[shotgunshane]

By the way, are they still shipping Vibratos? I paid the difference and haven't received any notification.

 

[foreverzer0]

OK, just got the iem-x
My first, out of the box impression...not bad sounding, clear, open, a bit tizzy on top, not that strong on bottom.
Will need to burn in.
I have a question, though...they're supposed to be balanced. Does that require purchasing a different cable? The one that comes doesn't connect to my adaptor (which I have to use for a balanced cable terminated for the AK style balanced out, allows me to use it for Pono), so I suspect it isn't a balanced cable. That stinks, I have to say, when I went for balanced headphones, I thought they'd be able to use balanced, guess I assumed too much.

 
Does that mean they also work with single ended output?

 

[mscott58]

   
Does that mean they also work with single ended output?

The IEM-X's will with SE with the right adapter (depending on your system). They work really well with (and are designed for) a Geek product with a 3.5mm TRRS balanced jack, such as my V2+ Inf. However, for most everything else you'll need an adapter. LHL is working on a 3.5mm TRRS to 3.5mm TRS adapter currently to help with this (see pic) and hopefully this will be out soon as it's actually not the simplest thing to find. Some custom cable shops make them (such as Norne) but they can be pricey (I think Norne's is $50 or so). Cheers 
 

 

[doctorjazz]

Meaning, if I want to use it, I need yet another converter, I guess...
So, I did find it works fine from the single ended output of my Pono. I'll wait on another converter cable, but I'm actually dying to get it to work with the balanced Pono out. Eventually, I'll get the Wave (I hope, I hope, I hope), it should work with that.

 

[Shawnb]

Got my IEM-X's yesterday, was excited until I opened them and realized I can't use them on anything. Not even my Pulse Infinity. So it'll make a nice paperweight and be a good dust collector until i either pay more to buy an adapter or wait for LH to make one. I'd rather have waited for the adapter, I understand the need to get them out as fast as possible after the cluster**** that was the Verb but sending me something I can't even use does nothing but frustrate me and sours any opinion I'll have when I do listen to them.

 

[wingsounds13]

While the balanced IEM-X will not work in most unbalanced headphone jacks, they will work in some. Very few plastic shelled jacks will make contact with both negative (ring 2 and sleeve) contacts, but I think that most metal shelled jacks will as the outer end of the shell is usually connected to ground. I am using mine with my Pulse X infinity with a nice metal 1/4” > 1/8" (or is that 1/8" > 1/4" - I always get that wrong) adapter.

Oh, yes... the IEM-X sounds pretty good. Somewhat U shaped, but not strongly so. A bit of boost in the low bass and in the treble, enough to emphasize those but not enough to make the mids sound recessed.

J.P.

 

[doctorjazz]

As I mentioned, have used it single ended into my Pono, sounds fine. Mids do sound good to me, make vocals good. Wanted to use them balanced with the Pono, but don't feel like springing for yet another adapter right now...

 

[Lonelyers]

I just posted the following in the IEM-X impression thread, and I think that it might be relevant to the Verb / Vibrato as well.  So I am also posting it here.
 
I have received the IEM-X but not the Vibrato, but to me, they look very similar.
 

  I have received my IEM-X, but don't have a good feeling about it.  Given that LH Labs' previous IEM "mishap" (i.e. Verb being rebranded Xuma), when I look at the IEM-X, I can't help but feel that it might be another rebranded product (or OEM product) from China / Alibaba.   The casing looks strikingly similar to a number of cheap IEMs from China I have seen.
 
And then I come across the following item on Alibaba:
 
https://xrxdz.en.alibaba.com/product/60398450714-803292448/2016_new_Titanium_driver_audiophile_metal_in_ear_monitors_IEMs_with_balanced_TRRS_Jack.html
 
So, let’s count the similarities, shall we?
Balanced 3.5mm TRRS jack? Check.
Titanium dynamic driver? Check.
16 ohms impedance? Check.
Comes with 3 pairs of very similar-looking silicone tips? Check.
Very similar-looking earphone casing and 1.2m cable? Check.
 
While IEM-X may look quite different from the OEM product on the surface, it should be noted that the supplier can also print the earphones in any colours, print customized logo on the earphones and design custom packages.
 
