[gLer]

Mirror these thoughts. Why do you have beautiful designs and associated glamour shots of timepieces? When they....sit on your arm and tell you the time. And ditto a luxurious or ultra fast cars that.....get you to the shops and back or get you from 0-100kph in 2.5s on a track the two times a year they're taken for a spin?

I'll also add that at the high-end there's no excuse for poor design. Premium means premium - both in performance and design - especially if you're going to charge premium prices.

 

[audionewbi]

I'm slowly caring for how my IEM looks. For me, VR1 is the best looking IEM in my collection. The opal faceplate, joined with how it responses with cable is keeping me occupied.

 

[Deezel177]

Yes, excellent photography as always. Dust on IEMs really is a pain to try and get rid of.

Funny, I personally am happy to get rid of the mirror slap sound. There’s something about the sound of the mirror in the absence of the film winder sound that annoys me . I like most mirrorless shutter sounds more. I also now can’t stand the optical viewfinder, as I hate taking eye level shots, and am too lazy and old to go crawling on my stomach or standing on furniture to get the right angles.

Appreciate that, man. To each their own. It's why some prefer the sound of Cherry MX Blue switches and others prefer silent ones. I kinda relate to you on the last sentence, though. I can't count the number of boxes and books I've got lying around to help me get everything to eye level, so I don't have to hurt my back every photoshoot.

Mirror these thoughts. Why do you have beautiful designs and associated glamour shots of timepieces? When they....sit on your arm and tell you the time. And ditto a luxurious or ultra fast cars that.....get you to the shops and back or get you from 0-100kph in 2.5s on a track the two times a year they're taken for a spin?

No offence to anyone who's expressed similar opinions these past few posts, but, to be 100% frank, I am dumbfounded. Why... exactly, can't IEMs look good? And, why can't IEM product photography... look good as well? I mean, it's not even a trade-off or compromise where the Odin is a fantastic-looking IEM, but performs horribly, or the photos (not just my own, but of other reviewers as well) look good, but there isn't any content to go with it. Why is having both style and substance... almost frowned upon? I'd really love to know what the issue is here, because I'm genuinely confused.

 

[xenithon]

Why is having both style and substance... almost frowned upon? I'd really love to know what the issue is here, because I'm genuinely confused.

We are on the same page - my comments on why cars and watches are designed beautifully is because form and function need not be mutually exclusive. And as @gLer pointed out, these are ultimately premium offerings so you should not compromise.

Another salient example - I am a food lover and have frequented several incredible restaurants around the world. It's not just the taste that makes the experience - it is the plating, the service, the ambience....hats off to all those that strive for excellence across multiple facets.

 

[mvvRAZ]

Appreciate that, man. To each their own. It's why some prefer the sound of Cherry MX Blue switches and others prefer silent ones. I kinda relate to you on the last sentence, though. I can't count the number of boxes and books I've got lying around to help me get everything to eye level, so I don't have to hurt my back every photoshoot.



No offence to anyone who's expressed similar opinions these past few posts, but, to be 100% frank, I am dumbfounded. Why... exactly, can't IEMs look good? And, why can't IEM product photography... look good as well? I mean, it's not even a trade-off or compromise where the Odin is a fantastic-looking IEM, but performs horribly, or the photos (not just my own, but of other reviewers as well) look good, but there isn't any content to go with it. Why is having both style and substance... almost frowned upon? I'd really love to know what the issue is here, because I'm genuinely confused.

+1

High end IEMs are pretty much in the same category as high end watches and jewelry - granted they don't go up to hundreds of thousands of dollars, but regardless, they're very, very expensive products - if I'm going to be paying a company this kind of money for a product I expect them to go all the way. The Oriolus Trailli is the perfect example (IMHO) - from what I've been told it sounds amazing, but to me it just feels extremely lazy to put it in a shell like that and ask for this kind of money. It just feels... wrong

I generally tend to stay away from acrylic universals as they've always come across as a little lazy from a design perspective, unless the company goes the extra mile when it comes to designing the acrylic shell - the Odin is a good example of an exceptionally built acrylic, and in some rare cases like the Infinity Mk2 by Rhapsodio, having the shell be transparent does make sense. Noble's Prestige editions do require it as well, as you need the material to be showcased.

