shotgunshane’s IEM (custom and universal) recommendations, favorites and classics

Discussion in 'IEMs and Portable Gear' started by shotgunshane, Jun 7, 2016.

  1. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    I think the AKG K3003 sounds closest to the HD800.
     
  2. mulolomu

    mulolomu New

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    wuutt??

    Hell no... K3003 bass a lot bigger or can i say bloated? And the coherence is very bad on K3003, the bass freq and mid/high freq feels so disconnected...maybe the only one that K3003 sounds closer to HD800 is because their shrillness and peakiness.
     
  3. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    Got the Sony XBA-Z5. Will post detailed impressions after 200 hour burn in period as recommended by Sony store staff.

    But here's out of box impressions:
    • Bass seems to be very well dampen(more "dum" than "thud"). Like a sealed subwoofer vs bass reflex port(JVC woodies). Although it can make drums sound too rigidity(no decay, one note bass)
    • Vocal seems to be more distant sounding and more mixed into the music as oppose to it's own focus/own spacing.
    • Very Warm Mids(typical BA mids, very speedy) but doesn't cause husky female vocals. Male vocals excel with this iem, female vocal isn't as good.
    • High Frequency extension is very good and smooth, even higher pitch than JVC. JVC still wins in instrument timbre, Sony sounds a tad more artificial(but much improved vs their terrible XBA4's artificial sounding treble & timbre).
    • Sometimes you can notice positional(cue) changes between low, mid and high frequencies.
    • Complex music pieces seems to be highly coherent(Better than JVC, which is very good) in the sense you can pick out each instrument/element more easily
    • This iem can handle high volume levels without breaking up/distorting/shouty/overly harsh
    • It doesn't seem to pair well with iphones headphone jack, somehow this iem seems to highlight the sibilance and digitius more. No such issues with the zero digitus ZX2.
    • Seals pretty well(stock sony tips). Doesn't leak in much nor leak out much.
    • stock cable is pretty flimsy, ordered the MUC-S125M1 to replace it.
    • JVC spiral dots improves bass depth.
     
    Last edited: Aug 16, 2016
  4. Huxleigh

    Huxleigh Almost "Made"

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    Anecdotal observation, here.

    It may be that that the Martian likes a lively amp. Straight out of the Mojo, it's a bit dull. I actually preferred it from my iPhone more. But I've been driving it with the HeadAmp pico Power for the last few days, and this combo is pretty fuckin' ace.

    Any thoughts on this, @shotgunshane? You too, @IlikeIEMs.
     
  5. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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    The Pico stuff I've heard is pretty forward sounding, so I can imagine the Martian paring better with that and the more laid back sound of the Mojo. Although I remember really liking vocals with the Mojo. I've always considered iPhone sound as slightly forward as well.

    Interesting Z5 impressions. The very warm mids don't really sound like my cup of coffee. How is staging and spaciousness?
     
  6. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    Z5's staging and spaciousness seems to be affected by choice of tip.
    With the stock sony tip(green silicone), it seems pretty closed in(very small room), however once I attached the JVC spiral dot tips, it gets wider(small hall). Depth wise, there isn't much to talk about, I am guessing 10 feet/3meters at most.
     
  7. Kunlun

    Kunlun cat-alyzes cat-aclysmic cat-erwauling - Friend

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    I'm listening to the z5 with an upgraded cable, spiral dots and out of an apex glacier (tube-like tuning) amp. The lower mids are indeed warm. Male vocals are good and female not bad, but both are not so forward, so I'm hearing what maa is hearing. With my set-up, soundstage is average.
     
  8. IlikeIEMs

    IlikeIEMs New

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    I ordered Trinity Audio's Phantom Master 6 about 6 weeks ago. I ordered it just after the Brexit vote, when the pound-dollar conversion took a huge hit. I really got a good deal. Expected delivery is in the September/October time frame. I can hardly wait to have a listen when they arrive!
     
