Acknowledgment   

Thanks 1MORE UK for providing this review sample in return for my honest opinion.
 

Introduction

I heard about 1MORE from a fellow HeadFier, who told me I should check out the triple driver, so I went searching. The triple driver is in such high demand that there are none available for review as I write this. According to the 1MORE rep I’ve chatted with, the 1MORE MK801 and 1MORE EO323 are great introductions to their sound, so they sent me them to review. After reviewing these offerings, I decided I wanted to hear 1MORE, and then two more and a third more. So now I have upcoming reviews of the 1MORE iBFree Bluetooth IEM, the 1MORE MK802 Bluetooth headphone (one of a few AptX HD headphones on the market), and these growingly famous 1MORE Triple Drivers.
 

About the company

1MORE is a design powerhouse brought into play by a few Foxconn executives and a shedload of venture capital from giants like Xiaomi. 1MORE makes their own goodies and are also the brains behind a few Xiaomi offerings. The company is based out of Shenzen, but this dragon barrels through the UK, and twists through the USA in San Diego—a really nice place to shuffle and soar through with all the great beer, rockin’ tacos, cultural hotspots, welcoming weather, and romantically fading honey blond sands extending out into the infinite.
Outside of being in some pretty cool places, 1MORE keeps winning design awards from obscure award ceremonies. My field’s accolades aren’t really different; most folks wouldn’t recognize a really decorated academic if their thesis smacked them in the face.
 
 
1MORE aims to have a global brand to match Apple’s big money monkey, Beats, I say monkey because a monkey could have tuned the ones I’ve heard. Unlike Beats, 1MORE wants to make premium quality headphones at midrange prices, instead of making low quality headphones at premium prices.
 
 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

 
 
 
The 1MORE website is fluent in market-speak, so I'll spare you that suffering. They say it's good, and talk about the materials that it is made of like they are some kind of totally unique concoction from a Shakespearean witch's cauldron. Double double toil and... treble?
 

Form & Function

A journey through giftly delights

Two headphones have really astounded me with their packaging this year: the MEE P1 Pinnacle and the 1MORE E1001 Triple Driver—their EO323 dual driver is no slouch either. The Pinnacle had set the bar extremely high on packaging, but the 1MORE E1001 may have outdone it. Instead of the a gullwing enclosure, 1MORE presents an antique book filled with sketches reminiscent of a middle aged Da’Vinci, or, more likely, Luca Bignardi, the Italian multiple Grammy winner who lends his production ear to tuning these bijou ear candy. There is a palpable air of discovery as each carefully arranged compartment is opened. The 8 extra sets of eartips (8 varieties in 5 sizes) have their own compartment stashed tightly behind the headphones. The luxuriously textured carry case receives it’s own case, as do the rose gold clad airline adapter and tie clip. Hidden in the bottom corner are a 1MORE bear sticker and some promotional materials. This is a gift box that is just made to be opened slowly and enjoyed. Make sure whomever you are giving this to isn’t an impatient little git and if it’s for you, take your time—slow down, you move too fast.
 

 
 
 

 
 
After you get through all the unwrapping gifs on giphy, it’s time to actually get some personal time with these. Full undressing below.
 
 

Matchmaker, matchmaker

Do you have weird shaped ears that fight viciously with tips on IEMs? Sorry ‘bout that. Well, maybe not. 1MORE has got you covered. There is a tip to match everybody in this thing. The tip sizes range from extra small to large with two sizes of medium in the middle. It was a good thing there were two medium sizes, because, in a departure from my normal, I wasn’t the size that was already fitted to the big honking nozzles. If you have miniscule canals, fit may be an issue on these. The included tip sizes are described by their measurement, which is great, because now I can bring my tiny tape-measure whenever I’m trying new tips and see how likely they are to fit. 13mm, that’s the ticket.
 
When I first tried on the tips fitted to the nozzle, they fit, but were slowly falling out of my ears and I couldn’t wear them cable up. It’s amazing how much a 1mm increase in size matters. I tried all the tips included and some other tips I’ve got laying around (Spinfit and Comply)—I like the stock silicones and Spinfit best. This is two out of three 1MORE in-ears that have had fabulous included tips. The 1MORE EO323 dual driver also had a good tip selection, but the iBFree is a bit of a disappointment.
 

 
The case that is included looks like it is supposed to sit in a shirt pocket with a cigarette popping out in some sort of Kool era James Dean imagery. Oh! to be back when death sticks could be advertised during family hour! Now you just get financial death pharmaceutical ads. What can you do—even youtube is loaded up with ads. Back to the case—as I said in my E0323 review, the vertical loading of the case actually makes it easier to tangle the cable. A cable wrap, or a horizontal loading would relieve some of that tangle danger.
 
A shirt clip is included, but it’s just a blingier version of the one that came with EO323 and still just as useless in practice.
 

I love gold… and tactile elements, sort-of

 
I’m a big fan of rose gold and gold coloured IEMs and DAPs. I don’t know when I got so much into bling. I don’t remember really caring much in the past. When it came to headphones before, everything was black and/or silver. The capsules are all metal, with part being a lovely dark purple colour (my pair are not black) and the rest being gold—purple and gold were my High School and College colours (colors where I’m from).
 
 
Anybody whose read some of my front page reviews has probably noted that I really like tactile elements that allow you to find which earpiece is left and right in the dark. 1MORE accomplishes this in two ways: first, the remote is on the right; second, there is a little rubber lip on the edge of the metal downtube on the right side. I approve.
 
The cable is also textured on the top section, which, while feeling nice in the hand and giving a more premium ambiance, is actually a negative. The cable has vertical corrugations that I found rubbed on my jacket a bit with the textured surface causing more friction and therefore more microphonic noise than a smooth cable generally does.
 
I found the triple drivers easy to wear for extended periods of time both in the up and down positions. Isolation was pretty average.
 

Audio quality

All audio comparisons were done with matched volume at 78dB using white noise and an SPL meter. I gave the 1MORE E1001 a bit of run-in to let the drivers settle. I think these have about 40 hours of neopolitan noise—like the ice cream, pink, brown, white—and about 60-70 or so hours of music playback. These phones have been my companions for the better part of two weeks with a some interludes to listen to more exotic fayre.
 
The 1MORE E1001 is a nice lively sounding IEM with a little bit of extra bass emphasis. It does a good job portraying delicate mids and adds a touch of creamy sweetness. The soundstage has nice development in layers, especially in the mids. Guitar plucks are carried with force on acoustic tracks with good natural decay. The details in the mids are very nicely rendered. Like bacon grease, they just make everything cooking around them taste good. Bass, on the other hand has a tendency towards a bit of bloom and boom with some chunkiness to the overall presentation. Soundstage width and depth are fairly average, with a bit of above average height on top.
 
Listening to Regina Spektor – Fidelity I get the big bass at the beginning, but the rough edges and distortion have been smoothed over a bit in the bass. The bass lacks the detail and texture to convey the oversteps in the recording. The bass is a little bloomy, and decidedly not HiFi on this track. Mids are nicely forward. Cymbals have some shimmer, but sound a touch thin. Some of this is the recording, but I would also describe the E1001 as having a bit of a bass and mid-forward signature, with slightly recessed treble. Sometimes this will make mids sound a bit thin and treble not as sparkly when things get busy.
 
Switching to the UERR gives a bit more defined bass, though the bass character remains similar on the track. A bit boomy/bloomy. UERR gives a better composure of the treble with longer decay on cymbals and guitar plucks that are more natural.
 
Damien Rice has a haunting and enchanting voice and solid instrumentation on everything he does. So it is understandable that when I saw 9 for £0.34 in a charity shop (3 CDs for £1), I grabbed it and some random Pavarotti and BBC orchestral stuff. Damien is the star, no doubt. If I want to feel emotionally vulnerable and conflicted, all I need to do is listen to The Animals Were Gone and Elephant. The 1MORE E1001 does a beautiful job displaying these two songs. Damien’s voice is warm, but not woolly. The bass is still a bit unfocused, but the mids are silky, nicely defined, imminently romantic and heartbreaking. “Waking up without you, is like drinking from an empty cup.” When I look at my daughter doing this for fun, it isn’t heartbreaking, but Damien Rice isn’t drinking from an empty cup in some sort of toddler fantasy land with dreams of milky joy dazzling in the remaining shiny places of his poet mind—he’s waking up to an empty life, the animals are gone and so is she. Is the cup empty because it has all been drank up—served it’s purpose—or is it empty because there is nothing in the house to drink. Maybe it’s both. The UERR has more warmth in the vocals but less in the bass. The 1MORE EO323 dual driver is more delicate in the mids, but the bass strums get a bit more woolly.
 
The Noble Kaiser Encore is more delicately textured than the UERR, with finer vocals wielding sharper defined edges, but less warmth. It’s almost like the classic vinyl/digital comparison, but here’s the thing: most vocalists don’t sound warm in person at least not the kind of warm that is usually associated with vinyl characteristics, so the Noble Encore is probably more realistic in the mids. I haven’t seen Damien live, so can’t completely tell you.
 
On David Bowie – Tis a Pity She Was a Whore there is good definition of the high notes for the 1MORE and good speed in dealing with all the percussive elements that Bowie sprinkles all over the stage. There is nice shimmer on cymbals and the sound, whilst busy, never seems overwhelmed. On Lazarus, the intro drums have good depth to their strikes and the bass comes off funky, but still a bit loose. Mids are still the star of the show here, and are thrown a bit forward. When you got a nice face, you should let it show, 1MORE knows these things have a pretty mug.
 
Switching on the Meze 12 Classics with Lazarus, the sound is smoother. The bass is a bit more focused and the overall sound is warmer. Saxophone has a more vinyl kind of sound to it, what I’ve commonly heard referred to as an analogue sound (which is BS because all sound is analogue). The sound on the Meze 12 is comfortable, a bit pillowy. The soundstage is smaller and more focused than the E1001. Percussion on Tis a Pity She Was a Whore is softer, less dynamic. The Meze 12’s retain the lovely layered mids that is a staple of the Meze sound.
 
With the UERR depth and instrument placement is much more precise. The vocals are less euphonic and more analytical, while still retaining some subtle warmth. There is way more air and space in the stage with the UERR. The mids are more restrained on the UERR than the E1001, but the E1001 doesn’t go overboard, it just pushes it’s star forward—that pretty face. The body on the bottom end is still a bit more Sir Mix Alot than Victoria’s Secret.
 

 
I also did some comparison with the EO323. The EO323 has bigger bass, but it lacks the mids clarity that the E1001 has. It is a bit slower sounding when listening to some Dragonforce. Compared to the the E1001, the EO323 is dark and cloudy, like a thunderstorm without any lightning strikes to illuminate the centre of the camera frame. The build quality of the EO323 is also a full level below. While the E1001 has a fully metal shell and black silicone on the right earphone to let you know which is right, the EO323 has cheap feeling plastic where the copper/golden metal is on the E1001. The plastic on the EO323 has discoloured slightly since I got them, as has the cable. It isn’t on the level of old Super Nintendos, but it is noticeable. For $30 more, the E1001 is a no brainer.
 

 
 
Compared to the RHA ma750 the bass is a bit tighter, the mids less lush, and soundstages are comparable. The sound is more focused on the E1001, but both options are excellent sounding for the under $100 crowd. In the Fidue A65, 1MORE E1001, and the RHA ma750, I’m absolutely spoiled for choice under $100. The A65 is a little bit smoother and more balanced than either the 1MORE E1001 and RHA ma750, but it doesn’t have the depth that either of the other offerings give in sound stage. The 1MORE is the sharpest and most precise sounding with the clearest midrange and treble, but it may be more crispy than some like. The RHA ma750 is lush and inviting, but can lack focus in the bass. Only a fool expects a perfect headphone for under $100, and each of these headphones is absolutely excellent for the money, warts and all.
 

Conclusions

The E1001 is bangin’ like an 808, selling lots of real-estate for your buck.
 

 
People now are so darn lucky. There are just so many excellent headphones for not much dough now. The 1MORE E1001 is one such excellent value proposition. The 1MORE E1001 has a clear, well balanced sound with a touch more bass than neutral—which is what most folks prefer anyway. This triple driver from China easily makes it into my top headphones under $100, and most of the time, I prefer the crisp sound of these to other offerings I’ve got in the running; for that reason, these elevate to a 5. This is just too much value for under $100 (£100 on uk.1MORE.com and amazon.co.uk)--I think a cybermonday deal may still be running on 1MORE's UK site (CYBERMONDAY20). You should have one of these in your collection, if only to show neophytes what they are missing when they buy 5 sets of cheap headphones in a year instead of learning to take care of their stuff and buying one set of 1MORE E1001 Triple Drivers.

Acknowledgment
I’d like to thank iFi for loaning me the Nano iDSD Black Label and a pre-production unit in return for my honest opinion. It was a lot of fun being one of the first folks to get their hands on a retail unit, though I wish I could have been at the launch event. I still haven’t tried Johnny Walker Black.

This review was originally posted on my blog, and I'm now sharing with the wonderful community on Head-Fi. You folks rock.

Introduction
Anyone who’s been following me for a while knows that I’ve reviewed two full sheds of iFi gear. I might be the person with the most iFi reviews, I’m not sure. This one makes six after the following: iFi Micro iDSD Black Label (Micro iDSD BL), iPurifier2.0, iDAC2, iCAN SE, Micro iUSB3.0. I’ve also spent some time with the original iDSD and the original iCAN. I’ve been offered a couple more reviews, and will probably do some, time allowing.

Up to now, the most ‘WOW!’ product I’ve heard from from iFi is the iDSD Micro BL. It was also the classiest and most decked out offering. It’s a desktop dynamo with a Swiss Army knife of audio features, but I have to emphasize that while it can be transported, it isn’t really what people think of as portable. For that, I’m now having a look at the brand spankin’ new iDSD Nano BL’s pocketable frame.



Usability: Form & Function
Unboxing




I’ve unboxed a lot of iFi gear over the years, but this is the first piece of gear from iFi to actually surprise me. Anyone who has been following iFi for any length of time or bought any of their Micro or Nano series DACs or amps has received the same box, with quite often the same components and compartments inside. It’s a roughly 10” x 3.5” x 3” oblong rectangle—a sort of less streamlined coffin-box. In the past, it hasn’t mattered whether you were buying a Nano or Micro series, the only thing different on the top level was how big the cut-away in the foam insert was. Below the presented DAC or amp would be some mix of the following accessories, a red 3.5mm aux cable, a short purple set of RCA interconnects, some adaptors (most likely), rubber stacking bands (for your DAP/phone), and a blue USB cable (sometimes USB3.0).

This time around we get a half-height box, which I very much like. The wasted space of previous Nano series boxes has been eschewed in favour of a more efficient DAC apartment. You’ve got your bed of foam on the left, and your closet box of white accessories on the right, all the cooking happens when the DAC gets out of bed. The box is still surrounded in a tight-fitting card sleeve, and still has the same silver iFi logo filigreed onto the top of the now slimmed down white heavy card box. Some things change, but others stay the same.






Aesthetics and Ergonomics
The major ergonomics critique of the iFi Micro series is that calling them portable is a bit of a joke. They are portable like your laptop and less convenient to carry, as there just aren’t any bags that really work for iFi’s unique signature shape. I loved the iFi Micro iDSD Black Label, but it was about as transportable and ergonomic as a pet brick. Don’t throw your Black Label, it’s so much better than Father Jack’s brick. It’s a shape that grows on you. Love who your Micro be, iFi.



That said, the Nano series is smaller, a little smaller than a minimum size deck of Magic the Gathering cards, with penny sleeves. Previous iterations of the iFi Nano series haven’t had any of the genetic make-up of the iDSD Micro Black Label in the looks and functionality department. Now that has changed. This isn’t your 2014 Nano iDSD. That version was silver, with big faceplates ridges on the front and back, whilst the new one has tapered edges to make it more pocket friendly. It doesn’t really feel like something you’d throw in your coat pocket due to the ergonomics. Those two RCA jacks sticking out the front and the coax coming off the back coupled with the aforementioned anodized aluminum ridges left lots of things to poke you from inside your jacket pocket.



From an ergonomics perspective the new Black Label is smoother, sleeker, with more attractive printing and a more durable frame. I say more durable for a different reason than one might think. It is made of the same aluminum, it has the same anodized finish (albeit in black), but it has some key differences. The iFi iDSD BL is rocking out with three 3.5mm jacks set flush and not directly by the volume knob. Making the 3.5mm jacks flush makes it so there isn’t anything to snag on, which is more pocket friendly. The placement of 3.5mm output right next to the volume knob didn’t just make the front of the original Nano iDSD a bit busy, it made it so turning the volume knob whilst listening to headphones would require navigating your headphone cable. An additional pocket friendly addition is switching from the USB B input of the original Nano iDSD to the USB A OTG input of the Micro iDSD series. The connection is very stable which reduces stress on the jack. All these smoothing factors add to reduced wear and friction on the case elements, and the more secure USB connection will minimise damage to the USB connection, meaning this is a daily driver that should hold up to a bit of rubbing, but I’d still not drop it or toss it around roughly.



Function
The original iFi Nano iDSD was full of firsts (DXD and DSD256, super lightweight, 10 hour pure battery running) and was the best-selling DAC in Japan for a while, but it was for a different use case. That iDSD was about being a pint-sized capable home DAC with a lightweight amplifier that only output 130 mW into 16Ω. It had a digital out, and full-size RCA outputs to hook up to your home amplifier—great features, but not pocket friendly. The iFi Nano iDSD BL has some serious upgrades under the sleeker casing. Much like the Micro iDSD BL, this Nano iDSD BL has iEMatch built in and iPurifier built in. Like the Nano iDSD (original) the Nano iDSD BL runs on battery for 10 hours and throws down some DSD256 and DXD, but it also has MQA in-built now too.

MQA
Now, I’m not sure about this MQA thing (ars technical article that is well worth a read). Some have said it’s a sneaky backhanded route to a new form of DRM (record companies have to license equipment, consumers pay for special equipment, streaming services get charged for royalties, etc…). Whatever I might think about the likelihood that MQA gives me better than just streaming 24/96 FLAC directly or listening to real master quality PCM (Archimago’s Musings), MQA certainly didn’t sound bad. That said, I was listening through the XI Audio Formula S and a pair of HiFiMAN Susvara headphones with the Nano iDSD BL as the DAC to start. I listened to 2L recordings DXD tracks in both DXD and in the MQA down-coded versions. I don’t know if I would be able to tell the difference. Both sounded bloody excellent, but those are excellent recordings. Chicken/egg dilemma. Did the tracks sound excellent because the format captured the quality of the recording, or would any lossless format of CD quality or above capture the quality of the recording? I don’t know. I also took an auditory stroll through Tidal’s ‘Masters’ library. Beyonce’s Lemonade album sounded awesome—why did Adele 25 win best album? That decision makes no damn sense as Lemonade is a triumph from start to finish (though some parts had some hardcore derivations, like the transparent Eurythmics inspiration on Don’t Hurt Yourself) and 25 is Adele singing three good songs plus some filler.

The difficult part of MQA listening is its hard to compare to actual redbook CD. I’ve always found that Tidal sounds a bit ‘enhanced.’ I’m convinced that there is DSP to make it sound a bit more vivid. Who’s to say this doesn’t also happen with MQA? Most of the albums that Tidal has MQA ‘Masters’ of, they also have standard ‘CD Quality’ versions. So I stepped right up and made a quick playlist of some stuff I’m familiar with:

1. Nick Drake – Thoughts of Mary Jane
2. Nick Drake – One of These Things First
3. Counting Crows – Anna Begins
4. Norah Jones – Shoot the Moon
5. Beyoncé – Don’t Hurt Yourself
6. Led Zeppelin – D’yer Mak’er
7. The Supremes – Where Did Our Love Go
8. Beck – Guess I’m Doing Fine

With Thoughts of Mary Jane the volume levels between the tracks aren’t the same. I have similar experiences on Counting Crows – Anna Begins. The Masters versions seem a little more restrained, but they also have a touch more depth to the sound, but this additional depth sounds like it is all in front of the stage. The stage sounds moved, not factually deeper. Turning down the volume on the HiFi version of Norah Jones – Shoot the Moon gives a good approximation of the Master. I am noting a bit more texture in the bass on the Shoot the Moon Master version. It sounds a bit fuller with rounder attack and decay. I think there may actually be differences, but that some of it is difficult to judge due to volume effects. I observe similar improvement in the kick drum on Beyoncé – Don’t Hurt Yourself. Well it’s either confirmation bias, or a trend, the bass on the Master version of D’yer Mak’er is more textured and rich. Transients in the cymbals also take on a bit more weight. Overall the sound is just a little weightier and more textured. On The Supremes – Where Did Our Love Go the Masters version is the louder version. Unfortunately two Where Did Our Love Go tracks sound so different, I’m pretty sure they aren’t from the same master. I can’t do a real comparison. This may end up being a problem for anything that has a remaster. Provenance is important, but it may be even more important on MQA albums as essentially they are having multiple operations done on the material. On Guess I’m Doing Fine slide guitar and bass sound a bit richer with fuller note edges without sounding fat. The bass sustains just a little bit longer.

So inconclusion (intentional), the results are inconclusive on MQA. With 2L songs off their test bench I couldn’t distinguish MQA from DXD Masters. On Tidal, MQA sounded generally a little quieter, but also sounded like the notes were a bit fuller and richer, especially in bass notes, which got some plus texture. I couldn’t discern any differences in sound stage. I didn’t do my tests blinded, but I also didn’t always know the order of tracks and was able to pick out the MQA track on a couple of occasions without having visual confirmation (D’yer Mak’er, Guess I’m Doing Fine), which could easily be random chance. Without repeated blind testing, the null hypothesis would be that I guess right 50% of the time. Two cherry-picked right guesses does not a strong observation make. How much do you trust my ears? How much do you trust your own? The next time I listened to D’yer Mak’er I guessed wrong. I also wasn’t consistent on Norah Jones – Shoot the Moon. I think I’d have to have perfect volume matching to have confidence in any comparisons over time.



One thing I can say for MQA, it doesn’t appear to make sound quality worse. Whether real or imagined, the sound seemed different, but it seemed generally better than the CD quality version on Tidal and not worse than the DXD when listening to 2L tracks (with a substantially smaller file size). I’ve done previous tests with DXD and lower bitrate formats and found that I generally preferred the DXD to everything else and couldn’t tell it apart from DSD128 and DSD256 on DSD mastered tracks. Generally, DXD is as close to the master as you can get. Top masters are in 32bit DXD (352kHz), commercial DXD just drops 8 bits on the word length.

iEMatch


To test out iEMatch I whipped out my most sensitive IEMs, the Noble Kaiser Encore. When no music is playing there is low level hiss out of both the Direct and the iEMatch outputs, but the iEMatch output is virtually silent. The hiss on the iEMatch is way way down. Hiss is inaudible on either of them when any music is playing, including silent portions of music. The iEMatch comes with a sound signature toll. Because it raises output impedance (from under 1Ω to under 4Ω), it does exactly what you would expect it to do, it pushes up the bass a bit. The effect isn’t bad, but it definitely colours the sound.

On the Micro iDSD I found that the main advantage of iEMatch was allowing greater use of the volume control with sensitive IEMs, and this is still the case here. On Direct, the Noble Kaiser Encore gets loud fast.

Driving Power
As previously highlighted, the Nano iDSD BL does just fine with sensitive IEMs, thank you very much. It also handled the RHA CL750 with aplomb. But what about the HD600, you say? What about those teasers on the twitterverse?

The stats say it should be able to pull it off. I’ve previously done the HD600 driven well from a 280 mW into 32Ω source. That measurement just happens to be right about where this Nano iDSD BL sits (285 mW into 30Ω), so theoretically, it should do it.

Is theory replicated in practice? Absolutely. Actually, I think it drives the HD600 better than it drives the RHA CL750. When comparing to the XI Audio Formula S (in balanced output) fed by the Nano iDSD BL driving the HD600 vs. the Nano iDSD BL in Direct drive mode, I get a little bit more depth on the Formula S, but the differences aren’t much. The iFi Nano iDSD BL gets out some serious performance. It will drive the HD600 to plenty of volume with plenty of dynamics.

For laughs, I hooked up the HiFiMAN HE1000 v2 for a little try. The Nano iDSD BL gives enough volume, but it lacks the dynamic punch of the XI Audio Formula S and can’t match the imaging. Unsurprisingly, the HE1000 v2 needs more juice to thrive. You can play the HE1000 v2, but it’s wasted on the iFi Nano iDSD BL. It was, surprisingly, not a laugher.

I also used the 3.5mm out to the XI Audio Formula S (review upcoming), and it provided a super clean output. The system is straight up transparent. I loved this combination with the HiFiMAN Susvara, and I also dug it with the Unique Melody ME1.



Audio quality
You know what is really strange? I really don’t have much to say about the sound quality of the iFi Nano iDSD BL independent of comparisons. It is transparent. It has excellent resolution. It doesn’t output a coloured sound. It has an accurate, well-defined, reasonably sized soundstage. I think the key here for the BL is actually how it compares to other DAC/Amps and DAPs. I’ve got a few of those on hand. DAC comparisons used the following signal chain, designed to get the best out of a DAP (you may not get as good using these on your rig):

Dell Inspiron 13 → Generic iFi USB3.0 cable → iFi Micro iUSB3.0 → LH Labs Lightspeed 2G split power and data usb cable → DAC/Amp (potentially with adaptor first)

I used a Lindy USB3.0 B to A adaptor instead of the iFi one included in the packaging (one more thing to send back to iFi in perfect condition). Since iFi doesn’t produce their adaptors and they don’t appear to be audiophile grade, it doesn’t really matter which adaptor I use, so long as it isn’t junk. I’ve used the Lindy for a long time. It does the job.

All comparisons were done using the Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (for general timbre and DAC capabilities), the Sennheiser HD600 for driving power, and the Noble Kaiser Encore for hiss. Volume matching was performed using an SPL meter and a listening level of ~78.2 dB calibrated with white noise for comparisons using the UERR. I didn’t bother to volume match the Noble Kaiser Encore because the listening tests were for answering relatively simple yes/no question does it hiss during silence or during quiet music? For that question I just need to listen at a similar volume, not a precisely calibrated volume. For the HD600, my question was similarly simple to the Noble Kaiser Encore: can the player drive it? To know this, all I needed to do was check volume and listen for dynamics and spacialization. My listening level is 78.2dB, approximately, and I can usually get within 0.2-0.5dB by ear. I’ve had a goodly number of times where I set the volume on an IEM, measure it, and then discover that the SPL measurement is 78.2 dB with white noise. For all listening tests the Nano iDSD BL was on the ‘Measure’ filter.



I played the following tracks:

1. Cyndee Peters – House of the Rising Sun (fantastic track from Opus3 records, DSD128)
2. Hoff Ensemble – Blågutten (2L track with huge space, DXD, available for free)
3. Wager-Åstrand - Fasten Seat Belts (another Opus3 track, DSD128)
4. Pixies – Where is My Mind (24/88.2)
5. Why? – Sod in the Seed (16/44.1)

iFi Nano iDSD BL vs. LH Labs GO2A Infinity
From a features standpoint, the Nano iDSD BL has a number of advantages: it draws normal current off of a USB source (LH Labs Draws a bit extra), it has 10 hours of battery, and it has a true and excellent fixed line-out. The Nano iDSD doesn’t have a balanced output, but the balanced circuit inside it gives the same sonic benefits. The Nano iDSD BL is more matchable and doesn’t rely on external volume control.

UERR
The sense of space in both players is similar, with the GO2A Infinity having a slight advantage in height and width, but depth goes to the Nano. The GO2A Infinity has harder edges and more firm impact, but it can be sharp and unforgiving at times. The Nano iDSD BL is smoother and more forgiving, whilst the GO2A can be hard and sharp at times. The upper mids on the GO2A are sweeter, but can overheat at times. The iDSD doesn’t soar as much as the GO2A does on Where is My Mind, but it has more depth on Sod in the Seed and has an overall less exuberant sound. On Sod in the Seed, the high glockenspiel notes are a bit piercing on the GO2A, and more natural on the Nano iDSD BL. Treble is hiked up a bit, which is probably what creates some of the extra height in the GO2A sound, and more edgy impactful sound in the upper mids. The sound on the GO2A can become fatiguing with its exuberance, even if it is totally inspiring in a collection of moments. If the hard edges and exuberance irritate you even a little, the echo-chamber of your mind will get to you when the track playing back has what some would view as flaws. Some will find the exuberance inspiring and worthy of praise whilst others will be immediately turned off on the GO2A Infinity, the Nano iDSD BL doesn’t have these hard edges, it’s smooth. It is still detailed, but the treble isn’t enhanced, so no divisive screams.





Noble Kaiser Encore
Out of both the Direct and iEMatch outputs, the Noble Kaiser Encore sounds as special as it should. Hiss is effectively controlled on both outputs, but there is some minor hiss during silence on the Direct output. You may not even hear it. If the Kaiser Encore is hooked up to the iEMatch output, it gets a bass boost. Maybe you want a bit extra midbass, maybe you don’t. When using the Kaiser Encore on the GO2A Infinity, even at the lowest gain, it hisses like an Indiana Jones nightmare.



HD600
The HD600 is my stress test for portable players and the both of these players pass. The HD600 sounds full with all dynamics intact. Soundstage was not crushed and nothing sounded softened.

iFi Nano iDSD BL vs. Questyle QP2R
I know. This comparison is not really fair, right? The QP2R is more than 6x the price. As anyone who’s been around the block in audiophile-land more than once will tell you, the law of diminishing returns hits like crotch-punching circus dwarf. There are some features that the Nano iDSD BL has that the QP2R doesn’t: a fixed analog line-out, and iEMatch. Of course the QP2R also throws down some features that iFi doesn’t, mostly about being a DAP and not a portable DAC/Amp. They both rock 10 hour (tested) battery life and excellent sound.



UERR
The UERR has brilliant spatial presentation on both the Nano iDSD BL, it’s a friggin’ monitor after all. However, the QP2R has greater depth, width and height as well as better layering. The soundstage has an effortlessness to the separation of the instruments on the QP2R. It’s really friggin’ brilliant. Tonally, the Nano iDSD BL is a bit soft in the midrange, whilst the QP2R is more impactful and sharper. On Where is My Mind, there is more soar, more space, more layering. The QP2R is just superior with the UERR. Listening to other tracks

Noble Kaiser Encore
The QP2R has hiss with the Kaiser Encore, more so on the balanced out. The hiss is lower and less obtrusive than that found on the GO2A Infinity when on single-ended output, but it is noticeable. I tried messing with some adaptors like the 75Ω impedance adaptor from DUNU or the UE Buffer Jack. The UE Buffer Jack reduces hiss by adjusting damping factor in favour of the IEM. It doesn’t cause frequency response modification like an impedance adaptor, but it does lower the hiss level, whilst not eliminating it completely in this case. The 75Ω adaptor eliminated the hiss, but messed up both the bass and the treble, making the treble thin and the bass flabby. The Nano iDSD BL is superior with the Noble Kaiser Encore. It has been my experience that none of Questyle’s gear plays well with multi-BA, sensitive IEMs. I’ve tried using the QP2R, the CMA600i and the CMA800R Golden Reference amps, and all have problems with the Noble Kaiser Encore. Questyle gear likes headphones and IEMs that have some impedance.

HD600
The Questyle QP2R likes the 300Ω Sennheiser HD600 headphones. The Questyle QP2R, on paper, shouldn’t drive the Sennheiser HD600, but current mode amplification is magic, and it somehow manages to drive it with space to spare on the settings dialled into high gain and high bias settings with the balanced output. I had to turn it up to 99 out of 120 on volume, which means plenty of overhead was still there.

With regard to the sound characteristics of the two players, the QP2R has a clearer and more forward midrange with stronger edges. The iFi Nano iDSD BL has a smoother more soft feel, which makes it feel a little less resolute, but will have people really digging the ambiance once they settle in. Much like the Hidizs AP200 below, the Questyle QP2R has greater impact to it’s sound, but it never sounds like it is trying too hard or tipping the frequency response out of balance. The Questyle QP2R is delightful, and I prefer it’s sound to the iFi Nano iDSD BL. It is 6x the price, though, so on a value for money level the Nano iDSD Black Label wins easily.

iFi Nano iDSD BL vs. Shanling M2s
The iFi Nano iDSD BL and Shanling M2s might be considered direct comparators. Both do DSD256 and DXD. Both are small and capable. Both are useable with your phone (iFi via USB OTG, Shanling M2s via Bluetooth). Both can be used as external DACs with a computer. Both are under £200 with the iFi Nano iDSD Black Label coming in at £199 and the Shanling M2s dropping in at £189 (on Amazon.co.uk). The Shanling M2s has the best screen on any DAP I’ve been privileged enough to use. The Nano iDSD BL doesn’t have a screen, but does have iEMatch, a true fixed line-out and MQA.

UERR
The Shanling M2s has a softer midrange on the The Pixies – Where is My Mind and doesn’t soar with female vocals like the iFi Nano iDSD BL can in Where is My Mind. It lacks the amplitude. On Why? – Sod in the Seed the midrange is cleaner and clearer with better defined edges on Yoni Wolf’s slacker rap musings. Claps and woodblocks lack the impact and definition on the Shanling M2s. Bass on the Shanling M2s is a bit more present with a warmer overall sound. There is a bit of a gauziness to the Shanling M2s sound, a slight veiling. On the fast percussion of Fasten Seat Belts, the M2s just can’t keep up with the track in the way that the Nano iDSD Black Label does. The Black Label has excellent speed and precision. The Shanling M2s just sounds slower. Listening with the iFi Nano iDSD BL on Cyndee Peters – House of the Rising Sun, it’s like a morning mist has been pierced by the rising sun and forced to retreat back into the wooded hollows from whence it crept. The background is black and clear. Excellent. The Shanling M2s, whilst good doesn’t have the kind of clarity and resolution that the iFi Nano iDSD Black Label can muster.

Noble Kaiser Encore
There is a slight elevation in the bass on the Shanling M2s because of the output impedance. Some will like this ‘enhancement.’ The added bass is still nice, but this is not neutral playback. The Noble Kaiser Encore does not hiss on the M2s.



HD600
The Shanling M2s can play loud enough with the HD600 only if you max out the volume meter. This player will do in a pinch, but really shouldn’t be used for the HD600. Dynamics are crushed a bit and the soundstage gets a little smaller, but the overall sound is still good.

iFi Nano iDSD BL vs. Hidizs AP200
Interestingly both the Hidizs AP200 ($299 suggested for aluminum 32GB) and the iFi Nano iDSD BL ($199) have balanced amplification inside with a single ended output. The Hidizs is more expensive, but you do get yourself a full-on touch screen DAP with full Android, Play Store, and friggin’ killer sound. In practice the iDSD gets better battery life. I’ve been averaging around 7-8 hours on the Hidizs AP200.

UERR
On Where is My Mind, the Hidizs soars a little more and has a little more impact. It is a very punchy player without having the sharpened treble claws of the LH Labs GO2A Infinity. Image size and clarity are pretty similar between the Nano iDSD BL and the Hidizs.



If I had to give any edges, it would be that the Hidizs AP200 has a little bit more height and the iFi Nano iDSD BL has a little more width. Depth is even, as far as I can tell. Tonally the Hidizs AP200 is a little more bright. What listeners prefer will really come down to tonal preference. Overall presentation is a little more energetic on the AP200 than the iFi iDSD Nano Black Label. Again, whether you want a more relaxed sound like the iFi or a punchy stand up and get noticed sound like the Hidizs will come down to listening preference. Personally, I’d be happy to have both options. Sometimes you want more relaxing, sometimes you want energy. Are you feeling laconic today?

Noble Kaiser Encore
There is a very soft hiss with the Hidizs AP200 that becomes inaudible in most music. Listening to Cyndee Peters do House of the Rising Sun with the UERR there is no hiss on the track, it’s clean as a surgical theatre. When switching to the Kaiser Encore, there is hiss on the track but it is light and may actually be the IEMs being more sensitive to the noise of the tape. The Cyndee Peters recording is a tape transfer direct to DSD, so it is possible that the Kaiser Encore could be picking up non-musical information from the recording method. The impedance output of the Hidizs didn’t cause any perceptible bass elevation, which is a pro in my book. Performance compared to the Nano iDSD in Direct mode is pretty similar, with slightly more hiss on the AP200.

HD600
Much like the Shanling M2s, it takes everything the Hidizs AP200 has to get to a good volume level on the HD600 (97 of 100). In this case, I think it sounds a bit better than the M2s. The soundstage has significantly less width and depth than the Nano iDSD BL, and the Nano iDSD BL clearly outplays on clarity, separation and driving power. It also handles the speedy percussion of Fasten Seat Belts with outstanding resolution that the Hidizs AP200 does not match. The Hidizs AP200 gives good tone, generally, but the technical capabilities of the Nano iDSD BL are superior. At times the Hidizs struggles and distorts on some low bass notes, whereas the iFi Nano iDSD BL withstands the assault of low bass notes without distortion. The Hidizs does have a bit more focus and slam in the mids, which could be due to slightly elevated upper mids compared to the Nano iDSD BL. Punchy like the talented Mr. McGregor.



iFi Nano iDSD BL vs. Aune M1s
The Aune M1s is quite simply one of my favourite DAPs to work with. It doesn’t change the sound of any IEMs I play with it. It stays out of the way, maintaining the most consistently neutral presentation of any of the DAPs in my stable (more than a few). It’s a simple beast, and it doesn’t have a ton of power for output or a ton of features. It doesn’t have a fixed line-out. It will not play the HD600. It does have balanced output. It also doesn’t mess with the sound of the Noble Kaiser Encore at all. I’ve spent a lot of time previously talking about the Aune M1s, so you can check out it’s review.

UERR
Listening to House of the Rising Sun, there is more width to the stage on the Nano iDSD BL than on the Aune M1s. Both keep a nice tone, but the Nano iDSD BL has a bit sweeter treble when the bells and cymbals come in, with a bit fuller presentation.

Noble Kaiser Encore
The M1s is perfectly clear with the Noble Kaiser Encore. It is a beautiful pairing that lets the Encore shine. There is no hiss, and the bass isn’t elevated due to impedance mismatches.

HD600
Can’t do it. Sound is drained and feeble. Frequency response isn’t accurate either.

Specifications
General Specifications
Price: £199 ($199)
DAC: Burr Brown
Formats Supported: DSD64-DSD256, DXD384/352.8kHz, PCM 44.1-384, MQA 88.2/96/176.4/192kHz filters
Filters: Listen (transient optimised minimum phase filter), Measure (frequency response optimised filter)
Inputs: USB Type A “OTG” socket with built in iPurifier® technology
Battery Life: ~10 hours (tested)
Dimensions: 96 x 64 x 25.5mm
Weight: 139g (0.31 lbs)
Warranty: 12 months

Headphone Amplifier
Outputs: Dual Mono 2 x 285mW Direct Drive, coupling capacitor free circuit, 2 x 3.5mm outputs: 1 Direct and 1 iFi iEMatch integrated (for sensitive IEMs)
Max Output Level (<10% THD): >3.5V @ 600Ω load (Direct; 20mW into 600Ω), >2.9v @ 30Ω load (Direct; 285mW into 30Ω), >1.7V @ 15Ω load (Direct; 200mW into 15Ω)
Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise: < 0.005% @125mW/30R
Dynamic Range (DNR): >109db (A-weighted) @ 3V (Direct), >107db (A-weighted) @ 0.5V (iEMatch®)
Output Impedance: ≤ 1Ω (Direct), ≤ 4Ω (iEMatch)
Channel Separation: > 79dB @ 600Ω load (Direct), > 79dB @ 15Ω load (Direct)
Volume Control: Analog 2-track Potentiometer with power switch, < 2dB tracking error – 40dB…0dB attenuation

Line Output
Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise: < 0.004%
Dynamic Range (DNR): >109db (A-weighted)
Output Voltage: 2.15V (±0.05V)
Output Impedance: < 240Ω
Channel Separation: > 99dB @ 1kHz
Jitter (correlated): Below set test limit

Conclusions
If you are looking for an upgrade to your two channel living room setup from something more basic, and potentially from something considerably more advanced—as a straight-up DAC the iFi Nano iDSD Black Label was superior to my Questyle CMA600i in the same signal chain (playing into the XI Audio Formula S feeding HiFiMAN Susvara); or you are looking for something that drives a wide variety of headphones with no problem, or maybe you are staring into the abyss of format wars like the potential impending ascendancy of the newest format darling (MQA), then you may want to check out the iFi Nano iDSD BL. The Nano iDSD BL drives headphones from the Noble Kaiser Encore (very minimal hiss that disappears with music) all the way up to the Sennheiser HD600 without distortion through the Direct port. In the case of the Noble Kaiser Encore, I did notice a little tonal change on the iEMatch port, that change was pretty similar to what I experience when listening to the Kaiser Encore out of the Shanling M2s, both sound good with the Kaiser Encore.

