Well, I bought the Creative Auvana. I ran out of comply tips for my UM2 and was looking for something to tide me over until the custom tips arrive for my UM2
My source is a Creative Vision:M. My first impressions were underwhelming. As someone described, it sounds "honky", there's something missing in the mids and treble, so it sounds a tad hollow and recessed. The sound is "not bad", it's better (IMHO) than some of the canal phones I've heard. However, for a pair of 'phones that cost more than S$200.00, I certainly expected something better. Perhaps it's an unfair comparison, but when pitched against the Westone UM2, it is no contest The lushness and sheer musicality of the UM2 sound totally blows away the Auvana
Then I plugged it into an amp. It's a no-name amp from Korea that uses rechargeable Li-Ion batteries. I bought it from Wilson at Jaben, and I suspect that it's probably the amp that was included in the recent UM2 promotion
Wow....what a difference. The soundstage really opened up. It sounds less congested. The bass is tighter and the highs are a tad more extended. It almost sounds...*gasp*...good Not as good as a UM2, and maybe even a UM1. but it certainly is a lot more listenable.
I also have a 2nd generation Xin Supermicro. I would love to try the Auvana's on it, but I ran out of AAA batteries
