Fit for a Bat! – Flagship IEMs Shootout (8:CT6E, 7:H8P, 6:JH13, 5:K10, 4:BD4.2, 3:A12, 2:W500, 1:SE5U)

[Kerouac]

 

Heard good things about it. Shame the Solar isn't going to be featured.

The Solar is a great IEM. In my opinion its better than the Layla, Angie, K10 and NT6P.

I can confirm that the Solar is an excellent iem, listening with it right now (while typing this) out of my P1

I definitely prefer it over my other iems (1Plus2, V6 Stage and Z5) atm

 

[flinkenick]

Listening to the Solar from a P1, you my friend have exquisite taste 

 

[jmills8]

I smell wooden shoes.

 

[Kerouac]

I smell wooden shoes.

I don't smell anything 

Maybe it's because of the tulips in my nose while staring at some windmills over here

 

 

[Ike1985]

Guys, Steven Rochlin's review of the A12 is up:
 
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1015/64_Audio_A12_Custom_In_Ear_Monitors_Review.htm
CIEMs."
 
He seems to favor pairing the A12 with the ZX2, which is what I was looking at anyway.  Excellent.

 

[fiascogarcia]

  Guys, Steven Rochlin's review of the A12 is up, interestingly he finds the attack fast and the decay slow, opposite of what Jelt found.
 
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1015/64_Audio_A12_Custom_In_Ear_Monitors_Review.htm
 
Per Steven:
 
"The result, audibly, is that since most acoustic music lives within the midrange you get the sound of more attack and hear more performance hall decay. Snare drums have a bit more snap, violins have a touch more sing and heavy metal guitars have more bite versus low-end growl. "
 
"The A12 CIEMs have an excellent, smooth and even decay in volume as recorded within the music. They are very quick to respond to initial attack and can stop on a dime too. Explosive cymbal hits shimmer impressively and fall off smoothly. Overall, the dynamics are reference quality and inner resolution being amongst the very best I have heard to date with CIEMs."
 
He seems to favor pairing the A12 with the ZX2, which is what I was looking at anyway.  Excellent.

 
Interesting!  What makes this fun (and challenging to some) is that buying an iem/ciem is such a personal choice that there will never be a consensus regarding any particular iem, and that choice will be influenced by equipment used and genre of music one prefers.  I'm sure I would be more than happy with any one of the ciems in this shootout!  I own one, but would love to hear them all.

 

[Ike1985]

I also notice the same effect as Steven, when cranking up the volume on a bass-heavy track, the bass remains crystal clear and only increases in volume not distortion/muddiness.

 

[Malevolent]

  Pros: Bass. Bass. Bass. So good I had to say it three times. Bass. There I go again. Also, awesome soundstage!

 
Yes, the bass is so good, I had to quote it. 

 
And I probably never mentioned it to you before, but thanks for introducing me to the W500 AHMorph. The very first time I auditioned them (at E1, maybe?), I was floored by its authoritative bass. I knew I had to get them. EDM never sounded so good with an IEM before.

 

[proedros]

fantastic work jet
 
congrats and thanx for sharing it with us 

 

[hrq12345]

Strongly recommend you to add Canal Work L71a, which to my ears, can be compared to TOTLs like Layla, K10, and A12. Abed CW L71 with AKG K3003. To my ears, CW got a "overall" win, which was incredible. "Overall" includes bass, mids, imaging and soundstage. For highs they might match each other.

 

[mahchefai]

Agree too. I found the h8p to be very good on individual notes, but string them together and "sticky" is a very apt description. The naturalness score refers to the individual note. The overall presentation of the treble needs to include speed, smoothness, etc. Add all that together, and I find it no contest- the overall organicness and presentation of the h8 is superior to the h8p.

Actually I have been speaking with @AmberOzL a while, we agree very much on the h8p vs h8. The h8 is overall very musical, coherent, calm. Tonality is also very much more on point compared to H8P

How would you compare the bass of the H8 vs the H8P? I have heard that the H8P is a little bit on the weak side and I am hoping that the H8 will leave me satisfied. I'm not a huge basshead but a lack of bass is

 

[jjacq]

Thank you so much for doing this! I really enjoyed reading the reviews. I hope you add a Lear IEM in your lineup for the universal one but nonetheless I think I'm gonna save towards the W500 now .

 

[jelt2359]

How would you compare the bass of the H8 vs the H8P? I have heard that the H8P is a little bit on the weak side and I am hoping that the H8 will leave me satisfied. I'm not a huge basshead but a lack of bass is

The bass is very similar. Good quality; quantity won't rock your socks off. If you're a bass head who likes some decent quantity, probably better off looking elsewhere.

 

[aras]

Jelt, what are the differences between the w500 and the lcm bd4.2? Bass seems similar. Is one brighter than other?

 

[jelt2359]

  Strongly recommend you to add Canal Work L71a, which to my ears, can be compared to TOTLs like Layla, K10, and A12. Abed CW L71 with AKG K3003. To my ears, CW got a "overall" win, which was incredible. "Overall" includes bass, mids, imaging and soundstage. For highs they might match each other.

Where'd you get them?
 

  Thank you so much for doing this! I really enjoyed reading the reviews. I hope you add a Lear IEM in your lineup for the universal one but nonetheless I think I'm gonna save towards the W500 now .

Welcome No plans for Lear at the moment.
 

  fantastic work jet
 
congrats and thanx for sharing it with us 

Thanks

   
Yes, the bass is so good, I had to quote it. 

 
And I probably never mentioned it to you before, but thanks for introducing me to the W500 AHMorph. The very first time I auditioned them (at E1, maybe?), I was floored by its authoritative bass. I knew I had to get them. EDM never sounded so good with an IEM before.

No problem. I'm just glad you're back to the basshead side. Ha.

Jelt, what are the differences between the w500 and the lcm bd4.2? Bass seems similar. Is one brighter than other?

Lifted this from my Lear LCM BD4.2 review:
 
The AAW W500 and the Lear LCM BD4.2 are the two CIEMs in this shootout that are hybrids, pairing dynamic drivers for the bass; with BA drivers for the rest of the spectrum. The AAW W500 has one dynamic bass driver, while the Lear LCM BD4.2 boasts two. Little wonder that I frequently got people asking me about how the two compare. Well, the Lear has some of the bass best I've ever heard, but the AAW W500 is even better. The AAW's bass hits like a sledgehammer, with more weight and authority than any other IEM I've heard- including the Lear. Its bass is also a bit faster, and decays in an even more textbook fashion. Interestingly, while it's a bit like an uber-dynamic in the above qualities, it also is tighter and cleaner than the Lear's low-end. It's not all negative for the Lear, though- its bass has a naturalness of tone that's clearly better; and also boasts a bit more detail. Getting to the sub-bass, it's safe to say that both these IEMs easily reach into the deepest reaches of the sea, feeding on hapless minions for breakfast. But the AAW has better slam in the darkest corners of the bass, with a more enveloping and bountiful presentation.