Do you guys think that Starfields are good timber/tonality-wise if I listen mainly to classical music? Going to be driven with Apple dongle and directly from phone. If drivability is an issue, any recommendations with good timbre/natural sound for about the same price?
No experience in IEM’s so this is going to be my first and I have absolutely no clue lol
The starfield probably lacks some brightness to go for the violins. They are seen as a jack of all trades master of none kinda iem. HZ heart mirror is cheaper and should be better suited for you.
Okay thank you i’ll check them out. How’s the drivability on these? Can they be driven from phone and dongle directly with decent performance? Since IEMs will mostly be for portable uses
they should be fine with any source
To my mind there’s no excuse for budget IEMs that require an amp. And I doubt there are many.
well, there shouldnt be really sensitive neither,
imagine plugging some picky ones into a dirty onboard audio
Good point, although I guess that’s why eventually one has to jump up to a dac, even just a cheap dongle dac can clean that up, no?
You can get the sonata hd pro dongle. Should be a big jump for a small price.
I have one. And it does a fine job. I stopped using it when I got first an ES100 and then a BTR5 after the es100 died. But only because they do more things.
If you got the btr5, you should be fine.
Unless you go up to the 300 usd range for iems, then you might want a better source. Like the ifi hip dac.
and unless tin P1 happens
Haha, yeah. But that one is one of the exceptions lol.
Tripowin TC-01 for $50.
A bit late to the party, but…
Considering the majority of my library is classical music (Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Early & Late Romantic), pipe organ, orchestral and symphonic, I have to say that these BGVP DM8’s with the W01 “Vocal” ear tips installed are strongest with this type of music.
I grew up with classical music in my blood, worked on and played the pipe organ, also played the upright bass in orchestra for 6+ years, as well as the cello, viola and violin, and the piano.
Over the years I’ve had a number of Sennheiser HD600’s, 650’s, AKG K701’s, a couple different Grado’s and Byerdynamic’s 880’s and 990’s, and Dan Clark’s original Mr Speakers Mad Dog’s with his upgraded pads.
Out of all of those, the K701’s were the best for all classical music and only lacked a bit in the bass department when it came to pipe organ. With that being said, these DM8’s even best the K701’s as far as a neutral presentation is concerned, and the DM8’s excel in detail and dynamics. They even do really good with those extremely low pedal notes on the organ. Considering these are an all BA design, that’s saying something.
Unfortunately, these DM8’s really don’t get the recognition that I think they deserve.
Yes, these are my first IEM’s and I know there’s others out there that will better these, but at what cost I don’t know. I know good sound, I know good sounding headphones, and I know these DM8’s sound considerably better than any of the headphones I’ve had in the past, and those were all powered with either a Cary Audio Sli80, an extremely modified and hot-rodded tube headphone amp or a Headamp Cosmic Reference. So those cans weren’t lacking quality amplification at all.
Anywho, just thought I put in my 2 cents.
At the price range of the DM8, the Tanchjim Oxygen is very likely to be better due to it being a single DD and timbre is exceptionally good with it along with a tuning suited for classical.
Otherwise I bet even the Aiderlot M5 (200 usd) is better for classic music than the DM8.
From the freq charts I’ve seen and the reviews I’ve read, I highly doubt either of those can do what the DM8’s do with classical music.
Always so much hate for the DM8’s.
Dangerous statement that?..
Hate? Not at all, but BA iems simply cant compete with DD iems when it comes to timbre. And that is the nr 1 priority for genres like classical/acoustic.
Listening to Beethoven’s Piano sonatas with the P1’s…they nail this with a iFi iDSD Micro source…for small money they’re up there imho.
Edit they need 
to achieve 
All I’m telling you is what I’m hearing. Being intimately familiar with the instruments involved and what an orchestra, pipe organ, etc, etc sound like in person up close and personal, and from the audiences’ point of view, I’d say these DM8’s are doing a rather convincing job with the timbre, tonality, etc, etc.
And I know everyone says that BA’s have a metallic sound to them, and I did in fact hear that with the KZ Zax that I had for a very brief period of time, but that metallic sound is totally non-existent with the DM8’s.
I’ve got probably just over 100 hours on these DM8’s now, and I don’t hear any colorations or artifacts, but simply a pretty faithful reproduction of the real thing, depending on the recording quality of course.
I’m not saying those other IEM’s mentioned are bad or worse than the DM8’s. Just from judging from the charts and reviews, I would conclude that what I have are more faithful and accurate to the real thing than the others are.