Goober's Journey Into the IEM Game or "Why Are You Not As Good As....?"

I’ve always liked all-rounder IEMs. This one looks solid. I don’t know how much it’s worth but it looks good. :wink:

I’m glad he bought the DTE900, as my daily IEM, and I missed this “great company”

I would live without DUNU IEM any day :nerd_face:

If SR have a stand, try their higher class PRADO or DTE900, I think you won’t regret it, but I guess they won’t be at this show. They can blow most multithousand IEMs. :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

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Lol yeah my bad sentence structuring, meant it as another positive affirmation for Scarlett Mini

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I was in denial for a bit that my head didn’t hurt at all and that it was manageable, I’d rather have the money for IEMs though

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haha yeah that’s why I gave up on over-ears. Apprently the new sennheisers are comfy but something tells me I would still prefer iems that cost a fraction of the price.

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Have you tried earbuds by any chance?

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Not yet, going to it at some point though

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do iitttt follow the white rabbit

just thought that maybe taking these with you.

Would help deal with the noise all around you when demoing iems. :thinking:

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IEMs shouldn’t need that IMO, otherwise it’s trash at it’s first job lol

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Yeah in normal situations, but I heard that Canjam is pretty damn noisy?

(probably not from speakers?)

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I didn’t have any problems with IEMs once I got a deal. Headphones struggled bad, though

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Put one of those noise protectors over the headphones then. :joy:

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At these shows, a big problem is the rush of people and pulling one IEM out of 100 dudes who want to hear it. :nerd_face:

giphy (3)

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Day Two Sprint at CanJam NYC 2024

So I only did 10-12 for Sunday CanJam because reasons, so it was really me just speedrunning impressions, way more so than yesterday. Don’t like it? Spend a couple hundred thousand dollars on buying me things! Otherwise, here are some thoughts:

  • Empire x Astell & Kern Novus through A&K A&ultima SP3000T - tube mode neutral, closer to lean. Very airy and spacious. Marvin Gaye sounds on point. Sharp imaging. Dac mode has a little more heft…

  • Oriolus Trailli Ti - wish I had Isa to A/B with. Can absolutely hear the shared DNA. That’s fly, but I dunno if I feel the price/performance is there

  • Aroma Fei Wan - similar tonality to Trailli, but vocals are a little more forward. Would say Fei Wan is a touch more balanced, Trailli a little more lush

  • Timsok TS-316 - nice 1DD. Less resolution than Fei Wan/Trailli, a little more diffuse. Very good but overpriced in the market

  • Oriolus Monachaa - warmer, more intimate sound. Lesser resolution and imaging than Trailli. Very nice bass impact though

  • QDC Emperor - QDC just misses with the pillowy, hollow bass. So focused on forward mids/vocals and details

  • QDC Folk (revisited) - yeah, everything sounds nice (as good as Emperor) and then the bass hits like a newborn kitten

  • Vision Ears VE10 (revisited) - Sounds super similar to QDC sets, staying bass light, but texture is subjectively better. A league ahead

  • Canpur CP622B (revisited) - warmer than VE10 but doesn’t lose much of anything against it. SUPER balanced

  • Ibasso DC-Elite through Simgot EA1000 - maybe a bit of soundstage difference with NiceHCK dongle but not much in it

  • Aune Yuki through EA1000 - pushes vocals forward. Sound seems a little bigger in a nice way

  • Fir Audio KR5 - plays just on the warm side of neutral in terms of body but has a little shout in the uppers

  • Fir Audio RN6 - cleaner than KR5. Straight upgrade

  • Fir Audio XE6 - clean as RN6 with similar vocals, bass is meatier but not bad at all; not super textured though. RN6 is the pick

  • Fir Audio NE4 - Vocals are a little more forward/intimate, bass more like XE6. RN6 still the pick

  • Noble Audio Ragnar (revisited) - the 8k peak would make me say most would like RN6 more, but Ragnar just hits right for my ear.

  • Austrian Audio The Composer through Full Score One Amplifier - had a symphonic piece loaded into it and rightfully so. This is an orchestral headphone lol. Wonderful timbre and big soundstage. Delightful sounding headphone.

  • Hifiman Arya Organic through Hifiman EF499 (revisited) - good in its own vacuum but I just remember how much better EF500 felt. If you want the black colorway never try to hear the EF500!

  • Symphonium Crimson - nicely technical, warm, meaty sound. Definitely better than I remember Meteor. Super nice set. Could be in the all-rounder conversation. Just a touch shouty though

  • Nightjar Singularity - better tuned than Timsok as a 1DD overall. Just a little less bright than Crimson but still up against my limit

  • Symphonium Triton - smoother than Crimson. Definitely sidegrade status in the family

I don’t have definitive thoughts about favorites compared to Saturday because I seriously didn’t have enough time. Fir Audio RN6, Empire x A&K Novus, and Aroma Fei Wan were the ones I’d want more time with the most.

One thing I didn’t get to was checking out the Schiit Audio gear, but the Hifiman EF500 is the piece of gear I’m most likely to buy thanks to CanJam, so it is what it is.

The IEMs were nice treats and were fun to listen to, but they’re absolutely beyond my price bracket.

Overall, CanJam was a hell of an event. Will look forward to doing it again next year! Thanks for checking out some of my thoughts!

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Some sharp impressions from a sharp man. Bravo :clap: here’s to next year :beer:

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Nice, anything peak your interest to buy?

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Hifiman EF500 is the piece of gear I’m most likely to buy thanks to CanJam, so it is what it is.

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That has peaked my interest as well now. Looking at the 499 also. Both look nice

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Going into the weekend I would’ve said both had my interest, but not any more

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