I don't think many people are saying the Apple dongle is all you need for hard to drive planars. You do need something that has enough power. But IEMs need nowhere near as much power as a low sensitivity over-ear planar and 31mW @32Ω is actually plenty for almost any IEM.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/poll-your-favorite-ksc35-mod.473151/

How would you compare the ear one to the headphone amp on the rme? What made you want a separate?

Agreed. Also inserting cold metal into the ear isn't nice.

I just wrote down what I heard

Some iems have vents that would allow moisture in.

Moondrop iems are also known to have a spongy filter that is a moisture magnet.

I'd get something really cheap for snow usage, the if the snow breaks them, no big deal. It would be a shame to ruin an expensive set of katos.

One of the £20 offerings like salnotes zero, trn mt3 etc.

If you want well built get the DT700 Pro X

Agreed, I also think that there are things that we've yet to measure and prove scientifically regarding how music sounds on different gears. Frequency response are one of those that we could already measure and have a standard measurement for but that doesn't mean that it is the only aspect that determines how music sounds on different gears.

We could only be scratching the surface on how to measure sound that is coming out from the audio gears that we use nowadays, but some people are just so certain that the frequency response graph is the only measurement that matters to determine how something sound.

I honestly think that is quite narrow minded of them.

Before gravity was researched and measured by Newton scientifically, does it mean gravity doesn't exist?

I hope in the future there will be someone dedicated enough to research this subject and discover what has yet to be measured now with the current knowledge we have.

Yeah. I bought these and received them a bit earlier than most. I had the sixth unit off the line and as great as they sounded they definitely had some flaws. The left side of the frame was partially bent and when you moved the driver it would scratch against the metal and damage the paint/ make a terrible noise. The fake leather headband was also unbelievably stiff and had issues with adjusting evenly when you put it on your head. Overall I wasn't very happy. I enjoyed the sound a lot, but the QC and headband caused me to send them back. Sadly, it's been over a month and they're still sitting at Chinese customs. Can't get a refund until they get to the factory (assuming they ever do)

Gamers spend $100 for a headset, when there’re way better headphones for soundstage and imaging, for half the cost.

Yes all Koss 60ohm drivers.

IU is the GOAT

I seem to be finding links of them in stock on AliExpress and on penonaudio

I've worked in live sound reinforcement and mixing for 5+ years. Most of the people on this sub have never actually done any professional audio work, or know how to listen critically (i.e mix, master, record).

I'm convinced a large portion of the users here listen more with their eyes reading FR graphs than their actual ears. Look at the comments on the recent HD 660S v2 posts... The headphones haven't even come out yet and people already think they have a good idea of what it sounds like just by looking at a FR graph.

I believe you when you say that there is a difference in the two dongles. I also would wager that a large portion of users actually cannot tell the difference between most DACs and amps simply because... their hearing is not good enough.

The ER4SR is particularly low sensitivity, I think this is because Etymotic use a resistor to tune the BA in them. There are a handful of IEMs like this, Final E5000 and Symphonium Helios are two other examples, they are even lower sensitivity. These are really outliers though, the vast, vast majority of IEMs are easy to drive.

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I think they are both the same, they have the same DAC and same internals. Ken Rockwell measured the lightning version and he got identical measurements on THD (0.0011%) as ASR got with the USB-C version (also 0.0011%).

Lightning version also doesn't have the volume issue the USB one has on Android, although this is a function of what you are plugging it into rather than the dongle.

Do you other have test/measurements that directly compared them?

wooden cups

you can't just add the cups on your LCD-2, there is additional dampening and other changes that needs be done for it to not sound like shit

https://imgur.com/a/IscdRiu

They are different but they are both DACs lol.

I can't recommend Arias and Katos for cold weather. Their metal shells make them very prone to condensation issues. Clogged filters from moisture is already a common issue even in room temperature. Snowy weather might chill the metal shell enough for condensation to form internally, and who knows what damage that's gonna cause.

Rain/snow is going to be risky for any IEM not build for active use, so just get some budget IEMs you can afford to break. The budget market is moving really fast these days and you can get Aria quality IEMs for less than half its price.

I've pretty much endgamed KSC75 even though I've owned summit fit. Things you could try:

Original Grado 325 - higher quality drivers than the current new stuff. Just as clear as the KSC75 but with a bit more technicalities across the FR.

Radioshack Pro 35a (vintage) - Same titanium driver as KSC75 but for some reason it sounds more clear and technical. Only problem is they come with a cable that has a volume adjuster on it that kills clarity, once the cable is replaced they sound much better.

Eta Mini Open 1/2 - https://www.etaheadphones.com/headphone/o2.. I have the Open 1 and it's like a mix between a Porta pro and a Utopia. It's a very, very interesting headphone.

Crazy you’re still on here lol. Saw you commenting all the time back when I started using Reddit around 2012 (had a different account)

1. Senn HE-1: Tried it for 10 minutes. Cannot describe the sound, hope it breaks my wallet (and possibly my neck) one day. The only electrostatic headphone that I really enjoy.
2. Hifiman SUSvara: Just like u/radrod69 said, jack of all trades, master of none.
3. Beyer DT1990: Wasn't looking forward to them after seeing FR graph, now using daily for detail and imaging
4. Senn HD560s and similar looking ones: Really comfortable for me. Using for everything that isn't critical listening. 560s sounds dull, 598/558 has too much mid bass and lower mids. Eq isn't an option because it's being used on a lot of devices.
5. Focal Clear OG: Utopia would probably go here if I didn't literally forget how it sounds...
6. Audio Technica R70X: I prefer this over senn's he6 line. I don't prefer the flappy wings though.
7. Hifiman HE1000v2: A mad scientist tweaked Arya into a detailed monster. Also comes with the drawbacks of a detailed monster.
8. Hifiman Arya SE: I don't know why I like HE1000v2 more.
9. Meze elite: Sounds so soothing. Would be so much better if it had better resolution or a smaller price tag...
10. Abyss AB1266: I'd like a baby between this and the elites, and that baby grown up is the HE-1.

Extra: Phillips SHP9500: The maniacal a**hole that started this mess...

Can get sibilant?lol what? It has the safest treble of all the headphones I have heard. Upper might be bothersome to some though

According to this image, a resistor, inductor, and something we can't quite see. So it seems they use passive filtering in the cup to tune the sound.