out, but there is a huge risk involved. I actually made my own 'molds' with some putty, purely for sound isolation. But these did not look at all like the impressions I had made with an audiologist. It's very hard to get the putty deep into the earcanal. 
Also, the appointment doesn't take too long, it's about a 15 minute procedure, so you should be able to schedule it into a lunch break. 
Btw, why do you only have one day off every 14 days!? :s

Ahhh so I seem to have mistaken the pre-fit service for a DIY impression kit :0. Now I must take a half day at work next week or so to go get the impressions done in as timely a manner as possible hehe. You ask why I only get one day off every 13 days. Well currently I am working in an industrial plant where we work from 7 to 5:30 in 10 hour shifts thru the week which amounts to alot of overtime bit little free time and we only get a day off every two weeks on a saturday or sunday as a fatigue day which we graciously accept, but doing this I've now been able to afford these suckers.

I also already made this post a couple hoirs ago with more details but seem to have forgotten them in the time thats past and for some reason my phone didn"t post. Grrrr

 

[yxpoh]

Damn! Now I feel like changing over to BA4F....
 
I have not paid yet, but I was in a conversation with Phil that I wanted BA2.....
Not sure if I would be able to change over...
 
Though if I were to change, I am slightly concern on the overshadowing of the treble.. Is it that bad? As in I don't mind slight overshadow but not basshead type....
Hope I am making sense here.

 

[infam0ussteven]

Quote:

So I received my BA4F yesterday and although I am somewhat new to the audiophile world, I have never enjoyed music so much since receiving these.
I paired these up with my Sansa Clip+ (Currently waiting to try these on the iBasso DX50 when they ship out).
 
The type of music I listen to is mostly kpop and some electronic music.

Finally found someone who listens to kpop and owns BA4F too. Can you tell me what songs you sampled and what differences you heard or anything you need to say? I really only listen to kpop and want to know what to expect from the BA4F. Thanks!