[Surf Monkey]

My advice: swim to the side frequently, maybe even spend some time at the riverside and watch it all go by. You may find yourself more grateful for the view.

100% this.

 

[nikbr]

My advice: swim to the side frequently, maybe even spend some time at the riverside and watch it all go by. You may find yourself more grateful for the view.

Such simple yet meaningful messages make me appreciate this community even more.

And this can be upscaled to life in general. Take a moment, slow down the pace, and watch the frenzy rush by through a third person's view.

 

[o0genesis0o]

Look, the data speaks for itself. If everything is 'good', nothing is."

The point is, most audio products are indeed “good” today. Not passable. But good. Say, I put the Blessing 2 as the benchmark of 3/5 on various aspect. And most IEMs in the last 6 months or so match or exceed that benchmark. Does that mean THE super hyped Blessing 2 is not a good IEM?

It should be the case that not everything is 5/5, because when everything is 5/5, nothing is 5/5.

On an unrelated note, I did try to scale the data so that Blessing 2 is 2/5. My whole ranking list just looks obnoxious and try hard, tbh (“oooh, my taste is so advanced, the Blessing 2 are only mediocre 2/5 to me, all other legendary and widely respected IEMs are merely acceptable”)

---

The Simgot EM6-L Phoenix (does anyone remember this IEM? The Simgot hybrid? Lots of hype, no longer mention?) has landed yesterday.

In some sense, this IEM is the quintessential of the hyper active budget end of the market, IMHO:

• Harman targeted but without the bad idea 250Hz dip: check
• Clear and crisp note definition: check
• Decent bass response: check
• Decent though not spectacular imaging: check
• Budget friendly: check

Looking back, it’s kind of incredible how fast this industry has moved. This IEM is a far cry from the ones available when I started this “hobby”, which is not that long ago. I’m quite impressed by the packaging and presentation as well.

Will share graphs and more detailed write up in the upcoming days.

Meanwhile, I have a ZiiGaat Cinno coming from Linsoul. Very eager to put the EM6-L and Cinno side by side. These IEMs and the companies behind them feel like long lost twins to me.

I haven’t done any critical listening / benchmark yet, but I predict a 3.5/5 absolute rating and an 3/5 subjective rating for both. We will see.

Edit: forgot to mention, the Simgot is sent directly by Simgot themselves. Much appreciated for letting me try, and I’ll give them a thorough and detailed test.

 

[brsdrgn]

Video comparing Simgot EA1000 and Hidizs MP145.

Surprising conclusion, IMO.

I see he's struggling with describing that classic planar well controlled bass. Sometimes too much controlled that the delicious wet bass you're expecting interestingly stops at some point and you're left like 'ha?'. Could it be that maybe the dreams of the bassheads come from a little less controlled lower end with that sweet distortion? Maybe, i don't wanna speculate



He should see also from the graph that there's a slight roll off in the lower end so it needs to be EQ a little bit to get the best out of it.

Planars have that characteristic that the diaphragm will sit in its place much quicker than DDs. I might be explaining wrong so please take this with a pinch of salt. The ground is running through diaphragm and the magnets playing that pulling factor given certain energy coming through cable. I think the ones in front responsible for main kick towards the ear drum meanwhile the ones behind helping it take back to its origin. So the diaphragm is not going unnecessarily back end forth like in DDs. I believe it's harder to calm it down with a coil attached from behind only. Well the diaphragm is being hold by edges in planars so might say it's harder to do with it. Imho the more magnets(or the better) you use, the better control and less THD you manage.

I might be wrong again. I'd appreciate an acoustic engineer out there explaining us.

Mp 145 is indeed very spacious. He seems to like silver filter and actually that's only filter without any fabric mesh behind just the metallic filter visible in the end of the nozzle.


When I buy headphones, i always keep their box but sometimes if I see some usable material inside, I take them. For example these foams you see. I don't pay extra to buy cut nozzle foams from places like Ae. I rather use these depending on the characteristics and sound I manage to get.

I didn't like red filter. Too much dampening. Gold is fine but not quite there. With silver you're basically leaving your ear drum face to face with planar. What I did with mp145 is that I took out outside metallic filter and I inserted a light foam into the nozzle. I wouldn't use any filter at all but the design is stupid a little with nozzle+filter system. There's no lips that will hold the tips from sliding being stuck in your ear, so I have to have that filter on to stabilize the tips.

Now mp145 has deeper bass slightly softened treble. I hear plenty of details. Sony and Jvc uses the foam trick quite a lot in their IEMs. And I know why. They're better a calming the treble meanwhile the soundwaves hitting that foam inner layers and dissolving nicely. Also it helps with driver flex. Foam compansates it a little.

 

[bithalver]

The river ever flows. One’s choice is simply when to jump in and when to get out.

There is a book about this:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/66354.Flow

 

[FreeWheelinAudioLuv2]

lol, I grabbed my pair before coming into the office today. Got them in my ears now and was sitting here thinking these are ruined by the mid-bass. Then I read your post....

IKR! I pull mine out, after I see mentions, and like that kid who keeps getting his fingers burned on the stove, it's almost like "will the mid bass be gone?" LOL Nope!

 

[brsdrgn]

For fun I ordered the Qkz Ck8 for 3,46 euro. The box says hi-res. Guess what. They don’t sound bad. A little good even. This is crazy

Kz ZSE, is that you?

Kz used to ship for additional 1$ payment along with the other IEMs you buy.

 

[ian91]

Such simple yet meaningful messages make me appreciate this community even more.

And this can be upscaled to life in general. Take a moment, slow down the pace, and watch the frenzy rush by through a third person's view.

