Yeah, I especially like the categorizing the attributes of a product in such a way that allows you to know if it ticks your boxes, or not. I really do like the summary Daniel does at the end. The thoughts are pooled together in a clear blurb-style summary: "you may like this if you are looking for X.... this is what it does well" - and "you may want to skip this if you're looking for Y.... here's what it doesn't do as well".
I really like those matte wood faceplates - totally unique and I don't think I've seen them done on IEMs before.Okayyy so the Plunge Unity 5 has arrived!
This is probably the most difficult IEM I've ever had to post impressions for... For the most part because it's been tailored pretty much perfectly to my preferences. Simon over at Plunge was kind enough to fine-tune the intangibles along with some of the FR to what I asked and the result is subjectively remarkable, and objectively a very specific niche. Here are some observation based on a few hours of listening
The good:
1. The soundstage is M A S S I V E. Legitimately, the widest and furthest I've ever seen an IEM stretch, to the point it is plain unnatural
2. Amazing upper mids and treble - unlike almost any I've heard before, save for the FiR M5. They're way past the treble tolerance limit of almost all audiophiles but that's something I specifically asked Simon for, and I absolutely love the result
3. Great, deep, textured bass with good slam and decay. I'm not the best audiophile to comment on bass in general but I love the execution in the Unity 5
4. Lovely build quality, design and fit. I used .STL files that have been used for other IEMs before but in this set the fit is significantly better than most others I own. Depth and tightness are actually very similar to that of 64Audio
5. The separation that the Plunge achieves is almost excessive, to the point where it can sound like multiple separate performances
6. Extremely revealing - any flaws in the recording are instantly pointed out, it spares you nothing - it's a rather sharp presentation overall, don't expect warm and musical here (Unity 8 coming soon and that should be a better fit for that signature)
The bad:
1. The treble can get excessive in certain recordings (especially older ones), where it just gets out of control and muddies the whole track
2. The technicalities can be perceived as excessive, to the point where they distract you from the music - doesn't apply to me personally as I leave and breathe that, but hey, to each his own
3. Male vocals that extend higher sound somewhat off due to the treble tuning (again, as requested by me)
Can I recommend it?
Yes and no. I can't recommend you to get a unit that is tuned exactly like mine, unless you and I share extremely similar preferences and you don't particularly mind ear rupturing upper mids and trebles
What I can recommend however, is for you to drop Simon (Plunge) a message and tell him about your preferences - he might be able to design something that's spot on perfect for you
Plunge call them "raw wood" and they're essentially not covered by any acrylic. Since I wanted an artwork on top of the faceplates they had to lacquer them, but for the Unity 8 I might go for the completely raw finish.
Oh that’s me
I did do the firmware update, but don't understand what happened. The first time I did not get the USB DAC to work, I could not get sound, but the BT DAC worked fine. Later I tried again and the BT did not manage to pair with my Mac, but the USB DAC worked, although I had the same issue as with the FiiO K3 where the sound in videos de-synched. My Mac is late 2011, so that could very well be part of the problem.
Okayyy so the Plunge Unity 5 has arrived!
This is probably the most difficult IEM I've ever had to post impressions for... For the most part because it's been tailored pretty much perfectly to my preferences. Simon over at Plunge was kind enough to fine-tune the intangibles along with some of the FR to what I asked and the result is subjectively remarkable, and objectively a very specific niche. Here are some observation based on a few hours of listening
The good:
1. The soundstage is M A S S I V E. Legitimately, the widest and furthest I've ever seen an IEM stretch, to the point it is plain unnatural
2. Amazing upper mids and treble - unlike almost any I've heard before, save for the FiR M5. They're way past the treble tolerance limit of almost all audiophiles but that's something I specifically asked Simon for, and I absolutely love the result
3. Great, deep, textured bass with good slam and decay. I'm not the best audiophile to comment on bass in general but I love the execution in the Unity 5
4. Lovely build quality, design and fit. I used .STL files that have been used for other IEMs before but in this set the fit is significantly better than most others I own. Depth and tightness are actually very similar to that of 64Audio
5. The separation that the Plunge achieves is almost excessive, to the point where it can sound like multiple separate performances
6. Extremely revealing - any flaws in the recording are instantly pointed out, it spares you nothing - it's a rather sharp presentation overall, don't expect warm and musical here (Unity 8 coming soon and that should be a better fit for that signature)
The bad:
1. The treble can get excessive in certain recordings (especially older ones), where it just gets out of control and muddies the whole track
2. The technicalities can be perceived as excessive, to the point where they distract you from the music - doesn't apply to me personally as I leave and breathe that, but hey, to each his own
3. Male vocals that extend higher sound somewhat off due to the treble tuning (again, as requested by me)
Can I recommend it?
Yes and no. I can't recommend you to get a unit that is tuned exactly like mine, unless you and I share extremely similar preferences and you don't particularly mind ear rupturing upper mids and trebles
What I can recommend however, is for you to drop Simon (Plunge) a message and tell him about your preferences - he might be able to design something that's spot on perfect for you
@Wyville and I discussed some single DD IEMs a while back, and I believe I stumbled upon a hidden gem today
At around 1200 euros, I proudly present you the Acoustune 1695TI
Had it for a few hours now and I’ve never been this impressed by anything at that price point. Will be listening closely and posting a review soon, but woah
The bass isn’t especially boosted. It’s balanced for the most part with somewhat lifted lows - amazing (by my standards) slam and decay though, with significantly lifted subbass. Billie Eilish’s bad guy never sounded this good hahaOoo..now I'm intrigued..
Does it have MOAR BASS?
Or are you just focusing on the mids and treble for now?
Thanks for sharing my friend! I really like Acoustune, but have so far only heard one or two of them and that was three years ago I think. Love the build quality on them as well, a bit heavy perhaps, but it inspires confidence. Look forward to reading your review!@Wyville and I discussed some single DD IEMs a while back, and I believe I stumbled upon a hidden gem today
At around 1200 euros, I proudly present you the Acoustune 1695TI
Had it for a few hours now and I’ve never been this impressed by anything at that price point. Will be listening closely and posting a review soon, but woah
The 1695 is definitely going to the front of the queue, will probably be done by the end of the weekend. Feels great to have my mind blown by a piece of gear haha
