[Metalomaniac]

I'm a little confused. Who has the "cracked" unit @Metalomaniac or @Loke13? Is one sending it in on behalf of the other or? Either ways please DM me your name and the tracking number so I can keep tabs on it personally. Sometimes with photos it can be difficult to tell exactly what's going on so we often ask for the unit to be sent in for further evaluation. I hear you and rest assured i'll have the process expedited once I know when I can expect it and whom i'm expecting it from.

Loke13 will be sending it tomorrow.

 

[mungster]

I would say cracks on a $1700 IEM is most definitely not part of "owning an acrylic IEM." These are not some self-destructing Banksy pieces of art, but high end consumer products meant to last decades. Or so I thought when I clicked on the dotted line.

Only Sony products last for decades. Lol

 

[InstantSilence]

Had the chance to listen for 3 EE iems today, as I may be in the market.
I was underwhelmed to find them shouty and fatiguing

 

[mungster]

Had the chance to listen for 3 EE iems today, as I may be in the market.
I was underwhelmed to find them shouty and fatiguing

Which one you talking about? Most ee iem Have very good tuning. Are you sure you didn't wander in the Chi-fi section by mistake?

 

[gnahra]

I'm a little confused. Who has the "cracked" unit @Metalomaniac or @Loke13? Is one sending it in on behalf of the other or? Either ways please DM me your name and the tracking number so I can keep tabs on it personally. Sometimes with photos it can be difficult to tell exactly what's going on so we often ask for the unit to be sent in for further evaluation. I hear you and rest assured i'll have the process expedited once I know when I can expect it and whom i'm expecting it from.

This is great - y’all shouldn’t paper over this. Excellent customer service is a rarity these days.
This particular issue has nothing to do with me, but I applaud you, @Jack Vang for stepping in to help!

 

[InstantSilence]

Which one you talking about? Most ee iem Have very good tuning. Are you sure you didn't wander in the Chi-fi section by mistake?

Tried a Zeus drop edition, valkirie (I think I'm spelling it wrong)
But the biggest dissapoitment was the Wrath or whatever. It was the most underwhelming, compared to its marketing of the new technologies used it in. I heard them with Hugo 2 and also a WM1Z. Just wanted a very resolving yet non fatiguing sound and while some of those were decently revealing (nothing too extraordinary), all failed on the fatiguing.
Briefly tried the legend x but as I'm not a fan of bassy iems, I didn't enjoy it, but it did do bass good.
Fit was great on all of them

 

[GiullianSN]

Buy the new totl now and then quit headfi, you will not know if there are new totl coming out

I'm almost doing that...quit Head-fi until I get completely bored of my gear.

 

[Sifo]

My custom valks have hairline cracks on both shells as well, can be felt with a nail. I got them in February, picked up at CanJam NYC, doesn't really bother since it doesn't affect anything. I haven't dropped them at all and swear I have been babying them ever since. Perhaps when I was wiping the shell off with a cloth I put too much pressure, not sure.

 

[GiullianSN]

My custom valks have hairline cracks on both shells as well, can be felt with a nail. I got them in February, picked up at CanJam NYC, doesn't really bother since it doesn't affect anything. I haven't dropped them at all and swear I have been babying them ever since. Perhaps when I was wiping the shell off with a cloth I put too much pressure, not sure.

For the Valkyrie, if the "crack" is right on the split between faceplate and shell, that is because of the dragonhyde layer. I had that since day one. looks like a crack.

 

[CL14715]

First and foremost what a wild past 2 days.. Drove 9 hours to North Georgia with aspirations to visit Empire Ears expecting a quick tour and audition of the Odin, Hero and others in the line up.. Then drive back 9 hours home. What actually happened when I got to Empire Ears today was well beyond anything I could’ve anticipated.

