[daveu]

Hello guys, right now i have a second pair of the yincrow X6. I really love the sound, but i am looking for better bass extension with the similar sound. Is there some of a branded earbud, that fits the criteria? Thanks

 

[jao29]

Hello guys, right now i have a second pair of the yincrow X6. I really love the sound, but i am looking for better bass extension with the similar sound. Is there some of a branded earbud, that fits the criteria? Thanks

I recommend the Willsound Mkii. Sub bass is similar to the X6 while retaining better mids and highs.

 

[emusic13]

I’ve got a tera too, I’ll try it with that tomorrow

How is it?

 

[calcatreppola]

is there a bud u guys would recommend for about 150$ CAD? I'm not super versed in the earbuds sphere but I've had a Kaiser 10 iem for a couple years now that i love the sound of but I cannot stand the fit so I almost never use them. No matter what tips I use from foams to spin fits it just irritates the inside of my ears so bad after just a little while of listening regardless of shallow or deep insertion. most IEM's I've tried from the Klipsch x10, Weston 3umx/4, Shure 535, Aurisonics asg 2/2.5 did the same but that Kaiser 10 has made it such a point that I have basically lost all interest in trying to use IEM's anymore.

As a result I just want an earbud that sounds pretty decent so I could listen to music away from my desk without my ears hurting. obviously even the best earbuds wont be able to even compare to the iems I'm familiar with but at this point comfort is worth about 100x more then sound for me which is extremely weird to say as an audiophile. anyways my only real reference points for earbuds are those 10$ Sony buds they sell at Walmart which are probably the worst things I've ever heard and the original apple buds which sounded pretty decent in my memory but I haven't listened to them in like 9 years, so hopefully a 150$ CAD earbud would be slightly better then those. for music i listen to everything besides country but I have a soft spot for female vocals and enjoy forward Mids. thanks.

I know I am late (boys, how much do you write LoL)... but I would suggest also a different try: Toneking Dendroaspis Viridis

 

[gazzington]

How is it?

Really, really good. Best pair ups so far are the r01 and tera

 

[Kukuster]

What's the model?

 

[n00b]

toneking viridis

 

[earmonger]

Iris Ancestor is A
Iris 2.0 is A+

Since you already have the Ancestor, maybe its better to save up for something like the K´s LBBS instead, less redundant and much better.

If an $8 earbud is A+ why pay more???

 

[RikudouGoku]

If an $8 earbud is A+ why pay more???

Cuz we are greedy.

(Diminishing returns hits very hard for buds...)

 

[calcatreppola]

If an $8 earbud is A+ why pay more???

this has been my question for very long time... if it can help, people who are in the game (or in the deep rabbit-hole) mean that for their specific price range they are to be considered that good.
I would also add that sometimes, depending on your "taste", they can be better than more expensive objects... but when you start listening to higher grade earbuds/iem/headphones you understand the higher cost.
And than the carrots... even if you have carrots for the next six years you might crave to have carrots for one more year, even if you know that they are not as good as the fresh ones, or they are not completely grown.
Personally I am quite satisfied, I am using ebx21 and waiting for my Blur and I think I must stop... but I always check shops and offers for something (that I know I don't need, I can't afford and I don't have place for it). At the same time I enjoy Monk lite because I can use it the easy way... And I know perfectly well that my listening is preferable with ebx21... I will go back to it. But Monk is so smooth... very good for 9 euro... Still my 200 euro ebx is great. And is worth every single cent I paid for it. When I listen music with it and with my xd05bal I perfectly know that the budget I put on it is the budget I needed for listening good (for now)

 

[rprodrigues]

If an $8 earbud is A+ why pay more???

With some soldering skills and no more than $ 20, most of us would be done...

 

[baskingshark]

Cuz we are greedy.

(Diminishing returns hits very hard for buds...)

Haha it is preaching to the choir to ask on headfi "why are you buying more audio gear"?

That's like asking an alcoholic why are you drinking alcohol? I think we all need to see a shrink!

