The Watercooler -- Impressions, philosophical discussion and general banter. Index on first page. All welcome.

[theveterans]

But what if we could get all the Singaporean IEM manufacturers here, along with a sprinkling of esoteric Japanese IEM manufacturers?

A mini CanJam just for Watercoolers along with them manufacturers would be a dream come true

 

[pierrerush]

Lol I think there are precisely 3 decent audio shops in this whole vast country as far as portable goes-- 2 in Toronto and one in Vancouver.

Tour thread is here:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/wat...ails-see-second-post-for-active-tours.960012/

That's a really cool initiative! A bit too busy right now but I'll definitely consider it this summer.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

A mini CanJam just for Watercoolers along with them manufacturers would be a dream come true

Yeah, let's do it in Hawaii.

 

[gLer]

How I am thinking about it, regardless of price just based on how it sounds.

MidFi = good enjoyable to listen to, just not over the top incredible.
MidFi Wannabe = not enjoyable to listen to, though is trying to be, another way to describe “half baked”.

Like I said I am at a loss, we do not all hear the same or have the same preferences. Mentor though for me is a real head scratcher as that is inadequate to describe the large chasm between what I heard and others describe. Leading me to fall back on synergy plus preferences compounding a less than enjoyable listen.

I concur. I mean, the timber and soundstage width all sounded great, but for me personally, the treble was pushed a little too forward and it seemed to take some of the air from between instruments. I felt like that also caused them to lose some depth in the soundstage. Coincidentally I did most of my listening through the P6 Pro as well, although I also used a 1Z with a C9 amp, with no real change in those issues. I really did like it, but didn't love it. Could be source synergy or just my "old man" ears missing something.

I'm somewhere down the middle. I think Mentor is technically very impressive, though not across the board. Stage is smaller than several other IEMs I've heard, and one way of getting it wider is with a lighter, airier source, which pushes its already very average bass response further back. It's resolving for sure, but can also be a touch bright, and unless you get a very deep fit, treble can be too strident for my liking.

I think like any good technical set, if it clicks with your library, and you're not chasing the last word in timbre accuracy, it's a very good fit. Ideal for electronic with its speed and dynamism, not as good as some other top sets for live performances and acoustic music, or anything that benefits from genuine DD bass.

TL;DR - very good set, but not one I miss now that I've heard it.

 

[fiascogarcia]

No reason to ponder letting them go-- they are still at the summit imho.

How would you compare Phonix Vs. Traillii?

Someone asked a bit ago, so forgive my cut and paste.
Soundstage pretty similar to Traillii. Bass is similar to Traillii with maybe a bit more mid bass and shorter decay, making it tighter. I must be a “mid’s” guy because that is what always catches my attention first. Timbre on both Traillii and LE are great to me. Vocals very natural. Mids on LE’s might be a touch more forward and they don’t have the upper mid/ lower treble dip that Traillii does to my ears. I think that’s what gives LE a more dynamic presence. Treble is clear, detailed and smooth, as with Trailli. I also have a set of VE Elysium ciems, and I don’t know how VE tunes their stuff to be smooth yet so detailed! I also think the FT Shielding cables seem to enhance all the good stuff in an iem, just my opinion!

 

[claud W]

On Amazon US -

tomtoc Electronic Organizer Accessory Tech Pouch for MacBook Charger, Cables, Power Bank, Hard Drive, Travel Cords, Water-resistant Storage Bag with Removable Card Slots for USB Adapter, Memory Card (Navy Blue)

https://a.co/d/fvQ9rvH

Thank you very much, Scubi. Ordered

 

[Eoin]

But what if we could get all the Singaporean IEM manufacturers here, along with a sprinkling of esoteric Japanese IEM manufacturers?

Then … it could be a doubly expensive weekend … bring it on!

 

[Anfernee]

No reason to ponder letting them go-- they are still at the summit imho.

How would you compare Phonix Vs. Traillii?

IMHO, I think even though many people think that the sound style of Traillii and PHX/PHX LE is similar or different, we should not ignore the more fundamental problem of unit configuration. The PHX with 13 BA units is a very successful tuning template. I think it is very difficult for an IEM with all BA units to completely surpass the VE13. The integration of VE13 is very good, and the sound is wonderful enough. However, the existence of the electrostatic unit will undoubtedly cause a significant difference in the sense of energy between the high frequency and the mid frequency of the Traillii. The golden partner PWAudio FTS will undoubtedly further improve Traillii on the original cable 1960s, so that the horizontal soundstage can be greatly improved and more details can be provided. I think the best way is to actually experience the difference between the two.

