• Why use a PMP instead of a phone? >better DAC/AMP >more output power so it can drive higher impedance headphones >smaller sizes than phones for activities like exercise >physical buttons >headphone jacks >some people can't use smartphone at work/use dumbphones
• How to request advice: >Budget >Source (phone or PMPs) >Location >Kind (in-ears or earbuds) >Sound Signature (or genres you like, important!) >Past gear and your thoughts on them (important!)
I am new to this stuff. Where do you guys buy your earbuds? Any recommendations for a begginner? I notice some of these earbuds have removable cables why is that?
>Where do you guys buy your earbuds? amazon if available, otherwise aliexpress/linsoul/hifigo/shenzhenaudio are good choices in my experience. >Any recommendations for a begginner? depends on your budget and what sound you like. most people will suggest either the CCA CRA or Moondrop Chu currently as the flavor of the month. >I notice some of these earbuds have removable cables why is that? cables are one of the fastest points of failure in bargain bin store earbuds in my experience, when you're paying potentially hundreds of dollars for a pair, it's nice being able to replace a cable for under $20 sometimes.
Easton Sullivan
My laptop brand claim this on their website. Do I still need an external DAC?
>cables are one of the fastest points of failure in bargain bin store earbuds in my experience this and you can use different kinds of jacks without needing a separate adapter, like 2.5mm-4.4mm, balanced cable, type-c, or even bluetooth you also have to know what connector type your iem uses, most common are 2 pin or QDC, and some are mmcx or something proprietary like the ones that etymotic uses
Dominic Barnes
you can easily tell in your device manager on which soundcard it uses. 95% of the time it's realkek
Angel Morris
I see. Thanks for the info frens. I have 150 shekels to expend, would you recommend me anything around that price from moondrop or other brand?
like I said, it depends on what kind of sound you like. one of the reasons people will suggest CRA/Chu for beginners is to figure out if you prefer something v-shaped or more neutral, respectively. if you already have an idea what you like, I'm sure people will start throwing out suggestions around your budget.
those labels are literally meaningless. the images illustrating the waveforms are actually just lies.
Caleb Price
If you don't like the idea of buying a bunch of cheap IEMs you can ignore the entry level ones and go straight into Moondrop Aria Snow Edition + Abigail CX31993 Dongle for a sub $100 endgame It's more on the neutral side like most Moondrops, but it has a very safe tuning that might fit most of your needs, and if you find it is lacking somewhere, you can just learn how to use PEQ to achieve most of it
Jackson Carter
For 150 you can go with an Abigail DAC dongle plus one of these: Aria Snow Edition TinHiFi T3 Plus Dunu Titan S Shuoer S12 (recommended if you know how to PEQ to tame most tonal imbalances) Etymotic ER2XR (recommended only if you're comfortable shoving those long ear tips deep into your ear canals)
Don't dwell that much on cheap flavor of the months and go straight into a good investment. Avoid falling for sidegrading or collecting memes. Once you get an IEM in the 100~200 range like one of the listed above and you feel the need to go for something better, your next notable upgrade would be IEMs with multiple drivers (be it BA, EST or both) like the Blessing2/Blessing2:Dusk, Variations, etc.
I'll second the other guy and say s12 is good with EQ, but there aren't many presets I've found for it. I'm not as fond of the t3+ in my bit of time with them, and I haven't heard the snow or titan. what kind of music do you listen to, and what do you like about how it sounds?
Easton Morgan
not that user but i have the t3+, would the s12 be a worthy upgrade?
Bentley Nguyen
I'll be honest, I only got them a couple days ago and I've been working 12-hour shifts since the day after they showed up. the t3+ had a pretty similar low end, and the treble seemed a little more reined in. the treble didn't bother me after some EQ, but if your source doesn't have PEQ options then I don't know if I'd consider it a large enough upgrade to warrant the cost. I'm demoing the Kato right now, I can swap back to the t3+ for a little while and then the s12 on stock tuning.
Juan Lopez
I can EQ just fine, so the S12's treble isn't all that scary. I heard it was identical to the Timeless in terms of resolving ability and other techs, so thought it must be a steal for ~135$. Going through the archives it doesn't seem like the S12 was much of a thing in /iemg/ so that had me a little concerned. Wondering if the Blessing 2 would be a more worthy upgrade, but on crin's memechart he lists the B2 as having an A rank in techs so maybe it's not worth coughing up twice as much as the S12.
Camden Baker
okay, just spent half an hour with the t3+ and refreshing myself on the stock s12. here's what I've got so far: the t3+ is a better laid-back listen, but it doesn't feel as resolving as the s12. if you listen to something with heavy bass or really busy songs, you're probably better off with the s12. you'll miss out on the thump of DD bass, but I think the speed more than makes up for it to have that extra clarity. t3+ has better stock treble. hi-hats sounded weird the first time I used the s12, and that's the main thing I worked to EQ (that said, it's not bothering me stock right now). like I said, if your source has PEQ, then I see no real downsides to the s12, but it's only an incremental upgrade instead of blowing the t3+ out of the water. I'd suggest finding something that's a wider step up, and saving for a while. on a personal note, I can't stand the shell of the t3+ at all. I'm getting a good seal, but the shaping they do that's supposed to help fit against the ear isn't as comfortable to me as the s12. I'm also using the blue tin foams on them, and comply foams on the s12. t3+ cable feels nicer, but that's preference. I like the thinner feel compared to the fucking umbilical cord that comes with the s12. they got overshadowed by the timeless as FotM, which was mostly shitposted about anyway. I think the way the stock treble graphs turned a lot of people off, combined with people remembering the tape. I don't have experience with the b2/d at all, unfortunately.
here's the t3+, s12, timeless, and my EQ on the s12 just in case you're curious to see how they all line up.
