Prestige are out for delivery! I’m quite excited for this IEM. I hope they sound just like the graph indicates they will. 
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Here’s hoping you enjoy them or find something special about them contrary to the others! Good luck, brother.
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I hope so too! If I don’t, I already have an offer from an acquaintance to buy it at what I paid so he doesn’t have to deal with shipping from China/Linsoul so I don’t have to worry about taking a hit from reselling. That said, I’m actually hoping that they’ll be keepers.
I’m not too worried by other reviews because I think my opinions on the ThieAudio tribrids don’t tend to match others’ anyways. For instance, I like the Excaliburs significantly more than the Oracles (Mk. 1 or 2) while most people seem to think the Excaliburs are somehow second class because they sport a v-shaped tuning. For me, I think they pull off that tuning so damn well and I think the Oracles are quite boring.
Anyways, we’ll see…
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That’s such a fat W - nice. That must of taken A LOT of the pressure off of you.
I have yet to try out any other Thie set unfortunately but I’d really love to hear the Oracles one day. For whatever reason, I guess I tend to enjoy boring sets as much as fun sets. For example, I think I reach for the Hexas as much as I reach for my OH10s honestly. It’s just like Thanos said - balanced, like everything should be.
We shall see, man - good luck!
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I enjoy sets from neutral to bright to v-shaped and everything in between. The tuning or signature is much less important to me than that its presentation is engaging. I don’t think the Hexas are a boring set at all, BTW. The OH10s border on having too much bass for me, but when I’m in the mood for some thump, they would certainly get the job done.
I think some people make the mistake of thinking that you have to have a c-shaped tuning or at least elevated bass to be “fun” and that neutral or balanced tunings are fundamentally boring. For me that’s just not true. Case in point, the OG Tin P1s I just acquired a couple weeks back are a very fun and engaging set and they actually have some rolloff in the bass. It’s all about the overall presentation and the P1’s detail, speed, and articulation combine to make them an IEM that captured my attention every time I put them in.
Given how you feel about the Monarch Mk2s, I’m not sure you’d like the Oracles all that much though I think you’d like the Mk2 more than the OG. I would love to hear/read your thoughts on the OG Monarchs, for sure. It would be interesting to see how you feel about them after having heard and loved the Mk2s first.
Edit: And yes, getting dude’s offer certainly takes a bit of weight off my shoulders in regards to making a decision.
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I think you make a really good point actually. I hadn’t considered this when I wrote my comment firstly - I don’t find the Hexas boring either, and it really comes down to, like you said - the presentation. I think the Hexas are my go to set when I’m outdoors if I really want to listen to and enjoy a beautiful vocal presentation with a little bit of bass in the low end. I’d say they’re my go to set for songs with a simple instrumental, with vocals taking the center of the stage. I wouldn’t reach for them however If i’m in the mood for jazz - I really prefer a laid back, bassier presentation for jazz. Where the horns won’t pierce my ear drums when they hit those high notes. I truly believe I have some crazy channel imbalance or QC issues with my OH10s because I have always felt they needed more bass as crazy as that sounds. The upper mids and lower treble for me take the main stage with that set, and I really think it comes down to my anatomy. I have since been experimenting and tweaking EQ and I’ve landed on a damn near perfect fr with them. They’re my go to set for most of my library now a days.
I’d love to hear the P1s one day, they seem … different. Which I think at this point in my journey, I’d be more interested in experiencing rather than a safer style of tuning. Speaking on the OG Monarchs, I have read that they have even more Subbass and come off a bit blunted in that area but others have wrote that they were TOTL back in the day for $730 - I almost went for the OGs but I thought to my self “You’ll never be able to really be happy if you just saved the $300 or so dollars and didn’t go with the MK2” At that point, $730 or $1000 - I was going to pay over time anyways. Might as well drop the cash and call it a day.
Side note: There’s a pair of OG Monarchs for sale over on Head-Fi for $550 which is just an insane price.
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Okay boys. This is going to be a long one and I wasn’t sure where else to put it so here it goes:
I’ve been a bit sentimental the last week with the new year fast approaching.
