[Brandon Lew]

Hey everyone! 
 
I recently got my first high-mid range / lower-high-end iems which are the Noble Tridents. I definitely love them and I think they sound great, however I sort of feel like the vocals are a little laid back compared to my Fiio EX1 which seems strange since not only are the Tridents well...$330 more, but they also run 3 way BA drivers VS the EX1 single dynamic driver. The difference is not huge, but it's still kind of bugs me that EVERYTHING else sounds amazing and then the vocals are hit and miss leaning more toward unforgiving and compressed sounding on the majority of songs. I'm not sure if this has to do with the fact that I'm using only my phone and laptop integrated amps, or if the Tridents simply have this sound signature. When I mean they are laid back, I mean to describe them as being a tiny bit muffled, but more like they are not as bright as I expect them to be...think of it like all the instruments are right in front of you and you can hear every single detail, then the singer is in the back and the speakers that project their voice is aimed at a wall and bounce forward rather than the speakers aiming toward the audience.

I've heard that amps and dacs can help a lot on higher end equipment where there can be bottlenecks in basic hardware power delivery, but I'm not sure how much it applies to the Trident since they don't seem difficult to drive. I'm still pretty new to the whole amp/dac world so I don't know where to start or what to consider and because this is my first higher end iem, I don't know if maybe I'm missing something to get the most out of my product or not. As far as dacs go, I hear that they work well for systems with authentic line-outs, but for something like a phone that has more of a "pseudo line-out" it doesn't make much of a difference.

 

[notfitforpublic]

I own the Noble 3's, the predecessor to the Tridents, and I'm afraid your issue with the vocals being a tad pushed back is the nature of this IEM. They have a slight V shape to the signature, meaning the lows and highs are pushed forward, while the mids (where a lot of vocals reside) are recessed and pushed back. No amount of amping or using a DAC is going to help this much. The Noble 3's/Tridents can be easily driven from most portable devices. You may try a bit of EQing to help the issue but really, its just the nature of the IEM.
 
Not the answer your looking for, I know, perhaps give it some time and you may come to appreciate it or sell them and move on. The Tridents/Noble3's come with the incredible detail that Noble is known for, but I also found them a touch too warm, bass a touch bloomy and mids recessed too much for my tastes. 

 

[Brandon Lew]

I see, that's a little unfortunate, I guess this is indirectly my fault for always using more neutral/bright iems and then going with a pair that were characteristically built to sound this way. I mean I still love them and all, but I also have found that using the smallest red core rubber tips to give me the most optimal seal and it has sort have changed the sound signature in my ears a little, now they're a little brighter. I've also use my laptop as my source since I think of all the computers I have in my room, it has the newest integrated dac compared to my old Dell Optiplex 790 and the basic mobile snapdragon dac on the S4 I have and it sounds ever so slightly clearer overall, but still a little crowded in the mids. Did you specifically use a high end setup to test the Noble 3s and still found it to sound the same pretty much? If anything I'll be fine using these Tridents for a couple years and in the mean time save up for a Django or something.

 

[notfitforpublic]

I tried the Noble 3's with the X3ii and then amped with the X3ii/E12a and found the problem to be worse amped. The X3ii has a very neutral and flat SS I found (perhaps even thin?), the warmth of the E12a lade the problem worse IMO.
 
I recently picked up a IT03 and find there overall signature much more to my liking. A flat, even response across the spectrum with just a bit of sub bass and bass bump to fill the voids opposed to the V shape from the Nobles. The IT03, however, lacks some of the detail and precision that seems to be a Noble trait. I'd like to find a mix of both to be honest. Tried the Noble 4 and it lacked the bass and sub bass warmth. If I could find a IEM that carried the IT03 sound sig and Nobles detail and musical presentation i'd be pretty happy.
 
Django seems like a great goal to save up for, but beyond my spending limits for an IEM at this point. I've got high hopes for the new Sage.