[Gilly87]

Tones or tons?

 

[mrAdrian]

A lot.

Hey don't blame me, I'm an engineering student!

 

[wahu]

Yeh should be tonnes or tons not tones lol

 

[Gilly87]

Lol sorry I literally just didn't know what you meant XD
 
I just put my SM3 cable on the TF10 and the sound has changed completely to my ears...I think I am going to make a thread about my TF10 adventure ^_^

 

[mrAdrian]

yeah. The ZO adds 'a lot' of bass quantity in a reasonable quality imo. The little cost of midrange/treble clarity is expected for the amount of bass it is pumping out I reckon. It would obviously make your phones go 'warmer', because of the huge amount of bass it adds.
 
Well, that is if you go into the orange-red regions. The ZO made me realize I am no basshead, hence I sent it off to a good new home I think new owner is actually loving it too!

 

[Gilly87]

I definitely don't need the ZO now...with my SM3 cable the sound is a bit warmer, and noticeably bassier; I don't feel the need for anything more. It could be tighter though. I am definitely going to upgrade my cable, seeing how much difference even my presumably mediocre stock SM3 one made.

 

[Gilly87]

Here are my initial impressions/notes on the TF10 vs SM3 (from an email to another head-fi member):
 
[size=13.333333969116211px]"Wider soundstage than SM3, but not as tall. Deeper, but separation is less than SM3, driver speed is slightly less though close. Harder bass impact, subbass is more present and responds better to EQ. Still not as round and powerful as HJE900 or SE215 but it has some grip, good impact and definition, reasonable extension. Mids are not as recessed as I had feared, also respond well to EQ; build quality seems solid compared to reviews I've read of their durability. Memory wire works well, cable is passable.[/size][size=13.333333969116211px][/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px][/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px]Very nice. Overall SQ is not quite up to SM3 in terms of pure realism, definition, and detail, but its close, and the sig is much more fun."[/size]
 
[size=13.333333969116211px]"The TF10 are even better now that I can really take in their dynamic range and midrange detail. The bass is just right: punchy, deep enough and knows how to get the **** out of the way. The acuity of its portrayal of depth feels less exaggerated than that of the the SM3 but the stage is wider, giving it this smoothly massive feel. I don't sense the midrange as being recessed; I usually like it just a bit more forward a la SE215 but really I have nothing to complain about as far aas the TF10s midrange is concerned.[/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] The treble is better than anything I have heard by a good bit. I don't detect any sibilance or metallic feel that others have reported; I can see how they would be fatiguing for long sessions, but they are never painfully shiny like the HJE900 can be.[/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] The fit is awesome on me, second only to the SM3, and the shells seem much higher quality.[/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] This is a ******* good IEM. They might just be my new favorite IEM; I am feeling pangs of annoyance that I didn't try this in the beginning, but I think hearing all of the variants leading up to it and noticing their flaws helps me to appreciate the TF10. It isn't the absolute detail master that the SM3 is, either in ability or the emphasis of its presentation. But the sound is ******* explosive, the dynamic range is in a totally different category than any other IEM I have heard except the ASG-1, which had so many other flaws that I can't put them in the same category of overall listenability.[/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] Infected is on a different level with these. The soundstaging and dynamics are perfect for crazy psytrance, and the added decay fills in the sound more like a full sized headphone than the SM3."[/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px]  [/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] "[size=13.333333969116211px]doing an AB now, the SM3 is clearly still the superior phone, but there is just something about the brightness and wide stage of the TF10 that makes them feel euphoric and alive without being metallic or harsh...it's weird, with the SM3s, I enjoy them so much more right off the bat, they just bring you under into their seductive little cave, but the TF10s are alive and wild and out in the open. They have this strange something in the treble that gives them a liquid feeling that the SM3 doesn't posess; with the filters, the treble was more muffled, and without them it's more focused in the lower treble even though it has good extension, which gives it a slightly metallic twinge that I find BAs are prone to. But the TF10's treble has just the right decay and shimmer, never cutting things off early but not overly coloring or emphasizing things like cymbals.[/size][/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px]  [/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] Here's a shocker: the TF10 actually have noticeably less bass punch than my unfiltered SM3. I don't know how that happened; not what I was expecting. Extension is better on the SM3, they even have a kind of subbass resonance and physical thump that the TF10s really can't touch. But the TF10s respond much better to EQ. I am actually curious to get a better source now, because I feel like the TF10s might need a little more power to fully shine.[/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px]  [/size]
[size=13.333333969116211px] SM3 is still technically superior and overall more my style, but there is something really endearing about the TF10; it doesn't have the driver speed or technical ability of the SM3, there's really no competition between them in this sense, but the TF10 is just livelier somehow for stuff like Infected Mushroom and other really upbeat music, where the openness and great dynamics really make a difference; I can never see the TF10 sounding boring, as the SM3 sometimes does, to me."[/size]

 

[Techno Kid]

I've been listening to my TF10 quite a bit lately and I'm really enjoying them again.  After getting my R-50 (which imo is technically better) I didn't listen to anything else but last week I put on the TF10 for the first time in months and forgot how good they are for electronic music.  I EQ'ed the mids up a little and they sound very nice and I've always loved the large soundstage.  They're still a very good IEM and for under $200 theres not to many that sound this good for music like edm but for rock and metal theres better options.

