Going fully Wireless IEMs. Too soon? Or are we there yet?
Jan 4, 2020 at 12:10 PM Post #18,031 of 61,361
18,000 posts would seem to indicate yes

Yeah but 18000 of posts include people like me who do not get any response to inquiry. So it does not count towards interest in TWS per say.
But I recall many positive reviews of Haylou Gt1, Xiaomi Redmi, and SSK thingy (but sold out) were under $30. However the battery life is nowhere near as good as a wireless headphone like Fiio EH3.
 
Last edited:
Jan 4, 2020 at 1:38 PM Post #18,032 of 61,361
Is it worth , switching to wireless iems.

That depends entirely on your expectations. They are not "there yet" if you're expecting the same quality from a wired source. While yes, the BT protocols and the new Qualcomm chips really did solve a lot of the major problems they still don't fix the main problem most true wireless have. Amplification. While you can get a nice pleasing sound, decent dynamics, and a ridiculous amount of convenience, they can't touch the dynamic range and clarity of a wired set. (I've been through a lot of these. After a lot of swapping out, trial and error I realized my expectations where way too high.)

So it depends on WHY you want true wireless. If you're looking for a super convenient pair of in ears that you can listen to on the go with reasonably-good sound quality, then yes it's worth it for you. If you want clarity and detail like you'd get in a wired set then no it's not worth it. A good compromise would be a really nice pair of wired with a Bluetooth adapter (like a btr5, for example.)

This is not to say true wireless sound bad, they don't. Just understand what you're getting before you jump down this rabbit hole. (With so many very decent cheap pairs, it's way too easy to dump a ton of money before you even realize it. Too many "Oh, just another 40-50 bucks".)
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 1:45 PM Post #18,033 of 61,361
Yeah but 18000 of posts include people like me who do not get any response to inquiry. So it does not count towards interest in TWS per say.
But I recall many positive reviews of Haylou Gt1, Xiaomi Redmi, and SSK thingy (but sold out) were under $30. However the battery life is nowhere near as good as a wireless headphone like Fiio EH3.
Yep, the MPow Flame S, for example, has a 12-hour-playback battery, but it's not a TWS because of a shared wire. It's still highly portable, though, and lacking in most wires, so if portability/wireless-ness is your only consideration, there's a slew of better options with better sound quality, better comfort, better battery, etc.

I got the T1x's, because I wanted something:
  • that would fit in my pocket
  • would last 5hrs minimum
  • could be fully charged in under an hour
  • had an EQ (because Android is weird about third-party EQ's)
  • would still sound decent
They'll never replace my wired cans, though, or any of my other headphones; just an addition to the headphone family!
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 1:46 PM Post #18,034 of 61,361
Is it worth , switching to wireless iems.

Not atm. No one should be doing it right now. CES is just days away with new and more refined tech. Just days away and you'll have more and better info of what is coming and what it can do up from what we have now. Much better plan if you wait a week and then review your options cause they will certainly have changed.
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 1:55 PM Post #18,035 of 61,361
Not atm. No one should be doing it right now. CES is just days away with new and more refined tech. Just days away and you'll have more and better info of what is coming and what it can do up from what we have now. Much better plan if you wait a week and then review your options cause they will certainly have changed.
It might make some models drop in price, but the lower your target price-point, the less likely you'll probably see much of a discount. If you have the wherewithal, though, it might be good to hold off until after CES. You might get a deep discount on last year's model!
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 2:06 PM Post #18,036 of 61,361
Got the Mavin Air-XR Qi today. It's hard to believe how tiny the case is! See my pic below.

As many of you know I love the previous Mavin TWS model, the Air-X, but had some nitpicks with the materials used. The good news is the quality of the plastic used for both the XR's case and earpieces is much nicer and not the ugly glossy plastic used on the X. My one complaint about the build is the hinge on the case is just a tad loose.

Qi charging works like a charm, although the bottom of the case gets a bit warmer than when I use my Qi charging pad with the L2P.

The earpieces are also tiny being ever so slightly smaller than the Air-X, but they're small enough where I could probably sleep with them in my ears. They're incredibly light and very comfortable.

The touch controls are full-featured but aren't the most consistent in registering touches, but there's probably a learning curve. They lean towards "less sensitive" which I actually prefer as they're harder to accidentally activate.

Like the Air-X, these have the quietest noise floor I've heard from any brand. It's virtually inaudible. I wonder what Mavin is doing differently with these Qualcomm chips as literally every other model I've heard has a noise floor that's detectable right off the bat.

Noise isolation is really good with aftermarket Comply SmartCore Sport Pro tips. The stock silicones don't isolate quite as well, and add a bit of sibilance. Incidentally, the nozzles have a rather large bore size so the Comply tips really took some wrangling to get them on.

In terms of sound, my initial impressions are favorable. They sound a lot like the Air-X but are a hair warmer with slightly less separation as they're more intimate in presentation than the X. They're lacking any obvious audible distortion or artifacts in the frequency range outside of a bit of sibilance compared to the X, but that seems to be fit-related as I don't have that problem with the Comply tips versus the stock silicone tips. They're warm in absolute frequency response and sound like they're probably designed close to the Harman curve. I do think the Air-X is the better sounding of the 2 models, but they're not worlds apart in that regard.

