So in this last day before new year, i would like to share my memorable findings along 2022:
I didn't buy a lot of things, but the ones that i bought and happy with them are:
- Topping G5 - i bought this to replace my ageing Centrance BlueDAC, not that it needed replacing in the first place as it still sounds great and perform well, but i decided to buy a new unit to keep up with the new tech (usb c, newer codec, etc). Overall the Topping G5 is a great buy and I'm happy with it.
-Raptgo Hook X - i tested it before and really like it, but i didn't buy it initially because i don't want to add more to my collection. But in the end a friend of mine asked if i want to barter his Raptgo with my BlueDAC, so i did. It was definitely a win-win solution for the both of us. This ended up as one of my most used IEMs this year.
-KZ EDA pack - this is definitely a blind purchase, but ended up being surprised. I like all three of them, each for different uses, and tuning wise i even prefer this trio even to other budget heavy hitters like CRA and Salnotes Zero.
- CCA CRA and Salnotes Zero - Even if i preferred the EDAs more, i still think these two are exceptional, performing way up compared to the price i paid for.
Now for things that i found/auditioned and really like along this year are:
-ZMF Aeolus - might not be the most detailed sounding headphones, but the tuning i really like.
-Planar IEM gangs: Timeless, S12, S12 Pro, Hook X, P1 Max, Talos.. I like all of them. The only exception would be the Stellaris, and also some planars that i didn't remember (Kinera if i remember correctly).
-Sennheiser E600 - great sound and technical performance, regardless the driver count.
-7th Acoustic Supernova and Proxima - Supernova tuned similar to the M9 and also performed in similar class, while the Proxima is similar to the ER4XR while having a much better fitting. I haven't heard this company before and surprise that it is in fact from my own country.
- Truthear Hexa - one of the last find of this year. Clean and inoffensive tuning. I'd buy this in a heart beat if i don't have my collections already.
- KZ AS16 Pro - This is also a surprise find. It's one of those IEMs that most of my friends that tried it would guess the price higher than the real price. I'd say it has a "baby U12T" sound sig...Great for stage monitoring on a budget.
I think that's it for this year.. I did tried and tested some more, but mostly not something to my liking or good, but not memorable enough.
All in all, i would like to wish you all a happy new year, and hopefully a more exciting year in our audio hobby!
Happy new year, discovery folks! It was fun.
This year was interesting to me, hobby wise, since I started to receive some support from manufacturers in terms of samples and reviewer discount. Without their support, I would never be insane enough to go out and buy all multiple sources to try. The differences and, at the same time, similarities between sources were eye-opening.
Best sources this year? Shanling M6 Ultra and Fiio K7.
Best IEM this year to me is the one that I expected to dislike, JD7. Yes, this is a sample that I received from Fiio to review. No, there is no incentive to push this IEM since even Fiio does not advertise them. It’s like they don’t want people to know there is a weird single-DD-in-FA7s-shell IEM to avoid confusion. Heck I even sunk extra money for bling bling cable and case to make the most of these IEMs. Best IEM below the Monarch II, IMHO.
My most surprising discovery is modern flathead earbuds. You know how we try very hard to find soundstage, natural tonality, comfort, resolution, etc.? Good flathead earbuds can give you all that at a fraction of IEM price. In fact, $200 is already considered TOTL in buds world, and boy do they trade blow with TOTL in IEM world. Have a try in 2023! They might be your end-game. Keep your eyes on Fiio and TGXear (made by our fellow head-fier
@tgx78).
Small surprise: TWS can sound satisfying. I’m reviewing Fiio FW5. Yes, software is annoying. Yes, the fit might not work for some. But boy of boy they sound like a good semi-open IEM attached to an AKM DAP. The sound is so spacious and 3D that I can almost forgive the annoying software. Just almost.
. This was an interesting clip. He finally showed his face. Not trying to get him attention for his antics but rather feedback on his information he is discussing. Interesting but I am not informed enough. Looking for check on his facts.
I have only skimmed Resolve’s video, but I have absolutely zero interest in hearing anything from the PoS ER2SE shiller (or whatever he fancies nowadays). Now, I’m usually a moderate guy (I hope), so I allow myself an exception here
Btw, on one hand, we have people who have skin in the game, who actually build measurement rig with genuine equipments, who get in touch with Sean Olive all the time. On the other hand, we have a guy with running mouth (and an empty head). I know who to listen to.
But yeah, target is closely tied to the measurement tool. You can’t compare the graphs from different rigs, so you can’t compare graph against target from a different rig either. That’s why you need to be careful when using the autoEQ function on squiglink.
Harman IE target, for example, was built on an IEC711 coupler, so they have no conclusion above 10k, thus they sloped everything down. Knowles redo the experiment with new coupler that is accurate to 20k and found that you need to add a big bump in air region (a.k.a. 64 Audio TIA treble style).
