A/B Comparisons - iems, buds, cans, daps, and more - Tips & Impressions
Oct 24, 2022 at 9:36 PM Post #151 of 396
Thanks for the support!
Unfortunately i do not have either the m9 or the ie900 atm (i cycle through iems a lot), but the bass on the m9 is not that prominent, and it's very pronounced on the ie900. Perhaps they were referring to the quality of the bass instead of the quantity?
They were referring to the quantity. I actually have m9 myself, I like it a lot, but some people I know said IE900 beats M9 in all perspective, I'm not sure if it's really necessary to switch to IE900. I really like the sound of m9.
 
Oct 24, 2022 at 10:28 PM Post #152 of 396
They were referring to the quantity. I actually have m9 myself, I like it a lot, but some people I know said IE900 beats M9 in all perspective, I'm not sure if it's really necessary to switch to IE900. I really like the sound of m9.
Yeah, i'm pretty sure that the ie900 handily beats the m9 in terms of bass quantity: ie900>z1r>m9.
For 1k, the m9 is a great all-rounder, and while the ie900 has some good points, the m9 is more to my taste.
Both crin and precog put the m9 in front in their rankings also i believe.
If you are curious (as most of us are in this hobby), a good way of going about it is to try to get a cheap second-hand ie900 and sell it for minimal loss if you still prefer the m9 after testing. Ofc, I'm assuming that your local store does not have a demo ie900.
You can also go on the m9 and ie900 threads and ask if anybody has A/B'd them!
Best of luck in your decision :D
 
Oct 26, 2022 at 12:48 AM Post #153 of 396
Yeah, i'm pretty sure that the ie900 handily beats the m9 in terms of bass quantity: ie900>z1r>m9.
For 1k, the m9 is a great all-rounder, and while the ie900 has some good points, the m9 is more to my taste.
Both crin and precog put the m9 in front in their rankings also i believe.
If you are curious (as most of us are in this hobby), a good way of going about it is to try to get a cheap second-hand ie900 and sell it for minimal loss if you still prefer the m9 after testing. Ofc, I'm assuming that your local store does not have a demo ie900.
You can also go on the m9 and ie900 threads and ask if anybody has A/B'd them!
Best of luck in your decision :D
I didn't know crin and precog, just googled them, seems like they are some credible reviewers. I guess I will just stick to M9 for now, for the price of IE900, I will probably go for HD800s, which I demoed last week with Focal Utopia, and both of them are quite impressive.
 
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Oct 26, 2022 at 10:40 AM Post #154 of 396
I didn't know crin and precog, just googled them, seems like they are some credible reviewers. I guess I will just stick to M9 for now, for the price of IE900, I will probably go for HD800s, which I demoed last week with Focal Utopia, and both of them are quite impressive.
i am a fan of both the hd800s and the utopia, and i am sure that you will enjoy your next purchase!
imo, a much better choice than the ie900 since you have the m9 already.
 
Oct 30, 2022 at 2:11 PM Post #155 of 396
104. etymotic evo (W) vs etymotic er3se:

The evo has a little more bass, a little wider soundstage, better layering, more clarity, better background detail, better instrument separation, a more holographic sound and more transparency.

The 3se has a flatter signature and a sharper treble.
 
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Nov 5, 2022 at 12:48 PM Post #156 of 396
105. eymotic er4sr vs moondrop kato (W):

The er4sr has tighter bass, sharper treble, clearer mids, better instrument separation, sounds thinner and flatter, and congested in comparison.

The kato has more bass, a wider and taller soundstage, is smoother, has better layering, more forward mids, is more lively, a little faster, more expansive, and more natural.
 
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Nov 13, 2022 at 12:22 PM Post #157 of 396
106. moondrop chaconne vs moondrop kato (W):

The chaconne has leaner mids, brighter treble, and is more natural.

The kato has more bass, more forward mids, louder background detail, wider soundstage, more transparency, better layering, better imaging, fuller notes, is more expansive, more height.

To be honest, the earbud is my form factor of choice, and the chaconne is the best earbud that I heard, so I was personally a bit disappointed that it could not stand sonically with an iem that is much cheaper. Sad, very sad, but I guess there is an intrinsic difference in the form factors.
 
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Nov 19, 2022 at 12:41 PM Post #158 of 396
107. moondrop chaconne (W) vs rose masya:

The chaconne is clearer, sounds more as a whole, more transparent, better background detail, better layering, more bass, better imaging. To be honest, bass, mids, treble are all better.

The masya has more forward mids, is airier, but very muddy in comparison.

I really like the form factor of the masya. It has a weird fit, but that fit means that the sound goes more straight to your eardrums, rather than bouncing off your inner ear to your eardrums. Unfortunately, the chaconne outclasses it in almost every way. I guess earbud technology has come a long way!
 
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Nov 26, 2022 at 1:10 PM Post #159 of 396
108. etymotic evo vs moondrop kato (W):

The evo is clearer, has leaner mids, better instrument separation, leaner treble, sounds more as a whole, and needs more power.

