newerish to the iem game but:
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Update:
1. Empire Ears Odin
2. 64 Audio U12T
3. Sony Z1R
4. 64 Audio Tia Trio
5. Vision Ears VE8
6. Hidition Viento-B
7. Campfire Andromeda MW10
8. Shure KSE1200
9. Unique Melody MEST
10. QDC Anole VX
Decided to move the LCDi4 off the Top 10 to make room for the Vision Ears VE8.
VE8 Impressions:
- very natural timbre, almost life-like
- can get a little dull though, not exciting dynamics like the U12T, MW10 or MEST
- upper mids are not boosted, so if you like hearing euphonic female vocals, this is not for you
- that being said, vocals are very realistic and tonality is spot on - male and female vocals are equally well represented
- bass is fairly light and neutral imo, great if you want quality bass, not great if you want slam and authority
- treble is damn well defined and doesn't spike hard like the U12T or Andromedas
- stage is a little above average, with Andros being the widest and VX being the smallest - has the "3D effect" similar to Odin/Trio/MEST. Tons of depth
- definitely warmth injected into the overall sound signature, particularly in the lower mids. Makes for very easy listening
- imaging is pretty incredible as is resolution. I get the same "living in a daydream" effect as I get from the KSE1200
- fit is excellent, as good as QDC stuff imo
Listening was done off my WM1A w/ a custom pure silver cable in 4.4mm which I find helps w/ the warmth a little.
Conclusion: Imo, almost as good technical ability as VX except sounds tonally much better. Probably the best "warm neutral" iems out there.
P.S. Also tried the Elysium, but overall, could not listen to it long bc of poor fit. Also, not a fan of the sound signature. Will listen to it more over the weekend and see.
There's a reason they call the Andromeda the 'gateway drug' to high-end IEMs. It gives you a taste of what's possible for 'reasonable' money, then makes you want more, more, more...Haven't heard nearly as many as you fine folks, but...
1) Campfire Andromeda 2019
LARGE GAP
2) Campfire Orion CK
3) JVC HA-FDX1
4) Moondrop Starfield
5) KZ ZS10 Pro
6) Tin T2
The Andromedas really live up to the hype. I kept trying to get them to fail at something, and all they failed at was failing at something. I think I might actually understand separation now.
It always starts with an Andromeda...There's a reason they call the Andromeda the 'gateway drug' to high-end IEMs. It gives you a taste of what's possible for 'reasonable' money, then makes you want more, more, more...
There's a reason they call the Andromeda the 'gateway drug' to high-end IEMs. It gives you a taste of what's possible for 'reasonable' money, then makes you want more, more, more...
Oh man, I had a re-0 or one of it's variants way back when. Not sure what happened to it... I definitely didn't sell it, but I have absolutely no idea where it might be. It wasn't my favorite signature (was really bass light) but it was so detailed and revealing compared to the other crap I had listened to before then. And so tiny and portable...i feel like my first uiem i bought by reading stuff here back in August 2010 (a 100$ Hifiman RE-Zero) was the getaway drug
the (c)iems that followed were just me upping the dosage , fooling myself that everything was under control
sure, it took me 7 years to go from the $100 Hifiman RE-Zero to the 2400$ EE Zeus XR , but still upgraditis was always there lurking in the shadows and laughing with my inability to show i am the boss
Luckily , i have stayed put those last 3.5 years but this has probably more to do than i am broke usually and I would need to spend 3-4K to get a significant sonic upgrade from Zeus, than me getting wise (and sane)