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September 2025
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Deafness comes for all
29-30/09/2025
that's it bros, quitting this thread/hobby for good. i ruined my ears finally. selling all my audio shit
i had the volume turned up way too high and i accidentally blew my left ear out, have permanent left-side tinnitus now. what's weird is that my hearing threshold test is healthy and nearly flawlesspicrel, you can see that my left ear can't properly pick up mids and highs anymore, it's borderline in the noise
my threshold is normal for some reasonStop being such a fag, people go to concerts and blow their ears out all the time and still engoy music.
You'll know it's over when one day you hear a click in your left ear, you can't hear anymore, the world starts spinning and you pass out unconscious and wake in the hospital.that's fucked up. my job fucks up my hearing occasionally but I never thought IEMs could do actual permanent damage
Why did you have so high volume?
I've used IEMs for over 25 years and this has never happened to me.
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Truthear Hexa Impressions
26/09/2025
Sound engineer/performing musician here. Just got Truthear Hexas after using kz AS10s for monitoring on stage and listening to albums. In studios I mostly come across Adam audio A7X or Yamaha HS8 monitors. I'm now using these Truthears to mix music over the studio monitors unless the room has proper treatment. I still use studio monitors no matter what to balance the mono and side images. Really like these iems. I like neutral response with detail. I'm yet to try them on stage but i have a feeling i will stay with the AS10's because i need to hear the bass player over bleed from the drumkit and the stiffer cable sits better running down the back of my shirt over the floppy cable that came with the Hexas.
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Only the tip
26/09/2025
just got those Tang Sancai tip things and they look comfortable but the problem is that I don't have a single IEM because Chang decided to not send what was supposed to be my first pair ever
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Anon orders an IEM
21/09/2025
I'm looking for a USB-C DSP in-ear monitor with harman tuning, low distortion, 1DD a must, neutral FR curve, low impedence high sensitivity, THD at lowest percentile, anime waifu on box with a trans inclusive community and don't forget the treble sparklebnuuy or one
EPZ G20.
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September Mass IEM Impressions
05-20/09/2025
Just chilling with friends and got a chance to cable roll the Nostalgia Guinevere, short impressions:>Nostalgia Pendragon
Biggest jump is swapping the Nostalgia Pendragon stock cable to Guinevere. The Pendragon’s midbass is tamed whilst retaining its BCD bass texture. Cleaner mids which makes the Pendragon a better generalist but it loses its mud-fi classic kino tuning. I don’t think the treble quality has changed but due to the tamer low-end, the treble may sound more extended.>Guinevere vs Sovereign Symphony 8W
SS8W is better. Better treble definition. The Guin is warmer and “slower” sounding.>Guinevere vs Mira MK2
Mira MK2 still better. Mira is more detailed and cleaner-sounding.>Toxic Cable Taipan (sorry no pic)
Dark horse of the lineup. Taipan beats both the Guinevere and Mira MK2. Taipan has very smooth sounding treble unlike the Mira. But it also manages to retain its warmth without sounding muddy like the Guinevere.Also the Sovereign Symphony 8W is temporarily mine since Subtonic is kinda enuf to loan it to me, so intense A/B with the stock cable of Storm soon.
>cable techs believer
You went too farWhen I first started I was a fervent ASR dickrider, but going to canjams/shops and trying everything for myself I stopped giving a shit about whether science can explain it. I just chalk all of it up to output impedance but I'm still gonna buy cables based on sound quality.
>too techy for the pagpags
>not techy enough for the cable autists
I suffer
Catching up on the new chifi releases, every pos tested on Azla Crystals.>Xenns Top Pro
The fabled Storm killer. Brought my Storm along to A/B:Compared to the Storm, the Top Pro is more vocal forward. The Xenns is more subbassy, yet it has weaker dynamics. It also lacks of a lot of the imaging and staging prowess of the Storm. The treble of the Xenns is also relatively edgier and not as smooth or as extended.
