Empire Ears - Discussion & Impressions (Formerly EarWerkz)
- Thread starter Jack Vang
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Wildcatsare1
Headphoneus Supremus
Hey Y'all, finally listening again!!! I missed the EVO horribly, well since this morning!
On the menu tonight The Band, again the perspective is different in perspective, the stage itself is higher, as I mentioned in my speaker metaphor. Every other IEM I've heard to date positions the stage at a lower point, with smaller images on that stage. Listening to the EVO, as I mentioned is moving from mini-monitor images to full-range panel speakers, Soundlab, Magnepan, or Quads. I can't wait for more folks to hear the EVO, I'm looking forward to sharing this with folks who've experienced this phenomenon before.
Also, the “jump factor” where sounds hit with an unanticipated power, or realism, triggering a startle response, is off the charts with the EVO. Listening to “Life is Carnival,” the stage width is presented on a huge stage, lead vocals front, and center, with the striking thing the depth and breadth of the backing horns.
Damn, albums over, and I've only written a couple of paragraphs. Well, a good sign of the quality of an IEM, you get drawn into the music, and Rick, Levon, Garth, Richard, and Robbie can spin a wonderful musical tale! These are properly burned in (I think, time will tell), and the “official” review will commence tomorrow, I'll be comparing the EVO, to the LX, Odin, Thummim, and if the postman cooperates with the EXT.
On the menu tonight The Band, again the perspective is different in perspective, the stage itself is higher, as I mentioned in my speaker metaphor. Every other IEM I've heard to date positions the stage at a lower point, with smaller images on that stage. Listening to the EVO, as I mentioned is moving from mini-monitor images to full-range panel speakers, Soundlab, Magnepan, or Quads. I can't wait for more folks to hear the EVO, I'm looking forward to sharing this with folks who've experienced this phenomenon before.
Also, the “jump factor” where sounds hit with an unanticipated power, or realism, triggering a startle response, is off the charts with the EVO. Listening to “Life is Carnival,” the stage width is presented on a huge stage, lead vocals front, and center, with the striking thing the depth and breadth of the backing horns.
Damn, albums over, and I've only written a couple of paragraphs. Well, a good sign of the quality of an IEM, you get drawn into the music, and Rick, Levon, Garth, Richard, and Robbie can spin a wonderful musical tale! These are properly burned in (I think, time will tell), and the “official” review will commence tomorrow, I'll be comparing the EVO, to the LX, Odin, Thummim, and if the postman cooperates with the EXT.
TomKorn
Member of the Trade: Audio Essence
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Did anyone try with a silver or hybrid cable? I feel this could bring mids and treble a bit more to the foreground. I got several to try but my demo unit is at a customers again.
I need my own private unit quick.
Wildcatsare1
Headphoneus Supremus
Did anyone try with a silver or hybrid cable? I feel this could bring mids and treble a bit more to the foreground. I got several to try but my demo unit is at a customers again.
Per your request, I'm listening with the Plato 4-wire now, and I'll fire up my favorite silver cable tomorrow a Thor/Leonidas blend.
To be honest, the Plato shines a high beam on the upper mids/lower treble, adding a touch of hardness in vocals, and emphasis. Mind you this is with The Band, but it's too much for my ears that are a bit sensitive to highlighted lower treble. Switching to the stock Genisis Cable, it is the perfect balance between the Stormbreaker and Plato, making it clearer to me the work put into selecting a cable for the EVO.
Wait, you want mids MORE forward on EVO? Only curious because they already have the most mid-forward presentation I've heard in an IEM, which is straddling the line between just right and too much for my personal taste.Did anyone try with a silver or hybrid cable? I feel this could bring mids and treble a bit more to the foreground. I got several to try but my demo unit is at a customers again.
You havent heard Odin have you?
Hey guys, I figured since I'm on safari for the next five days (here I am, see me waving?) I'll use some downtime to post EVO impressions each day, just for fun, while I build up my notes for the main review.
So after this...
...it's feet up at the lodge with this...
Edit: Fleetwood Mac - Dreams
Right off the bat, the weight of the drums in the centre/left sounds absolutely correct, while the snares in the right channel announce themselves vividly, sharp but not harsh, and relatively forward.
Stevie Nicks comes in slightly further back and slightly to the right of centre, with her trademark voice crisp and detailed, and only a slight hint of peakiness at the crest of 'frEEdom' at 0:23 (see what I did there?). The raspiness of her voice is perfectly articulated.
As the backing/second vocal comes in around 0:33 it's imaged slightly forward and wide left, giving me a very accurate sense of stage placement. The stick hits continue unabated in the right channel, again I hear them more forward than Stevie, and about in line with the 'backing' vocal.
