Nice! Very dope.
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Nice write up, hope you have something like a Xinhs graphene to pair with the Silver flash whenever you get it. Love that set
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Funnily enough, I do have a KBear Chord, which is Graphene. Thanks for the rec!
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Alright, I should actually post my impressions here on my thread, so here it goes 
CanJam 2026
Okay, this is going to be a long one…
*My fourth CanJam is in the books, and might I say, every year without fail, I swear these things get more and more enjoyable. This year, in particular, felt a bit more special than previous CanJams for a few reasons. Still, the main 2 are due to me actually getting to go alone with my wife for the first time - Being able to experience the city with her solely was amazing. We’ve never been able to hit the big apple without my Son before due to the crushing guilt we’ve felt leaving him back in Boston, but he’s getting older now, and this year he stayed with some of our fam, having an amazing weekend despite not coming, so that helped us feel way less guilty.
The other reason was my excitement for the possibility of meeting a few of my newly acquired Discord buddies. While I didn’t get the chance to meet everyone, partly due to timing and partly due to me being overly shy for whatever reason, I was able to meet J, (Enigma Fotos), and my buddy Ram (Not sure if he has a Head-Fi account) for the first time, and that was dope. Also got to meet Josh from Prisma, which was an honor. Speaking of an honor, I got to shake Mark Ryan’s (Super Review) hand right before his seminar. The social aspect of these events is really what I look forward to now, but the IEMs and other stuff aren’t so bad either…
So, I made sure to take some pics to make up for my poor writing, so I can share them with you all. I didn’t get to listen to much this time around, all the stuff I wanted to hear was already taken, most of the time, but the IEMs I really loved, I made sure to spend a decent amount of time with them. I’m happy to say I walked away with 2 buying goals in mind for this year, an IEM and a DAP.
I won’t start waxing poetic about NY - But it is my favorite place in the world, as I’ve said a million times before, so I’ll spare y’all the yapping.
ThieAudio V16
These were way warmer than I expected. I’ve heard all the noise about them being on the warmer side, but for an all-BA set, I was expecting a little bit of that BA sheen in there. Nope. The bass has decent impact but can come across as blunted and soft. Overall resolution is relatively low to my ears (Considering the price) - The lower mids are almost… muddy. I’d much prefer a cleaner overall replay with a stronger sense of impact in the bass. I also feel like these would benefit from some extra treble extension…. but I mean, c’mon… These are coming up on 5 years old now, and I’m surprised they still have them on display. These are for someone out there, just not me.
ThieAudio Valhalla 2nd go*
These were warmer than I remembered, in a similar vein as the V16, surprisingly, BUT midrange detail and texture are actually unreal, just as I remember them. Bass is a lot more impactful and punchy, and not soft at all. Some of the best BA bass I’ve ever heard. Treble is so open and deep, whilst the low end feels disconnected in the best way possible. Still every bit as good as I remember. Sub bass is slamming as well. I walked away from my 2nd impression still setting my sights on these for a purchase down the line, but another set knocked them off that pedestal…
Ziigaat Arete 2
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Bass Switch ON - bass is powerful in the sub bass, the marketing ain’t lying, but the mids are more forward than I expected, honestly. Strong sense of stereo imaging - There is a clear left and right channel deviation. Overall good. Slightly on the blunted side for instruments in the mid range. Not the last word in mid-range timbre either.
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Bass Switch OFF - To my surprise, I think I prefer them with the bass switch off. It cleans up the lower mids quite a bit. Upper mids sound a little unrefined to my ears, almost like the presence region is a touch too forward, but otherwise, very pleasing. Not the best techs to my ears.
FiiO R33
Sensational. I want one. Overall design and build are fantastic. The sound is very good as well, but I have no basis for comparison as this is my first time experiencing anything R2R.
FiiO EH11
No pics of these, but they are great. For $30, I dare say they’re a fantastic value. Comfortable, stylish, and with a little PEQ action, great sounding! So good, in fact, I tried to buy a pair right then and there, but they had none on hand. Bummer.
Canpur 752b
Incredibly clear and textured mid-range. Similar to Valhalla, but the lower mids are cleaned up significantly on these. Treble seems to extend a touch deeper in terms of the staging to my ears. $5500 tho? No chance. Valhallas gets close to these. Very close to my ears. I would need to have them side by side in a quieter setting to really get the differences between the two, and definitely a better DAC/Amp. The bass impact could be better as well. Overall, I can’t quite see why these are priced the way they’re priced.
Canpur Silver flash
These were some of the best-fitting IEMs I’ve ever tried in all my years. So incredibly comfortable for my ears. Semi-deep fitting with great noise isolation. Right off the bat, the mid bass comes off as very deep and punchy. The upper mids are slightly forward but not glaring at all. Goosebumps during Days by No Vacation. Treble is love. Splashy and airy. Going to pick these up for sure. They just seemed like a sensational EDC type of IEM. They played everything really well. Maybe some classical music could come off a bit harsh? I don’t listen to classical, so I wouldn’t know!
