Here is a short comparison of TOTL DIY earbuds that I managed to lay my hands on, that are:
- TGXear Serratus - a custom version, which comprises 500Ω driver and transparent bell shells; originally they used to feature 300Ω driver and MX500 shells.
- RikuBuds Grand Alter Saber 2 - with no huge alterations made to them, although Riku offers quite a few visual options to choose from; these have 80Ω driver.
Since I'm not an experienced audio reviewer and I'm not able to fully transcribe what I hear and feel, I will try to focus on the main differences between those two models, leaving the general description and characteristics behind. Serratus has already been reviewed quite a few times, therefore I don't really think I could add anything more worthwhile to it.
Okay, enough with excuses. Let me start with the basics.
One of the biggest advantages that GAS2 has to offer is its 80Ω driver, which makes it far easier to drive. Surely, Riku's buds do benefit from plugging them into an amplifier, but they sound great even without one.
Meanwhile, Serratus actually needs a decent source, even in its default 300Ω configuration. Not only due to 4.4mm BAL termination (which is the most popular option, though one may get it with 3.5mm SE), but also due to their scaleability.
At first I paired it with Tanchjim Space that, in spite of its little body, is quite powerful for a dongle (4 Vrms and 230 mW of power on the 4.4mm end). The results were breathtaking, they really were. But after connecting TGXears to TempoTec March III (4 Vrms, 630 mW) they became even better.. The sounds gained a little weight to them and the bass got slightly punchier, too. From what I've seen more and more people tend to pair Serratus with tube AMPs, which actually seems to make a lot of sense.
When it comes to comfort - even though my ears aren't that demanding and almost all buds fit me well, the Val39 shells won me over. TGXear bells aren't bad, they just don't feel that secure. Having said that, they've never fallen out of my ear or anything.
GAS2 scores another point for its cable - covered with a very thin, transparent sleeve that makes it soft and less prone to microphonics. Serratus braided cable appears more solid, but isn't that easy to handle.
The most important thing: sound.
As many of you already know Serratus easily became the king of technicalities. It's neutral, yet highly defined and accurate. Sometimes it may appear as too bright, especially to people that are sensitive to high frequencies. But no one questioned their amazing holographic staging.
Neither did I, at least not before I got GAS2.
In the direct A/B comparison GAS2 feels slightly wooly, though I feel that "analogue-y" is more on point. The mids aren't as forward as in Serratus. The particular notes sound smoother - not that sterile, not that digital. It's warmer, softer maybe, all right, but it's still highly resolving. It's funny, but Riku's buds are minutely better at replicating hi-hats, making them more audible, yet not harsh, not painful.
The stage itself seems to be a little wider, but most importantly it's the height that's much better. That's what saves GAS2 from sounding congested.
Based on the above write-up one could think that those two earbuds differ so much that it should be easy to pick them apart.
In reality, it's not.
If I hadn't compared them side by side, second by second, I'd have had hard time saying which is which. Both of them put a big smile on my face and tend to give me a hell of a lot of fun. Both guarantee a proper jaw-dropping experience on first listen.
Carbon will probably stay my favorite though.
