[gylyf]

Brand new (re)build... Nokia HS shells + 120 Ohm Beryllium + random KZ cable
Very proud of it

Very cool! Love the black and white scheme. How does that driver sound?

 

[Kyonnie]

Brand new (re)build... Nokia HS shells + 120 Ohm Beryllium + random KZ cable
Very proud of it

Very nice-looking buds. I really like those black and white shells; I didn't know they had them in black. I tried opening one of those HDS-3s and broke the lip of the shell. Those vintage bud shells are very fragile due to their age, something I learned the hard way.

Anyway, can you give an impression of how they sound? Much appreciated!

 

[ShaneyMac]

Very nice-looking buds. I really like those black and white shells; I didn't know they had them in black. I tried opening one of those HDS-3s and broke the lip of the shell. Those vintage bud shells are very fragile due to their age, something I learned the hard way.

Anyway, can you give an impression of how they sound? Much appreciated!

This sounds familiar I also broke few Nokia shells before I learn how to use hair dryer for a 1-2 minutes on them to soften the glue. This is much easier way to open them than the common brute force... That is why I have this B/W combination: I broke one of the white HS-7 during the opening session and black one is from Nokia HS-5 which is mono earbud About the sound: I would say they are on the warmer side with very nice punchy bass with clean and detailed overall sound. Soundstage is not so wide in my opinion, maybe because of the shells... not sure...

 

[Kyonnie]

This sounds familiar I also broke few Nokia shells before I learn how to use hair dryer for a 1-2 minutes on them to soften the glue. This is much easier way to open them than the common brute force... That is why I have this B/W combination: I broke one of the white HS-7 during the opening session and black one is from Nokia HS-5 which is mono earbud About the sound: I would say they are on the warmer side with very nice punchy bass with clean and detailed overall sound. Soundstage is not so wide in my opinion, maybe because of the shells... not sure...

You can try opening those slits to let more air in or use thinner wires to improve the soundstage. where did you get those black ones? I have never seen those ones before. I want to add a some to my collection lol.

Edit: sorry if you couldn't understand me earlier I'm multitasking atm rushing my homeworks lol.

 

[ShaneyMac]

You can try opening those slits to let more air in or use thinner wires to improve the soundstage. where did you get those black ones? I have never seen those ones before. I want to add a some to my collection lol.

I will try that next time. I do have few more Nokia shells around, but no more this drivers.
Black shell is from Nokia HS-5 mono bud

 

[Kyonnie]

I will try that next time. I do have few more Nokia shells around, but no more this drivers.
Black shell is from Nokia HS-5 mono bud

Oh, that's why I couldn't find them; they have a different model name. Thank you! I really like collecting vintage buds, even if they don't sound good and are becoming hard to come by. I mostly get mine from a friend in Indonesia, where they're still pretty easy to find.

 

[assassin10000]

I'll second this combination for sure. Although I can't wholeheartedly recommend the utws5 anymore because of reliability issues. I also fell prey to this. The update of the utws5 (utws15) should be available soon and supposedly addresses these issues. I'll buy it as soon as it comes out.

Still I truly believe that your favorite earbuds + a separate wireless receiver is way ahead of any packaged solution out there. My daily driver is Qudelix 5k + rw3000

Wow, thanks all. Never knew of that. This is fantastic, because I already have FF5.
But if UTWS15 is coming, I should probably wait for it.
I've been ready to get external DAC/AMP too. The problem is, I don't know if it would work with my Pico 4 VR headset. Some work, some not. But this as a bluetooth adapter should work.

I've been waiting for the utws15 since it was announced way back in jan or feb... for a sept release lol.

I guess it will all come down to the type and version of the BT chip..

Same as utws5 per @FiiO

1. UTWS15 ((NEW), expected to be available in the fall
The UTWS15 is the upgrade model of the UTWS5. The core architecture of the UTWS5 is still the one with the best sound quality among TWS products, because ordinary TWS products still choose the integrated DAC, which has weaker audio performance than the independent HiFi DAC used in the UTWS5. Even for the new TWS from vivo, we later got to know it used an independent DAC because it is attached to the noise cancellation function, but not using it for better sound quality like us.
So, the main progress of the UTWS15 is in some details of the experience, such as the size and weight of the charging case, the size and weight of the ear hook, as well as the new design of the contact connection. Old UTWS5 users are not necessary to upgrade it.

