NCM Bella 1DD 8BA Universal IEM REVIEW

The NCM “Bella” is an IEM that will appeal to Bassheads and Audiophiles alike…no easy task..that.

The “Bella” is an absolutely gorgeous set of IEM which bridges the Audiophile/Basshead gap quite nicely

The NCM “Bela” uses

(x1) Dynamic 10mm driver

(x8) Balanced armature drivers.

Accessories:

Shock proof case
Soft carrying pouch
Cleaning tool and cloth
OFC ultra soft removeable cable

Specs (from site)

Photo Bombs away motherfuckers!

Design

Typical Universal IEM using the bump for resting on the inner ear to hold the DD. They actually have made the smallest 1DD 8 BA hybrid I have seen and it is smaller than the Kumitate Labs KL-REF which is a DD BA hybrid but has less BA

NCM has stuffed a lot of stuff into a shell the size of 64 Audio’s U12 sized frame

The “Bella” is smaller or identical to U12 and smaller than ME.1

Sound impressions:

BASS

Going Back to Cali

Hit that play button!!

The Bella slams on this classic track. Without EQ it hits hard and with an amp and EQ it is among the heaviest hitters I have tried. NOTHING beats a Dynamic Driver for bass impact. The 8 BA drivers assure that the rest of the frequency does not disappear.

This is a set that goes from polite to slamming pretty easy.

Git some of that low end baby!

STAGE

On the Run

My go to track for panning cues and the Bella has a massive virtual stage. The 8BA are doing good work and the tuning lends itself to present big stages in a big way. I hate compact deliveries and this does not do that. Having lots of bass and lots of stage is a hard find and Bella does it well. The left to right and back panning cues on this classic Floyd track are all there and very clear. I was expecting a bass monster with no mids and a limited stage and got a shit ton of space and sparkle.

MIDS

Gold Dust Woman

Because of the male and female vocals through this track and the quality of the mastering it is a great track to judge vocals and any sense of them being pushed back or forward. The mids are a tad forward but it is actually a nice listen and the graph shows a smooth transition from bass thru mids to treble. they sound a bit forward (vocals) bit recessed is unacceptable to me and a touch forward is what I prefer.

TREBLE

Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’

This is where the “Bella” really really shines. See that graph above again. The treble is bumped right in the sweet spot and not spiking at 7.5-9khz. It is falling but no sense of roll off. The details in this awesome track on this fucking awesome album…..Mike got weird but this lbum was an epic masterpiece of mixing by Quincy Jones and others.

For a set that was focused on bass when sent to me…I imagine? The Treble steals the show. Absolutely tuned perfect for my ears. I played through and loved this whole fucking album on Bella….absolutely fuckingdope!

This is sparkle. Slam and sparkle with no scoop…2017 ladies and gents…good times!! The Hybrid sets are getting better and better

Conclusion

I had no idea who NCM was and they contacted me…and I am glad they did. Thomas was polite and did everything he was going to do when he said he would do it.

I would rec the company anytime. I have no incentive to kiss ass. I wouldn’t anyway but I got none. The dudes from Vietnam are cool very cool and the gear they make is fanfuckingtastic!

I highly rec the “Bella”. Never assume but……gotta imagine they make some more good shit over at NCM.

Big Thanks to Thomas!

Their website is here

Home

Their Facebook is here

https://www.facebook.com/nguyencustomsmonitors/

Their Instagram is here

https://www.instagram.com/nguyencustom/

Listened to this just before my review…good shit!

VIDEO REVIEW ON YOUTUBE IN ABOUT 1 WEEK

King of Customized Gear (PETEREK)

O.G. Audio community member CasperTFG/PETEREK, has been modding gear for a long time. Terminations, paint jobs, wood covers…you name it. He is not nutzo crazy about price either.

Best modder in the hobby, PETEREK, Check him out!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThePETEREK?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

He turned my MA-900 into balanced mini xlr multi termination beasts

Highly rec this dude!

Check him out for your custom needz!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThePETEREK

Aune B1s Class “A” Portable Amp (review coming)

Review coming in a while. Will re-post once review is complete

Worldwide Wednesday (Fraud Edition)

Lets put a spotlight on what’s not right

If you want to share stories send them to me and I will keep your identity secret.

This will be updated and completed over time. Submit stories to me via e-mail 😉

No real names will be used. This is not about the people…it’s about the problems…caused by people.

