[Amadeo Nospherathu]

I wish I still had my Cayin n3Pro to hear with Supermoon..I bet it would sound really nice.

It seems yup, but CA deserves better.
But when someone uses them with N8-2 - here, I think, you need to take a breath.

 

[FooFighter]

Did you find RS8 tuning similar to M9?

If RS8 is RS6 on steroids than the tunings are very different (judging through my current EXT pairing with RS6 vs M9)

 

[wazzupi]

If you believe the rating diagram on their own website then it looks like it's as flexible as a golf club.


Oh yes there is: Jaben in Surabaya. That's where I demoed Fitear about a month ago.

drftr

It's flexible enough imo enough so I'd consider a 8 wire

 

[Amadeo Nospherathu]

Hey now, lol, my tube comment was specifically only r-2r, class a, and tube in one portable device being likely a little too much of the smooth. Tubes generally speaking are amazing sonic tools. You go enjoy your tubes whenever you want.

I completely agree with you. R2R + tubes + class A is a slow fat death)

 

[justsomesonyfan]

I guess you could not reinvent the wheel, but add a CA Supermoon with a good cable to your R2R2k and get a headshot.

I'd love to demo it one day, I doubt I'll be in the iem game for a long while now, no money to spend I'll stick to the r2r2000 even tho the rs8 intrigues me.. that being said by the time I'll be back for iems (if that ever happens) who knows what cfa will release, and if I won't go for another plunge audio pair instead.. maybe if a new sony flagship would come out.. but for the time being my only interests in audio are daps, even cables are very hard to justify now that I have the venom and if the r2r2000 mod goes well (hoping for the absolute best, that being burson v6 vivid op amps) I doubt I'd look for daps aswell..

 

[Amadeo Nospherathu]

Curious whether there's a "written rule" about when to use a device in low gain or high gain. I'm using the Cayin RU6 for now and I thought the sound quality on an absolute level should be better in low gain as long as you don't run into power or head room limitations. But is that correct?

drftr

There are no rules and this is probably good news - you can use the gain that you like more)

Regarding certain observations - I see that planars, AMT, etc. are quite hungry drivers. Even if formally everything is fine, it is worth turning on high gain to get the maximum. At the same time, the control increases, and the volume margin can be up to 80% of the scale, but high gain sounds better. Like, for example, oBravos or CA Supermoon. High gain sounds some better.
When the IEMs are sensitive, low gain helps to save a little battery (not always, depends on the device) and achieve a blacker background.

 

[Skyediver]

Your whole post resonated but this especially. Andrew's table felt like a family gathering. It was further testament to his GOAT status that he let us all sit behind the table as though we owned the place. He had the single best collection of portable gear I've ever seen in one place. Once again it was great to meet you (and everyone) and I'm really hoping we can all do this again sometime.

Oh, SO true! It's amazing how Andrew (and his whole team really, calling out Frank and Leo especially) made us all feel like family. Not an exaggeration in the slightest. Andrew gets it: he takes care of us customers and over time, in a genuine and natural way, he makes you feel like family, truly willing to make sure you're a happy client.

I always hear about a few other great retailers out there like Bloom and others, but Andrew is so great with me at this point that if he has what I'm looking for, I'm gonna give that man my money to support his business. The great thing is, when talking portable gear particularly, he's damn near like Amazon, carrying ALL the good stuff we want, so I find it harder to build a similar relationship with the others. Andrew and team make it so pleasant to just stay with them if feasible.

 

[Amadeo Nospherathu]

haha i guess that's true, altho if the stock version had a bigger battery it would be fine, so it's not much about it not playing how it should, rather not playing for enough time

It's just that Hifiman engineers didn't think you could be fast enough to travel far from a charge))

 

[Amadeo Nospherathu]

I'd love to demo it one day, I doubt I'll be in the iem game for a long while now, no money to spend I'll stick to the r2r2000 even tho the rs8 intrigues me.. that being said by the time I'll be back for iems (if that ever happens) who knows what cfa will release, and if I won't go for another plunge audio pair instead.. maybe if a new sony flagship would come out.. but for the time being my only interests in audio are daps, even cables are very hard to justify now that I have the venom and if the r2r2000 mod goes well (hoping for the absolute best, that being burson v6 vivid op amps) I doubt I'd look for daps aswell..

Yes, I understand, you just don't want to look for easy ways))

 

[justsomesonyfan]

It's just that Hifiman engineers didn't think you could be fast enough to travel far from a charge))

hifiman engineers are unique.. to put it nicely.

Yes, I understand, you just don't want to look for easy ways))

what do you mean by that?

 

[Skyediver]

Photography is a bit of a hobby as well, tried to capture some of the "essence" of the days with a few iPhone shots. Hard to focus on photography despite the love for it when all you want to do is listen, lol. I can't be anywhere near as eloquent as @Rockwell75 's great write-ups, so many thoughts still to filter and I unfortunately had to jump right back into regular life, but some additional bullet-point highlights:

• I love my Cayin N8ii, it ain't going anywhere, but all of the hype/love of the Hiby was real and palpable. I'd like to get a complimentary R2R DAP and between the two I'd be done for my needs, and I was waiting for the LP7, but this Hiby might be the one not only for sound, but likely better UI considerations and streaming. Yes, please! Also, it's only anecdotal so keep that in mind, but concerning DAPs, there was WAY more chatter about the Hiby, less so of the AK SP3000. I was a bit surprised by that, expecting there'd be a bit more "buzz" about AK's new flagship. Anecdotal feedback here, though, it's early
• I think the Annihilator (with my Orpheus? I didn't try it that way but should've) has me thinking that fun tuning with additional base would be a nice compliment to my Traillii
• I wish I loved the Lina stack more. It's beautiful! And I think they nail it on the aesthetics of a headphone/desktop setup. Some setups are great on it, but not everything. And at that pricing, I'd want a more universally flexible setup. It's not apples to apples of course, but if the Lina stack was as flexible with its pairings as the Trail is, that would be huge. Ah, dreams.
• Woo Audio's tube amps are sublime. I could see in a year or two, wanting to make the investment in their endgame setup. Need some bonus checks to drop first.
• Justin of ampandsound is great. I was talking to him about his Nautilus and Red October, and because I own a ZMF VO and his matching Pendant, we talked about other options beyond that. He didn't just automatically point me to his most expensive, thinking the Ovation would be "the One" for that pairing, and it did indeed sound amazing. Appreciate the conversation, Justin!
• Wells Audio is crazy money for their Commander III setup, but WOW! Sounded amazing, and was a favorite of many at the show, including some of us Water Cooler gents.

 

[drftr]

I completely agree with you. R2R + tubes + class A is a slow fat death)

... while listening and slowly drowning in a bath tub filled with hot chocolate.

drftr

 

[Skyediver]

Oh, to add some context to a few things in the uploaded pics that might not be super clear: Justin's holding a vintage tube tester. Said in his presentation that if any of us are buying tubes for tube rolling from anywhere except a few trusted retailers (think Ebay), you're getting screwed, lol. A tester is the only way to well, test what you're buying. That THICK purple and white cable? Can't remember the brand, but it's @HiFiHawaii808 's. A beauty, both in sound and looks.

 

[Amadeo Nospherathu]

what do you mean by that?

A solution without a mod would be simpler and more convenient.

 

[justsomesonyfan]

A solution without a mod would be simpler and more convenient.

ahh yes, I wish that would've been the case