@buonassi I'll definitely post some impressions with different combos especially after some burn in to see if there's a difference. I also have a pair of Sony IER-Z1R arriving around the same time. I might keep one, I might keep both. I'll probably keep both.
RAI Penta -- Meze Audio's Flagship IEM with Penta Hybrid Driver Technology
- Thread starter MezeTeam
- Start date
Good to hear this.
Unfortunately, 30 days return policy does not apply over here.
Just checked Audio 46 is on back order again. They do sell fast.
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Even directly from Meze? Or can you not order from them where you are? Malaysia? That's a shame. I've seen maybe two pairs listed on here and they sold immediately for probably pretty close to retail.
I miiiight have purchased the last pair from Audio 46 last night. I was gonna wait until after the Sonys came in but saw there was one left and wanted to do a head to head comparison instead of waiting. I'm not good with patience, apparently. The good news is that I'm selling nearly everything else I own so people are gonna get some other good deals soon.
Getting it thru the local Meze distributor over here.
buonassi
Headphoneus Supremus
update:
I've either been listening with spinfits and EQ, or comply isolation T500 without any EQ. Both methods are equally impressive. Despite the very gentle partial top octave, I'm hearing things more clearly, IE backing vocals that were once obscure and blurred in the background are now placed with pinpoint accuracy. I'm also deciphering lyrics I previously could not make out.
The key things these IEMs excel at are:
bass - the DD is perfectly integrated and gives appropriate (ideal) rumble and punch. Very delicate and precise, but not lacking in quantity at all. I still am a bit puzzled at how much bass there is and yet it doesn't intrude or detract from the mids. Bass texture and resolution are excellent. Compared to Oriolus Mk2, there is more bass quantity and it's better balanced between sub/mid bass. You feel the driver moving more air, and the bass is more palpable. It's really not even a close comparison. Penta by a country mile. It reminds me of when I auditioned solaris at a meetup. I really took good mental notes with solaris and the Penta achieves the same feel I got with Solaris.
mids - low and high mids equally represented. What else to say? They're spot on. Yes, they are more accented than the treble, but this is not a mid-centric IEM. The bass pins down the mids in such a way that they don't sound "forward". People coming from something like the Andromeda will notice the mids more and need time to adjust. But mids are where the magic is and they'll realize they've been missing out. People coming from an upper midrange focused IEM (like Oriolus Mk2) will feel right at home, but will be rewarded with a more 'balanced' midrange that also has more lower mids (and upper bass) than Oriolus2.
imaging - Things are placed in the sound field precisely. There are not any 'dead zones'. When something pans from right to left, it is done perfectly. When something is mixed with spectral delay (cross-feeding a delayed signal to the opposite ear) in a recording, this IEM tracks distance or depth just as good as simple left right 'on axis' pans. The imaging is quite impressive.
resolution - it's sensitive enough and phase aligned perfectly, so it makes sense. However, I was shocked to hear only a low/medium amount of hiss when I drove it from my insanely powerful Lake People RS08 desktop amp. Yes, I could hear the noise floor, but no where near as bad as Fibae black, Oriolus mk2, Jupiter, Andromeda, etc.
comfort - yes yes yes
The things I'd change to make it perfect:
I'd like to hear a little less 6-8khz and a little more above 10k - just 3 db less and 3 db more, respectively. This is a preference thing. The tuning on Penta is meant to keep things 'bitey' enough in the treble for great attack/articulation, and gentle in the upper treble to sound natural (not overly 'airy' and artificial like Andromeda), so I get it. I like it, but a nudge here and there would be my perfect tuning.
isolation is not a thing. It can't be if you want that glorious DD bass. I'm OK with that. I didn't buy this to commute with, but if there was some magic way to achieve better isolation and keep the tuning and spaciousness, I'd accept that change.
cable. There's nothing wrong with it. It's very thin and ergonomic, but I have to think an aftermarket 26 gauge 4 core litz SPC will really open this up. Unfortunately, all my cables are 2pin and so I can't test! Prolly gonna buy another cable now
Besides, since I use this IEM when lounging, I don't need the slim cable. I'll measure the stock cable's resistance when I next disconnect it (which I should've done before hooking it up).
another mm or 2 nozzle length would be welcome
I've either been listening with spinfits and EQ, or comply isolation T500 without any EQ. Both methods are equally impressive. Despite the very gentle partial top octave, I'm hearing things more clearly, IE backing vocals that were once obscure and blurred in the background are now placed with pinpoint accuracy. I'm also deciphering lyrics I previously could not make out.
The key things these IEMs excel at are:
bass - the DD is perfectly integrated and gives appropriate (ideal) rumble and punch. Very delicate and precise, but not lacking in quantity at all. I still am a bit puzzled at how much bass there is and yet it doesn't intrude or detract from the mids. Bass texture and resolution are excellent. Compared to Oriolus Mk2, there is more bass quantity and it's better balanced between sub/mid bass. You feel the driver moving more air, and the bass is more palpable. It's really not even a close comparison. Penta by a country mile. It reminds me of when I auditioned solaris at a meetup. I really took good mental notes with solaris and the Penta achieves the same feel I got with Solaris.
mids - low and high mids equally represented. What else to say? They're spot on. Yes, they are more accented than the treble, but this is not a mid-centric IEM. The bass pins down the mids in such a way that they don't sound "forward". People coming from something like the Andromeda will notice the mids more and need time to adjust. But mids are where the magic is and they'll realize they've been missing out. People coming from an upper midrange focused IEM (like Oriolus Mk2) will feel right at home, but will be rewarded with a more 'balanced' midrange that also has more lower mids (and upper bass) than Oriolus2.