If I had to cite any weaknesses, it would be that sometimes the midrange can sound a little meeker than I expect. Some will find this of benefit, and I find it to be a very minor detractor that varies in infinitesimally small effects with the changing of my mood. This softening of the midrange is specific to the headphone amplifier component as the line-out maintains firm tone through the midrange when feeding the XI Audio Formula S.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a DAC/Amp combo at £199 ($199) with more features and better sound. Just as the iFi Micro iDSD Black Label was unfair to it’s competitors, the Nano iDSD Black Label should make some DAPs in the £200 range nervous. It’s got better sound quality than the all of my under $200 DAP stable, and kicks out sound on par to significantly better than some more expensive DAPs that I have or have played with.

Acknowledgment   

Thanks @Tony-Hifi at HiFi Headphones for letting me participate in the UK tour. It was fun as always. The Pinnacle is available from HiFi Headphones for £179 (no guess what that is in dollars, Brexit, after all).

 

Introduction

I’ve been hearing about MEE products for years! I don’t know why it has taken me so long to hear one in these ears of mine. I’ve recommended them to neophytes based on @ljokerl’s IEM thread—the place where my audio journey kicked off on HeadFi—and in other recommendations. In the past I’ve recommended some MEE headphones to friends who’ve been buying crappy $10 fashion headphones found next to dental rot sugar bombs from abusive multinational corporations, and then replacing them with similarly devoid of value offerings from other grocery and corner store counters. I’ve made these recommendations without hearing them, which is stupid, and the people I’ve advised haven’t listened, which is fitting given that they must have an unmitigated wax disaster in their ears if they think ‘fashion’ buds sound OK. Friends don’t let friends buy their headphones at a Tesco-Express counter.
 
Now I’ve gotten to finally hear a MEE product, and boy am I glad. I feel like slapping high-fives round the neighbourhood. I didn’t expect this Chinese company I’d never heard before to metaphorically palm the basketball that is my little melon head and ears, much less put up a Nate Robinson-esque 360 windmill slam-dunk of a pair of headphones—from Seattle to Shenzen, high fives all around. I came into this review expecting competence. What I got was a set of IEMs that ended up being my favourite among IEMs that I have on hand and view very favourably, and among my favourites that I've listened to this year. I’m stunned and overjoyed.
 

 

 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

In this section of my reviews I try to let the manufacturer’s story about their product be told. For the MEE Pinnacle, I’ve taken the information from HiFi Headphones and MEE Audio’s site. HiFi Headphones often does as well or better than the manufacturer in telling the story of a product. HiFi Headphones has this to say about the Pinnacle:
 
Pinnacle is more than a name - it is a statement that identifies the P1 in-ear earphones as the result of two years of design, engineering, and refinement. With its proprietary acoustic design and innovative zinc-alloy construction, the MEE Audio Pinnacle P1 delivers a timeless combination of beauty and performance.
 
To improve performance at the extremes of the frequency range the Pinnacle P1 utilises a proprietary 10mm moving coil driver with 50Ω impedance. The dynamic driver delivers a full-bodied bass note and slightly warm tonal character while retaining high levels of resolution and refinement. Using a dedicated audio source or amplifier designed for higher-impedance headphones can further improve the listening experience of the Pinnacle P1 heapdhones.
 
Built to last, the Pinnacle P1 is made of a zinc alloy that is stronger than aluminium and lighter than stainless steel and features interchangeable, replaceable cables with MMCX connectors. The unique ergonomic design can be worn one of two different ways and fits all ears comfortably.
The snug in ear fit blocks outside noise, preventing interruptions and protecting your hearing by allowing lower-volume listening. Comply T-Series memory foam eartips are included to further increase noise isolation for a superior audio experience.
 
On Mee Audio’s website they also note that the Pinnacle will sound best with CD quality or better audio and that they designed the driver to reduce moving mass. If you’ve watched Jude’s video on the new Focal line-up (well worth a watch), you know that lower moving mass allows for faster full frequency range response. Further, Mee Audio had this to say about the shell:
 
ACOUSTIC DIFFUSER
A proprietary sound chamber and damping scheme provide the best balance of treble extension and smooth-in-the-ear response. The P1’s patented acoustic diffuser takes advantage of the directional nature of treble (high frequency) sound waves, forcing select frequencies to resonate before reaching the ear to ensure coherency and smoothness. This effectively improves the detailing and high-frequency extension of the P1 without adding harshness, resulting in treble that is extended and energetic, but also smooth for a more realistic sound with improved detail resolution and handling of spatial cues.
 
 

 
 
 

 

Form & Function

First, I’d like to say that the Pinnacle came with serious presentation quality packaging. If you want to impress someone with a gift and are flush enough to just give away $200 pairs of headphones, MEE will make you look like a savant of gift-giving. Chris Kringle ain’t got nothing on you—he better put that red two-piece away. The box has a white outer sleeve with photos, text, specs and all that jazz. Lift the wrapper off and inside is illicit unboxing video porn, NSFW.  You are greeted by a high quality heavy linen finish card box that opens like a DeLorean that’s upside down, but meant to be that way. Like it’s barrel rolling in James Bond stunt at the apex, freeze-framed on the silver screen. Suffice to say I was impressed. I’ve opened up cases to much more expensive IEMs that weren’t as impressive.
 

 
Inside the box, there are two further boxes, each labelled with their contents and some thoughtfully organised compartments, with the obligatory IEM showcase insertion points. The leather magnetic clasp case looks up at you, announcing with a shiny metal placard your Pinnacle’s serial number and crying “hear ye, hear ye, here there quality be.” The two labelled boxes contain the MMCX cables in one, including one with microphone; and eartips in the other. A good assortment of eartips was included, including three sizes of comply foamies. I didn’t use the microphone cable as I don’t listen on my phone and hate interruptions in my music. Music time is me time, or MEE time in this case. The selection of tips was good, but I found that I liked the Pinnacle best with Spinfits—I’m finding that I like almost all of my headphones best with Spinfits, my second favourite tips were the stock single flange silicone tips. Can someone send me a bucket of medium Spinfits? It would be much appreciated. So little time to review, and switching tips is such a hassle—I need to satisfy my inner Garfield while growing into my outer Garfield. The Spinfits firm up the low end a little bit and make the treble crisper, which I like. I took observations with various tips, I’ll try to reference which tips are being used along the way.
 

 
The Pinnacle is lightweight with an easy nozzle angle for wearing the cable up. The product info advertises that it can be worn down, but this felt really awkward when I tried it. The cable has a premium feel and good weight. The braiding effectively prevents tangles, and the weight of the cable helped stop it from bouncing around too much. I didn’t notice microphonics when walking, but I also didn’t do any vigourous action with the Pinnacle in my ears—inner and outer Garfield intact. While the fit is good, it is no match for my best fitting IEM, the Trinity Audio Atlas. It is no shame to be second to the Atlas in fit as the Atlas fit like a pair of handmade sheepskin moccasins fit your December feet when the cabin fire has long since died out and the slate floor might as well be an ice-hockey rink. The Trinity Atlas are that friggin' comfortable—you just want to snuggle up with them in the cold winter night.
 
When inspecting the IEMs, the screens covering the bores appear to be glued on and are a fine mesh with a small lip. I’d be careful when doing tip switches and cleaning the screens.
 
Now the moment you've been waiting for, illicit unbox photos!
 
 

Audio quality

I had nothing but impressive experiences with these, the packaging was prophesy of my listening experience. For this review I used the following gear: iBasso DX50, LH Labs Geek Out V2, Spinfit tips, Comply foamies, stock tips. I listened to a lot of music, staying up till 3am with these beauties on one night. My wife asked me if I was coming to bed at about 1AM and I told her I’d sleep in the office—I should note there is a bed in the office. That is how much I was liking these.
 
First things first, I tried these with several tips, and found that Spinfits worked the best. Comply was a bit soft and not as well defined as the stock tips or Spinfits. The stock tips were a little bright in the treble and not as good on the bass as the Spinfits. I love Spinfits, and they had the clearest crispiest treble and best bass definition of the tips I tried, so most of my impressions will be with Spinfits mated to the pinnacle nozzle.
 
Second things second—has anyone ever said that? I think I’ll claim it; these demand a lot of power. When I played them through the DX50, they needed high gain and high volume to reach full performance capabilities. On the Geek Out V2, I was driving the Pinnacle at 50% volume in the 1000mW setting. For reference, I listen to the HD600 at about 65%, and most IEMs I listen on the 100mW (low gain) setting. Don’t try to drive these out of your cellular or a weak-sauce amplifier, it’s a waste of a good audio meal. It’s like asking for ketchup with your bistecca alla fiorentina (best darn steak in the world, sorry Brazil, Argentina, New York)—don’t be a heathen.
 
For my listening tracks I whipped out old review catalogue favourites and a couple tracks I love but haven’t been review tracks. On the beaten path, so to speak, were:

1. Eagles – Hotel California (DCC Gold),
2. Father John Misty – The Night Josh Tillman Came to Our Apartment,
3. Keith Greeninger – The Harder That We Love (DSD128, off Live at the Fenix),
4. Unleash the Archers – General of the Dark Army
5. Dragonforce – Heroes of Our Time
6. Charles Mingus – Eat that Chicken

 
On the other road in a yellow wood:

1. Beck – Satan Gave Me a Taco
2. Boys Age – I am a Jester (album can be downloaded for free here – why have you not downloaded this yet!?)

 
The list of tracks above were what I used for comparative listening, but I also listened to many more, including: Belle & Sebastian’s Dear Catastrophe Waitress album; some ELO, Tool, Tori Amos, Norah Jones, City of the Sun, Daft Punk; my treble torture test: Kraftwerk – Kometenmelodie 2; and Roger Waters – Late Home Tonight, Part One whilst calibrating which tips I should be using. Initial listens for tips were done on medium gain on the DX50 and it wasn’t enough power for the Pinnacle. On the DX50 with medium gain I felt a little bit of treble fatigue and a lack of bass emphasis with the stock tips. Switching to the Comply foamies tamed the little bit of extra treble and warmed up the bass a bit, but didn’t do anything for impact. A few of my albums were vinyl rips, and on each one the Pinnacle was very revealing of vinyl noise. Very clear headphones often expose the limitations of vinyl, and the Pinnacle are very clear headphones, indeed.
 
Throughout the listen on medium gain out of the DX50 there was excellent clarity with great detail in the mids and treble. On Step Into My Office Baby, there was a very airy quality to the vocals. On Roy Roger there was great reverb and sparkle on the xylophone. Telephone Line gave me some great drum response. I switched to high gain, and chucked the volume up to 237 (out of 255) on the DX50 for listening to Aenima, and it didn’t have enough oomph for me. Vocals sounded a little recessed and drum sounded a touch distant. Bass texture was excellent, though. I’m also happy to note that the Pinnacle passed the treble torture test with flying colours. It never went too bright on Kometenmelodie.
 
On Tori Amos – Hey Jupiter, the instrumentation has excellent depth. With Norah Jones I was hearing tiny details like a miniscule guitar pluck deep on the right of the stage in Cold Cold Heart. Whilst many IEMs will give you clues and markers to where instruments are located in the soundstage, like a set of ‘X’s on a alpine map denoting the route, not every IEM lets you fully sense and feel the way of the ski trail. The Pinnacle doesn’t just have you see the trail pencilled on a map, your skis are in the grooves left by alpinists before you, your eyes are watching for fluorescent tags on white birch bark denoting your path. I feel the sound stage with the Pinnacle, I don’t just hear cues to locations—there is crystalline mountain air around the instruments. With that said, the soundstage is only a bit above average in size—it just maximises the impact it gives in the space it has with excellent separation, detail and tactility.
 
Strolling through City of the Sun and Daft Punk, I noted excellent kick in drums and percussion with real air moving through the bass drum kicks, great tone on plucked instruments, and excellent imaging, but I also noted that bass quantity may not satisfy everyone. On Giorgio by Moroder, the Pinnacle’s imaging definitely stood out.
 
Now that I’ve established a baseline, I’ll proceed to the comparative listens. For each headphone, I attempted to do a crude volume matching by writing down volume levels and gain settings for each IEM at 78dB using an SPL meter. My methods weren’t perfect, but they were definitely better than not volume matching at all. I initially had the Pinnacle (with Spinfits), the Echobox Finder X1 (Black Filter, Spinfits), 64 Audio X2 (Comply, Spinfits), Shozy Zero (Spinfits), and Trinity Audio Atlas (Sony Isolation Tips). I’ll present comparisons on a song by song basis.
 
Eagles – Hotel California (played through iBasso DX50)
The Pinnacle has excellent clarity and imaging, and drums have good impact. The best in the group for the thump thump bass drum at the end of the intro are the 64 Audio X2. Mids were most recessed on the Finder X1. The 64 Audio X2 is the smoothest, but is sometimes soft and doesn’t have the treble extension and detail that the Pinnacle has. The Shozy Zero is bassier than the Pinnacle and has a larger soundstage.
 
Father John Misty – The Night Josh Tillman Came to Our Apartment (iBasso DX50)
The production on the album tends towards warmth, such that headphones that add warmth often make the album sound musty and congested. The Pinnacle doesn’t add any warmth, and to my ear lets the album sound natural and inviting. The Shozy Zero has a taller and wider soundstage with a romantic quality to the sound, detail is still there, but in less quantity due to smoothed treble on the Zero. Luckily for the Zero, the warmth in the sound doesn’t impact Josh Tillman’s voice. The Trinity Audio Atlas has slower bass but a nicer presentation of the glockenspiel on the track. The Echobox Finder X1 is bassy, and not as tight bass as it’s competitors, and has recessed vocals.
 
At this point I switched to the Geek Out V2 and popped the gain up to high, and proceeded to listen till three in the morning. The instrument separation when listening to Smoke & Mirrors Percussion Ensemble is fantastic with details just popping all over. The Pinnacle definitely likes the power to soar.
 
The Geek Out V2’s amplification is also more revealing of the other IEMs. On Keith Greeninger – Harder That We Love, the presentation is a little artificial sounding with the Trinity Audio Atlas, with bass colouring the vocals. It sounds wrong after the Pinnacle. The 64 Audio X2 is warmer, but less detailed, with a sleight veil, and more forward mids. The Pinnacle doesn’t over-emphasize any frequency, it is just beautifully balanced.
 
Brittney Slayes and Co. really rock it on General of the Dark Army, and the Pinnacle does not disappoint, the attack is crisp, with sharp well defined edges. It is metal and feels metal, with sharp guitars and machine gun drums. I just want to crank it up with the Pinnacle hooked into the GO V2. The 64 Audio X2 is smoother with a more immediate presentation (those forward mids at play).
At this point the Pinnacle has won me over compared to my other headphones on hand. Through the rest of the night it keeps up with Dragonforce, gives Charles Mingus – Eat That Chicken a fun live feel with horns dancing round the stage and hoots of ‘Oh yeah’ grounding the atmosphere. On Boys Age – I am a Jester a soft bassline under lying the tune is clearly heard and guitar is well defined. Beck – Satan Gave Me a Taco has an organic sound. The Pinnacle reveals the tape noise of the recording, but doesn’t make it sound as gnarly as some other headphones can. It also holds onto tiny details, like faint tapping and scratching on the guitar body. After listening to the Pinnacle on this track, the Trinity Atlas makes me feel yucky, it just sounds stale and muddy in comparison.

 

Conclusions

The Pinnacle is an absolute joy. It sings quality from the moment you meet it's unique packaging contours and continues in dulcet tones when the visual experience moves to your ears. It is sheer aural pleasure, the best sounding single dynamic driver embedded strongly in my memory (I have poor recall of IE800 listens). It is expertly tuned with great detail, an articulate soundstage with real air imported from the path less travelled by, and a balanced overall signature that is immensely pleasurable. At $199, the Pinnacle is a strong competitor for best price to performance ratio of the year.
 
The Pinnacle won’t be for everyone. It needs loads of power for the bass to be fully realised and the mids can sound recessed when they aren’t driven hard enough. If you drive them well, you’ll enjoy them. On the DX50 the Pinnacle needed high gain, and high volume. On the GO V2 it took high gain and 50% volume. Most IEMs are fine on low gain, and ones that like more power tend to be at about 20% on high gain. This is a stellar effort from MEE Audio and fully deserving of 5 enthusiastic thumbs-ups, but since I don’t have a strange form of polydactyly granting me five thumbs, I’ll give it 5 stars instead.

[size=24.57px]Acknowledgment[/size]

Thanks @BangkokKid, otherwise known as Brannon Mason, for sending this review unit to me in exchange for my honest opinion. Thanks @FullCircle, otherwise known as Dr. John Moulton or the Wizard, for making this piece of art and all the other magic you do.

This review was originally posted here.

List price: $1850 (£1699)

Introduction

I’ve been watching Noble for years, mostly from the sideline, silently admiring the many creations of the Wizard in the Wizard Returns thread on HeadFi. I haven’t read every single page, but I’ve read a lot. The Noble crew mix it up nicely in the thread with a blend of honesty, courtesy, some California cool, and swagger. The many miscreants and mobile audio enthusiasts mixing it up there tell jokes and generally create a fun environment. It is one of the most interesting corners on HeadFi and part of what attracted me to the brand before I ever heard their gear.

I first heard a Noble IEM at Canjam London 2015. Brannan was manning the stand single-mannedly, as he often does. He was courteous, but had a silent confidence that made him seem a bit beyond me. So I didn’t try to make conversation—I was intimidated. I just asked to listen to the Noble 6 and the Noble Savant. The 6 didn’t do it for me—too much bass. That Savant was a black shell-o-goodness (RIP, Savant; long live the Sage). It was balanced, musical, and lovely, and this was before the new cases that make the Noble line look even more premium and poised to disown you of your coffers.

A couple months post Canjam, I started my reviewing journey, over the past year and ½ I’ve averaged 2 reviews a month while working full time and having a family life. Never think that hobbyist reviewers like myself aren’t working hard. I hoped that reviewing would give me the opportunity to hear exotic pieces of gear I’d otherwise not have the chance to hear outside of meets—a pretty limited place to audition due to time constraints and noise levels. I put in the work, joining tours, contacting manufacturers, making friends, writing reviews.

A year after my first Canjam I returned to Canjam London 2016 with business cards and tried to project confidence and, I dare say, some of that Noble thread swagger. I didn’t have it when I was at the Noble stand. Brannan is still intimidating in person. He helped me with auditions of the Kaiser 10 and the Katana. I told him that a cross between the two would be just about perfect—something less lush than the Kaiser 10 and less razor sharp than the Katana (very fittingly named). I gave him a business card, followed up, and after some patient waiting, the Noble Kaiser Encore arrived at my door over here in old blighty. Brannan never told me what he would send me to review, but I knew that something new was coming in the beginning of September. It was a very pleasant surprise to see the newly anointed King.

I’m so excited to review a headphone that I think was designed specifically with my tastes in mind (though not specifically for me, of course), a magical crossbreeding of two majestic beasts, the Kaiser 10 and the Katana. The pedigree is plenty apparent. It’s more magical than a Liger and more badass than a Pegasus. Roar and soar.

Napoleon Dynamite​	Pegasus don’t give a…​

Or for a reality based imaging…

Noble Kaiser 10 Aluminum Universal​	Noble Katana​

I think it is valuable for readers to know as much about their reviewers as possible, so in the interest of full disclosure check out my about me (in the linkie).

Form & Function

The Noble Kaiser Encore comes inside two boxes, a sturdy outer box with the Noble emblem on top and a lovely inner box with black fine textured paper. Before I opened the box, I thought I was reviewing the Sage. I had a good feeling when I saw the intriguing centrally textured black grey swirls with deep glossy black embossed Noble logo and text.

The Noble Kaiser Encore is a beautifully sculpted IEM. It is formed through the joining of two precisely CNC machined, anodized aluminum halves. The former edition had a rocket red half and a bright silver half. The Encore is more muted, dappled in blue-grey and a softer silver tone than the previous generation Kaiser 10.

The sharp contoured edges decisively sweep from the fascia toward the nozzle. Those lines meet in the imprinted logo in the centre of the fascia giving a muted starburst effect. The headphones look absolutely lovely.



 
The headphones come with a ton of accessories crammed into the Pelican 1010 case. There are four varieties of ear tips in three sizes and I found them all to work very well. I preferred the ‘blue’ tips sonically, but found that I had the most firm and consistent fit was with the foam tips. The foam tips are the best foam tips I’ve encountered. They grip extremely well in the warmth of your ear and the smooth outer shell seems easier to keep from getting grubby. There was little difference sonically between the different tips, but I’m sure that without going to outside tips, you’ll find a tip that you like in the package. I tried my Spinfits—normally my go to tip—and went back to the Noble ‘blue’ silicones tips.



 
Functionally, there are a couple ‘rough edges’ to note. The anodized surface is not as hard as the edges of the design. The edges are strong, so you’ll want to keep the earpieces from rubbing against each-other or other metal. These headphones require more careful handling than a pair of custom Encores would need. The rewards for this quirk of the aluminum shell and anodized finish is the ability to try the headphones, buy and walk out in the same day; and the ability to share them. I can tell you, it is an absolute joy to watch people’s eyes light up when they hear their music in a whole new way. It is one of the greatest joys of the hobby. It is the reason why local meets with your friends like the upcoming UK HeadFi Meet in Milton Keynes are so much fun. I hope to be sharing the Kaiser Encores for a long time into the future.

I also found that the pinholes on the IEMs are on the tighter side. Noble recommends avoiding switching cables, as this can result in stretching of the sockets. There are a lot of 2-pin manufacturers, and there is a lot of variance in tolerance control. It isn’t likely that any one headphone will have a perfectly snug fit with all cables, so this problem is far from unique to Noble. I recommend being careful and not trying to force a cable to fit that is resistant to insertion. Be gentle when attaching the cable to the shell, don’t force something that doesn’t fit right as you may loosen the pinholes. Unless you can test out a bunch of cables on a shop unit, resist the temptation to partner your Noble IEMs with a room laden with exotic cables.

Audio Quality

 
The Encore is special. They are absolute speed and detail monsters. They aren't as warm as the K10UA as some have observed and from memory they don't have the massive soundstage of the Katana (don't have either on hand, so memory may be biased). Vibro Labs coined a phrase to describe their new MAYA flagship: ideal neutral. I think that is actually what is happening here. These have a nice natural timbre with a superbly layered and lifelike presentation. They have a little extra body in the mids and a bit extra treble energy and shimmer. The extra mid body gives these soul. The treble shimmers and sparkles but doesn’t spike. There is great focus and air, but no harshness. Treble notes linger exactly as they should. Light percussion strikes are light, sustained notes sustain, everything sounds startlingly realistic. Bass is full and lustrous. On 9Bach – Llywnog and Led Zeppelin – D’yer Ma’ker the bass guitar licks are satisfyingly groovy with perfect attack and decay—never dry, never woolly. I just love the tight little hits. Perfect attack and decay on that bass note. I loved them so much I had to rip a friend away from his book to share. He didn’t mind one bit. I had never used D’yer Ma’ker as a test track, but when the Encore ripped out such good bass guitar licks I had to add it to my playlist immediately. Oh, that space around the drum hit. Yes. On Why – Strawberries, the bass drops deep while still nailing the xylophone percussion elements and the high synth, piano and chimes. The complex arrangement of this track is flawlessly portrayed. Listening to Camera Obscura was just achingly good, Lloyd, I'm not ready to be heartbroken—I hope these get to stay around for a bit.

There are other in-ears with bigger soundstage from oBravo, but these are no slouch at all in that element, cost less, have a more customizable sound (aftermarket cables, non-comply tips), and aren't Halloween costume garish hangin' out of your ears. The in-ears from oBravo are nice, but why must I be made to look like Frankenstein’s monster?



One really impressive thing for me about the soundstage was that it has an arc to it. It's like being in the front row, with the concert speakers hanging with just a little bit of curvature to their sound plane. It's a live kind of experience. Many IEMs put you in the center of the stage, I feel more like I'm just at the edge of it. Soon I'll be leaping off and surfing back. Catch me. I need my head for listening to the Encore's some more.

Listening to the Animals as Leaders album, Joy of Motion on these is bliss. Not a single transient smeared, not a single detail missed. Micro micro micro detailed. They are also revealing of the reduced dynamic range of the track, as instruments don’t have a ton of depth in the stage. The depth in the sound is clearly artificial in its creation, much in the way that electronic music creates stage depth when there is no stage. This does not take away from the accomplishment of the Kaiser Encore, as even within this limited stage on the track there are a ton of elements, and the Encore misses none of them and portrays them all with absolute clarity.

They are definitely a step up from my UERR, the big question is always whether the step up is worth it to you? The resolution is higher on the Encore, more defined edges, more precise location. I've also found that I like them more with the Effect Audio Ares II+. There can be some treble fatigue for me with the stock cable, but the big copper cable from Effect Audio smooths the peaks a little. No detail lost, just eliminating some fatigue. The only problem with the Effect Audio Ares II+ is its sheer mass, it feels heavy on the ear and my sensitive ear skin gets irritated after a while wearing it.

I only had a brief comparison between the Katana and the old Noble K10UA and I thought the Katana was more airy and more precise, but a bit sharp--like it's name. The Noble K10UA was full and lovely, with robust body. I preferred it. The Encore to me has a bit of both, kind of a perfect in between sandwich of awesome. The Encore is the muffaleta of headphones, full and delicious with lots of tasty detail and complexity, but without the gut-busting heaviness. Pass the olive and carrot salad. Yum.

Matchability

The Noble Encore has low impedance in its curve. I don’t know what impedance the bass is at, but I know that when I play it out of the RHA DACAMP L1 balanced output with an adapter, the sound gets messed up and wrong. It lacks soul and dynamism. It is bloody wrong. The Encore also hisses on many sources. It hisses on the DX50, the LH Labs GO2A, the HiFiMAN SuperMini, the HiFiMAN MegaMini, the Echobox Explorer, and my phone. It doesn’t hiss on the Aune M1S either in balanced or single-ended; the iFi Micro iDSD Black Label, and the Cayin i5 passed with flying colours too. I am more sensitive to hiss than some others, so you may not have the experience that I have had. Or you could just get a player known to not cause hiss with very sensitive IEMs like the Noble Encore.

Crap, Damien Rice just came on. Grown-ass man tears a flowin’.​

Headphone Comparisons

Because I compare a lot of intersections of gear, I’ve decided that it is about time I keep a volume matching database. As the Aune M1S is still my best sounding player, I have used it for comparisons. First, a little bit about methodology:

1. I’ve got an SPL meter, I’ve got a DIY coupler,
2. I’ve got a white noise track from Ayre Acoustics, when I combine these I get volume matching,
3. I press the IEM onto my coupler firmly,
4. I generally use foam for measurement and silicone for listening (foam seals better on the coupler),
5. For the UERR I find that they sound louder than universals if I use matched volume, so I’ve dropped the volume 2dB on the UERR—it seems to work.
6. I don’t use pure tones for volume matching because that doesn’t make any sense.

 

We already know from frequency charts that headphones don’t have the same response at different frequency values, using noise eliminates potential biased matching due to frequency response mismatches between headphones. I use white noise because it is has equal intensity at all frequencies. Listening to white noise will also tell you if your headphone isn’t neutral, the noise definitely sounds different with a very coloured headphone like the RHA CL1 than it does with a neutral IEM like the UERR or mostly neutral IEM like the Noble Encore. For the base comparison I used only stock cables.

Headphone	Cable	SE/Balanced	Gain	Volume	SPL
UERR	Stock	SE	Middle	78	76.2
UERR	Stock 2.5mm Balanced	Balanced	Middle	66	76.4
Noble Encore	Stock	SE	Low	79	78
Noble Encore	Effect Audio Ares II+, with SE adaptor	SE	Low	75	78.2
Noble Encore	Effect Audio Ares II+	Balanced	Low	59	78.2
Unique Melody Miracle	Stock	SE	Low	81	78
Unique Melody Miracle	Stock	SE	Middle	66	78.2

In my UERR review, I did some comparisons against the CL1 and the Noble Encore. For this review, the CL1 has been omitted as it just wasn’t competitive, and new tracks used for comparing the headphones. For this comparison, I’ve picked out Why – Strawberries for bass and treble presentation and extension, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra performing Lou Harrison’s Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra Allegro for loads of percussive complexity, Clark Terry – Silly Samba for the sweet binaural Jazz stage and good variety of instruments, and Led Zeppelin – D’yer Ma’ker—you know why. Picking out more tracks for quick comparison is just too time consuming.

UERR

The bass on Dy’er Ma’ker is taut and well-defined on the UERR and the Encore with a little bit more decay on the Encore giving a bit more natural presentation. The treble is more satisfying on the Encore with nicer sounding cymbals and hi-hat. Instrument separation is a bit better and the sound just has a more whole feel to it. The overall sound is a bit more natural on the Encore, but both of these do a fantastic job with D'yer Ma'ker.

The mids on the Encore are airier than the UERR, which I found really helped on Silly Samba’s horns. Both the UERR and the Encore do an excellent job with the piano and chimes in the treble of Strawberries. There treble is a bit faster and more delicate on the Encore. Both have fantastic layering. Piano has a little more body on the UERR.

The depth of stage on the UERR is a little greater, but the Encore has a more natural feel to the instrumentation. I think I prefer both the Miracle and the Encore on presentation of the percussion orchestra. Both keep up with the speed of the percussive elements and maintain excellent imaging. The UERR has a little bit larger image, but the Encore has a bit more lifelike image. I tested increasing the volume on the UERR a little bit, and it still had the a bit deeper presentation. The Encore dealt with a greater concentration of instruments slightly better with more focused sound.

Verdict: Noble Kaiser Encore. More airy mids, more pleasing bass decay, and the delicacy of the treble really do it for me. It is worth noting that the UERR cost about 40% less than the Encore. An individual’s willingness to pay for the marginal, but imminently noticeable differences in performance will vary by the individual.

Unique Melody Miracle

A funny and surprising thing happened when I was testing the Unique Melody Miracle V2. I tried it on low gain on the Aune M1S and found that overall the Miracle V2 came across as laconic with a biit of a veiled effect. In comparison to the Encore it was diffuse in the bass (though still extending well), smooth and soft in the treble while retaining some good sparkle on Strawberries and Silly Samba, with smooth mids. The sound never challenged me, it was relaxing, but in need of some energy. On D'yer Ma'ker the bass edges, the defining characteristic of the song were soft and vocals sounded tame.

On the percussion orchestra piece, the race was tighter between the two IEMs. Both did an excellent job of depicting many simultaneous instruments in space with excellent separation and definition on the percussion orchestra and Silly Samba. Neither lose the mix of instruments and placements at all. You can definitely track every instrument. The Encore had a more focused attack and decay in the bass, which I preferred.

The Encore was airy with excellent extension in both the bass and treble. Bass body was full, not thick, with appropriate weight in the deep bass notes of Strawberries. D'yer Ma'ker’s bass guitar sounded real and lifelike. The soft edges of the Miracle gave way to firm well rounded bass with perfectly defined attack and decay on the Encore. D'yer Ma'ker sounds better on the Encore than anything else I’ve tried.

Now something special happened when I upped the gain on the M1S for the Unique Melody Miracle, it filled out and lost some of the softness that I observed, there was more energy, but it remained a smooth and easy-going signature. The Miracle V2 is great for long fatigueless listening sessions. The Miracle v2 isn’t as focused as the Encore, and doesn’t have as much stage depth, but it is a very satisfying listen. When adequately amped, the Miracle v2 is outputting firm bass with a bit more quantity than the Encore, but it isn’t outputting with the same quality. Bass texture, attack and decay are all more accurate to my ears. The Encore wins on depth and height, and has a slight edge (could be expectation bias) on width. The depth and height advantages are definite.

The Miracle V2 has a bit better isolation due to it’s pseudo-custom shell shape. I found that this shape also helped me with fit.  The bores on the Kaiser Encore are protected with a thin plastic around the edges. This should help keep the headphones operating at peak form for longer with lower maintenance. The Miracle v2 has two large offset bores that are difficult to keep clean. I would prefer that these have a sonically transparent screen over them. Over time the Noble tips get slippery and the insertion depth can make them slide a little bit, affecting the bass quantity. My advice is to clean the tips using alcohol wipes. When I did this the tips regained their nice firm grip. The plastic shell of the V2 is more pocketable as they won’t scratch themselves or other items. I find I like to put my IEMs in my blazer or jacket pocket when I’m getting on or off transit or when someone wants to talk to me, so pocketability is a good feature.

Verdict: Noble Kaiser Encore, due to better technical capabilities in space, and more refined bass. If sound is your main thing, then you can’t do much better than the Kaiser Encore. On aesthetics, the Kaiser Encore wins easily. On ergonomics, the Miracle v2 is a bit better. The Miracle v2 will be a better value for many.

The Spoils

To the victor go the spoils. In this little armatures race, the Noble Encore takes top place, but those looking for a better ‘value’ at the top end may wish to consider either of the competitors in this mini-shootout. In the end, the victor here is me, as I’ve gotten to spend so much quality time with these wonderful headphones.

Cable Musings

The Noble cable is a good one, but whilst reviewing the ENCORE I won an Effect Audio Ares II+ IEM cable. If the Noble has one weakness it is that the treble can become fatiguing on some tracks. In my experience, the Ares II+ helped with this. The Effect Audio Ares II+ is also a balanced cable, and while the Encore doesn’t need extra power, I find that the Aune M1S balanced out has better technical performance than the single-ended output. The Kaiser Encore is fully capable of showing this subtle difference between the two outputs.

My daily driver set-up is as follows:

Aune M1S (balanced) — Effect Audio Ares II+ — Noble Kaiser Encore

Specifications

All Noble IEMs on official Noble Audio sites provide little information about the measured characteristics about their IEMs. I can tell from listening that the Kaiser Encore is very sensitive, and it does hiss on lesser pieces of gear. I would also guess that the impedance is very low. I’ve been told under 30, but I’d guess well under 30 for the Encore. I’ll not hazard my guess and I haven’t measured.

I’m lucky to have a superior DAP in the Aune M1S that doesn’t hiss one bit. I have noted that audible distortion occurs on a 4.4Ω but not at 2.2Ω. The rule of eight (your output impedance should be 1/8^th your headphones impedance) likely gives us some clues as to what the impedance is on the Kaiser Encore, but we don’t have a specific value. All I can advise is you want your output impedance below 1Ω, as I’ve had hiss on 1Ω output impedances.

Specifications
Price	$1850 (£1699)
Drivers	10 BA, configuration unknown
Shell	Anodized CNC-machined aluminum
Accessories	Cleaning tool, Noble Wizard sticker, Pelican 1010, Noble branded gear bands, ‘Blue’ silicone tips (S/M/L), ‘Red’ silicone tips (S/M/L), coreless foam tips (S/M/L), biflange silicone tips (S/M/L), stainless steel tip holder, Noble warranty card, velvet pouch
Warranty	2 years

Conclusions

The Noble Kaiser Encore is simply the best in-ear headphone I have had the privilege of listening to. It has excellent extension in the bass and treble with natural bass decay and fast and realistic treble. The soundstage is big with beautiful instrument placement. The mids are airy, but not arid. The whole sound is natural and evocative of live music, not recorded music. I love these headphones and I think you will too.

The Noble Kaiser Encore Universal IEMs are not without limitations. The metal edges can be a hazard. This can be solved by getting one of the Wizard’s brilliantly beautiful custom designs, but you won’t be able to share the sound with your incredulous non-audiophie buddies. You could also get a Wizard Encore, which you could share. Treble can cause fatigue during long listening sessions with the stock cable if you are sensitive to this, which I am. The Kaiser Encore hisses with many sources. Whilst it can most certainly sound excellent out of an iPhone, you’ll want a really clean source to avoid hiss. The biggest negative for many will be price.

For many, $1850 (£1699) will be out of their reach or considered exhorbitant, and there are options that give you 80 to 90% of the Noble Kaiser Encore’s performance for around $1000, but I think you will know the difference once you’ve compared. I think they are worth it. It is up to each individual buyer to decide what they are willing to pay for the ever diminishing returns at the top of the price scale. There are certainly more expensive headphones than the Kaiser Encore, and if you are hunting for an IEM in this range, you would be doing yourself a great disservice if you didn’t try the Kaiser Encore before buying something in this price range and above.
 

 

List Price: $69

Product Website: https://ifi-audio.com/portfolio-view/accessory-iematch2-5

Introduction
I’ve been wanting to get an iEMatch ever since the first one was released. I was surprised that iFi didn’t send me one to review, given how much we’ve worked together. I’ve got a few hiss monster DAPs in house, including my favourite DAP, the QP2R. Beyond the QP2R, the HiFiMAN SuperMini and the HiFiMAN MegaMini are hiss cannons. When iFi sent me the press release for the 2.5mm version of iEMatch, I had to get it. So, when I saw them at Sound & Vision 2018 in Bristol, I bought one on the spot.

This review was originally published on audioprimate.blog.



Usability: Form & Function


The box that the iEMatch2.5 comes in is iFi’s standard small item box. They use the same box for their Purifier series, and I have to imagine they use it for their Defender and other USB paraphernalia. Inside the box are the iEMatch2.5 with a formed slot cut out of the foam, a pair of earplugs, the cloth bag, and a tasty tasty silica packet. Mmmm anhydrous! Underneath the earplugs, there is a smiley face thank you. Also in the box are a conveniently sized and folded instruction manual and a warranty card. The box has all kinds of fancy pictures on the outside, which is standard for iFi. They are good with the graphic stuff.



The iEMatch itself is tiny. I was able to easily fit it in side the Noble Encore Pelican hard case with a bulky aftermarket cable. It’s really a life-saver with the Noble Encore.

The iEMatch2.5 has a lower output impedance than the version built into the iDSD Nano Black Label (under 1Ω versus 4Ω) but the same as the original iEMatch. In practice, what this means is that I don’t notice any colouration of the sound signature on the Noble Encore with the iEMatch2.5, but I do with the iDSD Nano Black Label. I get to listen with the best DAP I have in house, which is excellent. With the Noble Encore, I only have ever needed to use the High sensitivity setting, but if you are an Andromeda fan, I’d wager the Ultra sensitivity setting would have you covered.



One thing that I noted was that with the Questyle QP2R, the Ultra setting on the iEMatch was a bad idea, as the volume had to be turned up too high and it caused a little clipping. So you may not be able to use the iEMatch2.5 with every IEM source combination. If it sounds wrong and you have to jack the volume knob up to insane levels, stop. Use your sense.

On the iEMatch2.5, the 2.5mm jack plug has a collar. It has been my observation that 2.5mm plugs are very brittle, which is one of the reasons that I'm all gung-ho for 4.4mm balanced jack plugs to take over the DAP world (my 4.4 make sure all y'all kids don't grow, to homophone a great one). The best way to strengthen a 2.5mm jack plug is increase the contact area around the plug. Using a collar decreases this area and makes the plug vulnerable. Similarly, the end your aftermarket cable plugs into is not flush with the magnesium body of the iEMatch2.5 so also has a point of vulnerability that could have been mitigated. That said, moving your aftermarket cable plug away from the 2.5mm jack on the DAP reduces the amount of pressure, thus reducing the likelihood of a busted jack plug on your [expensive] aftermarket cable. This issue is why I docked the build quality 0.5 points.

