@@VSN-wb2lyIts not really a replacement like other industries though. My Aria Snow Edition still plays music exactly as it did when I bought it in 2022. In contrast a phone from 2021 performs objectively worse the longer it lives.
@@kellycny65Dont really see the problem with a great headphone being respected as a great headphone for 5-10 years, then it getting a price cut and still being great. Leads to just people enjoying what's out there for its quality, not for the FOMO If IEMs justified the constant "upgrades", then sure its more exciting. But as the other person said, much of the market is just the same or similar stuff done in a different color way under a new brand with a similar price point the past couple years (sometimes its the same exact people making similar IEMs across several brands)
I still remember when companies like Shure, Westone, and Etymotics dominated the universal iem market. I still have my old Westone 4s stashed away somewhere, crazy to see how much the industry has grown since
@@Rezzzn0rYeah to get very natural timbre on planars, you definitely have to step up to the next tier bracket. Planar drivers in general are a lot more expensive to make vs DDs
As someone new to the IEM scene I found this video incredibly helpful and informative. Perhaps something like this every couple of months covering different price brackets?
I still return to my Aria almost every week. Not sure if it's a "first love" scenario, but there's just something about how it sounds that is so impressive to me, even to this day.
The timbre of the SA6 sounds better than the Ultra to me, less upper treble spiciness while also have more mids in general. Also the Blessing 2/B2Dusk on sale still rocks right now, S8 treble is still one of the best, and Thieaudio Oracle is old (you get my point)
MDR 7506 is looking at this with a smile.... in production since 1991 and still selling. Would be interesting to see if any iem at any price range could repeat something like this.
So happy I just bought the Variations on AliExpress anniversary sale for about 380 USD. What a deal on a legendary IEM that won't disappoint for a long time.
I got hooked when 7Hz Timeless was trending and decided to try it out. Since then I also bought 7Hz x Crin Zero and Zero 2 and they were as good as the hype predicted! But I haven't convinced myself (yet) to go for an upgrade. Thank you Timmy for the video, it was engaging (as always), but also it gave me the idea of the progress that's been made since Timeless
The first 4 iem’s I got were the Blon03, shozy 1.1, KBear Diamonds, then Urbanfun YBF-ISS014. would love to know your thoughts about these and maybe the original shouer tapes (have the pros). Has been fun over the years going on the iem journey. From my old stack of iem’s I still listen to my YBF’s (something about them I still love even with elevated mid bass), my shozy 1.4 (upgraded from 1.1) and the shouer tape pros. Great segment and would love to see more of them.
I have the main IEMs under $20 and none come close to the quality of the T3 plus in resolution and instrument separation, they can come close to timbre, but nothing else. Timmy may be right in genres like K-pop, but not in rock and roll and music with real instruments.
Regarding the S12, LETSHUOER kind of overshadows itself with their sub brand ARTTI T10. It's a similar driver, just in a plastic shell that looks different on the outside. I was kind of tempted to buy one since they're pretty cheap but I don't really need another planar IEM, but I heard good things about it basically just being an S12 Pro in a plastic shell.
It’s wild to me that Variations is still so viable and there hasn’t been an update/sequel to it. That $480-$520 price range doesn’t even seem that competitive. Give us Variations 2!
not a fan of the mindless consumerism many people in this hobby promote. bought the timeless like 2 years ago and still using them daily, still an amazing IEM.
Is there any cable 4.4mm that is good enough for these IEMs ? I have Moondrop Aria Snow Edition IEMs but they are 3.5mm jack but I have an AMP that I need to connect them with 4.4mm and they sound better ofcs. any recommendations ? Thx
Great throwback video from 18 months ago…. Yeah crazy seems like the starfield came out decades ago…. Agree with everything you said except Dunu Sa6 I own all three sa6 ultra is fav followed by og sa6 then mkii… love the og sa6 such great all rounder….and the look cables, fit and faceplates will never let them go out of style …. My original sa6 still looks better than any iem I have ever seen! How about the oxygen? Still relevant?
