Aune Jasper Review (1) – Brutally Revealing
Even by the incredibly loose standards of Chifi, the marketing hype for Aune’s single DD Jasper is ridiculous enough to make Stephen Miller blush (“multi-gradation diaphragm” “ultra-linear symmetric magnet”). Aesthetics and build, however, are commensurate with the $299 pricetag, with high-quality resins and supple and a noise-free, stiff cable; small, sleek headshells have a reassuring heft and (at least for me) provide for extremely comfortable fit, although isolation is surprisingly subpar and lots of street noise intrudes. (Note in this connection that Jurgen, who loaned these to me, could not get a suitable fit and, accordingly, his sonic impressions are much different than mine).
The Aune Jasper can be driven with just a mobile but improve markedly with more power, with more midrange presence and overall sparkle. I did much of my listening with my modest Meizu Master HiFi portable DAC/Amp, although they scaled well and sounded beefier and bassier with the SMSL SH-9 headphone amp (review to follow).
The Aune Jasper present a generally balanced signature, albeit with slightly elevated midbass region. Tonality tends to neutral/uncolored, with perhaps a little brightness in the highs; note texture is relatively lean and, in contrast to something like the Shozy Form 1.4 the Aune Jasper is somewhat relaxed-sounding, without a lot of added treble energy. Soundstage is average in width and depth but has good height, and stereo separation is particularly noteworthy. Performers are accurately placed.
Bass is the superstar of the show here—it’s not thunderous or impactful but shows adequate depth and absolutely stellar speed, attack and detail—as on the very best planar speakers every low note sounds chiseled and meticulously reproduced. (Again, my impressions here are completely opposite from JK’s, who as a result of his struggles with fit found the bass to range from anemic to thumpy depending on tip choice). Mids aren’t notably full-bodied—female vox in particular can sound a little recessed or thin, but are presented cleanly; I simply could not hear the elevated upper mids to which JK refers. Treble is the X-factor here—it’s well-extended and detailed (though not so much so as to sound clinical), with a lot of snap and sparkle, but (as noted below) can sound harsh or sublime depending upon the source.
The Aune Jasper is as source- and material-sensitive an IEM as I’ve heard—feed it well-recorded high-rez files from a good DAP and they’ll sound superb; feed it badly-recorded MP3 files and they’ll sound overly revealing and even strident, like a cheap BA. Tips are also critical—my usual large foams tended to blunt the blur the high end, while wide-bore silicones seemed to work well. Something like the UE900 or Moondrop KPE is smoother and more rounded on top and better suited for unamped usage and/or lower-quality files. However, in terms of technicalities—imaging, coherence, timbral accuracy–the Aune Jasper is on another level than the aforesaid and trumps recent favorites like the Shozy Rouge or Form 1.4—the Jasper has less coloration and more overall refinement. It simply sounds like the more expensive phone. The comparably-priced JVC HA-FDX1 match the Jasper in terms of coherence and tonal accuracy, but for me at least had less PRAT.
There’s a surplus of excellent phones at the $150- $200 mark which are easier to fit, drive and pair, while even >$100 models like the KBear Diamond gives you a reasonable facsimile of this tuning at a much lower price. If you’re up to the challenges and their quirky shapes works for your ear canals, however, the Aune is a step beyond and justifies the price tag.
Subject to the above qualifications, the Aune Jasper is highly recommended.
SPECIFICATIONS
Drivers: 10mm Dynamic Driver unit with MGD (Multi-Gradation Diaphragm)
Impedance: 32 Ω
Sensitivity: 102 dB/mW
Frequency Range: 5 – 40,000 Hz
Cable/Connector: MMCX
Tested at: $300
Company Page: Aune
Purchase Link: HifiGo
DISCLAIMER
The Aune Jasper was kindly provided by HifiGo for our reviews. Thank you very much. Shipped from Canada by the previous reviewer.
Our generic standard disclaimer.
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We see that LJ – was first gonna refer to him as ‘Johnson’ but thought it inadvisable – has seen fit to nudge us with his political sensibilities again, as per the reference to one Stephen Miller. Wouldn’t, say, “…make Bernays blush” have been more elegant for those who come here half-expecting a sort of refuge from the sociopolitical furor, in the (wait for it) heady realms of high fidelity?
I suppose i’d better go “just askin” now..
Anyhoo, thankyou for what I’d call a preliminary inspection of the Aune Jasper..i have a hunch don’t ask me what that it’s the kind of set which will turn out to be a total keeper down the track…
Perhaps i might mention that my own experience of things Aune ran into vexatious territory recently, when i tried to ask the “official Aune dealers in Europe” – i think they might be Dutch – about the problem i have trying to find a ‘synergistic’ IEM pairing with my Aune B1 amp. They appeared to not even know what high output impedance and consequently overdriven sensitive IEMs meant!
*don’t ask me why
*don’t ask me why