I will begin by just putting it out there that @JoshWatkins , @Jack Vang and Dean Vang are incredibly humble and friendly people. Their attention to detail and going above and beyond to accommodate me was mind numbing; I’ve never felt so welcome and comfortable in any establishment to date. Josh just kept bringing me IEM’s to try as he educated me on various aspects of the products, not in a sales pitch fashion either which was appreciated. It was more or less just listen and relax while Josh kept showering me with free merchandise. Seriously, I left with a bag full of it. He even loaded up my Fiancé with stuff.

Then while auditioning the Hero and Odin, Josh walked in and explained to me that @Andrew DiMarcangelo from www.bloomaudio.com went above and beyond and actually had them allocate an Odin for me that I could take home, if I wanted to purchase it. Josh made it abundantly clear that this was Andrew’s doing and he persisted to allow them to do so until they agreed. Josh also made it clear there was no pressure to do so regardless of the gracious offer. This was quite the surprise… people are chomping at the bit to get their hands on Odin and I was given the opportunity to do so immediately. Andrew is quite the gentleman and bloomaudio.com has seriously exceeded any and all expectations I have ever had as a consumer. I am not sponsored by Empire Ears, Bloom Audio and I was not asked to endorse either in return for anything. These are my own feelings coming from the purest possible place.

So, what the hell did I do about it? I guess I’ll explain my experiences with Hero and Odin first.

I listened to the Hero first, per Josh’s recommendation.

Side note, the white and black is gorgeous in person. The white has a marble like deep shimmer to it in certain light and it’s just awesome to look at. Fit is great for me as are all Empire Ears offerings.

So going into it, I realized there’s not much info out there about how these bad boys sound so I had no idea what to think. It took about 20 seconds to realize they are going to OWN the $999 to $1699 market with these. Goodbye Andromeda, Goodbye Solaris, Goodbye Nio and any other imposter hanging around this price range. To be fair and transparent, the Hero even makes the Valkyrie irrelevant and might replace the LX for some. I haven’t heard the MK2 models so this could change soon. Unless fit is an issue, which is something I cannot predict for you, there’s no reason to bother with the aforementioned. None.

Bass: Medium to heavy bass presence but done well and not over-powering. They have a similar to a bit less bass presence of Valkyrie but I think better executed. It’s more controlled and extended. It’s not there when it’s not supposed to be.

Mids: Extremely full bodied and clarity for days. Vocals are right where they should be and have spot on timbre. Empire Ears killed it here… seriously.

Treble: Super smooth and etched just enough to be detailed and present without fatiguing. Just as good as any Campfire offering which is what some of them are known for specifically. Really well done.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and coherent. Everything blends well but leaves enough separation to still have nice layering. I don’t foresee anything coming through as bloated. They responded well to everything I threw at them. Insane value for the price point. Musical-easy listening perfected.

The mighty ODIN… you have to see this things in person. Sheeeesh!

After first hearing the HERO and how well it performed I was nervous the ODIN was going to be underwhelming. NOOOOPE… The ODIN is the equivalent of a high end floor speaker array in an acoustically engineered room. You might as well be in the studio with the band, artist or engineer. Micro detail in every frequency range. They provide a resolution that isn’t easily replicated.

Bass: Very deep and executed with precision of delivery. It is there when it is supposed to be and not when it isn’t. It’s not the bass monster the Legend X is but it shares the sub bass depth and keeps the mid bass clean but present. Those who like reference bass will love these… by reference I mean how it’s supposed to sound; lifelike. Not a flat snooze fest reference.

Mids: Crisp, clear and loaded with detail / accuracy. Most impressive mid range I have ever heard. It’s not lush and warm, it’s just dead accurate in a natural sounding way.

Treble: I listened to the Wraith while I was there and found the treble to be quite impressive once a powerful source was utilized. If the source sucked, so did the Wraiths treble (and the rest of it for that matter). The ODIN retains this powerfully immense treble to the likes of the Wraith, just without the source dependency. It’s bright and detailed enough to impress but not harsh or peaky. I’m now biased against anything but electrostatic treble. Not even the tia tubeless stuff hit’s this quality to me.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and grand. Layered, micro-detailed and expansive with everything I listened to. Dean Vang came in and said he can’t listen to anything else immediately after ODIN and I can understand why.