Moondrop S8 went from being incredible and the near pinnacle of what most people wanted from an IEM... to not even being mentioned in any comparisons with newer stuff whatsoever As someone who owns one, makes no sense to me as its still awesome. Much prefer my S8 to things like Monarch MK2, SA6 Mk2.
There may be budget sets out there with better tuning than the BL03 (at least based on "objective" reasons / measurements), but there is something magical about that iem.. I still listen to it even though I have much better and more expensive sets nowadays... it is not nostalgia.. there is something very soothing about that sound.. at least to me..
Hey Want balanced sound. 7hz Zero 2 vs simgot ew100p or Should i increase my budget and get this is it worth any one help me Simgot ew200 vs kz - zs 10 pro
I liked so much the ultras but hated as much the limited move so not begging, not when the time they were unique is gone. now there are sliivos, pulas, ziigaats and a lot more doing same stuff for less money. So dunu may keep their ultras for the few.
Buddy. Forget about the tuning for a while. Most of this iem that you mentioned for 20 to 30 dollars can't handle volumes. That's how you see if a driver can handle. Not at medium volumes with the tuning that suits you. Decay and image and volume is what diferentes driver from one to other.
T2 Plus has a special place in my heart. Great metal and whatever really IEM with a strange looking FR, but it sounds mostly normal. Timeless is also still the best planar for the price afaik. Aria/Titan S are maybe a bit dated for their price point. I don't care much for T3 Plus. Edit: Heyday you say. Need to try one. Timeless has amazing mids, but the bass is very rounded so if Heyday is even a bit punchier then it might be my thing.
I just recently ordered my first pair of Dunu Titan S to have as a sub-$100 analytically-tuned with some vocal-forwardness IEM, hopefully I like them lol I’m going to them from the Hexa
@@woka_kawanua-hw2hj oh no I do, I just don’t care for it for particular types of songs and would prefer something with a cleaner tuning for those songs. The Hexa is awesome for metal and rock to me (and those are my fav music genres so they consist of at least 50-60% of my library) but anything acoustic or slowly melodic or very vocal-focused I think I’ll prefer the Titan S. Just want the diversity of flavors, especially since I can’t EQ on my phone lol.
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Please let me know which IEMs I missed so I can do a follow up episode to this.
sony MH series (MH 755 & MH1C) and final audio E-series (even though, they still reproduced it into the new name scheme)
What is an upgrade for the Kato at a similar budget level?
@@voidpunkprincesscheckout aful performer 5/8. They might be cheaper than kato rn
OG Oracle
Moondrop S8?
Crazy how "old" and "legendary" are applied to IEMs around 2 or 3 years old. What an evolving market.
Not really evolving, repeating.
@@ahmadhusaini8420 Still a hell of a lot more vibrant and exciting than the moribund over-ear market.
@@VSN-wb2lyI mean this only applies to lower tier IEMs, if you bought a TOTL IEM 10 years ago, its still good today =D
@@VSN-wb2lyIts not really a replacement like other industries though. My Aria Snow Edition still plays music exactly as it did when I bought it in 2022. In contrast a phone from 2021 performs objectively worse the longer it lives.
@@kellycny65Dont really see the problem with a great headphone being respected as a great headphone for 5-10 years, then it getting a price cut and still being great. Leads to just people enjoying what's out there for its quality, not for the FOMO
If IEMs justified the constant "upgrades", then sure its more exciting. But as the other person said, much of the market is just the same or similar stuff done in a different color way under a new brand with a similar price point the past couple years (sometimes its the same exact people making similar IEMs across several brands)
Good headphones stays good.
~Dankpods
I still remember when companies like Shure, Westone, and Etymotics dominated the universal iem market. I still have my old Westone 4s stashed away somewhere, crazy to see how much the industry has grown since
From westone and shure I used to look down on chifi. My very first chifi exposure was with a brand called Soundmagic
Blon03 was my first IEM, good times were had with those..
One thing I hate about them were gaming. it messed up and all over the place but it was legendary for me back in the day. KZ were just not it
Small note: Zeos did not decide the SA6 ultra be limited, it was Dunu.
the Raptgo Hook-X appeared, apparently won the planar war and disappeared.. they should reissue it because it's fantastic!
