Since I got the Oracle I mostly listened to it on my Sony Xperia 1 II (both 3,5mm SE and balanced with iBasso DC01), JDS Labs ATOM stacked with Topping D50s on my desktop. ThieAudio Oracle is a truly remarkable set and it is here to make its place with its TOTL sound and competive price.
Build & Presentation
Definitely a step up from old ThieAudio presentation, build is quite nice: ergonomic resin shells and nozzles with lip. I like it better than L9. The cable is the same as the Thor Mjölnir's. Silver plated, light and pliable. No microphonics. There's also a the usual plastic carrrying case (black and transparent), a set of sylicone asdas set of, I assume, Tripowin foam tips and a SpinFit CP100 (M size). There is a mesh-covered vent on the top side of the shell. There are 5 drivers in the shell - one 10mm dynamic driver for the bass, 2 BA for the mids and 2 EST for the highs. The nozzle is metal and mesh-covered with a lip at the end, which prevents the tips from falling off.
Bass
A step up from FH3, but not yet the and slam of IER-Z1R. Less slam, but more detail than THOR. It realistically portrays the amount of bass coming from any drums, beat machines, bass guitars, pianos and more. While listening to the tracks in my collection I came to realize that if a something didn't sound bassy, it was because it was recorded that way. The drum in Making Of Cyborg pulled up one of the biggest smiles on my face. (Kenji Kawai - Making of Cyborg, 2Pac - I Ain't Mad At Cha, Big Boi - Kill Jill, Doobie Brothers - Long Train Runnin')
Mids
I like Oracle's mids better than Z1R's: less euphoric, less sibilant, more body. Please note, I'm not saying the Z1R's mids are scramy or sibilant, they lack some presence though. (Hugh Laurie ft. Gabby Moreno - Kiss of Fire, Grateful Dead - Ripple, Eagles - Hotel California (MTV Unplugged), Foreigner - Cold As Ice, Doobie Brothers - Long Train Runnin')
Highs
Quite happy with the details and presents. Similar experience, but still a step down from IER-Z1R, better than L9 and HD800 in terms of realism. Very close to the OG MEST. (Queen - love of my life (Live at Rock in Rio Festival), Sting - It's Probably Me, Daft Punk - Giorgio by Moroder, Doobie Brothers - Long Train Runnin', Mariya Takeuchi - Plastic Love (Extended Club Mix))
Imaging/Soundstage/3D holograpic-ness
Very good separation, layering and positioning. Pars with IER-Z1R in FPS games (Queen - Love Of My Life (Live at Rock in Rio Festival), Eagles - Hotel California (MTV Unplugged), Mariya Takeuchi - Plastic Love (Extended Club Mix)). The Oracle replays sounds in an extremely coherent manner. Sound sources are easily identified. The sirens in Plastic Love sound as, if I'm listening to the song in the middle of Hibiya- or Shinjuku Dori, when there's a firetruck passing by. Fantastic experience! The audiences in the MTV hall and the stadium in Rio sound very coherent and I can easily tell which one is bigger.
Movies/Gaming/Other Audio Experience
With its coherency, details and Hi-Res capabilities (excuse my French here) provided an extremely satisfying experience with any movies or anime I played. To test Oracle's gaming capabilities I played a few matches in Overwatch only to confirm my speculations - having a lot of fun from the explosions rumbling my eardrums, while still having a precise audio information for where the rest of my team or the enemies were.
Value
Money well spent. In my opinion, it's only high spending for small gains from this point onwards. I'd only justify a ciem IER-Z1R or MEST as a worthy upgrade. Compared to my second most favorite set (L3 ciem) the Oracle is less comfortable, but my ears are as uiem unfriendly as ears may go. Sound-wise the L3 feels a bit sterile and honky, and that's why I wouldn't mind the soarness that comes after a couple of hours of listening with the Oracle. Compared to the OG MEST the Oracle stands its ground and does pretty well too. Of course the latter is better, but not by much, which is rather surprising given the big gap in their prices.
Conclusion
If you ask any music lover or audiophile, they would tell you their dream set should be both superbly tuned and technical. Usually such sets come in the 4-digit price range. However, with the progress ThieAudio is making, I started believing that the 'good sounds comes with a high price' trend is getting outdated and inaccurate.
With a pinch of warmth due to the potent dynamic driver sound is extrely fun and engaging, yet still very detailed. This translates to very pleasant listening sessions, watching movies or gaming. At such an affordable price! That is why holeheartedly recommend ThieAudio Oracle to any music lover and/or audiophile, who is browsing the market for their next purchase.
