[Stu Paddasso]

Halfway through or so it seems

Just an idea - even though it looks like a joke: What if you bought every new TOTL IEM, listened to it for a week, and sold it with a $50 discount to the next guy, who then repeats the process, et cetera? In 2 years a whopping 100 of us would have been able to demo the IEM for a week for just $50, with the advantage that they can hear all new top IEMs, try them for themselves for a week, and avoid any terrible buys on top of that.

drftr

You forgot the shipping costs.

 

[drftr]

There’s even one van Dijk family up here in northern Norway

They spread like the plague really.

You forgot the shipping costs.

2 wks ago I sent a parcel to London for $34. That's cheaper than taking a 1hr train to Amsterdam and back for a demo. So yes, good catch, but what does demoing cost you just to get to a dealer that has all these goodies? I could perhaps find a few in London, but after that it would probably be Singapore.

drftr

 

[Stu Paddasso]

They spread like the plague really.


2 wks ago I sent a parcel to London for $34. That's cheaper than taking a 1hr train to Amsterdam and back for a demo. So yes, good catch, but what does demoing cost you just to get to a dealer that has all these goodies? I could perhaps find a few in London, but after that it would probably be Singapore.

drftr

I only have Plunge Audio In Calgary. Otherwise, it's @rockwell Tours or blind buy.

 

[wolfstar76]

They spread like the plague really.


2 wks ago I sent a parcel to London for $34. That's cheaper than taking a 1hr train to Amsterdam and back for a demo. So yes, good catch, but what does demoing cost you just to get to a dealer that has all these goodies? I could perhaps find a few in London, but after that it would probably be Singapore.

drftr

Most feasible solution is like @aaf evo, just go ahead and purchase a TOTL IEM, and later sell them, cost you anywhere from $200 to $1500, if you really like what @aaf evo is doing, order a CIEM, and sell them later . Divorce is very expensive.

 

[Allears79]

Ok, I guess I am part of the group of people who got bitten by the “trifecta bug”. I just went to my dealer in NY - Audio 46 - and listened to it. I got curious after noticing how polarizing the opinions about this IEM are and I am actually searching for that freshness and that wow moment that we are all pursuing in this hobby.

Just so you understand where I am coming from, I am currently using the fantastic (for me end game in fact) Cayin N30LE with the Jewel and the Orpheus cable. To my ears this setup is an audiophile's dream of resolution , finesse, controlled power and clarity. To the point where all TOTL IEMs that I’ve been trying lately doesn’t impress me anymore because they sound VERY similar (with emphasis on different things but with a familiar and commercially safe tuning).

My desktop rig consists of the Abyss and a Nagra Classic Pre-amp. I doesn’t get much “better” than that right?

After inserting the Trifectas in my ears while standing in the counter of Audio46, it took a few minutes for my brain to adjust to the quantity of information bombarding my head. After 10 minutes, I decided to play NIN’s March of the Pigs from the Downward Spiral Album and boom, this electrical energy just invaded my brain and almost melted my eyes (lol, I’m really excited with this thing). I was immediately sold into this incredible IEM.

What actually convinced me to get it was an emotion quite different from what I usually experience with the standard hi-fi gear: All of a sudden I stopped to analyze the technicalities of the system and I was transported to the couch in the living room where I grew up, listening to my dad’s grownup stereo system, loud volume, just listening to the song, connecting with it emotionally, without separating frequencies or instruments or trying to close my eyes searching for the musicians in the room. And as a musician and an audiophile I MISS connecting to songs that I like as opposed to listening to beautifully recorded albums because they will show up what the gear can do. And that for me is pure magic! I was desperately searching for that connection. I won’t bother with measurements, curves, analysis, nothing. I trust what I am listening and it is just extremely engaging and exciting.

I don’t know how many of you had the opportunity to try this IEM paired with the N30LE (and the mandarin earplugs) but seriously, it is a unique musical experience. It is almost like the DAP works as a catalyst for this wild IEM, guiding it to a more emotional path, increasing its clarity and bringing the lower frequencies to a level of power and control that I don’t see everyday in a portable system. It is remarkable!

Will I be replacing my Aroma Jewel? No, but I was able to actually find something to add to my collection that brings a new form of interacting with my music and for that I am extremely satisfied. Thank you Campfire Audio for daring and trying to offer something different and unique!

 

[wolfstar76]

Ok, I guess I am part of the group of people who got bitten by the “trifecta bug”. I just went to my dealer in NY - Audio 46 - and listened to it. I got curious after noticing how polarizing the opinions about this IEM are and I am actually searching for that freshness and that wow moment that we are all pursuing in this hobby.

