[Exill]

I just received my mest JP ver yesterday.
Honestly, it is way better than I think it would be.

My favorite still gonna be IER-Z1R but this really come close.
Z1R still have a bigger soundstage for every instrument, a little bit detailed and extended treble and bass.
But Mest have a more balanced sound and mid compared to Z1R which tend to have a more forward lower mid compared to the other mid area,
better fit in my ear too ( a big plus to me ).
Might need to get some 4.4 cable for the Mest.

 

[Voyager14]

@tommykrebs
Absolutely same here, I'm using cp145 on S8F too and azla xlastec is awful pairing with S8F, they suck out all the bass and elevate the treble too much. You've just comfirmed my suspicion about Mest, I was thinking about upgrade but now I don't think it's gonna happen. I'm tired of beating the same horse but S8F is truly remarkable for the price if you prefer this kind of tuning and if the fit is good.

Hmm, I'm looking to upgrade to the MEST from my Voyager 14, it seems like they should be superior to the s8f or the upgraded version of the s8z.

I really wish somebody could compare the two that have listened to them besides bggar the dude puts blon 03 above clearly superior sets I have personally a/b with the blon, so I know he's full of it.

 

[Voyager14]

I use 8 core this one:
https://m.aliexpress.com/item/4000158772005.html
Its few levels above anything that cost below 3 figures

See I was looking at that cable I've seen it recommended other times here but when I look at the makeup of it, it has copper in it. Silver is supposedly superior in every way to silver/gold (not as corrosion resistant as gold). So how would that be superior to a 7n 8core fully pure silver cable?

 

[Bloopy]

The Mest will sound noticeably less bright than the V14, while also being more coherent. It's not that the Mest is dark - more natural would be more the idea. The Mest is a much easier listen than the V14. The V14 is right on the margins with tonality and staging - it's an interesting listen, but to me not really an easy one.
For what the Mest delivers technically, it does in a way that is easy for the listener to enjoy. I think that is one of the best things about the Mest. It does not sound like it's working all that hard - and likewise does not require hard work then of the listener. My 2 cents....

 

[Bloopy]

Hmm, I'm looking to upgrade to the MEST from my Voyager 14, it seems like they should be superior to the s8f or the upgraded version of the s8z.

I really wish somebody could compare the two that have listened to them besides bggar the dude puts blon 03 above clearly superior sets I have personally a/b with the blon, so I know he's full of it.

The Mest will sound noticeably less bright than the V14, while also being more coherent. It's not that the Mest is dark - more natural would be more the idea. The Mest is a much easier listen than the V14. The V14 is right on the margins with tonality and staging - it's an interesting listen, but to me not really an easy one.
For what the Mest delivers technically, it does in a way that is easy for the listener to enjoy. I think that is one of the best things about the Mest. It does not sound like it's working all that hard - and likewise does not require hard work then of the listener. My 2 cents....

 

[progdvd]

See I was looking at that cable I've seen it recommended other times here but when I look at the makeup of it, it has copper in it. Silver is supposedly superior in every way to silver/gold (not as corrosion resistant as gold). So how would that be superior to a 7n 8core fully pure silver cable?

Starting from build, I have this cable over a year now, and it's in perfect condition looks the same as new it didn't oxidise, plugs are sturdy, everything is top notch.
Here each channel gets 2 cores of silver and copper for positive and negative signals therefore taking full advantages of both materials. For more info check here:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/resistance-of-cables-pics-comments-and-links.907998/

I'm not the best person to describe differences between cables and I only can compare it to budget up to 6n copper or cheap 4n silver ones. What I found is that this cable bring out the lows not necessary in more quantity but in more refined way, same for the highs. Everything seems tighter with better control. Definetly it's not placebo I swear difference can be heard. I understand it's not the cheapest option out there but for me it gives me that feeling of premium like jewelery, it's high quality without paying 1k for boutique options. It's the furthest I will go for an upgrade cable, anything more expensive is ridiculous to me. And I figure it would be good option for warm and bright sets.

 

[Voyager14]

The Mest will sound noticeably less bright than the V14, while also being more coherent. It's not that the Mest is dark - more natural would be more the idea. The Mest is a much easier listen than the V14. The V14 is right on the margins with tonality and staging - it's an interesting listen, but to me not really an easy one.
For what the Mest delivers technically, it does in a way that is easy for the listener to enjoy. I think that is one of the best things about the Mest. It does not sound like it's working all that hard - and likewise does not require hard work then of the listener. My 2 cents....

This is very fascinating. What do you mean by margins? And is the v14 too shouty/sharp? The MEST seems natural, but this could be because many say it’s lean, hmm.

‘Hmm, I feel like the v14 are sharp sometimes but it could be my eq. How close are the v14 to the MEST % wise. Is the v14 the widest sound stage of any all BA iem?