If you’re still reading this you deserve one of those Headfi badges in your profile but I hope I at least answered as many questions as I foresaw coming my way after many knew I was auditioning Empire Ears lineup. I’m sure there will be more and I am happy to assist. The only remaining question I haven’t answered was, what did I decide on? Despite the long winded post, this particular part deserves recognition at length: After it all, I told Josh I was going to go through with purchasing the Odin as I am sure they anticipated I would after hearing how bad ass it is. Then I asked what about the Hero? what if I wanted that as well? He wasn’t sure as they were thin on product after this massive launch but sprang to action… about 30 minutes later to my surprise, Dean Vang walked in with a Hero he personally took from production and QC’ed himself !! He asked me to listen to it to make sure I was satisfied and I did just that. I laughed when he asked and thought who the hell am I to tell you if the IEM you designed and quality control tested sounded as it was supposed to… Long story short I am now the proud owner of the ODIN ANNND HERO!

Another huge shoutout to Dean and Jack Vang, Josh Watkins and Andrew DiMarcengelo.. you guys are all top notch and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I also want make an honorable mention to the Empire Ears crew… all super professional and hard working. They have a great team over there and it really quells the price to purchase pain seeing the massive undertaking to produce these audio devices at this level.

 

[gnahra]

First and foremost what a wild past 2 days.. Drove 9 hours to North Georgia with aspirations to visit Empire Ears expecting a quick tour and audition of the Odin, Hero and others in the line up.. Then drive back 9 hours home. What actually happened when I got to Empire Ears today was well beyond anything I could’ve anticipated.

I will begin by just putting it out there that Josh Watkins, Jack Vang and Dean Vang are incredibly humble and friendly people. Their attention to detail and going above and beyond to accommodate me was mind numbing; I’ve never felt so welcome and comfortable in any establishment to date. Josh just kept bringing me IEM’s to try as he educated me on various aspects of the products, not in a sales pitch fashion either which was appreciated. It was more or less just listen and relax while Josh kept showering me with free merchandise. Seriously, I left with a bag full of it. He even loaded up my Fiancé with stuff.

Then while auditioning the Hero and Odin, Josh walked in and explained to me that Andrew from www.bloomaudio.com went above and beyond and actually had them allocate an Odin for me that I could take home, if I wanted to purchase it. Josh made it abundantly clear that this was Andrew’s doing and he persisted to allow them to do so until they agreed. Josh also made it clear there was no pressure to do so regardless of the gracious offer. This was quite the surprise… people are chomping at the bit to get their hands on Odin and I was given the opportunity to do so immediately. Andrew is quite the gentleman and bloomaudio.com has seriously exceeded any and all expectations I have ever had as a consumer. I am not sponsored by Empire Ears, Bloom Audio and I was not asked to endorse either in return for anything. These are my own feelings coming from the purest possible place.

So, what the hell did I do about it? I guess I’ll explain my experiences with Hero and Odin first.

I listened to the Hero first, per Josh’s recommendation.

Side note, the white and black is gorgeous in person. The white has a marble like deep shimmer to it in certain light and it’s just awesome to look at. Fit is great for me as are all Empire Ears offerings.

So going into it, I realized there’s not much info out there about how these bad boys sound so I had no idea what to think. It took about 20 seconds to realize they are going to OWN the $999 to $1699 market with these. Goodbye Andromeda, Goodbye Solaris, Goodbye Nio and any other imposter hanging around this price range. Unless fit is an issue, which is something I cannot predict for you, there’s no reason to bother with the aforementioned. None.

Bass: Medium to heavy bass presence but done well and not over-powering. They have a similar to a bit less bass presence of Valkyrie but I think better executed. It’s more controlled and extended. It’s not there when it’s not supposed to be.

Mids: Extremely full bodied and clarity for days. Vocals are right where they should be and have spot on timbre. Empire Ears killed it here… seriously.

