I mean apart from that being the most likely true statement (it shows on measurements up to 18,5kHz that they are completely linear in whole FR range up to 0,1dB with close to no distortion) I dont think that Topping of all companies would say anything different than that their DAC/AMPs are completely transparent (how they all apart from tube amps should be in my opinion).
4 Likes
Fits great! Similar shape to the OG Tea.
4 Likes
Good to know about the shape!
I was afraid that could be similar to Blessing2/Dusk shells like Orchestra Lite is.
Put in an order on Amazon.ca. Should be getting them next Wednesday.
Excited to try them out.
What are your first impressions of them? (sorry if you’ve posted earlier…just haven’t had chance to scroll back on older posts)
So I got the KZ AZ15. It has a pretty noisy floor especially with the PR2 but even with the ZVX it’s noticeable 
Otherwise sounds fine for half the price of the UTWS3.
Actually the ZVX really surprised me! Terrific IEM for the price! Technicalities of the Salnotes Zero but with the bass of the Hola! It’s my new budget king 
2 Likes
Hey guys, happy Saturday~ It’s Quartet time. But before we get started, I gotta say I’m really digging this purple look of the shell, kiwi ears just don’t miss, or mess around when it comes to design. But, how does it sound? Well, let’s jump into it.
Starting off with the low-end, depending on the switch the sound can be anywhere from warm, to slight bass boost. One of the switches controls the bass, and the other controls the upper mids/treble, and you can have both of them on, one on one off, or all off. My favourite is with all the switches off since it sounds the most natural to me, or in the instances when I want to have some fun I’d flip the bass switch on. But how does the bass actually sound? Very good actually. With the bass switch on the Quartet has great low-end texture just like the EA500 with the major difference being that you’re getting more bass, and an improvement in the sub-bass where notes are better extended, travels deeper, and the rumble is more clear and satisfying, so basically an EA500 with more mid-bass, and better sub-bass.
And with the bass switch off, the amount of bass is around the same as the EA500. So overall, very high quality bass, textured, well-separated bass notes, authoritative, slams nice, and you get that physical feeling of the air impact, but also very well controlled even at higher volumes, so I guess that’s where the extra DD comes in. Tracks like Time and GKMC are prefect on the Quartet, as well as other hiphop and EDM genres. It’s not Rosefinch or Legato amount of bass, but it’s overall better and a welcomed upgrade over the EA500 if you wanted more bass, especially with the extra switches you can play around with.
Now, with all the switches off the Quartet sounds warm-leaning like the EA500, but without the treble harshness. Vocals are going to be more forward versus the Quarks and Tanya DSP, and not as open and light with voices having more husk and weight behind them. I guess you can say they’re slightly coloured, but it’s not congested or lacking extension, just closer. There is still a little masking even with the bass switch off since the bass is forward-leaning and takes away focus from vocals and other instruments, like in First Love for example, but overall it’s still tastefully done and not congesting the stage.
However, this can’t be said with the bass-switch on - with the bass switch on there’s masking, oh ya, no doubt about it. It’s not bloated or muddy since the quality is still great, but your focus is going to be almost entirely on the bass, and since vocals and instruments are more forward along with the in-your-face bass, separation and staging does end up taking a hit and doesn’t feel as open versus the switch off. Even though imaging is sharp, precise, doesn’t float off and is very accurate and probably one of the best under $200 - things just get too crowded sometimes with certain notes being emphasised more and feels more grouped together for example on busier tracks like Strangest Thing and Venice Bitch, but, the bass is fun as hell though.
Vocals can also feel buried, especially on busier rock tracks, and not fully extended with the bass switch, but that’s kinda fixed with the treble switch, but it’s still not very smooth, and gets peaky and fatiguing at higher volumes. And with both the switches on the Quartet becomes more v-shaped, and makes everything more exciting at the cost of pushed back mids because there’s so much emphasis on the low-end on top of the added high-end. Personally, if you like mids like me then keep all the switches off.
