[CharlyBrown]

The Z1R may also be on the chopping block and the Solaris SE removed from sale... I will re-assess after I give Odin a listen.

Yeah MusicTeck in the US. Andrew was very helpful and super responsive to my emails. I can see why people in the US rave about them.

I can also definitely recommend Andrew. Got all my latest IEM stuff and the R8 from him. The best experience for this kind of equipment, also for people in Europe.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

The Z1R may also be on the chopping block and the Solaris SE removed from sale... I will re-assess after I give Odin a listen.

Yeah MusicTeck in the US. Andrew was very helpful and super responsive to my emails. I can see why people in the US rave about them.

The Z1R and Odin are completely different presentations. Very complementary to me. Both keepers. The Odin is very smooth and reference sound. Sounds good with every source and with every genre of music. The Z1R has live excitement and realism. Needs EQ and doesn't pair well with all sources. Needs lots of power to drive properly. Both have great bass but present much differently. Both show their chops when scaling up. I paired them both with a Chord Hugo TT2 and m scaler and I was floored by the sound. It made me pause for a week to decide which direction I wanted to go. Almost dropped everything to get a TT2. Decided to wait until later to do that.

 

[PoSR77]

This thread moves too fast for me to keep up! But I wanted to comment on some of these posts (and sorry for any others I missed) so...

You certainly give the Odin a good write up. This is an IEM that really interests me. I am currently saving for a flagship IEM, but I’m a bit hesitant in going to pull the trigger on something without hearing it first. That’s not due to its quality. I am in no doubt that the Odin is flagship TOTL. It’s more about whether the particular signature would tick all my boxes. I think I might have to take a blind leap and see what happens

Simply put, the Odin is the first IEM/headphone that can compete with my 2 channel speaker setups, including my main, in terms of realism and detail. It can't win, it can't overthrow the hard laws of physics (bigger drivers/enclosures) to match that level of fidelity, but it doesn't embarrass itself either.

So, even after listening to, say, well mastered classical or jazz or world music on my main speaker system and then going to the Odin right after with the same material, it's not a disappointing step down like it has been with all my other IEM/headphones (keep in mind that I have sort of given up on full sized headphones after the Arya and Auteur let me down, so I haven't heard the top tier ones of 3k+ yet). It's almost, almost like it's as good of a presentation, just a different (and yes, smaller) presentation. That to me is just astounding.

All that said, what I overwhelmingly get from the Odin in terms of timbre is realism: music sounds like it did when recorded, for good or bad, with little coloration. So if that's not your preference (you want something either more clinical/cold or more warm/muddy) the Odin may not be for you.

Not to forget, apart from bass/mids/treble, the ODINs offer detail retrieval/resolution/imaging on a whole different level. That‘s great for critical or focused music listening. Listening while doing something else like computer work, I think the LX with less resolution etc. is better suited. Just my 2c.

I find the Odin makes for good low mid to mid volume background listening (for instance, I've been listening to it a lot while reading academic level philosophy, history and science which takes concentration); however it will distract you in the sense of drawing you into the music, and the way the macro and micro details "pop" out at you as Deezil put it so well.

Valid point. Even while distracted, I can get lost in Odin because of how wonderful they sound.

Yes. They often make you stop and just revel in their marvelous sound.

When I first got my Odin, of course I was staggered by its performance, but then I went through a phase of distraction from other recent IEM purchases. I recently began listening to the Odin quite a bit and with the right album, they are truly magical.

With truly top tier level (which is subjective) recorded material, they are simply exceptional. I've long found that the mark of top tier gear: the great stuff sounds as excellent as it should, and as real as it should (no over-coloration).

Yes, I agree. Let me say it from my pov. When I‘m in critical listening mood, I put in the ODINs. When I just want to melt in music, Legend X comes into play. I am still a very new owner but up to now it is pretty much 50/50 eartime. Maybe 55/45 for the ODIN.

But yes, you can do both only with the ODIN as they are just so terrific, it‘s a perfect example of 1st world issues. I am greatful and happy I have the chance to be able to enjoy both of these beautiful luxury items!

