For anyone that may be interested.
This will be my last comment so others that don’t care please bear with me
Today I spent three hours with my switch box set up to blind compare my iFi Diablo with my Dethonray Clarinet, the former fed by coaxial and the latter by optical from an SMSL digital to digital converter (DDC) run off an iPad Mini 6 so they were running the same music in perfect sync.
I used my AüR Audio Ascension which have DD for bass and EST for treble so I figure should be quite revealing of differences in sound at both ends.
Honestly, I went into this thinking the Dethonray had a different sound signature to other devices I own with an intentional V oriented tuning rather than aiming for neutral.
Well, it took a bit of fiddling to get the volumes matched but once I did there was no discernible difference in tonality, staging, dynamics or any other measure by which I might judge sound. Flicking the switch resulted in a seamless flow of identical music despite my preconception that the Dethonray did something different. Even passages of music with obvious soundstage features like a far away instrument or some such were identical, flicking one device to the other the sound was rock solid in its virtual location.
I was a bit disappointed that the Clarinet failed to deliver the different sound that I perceived it had but I guess I should be happy that it matches the much more expensive Diablo at least in sound if not in user experience
Something that was interesting given the difficulty getting the volumes perfectly matched with basic volume pots on both devices, was just how impactful a tiny difference in volume is. A very small difference in volume that with even just a moments pause between listening would not even be recognised as a volume difference would impact the perception of overall clarity and bass impact in particular. Match the volumes and the differences disappeared.
I know most are not especially interested in this sort of stuff but it takes very little experimenting with the switcher to demonstrate just how fickle, and dare I say it faulty, perception of sound can be and how unreliable uncontrolled comparisons are.
The switcher cost about $20 USD but is going to save me a great deal more than that knowing that other source gear is likely to provide nothing tangible unless I need the features or use case preferences.
YMMV of course but without giving it a go you can’t know
You are welcome to believe what you want Nik but until you carry out the same blind volume matched comparison you really don’t know.
You are human and therefore not immune to the psychological effects of expectations, biases etc so saying you are certain your perception isn’t faulty is technically inaccurate, you have no way to remove biases so no way to know if you are right or wrong. I am not being smart or critical that is just fact, we are all human.
I also previously believed sources sounded notably different until I realised my perceptions were inconsistent and I started doing more rigorous assessment to understand why. The switcher is only the latest attempt to refine such assessment and is even more telling.
Why don’t you simply spend $20 or so and find out for yourself ? The switcher even comes with some cables so you don’t need to spend more money on those. You have nothing to lose and you will learn something one way or the other. Your young hearing would no doubt give you an advantage over me but even if you could differentiate between devices I suspect you would not experience the degree of certainty you think you would.
I thought to reply to your "last comment" but you made it pretty hard to do for quite some time
Your tests are clearly subjective despite a truly objective switch box. You report your personal impressions that can't be objectively reproduced by anyone in the same controlled conditions since no one can have your ears and your brain.
For the records, I do have a switch box, even two actually - one with four channels and volume control.
The main reason I found A/B tests of this nature hard and limitedly practical is the
volume matching.
I found volume matching by ear nearly impossible to accomplish. Only some instrumental measurements - either total integrated power or using test signal at a given frequency, e.g. 1 kHz, worked objectively and still not perfect due to different limitations of the transducer matching.
Your matching by ear implies superimposing your ear sensitivity curve with your transducer frequency response that you then use to match and test sources - hopefully, one can see the limitations.
Then, no point to argue about different sources sounding the same. I can write many words of my experience and the journey into the rabbit hole - searching for some light in the end of the tunnel starting with the source strongly shaping IEM preferences/selection.
Just a simple example:
One source that I have is with the volume stage expansion switch. If the manufacturer opts to make two different sources instead of the switch - they would be very easy to distinguish in blind and semi-deaf A/B-ing.
Any source inevitably has some DSP processing/rendering.
Source manufacturers have the same motivation to make all sources sound the same, as distilleries crafting all whiskey to taste the same
Also, by the same logic of the overdriven minds of the sound science forum here - violins made to the same dimensions should sound the same - just the same design, wood and strings, right
That was my most recent A/B tests - I could distinguish the sound of the two violins despite the best imitation efforts
In the last few days my musical children were AB-ing violin bows - final selection are $2k & 3k ones borrowed for a week for the final decision. Diminishing returns are amazing, and I now start to understand and appreciate more $1k+ IEMs that require some listening skills to fully appreciate, similar to violins and bows.