 

[Voyager14]

Starting from build, I have this cable over a year now, and it's in perfect condition looks the same as new it didn't oxidise, plugs are sturdy, everything is top notch.
Here each channel gets 2 cores of silver and copper for positive and negative signals therefore taking full advantages of both materials. For more info check here:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/resistance-of-cables-pics-comments-and-links.907998/

I'm not the best person to describe differences between cables and I only can compare it to budget up to 6n copper or cheap 4n silver ones. What I found is that this cable bring out the lows not necessary in more quantity but in more refined way, same for the highs. Everything seems tighter with better control. Definetly it's not placebo I swear difference can be heard. I understand it's not the cheapest option out there but for me it gives me that feeling of premium like jewelery, it's high quality without paying 1k for boutique options. It's the furthest I will go for an upgrade cable, anything more expensive is ridiculous to me. And I figure it would be good option for warm and bright sets.

Wow! This is an incredible find. Yes indeed. Thank you for this lesson. I will check it out.

 

[tommykrebs]

After some more testing with different tips, EQing and Dap's I'm more or less at the point where the Mest and the S8F sound pretty much the same. I cannot use silicon tips with the Mest at all. Although I have the feel of a good seal, I haven't. Symbios W and F work pretty good with the Mest. Xelastec with the S8F. So, that's the reason for my rant on page 82. No proper seal. Now I can enjoy the whole library. At the moment I hear Steely Dan's two against nature with the S8F and the Mest. Both EQed on my R6 Pro and Plenue M. The differences are very minor. The S8F sound thicker with a little bit more bass, rim shots are a bit more piercing and the Mest sound's a bit more coherent and pleasing. That's all. Both are very good IEM's and the Mest sounds a tiny little bit better. Not worth to spend the money over the S8F IMO. I bought the Mest (and keep it, because I like it) because I knew the itch will only disappear when I have them. And I have learned, that I don't need a 3000€ IEM to be happy.

 

[PoSR77]

Got my universal MESTs in.

First, they seem comfortable as the shell fits well in my medium ears. I don't see any comfort problem here, but I'll need many hours of wearing them to be sure. (My CFA Solaris 2020s I can wear for literally 10 hours plus without any issues).

As for SQ; right away I'm hearing good things (a lot of air on top and treble detail/sparkle...but not harsh or too bright, and an even, balanced sound for instance) which is very good as I usually can literally tell if I'll like gear within the first 10 seconds of listening. I may not ever come to love gear that I like right away, but I've never even come to like gear that I didn't like at least somewhat upon first listen. So I'm set to at least like these.

But I'm very much going to be doing a lot of tip rolling since I'm not yet (with the stock tips that came attached to the MESTs out of the box and a pair of Final Audio E-Type tips I've been using with the Solaris 2020) getting the great seal that I do with my Solaris 2020s.

Much, much more listening...

 

[IEMusic]

Got my universal MESTs in.

First, they seem comfortable as the shell fits well in my medium ears. I don't see any comfort problem here, but I'll need many hours of wearing them to be sure. (My CFA Solaris 2020s I can wear for literally 10 hours plus without any issues).

As for SQ; right away I'm hearing good things (a lot of air on top and treble detail/sparkle...but not harsh or too bright, and an even, balanced sound for instance) which is very good as I usually can literally tell if I'll like gear within the first 10 seconds of listening. I may not ever come to love gear that I like right away, but I've never even come to like gear that I didn't like at least somewhat upon first listen. So I'm set to at least like these.

But I'm very much going to be doing a lot of tip rolling since I'm not yet (with the stock tips that came attached to the MESTs out of the box and a pair of Final Audio E-Type tips I've been using with the Solaris 2020) getting the great seal that I do with my Solaris 2020s.

Much, much more listening...

Right now, I’m using Final Audio Type E tips on my MEST, but using 2 sizes smaller than usual, with a deep fit. Hope you enjoy them.

 

[tommykrebs]

What works perfect for me and my small ear canals are the Symbio's W in size M. They seal at the top of the entrance of my ear canals perfectly. (no shoving down into the canal necessary) And I figured out that I can use them for my S8F and my Dunu's as well. Never knew that my Dunu's 2001 pro's can sound so good.

 

[Ebisue1212]

What works perfect for me and my small ear canals are the Symbio's W in size M. They seal at the top of the entrance of my ear canals perfectly. (no shoving down into the canal necessary) And I figured out that I can use them for my S8F and my Dunu's as well. Never knew that my Dunu's 2001 pro's can sound so good.

i am glad youre finding your way with the MEST.

youre not alone with these tip frustrations and worries about MEST. tip rolling with MEST has driven me totally crazy. unbelievable how much sound will change depending on tips with this IEM. What. thankfully i been returning tips that dont work to amazon...so bezos can pay for my tip rolling.

tip rolling is stupidly, frustratingly, extremely important for MEST enjoyment, and fullfilment of MEST potential. for anyone who still is going through this, here i have some tip impressions to try and help:

AZLA earfit light/light-short:
fairly comfortable. first settled on these as the best tips cause they have lots of wow factor. super detailed/extended high. plenty tight and nice bass. but after i stop going wow, i see that for me they have weak mids. horribly recessed. male vocals sucked behind everything, especially in songs with many elements. music with strings is weak no emotion. all was sounding hollow and just wrong. would have to turn volume way up to get mids and then high get harsh and its no good.

