The Watercooler -- Impressions, philosophical discussion and general banter. Index on first page. All welcome.

[ZachPtheDude]

Of course there are.
I am still not convinced the difference between cables that is unable to be tested is down exclusively to the coupling effect the gauge and material has on your earbuds. It isn’t in the special wirings and shieldings and rare earth minerals.

Well you have to remember, these copper-silver, copper-gold, silver-copper, etc. alloys are actually far less conductive than plain copper, silver, gold, brass, etc. By mixing the two metals, the resulting alloy is less conductive than either would be on its own. So, a lot of times if they’re hearing anything it’s the objective degradation of signal quality

 

[fzman]

OK, so here's more:

When was the last time (we can factor out covid lockdowns for the purposes of this qeustion) you attended a live acoustic concert- that is, no mics, no speakers no amplification - just lip and limb power?

What kind of music do you normally listen to?

What are your listening goals? (e.g., recreate a live event, make it sound the way i want it to , background sounds to block out other ambient noise - something to improve my mood, etc...)

I've known lots of musicians who just want to hear the notes - they don't think recordings will ever sound 'lie', i.e, they would never pass the Turing Test, metaphorically speaking. Audiophiles who are NOT musicians are chasing the possibility that the Turing Test can be passed, and many have a great story about that one time they got really close.....

Trophy collectors - it must sound good - it cost $$$$$$$$$$$$! vs. This cheap junk sounds just as good-- it sdys so right on this giant chip on my shoulder. (sorry getting grumpy and cross-eyed editing file tags that I've let get too out of hand....

 

[Mehran]

OK, so here's more:

When was the last time (we can factor out covid lockdowns for the purposes of this qeustion) you attended a live acoustic concert- that is, no mics, no speakers no amplification - just lip and limb power?

What kind of music do you normally listen to?

What are your listening goals? (e.g., recreate a live event, make it sound the way i want it to , background sounds to block out other ambient noise - something to improve my mood, etc...)

I've known lots of musicians who just want to hear the notes - they don't think recordings will ever sound 'lie', i.e, they would never pass the Turing Test, metaphorically speaking. Audiophiles who are NOT musicians are chasing the possibility that the Turing Test can be passed, and many have a great story about that one time they got really close.....

Trophy collectors - it must sound good - it cost $$$$$$$$$$$$! vs. This cheap junk sounds just as good-- it sdys so right on this giant chip on my shoulder. (sorry getting grumpy and cross-eyed editing file tags that I've let get too out of hand....

Just learned about the Turing Test, for all I know I could be interacting with bots right here.

 

[ranfan]

Plastics One cable meanwhile,
"It's not about the money.. It's about sending a message."
ーJoker

 

[Rockwell75]

You know, the BL-03 is the only thing I've heard where even a modest NiceHCK cable upgrade made a noticeable difference, largely because the stock cable is just so incredibly awful.

I have a Carbo Mezzo waiting for me at my mom's house...the Blon may be the next ultra budget thing I try out just because.

I would say approximately $5 dollars on number 1.

For the record when I answered that question I read it as "given everything you've been exposed to in this hobby approximately how much would you have to spend on a setup so that you weren't right away looking for an upgrade". I said $2000 and I based that on the cost of an M8 & Isa

For number 2, thats a much harder question to answer because I dont think theres any real way to quantify performance in this hobby. There are some metrics you can follow, but its really hard to have anything that equates to "performance" or anything that makes something "better".

Performance is one of those things that's hard to define in absolute terms but that you know right away when you hear it. There are many ways for an IEM to perform, and many ways to quantify said performance-- either by measurements or nuanced disciplined impressions-- but ultimately you could take any two people in this hobby and find they value totally different types of performance above others.

I tend to think "performance" is a WHOLE lot closer between high end and low end than people are willing to admit.

+1

Just learned about the Turing Test, for all I know I could be interacting with bots right here.

Certainly other parts of Head Fi and the portable audio world, but not here

Plastics One cable meanwhile, "It's not about the money.. It's about sending a message

Is that the Prelude up top? It's probably that or the AK Solaris for me this summer. Any Honeydew impressions to share?

 

[DanielListening]

I am dying for Honeydew impressions.

I really enjoy my Andromeda 2020s with the Sony NW-ZX507 and I want something that is more fun and bass-y but don't want to spend get the Dorado since the synergy with the Sony is BAD.

What I should probably do is buy the M8, and then keep my eyes peeled for a Dorado 2020.



Listening to Faye Webster's "I know I am Funny haha" a new release today. I really enjoy this album. The title track especially.

 

[ranfan]

I have a Carbo Mezzo waiting for me at my mom's house...the Blon may be the next ultra budget thing I try out just because.



For the record when I answered that question I read it as "given everything you've been exposed to in this hobby approximately how much would you have to spend on a setup so that you weren't right away looking for an upgrade". I said $2000 and I based that on the cost of an M8 & Isa



Performance is one of those things that's hard to define in absolute terms but that you know right away when you hear it. There are many ways for an IEM to perform, and many ways to quantify said performance-- either by measurements or nuanced disciplined impressions-- but ultimately you could take any two people in this hobby and find they value totally different types of performance above others.



+1



Certainly other parts of Head Fi and the portable audio world, but not here



Is that the Prelude up top? It's probably that or the AK Solaris for me this summer. Any Honeydew impressions to share?

