[mndless]

1 Watt for an IEM? how thirsty that IEM could be?
BTR5 and S9 Pro with balanced could power up to 200mw, is it not enough?
Sure it scales up with more power but how much it going to need till its "proper"

There are plenty of over-ear headphones that thirst for power. Usually they're the really big planar, though, so 1W per channel may not even be enough. I got one as a gift for a friend to pair with his Kinera NanNa 2.0, since those things are moderately high impedance and love power. He can't go over 35% volume on high gain balanced. They did sound amazing, though, when I heard them run from that DAP. I don't know if they sounded $900 worth of good, but that's his decision to make.

 

[r31ya]

There are plenty of over-ear headphones that thirst for power. Usually they're the really big planar, though, so 1W per channel may not even be enough. I got one as a gift for a friend to pair with his Kinera NanNa 2.0, since those things are moderately high impedance and love power. He can't go over 35% volume on high gain balanced. They did sound amazing, though, when I heard them run from that DAP. I don't know if they sounded $900 worth of good, but that's his decision to make.

I mean Headphone i understand the power required could go way up. But for an IEMs to have that high of power requirement seems like a design flaw.
Ah, so some could in some way benefit more power but its not required to have that much power to sound proper.

Hoo, EST Kinera Nana. I wonder how CCA EST/NRA will scales up with moar Powah

 

[mndless]

I mean Headphone i understand the power required could go way up. But for an IEMs to have that high of power requirement seems like a design flaw.
Ah, so some could in some way benefit more power but its not required to have that much power to sound proper.

Hoo, EST Kinera Nana. I wonder how CCA EST/NRA will scales up with moar Powah

The NanNa 2.0 are using the Sonion electret drivers, not magnetostatic drivers. Magnetostat drivers typically have lower power requirements. I would expect the CCA NRA to be significantly easier to power to their optimal state compared to the NanNa 2.0. I think I figured that they required something like 70% volume on my HiBy R3 Pro Saber to sound right, and those have 280mW per channel on balanced at 32Ω. They love power.

 

[lushmelody]

You need a powerful source to drive a planar magnetic driver. It doesn't matter how small it gets, it wants current. Dongles? Forget it.

Thought the driver size would mitigate this problem is a balanced more robust portable source still not enough? So is it limited to desktop amps only?

 

[r31ya]

Thought the driver size would mitigate this problem is a balanced more robust portable source still not enough? So is it limited to desktop amps only?

The one i got recomendded when i want to purchase Hifiman He400i (2020) is IFI Hip DAC or Fiio Q3.
Both are still technically portable or at least still somewhat smaller than modern smartphone unlike lets say Xduoo XD-05 Plus.

If i recalled it right, both capable to power up to 400 mW, which apparently to the previous owner of HE400i, its good enough to get proper sound from it.

 

[InvisibleInk]

1 Watt for an IEM? how thirsty that IEM could be?
BTR5 and S9 Pro with balanced could power up to 200mw, is it not enough?
Sure it scales up with more power but how much it going to need till its "proper"

I'd consider those devices weak when it comes to powering the Tin HiFi P2. So, yeah, just don't venture into planar territory without power.

 

[InvisibleInk]

The one i got recomendded when i want to purchase Hifiman He400i (2020) is IFI Hip DAC or Fiio Q3.
Both are still technically portable or at least still somewhat smaller than modern smartphone unlike lets say Xduoo XD-05 Plus.

If i recalled it right, both capable to power up to 400 mW, which apparently to the previous owner of HE400i, its good enough to get proper sound from it.

Just because 400mW's powers an HE400i, doesn't mean much. I have a DAC X6 which puts out 450 mW. It can just barely power the LCD-2F, but falls on its face trying to power the T60rp or P2. For those guys, the iFi iDSD Black label and Hip-DAC, plus the Modi/Magni Schiit stacks work fine. The DAPs I have, Shanling, HiBy, and Zishan, are all too wimpy.

 

[r31ya]

Just because 400mW's powers an HE400i, doesn't mean much. I have a DAC X6 which puts out 450 mW. It can just barely power the LCD-2F, but falls on its face trying to power the T60rp or P2. For those guys, the iFi iDSD Black label and Hip-DAC, plus the Modi/Magni Schiit stacks work fine. The DAPs I have, Shanling, HiBy, and Zishan, are all too wimpy.

I remember first time trying out the HE4xx on the store, all i had is my phone and BTR5.
On 3.5mm (80mW), it barely make a sound on max volume.

And i guess that's is one of the "lighter" planar.

 

[mndless]

With this chat about planar magnetic headphones, it would certainly be interesting to see if KZ or CCA decided to release a planar magnetic set of earphones at a $100 price point. I don't think anyone has a planar available at that price point.