 

[Headcasey MD]

is there a bud u guys would recommend for about 150$ CAD? I'm not super versed in the earbuds sphere but I've had a Kaiser 10 iem for a couple years now that i love the sound of but I cannot stand the fit so I almost never use them. No matter what tips I use from foams to spin fits it just irritates the inside of my ears so bad after just a little while of listening regardless of shallow or deep insertion. most IEM's I've tried from the Klipsch x10, Weston 3umx/4, Shure 535, Aurisonics asg 2/2.5 did the same but that Kaiser 10 has made it such a point that I have basically lost all interest in trying to use IEM's anymore.

As a result I just want an earbud that sounds pretty decent so I could listen to music away from my desk without my ears hurting. obviously even the best earbuds wont be able to even compare to the iems I'm familiar with but at this point comfort is worth about 100x more then sound for me which is extremely weird to say as an audiophile. anyways my only real reference points for earbuds are those 10$ Sony buds they sell at Walmart which are probably the worst things I've ever heard and the original apple buds which sounded pretty decent in my memory but I haven't listened to them in like 9 years, so hopefully a 150$ CAD earbud would be slightly better then those. for music i listen to everything besides country but I have a soft spot for female vocals and enjoy forward Mids. thanks.

EBX21 https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003538996727.html
Same shell size as B40 I believe, most people like it.
Classical/acoustic, bass may be light for others.

 

[WoodyLuvr]

K's Temperament 钛铃 "Titanium Ling" Bell-Ti (120Ω)
3.5TRRS Balanced aka HiFiMan 3.5mm Type

No. 831/1000


"LIMTTED EDTTION"
( which is decidedly better than "Limited Edition" in my book )​

This was K's 2018 flagship model and came in a titanium alloy bell-shaped shell and cabled with 5N pure silver wire. It was offered in two (2) impedance versions: low (32Ω) and high (120Ω). Only 1,000 titanium alloy shells were manufactured to be used for both impedance models.

SPECS
Parent Company: 凱聲科技 Kaisheng Technology
Brand Name: K's (Ksearphone)
Sub-Brand Line: Temperament
Impedance: 120Ω
Sensitivity: 106 ± 3dB/mW
Frequency Range: 5-45000Hz
THD: <0.2% @ 1KHz (sometimes noted as <1% @ 1KHz)
Channel Error: <1dB
Magnet: N55
Cable Length: 1.2M ± 5cm.
Drive: 15mm Dynamic Drive

TIMELINE
A rollercoaster ride.

Ordered: 4 FEB 2021
Received: 10 FEB 2021
Right Channel/Driver Issue: 15 MAY 2021

After three (3) months and four (4) days of daily use the right channel, in a single day, started to decline in volume, began fading in and out, and then went completely silent due to what I suspected was 'shotty' soldering of the cable to the right driver unit. The right cable was very loose and easily shifting, back and forth, within the shell stem. Oh how so very disappointing this was!​

Repaired by Wong @ Blur: 10 JUN 2021
Received: 21 JUN 2021
Left Driver Failure: 6 DEC 2021
Current: I am sadly through with Ksearphones. Case closed.

​

​

BUILD ("THE REPAIR")
Arghhh... an utter, total train wreck.

K's most definitely had/is having some rather concerning QC issues in both build and finish quality as it is not very consistent nor at the high standard that one should/would expect at this price level. Oh well, I still love me' Bell-Ti's though!

Thankfully, Wong Kuan Wae @ Blur was able to repair them for me. Besides a loose cable the true issue was that the right driver had completely failed due to a faulty driver voice coil. The driver is directly mounted to the inside of the titanium shell cap/front cover under very tight tolerance. With the aid of a watchmaker's loupe and very steady hands Wong successfully repaired the driver by extending the voice coil wires by soldering two (2) very tiny lengths of Litz OFC wire directly connecting them to the driver solder pads/points and the pillars. He also tightened the loose cable as well.

After repairing and testing, Wong discovered that the drivers are not matched very well. There is a 1dB difference in loudness between the left and right drivers. I had completely missed this imbalance before but I guess I can blame it on my poor hearing . If I listen carefully I can just barely discern (identify) the difference now.

COMFORT
Heavenly.

