[BenF]

Has anyone done a comparison between the the GD3 series and the SD3? I looked back through the thread and there is some mention of the SD3 but not to the same extent as the GD3A and 3B. One report said that the SD3 was tuned "way too hot", but other comments were more favourable. But I didn't see any side by side with the GD3s.

My SD3 isn't burned in yet, but on the first listen it sounds much worse than GD3A.
Bass is poorly defined, mids are muddy and remote.
It's as if I'm listening to a radio playing in another room.

Hopefully burn-in will help.

 

[DannyDanz]

By the way if someone's looking for a next step to upgrade from their GS Audio IEMs (GD3A and probably any other lower-end IEM from GS Audio) then I can 100% recommend Yanyin Canon. This post has nothing to do with GS Audio, I just thought I'd post it here because I was looking for an upgrade to my GD3A and it took some time and research to make my choice. I'm very happy with my Canon, and looking at the competition at the ~$300 price bracket, nothing else even comes close because of Canon's tuning switches and awesome tuning.

After doing some A/B these days, I can confidently say that my GD3A does not even come close to the Canon in anything. GD3A is a "bang for the buck" IEM, with Canons you really get that near-perfect hifi experience. Everything's better:

• Better tuning out of the box, my highs were a tad bit harsh on GD3A which prevented me from pushing the loudness
• Has tuning switches that work great
• Better bass
• Meatier mids
• Highs extend further
• Better details/resolution
• More musical
• No downsides to think of

BenF and some other reviewers are saying that Canons are on par with IEMs much more expensive than them. But I'm just posting this here to help out any other beginners in this hobby who bought the GS Audio stuff and have some extra money lying around for upgrades. Check the Yanyin Discussion Thread for more info.

 

[Tonytex]

My SD3 isn't burned in yet, but on the first listen it sounds much worse than GD3A.
Bass is poorly defined, mids are muddy and remote.
It's as if I'm listening to a radio playing in another room.

Hopefully burn-in will help.

GD3A is much better than SD3.....SD3 is darker above 8k and also shouts a little around 4 to 6
GD3A is better in everything!

 

[ian91]

The GD3C has arrived, OOTB I'm impressed on all fronts. For my smaller ears these fit like customs. I'll post some pictures and impressions this evening

 

[YujinYujin]

The GD3C has arrived, OOTB I'm impressed on all fronts. For my smaller ears these fit like customs. I'll post some pictures and impressions this evening

In anticipation)

 

[ian91]

GD3C Stock faceplate

Sound impressions (stock cable and tips, Cayin RU6, SE, high gain)

• Bass is detailed and well controlled
• Mids feel spacious and resolving
• Treble extends well with excellent detail
• Timbre is great but tonality does come across thin, especially with the wrong source
• Soundstage and depth are good but layering and imaging are average

Caveats have emerged from further listening:

• Seems source picky (or power hungry) - thin and harsh out of my Note 9 with zero depth and no bass
• Male vocals - recessed, lack presence & body but this can be somewhat offset with tip choice
• Bass is a little soft around the edges - needs a bit more impact

Cheap packaging but decent cable. Bring your own tips - I'm using Whizzer soundstage tips at the moment and a balanced SPC cable. Build quality and comfort is superb.

If I was to nitpick I would have added more midbass to this tuning by flattening the bass gradient or instead going for a bass shelf to offset the uppermid presence they have gone for. The BAs need more support from below so the midrange doesn't become quite so thin.

I'm enjoying this so far and I have to keep my expectations in check considering the price. It shows much more refinement than most hybrid sets I've heard below $100 and is versatile across the parts of my library that I have tried (instrumental and electronic). It doesn't seem from the graphs that the GD3D alters bass but instead cuts treble (which I think should stay the same). This leaves either EQ - that I don't like to do - or tip rolling, which I'll continue to experiment with.

I'll be interested to hear comparisons with the GD3A, to see if this 2nd gen DD is truly an improvement, and with the GD3D (that I may have to pick up myself to see if it sounds better from a tonal perspective).


Edit: trialing Spinfit CP-155 currently that has a longer nozzle to offset the short nozzle of the IEM, these also tend to boost midbass. A definite improvement in the bass region to my ears!

Edit 2: the graph on the marketing definitely overstates the bass on this set, no way does it have the quantity they are suggesting

 

[504246]

Thank you for your feedback.
I still haven't received my GD3D... I hope to receive them next week.

 

[gmdb]

GD3C Stock faceplate

Sound impressions (stock cable and tips, Cayin RU6, SE, high gain)

• Bass is detailed and well controlled
• Mids feel spacious and resolving
• Treble extends well with excellent detail
• Timbre is great but tonality does come across thin, especially with the wrong source
• Soundstage and depth are good but layering and imaging are average

Caveats have emerged from further listening:

• Seems source picky (or power hungry) - thin and harsh out of my Note 9 with zero depth and no bass
• Male vocals - recessed, lack presence & body but this can be somewhat offset with tip choice
• Bass is a little soft around the edges - needs a bit more impact

Nice write-up. Thanks. Would these be a significant step-up from our GK10 and 80 pals? I am interested in trying GS Audio.

 

[DannyDanz]

Nice write-up. Thanks. Would these be a significant step-up from our GK10 and 80 pals? I am interested in trying GS Audio.

