[Kevintj604]

I had been hearing so much about Whirlwind Tips and wondered what was so special about them. Couldn't find any suppliers in the UK so decided to go ahead and order from Amazon.com.

Today on my return from work there waiting for me was a delivery... OK I'll cut to the chase

Loved my ATEN R2, R2 Red and RAH's before

*#!$$$? ME absolutely head over heels now.

Having been foam tips fan due primarily to fit and seal, but found even Comply's struggled for fit personally especially on my RAH's (hence my purchase of the R2 Red).

I have never had such a satisfactory seal before with any other headphones besides my previous CIEMs but even they had their moments.

The Tenmark Whirlwinds are whole new game.

For me the plus points
1. Shallow Fit
2. Isolation
3. Comfort
4. Bass
5. Staging & Holographic sound even more apparent

Still to try them on my commute and the Underground but hopefully will avoid the expense or need for custom tips going forward.

Damn these RAH's sound AWESOME

Tonight I shall mostly be listening to EDM

Would you mind linking the Whirlwind Tips for me. I'll order a set before my Rah arrives.

On the R1's i'm currently going back and fourth with SpinFit Double Flange and Campfire Audio Marshmallow's.

Thanks

 

[monsieurfromag3]

Would you mind linking the Whirlwind Tips for me. I'll order a set before my Rah arrives.

On the R1's i'm currently going back and fourth with SpinFit Double Flange and Campfire Audio Marshmallow's.

Thanks

This seems to be a complete set. I’ll order that myself unless someone comes in screaming those are fake.

 

[HungryPanda]

I use Auvio tips on my Rah's

 

[Skullar]

This seems to be a complete set. I’ll order that myself unless someone comes in screaming those are fake.

They are the ones. Go for it you will not regret.

 

[masterpfa]

Would you mind linking the Whirlwind Tips for me. I'll order a set before my Rah arrives.

On the R1's i'm currently going back and fourth with SpinFit Double Flange and Campfire Audio Marshmallow's.

Thanks

deleted



Oops just seen the reply link already provided

 

[roygbiv6]

What I’m hoping for with the Halcyon is that quality of timbre improved even further. Music sounds so natural on the Rah. An even larger soundstage is going to verge on the weird - I don’t need studio-recorded music to sound like the band was playing in an open field. Bob rather emphasizes placement, and that’s one thing where there’s still room for improvement with IMR; the holographic experience that sometimes distinguishes the great from the greatest.
Bob is taking aim ever more squarely at the flagships with his mention of “8+-drivers” iems. A bold claim it maybe, but if IMR is one thing it’s a giant slayer, so if I were any other brand I’d tremble. Separation, as you mention, is paramount to get there. I don’t think the ceramic driver is a hindrance in this regard, some of the best tweeters I’ve heard were ceramic.

It's hard to know what to expect from the Halcyon & Semper. I'm not too sure what to expect without getting carried away as I've never heard in ear electrostats. I think you are right in that a larger soundstage may not be a benefit. So really the small differences that

Its hard not to set high expectations on the Semper though. It will effectively be the totl IMR IEM and competing with high prices pairs.

I'm looking forward to finally trying IEM electrostats and although I've been fixated on the Semper how I find the Halcyon will help decide if I buy it. (I know I probably will though - I'm in the justification stage).

On a side note I see sensitivity going down from 104 to 101dB between Rah and Halcyon. Already the Rah requires significantly more volume than the Aten, although the gap there was just 2dB, 106 vs 104.
5dB overall is meaningful - the Halcyon is going to eat up a lot of amplification, much more than the R2.

I guess I’ll have to plug in my extension cord to force the V30 into Aux mode... while I keep pondering the DAP and portable DAC/amp options out there. Replicating the richness and involvement of my desktop tube amp is hard, even though it’s not a top-tier unit.

Interesting. I had noticed the Rah needed more power than the Aten but thought it was due to the planar driver. I've always found they are power hungry in over ears I have owned. I didn't know about the sensitivity change would it make that much difference?

My reading on the estat drivers is that they are even more power hungry than planars. So I think the Semper may need some power.

With the V30 I use the 2.5 balanced cable & a 2.5 -->3.5 adapter and plug that in first to trigger Aux mode. The Rah really benefits from the extra power.

 

[monsieurfromag3]

Interesting. I had noticed the Rah needed more power than the Aten but thought it was due to the planar driver. I've always found they are power hungry in over ears I have owned. I didn't know about the sensitivity change would it make that much difference?

