Reviewer complaints and IEM hate/confusion

Discussion in 'IEMs and Portable Gear' started by Philimon, Dec 21, 2021.

  1. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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  2. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Ha. You don’t know my history in this hobby well
     
  3. Cellist88

    Cellist88 Friend

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    The short history I know of you so far is a lot of fomo hype so far. Schiit Lim bestest impulse buy to og a2, to Dunu zen pro bestest purchase in the hobby so far with no peaks to having a upper mid peak that was initially audible(how was this inaudible?), to returning it for the new 7hz timeless because it’s the bestest planar iem. With the bestest tonality. I appreciate your opinions and effort to expose us to new products, but I do take it now with a grain of salt.
     
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  4. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    @purr1n look! I'm being called a hype shill! I never thought I would see the day, this is a special moment for me. haha.

    @Cellist88 your post is only a reflection of your ignorance and lack of history in this hobby.

    I would be insulted if it weren't so ridiculous and funny for me. Take my reviews with any amount of salt you want I could give a shit. But since there are evidently lots of noobs here who are clueless to the history of this hobby past the last year, I will correct the many inaccurate, or simply fabricated statements in your post.

    1. You have cherry picked the most positive reviews I have written about any piece of gear in the last 16 years in this hobby and decided to judge me based on that. Which is fine if that's what you want to do. But not accurate.
    2. Do you know why I got banned from head-fi in 2013? Or that I was banned? How old were you then?
    3. You seem to be ignoring the huge number of negative reviews I've written on this site, not to mention elsewhere.
    4. I stand by all 3 of those reviews.
    5. LIM- I stand by what I wrote. I did not return it because I flip flopped or overcame hype. I bought a LIM because I loved what I heard from the loaner. In spending more time with the one I bought, I learned more about what I want from a DAC and my impressions evolved. I also decided that it just wasn't worth the cost compared to keeping the A2. I wrote this on the forums, but you seem to see what you want to see. Here are update posts by me about the LIM and my new opinion of it after getting more time with it owning one. link link. I posted this to the thread for all to see.
    6. Zen Pro- I stand by my initial review, with one exception. In trying them with more amps, and spending more time with them, and listening for the reported "metallic tonality" I picked up a sharpness to their sound. But I never wrote, or decided they had a peak anywhere. You can read here for my hypothesis explaining the sharp tonality that is brought out by some amps more than others, and I listened to some of these amps after writing the review. I said specifically I believed it was not a peak, but a very fast transient response and an overshoot in the burst decay. I still stand by my impression that there are no peaks in the upper mids to treble of the Zen Pro. And I don't trust iem FR measurements so I could care less what anyone measures.
    7. 7Hz- I included a lot of negatives in this review. I also never said they were better than the Zen Pro. You can see this part of my review to educate yourself about why I am thinking of returning the Zen Pro and keeping the 7Hz.
      I mention that the Zen Pro is better technically in some ways, but the 7hz is better in other ways and I like the ability to plug the 7hz into my Liquid Gold X and not need an extra DAP/Dongle plus feeling at home with the sound of ortho drivers.
    What is this, attack of the noobs? I put a lot of my time and energy into these reviews. I write what I hear, no filter. in this case I happen to have wound up with 2 great, groundbreaking iems back to back. There is a lot of gear I do not like. Almost all headphones are unlistenable to me. And you don't know about the loaner gear I get sent that I don't like and don't think SBAF would like either and send back to avoid wasting everyone's time and creating a thread full of negative reviews.

    I'm not sure why I should spend the time to get loaners for you and write these reviews if this is the kind of reception I get.
     
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    Last edited: Dec 21, 2021
  5. Cellist88

    Cellist88 Friend

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    @rhythmdevils Can't believe your ego is so bruised that you have to take it personally, which shows the opposite of what you claim you are. Don't take it like some personal attack. Its just a hobby.

    You obviously have reading problems, as I just stated above, "I appreciate your opinions and efforts"....just that I take it with a grain of salt aka, an opinion. I never once said it was invalid, or false. I don't know why you took it as a personal attack.

