[sanakimpro]

I was going to suggest Shanling M6U but then I realised you are after even higher end stuffs

I pay unreasonable amount of attention to soundstage imaging and detail / resolution, so any little bit matters. I find desktop gear provide more of these than most (but not all) dongles. Big portable amps and decent DAPs like M6U can catch up with my desktop gear, so I am satisfied. (Some) Shanling DAP also has that warm, smooth tuning that is nice and quite hard to copy with EQ.

Yep, iBasso DX320 and Shanling M9 are the top contenders now.. M9 has the AK4499EQ and and I heard very smooth tuning, deep bass extension and great soundstage imaging, it also has very fast and smoother Android UI. However, in my area it costs 1.5x the price, has lower balanced power output (920mW vs 1200mW at 32 ohms) and lacks the ability to change amps like the DX320.

Thanks for your kind thoughts!

 

[DaveStarWalker]

Aune M1p

If this new one is half as good as the original M1s (my precious : 5 years...)....

Only music, no gadgets....

 

[bauce]

I was in the camp of iPhone>L&P W2 dongle for ~2 years but recently started looking for a DAP as I've been moving around a bit and found the bundle a bit inconvenient + USB-C cables keep dying due to wear and tear. Totally aware that DAPs may not have 100% the SQ like TOTL desktop DAC/AMPs like Hugo2, DMP-Z1 etc but still would be nice to know the DAP we use as everyday carry provides ~80%-90% decent sound quality at reasonable price. Hence why my list has DX320 over the SP3000, N8ii etc. I'm aware you test your IEMs with the mighty Apple Dongle

In terms of DAP, yeah I've some confirmation bias to just get the DX320 already, just crowdsourcing different opinions for now... Fiio M17 is likely out for me as I've read a bit about heat issues and I can't have a hot brick in my gym shorts For Cayin N8ii, the DX320+Amp 14 actually gives balanced tube sound at much lower cost with higher power (amp11mk2), better screen, newer OS.. and I love the modularity of DX320 since I have had the 3.5mm ports break on me before so having ability to just change the amp card appeals to me. For A&K and Sony DAPs, agree with your observations.

In terms of sound signature, I'd like the DAP to accentuate and not trying to "compensate/correct" Z1R's character. I appreciate deep-subbass rumble with long decay, deep layering and expansive sound stage. Mid-range and treble timbre is not something I'm fussy with.. So far, I like the sound from Sony 1ZM2 and Shanling M9's AKM chip as well. My concern is the ROHM DAC is sort of a wildcard and to my ears sounded more "balanced", neither too velvety/warm like AKM based DAPs nor clean and analytical like ESS DAPs

Thanks so much for your thoughts! I will likely go with the DX320 but do let me know if you have other suggestions.

I love the sound and performance of my m9 with my Z1R but it gets really warm

 

[Hark01]

Hi @Precogvision. Will you be reviewing JQ 4U Pro / Hisenior Mega5P? It's an interesting hybrid in $200ish price range.

 

[Precogvision]

Truthear Hola Impressions

Price: $18
Configuration: 1DD
Unit kindly provided for review by Shenzhen Audio: https://shenzhenaudio.com/collections/vendors?q=truthear

10 minutes of listening:

- sub-bass emphasis, about 8dB, with a smooth push into 250Hz
- more relaxed 3kHz? pinna notch, certainly less than the Moondrop single-DD sets, a bit odd sounding and recessed from 1-3kHz to the way the pinna gain rises
- slightly recessed 5kHz and mid-treble, then with a peak somewhere in the upper-treble possibly around 13kHz, mostly rolled-off after this point

Frequency response:

Another "let's see how cheap but inoffensive we can make this sound" IEM...what fun.

A lot of the issues with the Hola are simply a product of it being too inoffensive. The generous bass boost, which would be desirable in isolation, becomes the Hola's Achille's Heel due to the more relaxed upper-midrange and treble regions. Perhaps this would appeal to listeners who want a more muted and bass-heavy signature. But it's neither what I would qualify as a good rendition of L-shaped tuning, nor good balanced tuning; the Hola is stuck awkwardly somewhere in-between. In essence, the Hola sounds slow, blunted, slightly more than what it costs, and generally plain boring.