 

[Gilly87]

Yeah I am really in love with the way the TF10 are playing Bassnectar, Infected Mushroom, and ESPECIALLY Shpongle, holy crap.
 
They produce REALLY nice bass out of my laptop soundcard, which I forget the name of it but I remember from my PC-buying-research that it's the same one that was used in the second or third most recent iteration of Macbook Pros, which is usually a good thing. It is comparable in terms of overall quality to my Voodoo'd G2x, less treble detail and more bass quantity though. Maybe not quite as wide in soundstage.

 

[HeroicPenguin]

Just bought a pair of replacement cables from Chris_Himself the other day. I have to say, I'm quite impressed. I wasn't one to initially believe in the difference of cables (this purchase was mainly done for ergonomics, not sound), but count me as a believer in this case. The new cable definitely brought out the mids a bit further (which I like) and added a bit more depth to the soundstage. It also picked up details better and I found lower quality recordings way more noticeable than before. The downside is that I feel like the new cable is more fatiguing to listen to, since with more details comes less smoothness and the microphonics are much worse than the stock cable. But, there was definitely more liveliness and energy to my music, they even made the Triple.Fis a bit more Grado-ish if I do say so. Overall, great purchase.
 
I don't have pictures up or anything, but they also look fantastic, definitely like a high-end product.

 

[Gilly87]

I've been looking at the Null Audio Arete, looks nice.

 

[marko93101]

Fell out of love with the TF10s for some reason, but then last week I was like, meh I'll throw them back on. 
 
 
Jesus christ almighty, cannot stop listening to them. The love is back.

 

[Gilly87]

They're awesome! I had heard so much negative hype about recessed mids, metallic treble, muddy/bloated bass...and to my ears, none of these are true. Tue TF10 is, to my ears, easily on par with the top-tiers I've heard, and more fun to listen to than most of them. Fit is not an issue at all with or without the flip mod; I did it because it gives them a lower profile, they don't look so ridiculous, actually pretty cool IMO.

I can see why the boost in midbass would turn some people off, but to me its done very tastefully, not overshadowing the mids but giving the whole sound a slight warmth that compliments the sparkly treble and helps fill out the spacious, 3D presentation quite well. Its such a fresh sounding IEM, I'm not usually into v shaped sigs, the W3 was no fun for me at all, it was just so brutal but the TF10s have the balance right IMO and the result kicks ASS

 

[Gilly87]

The closer I listen, the more I admire the tuning of this IEM. The most obvious aspect is the super sparkly treble, which usually means some brightness in or harshness the midrange, and the warm bass resonance, which usually makes the mids warm and slightly fuzzy sounding to me, like a car stereo kind of. These are the case with the HJE900, and also the W3, but its a flaw the TF10 avoids somehow; its midrange is the opposite, slightly dark and smooth but also very clear, and not recessed. I actually really enjoy the tonality of the mids on the TF10; they aren't as detailed as SM3, but the SM3 can be too aggressive with detail for me.

 

[Chris_Himself]

Quote:

Just bought a pair of replacement cables from Chris_Himself the other day. I have to say, I'm quite impressed. I wasn't one to initially believe in the difference of cables (this purchase was mainly done for ergonomics, not sound), but count me as a believer in this case. The new cable definitely brought out the mids a bit further (which I like) and added a bit more depth to the soundstage. It also picked up details better and I found lower quality recordings way more noticeable than before. The downside is that I feel like the new cable is more fatiguing to listen to, since with more details comes less smoothness and the microphonics are much worse than the stock cable. But, there was definitely more liveliness and energy to my music, they even made the Triple.Fis a bit more Grado-ish if I do say so. Overall, great purchase.
 
I don't have pictures up or anything, but they also look fantastic, definitely like a high-end product.

 
Thanks for the feedback. Sorry that they're a little more microphonic. We're getting new stranded silver plated copper soon, contact me when those land maybe I can swap for you if the microphonics are worse than you'd wish to deal with.
 
The harshness and slight tinny sound is a characteristic of fresh cables. Once they get "vine-ripened" on your IEM's for a week or so you'll notice a difference.
 
As of half a year ago, I didn't believe in cables or burn-in. It's becoming evident that I'm more wrong than right these days about audio.
 
Again, thanks for the support, it's what keeps us going.