Audiophilepure

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“The Halcyon does quite well for staging with excellent headroom and an airy treble from those quad-electrostatic drivers. The depth is particularly good also, especially when you up the bass levels using the filters.

What impresses me the most is how the Halcyon electrostatic treble can deliver a clean treble without sounding overly forced and peaky. However, poor tip choice and a bright source can at times draw too much attention to anything crossing that 5-6k elevation and that is where I tend to PMEQ or tip roll to introduce a more liquid overtone.

In terms of imaging vocals are to the fore, lower-mids instruments to the rear with anything below 200Hz leveling out with the vocal positioning. Treble is more forward at 5-7k compared to 8-10k so percussion and high-pitch synth notes can resonate a little louder.”

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“In a short summary, I’d call the Noble Sultan a well balanced monitor with exemplary low-end extension, lightly forward mids and a clear top section. It features very good resolution and texture, but absolutely shines in terms of depth and layering. While it doesn’t create the widest stages out there, it still reaches good measures. The Sultan is a nicely enjoyable monitor, that does many things right, but might miss out on a unique character for some.”

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“Paired with FiiO’s M11, the IEM gives you the brand signature, magnified: great vocals, tight bass, and excellent layering. I tried the various switches, to check if that makes a real difference, and it does. My favorite setting is the “strong bass”, as the standard setting sounds a bit too weak on the lower-end.

Even, if I didn’t have the price in mind, I’d gladly put those ears against higher-tier IEM. I really loved the FH5 and for now, I’m pretty sure that will be the same with the FA9. Or so I hope.”

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“There was an initial change in the line-up since the V3 in terms of accessories which a chrome-finished titanium alternative. And yes, the chrome finish is a fingerprint magnet par excellence. However, current orders since Q1 will no longer receive this case and instead, you get a Dignis designed blue zippered leather case.

I actually prefer the leather case over the older titanium version. The titanium version is clearly sturdier and quite attractive but nothing beats a lighter case for day to day portability. There is plenty of space on the inside also with protective velcro pockets to stash the monitors in and prevent them from hitting something stored in the main pocket such as the cable.”

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“The face plates of the headphones are specially designed according to the structure of the bone conduction drivers. Bone conduction driver delivers signals by vibrating the face plate. Then the signals are passed to the carbon fiber shell and finally delivered to your inner ear.The bone conduction drivers are made by metal vibration pieces that are covered by piezoelectric ceramics. The ceramic layers will bend the metal vibration pieces to make micro-vibrations according to the changes of input alternating voltage.”

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“Vocals on the Sultan are forward, particularly for higher-pitched vocals but they are not quite as forward as the Khan. The Khan was fairly strong around 2-3k and the Sultan feels closer to 1-2k and slightly milder which is great for some male vocals which often get a nice natural sounding lift without diminishing lower-mids instrumental presence.

Female vocals, depending on the pitch, sound a little further forward than male vocals for me and they do get a little cleaner with a slightly heavier mix of upper harmonics from the Sultan treble tuning.”

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“Buttery smooth finish and bubble-free as you would expect in terms of finishing, however, what it did notice is the little change under lighting. Under indoor conditions, the finish has a darker look but when you shine the light on it then it has more brilliance in the shine. I suspect that is the translucent shell allowing natural sunlight to exaggerate the visual aesthetic.

Lime Ears have also gone for a wide nozzle ‘nub’ and a flat dual-bore finish so this is not a Vari Bore design since the two bores are of equal size. The bass switch to the base of the faceplate on each side is also very easy to adjust and not too close to the surface. The sockets are 2-pin 0.78mm and sit flush to the outer shell in an over-the-ear configuration for cable use.

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“From a build quality point of view there are two one things that bothers me. For one that’s the missing lip on the nozzle. This essentially means, that there is a risk of having the ear-tip resting in your canals when you pull out the Nio. I came across this when I used third party silicone tips, and for that reason I sticked with what 64 Audio supplies. I have almost exclusively used the foam tips throughout my review time. Those held on tight to the Nio’s nozzle.

And then there’s a paint chip on the bottom of my right side’s shell. I assume that this is why mine became a demo pair in the first place. For showcasing the sonic qualities of the IEM it doesn’t have an effect and demo pairs are non-retail versions, meaning they can’t be sold by dealers anyway. If these were full retail units, I’d not have accepted this. But as said, the paint chip is probably the reason why these are demo units.”