The treble is a bit much for me on the Serratus but I’m finding it nice now that I got two foams on there. I will continue testing and see if that’s where I land
130ohm actually. 
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What’s 20 ohms between friends? 
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@GooberBM and others who have tried the following buds how would you summarize the difference (and potentially rank) the following buds
- Serratus
- Ripples
- Grand Rider 1/2
- Grand Beserker 2
I know the GB2 is probably the most different but there is a reason I put it in there. So after listening to the Serratus for the last couple of hours I will say while they are really an amazing experience, I think the top qualities of it are a little lost on me and my library (as @GooberBM so eloquently put it above).
The expansive stage and sparkly treble can be somewhat of a distraction for the music I listen to and I think what I really seek is something with more natural, maybe even mellow treble and more midbass.
so my questions are:
Treble:
GB2 on one end with very mellow but well defined treble, Serratus on the other end with air, hyper detail treble. Where does the GR1/2 and Ripples fall in between there?
Bass:
GB2 booming, loose, plentiful bass. Serratus tight punchy sub but lacking mid bass thumb. Where does GR1/2 and Ripples fall in between there?
My gut is telling me Ripples is probably would hit my sweet spot but I don’t want to rule out the Grand Rider. I also know the GR1 is discontinued so that might just answer my question for me.
Replaced by the better GR2 (and easier to drive, 32ohm vs 130ohm).
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What precise observation… looks like Sherlock 'Ohms was on the case!
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yeah although based on your description the GR2 is more neutral than warm and I almost feel like what I am looking for is warm. I could be wrong though
Also the answer may be what @Ohmboy said and I need a warmer source for the Serratus to get where I want
yeah, it is a bit different tonally as well.
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Hello! While I have the Serratus and Ripples, I don’t have the rest of the lineup (Alpha, Tantalus), so might wanna ping @nymz about this!
IMO, as I wrote earlier, the Ripples has impactful, hard-hitting bass like in the Serratus but more textured and more mid-bass. Stage width is smaller, and either similar height or possibly bit bigger on the Ripples. Less treble and air, but I didn’t get the sense that it was rolled off or veiled.
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Oh I got feelings about this:
Grand Berserker 2
- Didn’t really jive with me. It felt the most like an IEM to me, with a lot of sub-bass, but it was very dark for me, and I didn’t find it to be as well defined. It was definitely the set I liked least of these four.
Grand Rider 1
- Is the most purely neutral of the four, but it’s a warm-neutral. The IEM comparison I’d make is a tonality/body like Olina SE, but WAY cleaner. GR doesn’t have the most treble energy but Riku tuned that treble for my ear, it is CRYSTAL clear for me. Serratus has a more energetic treble with air and sparklies. I’d take GR’s treble over it, full stop. It has only JUST enough mid-bass and a lacking sub-bass. This would be my analytical listening choice.
Serratus
- This set is all about that staging, and the technicalities within the staging. I watched @Lcg842 have emotional reactions to listening to Serratus, and as much as I wanted her to feel something like that with Ripples, it didn’t come the same way. I even had a couple of times I felt chills listening to the Child of Light OST. Serratus brings out big feelings and emotions…if it connects. But I can also see the disconnect you describe.
Ripples
- Ripples may not have pulled out the big emotions, but for me, I heard a few songs and just knew “this is it.” Ripples is my measuring stick now, for my listening style and my library. The way I explained it to Lisa as we were listening together is “Serratus can have a higher ceiling, when it has the right music going the way you can feel is bigger, because Serratus is more ethereal. Ripples is different because it has a higher floor. NOTHING sounds bad, off, or lacking on Ripples. Where Serratus has times it can blow you away, it also has times where I can feel underwhelmed, like I’m waiting for a moment that’s not coming. Ripples never misses; one song can make one piano sound like three, another song can have a slow buildup from piano to forte and I feel goosebumps.”
So if I were going to rank them it’d be
- Ripples - As much as Nymz is going to kill me for saying this, Ripples is only top-2 mid-bass for me, but the combination of mid-bass to lower mids to upper mids is unimpeachable for me. Nothing I’ve heard does that range better. It’s easily the most natural listen I have in my collection.
- Serratus - If I didn’t know Ripples existed, this would be the easy “best I’ve heard” choice. It’s just now I know what I know about how “unnatural” Serratus sounds and I can’t put that toothpaste back in the tube.
- Grand Rider 1 - If I didn’t know TGXear buds existed, this would be an easy choice for “best buds I’ve heard”. It’s the cleanest listen I’ve heard and I’m not missing the sub-bass this doesn’t have. With the monstrous soundstage and great imaging this set has, and easy-listening treble, this is the set I’d run to grab when I want to dissect my music.
- Grand Archer 1 - I know you didn’t ask about this but Archer is a more energetic sound than Rider, so if “neutral” is too dull for you and you want more fun, I’d send you this way.