Comparing to other chifi sets, the Top Pro’s quite decent, like a cleaner sounding Mega5E, or a more resolving Hype 2. Good bright neutral tonality – but treble might just be too boosted because I’ve heard many irl complaints about it. 7/10.
>Thieaudio Monarch MK4
Non-bass mode: Bright and thin. Splashy and harsh.Bass mode: Huge improvement. The boost in the low end helps immensely to balance the high end. Nice hard-hitting bass. Relatively warm-sounding, like a baby Alter Ego. Good bassy warm V. I don’t think it’s better than its Monarch predecessors, but it’s the warmest Thieaudio yet. 8/10.
>ZiiGaat x Hangout.Audio: Odyssey 2
Shouty V-shape pos. Toning down the bass (compared to the Odyssey 1) only made the pos even more shouty. And the bass is STILL muddy – it’s not as boosted as the Monarch MK4, yet the Odyssey 2 with its tamer bass sounds muddier and the Monarch. With brain burn-in, the Odyssey 2 is still listenable, but why pay more for a shittier tuning. 5/10.>7Hz Elua Ultra
Bright, thin and harsh. Treble is very splashy and lacks extension. Top landfill candidate. The Salnotes Zero 1 is literally 10x better. 0/10.>Truthear Hola
I’ve never actually heard the Hola until now. Firstly, good timbre and tonality: it’s warm neutral without venturing into mud territory. Treble is decent – it’s not the smoothest nor the most extended, but at least it’s not chinkshit harshness like the Elua Ultra. Resolution (or techs or whatever you wanna call it) isn’t the best, but its timbre and cohesiveness is standout. 10/10.>hola
>10/10
The fucking bunny whore took it away from us.I have a Hola but I prefer zero red
Looks like the Red+10ohm graphs very similarly to the Hola, but I don't recall the Red sounding as good. Weird.
Thanks man. You're the best poster here (together with the guy who wrote the EQ guide).
nobody has read the eq guide though
damn man, stop spreading disinformation.
>Truthear Hola
>I’ve never actually heard the Hola until now. Firstly, good timbre and tonality: it’s warm neutral without venturing into mud territory. Treble is decent – it’s not the smoothest nor the most extended, but at least it’s not chinkshit harshness like the Elua Ultra. Resolution (or techs or whatever you wanna call it) isn’t the best, but its timbre and cohesiveness is standout. 10/10.
So this competes with kilobuck sets? Or it's 10/10 for costing ten bucks?My rating is purely subjective personal enjoyment.
>So this competes with kilobuck sets? Or it's 10/10 for costing ten bucks?
It's a mix of both I guess. I'd also rated the Softears Twilight a 10/10, but I would never claim the Hola is "better" than the Twilight. However I would pick the Hola over other kilobuck 1DD like the Nightjar Singularity, Dita Mecha or Moondrop Illustrious because I simply don't enjoy those iems as much.
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I don't know anymore
20-21/09/2025
FREE PALESTINE
rip x_xThis stand is worth more than every single sandnigger combined.
RINKO NOOOO!!!!!
you're indoctrinated
What the fuck does Rinko have to do with palestine
what even is this, why are you posting some weebshit figure burning in a thread dedicated to audio equipment
Newfagzo...
>im a newfag cause i dont care about and dont want weebfaggotry in my quality listening device
Okay.You're a newfag because you don't recognize an audio product, yes.
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Mangird Xenns Top Pro Impressions
19/09/2025
After honeymoon phase with Top Pro I'm starting to think about selling it. Yeah, it has great tech and detail retrieval but it's uninspiring overall. I found out I prefer warmer tonality and smoother and more forward vocal. I just can't find tracks or genres where Top would be my first pick other than that detail retrieval party trick that gets old fast. Reminds me a bit SMG - not for minmaxing and bigger collection.
Should've gone for the Mega5-EST instead.
Should've invested in the humble TRN VX Pro+.
pretty understandable. luckily you should find buyers quick since it's still a fotm.
