[davidmolliere]

I'll do a write up of FD5 vs Zen soon, too little time with my new job, next weekend probably.

In a nutshell though : FD5 doesn't have the same note weight, it's more open sounding with much more upper mid emphasis it doesn't sound as full as Zen. Both have exceptional bass but Zen has more weight and slam. Mids are fuller on Zen with more relaxed upper mids no harshness there while FD5 can edge there. More lower treble energy on the Zen which I feel more engaging and balanced while FD5 has more of an upper treble tilt.

FD5 might have the edge on soundstage but Zen is more resolving and coherent IMHO.

 

[jwbrent]

Here’s Crin’s graph:

 

[crinacle]

I am willing to bet you he did that right out of the box with no burn in what so ever. Can't see how anyone would see the Zen as muted. Lol. Oh well it is what it is.

Reason why I assume that is because I thought they sounded a bit dull out of the box. Probably what he is hearing.

Will report back after 50,000 hours of burn-in

 

[rbf1138]

No idea on the ETA. They shipped with 4px, I never used that before so I have no idea how long it takes....

Dunu shipped mine with 4px. The last update on 4px was on January 30: TENDERED FOR DELIVERY

The USPS tracking number still just says pre-shipment label created, but that was on January 23. No clue when I’ll be getting mine

 

[riverground]

Will report back after 50,000 hours of burn-in

 

[davidmolliere]

I am willing to bet you he did that right out of the box with no burn in what so ever. Can't see how anyone would see the Zen as muted. Lol. Oh well it is what it is. Reason why I assume that is because I thought they sounded a bit dull out of the box. Probably what he is hearing.

Sounded pretty great out of the box, burn in only made it better. There is brain burn in too
I think it has more to do with personal preferences than anything else really.

 

[riverground]

I am willing to bet you he did that right out of the box with no burn in what so ever. Can't see how anyone would see the Zen as muted. Lol. Oh well it is what it is.

Reason why I assume that is because I thought they sounded a bit dull out of the box. Probably what he is hearing.

Idk about burn-in (that's a whole different black hole I don't wanna be sucked in lol) but I think it's all about personal preference as well.

In my unboxing video, I did an on the spot first listen and I was wowed. And after quite a few days with it. I'm still in awe.

 

[Dsnuts]

Will report back after 50,000 hours of burn-in

Well I actually agreed with your take there. I thought they sounded bit dull out of the box especially the treble end. I would assume you did just that. Posted about how you heard them out of the box.

 

[riverground]

Sounded pretty great out of the box, burn in only made it better. There is brain burn in too
I think it has more to do with personal preferences than anything else really.

My thoughts exactly lol

Greats minds

 

[Codename john]

Whether it's brain burn /burn-in something happens. Of course the longer you have with the more you adapt. In my experience, . your mileage may vary. 50, 000 hours is not long enough on some sets I've had

 

[davidmolliere]

Well if you need almost 6 years (assuming you're spending 24 hours a day lol) then something is very wrong IMHO...

 

[snapandslide]

Well if you need almost 6 years (assuming you're spending 24 hours a day lol) then something is very wrong IMHO...

We're going from burn in to brain fry, maybe that's the trick....

 

[davidmolliere]

We're going from burn in to brain fry, maybe that's the trick....

Then you can listen to any 20$ IEMs and be content, now here is a thought and a lot of savings

 

[jwbrent]

Well I actually agreed with your take there. I thought they sounded dull out of the box. I would assume you did just that. Posted about how you heard them out of the box.

Although there are opposing sides on the value of burn-in when it comes to an IEM itself, higher quality cables in a sense have qualities like good capacitors in that their dielectric needs to stabilize (i.e., form) before they perform at their best. I imagine this process contributed to what we both heard with some time on the Zen given its nice cable.

Just for the record, I do believe there’s some credence for those that espouse burn-in as nothing more than becoming acclimated to a new sound. But based on my past experience with high end home audio components—at work and home—it’s more than this, there are certain components such as DD transducers that benefit from some play time.

 

[snapandslide]

Then you can listen to any 20$ IEMs and be content, now here is a thought and a lot of savings

Let's be honest, we really don't want to be content!