[Napilopez]

The Symbio W arrived in the mail today. Yeah, these are the ones.

Every other tip I've spent hours comparing, these I only needed one go against the competition to know they were the winners. Sound is a bit warmer than stock tips - which I normally don't like but is a good thing for the CL2's. I think it brings down a bit of that high-mids shoutiness. But unlike some of the other tips that warm up the sound, everything is there. As much detail as I had with any of my other tips, if not more, good soundstage, and by far the best isolation. The Spinfit bi-flanges come fairly close on isolation but wreck the high end of the sound. The Symbios are worth the wait.

This reminds me, I wish the CL2's had an 'ambient mode' as seen on other headphones because the isolation can actually be too much. But RHA already includes so much in this package I can't complain.

Also tried the Symbios on the RE2000 and it brought them from mediocre isolation to pretty darn good. Can't recommend these tips enough!

Anyway, I think the CL2's remain the most detailed headphones I have on hand at the moment. Going to spend some more time listening now that I've settled on the symbios.

 

[McCol]

Not meaning to say I told you so but I did insist it was pretty good from the get go and I thought I was going to get some aggravation about this as well

Oh I never doubted the Bluetooth option, I tried it very briefly a couple of weeks ago and knew it had potential.

 

[McCol]

The Symbio W arrived in the mail today. Yeah, these are the ones.

Every other tip I've spent hours comparing, these I only needed one go against the competition to know they were the winners. Sound is a bit warmer than stock tips - which I normally don't like but is a good thing for the CL2's. I think it brings down a bit of that high-mids shoutiness. But unlike some of the other tips that warm up the sound, everything is there. As much detail as I had with any of my other tips, if not more, good soundstage, and by far the best isolation. The Spinfit bi-flanges come fairly close on isolation but wreck the high end of the sound. The Symbios are worth the wait.

This reminds me, I wish the CL2's had an 'ambient mode' as seen on other headphones because the isolation can actually be too much. But RHA already includes so much in this package I can't complain.

Also tried the Symbios on the RE2000 and it brought them from mediocre isolation to pretty darn good. Can't recommend these tips enough!

Anyway, I think the CL2's remain the most detailed headphones I have on hand at the moment. Going to spend some more time listening now that I've settled on the symbios.

Have to say I agree with the choice of Symbio W's, I've thought about trying some others but the Symbio's sound so good and the fit is very snug.

 

[Kitechaser]

Seems like the spiral dots and the symbios is the consensus.

 

[Napilopez]

Have to say I agree with the choice of Symbio W's, I've thought about trying some others but the Symbio's sound so good and the fit is very snug.

Yeah, plus convenience tends to win out, and these automatically succeed in that front as well.

Edit: On a separate note, I think iFi's iDSD and xDSD are great pairings with these. Aside from adding a touch of warmth, the analog extra bass and '3D' crossfeed switches work really well. These can be a bit hit or miss on other gear - the crossfeed in particular - but I think they have pretty much no negative effect with the CL2s. Make these open up to a speaker-like presentation.

 

[davidmolliere]

So... I have been a bit delayed in finishing that review... but got a pair of CL1 on loan to compare with, this should be interesting although from all account I am not sure it will be my cup of tea.

Interesting, I was at a meetup yesterday with 10+ audiophiles and most people were fairly skeptical about the CL2's signature or unimpressed (especially after my positive posts about it), the upper mids tuning is clearly the divisive item here as well as lack of bass impact, treble sparkle and treble tone. I insisted about tip rolling and deep insertion but not sure everyone followed. Need to take it with a grain of salt as it's only 15/20 mn listen but interesting nonetheless. With the same listening time the Hyla CE-5 clearly won out most people (and yes, they're very nice).

I think the CL2 deserves time to appreciate, it won't wow you right away maybe but it's a very unique signature.

 

[Kitechaser]

So... I have been a bit delayed in finishing that review... but got a pair of CL1 on loan to compare with, this should be interesting although from all account I am not sure it will be my cup of tea.

