Creative Aurvana Ace 2 TWS first impressions:
My first thought will be about the bass. The good: emphasis on sub-bass provides deep reaching rumbly sub-bass. This is very satisfying and great for hip-hop and pop. The bad: the tuning lacks mid bass which makes music sound flat and lacking bass impact. Bass guitar in rock music is pretty much non existent not even in impact but in SPL as well. In classical music, cellos were difficult to hear even.
The vocals are pretty neutral, maybe recessed a little bit but it didn’t bother me or sounded wrong. It’s just not a vocal forward sounding IEM but it may sound vocal forward when the music doesn’t have sub-bass.
The upper treble is safe but not dark and I didn’t experience any sibilance. On graph, the upper treble look rolled-off but it doesn’t sound like that to my ears. Cymbals are nicely presented without being overly sharp or splashy. I believe that the xMems tweeter allows for this tuning; to offer good sub-bass separation without affecting the upper treble negatively (is there a crossover in there?)
Overall, the Aurvana Ace 2 is not as balanced as other IEMs like the Cadenza 4 but it shines by the strong sub-bass and upper treble presence (U shape?) that works really well for hip-hop, pop and some electro genres and minimal vocal music; or any that doesn’t require mid bass.
Today i was flooded with goodies
New phone arrived (Vivo x100 Pro taking the pictures)
And also the Grand Maestro himself came for a demo tour backed up by Fiio Q15 and IBasso DC-Elite
Where to start?
For whatever it´s woth here are some impressions after a few minutes.
Black module + vocal switch down = bassy, too muffled, vocals not clear/prominent enough
Black module + vocal switch up = much better balanced, sometimes too much (something in between the switch configuration would be perfect imho)
Blue module + vocal switch down = less bassy, sweet spot so far, best balance
Blue module + vocal switch up = too shouty
I know these are some very quick impressions, but do you need much more to get the main idea? In most cases I don´t think so, especially when what the switch is doing is so so evident and in your face.
I like the vocal switch and that you can use it while listening but its just too much, better call it shoutswitch
Blue module + vocal switch down could use a tiny bit more bass for my taste so ideally a module which is between the black and the blue one.
IBasso DC-Elite has a really bad design.
The volume wheel is really hard to turn. When it is lying on the table you can not really change the volume so you need to put it in your hand, hold it vertically, and then you can adjust the volume while the really hard and edgy corner of the housing is torturing your palm
Sounds very warm and analogue might be good with analytical IEMs.
This goes straight back into its Box.
I might sound a bit harsh today but there´s already too much praise for almost any product out there
I also love the look and also the materials are nice but the handling is an absolute fail.
Q15 is much better in handling and I also prefer its sound which is not so warm but still a bit too warm and a bit too beefy in the bass and I much prefer Zen Dac v2 which, suprisingly, is less warm/bassy compared to Q15.
I was eying Q15 all the time and had high hopes but I guess I just much prefer less warm/coloured sources.
For me, soundwise: G5>Q15 features: Q15>G5
Oh and G5 also wins at having the best volume wheel
Very interesting, I appreciate all the input on these sources, brother. The Q15 looks like an absolute BEAST of a unit. I can’t believe that thing is portable! haha
You are welcome brother!
I really like the Form factor and heft…its portable in the sense of moving it from your desk to the couch but i would not want to walk around with it in my Pocket.
BTR7 is still the way to go imho.
Or BTR15 that thing is stupidly good If you like uncoloured very open sound.
Definitely. The Q15 is one of those ‘portable’ desktop solutions which I assume would be really good for someone who travels a lot but still needs the music with them!
The BTR7 is still bae, I think that little source does a lot in such a tiny package. The Muse M4 is also really good as well! It has a fun sound with great bass punch, especially when using it wired. The FiiO KA17 is another little dongle I couldn’t recommend more. It really impressed me at CanJam! Very warm and impactful presentation with great techs for just $150. 650 mW of power as well!
I’m looking for specific ear tips that came with the OG Teas, they fit wonderfully with my ear anatomy and work for almost all of my IEMs with excellent seal and isolation. I think I prefer them over the Dunu S&S which I very much like.
I’ve looked everywhere I can so any help is much appreciated. For those that have them and have similar alternatives to share is of course welcome.
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