The Hola almost perfectly illustrates my qualms with what the bottom of the market has become. If you're new to the hobby or looking for a pair of IEMs on a very tight budget, then this is a set you should possibly consider - alongside a slew of other options like the 7Hz Zero, CCA CRA/CRA+, and Moondrop Chu. But if you're already in the hobby with a set of more expensive wired IEMs, or just a normal consumer with a pair of decent TWS like the Apple AirPods Pro or Samsung Galaxy Buds, then this probably isn't worth your time.

Bias Score: 4/10

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Truthear Hola Impressions

Price: $18
Configuration: 1DD
Unit kindly provided for review by Shenzhen Audio: https://shenzhenaudio.com/collections/vendors?q=truthear



10 minutes of listening:

- sub-bass emphasis, about 8dB, with a smooth push into 250Hz
- more relaxed 3kHz? pinna notch, certainly less than the Moondrop single-DD sets, a bit odd sounding and recessed from 1-3kHz to the way the pinna gain rises
- slightly recessed 5kHz and mid-treble, then with a peak somewhere in the upper-treble possibly around 13kHz, mostly rolled-off after this point

Frequency response:



Another "let's see how cheap but inoffensive we can make this sound" IEM...what fun.

A lot of the issues with the Hola are simply a product of it being too inoffensive. The generous bass boost, which would be desirable in isolation, becomes the Hola's Achille's Heel due to the more relaxed upper-midrange and treble regions. Perhaps this would appeal to listeners who want a more muted and bass-heavy signature. But it's neither what I would qualify as a good rendition of L-shaped tuning, nor good balanced tuning; the Hola is stuck awkwardly somewhere in-between. In essence, the Hola sounds slow, blunted, slightly more than what it costs, and generally plain boring.

The Hola almost perfectly illustrates my qualms with what the bottom of the market has become. If you're new to the hobby or looking for a pair of IEMs on a very tight budget, then this is a set you should possibly consider - alongside a slew of other options like the 7Hz Zero, CCA CRA/CRA+, and Moondrop Chu. But if you're already in the hobby with a set of more expensive wired IEMs, or just a normal consumer with a pair of decent TWS like the Apple AirPods Pro or Samsung Galaxy Buds, then this probably isn't worth your time.

Bias Score: 4/10

Considering LCP driver needs certain burn-in period, are you going to post post-burn in impression?

Images per Moondrop Aria OG’s instructions

 

[427951]

Considering LCP driver needs certain burn-in period, are you going to post post-burn in impression?

Images per Moondrop Aria OG’s instructions

You would think the company would have burned it in for the samples sent to the reviewers. But if not, that's a good score to me with no burn-in; though I don't have a lot of experience with many iems, all dynamic always sounded off with a veil over them.

 

[AmericanSpirit]

You would think the company would have burned it in for the samples sent to the reviewers. But if not, that's a good score to me with no burn-in; though I don't have a lot of experience with many iems, all dynamic always sounded off with a veil over them.

I have extensive experience with LCP drivers, and LCP drivers are very sensitive to burn-in, especially for first 10hours to 30 hours. Not review units Or loaners, but as an owner of those acquired by my own hard earned income.

Agree that it is a good score for non-burn-in LCP driver, out of box, most of LCP driver will have a poor compliance over bass transient responses.

 

[WAON303]

It's interesting how not a single IEM in Precog's rank list so far has a 10 in midrange performance.

I've always believed treble is the hardest part to get right.

 

[Precogvision]

Hi @Precogvision. Will you be reviewing JQ 4U Pro / Hisenior Mega5P? It's an interesting hybrid in $200ish price range.

Hey! I might ask Linsoul for a review unit of the 4U Pro, but no guarantees. Not sure where I'd source the Mega5P from.

Considering LCP driver needs certain burn-in period, are you going to post post-burn in impression?

