[lewisbot]

  Noble 4 - here I come!

I'm planning on getting that one too.

 

[darinf]

  Here's the official announcement regarding the Black Friday sale:
 
"For 72 hours beginning 12:01 am PST on Thursday, November 28^th, all Noble IEMs and CIEMs will be 20% off in spirit of Black Friday. If at anytime during the sale you are unsure as to how much time is left, please refer to the timer on our homepage.
 
As mentioned above, Black Friday will mark the introduction of our universal IEMs. The line-up consists of three, four, five, and six driver configurations. All IEMs come with a small Otterbox carrying case, one Noble cable, 12 pairs of ear tips, two Noble audio bands, and one cleaning tool.
 
All IEMs will come in a high-gloss black shell with a matte black Noble logo on each faceplate for a subtle and timeless look. All IEMs are estimated to be delivered prior to Christmas contingent on demand.
 
Vive la révolution!"
 
 
In case you missed it, that's really like two good things on one.... first, the universals are available. I mentioned earlier that I had spent some time with a prototype and it was impressive. Now that they are announced, I can say that it was the 6 driver model using a 3D printed shell which was representative of the final design in most ways except for appearance (obviously). It sounded very good to my ears - competitive with my 4C for sure, maybe even better. And as a person with larger ears, the fit seemed much improved over the old Heir universals. Those were too small and the nozzle too short for me to get a great fit. The new Noble universals should be a good fit for most people I'd think, though no universal is truly universal 100% of the time. Based on what I heard of the 6, I think universal users are in for a real treat.
 
The second thing is the 20% off. That's a big deal imho. Since Wizard has spent time building up his reputation over the past few years, I don't think he feels like competing on price alone at this stage. He always intended Heir to be seen as a premium brand and I'd say he achieved that towards the end there.... and Noble picks up right where Heir left off. As a premium brand, he doesn't shoot to compete with the more affordable stuff like 1964 Ears but rather aims straight for the top - Westone, JH Audio, Ultimate Ears, etc. So frankly this 20% sale is a surprise to me. I don't have any official word here, but I'd be very surprised if there was any other price related promotion anywhere on the horizon. This is probably it for a long time folks - get them at a discount while you can.

Whoa 20% off everything? I did not see that coming either...and I talk to Brannan all the time. That's an awesome deal across the board.
 
I heard the prototype, 3D printed, Noble 6 a while ago when I met with Brannan. We were meeting at a busy, noisy restaurant and I happened to have my Heir 8.A's with me too. I listened to the prototype 6's and INSTANTLY I could tell the sound was way better than anything I had heard from Heir including my 8.A's! So I switched back to my 8.A's right there just to confirm, and I knew that even the prototype of the Noble 6 was something special.
 
Fast forward to today... I have been listening to what I think are the same prototype Noble 6 universals that I heard many months ago. Brannan was nice enough to leave them with me. Yes, these are definitely prototypes and I have NO idea how they relate to the final production versions in terms of sound. I have not heard the production universals. (Visually I know they are totally different since these are the 3D printed prototypes).
 
But, these things are amazing! I can honestly say I like them better than my Heir 8.A customs. I also have not heard the Noble 8C's to compare, but these Noble 6's definitely suit my tastes. They remind me of what I heard with the universal demo versions of the K10's. Tons of detail, but super smooth in the highs. Clean, tight bass. Not as much bass as my 8.A's, but more controlled, fast. I can't find anything wrong. They are my favorite IEMs, until my K10's show up, of course!
 
I don't want to say too much more since they are prototypes. I can't imagine the production versions could get any better though... At least we will find out soon.

 

[FullCircle]

Whoa 20% off everything? I did not see that coming either...and I talk to Brannan all the time. That's an awesome deal across the board.

I heard the prototype, 3D printed, Noble 6 a while ago when I met with Brannan. We were meeting at a busy, noisy restaurant and I happened to have my Heir 8.A's with me too. I listened to the prototype 6's and INSTANTLY I could tell the sound was way better than anything I had heard from Heir including my 8.A's! So I switched back to my 8.A's right there just to confirm, and I knew that even the prototype of the Noble 6 was something special.

Fast forward to today... I have been listening to what I think are the same prototype Noble 6 universals that I heard many months ago. Brannan was nice enough to leave them with me. Yes, these are definitely prototypes and I have NO idea how they relate to the final production versions in terms of sound. I have not heard the production universals. (Visually I know they are totally different since these are the 3D printed prototypes).

But, these things are amazing! I can honestly say I like them better than my Heir 8.A customs. I also have not heard the Noble 8C's to compare, but these Noble 6's definitely suit my tastes. They remind me of what I heard with the universal demo versions of the K10's. Tons of detail, but super smooth in the highs. Clean, tight bass. Not as much bass as my 8.A's, but more controlled, fast. I can't find anything wrong. They are my favorite IEMs, until my K10's show up, of course!

I don't want to say too much more since they are prototypes. I can't imagine the production versions could get any better though... At least we will find out soon.

The internals are the same, there has been no tweaking among the beta sets that have been floating around. The thing about this "launch" as opposed to others is I was really nervous about it and I wanted as much confirmation that my ears weren't being influenced by "proud father syndrome" so beta sets were sent out in 3d format, before the official launch . Thus, the beta sets are ugly, but I'll proudly sport mine on the plane for 20+ hrs.

Game of Thrones here I come (all three seasons down loaded on my phone)

 

[Watagump]

The internals are the same, there has been no tweaking among the beta sets that have been floating around. The thing about this "launch" as opposed to others is I was really nervous about it and I wanted as much confirmation that my ears weren't being influenced by "proud father syndrome" so beta sets were sent out in 3d format, before the official launch . Thus, the beta sets are ugly, but I'll proudly sport mine on the plane for 20+ hrs.

