[Stu Paddasso]

I'm listening to the Evo right now and totally loving the bass and I am a bass head.

 

[drftr]

While you are in Hue, you might want to see if @Tzennn can meet up with you!

Wished I had a list of members of all the countries I'm visiting! I missed this opp as I'm leaving Hué tomorrow morning

EDIT: Just learning that a medium sized bowl of rice in Hué is more than I could possibly eat in a week!

drftr

 

[Wyville]

The good news being that people who bought the Sultan in 2020 are still suffering from the same syndrome and are doing whatever they can to sell them nowadays to scoop up the new flagship Viking Ragnar and the like. This made prices for used Sultans plunge as much as 50%. So if you wanted you could buy one for "little" and have extremely limited price risk if you decide it's not your thing; the main risk being having to wait a bit longer for selling.

All my hobby spending has been on hold for ages now mostly due to Barnie. If at some point there will be any cash lying around that is not immediately claimed by his Lordship, I will get a new camera first. By conservative estimate I might be able to spend on audio again by the year 2025.

Yes, I live vicariously through the Watercooler.

If I make it back home soon due to whatever reason I'd be happy to have you check it out for a couple of days. I take dogs as collateral nowadays so you're good

drftr

Thanks for the offer, very kind. I'm fine though. Wouldn't want anything to happen to your gear. You are always welcome to visit for an audience with his Lordship, if you are ever in the area. He accepts offerings of snacks, fruit (apples and bananas), some vegetable (cucumber, but not carrots) or cheese. Bring those and he will remember you for life and welcome you with a grand display of running around in circles in the garden while barking like a little puppy and jumping up at you to give kisses, forgetting he is ten times the size of a puppy.

 

[drftr]

You are always welcome to visit for an audience with his Lordship, if you are ever in the area. He accepts offerings of snacks, fruit (apples and bananas), some vegetable (cucumber, but not carrots) or cheese. Bring those and he will remember you for life and welcome you with a grand display of running around in circles in the garden while barking like a little puppy and jumping up at you to give kisses, forgetting he is ten times the size of a puppy.

No worries, I come well prepared.

Not wanting to lose my face for the audiophiles among you (if any) I will try to find a copper one though.

drftr

 

[Skyediver]

I might have gotten the toilet bowl if came with a 4.4mm cable.

Same. And CIEM. Luckily for me they didn’t offer that, allowed me to keep my wallet in my pocket. It has PTSD right nine, the way I’ve been recently spending.

 

[Frankie D]

Better late than never I guess, here's some of my impressions/general thoughts on the UM Multiverse Mentor (12 BA + BCD, $4500 UIEM/$5000 CIEM). Listening impressions mostly based off of AK SP3000 and Shanling M6 Ultra.





Honorary comforter pictures for @bigbeans.

The UM Mentor is to my ears is best described as a warm U shape tonality where the warmth resides in the bass and mids, followed by an elevated but well extended and natural mid/upper treble response which helps add some energy to the overall tone of the IEM. On paper I do think this almost sounds "weird" when I read it described as such, but to my ears it somehow just works really well, especially for people like me who are upper mid/low treble sensitive.

Out of the box I heard the Mentor bass to tilt to a mid bass presentation, now I'm not sure whether burn in has changed my perception here, but to my ears it sounds a bit more sub bass focused now. Reading UM's description of their bass in Mentor, as well as using open BAs for sub bass, left me slightly underwhelmed at first. I couldn't understand why it was being so hyped from their descriptions? "Can you believe BA drivers can deliver a bass that sounds like it comes from a subwoofer? You can hear that from our newest handmade open-back BA bass woofers." My only assumption here was that the open back lows needed a bit of time to get fired up. The Mentor bass has fantastic detail and control while also giving a convincing sense of weight/almost liquid-like presentation behind the bass, which I usually do not associate with BA lows. Comparing it back and forth with the A12t (M20) leaves the A12t low end sounding anemic and flat in comparison, although it does have more elevated sub bass rumble with M20 module, but I do not hear it as being able to reach as low as Mentor. Listening to Blame Myself by Illenium, this bass presentation sounds borderline perfect to my ears within the context of the IEM tuning as a whole. The two mid bass hits @ 1:26 and again at 3:19 come through with authority while the entire sub bass line plays in the background with a deep rumble that performs better than a lot of dynamic drivers I have heard.