Treble: Super smooth and etched just enough to be detailed and present without fatiguing. Just as good as any Campfire offering which is what some of them are known for specifically. Really well done.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and coherent. Everything blends well but leaves enough separation to still have nice layering. I don’t foresee anything coming through as bloated. They responded well to everything I threw at them. Insane value for the price point. Musical-easy listening perfected.

The mighty ODIN… you have to see this things in person. Sheeeesh!

After first hearing the HERO and how well it performed I was nervous the ODIN was going to be underwhelming. NOOOOPE… The ODIN is the equivalent of a high end floor speaker array in an acoustically engineered room. You might as well be in the studio with the band, artist or engineer. Micro detail in every frequency range. They provide a resolution that isn’t easily replicated.

Bass: Very deep and executed with precision of delivery. It is there when it is supposed to be and not when it isn’t. It’s not the bass monster the Legend X is but it shares the sub bass depth and keeps the mid bass clean but present. Those who like reference bass will love these… by reference I mean how it’s supposed to sound; lifelike. Not a flat snooze fest reference.

Mids: Crisp, clear and loaded with detail / accuracy. Most impressive mid range I have ever heard. It’s not lush and warm, it’s just dead accurate in a natural sounding way.

Treble: I listened to the Wraith while I was there and found the treble to be quite impressive once a powerful source was utilized. If the source sucked, so did the Wraiths treble (and the rest of it for that matter). The ODIN retains this powerfully immense treble to the likes of the Wraith, just without the source dependency. It’s bright and detailed enough to impress but not harsh or peaky. I’m now biased against anything but electrostatic treble. Not even the tia tubeless stuff hit’s this quality to me.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and grand. Layered, micro-detailed and expansive with everything I listened to. Dean Vang came in and said he can’t listen to anything else immediately after ODIN and I can understand why.

If you’re still reading this you deserve one of those Headfi badges in your profile but I hope I at least answered as many questions as I foresaw coming my way after many knew I was auditioning Empire Ears lineup. I’m sure there will be more and I am happy to assist. The only remaining question I haven’t answered was, what did I decide on? Despite the long winded post, this particular part deserves recognition at length: After it all, I told Josh I was going to go through with purchasing the Odin as I am sure they anticipated I would after hearing how bad ass it is. Then I asked what about the Hero? what if I wanted that as well? He wasn’t sure as they were thin on product after this massive launch but sprang to action… about 30 minutes later to my surprise, Dean Vang walked in with a Hero he personally took from production and QC’ed himself !! He asked me to listen to it to make sure I was satisfied and I did just that. I laughed when he asked and thought who the hell am I to tell you if the IEM you designed and quality control tested sounded as it was supposed to… Long story short I am now the proud owner of the ODIN ANNND HERO!

Another huge shoutout to Dean and Jack Vang, Josh Watkins and Andrew DiMarcengelo.. you guys are all top notch and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I also want make an honorable mention to the Empire Ears crew… all super professional and hard working. They have a great team over there and it really quells the price to purchase pain seeing the massive undertaking to produce these audio devices at this level.

Awesome impressions, thanks for taking the time.
and massive kudos to @Jack Vang and the EE crew and @Andrew DiMarcangelo
Class acts all around
Congrats on your new babies!

 

[Andrew DiMarcangelo]

@CL14715, bro, that sounds like an absolutely incredible trip! So excited for you. The Empire Ears team is so freaking cool.

Thank you so much for the kind words. I'm thrilled you were able to get Odin and Hero early, and directly from their HQ!

And oh mannnn, your impressions have me pumped! We get Odin and Hero in our office tomorrow and I can't wait!

 

[Sifo]

For the Valkyrie, if the "crack" is right on the split between faceplate and shell, that is because of the dragonhyde layer. I had that since day one. looks like a crack.

nah is along the canal tips, the area id probably use the most pressure when cleaning.

My custom Valks don't use the dragon hide plate either

First and foremost what a wild past 2 days.. Drove 9 hours to North Georgia with aspirations to visit Empire Ears expecting a quick tour and audition of the Odin, Hero and others in the line up.. Then drive back 9 hours home. What actually happened when I got to Empire Ears today was well beyond anything I could’ve anticipated.

