[listen4joy]

Crinacle, will you test and rank the Spiral Ear 5-Way Ultimate in the furutre? i find your ranking really spot on.

 

[lithrai]

There are no demos for 5-way Ultimate.

 

[SilverEars]

I would be interested in measuring mine if I'm not lazy to cook up a rig like crinicle's if that's easiest and economical option. I would need advice on way to rig one up like his.

 

[hakuzen]

you might find something of interest in my rig evolution; i think it is similar to crinacle's, although i ended going expensive at last.

hakuzen rig evolution

some of my conclusions:

- coupler.

a iec-711 coupler is highly desirable, compared to a tube system. the distance between the iem's nozzle and the mic is essential to get the peaks/dips at the right frequencies. by using the coupler, same tips, and trying similar depth insertion, you ensure consistent right distance. besides, the resonances into the coupler help to get a raw result which doesn't need extra calibration, compared with tubes (stated by @castleofargh as well).
(the different locations of peaks i commented in my reviews were due to defective distance of iMM-6 inside the coupler, because of a wrong attachment; they were not due to the mics, as first suspected).

- mic.

to get precise FR, decent mic calibration is desirable. but it's not usual to get a true individual good calibration with budget mics (the calibration i got with iMM-6 was a joke; the cal i got -in paper- with the expensive chi-pro mic was not individualized).
you can calibrate your mic by some methods: using a company which calibrates it for you, following quality standards (some companies sell you regular precision mics from third parties, calibrated by them); or calibrating yourself by using a precision calibrated mic as reference (you can rent one, or maybe someone can lend you one); or calibrating yourself using try-error method (comparing your results to relative accurate curves; much effort and i think you get better accuracy by using the first methods, while not much expensive).
after my endeavor, i think even a well calibrated cheap mic ($1 electret mic!) gives you a decent FR till 10kHz (10 panasonic cheap electret 6mm -1/4'- mics are on transit to my home, together with threaded shanks to be screwed into the 12.7mm -1/2'- threaded coupler conveniently..).

if you pretend better accuracy over 10kHz, or you need to get better other parameters (like distortion), you have to invest in a better mic; the price for accuracy grows exponentially. and beware, these are very fragile (G.R.A.S. provides 2 years warranty for their individual calibrated -in paper- mics; but they are not budget mics.. ).
higher precision mics also require less calibration (i'm getting good results with my chi-pro mic by using a generic calibration of these exact kind of mics, while waiting to get a ref mic to fine tune the calibration).

another consideration when getting a mic, is their ability to be screwed into the 1/2' couplers. some mics comes with such thread (their grid cap are also screwed on that thread; you have to remove the grid to insert the mic into coupler). you can try diy methods to attach a non-threaded mic to the coupler; for example, my tries to better attach iMM-6; got the right distance this way:

Spoiler: DIY iMM-6 attachment to coupler

- ADC.

if you pretend to get FR uniquely, any soundcard with flat input response would be enough.
but if you like to get other parameters, an enough low noise/distortion ADC is needed.
if you pretend to use a mic which needs phantom power (12V or 48V, for example), your ADC has to provide it; in this case, you can also plug your mics which work under 10V into the phantom powered input, and they will work, ALWAYS you use the specific 48V to 3-10V adapter (if not, you'd burn up the mic).

- SPL meter.

matching SPL levels is needed for consistency. response is different when measuring a 80dB SPL sine, than at 100dB SPL.
you can calibrate your software SPL reference by using iems with known and trusted sensitivity; not much accurate, because units haven't got exact same sensitivity than other units.
if you prefer to use an SPL meter, accuracy price also grows exponentially. it would be desirable that the mic of the meter also can be inserted into the coupler, so you get the closer SPL at mic's location.
an SPL calibrator would be also useful, to get better accuracy from a cheaper SPL meter, and to ensure your mic is working ok (if not, and if the mic is not broken, a re-calibration should be needed). again, accuracy means $$.