I can’t help but to fixate on how fast time has flown by for me the past 4 or 5 years. I have memories from then that I can still feel so strongly, my brain is tricked into thinking it was last week. It’s a strange phenomenon to say the least and I’m not sure how to feel about it all. What I am sure of is 2022 and how this year, with all things considered, has been an amazing year all together for me. Some negatives for sure, just like anything else, but my audio journey has been catapulted into the outer reaches of space and truly, genuinely, it’s all been thanks to this website and all the beautiful people I’ve had the absolutely pleasure of meeting, speaking to, and most importantly, connecting with. Really short backstory - I’ve been in this hobby (Audio, IEMs specifically) for about 11 years now. I made my Head-Fi account back in 2014 when I was 18 years old. It’s crazy to think about. I was beyond a novice, incredibly naive and shockingly uninformed about audio in general. All I knew was that I loved music and I wanted to enjoy it to its fullest potential. After a few runs with VSonic, Shure, even beats, I went through phases. Being hooked, buying 2, 3 sets at a time, enjoying the hell out of them, then breaking them by accident (the wash machine was my arch nemesis) and getting discouraged and not thinking about headphones or Audio in general for months and sometimes even years.
2021 was different. I finally had a well paying job. The bank account was looking might hefty, and the car market was booming. I got the itch again. The Timeless was stealing everyone’s hearts and wallets and I wanted in. So I bought them and… wow. Where do I even begin? Went ahead and started to buy tips, cables, another IEM the Ety ER2XR, then a small source, BTR3K by FiiO … Then, I found HFGF.
The rest is history. I have been able to demo and try so many IEMs this year that I would of never even dreamed of hearing but not only that, after 6 months with the Timeless, I was finally ready to go full lunatic mode and drop a Kilobuck on the Monarchs MKII. Since then, I’ve heard and owned more IEMs than any one person needs, admittedly. I have learned so much. It is all thanks to the generosity and kindness within this small circle here. It’s all thanks to you.
I couldn’t be more grateful. My audio experience this year has improved my life dramatically and I mean that. That includes you guys, so thank you. A special thank you to everyone who I’ve personally connected with - my experiences with you all cannot be valued. They are priceless to me.
@GooberBM @nymz @MMag05 @JAnonymous5150 @rattlingblanketwoman @Rikudou_Goku @Sonofholhorse @VIVIDICI_111 @cal_lando @hawaiibadboy And so many more. I can only tag 10 people at a time but there are 100% a lot of people missing.
Thank you all.
Here’s to 2023, guys 
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Cheers, brother.
Two and a half weeks and we bring in 2023 in REAL style!
Looking forward to it
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Cheers to that! Here’s to a great 2023! 
Seriously though, I have only been a member of HFG for a few short months (did some lurking before that) and it has quickly become my favorite place to talk gear, music, audio, and even life in general. I have been amazed at the generosity and community spirit that is fostered here. It just feels so much different and more inviting compared to some other forums/subreddits.
Folks like you made me feel welcome from the jump and quickly made me a part if this community and I couldn’t be more thankful. Thanks to @domq422 and all the other guys on here that have been part of making this such a cool place for me.
Happy New Year to everyone! 
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Ohhhh shit - you know it, my guy, looking forward to it for sure!
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Hey, man - can I just say something? Even though you’ve only been on here for a few short months, you’re one of the most helpful, thoughtful and active people on these forums and I can feel the passion that you have for this hobby.
I genuinely appreciate all the work you’ve put in and I’m looking forward to what 2023 will bring all of us!
Tanti auguri di buon anno!
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Aw shucks… 
Now I’ve got the warm and fuzzies! Thanks for the kind words, bro. You’re the best!
I have a question for everyone since we’re talking about the new year. What’s your goal for your IEM collection in 2023? Do you just want to experience new things and keep growing yout collection? Establish a stable rotation? Consolidate to a few sets and get rid of some that you’ve picked up along your journey up to now? Or what? I’d just be interested to read what goals you guys have in mind in order to make 2023 your best IEM year yet.
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Eyyyyyyy I mean it, man! Truly. I appreciate you!
I actually meant to write down my goals for 2023.
For me, my main goal is exploring desktop setups in the form of DAC/Amp combos coupled with Over ear headphones. I am completely in the dark on both of these fronts and I’d love to finally dive in head first. Outside of a few sets I’m curious about, my IEM space is well filled and I don’t think I should buy anything more outside of pure curiosity.
Come Tax return season, I’m hoping to budget my self for a solid static setup I can enjoy whilst at my desk for sure. How about yourself?
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I know you mean it. That’s why its so cool/nice! You’re one of those people who I can tell is just a genuine guy from the start without even meeting you.