Realistically though, once you cross the 3000/4000$ price point, I generally expect build along the lines of the MMR Thummim and VE Erl - luxury products should come in a luxury shell.

 

[riverground]

+1

High end IEMs are pretty much in the same category as high end watches and jewelry - granted they don't go up to hundreds of thousands of dollars, but regardless, they're very, very expensive products - if I'm going to be paying a company this kind of money for a product I expect them to go all the way. The Oriolus Trailli is the perfect example (IMHO) - from what I've been told it sounds amazing, but to me it just feels extremely lazy to put it in a shell like that and ask for this kind of money. It just feels... wrong

I generally tend to stay away from acrylic universals as they've always come across as a little lazy from a design perspective, unless the company goes the extra mile when it comes to designing the acrylic shell - the Odin is a good example of an exceptionally built acrylic, and in some rare cases like the Infinity Mk2 by Rhapsodio, having the shell be transparent does make sense. Noble's Prestige editions do require it as well, as you need the material to be showcased.

Realistically though, once you cross the 3000/4000$ price point, I generally expect build along the lines of the MMR Thummim and VE Erl - luxury products should come in a luxury shell.

Oriolous never really cared about their design I guess. Based on all the products I’ve seen from them. None have really caught my eye.
I think Hyla was more of their eye catching brand.
That’s why I was honestly surprised when they released the Trailli with the Oriolous brand.

Would’ve loved to see the Trailli in a silver shell like the Nerva.

But nonetheless if ever I get the money to buy the Trailli, I’ll grab it in pure transparent shell for the left side (because I’m a tech geek and I like to see the tech inside *even though they don’t have copper coils for dayzzz like the Infinity2) and their pearlescent Royal purple shell on the right.
I’m a sucker for that shade of purple. One of the reasons why I love the faceplate of the Wraith, and the shell of the Hyla CE-5.



And as for the Thummim. That is a gorgeous design in my eyes. And I’m quite curious to how they fit in my deep ear concha.

 

[mvvRAZ]

Oriolous never really cared about their design I guess. Based on all the products I’ve seen from them. None have really caught my eye.
I think Hyla was more of their eye catching brand.
That’s why I was honestly surprised when they released the Trailli with the Oriolous brand.

Would’ve loved to see the Trailli in a silver shell like the Nerva.

But nonetheless if ever I get the money to buy the Trailli, I’ll grab it in pure transparent shell for the left side (because I’m a tech geek and I like to see the tech inside *even though they don’t have copper coils for dayzzz like the Infinity2) and their pearlescent Royal purple shell on the right.
I’m a sucker for that shade of purple. One of the reasons why I love the faceplate of the Wraith, and the shell of the Hyla CE-5.



And as for the Thummim. That is a gorgeous design in my eyes. And I’m quite curious to how they fit in my deep ear concha.

Royal purple is suuuuch a nice color. I'm super tempted to get a custom Trinity with a purple glitter shell

 

[riverground]

Royal purple is suuuuch a nice color. I'm super tempted to get a custom Trinity with a purple glitter shell

That is one beautiful shell too!!
One of the reasons why I still have my eyes on a Trinity brass lol

I’m glad I’m not the only one that thinks Royal Purple is such a nice colour lol

 

[normie610]

I'm still partial to that classic DSLR shutter, though. I get frustrated every time my dad changes it back to Silent Shooting for church work. And, the analog viewfinder is a must for me as well. With that said, I have been intentionally ignorant towards the mirrorless landscape. I'm sure they've got alternatives (or even fully-integrated) the features I'm looking for. I'd just rather not have an excuse to get an all-new camera.

Well sounds like the Fuji X-Pro3 with its hybrid viewfinder is the right one for you

Regarding aesthetics, I do agree with most of you that when paying such a large amount of money, I’d expect the IEM not only to sound good, but also to look sexy

 

[davidcotton]

Custom art have 20% off the Black right now. Custom or universal.

 

[gLer]

Custom art have 20% off the Black right now. Custom or universal.