The kato has a wider soundstage, more bass, is airier, has more forward mids, better layering, better vocals, is more transparent.
 
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Nov 27, 2022 at 2:27 AM Post #160 of 396
Thank you for your amazing comparisons. Could I ask for one more: Chaconne vs ER4SR. Even if just from memory. I’m debating between those two for neutrality and detail.

Some say the Chaconne are more detailed than the Blessing 2. But you found the Kato more detailed, which is supposed to be less detailed than the B2. That’s why my curiosity.

Thank you in advance.
 
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Nov 27, 2022 at 12:30 PM Post #161 of 396
Thank you for your amazing comparisons. Could I ask for one more: Chaconne vs ER4SR. Even if just from memory. I’m debating between those two for neutrality and detail.

Some say the Chaconne are more detailed than the Blessing 2. But you found the Kato more detailed, which is supposed to be less detailed than the B2. That’s why my curiosity.

Thank you in advance.
Glad to be of some service ^^

As to the chaconne vs kato, if you refer back to my original comparison, i do not think that the kato has more resolution/clarity.
In fact, I think that the chaconne is leaner overall, something which is frequently (rightly or wrongly) associated with more detail.

As to the chaconne vs er4sr, their sound signature is similar, but i expect the er4sr to come out on top in neutrality and detail.
Part of the reason is the form factor. When you have an earbud and iem of the same quality drivers, you will always hear more detail in the iem.
However, if it was up to me, I would choose between the two in terms of form factor, and where you will use it.
Chaconnes are much more comfy to me, but lack isolation, while the er4sr offers great isolation, but the triple flanges are not my thing.

Hope this helps :D
 
Nov 27, 2022 at 1:03 PM Post #162 of 396
Glad to be of some service ^^

As to the chaconne vs kato, if you refer back to my original comparison, i do not think that the kato has more resolution/clarity.
In fact, I think that the chaconne is leaner overall, something which is frequently (rightly or wrongly) associated with more detail.

As to the chaconne vs er4sr, their sound signature is similar, but i expect the er4sr to come out on top in neutrality and detail.
Part of the reason is the form factor. When you have an earbud and iem of the same quality drivers, you will always hear more detail in the iem.
However, if it was up to me, I would choose between the two in terms of form factor, and where you will use it.
Chaconnes are much more comfy to me, but lack isolation, while the er4sr offers great isolation, but the triple flanges are not my thing.

Hope this helps :D
Thank you so much. Definitely helps.
Interesting you found both the ER4 and the Chaconne to have a similar sound signature. Although I suspect while the ER4 are more neutral overall the Chaconne are neutral warm.

So by your different Chaconne comparisons, I gather that they are great buds but do not convey the same experience of a great IEM or over-ear headphones (such as HD6XX) nor replace them. Is that correct?
 
Nov 27, 2022 at 2:37 PM Post #163 of 396
Thank you so much. Definitely helps.
Interesting you found both the ER4 and the Chaconne to have a similar sound signature. Although I suspect while the ER4 are more neutral overall the Chaconne are neutral warm.

So by your different Chaconne comparisons, I gather that they are great buds but do not convey the same experience of a great IEM or over-ear headphones (such as HD6XX) nor replace them. Is that correct?
You're welcome ^^

Yes, I would agree that the er4sr is more neutral and the chaconne is a little warmer.
Obviously there are other differences, but I would say that they are similar enough.
The Chaconnes are my favorite buds (and also among the most expensive buds), but yes they are not going to be replacing any good iems or headphones.
 
Dec 3, 2022 at 12:52 PM Post #164 of 396
109. campfire audio andromeda 2020 (W) vs etymotic evo:

Andromeda 2020: more transparent, clearer, more expansive, with a wider soundstage, more bass, more height, airier, smoother mids, more lively, better imaging, better layering, takes less power, but hisses a bit.

Evo: more forward mids, a little sharper treble, thinner mids, tighter bass, flatter, better instrument separation, clearer background detail, more natural, better vocals.
 
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Dec 10, 2022 at 9:02 AM Post #165 of 396
110. unique miracle mext (W) vs audeze euclid:

Mext: more and clearer bass, sounds more as a whole, smoother, better imaging, more vibrant, more natural, better layering, better bass/mids/treble balance, more spherical sound.

Euclid: clearer, more transparent, wider soundstage, leaner, sound is deeper in the head, shaper treble, fuzzy bass, better instrument separation, comfier, sometimes feels like it has L/R imbalance.

To be honest, I did not enjoy the euclid that much. For all its technicalities, the tuning sounded pretty bad to me. Of course, this is a constant problem of planar headphones, so it is no surprise that it carried over to iems. However, the planar metallic unnaturalness was much more apparent here than, say, the lcd5. Moreover, the sense of the L/R imbalance would be quite present in some tracks.
 
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