IMPORTANT: I was close to returning my set due to fit issues and ear pain but Spinfit cp155 completely turned this purchase around for me. If you can't get them to fit your ears, cp155 will probably help thanks to their thinner core. They're designed for long and thick nozzles like these here.(One type of silicone tips for this shell is not enough, MOONDROP!)There seems to be some more bass above the harman on my unit (different units graph differently in the bass region, apparently). The Cp155 seems to slightly reduce that bass but this might be placebo.Caveats out of the way, the Variations is a great set, like no other I've ever heard/had. I learned a little about the goal for this iem to achieve in objective terms and I think I get it. It's meant to emulate a flat speaker response in a good listening room with a touch more bass for extra tactility you naturally miss with headphones. I think they pulled it off.In subjective terms it can be described as a "good all-rounder", depending on what amount of bass you get, I imagine some complaining there's too much of it (not that big a deal, EQing that to taste is very easy). The impression is it has a dual nature manifesting between genres.Relative to most iems it is more sub-bassy and if your track has sub-bass, you'll feel it. The mid-bass tuck separates the lows from the rest so there's less "muddiness" you will get with other iems. Best of both worlds IMO. Initially, on some tracks (big band jazz etc) certain instruments like double bass/bass guitar sounded a little too forward relative to drums but it was ok after a few hours of brain burn in (coming from Olina se mostly). On EDM tracks this immediately sounded great, like a well integrated subwoofer, very immersive. My other sets can't do that even with EQ but Variations's bass can be EQed down if you don't like it.The Mids are flat overall with a slight upward slope. This type of presentation, qualifies the variations as a both fun and analytical (as in "flat", not "extra detailed") set in my book.The top end is the kicker for me. The treble execution here is sublime regardless of what you're listening to, it's just right. There's no shrillness, nothing's ever too hot and it somehow manages to remain detailed or "correct". You can probably get a similar type of overall presentation for half the price and some EQ maybe, but you can't EQ that treble manually in a million years without precise measurements. Probably has something to do with the EST drivers. Quarks/tanya DSP sound similar but there's an extra layer of treble "embellishment" for added note definition. This separates a "refined" signature from a merely "correct" sounding one.I don't really "believe" in technicalities so I'll just say in all categories these are doing great. Everything feels diffused, airy and immersive, the stage is wide enough, but not in a "i hear the clicking further away" kind of way but more "I'm in the room with the instruments" (not on every track of course). The instrument separation is really good. Highest octaves are present so it never feels like there's any details missing but it's never oversharpened. Subjectively, the word "immersive" comes to mind first.Overall I maybe would've liked more eartip selection and a touch less bass (subjective) but then that special subwoofer quality might be gone, so it's more of a feature really since it's never boomy and always well controlled. Again, this can be EQed down but I'm glad I got used to it.Comparing to the Timeless I had at hand, that has more prominent cymbals that feel sharper but on most tracks kind of live independently of the rest of the mix. While very impressive and satisfying, it can get weird and intrusive on busier mixes. The Variations sounds more "correct" on most tracks, even if not as "incisive and detailed" right off the bat. There's less congestion and more immersiveness, too. The Timeless while very competent, feels like it's pulling a trick with a treble peak really that doesn't work on all songs equally well by comparison (good for jazz but not necessarily for asian pop genres in my tests)Overall the best one I've had and I'll be holding onto it until it falls apart. In two words "correct and immersive".

pretty much end game iems for 90% of earphone users. the sound is comparable to the much more expensive shure se846. this shows how far chifi iems have come.

