[DaveStarWalker]

The Sony Z1R is not that good in sound.

I find it... not that good, yes...

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/mid-priced-iem-cables-thread.927268/page-84#post-17444049

But this is only my opinion...

 

[DaveStarWalker]

Ok.
Below (in the text) I write only about some IEMs.
I've listened to these IEMs over the years with different DAPs, so my impressions may vary in terms of synergy (DAP + IEM).
E.g. Astell&Kern AK300, Astell&Kern SE100, Cowon Plenue D, Aune M1s, Astell&Kern SP1000, Shanling M6 Pro and Astell&Kern SE200.


Astell&Kern Angie II - The best crafted IEM I've ever held. Very good bass (for an IEM), but the rest of the sound (mids and highs) is average.
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Astell&Kern AK T8iE Mk II - Very revealing but overall bad sound.
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Astell&Kern Layla II - The best crafted IEM I've ever held. Top soundstage but no fun and sterile and compressed sound.
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Westone W40 - Nothing that grabs my attention sonically.
Westone W60 - The same. The sound is a little better, but I don't recommend it.
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Shure SE846 Clear - Excellent bass (for a BA IEM), but the rest is average. Overall a big disappointment.
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Sennheiser IE800 - The habit was not entirely bad (for 1x DD). Cable fixed.
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Sennheiser IE8i - Decent IEM for hi-fi beginners. Good IEM for cell phones (this IEM for iPhone).
Sennheiser IE80 – The same. Very slightly better sound than IE8.
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Sennheiser IE900 - Best sounding IEM with 1x DD driver I've heard. The sound is tuned to "U".
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Astell&Kern Michelle - Good bass and soundstage, but overall a bad sounding IEM.
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Grado GR10e - Excellent sounding and revealing midrange. Decent sound for 1x DD IEM. Non-detachable cable.
Grado GR8e – Similar but slightly worse in sound.
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Etymotic ER4-XR - Decent sound for 1x DD IEM. No fun and reference tuning. A small bump on the bass.
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Audio-Technica ATH-E70 - The biggest disappointment in the sound. Big IEM for my ears. I do not recommend.
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InEar ProPhile 8 - Love at first listen. Reference tuning, but with switches on more fun listening tuned to "U".
Only after comparing I found that the sub-bass and treble are not complete.
If this IEM is not compared to others, you may find your end-game.
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Oriolus Forsteni - Excellent tuning without errors, but the sound resolution is in the middle class. I recommend.
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Oriolus MK2 - Excellent bass and midrange. Lack of heights. Excellent for long listening. I recommend.
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Jomo Audio Samba - A huge disappointment. The only IEM I couldn't stand to listen to for more than 2 minutes. Very unpleasant sound in the midrange.
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Campfire Audio Jupiter - Average mid-range and full BA IEM. I don't recommend it very much.
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Campfire Audio Solaris (OG) - A very good sounding hybrid IEM. Depending on the source, the upper midrange can be a bit aggressive. I recommend with warm sounding DAPs.
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Campfire Audio Andomeda (OG) - Fun and airy sounding IEM (for full BA). Their biggest weakness is the bass. Otherwise I recommend it.
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64 Audio U12t - The best sounding full BA IEM I have heard. Flawless bass and sub-bass (on full BA IEM). The sound is tuned to "U", but the midrange is flawless.
If you don't start comparing these IEMs with hybrid IEMs (with DD bass), the sound is top notch. I highly recommend this IEM.
Attention! If you listen to a hybrid IEM (with DD bass), the U12t can start to sound boring.
That's kind of my case.
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64 Audio U6t - Lower level U12t and slight changes. I recommend.
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64 Audio U18s - Very good sound in reference tuning. A bit compressed. I recommend, but not for its price.
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64 Audio Duo - Nice surprise. I didn't expect 2 driver IEMs to sound so fun and musically. But I do not recommend these IEMs for audiophiles.
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64 Audio Trió - Excellent bass and treble. Mids not quite complete (narrow). A small bump on the higher mids can sometimes be aggressive. Very fun sound.
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64 Audio Fourté - Very revealing sound and a very good soundstage. Sound tuning was not completely understood by my auditory perception.
Weird tuning. I'm not sure I would recommend these IEMs for the price. I think you can buy better IEMs these days for a similar price.
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Meze Advar - A strange and unpleasant sound. I do not recommend.
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Custom Art Fibae 7 Unlimited - The biggest surprise. Best sound (full BA IEM) I've heard (together with U12t). The sound does not have the resolution of the U12t, but it has better tonality (not as much warmth as the U12t) and is not tuned to "U". Nothing is lacking in the sound of these IEMs. These IEMs can be end-game for many people. I highly recommend.
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EarSonics Velvet (V1) - Probably the most fun full BA IEM ever.
Excellent sub-bass and even better treble (but only with foam extensions).
With the silicone ext, the highs are annoying.
Unfortunately, the bass is not complete (mainly mid-bass) and the mids are very narrow.
I recommend it for fun listening, but not for faithful listening.
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EarSonics Grace Platinum - One of the best performing full BA IEMs (at the U12t level).
Nothing is lacking in the sound of these IEMs.
The only problem is in the bump on the higher mids. At higher volumes, vocals can be screamed. These IEMs are not ideal for all genres. I recommend with caution.
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EarSonics Onyx - Excellent tuning but low resolution. A very good IEM for the price.
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Unique Melody Mest MKII - The most dependent IEM on the choice of tips. Balanced tuning and fun sound but a bit incoherent. Excellent separation (probably thanks to the use of more driver technologies) and a better soundstage, but lower resolution than the U12t.
I had major reservations about the sound of this IEM, but eventually my ears got used to its sound. In the end, I recommend these IEMs.
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Unique Melody Martian - Excellent bass but a very small soundstage. Average sound. I do not recommend.
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Noble Audio K10U - Still a top full BA IEM. Due to the excellent resolution and brighter sound, more revealing (especially in the mids) than the U12t.
The sub-bass doesn't go that deep, but the bass, mids and highs are flawless.
The biggest weakness of this IEM is the narrow soundstage.
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I apologize for my imperfect English.