For real the Hook-X was incredible.
Still rocking mine. Upgraded the cable to a Linsoul Euphrosyne and the tips to Azla.
Amazing iem, one of my favs. If only they could fix metallic timbre in the upper mids...
@@Rezzzn0rYeah to get very natural timbre on planars, you definitely have to step up to the next tier bracket. Planar drivers in general are a lot more expensive to make vs DDs
@@JtwasLuck that's true. Any high end iem planar without metallic timbre?
For me, the T3+ still rocks!
Oh I haven't heard of some of these in over a Chifi decade.
chifi decade = 6 months :P
Real
As someone new to the IEM scene I found this video incredibly helpful and informative. Perhaps something like this every couple of months covering different price brackets?
You know what amazing about this 2-3 year old IEMs is the fact that some of them are cheaper now and still sound amazing
I still return to my Aria almost every week. Not sure if it's a "first love" scenario, but there's just something about how it sounds that is so impressive to me, even to this day.
The timbre of the SA6 sounds better than the Ultra to me, less upper treble spiciness while also have more mids in general. Also the Blessing 2/B2Dusk on sale still rocks right now, S8 treble is still one of the best, and Thieaudio Oracle is old (you get my point)
I liked sa6 over monarch mk 2
Got the timeless and Kato at the same time, have rolled tips a few times, but haven't really gotten anything else since 😅
I got CCA-CRA and Kato at the same time. The CRA is perfect for me for taking places, the Katos I love at home getting all fancy with it.
I did the same thing. I have gotten better iem’s since but what I will say is that those two delineate the point of diminishing returns for me.
I still love the timeless, very fun iem and super comfy for my ears.
Timeless gang.. let’s go
I liked their sound, but the comfort was horrible for me. Hurted my ears after 10 minutes of usage
I don't wear anything but Etys when working around loud equipment! I've talked a couple co-workers into them for suppressing noise.
ER2XR holds up for sure… the isolation alone…
Oh I'm sure haha
Blon BL03 is amazing! Forget Wan'er, Chu 2
My Starfield's are my "at the office" iems that I can leave in for like 4-5 hours a day
Love them to this day haha
Speaking of old IEMs, I still have my UE triple fi 10 in working condition, you may call them ancient 😂
Being there with this warriors in the video, BL03, T3 plus, Aria, S12 pro, Titan S, in that order...
But now exist Hidiz MS3 and I loooove them 😍
I love this idea for a video! Please keep doing lists like this because I feel these iems were everywhere.
Really like these kinds of videos. Would like to see more on chifi legends and how do they stack up now and their substitutes/ upgrades right now.
MDR 7506 is looking at this with a smile.... in production since 1991 and still selling. Would be interesting to see if any iem at any price range could repeat something like this.
I think the hidition viento would have been an important mention
Recently gave my old unused T3+ to my mum and shes been enjoying it for her personal listening habits haha
I love my Titan S, and will keep it until it breaks before replacing it. Great content by the way.
That feeling man, when your Variations considered old........ *listening this on Variations
Tinhifi T3 Plus is definitely a great iem i still use them regularly even after getting 13 more pairs
So happy I just bought the Variations on AliExpress anniversary sale for about 380 USD. What a deal on a legendary IEM that won't disappoint for a long time.
I got hooked when 7Hz Timeless was trending and decided to try it out. Since then I also bought 7Hz x Crin Zero and Zero 2 and they were as good as the hype predicted! But I haven't convinced myself (yet) to go for an upgrade. Thank you Timmy for the video, it was engaging (as always), but also it gave me the idea of the progress that's been made since Timeless
Great video concept Timmy
It looks like there is a lot of alternatives for the variations nowadays, Hype4, ziigot cincotres, Zenns Top.. their price are just outrageous.
The first 4 iem’s I got were the Blon03, shozy 1.1, KBear Diamonds, then Urbanfun YBF-ISS014. would love to know your thoughts about these and maybe the original shouer tapes (have the pros). Has been fun over the years going on the iem journey. From my old stack of iem’s I still listen to my YBF’s (something about them I still love even with elevated mid bass), my shozy 1.4 (upgraded from 1.1) and the shouer tape pros. Great segment and would love to see more of them.
