So, I after reading A LOT of pages of this thread, I got inspired enough to create my own IEMs. I went with something simple, and as low cost as possible. However, because in Greece, things like photoplast, uv curing resin, and of course a way to buy BAs, and generally any drivers and random parts directly is practically impossible, I decided to try another method, with whatever was more easy to get my hands on. So, I made my shells for epoxy resin. I know its not the best material, as it's not medically approved, but I didn't show any kind of allergic reaction, so I went with it. However
you shouldn't use any kind of material that is not medically tested. I am responsible for myself and only for myself. You could really cause harm to yourself.
I got my impressions done by a professional of course, and then I made a copy of it using some dental grade silicone, as a close person to me was kind enough to provide some. The problem with this silicone was that it was too hard (like 50shore), and I ended up with the one impression destroyed. However, now I had the silicone mold.
Then I went on with the epoxy. The first try went horribly wrong. It seems my scale was a little bit off, and the casting ended up not hard at all. The second try, went substantially better. This time I got the measurements right, and added coloring. I also did the next step, carving out the inside of the shell with a dremel, and some diamond bits.
IMG_20180821_181345 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
However, I decided that I wasn't particularly happy with the result. The underside came out a little bit strange.
IMG_20180821_181357 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
So I decided to do the process a third time, and this time I added just a little bit of blue dye, so that they would come out blue semi-transparent. The final result I thik was pretty good.
IMG_20180821_180130 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180821_180139 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
The only thing that I didn't manage to do was to polish the inside of the shells to make them transparent. The diamond bit left a too harsh finish, and if I were to sand it more, I would have gotten through the shell.
After the shells were done, it was time for the faceplates. As I wasn't using photoplast, I couldn't make them the normal way. So, I encased some celluloid (it is commonly used for guitar picks) in the same resin, but with no coloring this time.
IMG_20180830_200542 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
Then I dremeled away the excess and I finally had 2 beautiful faceplates
.
IMG_20180821_180346 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180821_180212 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180821_180202 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
Then was time for assembling the internals. Unfortunately I don't have any photos of the internals, because I was so frustrated trying to fit in a 8mm, DD and the BA, that I forgot to take any. My choice was a 8mm DD from KZ for my woofer, and a Knowels ED-26784 for my mid-range/tweeter. I know these are probably not the best choices, but they were fairly cheap (bought from aliexpress), and this pair was more like a "proof of concept". So, I used a red damper and a 4.7Kohm resistor for my low pass filter, as the DD was full range, and no filter for the BA . I used acoustic tubing from ebay, sold as "BTE Hearing Aid Earmold Tube". For connectors, I went with MMCX, as I had a bad experience with the 2-pin from my KZ ZS3 (one of the connectors developed a small crack, and now the cable is barely held in place), and with a fairly cheap, but seemingly good quality mmcx cable from KZ again. The mmcx female connectors are right-angled, because I needed some extra grip.
The final result I think is pretty good. Sound wise, they sound surprisingly good, compared to the ZS3 and ATE at least. The soundstage is fairly wide, and it has GOOD seperation. I used them even for some Rainbow Six Siege sessions, and I was pretty amazed. Highs are good too, but a little bit harsh for my taste. The thing that I am most dissapointed with is the bass. I expected a good bass response because of the DD, but for some reason, there is very little. There is some mid-bass, but not much sub-bass. Maybe it's because I am used to the ZS3 bass heavy sound. But for my first time, I am pretty happy about their performance and how they turned out.
IMG_20180830_182830 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180830_182934 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180830_182848 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180830_183214 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
IMG_20180830_182801 by
Thanos D, on Flickr
EDIT: How can I upload photos directly?
EDIT2: Sorry for the multiple edits, I am new around here.