UPDATE 12/9/2017

See a lot of folks checking this. No worry musicday your fraud will be explained as will Echobox and LH Labs and Trinity Audio and others. The folks that scam each other via shady transaction and companies that commit mass fraud.

Musicday..

Favorite song?

It’s not really gonna be a Music day?

Going to be a omg dude!!! wtf??? day.

If you wanna share private stories without names feel free. or with names so long as not naming forums or sites.

Monk IEM “Biggie” REVIEW

notorious-big-wallpaper-1449978001

It’s Biggie when he was smalls…get it? Nah? nevermind…

bigg

I will do a review and post it … and hit up the social networks when it’s done.

Biggie and Smalls and the “7 day Theory”

Day #1

IMGP0076 IMGP0074

Figured Biggie would get clear benefits from a hardware bass boost.

This set-up Note4 and FiiO Q1mkII is much better than the X7II with stock AM3A amp.

Vinyl rip of…yeah Vinyl rip of All Eyez on Me sound nice. Bass boosted by EQ and hardware and some boost in treb and this sounds much nicer. All the dope mixing by Johhny J and D.J. Quick behind 2pac’s lyrics shining through.

Day #2

20171122_121546_001[1]

I figured the Shozy Alien + would provide the power for VE Biggie but it is revealing the need for an eq in the late bass /mids?

Is the bass blooming into the early mids or are they recessed? Never seen a chart but it is one of the 2. Shame the Shozy doesn’t have even a basic EQ as the pair seems great but not enough tweakability. Actually sounds like something needs a boost more than a cut…

I will work on other devices EQ’s. This coulda been a nice pairing as the Shozy is epic in sound and ghetto in all else.

Day #3

20171123_125917_001[1]

Sounds better than the Shozy because of EQ but still not shining like with the hardware bass boost on the Q1mkII

This is good, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not bass boosted goodness 😉

Day #4

20171124_103018_001[1]

Sorry about the finger prints but it was crashing again 😦

Headfonics reviewed this while it was still on a early beat firmware which blew my mind. 3 months later and it is still having issues. 3 moths ago Hiby was crashing, the storage was going ghost and most folks reported that. Some sites need to balance being first with being….looking like a moron/tool/hype site

I got nothing about Biggie. Thing wouldn’t start. likely not a good pair due to power and limited EQ. I like the device but it needs work.

Sorry Biggie. Day 4 just walked out the door and didn’t leave nuttin’

Day #5

20171125_180806[1]

Pairing Biggie with the OPUS#2

Using the same EQ I used on the X7MKII and it sounds very good. This is still not as good as the Q1MKI which is really tripps since that is a amp/dac and it’s not very expensive but like the Melody ME.1…The Biggie seem to sound best with a good hardware bass boost.

I told Lee pretty quick that I liked Small the best of the 2 but with a good flick of a bass switch that choice is less easy. These need power. No question. Particularly to get good bass and through what seems like a slight veil? Not sure, but the increased dynamics that come from power do a lot for biggie

Day #6

20171128_001115[1]

Mmm, no.

The more power the better. That is without doubt. Burn in be damned, these need to be kicked in with some juice. Gonna try to throttle em with an amp then see where we at.

Day #7

20171128_132813_001[1]

Best pairing…and most potent source. Q1MKII with bass boost might be better though.

Biggie likes power

MONK IE BIGGIE

Style In-Ear

Detachable Cable

Connectors 0.78mm 2pin

Driver Dynamic

Resistance 80Ω

Sound

The Biggie monk IEM reminds me of the TFZ 5s.

Biggie has a detachable cable and fits better due to smaller housing though.

1000px2

2pac’s “Shorty wanna be a Thug”

Lots of minute details going on in the background and if the bass is elevated to a tactile level the mids and some details get lost. They are named after my favorite Hip hop artist’s chief rival but they are not best suited for basshead or bass dominant stuff.

Some folks will be happy to hear that

1000pxm

“Wanna be startin’ Somethin'”

This sounds better as it does not require a big bass boost and the mids are left along to play back the Quincy jones engineered audio info fest. There is a lot going on and you can catch most of it at regular listening levels.

1000pxf

“Never Goin’ back Again”

Not as crisp as Biggies brother “Smalls” but pretty much what the TFZ gave me. I sometimes think I shoulda started with Smalls but I got a feeling Biggie will be left behind little brother over time so I start with biggie.

