[phiemon]

Hi there, I hope I don't come across as overly critical. It's not my intention to be a contrarian or to be critical just to criticize.

Here are some of my favorite DAPs:
- 320MAX Ti
- Shanling M9+
- Cayin N7
- HiBy R6 Pro II

I haven't heard N30LE, RS8, SP3K, or some other favorites.

Some IEMs I like (none of which are perfect and in no particular order):
- STORM
- Annihilator 23
- Amber Pearl
- CP622B (I've come around on it recently)
- CP54E
- Trailli + Trailli Ti
- Singularity
- EE Odin
- U4S
- Ice Labs Prismatica
- DUNU Mirai
- Letshuoer Cadenza 12.

Hope this helps!

…

You do and I love it! It's easy to hear the good things in an IEM, but reading why others have their reservations makes me "investigate the issue" myself more lengthy; which can be a real challenge with short demos. If I don't hear the issue no damage is done, while if I do hear it and could see it as a dealbreaker then you really saved my life wallet.

I like this way better than reading about someone's new love that is way better than anything in existance, then see it back on the Classifieds 3 weeks later. To each their own though and no offense meant to anyone.

drftr

This!

Joop has already said it all and I can only confirm that I want more of it. Your criticism sounds absolutely plausible and justified, so it's factual, as it should be.

I also have the impression that many people here often get too carried away by first loves or passions; in the end they only report positive things and the negative things are not really given much importance. I confirm that such impressions usually change completely after a short time and then you see everything in the classified. Why the change of heart? You only find out privately after many weeks, unfortunately don't really dare to report it in public.

Standard statements from first loves that fade after a short time are: "much better than anything I've ever heard; out-of-the-head experience; maximum musicality and engagement factor; highest resolution - never noticed such notes in music before; etc..." my stuff! When I read something like that, I know something is wrong.

So thank you very much, dear @Smirk 24!

Tell me, what is your critical opinion of the Storm? If you don't mind me asking...

 

[Sifo]

Storm + SS 8W + 465 + Meitner DAC was the GOAT, love chatting with Chang, some fun things coming, can't wait for Duality.

Canpur 622B still my personal favourite IEM right now! A second chance to hear it and I learned a lot about this IEM over the weekend that makes me appreciate it even more.

Novus was neat, I actually still prefer Raven though BUT the bass on the Novus was more to my preference. Raven as an overall package is still EE's best IEM to date (even though I may personally still prefer Odin).

E10 sounded okay to me but this was like end of day 1 and I was tired as hell mentally. I would actually want more time to try and understand this one. E12 I heard at home and it's not what I personally enjoy.

Eletech stuff you guys know I'm a shill but I genuinely really enjoyed the Romeo prototype IEM as well as their new silver cable prototype. The silver cable was especially impressive at making things sound BIG. The Romeo IEM was one of the most complete sounding IEMs I heard over the weekend. Juliet had interesting things going on for sure but needs a lot of work. I also finally bought some tips from them, long overdue, has made my demoing of universals much more comfortable and enjoyable.

@HiFiHawaii808 was kind enough to let me hear his Amber Pearl which I really enjoyed despite my usual bias against UM. It's a good IEM, probably top 5. On the contrary I didn't like the new Mason.

I heard Fei Wan again too, great IEM especially for the show floor noise levels. One of the best bass quality in any IEM right now.

Pilgrim is awesome for the price, fantastic entry point to Elysian treble. Leaves something to be desired with bass and mids but it's what, $500? Easy recommend.

 

[drftr]

Thanks for letting me know. It’s good to get an understanding of how I’m perceived.

I’m glad some people find it useful and I’ll consider highlighting more positives in my future impressions as well.

Thanks!

Peeps here know me as being highly critical, so if I write about 1 or 2 critical points for me in a certain IEM they have learned to interpret this as that I like all the things that I didn't mention. Everyone has a different style/approach here and they're all equally valid.

I also have the impression that many people here often get too carried away by first loves or passions

But that's what this hobby (and life, really) is all about! You can never express too much love. It's what makes the planet go 'round.

show floor noise levels

Meaning it's far noisier than Singapore? I had very low expectations myself at the time but found it to be no problem at all.

drftr

 

[phiemon]

But that's what this hobby (and life, really) is all about! You can never express too much love. It's what makes the planet go 'round.

drftr

I have to agree with you here too, dear Joop. I often tell myself that I should be more relaxed and that I shouldn't think too much

 

[PHLHarmonic]

Surprisingly few Singularity or Project M impressions considering their availability or lack thereof.

