Hello, so my Moondrop aria broke a couple of months ago and I’ve been thinking of getting two new IEMs. My current thought process is
Shuoer S12, Ikko OH10, Final Audio A4000, and obviously any suggestions are highly welcomed.
My music selection is alot of high energy songs, anime OPs, powermetal, jrock…etc, but I also enjoy some doom metal i.e:
warning - footsteps
Lord Vicar - World Encircled
Tripowin x HBB Olina, Shuoer S12, Timeless 7Hz and Moondrop Kato are seem to be the only ones that are reasonable for their prices, hell according to some folks, the Olina outperforms the Kato and they are much cheaper to get.
you haven’t mentioned what you liked and disliked about the arias… or why two pairs? budget?
I really liked the Arias, but the QC sucked and I wanna try something new.
my budget is $250-$300, I wanted to get 2 pairs because I feel like I can experience more tunings that way, I’ve only tried KZ ZS10 Pros and Moondrop Arias
Tripowin Olina + S12 should have you convered for all you need 
Agreed on this 
yep, these are the new value kings in A ranked IEMs, one dynamic driver and one planar… two different technologies/solutions to presenting sound accurately.
There are three more to consider if you want something slightly less “balanced”: the first two are more V shaped and the last one is a warm, bass oriented IEM.
lkko OH10: lots of bass slam, lots of treble energy, with OK midband ($180). But, they weigh 3x what Olina weighs (16g each), and many find that weight bothersome, some are OK with it. I find the upper mid/lower treble too hot on them, and the lower to middle midband a little recessed, so vocals step back on the stage even with or behind instruments. In other words too V shaped.
Tin Hifi T3+ ($70): A tuning philosophy little brother to the OH10, with slightly less bass impact and even more unnatural (to me) upper mid/lower treble.
Tripowin MELE ($50): Same big bass as OH10 above (better than T3+), better midband/vocals if you ask me than either OH10 or T3+, but a rolled off treble region so it lacks in sparkle/air sense of 3D that requires very well done treble. So not a V shape, but an L shape. Not dark treble, but lacking energy.. A “bass oriented” warm IEM but not bass-head level bass.
If I was in your shoes, I would get Titan S and Timeless. They complete each other well.
Sounds familiar, the ZS10 Pro was my first IEM, and I also had an Aria that broke last fall.
I liked the ZS10 Pro, was happy about the bass, but it was just a bit too bright for me. Aria became my daily, but the bass was a bit thin at times, and I couldn’t quite figure it out. That was what got me to come here.
Folks are showing you some great options, with your budget, that Tripowin Olina and Shuoer S12 would be a great combo.
For the Olina, if you like bass, you will want to try the double mesh mod on the Olina, since it hits me as a bit too bright stock. The stage, imaging and resolution are amazing, and if you liked Aria, this will seem like an upgrade in every way.
I am also a big fan of the Tin Hifi T3+, which graphs a lot like the Tanchjim Hana 2021. Prior to the Olina this was my favorite under $100 ( usually $70 on Linsoul ), but I have fit issues with it, which limits me to half day sessions.
Mele is my daily goto daily IEM, and perfect for when I don’t know what I want. It is comfortable, and has zero sibilance, but also lacks the sparkle that some people like. This is my favorite under $50, but is too dark for some.
If anyone mentions the Timeless, the S12 is just a little brighter, way better made, has QA ( not sure if 7Hz does that at all ), and $70 cheaper. I love the Timeless, but is seems like they only did a bit better than Moondrop with the Aria.
Also the S12 takes EQ very well ( planar sets usually do ), when I want some slam, I throw a bass shelf of 6db around 166Hz, and it can do justice to any genre that wants some bass. The S12 is one of the most flexible IEMs on the market and can do nearly anything well. I wish the cable came in 2.5mm termination, seriously that is my biggest complaint.
Sets that I haven’t tried, that were mentioned.
