[Layman1]

Well good news and bad news for my final verdict of the Phantom Master 6 after spending more time with it.

The good:

1. The Gun Metal is the best sounding (for me) as it's neutral and does not exaggerate any frequency. It's balanced, clean and clear. Nothing overpowers anything else.
2. The PM6 (with the Gun Metal) sounds almost (98%) identical to my Final Audio VI which costs way more. FYI the Final Audio VI is a single BA and well implemented.
3. The only (slight) difference is that the PM6 has more mid bass and a less recessed mid-range which is always clean and smooth just like the FA VI and sounds more full on the bottom end in the vocal area.
4. The PM6 also has a tad more (tighter) bass and it's quick and fast and never sounds bloated or out of control.
5. What I hear the PM6 do (way) better than the FA VI is (although it needs more volume to match the level of the FA VI) the PM6 can go LOUD and still have complete control and never lose it's sound signature or sound harsh. This is one advantage of multi-drivers to do this without distortion. The FA VI loses control and gets shouty with vocals and treble but it's rare I listen very loudly but others may appreciate this.

The bad news (at least for me) was that I was hoping that the PM6 would be the magical IEM to surpass the Final Audio but it instead it just matches it.

The search continues.

Have you tried the Hunter? It's supposed to sound similar to PM6, just a bit better

 

[Hi-Fi'er]

Have you tried the Hunter? It's supposed to sound similar to PM6, just a bit better

No I have not tried the hunter. I think I need to go into the TOTL IEM to find what I want, IE: UE, 64Audio, CampFire Audio, etc.

Don't get me wrong in any way shape or form. The PM6 are VERY nice, They are keepers. I just am looking for more detail and clarity. Although the PM6 deliver I'm sure higher up the ladder there is more to find.

 

[Torment]

So I know we got an email the other day but has anyone had a shipping confirmation for the Icarus 3 yet

 

[hikergrl]

Had the same question and Kieran sent me this picture but seem I can't paste it here but it's a XLR pinout.

XLR:
Tip: L+
Ring 1: R+
Ring 2: L -
Sleeve: R -

EDIT: Found a nice picture that @Raketen posted. Trinity same as HifiMan and Oppo.

rr12267 - thanks again for posting the info on Trinity master's balanced wiring.

Yesterday, using your info, I modified the Trinity balanced cable (which is essentially a cable approx. 3 ft long with a TRRS jack at either end) so that one end terminated in 2 TRS jacks to match Pono's balanced inputs (one TRS is wired tip L+, ring L-, the other TRS serves the R channels).
The modified balanced cable works fine, although it was a trickier job than I had anticipated - the 4 conductors in the Trinity balanced cable are really miniscule and are not separately sleeved with insulation (they seemed to have fibers wrapped around them rather than the "tubing" insulation that I was expecting). So I had to sleeve the L wires with heat-shrink tubing and repeat with the R conductors before terminating them with TRS jacks.
If I had known it was going to be this tricky I would have certainly just made a completely new cable from quad Mogami wire (or something similar).

Anyhow - the masters sound nicer balanced from the Pono than single-ended from Pono. It was not a dramatic difference, but overall certainly worth the effort (for me the PM4s sounded more significantly different balanced vs SE).
Balanced the masters appeared to have less grain, are smoother (in a good way - less metallic "edginess"), and have slightly better instrument separation.

For me, the PM4s and Masters compliment each other in a good way - the PM4s are spacious and detailed but can be a little "bright" and I definitely prefer them balanced from a "warmer" source.
The Masters are less detailed and "warmer" - blues sounds toe-tapping and enjoyable from the Masters (I don't enjoy blues from the PM4s).
The PM4s are lighter weight and smaller, are easier for me to wear - the Masters are heavier and bigger and don't seem very secure in my ears.

I'm glad to have both - and am looking forward to the newer Trinity iterations !!!

 

[majo123]

rr12267 - thanks again for posting the info on Trinity master's balanced wiring.
Yesterday, using your info, I modified the Trinity balanced cable (which is essentially a cable approx 3 ft long with a TRRS jack at either end) so that one end terminated in 2 TRS jacks to match Pono's balanced inputs (one TRS is wired tip L+, ring L-, the other TRS serves the R channels).
The modified balanced cable works fine, although it was a trickier job than I had anticipated - the 4 conductors in the Trinity balanced cable are really miniscule and are not separately sleeved with insulation (they seemed to have fibers wrapped around them rather than the "tubing" insulation that I was expecting). So I had to sleeve the L wires with heat-shrink tubing and repeat with the R conductors before terminating them with TRS jacks.
If I had known it was going to be this tricky I would have certainly just made a completely new cable from quad Mogami wire (or something similar).