1000pxb

Foreplay/It’s been such a long Time

Because of the electric guitar’s range the Biggie actually do good here because the mix is done well and besides the “Foreplay” minutia the rock group members come through nicely though the vocals seem a tad back

1000pxp

Biggie is not a stage monster.

This album sounds great but I use it for stage mostly and that is not this sets strong point.

So where the fuck are we?

Bass

Can slam with power but it WILL hurt the mids. I gotta feeling they are slightly elevated stock leaving less headroom before distortion or a veil forms. The Sony EX series are basically flat and have lots of room and 16mm and good power input handling so they are rare. Most single dynamic will start choking on 55Hz boosts.

**Hardware bass boost can help as it is not a DSP like EQ is…not really anyway, it helps this set a lot**

Mids

Fine as they are but will get pushed back by bass EQ. Use a hardware bass switch to leave the mids alone as much as you can. These are not mid forward so you will push them back even further

Treble

Surprisingly not bad. The “V” ish sig means the treble is there and not piercing at all. Could be rolled after 9-10Khz but that shouldn’t bother most folks

If “Smalls” wasn’t so damn good and coming with “Biggie” I might like it more but little brother steals Biggie’s spotlight.

Conclusion

Lee.

It’s about the music, the clan and being in it.

It’s never been about the money. That, that is Strictly business. Venture Clan is about more than business. They helped a person, not in the clan, I hope not, cuz I sent a mail telling him to show some damn respect so if he is family…my bad.

I do not do good things to make others happy. I do them to make myself happy….about myself. Lee is like that.

Try and join the clan and get booted for being a fool or supported for trying not to be.

20171109_003314_001

If you are a power user Biggie will be fine as he needs amp and a bass switch but since you get the really excellent brother “Smalls” (pic top of review…white IEM)…you get BOTH for less than you pay for 1 mediocre set from many companies….you pull triggers…you pull them nowz!!

https://www.veclan.com/engappliance_sel_one?eng_ApplianceVo.eac_id=23

Old Man Rant #1 – Don’t Fear The EQ

GOMred

Ok, every once in a while I’m going to throw up a quick rant about something or another, and this is my first. It’s my god-given-old-man right, lol. I’ll get right to it. I’m sick of reading, hearing, or seeing folks say that “You’re not an audiophile if you EQ your music” or “You’re not listening to the track the way the producer intended”. One reason that is ridiculous is that we the listener have no clue what headphones or speakers the person was using at the time, maybe they had more bass or treble than our headphones or speakers. Maybe, without EQ’ing, we’re not listening to the music the way they intended? We don’t actually know. And, because we’re not buying or listening to our music for the enjoyment of that producer, why should we not EQ it to our tastes? I say we can. I EQ every single headphone I have out of every source I use. I have EQ setups for extra bass, extra highs, raised mids, even for different genres. I enjoy the hell out of my music when it’s EQ’ed. And that is what this rant was about, not to tell you that you absolutely have to EQ, but to tell you it’s 100% ok to EQ your music if that is what you like, without someone telling you that you aren’t doing it right. Music enjoyment is subjective, do you, screw the haters, lol.

/rant

FiiO F9 PRO Full review

The FiiO F9 PRO. FiiO’s 1st real Approach to Audiophiles

The FiiO F9 PRO is a shot at Audiophiles who enjoy a detail filled listen with tuning that resembles the classic Sony EX1000 among others. Did they hit the mark? Lets check it out.

The F9 Pro uses

(x1) Dynamic 9.2mm PEK Polymer nanocomposite driver

(x2) Balanced armature drivers. the “Knowles” TWFK-30017-000

Impedance is 28 Ohm

Max input rated at 100mW

Design

FiiO has made an all metal design with an MMCX connect and mesh covered nozzle with a lip for securing the eartips. The interior is lined with plastic to secure the driver and reduce resonance.

It feels like an aluminum peanut. It fits like a piece of hearing protection which is to say it fits really really good with the proper eartips which depend on your ear size.

Inside the Box

Inside you find

As mentioned above:

Hard shell case

Soft carry case

(x1) 2.5mm balanced cable

(x1) 3.5mm single end (SE) cable

(12) sets of ear tips 6 bass enhancing sets and 6 balanced sound sets

Sound impressions:

STAGE

Foreplay/It’s been such a long Time

The wide spacey intro “Foreplay” is the kind of stadium rock anthem the the F9 PRO shine on. The treble clarity and peaks create a great sense of space. There is no perceived restriction on the virtual playback stage. Live recordings or those with large presentations from Classic to live 70’s arena rock shine on these

MIDS

Gold Dust Woman

Male and Female vocal Fundamentals are stretched across the entire mid range.