Images per Moondrop Aria OG’s instructions

Hmm probably not...it isn't really worth the effort (at least for me) to hook it up to something and have it playing for a few days. I talk briefly about this topic in the FAQ on my site, but I should probably add to it.

It's not that I don't necessarily believe in burn-in, as there are sometimes small, ~1dB shifts in frequency response measured between a "fresh" and "burned-in" set. But more closely, it's that my experiences with burn-in have been almost unanimously negative anyways. Realistically, I can't perfectly remember what I heard the last time I heard a set before burning it in for comparison. Those shifts in FR are also almost inaudible, which means that it's more a matter of psychoacoustics or "brain burn-in" for me. In that vein, I swap between separate sets often enough that I normally end up further disliking a set that didn't grab my attention in the first place. Or I get bored/fatigued of a set that grabbed my attention initially. This is reflected in my reviews which are almost always more critical than my first impressions.

Frankly, I dislike the practice that some manufacturers have of suggesting burn-in time with their IEMs. It's a game where they have nothing to lose, and it promotes an element of ambiguity that can be used to lead new listeners, or listeners who didn't like an IEM out of the box, astray (e.g. "you didn't burn the IEM in enough yet"). Newer listener's ears often don't acclimate to new sounds as quickly, so it's predominantly (again) a psychoacoustic effect - sensory adaptation - where, for example, peaks that were initially painful to hear become their new baseline for normal. Suggesting burn-in time is also just a lazy practice. If a manufacturer really cared, they'd burn-in the set themselves at the factory.

Anyways, that's just my 2c on the matter. If burning-in a set helps other listeners, more power to them!

It's interesting how not a single IEM in Precog's rank list so far has a 10 in midrange performance.

I've always believed treble is the hardest part to get right.

Yeah treble is definitely the most difficult part in an IEM to nail. Treble tuning also affects perception of the midrange quite a bit. They can go hand-in-hand to some degree.

 

[RikudouGoku]

Hey! I might ask Linsoul for a review unit of the 4U Pro, but no guarantees. Not sure where I'd source the Mega5P from.

Afaik, those 2 are the same iem.

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Hey! I might ask Linsoul for a review unit of the 4U Pro, but no guarantees. Not sure where I'd source the Mega5P from.



Hmm probably not...it isn't really worth the effort (at least for me) to hook it up to something and have it playing for a few days. I talk briefly about this topic in the FAQ on my site, but I should probably add to it.

It's not that I don't necessarily believe in burn-in, as there are sometimes small, ~1dB shifts in frequency response measured between a "fresh" and "burned-in" set. But more closely, it's that my experiences with burn-in have been almost unanimously negative anyways. Realistically, I can't perfectly remember what I heard the last time I heard a set before burning it in for comparison. Those shifts in FR are also almost inaudible, which means that it's more a matter of psychoacoustics or "brain burn-in" for me. In that vein, I swap between separate sets often enough that I normally end up further disliking a set that didn't grab my attention in the first place. Or I get bored/fatigued of a set that grabbed my attention initially. This is reflected in my reviews which are almost always more critical than my first impressions.

Frankly, I dislike the practice that some manufacturers have of suggesting burn-in time with their IEMs. It's a game where they have nothing to lose, and it promotes an element of ambiguity that can be used to lead new listeners, or listeners who didn't like an IEM out of the box, astray (e.g. "you didn't burn the IEM in enough yet"). Newer listener's ears often don't acclimate to new sounds as quickly, so it's predominantly (again) a psychoacoustic effect - sensory adaptation - where, for example, peaks that were initially painful to hear become their new baseline for normal. Suggesting burn-in time is also just a lazy practice. If a manufacturer really cared, they'd burn-in the set themselves at the factory.

Anyways, that's just my 2c on the matter. If burning-in a set helps other listeners, more power to them!



Yeah treble is definitely the most difficult part in an IEM to nail. Treble tuning also affects perception of the midrange quite a bit. They can go hand-in-hand to some degree.

