[gLer]

Oh come now...whatever else one can say about CFA and their IEMs the charge of not being at least interesting hardly seems fair. CFA is the brand everyone loves to hate and I'll never understand why.

You should know by now I make those sort of comments tongue-in-cheek. To be fair the only CFA IEM I've personally heard is Andromeda, and since that's been painted as 'the bastion' of CFA's lineup and imo is totally meh, that's the brush I paint them with. Not at all a fair or balanced reflection I know.

All that said I'm super keen to hear Supermoon. It's also the best looking CFA IEM by far so far (in its onyx black and chrome CIEM shell), and it sounds like they got the bass spot on for my liking. I'm hoping the whole light/ethereal midrange tonality and (gulp) Sabre glare is overblown though, because that's antithesis to my preferences and a total dealbreaker for me.

I've contemplated one of these for that reason

Now THAT's totally cool. I want one of those just to have one.

Super interesting test of human nature and behaviors. It's actually quite an interesting test of teamwork/team building in it's simplest form. We tend to put on certain facades in our lives to get by and to feel accepeted, but when you're really placed in a life and death situation, two things happen. You see the real and true colours of human nature - which are when people gain more of their humanity and adopt others instinct of survival to contribute to the survival of others as well and the second are the individuals that abandon their humanity completely for the sake of self-preservation and it's the latter that can be detrimental to the survival of the entire group. Not only because it abandons other's right for survival and their humanity but it can spread like wildfire to others and their already fragile mental and emotional state.

Based on the current goings on in the US and Eastern Europe, my faith in humanity is sadly at rock bottom. And that's while living in a country where the government systematically fleeces the poorest of the poor to enrich itself.

 

[yaps66]

Ya fair point. The detail is what I immediately noticed but I would agree that it doesn't have the same thumping, thick and fun bass of the Dorado's which is why I'm still undecided on which one I actually like more. In a way they are complementary but I've always been an 'all-rounder' type of guy so I'll need to listen to them a little longer and see what my brain says and how my emotions respond to the library. I mean... so far, Dorado's still hold a special place in my book.

Have been listening to both the Zen Pro and the Isabellae while they are burning in and at this point I have to say that none of them comes close to the Dorado fun factor. The Isabellae comes close but if anything I would say it has its own take of fun for me.

I am enjoying the Isabellae ride and really want to hear the Traillii now, though I am also tempted by Jewel. At this stage though I only have the budget for one of them. Decisions decisions!

 

[Scubadevils]

Super interesting test of human nature and behaviors. It's actually quite an interesting test of teamwork/team building in it's simplest form. We tend to put on certain facades in our lives to get by and to feel accepeted, but when you're really placed in a life and death situation, two things happen. You see the real and true colours of human nature - which are when people gain more of their humanity and adopt others instinct of survival to contribute to the survival of others as well and the second are the individuals that abandon their humanity completely for the sake of self-preservation and it's the latter that can be detrimental to the survival of the entire group. Not only because it abandons other's right for survival and their humanity but it can spread like wildfire to others and their already fragile mental and emotional state.

Yeah it was so interesting to participate and observe both my behaviour and others, plus as an overall group - and indeed how louder voices might drive more in the group to support their agenda - without maybe questioning assumptions or objectives. For example, one very outgoing and convincing member of the team was adamant we should all have a sip of whisky on the first night to keep warm, he quickly got group buy in and it was clearly a bad decision! - easy to realise this now, but equally easy to get caught up in group thinking. What we did wrong for the most part was not setting some early rules or norms - agreeing a process where everyone has a voice, and each proposal is carefully evaluated to determine how viable it is to ensure we survive - we jumped into a 'solution' mode without really thinking it through, and while only a simulation, a bit of panic kicked in under the pressure of the time set and an allocated observer. Really great exercise though.

 

[Scubadevils]

On our 2nd last day of a fantastic and much needed holiday... not looking forward to getting back to reality on Thursday - decided to have a small treat scheduled to arrive that same day, make it a bit easier! Been tempted to try this for a while...

 

[yaps66]

On our 2nd last day of a fantastic and much needed holiday... not looking forward to getting back to reality on Thursday - decided to have a small treat scheduled to arrive that same day, make it a bit easier! Been tempted to try this for a while...

Pretty balanced tuning. Love to hear your impressions of the T3+.

 

[goldwerger]

Great show review. I felt like I was there with you. Tks.

I did not see anything in the Spirit Torino Valkyria at the NY show. You and a few others seem to like it. I did not like anything about it. Maybe I will try it at another show, but I did spend a good deal of time with it. We will see.

Thank you for reporting on the Lina driving the Sus. I have been waiting on someone to test it out.

Have you ever tried the STAX 9000 on the 3ES by Woo Audio? This was at the NY Show. Tks.

Most welcome. It was fun writing this up

Yes I tried the 3ES with the X9000 and loved it. It’s an awesome amp!! The T2 is still my favorite…

 

[Quartex]

Finally...
I just saw this - relevant for Non-Streamers.
https://investors.micron.com/node/44086/pdf

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

I just got the FIR Audio tour IEMs which I signed up for months ago before I knew what FIR Audio was. Since then, I have heard them twice at CanJam NYC and this past weekend at CanJam Chicago. Now, in the comfort of home, I am able to listen to them in a familiar environment, relaxed and with my own sources and tips.

The KR5 was no longer too bright and I liked it a lot, just like I remembered in NYC.