Stevie Nicks and at times Lindsey Buckingham and others sound well balanced and well placed. The mids would be slightly forward or proper. There is no recess detected to my ears. The mid to early treble is one of the strong points of this set. Guitar also sounds very good both electric and acoustic.

BASS

Dazed and Confused

The opening notes of John Paul Jones Bass guitar are clear and extend into the harmonic range nicely. The lower sub-bass seems to be somewhat lacking. These are not basshead in any form nor were they advertised as such

According to FiiOs own advert it is a relatively neutral bass tuning with no real increase or recess along it’s range. It sounds that way. Some folks may want to add roughly +3dB or more/less depending on tastes for a fuller sound in the lows with more impact. An EQ will work a hardware bass switch would be ideal for many.

TREBLE

Shorty Wanna be a Thug

There is a ton of studio deck mixing going on on this track and the better the treble the more you will hear. Everything comes through loud and clear. The F9 has a peak at 7-8Khz. The PRO has one at close to the same point according to their graph. it seems less harsh than the F9 to me? They could graph out identical but while it sounds like a bright IEM it does not grate on me like the F9 did initially. I got used to it or this is just a bit better in resolution, clarity and no worse than the F9 peak perhaps better. This could be my brain getting burnt in though so take that with 2 grains of Salt

Conclusion

Did FiiO do what they set out to do?

Well, if the graph they made was what they wanted then yes. It sounds very detailed with a large presentation and a tame bass region. No noted recess in mids. That is what they showed in their own graph and that is what they did, to these ears.

If you like the Sony EX1000 like I do ( I fracking love em’!!) then you would like these and they fit much much better than the Sony.

Initial unboxing video

Buy at:

AMAZON

https://www.amazon.com/Headphones-Earphones-Detachable-Monitors-Compatible/dp/B077L3S4MQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1512140121&sr=8-2&keywords=FiiO+F9+PRO

FiiO provided this sample to me for free.

Thank you to FiiO and thank you for reading

http://www.fiio.net/fiio

EDIT:

With the bass boost on the Q1mkII I fully rec these. They are great without but they are to my taste with so I rec. They sound fantastic now.

Happy Holidays!

Worldwide Audio Wednesday

The Portable Audio Fest is coming (Japan)

https://www.paudiofes.com/2017/11/24/post-3320/

Girls holding audio stuff they don’t know the name of…or care but nobody looking at them cares that they don’t care so who cares.

(insert favorite company name) +Black friday

90% chance you will spot a deal O’ the year going on

http://www.e-earphone.jp/html/page342.html?top

e-earphone is selling stuff at a reasonable price and calling it a sale I think?

Some legit deals to be found though

Wordwide Audio Wednesday

World Wide Wednesday Vol1 11/22/2017

FiiO

FiiO is about to release the new F9 Pro Hybrid IEM with Knowles BA tech

They are also organizing a tour on Head-Fi and application to join can be found here

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/review-tour-of-triple-driver-hybrid-in-ear-monitors-fiio-f9-pro-in-us-market-is-on-right-now.865106/

(I will be in the mix so a look will be found right here.)

Shanling

Shanling is also hosting it’s first tour in North America and it is sending 3 DAP’s at once to the reviewers chosen. information on that tour can be found here.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/shanling-hi-res-portable-players-review-tour.865739/

(They follow me on Twitter but do not reply to me …about anything, anywhere, ever.LOL, whateverz, it is news!)

Hiby

Hiby has begun the process of delivering the first Hiby R6 DAP units outside of China/Asia and reviews and impressions should start coming in on that soon.

(I will be in the mix so a look will be found right here.)

Info on the device below

https://www.hiby.com/cpcc/index_49.aspx

FiiO II

The long awaited FiiO Q5 amp/dac is slated for a December release for $349.99

(I hope…who knows?)

Will edit and expand sources to include the gobs of stuff I come across. Somebody once laughed at Headphonia in a PM about their daily events. No, it’s smart. the traffic flows have patters and in between reviews you let the tide go too low or you use what they call “B-roll”. 20 year old tactics that work still. Gonna do Photobomb Friday’s if you folks tempt me!!

