Earbuds Round-Up

[droenald]

Well, then please excuse my tone there! It would seem there has been a misunderstanding.
Here is what I believe: all the techniques of DIY can be found in the DIY thread if you take your time to unearth all of that. You could also read up parts of it and get an idea of how it works and then experiment and develop a style of your own, which might lead to you "inventing" stuff that has been done before.
I don't see any problem at all. You can find recipes for good sounding buds there, @mt877 has released build instructions for great sounding buds, you could as well just have at it with any given driver and 2-3 different shells and if you know the basic rules you will eventually end up with a good sounding bud, if you have ears that work properly!
All of the infos and teachings on the DIY thread are public domain and can be used by anyone. What is the problem with using these techniques to create a great sounding earbud that sounds so good, that people are willing to pay money for it?
In the end a bigger company does exactly the same thing. They create a shell, maybe they employ some bass tube there and they pair a driver with it and some tuning materials.
I created a bass tube in mx500 utilizing a shrink tube and superglue. It works and it was my idea. Can be color customized with different xolor if shrink tube even. . Maybe it has been done before. Dunno. Others use thin brass tubes and grind away parts of the shell to glue that in and it works. Eventually if I build a bud like that that sounds better than anything else I've bought I might want to sell the result!
People will decide with their wallet if something is worth the money or not... I somehow seem to be missing the whole point of the debate. Where is the problem?

 

[harishl20]

Where is the problem?

I'm waiting to understand this as well, i can't tell so far.

 

[tOMZY]

I created a bass tube in mx500 utilizing a shrink tube and superglue. It works and it was my idea. Can be color customized with different xolor if shrink tube even. . Maybe it has been done before. Dunno. Others use thin brass tubes and grind away parts of the shell to glue that in and it works. Eventually if I build a bud like that that sounds better than anything else I've bought I might want to sell the result!

Great! This makes you a creator and I would never question your asking price.

 

[droenald]

Great! This makes you a creator and I would never question your asking price.

Huh?!? Why?!? The concept of the bass tube is known and we have seen people post pics if their creations before? It's not new at all? It's just a mod to the MX 500 shell...

 

[tOMZY]

Yes, but at least you did something more than assembled some mass-produced parts which you got from Ali.
You said that you invented this yourself not knowing whether this had been done before.

 

[jeejack]

Come on, we've gone too far! We were talking about the exorbitant prices of some banal earbuds. If someone is ok with this price knowing that their value is small, very well, let them do it.

This is ridicoulous!!! Of course everyone benefits of knowledge they learn from somebody else. It's called studying in school and university, in a broader context we simply call it learning. That's one of the oldest cultural techniques. Without it we'd still be living in caves. Someone invented the wheel one day! Your argument is "someone else invented the wheel you are not allowed to use it, because you didn't invent it"

Come on bro...
Good example with the wheel, now we can all use it without any R&D
BTW... Happy easter everyone

 

[mt877]

Thank ya'!

That is good to know.

Yeah, true bone conduction is an amazing feat, and I wish they could increase the resolution a bit, because hearing a single BC driver (with no other drivers in your ears) isn't exactly amazing sounding. And I DO love that you can have your ears free to hear other things but not have to turn up the volume just to drown out ambient sounds (well, not as much as you would if you had buds IN your ears). Shokz is the brand I always think of (but can't remember the name of) when I think of BC. They are and have been a huge brand in BC.

Either way, if they (the Conductor) are as good as some of the reviewers make them out to be, I might rather enjoy them (even the gimmick aspect as well) ... ha-ha

LOL

That is a very good point you have there.

That is fantastic to hear! I am glad you not only don't have buyer's remorse but really enjoy it as well.

The M8T is the most expensive DAP I have so far and it hasn't disappointed after the latest fixes. Actually the audio was never a problem, the DAP had functionality issues which some people experienced and some people didn't.

So, with having two tube modes, does this mean that one mode is hybrid SS + tube and the other full tube mode, or is it like my iFi; one mode focuses on even harmonics, and the other focuses more on even AND odd (more on odd though), but both are fully discrete tube modes?

With my iFi the consensus is that tube mode 1 (even harmonics) is the best and has less overall effect (sounds like the "Ultra-Linear" you are describing), and most times I would agree. But, there are a few sets (e.g. Destiny) that just do it for me in tube mode 2 (even and odd harmonics, which seems like your description of "Triode Mode" on your DAP).

It doesn't have a hybrid mode, only straight solid state and the two tube modes, so three modes. I can't really say what (even / odd) harmonics are responsible for the tonality changes in triode or ultra-linear modes since Shanling doesn't publish that data and as far as I know nobody has graphed the output distortion of the tube modes. All I can say is that the triode mode offers some warmth, while ultra-linear offers both warmth and smoothness. Opamps are the final output in all three modes, so in that sense you could say the tube modes are hybrid, but I think this is discounted whenever the 3 modes are discussed.

