Submitted by Drsagemonkey t3_z8jwkf in headphones
Unique Melody MEST MK2 Review
I've had the MEST Mk2 for about 3 weeks now, It blew me away as far as detail, resolution, stage and all the technicalities. The voices sound great on it too, only thing is the instruments and bass seem to get in the way sometimes on busy tracks, not in a way that would disturb anyone at all, only me perhaps.
I also have the Dusk and I noticed a warmth and dampening of the tuning in the MEST that the Dusk doesn't have. The Dusk is more open and the mids are more forward; the voice is always the star of the show and the instruments and background music never get in the way.
I have A B tested them with a 3.5 jack splitter that allows me to have both connected at the same time, playing the same song. It is clear that the MEST is better, and the resolution is like 8k while the Dusk is a standard 1080p. I will say though, that I concluded that the Dusk performs way above its price point. I came to the resolution that If there were an IEM that performed at the same technical level, and had the same everything as the MEST, only with the Dusk's tuning; I'd probably never look at another IEM again.
For some reason, it seems to me that the MEST has a sort of "veil" to it... I know many people throw that dirty word around a lot but I couldn't help feeling this, not sure if it might be the sound isolation or what, but it feels like there are metaphorical and sonic, acoustic panels that make it sound more closed in and darker. It was the thing that immediately saddened me when I first heard it. After continuously listening to them now, I can't really take them out of my ears, the passive noise isolation it has are better than my Sony Wf -1000 Xm3 I have and I don't want to live without that in an IEM of this caliber anymore. It really adds to their value for me. Even so, from what I've heard, I think the Diva would likely be my endgame that I would prefer over the MEST. It seems they are very mid forward with around the same level of detail but tuned closer to the Dusk. If only there were an easy way to get them used for a good price like I got the MEST. To be clear, A B testing them further, the Dusk sounds like it has a veil in comparison to the MEST, but that is in sheer detail retrieval... once you listen to the MEST long enough it makes sense that the Dusk would sound broken or simply like the sound is obscure in comparison. So I don't mean to say that the MEST is veiled in this manner, but just in the tuning, and especially the mids.
Note: I think that for the general listener, pretty much 99% of people, the MEST truly is BEST with no ands, ifs, or buts. They are impressive and immersive. Classical music sounds incredible on them because one feels as if one were in the piano room or in the orchestra, you can even hear the piano pedal being pressed down sometimes. This is the most thing I will miss if I let them go, the Dusk leaks to much sound in from the environment and won't have that immersive quality, I worry the Diva will be like this as well. Hopefully I'm wrong. Lastly, the build of the Dusk is much more to my liking, the aesthetic of the plastic that feels like glass, the brilliant silver shell, the little touch of blue inside, the transparency, the weight of them… The MEST feel and look like plastic, they seem to weigh less and the cable and general aesthetic seems to be so boyish. The Dusk is much classier and sophisticated in that regard.
If anyone wants to chime in I'd enjoy that, especially if you've heard these IEM's and extra special if you've heard the Diva and the MEST Mk2 and can provide feedback.
MiddleEmphasis6759 t1_iyctso1 wrote
I've only ever heard the MEST in the sound demos that Dan's Audio Reviews publishes on his YouTube channel, as kilobuck IEMs are pretty firmly out of the realm of obtainability for me, but just from those sound demos I can concur that the MEST's perceived resolution and imaging capabilities are addictive. Really puts you "in the room" with the performer in a way I haven't heard from anything else. Regarding the perceived veil in the mids that you experience with the MEST in A/B testing against the Dusk, the MEST is known to have a lack of energy in the ear gain region of the frequency response (between like 2-5kHz) which affects the 'bite' and forwardness of vocals and certain instruments. It's an area of the frequency response the Dusk puts emphasis on, which is likely why you perceive the Dusk as sounding more open and forward.
No idea where you stand on EQ, but if you're open to it, 2 or 3 filters in a parametric EQ could get you a very similar tuning in the mids of the MEST as there is in the Dusk. This would change the overall tonal balance of the MEST from something of a unique U-shape to more of a bright-ish Harman target, though, and a change in the MEST's tonal balance could also possibly affect its unique imaging capabilities, but I have no way of confirming that, as I don't own the MEST.
Parameters for the EQ would be:
Filter 1: Peak Filter, 3kHz, 3.5dB, Q Factor of 1
Filter 2: Peak Filter, 3.8kHz, 2.5dB, Q Factor of 3
Filter 3: Peak Filter, 6kHz, -1dB, Q Factor of 1.41
There are a couple other small adjustments you could make to the MEST's lower mids and bass to get those regions closer to the Dusk's more lean tuning, but I don't think those areas are likely problematic in the MEST. I've heard the Diva is an excellent IEM from reviewers I trust, so I don't think you'd go wrong in buying it, but if you're down to try it out, give EQ a shot before going out and spending another kilobuck on the Diva.