 

[Click]

Surprisingly few Singularity or Project M impressions considering their availability or lack thereof.

I shared some of my opinion of the Singularity in the Symphonium thread.

Singularity is so smooth but detailed with insane timbre. Cohesive af too, since it's only using 1 DD. Beats the ever living daylights in every category out of Sennheiser IE900, another great single DD IEM. I was blown away with how great it sounded, given it's only 1 DD and at an acceptable $1,300 price. To some, this is a bargain for the sound this produces.

Singularity impressed me so much, I'm considering it one of my next major IEM purchases.

 

[Rockwell75]

Surprisingly few Singularity or Project M impressions considering their availability or lack thereof.

I heard the Project M…imho the Pilgrim is a much better take at similar type of sound. M I found a bit bright with weak bass.

 

[Smirk 24]

So thank you very much, dear @Smirk 24!

Tell me, what is your critical opinion of the Storm? If you don't mind me asking...

I don’t have any major criticisms for Storm because it does so many things at a very high level.

If I were to really nitpick: its staging could be *even* better (it’s already quite good), its bass is already very textured but could use more “bounce”, and for people that love vocals, there are sets that do vocals even better than Storm already does.

Actually, I think if you were to isolate the bass, mids, treble, and staging, you can find sets that do each individual aspect better. However, IMO you’d be hard-pressed to find a set that surpasses Storm on all these fronts, especially once you consider that Storm is close to or is the single-most resolving and dynamic set on the market.

Then, on a more subjective level, people might not connect with Storm since it tends to lean more reference-like and can come across as a little dry maybe.

These are all nitpicks though, Storm is one of my favorite overall sets.

 

[Beh0lder]

Post CanJam mini CanJam

It's Canjam all the way down

 

[LithiumEars]

I heard the Project M…imho the Pilgrim is a much better take at similar type of sound. M I found a bit bright with weak bass.

I was interested in having Project M since it has good treble as my travel IEM but might look into Pilgrim instead. Is the Pilgrim better than Gaea in other ways aside from the bass? (Things such as treble, mids, resolution, dynamics, etc.) Thanks!

 

[PHLHarmonic]

I shared some of my opinion of the Singularity in the Symphonium thread.

Singularity impressed me so much, I'm considering it one of my next major IEM purchases.

I debated doing a blind buy since everyone seems to love it, but I'm not totally sure for the price. Once you get into that bracket I feel like you can at least in theory get a lot more technical prowess for not much more, especially if you can find a deal. Not to say it isn't potentially great. They're still scarce on the classifieds for the time being. I like hearing good things though.

 

[dleblanc343]

I don’t have any major criticisms for Storm because it does so many things at a very high level.

If I were to really nitpick: its staging could be *even* better (it’s already quite good), its bass is already very textured but could use more “bounce”, and for people that love vocals, there are sets that do vocals even better than Storm already does.

Actually, I think if you were to isolate the bass, mids, treble, and staging, you can find sets that do each individual aspect better. However, IMO you’d be hard-pressed to find a set that surpasses Storm on all these fronts, especially once you consider that Storm is close to or is the single-most resolving and dynamic set on the market.

Then, on a more subjective level, people might not connect with Storm since it tends to lean more reference-like and can come across as a little dry maybe.

These are all nitpicks though, Storm is one of my favorite overall sets.

Is your favorite Trifecta?

But yeah, like any high-end hobby, picking "1 favorite" is impossible.

It's like having to pick your favorite sports car of all time. There's no "One" car that is entirely superior to everything else out there. Same goes for any consumer product. And Trifecta may not be for everyone, but has its X-factors that makes it unique, that's what's cool about variety.

 

[Smirk 24]

Is your favorite Trifecta?

But yeah, like any high-end hobby, picking "1 favorite" is impossible.

It's like having to pick your favorite sports car of all time. There's no "One" car that is entirely superior to everything else out there. Same goes for any consumer product. And Trifecta may not be for everyone, but has its X-factors that makes it unique, that's what's cool about variety.

I enjoyed Trifecta on Sovereign Symphony 8W

 

[aaf evo]

Here's some brief impressions from this past weekend, unfortunately a large majority of my photos won't upload to Head Fi so I'll just share a few.

Thursday night I got in quite late, had a late night dinner and went back to the hotel to get some rest.

