Earbuds Round-Up

[samandhi]

my rw 3000's just arrived, and wow

these are great, fitment is perfect and comfy for me, soundstage and separation are excellent, and the bass is very nice as far as quality and quantity

i can't complain about them at all, just wish i had them earlier

i sold my hd6xx's and with a little more on top i got these, and i have to say, these sound better and more enjoyable

after doing AB testing with other sets, I don't think I'll use anything else at all

Congrats on your new shiny!

 

[baskingshark]

MassDROP is selling the Moondrop Chaconne at $229 USD

https://drop.com/buy/moondrop-chaconne-earbuds


Shipping date is a joke though, Feb 26, 2024 PT.

 

[InvisibleInk]

MassDROP is selling the Moondrop Chaconne at $229 USD



https://drop.com/buy/moondrop-chaconne-earbuds


Shipping date is a joke though, Feb 26, 2024 PT.

Patience, grasshopper…

 

[baskingshark]

Patience, grasshopper…

Hahaha in CHIFI land, 3 months is an eternity bro!

KZ would have released 1 set a week already, many "PRO" versions of their gear would have come and gone!

 

[InvisibleInk]

Hahaha in CHIFI land, 3 months is an eternity bro!

KZ would have released 1 set a week already, many "PRO" versions of their gear would have come and gone!

I know, but how many moons since Chaconne was released? Surely 3 more moons for such lofty savings is not too much of a burden to bear…

 

[thedjkhalid]

It's pretty good but I still find it lacking the 3D quality of other buds perhaps due to the 32ohm impedance. It's pretty 2D sounding and lacks some dynamic so I am hoping some improvements after prolonged burn-in.

i haven't tested out the 3d quality of it yet, but i've got a custom "bell" set (df neutral tuning) to scratch that itch
when i wear it in public, certain songs feel like i'm hearing them from the store's speakers

trips me out at times

edit:
upon further use of these (rw 3000's), i don't like them that much when watching some videos/podcasts, and in a game i just played i felt like the voices were not as crisp (as compared to my df neutral buds)

but when music is on, it's not even a comparison, these are an absolute unit

 

[thedjkhalid]

Congrats on your new shiny!

thanks! i definitely am

 

[saldsald]

i haven't tested out the 3d quality of it yet, but i've got a custom "bell" set (df neutral tuning) to scratch that itch
when i wear it in public, certain songs feel like i'm hearing them from the store's speakers

trips me out at times

Lol yeah, I listened to some sound effect of cars passing of a track and that was kinda scary the first time I heard that but that's the general quality of buds in general IMO.

edit:
upon further use of these (rw 3000's), i don't like them that much when watching some videos/podcasts, and in a game i just played i felt like the voices were not as crisp (as compared to my df neutral buds)

but when music is on, it's not even a comparison, these are an absolute unit

You probably will discover some even better buds along the way. I think buds in general are just full of potential as long as they are cable-swappable.

 

[ttorbic]

@samandhi since we've sometimes talked about dac amps and various power outputs, I thought you'd enjoy this review (not by me) on E1DA 9038 dongles:
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/e1da-9038s-gen-3.24573/

Fantastic write-up on the technicalities and interplay between the devices current, voltage, and power outputs.

I have a 9038S gen3 myself, and it's fantastic!

 

[jeejack]

@baskingshark stay away from Smabat M5... at least for now. I will try to do something...

 

[baskingshark]

@baskingshark stay away from Smabat M5... at least for now. I will try to do something...

Wowowow thanks for taking one for the team bro!

I skipped on it at 11/11!

 

[samandhi]

@samandhi since we've sometimes talked about dac amps and various power outputs, I thought you'd enjoy this review (not by me) on E1DA 9038 dongles:
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/e1da-9038s-gen-3.24573/

Fantastic write-up on the technicalities and interplay between the devices current, voltage, and power outputs.

I have a 9038S gen3 myself, and it's fantastic!

This was a very interesting read. Thanks very much for sharing it here.

This looks like one of those devices that don't simply go for "more power" to entice the masses to spend their hard-earned money, but instead they also focus on the "other numbers" I often refer to as being as important (if not more so) than the power numbers stated. Without even hearing it, I would submit that this is a VERY good solution for ultra-portable (either model most likely).

I especially liked the parts about distortion. As we all know there are MANY different types of distortion (some desirable, and some not so much), but harmonic distortion and the like, are generally not welcome; unless you like to listen to music that is colored to sound like the old school 80's bass that was so distorted and slow as to cause a huge "unnatural" rumble (artificial rumble), like iPods and Beats used to do.

This is one of the reasons I love my Neutron music app. I can apply what is called Dither in real time, which will add distortion to remove distortion, and to at least three types of undesirable distortions (the most common anyhow). Normally dither is used at the studio (recording) level but can also be used to great effect at the amplification stage in music reproduction (i.e. playback). Most music player apps either are not aware of this being a real thing, or simply (and more likely) don't feel that the extra work needed to implement it is worth the effort or cost to code it into the app. It can also be said that most people don't have the gear needed to hear these distortions anyhow, so that (I suspect) is probably another reason.