I only have one other gripe, and that is the price differential between the standard iEMatch, and the iEMatch2.5. The regular iEMatch can be had for around $50. I think this is actually a more appropriate price, which is why I had to dock the value 0.5 points.

This was awfully close to being my first ever perfect 5 review. If I'd beta tested this, it would have got the 5 star rating, because I would have addressed the only issues. My cons would then read: none.

Specifications
Specifications
Price $69
Sensitivity adjustment Ultra (24dB), High (-12dB)
Input impedance 16Ω
Output impedance
< 2.5Ω (High-Sensitivity)

< 1.0Ω (Ultra-Sensitivity)

Weight 12.2g
Total length 116mm
Waranty 12 months
Accessories Fabric travel pouch, 1 pair soft-foam contoured ear plugs (-37dB)


Acknowledgment
I acknowledge that I bought the iEMatch my own darn self. No acknowledgment necessary. I got a show discount.

Conclusions
The iFi iEMatch is a hissbusting miracle worker in a diamond-dusted magnesium suit. It’s worth every penny. Buy it!



Rating Disclaimer: ratings are subjective. Audio quality and value do not mean the same thing across all prices. A headphone with a 5 rating on audio at $5 does not have equivalent sound quality as a 5 rating at $500. Likewise, value at $5 is not the same as value at $5000 dollars.

 
 

Acknowledgment   

Thanks @Luke Pighetti of Vibro labs and @ejong7 for setting up this tour. I was loaned the Maya for two weeks in exchange for my honest opinion.
 

Introduction

The Mayan’s were an incredibly advanced civilisation, in art, literature, mathematics, engineering, and in astronomy. Their calendar was incredibly accurate, and extended hundreds of years past the demise of their civilisation, a source of many doomsday predictions . My Dad did his college studies in cultural anthropology and was absolutely fascinated with Central American and South American civilisations, so I grew up with big hardback anthropology books with pictures of Mayan pyramids, Aztec artwork, and Toltec heads—maybe these will be future IEMs from Vibro Labs. So if I’m thinking of what Maya, might mean before I listen, I can go two ways: the previously described allusions to dead civilisations, or I can think of Maya Angelou, brilliant poet, dramatist, and civil rights activist. I’m guessing that since poetry and music share some genes, that this is the way that Luke Pighetti, the one man band behind Vibro Labs was thinking of it.
 
 
Vibro Labs is basically a one man operation out of Maine. Luke Pighetti, founder and engineer of the the aesthetic and sonic characteristics of the company’s two IEMs, the Aria and the Maya, has some history with ZMF on designing their wood enclosures. He has affinity and talent with wood and his products look lovely. I’m hoping that the Maya is as lyrical as Ms. Angelou and it’s sonic images as compelling as the Ancient Americas.
 
 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

Every company that makes a product has a story to tell about their product. These stories are told in charts, graphs and superlatives of varying levels of believability. In my experience chatting with Luke Pighetti, he seems to be a straight shooting kind of guy. My Maine man seems as honest as his beard is long—may his Samson mane never fray.
 

 
Here’s what he had to say about the Maya on the Vibro Labs website:
 

MAYA is our new flagship earphone with an ideal-neutral signature.
 
It is as close to neutral as possible while still maintaining a touch of musicality. Maya builds upon the legendary extension of Aria while providing midrange neutrality and improved room acoustics. The result is a neutral, musical earphone that accurately portrays vocals, preserves microdetails, and presents lightning fast sub-bass extension.

Click to expand...

 
 
Good on ya for offering a two year warranty. It's a very nice statement, Vibro Labs.
 

Form & Function

The Maya has a tiny footprint and feels light and comfortable in the ear. The shape of the IEM means that it doesn’t have much contact area with the ear surface. Whilst this ensures comfortable fit for a wide variety of ears, it also means that beyond the tip, there is little to block out ambient noise, so I found isolation on these below average with Spinfits equipped. When equipped with the included Comply Isolate tips, the world outside was just a maze of moving lips and silent cars unaware of your existence—like that moment in the movie where the lead is realising the gravity of their predicament—aw crap, what were you saying? “Lips move but I can’t hear what you’re saying,” without the nastiness of feeling totally alien to your own humanity.
 

 
The Maya, as you may have noticed above does not come with any silicone tips. Personally, I’m not a fan of the Comply sound on most IEMs. I find that it makes the bass warmer and less detailed and reduces treble. I’m not a fan of warm bass, and not a fan of muted treble (even if only slight), so my tip of choice is the Spinfit medium (red). The Maya is poorly designed for using with other tips than the supplied T600 Comply tips, as it has a very large nozzle. I believe that the size of the nozzle, and the lack of ridge or texturing on the nozzle are responsible for one of my Spinfit tips falling off. It was an uncomfortable moment, as you want to have your sound impressions be consistent throughout on a review. Luckily, I found some spares that I forgot I had. I think that the nozzle on the Maya is needlessly large, as there are only two not terribly large sound bores. The nozzle could also be improved by having a lip or ridges, as this would make it more difficult for tips to fall off. Noble IEMs also have large nozzles, but they have designs that mitigate tip slippage.
 
The case that the Maya comes with is an authentic Pelican case and feels pretty bombproof. This is the first IEM Pelican case I’ve handled, and I like it. The foam insert doesn’t seem that useful though. I’d say an insert that secures the IEMs and has a compartment for the cable and tools and tips would be more useful, but not as sexy on presentation.
 
 
On the tour, we didn’t get standard packaging, so I can’t comment on what that looks like. I imagine mostly the same, but with tips in packs instead of in big Comply T600 series demo kits. @Luke Pighetti gave us a comprehensive treatment, tons of tips, and alcohol wipes to clean up. Well done. Every tour should do so well with regard to foamies. It would have been nice to be able to rate the retail packaging, though.
 
The cable is a really good stock cable. It slides nicely over the ear, is light weight, flexible, relatively tangle resistant, and non-microphonic. The y-split could look nicer—I’ve seen the same split on cheap Chinese IEMs, and the slider could be something other than a piece of clear tubing, but those are minor niggles that don’t really matter. The clear tubing actually works better than most sliders I’ve used, it moves smoothly and I didn’t have problems with twists and tangles due to it. If you want a swish looking cable, you were probably already getting an aftermarket cable anyway. This cable does the job well. The right side is marked with a red dot, and the left is marked with a blue dot. Given how secure the 2 pin fit is, you won’t be changing cables in the dark, so no need for elevated bumps or anything like that to tactically tell you which side is which. I really like those tactical clues and wish more manufacturers would do them, but they aren’t always necessary.
 
 

Audio quality

The way that Vibro Labs describes the Maya is accurate, it’s mostly neutral with a little bit of lift in the midbass and a little bit of lift in the lower mids that gives vocals a bit more weight and makes things rock a little more. Extension is good on both ends of the spectrum, listening to Why?’s Mumps Etc… album really highlights how deep the bass extends. Timbre throughout is spot on. The little boost in the mids gives vocals more weight without changing the tone, it is subtly done and very well executed.
 
I tested the Vibro with all kinds of music. It has the speed to keep up with Dragonforce and Animals as Leaders. It has excellent detail rendition. Everything is loaded with texture. Acoustic music from Amber Rubarth sounds poignant. Led Zeppelin rocked. The Maya is musical, poetic, and good looking to boot.
 
What the Maya doesn’t have is a deep soundstage. It has above average width and excellent height, but the depth and width are compressed a little compared to the Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (UERR). The UERR had less height than the Maya. Within that limited depth, the imaging is very good. You can pick out individual instruments’ relative positioning with ease, but they won’t have as much air around them as some other offerings in the same price range. On this journey, I only had the UERR to compare to among high-end offerings, but I remember other headphones I’ve listened to along the way.
 
To test out the ability of the Maya to render complex passages, I threw on Dragonforce – Heartbreak Armageddon. Around the 6 minute mark there is a really complex passage filled with guitar, airy backing ambient synth, vocals and bass. The Maya isn’t quite as resolving as the UERR on this portion. It gets a little smooshed with all that content coming at it, and it smooths out some detail (just a little). It still performs very well, the UERR is just a bit faster, edgier, and has more depth, aiding instrument separation and detail resolution.
 
The Maya didn’t have problems matching with any of my sources, though when music isn’t playing, that moment when you’ve plugged the headphone in and haven’t pressed play yet, I did get some low hiss on all the DAPs I had on hand (HiFiMAN SuperMini, HiFiMAN MegaMini, iBasso DX50). Those DAPs range between 0.5Ω and ~2Ω output impedance. When music was playing I didn’t generally hear anything at all outside of the most silent of passages, i.e. 99.99% of the time I didn’t hear any hiss. In other words, no problemo.
 

 
 
When compared to one of my favourites that I have on hand, the 64 Audio X2, the X2 has a more forward mids presentation, which gives some truly impressive drum impact, and is lacking in detail compared to the Maya. The Maya just has more resolution. The Maya manages to have a smooth tonality without being rich and without losing detail. The imaging on the Maya is more precise than the X2 due to that detail advantage. I’m very happy with it.
 
I tried the Maya with well recorded music and poorly recorded music. It showed the positives of well-recorded music, but didn’t outright expose some of my poorer recorded tracks like Wolf Parade’s Apologies to the Queen Mary album (excellent album, really terribly mastered). I would class the Maya as being forgiving of poor quality content, which will be welcome to most folks. We’ve all got shamefully mastered music that we like, for the most part. You’ll still like that music with the Maya.
 

Conclusions

The Maya is dynamic natural IEM with a nice musical neutral signature that plays really beautifully with just about any genre. The Maya accomplishes this organic musical signature through subtle, tasteful boosts in the mids and bass that give the music a bit more presence and grip. There are no parts of the frequency range that are excessively boosted.
It isn’t a perfect headphone, as it isn’t a total detail master and is a bit lacking in soundstage depth, but at $699 perfection isn’t expected. It will also hiss on some sources in near silent passages (less than 1% of listening time).
 
The performance of the Maya was as delightful as the UERR, but more musical and more forgiving of poorly mastered content. While the UERR is pinpoint accurate, it doesn’t play nice with all source material.
 
I think the Maya is going to be a rousing success. It looks beautiful, sounds amazing with whatever you throw at it and is competitively priced. This is an excellent, well-rounded IEM, I hope that this is a big hit for Vibro Labs.

Acknowledgment
The WAVAYA Octa was provided free-of-charge by WAVAYA. I have received no compensation for this review. All thoughts in this review are my personal opinion.

List Price: $1590 (€1590)

Product Website: WAVAYA Octa

This review originally appeared on Audio Primate, but we are nothing without HeadFi, mother to most headphone blogs. This is still the best headphone community in the world.

Introduction
My blogmate, Jackpot77 was contacted by WAVAYA asking if he’d like to do a review of their gear, and kindly introduced me to the company also. I’m glad he did, because I’m a total geek for innovation, and WAVAYA is all about doing stuff that nobody else has done. Talking to the head honcho of WAVAYA, Pasquale, painted a portrait of a man steered by his own compass, but flexible to productive detours from the longitudinal.

As far as I know, WAVAYA is the only company offering porcelain custom shells and the first company offering dual electrostatic (total of 4 drivers) super tweeters (from Sonion) for exceptional air and precision in the treble. They also use tubeless construction, which provides more control over resonance and allows the lowest lows and highest highs to be conveyed with greater magnitude. They’ve got a jewelry series that is embellished with crystals from Swarovski™. They don’t have a faceplate, because that doesn’t work with porcelain, they have a top more like the dome of a sarcophagus—no mummies inside, I promise. They will also be debuting signature series IEMs that are tuned for and by specific performing artists that will likely be revealing in a number of surprising ways. These WAVAYA cats are different.

They decided to pour their personal capital into the business, no loans, all personal skin in the game. Their goal was more to pursue an audio business built primarily for musicians, and their first two offerings, the Tria and the Quadra (see Jackpot77’s review here) were designed for stage and studio musicians who generally want a vibrant in-ear monitor when they are playing. However, these same musicians may want something different when they are listening for pleasure, something more refined and subdued, something that doesn’t have the levels set to 11. The Tria Comfort and the Exa (both now discontinued) moved the sound in this direction and the electrostatic/balanced armature hybrid Penta and Octa have moved further into audiophile territory. I feel privileged to take these steps into the unknown.

Producing porcelain IEMs is a more involved process than producing acrylic IEMs. Along my path to receiving my units I was sent pictures documenting what step everything was at, but the video below shows all that better than the pictures I received. The amount of work going into each pair justifies premium pricing. The Octa take a full day to build, that’s a lot of work. I’ve lifted the video from their website, but the website is worth looking at to see further details about the steps. Producing these is a lot more involved with a lot more chance of loss and need to redo the process, so these are very reasonably priced; a bit of a bargain actually.

One final thing to note, as far as I know the Octa were the first in-ear monitor to use 4 electrostatic tweeters about a year ago—Sonion hadn’t even developed a quad tweeter set yet. Others have done it since and are claiming they were first—I think they are probably wrong.

Usability: Form & Function
Unboxing


The WAVAYA unboxing experience is pretty good. They come in a red, light card box sealed with a metallised WAVAYA sticker. Inside the box there is a soft foam top sheet with a polystyrene inner below and another soft foam sheet on the bottom completing the foam sandwich. The soft foam was off-white, while the polystyrene is of course white. I think they could step this up a level by getting black foam for both parts and potentially using a similar density foam throughout. It’s good, secure packaging with a good internal organisation for content, but it could look and feel more premium. I’ve been told they’ll be updating the packaging and including a t-shirt instead of the pins—I support this and hope to advise on the new packaging.



Inside the box are a plethora of business cards, buttons, and other merchandise. There’s even a lapel pin. Personally, I didn’t find all of these necessary, and I think that most users would be unlikely to use them. I’d invest the money that goes into these items into a nicer foam. I did very much like the ‘Wait it’s porcelain’ card, which gives instructions on how to care for the IEMs. I found this very helpful. There is also a card containing a pair of magnets that can be applied to the leather case to affix it to a microphone stand. At their heart, WAVAYA IEMs are designed for live musicians, so this nod is a good one. There is also a branded polishing cloth, which is pretty much par for the course on custom or high-end IEMs (becoming common in mid-tier $150+ IEMs too).





There is an unique addition in the box, an accessory in a dedicated compartment at the bottom with it’s own plastic case: a set of ear cleaning tools. I found their presence a bit odd, though I did try them. A word of caution, audiologists don’t generally recommend sticking anything inside your ear beyond the outer ear as the risk of permanent damage to hearing isn’t worth getting at a hardened piece of wax near your eardrum. Ears are generally designed to be self-cleaning, but if you have excess wax or hardened wax using an ear-dropper with olive oil a couple times a day should help loosen up wax build-up. Some folks use diluted hydrogen peroxide, but while this will clear wax, it can also cause irritation and a defensive mechanism that will increase wax build-up. Treat your ears gently, they are a marvel of biology.



At the centre of the box is the main event—right where it should be. The IEMs are held within a leather calf-skin case; available in red or black, personalised or not; that is held within a black WAVAYA logo box. Also inside the box is an insert that provides information about the warranty, fitting guarantees, and the special leather box.

The leather box is made from Florentine calf-skin leather and will naturally absorb moisture off your IEMs, which is good. Moisture isn’t good for IEMs, and customs need more protection against moisture. The leather box has a decidedly premium feel and the branding of individual units is clear with a good logo for the Octa. The double box is designed to be affixed, open and pointing upward, to a microphone stand (using the included magnetic stickers), which is a thoughtful piece of design for musicians. Inside the leather box is a leather button strap designed to wrap the IEM cable around and place an IEM on each side of the wrap. The wrap is absolutely necessary because it prevents the porcelain IEMs from moving around inside the box, which should mitigate the risk of the porcelain colliding with equally hard objects and becoming damaged. Inside that wrap there is also a cleaning tool. I’ve used the cleaning tool, but find that my wax build-up has decreased with the porcelain IEMs, so I don’t need it after every time wearing them.



I think some audiophiles will feel cautious about using the calf-skin leather case for a few reasons: it doesn’t have any padding, it isn’t watertight (it should be fairly water resistant), and only the smallest of aftermarket cables fit inside the box using the wrap—not using the wrap would almost certainly lead to cracked porcelain IEMs, don’t do it. If you want to change your cable, there is a good chance that a standard size upgrade cable won’t fit in the leather case—I tested. With regards to the first concern, when I shake the leather case with the IEMs inside, they don’t really move. The double thickness of the leather will also provide some cushion for the little bit of movement that happens. It’s objects in motion that break, the case and strap do effectively limit motion. Unless you throw the case against a wall, it’ll probably be fine. Don’t do a Randy Johnson imitation with the case! With regards to waterproofing, this case won’t prevent water getting in if it’s submerged, it will limit ingress, but it won’t prevent it.


For those worried about submersion or their ability to practice throwing fastballs with their expensive IEMs, a nearly indestructible padded box like a Pelican 1010 with pick and pluck foam or a box similar to the Empire Ears Aegis case with individual padded foam compartments for each earpiece might be a good option to pick up aftermarket.

Pelican 1010 (£21.14) Pick and pluck foam (£5.45)

Other companies sometimes use a metal puck style case, but the only way a puck style case would work is if WAVAYA built a custom insert to wrap a cable and place the IEMs in padding in the centre. I think that this would actually be the best option, as the case would be tough, flexible to a variety of cables and easy to transport with confidence. You’ll probably always have to take it out and have it open when travelling by air, but it is a worthy price to pay for a really solid case. It wouldn’t affix to a microphone stand.

Cable choice
When I placed my ‘order’ for the Octa, choosing 2-pin meant getting a Plastics One cable and a discount, or WAVAYA making a special order to Estron to get a 2-pin SuperBaX cable. After I had a listen to the Plastics One and talked with Pasquale, WAVAYA got a deal with Estron to supply the SuperBaX cable in 2-pin as well as the default T2 setup (that tells you all you need to know about the Plastics One cable). Now you will always get an awesome cable with the Octa. They may even stock the balanced version of the Linum SuperBaX soon for no additional cost on the Octa. Lower priced models will come default with the T2 Linum BaX cable, but will come with the Plastics One if you want 2-pin (Estron doesn’t make a 2-pin BaX cable). I recommend getting the T2 Linum BaX on lower models than the Octa. Because of the design of the Florentine leather box, the IEMs need to ship with a cable for security, so I’m really glad that the default is that they come with a good cable.

Pasquale finds the T2 connector to be superior to 2-pin and MMCX connectors for touring musician use, which is their main audience. It is what Ultimate Ears’ new IPX system is based on, and is compatible with the IPX system, because Estron, who make the T2 connector, co-developed the IPX system. The T2 is water resistant, has a strong connection, and should hold up well if treated decently. The Linum cables are known for having high tensile strength, which means that they aren’t likely to break easily inside the wire. However, the wire breaking is usually because of the housing breaking and exposing the wire, not from any pulling force on the wire, and I’m not convinced that any cable housing without an extra layer (for example, pre-formed heatshrink at the ears) will hold up to much abuse at the connection to the earpiece. The SuperBaX doesn’t have pre-formed heatshrink, but they do feel well-made.

There are reasons for audiophiles to go for 2-pin cables. They may already have some cables they like. They may wish to get a balanced cable and options are much more flexible than with a T2 connector on which direction you can go with a cable. After discussion with Pasquale, he sent a Linum G2 SuperBaX and made sure everyone else could get one also. I actually really like the sound and the impeccable ergonomics of the SuperBaX.



I’ve tried the Octa with a variety of cables (even Plastics One, not worth mentioning in detail here).

• Double Helix Cables Symbiote Elite SP v3 (eight braid) ($790) The treble sounded excellent with this pairing but the bass came out sounding a bit anaemic. For tracks that rely on treble and mids to convey most of the feeling, this is fine, but the bass equation wasn’t quite right for me. The soundstage was improved, but the cost for a little bit more width was too high. Ergonomically, the eight braid is never going to be the most ergonomic, but as I said in my DHC Symbiote review, the quad braid likely will feel fine, give almost identical sonic performance and cost half the amount. This was never going to fit in the case.
• Effect Audio Ares II+ ($219.90) The Ares II+ makes the sound a bit richer and increases bass quantity a bit. I really liked the pairing. You still get the amazing treble off the electrostatic tweeters, but you don’t lose bass like on the DHC Symbiote. The price is also a good match for the discount for not going SuperBaX. Ergonomically, the Ares II+ has almost the same ergonomics as the DHC Symbiote, and so will also clearly never fit in the leather case.
• Cross Lambda Mikumo 2 ($65) This is a good basic copper cable with Litz wire (4-braid, about 28 AWG per wire) and a balanced sound signature. The Mikumo II has better bass, both by volume and by definition than the stock Plastics One cable. Mids are also clearer and fuller and treble performance is more nuanced. It is less ergonomic than the SuperBaX and doesn’t fit in the leather case. I was sent this model by Cross Lambda, but have never reviewed it because as far as I can see it was discontinued within a couple months of my receiving it. It is a good stand-in for a basic copper cable that can generally be had for somewhere in the vicinity of $100 (their new version, the New Mikumo Dragon is about $65). It’s a good basic cable that would benefit from a little bit softer and less springy housing. It doesn’t fit in the leather case. It is a pretty standard size cable, which means that standard size cables will rarely fit the leather box case.
• Linum G2 SuperBaX (included) The cable is very balanced. It has a good amount of bass while not losing texture. It has good extension on both ends of the sound spectrum. It has a good soundstage. It is a lot better than the Plastics One. It has fantastic ergonomics because of the lightness and softness of the cable and it fits in the swish leather case that comes with the IEMs. It’s probably the best choice for most people. There might be some wait for the 2-pin version as it may have to be ordered from Estron. If you live in a sweaty environment and need the tougher connection of the T2, this is the standard option. A balanced option is available from Estron, but is not sold by WAVAYA, which is understandable. T2 cables are compatible with Ultimate Ears, but I’m not sure if IPX (Ultimate Ears) cables are compatible with T2 fixtures.

Aesthetics & Build
The WAVAYA Octa I picked out are the mother of pearl lustre finish. It is a nice white rainbow pearlescent effect. Lustre finishes are free on the Octa, but $100 (€100) on other models. When the light catches these right, they are stunning—difficult to photograph, but stunning. They look even better in person than the photos here. Because of how the glaze is applied no two WAVAYA will look exactly the same. Each is a unique artisanal piece. I have now seen several WAVAYA glazes in person, and I think that my favourite is the finish on the WAVAYA Quadra reviewed by Jackpot77 and my second favourite is the mother of pearl effect. The all white Tria Live that I’ll be reviewing later remind me of a dainty teacup and are also quite nice. I recommend having a conversation with the company on what finishes turn out the best of the finishes that you like and go with their recommendation.



Another aspect of the WAVAYA IEMs is that they have tubeless outlets. Instead of a structure defined by tubes snaking around the inside of the IEM they built a structure to guide the sound which they say gives better fidelity and sound magnitude while being more durable.

Ergonomics
Some research before they arrived
I asked Pasquale, the leader of the porcelain posse why the heck I would want to put porcelain in my ear. I mean—won’t it shatter and send little splinters into my temporal lobe to scramble up my mind ala Bob Dylan in Alabama? I didn’t really ask that—I lied to you there. I used to ask the stupid questions that people didn’t want to ask in classrooms while I was growing up because the questions aren’t actually stupid and people need to know this stuff but may be too embarrassed or shy to ask. When I thought about porcelain, I imagined that it was really a hard ceramic with good thermal properties. The most bomb-proof IEMs are made of zirconium ceramic, ceramic doesn’t mean brittle. One of my favourite countries to visit is Turkey, and in the palace and many of the mosques there are the famously decorated Iznik tiles, but what most folks don’t know when looking at them is the tiles are excellent at retaining and reflecting heat, so they are actually quite good insulation.


Rüstem Paşa Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey
The properties of ceramics could be quite different than acrylic customs, so I asked Pasquale to help me define these properties. The testimony on the website that once you go porcelain plastic will never do wasn’t quite specific enough for me.



So basically, acrylics are easier to work with and less expensive to work with, but have differences, may be more comfortable in the ear and can cause contact dermatitis or allergic reactions (in the 1% to 1.5% of people who have an acrylic allergy)—a recent USA study found 2.6% of people undergoing patch tests to be allergic to hydroxyethyl methacrylate—that was a bigger study than the others, but these were people who knew they were allergic to something, so detection rate of allergens would be expected to be higher than the general public.

However, most people haven’t regularly exposed themselves to acrylic, and most people won’t be wearing and sweating in their in-ears for 8 hours in a day, so there may be higher rates of diagnosis of allergy or contact dermatitis in people who regularly use acrylic in-ears in heat, such as musicians and folks living in hot climates. This would mean that more custom IEM users would be expected to have allergic reactions or contact dermatitis while using acrylic in ears. Essentially rates are unknown for contact dermatitis, and methacrylic allergy is rare but not hugely rare; i.e. porcelain is worth trying.

With regard to sweating and wax, I have noticed that my two custom acrylic in-ears do have a tendency to make my ear canals sweat a little bit and my ears are more prone to wax build-up with customs than with other in-ears. This could be attributable to depth of insertion rather than material of insertion.



Upon arrival
It is not uncommon for custom in-ears, which are made from a direct mould of your ear, to not fit perfectly the first time. My Octa was uncomfortable in one ear and perfect in the other on first arrival and did need a refit. This isn’t a problem unique to WAVAYA—Twister6 had an IEM that needed refitting from a much bigger company. WAVAYA promptly took care of a second set from the same impressions with a more comfort oriented fit, and they arrived with perfect fit within a couple weeks. I was very pleased with the service I received. If you want to have a check on whether your impressions are fit for purpose, WAVAYA does have an online impression checker, which is an innovative feature that should help avoid refits. WAVAYA also offers VIP Service for $199 (€199) that includes the following: pick-up of impressions at your door, fast-track preparation and shipping of plastic shells to test fit (repeated until the right fit is achieved), fast track production of in-ears within maximum of 30 days or whole VIP fee is refunded, priority shipping, and a dedicated customer service representative.

This said, the material does take some getting used to as it is harder than acrylic. My ears are very sensitive—my nerves are sensitive in general, which probably helps my hearing response. I think my ears are more sensitive than average, honestly. Porcelain is harder and heavier than acrylic, which has meant that I note it in my outer and inner ear more under the same fit as an acrylic pair. This awareness of the IEMs does fade over time, and they are less noticeable after nearly a month of daily use, but I don’t think they will become invisible to my senses and that is okay. They are comfortable for me for goodly length listening sessions. I think this will be an experience that varies from person to person.

With regards to ear sweat and wax build-up. I haven’t noticed any difference in ear sweat levels, but I am producing less wax during insertion. The porcelain has been coming out basically clean (can’t stop all wax) for me at each insertion, which is not what I observe with my acrylic customs. I haven’t tested these under extremely sweaty situations, but I anticipate them doing well.

Audio quality
The WAVAYA Octa gives a balanced frequency response with a touch of warmth in the lower mids, silky yet soaring female vocals and refined treble that extends for miles. Bass drops low and drum impacts are palpable in a way uncommon with balanced armatures. You don’t get the rumbling extension of a dynamic driver’s sub-bass rendering, but the balanced armature extends as deep with good quality and natural timbre. Soundstage has good width with nice depth and less pronounced height but has excellent instrument separation and resolution. These have impeccable timing with waves of speed in reserve. Technical performance on these punches above their price-tag. I think these will routinely compete with more expensive IEMs.

Matchability
Source
I didn’t experience hiss on any of the sources that I tried the WAVAYA Octa with.

QP2R & SOUNDAWARE M2Pro
The gets enough power from both units with the same tone. On the QP2R, I went for low gain (high bias, volume 94), but to get the volume matched on the Soundaware M2Pro the gain setting jumped to high gain with a volume setting of 51. The Soundaware M2Pro has a touch of edge in the mids, while the QP2R is a little more supple. Both resolve space well with the Octa.



The QP2R and M2Pro are clearer, with less distortion on Wilco – Handshake Drugs (16/44), than the HiBy R3, with this especially noticeable in the bass and the kick drum when they get high amplitude in the track.

HiBy R3
The HiBy R3 is a little thinner in the mids and treble than the QP2R or SOUNDAWARE M2Pro. On Gordon Gano’s vocals in Violent Femmes – American Music (16/44), Gordon gets a little more nasal tone. Bass on the R3 is a little thicker, but at the cost of some definition.

LG V30
The LG V30 does well, but isn’t as dynamic sounding as the QP2R or M2Pro. I’d happily listen, as it still sounds good with nice depth to the listen. The LG V30 sounds a touch soft through the mids and doesn’t have the same air and extension in the treble. Bass still grooves along nicely, though.

Comparisons
All comparisons were made using the Questyle QP2R in high bias. Volume matching was done using white noise and an SPL meter. Where perceived volume and measured volume did not match multiple remeasurements were made and averaged to address the affect of position on measurement.



WAVAYA Octa ($1590) vs. UERR ($999)
The Octa has nice chunky bass with good texture on Wilco – Handshake Drugs (16/44) and when that kick drum comes in it kicks like a mule. You can actually feel the kick drum, which is some nice amplitude. Jeff Tweedy’s vocals are dead to rights right on. The maracas shaking like a pill dispenser through the whole track are at just the right depth. It’s a really nice presentation. Bass is a little less textured on the UERR and the kick drum doesn’t bash your face. I prefer the face-bashing of the Octa. The Octa has a touch more width to the piano imaging.


On 9Bach – Llyn Du (24-88) The Octa has great presentation of percussion. When sticks snap, when cymbals shimmer, when electronic percussion ticks rapidly, it just gets it right. Female vocals are universally delightful on the Octa, silky yet detailed, emotive but never strident. It’s no different with Lisa Jen Brown’s sung Welsh. When the menacing bass drops in, it certainly carries the menace it needs to in good balance with all the other elements. There are subtle ticks far back in the stage that come out perfectly resolved. The UERR is bit more forward and breathy on the vocals but without the silken quality. Bass also comes across with good texture. Percussion feels lighter with less body. While the vocals are more forward, they don’t sound quite as nice. Both sets do really nicely on this. The Octa sounds like it has a touch more depth to the stage, but I think the UERR gets the advantage in stage height.

The presentation is clean and clear while having some emotive grunt on the guitar and nice slam on the drums on Tool – Forty Six & 2 (16/44) with the WAVAYA Octa. Drums have a roundness and impact to them that makes it feel like the real thing. I think that WAVAYA has underestimated how well these perform with drums among their line up. These might not punch you in the face with impact, but the impact is nonetheless palpable and the quality is excellent. The stage width is quite good and depth is also good but not exceptional. Instrument separation is exceptional. Timbre of instruments just feels right. When the machine gunning drums come in at about 4:45 the transients have good attack and decay, nothing lingers too long and everything arrives on time. The rising shimmer of the cymbal in the background is deliciously refined on the Octa. Drums with the UERR don’t have the same feel or impact. The decay is a touch fast, comparatively which removes some of the roundness of the drum feel. The shadow of the shimmer in the intro is there, but it doesn’t have the same kind of texture to it, it feels partial. Stage width is less. As with 9Bach, the stage on the UERR has a little more height. The WAVAYA Octa retains more feel across the instrument spectrum when there are intentionally overlapped discordant harmonies (bass growl plus crashing cymbal usually), it gets more visceral feel while maintaining superior clarity. Maynard’s voice sounds excellent on both, but has a little bit of sweetness mixed in with the power on the Octa. When comparing bass, the Octa has a more full-throated growl on bass guitar and excellent extension. I do wonder if the newer BaX equipped UERRs (I’ve got the old 2-pin style) will get some of the characteristics the SuperBaX seems to impart on the bass of the Octa.



Jon Anderson’s voice comes across as if carried by angel wings on King Crimson – Lizard(16/44, Steven Wilson Remaster) on the Octa. The soundstage is laid out almost like a theatrical presentation. Jon Anderson’s soliloquy leading us in the beginning from far stage right with the piano diagonal to the rear of stage left and somehow miniature in scale in the intro. When loudness explodes on the stage, Jon comes to the middle of the stage and the individual instruments arranged in space or avoiding a defined space except above (the soaring cellos). The Octa has a way of making everything sound real. Bass is a touch forward of neutral on the Octa, but has good quality and depth and doesn’t sound coloured, it’s just a touch elevated. From oboe to clarinet, to marching drum, to piano, the flourishes of each instrument are refined and separated in space. The electrostatic tweeters work some magic here. I don’t know if it takes four to do it, but four are certainly doing it. Jon Anderson’s voice on the UERR has a touch more lower mids influence, giving a warmer character while strangely also not having as much body. Piano is more forward on the UERR, but bass is further back and not as textured. The Octa just gives me more feel and ambiance than I get from the UERR. At a $1590 base price, this is excellent value.

WAVAYA Octa ($1590) vs. Stealth Sonics U9 ($1099)
For my comparison with the WAVAYA Octa I had each headphone on the same cable, the Effect Audio Ares II+. When I did initial volume matches, I got the same volume for both headphones on the Effect Audio Ares II+. Listening backed up this measurement, though the U9 always sounds a little louder, which is probably due to having less stage depth and more mids emphasis than the Octa—treble tends to eat up some SPL without being as audible. It could easily be measurement error, too. The nozzle angle is difficult for getting good consistent measurements on the U9 and customs always have difficulties, which is why I often measure them multiple times. Because of the volume measurement being the same, I adjusted sound levels as I wished but just made sure they were the same for each, which is a nice benefit. The effect of the Ares II+ was to improve the bass volume and definition on the WAVAYA Octa while boosting clarity a bit, so I expect a similar effect on the U9.

The violins are deliciously rendered on Regina Spektor – Field Below (16/44) and Regina’s voice sounds nice, but a bit forward of neutral on the U9. Piano has great body and texture on the U9 but can be a bit hard and forward. A little more restraint would be good here. It’s overall a very solid performance, especially at $1099. There is a touch of shoutyness to Regina’s voice on the U9. Piano is more delicate and refined on the Octa with just the right amount of reverb. Regina’s voice is still forward but doesn’t get as shouty (still some shouty, probably just track mastering). There is more ambiance to Regina’s voice with the more texture extending out into her overtones and more nuance in the vocals. The refinement of the Octa is superior on Regina’s vocals, giving a more lifelike presentation. The stage on the Octa has more depth and instruments have a more natural presentation in space with better separation than the U9.

Yes – Sound Chaser (24-96, Steven Wilson remaster) is a speed test track for me. The U9 keep up with good impact. All the little treble tings, cymbal shimmers and percussive impacts are rendered very nicely. The soundscape is busy, but individual instruments can be picked out, with a little effort in their own space. Stage depth is not as good as the WAVAYA Octa, but it is still good. Instrument separation is really excellent on the Octa, with different elements of treble finding what feels like their true place and character in the right layer more consistently. Individual vocalists are easier to pick out on the Octa. Tone on drums and bass is accurate on the Octa, but impact is better on the U9 due to having a dynamic driver built in. If the Octa was using a dynamic driver here instead a balanced armature for the lows I think it would give the same kind of effect—assuming the right dynamic driver were used.

Outkast – Sorry Ms. Jackson (16/44) is a surprisingly layered and textured track. The treble on the WAVAYA Octa is superlative with layering, definition, and a sound that sounds ‘just right.’ There is a fundamental correctness to the treble presentation. It pulls out every little detail while still having a good decay and tonal accuracy. The treble just sounds real. On this track the WAVAYA exhibits a bit extra snap in the 3kHz – 4kHz range on the snare job, thrusting the impact hard forward. Bass is tight and controlled while still having some groove on it. Vocals are more forward on the U9 and a touch smoother and sweeter. Stage width and depth are a little bit smaller than the WAVAYA. The bass on the U9 has a bit more feeling, though the frequency response capabilities are pretty equal. The Octa has more roll off at the lowest end of the sub-bass range, which makes me inclined to like the sub-bass presentation of the U9 a little more for this hip-hop track. I like the less forward mids a touch more on the Octa.

I’m getting great texture in the treble on Blue Oyster Cult – (Don’t Fear) The Reaper (DSD64). The guiro comes through with some nice firm texture without being pushed too forward. Cowbell is a touch more forward than usual but not overexposed. There is good width, getting outside the ears and good height presentation. Because of a tendency toward forward elements in the signature, the depth is fairly average. The guitar solo in the middle of the track is silken in its transitions with excellent decay characteristics and good speed on the attack. Cymbals have good definition and remain back of the vocals (this is a good thing). The overall signature of the Octa is less forward. Guiro and cowbell sit at similar depth but vocals are less forward. The sound has a bit more natural delineation of instruments. There is effortless separation, which causes me to notice the separation of individual vocalists in vocal harmonies more than I have before. Bass on the Octa is present, but not emphasized at the lower end like the U9. I personally prefer the U9 bass, but this is because extra sub-bass energy is always welcome and while a balanced armature can replicate the tone and timbre of deep bass well, it can’t match the palpable power that the dynamic driver led setup of the U9 can do. Treble on both is excellent, but the Octa is more refined and effortless which gives a better stage and a more real feel in vocals and instruments. The timing of the Octa treble just has more sonic information.

Yoni Wolf’s vocal comes out with that sweet nasally quality that I’ve come to expect and cherish on Why? – Strawberries (16/44) with the WAVAYA Octa. There is excellent separation and attack in the numerous treble and upper mids percussion instruments with natural decay all around. You can almost hear the individual grains in the maracas. Detail plus on the WAVAYA Octa. The synth bass and claps are a bit bigger on the U9. Yoni’s voice is sweeter and a bit less nasally than the WAVAYA, which means there is a touch of colour in the U9 signature because Yoni should sound a bit more nasal. The stage width is a bit less on the U9 than the Octa. Maracas are rendered just as precisely and decisively on the U9 as on the WAVAYA, which is impressive given the fact that the Octa uses 2 pairs of electrostatic tweeters.

Overall, the WAVAYA Octa was the superior IEM, but the gap is less than the $700 price difference would indicate—diminishing returns and all that. The WAVAYA wins on separation, refinement and the way the mids and treble just sound more real. The U9 has better bass and impact because that’s what dynamic drivers do best.

WAVAYA Octa ($1590) vs. Unique Melody Mason V3 ($2699)
Speedfiends rejoice Billy Cobham – Quadrant 4 (DSD64) delivers some mighty rapid percussion and guitar. The Unique Melody Mason V3 does a great job resolving the rapid-fire cymbal work in the the treble. All other parts of the spectrum are also resolved with great speed on the Mason V3. On the WAVAYA Octa the bass drum isn’t coming off as clean as on the Mason V3. Cymbals have a bit more decay on the cymbals, but still keep up the speed on the cymbals well. Mids seem a touch further up in the stage on the Octa than on the Mason V3. Bass and guitar are further back on the Mason V3, which gives more perception of depth and more space for the cymbal hits to play within. The snare drums come off with a much cleaner rhythm, as does the bass. The Unique Melody Mason V3 does have a resolution advantage at $1000 more in price, but the decay is shorter on all areas of the spectrum, where in some places the listener might want a little less speed and precision.

The sweet violins in the intro on Kate Bush – Cloudbusting (24/96, vinyl rip) carry nice emotional weight while being precise on the Mason V3. Kate’s vocals are more forward, silky, and sweet on the Octa and a touch more breathy on the Mason V3. Violins have a bit more body and drums are more textured. The smacking of Kate’s lips is better revealed on the Octa during the intro, which might not be desirable for some, but is realistic. Both of these have realistic sounding timbre on the drums, but the Octa is more realistic with more tonal detail on drum hits. I love them both, but I get a bit more emotional response on the Octa than the Mason V3. When switching over to the copper cable on the Mason V3, I get a very similar presentation to the Octa. The flexibility is a really nice feature of the Mason V3, it really is like two IEMs in one with a common musical vocabulary but slightly different expression. Even in the copper comparison, the Octa is a bit richer on Kate’s vocals.