>warmer tonality and smoother and more forward vocal
maybe softears volume s, ddhifi surface, or upcoming moondrop meteor de.
mega5est too, but some people perceive it more on the relaxed side for vocals
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Kinera Celest IgniteX Beast Impressions
18/09/2025
Random pos I bought over the past month impressions
Celest IgniteX Beast
Bought this one because it seems to be the cheapest IEM with a filled resin build.
>does not suffer from BA midrange loudness abnormalities
>BA most likely is only handling treble, or is fake
>unremarkable sound, some treble spikes but decent
>decent comfort
KZ Duet
Bought this one because they're using the semi in-ear form factor, which is quite rare for non-TWS earbuds.
>seals like an IEM even without the tip, I'd say it's only slightly more open than regular DD IEMs
>has similar suction effect to normal IEMs
>the silicone tips included are mostly unnecessary and are hard to get sealed properly
>sound becomes tinny like a regular IEM when seal is broken
>when sealed the sound is still mediocre, uneven treble, boomy bass, muted mids
EPZ P50 (Custom faceplate)
I actually really like these. Somehow they're a lot smaller than the Q1Pro shells making it much more comfortable.
>great modular cable
>new meta ish tuning, sounds similar to moondrop meteor, better treble than hexa
>filled resin build
I also bought the ddhifi tc44grip which is coming in tomorrow. I'm not sure yet where I want to install it, because I use my phone's USB C for video out sometimes.>I actually really like these. Somehow they're a lot smaller than the Q1Pro shells making it much more comfortable.
I wouldn't say they are a lot smaller than q1pro (well I have daybreaks but they are pretty much the same POS) btu I also was surprised how small and comfy they wereIt feels a lot smaller in the ear for me, probably because of the reduced width of the bottom part of the shell.
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Luxury & Precision EA4 Unboxing
15-16/09/2025
>Amp finally got delivered
Anyways, here an unboxing dump because some anon said he likes pics
>Wooden box inside
>Amp
>Accessories (end of dump)
Kinda barebones, wished LP had included a case>L&P EA4
So is this what you settled on for a portable source and you still have other desktop source? Do you mainly care about how Storm sounds on the sources you test, or still account for other pos?>settled on
I'm thinking of getting the Masskobo 475 as well. A treble-boosting amp would be a nice option next to a nutube amp like the EA4.>other desktop source
I do have a Questyle CMA15 for desktop use but I'm away for work most of the time, so desktop sources aren't my priority atm. Though I'll admit that desktop sources sound better than my shitty DAP.>Do you mainly care about how Storm sounds on the sources you test, or still account for other pos?
Storm is tuned to be neutral so its the easiest way to hear for coloration in sources. As for other pos, I do take note of whether the amp is capable of driving the Nightjar Duality and whether there's any hints of channel imbalance or noise floor when I plug easy to drive pos (Jomo Nautilus/Palavox Akasha). My concerns for synergy in terms of sound are mainly reserved for the more expensive IEMs. As for beater sets like the Helios or Gaea, synergy's an afterthought (I won't keep them for long in my collection anyways).
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TRN Shell Impressions
13-14/09/2025
Thank you TRN for the case, cable, and ear tips bundle, I know now what muddy bass and forward vocals really mean.
It's not terrible though but how the fuck can the Tripowin Vivace knock them so hard out of the park with just 1DD? This thing has 3DD + 1 Planar and i feel like every time I try to EQ it I just make it muddier.(pic not mine, I'm too lazy to take one right now)
did you really think TRN would use drivers in a reasonable and productive manner?
I actually don't know what I expected
update, after fucking around with EQ for a bit, it actually sounds pretty decent, I don't know how must of the muddiness of the bass is just gone like that but it worked.
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Tanchjim Fission Black Review
13/09/2025
Tanchjim Fission Black, it's pretty good. Channel matching is not as perfect as it was with the Origin, but still very good and below 0.4 dB.
What was I thinking with that green color.
Here's the insertion depth variation.
And finally distortion at 105 dB.
Overall, very good, like a more relaxed Origin.
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Azla Trinity Impressions
11/09/2025
I'm back. Not a expert on technical term or anything, I really like listening with alza trinity.