 

[lordearl]

Are there any flat-head earbuds that use a two pin detachable connection rather than the MMCX connection?

 

[assassin10000]

Are there any flat-head earbuds that use a two pin detachable connection rather than the MMCX connection?

Older rose earbuds (maria, maria ii, etc). The newer k's db series. Others I'm forgetting.

 

[hiheaded]

Are there any flat-head earbuds that use a two pin detachable connection rather than the MMCX connection?

Fiio ff3s(note that it is a proprietary 2pin), ksearphone db1 and db1e

 

[lordearl]

Thx - that's a great start! Will have a look at the KSEARPHONE line as the ROSE products seem to be out of production.

Fairly significant price difference on the DB1 and DB1E. Has anyone owned both?

 

[mt877]

I think the word legendary is more applied to the original green shelled ST10 which has phenomenal bass and first of its kind (with the labyrinth system), SO is suppose to be a continuation of the sound sig of ST10 and has more bass. Comparing to RW3000, SO has less quality highs but more size and atmospheric bass, mids are about the same; this is on the portable amp. On the desktop amp SO is much bigger sounding than on the portable amp.

Anyway, can you do a comparison of M5P+SO driver and RW3000 in sound signature and technicality please?

I think Smabat themselves recognize that the ST10s Black & Gold with 150 Ohm driver is the one with the bass to be beaten, so they introduced the Super One. Their product literature mentions ST10s, not ST10. That is why I stated "legendary" ST10s B&G.

Spoiler

SO vs ST10s FR data comparison:

Here's my RW-3000 (16 Ohm) vs M5Pro+SO (100 Ohm) driver listening (subjective) comparison.

Using Shanling M3X 4.4mm Bal. out as source and listening at a comfortable listening volume (volume matched by ear as close as possible due to impedance difference between the 2 earbuds), I found the bass had more rumble with the M5Pro+SO driver than the RW-3000, but the RW-3000 is no slouch in the bass department either. I found the M5P+SO had more forward mids/treble and better resolution on the high end than the RW-3000, but that represented itself by making the entire soundscape like a "wall of sound" effect to me. Maybe the typical Smabat 2k~3k peak tuning had something to do with that. In contrast the RW-3000 had a warmer mid-bass presentation which made the sound feel full bodied in a good way, slightly recessed high end, maybe due to the mid-bass previously mentioned. Overall the soundstage and instrument separation was better with the RW-3000, I guess it could be described as a bit more nuanced compared to the M5P+SO combo.

Using Shanling M3X 4.4mm Bal. (line out mode) to feed Topping A70 Pro (balanced in and out) and listening at a comfortable listening volume (volume matched by ear as mentioned above) I still found the M5P+SO had more bass rumble than RW-3000. I did start to notice in some music tracks where lower amplitude bass was present the M5P+SO was soundng a little thin compared to the RW-3000. I think that is where the overall warmth of the RW-3000 really made a difference versus a U shaped tuning of the M5P+SO(?). For some reason the "wall of sound" effect I mentioned above was reduced. I'm thinking it's due to the higher Vrms output of the A70 Pro vs the M3X drives the transducer much better.

Anyway, that's my take of both earbuds. The tuning is different between the 2 sets. Both sets can be engaging, although the RW-3000 suits my preferences better. The M5Pro+SO will still have a place in my rotation and I have other Smabat drivers that I have to test before I can decide which combo will be best for me.

 

[mt877]

Are there any flat-head earbuds that use a two pin detachable connection rather than the MMCX connection?

I'll also add to the list a couple budget sets, FiiO FF1 and NiceHCK YDX.

 

[lordearl]

Thanks all - really appreciate this. I've been on an IEM journey the last few years but keen to discover some great flat-heads after finding an old pair of Audio Technica earbuds which came with a discman that I'd forgotten about from a few decades ago. Blown away by the relative ease of use and clean, flat sound!

 

[hansnaert]

I'll also add to the list a couple budget sets, FiiO FF1 and NiceHCK YDX.

And not to forget the TRN EMX with 2 pin QDC.

(I'm very happy with the TRN EMX, it sound much better then other low costs earbuds as NiceHCK EB2S or TRN EMA - and you can attach a boom mic.)