I will begin by just putting it out there that @JoshWatkins , @Jack Vang and Dean Vang are incredibly humble and friendly people. Their attention to detail and going above and beyond to accommodate me was mind numbing; I’ve never felt so welcome and comfortable in any establishment to date. Josh just kept bringing me IEM’s to try as he educated me on various aspects of the products, not in a sales pitch fashion either which was appreciated. It was more or less just listen and relax while Josh kept showering me with free merchandise. Seriously, I left with a bag full of it. He even loaded up my Fiancé with stuff.

Then while auditioning the Hero and Odin, Josh walked in and explained to me that @Andrew DiMarcangelo from www.bloomaudio.com went above and beyond and actually had them allocate an Odin for me that I could take home, if I wanted to purchase it. Josh made it abundantly clear that this was Andrew’s doing and he persisted to allow them to do so until they agreed. Josh also made it clear there was no pressure to do so regardless of the gracious offer. This was quite the surprise… people are chomping at the bit to get their hands on Odin and I was given the opportunity to do so immediately. Andrew is quite the gentleman and bloomaudio.com has seriously exceeded any and all expectations I have ever had as a consumer. I am not sponsored by Empire Ears, Bloom Audio and I was not asked to endorse either in return for anything. These are my own feelings coming from the purest possible place.

So, what the hell did I do about it? I guess I’ll explain my experiences with Hero and Odin first.

I listened to the Hero first, per Josh’s recommendation.

Side note, the white and black is gorgeous in person. The white has a marble like deep shimmer to it in certain light and it’s just awesome to look at. Fit is great for me as are all Empire Ears offerings.

So going into it, I realized there’s not much info out there about how these bad boys sound so I had no idea what to think. It took about 20 seconds to realize they are going to OWN the $999 to $1699 market with these. Goodbye Andromeda, Goodbye Solaris, Goodbye Nio and any other imposter hanging around this price range. Unless fit is an issue, which is something I cannot predict for you, there’s no reason to bother with the aforementioned. None.

Bass: Medium to heavy bass presence but done well and not over-powering. They have a similar to a bit less bass presence of Valkyrie but I think better executed. It’s more controlled and extended. It’s not there when it’s not supposed to be.

Mids: Extremely full bodied and clarity for days. Vocals are right where they should be and have spot on timbre. Empire Ears killed it here… seriously.

Treble: Super smooth and etched just enough to be detailed and present without fatiguing. Just as good as any Campfire offering which is what some of them are known for specifically. Really well done.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and coherent. Everything blends well but leaves enough separation to still have nice layering. I don’t foresee anything coming through as bloated. They responded well to everything I threw at them. Insane value for the price point. Musical-easy listening perfected.

The mighty ODIN… you have to see this things in person. Sheeeesh!

After first hearing the HERO and how well it performed I was nervous the ODIN was going to be underwhelming. NOOOOPE… The ODIN is the equivalent of a high end floor speaker array in an acoustically engineered room. You might as well be in the studio with the band, artist or engineer. Micro detail in every frequency range. They provide a resolution that isn’t easily replicated.

Bass: Very deep and executed with precision of delivery. It is there when it is supposed to be and not when it isn’t. It’s not the bass monster the Legend X is but it shares the sub bass depth and keeps the mid bass clean but present. Those who like reference bass will love these… by reference I mean how it’s supposed to sound; lifelike. Not a flat snooze fest reference.

Mids: Crisp, clear and loaded with detail / accuracy. Most impressive mid range I have ever heard. It’s not lush and warm, it’s just dead accurate in a natural sounding way.

Treble: I listened to the Wraith while I was there and found the treble to be quite impressive once a powerful source was utilized. If the source sucked, so did the Wraiths treble (and the rest of it for that matter). The ODIN retains this powerfully immense treble to the likes of the Wraith, just without the source dependency. It’s bright and detailed enough to impress but not harsh or peaky. I’m now biased against anything but electrostatic treble. Not even the tia tubeless stuff hit’s this quality to me.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and grand. Layered, micro-detailed and expansive with everything I listened to. Dean Vang came in and said he can’t listen to anything else immediately after ODIN and I can understand why.