Without wanting to divert the Discovery Thread away from what some might prefer to see (more IEMs), I just want to share my own experience with this. I have spent more money than I care to admit chasing smaller returns to find my 'perfect' sound. Could I tell you exactly what I was chasing? Would I know if I had found it? How long would I be satisfied for? The more I buy, the more critical I become, the less certain my answers and the more fleeting my satisfaction. It's so easy to get swept up with the pace of life, product cycles and stimulus overload these days, I feel the most valuable thing is a mindfulness of my own habits and being inquisitive when it comes to my own motivations in the search for 'satisfaction'. If I slow down and let my attention settle, there's a gratitude and contentment there that I hadn't acknowledged and the more I explore it, the healthier this hobby becomes for me.

In short, yes; slow down, protect your self-awareness and nurture the fulfilment you already feel because it's probably plenty.

Sorry! Back to normal programming!

 

[cobrabucket]

Without wanting to divert the Discovery Thread away from what some might prefer to see (more IEMs), I just want to share my own experience with this. I have spent more money than I care to admit chasing smaller returns to find my 'perfect' sound. Could I tell you exactly what I was chasing? Would I know if I had found it? How long would I be satisfied for? The more I buy, the more critical I become, the less certain my answers and the more fleeting my satisfaction. It's so easy to get swept up with the pace of life, product cycles and stimulus overload these days, I feel the most valuable thing is a mindfulness of my own habits and being inquisitive when it comes to my own motivations in the search for 'satisfaction'. If I slow down and let my attention settle, there's a gratitude and contentment there that I hadn't acknowledged and the more I explore it, the healthier this hobby becomes for me.

In short, yes; slow down, protect your self-awareness and nurture the fulfilment you already feel because it's probably plenty.

Sorry! Back to normal programming!

Beautiful words, my friend!

 

[FreeWheelinAudioLuv2]

I'm a newbie around here, but for the short time I've followed this thread I've seen a sudden drop in the chillness of the vibes in here. Is a rotation of random beefs the usual in here? Maybe I happened to start following during an abnormally chill period in the thread?

No. It's just that people want to overanalyze posts, take their paranoia, and impose that on the thread. It's happening in a comic book group I belong to. This very type of "beefing". All it takes is for a cable to be mentioned, a tip to be mentioned, an IEM to be mentioned, a DAP to be mentioned, or a dongle, and if it's getting any kind of traction or kind words, instead of agreeing to it, saying thank you, or just saying "i'll reserve comment until I've actually listened to it", there's always some paranoid take, negative comment, or over-analysis of what a poster actually means when they post something or their true intentions. It gets annoying tbh, but we keep coming back. Nature of the beast, my friend. Nature of the beast.

 

[Ace Bee]

For those who're interested in DD under 1k, I made a video comparing FAudio Spring with Timsok TS-316. Feel free to check it out!



Will keep making more audition videos. Subscribe!

Really nice comparative video, although I only noted the differences between the sounds, since that's what's important. The TS-316 seems to be a solid contender.

 

[Redcarmoose]

The Quintet is more detailed but at the expense of some possible brightness, but pretty much OK. Just that it depends how you take brightness. There is also a kind of a slow getting used to how it performs, where at first listen the Quintet can seem slightly synthetic, but then as burn-in takes place and getting used to the sound, it becomes more natural. This primarily has to due with personal perception of upper timbre, I think? Through mids are ever-so-slightly less involved than some in IEMs in the same price range? Still the Hybrid displacement of all the imaging and just the bigness of display is something to behold, as ultimately it is one of the top performers of the year, as far as value per dollar/sound goes. Especially if you’re game for the style of treble involvement the Quintet offers. Bass is well separated, as is the treble imaging. And while the bass is defined, it’s detail is probably not the Quintet’s strong points, yet it is fun and gets the job done well.....especially through Hybrid separation in the mix! Some think they can hear the different drivers, showcasing a special tone per driver character, but I don’t, it sounds while still separated in Hybrid form, still very together, especially when you get used to it. Ultimately the Quintet is throughly intoxicating, in my opinion.

The Hype2 comes off more unified and bass laden than the Quintet (read warmer) yet displays a special charm too. Where better midrange takes the cake over the Quintet, yet both could be considered complementary, I listen to the Quintet more, but that’s just me. The Hype2 is smoother and offering a more accessible tune maybe? Less rough edges or separation in the mix. The Hype2 offers this style of monolithic tone, where all is one. Where there is (still) both a midrange and treble clarity, the details seem to fall in line with no rough edges somehow connected to the bass? The treble is definitely different in showcasing a smoother less detailed treble experience, yet the magic is that the Hype2 treble seems totally adequate, yet not as showy as what the Quintet does 24/7.

Never try the pro version.

But the TRI i3 OG for the lovers of dark sound... is really pleasant to listen.

I hope KBEAR/Tri find the way to make nice iems again.

DIAMOND, BELIEVE, TRI I3 (or the starlight, wich is a rebranded 07 with more treble) are really nice sets.


Yeah it looks like an HYPE, but more relaxed, nope?

Im curious about THIEAUDIO or KIWI EARS... Im thinking about the QUINTER or the HYPE (the one that cost around 300)

What would you recommend, folks?

 

[ianfann]

That pair looks dope!

Would u share some impressions of them? Btw, they got frequency graph from any reviewer?

https://ianfann.squig.link/?share=KIWIEARS_FORTEZA

 

[theintention]

insane posts in here to come back to, ima just... move on. Headphones are cool right? sick.

I am still waiting for Quattro.

 

[ToneDeafMonk]

insane posts in here to come back to, ima just... move on. Headphones are cool right? sick.

I am still waiting for Quattro.

Still no update from PENON on the Quattro, last word was the DD for the highs were getting swapped out. So probably delayed for proper tuning.

Really looking forward to hearing this one of the rumors are true and it tuned more neutral ish!