IBasso Audio IT03

[M0N_]

I'm using the cb12 with a fiio q1 II and an ifi xdsd and it does improve the sound, but I can't quite remember what improves, besides the overall smoothness. I don't remember a large change in the mids going to balanced from unbalanced. I have not tried using foam tips on the it03. I have only heard foam tips on Shure products and the campfire andromeda. I just found the best bass and treble extension with the smoke grey tips inclided. These really emphasize the v shape aspect, so that's not what you are most likely looking for. The JVC spirial dot tips really warmed up the mids but kind of limited the bass and treble extension a bit, so that might be what you are looking for, if you aren't really looking to buy a different pair of iems.

 

[pr0b3r]

I've burned them in for about 125 or so hours now. I find the treble still a bit offensive for my ears, even with Comply tips. It seems like I'm unfortunately treble sensitive. I absolutely love the soundstage, bass extension, and energy though. I've heard that a copper litz cable or the iBasso balanced CB12 cables could warm up the sound signature. Is this worth looking into or should I sell these and go for something else like the Massdrop x Noble X? I want what the IT03 has but with a slightly smoother treble, and neutral/thicker mids.

I feel the same. I find the treble to be quite fatiguing during long listening sessions. I never felt that before when I still didn't have the IT01 with me. Now, I spend more time using the 01 more than the 03. I have the CB12 cable and I feel like it doesn't tame the treble that much. Pure copper without silver plating will be a better choice for the 03 I think. I love how controlled the bass is on the 03. My 01 still has more bass quantity/presence than the 03 but I can tolerate that more than the hot treble of the 03. Noble X, if my memory serves me right, sounded warmer and darker for me compared to both the 03 and the 01. I didn't like it that much.

 

[loopy.s]

I feel the same. I find the treble to be quite fatiguing during long listening sessions. I never felt that before when I still didn't have the IT01 with me. Now, I spend more time using the 01 more than the 03. I have the CB12 cable and I feel like it doesn't tame the treble that much. Pure copper without silver plating will be a better choice for the 03 I think. I love how controlled the bass is on the 03. My 01 still has more bass quantity/presence than the 03 but I can tolerate that more than the hot treble of the 03. Noble X, if my memory serves me right, sounded warmer and darker for me compared to both the 03 and the 01. I didn't like it that much.

After 150 hours of burn in the treble got tamed a bit more than after 125 hours but I still find it too fatiguing. I agree, the bass control, and also the bass extension is awesome on the IT03. I love how wide the soundstage is as well but sadly I think my pair is more suited for someone that's not as treble sensitive/prefer the V shape sound.

 

[PaganDL]

Hi @pr0b3r & @ loopy.s,

Just curious, what are you listening to & with (source wise) which makes the IT 03 fatiguing?

I ask as I am very sensitive to high frequencies & have no issue in that regard.

I own & use the IT 03 on a rotating basis with other IEMs, especially the IT 01 & IT 04 so I am well aware of iBasso sound which I really enjoy.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[subxero]

I bought these on headfi from a member, left headphone stopped working within a week... Not sure what to do, not a cable problem either. Really should've bought the fh5 instead

 

[435279]

I bought these on headfi from a member, left headphone stopped working within a week... Not sure what to do, not a cable problem either. Really should've bought the fh5 instead

That is the main issue with buying second-hand, did you contact the seller?

 

[subxero]

he doesnt wanna do anything about it

 

[Paul - iBasso]

he doesnt wanna do anything about it

Have you checked the grill to make sure it is clean and switching the side of the cable? You can also contact me via email for servicing.

 

[Anatase]

Hey everyone,

I have been having the IT03 since Fall 2016 now and they have been my everyday IEM since then.
At some point the shell and the rest in the IEM itself went lose, and after looking for similar issues here and posting about it, Paul quickly reached out to offer some help. I ended up glueing the shell and the IEM.
Since then it worked like a charm, until recently.
For whatever reason, The cable seems to have taken some damage at the elbow, and twisting it either activate or deactivate the sound on the right side.
That's really a shame because I tried my best to take care of the cable, however i can't tell whether it's my fault or just tear&wear. That's not the end of the world and I am still very much willing to use the IT03 with a new cable.

Now I know there are remplacement cables (CB12/CB13), and I was wondering which other MMCX cables have been successfully used with the IT03.
I have been looking a it on this thread but everybody seem to revolve around the official cables.

Any recommendation or experience some of you would like to share on other MMCX cables paired with the IT03?

