[Surf Monkey]

In 8 years i haven't broken a single 2.5mm jack

Lucky.

 

[FreeWheelinAudioLuv2]

So i'm wondering how this IEM got swept under the rug? With the recent CCA CM20 or whatever it's called being released, I decided to pull out my CCA NRA and give them a relisten on the DX170. 1 EST+1 DD for $25.00. Excellent treble and the mids are great. The bass is there. It has presence and never gets wooly or bleeds. I suspect it's the average imaging and lack of depth that might had done them in. The soundstage is wide left to right but lacked height and a 3D presentation, but if you're not a stickler for imaging and depth, these are some fun and well detailed cheapos. Balanced. Really good resolution and detail retrieval for a sub $30.00 offering. Daily beaters? Yeah. You could definitely go wronger. <--- is that a word? LOL

 

[r31ya]

So i'm wondering how this IEM got swept under the rug? With the recent CCA CM20 or whatever it's called being released, I decided to pull out my CCA NRA and give them a relisten on the DX170. 1 EST+1 DD for $25.00. Excellent treble and the mids are great. The bass is there. It has presence and never gets wooly or bleeds. I suspect it's the average imaging and lack of depth that might had done them in. The soundstage is wide left to right but lacked height and a 3D presentation, but if you're not a stickler for imaging and depth, these are some fun and well detailed cheapos. Balanced. Really good resolution and detail retrieval for a sub $30.00 offering. Daily beaters? Yeah. You could definitely go wronger. <--- is that a word? LOL

It got buried by KZ/CCA quick release,
Shortly after NRA release we got KZ ZEX released and later the super hyped KZ ZEX Pro appears.
Then KZ/CCA got hit by the controversy.

that being said, plenty NRA owner like it and some still prefer it compared to its younger sibling

 

[jmwant]

man the build quality of SMSL DACs is superb. Although I find their amps kinda dry(Previously had the SH9).

I'm thinking about getting the DA-9 or A0200 to replace my Topping PA3S. This little amp powers up the KEF Q350 quite adequately but it's nowhere near the McIntosh monoblocks I demod the KEFs with. I think a bit more power would help. Is the dry sounding thing their house sound?

 

[Redcarmoose]

Just wanted to ask if the Celeste is available in India? the wild lazy dog according to Red

The playful dog, also a little cute!

 

[jmwant]

I was considering the Q1 when I bought the R2. Glad I heard about Hiby's dubious battery history before I bought an upgrade. Their DACs seem fine and I don't feel as nervous about buying their products without batteries (FD1, FD3 and FC3).

I have heard their higher end Android daps, like the R5S and R8. Those sound pretty good. Their lower-end daps should be considered only for Hibylink. Yeah the FC3 sounds great.

 

[jmwant]

mine too. imagine that.

It's a common issues that plagues most of their entry level daps. They replaced my unit though.

 

[jmwant]

Did anybody end up ordering the SGOR Venus?

Why does KZ have so many sub-brands?

 

[yaps66]

My little colourful discoveries of the day: QKZ AK6 pro ($5.5) and X7, misrepresented as KZ X7, ($4.5))

Very decent, close to KZ EDX, much better than some unlistenable right out of the box TRN, such as MT1 (I bought it for parts so no problems with listenability on my part).
QKZ has more prominent bass, so I liked X7 a bit better, though it has a fixed cable being a bit cheaper.

Both are very listenable out of the the phone, better with the Apple dongle and scale a bit more with Tempotec E44.

So decent DDs propagate down the IEM chain, and $5 listening experience can be quite enjoyable nowadays

The X7 reminds me of the Isabellae! Nice!

 

[newworld666]

I'm thinking about getting the DA-9 or A0200 to replace my Topping PA3S. This little amp powers up the KEF Q350 quite adequately but it's nowhere near the McIntosh monoblocks I demod the KEFs with. I think a bit more power would help. Is the dry sounding thing their house sound?

I use mostly the SMSL SU-9 + SD-9 with a monolith THX887 as headphone amp for demanding headphones like DCA Stealth and Heddphone One V2...

I think I still get some improvement with this combo over my Fiio M17 + iFi iPower Elite 12V in enhanced audio mode for impacts in low frequencies.. of course such SMSL combo is something like "dry". I prefer to say such combo is totally transparent and powerful enough for any headphones or IEM.
Basically, I don't expect any electronic devices to modify in any way the input signal.. I prefer to adjust sound to my taste with the players trough Poweramp EQ, Wavelet, or Jriver 30's PEQ... et never with any electronic amp or DAC.

 

[baskingshark]

The latest ultra-budget IEM wars heat up with the Tangzu Audio Wanker Wan'er

$16.50 USD

Single DD

https://www.facebook.com/tangzuaudi...xsqTAS1sksRV3gtWiFduSdjeg7gmpJe5tDeFSMMYh7fRl

Why does KZ have so many sub-brands?

It is their modus operandi.
1) Release IEMs on an almost weekly basis.
2) Call the new model "Pro" or "Ultra" or "X".
3) New model is generally a marginal upgrade or sidegrade.
4) Consumers be the guinea pig beta testers to garner feedback.
5) Rinse and repeat.

End-goal: Throw as much stuff on the wall and something will finally stick.


As for sub-brands, I guess in case one brand gets lots of stick for bad QC fails or failed tuning, you can easily close that brand, a new fly-by-night one mushrooms out next week to continue operations.

 

[Carpet]

The latest ultra-budget IEM wars heat up with the Tangzu Audio Wanker Wan'er

$16.50 USD

Single DD



https://www.facebook.com/tangzuaudi...xsqTAS1sksRV3gtWiFduSdjeg7gmpJe5tDeFSMMYh7fRl

Of course the big question is... "why QDC?"

Everything else was 0.78 2pin

 

[Jmop]

I rather like the idea of who can make the most expensive looking dirt cheap IEM.

 

[o0genesis0o]

Looking for new DAC/AMP to power your portable gear? My review of Shanling UP4 2022 is finally online on both Head-Fi and my review blog.

Spoiler: tl;dr:

UP4 is a competent and well-designed product. I love the volume wheel. For casual listeners, UP4 can handle most of your music listening needs and give you a bit of room for future upgrades with the 2.5mm balanced output. For seasoned listeners, UP4 offers various sound signatures that you can change on the fly.

Sound quality wise, UP4 slots neatly between the Apple dongle (3/5 - Average) and Fiio KA3 (4/5 - Good). The excellent handling and enjoyable user experience is a big plus. On the other hand, audio delay does limit UP4 usability. Taken all aspects into consideration, I rate UP4 3.5/5 (above average).

 

[baskingshark]

From the company that brought the Muse HIFI Power Planar (which seemed quite meh among the current planar releases of 2022), comes a hybrid, the Muse HIFI ME1

• 10 mm Dynamic Driver & Knowles Flagship BA Driver
• Acoustic Shark-Gill Chamber & Ergonomic Design
• $199 USD

https://www.linsoul.com/collections/all/products/muse-hifi-me1


Not sure if the shark gill housing (yes i know my nick has a shark inside), is a gimmick or actually something that really gives good sound. But $200 USD is quite an ambitious price bracket to release your gear into, considering there's lots of tough competition to fight against here.