Early Friday morning I went down to visit the 9/11 museum and memorial. Absolutely incredible and emotional place and exhibit but 100% worth seeing at least once if you are in New York. Shortly after that it was lunch at Carragher's bar and grill, being a Liverpool fan this was a MUST try for me. It's Irish-American cuisine and the chicken curry there was to die for! If you've had chicken curry in England and then chicken curry in America, you know they are not the same. This tasted just like how I expected it to be back in England and it was fantastic.

Friday night's view from the Summit @ One Vanderbilt, easily the best view I've had in Manhattan. Lovely atmosphere as well with a few exhibits and a nice cocktail bar on the 93rd floor.



Late night walk through Grand Central, absolutely beautiful inside here and my god this place is MASSIVE.



I headed into CanJam Saturday right at opening after an amazing breakfast with @bigbeans and his father.. naturally I shot straight to the MusicTeck table to knock out as much as I could ASAP.

UM Mason... This was fairly decent. It was a neutral warmer tonality with a good sense of body and texture, I found the upper mids a bit too relaxed for my tastes but overall a more library-friendly version of the Mason line. I still prefer the Multiverse Mentor.

Traillii Ti, I was quite impressed with this overall but I couldn't get over the price tag given the OG Traillii can be had for $3k now on the used market. It felt like this was a little leaner and more clarity based with less of a mid bass emphasis and more of a sub bass focus. It was still very excellent but again at $8.5k in 2024, no thank you.

Elysian Pilgrim, 1 DD 3 BA and I think priced around $400? This was a highlight of the show for the price to performance ratio. Very Elysian-esc in tuning but I largely prefer the bass quality here compared to the Annihilator or X, it didn't have that dryness or lack of texture that I associate with those two releases. I did find the treble a tad too energetic and missing some refinement but overall I think this one will be a hit when it's available.

QDC Emperor... a warmer tilted QDC-sounding IEM with lots of details and high resolution but I was quite disappointed by the DD bass in this set. It decayed incredibly fast and honestly I could have been convinced this was a BA driver handling the lows instead. Overall it was underwhelming for me.

Fatigue set in very fast for me Saturday, the show floor was packed and ambient noise levels meant you had to really crank up everything to be able to listen properly. As a quiet listener that isn't really my vibe when it comes to auditions. Shortly after the MusicTeck booth I left to go have a bottomless mimosa brunch with Head-Fi'er @tawmizzzz and some of his co workers.

After more mimosas than I can count we headed back to CanJam and the show floor was even more packed, it was a large contrast to the more relaxed vibes that were at CanJam Dallas. At this point I had lost interest in listening to anything else for the day so I left quite quickly and went to go meet up with some friends in the city for some beers and darts, followed by dinner at Hard Rock Cafe and some more cocktails with @tawmizzzz , I think I might have gotten him a little too tipsy but it was a great night with even better company.

Sunday morning the show floor was far less hectic but still overall busy, and I was able to really knock out a bunch of auditions.

The AK SP3000T was quite impressive, it was not your typical AK sound and went for something the was more musical and bodied which I think offered a very nice side grade option to the SP3000. Build quality was impressive and exactly what you'd expect from an Ultima product. I am looking forward to spending more time with this when demo units will be available, but I couldn't reach a conclusion regarding how much I enjoyed it with the show floor environment.

I also spend a little bit of time with the AK x EE NOVUS, this sounded like a warm tilted/mid bassy set with good tonal balance and high levels of details and technicals. As you'd expect from the w9+ drivers, sub bass was deep and well textured but I felt it was missing a bit of that "airy" bottom end I usually prefer. Regardless I thought it was very impressive but maybe a tad over priced. The IEM was on the larger side but I had no issues with fit and the build quality was by far the best I've seen from anything EE related.

The Lotoo Mjolnir, this honestly just blew me away almost instantly. The build quality is fantastic and it looks the part too. It's smaller in person than you'd expect from pictures but very much transportable/desktop sized. I already placed an order for this yesterday and I will receive this tomorrow. The was more neutral in tonality but the way this was able to capture levels of detail, resolution, transparency, and texture was just unlike anything I've experienced before with IEMs, and it did it all so effortlessly and in an organic nature that felt like it wasn't forcing you into hearing it but rather laying it out in front of you instead for you to enjoy. I have heard from some trusted ears who have more experience in desktop level gear that the price to performance on this isn't anything special, but I couldn't find myself caring because the emotional reaction I had listening to this was priceless. One of my test tracks "it's been a while" by Staind just left me speechless. The bass texture, the weight behind his voice while not needing added warmth to achieve it, the details and spacious imaging... it was one of the most overwhelming experiences I've had and I was fighting tears the entire time listening to it (or maybe I was just tired and needed more sleep after Saturday night's debauchery ) Either way I loved it and I can't wait to spend more time with it.