Yea, I find I can critically listen or lose myself in the music with the Odin, just like with all my favorite gear. This for me is not an either/or matter; it's a both/and.

Ditto, I was fine with the MEST until I demo'd the Odin. The mental gymnastics I was doing to convince myself that the MEST was equal to the Odin were breathtaking. Eventually It resulted in the sale of that and the DMagic.

I was expecting, almost hoping, to be let down by the Odin so I could just save some money and be content with the MEST or some other 1 -2k IEM. Nope. Instantly I knew the Odin outperformed it, especially in the depth of stage which was one of my main issues with the MEST (it's just so flat).

I meant recording quality, not genre. I have a large collection of music going back to the 60s, some not so well recorded. Listening to these lesser quality albums with the Odin can cause some discomfort for me. But when I put on a well mastered album, listening with the Odin becomes immersive.

I know what you are saying (hell, I have recordings going back to the 20's and 30's, as I've mentioned before in this thread, that aren't going to sound good on anything; granted I listen them only once a year or so for historical interest), but for me that's one thing I love about highly resolving gear: it makes everything sound real, as it was intended to sound when recorded. So great recordings sound great, and bad recordings sound as bad as they did when recorded.

What is most important for me in audio playback is realism, which is a rendering that is not overly cold/analytical/clinical, nor overly warm/unclear/unresolving to cover over recording defects. Either one of those presentations I find unrealistic and ultimately unenjoyable.

What impresses me most with the Odin (and other top gear) is its uncanny ability to let the recordings speak for themselves realistically; there is no homogenization of the sound and each album has its own unique sonic character that is easily distinguishable from all others. With lesser gear that is less resolving/transparent, even radically differently recorded albums can start sounding somewhat alike. Much of the character of the recording, and thus much of the character of the music, is thus lost.

Thus this is a case of killing the patient in order to cure him: draining the realism from the recording with too much warmth or softening of the lesser recordings in order to make them not sound so "harsh" or "bad", but in the process not only severely limiting the grandeur of the great recordings, but also covering over any redeeming sound qualities in the lesser recordings that a more realistic/revealing presentation will tease out.

But this is my very subjective preference (which I think has a lot to do with my "the truth of any matter, no matter how ugly/depressing, is always what I most prefer to know" personality).

Try tube amp next time you get a chance.

I have not had good experiences with tube amps and don't like to mess with them, but if I get to the point where it seems like I'll use the Odin a lot at my desk/study setup I'll certainly be looking at different desktop amps including tube/hybrids.

Quite the contrary. I actually believe that the insane detail, separation and clarity would actually give you the feeling of an improved sense of hearing. You'll know what I mean when you inevitably cave and at least demo them.

Yes, the Odin will certainly give a clearer window into the music that lesser gear can't do, and without being overly clinical either.

I totally agree. The ODINs, detailed and with ultra high resolution capabilities are not forgiving to mediocre recordings. The LX are much better suited for such tracks. But when the recording/mastering is fine, the ODINs shine!

See my response to jwbrent for my take on this fwiw.

I used to have the DX300, with the intention of solely pairing it with the Odin. It's not a bad pairing in my opinion, the bass delivered was excellent and treble good enough. However I felt the midrange was only decent because of the inaccuracy in some vocals and instruments' timbre. It felt like it was missing the realism slightly to my ears. In addition I also heard that it had a bit of hiss balanced out, and more noticeable from the 4.4mm output. It had a very good presentation and resolution nonetheless.
If I had to choose again, I'd say the WM1A/1Z complements the Odin very well. I'd recommend it for you to try someday


Effective yet simple. With good quality material too. I'd say the C/2019 Q4 is the best one they have currently. It's a shame that they don't make it more available.

Good info, thanks. I'm still heavily leaning towards the DX300 for several reasons, but if that doesn't work out the WM1A would be next on the list.


