[gibant1]

Hi, Having just started my IEM journey, I Purchased some Empire Ears Hero and a Penon cable advised by another Head-fi member.
It sounds fantastic but as usual, I want to try more, I purchased a few cheap units and was incredibly impressed at what you get for the money compared to full-size headphones.

I purchased some EPZ 530 after reading good reviews and they are very good but not a patch on the Hero's.

Sadly my wallet has taken a beating of late so £750 is about all I can scrape together. Is it possible to get something at that money that can compete, I'm happy to use the second-hand market.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[LFC_SL]

If the criteria is "want to try more" without any particular sound presentation nor building a system goal (none is listed), perhaps visit a headphone dealer (ask in advance what is available to demo) or visit one of the CanJam shows this year

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/canjam-global-2024-general.971086/

 

[gibant1]

If the criteria is "want to try more" without any particular sound presentation nor building a system goal (none is listed), perhaps visit a headphone dealer (ask in advance what is available to demo) or visit one of the CanJam shows this year

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/canjam-global-2024-general.971086/

Sadly we don't have anything like that where I live, I have to buy blind. I listen to a wide range of music. While I love the Hero they are very lively, you're not going to sleep after a session listening to them.

 

[gibant1]

I don't know whether this helps but I think the Hero is like my Sendy Peacock or JM Audio XTC 1.5 but sometimes I still use my HD800s and HifiMan Arya Stealth for a more chilled-out critical listen.

 

[gibant1]

I have short-listed a few IEMs, if you could give me some thoughts, also the Penon Volt (which is high on my list) can be done as a custom fit, is it worth it?

Penon Volt
AuR Neon Pro
Penon 10TH Anniversary
SoundRhyme SR9 DTE900
Symphonium Helios SE
Mangird Xenns Top