Of course, I cannot provide concrete proof that the IEM-X is manufactured by this OEM company (no one could - unless the OEM company or LH Labs admits this).  Assuming that they did purchase these IEMs from the OEM company, then after receiving the OEM earphones, LH Labs might have done something more to the earphones (Hopefully further tuning? Testing a few pairs of them? Printing shipping labels and actually shipping them?).  But given LH Labs' past history in making IEMs, seeing the above Alibaba listing makes me feel very uncomfortable.  Call me skeptical, but when I look at the IEM-X, it reminds me about the IEMs from China.  Think about this – backers were charged $69 for the IEM-X, with an additional $15 for shipping; but these can be ordered from the OEM company directly at less than $10 per item.  A very profitable business, isn’t it?
 
There is also another interesting observation – remember the Vibrato that has a similar casing with IEM-X?  Why does Vibrato come with a mic while IEM-X doesn’t?  I don’t know – perhaps because the same OEM company offers balanced 3.5 TRRS earphones without mics (naturally) and unbalanced 3.5 TRRS earphones with mics?
 
https://xrxdz.en.alibaba.com/product/60368676092-803292448/Deep_bass_Metal_Material_Shell_Earphone_With_3_5MM_Gold_Plated_Plug.html
 
And for the sound, I may be in the minority - I am not very impressed with it.  No doubt it is better than the Verb, but let's just say, Verb did not really set a standard in terms of sound.  It does not sound very clear to me, and the vocal is too forward - I cannot hear the instruments and details clearly.  To me, the $5 VE Monk Plus sounds better than the IEM-X - but let's not forget that IEM-X is a $129 IEM (IEM-X is better than Monk Plus in terms of isolation (naturally, because this is in-ear vs earbuds), offers more bass, and that's all).
 
This makes me worry more about the Geek Wave - will it be another OEM product?  How many corners will LH Labs have to cut in order to deliver the product - if it could be delivered?  Understandably, they have mouths to feed - and the longer the delay, the more likely "sacrifices" of the end-product have to be made.  Honestly, I have lost faith in this company.

 
Edit: Post edited, with no change of contents.  Instead of putting my message in the spoiler form, I used the Quote function.

 

[Lonelyers]

Further to my previous post, I am posting the following observations, which was also posted.in the IEM-X impressions thread.  Hopefully, someone from LH Labs would come up to clarify.
 

 ... LH Labs offered the unbalanced Vibrato with mic (instead of without mic) because for the casing of Vibrato, the OEM company only offered (or usually produced) it with mic (at least this is the impression I get when I briefly glanced through their product page - but I can't be 100% sure, as there were 47 pages of products and I only went through the pages quickly).  Therefore, instead of releasing both IEM-X and Vibrato without mic, LH Labs had no choice but to release the Vibrato with mic (or offered the mic for convenience's sake when making the order from the same OEM company).  
Once again, I must reiterate that this was purely speculation.  I certainly hope LH Labs would come up to clarify and tell us what they did to manufacture the IEM-X / Vibrato.  But based on past history of LH Labs on making IEMs (which is a very short history, with very negative experience), the Alibaba website and the similarities observed, I wouldn't be surprised if the Vibrato and IEM-X were indeed both manufactured by the same OEM company.  In other words, the IEM-X / Vibrato might be nothing more than rebranded IEMs of an existing product in China.
 
What's more, by offering Verb owners a Vibrato for "free" as compensation (for the "shipping cost" of $26), LH Labs was more than able to break even - taking into account of the $15 for shipping that they charged for shipping IEM-X / Verb, and an additional $5 per item for ordering the earphones from the OEM company in bulk, they could still earn at least $6 from each "compensation".  Sorry for making all this sound like a conspiracy theory, but I personally just feel very disappointed in LH Labs, after all these years.

 

[markrw]

I paid $26 for the Vibratos "gift" to make up for the awful Verb. I immediately regretted paying for another mistake so my plan was to sell the unit upon receipt. Several months have passed and those of us who had the misfortune of buying the Verb and were offered the "gift" of the Vibratos have not received the Vibratos. Meanwhile, you can buy the Vibrato on Amazon without delay. Apparently, this "gift" has turned into another punishment for supporters of the company.
 
