Reach out to @eric_lab he has my set and the Serial
Spoiler I am 100% certian he loves both.
so after some time with the Hiby R5 Gen 2 I think I have some thoughts I can put down finally:
- I don’t notice much of a sound difference between Class A and economy mode on low, medium or high gain honestly. Maybe Class A with high gain is a tad warmer but I don’t think I would be able to call it out if I was doing it blind
- I don’t really notice much of a sonic difference between the Qudelix 5K and Hiby either. Both drive the Serratus very well to my ears.
- I enjoy having a DAP where I can listen to music without having my phone on me and using up my phone battery
- MSEB is… not great. Trying to do bass boost with it just sounds bad to me. I have also tried bass boost in Spotify which is somehow better than MSEB but also pretty terrible. Its shocking how good the EQ on the Qudelix is. Doing a bass boost with PEQ sounds substantially higher quality and deeper, literally rumbling my ears with my IE600.
I will say that I am overall happy I bought the Hiby from @rattlingblanketwoman and finally got to try a DAP out for a great price! I do think though that this ends my source journey as I cannot imagine spending more money on something that I don’t think will appreciably improve my experience.
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I have the HiBy RS2 and MSEB on that one isn’t great either. The sound distorts easily even with minor adjustments.
I was considering getting the R5 Gen II but went with the DX170 instead, mostly to try a CircusLogic Chip but also cause I like the looks of it. Hopefully it will arrive soon.
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I know this was like a week ago, but I just read it and wanted to say that I’m generally not a fan of the VE cultish fanboy croud or their leader, but I have owned several VE buds and their Megatron and I have to say that they do make some very good higher end buds. I haven’t liked most of their lower tier stuff, but I really dug the VE Sun Dice and would still own them if I could get the damn things to fit with any level of stability (and I tried everything). The Zen series is too warm for my tastes, but the 2.0 is, IMO, a very good bud rec for someone looking for that super warm, lush tuning. The Megatron is an absolute steal for $50. I have tried some of their higher end amp and DAC offerings and thought they were a bit overpriced and lackluster for what they are, but no more so than a hundred other companies I could name. Point being, the Wild Lee dude is clearly a nut who needs to grow up a bit, but he is capable of puting out some very good sounding buds. That’s all.
P.S. I have tried one of their expensive IEMs called the Grand Duke and it wasn’t my style at all and I think it’s considerably overpriced given it’s performance, but that’s just me…
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Killer deal on a set of Xenns Up if anyone is looking.
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The Magma sounds really nice. I am baffled that no one talks about it.
To be honest I was not even aware that it existed.
It wows me quite a bit more than Mahina or Meteor did and it´s the first IEM that can compete with my beloved Kinda Lava.
Truely a hidden gem
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Woah, huge praises, brother but I’m happy you found a gem that vibes with you! What would you say the Sound Sig. is like?
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There are no reviews but looks like a company graph. It looks pretty basic from here
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What led you to take a chance on it?
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Off the top of my non-photographic memory the triple peak “crown” recalls the FD5, Norn, and I think acoustics sets?
To my ears it sounds pretty balanced overall. Nothing stands out and nothing is lacking which makes it an overall enjoyable listen.
The midbass is absolutely fantastic, i love its quantity and texture.
Midbass>Subbass emphasis.
Subbass is there when called for and also of very good quality
Still I would probably ad 2-3db of subbass but I am not really missing it much on most tracks so i would not say it is lacking, it´s a matter of preference.
Mids are nice and clear, vocals sound natural and present, definitely not laid back but also not too much in your face.
The upper Midrange is really niceley done and engaging.
Treble is nicely done aswell and nothing is really missing but in comparison Kinda Lava is a bit more airy and realstic on the high hat hits from “The Speedwalker live at Madison Square Garden”
On the technical side, the stage is really nice and wide. Sounds are easily located and coming from all directions which gives a holographic impression and to me that´s the star of the show.
Build quality and fit is also fantastic, its a pretty tiny monitor and perfect for smaller ears.
If I would not own KL already I would be very much tempted to buy this one, especially now that it is on sale for 360€ which is a “bargain” for a tribrid with that tuning/performance
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I thought these peaks would be a problem, especially the first one but to my suprise it is not.
So far only with bad recorded metal I had to turn down the volume.
With my Kinda Lava i am reaching for the volume knob more often.
Here you can find two reviews:
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I am in a german Hi-Fi Forum thats where I also got the Meteor to demo and more are about to come, next will be Xenns Top and Fiio FH7s, cant wait 
Sorry for piquing your interest and threatening your wallet 
but the Magma really deserves way more attention and I would love to hear everyone elses opinion in here.
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For metal FH7 are of great performance. One of the best for this genre at any price. But an OG cable makes the sound harsh, listen to them with pure copper cable . And FH7 needs a very good DAC/AMP. 
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I have FH7. I thought you were talking about him. I haven’t listened to the FH7s, but it looks like it won’t be very good for metal with that boost in the mids.
Otherwise, if you can try the FH7 OG, unsurpassed performance for metal, knocks everything down to $1000! 
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I really loved FH3 for metal and now i am really curious about FH7 for that specific genre. Would love to try it when i get my hands on it
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