[TooPoorForHiFi]

 

[ChrisHeld1989]

Yep, me too!

 

[ChrisHeld1989]

You can test your cupid very easily. Plug it into a device that allows you to play music in mono modus. When you hear a imbalance then you know the cupid has a driver problem or something else. I will test it.

 

[jmills8]

This is from Hong Kong’s distributor.

He also made a A&K video review.

 

[PhilW]

He also made a A&K video review.

Welcome to the thread jmills8.

 

[cup0kimo]

I use RME baby face pro with TOTALMIX software to test left and right channel. I didn't find this problem. I don't know why this video can use a DAP to indicate this problem.

 

[AlexCBSN]

Got my pair a couple of days ago from audio concierge, service was impeccable and responsive, seriously appreciated their service, super laid back dudes, at first they appeared a bit muffled to my taste, but I’m coming from using imr zeniths and Atens, which are a bit less shy in the mid upper region and bass are massive and brutal, I’ve been using em and letting the planar driver settle in, soundstage and separation are outstanding, love how the bass has an amazing depth and extension and the mids and highs are lush and enjoyable. Albums like thirteen step where the bass and vocals have such presence became a new experience, I found em really interesting, fit for me has been a bit trouble some , the nozzles are a bit long. The balanced cable is the only thing I hate, and even more the proprietary mmcx plug they use, the gritty texture they have actually hurts my ears, but well, I set a pair of ear guards that came with the e3000 and half of the problem is gone

I think that the use of brass in the acoustic chamber was a big assertion, I can tell the sound is dry and fast, quite admirable

Sound wise they are outstanding

 

[PhilW]

Got my pair a couple of days ago from audio concierge, service was impeccable and responsive, seriously appreciated their service,

Thank you very much for your feedback. Statements like this make my job worthwhile. Regards

 

[mashuto]

Thank you very much for your feedback. Statements like this make my job worthwhile. Regards

I second what was said. The buying experience from you was excellent. I am always hesitant when ordering from overseas, but it was an excellent ordering experience, and I appreciated the communication very much. Thanks Phil, seriously. I will certainly turn your way again should there be anything that is otherwise hard to find here in the US.

Anyways, been listening to the cupid for a good portion of the week. Coming from my CA Atlas, my first impression of the cupid was a bit odd. Timbre initially presented very differently mostly with upper mids and trebles just being presented quite a bit differently (I am guessing that has a lot to do with the planar driver). On top of that, I dont think I have ever used an IEM that is quite as sensitive to eartip choice. Using something like the final audio e tips (which I find excellent most of the time) really muffled the sound in the higher end and I think was a big contributing factor to the odd sound I heard at first. Using something like spiral dots or the included whirlwind tips that are both wide bore really opened up the sound and I think wide bore tips are pretty much a necessity with these.

But with wide bore tips on, these really shine. imaging is good, and instruments are easy to identify, these might not have the largest soundstage ever, but things definitely feel a bit "out of head" and there is this wonderful quality to them that I find hard to really describe. There isnt as much sparkle up top as I am used to with the atlas, but detail seems to be there. Vocals are shine through very nicely and do sound very nice. And the bass. I am not sure if these are really what I would call bassy IEMs, but the bass that is there hits hard and has real weight to it. I don't consider myself a basshead, but after using the CA vega and then atlas, I find myself really missing bass when its not there or when it doesnt have that physicality. These definitely deliver it for me, even if they arent bass focused.

I was attracted to these because I was hoping to try out some newer interesting driver tech, as planar seems to be the new trend for IEMs. Some of the other options out there didnt quite pique my interest or were too expensive for what I was looking for, and obravo is notoriously usually very very very much out of my normal price range (or at least what I am comfortable with). So these really fit the bill. And I absolutely think they pumch way above their price point.

So, the major negative for me. Fit. I do not think these are necessarily hard to fit IEMs, but my ears just often don't seem to play nice with more "ergonomic" shaped IEMs that are meant to be worn over ear. And I find these cause me pain from pressure points after relatively short listening sessions. So that has been a major bummer. Even bigger bummer is the best tips I found for fit seemed to be the large final e, but the sound was really choked off. I did however have a bit of an epiphany this evening, and simply decided to see what would happen if I wore them cable down. They probably look a little silly (though nobody outside of this community would ever know), but I think this may have done the trick for me, and I can use ml spiral dot ++ again. Been adjusting them a lot, so who knows, but might be on to something. Also tried swapping left and right cable down too, but it needed a longer tip to fit (spinfit cp155), which had a bit of a negative impact on sound.

TLDR: I think these are great. Sound is wonderful, somewhat unique sound to them, smooth yet detailed listening experience, and they definitely punch above their price point.

 

[TooPoorForHiFi]

I second what was said. The buying experience from you was excellent. I am always hesitant when ordering from overseas, but it was an excellent ordering experience, and I appreciated the communication very much. Thanks Phil, seriously. I will certainly turn your way again should there be anything that is otherwise hard to find here in the US.

Anyways, been listening to the cupid for a good portion of the week. Coming from my CA Atlas, my first impression of the cupid was a bit odd. Timbre initially presented very differently mostly with upper mids and trebles just being presented quite a bit differently (I am guessing that has a lot to do with the planar driver). On top of that, I dont think I have ever used an IEM that is quite as sensitive to eartip choice. Using something like the final audio e tips (which I find excellent most of the time) really muffled the sound in the higher end and I think was a big contributing factor to the odd sound I heard at first. Using something like spiral dots or the included whirlwind tips that are both wide bore really opened up the sound and I think wide bore tips are pretty much a necessity with these.