I spent the majority of my Saturday hanging out at the SG trio booth of Symponium, Subtonic, and NightJar. This booth was PACKED the entire time on both days and deservedly so. These companies are putting out some of the best products money can buy so seeing the lines of people waiting to audition stuff wasn't even remotely surprising. I cannot sing enough praise around this booth and everyone that was working it. They were all so wonderful and are genuinely some of the most kind souled and full hearted people I have ever met. The passion these guys have for the hobby is intoxicating and I am looking forward to giving these companies my business because I know it will lead to even better products down the road.

I finally got to hear the Crimson and upcoming model Titan. Crimson was awesome, depending on what tracks I was using it sat somewhere between a U shape and W shaped tonality but came off neutral in the mid range with an elevated sub bass response and slightly elevated treble. I could see the highs on this maybe being a bit too much for some people but using CP145 tips and DX260 I had no issues with it. The treble was elevated enough to give the top end some life and excitement but I didn't find it sharp or spicy. The bass was also incredibly impressive for BA drivers, what they've achieved here with a 4 BA setup is quite astonishing.

The Titan is their new IEM that should be out soon. This was warmer and smooth but with a massive DD bass response that was incredibly satisfying to listen to. Detailing was still fairly good as well and I can see this being popular amongst watercoolers. It also had a lovely looking blue shell and cable that I thought was really a looker.

The NightJar Duality was every bit as impressive as it was when I heard it in CanJam Dallas and my initial impressions of it were justified again after hearing it in New York. This is a must-buy for me and it should be available in June/July ish if everything goes well. This IEM is unbelievably fun with an addicting bass shelf but manages to still keep excellent timbre and impressive detailing for an all DD setup. I can't wait for this.

I like to stay open minded and I got curious and auditioned the Subtonic Storm again to see if my opinions would change on it. I've stated here before that I really don't like how the Storm stages, at least from the DAPs I have tried it with (SP3000, N30 LE, and DX260), but pairing this with the PB5 completely changed my opinion on it. Not only did it smoothen out the treble and reduce the slightly dry timbre but it also felt like the faceplates of the IEM were removed and it could finally stage/expand the way I wanted it to and no longer felt boxed in. The added width and more spacious imaging took this to a level that I thought is probably the highest fidelity sound available right now. I think the regular edition is going to be available in April or May and I have every intention to rebuy it after hearing it again with the PB5, I highly recommend that pair up. I did try it from the D16 straight but it didn't quite do it for me. It was still impressive in its own right but I felt it was missing personality. The dynamics felt softened and treble was a little too blunted for me and missing that vibrant detail that I enjoy with the Storm. I also got to test with with the 8 wire Sovereign which I think is a $13,000 cable and the MASSKobo 465 AMP, which is like $17,000? It was damn impressive especially in how the 465 was able to handle the bass and overall note weight but I just couldn't appreciate it enough given how strong diminishing returns are hitting here. Either way, I think Storm + PB5 is an endgame setup.

There were some other stuff I got to test but overall these are what stood out to me the most... the Mjolnir, Storm, and Duality are all products I want to own. Mjolnir has been purchased and I will be waiting for the release of the RE Storm and the Duality.

I got to meet so many new faces and most of these people I have been chatting to for years. I really had the best time and I am looking forward to linking up again in SoCal and Dallas later this year.

 

[mashuto]

I debated doing a blind buy since everyone seems to love it, but I'm not totally sure for the price. Once you get into that bracket I feel like you can at least in theory get a lot more technical prowess for not much more, especially if you can find a deal. Not to say it isn't potentially great. They're still scarce on the classifieds for the time being. I like hearing good things though.

If it helps (or not) I am considering it my endgame. In so far as endgame just means that I am completely satisfied with them and have no desire to continue seeking out new gear.

I don't know how it compares technically to others. But it's just such an engaging listen that the only thing it left me wanting was a better fit, which I have now solved with custom sleeves from advanced sound.

Of course compared to others here, I have heard very little of anything that would be considered totl.

... Ok, I will admit that I do have some interest in new headphones, but specifically just for utility at this point, not sound. Really looking for a good pair of open ear "air conduction" tws buds with physical buttons and a good ip rating for exercise, but that also has decent microphones so I can take calls on them. Hoping Sony gets off their ass and moves into this newish category.

By the way, even though I am not actively looking, thanks everyone for sharing all the canjam impressions. I still would like to attend at some point, even if it's just to meet some of you guys.