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I am still waiting on EE to send a new Legend X. Given the Holidays, they were on break and playing catch up with Black Friday but am expecting to hear from them soon with a shipment.
TOUR CLOSED - US Head-Fi Tour: Empire Ears Legend X vs. Phantom TOTL CIEM Tour - Starting November 2018
- Thread starter Barra
- Start date
Tybot
500+ Head-Fier
I am still waiting on EE to send a new Legend X. Given the Holidays, they were on break and playing catch up with Black Friday but am expecting to hear from them soon with a shipment.
Ahhhhh...didn’t know we were on pause. No worries at all.
wormsdriver
Headphoneus Supremus
Ok guys, I received the tour package from @Barra.
Both iems arrived in good shape, I'm listening to the Legend X right now
Both iems arrived in good shape, I'm listening to the Legend X right now
Tybot
500+ Head-Fier
Kit received from @wormsdriver today. Looks like he had them detailed prior to sending...perfect shape.
Tybot
500+ Head-Fier
With great regret, I am packing up the Legend X (and Phantom) and will be shipping to @Darkestred tomorrow AM.
The contents have changed slightly since the LX replacement. It currently contains both IEMs, stock cable (2.5 balanced is on Phantom and 3.5 is on LX), 1 bag of Final tips, wipes, 2 small microfiber bags, 2 large microfiber bags, 2 microfiber cleaning clothes and a 2.5 to 4.4 adapter. Please note there is no 2.5 to 3.5 adapter but obviously cables can be swapped if you don’t own an adapter.
The contents have changed slightly since the LX replacement. It currently contains both IEMs, stock cable (2.5 balanced is on Phantom and 3.5 is on LX), 1 bag of Final tips, wipes, 2 small microfiber bags, 2 large microfiber bags, 2 microfiber cleaning clothes and a 2.5 to 4.4 adapter. Please note there is no 2.5 to 3.5 adapter but obviously cables can be swapped if you don’t own an adapter.
Tybot
500+ Head-Fier
After participating in a number of tours, this one was the hardest to let go of after a week of enjoyment. Here are some thoughts:
Phantom-
Very nice and well behaved. Doesn't do anything wrong nor anything outstandingly or uniquely well. Very cohesive and wide sound. I could see how some people opt for this as their personal end-game, but I need something with more sizzle in these times of hype and tri-brids. Which brings me to...
Legend X
-Whoa. Living in the middle of the desert Southwest, I don't know if there is a pair of LX in the state period and certainly not available anywhere for demo. Because of this, I'd been looking forward to this tour very much. I was expecting the legend-ary bass with some duller highs compared to Valkrie and Khan tech. I was quite surprised that the LX highs held their own against the two. The Valkrie and Khan both win the battle for the highs, but it was an actual fight and not completely different universes. LX mids are a touch better than both of them.
The bass though. Wow. Not just quantity but the impact is fantastic. Took me a while to get a good seal but ended up with Symbio wide-bore that always seem to save the day on harder to seal IEMs. Paired them with an Effect Audio Janus cable which seemed about perfect.
The best analogy I can come up with is my 1973 blazer I had as a teenager in the late 80's/early 90's. I had a system I still miss to this day with Infinity ribbon tweeters down to 2 15" subs in the back. I could shatter the back window when turned up. I designed and built most of myself and it had a crystal clear sound with purposely over-bearing lows that could be turned down or all the way off. The LX is the closest I've come to that system in my ears. It's no where near a reference signature nor is it intended to be. But boy is it fun. I am now planning on dumping some of my mid-upper tier equipment and acquiring a LX as a complement to Valkrie and Khan. Yes, LX can be a little fatiguing and I'll probably go deaf a full 5 years sooner than I was on track for, but it'll be fun!
Phantom-
Very nice and well behaved. Doesn't do anything wrong nor anything outstandingly or uniquely well. Very cohesive and wide sound. I could see how some people opt for this as their personal end-game, but I need something with more sizzle in these times of hype and tri-brids. Which brings me to...
