[drftr]

My HD800 came with individualized frequency response graph, but it was useless as you can see here. NFT worth pixel art right there lol.

Ha ha! Perhaps you should apply a pixel art style to your paintings? But with just a little bit of an analog edge to be slightly more pleasant on the eye.

drftr

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

My HD800 came with individualized frequency response graph, but it was useless as you can see here. NFT worth pixel art right there lol.

I've been following your frequency response graphs. They were slightly hamajang at first, now they are pretty smooth. You must improved your technique over time.

 

[Precogvision]

Here’s the post where I talk about the different U12ts that I have heard. All three units that I have measured have very good channel matching; no more than a 1db difference in the bass regions. For what it's worth, I wouldn't be able to decide which one I like more. The S2 and S3 sets sounded slightly more dynamic and U-shaped at the expense of sounding a little less clean.

I get the feeling that a lot of people don't realize that unit variance between the same model of a given IEM is a very real thing with IEMs. I get to hear multiple units of the same model quite often because MRS (Super*Review) tends to get new IEMs first (which I demo) and I get my sample after. In numerous cases, I've found units to sound slightly different; sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. This even holds true for many of the big-name brands selling kilobuck IEMs.

Why? As far as I understand, drivers used in IEMs have a fairly high range of tolerance from the manufacturer. This means it's often up to brands themselves to set the standard. Unless you're a boutique manufacture like Symphonium Audio that's going to lengths to discard drivers that don't meet a very specific set of parameters, it's much more cost-effective to just match drivers that generally hit the specified target curve. That in mind, the more important metric of QC is usually channel-matching or making sure the two sides of the earphone sound identical. Most people are not going to hear two units of the same model, much less A/B them. All that said, of course you still want to have decent consistency of the end result or you end up with something like the infamous Solaris debacle.

Edit: I should also add that it's difficult to draw correlations between different measurement rigs. The adapter used (eg. Apple dongle) can sometimes make a difference in the bass regions via impedance (eg. the ThieAudio Monarch) as can the individual coupler itself.

 

[tgx78]

I've been following your frequency response graphs. They were slightly hamajang at first, now they are pretty smooth. You must improved your technique over time.

Oh boy.. thanks!

They were pretty crude weren’t they.

I could tell many people were cringing when I uploaded those graphs.

 

[Scubadevils]

I've no idea where to start in terms of 2021 favourites, it has been an incredible journey of discovery for me over the last 12 months or so, 'meeting' so many great people here on Head-Fi who, in some cases, I speak with on a daily basis about all thing's music. Many more random interactions, some more often than others and I really appreciate the wealth of knowledge and genuine good nature and spirit of engagement that tends to exist here on Head-Fi and especially in this thread, hats off to @Rockwell75 for creating a wonderful environment that is full of great people, banter, knowledge, laughs and true personality.

Some highlights anyway:

Traillii was of course an astounding purchase - much more money than I ever thought I could possibly spend on a set of earphones and actually the set I listen to the least in terms of IEMs I rotate on a weekly basis - this is intentional though, I like to have very specific time with the 'Bird' and give my full attention, not a casual listen by any means. These moments are so special and genuinely almost tear inducing when I do listen. Crazy money, no question about it but to me, they are worth it and take the top spot in my collection.

Dynamic Drivers - beyond Traillii, I'm just going to say single DDs for now. I'm still getting to know my collection, and IE900 was the real light-bulb moment for me in terms of what I really enjoy with IEMs. I've said a few times now, I'm slowly discovering where they each excel in terms of the wide variety of genres I listen to, and I'm very happy to have options to reach for depending on mood, location, choice of album etc. I'm off for the next week and I cannot wait to spend focused time with each of the four pictured below and continue to document my findings for each.

Buds - I was sceptical as to what buds might offer to my listening, but quickly got bitten by the bug when I bought the Fiio EM5. I've since built up a collection that still amounts to less than a 6th of the cost of Traillii but equates to significantly more weekly listening. Bang for buck more evident here than anywhere else in this hobby for me - choosing a $300 set of buds (Moondrop Chaconne) as both my bedtime and WFH companion on an almost daily basis now for several weeks.

