Moritz Dragon Review
Intro
Hello, this review and feature covers Moritz Audio‘s latest iem, the Moritz Dragon ($629). The Dragon is a single dynamic driver earphone which sits nestled right smack-dab in the middle of the mid-fi price range at $629. I was beyond thrilled to have the opportunity to feature the Dragon at Mobileaudiophile.com. All thanks go to Moritz Audio for providing Audio Geeks with the Dragon so to be circulated amongst all of the reviewers on the Audio Geeks US Tour. So, before I begin, I’d like to personally thank both entities for the opportunity to spend quality time with the Moritz Dragon.
Moritz
The truth is, I’ve never had the chance to hear any Moritz iems prior to the Dragon which will arrive at my home today at some point. However, Moritz is a relatively new brand with only a few offerings in their product line. That said, there are some very substantial iems. Like, the Moritz Audio Paradise ($729). It is composed of two dynamic drivers, four balanced armature drivers (Sonion & Knowles), as well as two bone-conduction drivers. That is a wild tri-brid setup! So, as you can see, Moritz is not scared to bring to market unique driver implementations. They also have the Moritz Audio Gloria ($1,099) which is their flagship iem. The Gloria employs seven drivers in total. That’s one dynamic driver, four balanced armature drivers, and two EST (electro-static) drivers. Again, not afraid to shake things up and produce premium level kilo-buck offerings either. Obviously, the Moritz Dragon is Moritz’ most budget friendly offering being a single dynamic driver earphone. However, you’d be amazed what one lone dynamic driver can produce. Folks, if I’m being honest, I don’t know a whole lot about this brand. Again, they are still very new in the grand scheme of things. I am wholly impressed with what they’ve been able to accomplish in such a short period of time and I’m wholly interested to hear those accomplishments with my own two ears. I don’t have much more on Moritz, but I am eager to learn more when the Dragon arrives.
See you in 10-12
Okay, the Dragon just showed up and I’ve literally spent about the last two hours with them. Without question I am reviewing this set because it is a very solid single DD. It makes no sense to burn them in as the Dragon has made its way through some folks already on this tour. So, it’s all about listening for me. No waiting. At any rate, I am very impressed by this set and I’m happy to talk about it. So, with that, I am very much ready to get into this. I suppose I’ll see you in about 10-12 days after some exhaustive critical listening. With that, the Moritz Audio Dragon everyone…
*Note: I also need to add that I did not receive the full packaging of the Moritz Dragon for this review tour set. I only received the earphones themselves, the cable, modular adapters, and the carrying case. I will speak on what I have. Basically, this will be a “Sound Review”.
Non-Affiliated Purchasing Links:
Disclaimer:
I received the Moritz Dragon from Audio Geeks United States Tour and from Moritz Audio as a loaned tour sample. In exchange I will conduct a full review and feature at Mobileaudiophile.com. I have not received any payment or any other form of compensation for this review. Again, this set is a tour unit. Moritz Audio has not requested to pre-read any review and doesn’t have any control over “what” or “when” anything gets published to mobileaudiophile.com. All thoughts within this review are my own, though please take note that I will always have my own biases. This is impossible to get around. I try to be as objective as my subjective self can be, but this is an opinion piece folks. Thank you to Audio Geek/Moritz Audio, and thanks for reading.
Dragon Pros
-Gorgeous iem with a beautifully designed faceplate area
-Very comfortable, great ergonomics
-Quality modular cable
-Very fun, very dynamic, and warm sound, immersive
-Mostly organic sound across the mix. Nice timbre & tonality
-Heavy, deep yet also tight bass region
-Midrange is rich, smooth, and very engaging
-Non-fatiguing yet nicely revealing treble, smooth
-Great soundstage layout
-Instrument separation, Imaging and layering for a single DD
-Nice detail retrieval for a smoother, warmer sounding set
-Simply a very well-tuned iem
Dragon Cons
-Bass presence may be a bit too much for some hobbyists
-Those analytical-heads may not enjoy this musicality-first iem
-Treble enthusiasts likely will want a more brilliant and emphasized sound
-Desires quite a bit of juice for full potential
-Moments of upper-mid shout (rare but it’s there)
-Cable can get a bit springy when trying to roll up, perhaps a hair tangly
Gear used for testing
–iBasso DX240 with Amp8 MK2
Build / Design / Internals / Fit
Build Quality
The Moritz Dragon is a nicely built iem. Nothing which will blow your mind, but nice. It’s an all-resin set and so it’s as nice of a build as a resin iem can be. To be 100% honest, there isn’t much of a difference in actual “structural integrity” between $50 all-resin iems and $500 all-resin iems. Perhaps some resin is of slightly better quality, but resin is resin. However, what sets the pricier iems apart is the cleanliness of the final result. No burs, no glue, no rough edges, polished and smooth. More care is put into the process to create something worthy of the moniker “premium”. Most of the time. The final “market ready” build is usually something which honestly feels more “premium” when in hand. Now, of course there are budget sets which exude this same feeling, at times. I’ve said those words myself in past budget iem reviews. However, the Dragon most certainly doesn’t feel cheap. There’s probably a ceiling on how “premium” a resin set can feel, but the Dragon definitely reached that ceiling. They feel nice, very ergonomic, fairly small too as the Dragon is not a large set of earphones. To add to that, they’re light as well. And I wouldn’t equate “light” to “cheap” either because I do feel some density, or hardness to the build, but they’re very lite in the ear. Nozzles are roughly around 6mm in width and aren’t the deepest fit in the world. About average length. There’s only one pressure regulating back vent as well with a dope little silver ring which encircles it and the nozzles appear to be gold plated, or at least gold colored. All-in-all, Moritz did a nice job on the build.