I'm still being amazed by the Odin on all recordings from excellent (earlier I listened to Vivaldi: 5 Concertil, Milan Turković, I Solisti Italiani; one of the great Denon classical cd's) to subpar (now I'm listening to Guns N' Roses "Appetite for Destruction", first press CD, which has always sounded poor, even by 80's hard rock/metal standards)
and without getting into much about their sound characteristics, I did want to say that I find the bass literally perfect. The bass is one thing that jumped out at me from the beginning: it is perfect in quantity for my tastes, and its quality (texture, definition, tactility, agility, speed, density, control, etc) is incredible. Just 10/10.

 

[saltyfr0g]

Back from it’s spa treatment at EE!!

 

[subguy812]

I find the Odin makes for good low mid to mid volume background listening (for instance, I've been listening to it a lot while reading academic level philosophy, history and science which takes concentration); however it will distract you in the sense of drawing you into the music, and the way the macro and micro details "pop" out at you as Deezil put it so well.



I think the ODIN is best suite at low to mid volume as well

Good info, thanks. I'm still heavily leaning towards the DX300 for several reasons, but if that doesn't work out the WM1A would be next on the list.

I prefer pairing the ODIN with the M8, only my preference. I had the R8, DX300 and M8 as well as my SP2000 and only the M8 and SP2000 remain

I'm still being amazed by the Odin on all recordings from excellent (earlier I listened to Vivaldi: 5 Concertil, Milan Turković, I Solisti Italiani; one of the great Denon classical cd's) to subpar (now I'm listening to Guns N' Roses "Appetite for Destruction", first press CD, which has always sounded poor, even by 80's hard rock/metal standards)
and without getting into much about their sound characteristics, I did want to say that I find the bass literally perfect. The bass is one thing that jumped out at me from the beginning: it is perfect in quantity for my tastes, and its quality (texture, definition, tactility, agility, speed, density, control, etc) is incredible. Just 10/10.

The comments for ODIN have certainly been overwhelmingly positive. Technically superb. Dean did a fantastic job tuning this.


edit: Removed the Bold text so my Millenial friends don't think I am yelling at them

 

[PoSR77]

I think the ODIN is best suite at low to mid volume as well

Well, I didn't mean best for that, but that in the context that it is just fine for background listening.

For now I wouldn't say the Odin is best for any volume as it seems to excel at both high or low volumes! (I mostly listen to music at moderate volumes no matter by what means however).

I prefer pairing the ODIN with the M8, only my preference. I had the R8, DX300 and M8 as well as my SP2000 and only the M8 and SP2000 remain

Ugh. Too many options. I've looked hard at the R8 and M8 too. But I keep seeing reviews/comments mentioning how good the Odin is with the DX300 and I figure it is the cheapest and has the most non-audio qualities I want as well. And if it doesn't work, then I could always try something else.

The comments for ODIN have certainly been overwhelmingly positive. Technically superb. Dean did a fantastic job tuning this.

They have, especially the technicalities praising. However, I'd like to also mention something that isn't noted as much, that I find the Odin engaging as well. It is no laid back or relaxing listen. It's very powerful (in terms of music force as well as scale) for one thing, and its PRaT is accurate, so it will keep up with the pace of speed metal (and separate and layer the instruments without losing control better than any IEM/headphone I've yet heard) or the calmness of soft jazz (yep, I do listen to some of that!) lol. It is neither overly hyper or sluggish, just right for me.

Edit: Removed subguy's bold text, even though this millennial had no problem with it.

 

[gLer]

This thread moves too fast for me to keep up! But I wanted to comment on some of these posts (and sorry for any others I missed) so...



Simply put, the Odin is the first IEM/headphone that can compete with my 2 channel speaker setups, including my main, in terms of realism and detail. It can't win, it can't overthrow the hard laws of physics (bigger drivers/enclosures) to match that level of fidelity, but it doesn't embarrass itself either.

