[darinf]

Should I get this logo for my Noble customs?
 

 

[project86]

Nice review. But I would like to know...do these products have any aspect that is less than perfect ? I like to know the downsides of a product too...same goes for the Kaiser 10. Thanks

 
Well of course, nothing is perfect and I tried to capture that as best I could. But let me go further.
 
 For the Noble 4C, it's more aggressively tuned in the upper mids than the slightly laid back Heir 4.A, and some people wouldn't like that. Also the bass is slightly north of neutral which again is not the preference of every listener. But at the same time it's not a bass monster, which again is not ideal for some people. Also, you can certainly buy some excellent 4-driver CIEMs for less money by going with different companies. Some people have a hard time paying more, despite any benefits it may bring. Noble is launching as a "premium" brand right out of the gate. No discounts, intro pricing, etc. That automatically excludes some potential customers.
 
For the 8C, like I said - it has become my current favorite CIEM. But that doesn't take away anything I've written in the past about model I love. The JH13 FP is arguably more versatile due to being more neutral. The Westone ES5 has ravishing mids that some people fall in love with. No single CIEM will cover every area and there are a lot of good choices. Also, the 8C (like the 8.A) requires a lot of space. It won't be a super low-profile shell design, and some people with smaller ears may not even be able to order it. There's probably a point at which Wizard would have to turn someone away because the drivers just don't fit in there. Also, and this was an issue with the 8.A and 6.A LE as well - the tiny bass tube, which Wizard says is key to extracting the high quality sound, is somewhat prone to clogging. And it's so small it can be hard to clean. Wizard makes the tip concave which is a clever way of minimizing earwax contact, but it still happens from time to time. You have to be more careful than you otherwise would and clean it regularly.
 
Is that negative enough? Normally with a new CIEM company I bring out my usual warning about customer service being an unknown at the moment, but that doesn't really apply here. 

 

[lewisbot]

Thanks, I wasn't actually looking for negative, just the full picture. It's hard to part with $1900 on a whim without many reviews. You have helped me buy my other customs in the past, so thank you.

 

[Mimouille]

Well of course, nothing is perfect and I tried to capture that as best I could. But let me go further.

 For the Noble 4C, it's more aggressively tuned in the upper mids than the slightly laid back Heir 4.A, and some people wouldn't like that. Also the bass is slightly north of neutral which again is not the preference of every listener. But at the same time it's not a bass monster, which again is not ideal for some people. Also, you can certainly buy some excellent 4-driver CIEMs for less money by going with different companies. Some people have a hard time paying more, despite any benefits it may bring. Noble is launching as a "premium" brand right out of the gate. No discounts, intro pricing, etc. That automatically excludes some potential customers.

For the 8C, like I said - it has become my current favorite CIEM. But that doesn't take away anything I've written in the past about model I love. The JH13 FP is arguably more versatile due to being more neutral. The Westone ES5 has ravishing mids that some people fall in love with. No single CIEM will cover every area and there are a lot of good choices. Also, the 8C (like the 8.A) requires a lot of space. It won't be a super low-profile shell design, and some people with smaller ears may not even be able to order it. There's probably a point at which Wizard would have to turn someone away because the drivers just don't fit in there. Also, and this was an issue with the 8.A and 6.A LE as well - the tiny bass tube, which Wizard says is key to extracting the high quality sound, is somewhat prone to clogging. And it's so small it can be hard to clean. Wizard makes the tip concave which is a clever way of minimizing earwax contact, but it still happens from time to time. You have to be more careful than you otherwise would and clean it regularly.

Is that negative enough? Normally with a new CIEM company I bring out my usual warning about customer service being an unknown at the moment, but that doesn't really apply here. 

It seems pretty clear. It is not that I WANT negative points. It is just that I am in the market for another TOTL ciem and having the limitations of each is a good way to compare. For instance, some review stated that the 8a bass was a bit much, sometimes slightly bloated and bleeding into the mids a bit. In the same way, the 8c or K10, could have such limitations and still be excellent.

 

[project86]

I did discuss the midbass factor - it seems toned down from the 8.A but will still be a bit much for some people. The bass in general is very prominent which again will not be to the taste of all people. This is a more balanced sound but if you wanted a top tier take on a fast, wispy Etymotic sound sig.... This ain't the one. The 4C comes closer but still probably doesn't hit that target.

 

[Kunlun]

Thanks, I wasn't actually looking for negative, just the full picture. It's hard to part with $1900 on a whim without many reviews. You have helped me buy my other customs in the past, so thank you.

For the Kaiser 10, it's a ciem perhaps defined by its lack of a downside as it does so much very well without a weak spot in the frequency range. However, each person has their own taste, so a person may want a bassy signature and prefer a different ciem or they want a universal fit iem or a dynamic driver or a very small shell for small ears, etc. I would read Soren's review and mine (coming soon) to get a sense of whether it's right for you rather than thinking about goods and bads.

 

[goodvibes]

It's interesting that silicone is available though have never tried it. Did Wizard mention anything about relative differences other than better isolation and fit?

 

[FullCircle]

  It's interesting that silicone is available though have never tried it. Did Wizard mention anything about relative differences other than better isolation and fit?

 
 
 
Not sure.....   But one thing about silicone, if u wear them for very long extended periods, your ears will "sweat" as the silicone will not allow your ear to "breathe." (so to speak)
 
Much like when u remove a band aid, the skin is "slick" or wet where the band aid was, much the same concept.

 

[AmberOzL]

First of all, I would like to say a big welcome back to The Wizard, I myself missed him.
 
Secondly, I got SE5way and I need a proper source update than another ciem but that K10 is really getting into my mind. Maybe in the future who knows. I always and always want to have a Wizard signature ciem and one day it will become true I know.
 
About the silicone, I have a silicone earpiece ciem and the sweating is quite correct. I wear them once for about 7 hours and when I took them out, it was interesting to feel the fresh air entering into my ears again.
 
Once again, welcome back Dr Moulton aka The Wizard.

 

[Tom Yum Goong]

Subbed

 

[Don Lehrer]

Ohh I like your review, really good. I like the esthetics and the nice work done by the Wizard

 

[Fatalethal]

Hey project86,
 
how would you compare the UM Merlin to the 8C?
 
 
Also, did you send your UM Merlin back to UM for reshell/retune? because apparently my Merlin (which i got it back in 2011), is different sounding to the current Merlin i have heard... way different.

 

[bangkokkid]

  Should I get this logo for my Noble customs?
 

 
This can be arranged.

 

[faithguy19]

  Should I get this logo for my Noble customs?
 

 
It took me a second to get this.  Very nice!!

 

[Thracian]

Already been waiting awhile. When will my K10 see the light, or dark, of my ears?