Reply With QuoteI looked into this about 4 years ago and didn't get very far. I ended up going throughOriginally Posted by bonzo697
http://www.custom-inearmonitors.co.uk/1964-ears.html
and getting a pair of 1964 V3
My current fad is for IEMs. I started out with Soundmagic (E10/50/80) and now have a pair of RHA and Rockjaws on the way. These are UK based companies and it got me wondering who else is out there in the UK IEM market. Excluding the mainstream HiFi brands (B&W, KEF, MF) I'm aware of Atomic Floyd and Trinity Audio; anyone I'm missing? I've searched Google but there are no obvious lists.
I looked into this about 4 years ago and didn't get very far. I ended up going through
http://www.custom-inearmonitors.co.uk/1964-ears.html
and getting a pair of 1964 V3
Just took a look at the 1964 site.I'm sure they'll sound marvellous, but after seeing the prices I think I'll stick with my RHA 750is.
F.T.F.A.
I did a lot of research and these at the time seemed the best bang for the buck. I think at the time after the artwork and other options they're to about £500!! Fir what I wanted this was cheap compared to most. They do sound fantastic though when playing flac off my cowon j3.Just took a look at the 1964 site.
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Forgot to mention I moved to these from some v-sonics in-ear headphones and the difference is amazing
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Me too! I'm looking more in the £40-60 range to use with my phone and Fiio A1. I'm just trying the RHA 600s & Spinfits which sound great to me.Just took a look at the 1964 site.
I think there is a great comparison chart somewhere on the head-fi website which I found really useful
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I doubt my 59.5 year old lugs would hear that difference! :-( ;-)
Maybe not but remember that because you get a moulding done of each ear they fit perfectly and effectively seal out the outside world. Plus the use of separate drivers really is a massive step up in sound quality, stage and separation. I got them when times where good for us and could afford them. Wouldn't do it now, lol
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I've just pre-ordered a pair of Trinity Vyrus 2 for £31 with Headfi discount. Full retail will be £59 in March. With the Rockjaws on the way I'm pretty much covered for now, but still interested to hear about any other UK brands.
I've already ordered mine but there's a 20% discount code if anyone is interested: RJ671
I use custom moulded ear protectors from Ultimate Ear - they also provide ones with built in monitors for 180 or 280 for the higher quality music ones. A couple of my friends got these for bikes and ended up using on the tube etc. as very good when surrounding noise.
Still seems a lot to me for headphones but I guess it depends how much use you get from them too.
I've got Trinity Deltas which are very good for when I have to have IEMs (I usually use over or on ear cans, but sometimes need something smaller).
Have just ordered the Trinity Master IEM using their 'existing customer upgrade' option for £60.
https://trinity-audio-engineering.my...roducts/master
Not sure whether they'll be discernibly better than anything I have, but fancied trying these 'push pull dual coil dynamic drivers' just to see if my ears can detect anything beyond snake oil.
It is a lot to spend on something like this but I spent a long time researching it all. Plus I knew that they'd last me years so using man math I could justify it (just). At the time I chose them as they had single Low, Single Mid, Single High Precision Balanced Armatures and where the cheapest way to get that spec at the time.
https://www.64audio.com/product/1964...In-Ear-Monitor
They look pretty good and I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on them.
I've got a pair to use on my bike and a pair of Shure 315s for everything else.I use custom moulded ear protectors from Ultimate Ear
I bought a set of ACS moulded ear protectors for operating machinery in my workshop around 12 years ago. Probably one of the best things I've bought work related. After seeing this thread I'm now tempted to look into a set of moulded Earphones, anyone have any recommendations for a wireless pair to work with IOS?
Let us know how the Rockjaw compare to the E80s.
I'm happy with those but always like trying new iems
Currently have
Soundmagic e10 (Mrs has pinched these as she sees headphones as disposable items it seems)
RHA S500 which I find too uncomfortable
Shure se115 in pink which I never got on with
LG quadbeat 4 (which are pretty good for bundled headphones but again borrowed by the Mrs)
Soundmagic E80 which I really like
And then for over the ears
Jabra Move
Bose soundtrue 2
AKG 451
I'm covered but don't mind another £40 or so on a decent set.
Firmly in the budget end though, trying not to look much higher
My Alpha Genus V2 have been delivered to the office, but will let you know. If you use the code listed above you'll get them direct from Rockjaw for £35 including next day delivery. Have you tried Spinfit tips? They work really well with the E80.
Last edited by bonzo697; 24th January 2017 at 21:35.
Excluding hifi brands and custom made, it appears the list is limited to the following companies, but feel free to add to it if there are any others:
RockJaw
RHA
Trinity
Atomic Floyd
Flare Audio
Last edited by bonzo697; 28th January 2017 at 14:12.
earphones and headphones should be made by transducer manufacturers i.e. Sure, AKG, Sennheiser, Koss, Audio-Technica etc, with few exceptions like say Grado most of the others are just marketing.
