Earlier this year, we looked at the Thieaudio Prestige, but the company is back with a revision based on user feedback. Designed for realism, immersion, and accuracy, the Thieaudio Prestige LTD is an absolutely killer update. Read on to find out what makes it special in this edition of Golden Ears.
Specifications
- Current Price: $1,299 (Linsoul)
- Type: In-Ear Monitors
- Drivers: 4EST+ 4BA + 1DD
- Sensitivity: 98dB @1kHz
- Impedance: 22Ω
- Frequency Response: 20Hz-80kHz
- Cable Details: 1.2 ± 5% meter 22AWG 6N OCC Silver-Plated and Graphene Silver-Plated Cable
- Cable Connectors: 2-pin 0.78mm
- Cable Termination: Modular Termination with 2.5mm Balanced, 3.5mm Unbalanced, 4.4mm Balanced Interchangeable Plugs
Thieaudio Prestige LTD - First Impressions and Key Features
The Thieaudio Prestige LTD is the latest flagship tribrid pair of earphones from the company, combining three different types of drivers into each housing. It’s a follow-up to the original Prestige, which debuted earlier this year, and follows a very similar design. The revision here is based entirely on tuning and is a direct response to the feedback offered by the community, helping this model to be the best it can be for its intended purpose.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves and take a closer look and its design. While a “hybrid” pair of earphones uses two types of drivers (usually dynamic drivers [DD] and balanced armatures [BA]), the Prestige LTD’s tribrid moniker indicates that there are three different types of drivers at play in each earpiece. It takes the hybrid design and expands on it with electrostatic (EST) drivers to enhance treble and resolution. All told, there are nine drivers in each side, one 10mm dynamic driver, four balanced armatures, and four electrostatics.
As you would expect from such a premium pair of earphones, these drivers are all hand-chosen for the sonics they’re intended to deliver. The bass is handled by the dynamic driver acting as a subwoofer. Two of the balanced armatures, produced by Sonion cover the low-mids, while the remaining two, from Knowles, cover the upper-mids. The electrostatics, also from Sonion, cover the highs and ultra-highs. These drivers split the frequencies with a 5-way crossover, a small electronic component that sends frequency ranges to particular drivers so they can always focus on what they do best without fear of distortion or pushing beyond their limits.
As I mentioned previously, the intention behind this release is to address user feedback. The original Prestige were intended for live performance stage monitoring and mixing, so they were tuned to be revealing — a strong suit of this kind of tribrid design. But, it was a foregone conclusion that normal audiophiles and enthusiast-gamers would also be using the set. Those purposes are distinctly different, and while it was popular for its resolution, soundstage, and imaging, many listeners found them to be a bit bass light and could sound a bit sharp in the upper treble. I didn’t echo the sentiments on the bass (I used these for music as well as live stage monitoring, so they worked perfectly for me), but could see the critique of the treble coming.
This revision addresses both of those critiques in meaningful ways. Both the dynamic driver and the electrostatics have been modified. The bass now has a shelf at 200Hz for a bigger, yet still tight response. This shelf enhances the sub-bass and boldens the mid-bass, adding rumble and impact that’s even better for music listening and gaming. The treble peaks have also been smoothed out, removing some of the high-end “zing” without impacting its extension. The result is a slightly warmer listening experience that is smoother and less fatiguing but is also very resolving and hides absolutely nothing from your ears.
Returning to the physical properties of the earphones, they continue with the galaxy theme Thieaudio has been embracing in a number of its releases. The shells sparkle with a starscape that’s quite striking, though, unlike the Monarch MKIII, there’s only one style that’s currently available. It looks great, though.
The earphones are fairly large, which is to be expected given how many drivers are in each side. This can definitely impact fit if you have smaller ears, however. I’m on the lower-end of averaged sized at 5’8” with a typical build and was able to find a comfortable fit, but it’s definitely something you’ll want to keep in mind as you consider them. This goes with the territory for most tribrid monitors, though, and isn’t something I consider a knock against the Prestige LTD.
To help with fitment, the company includes a selection of silicone and foam eartips in the box. Using the foam tips, most listeners should be able to find a comfortable fit. If, like me, you prefer silicone, however, there’s only a single pair of small, medium, and large included in the package, which is very sparse for this price point. Thieaudio also includes a nice, zippered travel case akin to those we’ve seen on its past models, which is a nice touch.
Another high point of this release is its modular cable. This cable is graphene, silver-plated, and wound in a tight coil. It’s very soft and is able to be wound and unwound without excess amounts of wire memory and is not microphonic. The best part is that it features modular ends so you can swap between balanced (2.5mm and 4.4mm) and single-ended (3.5mm) terminations to connect to all sorts of source gear. It’s also detachable from the earpieces so you can upgrade it or change it over time if you like.
