[mvvRAZ]

Great preview Michael!

A quick note on W2, its edge over S1 is not immediately obvious to me either. While to some extent I have found it to have better technical performance compared to S1, the Lotoo sound signature delivered by S1 is still so appealing to me and pairs very well with the MEST I am using.

Having gone through the W2 thread (I am the one who started it actually), people seem to conclude that it needs synergy to work well (although most people seem to have found good synergy with at least some of their gears). As for Thummim, I have seen two users there reporting positive synergy with W2, but this could be a preference thing.

Yup definitely would concur with this - it does naturally match the thummim well, and what is IMHO holding it back is the tonality. On technical ability it’s no slouch, and as you say there’s a good chance it actually outperforms the PAW S1, but the latter just has the edge on tuning

 

[noplsestar]

A few developments!

- P6 Pro swapped for PAW6000, eagerly awaiting its arrival Wednesday! Ultimately what killed it for me is that it really feels like a burden to use - from having to hold the power button for a specific set of seconds before all settings reset, to the generally awkward feel of the software

- Sultan once again cut short due to the Thummim being the MVP - both fit the same mood while that mood works better with the Thummim

- Odín joining the ranks once again! - @KuroKitsu i apologize in advance for the EQ I’m going to be applying (it’s more of a trial for few weeks so if anyone’s potentially interested in buying it please feel free to PM me)

- PAW S1 vs LP W2 shootout, but just a small spoiler alert, I’m heavily unimpressed with the W2 based on initial listening

- Jolene pleaaaaase get here sooner!

You could include this one to your shootout: https://www.romiaudio.com/product-page/dac2-balance-digital-audio-converter
I have to say, I am not familiar with those DAC dongles, but it may be worth a try ...

 

[mvvRAZ]

You could include this one to your shootout: https://www.romiaudio.com/product-page/dac2-balance-digital-audio-converter
I have to say, I am not familiar with those DAC dongles, but it may be worth a try ...

That looks awesome!!! Let me see if I can get my hands on one

 

[bluestorm1992]

I am also thinking about what’s the next to get for my IEM rolling. Don’t want to settle on an IEM just yet. There is a new Odin in the market which seems tempting, but I know I will probably keep it only for a short while until MMR releases their new product , which I will jump right on board for.

The QDC V14 is also on my radar but Andrew said the wait is at least another two weeks. For me, two weeks without a new toy is like forever.

 

[aaf evo]

I am also thinking about what’s the next to get for my IEM rolling. Don’t want to settle on an IEM just yet. There is a new Odin in the market which seems tempting, but I know I will probably keep it only for a short while until MMR releases their new product , which I will jump right on board for.

The QDC V14 is also on my radar but Andrew said the wait is at least another two weeks. For me, two weeks without a new toy is like forever.

The new QDC looks great, i haven’t heard of any of their IEMs but this one I will probably demo just to see how it is.

 

[mvvRAZ]

I am also thinking about what’s the next to get for my IEM rolling. Don’t want to settle on an IEM just yet. There is a new Odin in the market which seems tempting, but I know I will probably keep it only for a short while until MMR releases their new product , which I will jump right on board for.

The QDC V14 is also on my radar but Andrew said the wait is at least another two weeks. For me, two weeks without a new toy is like forever.

The new MMR IEM is something I’m also suuuuper excited for - easy buy

QDC... the VX has to be the most boring IEM I’ve heard to date, the D-Magic is the most disappointing DD configuration I’ve tried. I can definitely see their spot in the market and the appeal but I don’t think it’s for me

The new 64 releases on the other hand... sign me up!

 

[bluestorm1992]

The new MMR IEM is something I’m also suuuuper excited for - easy buy

QDC... the VX has to be the most boring IEM I’ve heard to date, the D-Magic is the most disappointing DD configuration I’ve tried. I can definitely see their spot in the market and the appeal but I don’t think it’s for me

The new 64 releases on the other hand... sign me up!

What I have heard is that the V14 is a massive improvement over VX. It is finally a fun and musical IEM thanks to the added drivers and change in tuning, and this is done without sacrificing the technicalities which VX excels in. I will want to try it out and see if these early impressions are true.

 

[KuroKitsu]

A few developments!

- P6 Pro swapped for PAW6000, eagerly awaiting its arrival Wednesday! Ultimately what killed it for me is that it really feels like a burden to use - from having to hold the power button for a specific set of seconds before all settings reset, to the generally awkward feel of the software

- Odín joining the ranks once again! - @KuroKitsu i apologize in advance for the EQ I’m going to be applying (it’s more of a trial for few weeks so if anyone’s potentially interested in buying it please feel free to PM me)

- Jolene pleaaaaase get here sooner!

Paw 6K is generally a better feel, but super minimalist still. Not sure if they made some more change, but tracks not being displayed in the tagged order was a big no. I did like the 15 hour ish battery life, but I ended up trading for the 1A again.

