Advice wanted on purchasing a new pair of IEMs

Well the S12 is as good as £500 IEMs from not very long ago.

However they do go right up to well over £3k. I've never heard anything that expensive though.

Of course there is jewellery too - gold plated & diamond encrusted sort of thing, but excluding that.

Usually the more expensive stuff sounds better, (there are some charlatans about so you do have to be careful) but your money buys you less and less - the law of diminishing returns sets in pretty hard on all audio equipment, and IEMs are no exception. There is often a sweet spot where you can get really good sound for reasonable money and then each step up starts to cost more and more.

The great thing about the ChiFi IEM market is they are really applying exceptional engineering skills and moving that sweet spot lower and lower. I don't think there is any doubt they are leading the world at the moment.

Arguably something like the S12 is right at that sweet spot now.
 
Updated review:

OK, now I've got them in the right way around, they're much more comfortable. :)

I think they sound really good, although I've seen online some IEMs sell for £1k. Insane! Think they were Sony 1ERs. Do they really sound that good??

My only criticism is that my old IEMs had a little control monitor on the cable so I could play/pause/adjust volume etc. These don't have one.

Otherwise, a great buy.
Of course, not all that glitters is gold. there are some IEMs worth going over 1k, and some that are not. Unique Melody MEST is incredible if you want to have fun. FiR Kr5 is absolutely fantastic universal IEM that is entirely natural. But you'll need to invest in DAC/AMP to get the most of it. Some people say it's not worth it, some say it is.

Shuoer S12 and Dunu Vulkan are an example of excellent Chi-Fi IEMs. Listening to them makes me think, do I really want the expensive stuff? Then I listen to the Kr5, and I'm like "yes, I do" 😅
 
For me IEMs are mostly used for on-the-go listening, walking or commuting.

I think they are too easily lost, stolen or dropped - so I am really nervous about spending too much money on a set. I would rather spend it on headphones.

I might consider going up to around the 500-700 mark, but even that makes me really nervous. If I lost my S12s I would be upset but not suicidal. With a £2k set I don't think I could ever take them out of the house, I would be too paranoid.
 
Yes we are only human and anyone can leave behind something in a shop or locker. Have never lost an IEM personally, mind. The most common reaction to the Shure SE846 is "are those hearing aids" ha. Completely made up, a thief might prefer to take true wireless earphones over an expensive wired IEM. And everyone now are walking around with smartphones

TL ; DR: buy what makes you happy at the price that you can afford and yes Chinese brands like Tin Hifi, Moondrop, Blon, Shuoer etc etc are pushing the price / performance ratio in IEM's 😎
 

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