Bass anyone? Yosi Horikawa – Wandering (16/44, binaural) has a big deep bass drop that I’d never fully realised until I recently listened to the Stealth Sonics U2, which rattles your brain like a can of pink paint. Continuing with a copper clad Mason V3 I get more detail in the mids but more bass body and depth on the Octa. The sound is more distant and less visceral on the Mason V3. It’s mighty spacious. Stage depth is better across the spectrum on the Mason V3. Instrument separation is excellent on both, but the Mason V3 comes off just a bit clearer.

The bass has nice deep extension on San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas – Beethoven – 9th Symphony; IV. Finale, Ode to Joy (24-96) with the undertones well resolved on the Octa. The male soloist has great power and definition. When the chorus comes in each individual voice is easy to separate in space with the strings backing nicely. Even when it gets busy some individual vocalists are easily picked out among the chorus. The Octa is comparatively warm in the mids to the Mason V3 which has a lighter, airier expression. The Mason V3 (copper cable) does a better job picking up stage depth and horns are more delicately rendered. Stage height is also taller on the Mason V3. Cello plucks and bass plucks are rendered better on the Octa with more weight and texture. These plucks are probably in the same frequency range as drums, which still have better resolution on the Octa with a more realistic timbre. With the copper cable, the Mason V3 doesn’t pick out individual vocalists as well as the Octa. With the silver cable, the sound has a bit more air to it on the Mason V3 and also a bit more ability to pick out individual vocal elements and small groups of vocalists. Strings have a bit more warmth on the Octa, with lower strings having a bit of accentuation. The tonal balance gives a nice natural feel to the instruments, though it would probably be a touch more neutral without the little bit of lower mids emphasis that lends warmth to the sound. I think a lot of people are going to like the combination of slightly north of neutral bass with good sub-bass extension, and the sublime texture and speed that the electrostatic tweeters give to the treble and mids.



The Octa are delightful. While they give up some air and tightness of resolution to the Mason V3, they hold up on speed, are better on drum hits and on resolving individual vocals, and have wonderful timbre. The Mason V3 has less distortion and a little more technical accuracy, but the Octa are more emotive. These are surprisingly well-matched at an $1100 difference (Mason V3 more expensive).

Specifications
WAVAYA have provided a frequency response chart, so I’ll provide that here.





Conclusions
The WAVAYA Octa has absolutely dreamy performance at $1590. As far as I know, the Octa was the first IEM to have an electrostatic quad tweeter setup, and I have to say, the kind of refinement that the quad tweeter gives to the sound is remarkable. Basically from the lower mids to the upper treble instruments just sound deliciously realistic. The bass has good texture, but it is a balanced armature set-up in the bass, so don’t expect that it will rumble you to your core like a dynamic driver can. From a comfort perspective, the harder porcelain material takes some getting used to, and still feels more present than an acrylic, but at the same time doesn’t cause the same amount of sweating or wax build-up, so it is a trade-off. I’m used to it, but it isn’t as comfortable as my best fitting acrylics—might be different for others. My ears are sensitive. The accessories that come with this are exceptional. The Linum SuperBaX is a fantastically comfortable and excellent sounding cable, the leather box securely holds the IEMs and looks classy. Overall, this is an exceptional bargain at $1590. WAVAYA has hit a grand salami here, My Oh My (still a Seattle Mariners fan).



Rating Disclaimer: ratings are subjective. Audio quality and value do not mean the same thing across all prices. A headphone with a 5 rating on audio at $5 does not have equivalent sound quality as a 5 rating at $500. Likewise, value at $5 is not the same as value at $5000 dollars.

 

Acknowledgment   

It’s always a privilege to check out new gear in exchange for your honest opinion. Thanks, iFi, for letting me in on this particular party. I’ve been borrowing this unit as part of the worldwide iFi tour.
 

Introduction

This is my fifth review of a piece of iFi gear. I’ve previously reviewed the Micro iUSB3.0 (own it), the Micro iDAC2, and the iPurifier2 (extreme value for money and good performance)(links are to the reviews), and have a pending review of the Micro iCAN SE (link to the iCAN SE thread). I’ve also had brief listens to the Micro iDSD and the Micro iCAN, so I feel like I’ve got a good idea of what iFi has to offer now, and it’s generally good, though few products have reached anywhere near the wow factor of the first product I reviewed, the Micro iUSB3.0. The iDSD BL just may reach for that summit.
 
I’ve experienced a good working relationship with iFi and every item I’ve reviewed for them has been worth at least four stars. They make excellent products with extreme capabilities, and the newly upgraded and optimized version of the the Micro iDSD is no different. It packs a lot of power in a portable package, has a big battery, was developed with the community, and has an extremely capable DAC that plays every format worth delving into and some that are probably just wastes of space—I can’t tell the difference between DSD128 and DSD256 and PCM352, I’m pretty sure that I won’t hear anything different with DSD512—but good on iFi for being ironclad ‘buzzword’ proof. It’s a philosophy that I think Jason Stoddard of Schiit would probably smirk a little at. I won’t smirk. I actually do have a lot of respect for letting people play whatever music they want and doing your best to make it sound as good as you can even if you know that they are fools hearing placebo effects or just anything they think they want to hear. I think iFi’s dedication to serving their customers desires, within reason, is very enviable. I appreciate the amazing Schiit—the Yggdrasil is still one of my favourite DACs and I am eager to hear the Jotunheim—being turned out by that California powerhouse of affordable audio, but I’d really like to be able to play my DSD without using the sub-optimal Loki. A DAC named after the trickster god shouldn’t do one trick and only in limited fashion—it didn’t even play DSD128.
 
The iFi Micro iDSD Black Label isn’t trying to do one thing and do it well. It is trying to be a veritable Swiss army knife of audio goodness that is small enough to carry in similar fashion to perhaps the world’s most famous multi-tool—I got my whittling badge in Cub Scouts with a Victorinox knife. I doubt the iDSD BE will ever reach that level of fame, but I imagine I’ll have a lot more uses for it now that I’m not living in the deep woodlands of Alaska and not earning any further whittling honoraria.
 
Let’s see what this baby has going for us. But first, here is a mea culpa and description of my predilections. It takes a confident person, or maybe a fool—I resemble both—to buy shoes from a brand that they’ve never tried on. Reading a review without knowing anything about the reviewer is a similar thing, so there’s some pertinent information about me below the fold.
 

 
My brother used to have a Mohawk but not like Mr. T’s awesome Mohican. It was actually a Mo-mullet. It was probably the worst haircut I’ve ever seen. Shaved on the sides, short on top, long in back. Totally unique, in totally the wrong way. My brother the unicorn.
 

 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

Of all the manufacturers I’ve dealt with, and there are a few, iFi is the only one that makes what they are doing sound like witchcraft. Stealth technology, tube state, noise cancelling power USB coax etc… I don’t know how they do it, and don’t pretend to, but my lack of understanding won’t make me turn all Luddite and start bashing gears. I don’t need to understand it to enjoy it.
 

 
 
Here’s the brief version of everything that iFi had to say in the iDSD thread about the newest member of the iFi family:
 

In short, iFi Audio Micro iDSD Black Label has:
 

1. re-designed output stabilisation
2. OV2627 op-amps upgraded analogue section
3. Panasonic OSCON capacitors loaded power supply
4. OV2028 op-amps loaded DAC power supply
5. DAC voltage decoupling based on audio-grade ECPU film capacitors
6. GMT® Femto precision clock system power supply upgraded

 
In short, iFi Audio Micro iDSD Black Label is:
 

1. a tweaked to the roof original Micro iDSD
2. a satin black version (with silk orange writings) of original Micro iDSD
3. sonically much better version of original Micro iDSD
4. loaded with latest 3D+® and XBass+® tech, superior over ones in original Micro iDSD
5. 10% higher price of $549 (ex-tax) / Euro599 (incl VAT)
6. superior to original Micro iDSD

Click to expand...

 
 
It also has special Operationsverstärker, which is Operational Amplifier auf Deutsch. They use the cool copper-lead frames pictured below.
 

 
 
It is also worth noting some of the features passed on through its iDSD lineage:

1. Dual Burr-Brown DAC chips developed by Burr-Brown Japan before the TI acquisition, custom tweaked to play all the way up to unicorn formats: OctaDSD (512DSD—there aren’t even any recordings that I know of) to PCM768 (I don’t know if recordings exist for this standard)
2. 3 output modes: eco, normal and turbo and the iEMatch feature allowing headphones from ultra-sensitive custom in-ear flagships to insensitive masses of metallic HiFiMan HE-6 glory
3. Intelligent In/Out SPDIF Digital Optical/coax allows using the iDSD BL to feed your Sonos, or plugging in your DAP when you feel the need to make up for it’s inadequacies
4. Battery power for loads of time, with smart charging for your devices when you aren’t blasting your aural cavities with wonders, delights, and delectable morsels of audio fayre (iFi advertise 6-12 hours battery playback, depending on how hungry your headphones are)

 
If you want more text about this new-fangled contraption, check out the iFi website.
 
 

Form & Function

 
Those who’ve seen any iFi gear from the Nano or Micro series will know that they all come in the same size box. Whilst this is true, the iFi iDSD BL comes with more in its box than any of the other’s I’ve opened. Here are the full contents:

1. Micro iDSD BL
2. 1 metre USB 3.0A female to USB3.0A male cable
3. USB 2.0A female to USB 2.0B female cable (for using whatever USB cable you like without straining the USB jack)
4. USB 2.0A female to USB 2.0B female short adaptor (for using whatever USB cable you like)
5. iFi’s standard purple RCA cables
6. Heavy duty rubber bands for stacking your source on top of the iDSD BL
7. 6.3mm to 3.5mm convertor
8. Short 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable
9. Mini Toslink to Toslink adaptor
10. 4 iFi branded silicone feet (that’s a step up from my Micro iUSB3.0)
11. A silicone sheet—is this for putting under or on top? I couldn’t tell, but it should provide some cushion
12. A velvet bag for transport

 
That’s a lot of stuff in the box. Strangely, they didn’t include a standard USB OTG cable. That seemed really strange to me. For a device that is going to be used with a lot of people’s cell phones, that should be included. We get two USB2.0A female to USB2.0B female adapters.
 
absolutely bass
head round bashing
up down vertical
crack guitar--sparkle
 
Those who like Ace will understand. Must not sleep, must tell others. Those poor lines above are mine, not Aesop Rock, so direct your hate mail at me for the bad attempt at rap. Ace rocks the lyrics better below.
 

 
I can also confirm that if you are going to connect your phone in this way as your primary way of using your Micro iDSD Black Label, you’ll want to flash the Limoncello 5.2B firmware. Twenty minutes hooked up to the iDSD BL took my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 from 100% to 81% battery.
 
 
The Micro iDSD BL has the same form factor as the whole micro series, but has traded out the straight aluminum (aluminium for some folks) sheath for a stark matte black scabbard with orange accent lettering. I was a bit worried that the orange lettering would look garish and never allow me to escape the conquest of Jack-o-lantern images in my head. Luckily for me, and all those thinking of buying this little beast, the orange is very well executed and the black looks amazing. It looks like I’ve got a miniature panther sitting atop my other audio gear, but there are no eyes to see on this in the dark, nothing to let you know that your ears aren’t about to be bombarded with bliss. It’s a stealthy joy cannon.
 
The switches are well labelled, as is the headphone jack, 3.5mm input, and all inputs and outputs, but lordy the volume knob could use an orange dot to know not to blast my ears too badly. This thing can throw out a lot of wattage, so a little warning would be good. As is, there is just a barely visible black line to let you know what volume you are at. The line is cut into the knob, so you can feel the volume before you hear it at least.
 
Similarly, if you want to read anything on the bottom of the iDSD BL, good luck with that. The writing is dark grey on a black background. Not the most clear choice of text. The good news is once you know what you are doing, and through using the user manual, the text on the bottom is made irrelevant.
There are lots of features on the iDSD BL. I’ll take these features one by one.
 

1. Power mode: the iDSD BL, like it’s predecessor has three power modes, it’s like gain but each step doubles the wattage to the headphones. Turbo delivers 4W, while normal delivers 1w, and Eco delivers 250mW into 16 Ohms. My personal preferences with the HD600 were was normal at about 2 o’clock. With the Noble Kaiser 10 Encore (K10E), I liked Eco mode at about noon. I liked the Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (UERR) best in Normal with volume at about 11 o’clock.
2. iEMatch: the Noble K10E is pretty sensitive and has pretty much never needed much of anything to drive it on anything that I’ve drove it out of, but it didn’t need iEMatch. I don’t have any more sensitive IEMs on hand. One advantage of IEM match with the Noble K10E was more sensitive volume control. When I turned to high sensitivity my volume adjustment became finer. I tried the UERR in High Sensitivity, but had to put the power level into Turbo, which comes with some noise floor consequences, so negates some of the benefit. I preferred the UERR with iEMatch Off and power set to Normal. With the Noble K10E, I tried Eco and High Sensitivity, but found that I preferred Eco with Normal, as I perceived a slightly larger soundstage.
3. XBass: gives a small dB boost to lower frequencies without touching the mids. It’s a really nicely executed effect that worked well with the HD600 and the UERR (especially with the UERR).
4. 3D: I was previously a fan of this on the iCAN SE, but the iCAN SE amp was not as good sounding as the iDSD BL, from memory, and I find the change on this iDSD BL is not as subtle as the XBass effect. It does give a bit more air, but it also pushes some instruments forward (cymbals particularly), which will be pleasing to some but sounded a bit unnatural to me. I like an organic neutral signature most of the time, without any particular sections of the frequency range sounding too far forward. The 3D switch goes a little too forward and v-shaped for my tastes. That’s OK, though, as it is designed for variation, the standard is soooooo good, I generally don’t even touch the switches (maybe the XBass from time to time, depending on my mood and my material). 3D is awesome with the Meze 99 Classics.
5. Filter: there are three filter settings—standard (not for DSD or DXD), Minumum Phase, and Bit Perfect. I tested these out with the Rebecca Pigeon – Spanish Harlem, and noted that the sound got warmer and less sharp as I dropped down the ladder from Bit Perfect to Standard. The differences were very subtle. With DSD256 (Trondheim Solistene – Frank Bridge Variations 4. Romance, from 2L recordings), I noticed increased volume as I went down the ladder. With DXD (Hoff Ensemble - Bøhren/Åserud: Blågutten) I didn’t notice differences—it all sounds wonderful.
6. Native everything. Cookie Marenco over at Blue Coast has previously emphasized that the less conversion that happens, the better; this is why they say recordings that they receive in PCM192 sound best in PCM192, not DSD. This plays native DSD to OctaDSD (512) and DXD to double DXD (768mHz), and all the other PCM you can eat. If you need DoP it’s there, but trust me, you don’t need it.

 
In other good news, I powered the HD600 for at least 13 hours on battery power, so the battery has plenty of guts. The reason I say at least 13 hours is I fell asleep and it was off when I woke up. I was doing the battery test passively, as 13 hours is a long time to be in one place. I fell asleep after watching the Seahawks dismantle the Panthers—that game ended at 5 AM here, I was le tired.
 

Audio quality

With no switches engaged the iFi iDSD Black Label is dead to rights neutral. It lets the headphone do the singing. This is very similar to the LH Labs GO2A Infinity I just recently picked up. These two DAC/Amps share quite a bit in common, actually. Both are made out of aluminum, both have multiple gain settings, both output 4V_RMS at 16 Ohms, both are freaking excellent neutral DACs. The GO2A Infinity, for all its qualities, can’t play DSD256 or higher, uses DoP exclusively, doesn’t have a battery up in it (GO V2+ for that), doesn’t have the sheer headphone matchability, and doesn’t have digital or analogue outputs outside of headphone outs—of which it has a 3.5mm TRRS balanced and a standard 3.5mm jack. Also, the GO2A doesn’t have the magic switches found on the front of the Micro iDSD Black Label.
 
Let’s talk about those switches. I first threw the iDSD on with another item I’m reviewing, the 1MORE MK802 using the optional 3.5mm cable (it’s a Bluetooth headphone). I tossed some white noise on to see if I could hear the shaping effects of the switches. When I flipped the 3D switch the pitch of the white noise became higher. It was a very noticeable change. I then flipped off the 3D switch and flipped on the XBass switch expecting a similar lowering of pitch. I couldn’t hear the difference with white noise. However, when I threw on the new Chesky 30^th Anniversary Collection, the bass switch was subtle, but noticeable, and more so when I switched to the HD600. From what I can tell the XBass gives a subtle subbass boost that is just big enough to make bass notes more full and drum strikes have more palpable impact and air in the strike. XBass can lend bass guitar and stand-up bass some really nice grunt, too. The 3D effect is accomplished through a treble boost. Neither boost messes with the midrange frequencies, which is really nice. The boosts are subtle modifications that allow you to give more fulfilling bass on a slightly bass light headphone like the HD600 or give a little more perceived soundstage on a treble limited headphone. Also, if you have a neutral phone and want it to sound more vibrant you can flip the switches. If you want to paint in technicolour shades in a landscape in your audio dreams without losing the central image and symbolic language, these switches let you do that.
 

 
In several words the iDSD Black Label is: clear, neutral, powerful, and flexible. I tried the iDSD Black Label with the HD600 (Normal, iEMatch Off), the Noble Kaiser 10 Encore (Eco, iEMatch Off, soft hiss on Normal), the UERR (Normal, iEMatch Off), and the Meze 99 Classics (Eco, iEMatch Off, hiss on Normal) it delivered all courses deliciously. When I craved a bit more bass from the HD600, the XBass took care of that; and when I wanted to balance out the signature of the Meze 99 Classics to make them clearer, I switched on 3D effect; but generally I found I liked the iDSD BL vanilla. It delivers such perfect neutrality. I think that the Meze 99 Classics really benefit from the 3D switch. The sound of them improves so much more to my liking—after listening to them with 3D on, I don’t think they’ll ever sound quite as good on other sources. The 3D switch balances out the extra bass groove that the Meze’s have. They don’t tighten that bass, but they put it into relief by sharpening the upper-mids and treble registers. I found that the 99 Classics don’t have sharp treble—I don’t get where that has been coming from; but do have boosted bass and mids. The signature is much more balanced with 3D engaged. One thing I did like with 3D was boosting the treble helped make some muddier tracks sound a bit more crisp, which to me was better than boosting soundstage. I totally dug the increase in perceived resolution. Duller tracks had their camping spork audio tranformed into restored functional blades, but not into Japanese steak knives.
 
 
 
My primary listening for the review was Bob Dylan – Highway 61 Revisited in 24/96. The album is excellent and excellent sounding. You really understand why Bob Dylan just recently won the Nobel Prize for literature—his words are poetry that moved the world and shaped music in his heyday and will continue shaping music long into the future. I used this to generate my initial impressions above and gauge the capabilities of the device.
 

Comparisons

For comparative listening I expanded out a bit:

1. Dragonforce – The Fire Still Burns; Heartbreak Armageddon (speed, air)
2. Damien Rice – Animals Were Gone (just for the heartbreak)
3. Animals as Leaders – Ka$cade (speed, resolution)
4. Marvin Gaye – What’s Going On (resolution, male vocals)
5. Why – Strawberries (bass, stage)
6. Michael Jackson – Billie Jean [vinyl rip] (stage, imaging, resolution)
7. Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra – Sibelius: 5^th Symphony, Allegro molto [DSD64] (scale, imaging)
8. Mariinsky Orchestra, Valery Gergiev  – Tchaikovsky: 1812 Festival Overture
9. Amber Rubarth – Sessions from the 17^th Ward
10. And others…

 
Before I do some comparisons, here is the relevant info about my set-up(s).
 
Dell Vostro → LH Labs Lightspeed 2 (split power and data) USB cable → iFi Micro iUSB3.0 →

1. Stock iDSD BL USB3.0 cable → iDSD BL
2. Stock iDSD BL USB3.0 cable → iDSD BL → Airist Audio Heron 5
3. LH Labs Lightspeed 2 (split power and data) USB cable → LH Labs GO2A Infinity

 
iBasso DX50 → stock 3.5mm to coaxial cable → iDSD BL
 
 
 
 
When comparing the iDSD to the Airist Audio Heron 5, the Heron 5 has more grunt and soar across the whole spectrum, clearer holographic mids, and a bit bigger stage (all dimensions), but both are truly excellent sounding. The Heron 5 costs $750 (on Massdrop when it comes up, $1000 direct from Airist Audio). The Micro iDSD BL costs $550. The caveat here is that when I reviewed the iCAN SE, I didn’t find the iCAN SE to do as well with power hungry cans as the Heron 5. For this review, I don’t have any of those top-tier cans on hand. With the HD600 the Heron 5 is better, but it isn’t as decisive a victory as the comparison with the iCAN SE. There are a lot of ways that the iDSD BL is better: you can use it with high sensitivity low resistance IEMs, it has an excellent DAC implementation, you can throw it in your backpack, the iDSD BL has excellent distribution networks, and the customer service of iFi is absolutely stellar. Overall the Micro iDSD BL is a way better value than the Heron 5. In this comparison the Airist Audio Heron 5 was also being fed by the Micro iDSD BL, so the incremental cost of the improved performance is really $750 or more, because the iDSD BL is responsible for some of the sound quality I’m hearing out of the Heron 5.
 
When comparing to the Light Harmonic Labs GO2A Infinity in balanced, with volume matching, the two amps were nearly indistinguishable when playing at the same power output. The GO2A (1000 mW) setting is exactly the same 4V_RMS into 16 Ohm output as the Micro iDSD BL. The GO2A was a little smoother, with the iDSD having a bit tighter contours and more well defined edges. The GO2A Infinity and the iDSD BL both have good power and good matchability. The GO2A Infinity has three levels, 100mW, 450mW, and 1000mW into 16 Ohms. Potentially, the iDSD BL has more matchability than this with the various iEMatch settings. Both amps have about the same soundstage. The GO2A Infinity is tiny, but won’t have a chance in Hades of driving an HE-6 or AKG-K1000. The GO2A Infinity will do fine on most headphones on the market, and performs very well with my HD600 and the Noble Kaiser 10 Encore. For value, the GO2A Infinity is currently $349 (not including shipping/taxes/etc…, distributor network is poor), and the iDSD BL is available all over the place for $549 (£455, €599—dang, what happened to the Euro?). Another place that iFi wins is customer service. iFi are just better staffed and more responsive. They also have had a better business plan to date and a lot better relationship with the community—needless to say.
 
As expected the iDSD BL sounds great when fed by the coaxial source. Amber Rubarth covering Tom Waits’ ‘Hold On’ is still one of my favourite acoustic tracks. Sessions From the 17^th Ward should be in everybody’s collection. I don’t care if all you listen to is mainstream pop, metal and EDM, if you can’t feel this music and can’t get into the stellar musicianship, I just don’t know what to say.
 

Conclusions

Go get one. What the heck are you waiting for? There isn’t a so easily transportable DAC/Amp combo out there with the technical capabilities of the iDSD Black Label. It has a crisp, transparent, neutral presentation. It can power headphones from the most delicate flower sensitive custom IEMs all the way up to the man eating Bengal tigers of audiophilia: the HE-6 and other rare beasts. Beyond having power and finesse, it also plays any kind of music you throw at it natively—no signal degrading conversion. If you needed some dessert with this 15 course dinner, the XBass and 3D effect switches give it to you. Have all the pudding you like, I promise the enhanced treble and bass won’t screw up your appetite. It's a worthy $549 contender for your audio money.

Acknowledgment    

Thanks @ejong7 for organising this tour, you are a gentleman and a scholar. Also thanks go out to the mysterious unnamed provider of the ERIB-2A. Mysterious benefactor, you redefined Easter for me. I’m not religious, but these headphones make me want to be a little blasphemous—altars built in high places only to be struck down by some highfalutin prophet and all that old-religion jazz.

 

Introduction

“Drip drip drop there goes an eargasm.”
-Big Boi
 
Why!? For the love of God, WHY!? Why did I have to hear these aluminum ear-boxes of absolute bliss, when I just don’t have the money to even think about bad decisions I could make. I’m not going to mince words. These are some of the best headphones I’ve ever heard, and I think they are good value for money at their price. I respectfully disagree with a previous reviewer who said these were too expensive, they absolutely are not. I think these are well worth £549 ($775) (the price at the time of the review). The rest of this review will be about telling you why my wife probably thought I was emotionally cheating on her for the week I had these.
 
First, I’ll tell you a bit about me, below the fold. If you think I’m not a biased reviewer, I’ve got a bridge to sell you, even if you’re from Arizona and have already bought a famous bridge. Read below the fold if you like, or swallow the blue pill and continue on in naïve ignorance.
 

 

 

oBravo does things a little different

To my knowledge, there isn’t another headphone manufacturer that is making headphones like oBravo’s line-up. They have a line of IEMs that pair a planar magnetic tweeter and a dynamic driver, the ERIBs, of which the ERIB-2A is one. Their IEMs come with choices of material for differently tuned sound, aluminum for crystalline clarity and balance, wood for warmth, ceramic for delicate detail. oBravo has a further technology that is unique to them in headphones, air motion transformer tweeters. They use this technology in their EAMT line of IEMs, and in their HAMT line of full-size headphones. I can’t wait to hear this technology next time they visit a show I’m at. All of oBravo’s lineup have a clean metallic industrial design, but all work in notes of wood to provide some organic flavour and warmth to their image. I’m a fan.
 
If you’d like to know more about these upstarts from Taiwan, check out oBravo’s website for some hot pics and information.

 

Vital Statistics (what the manufacturer says about their gear)

Almost every headphone comes with some summary measurements about the piece of kit you’ve just thrown your coin on the table and bought, and many of them aren’t relatively true. I’ll leave that judgment up to you. I found that the ERIB-2A lived up to it’s measurements, to my ear, at least. I’m also inclined to believe the frequency response is being conservative. They have another headphone that they list as having response to only 28Hz.
 
From custom-cable.co.uk, my local seller of oBravo goodies

• The world first Coaxial two-way IEM design by an implementation of Planar tweeter and NDD to deliver a rich sound stage listening experience.
• World class Comply ear tips implementation for balanced sound stage.
• A Wooden ear cup designed model - (erib-2w), and a Precision Ceramic ear cup designed model - (erib-2c) to provide a choice for different sound styles.
• Easy way to enjoy a ultimate sound from a balanced output by an optional 2.5mm Balanced cable.

 
Specification:

1. Frequency Response: 20Hz~35KHz
2. Tweeter: 8mm Planar Magnetic Tweeter
3. Dynamic Driver: 10mm Neodymium Driver
4. Impedance: 16 ohm
5. Sensibility in dB: 102dB
6. Weight: 35 g

 

Form & Function

The ERIB-2A comes in a large zippered container, like a little clutch full of foam and other things to make it look precious. It makes me think of blown plastic inserts on boardgames. They make everything seem organised, but they aren’t really fit for purpose, they are inflexible overkill that you end up tossing out to better use the space in your box. oBravo’s case is ludicrously large, and they appear to have learned their lesson with some of their other headphones (ERIB-5A comes with a logical sized pouch). The case has enough real estate to fit four sets of headphones in it. The case has enough real estate that they had to come up with new inventions to fill the ludicrous space. You’ll find in the packaging something besides the IEM that is special to oBravo, IEM tip organizers. These handy dandy little nails will hold your tips while you drop them down into specially cut foam cubby holes. I would have much rather they gave me an appropriate case to fit the IEMs with a couple sets of tips. The case is a pile of dumb. Luckily everything else about these is pretty brilliant.
 
They feel a tiny bit awkward at first, as they stick out a bit from your ear. It was emphasized on the tour that you shouldn't really jam the Comply foamies all the way into your ear, that they should be a touch loose to allow a bigger soundstage. What they say works. It doesn’t take long to get acclimated to the feel of the headphones when the sound makes you want to leave them in so much. The cable feels of sufficient quality, but I’m not a huge fan of the proprietary connector. I experienced no microphonics with the cable.
 
The ERIB-2A can be worn up or down, but I found them most comfortable down due to the big strain relief on the cables. Isolation is not great on these as they are basically an open design IEM, you can see little holes on the wood exterior of the headphones. You’ll hear all the traffic around you, but the music is so clear you still won’t care, and I live in one of the worst traffic cities in the UK. Like every other IEM I own, these didn’t anger any of my office mates when I blast some AC/DC. Win win.
 
Inside the box you’ll find:

1. The aforementioned oversized case (clutch?)
2. The coaxial headphone cable
3. The IEMs
4. Silicone ear guides for helping the IEMs stay in
5. Some silicone tips
6. Comply foamies
7. An awesome stubby 3.5mm to 6.3mm adaptor (so good I asked if I could buy just the adaptor if nothing else)

Audio quality

I took these to work with me every day for the week I had them and ignored the world as much as I could, which is normal, but I was very committed to this ideal whilst I had these. I played these at home out of the 5W Airist Audio Heron 5 amplifier, and out of the 4W iFi Micro iCAN SE, and I played this out of a cheap low power DAC/AMP, and the iBasso DX50. These didn’t sound bad on anything, but they definitely sound better on certain pairings. I compared these to my favourite headphones I have on hand, and I took them into Richer Sounds and compared them to full size cans from Oppo and Audeze. These little IEMs are top tier stuff.
 

 
My first listen on these was using the Airist Audio Heron 5 (my next in line review) with the Chord Mojo as the DAC. I loaded up Roger Waters – Amused to Death and listened to Late Home Tonight Part I, Late Home Tonight Part II and Too Much Rope. These tracks have fantastic levels of micro-detail, big soundstages with lots of pans including one of the only sky to ground vertical pans I’ve ever heard in a music track (BOOM). If you are okay with highly political prog rock, you should definitely add Amused to Death to your listening list. The headphones took a couple minutes to warm up. Once they did they had a touch of warmth to the upper mids, super clear vocals, and supremely natural guitar on Too Much Rope. The soundstage width is spectacular, the height is impressive when the bomb drops in Late Home Tonight, and the image is layered with excellent depth and space for each element of the cinematic experience. The details of the woman leaving and entering rooms of the house holding her baby whilst the TV news plays and music goes on in the street were intricately and precisely detailed—like I was following one step behind her as she went about her everyday normal human day. If I spoke Arabic, I would have understood every syllable of the broadcast and speech. I haven’t had that kind of detail on any IEM I’ve listened to this track with.  My first observation was that the sound is crisp, like a collared shirt hard-edged with starch. I think some of this may be the effect of pairing with the Mojo, as the Mojo has a very precise, sharp sound while still having smooth flow and a natural sound. I was also still burning in my brain on the sound, it sounded smoother on future listening.
 
City of the Sun (on Chesky Records/HD Tracks in binaural+), recently released an album that is spectacular. The album has several fantastic test tracks, my favourite probably being the title track, To The Sun And All The Cities In Between. When I played the ERIB-2A out of the iFi iCAN SE with the LH Labs Geek Out V2 as the source with none of the iFi iCAN SE switches engaged the sound was duller and flatter with less bass than the Heron 5 pairing. Engaging the XBass switch to one dot had the bass show up, whilst three dots made it overbearing. The 3D switch on the iCAN SE boosts treble and made the sound less flat sounding. A comparison to the HD600 revealed the ERIB-2A to be a formidable competitor. I threw on The Beats, Man – Yummmmm and micro-detail was just popping all over like amplified water droplets from a soaking rain perched on a leaf diving into a lake teaming with activity, like a popcorn popper inside your head. The music would have given Salvador Dali a rise. The ERIB-2A was more detailed than the HD600, and not subtly so. The ERIB-2A has greater soundstage height, greater soundstage width, but slightly less depth than the HD600. It has insane imaging and clarity, and jaw-dropping separation between instruments. Every instrument has its own space, every note plucked has its own place. The ERIB-2A feels like it has a touch more body, while the HD600 has a more delicate touch. The HD600 is a great reference headphone, but this in-ear is blowing it away. I’m drooling like a St. Bernard now. Roll over Beethoven, some Pasadena family will be adopting me soon. Who can resist this face?
 

 
Switching back to the Heron 5 for the comparison on City of the Sun, the bass is healthier (no boost necessary with the right amplification). The sound has an airy ethereal quality with absolutely stunning mids. Higher guitar notes are something special to hear. Transients are naturally portrayed with excellent instrument decay.
 
With the Heron 5 and the iCAN SE, I did notice some buzz during quiet sections, but whether it shows up depended on volume level listened at. I also had an interesting effect with the headphones that I think was due to the supremely high amount of current feeding them. The ERIB-2A warmed up and shocked my ears a bit. I wonder if the case is being used as a ground. I think these should probably have a bit less powerful amp hooked up to them, even though they sound absolutely amazing on the Heron 5. I also tried these with the Geek Out 1000 straight out of the high damping factor 0.47ohm jack—they lost about half the soundstage volume compared to the iCAN SE, but still sounded lovely, but a bit thicker tonally. Luckily, I found an inexpensive but brilliant source that I absolutely loved them on, my iBasso DX50.
 

 
I listened with the DX50 (on high gain) for two days and compared back and forth with the DX50 alone and DX50 feeding the iCAN SE. I preferred the DX50 alone. I didn’t do a comparison of the DX50 to the Heron 5. I think the Heron 5 probably has a bit too much impedance for these, but the buzz isn’t noticeable on every track. I listened to Led Zeppelin for a whole day—Led Zeppelin I all the way through Presence. That’s a darn fine day. The bass was a touch recessed, but tonally accurate with rich timbre. Jimmy Page’s voice had a nice edge to it, and the DX50 is churning out a soundstage as impressive as the iCAN SE.
 
At this point, we’ve identified the one minor weakness of these headphones sonically, the bass is a touch recessed. I decided to throw down with Beck – Midnight Vultures, which is a bass forward album. The bass isn’t as forward as on other headphones but is deeply satisfying. The mids are special from lower mids all the way up to the top of the mids ladder. Drums kick right and falsetto occupies the sonic aeries meant for its creepy-cool vibe. I wanna get with these, and their sister, I think her name is EAMT. Get Real Paid is a big highlight; it has sounds popping all over the stage, verticality, width, panning, falsetto, electronic blips and bloops, cool percussion, etc…. I decided to take the ERIB-2A and the DX50 to Richer Sounds to compare to some full size cans using Beck - Get Real Paid.
 
At Richer Sounds I had to wait a bit to get into the goodie case, but when I did I asked for the Oppo PM3 (£349) and the Audeze EL8 Open (£599). Both the PM3 and the EL8 are designed to be able to be driven out of an iPhone, so the comparison is fair. The ERIB-2A was better than both. The Oppo PM3, was tops on my list for work headphones as it has silky smooth liquid mids and satisfying presentation on the rest of the spectrum. The Oppo PM3 had bass that was a touch slow and loose, the treble clarity was good and the mids were as liquid as I remember them. The PM3 had some boosting in the mids and some added warmth to the signature. Comparatively, the ERIB-2A was cooler sounding, it was clearer, had a much wider and deeper soundstage, more precise instrumentation, and tighter more accurate bass (though less quantity). The EL8 was clearer than the Oppo PM3 with a more forward signature. The treble on the EL8 is less detailed than the Oppo PM3. The EL8 has less stage depth than the ERIB-2A, is a bit warmer, has a touch of grain to the sound, and a more congested presentation. The ERIB-2A also has more height in the stage and better treble definition. The ERIB-2A has less bass, but better bass than the EL8. I handed the ERIB-2A over to one of the shop employees to listen, and they confirmed my preference. They also said I can come back and let them listen to headphones I’m reviewing any time I want.
 
The ERIB-2A at £549 ($775) beats the £599 Audeze EL8 in basically every way and it is an in-ear headphone.
 
I also compared the ERIB-2A to the following: Trinity Audio Atlas (orange filter), Echobox Audio Finder X1, RHA ma750, 64Audio ADEL X2, and the Fidue A65 (watch for my review). The ERIB-2A dropped the trousers of the Trinity Audio Atlas, RHA ma750, and Fidue A65 like the class bully on the nerds at your high school. Those are all really good headphones, especially the Trinity Audio Atlas. The Echobox Audio Finder X1, and 64Audio ADEL X2 were closer to the ERIB-2A. The Finder X1 is an impressive little (emphasis because it is crazy tiny) headphone—superb detail, v-shape sound, excellent transparency, healthy but not overpowering in any frequency. The 64Audio ADEL X2 is very natural and fluid sounding, very balanced, with excellent decay and impact on bass and drums. When listening to Neil Young - Out on the Weekend (Pono 24-192) the bass chugged along beautifully with the other two guitars making good appearances and nice vocal reflections off the back of the stage giving an excellent idea of stage size. The ERIB-2A still beats both of the most competitive handily. Micro-details like string scratches on guitar and guitar placement are showcased. The bass is the fastest. The layering is the best. The resolution is the best. The harmonica is perfectly placed at the height of the vocals in a way that none of the other headphones accomplished. Listening to Queen – Loser in the End—a great track for spaciousness, crunchy guitar, wood blocks, and most of all drum impact—the 64Audio Adel X2 was more forward with good impact, but didn’t have the epic transparency, layering and instrument separation of the ERIB-2A.

 

Conclusions

These headphones are absolutely spectacular, unless you are an unrepentant bass-head or a glutton for the warm sound. I’m neither of these, so I was cursing my ill finances when I had to send these on to the next in line. I want to listen to these more. After sending them on and listening to other very good to great headphones I just find myself missing these. These headphones have spectacular resolution, speed, tonal accuracy and soundstage. I think these will beat many equal or higher priced headphones on sound, including full-size open headphones. There is only one sonic weakness on these headphones to my ears, and it is a minor weakness compared to the copious amounts of strengths these exhibit: the bass is a touch recessed. I didn’t EQ these, but in my experience low bass quantity is generally correctable with EQ. I would buy these with no regrets. These are top of the line, and £549 ($775) is not too much to pay for them.
 
If you’ve got £549 ($775) in coin and are looking for a new IEM, you should do your best to have a listen on these. You might never look for another headphone—but you will go buy another case, because the case is terrible; unless the EAMTs are as good as their reputation. Hopefully when I hear those I won’t end up divorced and compromising myself in horrible ways to afford them.
 
 

Acknowledgment   

Thanks to @Tony-Hifi  of HiFi headphones for making me review this desktop DAC/Amp as a favour. I love reviewing loaners, but it’s always sad to package and send them off afterward. It’s definitely a carpe diem kind of experience, for you know the end is nigh. Thanks, Tony, for feeding my manic/depressive cycle of celebrating audio beauty just to watch it leave me to other hands and ears. Parting is such sweet sorrow.
 
 

 

Introduction

Schnikies! I only had 9 days to review this beauteous Questyle CMA600i AND the Fidue Sirius A91—delicious masochism. Thank you, sir, may I have another! When Tony of HiFi Headphones said I could review the Sirius, I was super psyched, but he did it on a condition, I had to review the Questyle CMA 600i and I had a short window to borrow them. I felt so put out that I nearly stamped off in disgust. Not really, but reviewing two units at the same time is challenging, especially when one is a large desktop amp.
 
Whilst that type of situation may make one review feel like a ‘me too’ review, that was not at all the case with these two reviews. Both pieces of kit were brilliant, but one star from the East shone brighter.
 
I first encountered Questyle at CanJam London 2015, where they were rolling out the Questyle QP1R—a fine player deserving of all the laurels and lauds flung at it. I didn’t have a go with an HE1000 like @moedawg140. If you want to know everything there is to know about the QP1R, Moe has an Encyclopedia Questylica going up here on HeadFi. Before I arrived tired and excited after a 3 hour bus-ride from Southampton at CanJam London 2015, I had already seen pictures of Moe parading the QP1R and the HE1000 around with Gordon Ramsay and looked like an avatar of audio walking around Heathrow airport. The QP1R looks classy. Questyle makes classy stuff with current mode amplification. I don’t pretend to be a tech expert so I’ll tell you more about that from the mouths of the creators in the next section of the review.
 
