[szore]

If you like bass the Globes will not let you down!

I just order the Globes a week ago! Still waiting for Penon to ship!

 

[ssantan2]

The Vortex is good. It's 1 and only problem is the sound stage lacks depth. The sound itself is wonderful, tho. More than once while 'criticaly' listening with the Vortex did I just completley forget myself and just get lost in the music...only to shake my head 1/2 hour later to snap out of it. The Vortex has the "classic penon tuning" which generally means a very dynamic, organic, natural DD sound. The Vortex has great PRaT, e.g. very engaging and musical. yes, a little warm, lush in the mids but great layering (despite the shallow stage) and very sophisticated tuning all around. The kind of 'all rounder' set where you can listen to 'ambient' music, then throw on Sabbath's 13, and either way the Vortex comes out to play.

The Hook, however is the Holy Grail of IEMs, I mean, this thing is sublime... At any price, let alone $239. Now I can do without the stock cable, but using my PWAudio Monile MKII or the Yanyin stock cable, the Hook just transcends. First of all the main driver is planar, and I love planar. then you have the "piexoelectric" or "Bone conduction" driver for the highs. I've seen some peopl critisice the bone conduction on the Hook, but I think they misunderstand it. The bone conduction on the Hook is the best implementation I have yet heard. I have owned the MEST, The MEXT. I demoed the EVO, and all of them, the treble is too forward and brash. On the Hook, the treble is invisible, and excellent. By Invisible, I mean, you never notice them, but If I asked you in the middle of a song, "How is the treble?", you would say the treble is perfect.
I think the ultimate success of the Raptgo Hook lies in the fundamental synergy between the planar driver and the bone conduction driver. Also the Hook scales amazing.... I am listening on my desktop now with the Moonlighgt cable and its perfect in every way! the Holy Grail! Maybe I will start an audition tour....

Wow that is quite the statement! I may have to try to pull the trigger on this once I free up some funds. How would you compare bass response and mid texture? The vortex is damn near perfect for me although the idea of the Vortex with better stage sounds pretty amazing. I know the tunings are slightly different though. Im not someone who listens to more than one IEM so the question really is "is it worth replacing the vortex with the Hook X".

 

[szore]

Wow that is quite the statement! I may have to try to pull the trigger on this once I free up some funds. How would you compare bass response and mid texture? The vortex is damn near perfect for me although the idea of the Vortex with better stage sounds pretty amazing. I know the tunings are slightly different though. Im not someone who listens to more than one IEM so the question really is "is it worth replacing the vortex with the Hook X".

In my humble opinion, yes, absolutley. And don't get me wrong, I adore the Vortex, but the Hook is just something special...(but not with stock cable).

 

[szore]

I just order the Globes a week ago! Still waiting for Penon to ship!

And they have that crafty little disclaimer on their website...Orders may be delayed a week or more....

 

[drbluenewmexico]

It is vertually impossible for any earphone to have universal love so I can understand. You should have no issues with selling off the Moonlights if thats what you plan on doing. I noticed Penon brought the price down a bit by $5 to $69 for the cable now. Excellent cable for the price I agree.

@drbluenewmexico keep telling me about the Szalayis. Would love to try Raptigo Hooks, all in due time I suppose but there is something new that pops up just about every day. So many IEMs. I wish I had another set of ears to help listen to em all.

OK. The SZA are m goldilocks set. I'm still entranced and haven't touched Moonlight,Kinda lava,or even Focal Radiance for dawn listening sessions in 2 weeks. They are superbly musical,
But still have details and soundstage
The PRAT is extraordinary, the timbre right on, and after 100 hrs burn are not dark any more but pretty balanced with a great dynamic bass emphasis. The planar mids make everything sound better. And boy do they step up to desktop dac and tube amp!! I'm almost ready to retire from head to for a while. True you haven't tried mist of the top 12 earphones rec on the awatercooler thread, but I can't afford them either.