Legend X
-Whoa. Living in the middle of the desert Southwest, I don't know if there is a pair of LX in the state period and certainly not available anywhere for demo. Because of this, I'd been looking forward to this tour very much. I was expecting the legend-ary bass with some duller highs compared to Valkrie and Khan tech. I was quite surprised that the LX highs held their own against the two. The Valkrie and Khan both win the battle for the highs, but it was an actual fight and not completely different universes. LX mids are a touch better than both of them.
The bass though. Wow. Not just quantity but the impact is fantastic. Took me a while to get a good seal but ended up with Symbio wide-bore that always seem to save the day on harder to seal IEMs. Paired them with an Effect Audio Janus cable which seemed about perfect.
The best analogy I can come up with is my 1973 blazer I had as a teenager in the late 80's/early 90's. I had a system I still miss to this day with Infinity ribbon tweeters down to 2 15" subs in the back. I could shatter the back window when turned up. I designed and built most of myself and it had a crystal clear sound with purposely over-bearing lows that could be turned down or all the way off. The LX is the closest I've come to that system in my ears. It's no where near a reference signature nor is it intended to be. But boy is it fun. I am now planning on dumping some of my mid-upper tier equipment and acquiring a LX as a complement to Valkrie and Khan. Yes, LX can be a little fatiguing and I'll probably go deaf a full 5 years sooner than I was on track for, but it'll be fun!
The LX is very unique and extremely fun while being a clear top tier TOTL. I love my LX.
- Joined
- Nov 11, 2006
- Posts
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- 855
One man's regret is another's...i got nothing.
The kit is in my hands. Safe and sound. Everything looks A-ok.
- Joined
- Nov 11, 2006
- Posts
- 1,273
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- 855
I like to do things in reverse. Here are my current and final thoughts on the Legend X but before that: The Phantom, it was ok. Not my style.
Im going to hold onto the legends until Monday 03/08/2020 before shipping them out. I need the two guys ahead of me (@riverred105 @gc335) to check your pms
This impression turned out longer than i thought. Originally, I was going to write a few things but this became more of a cronicle. Please keep in mind, this is by no means a review but moreso my experience.
Preface
I have encountered the Legend X a few times but never able to audition on a proper setup... Until now. Using a Schiit modi/magni stack the chapter begins.
I use a bevy of tracks for when i am looking at what an iem can do. I have included a quick rundown of the tracks and how the X' tackled them. Please note, that i pay more attention to the drumkit when listening to music.
Dream Theatre - 6:00 (Vinyl Flac) - Great recording with a lot going on drum-wise. Hi-hat strokes and rolls were articulate and easy to hear. The kick and bass had great presence. Splashes and crashes sounded great.
Extreme - Politicalamity - horns, vocals, guitar, album production. Fat sounding and how i like it.
36 Crazyfists - Bloodwork - There is a specific passage about 10 seconds in. The drummer chics (foot stomp) his hi-hat twice per bar. What i am looking for is does the chics become "just a part of the music" as opposed to another layer added. The X' did a good job.
Deftones - Digital Bath - Great record and great track for isolating drums. Articulated hi-hat strikes that have bite, thumping kick drum with nice decay and a snare drum that cracks.
Now onto my experience...
Ares Cable
The Copper Cable gives a very open and an almost aggressive feel. No audio passage sounded congested regardless of what style of music was thrown at the LX. Each song had a smooth feel to it, almost liquid. All music was so enjoyable to listen to.
Vocals sounded slightly warm, smooth and clean. Instruments had very good macro details and presence. Mid-range has a mix of air and thickness to it. The whole spectrum has very good detail retrieval while sounding warm but not dark - where dark to me is boomy with bass presence dominating the spectrum.
Ares Cable Bass
For the amount of bass the X' exudes and without eq, rarely colored outside the lines. The times the bass did go over it was tasteful and never excessive for my ears. The bass is thunderous and very much like home theatre or car audio subwoofers. Bass hits viscerally during times it is truly called for. There is good weight to the impact and extension is nice. Simply fantastic.
Thor II+
I decided to try my Thor II+ and noticed the following changes on higher quality formats like FLAC Vinyls. Mp3s v0/320 were harder to discern the differences but subtle non-the-less. The signature with the Thor became slightly warmer and refined and there was a different air about it - i liked it but i also liked the ares, hmmm.
