Hey I haven’t forgotten you asking about Serial tips elsewhere - just need a chance to A/B the ePro Horns and current favorite tips so I can give you a good answer.
Love my Twilight as well you described them perfectly.
If you think thoose blow you mind try The Plunge Audio Unity. The most Uncolored set you will hear.
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- IE800S
- IE600
- Hidizs MS5
- Moondrop Blessing 3
- FiiO FH15
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- SA6 MK2- I still maintain that this thing is extremely technical with an amazing soundstage. I’m in love forever…
- IE600 - Absolutely superb 1DD. Love it.
- Thie HYPE2 - If I want to enjoy master tuning and just listen to music.
4.KL with added bass. It lags behind the others in some things, but it’s a good IEM, with good resolution and decent technical characteristics for the price. The timbre is very BA. But I love her.
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1a. GL-AMT16 (6.0/4.4)*
1b. MP145 (Brass Nozzle)*
2. QDC 8SL
3. Simgot EA500 (Red Nozzle)*
4. 7hz Legato* **
*One High Density Foam in the Nozzle
**Using 150Ω adapter to bring down the upper treble
Mostly a rearrangement from before. 8SL on the UTWS5 is getting a lot more love since I like the colder weather outside. MP145 has been extremely impressive for me once I got the tuning dialed in. Favorite planar IEM to date.
Messing around with some mods and adapters to the Legato. Not a very technical iem, so I’ve been trying to, with mods, push them into bassy-dark / dolby NR sound direction that I enjoyed with the AQ Nighthawks.
IEM RANKING LIST
- Goldplanar GL-AMT16 - On foams, the most resolving IEM I’ve heard to date with ridiculous imaging, separation, and perceived stage. Whatever shortcomings it has from a tuning perspective are overshadowed by its technical prowess.
- QDC 8SL - Fun, bass-boosted signature multi-BA set that’s still very technical. Best for isolating instrument lines.
- Thieaudio Monarch MKII - Favorite tribrid I’ve heard with center-stage vocals. Results in slightly off imaging, though. A bit of a squeezed in effect. Could be more detailed.
- Softears Twilight - Clear-sounding with good vocal body. Was missing some bass quantity and the vertical fit drove me nuts. When things get busy, it doesn’t handle separation as well as the multi-driver sets.
- Thieaudio Prestige (not LTD) - Very reliant on deep insertion depth. Better imaging than MKII, but treble was too much with my usual fitment, and the bass was too boosted/bumped.
- Hidiz MP145 - Favorite planar to date with a warmer signature. With the red filter, excellent for rock & metal.
- Fiio x Crinacle FHE: Eclipse - This one reminds me a lot of the Fostex Biocellulose headphones. Clean and bassy. A part of me regrets selling this.
- Mangird XENNS UP - Smooth and unobtrusive sounding with a good bass. Ultimately not enough air to justify keeping it. (I like controlling smoothness/darkness at the amp/dac level)
- Moondrop Variations - Very technical and hit the treble quantity sweet-spot, but that bass tuning is just not for me, even for the part of my library that it’s good for.
- 7HZ Crinacle Zero: 2 - First IEM out of the box that I wasn’t temped to tip-swap/experiment with. Treble and bass are perfect for good and bad recordings alike.
- Simgot EA500 - Favorite sub-$100 IEM for good recordings, but the Zero:2 has usurped it last-minute. Both clear sounding with body-thump bass that I don’t usually get with non-bass-boosted sets.
- Kiwi Ears Cadenza - What I find is now a less dialed-in Zero:2 with not as good of a value
- 7HZ Salnotes Zero - Excellent, but slightly missed the mark in tuning, for my preferences.
- LZ A7 - On the right gear with the red nozzle, it’s a sublime listening experience. It does have shortfalls in the air frequencies with the piezos, hence the gear argument.
- 7hz Timeless - Really technical, but the stage width sounded very intimate, and the coin-shape did NOT work with my ears for long sessions. Had to jerry-rig tip extensions. MP145 is how you do a big planar.
- LetShuoer Z12 - Technical planar with good fit. Too much treble for my liking.
- LZ A6 - Sibilant in most configurations, but more detailed than the others on this list (minus the Ace 2 in the treble)
- Etymotic ER2SE - Hated the fit and perceived stage width with these, but undeniably a resolving and cohesive set.
