Meze Audio’s newest single-DD IEM - ADVAR

[Kristofa]

Meze quality at this price range is insane. I was about to pickup another pair of IE 200 just for portability and comfort but once I saw the Alba get announced I knew waiting would be worth it.

I agree. When I did my A/B compare with the Advar and Alba and gained more respect for each of them in the process.

 

[jbarrentine]

I'm exceedingly new to iem stuff. Just considering a pair this week. That known, what level headphone do these meze alba compare to in the over ear market? I have no frame of reference for anything. Thanks so much.

 

[Thomastb]

I agree. When I did my A/B compare with the Advar and Alba and gained more respect for each of them in the process.

how to you find the comparison? detail, soundstage, imaging, holographic.

Thanks!

 

[Kristofa]

how to you find the comparison? detail, soundstage, imaging, holographic.

Thanks!

Hey Thomastb! I concur with barking in post #503 of this thread. I also want to add that the nozzle on the Alba is slightly larger and the Advar is more comfortable to me. Below are some notes I made in the Alba thread that might be helpful to you:

In my opinion, the Advar is more technical and resolving. I just did an A/B compare using Final E tips for both IEMs and Roon ARC via my humble iFi Go Blu.

Test tracks:
David J - “Man Of Influential Taste.”
There is snapping of fingers near the beginning of the track. Neither IEMs resolve them well (in comparison with full range speakers…where you can hear his fingers slip and fail in some snaps!) but when the organ and drums come in, the Advar immediately brings this to life. The Alba keeps the entire soundstage at arms length in a reserved and polite way. There is a touch of sibilance to David’s voice on the Advar that is absent on the Alba.

Miranda Lee Richards - “First Light of Winter.”
At 0:08, there is a tone change that even full range speakers can have a difficult time with, and I think the Alba reveals it a touch clearer than the Advar, but soon after that the mix fades in the vocal track so a sense of “air” really hovers before she sings, and perhaps the Advar is better at this. Again, the Alba keeps the track at arms length.

Flanger - “Galak”
This track is all about the vibraphone! The Advar allows it to ring and reverberate better around the bongos. No question in my opinion, but the arms length of the Albas lets you analyze it more.

Estas Tonne - Bird’s Teardrop (live)
Nice acoustic guitar and female voice. It gets busy toward the end of the track and while I think the track is compressed (my wife just shared it with me this afternoon so haven’t heard it on the main stereo yet!), the Advars handle the cacophony better where the feet stomping, etc. is more defined.

I hope this helps.

 

[raulromanjr]

I guess Meze dropped the Advar? Don’t see it anywhere on their site. Anyone know the story?

 

[Kristofa]

I guess Meze dropped the Advar? Don’t see it anywhere on their site. Anyone know the story?

Oh wow. So now just the Alba? Surely something must be coming after the Alba sales slow down.

 

[ThanatosVI]

I guess Meze dropped the Advar? Don’t see it anywhere on their site. Anyone know the story?

Oh damn. I wonder if it will be replaced.
Maybe I should get an Advar from the last stock that sells off

 

[C_Lindbergh]

Oh wow. So now just the Alba? Surely something must be coming after the Alba sales slow down.

Rai Penta II please!

 

[alekc]

Oh damn. I wonder if it will be replaced.
Maybe I should get an Advar from the last stock that sells off

@ThanatosVI you should do it. Meze Advar are one of the best HPs purchases I made right there with T+A, while I could exchange Meze Empyreans for AudioQuest NightOwls or NightHawks while loosing beautiful synergy Empys have with HEADA I could still be happy I see nothing on the horizon that would replace Advars for me and their brilliant synergy with Mojo 2 and ifi micro iDSD Signature.

 

[alekc]

Rai Penta II please!

@C_Lindbergh nice idea but for me Rai Penta had less relaxed tuning than Advar and the price difference was enough for me not to consider them. Still I'd like to listen again to OG Rai Penta and their possible future replacement.

 

[ThanatosVI]

@ThanatosVI you should do it. Meze Advar are one of the best HPs purchases I made right there with T+A, while I could exchange Meze Empyreans for AudioQuest NightOwls or NightHawks while loosing beautiful synergy Empys have with HEADA I could still be happy I see nothing on the horizon that would replace Advars for me and their brilliant synergy with Mojo 2 and ifi micro iDSD Signature.

I know, the Advar is amazing.
I actually reviewed it here on head-fi during a review Tour.

However my life circumstances changed so that I have no need to use IEMs ever since 2019. Therefore I never bought them so far
I always had it in the back of my mind tho

 

[Kristofa]

I took my Albas on a three week trip to Europe and wished they were my Advars the entire time.

 

[alekc]

I took my Albas on a three week trip to Europe and wished they were my Advars the entire time.

@Kristofa thank you. I'm glad you shared your thoughts here as I have been considering Albas as temporary replacement for Advars but quality issues and opinions from Advar owners kept me away from spending my money on those IEMs.

 

[alekc]

I know, the Advar is amazing.
I actually reviewed it here on head-fi during a review Tour.

However my life circumstances changed so that I have no need to use IEMs ever since 2019. Therefore I never bought them so far
I always had it in the back of my mind tho

@ThanatosVI got it, but I tend to listen to IEMs even on desktop setup. Advars are scaling well so there is no bottleneck. Overall I'm very happy with both Advars and Empys

 

[ThanatosVI]

@ThanatosVI got it, but I tend to listen to IEMs even on desktop setup. Advars are scaling well so there is no bottleneck. Overall I'm very happy with both Advars and Empys

Not sure wether I could use them with Envy?
Guess I could try Rai Penta tomorrow