Yea, I agree that manufacturers are better off just account necessary step in their production phase to make their products at the optimum level.

Like AFUL, they break-in all of their Performer 5 before shipping to their customer, and I feel AKG is doing same thing for their N5005, those two without pre-information, I noted “I don’t see any noticeable changes” on my impression notes fro both out of the box and follow up impression.

It’s unique comment that your experience with burn-in is unanimously negative But yes everyone has different perceptions so that’s understandable.

The burn-in on LCP to my experience is more than simple change in few decibels on FR, it’s more of change in second/third harmonic distortions.

Anyway, as far as users get to listen the LCP pairs either physical or psychological change, they may fall in love with their partner more and more, yes more power to them.

Cheers, man

 

[Precogvision]

ThieAudio Prestige Impressions

Price: $1300
Configuration: 1DD/4BA/4EST
Unit kindly provided for review by Linsoul: https://www.linsoul.com/products/thieaudio-prestige

The bass response of the Prestige is mostly just palatable. It has a really good-looking bass curve on paper, but subjectively, it's less satisfying than I'd expect. It has stereotypical dynamic driver attack transients; that is to say, a more explosive, sharp leading edge to bass notes. Simultaneously, I struggle to find words to describe other aspects of the Prestige's bass transients. It almost sounds overly dry and hollow, lacking in the thickness and generous decay that I associate with good dynamic driver implementations.

The Prestige's midrange shares a fair amount of DNA with the ThieAudio Monarch MKII, which is a good thing given that the midrange was the Monarch MKII's standout. Comparatively, I would say that the Prestige's midrange is generally slightly more reserved, especially in the female vocal presence regions, but not necessarily thicker overall. Simultaneously, it doesn't have the trailing grain - what some listeners will perceive as texture - that the Monarch MKII's midrange has. A lot of this comes down to these two IEMs' respective treble responses wherein the Prestige's is much more emphasized in the upper-treble. In any case, this is a fairly "correct" sounding midrange that appeals to my sensibilities as someone who prefers a more muted upper-midrange. The biggest criticism I would point out is a minor lack of body from ~1-2kHz which - to my ears at least - makes male vocals sound somewhat odd on the Prestige, especially in conjunction with the lack of texture.

Moving on to less green pastures, the treble response of the Prestige is interesting, as it shares a lot of similarities to the ThieAudio Oracle MKII. This is in the sense that it has fantastic extension (well up to the limits of my hearing and even par with something like the Elysian Annihilator), but it simply doesn't sound correct. The Prestige, then, has a number of upper-treble peaks which beget a bright and almost puffy quality to a lot of instruments. Frankly, it's fatiguing at even my quieter listening volumes and the kicker is that the Prestige's treble doesn't sound particularly detailed. Ostensibly, this is a product of masking from the sheer quantity of upper-treble and it being outside the normal, or what I'd consider tasteful, parameters of my HRTF. On the topic of masking, I suspect that the excessive upper-treble presence also contributes to the Prestige's unsatisfactory bass decay.

Technicalities on the Prestige are just decent, especially for its price point. To me at least, the detail on it sounds forced. This is in the sense that it has very little texture to any parts of its presentation, and its timbre sounds highly unnatural. Some listeners might find the heavy upper-treble to be a boon to a sense of detail, though. Generally, the imaging of the Prestige again falls into the bucket of just alright. It sounds very wide to me, but I would not consider its layering ability - the distinction between individual instruments and their position on the stage - to be noteworthy. As most would know, my listening discography leans brighter, and I find it difficult to track between instruments on certain tracks due to how bright the Prestige's treble leans.

Ultimately, the Prestige is primarily interesting - and not in a good way - in that it illustrates the importance of fine-tuning treble response. I wish more time had been taken to refine its EST implementation because I do think there is some potential to the way the ESTs have been implemented on it. For now though, I'm left to ponder where the Prestige falls in today's market. It's not better than the Monarch MKII (at least I don't think so) and it's certainly not better than the Helios which absolutely runs circles around it in the treble tuning department.