But, what I can say is that for me, 4 times is a charm. I finally get the XE6. This morning, I was listening the 1266TC with its glorious bass. Then, I listened the the KR5, then the XE6 and now I absolutely love it. I have no idea why it took my mind so long to wrap itself around this IEM. But, I am there now. It actually sounds like full sized headphones with fantastic bass.

I have a theory about it, but that's all I have. When I first heard it, my mind trained on what I could only hear as overwhelming bass. For a bass head, that is hard to believe. But, what it really was is that the bass was distracting me away from the rest of the music. Now, my mind has adjusted to it and it sounds like a room full of bass surrounding the rest of the music inside. I think the right metaphor would be listening to a 2 channel system. You get used to listening to the music with walls that are dampening the bass and that is what you get used to hearing. Then, you put in the XE6 and the walls are energized. At first, since it is different, that's all you hear. But, after a while, you get used to it and it becomes a room filled with bass and the rest of the music is inside. The XE6 has tremendously great punch and slam. I used to think that they Z1R was the king in this regard. No longer. Now, it's the XE6. And, part of that room of bass is deep subbass. And, the resolution of the IEM is fantastic. Much more resolving than the KR5. It took me a while, but I am finally hooked. I am going to get one.

 

[DanielListening]

LOL

I love the XE6 but could never justify the cost. Maybe in three years they will have a model I can afford.

 

[aaf evo]

I just got the FIR Audio tour IEMs which I signed up for months ago before I knew what FIR Audio was. Since then, I have heard them twice at CanJam NYC and this past weekend at CanJam Chicago. Now, in the comfort of home, I am able to listen to them in a familiar environment, relaxed and with my own sources and tips.

The KR5 was no longer too bright and I liked it a lot, just like I remembered in NYC.

But, what I can say is that for me, 4 times is a charm. I finally get the XE6. This morning, I was listening the 1266TC with its glorious bass. Then, I listened the the KR5, then the XE6 and now I absolutely love it. I have no idea why it took my mind so long to wrap itself around this IEM. But, I am there now. It actually sounds like full sized headphones with fantastic bass.

I have a theory about it, but that's all I have. When I first heard it, my mind trained on what I could only hear as overwhelming bass. For a bass head, that is hard to believe. But, what it really was is that the bass was distracting me away from the rest of the music. Now, my mind has adjusted to it and it sounds like a room full of bass surrounding the rest of the music inside. I think the right metaphor would be listening to a 2 channel system. You get used to listening to the music with walls that are dampening the bass and that is what you get used to hearing. Then, you put in the XE6 and the walls are energized. At first, since it is different, that's all you hear. But, after a while, you get used to it and it becomes a room filled with bass and the rest of the music is inside. The XE6 has tremendously great punch and slam. I used to think that they Z1R was the king in this regard. No longer. Now, it's the XE6. And, part of that room of bass is deep subbass. And, the resolution of the IEM is fantastic. Much more resolving than the KR5. It took me a while, but I am finally hooked. I am going to get one.

Welcome to the team such an amazing IEM. One of the few sets I’ve heard in a long time that really feels so unique and different, but so captivating. If you pull the trigger on a CIEM it’s even better too.

 

[Frankie D]

Yeah it was so interesting to participate and observe both my behaviour and others, plus as an overall group - and indeed how louder voices might drive more in the group to support their agenda - without maybe questioning assumptions or objectives. For example, one very outgoing and convincing member of the team was adamant we should all have a sip of whisky on the first night to keep warm, he quickly got group buy in and it was clearly a bad decision! - easy to realise this now, but equally easy to get caught up in group thinking. What we did wrong for the most part was not setting some early rules or norms - agreeing a process where everyone has a voice, and each proposal is carefully evaluated to determine how viable it is to ensure we survive - we jumped into a 'solution' mode without really thinking it through, and while only a simulation, a bit of panic kicked in under the pressure of the time set and an allocated observer. Really great exercise though.

Sounds like your team needed what we ( from leadership training, sales training etc ) call the Fox. The fox is the main influencer who can move the team toward a leader and influence the overall direction by getting everyone on board. The Fox is not necessarily the leader, but instead influences the leader and the overall team to agree.

The Fox can also route a sales strategy if not identified early., but that is a separate discussion.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

Welcome to the team such an amazing IEM. One of the few sets I’ve heard in a long time that really feels so unique and different, but so captivating. If you pull the trigger on a CIEM it’s even better too.

I think I am going to do custom.

 

[aaf evo]

I think I am going to do custom.

Having heard them all in universal and CIEM, it’s definitely one of the few IEMs that I wholeheartedly think is a step up in custom. That bass driver right inside your ear hits different.

 

[PHLHarmonic]

LOL

I love the XE6 but could never justify the cost. Maybe in three years they will have a model I can afford.

You can get the universal version for much cheaper, but I can't justify the full price of the custom version, as much as I want to. The gap from the NE4 is there, but $1600 extra for it hurts. I'm mostly between these possible designs right now for the A12t and NE4 were I to get a custom of one.

 

[aaf evo]

You can get the universal version for much cheaper, but I can't justify the full price of the custom version, as much as I want to. The gap from the NE4 is there, but $1600 extra for it hurts. I'm mostly between these possible designs right now for the A12t and NE4 were I to get a custom of one.

I love both of these. The pearl white with gold and black goes surprisingly well.