[Mimouille]

What do you mean slightly back area of the mids?

 

[goodvibes]

Mid to bass transition seems fine on these but it's a bit back in the upper mids until the slightly elevated highs kick in. Less apparent than on other TWFK units I've heard that show a much greater contrast here and why I like these. Problem is that when you describe something as not perfect, folks read in too much. No IEM is perfect though I keep my fingers crossed.

 What I'd currently buy in this price range would be a custom Perfect Seal PS3(b).

 

[alpha421]

At retail price, competition is fierce from not only universal substitutes, but from custom monitors like the UE4 for example.

 

[goodvibes]

Agreed but the street price of these will be a bit lower and they are a fantastic size and build. Even the case rocks. Seeing how some are all about TWFK sound, this is a great example. I didn't think that highly of the originals.

 

[gnarlsagan]

So are these officially TWFK? It wouldn't surprise me.

 

[gnarlsagan]

Package is off to nmatheis! Noting here that I reread SGS's comment about the tiny rubber ring on the connector after I had already had them for a few days. When I checked for them, one was missing, so I'm not sure if it came off when I first screwed the barrel onto the cable (they came separated) or sometime before then. Seems like a poor design choice, but nonetheless I offer my apologies for letting it get away from me if that's what happened. 
 
Impressions
At first listen the Q-jays sounded pretty linear through the mids, although with a definite treble spike. It took me a few days to come to terms with this spike (tones put it at about 8.5kHz for me), and whether or not it added a tasteful character to the music. Multiple tip choices and varying fit depths later, I came to the unfortunate conclusion that the spike was too much to deal with. While not as blatant as something like the DBA-02, there can be a grating tendency towards sibilance and accentuated high hats. Spikes like this don't allow cymbals and percussion in general to inhabit the ideal range of frequencies for those sounds, which translates into odd timbre to my ears. And this phenomenon isn't limited to just percussion. Just about every instrument becomes tinged with a slight sharpness that creates some major fatigue over the course of a couple hours.
 
Peaks like this, while troublesome on their own, are exacerbated when there is a dip in the upper mids, which is exactly what I hear on the Q-jays. Tones reveal a minor dip around 4kHz to my ears, which I normally don't terribly mind on it's own. But together, a treble spike and upper-mid dip can wreak havoc on an otherwise impressively flat frequency response. This kind of sound signature sounds hollow to me compared to something like the ER4S. I distinctly feel as though I am missing a sizeable chunk of sound, which is then filled in with emphasis from the wrong areas. Despite this, mids from 4k on down are quite linear and forward, almost as much so as both the Rockets and ER4S. Mid-bass bloat is non-existent, leaving voices very nicely intact timbre-wise.
 
Bass extends much more deeply than either the Rockets or ER4S, with 20Hz tones being pretty easily audible. Quite impressive. If I could take the bass extension of the Q-jays and splice it into either of those iems, it would create quite a force to be reckoned with. But this is the grand problem; no one has been able to pull this off. I'm starting to think that deep bass with linear mids and smooth treble extension might actually never happen for iems. As close as we get every year, we never seem to close the gap created by Etymotic so many years ago. And now I've written myself completely off track.
 
Despite my own analysis, I could see people really enjoying the Q-jays. They aren't nearly as offensive as many other very popular iems, like the W4 or (almost) Noble Audio's entire line, or basically any TWFK based offering. It just so happens that they commit one of the most annoying sins to my ears, a dip followed by an untimely spike.
 
Otherwise, the packaging is pretty over-the-top. There is basically an entire Jays book included, along with meticulously placed cardboard containers for both tips and the cable. I'd rather not see threaded screws for items this small. I was very much afraid of stripping the screws while assembling the iem, but just about any implementation at this tiny size can feel pretty precarious. The cable is a nice length, coming in at somewhere between the longer ER4S and shorter Rockets (I didn't measure it), and exhibits a supple and grippy texture reminiscent of the CK-10.
Thanks to SGS for organizing this tour. As always, it's great to stay up to date with more recent offerings, even if they aren't my favorite. I like to see what direction sound is traveling towards, and how much closer we might be getting to that elusive neutral.

