I just noticed when seeing resolutions picture of his set, that mine didnāt came in a plastic wrap/sealā¦ so far all my interactions with shenzhen audio were subparā¦ donāt think I will order there anything again.
But what I really wanted to share: Since I wanted to sell my Variations and I had it laying around here anyways, I thought āwhy not give it a second tryā, since I really just listened to it for 2-3 hours before repackaging it. My second impression was pretty much like the first one, until I noticed, that the tips cover the nozzle holes to some extent and I saw that the Chuās spring tips seemed to have a wide boar. To my surprise I could fit the spring tips on the Variationās nozzle pretty easily and it really doesnāt cover the nozzle at all. With the spring tips pretty much everything improved, I feel. Better bass, clearer highs, more stage. I know about the power of tips, but I guess I should pay even more attention
First impression without ABing:
still less air&treble than the Timeless, but on a much better levelā¦ maybe on par with IE600 and more than Mest MK2
I am starting to think, that what I am missing with the IE600, Variations and Mest MK2 compared to the Timeless is really just the fast decay. On the other hand I think the Excalibur was pretty satisfying as well, but canāt really say with confidence from memory alone
I remember when I went from EQed Blessing 2 ā Timeless I was missing the dynamic bass impact. The Variations (now with the tip change) gives me that bass feeling, which probably is overall more satisfying than the Timeless, but still I would say that the Timeless has the better quality/resolving bass. However both are pale in comparison to the Mest MK2 bass.
I said before that the IE600 is the better IEM (imho), but I canāt say that anymore with the tip change. I liked the Excalibur still better, I believe, but take both comparisons (IE600/Excalibur) with a grain of salt (memory comparisons).
Hopefully will do some ABing with Timless/Mest laterā¦
My Spring Tips just came in yesterday and Iāve been using it ever since.
I can vouch for @lilhm . Itās not a night and day difference for me cause Iāve been using the variations as my daily driver with the spinfits cp145 but yes. The mid-bass feels kinda fuller to me while that sub-bass still retains.
It definitely sounds slightly warmer for me but I didnāt mind it since the rest of the sound remained intact to my liking. Iām able to use it comfortably while Iām working in long sessions.
These tips might just stick to my variations. The bass rumble is just
Well I am not in the best position. This thicc nozzle is really uncomfortable and spring tips and even cp145 get uncomfortable after some time. I probably do I need a S size CP155 for this to be comfortable. Never knew I had a small ear canal. With normal size nozzles I usually use Medium ones but once I come across something that goes deeper itās a trouble (FH3)
Like you, the Variations were too thick for my ear canals. I tried many tips - CP145, CP155, S and M. For me, I believe M gave the best seal but the thickness made it less comfortable than the S.
I ultimately gave up on the Variations and sold them. Fun IEMs while it lasted but the sore ear canals were a deal breaker. The silver lining is that there are other IEMs out there to fill the void. After sometime, I have found alternatives that I actually like better than the Variations. Have not looked back since.
Hope the new tips make a difference but if not, the IEM world is large and diverse. You will find something that fits better and sounds good.
Couldnāt have said it better, Paul is spot on. The Variations is an absolutely legendary set. So glad I bought it all the way back; one of my all time favourites.
It does what it says on the box very well, but can be somewhat grating to listen to with certain genres due to the aggressive tuning (for my liking). Definitely a set you should try, its one of those where you have to skip a decent amount of tracks due to it making them sound deflated / missing something.
Took me a couple of weeks to really understand this set
Blasted Moe Shop x Snailās House - Pastel and the Vari is like the single best set created in mankind but recently I decided to give Avenged Sevenfoldās Life is but a dream a listen to these and now I understand the concept of āmissingā something
I ran to my Xenns Up and definitely understand the difference now, I wish I was knowledgeable enough to describe it but definitely itās missing something when I compare the two. Iām guessing thatās where Top is the winner
Honestly, I donāt ever see myself letting this one go, the female vocals and when it shows its technical along with the musical capability Iād say this was absolutely $325 staggeringly well spent.
It definitely is leaving me with the āwhat could and what it will never beā someday Iāll give the Top a listen but Iād rather jump to a Monarch or one of those cool sets with BC on em
Overall if you run into this forum and see yourself with the capability of buying one, Iād say go for it. For every track you skip because it feels slightly empty, the ones you donāt skip are mind blowing
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