The Master must have been an unfinished prototype, none of the undamped filters are listenable to (with a proper seal) unless you're deaf, the high-end peaks give one a sensation of getting stabbed in the eardrum with an ice pick and the mids are so distant I may as well run behind the train and wave at them as they disappear into the horizon. All the dampened filters lose the soundstage. The only time they excel SOUNDWISE is with a gunmetal filter and two black acoustic damping plugs in each instead of white acoustic damping membranes. The separation and soundstage evolve massively with a slightly closer mid-range which plays well with shredding highs and not overpowering but authoritative bass, excellent post-rock combo, feels like initial morphine drip after a bad car accident.
The Master fit is horrid, you'll end up twiddling with your IEMs more than John Travolta with his earring in pulp fiction. It's hard to get a good seal, and spiral dots are a must. They're heavy and will move in your ears in day-to-day activities. On the upside if you're getting robbed you can always swing them over your head to stun your attacker for a quick getaway. Also good luck wearing them mid-day, you may think people squint at you in the sun because you're a dazzling, radiant creature; sadly the fact is that you're blinding anybody that looks you directly in the face.
The Icarus 3 fit is excellent, the nozzles are perfect length and angle, the IEM body sits securely in your ear canal and the very low weight keeps it from moving much if at all. I would use these to work on my race car, that's how confident I am about the fit. The cables on the y-split seem smaller dia which is a nice touch.
It's a much more refined IEM in sound as well. ALL of the filters are usable!!! There is absolutely ZERO sibilance. The sound signature delta between the filters is a lot smaller than on the Master, but because all of the filters sound good you can actually fine tune the Icarus sound to your specific taste without the need to tear the filters apart. Icarus 3 EDIT: have less bloated bass across all the filters compared to the master, it feels more controlled and mature, I can listen to every filter without being annoyed. Highs are good, mids are okay, bass is okay. Everything is balanced and clear but I am using significantly more volume compared to masters, deltas, and lyra (50% on E12a volume pot)
It's almost like they made a Delta 2 with a slightly larger soundstage and separation, more tuning filters, more bass, less timbre and skinnier mids.
If anybody wants these send me a PM, I'm posting both the Icarus 3 and Delta 2's in the classifieds later tonight.
Up to the last minute, description was always 2.5 balanced, and the description for the new Phoenix headphone shows 2.5 included again. Maybe a production mistake - I don't think Trinity planned it to be 3.5, when it is so rarely used on new DAPs.