So I got these, pitting them directly against the 7Hz Timeless AE IEM ($230):SOURCE/SETUP:TIDAL Music -> MIDI Out (32 bit @ 768kHz) -> IEM (with or without DAC/amp)DAY 1 (straight from headphone out):Timeless AE: much better sub-bass, more comfortable, but a bit muddy with difficult music, and some harshness in upper treble.Variations: seemed completely lacking in sub-bass, despite what reviews all claimed... and despite a great eartip fit (better than I got with the Timeless in fact). VERY resolving and detailed, although this brought fatigue in the upper ranges/treble.DAY 2 (amped via iFi hip-dac3, $200):Timeless AE: Opened up a bit, but sounded mostly the same. Could not use X-bass boost on the amp without overpowering the sub-bass.Variations: Needed the X-bass boost to make up for the lacking bass... at which point it became more controlled and deeper than the Timeless AE. My conclusion? Variations just needed power and some EQ/boost in the sub-bass. It was obviously capable...Day 7 (amped with Chord Mojo 2 @ $650):Timeless AE: Did not noticeably improve. With the general muddiness of mid-bass under messy song bits, these ultimately were ruled out by this point, even has a backup pair of IEMs.Variations: With a bit of EQ from the Mojo 2, these things came to life. Ultimately this was a close call with the much cheaper iFi Zen DAC 3 (desktop), but the Mojo let me dial back the treble a bit, and also vocalists sounded more "real", with the iFi sounding more like a warm, relaxed hi-fi speaker floating in space. The detail resolution of the Variations just really seemed to respond to the Mojo's analytical presentation.DAY 7 PLOT TWIST (direct from the headphone out on Mac Mini):On a whim, I wanted to really validate my decision to keep the absurdly-priced Mojo 2 by plugging straight back into the headphone out on the Mac Mini...And the deep sub-bass was there!!! Honestly, the soundstage was impressively wide and the sound was pretty decent... had I heard this on day 1, I might have skipped the entire journey of trying to better drive the IEMs through external amplification. Now... the Mojo was still much better sounding than stock, particularly with the dialed-back treble to cut down on treble fatigue.With the stock headphone out, that harshness was back in full force... but the missing bass was fully there. This tells me that the Variation's bass driver in particular needed to break in and soften up before coming to life.CONCLUSION:These are incredibly-resolving IEMs... frequency-tuning can always be adjusted with external EQ (less ideal than a perfect tuning, but that's subjective to each listener), but resolution and control will NOT be fixed this way. In the case of the Variations, once dialed in and broken-in, these rival my B&W CM10 S2 floor-standing speakers with dedicated monster amps. Pretty incredible.Of course, I would have preferred to have fallen in love with a much cheaper pair... RIP $$$.

Su sonido está muy cerca del ideal para mí. Por ponerle un pero, le falta un pelín de aire en los agudos en ciertos momentos.Se disfrutan tanto que a veces te cuesta mucho dejar de escuchar música cuando los tienes puestos.Cable, confort, accesorios... Nada excepcional, pero correctos.Precio demasiado alto. Con unos Truthear Nova se tiene una experiencia parecida, con un coste mucho más contenido.

Je n'avais pas encore franchi ce cap tarifaire, mais après lu quelques éloges sur le Moondrop Variations et surtout se rapprochant de mes gouts musicaux je ne suis en aucun point déçu. Cet iem me donne entièrement satisfaction. Je ne trouve rien a lui reproché. Tout me semble parfaitement étudié et conçu et ça a un cout.Les Plus:Package et accessoires- Package minimal mais complet et de qualité- Le câble pourrait paraitre fragile mais il a l'avantage d'être souple et léger- Juste 1 sorte d'embouts silicone mais au moins bien adaptés- Fit parfait la ou j'avais des doutes avec les review et je pense une bonne isolation !Rendu- La Scène extraordinaire ou chaque instruments a sa place même sur du dense- La définition et micro détails- le grave extraordinaire et les sub, ça descend bas avec des nuances et du détail- Superbe médium, ça chante bien et juste- les timbres et nuances- finesse de l'aigu- Pas sectaire, on écoute tout type de musique- Se drive facilement (Hiby R3 pro Saber en symétrique, meme pas testé sur le R5)Bref je ne lui trouve aucun point négatif, IEM hautement recommandable si vous écoutez comme moi de l'Electro, du Jazz, Rock ou Punk Rock et voir un brin de Classique :-)