Oriolus

Oriolus is famed for its Traillii JP taking a fundamentally correct sound to spectacular heights. But they don't forget those who live for absolute neutrality and detail either, releasing Mellianus JP to cater to those crowds. Silver suits the look of Mellianus JP. Its brilliance shows up too in its sparkling sound. 10 balanced armatures show up here in a model that's anchored the audiophile reference since 2018. [See Product Desc. For More] Technical performance moves to the fore here, with Mellianus JP strongly focusing on allowing you to hear everything. Its mildly U-shaped curve is perceptibly flat listening softer, with a beautiful sparkle up high, while a 36ohm impedance maintains its intended frequency response into a greater variety of sources. Mellianus JP brings it all together with a premium silver cable. You're not going to need to turn up the volume to hear details buried deep – Twister6 sighed he "wanted to hear Mellianus again, so I can get the sound sig out of my head, but instead I became more addicted to this silver bird". Come have a listen to this dose of trouble then, or browse the other birds from Oriolus here and check out our IEMs here.

Is it an Oriolus first or a Monachaa first – that's the question Oriolus Japan had us asking with their new release of four dynamic drivers. The happy answer is that it's a beautiful blend of both. Twister6 "enjoyed this latest Oriolus bird because of its natural detailed tuning". Headfonia's"experience with the Monachaa was thoroughly enjoyable ... confident that you’ll find it to be a compelling choice". The same spacious soundstage, as you've come to expect from any Oriolus JP, is present. However, the decision to work exclusively with multiple dynamic drivers, omitting balanced-armatures, marks a first for the company. This choice pays off in terms of dynamics, though not in the bass as you might assume. The additional pistonic capability of Monachaa's ability to move air in the treble region results in high-frequency transients zipping and biting. Cymbals crash with intent, and horns exhibit crisp realism. Monachaa may not be hot enough for treble-heads by any stretch of the imagination, but it represents the company's boldest move in high-frequency performance since Mellianus JP. [See Product Desc. For More] The star attraction that has garnered such a remarkable response is a distinctive square dynamic driver that stands apart from anything else in the market. Oriolus JP invested considerable effort in crafting the perfect acoustic chamber and pathway for this square dynamic driver to deliver an expansive and airy soundstage that befits the company's reputation. Oriolus JP dedicated meticulous attention to creating Head-Fi's inaugural quad dynamic driver in-ear monitors. The brilliance of this design lies in the development of a four-way crossover system with shallow and gentle frequency roll-off slopes for each driver. By adhering to first-order crossovers and maintaining 6dB/octave roll-offs consistently, Oriolus JP managed to preserve the phase response across the entire frequency spectrum, ensuring that Monachaa's drivers harmoniously blend their voices to sound as one. Its bass is handled by a 10mm carbon nanotube driver, seamlessly transitioning to a similarly-sized sibling responsible for the lower-mid frequencies. Both of these larger drivers operate within their optimal frequency range, avoiding cone distortion or modal break-up. They then pass the baton to Monachaa's 5mm titanium membrane driver, which strikes a balance between descending in frequency and delivering exceptional upper-midrange detail with precision. The titanium construction of Monachaa's upper-mid driver capitalizes on the material's superior stiffness, lightweight build, and outstanding damping properties to propel air towards the ear. An incorporated side-vent allows Oriolus JP to achieve an exquisite balance between accurate micro-detail retrieval, lush midrange tones, and an expansive soundstage. This sets the stage for Monachaa's titanium driver to seamlessly transition to its square tweeter. Both drivers excel at expelling air towards the ear faster than balanced-armature or electrostatic counterparts. All, while benefiting from the remarkable phase response that a low-order dynamic driver crossover can deliver, ensuring precise and immersive imaging. The great work building Traillii continues to be reflected in Oriolus Japan's continued offerings, each release focused on adding more original R&D to the company's portfolio, and audiophiles' choices. Bask in the unique perspective Monachaa supplies today, tomorrow and forever more. Or, view Oriolus Japan's other releases here, and our other IEMs here.

