I’ve been spending some time EQing the Final Audio A8000 - in part because I think it’s one of the most technically impressive single DD IEMs out there (in addition to the Dunu Luna). My only complaint with the A8000 has been that it’s got some strange sounding treble with a substantial 5.5khz peak going on along with a few other oddities that make it just a bit too bright/sibilant for my taste. I had originally planned on trying to modify it in some way since I don’t typically EQ IEMs (on the go and whatnot). Unfortunately I haven’t found anything that works yet for that - maybe in the future I’ll have something more concrete.
Default Frequency Response:
Note that this uses the GRAS RA0402 coupler which subdues the coupler resonance at 8khz you might see on other graphs - the downside is that in reality it’s somewhere in between.
In any case, for those who use IEMs at their desk and do have the luxury of being able to EQ, I’ve put together a profile for it using EQ APO and PEACE UI.
- 40hz Pk +2 Q=1.41
- 800hz Pk +1 Q=1.41
- 2500hz Pk -4.5 Q=1.41
- 3250hz Pk +2.5 Q=2
- 4500hz Pk +2.5 Q=2
- 5400hz Pk -2.5 Q=2
- 5600hz Pk -6 Q=3
- 6000hz Pk -2.5 Q=2
- 8000hz Pk -3 Q=3
- 8670hz Pk -2.5 Q=4
- 10000hz Pk +2 Q=2
- 11900hz Pk -4 Q=5
- 15000hz Pk +3 Q=2
And here’s the curve we end up with after applying this EQ:
Note again that the dip around 8khz here is just the coupler dampening, and this FR matches the target almost exactly. A little more energy in the lower mids is also welcome since this target is essentially the Thieaudio Monarch’s tuning.