[Rockwell75]

Tbh @Rockwell75, your constant praise of the Dorado has gotten me interested in a new IEM again, I thought I was done..

If I'm being honest I like it as much as Ely...make sure you demo though as there are some who dislike it just as much as I like it.

So after a couple of days with the Elysium I want to share some of my thoughts.
Right now the only fault I can think of , as many have stated before, is that the stage width could be better. It's noticeable when you compare it to Solaris, Mest and Semper . But also these IEMs all are great in that aspect. Maybe the M8 will help with that.
Where they excel at is in tuning . It's been done so masterfully that they sound great with everything in my library, and I listen to a lot of different genres with all kinds of recordings.
The instruments and vocals sound so natural with the right tonality and timbre IMO. I don't know why a lot IEMs mess the vocals so much and nobody cares. Almost all the IEMs I've tried sound high pitched and off to various degrees.
For me a lot of beauty lies in the tone of a singers voice and vocals are the main focus when listening to music, at least for me.
Anyway I'm quite happy with them. Hoping for the M8 to make the M8 even more enjoyable.
On another note I had to cancel my Dorado unfortunately as I found a good deal on a Tia Fourte. I had too many bassy IEMs so I wanted to go for something different.

Awe...was looking forward to your Dorado impressions...congrats on Fourte though...you've gone with an IEM that's just as divisive in its own way.

Totally with you on Ely-- it's a masterpiece and a summit of the IEM world right now.

 

[Mehran]

If I'm being honest I like it as much as Ely...make sure you demo though as there are some who dislike it just as much as I like it.



Awe...was looking forward to your Dorado impressions...congrats on Fourte though...you've gone with an IEM that's just as divisive in its own way.

Totally with you on Ely-- it's a masterpiece and a summit of the IEM world right now.

I really wanted to hear them too. Maybe in the future if it's meant for me.
In my experience there's a better chance that I'll fall in love with an IEM that's more divisive . That's the main reason I went for them, lol, and I'm a bit nervous about them. Hope I made the right choice.

 

[Rockwell75]

I really wanted to hear them too. Maybe in the future if it's meant for me.
In my experience there's a better chance that I'll fall in love with an IEM that's more divisive . That's the main reason I went for them, lol, and I'm a bit nervous about them. Hope I made the right choice.

Well the bright side is since you bought used you'll be able to sell them at a minimal loss...that's the main reason I mostly buy used. REALLY looking forward to your thoughts on the M8 + Elysium. I'm not sure it will improve stage width but everything else improves...particularly with its turbo gain setting.

 

[Mehran]

Well the bright side is since you bought used you'll be able to sell them at a minimal loss...that's the main reason I mostly buy used. REALLY looking forward to your thoughts on the M8 + Elysium. I'm not sure it will improve stage width but everything else improves...particularly with its turbo gain setting.

It's not used actually, but an open box with additional discount. But yeah I can minimise the loss probably if I don't like them.
Can't wait for the M8 now. I've never seen the amount of praise that it's getting with the m15 from so many different sources , so I think that's a good sign.

 

[Rockwell75]

It's not used actually, but an open box with additional discount. But yeah I can minimise the loss probably if I don't like them.
Can't wait for the M8 now. I've never seen the amount of praise that it's getting with the m15 from so many different sources , so I think that's a good sign.

Yeah the M8 is pretty special. I've said this before but I think it's my favorite piece of gear that I own.

In other news it's been just me, the Andromeda 2020 and the M8 for about a week and I couldn't be happier. I'm pretty sure I could live with the Andromeda as my only IEM...which goes to show that fundamentally my needs are pretty simple...it's the wants that get out of hand.

Dorado 2020 and Andromeda 2020 are the Ginger and Mary Anne of my IEM world (props to anyone who gets the reference).

Andromeda -> Enticing, sweet, innocent, proper, natural, safe
Dorado -> Seductive, smouldering, playful, colourful, fun and a touch unpredictable.

Epic tune:

 

[Verificateur]

You have 2 options:

a) Get Comet and be satisfied with what you have and never need to visit HF again (a lot of us here can’t lol)

b) Go for something complementary around the same price, visit HF more often, find more IEMs that interest you, maybe a 3rd one is now on your radar, now you have 8 IEMs and a sad wallet.

So... I decided to follow the less costly path and chose option “a”. Let’s hope I can resist my “wants” without having to stop visiting HF.

