All cards updated
I did try hybrid tips, but unfortunately they didnāt seal well for me, even in large sizeā¦
However, searching for something like comply, but shorter - to get closer to the nozzle - I found the Inairs Air 2 to do the trick for me! Now Iāve got all the bass I need running stock, while the sound is balanced as a whole - no mod needed.
Second best was the Comply ts 500 - really good, but due to the shorter nozzle, they didnāt keap the seal - it seems Iāve got really large earcanalsā¦
The Olina is my first iem, that Iāve had to tiproll this much, spending almost as much on tips - but it really pays off! The Olina is my best and favorite set
(And the other tips will surely come in handy another time)
Greetings friends! I am an older gent retired in Mexico. I finally after a VERY long wait and with great expectations, got my Olina set today. Sadly, the 2 pin connector on the left side wonĀ“t go in. I am afraid to force it, fearing I may cause some damage. This is my first IEM, and have no experience. I bought these from DD-Audio Store on AliExpress (also a first time experience). Before entering a dispute and opening up a possible can of worms, I was hoping someone here might offer me a suggestion, or some advice. I donĀ“t have another cable to try with at the moment. A little sad about this, I must say. Thanks for you help!
The right side goes in no problem?
Yes. Perfectly, Thanks for your reply.
try wiggling it a bit? shouldnāt damage anything as long as you donāt put a lot of force, mine also seemed to be barely within tolerance but once it got past a point it just slid right in
Is there anything inside that might be obstructing the entrance, that could get damaged if I press with Ā“a littleĀ“ force? It seems the pins are a tiny bit bent, but only a little, Thanks again!
It does indeed look like the left pin from the top picture is bend (banana bend, not sideways) as if it was pushed too hard into a place it would not get. Did you try assembling the right side cable (the one that fits fine to the second bud) to left bud and see if it fits? This way you would see if the problem is on cable or on bud side
If the problem is on the socket bud could use some pin/needle to see if there is any obstruction in the socket, being quite delicate not to damage the walls. Those holes are normally blind so you would not damage anything inside, but still, some care is advised to prevent going too deep if this particular one is thru
@SirAlice, please try @pylaczynskiās excellent idea (testing the right side of the cable into the left unit) to confirm where the problem lies. If the problem is in fact a defective cable, I will be happy to send you mine as I prefer a balanced connection and literally never even used my stock cable.
Thank you all for your kind advise. I tried inserting the RIGHT pin in the LEFT connector but it also does not go in perfectly. Finally, I decided to risk it by applying more pressure than I thought advisable and managed to get it ALMOST all the way in. It does not not sit perfectly as the right one does but it seems firmly secured and sound is playing on both sets. I will not be fiddling with this again unless I get another cable. I am not certain the problem is in the cable itself.
Thank you very much StevehamNY for your very generous offer. Being in Mexico, it would likely be a bit troublesome for you, so I will let things lie for a few days and see how things turn out. I greatly and sincerely appreciate your offer.
I will now dedicate the next few hours (days) to discovering this little gem, which thanks to everyoneĀ“s input on this site, and others related, were the inspiration that prompted me to buy it, learning much in the process about music and sound itself. Thank you all!
If the right end of the cable can go into both sides but the left canāt itās definitely a bent pin. You could try bending it back with pliers but since itās in I would leave it alone
The RIGHT pin also struggles to go in fully on the LEFT bud for some reason. However since I managed to get it in as far as it will go and seems secure, I will now leave it well alone. It is likely however that at I may get a different cable at some point soon. We will see what happens then. Greatly appreciate your comments and assistance. Cheers!
Just make sure the pins are aligned and push it in not with too much force welcome to the iem world this is common just be glad sometimes theyāre a little easy to go in a little too easy
Well I fell victim to the dreaded Condensation Issue Noticed a considerable drop in volume on the right earphone. This happened at work and I had been sweating a bit. It was right before lunch so I took them home. (I eat lunch at home, 5min from work) finished my day using my Timeless without any issues.
