Shuoer impressions thread
Apr 18, 2021 at 12:47 PM Post #3,151 of 3,867
I’m curious the alloy one @fjlabs you got! So much secret you don’t share :D
Hehe still in the early engineering stages and I'm doing some testing for em. Even I don't have any info on it yet in all honesty... no pictures at all... ㅜ_ㅜ
 
Apr 30, 2021 at 5:22 PM Post #3,152 of 3,867
Yep the gold plated silver one is what I got - asked for 2.5 which they don’t have but eventually agreed if I don’t mind can take the engineering sample one.

I’m curious the alloy one @fjlabs you got! So much secret you don’t share :D

Back to this gold plated silver one I’ve got - didn’t swap out to test with 07 but the improvements over stock silver one is significant I do recommend it. This is what I like about Shuoer, similar cable from others would cost 3x more
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Look what the cat dragged in today. :D Gold-Silver cable from Shuoer made it. Gonna spend a little bit of time with it, but initial impressions are very positive with the EJ09's.
 
Apr 30, 2021 at 6:05 PM Post #3,153 of 3,867
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Look what the cat dragged in today. :D Gold-Silver cable from Shuoer made it. Gonna spend a little bit of time with it, but initial impressions are very positive with the EJ09's.
Awesome! This is the silver-gold alloy right? From the outset seems they are using the same fabric outer layer as 07’s stock ofc cable. Let me know how it goes! Is it metal terminator 2.5/4.4?

Also small update from my side, brought my old single crystal silver out of retirement with 09 - compared to the gold plated silver it’s cleaner (could be due to its even of higher purity?) and treble is also less hash. It does suffer from a narrower sound stage and lose in weight thou. So really curious how this alloy cable will bring out for the 09.

Once they have production units ready I’ll have my local mate test it out before deciding myself :D Do let us know once you are able to run thru some music with it
 
Apr 30, 2021 at 7:25 PM Post #3,154 of 3,867
This is the silver-gold alloy right? From the outset seems they are using the same fabric outer layer as 07’s stock ofc cable. Let me know how it goes! Is it metal terminator 2.5/4.4?
Yep, This is the new TOTL Silver-Gold alloy that's pre-release. It is indeed the same outer layer. I don't mind it, it's rather soft, but also a little paper-y feeling.

Their terminations will be the usual 3.5mm and 4.4mm, if memory serves me right. However, I asked for mine unterminated on the source side. Usually, I like to add a Mini-XLR 4-pin to each of them. I just finished putting it on, using Kester 63/37 solder, and it sounds a fair bit different from the stock silver on the 09's [as much a difference a cable can make at least]. Random thoughts, it tones down the 09's "harshness" a little bit—softening the leading edge of notes a little bit. The new cable also feels a little bit more "airy" in presentation and has a bit more space in some tracks. More thoughts to come—don't have enough time with it yet.
 
May 14, 2021 at 8:36 AM Post #3,155 of 3,867
Been using EJ09 for quite some time now and it’s so much better than 07, really enjoying it. In my own fashion 07 has been stored away now as tried a few other times, couldn’t going downgrade anymore 🤣

Anyways, although Q5s pairing with 09 is really good (well, I don’t have any better DAC), back to using wired listening is something really annoyed me but CF01 or any other Bluetooth cables I’ve got just can’t drive 09 properly… Back to drawing board & I’ve come across Ikko’s ITB05, it’s a neckband but at least it’s much better than cable dangling around with a heavy DAC while commuting (talking about forward planning? Office opening on the cards).

Anyways, the key for this neckband is that its got a proper power support with 2 AKM4377 DACs for balanced output! Claimed to support upto 9hrs listening, more than sufficient for my daily usage. They have MMCX or 0.78 so it’s obvious the latter for me:
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On listening quality/experience side:
Just paired it up with my phone, compared to Q5s & single crystal silver: the drop in bass, stage, resolution and increase in harshness in treble is noticeable - but crucially only just ever so slightly. No background noise or statics detected. 09 still sounds detailed, controlled and full bodied, bass still there and vocals still nicely presenting; airiness also retained. So, for now it’s a keeper for me and my personal needs.

Will update folks should anything further can be added / noticed later on, typing this on my phone whilst listening thru my testing tracks.

Hope everyone’s safe!
 
May 14, 2021 at 12:21 PM Post #3,156 of 3,867
well, I don’t have any better DAC
Fair warning, don't get anything too noisy. The 09's are extremely sensitive and will pick up hiss easily. An IFI ieMatch helps a lot, or a custom designed adapter if you need weird terminations.
 