Questyle, like many innovative companies, has an interesting origin story. I’ll give a taste of the origins here, but the story is worth reading on their website. I always find it inspiring to hold in my hands what is the realisation of someone’s dream, evidence of finding a calling, not a just a job, but a pathway by which they can feel fully enriched and change the world in a way best suited to their talents. From what I can tell, Wang Fengshuo, founder of Questyle audio found his calling. He started building current mode amplification while at university after an accidental discovery of current mode amplification. Whilst other students went home for the summer, he remained on campus playing and working in the lab, sifting through piles of components in search of perfect matches for his innovative prototype he was building. He finished that amplifier in the Summer of 2004, and went off to work for a big design firm after graduation. At that firm he met some like-minded folks and they built the CMA800, birthing it into the world in 2007 and revising it an astounding 22 times over the next four years before they finally realised that people really liked it and they needed to be able to sell and produce on a larger scale. In 2012, Questyle was born to bring current mode amplification to the world. Since then they’ve been rolling out products, but not getting a lot of official reviews here on HeadFi, just lots of positive impressions.
 
After making a series of purported world-beaters like the CMA800i DAC/AMP, CMA800R monoblocks, and CAS192 DAC, the CMA600i is more modest, what could be considered Questyle’s entry level desktop DAC/Amp. If this is entry level, I can’t wait to hear the top tier.
 
Whilst I set the Sirius burning in, I got some heavy pet… listening in on this gunmetal (space grey, they say) glory. I listened to the Sirius quite a bit on this after burn-in, but found that I liked it better in balanced mode out of the Geek Out V2. If I had a balanced adapter from Norne Audio on hand, I would have gone all Questyle all the time, I think. During this review a Heron swoops in, the real value of balanced output is tested, and the hard scrabble streets of Lewisham (South London) are challenged.
 
Here’s the obligatory about me. How can you trust someone’s ears if you don’t know a thing about what they like and how they hear? Hopefully my little blurb is helpful for you.
 

 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

In this section of my reviews I try to let the manufacturer’s story about their product be told. Statistics about their product’s performance are part of this story and this data is important for consumers to know. Beyond measurements, manufacturers and retailers always have something to say about their products, some of the time it’s accurate. The review sections will tell whether that is the case here.
 
As the CMA600i has a lot of components, it has a lot of stats, so prepare yourself for lots of graphs and tables. First I’ll throw down what Questyle has to say about the unit on their English website:
 

CMA600i inherits Questyle Audio flagship headphone amplifier patent Current Mode Amplification technology, adopts all discrete circuit design, working in pure class A status. Thus it can provide best sound required ultra-low distortion (0.00042%) and DC-600kHz (+0,-3dB) ultra-wide frequency. Plus the high quality sound performance, CMA600i is capable to challenge world class Hi-end headphone amplifiers.
…
 
CMA600i inherits Questyle patented True DSD converting technology. CMA600i drives [the] program directly and processes DSD source code of PC, and CMA600i hardware provides special DSD channel to process the signal strictly under SACD standard.
 
CMA600i is designed with an independent Pre-amp, following Current Mode Amplification patent technology. The Pre-amp uses independent circuit, output with RCA and XLR cable, max amplitude with 4Vrms and 8Vrms separately.
 
…
 
On manufacturing, CMA600i is made in Foxconn factory under world top standard. Chassis is made of aviation aviation aluminum, assembled in CNC “mutual bit” structure, 10mm in thickness to reduce resonance. Spikers are pure aluminum as well, specially tooled by Foxconn CNC machines. CMA600i provides space grey finishing, fashionable and also full of technology.

Click to expand...

 

 
 
 
According to Questyle, it only took three months to design (prototype?) the CMA600i, but over a year to tune it. With “5 changes to the main circuit design, over 50 different components, 10 different headphones, 5 pairs of world famous active speakers and more than 500 times sound alignment.” I hope that other manufacturers do similar things, but without being an insider I can’t know. What Questyle says sounds impressive, but it could be routine and just a normal part of the design process. Many devices take years to develop, one year and three months doesn’t sound like that long a cycle.
 
I left out some information, because Questyle likes to talk a bit. Like I said, you can tell that they are passionate about their devices and their vocation.
 
 
 
As can be seen, the Questyle CMA600i has ruler flat frequency response. That drop at the end is normal.
 
From what I know, that is about as good a THD+N graph as you are going to get out of your Audio Precision machine.
 
 
 
 

 

Form & Function

The Questyle CMA600i comes packaged with a driver disc—at the time I had this I couldn’t identify drivers online, a remote—I didn’t use it, warranty information and the unit itself. It is a sleek looking unit with excellent CNC machining. The colour is a neutral color that will go with most decors. It is solid feeling and solid looking. The ALPS potentiometer has a very solid feel and has beautiful adjustment due to being entirely in the analog range. I didn’t use the remote, but I have a similar motorized potentiometer on my Cambridge Audio azur 540A integrated amp, and it is wonderful. It’s magical watching the knob move from across the room. I didn’t put this beauty out in the living room, as my toddler is real grabby and would have smacked the crap out of it—she has no respect for other people’s expensive property. I put it in my office on top of my desk for safekeeping. She’ll have to grow another foot before she can mess with my reviewing area now. Mwa ha ha, no fun for you, baby!
 
I’ve got one quibble about the volume knob. It has an incredibly tiny black indentation for showing the volume level. I was sitting right in front of it and had trouble seeing it. I’ve got better than 20/20 vision. A little bit bigger volume indicator would be really helpful. For me it was a nuisance when volume matching components, but I got used to it over time.
 
Overall, the unit is attractive, and the build looks reassuringly bombproof. I never noted the Questyle to heat up like a bomb, so that is a point in it’s Class A amplification favour.
 
 

 

Audio quality

First, lets start out with equipment I used in this review.

1. Questyle CMA600i
2. Airist Audio Heron 5
3. iFi Micro iUSB3.0
4. LH Labs Geek Out V2
5. Custom made 4-pin XLR to 6.3mm adaptor (uber adapter with quad core litz-braided Au/Ag wire and gold plated pins on the Neutrik XLR jack with a Neutrik 6.3mm jack)
6. Supra USB 2.0 cable to iFi Micro iUSB3.0
7. 2 LH Labs 2g USB cables from the iFi iUSB3.0 to the DACs
8. Van Damme XLR cables (XKE quad microphone cable, SPOFC, £25 for a set on eBay)
9. Atlas Element Integra RCA interconnects
10. Wensa SPL meter

 
I compared the Questyle CMA600i amp to the Airist Audio Heron 5 amp, both with the Questyle CMA600i as the DAC. I tried the Airist Audio Heron 5 fed in balanced mode and in single ended mode. I compared the CMA600i with the iUSB3.0 and without it in single-ended and balanced mode. I did a volume matching experiment between single-ended and balanced headphone outputs. I volume matched my HD600 using white noise when comparing the Questyle CMA600i and Airist Audio Heron 5. I listened with the following headphones: Fidue A91 Sirius, 64 Audio X2, Echobox Audio Finder X1, oBravo EAMT-3a, Sennheiser HD600, Audeze LCD4, Ether, and Ether C. In other words, I put the CMA600i through it’s paces.
For volume matching I didn’t use a rigorous method—my setup is modest and my time is limited. I stuck headphones onto the same location on my SPL meter best I could and set white noise playing to my desired volume level on each device. The headphone used was the same for each device, so I recorded volume level locations on the volume dials so that I could quickly switch back and forth. Volume levels used during the review ranged between 78dB and 82dB. I listen a bit loud.

1. Spoiler: Here is my music list

   1. Keith Greeninger – Harder that we love (DSD128)
   2. 2Pac – God Bless the Dead
   3. Daft Punk – Giorgio by Maroder
   4. Jan Kraybill – Allegro from Symphony #6 in G Minor (24/96)
   5. Horrendous – Anareta [Album], thanks @Trogdor (@MetalFi on twitter)
   6. Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here (DSD64 SACD Rip)
   7. Smoke & Mirrors Percussion Ensemble – Udakrep Akubrad (DSD256)
   8. Michael Jackson – Billie Jean (24/96 Original USA Vinyl Rip, best sounding version of Thriller)
   9. Regina Spektor – On the Radio
   10. Pixies – Wave of Mutilation (24-88)
   11. Paul Simon - Werewolf
   12. London Symphony Orchestra – Mahler – 6^th Symphony
   13. Eagles – Hotel California (DVD-A)
   14. Pink Floyd – Time (24-96 Immersion)
    

Straight outta the box, I hooked up the Questyle CMA600i with everything plugged in on the equipment list above. The Heron 5 was hooked up using the balanced cables. After doing my volume matching I found that the Heron 5 was a touch smoother, but not quite as detailed sounding as the CMA600i.
 
The CMA has a nice soundstage, with good depth, and average to slightly above average width. It is extremely clear, with no lack of bass and no frequencies emphasized. That ruler flat frequency response isn’t lying. I found that the CMA600i had great stage definition. When listening to the live recording, Keith Greeninger – Harder That We Love, sound reflections off the edges of the room are clear and natural with a detailed presentation. When I went to reach for bass hungry tracks like 2Pac – God Bless the Dead, I left satisfied.
 
When checking differences between the balanced and single ended headphone outputs, I initially didn’t volume match. This is a big mistake. I wrote down some crap about the bass being better defined on the balanced output and the treble being smoother on single-ended. When I volume matched, these differences disappeared whilst listening to Michael Jackson – Billie Jean (18DR, woot!). I also listened to an obviously flawed but lovely track in Regina Spektor – On the Radio, and a hi-res good dynamic range version of Pixies – Wave of Mutilation. I didn’t hear a difference on either of them with volume matched playing through the HD600. Questyle lists that the SNR is the same on both the single-ended and balanced headphone outputs, which means that the primary difference will be power. The evidence from this little experiment seems to support that if everything else is the same, the difference people hear between single-ended and balanced outputs may just be a difference in listening volume.
 
The SNR is not the same between the pre-amp outputs. When I volume matched single-ended and balanced pre-amp outputs playing through the Airist Audio Heron 5, I did notice a difference, but it was subtle. Bass definition was a little tighter and body was a little fuller in balanced mode. There was a touch more air. Admittedly, not everything was controlled as I didn’t have identical XLR and RCA cables. So there are several possible explanations: cable difference is responsible for subtle difference in sound, the SNR difference was responsible, I’m just imagining things, or a combination of these. I hope I’m not just imagining things, as I really try to stay objective.
 
I tested the Questyle CMA600i with a variety of headphones IEMs on the single ended outputs. I didn’t experience hiss with any of the four IEMs I tested: Fidue A91 Sirius, 64 Audio X2, Echobox Audio Finder X1, oBravo EAMT-3a. All the headphones sounded lovely out of the CMA600i.
 
After I finished my time with the CMA600i, I had to ship it back from at the end of a train journey from London due to a mix-up at my local DPD drop-off point. I can tell you that you don’t want to carry the CMA600i around the London Underground. It’s heavy on to carry that far. After finally getting it shipped back, I ended up listening to it again. I was in London for a Statistics course, but had time afterwards to pay a visit by Custom Cable in New Malden (London’s version of Korean Town). It turns out that Custom Cable is who sells the CMA600i in England. I listened to the CMA600i with the Ether, Ether C, EAMT-3A, and Audeze LCD-4 out of the CMA600i. They all sounded beautiful except the Audeze LCD-4. I thought it sounded terrible. Maybe the Audeze has some specific amping requirements, but it sounded extremely dark with a slow, muddy bass signature, and recessed treble. It sounded like what you find in the hole in the ground behind Door #2. Wearing that behemoth was about as comfortable as sitting on the throne of #2. I should know, our outhouse in Alaska was so cold that we took off the toilet seat in winter, too much risk of frostbite.
 
 
I’ll have to try the LCD-4 again in the future, but it didn’t play well with the CMA600i, and my observance with the CMA600i is that it was neutral to a fault and mostly just got out of the way of headphones allowing them to reveal their own personality. That is exactly what I want in a headphone amplifier. It is possible that the LCD-4 needs more power than what the CMA600i provides, so I’ll be giving the LCD-4 another listen at CanJam London 2016. I've got no firm conclusions on it now, but I wasn't impressed with this pairing.
 
 
I did some comparisons between the CMA600i and the Airist Audio Heron 5 using the balanced out and single ended output from the CMA600i. I found that the differences between the two sounds was small. The Heron 5 had a bit firmer bass, and overall presentation was a bit smoother, with a little bit less detailed sound. I think both headphone amps allow the music and attached headphones to do speak for themselves rather than imposing a signature on the sound, which is a very good thing.
 

 

Conclusions

The Questyle CMA600i is a excellent unit at an excellent price. For the price of admission you get an incredibly transparent amp that had no trouble driving headphones to loud volumes, you get an extremely clean pre-amp with both balanced and single ended outputs. If you have a pair of active speakers with balanced inputs, the balanced outputs on these will have them absolutely singing and make for a very affordable set-up. I found that the headphone amp within the CMA600i was about as amazeballs sounding as my Airist Audio Heron 5 with the HD600, with maybe a slight edge going to the Heron 5. The difference could potentially be explained by the cleaner SNR of the balanced output in comparison to the balanced headphone out on the CMA600i.
 
I have absolutely no problems recommending this DAC/headphone amp/pre-amp. Any audiophile looking for a desktop DAC/Amp for around £900 ($1200) should put the CMA600i on top of their listening list. It is an extremely good value proposition.

Acknowledgment   

Thanks Airist Audio for organizing this tour and producing this brilliant amp. I was the last stop on the tour and bought this amp directly from Airist Audio (without sending it back) with a small discount.

Introduction

First, I’ll tell you a bit about me, below the fold. Every reviewer is biased, but we all have different flavours of bias. I think my flavour is maple walnut, cause I’m the sweet mildly complex stuff with a bit of crunch and overall neutral visual tone that is an ironic reward for a trip to the dentist in the winter cold of Fairbanks, Alaska (my home town). Like dentists, audio gear is pricey, and the good ones don’t charge that much different than the bad ones. It doesn’t matter if it’s cold outside give me that creamy smooth frozen yummm—Hot Licks, RIP. Frozen eyelashes and blue lips build character.
 

 

 

Airist Audio: aiming for the stars and quicker student loan debt relief?

Airist Audio is a New York startup founded by a small group of audiophile tech nerds with a passion for audio. These 5 baby-faced entrepreneurs have some serious school credibility, these kids are either done with or doing degrees at Columbia, Harvard, MIT, etc…. If these kids are anything like me, their student loan debt would make most of the bourgeoisie blush. That’s the American education system for you—I saved money by getting a degree in England. I hope this audacious endeavour pays off some of those debts. Go get ‘em kids. Look at those faces. So much courage!
 
 
 
 
 
If you’d like to know more about this start-up from New York, check out Airist Audio’s website for some hot pics and information. They don’t skimp on catwalk worthy New York style (I'm so sorry, I had to do it).
 
 

 

Vital Statistics (what the manufacturer says about their gear)

Audio gear comes with fancy charts and marketing descriptions. Here are some from Airist Audio. The main selling points that Airist Audio puts forth are a completely flat frequency response accomplished with a completely accurate phase response. They also boast of ridiculous resolution, silence, and lack of distortion. The proof is in the pudding. This amp is neutral, silent (with right impedance headphones), and instrument placement is special. To the charts and graphs!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Yep, that tape measure isn’t drooping at all. Ruler flat on frequency response. Looking below, we see something I’ve never seen and can’t really judge without having sufficient math or engineering expertise, a flat phase response across all frequencies. From the explanation on the website, this means that instruments are in the exact place they should be without bleeding into other instruments. I can confirm this, and its gorgeous.
 
 
 
 
 
Courteously, Airist Audio provided lots of numbers. Here are the rest of the numbers Airist Audio has provided:
 
 
The noise floor and SNR really stand out when listening.
Other features listed in the owner’s manual include the following:

1. 100% discrete power supply and amplification circuits
2. Minimum phase amplification with bandwidth from DC to 30Mhz
3. Active power regulation synchronized with the amplification circuit
4. No coupling capacitors or DC servo in the signal path
5. OCC pure silver wiring in the signal path
6. Highest grade toroidal transformer with a laser inscribed carbon steel core and American-made winding wires
7. Power transformer with overhead capacity rated at 5x power consumption
8. Class A output power with an internal chassis design that keeps the Heron 5 warm, not hot to the touch (without ventilation holes  on the top—winning!)
9. Soft start circuit protects your headphones from equipment destroying start-up peaks
10. Elite grade Mundorf capacitors in the main power supply

 

Form & Function

The Heron 5 is a big hunk of aluminum that has reassuring heft whilst maintaining lean lines and a serious stately stature. The amp has no visible screws and keeps the facia simple. It features a delicate curvature to the top and bottom of the facia, the Airist Audio insignia (like two birds flying in concert), a simple small power button, two headphone jacks marked high and low (more on that later), and a big stepped attenuator volume knob with a red LED line drawn in a black circle signalling the benthic depths of the joy pumping into your cranium. The Kraken, Leviathan, and Dandân battle in the depths here.
 
The back of the unit has has the IEC port, a pair of balanced inputs and a pair of RCA inputs. You can flick a switch to choose which you’ll be listening through. My balanced source died before I could get a chance to listen in balanced mode, so all my listening in this review was done in single-ended mode, which is fine, as the internals are single ended.
 
The front headphone jacks are somewhat confusingly labelled. The ‘High’ jack is intended for lower impedance headphones (Airist Audio says for better impedance matching), whilst the ‘Low’ jack is for high impedance headphones. I found that basically everything sounded clearer on the low jack (high damping factor) but it was also more prone to buzz, the high jack adds a bit of body to headphones and is slightly less prone to buzz. I don’t think either of these jacks are truly low impedance and Airist Audio doesn’t tell us any output impedance statistics. If I had to wager, I’d guess the low jack has an impedance of around 5. The reason for this being that my venerable RE0 iems (64 ohm impedance) had no buzz at all out of the Heron 5. Actually they sounded pretty darn great.
 
Inside the box are the unit, a manual, and a USA plug IEC cable. The manual is informative, with good diagrams, details about features, startup instructions, dos and don’ts for using the Heron 5 and a short FAQ. I would have liked if I could lay the manual flat—I had to type most of the above bullet points one-handed because the binding is too tight. The included power cable appears to be well made, but I didn’t use it during the review as I have a shielded IEC cable that has a UK plug. Airist should be making plugs for the region the amp is being sent to, not telling people to use an adaptor. This is something to fix in the future. I don’t have much confidence that my available adaptors will provide enough quality to the power lead.
 

 

Audio quality

In one word: spectacular. I used this with a number of pieces of excellent gear in the test-bed. Here are the constant parts:
 
Acer Revo RL70 mediaPC to LH Labs Lightspeed 2G USB Cable to iFi iUSB3.0
 
The LH Labs Lightspeed 2G cable adds definition to the upper end, blackens the background a bit and opens up the soundstage a bit. The iFi iUSB3.0 makes the background even blacker and increases soundstage in all dimensions whilst giving notes a rounder more natural attack and decay (review of iUSB3.0 here).
 
Other elements that were used include Atlas Element Integra interconnects, a LH Labs Lightspeed Micro USB, a custom made Van Damme 3.5mm to RCA cable, the Chord Mojo, the LH Labs Pulse X-Infinity, LH Labs Geek Out V2, and a pantheon of headphones. The mountaintop vista included such headphones as the Sennheiser HD600, Sennheiser HD800, HiFiMan HE6, AKG K1000, oBravo ERIB-2a, HiFiMan RE0, and Echobox Finder X1. I won’t list impressions with all of those headphones, but will attest that there was some buzz with the Echobox Finder X1 and the ERIB-2a (dependent on track and volume), but no buzz with the RE0.
 
The first setup I listened to was the X-Infinity feeding the Heron 5 with the Atlas Element Integra interconnects, a 2^nd Lightspeed 2G USB cable from the iUSB3.0 to the DAC, and the HD600 as the headphone. I nearly cried. I’ve never heard the HD600 sing like it does with the Heron 5. I listened to City of the Sun – to the sun and all the cities in between, and to Keith Greeninger & Alex deGrassi’s  Live at the Fenix (from Blue Coast music). City of the Sun is binaural and very immersive especially with the Heron 5. I was getting sound like a speaker presentation. Live at the Fenix has the best recording of a live acoustic environment that I’ve ever heard. The purchase of the set in advance for Live at the Fenix was the best audio decision I’ve made so far this year (all formats including DSD256 for $25). Listening to the album with the HD600 fed by the Heron 5 was like sitting in the front row of the concert venue next to the very California lady telling Keith Greeninger when he’s done a ‘nice job’ just to your left.
 

 
My X-Infinity packed it in the next day (RMA in process—I’m sad), so I listened with the GO V2 with all other elements the same (adaptor to use the interconnects was a cheapie ebay number, but works). The GO V2 doesn’t have as much stage or as much precision as the X-Infinity, but it still pairs wonderfully with the Heron 5. The HD600 continued to sing, but not like any long-necked marsh bird you ever heard. The Heron should be the Blackbird 5. There are few things as pretty as a blackbird’s song sweetly sung while the sun is just awakening dusky eyed from its nightly slumber. With 9bach – Llwynog in 24-96 the background is completely black, silent. The soundstage has exceptional depth and height. Instruments are coherently arranged with articulate interplay in a well-defined sonic space—percussion instruments hang in the air and echo in the soul. The bass grooving throughout the track has excellent weight and tonality. Notes are well-rounded, but with excellent precision. I can find no flaw in the transient representation. The sound is clean, yet musical. There is no white coat sterility here. The sound is like a buxom renaissance nude with a coy smile that grows ever more suggestive and more vivid in your mind with more time spent with her. The canvas of the tune is alive with sonic brush-strokes.
 
Turning to Fleetwood Mac – Never Going Back Again (a track I like for the acoustic presentation) reveals no new insights, but provides a pleasurable listen to the articulate guitar with organic attack and decay.
 
There are moments when the Heron 5 tells you the truth about your music, and you might not be ready for it. When listening to Father John Misty – Nancy from Now On, the Heron 5 reveals track noise from the recording process. This album isn’t audiophile top fare and it is apparent, but I love it none-the-less. Aside from bringing out noise, the amp also highlighted some subtle over-dubbing on Josh Tillman’s voice on ‘run boy, run boy….’ I never noticed the layers in his vocals on that before. On Hollywood Forever Cemetary Sings (the music video is spectacular and features Aubrey Plaza of Parks and Rec—watch her), the cymbals and tambourines crash within their own violent little halos more than I’ve ever heard them. Heron 5, I dub thee the Phase King.
 

 
The Heron 5 is a truth-telling straight shooter from New York. In the classic mythology of six-gun slinging straight-talkers, this amp should really hail from The West, The Frontier, somewhere like Arizona or Colorado, or a gold panning town in the streams surrounding San Francisco. New Yorkers have no right to mete out frontier justice on my audio. When listening to vinyl rips, the vinyl is more apparent with the Heron 5 than any other amp I’ve heard, there is no doubt that your digital track came from a flawed purely analogue source, no matter how well that record was cleaned, no matter how good the recording set-up.
 
Eurythmics – Love is a Stranger is a great track for looking at imaging. The Heron 5 doesn’t disappoint. Drums are back in the deep depths of the stage, Annie Lennox seduces from up high and at the front of the stage, whilst David A. Stewart’s grunts undulate from low to middle height and from varying depths in the stage with excellent precision.
 
The spacious aeries of Kraftwerk’s Autobahn gave the Heron 5 another opportunity to be a straightshooter, this time about the limitations of the HD600. I’ve listened to the record with speakers, and the soundstage can extend up to the ceiling from my almost pension-collecting Mordaunt Short bookshelf speakers (28 years old is past most speakers retirement age).  For the first time, the HD600's stage height goes a bit higher than my head, which is truly impressive. The panning cars zoom across miles of horizontal space.
 
I found myself taking notes about the flaws in the music or the flaws in my headphones. It was especially apparent on my West German Target CD pressing of Stairway to Heaven. The track is not an audiophile track, it has compression artifacts, an elevated noise floor, and other flaws. The Heron 5 pulls no punches. The Heron 5 doesn’t force anything but honest representation of the music. It sounds natural, neutral, and transparent with precise imaging and expansive soundstage. I think that my other components (especially the iUSB3.0) help the Heron be the best it can be, but it is something special in its own right.
 
When listening to Rodrigo y Gabriela – Viking Man I was wondering who let these Mexicans in the house and what kind of beer that brilliant person wants in thanks. It was like being in the front row, while the guitars duel at breakneck speed, with the amp and headphones keeping up, never missing a beat, never smearing a string transient. If you want to blow your mind on a supremely layered percussion track, go check out KUNIKO – Xenakis IX Pleiades 1. Melanges. The track is busy as hell on a Saturday, but every element of the stage is beautifully articulated.
 
I also booted up the HD800, HE6, K1000 and ERIB-2a (review of ERIB-2a here) with the Heron all fed by a Chord Mojo connected to the iUSB3.0 with a LH Labs Lightspeed Micro USB cable and a custom made Van Damme 3.5mm to RCA cable. The Heron really lets each headphone shine. The best pairing, to my mind was the HD800. I threw City of the Sun on again, and for the first time, the haze (it has a sort of ambient feel) that is prevalent on the album was pulled back a little. Sennheiser lifted a veil.  The sound was crystal clear, the soundstage was vast (especially in width), the treble had excellent attack while sounding organic. The ambient tones from hanging transients are plucked like so many apples for Grandma’s pie. The pie is delicious and there’s no need to wait for it to cool on the window sill. With the HE6 the menace of organs on Jan Kraybill – Allegro from Symphony No. 6 in G Minor (HD Tracks 2015 sampler, which is free) is present, but the HE6 doesn’t quite have the treble clarity of the HD800 (the only mod on this HE6 is removal of the screens, a lot more can be done). The K1000 was also beautifully powered by the Heron 5. There wasn’t a headphone that sounded under-driven on the Heron 5. From memory, I prefer the HE6 with a custom made First Watt F6 30w per channel power amp fueling them (the minibeast). The HE-6 likes the extra energy. I don’t think the HD800 has ever sounded better than it sounds with the Heron 5. HD800 owners should be lining up around the block to buy this amp.
 

 
I did find some flaws with the amp, mainly related to the front headphone jacks. The labelling is not intuitive, so those who hurry to listen and don’t read the manual will likely be disappointed in what they hear. I would have rather had one well-labelled (labelled with output impedance instead of ‘low’) high damping factor output than two ambiguously labelled jacks. Both outputs buzz with low impedance headphones, this may be related to the fixed, decently high gain (12.5 dB). This isn’t really a design that makes you think: ‘You know what this big beefy amp needs to power? An uber sensitive iem!’, but it would be nice to have the option. I think having variable gain might solve some of the problem. When comparing the Heron 5 to the iFi iCAN SE, the iCAN SE did a much better job at impedance matching, but was worse at everything else (even with switches engaged).
 
Some reviewers on the tour reported volume issues with the stepped attenuator, after hearing on Massdrop that there were two versions of the volume control I asked William at Airist Audio for clarification. Apparently, the first six or so amps were made in two batches. The first batch had some units with volume control issues. All amps built after that point, including all European units don’t have a volume control issue. Speaking of Massdrop, this amp is currently live on Massdrop (3 days left at time of writing). Two more people and the price will be $749. That is a steal of a deal, and people should consider it strongly, especially if you've got an HD800.
 
Other reviewers have expressed disappointment that the amp doesn’t have a balanced output. However, the amp has single-ended internals, a balanced output wouldn’t have sounded better than the single-ended outputs the amp has. Adaptors are prevalent, get an adaptor for your balanced cable. I’ve got one, you can get one. This amp sounds better than my Pulse X-Infinity balanced out sounded, and competes with my memories of previous listening on the balanced Schiit Ragnarok with the HD600. It’s been too long since that listening session to draw any clear comparisons, but both amps are fantastic.
 

Non-audio niggles

Airist Audio is inexperienced, and it shows. When they took volunteers for the tour, they were incredibly brave. The person who was supposed to be after me on the tour was a person with 0 posts with a freshly minted join date. I was concerned that I would send off the amp with tracking and it would be to a phony address meant to steal the amp, luckily that zero post Head-Fier never responded, which might have led to my purchase of this amp. Because I was the last on the tour, the amp was going to be shipped across the ocean to Airist Audio after me.
 
I asked about buying the amp, and was offered what looked like an unbeatable price. Before I paid the invoice (I was still debating), the official price was cut in half. I don’t think economies of scale quite covers that. Beyond that they offered a CanJam discount to $850, but now have a potential $750 price on Massdrop. Not only that, but the price of shipping to the UK on their website was $190, whilst the price of shipping to the UK on Massdrop is $73. Airist Audio needs to realise that people won’t trust you if you sell them a product and then immediately lower the price.
At this point I’ll put it down to inexperience, but it is something they need to be vigilant about in the future lest they create customers who feel that Airist Audio has taken advantage of them.
 
I think if Airist Audio keeps putting out gear that is as special as the Heron 5, they have a bright future. With the new lower MSRP of $1000, I think they have a headphone amplifier that could be a run-away hit.
 

Conclusions

The Heron 5 is a special amp. It has wonderful transparency, tight natural bass that digs as deep as your headphones will go, treble that is smooth and natural without any touches of harshness, flawless imaging, and a tell me no lies injectable truth serum quality that still manages to be forgiving as it is revealing. Until the Heron 5, I never felt like I was reviewing the music and the headphones more than I was reviewing the amp when I was taking notes on an amp. The Heron 5 doesn’t impose it’s will on the sound, it is natural and neutral, the music and headphones are completely allowed to be themselves without any colouration from the amp. For these reasons I bought the Heron 5.
 
The only problem I have now, is that I feel like I need the HD800 to pair with it. That match is made in heaven, and that heaven is a Southpark heaven. Fly, Kenny, fly.
 

 
I can’t wait to see what their DAC has to offer in the future (make sure it has a pre-amp, Airist Audio).

[size=24.57px]Acknowledgment[/size]
This review unit was provided to me in exchange for my honest opinion by Penon Audio. This review was originally published here.

Introduction

I’m a regular watcher and poster on HeadFi’s Facebook page and when I saw Penon Audio announce that they had the M1S available for presale, and when I saw the stats for $249 in what I thought would be a small player, I was more than intrigued. I had to hear it. Penon Audio graciously made this happen. Penon Audio is a store based out of Hong Kong that sells gear worldwide. They’ve been around for just a few years (established in 2013) but get quite a bit of mentions on HeadFi. This is probably due to their reasonable prices, good inventory and worldwide shipping. Aune Audio is the HiFi brand of As Ao Lai Er Technology, below is what Aune’s website has to say about their brand:
 

As Ao Lai Er Technology’s high quality HiFi brand, Aune has been devoted to developing and producing desktop, portable and car audio products. Founded in the year of 2004, Ao Lai Er owns the largest Chinese audio technology website - HIFIDIY.NET and high end audio brand TITANS. HIFIDIY.NET has 700 thousand members. It’s always been a platform for the most advanced HiFi technology communications and practice. We gained lots of experience from the long-term accumulation, and have released hundreds of kits and parts from independent R&D, which are well received around the world! Aune team is a group of audiophiles who only pursue the best. We use our products in daily life and we love each and every one of them! Superb sound is Aune’s goal; great user experience and satisfaction is what Aune pursues. We are striving to make Aune one of the world’s famous audio brands in the future!

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Useability: Form & Function

 

 

 
 
The Aune M1S comes in a simple box with two screen protectors and a USB cable as accessories. The packaging is non-descript and not memorable in any way. Neither screen protector is applied to the device. In my opinion, all manufacturers should apply a screen protector if they are going to include one. Most electronic manufacturing facilities are dust free, which is something that most homes cannot claim. Anyone who’s applied a screen protector knows how much of an advantage that is. I feel sorry for anyone who lives in a completely dust free home, as it probably means a neurotic lives in the house.
 

 
 
It still may be better than my house. At least it would be sparkly clean.
 

 

Physical characteristics

The M1S is a pretty solid brick with six edges. I personally don’t mind the edges, but other folks will be scrambling for one of their not included silicone cases. Penon Audio has them for ten bucks a pop—in three colours even.
 

The player is a bit long for my tastes. It is longer than the Cayin i5, and probably just about every other DAP out there. The width and thickness give it a big candy bar form factor, but I’ve never had a candy bar with this kind of girth. If they can reduce the length on future players, that would be awesome, but I have a feeling the form has something to do with the insanely low distortion on this thing. The distortion and dynamic range specifications on the M1S are better than those on the M2Pro, their much more expensive offering. That player is a bit chunky too.
 
Overall the profile is utilitarian in aesthetic with little to make it look particularly appealing. This player just gets down to business. The ‘wheel’ in the middle is not a wheel at all. It has five buttons. The centre button is the standard OK button, whilst the other buttons have multiple functions, including the standard playback controls and adding tracks to favourites (the M1S version of playlist) and changing the digital filter. I didn’t play much with digital filter as I’ve found that I generally prefer slow roll-off filters on previous DAPs I’ve listened to. The centre button plays or pauses tracks during playback and selects menu items when not controlling playback. The left and right buttons are for skipping and reversing tracks. They also allow fast-forward and rewind by holding down. I found that my unit has very specific engagement points for the buttons. I need to press dead centre to get them to work right, so make sure you are doing that before you think you have malfunctions. I only had problems with the left and right buttons, top and bottom were fine. Short presses on the top button change the repeat/shuffle modes. Shuffle and repeat are tied to folders. Options include shuffle folder, repeat one (has disk in left part of icon), repeat folder, and no repeat (has x in bottom left of icon). Tapping the bottom button stops playback. Just like an old CD player, it loses your place in the track when you press stop. Holding down the top button will add a track to favourites, whilst holding down the bottom will change digital filters. Above the ‘wheel’ there are two buttons, with obvious use and universal symbols. The left one takes you to the main menu and the right takes you back one screen. Volume and power buttons on the right side are straight forward. I found myself wishing I had some controls on the left side, but I imagine the circuit design didn’t allow it.
 
I tested the line-out in comparison to my LH Labs Geek Pulse X-Infinity DAC. I could not tell the difference when switching in between the two with volume matching done by ear. That is damn impressive. It should be noted that the LH Labs gear and the Aune M1S share the same DAC chip, but I didn't expect the Aune to go toe-to-toe with the X-Infinity and do as well as it did. With regards to some measurables, I get about 10-11 hours battery life and charge times are around 3 hours. Time to scan my music library on my 200GB microSD card is under 1 minute.
 

Operating System

As shown above, the controls are fairly intuitive—they also include instructions with the player. The menu system is pretty straightforward. Left and right will scroll options, as will up and down. When in the settings menu pressing the centre button changes the option you are currently on. The OS is minimal, but functional. The screen lays out everything in black and white with a touch of brown-grey tones. The screen is capable of colour, as indicated by the bright green battery charging emblem, but they haven’t deployed much of it in the interface. I’m perfectly fine with this, as the Spartan image of the OS fits the player well. The OS is really quick to navigate. When going through folders or settings options you can go down or up one entry at a time with the down button or up button, or advance to the next page or previous page with right and left. Volume and remaining battery power are clearly displayed at the top of the screen while track information and track progress follow as you read down the screen. The file name is displayed as whatever you've left it. My Positive Feedback DSD Sampler has Pos~1 for every track. I have most of my files in folders but I do have one lonely file sitting by itself in the root folder with no album name in the file name. When I went to play this file it knew artist and album, so the player is reading tags, but it is using them only minimally. I suggest that Aune should add tag-based browsing if possible, as it is something I really love and I don’t think I’m alone in this.
 
I think that Aune could take some lead from the HiFiMan SuperMini on having a simple interface but with full tag browsing for artist, album, and genre. Folder based browsing is fast and foolproof (nothing goes wrong with folder names), but tag browsing is usually a nicer organisation. There is no EQ on the M1S, so those who like to tweak will not be happy. I like a player that is dead to rights neutral, and the Aune M1S gives me that. I tweak with headphones. Other things you won’t find, a digital line-out port, USB-DAC functionality, USB-OTG, WiFi, Bluetooth, or any other fancy bits. The M1S is all about its core function, playing music as honestly as possible and thinks that all other things a DAC might do are unimportant. Now let Paula Abdul out of that music box looking thing.
 

 
Anyone looking for this to be their only DAP/DAC should move along, this player won’t fill your needs. I’m lucky to have a variety of DAPs and DACs, so the lack of USB DAC function isn’t a conversation ender for me.

Audio quality

In a word: stellar. The Aune M1S has a spacious, crystal clear sound with no particular emphasis to any part of the frequency spectrum. It is detailed, with impeccable timing. It has excellent extension in bass and treble and makes every reasonable headphone I’ve thrown at it sound wonderful. If you want your portable gear to sound it’s best, the M1S is a good choice. The M1S didn’t do terribly well when I hooked up an HD600 to it, but it wasn’t an utter failure. The HD600 is kind of my stress test on DAPs. I’ve only had two DAPs do what I would consider adequate on the HD600, the HiFiMAN SuperMini and the Echobox Explorer. Many portable DACs fail to do adequately with the HD600, including the Chord Mojo. I hope to try the Shanling M5 in the future with the HD600, but that hasn’t happened yet. I did try the Aune M1S with the new 150Ω, 89 sensitivity RHA CL1, and the M1S powers it beautifully. The M1S really shined with my neutral headphones, the UERR and the Noble K10E. When I start listening, it is truly difficult to stop. I’ve tried a lot of DAPs and DAC/Amps. The Aune M1S is one of the best sounding and only costs $249. The price to performance ratio is just crazy talk.
 
As usual, I did volume matched comparisons between players. For my methodology, you can read pretty much any of my reviews in the last six months. Briefly, I match using an SPL meter and white noise. I use a coupler for IEMs that I’ve made out of toilet roll cores and packing tape—cheap but functional. For full size headphones I press the foam ball that came with it into the cup and try to be steady. My methods are imperfect, but fairly consistent.

Comparisons

Cayin i5

The M1S has a similar tonality to the i5. On Pink Floyd – On the Run, the two players are very similar in presentation of stage, but the i5 has a bit better definition on the train announcement near the beginning of the track and in general. Stage height is a little better on the M1S. On Pink Floyd – Time, the clocks are more in your face and instrument separation is greater, the stage is also wider and deeper. The drums are bigger and bolder through the i5, there may be a little lift in this frequency range as the drums are further back in the stage on the M1S compared to the i5. Both have good full sounds to the drums, but the i5 is fuller in single-ended. When switched to balanced mode, the M1S pulls ahead with bigger stage and better definition.
 
The Aune M1S, like the i5 doesn’t hiss with the Noble K10E. With the Noble K10E and some good old Surfer Rosa highlights, Where is My Mind, the Aune M1S has a touch more subtlety with the restrained almost hiding male almost echo muttering backing vocals, but it doesn’t have quite the same amplitude on the ethereal female vocals. It climbs, but not quite to the height of the i5. The stage is significantly wider and a bit deeper on the M1S. Both sound amazing. The Aune M1S has a similar library scan speed, but doesn’t have any frills in the OS. Both players have excellent volume controls, but the feel of the i5 control is much more premium. Both have distortionless volume adjustment. I narrowly prefer the sound of the M1S and like that it has a 2.5mm balanced jack, but every other comparison goes to the i5. The i5 has USB DAC functionality, tag based browsing, Bluetooth, WiFi, the Google Play store, and many more features. The M1S is a top notch audio player, that is all.
 

HiFiMAN SuperMini

The soundstage on the SuperMini isn’t the match of the M1S or the i5 in size, but it is just as well defined as either. The OS on the SuperMini doesn’t compete with the i5, but easily bests the M1S. The SuperMini doesn’t have adjustable gain and has one of the worst volume controls I’ve ever seen on a DAP, 32 steps is bad—it’s iPhone volume levels bad. It does drive the HD600 well, which, to my surprise, the i5 does pretty well too. The Aune M1S doesn’t drive the HD600 as good as the SuperMini. It sounds a bit thin and sharp as the bass on the HD600 recesses a bit without the power to push it forward, but the sound is clean and clear. The SuperMini drives the HD600 more fully and with a bigger sound stage. With the Noble K10E, the SuperMini hisses, like many DAPs. It also has a more muted sound and a smaller stage than its two primary competitors in the i5 and the M1S. Because of a little bit of veiling the dude-quiet vocals don’t pop out from hiding as much. The amplitude of the female vocal doesn’t reach the aeries of the i5 or the M1S. Again, you can’t make the Noble K10E sound bad in my experience, but the SuperMini wasn’t competitive versus the i5 or M1S here.
 

