Campfire Audio - NEW - Atlas and Comet

You mean they're appealing to the mass market?

 

Maybe Atlas will swing with OI like the Andromeda and thus be tunable in that way - I'll hear them at CanJam and report back

 

My wife is a basshead and thinks my andromedas are thin sounding (her words), so she will probably buy the Atlas if it sounds "Rich" (her words again).

 

Looking to compare the Comet to my Orion which I still enjoy very much. Will be able to do that at Axpona hopefully.

 

Yeah I bet it'll be like a grown up Vega or something. Ken has said he won't tune a DD like Andromeda.

 

watching this thread like a hawk. A cheap beater iem that sounds great would be awesome. Very intrigued by the comet. The Atlas is probably going to be better of course but I am an IEM noob and still don't find them comfy enough for long term listening so I might not want to spend big bucks on a pair yet.

 

Ken...
Will the Comet be available for purchase at Axpona?

 

It doesn’t have to necessarily be tuned like the Andro, but if it sounds like a Vega with more bass quantity that would be going in the wrong direction, IMO. If it’s like a Vega but with more subbass resolution, that would be worth hearing.

 

Hopefully fixes the strange Vega midrange which was my main gripe with it. Takes me out of the music instantly.

 

I'm curious about the strange midrange you mention because I have a problem with strange mids on most iems but haven't heard any of the campfire's yet. I wonder if its specific to certain people. I hear a tunnely effect with many iems and need to really go through a lot of tips to minimize it.

 

That's likely a fit issue. Long story short, you're doing it wrong. Longer story? Go to the general iem thread.

 

Is there a mass market for IEMs at 1.3k?

I love bass as much as the next fellow (I'd prefer it somewhat north of 'neutral", but if I'm paying USD 1300 for IEMs they better play well with all my music. That requires more balance than the typical basshead IEMs/HPs bring to the table.

Anyway, let's hope the Atlas are more bass-boosted than basshead.

 

I think my terminology game isn't on point, therefore I don't know how to take that "larger" sound statement. At first I thought Ken meant more headstage, but maybe he was talking about bass quantity. Anyway, a refined Vega with Andromeda-like headstage sounds pretty interesting if that proves to be the case. Gonna wait for comparisons before pulling the trigger on the Andros.

 

He probably meant the Comet which only costs $200. 1k+ headphones will always be for enthusiasts I guess.

 

it's less mass market than a tonality that is less obsessed with the traditional head-fi (hobby not the site) notions of what constitue as "flagship/good sounding" (ie the diffuse field school, monitor heads, neutral heads, detail heads etc)

Quite a few for these heavier/darker sounding products (Lyra2, Z1R, Z7, LCD2, nighthawk/owl, cardas iem) sells incredibly well with 2ch owners who want a similacrum of their home systems on the go, this often means that they want a "built in" room gain like bass and a relaxed top end. Several of my friends who are strictly 2 ch and who's preferences are relatively conventional (Wilson Sophias, Harbeth C3s, Avalon Indra owners) found Andros (via z300) to sound clinical or thin*, of all the iems i have on hand, TG334 and parterre were the only ones that they found enjoyable. They would be the demographic methinks.

*one of them, who has a nice sounding 2C system, bought the jupiter "blind" based on my rec (he uses AK 380 as source, Musical Fidelity A1 amp, Harbeth C7 at home) he sold them after 2 days and got the Lyra 2 to replace it citing the lack of body.

All anecdotal, i know, but i do find that in my experience, portable audio ppls often dont see eye to eye with 2c folks.

edit: meant to say Lyra 2 not Vega

 

Aren't the Vega V shaped? I get the appeal of a relaxed top end but that's not the same as an overpowering bass or sucked out mids (obviously).

I do think that what is often defined as neutral is in fact bass light in comparison with how live music sounds. Neutral is often mistaken for clarity. And a tame bass, all else equal, makes music sound clearer. But to my ears it's not more realistic sounding. Anyway, a digression.

 

The Vega have that wacky 6.5k peak that is sadly the CA house sound, plus an additional peak above that.

Don't forget
Dita, which explicitly tunes their iems to sound like a 2ch, and their whole line sounds like middle or middle-high end ass.
And I say that as someone who liked their Dita Dream.