Design
Now this is the area which first grabbed my attention because the Dragon is one of the better looking iems out there. No doubt about it. It is truly a gorgeous iem. You have a maroon-ish transparent housing which enables me to see the internal driver, the wiring too etc. A very nice touch because the faceplate area is stunning with its deep purples, golds, orange, and slight browns swirling around creating an artistic flare which is striking to the eye. The deep purple vaguely shows itself as the predominant orange and gold contrast colors create an almost marbled effect and topped off with the slightest bit of fine glitter to give the look a hint of pizzaz. Just beautiful! A+ from me Moritz! Add to that the gold-colored nozzles and the brown cable and you have yourself one heck of an aesthetically pleasing design. I really did enjoy taking pictures of this set folks. Truly a wonderful job Moritz.
Internals
Like I said, the Moritz Dragon is a single dynamic driver earphone. Friends, for a single DD set which costs $629 you have to imagine that the driver used must be pretty special. In the case of the Dragon, Moritz states that the dynamic driver is a customized beryllium-plated ultra-thin diaphragm driver. I cannot find the actual size of the driver, but I also don’t really think it matters too much (I do believe it’s a 10mm). We’ve seen so many beryllium-plated iems over the years. So many in fact that seeing a $25 iem with beryllium plating almost means nothing. So, to see that Moritz used the material to plate their driver has me wondering if the Dragon’s driver is actually beryllium-plating done right. I honestly don’t really have a whole lot more for you guys. Moritz doesn’t provide a ton of info, and I cannot find anything which provides me more. So, there you go. I can tell you this, the Dragon’s driver can take a lot of pushing and never once sounded distorted or sloppy.
Fit /Comfort
I already alluded to my thoughts about the Dragon’s fit and comfort, yet I didn’t really elaborate very much. Friends, I have zero idea how well this set will fit your ears, but I cannot imagine the Dragon won’t fit 95% of you just as good, if not better, than they fit me. Again, the Dragon is not a large set of earphones. In fact, they’re pretty small, compact, and not one of those odd “fit-issue” iems. The Shells are all rounded corners, smooth, and just feel great. Remember that the Dragon is also very lite. Furthermore, the provided cable is also very lite which never feels as though something is yanking on my ear. Just a very comfortable set. Not a chance at any wearing fatigue. I should also add that the passive sound isolation is actually quite good too.
Carrying Case
Like I said earlier, I wasn’t given the entire package. In fact, I was only given the carrying case, the cable, and the earphones. I usually have a whole section specific for the accessories, but I don’t have that here and so right here is good enough. At any rate, the carrying case is a type of pelican style case, likely watertight, made of very hard clear plastic. It has a pull down with a clasp which clamps the lid down very well. I gotta say, I love these pelican cases, and the Dragons case is no different. Really a nice addition. Large enough for the Dragon earphones, the cable, and some tips too. If you are good, you may be able to squeeze in a dongle dac too. I suppose for $630 you should get a quality carrying case, however that is definitely not true across the board. Not bad at all.
Cable
The cable provided is a very serviceable cable which I’m certain was added into the accessory pool for a very utilitarian purpose. You see, the Dragon is a light earphone, not heavy at all. The last thing some folks want is a big, heavy and fat cable weighing down the earphones. Slowly nudging them out of their perfect seal over time. So, I do think that the cable provided is thin with purposeful intent.
Tell me more…
Now, to be exact, the Dragon’s cable is a 2-pin cable with pure silver wire. I have zero idea about how many cores or any other material present within the cable. Anyways, it’s a very nice-looking brown colored, thinner braided cable which terminates in a modular setup. Moritz provides a 3.5 single ended jack, a 2.5 balanced jack, and a 4.4 balanced jack. Certainly, a nicely put together modular system with “push-on” and “screw-on” terminations which results in a very secure connection. I’m assuming that all of the fittings (Y-split, termination housing, cable slider) are built using aluminum which is colored a dark gray while the terminations are gold plated. Listen folks, I know, I know, you want a fatty-fat-fat cable. I get it, I do too. I want that plump beast of a cable too. However, when using this pure silver cable, no stress on your ears, so light that you don’t even think about it, you start to realize how nice it actually is. In truth, I found that this pure silver cable is really a perfect compliment to the tonality and tonal color of the Dragon. Now, I’m not going to lie, I had a few much more expensive cables which seemed to bring out the best in this set. That said, for all critical listening I used this very nice and thin cable the whole time and I truly think it’s a nice match. You all know I wouldn’t have this set in my possession and “not” swap about 20 cables in the process. I know that not everyone will dig the cable provided, but it’s a nice addition.
Drivability / Pairings
Output & Sensitivity
The Moritz Dragon is a fairly sensitive iem folks. It is rated with an impedance of right around 19 ohms and a sensitivity of about 103 db’s. Can I just say, the Dragon sounds really nice even off of sensitive sources. I really mean that. I used all sorts of low power dongle dacs, smartphones, my iPad, even the Fiio UTWS5 with the Dragon and honestly really enjoyed the dynamics of this set quite well. Despite that last statement, without a doubt in my mind you should have a source ready to go which has some power to it. Definitely the Dragon scales very well with power. Enough for me to declare that power brings out the best in this single DD. Having said that, I don’t think many of you are purchasing this $630 set without already having a nice source at your disposal. Unless you are a newbie with a lot of money to spare. What it comes down to is that the Dragon really does shine well with some serious juice. My dongle dacs were great on high gain and sounded wonderful but it wasn’t until I used my 1-watt daps that I have on high gain that the Dragon truly opened up. Perfect for a desktop setup. It seemed that I could keep feeding the Dragon juice, and it would simply keep… drinking. So, don’t worry if all you have is a decent Dongle Dac. The Dragon will still sound great. It’s very sensitive and so it’ll play nice with most any source power. Yet when you can, feed this beryllium-plated single DD some power.
