[helloh3adfi]

I use my tablet for burn-in, only for some burn-in sensitive dynamic drivers.

I'm using a Raspberry Pi + dongles for that. What is more energy efficient?

 

[o0genesis0o]

Fiios new FH15 sounds great. It doesn't surprise me though. Everything they made this year be it a source or IEM or Bud all of it has been a level up from previous efforts. It is like if you work for Fiio they make you improve everything about a product to be released. These guys haven't made one bad or mediocre product this entire year. It is automatic with these guys.

Somehow I got a feeling if anyone next year will raise the bar in what you can buy at all levels of the game. It will be Fiio. FH15 don't sound like what they are asking for a set let me put it that way. A nicely refined sounding hybrid at $229.

Haven't checked out their new bud the FF5 yet but I am looking forward to busting that box open soon to check them out as well.

Fiio is doing a great job this year across all fronts. I was not too keen on their FH5s so let’s see how their FH15 fare.

 

[MVVp]

Earlier in the thread I commented on the lack of bass in the NF Audio RA10. After doing some tip rolling I finally found tips that make this iem sound quite good: Moondrop Spin Tips in XL size. Now they are great to sleep with. Still not the solution for bass heads, but very comfortable because of the tiny size, and natural sounding.

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Conducting some data mining for AFUL.
Oh Boy…this company is not a joke…even if their name AFUL sounds like a joke, it’s just Aful’s scientists/engineers shortcoming.

A solid academic research project, backed by many patents.

Four years of obscurity, it may have been cold for other brands, but AFUL persisted. Basic technology has been developed for three years, and the product has been iteratively upgraded for more than a year. BAND5 and BAND8 with three breakthrough technologies have been produced, which were amazing at the Chengdu Headphone Show. In addition, in 2020, AFUL's acoustic technology was recognized and recommended by the Institute of Acoustics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, representing China's latest acoustic research results at the seminar on acoustic technology in China and Denmark.

I guess I may chip in for Band8, Performer 8 or hopefully future Performer 13 (12BA + 1 LCP)

HiFiGo should have elaborate on this solid science project in the header…rather than put the random template flowery wording we see on all products

Note: Chinese Academy of Science is not a joke department, it's the mother of Chinese NASA, AI, and many other leading sectors in modern science. My grandfather was a one of the Chinese Academy of Science board, so I'm 120% certain. Acknowledgment from CAS would need "serious" and "proven" solid achievement.

 

[helloh3adfi]

Still the naming is just awful. Is this supposed to be a gag like Schiit?

 

[r31ya]

Conducting some data mining for AFUL. Boy…this company is not a joke…




A solid academic research project, backed by many patents.

Four years of obscurity, it may have been cold for other brands, but AFUL persisted. Basic technology has been developed for three years, and the product has been iteratively upgraded for more than a year. BAND5 and BAND8 with three breakthrough technologies have been produced, which were amazing at the Chengdu Headphone Show. In addition, in 2020, AFUL's acoustic technology was recognized and recommended by the Institute of Acoustics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, representing China's latest acoustic research results at the seminar on acoustic technology in China and Denmark.

I guess I may chip in for Band8, Performer 8 or hopefully future Performer 13 (12BA + 1 LCP)

HiFiGo should have elaborate this solid science project to the header…rather than put random template flowery wording we see on all products

If i recalled it right, Band8 is 1DD+3 high freq BA+4mid freq BA.
it was posted here shortwhile ago.

 

[o0genesis0o]

Conducting some data mining for AFUL. Boy…this company is not a joke…




A solid academic research project, backed by many patents.

Four years of obscurity, it may have been cold for other brands, but AFUL persisted. Basic technology has been developed for three years, and the product has been iteratively upgraded for more than a year. BAND5 and BAND8 with three breakthrough technologies have been produced, which were amazing at the Chengdu Headphone Show. In addition, in 2020, AFUL's acoustic technology was recognized and recommended by the Institute of Acoustics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, representing China's latest acoustic research results at the seminar on acoustic technology in China and Denmark.

I guess I may chip in for Band8, Performer 8 or hopefully future Performer 13 (12BA + 1 LCP)

HiFiGo should have elaborate this solid science project to the header…rather than put random template flowery wording we see on all products

Not directly related, but my Awful P5 has already been shipped. This is a new batch. Finger crossed. Can’t wait to hear these IEMs

 

[r31ya]

Didn't know who this guy is, but i found early impression on CCA FLA

Icenerds Coffee early impression on CCA FLA

Just a little bit of my impression on the CCA FLA
I'll just try my best to describe what i hear.

