I wanted to comment on this post again. You are quite right to point out that the prices of summit fi IEMs have gone off the rails in recent years. I also think you correctly point out that exclusivity is a motivation for some-- this is practically a truism and an intrinsic part of human nature. However the tone of your post here crosses a line and seems to strike a resentful tone towards those who, for whatever reason, choose to indulge themselves in the highest price tiers of IEMs. This is not the first time you have done this in this thread and I am respectfully asking you to stop it. There are inumerable audio communities out there where people love to cast aspersions at the cost and value of high end IEMs and stroke themselves into believing that those of us who partake in the same are deluded or lost in lala land. The fact is that the folks who comprise this community are by and large educated professionals who can keep their own council around how they spend their money, where they perceive value to be and where to invest their money in order to receive a proportional amount of joy and satisfaction. We don't need folks who don't see the value, or who are butt hurt they can't partake-- to come in here and stomp their feet, whine out loud, and tell us how we should or should not be spending our money. If that's your thing go to Reddit or one of the more budget oriented threads on Head Fi. This is a community where all are welcome but as in any community proper ettiquette demands that when visiting you use tact and respect established norms and values. I hope this post strikes you in the right spirit. I have appreciated your contributions in the past, and am prepared to do so in the future-- but kindly stop these resentful and dismissive posts around the perceived value of high end IEMs. The market can and will correct itself eventually-- and until it does we should all just be grateful that we're living through an era where there are endgame qulaity products on just about every conceivable price tier.
I see how it might have come across as rude and want to apologize to those who undeservedly found themselves enraged by my views. Despite my slight and harmless provocation now and then, I've no reason not to show you guys utmost respect.
Last but not least, I appreciate your acknowledgment of the market getting overinflated.
What is a brand or IEM or piece of gear that has continued to elude you through the years?
Chord products....not for not wanting to try them or being unable to...there's just something about the brand and their philosophies (and owner) that simply push the wrong buttons.
Don't forget the holier than thou attitude that neither of those are performance depricators let alone inconveniences that the owner refuses to acknowledge and calls better
I had another comment along with that where I mentioned that it was with Raphael cable. I would stay away from the stock cable. Also the ear tips play a huge part.
Yes they seem to cause a problem in that regard for some - maybe an age thing, but I've never had a problem and love the crisp uppers. IE900 play any genre for me incredibly well... comfortable, and excellent isolation means they are a set I always reach for when I travel - I had many moments when in Vegas a couple of weeks ago where I was pondering how I could still choose this set as an IEM to leave the hobby with! They were a real 'eureka' moment for me when I first bought them back in early 2021, and remain very special over two years later.
Completely agree! The ie900 has been an incredible on the go and even gym Iem, very underrated due to bad reviews for not having the best neutral frequency response but I don’t care they hit so hard the bass is incredible,The clarity n details are wild and insanely comfortable a must have in my collection
I've been slow and unmotivated waiting for tours to show up at my doorstep. I have tried a bunch of things and nothing scratches the itch so my motivation is on life support. If I don't like audio gear constantly I get very unmotivated. I don't really think I like the hunt as much as most folks. It's time consuming and costly to end up in the same exact place over and over. I live vicariously through everyone here, so thank you!
Q1: +1 No doubt, FitEar! They make it hard to impossible to demo. They have their own dumb cable connection and mostly custom or you pay even more! Unless you want to make a $5000 hail mary, you may never hear one. They have the most barriers of entry of any IEM manufacturer. I assume they think they are creating exclusivity? But due to that, I care and I don't care. Elusive indeed.
Q2: I have a ton of gear on my "want to hear" list. But Anni 2023 has jumped to the top. (Good thing it's on it's way to demo)
I liked decently Gaea, and even more Diva, but not enough to reach for them over any of my old faithful's. Hoping Anni blends all of the good of those 2 and none of the bad.
The trick with Fitear customs is that you have to be in Japan. Oh and speak Japanese. And have a Japanese address to ship to. That narrows things down a lot.