I am gonna be touring for most of 2023 aside from a couple short breaks so I probably won’t make too many purchases. That said, with what I added this year I feel like I have a very solid lineup and I want to spend some serious time with my collection and figure out where everything fits and determine what areas, if any, I need and/or want to improve upon. Thankfull with all the travel time involved, I will have plenty of time to do just that.
The second half of this year has been a crazy period of buying and assembling a great lineup in anticipation of 2023 being spent almost entirely on the road and I think I have been VERY successful in accomplishing that. So I think 2023 will mostly be about enjoying with maybe a couple moves aimed at refining my rotation and that’s it. Now we’ll see if it actually works out that way lol! 
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Here here!
My audio journey started at the beginning of this year when my work offered me $200 for new headphones. After a year I ended up spending almost 5x that but it’s been worth it because I got to interact with everyone here and become part of a community I greatly admire! I appreciate everyone who has helped me on my journey and I am honored that I could have helped even just one person!
I wish everyone a happy new year!
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Waiting more impressions doing A/B with Monarch MKII. Thanks.
Also I hope JAnonymous5150 is getting them in few days.
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Mine are actually waiting for me at my house. I wasn’t expecting them until Monday or Tuesday, but I guess I got lucky. I won’t be home for a couple hours and I have to get things ready for a New Years get together we’re having at my pad, but I’ll try to get a quick listen in if I can.
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Here’s a comparison between three tracks for the Thieaudio MKII vs the Prestige:
Ed Sheeran - Perfect Symphony
At the start of the song, the bass guitar is a LOT more forward in the mix with the Prestige vs the MKII, a bit boomier I might add. Both sets are resolving about equally and accomplish that in different ways. The MKII is more recessed in the bass presence, and combined with its more intimate presentation, make the midrange sound a lot clearer/crisper. The Prestige’s bass is elevated, which would’ve masked the treble if it wasn’t for the great extension and presence, so they tend to counteract each other. If you lessen the seal for the Prestige, it adversely effects this, hence, the metallic overtones I was hearing in my previous observation with shallower tips.
The strings have more perceived detail in the Prestige over the MKII, but the opposite is true for the Hi-hats. Everything is more in-your-face on the MKII vs the Prestige which is slightly pulled away from the listener with more cohesion between elements.
Madeon - All My Friends
Vocals are again center stage on the MKII, but the Prestige SLAMS, with the bass line being much more audible in the mix. The Prestige is more intense for this song.
I don’t have much else to say here, since the same observations from earlier hold true here. A lot more CLARITY (not resolution) on the MKII when it comes to elements that live in the mids and lower-treble, but you don’t get the slightly more cohesive/spaced presentation of the Prestige with the present bass and extended treble.
Julian Lage - I’ll be Seeing You (Live)
The bass is a lot more tactile, and present on the Prestige, but the small movements like shirts brushing against the instruments, and general movement are clearer on the MKII —not to say that they aren’t audible on the Prestige, but they’re recessed. Cymbals sound noticeably clearer on the MKII, but the presentation is like being in a small bubble center of the performers, so the Prestige sounds more right here. Percussion is more elevated on the Prestige, very resounding and tactile (almost a bit too intense volume-matched.)
My main takeaways are that both have pros and cons, and it really boils down to music you listen to. If you listen to genres that token more bass presence and sound better with that commercial, v-shaped sound signature (not to say that this IEM is that kind of v-shape), the Prestige is probably the better pick. If you really want to dissect the mids and want a lot of clarity, sacrificing some presentation/imaging accuracy, the MKII is the better pick.
**
A fun experiment I do is to take “8D Audio” tracks (which is just stereo panning) and use that to compare relative soundstage width (and consequently treble performance.) The MKII extends to the edge of my outer-ear with less clarity while the Prestige goes out an inch with more vocal clarity.
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Awesome breakdown! You did this just to get me all worked up for when I get home, didn’t you? Thanks for sharing this. Your impressions here make me think the Prestige are likely going to come out more or less as I have been imagining them, which would be a very good thing. I’m looking for a v-shaped tuning with some refinement something akin to a more polished Excalibur and it sounds like the Prestige presents along those lines. 
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This is exactly what you’re looking for then. I’d also say, akin to my experience, to tip roll this set. I was getting (or at least I thought I was) decent seal with the stock tips, but my experience improved with thicker-tubed silicone tips that went further in the ear canal. With any tip you still get the large bass, but the control is better with a good seal. The bass then properly masks the treble enough to get rid of upper-treble sibilance, etc. etc. like intended.
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