Compared to the L2P, they're a lot less bassy with a much more even treble response. The treble in general is less forward, not as sharp and more relaxed than the L2P, but doesn't suffer from a lack of air. The Comply foam tips I stuck on there definitely reduce the treble a bit too much for my taste compared to the stock silicone tips that came with the XR. The L2P also has a bigger soundstage, but the Mavin is much clearer and tonally even from top to bottom. The L2P sounds a little thick in the bass and lower mids in comparison.

I'm really loving the XR so far! They're better than the X than and addressed most of my complaints with that previous model in terms of build quality and feel without mucking around with the excellent sound quality. The addition of Qi charging is awesome. Hopefully Mavin can help me out by getting me a pair that doesn't have the voice notifications in Japanese (see the nitpicks below).



Some nitpicks:

- They barely fit in the case with the large Comply smart core premium tips. I really have to cram them in and compress the foam tips to get them to fit with the lid closed.
- They don't fit in the case with the sport stabilizers, but I've found that on both the X and XR that they're not necessary for a comfortable fit. This seems like a weird design decision, but clearly the case size was the main priority.
- The case still has a microUSB charging port, although Qi charging sorta negates this being a problem for me, but it'd still be nice to only have to bring a single USB-C cable for my phone and TWS when I travel.
- For some reason the pair I got from Amazon sold directly by Mavin has the voice notifications in Japanese. I contacted the seller through Amazon to see if they can remedy this.

Bp3qpWm.jpg
 
Last edited:
Jan 4, 2020 at 3:46 PM Post #18,038 of 61,361
Pulled out one of my first sets of TWS tonight that I hadn't listened to in quite a while. I forgot how great the Alterola IE600 sound with some EQing. Good strong bass, crystal clear highs. Mids are a bit muddy until you boost them with an EQ, then they come out pretty damn fine too. Only downside is their proprietary eartips, which can be a bit weird to get a good fit with sometimes and doesn't leave you any options for something more comfortable if you don't like the stock tips. Thanks, @actorlife for convincing me to get these!
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 4:57 PM Post #18,039 of 61,361
It might make some models drop in price, but the lower your target price-point, the less likely you'll probably see much of a discount. If you have the wherewithal, though, it might be good to hold off until after CES. You might get a deep discount on last year's model!

Not just that. The answer to should I go wireless may be "no" right now but some new model with a new features or level may change the answer irregardless of price. Perhaps now is "no they aren't good sounding enough" but maybe that Helm electrostat model changes the answer. Depends on the person but there is no doubt there are more answers to the question in just a few days.
 
Last edited:
Jan 4, 2020 at 5:23 PM Post #18,040 of 61,361
Screenshot_20200104-141808_Chrome.jpg
That bass boost is so ridiculous. Would be curious to see them measured with different app EQs used

@crinacle any chance you were using the Soundcore app that has EQ presets?
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 5:27 PM Post #18,041 of 61,361

@Floris888 -- Sorry, I was being a bit facetious there. (actually meant to reply with an honest answer right away, but ended up hitting the road w/ family.)

The last 6 months have been a renaissance of sorts for TWS earphones with brisk product development, resulting in constant new product introductions continually. This has resulted in raising the overall quality of chi-fi TWS earphones. If you were in the market a 1.5 year ago for some TWS's in the $20 to $40 USD range, you would end up with something not very satisfying from a music standpoint -- pretty much equivalent to sub $10 iems (and not as good the Monoprice 8320s, remember those!).

Currently, there are a number of $30 to $40 TWS's that easily rival Apple Airpods (not to say that Airpods sound particularly good, but it's a good reference point since they're everywhere.) There are even a few in this price range that is roughly sonically as good as Apple Airpds Pros.

With any TWS models over $120, you hit diminishing returns in terms of sound quality.
 
Last edited:
Jan 4, 2020 at 5:35 PM Post #18,043 of 61,361
Guys (and Gals?)... Had a good laugh after reading all the responses to @Floris888 question re: "is it worth switching to wireless iems?".

Basically, we all recognize the shortcomings of TWS earphones but still persistently post here and buy various offerings, noting small incremental changes day after day.

A great example of our affliction?
 
Jan 4, 2020 at 5:37 PM Post #18,044 of 61,361
Jan 4, 2020 at 5:47 PM Post #18,045 of 61,361
Guys (and Gals?)... Had a good laugh after reading all the responses to @Floris888 question re: "is it worth switching to wireless iems?".

Basically, we all recognize the shortcomings of TWS earphones but still persistently post here and buy various offerings, noting small incremental changes day after day.

A great example of our affliction?

well put. Baby steps for sure. TWS has already made wired BT completely irrelevant. Once LDAC and other similar codecs are available in TWS then I think we will see some real progress toward audiophile grade tws.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top