- Tin Hifi T2 - At the time of release, with the blue foams this was my favorite set. Very clean sounding.
- 7hz Legato - Not very resolving, but it’s got a ton of bass quantity. Fun for older electronic subgenres. If the FHE:Eclipse is a TH900, then this is a Campfire Cascade (for better or worse, lol)
- Creative Aurvana Ace 2 - Favorite wireless set I’ve tried, but mainly due to the treble party trick with XMEMS. The bass is unresolved and boomy without the app. After EQ it’s warm with the same bass quality. One of the most obvious hybrids you’ll listen to.
- Moondrop Stellaris - It’s like a better PR2, but the treble is a bit much without foams. The GL-AMT16 is like the TOTL version of this lean signature with less bass and the upper-treble doesn’t actually hurt (still requires foams though.)
- Tin Hifi P1 MAX - Warm and pleasant signature, but doesn’t stack up to the newer planars.
- BLON BL-MAX - More v-shaped and better bass quantity and quality over the BL03. Lost BL03’s magic, but ultimately the better of the two.
- BLON BL03 - Smooth and warm, but the detail doesn’t stack up to newer IEMs on the market.
- KZ PR2 - Detailed for the price-point, but lean and quite sibilant without modding. Wouldn’t grab it over the DD sets in the same price-range.
- Jaybird X2 - My favorite of the wireless buds at the time of release with one of the app EQ presets.
- ZERO AUDIO Carbo Tenore - Bassy bullet-style. I liked this one a lot for casual use.
- Sennheiser CX 200 Street II - I really liked this one, but it’s been over a decade since I’ve listened to it. Probably wouldn’t fare well with the newer sets.
- Klipsch S4 - While a bit more technical that other sets at the time, I didn’t love the tuning compared to my cheaper IEMs for some reason.
- LG Tone Platinum - Improvement upon the 730, but not by much.
- LG Tone 730 - Commercial v-shaped signature.
- Tri i3 - Really wonky sounding and sounded very low-resolution. Potentially a defective unit.
□ - Current Rotation
3 Likes
Since I only have 5 sets, I’ve just listed them in order of what I deem to be the best/ my
favourite:
- Symphonium Helios SE
- Thieaudio Monarch MK3
- Soundrhyme SR8
- Aür Audio Aurora
- Moondrop Variations
The HSE & MMK3 are a clear step above the other 3 in terms of tuning, technicalities and resolution.
The SR8 & Aurora are very close, I just give the slight edge to the SR8 (I generally listen in 0-1 configuration). If the Aurora had better treble extension, it would likely be above the SR8.
Whilst the variations are bottom, I do like
this set a lot. They also have better treble extension than both the Aurora and SR8. However, they’re a little shouty in the upper mids.
Edit: Interestingly, this is also the order of most expensive to cheapest. This was incidental, but it’s does show that if you pay more the you should get better.
10 Likes
That’s an impressive collection of complementary sets!
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The list till 2024
- IMR Acoustics Titan
2 Oriveti OH700VB - Oriveti OD200
- Penon 10th AE
- IKKO OH5 ASGARD
THE alternative 5
1.FIIO FH9
2.EPZ 530
3. DUNU Zen
4. Acoustune HS 1655cu
5. Meze Advar
Man it’s hard I have a very fluid rotation choose the iem to suit my mood and Dap of choice
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In no particular order
Simgot EA500LM- for feedback testing
A improved driver with more bass Sub and Mid Bass and clearer resolution and stage.
Oriveti OH700VB simply wonderful tuning.
Softears Twilight - Reference DD hard to beat it’s realistic timbre and Tonality and 3D stage
ThieAudio Oracle - Wonderful tuning as well clean clear mids
Sound Rhyme DTE900
A seriously fun set with very well executed EST and wonderful slam!
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With my Michael Bruce S12s out of my possession at the moment, this is the Fave Five I’m working with:
- IMR Elan+ - Hate, hate, HATE the man, but the gear (sound and versatility) is gucci.
- Dunu Vulkan - This is all I’ll ever need for a clean, more neutral tune. Don’t care how much people hate the 8k peak, it gives me life!
- Modified Letshuoer D13 with Simgot EA1000 Gold Filters - Tape off the front vent and the back chamber by the crescent moon shape, then either mod the nozzle with filter or foam to drag the upper-mids down and Holy Fuckballs, you’ll be blown away with how close to pure flat you can go. On top of that, these are fucking EQ monsters once flattened out. You can retune them to almost anything. Once I get the D13 filters modded by Michael Bruce, I’ll be able to test them out more.