Highs sounded smoother but also cleaner. On the Ares, certain notes got lost in the mix. Hi-hats in Dream Theatre's 6:00 (vinyl FLAC) sound crisp and distinguishable.
Some micro details were lost in the upper-ranges by way of extension. The mid-range was ever-so-slightly pushed forward. Snare hits were more isolated. Separation, overall, was better. Instruments were better layered and had more attack. Again, more nuanced depending on track/format but noticeable.
Ba-ba-ba-Bass and more
Bass on the Thor had slightly more extension and impact. Well recorded albums and higher bitrate formats made it difficult swithing back to the Ares.
The legend X was nothing short of delightful. Everytime ive auditioned the X, there has been what i can best describe as the blackest of backgrounds ever heard on an iem. EE has done a great job with this headphone. If bass is important this iem should be in your top 5, whether that be TOTL, to try or only kidding yourself that one day you'll justify the purchase Now just lower it by a grand and i'll buy it instantly.
Thank you @Barra for the opportunity to demo this unit and setting up this tour.
Im going to hold onto the legends until Monday 03/08/2020 before shipping them out. I need the two guys ahead of me (@riverred105 @gc335) to check your pms
This impression turned out longer than i thought. Originally, I was going to write a few things but this became more of a cronicle. Please keep in mind, this is by no means a review but moreso my experience.
Preface
I have encountered the Legend X a few times but never able to audition on a proper setup... Until now. Using a Schiit modi/magni stack the chapter begins.
I use a bevy of tracks for when i am looking at what an iem can do. I have included a quick rundown of the tracks and how the X' tackled them. Please note, that i pay more attention to the drumkit when listening to music.
Dream Theatre - 6:00 (Vinyl Flac) - Great recording with a lot going on drum-wise. Hi-hat strokes and rolls were articulate and easy to hear. The kick and bass had great presence. Splashes and crashes sounded great.
Extreme - Politicalamity - horns, vocals, guitar, album production. Fat sounding and how i like it.
36 Crazyfists - Bloodwork - There is a specific passage about 10 seconds in. The drummer chics (foot stomp) his hi-hat twice per bar. What i am looking for is does the chics become "just a part of the music" as opposed to another layer added. The X' did a good job.
Deftones - Digital Bath - Great record and great track for isolating drums. Articulated hi-hat strikes that have bite, thumping kick drum with nice decay and a snare drum that cracks.
Now onto my experience...
Ares Cable
The Copper Cable gives a very open and an almost aggressive feel. No audio passage sounded congested regardless of what style of music was thrown at the LX. Each song had a smooth feel to it, almost liquid. All music was so enjoyable to listen to.
Vocals sounded slightly warm, smooth and clean. Instruments had very good macro details and presence. Mid-range has a mix of air and thickness to it. The whole spectrum has very good detail retrieval while sounding warm but not dark - where dark to me is boomy with bass presence dominating the spectrum.
Ares Cable Bass
For the amount of bass the X' exudes and without eq, rarely colored outside the lines. The times the bass did go over it was tasteful and never excessive for my ears. The bass is thunderous and very much like home theatre or car audio subwoofers. Bass hits viscerally during times it is truly called for. There is good weight to the impact and extension is nice. Simply fantastic.
Thor II+
I decided to try my Thor II+ and noticed the following changes on higher quality formats like FLAC Vinyls. Mp3s v0/320 were harder to discern the differences but subtle non-the-less. The signature with the Thor became slightly warmer and refined and there was a different air about it - i liked it but i also liked the ares, hmmm.
Highs sounded smoother but also cleaner. On the Ares, certain notes got lost in the mix. Hi-hats in Dream Theatre's 6:00 (vinyl FLAC) sound crisp and distinguishable.
Some micro details were lost in the upper-ranges by way of extension. The mid-range was ever-so-slightly pushed forward. Snare hits were more isolated. Separation, overall, was better. Instruments were better layered and had more attack. Again, more nuanced depending on track/format but noticeable.