The sednaearfit T eartip that come with it fit really well
Female vocal sound crisp with this,this fits well for ASMR>not a bed sheet background
rip measurements
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Anon attempts to remove wax from his IEMs
10/09/2025
Embark on me in this journey bros where I attempt to remove ear wax from my iems.
As you can see. These items looks disgusting and full of ear crud. This is gross and looking at it makes me want to puke. How will I solve such a dilemma?just dip in peroxide dumbass
you need to pry open the metal grill with a pointy sewing needle or something and then replace the filterwhy would you open it? the earwax or debris goes through the nozzle... the best you can do is to replace the filter
>why open it?
I dont entirely know what im doing.I have used an ultra fine tip tweezers to remove the outer screen elements.
Now im cleaning the screen elements using some isopropyl. I have noticed the white screen appears to have an adhesive ring on both sides to hold thing thing together. Removing this sorta ruins the adhesive.
Everything is pretty clean. I'll now reassemble.
Foam adhesive is going down. I applied by scraping in on with fine tip tweezers.
Shiz I used is called foam2foam. Its made for model airplane, not items but it should work.
Ok its glued back together. But this sorta looks like shit. Is that really any better than being full or earwax? Maybe i can clean it up a bit under a magnifyer.Now to complete the other side.
Complete. Im pretty sure this was a complete waste of time. Next time I'll just order a new screen shit off ali express to pop in there. I may have got more glue in there than there was earwax. Now for the sound test!
The left iem is quieter. Its not a big deal to pull the screen off and rub away the rubber cement type glue to redo it.. i think I did a messier glue job on thay one.
I feel the volume still isn't as loud as my newer zero 2s. I can still make it plenty loud with my EPZTP50 but with high output mode I still need to have the volume cranked quite high.. I think these are just a little worn out. EZPTP50 also has L/R balance adjusent so I was able to adjust for the quieter L iem. I dont need to trash these iems. I like the zero2 better.cleaning visible debris from the filters does not mean you cleaned the filters
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Sennheiser MOMENTUM True Wireless 4 Impressions
08/09/2025
I gotta be honest with you guys, you were right about the sennheiser momentum TW4s. Not about the quality or other aspects, but just the reliability. Why would anyone buy 300$ TWShitters that reliably have their left pieces break after a few months, is beyond me.
Too bad that it seems the TWShitter space seems awful now. No matter the cost, each and every single one of them is flawed (an anon pointed that out earlier and I ignored him only to waste 2 days of research). It's either:
-No good codecs, or one key codec (to me) is missing
-No BT 5.4
-Terrible battery life
-Uncomfortable fit (though it's always accompanied by something else)
-Lack of tip compatibility with other OEMs (likewise never the only issue)
-Terrible mic (or mics), usually either or with no LC3 support
-No water resistance (even IPX4 which should be the BARE minimum)
-No physical buttons or poor touch/capacitive button implementation
-Terrible reliability (wouldn't matter if they were cheap, and funnily enough the cheapos are more reliable)
-Bad ANC making them unusable (more the case for the Sennheiser TW4s)And this is at any price point; It doesn't matter if you have 10$ or 1000$, in fact it's probably better if you spend the least amount of money possible because you might actually get the most for it.
I can't believe a board of gullible retards was right again
Do you think manufacturers are skipping on IP ratings because the certification cost adds to the expenses and the buds themselves are water resistant enough?
Well, considering FiiO’s TWS modules don’t even have contacts on them for charging, in contrast to some other western or even chink TWS Pos which sometimes have those exposed to the elements completely, AND YET, the FiiO UTWS5’s are only IPX4 rated whereas even chink pos like the earfun air pro 4+ are IPX5 rated, no.
If you splash your chink iem with water, it will almost certainly die if it gets moisture even close to the nozzle, the 0.78 pins or the vents if applicable. Gamer tip: have cheapos to use with TWS modules. As the moisture kills them over time, your 0$ pairs will probably die anyway, but your shiny Monarch MKIV’s back home are safe and sound from both rain and jamal asking you to “see dem aeepods” not knowing he is about to inadvertedly hit a jackpot he will happily trade unknowingly for 2 ounces of crack. Unless you also buy a gun to shoot him, but that is another story.
