How likely is it that the Dioko is going to give the current crop of top planars a run for their money? Is that just crazy talk?
And purple? Really? Good thing much of this hobby is spent in solitude. 
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That graph looks very worrying. Uneven dynamic frequency dip past 2K with channel imbalance and sudden 8K peak. This will be a wait-for-review kinda IEM for sure…
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i wonder if the dioko will accidenally bite into crins dusk revenue… since now they can get dusk level technicalities for a third of the price
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Dusk probably not selling as much because there are lots of options nowadays. On the other hand, $99 planar iem with a great tuning will sell like crazy.
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Regular timeless has similar issues too.
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Thats a pretty typical planar issues
Even full sized planar drivers have that sort of “unevenness” and minor channel imbalances. It shouldn’t be too much of an issue since it doesn’t affect a wide range of frequencies and the dip isn’t too severe, so it doesn’t worry me too much. Though the spike may be an issue to people who are treble sensitive.
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Which is still an issue that you should lookout for.
Again, just because something else have the same issue doesn’t make it okay or justify the current problem. Those kind of unevenness (+planar timbre) is the main reason why I’m super cautious about purchasing any planars. The only one that is well-implemented I have tried are the LCD-X.
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sorry i should’ve clarified a bit more, what i mean is that while they do look like that on a graph, they are not severe enough to be a major audible issue, the dips and peaks in the dioko’s case (and a lot of other planars) in the treble arent that big, but if they were they would be a major issue. Even audeze planars tend to also have those same “issues” when seen on a graph. Planar timbre although is a very big issue that i too have an issue with on planars.
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Also speaking about the whole wonky planar FR thing, it is necessairy to remember about the effect that our ears (or to be overly specific- brains) impose on high frequencies. The higher the frequencies, the more our ears kind of smooth that region. In other words, our ears in high frequencies hear a little bit as if someone applied higher smoothing in FR graph tool. Amir from Audio Science Review did a nice explanation of this effectin one of his videos.
From 4:00 mark in this video
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I just got a pair of Blessing 2s coming from the Starfield and honestly, I really can’t tell that much of a difference. I’ve tested 5 different IEMs and the only ones I don’t like the Starfields more than are the Mangird teas, they’re the only ones where the music and the way it was presented actually sounded different and more enjoyable to me
I’m kinda glad i’m not finding differences in every nook and cranny of every iem because I think it’s helped me make the decision that i’m going to get the teas and they will be my endgame, I don’t see the point in continuing to spend so much money on shit that I don’t even notice
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Thanks for sharing your journey. As a recent member of the Tea cult, the Tea is top-tier in terms of musical enjoyment. Congrats in advance on your new set of Teas!
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For the time being, tea is my most expensive set. I heard the difference between tea/tea2 and my under-200$-sets. But I still find hard to represent How Much the difference of feeling can be between price brackets.
Tea is really special. Even tea2, that has a more traditional FR, doesn’t sound that different from the other Harman sets
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Ok so, I have decided to read more reviews on 2 IEMs that I have taken interest on, but I find myself at a lost on what to choose and decide to get. ThieAudio Elixirs and Seek Real Audio Airships, both of the two hits the check mark when it comes to my musical preference but I don’t know what to choose and that what makes it a bit tough for me right now.
Just wanted an IEM that is an upgrade or at least can compete with the Katos, but both Elixir and Airship seems to be in that case. So I think I need a bit of a help here on what to choose, just to be assured in the end, it will be all worth it.
- ThieAudio Elixir
- Seek Real Audio Airship
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An output would be appreciated and thank you for the replies.
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based on reviews, airship is like a modded Olina which means it sounds amazing (but less energy than Olina) … with worse fit…!
I suggest you pick Olina or save up and get something better…!
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Yeah the fit is a bit tricky on the Airships, kind of like similar to the BLON BL-03, but apparently the BLON BL-03 despite its short nozzle, fits me just right, so this might fit all right as well. The Elixirs apparently are a good alternative to the Kato, leans more towards the warm and lusher sound and my god I love the look of it, but all I want is the sounds and yeah it just hits me right as well due to my friends telling to get the Elixirs for they prefer it more than the Airships, for they have seen more reviews of it than the Airships.
I received the Airship yesterday and have only tried it briefly, so I can’t comment on performance yet but personally I find it comfortable lol
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Do your friends prefer it because they listened to it or are they going strictly by reviews? I wouldn’t personally put too much stock into people’s opinions on reviews but instead compare graphs and read reviews or people who have actually listened to the headphones you are interested in. What don’t you like about the kato? What do you like about the kato? Find an IEM that matches those preferences based on graphs and reviews. Imo it’s the best way to gauge whether you will like something outside of being able to actually listen to it.
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I thought it was a common misconception that you need a DAC for a planer IEM? Any phone can run them just fine right? Or am I wrong?
A new video from the honest audiophile is saying you can’t run a planar IEM with most of these dongles… USB C dongles - Which is best for planar IEM? Which sounds best? - Honest Audiophile impressions - YouTube (edited, posted wrong video link)
newer ones are better but things like the OG Tin P1 needed more power than a phone could provide
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