BATTLE OF THE BANSHEES, RIDE OF THE VALKYRIE
Just received a tour unit of the TRN VX Pro. After reviewing it, this unit will be passed on a tour in Singapore to some other audiophiles.
Well, TRN and KZ are forever locked in a driver nuclear race, a battle of the banshees so to speak, and the TRN VX Pro's predecessor (the original TRN VX), was a multi driver behemoth that I nicknamed "Poison Ivy". I found the original TRN VX to be sibilant and shouty and I honestly couldn't use it for more than 5 minutes without EQ or some foam mods. The "Poison Ivy" nickname was in memory of the "female poison" banshee tuning and the VX poison gas monicker. Mind you, the original TRN VX had great technical performance, but different strokes for different folks, I'd rather something with average technicalities + good tonality than outright pure technical brilliance with poor tonality.
Thankfully, the tuning here in the VX Pro is improved from the "Poison Ivy" predecessor. This set is an 8 BA + 1 DD monstrosity.
Accessories are rather good for the price.
Included are:
1) TRN VX Pro IEM
2) 4 Core SPC cable - disappointingly there is no chin cinch, but it is quite usable
3) Hard round case
4) Foam tips x 1 pair
5) Silicone tips S/M/L - there are 2 variants, one has a narrower bore which boosts the bass for me, the other has a wider bore which boosts the upper frequencies for me.
6) 1/4 inch jack
During ordering, you can choose a silver mirror like version, or a navy blue matte version. I got the silver version as per this photo, they are really quite nice, akin to the Moondrop KXXS, HZSound Heart Mirror type of shell. Something different from the usual industrial looking TRNs, but they can be a finger print or scratch magnet, so do be careful if you opt for this version.
Comfort is good, this set is quite ergonomic and light. Unfortunately there is
driver flex.
Isolation is above average.
This set is easy to
drive.
In terms of tuning, the VX Pro is
V shaped, as per most TRN sets.
TRN VX Pro graph, courtesy of KopiOKaya (IEC711 compliant coupler). 8 kHZ area has a resonance peak, but there is also an actual peak on listening.
The TRN VX Pro is midbass focused. The midbass is north of neutral, but not as basshead levels. Subbass extends moderately with a rumble when called for. Unfortunately, there is midbass bleed, this encroaches into the lower mids. The bass is also slow, and not very textured. In songs with fast bass movements, the DD bass may struggle to keep up and I would describe the bass as sounding smeared.
The
midrange is recessed as per the V shaped tuning, upper mids have a slight boost, but thankfully are not shouty like its predecessor, the original VX. Vocals are forward without being too fatiguing.
Treble is moderately extended, but the 8 kHz area is quite emphasized and sibilance is present, with cymbals and highhats being overemphasized and splashy.
In terms of
technicalities:
- Soundstage width is above average, but height and depth are below average.
- Imaging is above average
- Microdetails are quite good
- Instrument separation is below average, possibly it is not aided by the below average soundstage.
BA
timbre is present in the upper frequencies, but not the worst I've heard for a BA. Vocals can be a bit nasal and the note weight on this set is on the thinner side.
Well these are early impressions, will do some burn in and comparisons. FWIW, the VX Pro is improved in tonality from the original VX, but the bass is slow and the 8 kHz can be a bit splashy. I'll see if changing eartips or sources can fix these areas. So far, I think this set is decent, but as we know how fast this CHIFI industry moves (with weekly releases and hypetrains), being decent may mean it can't stand out from the cut-throat competition. Will also do some comparisons against the original VX predecessor, and some multi driver sets at this price bracket and report back.