My reading on the estat drivers is that they are even more power hungry than planars. So I think the Semper may need some power.

With the V30 I use the 2.5 balanced cable & a 2.5 -->3.5 adapter and plug that in first to trigger Aux mode. The Rah really benefits from the extra power.

I surmise it is indeed the planar driver which makes the Rah harder to drive than the R2. And electrostatic drivers are working on voodoo fumes in these tiny enclosures (“self-powered” wot?), I’m actually surprised sensitivity isn’t taking harder a beating.
Each of these models with their exotic drivers will respond differently to amplification, and those sensitivity ratings probably don’t paint the whole picture. I found the actual difference on the volume pot between Aten and Rah much more significant than the figures let on.

How happy are you with your V30 driving the Rah? Do you have any alternative/sidegrade/upgrade in mind?
What are all you guys using with your IMR gear?

 

[Skullar]

I surmise it is indeed the planar driver which makes the Rah harder to drive than the R2. And electrostatic drivers are working on voodoo fumes in these tiny enclosures (“self-powered” wot?), I’m actually surprised sensitivity isn’t taking harder a beating.
Each of these models with their exotic drivers will respond differently to amplification, and those sensitivity ratings probably don’t paint the whole picture. I found the actual difference on the volume pot between Aten and Rah much more significant than the figures let on.

How happy are you with your V30 driving the Rah? Do you have any alternative/sidegrade/upgrade in mind?
What are all you guys using with your IMR gear?

All i will say. Rah scales with good source insanely well. Quality source and material makes it sound fantastic. It just shows how technically capable Rah is.

Semper will have to be trully flawless to top that.

 

[Infoseeker]

Just know for planars you are interested in the mw-spec of the amp parameters; not the vrms.

As they can easily get loud, but won't sound better.

 

[monsieurfromag3]

Just know for planars you are interested in the mw-spec of the amp parameters; not the vrms.

As they can easily get loud, but won't sound better.

Ah thanks, that’s the kind of thing I was thinking about but I’m so not technically minded... I am interested, I read the stuff, I understand it - then I forget! Qudelix insist on the importance of the voltage rating rather than the wattage and make an eloquent case for it, but both have a place depending on the properties of the drivers.

 

[roygbiv6]

I surmise it is indeed the planar driver which makes the Rah harder to drive than the R2. And electrostatic drivers are working on voodoo fumes in these tiny enclosures (“self-powered” wot?), I’m actually surprised sensitivity isn’t taking harder a beating.
Each of these models with their exotic drivers will respond differently to amplification, and those sensitivity ratings probably don’t paint the whole picture. I found the actual difference on the volume pot between Aten and Rah much more significant than the figures let on.

How happy are you with your V30 driving the Rah? Do you have any alternative/sidegrade/upgrade in mind?
What are all you guys using with your IMR gear?

I upgraded to a V40 about 6 months ago but had the V30 for about 2 years before that. I love both of them but prefer the 40 as the sound sig being more balanced & detailed suits better phones more. If I listen to the 30 now I can find it fatiguing at times which is odd as I never had that before I upgraded it.

They got me off the dap hype trains as I was buying too many for too little gain and wanting a new one as soon as I got one. I was so happy with the 30 when I got it that I sold most of my daps including my dx100 when someone offered me a crazy amount for it.

So I was very happy with the LG's and the Rah sounds great on them. I also have a zishan dsd which sounds great for the money after a lot of burn in and a fiio m7 which is ok its my beater dap. Recently got a dx220 as I thought the Rah and new models will be worthy of it. I'm done now apart from trying some different amps for the 220 & maybe modding. There is a clear difference in quality of sound between the LG's and the 220. There should be too but It's enough that I'm very happy with the purchase. I'm totally over the dx100 now.

I've tried around 15 pairs of IEMs on the 220 and the Rah are such a perfect match for it. Sounds sublime. They scale up so well. As @Skullar said feed the Rah high quality audio from a top source it will reward you. Roll on PB1, Halcyon and Semper.

The other thing a decent dap has over the LG's is balanced output and this is good for the Rah. I find the better the IEM the bigger the difference balanced makes.

 

[roygbiv6]

Tried the R1 copper filter on the Rah out of curiosity.
I always found it too much on the R1 & Aten. And it is on the Rah too but after about 20 minutes I kind of got used to it and liked it. A lot on some tracks. It's probably the most bass you'll get out of the Rah & it can pump it out. Was pounding out of the 220.

