[ian91]

Hello Earbuds Experts! My brother is looking for something better than his airpod 2s and doesn't seem to want to go the IEM route... I have way less exposure to proper earbuds, beyond a bit of dabbling with the OG VE Monk 5 or 6 or more years back.

Are there any affordable (~sub $100) TWS earbuds on the market that would come head fi earbuds recommended? In terms of sound profile, he's looking for something more like the Koss KSC75s I gifted him a few years back, with the form factor of TWS.

Not really my gig but I've heard good things about the ZE8000.

 

[anli]

Hello Earbuds Experts! My brother is looking for something better than his airpod 2s and doesn't seem to want to go the IEM route... I have way less exposure to proper earbuds, beyond a bit of dabbling with the OG VE Monk 5 or 6 or more years back.

Are there any affordable (~sub $100) TWS earbuds on the market that would come head fi earbuds recommended? In terms of sound profile, he's looking for something more like the Koss KSC75s I gifted him a few years back, with the form factor of TWS.

I think about TRN BT30 mmcx + buds with detachable cable (probably Yincrow Calf to respect your limit, but others will suggest more).

 

[firesgt911]

I have been listening to these old, beat up CFA Orion’s with a Tripowin Grace at work and loving it! They sound so much better with a balanced cable, but the microphone is critical in the office. I run them through a Moondrop Dawn Pro through my iPhone, iPad or desktop, all on Spotify.

 

[trevdawg94]

Hello Earbuds Experts! My brother is looking for something better than his airpod 2s and doesn't seem to want to go the IEM route... I have way less exposure to proper earbuds, beyond a bit of dabbling with the OG VE Monk 5 or 6 or more years back.

Are there any affordable (~sub $100) TWS earbuds on the market that would come head fi earbuds recommended? In terms of sound profile, he's looking for something more like the Koss KSC75s I gifted him a few years back, with the form factor of TWS.

I think about TRN BT30 mmcx + buds with detachable cable (probably Yincrow Calf to respect your limit, but others will suggest more).

I have this combo and it's pretty good, but to me it's brighter and has less bass than the KSC75 (w/ Plantronics pads and Qudelix 5K source). I'm not sure which pads anli is using but the ones I have are much thicker than the stock ones so the driver sits further away from my ear which will affect the sound. From what I remember reading on the BT IEM Adapter thread the BT30 doesn't have a great mic but I haven't used the mic myself, so if he wants to make calls that might be an issue. On a good AliExpress sale you should be able to get the BT30 for $40 or less and the Calf for $50 or less so it fits in your budget.

I've been using Penon's PAC Earbud with Fiio's UTWS3 and listening to them and the KSC75 back to back they sound somewhat similar. The PAC is brighter than my KSC75's and vocals are more pronounced and somewhat harsh, but the bass is still present though somewhat reduced unlike the Calf. The UTWS3 is hard to get ahold of right now and costs more than the BT30, but the dedicated amp chip makes a lot of difference to the low end and it has a better mic. It does have some issues with the charging pins like the UTWS5 does but from what I've read it isn't nearly as bad. Fiio seems to have discontinued the UTWS3 as they don't sell it on their AliExpress store, but it's still available for $70 on Amazon and the PAC earbud can be had for as low as $35 from Penon Audio. It's just above your budget but it might be worth looking into.

 

[mt877]

After doing a couple high impedance builds I really wanted to do a low impedance build. Here's my latest build going back to the venerable MX500 shell with an 18Ω PU+Titanium composite driver. This is not a drag and drop build, though wasn't difficult to tune it. I have to say this low impedance driver is excellent and performs right up there with some of the high impedance bad boys.

Edit: I'll add this build to the D&D list.
15.4mm 18Ω PU+Titanium driver (includes shells)
3.5mmSE cable
Medium density tuning cotton (black foam horseshoe)
The chin slider is a plastic bead. I picked up a bag of assorted colored beads from the local arts and crafts store. They are cheap, look good and work great.

Put the tuning cotton on the shell. Face the VC at the top of the shell. That will give you a good start in the tuning. You can then use the foam "socks" to customize the sound further. More bass, go with thick full foams, want to increase the high end while having that thumping bass, use a donut foam. My preference is to use a thin full foam for best balance.

Edit: I found after burning in the drivers overnight (about 8 to 10 hours) the buds sound smoother. I guess something to try.

 

[fooltoque]

They did you a good favor because that's basically all you'll need; it's quite a bargain for that price. It's one of the reasons why I prefer shopping in those small mom-and-pop shops.