MP145 took timeless place for me
The existence of the simgot ea500lm & artti t10 has pretty much rendered anything under $100 irrelevant nowadays.
hearing these iems called " OLD legendary" nowadays makes me feel old in the hobby
Great video idea timmy. Love this, to compare legends vs new ones
I own my s12 even after 2 years, it still remains my main brightest in-ears 🌟
Wow great idea for a video
You should do this regularly
Awesome job
I always wondered about this because the market is changing so fast
I heard the hisenior mega 5 est is an upgrade to Variations
Hope you can get the Hisenior Mega5-EST in for a review. Seems to be a great alternative to the Variations.
Another legendary one is Blessing 2 :Dusk, which aged like a wine to me.
Yes I love my Dunu Titan S and they are amazing.
hey timmy
under 100 dollars is the zero red still one of the best ?
I have the main IEMs under $20 and none come close to the quality of the T3 plus in resolution and instrument separation, they can come close to timbre, but nothing else. Timmy may be right in genres like K-pop, but not in rock and roll and music with real instruments.
Some kpop songs i'd suggest are triples rolex and nmixx my gosh. Rolex has 3 violins playing at the same time, and my gosh has 3 guitars
@@radiofreealbemuth Good for Kpop!
Super informative and relevant to me now. Thanks
Still rocking the Timeless
I miss the old cca cra, before revision :(
me too!
That's what I have or thought I had. I love them whatever they are.
part 2 pleasee!! co-begging for the SA6 ultra. How about B2 dusk?
im happy with my aria 1 and have no reason to upgrade. Am i normal?
Regarding the S12, LETSHUOER kind of overshadows itself with their sub brand ARTTI T10. It's a similar driver, just in a plastic shell that looks different on the outside. I was kind of tempted to buy one since they're pretty cheap but I don't really need another planar IEM, but I heard good things about it basically just being an S12 Pro in a plastic shell.
TinHiFi P1 Max, a hidden gem imo with a different tuning to most, if not all other planer IEMs on the market, very good timbre.
You should do a prediction version, maybe with other TH-camrs. Guess which ones won't and will stand the test of time and check back in a couple years
great one mate!, should be a regular series videos to keeping us up tp date as they are changing so fast, TG my variations are still good!
I still listen to my Tin T2+. But I replaced my Blon BL-03 (liked the sound but never fully happy with the fit) with 7Hz Zero.
Mangird Tea OG!
It’s wild to me that Variations is still so viable and there hasn’t been an update/sequel to it. That $480-$520 price range doesn’t even seem that competitive. Give us Variations 2!
Variations.
not a fan of the mindless consumerism many people in this hobby promote. bought the timeless like 2 years ago and still using them daily, still an amazing IEM.
Reviewers of products are recommending products 🤯
Damn, bring me back in 2017 where everyone almost have a VE Monk and KZ ZST LMFAO
I don't even do reviews and have always said that the KZ zsn pro is good and still beat these 3 you have here, thanks for proving me right !
I bought the titan s for just $26 on sale, and really no brainer for the price
Still have arias with chipped paint, not the best but, most comfortable for long use😂
Hi Timmy, thanks for the video..
How about Dunu Kima?
Is there any cable 4.4mm that is good enough for these IEMs ? I have Moondrop Aria Snow Edition IEMs but they are 3.5mm jack but I have an AMP that I need to connect them with 4.4mm and they sound better ofcs. any recommendations ? Thx
What about tin hifi t4??
I've had it since 3 years maybe 🤔 and it's still one of my favorite one.
I prefer good tuning over technicalities. That’s when I enjoy music more.
the tuning meta you could say...
Thieaudio Oracle OG
Great throwback video from 18 months ago…. Yeah crazy seems like the starfield came out decades ago…. Agree with everything you said except Dunu Sa6 I own all three sa6 ultra is fav followed by og sa6 then mkii… love the og sa6 such great all rounder….and the look cables, fit and faceplates will never let them go out of style …. My original sa6 still looks better than any iem I have ever seen! How about the oxygen? Still relevant?