Its def not for majority of listening but nice for a random change.

 

[monsieurfromag3]

I upgraded to a V40 about 6 months ago but had the V30 for about 2 years before that. I love both of them but prefer the 40 as the sound sig being more balanced & detailed suits better phones more. If I listen to the 30 now I can find it fatiguing at times which is odd as I never had that before I upgraded it.

They got me off the dap hype trains as I was buying too many for too little gain and wanting a new one as soon as I got one. I was so happy with the 30 when I got it that I sold most of my daps including my dx100 when someone offered me a crazy amount for it.

So I was very happy with the LG's and the Rah sounds great on them. I also have a zishan dsd which sounds great for the money after a lot of burn in and a fiio m7 which is ok its my beater dap. Recently got a dx220 as I thought the Rah and new models will be worthy of it. I'm done now apart from trying some different amps for the 220 & maybe modding. There is a clear difference in quality of sound between the LG's and the 220. There should be too but It's enough that I'm very happy with the purchase. I'm totally over the dx100 now.

I've tried around 15 pairs of IEMs on the 220 and the Rah are such a perfect match for it. Sounds sublime. They scale up so well. As @Skullar said feed the Rah high quality audio from a top source it will reward you. Roll on PB1, Halcyon and Semper.

The other thing a decent dap has over the LG's is balanced output and this is good for the Rah. I find the better the IEM the bigger the difference balanced makes.

Thanks a lot for that comprehensive reply.
I almost jumped on @rcoleman1 ’s DX220, started a PM about it just as he’d lowered the price, but renounced as it was still a lot of money and long-distance shipping when I have never heard the AMP8EX or AMP9, and don’t have any 4.4mm cables (small problem I know, easily remedied with a CA02 adapter).

There’s another DX220 for sale in the forum, shipping from Europe, going for 600€ with no extra amp. But have you,@Skullar or the other guys and gals on here with a DX220 found better synergy with modules other than the Amp1mkII?
The V30 remains a perfectly good source, but as you say it’s got no balanced out, nor does it natively avoid SRC as good DAPs do, and I did find the DX220 a bit better than the V30 last time I tried it out, and that was out of SE.

 

[roygbiv6]

@monsieurfromag3 I got my 220 from advancedmp3 players. It was deal of the day and used a 15% discount code so paid around £650. They had an open box one for £600 which I ummed and arred over. For £650 this is a steal. I'll keep this for years now so if it was in good condition or even comes with an extra amp £600 is great.

I haven't heard any other amps other than stock amp1 mkii. It will be a while before I can buy any probably after the Semper as blown my budget this year already. I'm interested in seeing how good the upgrades @Skullar has done are as if this can get better then wow.

I should also say I haven't heard any other comparable daps either. Only zishan and m7. So can't compare it to anything else. I loved the dx100 so much and this is better sounding from memory but also I can put up with the average battery life and little niggles becuase the 100 was appalling in that respect.

 

[Skullar]

@monsieurfromag3 I got my 220 from advancedmp3 players. It was deal of the day and used a 15% discount code so paid around £650. They had an open box one for £600 which I ummed and arred over. For £650 this is a steal. I'll keep this for years now so if it was in good condition or even comes with an extra amp £600 is great.

I haven't heard any other amps other than stock amp1 mkii. It will be a while before I can buy any probably after the Semper as blown my budget this year already. I'm interested in seeing how good the upgrades @Skullar has done are as if this can get better then wow.

I should also say I haven't heard any other comparable daps either. Only zishan and m7. So can't compare it to anything else. I loved the dx100 so much and this is better sounding from memory but also I can put up with the average battery life and little niggles becuase the 100 was appalling in that respect.

Wow that is a steal! I shaved almost 800 for it but again i went with amazon just in case i did not like it. Was skeptical that it can top WM1A. Of course i was wrong. As far as i am concerned it topped it and then some.

And now after all mods i really think this size dap cannot get much better. Apart from maybe moded amp9? That might be a thing of preference.

I would suggest trying out free Purist mod at fidelizer. If you like it. Advanced mod for 100 bucks will double it. Some people said they did not hear a difference. But i think they had sub par gear.
Also it only works on android os.

what rom does is expands sound even more. Improves seperation and imaging.

And Ultimate mod adds improves clarity and detail retrieval.

They are deadly combo.

I will be hunting for used amp9 now and if i like it of it goes to thailand.
Btw you can just buy moded amp from him too. Saves time