Specifications

 

Conclusions

I’ve had the privilege of listening to and reviewing a lot of DAPs and DACs, none has impressed me quite as much as the Aune M1S. The Aune M1S is my new reference DAP. It is a sonic marvel at $249, with sound that is better than most DAPs on the market, including the current toast of the town, the Cayin i5. The Aune M1S has truly special clarity with a background as black as the inside of a singularity. The soundstage is wide and deep with above average height. The price of the M1S makes it a no-brainer for anyone who doesn’t care about anything but audio quality--it delivers audio quality in spades. Aune M1S will be joining me for my upcoming reviews of the UERR, Noble K10E and the Empire Ears/Effect Audio Arthur.
 

List Price: $3499

Product Website: http://www.theevolutionofsound.com/xiaudio-formula-s/

Acknowledgment
The XIAUDIO Formula S was provided on loan by XIAUDIO. The length of the loan was not specified. I have received no compensation for my review, and the opinions represented are mine. I’d like to thank Michael Xiao for giving me the opportunity to experience this amp.

This review originally appeared on Audio Primate. Now we are sharing with our friends and fans on Head-Fi.

Introduction
Alex Twister introduced me to Michael Xiao, proprietor of Eleven Audio, formerly of Lotoo. Alex doesn’t have any particularly demanding cans and knew that I had the HiFiMAN HE-1000 v2 in house, and a HiFiMAN Susvara on the way (review here), so he kindly introduced Michael to set up a review of the XIAUDIO Formula S. I’m glad he did.

The version that Michael sent me was the original design (only ever available in Asia). The new design has all the same guts but comes in an all black finish that I think matches the Abyss AB-1266 Phi a bit better. The Eleven Audio Formula S was designed to power the Abyss AB-1266 perfectly and contains JPS Labs Alumiloy wires inside. Here are some pictures of what the amp you would get if you were to purchase looks like.





The differences between the two looks are cosmetic: different printing, black colour, different more grippy volume knob (looks more industrial). Pictures in this review will all be with the silver 1.0 looks, rather than the black 2.0 looks.

Usability: Form & Function
The XIAUDIO Formula S comes well packed with foam all around, a thick double-walled inner box and a thick double walled outer box. This is how high end electronics should be packaged, and is similar to how the Airist Audio Heron 5 was packaged, with one exception. The Airist Audio Heron 5 came with a power cable and a manual. The Eleven Audio Formula S sent to me came with neither. An AC cable is not included, standard. Their website recommends the JPS Labs PAC Lite. This is probably due to the development partnership between the two companies. That power cable will set you back about $500. If you do the recommended configuration, the amp is about $4k, the same price as an Audeze LCD-4 or a Focal Utopia. I didn’t run this set-up. I used a shielded cable from MCRU that I had on hand, it was less than $50.



The Formula S that arrived on my doorstep has a single set of RCA inputs, which is the default configuration. When ordering, you can request XLR inputs instead. If I were purchasing, this is probably how I’d roll. My Questyle CMA600i has lower distortion on the balanced line-out and I noted it sonically when I reviewed it. The rear inputs are directly linked to the volume knob. Short paths are good engineering practice, the less circuitry in the way, the better opportunity to prevent distortion. The amp has a switching power supply and two gain settings. I like both features. Though I live in Britain, I like having the option to take my gear with me if I should ever return to my native land. Having two gain settings allows better matching with headphones which will lower the potential for distortion.

The outputs on the amplifier include all the most common full-size outputs—but not for long. There are two 3-pin XLR jacks, one 4-pin XLR and one 6.3mm jack. It would have been nice to see the dual 3-pin XLR replaced by a 4.4mm TRRRS, but one can’t have everything. The outputs are all equipped with protection circuits and turn on/off delays to protect headphones.

The amp promotional text on the website says that the volume goes from 0 to 11, but that isn’t exactly true. The volume on the amp actually starts at 11 and goes on to an unnamed number. Zero to 11 is for chumps.


I played the amp at all sorts of volumes with all sorts of loads. For the Focal Utopia, it never went past a quarter of the volume knob. For the Susvara, I never needed more than 3/4s of the volume capability. This amp can handle the demanding cans you throw at it. However, it should be noted that I am a madman, and decided to plug in sensitive IEMs. Predictably, it hisses. This amp is for cans. You don’t need this kind of power for an IEM. It’s like cutting your hair with a chainsaw.



Audio quality
The amp has an incredibly black background with extreme levels of detail and texture. The Susvara could be driven using the Questyle CMA600i to sufficient volume, but it was a different beast—a tamer smaller beast, think housecat versus tiger. The soundstage was small and spherical, and details didn’t emerge like they do on the Formula S. The Formula S pushes the stage way out of head with especially impressive depth and instrument separation. The sound is natural—nothing added or taken away. The amp gets out of the way and lets the headphone speak, which is exactly what a headphone amp should do.

When the XIAUDIO (Eleven Audio) Formula S drives the Susvara it sounds effortless. The stage is airy with a smooth flow between its areas. The soundstage is tall, with exceptional depth and an impressive out of head width. Imaging is precise and sonic cues are detailed. The background is black and completely silent.



Compared to the CMA800R Golden Reference monoblocks, the XIAUDIO Formula S has greater stage depth and a more neutral presentation. The monoblocks have a bit of a warm tinge to their sound and a bit weightier tones. I preferred the sound of the Formula S.

The Focal Utopia is pretty easy to drive, as flagships go. It takes next to nothing from the Questyle CMA600i to get it up to volume. It is easily driven by the Questyle QP2R. However, like the Susvara, the Focal Utopia benefits from the added transparency and drive of the Formula S. When listening to Leonard Cohen – Leaving the Table with either the Susvara or the Utopia, the Formula S brings more micro-texture to the sonic landscape. Leonard Cohen’s voice is just dripping with texture and emotion, and the Formula S brings a level of micro-texture (especially with the Susvara) that lesser amps can’t equal. It’s spine meltingly good.

The Formula S has greater resolution than the CMA600i, better texture, a bigger soundstage, greater precision and speed with an effortless delivery. I guess there are reasons to go beyond one box, if you are getting to the top tiers of headphones. The CMA600i can’t showcase what the Susvara or Utopia can do. The Formula S emphatically does.

My standard interconnect setup when the Formula S arrived was Atlas Element Integra RCAs. They are good interconnects that I previously noted to be brighter and more transparent than the Van Den Hul interconnects I have in my living room setup. I did the blinded wife test and got the same observations—I know, not very scientific, but can be done while watching a two-year-old. When I went to the Indulgence Show (October 2017), I lucked out and won some Wire on Wire Experience680 interconnects. I doubted they’d make much difference, but when I plugged them into the setup they upgraded transparency and soundstage width over the Element Integra, but at the cost of a little bit more brightness that can be fatiguing. That fatiguing effect seems to have lessened over time. Upgrading the interconnects showed that the Formula S had some previously untapped potential. The resolution is simply spectacular. Laser sharp focus emerges from the prog rock synths of Rush – Tom Sawyer. Drums snap and slam with convincing air and motion at the end of Neil Peart’s drumsticks. The sound is like being there, but slightly shrunken down so that it fits in your home. It’s a miniature reality a bit bigger than the confines of your head.

Specifications
Specifications
Price $3499
Output 6W @ 16Ω, pure Class A
Input Z 10 KOhms
Input Sensitivity 1000 mV
Gain 10 dB (low), 16dB (high)
THD 0.0006% @ 300mW, distortion character compensated for high-end music playback
Noise floor -110 dBV
Weight 4.8 kg (10.5 lbs)
Dimensions 24 cm (width) x 29.3 cm (length) x 13 cm (height)
Power 100-115/230 VAC, 50/60 Hz, CE certified

Conclusions
Of all the amps I tried with the HiFiMAN Susvara, the XIAUDIO Formula S is the best at showcasing the Susvara’s talents. It holds nothing back on power. It is transparent as a caldera lake of a long dormant volcano. It allows air between instruments to be felt and heard and the air movements of drum strikes to prickle the skin. The timbre and texture of bass notes is awe inspiring with the Susvara, and it didn’t do it without the Formula S in my setup. I observed similar gains with the Utopia compared to driving it on lesser amplification.

The XIAUDIO Formula S is a spectacular enabler of audio bliss. It’s expensive and excellent.

List Price: $800.00 (¥90,000 JPY)

Product Website: http://www.kumitatelab.com/kl-sirius/?sl=en



Rating Disclaimer: ratings are subjective. Audio quality and value do not mean the same thing across all prices. A headphone with a 5 rating on audio at $5 does not have equivalent sound quality as a 5 rating at $500. Likewise, value at $5 is not the same as value at $5000 dollars.

Acknowledgment
The Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius was provided to me free of charge by Kumitate Lab. I do not have to return the unit, but I cannot sell it or give it away. I have received no compensation for this review and the thoughts contained within are my honest opinion. Thank you Kumitate Lab for supplying the review unit.

This review originally appeared on audioprimate.blog, and is now being shared with our followers on Head-Fi. This community is still at the heart of the headphone world.


Introduction
I first ran into Ito Ryosuke, the leader of Kumitate Lab at the 2017 Indulgence Show. They really caught my eye at the show with their gorgeous Raden pieces, and they really captured my ear with their KL-Ref. After hearing the KL-Ref I made sure to get in contact with Mr. Ito to try to arrange a review and/or review tour, and after some persistence, he agreed to send a review unit, but not the KL-Ref, the KL-Sirius.

Kumitate Labs isn’t well known outside of Japan, but when I saw them, I thought they should be. They started as a DIY lab experimenting with drivers and custom acrylic shells inspired by videos of how to make a CIEM on Youtube from 1964 Ears (the old name of 64Audio). Over the years they’ve developed a huge following in Japan, where some folks own a dozen custom IEMs—they wear custom IEMs like earrings, apparently. Kumitate Labs has such demand that Mr. Ito has to open and close orders taking periods as he fills up his production queue a few times per year. I feel very privileged to review the KL-Sirius.

The KL-Sirius is one of two entry-level ¥90,000 JPY custom IEMs from Kumitate Lab (the other is the KL-Meteo). The sound signature is described as infinitely flat, with delicate high frequency expression. I take that to mean that this is the entry level take on a reference signature from Kumitate Lab.

Usability: Form & Function
Unboxing
Japan has a reputation for elaborate packaging with clever use of paper folds, specially textured containers and prize-worthy gift boxes. When I received my package from Kumitate Lab I was excited to see what kind of lavish presentation would be in the box. There wasn’t any. Inside the box was a small black press-close case (same as HiFiMAN RE2000 without the painted letters) surrounded by butcher paper arranged to protect the IEM. It felt a bit like I was being sent a wrench rather than a high end headphone. Monkey see, monkey use.


There was no retail box with artfully designed compartments, no fascinating textures, no pomp and circumstance. There weren’t even any accessories. It was a bit disarming and unexpected.

The package is no more than it needs to be and nothing else. Inside the non-descript tin, however, magic is concealed.



Aesthetics
When the simple press-close metal case was opened I was greeted by solid acrylic custom IEMs with flame tempered titanium faceplates. Titanium burnishes to rainbow colours if this is the chosen effect, but Kumitate Lab’s choice on these gives them a purple hue with some brown undertones. They look lovely. The gold writing provides more description than most custom manufacturers I’ve seen, where frequently you can’t list what headphone model you are decorating your ears with. The Kumitate Lab options allow me to choose from several fonts and to choose whether the model name is listed.

The number of options for what you can do with your customs at Kumitate Labs is nearly unrivalled. I suggest checking out their lookbook. Also, their Raden gallery. Raden are special units that use seashells to create works of art in an in ear that are unique to Kumitate Lab. Too much gorgeous. Check them out on twitter and instagram, too. They are always tinkering with new designs.

The acrylic construction is perfectly smooth with a bit of sheen. There are no bubbles or imperfections. The craftsmanship from a hand-made acrylic shell is better than what I see on the 3D printed UERR in my headphone stable.

Inside the Sirius there is silvery wire—this is not silver. I asked Mr. Ito what it was and to my surprise it was tin-plated copper. The gauge of the wire is quite high for internal wiring on an IEM and the silvery sheen is a nice effect. Inside my unit the four drivers and crossover are clearly seen.





Ergonomics
The Sirius is custom and has a more robust feel to the ear-tip than the UERR. The UERR has a long extended taper at the end of the ear-piece, while the Sirius terminates earlier in a thicker more full tip. I found that both took some getting used to, but now the Sirius tends to be more comfortable than the UERR and has better isolation.

The Sirius has three sound bores, each with a filter inside the bore preventing ear-wax from getting into the inner workings of the IEM. It’s a pragmatic design that I imagine is part of the sonic tuning also. The Sirius does not come with an brush and earwax tool, which is standard with most custom IEMs. Mr. Ito told me that he recommended people use a toothbrush. Personally, I would have included the tool and a basic retail box.



The cable that the Sirius came with consists of 4 wires of relatively thin gauge arranged in a double twist configuration. The cable has pre-formed heat-shrink ear-guides with good springiness, this is my favourite type of ear-guide. The cable is light and comfortable on top of the ear and grips the top of the ear without being imposing. The connectors on the top appear don’t appear anything out of the ordinary. They are silver, with smooth exteriors that were initially hard to remove from the IEM, a little grip on the outside would help. There are no explicit marks for right and left. I used the direction of the groove on the IEMs to determine right and left. I would use the standard colour-coding scheme that is out there, red = right and blue = left. There is also a metal Kumitate Lab logo bead on the left earpiece. The y-split is made of two layers of heat shrink, with a Made in Japan label. Apparently a large amount of the IEM is made in Japan. The wire is from a Japanese company that is well known in pro-audio in Japan, the 2-pin connectors are made by a company called Bispa (well known in Japan), and the assembly of the cable is done by Kumitate Lab hands with 10 years of experience. A heat shrink chin slider is above the y-split. The cable I received was terminated in a good quality verified Oyaide 2.5mm termination (there are lots of ‘Oyaide style’ terminations).

I tried multiple aftermarket cables with the Sirius, but the one that I’ve settled on as the best cable is the Double Helix Cables Symbiote Elite SP (8-Braid). The DHC Symbiote Elite extracts more detail than the basic cable that the Sirius comes with, and sounds fuller, with a bigger stage. It takes the IEM to a whole new level. The Sirius is probably the most sensitive IEM to cable change that I’ve tried.

Audio quality
Overall sound impressions
Overall the KL-Sirius is tuned more to the reference side of the spectrum. It has light but accurate bass with good extension and no particular bands emphasized. The mids are silky smooth and more organic sounding than your average reference tuning. These mids are liquid, smooth like butter, baby.


Cable Rolling
I’ll start with some brief cable rolling impressions. Truth be told, I wasn’t going to do that here. I was going to save it for another review, but then after I’d already determined that I liked the DHC Symbiote Elite SP (8 Braid), I decided to do a quick switch back to the stock cable that I hadn’t listened to since the first couple days I had the KL-Sirius. The difference didn’t feel as big. The DHC Symbiote Elite is much prettier, maybe that has been driving my impressions. Attractive food tastes better then the same ingredients with no presentation. Our brains are wired for expectation bias. Maybe I’ve had a bit of that. So I decided to go back with doubt, and listen again.

For this little exercise I checked to see if there were any major impedance deviations through some volume matching. There weren’t. If there are differences in impedance, it’s resulting in less than 0.2dB difference in sound, so all the differences in sound will be due to cable construction.

I start out with the DHC Elite and Smashing Pumpkins – Mayonaise, and then switch down to the stock balanced cable that came with the KL-Sirius. The stage shrinks in on the switch, cymbals sound thinner, and the mids sound thicker and more forward. Billy Corgan’s voice loses some breathiness. Bass gets a touch more midbass. There is a reinforcement of the centre image. The biggest losses were in overall resolution and stage. In the past I’ve observed that the amount of wire matters, it could be that if the cable guage were higher this would sound more even. I think even a switch up to 28 AWG would make a difference. I think the current wire is around 32 AWG. Switching back to the DHC Elite, there is also more bass texture and note depth. The stock cable sounds comparatively laid back and fuzzier.

I wish my comparisons could be blinded, but that is probably impossible given the different feels of the cables. In this brief face-off, the DHC Elite won, but it is an $800 cable with better conductors and more of them, so there is that.

All the impressions in this review are done with the KL-Sirius paired with the DHC Symbiote Elite SP (8-braid) cable. Short story on the cable, the Sirius is capable of more than the cable it comes with. Review comparisons were made with volume matching. Volume matching was done using an SPL metre and white noise. I position my IEMs in my home-brew coupler with the IEMs perpendicular to the ground. I’ve found this allows the most consistent measurements and ensures that the dB in custom in-ears match up to universals. I’ve listed the comparators in the table below.



Comparisons


When I went to use the Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius with the Soundaware M2PRO, the mids sounded hollow, so I hooked up the iFi iEMatch 2.5mm and that fixed the problem. The fun thing about balanced armature based IEMs is that each armature has a different impedance, and the differences can be extreme. I’m not convinced that sources listing their output impedance have the same impedance across the frequency range either. So maybe a mismatch explains the hollow sound I got out of the M2PRO. I have not had any problems with matching the Kumitate Labs KL-Sirius on any other rig. In fact, I found it worked equally well on the QP2R with and without the iFi iEMatch2.5.

Unless otherwise noted, I used the QP2R for comparisons. In all comparisons using iFi iEMatch2.5, the setting was high. I find most IEMs clip if I turn the setting to Ultra sensitivity on the iEMatch2.5. I don’t like clipping.

UERR ($1049 with balanced cable) vs. Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius w/ DHC Symbiote Elite (~$800 + $800)
Metal! Slayer – Necrophobic is a showcase of speed, and it’s short, which means I can switch back and forth or listen to the whole track repeatedly. Luckily, it’s a great visceral track that I like listening to repeatedly. The mids on the UERR have a harder character while also being airier. The UERR feels faster through the lower mids and midbass. The vocals are a touch further back on the Sirius. The guitar solo about half-way through the track is faster and better defined on the UERR. The smooth silky sound of the KL-Sirius is not as good during speedy guitar solos as it is during female vocals slow jazz riffs.

When I want some sultry female vocals, Natalie Merchant – Carnival is always a solid standby. She’s got a heavy, rich voice. The rest of the track is laid out very well too. On this track, I prefer the voicing of the Sirius. It has a tighter snap to the percussion, and the silkiness of the mids works well with the slow guitar and female vocals. As with Necrophobic, the vocals are positioned a little further back on the KL-Sirius than vocals on the UERR. On both IEMs, bass grooves with good definition, but neither emphasises it. The UERR has a touch more bass.

The edges of the stage are nicely populated on the KL-Sirius when listening to Macy Gray – Annabelle. The stand-up bass has accurate timbre, but isn’t as pronounced as the track should call for with the KL-Sirius. The sound is very well integrated, just a pleasing tuning. Bass is a little more forward on the UERR, but the overall stage has less depth. Guitar is really gorgeously presented on the UERR.



These are both such capable and good IEMs, I really can’t pick one. They have slightly different tonal and technical profiles. The UERR has a more immediate feel, and is more resolving during fast complex passages. The overall timbre of the KL-Sirius is neutral organic, and quite lovely. From a technical perspective, the KL-Sirius and UERR are a push on stage width, but the Sirius has greater depth. The UERR has a taller stage. The UERR has a resolution advantage, but it isn’t a night and day comparison. The UERR costs a bit more, but not more as tested. I think that with a $200 upgrade cable, the KL-Sirius likely still competes. I think folks wanting a more silky musical version of neutral who like easy going music will go for the KL-Sirius. If you are looking to portray classical music, or speed metal, the UERR is the better choice.

Noble Encore w/ PlusSound X-Series GPC ($1699 + $399) vs. Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius w/ DHC Symbiote Elite (~$800 + $800)
I start out getting my dance rhythms on with some STRFKR – Tape Machine. The KL-Sirius has liquid mids, delicate treble, and a slightly warm chugging bass on this track. The track doesn’t have a ton of depth, but I’m getting just slightly outside the ears width with on the Sirius. Treble is a touch harder with the Noble Encore, a little more forward, with a touch more detail resolution. The bass is bigger with more rich and full timbre on the Encore. The Encore gets more texture out of this track. Soundstage is a push between the two. The Encore has more of a v-shaped inflection to the tuning. It’s more fun, while the Sirius tilts more towards a reference tuning.

After getting FKed up in space, I decide to stroll to a decidedly more earthen location and throw on some Stevie Ray Vaughan – Tin Pan Alley (aka Roughest Place in Town). This track has an underlying electrical noise, while still exhibiting some intricate blues guitar work. The Sirius has very fluid mids with good detail layered into vocals from Stevie. The bass guitar is tuneful without extending remarkably deep. The bass is neither forward, nor recessed on the Sirius, but many would interpret it as such. It’s got kind of an HD600 kind of feel to it. Mids are more airy on the Noble Encore. The whole sound is more lively and realistic feeling. Bass is elevated on the Noble Encore, but satisfyingly so. The bass on the Encore has more texture, but it has decidedly more mid-bass than sub-bass. The sub-bass on the Sirius sounds more balanced due to lack of emphasis on the mid-bass. Clarity around the 5 minute mark in the track is similar between the two. I really like the mids presentation on the Sirius.

Can I get some sibilance? Rush – The Trees, is generally good for that. The Sirius doesn’t accentuate sibilance, what’s there is an accurate amount. Geddy Lee loves to elongate his ‘s’ sounds, so if there isn’t sibilance it’s from heavy-handed downtuning of the sibilance range between 6kHz and 8kHz. Cymbal strikes sound harder on the Noble Encore, with less fluidity. The decay is slightly shortened on the Encore. The Encore slightly reduces sibilance compared to the Sirius.

The Noble Encore exhibits good hard rock power when thrashing on Rage Against the Machine – Know Your Enemy. The Sirius has more natural sounding cymbals. The Encore rocks the crap out of the Sirius, with the Sirius sounding comparatively dull on this track. Easy win for the Encore on this track.

If soaring female backing vocals is what you are looking for when listening to Pixies – Where is My Mind? you’ll get it with the Encore. It has great clarity and separation in the upper mids. I get the same soar with the Sirius, but it has greater depth in the representation and is silkier. It’s hard to pick a winner on this track. The Noble Encore has those enhanced bass notes that give a more lively feel, but my oh my are those female backing vocals alluring on the Sirius. Both give similar stage width, but the female vocals project and expand from deeper in the stage on the Sirius. I’m enthralled with both.

What about Bob—I mean jazz. On Miles Davis – Spanish Key the Noble Encore has more immediacy, but sounds a bit busier due to pushing some bass and treble elements forward in the mix. The more neutral tuning of the Sirius is a better match for this complex and busy track, stylistically. The Encore has more resolution on this track, but misses on the ambiance.

I think the Noble Encore has a more resolution, but the Sirius has a touch more stage, so the advantage on technical aspects is slightly in the Encore’s favour. The Sirius has silky alluring mids and a non-fatiguing reference-like signature. It has a more fluid treble, while not losing detail in the treble. The bass is more balanced than the Encore, but also what would be considered a touch light for many. The Encore rocks much harder, so if hard is what you are looking for, the Encore might as well be a little blue-grey pill. I like both, a lot, but given my usual listening habits, I’d probably reach for the Encore more often, even though I think the Sirius is probably more timbrally accurate. In a 10 driver competition versus 4 driver competition, it was a lot closer than I expected.

Unique Melody Mason v3 ($2699) vs. Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius w/ DHC Symbiote Elite (~$800 + $800)
I decided to do this comparison using the Soundaware M2PRO as the volume setting difference is only one point, but on different gains, which means that switches should be fast. The switch isn’t as close on the QP2R. For this comparison I had the Mason v3 set with the dB-Go switch turned to the back, and the silver cable on, which is my preferred setting.

2Pac – Troublesome ’96 shows some nice bass texture with the Unique Melody Mason v3. The Masons are not bass light. They have nice fully developed low bass notes. 2Pac’s vocals are a little back of where I’m used to. Bass texture is still good on the Sirius, but the Mason reaches deeper. The Mason has more resolution through the mids, with more texture to 2Pac’s voice. The slight dip in the mids gives a bit more feeling of depth. I’m a little surprised to detect the dip in the mids on the Mason. Stage depth is more pronounced on the Mason v3.

The Mason v3 delicately arranges the stage on Bob Dylan – Like a Woman. The slight recession in the mids creates some illusion of additional depth, but when considering the rest of instruments, depth is still extremely impressive, so one wonders why not just tune the vocal bands completely neutral? Bass is more prominent on the Mason v3 than the KL-Sirius. Bob Dylan’s voice is silkier and more prominent in the stage on the Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius. This song sounds better on the KL-Sirius. It just sounds more whole and real.

A band that far too few people think of as audiophile listening fodder is Wilco, especially their a ghost is born album. On Handshake Drugs, the Sirius gives nice clear presentation to vocals; the bass chugs along nicely without overpowering anything; and the drums are exactly where I want them to be. The bass guitar is better represented on the Mason v3, with much more full sub-bass development and more texture to bass. The stage has an effortless breadth to it with incredible instrument separation. Every instrument really gets to shine on the Mason v3, with all sounding at appropriate depth. The only exception is the slightly recessed male vocal from Jeff Tweedy. The Mason v3 is better at taking on the complex interplay of instruments on this track.





Katherine Bryan – Flute Concerto: II. Alla Marcia presents a complex sonic landscape that will expose over-bright treble and inadequate driver speed. Katherine Bryan has some masterful flute trilling. The Mason v3 doesn’t miss a beat with any of the broad sonic range of expression in her flute vocalisations or in the various individual instruments. The scene never sounds busy on the Mason v3, and every instrument is well-resolved. Mmm, those silky mids on the KL-Sirius. The Sirius sounds a bit sharper on flute, but also a bit fuller. The overall speed of the KL-Sirius doesn’t match the Mason v3. Complex notes are more fluid and less delineated. They have a little bit more heft to them, whereas the Mason v3 is more light on its touch. Stage width isn’t close to the Mason v3 on the KL-Sirius, and the Sirius’s instrument separation is similarly bested by the Mason v3.

Overall the Mason v3 is technically superior, though the slightly recessed mids turn it off of being a full-on reference tuning. The Sirius has a more reference tuning but can’t match the stage, instrument separation, resolution, speed or bass depth of the Mason v3. The Mason v3 and Sirius are from the same signature family, but the Mason v3 is the higher technical performer.
Specifications

Conclusions
The Kumitate Lab KL-Sirius has liquid mids that are to die for, given the right circumstances. Speed metal with over-complicate for the KL-Sirius, but smooth bluesy presentations absolutely shine. They extoll the virtues of female singers, and do an excellent job resolving a good size stage with impressive depth and width. The build quality is excellent, but they could use more in the way of accessories to make the overall buying experience stand out as a more boutique experience. They scale with better cables and better sources, and can run with more expensive IEMs. These are artisanal IEMs, and I really appreciated the design and performance.

I'll start off with an intro to me. I'm a 33 year old long time audio enthusiast that has only really started to get seriously involved in the audiophilia hobby in the last year. In that time I've picked up almost my entire collection of audio gear (more on that below). My music tastes are very broad, but don't include much main stream country music, EDM, or mainstream tween pop. It would not be an unusual listening session to for me to have Frank Sinatra in the morning, Amon Amarth at noon, with some Pink Floyd, Aesop Rock, Beck, Charles Mingus, and an awesome and obscure Japanese band called Boy's Age to round out the day.
 
My home rig consists of the following:
LH Labs Geek Out V2
Feliks Audio Elise Valve Amp w/ C3G driver and C13s power tubes
HD600 headphones
LH Labs Lightspeed 2 Split power and data USB cable
...and various interconnects and a shielded power cable for the Elise
 
I did not buy this iUSB3.0. I was lucky enough to win one through an iFi giveaway here on HeadFi, and iFi was gracious enough to get it to me very quickly so I could test it out with a top-tier DAC or two that I do not own. I was only able to get it hooked into the Schiit Yggdrasil, but I'll be getting my own high end DAC soon.
 
When I got this, my mother-in-law was here, there were presents for the new baby brought from across the ocean strewn all over and no space to take any sexy pictures of the packaging and contents. For those kind of pictures go to the iFi iUSB3.0 thread. I do have some pictures from a little meet-up where the iFi upped the game of the Schiit Yggdrasil. That's it in the picture below hiding behind the computer whilst feeding the Schiit Yggdrasil/Ragnarok stack some delicious tunes.
 

 
You can also hook multiple DACs up at the same time for quick A/B testing of the DACs and headphones. Below I've got it hooked up to the LH Labs Geek Out V2 and Geek Out 1000. The observance of another mini-meet goer was that it made the sound more refined. I agree, but there is more.
 

 
When I received the iFi iUSB3.0, I immediately tested it out with my favourite test track:
 
Katherine Bryan - Flute Concerto Alla Marcia
 
The track has a lot of stage depth and width, extreme differences in pitch, big tympani strikes, and incredibly fast well-defined flute notes that are a perfect torture test for seeing if you've got a treble emphasized piece of equipment.  Switching between the Geek Out V2 plugged into the computer using the Lightspeed 2 USB cable and fed through the iUSB3.0 via the included usb 3.0 cable with the Lightspeed 2 USB feeding the DAC, the difference was immediately apparent. The iUSB3.0 adds significant soundstage depth on my Sennheiser HD600 headphones, and a little bit of extra width. Drum strikes were noticeably more rounded and defined, the instruments were suspended in the aether with precise locations. When I switched to one of my favourite acoustic tracks, Tony Furtado - Angeline the Baker, the guitar plucks picked up a much more natural decay, bringing the feeling closer to live music.
 
I've listened to a lot of music through this now, and got the opportunity to do the same test tracks on the Schiit Yggdrasil to similar effect as the Geek Out V2. The Yggdrasil is incredibly resolving, and I was listening out of a HE-1000, which is also incredibly resolving, but it gave a little bit more depth and a nicer impact on drums and nice pluck on guitars compared to Yggdrasil without it. This iUSB3.0 is magic. I can't say I completely understand how it is working, but it is most definitely working.
 
Some additional music I've listened to: basically all of the Queen and Pink Floyd albums, loads of Led Zeppelin, Father John Misty, Black Sabbath, Massive Attack, Miles Davis, Fleetwood Mac, Boy's Age (very weird and very good), and some metal from my favourite metal band, Unleash the Archers.
 
I've used it to charge a couple of devices, my Note 2 and my DX50. It does what it says on the tin.
 
The main negative I've had is that when the music isn't flowing and I take my headphones off in a silent room, if I'm within 5 feet of the iPower, I can hear a high pitched sound. It is similar to the sound of my Samsung Note 2 charger whilst charging, probably up around 18 to 20k in pitch (I can hear 22k). Also, when I had this hooked in and a neighbouring USB slot was being used to transfer data to an external hard drive it made it sound like my system was broken--garbled interference crap all over the place. This was with the bog standard USB 3.0 cable that came with the iUSB3.0. I haven't tested it with my spare Supra USB cable as the interconnect between the computer and the iUSB3.0. Maybe a better made USB cable will make a difference, maybe not. I also found that I usually had to restart JRiver in between tests with and without the iUSB3.0. JRiver treats your DAC like it is a new DAC being plugged in when running through the iUSB3.0 for some reason I don't comprehend.
 
Overall, I'm very impressed with this little wonder. It boosted DAC function on DACs ranging between $300 and $3000 in price. I'm very happy to have it in my system and stopped doing comparisons pretty quick--the difference was that noticeable. I can't wait to show it off to more folks and try it out with my next DAC to arrive, the LH Labs Pulse XFi. I'd love to compare it to the Uptone Regen, but that will have to wait a bit.
 
Update 14/01/2016
The lovely folks at iFi contacted me to see how I was getting on with the iFi Micro iUSB3.0 and I told them I love it and I've only had the one issue. They took care of the issue immediately. They sent me a replacement iPower and now my primary complaint is gone. I use this with my Pulse X-Infinity (I got an upgrade) in my main system and the system is lovely. The pulse has a lovely stage and this only makes it better. I'm a big fan. Thanks iFi for your great customer service and great products! I hope every launch is a huge success! I wish I could have an iUSB3.0 on every system I have. Maybe I should get the iPurifier2 and see how that goes. 

List Price: $759.00 (at Musicteck)

Product Website: http://en.uniquemelody.org/detail_185.html

Acknowledgment
I’d like to thank Unique Melody for loaning me the ME.1 for review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This review originally appeared on audioprimate.blog. I'm now sharing it with the awesome community on Head-Fi. It's the place to be.

Introduction


My first interactions with the Unique Melody brand were on Head-Fi. I had seen several reviews that basically said that the original Merlin and Miracle were awesome. Then I saw that they were doing something ambitious and potentially game changing: the ME.1. I was so enthusiastic about the ME.1 that when looking for folks to interview from British headphone companies, I set myself down the path of confusion, as Unique Melody is based in China, but used to have a good market in the United Kingdom. I’ve had a previous interview with Unique Melody’s Lawrance, and have also reviewed the Miracle v2. I have found Lawrance to be an excellent fellow and quite liked the Unique Melody Miracle v2. It was a fortuitous mistake. Here are some snippets from that interview with Lawrance regarding the development of the ME.1:

Lawrance: The idea of an in-ear planar has been around for a while. In fact, I know of at least 3 other companies that were interested in such a design, of course, I don’t know the details of where they are along that path now.

There’s certainly a lot of thought that went into the ME.1.

User experience is important, so we’ve made a big commitment to ensuring that the unit fits well and has a reasonable profile

While it does leak sound and does not isolate amazingly well, we’ve also made it a point to make sure that the product is still usable in environments such as a quiet space.

…

The part of the ME.1 that has gotten a good bit of questions is our use of a hearing protection filter in its design.

A lot of people have been asking, hey aren’t you just copying ADEL and such?

We certainly respect ADEL as a unique design and solution to hearing protection, but UM have been in the hearing protection business for quite some time ourselves. Of course, our founders and chief engineers all being from the hearing aid industry helps with that.

Our sister company, Rooth, has actually been making sound attenuating earplugs for quite a while now, and we implemented some of that technology here.

A planar driver’s ability to move air, even with an open design, has led us to believe that we need to find ways in which to normalize the pressure within the ear canal, which allows a more natural sound reproduction compared to if the canal was sealed off.

Glass Monkey: Does this mean that what your ME.1 is doing is leaking out the harmful low-frequencies that cause resonance and stapedius reflex? Basically, killing bad vibrations.

Lawrance: Yes, and at the same time, it’s an acoustic filter that attenuates the outside noise at specific frequencies.

So, in summary, there is a lot of cool tech to be interested in here. It’s an open planar magnetic in-ear that protects your hearing. Cool beans. Let’s see how it performs.

Usability: Form & Function
Unboxing


The Unique Melody ME.1 comes with a new upgraded wooden box wrapped in light cardstock. Embossed on top is some fancy cursive writing declaring the ME.1. On top of the wooden box a thick plastic Unique Melody logo is affixed. Inside the box there are two foam trays with ribbon lifts to take out the top tray. The top tray contains a case that is shaped like an oversized pill or lozenge made of silicone rubber. It is round and tapered with a core that flips out to show a cable winder and a compartment in the centre for the headphones and the 3.5mm jack plug. The compartment below has a soft case that holds all the accessories. I never used the soft case for the headphones and found the elastomer case too large, but apparently it is a big hit in the East. The soft case felt a bit flimsy to me. The headphones and cable have some girth, so I think the soft case needed more padding.









Aesthetics and Ergonomics
The ME.1 has a stately build to it. It has clean lines and a good tapered shape that I think will allow it to fit most ears. It won’t win any beauty contests in the headphone world, but it isn’t ugly in the slightest, to my tastes. If you have small ears or ears without much depth, fit may be a little difficult. The cable is oriented in an over the ear direction, with memory wire to hold the cable to your ears, which helps with fit. The included white Comply tips also help with fit, and sound good on the ME.1. The connector is sturdy. I never disconnected it, as I didn’t have another cable to try for the ME.1. UERR told me not to use their balanced cable for Unique Melody IEMs—different polarity, maybe? I never felt like the ME.1 weren’t secure.



The cable is composed of 8 cores, with half of them silver plated copper, and the other half plain copper. The wires are in twisted pairs with 4 pairs on each channel. The cable looks very nice and has a sturdy y-split and slider. In fact, I think they are too sturdy. I frequently found myself worrying about them clanking around and damaging things. I would suggest that lighter material would be better. I think these are steel, maybe the right material is aluminum. The chin slider is especially heavy feeling and sometimes draws down of its own weight. Due to the weight of the cables and the over-ear design, I had no problems with microphonics.

The bore for the IEM is large, and has a spring inside it—I presume to help catch wax. The Miracle v2 had two wide open bores that looked like a wax superhighway to the drivers. The new design is an improvement. I was able to try a lot of tips with the ME.1, so people can rest-assured that you can find a tip that fits your sound preferences. There is a high likelihood that it will be the included Comply tips. If I hadn’t attended CanJam London 2017 and stopped by HiFi Headphones’ booth, I wouldn’t have Final’s E-type tips and I would have gone with the Comply tips.



These are open IEMs, so don’t expect the isolation to be great. That said, they do have some isolation. In a positive, I found that they aren’t very leaky. I think these are fine for in the office. In fact, I think they are ideal for in the office.

Tip Rolling
I tried the stock Comply tips, Spinfit CP100s, Spinfit CP240, Symbio Mandarines, and Final Audio Design Type-E silicone tips (clear, medium-large). The best tips were the Final Audio Design Type-E tips. The Comply tips sound less clear in the mids with some loss of resolution (probably due to taming some clarity bringing treble), whilst the Type-E tips gave the most well-defined mids while not having the treble get too sharp. The Spinfit CP100s were a bit too bright for me. The Spinfit CP240s weren’t comfortable due to the bore size. Similarly, the Symbio Mandarines were also too bulky and inflexible for the ME.1. For this review, I used the Final Type-E (clear) silicone tips throughout.

Audio quality
I think I may be beginning to see the house sound of Unique Melody a bit clearer. Both the Unique Melody Miracle v2 and now this ME.1 have been fairly smooth with a bit of extra weight in the mids that gives them a touch of romance. The ME.1 are very smooth indeed.

The ME.1 has a bass character that is led by its mid-bass expression. Bass extends down into the sub-bass, but it doesn’t have the rumble that strong bass performers have. The bass here, along with some emphasis in the lower mids, serve to warm the sound a little bit. Bass has some texture. Lower mids when listening to Leonard Cohen – Leaving the Table are a bit airy and the full complexity of his vocal tones isn’t expressed (I’ve been spoiled with the HiFiMAN Susvara, these do quite well actually). Mids are forward, slightly warm and smooth. These aren’t toasty like a hot toddy by the fire, more like a Christmas jumper on a cool winter day.



The treble on the ME.1 is and not very sparkly and has some smoothed peaks. It shimmers wonderfully on hi-hats, but has a little bit slow decay. On Kraftwerk – Kometenmelodie2 the sharp peaks that should be a bit shrill on the recording I have are smoothed out. The treble is not perfectly accurate, but is tuned in a way that will ensure that there isn’t a person who will ever find a note harsh. The truth about treble is that sometimes a real instrument produces a harsh sound. You won’t get that here. The treble is euphonic. The overall signature is euphonic. These are quite pleasurable to listen to, but will rarely challenge you.

If I had to visualize signature by bass/mids/treble, it would be like this: XXx. Bass and mids are emphasised, whilst treble is smoothed and tapered, reducing emphasis.

The sound stage on the ME.1 has above average width, excellent height, and average depth. The forward mids and mid-bass reduce perception of stage depth in addition to the natural characteristics of the stage. The sound stage is excellent given the sound signature’s emphasis in bass and mids and smoothing of the treble. In my experience, increasing treble increases sound stage perception. These accomplish an excellent soundstage without having treble emphasis.

Matchability
I found that the ME.1 benefits from a source with a little treble emphasis, as the main weakness of the IEM can be a bit of slowness in the mids that smooths over some detail and can make the mids sound a little stuffy. I was happy to have the Opus #3 back in house for this review, as I think it pairs excellently with the ME.1 given that it is a touch on the bright side and is very airy sounding. The Questyle QP2R has a bigger stage, but a weightier sound and denser sounding mids with the ME.1.

