[Valrhona]

Since you already used the cat, I'll just say nature...

Amazing...
Where is this?

 

[jmo04]

Perhaps you're being cheeky with this comment but we live in a country and in a time where the current leader's most noteable accomplishment is putting tampon dispensers in the male bathrooms of all federal buildings. I wouldn't put it past the clowns in charge these days to start editing old books to make them more politically correct...or to suit whatever other agenda strikes them. I'm pretty sure this has already been talked about...if it hasn't happened already...with Ian Fleming's James Bond novels and I think even some of Roald Dahl's books. For this reason, and as well as my reasons already given for maintaining my own music library, I'll appreciate e-books as a convenience but I'll never entirely commit myself to them when it comes to my very favorites or stuff I want to keep for posterity.



It's all relative. I've been swimming in the ocean in San Diego in February and it's way more tolerable than the same ocean is up here in August.



Found the guy whose wife reads the thread .

Some of us are married to our IEMs...and cats.

Really loving the pictures and sentiments everyone is sharing. I went for a hike this afternoon to my usual spot.

Awesome view! What trail was this on?

 

[emdeevee]

Amazing...
Where is this?

A man recommends a visit to Carrizo Plain in central California! Especially during the spring!

 

[KuroKitsu]

I guess my birdie is on the way to developing character

Not sure if it was there already or me

The downfalls of faceplates like this.

Also heart attack from dropping them on my desk taking them out from the pouch

 

[timeslip]

Taking a break from the dap and IEMs tonight.

 

[timeslip]

Share a picture of something in your life that you love, non-audio related.

Snowboarding, especially with my son. Started him when he was 3 and he’s 10 now. Rides all the blacks, moguls, and trees with me.

 

[Neweymatt]

I would rather spend $10k on a DAP and IEM that hit the right spot. Being able to enjoy your music perfectly is better than a nice watch on your wrist!

A phone in my pocket was all the watch I needed for many years until I finally got a smart watch a few years ago. Producing a watch to function at its intended purpose does not cost a lot of money, and I believe expensive watches exist to show the world that you can afford an expensive watch. That's it. And that's perfectly fine, the same can be said of expensive clothes, shoes, handbags, and other sorts of jewellery.

One day maybe I'll want that kind of jewellery, but for now I'd MUCH rather put those $$$$$ toward something that makes my ears happy.

 

[o0genesis0o]

Producing a watch to function at its intended purpose does not cost a lot of money, and I believe expensive watches exist to show the world that you can afford an expensive watch.

Maybe. But I auditioned tried a longines chronograph once to see what the fuss is about. The fit and finish was miles ahead of my cheapo Seiko and Tissot. Maybe the ultra expensive ones are status symbols, but that longines showed a clear difference.

I dual wield apple on one arm and normal on the other

 

[Auricon]

I guess my birdie is on the way to developing character

Not sure if it was there already or me

The downfalls of faceplates like this.

Also heart attack from dropping them on my desk taking them out from the pouch

The first scratch is always the worse It’s character and patina!

 

[timeslip]

I would rather spend $10k on a DAP and IEM that hit the right spot. Being able to enjoy your music perfectly is better than a nice watch on your wrist!

I am a geek with a tech job, which is why the apple watch is on my wrist 90% of the time. But those occasions when I go out for a nice dinner and I get to put on my hublot or iwc portuguese puts a real smile on my face. That being said, i've spent more $ on audio than watches.

 

[Auricon]

Speaking of patina, sub $4K Tudor (owned by Rolex) with lots of character.

 

[CharlyBrown]

Some brief "thoughts" over the VE X so far now that I've gotten quite a lot of listening hours with them since I received the demo... testing done from HiBy R8 II. Full disclosure, this is how I hear/enjoy the IEM and is not meant to be a review of some sorts.



Love love.. absolutely love.

I have a bias towards VE IEMs that I expect them to almost always be warm-tilted and musical without sacrificing too much in details and resolution. It's how I was introduced to the brand and how I fell in love with "their sound", very similar to how I expect EE IEMs bass to always rattle my brain (where's LX MK2?) and I personally think the VE X absolutely nails this sound.

