I recently found a better seal with my A8s with the Symbio W tips (silicone/foam hybrid). The results were pretty amazing.
Paired my M11 with my A8, I find nothing lacking in any of the frequencies. Bass is as clear as day and thumping. Kick drums and snare drums have a nice omph and weight to them. Sub-bass sounds great with bass guitars. Every note can be heard through the music mix (see A Certain Romance - Arctic Monkeys). Does not bleed into the mids. Lower mids and male vocals are not recessed like a lot of IEMs and are very present and are front and center. I do not need to struggle to hear them in a track (Rock genres are a good example). The A8 also handles frequency separation extraordinary well. The three soundtubes on each side of the earpieces let the sounds flow neatly and organized. Electric guitars have nice zing to them and very emotional. Regarding female vocals, they’re level with male vocals imo, so no particular emphasis and are quite transparent with no metalicity (see Give Me That Slow Knowing Smile - Lisa Ekdahl). No upper midrange zing or fatigue which I quite like. Treble is quite articulate and very resolving. No sibiliance or fatigue. Love the tonality (see No Surprises - Radiohead). It also handles congestion like a champ (see Burn the Witch - Radiohead). You have sub-bass, bass, treble, lower mids and upper mids all aggressively competing for presence attention in that track. The A8 manages to present all of the frequencies with amazing cohesiveness and dynamicism which I’m really impressed by. Soundstage (My Heart Will Go On - Celine Dion) - tons of air and height. Triangle quietly hitting on the left. Flute in the back. Celine her heart out in the center. Sound effects booming her voice upwards (go onnnnnnnnnn - (4:05), cymbals quietly on the right. Drums giving some depth and good weight.
Criticism - the earpieces are quite big - but have a really nice fit. Stock cable kind of sucks (I’m using an Empire Ears Phantom cable). Bass is not the most textured (BA bass). Need Symbio W tips to sound their best.
In all seriousness, I find it’s really hard to combine amazing detail (across ALL frequencies) while sounding cohesive and musical. The Andromeda does it. The A8 does it as well. I’m really happy with mine
Paired my M11 with my A8, I find nothing lacking in any of the frequencies. Bass is as clear as day and thumping. Kick drums and snare drums have a nice omph and weight to them. Sub-bass sounds great with bass guitars. Every note can be heard through the music mix (see A Certain Romance - Arctic Monkeys). Does not bleed into the mids. Lower mids and male vocals are not recessed like a lot of IEMs and are very present and are front and center. I do not need to struggle to hear them in a track (Rock genres are a good example). The A8 also handles frequency separation extraordinary well. The three soundtubes on each side of the earpieces let the sounds flow neatly and organized. Electric guitars have nice zing to them and very emotional. Regarding female vocals, they’re level with male vocals imo, so no particular emphasis and are quite transparent with no metalicity (see Give Me That Slow Knowing Smile - Lisa Ekdahl). No upper midrange zing or fatigue which I quite like. Treble is quite articulate and very resolving. No sibiliance or fatigue. Love the tonality (see No Surprises - Radiohead). It also handles congestion like a champ (see Burn the Witch - Radiohead). You have sub-bass, bass, treble, lower mids and upper mids all aggressively competing for presence attention in that track. The A8 manages to present all of the frequencies with amazing cohesiveness and dynamicism which I’m really impressed by. Soundstage (My Heart Will Go On - Celine Dion) - tons of air and height. Triangle quietly hitting on the left. Flute in the back. Celine her heart out in the center. Sound effects booming her voice upwards (go onnnnnnnnnn - (4:05), cymbals quietly on the right. Drums giving some depth and good weight.
Criticism - the earpieces are quite big - but have a really nice fit. Stock cable kind of sucks (I’m using an Empire Ears Phantom cable). Bass is not the most textured (BA bass). Need Symbio W tips to sound their best.
In all seriousness, I find it’s really hard to combine amazing detail (across ALL frequencies) while sounding cohesive and musical. The Andromeda does it. The A8 does it as well. I’m really happy with mine