I would still like t o hearcthe Hook x and the Indigo but I don't need them now. Pylutting silver cable on SZA improved high end and Aelastic tips worked great for bass focus. I'm definitely smitte. Even horns sound beasts and authentic and not harsh.
Good with most genres but esp
Blues, EDM,, Reggae and Rock. Dance in my seat. And they are a Gorgeous Blue! QED. SOLD OUT TILL END OF AUGUST at Musicteck, but talk to Andy about reviewer discount. I feel like the promise of iems glad been deliveted here without a kilobuck penalty.
PS I am an Oriolus fan and in some ways these are a major step up from my treasured Reborn mk2 sound!

 

[szore]

OK. The SZA are m goldilocks set. I'm still entranced and haven't touched Moonlight,Kinda lava,or even Focal Radiance for dawn listening sessions in 2 weeks. They are superbly musical,
But still have details and soundstage
The PRAT is extraordinary, the timbre right on, and after 100 hrs burn are not dark any more but pretty balanced with a great dynamic bass emphasis. The planar mids make everything sound better. And boy do they step up to desktop dac and tube amp!! I'm almost ready to retire from head to for a while. True you haven't tried mist of the top 12 earphones rec on the awatercooler thread, but I can't afford them either.

I would still like t o hearcthe Hook x and the Indigo but I don't need them now. Pylutting silver cable on SZA improved high end and Aelastic tips worked great for bass focus. I'm definitely smitte. Even horns sound beasts and authentic and not harsh.
Good with most genres but esp
Blues, EDM,, Reggae and Rock. Dance in my seat. And they are a Gorgeous Blue! QED. SOLD OUT TILL END OF AUGUST at Musicteck, but talk to Andy about reviewer discount. I feel like the promise of iems glad been deliveted here without a kilobuck penalty.
PS I am an Oriolus fan and in some ways these are a major step up from my treasured Reborn mk2 sound!

Awesome, Dr. Blue, I'm drooling for the Oriolus! I posted the Moonlights sans cable for $450.... 2 weeks old,,,sorry if I'm a bit off topic!

 

[drbluenewmexico]

Awesome, Dr. Blue, I'm drooling for the Oriolus! I posted the Moonlights sans cable for $450.... 2 weeks old,,,sorry if I'm a bit off topic!

Good luck with Moonlight sale! They are great but SZA makes them pale in comparison.

 

[szore]

Good luck with Moonlight sale! They are great but SZA makes them pale in comparison.

Yes I plan on ordering one as soon as Andrew gets them in...

 

[-rowan-]

I gotta say I’m digging the sudden introduction of a whole lot of other IEMs in this discussion. Exhausted from a long day and yet I feel compelled to jump in. I know it’s a Penon thread but I do like the talk about other IEMs (and I hope it helps folks who are less familiar with the brand as well).

But I have to disagree on the Moonlight; can't resolve those forwards mids...but that stock cable is better than my 1K$ PWAudio cable, go figure.

I may be asking the obvious but have you tried the Moonlight with an SE cable and a lower powered source? I seem to recall they may have been a bit shouty out the box but I haven’t used them 4.4 balanced since.

Cable is great, I agree. Gives the OSG a good run for its money.

How would you compare bass response and mid texture? The vortex is damn near perfect for me although the idea of the Vortex with better stage sounds pretty amazing. I know the tunings are slightly different though. Im not someone who listens to more than one IEM so the question really is "is it worth replacing the vortex with the Hook X".

Personally? No. Vortex has a tight, textured bass that strikes a good balance between detail and resonance. And those Penon mids.

Hook X is a funny one for me. I think of it as the lofi girl of the planar iem world. Likeable tuning. It has a better stage, it can move a really decent bit of air for a planar and it reaches low, lower than an unmodded Vortex will go. But the graininess is just something I can’t shake, and something I hadn’t expected or heard in any other planar. It does scale up when fed with lots of power, I’ll give it that, but detail and resolution are just not its forte. And Vortex sounds great even straight from my phone.

I would still like t o hearcthe Hook x and the Indigo but I don't need them now. Pylutting silver cable on SZA improved high end and Aelastic tips worked great for bass focus. I'm definitely smitte. Even horns sound beasts and authentic and not harsh.
Good with most genres but esp
Blues, EDM,, Reggae and Rock. Dance in my seat. And they are a Gorgeous Blue! QED. SOLD OUT TILL END OF AUGUST at Musicteck, but talk to Andy about reviewer discount. I feel like the promise of iems glad been deliveted here without a kilobuck penalty.
PS I am an Oriolus fan and in some ways these are a major step up from my treasured Reborn mk2 sound!