Cheers

 

[PaganDL]

Hey everyone,

I have been having the IT03 since Fall 2016 now and they have been my everyday IEM since then.
At some point the shell and the rest in the IEM itself went lose, and after looking for similar issues here and posting about it, Paul quickly reached out to offer some help. I ended up glueing the shell and the IEM.
Since then it worked like a charm, until recently.
For whatever reason, The cable seems to have taken some damage at the elbow, and twisting it either activate or deactivate the sound on the right side.
That's really a shame because I tried my best to take care of the cable, however i can't tell whether it's my fault or just tear&wear. That's not the end of the world and I am still very much willing to use the IT03 with a new cable.

Now I know there are remplacement cables (CB12/CB13), and I was wondering which other MMCX cables have been successfully used with the IT03.
I have been looking a it on this thread but everybody seem to revolve around the official cables.

Any recommendation or experience some of you would like to share on other MMCX cables paired with the IT03?

Cheers

Hi @Anatase,

I would suggest contacting @Paul - iBasso again for help with regards to your issues with IT 03 & cables.

Honestly, subjectively & personally, sure, there are other MMCX cables which can be used with IT 03, CB 12 & CB 13 are both very good pairing for IT 03 & offer good to excellent synergy, depending on Source, over Stock, personally I lean towards CB 12 for IT 03 when I use this IEM as it makes the subtle tuning it offers to me, gives it more impact across the ranges.

Though if you are interested in trying some other MMCX cables which may appeal to you, I suggest the following in no particular order :

Penon GD 849 / GS 849 / OS 849
Null Audio Lune / Arete

As a final note, different cables do not change base sound signature but offer a certain tuning to the sound...

Hope you have a great day !

 

[Amberlamps]

Hey everyone,

I have been having the IT03 since Fall 2016 now and they have been my everyday IEM since then.
At some point the shell and the rest in the IEM itself went lose, and after looking for similar issues here and posting about it, Paul quickly reached out to offer some help. I ended up glueing the shell and the IEM.
Since then it worked like a charm, until recently.
For whatever reason, The cable seems to have taken some damage at the elbow, and twisting it either activate or deactivate the sound on the right side.
That's really a shame because I tried my best to take care of the cable, however i can't tell whether it's my fault or just tear&wear. That's not the end of the world and I am still very much willing to use the IT03 with a new cable.

Now I know there are remplacement cables (CB12/CB13), and I was wondering which other MMCX cables have been successfully used with the IT03.
I have been looking a it on this thread but everybody seem to revolve around the official cables.

Any recommendation or experience some of you would like to share on other MMCX cables paired with the IT03?

Cheers

For the price, the CS819 is an excellent cable from our favourite iem retailer Penon.

https://penon-official.com/shop/

https://penon-official.com/product/penon-cs819/

Much better looking in real life and excellent quality and all metal parts for the mmcx end.

$49 and it comes with a wooden storage box and the quality of the cable is excellent. I have 2 mmcx and 2 2pin 0.78mm 3.5mm versions. They are that good. I also have some of their dearer cables, but for everyday use, the CS819 is perfect, it’s very supple and has 8 cores, the stock iBasso iT03 in comparison is not a good cable in my opinion. I have iT03 and from day 1 I have never been able to use the cable as the ends will not fit behind my ears properly. The only cable I have that is like that.

Another good cable is the iBasso iT01 cable, it’s $30 from iBasso direct but when I bought 4 they were running low and that was earlier this year.

Both Penon CS819 and iBasso iT01 cables are good, Penon beats the iT01 though. Also, can you not just buy a replacement iT03 cable ?

If you buy the CS819 you will enjoy it very much, the other 8 core Penon cables like the OS849 are very thick and not for everyday use, not supple at all and are more for sitting down at home listening.

If you need iBasso contact info for spare parts, let me know and I will send you a message with their contact details, I got very good service from them.

 

[Anatase]

Hi @PaganDL, @Amberlamps,

Thanks both for your answers.
I had no clue the Penon's cable were of such quality, it definitely sounds interesting.

@Amberlamps, I only had a look at Penonaudio and there there was no IT03 direct replacement, only the CB12/s/13 which are anyway very good options already.
I didn't know you could get the cable directly from iBasso, i guess i should have checked.
And you definitely got me curious on the CS819, seems like a great bang for the buck.
I considered for a while reaching out to Paul, but I decided it would just be the right moment to try a different cable, mainly out of curiosity. My experience with him has been excellent too though and it is great to know there is reliable people working in this.

@PaganDL,
the Null Audio look really good and also make me curious, even though they are already in a different price range, they do look really nice, at least on their pictures
Thanks for the feedback on the CB12, i read somewhere here the CB13 were also an excellent cable but it is in a price range which defies my necessity.
My source is a modest Fiio X3 2nd; and nothing else, hence my reluctance to go over a certain price tag for cable, makes no sense without an appropriate source, I assume.

Thanks both for the input, very informative and much appreciated

 

[Amberlamps]

Hi @PaganDL, @Amberlamps,

Thanks both for your answers.
I had no clue the Penon's cable were of such quality, it definitely sounds interesting.

