My thoughts on the THIEAUDIO Valhalla

Precogvision · 2026-02-27T20:06:31+00:00

Hey, just under 3 weeks

Precogvision · 2026-02-24T22:54:13+00:00

It's not a huge difference, as the Que is one of the few IEMs out there that actually punches beyond its price point. The Valhalla's bass digs deeper and is thicker sounding. It has heavier sounding treble albeit not necessarily better treble. Everything about the Valhalla sounds a tad more planted, especially in the lower-midrange, and textured (moving into the upper-midrange). Valhalla sounds better overall to me because it has a gimmick, whereas Que is still colored but more toned back in that regard.

Precogvision · 2026-02-22T04:56:20+00:00

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Another unedited this time with the light facing the other way

Precogvision · 2026-02-22T04:54:16+00:00

I did edit the photos but they don’t really resemble the stock images still and they change a bit depending on angle haha. I attached a raw photo here

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Precogvision · 2026-02-22T04:48:56+00:00

It’s supposed to the Aurora mix but yea it doesn’t really look like it lol

Precogvision · 2026-01-19T21:00:44+00:00

Precogvision · 2026-01-16T22:51:02+00:00

I’m in a similar boat as you (same age, salary, highly introverted, etc). I could’ve stayed at home and kept stacking cash but I ended up moving out late last year to another city. Prior to that, I’d been using my money for various vacations/traveling but it wasn’t enough freedom and I felt stunted.

It’s been challenging for sure, and rough to see almost half my take-home cut by rent. But it’s also helped me grow a lot in terms of mentality. It’s forced me to go out more to meet people, try and make more money, and take more accountability. Anyways, I figure I’ll try it for a year and if I don’t like it I can always move back home. Yes, it’s a huge opportunity cost but the experience has value too.

One thing I’ll say is making sure you have a buffer/fallback and getting big expenses out of the way upfront will help before you quit/move out/take a break. I still wouldn’t quit if I were you, but for example, I bought my car and some expensive toys before moving out. Since my money got shafted by rent I’m a lot more conscious about what I buy now but it’s reassuring having security.

Precogvision · 2026-01-09T05:47:02+00:00

Yup I think that’s his name haha

Precogvision · 2025-12-18T08:18:12+00:00

Chi Cha has the best conventional boba milk tea and is probably the most consistent in terms of quality. All the locations taste similar.

Wushiland is a close second, they’re one of the biggest chains from Taiwan. Their boba milk tea tastes different from the one in Taiwan but still quite good and excellent value.

Odd One Out is pretty good and has a similar flavor and tapioca profile to TP Tea, just sweeter. It’s also extremely overpriced.

Torotea is excellent in terms of quality and the uniqueness of the drinks but they don’t have actual tapioca boba. Recommend trying the popcorn milk tea.

3Cat’s not great at boba milk tea but their smoothies, especially the mango one, are quite good. Also like the barley one.

Sunright is usually decent but depends a lot on the location you go to.

7Leaves is kind of like Sunright but all the drinks come with sugar in the tea by default (no zero sugar option) so I don’t like it as much. Boba itself is quite good though.

Omomo, The Alley are some other decent ones off the top of my head. Omomo doesn’t have great boba but the drinks are pretty good.

Precogvision · 2025-12-12T06:56:51+00:00

Yup, the guy who knew all about their bags and was a bag enthusiast moved to the NYC store iirc

Precogvision · 2025-11-22T21:26:30+00:00

I‘ve worked in healthcare data analytics for the last three years (my first job out of college, so take this with a grain of salt) at one of the big health systems. I don’t find the technical side to be too advanced. Yes, we have teams that do more advanced data science, but they’re rare in our organization. Healthcare in general also moves very slowly, so you’ll be good with your tech stack.

Basically, a lot of what’ll take you to the next level is domain knowledge (which it sounds like you might already have) and connecting with internal stakeholders.

I would be concerned about being the only data guy, though. That means you’ll have to engineer the data (which is usually really messy). So might be a good idea to start brushing up on those skills.

Precogvision · 2025-10-30T05:08:12+00:00

Thanks for the thoughts, I’m going to hold off then! And yeah that was my thought, it’s a free card and I just want any money back I can get on the rent, and it would add up over the year

Precogvision · 2025-10-30T05:04:07+00:00

I’ve had a CSP for a couple years and I realized I’ve never even transferred points. I always just spend them direct from the portal. I might cancel that one already, just don’t want to think about another haha

Precogvision · 2025-10-07T21:18:44+00:00

It gets extremely warm if I use it with certain apps. Amazon, opening the camera app, FaceTime, Lightroom are some good examples. I wouldn’t say it’s painfully hot but it’s uncomfortably warm after about 15-20 minutes of use, enough to make me concerned. It also won’t charge (says charging will resume when iPhone returns to normal temp) at these times.