AZLA xlastec:
super comfortable. but too bad NO bass. this is crazy because bass on mest can be intense. xlastec are all mids and highs at expense of bass. not recomended.

in all AZLA tips i bought i tried like every possible size. for me, size/ depth of insert didn't make much difference. got good fits with MS and S but not as good as with spinfit smalls as i will tell you below.

random foamies i tried (Dekoni/Tennmak are the brands...no differece to my ears except dekoni softer/more comfy):
weirdly, foamies subdue bass too. not bad like azla, but after hearing the bass with AZLA earfits i missed having more bass, which i know MEST is capable of. plus foamies pain in my ass to put in, take out. also hurt my ears.

Comply with wax gaurd included with mest:
no. just no. so muffled was everything. no.

Spinfit c100 MEDIUM:
this is what i wear in other IEMs i have. with those IEMs c100 in medium incredibly comfortable and i love the sound. With MEST total disaster but gave me hope cause mids were there! but these make crazy amount of pressure with MEST for me. also makes everything little bit muffled. bass become huge, kinda bloated. lower mids stand out. kills highs. BUT i was not having problems with no mids. so I get...

Spinfit c100 SMALL:
since the nozzels on my other IEMS that i use c100 on do not go nearly as deep as MESTs, I bought c100 in size small to see. WOW! suddenly all my fear about MEST never working for me is gone. Bass and mids incredible. songs finally sound like what i think they are supposed to. very comfortable. insert deep without issue. only problem is if i compare with AZLA earfit, these Spinfit do not have same detail or magic in highs. and they lack "air" that other tips give. so sound is little dark, but overall, with c100 MEST is still the best IEM sound i ever heard, and highs are definitely not bad.

I have ordered Spinfit C145 in small...hopefully wider bore size than C100 helps with highs/makes them sound more like AZLA. AZLA bore for earfit short is 4.5mm...like c145. but c100 is just 4mm. idk if this will matter. but whatever. i will try it.

Symbio tip that's 3yrs old:
i do not know if you call this W or not. I bought it 3 years ago and never used it. it is a weird flat shape compared to other tips that are more cone shaped. this is perhaps the best balance of all other tips. i use size small. has good highs (better than spinfit). satisfying mids (not as good as spinfit). nice tight bass (more controlled but less amount than spinfit). problem is, this weird shape of them make it so after 10 minutes they hurt so bad. maybe i buy a new symbio w in small/medium to see. looks like they are made in more noraml shape now. unfortunalty not sold on amazon, so if i dont like i can't return. but maybe worth it for air and space between instruments that spinfits dont have.

Final audio not on amazon either so i have not tried.

will update once i try c145

if you disappointed with your MEST do not give up hope. just order crap ton of tips. it sucks. but very worth it when finally MEST sounds right.
hope this helps

 

[Ebisue1212]

i am glad youre finding your way with the MEST.

youre not alone with these tip frustrations and worries about MEST. tip rolling with MEST has driven me totally crazy. unbelievable how much sound will change depending on tips with this IEM. What. thankfully i been returning tips that dont work to amazon...so bezos can pay for my tip rolling.

tip rolling is stupidly, frustratingly, extremely important for MEST enjoyment, and fullfilment of MEST potential. for anyone who still is going through this, here i have some tip impressions to try and help:

AZLA earfit light/light-short:
fairly comfortable. first settled on these as the best tips cause they have lots of wow factor. super detailed/extended high. plenty tight and nice bass. but after i stop going wow, i see that for me they have weak mids. horribly recessed. male vocals sucked behind everything, especially in songs with many elements. music with strings is weak no emotion. all was sounding hollow and just wrong. would have to turn volume way up to get mids and then high get harsh and its no good.

AZLA xlastec:
super comfortable. but too bad NO bass. this is crazy because bass on mest can be intense. xlastec are all mids and highs at expense of bass. not recomended.

in all AZLA tips i bought i tried like every possible size. for me, size/ depth of insert didn't make much difference. got good fits with MS and S but not as good as with spinfit smalls as i will tell you below.

random foamies i tried (Dekoni/Tennmak are the brands...no differece to my ears except dekoni softer/more comfy):
weirdly, foamies subdue bass too. not bad like azla, but after hearing the bass with AZLA earfits i missed having more bass, which i know MEST is capable of. plus foamies pain in my ass to put in, take out. also hurt my ears.

