Massdrop x Empire Ears Zeus Universal IEMs Discussions | Drop

Massdrop x Empire Ears Zeus Universal IEMs

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Sep 20, 2018

Who is stronger than Zeus? This new Zeus.
Empire Ears was on our radar back in 2016, when a couple of community members pinged me and said that Jack was such a great guy and I should really check out their line-up because so many of the models/Gods sounded great.
The overall balance in the original Olympus product line was impressive. Some of the community favorites were the Spartan, Apollo, Athena, & Zeus. A lot of care was taken with the mids and to deliver a linear sound with all of the music and nothing masked.
At 2016 RMAF, I snapped this pic of Jack…with wings:

This was a good omen as we listened to the line-up. He definitely helped this project happen today. AND- if you sneak a peek at the background to the left of Jack…that’s our tuner, the Co-Founder and Engineer Dean Vang.
Speaking of tuning, I asked Dean Vang about his approach to tuning earlier this year at their new facility in Georgia:

Dean plays guitar and bass. He knows what these instruments sound like and he is heavily influenced by the feel of live shows. Paraphrasing, Dean “tunes for a sound that gives the feeling of live energy from going to a show but with a studio-produced quality in terms of polish in the presentation”. We spoke about combining elements of Zeus and Athena into a new model and Dean even made some new prototypes. While we are enjoying the process of thinking about doing something new, Jack and I kept coming back to thinking about the original Zeus XIV that made such an impact and has been so influential. There is still so much chatter and buzz on the boards about Zeus; how could we deliver this community favorite in an accessible but uncompromised way? A lot of work and partnership, it turns out. We’re very excited today to to announce this collaboration to the audiophile community.
After spending time with Zeus, I marvel at how much information the 14 drivers deliver to the brain. Some of it must be attributed to how sensitive they are (how little power/signal is needed get all these drivers moving) combined with the lack of dampers. There is a direct connection from the drivers to your eardrum. It’s hard for me to do complex work while listening to these, the detail is distracting and something to get used to. (Years ago I read ClieOS’ massive earbud comparison thread on Head-Fi.org and he said he liked some earbuds that were not as detailed so he could get some work done at times, ha! I understand.)
When it comes to a top-of-the-line (TOTL) item…you want it to deliver a special experience, to do something extraordinary. The middle of the Zeus presentation has a 3-dimensional quality and a level of resolution that I find very addictive.
Audiophile Ambrosia Same drivers, same crossovers, new construction. · 14 Knowles drivers (6 high, 6 mid, 2 low) per ear! · 7-way Crossover circuit · No dampers · Air/Treble · Holographic headstage · Tons of sonic information- extremely sensitive system IMPROVED Durability · ABS shell & Faceplate · stainless steel nozzle · wax guard · recessed socket for improved cable strain relief & less contamination
EMPIRE EARS…It’s a Family Affair Dean- Engineer/Co-Founder Catherine- CEO/Co-Founder Jack- VP of Sales Victor- Operations Manager Lauren- Shipping/Logistics Richard- Graphic Arts Kay- Technician Made in Georgia

From Flinkenick: Rank #2: Empire Ears Zeus-XIV “Zeus-XIV was awe-inspiring, as the first iem to pass the 12 BA mark – the earphone community felt collectively lifted to another level. Despite initial scepticism, it quickly became apparent that Zeus’ driver count was more than a gimmick” “Zeus is an iem that never fails to impress me. It combines high resolution with an impressive stage, and power in its sound. Leave it to 14 drivers to hit you with a wall of sound – to floor you even. There’s solidity in its sound, enhanced by its forward vocals.” https://theheadphonelist.com/rank-2-empire-ears-zeus-xiv/
I’ve dreamt for a long time of being able to bring Zeus to our community on Massdrop. Luckily, Jack dreamt with me…many thanks to Empire Ears for making this happen!

daidai

Sep 21, 2018

CEE_TEEWill there be CIEM option with this drop?

Sep 21, 2018

daidaiNot planned at this time, daidai.

Vote

jaykun

Sep 23, 2018

CEE_TEE Will there be zeus R or XR options with this drop?

kennn

Sep 24, 2018

jaykunmass drop confirmed there are NO PLANS for any other models. just the XIV according to them

pawpro2

Sep 24, 2018

CEE_TEEAs someone interested in preserving their hearing, will it be possible to add ADEL to these, either in the drop or by purchasing separately from Empire Ears?
MAM Module https://empireears.com/products/adel-mam-module
B1 Module https://empireears.com/products/copy-of-titanium-silver-cable-60

Sep 24, 2018

pawpro2Hi pawpro2. This is the non-ADEL XIV, no plans to offer ADEL at this time.