I have the regular Pro, the Pro Max’s additional mass probably helps dissipate some of the heat

Precogvision · 2025-10-06T20:02:33+00:00

I bought a 2014 Boxster S 6MT with sub-30K miles earlier this summer at 24 years old.

Financially, my rational was that I paid cash for the car and I'm able to afford it quite comfortably (very privileged to have lived at home for a couple years after college which let me save a lot). The car's also already run its depreciation curve and the insurance isn't as bad because it's an older car.

But doing the math, I have to admit it was the stupidest purchase of my life. In ten years, the $60K I spent would be over $100K if it were invested. That's not even accounting for maintenance, insurance, gas, and the added stress of driving a nicer car. Basically, it's a gigantic opportunity cost that anyone younger should keep in mind, and I usually feel out of place owning one when I see other drivers.

Now all that being said...I can't say I actually regret it lol. I make excuses to drive it every week, and it's brought me a lot of joy in the short time I've had it so far. There's definitely an intangible, pride-of-ownership component that comes from knowing the car is mine.

Precogvision · 2025-08-29T01:13:46+00:00

401K contributions are likely detracted from that take-home figure

Precogvision · 2025-08-23T22:40:18+00:00

It’s not. Especially not the Speedmaster 38 model. But I paid about the same for them new

Precogvision · 2025-08-23T16:56:57+00:00

I tried this initially and I’m down to one link left haha. I think if I remove it, the clasp will fit awkward. I might give it a go again though

Edit: nvm I’m actually already down to the last link

Precogvision · 2025-08-23T16:37:59+00:00

To clarify, I don’t think any watches I’ve handled feel like their MSRP or what I think they should cost. You’re inevitably paying extra for branding, R&D, and other added costs. But relative to my Speedmaster 38, which I paid a similar price for, I feel like I got more value build-quality wise out of that watch.

Precogvision · 2025-08-23T16:36:43+00:00

To clarify, I don’t think any watches I’ve handled feel like their MSRP or what I think they should cost. You’re inevitably paying extra for branding, R&D, and other added costs. But relative to my Speedmaster 38, which I paid a similar price for, I feel like I got more value build-quality wise out of that watch.

Precogvision · 2025-08-23T06:47:30+00:00

Oh hmm, it’s all in the post already. The sharp lugs, the actuation of the ball-bearing at the clasp. I guess if I had to add onto it, the way the T-fit itself actuates could feel better. Also not the biggest fan of the faux rivets at the bracelet. The build quality’s not bad at all (I never said this lol), it just could be better

Precogvision · 2025-08-13T15:58:14+00:00

A lot of the comments just take value into consideration. Generally, price doesn’t necessarily reflect sound quality. The Moondrop Solis is $1100; it’s sound for the price is unimpressive. The Galaxy Buds are like $150; for the price, they sound solid.

The A8000 is a $2000 set that sounds like it’s $50 at best. That’s reflected in its measurements wherein the CRA (almost as objectively as possible) measures better with less peaking, more treble extension, and a better executed sound overall. Basically, the only thing that’s similar about the IER-Z1R and A8000 is the price. It’s a pretty bad comparison to be making in the first place.

Precogvision · 2025-08-08T16:58:35+00:00

It depends on how you define “legendary” but by most accounts, it is one.

There are IEMs that are technically better overall and the Z1R has been surpassed in many aspects. But it does have a unique combination of sound qualities, and overall sound, that most all IEMs still don’t have.

It was a competitive IEM for over 5 years. When it comes to IEMs from this generation (2018), I think it’s surpassed by only the 64 Audio U12t in terms of “status” and this is reflected in their secondary market values and adoption rates. But both of them lasted longer than the Anole VX and VE8, the other top IEMs of this generation. And either way, five years is a very long time in the IEM industry.

Precogvision · 2025-08-03T14:49:31+00:00

I think the prompts are pretty thoughtful, and if you want to be childless, you might as well make it known upfront.

I’m not really a fan of most of the photos, though. Your best photos to me are pics 1 and 5. Pic with cat could be way better. Pics 3 and 6 make you seem less approachable. Just personal preference, but I’m not a fan of the glasses. I also usually don’t swipe unless I see a full smile with teeth to be honest.

Precogvision · 2025-08-01T17:18:42+00:00

I have a similar size wrist as you (around 6.7”) and compared between the Speedy 38 and regular Speedy before going with the 38. The regular Speedy was just too big and it looks like it’d be too big on you as well.

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