[morrisericd]

As I get more into this hobby, I find myself wanting to try more and more different types of IEMs. I build cabinets all day long in a noisy one man shop, so passive noise canceling is important as well as great sound. Music is a mix of rock and hip hop, along with some Jazz and Honky Tonk. I'd been through several pairs of IEMS (Apple AirPods Pro, Aurisonic Rockets (then a replacement pair of Fenders when they bought them), Momentum's, FIIO FA9's, FH7's) before purchasing a pair of custom UE 18+. Wow! Isolation is perfect and the sound is great.

The question is, are there other IEM's I should try? In my sights are the ThieAudio Monarch II's and the 64 Audio U12t's. What I'm looking for is great, but not clinical sound. I want to be excited to put them on and listen to music. Soundstage is important as is good bass and treble. I don't think I care if they are technically accurate. The issue is, I don't live somewhere that has a selection of IEM's to try. And - although I know what I like, I really can't decipher / describe what I have and what these other IEM's have in order to compare. So - are the IEM's above something I should try? Are there others? I'd like to be closer to $1,000 than $2,000, but I'll spend it if that's what I need to do. I've read a lot of reviews but I'm looking for some first hand knowledge. Thanks!

 

[Wiljen]

Sticking as close as I can to the budget (nearer 1k than 2), I'd suggest adding the Empire Ears Hero, the Fir Audio 5x5, Custom Art's FIBAE 6, Vision Ears 4.2, and my personal daily use model for a long time, the Jerry Harvey JH13v2 to your audition list. I eventually upgraded from the JH13 to the UE Live.

 

[morrisericd]

Thanks - will check these out. How would you compare your UE Live's to the Hero's and the JH13's? You say you upgraded? Most of my listening is either through a Fiio M11 or a iFi Go Blu (great sound, terrible Bluetooth range, although I'm hopeful a firmware update helps that). I spent the day yesterday swapping between my 18+ and the Fiio FA9's, along with Apple AirPods Max, Shure 215's and (quickly) the Rockets and an old pair of Etymotic HF5's (surprisingly good still - my first real pair of in-ears). The 18+ is by far the "best" sounding one. It's custom, so it fits perfectly and I can wear it all day. I'm not looking to replace the 18+, just for another option. I'll sell the FA9's, as I'm now convinced that profile / sound isn't really for me anymore.

 

[maisongoyard]

I really like my U12T's. They sound amazing and they're very comfortable. I believe headphones.com has open box units available sometimes for $1600. I've also seen them pop up on here for less than that if you're ok with purchasing second-hand. I've also heard great things about the monarchs but they can be a bit fatiguing for some over long periods as the shell is quite large.

 

[morrisericd]

I really like my U12T's. They sound amazing and they're very comfortable. I believe headphones.com has open box units available sometimes for $1600. I've also seen them pop up on here for less than that if you're ok with purchasing second-hand. I've also heard great things about the monarchs but they can be a bit fatiguing for some over long periods as the shell is quite large.

Thanks for the reply. I've ordered the Monarchs from Headphones.com after chatting a bit with them. Very helpful and nice guys over there. I do see that 64 has B stock U12T's in stock now. I'd like to try them both. I am a little concerned about the fatigue, which I've heard the 64's are better at. I wear IEM's 8 hours a day - definitely sensitive about fatigue.

 

[IAmARaven]

Would like to piggyback on this thready, in a pretty similar position. Got monarchs a few days ago but have always been interested in trying u12ts, the fit is quite fatiguing but is manageable with the right steps. Let me know what you think!

 

[morrisericd]

I think my experience echos what others have said. I really like the Monarchs. I do find myself grabbing them more than my U18's. There's something about the sound that's very engaging. I race bikes as a hobby and some bikes just want to get up and go - have a snap to them - and some bikes seem happy to do what you want, but they don't have that "get off your butt and out of the saddle and chase down that guy" kind of feeling. Probably not a great analogy, but that's how I feel about the Monarchs. They have a little more sparkle and fun sound to them than the U18's. Monarchs are fatiguing though. I can only listen to them for about 2 hours before switching to my U18's or other headphones. Using Comply tips as the noise canceling is most important to me. I've tried others, but I'd love to hear some suggestions of less fatiguing, but good noise isolation tips.

I still want to try the U12's, but there's no way without selling my Monarchs and I don't want to do that.