The Wizard Appreciation Thread - Long Live the Wizard - The former HA Appreciation Thread

[Poimandres]

 Let me start by stating that I have had an assortment of different IEM's, both dynamic and balance armatures, in the past and as such I have had the pleasure to deal with many different companies in the past few years.  Although I have never had any major issues or problems in my past experiences I can also say that I have never experienced that wow factor as a potential buyer/buyer of a product from a customer service stand point.
 
 Recently I have decided to make the jump from universal IEM's to custom IEM's and of course I have had plenty of questions and concerns for the potential manufacturers.  Most of which replied within a couple of days, some within a week and there is still one that I haven't seen a response from.  Throughout my constant barrage of questions and concerns there has been one company which not only answered my questions (most of the time within minutes) but has gone above and beyond any service that I have ever received even outside of the IEM marketplace.
 
 As the title suggests this company WAS HA and is a newcomer in the IEM marketplace.  Doctor John Moulton a.k.a. the Wizard has not just simply exceeded in providing the best customer service I have ever received, because he has exceeded it exponentially.  Ultimately after relentlessly emailing The Wizard I have decided to purchase the 4a in dark blue without any customizations.  If the special promotion price wasn't enough The Wizard decided to personally create a custom piece of art for me with a floating logo atop of a new carbon fiber that is not even listed on the HA website yet.  Here is the kicker he is creating this masterpiece for me at no additional cost.  The Wizard is without a doubt the Pinnacle of customer service, words cannot accurately express my gratitude for Dr. John.  If Johns IEM's sound as good as they look, or sound as exceptional as their customer service is then we are all in a for a treat; of which I am certain that we are.

 

[Poimandres]

 After I receive the 4a's I will update this thread by uploading photo's and I will follow up with a review.  If you have ordered a set of Heir Audio CIEM's or their re-shell's please let the rest of us know how the entire process went for you and your thoughts about the quality and sound quality of the Heir Audio CIEM's.
 

 

[Poimandres]

This morning I was surfing over at 1964 Ears as well as Unique Melody as I had previously given thought to purchasing the 1964-Q and even kicked around the idea of picking up the Merlin before deciding on the 4a.  What I found astonished me, does anyone know when 1964 or UM started offering woodies?  I may not have noticed them before however the first time that I had seen them in a custom IEM was when Project86 displayed them in his post about his Heir Audio re-shell's.  Were there any other companies offering woodies in CIEM's prior to Heir Audio?  Well you know the old saying imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

 

[project86]

The 1964 Ears option only shows up on their order form, so no pics available. But I don't recall seeing that when I checked out their site recently.
 
UM has had their wood faceplates posted for a few months now. It only appears on Stephen Guo's USA website but I assume the others offer it as well. I am not sure if they are actually real wood or not. Last time I spoke with Stephen, he said UM had put them on hold for a few months to sort out color and texture options. 
 
Dr. John is the Wizard at this sort of thing - I just don't think others can match his craftsmanship. But we'll see. 

 

[Ikarios]

I believe UM first started posting photos of woodied customs sometime around September, which happens to be not long after Dr. Moulton posted his showcase thread. Likely a well-timed coincidence, but interesting nonetheless.

 

[xatlx]

i am very temped to buy the 4.A right now due to the price but man oh man tuff chooses.
 
however, Poimandres did you get your 4.A yet ? i am planing to place an order for my first custom IEM tomorrow.
 
my chooses are
 
AC 2
UE pro 4
JH 5 Pros
and now for 50$ more i could be getting HA 4.A
 
man oh man.....

 

[Poimandres]

Quote:

i am very temped to buy the 4.A right now due to the price but man oh man tuff chooses.
 
however, Poimandres did you get your 4.A yet ? i am planing to place an order for my first custom IEM tomorrow.
 
my chooses are
 
AC 2
UE pro 4
JH 5 Pros
and now for 50$ more i could be getting HA 4.A
 
man oh man.....

Not yet just sent out my impressions this past Tuesday so I will not have them for awhile yet.  I will keep you updated.