The comfort zone. Oriolus build Szalayi with a planar-magnetic driver to sit at the epicentre of everyone's listening tastes and budget. This tri-brid enlists a 14mm planar for mids and flanks it with one dynamic driver and balanced armature, meeting Head-Fi's sweet spot for performance. It's typical that Oriolus blended three vastly different transducer topologies so seamlessly. Szalayi's three drivers sing in unison, and its coherency leads to a mid-price pinnacle of performance. For that it made its way onto Headfonia's Recommended Buys list. Headfonics say it's "an impressive IEM for bass heads ... capable of delivering a thunderous bass response with a clean and crisp mid-range". Bass and mids are convincingly portrayed with palpable dynamics and presence, topped off by a sprinkling of treble air that is ever delicate and finessed. Szalayi's authoritative, downward-sloping performance never strays out of our sonic comfort zone. [See Product Desc. For More] What a heavyweight Oriolus have on their hands, the clever utilisation of drivers perfect for rendering their assigned frequencies with excellent realism and resolution. Szalayi's star is undoubtedly its 14mm planar-magnetic mid-range driver. With a diaphragm less than two microns thick, mid-range frequencies are rendered with vanishingly low distortion. Despite its large surface area, the low mass of Oriolus's planar unit means it's always under the control of its magnetic array. Transients are produced instantly and effortlessly, without having to worry about modal break-up.  Indeed, Szalayi's thin vibrating surface needs minimal excursion to move plenty of air, reproducing tons of information, as a straight plane. This grants the simultaneous sense of presence and articulation balanced armature counterparts comparatively struggle to balance. With planar-magnetic drivers on the ascendency in multi-ways, Oriolus weighed in quickly and convincingly to define a new era in IEMs. That's because the sum of Szalayi's strengths lies in the contributions of its supporting cast. A stiff 10mm dynamic driver plumbs the lows, with the excellent excursion of audio's oldest transducer technology – perfect for producing a long, slow bass wave that descends in frequency and rumbles away in Szalayi's sub regions. Up high, a balanced armature takes over as the planar mid driver becomes directional and rolls off. Freed from having to move air beyond its means, this specialised tweeter's low distortion is the reason Oriolus's trademark clean, airy and refined treble can be implemented in the brand's latest star. Certainly, the story of Szalayi is one that produces music as it was recorded, adding few artifacts of its own and being true in its playback. There's always a demand for accuracy, and the sheer competence of Oriolus's latest child is bound to show up played through Questyle Audio's M15i, HiBy Music's R6III and iBasso Audio's Amp8 MKII for DX240. For those wanting to move beyond mere proficiency and instead be held spellbound by their music, the flagships from Oriolus await here. Otherwise, browse the rest of our IEMs here.

The hybrid formula has been repeated over and over, so it's remarkable how Oriolus blazed the trail they did with the Traillii JP. This 12-driver, electrostatic and balanced armature UIEM commands the statement, flagship, segment. Transparency is easy to achieve this day, but Traillii JP delivers a whole other X-factor – enough to make the niche its own. A whole, out-of-head, experience awaits. The air, separation and soundstage belies the physics of an IEM. Traillii JP delivers sound that appears as if it's coming beyond the confines of its shell. [See Product Desc. For More] Perhaps it's apt that Oriolus is inspired by the avian maroon oriole species. Traillii JP's sound is free as a bird, in the most acoustically transparent presentation known in Head-Fi – more so than even fabled electrostatic earspeakers, in which the cup enclosure can still be heard, if ever so subtly. Traillii JP breaks boundaries, and the four electrostatic tweeters have something to do with it. Supported by a 21ohm crossover that will work off anything, excellent SPL is derived from the comparatively insensitive Sonion ESTs. That promises abundant treble quantity, and beyond, quality. The ESTs supply a treble presence that is ever-so-sweet, immersing you within the soundscape. Imaging is as you'd expect, with PW Audio 1960 4W cabling bringing you the cable maker's famed soundstage and image precision. It's a theatre effect unheard in IEMs, and Traillii JP's rumbling sub-bass does nothing to hurt that out-of-head presentation. Subtle impact and rumble is judged in the perfect quantity, and the most intricate bore design ensures the crossover delivers all frequencies to your ears in perfect phase and harmony. Cohesiveness is Traillii JP's strongest suit, and it has to be heard to be believed. Once exposed, you'll never go back, and you'll never tire of it either – Headfonics attested it "really shocked me for a long while, and soon became my favourite IEM". About Audio lauded its gigantic staging and endgame performance. Twister6 were drawn to Traillii JP's "quad-EST highs [that] are very natural and still airy and resolving ... on top of that you get a big holographic soundstage", but over time couldn't help but refer to the performance of this status symbol as a whole, the sum of its 12 drivers bass to treble. Please write to crew@zeppelinandco.com for enquiries on pricing and design in South-East Asia. Zeppelin & Co. is an authorised regional dealer of Oriolus Japan, and recognised for all your support needs. Also browse the other IEMs from Oriolus Japan here, or our other earphones here.