So I managed to get my hands on an EXT a couple of days ago on my travels alongside a Polaris II for out and about. I've made some notes which I thought I would share.
Burn in
- I noticed a distinct change in the sound and tonality of EXT after around 30 hours. I haven’t noticed such a drastic change like this since burning in earphones like the Atlas and LX.
- Initially bass is VERY prominent it almost comes across as an 'L' shaped sound sig. After burn in the bass is much less prominent and gives the rest of the FR room to breath. This comes across as balanced to me now akin to something like a U12t but with much better bass slam, texture and extension.
- Bass is still some of the best I’ve heard, and the sub-bass extends very nicely, I wouldn’t say that its as capable as Odin's bass in terms of rumble and extension but it puts the LX's W9's to shame IMO in texture and character. Texture is very satisfying. The mid bass accentuation really plays well with rock and adds a very nice level of PRaT while adding warmth. The mid-bass response reminds me a lot of the VE8's but with much better texture, slam, extension and a lot more sub-bass. Overall its a very different signature to Odin and very complementary.
- After burn in treble is given more air to breath and can come across as ethereal on some tracks, especially atmospheric and ambient electronic tracks. It's extension and sparkle reminds me a little of the Andro (OG) treble, there are a lot of instances where, in tracks that I am not familiar with, I think that there is someone behind me making a noise but it’s in the track.
Overall sound
- This is probably the least offensive IEM I've heard and I'm not sure how some are managing to eek out sibilance from the EXT... it's one of the warmest IEM i've heard and has a very linear treble.
- From experimenting with my sources, these seem to respond very well to power and actually require it for the best result. On my SE200 it is nearing the volume levels of the Z1R on balanced AKM output. I think it also benefits from a neutral / brighter source due to its already warm nature. The best pairing I’ve tried is with the Hugo 2. EXT also sounds very good with the balanced out of the AKM side of my SE200 (6vrms) albeit understandably taking a hit in technicalities. The balanced out of the ESS side (4vrms) really doesn’t pair well IMO, I’m putting this down to insufficient power.
- The overall sound of the EXT is extremely dynamic which really makes sounds jump out at you. I wouldn’t go as far as saying that it demands your attention in an analytical sense which is overbearing on the senses or through spikes in the FR, this it is still a warm and musical signature, but it demands your attention in a different way through engagement and dynamics.
- Whenever I listen to EXT I can’t stop my foot from tapping and just find myself getting lost in the music when attempting to compare with other IEM’s. This is surely a good thing and is testament to the EXT’s musical nature.
- What really stood out to me is how at home the EXT sounds with a diverse range of music. Acoustic? No problem. EXT renders voices and instruments in such a lifelike and emotional way that at one point I almost felt like I was going inside myself and having a revelation haha. Electronic? EXT sounds like it was made for it.
- Voices always seems to cut through the mix and have a tangible element to them that I’ve never heard before. I am putting this down to the use of the HALC mid’s, they aren’t forward in the mix but they always manage to be legible, emotive and grab your attention… there's a heft to the mids that I’ve not heard before in any other IEM.
Tips
The EXT has some FAT nozzles so those with smoll ear holes may need to beware. I use the trusty spinfit CP155’s and haven’t really felt the need to experiment too much. Azla Sedna lights and crystals also do very well but I felt that detail retrieval took a slight hit. I'm putting this down to being further away from my eardrum and also the weird curvature of my ear canals.
Fit
- Fit is second only to the VE8 universals, these fit me very well and lock / suck in like customs when twisted into the ear.
- A slight pressure point on the inside of the antitragus of the right ear but this has since been resolved by swivelling the IEM forward and getting used to the fit.
Cable rolling
The stock cable wasn’t great sonically to my ears despite being aesthetically nice and well built… I didn’t give it time to burn in and switched immediately to the 4 wire Plussound Tri-copper which sounded like it had lifted a veil.
Stormbreaker (1960s)
- Higher resolution but less perceived bass impact, mids and vocals sound higher in resolution and seems to be more forgiving on bad recordings
- Smoothens out the entire FR while somehow adding more details retrieval
- It is however less dynamic sounding that the Tri-copper, bass on the Tri-copper is much more satisfying to my ears.
- Slightly better separation and layering of voices / instruments
- Would be perfect with better mid bass impact / sub-bass extension
PW Loki (4 wire)
- Sounds more distant (compressed?)
- Immediately didn’t like this pairing…. Seems to bottleneck the sound possibly due to using mmcx to 2 pin adapters?
- Neuters the bass
- Smaller stage / compressed.
- Similar detail retrieval to 1960s but not a great pairing imo
- Staging and soundstage really takes a hit, width, height… better bass impact than 1960s
Plussound Silver+Gold X8
- 2-pin connection seems to fit better than the others
- Sounds quite similar to the Tri-copper at first listen
- Smoother top end with higher level of detail retrieval over tri-copper
- Very good bass impact and definition, shifts bass emphasis to the sub-bass more so than the Tri-copper
- Notes seem more ‘etched’ than the 1960’s but with a slightly lower level of resolution. The dynamics is the best out of all of the cables I've heard though.
- Much better layering and 'cleaner' sound the the tri-copper but not as good as the 1960 in layering.
Best pairing seems to be between the Silver+gold (more lively, better detail retrieval and layering than tri-copper) and 1960s (higher resolution, quite smooth with highest level of detail retrieval but bass dynamics and extension seems to take a slight hit).
Some quick comparisons with my other IEM's. I need more time to do more in-depth comparisons.
Odin
These are a very complimentary pair IMO with EXT going for a warm and musical approach whereas Odin goes for absolute precision and transparency while still retaining an engaging sub-bass response and upper-mid accentuation. Odin takes the cake for outright technicalities (no surprise there) but EXT is certainly no slouch here.
- I don’t feel like I am missing out on too much when going back and forth between the EXT and Odin and I feel that resolution is TOTL on both. Detail retrieval is less on EXT but not as much as you’d think, it is replaced by texture and warmth.
- Odin’s treble is very well extended to my ears, and I feel like it doesn’t get the praise that it deserves a lot of the time. I think this is mainly due to the upper-mid accentuation. The EXT’s treble accentuation is more towards the upper treble and it is a lot more linear.
- Left to right separation seems more prominent on the EXT giving the impression of a wider soundstage but I think they are both fairly even in soundstage width. Odin on the other hand wins out on the razor-sharp imaging and placement of sounds within its respective soundstage.
- I have had more experiences of sounds seeming like they are coming from behind me with the EXT and I think that the spherical stage of the EXT wraps further around the head than Odin. I think this may be a characteristic of using DD’s for most of the FR and the upper treble accentuation of the EXT which is not present on Odin.
VE8
These impressions are with the Labkable Samurai III cable on the VE8 and are from memory (take with a pinch of salt). The things that stands out to me are:
- Higher resolution throughout the FR.
- Better extended on both ends.
- Mids are more emotive and ‘tangible’ on EXT, they have more heft whereas I felt like the VE8 with the Samurai III cable seemed to layer the mid’s a little more but with lower resolution and less engagement.
Anyway, thought I would post my initial thoughts for those still on the edge about whether to take the plunge or not. Hopefully they give you more of an idea of what to expect. I'll post more comparisons etc as time goes on. In the meantime if anyone has any questions or comparison requests ill be happy to try and help.