BVGP Astrum
These disappointed me so much. They were lacking some serious dynamics in the bass. To my ears, the low-end has a distinct lack of depth to it, and it immediately jumped out at me, especially compared to the previous IEMs I listened to, the Silver Flash. The difference is night and day. Not a very engaging sound to me, which is very surprising. As I sit here and write this, I wonder if it was the tips, source, environment, fit… I’m not sure. But these were disappointing to say the least.
Alpha & Omega…. Omega
The driver flexes on initial insertion, goddammit. No pressure issues once seated, though. All switches are down for this listen. Clean and clear sound in this config. The sound stage just feels flat to me, like everything is right in front of me. A wall of sound, so to speak. They sound good, timbre is on point, bass is nice for the most part, but nothing is blowing me away. Switching over to Voyager by daft punk showcases the bass a bit more. There’s some depth there, but again, the stage is cramped. A wall of sound right in front of me.
Trailli Ultra
These were probably the closest thing I’ve ever experienced to being in the same room as Led Zeppelin while they play the Wanton Song. Clearly a step above everything I’ve heard today so far. The mid bass is some of the best I’ve ever heard. Could use more sub bass tactility for my taste, but that’s nitpicking. Quite frankly, too expensive and too cumbersome to set up to ever consider for even an audiophile that’s deep in the hobby. But, for $10k+, I’m sure they’ll sell a few units. The timbre is literally as realistic as I’ve ever heard. I thought my monarchs were accurate in terms of timbre… heh. These are my new benchmarks. The stage width, depth, and sheer naturalism of it all blew my mind. Getting a taste of the top is very nice once in a while.
Crinear Reference
Very… reference-y but on the thin side for me, personally. Lean, I would say, is probably more accurate. I wouldn’t even say these are neutral to me, I’d even say the upper mids or presence region is a touch on the glarey side. I’m sure he’ll sell a million of these, but the lack of low-end, specifically the lower-mids, makes these not on the reference side for me, personally. I assume it’s how they interact with my ears. I wouldn’t call them bright because the treble isn’t the issue; it’s the upper mids. They lack body to their sound.
Crinear Cipher (Nightfall)
I’ve never heard of these before, and to my surprise, these are right up my alley. Now these are somewhat neutral to me, more bass, less upper mids, with a slight emphasis on the treble to compensate for my deafness. Really digging the lower mids texturing here. Low end has some texture and tactility too. Slightly spicy up top, but I like it. The bass is very fast. It barely lingers. Nice impact in the mid bass as well. I’ll be keeping an eye out for these…
I didn’t get to listen to the Monolith because as I picked them up for a photo, a guy walked over and told Crin he waited forever for a listen but kept getting bumped, so I just gave them to him… oh well. They are F-ing HEAVY. Like, damn heavy. Oh10 dense and heavy. If you know, you know…
Prisma Lux
These are so small and comfortable. In my opinion, they’re beautifully simple in their design. Overall tuning sounds very balanced to me with an emphasis on the upper mids (vocals specifically) and the treble is to die for. Lovely hi hats on this one. Bass is on the more natural decaying side. I wouldn’t say it’s overly fast, but also not muddy in the slightest. Very dynamic. Are You Blushing by Horsepower sounds unreal. Some of the best treble I heard all day.
Prisma Lumen
The mids are identical between the two, Josh confirmed. The slight treble roll off actually helps balance them out really nicely, but to my ears, they are just a touch bright and maybe a little too forward in the upper mids for me to truly appreciate them. They’re slightly harder to drive than I expected. I should mention that. I’m at 90/120 on the BTR17 in high gain.
Thanks to my buddy @Sonofholhorse I have been able to take both his Lumen and Lux home with me for a full review + pics before shipping them off to him, so expect full reviews of both the Lux and Lumen soon!
I want to make a special shoutout to Josh (VeeBee) for being a fantastic guy. A buddy of mine purchased both the Lumen and the Lux, and I’ve had the pleasure of taking them home with me for impressions before shipping them off to their true owner, so expect a full written review for both IEMs + Pics.
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Symphonium Zenith**
Oh god damn. Star of the show for me.**The set that dethroned the Valhalla.**So nicely balanced throughout & with sub bass to die for. Genuinely some of the best sub bass I have ever heard. So deep and detailed with texture for days. Not as much in terms of quantity as the Titans, but the upper mids are pulled back a touch, so higher volume listening is possible, leaving more room for the sub bass to breathe a bit at higher volumes. Layering and resolution are also standout. The stage is deep rather than wide. But overall, the sound is very… “open”. Love 'em. My favorite today so far and a set that took my breath away, quite frankly. The tubeless design and the final evolution of the 4BA design have given us the Zenith.