 

[ezekiel77]

To hear the SE5U you either have to buy one yourself or jam a mate's SE5U into your ears. No demos nor universals available, and no dealers!

 

[crinacle]

I would be interested in measuring mine if I'm not lazy to cook up a rig like crinicle's if that's easiest and economical option. I would need advice on way to rig one up like his.

Easiest would be the IMM-6 rig (if you have a iDevice because Android FFT apps suck). ARTA/REW can be a little complex but if you're willing to stumble and learn, you can use a TRRS splitter on PC as well. Or a Veritas rig, in which people like @Brooko and @bartzky can advise you with.

On the subject of the SE5U, I may just pull the trigger next year. I see so much hype on it that I guess it's at least worth a shot. Even better if a used unit pops up on the market.

 

[castleofargh]

you might find something of interest in my rig evolution; i think it is similar to crinacle's, although i ended going expensive at last.

hakuzen rig evolution

some of my conclusions:

- coupler.

a iec-711 coupler is highly desirable, compared to a tube system. the distance between the iem's nozzle and the mic is essential to get the peaks/dips at the right frequencies. by using the coupler, same tips, and trying similar depth insertion, you ensure consistent right distance. besides, the resonances into the coupler help to get a raw result which doesn't need extra calibration, compared with tubes (stated by @castleofargh as well).
(the different locations of peaks i commented in my reviews were due to defective distance of iMM-6 inside the coupler, because of a wrong attachment; they were not due to the mics, as first suspected).

- mic.

to get precise FR, decent mic calibration is desirable. but it's not usual to get a true individual good calibration with budget mics (the calibration i got with iMM-6 was a joke; the cal i got -in paper- with the expensive chi-pro mic was not individualized).
you can calibrate your mic by some methods: using a company which calibrates it for you, following quality standards (some companies sell you regular precision mics from third parties, calibrated by them); or calibrating yourself by using a precision calibrated mic as reference (you can rent one, or maybe someone can lend you one); or calibrating yourself using try-error method (comparing your results to relative accurate curves; much effort and i think you get better accuracy by using the first methods, while not much expensive).
after my endeavor, i think even a well calibrated cheap mic ($1 electret mic!) gives you a decent FR till 10kHz (10 panasonic cheap electret 6mm -1/4'- mics are on transit to my home, together with threaded shanks to be screwed into the 12.7mm -1/2'- threaded coupler conveniently..).

if you pretend better accuracy over 10kHz, or you need to get better other parameters (like distortion), you have to invest in a better mic; the price for accuracy grows exponentially. and beware, these are very fragile (G.R.A.S. provides 2 years warranty for their individual calibrated -in paper- mics; but they are not budget mics.. ).
higher precision mics also require less calibration (i'm getting good results with my chi-pro mic by using a generic calibration of these exact kind of mics, while waiting to get a ref mic to fine tune the calibration).

another consideration when getting a mic, is their ability to be screwed into the 1/2' couplers. some mics comes with such thread (their grid cap are also screwed on that thread; you have to remove the grid to insert the mic into coupler). you can try diy methods to attach a non-threaded mic to the coupler; for example, my tries to better attach iMM-6; got the right distance this way:

Spoiler: DIY iMM-6 attachment to coupler

- ADC.

if you pretend to get FR uniquely, any soundcard with flat input response would be enough.
but if you like to get other parameters, an enough low noise/distortion ADC is needed.
if you pretend to use a mic which needs phantom power (12V or 48V, for example), your ADC has to provide it; in this case, you can also plug your mics which work under 10V into the phantom powered input, and they will work, ALWAYS you use the specific 48V to 3-10V adapter (if not, you'd burn up the mic).

