Astrolith

All but one of my sets is less than $1k retail - and that set can trade blow for blow with many well regarded $2000 sets... and out of the hundreds I've heard, it is the only one that I can say that for. It is of course the Moondrop Variations, and they easily sound like a decent $1200 - $1300 set. The only $1k set I own that does not sound like a. $1k set is the Campfire Alien Brain. I'd say 600-700 would be a fair price for these. Fortunately I got them for $500 open box & /they are my out & about set & have the right characteristics for that. My list of others, their retail price & my thoughts as to whether they represent good value. Canpur 622b - $5500 I think this is an INSANE amount of money for a set. I lucked out & bought (technically) secondhand as an unwanted gift & unused. These are so far from my favourite typical kind of set as they have very little sub bass (not that I need to have every set be a basshead set) - BUT - that does not stop them from easily being the most impressive pair I've ever put in my ears. I savour them. I used them twice a week & really make sure I have no distractions & no one is home. For funk/rare groove/soul etc, they are unbelievable. For excellent pop/rock in eg Prince, Queen & MJ, same thing. For the Blade Runner 1982 Vangelis soundtrack - best I've ever heard it & I've heard it a lot. It's really difficult to qualify $5500 as a price for ANY IEM - but if one set does - it's these. Others - Final A8000 - $2000 - absolutely. Most clear & natural anything I've ever heard. For well recorded jazz, absolutely unbeatable. Good with lots of other stuff, too. Empire Ears Raven - $3750 - the best sub bass heavy 'basshead' set that have ever existed IMO. This is basically the dream sound I had in my head as a 'basshead' set & I've been through them all. Absolutely yes - absolutely worth it, but the build quality could certainly be better for that price. Campfire Astrolith - $2200 - the best planar set that exist IMO. Decent value. Incredible proprietary tech. Thieaudio Prestige Ltd CIEM - $1800 - my most used set of all time. All day every day for two years solid. Fatfreq Maestro SE CIEM fully custom - $3500- technically sound, bass is decent but nowhere near the Raven. Still, it's great to have a bottom heavy set that are so comfy, look stunning (my choice of around 200 aesthetic designs + additional options). FiR RN6 - $3000 - the ultimate one & done! Thieaudo Valhalla - $2000 - no idea, haven't arrived yet 😅 I have more but I gotta Run.

you mention 2.8K max yet mention devices that are inexpensive, so I assume your currency isn't USD. Moondrop Chu 2? but if you are talking USD, campfire audio Clara/Andromeda 10, 64 audio Volur are bassy, campfire Astrolith is snappy/punchy in its attack, 64 audio u6t is very utilitarian(all genre)

Two devices that really impressed me were campfire audio Astrolith and unique melody MEST fortune. I got Astrolith but if I had heard the MEST fortune first… Astrolith is all about speed and crispness. But MEST fortune is just sublime

For me, its the Astrals. No doubt.

I absolutely loved the sound of astrals but the shell wouldnt fit no matter what tips i used. It was quite uncomfortable since the nozzles are almost not angled at all and i need iems with angled nozzles like the p7 or ziigaat nuo.

[The Kiwi Ears Aether](https://youtu.be/SeB6BQaZse0), for sure. [I reviewed the Timeless II](https://resonancereviews.com/7hz-timeless-ii-review-strong-performance-questionable-refinement-50e07b8697c4), but wasn't not nearly as happy with it. [The Campfire Audio Astrolith](https://youtu.be/aI5qikMTwHY) is a really, really good IEM, but is so expensive that its hard to recommend to the general enthusiast community.