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Ringo9th
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SPPofMN
Meze 99 Noir
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Hifiman x Dekoni Cobalt or Massdrop x Meze 99 Noir
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Island-Listener
Bmr 1 V2 Discount
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Koalich
Xduoo Poke II repair
Hi friends, I recently had a mishap with my Xduoo Poke II, that is, it fell out of my hands and now it turns on but the command buttons now work sometimes and sometimes not. I have written several times to Xduoo directly because it was with them that I bought this Dac and to find out what I can do about it but after two months I have not received a response. I live in Mexico City but I would like to know if anyone knows of a technical service in the US that could repair my Poke II and know if it would be worth it for me taking into account the cost of repair and the issue of shipping, or if it is better to think about buying a new portable Dac. Thanks and Cheers everybody.
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Summary: Extremely overpriced, uncomfortable, and generate no bass at all
Positives:
- Attractive, high quality, midnight blue faceplates - Smooth and clean audio typical of BA drivers - Tone profile similar to Grado headphones, but flatter response on the high end
Negatives:
- Zero bass. They generate usable mids and highs only. I tested these with a tone generator and they start falling off around 250 Hz. In back-to-back comparisons with other products these have a thin, choked, tin can tone. - In the current market there are many BA IEMs for $50 or less that offer far better sound and comfort. I greatly prefer the KZ AS10 and TRN V80 over these. - The egg-shaped housing hangs outside the ear rather than going into the ear, and so it's tippy and requires extra support versus competing IEMs. - The ear shafts are short and don't go deeply into the ears. This requires larger tips for stability and decent sound, as the tips must rest in the outer part of the ear. After a great deal of searching I ended up with large New Bee foam tips, but they run tight in my ears and aren't very comfortable. - They do not have memory wire in the cables (manufacturing cost $0.10), and this limits stability and comfort.
There are no effective solutions to Noble's multiple ergonomic design mistakes.
I've reached the conclusion that Noble designed these as introductory products for its much more expensive offerings. They likely knew about the issues prior to release, but may have thought it would motivate people to upgrade. Unfortunately for them, the competition brought the price of quality BA IEMs way down.
The fit issues relate to ear canal depth and size, not head size. Many people have issues with the Massdrop X Noble housings because the shape rides out.
The main audio issue with the midnight blue $250 Nobles comes from having just 2 balanced armature drivers (BAs) per side. I don't think anyone can get 2 BAs to span the full audio spectrum--even Massdrop followed up with a newer 3 driver model at $300. Many vendors have gone to hybrid BA and dynamic designs, as BAs do best with many narrow range drivers clustered together. This involves a lot of parts, and used to be very expensive (e.g., the $900 red Nobles).
I think the cost of BA IEMs went down so fast because the Chinese entered the market and started mass producing BAs for consumer audio. In the old days the BAs were sourced from hearing aid manufacturers, and each driver was pretty expensive.
The TRN V80s are 2 BA + 2 dynamic drivers. They are comfortable in the ear, very warm, and 'laid back' or 'fun' sounding IEMs. They bass is quite deep for their small size, but it's loose and they aren't particularly detailed. Overall, I enjoy their full range sound a lot more than the strangled tone of the blue Nobles. I'd happily buy these for casual listening but certainly not as a primary, neutral IEM.
The KZ AS10 has 5 BA drivers per side, and 4 of those are for the mids and highs. As such, they are incredibly detailed, precise, and localized--they image extremely well. With just one bass BA driver they don't go especially deep, nor are they as precise on the low end. However, all the drivers are equally fast so the image stays together well. But note, they do have genuine bass versus the empty low end of the blue Nobles.
For comparison, I also own the KZ ZS10s. These have 4 BAs for mids and highs plus 1 dynamic driver for bass. The BAs and dynamic drivers don't have the same speed/timing, so (to me) they sound like an excellent set of speakers with a cheap subwoofer. And, they are very, very bright (V shaped profile).
I can't recommend a $300 to $500 IEM these days, as I shifted down to the $100 and below market after buying the Nobles.
I've been thinking to purchase a pair of AK billie jeans,the few reviews that i've found have been very positive and seem fairly good for the price! They are 2ba's per side though.
I guess I could buy a pair of TRN v80s or KZ AS10's since they're dirt cheap to see how they compare to my old mid range sets. I got a pair of HD650's for home use so that's not an issue but driving them on a shitty portable amp or even commuting with them is a bad idea.
Ill watch a few reviews and see what could fit me best!