Akihabara used to be absolutely full of these small electronics shops, each with it's own specialization. Now it's more known for being "anime/maid cafe town", but there are still a few small pockets of the old shops. In 10 years they will probably be gone. End of an era.

 

[mt877]

Akihabara used to be absolutely full of these small electronics shops, each with it's own specialization. Now it's more known for being "anime/maid cafe town", but there are still a few small pockets of the old shops. In 10 years they will probably be gone. End of an era.

It will be a sad day when that happens. Japan is still hanging in there with the small specialty shops, but as you mentioned they are dwindling. I haven't been to Japan in 5 or 6 years, but every time I get to go, more things are disappearing.

 

[Rackhour]

So...I dunno if anyone has done this and shared it here, as I haven't been here in quite some time, but I finally got around to my modding experiment with the FiiO FF1, specifically the proprietary-lookalike cables.

Not the neatest job, but enough to plug cables in, and make this possible:

I can hear the sound, there are no buzzing or odd noises, and it works, at least in the technical sense. Fit is a bit off.

So basically FiiO pulled a Final Audio or Audeze with the cables and used physical barriers to make inter-compatibility not possible. But shaving that half-cm or so off does away with that. I still think it sucks this had to be done in the first place, but I think that general enthusiasts may find this info useful.

 

[Kyonnie]

Akihabara used to be absolutely full of these small electronics shops, each with it's own specialization. Now it's more known for being "anime/maid cafe town", but there are still a few small pockets of the old shops. In 10 years they will probably be gone. End of an era.

It will be a sad day when that happens. Japan is still hanging in there with the small specialty shops, but as you mentioned they are dwindling. I haven't been to Japan in 5 or 6 years, but every time I get to go, more things are disappearing.

First thing I remember when reading these There used to be a lot of these stores around, selling random things you couldn't even find online, very niche electronic parts, and such. They're always very friendly and helpful. The pandemic really did a number on these small businesses, plus the changing demographic makes it hard to stay afloat these days.

So...I dunno if anyone has done this and shared it here, as I haven't been here in quite some time, but I finally got around to my modding experiment with the FiiO FF1, specifically the proprietary-lookalike cables.



Not the neatest job, but enough to plug cables in, and make this possible:

I can hear the sound, there are no buzzing or odd noises, and it works, at least in the technical sense. Fit is a bit off.

So basically FiiO pulled a Final Audio or Audeze with the cables and used physical barriers to make inter-compatibility not possible. But shaving that half-cm or so off does away with that. I still think it sucks this had to be done in the first place, but I think that general enthusiasts may find this info useful.

Thank you for sharing! I've been thinking of doing this myself in the future with my FF3s when the provided cable finally gives up, but I think it'll be a little bit more difficult because it's made out of metal, but I will figure something out hopefully.

 

[qsk78]

Guys, could you please advise earbuds (TOTL or close to TOTL) with 2 pin 0.78 mm connectors?
I have some good cables left from IEM time (Plussound and Nobunaga Labs)...
Thanks.

 

[hiheaded]

Guys, could you please advise earbuds (TOTL or close to TOTL) with 2 pin 0.78 mm connectors?
I have some good cables left from IEM time (Plussound and Nobunaga Labs)...
Thanks.

Ksearphone db1, Db1e, dbx, @RikudouGoku gas3, yincrow 3000

 

[anli]

dbx

How does it differ from db1?

 

[DBaldock9]

Guys, could you please advise earbuds (TOTL or close to TOTL) with 2 pin 0.78 mm connectors?
I have some good cables left from IEM time (Plussound and Nobunaga Labs)...
Thanks.

Ksearphone db1, Db1e, dbx, @RikudouGoku gas3, yincrow 3000

Both the VE AOE (Asura 2.0s Omega Edition) and ZOE (Zen 2.0 Omega Edition) that I've got (from a few years ago), have 2-Pin 0.78mm connections - but it looks like Lee is only making a $50 MOE (Monk Omega Edition) right now. [ https://www.veclan.com/engappliance_sel_one?eng_ApplianceVo.eac_id=67 ]

 

[mt877]

How does it differ from db1?

More expensive and different shell materials. Damascus gold and titanium. Not sure if the shell is contributing to better sound.
https://www.aliexpress.com/i/3256805459418924.html

 

[anli]

More expensive and different shell materials. Damascus gold and titanium.

To tell the truth, I was interested in sounding rather than look and materials.
As for look - it is funny, I use black-and-white version of db1 (attached), and it looks as inversion of black-and-white version of dbx.