 

[Rockwell75]

IMHO, I think even though many people think that the sound style of Traillii and PHX/PHX LE is similar or different, we should not ignore the more fundamental problem of unit configuration. The PHX with 13 BA units is a very successful tuning template. I think it is very difficult for an IEM with all BA units to completely surpass the VE13. The integration of VE13 is very good, and the sound is wonderful enough. However, the existence of the electrostatic unit will undoubtedly cause a significant difference in the sense of energy between the high frequency and the mid frequency of the Traillii. The golden partner PWAudio FTS will undoubtedly further improve Traillii on the original cable 1960s, so that the horizontal soundstage can be greatly improved and more details can be provided. I think the best way is to actually experience the difference between the two.

I agree that driver config is of preeminent importance-- at least as important as FR in my experience.

What is the VE13? Was that a colloquial name for the Phonix a la VE's naming convention in other BA IEMs?

Also, you've got one of the more jaw dropping sigs I've encountered yet. Lots of amazing IEMs. Just out of curiosity-- my off the cuff impression hearing them both (albeit briefly) left me with the impression that Phonix LE was much closer to Erlkonig than the OG Phonix-- would you agree with that?

 

[stacey]

I thought they claim its because those additional features will take away from their music-only design.

Both can be technically true, but it's also likely a marketing lie, too.
If they use their own OS, they won't have to deal with constant compatibly issues, Android updates, etc, and they can upgrade at their own pace and ensure compatibility with their custom chips . Downside is that you also have to deal with unintuitive controls, no touchscreen/limited touchscreen use, no apps. While that's fine if you have a lot of music and all you care about is using it to drive IEMs, it's not great if you keep your files on the cloud, stream, swapping SD cards between devices, or connecting it to a home stereo/Roon core, etc

But what if we could get all the Singaporean IEM manufacturers here, along with a sprinkling of esoteric Japanese IEM manufacturers?

Technically wouldn't Japan be the most equidistant for everyone, if you factor in Singapore?

 

[Andricop]

Sharing some Traillii Ti pictures Would love to grab a pair!
Cable is PW1960s 4 wire according to HK resellers.

 

[Anfernee]

I agree that driver config is of preeminent importance-- at least as important as FR in my experience.

What is the VE13? Was that a colloquial name for the Phonix a la VE's naming convention in other BA IEMs?

Also, you've got one of the more jaw dropping sigs I've encountered yet. Lots of amazing IEMs. Just out of curiosity-- my off the cuff impression hearing them both (albeit briefly) left me with the impression that Phonix LE was much closer to Erlkonig than the OG Phonix-- would you agree with that?

Because both Erlkönig and PHX are IEMs composed of 13 BA units, I will simply call them VE13. I think you must know that Erlkönig has four different tuning mods, among which mode 2 is the most popular. I think the tuning of the PHX (including the all-black PHX limited to Hong Kong) is closer to mode 2. The tuning style of PHX LE is closer to Mode 1 and Mode 3, which correspond to bass and treble enhancement respectively (or a combination of 2 and 3). In fact, I think the difference in the material of the cavity will have an impact on the sound. In fact, my favorite is the silver Erlkönig, not the black limited edition.

 

[aaf evo]

Sharing some Traillii Ti pictures Would love to grab a pair!
Cable is PW1960s 4 wire according to HK resellers.

How do you even buy one?

 

[Rockwell75]

Because both Erlkönig and PHX are IEMs composed of 13 BA units, I will simply call them VE13. I think you must know that Erlkönig has four different tuning mods, among which mode 2 is the most popular. I think the tuning of the PHX (including the all-black PHX limited to Hong Kong) is closer to mode 2. The tuning style of PHX LE is closer to Mode 1 and Mode 3, which correspond to bass and treble enhancement respectively (or a combination of 2 and 3). In fact, I think the difference in the material of the cavity will have an impact on the sound. In fact, my favorite is the silver Erlkönig, not the black limited edition.

Interesting. I would love the opportunity to hear all four back to back to compare. Absolutely agree on shell material impacting sound. What do you like about the sound of the silver?

 

[Andricop]

How do you even buy one?

For USD 8,520.71 you can try here