Hmm, I dont think I was as clear as I could have been. What I was trying to say, was not that the switch in its 'on' position degraded the sound. Rather, simply having the switches as part of the electronic component chain, regardless of position, will every so slightly degrade the sonic signature, and that degradation was to me, easily perceivable, because the Flamenco is in itself so detailed in its retrieval that small changes are easily picked up. This, was by comparing two custom units, one with the standard switches implemented, and mine which was simply a direct wire connection without a switch in the middle. I guess that this is only a problem, because the Flamenco is in itself so capable, that minor changes are easily noticed; something that other iems may just hide due to difference in tuning philosophy or performance. Talk about a first world problem......
I am pretty sure that, if you decided to stick to a single setting and just forgo the switch board for a direct wire connection from jack-->resistor network-->BA, as opposed jack-->switch-->resistor network-->BA, you should squeeze out even more performance out of your PP8! The PP8 in itself is very reference and detailed, so I am sure that the same phenomenon I noticed with the Flamenco, will happen in the switchless PP8 too, if they ever decided to make one that is haha.
Personally, I would rather buy multiple IEMS to cover all bases in its absolute best form (which is why I have the dita dream, Flamenco and an another IEM that is incoming), than go for the middle ground compromise (small, but a compromise none the less) with a switch. But, in the demo unit, even with a switch and universal shell, its performance was still enough to convince me to buy this over many other TOTLs, just based on its performance alone, so that says something.
However, as much as I praise the PP8, i found myself very turned off by it for the same reasons I decided to forgo the switches on the Flamenco. The PP8 is my idea of a reference signature detail retrieval monster, but for that purpose, I would much rather get a UERR, by virtue of the fact that it not only does a better job (in my opinion) because its design philosophy is explicitly orientated for that purpose, but can also be had in a custom form. None of these are present in the PP8. While I think that the PP8 is amazing, inside it exists a compromise in its sound performance to inject in versatility, and that is to me a big no-no. Its also one reason why i find myself rather unimpressed with the, e.g. Empire XR, as opposed to the separate Empire Zeus XIV and R iems.
