Effect Audio x Elysian Acoustic Labs New Release | PILGRIM:NOIR - Dark Sophistication

[pawdiophile]

If it's a well-designed & well-engineered product, then I wish it well, but pretentious marketing like this just makes me cringe.

I understand your concerns about marketing language sometimes sounding over the top, but the Noir seems to be delivering based on online reviews.

I don't see anything wrong with what they wrote. Marketing is about creating a story and adding value to a brand after all. Without these elements, the Noir might seem just like any other piece of audio gear. EA probably intended the storytelling aspect to be more engaging for their audience.

It is a very efficient marketing trick. You overblown every aspect with a tech or historical content.

Many luxury brands across various industries use similar strategies but people still buy from them

In the end, marketing is about connecting with the audience, and different people connect in different ways. The way I see it is if the product performs well and meets/ exceeds expectations, then the branding and story are part of what makes it special and enjoyable.

I personally don't hate it and wouldn't call it 'pretentious,' but to each their own.

 

[BlueA]

Noir is a very good product, not doubt about it!
I do not want to discourage anyone from buying it, on the contrary.

But I tell the story on the story and I've come to find that this hobby has more to
do with psychology than anything else.

Even you are using language elements of a company,
like I said some people need being told stories, they crave for it.
companies only need EBITDA.

A good story to a good listener multiply margin.
EA has always been one of the best actor on the market and they really helped Elysian to level up.

 

[EnigmaFotos]

Just posted my written review here

Really enjoy the Noir

 

[NewEve]

Catch and release here, with a few caveats going both ways. Keep on reading

I found the Effect Audio X Elysian Acoustic Labs Pilgrim:Noir to be a much better value than the Campfire Audio Black Star which I eventually returned.

They will make a very good first foray into the 500-1000/sub-kilobuck range while punching above their price point.

For this price you will also get a cable with swappable terminations — on both ends if you please.

While the cable is on the thick side, it still is well made and many will appreciate it a great deal though, for me, it was a tad overbuilt.

The nozzles are unfortunately on the very thick side as well. Think Oriolus-thick so, unfortunately a no-go for me, hence the release.

Last but not least, it is a very coherent hybrid making good use of all its drivers and respective strengths which are character traits I believe to be under-appreciated in the hobby.

While not highly recommended due to the aforementioned points for me, it’s still a set I’d recommend to most looking for a well-manufactured, well-balanced, IEM which will steer clear of glaring issues.

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Catch and release here, with a few caveats going both ways. Keep on reading

I found the Effect Audio X Elysian Acoustic Labs Pilgrim:Noir to be a much better value than the Campfire Audio Black Star which I eventually returned.

They will make a very good first foray into the 500-1000/sub-kilobuck range while punching above their price point.

For this price you will also get a cable with swappable terminations — on both ends if you please.

While the cable is on the thick side, it still is well made and many will appreciate it a great deal though for me it was a tad overbuilt.

The nozzles are unfortunately on the very thick side as well. Think Oriolus-thick so, unfortunately a no-go for me, hence the release.

Last but not least, it is a very coherent hybrid making good use of all its drivers and respective strengths which are character traits I believe to be under-appreciated in the hobby.

While not highly recommended due to the aforementioned points for me, it’s still a set I’d recommend to most looking for a well-manufactured, well-balanced, IEM which will steer clear of glaring issues.

Thanks, dude! Appreciate the compliments and the recommendations to your buddies. Understand it's not for everyone with the fit!

 

[Danx3k]

I purchased the Noir about 2-3 weeks ago from Musictek. The service was excellent and Andrew is a gent and a pleasure to deal with. My impressions are my own and I’m not under any obligation to say anything positive.

I previously owned the OG Pilgrim and thought it was a wonderful iem for the price, with the only really negative being it could sound a little dry. Prior to owning the Noir, I never really saw the appeal, it seems like a substantial increase in price for a minor tuning change, black finish and a more expensive cable.

Anyway, I attended CanJam in London and was curious to try the Noir, amongst other iem’s on my ‘must listen to’ list.

