great xmas gift…emh…meant…great xmas deal! 
pairing is not so crucial, of course mk2 will scale with better source/amp, but you will defintely get an enjoyable sound also with a good dongle. I’m using a DX300 with amp11.2 and find the pairing just perfect to my ears (filter D4 and gain low)
tips pairing is far more important, don’t stick with the first ones and try more options, I have found the best pairing with Azla Sedna light short, but every ears are different so just try 
1 Like
Thank you for the tip! (Get it? ^^)
Is it reasonable and worthwhile to invest in a upper tier (think Shanling M6 Pro 21 / iBasso DX240) DAP over a good $200-300 dongle DAC considering the capability of the MEST MK2?
In other words - how much of a disservice would I be doing pairing it with a Dongle?
1 Like
There are very good Dongle DAC/Amps out there that provide very good sound. The Hidizs S9 Pro and Cayin RU6 R2R come to mind.
Alternatively, a good DAP like the Shanling M3X or Hiby R3 Pro / R5 Saber are good choices.
I do not think high-end DAPs (past 600$) provide superior sound quality to DAPs or Dongles below them that warrants their high price.
3 Likes
Another one (re-selling) and no I don’t know the seller…
1 Like
Thanks man!
But you see, audiophile greediness unfolds: the MEXT is out, what now?
We all need to be smacked in the face haha
1 Like
Gosh I really enjoy the MEST MK2. First impression was lukewarm, I didn’t comprehend the special sauce fully at first and struggled to take notice of the fabled MEST imaging. ( I know the MK2 has less of that than MK1).
Now that I have had some hours with it I can say that I get it. It’s like putting on a helmet of sound and it’s exactly what I like. So immersive and chaotically enjoyable.
Some cons:
I am missing some upper-midrange bite and some midrange fullness, both of which can be largely amended with EQ. This is something I was expecting by looking at the graph and reading impressions.
Lower treble a bit too polite as well. Also needs some EQ.
Comfort is good but not great and I start to get sore after about an hour.
Fit is okay as well. The seal however is a bit finicky as it’s not the easiest thing to achieve it and maintain it. Sometimes my right ear isolates far less than the left and so I know the pressure is skewed inside the right ear.
It has made the 7Hz Timeless obsolete for me as it has higher detail retrieval, better separation, better imaging, better clarity, larger stage, more air, more low end extension etc… and more natural overall sound and timbre. I’m not getting any noticable BA timbre from the MEST MK2.
it’s only if I really squint my eyes (ears) that I can detect and be bothered by some foul play compared to a single DD.
I am not left wanting at all, I can stop here and call it end game.
The MEST MK2 sounds more controlled and technically fleshed out on my phone using a dongle DAC than the Timeless does on my computer using the same dongle DAC. That speaks volumes to me.
6 Likes
Blockquote The MEST MK2 sounds more controlled and technically fleshed out on my phone using a dongle DAC than the Timeless does on my computer using the same dongle DAC. That speaks volumes to me. <
Could you explain what do you mean by that? Why would you expect computer + dongle DAC to sound better than phone and same DAC? I am not ironic, just curious 
1 Like
Desktop/Laptop USB output always sound as if it provides the dac dongle with much more power which lends to a better controlled sound with more depth.
Correct me if I am wrong, but unless you use different raw file quality in your source it is the DAC + internal amp in the DAC that make the difference in the sound.
If you send digital signal from the source (be it PC or phone) DAC takes care about further processing (converting it to analog) and amplification down the line (maybe with external AMP in series). The power of the source would not matter to the outcome -only potential artifacts/noise from EMI, power lines etc.
So basically if you don’t use any EQ and play the same file on phone and PC using the same decoding algorithm (let’s say foobar) the files on phone and PC should sound exactly the same when volume is matched.
That is how I always understood that art, but I may be having some inherent fault in my thought process 
That’s obviously a personal take but Timeless driven by Hybrid tubes is an absolute joy and even with higher end sets available to me it’s still a combo I go to regularly to enjoy my library…when it comes to what set I reach for…well that’s down to my mood and the genre I want to listen to…There’s no one golden set just a set that does what you want when you’re in the mood.
4 Likes
A USB port on a phone is usually limited in the amount of current it can deliver (it’s up to the manufacturer but I believe it’s usually around 100mA), compared to a desktop port which can normally deliver up to the max of the specs (500mA on USB 2.0 / 900mA on USB 3.x?).