The midrange from the Mentor reminds me of something that would come straight from Vision Ears. The low mids on Mentor are tuned to be neutral to my ears but manage to capture a very authentic sense of body and presence without needing that low mid lift to help compensate for it. I'd assume the BCD has something to do with this. The upper mids are well represented but tilt warm to my ears with a sense of wetness behind vocals, this is especially noticeable when A/B'ing to either the Elysian Annihilator or Aroma Jewel. Listening to vocals, the Mentor gives what I can only describe as more of a "true to life" type presentation, where I feel I'm listening to an artist sing directly to me without any sort of mic/speaker. The Jewel in comparison (which I think is another fantastic vocal set) is a bit more energetic with its vocals. They have more clarity and don't sound as rounded off, this makes me hear it as ever so slightly digital in comparison, but using that word honestly feels like an injustice to the Jewel's vocal presentation. Listening to "All That Really Matters" by Illenium I feel the Mentor is more capable of portraying Teddy Swims vocals correctly with that slightly deeper and more emotive presentation. This same track on Jewel makes him sound like he's almost.. younger(?) than he actually is, or that his voice hasn't quite matured yet. On the flip side, I find Jewel to handle vocalists like Haliene (in tracks like Stars & Moon by Breathe Carolina, :44 seconds and above) slightly better who have incredible top end reach, whereas the Mentor seems to keep this more on the restrained side. Overall I probably prefer the Mentor vocals here, but most of this will be dictated by the mood I am in and what I feel like listening to on any given day.

The treble response is where the Mentor gets a little quirky. Relative to the upper mid range and low treble it is quite elevated in mid treble and then extends well but "naturally" into the upper treble/airy regions. What I mean by this is that as it goes up in the FR it doesn't have any sort of airy peaks, it seems to slope down but it doesn't roll off. This is an area of the tuning I spent a lot of time focusing on when I had the demo unit, and thankfully I didn't find it to cause any sort of fatigue or weird timbral issues. I am assuming this works because I don't quite hear the treble to be elevated over neutral, but relative to the mid range it is more energetic. So it's not hitting my sensitivities and it also sounds quite correct to me. I also think the fact that whatever drivers they are using here for the highs seem to be very good quality is what's making this tuning choice work. I was expecting them to be open BA drivers when I first heard the Mentor, but they are not.

In terms of technical chops, the Mentor leaves nothing to be desired for me. It has pinpoint imaging, a holographic but more intimate stage presentation, great sense of dynamics, as well as top class separation and layering. With the HiBy RS8 I did find the soundstage to come off as a bit wonky, the Mentor has fantastic depth in its stage and I didn't hear the RS8 to have very exceptional width, this resulted in some odd "hallway" type sound where I felt the image was being presented almost directly in front and behind me and not appropriately proportioned.

For my preferences, I feel the Mentor sits above everything I have heard. It has an incredibly coherent and musical tonality that also comes off as exciting and highly technical. For me this makes it work across a large variety of genres. The BCD being used in IEMs nowadays present a subtle, but unique way of experiencing music. The IEM may not be tuned to any specific target curve, but that's not what I am interested in. When I push play with the Mentor in my ears I want to keep listening to music, and that's the type of experiences that are priceless (well, unfortunately there is a price) for me.

Pros:
- highly technical and musical sound
- top class coherency
- great timbre
- available as CIEM

Cons:
- price
- IEM design doesn't quite look like UM's marketing shots (I actually prefer the more subdued look, but I know some don't)
- BA bass as good as it is will never be a TOTL DD, but in this situation I wouldn't want to give up any coherency for a DD
- cable is microphonic and was uncomfortable for me until I got used to it

Excellent description. Tks.

 

[Wyville]

No worries, I come well prepared.



Not wanting to lose my face for the audiophiles among you (if any) I will try to find a copper one though.

drftr

Might be a good idea because Leonbergers be like...

...and this one seems quite small compared to Barnie.

 

[Skyediver]

Some more concert experiences to share for the live music lovers amongst us. A couple of weeks ago I caught my first “real” country music concert ever (I’ve been to multiple small town summer county fair shindigs, but no full on county music concert), seeing Carrie Underwood’s “Denim & Rhinestone” tour here at Denver’s Ball Arena. Not knowing what to expect going in, I surprised myself with how much I liked it! You can see the roots of Shania Twain in Carrie’s latest music, which I’m all for, enjoying what Shania used to do.

