[Ojisan]

Speaking of Metal... I'm telling you, these U18s with metal are really impressing me.

Man, I must have been in a cave too long... still listening to stuff from 90’s Pantera, Lamb of God, Dream Theater,.... I just checked Soen and Born of Osiris ... seriously awesome bands!!! Thanks for the mentions!

And yeah, sorry @CL14715 and Odin, these sound really good with U18s!

 

[Ojisan]

Thanks to @CL14715 I have Odin in hand to challenge others this weekend. This should be fun!

 

[Vitaly2017]

Thanks to @CL14715 I have Odin in hand to challenge others this weekend. This should be fun!

What pretty collection you have there

 

[GiullianSN]

Speaking of Metal... I'm telling you, these U18s with metal are really impressing me.

Speaking of speaking of Metal... Gojira just launched the best album IMHO.

https://tidal.com/browse/album/179999770

 

[Deezel177]

Speaking of speaking of Metal... Gojira just launched the best album from them IMHO.

https://tidal.com/browse/album/179999770

‘Been eager to give this one a listen since Jared Falk covered one of their tracks on Drumeo recently. This’ll be my first exposure to Gojira, so I’m certainly excited.

I also wanted to throw in my contribution to the treasure pile: Mark Lettieri’s Deep: The Baritone Sessions Vol. 2.



It’s a filthy, funky guitar record, and I think a lot of you are gonna enjoy this one too. My personal favourite’s Star Catchers, featuring Toto’s very own Steve Lukather.

 

[GiullianSN]

‘Been eager to give this one a listen since Jared Falk covered one of their tracks on Drumeo recently. This’ll be my first exposure to Gojira, so I’m certainly excited.

I also wanted to throw in my contribution to the treasure pile: Mark Lettieri’s Deep: The Baritone Sessions Vol. 2.



It’s a filthy, funky guitar record, and I think a lot of you are gonna enjoy this one too. My personal favourite’s Star Catchers, featuring Toto’s very own Steve Lukather.

I personally never liked them. But this album, got my attention and it’s playing unstop here since yesterday.
I will give yours suggestion a go.

 

[xenithon]

Thanks to @CL14715 I have Odin in hand to challenge others this weekend. This should be fun!

Really looking forward to your impressions!

I know I’m may be in the minority but, in regard to the bass discussion a couple pages back and seeing this photo, my preference is the Noir.

- I found Nio a little too dark and bass not controlled as well as I’d like
- The LX, which I only tested a little bit, was simply overpowering (pinch of salt - my tinnitus is sensitive to bass so the LXs heft plus the earpiece shape forming a total seal plus lack of pressure relief was far from ideal for me)
- Trio had great punch, texture and control in the bass but ultimately the thinness in the midbass and zingy treble wasn’t for me
- Fourte OG had incredible bass depth, sub bass rumble and refinement but the tonality and brightness pushed the sibilance beyond my comfort levels

Similar to the comments about Fourte and nasality, the Noir seems to also be very sensitive to cables, tips and source. A bad combo can yield a thickness in midbass (@gLer aptly refers to it as a “blanket”), and for some its upper treble peak doesn’t sit well with them.

All goes to show how important preference and system synergy is. There is no “right”, only “right for me”.

 

[MatW]

Really looking forward to your impressions!

I know I’m may be in the minority but, in regard to the bass discussion a couple pages back and seeing this photo, my preference is the Noir.

- I found Nio a little too dark and bass not controlled as well as I’d like
- The LX, which I only tested a little bit, was simply overpowering (pinch of salt - my tinnitus is sensitive to bass so the LXs heft plus the earpiece shape forming a total seal plus lack of pressure relief was far from ideal for me)
- Trio had great punch, texture and control in the bass but ultimately the thinness in the midbass and zingy treble wasn’t for me
- Fourte OG had incredible bass depth, sub bass rumble and refinement but the tonality and brightness pushed the sibilance beyond my comfort levels

Similar to the comments about Fourte and nasality, the Noir seems to also be very sensitive to cables, tips and source. A bad combo can yield a thickness in midbass (@gLer aptly refers to it as a “blanket”), and for some its upper treble peak doesn’t sit well with them.

All goes to show how important preference and system synergy is. There is no “right”, only “right for me”.

Please remind me of the cable you're using with the Noir?

