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Has anyone tried the Moondrop Aria?

phoenixsong

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For those with the 2021 Aria I really recommend trying it with KXXS filters instead and BGVP A07 tips equipped, especially if you prefer upper? mids to stand out a little more
 

Human Bass

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I'm actually very curious about the new flagship: Kato.

Moondrop claims some planar like low THD and it's a single DD
 

phoenixsong

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I'm actually very curious about the new flagship: Kato.

Moondrop claims some planar like low THD and it's a single DD
Yeah, distortion in the mids doesn't look any different from their current offerings, but is lower in the bass than even their Illumination model. Pricing is really competitive too; I think they are determined to beat the Tanchjim Hana 2021 at least. The interchangeable nozzles are like those of the Fiio FD3 as well. Wonder if it will be much better than the Aria (customised) in value though

My list of budget IEMs potentially matching my tuning preferences so far:
(<$15): QKZ VK4, Sony MH750/755 (ordered both as beater IEMs but not yet here with me)
(~$50): BLON BL-05s, Reecho SG01, Tripowin Mele (not as good as Aria from what I've gathered, this tier might be worth skipping and saving on)
(~$70): *Moondrop Aria* (owned, very impressive after swapping to KXXS filters and BGVP A07 tips)
(~$100): Fiio FD3, iBasso IT01X, Tforce Yuan Li, Thieaudio Legacy 2 (from what I've gathered Aria can compete at least evenly with all of them- probably even more to my tastes than the FD3 and Legacy 2- except for the IT01X which does not have sufficient reviews and impressions released to get a good gauge of)
(~$200): Aune Jasper, bass-boosted JVC FDX1, KBear Aurora, Moondrop Kato, Sony XBA N3, Tanchjim Hana 2021, Thieaudio Legacy 4, YanYin Aladdin (haven't done meticulous reading on this tier yet, but each of these shortlisted ones have a lot going for them) Edit: stock FDX1 looks to have too little bass and a slightly off peak, Aurora's measured bass boost blooming excessively into its mids section could be questionable
 
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38yEj5SxGA

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Ordered these today. Looking forward to getting the best IEM's in the price range, if not higher. Any FR issues can just be EQ'd with my Q5K, so not point "chucking an audiophile" so to speak, and sweating over the FR.
 
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Matias

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Here is the Kato FR compared to the recent budget IEMs from Moondrop. Apart from Dusk, all very similar imo.
https://squig.link/?share=Super_Rev...a,Moondrop_Blessing_2_Dusk,Moondrop_Starfield

graph.png
 

FTB

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The Kato hasn't the 15K peak. Interesting. Because this peak is kinda audible on Aria/Starfield.
 

FTB

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Ordered these today. Looking forward to getting the best IEM's in the price range, if not higher. Any FR issues can just be EQ'd with my Q5K, so not point "chucking an audiophile" so to speak, and sweating over the FR.
You can't go wrong with Aria. Plus at this price point it's a gem.
 

phoenixsong

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Ooh TRN MT1 tips go surprisingly well with the Aria
Correction- on some tracks the soundstage appears collapsed through these tips. To me it'll still be either the stock tips with stock filters or BGVP A07 tips with KXXS filters for a slightly different sound presentation
 

phoenixsong

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You can't go wrong with Aria. Plus at this price point it's a gem.
Indeed, it does seem to perform quite favourably against the Fiio FD3, iBasso IT01X, Tforce Yuan Li and Thieaudio Legacy 2, all of which are popular IEMs themselves and more costly to obtain. A clearer upgrade would be closer to the $200usd tier which includes IEMs like the Aune Jasper, Moondrop Kato and Tanchjim Hana 2021
 

FTB

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I use them more and more these days. I was used to the AKG K371 at home but as I'm back to college, IEMs are way easier to carry and isolate better in public transports.
The K371 has the 3/4 KHz default, a much audible dip, the Arias have no major peaks or dips.

Enjoying them each second, monsters of linearity, they supress or mask nothing in the music.
For 70 € here, I can't see nothing else.
 
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Matias

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Love my Aria as well. From linearity, to resolution, to fit and finish, to price, check all boxes.
 

Hewbacca

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I picked up Arias, sound was great, very well made. My problem was the shape and materials just made them very uncomfortable, there is a relatively sharp edge (not SHARP, but not especially rounded), made out of metal like the whole thing is, that pushed against the inside of my ear in such a way that they were unbearable after half an hour or so, so I returned mine. I wanted to love them. I ended up getting Fiio FH5 (different price bracket, I realize), and I am extremely happy with those.
 

Matias

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Is the 8k peak there and audible in all these or is it a measuring anomaly? So many iems have spikes somewhere in the upper range making them unpleasant for me.
I hate sibilance and my Aria never bothered me.
 

phoenixsong

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Anyone tried their Aria with KXXS/Starfield filters and Starline tips? Seems to sound very good (I had to test mine with M instead of S tips because those were delivered to me damaged, so might be a little inaccurate)
 

JohnYang1997

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Just got Kato and the high frequency response is superb with no peaks. Finally the 7khz canal resonance issue is solved. And you'll not find that with regular measurements.
It had been a conudrum in IEMs. Most IEM manufacturers don't even realize the issue let alone solving it. And some people would also perceive peaks as resolving or detail. Nah.
Kato is just that good.
 

Merkurio

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Just got Kato and the high frequency response is superb with no peaks. Finally the 7khz canal resonance issue is solved. And you'll not find that with regular measurements.
It had been a conudrum in IEMs. Most IEM manufacturers don't even realize the issue let alone solving it. And some people would also perceive peaks as resolving or detail. Nah.
Kato is just that good.

Believe it or not, but I was going to ask you about the Kato at this very moment, giving your experience with well tuned IEMs. :D

I currently have the ER4SR and want something less intrusive to the ear for when I don't need the best sound isolation (but still want to have a good tonal response).

What are your thoughts between ER4SR and Kato?
 
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Ashimaru

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Just got Kato and the high frequency response is superb with no peaks. Finally the 7khz canal resonance issue is solved. And you'll not find that with regular measurements.
It had been a conudrum in IEMs. Most IEM manufacturers don't even realize the issue let alone solving it. And some people would also perceive peaks as resolving or detail. Nah.
Kato is just that good.
Hi, John. How do you know a canal resonance (7kHz peak) is present in an IEM? Is it through a measurement rig like 711? Or in what way?
 
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