Thank you, I never understood the MMag branding on Jay’s squig ( or the other way around ), now it all makes sense.
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Yup moving away from squig due to the annoying ads from Hifigo. Since we already had the site up the move wasn’t too bad, and shoutout to @MMag05 the legend for making everything happen 
And I feel you. Getting bombarded with review units is already draining enough, must be even harder for the average audiophile who has to choose between gear carefully when a crap ton of them keeps coming out. That’s why I try to change things up a little or else everyone will be burned out, myself included 
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It’s because the database started by me for our tour group. Eventually I got burned out doing measurements and all the gear coming my way. The offer was put up to our group for someone else to maintain it and @VIVIDICI_111 stepped up. Decided a rebrand was in store now that Jay has gained traction as a prominent and respected reviewer of the community.
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I never see any ads on squiglink, perhaps because I am using adblock plus and privacy badger.
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Ding, ding, ding. But it’s not about whether you CAN block them or not. It’s the principle of it all
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That’s a lot of words for bamboozled 
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Shit! 
. How are they?? Looks insane in your pic!
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Had to downsize my regular tips for them lol chonky boi
Soundwise: Overall Hype 4> Hype 2/Davinci> 61t
Resolution wise Hype 4/2> Davinci> 61T, the 61t feels a little congested in the separation and not as clear and detailed
Bass: Hype 4/Hype 2 EQ> Davinci/61T> Hype 2 stock
61T feels lighter in the slam, doesn’t linger as long as the Davinci which is good or bad depending on your preference, not as mid-bass centric with a little more rumble. Hype 4 has both the impact and decay from both sets with better texture, Hype 2 with EQ is pretty close to the 4, but stock wise it’s a bit light in the low-end, but good to know that the competition is easy pickings
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Guess I need to open my 61T package one of these days…
Better bass than the H2 is a good sign imo, considering it is quite a bit cheaper.
(I dread opening it cuz it is probably gonna have pressure build up as it has no damn vents…)
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That was a good read, thanks.
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Looks a bit thicker than I’d like.
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What principle are you talking about? If I allow all of the HiFiGo ads to me shown to me on squiglink, then what “principle” is being served? Is the principle to suggest that all of the reviewer squiglink graphs are sponsored by HiFiGo and that the reviewers who post their squig graphs are also sponsored by HiFiGo? Today I noted that Jays Audio totally moved away from squiglink and that the reason was due to the HiFiGo advertising.
Again, I am totally confused about what “principle” you are talking about. Please elaborate.
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The principle I’m talking about is moving away from squig.link when they have given/sold advertising space to hifigo, if it’s not in line with someone’s objectivity as a reviewer.
I dunno if you mistook my meaning but I’m fully in support of Jay (and HBB) distancing themselves from squig.link because they feel it goes against how they conduct themselves as reviewers.
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Just A/Bed the same song for about 3 hours with the 61t/Davinci and the main difference in the low-end is that the Davinci is “slower” but goes deeper and harder, more satisfying in the slam, whereas the 61t is quicker but lighter with the lower-mids being better separated from the vocals but not as “fun” is how I would put it.
Resolution wise Davinci is slightly better with the vocals popping out more but I think the 61t is airier and the stage is slightly more open although at a slight hit to the timbre, the Davinci sounds more natural to me. Both trades blow with one another depending on your preference.
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Thank you. This helps me to understand what is going on.
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AFUL EXPLORER REVIEW: You’d be AFOOL, to sleep on AFUL… Explore
Alright bad pun aside, these are probably currently one of my favourites at around $100 - and just to get it out of the way - the Explorers are not the most technical or resolving at around its price.
VALUE PROPOSITION & SOUND:
Value wise they’re not going to beat the EA500LM, the SUPERMIX4, Nova or the planars like the T10. The resolution and detail retrieval is fine, I’d say it’s average for the price, but the tuning is more unique than a lot of the other stuff.
At mid volume they are a very comforting and chill listen, smooth, non-fatiguing, and it’s a set you’d use if you want to focus on something else, or if you just wanna sit back and relax. The vocals are definitely pushed back at mid-volume, it’s not very forward, you’re not going to hear lots of the vocal details, they’re kind of soft because they scooped out the uppermids, and the same thing could be said with the treble.
There is a roll off past 15K, it’s not going to be very airy, not very sparkly, not super detailed in general, and it’s more of a dark set at mid-volume - Which is why I wouldn’t really recommend it at mid-volume unless you like dark sets, but where the Explorer shines is when you crank them up.