EQ away, if the upper mid is the biggest issue I really don't see why it should be the hill the Odin dies on

Joleeeeeeeene impressions

Looks like Thummim is still the bae if it toppled Sultan

 

[mvvRAZ]

Paw 6K is generally a better feel, but super minimalist still. Not sure if they made some more change, but tracks not being displayed in the tagged order was a big no. I did like the 15 hour ish battery life, but I ended up trading for the 1A again.

EQ away, if the upper mid is the biggest issue I really don't see why it should be the hill the Odin dies on

Joleeeeeeeene impressions

Looks like Thummim is still the bae if it toppled Sultan

I really miss the LPGT’s UI. What stopped me from going LPGT no3 was that reviews indicated the PAW6000 comes decently close while being a bit warmer, and also the fact that it comes in at like a third of the price new is a big welcome with all these IEM releases around the corner

As to the Odin - for sure, I really miss the bass on that thing, it’s just a question of whether I am cool using an IEM with a permanent EQ slapped on it

 

[bluestorm1992]

Paw 6K is generally a better feel, but super minimalist still. Not sure if they made some more change, but tracks not being displayed in the tagged order was a big no. I did like the 15 hour ish battery life, but I ended up trading for the 1A again.

EQ away, if the upper mid is the biggest issue I really don't see why it should be the hill the Odin dies on

Joleeeeeeeene impressions

Looks like Thummim is still the bae if it toppled Sultan

Lotoo ranks the songs based on the track names instead of the tags. I use MAC to rip all my CDs so all tracks begin with the numbering, and Lotoo handles that very well.

 

[bluestorm1992]

BTW Michael, 6K has a nice green leather case that Musicteck also sells. My profile pic is in fact me holding the 6K with a green case.

 

[fzman]

hmmmm, what new 64 releases? the 18's? Also curious about Thummim vs Sultan for the fun side of things.

 

[twister6]

Yup definitely would concur with this - it does naturally match the thummim well, and what is IMHO holding it back is the tonality. On technical ability it’s no slouch, and as you say there’s a good chance it actually outperforms the PAW S1, but the latter just has the edge on tuning

Considering darker/warmer sound nature of Thummim, you will probably like pair up with a brighter tuned S1, since W1/W2 are smoother and more naturally tuned (typical L&P). In terms of technical performance, W1 and S1 are close enough, while W2 is noticeable step forward with a bigger soundstage and much lower noise floor. W2 technical performance is nearly the same as Cobalt, and tonality similar as well. But Cobalt has a little different signature, lacks balanced and no other bells'n'whistles (no volume control, no EQ presets, etc). One thing that I can't live without anymore is a volume control on these usb dac/amp dongles. Unless you go into the app and adjust the volume from there, changing the volume on your smartphone using side buttons has no precision. Having volume buttons on these dongles helps with micro-adjustment of the volume in smaller steps.

You could include this one to your shootout: https://www.romiaudio.com/product-page/dac2-balance-digital-audio-converter
I have to say, I am not familiar with those DAC dongles, but it may be worth a try ...

Romi Audio dac/amp looks interesting, aside from no volume or no eq. But the power output is a little less than W1/W2, which is still OK for IEMs. But one red flag is 200mA playback current. This will cause you problems with iPhones because they limit external devices to 100mA, and with Android phones will cause a higher battery drain.

 

[KuroKitsu]

Lotoo ranks the songs based on the track names instead of the tags. I use MAC to rip all my CDs so all tracks begin with the numbering, and Lotoo handles that very well.

It's really a minor inconvenience at that point. For some reason I really didn't want to have to rename all my tracks with the track numbering

Granted when I transfer music to my 1A I have to change the tags to ID 2.3 V3 in Mp3tag, then re compress the embedded album art which is in progressive jpeg using tagscanner at which point I'm playing myself anyhow.

 

[RTodd]

Paw 6K is generally a better feel, but super minimalist still. Not sure if they made some more change, but tracks not being displayed in the tagged order was a big no. I did like the 15 hour ish battery life, but I ended up trading for the 1A again.

P6K been using since the beginning of my journey. And still use it everyday. Love it.

The LPGT shares the software, and handles busy music better, that is the only gain upgrading, you sacrifice battery run time, lighter smaller portability, and money. And maybe warmth although I did not notice that during the couple demos I did with the LPGT.

One thing that the Lotoo software does that I really like is that little button on the lower right that opens the EQ and lets you quickly change the sound without missing a note on the fly. And that the library automatically updates when you add new tracks.

I had made a suggestion to Lotoo that they should store the EQ setting for the track so next time you play it it changes automatically. For some older recordings the EQ can effectively remove the hiss, and for some overly bright recordings you can tone them down, etc...

I also use the Apple to process files and the track numbering keeps the tracks in the right order since the Lotoo software does not use the tags. Which is also why there is no genre filter.