Simple Man's IEM Measurements, Impressions, Ranking of 75+ IEMs!
Apr 16, 2020 at 9:26 AM Post #48 of 66
Featuring Carot One Quasi Titta Earbud (~25 USD):
I remember being quite impressed with the neutral-balanced tuning of the Carot One Titta (in ears) which i used to own a while ago. I'd been eyeing these Quasi Titta earbuds which are driven by 15mm dynamic drivers and finally bought them a month ago.

Carot One Quasi Titta.jpg

Fit & Design: 5/5
I love the design and fit of these earphones. Being earbuds we get no isolation, but they fit real snug and they will stay put no matter what you do unless you remove them yourself. They look better in the ear than on the desk. Build quality is great, made of hard plastic and braided cables. Love the Carot One Orange-blue colour theme as well.

Sound:
These are quite hard to drive, and i have to push the volume to around 85% to get immersed in music using my HTC10s.
However, i do think these are meant for low volume listening. I'll tell you why.

The general tuning is very neutral, with absolutely flat bass which drops down to oblivion below 100 hz or so. The mids are also neutral and there is no warmth or bloom like you notice in the final Piano Forte II's - which are really awesome for this reason.
The Quasi Tittas make no attempt to impress you in any way except by staying dead neutral across the spectrum (100hz - 10+Khz). I like them for this reason. Listening to Metallica's Kill 'Em All was amazing, and they did take me to those days when i used to be a big fan of the old Metallica albums. Lars' kick drum was faint but clearly audible. Of course the ER2SEs are significantly better in every way for Metallica's old albums, but that's a whole different beast altogether.

In terms of detail extraction in mids and treble they are pretty good. I wouldn't say they excel in separation or positioning, but they are pretty good and i get a realistic presentation of music. I don't miss any extension in treble as well.

Everytime i pop them in, i'm surprised at how open they sound. Sometimes, in low volumes, these earbuds fool me into thinking i'm listening through the smartphone/laptop speakers, and i have to do a double-take to make sure the music is in fact coming through the earbuds. I love how they sound so out of your head and open!

Of course, being so open these are great to be aware of your surroundings. Another great thing about them is that they don't leak too much like you would expect from an earbud. They do, of course, but they are far better than piano forte II in terms of leakage.

Compared to final Piano Forte II
Piano Forte IIs are much more easy to drive and they sound more dynamic with better bass reproduction. They have a good mid bass bump to bring some fun and warmth into the sound. Switching back and forth you can see how coloured the Piano Fortes are and how, in contrast, dry and neutral the Quasi Tittas are. Being so hard to drive, the Tittas also sound a little weak. I'm sure if an amp is used they will perform much better!

Overall, i'm glad i bought these, and do use them frequently while working. Of course, i can't get into pop or electronic music with these, but i don't miss them too much anyway.

Sound rating: 8.0
 
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May 4, 2020 at 6:15 AM Post #49 of 66
JPRiDE 1984 Freedom : Initial impressions & measurements

Jpride 1984 IEM.jpg

Design : Loved the practical design, form and fit, with an MMCX detatchable cable.
Ordered them for this reason, and the advertised FR. We get no pouch nor carry case.

Expected FR measurement:
MSR expectation.jpg
Actual FR measurement for JPRiDE 1984 Freedom:
jPride 1984 LR.JPG
jPride 1984 Avg.JPG

Initial impressions

Quite easy to drive off of HTC10.
The bass is big and rumbling. They are quite fast and defined though. These don't sound bloated.
But when that sub-bass hits, they do show increased presence.
Mids are still clean and intelligible. I don't miss any details and don't see much of masking right out of the box. Hopefully they get even better.
Highs are detailed and extended. They stop just short of sounding metallic. Timbre is good.

Soundstage is 3-D, and instrument separation is also very good!

These are V-shaped IEMs, tuned very well, very fun to listen to. The driver is fast and delivers good detail and resolution.
The overall signature reminds me of the JVCs, the treble is taken straight out of the FXT90. Of course i need more ear time and A-B comparisons for a proper sound commentary.

