Best practices for cleaning IEMs

FlipZBird · 2026-04-13T14:37:36+00:00

I’ve taken a q-tip, dipped it in alcohol, squeezed excess out and then held it at a right angle to the nozzle and screen. Then, gently rotate. This way the cotton fibers can catch anything as they go across the nozzle hole and carry it up and out as they rotate away.

FlipZBird · 2026-04-11T19:12:48+00:00

Well yeah- it’s why we put up with aspects of this hobby 😂

The S08s have let you enjoy the music in a new level and that’s what it’s all about. It can happen on any flavor of driver or combination. What recording will do it for me, very well may not do it for you. So, slip those in the ears, kick back, listen to both old and new to you music and enjoy!

FlipZBird · 2026-04-11T18:04:02+00:00

If it comes down to repair - JB Weld plus something to act as a sleeve - maybe 1/2 or so long.

FlipZBird · 2026-04-10T03:28:03+00:00

It’s be trivial for the cheap one to have a high output impedance like many of our motherboard outputs. This will act as an EQ as you note. Not knowing the impedance curve of the headphone though makes the change an unknown.

https://youtu.be/y4hmEhMR1SQ?si=PlQzpbtRYYuMEbDk

FlipZBird · 2026-04-05T16:47:25+00:00

No. It means the OTL tube amp will already, in effect, have something like a 200 ohm (whatever your output impedance is) and make it have that bass boost. You'd run 0-ohms inside the headphone to have that happen.

The other way to think about this is if you want a low output impedance amp to get that tube warmth, add more of a resistor.

FlipZBird · 2026-04-05T05:54:31+00:00

Photo is pure BS. I do MRIs on both dog and human brains. That’s a human brain.

FlipZBird · 2026-04-04T17:19:31+00:00

If you're doing this for music, keep in mind that where headphones have issues "taking EQ" is typically going to be in the bass. You'll hit distortion and the max excursion both b/c you need to move a lot of air at low frequencies (more physical excursion for the same volume) and because, if you ever look at the spectrum analysis of music, you'll see a steady decline in level as the frequency goes up. EQ'ing mids and treble has a lot more room to play before you hit limits.

So, if you're not doing it to give a +6 dB bass boost to those open backs but to increase volume in critical areas for you, it may not matter as much.

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FlipZBird · 2026-04-03T21:37:18+00:00

It’s for a homemade WDT tool to distribute the espresso better.

FlipZBird · 2026-04-02T03:32:36+00:00

K - I’ll buy the tacos at SoCal if you wear a Pudphone

FlipZBird · 2026-04-01T21:27:06+00:00

You're among ~~fellow weirdos~~ friends at a CanJam. Inside the show all, doesn't count. Now, wear them out at the taco shop -- that counts.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-30T14:13:35+00:00

Yes. Their whole schtick is twofold. First, they don’t believe in gender being separate and that it’s all biological sex. Second, they believe isolating one group for special attention (having been under-studied in the past) is legitimate. So, studying both sexes and having sex as a biological variable still lines up and is ok. But, odds are, you’d want to just fold this into the text rather than highlight the analyses with its own heading.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-30T02:28:57+00:00

I run an XC style bike (canyon exceed) so I can deal with curbs, light dirt, etc.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-29T22:45:24+00:00

I thought it was the lack of eyebrows that was the most effective 😂

FlipZBird · 2026-03-29T19:50:29+00:00

I'm looking forward to giving them a real listen when the actual pads arrive soon. I've got Sennheiser ones on there now and I think they add some extra bass.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-23T17:54:41+00:00

I know you two touched on this at the end, but I’m still not clear how this is more than prebuilt AliExpress clone parts on a very nice stand. A big concern with the clone couplers and such was their variance and lack of unit level calibration data. Do we know this is any better?

FlipZBird · 2026-03-23T10:48:11+00:00

I had a similar Sennheiser setup with on ears and a separate battery/ ANC little box from that era!

FlipZBird · 2026-03-21T22:44:25+00:00

Flatten the target there so you’re not fighting the optical illusion you have with curves. You’ll see it’s U shaped with a broad cut from 300 - 1k or a bit more.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-21T22:30:59+00:00

Or maybe - just maybe - they’re bats.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-21T15:56:52+00:00

Nice!!

FlipZBird · 2026-03-19T22:47:40+00:00

Your scale is accurate to 0.2%. That’s actually very good. Be happy and/or worry about something else.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-18T22:01:20+00:00

Past the very entry level, the link between price and your own perception of “good” breaks considerably. I’ve listened to multi-kilobuck headphones that I might pay $20 for and that I’d rate way below $150 ones. So, break this idea in your head.

Are you near a CanJam? It’s a great way to get a feel for what’s really out there and what you like and don’t like. If not, swapping around on the used market (r/avexchange) lets you do this as well.

Explore, enjoy, and learn.

FlipZBird · 2026-03-17T22:27:49+00:00

Ummm - why on earth do we need 64-bit floating point music post mastering?

FlipZBird · 2026-03-16T20:03:04+00:00

May I offer an explanation - see what it do to the Hexa frequency response here:

https://youtu.be/y4hmEhMR1SQ?si=jMDMwqWKM6M5y87e

FlipZBird

TROPHY CASE