[KutuzovGambit]

I've been thinking though for Elysium and Traillii to really go "toe to toe" they should update Elysium to have the newer e-stats-- then we'd really see some Schiit. Ely and Traillii could head to head on more-or-less equal terms with respect to drivers and it would be something of a "Clash of the Titans" with respect to tuning.

Woah.

 

[Ace Bee]

Oriolus Reborn first day impressions...consolidated post, continually updated.

Earliest of early impressions after just a few test tracks were that this is another work of characteristic Oriolus magic. First thoughts-- very well balanced and pleasing tuning. Think Solaris with more sub-bass, a bit less mid-bass (a little less thump but more woob), not quite as spacious or layered but with more forwardness & even temperedness in the mids combined with The Old Man's peerless affinity for extracting nuance, emotion and subtle textures out of vocals and bringing the whole upper mid-range forward without overshadowing the lower mids, sacrificing weight and body or veering into anything too shouty (it did come a bit close on one of my tracks but that could have been the recording) or sacrificing sweetness in the highs. So far, huge thumbs up.



Some more notes after a few hours. Something I've been surprised about: these things are sub-bass beasts. Not in quantity but in quality-- the bass is quick, thick, very well extended, nicely nuanced & detailed...all in all possibly the most satisfying pure sub-bass experience I've had since the IER Z1R. On the flip side mid-bass oomph, as I noted earlier, is not as strong and at first-- coming right from something like the Dorado or even the Isabellae-- I find myself missing that presence, however invariably after some time passes and my brain adapts to the sound I stop noticing/minding...it's funny how our minds work and what we can adapt to. Not unlike walking into a bright room from the dark-- it's overwhelming at first but after time your perception adjusts accordingly.

On any of my tracks that benefit from a good sub-bass emphasis the Reborn absolutely knocks it out of the park-- I was not expecting the sub-bass to be this good.

Mids are fantastic-- sometimes upper mids veer into "almost too sharp" territory but they never quite get there. I think this is a consequence of missing mid-bass presence I am used to as well as adjusting to, what is in my experience generally sharper, BA midrange timbre. Male vocals are some of the nicest I've heard.

Staging is fairly wide and tall but quite deep-- this is where Reborn's hybrid elements allow it to surpass something like Isa. There is a really nice sense of holographic rendering here and you get the inklings of a tangible 3-d presence-- something that The Old Man perfected in the Traillii.

All that said this IEM has already won me over. My only real reservations so far are 1) re-adjusting back to BA timbre in the mids, 2) not as much mid-bass presence as I usally like, and 3) upper mids come within a hairbreadth of too strident at times...though I must also say that after I've been listening for a while my awareness of all these things vanish as I find myself melting into the inviting, open and embracing tuning of the Oriolius Reborn.

Spoiler: Unboxing

Dunno...after an impression like this, I might try to get one for myself...how would you compare it against the TSMR Spark?

 

[Rockwell75]

Dunno...after an impression like this, I might try to get one for myself...how would you compare it against the TSMR Spark?

Spark was a great technical IEM and I could detect shades of Traillii in the note weight and staging...but to my ears it didn't have the tuning magic of Oriolus to make up for the lack of DD.

Just to get this out of the way, here is how my current top 5 is shaping up:

1) Oriolus Traillii
2) Oriolus Isabellae
3) Oriolus Reborn
4) Vision Ears Elysium
5) Campfire Dorado 2020

This is all subject to change on a dime but it's the first time a single brand has ever swept my top 3, which is substantial & noteworthy and I wanted to share it. I offer a bow of respect & gratitude to The Old Man.

Edit: For Schitts and giggles here is that same list tiered according to different realms of creation:

Satya Loka (Divine Realm)
1) Oriolus Traillii

Tapa Loka (Enlightened Realm)
2) Oriolus Isabellae
3) Oriolus Reborn
4) Vision Ears Elysium

Jana Loka (Earthly Realm)
5) Campfire Dorado 2020

 

[Ace Bee]

Spark was a great technical IEM and I could detect shades of Traillii in the note weight and staging...but to my ears it didn't have the tuning magic of Oriolus to make up for the lack of DD.

Just to get this out of the way, here is how my current top 5 is shaping up:

1) Oriolus Traillii
2) Oriolus Isabellae
3) Oriolus Reborn
4) Vision Ears Elysium
5) Campfire Dorado 2020

This is all subject to change on a dime but it's the first time a single brand has ever swept my top 3, which is substantial & noteworthy and I wanted to share it. I offer a bow of respect & gratitude to The Old Man.

Edit: For Schitts and giggles here is that same list tiered according to different realms of creation:

Satya Loka (Divine Realm)
1) Oriolus Traillii

Tapa Loka (Enlightened Realm)
2) Oriolus Isabellae
3) Oriolus Reborn
4) Vision Ears Elysium

Jana Loka (Earthly Realm)
5) Campfire Dorado 2020

So the Reborn sounds even better than Dorado 2020? Can you do a coparison please?

 

[claud W]

Rockwell,
What version of the Reborn is yours? Since you got the last one, is there a newer version being released?

 

[Rockwell75]

So the Reborn sounds even better than Dorado 2020? Can you do a coparison please?