Unique Melody ME.1 Planar IEM REVIEW

**Waits for Unicorn IEM**
Unique Melody: Hold my Beer, I got this..

Like a Game of thrones, The Sony EX1000 has finally been put down

by the Unique Melody Me.1

The Unique Melody Me.1 is what is known as a “Planar” IEM

It is a technology developed and used for expensive headphones costing in the thousands of dollars. Recently the technology, forms of it, have been miniaturized and used in IEM or “In Ear Monitors”. This is a very good thing for music listeners obsessed with detail. The minutia that is barely audible and sometimes lost to harmonic distortion is now available to you, the O.C.D crowd (me) and people who expect the whole recording to be played back…ALL of it

Sound impressions

Finest, clearest most impressive sonic playback of any IEM I have ever heard at any price.

The black quiet background is unlike any BA,Hybrid or Dynamic driver I have ever tried. It is absolutely addicting.

A Benchmark.

The sound of the needle gliding along between tracks on a vinyl rip is like being there. Next to Mom’s record player again, young, loving music and not analyzing it.

The moments between “The Battle of Evermore” and “Stairway to Heaven”

Those kind of moments are why I love this hobby.

I decided before starting to write this to just say what i think without trying to be some balanced robot infonator passing facts and general thoughts on to you. Nah, fuck that, these fucking RULE!

Bass

It is very much like the Sony EX1000. No measured increase of note between 20Hz and 1Khz. It is very clear and the speed of planar is second to…nothing. Bass guitar is outstanding. The pluck and pull and resonance of bass strings on some thing like the Violent Femmes “Blister in the Sun” is pure joy.

Who is she? No idea? Mommy or Daddy sure know their freakin’ music though. Whole album sounds sick on the Unique Melody Me.1

EDIT:

The best pairing for this IEM is the FiiO Q1MkII with it’s hardware bass boost switch. Most any good amp with a good bass switch will bring out the thump in these in a way an EQ cannot. Most DD or BA can be EQ’d to a reasonable point but for thump these love a good hardware boost..to my ears anyway.

Mids

Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham are an awesome pair of Male and Female vocals. Christine Mcvie reaches a little higher and brings in what is the sole weakness of the Planar…all of them. From 1.5Khz to approx 4.5Khz there is a harmonic event. A dip. Just prior is often a hump. Vocals on planar IEM without EQ can come off as shouty or odd if no EQ work is done.

Bass can go up because…it’s planar,

mids will not become veiled.

1Khz is very sensitive with this IEM IMO and it is my dip.

I do that at 400-500Hz usually but here it is 1Khz then I slow rise peak between 4-6Khz

Pretty simple and the payoff is perfect mids that transition to treble well, anchored by tight and authorative bass if you want it to be

Treble

“Telephone Line”

Woooo!! WOOOOO!!!

every crispy little detail pulled out and layed there for you. NOTHING shaded, trimmed,dulled…nothing. I coulda used any track with some sparkle but I was listening to this, wanted to try the widget so BAM….there ya go.

Science, muf __kers!!

Product Specifications

Impedance: 23.1 Ω
Diaphragm Diameter: 18.5 mm
Magnet Type: Dual-Layer High Strength Neodymium

Shell: 3D Printed Medical Grade Acrylic with CNC Finish Connector Type: 2-Pin Protruding Connector
Cable: 6N Single Crystal Copper
Cable Termination: 3.5 mm Headphone Jack

You can change the cable..

But why??

Pimp C would blush….then wear it.

The cable is sick, the comfort is great (I use comply) the earhooks are soft and easy to adjust to your ear and the cable is sick….did I mention that?

Good

Un rivaled SQ

Speed of driver and it’s assurance of the TOTL quality

Very responsive to EQ

Comfortable for long listening

The cable is unicorn hair dipped in gold

Bad

EQ near 1.5-4.5 Khz would be advised

hardware bass boost really needed to push bass properly

Ugly

Your desk without these on them

I once watched Twister6 stumble over announcing one top of the line IEM after the other till he said he would stop making such grand statements and I thought..pffft, get a grip dude!

Now I am looking at my EX1000 considered by many old timers and myself to be the apex of dynamic in ear monitors. And I find myself rationalizing that they are in the Dynamic driver world but I am just splitting hairs over here. The Unique Melody Me.1 are the finest IEM on the market and they are not over $1000, they are not even near Unique Melody’s most expensive IEM yet here I am calling them the King.