Given these do lean warmer VE have tuned them to have a great balance across the FR. The bass response is mid bassy and full with strong impact but it never comes off as bloated or boomy, the decay is very well controlled and stops it from spilling over into the mid range. The sub bass also has good depth and detail but isn't quite elevated or separated enough to give you that large airy bottom end, it's more about staying tight and giving a well articulated rumble. The mid range is lush and very organic in its timbre. Instruments have a lovely weight and density to them that just feels so natural to my ears. Listening to drums, bass guitars.. ugh, . Electric guitars to sound a tad less bite-y than I prefer but overall still very well within the bounds of what I'd consider normal and fitting for the IEM tonality. For some added context I tend to find "flat" lower mids on the lean side, so the slight low mid lift here just fits more with my personal tastes of how I want my mids to typically sound. I understand you're trading some transparency here but it's what I tend to enjoy. Both male and female also carry this ever so slightly deeper tone to them. The treble for me is the icing on the cake. The way I hear it relative to the rest of the tuning is borderline perfection. It's not too relaxed or too emphasized anywhere. I find it very well balanced from low to upper treble while giving all the details and extension you could want but presenting it in a totally inoffensive yet dynamic and lively way.

Before I heard these I was under the impression from friends that I may not find these technical enough for their price point and I'm happy to say I don't find this to be an issue at all. The main "weakness" of their techs would be that the soundstage isn't overly large, but if you've heard VE IEMs before you know they tend to keep their stages more focused and in head which I am completely fine with so long as it doesn't sound congested or too narrow. The soundstage here is definitely on the more "in head" side but it compensates it by having wonderful imaging, and it is still large enough to not ruin the playback of electronic music which I feel benefits from bigger soundstages. Both macro and micro dynamics are well above average also, but this IEM sounds more dynamic though sheer body and note fullness as opposed to having super clean/clear transients. Each note has such a sense of power behind it that really breathes life into the playback.

The build of the IEM feels very premium with its anodized aluminum. It's also VERY light and comfortable in the ears. The cable also feels very nice and fairly supple, I love the hardware and how it matches the IEMs design aesthetics.

My main gripe from the VE X is that just like other VE sets I have tried (with the exception of Elysium and EXT) they are quite sensitive which means they're susceptible to hiss if your source amplification isn't clean enough. However, I do appreciate how easy they are to drive. These don't need any special juicy sources to sound their best so long as the tonality/synergy of what you're using is to your liking.

I do plan to buy these as a universal when inventory is available, I believe sometime in February for MusicTeck. Whether or not I'll get them as a CIEM will be something I'll decide when that choice is available. The fit is great so I'm not feeling pressured to, but if VE has any special designs for the VE X I probably will as I've always wanted a VE CIEM. As far as I know CIEM is still in the works from a development standpoint.

For me these are such an incredible set and I recognize these might not be the "best" at anything in particular, but I find the VE X to be a set that really tugs on my emotional strings and gets my neurons firing, and that is worth more to me than anything that I can score out of 10. The feet tapping, lip syncing, and head bobbing is something that even the most technically impressive sets have failed to do for me.

TL;DR - My favorite VE IEM to date and what I feel is the most complete offering they have so far relative to my tastes.

There is SO much more I could have said about these but.. I feel this is enough. If anyone has any questions I would be happy to answer as best as I can while I still have them on me.

Squiggly wigglies for the measurebaters:

Great review thank you!! I’m very interested in the VE X now

 

[RonaldS86]

Apx day 6 and I can finally understand it's tuning. On my previous post, I said I feel that Apx is quite bass light, but now I realize that is not true. The bass on Apx have enough slam actually, but what makes it special is the rumble from its rectangular planar driver
You gotta try it if you have the chance

 

[Beh0lder]

Speaking of patina, sub $4K Tudor (owned by Rolex) with lots of character.

This is character. My black Epix went full Andromeda on the edges I should've gone for the silver one...

 

[somnarium]

A non audio related joy for me is walking... well, often with IEMs in ... so not sure this counts

A recent highlight being NZ