Just so you understand where I am coming from, I am currently using the fantastic (for me end game in fact) Cayin N30LE with the Jewel and the Orpheus cable. To my ears this setup is an audiophile's dream of resolution , finesse, controlled power and clarity. To the point where all TOTL IEMs that I’ve been trying lately doesn’t impress me anymore because they sound VERY similar (with emphasis on different things but with a familiar and commercially safe tuning).

My desktop rig consists of the Abyss and a Nagra Classic Pre-amp. I doesn’t get much “better” than that right?

After inserting the Trifectas in my ears while standing in the counter of Audio46, it took a few minutes for my brain to adjust to the quantity of information bombarding my head. After 10 minutes, I decided to play NIN’s March of the Pigs from the Downward Spiral Album and boom, this electrical energy just invaded my brain and almost melted my eyes (lol, I’m really excited with this thing). I was immediately sold into this incredible IEM.

What actually convinced me to get it was an emotion quite different from what I usually experience with the standard hi-fi gear: All of a sudden I stopped to analyze the technicalities of the system and I was transported to the couch in the living room where I grew up, listening to my dad’s grownup stereo system, loud volume, just listening to the song, connecting with it emotionally, without separating frequencies or instruments or trying to close my eyes searching for the musicians in the room. And as a musician and an audiophile I MISS connecting to songs that I like as opposed to listening to beautifully recorded albums because they will show up what the gear can do. And that for me is pure magic! I was desperately searching for that connection. I won’t bother with measurements, curves, analysis, nothing. I trust what I am listening and it is just extremely engaging and exciting.

I don’t know how many of you had the opportunity to try this IEM paired with the N30LE (and the mandarin earplugs) but seriously, it is a unique musical experience. It is almost like the DAP works as a catalyst for this wild IEM, guiding it to a more emotional path, increasing its clarity and bringing the lower frequencies to a level of power and control that I don’t see everyday in a portable system. It is remarkable!

Will I be replacing my Aroma Jewel? No, but I was able to actually find something to add to my collection that brings a new form of interacting with my music and for that I am extremely satisfied. Thank you Campfire Audio for daring and trying to offer something different and unique!

Need to demo myself, I read all the positive reviews, still cannot grasp what is going on with Trifectas.

 

[aaf evo]

Most feasible solution is like @aaf evo, just go ahead and purchase a TOTL IEM, and later sell them, cost you anywhere from $200 to $1500, if you really like what @aaf evo is doing, order a CIEM, and sell them later . Divorce is very expensive.

Haha well the resale on CIEMs is always more substantial unless it's from a company that does reshells like FiR, UM, FATFreq, and Aroma. However, I don't regret it most of the time. I've had one or two blunders. I shouldn't have gotten the FiR KR5 as CIEM and I knew beforehand that the Elysian Annihilator bass quality wasn't to my liking, so getting that as a CIEM wasn't wise even though I still enjoyed it, but life goes on.

I very rarely blind buy universals like I used to. Now that I am starting to attend CanJams and can try most other stuff through MusicTeck, there is just no need. On top of that I think for my tastes there are maybe 5 sets that I consider "worth" owning for myself anyways so the overall temptation to buy new things has really dwindled.

At this point I want what I would consider to be the absolute best of the best there is to offer or I want something unique and different. The two sets on my radar that should be out within the next 3 months or so are the new IEM that is coming from PMG audio and the NightJar Duality. The PMG I will demo and the Duality I need to think more about depending on what the price will be as I'd have to buy that one based off of about 15 minutes of combined demo time at Dallas and NYC.

I am planning to add a "summit-fi" headphone setup within the next 12 months or so also but that's just an idea at this point. I will spend time at SoCal checking some stuff out.

 

[emdeevee]

As I test this new PB5 Osprey with my collection, I'm just blown away by what it is doing to my P6Pro. For the first few days, I kept everything in low gain and had wow moments, but when I pumped the PB5 to its high gain, even more wows. This is sort of what I was hoping this pairing would do.

Interestingly, trying the Xe6 (which does not require a lot of power) in this configuration is giving it something even more special. The separation and air quotient is way up, the bass and kinetic bass are on fire, and the vocals clear without veil. I guess when amped up, Xe6 rises to the occasion and is hugely more enjoyable than before.

So, score on the PB5, an amazingly great and reasonably affordable way to radically up your DAPs performance!

 

[greymousetaxi]

Lots of folks don't like CFA sound and it sounds like you're one of them. So, have you also tried the Penon Serial (3xDD) or Quattro (4xDD)? Does the KZ kick their ass as well?

have not tried the penon serial, it's been on my wishlist since it's release. i also don't really spend alot of money on iems, so i mostly stick to kz and chifi, then tune using filters/sponges/eq. kz's dynamic drivers are done very well these days, ftom what i remember, they've gone fully automated for their dd, utilizing a welded coil design.

