final - A5000

I kept the a5000, got rid of the Davinci. The Davinci I find to be quite unimpressive especially for 300usd. A5000 is more dynamic, impactful, more energetic while the Davinci’s top end sounds a bit muffled and overly smoothed. However, the a5000’s midrange is thinner sounding than the Davinci so if you like thick vocals, go with Davinci. Female vocals on Davinci sounds bad though. Muffled and boxy. A5000 female vocals sounds decent - forward but a bit thin Overall, I can highly suggest the a5000 if you are looking for a V shaped sounding IEM. Not to mention, the a5000 also sounds extremely close to the ie600 (not saying they sound the same, just similar) so to me, the a5000 is like the poor man’s ie600. As for Davinci, I can’t recommend it.

The final a5000 tuning is a very v shaped for classical. Good staging, though.

I’ve owned the a5000 & I currently own the a6000, the rest was their ze3000 & ze3000 sv Bluetooth earbuds that I own

As someone who has used all three, I'd say Pilgrim by a mile. A5000 sounds very wide and impressive, but uses a weird and unnatural tuning to achieve the effect. I care much more about tonality and technicalities rather than soundstage. Mega5EST is impressive in its natural timbre and sound, but sounds too boring and very untechnical in my opinion. Still, worth picking up if a natural sound is your top priority. Pilgrim is my favourite IEM at the moment and, at the risk of sounding hyperbolic and over-hyped, I'm selling my u12t because I Simply prefer the Pilgrim. Bass sounds deep and natural but not bloated, mids sound crystal clear, highs are slightly forward while not being unbearable, and the tonality is very balanced unlike Variations or A5000. Fit may or may not be an issue though, the nozzle is big and too short. As for the oracle mk3 everyone is suggesting, I found that to be too spicy up top and to be rather unnatural in the timbre. (I love baroque, choral, and organ music especially)

of all the characteristic of the 3 iems you had, i personally feel like thieaudio Monarch Mk2 have all of it except the fit. I personally own the Final A5000(after demo A4000 and prefer the A5000 instead) For Monarch Mk2, some people will argue there’s this lack of bass, slightly recessed vocals. If you have the chance to demo out stuff, go ahead because only whatever that please your ears matters. I’ve recently ordered a ciem from 64audio, it doesn’t really matter about diminishing return. I like what i hear and that’s the sound i like. Not a single iem out there i’ve demo sound the way it is, thus this makes all iem different.. you pay a premium for certain models if that’s what you like