Source tonality
This section is really only added to try to help you decide what the best source tonality “may” work best for you with the Moritz Dragon. The Dragon leans warm in its tonal coloration with some upper mid emphasis as well. So, there’s a good dynamic balance. Yes, it leans warm, but also, the Dragon does have energy up top to think about. Basically, just because this is a warmer, richer sounding iem doesn’t mean that a colder, brighter or more sterile source is the answer. In fact, I found that brighter sources will influence those upper mids a hair too much for me. I actually like a warm, warm/neutral to neutral source device. Which, if you aren’t paying attention, is most sources anymore. Most dac/amps, daps, dongle dacs are in that range. For me personally, I found that my warm/neutral Shanling M6 Ultra was clearly my favorite way to hear the Dragon. I do not feel that the warmth was embellished at all. In truth, the bass is tight enough on this set for that warmth to not really pose an issue. Now, if you are allergic to warmth (I know plenty who are) then you may want to check out a neutral device. For instance, a close second to the M6 Ultra for me was the Fiio Q15 which is a dynamic neutral. A very clean sound and one of the best source devices under $500, in my opinion. At any rate, both devices really did well with this set. Furthermore, I could go on and on speaking of my sources that worked well with the Dragon for me. I used 17 different sources at one point or another and most sounded great where the warmth nor the brightness was too overtly exaggerated.
What do you need?
Just get your favorite source device, your best device, and give the Dragon some juice and then go from there. I’m not you and so I cannot advise what is best for your taste. For me, I definitely enjoy something tilting warm from neutral, but you may love a brighter sound. The only mainstay is that you should try to procure a source device which has decent output power. I really think the Dragon sits within the sweet spot tonally to work well with most source device tonalities.
Sound Impressions
*Note: before I begin this next section I want to preface it with a few things. First off, I did not burn-in the Dragon due to the fact that it is a tour unit and has already gone to many folks around the US. So, I have no idea whether burn-in helps. I would imagine that it would being that the Dragon has a beryllium-plated driver, but I’m not sure. I listen mainly with flac or better files which are stored on my devices. Also, I used eartips which are very similar to KBear 07 tips. After much tip-rolling I ended on these. They are the white silicone tips with the black stem provided to me by Letshuoer. Beyond that, I use UAPP (USB Audio Player Pro) as my Android music app for the majority of my listening. However, at times I do use Hiby Music Player for some dongle dacs, as well as Poweramp for any Bluetooth listening.
Sweet Spot
Folks, I gotta say, the Moritz Dragon kind of took me by surprise. At least to a marginal degree. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting the fullness and depth to the sound field that it has. Not that I haven’t heard a single DD perform well, because I certainly have. However, the Dragon has this… warm vibrance. Or a certain type of vivid & smoothly refined tidiness across the spectrum which coincides with a definite richness providing the Dragon a very nice lean-lush note density. Not thick and bogged down, or too wide in perceived note mass. In the same breath, the Dragon never comes across thin, or feeble in the tonal body of its notes. Maybe it’s the quality of the driver, the exactness of the acoustic cavity, the perfect length and width of the nozzles, the right damping, etc. etc. Whatever the secret sauce is, I can tell you that when the sound from those nozzles got absorbed into my auditory cortex during the course of my time with the Dragon, it hit a certain sweet spot for me. Maybe it was the perfect timing for me to hear this specific transducer portray my music. I don’t know. I can tell you that I enjoyed that time very much.
They did a fine job
In all honesty, you would think (at times) that the Dragon is a multi-driver iem outfitted with more than one driver taking on each area of the mix…at the least. Also, the Dragon has an uncanny ability to be both dynamic, bold, and forceful, yet fine-tuned and precise. The Dragon has very nice presence, bouncy, and spirited too, while at the same time the Dragon has a very stalwart and robust sound. I’m not saying that the Dragon is going to change your life, but I’m definitely saying that Moritz did a fine job.
What’s it sound like?
To me the Dragon is rhythmic through and through. Musical to its core. The Dragon can pose as a wonderfully tuneful and symphonic sounding set too. Mellifluent and harmonious at every turn. So, the Dragon is predominantly warm. However, “warm” doesn’t nearly describe the sound. The bass is emphasized quite a bit, yet you have an almost equal pinna rise with the bass shelf. I say that because as warm as the bass is, the upper midrange also has ample energy. However, the sound never gets outright bright or too offensive and I don’t really hear brighter inflections to notes. For the most part anyways. Instead, the sound simply comes across energetic and uplifted yet in a slightly warm setting. For a warmer iem the Dragon has plenty of contrast tonally with very nice macro-dynamics. The Dragon has enough vibrancy up top juxtaposed with the depth and robustness of the bass to really give the listener a dynamic presentation. Essentially, this is not a boring set folks. No sir. I’d call the Dragon a V-shaped iem. Or more like “slightly V-shaped”. I don’t feel that the midrange is overly recessed or pushed into the background and the bass and treble both have a healthy lift. I’d also say that the Dragon carries a nice mix of smooth and crisp. I do hear some very nice texture to the sound as the Dragon definitely has a pleasing tactile surface texture to each note. Of course, this entirely depends on the track, but chiefly the Dragon is a really pleasant and fun sounding iem.