Until then, here are some comparison graphs, you can see how close these are to the FXT90s.
JPRiDE 1984 Vs JVC FXT90
Vs FXT90.JPG

JPRiDE 1984 Vs CoDonguri Brass
vs CoDonguri.JPG

JPRiDE 1984 Vs MUIX IX3000
vs IX3000.JPG
 
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May 4, 2020 at 9:42 AM Post #50 of 66
JPRiDE 1984 Freedom - Reversible Tape mod.

Tape mod.jpg
There is a vent of considerable radius atop the housings.
Nothing drastic, but taping this vent shut with a cellophane tape, reduces the mid-bass just a touch.

JPRiDE Tape mod LR.JPG
Vs stock
JPRiDE Tape mod compare.JPG


**I must, however, add that i prefer the sound without the mod. The mid-bass, as it is, balances out the treble emphasis perfectly**
 
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Jun 3, 2020 at 12:49 PM Post #51 of 66
For first, nice job! Love this thread since here's a lot of non OTE style IEM's which i prefer. Glad you got both Azla Azel and JPRiDE 1984 Freedom. I found them lately while searching through Japanse Amazon. Is A to B comparison possible between these two? :D
 
Jun 4, 2020 at 4:24 AM Post #52 of 66
For first, nice job! Love this thread since here's a lot of non OTE style IEM's which i prefer. Glad you got both Azla Azel and JPRiDE 1984 Freedom. I found them lately while searching through Japanse Amazon. Is A to B comparison possible between these two? :D
Here's a short comparison from memory:
i would say the Azels sound a bit more mellow, with smooth and airy mids + treble. Their bass is punchy and gives a warm and earthy overall tone. The fibonacci grill gives a nice sense of openness to the stage.
The JPride 1984 has greater bass slam, and the highs on the other end are splashy and more on the aggressive side. The mids of the 1984 are a bit pulled back, and you can actually see the mids (singers) playing a little behind in the stage - meaning V-shape is quite apparent with the 1984s.

I will do a proper A-B later tonight.
Any favourite songs that you would like me to use with this back to back comparison ?
 
Jun 4, 2020 at 11:49 AM Post #53 of 66
Here's a short comparison from memory:
i would say the Azels sound a bit more mellow, with smooth and airy mids + treble. Their bass is punchy and gives a warm and earthy overall tone. The fibonacci grill gives a nice sense of openness to the stage.
The JPride 1984 has greater bass slam, and the highs on the other end are splashy and more on the aggressive side. The mids of the 1984 are a bit pulled back, and you can actually see the mids (singers) playing a little behind in the stage - meaning V-shape is quite apparent with the 1984s.

I will do a proper A-B later tonight.
Any favourite songs that you would like me to use with this back to back comparison ?
Not really, i listen to bunch of genres so just mix the playlist a bit with rock/electronic/blues songs i would be grateful, cheers :)
 
Jun 5, 2020 at 7:31 AM Post #55 of 66
Azla Azel Vs JPRiDE 1984 Freedom

Azel Vs 1984 Freedom.JPG

Test track: Radiohead - Lotus Flower (because great bassline, and Thom's vocals naturally hit close to sibilance in this song making it a great test track).

With the 1984s - in the song intro, the bassline is loud and shows good presence with adequate oomph! The high end details with the claps, hi-hats, snares envelope the stage nicely and present themselves clearly with good detail. The highs have an edge to them, and one wouldn't call these polite.

With the Azels, the entry bassline is equally loud, only i think these have a little more meat (not bloat), or rather the bass in the Azels come across as a little thicker. As a result, the Azels have a warmer tone in comparison. The balanced highs help achieve this tone in the Azels, whereas the 1984's forward highs remove this warmth and give them a brighter overall tonality.
The hi-hats shimmer less with the Azels, with the edges smoothed out. The edgy treble does carry a little extra detail in the 1984s, which the Azel's decided to let go in favour of a more earthy presentation (final audio like).

