Sorry if I'm late to the party but surely there's no way that the drivers in the Sivga SV023 are not related to the K100 drivers from Qigom?! Pic of Sivga SV023 50mm dynamic driver "made of LCP composite diaphragm plated with Beryllium" taken straight from their own website: Qigom K100 pic...

I was actually very disappointed with my H26 when I fired it up straight from the box. Why you might ask? Well...it sounded almost EXACTLY the same as my H16 lol. Gave the H26 a thorough burn-in and now...it does NOT sound the same although to be fair...they still share some similarities. In...

I also have the Gustard H26. After a seriously long break-in period...I can say that this amp sounds really great. However, it feels nowhere near as powerful as what the specs would lead you to think. I was expecting to run my hugely efficient Meze 109 Pro on a scale of 1-10 out of 100 on...

Heh, I'm always a bit surprised when people mention how the 109 Pro has less punch/slam compared to the Focal Clear OG. Sure, I guess objectively...the Clear OG has a bit more impact because of the bass but what I love about the Meze is that when called for...it absolutely punches hard lol. I...

It's funny you mention this cause I saw your post about your Audio-GD Master 19 in the Focal Clear OG thread and immediately started doing research lol. Where I am in the UK, it seems a bit of a pain to find one of these as there doesn't appear to be a UK dealer? :thinking: The sheer size of...

Unlike many, you seem open minded, given that you already have hi-fi fuses and an upgraded power cord....so I think it's quite likely that you'll hear the difference of what an I2S cable + DDC will do. If/when you make the purchase...you'll thank me later :laughing:

If you ever get to try the X18 over I2S with a good DDC like the Gustard U18...things get taken up a notch or two. Throw in a hi-fi fuse and decent power cord ideally with some Furutech connectors at each end and well...your X18 really becomes something else lol :sweat_smile:

The U18 added to the X18 is not a night and day difference, let me make this very clear lol. The U18 basically increases all the stuff you like about the X18. Soundstage especially appears more deeper and holographic. More separation and airyness. Everything sounds crystal damn clear lol. I...

Haha...it's funny you mention fuses. As someone who owns both the X18 and the Gustard U18 DDC....I'm gonna copy this wall of text I wrote in another thread right here below: Guys, Something has happened to my Meze 109 Pros. I barely post here much cause I've been so happy and content with...

Guys, Something has happened to my Meze 109 Pros. I barely post here much cause I've been so happy and content with these cans since I purchased them in October of last year. Now, I'm not even sure if this is the best place to post this...even though on paper, it appears to be. The only...

All that you liked about the X18....the U18 turns all those things up a notch. I'm not gonna exaggerate and tell you it's a night and day difference lol but...there is a difference...especially with how 3 dimensional everything sounds all together. The depth of the soundstage is quite notable...

lol your impressions on the X18 mirror mine EXACTLY. As an X16 owner also, I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed the substantial difference in treble extension and quality going from the X16 to X18. I never knew that there could be such differences in DACs but hey lol 🤷‍♂️

Hi mate, You can rock up at Audio Sanctuary and use your DAP for long listening sessions. If you plan on staying for an hour or 2...get there in the morning as early as possible when it's quiet and you should have no problem. It's also a good idea to call them beforehand to introduce yourself...

Hey @Pharmaboy thanks for your impressions! Regarding your H16 comparison to your V81...I know this is "snake oil" territory for many people but to possibly get almost the last ounces of texture and dynamics in your H16...I would suggest in "upgrading" the fuse in your H16 with Gustard's own...

Just watched these 2 reviews of the 109 Pro and wow...you'd never believe that these people are reviewing the same headphone lol...they both have very different opinions in some areas apart from both agreeing on the Meze's having really good mids. I'm honestly shocked by Michael's (from...

Nice impressions, thanks very much for sharing. May I ask what you're using to drive your 109 Pros? Not sure if you believe in this stuff lol but have you given your 109 Pros time to burn-in? Whether anyone believes in it or not....even Meze themselves recommended burn-in of at least 70 hrs, I...

So I've had mine for 15 days now. Just approaching 360 hrs burn-in! My pair have also appeared to have turned a little warmer but not too much. Hehe...yeah, they are definitely much different now to how they sounded compared to day one lol. Mainly...it's all the technicalities that have...

You are 100% correct. It's not so much a case of the 109 Pro being so bright. For me, it's the Focal Clear that sounds very warm/a bit dark because there is a recession in the 4-5khz range. Couple this with the mild lower mid bass boost/bloat which slightly intrudes on higher frequencies...this...

:grin: I secretly want/wanted an Arya Stealth...I just couldn't justify the price at this moment in time. I heard it briefly at Canjam London this year although it was a noisy environment. Despite the less than ideal setting...the Arya shocked me (in a good way) with it's bass presence and...

So, I weakened and caved into purchasing the 109 Pros. 🤦‍♂️ Bought them 11 days ago actually and have burned them in heavily for more than 240 hours so...here is my updated impressions/mini review... I won't go into build/comfort as I'm sure most of you are well aware of how godamn beautiful...

Yeah, I actually remember one of the staff members at the store telling me that they have been run in a little. This is probably why I had zero issues with the treble!

Little disclaimer...at Canjam London this year I briefly heard the Clear MG but this was in a noisy environment so please feel free to take my advice with a grain of salt. All the feedback I heard of the Clear MG prior to listening to it aligned perfectly with what I heard. If you look at...

As the Clear MG is a little warmer than the OG Clear...I'd say it's a better comparison towards the OG Clear. As I've had my OG Clears for more than 2 years....I'm obviously well versed with them lol. There are similarities such as both being dynamic as hell...but maybe giving the edge to the...

lol nope...it doesn't have a headphone out. Doesn't need one! Forget about the X16. Save up and wait if you have to but it is worth going for the X18!

I couldn't help you with that buddy as I don't have Tidal/MQA. I'm sure someone else here can help you with that. As an update to my previous early(ish) impressions of the X18...man, the stage really is quite deep. Some songs that I'm very familiar with sound completely different to how I heard...