Timbre
I guess it must be those dynamics that I was talking about, or the energetic but also full-bodied character, the inoffensive vibrance paired with organic leaning timbre which makes the Dragon a real viable mid-fi single DD. The Dragon’s timbre is mostly natural to me. I’d even say it’s almost earthy (if that means anything to you). Basically, the Dragon has something akin to an authentic sound. To me “natural” is somewhat warm, but with a non-intense vibrance and intonations of the sound. Also, a natural sound has depth, roundness, or dimension. It has a clean attack, and a natural decay. However, these are only some of the descriptors designated for a natural sound in my mind. They’re just what the world sounds like to my ears. Be it music, voices, nature etc. The Dragon carries at least some (if not all) of those descriptors within its well composed and well poised timbre. Again, it’s smooth to the ear, nothing jagged, no rough edges, nothing grainy, nothing spiky, and nothing even close to artificial to my ears. There’s no annoying sibilance, very subtle shout, no sloppy splashiness. Each note generally has very nice contours with its smooth form factor. Obviously, not to the degree of sets which are born and bred to render clean note outlines, but great for a smoothly executed iem with that fun V-shaped signature.
Timbre Cont…
So much goes into timbre and what moniker we give that timbre. It’s definitely not a perfect science and not an across the board understanding either. Oh, and by the way, it’s different for everyone. “Natural” to me may not be “natural” to you. That all said, the Dragon sits nestled right in that sweet spot for timbre accuracy. Is it perfect? No, of course not. “Perfect” is subjective, it’s in the ears of the beholder. I can tell you this; natural or not… it’s pretty damn nice.
The technical stuff?
Now, the technical side of the Dragon’s auditory expression may suffer in favor of that good timbre, to an extent. Without question the Dragon isn’t tuned to be a “Master of Technicalities”. Attributes like detail retrieval are not the greatest I’ve ever heard as that smoothness, coupled with its richer note body simply cannot compare to more analytical or clinically tuned sets. As one should expect. A somewhat bass-focused iem with a more velvet presence usually doesn’t garner intricate fine-lines quite as well as those iems which are literally tuned to illuminate the subtleties, especially in complicated or bass heavy tracks. However, I’m more than fine with that. How awful would it be to strip away all that makes the Dragon magical… all for a few more details? Also, the Dragon is more than sufficient at bringing the minutiae to the surface. Let’s put it this way, I’ve never felt like I was missing something (details) with the Moritz Dragon in my ears. Micro-dynamics are generally nice and transients’ decay in a natural manner. I wouldn’t say they’re overly quick, rather they’re more organic to the ear and certainly not slow or laggy. Instrument separation is mostly dependent on the track as well. For the most part the Dragon does a good job of creating gaps between elements of the sound field. There’s some air to the sound. Yes, it’s musicality-first, and yes, the Dragon has a warm presence across the mix. However, I still hear plenty of openness to the sound coinciding with a very clean presentation as a whole. Let’s check out each 3rd of the mix, shall we…
Bass Region
Bass is the first thing I always check, without fail. I do this because the bass affects the frequency (in my opinion) in a greater way than any area of the mix. Friends, the low-end on the Moritz Dragon can flat-out GET-IT! A hard hitting, physical style bass which is very composed, very clean for the emphasis, and a very low-droning bass with solid note definition and density. I feel that there’s a nice dynamic balance across the mix, but there’s certainly a slight focus towards the low-end. I’d actually say that the bass serves as the foundation of the Dragon’s tuning. What it all boils down to is that… this bass is fun. No doubt you have the rigidity, density, and overall cleanliness of a good beryllium-plated driver at work on the Dragon in harmony with the fact that Moritz can flat-out and hands-down tune a set of earphones. I love the bass emphasis on this set. Not basshead, not too much, not overwhelming the mix. Yet also not even close to weak. Moritz crafted a set that is both bodaciously fun and also pretty mature and tidy. The Dragon’s bass is the type that will catch you off guard if you aren’t expecting it. I say that because the bass doesn’t push its focus across the spectrum, there isn’t that shroud of veil, it doesn’t muddy the mix, it doesn’t create a sludge filled midrange, and it doesn’t ever come across sloppy. However, once you come across a track which is recorded with any low-end emphasis, I promise you… you’ll feel it. The bass is the focus, but it’s so well kempt that it only shows up in a robust manner when it’s called upon to do so. If that makes any sense to you.
Sub-Bass
The lowest of lows on the Moritz Dragon most certainly carries the brunt of the emphasis and low-end muscle. Brothers and sisters, the Dragon can reach some extremely guttural and downright chasmal levels of low-end drone when a track presents it. Think of any really deep track, just dirty, grungy, and deep. I have a ton of these types of tracks and a few I use all the time for review purposes (even if they aren’t my favorite tracks). A track like “Tell Me What’s on Your Mind” by The Decemberists. This track begins with a very gravelly and reverberant distorted bass and the Dragon literally eats it up. Again, not to basshead levels, but very close. Close enough to appease bass-bois yet not so close that it makes the rest of the mix murky. What’s best is that the sound of the sub-level bass on this track stays clean. The note edge doesn’t get lost, blurred, or muddled. It stays razor sharp with an immense level of haptic feedback. Let’s put it this way… you’d think this set had a bone-conduction driver. It’s very physical. However, in the same exact breath I could also say that the sub-levels on the Dragon are actually quite clean and able to take on faster low-level passages of music. Certainly, there are more sprightly sub-bass replays from other sets within the Audioverse, but those sets aren’t nearly as fun. You’ll somewhat feel every good bass guitar and kick drum recording and the sub-bass comes across with solid note definition for the amount of emphasis as well very nice note density. Very authoritative.