Highlight for me was actually this 10 year girl in front of me who was at her first concert ever with her parents, and she was living her best life, having a BLAST. So fun to see her enthusiasm for Carrie, to her it was like she was seeing the Beatles. Very cool.

And just last weekend, the wifey and I flew to LA for a long weekend to visit friends and to catch Elton’s 2nd to last performance at Dodger’s Stadium. What an AMAZING concert! First, most of my concert-going are solo excursions, but my wife didn’t want to miss Elton, so that made it cool.

Also, people came out TO PARTY! I mean, a good percentage of the audience came decked out in full on regalia of Elton’s iconic outfits from throughout his career, but by far the most popular and appropriate considering the setting/night were folks sporting Dodger Blue. The wife and I were both regretting not participating in the dress up game.

Overall, we had a GREAT time. Michael Jackson self-proclaimed he was the King of Pop, but I don’t know… Elton may indeed be the real King. He did it longer, across more albums, and especially off of his 70s phase where he lived at the top of the charts, the man just has hits, after hits, after HITS. An anecdotal story to share is I was trying to time when to freaking go take a leak without missing something iconic… and just couldn’t do it! Ended up scrambling back from the bathroom at the opening chords of “Rocketman”, lol!

Here’s my thought, would love any additional suggestions from others, but I think Elton is one of an elite group of performers currently that can do two or three nights of a show in a row, and could not repeat one single song for any of the nights, and have his audience for all those shows be completely satisfied. He just has so many hits. Paul McCartney could pull the same trick… not sure who else could? Most others I’d consider would still have a song or two that HAD to be played every night or audiences would feel they were cheated, but I think Elton and Paul could pull it off for at least two shows, no song repeats. That says something.

Some things I’ve learned from this fantastic year of multiple live music events: I’ve become a concert snob, preferring smaller venues over stadiums (though stadiums can be cool when 50,000 are singing together), and I definitely prefer VIP access and front row seating. Yes, I’m spoiled. And while I LOVE our gear talk and our lovely toys to “bring the music closer” and all that, it still pales compared to LIVE MUSIC with a couple of thousan of your new best friends.

Next up is The Roots at Mission Ballroom in Denver the day after Christmas, followed by Tove Lo. Sweeeeet!

 

[drftr]

Might be a good idea because Leonbergers be like...

...and this one seems quite small compared to Barnie.

Holy crap!!! I may have to put grease on the armor to keep him off!

Starting to understand why your wife said she'd only allow one of them. This may have a little bit of influence on the mini project I'm doing with my brother as well. Geez...

drftr

 

[Progisus]

Some more concert experiences to share for the live music lovers amongst us. A couple of weeks ago I caught my first “real” country music concert ever (I’ve been to multiple small town summer county fair shindigs, but no full on county music concert), seeing Carrie Underwood’s “Denim & Rhinestone” tour here at Denver’s Ball Arena. Not knowing what to expect going in, I surprised myself with how much I liked it! You can see the roots of Shania Twain in Carrie’s latest music, which I’m all for, enjoying what Shania used to do.

Highlight for me was actually this 10 year girl in front of me who was at her first concert ever with her parents, and she was living her best life, having a BLAST. So fun to see her enthusiasm for Carrie, to her it was like she was seeing the Beatles. Very cool.

And just last weekend, the wifey and I flew to LA for a long weekend to visit friends and to catch Elton’s 2nd to last performance at Dodger’s Stadium. What an AMAZING concert! First, most of my concert-going are solo excursions, but my wife didn’t want to miss Elton, so that made it cool.

Also, people came out TO PARTY! I mean, a good percentage of the audience came decked out in full on regalia of Elton’s iconic outfits from throughout his career, but by far the most popular and appropriate considering the setting/night were folks sporting Dodger Blue. The wife and I were both regretting not participating in the dress up game.

Overall, we had a GREAT time. Michael Jackson self-proclaimed he was the King of Pop, but I don’t know… Elton may indeed be the real King. He did it longer, across more albums, and especially off of his 70s phase where he lived at the top of the charts, the man just has hits, after hits, after HITS. An anecdotal story to share is I was trying to time when to freaking go take a leak without missing something iconic… and just couldn’t do it! Ended up scrambling back from the bathroom at the opening chords of “Rocketman”, lol!

