[hong8311]

Hi happy Friday!

Newbie here again, seeking for experts' opinion and insight.
I am looking for upgrade or equivalent in different character from Moondrop Blessing 2.
BTW, I am listening music via cellphone + Helm Bolt + Applemusic

While I like the clarity and separation of B2, it wasn't fun enough for my test. Acoustic or older music with stereo image are played really good but I feel bass and punchiness are missing from other genre such as pop, edm or rock.

So, I am looking for another option that has about the same quality of clarify / separation of B2 + some fun / bass.
I don't mind V shape.
FYI, I have tried Westone W80, but to me, only thing better than B2 was bass. Though it is more expensive than B2, I feel separation and clarity/resolutions falls behind.

I know there is cost to upgrade so, I have thought about Monarch Mk2 which is at $999.

Do you think it is too much? I am looking for one end-game IEM.
If you think it is overkill or I am too green to be at that price point, what can you recommend?
Somehow, I found my taste is quite similar to Crinacle if that helps. (I liked his some of his high-ranked but cheaper gears than low-ranked expensive ones)

One more question: Is Helm bolt enough to drive those high end IEM? I know some dongle dac, i.e) Hidiz S9 has balance plug. Does balanced cable makes dongle dac/amp pull out more power or is it just matter of less noise in terms of THD?

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

 

[surfgeorge]

If you like the fit with the Blessing 2 you can take a look at the Moondrop Variations.
IMO a pretty good upgrade, and it slams really hard with a good amp and delivers good detail and smooth sound with good layering and staging. Main issue is the rather thin lower midrange/upper bass. That can make male vocals sound a bit thin, but it helps other types of music by delivering great bass and (upper) midrange while keeping everything very clean.

For in-depth reviews and discussions Precogvision has put together excellent reviews. Links in his thread here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/precogs-iem-reviews-impressions.937468/

He also discusses the Monarch I and II in detail.

Regarding the source - IMO any IEM above 200 really benefits from better sources, and I consider the Chord Mojo the best investment in my head-fi journey. Best money I spent. Just makes me enjoy my music much more.
But many are happily listening to kilobuck IEMs from their phones, so YMMV.

 

[hong8311]

If you like the fit with the Blessing 2 you can take a look at the Moondrop Variations.
IMO a pretty good upgrade, and it slams really hard with a good amp and delivers good detail and smooth sound with good layering and staging. Main issue is the rather thin lower midrange/upper bass. That can make male vocals sound a bit thin, but it helps other types of music by delivering great bass and (upper) midrange while keeping everything very clean.

For in-depth reviews and discussions Precogvision has put together excellent reviews. Links in his thread here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/precogs-iem-reviews-impressions.937468/

He also discusses the Monarch I and II in detail.

Regarding the source - IMO any IEM above 200 really benefits from better sources, and I consider the Chord Mojo the best investment in my head-fi journey. Best money I spent. Just makes me enjoy my music much more.
But many are happily listening to kilobuck IEMs from their phones, so YMMV.

Hey, thanks for the recommendation of Variation and opinion about the dac/amp.
By reading your link and finding Variation review, you have addressed my issue. What is your opinion on B2 dusk vs. Variation? Do you think it worth $200 to upgrade?

For source, I know Chord Mojo is one of top notch gear. But, by its size, how do feel when you use it on the street? I tend to listen music a lot while I am walking, and mojo seems to be bit bulky to be in my pocket.

 

[surfgeorge]

Hey, thanks for the recommendation of Variation and opinion about the dac/amp.
By reading your link and finding Variation review, you have addressed my issue. What is your opinion on B2 dusk vs. Variation? Do you think it worth $200 to upgrade?

For source, I know Chord Mojo is one of top notch gear. But, by its size, how do feel when you use it on the street? I tend to listen music a lot while I am walking, and mojo seems to be bit bulky to be in my pocket.

I had the regular Blessing 2, not the Dusk version. The main issue I had with the B2 was the occasionally grainy upper midrange/treble range and a somewhat lackluster bass. I also didn't find the detail and soundstage/imaging that great. But my reference is the Sony IER-M9, which is exceptionally coherent, has excellent detail and imaging. So not really a fair comparison to the B2.
But I think the other factor in my slight disappointment is that I am using very good sources and I felt the B2 just didn't scale much when going from the phone to Mojo and to the Hugo2, which is my top source.

The Variations solves almost all the issues I had with the Blessing, and I think it's technically really well rounded for the price. Good detail, imaging, layering, no grain, good attack and decay, if a little on the smoother side in the treble. The tuning is a bit controversial IMO, I wish it had a bit less sub bass and a thicker midrange, but I seem to like a thicker midrange. And I still very much enjoy the Variations. It also scales well with the sources, which I take as a sign for the technical abilities of the IEM.

Regarding Mojo on the go - I'm mostly using it as a portable desktop unit, and I think if you really want to use it on the go you need to add the Chord Poly - which doubles the cost and still has it's quirks. So it's hard to recommend that solution. Great SQ, but maybe not that great on the street. For the street maybe your dongle is the better choice.

 

[hong8311]

I had the regular Blessing 2, not the Dusk version. The main issue I had with the B2 was the occasionally grainy upper midrange/treble range and a somewhat lackluster bass. I also didn't find the detail and soundstage/imaging that great. But my reference is the Sony IER-M9, which is exceptionally coherent, has excellent detail and imaging. So not really a fair comparison to the B2.
But I think the other factor in my slight disappointment is that I am using very good sources and I felt the B2 just didn't scale much when going from the phone to Mojo and to the Hugo2, which is my top source.

The Variations solves almost all the issues I had with the Blessing, and I think it's technically really well rounded for the price. Good detail, imaging, layering, no grain, good attack and decay, if a little on the smoother side in the treble. The tuning is a bit controversial IMO, I wish it had a bit less sub bass and a thicker midrange, but I seem to like a thicker midrange. And I still very much enjoy the Variations. It also scales well with the sources, which I take as a sign for the technical abilities of the IEM.

Regarding Mojo on the go - I'm mostly using it as a portable desktop unit, and I think if you really want to use it on the go you need to add the Chord Poly - which doubles the cost and still has it's quirks. So it's hard to recommend that solution. Great SQ, but maybe not that great on the street. For the street maybe your dongle is the better choice.

By reading your reply, I feel like I am not at your level yet. You seem to have way more experience on IEM than me. What I agreed with you is B2 doesn't benefit much from upgrading the source. I've tried 3 different sources, Helm bolt, schiit stack (modi & magni), Topping Stack (L combo).

I also had a chance to listen Shure Aonic 5 yesterday for few hours yesterday. Then the limitation of B2 became more pronounced. I know they belong to different league, but it came to clear to me that a lot of reviewers are saying B2 is amazing at $300 price point.

Taking your opinion, my bonus for this year will go to Variation. One thing I am bit concerned is 'Is dongle dac; in my case, Helm Bolt' good enough to pull enough juice out of Variation. Compare to top gear, not sure how this little device can drive $500 IEM.

I thank you for your insight so far.