Mid-Bass
The mid-bass is less lifted and definitely plays second fiddle to the sub-levels as far as actual low-end prominence is concerned, but that doesn’t mean that the Dragon doesn’t have a very full-bodied mid-bass. I quite enjoy what Moritz did here as they left the mid-bass very clean and less bulbous. What this does is help with defining this area a little bit better. In no way is it a muddy affair as I hear very clean note outlines. Nothing fuzzy, nothing pillowy, and I don’t hear anything which resembles a one-noted playback. Well, perhaps on some more chaotic and congested tracks you won’t be able to get away from that, but for the most part the Dragon presents a fairly clean separation from other areas of the low-end. No doubt in any bass emphasized iem there can be some indistinct note definition. I don’t want to oversell here. However, considering the weight and effective slam that the Dragon puts out… It’s clean folks. Furthermore, the mid-bass has very nice timbre coupled with a more textured playback as well. Listening to “Billie Jean” by Weezer, the successive and repetitive kick drums which begin this song hit fast, dense, and hard followed by a solid hard “pap” from the snare drum. Or “2040” by Lil Baby and Lil Durk. The bass drop creates a very clean-lined yet swollen sounding boom. Very satisfying. Then I play “Higher Ground” by The Red-Hot Chilli Peppers and Flea’s slap bass ultra quick bassline is full, pointed, exact and very rhythmically bullish. It’s just nice.
Downsides to the Bass Region
Of course, the issue in this region will come from those who detest any sort of bass focus. That’s definitely a problem for those folks. Anytime the bass steals focus or masks the mix, even to the slightest extent, it’ll be a problem. No doubt the Dragon will do this from time to time. You can’t really get around it. All of that bassy sound is pushed out of one tiny nozzle, and if that deep, dark, and raucous bass is emphasized at all… then you may hear some masking. Granted, I feel that the Dragon has an uncanny ability to thwart this masking, but it happens. Many folks will want something more balanced, better defined, and less intense. However, I don’t want this review to get away from me. Yes, the bass is big and is definitely the foundation of the Dragon, but it isn’t some basshead style tuning. The Dragon has some real character. It’s quality. Like I said, the upper-mids through the treble are also well lifted and prominent which does seem to balance things out a bit. So, the problem is not a very huge one with the Dragon. Especially for those who enjoy a dynamic and fun listen. To be perfectly honest, the Dragon holds a nice dynamic equilibrium across the frequency which helps areas like the bass to stay honest when the treble is basically just as prominent. Folks, I love the bass on this set. Most certainly it colors the mix and most certainly it is lifted, but it is done in a very refined way.
Midrange
The mids on the Moritz Dragon have a very smooth and velvet character to them. Only subtly recessed in the lower parts of the midrange against the rest of the mix, yet with solid presence. You have more energy and sprightliness as you move up the frequency to the upper-midrange and the timbre is very close to organic throughout. You will hear some bass bleed as the low-end shelf really doesn’t flatten out until around 500hz. So, there is certainly some coloration happening causing note weight to sound somewhat full, lean-lush, and milky. The Dragon has a moist sound in this region which is wonderful for vocalists. Speaking of vocalists, they are rendered perfectly dead-center while the Dragon imbues an almost holographic display. Great for a single DD. I perceive the transient attack through decay as close to natural. They’re not so fast that harmonics sound clipped, and not so slow that the sound comes across blunged in a mishmash of warmth, or veiled in shrouded murkiness. Actually, the Dragon has a clear sound with nice resolution for a warmer set. It has good detail retrieval for the tuning too, especially closer to the upper mids. Additionally, the Dragon actually has some nice air to the sound which helps the midrange to not feel jumbled together, but rather fairly cleanly separated. Once again, the timbre is more organic as I don’t hear anything artificial to my ears. Just a very pleasant and rhythmic sound full of emotionally charged musicality. It’s a very fluid sound, low sibilance, nothing metallic, nothing outright shouty, no graininess, and not even hinting at sounding analytical or clinical.
Lower-Midrange
The low-mids are certainly a bit richer in note body than the upper regions caused by some well-tuned bass spill-over into the midrange. You’ll notice a subtle pervasive warmth which only adds to the tuning rather than hurt it. Unless of course you are one who needs ultra clean and clear lower-mids which require much less bass influence. I realize that not everyone enjoys a lusher sound here. Still, there are subtle moments of crispness at the crest of some notes and a soft layer of warmth infused vibrance which helps male vocalists to come across somewhat sculpted in the sound field. They aren’t so smoothed-over that the definition is blurry, let’s just put it that way. I’d definitely say that the low-mids are the least resolute part of the frequency, but that doesn’t make them bad either, per se. It’s all about what you enjoy. For me, males and instruments in this region have a nice convex note rendering with some real solid body to them. Not the most detailed, separated, or precise, but they’re very measured and fluent. Very bold as well. Like Sam Barber in the track “Indigo”. His voice is well captured, and for a moderately authoritative voice he comes across very composed while the Dragon prompts all of the emotion into my ears. Or Kygo’s track “Beautiful” sung by Sandro Cavazza. His voice is crisper, more knife-edged, less silky but very silvery and the Dragon seems to take all of those brief one-word summaries and simply make them even more palatable and melodic. Instruments follow the same course. Very tuneful and keeping a very nice organic sounding timbre.