Sources - I've loved my Sony DAPs but the n6ii-Ti has been such a massive upgrade in terms of sound quality, even though I prefer many other attributes of the Sony DAPs. R2R is incredible and driven a new level of experience to my IEMs - very much teaching me the importance of the audio source.

I feel I've a good sense for what I enjoy in this hobby and 2022 should become more of a focus on appreciating what I've already bought, I need to slow down! I love having a variety though and do not envisage a scenario where my collection amounts to less than five IEMs - my music preferences are quite broad, and it's tricky for the variety of genres to sound at their best on a handful of IEMs - not to mention different listening environments.

Anyway, thanks all and here's to 2022 - hopefully this dreaded COVID will start to leave us alone, and we might actually meet in-person at some point

 

[drftr]

I think you're the exception here

@tgx78 I was going to include "being able to verify measurements himself". I guess I didn't.

drftr

 

[Rockwell75]

You are the one that posted it in your last list.

I was just speculating and referring to the fact that someone had stated that they'd tweaked the tuning...I've never seen any actual statement from 64 that they have.

If you can define what exactly defines musicality for you the question will be easier to answer.

I'm still learning about what a lot of these terms mean for me in practice. On the topic of 2021 revelations that sound glossary that was shared here a month or so ago definitely counts as one for me-- it really opened my eyes to what a lot of these terms we throw around (detail, resolution etc.) really mean, or were originally implied to mean. In terms of how I understand musicality I think of that interview with Caleb Roseneau from Campfire where he was talking about the differences between DDs and BAs and said that BAs excel at describing sound and DDs excel at making you feel it. For me musicality stands opposite analyticity on the sonic spectrum and I'm converging on an understanding of those two terms in line with Roseneau's description of BA vs. DD drivers ie., analytic IEMs prioritize describing sound (the more detailed, precise, technical the better) and musical IEMs tend towards making you feel it (with the priority being more body, richness and natural timbre to the sound). Of course IEMs can do both but it seems to me that, generally, the more analytic an IEM is the less musical it is and vice versa. It's no coincidence that the most analytic IEMs tend to be BA driven given those drivers' greater technical capacity and IEMs thought of as musical tend to be DD driven given those drivers' capacity for warmth, body and richer, more natural timbre etc. This is not an absolute distinction-- some BA IEMs can be musical (VE8, Andromeda), and DD IEMs can be tuned to be very analytic (FD7)-- but in general I think the distinction holds and I would maintain that DD drivers, when push comes to shove, cannot compete with BAs for analytical sound and technical prowess and BAs cannot compete with DDs when it comes to musicality and natural timbre.

That extra mid-bass/lower mid emphasis in the S3 there is definitely consistent with something I think I would enjoy a lot more.

 

[SemiAudiophile]

I feel I've a good sense for what I enjoy in this hobby and 2022 should become more of a focus on appreciating what I've already bought.

This.

Moondrop Quarks was probably the best purchase (value) of the year and in this hobby period for me. Amazing quality for a pair of $15 IEMs.

RU6 opened the door into R2R for me. Absolutely love it and I want to get a desktop R2R in the future. RS6 or R01 still pending...

I don't foresee myself making any IEM purchases next year, quite happy with what I have already. Unless a higher end Timeless or Variations 2.0 (still my favorite for electronic with the best subbass) comes out? I think I'll mostly focus on source/synergy matching.

Cheers to a good 2022 all! And happy listening!

 

[Wyville]

Here’s the post where I talk about the different U12ts that I have heard. All three units that I have measured have very good channel matching; no more than a 1db difference in the bass regions. For what it's worth, I wouldn't be able to decide which one I like more. The S2 and S3 sets sounded slightly more dynamic and U-shaped at the expense of sounding a little less clean.

I get the feeling that a lot of people don't realize that unit variance between the same model of a given IEM is a very real thing with IEMs. I get to hear multiple units of the same model quite often because MRS (Super*Review) tends to get new IEMs first (which I demo) and I get my sample after. In numerous cases, I've found units to sound slightly different; sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. This even holds true for many of the big-name brands selling kilobuck IEMs.