Here’s my thought, would love any additional suggestions from others, but I think Elton is one of an elite group of performers currently that can do two or three nights of a show in a row, and could not repeat one single song for any of the nights, and have his audience for all those shows be completely satisfied. He just has so many hits. Paul McCartney could pull the same trick… not sure who else could? Most others I’d consider would still have a song or two that HAD to be played every night or audiences would feel they were cheated, but I think Elton and Paul could pull it off for at least two shows, no song repeats. That says something.


Some things I’ve learned from this fantastic year of multiple live music events: I’ve become a concert snob, preferring smaller venues over stadiums (though stadiums can be cool when 50,000 are singing together), and I definitely prefer VIP access and front row seating. Yes, I’m spoiled. And while I LOVE our gear talk and our lovely toys to “bring the music closer” and all that, it still pales compared to LIVE MUSIC with a couple of thousan of your new best friends.

Next up is The Roots at Mission Ballroom in Denver the day after Christmas, followed by Tove Lo. Sweeeeet!

Watched live on Disney. Absolutely great concert. Pretty sure I saw you.

 

[Wyville]

Holy crap!!! I may have to put grease on the armor to keep him off!

It is quite intimidating when he does that and Barnie is big enough that he can put his front paws on my shoulders. The funny thing is, he can be like this as well:

One of the neighbour's kids grabbed Barnie by the face like that and he simply allowed it. That is why we think he has the right disposition to become a therapy dog. He just needs to grow a little older and calmer.

Starting to understand why your wife said she'd only allow one of them. This may have a little bit of influence on the mini project I'm doing with my brother as well. Geez...

drftr

Oh, but my wife really, really, really wants another. We even tested it with Barnie's half-brother staying over for nearly three weeks last Summer. It is just that it would be too much work for me and I would probably have to give up work entirely. That's a bit too much for now. But it is a long-term plan and probably depends on whether or not my wife will make full professor.

 

[SteveK27]

Today I visited a local audio store and got my hands on the long awaited SP3K. I had only read impressions in regards to it till now, and as usual, the impressions always had conflicting opinions that made it difficult for me to formulate a conclusive understanding.

And so, I'd like to contribute by providing my own input for the welfare of our lovely community in the hopes that it may be informative to those who have not had a chance to hear them as of yet.

I do not know whether my demo unit had been burned-in or not, but I did a deep two hours testing continuously A/B-ing with my N8ii to see how well it stands up to the former king of totl daps.


N8ii (ss Amp, P+, Class A/B) vs. SP3K

The first thing I notice is the immediate jump in dynamics going from N8ii to Sp3k. I had been inundated with the "blacker background" impression that the sudden impact and force of the Sp3k caught me off guard more than I expected. It's quite reminiscent to the first time I experienced P+ mode on N8ii. It swallows and overpower you, then take you on a roller-coaster of a journey.

Sp3k has a tad wider soundstage in every direction. It's noticeably wider and deeper, but not enough to make me feel congested when moving back to N8ii. The blacker background is noticeable, but from sheer memory, it's quite comparable to the very black background of the Sony 1zm2 that it didn't leave me impressed beyond a welcome appreciation.

Sp3k has the most neutral tonality among any Astell & Kern products I've tried. I always associated AK daps with this engaging and vivid tonality, but SP3k takes a different approach where its tuned to be more mature and "neutral" (must emphasize again as I can't think of a better word to describe). Nothing stands out for you to observe, but presents itself in a grandiose manner through its sheer confidence in technical competence.

The vocals are placed slightly behind instruments in comparison to N8ii's more forward vocals, and it comes off a bit more tamed and polished as opposed to the sparkly vivid vocals of N8ii. My bias leans closer to N8ii's vocal rendition, but neither dap performs better than the other in this regard. It truly is a preferential thing that I can foresee one liking more than other.

N8ii is more subbass focused. The texture and growl is unmistakable in comparison to any other dap that I've tried - but Sp3k simply have more muscle here. The entire lower frequency have more strength and ease that when in tadem with the immense dynamics, the Sp3k simply overpowers N8ii when the bass hits and allows the lower frequency shines. The low end is palpable unlike any other dap that I've tried.

Overall, Sp3k is like a strongman comparable to a well trained Olympic athlete. The ease in which it's capable of showcasing strength and dynamics is a step above anything I've heard. The Soundstage is more enveloping and everything sounds a bit more "alive".