Yes, but at least you did something more than assembled some mass-produced parts which you got from Ali.
You said that you invented this yourself not knowing whether this had been done before.

I will add a little to this discussion and for me it will end here. Even though I may assemble earbuds from mass-produced parts I purchased on AliExpress, I use my creativity to produce earbuds that have very good tonality. Much thought, experience and experimentation goes into creating good sounding buds from mass-produced components. Creativity comes into play for this to happen. If anyone says that I am just an assembler without recognizing the creative effort in my creations then I would not have any respect for them. I guess you could say that people that build my creations following the instructions I provided may be considered just assemblers as they just followed my recipe. Having said that, if anyone uses my builds as a basis and varies the build in any way, then they are making their own creative choices too. It is not a matter whether someone uses mass-produced components or builds something completely from scratch, creativity will always be part of the process.

 

[tOMZY]

The fact that I ordered the parts for the Destiny build speaks of my trust in your creativity.

 

[h8uthemost]

I don't know what this thread turned into, but Happy Easter everyone!

 

[prinzpudding]

Quick Impressions of the Moondrop Pavane

This one is quite hard to drive. When plugged into Q5K in Bluetooth mode (24mW @ 32 ohms), there’s barely any bass. I need to use Q5K in USB mode (80mW) for Pavane to sound properly.

The shells are made out of stainless steel - very premium and beautiful looking, however not as heavy as the Moondrop's previous earbuds (around 10g per side). With full foam or donut, these are comfortable, secure, and won’t fall out even while walking.

With full foam:

• Balanced sound across all three ranges; smooth, sweet, and easy to listen to.
• Full-bodied lower midrange gives male vocal and bass guitars a certain growl / grunt.
• Mid bass is punchy, but sub bass is quite weak and lacks rumble.
• Vocals and instruments are generally very clear and detailed; female vocal sounds full, textured, and full of emotion.
• Treble is smooth and not sibilant.
• Soundstage is moderately wide - better than IEMs but still not quite on par with headphones or certain soundstage-focused earbuds; good imaging.

With donut foam(recommended by Moondrop):

• Brighter and emotion-packed.
• Lower mids are still fairly textured, but vocal isn't as thick as with full foam, so rock/metal tracks may lack aggressiveness.
• Mid bass is enough to keep rhythm, still punchy when needed, but otherwise not spectacular.
• Vocal and instruments are crystal-clear, detailed, and sharp - can get a bit hot at times.
• Female vocals are extremely satisfying at higher registers.
• Treble is sparkly, slightly sibilant with some harsh vocals.
• Soundstage is very wide - comparable to headphones.

Without foam:

• Weaker than Blessing 2 in the bass, very bright, fairly sibilant, and vocal sounds thin.
• Wide soundstage but feels lacking - some elements are stretched too far away.

When plugged into the TA-22, the mid bass hits harder, and the soundstage expands a bit.

 

[sofastreamer]

A newbie to this thread. Just wanted to check. Are discussions here that diss and roast the other always like this or is it a Easter thingy?!

nah, usually this thread is all about helping each other. this is a rare and open minded community within the audio community

 

[sapporo444]

I ran out of foams (), so I've been using my BGVP DX7 without them while Fiio finally decides to fix my Q15, so I can send it all in a single parcel.

Anyway, I really, really like them without foams - I feel like the imaging is pretty good; the bass (still punchy to me) and soundstage take a hit, yeah, but it's not that noticeable compared with worn down foams. The sound is very clear (no sign of muddiness) and non-fatiguing, imo; very similar to the HD560s.

I really like these.

 

[mt877]

Seems there's a new innovative design of earbuds by Tiandirenhe.

Tiandirenhe TD26

The driver is mounted in the main housing rather than the traditional position.

A: Air Compression Zone B: Horn Diffusion Zone C: Reflective Human Ear Area
Principle
The diaphragm pushes the air to compress in the A-zone and emit it to the B-zone for energy transfer and expansion. Then through the C area of the reflection to the soundmouth to concentrate the energy into the ear canal.

 

[dykzei]

Seems there's a new innovative design of earbuds by Tiandirenhe.

Tiandirenhe TD26

The driver is mounted in the main housing rather than the traditional position.

A: Air Compression Zone B: Horn Diffusion Zone C: Reflective Human Ear Area
Principle
The diaphragm pushes the air to compress in the A-zone and emit it to the B-zone for energy transfer and expansion. Then through the Careaof the reflection to the soundmouth to concentrate the energy into the ear canal.

Oh this looks like IEM with nozzle replaced by flat head grille, wonder what will keep it the same position while eating my succulent Chinese meal

 

[sapporo444]

Seems there's a new innovative design of earbuds by Tiandirenhe.

They look like IEMs, interesting design. I wonder if the outer shells block out noise better than the common ones.