The mids are more convincing in the Azels. They sound fuller and i hear more mid-range detail as the focus is concentrated in this area. Contrarily, the highs are where the 1984s seem to have their spotlight. They do put out more treble details to your face.
The vocal timbre and weight sound better in the warmer Azels than the relatively thinner, colder output of the 1984s. The ssssss and the shshshshs in the vocals are also easier to listen to with the Azels than the 1984s. Although i must say the 1984s are not really sibilant. They do play this song much better than some other sibilant earphones (e.g: ATH E70, Flare R2A).

Soundstage & Positioning:
The Azels have a more lateral presentation and greater stage width. The positioning equally good - maybe just slightly better than 1984s with the mid range instruments.
The 1984s have more height to the stage, the highs play a little higher grabbing your attention, and the stage width is slightly narrower compared to Azel. The treble information can be easily picked out in the 1984s than the Azels.

Overall, i must say i prefer the tasteful highs and the more mid-focused presentation of the Azels.
The 1984s do throw a little extra detail and sound more exciting, but the mids do take a slight back seat in the picture.

Both are very competent earphones and are rightly priced.
The 1984s give you detachable MMCX cables, and extra treble detail!
Azels get you a nice carry case, with fuller mids and smoother highs!

@prawdziwysimone Choose what you will :)
 
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Jun 5, 2020 at 5:24 PM Post #56 of 66
Thank you for your time doing this comparison mate. I think 1984's might be too agressive for me (i'm kinda lower treble sensitive person), also Azels looks like the purchase i'm looking for - warmish, smooth presentation with big lows and on the go design. Love the look of them as well and will give them a chance . I was never disppointed with Japanese products btw :). One more question, any comfort issues with Azels? Isolation will not be even ok looking on this vents on the back of the housing, isn't it ?
 
Jun 5, 2020 at 5:53 PM Post #57 of 66
,Any comfort issues with Azels? Isolation will not be even ok looking on this vents on the back of the housing, isn't it ?
These are some of the most comfortable IEMs I've tried. Very light weight, great cables! Can't fault the design in any way. And you guessed right about the isolation. They don't isolate too much, and there is also a little bit of sound leak. They aren't terrible though, like the ex800s. I would give them a 3/5 for isolation/leakage.

Also, if you are buying them, consider all the available colours. I kinda wish I went for the grey Azels, or even the reds. The greens are a bit too attractive for my tastes :)
 
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Jul 9, 2020 at 4:37 AM Post #58 of 66
Scored a couple of IEMs from Amazon Japan.

Japaear JE-555 (price~350 USD)

20200604_144126_HDR.jpg

Impressions
I've had the 555's for more around a month now, but just couldn't get the time to enter my impressions here.

Build - Excellent! Fixed cables are solid and are re-assuring!

Fit - Wearing comfort takes a hit! The circular body of the housing, with the nozzles popping out from the center, tends to scratch around the bottom of the ear-notch. This is a common issue I've noticed with iem's sporting a non-angled nozzle mounted on a large circular plate (e.g: Acoustune HS1004).
They are aesthetically very pleasing to the eye and allows over-the-ear and straight-down wear, but this design just doesn't work (at least for me) where drivers are 10mm or more. Anyway, the comfort issues start bothering after 30 mins or so, after which you need to gives your ears some rest to recover from all that friction.

Housing Design & vents!
3 vents are positioned around the nozzle such that they are partially covered by the ear concha when we get a good fit. Covering these vents let the bass come through. Basically, these have like an analog bass tuning driven by the fit, and how securely the housing rests on the ear. (I'll add a photo of these vents later).

Measurements (Closed vents)
JE-555 closed vent.JPG
* We hear this response only when we press the iems down with their finger to get the above full bass response.
* For measurements i used the silicon tips to cover all the nozzles completely.

Measurements (open vents)
JE 555 Open vent LR.JPG
* With a bad fit we hear this response

Sound
These drivers are one of the best i've heard
- really up there with the Ocharaku Keyaki Ti Plus! The detail and speed are mind-blowing to say the least (faster than some BA iems i own).

When we get a nice secure fit (IN BOTH EARS), with the housings rested nicely on the ear concha, we get very good thumping bass, with the perfect amount of warmth and detail!
At no point do we hear the bass taking over or masking any of the details from the mids or high frequencies. They simply sound, for the lack of a better word, perfect, throughout the hearing range.

