SteveKiwi
100+ Head-Fier
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That's saved me moneyHaving demo-ed the Grand Maestro @ their HQ, i find that the GM loses the magic in the maestro series
That's saved me moneyHaving demo-ed the Grand Maestro @ their HQ, i find that the GM loses the magic in the maestro series
You already know I will!Who's going to be a CanJam Singapore?
You already know I will!
I'm assuming FF pays for the DHL return shipping when their product fails? Or do you go through musicteck? These stories of quality control issues are concerning.
I feel the same, they are amazing iem'sWell. This is the most incredible set I've heard. An achievement I can't really believe.
Well. This is the most incredible set I've heard. An achievement I can't really believe.
How's the fit for you guys?
What tips did you end up going with?
What tips did you end up going with?
That's interesting I got a set of SendnaEarfit MAX (SS. S and MS). As part of the package from FatFreq.I have tip rolled extensively on my MSE, there's a lot of great tips (pun fully intended) in the Fatfreq general thread. While the Mini benefits from being more flexibly positioned due to its small size, it has similar preference for tip fit and a lot of the posters there have given me excellent suggestions for the MSE.
I'll share here the notes I took of the various tips I've tested on my MSE. My Grand Maestro is custom, so having the flexibility to tip roll on my universal MSE and experiment with this tribrid configuration is quite fun in contrast. Because of the difference in ear canal shape, perhaps even more so than usual, YMMV!
Generally the MSE benefits from a deep insertion depth, but its tuning is also relatively sensitive to harshness induced by the tip bore tube resonance (particularly in longer tube, deep inserts!). There's a fundamental trade off there, and also some substantial core strength requirements to keep the bore tube from collapsing in the depths of the canal. My usual 'go to' tips I use on other IEMs didn't far very well fitwise here, the MSE is a bit challenging this way.
Azlasedna Crystal: My usual go to, I love the wide bore, and I find the tip material is a nice compromise between comfort and grip. Didn't work well at all for me on the MSE. there wasn't enough core strength in the tips and they bend in a bit, partially to fully blocking one of the sound bores on the MSE's nozzle (very frequent issue for me across tips).
Azlasedna Xelastic: Not as comfortable as the Crystals but in theory do a better job of sculpting to the canal with heatup. I found this just locked in the blockage issues I encountered with the Crystal's. Fit was maybe slightly better overall, bit more rumble down below delivered vs. Crystal.
Spinfit W1: My usual go to for tricky fits. Very comfortable with the MSE, but suffered even more severely from the partial blockage issue above. Soundwise, the spinfits aren't quite wide enough bore for my taste and I feel I can hear the tip tube. Bass is a bit subdued and they can bring out a harsher quality int he MSE.
Spinfit CP240: Double Flange,medieval torture device. Recommend going a size down from usual. Absolutely top level bass of all tips tested. Tube coloration unfortunately even more severe than for the W1. Deep insert is ideal, wish these were more comfortable and had a wider bore.
Moondrop Springtips: Very nice flexible core helps ensure deep fit, very similar to spinfits but without the narrow bore sound. Unfortunately the tip firmness relaxes a lot as it heats up in use, and it suffered from bore occlusion after moderate usage time. Soundwise nicely balanced.
JVC Spiraldots: love the diffraction strategy to mitigate tube sound, very nice tip material and good core strength. Offered an ideal compromise between core strength and insertion, very nice delivery from the MSE results. Initial fit was a little stubborn, wish they were a bit deeper.
Acoustune AET07 / AEX07: AET is a wonderful cheap tip that has a simple strong bore design and nice tip material. They sound great with the MSE, very nice neutral delivery of the MSE like the Spiraldots but with maybe just a bit of dry dullness. The AEX07 is the next gen version and is slightly more comfortable but not worth the much higher price vs. the AET even if it shores up some of the slight sonic deficiencies. Some occlusion after prolonged use heat up ala the Springtips but less severe.
Acoustune AEX70: Very nice material, beautiful elasticity in the bass response, maybe the cleanest bass of all tested. Doesn't grip the MSE bore enough and slipped off in my canal, just can't recommend them for the MSE as a result.
Symbio W hybrid eartips: Several posters speak very highly of these on the MSE and I was very excited for the hybrid foam and silicon tip design. Unfortunately I found getting even an initial fit quite uncomfortable an ineffective. Sound wasn't delivered correctly due to bad seal so I won't comment on sonic effects, other than it just didn't work for me.