When I got home this eve I got out my tweezers and removed the saturated filters and cleaned the nozzle with a q-tip. I put the tips back on for a quick damage check. No issues with the driver Bright AF with no filters lol.
I decided to look at the old filters. I had been running duals as I preferred the greatly improved Bass and the more linear response to higher Volume you get with double filters.
I realized that my filters were different sizes. I discovered that I had used the replacement filters that came with the Mele to double up. I didnāt know that the Mele filters were a smaller diameter than the Olina filters.
I decided to do a little experiment and first tried placing 2 Olina filters per earphone and found that the Bass response was less than what I remembered. So I switched back to one stock Olina Filter with the smaller Mele filters on top. My beloved Bass was back!
Guess that means I found something else for you guys to try. If you want more Bass and have access to the slightly smaller Mele Filters I would say give it a shot. Sounds excellent to my old ears
Hope you found this helpful.
Thanks! I was afraid something would snap if I pushed them in further than they seemed willing to go, but in they went. Glad to know these are merely some of the quirks of the trade. I am greatly enjoying and discovering the SOUND. Best IĀ“ve heard to be honest! Little by little I will be trying out all the many things I have learnt here, tips, mods, the works! This is my first IEM, and I donĀ“t think I will be trying out any higher end equipment any time soon (many I am sure have said this before before falling headlong into the abyss), but this just about hits the perfect spot for me, in so many respectsā¦ so why tinker till the end of timeā¦ itĀ“s about the music, right? Thanks again, all the best!
when condensation problem, no need to remove the filter, just let the iem dry
I suggest looking into a dac amp or dac amp combo dongle preferably that self power meaning it has its own battery and it wonāt depend on the battery from your phone I wish someone wouldāve told me that when I first started out But I recommend the Ifi hipdac2 MQA decoding most powerful output in this price range 180 to 160 it also has two inputs the regular 3.5 mm and the valance 4.4 mm which you would need to get a new cable for but power is good good but the single ended 3.5 mm Is powerful as well they donāt take my word for it look it up Ifi hipdacā¦. Donāt waste your money on these cheap $30 $40 dongle dac ampsā¦ But everything else as you were saying mods eartips etc I think that would be fun for you to explore because it doesnāt really break the bank enjoy I waited for my Olina to arrive for What seems to be a long time but I just finished putting it through my ritual burn in process and now Iām ready to listen to all my jams and enjoy and if you havenāt heard of the Mele By Hawaiian bad boy that is an excellent IEM and itās going for like 40 bucks now when I first bought it I bought it for almost $80 you can imagine how pissed I was to find out now that itās only $40 but it punches way above $40 oh well thatās my rant for now, but Iām glad you chose to take my advice and just push it in itās not rocket science lol
Hi and thanks again for your thoughts and recommendations. Along with the Olinas I also bought the FiiO 2021 BTR5 Dac/Ampā¦ not the one you mentioned, but somewhat similar, and the one I am going to stick with, since from a neophyteĀ“s point of view it basically came down to making a choice and taking the plunge. Going through the motions now trying to configure the whole setup for best effect.
One thing I am dealing with is the output from my android phoneĀ“s USB port which seems may be putting a damper on the output audio quality, so I am investigating possible ways to get around that. My main source of music is content from Amazon Ultra HD music. I am looking for ways to bypass the phoneĀ“s internal limitations by using an app such as USB Audio Player Pro, Neutron, or something similar which might allow me to access my streaming or downloaded content, etc. But it seems not all these apps allow to access my music library, so I am in the process of figuring out the best option. It seems a waste to have my Android device throttle the full potential of the Beautiful Olina. At the same time, it crosses my mind that my well-travelled ears, may not actually be up to distinguishing the differenceā¦ but hey! worth the try.
Thank you again, my friend.