I believe the natural response is somewhat like below - when we get to wear them properly partly closing the vents:
JE 555- natural wear LR.jpg

UNFORTUNATELY - getting this response / fit on both ears are near impossible in the first go. In fact i find myself fiddling around both the housings repeatedly to get a similar fit on both ears.
Taping one/two vents doesn't really change the signature. I didn't want to try to get the super-bass response by taping all vents, so i use them as-is.

If we can get beyond the discomfort and the annoying fiddly fit, we get to enjoy one of the best tuned dynamic drivers in the world!

I would rate them right next to Ocharaku Keyaki Ti Plus on driver performance and sound (with the ideal fit).
Hell, if not for the fit issues and the vent-driven sound, i might have ranked them #1 in my list.
I believe they fixed the fit-issue with a modified design in their JE-777 (too expensive though). If you have the money, i highly recommend buying them!

They aren't the perfect IEM, but I love the Japaear JE-555's more than any other when they are in the right place, for around 30-45 mins.



The next post will be about the Azla Horizons - Great IEMs.
20200706_082008.jpg
 
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Sep 10, 2020 at 5:23 AM Post #59 of 66
Azla Horizon (Price 230 USD incl. import to Germany)

Brief Impressions
Packaging is rudimentary: we get a set of normal silicon tips, and a set of Sedna tips, along with the earphones themselves.
Sedna tips have a longer stem and enable a deeper insertion. These are great eartips, but in my opinion the longer nozzles of the Horizons themselves don't need extra length of the Sednas. I'm using my smaller final E tips with the Horizons and they are made for each other. While the Sednas go well with earphones that have a shorter nozzle.

The cable is light, albeit a bit on the thicker side, they aren't as flexible as i would have liked. MMCX connectors are stable and fit securely.
The earphones themselves are built well, with hard plastic housings. I don't see any issues in long term use.

Fit is very good, although in terms of sheer comfort these leave me slightly wanting, in the sense that they don't "disappear" like Sennheiser IE Pros do.
The Horizons do stick out slightly, and do not sit flush in the ear. Nevertheless, they are easily a 4/5 in this section.

SOUND
In a line, i can say these sound great. They sound just like big room-speakers, with big bass and detailed highs. The mids and vocals are not very up-front, not pulled back either. They play at a short distance which gives a great 3-D soundstage with great depth extending on all 3 axes. Stage has good height and width, and there is a nice surround effect, unlike the lateral presentation of monitoring earphones.

The timbre is especially good, finding the right balance between decay and definition. These are not super analytical, but one wouldn't call these lacking in detail. The highs come out effortlessly and there is not a hint of sibilance. Like i said, they are like room speakers and lean towards sounding musical, the way it is intended by musicians. These days i find myself rotating between the Horizons and IE 500 Pro. All my other earphones are collecting dust.

Azla Horizon LR.JPGAzla Horizon Avg.JPG

I would rank these alongside the Donguris, and Yamaha EPH200 and the IE 400 Pro with a rating of 9.1.
In some aspect the Horizons are slightly better than the earphones in this tier. However, i would say they a just a little short of the 9.2 class and finesse.

It might well be a co-incidence, but the Azla Horizons mark the end of my earphones hobby. These will be special if only for this reason.
I'm now rounding up to sell some of my lesser used earphones to accumulate some funds. Look out for FS posts. If you are particularly interested in any comparisons or comments, please drop a note, and i will be glad to add my 2 cents.

Enjoy your music!
 
Sep 10, 2020 at 9:00 PM Post #60 of 66
It might well be a co-incidence, but the Azla Horizons mark the end of my earphones hobby. These will be special if only for this reason.
I'm now rounding up to sell some of my lesser used earphones to accumulate some funds. Look out for FS posts. If you are particularly interested in any comparisons or comments, please drop a note, and i will be glad to add my 2 cents.

Thanks for sharing your explorations! Is it safe to assume the keepers correspond w/ your rankings (or more towards eartime...)?
I really need to jump on the SD-2 before it gets discontinued, supposedly quite similar to the IM02 (same BA model, similar FR) which remain one of my all time favorites (but didn't keep because of comfort issues).
 
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