Bias Score: 6/10

All critical listening done off of my DX300 and iPhone 13 Mini with the stock cable and stock tips.

 

[DynamicEars]

ThieAudio Prestige Impressions

Price: $1300
Configuration: 1DD/4BA/4EST
Unit kindly provided for review by Linsoul: https://www.linsoul.com/products/thieaudio-prestige



The bass response of the Prestige is mostly just palatable. It has a really good-looking bass curve on paper, but subjectively, it's less satisfying than I'd expect. It has stereotypical dynamic driver attack transients; that is to say, a more explosive, sharp leading edge to bass notes. Simultaneously, I struggle to find words to describe other aspects of the Prestige's bass transients. It almost sounds overly dry and hollow, lacking in the thickness and generous decay that I associate with good dynamic driver implementations.

The Prestige's midrange shares a fair amount of DNA with the ThieAudio Monarch MKII, which is a good thing given that the midrange was the Monarch MKII's standout. Comparatively, I would say that the Prestige's midrange is generally slightly more reserved, especially in the female vocal presence regions, but not necessarily thicker overall. Simultaneously, it doesn't have the trailing grain - what some listeners will perceive as texture - that the Monarch MKII's midrange has. A lot of this comes down to these two IEMs' respective treble responses wherein the Prestige's is much more emphasized in the upper-treble. In any case, this is a fairly "correct" sounding midrange that appeals to my sensibilities as someone who prefers a more muted upper-midrange. The biggest criticism I would point out is a minor lack of body from ~1-2kHz which - to my ears at least - makes male vocals sound somewhat odd on the Prestige, especially in conjunction with the lack of texture.

Moving on to less green pastures, the treble response of the Prestige is interesting, as it shares a lot of similarities to the ThieAudio Oracle MKII. This is in the sense that it has fantastic extension (well up to the limits of my hearing and even par with something like the Elysian Annihilator), but it simply doesn't sound correct. The Prestige, then, has a number of upper-treble peaks which beget a bright and almost puffy quality to a lot of instruments. Frankly, it's fatiguing at even my quieter listening volumes and the kicker is that the Prestige's treble doesn't sound particularly detailed. Ostensibly, this is a product of masking from the sheer quantity of upper-treble and it being outside the normal, or what I'd consider tasteful, parameters of my HRTF. On the topic of masking, I suspect that the excessive upper-treble presence also contributes to the Prestige's unsatisfactory bass decay.

Technicalities on the Prestige are just decent, especially for its price point. To me at least, the detail on it sounds forced. This is in the sense that it has very little texture to any parts of its presentation, and its timbre sounds highly unnatural. Some listeners might find the heavy upper-treble to be a boon to a sense of detail, though. Generally, the imaging of the Prestige again falls into the bucket of just alright. It sounds very wide to me, but I would not consider its layering ability - the distinction between individual instruments and their position on the stage - to be noteworthy. As most would know, my listening discography leans brighter, and I find it difficult to track between instruments on certain tracks due to how bright the Prestige's treble leans.

Ultimately, the Prestige is primarily interesting - and not in a good way - in that it illustrates the importance of fine-tuning treble response. I wish more time had been taken to refine its EST implementation because I do think there is some potential to the way the ESTs have been implemented on it. For now though, I'm left to ponder where the Prestige falls in today's market. It's not better than the Monarch MKII (at least I don't think so) and it's certainly not better than the Helios which absolutely runs circles around it in the treble tuning department.

Bias Score: 6/10

All critical listening done off of my DX300 and iPhone 13 Mini with the stock cable and stock tips.

Thanks for detailed review. Seems like their DD implementation still need works as contender to TOTL area.
I imagine the bass is blunted like sounded trapped with too much mid-upper bass at the same time?

Which one do you prefer between Prestige and Mest (mk I and II)?

 

[wolfstar76]

It's interesting how not a single IEM in Precog's rank list so far has a 10 in midrange performance.

I've always believed treble is the hardest part to get right.

IMHO UM Mason FS should have 10 in Mids, however, @Precogvision does not seem to agree with me