[Flappy]

I must ask since you mentioned sibilance.. and I’m not sensitive to it. How does it come across to you? Do certain S and T sounds actually become amplified and piercing? Is it just a lisp type sound that bothers you? I’m interested so I can better understand that perspective.

To me it's not really a lisp type of thing. When I get hit with sibilance it's a distinct, sharp, piercing sound that cuts through all the other sound and literally makes my eardrums shudder. Like what npZONE said, it can make you wince. I can't say that everyone hears sibilance that same way, but it really does stand out from all the other sound coming through and I certainly can't miss it when it's there. This is a weird analogy, but it's like an audio knife slicing across the eardrum. You certainly sit up and take notice of what just happened.

 

[Damz87]

How about a pretty picture to lighten the mood

The iBasso DX220 Max is my new favourite DAP for the Legend X. Never heard the LX sound this good

 

[godlikegamer]

I read an overseas review that thought the majority of the MK2 models are not as good as the originals. Only a couple were and I don’t believe the Valkyrie was one of them.

May I know which website has the review?? I cant seem to find it..

 

[Flappy]

How about a pretty picture to lighten the mood


The iBasso DX220 Max is my new favourite DAP for the Legend X. Never heard the LX sound this good

Monster DAP in the house! What cable is that? Looks thick, just the way I like them.

 

[Damz87]

Monster DAP in the house! What cable is that? Looks thick, just the way I like them.

Thick DAP...Thick Cable...Thick Bass

It’s an Effect Audio Leo II/Ares II+

 

[rantng]

If anyone is interested, Bloom Audio has an open box FE Odin for $3099 - https://bloomaudio.com/collections/...ibrid-electrostatic-ba-dynamic-universal-iems

 

[Flappy]

If anyone is interested, Bloom Audio has an open box FE Odin for $3099 - https://bloomaudio.com/collections/...ibrid-electrostatic-ba-dynamic-universal-iems

That shouldn't last long.

 

[Deezel177]

Wait...if some are saying the Odin has some sort of extended peak at 8kHz, what exactly will they be saying about Hero...!? (see below). I though the Odin's discussion point was the big rise between 1khz and 3khz and to a lesser extent the 5khz "peak"?

I personally enjoy the 1-3kHz rise. My preference has always been a bit more oomph at 2kHz, which really rounds out vocals and gives them weight and texture. The rise has also been done with no technical compromises to my ears, so it’s no issue at all for me. The same goes for the 5kHz peak. Where the 8kHz peak differs for me is that it does have a slight technical drawback for me, which I’ve already discussed with the hi-hats and cymbals. But, again, that’ll be talked about further in my article

The treble of the Odin looks just right to me (and I don't even mind the Trio's treble, which is more elevated than Odin for sure). I don't even mind forward mids, as long as they're not shouty or thin. My only concern with Odin, going by the graph alone, is bass quantity. I have no doubt quality is best-in-class with those twin Weapons, but quantity-wise I want more than "reference" and I definitely want bass to at least match the mids/highs in level. Trio/Nio (and by extension LX) bass levels are my benchmark for perfect quantity (though maybe a touch less than the LX for better balance with the mids/highs).

The bass of the Odin’s sit very well-balanced against the mids and treble to my ears; no more, no less. The only issue I have is that the narrow bore of the stock Final tips tend to “choke” them a bit, especially in the subs. I’ve found switching to a wider-bore tip opens up the bass and fills the signature out even better.

I must be less sensitive to bumps in the upper mids, but I can be quite sensitive to any anomalies in the 6kHz region. The final A8000 received lots of reports about the highs being too bright, but I never felt that way, and prior to my Odin purchase, the A8000 was my reference ... and still is to some degree. I haven’t really done much comparing of the two, so my thoughts may change.

I found the A8000 pretty bright and thin when I auditioned it in Japan. It lacked a lot of those lower, meatier harmonics for me. ‘Goes to show how we all hear things differently.

 

[jwbrent]

If anyone is interested, Bloom Audio has an open box FE Odin for $3099 - https://bloomaudio.com/collections/...ibrid-electrostatic-ba-dynamic-universal-iems

There’s one for $2,900 in the classifieds.