-smooth sounding
-mid bass pounds hard and goes deep while maintaining good speed.
-sub bass lingers a little longer making it great for watching movies.
-the midrange is recessed but has clarity almost reaching Aria levels.
-treble is average, smooth without any siblance.
-to my ears, the sound signature is bassy, with balanced mids and treble.
-less than average isolation due to an open back design
-covering the vents doesn't change the sound

[compared to other IEMs in perspective from the other IEMs, i think]
vs. Salnotes Zero
- has less bass but more clarity in the mids
- treble is a bit more sibilant
vs. Moondrop Aria
- has less bass
- has more treble
- better mids
- better tonal balance
- clarity and resolution almost similar
vs. blon 03
- maybe midrange is better?
- inferior clarity, resolution and overall sound quality
vs. kz zs10 pro, cca ca10, cca NRA, kz zex pro
- has better layering
- inferior in other aspects
vs. Thieaudio Legacy 3
- has better layering and soundstage
- both are smooth sounding
- a bit better midrange
- inferior in other aspects
vs. CCA CRA
- has better layering and soundstage
- better U shape sound signature
- has less bass and more sibilant treble
vs. HZ SOUND Heart Mirror
- sounds thin
- better clarity in the mids
vs. Reecho SG-01
- has better mid bass though lacking sub bass
- has smooth and sparkly treble
- midrange sounds thin

 

[saldsald]

But I agree that cheap IEM has gotten so good recently that it kind of doesn’t matter which one you pick. The manufacturers (most of them) have mastered formula: decent DD + beautiful graph (Harman-ish, warmer or colder to taste) + collab = money. They are so interchangeable so any of the decent ones can be “best under $50”.

I agree and makers need to come up with new drivers instead to attract buyers like myself.

 

[AmericanSpirit]

If i recalled it right, Band8 is 1DD+3 high freq BA+4mid freq BA.
it was posted here shortwhile ago.

great, I also posted the Band8 review from a Chinese source, a while ago. 4Mid is actually my "must" line.

AFUL Performer 8 review, original text In chinese, google translated.

Unfortunately the pictures/images are only available in original content, google translate cut those pics out.

FR of Performer8 (Band 8)

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Not directly related, but my Awful P5 has already been shipped. This is a new batch. Finger crossed. Can’t wait to hear these IEMs

Just a note, the bass dd sounds very muddy right out of the box. Even at 30hrs of burn-in I still hear it.

Hope you get P5 soon! The rumble of the bass is something worth trying.

 

[ChrisOc]

Don’t mean to offend, but I just read this comment again and it feels … bitter

But I agree that cheap IEM has gotten so good recently that it kind of doesn’t matter which one you pick. The manufacturers (most of them) have mastered formula: decent DD + beautiful graph (Harman-ish, warmer or colder to taste) + collab = money. They are so interchangeable so any of the decent ones can be “best under $50”.

Here is the thing. If you are a newbie looking for your first sub $50 IEM, it doesn’t matter which one you pick and reviews would only confuse you further. Most of these are decent stuffs that can reward you good listening experience. Moreover, they can be so drastically different from you usual supermarket earbuds that they don’t sound good to you (which is fine, move on, have a saner hobby ) If you are a veteran, then the “best sub $50” is pointless because they might not fit your ears and your library.

Oh well, the good thing is you can have good listening experience at any budget nowadays, which is good.



I highly doubt that we will see high-end wired IEM from AKG ever again. After all, we are a (dying) niche. If you look at reddit, you will regularly see people posting like “I have just bought Hifiman / Sennheiser this and amplifier that and I hear no difference from my ANC headphone”. Imagine the ridicule if Samsung spends money and time to develop and release a kilobuck 9-driver IEM that requires wired and have no ANC.

As much as we kick and scream, the future is wireless and DSP. I heard from some manufacturers how much they worry about the potential disruption of these TWS when the bluetooth technology mature. The R&D prowess and investment of big techs cannot be underestimated either. Whatever R&D lab of Moondrop or Dunu or Fiio, Apple and Samsung would likely have a bigger and better one.

You are so right! Why are all the audio manufacturers making wireless headphones and earphones, because we are a dying breed. Most of what we buy will be vintage in no time.

From the other end, wireless tech is improving fast. Music streaming is mainstream and gaining in popularity. A bit more improvement in LDAC, AptX and we (audio enthusiasts) are relics of the past.

Tell a "layman" you are an audio enthusiast and the first thing they ask is a recommendation for a good set of headphones or earphones with ANC! You say, you are into wired sets and you get a weird look.

The huge companies are moving fast, with huge budgets churning out good imitations of audiophile gear. Above all it does not make financial sense to focus on audio enthusiasts, when there is a huge "lay" consumer market waiting for good quality sound.....why would Apple, Sony, Samsung bother to invest so much money in audio otherwise? They, ("lay" consumers) enjoy music just as much as we do, they can tell good sound......sorry, but not long to go before we become dinosaurs.