    I have no inclination to know your whole history, nor do I care. Since you've brought up "history", It just seems you've been flopping around a lot recently, esp with the Schiit Yggdrasil, putting it up for sale immediately after hearing the LIM, only to return the LIM after the hype ran down. This type of knee-jerking/see-sawing to such a degree is why I take your opinion, positive or negative, with a grain of salt. That's all.

    If you feel the need to denigrate me for not taking your word as more than an opinion, I would say you have some personal issues.
     
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  6. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    This was a personal attack, with a bunch of falsehoods. You are talking about me as a person, which is by definition personal. If you don't see it that way, I don't know what is wrong with you.

    I don't care if you like my reviews or listen to them. I also don't care what you think about me. But I will correct false accusations about me. That is all.

    I now have to correct more stuff you are making up. I did not put up my A2 for sale. I bought a LIM after hearing the demo, listtened to it for more time and and learned more about what I want in a DAC and decided it was not wroth the cost, then put the LIM up for sale. Then returned it when no one bought it. This is very common on this site and everywhere in this hobby.

    I also did not return it "after the hype died down". I returned it in the very middle of the initial hype due to conclusions I came to on my own after spending more time with it and considering the cost of the DAC. Stop making stuff up to paint this bullshit picture of me you'v'e decided to create.

    Feel free to not read my reviews and leave me the f**k alone.
     
    Last edited: Dec 21, 2021
  7. spoony

    spoony Spooky

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    HF behavior is so bound to the shape of things (one's organs) that it should be a moot point arguing without an actual listen... Just join the loaner program and hear for yourselves.
     
  8. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Yeah. This is why we have one right?

    SBAF has been accused of being Schiit shills. What people do is formulate something in their mind and seek evidence that confirms what they want to believe while ignoring the evidence to the contrary.

    I've said this before and will say it again. The secret to figuring out if stuff is good is as follows:
    • See how long people hold on to stuff before they get bored and move on. Good stuff stays around for longer.
    • Ignore people who keep change gear frequently (you are an exception because we just defrosted you like Captain America, so you get a pass to catch up since you been missing for seven years).
    • Component synergy and "audiophile chef" Kung-Fu trumps how many Golden Schlongs any piece of gear receives.
     
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    Last edited: Dec 21, 2021
  9. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    I like your post @spoony for trying to defuse the situation and because we agree. And after everybody's listened and there is a consensus opinion then we can nickname 7Hz as 7kHz. Lots of reasons for why people perceive things differently even amongst pros. Your impressions are appreciated @rhythmdevils
     
  10. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    That's not what my reference to being banned on Head-fi was about. I was banned for posting too many negative reviews of headphones and messing with Jude's profits. My history in this hobby is full of very critical, negative reviews. To call my a hype FOTM reviewer is really funny considering everything I've been through in the past.

    I'm not going to keep posting about this, I really don't care what you think about me, but I do feel the need to correct grossly inaccurate re-writing of history about me and fabrications about what I have done and said.

    I may move all of this out of this thread.
     
  11. spoony

    spoony Spooky

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    '7 KHz', LOL.
    During my time modding, pretty subtle changes in damping, earpad geometry, material and size, and other 'minutiae' have taken mod iterations from DEAR LORD REMOVE THESE ICE PICKS FROM MY EARDRUMS to 'This is pretty okay, smooth even', even positioning can have a big impact here... I think this is a space in which 'YMMV' may be pretty sound advice, and yes, trends should be noteworthy and only with several listeners can we identify them.
     
    Last edited: Dec 22, 2021
  12. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    Okay but can you name it “rhythmdevils history” so its easy to find and know better.

    I dunno. I think history is helpful to understanding the review.
     
  13. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I thought we were all banned for caulk jokes. It was fun while it lasted and I felt it offered some humor and made Head-FI a better place.
     
  14. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    I mean caulk was made to be stuffed into holes. By that token high frequency icepicks are a splendiferous exemplar of caulkish behaviour.
     
  15. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    Too far. I regret. Apologies @rhythmdevils

    I was just trying tough love @rhythmdevils . You looked crazy not atleast acknowledging to the possibility that you are not sensitive to 8kHz peaks to whats considered a lot by norm. Doesnt mean you have hearing damage. You know this idea of people having different experiences for myriads of reasons.

