IEM discussion thread (Part 1)

I would say yeah $600-700 hundy.

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I wouldn’t trade my Z1R even with ++ :dollar: for that set…No DD no :handshake:

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If IEM prices continue to rise:
shame hot fuzz
:grinning:

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No more than $550 imo since they go on sale a lot.

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It’s a weird thing: Name-brand and boutique brands (your Dunu, Penon, this Hidizs, Letshuoer, etc.) prices are higher than the market dictates.

These untested chi-fi brands (7Hz this time last year, Aful, Juzear, Sound Rhyme etc.) are crashing the party and moving the market downward.

It’s a fun time to be alive in the hobby!

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I’ve posted my impressions of the TinHiFi C2, C3, and C5 in my HiFiGuides thread:

Some ISN EST50 food for thought. Still need more free time to get some more detailed thoughts down. First I think it’s fascinating that there’s not really any graphs floating around these. As an EST set priced at $449 it’s easily punching in a class with the big boys priced $200 more. This set needs a graph and I feel like it may be my duty to do so, whether it’s sending them out or finally caving and ordering an IEC711 coupler myself.

In my preference line, warm bass and smooth darker treble, these are a phenomenal set. There’s a elevated bass presence that I wouldn’t say fits basshead level but, sits somewhere between the Mahina and UP. UP punches more in the midbass on hits and has faster attack and decay where the Mahina seems a bit slower and hits a bit deeper in the sub bass and and has longer decay. EST50 seems to be somewhere right in the middle of the two.

I can’t comment on accessories and such as my set was purchased used and not with the box. Currently I’m using Spinfit CP100s on it. The fit and weight are phenomenal. If you’ve tried the Moonlight or Mahina I’d say they’re very similar. For me the Mahina was the closest I’ve gotten to a CIEM before these which are slightly better.

Treble is smooth, airy and well extended. It’s on the side of what I consider bordering darker so, this is not a set for treble heads or those that like some sizzle. If you want to crank the volume or enjoy them all day the EST50 is an easy win.

Vocals are meaty and rich. I don’t sense any sibilance. Overall I’d say the set favors male vocals as female vocals can sometimes come off a tad nasally. The tuning gives alot of extra thickness to male vocals. They’re slightly forward and not as intimate as the UP but, still have some intimacy to them.

Staging and imaging are great and rival a lot of the EST sets I’ve heard priced higher. It’s a hard call but I’d almost place them right behind the EJ07.

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TLDR: Looking for an Amp/Dac for OG EJ07. Considering G5 299$ New Mojo (1) 180$ Used - Xduoo XD-05 BAL 250$ Open Box - Dethonray SG1 299$ New

Hello ALL! Long time lurker seldom poster looking for some advice. Little backstory a few days ago on the US Amazon LetShuoer store everything was discounted 10%, 20% or a massive 40% off at checkout. EJ07 / 7m / 9 / Conductor all were 20% off.

The OG EJ07 always pulled me in with the squigs and cult-like following. Every time this set has gone on sale in the past year (or so) I seem to always have had other IEM’s and headphones in my rotation. That being said over the past year I have sold or gifted mostly all of my audio gear.

The last IEM - DAP combo I used was a UM Mest MKII with an IBasso DX300 *12 Unfortunately those hit the selling block a few months ago when I started to fall out of the hobby. The OG EJ07 was going to be my next IEM in the journey. Once I saw that 20% off 899$ I knew it was time.

I won’t have the EJ07 in for at least another few weeks if not longer. I was hoping other EJ07 owners might be able to shed some light on how they will pair with those particular Amp/Dac choices…

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Well said! Very cool to hear comparisons with more well-known sets. I have to admit, these impressed me way more than the Xenns Top I got a few days before the EST50. In a blind comparison, I would have guessed the EST50 was way more expensive than the Top, both build quality, looks and sound-wise.

A small comment on accessories: It’s pretty bare-bone inside the box, but not bad at all. Decent carrying case, the cable is also decent, albeit without ear hooks, so the cable takes a bit more fiddling around with to get the fit right, in my experience. The tips that follow are surprisingly good, specifically the grey ones that are reminiscent of spinfit tips. Also comes with a shirt clip. That’s it.

At the moment, I’m enjoying these so much that for the first time, I’m not considering any higher priced IEMs for a bass-emphasized tuning. I also think they look absolutely beautiful (I’m a sucker for the green colour-scheme)

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I haven’t had an EJ07 OG in some time now, but I was using my newly-acquired Topping G5 (amping my Hiby r3 pro) to run both my EJ07M Kinda Lava and Subtonic Storm last night during a power outage, and it did just fine! The Kinda Lava hit good volumes on the low-gain setting while the Storm (which is imfamously thirsty, in my experience even moreso than the 300 ohm Serratus on a single-ended 3.5) needed medium gain and volume closer to 12:00 on tracks I have set to 89db. The sound in my experience is basically transparent from the G5 as a pure amp (i.e. exactly what I hear out of my Hiby, just with more juice/headroom/dynamism as a result). I have not tried the DAC output yet, will report back later this week if you want.
I would say that the G5, assuming it meets all of your other needs/parameters, is a safe bet for the EJ07 OG. Just note that the 4.4 balance output on the G5 is not a TRUE balanced output, if that matters to you.

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I wonder how much this Kinera Loki will cost?

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Does this look like a good price for a coupler setup and anyone have any experience with the seller College Shop Store? Or perhaps an alternative being US based

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I would say so. I think that I could see my self enjoying the OG EJs as munch as my pair of Monarchs which I paid full retail for - So if you ask me, $650 isn’t a big number when it comes to the sound they produce. But again, that’s me. YMMV

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I was pleasantly surprised by the bass reply on the U12t, they do sound like they have a DD in there. But keep in mind, I’ve never heard the Z1R, and I’ve only heard about it’s legendary status by now. I don’t think the bass at least could compare.

Edit: Sorry for the double post, trying to catch up on the thread!

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I bought from them and I’m currently running into issues with measurements. I think it’s the soundcard, but your luck may vary!

That is where I and many other people ordered from.

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Fiio K7 is fantastic with my EJ07m KL and with pretty much everything I use it with
Very linear/clean sound but with a smoothnes to it and never too aggressive, I highly recommend it!

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Excellent write up, mine come next week and looking forward to a shootout with the EJ07M and the MS5 Dark angel.

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Let me know how you make out I think I will also get a graphing set.!

Ordered will update everyone when it’s eventually received.

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