Anyhow - the masters sound nicer balanced from the Pono than single-ended from Pono. It was not a dramatic difference, but overall certainly worth the effort (for me the PM4s sounded more significantly different balanced vs SE).
Balanced the masters appeared to have less grain, are smoother (in a good way - less metallic "edginess"), and have slightly better instrument separation.

For me, the PM4s and Masters compliment each other in a good way - the PM4s are spacious and detailed but can be a little "bright" and I definitely prefer them balanced from a "warmer" source.
The Masters are less detailed and "warmer" - blues sounds toe-tapping and enjoyable from the Masters (I don't enjoy blues from the PM4s).
The PM4s are lighter weight and smaller, are easier for me to wear - the Masters are heavier and bigger and don't seem very secure in my ears.

I'm glad to have both - and am looking forward to the newer Trinity iterations!!!

I bought a balanced adapter to go with the balanced cable I recieved from trinity and agree there is a definite improvement all though not drastic changes, I think the treble tamed a little and sub bass improved , slightly more detail overall....you realy do have to listen to pick out the changes and the master standard are realy not that much different , this was through an opus1 and fiio x7.

 

[Podster]

Like selecting which IEM looks better. Hmmmmmm

She is being coy, I'm far more attracted to cute

Come on Icarus III I'm ready!

 

[JaeYoon]

She is being coy, I'm far more attracted to cute


Come on Icarus III I'm ready!

Do you Icarus III accept Podster?
I now pronounce you husband and wife.
You may now kiss thy IEM the Icarus III

 

[Podster]

Oh Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy

 

[guysmileeey]

For me, the PM4s and Masters compliment each other in a good way - the PM4s are spacious and detailed but can be a little "bright" and I definitely prefer them balanced from a "warmer" source.
The Masters are less detailed and "warmer" - blues sounds toe-tapping and enjoyable from the Masters (I don't enjoy blues from the PM4s).
The PM4s are lighter weight and smaller, are easier for me to wear - the Masters are heavier and bigger and don't seem very secure in my ears.

I'm glad to have both - and am looking forward to the newer Trinity iterations !!!

I've been away from the thread for a while. Returned for potential Icarus impressions, but am happy to catch this post instead.

I concur 100% with this perspective. While neither iem is perfect, they each bring unique strengths and charms to the table. My impressions match yours identically. I now use the PM4 for bedside/mobile and the Master for PC/turntable. Quite happy with both and looking forward to the Icarus 4.

 

[guysmileeey]

Since 'hikergrl' mentioned blues through the Master, why not share a little hot, new, timeless blues.



Enjoy!

 

[hikergrl]

Keb' Mo' - awesome!
Thanks for sharing!

 

[originalsnuffy]

Any sighting of this Icarus III in the wild? Any impressions?

I so want to be able to upgrade my opinion on this company.

 

[posnera]

The Icarus III, like so many of Trinity's offerings, can perfectly reproduce the sound of one hand clapping.

 

[Podster]

Any sighting of this Icarus III in the wild? Any impressions?

I so want to be able to upgrade my opinion on this company.

For those of us who enjoy the Trinity's we already have I'm with you, per my last email with Bob I'm expecting mine sometime next week! Dying to see if they can even put another SS in the fray like @hikergrl said about the Masta/PM4 separation

 

[Hi-Fi'er]

No I have not tried the hunter. I think I need to go into the TOTL IEM to find what I want, IE: UE, 64Audio, CampFire Audio, etc.

Don't get me wrong in any way shape or form. The PM6 are VERY nice, They are keepers. I just am looking for more detail and clarity. Although the PM6 deliver I'm sure higher up the ladder there is more to find.

Update: After spending more time across different types of music and A/B'ing vs my Final Audio VI I can say now that I can hear the difference more in that the PM6 appears to surpass the FA VI in almost all area's except being mid forward but it's not horrible by any means. The PM6's are just a little less mid forward and more clear and less thick in comparison bringing out clarity. I think I like this more. I always enjoyed mid forward in your face IEM's but the PM6 shows that you don't need that and it can take away from everything else in the song.

In addition the PM6 exhibit details in the background in well recorded high bit rate tracks very well. The PM6 also have a wider and deep sound stage and imaging. The more I listen to them the more I am finding things I like about them. They also do not distort at any level at any volume. I've mentioned this before but I appreciate that as it keeps it's clarity across different genre which most IEM's have a hard time doing. Lastly the PM6 has tight and well defined and controlled bass that never overpowers anything in the frequency range. All this with the Gunmetal filters.

Hope that helps.