Symphonium Neuropa (I forgot to snap a pic)
Very similar to the Zenith in a lot of ways, but with a deeper sense of stage, a little on the overall blunted side, and less open-sounding to my ears. These are a warmer approach to the same tuning as Zenith…
Europa
I prefer these over the Neuropa because they sound more open, but they have less bass compared to the Zenith. I think the zenith has nailed this style of turning. The treble and bass depth is the signature of Symphonium. Still my fav company in the game, no doubt. These dudes know what they’re doing.
By this point, my ears are pretty fatigued, and I’m getting a bit tired, plus it was about 4:30, and I knew I was running out of time. Rushing around, doing quick listening spurts was the only way forward now.
7th acoustics Asteria
High levels of resolution and detail retrieval. That deeper sub bass that only true flagships have.
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IBasso Epitome**
These had seriously poor timbre in the upper mids and lower treble, and they’re too bright to boot. Pass on these. Beautiful though!
Anni 2026
Well, they definitely can say they fixed the bass compared to the 2023 version. It’s harder hitting and far less soft in the initial attack like the previous Anni models. This mid bass has some bite to it. It’s still not a bass monster, and probably still is disappointing in the bass department compared to the other IEMs in the same price range, but it is now finally not nerfing the IEM to a point where you’d consider maybe skipping because of it, just as long as the treble still has that magic to it… The treble isn’t hitting the same as I remembered, though, unfortunately. Hard to put my finger on it. These are a lot more “tame” and normally tuned in the table area just from memory. Still, extreme levels of detail and resolution here. It’s just not as… in your face, I suppose. I remember I once lusted over the Anni so much… how times have changed. So have my ears!
*This was a little self-indulgent, I’m aware. But I can’t lie and say CanJam and the follow-up days and weeks with all of the impressions aren’t some of my favorite days out of the year. To everyone I met this weekend, it was an absolute pleasure.
I won’t subject you to any more; that’s all I’ve got this year. Those are my impressions from CanJam 2026. Thanks to everyone that I met and spoke to over the weekend. I really do look forward to CJ every year now, and it’s made my days a little bit brighter. I’ll post some other random pics I couldn’t fit here from the day below.
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This is not a pair of Annis btw…
Thanks for reading, & take care, everyone!*
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Some more random pics I took from the day
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Thanks! I think the write up tells us everything we need to know. The Zenith is now on my demo list.
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Try to get your hands on it, brother! It’s a banger set in my opinion!
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They usually are at CanJam London so that’ll work out nicely. Also hope the Monolith will be there just to compare it to the Pentaconn Scyne (which is also made of brass and sounded like the best parts of the IE600 and 900 combined to me).
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The Monolith will def be there as long as Crinear is there so you should get a listen. It’s a popular model so grab it quick haha
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Honestly, I expected more from Anni 26, Epitome and 752b. I guess Oriolus is niche despite the price 
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Which one is the most versatile for your ears?
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CJ impressions are always so up in the air, man, ya never know, I could be missing something honestly. I think I am probably missing some sauce with the 752b, but I’ll most likely never know. The Anni was a big disappointment, but to be expected. The Epitome… heh, Idk what they were thinking with that set. The timbre is so bad to my ears.
The most versatile set I heard all weekend was probably the Prisma Lux. Such a great pair of IEMs. Great bass, great mids and some of the best treble I’ve heard
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Loved to read your impressions @domq422 you rock 
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Dang, thanks so much, buddy!
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Prisma Lux Unboxing
YouTube took my audio away for some reason - womp womp
Special thanks to @Sonofholhorse for letting me take these and his Lumens home post CanJam for pics and review 
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That must have been one colourful description 
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Also: just watched the vid. That is one impressive package for a one man operation. Damn.
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hello hello! I admittedly have somewhat of a bias against oversized, foam filled packaging and wanted to make something that both has a nice presentation, and can be thrown in the recycling without guilt if so inclined… I understand the appeal of a grandiose, beautiful unboxing experience, but it all feels a little wasteful to me
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It was a song, thought I was safe to upload since it’s unlisted.. I guess not lol
And I couldn’t agree more. I love the simple and tasteful packaging that Josh came up with.
@veebee You did a great job with the entire unboxing experience 
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To be fair, I can do without it, regardless of price. In the end, you pay for it as well. Just give me a proper IEM, good cable, tips if they are necessary for its performance as intended and a decent case and I’m good.
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Could not agree more.
I own the BGVP Astrum. The presentation while opening the box, with the individual lights shining on each IEM and the Etch-A-Sketch glitter in the background, was SO impressive. But it was impressive ONCE.
That’s not efficient use of development money. Too much bling, which is kind of becoming BGVP’s trademark, especially with the Wukong. Something tells me the Astrum – which I love – could have been a few bucks cheaper without the elaborate box and pewter carrying case.
On the other side of the spectrum, Penon/ISN makes nice IEMs that are packaged like complete shit with bare-bones cases and tips. There are other manufacturers like that, such as KiwiEars and Ziigaat.
A middle ground is ideal. I think you’ve nailed that, Josh. Other brands doing it right include DUNU, Flipears and Hisenior.
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