Received KBEAR Cepheus KB16 yesterday. It is a quite impressive. Sound profile is more close to OH700VB than to SR9. KB16 has more coherent sound and also treble extension, airiness. I think it deserves more attention especially if you can get it on discount price.
Exactly, I struggled a bit to put together a review of KBEar KB16: first, because of its MSRP price, and second for I really like it's specific pairing with Questyle M15C that made many hybrids to sound faster and punchy to my subjectivity liking.
My
disclosure here: KB16 was kindly provided by KeepHiFi as to replace faulty ZA12 (with two options of either replacing ZA12 or providing new KB16 offered few weeks upon its release; clearly not a review sample, explicitedly stated - so a courtesy of KeepHiFi that I do appreciate). I did not know MSRP (and would possibly decline this kind offer since I have very few $200+ IEMs to compare). Hence, I struggled a bit with the KB16 evaluation that I put together below.
Even with brighter and more revealing sources, I did not find too much "airness" with KB16. The last octave is notably smoothened along meta tuning lines.
KB16 does not feel much demanding for the sources power. I loved Questyle M15C. My favourite Plus4 worked very well. KA17 felt nicely rich, even without its power mode. Not the Apple dongle (relatively low impedance of KB16), while most balanced Cirrus did a very good job delivering at least 80-85% of KB16 capabilities (for the record, I would not recommend buying any $150+ IEM without at least $70+ sources. Source costing slightly more than IEMs worked well for me, YMMV.)
KB16's DDs are very nice to my ears (and I am definitively a person with BA preferences), no tubbyness and linear.
I do agree about nice DD-BA integration for the excellent cohereness. Very good sub-bass extension - as low as 15 Hz rumble can be perceived, and above 22 Hz - a lot is there (and perhaps more of my hearing/perception limitations than the intrinsic KB16 response). So DDs feel the best that I've ever experienced (with my relatively limited experience).
Two most relevant comparisons to share are with:
1)
Celest Relentless - that is close in price, driver configuration, and aesthetics. First, KB16 shells are very well made, top plates look very nice, especially with the extra touch of the metal KBEar logo embedded. Close to Relentless there, minus the artistic touch and unboxing experience that is surely hard to match for Celest. Non-modular cable of KB16 is hardly competitive for its MRSP, IMO. KB16 tips provided are plentiful, but no premium KBEar tips are supplied, so I just used my totly favourite TRI Clarion, as with most of my IEMs. To be fair, I have not tried Relentless tips either, but they felt as a bit more solid selection for tuning.
Now for the sound, KB16 treble is definitely more contained compared to Relentless, hardly airy for me, but well resolving, so my treableheadness is quite satisfied. Bass quality and integration of KB16 is definitely more preferable for me and likely objectively superior. More cohereness for KB16 as well.
Overall, for the sound - I think that KB16 would be preferred by many/most other than, perhaps, trebleheads.
2)
CCA CA16 - an old hybrid of CCA not an all-BA, as many CCAs with deceptively similar lettering. CA16 was/is cherished by many, including me, for its smooth rendering and nice BA-DD integration that worked well for smooth relaxed listening.
Definitely, KB16 is at least one generation ahead with its better bass and more natural tuning.
Some analogy in this comparison would be - if one has its favoutite great well previosly listened to vinyl (CA16), KB16 would be that favourite vinyl in its pristine state and reproduced on more advanced HiFi system.
Again, struggling to fully gauge KB16, my limited evaluation for this very good skillfully (and on a safer side to my ears) tuned IEM would be:
4 stars at its $200+ MSRP (and, again, I have limited experience in this category, and may possibly underappreciate refinement and intricacies of KB16 tuning).
4.5 stars at $140-150 offered at first adopters discount and based on comparison with Relentless.
5 stars at $100+, definitely well (or even totly) above there based on several comparisons with CA16, ZAX and few others.
In few words,
KBEar KB16 Cepheus is hard to find any fault with soundwise (the last octave is clearly the tuning choice), Great bass, nice coherence and tonality. Source friendly - good basic balanced source works well; your own cable and tips may be a good option for full enjoyment.