1 Like
been there, done that
yes, correct fit is a nightmare (curiously also for me on the right ear). the right choice for the tips is fundamental. they must be right for your ears but also for the bc, and that’s not trivial at all. without the correct tips the contribution of the bc is lost or heavily decreased, and the experience is exactly what you said, mids not “full” and treble a bit recessed.
I have found that for my ears, the Sedna light short are the best. since I’m using those (and a Xinhs graphene 8 cores cable) I’m fully enjoying these little gems. I have to use M size for left and ML size for right to get the best seal. second choice are the crystal also from Azla, but the treble are a bit too much for me.
experiment with different tips, don’t give up , I’m sure you will find the right tips for you and you will no more need eq.
Mest MK2 are the best IEM I have listened to from any point of view (timbre, technicalities, stage, etc), example of other TOTL I have listened to are Odin, U12t, some others. Mest MK2 are my end game (until I find something better of course … I’m curious to listen to Indigo), and now I’m just concentrating on checking other boxes (ordered an EVO for a audiophile-grade - hopefully - basshead IEM, thinking about a QDC V14 for a BA bass IEM)
oh! almost forgot, with the right tips I can use my Mest MK2 for hours without any prob
That is truth, but the audio power output in the signal path is defined by the amplification of analog signal in hardware section after conversion in digital->analog converter.
Before conversion you have digital signal, so power from USB does not matter as long it is enough to drive amp section (and there is separate power line in USB port from signal line). And 100mA is plenty for generally all dongle DACs (it would be equivalent of 0,5W at 5V rated voltage and I did not see any passive DAC with power even close to that).
that’s not really correct. any dongle will use power for the dac AND for the amp. and that power myst be delivered by the usb port. you can think of it as having two gears, a DAC fed by the usb (and you are correct, in this case power consumption is not a problem) + an amp fed by the (same) usb, and in this case power does matter a lot. if you have 100mA max on the usb you have a theorethical max of 50mA x channel for the amp (if the dac consumes more or less 0, not true but let’s simplify) this translates to a max 40mW per channel on a 16ohm IEM, while if you have 500mA max you have a theorethical max of 1W
1 Like
Ok thanks, did not think about splitting total current for both channels.
Still the initial assumption was using dongle DAC without any further external AMP, so in my opinion it should not make a difference for IEM whether it is phone USB or PC. Also dedicated AMPs are normally not fed from the same line as signal
I am just mechanical engineer though, so I may have this everything wrong
All other things equal, Computer USB just sounds more mature, more controlled, with better extension and stage depth than any phone USB-C output I ever heard, including a phone with USB-C 3.2 output which provides max power.
well, let’s say you have the same compressor (usb port) that can deliver a certain amount of liquid at a certain pressure. with that same compressor you feed a steering servo (dac) and a lift (amp). as you can imagine, even with low power compressor the steering servo can work 100%, but not the lift if you have an high weight to rise up.
the max current an usb port can deliver is important for any dongle.
btw, a dongle is basically a dac+amp (in some cases in the same chip), and the amp must be powered in the right way
if the amp has a dedicated power supply (e.g. a battery), then you’re right, usb power doesn’t matter (or matter very little). but if amp is powered by the usb, then yes it does matter a lot.
1 Like
Thanks for this analogy for my simple mind .
Still, I don’t think I was far off, as my assumption stands that “given you deliver enough juice for amp section of dongle DAC” you should have the same results driving it from PC and driving it phone, so source does not matter in that condition. And following the thought process - for most cases of using of DAC dongles the desired load is very small (low impedance, high sensitivity IEMs) so any phone should sound as good as any PC unless we are throwing some crazy Tin P1 or Sundara at them. And for that the limiting factor would be the output power of amp section of dongle DAC still and not the source max current
1 Like
yes, you are correct, the typical IEMs are quite easy to drive.
but in general, what is wrong is the concept that “the limiting factor would be the output power of amp section of dongle DAC still and not the source max current”. the output power of the amp section of the dongle IS dependent on the max power (i.e. current as the limiting factor) of the source usb, since the amp in the dongle IS powered by the usb (unless, as said before, the amp has an independent power supply).
anyway, these are only theorethical discussions, at the end what matters is if the dongle sounds good or not
What are the essential differences between the Mest Mk2 and U12t? I’m planning on going to 64Audio next week and demo some of their units.