Interesting, I was at a meetup yesterday with 10+ audiophiles and most people were fairly skeptical about the CL2's signature or unimpressed (especially after my positive posts about it), the upper mids tuning is clearly the divisive item here as well as lack of bass impact, treble sparkle and treble tone. I insisted about tip rolling and deep insertion but not sure everyone followed. Need to take it with a grain of salt as it's only 15/20 mn listen but interesting nonetheless. With the same listening time the Hyla CE-5 clearly won out most people (and yes, they're very nice).

I think the CL2 deserves time to appreciate, it won't wow you right away maybe but it's a very unique signature.

I had to go back to the ALO SPC cable because the copper cable was coloring the upper mids way too much for me, and was affecting the transparency, and treble of the CL2 that I enjoy so much.
As far as bass impact, with the spiral dot tips, deep insertion, and over 300 hours of use, the bass is "almost" 2 much for me. I actually remember thinking this yesterday, I was listening to Eric Clapton, his friends album, and the bass was rumbling and was right at the point, where a bit more and I would call the sound bassy.
I'll use the copper cable with the DM6, but I much prefer the other cable here.
RHA should add spiral dots to its collection of tips, and for the love of GOD stop auditioning new CL2'S, out of iPhones, with no burn in time.
The sound of the CL2 is very tip dependent, you have to do some work to get the best out of it.
Edit: I am not surprised, the CL2 is not an iem I can just hand to someone else, and expect them to hear the same sound I am hearing, these are so tip and fit dependent it's crazy.
The vega, Atlas, Hyla, Legend x, are iems that would make instant impressions, they all have that floor speaker sound, that grabs you instantly.
I am really looking forward to you sony ie-Z1R impressions, I will be getting those next year, and retiring from the iem rat race

 

[Kitechaser]

So... I have been a bit delayed in finishing that review... but got a pair of CL1 on loan to compare with, this should be interesting although from all account I am not sure it will be my cup of tea.

Interesting, I was at a meetup yesterday with 10+ audiophiles and most people were fairly skeptical about the CL2's signature or unimpressed (especially after my positive posts about it), the upper mids tuning is clearly the divisive item here as well as lack of bass impact, treble sparkle and treble tone. I insisted about tip rolling and deep insertion but not sure everyone followed. Need to take it with a grain of salt as it's only 15/20 mn listen but interesting nonetheless. With the same listening time the Hyla CE-5 clearly won out most people (and yes, they're very nice).

I think the CL2 deserves time to appreciate, it won't wow you right away maybe but it's a very unique signature.

What other sources were you able to use? How did it pair with the TOTL AK players? And the Hyla, as far as I have read, sounds like an absolute bass monster, would love to get my hands on it for a bit. Outside of that, did anything else stand out?

 

[mahesh]

I love cl2 more and more ,
Unique bass unique treble
Not so convinced with mids though
May be chinging tips and with balanced cable sound will change in a good way, at least i m hoping.

Lets not forget that planar iem technology is fairly new
Its like a class D amp
Next CL3 or CL4 will be more mature
But what it is its already very good
At least for my ears
If i compair even with campfire atlas,cl2 is better in highs and micro detail
Bass of cl2 is very unique and i hear more details

Im waiting for my balanced cable from plussound and sipiral dots

 

[davidmolliere]

What other sources were you able to use? How did it pair with the TOTL AK players? And the Hyla, as far as I have read, sounds like an absolute bass monster, would love to get my hands on it for a bit. Outside of that, did anything else stand out?

I only used WM1Z as a source, I made sure to test it with my own Ares II as they were fitted with PW 1960 4 wires which is in a category of its own in my book. I suspect a SP1000 would make them more detailed yet.
I wouldn't say bass monster, but there is enough kick to satisfy the basshead in me, it's a clean bass though very controlled, good kick, quite detailed. You can get more impressions of what I tried here, I don't want to hack the CL2 thread

I love cl2 more and more ,
Unique bass unique terrible
Not so convinced with mids though
May be chinging tips and with balanced cable sound will change in a good way, at least i m hoping.