N8ii is comparable to like a highly finessed martial artists. The poise in which it displays everything is quite elegant. Its tonal quality makes it sound "expensive" even if it doesn't display the same level of ease and technicality as Sp3k. There is a "taste" to it that Sp3k can't replicate, so much to the point that I personally don't consider Sp3k as an immediate upgrade.

N8ii also have quicker and speedier user-interface, and having access to the full capacity of Android functionality makes it more user friendly in comparison to the closed version of Android that AK implements in their products.

Sp3k is surprisingly heavy and honestly feels heavier than the M2 from memory. It's also incredibly sharp to hold without a case, and quite big and bulky to comfortably put in and out of pocket.

With all things considered, and especially taking account to how much I prioritize portability as I mainly listen to music on the go, I'm quite content to hold onto my N8ii instead of trying to find another dap.

This was such a fun experience and I hope to hear further impressions from the cooler members here

 

[drftr]

It is quite intimidating when he does that and Barnie is big enough that he can put his front paws on my shoulders. The funny thing is, he can be like this as well:

One of the neighbour's kids grabbed Barnie by the face like that and he simply allowed it. That is why we think he has the right disposition to become a therapy dog. He just needs to grow a little older and calmer.

Oh, but my wife really, really, really wants another. We even tested it with Barnie's half-brother staying over for nearly three weeks last Summer. It is just that it would be too much work for me and I would probably have to give up work entirely. That's a bit too much for now. But it is a long-term plan and probably depends on whether or not my wife will make full professor.

My brother's youngest son is disadvantaged (if that's a word?) and we thought Leonberger could be the friend he must be longing for. Looks like it is but probably if the grow up together.

drftr

 

[yaps66]

Today I visited a local audio store and got my hands on the long awaited SP3K. I had only read impressions in regards to it till now, and as usual, the impressions always had conflicting opinions that made it difficult for me to formulate a conclusive understanding.

And so, I'd like to contribute by providing my own input for the welfare of our lovely community in the hopes that it may be informative to those who have not had a chance to hear them as of yet.

I do not know whether my demo unit had been burned-in or not, but I did a deep two hours testing continuously A/B-ing with my N8ii to see how well it stands up to the former king of totl daps.


N8ii (ss Amp, P+, Class A/B) vs. SP3K

The first thing I notice is the immediate jump in dynamics going from N8ii to Sp3k. I had been inundated with the "blacker background" impression that the sudden impact and force of the Sp3k caught me off guard more than I expected. It's quite reminiscent to the first time I experienced P+ mode on N8ii. It swallows and overpower you, then take you on a roller-coaster of a journey.

Sp3k has a tad wider soundstage in every direction. It's noticeably wider and deeper, but not enough to make me feel congested when moving back to N8ii. The blacker background is noticeable, but from sheer memory, it's quite comparable to the very black background of the Sony 1zm2 that it didn't leave me impressed beyond a welcome appreciation.

Sp3k has the most neutral tonality among any Astell & Kern products I've tried. I always associated AK daps with this engaging and vivid tonality, but SP3k takes a different approach where its tuned to be more mature and "neutral" (must emphasize again as I can't think of a better word to describe). Nothing stands out for you to observe, but presents itself in a grandiose manner through its sheer confidence in technical competence.

The vocals are placed slightly behind instruments in comparison to N8ii's more forward vocals, and it comes off a bit more tamed and polished as opposed to the sparkly vivid vocals of N8ii. My bias leans closer to N8ii's vocal rendition, but neither dap performs better than the other in this regard. It truly is a preferential thing that I can foresee one liking more than other.

N8ii is more subbass focused. The texture and growl is unmistakable in comparison to any other dap that I've tried - but Sp3k simply have more muscle here. The entire lower frequency have more strength and ease that when in tadem with the immense dynamics, the Sp3k simply overpowers N8ii when the bass hits and allows the lower frequency shines. The low end is palpable unlike any other dap that I've tried.

Overall, Sp3k is like a strongman comparable to a well trained Olympic athlete. The ease in which it's capable of showcasing strength and dynamics is a step above anything I've heard. The Soundstage is more enveloping and everything sounds a bit more "alive".