I know it's a little OT but is it just me or are these so-called 'Black Friday' deals underwhelming? Firstly, what happened to Black Friday actually being on Black Friday? Second, these vendors run 20% off deals throughout the year, so these BF promotions seems tagged-on at best (and I'm not singling CA here, or any vendor, just a general statement).

I was always under the impression that BF was a one or two day unique smash sale with discounts of 50% or more on a limited number of items with limited stock numbers. The whole thing seems to have morphed into a sorry excuse for an extended holiday promotion that's more or less timed around BF but the day itself is actually meaningless and the discounts are diluted at best.

Heck you can probably call up most of these vendors any time of year and negotiate a similar discount without having to wait for any particular day.

 

[Vitaly2017]

I know it's a little OT but is it just me or are these so-called 'Black Friday' deals underwhelming? Firstly, what happened to Black Friday actually being on Black Friday? Second, these vendors run 20% off deals throughout the year, so these BF promotions seems tagged-on at best (and I'm not singling CA here, or any vendor, just a general statement).

I was always under the impression that BF was a one or two day unique smash sale with discounts of 50% or more on a limited number of items with limited stock numbers. The whole thing seems to have morphed into a sorry excuse for an extended holiday promotion that's more or less timed around BF but the day itself is actually meaningless and the discounts are diluted at best.

Heck you can probably call up most of these vendors any time of year and negotiate a similar discount without having to wait for any particular day.

There is always a marge in the price they can cut and sometimes it can be as big as 50%

So this does bring a big question how much does the iem really cost and why we overpay so much!!!

 

[davidcotton]

I know it's a little OT but is it just me or are these so-called 'Black Friday' deals underwhelming? Firstly, what happened to Black Friday actually being on Black Friday? Second, these vendors run 20% off deals throughout the year, so these BF promotions seems tagged-on at best (and I'm not singling CA here, or any vendor, just a general statement).

I was always under the impression that BF was a one or two day unique smash sale with discounts of 50% or more on a limited number of items with limited stock numbers. The whole thing seems to have morphed into a sorry excuse for an extended holiday promotion that's more or less timed around BF but the day itself is actually meaningless and the discounts are diluted at best.

Heck you can probably call up most of these vendors any time of year and negotiate a similar discount without having to wait for any particular day.

It's the curse of Black friday becoming mainstream. See Christmas sales, Summer Sales, Boxing Day sales and so on. There's a joke going around that someone had to be really unlucky to get a sofa from one of the high street shops when they didn't have a sale on for one day!

 

[gLer]

Speaking of audio gear teasers, my long-overdue First Look at the Empire Ears Odin is now live on THL! The link's over on the Empire thread: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/emp...merly-earwerkz.786335/page-1738#post-15990706

As always, I hope y'all enjoy, and look out for the full review coming... some... time in the future. Cheers.

​

Daniel these are EASILY the most impressive images I've seen of Odin anywhere online. Even Empire's own product shots don't come close. The emphasis of the colour and iridescence against the dark background is sublime. If I didn't read your review (excellent as always) that reaffirms the general impression of the Odin's brighter, lighter, more neutral/mid-focused tuning, I'd almost be tempted to seek one out myself.

 

[mvvRAZ]

I know it's a little OT but is it just me or are these so-called 'Black Friday' deals underwhelming? Firstly, what happened to Black Friday actually being on Black Friday? Second, these vendors run 20% off deals throughout the year, so these BF promotions seems tagged-on at best (and I'm not singling CA here, or any vendor, just a general statement).

I was always under the impression that BF was a one or two day unique smash sale with discounts of 50% or more on a limited number of items with limited stock numbers. The whole thing seems to have morphed into a sorry excuse for an extended holiday promotion that's more or less timed around BF but the day itself is actually meaningless and the discounts are diluted at best.

Heck you can probably call up most of these vendors any time of year and negotiate a similar discount without having to wait for any particular day.

EA's 10% off limited to the first three units sold

You're right though, I am yet to see a BF deal that I haven't been able to get anyways, some % are even lower than what I buy at normally lol

I like the pricing policy of companies like VE - flat out no discounts, this is the price we sell at and that's that. Nothing worse than buying something and seeing it go on sale a week later