As the title says, I’m looking for an IEM that can work well with the tuning that usually comes with those kind of songs, I have a Tin audio T2 and from my experiments with EQ a sound signature like the A2000x/AWKT (https://crinacle.com/graphs/headphones/graphtool/?share=IEF_Neutral_Target,A2000X) would work really well for that, but that is waaaay out of my budget so I’ve spent quite some time searching for something close to it or flat and efficient enough to be EQ’d into a similar signature.
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I think the good IEMs for you to have since you like imaging, the BLON BL-03 are a good starting set for you, though I recommend changing its ear tips and stock cable for a better set, like the Yinyoo cable and the Final Audio E Type ear tips. Speaking from experience, the BLON BL-03 is good all-around regardless of genre, therefore you will enjoy listening to Jpop/Anisongs with no problem.
Since you also want an IEM that is similar to the T2s but “better” (sounds are objective, therefore we have our own preferences.) the Moondrop Arias 2021 are also good, for the treble and bass from those are elevated compared to the Moondrop Starfields.
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Jpop is one thing. Anisongs is such a varied thing, everything from pop, to rock, to jazz, to classical, and many many more.
As far as a upgraded T2 I agree with the Aria being a good choice. It uses Moondrop’s general signature which is close to a IEM Harmon neutral.
There is also the Etymotic Er2XR which is also fairly neutral and takes to EQ very well, though personally I tend to try and get other IEMs closer to my Er2xr rather then EQing the ER2xr. There is good imaging but not a good soundstage. IE you can clearly hear everything separately but it all sounds really close. Also the cable is awful and really annoying to get a different one and the fit is either a love or hate kind of thing for most. But despite the flaws I honestly love these IEMs the most.
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I ended up going for the Aria but I’m still learning about EQ so some tips would be really nice.
You are right about anisongs, honestly the reason I threw those two into a single group is because I have the impression that they are usually more brightly mastered than western music but in more specific terms I usually listen to anime and VN relaxing or dramatic BGMs (Yuki Kajiura, Szak, Jun Maeda etc) which often feature female vocals, string and percussion instruments, and the vocal stuff I listen often features bass guitars, guitars and some electronic effects on top of that (Aimer, Nana Mizuki, Claris, Ito Kanako and some moe stuff usually come to mind) and honestly I’d easily trade soundstage for being able to easily pick those elements apart while keeping a sound that is fun and doesn’t sound grating too often.
For western stuff I listen to almost anything with some slight inclination into metal, rock and classical.
I also watch films really often and I like to keep the OST of orchestral and action oriented stuff I enjoyed like Junkie XL and Hans Zimmer where again, I hate when instruments either just become jumbled together or it becomes too hot in the treble.
Anyways, thanks for the answers.
Do you notice a big difference in sound changing tips or is it more of a confort thing? And how does it stack up against the stock tips of the T2s and the Starfield/aria?
The Starfields and the Arias are an upgrade from the T2s at least for me, and I love my T2s to this day. It’s like from eating a vanilla ice cream to eating a vanilla ice cream that came from Belgium. Though in my opinion to get the most out of the Starfields, replacing its stock tips with Final Audio E Type ear tips will make it much better in sounds, comfort and fit.
The 2 things with tips I personally tend to find make the most difference to sound are material and distance. How far forward or back the end of the tube is from the end of the tip and foam vs pretty much most non foam (I am sure there are subtle differences in some silicone tips vs other silicone ones I usually can’t tell as long as they get a good seal).
Personally for comfort and a good seal I like the Alza SednaEarfit Xelastec, though my tip collection is not the biggest and it is something I am usually getting more of. I haven’t tried the Final tips, but honestly I probably will soon if for no other reason then to give me the excuse to buy the E500 or E1000 for the tips since really the price difference between just the tips and those 2 are almost nothing.
Foams do absorb a bit of the sound, and can help mitigate a microphonic cable to a certain amount. Though fo me they are just too much of a hassle to use often with how much I tend to need to remove and reinsert IEMs.