[kevin638880]

My Phonix is out for delivery, I have a feeling I’ll prefer EXT for most of my library but I have no doubt I won’t be anything less than very impressed w the Phonix also.

You might end up liking both, it is a completely different tuning afterall.

Plus Phonix would be easier to drive on the iPhone dongle

 

[gLer]

You might end up liking both, it is a completely different tuning afterall.

Plus Phonix would be easier to drive on the iPhone dongle

I should do like @aaf evo and sell all my expensive DAPs and just use an ifi Go blu or Gryphon with my phone. Then I'd be able to afford any IEM I want

 

[HarveyLowis]

Epic bass with better upper mids than IE 900. Sounds like a winner to me

then... are we gonna pm our seller ? who know we get special price from him..

 

[kevin638880]

I should do like @aaf evo and sell all my expensive DAPs and just use an ifi Go blu or Gryphon with my phone. Then I'd be able to afford any IEM I want

L&P W2 is pretty good, beats a lot of entry level DAPs IMO. But it is hard to go back once you are used to a TOTL DAP.

And...DDs would need quite a bit more power to drive, so this is not an option for you

 

[gLer]

L&P W2 is pretty good, beats a lot of entry level DAPs IMO. But it is hard to go back once you are used to a TOTL DAP.

And...DDs would need quite a bit more power to drive, so this is not an option for you

True, but that also depends... If EXT needs about the same power to drive as the IE 900, then Go blu is more than enough (235mW into 32ohm balanced). And quality, even using LDAC Bluetooth, is excellent. Is it R8-excellent? Of course not, but much, much more convenient. I'd probably only use a Bluetooth dongle. Having to wire up my phone and then wire up IEMs is one wire too many for my liking.

 

[aaf evo]

The iPhone dongle drives any IEM just fine, even the Elysian stuff. Now scaling? That’s a different story.

 

[davidmolliere]

The iPhone dongle drives any IEM just fine, even the Elysian stuff. Now scaling? That’s a different story.

Yeah there is such a thing as driving an IEM loud enough, but well enough? That's a different story... can beat good current and you can see it when scaling sources on IEMs like the Ely it just takes on life!

 

[Skullar]

Yeah there is such a thing as driving an IEM loud enough, but well enough? That's a different story... can beat good current and you can see it when scaling sources on IEMs like the Ely it just takes on life!

Power chain quality is a thing for sure. As much as i wanted to convince myself LG v60 is enough i just cant sell my sp2k.

 

[Cmills33]

I have noticed that lower quality daps (or phones) tend to close the gap between a TOTL iem and a less expensive one, which is why sound sig takes precedence over technicalities for me when I'm using my android or Mac. Even my atlas is comparable technicalities wise to the LX and EXT. (Still performs poorer but nonetheless) when I A/B them with my M8 or desk setup, the atlas is obviously blown away by the other two. I would never work out with my EXT, or actively analyze music with my atlas, so they each have their purpose

 

[SLC1966]

Elysium Extended and Elysium OG scale up extremely well. As well as any other IEM I have heard. Listening to either on a subpar source after getting used to them on an excellent source is painful. Painful in that I can hear exactly what I am missing. Or I should say, I am not able to hear what I know I hear with a better source.

 

[davidmolliere]

And... I have been flying under the radar for a good long while but excitement is too big, my EXT have shipped and are on the way
First TOTL universal in ages, but if there was to be one it had to be the EXT

 

[mungster]

And... I have been flying under the radar for a good long while but excitement is too big, my EXT have shipped and are on the way
First TOTL universal in ages, but if there was to be one it had to be the EXT

Oh lord! I am so envious. Congrats.

 

[SLC1966]

And... I have been flying under the radar for a good long while but excitement is too big, my EXT have shipped and are on the way
First TOTL universal in ages, but if there was to be one it had to be the EXT

I remember we talked about getting together in Paris for a listening session pre-covid but with many family members with me, I could not make it work. Good to see you around. I hope to "fly under the radar" after the Ext and Phonix reviews. We will see if I can do that I have my doubts!

 

[iFi audio]

I should do like @aaf evo and sell all my expensive DAPs and just use an ifi Go blu or Gryphon with my phone.

Using a smartphone as a transport for a portable DAC/amp is very convenient and many such combos sound great on top of that! The question to ask would be about your readiness to transition from a DAP to something else

 

[gLer]

Using a smartphone as a transport for a portable DAC/amp is very convenient and many such combos sound great on top of that! The question to ask would be about your readiness to transition from a DAP to something else

It's not so much readiness as it is doubt that a small, portable DAC/amp can deliver the same quality as a high-end DAP. As good as the GO blu is (and it is very good) the main reason I use it is convenience/laziness, letting me listen to music with quality IEMs while I work/browse on my phone without having to switch to the DAP. But if I want to maximise quality with high-end IEMs, a high-end DAP is going to sound better. I'm going to sample the Gryphon soon to see if it can come close to high-end DAP quality, and if it can I'll certainly reassess my use cases.