I tried some other pairings. The Shanling M2s did a great job in the mids and provided a little extra bass weight. Soundstage was not as wide. I’d have no problems with this pairing being primary, these sound excellent together. The Hidizs AP200 slants a bit too much toward the bass and lower mids with the ME.1 with not enough treble presence. Drums really kick with it, but the soaring female vocals in Pixies – Where is My Mind get lost, which is a darn shame. The Echobox Explorer sounds a little thin on the ME.1.



Comparisons
After some listening, I noted that the measurements for the ME.1 were producing louder playback than the comparators when I did my normal routine of measuring to 78.2 or so with white noise and an SPL meter. This is probably due to the open design of the ME.1 and quite possibly due to the hearing protection port. It is really hard to volume match open headphones vs. closed headphones with an SPL meter, as perceived volumes just don’t match. I had to drop the ME.1 volume down substantially to make the sound more comparable. I ended up matching the ME.1 by ear, which is less than ideal. The ME.1 sounds a lot louder than what it measures. The figure I came to is that my other volume-matched IEMs were about 4dB quieter than the ME.1 at the same measured level.

Unique Melody ME.1 vs. UERR
On Pixies – Where is My Mind, the ME.1 has chunky drum hits with some slam, but limited texture. The ME.1 is rich with some mid-bass and mids emphasis. Black Francis’s vocals are more immediate on the ME.1, where they are a bit further back in the stage on the UERR. The UERR on the same track sounds comparatively lean, but more detailed. Treble is cleaner, clearer, and more extended on the UERR. The treble presentation on the ME.1 could be described as smooth. Bass texture extends further into the sub-bass on the UERR and the bass tones are more balanced. Tonally, the ME.1 will be more pleasing to more individuals with its little bit of added warmth from the mid-bass to mids and smooth treble. I think this is actually the sound profile most normal folks prefer (maybe not Western audiophiles). It won’t work as well for detail freaks or treble heads.

In terms of technical capabilities, the UERR doesn’t have as tall a soundstage as the ME.1, but it has more depth and greater instrument separation. Width on both is similar. The UERR also has greater resolution. When listening to the hi-hat on Macy Gray – I Try, the shimmer is more realistic on the UERR. The shimmer is less textured on the ME.1 and the decay is a little too smooth. The UERR has more precise decay (not too quick), whilst the ME.1 is a bit lingering and emotive.

The listening above was done in the most beneficial environment for the ME.1, but not the most beneficial environment for the UERR. The UERR can sound a bit thin on the OPUS #3 (source for most observations above) but has a bit more body whilst listening on the QP2R. On the QP2R (medium gain, high bias), the ME.1 sound is a bit thicker, but also has better layering and detail through the bass and lower mids. The ME.1 scales to higher resolution sources.

Both the UERR and the Unique Melody ME.1 use proprietary connectors (though the ME.1 can be used with standard 2-pin, they just look vulnerable), but Ultimate Ears sells a 2.5mm balanced version of their cable ($49), whereas Unique Melody does not—something that may not be corrected due to Unique Melody moving to another proprietary connector on their v3 line-up. The cable is bigger and more premium looking and feeling on the ME.1. Both IEMs are comfortable.

In a few words, the UERR is a detailed and precise whilst the ME.1 is smooth and soulful with lingering ambience. The ME.1 is headphone that you just melt into. It’s wonderfully organic sounding. Planar magnetic relaxation.



Unique Melody ME.1 vs. HiFiMAN RE800
The Unique Melody ME.1 has a smooth slightly warm signature. The HiFiMAN RE-800 is an exercise in contrast, with a V-shaped signature and big detail resolution.

The RE-800 has more extended sub-bass, which gives more texture to the bass, holistically. The mid-bass is more emphasised on the ME.1 whilst the sub-bass has more body on the RE-800.

Mids are distant at volume matched levels which makes the RE-800 sound a bit thinner, and treble is more extended. The tuning sounds thin after listening to the Unique Melody ME.1. However, when listening for vocal texture and detail on Leonard Cohen – Leaving the Table, the RE-800 has greater resolution than the ME.1. There is more grip to Leonard’s voice. The mids have a more technical sound on the RE-800, whilst they are more fluid (but less detailed) on the ME.1.

Treble has faster decay on the RE-800, which means that transients are more intact with less blending. Treble is a little more extended and sharp peaks are a bit more shrill when they should be on Kraftwerk – Kometenmelodie2 with the RE-800.

The RE-800 are really made to be played loud in loud places, not at reasonable listening levels. My testing volume is lower than what I would listen at with these. Cranking up the RE-800 would surely make them sound better, but it also risks hearing damage. The ME.1 reduces the risk of hearing damage.



Unique Melody ME.1 vs. PlusSound Spectrum
The ME.1 and the Spectrum share some characteristics. Both have round but not deep bass with a mid-bass focus. The ME.1 has more texture in the bass and a bit more quantity. Both have some thickness to their mids and a relaxing warmth. The Spectrum is a little warmer (this may be due in part to Comply tips on the Spectrum). This results in the ME.1 being the clearer of the two IEMs. Both have smooth treble, but the ME.1 is a bit more extended with a bit more shimmer to hi-hat hits.

The ME.1 has a larger soundstage with better instrument separation. The advantage on stage dimensions is especially obvious on width and height. Where the Spectrum gets just outside the borders of my ears, the ME.1 is comfortably outside my ears. Height on the ME.1 is just over my head on Norah Jones’ vocals on Feelin’ the Same Way whilst Norah is in my forehead on the Spectrum. Resolution is also higher, partly due to having less warmth in the sound signature compared to the Spectrum.

What the Spectrum does with a single balanced armature driver is very impressive, but it is not the technical equal of the ME.1. It shouldn’t be at a little more than half the price.



Comparison Table

Specifications

Conclusions
The Unique Melody ME.1 is an excellent headphone that protects your hearing whilst having a sound signature that manages to be engaging and relaxing at the same time. It accomplishes this by having a smooth tonal character and a broad and tall stage that draws you in to compositions nicely. The emphasis in the ME.1 signature is on the mid-bass and the mids, an emphasis that usually shrinks the soundstage, but the ME.1 still has an impressive soundstage for an IEM.

I think that if Unique Melody decide to build an ME.2, their focus should be on extending the treble and bass along with resolution improvement. This ME.1 is a very nice headphone. If you are looking for a euphonic sound signature that never fatigues, has an impressive sound stage, and protects your hearing, the ME.1 should be strongly considered. I think these are perfect for work, as they are smooth enough to make music not a distraction from work.

 

Acknowledgment   

Thanks 1MORE UK for providing this review sample in return for my honest opinion.
 

Introduction

Bluetooth is weird. There are a good many people who have stood on the position that all we need to hear is 320kbps MP3s. If this is so, than nobody needs the headphone jack and Apple has it right in getting rid of the archaic technology. Surely we should get rid of all technology that is more than 100 years old. My doorknob needs to be retired, as does my toilet. I don’t know what I’ll replace them with, but they are old technology, so they need to go—or so the marketing would have us believe. The billion dollar question is whether we need the wires.
I’ve reviewed 4 Bluetooth headphones now, not including the iBFree or the two further Bluetooth reviews I have on hand, and I’ve used 4 different transmitters during these reviews. I have generally found that wired performance is better than Bluetooth performance, but it isn’t night and day. On the go, in loud environments, Bluetooth may be preferable—you won’t hear the full fidelity of your music anyway.
 
The 1MORE iBFree is one of many Bluetooth headphones out there that use the aptX codec. For the purpose of this review, I think it is important that we understand what this means. According to a 2016 What HiFi? article, AptX HD Bluetooth: What is it? How can you get it?, aptX is a coding algorithm created in the 80s that was popular with film studios and radio broadcasters. AptX claims to be able to play ‘CD-like’ audio quality, but when we examine what this means. ‘CD-like’ is 352kbps lossy music. It isn’t much better than the best quality MP3s. AptX HD, the new poorly supported standard (only a couple headphones, not many transmitters), boasts a bitrate of 576kbps, and has the ability to play 24-bit/48kHz audio—it’s still compressed and lossy, but higher quality lossy. Qualcomm also claims lower distortion in the mids and treble regions—that would be spiffy. I’m not sure I get the point of aptX HD yet, but I’ll find out in the near future.
 
If you don’t have aptX you have a codec called SBC (subband coding). The Headphone List has an article that should be required reading for anyone thinking about their upcoming Bluetooth purchase. According to the linked article, SBC plays at a bitrate of 328kbps at a 44.1kHz sampling rate (at maximum quality), but with worse audio quality than a top quality 320kbps MP3. If you have an Apple device you may get AAC, which is designed to sound better than MP3 at similar bitrates.
 
The catch in all of this is that your ears will only get to hear the best codec that your transmitter and your receiver (the headphone) are capable of producing. If you are wielding an iPhone, aptX is just marketing, you don’t have it. If your phone doesn’t use it like the ZTE Axon 7, your aptX headphones will default to whatever quality SBC the phone is programmed to play—it might not be that 328kpbs high quality bitrate. Beyond this, headphones with aptX aren’t necessarily better. I have an Aukey Bluetooth USB dongle that has aptX low latency, but my older Avantree SBC only BTTC-200 is better sounding with less noise. My new Avantree Priva II transmitter is better than the Aukey also. Both Avantree transmitters sound better than my Samsung Galaxy Note 2, which has aptX.
Another factor plays into whether your Bluetooth set-up sounds any good. Unlike your wired headphones, your Bluetooth headphones have the Bluetooth receiver, a DAC and an amplifier (as well as batteries) in the earpiece(s) or attached to the earpiece(s). The quality of those components may mitigate the quality of your source. If the amplification isn’t clean to the drivers, your source isn’t really going to matter too much.
 
Wireless is just a lot more complicated than wired headphones. With wired headphones you know exactly what you are getting in the signal chain much of the time. This isn’t the case with Bluetooth headphones most of the time.
 

About the company

According to the Wall Street Journal, 1MORE was founded in 2013 by three former Foxconn executives with an in investment from Xiaomi, one of the largest mobile gear manufacturers in China among other venture capital investments. The company is based out of Shenzen, but has roots in the USA in San Diego—a really nice place to have roots with all the great beer, great food, great culture, great weather and endless beaches—and a distributorship in the UK. 1MORE aims to have a global brand to match Apple’s big bangin’ gorilla, Beats. Unlike Beats, 1MORE wants to make premium quality headphones at midrange prices, instead of making mediocre quality headphones at premium prices. As of the Wall Street Journal blog entry in 2015, achievements included 10 million in earphone sales in China, and I imagine since their triple driver won a couple of awards, that those sales numbers are way up.
 
 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

This is where the marketing speak gets voice. Most of what’s in this section of my reviews isn’t my words. I generally use standard block quote methods to let you know what I’m not saying. Keep at attention to avoid confusion. The typos are original, I take no credit for them. As is standard, brackets means that the text is mine.
 
Quote

Lightweight Ergonomic Sport Design
Be free to enjoy your music while staying active. Oblique angled ear fittings naturally match your ear canals while 3 sets of included ear tip and sport grip sizes ensure a comfortable secure fit. Extended battery life let’s you play longer.
Superb Sound With Bluetooth®4.1 and aptX®Coding
Experience meticulous wireless sound quality without signal loss. Sound quality is further improved with a titanium driver for enhanced response time, sizzling highs, present mids, and powerful bass.
Water Resistant Aluminum Alloy Body
Attractive textured aluminum body ensures durability and lasting colors while eliminating fingerprints. IPX4 water resistance protects the earpieces and controls from rain, splashing, and sweat for outdoor use and exercise.
Tuned by a Grammy Award Winning Sound Engineer
1MORE collaborated with internationally acclaimed [multiple Grammy winning] producer, mixer, and sound engineer Luca Bignardi to perfect the final tuning to deliver a precise representation of your favourite artist’s intended sound.

Click to expand...

 
 
 
The 1MORE iBFree can be purchased at uk.1more.com (£79.99). These particular headphones are $59.99 on usa.1more.com. I have no idea why they have a 40% price discrepancy on the UK 1MORE site. Right hand, meet left hand; please do a little dance and get the whole body is in step.
 

 

Form & Function

The packaging is simple and functional for the iBFree, a simple white box with perfectly tailored compartments. I found the accessories underwhelming, though, for several reasons. First, there was no pouch for the headphones. I like to keep my headphones protected. Luckily I bought a couple spare case/pouches so I’ve had something to keep these from getting mucked about too much when I toss them in my bag. Second, I couldn’t get a good fit with the included tips.
 
The iBFree is very large right behind the nozzle, and the nozzle is not very long. For me this means that the body of the headphone was competing for space with the structure of my ear. In order to have proper fit, and in order to pass what I call the doggy shake test, I had to use either Comply Isolate tips (I think the 500 variety), or Spinfit’s new double flange tip (CS220, methinks). I don’t think most people buying a sport Bluetooth headphone will expect to need aftermarket tips. Also, the Comply tips were the best fit, but they would be a bad idea for sports use. Mmm, nothing like foamies dripping oversaturated salty sweat down your ear canal.
 
[size=inherit][/size][size=inherit][/size]
 
With the stock tips, shaking my head from side to side like a shaggy dog drying off dislodges the tips easily—this is with the sport grips perfectly in place. Switching to the CP220, side to side movement loosens the headphone, but it doesn’t fly out. With the Comply Isolates, the IEM stays firmly in place.
 
I’m also not a fan of the inside vent on these headphones. If you twist the headphone wrong, your sport grip will cover over the vent. The manual even has a diagram telling you not to do this. I was able to avoid occluding this tiny little dot on the inner part of the headphone, but I think this design can be improved.
 
With regards to range, I was able to get about 20 feet away, with some office walls—real world testing—getting in the way before signal broke down badly. At about 15 feet there was some instability. Bluetooth performance depends heavily on the transmitter, so some may find that they get better than what I’ve gotten with these, some may do worse.
 
I got the full advertised 8 hours of playback and charging was quick, only an hour or so. Pairing is easy and they have a good manual to walk you through all the controls. I didn’t test the water resistance of these, but I can confirm that the USB cover firmly plugs into place. I think these will do just fine in your sweaty workout, assuming that they stay in when you go all shaggy sheep dog shake on them. For running or other up and down activities, I think fit will be less problematic. These probably won’t be great for dance or gymnastic parties, but exhibitionist park joggers will be fine.
 

Audio quality

For a single driver Bluetooth IEM at the price on offer, these sound exceptional. I hooked these up with a number of DAPs using the Avantree Priva II as my transmitter (it’s aptX low latency and excellent sounding). It sounded good with the Priva II, but the Note 2 is a lousy audio source, it’s muddy and awful in wired configuration and muddy and awful in Bluetooth, relative to real dedicated DAP and DACs at least. The Note 2 is probably better than a bucket of mud—I haven’t tested this scientifically.
 
 
I tested this with the LH Labs GO2A Infinity, the iBasso DX50, the Cyberdrive Clarity Feather DAC and the HiFiMAN SuperMini. Now I’m aware that the final DAC and amplifier are in the headphones, but it has been my experience that if you are using a USB dongle, the power of the amplifier and the quality of the DAC/Amp feeding the dongle do affect sound quality and useable volume range. If you put good stuff in, you are far more likely to get good stuff out.
 
The iBFree has a clean balanced sound. The sound reminds me quite a lot of the 1MORE E1001 Triple Driver I just reviewed, but without the bass lift, which is quite an accomplishment with two less drivers to work with. The iBFree is not as airy and has a smaller soundstage, but it accomplishes some of what the advertising speak on the UK 1MORE site claims. The sound has present bass with good quality, if not a ton of quantity. The mids are clear, precise and tonally balanced. Treble has good extension, but sometimes cymbals can sound a bit thin. Overall the treble is pleasing with no harshness. Violins are sharp when called for, but not piercing. These are really very capable dynamic drivers.
 
When listening to Sibelius’s 5^th symphony from the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra in DSD, the strings soar, but don’t have tons of separation. Musicality is preserved and the presentation is excellent, but it lacks the huge soundstage necessary to really knock Sibelius’s 5^th symphony out of the park.
 
These are really natural sounding. I think that Luca Bignardi might be a magician or a renaissance man. A renaissance magician? I think pointy hats are all the rave with both of them. He’s good, whatever way you think about him. You don’t win four Grammys if you suck. All the 1MORE gear has his signature imprinted on it, and now I find myself wanting to go get albums he’s been associated with because his sound is clear and natural, for the most part, with the EO323 being a little bit of a departure.
 
When listening to the new Chesky 30^th Anniversary Collection—go get it, it’s the good stuff, real black tar kind of stuff—every track sounds beautifully open and natural. Some of that is the recording, but the iBFree do a good job keeping pace too. You’ll need rehab after listening to this pentuple length album.
 

 
When putting on my speed test track: Animals as Leaders – Ka$cade, it mostly keeps up, but does smooth out some details. Also, the cymbals still sound thin.
 
One difference between wired and Bluetooth headphones is noise floor. You can take a wired headphone down to basically no noise floor with the right equipment in hand. You can’t change out the amplifier on Bluetooth headphones, so the noise floor that is in them is what you are stuck with. These have an audible noise floor. It isn’t offensive, but you will hear snakes hissing in the grass that aren’t really there from time to time.
 

Comparisons

Compared to the Ausdom M05 full size aptX capable Bluetooth headphone, the 1MORE iBFree have a smaller soundstage in all dimensions, but have far more precise bass with none of the somewhat woolly midbass bloat that can afflict the Ausdom M05. The M05 is more airy with a bigger sound. The iBFree is more focused and precise.
 
The Syllable D700-2017 have a more closed in mid-centric signature that is soft and smooth like an ermine throw, and probably just as ethically produced. The sound of the Syllable is very fit dependent, and the fit on these makes it difficult for the bass to show up loud and proud. The drivers on the Syllables aren’t fast enough to handle Ka$cade’s busier parts well. The mids get really muggy and woolly with all the finer details just collapsing out of the mix. These need calmer music.
 
Overall the 1MORE iBFree held up very favourably to the competition I threw at it. The sound is more precise than the Ausdom and more technically capable than the Syllable by a long distance.
 

Conclusions

The 1MORE iBFree is good value with a clear, coherent sound that did well with all the music I threw at it. It has neutral bass and mids performance with a little bit of treble roll off. Details are generally presented well. The iBFree isn’t flawless. It doesn’t have a large soundstage, has a little bit of tin smack going on with some cymbals, and can smooth over some details in particularly fast musical passages. Beyond audible limitations, the headphone may have fit issues for some, as it did for me. I was able to correct fit issues by using aftermarket tips, but the market this product is targeted at may not find that an acceptable solution. These headphones are excellent value and should be quite popular among folks wielding jackless iPhone 7’s, it is likely to be better than Apple or Beats’ in-house sound.
 
Overall, I think the positives of these headphones outweigh the negatives by a significant margin. I highly recommend the iBFree and that’s why I give it 4.25 stars. If it had a bit better fit with the stock options, this would be a solid 4.5. I think these are better than a 4 on sound, so I’ll round up to 4.5, after all.
 
Thanks again, 1MORE UK, for providing this review sample, they were definitely worthy of spending some quality time with. Then again, everything that 1MORE and Luca Bignardi have touched has sounded excellent. Just 1MORE to review.

 

Acknowledgment   

Thanks, Syed, at 1MORE UK for providing this review sample in return for my honest opinion. The MK802 is available from POCKET ROCKET UK (1MORE's official UK retailer) for £115.99 ($140).
 

 

Introduction

I find myself in a strange position. I love wired headphones. I like the plugs, I like the feel of aftermarket cables and sexy looks. I like that I can be confident that my music won’t be interrupted.
I’ve reviewed a lot of Bluetooth headphones, with my total now at six before this review is completed. Four out of six have been inexpensive units that have failed to be anywhere near giant killers, all in the below £25 price range. Most of these have sounded like average consumer headphones with inoffensive signatures that don’t move me in any way. This is not a recipe for audio pleasure. So far, my experience has been that you can get good to excellent sound from Bluetooth, but not under $50 (~$65). Ironically, I think that many of the people searching for a Bluetooth option are also the people who don’t want to spend $50 on any headphone. So these folks, those that could be wading into the shallow end of the steadily improving sound quality pool, will not partake of any auditory feast of wireless delectibles. They may not hear the 1MORE iBFree ($60 or £80), or the 1MORE MK802 ($150 or £150).
 
I think the audience that this headphone is serving is so called audiophiles such as myself, and aesthetes and fashionistas currently donning Beats and other fashion headphones like members of some me-too cult. Don’t drink the Kool-Aid, it doesn’t matter if it’s in the room and bursting through the wall. Don’t drink the Kool-Aid.
 

 
I first heard the 1MORE MK802 at CanJam London 2016. I was in the middle of reviewing the MK801 and had finished reviewing the EO323 Double Driver in-ear. I stopped by the 1MORE booth and Jude had just checked out the iBFree. Having a brief listen to the MK802 and the E1001 while seeing how impressed Jude was with the iBFree, I just had to review all of them. In hindsight, that was a big plate of food I served up, and I’m now just finishing it, with the maitre d’ signalling closing time. It’s a bit bittersweet to finish this three course meal. There’s no time for coffee and the other guests have left. The meal has been delicious, though, so there is that.
 

 

A little bit of musing on bluetooth

Bluetooth is weird. There are a good many people who have stood on the position that all we need to hear is 320kbps MP3s. If this is so, than nobody needs the headphone jack and Apple has it right in getting rid of the archaic technology. I’ve had the privilege to hear a great variety of Bluetooth headphones, and I can say with confidence that the quality is improving, and that the quality is getting ever closer to rivalling the quality found in wired headphones. For those who listen exclusively to Redbook CD rips or can’t tell the difference between MP3 and 24/192, cables may already be obsolete—assuming sufficient battery life.
 
I have generally found that wired performance is better than Bluetooth performance, but it isn’t night and day. On the go, in loud environments, at the gym, Bluetooth may be preferable—you won’t hear the full fidelity of your music anyway.
 
Many Bluetooth headphones tout their use of aptX. I think we need to define what aptX does and doesn’t do a bit better. The 1MORE MK802 is one of only a few headphones that have aptX HD (or my pair say that on the box, but it doesn't say that on the website), the green mushroom of aptX technology. According to a 2016 What HiFi? article, AptX HD Bluetooth: What is it? How can you get it?, aptX is a coding algorithm created in the 80s that was popular with film studios and radio broadcasters. AptX claims to be able to play ‘CD-like’ audio quality, but when we examine what this means. ‘CD-like’ is 352kbps lossy music. It isn’t much better than the best quality MP3s. AptX HD boasts a bitrate of 576kbps, and has the ability to play 24-bit/48kHz audio—it’s still compressed and lossy, but higher quality lossy. Qualcomm also claims lower distortion in the mids and treble regions—that would be spiffy. I’m not sure I get the point of aptX HD yet. The problem with aptX HD is that there are next to no transmitters and only a few audio output devices (headphones, speakers) that support it. The most notable sources that support aptX HD are the LG G5 and the LG V20. If you aren’t rocking one of those, you probably will be listening in just regular aptX—I’m in that boat.
 

 
If you don’t have aptX you have a codec called SBC (subband coding). The Headphone List has an article that should be required reading for anyone thinking about their upcoming Bluetooth purchase. According to the linked article, SBC plays at a bitrate of 328kbps at a 44.1kHz sampling rate (at maximum quality), but with worse audio quality than a top quality 320kbps MP3. If you have an Apple device you may get AAC, which is designed to sound better than MP3 at similar bitrates.
 
The catch in all of this is that your ears will only get to hear the best codec that your transmitter and your receiver (the headphone) are capable of producing. If you are wielding an iPhone, aptX is just marketing, you don’t have it. If your phone doesn’t use it like the ZTE Axon 7 (as far as I know, not listed aptX anywhere), your aptX headphones will default to whatever quality SBC the phone is programmed to play—it might not be that 328kbps high quality bitrate. Beyond this, headphones and transmitters with aptX aren’t necessarily better. I have an Aukey Bluetooth USB dongle that has aptX low latency, but my older Avantree SBC only BTTC-200 is better sounding with less noise. My new Avantree Priva II transmitter is better than the Aukey also. Both Avantree transmitters sound better than my Samsung Galaxy Note 2, which has aptX.
 
Another factor plays into whether your Bluetooth set-up sounds any good. Unlike your wired headphones, your Bluetooth headphones have the Bluetooth receiver, a DAC and an amplifier (as well as batteries) in the earpiece(s) or attached to the earpiece(s). The quality of those components may mitigate the quality of your source. If the amplification isn’t clean to the drivers, your source isn’t really going to matter too much.
 
Wireless headphones are just a lot more complicated than wired headphones. With wired headphones you know exactly what you are getting in the signal chain much of the time. This isn’t the case with Bluetooth headphones most of the time. I think that Bluetooth tech needs to fully disclose what chips are used inside the enclosure so consumers can know what to expect a bit more. It would be similar to being able to know that your favourite delta-sigma chip is inside your DAC. I happen to like the AK4490 almost all the time.
 
I think that the improvements in sound quality between most Bluetooth headphones aren’t down to the differences in codec, but in the differences in DACs, amps and drivers that are in the headphones. Additionally, as others have pointed out, much of the difference in sound quality between HiRes and CD/MP3 is due to better mastering on the HiRes tracks, so if you down-convert from a high quality master, you are getting most, if not all of the sound quality of that master. Theoretically, this means that Bluetooth headphones may very well replace most wired headphones in the not too distant future and we won’t be any worse off for it.
 

About the company

I’ve described 1MORE’s ascent in all of my 1MORE reviews—that’s four other products, so in this one, it’s below a spoiler.
 
 
Back to back spoilers, that’s no good. This sentence serves no purpose but to make it clear there are two spoiler boxes, maybe you’ll open one or both up just to not look at this puke green sentence any longer than you have to.
 
 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

This is where the marketing speak gets voice. Most of what’s in this section of my reviews isn’t my words. I generally use standard block quote methods to let you know what I’m not saying. Keep at attention to avoid confusion. The typos are original, I take no credit for them. As is standard, brackets means that the text is mine.

 

1. Superb Sound with Bluetooth® 4.1, aptX® Coding, and Beryllium Driver- Experience meticulous wireless sound quality without signal loss. The sound quality is further improved with a large beryllium driver that delivers sizzling highs, present mids, and powerful bass. The bass level can be boosted or limited with a convenient switch on the ear cup.
2. Exceptional Comfort and Style- The headband and ear cup housings are constructed with TR-90 synthetic titanium for extreme durability, flexibility, lightweight comfort, and modern appeal. The ear cups rotate in four directions to customize your comfort level and ensure noise isolation.
3. Tuned by a Grammy Winning Sound Engineer- 1MORE collaborated with internationally acclaimed producer and sound engineer Luca Bignardi to perfect the final tuning to deliver a precise representation of your favorite artist’s intended sound.
4. Intelligent Control Technology and Microphone- Convenient ear cup controls are compatible with Apple iOS and Android, allowing you to control Bluetooth, 1MORE app, volume, select songs, take calls, and activate voice control. Superior MEMS microphone eliminates echo, cross-talk, and background static for crystal clear phone calls.

 
…
 
BONUS FEATURES
 
Our MK802s come with an optional Kevlar® core cable enhanced with TPE for comfort with additional in-line microphone and remote (useful if your battery is low). In addition, the MK802s work in conjunction with our optional downloadable 1MORE Assistant app. Current features include: Optional Hearing Protection for monitoring kid’s volume levels and for adults concerned with hearing health; Smart Burn-In for optimizing your MK802’s sound quality within a shortened time period; 1MORE button for controlling assignable apps right from your ear cup.
 

Click to expand...

 

Form & Function

The MK802s come in the same box as the MK801s and even have the same cloth pouch, and same cable (in a new colour in my case). That cloth pouch is still about as protective as a paper bag—I’ve definitely seen tougher paper bags. The foam inner box has grown on me a bit since I reviewed the MK801. It still isn’t as fancy-pants as the 1MORE E1001 or the 1MORE EO323 box innards, but the box has a solid feeling foam insert, a useful accessory box and one can never forget the all important desiccant package—do not eat, that’s for keeping out the salty sea air, not for causing poisoning down in there.
 
The headband is made of the same material as that of the MK801 and took a little bit to break in, much like the MK801 headband. I find the headbands on both headphones to be most comfortable tilted slightly forward. The earcups are more plush than those on the MK801 and slightly larger in width (75mm vs. 70mm), so they have a bit less concentrated pressure on the ears. The depth is the same, but the MK802 have softer pads with a nicer feeling protein leather. These are still not circumaural, but they are more comfortable than their forebearer. Like the MK801 the cups have good adjustability via vertical movement, and are adjustable on two additional axes, both front to back and side to side on the head.
 
There are five buttons on the right earcup. From top to bottom, they are: the power on/pair button, volume up button, play/pause/answer call button, volume down button, and the dedicated 1MORE Assistant App button. Pairing and volume control were mostly straight forward, with the exception of pairing with my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (I know, why do I still have such an ancient outdated phone, right?). Pairing with computers and dongles was easy with all devices identifying the 1MORE MK802.
 
The Note 2 had to be put into developer mode. I didn’t answer any calls while using my Note 2, but I did try to make one. On that occasion the microphone didn’t turn on, so I could hear the person on the other end, but they couldn’t hear me. It may just be that I’m a newbie to making calls with Bluetooth, but there were no instructions in the manual for making calls, only for answering them.
The included manual was clear with good definition of all functions. There was also a manual included for the 1MORE Assistant app. Personally, I found the app to be absolutely useless. It didn’t help me pair the headphone when my phone wasn’t allowing pairing, it didn’t have any really interesting features or modes for the headphones, and the included smart burn-in feature was stupid. The principle behind burn-in is to exercise a dynamic driver so that it has longer excursions, increasing its capabilities. The app sets the volume of the phone at 20%, which is not sufficient to exercise a driver. It’s like doing the right exercise but with a weight that won’t challenge the driver. Most burn-in recommendations I’ve read have said to play between slightly lower than normal listening volume to slightly above. All advise against blasting the volume. I normally play at normal listening volume for burn-in. I didn’t use the app for burn-in as the audio signal was just way way way too quiet. It was school library when all the students have left quiet.
 

 
In addition to the controls on the right earcup there is also a headphone cable out. The cable used for the MK802 is exactly the same as that used for the MK801—noticing a theme here? I burned in the headphones using the cable. Burn-in did help the sound, making it open up a bit and making the sound more defined. It was a bit murky to start. I found that the sound is better without the headphone cable, with better overall clarity. There is something to be said for the amplifier having almost no distance to the diaphragm.
 
My favourite feature, by far, is on the left earcup: the bass switch. The bass switch has a boosted setting and a reduced setting. The boosted setting does a nice job boosting sub-bass and lower midbass. To my ears it accomplished this without colouring the mids. The boost is bigger than on the iFi iDSD BL and more broadband.
 
 
 
The Bluetooth is strong with this one—I’ve been watching way too much Star Wars. I was able to travel about 10 meters with solid signal. With regards to longevity, the battery life is absolutely exceptional. The specs say that the battery will last for 15 hours listening time, I got 23 hours. Well done, 1MORE.
 
 

Audio quality

The 1MORE MK802 is a larger, more refined version of the MK801 with long-life Bluetooth added.
 

Comparisons

For comparative listening I volume matched every headphone using my trusty SPL meter with big foam ball or with my toilet roll and Poundland packing tape coupler—extra special reviewing gear here. Volume was matched to 78dB using white noise from Ayre Acoustics – Irrational but Efficacious System Enhancement Disc.
 
 
Below is the rest of the signal chain:
Dell Vostro—LH Labs Lightspeed 2 USB—iFi Micro iUSB3.0—LH Labs Lightspeed 2 USB—LH Labs GO2A ∞—
            —Avantree Priva II AptX transmitter—1MORE MK802 Bluetooth headphone
—Avantree Priva II AptX transmitter—1MORE iBFree Bluetooth IEM (Comply tips)
—Avantree Priva II AptX transmitter—Syllable D700-2017 Bluetooth IEM
—1MORE MK801
—Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (got to have a neutral reference in there!)
 
For Bluetooth headphones I maxed transmission volume on the GO2A and then adjusted volume on the headphones to closest match. All volume adjustment was done via the GO2A volume controls for wired headphones. The Avantree Priva II sounds better than the Cayin i5 Bluetooth out, and better than my phone’s Bluetooth, I wouldn’t be surprised if this little white disc of flexibility bests a lot of Bluetooth setups. Something to note with Bluetooth dongles is their black box nature; inside the Avantree Priva II there is an ADC, and a DAC and Bluetooth transmitter (maybe part of same chip, I don’t have a clue) but I don’t know what they are. One advantage of the Avantree Priva II is that it can pair two Bluetooth headphones at the same time, which is hugely useful for reviewing. I should have bought this little white beauty a long time ago. The table below presents the volume levels and recorded SPL readings for each of the headphones.
 
 

Syllable D700-2017

Why – Strawberries has a bit of a veiled sound, but for £20.99, these are doing pretty well. Bass sound is very fit dependent and these things are sized like they are made for Keebler Elves or other fey creatures, not for humans who have reached full maturity. If I press these in firmly I get a more intimate soundstage, bigger bass and more muffled mids. I prefer the loose fit that is more natural on these, which is good, because I’d have to hold my fingers on top of the capsules to make these seal more—that would be a pain in the butt. There is nice sparkle on the bells. Perla Batalla’s rendition of Bird on a Wire (RIP Leonard Cohen—2016 was like a class field trip to the sewage processing plant, at least it’s over). Overall the detail is pretty excellent for this price range.
 

1MORE MK802

Bigger than D700-2017 in every dimension on soundstage. Fit much more comfortable. Both headphones have a neutral-ish sound to their base signature. I can flip a switch for more bass on the MK802, though, which is awesome like a Secret Aardvark hot sauce. That’s some hot action there when listening to Yoni Wolf drop some twisted and demented rhymes on Mumps, Etc…. I far prefer the MK802 with the bass switch pumped up on many tracks. Pushing the bass a bit forward also gives the impression of greater depth in the signature. It’s a nice improvement much of the time.
 

 
There is really nice air between instruments in the MK802 presentation. Perla’s vocals should always enchant, and the MK802 don’t fudge with that—children force you to learn prudent self-censorship. I prefer this trackThe soundstage on the MK802 is not as big as that on the Ausdom M05. Some of this could be due to the MK802 sealing better. The MK802 does have better detail and separation than the Ausdom M05. For rock tracks and hip-hop tracks I found that I basically always flip the bass switch as it is much more satisfying.
 
To test out speed, I tried to do some metal music, but volume levelling doesn’t work right for metal, it removes all the dynamics and makes the music sound muted. Metal shouldn’t be muted. However, when I turn off the levelling the result is distortion. These headphones can’t handle being punched in the face by some aggressive metal music.
, 

Ausdom M05

Warmer than the MK802. Big midbass, with a little bleed into the mids. Still love the fantastic airiness in the signature, good 3-dimensional soundstage. More comfortable than the MK802. Leak sound like a sieve, though, so not suitable for out and about or in a quiet office. The bass is on these is like a less controlled version of the MK802 with the bass switch engaged. These sound louder and more energetic than the MK802 due to a more forward signature and the big bass enhancement. However, instrument definition on the M05 is not nearly on par with the MK802. The soundstage has greater dimensions in all ways, but instrument separation isn’t as refined and mids and midbass are forward, a sound that many will prefer.
 

1MORE iBFree

Listening to Michael Jackson – Billie Jean, the house sound is readily apparent. Similarly, both of these headphones use single dynamic drivers to provide their sound. The soundstage is smaller than the MK802 and notes don’t have quite the same precision, but the sound signature is very similar. The mids on the iBFree are a bit more forward than the MK802, which is helpful in picking out the details of the train station announcements on Pink Floyd – On the Run. Similarly, the drums are closer on Pink Floyd – Time, which compresses the soundstage depth a bit but gives more immediacy to the sound. There will be folks that prefer the more forward mids of the iBFree. I think that both presentations are good. In my opinion, the MK802 definitely has the edge in overall presentation.
 

1MORE MK801

Similar to the iBFree, the 1MORE MK801 is a bit more mid-forward in the signature. Listening to Dragonforce – The Fire Still Burns reveals that the amplifiers in the MK802 earpieces just aren’t up to snuff for loudly mastered tracks. They twist and distort when exposed to more heavy tracks. Something I’ve found is that if a track is mastered loud, listening to it quiet will never sound right. I try to have a live feel to music when listening. Because I wanted to listen to some metal, I did a corded comparison for the MK801 and MK802 with volume matched as follows with white noise: MK802 = GO2A Infinity 450mW, volume = 41; MK801 = GO2A Infinity 450mW,  volume = 37). I used the cable from the MK801 for both, but it is likely that the cable is identical between the two headphones, just a different colour.
 
Listening to Animals as Leaders – Ka$cade, the background is a tiny bit noisier on the MK801, and the notes a little less precise. The MK802 is also a bit faster. Some detail is lost in both. The MK801 has more forward mids, which will be inviting to many. I experienced no distortion with either headphone in cabled operation.
 

UERR

Since I was already corded, and still wanted to judge some speed, I ran some more volume matching for the UERR without volume levelling (GO2A Infinity 450mw, volume 29). Mids are more like the MK801 on the UERR than like the MK802, which inclines me to conclude that the mids are a bit recessed on the MK802. The soundstage of the MK802 is more intimate and has less well-defined elements, but we are talking about a nearly £900 price difference. The UERR is a bit denser in the mids too, which isn’t always welcome, depending on the track and sonic preferences.
 
Throwing on San Francisco Symphony Orchestra – Harrison: Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra (off American Mavericks), the UERR sorts instruments in space much better with a greater soundstage in all dimensions.
 
Whilst the MK802 is not as technically accomplished as the UERR, it’s performance is by no means embarrassing. It is still a great sounding headphone. I’m finishing off with some SACD ripped Pixies – Where Is My Mind. The mids are further back on the MK802 and it doesn’t give the same level of performance in soundstage or instrument definition, but it is still very satisfying.
 

Conclusions

I set out with three new 1MORE headphones to review in August. Of the 1MORE headphones, these MK802s have the greatest range of functionality. I love love love the bass boost on the MK802 and find myself engaging it much of the time for the increase in body and small increase in perceived stage depth. These are fast enough to keep up with the technical metal of Animals as Leaders and reach high enough to showcase the airy twinkling percussion of the Welsh folk of 9Bach. If you are looking for a Bluetooth headphone that will give you copious playback time, good range, corded operation for when that mega-battery runs out, and a neutral signature with extra bass on demand, these 1MORE MK802s should be on your list of headphones to check out.
Thanks again, 1MORE UK, for providing this review sample, these were a nice cap to a delicious three course audio meal, though I feel like I did this in the wrong order. These are definitely more of a main, with the iBFree being an appetiser and the E1001 Triple Driver a dessert. It’s time to turn the lights out and go home.

Acknowledgment   

Thank you Shozy for the review sample in exchange for my honest opinion.

 

Introduction

Shozy is a manufacturer out of Hong Kong known for their interesting portable DAC/Amps and price to performance ratio. The company responsible for the brand has also manufactured under the name Cozoy. I think Shozy sounds nicer. The Zero continues in the same price to performance vein where the esoteric Alien and Alien Gold DACs have tread before, but the Zero is a lot more approachable.
 
Shozy sells the Zero on their website for $60 and notes that there are only a limited list of authorized distributors, check that your local (or not so local) shop is associated with the right distributor.
 

 

Vital Statistics (specs from manufacturers and distributors)

In this section of my reviews I try to let the manufacturer’s story about their product be told. Manufacturers and retailers always have something to say about their products, some of the time it’s accurate. The review sections will tell whether that is the case here.
 
Shozy doesn’t provide very informative information on their website, and has it formatted in a way that makes copy/paste onerous, the whole page is a jpeg. Shozy should definitely improve on making their website not just pretty, but functional. You can put lipstick on a pig, but you probably won't want to take that pig to the village dance--I don't presume to know what your community does. I’ve chopped the relevant bits up for you here.
 