Don't forget the holier than thou attitude that neither of those are performance depricators let alone inconveniences that the owner refuses to acknowledge and calls better
I wanted to comment on this post again. You are quite right to point out that the prices of summit fi IEMs have gone off the rails in recent years. I also think you correctly point out that exclusivity is a motivation for some-- this is practically a truism and an intrinsic part of human nature. However the tone of your post here crosses a line and seems to strike a resentful tone towards those who, for whatever reason, choose to indulge themselves in the highest price tiers of IEMs. This is not the first time you have done this in this thread and I am respectfully asking you to stop it. There are inumerable audio communities out there where people love to cast aspersions at the cost and value of high end IEMs and stroke themselves into believing that those of us who partake in the same are deluded or lost in lala land. The fact is that the folks who comprise this community are by and large educated professionals who can keep their own council around how they spend their money, where they perceive value to be and where to invest their money in order to receive a proportional amount of joy and satisfaction. We don't need folks who don't see the value, or who are butt hurt they can't partake-- to come in here and stomp their feet, whine out loud, and tell us how we should or should not be spending our money. If that's your thing go to Reddit or one of the more budget oriented threads on Head Fi. This is a community where all are welcome but as in any community proper ettiquette demands that when visiting you use tact and respect established norms and values. I hope this post strikes you in the right spirit. I have appreciated your contributions in the past, and am prepared to do so in the future-- but kindly stop these resentful and dismissive posts around the perceived value of high end IEMs. The market can and will correct itself eventually-- and until it does we should all just be grateful that we're living through an era where there are endgame qulaity products on just about every conceivable price tier.
I absolutely love the underlying principles and wording of this post. I used to eschew and told myself I would never buy an expensive cable or IEM, but here I am, hedonistic but not apologetic about it. Like many things in this world, I dislike the cost of things but call me weak-minded, overly-indulgent, it’s my life and I didn’t kill anyone when I spent my hard earned money to purchase insanely-priced or meretriciously-priced (however you want to look at it) audio gear. I’ve never felt the need to chastise anyone for deciding that competitively priced gear is the right way to enjoy this hobby, but I also don’t appreciate sanctimonious statements about anyone who thinks or does otherwise. One of the reasons I avoid posting many a time here is due to the disflavour in this regard. So thank you, Jeff for moderating and saying what I would have wanted to say, but feel that it is not my place to.
Don't forget the holier than thou attitude that neither of those are performance depricators let alone inconveniences that the owner refuses to acknowledge and calls better
I don’t really understand the Chord hate. My M scaler and Dave combo is insane in terms of audio quality. The best I’ve ever heard, and I feel blessed to be able to listen to it every day. But it’s great to have options. Plenty of alternatives if you don’t like Chord.
I absolutely love the underlying principles and wording of this post. I used to eschew and told myself I would never buy an expensive cable or IEM, but here I am, hedonistic but not apologetic about it. Like many things in this world, I dislike the cost of things but call me weak-minded, overly-indulgent, it’s my life and I didn’t kill anyone when I spent my hard earned money to purchase insanely-priced or meretriciously-priced (however you want to look at it) audio gear. I’ve never felt the need to chastise anyone for deciding that competitively priced gear is the right way to enjoy this hobby, but I also don’t appreciate sanctimonious statements about anyone who think or do otherwise. One of the reasons I avoid posting many a time here is due to the disflavour in this regard. So thank you, Jeff for moderating and said what I would have wanted to say, but feel that it is not my place to.
#1: There's several brands that I really want to hear but have no easy way of doing so right now. To name a couple: FIR, Aroma, FatFreq. I've heard some UM IEMs but none since they started doing really good bone conduction, which makes me very curious. As far as IEMs themselves, I think the only real two that are noteworthy are the U12t or any regular version of the CA Andromeda. I've heard other 64 Audio IEMs and also a couple exotic variants of the Andros (S and Gold). However, I really would like to hear the U12t and OG Andros specifically not because I think I'd like them a ton, but because they seem to be such big milestones for the hobby as a whole. For that historical aspect alone I'm very curious.
#2: The obvious answer for me is the iBasso DC Elite dongle. As soon as a US distributor I'm familiar with gets them I'll be jumping on it. But longer term I'm still looking for a TOTL CIEM. Potentially awaiting VE X. However, I'm moving next year so I may be more conservative with the hobby...
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