imaging - Things are placed in the sound field precisely. There are not any 'dead zones'. When something pans from right to left, it is done perfectly. When something is mixed with spectral delay (cross-feeding a delayed signal to the opposite ear) in a recording, this IEM tracks distance or depth just as good as simple left right 'on axis' pans. The imaging is quite impressive.
resolution - it's sensitive enough and phase aligned perfectly, so it makes sense. However, I was shocked to hear only a low/medium amount of hiss when I drove it from my insanely powerful Lake People RS08 desktop amp. Yes, I could hear the noise floor, but no where near as bad as Fibae black, Oriolus mk2, Jupiter, Andromeda, etc.
comfort - yes yes yes
The things I'd change to make it perfect:
I'd like to hear a little less 6-8khz and a little more above 10k - just 3 db less and 3 db more, respectively. This is a preference thing. The tuning on Penta is meant to keep things 'bitey' enough in the treble for great attack/articulation, and gentle in the upper treble to sound natural (not overly 'airy' and artificial like Andromeda), so I get it. I like it, but a nudge here and there would be my perfect tuning.
isolation is not a thing. It can't be if you want that glorious DD bass. I'm OK with that. I didn't buy this to commute with, but if there was some magic way to achieve better isolation and keep the tuning and spaciousness, I'd accept that change.
cable. There's nothing wrong with it. It's very thin and ergonomic, but I have to think an aftermarket 26 gauge 4 core litz SPC will really open this up. Unfortunately, all my cables are 2pin and so I can't test! Prolly gonna buy another cable now
Besides, since I use this IEM when lounging, I don't need the slim cable. I'll measure the stock cable's resistance when I next disconnect it (which I should've done before hooking it up). another mm or 2 nozzle length would be welcome
Nice updates on the RP.
A bit off topic. As the store don’t have a RP demo for auditioning, I grab a pair of Meze 12 Classics to listen to out of curiosity. To my surprise, it sounded very good for such an inexpensive iem. It comes with a big sound, good bass and nice mid. Treble is a bit too much for me, but still acceptable at normal listening level (form tip may help tone it down). I was impressed by the 12C and now my expectation for the RP has been increased 10 fold LOL.
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Audio46 review is up.
Unless I got it completely wrong, it seems the RP sound signature matches my kind of sound preference. Exciting time ahead.
Unless I got it completely wrong, it seems the RP sound signature matches my kind of sound preference. Exciting time ahead.
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dcguy73
Formerly known as dc_guy
Now that my Rai Pentas have some hours on them and I've put the SpinFit 100s on them, I understand what the Audio46 review says about the bass. There's a lot there, and it hits hard. Not Sony-level bass, but pretty close. Great for modern pop/electronic/hip-hop, but I find it to be a bit overwhelming. It can be attenuated with eartips. I switched to Symbio W, and now the bass sounds leaner and more accurate.
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A few impressions from CanJam up at Inner Fidelity too: https://www.innerfidelity.com/content/canjam-socal-2019-meze-dunu-and-beyerdynamic
pstickne
100+ Head-Fier
That is not sweat or ambient heat damage as those don't affect anondized aluminum*. The wear along the 'edge' appears to be from abrasion (eg. sliding into/out of rough surface or maybe grinding pocket) as the 'edge' has the most contact pressure in a small surface area. In this case the anodized coating is literally being scrubbed away.While the SQ is top notch for it's price range, any Rai Penta owner here experiencing my discoloration problem? I have not dropped or been hitting them against any solid surface. In fact I have been very careful. I suspect its my sweat? Hong kong under 30 degrees heat is not fun.....
Personally, I think it gives character!
Although, maybe too much character too soon. Since anodized aluminum is quite durable, this actually a bit disconcerting - either it's high abrasion or a sub-par process. Maybe a batch quality issue? As it's advertised as a "HIGH ENDURANCE ANODIZED SURFACE", it might be useful to reach out to Meze .. although such probably falls under 'normal use'.
* Anondized aluminum is used for many applications including marine (salt water) and heat-sinks.
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buonassi
Headphoneus Supremus
I mentioned symbio mandarins (wide) sounding pretty good in a previous post. Well I've played around with the depth they are fitted on the nozzle and I also removed the foam from them so comfort is no longer an issue. This may be the best tip that brings out the upper treble without increasing lower treble. I agree with @dcguy73 that these tips drop the bass relative to the highs just a tad (vs the spinfits) and I like the balance better.
I'm still getting some extra energy at 6.5 and 7.5k, but this is likely my ear anatomy, as pretty much all IEMs sit with me badly in this region.
I'm still getting some extra energy at 6.5 and 7.5k, but this is likely my ear anatomy, as pretty much all IEMs sit with me badly in this region.
dcguy73
Formerly known as dc_guy
A relaxing Friday night listening to this excellent and well-recorded album with my Rai Pentas. Great sound. The acoustic mandolin especially sounds fantastic, each pluck resonating perfectly.
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Maybe you are not used to the new sound yet. Also, the cp100 do enhance bass a bit.
Suggestion: if you want to reduce more bass, try some Acoustune aet07 tips.
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A fan of Audio 46 and the review was great, and the writer made it entertaining as well. The reviewer's impressions are spot on with my thoughts from earlier this year. The Rai Penta is a great little IEM...especially suited for traveling and commuting given its ergonomics and sound isolation, in addition to it's great sound.
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