Upper-Midrange
Now, the upper-mids on the Dragon are much more impelled by the steady rise in the pinna gain to come across more energetic, airier, and simply more vibrant. Obviously, the upper-mids are presented more forward than the low-mids. As with most any V-shaped iem. The question isn’t whether the upper-mids will be more perky, or bouncy. The question is… to what extent. I feel that the upper-mids take that energy right to the brink of shout, yet with very good control they stop short, which comes across very poised to my ears. Of course, I could envision some people possibly not enjoying the more vivacious upper-mids region, but those folks would also be pretty darn sensitive to it too. It’s true that “potentially” the Dragon may exhibit some very slight glare from time-to-time. However, those instances are very few and far in between in my opinion. I can tell you this, it almost never bothered my listening session and more often than not gave me the vivaciousness and spice to bring upon a dynamic and enthralling experience. No doubt the upper-mid region also shows off nice detail retrieval, a sense of openness and better separation with a nicely feathered-in transition from the mids to the low-treble. I’m just very impressed by the tuning. Instrumentation has all the tight snap for percussion, the edginess and melodic timbre for strings, woodwind instruments generally sound very nice, piano is both tuneful & euphonic. Granted, these are some very broad and overarching descriptions that hardly tell the full tale, but in my most honest estimation… they check out.
Females
I find that female vocalists in particular excel with this tuning. They have the zestiness for a softer and sweeter voice to come across more etched against the backdrop of a track. Females simply have good presence. They tend to have substance to them. They aren’t dry, or papery, and they don’t come across as thin, or artificially lifted. Once again timbre is naturally peppier, and less cloaked in warmth. To add to that, females also have a slight layer of moistness to them along with better resolution too. Great for a singer like Lady Gaga in “Always Remember Us This Way”. Or Mazzy Starr‘s track “Fade Into You”. The body to each note is substantial enough to breath some palpable life into her vocals. Lake Street Dive sings “Twenty-Five” and her vocals cut through so nicely. Her voice is resounding even in an unenergetic track like this, and jutts out toward the listener. Very clean, very clear. I could sit here and list tracks from my “Female Vocalist” playlist all day long and more often than not I’ll draw similar conclusions. While the Dragon doesn’t specialize in this area, or the midrange in general; I can’t sit here and say that I’m not impressed.
Downsides to the Midrange
The issue that first comes to mind in the midrange would be the slight harshness which the upper-mids can exhibit at times. Like I said, I don’t honestly feel that I’ve been very bothered by it, but I know so many people sensitive to this area of the mix. Listen folks, the Dragon isn’t perfect. Without question it has some quarks which will come across as slight issues to some people. However, this is the case with most sets. Name the set and name the price, I’ll be able to find an issue that “someone” will have. By-and-large the Dragon really does a nice job throughout the midrange for a V-shaped iem. Not just for vocalists either. I know I always spend way more time on vocals in my reviews, but I enjoy instrumentation just as much. I just find it easier to relate to the listener through vocals. At any rate, I haven’t heard any one issue that is so persistent that I feel they are hard “cons” for me. Every set will display some weird issue on different recordings. Still, the midrange on the Dragon has such nice control and such a musical quality to it that it’s hard to declare that “this” is bad, or “that” is bad. I could definitely state that detail retrieval isn’t the Dragon’s greatest strength. Or I could say that the lower-mids lack some real bite to notes. Or that there is the slightest bit of sibilance in the upper-mids. I could say alot of things. Despite those “things”, I cannot help but enjoy my library through this set.
Treble Region
The treble region on the Dragon is one of balance. To keep the Dragon from sounding veiled, or too warm, Moritz made sure to add just enough brilliance to the region to bring needed levity to the frequency. Enough lift to add some sparkle, some sprinkling of resplendence to an otherwise bass heavy sound. If you ask me, they did a nice job of creating a balance, of sorts. Now, I wouldn’t refer to the treble emphasis on the Moritz Dragon as bright. In fact, I’d probably label the treble region safe. Although, “safe” for whatever reason almost has a negative connotation to it in audio circles. In my opinion, this “safe” tuning is exactly what the Dragon needed. Any more brilliance and you’ll begin to change what makes the Dragon a special iem. We all know that nothing is for everyone and of course not everyone wants a safely tuned treble region. For instance, I can tell you assuredly that the Dragon won’t appease treble-heads, or even moderate treble lovers. However, to keep that wonderful musicality intact you cannot really add a ton more energy up top. Having said all of that, the treble region is wonderful. I enjoy it. I enjoy the smooth demeanor, the precision to notes, the highly controlled sound. To add to all of that, the treble is definitely non-fatiguing to my ears, so I guess “safe” checks out. However, it’s not so safe that the Dragon sounds rolled-off or dark. There’s still some well-placed shimmer, as well as enough air within the treble to add some luster at times too. Like I said, there’s a definite balance. Perhaps the low-end has a slight bit more oomph and focus, but the frequency is nicely measured.
Technical Treble?
The treble on the Moritz Dragon will provide your listening experience with some bite to treble notes along with some slightly smoothed-over crunch. I hear some suitable detail retrieval in this area too as well, respective to the tuning of course. Most treble notes come across fairly well defined, decent resolution too. However, don’t expect some detail monster which will resolve every last nuance and gradation. Not that the Dragon can’t illuminate the subtle details, but it simply isn’t going to match some multi-driver sets tuned in a manner to bring those subtleties to the surface. Still, for a fun, warmer, and more musical single DD, I hear very nice detail retrieval and nice resolution. Also, the Dragon has plenty of air and space between instruments. It’s not just some menagerie of mashed together treble tizz. The Dragon doesn’t come across subdued, indistinct, suppressed or softened either. It has some edge to it, some treble punch, some roundness of notes as well. However, in the grand scheme of things the Dragon doesn’t exactly put its treble display on a pedestal. In my opinion, the treble much more resembles a good supporting actor. A good and trusty part to a nice whole. It isn’t that it’s going to blow your mind with its technical benefits. I’d say it’s good for what it is. As simple as I can say it; the Dragon is all about timbre, rhythmic fluidity, with a more liquid presence. More like… rounded and smooth corners rather than hard, sharp, and tight right angles. If that makes no sense, then I’m sorry.
