MEElec New Balance

In merely a little more than a year, MEElectronics has transformed from the maker of the more humble, budget oriented M6 / M9 series to the more upscale CC51 (+ the new Clarity series) and their first balanced armature IEM, the new A151. Like the CC51, this new IEM looks very much like a keeper. I sure hope it will be just as good sounding, if not better.

Rumor: Be '4'? [UPDATE]

Westone CEO posted a picture for his tweeter, but it turns out the most interesting bit is the IEM next to his new iPad. Does it read like a '4' on that orange logo? Could it be a Westone 4 sample? Will this be Westone first 4 drivers universal? If so, will this beat x-JAYS to the market and take the title of 'first quad drivers universal'? Ah, all the questions with no answers...

[UPDATE] Days after the picture leak, Westone finally announced the Westone 4 officially. As the name suggested, it will have 4 BA drivers each side in 3 ways crossover and a new type of cable. MSRP is around $450 and it will debut in CES2011 and hit the market early next year. So the race between JAYS and Westone for the first quad drivers univeral IEM to reach the market is officially on as well. Ah, all the excitement!

[REVIEW] ECCI PR100, PR200 and PR300 - Pop and Rock in Trio

First, I’ll like to thank delonicdevil (which is also a seller on eBay) for sending me the samples. ECCI is the brand from the same company that brought us the Storm portable amp and Cyclone IEM a while back. As the business grew, the company decided to up its game with a new name and a new series of products at the end of last year. The original PR series, which were quite popular in Head-fi, was then slowly replaced by a new series of IEM in order to move the production from pure OEM’ed by another company to more of an in-house operation (or so I heard). The results are the PR100, PR200 and PR300 (the latest PR401 has hit the market as well). The name ‘PR’ is short for Pop and Rock – it is what the IEM are intended for: budget oriented products aimed for the mainstream listener.

New Force: NE-700

Nuforce is releasing a new series of IEM called the NE-700 (X for regular version, M for iPhone supported Mic version). Like the previously reviewed HifiMan RE262, this IEM will have a titanium diaphragm which I personally like (they tend to be quicker and more detail). NuForce is known for its bang for the bucks products, so this will be something to look forward to. You can expect it to reach market by end of December with MSRP of US$65 (NE-700X) and US$79 (NE-700M).