So, even after listening to, say, well mastered classical or jazz or world music on my main speaker system and then going to the Odin right after with the same material, it's not a disappointing step down like it has been with all my other IEM/headphones (keep in mind that I have sort of given up on full sized headphones after the Arya and Auteur let me down, so I haven't heard the top tier ones of 3k+ yet). It's almost, almost like it's as good of a presentation, just a different (and yes, smaller) presentation. That to me is just astounding.

All that said, what I overwhelmingly get from the Odin in terms of timbre is realism: music sounds like it did when recorded, for good or bad, with little coloration. So if that's not your preference (you want something either more clinical/cold or more warm/muddy) the Odin may not be for you.



I find the Odin makes for good low mid to mid volume background listening (for instance, I've been listening to it a lot while reading academic level philosophy, history and science which takes concentration); however it will distract you in the sense of drawing you into the music, and the way the macro and micro details "pop" out at you as Deezil put it so well.



Yes. They often make you stop and just revel in their marvelous sound.



With truly top tier level (which is subjective) recorded material, they are simply exceptional. I've long found that the mark of top tier gear: the great stuff sounds as excellent as it should, and as real as it should (no over-coloration).



Yea, I find I can critically listen or lose myself in the music with the Odin, just like with all my favorite gear. This for me is not an either/or matter; it's a both/and.



I was expecting, almost hoping, to be let down by the Odin so I could just save some money and be content with the MEST or some other 1 -2k IEM. Nope. Instantly I knew the Odin outperformed it, especially in the depth of stage which was one of my main issues with the MEST (it's just so flat).



I know what you are saying (hell, I have recordings going back to the 20's and 30's, as I've mentioned before in this thread, that aren't going to sound good on anything; granted I listen them only once a year or so for historical interest), but for me that's one thing I love about highly resolving gear: it makes everything sound real, as it was intended to sound when recorded. So great recordings sound great, and bad recordings sound as bad as they did when recorded.

What is most important for me in audio playback is realism, which is a rendering that is not overly cold/analytical/clinical, nor overly warm/unclear/unresolving to cover over recording defects. Either one of those presentations I find unrealistic and ultimately unenjoyable.

What impresses me most with the Odin (and other top gear) is its uncanny ability to let the recordings speak for themselves realistically; there is no homogenization of the sound and each album has its own unique sonic character that is easily distinguishable from all others. With lesser gear that is less resolving/transparent, even radically differently recorded albums can start sounding somewhat alike. Much of the character of the recording, and thus much of the character of the music, is thus lost.

Thus this is a case of killing the patient in order to cure him: draining the realism from the recording with too much warmth or softening of the lesser recordings in order to make them not sound so "harsh" or "bad", but in the process not only severely limiting the grandeur of the great recordings, but also covering over any redeeming sound qualities in the lesser recordings that a more realistic/revealing presentation will tease out.

But this is my very subjective preference (which I think has a lot to do with my "the truth of any matter, no matter how ugly/depressing, is always what I most prefer to know" personality).



I have not had good experiences with tube amps and don't like to mess with them, but if I get to the point where it seems like I'll use the Odin a lot at my desk/study setup I'll certainly be looking at different desktop amps including tube/hybrids.



Yes, the Odin will certainly give a clearer window into the music that lesser gear can't do, and without being overly clinical either.



See my response to jwbrent for my take on this fwiw.



Good info, thanks. I'm still heavily leaning towards the DX300 for several reasons, but if that doesn't work out the WM1A would be next on the list.


I'm still being amazed by the Odin on all recordings from excellent (earlier I listened to Vivaldi: 5 Concertil, Milan Turković, I Solisti Italiani; one of the great Denon classical cd's) to subpar (now I'm listening to Guns N' Roses "Appetite for Destruction", first press CD, which has always sounded poor, even by 80's hard rock/metal standards)
and without getting into much about their sound characteristics, I did want to say that I find the bass literally perfect. The bass is one thing that jumped out at me from the beginning: it is perfect in quantity for my tastes, and its quality (texture, definition, tactility, agility, speed, density, control, etc) is incredible. Just 10/10.

