[gLer]

Personally I'd recommend trying them on before blind buying one just to see if it fits.

For sure! I took a big chance blind buying it, and got lucky. At least with Z1R you won't lose any money reselling it if it doesn't fit. And like you say, if it does, the sound is exceptional.

PS. I have smallish ears with narrow canals. So I'm not sure exactly what ear type/shape it doesn't work for. The nozzles are quite short, so if you have big earholes and want a deep fit, that could be an issue. Thicker nozzles like EVO and EXT are the ones I usually find problematic.

 

[gLer]

Thank you! Yes, it all matters. We don't need to divide ourselves into "tuning" vs. "tech" sects. One without the other = mediocrity as far as I'm concerned.

Perfectly said. To some tuning may be more important than tech, but both matter when you're talking TOTL IEMs, else they're simply not TOTL.

It's also ok not to only want/like TOTL IEMs, or rather be very satisfied with mid-tier, of which there are many excellent choices nowadays, and at much more accessible price points too.

 

[feverfive]

Perfectly said. To some tuning may be more important than tech, but both matter when you're talking TOTL IEMs, else they're simply not TOTL.

It's also ok not to only want/like TOTL IEMs, or rather be very satisfied with mid-tier, of which there are many excellent choices nowadays, and at much more accessible price points too.

Yeah, that's a great point. Not trying to judge others' preferences. Just sayin'...

Also, I guess I just prefer to keep holding IEM makers' "feet to the fire" so to speak...don't give them an "out" by making it "easy" on them to eschew "tuning" in favor of tech (LOOK AT ALL THOSE DRIVERS! OMG!!!) or vice versa.

 

[davidmolliere]

Thank you! Yes, it all matters. We don't need to divide ourselves into "tuning" vs. "tech" sects. One without the other = mediocrity as far as I'm concerned.

Well you can have no special tech in an IEM that sounds great... Timeless is a good example
But greatness and competitiveness against the best requires both...

Perfectly said. To some tuning may be more important than tech, but both matter when you're talking TOTL IEMs, else they're simply not TOTL.
It's also ok not to only want/like TOTL IEMs, or rather be very satisfied with mid-tier, of which there are many excellent choices nowadays, and at much more accessible price points too.

There are some incredible offerings in the mid tier segment indeed... and it's refreshing in a day and age where TOTL tend to get more and more insanely priced

 

[Rockwell75]

Tuning is the most important but tuning plus tech is unbeatable.

 

[Rockwell75]

Well you can have no special tech in an IEM that sounds great... Timeless is a good example

Timeless’ driver is pretty special tech but the tuning is the star of the show there.

 

[aaf evo]

Driver configuration doesn’t matter to me much, I’ve heard BA bass and mids outdo DD versions, as well as BA treble outdo estat and DD highs. But a good DD low is hard to beat

 

[Skullar]

True but when design meets tuning then it's engineering and art combined and that's where the special IEMs / Headphones are born...

For example DCA Stealth has some very innovating stuff with the 3D printed Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning System (AMTS) which integrates waveguides, diffusion control, quarter-wave, and Helmholtz resonators into one compact structure that serves a goal of lowest possible distorsion and solves resonance issues with closed back headphones. Same goes for IE900 and its three chambers and the acoustic vortex milled into the nozzle (T3CA) system... innovation for innovation sake means nothing without good tuning.

But top tuning with top R&D means benchmark IEMs and headphones for sure...

A lot of that is usually simpler than we think and is just marketing BS. Or some sort of patent war.

I could see various tech implementation helping technicalities (staging, transient speeds etc.) or ergonomics.
But tuning probably does not rely on tech so much. Apart from some top or low end extension.

Look at how much well tuned chifi stuff that is thrown together in a basement with off the shelf parts there are.

Im not saying all of it is like that. But when you see "spaceship grade aluminium that makes your ears glow", chances are they will only glow in ad photoshoot.

 

[Scubadevils]

Comparing Serial to Timeless today and the former with a cable upgrade the better (aka my preference) IEM, IMO* Bass quantity and definition on Serial is excellent, not IE900 refinement of course but bloody good - pop on something with a decent kickdrum pounding, and you can hear, feel and almost visualise that bass DD slamming it's heart out, like seeing a woofer on a bookshelf speaker pushing in and out. Any accompanying sub bass has this wonderful distinct separation to mid bass, this has really stuck out for me so apologies for repeating! Beautiful mids, again, nicely enhanced now and smooth but appropriately crisp treble - beautifully engaging, smile inducing tuning. If I hung IEMs on hooks with genre labels, I'd mark these at "techno, trance, D&B, hip hop etc".