Lastly, how’s the treble? Well… I have mixed feelings. With all the switches off the treble is nicely extended without getting fatiguing even at louder volumes, unless you’re blasting your brains out. Now I wouldn’t say it’s perfectly smooth since there is a little unevenness, but I don’t hear any major peaks masking other parts of the frequency, and it does add a nice sharpness to notes helping with the overall resolution. Electric guitars have great energy and bite to them while not being light and thin, and ya the Quartet isn’t the airiest when it comes to cymbals, but the decay is still extended and not dull. In my opinion, the treble switch should only be used if you’re listening at mid volume or else it just ends up getting too fatiguing and sharp, especially in the uppermids where vocals start getting shouty.
So if it wasn’t obvious enough, out of all the switches my favourite combination would either be with all the switches off, or only the bass switch on. I just don’t think the treble is refined enough to be an option on its own, and to me, no switches just sounds the most natural and extends the best dynamically since it’s a fairly straight line with no drastic elevations. And if I wanted to have some fun, then I’d turn the bass on and crank it up. It’s not the same experience with the treble and bass switch on because it doesn’t scale as well since the treble can get fatiguing and distracts you from the bass and immersion.
In conclusion, the Quartet to me is the best all rounder around $100 since you get so many options with the switches, and it’s actually well tuned unlike the JOYODIO Shine which also had a lot of switches but sounds really bad. The Quartet is probably the best bass set around its price as well, and with the bass switch on it’s like an upgraded EA500 with more low-end immersion, rumble, and tamer treble. But, it’s not going to be as open or neutral as the Hexa or the Tanya and Quarks DSP, which all have better separation and dynamics.
Then you also got the P1 Max which is also warm-leaning but with smoother treble and more mid-centric, and also the Galileo which is my favourite for vocals at around $100 but at the cost of darker treble. So, there are tons of options depending on what you prioritize, the PR2 is also a fantastic option if you want an all rounder with just 1 tuning and no switches, but regardless, I recommend the Quartet since it’s a safe pick and a great bass set that brings a lot of variety you can try out. Plus, it looks absolutely amazing.
Thanks for reading 
19 Likes
Oh my…
Every new IEM coming out (be it 41T, EA500 or the above mentioned Quartet) seems to be the best $xxx you can spend right now.
Turns out that if you sum up all the money spent on each of them, you could get yourself some custom TOTL…
10 Likes
Or you can 3-4 VERY good IEMs with different flavors for different moods.
In chess terms: 3 bishop/knights are functionally equivalent to 1 queen
14 Likes
Gotta throw a rook in there as well 
1 Like
Welp found out a definite con of the ZVX. It’s very non-isolating! Sitting here at the gym with the volume at dangerous listening levels and I can still hear everything 
1 Like
8 Likes
You already are listening to that, it’s EN1000 lol
2 Likes
Wellllll we can’t have the best of both worlds It’s not too bad, but don’t go expecting Variations or OG Monarch levels of clarity/separation, or Hexa
2 Likes
How are we even friends, when we have such opposed preferences of midbass? 
2 Likes
Oh, I love mid-bass - just not with certain genres. For most of my library I’d take an EJ07M style of bass-shelf, but for the odd hiphop session I’ll pull out the Rosefinch or something
2 Likes
Anybody take a look at the XSL X-One Iem?
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805089886631.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.3.64e4226fq9D62w&algo_pvid=a3d3ad0d-3b06-4977-91a5-810cb17fb307&algo_exp_id=a3d3ad0d-3b06-4977-91a5-810cb17fb307-1&pdp_npi=3%40dis!USD!110.0!45.1!!!!!%4021227a0f16840966006762457d0788!12000032454455711!sea!US!2265345790&curPageLogUid=WHEK8BmTm4zY
I seen some people tear it down and say that it has like the same or similar driver to the MiM Dark Magician. Only person that I had seen talk about it is like Akron on youtube and Kenyon on headfi.
1 Like
Supposedly Penon will list their 10th Anniversary IEM on their web page today, 15/05.
I wonder if they fixed the security issues, cause something tells me that a lot of people are gonna put an order for it.
It’s live and is $500 yikes that’s a bit higher than a lot of guesses around here
1 Like