As the chorus begins and Mick Fleetwood joins in, each vocalist has his and her space (great imaging again), while the snares in the right and guitar plucks to the left, as they hit, are audibly more forward than the singers, though not distractingly so.
It feels as if I'm on stage with the band, probably standing a little closer to the drummer than the singers. There's no hint of sibilance or pitchiness in any of the vocals, and every lyric is very clear and articulated.
Overall the performance is very engaging, layered and lively, with plenty of space in a large stage, and excellent resolution (microdetails and separation) letting me pick and choose my focus.
Dominant FR: probably upper mids (snares) and the crest of Stevie's vocals, but well balanced with the bass (drums), which stay in their lane throughout the track.
Fatigue scale**: 3/10 (almost negligible at moderate volume).
Enjoyment scale**: 8/10 (foot-tappingly fabulous).
**Trying something new with this, haven't even worked out the different degrees of each scale, but I'm using it to give me a sense of each track relative to the way I've heard it before with other IEMs. Naturally this is a very subjective score, and any comparisons are by memory only, so probably not worth going into any more detail than that. Still, I hope you find it useful as a gauge of where I'm coming from.
So after this...
...it's feet up at the lodge with this...
Edit: Fleetwood Mac - Dreams
Right off the bat, the weight of the drums in the centre/left sounds absolutely correct, while the snares in the right channel announce themselves vividly, sharp but not harsh, and relatively forward.
Stevie Nicks comes in slightly further back and slightly to the right of centre, with her trademark voice crisp and detailed, and only a slight hint of peakiness at the crest of 'frEEdom' at 0:23 (see what I did there?). The raspiness of her voice is perfectly articulated.
As the backing/second vocal comes in around 0:33 it's imaged slightly forward and wide left, giving me a very accurate sense of stage placement. The stick hits continue unabated in the right channel, again I hear them more forward than Stevie, and about in line with the 'backing' vocal.
As the chorus begins and Mick Fleetwood joins in, each vocalist has his and her space (great imaging again), while the snares in the right and guitar plucks to the left, as they hit, are audibly more forward than the singers, though not distractingly so.
It feels as if I'm on stage with the band, probably standing a little closer to the drummer than the singers. There's no hint of sibilance or pitchiness in any of the vocals, and every lyric is very clear and articulated.
Overall the performance is very engaging, layered and lively, with plenty of space in a large stage, and excellent resolution (microdetails and separation) letting me pick and choose my focus.
Dominant FR: probably upper mids (snares) and the crest of Stevie's vocals, but well balanced with the bass (drums), which stay in their lane throughout the track.
Fatigue scale**: 3/10 (almost negligible at moderate volume).
Enjoyment scale**: 8/10 (foot-tappingly fabulous).
**Trying something new with this, haven't even worked out the different degrees of each scale, but I'm using it to give me a sense of each track relative to the way I've heard it before with other IEMs. Naturally this is a very subjective score, and any comparisons are by memory only, so probably not worth going into any more detail than that. Still, I hope you find it useful as a gauge of where I'm coming from.
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I'll hazard I don't want to either, especially since I find EVO's bass perfect in every measure for my tasteYou havent heard Odin have you?
I dont mind Odins mid tbh. But if it had another 5db in subbass it would have been really impressive.I'll hazard I don't want to either, especially since I find EVO's bass perfect in every measure for my taste
But that is where Evo comes in, with more than 5db if bass lol.
infinitejustice
Head-Fier
Yeah, Evo is like Odin with slightly less detail/hot upper mids, and +15db bass, lol
Sounds like exactly what Odin needed to be perfect
Going to the store tomorrow to try dat W and bone conductor of the Legend 
Kudos to Empire Ears for sending the demo units so quickly. SO excited to finally hear how they sound/feel
Kudos to Empire Ears for sending the demo units so quickly. SO excited to finally hear how they sound/feel
TomKorn
Member of the Trade: Audio Essence
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Yes I do. As @Skullar pointed out, Odin has more forward mids and I like it. Also I could do with a little added sparkle in the treble.
How does the treble of EVO compare to ODIN?
To me, I don't have a problem with the Odin elevated upper mids. I have a problem at times with hot treble. But this is a double edged sword. The Odin also has more treble air and is fantastic for genre such as piano that need upper harmonics and bass that doesn't overwhelm. For the EVO, the treble is there, but not shimmery as it can be with Odin. Someone else posted that the treble is in line with the signature the EVO is attempting to achieve. I agree with that idea.
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