Why? As far as I understand, drivers used in IEMs have a fairly high range of tolerance from the manufacturer. This means it's often up to brands themselves to set the standard. Unless you're a boutique manufacture like Symphonium Audio that's going to lengths to discard drivers that don't meet a very specific set of parameters, it's much more cost-effective to just match drivers that generally hit the specified target curve. That in mind, the more important metric of QC is usually channel-matching or making sure the two sides of the earphone sound identical. Most people are not going to hear two units of the same model, much less A/B them. All that said, of course you still want to have decent consistency of the end result or you end up with something like the infamous Solaris debacle.

Edit: I should also add that it's difficult to draw correlations between different measurement rigs. The adapter used (eg. Apple dongle) can sometimes make a difference in the bass regions via impedance (eg. the ThieAudio Monarch) as can the individual coupler itself.

That's a shame. Wish I had heard the later U12t. I had a very early version over for a while and it never resonated with me despite being technically excellent. I felt the U12t were just a tad too lean and lacking warmth to give the mids a more natural tone. Sounds like the later version are more my cup of tea and IEMs I would have included in my classical music series. Oh well, such is life.

Concerning measurement rigs. Absolutely, people should not draw too many conclusions comparing the results from different rigs. The only meaningful way to compare is to use the same highly standardised setup that is regularly calibrated. With any such setup, the most unexpected things can sometimes have significant consequences for the end result. Using non-standardised components, e.g. third-party adapters, is like adding a little black box where you loose a certain degree of control of what is essentially an experimental setup.

 

[Ace Bee]

On Sunday I got the opportunity to meet a long time audiophile friend @RoXor for the first time and had a brief session together. The listening session, though brief, were quite eye opening for both of us, and paired with some delicious Assamese cuisine, namely smoked pork with dry bamboo shoot - suffice to say experience was a delicious one. But I digress.


This was my second rodeo with the famous Andromeda 2019. The first time I got to listen to one, well, I am ashamed to say, I was a non-believer of source then. I used to use my iems with the 3.5 mm jack of a paltry Samsung J6 phone. I know, I know, laughable, and I myself cannot imagine what was going on in my stupid head then. Anyway, suffice to say that with the stock cable and the 3.5 mm out, the sound of Anro was lean, lifeless, extremely analytical and harsh and sharp, bass was practically non existing. I knew of Andro’s extreme impedance sensitivity, but never thought it was that bad. When I paired it with Shanling M0, it turned into a bloated bassy mess.

However, this time I had the opportunity to pair the Andromeda with my M3X balanced out, and let me tell you it amazed me from the very first listen! The bass was so satisfactory - the midbass slam was thick and devoid of any BA tonality. Male vocals were forward and had quite a nice weight to them such that I did not feel I was missing out on anything. Midrange had a brilliant clarity in spite of the powerful low end and had quite a bit of crunch. Nothing felt harsh or sharp at all - just very finely tuned. The background instruments were placed at a perceptible distance with very prominent presence - creating a holographic stage. I loved it. Although, it wasn't without caveats - the subbass had that distinct BA timbre where it could be heard, but not felt. The deepest subbass rumbles were unable to be perceived.
Note: I have yet to listen to a kilobuck DD iem to understand if the midrange feels more natural than BA mids. Also, I might not had enough time with Andromeda to accurately judge the midrange timbre and tonality, and hence cannot confirm whether with time it would have started to bother me.


Along with this, what surprised me most was that the gap between the Andromeda and the IMR Splash Of Red was not as much as one would expect it to be, given their respective price points of $999 and $254 (including shipping). Normally, after coming from a Kilobuck iem, when I would put on a cheaper iem - the first realisation that would immediately hit me was that the notes felt flatter, much less three dimensionally defined. However, when I am putting on the SOR after Andromeda, I am not hit with that realisation. Yup, the evident step down in details can be immediately perceived, but the notes do not exactly fall so much flat. They still feel very much three dimensionally defined, to a lesser degree of course, but the definition is still there nonetheless. The stage width is similar, depth a little less but still well perceptible, imaging and clarity are noteworthy yet. Midrange is noticeably pushed back - immediately evident in case of male vocals, which feels a bit thinner on SOR than Andromeda - which had fuller male vocals. That holographic feel still lingers somewhat. In a nutshell, I could not feel I was losing out a lot with the SOR. Which is precisely the reason I am not feeling like upgrading to anything full BA or hybrid after getting it. However, I do still hold an active interest towards the DD kilobuck contenders.