Currently have Nu-Force Primo 8's (4 BA per side) which sound wonderful but the MMCX connector is staring to get a little temperamental so I'm having those re-shelled by Cosmic Ears following ear impressions next week (will also get a pair of custom moulded ear protectors to help with my increasingly worsening tinnitus).
I've also got a pair of Trinity Audio PM4's which sound amazing but I can't always get the seal that I like (and can get easily with the primo 8's). I've also got a pair of PM6's on the way (soon hopefully) one of which may end up on SC if I get on with the reshelled primo 8's). Trinity are pretty good and their head shed used to work for Rockjaw before setting up on his own, using much the same principles with the filter system.
Currently £45 with this code direct from Trinity which is an £80 saving on list price: Sabrefinalsale
Last edited by bonzo697; 26th January 2017 at 22:43.
Well that's an impulse purchase
The Trinity Sabre arrived.
No idea how they sound but there's at least £45 worth of fun playing with all the bits, and tips etc
I left it too late for the Sabres, but I've ordered a couple of other pairs from them - the Vyrus 2 and the Hyperion.
Thanks to this thread I've just ordered some Rockjaw Alpha Genus V2 for the daily commute.
Replacing some ancient Sound magic ones but for £35 got to be worth a punt.
😀
^ They're good but I think the Trinity Hyperion's are better for the same price. Either way it's amazing what you get from these small British companies. You get great products, amazing value and excellent customer service.
Have you tried them yet, how do they sound?
Pretty good. The bass is better and they're louder than the E80s.
To my ears anyway.
The remote cable doesn't seem to work with android and it took a lot of experimenting with tips etc too get a seal and sound I liked.
Large silicone buds and short orange tips work best for me.
Well worth £45, wouldn't have considered them at full price (as I'm tight like that)
I was put off by the around the ear cables and went for the Hyperion's which sound amazing. I can't believe they're only £30 and they included 4 pairs of Spinfits too.
I rather like the sound from my Musical Fidelity EB-50. Sadly, they're discontinued.
Just come home from work to discover the Masters had been delivered today (unexpected, hadn't seen a despatch note email).
Had about 20 mins with them and my Fiio X3 so far, picking through my usual testing flac files.
Initial impressions are very good. Bloody loud though - had to drop volume from where it had been set by about a third for my day to day B&O over ears.
Very detailed and to my cloth ears a very wide sound stage. Lots of clarity in the treble end of things without being painful and supported by a very tight but powerful bass response.
As yet only compared them with the super cheap ATE KZ things i bought on impulse from another thread on this forum. Unsurprisingly the Trinity phones completely trounce them. Need to compare with my well used Trinity Deltas when I can find them. I suspect that'll be much closer - but I think these are the best IEMs I've ever owned on the performance so far. And that's without playing with any of the filters or tips.
They're big, ungainly and heavy to hold but right now feel very comfortable in the ear.
All in all, very pleased and expect to be picking these out for any upcoming public transport requirements.
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Lucky you on the masters. I've been waiting for my pm6 since August. I nearly went for the masters as a stop over but held firm. My RHA t20s are highly recommended. The pm6 better kick those into touch after all this waiting. Feedback on the masters so far is excellent all round. Fingers crossed. I might go for the Icarus iii as they'll match my preordered Icarus I that was offered as an apology (for a tenner). We'll see.
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Yeah, seems I have been lucky. I've never got excited about the wait. Didn't the kick starter thing for the Delta and only ordered the masters as it seemed a good offer and intriguing tech. Ordered just before Christmas.
I also ordered the Icarus I for a tenner a while back but have to admit I'm more than a little in the dark about what i may receive and when.
Still not played with the filters on the masters but have been listening all morning. Tremendous amount of detail present, very pleased with them...
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The Tenner Icarus is (I think) the in line blue tooth DAC that will connect to the Y split on your masters. I think it'll be worth it to try out the tech. I'm concerned it won't actually work with by pm6 though. Well, it will but it'll be dangling off the jack with an adapter so pretty pointless. :)
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That could come in handy then. Not much use with my Fiio, but there's plenty of music stored on my phone too so can play with that.
Wonder how big it is, my Beoplay h6's have a cable connection point direct at the can...
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https://instagram.com/p/BO3T1m6hfRH/
There's a mock up here. Who knows if it's actually representative though? ;)
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I pre-ordered the PM6 on June 28th last year and cancelled my order last week as I got sick of waiting and went down the custom route. I think they've handled this quite badly to be honest, they seem to have over promised and under delivered on timing, especially as they seem to have released other models in priority over the PM6, Air and Hunter. I was genuinely excited about the PM6's but seeing the deadline pushed back repeatedly (and they've not even bothered doing that now) I just got sick of waiting with no communication. The thread on Head-fi is quite revealing.