- TinHifi Giant Pandas (Flatland mod) - Tape the front vent and use a 500mesh (or KBear Rosefinch) filter on the nozzle and it’s 90%+ of Michael Bruce’s Glamdring mod. The only non MB planar I’ll touch.
- Simgot EA1000 with Simgot DIY kit nozzles with 500mesh filter - The naked nozzle with a 500mesh filter is the epitome of what you can do with neutral bright tuning at $200. This is off-ramp level for most.
Honorable mentions for portable use (cause those five don’t usually run the streets):
- Light Harmonic Mera
- Michael Bruce modded Simgot EA500
- KBear Ormosia
- KBear Rosefinch (modded with 400mesh filter)
8 Likes
I was thinking this morning that the EA1000 is my offramp as you say. The Penon Fan 2 is my other one. I’m not sure which one I’d pick yet if stranded on a desert island. (I wish you would stop mentioning the Vulkan…it’s haunting my credit card every time I see it on sale. I’m trying to resist as I’m very happy with the EA1000 & Fan 2.)
I don’t think I’ll ever buy any of the megabuck earphones…around $200 is my max.
(I have to mention I also enjoy my much hated on KZ ASX.)
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I have Fan 2, EA1000, and Vulkan. If you’re happy with F2 and EA1000 then live blissfully, brother. Both of those are fantastic sets and well complimentary to each other…
Or just give in on the next AliE sale where Vulkan gets under $250 lol 
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How does the Vulkan compare to the EA1000 & Fan 2?
Is it similar to one or the other or a completely different flavor?
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They’re different flavors of neutral tuning:
- Fan 2 is a bassy form of neutral; it’s focus is in the midbass/low-mids with relaxed upper-mids and a mid-treble cut that keeps them fatigue-free
- EA1000 is a Harman-neutral; way better midbass than fully-tucked Harman, I’d take it 1000x over Hype 2. I don’t think the uppers or treble are overly boosted. I hear them as improving on everything EA500 does.
- Vulkan is a more balanced form of neutral; it hits the QDC-style of tuning which Dunu likes for their mid-fi sets. Sub over mid bass presentation, early pinna gain with lower-than-Harman upper mids and an 8k peak for ideal clarity. Lots of people don’t like that emphasis, so that’s a dealbreaker
5 Likes
Last 2 weeks or so it’s just been 2:
Night Oblivion / Forget Night Audio Butastur
Penon / Shill factory Serial
I’m not thrilled with either manufacturer. But the Serial is still my #1, and I really like the Butastur.
The Butastur sort of goes with everything and I don’t “hear” it, worst case scenario it’s boring but best case I can listen for a long time without a single complaint, usually really enjoying the music too. I like it across the FR, but it’s extra strong card that comes into play with certain high pitched plucked instruments and a few other situations is treble.
This also allows my Serials to be a more indulgently bassy set. I have always heard them as bassier than they graph, but when the other set in the rotation is a pretty neutral all BA, it hits extra hard when it’s its turn.
They probably don’t have the same peaks, but the Butastur reminds me a lot of the Olina SE for a clean presentation that doesn’t focus on bass but always had the right amount when needed.
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I had the Butastur in my ears for almost 12 hours total yesterday, they just work.
A slight eq boost in sub bass and 500 hz is perfect for me.
Keepers certainly.
Just sold my Serials 2 days ago…the Artti R1 dethroned em, 60 dollars vs 300…how bout that.
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Wow, that is impressive.
I have been listening to very bassy sets lately, the Kbear Rosefinch, and KZ Castor Black.
My favorite Harmon style this year is the Kailua, and that isn’t even close.
I have been pondering the Artti R1 and the Tangzu Fudu.
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Having heard both I really don’t get the displacement, glad you could save the money though.
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Woah, seriously?! That is an insane case of subjectivity, but I have to say, congrats. That’s some nice freed up funds for the holidays!
I think you’ll enjoy the R1, John but I recommend against the Fudu, but that’s just my opinion. When I demod them, I found the timbre to be absolutely horrible, the whispy BA timbre was poor to my ears only to find out at a later date that they stuffed both the BAs in the nozzle. I don’t think you’d enjoy them.
3 Likes