TRI Clarion: Alternate tips that ship with the MSE. I really like the tapered nozzle end on them, and they have a nice wide bore width. Very accurate and balanced delivery, tames the bass maybe a tad too much. When upgrading to 'large' size it has the best fit both initial and overtime of all the tips I've tested on the MSE.
TLDR: Best fit TRI Clarion, Best Sound JVC Spiraldot, Best Bass Spinfit CP240
I still need to test out Final Audio E type tips and Azlasedna max tips I have sitting around if anyone is interested in either particularly.
First of all thank you so much for taking the time to post this. Incredibly helpful.I have tip rolled extensively on my MSE, there's a lot of great tips (pun fully intended) in the Fatfreq general thread. While the Mini benefits from being more flexibly positioned due to its small size, it has similar preference for tip fit and a lot of the posters there have given me excellent suggestions for the MSE.
I'll share here the notes I took of the various tips I've tested on my MSE. My Grand Maestro is custom, so having the flexibility to tip roll on my universal MSE and experiment with this tribrid configuration is quite fun in contrast. Because of the difference in ear canal shape, perhaps even more so than usual, YMMV!
Generally the MSE benefits from a deep insertion depth, but its tuning is also relatively sensitive to harshness induced by the tip bore tube resonance (particularly in longer tube, deep inserts!). There's a fundamental trade off there, and also some substantial core strength requirements to keep the bore tube from collapsing in the depths of the canal. My usual 'go to' tips I use on other IEMs didn't far very well fitwise here, the MSE is a bit challenging this way.
Azlasedna Crystal: My usual go to, I love the wide bore, and I find the tip material is a nice compromise between comfort and grip. Didn't work well at all for me on the MSE. there wasn't enough core strength in the tips and they bend in a bit, partially to fully blocking one of the sound bores on the MSE's nozzle (very frequent issue for me across tips).
Azlasedna Xelastic: Not as comfortable as the Crystals but in theory do a better job of sculpting to the canal with heatup. I found this just locked in the blockage issues I encountered with the Crystal's. Fit was maybe slightly better overall, bit more rumble down below delivered vs. Crystal.
Spinfit W1: My usual go to for tricky fits. Very comfortable with the MSE, but suffered even more severely from the partial blockage issue above. Soundwise, the spinfits aren't quite wide enough bore for my taste and I feel I can hear the tip tube. Bass is a bit subdued and they can bring out a harsher quality int he MSE.
Spinfit CP240: Double Flange,medieval torture device. Recommend going a size down from usual. Absolutely top level bass of all tips tested. Tube coloration unfortunately even more severe than for the W1. Deep insert is ideal, wish these were more comfortable and had a wider bore.
Moondrop Springtips: Very nice flexible core helps ensure deep fit, very similar to spinfits but without the narrow bore sound. Unfortunately the tip firmness relaxes a lot as it heats up in use, and it suffered from bore occlusion after moderate usage time. Soundwise nicely balanced.
JVC Spiraldots: love the diffraction strategy to mitigate tube sound, very nice tip material and good core strength. Offered an ideal compromise between core strength and insertion, very nice delivery from the MSE results. Initial fit was a little stubborn, wish they were a bit deeper.
Acoustune AET07 / AEX07: AET is a wonderful cheap tip that has a simple strong bore design and nice tip material. They sound great with the MSE, very nice neutral delivery of the MSE like the Spiraldots but with maybe just a bit of dry dullness. The AEX07 is the next gen version and is slightly more comfortable but not worth the much higher price vs. the AET even if it shores up some of the slight sonic deficiencies. Some occlusion after prolonged use heat up ala the Springtips but less severe.
Acoustune AEX70: Very nice material, beautiful elasticity in the bass response, maybe the cleanest bass of all tested. Doesn't grip the MSE bore enough and slipped off in my canal, just can't recommend them for the MSE as a result.
Symbio W hybrid eartips: Several posters speak very highly of these on the MSE and I was very excited for the hybrid foam and silicon tip design. Unfortunately I found getting even an initial fit quite uncomfortable an ineffective. Sound wasn't delivered correctly due to bad seal so I won't comment on sonic effects, other than it just didn't work for me.
TRI Clarion: Alternate tips that ship with the MSE. I really like the tapered nozzle end on them, and they have a nice wide bore width. Very accurate and balanced delivery, tames the bass maybe a tad too much. When upgrading to 'large' size it has the best fit both initial and overtime of all the tips I've tested on the MSE.
TLDR: Best fit TRI Clarion, Best Sound JVC Spiraldot, Best Bass Spinfit CP240
I still need to test out Final Audio E type tips and Azlasedna max tips I have sitting around if anyone is interested in either particularly.