64 Audio Volür

I wanted to thank Mark from Supereviews a fellow Californian Audiophile who lent me this iem. This is just a fan review.

This is just a short written review as a fan and not meant to be a crazy long review. The Volur is almost 4 months old and is almost ancient in terms of hype! As this is 64 Audio's most recent release it is still a remarkable set and deserves a review.




Song Choice: Tidal list here:
I listen to a wide variety of music. I pick the songs because of various reasons. But I picture myself locked away like Andy Dufresne from Shawshank blasting music and shut off from the world. It’s a blissful image.
The Marriage of Figaro -The opera song from Shawshank Redemption, terrible recording but fun and gets me in the mood to listen to music.
O mio Babino caro -This is a modern less operatic version but a song with great female vocals.
Video Rigoletto - “La donna e mobile” Sung by one of the three Tenors, great song for high-performing male vocals. Pavarotti is the greatest classic singer maybe ever. Fight me!
Iron man - The sound at the beginning is hard to make sound great, great drums, and cymbals, and if done right it feels like an old-school band.
I Will Survive (1981 recording, I like her voice, and the old vocals, the drums, and various natural instruments really make this a favorite for me.
There is a light That never goes out - Smiths ( A classic, I just love it. It’s mellow, and I can tell a lot of the tuning if this song is done right.)
Jump (I like how the sound effects are in this!)
Star Child Someone recommended this song to me, and I like how funky it sounds and has nice vocals and a mix of music and things going on.
Dicke Titten Ramstein The beginning is amazing and the bass hits hard. Great song. I love rock and metal. The German language fascinates me
Master of Puppets: Very fast song. Helps me determine if the driver can keep up.



Bass (20-60 Sub Bass, 60-250 Hz Mid Bass)

The details of the bass is strong and everything sounds right on it. The bass seems well-controlled and fun. Everything on this iem sound great with a hint of warmth. It sounds like strong speakers and has a natural timber and is fantastic.


Midrange (250 HZ to 800 HZ Low Mids, 600-200 Hz Mids, 2000-5000Hz Upper Mids)

The timber and tone is great on this iem, people have described it as near perfect or class leading and they aren’t joking. It is basically perfect for what I want out of an iem. It has nothing that will often plague other iems. No weird plastic feeling, voices sound right with no plastic feeling. Rich note weight and everything is just a nice strong sound.

I don’t find it shouty at all but fun, smoothe and enjoyable. Podcasts and voices all sound great on it, and it has a good feel to it. Overall this iem is fresh, non fatiguing and just an easy clear listen. Vocals sound detailed and lifelike.

Treble (5000- 10000 Trebble/Highs, 10000 ++ HZ Upper Trebble & Air)

The treble is a good part of this set and this iem has great detail and sparkle for me. Yet the 2-4 region is a little flat and I enjoy a little more 3k energy. No major issues here, just a minor nitpick. All the music that I listen to sounds great and I feel that it has a wide beautiful soundstage.

Gaming

Gaming is amazing on this em. Do I think you should buy this iem to improve your gaming experience? No, but this is perfect. Great shell, Super comfortable, and never has sibilance. It has a beautiful open and clean sound. The stage isn’t too wide, but just right. Detail retrieval during fights is immaculate, and the imaging vertically and horizontally is fantastic. It has great imaging. The iem is light and feels durable with this .fantastically textured cable. It’s truly a treasure to have for long gaming sessions as the details of the game sparkle.

Shell -
The shell is metalic and beautiful. It’s easy to cable swap.

Comparisons:

Having got to listen to a lot of iems over the last few years I will recommend this as a strong piece to anyone’s collection that can afford the cost. It is a truely remarkable iem for the cost and just a beauty to listen to. It does things for me that other iems don’t and is one of my favorite iems that I’ve heard.
Graph:


Sound - Final Impressions

While this iem is very good, and almost perfect is seems that there could be some room for some slight improvement here. The 2-4k region is one area that I have an issue with. The details and imaging are very nice on this iem, but I don't think it's absolutly perfect and that at time certain tracks aren't as good as I wish. But overall the really only downfall or huge fault I have that might prevent me form owning this is the price and the price alone.


Recommended EQ: I use Peace APO to EQ on the PC. This EQ is done to my preference. I recently set up a preference curve on My Squig. So for at least iems, I can use my own graphs now. Please feel free to use the measurements as you want.. Jaytiss.squig.link
Overall this is an amazing iem that could easily be a game for most. The goal for me with an iem is to have an that doesn’t need EQ.

