[Raketen]

To be honest. Rank B for LCD i4 ?

Can you tell me why?

Coincidentally I was doing some research because of the BF b-stock sale which might help you: LCDi4+Cipher used to have a higher ranking (from quote below), in the i3 unboxing explained the re-ranking https://crinacle.com/2019/10/03/audeze-lcd-i3-unboxing/

(Head-Fi ProTip: in search box you can restrict your search to specific thread, and specify specific user, I found these quickly by searching for "Audeze" with that method- There might be more explanation in the ranking update posts on reddit (or Patreon?))

Decided to rank the Audeze in-ear planars with Cipher cable (i.e. EQ'd) since there is an active hardware component being offered to fix the tuning. Note that these are the exceptions and not the norm; I will not be factoring EQ scalability into the rankings unless there are active/passive accessories bundled with the product.

Audeze LCDi4 (Cipher)
Low distortion, high resolution, excellent dynamics and expectedly open soundstage. Properly EQ'd, the i4's main weakness is eliminated. Contrary to popular opinion, additional power or amplification does NOTHING to address the glaring issues of a raw i4.

Grade: S

Audeze iSine 20 (Cipher)
As with the i4, the iSine 20 shines with proper DSP. EQ/Cipher is essentially mandatory for discerning ears.

Grade: A

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I have not tried the iSine 10 with Cipher so I won't add it into the list until I can proper ear time with it.

 

[crinacle]

In-Ear Fidelity's Buyer's Guide to True Wireless IEMs
​

 

[crinacle]

[Cliffnotes] Etymotic ER2: Market Disruptor
​

 

[iBo0m]

@crinacle , thanks for the review of Etys ER2! What do you mean by "two dimensional" IEMs in case of ER4... where does the lack of imaging suffer the most in your opinion?

 

[Piotr Michalak]

@crinacle , thanks for the review of Etys ER2! What do you mean by "two dimensional" IEMs in case of ER4... where does the lack of imaging suffer the most in your opinion?

Funny thing, for me ER4 is one of the most holographic 3D-sounding IEMs actually, maybe due to the tuning hitting my actual hearing curve pretty accurately.
BUT! It has to be inserted pretty deeply to sound that way. YMMV.

 

[crinacle]

More graphs.

Full website post

ADDED
Audio Technica ATH-IEX1
Fatfreq Eden
Kinera Nanna
KZ ED Special Edition
Meccaudio ME-04
Meze Rai Solo
Noble Falcon
Noble Savant 2
Noble Tux 5
Unknown Custom UCD-2
Unknown Custom UCD-3
Unknown Custom Quad 2.0
Unknown Custom Juno

UPDATED
Noble Khan Sample 2 remeasure
Sony MDR-EX1000 Sample 2 (filterless)

All data has been uploaded to the Graph Comparison Tool.

 

[crinacle]

[Cliffnotes] Noble’s New Subjects: Falcon TWS, Savant 2 & Tux 5
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[RSC08]

First Obravo, now Noble.. Our boy Crin is taking the big names down, one at a time.

 

[FastAndClean]

he is a killer

 

[papa_mia]

First Obravo, now Noble.. Our boy Crin is taking the big names down, one at a time.

oBravo is like a meme brand bruh, the ones that actually buy their products don't hang around here so I doubt this has any effect at all on their sales.

 

[SilverEars]

[Cliffnotes] Noble’s New Subjects: Falcon TWS, Savant 2 & Tux 5
​

Yeah, never could trust Noble. The way they bump up their threads isn't for any informative content, but just marketing the looks of their shell. If I'm getting an audiophile iem, I care about sound, not the shell of the driver.

Way back I got to try out their expensive Encore iem, and was so underwhelmed. Just not worth the price they were charging. After that experience, I pretty much lost interest in their iems.

 

[jmills8]

oBravo is like a meme brand bruh, the ones that actually buy their products don't hang around here so I doubt this has any effect at all on their sales.

I had one. Maybe they dont react often.

 

[papa_mia]

I had one. Maybe they dont react often.

Man you have a piece of everything that doesn't count.

 

[crinacle]

Toranku’s Thoughts: Massdrop Zeus
​

 

[Piotr Michalak]

First Obravo, now Noble.. Our boy Crin is taking the big names down, one at a time.

Funny thing is that I value my Khans very highly. They are an "S" to me. But you need comply isolation foams on them, which damps the highs a bit, making them neutral with only subbass boost and very coherent overall (just look at the graph and the mids). I've measured them and they look great with comply.

Other thing is V1 Khans were f*ed quality wise, I had to replace mine 2 or 3 times due to broken 2pins or the whole shell broke once (!!!). Had to negotiate the replacements heavily as they told me it's my fault. Once they created V2 though, they are OK now! That, not the tuning, was a blemish on the brand and why I probably won't buy anything from Noble soon, but I have to admit, Khan is a great IEM and they know how to make a superb IEM, only watch out for their highs made for people with hearing loss (no disrespect intended here), these highs need to be tamed.

Also have EE Zeus XRA and have to admit: it is coloured neutral. In CIEM format the highs move further away into 10+ kHz region and are more flat / neutral than shown here, with some little spikes adding resolution and sparkle. Superb layering and a tuning one has to get used to, mid forward, but also higher mids subdued at the same time. Bright and light, but at the same time dark and slightly warm. Technically proficient. Still a flagship and a legend. I even consider buying myself a second one from this Drop, to have it also in UIEM format. What a pity Wraith didn't overcome the predecessor, had big expectations (heard it myself too and wasn't impressed much).