I'm currently focused on the Odin, but once I make up my mind on that one, I will need to do the same with the Noir. I really like what I hear so far, but need to spend more time with it.

 

[gLer]

I prefer Nio for two main reasons: 1. You need to turn up the volume on the LX to bring out the bass. More than I like. No such issues on the Nio. 2. I found the vocals too recessed on the LX compared to the Nio. Oh and 3. I'm not convinced the LX is actually better technically...

Anyway, no point arguing, the man is a fellow metalhead, so he's going to trust the opinion of a metalhead, no doubt about it...

1. Yep. Although for everyone complaining about the LX's bass 'overload', low volume listening would be surprisingly balanced. 2. Yep...but only if you're used to vocal-forward IEMs like Nio. I find LX perfectly neutral position-wise, unless vocals are mastered further back in the mix. Nio pushes vocals forward regardless of mastering, which is fine if you enjoy that (I actually liked that about Nio, along with its lush, wet, organic vocal tonality). 3. There's no question LX is better technically in almost every metric. But at this level it's not night and day. LX doesn't get embarrassed next to Fourte, that's how proficient it is, whereas Nio's technicalities only really tighten up with Mx.

On a serious note, music genre is an important factor. I've been listening to the Odin this evening. More laidback music than I normally listen to. Sounds great! When I switch to metal it becomes too much of a good thing, energy times energy... Music preferences are key imho.

Say whaaat? You use music to rate IEMs? Seriously though this is the most obvious but too often overlooked factor in any buying decision. While both Nio and LX can be considered all-rounders in that they're great with most genres, their particular tonality and technical strengths will tend to favour some genres (and even recording quality within genres) more than others. I might rave about Nio while listening to singer songwriter music, and then a metalhead will pick one up thinking I was smoking something. Music choice is one of, if not the most, important decider.

 

[xenithon]

Please remind me of the cable you're using with the Noir?

I’ve settled on the palladium plated silver from @doctorjuggles - very refined, taut bass (particularly punchy and textured), and extended but smooth, sibilant free highs. And I might add, the most ergonomic and supple cable I’ve had the pleasure of using. The PW-style hex hardware work a treat with it too

 

[MatW]

Say whaaat? You use music to rate IEMs? Seriously though this is the most obvious but too often overlooked factor in any buying decision. While both Nio and LX can be considered all-rounders in that they're great with most genres, their particular tonality and technical strengths will tend to favour some genres (and even recording quality within genres) more than others. I might rave about Nio while listening to singer songwriter music, and then a metalhead will pick one up thinking I was smoking something. Music choice is one of, if not the most, important decider.

Yes, it's obvious but I cannot stress this point enough. Quite a few reviewers (and folks on this forum) provide their opinion without mentioning the music they base their judgment on. I love reviews that mentions actual tracks to illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of the headphones or iems, like in some of yours .

 

[MatW]

I’ve settled on the palladium plated silver from @doctorjuggles - very refined, taut bass (particularly punchy and textured), and extended but smooth, sibilant free highs. And I might add, the most ergonomic and supple cable I’ve had the pleasure of using. The PW-style hex hardware work a treat with it too

Excellent thanks!

I have a Leo II Octa coming in, today hopefully. Same metals, so looking forward to pair it with the Noir!

 

[toaster]

I’ve settled on the palladium plated silver from @doctorjuggles - very refined, taut bass (particularly punchy and textured), and extended but smooth, sibilant free highs. And I might add, the most ergonomic and supple cable I’ve had the pleasure of using. The PW-style hex hardware work a treat with it too

Wow, that’s beautiful.

every time I see a @doctorjuggles creation, I always ask myself the same question:

“why do I own only one ‘juggles?’”

 

[425455]

I'm sticking with my nio for the foreseeable future. The fir O module is excellent with it.

I'd love to be able to get hold of a fir O module here in the UK

 

[gnahra]

Wow, that’s beautiful.

every time I see a @doctorjuggles creation, I always ask myself the same question:

“why do I own only one ‘juggles?’”

Shameless plug...I have an 8-wire silver cable (4N, type 4 litz, 26awg, 3.5mm rhodium-plated termination, 2 pin connectors) from @doctorjuggles that I will be putting on the classifieds soon if anyone is interested. It's an AMAZING cable (I pair it with my U18s and Erlky) and only selling because he's making me another cable which would make this particular one redundant.
PM me if you're interested. Pic below