  9. Madaboutaudio

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    Tried the Fidus Sirius A91, pair it to the Sony ZX2.

    It is a ultra smooth flowy sound iem that sounds a lot like the noble k10u. It will work well with any genre. Excellent soundstaging.

    There are three issues with A91:
    Lack of Deep Bass Response
    Lack of High Frequency Extension
    Short bore doesn't allow for deep enough insertion into ear canal
     
    Last edited: Aug 23, 2016
  10. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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    The Fidue flagship dynamic lacks sub bass extension?

    My Perfect Seal Deca custom has arrived. Won't really get any serious ear time until Friday but initial impressions are better than my experience with the demo, which was impressive.
     
  11. Madaboutaudio

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    I was expecting more from the Fidue's bass given it's a dynamic driver but even the much cheaper TFZ Series 3S has more mid bass boom and punch than the Fidue!

    If compared to JVC Woodies and Sony Z5, the fidue cannot even come anywhere close to these two basshead iems. I guess it could be related to the sealing/tips, but the Fidue wasn't really pushing strong bass output even out of a bass champion Sony ZX2! It's more like Noble K10U kind of bass.
     
  12. k4rstar

    k4rstar Britney fan club president

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    That makes sense, from what I understand they tuned the DD driver to sound like BA bass.
     
  13. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    The mids on the Fidue is very impressive. Vocals come alive on these. They reminded me of the Audio Technica IM04 like vocals. Lushy, warm and inviting. A91 is a great musical iem but I wish it could reveal more music details on the bottom and top end of the spectrum.
     
  14. fierce_freak

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    Very interested to hear about the Deca
     
  15. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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    Sure thing. I'll probably post some thoughts after the weekend.
     
  16. Warrior

    Warrior RIP 2021

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    I wish you could have compared with the stock cable. I really couldn't stand the Z5 with the stock cable, at all. Thought it was terrible. I had no desire to listen to the Z5, at all. Received the upgraded cable, and I found it to be a significant improvement. On the stock cable I found the Z5s bass to be very boomy, basically it was rendered useless for me. Probably the most noticeable change I've ever heard due to a cable.
     
  17. Madaboutaudio

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    Just recieved KZ ZS3(8mm single dynamic driver) from Amazon:
    https://www.amazon.com/KZ-ZS3-Cancelling-Earphone-Comfort/dp/B01GYNCJWS/

    Out of box impressions:
    This $20 iem certainly sounds way way above(~20x) it's price.

    Think of Etyomic ER4P, Final Audio Fi-BA-SS and you get the type of sound signature I am refering to, if you have heard these iems. This iem is not for bassheads at all.

    The Bass isn't it's strong suit* but it's mid range and treble clarity is crystalline/liquid like. Bass has punch but not much boom nor body to speak of, I would describe the bass as fast and tactile.

    It displays alot of finesse to the sound, a very fast sound(strings, cymbals all sound really true to life without any artificial graininess). It has uncanny ability to showcase reverberation and echos in live music.

    Male or Female vocals sound excellent on these. Mid range is one of it's big strong points. With group singers of three, you can hear coherently who or how many singers are singing at once. The mids are like a technicolor of display which makes it easy to pinpoint different instruments at play. Highly Resolving sound.

    Soundstage is not the widest but it's about a mini concert hall size. It does present quite abit of positional cues too(3dness).

    It's major weak point is that it tends to exhibit rather noticeable distortion(cracking) with certain difficult music or when pushed abit louder. This also means this iem can be easily driven without dedicated amps and sound good at lower volumes.

    But for $20, It blows away most $50 iems.

    *This sony foam tip improved bass(to the point where it has somewhat decent bass slam and boom) on the ZS3:
    [​IMG] [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Aug 26, 2016
  18. mrweirdude

    mrweirdude Asshole lowballer - acquaintance

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    I may have just scored a Audio Technica CK10, no promises, but a comparison with my EX1000s might come later, let's see whether my very favorable memories of my first CK10 hold up....
     
  19. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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  20. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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