These have incredible scaling, super immersive, and very smooth even at higher volumes because of the tamer uppermids and the treble. The vocals also sound more forward now because they are louder, you hear it better, they sound a lot more natural but never gets fatiguing or sharp since there’s almost no gain around 3K.
vs DAVINCI:
The low-end is also surprisingly good, when I was A/Bing these with the Davincis the Explorer has faster decay and is a bit tighter to me in the mid-bass separation. It doesn’t slam as hard as the Davincis, the note-weight, impact, and overall thickness and fullness is still better on the Davincis, but you know, the low-end just feels a little bit cleaner.
If we’re talking overall resolution and detail the Davinci is still a step above the Explorer, at mid-volume the Davincis are just straight up better, they’re more complete, better extended and balanced while having that thick thumpy bass, but if you’re willing to crank it up, then I would take the explorer.
Because imo the explorer is just more unique, it’s a lot more immersive, and once you crank it up the staging feels bigger than the Davincis, it kind of wraps around you makes you forget what you’re doing, and it feels like you’re just swimming in the music.
vs LETSHUOER S08:
Compared to the S08, the Explorer has more sub-bass presence, it’s fuller sounding, bass notes hit deeper, it scales better, but it does feel softer, less resolving, and less detailed in the uppermids and treble. Low-end wise it’s not as tight and well-controlled as the S08 even though the S08 graphs a little more in the mid-bass. The bass in the Explorer lingers longer, and the S08 feels faster in the attack and decay because of planar vs DD, whereas you’ll get better impact and noteweight with the Explorer.
I like to think of it this way, the Doscincos (my unit at least) is the heaviest in the slam, whereas the S08 is the lightest impact wise but feels the fastest, and the Explorer sits in between the Doscincos and the S08 with a good balance of both speed and slam.
If you want something cleaner and more exciting, get the S08.
vs ZIIGAAT CINNO
Now versus the Cinno, the Cinnos are basically a cleaner version of the Explorer, focusing more on the vocals and treble, with more detail and resolution as well as having sharper imaging, but it does have a little bit of BA timbre. Sub-bass wise the Cinno can also be lacking to some people, whereas the Explorer’s low-end hits harder, deeper, and even though it’s not as detailed, they are smoother and fuller sounding.
Stage wise the Cinnos are more pushed back, it feels more opened but it’s not as immersive although you do get more air and nuance to the cymbals and vocals, vocals pop out more on the Cinnos, whereas the Explorer is overall bassier and smoother.
So it really depends, if you want a clean, neutral, and slightly airier sound that works at mid to higher volumes that still scales decent without hurting your ears, then go for the cinnos, those will be better for classical, instrumentals, indie, singer-songwriter, they replaced the Hexa for me as a neutral/clean set… But if you’re looking for something bassier, more intimate, scales better, then the Explorer would be better for hiphop, rock, r&b, lo-fi, and stuff like that.
So you know, take a chance, Explorer… a bit… Because both the Cinno and Explorer are good sidegrades and alternatives to the harman sound from the nova and supermix4, they give you a different flavour to your music without destroying your wallet too much.
vs CKLVX/PULA PA02:
At mid volume the CKLVX feels a little fuller in the low-end compared to the Explorer, and it also has more air with the stage being more pushed back - it’s not as intimate, and it works better at mid-volume, as well as being a little more detailed and resolving. However, the listening experience is fairly different on both of them because the Explorer excels at high volume, it’s more immersive and intimate, whereas the CKLVX is more of a mid-volume set, being airier in the vocals and treble, and more dreamlike.
vs MAGIC ONE:
The Magic One on the other hand is a lot warmer than the Explorer with the vocals popping out a bit more but also being huskier. It’s the warmest out of all of them, but the sub-bass isn’t as pronounced, it’s not rolled-off, but it gets overtaken by the mid-bass, so not the best for hiphop, jpop or EDM because it’s very mid-bass centric, so better for jazz and rock etc.
All in all the Explorer is either going to be a hit or miss with many people. If you don’t listen loud or have a lot of rock, hiphop, r&b stuff then probably pass on these unless you just wanna try them out. And for the rest of those on the fence… Explore a bit… because i think they are worth a listen at least.
Here is the Final Ranking (HIGH-VOLUME):
Tonality: A+/S- (8/10)
Tech: B+ (5.5/10)
Overall: A- (6.5/10)
Thanks for reading 
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Based on your excellent description, I think I’ll like the 61t more.
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