Empire Ears Odin Review

Comparisons:

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2019 was the year that brought us the e-stat race. So many companies have jumped on the train to release new hybrid monitors with Sonion’s electrostatic/electet high frequency drivers. We have seen Empire’s own Wraith and Valkyrie, AAW’s Canary, Vision Ears’ Elysium, Shozy’s Pola39 and a couple of others. Most of them have been released as the respective company’s flagship. Most of them at a price over 2000 USD with a few exceptions. The Odin now comes in at 3,299 USD and in that area there certainly are only few options for comparisons.

I will include comparisons to Empire’s Wraith and Legend X, as the former king of the X-line. The Odin will also have to step in the ring against 64 Audio Fourté Noir and A18t as well as JH Audio’s Layla. An IEM that has reigned for almost six years now over Jerry Havery’s CIEMs. Sadly I can’t give you a comparison to Vision Ears’ Elysium. I had it last year for a couple of weeks, thanks to the generosity of Oliver Marino – the creator of VE’s flagship. It was sent back earlier this year though.

I can only compare the Odin to what I have direct access to. I know some people offer comparisons to products they have auditioned at dealers or during shows. To me, that’s not credible as I could never form a solid impression on a product within that time. I need to spend weeks with something to really know its characteristics. Therefore I don’t publish comparisons based on short term listening sessions.

All mentioned prices are correct at the time of writing and in USD for the universal versions of the IEMs. All comparisons were done using the stock cables.

Empire Ears – Wraith (7BA/4e-stat; 3,499$)

The Wraith is Empire’s flagship of the EP series. It uses a total of eleven drivers and is noticeably more sensitive to hiss than the Odin. Wraith picks up faint noise from pretty much every source I have.

Odin and Wraith do share similarities, but differ in some regions noticeably. For instance, the Odin has fuller, more authoritative lows that come with more meat on their bones than the ones found in Wraith. Wraith has a light bass response, that leaves a bit to desire for me. The Odin reaches deeper and puts sub-bass more in front. The Wraith puts his focus more on the mid to upper bass, if you can even say that. The lows are hardly comparable between the two. To me, Odin clearly wins this contest.

Wraith is a more mid-centric monitor, that comes with more clarity in the midrange than the Odin. It separates the instruments also better. Mids sound a bit smoother and more organic on Wraith than on Odin for me. The Odin however sounds more open and wider spread in the mids. Wraith pushes the frequencies from 2kHz more forward with a steeper rise than Odin, who gives a slightly more laid back impression in comparison here.

Odin sounds more dynamic and energetic, more exciting and thrilling than Wraith. You can especially hear that in the treble section. Here Odin extends further and puts frequencies beyond 10kHz more forward than Wraith.

The Wraith gives me better instrumental separation than Odin. While both stretch a similarly wide and deep stage, it’s the Odin that sounds more holographic to me. It gives musicians a bit more air to breathe. Wraith provides higher resolution, which to me is most audible during live concerts when the audience makes noise. Here Wraith captures finer details better than Odin.

Empire Ears Odin

Empire Ears – Legend X (2DD/5BA; 2,299$)

The Legend X has just been surpassed by Odin as the flagship of EE’s X-series. In a way you can think of Odin as a super charged Legend X. But upon further inspection and listening you will notice, that these two have clear distinctive characteristics.

The Odin does not push as much volume in the lows as the Legend X, which has a more L shaped signature compared to the U shaped Odin. The Legend X’s bass is loads more prominent and asks for your attention at a higher rate. The Odin puts its bass more in line with the rest of the frequency spectrum, although it is also a bit more north of neutral.

The Legend X especially boosts the sub to mid-bass regions a bit more than the Odin. Which is more concentrated on the sub-bass. To me, the texture, resolution and air are all achieved better on the Odin than on the Legend X, which sounds smoother in texture to my pair of ears. Mids are more distant on the Legend X than on the Odin due to the more forward low end.

The Odin has a more open sounding midrange, that comes with a bit higher resolution than the Legend X. The Legend puts more warmth into the mids, which might suit some better. It produces richer and sweeter sounding instruments and vocals, and also puts more emotions in singers than Odin.

Both monitors have similar extension into the highs, but with Legend X’s more forward bass, they don’t come out as clearly as on Odin. Odin’s treble is more forward and cleaner, while the Legend X delivers a richer tone in the treble. Odin shines brighter and dryer than Legend X to me.

In terms of technical performance these two perform rather similar. The Odin however always comes out as top dog. It has higher resolution, especially in the lows, creates a slightly wider stage and images just a touch better. Both have equal instrumental separation. The Odin creates a darker pitched background though.

Empire Ears Odin

64 Audio – Fourté Noir (1DD/3BA; 3,799$)

The Fourté Noir is a whole lot different, when you just look at technical specs. It uses a traditional hybrid construction, but in an all-tubeless design. 64 Audio is one of the very few companies, that hasn’t jumped in on the e-stat race. They sticked to their own hat-less tia drivers.

In terms of sound quality alone, these two both perform at incredible levels for In Ears. When comparing them, it is quite audible that there are differences. The Noir has an overall warmer and thicker sound compared to the Odin. Both bring a unique low end experience to the table. While the Odin is more sub-bass focused, the Noir highlights mid and upper bass more. The Odin has a finer texture in its lows, which appears to me has more resolution as well. The Noir seems smoother and a touch more organic, while the Odin is more physical and punchy.

The mids of the Noir are a bit warmer and denser. The Odin sounds a bit more open and airy in its midrange to me. Vocals and instruments do sound slightly more forward on the Noir. Both monitors offer very high levels of imaging, but to me it’s the Noir that produces a darker background. The Noir also contours instruments with more contrast.

Treble is sharper and edgier on the Noir to me, while highs are a touch softer and calmer on the Odin. The Fourté Noir does have a brighter pitched top, which can sound more forward than the one found on the Odin.

Both of them create a big venue as a sound stage, where the Odin goes wider while the Noir has better reach into depth. The Noir also comes out with the upper hand in terms of layering to me. Resolution goes to the Odin which renders at a faintly higher rate.

Final words on the final page. After the jump.