IEM discussion thread (Part 1)

IEMs / Other In-Ear Monitors (IEM)
5629

Oh boyo a new playground has been discovered with this AutoEQ thing.
I created a github repo where I’ll commit all my profiles:

Feel free to contribute.
This is currently only what I played around today.

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Some fun and interesting profiles are.

  • Tripowin HBB Olina x Fatfreq Maestro Mini
  • Moondrop Variations x Mangird Xenns Top
  • Kiwi Ears Cadenza x Softears Twilight
  • TRN ST5 x Huawei Freebuds Pro 2 + High Shelf

There’s a lot more profiles to follow. The possibilities are almost endless.
Right now I only use the APO profiles.

To Do:

  • Create APO/wavelet converter script
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5630

Olina on the maestro mini signature is not where I expected today to go :face_with_raised_eyebrow:

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5631

Cadenza transformed into Softears Twilight?! what a bold move!!

Your repo sure does interest me; I take this page in my bookmarks and visit it a bit later, when I’ll have a litlle more time…

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5632

Just keep in mind that there isn’t a negative pre-amp for EQ’d files so it might clip if there is any +dBs.

5633

Mine should be here tomorrow or Monday. I didn’t get that initial wow from the Monarchs, but I could hear the potential for greatness and I did really like them. The graphs of the Prestige make it look like a version of the Monarch with tuning changes exactly where I would like them so I’m still keeping my fingers crossed that they’re closer to that than what you’re hearing.

Sorry they aren’t an immediate home run for you, though.

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5634

Spent the last hour-or-so doing tip swaps. My findings are that deep-insertion/qdc double-flanged tips are necessary for the Prestige to sound its best, and actually end up fixing a lot of the initial gripes I had with the set (less boominess and a lot more mid-clarity.) On the opposite end, the MKII I find is nice as a shallow fit with the 7hz horn tips, but when I use the double-flanged tips, the mids get borked/unresolving. I don’t suggest foams for either one.

(I forgot to mention I received the MKII only a few days prior, so I’m at an initial listening phase with both)

It’s amazing how temperamental IEMs are when it comes to tips/seal/etc. They’re toe to toe now in performance, imo, and any future comparisons will be based on that. Apologies if I threw some people off there, but I think describing the process might be helpful to some. I try to eschew any potential psychoacoustic bias by reporting my initial testing thoughts, but tip-rolling is really important as well.

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5635

Nice to hear that they’re shaping up for you afterall! :metal::sunglasses:

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5636

Since it’s the end of the year, I opened a thread out of curiosity on what others’ value pick is this year (since the market has been so hectic and fast moving). Come say hi! What's your value/budget IEM pick for 2022?

Also, new vid :slight_smile:

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5637

Kinera has partnered with the legendary audio reviewer, Z Reviews (ZeosPantera):thinking:…

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5638

I made a little bit of tidying in my “audio drawer”, and I have found a piece that belongs to a museum:

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Behold the almighty Sony xba-C10B.AE !!
I bought them in November 2014 for the eye tearing price of 33.11€.
They were a gift for my wife, and she used them… Twice iirc…

The tips are genuine, but I’m very good shape regarding the conditions they were stored in. The specs say they are a BA set.

I just listened to it and they actually don’t sound that bad. They are warm of course, but not too boomy. The thing they lack, really, is extension in both ways.
Looking back at the specs, no wonder why: they are 100Hz-15kHz. A set that would go out nowadays with that kind of spec would be immediately trashed…

Here is a graph I found on the Web (the axis may be shit, I adjusted them but not very precisely):

The tips are good but a little small, so they need a deep insertion. The separation and resolution aren’t great but again, at 30 bucks in 2014…

I’ll have a little fun tip rolling these, see if I can squeeze a little more performance out of it :slightly_smiling_face:

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5639

well, damn, that is a gem.

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At least 45 usd currently. (used)

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5640

I saw it at 65€ on a french store. I didn’t pay attention wether it was new or used though.

5641

Prestige are out for delivery! I’m quite excited for this IEM. I hope they sound just like the graph indicates they will. :crossed_fingers:

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5642

Here’s hoping you enjoy them or find something special about them contrary to the others! Good luck, brother.

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5643

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…:crossed_fingers:

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5644

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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5645

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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5646

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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5647

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 :sparkler:

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5648

Cheers, brother.

Two and a half weeks and we bring in 2023 in REAL style!

Looking forward to it

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