Empire Ears Raven VS Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS

IEM Comparison: Expert & Community Scores Side-by-Side

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Empire Ears Raven and Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS use 2DD+5BA+4EST+1BC and 2DD+5BA+4EST+2BC driver setups respectively. Empire Ears Raven costs $3,600 while Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS costs $5,000. Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS is $1,400 more expensive. Empire Ears Raven holds a clear 0.7-point edge in reviewer scores (8.6 vs 8). Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS has significantly better bass with a 1-point edge, Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS has significantly better treble with a 2-point edge, Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS has better dynamics with a 0.5-point edge, Empire Ears Raven has better details with a 0.5-point edge and Empire Ears Raven has better imaging with a 0.5-point edge.

Insights

Metric Empire Ears Raven Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS
Bass 8 9
Mids 8 8
Treble 6 8
Details 9 8.5
Imaging 9 8.5
Dynamics 8 8.5
Tonality 8.2 8.3
Technicalities 8.9 8.5
Take these comparisons with a grain of salt—we don't have enough Empire Ears Raven and Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS reviews saved yet to provide an unbiased result.

Empire Ears Raven Aggregated Review Score

Average Reviewer Scores

Precogvision Head-Fi.org
Jays Audio

Average Reviewer Score:

8.6

Excellent

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS Aggregated Review Score

Average Reviewer Scores

Audionotions
Smirk Audio

Average Reviewer Score:

8

Strongly Favorable

Reviews Comparison

Empire Ears Raven (more reviews)

Empire Ears Raven reviewed by Jays Audio

Jays Audio 9 Reviewer Score
S Tuning
S Tech
YouTube video thumbnail
V/W Shaped. Energetic treble. Great tech. Fun bass and engaging signature. Overpriced?
Youtube Video Summary

Empire Ears Raven delivers the flagship gloss without pretending to be a value king. Expect deep sub-bass rumble, clean driver control, and a warmer mid-bass emphasis that puts extra weight behind kick drums and bass guitars. That tilt makes Raven a better fit for rock, metal, and live band mixes—grooves hit with authority and instruments carry more body, while treble stays extended without getting spicy or fatiguing.

Against strong $1K contenders, the step up is more refinement than revolution: a roughly 10–15% lift in resolution and texture, not a night-and-day transformation. For pure hip-hop subwoofer thrills, sets with stronger sub-bass focus edge it out; Raven trades some of that in-your-face thump for fuller mid-bass punch and an all-rounder presentation that scales well but isn’t about flexing quantity. Stunning set if the budget is open and rock-first bass weight is the priority; otherwise, mid-tier heavy hitters already capture most of the experience.

Jays Audio original ranking

Jays Audio Youtube Channel

Empire Ears Raven reviewed by Precogvision

Precogvision 8 Reviewer Score
A- Tuning
S- Tech
Sounds quite hi-fi and grand sounding, but coherency could use work - bass is distinct from the EST tweeters.

Precogvision original ranking

Precogvision Youtube Channel
Bass: A+ Mids: A+ Treble: B Dynamics: A+ Details: S Imaging: S

Empire Ears Raven reviewed by Head-Fi.org

Head-Fi.org 8.8 * score rescaled + normalized
3 community members have rated the Empire Ears Raven at an average of 4.7/5 on Head-Fi. Overall sentiment: Exceptional.

URL to full Review

Head-Fi.org original ranking

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS (more reviews)

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS reviewed by Smirk Audio

Smirk Audio 8.4 Reviewer Score
A+ Tuning
S- Tech
Excellent bass dynamics and texture. Cold timbre and driver flex. Otherwise excellent technicalities and solid tuning. Cons: Driver flex, cold timbre.

Smirk Audio original ranking

Smirk Audio Head-Fi Profile

Bass: S Mids: A+ Treble: A+ Dynamics: S- Details: S- Imaging: S-

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS reviewed by Audionotions

Audionotions 7.5 Reviewer Score
Very engaging IEM. Bass extends deep and hits hard and fast, mids are clear and lush with very good weight and tactility. Treble is clear without fatigue. It's a pretty warm IEM but has clarity that you don't usually find with this sort of tuning. Instrument separation is pretty standout. Very expensive. Timbre is a bot off and overall is little bit brittle sounding. Very large IEMs and very heavy. And they have driver flex, which is not what you'd expect from something that costs this much. Nonetheless, a very fun IEM if you don't care about how natural it sounds.

Audionotions original ranking

Website (Audionotions)

Empire Ears Raven User Review Score

Average User Scores

Average User Score: n/a

Based on 0 user reviews

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Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS User Review Score

Average User Scores

Average User Score: n/a

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Empire Ears Raven Gaming Score

Gaming Score & Grade

  • The gaming score is prioritizing technical capabilities of the IEM (Separation, Layering, Soundstage) and good value.

Gaming Score

7.1

Gaming Grade

A-

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS Gaming Score

Gaming Score & Grade

  • The gaming score is prioritizing technical capabilities of the IEM (Separation, Layering, Soundstage) and good value.

Gaming Score

6.9

Gaming Grade

B+

Empire Ears Raven Scorings

Average Technical & Tuning Grades

Average Tunign Grade

A+
  • Expect a tasteful, well-judged response that feels both musical and true to the source. Great synergy with a wide range of genres.

Average Technical Grade

S-
  • The presentation is crisp and expansive, handling complex passages with impressive ease. Low-level details remain audible in quiet passages.
Bass A+
Expect a gripping low-end presence that marries clarity with visceral impact. Dynamic swings land with thrilling force.
Mids A+
It offers a luxurious, resolving midrange that captures micro-detail beautifully. Every vocal inflection is captured.
Treble B
Highs sound lively and extended while remaining controlled. Detail retrieval keeps shimmer intact.
Dynamics A+
You get a masterful mix of slam and finesse across every track. Music breathes with realism.
Details S
Resolution reaches the limit of perception, exposing layers you didn't know existed. Clarity remains pristine regardless of complexity.
Imaging S
Reference-class imaging delivers perfectly pinpoint accuracy in 3D space with zero positional drift. Localization is pinpoint-perfect in 3D.
Gaming A-
Good fundamental spatial awareness for most gaming scenarios. Handles basic positioning well but may lack nuance in complex situations. Bad value-to-cost for gaming purpose - not recommended

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS Scorings

Average Technical & Tuning Grades

Average Tunign Grade

A+
  • It delivers a coherent, natural timbre that remains captivating across genres. Acoustic instruments sound lifelike and textured.

Average Technical Grade

S-
  • The presentation is crisp and expansive, handling complex passages with impressive ease. Low-level details remain audible in quiet passages.
Bass S
The bass is breathtaking, pairing thunderous impact with absolute precision. Every rumble is rendered with realism.
Mids A+
The midrange sounds refined and revealing, balancing clarity with emotional weight. Timbre accuracy rivals studio monitors.
Treble A+
The treble performance feels luxurious, marrying air, control, and excitement. You can place every high-frequency element.
Dynamics S-
Dynamic range is superb, blending powerful impact with nuanced control. It captures both whisper and roar effortlessly.
Details S-
The tiniest inflections pop into view as if spotlit within the mix. Low-level details feel magnified yet natural.
Imaging S-
Exceptional imaging with holographic precision that creates a palpable sense of placement. It creates a near-holographic placement.
Gaming B+
Respectable environmental presentation favors atmosphere over precision. Detects obvious directional cues while conveying game world ambiance. Bad value-to-cost for gaming purpose - not recommended

Empire Ears Raven User Reviews

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