Big Oriolus Mk2 fan here as well - bought it back in the day despite thinking it lacked the last mile of treble air, yet here it still is. It’s aged surprisingly well. And in hindsight it presaged my Penon collection as well.

I’d have jumped on the Szalayi as well if not for a couple of large expenses lately but what I’ve heard so far in a brief audition intrigues me and certainly bears returning to. Bringing 3 disparate drivers, each with their own distinct identity together, and making a persuasively cohesive whole out of them. I’ll probably cave at some point.

Our band name. ASBESTOSAURUS. Yes those were the days. Reason why I have a soft spot in my heart for anything with an edgy guitar riff.

ASBESTOSAURUS. Love this band already

 

[drbluenewmexico]

Abestosaurous forever!!

 

[BrokenHill]

I was born with a lot of music around me as my father owned the only record shop in all of Suwon S Korea during the late 60s early 70s. So it was natural for me to be into my music. Been collecting music and gear all my life and have been around headfi since 2011.

My mother worked in a record and classical instrument store when I was a kid. I spent idle hours browsing through the records and asking permission to play one or the other, treating them with care. I used my tips to buy records, and I managed to get imported ones. When I finished elementary school, I was given my first CD player with two discs. My parents picked me out a reproduction of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, and I picked out Pearl Jam's Ten, which had just come out. What memories!
Today, due to space issues, and being a father, I have everything digitized and perfectly organized on a NAS with Roon service, but I still prefer my files to streaming services.

(Sorry for the off topic)

 

[darren700]

Got my vortex last night, lasted 5 minutes before i removed the filter for the bass mod lol. tip rolled for a bit and settled on Comply T500 Medium Foamies for now. Also tried the Dunu Amber, and then moved to the Dunu Blanche Silver Cable. Listening to some new Norma Jean metalcore at work today on my JDS EL DAC II and SMSL SH-9 and they sound awesome! loving these little iems so far! With some bass heavy EDM it can be a bit much after the mod, but overall im very happy. I also have the the Hook X, while the hook X sound just as good if not better, they seem to always push out of my right ear over time no matter what tip i use, so currently the favourites are the vortex! thinking of picking up the serial or globe also.

 

[ssantan2]

Got my vortex last night, lasted 5 minutes before i removed the filter for the bass mod lol. tip rolled for a bit and settled on Comply T500 Medium Foamies for now. Also tried the Dunu Amber, and then moved to the Dunu Blanche Silver Cable. Listening to some new Norma Jean metalcore at work today on my JDS EL DAC II and SMSL SH-9 and they sound awesome! loving these little iems so far! With some bass heavy EDM it can be a bit much after the mod, but overall im very happy. I also have the the Hook X, while the hook X sound just as good if not better, they seem to always push out of my right ear over time no matter what tip i use, so currently the favourites are the vortex! thinking of picking up the serial or globe also.

haha another mod convert! Purely my opinion but while I really liked the serial, there is nothing I think it does particularly better than the vortex post mod. It has a bit better bass texture but I have to really look for it. I'm still thinking about finding some filters for the vortex that can tame and tighten up the bass a smidge as I agree that some tracks it can be a bit too much!

 

[szore]

haha another mod convert! Purely my opinion but while I really liked the serial, there is nothing I think it does particularly better than the vortex post mod. It has a bit better bass texture but I have to really look for it. I'm still thinking about finding some filters for the vortex that can tame and tighten up the bass a smidge as I agree that some tracks it can be a bit too much!

Does the Vortex mod deepen its soundstage?

 

[darren700]

haha another mod convert! Purely my opinion but while I really liked the serial, there is nothing I think it does particularly better than the vortex post mod. It has a bit better bass texture but I have to really look for it. I'm still thinking about finding some filters for the vortex that can tame and tighten up the bass a smidge as I agree that some tracks it can be a bit too much!

please let us know if you do end up finding some other filters. I wonder if poking a small hole in the middle of the stock filter would give a good "in the middle" result with a bit more bass than stock.