Try googling pig with lipstick, you'll get racism, misogyny, judgemental religious blogs, and other fantastic things besides this great image. She's so stylish, she even knows how to wear pearls. Better trot out your best Sunday suit.
 

 
 

 
 
 
Conspicuously missing from the specs were driver size and impedance. Whilst the driver size isn't listed, it's a pretty safe bet to say between 8 and 10mm. The website says of low impedance. I have no idea what this means, but I'm guessing it means somewhere around 16Ω.
 

 
As can be seen, Shozy kind of sucks at drawing graphs. The scale here is obviously not linear, which makes it difficult to discern where that heavy roll-off really starts happening. That dip that drops down to 0 doesn't look so good to me. Luckily, it sounds better than that graph makes me feel. Maybe I just suck at reading graphs. After all, I've used the XKCD cartoon below for teaching economic modelling.
 
 

 

 

Form & Function

The units I received were one of many beta units sent out into the wild by Shozy, and I was very happy to be approached. My unit came in a simple padded mailer with no case or retail packaging, so I can’t comment on the packaging first hand. These are the accessories listed by Shozy as coming with the IEM:

1. Carrying pouch
2. Single flange eartips (S/M/L)
3. User manual

 
The stock tips have a very wide bore, which I found to increase stage width but decrease bass definition. I preferred the slightly smaller stage and improved overall definition and clarity of the spinfits. One interesting thing on the nozzle is there is a little notch on the bottom. Shozy indicates that this is for tuning, but I found that it also makes it easier to get tips on. The Shozy Zero has quite a large bore and loading the tips over the notch makes fitting tips much easier.
 
Overall the accessories are pretty bare, but are acceptable for the price range. There are headphones at lower prices with much nicer accessories, like the Brainwavz Jive. This is an area where Shozy could improve here, but from what is listed on Penonaudio.com, the cost of the wood might necessitate the price, and further accessories may cut into margins too much. According to Penonaudio:
 
SHOZY Zero in-ear earphones use simple in-ear design, wearing comfortable. Earphone front shell is  precisely processed by lathe and CNC,it has a remarkable acoustic structure designed to allow normal speaker releasing excellent sound; the rear shell, splitting and the plug shell, and are using good quality red sandalwood, precision lathe processed, carefully selected (1500 sets of wooden shell can pick out only about 300 sets). Imported speaker driver, high-sensitivity low impedance, mobile phone can drive it easily, if play with the high-end players and decoding amp, sound quality increase significantly and clearly.
 
The description on Penonaudio using ‘red sandalwood’ is not an error, as rosewood and red sandalwood are varieties of the same family. Rosewood is known for its excellent density, which makes it desirable in audio and woodcarving applications. Suffice to say that rosewood, a less expensive variety of red sandalwood, is still an expensive component.
 
Something to note ahead of getting into all this. I was advised by Shozy’s representative to burn the headphones in using classical music for at least 100 hours, preferably 200 hours. I think that this is a completely unreasonable amount of burn-in for a $60 headphone. If it requires this much burn in, most of this should be done at the factory. I’m also of the opinion that music doesn’t give drivers the same exercise as noise. I would usually burn-in headphones using what I’ve coined ‘Neapolitan noise.’ Neapolitan noise is white noise, pink noise, and brown noise; it’s like vanilla, strawberry and chocolate ice cream combo bricks you find in your grocery freezer section. Noise gives a more full frequency workout that reduces time to burn in drivers completely, and I’ve found that most headphones after 20 hours of noise exhibit no further changes. I have run into headphones that change around 50 hours, but there aren’t many. For the Zeros, I followed the manufacturer instructions, mostly. I tested them at zero, 20, 50, and 100 hours and noted that there were changes along the way. After 100 hours I gave them some Neapolitan noise to firm them up. The zero is more strident at first blush and mellows out over time. Give it due time.
 
 
 
 
 
 

Audio quality

The Shozy Zero has a warm mid/upper bass emphasis with smooth and pleasant sounding treble that does very nice with violins. I found that with the stock tips the bass could be a little fuzzy. A bit more control would be an improvement. The sound stage has good width but depth is superficial. You can hear the relative weight in the stage of instruments at different depths, but you can’t feel the air moving through and around instruments. It is like a painting done with broad brush strokes versus a painting using finer strokes. Both are pleasing, but the details are far superior when the more delicate brush is used. Instrument placement could be more palpable, with better separation in the depth dimension. Soundstage height is excellent on the Shozy Zero. I think the stock tips trade off some detail in order to blast out an impressively wide soundstage.
 
Switching to Spinfits, which give the bass more control and crispy up the treble a bit, I tried the Shozy Zero with a few DAC/DAPs. The Cyberdrive Feather DAC (a crazy bargain at current prices, $30 on IndieGoGo for DSD256 native DAC) is a nice pairing. The Feather DAC is a bit bass shy, so it controls some of the excesses on the Zero. I prefer a bit less emphasis on bass quantity, and more emphasis on bass quality most of the time, and the Feather tones down quantity nicely with the Zero. Soundstage height is still exceptional at this price. The LH Labs Geek Out 1000 is also a good pairing. The GO 1000 is fairly neutral with a bit of treble emphasis giving it a sharp sound that can be a touch metallic. This works well with the Shozy Zero. The iBasso DX50 has a bit of emphasis in the midbass to lower mids, which is where the emphasis is on the Zero also, so it didn’t make as good a pairing. The Opus Audio Opus #1 is a great pairing for anything I threw at it as it is sublimely neutral and was no different with the Shozy Zero.
 
When compared to the MEE Audio Pinnacle P1 (link to review), listening to Father John Misty – The Night Josh Tillman Came to Our Apartment, the Shozy Zero has more soundstage width and height, but lacks the definition and depth. The Shozy Zero has a romantic quality to it that many will find inviting. It has more forward mids and bass, and smooth treble that doesn’t extend as well as the Pinnacle, which makes it a less detailed sounding IEM, in comparison. Detail is still good with the Zero. I use Josh Tillman’s voice to check whether the midbass is bleeding into the lower mids and colouring the sound. Whilst there is emphasis in the midbass and upper bass, the Zero didn’t colour Josh Tillman’s voice, which made me very happy.
 
Listening to San Francisco Symphony Orchestra – Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra - I. Allegro (off American Mavericks), with the LH Labs Geek Out V2 as the DAC (low gain, 100mW) the Zero keeps pace well and has good impact, but the 64 Audio X2 is a bit more composed with a greater sense of depth and a bit more impact on drums and percussion. Downloads now has a slew of fantastic recordings, and I particularly enjoy San Francisco Symphony Orchestra recordings. Concerto for Organ with Percussion… is a fantastically lively 5 and ½ minute track. I love me some percussion, and own four or five hi-res percussion albums from 24/96 PCM to DSD256. About the 64 Audio X2, which is relatively unknown, it was a Kickstarter exclusive fixed cable version of the 64 Audio U2, which retails at $399, so it is very impressive that the Shozy Zero is performing on similar level. I much prefer the 64 Audio X2, but it isn’t an open-shut case, and others may have different views. Both are excellent sounding. On Rage Against the Machine – Killing in the Name, the 64 Audio X2 is a bit cleaner and sharper with a slightly more balanced sound, which is more to my sound preference. On Be’Lakor – Abeyance/Remnants of the dynamic range laden metal purity Vinyl remaster of Of Breath and Bone, thanks @Trogdor (follow him on twitter @MetalFi), the 64 Audio X2 has much better bass texture, clarity, instrument separation and depth. The 64 Audio X2 is just better than the Zero, in my opinion.
 
Versus the Fidue A65 (link to review), the Shozy is a touch warmer and a little bit less crunchy.The signature of the Shozy is more restrained, with a bit more depth and width to the stage. The Fidue A65 has a more forward energetic signature with more brightness. Both are stellar performers in the price range. The Fidue A65 can be had from Hi Fi Headphones, locally in the UK for under £50. In a strange note, I’m pretty sure the rose gold Fidue A65 have the exact same cable as the Shozy Zero. The less sexy silver ones I have on hand have a black cable, so I can’t confirm if it is the same.
 
The Zero is really easy to drive. The Feather DAC doesn’t have much power, but it drives the Shozy Zero plenty. I like the Zero best with the Opus #1 and the Geek Out V2, two very neutral dacs with good strength in detail resolution.

 

Conclusions

The Shozy Zero is an excellent under $75 IEM. In fact, it is an excellent under $200 IEM. I don’t know if the joke on HeadFi is apocryphal or true regarding the Zero being designed to compare to headphones with an extra ‘0’ on the price, but I found it competed very well with all my sub $200 offerings.
 
This is a beautiful headphone made with premium wood with a warm and pleasurable sound. The soundstage is impressive for the price. It has smooth treble with a warm inviting sound that many will enjoy. I like a little less emphasis on the upper bass/lower mids, but this is a small quibble. Even with this emphasis, details are still good but do not beat the MEE Audio Pinnacle or the 64 Audio X2.
 
The Shozy Zero is well worth picking up for the low price of admission and competes very well with more expensive offerings.

Introduction
I didn’t know anything about Lark Studio until I was asked if I wanted to be put in contact with them by a friend in the review world over at Simply Audiophile. He tried to put me in contact with Lark Studios via Head-Fi and my email, but I never got any messages. Then the European distributor for Lark Studios contacted me to ask if I wanted to run a tour, and I noticed that I had an old friend request from someone with Lark Studios in their Facebook ID. With that we were off to the races. I’m the first up on the tour, in a change of pace from my usual closer position. Hopefully none of my review tour mates will read this too much, as I’m going full throttle here. Lots of comparisons, lots of variations in set-up, lots of work. After me, there are 6 more people signed up to the tour, so you’ll be getting a variety of opinions.

The Head-Fi thread for Lark Studio can be found here. Each reviewer will have about 24 days to produce their review, with a loan time of 10 days. This should be a lot of fun.

Acknowledgment
The Lark Studio LSX was provided to me on loan from Audio Concierge and Lark Studio as part of a review tour. The LSX will be returned to Audio Concierge after completion of the review tour. I have received no compensation for this review. All thoughts in this review are my personal opinion.

This review was originally published on Audio Primate. Our blog and so many others wouldn't exist without Head-Fi. We love this community and want to give back to it.

A little bit about Lark Studio and the LSX
Lark Studio was formed by a couple audio-fanatics from other IEM labs. They’ve got a good deal of experience in the industry but the LSX is their very first product. The goal of the product was to get people’s attention, and it has. There’s a sprinkling of impressed reviewers all over the interwebs and it has basically wide-spread acclaim. The distributor told me that he thought it was a Noble Encore killer and better than the Unique Melody Mason V3 and Mentor V3—luckily I can test against all three right now as I’m still producing my Mentor V3 and Mason V3 reviews (stay tuned!).

Lark Studio will have additional IEMs coming out in the upcoming year designed to appeal to different audiences than the fun-tastic LSX. A four driver with more of a reference tuning and a new 12-driver flagship focused on superior technical performance.



Usability: Form & Function
Unboxing


The LSX comes in a large-ish black box encased in a matt black card sleeve, the box inside the sleeve is emblazoned with Lark Studio in red on the outside. Th box has a magnetic clasp closure. It is of average quality. On the inside, the earpieces are shipped connected to the cable, which is a single ended copper cable from Rhapsodio. The cutout for the earpieces is twice as deep as it needs to be, which is why the earpieces in my picture are in little baggies. The depth of the cutout should be reduced. A large selection of tips are included with the LSX and sent in a display box. While there is a large variety, people with very small ear canals aren’t catered for, as there are only three tip sizes. Accessories include the ubiquitous airline adaptors and a 3.5mm to 6.3mm adaptor, both of which are displayed prominently. It always humours me when components that cost under $1 on the open market are displayed like prizes.


I actually put one of these in a Christmas stocking once. I’m a mean one, Mr. Grinch.
All the other accessories are inside a hard jewelry style cardboard box. These accessories include: a faux leather pouch that is conspicuously long (looks like it is for children’s sunglasses), two amp stacking bands (I doubt people would use the LSX with a dedicated amp), a polishing cloth, and a cleaning tool.



I get what Lark Studio was going for here. They wanted a premium unboxing experience. They didn’t quite get it. This is what I would do instead:

• Ditch the amp stacking bands, faux leather bag, and the jewelry box.
• Include a small hard travel case
• Make the box more compact. This may save the company on shipping.
• Put accessories inside the small travel case

Aesthetics & Build


The 2-pin connector on the IEMs (female side) is completely external and leaves a tiny bit of the pins exposed. Having a slight indent into the body would allow for a more secure fit and would reduce breakage risk via stress on the pins. Even 1mm into the body would likely make a difference in the security of the connection while not changing the profile of the IEM at all.

The sound bores appear on the nozzle appear to be directly drilled into the IEM body with white acrylic seen right behind the glossy black shine of the IEM, I anticipate that sound tubes in the internal structure lead to the very front of the IEM, with the rest of the distance traversed by the body.

The included cable is a very nice what appears to be 24 AWG type 2 Litz copper cable manufactured by Rhapsodio. This cable was based on a retired Rhapsodio design and customised for Lark Studio. The cable is good quality with a nice lustre, but was not available in balanced terminations at the time of review. The company founders are looking into whether Rhapsodio will do this. The cable itself is very well built with a nice tight braiding all the way along the cable that gives it excellent flexibility. The terminations appear to be good quality and the 2-pin connectors have some grip to them instead of being metal slide-fests. Many cable manufacturers make the mistake of using polished chrome-effect 2-pin connector housings which are hard to grip when you need to. The cable is a really good cable. However, I think there is some risk in having a cable that is based on a retired design. I would suggest that given that they already partner with PWAudio for the Saladin cable (SPC and copper, available in balanced, $200 extra on IEM price), they should consider striking up a full partnership with PWAudio, and maybe get their No. 5 cable in bulk. Just looking at pictures, the PWAudio No. 5 is not to the same build quality as the retired Rhapsodio, but predictable supply may trump the value of the Rhapsodio cable’s better build quality. The No. 5 cable is not likely to disappear in any significant way and may allow an even better partnership to form. Manufacturers like Empire Ears and Jomo Audio already partner with Effect Audio, so clearly there is some benefit to be had from these partnerships for both sides.

Ergonomics
For the most part the Lark Studio LSX presents a pretty comfortable ergonomic fit. The size of the IEM is incredibly small for having an outlay of 10 balanced armature drivers inside of it. It is smaller and lighter than the Noble Encore (10 drivers) and the Unique Melody Mentor V3 (12 drivers) universal versions. The Noble Encore has a compact size, but the weight makes choice of tips very important as the tips have to have excellent stability and grip. I’ve found that the Final Type E tips are the best for the Encore and haven’t had slippage problems since switching to the large versions of these.

The included Spinfit CP155 & CP230 (bi-flange) and the Comply T-500 tips might be the only tips that really fit the nozzle of the Lark Studio LSX, so your tip choices may be limited to what is in the box. Given that I’m not into a hugely warm sound, I knew immediately from my CP155 listening that the tendency of the Comply foams to attenuate treble and ramp up mid-bass would not be to my liking. My final tip choice was the CP155. These are long flange tips that can isolate really well if you give a little tug on the top of the ear and wiggle the IEM.

The ergonomics of the included cable are excellent. In my experience the best type of earguide is a light preformed ear-guide that has a tiny bit of spring to it. These types of earguides fit to the ears without causing pressure. They don’t have the extra bulk and pressure points of memory wire, and they don’t have the sheer mass of solutions like what HiFiMAN do with the RE2000 Silver (and Gold) wherein they have an external massive plastic rubber cradle for the cable that basically nobody would ever find comfortable on their ear, especially with glasses. In other words, the earguide on the Lark Studio LSX is just about perfect.



Audio quality
The LSX has a fun signature with a healthy helping of bass and warm sound. It has smooth treble while still having good detail in the mids. The mids are silky smooth and inviting. Bass is present, but has a focus on the mid-bass, with less prominent extension than some other in-ears. The bass gives some dynamic driver like impact and has a long decay. The soundstage is average to a little below average for the price point and has a notably forward signature that causes some reduction in depth.

Matchability
When I did initial listening test with the Questyle QP2R I did so straight out of the single ended jack. When I went to do my comparison work with the Noble Encore, it wasn’t possible to do the Noble Encore with it’s stock cable from the single-ended jack as this would result in excessive warmth in the midbass and likely some hissing—I’d previously observed these when working with the Noble Encore. So to tame the mid-bass bump I went and grabbed the Ultimate Ears Buffer Jack with the thought that this would work just like the iFi iEMatch 2.5mm worked to make it so I could use the Encore with the QP2R. It worked. This also made me think that the QP2R may have been causing extra bloom with the LSX, so I tested. It was.

When listening to Wilco – Handshake Drugs (16-44) I noted that the bass in the intro was better controlled with the buffer jack and that the mids were a hair clearer. I think that there is improvement in the treble/upper mids that leads to enhancement of the bass and mids. The differences weren’t huge but were noticeable. With Daft Punk – Instant Crush (24-88), the bass drum remains palpable with the UE Buffer Jack and the bass guitar is a touch tighter. Mids are also slightly more forward giving better sonic balance with the placement of the bass. On Pink Floyd – The Thin Ice (16-44) I note a little more stage width with the buffer jack and that same improvement in bass control. Without the buffer jack the bass on Macy Gray – Slowly (24-192, binaural) overshadows Macy Gray’s voice a bit. The buffer jack brings better balance and also gives cymbals better presence. QP2R with buffer jack was my preferred sound, but there will be plenty who crave the additional warmth that I was looking to tame, so your mileage may vary. I didn’t observe hiss with the Lark Studio LSX on the QP2R at all, with or without the UE Buffer Jack.

The sound from the SOUNDAWARE M2Pro without buffer jack sounded indistinguishable from the QP2R plus buffer jack, which was good for me, and confirmed my belief that the current mode amplification was affecting the sound on the QP2R without the buffer jack. The M2Pro is a fantastic sounding player, but the QP2R is much easier to review on and sounds virtually identical, so the QP2R is the primary reviewing rig for this review, with accessories.

I found the LG V30 to drive the LSX just fine, but also found that it had a little bit extra warmth compared to what I get from the SOUNDAWARE M2Pro or the Questyle QP2R plus UE Buffer Jack. I tried using the buffer jack with the LG V30 and it did mostly fine but sometimes clipped in the treble region. This led me to listen mostly without the buffer jack when using the LG V30.

Cables


The cable that comes with the basic Lark Studio LSX is a Rhapsodio cable and isn’t available in balanced implementation. Lark Studio does offer a balanced Cable made by PWAudio called the Saladin for $200 more, which is an increment that is less than if you bought the cable on it’s own. Unfortunately, Lark Studio did not send the review unit with a PWAudio Saladin, so testing alternative cables will fall completely outside of those offered by Lark Studio.

In order to compare with the stock Rhapsodio cable I ran each balanced aftermarket cable through a 2.5mm to 3.5mm convertor and then used the UE Buffer Jack hooked up to the single-ended output on the QP2R. I’ve previously identified that there are no significant impedance mismatches between the cables through volume matching, which means when I do cable tests I don’t have to volume match, I just need to be super quick on my switches so that the miniscule differences are noticeable. Cable switching runs huge risks of confirmation bias and I can’t guarantee I’m immune. The ideal situation would be to have two identical IEMs with different cables playing out of a neutral splitter. There would be next to no lag time. As is, my lag time is generally around 30 seconds, which is pretty fast when having to pull out 2-pin cables re-insert new cables and then get the IEMs in ear and play.

I really like the pairing of the PlusSound X-Series Gold-plated copper (GPC) cable with the LSX, the primary effect of the PlusSound X-Series GPC that I’ve noticed is a strengthening of the middle of notes which gives them a little added focus and smooth transients. It pairs very nicely with the LSX, just as it does with the Noble Encore.

The most expensive accessory I have in my review cave is the Double Helix Cables Symbiote Elite SP (8-braid). I don’t recommend most people spend their money on an $800 cable if they can spend that money on a better DAP or headphone, but it absolutely makes a difference in terms of maximising performance of a high performing IEM. Bass is a touch smaller but tonally the same with the Symbiote Elite SP when listening through the extended intro of Isaac Hayes – Walk On By (DSD64). Sound stage has a bit more width and depth. The stock cable is a touch warmer, but most of the warmth is coming from the tuning. Switching to Saturday Looks Good To Me – Sunglasses (16-44), bass is a touch tighter with the Symbiote Elite SP with little difference in bass presence (less), but the bigger difference is the openness of the stage. The elements in the stage have better definition and there is more overall space in every dimension (height, width and depth). This is my favourite pairing. Switching up to balanced amplification with volume matching (vol. 98, 78.4 dB) on the Questyle QP2R with the iFi iEMatch 2.5 gives a small incremental boost in the characteristics the cable is already revealing. The wire isn’t adding anything, it’s getting out of the way.

Comparisons
All comparisons were done using stock cables with some use of the UE Buffer Jack where necessary. Volume matching was done using white noise and an SPL metre. I provide this information so that if people want to do the exact same comparison, they can repeat my observations without an SPL metre. Repeatability is the heart of scientific enquiry.



Ultimate Ears Pro Reference Remastered (UERR) ($999) vs. Lark Studio LSX ($1699)
The UERR has a bit of extra thickness in the lower parts of Damien Rice’s voice in Elephant (16-44). The Lark Studio LSX presents Damien’s voice with more delicacy and air while packing a touch more emotional payload. The LSX carries Damien’s breath a little better and makes the track that much more intimate. That said, the UERR has greater stage height. With the LSX I get some absolutely beautiful fine level bow on strings detail on the cello when it’s in isolation. Bass presence is lower on the UERR. Both accurately convey the somewhat distorted mastering of the flurry of activity near the 4:30 mark in the track. The UERR captures a tiny bit more treble detail from the strings than the LSX.

The LSX is giving me big beautiful groovy bass out of Blue Oyster Cult – (Don’t Fear) The Reaper (DSD64). The bass is forward of neutral, but without disappearing the mids further back in the stage, which gives the song a very engaging sound. It also ensures that the cowbell and guero aren’t lost in the stage. The stage depth is somewhat compressed to accomplish the engaging sound, but for many this will be a worthy exchange. The UERR has a bit more depth, with more separation of instruments. This make the UERR a fine tool for monitoring a mix. I don’t think I’d use the Lark Studio LSX for that kind of spatial accuracy intensive activity. The LSX gets the timbre of instruments right, but placement isn’t as honest as a reference monitor like the UERR. That isn’t what the LSX is designed to do. Personally, I get great enjoyment out of precision over power. This is reflected in my day job as a health economist, also. I’ve spent several days looking at Hierarchical Related Regression, and the potential for more precise measurements of effect using all available information from a variety of trial designs has had me practically giddy. The UERR fits my precision desire on this track with its fantastic instrument separation. The Lark Studio LSX has a warmer more emotive feel with towering bass.

Saturday Looks Good To Me – Sunglasses (16-44) begins with a big satisfying rumbling artificial bass that the LSX delivers up in full glory followed by a chunky electric bass guitar line and and two widely panned guitars. The track is busy as heck and the LSX’s 10 drivers are keeping up well. This poppy fun track perfectly matches what the LSX does well. The UERR doesn’t get the bass volume or the bass feel. It’s a tight controlled bass with excellent depth, but without the presence or body of the LSX bass. The rest of the sound is more open and precise sounding, especially the rocket fire clap sounds. On the UERR every element of the track can be picked out with precision, which is where the fun comes from. Everything is presented honestly on the UERR and it elevates my favourite album of 2016 (Saturday Looks Good To Me “One Kiss Ends It All”). The LSX has intoxicating bass, but the UERR has intoxicating scientific precision.

The variable depth of instrumentation in Isaac Hayes – Walk On By (DSD64) is an impressive recording feat. The UERR is all over the depth with the intro sound effects dancing all over the stage. Swells of strings come in at markedly different depth than the bass guitar and the backing vocals. The tapestry is full of little details. The LSX sounds darker, warmer, and less detailed with less stage depth. Isaac Hayes’s vocals come in like smooth brown butter with the LSX. Violins are silky. There’s romance to the LSX sound. Sometimes a little romance makes up for a short deck in terms of depth. The UERR has more of every dimension of stage size (height, depth and width) but the technical precision won’t necessarily set the mood in the same way that the LSX will. The LSX, for a warm sound, doesn’t sacrifice much in the way of mids clarity, which is unusual. It has a pretty good balance of tone and technical performance. The tone is really good.

I like both a lot. Given my particular listening preferences, I’d probably pick a UERR style signature on more days, but if I want to listen to pop or hip-hop, or any bass-driven music, my choice may very well be the LSX.

HiFiMAN RE2000 Silver ($1500) vs. Lark Studio LSX ($1699)
OutKast – Ms. Jackson has a lot going on, for real. The RE2000 Silver has some great menace going with the bass guitar, with tight funky plucks. The multi-tracked layered stage is well presented with individual elements easily discernible. However, each element is not entirely distinctive, which will be a function of the treble levels on the RE2000 Silver. With the Lark Studio LSX the underlying bass in the background is pushed forward. Compared to the drum power on the RE2000 Silver, the bass drum kicks you in the face on the LSX. The LSX, in spite of the bass emphasis, still provides extraordinarily well textured bass. The bass on the LSX is a lot like dynamic driver bass. It actually is bass that you feel, which is rare in fully balanced armature IEMs. The lower mids and upper midbass have a warmer sound on the Lark Studio LSX. Soundstage on the LSX sounds a little wider than the RE2000 Silver on this track. Individual elements in the stage also feel a bit more distinct with better instrument separation. The sound of the LSX is actually a bit reminiscent of the RE2000 Gold but with better build quality and a bit more separation in the mids. Piano in the intro is less forward as the mids of the RE2000 Silver are a bit back of neutral. This placement of the mids tends to make the sound stage sound a bit deeper. The LSX sounds forward in general due to the elevated bass and the pretty normal emphasis mids. Both IEMs are fun sounding with natural timbre. The RE2000 Silver has a more neutral sound than the LSX, which is a bombastic but lovely sounding number.

On the RE2000 Silver the recessed mids make Michael Jackson sound like he is way deep in the stage rather than in the middle of it on Michael Jackson – Billie Jean. The LSX has a more front row sound, while the RE2000 Silver sounds like it is further back in the crowd. The RE2000 Silver crowd is a more civil affair, whilst the LSX is a party. The RE2000 Silver is Coldplay (civilised and moving), and the LSX is Bruno Mars + Beyonce (absolutely ridiculously fun). The Lark Studio LSX has Michael where he should be, right in the middle of the sound stage, rather than pushed back. It also pushes bass forward of the mids, which is off of neutral. The bass is big on the LSX. Both do an excellent job of resolving instruments in space, but the LSX’s better formulation of the mids gives more flexibility for instruments that occupy the mids to move deeper in the stage.

The RE2000 Silver presents Kuniko – Pleiades: I. Melanges (Mixtures) with a nice even keel. Nothing sounds over-emphasised or out of place, whether it be xylophone, tympani, or chimes. The increasing aggression of the sound at about 2 minutes in builds beautifully. The LSX gives a similar performance, but the whole sound is more front row than 3 rows back of the stage. The LSX easily goes toe-to-toe on timbre, and might be a bit more sonically precise. Soundstage size is a push, but soundstage positioning is definitely different.

The bass is most definitely forward when I throw Wilco – Handshake Drugs on with the Lark Studio LSX. It’s a bit too much actually, as the bass is competing too much with Jeff Tweedy’s vocal in the intro. It slinks back a little bit later while still having some presence, like the bass guitarist moved back towards the drum kit or like Jeff Tweedy moved forward in the stage. The bass is tighter and more controlled on the RE2000 Silver, but also has more perceivable extension. The perceived increase in extension is because the Lark Studio LSX has some added mid-bass that throws the deeper lows out of balance when deeper bass instrumentation and mid-bass and upper mid-bass are present. The RE2000 Silver sounds better on this track, though I do still find myself wishing the little bit of recession in the mids wasn’t there.

The breathiness of the RE2000 Silver really suits Tori Amos’s vocals on Hey Jupiter, in my opinion, as it gives even more fragility to the presentation. Some will find the sound sibilant as the breathiness also imbues more weight to her ‘sss’ sounds. In contrast, the LSX presents Tori a bit more solid and rounded with less emphasis on her breathy ‘sss’ sounds. The piano is also more accurately placed right next to her singing.

Unique Melody Mentor V3 ($2099) vs Lark Studio LSX ($1699)
The Mentor V3 provides a clear and well delineated presentation of the Rolling Stones – Salt of the Earth (DSD64). Each instrument has great spacing around it. Bass has great tone, but not huge presence. Turning the dB-Go switch to closed enhances bass impact slightly. The female vocal chorus has individual vocals that are separated without much difficulty on the Mentor V3. Right off in the track, guitar and vocals are more forward with a nice organic sound on the LSX. The overall sound is more forward on the LSX. Bass has a lot more presence and sustain. The decay on the mid-bass is a touch long, the Mentor V3 is faster. The LSX trades some precision for increased presence. The overall stage depth is reduced on the LSX with the presentation more like two closely arranged planes rather than several layers as with the Mentor V3.

Billy Cobham – Quadrant 4 (DSD64) is the Speedy Gonzales of music tracks. The Lark Studio LSX keeps up well for the most part but smooths over a bit of detail on bass and treble. The Mentor V3 is faster and more open sounding with individual drum beats resolved more completely with less blending. The presentation is a bit more distant on the Mentor V3, whereas the LSX puts you right in the thick of it. Bass is tighter on the Mentor V3, but less present. The Mentor V3 is the technically superior performer while still being fun. If a more forward signature is what you are looking for, the LSX will likely suit better. The Mentor V3 also has the ability to switch cables without buying a new cable. Switching to the copper cable gives a more forward sound that is like a more controlled version of the LSX with less bass slam.

With DB-GO open on the Mentor V3, the vocals on Daft Punk – Fragments of Time (DSD64) are airy with good clarity. Bass is back in the stage with good definition. Treble is forward on the Mentor V3, but not as forward as the vocals on this particular track. Decay on the variety of cymbals is good on this track. When switching to the LSX, the bass is huge with good texture on the lower notes and dynamic driver like depth, but with a hint of bloom. The ambiance is great on the LSX with a bit more decay in both the bass and the treble. The extra decay is primarily in the midbass for the bass section of frequency response. Vocals sound great on both, just more forward on the LSX. Switching from silver to copper on the Mentor V3 brings the bass forward a little, but it still has the same tight controlled presentation. The LSX has a little extra ambiance. I think people will enjoy both sounds. One has to recognize that they aren’t trying to do the same thing. The Mentor V3 is a fun-reference tuning, while the LSX is a fun-fun tuning with big bass and smooth emotive mids. The Mentor V3 is less fun in all its set-ups vs. the LSX, but is a better technical performer all-around. I think most folks listening to Fragments in Time would pick the LSX as the signature fits pop music really well.

Norah Jones – Feeling the Same Way (24-192) has a beautifully delicate presentation with the Mentor V3. The wide-panned guitars are very well defined, the central stand-up bass and the piano and drums at the back of the stage are just delightfully distinctly presented. Mmmm delicious in silver with dB-Go open. The LSX is warmer and softer, with a less wide stage. On this track I prefer the Mentor V3. The LSX slightly compresses the stage depth and slows down the activity in the track some.

Unique Melody Mason V3 ($2699) vs. Lark Studio LSX ($1699)
The comparisons here were done on the SOUNDAWARE M2Pro as the Mason V3 doesn’t sound quite right out of the single-ended output of the Questyle QP2R.

The Mason V3 really lays out the stage beautifully on Macy Gray – Annabelle (24-192, binaural). The distance between the band members feels like a real stage with Macy sitting a bit back of the bassist and the lead guitarist, while the drummer sits well into the back slightly left of centre. On the LSX, bass and Macy Gray’s vocals are slightly more forward, but Macy’s vocal sounds a bit stuffy. The Mason V3 sounds cleaner and clearer on Macy’s vocal, and overall on this track. The cymbals sound like there is a bit of a haze between them and the listener on the LSX. The LSX out does the Mason V3 on bass weight with dB-Go open and closed, but the gap is less when the dB-Go module is closed as this gives a bit more weight.

Metallica – Master of Puppets (24-96, Vinyl Rip) has great speed on the Mason V3, but a slightly more forward sound usually benefits metal, and the Mason V3 isn’t a front row kind of IEM. I find myself wanting it louder on this track. When I jack up the volume a bit that sounds more like it. It can certainly make it sound like I want it to. Bass extension is good on this track, but there isn’t any emphasis, so these could be interpreted as bass light with the dB-Go open. Closing the dB-Go gets a bit more bass ambience and makes the sound a bit heavier in general. The desire for additional loudness is repeated on the LSX (this is just a quietly recorded track). Vocals feel a tiny bit more distant due to some emphasis in the lower mids. Doing a similar volume boost works on the LSX also. The cymbal taps on this track have longer decay on the LSX, in contrast, the Mason V3 sounds a touch fast on the cymbals on this track. Guitar solos sound smoother on the LSX, but more refined on the Mason V3.

Why? – Strawberries (16-44) with the LSX has some big nicely textured bass. It gets some serious slam in the intro. Yoni Wolf’s vocals sound nice and silky with the LSX. Instruments have good layering. These work really well for this highly active alt-rap track. Nice sparkle in the percussion too with the LSX. The Mason V3 does just as nicely with Yoni Wolf’s vocal. Bass comes in with really nice definition, but the slam is less palpable on the Mason V3. Percussive elements like the maracas or the clapping are more in balance on the Mason V3. The sound isn’t as fun on the Mason V3, but it is probably more honest to the recording. Fans of hip-hop will probably prefer the bigger bass of the LSX.

There is some voice echo in Tori Amos – Silent All These Years (24-96, Vinyl Rip) in the verse vocal sections that is very subtle and soft. The Mason V3 does an excellent job picking this minute detail up. The vocals on the Lark Studio LSX are more forward, but it doesn’t pick up the echo vocal with quite as much definition. It’s still there, but I can’t pick up the full resolution of the vocalisations. It’s like it’s half there. The LSX is louder in the mids and has a silky texture to Tori’s vocals. Piano has a slightly softened timbre on the LSX. Low notes on the piano have slightly exaggerated body on the LSX. Cello has similarly lengthened decay. On the Mason V3, stage depth is deeper, but mids are also presented deeper. Cello and flute are more precise and correct sounding on the Mason V3. The violins have a beautiful soar to them. Tori’s voice isn’t as silky on the Mason V3. Low piano notes and cello are more controlled on the Mason V3.

With the Mason V3 the silver cable gives a leaner presentation, as does having dB-Go open. When dB-Go is closed and the copper cable is engaged, the Mason V3 retains a resolution advantage on the LSX, but has a closer tonal presentation to the LSX. The LSX still wins on bass impact, and still tends to have silkier sounding vocals (vocals depend on the singer). The Mason V3 is more flexible, and more technically proficient with the accompanying sonic precision, but is not as emotive as the LSX.

Noble Kaiser Encore ($1850) vs. Lark Studio LSX ($1699)
It’s worth noting that most times that the Encore appears in my reviews, I’m using the PlusSound X-Series gold-plated copper. For this comparison, I was using the stock cable. That cable could use an upgrade to its pretty basic standard. It had been a long time since I’d listened to the stock cable.

On Pixies – Where is My Mind? (DSD64) I’m not quite getting the soar in the female backing vocal that I’m used to with the LSX. The sound of the soaring vocal is somewhat distant and slightly concealed. On the Kaiser Encore the soar is bigger. However, bass doesn’t extend as deep and drums strikes aren’t as tactile. Both the LSX and the Encore have some elevation in the midbass, but the feel is better on the LSX. The LSX and Encore have different points of emphasis on the upper mids. The Kaiser Encore emphasizes higher frequencies in the mids more while the LSX goes lower in the upper mids. This gives the Encore greater soar and air, while the LSX has more richness and body. Both are good sounding so signature preference will probably determine which is preferred rather than any measure of objective superiority.

The Noble Kaiser Encore is smooth on Leonard Cohen – Leaving the Table (24-44) when it comes to the bass and his vocals. The backing strings have great weight and texture. Bass extension on the Encore is somewhat muted. The deeper frequencies are present, but the overall tactile sound isn’t. This is pretty normal for fully balanced armature setups. They don’t normally push enough air to make you feel the bass. In contrast, the LSX accomplishes something really rare in balanced armature setups, you feel the bass. It also extends lower. Leonard’s voice has more body on the LSX and more texture. Strings are a touch less precise on the LSX than on the Encore but have a nice fullness. Full is a good way to describe the LSX sound. For this track I think the LSX has a more pleasing presentation. The tactile feel of the bass is a big accomplishment for a $1699 fully balanced armature IEM. The $4k Vision Ears Erlkönig gets bass feel like this, but this is remarkably rare for balanced armature setups. It’s very impressive.

The presentation of the cymbals is a strong point on the LSX. Many balanced armature setups have sharp cymbals with tight attack and decay that sounds just a touch unnatural. The LSX extends that decay a little. On Natalie Merchant – Carnival (24-96) mids sound thick through Natalie’s vocals on the LSX. Bass drum impact in the intro is impressive on the LSX. On the Noble Encore, the bass isn’t big but it has a tightness that lets a bit more funk develop. The space in the stage and instrument separation are better on the Encore. Natalie’s voice isn’t as rich as the LSX but it has greater texture and depth. The organ in the upper mids has better dimensionality with sound extending well from back to front of the stage. Layers in the stage are easier to pick out on the Noble Encore. The organ presence is greater in general on the Encore—it’s that difference in expression of the upper mids again. Stage is a touch narrower on the LSX.

The LSX presents the sonic landscape of King Crimson – Lizard (16-44, Steven Wilson Remaster) brilliantly. It has a very natural and organic sound. Jon Anderson (of Yes) sounds more delicate on the Noble Encore, and a touch more forward. The percussion is a bit more fulsome on the Encore due to its frequency placement in the upper mids/lower treble. Upper midbass is also slightly more forward on the Encore. The overall sound is fuller on the LSX. Both IEMs have good sustain on the tubular bells. As expected, bass body is bigger with longer decay on the LSX.

Both the Noble Encore and the LSX are fun signatures. The Encore is a bit more balanced, while the LSX has more emphasis on the lower end and more warmth. Treble has more emphasis on the Encore. The Encore has better technical performance in the treble and upper mids, while the LSX has better technical performance in the bass. Both are excellent IEMs, that I’d be happy to reach for frequently. Your sonic preference will determine which one you like more. The LSX is slightly better value for money.

Specifications
Specifications
Price $1699 (custom or universal)
Driver type 10 balanced armatures (3 bass, 4 mids, 2 treble, 1 super treble)
Frequency response 20Hz to 20KHz
Impedance 19-20Ω
Sensitivity 109-110dB
Construction Acrylic body, 2 pin connector (non-recessed)
Accessories Spinfit CP230 Bi-flange (S), Spinfit CP155 (S/M/L), Comply T-500 (M/L), protein leather display case, protein leather travel bag (oddly shaped), 2 armbands/amp stacking bands, airline adaptor, 3.5mm to 6.3mm adaptor, cleaning cloth, cleaning tool.

List Price: $1699 (£1499, custom or universal)

Product Website: https://www.audioconcierge.co.uk/portfolio/lark-studios-lsx-bespoke-universal-earphone/

Conclusions


The LSX provides a rich, lush listen with a focus on the bass and the mids. Treble performance is smooth without losing much in the way of mids detail. This full BA setup has accomplished a rare feat of presenting with bass that is very close in impact and feel to a dynamic driver set-up. The sound is warm overall with a healthy serving of midbass.

For $1699 for either custom or universal the LSX has a very good value proposition. If you are into a warm sound with big bass and lush mids, this one’s for you.




Rating Disclaimer: ratings are subjective. Audio quality and value do not mean the same thing across all prices. A headphone with a 5 rating on audio at $5 does not have equivalent sound quality as a 5 rating at $500. Likewise, value at $5 is not the same as value at $5000 dollars.