Final Audio Design Impressions and Discussion Thread

[Edric Li]

The entire A series lineup is a disaster to me.

Kudos to Final for being daring, experimenting and not doing the same cookie cutter tunings everyone (specially ChiFi) is attempting these days, but I just can’t enjoy music like this.

If you end up buying the A8000, try it with the Comply tips with the wax guard.

Back in 2015-ish, the people in this hobby around me (including me) always thought of Final as the company that puts extraordinary price tag on absurd sounding products. It was a running joke for us besides the equally absurd Ocharaku. Everything, probably with the exception of FI-BA-SS, was sonically and design-wise too interesting or experimental. As much as it hurts to say, I think E-series is actually the outlier, whatever happened. A-series is like Final getting back to its niche IEM game again.

I asked this on the A8000 thread too.

I have loved my Final Audio B3 a lot. It has amazing tuning. I am getting a B-stock A8000 for nearly $1100. There is a 3-month warranty on it. I'm just wondering if I should pull the trigger on it. I know Final IEMs are built like tanks and will last forever. I'm just a bit worried if excess of brightness will be an issue. But I know that can be tamed using foam tips, good copper cables, eq etc. Suggestions.

Just get a VR3000 on Amazon and see if it is too bright to you before you return it. The entire A series is at least as bright as the VR3000, so it is a good reference point. IMO the upgrade to B3 is E500.

 

[Star Ace]

Have been enjoying my F7200 since acquiring them late June. Indeed even more so than my first time with them years ago! Find their unique yet also familiar signature quite refreshing.

Crystal tips "MS" size, deep to medium deep insertion, all sounds awesome. Using none of the included filters (they do not get earwax on the vents with my current fit.) They are not bright/harsh enough to cause problems without the filters (and originally came without these-filters were added to the later produced F7200s.) It is a bright/fresh signature-if that makes sense-vs a very trebly, highly analytical signature-detailed in a very "lovely" way. Vocals and violins are amazing, but I also use it for everything.

It may not be a good fit with people needing tons of bass rumble. All bass is there, it's just not a bassy set, not its purpose.

Love the fit, around the ears without the guides and with deep insertion, super stable, super comfortable-larger tips and a narrower insertion *may* introduce some instability (not always-depends on the tip and the ear shape.)

A different take on the ER4SR, a touch of "Final-ness" to the signature. My other single balanced armature Final IEMs are excellent, but I must admit the F7200 are more unique and I love their "beautiful" sound. Would not get rid of my Heaven V and B2, though, as they are more than different enough.

Unsure if the lower models-F3100/F4100- sound "the same" as some specs are shared (they may, Final claims otherwise), but the old F7200 are a great sounding pair of IEMs. Would highly recommend them, though not so readily available right now. Single balanced armature IEMs are not popular as of late, but if something sounds good, it does, regardless the technical specs. IMHO, a great product that as far as I know never was truly popular-people may have preferred the more "normal" E series since way back then when it was introduced in the cheaper models.

I can understand why Final was "proud" of the F7200. Perhaps not so much today, but I love them!

 

[Ateefi]

For the ZE8000 user here, did anyone try to pair two devices? PC and Phone together? It seems it has to unpair my phone and connect the PC.

Just found this thread so don’t know if anybody answered your question. I think you have to unpair first and then connect, I also have issues where when in case there still connected to the phone, only way to fix this is by disconnecting Bluetooth.

 

[pail]

I checked the final’s JP website, and found this very interesting wireless IEM:


is it an unreleased version, or some limited edition that I have missed?
Thank you very much!

No man, don't think so, those are the ZE3000, i just bought them, i'm not a big fan of TWE technology, i send back those very famous Sony and their crappy app, but these are amazing, i need a pair of TWE as they are very comfortable for working or doing other activities while listening to music, the ZE3000 don't have any app you just pair them and they sound great.

You don't need ANC, here the mechanic isolation is really good, ANC on Sony iem is useless CRAP.

And better not talk about the charging case, best design ever.

LOL your post was like 2 years ago...

 

[pail]

I have a question about the ZE3000, when you pair it on Android there's a little icon that says battery 100%, but this stay at 100% and does not change for me right now, is it the charging case battery indicator or the one of the earphones ?
Answer: earphones.

 

[tricolor]

Hey friends,

Just to send some Kudos to an Amazon vendor, Audio Equip from Eden Prairie.
I had an issue with one of the drivers of my Final B1. The volume was significantly lower than the other side and I got it replaced without any questioning!