 

[PhonoPhi]

You are so right! Why are all the audio manufacturers making wireless headphones and earphones, because we are a dying breed. Most of what we buy will be vintage in no time.

From the other end, wireless tech is improving fast. Music streaming is mainstream and gaining in popularity. A bit more improvement in LDAC, AptX and we (audio enthusiasts) are relics of the past.

Tell a "layman" you are an audio enthusiast and the first thing they ask is a recommendation for a good set of headphones or earphones with ANC! You say, you are into wired sets and you get a weird look.

The huge companies are moving fast, with huge budgets churning out good imitations of audiophile gear. Above all it does not make financial sense to focus on audio enthusiasts, when there is a huge "lay" consumer market waiting for good quality sound.....why would Apple, Sony, Samsung bother to invest so much money in audio otherwise? They, ("lay" consumers) enjoy music just as much as we do, they can tell good sound......sorry, but not long to go before we become dinosaurs.

Why so closet-gloomy?

Transducers are still needed. The lithium battery capacities are at the limits. So some part of the wireless would be power-efficient compact earbuds delivering decent sound (like Airpods), and then, catered to "audiophiles", - a bit more heavy wireless adapters to power all your IEMs! As well, there are devices like BTR3K, BTR5, BTR7 - from tiny and decent to more powerful and capable to avoid too much wires.
All is good

 

[ChrisOc]

Why so closet-gloomy?

Transducers are still needed. The lithium battery capacities are at the limits. So some part of the wireless would be power-efficient compact earbuds delivering decent sound (like Airpods), and then, catered to "audiophiles", - a bit more heavy wireless adapters to power all your IEMs! As well, there are devices like BTR3K, BTR5, BTR7 - from tiny and decent to more powerful and capable to avoid too much wires.
All is good

I hope we have many more years of fun in our audio Shangri-la but it is the future I see.

Great to have a chin up.

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Don’t mean to offend, but I just read this comment again and it feels … bitter

But I agree that cheap IEM has gotten so good recently that it kind of doesn’t matter which one you pick. The manufacturers (most of them) have mastered formula: decent DD + beautiful graph (Harman-ish, warmer or colder to taste) + collab = money. They are so interchangeable so any of the decent ones can be “best under $50”.

Here is the thing. If you are a newbie looking for your first sub $50 IEM, it doesn’t matter which one you pick and reviews would only confuse you further. Most of these are decent stuffs that can reward you good listening experience. Moreover, they can be so drastically different from you usual supermarket earbuds that they don’t sound good to you (which is fine, move on, have a saner hobby ) If you are a veteran, then the “best sub $50” is pointless because they might not fit your ears and your library.

Oh well, the good thing is you can have good listening experience at any budget nowadays, which is good.



I highly doubt that we will see high-end wired IEM from AKG ever again. After all, we are a (dying) niche. If you look at reddit, you will regularly see people posting like “I have just bought Hifiman / Sennheiser this and amplifier that and I hear no difference from my ANC headphone”. Imagine the ridicule if Samsung spends money and time to develop and release a kilobuck 9-driver IEM that requires wired and have no ANC.

As much as we kick and scream, the future is wireless and DSP. I heard from some manufacturers how much they worry about the potential disruption of these TWS when the bluetooth technology mature. The R&D prowess and investment of big techs cannot be underestimated either. Whatever R&D lab of Moondrop or Dunu or Fiio, Apple and Samsung would likely have a bigger and better one.

Yea agree that point of view as well. From someone who doesn’t know what a decent good sound is, their effortless bet is finding someone knowledgeable to that field and try one of their recommendations, if it hit ones spot, they start to follow and relying radar detection with “follower”’s talent. It’s very energy & time efficient thing we all do to our life in certain aspects. Relying on other’s hand.

I’m criticizing HBB for being that radar and providing a random assessment for “average” IEM as “best”.

He has extensive knowledge and experience to tell the difference between “medicore” and “outstanding”, knowing that facts and still recommended “medicore” isn’t a thing that can be praised.

For AKG…yes…my hope is only a hope, knowing that probably will not happen. Another reason I dipped my hard earned money for an IEM rated “B” by Crin which usually he does pay attention to non-C grade rating.

Result was “ah Crin’s subjective evaluation is purely based on his preference. Not actual performance” . Pretty rewarding.

As a side story of not having any hope for N5005’s successor: My company hired two former-harman employees. Of course they have NDAs with previous employer so there will not be any of confidentiality breach, but still you can see the re-organization of harman is already taking place.