About the earphones I know be myself :
Agreed

Just I find the u12t good in every aspects... but too "boring" for my tastes (lack of craziness, madness, sort of).

And about the K10 (acrylic version), too "safe" for me too (compared to the Encore's : these are completely different beasts ).

And the same disappointments... with the same products...

 

[Arora]

^ huh?

i am confused too, the Z1R isn’t that good but he hasn’t tried it?

i bet if there were no forums/reviews of IEMs and everyone listened blindly with no prior knowledge, everyone would have wildly different rankings.

 

[Nooseybear]

i am confused too, the Z1R isn’t that good but he hasn’t tried it?

i bet if there were no forums/reviews of IEMs and everyone listened blindly with no prior knowledge, everyone would have wildly different rankings.

I've often wondered how different people's rankings would be if they couldn't know other people's opinions. I'm sure I've been influenced by what others have written when forming my own views.

On the other hand I don't understand how anyone can feel qualified to comment on an iem they've never heard...

 

[Arora]

I've often wondered how different people's rankings would be if they couldn't know other people's opinions. I'm sure I've been influenced by what others have written when forming my own views.

On the other hand I don't understand how anyone can feel qualified to comment on an iem they've never heard...

absolutely, my buying decisions are based on other people’s opinions. but if i didn’t have that info nor the price i’m sure i would own different IEMs.

there are plenty of videos on youtube of ‘normal’ people A/Bing expensive and cheap headphones/IEMs and getting it wrong. i’ve seen the same for ‘audiophiles’ too.

 

[vladzakhar]

100%. It's the golden rule: don't comment, if you didn't hear it.

 

[toaster]

It is not possible for me to listen to the UM Multiverse Mentor before buying.

Hmm, I understand it's tough to listen to iems sometimes due to availability.

I think you're doing yourself a disservice to assume you won't like something without hearing it...you may be missing out ever hearing your favorite iem!

Hopefully you'll be able to get on more tours or find people who can allow you to listen to some new stuff in the future.

 

[DaveStarWalker]

100%. It's the golden rule: don't comment, if you didn't hear it.

Back to basics

 

[s2kphile]

I started with budget sets to find out my tuning preference and went from there. Started with moondrop chu, then Blessing 2, so on and so forth.

