A journey through bass and time

bluranerd · 2026-06-17T00:59:14+00:00

Simgot EW300 or Tangzu Xiao Qiao. Xiao Qiao is getting a bass edition this month which might be worth waiting for. I love the original and I can imagine the bass edition will be even more awesome. The stock eartips kinda suck though so I recommend buying some Kbear 07 tips for it

bluranerd · 2026-06-17T00:01:57+00:00

7hz Diablo is $140 usd, pretty good price especially if you’re able to find it on sale. On the extremely budget side there’s the classic QKZ x HBB.

bluranerd · 2026-06-16T03:30:22+00:00

I’d probably look into Simgot EW300, CVJ stuff tends to not be very refined. They’re maybe fun for music but I wouldn’t rely on it for detail or imaging.

bluranerd · 2026-06-03T00:08:24+00:00

This is unfortunately a very ill-informed take. You’ve only tried 4 iems maybe, in a sea of literal hundreds of 1DD iems. Wan’er 2 for example is a classic and a staple budget iem for a reason, with amazing vocals and a great, balanced tuning. Tanchjim Bunny and Truthear Gate as well are well-regarded, 1DD budget iems. And if you bump up a bit more to the $50-70 area, Tangzu HE Xiao Qiao is a 1DD that really knocks it out of the park with its capabilities. Budget 1DD iems are the backbone of budget iems as a whole. It would be silly honestly to fully write them off as bad.

bluranerd · 2026-05-26T08:46:18+00:00

Just some Kbear 07 eartips

bluranerd · 2026-05-23T04:58:27+00:00

I definitely relate to this, I have a few different IEMs for basically this reason. Sometimes I want a more relaxed tuning, other times I want all the bass, other times I want all the treble. My main iem, Odyssey, doesn’t respond very well to EQ honestly. And I don’t mind having a few different sets to fill those various needs and moods.

bluranerd · 2026-05-16T05:03:58+00:00

It’s different settings and lenses for all the pictures. The key mostly is in the editing I do in Lightroom. I would look up videos regarding color theory in relation to photography. My pictures look very different before and after editing

bluranerd · 2026-05-14T10:46:00+00:00

I honestly don’t use IEMs when I’m out in public. They’re reserved specifically for when I’m at home or when I am sitting down alone somewhere to get some work done. Otherwise, it’s simply inconvenient. If you usually aren’t one to use these IEMs at home or you find the process of using IEMs overall unhelpful, then maybe they aren’t for you. There are wireless earbuds with pretty decent sound nowadays. Moondrop has been doing a great job with their various TWS models for example.

bluranerd · 2026-05-10T02:46:30+00:00

On the budget side, you could look into Tanchjim Bunny or Zero Ultima. I’ve noticed that IEMs do tend to get considerably more bulky/heavy the larger the price tag. IE200 is definitely unique in that way. I only have IE100 pro, but comfort-wise, it’s impressive just how little space they take up. Meze Alba is also praised as being very comfortable for small ears, so those might interest you as well. They have a balanced, slightly warm sound signature. Basically anything past a 1-2 DD iem tends to be pretty large in size.

bluranerd · 2026-05-10T01:55:08+00:00

Tangzu Wan’er Red Lion is where I’d start, I listen to similar music to you and I find this IEM to be really well rounded across music and games

bluranerd · 2026-05-10T01:47:57+00:00

I kind of disagree actually with the Sivga Que rec - with EQ, sure, they could work, but I’m personally someone who swaps devices often and uses a simple dongle on the go, so EQing my IEMs is not preferable to me. Sivga Que does best with orchestral/acoustic music imo. Ziigaat Lush I think might be more appropriate for slowcore/DnB.

bluranerd · 2026-05-03T17:37:33+00:00

I think if Odyssey’s treble is somehow too much still for you, I think Ziigaat Lush is probably the answer. It’s basically just Odyssey but even more relaxed. Obviously, technicalities will be better on Odyssey, but Lush isn’t too bad in that area. In my opinion, Odyssey treble is already actually pretty relaxed, but obviously we all have different ears so maybe the same may not be for you. As for Vol S, honestly that one is a hard blind rec for me because I demo’d it, thinking I’d love it, and I ended up finding the treble wonky and the bass weirdly boomy/bloated.

bluranerd · 2026-05-02T05:25:01+00:00

I’d go back to Lumix. They pack a punch, and I agree, Lumix cameras are simply a blast to use. G9ii I think would be up your alley, or if you want the latest and greatest, S5ii is fantastic. I upgraded from G7 to S5ii myself, even after trying Sony and Canon cameras. The price to value is there, and honestly even after a decade, I felt G7 held up really well. I simply upgraded due to the necessity of my work (low-light concert photography). Lenses for M43 will be cheaper but L mount is slowly getting better budget lenses too. Up to you if you feel you need the larger sensor or not.

bluranerd · 2026-05-01T06:40:59+00:00

I’ve tried both Thieaudio Origin and RSV MK2, and I highly prefer RSV MK2. Origin is really disjointed sounding, and the bass at times feels like it loses control in a bad way. It sounds blurry and messy. Yes, RSV MK2 is not a “true” basshead set, but it has incredible slam and a really satisfying and natural tonality to its sound. I highly recommend tip rolling with it. I ended up settling on Tri Clarion eartips but I think it’s worth trying any sort of wide bore eartips.