May 16, 2021 at 7:06 PM Post #3,157 of 3,867
I know I promised a review of Shuoer’s brand new mono-crystalline cable a while ago, so sorry to everyone this one took a little bit of time to crank out! I struggled a little bit with this—why to follow. I first want to give the biggest shoutout to Shuoer for hooking me up with a generous discount on this TOTL cable (I’m gonna call it the TOTL for this review) and accommodating my request for unterminated on the source side.

Background
This is the brand new [potentially unreleased as of this posting?] top-of-the-line cable from Shuoer featuring a mono-crystalline gold-silver alloy, not gold-plated silver. From examination of the actual raw wire itself, I can confirm that it’s not the usual plating, but is instead a unitary metal inside the stranded metal.

Most of the hardware on this cable is actually non-standard. I had Shuoer leave the source side unterminated, both so that I can do some “destructive” testing of the raw wire without destroying too much, and so that I could put on a mini-XLR 4-pin connector for use with my modular system (similar to Hart Audio Cables). The splitter is also non-standard so don’t expect something so large on the actual unit, I did some custom work to that myself. The 2-pin connectors on the cable are standard though, and mimic that of the Shuoer Conductor cable. I went ahead and soldered on the mini-XLR 4pin with some Kester 63/37 solder, well regarded in the cable world, so that shouldn’t have an impact on overall sound.

Note that I’m in the firm camp of “cable metals and construction inherently make a tiny but noticeable difference.” However, differences are minor at best apart from issues attributable to build/design/comfort. A cable doesn’t necessarily sound “better” for being more expensive, but it certainly sounds “different.” Whether it’s worth the money, is a personal judgement call on your comfort-point in the curve of diminishing returns.

Technical Specifications
A lot of these specs are coming from my own measurements and testing having worked with the raw wire. The TOTL is a 4-core individually sleeved design. Each core consists of a 32AWG wire with, what seems like, 19-30 strands of mono-crystalline gold-silver alloy. The core comes out to about 0.75mm unsleeved and around 1.2mm sleeved. Together as a braided bundle, the cable is around 4.5mm thick, so in line with most other thicker 4-core IEM cables.

Did a few resistance measurements too using a fairly accurate multimeter:
- TOTL cable: 0.62Ω/m
- Linsoul EST cable: 0.55Ω/m
- Shuoer Mono-crystalline Pure Silver [EJ09 Stock]: 0.39Ω/m
- Hart Audio Cable [Mogami OFC @ 28AWG]: 0.78Ω/m

These numbers probably don’t mean much, but there ya go, if you are curious. Linsoul’s EST cable is much higher gauge than Shuoer’s TOTL so these numbers make sense, despite the TOTL being pure silver and having a theoretically higher conductivity. All three cables are actually finished the same way, in a mini-XLR 4pin, and measured across all 4 pins, they were within margin of noise/error.

Sound
Now that we have the technical mumbo-jumbo out of the way, time for the fun part. I’m comparing this cable exclusively on the Shuoer EJ09 (see my full review on the EJ09 here), with the stock mono-crystalline pure silver cable, as well as the Linsoul EST cable.

Compared to Stock Mono-crystalline Pure Silver Cable
Those that read my 09 review will know that one of my main gripes was how sharp the 09 presented with its stock cable. While not “emphasized” in the treble, the 09 with the stock cable had a very sharp attack to the leading edges of notes that often sounded abrupt. Having spent more time with the 09’s, it seems like may even potentially negatively affect the timbre, making it everything around a little more forceful than natural.

Swapping to the gold-silver cable alleviated this to some extent. I’m not going to say there is a massive difference that blew me out of the water, since it’s just a cable after all. However, it definitely softened up much of the leading edges and make some previously unlistenable songs (Coheed and Cambria, Colors, 1:40) a lot more palatable. At the same time, the cable swap added a little bit balance to the overall mix, taming the upper presence registers just a hair. Seori’s Lovers in the Night felt more cohesive in the brassy chorus and the reverb of Tristam’s Over the Edge was slightly more delicate.

The TOTL didn’t do much to the mid-range if anything at all. As before, the 09’s presented cleanly and upper-mid-forward, with resonant vocals and a lot of energy. Trying hard to pull out some changes, the highest registers of female vocals get pushed back a hair (See, e.g., Nature, Girls; Minx, Why Did You Come to My Home - 1:55–2:10, 2:35–2:45). However, this change is so subtle it might be a result of short term acoustic memory than the cable itself.

The TOTL did seem to bring back a little bit more more texture to the bass. Compared to the stock cable, the bass seems even more detailed rather than relying on a singular low rumble. WE ARE FURY, Poison presents with a more vivid bass in the main drop. Additionally, it seems to impart more energy into difficult-to-drive tracks like Excision & Illenium, Gold (Stupid Love), one of the 09’s weakest tracks in my usual rotation.