If you’re still reading this you deserve one of those Headfi badges in your profile but I hope I at least answered as many questions as I foresaw coming my way after many knew I was auditioning Empire Ears lineup. I’m sure there will be more and I am happy to assist. The only remaining question I haven’t answered was, what did I decide on? Despite the long winded post, this particular part deserves recognition at length: After it all, I told Josh I was going to go through with purchasing the Odin as I am sure they anticipated I would after hearing how bad ass it is. Then I asked what about the Hero? what if I wanted that as well? He wasn’t sure as they were thin on product after this massive launch but sprang to action… about 30 minutes later to my surprise, Dean Vang walked in with a Hero he personally took from production and QC’ed himself !! He asked me to listen to it to make sure I was satisfied and I did just that. I laughed when he asked and thought who the hell am I to tell you if the IEM you designed and quality control tested sounded as it was supposed to… Long story short I am now the proud owner of the ODIN ANNND HERO!

Another huge shoutout to Dean and Jack Vang, Josh Watkins and Andrew DiMarcengelo.. you guys are all top notch and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I also want make an honorable mention to the Empire Ears crew… all super professional and hard working. They have a great team over there and it really quells the price to purchase pain seeing the massive undertaking to produce these audio devices at this level.

I had a very similar experience when I flew down to visit. Really awesome people. Glad you had a good time and left with some goodies

 

[CL14715]

@CL14715, bro, that sounds like an absolutely incredible trip! So excited for you. The Empire Ears team is so freaking cool.

Thank you so much for the kind words. I'm thrilled you were able to get Odin and Hero early, and directly from their HQ!

And oh mannnn, your impressions have me pumped! We get Odin and Hero in our office tomorrow and I can't wait!

All well deserved after your wizardry just for little ol‘ me!

Just don‘t make any plans tomorrow lol. You’re gonna be busy for a while.

 

[mwhals]

First and foremost what a wild past 2 days.. Drove 9 hours to North Georgia with aspirations to visit Empire Ears expecting a quick tour and audition of the Odin, Hero and others in the line up.. Then drive back 9 hours home. What actually happened when I got to Empire Ears today was well beyond anything I could’ve anticipated.

I will begin by just putting it out there that @JoshWatkins , @Jack Vang and Dean Vang are incredibly humble and friendly people. Their attention to detail and going above and beyond to accommodate me was mind numbing; I’ve never felt so welcome and comfortable in any establishment to date. Josh just kept bringing me IEM’s to try as he educated me on various aspects of the products, not in a sales pitch fashion either which was appreciated. It was more or less just listen and relax while Josh kept showering me with free merchandise. Seriously, I left with a bag full of it. He even loaded up my Fiancé with stuff.

Then while auditioning the Hero and Odin, Josh walked in and explained to me that @Andrew DiMarcangelo from www.bloomaudio.com went above and beyond and actually had them allocate an Odin for me that I could take home, if I wanted to purchase it. Josh made it abundantly clear that this was Andrew’s doing and he persisted to allow them to do so until they agreed. Josh also made it clear there was no pressure to do so regardless of the gracious offer. This was quite the surprise… people are chomping at the bit to get their hands on Odin and I was given the opportunity to do so immediately. Andrew is quite the gentleman and bloomaudio.com has seriously exceeded any and all expectations I have ever had as a consumer. I am not sponsored by Empire Ears, Bloom Audio and I was not asked to endorse either in return for anything. These are my own feelings coming from the purest possible place.

So, what the hell did I do about it? I guess I’ll explain my experiences with Hero and Odin first.

I listened to the Hero first, per Josh’s recommendation.

Side note, the white and black is gorgeous in person. The white has a marble like deep shimmer to it in certain light and it’s just awesome to look at. Fit is great for me as are all Empire Ears offerings.