I have GK10 and they're the worst-sounding of all my earphones the mid-bass bloat just overpowers the other frequencies, might have some limited usage for EDM but that's about it. I'm wondering if your set is different? For example in The War On Drugs - Pain the bass that comes in at 0:20 - does it also drown out everything else in your pair? Apologies for the rant, to answer your question yes the GS Audio should be a significant step-up, the models that are recommended in this thread. But after getting the GD3A and finding mine a little harsh in the treble, I might have looked closer into getting a Moondrop Aria in hindsight, $67 or so on sale.

 

[gmdb]

I have GK10 and they're the worst-sounding of all my earphones the mid-bass bloat just overpowers the other frequencies, might have some limited usage for EDM but that's about it. I'm wondering if your set is different? For example in The War On Drugs - Pain the bass that comes in at 0:20 - does it also drown out everything else in your pair? Apologies for the rant, to answer your question yes the GS Audio should be a significant step-up, the models that are recommended in this thread. But after getting the GD3A and finding mine a little harsh in the treble, I might have looked closer into getting a Moondrop Aria in hindsight, $67 or so on sale.

Thanks for your reply. My experience is of the GK 10 is very different to yours. It is my favourite IEM. Not sure if you ran into one that had QC issues, or didn't get a chance to try it with a low impedance source. It is finicky and needs a very low impedance source. I listen to a lot of reggae dub where the bass is big (and bigger), and it sounds perfect on the GK10 with the bass sitting exactly where it should be in the mix.

 

[ian91]

Nice write-up. Thanks. Would these be a significant step-up from our GK10 and 80 pals? I am interested in trying GS Audio.

It's a step-up yes and a totally different tuning. Much, much less midbass but much more versatile and revealing.

To update, I've paired the GD3C with the ACMEE Magic Sound IV (ES9018K2M & RT6863) and whatever it's done has dramatically improved note weight. It's not as clean as the Shanling M8 or the RU6 but it counters the thin uppermids well.

Edit: back to the RU6 but different tips - much better now.

 

[ian91]

More time with the GD3C and either by brain or driver burn in these are settling into a groove. I still don't hear this set as V as the graph suggests and it's very tastefully done for much of my library. I'm hoping for GD3E where they retune the bass for less subbass and slightly more middbass into low mids.

Has anyone else, apart from Gedeon, got a GD3C/GD3D on the way?

 

[504246]

I received my GD3D today.

I use a Tripowin Altea cable and my WM1A for my first listens.
So, out of the box, with the tips provided (L for me), I'll do other tests with other tips later, the sound is almost as I expected, rather warm. The only thing that surprises me a bit at the moment is that high mids are a bit more biting than I thought, with perhaps a slight harshness, more might have been too much for me. The bass rumbles well as I like without masking the rest. Soundstage seems quite open to me, wider than deep.

 

[gmdb]

By the way if someone's looking for a next step to upgrade from their GS Audio IEMs (GD3A and probably any other lower-end IEM from GS Audio) then I can 100% recommend Yanyin Canon. This post has nothing to do with GS Audio, I just thought I'd post it here because I was looking for an upgrade to my GD3A and it took some time and research to make my choice. I'm very happy with my Canon, and looking at the competition at the ~$300 price bracket, nothing else even comes close because of Canon's tuning switches and awesome tuning.

After doing some A/B these days, I can confidently say that my GD3A does not even come close to the Canon in anything. GD3A is a "bang for the buck" IEM, with Canons you really get that near-perfect hifi experience. Everything's better:

• Better tuning out of the box, my highs were a tad bit harsh on GD3A which prevented me from pushing the loudness
• Has tuning switches that work great
• Better bass
• Meatier mids
• Highs extend further
• Better details/resolution
• More musical
• No downsides to think of

BenF and some other reviewers are saying that Canons are on par with IEMs much more expensive than them. But I'm just posting this here to help out any other beginners in this hobby who bought the GS Audio stuff and have some extra money lying around for upgrades. Check the Yanyin Discussion Thread for more info.

That is a big price jump from the GD 3A. Were you disappointed in the GS Audio brand? Did you try their SD7. That uses 1 x DD and 6 x BA each channel and BAs are a combination of Knowles and Sonion. It is a bit cheaper than Yanyin Canon and has more high quality BA drivers.

 

[DannyDanz]

That is a big price jump from the GD 3A. Were you disappointed in the GS Audio brand? Did you try their SD7. That uses 1 x DD and 6 x BA each channel and BAs are a combination of Knowles and Sonion. It is a bit cheaper than Yanyin Canon and has more high quality BA drivers.

No, not disappointed, it's just that their higher-end models don't have all that many reviews out there so didn't feel like taking a blind with them. I guess it doesn't make too much sense to compare the GD3A head-on with Canon, but I just posted this for the folks with some money to spend who are new to the hobby, and looking for a definitive upgrade. I did my research and Canon seemed like a good pick out of all the options for its $330 price tag.

Canon is definitely pricy, but when you're looking to upgrade from GD3A that costs ~$100, you'll probably be looking at things in the +-$200-$300 range. And so if you're already spending $200, it might make sense to save up on that another $100 to get you a level higher.

I also read somewhere that you don't really need more than 5 drivers, see a lot of those hybrid mid-fi flagships also going for 1DD+2BA+2EST / 1DD+4BA in that same price range. Something about the way the BA's are tuned, more is not always better. Kinera Skuld, 5BA for example at $550. It's more about the tuning and how everything works together.