Bottom line is that it is refreshing to see a cheaper device that is able to provide those "other numbers" that doesn't break the bank. If you do a search for desktop solutions, you will find that to get those numbers that are considered at least good (if not great), you will start getting into the kilobuck territories (for the most part anyhow). Most focus on power, first and foremost.

If I remember correctly, @miserybeforethemusic (if you remember him) had one of these quite some time back, and I was almost baffled at the time because it almost seemed like the harder to drive the gear, the more power it would make (much like what the Megatron seems to do), and I thought it to be ahead of its time for power output on a very small device. I was especially baffled at how much current it was able to make. Nothing battery powered like a phone, should be able to provide the current that this little thing can generate; advancements in capacitance, and conductance has come a really long way to achieve this. This may seem like a really trivial thing, but it really isn't. I have to rely on the fact that my DAP has one battery for the OS, and one just for the amplification section in order to get 2+ amperes in my gear. Otherwise, my planars wouldn't sound as good as they (inherently) do.

Because of this, I still think that Cayin and iBasso are kings of being portable (well, at least transportable) and still able to drive planars correctly. If this device can do that (as it appears to be able to do), then this is a real winner for anyone that is a "nut" for planar (ortho dynamic) transducers....

@baskingshark stay away from Smabat M5... at least for now. I will try to do something...

Can you expound on this? I still have a set coming (if they ever decide to ship it).

 

[jeejack]

This was a very interesting read. Thanks very much for sharing it here.

This looks like one of those devices that don't simply go for "more power" to entice the masses to spend their hard-earned money, but instead they also focus on the "other numbers" I often refer to as being as important (if not more so) than the power numbers stated. Without even hearing it, I would submit that this is a VERY good solution for ultra-portable (either model most likely).

I especially liked the parts about distortion. As we all know there are MANY different types of distortion (some desirable, and some not so much), but harmonic distortion and the like, are generally not welcome; unless you like to listen to music that is colored to sound like the old school 80's bass that was so distorted and slow as to cause a huge "unnatural" rumble (artificial rumble), like iPods and Beats used to do.

This is one of the reasons I love my Neutron music app. I can apply what is called Dither in real time, which will add distortion to remove distortion, and to at least three types of undesirable distortions (the most common anyhow). Normally dither is used at the studio (recording) level but can also be used to great effect at the amplification stage in music reproduction (i.e. playback). Most music player apps either are not aware of this being a real thing, or simply (and more likely) don't feel that the extra work needed to implement it is worth the effort or cost to code it into the app. It can also be said that most people don't have the gear needed to hear these distortions anyhow, so that (I suspect) is probably another reason.

Bottom line is that it is refreshing to see a cheaper device that is able to provide those "other numbers" that doesn't break the bank. If you do a search for desktop solutions, you will find that to get those numbers that are considered at least good (if not great), you will start getting into the kilobuck territories (for the most part anyhow). Most focus on power, first and foremost.

If I remember correctly, @miserybeforethemusic (if you remember him) had one of these quite some time back, and I was almost baffled at the time because it almost seemed like the harder to drive the gear, the more power it would make (much like what the Megatron seems to do), and I thought it to be ahead of its time for power output on a very small device. I was especially baffled at how much current it was able to make. Nothing battery powered like a phone, should be able to provide the current that this little thing can generate; advancements in capacitance, and conductance has come a really long way to achieve this. This may seem like a really trivial thing, but it really isn't. I have to rely on the fact that my DAP has one battery for the OS, and one just for the amplification section in order to get 2+ amperes in my gear. Otherwise, my planars wouldn't sound as good as they (inherently) do.

Because of this, I still think that Cayin and iBasso are kings of being portable (well, at least transportable) and still able to drive planars correctly. If this device can do that (as it appears to be able to do), then this is a real winner for anyone that is a "nut" for planar (ortho dynamic) transducers....

Can you expound on this? I still have a set coming (if they ever decide to ship it).

You do not trust me? Nothing has changed, a slightly better M4

 

[anli]

@baskingshark stay away from Smabat M5... at least for now. I will try to do something...

It is interesting. I haven't shared impressions of M4 (and it has nothing with music, don't know why this shouter was manufactured... To be used as car siren?). Now I see the story is repeating. That is Smabat decision makers seem to be deaf (don't listen to their production) and blind (don't read reviews). Or what? How is it possible?

 

[jeejack]

It is interesting. I haven't shared impressions of M4 (and it has nothing with music, don't know why this shouter was manufactured... To be used as car siren?). Now I see the story is repeating. That is Smabat decision makers seem to be deaf (doesn't listen to their production) and blind (doesn't read reviews). Or what? How is it possible?

I don't understand their politics either. Since the M2 pro nothing has been good