So going into it, I realized there’s not much info out there about how these bad boys sound so I had no idea what to think. It took about 20 seconds to realize they are going to OWN the $999 to $1699 market with these. Goodbye Andromeda, Goodbye Solaris, Goodbye Nio and any other imposter hanging around this price range. Unless fit is an issue, which is something I cannot predict for you, there’s no reason to bother with the aforementioned. None.

Bass: Medium to heavy bass presence but done well and not over-powering. They have a similar to a bit less bass presence of Valkyrie but I think better executed. It’s more controlled and extended. It’s not there when it’s not supposed to be.

Mids: Extremely full bodied and clarity for days. Vocals are right where they should be and have spot on timbre. Empire Ears killed it here… seriously.

Treble: Super smooth and etched just enough to be detailed and present without fatiguing. Just as good as any Campfire offering which is what some of them are known for specifically. Really well done.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and coherent. Everything blends well but leaves enough separation to still have nice layering. I don’t foresee anything coming through as bloated. They responded well to everything I threw at them. Insane value for the price point. Musical-easy listening perfected.

The mighty ODIN… you have to see this things in person. Sheeeesh!

After first hearing the HERO and how well it performed I was nervous the ODIN was going to be underwhelming. NOOOOPE… The ODIN is the equivalent of a high end floor speaker array in an acoustically engineered room. You might as well be in the studio with the band, artist or engineer. Micro detail in every frequency range. They provide a resolution that isn’t easily replicated.

Bass: Very deep and executed with precision of delivery. It is there when it is supposed to be and not when it isn’t. It’s not the bass monster the Legend X is but it shares the sub bass depth and keeps the mid bass clean but present. Those who like reference bass will love these… by reference I mean how it’s supposed to sound; lifelike. Not a flat snooze fest reference.

Mids: Crisp, clear and loaded with detail / accuracy. Most impressive mid range I have ever heard. It’s not lush and warm, it’s just dead accurate in a natural sounding way.

Treble: I listened to the Wraith while I was there and found the treble to be quite impressive once a powerful source was utilized. If the source sucked, so did the Wraiths treble (and the rest of it for that matter). The ODIN retains this powerfully immense treble to the likes of the Wraith, just without the source dependency. It’s bright and detailed enough to impress but not harsh or peaky. I’m now biased against anything but electrostatic treble. Not even the tia tubeless stuff hit’s this quality to me.

Overall presentation / conclusion: Holographic and grand. Layered, micro-detailed and expansive with everything I listened to. Dean Vang came in and said he can’t listen to anything else immediately after ODIN and I can understand why.

If you’re still reading this you deserve one of those Headfi badges in your profile but I hope I at least answered as many questions as I foresaw coming my way after many knew I was auditioning Empire Ears lineup. I’m sure there will be more and I am happy to assist. The only remaining question I haven’t answered was, what did I decide on? Despite the long winded post, this particular part deserves recognition at length: After it all, I told Josh I was going to go through with purchasing the Odin as I am sure they anticipated I would after hearing how bad ass it is. Then I asked what about the Hero? what if I wanted that as well? He wasn’t sure as they were thin on product after this massive launch but sprang to action… about 30 minutes later to my surprise, Dean Vang walked in with a Hero he personally took from production and QC’ed himself !! He asked me to listen to it to make sure I was satisfied and I did just that. I laughed when he asked and thought who the hell am I to tell you if the IEM you designed and quality control tested sounded as it was supposed to… Long story short I am now the proud owner of the ODIN ANNND HERO!

Another huge shoutout to Dean and Jack Vang, Josh Watkins and Andrew DiMarcengelo.. you guys are all top notch and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I also want make an honorable mention to the Empire Ears crew… all super professional and hard working. They have a great team over there and it really quells the price to purchase pain seeing the massive undertaking to produce these audio devices at this level.

That is awesome! I would say I am never that lucky, but one makes their own luck. You did so by completing an 18 hour round trip! Well done!