[scootsit]

Hi guys! i recently sold my Soundmagic PL30 and got a pair of VSonic gr99.
Vsonic's ar far the best IEM i ever tried, but i would like to try something more expensive..

I listen to electronic/trance/house music (with sweet female vocals and deep bass), hip hop, and sometimes rock and metal.
I'm looking for an IEM with a good mid and a punchy bass when it's needed

I've got my eyes on:

Vsonic GR06 (Mid centric with over-the-ear form factor that i loved on my PL30)

Sunrise SW-Xcape impressive ed. (balanced, seem to fit my requirements)

Soundmagic PL50 (or MEElec a151, astrotec AM90..i'd like to try a BA but it seems that people coming from Dinamic Drivers hear a noticeable lack of bass.. i'm afraid i would be disappointed)

Any help?
Thanks!

I cannot comment on many of those, but if you're going for a Vsonic, I'd recommend the GR04 Flagship Pro if you can still find them. They're technically a step up from the 06, and can be found for about $50 because they're being discontinued.

 

[suman134]

      try the cc51 ,  abit of bass lacking , but not like orthodox BAs , the bass is bigger , nearly equal to ue 400/500 . and other spectrum is also taken care of , im not explaining much , cuz its already explained in the review . a bit heavy may be , a bit weak cable , but really good sound for just $55 . or the eu 400 , my fav under $60 , neck to neck with low end BAs .
 

 

[AstralStorm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by marald /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
I listen to electronic/trance/house music (with sweet female vocals and deep bass), hip hop, and sometimes rock and metal.
I'm looking for an IEM with a good mid and a punchy bass when it's needed

 
Here's the thing: Siren and TWFK based armature IEMs don't lack bass at all. I've just grabbed Brainwavz B2 after audition and can personally vouch for that.
 
Astrotec AM90 and MEElectronics A151 are Siren-based, while Fischer Audio DBA-02 and mkII, Brainwavz B2, VSonic GR01 and ATH K3003 (I think, never heard it) are TWFK-based.
 
TWFK boasts superb highs quality and detailing without any lack of bass. They're definitely *not* for people who want lots of boosted bass; it is exactly the right amount. Subbass is solid but very fast. Could use a bit more impact.
Siren boasts more liquid mids and lower amount of high end, less air and lower price. Slower bass but less solid.
 
For comparison, VSonic GR07 (same price range dynamic) has bass about as fast as Siren, but quite a lot more impact. It lacks the air and absolute detailing of either, is about as smooth as Siren-based armature. It is warmer than either of the two armatures.
 
Sunrise Xcape is a bad pick for electronica IMO, it's pretty mid-centric with upper vocal range boost. It will gloss over detailing required to reproduce it faithfully. The boost will also make any boost present in the track that much more jarring.
 
Soundmagic PL50 is pretty decent pick, VSonic GR06 too, but not as airy and slightly hot. I don't like GR06 and GR07's brand of hotness on any kind of female vocals.

 

[olear]

joker, have you heard the Sony 7550? I understand they are quite similar to the ex1000, except the 7550 mids are more forward and are less bright.  Thanks

 

[kova4a]

Quote:

Hi guys! i recently sold my Soundmagic PL30 and got a pair of VSonic gr99.
Vsonic's ar far the best IEM i ever tried, but i would like to try something more expensive..
 
I listen to electronic/trance/house music (with sweet female vocals and deep bass), hip hop, and sometimes rock and metal.
I'm looking for an IEM with a good mid and a punchy bass when it's needed
 
I've got my eyes on:
 
Vsonic GR06 (Mid centric with over-the-ear form factor that i loved on my PL30)
 
Sunrise SW-Xcape impressive ed. (balanced, seem to fit my requirements)
 
Soundmagic PL50 (or MEElec a151, astrotec AM90..i'd like to try a BA but it seems that people coming from Dinamic Drivers hear a noticeable lack of bass.. i'm afraid i would be disappointed)
 
Any help?
Thanks!

I second the Vsonic GR04 Flagship - I admit I wasn't impressed at first but now I think it's definitely one of the best bang-for-bucks I've heard. Also, it's a lot more versatile than the GR06. Actually, I like it so much that my B2 has been retired from the position of iem for commuting.

 

[EdChap]

This thread is awesome. So detailed.
 
Having difficulty knowing which are best unamped in the 150-250 range, though?

 

[AstralStorm]

Hmm, it's hard to specify best. Here's some short guide:
VSonic GR06 and GR07 have some boost there, depending on tips, 3 (foam) - 5 dB (stock silicone). Sounds warm.
Sennheiser IE7 has a 4 dB boost. Warm.
Sennheiser IE8 at lowest bass setting has an 8 dB boost. Very warm.
MEElectronics A151 has a minor boost. Mildly warm, less than GR07.
Soundmagic PL50 already starts to roll off at the bottom of this range. Cold.
HifiMan RE-272 also already starts to roll off. Cold, even more so than Soundmagic.
Etymotic HF5 has a ~2 dB cut. Cold in a different way than RE-272 due to less rolloff in general.
Brainwavz B2 is linear.
Spiral Ear SE-5 has a 1 dB boost. Very slightly warm.
 
