I’m pretty new to the hobby, I find it very exciting and follow the news and lurk the forums from time to time but I haven’t bought or heard anything new in the past 2 years and am finally looking to upgrade.
It all started for me when I needed a new set of earphones 2 year ago and decided to break free from 5€ garbage from Chinese stores and get something decent so I bought a 20€ set from a Chinese website: the Tin Audio T2.
Like many before me I was very impressed, I had never listened to something so good and was satisfied with my purchase. This set comprises almost all of my listening experience so a real noob here. At the same time my brother got the TRN V80 so I at least know how different two pairs of IEMs can be. I also own a TWS set Tronsmart Spunky Pros mostly for convenience and sports so I don’t count them as experience (looking to upgrade too, reccomendations appreciated sub 100€)
Anyway, one of my troubles is understanding and explaining what I like with my so very limited experience but I’ll work with what I’ve got:
T2: I really enjoy the soundstage, clarity and separation of the instruments, and the details. I always thought they lacked bass and never felt I got a decent seal with them. They also feel, I don’t know, a bit quiet?
V80: Much better seal and fit, really made me jealous at the time lol. Much more bass presence and kind of warmer sound I guess, one thing I hated was they caused me sibilance past a certain volume, really awful feeling.
So if I had to guess I would say I enjoy a neutral signature but wouldn’t mind something more enganging with more bass presence but keeping details clarity and an impressive soundstage. And a better fit/seal. I’m not a collector (yet) so I want a safe bet that feels like a major improvement from the T2. I basically want to be impressed as I was back when I first got the T2 two year ago.
Without further a do, I have a bigger budget this time, I’d like to keep it under 200€ but am willing to go slightly above if I’m convinced it’s worth it. Some names that caught my eye are : T2+, T4, Blon BL 03, Moondrop Starfield, Thieaudio Legacy 3, Etymotic ER2XR, Fiio FH3, Mangird Tea (over budget but jesus are they gorgeous)… so I’m obviously looking for reccomendations and help deciding but I’d also like to post some other questions:
What expectations should I have of a wow factor in this price range and with the advance of the market coming from the T2 ( my biggest fear is spending 200€ and feeling like its “meh”)
First time buying pricey stuff from aliexpress, I’m from Europe what is the probability of customs complications
Buy now or wait for 11.11 or some other sale
Any other stuff worth having like tips or other accessories
I guess that’s it, thanks in advance I’ve been lurking for a few days and you got a really great forum here congrats. I listen to rock mostly and own a Shanling M0 if that’s relevant.
Since it sounds like what impressed you on the T2 is the technicalities. So it is very likely that you will get the wow factor when going up since higher tiers usually have bettert technicalities. But you do need to understand that it wont be a 10 times improvement even if you are paying 10 times more (you know…diminishing returns).
That depends on where you are located, I am in sweden and they charge me around 10 usd + 25% VAT for every package that comes outside EU. I suggest you read up on the import laws in your country since it could be very different.
I would recommend, if you arent in a hurry. To wait for 11/11, there is a ton of new iems that have recently come out. So by 11/11, the bad stuff should have been “weeded out” from the good stuff. Price will obviously be cheaper too.
Tips are one of, if not THE most important factor you need to get right. Since the tips can make or break the seal/fit of the iem for you, and if you dont get a good seal nothing will sound good or at the very least wont be what they intended for you.
As for the ones you suggested, if you want the Fiio FH3 or the Thieaudio L3, I would recommend that you get them from amazon or somewhere with good return policies. As they do have QC problems.
The Etymotics are what convinced me it was worth looking at higher end IEM’s.
I went BL03 -> Tin T4 (which I like) -> ER3XR ->…
But they aren’t a very “complete” sound, they have an extremely small stage, and no bass worth talking about, but they are very resolving with great clarity, certainly not an IEM to use for everything.
They also don’t have replaceable cables, and the deep tips limit comfort.
But to me they were an obvious step up in some areas, and that was enough to want to spend more.
I started looking then in the $500 range but was convinced that it was better to wait, so I ended up buying a pair of Hyla Sarda’s recently.
Yeah I do really feel like if I get this one right I might fall in love with this audiophile stuff. Ever since the research I did 2 years ago for the T2 I felt really intrigued by all the possibilities of this new world but only now do I have the financial liberty do delve a little bit deeper.
That’s what I thought. Good enough for me though.
I understand that, I believe I never got a decent seal on the T2 because I didn’t make the effort of looking for the right tips. My question was meant in a general purpose sense like must-have tips or what are some other stuff I can buy to play around throughout this journey
I’ll check the prices on Amazon and probably wait for 11.11 if I manage to hold myself, thank you for your reply
Final Audio Type E
Sony Hybrids (EP-EX11)
Spinfits CP145
JVC Spiral dots/spiral dots++
AZLA sedna tips
You can buy the Final Audio E1000 (iem) and actually get the Type E tips included (with all sizes), the price isnt much more expensive than buying the tips separately and the iems itself has a very good sound profile that is neutral.
There are a lot of fake sony tips on aliexpress so I suggest buying them from amazon, but the Type E´s are close enough to them so the hybrids are a bit redundant if you have the Type E´s.
The AZLA Sedna tips are a bit cheaper than the JVC spiral dots but are similar in quality.
Little bit of everything but mostly rock of all kinds, post-rock, indie, prog, some more classical stuff. In the electronic department it’s mostly techno or stuff like daft punk, the prodigy, LCD soundsystem. Hard to say because I am constantly finding new stuff. I’m not to keen on hip hop or k-pop and stuff like that although there are exceptions
I am considering Etymotics but I would like to try some better bass, I’m by no means a basshead but the T2 just doesn’t cut it and I want to know what decent bass presentation feels like.
oh…I guess it depends on where you buy it then. But the MSRP of the Azlas should be cheaper than the Spiral dots and that is the case on amazon japan which is where I bought them from.
Out of the IEMs that interested you I’ve heard the a fair bit of them. And I’d you want a slightly closer upgrade to the t2 in particular with bass the starfields might be a good consideration. The fh3 are also good but darker imo, in addition the bl03 are fucking great too but fit is hit or miss lol. I think you can’t go wrong with most of the stuff u mentioned
I like them a lot, but I’m not as much of an IEM person as some on the forum.
It has a lot of sub bass, slightly recessed mids, exceptional resolution, stage is good for an IEM.
I’ll be traveling a lot (what I always do if no covid), living abroad for a full year next year and I cannot take big headphones. So I’d take my fiio q5s and a good iem. I’ve read some on the sarda and it seems right up my alley.
Just placed the order. Hope they will serve me well!
I use them when I’m out of the house, paired with a chord Mojo, I’d recommend you pick up an IFI IEM Match, they are 7 Ohms impedance, and IME many amps sound better at higher volume through the IEM Match, than they do directly into the Sarda’s.