After all, my thinking is that MEST Mk2 will be my universal/main IEM (I really like its sound and don’t feel it’s reasonable to buy into another high-end IEM from another brand), while the Campfire Comet will complement my quick on/off or on-the-go needs when I don’t take the MEST Mk2 with me.

What do you think @8481 @Rockwell75 ?
Is it a plan that’s doomed to fail?

 

[Rockwell75]

What do you think @8481 @Rockwell75 ?
Is it a plan that’s doomed to fail?

Honestly man it depends on you. For myself I've learned that if I have IEM A plus lower tier IEM B I'll never listen to IEM B as doing so would make me feel I was wasting precious time I could be spending listening to IEM A...thus I try for all my IEMs & complements to be roughly the same tier of performance. But if you feel like you could do that and not be haunted by curiosity or feel like you're missing something...then go for it. It's not like the Comet is a huge commitment.

 

[Verificateur]

Honestly man it depends on you. For myself I've learned that if I have IEM A plus lower tier IEM B I'll never listen to IEM B as doing so would make me feel I was wasting precious time I could be spending listening to IEM A...thus I try for all my IEMs & complements to be roughly the same tier of performance. But if you feel like you could do that and not be haunted by curiosity or feel like you're missing something...then go for it. It's not like the Comet is a huge commitment.

Fair point.
Unless the IEM B offers something that IEM A doesn’t I guess. Which wouldn’t be sound quality in this case for sure. Perhaps it would be the usefulness of Comet when I don’t take the MEST with me if I want a more inconspicuous IEM... or perhaps I could turn the Comets into a TWS... hmm

Or... I would end up selling the Comet and get an Andromeda/Dorado and prove you were right all along.

 

[Rockwell75]

Fair point.
Unless the IEM B offers something that IEM A doesn’t I guess. Which wouldn’t be sound quality in this case for sure. Perhaps it would be the usefulness of Comet when I don’t take the MEST with me if I want a more inconspicuous IEM... or perhaps I could turn the Comets into a TWS... hmm

Or... I would end up selling the Comet and get an Andromeda/Dorado and prove you were right all along.

The Dorados are indestructible and my initial idea behind buying it was to use it as an every day carry out and about IEM.

 

[Mehran]

Sounds magical on the Ely.

 

[Rockwell75]

The Sony Sport walkman above was my first passport to portable audio bliss back in the 90s. Walkmans had been around for some time at this point but the one above was a revelation in how good it sounded and how robust it was-- I took it to the gym, on walks, out and about...everywhere...and it never let me down.

A number of years later in university I ate ramen for a month so I could afford the sleek "auto reverse" model below that sounded even better than the yellow one above. This one was my bread and butter for years...basically until mp3 players became a thing.



The most interesting aspect of things then and things now, not considering advances in tech etc. is that back in the walkman hey-dey the player was given all the attention and the transducers themselves were almost afterthought, or at least not obviously the result of any serious r & d, and just bundled in the box wrapped in cheap plastic. These days there is a common sentiment that the transducers are the most important factor and that sources are much less important, with some even saying they don't make much of a difference at all. Like so many things I feel the answer is somewhere in the middle. I have been at this for a few years now and I've finally honed in on a setup that fits my tastes almost perfectly. It occurred to me recently that, say, if I was forced by circumstance to sell off all my gear one piece at a time the Shanling M8 would be the last thing to go. I found this puzzling in light of the prevailing notion that transducers are the most important factor. I'm settling on the opinion that while yes the transducers are the most important factor in your chain, the source is the hardest thing to get just right. So while there are a number of IEMs out there that give me roughly the same degree of satisfaction I can't think of any source I've heard-- and I've heard a few-- that ropes me in with its seductive musicality as the M8 does. It elevates every IEM I've heard to another level...somehow zoning in to the best strengths of each and making them shine. Z1R's bass digs deeper and has more liquidity, power and definition, Andro sounds clearer, more spacious and more refined, Elysium sounds more spacious and natural etc. etc. Whatever Shanling brings out in the future I hope it expands on the legacy and sound of the M8.

 

[Rockwell75]

Sounds magical on the Ely.

What is it? The video has been blocked in my country (Canada) for copyright reasons.

 

[Mehran]

What is it? The video has been blocked in my country (Canada) for copyright reasons.

Oh sorry, it's a classical piece.
Lucia Popp, "song to the moon "(Rusalka) by Dvoràk

 

[Rockwell75]

Oh sorry, it's a classical piece.
Lucia Popp, "song to the moon "(Rusalka) by Dvoràk

This?

 

[Mehran]

This?

Yes , it's also on Tidal.