It amazes me I've only been in this IEM space since Oct 2022 and purchased many sets to find that my preference change dramatically from enjoying the b2 sound signature to not likely at all the Gaea sound.

It took me alot of trial and error, many purchases, and researching to find what I like. And that's where it should start. Finding people who share similar tuning preferences you like to save you a couple of bucks.

 

[alavenue]

What do you guys think are some of the best Daps with streaming under $2000?

 

[Rockwell75]

Shanling M6U.

 

[conceptcar3]

1. Aroma audio thunder - the best sound I’ve ever heard from an iem
2. Thieaudio monarch mk2 - excellent detail especially the mjds
3. Clairvoyance- almost as good as monarch 2 but mids not as detailed
4. Monarch mk1 similar to clair
5. Kinera nanna 2.0 smaller shell than the rest and a fun listen but not as detailed as monarch 2
6. Solaris 2020- love the set , spacious sounding must be the acoustic chamber and great bass
7. Thieaudio voyager 14- great sounding but not tuned as well as monarch 2 and lacks dd bass
8. 64 audio U12t great shells and fit and love the modules to reduce pressure in ear but not as good as monarch and twice the price???
9. Imr edp ace- a strange sounding set but I love it. Best way I can describe it is that it sounds muffled except totally clear. Lol
10. Penon serial
11. Raptgo hook x - an extreme value and great bass!
12. Zetian wu - my set broke after one hour but it sounded great for the short time I had it
13. Mest mk2 sound slightly better than hook X and zetian wu but can’t justify the price.
14 timeless/dioko (liked them equally but dioko the better value due to price)
15 xenns up
16 kinera skuld
17 solaris og- terrible fit
18 penon vortex- amazing set!
19 thieaudio legacy 5
20 fiio fd3
21 cca cra
22 Sony wf1000xm3
23 Ibasso it01s
24 fatfreq maestro mini
25 Kbear believe
26 Bose qc20i
27 cca nra
28 qkz X hbb
29 Bgvp dm8
30 thieaudio legacy 4
31 thieaudio oracle mk1 (unpopular opinion- did not care for this set)
32. Tinhifi p1
33 cca c16
34 bqeyz autumn
35 kinera Celeste gumiho
36 etymotic er3se

 

[LH86]

What do you guys think are some of the best Daps with streaming under $2000?

DX320 or DX320x + AMP12 / AMP14 this are very underrated DAP. SQ wise are there in the same ballpark with N8ii, SP3000, 1zm2 . While still be something able to call portable.

 

[Vamp898]

I have questions.
Can BA bass and Bone Conduction Driver really replace DD bass?
How good is the bass and sub-bass of the IEM Multiverse Mentor?

The BA Bass in the IER-M9 is already better than most DD that exist. There are Hybrid that sound more BAish then this All-BA setup.

So it is possible, yes. Not for every Earphone tough, It needs an extensive amount of development and research which most companies don't have the money for.

I assume we are talking about slam/punch/impact. In terms of technicalities, most if not all BA are better than DD in the bass region.

Sometimes the performance of BA Drivers highly depends on the tips due to sound pressure issues. If you use good foam Tips looks the EP-NI1000 or Moondrops MIS-Tips, an Sonion 37 or Knowles HODVTEC can produce excellent Bass that have more advantages over DD bass than disadvantages

 

[DaveStarWalker]

Well... There is some great differences between a dynamic driver and a balanced armature :

- The first one produce air deplacement, not the second one. So the hearing sensations are different.
- So you can make different vents tunings, passive radiators... With dynamic drivers.
- The first one as a longer decay. Because of the suspensions.
- You can make the dynamic drivers with a lot of different materials (very fine tuning and other things : wood, impregnated paper, titanium, beryllium, CLD, etc...), not the BA
- You can work heavily on the physical dampening of the dynamic driver. Not the BA.
- The BA "only" make air vibrations.

(...)

So, even if the sound level (general balance in the bandwidth) and the tuning are comparables, the final results (tactility, textures, decay, physical impact because of air deplacement...) are quite different.

It is mechanical and physical domains, non-reducible.

I'm not saying one is necessarily better than the other.

It's different.