 

[emdeevee]

Ok, I guess I am part of the group of people who got bitten by the “trifecta bug”. I just went to my dealer in NY - Audio 46 - and listened to it. I got curious after noticing how polarizing the opinions about this IEM are and I am actually searching for that freshness and that wow moment that we are all pursuing in this hobby.

Just so you understand where I am coming from, I am currently using the fantastic (for me end game in fact) Cayin N30LE with the Jewel and the Orpheus cable. To my ears this setup is an audiophile's dream of resolution , finesse, controlled power and clarity. To the point where all TOTL IEMs that I’ve been trying lately doesn’t impress me anymore because they sound VERY similar (with emphasis on different things but with a familiar and commercially safe tuning).

My desktop rig consists of the Abyss and a Nagra Classic Pre-amp. I doesn’t get much “better” than that right?

After inserting the Trifectas in my ears while standing in the counter of Audio46, it took a few minutes for my brain to adjust to the quantity of information bombarding my head. After 10 minutes, I decided to play NIN’s March of the Pigs from the Downward Spiral Album and boom, this electrical energy just invaded my brain and almost melted my eyes (lol, I’m really excited with this thing). I was immediately sold into this incredible IEM.

What actually convinced me to get it was an emotion quite different from what I usually experience with the standard hi-fi gear: All of a sudden I stopped to analyze the technicalities of the system and I was transported to the couch in the living room where I grew up, listening to my dad’s grownup stereo system, loud volume, just listening to the song, connecting with it emotionally, without separating frequencies or instruments or trying to close my eyes searching for the musicians in the room. And as a musician and an audiophile I MISS connecting to songs that I like as opposed to listening to beautifully recorded albums because they will show up what the gear can do. And that for me is pure magic! I was desperately searching for that connection. I won’t bother with measurements, curves, analysis, nothing. I trust what I am listening and it is just extremely engaging and exciting.

I don’t know how many of you had the opportunity to try this IEM paired with the N30LE (and the mandarin earplugs) but seriously, it is a unique musical experience. It is almost like the DAP works as a catalyst for this wild IEM, guiding it to a more emotional path, increasing its clarity and bringing the lower frequencies to a level of power and control that I don’t see everyday in a portable system. It is remarkable!

Will I be replacing my Aroma Jewel? No, but I was able to actually find something to add to my collection that brings a new form of interacting with my music and for that I am extremely satisfied. Thank you Campfire Audio for daring and trying to offer something different and unique!

Yes, it is a uniquity in the hobby, the CFA Trifecta. While polarizing, you can't say it sounds like anything else, because it doesn't. A lot of the TOTL is tuned similarly, of course with differences, but following a certain approach that favors high end brilliance often at the expense of the lows. Some can nail that tuning, like Aroma and many others. But only CFA has produced a beast like Trifecta. I do feel that Xe6 comes closest to this approach, also providing a uniquity.

This is also something I want in my experience, what you've described, and like you, for me, Trifecta provides this in spades.

 

[PixelSquish]

What actually convinced me to get it was an emotion quite different from what I usually experience with the standard hi-fi gear: All of a sudden I stopped to analyze the technicalities of the system and I was transported to the couch in the living room where I grew up, listening to my dad’s grownup stereo system, loud volume, just listening to the song, connecting with it emotionally, without separating frequencies or instruments or trying to close my eyes searching for the musicians in the room. And as a musician and an audiophile I MISS connecting to songs that I like as opposed to listening to beautifully recorded albums because they will show up what the gear can do. And that for me is pure magic! I was desperately searching for that connection. I won’t bother with measurements, curves, analysis, nothing. I trust what I am listening and it is just extremely engaging and exciting.

I think these are probably some of the most important things to keep in mind in this hobby. I got a bit caught up in that and started doubting things I enjoyed because of a lack of enough technical detail in this frequency or not, until I went to CanJam and tried a bunch of expensive IEM and realized, just because I could hear something, say in part of the treble in this case, more so than I could with my favorite IEM, I didn't care at all. Overall it just didn't connect me with the music nearly enough. Who cares if I can hear a certain thing when the point of music is to get lost in the music, not in the technicalities. Saved me a lot of fomo, which I'm still trying to work through, and now I am much more certain in what I seek.

A lot of the TOTL is tuned similarly, of course with differences, but following a certain approach that favors high end brilliance often at the expense of the lows.

This is what I realized after all that auditioning. And I don't want any high end brilliance at the expense of the lows and the overall body and organic sound of the music. That's just not what makes me tap my foot and break out into smiles and impromptu 'dance' moves when I listen to the music I love.

edit: Also I do want to add the Trifecta to my collection, but right now it's a price thing. But really all I want to hear now is the Pilgrim Noir/Pilgrim, and the Monachaa. I am interested in future great bone conduction IEM's as I was impressed by the Mentor as well

 

[linux4ever]

Delivery day! Full retail packaging isn't ready yet (although as-is this beats out any other cable I’ve bought for accessories) but I've received the goods. The carrying case is lovely and feels like a very high quality leather.