Love these impressions and your insight into the music! The Odin is currently the only IEM i know of that I can imagine taking the spot of my Fourte in a two-IEM system (my other IEM is the Legend X, which is going nowhere). I've just come off a two-hour session with Fourte, listening to two very different albums (one jazzy/contemprary female vocal, one electronic/ambient dream pop) and both were next level immersive and so REAL it was palpable.

Realism, to me, is everything, specifically vocals, but I also want the music to occupy as large a space as possible, with detail to the tiniest nuance, all without sounding cold or analytical, and the Fourte nails it. Based on your descriptions, I'm even more keen now to put Odin against Fourte, and keep the one that wins.

I do know that Fourte will win hands down in one department: comfort - that's not even a contest (I recently reviewed the Bravado II, which uses the Odin shell, and the deep fit is quite intrusive with all but the smallest tips), so if Odin wins out it may just prompt a custom consideration.

I prefer pairing the ODIN with the M8, only my preference. I had the R8, DX300 and M8 as well as my SP2000 and only the M8 and SP2000 remain

To be fair you had the R8 for about 5 minutes before it bombed out on you, and you didn't replace it.

 

[subguy812]

Love these impressions and your insight into the music! The Odin is currently the only IEM i know of that I can imagine taking the spot of my Fourte in a two-IEM system (my other IEM is the Legend X, which is going nowhere). I've just come off a two-hour session with Fourte, listening to two very different albums (one jazzy/contemprary female vocal, one electronic/ambient dream pop) and both were next level immersive and so REAL it was palpable.

Realism, to me, is everything, specifically vocals, but I also want the music to occupy as large a space as possible, with detail to the tiniest nuance, all without sounding cold or analytical, and the Fourte nails it. Based on your descriptions, I'm even more keen now to put Odin against Fourte, and keep the one that wins.

I do know that Fourte will win hands down in one department: comfort - that's not even a contest (I recently reviewed the Bravado II, which uses the Odin shell, and the deep fit is quite intrusive with all but the smallest tips), so if Odin wins out it may just prompt a custom consideration.

To be fair you had the R8 for about 5 minutes before it bombed out on you, and you didn't replace it.

I received the unit on Sep 9 and returned it on Nov 18. I had it a couple of months. I enjoyed the sound, but that was prior to hearing the M8. The R8 was the first of the new wave of DAPs I purchased.

 

[CL14715]

Love these impressions and your insight into the music! The Odin is currently the only IEM i know of that I can imagine taking the spot of my Fourte in a two-IEM system (my other IEM is the Legend X, which is going nowhere). I've just come off a two-hour session with Fourte, listening to two very different albums (one jazzy/contemprary female vocal, one electronic/ambient dream pop) and both were next level immersive and so REAL it was palpable.

Realism, to me, is everything, specifically vocals, but I also want the music to occupy as large a space as possible, with detail to the tiniest nuance, all without sounding cold or analytical, and the Fourte nails it. Based on your descriptions, I'm even more keen now to put Odin against Fourte, and keep the one that wins.

I do know that Fourte will win hands down in one department: comfort - that's not even a contest (I recently reviewed the Bravado II, which uses the Odin shell, and the deep fit is quite intrusive with all but the smallest tips), so if Odin wins out it may just prompt a custom consideration.

To be fair you had the R8 for about 5 minutes before it bombed out on you, and you didn't replace it.

For me, the Odin was more enjoyable and more to my liking in the bass region which really called it for me. Additionally, despite how awesome the Tia drivers are in the Fourte, the way they tuned e-stats in the Odin really convey depth and space without that sometimes zingy feel. It's almost as if the e-stats offer such power and clarity that they were able to achieve the same detail level and prominence in the 6-8k region while keeping them underpowered. It's a very refreshing never harsh smoothness that makes sense to my ears.

So to be clear, to me the Odin has better low and top end. Mids on both are slightly colored but not thick or gooey. I'd say they kept the mids neutral but in a fun and not clinical way. The Odin has a more pronounced and clear vocal range than the LX which is the best way I can describe it. It may be the bass tuning or the upper mids rolling into treble but whatever it is, the coherency and clarity are straight up ridiculous. Literally makes any thing else I have ever compared it to sound veiled.