With the nightmare (driver failure) over I can now move on to say that these are the most comfortable earbuds I have ever owned and/or worn period. The small titanium shells remain cool here in the tropics and immediately disappears (I have rather small ears so I find it difficult to wear MX style shells for any length of time so prefer smaller shell types like PK or Bell). The cable, though very thin, is very supple... gracefully so, and has very minor, if any, microphonics. Probably, the second best earbud cable I have ever heard for low microphonics... coming right behind my PureSounds 醇声 PS100-600S "Pop Edition" (600Ω) which had the upgraded ultra-soft and ultra-quiet 600-core copper cable.

SOUND
Warm and gooey. Smooth as silk. Strangely yummy.

I had asked @ClieOS for his recommendation of a god-tier earbud that exhibited low fatigue for ultra-extended listening sessions and he offered "Bell-Ti 120Ω". Indeed! The Bell-Ti 120Ω has been extremely polite, friendly, and relaxing to my ears and with the music genre that I typically listen to (ambient electronic). Coupled with the superbly comfortable fit I can listen to these earbuds all day long without issue or complaint

Originally, I had thought they were balanced or neutral but with a very soft signature. I was wrong. It is now my personal opinion that these earbuds are not for critical listening. Their sound signature and tuning is actually really goofy but not necessarily in a bad way if you seek a super-mellow earbud! I have come to realize that they are rather mid-focused and although they exhibit excellent midrange resolution (detail & clarity) they are way too forward in presentation. I believe this forwardness is due to the loudness of the mid-bass and mid-range (~125Hz to 500Hz) overpowering (greatly) the higher frequencies above 2KHz... which is nice for those of us who are sensitive to bright & sibilant treble especially during extended listening sessions. A resulting negative is that the overall timbre and treble (higher frequencies) are inaccurate. The timbre is soft and "far away" and the treble is recessed. One would say it has a very forward position which adversely affects the soundstage making it feel distant while also sounding very close to one's ears. The sound signature is heard more "inside your head" and in many ways kind of like coming from "behind your head" if I am making any sense at all.

To sum it all up: the tuning is a complete disaster! And thus why I think these earbuds can not, and do not, offer that "reference sound" required for critical listening. With that said, I totally love 'em... go figure!

Spoiler: K's Bell-Ti 120Ω

Spoiler: Adapters & Cables

Here are some of the headphone adapters and audio extension cables that I use with my Bell-Ti earbuds.

Top: Ksearphone (K's) 3.5TRRS to 3.5SE Adapter Cable
Bottom: Venture Electronics (VE) 3.5TRRS to 2.5TRRS Adapter Cable


Top: XINHA HIFI Audio Headphone-Audio Extension Cable (2.5TRRS Female to 2.5TRRS Male; 75cm)
Bottom: Japanese No Name Brand Headphone-Audio Extension Cable (3.5SE Female to 3.5SE Male; 120cm)

Spoiler: Battleship Earbud Case

Ksearphone Bell-Ti 120Ω earbuds sitting on top of "Battleship Earbud" Case

This is a re-purposed watch travel case that I completely gutted and then re-applied cotton batting, thin foam padding, and black suede velvet. I also applied black suede velvet onto the outer bottom-side of the case. The top of the case was then decorated with vintage 1898 US Battleship Proprietary Revenue stamps (aka "Battleships") depicting the USS Maine sunk by an explosion in Havana Harbor, Havana, Cuba on 15 February 1898. These 120-year-old war tax stamps were affixed with three applications of decoupage glue followed by fifty thinly applied layers of acrylic polymer varnish which were lightly and finely sanded between coats, over a period of one month. I am still waiting for the varnish to completely cure before the final rub-out and polish.



Scott#RB23 5/8c Deep Ultramarine - US Proprietary "Battleship" Revenue Series of 1898
Engraved by Robert Ponickau. Frame engraved by Douglas S. Ronaldson.
These revenue stamps were issued to fund the Spanish–American War.