The analogue tone mixed with high detail and image size/precision makes this cable quite enjoyable to pair with many IEMs. The ergonomics of it are also surprisingly good given its size and weight.

Happy camper here

Congrats! How long did it take from the time of ordering?

Also, can you compare the Blue Hour 4W with Sovereign Symphony when you get a chance?

 

[wolfstar76]

Haha well the resale on CIEMs is always more substantial unless it's from a company that does reshells like FiR, UM, FATFreq, and Aroma. However, I don't regret it most of the time. I've had one or two blunders. I shouldn't have gotten the FiR KR5 as CIEM and I knew beforehand that the Elysian Annihilator bass quality wasn't to my liking, so getting that as a CIEM wasn't wise even though I still enjoyed it, but life goes on.

I very rarely blind buy universals like I used to. Now that I am starting to attend CanJams and can try most other stuff through MusicTeck, there is just no need. On top of that I think for my tastes there are maybe 5 sets that I consider "worth" owning for myself anyways so the overall temptation to buy new things has really dwindled.

At this point I want what I would consider to be the absolute best of the best there is to offer or I want something unique and different. The two sets on my radar that should be out within the next 3 months or so are the new IEM that is coming from PMG audio and the NightJar Duality. The PMG I will demo and the Duality I need to think more about depending on what the price will be as I'd have to buy that one based off of about 15 minutes of combined demo time at Dallas and NYC.

I am planning to add a "summit-fi" headphone setup within the next 12 months or so also but that's just an idea at this point. I will spend time at SoCal checking some stuff out.

Looking forward to seeing you in SoCal this fall.

 

[Rockwell75]

Ok, I guess I am part of the group of people who got bitten by the “trifecta bug”. I just went to my dealer in NY - Audio 46 - and listened to it. I got curious after noticing how polarizing the opinions about this IEM are and I am actually searching for that freshness and that wow moment that we are all pursuing in this hobby.

Just so you understand where I am coming from, I am currently using the fantastic (for me end game in fact) Cayin N30LE with the Jewel and the Orpheus cable. To my ears this setup is an audiophile's dream of resolution , finesse, controlled power and clarity. To the point where all TOTL IEMs that I’ve been trying lately doesn’t impress me anymore because they sound VERY similar (with emphasis on different things but with a familiar and commercially safe tuning).

My desktop rig consists of the Abyss and a Nagra Classic Pre-amp. I doesn’t get much “better” than that right?

After inserting the Trifectas in my ears while standing in the counter of Audio46, it took a few minutes for my brain to adjust to the quantity of information bombarding my head. After 10 minutes, I decided to play NIN’s March of the Pigs from the Downward Spiral Album and boom, this electrical energy just invaded my brain and almost melted my eyes (lol, I’m really excited with this thing). I was immediately sold into this incredible IEM.

What actually convinced me to get it was an emotion quite different from what I usually experience with the standard hi-fi gear: All of a sudden I stopped to analyze the technicalities of the system and I was transported to the couch in the living room where I grew up, listening to my dad’s grownup stereo system, loud volume, just listening to the song, connecting with it emotionally, without separating frequencies or instruments or trying to close my eyes searching for the musicians in the room. And as a musician and an audiophile I MISS connecting to songs that I like as opposed to listening to beautifully recorded albums because they will show up what the gear can do. And that for me is pure magic! I was desperately searching for that connection. I won’t bother with measurements, curves, analysis, nothing. I trust what I am listening and it is just extremely engaging and exciting.

I don’t know how many of you had the opportunity to try this IEM paired with the N30LE (and the mandarin earplugs) but seriously, it is a unique musical experience. It is almost like the DAP works as a catalyst for this wild IEM, guiding it to a more emotional path, increasing its clarity and bringing the lower frequencies to a level of power and control that I don’t see everyday in a portable system. It is remarkable!

Will I be replacing my Aroma Jewel? No, but I was able to actually find something to add to my collection that brings a new form of interacting with my music and for that I am extremely satisfied. Thank you Campfire Audio for daring and trying to offer something different and unique!

Love it. For everyone who hears this IEM and goes "What is this?" someone else will have exactly this reaction. Welcome to the club.

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Delivery day! Full retail packaging isn't ready yet (although as-is this beats out any other cable I’ve bought for accessories) but I've received the goods. The carrying case is lovely and feels like a very high quality leather.

The analogue tone mixed with high detail and image size/precision makes this cable quite enjoyable to pair with many IEMs. The ergonomics of it are also surprisingly good given its size and weight.

Happy camper here

What IEM did you have to divorce for this