Yes the cable in question here is $200, but coupled with a $300 3xDD IEM, a seriously formidable offering for a grand total of $500 that has me reaching for it at every opportunity.

*Timeless a bit more of a speciality IEM for me so far - it gels incredibly with ambient music and they fit my ears nicely plus very light so they suit this use case - they have a smooth, inoffensive warmth that is perfect for ambient - nice soundstage and detail too but nothing jawdropping. I have noticed volume fluctuations in frequencies which sound a bit off and distracting. When I've briefly tried more energetic music, not quite doing it for me - bass is good but I prefer DD... more testing to do though, very early days on this double honeymoon!

I'm ordering the Cayin E02 module for a different flavour to R01, slightly OCD on the fact the module is black versus the titanium unit but I'll survive! Other than that, I'm going to try not buy anymore IEMs till late Feb...

 

[kevin638880]

Im not saying all of it is like that. But when you see "spaceship grade aluminium that makes your ears glow", chances are they will only glow in ad photoshoot.

Or Damascus steel, or German-grade acrylic, or Grade 4 Titanium, etcetc.

The only thing that is actually as good as the marketing BS about the shell materials is the Erlkonig.

 

[Ace Bee]

Comparing Serial to Timeless today and the former with a cable upgrade the better (aka my preference) IEM, IMO* Bass quantity and definition on Serial is excellent, not IE900 refinement of course but bloody good - pop on something with a decent kickdrum pounding, and you can hear, feel and almost visualise that bass DD slamming it's heart out, like seeing a woofer on a bookshelf speaker pushing in and out. Any accompanying sub bass has this wonderful distinct separation to mid bass, this has really stuck out for me so apologies for repeating! Beautiful mids, again, nicely enhanced now and smooth but appropriately crisp treble - beautifully engaging, smile inducing tuning. If I hung IEMs on hooks with genre labels, I'd mark these at "techno, trance, D&B, hip hop etc".

Yes the cable in question here is $200, but coupled with a $300 3xDD IEM, a seriously formidable offering for a grand total of $500 that has me reaching for it at every opportunity.

*Timeless a bit more of a speciality IEM for me so far - it gels incredibly with ambient music and they fit my ears nicely plus very light so they suit this use case - they have a smooth, inoffensive warmth that is perfect for ambient - nice soundstage and detail too but nothing jawdropping. I have noticed volume fluctuations in frequencies which sound a bit off and distracting. When I've briefly tried more energetic music, not quite doing it for me - bass is good but I prefer DD... more testing to do though, very early days on this double honeymoon!

I'm ordering the Cayin E02 module for a different flavour to R01, slightly OCD on the fact the module is black versus the titanium unit but I'll survive! Other than that, I'm going to try not buy anymore IEMs till late Feb...

This grand total of $500, does it go toe-to-toe with, say, Isabellae with its stock cable?

 

[Rockwell75]

Definitely, especially the estats. Unlike DD, it could literally do nothing better than BA tweeters....

I dunno I've yet to hear any BA treble that can match the treble on the Elysium, Traillii or IER Z1R. (There is lots I haven't heard though, mind you.)

I’ve heard BA bass and mids outdo DD versions

I haven't heard any BA mids or bass yet that can pass the sniff test for me in the long term over any of my favorite DDs. This is a huge YMMV though as one of the things uniting us all in this thread & forum is the extent to which we'll nit-pick about things that would be utterly inconsequential to the vast majority of people.

The only thing that is actually as good as the marketing BS about the shell materials is the Erlkonig.

I would say the Dorado 2020 as well...the ceramic is legit. I do think that harder materials in general make for a more sure footed sound and I've seen more than a few credible people claim that the overall timbre of the sound can be subtley affected by the shell material the drivers are housed in.

 

[endless402]

burning in my luminox night for night cable after a reterimination fiasco...sent it back to them to get reterminated only to get it back broken. They sent me a brand new cable instead as a result, which is good service from them!

Luminox is a lesser known brand in north america but more known in asia given that it is an asian brand

Interestingly they provide a graph on their website which compares their cables. Will be comparing against the stock silver PW Audio cable on my perci

 

[blotmouse]

I would say the Dorado 2020 as well...the ceramic is legit. I do think that harder materials in general make for a more sure footed sound and I've seen more than a few credible people claim that the overall timbre of the sound can be subtley affected by the shell material the drivers are housed in.

That's the general idea behind Rega turntables. Rigidity provides the platform. Porousness plays a part as well. Some materials are a reflective nightmare. This is the subtlest of subtleties.

 

[Xinlisupreme]

Any experience with Fitear Air, EST or Titan?