I'm also excited to try out the Blon. I got the 03 for $25 like-new used. It'll arrive prob next Monday. Moreover, from the FR the 03 look eerily similar to Isa up top

Spoiler: 03

courtesy crinacle

courtesy tgx78

The green one is Prelude 2017 model, and blue one is 2021. The sound signature (tonality) are the same, just the subtleties and intangibles (technicalities) are improved. More stable quiet black background, and tighter bigger bass are most noticeable. Vocals also sounded smoother, as I think they added some sort of stringy mesh filter inside the spout now. Of course a newer driver model also play a significant role in its improvement

The Honeydew has a sour tone, with good bass and staging. Bass reaches deep, but not as powerful in its impact as the Atlas from memory. It's slightly tighter and better controlled though. Soundstage was quite exceptional for its price range. It's quite big in especially width, and secondly depth. Treble has a good extension, and sounded smooth, non-fatiguing and without sharpness or sibilance. It provides just enough brightness to avoid becoming/sounding dark. Honeydew's tone overall was quite unnatural to my ears though, but technically it's very good for its price. It has good presence in the ~5kHz, but coupled with slightly neutral 1-2kHz and some upper-bass energy, it made the pronounciation of the vocals and tone of acoustic instruments sound somewhat bittersweet imbalanced. The fundamentals were provided by the upper-bass instead of the mid-mids. It's hard to describe very well; the upper-bass provides some warmth, but the neutral midrange attenuates some of that power, while the upper-mids lift the whole sound giving it extra clarity and sweetness. I think it's a pretty fun-sounding tuning, and could give a fresh change listening from time to time

 

[tgx78]

I'm also excited to try out the Blon. I got the 03 for $25 like-new used. It'll arrive prob next Monday. Moreover, from the FR the 03 look eerily similar to Isa up top

Spoiler: 03

courtesy crinacle

courtesy tgx78

The green one is Prelude 2017 model, and blue one is 2021. The sound signature (tonality) are the same, just the subtleties and intangibles (technicalities) are improved. More stable quiet black background, and tighter bigger bass are most noticeable. Vocals also sounded smoother, as I think they added some sort of stringy mesh filter inside the spout now. Of course a newer driver model also play a significant role in its improvement

The Honeydew has a sour tone, with good bass and staging. Bass reaches deep, but not as powerful in its impact as the Atlas from memory. It's slightly tighter and better controlled though. Soundstage was quite exceptional for its price range. It's quite big in especially width, and secondly depth. Treble has a good extension, and sounded smooth, non-fatiguing and without sharpness or sibilance. It provides just enough brightness to avoid becoming/sounding dark. Honeydew's tone overall was quite unnatural to my ears though, but technically it's very good for its price. It has good presence in the ~5kHz, but coupled with slightly neutral 1-2kHz and some upper-bass energy, it made the pronounciation of the vocals and tone of acoustic instruments sound somewhat bittersweet imbalanced. The fundamentals were provided by the upper-bass instead of the mid-mids. It's hard to describe very well; the upper-bass provides some warmth, but the neutral midrange attenuates some of that power, while the upper-mids lift the whole sound giving it extra clarity and sweetness. I think it's a pretty fun-sounding tuning, and could give a fresh change listening from time to time

how they are measured on my coupler

love Blons

 

[SBranson]

I have a Carbo Mezzo waiting for me at my mom's house...the Blon may be the next ultra budget thing I try out just because.

I tried to get you to listen to the BLON03 at the last meet up and you weren't interested..
Next time.. The only problem you'll probably have as I do is the fit. We both have big ears so the fit ain't so great...

 

[Charlyro222]

Blon 03 for me are best iems at low price range.
Great combo with Shanling M8, as every iem I try with this incredible DAP (thanks @Rockwell75 to take me to the dark side)
Problem as you know, the fit, sednaearfit light L are best for me.

 

[ranfan]

Got a new cable for Isa. Bought it used for $60. Really high quality build and braiding. The preformed earhooks are also more comfortable than the stock one. It's called "Chikyu-Sekai Solomon". I didn't know that they're in the same brand group with Tanchjim, Softears, and Moondrop

 

[Neweymatt]

the Blon may be the next ultra budget thing I try out just because.

For someone who drops $250 on Honeydew "just because", I'm surprised you haven't already. I've found the Mini fits my earholes much better than the BL-03, which just sits much to shallow to get a proper seal.

 

[Neweymatt]

I am dying for Honeydew impressions.

I really enjoy my Andromeda 2020s with the Sony NW-ZX507 and I want something that is more fun and bass-y but don't want to spend get the Dorado since the synergy with the Sony is BAD.

What I should probably do is buy the M8, and then keep my eyes peeled for a Dorado 2020.



Listening to Faye Webster's "I know I am Funny haha" a new release today. I really enjoy this album. The title track especially.

Yeah, I'm really enjoying that with the Moondrop Aria that arrived in the post earlier this week. There's lots of percussion along with Faye's vocals in that recording that the Aria does very well with.

 

[ian91]

Love my 03 and look forward to hearing your impressions. Having said that the most recent BL-A8 has stolen my attention over the past week - it improves on the 03 technicalities being much less congested and with better imaging.

Edit: oh and I totally agree, both BLONs deserve a replacement cable and a good source (e.g. M8!)

 

[Rockwell75]

The Honeydew has a sour tone,

Lol yikes...probably not a good thing for an IEM named after a fruit.

@mashuto any more Honeydew impressions from your end? I should have mine in a couple days so Iiving vicariously through others for the time being. I'll be using it mostly for EDM so hopefully @ranfan's criticisms won't apply as much to me.