Game of Thrones here I come (all three seasons down loaded on my phone)

 
 
Game of Thrones, AHEM, Breaking Bad > all other shows EVER.

 

[ibbreezy]

If I hadn't already got the K10s, the N6 would have been near irresistible, especially with the 20% off. As it is, the 4C, with the 20% off is now near irresistible. 

Good luck with the Universal launch. 

 

[chiman]

Is their a noble UK or EU rep we can send impressions to be checked?
Really want either the 8.C or K10 but money is so tight right now. damn.

 

[ibbreezy]

Is their a noble UK or EU rep we can send impressions to be checked?
Really want either the 8.C or K10 but money is so tight right now. damn.

You can contact Paul for UK/EU at paul@nobleaudio.com
 
He's a great guy to deal with, I corresponded with him extensively pre and post sale of my K10s. The K10s are my first CIEM, and he made me feel a lot more confident about the whole process.
 
In terms of getting your impressions checked out, I was asked to send photos of my impressions to the team in China for them to check out. 

 

[chiman]

In terms of getting your impressions checked out, I was asked to send photos of my impressions to the team in China for them to check out. 

Thanks for the email.
Once they got the OK, you sent them to Paul to be passed on?

 

[matthewh133]

20 percent?! Count me in for a k10!

 

[ibbreezy]

Thanks for the email.
Once they got the OK, you sent them to Paul to be passed on?

You send them straight to China. There are some specific instructions to follow. In terms of courier, I went with Parcelforce's global Priorty, but I don't think I would recommend them for speed. They got through customs ok, but when it lands in Guangzhou, China, EMS takes over and they were a bit slow. My "guaranteed" date was 3 days overdue. Tracking is highly recommended. The Parcelforce tracking number works with EMS, but you have to use EMS's website once it lands in China. I didn't know this until I contacted Parcelforce, so for a few days I couldn't track my impressions.

 

[Watagump]

HE IS THE WIZ.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRf_A07Elyw

 

[drm870]

Wizard/FullCircle or bangkokkid,
 
Had been considering purchasing the 8C (or 5C) for myself eventually, but am now wondering about the universal Noble 5. That said, my ears seem to be picky in terms of getting a seal with tips, so I was wondering -- as crazy as this request may seem -- if you could post details on the tips you guys will be including. I don't know if you guys have finalized that yet, given the accessories listed on the website's page for universals all carry a "Coming Soon" disclaimer, but I figured it'd be worth a shot.
 
Then again, should I just go the custom route if I care this much? I like a good seal due to the importance I place on bass response, but having a huge amount of isolation from the outside world isn't a big priority for me. Furthermore, I'm usually in situations where I need to take my earphones (or headphones, as the case sometimes is) off from time to time, so I'm not sure how customs would fare in that respect. Anyway, what do you think?
 
Also, that second paragraph is addressed to anyone who wishes to chime in, not just Noble folks. 

 

 

[bangkokkid]

  Wizard/FullCircle or bangkokkid,
 
Had been considering purchasing the 8C (or 5C) for myself eventually, but am now wondering about the universal Noble 5. That said, my ears seem to be picky in terms of getting a seal with tips, so I was wondering -- as crazy as this request may seem -- if you could post details on the tips you guys will be including. I don't know if you guys have finalized that yet, given the accessories listed on the website's page for universals all carry a "Coming Soon" disclaimer, but I figured it'd be worth a shot.
 
Then again, should I just go the custom route if I care this much? I like a good seal due to the importance I place on bass response, but having a huge amount of isolation from the outside world isn't a big priority for me. Furthermore, I'm usually in situations where I need to take my earphones (or headphones, as the case sometimes is) off from time to time, so I'm not sure how customs would fare in that respect. Anyway, what do you think?
 
Also, that second paragraph is addressed to anyone who wishes to chime in, not just Noble folks. 

 

 
Hi there,
 
Actually, just about everything is set in stone at this point regarding the universals, we just decided to mark all the universals and related items as coming soon until our Black Friday event begins. If you look at the accessories listed on the universal page, there should be a picture of the full set of ear tips that comes with the universals (same picture included below). Basically, you're looking at 12 pairs of tips, three sizes and four different kinds. On the far left in red we have a softer standard silicone tip. Second from the left in black we have a double flange tip. Second to the right in blue we have a harder standard silicone tip that also has a little bar that enables the user to securely stuff acoustic foam into the core of the tip if he/she so desires. Last, at the far right we have our NEW core-less foam tips which are sealed such that they can be washed. Personally, I like the foam tips.
 
EDIT: I should also note that a wide variety of 3rd party tips, including several from Comply, are compatible with the IEMs.
 

 
I'll let others here address the second question, but will say that I am a custom guy. John on the other hand is a universal guy. Really is a matter of preference and how you plan to use them.
 
Best,
 
Brannan

 

[drm870]

I actually was originally going to request a larger version of the tip pic on your site, but decided to word it more generally and say "post details" instead. Thanks to you, I now have both! 

 Much appreciated!

 

[FullCircle]

The blue set (with the bar running through it) are softer than the red set and my preffered set as well.  The blue set sit tighter on the IEMs, and I use a pair of needle-nose pliers to stretch them and apply them to the ear canal portion of the IEM...   a little drastic, but it works.
 
Due to the fact it is a tight fit, I know with confidence they will stay on the IEMs even under some what hostile conditions.
 
Regarding "Your case" it is really hard to say, as no one can really safely answer that question, and due to that.... I'd probably lean toward CIEMs.