Comply with wax gaurd included with mest:
no. just no. so muffled was everything. no.

Spinfit c100 MEDIUM:
this is what i wear in other IEMs i have. with those IEMs c100 in medium incredibly comfortable and i love the sound. With MEST total disaster but gave me hope cause mids were there! but these make crazy amount of pressure with MEST for me. also makes everything little bit muffled. bass become huge, kinda bloated. lower mids stand out. kills highs. BUT i was not having problems with no mids. so I get...

Spinfit c100 SMALL:
since the nozzels on my other IEMS that i use c100 on do not go nearly as deep as MESTs, I bought c100 in size small to see. WOW! suddenly all my fear about MEST never working for me is gone. Bass and mids incredible. songs finally sound like what i think they are supposed to. very comfortable. insert deep without issue. only problem is if i compare with AZLA earfit, these Spinfit do not have same detail or magic in highs. and they lack "air" that other tips give. so sound is little dark, but overall, with c100 MEST is still the best IEM sound i ever heard, and highs are definitely not bad.

I have ordered Spinfit C145 in small...hopefully wider bore size than C100 helps with highs/makes them sound more like AZLA. AZLA bore for earfit short is 4.5mm...like c145. but c100 is just 4mm. idk if this will matter. but whatever. i will try it.

Symbio tip that's 3yrs old:
i do not know if you call this W or not. I bought it 3 years ago and never used it. it is a weird flat shape compared to other tips that are more cone shaped. this is perhaps the best balance of all other tips. i use size small. has good highs (better than spinfit). satisfying mids (not as good as spinfit). nice tight bass (more controlled but less amount than spinfit). problem is, this weird shape of them make it so after 10 minutes they hurt so bad. maybe i buy a new symbio w in small/medium to see. looks like they are made in more noraml shape now. unfortunalty not sold on amazon, so if i dont like i can't return. but maybe worth it for air and space between instruments that spinfits dont have.

Final audio not on amazon either so i have not tried.

will update once i try c145

if you disappointed with your MEST do not give up hope. just order crap ton of tips. it sucks. but very worth it when finally MEST sounds right.
hope this helps

hahah i go outside after posting this and the c145 have come in the mail.

subtle but definite difference so far from c100. like i thought it would be sound is brighter. better highs/separation at expense of a little bass. might be better this way but i will have to wait and see. might be a little fatiguing after a while. curious to try other symbios and maybe final e

 

[PoSR77]

Right now, I’m using Final Audio Type E tips on my MEST, but using 2 sizes smaller than usual, with a deep fit. Hope you enjoy them.

My smaller tips are not working for me; they just won't seal. I don't think I can insert IEMs deeply into my ears; I had this problem with the Blessing2's as well. Thanks for the tip on tips (haha) though!

What works perfect for me and my small ear canals are the Symbio's W in size M. They seal at the top of the entrance of my ear canals perfectly. (no shoving down into the canal necessary) And I figured out that I can use them for my S8F and my Dunu's as well. Never knew that my Dunu's 2001 pro's can sound so good.

Yes, that sealing at the canal entrance is very important. I'm looking at the AZLA SednaEarfit because I heard they are sticky which would be perfect for a good seal. Thanks for the tip on the Symbio tips (again, haha), but I generally don't like foam tips so I'm unsure of even a hybrid.

Medium sized tips provide the best fit for me across IEMs for reference.

Couple of (tentative) SQ notes: wow, the sub-bass on these! (with a good tip seal at least) I think it's more than on my Solaris 2020's, but that could be because on the Solaris the sub-bass is more covered over by the (imo) excess mid bass. On the MEST you can hear it more distinctly...also there is more bass texture and definition.

Also noticing great detail on these from top to bottom, good/great micro detail and lots of shimmer/sparkle/air at top (with being fatiguing to me) so I can hear more nuance in cymbal work for instance, as well as great overall layering and separation. Vocals are slightly upfront, but not as much as on my Solaris (which is both good and bad depending on how much you are a vocal head...I lean towards being one).

The overall presentation is somewhat light, airy, large, but not too thin or weak, with a crisp but also natural tone with just enough weight in the lower/mids to keep things from being too anemic (at least so far: haven't tried my overly thin test recordings yet). It's quite different than my darker, thicker, warmer Solaris 2020s. It's certainly not as forgiving of lesser recordings, more transparent, though I feel that the Solaris also changes tone with the recording to reveal the distinctive production.

The contrast with the Solaris is large, but I'm not one to really react positively or negatively to such contrasts as I think of transducers as having different flavors and I regularly shuffle between them (such as going through my different headphones and speakers semi daily for different applications).

Also, these seem to need a lot more volume than my Solaris.