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

[ttt123]

My favorite titanium pen. Nitecore NTP30. Love the bolt action one handed operation. Simple and effective.

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https://www.aliexpress.com/item/330...nuy952dIfouRzq1Yy3IaAp4oEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Eoin]

I find the quite Xelastec good because they add a bit more foundation and better vocals without sacrificing energy (or even soundstage).

Azla max old favorite and still my current favorite azla crystal for Ragnar(viking).

I've found the Xelastec's steal some of the sub bass where as the Crystals don't.
Azla Crystal are also my preferred tips on most IEMs.

 

[Garney]

By the way, does 634ears still offer their budget model? I remember it being around 190 US dollars or something like that. Surprisingly affordable.

I believe the original base model had a wood housing called the SARN. That’s no longer offered as far as I know.

The new entry level model is the 9iNE. It’s around $280 US at the current exchange rate. It has a wonderfully organic, smooth tuning.

 

[CodenameBK201]

What an absolutely perfect start to the weekend. My cat, my music and the first cup of coffee of the day.

 

[ian91]

What an absolutely perfect start to the weekend. My cat, my music and the first cup of coffee of the day.

Having recently welcomed two new additions to my family I can confirm, cats, coffee and music go perfectly (as do dogs, coffee and music)!

 

[claud W]

 

[phiemon]

Azla max old favorite and still my current favorite azla crystal for Ragnar(viking).

I've found the Xelastec's steal some of the sub bass where as the Crystals don't.
Azla Crystal are also my preferred tips on most IEMs.

Very good, my next question would have been about the difference between Xelastec and Crystal . However, I don't think I can get deep enough with the Xelastec and Crystal, I'll have to see. Azla Max I can take a look at.

 

[maegnificant]

Slightly audio related because these seem to have pretty convincing bone conduction audio! Pre-ordered them for my switch and movie streaming, in bed or for outside, traveling etc. These seem to be pretty amazing I can tell you all about it when they arrive at the end of may!

 

[Eoin]

Very good, my next question would have been about the difference between Xelastec and Crystal . However, I don't think I can get deep enough with the Xelastec and Crystal, I'll have to see. Azla Max I can take a look at.

As I've said to you before, the secret for me with Ragnar is deeper insertion with a slightly smaller tip than normally used.
I find the material in the Xelastec to be softer and stickier, than the Crystal, which seems to take away some of the sub bass flutter.
Also the sticky Xelastec have a tendency to come off the end of the nozzle sometimes.

 

[MRT-Man]

i am seriously considering about pulling the trigger on an orphy shielding. looking/lurking around, i came across with murakumo2. anyone has had a chance to see/hear this thing ? any reviews or opinions better yet comparisons ?

Keep in mind the potential tuning differences. I have an Orpheus and Brise Yatono 8w but haven’t heard Murakomo2. While I think the Orpheus has a modest edge on technicalities vs Yatono 8w, I prefer the Yatono on some IEMs due to the tuning.

I don’t know what the Murakomo2 tuning is like, but Orpheus adds some nice warmth while Yatono is more neutral with some extra (not excessive) treble energy. So for example I like Orphy on Ragnar and Yatono on Ronin. (I could go either way on Rn6 but might lean to Orphy).

 

[phiemon]

As I've said to you before, the secret for me with Ragnar is deeper insertion with a slightly smaller tip than normally used.
I find the material in the Xelastec to be softer and stickier, than the Crystal, which seems to take away some of the sub bass flutter.
Also the sticky Xelastec have a tendency to come off the end of the nozzle sometimes.

Yep, deep insertion with Xelastec works really well. I recently bought new Xelastec for Mentor and I had never thought of using it for Viking Ragnar as well. I actually need a size smaller than usual with Xelastec. By the way, it was not even clear to me that Viking Ragnar has more sub-bass than Ronin (!?) ... at least I had Ronin differently in memory.

This track (and album) is just a dream with Viking Ragnar: https://tidal.com/browse/track/195330204 (credits to @Scuba Devils )

Rediscovering Viking Ragnar after a very long diet with Mentor ...

 

[gryphonos]

I agree with you about them being different experiences entirely but "sound quality"to me is never in isolation. I spent 15 years in the highest end of 2-channel and HPs and I currently get much more enjoyment out of a $5K IEM rig. Ease of use matters A LOT. It would take me a day to get my 2-channel system warmed-up and optimized and then I had to sit in one chair in one place in my isolated, treated room with no outside distractions in order to listen to a 20 min. album. Even moving your head a fraction of in inch could ruin the presentation. Forget about the dog or the wife or the postman. With HPs, yes, I could turn on my DAC, warm up my tube amp, and select a pair of headphones, and pretty much shut out the world, but then I was tethered to my desk with a massive, goofy thing on my head that I was always VERY aware of (and believe me, they are massive and goofy-looking to 99% of the world, especially the dog, the wife and the postman). Sound was great, but the listening experience was impacted. Looking back, I could never shed the awareness of these significant physical limitations to 2-channel and HPs. I could never really "lose myself in the music" except on rare occasions. Regardless of price. IEMs sound very very good -- and that goodness is very easily repeatable -- and you are pretty much FREE - car, plane, cafe, beach, hike, any room in the house - you are always in the sweet spot - and the right IEMs just disappear from your ears...

I am absolutely with you. and this one, single and specific position, where the 2-channel high-end system realizes its potential, is the reason why our 2-channel system gets less and less listening time and why the time I spend listening with in-ears is drastically increasing.

- you are always in the sweet spot -

This one more sentence for first page. It's kind of a definition of what listening with in-ears is all about.
Very good!

 

[RTodd]

Thinking out loud this morning about preferred tunings and profiles, (perhaps opening a can of worms).

If there is an Asian tuning I think it is an Asian Consumer market tuning, if that is true then there must be a Western Consumer market tuning.
Western being boom box type bass, Asian being tin like treble, (excuse me for the broad brush boiler plate descriptions). Perhaps there is not only one Audiophile tuning (non consumer) different than these two versions of consumer tunings.

What we are left with when not swimming in the Pacific Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean is a lot of tributaries flowing towards one of the oceans.

 

[Delitia]

Yep, deep insertion with Xelastec works really well. I recently bought new Xelastec for Mentor and I had never thought of using it for Viking Ragnar as well. I actually need a size smaller than usual with Xelastec. By the way, it was not even clear to me that Viking Ragnar has more sub-bass than Ronin (!?) ... at least I had Ronin differently in memory.

This track (and album) is just a dream with Viking Ragnar: https://tidal.com/browse/track/195330204 (credits to @Scuba Devils )

Rediscovering Viking Ragnar after a very long diet with Mentor ...

If it fits your tastes, Eluveitie (swiss folk metal) and Elyose (french metal) are both excellent with the Ragnar.

 

[kyorakun]

is there a minimum income to join this club?