[boMD]

Hello,

Long time reader of Head-Fi, but don't post often. I always appreciate the advice and reviews on here, but the IEM selection and information that's out there can be daunting at times.

I'm looking for a new pair of IEMs. Ideally I'd like to spend $200-$250 new or used. I can stretch to $300, but at that price I want to purchase new.

My ears are smallish, and I have small ear canals. My first choice at the moment is the Cardas A8, which can be had for around $250-$300 depending on the dealer. I've read these fit well in small ears.

Currently, my daily drivers are the HiFiman RE-400. I love the way these sound and am looking for something that has a similar sound signature (neutral, controlled, and well balanced; I'm not a big bass guy). After two years of nearly daily use they're really showing signs of wear. Looking to replace the RE-400s with something that has nice build quality, and provides even better SQ.

Sources are redbook quality FLAC files and TIdal HiFI > AQ Dragonfly Black or Oppo HA-2SE.

Besides the A8s are there other decent pairs I should be looking at?

Thanks everyone!

Cheers,
Matthew

 

[Grimbles]

Ive got the ue900s and se425 both of whcih fit in your price bracket and both of which i enjoy very much. Unamped the se425 can sound a bit flat imo but if i was buying now id probs go hybrid like fidue a83 or orivetti new primacy.

 

[serman005]

You might also check out a 1More Quad Driver and a MEE Pinnacle P1. It is conceivable one of those could work for you as well. If you can stretch somewhat, I would say go for a Campfire Orion--it is fantastic. Somewhat over $300, though.

 

[boMD]

You might also check out a 1More Quad Driver and a MEE Pinnacle P1. It is conceivable one of those could work for you as well. If you can stretch somewhat, I would say go for a Campfire Orion--it is fantastic. Somewhat over $300, though.

Thanks for these recommendations. I really like Campfire Audio and since I also live in Portland they've been on my radar for sometime. I might try to stretch my budget to have the Orions be a contender.

 

[boMD]

Ive got the ue900s and se425 both of whcih fit in your price bracket and both of which i enjoy very much. Unamped the se425 can sound a bit flat imo but if i was buying now id probs go hybrid like fidue a83 or orivetti new primacy.

Thanks! I haven't heard of the Fidue A83 or Orivetti New Primacy. I'll read up on those. The SE425 also looks nice.


Cheers,
Matthew

 

[buke9]

Haven’t heard the original A8’s but did have two weeks with the A8 30th Anniversary Edition . I’m more of a headphone guy but do have several in ears that I use at work and then a few decent pairs I use at home and have heard almost all of the TOTL ones at two CanJams. The cable on the anniversary edition needs to be replaced. It was a nice looking spiral cord but made so much noise when it came in contact with clothing it became annoying if you moved around much. I hope they have changed that now as it was a awesome sounding IEM. If it wasn’t for the cable I would have probably bought a pair.

 

[William Zhu]

seeling my sm64, lightly used, pm me if interested

 

[boMD]

Haven’t heard the original A8’s but did have two weeks with the A8 30th Anniversary Edition . I’m more of a headphone guy but do have several in ears that I use at work and then a few decent pairs I use at home and have heard almost all of the TOTL ones at two CanJams. The cable on the anniversary edition needs to be replaced. It was a nice looking spiral cord but made so much noise when it came in contact with clothing it became annoying if you moved around much. I hope they have changed that now as it was a awesome sounding IEM. If it wasn’t for the cable I would have probably bought a pair.

Thanks for sharing your experience with the A8s. I don't think I'll be moving around too much with them, but you never know. I own a pair of HiFiman HE-300s that also have a noisy cable, so I understand what you experienced. I'll definitely keep the cable in mind.

 

[Tsukuyomi]

Bower and Wilkins C5 Series 2. it's pretty decent, im not really an IEM user. i'm more over-ear headphones user. but i've heard decent things about these.

 

[kukkurovaca]

Thanks for these recommendations. I really like Campfire Audio and since I also live in Portland they've been on my radar for sometime. I might try to stretch my budget to have the Orions be a contender.

Orion B-stock fits in $300 budget. (link)

 

[boMD]

Orion B-stock fits in $300 budget. (link)

Thanks for the link! I knew ALO/Campfire has had B stock deals in the past, but couldn't find any on the aloaudio.com. Nice to know about the .deals domain.

Do you know if the Orions are a better bet compared to the Cardas A8s?

 

[kukkurovaca]

I haven't listened to either.

There are two aspects of the design of the original Cardas A8 that gave me pause: the wiring is non-standard, so you're limited in terms of cable swapping (but Cardas is a cable company, so I'm sure the stock cables are good), and there are reports of the blue rubberized coating wearing off over time. The anniversary edition does not have the rubberized coating, so I would probably go for that over the original blue ones if I were getting the Cardas.

 

[boMD]

I haven't listened to either.

There are two aspects of the design of the original Cardas A8 that gave me pause: the wiring is non-standard, so you're limited in terms of cable swapping (but Cardas is a cable company, so I'm sure the stock cables are good), and there are reports of the blue rubberized coating wearing off over time. The anniversary edition does not have the rubberized coating, so I would probably go for that over the original blue ones if I were getting the Cardas.

Good to know. Right now, unless I come across a great deal on the A8s, I'm leaning towards the Orions.

 

[onevstheworld]

If you're in Portland, is there any way you can demo the Orions?

I bought mine after demoing them in a local store... was looking for something similar to my MSR7. Very happy with the purchase, but I'd recommend anyone thinking of buying them to try beforehand for 2 reasons:

• The unusual shape may not be comfortable in everyone's ears. It's nozzle is also fairly large.
  
• The high sensitivity means it will hiss when used with anything that doesn't have a low noise floor. My Macbook Pro 2011, iPhone 4, Sony Z3, Z4 and Galaxy S8 all had some degree of hiss. If I run them through my FiiO E10k or Magni 3, that hiss would disappear.

 

[kukkurovaca]

You know what might be worth a look? The Rose Mini2. I haven't heard these either, but IIRC they've been reviewed pretty well, and they're *tiny*. Penon carries them, $109..