Preamp: -10.8 dB
Filter 1: ON PK Fc 24 Hz Gain 0.6 dB Q 1.400
Filter 2: ON PK Fc 72 Hz Gain 1.9 dB Q 0.500
Filter 3: ON PK Fc 180 Hz Gain 0.5 dB Q 2.000
Filter 4: ON PK Fc 300 Hz Gain -1.6 dB Q 1.200
Filter 5: ON PK Fc 1600 Hz Gain -1.1 dB Q 0.900
Filter 6: ON PK Fc 3300 Hz Gain 4.8 dB Q 1.700
Filter 7: ON PK Fc 3600 Hz Gain 0.6 dB Q 2.000
Filter 8: ON PK Fc 6100 Hz Gain -2.4 dB Q 1.400
Filter 9: ON PK Fc 7600 Hz Gain -2.4 dB Q 2.000
Filter 10: ON PK Fc 10000 Hz Gain 12.0 dB Q 2.000

Does the Volur need eq. No but this is a fun profile for it.




Gifting/who is it for: I think this is a nice hifi iem to gift to someone, but it is very expensive. I’d almost recommend a cheaper iem. Even the u4s might be the better pick. This isn’t for pure bassheads, but those who enjoy good tight beautiful bass and an energetic iem that is true end game. Dont’ get me wrong, it’s expensive but if you compare it to the 8000 dollar iems from um it is a beautiful yet semi affordable iem.


Pairing: I used a Quidelix 5k for mobile, my dongle Dac iBasso DC04 for my laptop, and my JDS labs Element III MK2 Boosted for my Desktop PC. I also tried the iem briefly on the Apple dongle as well. This iem had no issues being driven. Typically I only find overears to really have a hard time being driven and maybe some planar iems. (I personally am not a huge mmcx or planar fan.)

Summary-
This is a fantastic set, that compliments or exceeds many sets that I have ever heard. I full enjoy this set and recommend it.


Thanks for reading, and maybe even watching. Any feedback is welcome.

Please see the full review with frequency response graphs and comparisons to 64 Audio U4s and Sennheiser IE 900 here!

Sound​

When I first heard the Volür, I used the m12 module as I thought it’d be the obvious choice given that it’s specially included with the Volür. Turns out, that was a mistake. It’s not that the m12 is bad. It’s just that it doesn’t quite capture what the Volür is all about - bass. So I promptly switched over the m20 module. The overall tonality can thus be described as bassy with a big upper treble peak. It’s similar to a U-shape but not quite.

Bass​

The bass is the obvious standout performer of the Volür. It has a superb sense of heft and weight while maintaining great control and tactility that never gets muddy. Notes land with aplomb. It definitely leans boomy rather than punchy thanks to lengthened decay. Altogether, the Volür delivers a large sounding sustained low-end presence that’s excellent in both classical instruments like the double bass or in modern genres with electronic beats. One thing to note though is that it has less bass contrast due to the sloping into the lower mids. Thus if you’re looking for distinctly segmented bass notes, the Volür isn’t quite it.

Mids​

Given the bass tuning and how it transitions into the lower mids, you might expect the Volür to be rather thick and warm. And while it certainly has a good helping of warmth, the sizable upper mids in that 2 - 4 kHz region counterbalances the warmth. Vocals are well positioned in the mix, neither shouty nor recessed. Vocal tone has a slight off-ness at first listen due to the centering of the pinna around 2 kHz rather than 3 kHz. But spend some time listening to it and that off-ness mostly fades as you get accustomed to the tuning (AKA brain burn-in).



As for the other instruments, they have a tasteful vividness thanks to the coloration in the lower mids and the 4.5 kHz peak helps notes pop with definition. Stringed instruments, be it acoustic or electric, are especially engaging. I’d like to say that I don’t really have any complaints with timbre except…

Treble​

That big treble peak in the graph is real. This is a consequence of the tia driver technology that 64 Audio likes to use and can be pretty hit and miss on in terms of how well it’s controlled. As we can see, it’s not exactly the best on the Volür. To be fair, while the B&K 5128 system is much more accurate than the old GRAS rigs we’re used to, we still have to take it with a grain of salt. Doing a sine sweep by ear, I found that there was only one wide-ish peak around 12 - 14 kHz instead of a consistent airiness all the way up to highest octaves. For reference I can still hear up to around 18.5 kHz.



So how does this peak translate to the listening experience? It’s a constant emphasis on certain notes and it throws off the timbre of a number of instruments. For example, the thin raking of the pick against the strings on an acoustic guitar sometimes overpowers the rich tone of the strum. Or with vocals, there’s a shimmery sibilant sheen. It’s not painfully sharp but it’s a definite edginess to the voice, particularly for female vocals. And with hats and cymbals, it’s less of a clean, crisp attack and more of a clicky or tizzy body past the transients. I expect this peak to be a dealbreaker for a lot of people. It might just be a little too grating.