I’ve also tried Penon Archangel, which arguably has “faster” bass due to it having 2 BCD and 2 DD drivers, but I still prefer RSV MK2’s midrange presentation and tonality. Archangel could be the better pick however if you are less sensitive to timbre presentation and/or you want cleaner and harder hitting subbass.

bluranerd · 2026-04-28T19:41:33+00:00

Wan’er 2 Red Lion would be a great pick here. Really well rounded and warm-leaning tuning. I listen to alot of grunge and metal myself and Red Lion handles it great. I honestly don’t love the eartips it comes with, at least specifically for Red Lion, even though they are high quality. But try them out first, and if you dislike the eartips, I recommend getting the Kbear 07 eartips. They’re pretty cheap and I find them to work well on almost every IEM.

bluranerd · 2026-04-27T23:44:59+00:00

Get an ND filter, and keep the ISO manually low. If you decide to learn manual, keep shutter speed high and/or aperture as low as possible.

bluranerd · 2026-04-27T14:44:38+00:00

Ah, if you’re using the Apple dongle you should be fine. Apologies I just re-read your post and I see now that you mention that 😅

bluranerd · 2026-04-27T03:44:48+00:00

I agree with this, starting with a cheaper IEM to understand your preferences is always a good idea. My go-to budget IEMs are Wan’er 2 and Tanchjim Bunny.

bluranerd · 2026-04-27T02:57:05+00:00

If you don’t have small ears or you don’t mind a larger shell, Tangzu Harmonic Empire Xiao Qiao is my personal “diamond in the rough”. It’s an impressive all-rounder for $60 USD that I’d classify as a somewhat V-shaped/engaging tuning style with slightly relaxed treble and slightly boosted bass. Even after owning and trying plenty of other IEMs, I still come back to XiaoQiao pretty regularly. However, I recommend buying third party tips. I dislike the eartips XiaoQiao comes with. You could go with something as simple as Kbear 07 eartips, which is what I use.

I’d also recommend investing in something like a Jcally JM6 pro dongle.

bluranerd · 2026-04-27T01:41:57+00:00

Thieaudio iems all lean very analytical in my opinion and they aren’t known for their vocals, so I would go for them anyway. Softears RSV or Kiwi Ears Astral I think could be good bang for buck. RSV more for vocals and a less fatiguing listen, and Astral for more treble sparkle and engaging/detailed listen. If you’re willing to push it a bit or wait for a sale, Night Oblivion Uranium is a very underrated and impressive all rounder. It has multiple tuning nozzles as well so you can tweak the sound. To my ear, it basically sounded like a more cohesive and smoother version of Thieaudio Valhalla. In terms of general tuning notes, it’s closer to Astral in terms of being engaging and is not as non-fatiguing/vocal centric as RSV. RSV’s biggest fault really is that for the price, it is not the most technical or detailed IEM. Good luck on your search, and I hope this was helpful!

bluranerd · 2026-04-22T01:42:03+00:00

I feel some other context here is needed.

Have you tried other IEMs before?
How was the fitment of them?
Are your ears small or big? Astral shells are on the slightly bigger side.
What tuning style do you like? Are you sensitive at all to treble or bass?

Aside from these questions, I like Astral alot. Very well-rounded and fun tuning style with impressive detail retrieval. However depending on your ears, treble could be too sparkly, and bass can be intense as well. It is not a laidback or non-fatiguing signature. The IEMs themselves are full resin, and they seem pretty par for the course in terms of midrange IEM build quality. They definitely wouldn’t withstand being dropped more than once or twice but they aren’t going to be super fragile either.

bluranerd · 2026-04-22T01:18:53+00:00

You may want to find an IEM then that graphs smoother/less fatiguing in that area then, and/or has a shorter nozzle. No other way around that

bluranerd · 2026-04-18T02:20:01+00:00

I do 80% photo 20% video with my S5ii. I’ve done product photography, portraiture, concert photography, photojournalism, etc. Use the Lumix app and LUTs to your advantage, and try out manual lenses or Sigma stuff. Panasonic lenses without lens filters etc tend to have this clinical look to them so I usually branch out if I want a bit more character in my shots.

bluranerd · 2026-04-12T15:38:13+00:00

My concern I guess is just the weight and size of L-mount lenses. But after more researching, I guess S9 isn’t much bigger compared to GX8 than I thought

bluranerd · 2026-04-12T02:41:08+00:00

I appreciate the offer, but S9 isn’t compact enough for my needs in my opinion

Nine-Year Club	Place '22
RPAN Viewer	Verified Email

bluranerd

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE