šŸ”¶ Tin P1 - Planar IEM

Absolutely! I actually meant potable. Desktop IEMs are too limited for me. I am loving these though. I’ll check out the Asgard.

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I just bought an iFi Zen Can and 4.4mm cable for my P1, it’s just amazing what decent power does to this IEM. Don’t need to EQ any more, the xBass button is more than enough for a very satisfying experience.

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PORTABLE* I’m not under the impression you can drink IEMS.

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Would running these balanced from a btr5 work, or does that also not have enough power?

Volume wise it should work. But the usual recommendation is to have at least 500 mw output power, the BTR5 only has 240mw, so it will probably sound very flat and lifeless.

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Right here with you. P1 + balanced cable + xBass button :ok_hand:

Next step seems to be balanced input into the zen can. Will have to wait for that one though!

Just got my P1’s today, running them on an A3+E30… I’ve been in my listening chair for 3 hours now and just keep going song to song. Such a different experience than my other IEMs. Great sound, just sucks you into the music with detail and accuracy. I tried them on the BTR5 and a dragonfly red and the magic was gone, not enough power. These will live on my desk, which is fine, not every IEM can go BTR5’ing with me.

I think one thing that really strikes me on these is piano music sounds very real a life like. They nicely bring out the impact of the piano strings, much more than my other IEMs.

edit: one slight adjustment to my above statement, I went back and ran my P1 balanced on the BTR5 again. It was much better than I remembered. DEFINITELY not full performance, especially in the low end. But to my poor ear it was acceptable, giving a little planar flavor while on the go. Probably not a daily driver configuration, but workable in a pinch.

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Bazinga! The A3 + P1 = sonic heaven

Okay… some say the P1 needs at least 300 mW, others say 400 mW, and yet others say 500 mW.

So, it’s obvious that the P1’s power requirement is definitely up there, so my SPECIFIC question is -

Does anyone know if the iFi ZEN Dac/Amp can drive the P1 appropriately… using 4.4 Balanced output, which is specified at 330 mW@32 Ohm) ??? Not sure if the ZEN Dac gain button would be useful or not?

Should be enough, I’m driving mine now on an og iDSD Micro, SE (2.9V @ 285mW/30Ī©) on turbo at about 1/3 % power and still good on normal power at 3/4 crank :+1:

Thank you… AGAIN… :raised_hands:

I very much enjoy the TEA with it’s superb clarity in vocals and instrumentals, tight sub-bass/bass, and no sibilance in the highs. I’m thinking I would also enjoy the P1… but man, that extreme roll-off in the sub-bass looks anemic. But… with that flat upper mid/lower treble line, maybe not so anemic?

It is anemic to me. But EQ helps.

I don’t find that…fit, fit and power is the way forward, plus the the Zen Can has Truebass if you want to add :loud_sound:…They’ll always be a dope set for me :+1:

Regarding EQ, I forgot about that puzzle piece… the ZEN DAC/amp has the TrueBass switch also. Arriving today in the mail, will see how it’s ā€˜analog’ bass lift works on my Tin T3 (flat and bright sob).

Yes, FIT does change things. Depending on tip and seal, the TEA can sound quite different depending on what choice I make.

I use my Z1R’s as my daily driver, not really bass anaemic? and I’m happy swopping to the P1…needs more power for sure but once accustomized they’re fine…no they don’t have the same sub-bass but what they do have is a fast/kicking bass response that entertains me…if you want EDM/Rap/Dub bass canon rumble then no, but for most of my library they’re solid.

Re-posting some of my thoughts here that I recently posted on the RNHP thread:

I started last week with the RNHP amp, experimenting with it on various headphones and IEMs. One very big surprise for me is how well the Tin P1 IEM’s sound on the RNHP.

In the past I had a very strong opinion that more power (clean power) was key to the Tin P1 sounding right. Running them on the Asgard3 sounded very good compared to other (weaker) amps in my collection (Atom, L30, Erish, DragonFly Red, or BTR5). But the RNHP breaks this. At 20ohms the RNHP puts out approx 200-300mW. At 20ohms the A3 puts out approx 4W. More than 10x the power on the A3! And I honestly like the sound of the P1’s on the RNHP better - more detailed and more resolving. Additionally I don’t hear the loss in bass response that I expected. My comparison was done using some Marcus Miller for electric jazz bass, and Christian Mcbride for accoustic upright bass. And to really make them rumble I used Train Song with Holly Cole. The RNHP produced as much bass as the A3, but tighter, more controlled, and more detailed. Overall to my ear a superior sound.

Has anyone else experimented with the Tin P1’s on an RNHP? I’m curious to hear anyone else’s impressions.

(For the complete picture, I’m running my P1’s with Final Audio Type-E tips.)

Good luck finding a better IEM than the TEA. Please let me know when you find it. You’re going to find it has spoiled you until you dish out serious money for a flagship and even then, you might still prefer the TEA. The Monarch is the only IEM I’ve found I prefer.

Yeah, LOL. I nearly asked a question on BGGR’s thread… ā€œWhat would I be getting with the Monarch or Clair that I’m not already getting with the TEA?ā€

Wow, $300 (240 in my case) compared to $700 ? Seems like diminishing returns there. But of course, I don’t own Monarch or Clair… so maybe it’s best I don’t know what I’m missing, LOL.

hmmm… riding season is here, Kawi Z900 is getting treated nice with a bunch of upgrades.

Will probably call it end game with the TEAs, for now at least. I’m sure glad I discovered Vanatoo desktop speakers and the TEAs for my music appreciation. And that old Pioneer PL-530 is still going strong…

The Monarch has a stronger sub bass focus, but unlike the Tea, it can be too much at times. The Monarch might have slightly better resolution in general but not by much and the Monarch’s treble is slightly more elevated yet has the smooth character only est drivers have at the moment. I consider the TEA to be the little brother of the Monarch. They are both tuned brilliantly and quite similarly. The TEA has a less gain overall vs the Monarch.

As you said, you’re definitely hitting the wall of diminishing returns. It is difficult to find a ā€œbetterā€ IEM than the TEA.

The issue the TEA does not have the Monarch does is the Monarch’s huge shell size. The TEA is small and is an incredible feat of packing that dynamic and so many BAs into that very small footprint.

Great description detailing comparison of Monarch vs. TEA.

Thanks a bunch, much appreciated. :beers:

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