In the span of a week the Aroma Audio Thunder has become my reference IEM and the one I grab for long multi-genre listening sessions. I love all music and this IEM is superb on everything.
The bass is full of impact and texture and the mids are nicely layered. The highs while not as airy as some of the EST equipped IEMs I have heard are beautifully done and don't ever tread into harshness. Vocal and instruments have great separation and definition with a wonderful sense of space. Sound stage has good depth and width, though it is slightly smaller than the UM Mest MkII in width.
If you listen to a lot of everything, classical, jazz, electronic, rock, vocal and anything else I believe this is a great choice!
Bought this IEM thinking it might be bass enhanced. Turned out to be a well balanced IEM including sub base. Am cable rolling it for now. Have broken it in 24/7 for a week with stock cord which ain’t bad it self.
Review can be found on headfi: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/unique-melody-mest-mkiii-cf.26526/reviews
TLDR: I loved the Mest Mk3 when I first heard it at CanJam, and I have no regrets purchasing it. It really is a wonderfully tuned iem, that does pretty much everything right. It strikes a perfect balance to me of sounding detailed and resolving but also having a hint of warmth to give it a more natural tonality without bloating the lower mids. It also has a unique spacious spherical soundstage that is truly impressive, especially when compared to my other iems in my collection.
Nice IEM and thank you to Musicteck for delivering it safely.
Absolutely wonderful sounding and feeling cable. I need to buy about 5 more. Very very impresed.
Powered by an LP6TI (199) & connected to the Aura, I simply dressed them up in a luxuriant "envelope" that embellished the entire spectrum and darkened the black background even more!
The "tactile" side of the instruments thickens, the details are just as magical in their realism, and the highs are breathtakingly smooth... A gain I'd describe as admirably "emotional"...
Nothing is spared, reverb/sustain/echo/vibrations Pffff the extinction of notes never ends 👏
👉🏻 The tuning on Todi is fairly balanced with a slight mid bass focus over sub bass, and somewhat relaxed lower mids that gain energy as they rise into the upper mids and highs.
I don’t find any particular range to be over, or, under represented to any detrimental degree.
👉🏻 Recorded sources are quite transparent. Poorly recorded source files will be laid bare, while, well recorded source files will bend Todi’s tuning to their will.
👉🏻 Listening to a sub bass test track (Bass Test 20Hz by Boosted Bass, or, Mo’ Better Bass by Techmaster P.E.B.) the sub bass is capable of going very deep with nice rumble or boom. Not as low as some bass focused IEM’s, but Todi is no slouch.
Listening to Cherish the Day by Sade;
The opening couple minutes of this track start with a steady rhythmic
kick drum beat with impact and thump, at about the 1:30 mark the bass guitar drops in deep and low. Todi maintains clean clear definition between sub and mid bass, while Sade’s sultry voice floats overhead with clarity and natural tonality.
Nicely confirming that the 2 full range, 6mm dynamic drivers are capable of moving enough air to offer strong sub bass presence, yet agile enough to deliver impactful mid bass and tonally correct vocals.
👉🏻 Lower mids are recessed, but the bass stays in its place and doesn’t overshadow. Lower mids detail and clarity is good, just not elevated or forward.
Energy builds into the upper mids and vocals, giving them a more elevated and prominent presentation. No harshness or sibilance.
👉🏻 Highs are crisp and clear with excellent micro detail retrieval. Very good air and sparkle.
Listening to Poncho Sanchez Medley #2 by Poncho Sanchez, there is a flute solo just past the 3:00 minute mark that lasts more than a minute. The high notes reach well into the upper frequencies and Todi handles it like a champ. Crisp, clear, and accurate with no hint of sibilance or harshness.
👉🏻 Head stage is very good.
Very wide left to right, just outside the head.
Top to bottom height also very good, especially on tracks that pull the sub bass low and also have good treble presence.
Front to rear depth is just average.
I find the stage head filling, but intimate.
Imaging and layering are very good left to right and top to bottom.
Instrument placement is easy and accurate.
Summary:
I spent a considerable amount of time listening to recorded tracks of individual instruments, listening for tonality and timbre, and I found Todi to be extremely accurate.
This was one area where higher resolving source devices had a slight disadvantage. They had a tendency to thin the tonality of the upper ranges on some tracks. Bit of a nitpick, but it is why I choose a warmer source device with Todi.
Todi is very much an audiophile tuning.
It doesn’t cater specifically to serious bass heads, treble heads, or mid centric aficionados.
It does offer a quality musical presentation throughout all the ranges that will, in my humble opinion, satisfy a wide swath of music enthusiasts.
At $1500 usd it is not an inexpensive offering, but the build quality, technical design, and quality sound presentation, establish it as a worthy contender in this price bracket.