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Anon on a quest to find a bad IEM
07/09/2025
>want to buy a palate cleanser terrible sounding pos
>oh, the KZ EDC is just 3$ and graphs terrible, order placed
>it arrives, I open the package and for some reason it uses the new EDC Pro style 2pin connector and has a new-style silvery mesh on it
>plug it in, it does not sound terrible, just another average 1DD pos and graphs acceptably well
Literally can't even have shit these daysyou have to get the diy boutique cheap shit on aliexpress to get truly bad stuff
that and qkz 2 cent pos
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Shanling M0 Pro Impressions
05-07/09/2025
>shanling m0 pro on the way
can't wait
well I've received it and so far I'm disappointed even after watching multiple reviews
>interface isn't actually smooth as purported to be
>scrolling through the library isn't intuitive, trying to quickly scroll just warps you to either the top or bottom but trying to scroll slowly doesn't even let you scroll line by line so trying to slowly scroll would take an eternity
>album artists are case sensitive for god knows what reason
>can't sort albums by release order after opening an artist
>bluetooth connection is poor even when the device is sitting right on my desk, on top of being glitchy and noisy
>bluetooth codecs sometimes crap out, kept defaulting to AAC for some reason
debating whether or not I should just give it a day or two before returning it. any recs for a better player? I initially got this just for use while at the gym due to its size and to avoid using my phone but I'm now open to getting something bigger than it if it means the software isn't as badAll non android players have horrible software, just use your phone and some twshits for the gym. The background noise is going to ruin any semblance of sound quality anyways, no point in using fancy audiophile hardware. The smallest android player is the Hiby M300 if you insist on using a dedicated player.
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Nightjar Acoustic Soverign Symphony Cable Impressions
06/09/2025
Totl anon here. Impressions with the Sovereign Symphony 8W. Unofficial cable from Nightjar and MSRP is around 15,000 SGD (not sure about US pricing).>Ergonomics
0/10. This cable is literally painful to use long-term. Normally when I wear the Storm with the stock Mira cable, the 2pins are angled inwards, pointing towards my head, but the earhooks and 2pin connectors for the SS8W are fucking massive. There’s no room left for an inward angle and this changes the insertion angle for the Storm as well. The Storm is tilted upwards and exerts pressure on my ear canal which becomes sore after just 30mins.Even when stationary I’ve got to be mindful of how I wear it. The weight of the earhook tugs on my IEMs and so I gradually lose seal whenever I turn my head. It kinda helps if I rest the entire weight of the cable on the table but that means leaning back is out of the question.
Walkability is surprisingly decent with the cable tho.
>Sound quality (A/B’d with stock Mira MK2 cable)
SS8W is a U-shape, bright-leaning cable as compared to the stock Mira. For some reason, on the same volume step, the SS8W sounds louder – possibly due to lower output impedance? Or maybe the boosted coloration is just more audible.On “Bloody Mary” by Lady Gaga, the opening background static is more audible with the SS8W. Bass is slightly louder but also bloomy, Mira’s bass is definitely tighter and better controlled.
The bright-leaning nature of the SS8W is more audible on weebshit like “Hoshizora no Memoria” and “あの輝きを忘れない” (both by Chata). Chata’s vocals sound a tad more laidback and less shouty on the SS8W (maybe it stages wider?), and cymbals sound more extended.
On Shadow Shape by Hatsuki Yura, I can hear the same bright nature of the cable – more treble texture, but bass sounds slightly muddy and not as tight as the Mira MK2. The muddiness comes through evidently around the 2:40 mark when the drums kick in when the duo sings their duet.
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CVJ Vivian Review
05/09/2025
She's herethat right earhook needs correction. brat...
Now that is an IEM.
is the FR bleeding? :3
First impressions it sounds cheap. Channel matching isn't great nor is the tuning. It's very V shaped with harsh treble and the bass is very forward but sounds a bit off. The Tanchjim Force had a similar thing going on with its base but it's worse on the Vivian. With some EQ it sounds passable.