Ba-ba-ba-Bass and more
Bass on the Thor had slightly more extension and impact. Well recorded albums and higher bitrate formats made it difficult swithing back to the Ares.
The legend X was nothing short of delightful. Everytime ive auditioned the X, there has been what i can best describe as the blackest of backgrounds ever heard on an iem. EE has done a great job with this headphone. If bass is important this iem should be in your top 5, whether that be TOTL, to try or only kidding yourself that one day you'll justify the purchase
Now just lower it by a grand and i'll buy it instantly.Thank you @Barra for the opportunity to demo this unit and setting up this tour.
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Coronavirus Caution
We are all concerned by this Coronavirus outbreak and we are all taking precautions, but thought I would address it here. I am not a doctor or an expert of any kind so I am open to suggestions from our participants. If things get too bad, we may need to consider suspending the tour out of an abundance of caution but I am not sure if we are there yet. What do you think?
Suggestions:
We are all concerned by this Coronavirus outbreak and we are all taking precautions, but thought I would address it here. I am not a doctor or an expert of any kind so I am open to suggestions from our participants. If things get too bad, we may need to consider suspending the tour out of an abundance of caution but I am not sure if we are there yet. What do you think?
Suggestions:
- 24 Hour Package Quarantine: It has been suggested that we allow our delivery packages to sit for 24 hours as the virus is supposed to die off after 16 hours on all surfaces. Plastics and metals are supposedly the most friendly to the bacteria with metals being offering virus survival for 16 hours. Since our CIEMs and the kits are mostly metal and plastic, I am offering an additional 8th day to allow everyone to quarantine the kit for a day out of precaution.
- Communicate Virus Concerns: Please communicate with the participant you are shipping too if you feel there are any virus exposure concerns. This allows the next person to take any extra care that they deem necessary.
- Clean Prior to Shipping: As always, please clean the kit thoroughly before shipping to minimize the risk of passing on germs. This should include careful but thorough use of disinfectant wipes on the CIEMs and down the length of the wires as well as cases and any other kit items that you have touched. Once dry please package and seal before reintroducing germs.
- Clean Prior to Use: To be double sure that the kit is clean, please clean it thoroughly before using it to minimize the risk of any germs passing through the prior cleaning efforts. This should include careful but thorough use of disinfectant wipes on the CIEMs and down the length of the wires as well as cases and all other kit items that you will handle.
- Input: If have missed anything, please offer suggestions and I will update.
- Pause: I am open to input about pausing the tour until this virus has passed if you deem necessary. You can also request to be pushed down the list if desired.
mwhals
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2015
- Posts
- 3,295
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- 2,184
I so happy I bought both the Legend X and Phantom. They are both among my favorites.
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Tybot
500+ Head-Fier
I think adding a little time to each destination would be wise. 24-48 to let it sit before unpacking and the same for outgoing...let it sit, packed up for a day before mailing. We all need something to look forward to.
Ynot1
500+ Head-Fier
I read 3 days on most surfaces and a little less on copper.
I recommend viewing a youtube video made by audioholic.
It is worth noting most people have not dealt with this before.
Anything we can learn to prepare for it the better. I call it the GI Joe factor.
Knowing is half the battle.
I recommend viewing a youtube video made by audioholic.
It is worth noting most people have not dealt with this before.
Anything we can learn to prepare for it the better. I call it the GI Joe factor.
Knowing is half the battle.
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For those interested, I just posted my Valkyrie review: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/empire-ears-valkyrie.24269/reviews#item-review-23407
In it, I admit that it has given me a sweet tooth that makes my other CIEMs feel bland when I try to go back. After hearing the new EST and Sub implementation, I knew I had to have one. I have offered some optimization thoughts as well as comparisons to my A18, LX, and ELYSIUM to offer some insight into its performance. Enjoy!
In it, I admit that it has given me a sweet tooth that makes my other CIEMs feel bland when I try to go back. After hearing the new EST and Sub implementation, I knew I had to have one. I have offered some optimization thoughts as well as comparisons to my A18, LX, and ELYSIUM to offer some insight into its performance. Enjoy!
Likeimthere
100+ Head-Fier
Can I be put back on the tour list please? 
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