Painting of U.S.S. Maine by Frederick Nelson Atwood (1895); B&W Photograph circa 1897


Connected to a FiiO BTR5 via a 3.5mm Balanced to 3.5mm Unbalanced Adapter. You may spy a Meizu HiFi Pro DAC headAMP; FiiO L26 3.5mm Unbalanced to 2.5mm Balanced Adapter; FiiO BTR5; ddHiFi DD DJ35A 3.5mm Unbalanced to 2.5mm Balanced Adapter; and an awesome 3.5mm Unbalanced Audio Extension Cable that I bought many, many years ago in Japan.


Top Left: Crystalcore Audio Kryptonite 150Ω Balanced 2.5mm Top Right: •D•Q•S•M••A•u•d•i•o• Turandot 16Ω Balanced 2.5mm
Bottom Left: Blur 美魔女 Beautiful Witch "Dark" 300Ω by by Wong Kuan Wae Bottom Right: Smabat ST-10S Black-Gold 150Ω


Here is a pic of "Battleship Earbud" Case all ready for travel. So no, my earbuds do not travel loose within the case, but rather each in their own protective leather pouch

Well... bad news folks the right channel on my Ks Bell-Ti 120Ω is going... gone!
It started going out intermittently earlier today (either softening in volume and/or totally turning off) and it would correct if I wiggled and/or disconnected the plug. I thought it might be due to a bad adapter cable so I changed it with another one with the same results.
I think believe the wiring of the right driver was poorly soldered as now the right channel isn't working at all.

Yes, I definitely could but as I bought them from my buddy, Jim @ NiceHCK, I rather not hit him with this big headache at the moment... business is a critical point for him at the moment and this would hurt him badly in the wallet as he would have to cover the cost 100%. One of the dangers of selling mainland China brands as a dealer and buying as a customer.

At least I got a solid three (3) months and four (4) days of good use out of them !

I will have a "full report" of the issue posted on this here thread shortly.

Apparently, there have been a number of these "cable issues" reported over on the Chinese forums which I had completely missed before my purchase and of course heard about after-the-fact. Drats!

Not ignoring you good sir. I am patiently awaiting the following two (2) items before posting:

• additional feedback from some of our audiophile comrades over on erji.net and a few of the other Chinese audiophile forums
• return of my Ks Bell-Ti 120Ω earbuds expertly repaired by Wong @ Blur who refused to keep them due to their value but more so because he simply felt bad for me (yes, he is that stellar of a human being indeed!)

Damn, sorry about the bad luck there mate. I certainly know how that feels. When my Ks Bell-Ti 120's right driver went out on me I felt sick to my stomach.

Never fear, Wong will certainly sort it all out for you and promptly so as he truly stands by his buds . I know of only one confirmed complete driver failure and a few confirmed driver errors (mismatch or rattle) which Wong immediately replaced, repaired, retuned, and/or sorted out without question. So they do happen but fortunately for us we have Wong 'The Gentleman' always at hand to rectify. I have yet to know of any confirmed cable & connector failures to date which I find to be an absolutely astonishing feat for earbuds.

Well bad news folks... the left driver went out on me on my K's Temperament 钛铃 "Titanium Ling" Bell-Ti (120Ω) earbuds earlier today. As many of you might already be aware (see above) the right channel earbud had failed earlier on me months ago due to both shoddy cabling and a severe driver voice coil fault which Wong @ Blur managed to repair for me

I am definitely done with the brand as a whole now and contemplating if I should keep the brand as a whole on my God-Tier List still or not... might simply remove the Bell-Ti models altogether leaving the Bell-Blue and Bell-LBBs on the list with a QC warning. Although the Bell-Ti models have an excellent warm & relaxing signature I am reluctant to continue to recommend them in case others get burned.

 

[WoodyLuvr]

Haha it is preaching to the choir to ask on headfi "why are you buying more audio gear"?

That's like asking an alcoholic why are you drinking alcohol? I think we all need to see a shrink!

I assure you that we are fully in control, thank you very much. Who are we hurting? No one! So why the inquisition? Mind your own business! We are not as bad as you... you are the one with the real problem buddy not us! We can stop wanting and/or acquiring more earbuds at any time we choose, within a moment's notice if we please, completely without issue if we want to... apparently, unlike you. And unlike you, we actually deserve another pair of earbuds... or two... or three just like everyone else!