 

[project86]

Quote:

i am very temped to buy the 4.A right now due to the price but man oh man tuff chooses.
 
however, Poimandres did you get your 4.A yet ? i am planing to place an order for my first custom IEM tomorrow.
 
my chooses are
 
AC 2
UE pro 4
JH 5 Pros
and now for 50$ more i could be getting HA 4.A
 
man oh man.....

Wow, you have quite a wide range of sounds there. I've owned the AC2 and UE4pro and they are very different, both from each other and from the way the 4.A is supposed to sound.
 
AC2 is more of a V shaped signature, with powerful bass, somewhat cool mids, and edgy highs. Some people would love it, others would hate it.
 
UE4pro is more of a "jack of all trades, master of none" type sound. Most people should find it decent, but not necessarily the best choice at $400. 
 
4.A is described as being a neutral reference sound, an extension of the classic Etymotic ER4S signature. It probably has tighter more controlled bass than the others, and less quantity of it. But I haven't heard it or the JH5 to say for sure. 

 

[kckc]

I also must show my appreciation for Dr.John aka the Wizard for his excellent customer service. He always returned emails promptly and answered all my questions thoroughly. He worked with me throughout and gave me lots of advice. I have nothing but admiration for his craftsmanship and I look forward to hearing the 8.A for myself. 

 

[tomscy2000]

Has anyone been in contact with Dr. John in the last couple of days? I sent him an e-mail early yesterday, and haven't gotten a reply yet; I want to make sure it's not an issue with my e-mail, which has been having some problems lately.

 

[Poimandres]

Quote:

Has anyone been in contact with Dr. John in the last couple of days? I sent him an e-mail early yesterday, and haven't gotten a reply yet; I want to make sure it's not an issue with my e-mail, which has been having some problems lately.

I am certain that he will get back to you as soon as he can if he received the email.  I also believe he is still on vacation.
 


Quote:

I also must show my appreciation for Dr.John aka the Wizard for his excellent customer service. He always returned emails promptly and answered all my questions thoroughly. He worked with me throughout and gave me lots of advice. I have nothing but admiration for his craftsmanship and I look forward to hearing the 8.A for myself. 

He is truly a first class, top notch guy.  Our email exchanges currently number in the 40's and throughout all of my pestering he still responds promptly.  I would have ignored myself a long time ago.

 

[underhysteria]

i hope that there are more indepth impressions on the 8.A. I'm sure there are a couple of head-fiers who have already placed their orders on these.
 
 
Hopefully the 8.A is not overhyped to begin with! Since it is heir audio's flagship model, it should be contending strongly against other established high end CIEMs such as the miracle, JH16, ES5s and the UE18pros.
 
 
So far we have only been relying on project86 for his views

 

[Saintkeat]

I would certainly be trying to work my finances out to try getting the 8.A. But by then, there might be one or two compelling in-depth reviews out. Project86's extensive review would certainly be worth looking at when its finally out.
 
Happy New Year everybody! I have to wish you guys in advance since I'll be heavily wasted tomorrow.

 

[riffola]

 
I am now a Heir Audio customer. I just placed an order for the 4.A, base model. No options. I had to stretch my budget to make the purchase work. I figure the neutral sound profile is worth the money over getting a Woodie 3.A or a carbon fiber 3.A.
 
As a first time CIEM'er, I have butterflies in my stomach now. I don't want to start second guessing my purchase. I'll send my impressions out as soon as they contact me on where to send them.

 

[tomscy2000]

Me too, except I splurged and got some CF to bling up the face plate --- also a little above what I'd budgeted, but hopefully it'll all be worth it. Unfortunately, I have to go into hiding for the next two weeks or so, and won't be able to do ear impressions until then. I'm guessing I won't get mine until well into February, but I'm in no rush. Good things come to those who wait.
 
Quote:

 
I am now a Heir Audio customer. I just placed an order for the 4.A, base model. No options. I had to stretch my budget to make the purchase work. I figure the neutral sound profile is worth the money over getting a Woodie 3.A or a carbon fiber 3.A. As a first time CIEM'er, I have butterflies in my stomach now. I don't want to start second guessing my purchase. I'll send my impressions out as soon as they contact me on where to send them.