 

[baskingshark]

With this chat about planar magnetic headphones, it would certainly be interesting to see if KZ or CCA decided to release a planar magnetic set of earphones at a $100 price point. I don't think anyone has a planar available at that price point.

TRI I3 is around $140ish USD (it has a planar inside). I bought my TRI I3 at $108 USD actually, after using some coupons at Aliexpress' sale.

I think it has been superceded by the TRI I3 Pro that recently released.

 

[MacAttack7]

I've read on many reviews that the ASX and ASF have recessed mids.
If that is the case why are vocals so forward?

I think that's why I like them both so much, becasue I enjoy singer/songwriter music.
I don't understand graphs and equalizer settings too much, but I thought vocals were firmly within the "mids".

 

[mndless]

TRI I3 is around $140ish USD (it has a planar inside). I bought my TRI I3 at $108 USD actually, after using some coupons at Aliexpress' sale.

I think it has been superceded by the TRI I3 Pro that recently released.

Purely planar sets seem to be more expensive than hybrid sets that use a planar. I'm not really sure why this is the case, but my best guess would be the tuning challenge that a planar magnetic set poses when you try to make it function as a proper full-range driver, since they aren't always known to have substantial bass impact or excellent treble performance unless you're very careful with the driver design and enclosure tuning. Based on the graphs and recommended crossover points for the raw planar magnetic drivers I've found for IEMs on AliExpress, it seems to be quite a challenge to get their upper treble performance to behave as you want, since both the 10mm and 14mm planar drivers I found want to be crossed over before 5kHz. TRI compensated for this with a DD and BA to handle those regions, but it would be nice to find a pure planar set with acceptable bass levels and smooth treble so you get the coherency of a single driver but the potential for natural timbre that some planar drivers can provide.

 

[baskingshark]

I've read on many reviews that the ASX and ASF have recessed mids.
If that is the case why are vocals so forward?

I think that's why I like them both so much, becasue I enjoy singer/songwriter music.
I don't understand graphs and equalizer settings too much, but I thought vocals were firmly within the "mids".

This is a useful chart I use for stage monitoring for EQ purposes (like to know where to cut/increase for stage work for vocals/instruments).

The vocals generally encompass the midrange as above. Female vocals are as expected, of higher frequency range than males, but they are still in the mids mostly. There are vocal harmonics that also affect their perception at higher frequencies. Eg the sibilance area. Sibilance refers to the high frequency components of some vocal sounds, especially “s” and “sh”. Sibilance is mostly found in the 5 to 10 kHz frequency range, it can cause issues if there is too much of this.

Purely planar sets seem to be more expensive than hybrid sets that use a planar. I'm not really sure why this is the case, but my best guess would be the tuning challenge that a planar magnetic set poses when you try to make it function as a proper full-range driver, since they aren't always known to have substantial bass impact or excellent treble performance unless you're very careful with the driver design and enclosure tuning. Based on the graphs and recommended crossover points for the raw planar magnetic drivers I've found for IEMs on AliExpress, it seems to be quite a challenge to get their upper treble performance to behave as you want, since both the 10mm and 14mm planar drivers I found want to be crossed over before 5kHz. TRI compensated for this with a DD and BA to handle those regions, but it would be nice to find a pure planar set with acceptable bass levels and smooth treble so you get the coherency of a single driver but the potential for natural timbre that some planar drivers can provide.

Then if you want a pure planar, probably the cheapest would be the Tin P1 at around $150ish USD. It can be just slightly above $100 during sales.
P1 is rather hard to drive, and IMO is not too portable outside as most dongles and low powered smartphones can't drive it. Plus it is rather bass lite when not powered well.

 

[RikudouGoku]

Then if you want a pure planar, probably the cheapest would be the Tin P1 at around $150ish USD. It can be just slightly above $100 during sales.
P1 is rather hard to drive, and IMO is not too portable outside as most dongles and low powered smartphones can't drive it. Plus it is rather bass lite when not powered well.

I honestly do not think the P1 is a good iem if you want to hear how a planar sounds like. Because it sounds very different from them (the hifiman Sundara sounded very different from it).

 

[baskingshark]

KZ EDX Pro incoming. More pokemons on the way!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/audioreviews/posts/6120644957975764/



When is the Pro version of this Pro version coming?

So for our pokemon collectors, the EDX Pro is finally on Aliexpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003199660801.html

$8 USD for non mic version! $9 for the mic version!

How do these guys break even?!
The graph is a bit wonky though, assuming the store provided graph is legit. The high sensitivity with lowish impedance may also mean it may be a hissy IEM.