@Amberlamps, I only had a look at Penonaudio and there there was no IT03 direct replacement, only the CB12/s/13 which are anyway very good options already.
I didn't know you could get the cable directly from iBasso, i guess i should have checked.
And you definitely got me curious on the CS819, seems like a great bang for the buck.
I considered for a while reaching out to Paul, but I decided it would just be the right moment to try a different cable, mainly out of curiosity. My experience with him has been excellent too though and it is great to know there is reliable people working in this.

@PaganDL,
the Null Audio look really good and also make me curious, even though they are already in a different price range, they do look really nice, at least on their pictures
Thanks for the feedback on the CB12, i read somewhere here the CB13 were also an excellent cable but it is in a price range which defies my necessity.
My source is a modest Fiio X3 2nd; and nothing else, hence my reluctance to go over a certain price tag for cable, makes no sense without an appropriate source, I assume.

Thanks both for the input, very informative and much appreciated

Hi, yes the CS819 is a very good cable, excellent quality for only $50. It comes in a wooden box, with a nice shirt/tie clip and what can only be described as 2 tea coasters/cup mats.

The CS819 is made up of 8 copper cores, 4 of which have been silver plated, which makes a nice contrast between the other 4 copper wire cores.
It’s extremely worth the price, which is why I bought 3 and was given one for free when I purchased an iem.

There is a cheap OS819 cable that Penon sell for $5 when you buy any iem, that can only be bought on Penons.com website, the CS819 is only available on Penon-Official website. 2 different site.

Yes, ibasso sell direct to customers, however, I seem to recall the iT03 stocks was running out, this was early this year. I don’t know if iBasso still have them to sell, but you can email and ask them.

Happy hunting

 

[PaganDL]

Hi @PaganDL, @Amberlamps,

Thanks both for your answers.
I had no clue the Penon's cable were of such quality, it definitely sounds interesting.

@Amberlamps, I only had a look at Penonaudio and there there was no IT03 direct replacement, only the CB12/s/13 which are anyway very good options already.
I didn't know you could get the cable directly from iBasso, i guess i should have checked.
And you definitely got me curious on the CS819, seems like a great bang for the buck.
I considered for a while reaching out to Paul, but I decided it would just be the right moment to try a different cable, mainly out of curiosity. My experience with him has been excellent too though and it is great to know there is reliable people working in this.

@PaganDL,
the Null Audio look really good and also make me curious, even though they are already in a different price range, they do look really nice, at least on their pictures
Thanks for the feedback on the CB12, i read somewhere here the CB13 were also an excellent cable but it is in a price range which defies my necessity.
My source is a modest Fiio X3 2nd; and nothing else, hence my reluctance to go over a certain price tag for cable, makes no sense without an appropriate source, I assume.

Thanks both for the input, very informative and much appreciated

Hi @Anatase,

Whichever cable brand you choose from, I doubt you won't be disappointed.
Be interested to know how you go.

Subjectively & personally, for IT 03, there isn't a whole lot of difference tuning wise between CB 12 & CB 13, as you stated, cost wise, it's hard to justify the latter just for the IT 03 unless you frequently cable roll though as said, CB 12 does pair very well.

Source, cable & IEM synergy is a tricky highly subjective & personal process which can get rather complicated as we all hear & precieve sound differently which sometimes makes things 'fun' but I digress...
I have seen & heard 'pricey' cables of various types be used on inexpensive to expensive source gear & components, overall, this is highly subjective & personal, inexpensive usually beats anything pricey where value & performance gains are concerned though realistically, that margin is quite small to begin with so there is no real good benchmark.

Cable cost vs value &/or performance is always a hotly debated topic which is why for inexpensive aftermarket cables, usually in no particular order Null Audio & Penon tend to be my go tos as already stated, though I do have a third option which I forgot to mention was veclan.com, they have some nice options as well for very low cost but high quality.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[Steve Guppy]

I have to say that my experience with the IT03's has been vastly different than everyone else's. And i have to argue with those that have said the supplied cable was of good quality Well, I guess I must just be very unlucky, because my stock cable was terrible

I've had the iBasso's 48 hours, yes, you read that right, FORTY EIGHT hours, and as you can see from the attached picture, they are being returned to Amazon (sold by, on behalf of another well established audio equipment company) for a refund. For the brief 2 days of ownership I was falling in love with their sound. But switching between the stock and a 2.5mm balanced cable to decide which i preferred, the stock cable started to crackle and stop playing audio through the monitors due to a poor connection. After TWO Days! The FiiO 2.5 however still worked fine.

I'm sorry, heap whatever plaudits you want on these but for the asking price of £300, that is simply unacceptable. Very disappointed and a little bit heart broken if im being totally honest ..