[rasmushorn]

Nothings for Australia it seems.

There is another way: https://www.etymotic.com/product/evo-multi-driver-earphone/

 

[qsk78]

As far as I understand no balanced cable comes with the tour unit, right?
Need to find IPX/T2 connectors asap to make a custom 4.4 mm cable at home.
Ideally I should listen to it out of a 4.4 mm output of my iDSD Diablo to utilize its fully balanced circuity

 

[gikigill]

There is another way: https://www.etymotic.com/product/evo-multi-driver-earphone/

Would be nice to have a listen before plonking down the cash. It's a competition between the IE900 and the Ety for me.

 

[InvisibleInk]

As far as I understand no balanced cable comes with the tour unit, right?
Need to find IPX/T2 connectors asap to make a custom 4.4 mm cable at home.
Ideally I should listen to it out of a 4.4 mm output of my iDSD Diablo to utilize its fully balanced circuity

Or, just a thought, you could try listening to it via the 3.5mm -> 6.3mm adapter.

 

[Zachik]

Nothings for Australia it seems.

Australia was lumped with Asia for the tour. Not everyone was chosen unfortunately.
If we get a few more aussies - I can pitch an Australia Tour to Etymotic once they allocate more units for samples / tours (obviously, I cannot make promises...)

 

[Zachik]

As far as I understand no balanced cable comes with the tour unit, right?

AFAIK it will only ship with the 3.5mm stock cable, same as the sample unit I got.

 

[Zachik]

As far as I understand no balanced cable comes with the tour unit, right?
Need to find IPX/T2 connectors asap to make a custom 4.4 mm cable at home.
Ideally I should listen to it out of a 4.4 mm output of my iDSD Diablo to utilize its fully balanced circuity

Or, just a thought, you could try listening to it via the 3.5mm -> 6.3mm adapter.

@qsk78 is making a valid point. It is NOT the balanced vs. SE cable debate, but rather being able to use a different (technically superior) circuit out from his source!

 

[InvisibleInk]

@qsk78 is making a valid point. It is NOT the balanced vs. SE cable debate, but rather being able to use a different (technically superior) circuit out from his source!

Just teasing. I suppose if I had a Diablo, I'd want to make the most of it by doing almost everything balanced, too. Even if I was convinced it was unnecessary.

 

[AnyDave]

As far as balanced goes, Estron does not currently make a balanced BaX cable, so that's not really an option, unfortunately. I believe they did offer an MMCX version on the first gen BaX cable but are phasing it out.

Estron does offer a T2 SuperBaX in both 2.5mm and 4.4mm variants. I believe we are going to stock those an accessory cables, but I'll check. I expect there will be more aftermarket options as T2 connectors get more popular as well.

 

[qsk78]

Even if I was convinced it was unnecessary.

Balanced output is 2 times more powerful. This is critical for hard to drive planars.
For the EVO it is not that critical.

 

[InvisibleInk]

Balanced output is 2 times more powerful. This is critical for hard to drive planars.
For the EVO it is not that critical.

Yeah, I never said I wouldn’t/didn’t use it myself. I find when I’m using my DAPs, if I want to listen to my T60rp or 6XX, balanced is simply mandatory. For DD or BA IEMs, not so much.

 

[miserybeforethemusic]

Awesome! Glad to be a part of the tour. Thanks @Zachik for the pick!

Balanced output is 2 times more powerful.

Not with every implementation. Don't even know if I'd consider this a rule of thumb.

I'd rather have a beefier single-ended power supply than a so-so balanced one, to be honest. Good news is there's gear out there like the E1DA PowerDAC that manages to handle both (with the v2.1 iteration) that would be a viable and cheap desktop alternative, both for IEMs and for over-ears. Really useful tool and, last I checked, only runs you about 50 USD.

 

[Zachik]

Estron does offer a T2 SuperBaX in both 2.5mm and 4.4mm variants. I believe we are going to stock those an accessory cables, but I'll check. I expect there will be more aftermarket options as T2 connectors get more popular as well.

Apparently, they do offer the T2 connectors for sale. Hopefully that means that aftermarket cable makers will start offering more options for balanced T2 cables.

 

[Zachik]

I have now updated post #2 of this thread to become the "Tour Tracker".
I will update it every time a unit reaches the next reviewer, and when the impressions / review are posted.
Etymotic received from me the shipping info for the 1st person in each tour, so now the ball is in their court I will provide tracking #s by PM once I get it from Etymotic.

Couple extra "housekeeping" notes:

• I asked Etymotic to declare them as demo/samples or very low value, so reviewer in the Asia / EU tours will not need to pay custom/import fees.
• I am asking each of you: when sending the EVO to the next person - if it is international, please do the same!
• Reminder that when shipping to the next person - you do not need to pay extra for insurance, but please ship with tracked service.
• According to my contact @ Etymotic, these units will ship just like mine - without the retail box since it was not ready/available at the time the demo units were allocated.
• That means for this tour we cannot get the "real" unboxing experience. It was either that or delay the tour by several weeks...
• Etymotic was kind enough to include several extra tips with each demo unit. Please only use what you need, and ship the rest of the tips down the line to the next person. That would allow for everyone to use new untouched eartips

I will keep updating as we go! Good times!!!

 

[bobeau]

@qsk78 is making a valid point. It is NOT the balanced vs. SE cable debate, but rather being able to use a different (technically superior) circuit out from his source!

https://benchmarkmedia.com/blogs/application_notes/audio-myth-balanced-headphone-outputs-are-better

If it's a hard to drive IEM (like the IER-Z1R) a balanced option is wonderful as it affords much more power from a portable source. And sometimes single ended outputs on a a balanced amp/source can be an afterthought. That said, I imagine these are super easy to drive.