Here's the Final B1 with the FiiO M11 and the upgraded cable, LC RE Pro 2022 with Etymotic tips! Awesome passive sound isolation!

Hey friends! Any B1 user in the area? I am hoping to receive my SECOND replacement of the B1. The vendor is incredible and is sending me another brand new B1 after the very same issue happened again only after a few months worth of use. It is frustrating to have the same lower volume in one of the drivers out of nowhere... i do not think it was wax build up, as Erik from Audio Equip did confirm the driver was lower... probably due to wiring issues. Wondering if it's a sign to "open up" the unit and fix it myself if it happens AGAIN... is it THIS common or am i getting a batch of lemons, sadly?

 

[llysender]

Finally got my A5000 after what felt like a ethernalty.

First impressions of my new is the transiants are a tad lacking in in attack tip. Second is there is a strange dip in the presence(3K to 6k) area. Also besides that it sounding very plain with no emblishments.

Then I kept listening and now I'm hooked. The way the trasients roll before decaying gives this calming effect. Also the speed is significantlty faster than the A4000 giving for much better saperation.

I feel that the A5000 is either for pure vocals or extremely compressed metal. Both work very well.

 

[llysender]

Did some cable rolling with the A5000. Besides tonal differences it still retains alot of the speed and detail Unlike the A4000 which is quite cable sensitive and not really able to get the same level of speed and aggression as the stock cable.

Personally I found the the KBEar Black blade suits my taste the best. Compared to the stock it warms up the mids mids nicely and slightly lowers the mid treble(which I found quite a problematic cable characteristic as it doesnt jell with alot of iems). Quite different from the stock cable though as it looses that light and delicated sound for a more A4000 esque bombasic sound. Interestingly I found silver cables dont jell well with the A5000 as it makes it more sibilanant while still not fixing the transiant flaw.

Another combo I really like is the KBEar Chord(need to request a recessed with groove 2-pin as stock is flush) which gives this nice velerty texture and kind of extends the decay sustain abit making it sound fatter without changing the tonality much(still abit warmer).

Just curous have you folks tried rolling cables on the A5000?

Edit:
Had some time with the black blade. interestingly the soundstage is slightly smaller but the treble besides being slightly dipped is actually alot more defined. May or may not be a good thing.

 

[Knee Deep In Epoxy]

Enjoying my A5000's. Sooo comfortable in stock form... other iems should take note...although I think I've made it less comfortable... at a trade off...

At first I worried that the upper mids might be a little too bright, but when i went back to my HD600 I felt they were quite similar in that region... May be just a bit brighter on the A5000... They are pushed as far as they can go without going overboard... Acceptable...

I have tried a fiio LC-RC cable, but that was just for convenience in my setup. Didn't notice a change in tonality, but wasn't really looking for one either as cable rolling isn't my thing.

Love the sub-bass impact on the A5000. To me it's clean and enjoyable without being too much.

Mids are a little recessed and the stock tips are not as isolating as I would like. However those two "faults) are in my view are what gives them their spacious sound which is my favourite feature. I was able to elevate the mids slightly at a loss of space using Azla Xelastec tips, one size too big (I usually use M, but ML elevated the mids and made the sound more intimate). I then switched to M... Not as comfortable as stock tips, mids back to stock level, better isolation, but slightly less spacious sound, bass was also not as crisp as stock tips.

Then I switched to Azla Crystal tips. These seemed to keep everything as close to stock as possible except, more isolation, slightly less spaciousness, slightly less comfortable (but more comfortable, but also less isolating than the Xelastec tips). Bass crispness and the rest of the tonality is otherwise preserved.

So my conclusion is the sound and comfort is best with stock tips when I'm in a quiet place, but when I need more isolation I will use the Azla Crystal tips as that elevates the isolation without sacrificing much of the other sonic aspects I enjoy.

 

[Knee Deep In Epoxy]

Tried the A5000, stock tips, with the Mojo 2 today.

People are really sleeping on these! Great bass impact... natural, clear mids... treble with a perfectly enticing sizzle that never gets harsh or piercing, and lovely spaciousness.

I can't imagine the A8000 being much more enjoyable than this, but I've never tried the A8000 so don't take my word for it. All I'm really saying is the A5000 are great and I'm loving them more and more.

 

[jfopps]

Tried the A5000, stock tips, with the Mojo 2 today.