 

[gLer]

I must be less sensitive to bumps in the upper mids, but I can be quite sensitive to any anomalies in the 6kHz region. The final A8000 received lots of reports about the highs being too bright, but I never felt that way, and prior to my Odin purchase, the A8000 was my reference ... and still is to some degree. I haven’t really done much comparing of the two, so my thoughts may change.

This probably goes to the age-old debate about brightness and details. Some equate extra details with brightness, while others see added brightness as more detailed. It's two sides of the same coin. For me the added details and or slight bump in brightness is fine IF the mids still come across as sufficiently full and not thin, and the bass is elevated to a respectable level to support those mids. I'm yet to find all three in one IEM, though the Trio I recently bought comes closest - though loses to others like Nio for midrange fullness and treble smoothness. From everything I've read the A8000 sounds like a clinical detail monster, and if you enjoy clinical detail monsters then it'll be right up your alley. No right or wrong here.

I think part of the reason for this is “bright” can be a nebulous description. In fact, the lingo we use to describe what we hear is not universally understood in the same way. Highly subjective terminology.

Goes to the point I made above. Bright can mean different things but when it comes to describing bright as offensive, that generally means thinner elevated upper mids (so some female vocals shout and hiss at you) and narrow treble peaks (so some instruments and notes bite harder than they should and take you out of the music).

I must ask since you mentioned sibilance.. and I’m not sensitive to it. How does it come across to you? Do certain S and T sounds actually become amplified and piercing? Is it just a lisp type sound that bothers you? I’m interested so I can better understand that perspective.

Sibilance is exactly that - the lisssping sound in some (mostly female) vocals. If the S sounds coincide with a peak, be it 5khz, 6khz or 8khz, it'll stand out more, cut through the music and take you out of the flow of the song (soon all you'll be hearing is the hissing). If this doesn't bother you - great. Same with other offensive sounds, like biting cymbals or piercing trumpets. Sure, real instruments played live (and often amplified by crappy PA systems and crappy venues) can be harsh and bright, but for me the pursuit of high fidelity is not to replicate those sounds 1:1 but rather find the best versions of those sounds that align with the way I enjoy hearing them.

 

[subguy812]

I’ve had mine for almost a month and it sounds exactly the same as day one to me...

Damz you have a great recollection...not being a jerk, but it is like comparing something you owned a month ago that you don't own anymore. I am not sure you can do that from memory.

 

[subguy812]

I am with you on burn-in can sometimes be just a pipe dream. I had erlkonig le for a week burning it night and day trying to open up to make it more transparent and have the bass sound more articulate but the glory never came. Ironically, the best thing I found with erlkonig was the fit (fits like custom). VE was nice enough to let me return it but the name of the game here's a personal preference. Everyone has different set of ears so the IEM can sound different. I never expect one IEM can be loved by all.

I wouldn't expect change from a BA IEM. I have heard burn-in have an effect on three IEMs, Erlkonig isn't one.

 

[mvvRAZ]

I wouldn't expect change from a BA IEM. I have heard burn-in cause an effect on three IEMs, Erlkonig isn't one.

Wait so the midrange BAs in the Erl don’t change... but the midrange BAs of the Odin change because there’s a DD covering a completely different frequency region? Care to enlighten us how the math of that works?

 

[Damz87]

Damz you have a great recollection...not being a jerk, but it is like comparing something you owned a month ago that you don't own anymore. I am not sure you can do that from memory.

Doesn’t that logic go both ways? To me it sounds the same. I’ve been listening to it regularly over the past 4 weeks. I haven’t noticed any changes.

 

[gLer]

Even if we assume burn-in is a thing (regardless of driver type) - and I believe it is because I've experienced it myself - the changes are almost always subtle. If there's a giant spike somewhere it might settle and sound less spiky, but only moderately so. If there's a hump in the bass or mids, it might flatten slightly, but again moderately so. Interestingly it seems burn-in always works in FAVOUR of an issue. So a spike can't become more pronounced, a hump can't become more humpy, and the tonal balance somehow manages to always stay the same. I'm not casting aspersions here because, like I said, I heard changes in more than one IEM myself, though never enough to completely change my initial impressions of an IEM (which can be done with tip rolling, cable rolling, source rolling etc., all of which will have a more pronounced effect than physical burn-in.)