Overall, we have virtually the same presentation and package that we received with the original Prestige. To be expected since this is a revision, so let’s get into what’s changed with the sound.
Thieaudio Prestige LTD - Listening Impressions
I would like to thank Chris of Bad Guy Good Audio Reviews for his efforts in graphing so many earphones, including those below. Using the tool squig.link, produced by Super* Review, we’re able to compare the exact frequency responses of different earphones side by side to see how they stack up. Our own measurement tools have finally arrived, so we plan to produce our own graphs in the near future as we learn how to take accurate measurements of in-ear monitors.
Graph Courtesy of Bad Guy Good Audio Reviews via Squig.Link
Thieaudio has been successful with its tuning goals. Compared to the original, the Prestige LTD is a fuller, smoother sounding pair of IEMs but one that remains highly technical, resolving, and a good fit for stage monitoring — as well as music and games, which wasn’t as true of the original. Though, I repeat my stance, that I actually enjoyed it quite a bit for these. Even though that’s the case, I think the LTD will be a better fit for a wider range of listeners and puts this pair of earphones in close contention with the venerable Monarch MKIII, which retails for a bit less at around $1,000. We’ll come back to that in a moment.
The bass is bigger here, with more rumble. This pair of earphones is a good example of how a graph only tells a part of the story because it appears that it would offer less in the mid-bass (bass guitars, synths, explosions, grenade launchers, etc). In truth, this section doesn’t sound any more lean but is instead tighter and cleaner sounding with better texture and detail. That’s saying something because the original was also very good with the presentation of its low-end. There’s not an audible reduction comparing the two side-by-side, and the steeper and higher shelf of the LTD adds a sense of impact that the original doesn’t quite achieve.
The mid-range is virtually untouched. The mids are smooth and natural, such that I actually find them less remarkable than the rest of the frequency range. This doesn’t at all mean they’re bad, however. In fact, I think male and female vocals sound fantastic on this set and instruments within this range are packed with detail. It’s simply that they don’t come forward in the way a more vocal-centric set might. The mids are smoothly balanced with the lows and highs and are very well-done overall.
The upper mids and treble have received fairly major changes. The Prestige LTD has lost its zing but still manages to have plenty of air and a fair amount of sparkle. By dropping the response above 10K, the sharp edges that existed with the original have been rounded off. Yet, the ESTs still do a great job of capturing the air and atmosphere of the recordings and game environment, the BAs resonate with those upper harmonics to make instruments, voices, and sound effects sound true to life. Even though the LTD is markedly different in its upper-range, I don’t think it sounds worse or less-resolving, overall.
Rather, there’s a difference in amplitude, which could be make or break if you crave those high-end details to come forward, so cymbals and breaking glass sound hot and centered. Even more than the bass, this would be the range that I would recommend looking most closely at when deciding which version is for you.
Where the Prestige LTD really excels is in soundstage and separation. The technical performance is exceptional here. The stage is wide and deep with a lot of air between each layer of sound. The earphones seem to pull apart what you’re listening to and place each element in its respective part of the soundscape. For live monitoring and mixing, this is an excellent quality and is also very immersive for gaming. It works in conjunction with outstanding detail retrieval to create a listening experience that is highly detailed and engrossing.
Graph Courtesy of Bad Guy Good Audio Reviews via Squig.Link
Given the enhanced bass and smoother treble, comparisons to the Thieaudio Monarch MKIII are inevitable. Retailing for $300 less, there’s a very reasonable question about which of these earphones is the better value. When you get up into this price range, however, it often comes down to tuning preferences with which will be the better fit for any given listener. There are some notable differences, though!
The Monarch MKIII, for example, offers the more powerful bass response. You can tell right away that Thieaudio tuned the Monarch for more engagement and fun versus the Prestige LTD, which we know is intended for live and studio monitoring as well as general listening. The mid-range and high-end, however, go to the Prestige. Not only do vocals sound more natural, the LTD offers a greater sense of air and space to the listening experience, as well as enhanced separation between each sound element. For music, gaming, and monitoring, this lends the LTD a significant edge in what you can hear and perceive.
But, with that in mind, we’re talking gradations. Both of these earphones sound fantastic. For sheer fun, I would take the Monarch MKIII every time. For accuracy and spaciousness, I would choose the Prestige LTD.
Overall Impressions and Final Thoughts
The Thieaudio Prestige LTD is an expensive but fantastic set of earphones. I have to commend Thieaudio for so quickly factoring in user feedback. Many of these changes could be accomplished with a good EQ, so I wouldn’t go out and rebuy this set if you already own the original Prestige, but if you were on the fence, this is certainly the one to buy.
The product described in this article was provided by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.