Soundstage takes a small hit with this cable. Instruments lose a bit of their lateral distance (Audiomachine, Remember Not to Forget; Evanescense, Lithium - Synthesis Version). Thankfully, the change is fairly minimal and the additional balance the cable imparts helps to alleviate any placement issues. Imaging still remains clear and pinpoint accurate. (Rolling Quartz, Blaze).

Overall, the new TOTL cable is a great pairing with 09’s—fixing many of the complaints I had in the stock configuration, at the expense of a bit of soundstage depth.

Compared to Linsoul EST
I actually had my customized Linsoul EST cable for that long, so thoughts are sparse. As a complement to the 09’s, the TOTL allows details to be reproduced with “less effort,” letting the micro-details like recording venue background noise (Audiomachine, Remember Not to Forget) and vocalist “ticks” (DREAMCATCHER, Eclipse - (JiU’s breathe tremor at 0:03; Gahyeon’s vocal vibrato at 2:09)) be just a hair more noticeable. The EST also suppresses the 09’s treble and leading edge annoyances much more significantly in the 09’s weak tracks (See AleXa, Never Let You Go; Coheed and Cambria, Colors). I personally feel like the EST does overstep here and blunts some of the EJ09’s upper energy character though, and I don’t like this pairing at the end of the day. Soundstage is also much more compressed with the EST, than with the TOTL.

Build/Design/Comfort
The TOTL is a fairly light cable and the individual fabric sheathing keeps it comfortable when worn under the shirt. However, my biggest gripe on this cable is its microphonics. The cable is extremely loud in the first foot of cable around the ear hooks, and no amount of cable finagling was able to get rid of it. Even just hitting my jaw or side of head when moving would result in a fairly large noise with the 09’s. I’m sure this would be less noticeable on something less sensitive, but I didn’t have a chance to test that fully. Talking to Shuoer, this seems to be caused by a combination of both the thin inner strands and the outer sheathing material. However, I didn’t notice this with the Shuoer Conductor cable, sheathed with the same fabric. This unfortunately caused me to take a bit of time with this review, since I had to be fairly stationary when listening to prevent microphonic from getting in the way. Below the splitter, microphonics lessened greatly, and was much less of a problem.

I’m honestly not sure if Shuoer will be able to solve this in the production run, but it’s something to watch out for. If microphonics aren’t a huge problem to you though, I have nothing else bad about the cable construction. Everything is well finished like usual coming out of their factory.

Miscellaneous
Source used was the RME ADI-2 DAC FS throughout this review. MSRP is still undetermined at the time of this post. Will edit once full retail information is released.
 

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May 17, 2021 at 5:23 AM Post #3,158 of 3,867
Wow that was awesome and detailed review! Much better than my usual 2cents ones :D

You might read it wrong (or I didn’t make it clearer), I think on the Q5s the gold plated silver actually improved sound stage not compressed vs stock pure silver. I later on swapped to my single crystal silver which lose out on the soundstage but made the treble even more smooth hence I decided to use it until obviously last week - when I fed up with wire in my way…

Since 09 is such a great set, moving from Q5s (I’m sure if one has better DAC, sound would be even more amazing) to the neckband, despite it has two akm4377s, stage, details, treble sharpe edges (this prob got smooth out by the cables) still noticeable. I just enjoy so much more wire-free!! For critical listening, proper DAC + high quality cable still the way to go. (And if lossless Apple Music come in, even more so)

And if I’m allowed to switch back to the cable point, I don’t think it’s snake oil - yes on paper these are all conductive materials and the length vs electric signal is so small one would argue why/how can it matter. I have tried numerous times with my not so great hearing (most obviously with se846 & now EJ09) that for sensitive IEMs, it matters a lot. Imagine this, these IEMs trying to reproduce every single frequency from the source, any “bump / resistance” along the cable way might affect it ever so slightly, hence the sound! So, for me the cable matter…

To wrap up the subject on this Shuoer TOTL cable, I’m now thinking perhaps their gold plated-silver might be the best bet? Wish you had that one too so can a/b them :D
 
May 17, 2021 at 3:05 PM Post #3,159 of 3,867
You might read it wrong (or I didn’t make it clearer), I think on the Q5s the gold plated silver actually improved sound stage not compressed vs stock pure silver.
Oops!!! Must've read your latest comment wrong! That's what lack of sleep does to ya I guess. 😂

Just heard from Shuoer that the TOTL cable may be actually be a one-off now, or an extremely limited released, since the raw materials [I'm guessing the wire] are hard to get in stock.

Might pick up the gold-plated silver to see what's up with that, but I think from your description that might be the best bet from Shuoer.