As soon as I tried the Noir, I knew I needed to purchase it to replace my OG set. It’s not worlds apart, but it just sounded so much more natural, with a bit more body and weight giving a sense of overall more refinement, correcting the only real weakness I felt the OG had.

Anyway, since the Noir has arrived, I’ve enjoyed it very much every day. Not only does it look great, but sounds wonderful. Whilst the treble presentation is on the relaxing side, it’s still detailed and resolving with good extension.

It has really good imaging, lovely impactful bass, that never bleeds into the mids -but also manages to sound natural and never dry or analytical.

A/b’ing it to my Mega5est it’s not too disimilar with both going for a warm-neutral sound/presentation, however the Noir is more detailed with better resolution and imaging. So for me it’s easily worth the price increase vs the Mega5est.

Versus the Dunu Mirai which I’ve had for about six months now and isn’t too far above it in price, I’d say they’re comparable with the Mirai being a bit more laid back with the stage being a bit wider and pushed back stage. Whilst the Noir having more forward mids and vocals in particular. The Mirai also has more elevated upper treble, whilst exciting and creating a sense of more air and detail, also sounds a little
artificial. The Noir still has really solid treble extension but comes across more natural in comparison.

They’ve both wonderful iem’s, that achieve a relaxing sound presentation that are so resolving with good technicalities. I can’t really pick between them.

Some people have had issues with the fit, and with the OG I did too, until I used keyboard o-rings to extend how far out the eartips will extend.

However, I’ve since purchased some eletech baroque ear tips, and I’ve found that with the Noir, they fit me great, giving a good seal, without the need for the o-rings. They also suit the Noir aesthetically really well too.

The biggest competitor and issue with the Noir is the OG exists for half the price. Is the Noir better than the OG? For me, yes undoubtedly. Although some people will prefer the OG and I respect that. However is it worth twice the cost of the OG, the simple answer is no, no it’s not.

However, anyone who’s been in the hobby long enough and tried various iem’s across various price ranges know that diminishing returns exist. So whilst it’s not twice as good, for me at least, it is worth the price increase (over the OG).

The best way to fairly assess the Noir is in isolation, and for me it’s absolutely worth its price compared to what I’ve heard around it's price. It also benefits from coming included with a quality cable and looks great in all black with gold

So what I would say for anyone interested in this set, give it a try and don’t be put off by the fact that the OG is half the price,
the Noir is a wonderful iem, and one of my favourite sets that I’ve owned.

 

[German Expat in Vietnam]

Have any of you by chance tried the Pilgrim Noir with the Shanling M7?

 

[tombrisbane]

Just wanted to share my experience with these, I have a large collection of IEM's (>100) and really thought these would be another one which would go into rotation like my other top 20 or so. Oh, how wrong I was.

I'd had the Pilgrim OG for a little while and really wasn't expecting a massive difference, maybe a little more refined, but this to me is a significant step up in how they present music to you. Pilgrim OG is pretty great at it's price point, and I was using it as my EDC as it's play everything well (so probably four days a week when I'm in the office), but the Noir has a special something in the sound which elevates it up. I guess that it must nearly perfectly match my preferences, when I have these in I don't want to take them out. I've used them every single day since I got them which hasn't happened with an IEM in a long while. They sound great from everything I tried them with and do scale quite well, listening to them right at this moment out of my Sony NW-WM1ZM2 and it leaves me wanting absolutely nothing else, just a beautiful musical experience where you forget that you're listening to music through audio gear. I get a similar experience when I listen to Aura but that's obviously at quite a different price point!

If anyone is on the fence around OG vs Noir, go Noir if you can afford it, I really don't think you'd regret its, and perhaps it'll tick nearly all of your boxes like it has for me. Getting Noir has killed off my IEM acquisition desire for a while (which hasn't saved me any money, I've just directed it to other gear lol), but again the last thing to do that for me was Aura.

Also, just a shout out to MusicTeck, I purchased these through them and they were delivered to Australia extremely quickly, awesome service as always!

 

[German Expat in Vietnam]

The Pilgrim Noir and Cayin N7 go very well together. Fantastic synergy. I love it.