LordZero
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Can you send me a pm with the model and cable?
Earbuds Round-Up
- Thread starter ClieOS
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Yes, exactly! Whenever we go to the next bank with our robbery gang (me, my wife and 2 adolescent daughters) for armed negotiations, my earbuds are left naked...Good to know that MMCX is better implemented on earbuds and that I can actually make use of these MMCX cables.
Btw, I like your foams. Are they custom? They look like they're ready to rob a bank.
Edit: And for God's sake, where did you get a picture of me at work?
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LostnAmerica
100+ Head-Fier
Basically I was gaining interest in buds in general and search out Rikibuds as they seem to be a favorable choice among bud aficionados. So, these 3 things got my interest. In back and forth messaging with Rikudou_Goku, he stated: “Sound wise, tuning is not finalized yet but is somewhere around my Saber/Rider lineup. Bass-boosted neutral likely.”. And it is a smaller bud using a smaller shell since the driver is 14.8mm compared to the standard 15.4mm. And it’s a 32Ohm variant. That’s what made it interesting. As for the diy, that’s definitely not meExcellent! The Nobunaga are in the same wheelhouse as the Moondrop Chaconne. So if you do end up enjoying the Nobunaga and want a step up, IMO the Chaconne will not do you wrong, though I admit the price difference between the Nobunaga and Chaconne is steep. If you're handy, have basic soldering skills and into or willing to DIY, then I can offer a drag & drop build for an excellent "Nightingale" type earbud.
Artiste "Nightingale" DnD build.
EDIT: Here's 2 impromptu Artiste sound impressions by our neighborhood nice guy @samandhi.
From post https://www.head-fi.org/threads/earbuds-round-up.441400/post-18100493
As for the Artiste, only a few words for now. These are pretty Chaconne(esque) in their overall tuning (or even the OG HD800 without the spike) but are more aggressive in their overall sound. This is to say, that they are like a really good diffuse tuning without the overly boosted presence region. These are detail MONSTERS! If you are sensitive to really revealing treble, these aren't for you. I am not sensitive to treble unless it is sibilant though (which, surprisingly, these are not), so these are a REALLY good sound. Also, if you are after a full bassy sounding set, these won't be for you either. But, boy do they sound fantastic with the right music. These come fairly close to the Chaconne. I would say that these are a sublime critical or analytical set. Classical sounds VERY nice indeed!
Having said that, they aren't Chaconne clones by any means. They have their own personality, and are just enough different from the Chaconne that they compliment them rather than compare to them.More on these later.
From post https://www.head-fi.org/threads/earbuds-round-up.441400/post-18107957
P.P.S. And, I almost forgot, that I recently discovered a set that are similar to the Chaconne, but have a touch more quantity of bass (making them better suited for more than classical, and jazz, etc...). They are the Artiste Nightingale as created by @mt877.
There's not much info about the Rikubuds Caster 3. Can you share the sound profile description or what excited you to jump on the Caster 3 buds wait list?
. And the potential for treble sibilance, is not for me also. We shall see how they fare. Might be back on the market after a trial run (breaking in of course)…Thanks for the help and suggestions.
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LordZero
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Thank you!
h8uthemost
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I didn't know the drivers you used is from qigom. I'm a huge fan of that stores builds. This makes me want to do a build of my own now...The recent comparison I did of the Nobunaga Uguisu (aka Nightingale) vs other earbuds prompted me to see if an excellent DIY "Nightingale" earbud could be built.
I think I've succeeded in that quest, so I present to you my "Artiste" earbuds which I'm sharing with my fellow earbud fiends here as another Drag-n-Drop build.
If you're new to DIY earbuds building / soldering, please click the "Soldering for Earbuds 101 - A Practical Approach" link in my signature. It's easy to build these buds and for the time spent you'll have an excellent sounding set of "Artiste" Nightingale earbuds. These buds have excellent tonality and absolutely no spike in the ear gain region. Also don't be fooled by the bass region in the FR graph, these buds have very good bass. BTW, the FR was measured with HieGi full foams applied to the earbuds and IMO they sound best with those foams.
Build notes: The shells come with black horseshoe tuning foams. You will apply them to the inside of the shell covering the back vents. Here's the important part, the vent closest to the MMCX connector is where you'll start and end applying the foam, leave a small uncovered gap (1mm) at that vent. When snapping on the speaker cover to the shell, be sure to put the voicecoil upwards (opposite the MMCX connector).
Enjoy and if you do build a set of these Artiste buds please share your impressions. I think you will be impressed.
Build materials:
15.4mm MMCX Open Back Flat Earphones Shell (4 colors)
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256805988389365.html
68Ω Graphene driver
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256805165081080.html
RY-C5 Silver plated 8 core (2.5mmBal, 3.5mmSE, 4.4mmBal)
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2255800618505046.html
borrego
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Here is my short review of the Lun Sheng YE05 and Aeolian earbuds. I recently got bitten by the earbud bugs and purchased 5 inexpensive earbuds from NiceHCK, Fransun, and Lun Sheng. I bought the YE05 about a month ago and the Aeolian a few days ago.