Aegis_of_gods

Sep 27, 2018

CEE_TEEDo you all at least plan to change the faceplate color? Because idk about others i find the blue to be unaesthetically pleasing.

Oct 4, 2018

CEE_TEE Hi, I was wondering when would we see the photos of MD's Zeus XIV? I remember you mentioned that we will see massdrop Zeus post production photos sometime near the end of the drop?

Oct 12, 2018

CEE_TEEHi, it's been slightly more than a week... Any measurements or massdrop Zeus post production photos please?

Oct 13, 2018

U0900147Hi U0900147, Just talked to Jack, we're working on some graphs from Empire to post this week...

Oct 17, 2018

CEE_TEEHi, still no measurements?

Steve.Y

Oct 18, 2018

CEE_TEEWe need some update and is tick tocking. I am sure lots of us are waiting for the update before we push the button.

Oct 19, 2018

CEE_TEEI was wondering if new photos of Zeus ready?

Oct 20, 2018

CEE_TEEHi Cee_Tee, not trying to pressure you or anything, but I am concerned that we might only be getting the drop after many numerous delay (i.e. like the noble k10 drop).
To date, there are no measurements or pre-production photos, which seem to indicate that this drop is in the preliminary planning phase and nothing concrete has been created yet.
This is very concerning because the translation from design to prototyping to mass production is where (many) "unforeseen" delays crop up.
If the design hasn't even been prototyped close to 1 month later, then how would we know that the drop would (1) deliver what we purchased and (2) be on time?
Could you reassure us with pics and measurements, please?
Thank you. :)

Steve.Y

Oct 20, 2018

CEE_TEEIn terms of the price, 50% of their previous flagship model is really tempting honestly. And I have tried the EE products, which I am really impressed. However, is almost 2 to 3 weeks since we requested for the graphs, and yet there is no update, I think 62 sold at this point, can really prove , people are still hesitating in this drop. Have you thought of extending the drop, at least some of us, don’t have to come back and forth to check the update. And even the graphs are ready, the last two weeks of silence are really freaking us out.

Oct 21, 2018

Steve.YDo you think of joining this drop or already did? I am still hoping for the best, the wait and unanswered questions plus lack of preproduction photos make me little bit nervous too.

Steve.Y

Oct 21, 2018

VAS007No I haven’t, I will see for the last 6 hours. Too much uncertainties, and 1000dollars is not a small amount.

flipleung

Oct 22, 2018

Steve.Ythe endless wait for graphs and updates is over, and thanks for the unresponsiveness... starting to search for sth else other than empire ears fingercross for those who joined the drop, beware of the targeted due date and promises made

pawpro2

Oct 25, 2018

CEE_TEEI honestly think it's incredible that the drop ended without ANY fulfillment of the promised information. No graphs, no pictures, and seemingly no response from Massdrop or Empire Ears. @CEE_TEE continues to be an unhelpful ghost, and those of us who took a chance now look to be on the losing end of a long and nebulous transaction. I was a member if the original Noble K10 drop, and after that experience (multiple delays, poor communication, lack of urgency from Massdrop customer support) I'm even more worried about this one. Those of us who joined are of course to blame for accepting the risk, but Massdrop should at least recognize that theirs is a business model fundamentally lacking in certainty or confidence.

Oct 26, 2018

pawpro2

Nov 18, 2018

VAS007Yeah, I left the drop for exactly this reason after there was no response to my previous comment. I'd like to know what kind of people Massdrop think we are that we can drop $1,000 on something by faith alone. They've already lost my business to Campfire Audio.

Feb 3, 2019

VAS007 @CEE_TEE @EmpireEars :( It's already Feb. Could we have some news please? 97 of us dropped a grand on this...

Vote

Mar 13, 2019

CEE_TEEHi! It's mid-Mar now, i.e. the promised shipping date. Any news, please? It's ok if it isn't good news, we just need to know to manage our expectations. Please share!

Vote

Mar 13, 2019

U0900147Some news is coming very soon!

Mar 17, 2019

CEE_TEEHi Cee_Tee, what's the good news?? :) have been excited for the past few days

erfan_elahi

Jun 9, 2019

CEE_TEEgot a clear example of cost cut down by not adding ADEL. But thanks for this drop, those who couldn't grab it for $2100, now at least can taste it... :-)

(Edited)

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