People are really sleeping on these! Great bass impact... natural, clear mids... treble with a perfectly enticing sizzle that never gets harsh or piercing, and lovely spaciousness.

I can't imagine the A8000 being much more enjoyable than this, but I've never tried the A8000 so don't take my word for it. All I'm really saying is the A5000 are great and I'm loving them more and more.

Good to hear that. Ive had the A3000 for a while now and love them. Been thinking about grabbing the A5000 soon.

 

[llysender]

Been enjoying the A5000 alot. But one thing that has been bugging me is the lack of backing vocal body. But I guess you cant win everything esp with the 1DD miracle they made.

Also what is interesting for me at lest is that on massive bass spikes the driver cant hide itself and images the whole driver moving instead of the synth which is abit jaring.

Edit:
I feel the need to say that the A5000 is both a microscope in that it will show any and all defects yet is very musical and soulful. I feel that it works best with vocal and string heavy songs.

 

[M4tchb0X]

Got my A5000 last week, my daily go to IEM when I am static. On the go I prefer something else.

The FIT is amazing, not 1IEM that could last me close to an hour previously, I was with the A5000 for 4hrs+ so far, no fatigue, no ear canal pains (with smallest stock tips). I love the details and soundstage but suffers a little transition gap from bass to mids. It is apparent but not a huge problem for me for now due to budget constraint. Still unable to find an IEM that covers that gap and retains the rest of the details, Hidition Viento comes closest so far.

I'm more tolerant towards treble being Grados fanboy for more than 5 years.

I run the A5000s through the RSA SR-71A though, it's a bit more jaring on the treble and slightly muddier bass without the SR-71A for me, especially on Adele's All I Ask.

For this price, I'd rather not cable roll, in my opinion that becomes overly complex, too much permutations but that's me. The stock cable itself seems to be of good quality too, i've not cable roll them before so my 2cents may not be that valid but please share your views if you had tried reasonably priced cables $50 - $80?

The B1 seems to be interesting, I may try it soon, A8000s been on my mind BUT I'm too afraid to try. Once i hear stuff, I can no longer unhear them. I recently got the Tago Studio IEMs because it's really fun, i use it in transit and on the go. Didn't have funds to buy both the A5000s and Tago Studio but eventually dug deeper as it was SGD50.00 cheaper sale during 8.8 because i missed it so dearly.

Disclaimer: I'm fairly new coming into IEMs, i mean i did go through the whole Shure E2C / UE TF10 TOTL era but couldn't afford any and den stucked with headphones. Just began trying newer IEMs.

 

[llysender]

Got my A5000 last week, my daily go to IEM when I am static. On the go I prefer something else.

The FIT is amazing, not 1IEM that could last me close to an hour previously, I was with the A5000 for 4hrs+ so far, no fatigue, no ear canal pains (with smallest stock tips). I love the details and soundstage but suffers a little transition gap from bass to mids. It is apparent but not a huge problem for me for now due to budget constraint. Still unable to find an IEM that covers that gap and retains the rest of the details, Hidition Viento comes closest so far.

I'm more tolerant towards treble being Grados fanboy for more than 5 years.

I run the A5000s through the RSA SR-71A though, it's a bit more jaring on the treble and slightly muddier bass without the SR-71A for me, especially on Adele's All I Ask.

For this price, I'd rather not cable roll, in my opinion that becomes overly complex, too much permutations but that's me. The stock cable itself seems to be of good quality too, i've not cable roll them before so my 2cents may not be that valid but please share your views if you had tried reasonably priced cables $50 - $80?

The B1 seems to be interesting, I may try it soon, A8000s been on my mind BUT I'm too afraid to try. Once i hear stuff, I can no longer unhear them. I recently got the Tago Studio IEMs because it's really fun, i use it in transit and on the go. Didn't have funds to buy both the A5000s and Tago Studio but eventually dug deeper as it was SGD50.00 cheaper sale during 8.8 because i missed it so dearly.

Disclaimer: I'm fairly new coming into IEMs, i mean i did go through the whole Shure E2C / UE TF10 TOTL era but couldn't afford any and den stucked with headphones. Just began trying newer IEMs.

I would say the KbEar Black blade would be my go to for rolling to "tame" the treble.

 

[pail]

Noob question, i want to buy Final C112 2.5mm balanced MMCX cable, can i use this cable with Final E5000 and E4000 iem (with a Qudelix 5k) ?