    We disagree on a few things but mostly your posts are informative and appreciated. Please continue.

    edit: caulk
     
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  16. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Just leave the me the f**k alone man. Why are you up in my business so much? I'll name the thread whatever the f**k I want if I move the posts. I have never accused someone of hearing damage and it's just a shitty thing to do. No, I don't have hearing damage but think whatever you want and keep it to yourself.

    Please move the conversation in this thread back to the Timeless 7hz. That''s the end of whatever this is or members will be getting a break from this thread.
     
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  17. limesoft

    limesoft Friend

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    I can't stress the importance of this enough >> See how long people hold on to stuff before they get bored and move on. Good stuff stays around for longer.

    The Andomeda is the epitome of this for IEMs. Over the years I've gotten very excited with some IEMs, shilling them all over forums - like an excited teenager..Look at the forum threads on the Andro over the years, they're massive and they've stuck around so long for a reason... I don't think any IEM has that coherence and friendly non fatiguing long listening quality like the Andro with excellent technicalities - in the past I've thought U12t/IER-m7 surpassed them overall, i was wrong - there was always something that reared it's head over long listening periods..

    Anyhow, i digress, just wanted to highlight the importance of this statement - I keep hunting for the next best thing and I really want to find it, but it just doesn't come so often in this hobby.. although with IEMs we're getting bit more movement nowadays - 90% of the time there's a catch for me (typically in the uneven treble/tonality)
     
  18. crenca

    crenca Friend

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    My 1.5 cents:
    • Marv's point about longevity/gear cycling is very important. There are longtime and respected members here who really can describe the subtle aspects of sound well, contribute massively with measurements, etc. but who nevertheless are not all that useful for me because they never truly center on a preference. Eventually they like and dislike just about everything, the positives and/or negatives get emphasized depending upon where they are at this day/month/year.
    • Even though I personally dislike the HD6 series more than most, even I get it. References are important, and the IEM space is weak here, even though certain CA's are it for some, they don't seem to be for too many others. Throw in BA timbre, very weak/problematic DD offerings, ever present rising upper mid/low treble FR profiles, and IEM's just suck overall in a general way, and the consensus we see with HP's and speakers (such as it is) is not there.
    • The 5-10k region seems to be the most controversial, more so as you move from talking about room speakers > HP's > IEM's. Throw in the usual confounders, for example how there is no chain/synergy consensus for IEM's or how IEM listeners skew heavily toward poorly recorded wall-of-sound studio music, and the situation really is difficult from a review and community point of view.

    Add to the above the Asian-glamor-FOTM market forces, let's just admit IEM's suck. Repeat after me, IEM's suck.
     
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    Last edited: Dec 22, 2021
  19. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    We discussed it all in PM and I thought you were satisfied with the explanations. To repeat myself: I didn't say you had hearing damage, I said "not sensitive". In simplest example of the difference it could just be down to preference, for example I am basshead. Unless I am wrong cuz noob which is totally fine. If I had to guess why you're saying this its to force me to clear up your falsehoods which would then give you sufficient excuse to edit the thread. Repeating myself again: I was just trying to help. Sorry if I sounded too critical but I thought you were being unreasonable (past tense because i dont want to be temp banned) my friend.

    ------------------------------------------------------------------ BACK TO 7Hz ------------------------------------------------------------------

    7Hz iem if possibly too bassy could be improved by closing vents would you say rhythmdevils ?
    And if its too peaky in highs for some that can be mitigated with tip rolling, yes?
    Do you think I would like this if I like Yamaha YH-2 modded by dbel84? I don't have an iem but this could be a good start for me if this is a good match considering my history.
     
  20. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    That could be a description of me. Slowly over time I've come to better understand my preferences and to trust my own ears. When new youre still deciphering others experiences without any frame of reference. Hearing some of the standards like HD6XX and THX00 was pivotal in interpreting other's subjective impressions and understanding my own preferences. I was kindly allowed on some very interesting loaner tours and so was forced to write reviews which helped my understanding a lot because I had to research audio definitions to seriously speak on them. I forget who said it but it changed my way of writing impressions: "Only state something if you are certain". It meant no wishy washy ambiguous opinions that were of no use and possibly misinformative. My confidence and skill increased as I practiced making sure what I wrote was true (atleast in my experience with evidence if asked).
     

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