And for the price difference between the Tripowin Olina and Moondrop Kato, you can grab a Tanchjim Tanya for better filters than Olina stock (the Tanya makes a good pocketable pair), better/variety of eartips, and an upgrade cable if so inclined.
I have Olina and S12.
Tried most IEMs under 200 and these were the two standouts and I prefer both to even the Dusk.
Had to go up to Variations to find something I clearly could say was better.
I liked the ZS10 Pro, was happy about the bass, but it was just a bit too bright for me. Aria became my daily, but the bass was a bit thin at times, and I couldn’t quite figure it out. That was what got me to come here.
Same story here.
and I am reluctant to give Moondrop more of my money after that interaction.
Yeah I don’t think i’ll be ordering many moondrops anytime soon, at least till I can see that the QC has improved.
The Titan S would be the opposite and complementary tuning to the Tripowin MELE. In that he liked the sound of Aria, Titan S might disappoint him in its lack of bass quantity and impact.
Good point. My thought was to get a bassy set (Timeless).
And Titan S because:
If u like V shape sound, nothing is better than OH10. It’s extremely good for that specific signature, coupled with airy wide soundstage, it’s amazing. My current favourite iem
If u don’t like v shape sound, i wont recommend OH10.
Drop selling it at 149$ now
Honestly this was such a difficult choice for all the good reasons, everything suggested here is something I’d like to own at some point, I’ve watched and read alot of reviews and heard some sound demos for the iems mentioned here. But when all is said and done, I’ve bought the 7Hz Timeless and the Ikko OH10s.
I’ve wanted a planar iem for a while, never heard a planar driver in my life so I knew I had to either pick this one up or the S12s. I decided on the Timeless due to it fitting more with the stuff I listen to, I don’t need the extra treble and i’m kind of sensitive to it anyway.
OH10s on the other hand were picked from a random dice roll. 1-Olina, 2-OH10s, 3-A4000, 4-Kato, 5-Hana 2021, 6-Titan S.
and obviously it landed on 2 so I picked up the OH10s, which to be honest, I was heavily leaning towards to begin with so there’s that.
Anyways, massive thanks to everyone who commented suggestions, and despite not picking the recommended duo S12&Olina, I still am thinking of buying the Olina when I get a bit more money.
You’ll be more than happy with the Timeless, my man. I can attest to that. The OH10 has been a set I’ve always wanted but never had a reason to Buy them. Let us know what you think when they come in! Congrats
Also to add an another one for a cheaper budget, the Tin Hifi T3 Plus seems to be a reasonable one for its price and probably Tin’s best release recently. Yeah Tin lately has been quiet and nothing but flop with their T2 revisions imo, but with their T3 Plus, according to most reviewers I have watched, is their best ever so far, hell even some thinking it surpassed their T2s.
You might want to get that one as well, but I have to hear it for myself to be proven true for me.
As someone who enjoy oh10 & dislike Timeless. I’m looking forward to your thoughts on both iems.
Enjoy 
I recently tried both Moondrop Aria & T3 olus. Here i share my thoughts, maybe it can be useful to anyone interested in either iem:
Both tried with Azla Xelastec with Qudelix 5k dac
Start with Aria first, there’s quite some bass, more than i expected. Going in i was ready for some thin, anemic bass but no, Aria have some punch to it.
The treble is where i find it abit lacking, less bite, less excitement.
Beautiful vocal tho, especially male. I didn’t expect to like it this much, given my preferences for V shape sound.
I like the non V Aria more than the very V Cra (ignore the price difference sweat_smile).
All in all. Very good. Comfortable fit too.
Now Tin T3+, right off the gate definitely got more bass. Lively treble too. I enjoy rock genre song alot more on T3.
Vocal sounds better on Aria. Both have similar-ish detail retrievals & imaging. Not bad, not stellar either.
I like T3 more than Aria personally, but both very good for it’s price.
No wonder people have lots of praise for these 2 iems.