Great topic and good video!
What’s an iem that improves on the yume, looking for an upgrade
Perhaps.... The monarch Mk2?
Ive always loved the Titan s.
Please bring back the SA6 Ultra
Moondrop S8 went from being incredible and the near pinnacle of what most people wanted from an IEM... to not even being mentioned in any comparisons with newer stuff whatsoever
As someone who owns one, makes no sense to me as its still awesome. Much prefer my S8 to things like Monarch MK2, SA6 Mk2.
okay i guess its time for me to buy aria 2 next month 👍
Coming up on my channel:
ZHz Timeless and Letshuoer S12 Pro vs
NiceHCK F1Pro & Artti T10.
Planar wars part 743. lol. Peace ☮️
Now that you say Wan'er I don't remeber where I left mineee D:
where the Kato on this
I guess Kato is old too. I'll talk about it in the next addition of this video.
There may be budget sets out there with better tuning than the BL03 (at least based on "objective" reasons / measurements), but there is something magical about that iem.. I still listen to it even though I have much better and more expensive sets nowadays... it is not nostalgia.. there is something very soothing about that sound.. at least to me..
Do the S12 and S12 Pro have different sound signatures? I'm planning to purchase and I feel like saving some $16 and going with the S12 over the Pro.
Got the S12, it's pretty much the same, but the S12 Pro has a different filter that slightly changes treble apparently
Great video!
Hey
Want balanced sound.
7hz Zero 2 vs simgot ew100p or
Should i increase my budget and get this is it worth any one help me
Simgot ew200 vs kz - zs 10 pro
I really like waner should i upgrade to red or hexa?
Its a shame, that Truthear Hola are no longer avaible for purchase ((
JVC FDX1 is legendary too IMO
I liked so much the ultras but hated as much the limited move so not begging, not when the time they were unique is gone. now there are sliivos, pulas, ziigaats and a lot more doing same stuff for less money. So dunu may keep their ultras for the few.
Buddy. Forget about the tuning for a while. Most of this iem that you mentioned for 20 to 30 dollars can't handle volumes. That's how you see if a driver can handle. Not at medium volumes with the tuning that suits you. Decay and image and volume is what diferentes driver from one to other.
I m listening with tangu warner because of ur recommendation
Still owned Timeless, Er2xr and Kxxs.. timeless still my favorite
I can’t find moondrop chu 2 on your iem ranking list. I wonder between chu 2 and waner which one is better for listening to J-pop and J-rock?
you missed timeless AE (angel ears) - this should have been your pick over the timeless og
Nah. It's more expensive for very small improvement
Part 2!!!!! 😊
Oracle Og? 😢
I still have my 2021 blon 03 as my main iem😭
T2 Plus has a special place in my heart. Great metal and whatever really IEM with a strange looking FR, but it sounds mostly normal. Timeless is also still the best planar for the price afaik. Aria/Titan S are maybe a bit dated for their price point. I don't care much for T3 Plus.
Edit: Heyday you say. Need to try one. Timeless has amazing mids, but the bass is very rounded so if Heyday is even a bit punchier then it might be my thing.
It isn't punchy at all.
You missed the Thieaudio Oracle 😭😭😭
I just recently ordered my first pair of Dunu Titan S to have as a sub-$100 analytically-tuned with some vocal-forwardness IEM, hopefully I like them lol I’m going to them from the Hexa
you don't like the Hexa ?
@@woka_kawanua-hw2hj oh no I do, I just don’t care for it for particular types of songs and would prefer something with a cleaner tuning for those songs. The Hexa is awesome for metal and rock to me (and those are my fav music genres so they consist of at least 50-60% of my library) but anything acoustic or slowly melodic or very vocal-focused I think I’ll prefer the Titan S. Just want the diversity of flavors, especially since I can’t EQ on my phone lol.
@@jacobbarfield7828 ， coincidentally I'm looking for something neutral and vocal purpose, don't know about Titan S, I was suggested the Hexa.