Excuse for buying the YE05: After I bought the NiceHCK YD30 and Fransun earbuds, I was surprised by their relatively high quality of sound (especially the latest Fransun model with gold plated cables). I would like to try a slightly higher tier model, still cositng below CNY100, for easy listening before/during bedtime. My requirements would be a balance sound signature and low profile earphone case which does not protrude outside my ears too much, so I can lie on the side on my pillow wearing the earbuds comfortably. I chose the YE05 after its low profile case, beautiful full metal construction, carbon element drivers (similar to the NiceHCK B70?) and the favourable comments found on the Lun Sheng taobao shop. I ordered the YE05 from the Lun Sheng taobao shop. I even purchased an custom made a 1.6m MMCX cable (costing more than the YE05) to be used with YE05 for its upcoming bedtime duty.
The YE05 model name 風輪, actually means "wind mill" in Chinese, which is illustrated by its grill cover design.
About the YE05 audio performance (driven by my CS43131 dongle from phone and PC, the same "Player2" model from the Luling Aliexpress store, with the SPC litz upgrade cable):The YE05 does not disappoint me. It has a smooth FR profile with no treble peak, nor excessive mid bass. The sub-bass does need some 15 burn-in hours to be opened up. After the 15 hours burn-in period, the YE05 gives a smooth, non intrusive, sound signature with enough dynamics and micro details for its bedtime duty. The YE05 is slightly warm due to its slightly slow sound decay in the mid and bass frequency range, but it doesn't sound congested. Overall I found the YE05 both neutral and natural sounding and like it quite a bit. The performance of the YE05 justifies my purchase of the upgrade cable costing more than it.
Initially the smaller 14.8mm driver case of the YE05 does not give my enough seal for proper bass response. Then I bought the Fiio FF3/FF5 rubber rings to use with the YE05 together with sponge foam covers, to have the bass returns to proper level.
Excuse for buying the Aeolian: I followed the Lun Sheng taobao store after the satisfactory YE05 purchase. I found the Aeolian was heavily discounted the other day and was intertested to try out the Piezo drivers sound for cheap.
The Aeolian model name 風鈴, actually means "wind chimes" in Chinese, which is illustrated by its case profile.
About the Aeolian audio performance (driven by my CS43131 dongle from phone and PC, the same "Player2" model from the Luling Aliexpress store, with the JCally EP05 SPC cable): The Aeolian does sound like its name, like a pair of wind chimes. Every notes across the frequency range, including the bass section, are played with a layer of air wrapped around. It is almost like you have the reverb effect turned on with your player, but not quite exactly the same. I find the Aeolian's main sound notes actually decay quicker than the YE05, yet with its "airness" harmonics extends longer, yet without costing congestion. I suspect there is no crossover between the dynamic and Piezo drivers in the Aeolian and both drivers are just connected in parallel, as the airness extends to the bass frequency section.
Initially I felt the Aeolian sounding bright, but later I found there is acutually no treble peaks. I also would not call it sounding thin as there are plenty of harmonics filling the air space like how a tube amp sounds. The Aeolian have less sub bass extension comparing to the YE05, and also resolves a bit less detailed. However, the Aeolian still performs above the "base level" earbuds from NiceHCK and Fransun in technicalities.
I do not need to use any rubber ring with the larger and thicker driver cases of the Aeolian to have good seal.
Overall I like the Aeolian as a pair of "special effect buds" for its price. The Aeolian sounds very pleasing with the right music. Listening to Baroque organ and harpsichord with the Aeolian and you'd feel like being inside a 17th century cathedral. Listening pop/rock music with the Aeolian and you'd feel like being in an outdoor concert.
Be aware of the Aeolian MMCX sockets may have some compatibility issues. I initially purchased the Aeolian with another JCally MMCX cables from the Lun Sheng store. The store then told me the cable I chose cound not be plugged into the Aeolain and substituted with the SPC cable used by the JCally EP05 earbuds and refunded the price difference to me.
Excuse for buying the YE05: After I bought the NiceHCK YD30 and Fransun earbuds, I was surprised by their relatively high quality of sound (especially the latest Fransun model with gold plated cables). I would like to try a slightly higher tier model, still cositng below CNY100, for easy listening before/during bedtime. My requirements would be a balance sound signature and low profile earphone case which does not protrude outside my ears too much, so I can lie on the side on my pillow wearing the earbuds comfortably. I chose the YE05 after its low profile case, beautiful full metal construction, carbon element drivers (similar to the NiceHCK B70?) and the favourable comments found on the Lun Sheng taobao shop. I ordered the YE05 from the Lun Sheng taobao shop. I even purchased an custom made a 1.6m MMCX cable (costing more than the YE05) to be used with YE05 for its upcoming bedtime duty.
The YE05 model name 風輪, actually means "wind mill" in Chinese, which is illustrated by its grill cover design.