Totally different tuning-- Reborn is a W shaped sub-bass beast with more even keeled mids beast whereas Dorado is a mid-bass monster dedicated to bodied thumping rhythms & driving beats. I use Reborn when I want more balance and to sink into the mids, Dorado is for when I just want to boogie with a smile on my face. Apples & oranges really.

Edit: Even with the dips in the FR Dorado 2020 has fantastic mids...but the star of the show is the mid-bass. No other IEM presents a mid-bass focused signature as well to my ears and for this reason alone the Dorado 2020 will have a place in my heart for a very long time.

 

[endless402]

For what it's worth based on anecdtal reports pretty much every IEM not named Traillii or Fourte has a soundstage that seems narrow next to Solaris.

But yes-- narrowish stage is something Ely is known for. It is something associated with the first generation e-stat drivers that Ely uses. It was never a problem for me though because what Ely lacked in width (compared to Solaris) she more than made up for in depth, detail, air, life and vibrancy in the mid-ra

Thanks... been listening to the Ely and Percivali all day. My heart gravitates to the percivali so far

My initial impression of the Ely is that it's a bit sibilant, bit weak on the sub bass and narrow soundstage in comparison. Bass is a bit quicker and punchier, and highs are more vivid for sure.

 

[Rockwell75]

Rockwell,
What version of the Reborn is yours? Since you got the last one, is there a newer version being released?

I think the Crassirostris replaced the Reborn in their current lineup-- and it seems to have a totally different tuning approach. There is a Reborn LTD but that also has a different tuning than the Reborn.

 

[Rockwell75]

Thanks... been listening to the Ely and Percivali all day. My heart gravitates to the percivali so far

My initial impression of the Ely is that it's a bit sibilant, bit weak on the sub bass and narrow soundstage in comparison. Bass is a bit quicker and punchier, and highs are more vivid for sure.

I can well understand said gravitation

What are you driving Ely with? This can make a big big difference in terms of how the highs & bass come off. Though Ely can be a bit bright at times I never heard anything approaching sibilance.

 

[endless402]

I can well understand said gravitation

What are you driving Ely with? This can make a big big difference in terms of how the highs & bass come off. Though Ely can be a bit bright at times I never heard anything approaching sibilance.

running it off a chord hugo. i haven't tried it on the chord dave yet

 

[RTodd]

I can well understand said gravitation

What are you driving Ely with? This can make a big big difference in terms of how the highs & bass come off. Though Ely can be a bit bright at times I never heard anything approaching sibilance.

I have heard some sibilance on the Elysium, not bad just some. Changing the cable and using the M8 as the source on Turbo tamed it almost completely also the M8 helped with the low frequencies. No sacrifice to the excellent mids I can hear from the Code 51 cable or the M8.

When I did some recent A/B comparisons with the Mason FS I did notice some sibilance was still there only noticed because I was trying hard to hear the differences.

I listen to the M8/Ely every night low volume and it never bothers me.

On another note I am thinking about the Isabellae and wondering…

 

[ranfan]

Tapa Loka (Enlightened Realm)
2) Oriolus Isabellae
3) Oriolus Reborn
4) Vision Ears Elysium

Jana Loka (Earthly Realm)
5) Campfire Dorado 2020

The Reborn is like a cute baby bass-monster reborn in the earthly realm

 

[Rockwell75]

The Reborn is like a cute baby bass-monster reborn in the earthly realm

You are 100% correct . That's the only place this little schema doesn't work...Reborn is #3 in my heart right now though, so that's where it stays.

Edit: I'm tempted to also describe Reborn as a Z1R with much better mids, better balance between sub-bass, mid-bass & lower mids and not-quite-as-good highs.

 

[Ace Bee]

Totally different tuning-- Reborn is a W shaped sub-bass beast with more even keeled mids beast whereas Dorado is a mid-bass monster dedicated to bodied thumping rhythms & driving beats. I use Reborn when I want more balance and to sink into the mids, Dorado is for when I just want to boogie with a smile on my face. Apples & oranges really.

Edit: Even with the dips in the FR Dorado 2020 has fantastic mids...but the star of the show is the mid-bass. No other IEM presents a mid-bass focused signature as well to my ears and for this reason alone the Dorado 2020 will have a place in my heart for a very long time.

I think I would like the balance.. actually what I wanted to know about the stage, separation, and imaging. Are they similar between reborn and dorado2020,.or is reborn superior?

 

[Rockwell75]

I think I would like the balance.. actually what I wanted to know about the stage, separation, and imaging. Are they similar between reborn and dorado2020,.or is reborn superior?

Reborn definitely has the more consistently open midrange whereas on Dorado everything is so incredibly disciplined considering how much bass there is, which is something to note-- on Dorado the mid-bass definitely can seem to crowd out the mids at times. It's another one of those things, like the upper mids & comparative lack of mid-bass on the Reborn that is jarring at first but after time you just adjust to it. What sort of music do you listen to?

On a different note...



and



are positively otherworldly on Reborn..that sub-bass is sooo good. It got me thinking of the Hyla CE5, which I've never heard, but I know there's some shared pedigree and I'm now wondering if they are similar at all in their bass response.