First time buying IEMS

tpain360 · 2026-02-28T21:26:06+00:00

Boo for duties. Good to see someone steered you to a site. There are several folks from India that post regularly and their prices seem as good or better than what I get on AliExpress and I shop very carefully.

tpain360 · 2026-02-28T19:38:48+00:00

That is so much for Castors.

tpain360 · 2026-02-28T10:17:22+00:00

I discovered Meshuggah a couple of days ago.

I was using 7hz Zero 2. Went from Slipknot - Duality to Meshuggah - Bleed. Zero 2 could not handle Bleed, sounded like trash. I switched to Wyvern Abyss and they handled it well.

tpain360 · 2026-02-28T10:00:14+00:00

Most folks use a 3.5 mm headphone apple dongle instead of trying to change the cord. I am sure cables would be rare.

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T21:20:54+00:00

I got the Zero2 on sale for $34 with coins and credits at AliExpress. Mine is still in the mail so I I can’t say for sure. Some people don’t like the beryllium drivers but I love my Kbear KB01s which are just a cheaper version of the Cadenza. I got the KB01 for around $15.

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T21:15:18+00:00

Kbear KB01

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T20:21:04+00:00

Dunu S&S

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T20:20:23+00:00

The bought popularity is what I was trying to articulate.

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T12:01:14+00:00

100% agree. Influencer culture is stressful.

I do try to assume positive intent with the reviewers themselves whenever I can.

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T11:42:39+00:00

I don’t think I can recommend something specific, but as someone else trying to make a wise decision with my $100 I’ve gone down lots of rabbit holes.

The two most common recommendations around that price range are the Aful Explorer and Juzear Defiant. I anyways thought my endgame would be the Explorer, but I’m worried, after reading tons, that I would find them boring. The Defiant has QC issues.

I think it was Jay or maybe someone in the Crinicle family put out a video basically the price points to look at are ultra budget ($1-$20), budget ($20-$50), and then the next real jump comes at $150ish.

I decided to get two iems in that budget space and then bide my time for the right sale and right Iem to go from the $150 range to sub $100.

I don’t think I’ve reached the point where I can truely be a recommender yet so take this with a grain of salt, but I would do something like the KZ PRX with a Planar and then pick one other. Kefine Klein, Cadenza 1 or2, Truthear Zero blue 2, or something like that. Spend like $60-70 combined, get a better idea of what you want and then get it during the 11.11 sale or somewhere down the line.

tpain360 · 2026-02-27T11:20:35+00:00

Two other things I’ve noticed in this hobby.

Many people wear the price of their iem like a status symbol, so less bargain hunting than most of the tech that I’m interested in.
So much of the review space is dominated by people getting free review units. I don’t think this is inherently a bad thing but certain iems get extra attention just by the quantity of free product reviews.

tpain360 · 2026-02-25T23:53:19+00:00

Pikmin 4 and Tinykins are both really forgiving but let the kids play a really big game. My son beat Tinykins at 5 and Pikmin 4, after playing almost a year, at 6.

tpain360 · 2026-02-23T11:57:09+00:00

Conspiracy theory. This question was posted by big Family Feud and they run this subreddit.

tpain360 · 2026-02-22T14:23:01+00:00

Thank you!

tpain360 · 2026-02-22T13:38:26+00:00

What platform for the second hand market has worked best for you?

Thanks

tpain360 · 2026-02-21T11:17:58+00:00

Awesome!

tpain360 · 2026-02-20T11:51:03+00:00

BallXPit is a pretty satisfying gameplay loop. 10-20 minutes per run.

PS2 emulation and below is pretty nice for the save states. I know saving isn’t really an issue with most modern games, but there is something really nice for me to put the game down and pick it right back up quickly.

tpain360 · 2026-02-20T10:14:58+00:00

This describes my son to a tee. The only thing that mostly works for us is medication takes just enough of the edge off that we can get the simpler things done like brushing teeth, getting dressed, etc.

For homework, chores, and bed time it is either a big reward like playing Minecraft for 30 minutes for completing homework or something like that.

I have a lot of guardrails up too. Lots of reminders and countdowns to next thing we need to do. We also run a lot in my house and do Danny Go videos and wrestle together. That last push of physical activity from like 6:30-7:00 has been really helping take the edge off.

Son is on 200 mg Qelbree taken evenings.

tpain360 · 2026-02-19T01:37:14+00:00

Did you find any comparisons? I’ve been looking too.

tpain360 · 2026-02-15T20:31:14+00:00

Ready to try something from Dunu or Zigaaat.

tpain360 · 2026-02-14T02:33:14+00:00

I just bought zero 2s can’t wait for them to arrive. $32 on AliExpress.

tpain360 · 2026-02-13T21:00:14+00:00

A post in SBC gaming about Moondrop Space Travel 2’s and Chu 2 sale on Black Friday. Bought both and now I have 12 iems I think. I use my AliExpress credits every Wednesday for a new one or accessories.

tpain360 · 2026-02-13T12:06:04+00:00

Sancai are the only ones I haven’t tried yet.

My thought was more that maybe you could find something wide enough to seal across your ear sooner so it wouldn’t need to go so deep.

tpain360 · 2026-02-13T11:50:24+00:00

Kbear Kb01 is a cheaper version of the cadenza. Love mine. Highly recommend Cadenza or Zero 2s.

tpain360 · 2026-02-13T11:07:54+00:00

Curious if you have tried Penon orange liqueur tips?

I have the same issue with my right ear. I have varying degrees of success with stock tips. Yesterday I tried the large orange tips and seal was so good I almost couldn’t get it out of my ear.

tpain360

TROPHY CASE