THIEAUDIO Showcases Flagship Valhalla IEMs with 38-Driver System

[AleksandarK]

During CES 2025, THIEAUDIO showed off its most ambitious creation yet: the Valhalla in-ear monitors. This flagship model, priced at $1999, represents an engineering marvel in personal audio technology, combining significant driver configuration with meticulous handcrafting. The Valhalla's most striking feature is its remarkable 38-driver architecture, with 19 balanced armature drivers positioned in each earpiece. It incorporates premium components from renowned manufacturers Knowles and Sonion, enabling the IEMs to reproduce sound with exceptional precision across the entire frequency spectrum. At the heart of Valhalla's innovative design lies the proprietary Precision Bass System (PBS), which helps with low-frequency reproduction in IEMs. By housing multiple bass drivers within a specially engineered resonance chamber, the PBS delivers subwoofer-quality bass response reaching down to 5 Hz while minimizing listener fatigue.

The production process of each Valhalla unit is equally complex. A single engineer dedicates an entire day to handcrafting each set, carefully measuring and matching drivers before assembly. The implementation of a sophisticated 4-way passive crossover network, combined with advanced acoustic tubing, helps seamless frequency transitions and optimal tonal balance throughout the audio spectrum. Complementing the Valhalla's acoustic prowess is the EliteNoir cable, which features silver-plated LCOFC wires that maximize signal integrity and durability. This premium cable enhances the IEMs' already impressive soundstage and imaging capabilities. Preorders are now open, and production times are estimated at 2-3 weeks. The design is equally interesting, and you can see it in the pictures below.



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[TheLostSwede]

The most useless implementation that nobody asked for it.
No self respecting musician would ever use earplugs to listen to quality music. They should have use this tech in headsets, not crappy useless earbuds, which are not even wireless....

Except all of them use IEMs when they perform...
Not these though, as these aren't custom moulded to fit their ears.

 

[Firedrops]

The most useless implementation that nobody asked for it.
No self respecting musician would ever use earplugs to listen to quality music. They should have use this tech in headsets, not crappy useless earbuds, which are not even wireless....

This might be one of the most ill-conceived and baseless comments I've encountered on this site.

 

[Airisom]

Not sure if trolling or serious, but I guess I'll bite. IEMs give people the option of having high quality audio on the go. No way in hell I'm wearing susvaras or something out in public. IEMs are technically superior to a lot of headphones because of the ability to use different driver types to maximize the delivery of each segment of the FR curve. DD and Planars do bass really well, BAs, Planars do mids very well, BAs, Planar, and especilly electrostats do treble really well.

You are able to dedicate a driver or multiple drivers to a particular frequency range so that your single dynamic or planar driver isn't distorting trying to vibrate at sub-bass frequencies to give you that rumble AND accurately deliver the treble without distortion. Moving the same driver at 40Hz and at 10kHz at the same without distorting is a very difficult feat. I've experienced this with every headphone I've used, and it's a non issue with multi-driver IEMs. Soundstage is comparable believe it or not, so many more options and configurations to choose from discovering new methods of hearing your music becomes a hobby in itself. Because the units are so tiny, the membranes move very little. The less they move, the less distortion they have, so a lot of these IEMs are inherently clear. Granted, some are better than others, but I'm getting sound out of a cheap $60 pair of IEMs that sound better than some kilo-buck headphones. And I can wear them all the time. And they're easy to drive. And if I scratch them or lose them it isn't a big deal because they're cheap. I don't have to worry about headphone head (lol), they're comfortable (depends), and because of their size, they are less prone to being damaged. Clamping force is a non-issue, and I have the freedom of choosing my favorite ear tips that I can wear all day long with no discomfort.

Each driver type has its pros and cons. DDs are good with moving a lot of air, but transient response can be worse than other driver types, so it's usually the preferred driver to use for the lows. BAs don't move a lot of air, but they are tiny, have really good transient response, and you can use multiple ones together to produce really good sound out of a particular frequency range. Because there are so many different types of BAs to choose from, you can really get creative and create an IEM with a very purposeful FR curve. Usually with headphones, you try to tame the shortcomings of the driver with the enclosure itself and fancy materials. You can effectively tune out resonance with IEMs. Can't really do that with headphones.

Planars are the all-rounders of the IEM world giving you a good balance of air and speed, but some implementations have something called planar timbre which is a harmonic produced in the upper mids that makes things sound a bit higher pitched than it should be. Primarily affects the large single planar iems, and is resolved when using either the 6mm planars or the BA style microplanar drivers. See? Choices.

Electrostats are the fastest transducer type and also the most expensive. They only work well for the treble and require a transformer to work, so that takes up extra space in the enclosure. But they are currently the most accurate way to produce the treble frequencies in IEMs, and you can use multiple units together. The most I've seen is 8x sonion ESTs in the Sterankos. Each sonion est unit comes with one transformer and two est units, and that'll cost you around $200. Each transformer can hold 4x ESTs maximum.

Then, to bring all of this together, you use crossovers to designate each driver type to a particular frequency range. 2-way, 3-way, 4-way, 5-way, and I'm sure they're more. Talk about layering and clarity, IEMs do it best. You'll never get bass out of a Stax like you can with a Fostex. You'll never get the transparency out of a Fostex like you can with a Stax. You'll never get the soundstage of a Mysphere 3.2 out of an LCD-5. There will always be compromises with headphones because of size, weight and drivability. IEMs are that bridge, and there is so much innovation going on in the IEM space that it'll make you broke. Bone conductiorn AMT, micro planars, magnetostatic drivers, piezoelectric transducers, all of the different hybrids, berylium DDs and other fancy materials, pure aluminum dome tweeters, DIP switches to tune the FR curve, specialty tips like the EPFX12 to tune the sound, all of the different hybrid configurations, cables, custom molds and the rest. It's a whole new world, and honestly headphones just aren't there yet and probably will never be. Hifiman is getting close with their Isvarna, but IEMs have been doing that for years without costing $3k.

 

[SOAREVERSOR]

The most useless implementation that nobody asked for it.
No self respecting musician would ever use earplugs to listen to quality music. They should have use this tech in headsets, not crappy useless earbuds, which are not even wireless....

What? When you perform on stage you use IEMs. That's where they came from. Shure sells their universal IEMs specifically for performers. Etymotic IEMs are used by U2 to master their tracks. Empire Ears, JH Audio, Ultimate Ears, 64 Audio and more claim the top artists in the world as their customers who use their products when performing.

Of course they aren't wireless wireless sucks. For stage they are connected to a powerpack/transmitter device the artist wears.

Of course most professionals use custom ones molded for their ears but it's the same device as the universals.