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Venture Electronics (VE) Duke - a new high-performance IEM

Aug 8, 2015 at 11:22 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 663
nmatheis

nmatheis

Headphoneus Supremus
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Hello all,
 
I wanted to introduce everyone to Venture Electronic's first IEM - The Duke.  Venture Electronics (VE for short) is an up and coming Chinese audio company that's making quite a name for itself with the Zen earbud.  Yup, you read that right - an earbud! I'm a big earbud fan and have given the Zen a listen.  The hype is real, my friends!!!
 
Dedicated VE earbud thread: LINK
 
VE Zen reviews: LINK
 
Not content to just take the earbud world by storm, VE is releasing an IEM called The Duke.  A lucky few of us on Head-Fi just received it and are putting it through its paces.  First impressions are very good, my friends!
 
I'm finding them to have good extension on both ends.  Bass is quick and punchy, mids are clear and clean, high end is detailed without veering too far off off into sibilant territory.  I say too far off because while I don't have sibilance issues with The Duke, a few of my Head-Fi friends who are more sensitive have noticed just a touch of sibilance that is tamed with foamies.  Soundstage is quite natural - not overly intimate or stretched out.  Instrument placement and separation are quite nice, as well.
 
During my first run through with these, I listened to Bjork's Biophilia album.  Everything sounded great, and I got the chills a few times as things really gelled!
 
Here are some pics of The Duke, which is a low-impedance micro driver IEM.  I love the size and shape.  It's really easy to find just the right position for a great fit and seal with such a small housing.  I wish more high-performance IEM adopted such a pragmatic yet elegant form!
 
You can see just how tiny the housing is in comparison to the nozzle.  It might be just a bit bigger than the ZA Tenores, but boy does it have much, much bigger sound!

 
VE's trademark domain name is printed on the nozzle

 
Close-up of the housing

 
I love the DUKE script on the rear of the housing, along with the VE logo and the only vent.  

 
 
Ok gang, that's all I have to say for now.  As I mentioned above, several lucky Head-Fi'ers just received these, so keep your eye out for more impressions and reviews in the next week or two!
 
Cheers,
Nikolaus
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 11:39 PM Post #3 of 663
hisoundfi said:
Jamming them on the train today.
Click to expand...


Awesome!  How you liking them so far, or would you prefer to wait a bit and acclimate to them?
 
I've got to say, I had one of the quickest acclimation periods with these I think I've ever had with an IEM - and that's coming from being acclimated to @hakushondaimao's ESS RLM-713 over ear headphones.  that was quite a sound signature difference, so I'm really surprised it didn't take longer.  For me, that's a very good sign for how natural The Duke sounds!
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 11:43 PM Post #4 of 663
They have a crisp top end that some will find to be a touch over the top.

I enjoy the treble a lot personally. I just can't turn it up too loud, which isn't a bad thing. Going to try my comply t500 when I get home and see if it helps tame the treble a little bit.

Midrange is very nice. Airy and open sounding with great separation for an iem.

Bass is punchy and fast, but there isn't a lot of sub presence. I really like it because it doesn't linger and sounds great with all genres
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 11:49 PM Post #8 of 663
hisoundfi said:
They have a crisp top end that some will find to be a touch over the top.

I enjoy the treble a lot personally. I just can't turn it up too loud, which isn't a bad thing. Going to try my comply t500 when I get home and see if it helps tame the treble a little bit.

Midrange is very nice. Airy and open sounding with great separation for an iem.

Bass is punchy and fast, but there isn't a lot of sub presence. I really like it because it doesn't linger and sounds great with all genres
Click to expand...


Nice impressions.  Pretty darn similar to what I'm hearing.  And you know I like a pretty bright top end, so it's no surprise that these wouldn't bother me in the slightest.  Fits my taste well!
 
I listen to a lot of electronic and will run them through the bass wringer 
basshead.gif

 
I also listen to a lot of metal, so I'll see how it fares with shockingly bad production value and will see if my ears can withstand the piercing treble 
wink_face.gif
 
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 11:50 PM Post #9 of 663
...I have ordered a pair with Pono balanced termination. If the results are anything like those I got with the Pono balanced Zen earbuds, I am going to be a pretty happy little camper.
 
Aug 8, 2015 at 11:58 PM Post #13 of 663
hisoundfi said:
They have a crisp top end that some will find to be a touch over the top.

I enjoy the treble a lot personally. I just can't turn it up too loud, which isn't a bad thing. Going to try my comply t500 when I get home and see if it helps tame the treble a little bit.

Midrange is very nice. Airy and open sounding with great separation for an iem.

Bass is punchy and fast, but there isn't a lot of sub presence. I really like it because it doesn't linger and sounds great with all genres
Click to expand...


Awesome impressions bud. I found it to be the same at the beginning. Dunno if its brain burn in but the treble is really tamed. I know I sound like a broken record but they sound, as you like to say, amazeballs with the havi foamie tips ;)
 
I am treble sensitive and I can listen to them loud now with the treble under control.
 
Aug 9, 2015 at 12:00 AM Post #14 of 663
redjohn456 said:
Awesome impressions bud. I found it to be the same at the beginning. Dunno if its brain burn in but the treble is really tamed. I know I sound like a broken record but they sound, as you like to say, amazeballs with the havi foamie tips ;)

I am treble sensitive and I can listen to them loud now with the treble under control.
Click to expand...
I'm going to play them overnight with a mix of stuff.

They are a great earphone. I really like the build and design.
 
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