Comfort is good, print quality is decent. Seems CVJ learned from the neko and the 3D embossing is much more subtle on this one.>unsmoothed constant frequency data
jesus fuck my eyesI forgot to smooth it but give me a break dude its Friday
clock back in and do some ot young chap
>waifu techs is a lie
I'm disappointed
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What the fuck is all that
05/09/2025
>believes in techs
>setup isn't like picrel
ngmi
Orgone Accumulator and schizo audio tech?orgone is 100% bullshit. new age nonsense.
with every fiber of my being, I urge you to stay away from new age bullshittery
ok
no techs for youplease just tell me it's not your OC. nobody should take you seriously if you do this. at all. I bet you take kratom and smoke dmt too don't you
No, I inject heroin and drop shrooms like a sane person.
The true power of Aliexpress.
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Tripowin Ruta10 Review
03/09/2025
As promised, Ruta10 review. Too lazy, didn't take pics, sorry.
Accessories: Average, which means it's relatively good, and for the price, great. You can get these for around $10, and the accessories are acceptable. There is nothing that immediately needs to be replaced, the cable and tips are fine and work well enough with the IEMs. The cable handles itself very well: it is very thin (think of the white cable that came with some TinHifi IEMs) but has practically no memory. The Y split design is old but doesn't bother me and the strain reliefs are good.
Comfort: The shell is rather strange and is slanted, and when worn, the nozzle will twist and angle itself properly, in turn making the slanted faceplate be parallel to the ear. However, the fitting is weird, and in my experience requires a lot of trial and error with tips. The earhooks also hampered fit security a lot, so I removed them. In my opinion this is mandatory since the shell of the IEM only relies on the nozzle/eartip for security, it does not rest anywhere in the ear.
Pic shows the channel matching on top, and the effects of covering the vents on the bottom.Sound: I won't go into detail, it sounds fine, bassy and decent timbre. Honestly sounds like a Wan'er with more treble and a bit more bass, both changes that I like.
Channel matching: I've seen worse, I've seen better. It is far from good, and the discrepancy is big and wide enough to be slightly audible. I wouldn't be bothered after a while but it is a bit disappointing. The only real issue is everything below 1khz, the rest above is small enough to not be distracting.
Vents: The effects of covering the front and back vents are as expected, but the changes are decent. You can cover the front to have more bass, cover the back to decrease bass, or both to reduce the region around 100hz. Too much of a hassle for me, I would just use EQ.
Distortion: Nothing much to say, inaudible and stuff. Surprising amount of 3H but that's that. 104dB.
Insertion depth: Shit looks so cool. Anyways it looks good, pretty much the same changes as seen with others. I have to remind you all that the range (7-10khz) is probably shifted higher in frequency, it should be probably be around 5.5-9khz, although since the Ruta is very small it is probably higher.Conclusion: Another IEM that is well built, measures nicely, and fits fine. I don't feel strongly about it, get it if you want to. I do think it's a fine addition to the OP, it is basically a Wan'er with better build and increased treble. The differences are relatively small ccompared to others so I wouldn't fret over it.
I prefer it over the Gate and Wan'er. I would take the Q1 Pro and Bunny over it.are you deaf? otherwise its odd to prefer shartman treble rape over ruta10
Are you referring to what I prefer? If so, the Q1 Pro fits me much better. I prefer how the Ruta10 sounds.
oh okay just making sure :)
>It's a Waner except V shaped
Fuck, I wasted $0 on this.
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AFUL Explorer Impressions
01/09/2025
Received my Aful Explorer today, and have listened to them for an hour. These are just amazing. They're the closest of my IEMs to my Klipsch RF-8000 floor standing speakers so far. The sound is super balanced. Good bass, very clear vocals, great treble that is never shrill or sibilant. I don't want to EQ them at all.
Now, should I just be happy here or is there an upgrade for me? Is there something more expensive I can buy that will sound similar but even better?