But with wide bore tips on, these really shine. imaging is good, and instruments are easy to identify, these might not have the largest soundstage ever, but things definitely feel a bit "out of head" and there is this wonderful quality to them that I find hard to really describe. There isnt as much sparkle up top as I am used to with the atlas, but detail seems to be there. Vocals are shine through very nicely and do sound very nice. And the bass. I am not sure if these are really what I would call bassy IEMs, but the bass that is there hits hard and has real weight to it. I don't consider myself a basshead, but after using the CA vega and then atlas, I find myself really missing bass when its not there or when it doesnt have that physicality. These definitely deliver it for me, even if they arent bass focused.

I was attracted to these because I was hoping to try out some newer interesting driver tech, as planar seems to be the new trend for IEMs. Some of the other options out there didnt quite pique my interest or were too expensive for what I was looking for, and obravo is notoriously usually very very very much out of my normal price range (or at least what I am comfortable with). So these really fit the bill. And I absolutely think they pumch way above their price point.

So, the major negative for me. Fit. I do not think these are necessarily hard to fit IEMs, but my ears just often don't seem to play nice with more "ergonomic" shaped IEMs that are meant to be worn over ear. And I find these cause me pain from pressure points after relatively short listening sessions. So that has been a major bummer. Even bigger bummer is the best tips I found for fit seemed to be the large final e, but the sound was really choked off. I did however have a bit of an epiphany this evening, and simply decided to see what would happen if I wore them cable down. They probably look a little silly (though nobody outside of this community would ever know), but I think this may have done the trick for me, and I can use ml spiral dot ++ again. Been adjusting them a lot, so who knows, but might be on to something. Also tried swapping left and right cable down too, but it needed a longer tip to fit (spinfit cp155), which had a bit of a negative impact on sound.

TLDR: I think these are great. Sound is wonderful, somewhat unique sound to them, smooth yet detailed listening experience, and they definitely punch above their price point.

Since you have the Cupid, Could you test if the Insertion depth matters ? On the Sony M9 IMO, Insertion depth makes a big difference.

 

[mashuto]

Since you have the Cupid, Could you test if the Insertion depth matters ? On the Sony M9 IMO, Insertion depth makes a big difference.

I dont normally go for deeper insertion since I have fit issues a lot of times and the deeper, the more pressure points it usually creates. That said, in trying to get the fit right, I did try medium spiral dots which are normally too small for me at shallower depths. And I was able to get a decent seal and get them a bit deeper. But I found that sound quality wasnt affected much between say using a medium spiral dot with deeper insertion and a large spiral dot at shallower depth. For me, for the cupids, tip selection made a much bigger impact (wide bore seems necessary to not choke off treble) than insertion depth which seemed to make practially no difference. YMMV obviously since I know everyones ears are different. Hope thats helpful.

 

[endlesswaves]

And I find these cause me pain from pressure points after relatively short listening sessions.

Yeah having the same problems now. Literally now. Feeling pain about 30 minutes after putting them on. Had these for a month now. Have been testing Cupids many eartips and back to Spiral Dots+ M size. Still having trouble putting them on for the best seal without the excessive pressure in the ear canal. Found shallow insert with full seal is the best with bass and sub bass of a deep insert and with good air and soundstage. This is after putting them on and fidgeting them until I get the seal I want. Once I get this, nirvana and damn reluctant to take them off.

One question, is there a difference between Spiral Dots+ that comes with JVC FW01 and Spiral Dots++?

One more question, does anyone feels that Cupids sounds better at higher volume (loudness) than the usual volume you use with other IEMs?

 

[PhilW]

One question, is there a difference between Spiral Dots+ that comes with JVC FW01 and Spiral Dots++?

One more question, does anyone feels that Cupids sounds better at higher volume (loudness) than the usual volume you use with other IEMs?

Yes i heard a difference with Spiral and SD++

Yes i have found that if they player doesn't have enough gain they sound better at louder volumes. FiiO m9 sounds awesome a bit louder. N8 sounds great at usual volumes so does the MoJo.

 

[endlesswaves]

Hi Phil, thanks for answering my questions.

The spiral dots that came with FW01 is Spiral Dots+. The ones that came with FX1200 is the original spiral dots (which I have torn a few after punching holes in them to relieve the pressure) . Then there is the Spiral Dots++ (EPFX9MSB) which is sold separately. Wondering if anyone have both Spiral Dots+ and the Spiral Dots++ and hear any difference between those 2.

 

[AlexCBSN]

Hi Phil, thanks for answering my questions.

The spiral dots that came with FW01 is Spiral Dots+. The ones that came with FX1200 is the original spiral dots (which I have torn a few after punching holes in them to relieve the pressure) . Then there is the Spiral Dots++ (EPFX9MSB) which is sold separately. Wondering if anyone have both Spiral Dots+ and the Spiral Dots++ and hear any difference between those 2.

Never had the chance, i own SD medium and SD++ MS and M (they just arrived today after 3 months stationed in customs) will try em on, though my problem with my ear canal is not only with this set (DM6 and DM7 had always been a problem and so as tfz balance 7 but that’s a different kind of issue) my real problem is with the cable, the brittle finish actually soar the top of my ears and I’m not the kind who’s using iems downwards, they look silly and no thanks...