Lets not forget that planar iem technology is fairly new
Its like a class D amp
Next CL3 or CL4 will be more mature
But what it is its already very good
At least for my ears
If i compair even with campfire atlas,cl2 is better in highs and micro detail
Bass of cl2 is very unique and i hear more details

Im waiting for my balanced cable from plussound and sipiral dots

Bass is very detailed and texture indeed, I guess you meant terrific not terrible

Mids will be the main issue for some, in particular upper mids, but to me the CL2 walks a fine line and only bad mastering / dynamic range compression and/or analytical sources will make them sound harsh. YMMV
On good stuff with the good source the mids will be great, highly articulate while remaining smooth. I could understand why people would like more lower mids but it's the signature, the CL2 are clean not sweet.

Surprised that highs qualify as better than Atlas, as it is supposed to pack some sparkle and while the CL2 is detailed, it doesn't have much sparkle in the lower treble (it played safe there, too safe ?). The higher part of treble is more detailed and provides the CL2 airy signature (IMHO). It has great speed and a feathery quality.

 

[HarlanDraka]

So... I have been a bit delayed in finishing that review... but got a pair of CL1 on loan to compare with, this should be interesting although from all account I am not sure it will be my cup of tea.

Interesting, I was at a meetup yesterday with 10+ audiophiles and most people were fairly skeptical about the CL2's signature or unimpressed (especially after my positive posts about it), the upper mids tuning is clearly the divisive item here as well as lack of bass impact, treble sparkle and treble tone. I insisted about tip rolling and deep insertion but not sure everyone followed. Need to take it with a grain of salt as it's only 15/20 mn listen but interesting nonetheless. With the same listening time the Hyla CE-5 clearly won out most people (and yes, they're very nice).

I think the CL2 deserves time to appreciate, it won't wow you right away maybe but it's a very unique signature.

Not surprised.CL2 appear to be very tips and depth of insertion dependant..and at audiophile meetings there’s no much time to try and find the tips that work the best for each other ears But with correct tips, CL2 are a revelation. Speaking about tips, I followed your suggestion and ordered the Tennmak tips.They are awesome, I’m using the gray largest ones and wow, bass hits hard, mids are excellent and treble is sparkly yet smooth.I prefer them to shure and spiral dots tips.Pretty happy

 

[Duncan]

Yup, I'm definitely in the revelation camp - takes some time and effort to get right, the number of times I've bounced tips and cables isn't even funny!

They definitely sound more realistic (to me) than the AK T8ie mkII that was my daily driver for 5 months.

 

[mahesh]

@David i wanted to say treble hehe
For that beautiful high alone im keeping my cl2
very lively lovely
Yes its better then atlas treble which is just fine but nothing more
Cl2 high is airy,extended and has lots of details...

 

[McCol]

I've finally ordered a cable for the CL2. Plumped for the **** in the end. Couple of reasons for this choice - first is price, its reasonably priced for what it offers compared to other options here in the UK, secondly, there seems to be a few people who are happy with their cables.

 

[AManAnd88Keys]

Mids will be the main issue for some, in particular upper mids, but to me the CL2 walks a fine line and only bad mastering / dynamic range compression and/or analytical sources will make them sound harsh. YMMV
On good stuff with the good source the mids will be great, highly articulate while remaining smooth. I could understand why people would like more lower mids but it's the signature, the CL2 are clean not sweet.

I know that people have different ears, physically speaking, but with deep-insertion IEMs a lot of the differences are eliminated as most of the outer ear plays no role anymore. In a way it's strange to me how the mids were the polarizing aspect in this case, as for me they are rendered very realistically. Goes to show that taste and invidividual preferences are very important, no doubt about it.