Nothing wrong with stepping back when you’re already where you want to be! I agree that a lot of the pricing has gotten bonkers (and I say this as someone who has paid bonkers prices before haha), and I think in a case like yours the best thing to do is sit back, enjoy what you have and keep an eye on the second-hand market for eventual upgrades. There are amazing deals to be had if you wait for people to move on in 6 months to a year or two, especially with how fast the market moves! The other thing you could think about is waiting for a big show or meetup that you can travel to (like a Canjam) if you are able, or to see if you can get in on a tour group to try the “big boy” stuff without dropping a dime outside of shipping; I think many people in this hobby would be (or have been) surprised at how steep diminishing returns can be above fairly low price levels. Then again, if you’re a maniac that needs that last 1-5%, that could be dangerous for the wallet haha.
That looks delicious…
Holy crap, those do look delicious! LOL
With that being said, the Estrella (IEMs, not the chips) are pretty much everything I could ask for in an IEM.
They are very well balanced from the sub-bass, all the way to the late treble. When Jay originally was trying to tune the set with Ziigaat, he showed a bunch of different bass tunings and once he settled on the mid-bass increase tuning, I can’t lie, I was a bit worried that there wouldn’t be a pronounced sub bass rumble. I was wrong, and I found that out this morning on my way to work. I took off the clear tape that was on the back vent (that reduces the bass level by more than a few dB), and boom. There it is. The sound comes across as very dynamic as a whole but the individual parts are what I’m more interested in diving into.
The bass, specifically the sub bass, has a strong rumble to it with lots of texture and separation between notes, this is such a relief because I’ve been having a difficult time finding an IEM that does this type of rumble and texture. All the other IEMs, including the ones from Ziigaat like the Doscinco and the Cincotres, have sub bass energy, but the driver just seems to be too slow or maybe not as refined, or maybe it could just be how the rest of the FR interacts with the sub bass. On the Estrella it is wonderfully powerful and textured. The mid bass is also good, but not a stand out to me personally. It does not have the same kind of snap and attack at something like, for example, the Pilgrim. I found that IEM to have a very clean and punchy mid bass reply but that might be due to the elevated sub bass and slight tuck in the lower mids giving more definition. Regardless I think that 9/10 listeners will enjoy this bass replay.
The mids are wonderful. Specifically the texture and details of female vocals. They’re slightly drier than I expected but I really am enjoying it. There’s definitely plenty of weight and heft to vocals, they never come across as shrill, thin or shouty in anyway. These might be some of the best vocals I’ve heard under $500 if I’m just going off memory.
The treble I think is where the special sauce lies in this IEM. The last time I heard this good and spot on to my preferences was the time I had the Symphonium Meteors in for review. The absolute best treble I’ve ever heard comes from the Elysian Annihilator 2023. The Estrella is right next to the Meteors when it comes to my tastes. Holy moly…. It is airy, snappy, pronounced, cleeeeaaan and never intense at all. Hi-hats, cymbals, spacial cues… it’s all there and some of the best I’ve heard. I prefer this treble tuning and timbre over my pair of Monarch MK2s. Full stop.
Layering, separation and overall resolution is also fantastic. For my HRTF, layering is particularly a standout. I have to do some more testing, but I noticed this morning while listening that so many instruments and sounds, which are usually masked on other IEMs, come across clean and clearly audible. It feels as though I’m listening in my car, that’s the level of separation I’m experiencing. Needless to say, it’s impressive.
Please take into account the very clear bias here, as Jay is my good buddy. But I can’t deny that my initial 2 day impressions (about 2 hours total listening time) is extremely positive and seriously right up my alley.
When I first heard the sub bass rumble I was looking for, I couldn’t help but to smile. And the treble tuning kind of blew me away when I first heard the song Days by No Vacation. The constant open hi-hat strikes through the entire song and the big crash cymbal hits right before the chorus gave me chills. The last time that happened was on the Symphonium Crimson…
Thanks for reading, everyone. I’ll have a full in depth review diving deeper with more music references in the next few days!
Take care 
Nice thanks for sharing 
You are too sick with it, bro! Making the wait that much harder hahaha!
Edge Lord Dom is in the house, baby!
LOL
You’ll be getting it 2nd before anyone else, So, shut up goobs 
Yeah, nobody cares about what I have to say though. The smart people are living on your impressions. You’re the one feeding the streets with your words and pictures, boss!
Nahhhhh, that ain’t true. Once you get them in hand, I’m sure you’ll enjoy them, but I think your un-tainted ears will find some fault in them. At this point, I’m struggling to find even minor nit picks, but I am hoping the honey moon stage wears off so I can be at least a little objective in my review.
Have you noticed any sibilance from the 5k bump?
Are you typically sensitive in this area?
I’m not sensitive to that area from my experience, just around 3K. But I haven’t heard or felt even the slightest bit of sibilance coming from the Estrella.
First quick impressions of the very popular Aful Explorer.
They’re an interesting listen, and right up my alley, that’s for sure. It’s a low pinna, healthy low-end kind of tuning so the crank-ability is high with this set and I find myself vibing to most of my library. The one thing that’s sorely missing however is some treble sparkle to balance out the listen. I feel as though I’m missing quite a bit of details up top, not to mention vocals are a bit too pushed back for me. Side note as well; surprisingly they’re harder to drive than I expected. I’m currently on medium gain at 12 o’clock on the L30 which is no slouch when it comes to output power.
I will say that mid-bass is healthy, it’s very thumpy and powerful. Sub-bass is lacking clearly, there’s a rumble, I can hear it, but it’s not as textured and clean as I’d like. It’s fine though, this isn’t some flagship so for the price of admission, I think this set clearly carves out a nice spot in the hobby.
I’ll be doing some more listening over the next week or so and maybe write up a quick full review with some pics.
Thanks for reading!
If you’ve heard the DaVinci, could you compare it to Explorer please?
I have heard the DaVinci, this is my take based on memory, keep in mind though, I haven’t had the DaVinci in hand for over a month at this point so it might be grainy at best.
The DaVinci has stronger tech abilities, layering, detail retrieval, and overall resolution are clearly better on the DaVinci, however, it’s not by miles. The tuning is similar, but the vocals are more forward on the DaVincis, they have a better texture for sure. Bass is similar in tonality, but mid-bass kick and thump is far superior on the DaVinci for sure, that’s not a contest IMO. The one thing the Explorer has over the DaVinci in terms of sound is the timbre is more natural on the Explorer. I was not a fan of the upper-mid/lower treble timbre on the DaVinci - Somewhere around 4-5k there was something off and it didn’t vibe with my ears. The Aful has no timbral issues, they;re extremely smooth all around.
At this point, especially after hearing Estrella, I wouldn’t pay the $300 for the DaVincis. There are other sets that are superior.
Spot on. These impressions match mine to a T.
The Explorer with a bit more treble extension and detail might be the ideal IEM for me, as I’m a mid-bass guy, not a sub-basser.
Still enjoying the hell out of the Explorer with Dunu S&S tips, though. These IEMs are VERY tip-sensitive, so roll a bit and see what you discover, Dom!
Dude I’m kind of in the same mindset as you tbh; I just need a little more sub bass rumble and texture, but to my ears the Explorer is like a baby version of the Meteors minus the treble experience. So I’m right there with you - an Explorer with more treble is probably up there for my ideal IEM, the VE EXT comes to mind right away and those things are honestly some of my favorite IEMs I’ve heard to date (thanks @Sonofholhorse) 
I’ll continue to tip roll for sure, I just hate the fact that the nozzle has no lip… it scares me thinking a tip could get stick in my ear canal, I absolutely hate when that happens