 

[RoXor]

On Sunday I got the opportunity to meet a long time audiophile friend @RoXor for the first time and had a brief session together. The listening session, though brief, were quite eye opening for both of us, and paired with some delicious Assamese cuisine, namely smoked pork with dry bamboo shoot - suffice to say experience was a delicious one. But I digress.


This was my second rodeo with the famous Andromeda 2019. The first time I got to listen to one, well, I am ashamed to say, I was a non-believer of source then. I used to use my iems with the 3.5 mm jack of a paltry Samsung J6 phone. I know, I know, laughable, and I myself cannot imagine what was going on in my stupid head then. Anyway, suffice to say that with the stock cable and the 3.5 mm out, the sound of Anro was lean, lifeless, extremely analytical and harsh and sharp, bass was practically non existing. I knew of Andro’s extreme impedance sensitivity, but never thought it was that bad. When I paired it with Shanling M0, it turned into a bloated bassy mess.

However, this time I had the opportunity to pair the Andromeda with my M3X balanced out, and let me tell you it amazed me from the very first listen! The bass was so satisfactory - the midbass slam was thick and devoid of any BA tonality. Male vocals were forward and had quite a nice weight to them such that I did not feel I was missing out on anything. Midrange had a brilliant clarity in spite of the powerful low end and had quite a bit of crunch. Nothing felt harsh or sharp at all - just very finely tuned. The background instruments were placed at a perceptible distance with very prominent presence - creating a holographic stage. I loved it. Although, it wasn't without caveats - the subbass had that distinct BA timbre where it could be heard, but not felt. The deepest subbass rumbles were unable to be perceived.
Note: I have yet to listen to a kilobuck DD iem to understand if the midrange feels more natural than BA mids. Also, I might not had enough time with Andromeda to accurately judge the midrange timbre and tonality, and hence cannot confirm whether with time it would have started to bother me.


Along with this, what surprised me most was that the gap between the Andromeda and the IMR Splash Of Red was not as much as one would expect it to be, given their respective price points of $999 and $254 (including shipping). Normally, after coming from a Kilobuck iem, when I would put on a cheaper iem - the first realisation that would immediately hit me was that the notes felt flatter, much less three dimensionally defined. However, when I am putting on the SOR after Andromeda, I am not hit with that realisation. Yup, the evident step down in details can be immediately perceived, but the notes do not exactly fall so much flat. They still feel very much three dimensionally defined, to a lesser degree of course, but the definition is still there nonetheless. The stage width is similar, depth a little less but still well perceptible, imaging and clarity are noteworthy yet. Midrange is noticeably pushed back - immediately evident in case of male vocals, which feels a bit thinner on SOR than Andromeda - which had fuller male vocals. That holographic feel still lingers somewhat. In a nutshell, I could not feel I was losing out a lot with the SOR. Which is precisely the reason I am not feeling like upgrading to anything full BA or hybrid after getting it. However, I do still hold an active interest towards the DD kilobuck contenders.

Got the opportunity to meet @Ace Bee today, we had our small audiophile meetup in Guwahati (India). I tried the IMR Splash of Red, Penon Aladdin and Shanling M3x.

To start with, M3x is a great DAP in terms of sound. I didn't get much time to experience the UI so can't really talk about it, but one thing I can assure you, its not laggy. I loved how it sounds, got an overall pretty flat sound signature, not too intimate but being emotional at the same time. Soundstage was good too with good amount of detail retrieval. I think its definitely better than Ibasso dx160 in terms of sound. Didn't get opportunity to test the power output, but drove IEMs with ease. M3x has good pairing with Andromeda v3 with the Penon mix cable and whirlwind tips.

Penon Alladin: This didn’t get much time, couldn't even finish up one whole track, but I feel, its a pretty good IEM, nice warm presentations with no weird peaks, but I couldn't find anything special. Its a jack of all trades kind of an IEM and today's market demands more.

