New Noble Katana Universal Flagship IEM

Discussion in 'IEMs and Portable Gear' started by GoodEnoughGear, Jul 12, 2016.

  1. Kunlun

    Kunlun cat-alyzes cat-aclysmic cat-erwauling - Friend

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    My Katanas are in and it's as @The Life and @Out Of Your Head have said. These have the detail of the Andros without the touch of leanness or brittleness the Andros sometimes have, a little fuller note weight and less peakiness at the top. The bass is present and has good depth, but isn't the boosted bass or all the added warmth of the k10. I do like a little added sub-bass to my sound, but the Katana is actually doing quite well with timpani, kick drums and tabla.

    I'm in the early stages of listening, but so far this is Noble Audio: SBAF Edition.
     
    Last edited: Sep 19, 2016
  2. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    A lot pricier than the Andros though, may have to wait for some to hit the used market.
     
  3. Griffon

    Griffon 2nd biggest asshole on SBAF

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    I felt the timbre on Katana was off than Andromeda and the Katana didn't have the 2-channel-like effect to me. This writes the Katana off from my book.
     
  4. Kunlun

    Kunlun cat-alyzes cat-aclysmic cat-erwauling - Friend

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    Huh, definitely haven't heard a timbre issue in my early listening and timbre is important to me as I come from the land of dynamic drivers. Not that any multi-BA quite compares to a good dynamic, but I find both the Andro and Katana do quite well. So far, the Katana sounds a little more real with a more natural note thickness in the mids and less peaky in the treble, but I don't have the Andro on me now, so that does hamper comparisons on my side. I'll keep listening, though! Any particular tracks you'd like to point me to would be appreciated as always!
     
  5. fierce_freak

    fierce_freak Friend

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    Argh, I want to hear these even more now. Thanks for the notes, Kunlun.
     
  6. Kunlun

    Kunlun cat-alyzes cat-aclysmic cat-erwauling - Friend

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    I've been listening to string quartets and quintets with the Katana to see how the timbre and balance is. I like Beethoven late quartets and have the Tokyo quartet's set, also, I have Vaughan-Williams' phantasy quintet on Naxos, it's really lovely.

    Anyway, the Katana is superb with strings. Timbre is excellent for a multi-BA iem. There's a treble tilt which manages to not be fatiguing over time (there's no feeling of tangible relief in my ears when I switch to a dynamic driver iem, as I had with the Andromeda which I didn't really find so fatiguing otherwise and liked a lot).

    Overall, the members of the quartet are all present and sound good with a touch of that Noble euphony and a little warmth, although much, much less than in the k10, just to leaven the clarity.

    Some of Glenn Gould's Bach piano (Goldberg Variations and Art of Fugue) also sound great on the katana.

    I still have a lot of listening before I think I fully grasp the Katana, but it continues to be a very good experience.
     
    Last edited: Sep 22, 2016
  7. fierce_freak

    fierce_freak Friend

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    I think I need to hear these. I lurv the andros, but curiosity and all that. I doubt there's any b&m place anywhere near me that would stock that kind of awesomeness, but I'll have to look!
     
  8. Kunlun

    Kunlun cat-alyzes cat-aclysmic cat-erwauling - Friend

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    Come to CanJamNYC, Brannan is sure to be there with the whole Noble Line!
     
  9. Out Of Your Head

    Out Of Your Head Friend

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    Can't wait to get my custom Katana's...It'll probably be a while before they're finished though.
     
  10. ashrafazlan

    ashrafazlan New

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    I had the chance to demo these things in Malaysia and I was very impressed. I wish I had the vocabulary to properly describe its characteristics, but I don't. Almost makes me sad to return to the TFZ S5 (not that I'm complaining, these things sound great considering the price).
     
  11. LunaC

    LunaC New

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    It could predict the speed at which a similar, much lower cost, IEM will wander onto the playing field if off the shelf components are being used int the Katana.
     
  12. thegunner100

    thegunner100 Hentai Master Chief

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    I'm looking forward to comparing the Katana and the UERMs when Kunlun lends them to me. Of course, the UERMs will have the advantage of having a near-perfect fit (I say near-perfect because it has been 3 years since I had my pair made, and I'm sure they don't seal nearly as well as they used to). I played around with 3 sets of tips when I was at Kunlun's office and none of them had the fit that I was really looking for unfortunately.

    I'm hoping to get a ZX2 by then, but it doesn't seem likely. At the very least, the Yggdrasil + Jotun is just about as good as it can get for a IEM setup and the dx90 is a good budget dap indicator.
     
  13. The Life

    The Life Facebook Friend

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    Katana < Linux Music cable < Alo CDM (in full DAC/amp mode) < iPhone (via camera connector) is my new favorite set-up for just kicking back and letting the music flow over me.
     
  14. k4rstar

    k4rstar Britney fan club president

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    Can lend you my ZX2 since you're right over the border. Let me know when you plan on comparing them.
     
  15. mulolomu

    mulolomu New

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    after reading all the impressions, can we describe katana as a neutral/reference iem?
     
  16. fierce_freak

    fierce_freak Friend

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    Any more direct impressions comparing Andros and Katana? Particularly curious about soundstage, treble peakiness, and if anyone can put a finger on what makes them seem more musical (is it note weight, fullness, something else?). Appreciate anything anyone can add.
     
  17. deafdoorknob

    deafdoorknob Almost "Made"

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    hi

    does anyone know how close to Katana does Django get? I am contemplating if i should just get CA's jupiter/dorado/andro instead. Soundstage/ambience and a certain weightiness (bigger sounding than my Orion at least) are my main priorities i suppose. thx
     
  18. thegunner100

    thegunner100 Hentai Master Chief

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    I might be able to make a comparison next week if I get my Andros and borrow Kunlun's Katana's for the meet. I liked the Katana but I much prefer the Andros. based on memory, Andros have far better soundstaging. Neither of them have any treble peakiness or harshness. While the Andros have a downward sloping treble, they do have more treble and sparkle than the Katana. Andromedas definitely lean more towards the neutral side while the Katanas are more W shaped response.

    Not neutral at all.
     
  19. mulolomu

    mulolomu New

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    Thanks @thegunner100 for chiming in..its a bit too late because i've finally pulled my trigger on katana...
    What is the main weakness on katana in your opinion?
    What katana's pros over the andro's?
    Im quite curious with andros for long time but unfortunately no Campfire distributor in country where I lived...
     
  20. thegunner100

    thegunner100 Hentai Master Chief

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    Main weaknesses would be price, soundstaging, lush mids. I'm not sure what the Katanas do better but it mostly comes down to preference at this level of performance. I'd have to do a little bit more listening and comparison but I have some other gear coming in for the NY meet so I won't have much time for the Katana again.
     

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