About the YE05 audio performance (driven by my CS43131 dongle from phone and PC, the same "Player2" model from the Luling Aliexpress store, with the SPC litz upgrade cable):The YE05 does not disappoint me. It has a smooth FR profile with no treble peak, nor excessive mid bass. The sub-bass does need some 15 burn-in hours to be opened up. After the 15 hours burn-in period, the YE05 gives a smooth, non intrusive, sound signature with enough dynamics and micro details for its bedtime duty. The YE05 is slightly warm due to its slightly slow sound decay in the mid and bass frequency range, but it doesn't sound congested. Overall I found the YE05 both neutral and natural sounding and like it quite a bit. The performance of the YE05 justifies my purchase of the upgrade cable costing more than it.
Initially the smaller 14.8mm driver case of the YE05 does not give my enough seal for proper bass response. Then I bought the Fiio FF3/FF5 rubber rings to use with the YE05 together with sponge foam covers, to have the bass returns to proper level.
Excuse for buying the Aeolian: I followed the Lun Sheng taobao store after the satisfactory YE05 purchase. I found the Aeolian was heavily discounted the other day and was intertested to try out the Piezo drivers sound for cheap.
The Aeolian model name 風鈴, actually means "wind chimes" in Chinese, which is illustrated by its case profile.
About the Aeolian audio performance (driven by my CS43131 dongle from phone and PC, the same "Player2" model from the Luling Aliexpress store, with the JCally EP05 SPC cable): The Aeolian does sound like its name, like a pair of wind chimes. Every notes across the frequency range, including the bass section, are played with a layer of air wrapped around. It is almost like you have the reverb effect turned on with your player, but not quite exactly the same. I find the Aeolian's main sound notes actually decay quicker than the YE05, yet with its "airness" harmonics extends longer, yet without costing congestion. I suspect there is no crossover between the dynamic and Piezo drivers in the Aeolian and both drivers are just connected in parallel, as the airness extends to the bass frequency section.
Initially I felt the Aeolian sounding bright, but later I found there is acutually no treble peaks. I also would not call it sounding thin as there are plenty of harmonics filling the air space like how a tube amp sounds. The Aeolian have less sub bass extension comparing to the YE05, and also resolves a bit less detailed. However, the Aeolian still performs above the "base level" earbuds from NiceHCK and Fransun in technicalities.
I do not need to use any rubber ring with the larger and thicker driver cases of the Aeolian to have good seal.
Overall I like the Aeolian as a pair of "special effect buds" for its price. The Aeolian sounds very pleasing with the right music. Listening to Baroque organ and harpsichord with the Aeolian and you'd feel like being inside a 17th century cathedral. Listening pop/rock music with the Aeolian and you'd feel like being in an outdoor concert.
Be aware of the Aeolian MMCX sockets may have some compatibility issues. I initially purchased the Aeolian with another JCally MMCX cables from the Lun Sheng store. The store then told me the cable I chose cound not be plugged into the Aeolain and substituted with the SPC cable used by the JCally EP05 earbuds and refunded the price difference to me.
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Kumonomukou
100+ Head-Fier
I actually think they'll fall under the $50 territory simply because of the amount of plastic used. Probably between Moondrop Nameless & Moondrop VX Classic when they first introduced.
Small 14.8mm drivers and meant to wear without foams. For people with small ears this could be the bud of choice.
fooltoque
100+ Head-Fier
I ...actually like the utilitarian/paperclip look a lot.
trevdawg94
Head-Fier
I've struggled a little with keeping them in place as well, I tried stacking foams the same way you did but it made the fit and sound quality worse for me. I think a big part of it is the stock cable's heatshrink is too flimsy and flexible so it doesn't hold them in place very well. I think a cable like Kinera's Gramr will fit the best as it uses curved 2-pin connectors instead of straight connectors like most other cables do. I thought about getting it but it's not cheap and I won't use the included mic so it feels like a waste of money and I'm not a fan of their modular plug design since it doesn't look like it has any locking mechanism so it's just relying on a friction fit.
I'm thinking of getting NiceHCK's Whitesky instead since it has a pretty aggressive curve near the connectors and has a matching color scheme so we'll see how well it works. If anyone has recommendations for cables that use the curved 2-pin connectors like the Gramr I would appreciate it since it's hard to find cables with those specific connectors.
I haven't tried the MMCX adapters yet, I have to find where I put them first lol. But I'll let you know when I do and whether they help or not.
I measured the diameter of the round section right behind the stem and got 10.4 mm. I only have ones that are 9 mm so I'll have to order some 10 mm ones and see how well they work. As far as the earclips being uncomfortable it doesn't look like there are a lot of options for different sizes and shapes other than the diameter of the clip that attaches to the earbud. I found these earclips that should work for the DB1E, they're supposed to be made of silicone instead of hard plastic like the ones I got for the RW2K so they are likely more comfortable and closer to the Sport Clips I use on my KSC35s that I can wear all day without any discomfort even though I wear glasses.
PeacockObscura
Headphoneus Supremus
Excuse the frankly terrible photo. Received today the the TD21 a very beautiful looking oddity with nice cable first impressions are not as bad as I feared. Bassy warm set with no unusual peaks (yet) bought them cos, well they look unique
They fit very comfortably in my ears with no need to fiddle for £41 I'm happy nice case too!
