[HiFiWar]

I prefer a more bassy profile because of the music I listen to however my taste is quite eclectic so needs to also be good all round which I have no doubt most of these iems are. Another factor for wearing them at the gym is the weight and comfort, I'm kind of OK with wires and if upgrading to a dedicated player makes sense to go the whole hog. Can always pair my sony buds if I need wireless at a push. Why do you recommend the Ponderosa?

The Ponderosa is supposed to be essentially an upgraded Andromeda , but if you like more bass, it's probably not the IEM for you. You'll likely want an IEM with a dedicated DD for bass since dynamic driver are considered the best bass. The final A5000 is the best IEM you can get under $500, but between 500-1000, there's quite a few good options. The Campfire Black Star would be my first choice, but good luck finding one, and you'll pay full price for a used one probably - if you can fit it into your budget though, it's pretty great. A used Fibae 5 would be an excellent choice most likely. The Earsonics Onyx is heavy, but the sound and price are a great deal. Avoid the FiR VxV - excellent IEM, but almost no bass. The AFUL Performer8 is a really good choice, especially for the price. You could even get a used Shanling M6 Ultra with the P8 or the A5000 - worse battery than the M3, but noticeably better sound - less portable though. Everything in this hobby is a tradeoff, better sound costs more and weighs more, more bass often means less mids or treble. Hopefully I've given you a decent starting point - feel free to use my headphone rankings in my sig to help you make an informed choice, but keep in mind that everything is opinion based and feel free to ask questions - happy to help when I have time.

 

[mtron]

Trigger has been pulled, gone with the M3 Ultra with a set of the blackstar IEM's. Figured I can always upgrade the DAP at a later date and the M3 Ultra seemed like a really good place to start. Can't wait for it all to arrive now to upgrade my listening experience. Thank you to everyone who gave advice here. I'm sure this will be just the start!

 

[HiFiWar]

Trigger has been pulled, gone with the M3 Ultra with a set of the blackstar IEM's. Figured I can always upgrade the DAP at a later date and the M3 Ultra seemed like a really good place to start. Can't wait for it all to arrive now to upgrade my listening experience. Thank you to everyone who gave advice here. I'm sure this will be just the start!

Great choice there. I hope you enjoy!

 

[rennyprowess]

Trigger has been pulled, gone with the M3 Ultra with a set of the blackstar IEM's. Figured I can always upgrade the DAP at a later date and the M3 Ultra seemed like a really good place to start. Can't wait for it all to arrive now to upgrade my listening experience. Thank you to everyone who gave advice here. I'm sure this will be just the start!

Late to the party but good choice!

 

[mtron]

OK so everything has arrived and I'm over the moon with the setup, the quality of the blackstar buds and having propper quality recordings from the player are amazing. Listening to songs I've heard hundreds of times sounds like completely new music hearing things I've never heard in songs before is amazing.

Few questions if anyone can help, I kind of want to get custom fit ear molds for the blackstar but don't think anyone makes them currently which sucks a bit. The smallest foam tips they came with are a fraction too big so wondering if anyone has a recommendation for replacements?

Second thing that I didn't think would be an issue is the cables being loose round my neck does anyone have a solution almost like a loop of some sort to go round the wire to keep then together and tight round my neck so the cables don't get as slack?

Thanks for the advice people that recommended this set up in parts or full

 

[HiFiWar]

OK so everything has arrived and I'm over the moon with the setup, the quality of the blackstar buds and having propper quality recordings from the player are amazing. Listening to songs I've heard hundreds of times sounds like completely new music hearing things I've never heard in songs before is amazing.

Few questions if anyone can help, I kind of want to get custom fit ear molds for the blackstar but don't think anyone makes them currently which sucks a bit. The smallest foam tips they came with are a fraction too big so wondering if anyone has a recommendation for replacements?

Second thing that I didn't think would be an issue is the cables being loose round my neck does anyone have a solution almost like a loop of some sort to go round the wire to keep then together and tight round my neck so the cables don't get as slack?

Thanks for the advice people that recommended this set up in parts or full

Glad you like it! I am a huge fan of Spinfit, but the Final E type tips may be good too. Everyone has their preference, so take a look at what's available near you and ask around. The cables should be loose around your neck. They're not meant to go around your neck. The ear hooks go over your ears and then the cables should hang in front of you. No neck contact at all.

 

[mtron]

I normally prefer the memory foam type tips to the silicone ones tbh will need to have a look and find something.

 

[jmwant]

where I am getting confused is do any of these DAPs play lossless music from any streaming services as I havnt purchased any music in forever due to apple music, Spotify etc... (I know Spotify isn't hifi yet but tidal and qubuz are?)

You'd need an Android dap then.

You can always get a bt DAC-amp with Ldac like the Btr15 or Quedelix 5k. The sound quality is indistinguishable from a wired source if you're not trying very hard to find a difference.

Most iems are not sweatproof btw, I'd suggest to get an affordable to test how long it survives.

 

[BS5711]

OK so everything has arrived and I'm over the moon with the setup, the quality of the blackstar buds and having propper quality recordings from the player are amazing. Listening to songs I've heard hundreds of times sounds like completely new music hearing things I've never heard in songs before is amazing.

Few questions if anyone can help, I kind of want to get custom fit ear molds for the blackstar but don't think anyone makes them currently which sucks a bit. The smallest foam tips they came with are a fraction too big so wondering if anyone has a recommendation for replacements?

Second thing that I didn't think would be an issue is the cables being loose round my neck does anyone have a solution almost like a loop of some sort to go round the wire to keep then together and tight round my neck so the cables don't get as slack?

Thanks for the advice people that recommended this set up in parts or full

Not quite sure how you are wearing the cable but it should have a little slider that moves up from the splitter to pull the ear wires closer to your chin.

Known as a chin cinch usually.

The ones on Campfire cables are often quite small and discreet.

 

[earmonger]

If you don't have a slider, just use a wire bag tie from your kitchen plastic bag supply. I have headphones I love that for some reason didn't put a slider on their cable, and the bag tie works fine.

There are approximately a zillion eartips on Aliexpress.com, and you might try silicone if foam isn't working for you. Tennmak is also on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/D8FB84A2-050F-443C-A972-0371E04BE35B