- SPL meter.

matching SPL levels is needed for consistency. response is different when measuring a 80dB SPL sine, than at 100dB SPL.
you can calibrate your software SPL reference by using iems with known and trusted sensitivity; not much accurate, because units haven't got exact same sensitivity than other units.
if you prefer to use an SPL meter, accuracy price also grows exponentially. it would be desirable that the mic of the meter also can be inserted into the coupler, so you get the closer SPL at mic's location.
an SPL calibrator would be also useful, to get better accuracy from a cheaper SPL meter, and to ensure your mic is working ok (if not, and if the mic is not broken, a re-calibration should be needed). again, accuracy means $$.

maybe the other one of crinacle's topic would be better for this, but just small notes:
yes, with a coupler over the mic it gets easier to approach the type of RAW response we see from pro rigs. the net benefits are probably small objectively given how unreliable/variable everything is in the end, but it's oddly satisfying to have a real RAW response that can look "pro" ^_^.

matching SPL levels is needed for consistency. response is different when measuring a 80dB SPL sine, than at 100dB SPL.

I don't believe it's normal. the FR is the one thing that shouldn't really change much with sound level as it would mean crazy non linearity for the driver. maybe something distorts like mad at 100dB, or the signal clips, or maybe at 80dB there are some noises big enough to be recorded as FR? or could it simply be that the IEM has moved a little between the 2 measurements? admittedly I usually stick to 90dB or below(but mostly 90dB) for my measurements.

 

[hakuzen]

maybe the other one of crinacle's topic would be better for this, but just small notes:
yes, with a coupler over the mic it gets easier to approach the type of RAW response we see from pro rigs. the net benefits are probably small objectively given how unreliable/variable everything is in the end, but it's oddly satisfying to have a real RAW response that can look "pro" ^_^.


I don't believe it's normal. the FR is the one thing that shouldn't really change much with sound level as it would mean crazy non linearity for the driver. maybe something distorts like mad at 100dB, or the signal clips, or maybe at 80dB there are some noises big enough to be recorded as FR? or could it simply be that the IEM has moved a little between the 2 measurements? admittedly I usually stick to 90dB or below(but mostly 90dB) for my measurements.

oops, confused the threads, sorry. should i copy the post in the right topic and delete this one?
about sound level for measuring, thought something would vary, after reading many suggestions to measure at 80, 82, 90, or 94dB.. you are right, when i compared FRs between measurements at very different sound levels, found they are almost identical. guess the suggestions are related to mimic usual listening levels, and maybe related to distortion measurement rather than FR.

 

[terminexia]

Quick question Crinacle. Between the W500 and the Nocturnal Atlantis, which of the two would be better for female vocals? I might get either one of them to complement my incoming A3H-v2.
Thanks!

 

[crinacle]

Quick question Crinacle. Between the W500 and the Nocturnal Atlantis, which of the two would be better for female vocals? I might get either one of them to complement my incoming A3H-v2.
Thanks!

I would say Atlantis.

 

[crinacle]

THE RANKING LIST IS FINALLY COMPLETE! BRING OUT THE CHAMPAGNE!

The [WIP] tag has finally been removed. God, all that formatting for the tables have been an absolute nightmare. Comments have been all added in and the ranks have been restructured to what I think is most accurate to my opinions.

That said, this definitely isn't the end for the resource. As I try new things I'll continue to update the list. Here's to more to come.

 

[alphanumerix1]

THE RANKING LIST IS FINALLY COMPLETE! BRING OUT THE CHAMPAGNE!

The [WIP] tag has finally been removed. God, all that formatting for the tables have been an absolute nightmare. Comments have been all added in and the ranks have been restructured to what I think is most accurate to my opinions.

That said, this definitely isn't the end for the resource. As I try new things I'll continue to update the list. Here's to more to come.

Nice mate, Well done. Excellent resource for the community.

 

[1TrickPony]

+1. Excellent work. I like the fact that you've gone and included pretty much iems even in the sub 500$ lol... and some of them compete rather well!

I'd love to see a reiteration for next year, at you get a proper break!

 

[Joe Caldino]

Makes me want to go to the stores and audition a lot. Lol.

 

[Swiftfalcon]

I m curious where the jh audio layla 2 fits?