I think they’re worth the price, can wear those without even remembering they’re on.
I find these need quite a bit of EQ at the bottom end to sound their best. And tons of power.
…but they do sound damn good for the money.
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Received the Symphonium Crimson just a couple days ago and honeymoon period notwithstanding the tuning alone places it easily in my top 5. Really can’t seem to put it away. Color me impressed, which is something not many IEMs have managed to do since the Jewel and Odin. Looking forward to Symphonium’s future releases…
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My list for September
IMR ACOUSTICS Titan
FiiO FH9
Penon 10th AE
FiiO FD7
IKKO OH5 ASGARD
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- GL-AMT16 (6.0/3.8) w/ Legato Filter
- 7hz Legato
- Simgot EA500 (Red Nozzle) and 6x5 High Density Foams
- QDC 8SL
Pulled the foams I had for the AMT16 and just kept the paper filter and that’s pretty much a wrap there. Really a TOTL experience OTG.
AMT-posting of the month aside, I’m copying what I did over on the other thread mainly just to continue gushing over the Legato. I actually really like the “bleed” that this has over the clean “elevated-bass” implementations like the FHE and Variations that I’ve previously owned (doing the audiophilac version of this regarding quality bass and anything that wasn’t a v-shaped signature.) I think my endgame is just one hyper-detailed IEM and one portable ghetto blaster.
Also, the EA500 with the foams is like a really good YouTube/Podcasts IEM. Super inoffensive sounding (I tried to get the KE Cadenzas for that purpose, but they’re a bit gimped in some upper frequencies) and I don’t mind dragging them everywhere.
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LOL dang, you pulled that one out from way back! I haven’t seen/heard anyone use ghetto blaster in a long time. 
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Ok top 5 for now is changing.
- Monarch Mk 3 (Bed side iem_
- Supernova (Gaming computer iem)
- Hexa (work computer iem)
- Choppin (Which I say as Choppin’ not Showpan.)
- Nova
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Top used last weeks.
1 AüR Audio Alita
2 634ears Miroak-II
3 Sound Rhyme DTE900
4 FranQL Pegasus
5 Fatfreq Maestro Mini
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Top five right now in no particular order:
Subtonic Storm: These have really grown on me and are an incredibly impressive set from a technical perspective. They have a presentation and authority like no other and actually come the closest to providing studio monitor level sound of any IEM I have ever heard. Will likely have a custom CIEM reshell done on these soon.
MMR Thummim: There is no IEM I have ever heard that can match the power and refined dynamism of the Thummims. They are by no means neutral with slamming bass and warm, rich mids with nuanced highs, but they also provide superb technical performance with great separation and layering, a massive soundstage with great height and depth, and oodles of macro and micro detail throughout the sonic range. They’re just so engaging to listen to and they pair perfectly with my Cayin N8ii in tube mode.
SoftEars Twilight: The best single DD I have heard under $2k. What more needs to be said. Super cohesive with the most accurate and natural timbre and tone. Everything sounds as it should on these bad boys.
Campfire Supermoon CIEMs: The best planar IEM I have gotten my ears on. Incredible detail and speed while having timbre that’s much more DD sounding that typical planar timbre. These have been floating in and out of my top five, but the last couple weeks I’ve been diggin’ them as I’ve been listening to a lot of math rock which they recreate beautifully.
Dunu EST112: A bit of a surprise pick for many of you I’m sure, but these guys have become my go to put and about IEMs when walking around with a couple grand worth of gear isn’t appropriate like in downtown LA for instance. That said, I even find myself listening to them when I have more expensive choices like those above. The tuning profile is very close to what I would have tuned these to myself and makes for a great allrounder that can go from metal to prog to punk to jazz and blues pretty effortlessly. They also have some crazy synergy with my lowly iBasso DX160 which makes that combo my go to work/out and about rig.
Honorable mentions: Orioles Szalyis and AKG N5005 which have both seen their fair share of ear time recently as well. For the record, I intentionally don’t take into account any of the 64Audio or JH Audio CIEMs that I have for actual monitoring for business, legal, and personal reasons so don’t judge my opinion of them by this list. 
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Kind of surprised that you came back around on the Storm…and yet not surprised haha. Also interesting to hear that they live up to their name (SubTonic Opus Reference Monitor), you may be one of the only people to use them for their intended purpose!
Also great to see some EST112 love, truly a cult hit of an IEM!
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The Storms aren’t the most enjoyable or engaging IEM I own by any means, but when I want to hear a track exactly as it was laid down with all possible nuance, detail, and micro dynamics/detail possible, the Storms are the best there is (that I have encountered). They are my go to set for critical listening and when new albums come out I’ll listen to them through the storms once I’ve had the first non-critical listen to just sit back and enjoy it. The second time around, I’ll use the Storms to give me that ability to look deep into the music and production techniques to confirm or deny what my ears are telling me and give me greater insight into the technical foundations of the music I’m listening to. My girl got over them and went back to her Evos, but I gave them one more week in my rotation before deciding if I should sell them and I’m glad I did.
As for the EST112, I think I have owned pretty much every mid level EST based IEM out there and it is my favorite by a decent margin. Not perfect, but it makes me want to keep listening and that speaks volumes IMO.
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In some kind of order:
Softears Twilight - fantastic for pretty well all my library, bass tactility, superb timbre, all day comfortable, 100% worth the money for me
Tangzu HBB Heyday - for when the melodic death metal/tech death metal mood strikes, balanced tuning perfect for this to my ears
Xenns UP - don’t work for everything, but love these for classic rock and older recordings
EJ07M KL Resin - very good all rounder, still tip rolling to find something with a narrow-ish bore that will fit the resin nozzles without deforming too much (suggestions welcome )
Simgot EA500 (red nozzles + foam mod) - default on-the-go set for commuting
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How do you get on with the “stock” soft/light gray tips? I still find that they give me the best comfort/balance. I liked them okay with Ye Olde Spinfit CP100s, too.
My lineup in no particular order.
U12t very fun energetic sound and can be tuned
QDC tigers can be warm and smooth or really technical depending on chain
Lcdi4 warm big sound while still very technical but need desktop power
Nanna z tune subwoofer type bass and treble the is very clean
Rinko cause they are fun and silly most of the time
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Yeah, I have med CP100s on them at the moment but sometimes I think the seal isn’t quite there. I can’t put my finger on exactly what the issue is with the stock tips but just feels like I can’t get the right insertion depth with the large ones and the med didn’t seal properly 
.
Going to order some Softears UC tips from somewhere (never available on Amazon uk) and see how they work out.
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For some reason, these haven’t worked for me on a single set I’ve tried them on. They are very comfortable, I’ll give them that, but the sound comes off as slightly rounded. I’ll be curious to see what you think of them because to my knowledge, most people like them quite a bit.
Some other weird ones that seem to seal really well (but I haven’t tried fitting on the Resin 'M yet) are the Spinfit CP240 bi-flange. They give me a better seal than the CP100 typically does, and if you want, I can try them out tonight and see how they work.
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Yeah, interesting. I can say I haven’t felt any need to change from these (stock) on the Twilights though - which was a first for me.
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That would be great, thanks. It never crossed my mind to try double-flange tips, could be good (added to list).
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They’re weird in that they are kinda “pseudo-bi-flange” tips, but they have normal Spinfit bores on the stem and effectively go in a lil’ deeper like a proper bi-flange. I’ve had one or two IEMs that they really didn’t like staying attached to, but I’ll test the Resin 'M tonight and see if I can get you some shots if they work out. Here’s some reference pics along with a comparison on fit with CP100 M on my Lokis:
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