N8ii is comparable to like a highly finessed martial artists. The poise in which it displays everything is quite elegant. Its tonal quality makes it sound "expensive" even if it doesn't display the same level of ease and technicality as Sp3k. There is a "taste" to it that Sp3k can't replicate, so much to the point that I personally don't consider Sp3k as an immediate upgrade.

N8ii also have quicker and speedier user-interface, and having access to the full capacity of Android functionality makes it more user friendly in comparison to the closed version of Android that AK implements in their products.

Sp3k is surprisingly heavy and honestly feels heavier than the M2 from memory. It's also incredibly sharp to hold without a case, and quite big and bulky to comfortably put in and out of pocket.

With all things considered, and especially taking account to how much I prioritize portability as I mainly listen to music on the go, I'm quite content to hold onto my N8ii instead of trying to find another dap.

This was such a fun experience and I hope to hear further impressions from the cooler members here

Excellent review! Enjoyed reading your impressions!

 

[drftr]

Today I visited a local audio store and got my hands on the long awaited SP3K. I had only read impressions in regards to it till now, and as usual, the impressions always had conflicting opinions that made it difficult for me to formulate a conclusive understanding.

And so, I'd like to contribute by providing my own input for the welfare of our lovely community in the hopes that it may be informative to those who have not had a chance to hear them as of yet.

I do not know whether my demo unit had been burned-in or not, but I did a deep two hours testing continuously A/B-ing with my N8ii to see how well it stands up to the former king of totl daps.


N8ii (ss Amp, P+, Class A/B) vs. SP3K

The first thing I notice is the immediate jump in dynamics going from N8ii to Sp3k. I had been inundated with the "blacker background" impression that the sudden impact and force of the Sp3k caught me off guard more than I expected. It's quite reminiscent to the first time I experienced P+ mode on N8ii. It swallows and overpower you, then take you on a roller-coaster of a journey.

Sp3k has a tad wider soundstage in every direction. It's noticeably wider and deeper, but not enough to make me feel congested when moving back to N8ii. The blacker background is noticeable, but from sheer memory, it's quite comparable to the very black background of the Sony 1zm2 that it didn't leave me impressed beyond a welcome appreciation.

Sp3k has the most neutral tonality among any Astell & Kern products I've tried. I always associated AK daps with this engaging and vivid tonality, but SP3k takes a different approach where its tuned to be more mature and "neutral" (must emphasize again as I can't think of a better word to describe). Nothing stands out for you to observe, but presents itself in a grandiose manner through its sheer confidence in technical competence.

The vocals are placed slightly behind instruments in comparison to N8ii's more forward vocals, and it comes off a bit more tamed and polished as opposed to the sparkly vivid vocals of N8ii. My bias leans closer to N8ii's vocal rendition, but neither dap performs better than the other in this regard. It truly is a preferential thing that I can foresee one liking more than other.

N8ii is more subbass focused. The texture and growl is unmistakable in comparison to any other dap that I've tried - but Sp3k simply have more muscle here. The entire lower frequency have more strength and ease that when in tadem with the immense dynamics, the Sp3k simply overpowers N8ii when the bass hits and allows the lower frequency shines. The low end is palpable unlike any other dap that I've tried.

Overall, Sp3k is like a strongman comparable to a well trained Olympic athlete. The ease in which it's capable of showcasing strength and dynamics is a step above anything I've heard. The Soundstage is more enveloping and everything sounds a bit more "alive".

N8ii is comparable to like a highly finessed martial artists. The poise in which it displays everything is quite elegant. Its tonal quality makes it sound "expensive" even if it doesn't display the same level of ease and technicality as Sp3k. There is a "taste" to it that Sp3k can't replicate, so much to the point that I personally don't consider Sp3k as an immediate upgrade.

N8ii also have quicker and speedier user-interface, and having access to the full capacity of Android functionality makes it more user friendly in comparison to the closed version of Android that AK implements in their products.

Sp3k is surprisingly heavy and honestly feels heavier than the M2 from memory. It's also incredibly sharp to hold without a case, and quite big and bulky to comfortably put in and out of pocket.

With all things considered, and especially taking account to how much I prioritize portability as I mainly listen to music on the go, I'm quite content to hold onto my N8ii instead of trying to find another dap.

This was such a fun experience and I hope to hear further impressions from the cooler members here

Fantastic write-up! Quick check: Not knowing which IEMs you used, could it be they were on the more demanding side making the A&K show off in a better way?

drftr