- Grand Berserker 2 - Eh…
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This seems like exactly the changes I would want with the Serratus…
This is the best description of my feelings as well. There are times where I go “Wow I get it” and its amazing but for me sometimes it can be almost too much. When the treble gets too much I have to turn it down and then the magic kind of goes away. Its interesting because its not like its sibilant or anything, the best way to describe it is it just gets overwhelming. The way you and @ttorbic talk about the Ripples makes me think I picked the wrong horse 
Maybe thats unfair as I am overall very happy with the Serratus and its a great pickup and value. I could see getting the Ripples and not really listening to the Serratus anymore though which would be unfortunate.
I figured you weren’t a fan. I am usually not a fan of dark (love me some V) but something about it just jives with me, its like dark and creamy but it’s got a little surprise. If it was a food I say its like Nutella (not trying to still your thing @GooberBM I swear!). For me, the GB2 is a good example of the something being greater than the sum of its parts.
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Fun fact: For YEARS, I was anti-Nutella because I figured if it’s a nut spread with chocolate hiding it I won’t like it (I’m barely a peanut butter person, with a gun to my head).
I FUCKING LOVE NUTELLA!!! So I feel you!
This was a reason RBW loaning me Serratus hit home so much. I think the exact same way you do: Hearing Serratus, I understand exactly why it has earned the love it has. I get it. But it made me more curious about if Tantalus was the sound I really wanted. Then a). I saw a really good Ripples deal on Head-Fi and b). Nymz literally said publicly and in PM to me “Ripples or bust”.
Ripples it is!
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I am really sorry - you are speaking about pinnacles of DIY buds from Riku and Jim, and I would humbly just put a short note about my BOTL for the records.
Tiger Build - 32 Ohm Red Dot, paper filter Y6 on driver, aluminium bell shell w/ MMCX, no filter on the bass vent.
Probably my best build up to date. It is a great stock driver though, sounded good even when installed with no extra filter. Lesson learned is that the shell filtering has really huge impact - with a metal mesh on the bass vent it sounded plasticky/canny, while no filters attached made the timbre more natural and full (though with higher leakage) and widened the stage.
Nice note weight, central imaging, but not the widest stage making very problematic imaging of instruments around the vocalist, not harsh/excessively bright at all. Has some bass extension even, mid bass is present, thumpy, but a little bit empty (canny). May be lacking resolutions as compared to TOTL buds, also mids sound a bit muffled. Not the most natural vocals.
I would say I am reaching VIDO level, but not quite there yet 
Final lesson learned - I think I would focus on making the most comfortable shell’s design, as this I could do with a set of skills I have and tuning with a bad ear is like painting, while being color blind 
May be fun, but probably it is not the best idea.
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Loans ftw! Being able to test audio equipment out is so clutch. I will give Serratus its due time. I feel like I am being a bit overly critical as its still an amazing bud
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Welp, we’re set for the weekend:
IMMEDIATE initial impressions: These are some toe-tapping, head-bobbing buds. I think we’re gonna have fun with these. Also, as long as you have a decent amp at hand, single-ended isn’t THAT awful to drive…but they do want some juice!
There will be no immediate comparisons with the Grand Alter Saber 2 or Grand Rider 1, because both of those sets are going on loan (and my lazy ass can let THEM do the comparisons hahaha) tomorrow! I MAY do some impressions against the Rider 1 and Berserker 1, though, since I still have them on hand.
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I just want to say that I’ve really enjoyed catching up on the discussion here.
As someone who is currently in the IEM world but interested in ear-buds, are there certain genres of music that fair better on earbuds vs. IEMs? For example, there was an comment about hard hitting bass by @ttorbic. What can one expect from this description if they are coming from an IEM? Granted, I understand that earbuds are not as close to the ear when compared to IEMs, nor do they seal as well, so the use case would also be different.
edit: If I were to try a pair, I’d probably want to start with the TGX Ripples given what others have said before but $300 is quite expensive for a first pair of buds. just dont want to set myself up for disappointment.
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I will try to be as realistic as possible. Imo buds can work amazingly well for any genre that don’t require heavy sub bass. The grand berserker 2 is the most bass heavy bud I have heard but an iem will easily beat it in rumble and bass pressure.
As you move up the FR buds can definitely match IEMs in midbass thump and it’s pretty beautiful. Once you get out of the bass region buds start to beat IEMs imo. The biggest caveat is buds are very situational. Unless you can listen in a quiet room IEMs will probably be better. Oh and also fit can be an issue
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Welcome, join us down the rabbit hole haha. A couple things:
- definitely do NOT but the Ripples as your first proper earbud. There are several very good options to try under 20-30 USD. Have a look at @Rikudou_Goku’s excellent database and ranking list from his profile for some reccs
- check what shells you find most comfortable. This is really key
- hard hitting bass is not quantity but a type of sound. Drum hits and double bass slaps sound like they have short decay, like TAT TAT. In IEMs I’ve heard, they are more pillowy, soft, THAD or TAD. It’s not what audiophiles call slam IMO. Hard to describe haha maybe @GooberBM can help me out here
Also, check out these threads on headfi:
- TGXEAR discussion thread. | Page 44 | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org
- Earbuds Round-Up | Page 4530 | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org
Hope that helps!
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What 
audio is subjective and I think we align on this tbh. Ripples had a wet timbre meaning the vocals and pianos will sound more natural while serratus has more accurate decay or cymbals and brass
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