@|joker|:
Could you please take a peek at this correction for Brainwavz B2:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/615417/how-to-equalize-your-headphones-advanced-tutorial-in-progress/30#post_8660716
and perhaps tell which custom IEM has this kind of signature?
It wouldn't happen to be UM Miracle or Merlin, would it?
 
Oh, in case anyone is curious:
Brainwavz B2 comes with their hard clamshell carrying case (same as for M1/M2/M3 except lacking the logo), large jack adapter, airplane dual mono adapter, 2 pairs of each of 3 sizes of single flanges and one pair of red Comply T100, M size.
Lacks cable guides. The sliding cinch is better than the DBA-02 one and minijack is now J-shaped (120 degree) bent slim model. Comes with 1 year warranty.
 
These indeed smack you in the face with detailing and airiness. Darn. Something like that with better deep bass and not as overblown highs would rule.

 

[Tilpo]

Hmm, it's hard to specify best. Here's some short guide:
VSonic GR06 and GR07 have some boost there, depending on tips, 3 (foam) - 5 dB (stock silicone). Sounds warm.
Sennheiser IE7 has a 4 dB boost. Warm.
Sennheiser IE8 at lowest bass setting has an 8 dB boost. Very warm.
MEElectronics A151 has a minor boost. Mild warmness.
Soundmagic PL50 already starts to roll off at the bottom of this range. Cold.
HifiMan RE-272 also already starts to roll off. Cold, even more so than Soundmagic.
Etymotic HF5 has a ~2 dB cut. Cold in a different way than RE-272 due to less rolloff in general.
Brainwavz B2 is linear.
Spiral Ear SE-5 has a 1 dB boost. Very slightly warm.

Where did you get this information from?

 

[AstralStorm]

Experience unfortunately. Where I have provided the measurement, it was done by equalization.
I have owned, still own or have borrowed one of these for a reasonable length of time.
 
(Actually, rechecked SE-5, it is +2 dB in that range. Such low differences from ideal are finicky.)

 

[james444]

^ Unfortunately this information is pretty subjective. Equal-loudness contours vary noticeably, depending on sound pressure level (volume), plus your individual contours may also differ from the ISO standard and from other listener's.
 
Talking about 1 or 2 db deviations from "ideal" or "linear" in this context is obviously problematic. jm2c.

 

[lee730]

Quote:

^ Unfortunately this information is pretty subjective. Equal-loudness contours vary noticeably, depending on sound pressure level (volume), plus your individual contours may also differ from the ISO standard and from other listener's.
 
Talking about 1 or 2 db deviations from "ideal" or "linear" in this context is obviously problematic. jm2c.

Agreed. These slight differences between the IE8 and IE80 made it a love hate game. The difference is enough for me to not use EQ at all on the IE80 while on the IE8 I would have to use EQ to get any enjoyment out of them....

 

[Joe Bloggs]

This thread is awesome. So detailed.

Having difficulty knowing which are best unamped in the 150-250 range, though?

On top of that I think he was talking about price range not frequency range :evil:

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Experience unfortunately. Where I have provided the measurement, it was done by equalization.
I have owned, still own or have borrowed one of these for a reasonable length of time.

(Actually, rechecked SE-5, it is +2 dB in that range. Such low differences from ideal are finicky.)

+2dB relative to what? 1kHz on your scale? Or some kind of average across all frequencies?

 

[AstralStorm]

Relative to 500 Hz. I don't use 1000 Hz because some IEMs actually have a dip specifically in midrange and very few have any issue here. Also it's far less annoying to listen to.
 
Regarding the $150-$250 range, there are quite many in there that don't need or benefit greatly from amplification. It might be easier to count the ones that do.
Rule of the thumb for amping:
1) dynamic driver and impedance < 32 Ohm needs low output impedance for good bass damping, might benefit from amp
2) uneven impedance curve (see innerfidelity, goldenears and headroom (headphone.com) for this data)
3) high impedance > 64 Ohm with low sensitivity, might be too quiet without amp
 
As to HRTFs, low frequencies (barring subbass, < 80 Hz perhaps, which is heavily seal-dependent) match in almost all listeners - it's the highs that don't. I can dig up that old paper, but feel free to do that yourself.

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Quote:

As to HRTFs, low frequencies (barring subbass, < 80 Hz perhaps, which is heavily seal-dependent) match in almost all listeners - it's the highs that don't. I can dig up that old paper, but feel free to do that yourself.

 
Says the only guy in the EQ thread that EQs his subbass up 10+dB for all his phones even after being introduced to equal loudness contours