[BlankName]

Would the Serial and Quattro run well enough from an iFI Go Link?

Not even close.

 

[-rowan-]

From the OPs description Penon told them the pre-release version was better than the production version.

My consternation is that Penon would say this at all. That’s dumb to admit, even if it’s true. If they say nothing we could speculate all we want but we wouldn’t know it’s their position too. I still don’t understand how it serves anybody to say this

Because in my eyes, they’re honest and open about their products, and at the same time committed to getting it right and doing the best job they can. And I appreciate that. I couldn’t have said it better than @jsmiller58 here:

Everyone of course can and does have their own opinions! To me, this is one of the reasons I really like to order from Penon. All of the nitpicks that have recently been mentioned, to me are endearing. From their website design, to their email address, to how they are so open in their communication… they seem like the kind of people I would like to know, and am happy to buy from.

+100.

 

[-rowan-]

Exactly the DTE900 is a very detailed IEM the 10th as well micro details is killer when you do the comparison the difference is clearly shown.

That being said not a knock against the Quattro as some people including myself like a more colored sound , it's just nice to share on here what people may expect if your thinking about picking up this one.

TDM, out of curiosity, any comparison between the Quattro and the Timsok TS-316?

Would the Serial and Quattro run well enough from an iFI Go Link?

Not familiar with it but a quick look at the specs suggests no. I recall @Dsnuts mentioning that the Tail can drive the Quattro so that might be a good baseline to work from.

 

[Dsnuts]

I was very surprised just how much power the Tail actually has in comparison to something like the Fiio KA3 which is the other dongle dac amp I have on hand.

Tail can drive the Fiio FT3 and that is a 350 Ohm full sized can. Besides being able to drive the quattro it actually synergizes with it as well.

 

[chibicas]

Curious, would my Fiio M11 Plus LTD good enough for the 10th? I assumed so but if it's not enough I will do more if needed aha.

Also thanks for the recommendation for the tips and cables, I recently bought the Spinfit W1 and i'm loving it. I recently ordered the penon space and penon bass cable... That XINHS 2 palladium cable is definitely coming up next after I spend time with those. I thought I would buy penon cables before anything else and then up the ante on other cables you guys are recommending. Thanks for the great info guys. I think maybe end of the new year i'll get the Quattro. It sounds like a really fun IEM.

 

[-rowan-]

That XINHS 2 palladium cable is definitely coming up next

The xinhs silver palladium is a no brainer and it synergizes well with a lot of my iems including 10th, Impact and Vortex off the top of my head. But wait for the next AE sale. It always gets discounted and you get to pile on coupons and whatnot.

 

[Echalon]

Curious, would my Fiio M11 Plus LTD good enough for the 10th? I assumed so but if it's not enough I will do more if needed aha.

Also thanks for the recommendation for the tips and cables, I recently bought the Spinfit W1 and i'm loving it. I recently ordered the penon space and penon bass cable... That XINHS 2 palladium cable is definitely coming up next after I spend time with those. I thought I would buy penon cables before anything else and then up the ante on other cables you guys are recommending. Thanks for the great info guys. I think maybe end of the new year i'll get the Quattro. It sounds like a really fun IEM.

The 10th is not as demanding as the Serial or Quattro, so the M11 Plus LTD should easily power it.

With cables, bear in mind that a lot of the cables recommended in this thread colour the sound. The Xinhs palladium cable you mention is wonderful, but adds brightness to the sound. We all have our preferences, so make sure you say what (if any) changes you want to the IEM’s sound signature when asking for cable recommendations.

 

[chibicas]

The xinhs silver palladium is a no brainer and it synergizes well with a lot of my iems including 10th, Impact and Vortex off the top of my head. But wait for the next AE sale. It always gets discounted and you get to pile on coupons and whatnot.

Thanks for the recommendation but I pulled trigger on it a few months ago. Thoroughly enjoying it right now!

The 10th is not as demanding as the Serial or Quattro, so the M11 Plus LTD should easily power it.

With cables, bear in mind that a lot of the cables recommended in this thread colour the sound. The Xinhs palladium cable you mention is wonderful, but adds brightness to the sound. We all have our preferences, so make sure you say what (if any) changes you want to the IEM’s sound signature when asking for cable recommendations.

Yes, thanks for the fair warning. That's precisely why I want to try more cables. This is my first expensive IEM and I've never played with cables before. I bought one in japan and compared the stock cable with it and I was really really surprised how the flavor changes. They were things I never noticed if I just used the stock cable. I thought I knew what I wanted before I got the 10th but there's still so much to explore and look into before I can confidently say "I want it like this." So I'm going by what people recommend first and then make observations on what I really like.

Also would it also have enough to power the Quattro?

