I purchased the Noir about a month ago here at Musictek. The service was excellent and Andrew is a gent and a pleasure to deal with. My impressions are my own and I’m not under any obligation to say anything positive.
I previously owned the OG Pilgrim and thought it was a wonderful iem for the price, with the only really negative being it could sound a little dry. Prior to owning the Noir, I never really saw the appeal, it seems like a substantial increase in price for a minor tuning change, black finish and a more expensive cable.
Anyway, I attended CanJam in London and was curious to try the Noir, amongst other iem’s on my ‘must listen to’ list.
As soon as I tried the Noir, I knew I needed to purchase it to replace my OG set. It’s not worlds apart, but it just sounded so much more natural, with a bit more body and weight giving a sense of overall more refinement, correcting the only real weakness I felt the OG had.
Anyway, since the Noir has arrived, I’ve enjoyed it very much every day. Not only does it look great, but sounds wonderful. Whilst the treble presentation is on the relaxing side, it’s still detailed and resolving with good extension.
It has really good imaging, lovely impactful bass, that never bleeds into the mids -but also manages to sound natural and never dry or analytical.
A/b’ing it to my Mega5est it’s not too disimilar with both going for a warm-neutral sound/presentation, however the Noir is more detailed with better resolution and imaging. So for me it’s easily worth the price increase vs the Mega5est.
Versus the Dunu Mirai which I’ve had for about six months now and isn’t too far above it in price, I’d say they’re comparable with the Mirai being a bit more laid back with the stage being a bit wider and pushed back stage. Whilst the Noir having more forward mids and vocals in particular. The Mirai also has more elevated upper treble, whilst exciting and creating a sense of more air and detail, also sounds a little
artificial. The Noir still has really solid treble extension but comes across more natural in comparison.
They’ve both wonderful iem’s, that achieve a relaxing sound presentation that are so resolving with good technicalities. I can’t really pick between them.
Some people have had issues with the fit, and with the OG I did too, until I used keyboard o-rings to extend how far out the eartips will extend.
However, I’ve since purchased some eletech baroque ear tips, and I’ve found that with the Noir, they fit me great, giving a good seal, without the need for the o-rings. They also suit the Noir aesthetically really well too.
The biggest competitor and issue with the Noir is the OG exists for half the price. Is the Noir better than the OG? For me, yes undoubtedly. Although some people will prefer the OG and I respect that. However is it worth twice the cost of the OG, the simple answer is no, no it’s not.
However, anyone who’s been in the hobby long enough and tried various iem’s across various price ranges know that diminishing returns exist. So whilst it’s not twice as good, for me at least, it is worth the price increase (over the OG).
The best way to fairly assess the Noir is in isolation, and for me it’s absolutely worth its price compared to what I’ve heard around it's price. It also benefits from coming included with a quality cable and looks great in all black with gold
So what I would say for anyone interested in this set, give it a try and don’t be put off by the fact that the OG is half the price, the Noir is a wonderful iem, and one of my favourite sets that I’ve owned