 

[SBranson]

Got the Bravado Mk2 a couple days ago and though I’ve only had a relatively brief listen I’m very impressed. I’ve been mostly listening to what I want to rather than look for specifically bassy tracks to test and in that I’m mostly struck at how much better these are in the mids than I remember from the first iteration. These really do remind me now of my memory of the LX though the staging is less airy and smaller overall. The few tracks of bass I tried are unbelievable. I forgot the impact of the EE dd bass treatment and the sub bass rumble is felt in the chest it seems even if logically impossible.
With my ZX507 and stock cable there was as bit of bleed but not much but hooked up to the M8 with the Eletech Plato the bass tightened up and overall these are really excellent sounding and really narrow the gap to my Elysium in overall enjoyment.
Looking forward to listening a lot more today and exploring other music.
My musical choices probably aren’t the target for this type of iem as bass drops on hip hop are epic (the one or two albums I have) but their newly refined mids and treble no longer leave me feeling that there was a BA missing as I did with the first Bravado.
This really is a much better all’rounder now.

The only thing is that this makes me really scared of the Odin.. I had told myself that the Elysium was my end of the line but if the Bravado Mk2 is any indication of where EE have come then I better not audition the Odin.

 

[Mehran]

All this recent talk about the LX convinced me to order one. Really looking forward to hearing them. I'm hoping they are the ultimate IEM for snowboarding and other sport, listening to some 90s rap and Metallica. Although I may break my neck trying to save them if I crash or something, lol.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

All this recent talk about the LX convinced me to order one. Really looking forward to hearing them. I'm hoping they are the ultimate IEM for snowboarding and other sport, listening to some 90s rap and Metallica. Although I may break my neck trying to save them if I crash or something, lol.

You aren't going to have a problem with shouty mids with the LX.

Got the Bravado Mk2 a couple days ago and though I’ve only had a relatively brief listen I’m very impressed. I’ve been mostly listening to what I want to rather than look for specifically bassy tracks to test and in that I’m mostly struck at how much better these are in the mids than I remember from the first iteration. These really do remind me now of my memory of the LX though the staging is less airy and smaller overall. The few tracks of bass I tried are unbelievable. I forgot the impact of the EE dd bass treatment and the sub bass rumble is felt in the chest it seems even if logically impossible.
With my ZX507 and stock cable there was as bit of bleed but not much but hooked up to the M8 with the Eletech Plato the bass tightened up and overall these are really excellent sounding and really narrow the gap to my Elysium in overall enjoyment.
Looking forward to listening a lot more today and exploring other music.
My musical choices probably aren’t the target for this type of iem as bass drops on hip hop are epic (the one or two albums I have) but their newly refined mids and treble no longer leave me feeling that there was a BA missing as I did with the first Bravado.
This really is a much better all’rounder now.

The only thing is that this makes me really scared of the Odin.. I had told myself that the Elysium was my end of the line but if the Bravado Mk2 is any indication of where EE have come then I better not audition the Odin.

If you want to take baby steps, try the Valyrie MKII.

Nah, sell everything else you've got but the Elysium and get the Odin or just make sure you never audition them.

If you are going to invest in an Empire Ears IEM, you must get something with a weapon IX subwoofer. Go big or go home. Best dynamic driver in the industry.

 

[Mehran]

You aren't going to have a problem with shouty mids with the LX.

Hehe, I hope not. There was deal on an open box Odin too, but for the same reason I couldn't get around ordering it. I hope I made the right choice.

 

[subguy812]

Hehe, I hope not. There was deal on an open box Odin too, but for the same reason I couldn't get around ordering it. I hope I made the right choice.

I think the Legend X is the right choice. Just give them some time to season. The ODIN and Legend X would most certainly complete a collection, if you decide you want the ODIN in the future, IMO.

 

[Mehran]

Thanks for the advice.
Absolutely, I won't judge them until fully burnt in.