Noble Audio Ronin is an updated version of the award-winning Katana earphones. While Katana had 9 balanced armature drivers, Ronin features 4 Sonion balanced armature drivers for sub-bass and bass frequencies, 4 balanced armature drivers for mid-low and mid frequencies, and 4 electrostatic drivers for high and ultra-high frequencies.
Ronin delivers excellent bass, superb mids, and clear non-fatiguing highs, revealing intricate details in music that will make you want to listen to all your favorite tracks over and over again.
Features:
- 4 Sonion balanced armature drivers for low frequencies
- 4 Knowles balanced armature drivers for mids
- 4 electrostatic drivers for highs
- 5-way crossover
- Custom Ronin cable made of 7 Litz conductors
- Copper + silver-plated copper conductor material
- Silver shielding
- Resin body with CNC polishing
Ronin stands out for its incredible detail and microdynamics, providing a bright, realistic music reproduction that makes you feel like you can reach out and touch the instruments. The emphasis is on creating a bright reference sound, but not as analytical as emotional, thanks to immersive visualization and intuitive sensations.
With a balanced tuning based on the use of armature drivers, Ronin offers excellent speed and perceived sound texture. While Ronin lacks the dynamic bass effect of a dynamic driver, there are other physical characteristics provided by the headphones, such as bass sound or the tactile nature of drum skin or cymbal heads.
The Ronin shell is made from material developed and manufactured by Noble, which is then cut and shaped using CNC machining, following the same process as the Noble Prestige shells.
The Ronin cable, designed in collaboration with Eletech to provide spaciousness, features high resolution in the midrange and is a unique construction made exclusively for and supplied with the earphones.
The cable consists of four 7-strand conductors with double-sized cores and Eletech's special shielding for improved high-frequency detail and background purity.
The cable uses a unique blend of GP-OCC + OCC copper and silver-plated OCC silver. Thinner strands optimize the high-frequency range, while thicker strands are responsible for the lows. The cable also features Eletech's proprietary shielding mesh, providing absolute protection against electromagnetic fields and radio frequencies. This leads to absolute darkness in the background. The 4.4mm plug allows for additional shielding benefits by grounding it on the 5th pole.
The build quality of the model is top-notch. The Ronin shell looks like a solid piece of resin, and only upon closer inspection can you see where the faceplate attaches to the shell. Both pieces are made of the same material - resin with blue shimmer and a silvery-gray hue throughout the surface. Although the Ronin consists of 2 parts (like almost all IEMs), it is covered with a clear coating that holds the two parts together, creating one of the most magnificent IEMs you can find on the market.
The materials used to make the Ronin shell more resemble Kublai Khan than a sultan or Viking Ragnar. In other words, it's a resin-based material with a more robust custom shaping than any heavier metals such as aluminum or Damascus steel.
The stunning aesthetics mostly correspond to the prestigious assembly process, usually involving more complex finishing methods. Noble does not disclose the exact composition of the Ronin material, but it is CNC machined and still very beautiful.
The finishing touch is the combination of blush nebula or marble brushstrokes with a dot layer on a smoky black background. This covers both the faceplate and the shell, giving them a pleasant uniform appearance that I prefer to heavily segmented faceplates and shells.
Package Contents:
- Earphones
- Cable
- 12 pairs of spare ear tips
- Hard storage case
- Documentation