 

[Vallenium]

Yeah, there was a set on the board for 1200 that I almost bought

Was this a yes to having heard both or am I misinterpreting?

 

[zikarus]

Take the song "Never give Up" by SIA a perfect example of how Quattro bleeds the bass into the mids and vocals making female overtones too thick and not tonaly accurate certainly not ruined but definitely coloured.

In this track the bass of the Quattro is missing the snap and crispness of a more neutral and faster DD set and the trade off is a smoother replay and lush vocals. I for one enjoy this kind of tuning but am also acutely aware of how the Quattro is far from a timbre pitch perfect set the way I hear them with my best set up.

Having chosen big clean power and a very clean neutral ish source the rest is the IEM's replay.

Exactly the DTE900 is a very detailed IEM the 10th as well micro details is killer when you do the comparison the difference is clearly shown.

That being said not a knock against the Quattro as some people including myself like a more colored sound , it's just nice to share on here what people may expect if your thinking about picking up this one.

Thank you for naming a song to compare TDM. I just gave it quite a number of comparing listens with Quattro and 10th AE and am left behind puzzled now . The song seems badly produced / mixed but that makes it a good test-track...

I agree that the Quattro in comparison has slightly recessed, less forward mids. And (as already said) the Quattro is not neutral aka colored.

But.. I perceive the 10th AE bass as the slower one of the two. It sounds looser and a tad boomier, less controlled compared to the Quattro's, which offers less mid-bass and reaches deeper imo. Besides I would say that the 10th AE is as colored as the Quattro, but very differently. The Quattro pronounces the bass region, the 10th AE especially in direct comparison tends to overdo presence and can sometimes sound almost echoing a bit.

But anyway I wondered about the term "bass bleed" which I would not attest to neither the Quattro nor the 10th AE.

Might be a question of definition / understanding and I may use the term wrongly. In my book 'bass bleed' correlates with affecting the mids and treble of an IEM leading to diminished resolution due to the bass overshadowing the higher frequency ranges. That does not seem to be the case here. The Quattro has a lot of subbass but that does not affect it's presentation of the mids, which are simply tuned differently, less energetic to those of the 10th AE. Typical DD vs. BA one might say... The one IEM I would attest bass bleed to is the Singularity.

As for the coloration I find it hard to judge which one of the two sounds more natural to me. Guess for my taste more often the slightly darker / less forward Quattro takes the lead in the end but it depends on genres and ymmv oc.

I suggest another track to test the differing timbres for yourself:
The Triffids - Jerdacuttup Man

 

[drummguy26]

Just tried the spring tips with the Quattro's. Soundstage is greatly enhanced. Very good synergy here!

 

[-rowan-]

Also would it also have enough to power the Quattro?

If you don’t hear from anyone who has one - I reckon so from the numbers alone, but would defer to someone who’s actually heard it.

The Quattro really enjoys being hooked up to an external amp it has to be said.

 

[vikinguy]

Was this a yes to having heard both or am I misinterpreting?

No, you were reading a poorly written post by me haha.

I have neither. Quattro will be here Friday. I wanted to buy the Oriolus but didn’t have the 1200 to spare despite the insanity of the deal.

 

[BlankName]

Just got my Quattro from the mail and am currently doing first impressions but I can almost certainly say my vari's been bested. Given the delta in graphs and drivers, I would've imagined the quattro being warm and relaxed yet it's anything but. It's fuller and bassier but not warm to my ears, which is what I thought what was missing with the vari, and with slightly more relaxed upper mids which makes using silicon eartips possible as the vari's um was too hot for me and treble extension is about the same, maybe a bit more elevated on the quattro. Can't say much about tech yet but not missing anything vs vari. (Except when it comes to imaging and soundstage as the vari had a laser-like ss, a straight line from ear to ear, before burn-in whearas this is much more normal, although a bit 2d, but fine as burn in will probably help out.)

 

[soundblast75]

Take the song "Never give Up" by SIA a perfect example of how Quattro bleeds the bass into the mids and vocals making female overtones too thick and not tonaly accurate certainly not ruined but definitely coloured.

In this track the bass of the Quattro is missing the snap and crispness of a more neutral and faster DD set and the trade off is a smoother replay and lush vocals. I for one enjoy this kind of tuning but am also acutely aware of how the Quattro is far from a timbre pitch perfect set the way I hear them with my best set up.

Having chosen big clean power and a very clean neutral ish source the rest is the IEM's replay.

just checking that song, i hear what you mean, but it is a pretty poorly mastered track, the chorus is just so overproduced it’s like typical example of loudness wars
the dte900 is definitely cleaner more definition and separation etc, but Quattro is still an amazingly enjoyable listen especially for electronic, listening to the new Jazztrronic track, for the money I don’t think I could ask for more, which also makes dte900 an even more amazing purchase as it breathes in the big boyz neck