Extension
Lastly, I’d say that the Moritz Dragon has decent extension into the highest of highs. By “extension” I don’t mean loudness, or amplitude. So often people equate a lift in the upper treble as “good”. Please hear me, this is not always the case. Actually, more often than not a larger lift past 10k leaves the sound more artificial than anything else. Unless the right implementation of the right drivers are employed by the right people doing the right tuning. That said, the Dragon has a very natural upper treble, in that, I don’t hear any faux-timbre, forced resolution, or spurious and phony prominence up top. It’s a delicate area. So often we hear splashy treble. So much so that splashy becomes the way we associate stuff like the secondary harmonics of cymbals strikes & hi-hats. Or the fundamental upper register frequency of the sax, flute, violin, and the list goes on. The Dragon’s upper treble is lifted enough to promote a nice layer of air and levity across the mix, and it does this in keeping with the overall tuning. I certainly tend to the realistic or the authentic. Now, is the Moritz Dragon’s upper treble perfectly authentic? My answer would be “almost”. Which is pretty darn good.
Downsides to the Treble Region
The downsides are almost all going to be subjective preferential issues that some hobbyists may have. I say that because nothing about the treble is necessarily “bad” at all. It fits the tuning and does so well. However, the audiophile standard of what a good treble is supposed to sound like would indicate that the Dragon doesn’t have enough bite, or enough edge, and it doesn’t have enough brilliance. For some folks. I much rather enjoy a treble that fits the overall sound in a cohesive and natural manner. Definitely I enjoy some sets which employ those amazing EST drivers which chisel out every glass-lined note outline with perfect control. However, believe it or not, that wouldn’t fit the tuning of this set. Again, the Dragon is rhythmic, cadenced and it flows harmonically like a river. A good single DD doing what a good single DD does when that good single DD is tuned to a particular target. Still, the Dragon could cast a bit more light on the subtle details and notes could be a hair tighter I suppose. Maybe. I will tell you this; Everytime I sit down to listen to this set I am missing nothing, at all. I like it the way that it is.
Technicalities
Soundstage
The soundstage on the Moritz Dragon is actually pretty nice. Good spacing, nice width, solid height and even some front to back depth as well. The stage feels open to my ears, which sort-of caught me by surprise being that the tuning is more rich and warm-musical. Most of the time those words will not find themselves in the same sentences. I would say that the stage is a touch more intimate, in front of the listener, but also very full and wide in the imaginary sound field. The Dragon has a big sound, nice macro-dynamics, great presence, warm/energetic, and it just gives off this feeling of openness. To a degree. I wouldn’t label the soundstage as cavernous, or stadium-like. But I also don’t hear any real stage compression or congestion. In fact, the stage is actually very well laid-out with a very nice layering ability. Sound is not one dimensional at all. This is probably one of my favorite aspects about this set besides the fun factor timbre, and the musicality. I love a stage which forces my brain to see the dimension of each element of that stage. Really a nice job here.
Separation / Imaging
Instrument separation is pretty solid with a couple obvious caveats. Caveats which you really cannot get around being a single DD tuned in this way. Concerning the Dragon, most of the time you’ll hear nice air to the sound, yet in a slightly warmer setting. Transients aren’t slow or laggy, note weight is lean-lush and not straight lush. The stage is fairly wide, tall, and has depth. Notes have good clean density, clean outlines, and nothing blatantly fuzzy or out of focus. These attributes tend to promote a cleaner separation between instruments in my mind. However, the caveats. Those being; in bass heavy or bass dominant music there will be a slight bit of masking over some of the technical stuff. Also, in really complicated tracks you’ll also obviously hear some mushing together of sounds. Imaging walks in perfect harmony with separation. I feel that imaging is almost always great. Vocals are dead center (if they’re recorded that way) and each instrument sounds as though they have good placement. I’ll say it like this; I never hear anything which comes across as “odd” to me. Nothing feels out of place, and I don’t get that “circling inside of my head” style of imaging. Both separation and imaging are nice with some suspected caveats. That’s it.
Detail Retrieval
I’ve spoken pretty heavily on detail retrieval already. Like I said a couple times, the Moritz Dragon is not going to come across like some dry, analytical, clinical, or razor-sharp set. Thankfully! Thankfully, the good people at Moritz know what they’re doing. Anyways, detail retrieval is solid for all the same reasons that separation and imaging are solid. On the flipside, detail retrieval suffers for the same reasons and caveats which they suffer with too. Few and far in between are the moments in which the Dragon blends sounds, masks sounds, or sounds out of focus. The great majority of the time the Dragon is well able to present the small stuff very well. Again, I’m not missing much with this set. Now, is the Moritz Dragon a detail-beast? No, it isn’t. Would I want it to be? No, I wouldn’t.
Comparison
Shanling MG600 ($599)
I decided to compare the Dragon with one of my favorite single DD iems which hovers around the Dragon’s price point, the Shanling MG600 (MG600 Review). I would’ve chosen a few others, but I don’t have those on hand with me, so you get what I got. Although, it’s actually a really fitting comparison. It may not help you at all, but it’s a comparison, nonetheless. What a wonderfully fun and energetic set! Also, what a wonderfully beautiful set! My word, it’s gorgeous! Anyways, I digress, the MG600 carries a 10 mm aluminum-magnesium dynamic driver which sits in one of the more amazing shells. No doubt the MG600 is rarely spoken of and certainly has flown under the radar since its conception. It’s a shame because it is a very solid set. Let’s take a look at some differences.