IMR Splash of Red: Well, apart from the delicious food, this took up most of my attention. Its a great IEM, specially for the price. Nope, its not a neutral IEM that targets any recognized frequency response. What it does is present you with meaty bass, crystal clear mids and highs. This is the kind of IEM that takes up the mids and highs of JVC fdx1 but adds a bit of tonal weight and then adds deep impactful bass with it. The bass kind of envelops the sound, like an woofer, but somehow manages to not meddle with mids and highs. Soundstage and imaging is pretty wide, its definitely holographic. Fdx1 probably has slightly wider soundstage. Overall, I am amazed by this IEM and was shocked to realize its a single DD iem!! I would suggest to try it if possible, some may like it, some may not, but I loved it. It ticks all the right boxes for me to enjoy my music. More expenses I guess :/
No pics, didn’t feel like wasting any time
Thanks

 

[Rockwell75]

Dynamic Drivers - beyond Traillii, I'm just going to say single DDs for now. I'm still getting to know my collection, and IE900 was the real light-bulb moment for me in terms of what I really enjoy with IEMs. I've said a few times now, I'm slowly discovering where they each excel in terms of the wide variety of genres I listen to, and I'm very happy to have options to reach for depending on mood, location, choice of album etc. I'm off for the next week and I cannot wait to spend focused time with each of the four pictured below and continue to document my findings for each.

I am totally with you. I've come to value DD mids as much as DD bass and going forward, barring more planar tech, I will most likely confine myself to single DDs or hybrids with DDs doing mids and lows. Last week when I was visiting @tgx78 I spent about an hour going from Zen Pro to IE900 to Isa and back again to compare the 3 and afterwards when I switched to u12t and Monarch II the difference in midrange timbre was immediately and unremittingly apparent to me. As good as those two IEMs are (and they are in their own way as good as it gets) and even factoring in the increased wow factor and enjoyment I experienced with the u12t this time when I went back to the Zen Pro there was no mistaking where my personal preference lies. As with everything YMMV.

I feel I've a good sense for what I enjoy in this hobby and 2022 should become more of a focus on appreciating what I've already bought, I need to slow down! I love having a variety though and do not envisage a scenario where my collection amounts to less than five IEMs - my music preferences are quite broad, and it's tricky for the variety of genres to sound at their best on a handful of IEMs - not to mention different listening environments.

100%. 5 is a good number. I probably won't count Timeless as it's only $200 so that means I have room to acquire one this year. Eager for a comparison between Dark Sky & Zen Pro from you.

Anyway, thanks all and here's to 2022 - hopefully this dreaded COVID will start to leave us alone, and we might actually meet in-person at some point

Amen to that!

 

[claud W]

Got notified this morning that Crinicle Eclipse is en route. Should be some good **** You bass!

 

[Ryokan]

As much as I'm enjoying Timeless I won't be selling off my Mest II or Andro 2020 just yet.

 

[Scubadevils]

I am totally with you. I've come to value DD mids as much as DD bass and going forward, barring more planar tech, I will most likely confine myself to single DDs or hybrids with DDs doing mids and lows. Last week when I was visiting @tgx78 I spent about an hour going from Zen Pro to IE900 to Isa and back again to compare the 3 and afterwards when I switched to u12t and Monarch II the difference in midrange timbre was immediately and unremittingly apparent to me. As good as those two IEMs are (and they are in their own way as good as it gets) and even factoring in the increased wow factor and enjoyment I experienced with the u12t this time when I went back to the Zen Pro there was no mistaking where my personal preference lies. As with everything YMMV.



100%. 5 is a good number. I probably won't count Timeless as it's only $200 so that means I have room to acquire one this year. Eager for a comparison between Dark Sky & Zen Pro from you.



Amen to that!

Spending a large portion of my Monday holiday afternoon with some initial comparisons - focus on Dark Sky, ZEN PRO, and IE900 - possibly Isa too. Being off work, I felt it was quite necessary to crack open a beer too The current scene at my kitchen table - my wife just threw a bewildered smile at her nerdy husband!