(most obviously with se846 & now EJ09) that for sensitive IEMs, it matters a lot.
Good catch here, I'm starting to think it matters a lot more for sensitive and low impedance IEM's a lot more than something super hard to drive. The differences between cables are still small though, no matter how sensitive your IEM. For me, they are noticeable, but you'll change a lot more by just swapping sets or even source devices. The analog cable is usually the last thing I worry about in a chain. I have slightly different thoughts about digital cables, so don't get me started there.
 
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May 17, 2021 at 3:26 PM Post #3,160 of 3,867
Oops!!! Must've read your latest comment wrong! That's what lack of sleep does to ya I guess. 😂

Just heard from Shuoer that the TOTL cable may be actually be a one-off now, or an extremely limited released, since the raw materials [I'm guessing the wire] are hard to get in stock.

Might pick up the gold-plated silver to see what's up with that, but I think from your description that might be the best bet from Shuoer.


Good catch here, I'm starting to think it matters a lot more for sensitive and low impedance IEM's a lot more than something super hard to drive. The differences between cables are still small though, no matter how sensitive your IEM. For me, they are noticeable, but you'll change a lot more by just swapping sets or even source devices. The analog cable is usually the last thing I worry about in a chain. I have slightly different thoughts about digital cables, so don't get me started there.
Tbh - it’s a steal for the price that gold-plated silver, however, vs a big brand cable specialist, can hear the “impurity” still. Which is why I think the sharp edges might have come from? Could be wrong but my gut feeling my single crystal silver felt smoother. But the soundstage, details are better in the Shuoer one

If you have other high purity cables, might not need to get this gold plated silver to just test out (of course not trying to lecturing you how to spend your hard earned $$$)…
 
May 18, 2021 at 6:38 AM Post #3,162 of 3,867
I see that there is no hype around the Shuoer EJ09, maybe they have something wrong with the setup and the EJ07 is still a favorite of many audiophiles? :) Even BGGR didn't add it to the EJ09 rating list.
Prob too pricey and into MEST territory? I could be wrong. Me too quite surprised, I knew some don’t like the use of certain BAs. The tuning is also treble-heavy?

Having both 07 & 09, I definitely prefer 09 way more as I prefer treble, so too mids are fuller with more forward weight in 09. Detail wise 09 also much much better than 07. As previously mentioned, Live version of Hotel California has never sounded so great felt like as if I was there.

The other owner of 09 I knew here obvious is @fjlabs who did some great detailed review as well as A/B with 07. I’be now just opted in Amazon HD (30-days free trial) on my Q5s with a branded single crystal silver, listening lossless via DAC I can appreciate way more sound without the sharp edges in certain songs! Amazed that certain sharp notes got smooth out in lossless version, will definitely be enjoying Apple lossless come in June.

Preciously I thought 07 is sufficient to be my end game set obviously 09 dethrone it. If budget permit, I would recommend 09 - although it require better DAC & cable hence its a deeper rabbit hole here. But I’m confident to say 07 would sound just great via okay ish Bluetooth cable (worked great with CF01) whereas 09 is hungry with power and unforgiving: source file quality / DAC / cable. I did benefited from a trusted friend who’s also an owner of 07 listened 09 and recommended 09 that I wasn’t blindly buying such an expensive set.

Hope Shuoer can attend some audio show to let folks test 09 out, after all only valid that our ears pick the IEM not our eyes by reading others reviews :D
 
May 18, 2021 at 1:25 PM Post #3,163 of 3,867
I see that there is no hype around the Shuoer EJ09, maybe they have something wrong with the setup and the EJ07 is still a favorite of many audiophiles? :) Even BGGR didn't add it to the EJ09 rating list.
Part of the reason was that even Shuoer didn't, until recently, put up much public info on the sets. There was some internal talk about reworking parts of the set, but that idea was later canceled. The current version is the final version and the product page was just put up yesterday. https://www.shuoeracoustics.com/product/ej09
 
May 21, 2021 at 3:30 AM Post #3,164 of 3,867
Just saw this in my fb feed! Omg what does this mean… mass production version of EJ07? Does this mean cheaper or Shuoer has the confidence it will sell well so from made-to-order to readily available so folks can get it almost immediately thru all sales channel… very few info I’ll try to reach out to CS
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May 21, 2021 at 3:32 AM Post #3,165 of 3,867
Just saw this in my fb feed! Omg what does this mean… mass production version of EJ07? Does this mean cheaper or Shuoer has the confidence it will sell well so from made-to-order to readily available so folks can get it almost immediately thru all sales channel… very few info I’ll try to reach out to CS A290CAD0-19DA-4193-944E-45038438EEE8.jpeg
Hahahahahaha looks like they finally got around to announcing it. 😛. I’ll save further details for Shuoer to announce to avoid spoiling it any more
 

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