Anyhow, hope they're stellar, you'll have to post some pics and impressions when they arrive?
I'm on Head-fi too. Mini subversive TZ-UK community. ;)
I'm sort of ok with the wait. I'm not ok with being lied to and I was also on the brink (literally) of cancelling when the praise started for the early master deliveries.
I personally think it's the cable issue that's delayed the pm6 and hunters. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if Bob hangs on another couple of weeks and then says the detachable cables are a no go. We can offer you a Y-split instead though......
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I lurk on head-fi, but don't post there. It's all a bit to excitable for me.
I understand the frustrations with delays and (it now seems) lies. But for me, this was never anything but a fairly frivolous purchase or two. I like headphones as I love music and most of my opportunities to listen seriously are when travelling. But, I've always got access to some way of listening - this is just gathering more options.
I can't say I think they've gone about everything the right way, but the two sets I own are both fantastic and I've been happy to take advantage of the reduced cost upgrade / apology offers - taking expected delivery dates very loosely as I do.
As it stands, I was pleasantly surprised to find the masters delivered yesterday. I'd not been on the Trinity head-fi threads for a little while so was out of the loop.
The actual product - and packaging and 12 different coloured filter options are very impressive. I'm happy to have them now. No idea what signature any of the filters are intended to give, but as they sound great now with a flat EQ setting on my X3ii and the stock filters I'm not messing about with them just yet...
I'd be OK with the wait if there was some transparency but it just seemed like it was being pushed back for no reason, especially since they've launched other products in the interim and meanwhile the PM6 still has no pictures (apart from the really old ones) which makes me think there's more at play here. I get the idea of kickstarter and preorder giving you favourable prices but effectively the customer is paying for the R&D of TRinity and for that I expect some communication.
Anyhow, enough of me b*tching, I've cancelled my order so no skin in the game any more. But I'm still tempted by the PM6 though
Oh, and I just picked up an AK Jr this morning and am listening with my Cosmic ears. Beautiful, really musical. I sold a DX90 on here last year and really wished I hadn't. Was looking at Sony, Cayin etc and saw the Junior was down to half price on Amazon so grabbed one. Lovely sound and very pocketable (my two main criteria).
Last edited by tiny73; 21st April 2017 at 14:45.
Brilliantly I've just received a despatch notice email for the masters that were delivered yesterday!
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They do look nice, would be interested to hear impressions (and how they fit?)
See #32 above for initial impressions...
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oopsThanks!
I looked at AK Jr but ruled them out due to SD capacity compared to the Fiio X5 3rd gen but seeing as its about about 130 quid cheaper than the fiio I may have to reconsider, but the fiio is 60 quid cheaper now so sounds more of a bargain in man math. Couple that with (at present) 512Gb capacity and its pretty future proff for me for now. I think they are both fairly close musically aren't they?
That good to hear. For 350 quid they do now seen to be one of the cheaper ways to get into the custom IEM area. I'm just looking at the website and they do look substantial pieces of kit for the money. I'll bet they'll sound even better after a bit of burn in time. I used to leave mine hook up to my hi fi over night playing on repeat for a week.
Since starting this thread I've settled on pair of RHA CL750 to use with my Fiio x1ii/A3, and Trinity Hyperions with Fiio A1 and phone for the train. I did have a pair of Trinity Vyrus 2 on pre-production order but cancelled after the 3rd missed delivery deadline.
I have had great customer service from RHA and RockJaw and they all offer outstanding value compared to the mainstream providers.
Last edited by bonzo697; 21st April 2017 at 18:22.
Not sure to be honest, I liked the idea of the X5iii for the wifi and other features but it's a bit of a brute and I wanted something more pocketable with a half decent battery life. Looked at the Sony players for the battery life but they didn't get the best reviews on sound, for the size and form together with the sound quality associated with AK, the current pricing seemed too good to be true (am assuming they'll be discontinued which is why it's such a good deal). In terms of SD capacity it has 64gb internal and I believe will accept 128gb cards (at least people on Head-if are reporting as much) in addition.
I've got a lovely sounding, pocketable player that sounds phenomenal with my CIEMs, is perfectly sized for a pocket. The sound is what I would describe as rich and full (I'm no audiophile) and very "musical". What's not to like?
Last edited by tiny73; 21st April 2017 at 19:58.
£49.95 for another two hours: https://goo.gl/9TX273
Tried Rockjaw and wasn't impressed - both original purchase and replacement stopped working within a month. I gave up after that and bought a set of B&O.
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