While the unevenness of the treble can warp the naturality of many notes, not every instrument is equally affected and some might even be enhanced. For example, crystalline or bell-like tones have amazing clarity. In addition, your experience will be affected by the tips you use. I tried on a set of Divinus Audio Velvets and it did wonders to shape the upper treble just enough to mask some of that timbral awkwardness.

Presentation​

The technical ability of the Volür is quite good but isn’t quite to the level I expected. Stage width is excellent but there’s little height and only a touch of depth. Imaging and layering is very good - nuanced and coherent across the soundstage. But its resolution is one clear step below 64 Audio’s universally acclaimed U12t and marginally better than the U4s. While the bass definition and control makes it less smeary than the U4s, it just doesn’t quite have the raw ability to highlight hidden notes in the way the U12t does. Where the Volür stands confidently is in its bass macrodynamics. I was once almost tempted to turn down the volume at times after getting caught off-guard when a track transformed from a quiet ballad into a heavy hitting passage.

Should You Buy It?​

Maybe. If you’re value sensitive, I can’t justify the Volür over the U4s or some of the other options around the $1,500 mark. But if your wallet is a little bulkier, the Volür is a very reasonable choice for those who already love the 64 Audio sound and want to further push the boundaries in their IEM’s bass. Or y’know, if you really love purple.

The latest model with the name Volür from 64 Audio is the successor to the popular Nio. With a price of 2749€, it is above the Trio and below the U18s/t. That's a lot more expensive than the Nio, but the Volür brings some technical innovations that currently ensure a unique selling point at 64 Audio. More on the technical highlights later.



The scope of delivery includes 64 Audio typical a leather case, a 3.5mm black premium cable, stickers, three different sets of ear tips (foam, silicone, SpinFit CP155) and 4 different Apex modules (MX, M12, M15, M20). The M15 module is mounted by default. The M12 module is only supplied for a short time and must then be purchased separately. A brush as well as a retaining clip are also still in the package. The design of the Volür knocks my socks off. When I learned that the new one was purple, I first thought, an IEM for women? No, I'm not kidding, but purple is not one of my favorite colors, but the way this faceplate is designed with the glittering purple and shimmering blue and green colors is a real eye-catcher. My wife even said, "Wow, this looks great!". The faceplate is made from a New Zealand paua shell. The whole shell of the IEM is made of metal and absolutely good processed. The IEM is also super comfortable to wear due to its small size. As with almost all 64 Audio IEMs, the SpiralDots fit the Volür perfectly in terms of sound and comfort. Personally, I prefer the SpiralDots++ because of the even better comfort. However, the included SpinFit CP155 do their job just as well. Due to the slightly different texture, some will even prefer them, depending on the shape of the ear canal. In terms of sound, all three don't do much. On the other hand, I can't recommend foam in terms of sound. It inflates the sound and sounds too hollow and unbalanced to me, too little airiness.




What are the technical features? The Volür is a hybrid IEM with a total of 10 drivers. Two dynamic drivers and 8 BA drivers. But now please hold on! Yes, you heard right, 2 dynamic drivers, which are responsible for the bass range and here two 9mm drivers, which are arranged in a so-called True Isobaric configuration. Both drivers are acoustically connected by a coupling chamber. One driver is completely sealed. Only one driver generates the sound pressure. This system is unique to the Volür and is said to result in better damping, lower distortion and twice the power handling. Such an arrangement of two dynamic driver for the bass exists, for example, in the Astell & Kern AURA, but here only two 8mm drivers are used.

The second innovation concerns the tia waveguide technology. I mentioned earlier that 8 BA drivers are used. Of these, 6 midrange drivers, 1 high-midrange driver and one tia driver. In all top models of 64 Audio tia drivers are used, which are designed for optimum highs performance. Tia Waveguide optimizes efficiency and also provides better tuning control. For this purpose, special diffusion windows are used on the front as well as on the sides. This additional component is fitted into the driver's housing.

In addition to the two new technological highlights, which were introduced for the first time at 64 Audio, the familiar technologies such as apex and LID, which I will not go into further here, are also used.



