Do keep in mind though, that the most important part with monitoring is that you yourself KNOW how the transducer you are using performs. So its better to use something you are familiar with.
And it is also recommended to have multiple transducers with varying tonalities so you know how the music you create sounds on them.
For example, if someone is making OSTs/music for a game meant for the nintendo switch, you are obviously going to want to listen to how they sound on the actual switch speakers. While if you are making music meant to be played on the radio, then maybe checking out how it sounds on car speakers would be optimal.
And maybe check how it sounds on mainstream products that the majority of people use, like Airpods.
Is the person looking to do monitoring work or mastering. Those 2 things are different and its pretty common to see beyerdynamics used for the mastering side. As you mentioned they are not for monitoring usually which are what the Sonyās are but those treble peaks are more of a desired thing when it comes to mastering to not overly boost the treble. I donāt know anybody that takes the pair of sonyās for mastering. You might want to check out this thread on gearspace if you want to play around with more pro audio stuff.
I would agree with the guys above that overears are probably better for mastering work but I imagine your doing full service from producing to mixing to live to mastering for those genres - then IEMs may offer a better value & UX point if you need to stay under ā¬200.
At that price try the Aful Performer 5 - they are around ā¬170ish with a set of S&S tips in the current sale. Monitor neutral tuning with a bass boost. The gripes that audiophiles have with the set around soundstage will not apply so much if your using these as part of your production or DJ/live work.
The Fiio is a little outdated and over priced in the current market. As also pointed out its tuning wouldnāt work well for mixing /mastering
Iām going to lay it here first. The Neon Pro is over hyped. Of course Iām saying this as my pure opinion to my preference. For me in switch down mode the tuning is already a no go. Way to bass light with no authority to kick drums and bass guitar. No harm there though as I knew it would be before purchasing. In bass mode pick any track with huskier/deeper male vocals even more apparent when itās a busy song and itās flaw becomes very apparent. Vocals just get congested and swallowed into the mix and sound like someone a week into a horrible cold talking. I was able to solve the issue, thanks @GooberBM for rec, by doing a 225Hz -2.5db Q1 EQ. Unfortunately Iām not into EQing a set so expensive to fix issues when cheaper sets already do it without EQ.
If your willing to look past that issue itās a great set. Even more so if you enjoy it in both configs and get more versatility out of it. The midbass congestion is none existent in switch down mode. Still think cheaper sets come at just as strong though and even surpass it and you could come out with two sets and more versatility for the asking price. Its unfortunate for me though because a lot of talk is hailing this a great all arounder and Iām not hearing it with the mentioned issues to midbass and vocals.
I appreciate the tips! I looked these up and unfortunately it seems that these go for a bit more than 200 on Ebay and AliExpress (considering shipping as well)ā¦ another consideration I had was the build quality of the FD5ās since it seemed that they could last for a while
Iām sorry if I am being a bit annoying in terms of my lack of knowledge in this back and forth, because I am still confused about all of the different aspects of consideration here. If you have any more suggestions they would be greatly appreciate!
Also appreciate all the help from everyone so far
All 10 drivers and do not separate the vocals. None of the mentioned problems are present in SA6 MK2, with only 6 drivers. Good thing I didnāt go for AuR audio. In fact, this could not be done, because I was looking for a certain setting and technical parameters. EQ of an expensive IEM - this is sacrilege.
EQ if you want it? Sure thing. EQ that you have to do to be useable? Not at that price lol
If that $180 line is a hard one that you canāt pass, look up these couple of IEMs if you have criteria of ābalanced soundā, āa bit of extra bassā, and āsound stagingā
Letshuoer x Gizaudio Galileo: at $90-110, from what Iāve heard about it, thatās going to cover you completely on balanced sound, especially if Performer5 is beyond your budget constraints
Tripowin x HBB Olina SE: A lot of the same as above, but I actually have experience with this one. This will get you a balanced sound but could be a little light for āextra bassā
Tri Starsea: If you would be okay with vocals that are more forward than Olina SE, this is easily a pretty balanced set with very good sound staging. Some people have gotten pressure build-up in their ears using these but Iāve never had a problem with that and these are a better sound overall than Olina, to my taste.
Fiio JD7: If you really want a Fiio, this is the one I would recommend to anybody, anytime, period.
Meteor have worse technical parameters and a worse scene. But they have more bass. If we take that for the better, so be it. I doubt they are better at anything. HBB doesnāt like the MK2 tuning and therefore puts it under Meteor. In fact, DUNU hit well above the price!
And the quality of workmanship and fit is 1000% better with DUNU. So if you want, trust HBB
I canāt argue that but, damn itās so fun to listen to. Itās currently one of my favorite sets to just throw on get phat thick bass slaps. Only second to Glamdring which unfortunately is limited in release. Vocals could be better on some tracks with Meteor but, I donāt find the issue as apparent as the Neon Pro.
Canāt agree enough with this
Iām fine EQing an IEM if itās less than $100 but if Iām paying much more than that I expect the tuning to at least be close enough to my preference without any EQ and yeah the neon just looks too muddy to me
Haha yeah just my 2c but I remember doing piano transcriptions and stuff way back in the day on airpods and some super cheap I think they were Skullcandy earbuds? As you said if it gets the job done then itās good enough
I suspect tons of hip hop artists use beats for their stuff so yeahā¦ Haha!
Very true! Hell I do everything I do right now on a pair of 25 dollar Logitech speakers+subwoofer (and an occasional listen through heavily bass boosted headphones / awful earphones), Iām pretty proud of my mixing/mastering work and Iāve done commercial work before! Iām sure better hardware could help me do what I do, but I certainly agree that you donāt need it to get the job done for a lot of different jobs!