Three weeks ago, I requested a refund of the shipping fees for the "gift". This amounts to $26 USD or $34 CAD. Gina informed me that LH Labs is sorry for the delay and that they will comply with my request for refund within 5 business days. 3 weeks later and several requests for updates later (after 10 days had passed) and I am getting completely ignored by LH Labs. I will never buy anything from this company again! Lesson learned.

 

[dclaz]

  I paid $26 for the Vibratos "gift" to make up for the awful Verb. I immediately regretted paying for another mistake so my plan was to sell the unit upon receipt. Several months have passed and those of us who had the misfortune of buying the Verb and were offered the "gift" of the Vibratos have not received the Vibratos. Meanwhile, you can buy the Vibrato on Amazon without delay. Apparently, this "gift" has turned into another punishment for supporters of the company.
 
Three weeks ago, I requested a refund of the shipping fees for the "gift". This amounts to $26 USD or $34 CAD. Gina informed me that LH Labs is sorry for the delay and that they will comply with my request for refund within 5 business days. 3 weeks later and several requests for updates later (after 10 days had passed) and I am getting completely ignored by LH Labs. I will never buy anything from this company again! Lesson learned.

 
They actually said they would refund?

 

[markrw]

   
They actually said they would refund?

Yes

 

[markrw]

I finally received my refund for the Vibrato shipping costs from LH Labs.

 

[markrw]

 

 

 

[DownSouth]

xie xie Lonelyers,
 
Could it be this one?
https://xrxdz.en.alibaba.com/product/60506062457-803292448/2016_china_best_corded_headphone_price.html
 
Probably a friend or acquaintance of someone at LH Labs who owns the company.
Nothing unusual or suspicious abut that.
It could be LH had this company build them but specified different drivers, etc.
Cost delivered to Roseville easily under $15 and in "HiFi" 6-8 times production cost on IEM's to the western world is not unusual.
If that's the case, that's normal business since you have to pay R&D costs above production costs.
BUT
What's not usual is the ridiculous shipping charges AND selling them on Amazon instead of delivery to people who already paid for them.
 
Selling and shipping on Amazon while people who have already paid is not just a civil but a criminal act according to California statutes.
 
I called and then wrote the Attorney General's office in California and filed a complaint for fraudulent business practices.
I suggest anyone reading this do the same.
 
When they get several complaints they normally launch an investigation but in this case I was told that since no specific delivery dates were stated not much could be done.
 
When I spoke to them a month later and gave them the info of the product being sold on Amazon I was told that now there is a case.
 
Please write a letter (calling does little good) to the AG's office complaining about LH Labs not delivering product that has been paid for.
No need to mention the Verb debacle except for the promise of replacement with the Vibratos.
Include a copy of the email from LH with the offer of replacement and the email showing your payment received.
Perhaps a call from law enforcement will get the product to us instead of Amazon customers.
If you live in CA that's better, but even if out of state a letter will work if enough of us write.
I would vastly prefer getting the product instead of LH Labs paying a fine to the AG.
I hope Larry reads this and starts shipping by months end before the AG gets involved.
 
Office of the Attorney General
1300 "I" Street
Sacramento, CA 95814-2919
Phone: (916) 445-9555
 
Write "Fraudulent Business Practice: Consumer complaint" on the envelope.
 
LH Labs info:
920 Reserve Drive Suite 160 Roseville, California 95678
Voicemail: (888) 842-5988. Email: info@lightharmonic.com.
Shen Zhen. Area No.44, Tian-Hong Smart Hardware Zone, Bao-An District  
 
This is the company who makes the headphones which look the same. Not far from LH Labs address.
Shenzhen XinRongXing Electronics Co., Ltd.
Floor 2, No. 109, Houting Second Industrial Zone, Shajing Town, Baoan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
 
For anyone who is curious Shenzhen is right next to Hong Kong on the Communist side of the border.
You actually need to get your passport stamped each time you go from one to the other.
My base of operations in 2006 was Shenzhen.