64 Audio's advertising promises that the Volür is a new benchmark in acoustic reproduction, with rich bass (while giving room to the rest of the spectrum) and treble that catapults it near some of the highest-resolution audio products in the world. Does the advertising promise too much? I'm about to get to the bottom of that. As always, I'm using my terrific iBasso DX320 MAX Ti for the test, one of the best DAPs you can buy right now. My comparative tests were basically carried out at gain level 1, which for me even higher volumes out of the Volür without problems, because it can be driven very easily. The supplied cable is unfortunately only unbalanced and for the full development of the possibilities of the Volür I switched directly to a pure silver cable from Lavricables, namely the current top model Grand Silver IEM. Compared to the delivery cable, it gets even more resolution out of the Volür, so it plays cleaner and more detailed with more transparency especially in the bass range. A fantastic combo!

By the first short hearing impressions, which one could read on the day of the release, I hoped not to get a bass cannon that sounds in addition still shrill. And I can say that is the Volür not at all. But bass it can and how! Tonally it plays on the minimal bright side. A Raven, for example, sounds a bit brighter and livelier in the treble. The Volür does not have this boost in the treble range.

Now we come to the most pronounced area of the Volür and that is the bass. I have never experienced such an expansive bass in the IEM range, especially in the low bass range, which goes to work with such a bass texture and a speed and now it comes - without it inflates into other areas! Madness! The Volür's bass makes not only bassheads happy, but also those who don't want to miss out on the other ranges. And that includes fabulous, warm mids and a treble range that plays in the absolute top league of IEMs. Now, as you know, I own two of the best IEMs for bass, the Radon6 and the Raven. These two are already insanely good for EDM. But I think the Volür tops them both in that it is capable of reproducing trance music a la Paul Van Dyk with such massive punch and control, even at ear-splitting volumes, with a priority on more low bass. And neither mids nor highs suffer. I really have to repeat that I have never heard an IEM do that. Raven and Radon6 (more so) present the bass range more detached from the rest of the action, in the Volür it is integrated around the action. Here I have the feeling that a fat subwoofer is at work, even more than the Raven. 64 Audio does not use a bone conduction driver, nor are there any openings to the outside as with the Kinetic Bass technology of the Radon6 and yet I feel the almost infinitely deep bass, just awesome! With non-synthetically generated bass, such as that of a bass drum, Radon6 and Raven have the nose slightly ahead again, everything seems a bit more detailed and audible. You just can't have both. Pronounced low bass does not allow higher frequencies in the bass to show through as well. Fortunately, this ends at a certain bass frequency and the mids can breathe freely.

With the apex modules you can either gradually lower or raise the bass range. I find the standard mounted M15 modules fit best. M12 is also still okay with a little more treble with minimally decreasing bass. Mx is too thin for me and takes away too much bass. And M20 is too much bass for me.

The mids are anything but thin, but are reproduced with proper contour and especially the rendering of voices is very expressive but never superficial, but always with enough distance to the listener. This is not an intrusive sounding IEM. But neither is it as laidback as a Fourte Blanc, for example, which has a dip in the mids and illuminates the action from further away. That brings us to the stage. This is very holographic and sufficiently pronounced on all sides about the same level as the U4s, but with much better separation. The Blanc delivers an even better depth gradation and seems minimally wider. The Radon6 is also a bit more pronounced on all sides and has an airiness like no other IEM. The Raven has the largest stage and is currently the end of the line in the IEM range in this discipline.

What about the details between the top model Blanc from 64 Audio and the Volür? Well, despite the "fatter" tuning compared to the Blanc, I miss absolutely nothing in terms of details with the Volür. The tia waveguide technology is not only a promise, but also works and that by all means very well. Here, for example, a U4s can not keep up at all. Well, this one doesn't even have a tia driver. Technically, I would see the Volür absolutely on par with the Blanc. For me, the latter represents a tuning as I personally imagine it. A slightly smooth midrange with strong bass and gentle treble in addition high resolution. It doesn't get any better than that at the moment. I would now consider the Volür as my second favorite tuning from 64 Audio. An even stronger bass range and in addition technically one that the Blanc with a dynamic driver cannot offer. So it's a tie between the Blanc and the Volür. The former is even better tuned (for me) and the latter has the better bass range.

Due to the technical innovations, especially the absolutely fantastic bass range, I see the extra price compared to the Nio quite justified. In my opinion, anyone who only listens to EDM cannot get around the Volür. This is currently the best IEM for EDM, period. I listen to some EDM and mostly Metal. Also some New Wave. For all these genres, the Volür is made like. But for those who prefer more neutral tunings or a very expansive stage presentation, the Volür might not be the right choice. In conclusion, I can say that the Volür is not a bass cannon that fires unchecked in all areas. It has a strongly pronounced bass range, which is nevertheless always controlled to work even at very high volumes, absolutely distortion-free.