Differences
For starters, the MG600 is a much smaller iem than the Dragon, it’s shaped differently and made out of completely different materials. The MG600 is honed out of stabilized maple wood with a semi open back design. The Dragon on the other hand is all-resin, a pinch lighter and probably fits better in the ear for most people. As far as design goes, the MG600 is simply one of the best-looking earphones ever made at any price, hands-down! End of discussion! Well, the Dragon does have a totally gorgeous design itself and not everyone wants a set as flashy, or which “pops” as much as the MG600. The MG600 has the better unboxing, better cable too. Both sets will appeal to a wide range of hobbyists. The MG600’s MSRP is a hair less than the Dragon at $599 while the Dragon sits just under $630. Also, the MG600 routinely sells for cheaper than that if you know where to look.
Sound Differences
The Moritz Dragon certainly has a slightly warmer sound altogether, richer, and moister. The MG600 is the more energetic set, warm/neutral, and greater vibrance. The low-end of the Dragon runs deeper, more extended into the sub-bass, heavier rumble, more impact. While the MG600 has a much snappier bass, still deep and impactful but more reserved in amplitude and authority. The MG600 has better bass definition by a small degree. Looking at the mids, the Dragon is richer, lusher, more musically inclined, and much more rhythmic and fluid than the MG600. The MG600 has a slightly leaner, drier, more detail rich, and brighter midrange. Also, the MG600 has a much better chance at coming across shouty. The treble region of the MG600 has more brilliance, sparkle, shimmer, detail retrieval is better, more bite, more extended. The Dragon has better note density in the treble, less offensive to the ear too. All technical aspects seem to go to the MG600 in my opinion. Like I said all throughout this review, the Dragon isn’t deficient in any technical category. But also like I said, some sets (MG600) are tuned to illuminate the subtle details better. That more illuminated sound also comes with its own set of issues. It all comes down to what you want folks. Your preferences.
Final thoughts on this comparison
I truly enjoy both iems for entirely different purposes. Without question these two sets represent a “preference battle” when paired against each other. They are simply so different. However, both show different tunings which are both wonderful for what they are. Neither is necessarily better, but one will be “better” for you. This was one of the most fun comparisons for me. I got a chance to bust out one of my favorite single DD’s with the MG600 which allowed me to go back and forth with another one of my favorite single DD’s, the Dragon.
*Note: The graph below is the only graph I could find on the Shanling MG600. I could not find an actual comparison graph. The MG600 doesn’t sound like it graphs.
Is it worth the asking price?
This is a tough question to answer for me because the worth of the Moritz Dragon and what it brings to the table will be different for everyone. However, anyone reading this is either a fan of audio who simply likes to read about audio stuff, or you have the money and are reading to know if the Dragon is a waste of that money. For the latter, I would say unquestionably the Dragon is worth the $630 that Moritz is offering it at. You are not wasting your money. Think of the other single DD’s in its price point. There really isn’t a huge pool of single DD’s to choose from. Now, I have to be perfectly honest that there certainly are some fantastic iems at much lesser prices which also feature one dynamic driver. Still, the Dragon is wonderfully tuned and one that I rank very high in my favorites for this price. I couldn’t dream of telling you that it isn’t worth the cost. Is it expensive? Um… yeah! $630 is a lot of cash to hand over for any set of earphones. That said, in the realm of high quality, high standards, and high caliber in ear monitors, the Dragon should certainly be a consideration if the tuning seems like it would mesh with your preferences.
The Why…
Cause the Moritz Dragon has a very nice unboxing (sorry I couldn’t cover this aspect of the Dragon) with a very nice and functional cable, a great pelican case too. The Dragon is built without flaws as far as structural integrity is concerned. It’s also absolutely striking! Without a doubt it’s one of the prettiest iems in its price point. Yet it’s the musical sound which makes this set worth the cost. The Dragon offers a very smooth sound which is very articulate in its presentation. Each and every area of the mix comes across with wonderful cadence, wonderful dynamism, well detailed, and nicely balanced dynamically. Ooh, and that bass! The Dragon has deep, palpable, nuanced, and bullish bass which stays tight and clean. The mids present vocals beautifully; lean-lush, with some awesome organic timbre while rarely ever coming across shouty. The treble has just enough presence in the mix, never offensive, nice sparkle, and is simply well emphasized according to the tuning. Everything just comes together so we’ll friends. The stage has that awesome layering of the sound field, great imaging ability along with very clean and natural sounding transients. However, that timbre is so nice folks. Instruments and voices really do come across naturally to my ears. It’s been a joy to spend time with this set friends. Yes, the dragon is worth the asking price!
Conclusion
To conclude my full review and feature of the Moritz Dragon, I have to say a huge thank you to Moritz Audio for giving me the opportunity to listen and speak on the Dragon. I truly hate to send this set off to the next person in line for review. So, thank you very much. Of course, many thanks go out to Audio Geek for being the vehicle by which I’m able to hear this set. I greatly appreciate both entities. I also have to thank you, the reader. Thank you so very much for clicking the link and spending time here. Thank you! It’s you who keeps mobileaudiophile.com in the Google search results. I’m all about thanks right now and I mean it from the bottom of my heart.
Other Perspectives
Now that you’ve spent your time reading my lengthy review, I implore you to check out other thoughts from other reviewers. This is of huge importance, especially considering the price tag. Make sure to read, listen to, or watch other opinions. I’m only one-man folks and I am not infallible, nor am I the end-all-be-all of reviews. There are so many talented reviewers who have valid and great impressions. So please check out other thoughts. With that, I think I’m ready to end my review of the Moritz Dragon. Please take good care, stay as safe as possible and always… God Bless!