 

[shotgunshane]

Did you have an impedance adapter to try?

 

[goodvibes]

Try some shure olives if you have them. Won't make it all better for you but they did help the overall balance a bit. Many should love these since units without that TWFK sparkle often get described as not extended when in fact, elevated treble is being preferred. I'm of the mind that a little less top is more appealing to me than too much. That said, I think this is a great example of what can be done with a single TWFK and should be well liked by those whom this particular balance appeals to.

 

[nmatheis]

Just got here. Haven't listened yet (have a few other things to wrap up first), but everything looks fine. Well, more than fine. These are absolutely gorgeous. Very much in line with my aesthetic tastes right from the low-key picture on the box, beautiful booklet with lots of black space, tiny & stealthy earpieces...

Fit for Batman shotgunshane? Maybe. A very refined Batman, perhaps :wink_face:



P.S. I've got 75 & 100 Ohm adapters ready to rock the Q-Jays

 

[DJScope]

Just got here. Haven't listened yet (have a few other things to wrap up first), but everything looks fine. Well, more than fine. These are absolutely gorgeous. Very much in line with my aesthetic tastes right from the low-key picture on the box, beautiful booklet with lots of black space, tiny & stealthy earpieces...

Fit for Batman @shotgunshane? Maybe. A very refined Batman, perhaps

 

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

P.S. I've got 75 & 100 Ohm adapters ready to rock the Q-Jays

 
Hey guys,
 
I hope you don't mind me tagging along for a bit. I've got the Jays Q-Jays to start a tour of my own, but the tour doesn't start till next year and I have no one to compare notes with. I've had them for a couple of weeks now and really haven't had a chance to give them the time they deserve as I had other samples to review. But the Q-Jays time has finally come! 
 
I have a question for you guys. What is everyone's preferred tips for the Q-Jays, I seem to be leaning towards the included Comply tips that come in the box. 
Also, I'm looking into making a switchable impedance adapter in due time, but in the meantime, what are the benefits of using them?
 
Cheers guys!

 

[shotgunshane]

Added impedance fills in the mids some and tames the treble a bit. ~90ohms impedance gets it somewhat close to a JHA Angie type signature.

 

[DJScope]

Added impedance fills in the mids some and tames the treble a bit. ~90ohms impedance gets it somewhat close to a JHA Angie type signature.

 
I do find the treble just a little harsh, hence why I've gravitated to the Comply tips to dampen them some. I've made an order for some 100 Ohm resistors (Already got 75 Ohm) to make a switchable attenuator for comparison. Quite curious to see what it reacts. You're basically just raising the output impedance of the source, right?

 

[shotgunshane]

I do find the treble just a little harsh, hence why I've gravitated to the Comply tips to dampen them some. I've made an order for some 100 Ohm resistors (Already got 75 Ohm) to make a switchable attenuator for comparison. Quite curious to see what it reacts. You're basically just raising the output impedance of the source, right?

Yes, it's the same as raising the OI of the source.

I look forward to reading about your switchable attenuator. Too bad there is nothing commercially available in a super small and portable form factor for switching impedances.

 

[DJScope]

Yes, it's the same as raising the OI of the source.

I look forward to reading about your switchable attenuator. Too bad there is nothing commercially available in a super small and portable form factor for switching impedances.

 
Nothing too complicated. Just a simple switchable bypass like an AB switch but with a different impedance on each line. I always make sure to use overkill wiring for such devices just to make sure that I don't get any degradation of the sound.
 
Edit:
 
Here is an AB switch that I've built:
 

 
This one has a Stone Acoustics UD120 in it because I had space for it, and I wasn't using it enough so this makes it more versatile. Wiring is solid core 26AWG SPC wire, and all contacts are silver plate except for the 3.5 TTRS jack in the UD120 which is gold plated.
Just uses a simple 3 pole 2 throw toggle switch on one end and a 3 pole 3 throw toggle switch on the other end; the middle is used as a mute.

 

[shotgunshane]

added @shane55 to the tour list.