Canadian Shipping Details
We offer free shipping in Canada on most items when an order totals $99 or more before tax. Some exceptions apply; click here for our full shipping policy.
Estimated free shipping transit time
- Greater Toronto Area: 1-2 business days
- Rest of Ontario: 2-3 business days
- Quebec: 2-3 business days
- Maritimes, Manitoba: 3-4 business days
- Alberta & Saskatchewan: 4-5 business days
- British Columbia: 5-6 business days
- Territories: 6-10 business days
Express options available at checkout. Orders dispatch next business day.
Toronto Store Pickup
Select in-store pickup at checkout and collect your order from our store in Toronto.
Find our entrance on Bay Street, near Charles Street West. We also have a pickup area in the Manulife Centre parking garage. Click here for directions. Before coming to the store, please wait for a confirmation email indicating your order is ready for pickup.
⚠️ No Returns on Headphones Once Opened
Buy with confidence, backed by Price Protection: if our advertised price goes down within 30 days of your purchase, contact us and we'll refund the difference.
For hygienic reasons, there are no returns on headphones and earphones once opened.
All in-stock headphones are available for personal demonstration in-store. We encourage you to try before buying to ensure satisfactory sound, fit, and functionality.
Click here for our full return policy.
If an item is defective upon receipt, please notify us within 30 days of purchase so we can arrange an exchange. For issues following 30 days, we will work with you and the manufacturer within the scope of each brand’s warranty and service policies.
Description
A18s
Eighteen Driver Custom In-Ear Monitor
Custom-Fit, Custom-Look, Custom-Made
Designed to be the most capable and versatile in-ear monitor ever created and packed with an unbelievable 18 balanced armature drivers per ear, A18s features a warmer reference monitor tonality.
Designed for professionals on stage and in the studio, A18s it provides the clarity and precision necessary for sound engineering and mixing with the warmth, power, and headroom demanded by musicians taking the stage.
A18s combines 36 proprietary drivers, LID technology and a new electronic crossover network to deliver a uniquely exceptional listening experience.
Bay Bloor Radio in Toronto makes custom in-ear monitors easy:
1. Decide and customize.
At our store in downtown Toronto, we have "universal" versions of 64 Audio's custom IEMs available for testing. While they won't perfectly conform to your ears or have the insertion depth like the final product, they'll give you an idea of sound signature so you can make the best decision for your tastes and needs. Our expert staff can also guide you through customization options and accessories.
2. Make impressions.
Once your order is in, you'll need to have impressions taken of your inner ears. To make things easy, we've partnered with a nearby audiologist familiar with 64 Audio's specifications. Our $49 CAD custom shipping package takes care of international shipping in both directions, and covers all cross-border import fees and customs brokerage — no need to worry about surprise charges upon delivery.
3. In production.
Each 64 Audio CIEM is hand built by highly specialized technicians in Vancouver, Washington. They will scan your impressions to perfectly recreate the intricacies of your ear shape, mapped to fit all internal components, then printed into 3D shells made from hypoallergenic acrylic. Once drivers are installed and tested by hand, your custom faceplate is the final touch to a truly one-of-a-kind earphone.
A18s is also available in a universal version, U18s.
A co-flagship IEM from 64 Audio, U18s carries the same driver configuration in an elevated solid aluminum shell. It features upgraded packaging and accessories, including all three sets of Apex modules, a premium silver cable, multiple eartip styles and sizes for fit and sound flexibility, and leatherette case.
As UIEMs are not customized to each wearer, multiple people can enjoy the earphones throughout their lifespan. They are also available for purchase with minimal to no wait time.
SOUND
Because it is built on our 18-driver platform, A18s is capable of extraordinary detail and separation. It takes the the extreme flat tonality of A18t and slightly increases amplitude in the mid-bass region for a warmer sound.
As is true with our other “reference monitor” models, like A12t and A18t, the A18s is a flavor of that trustworthy reference sound that studio professionals are after. You can mix and master a record on any one of those three models confidently, the choice is really up to personal preference on the differences between the three; similar to choosing between large scale studio monitor brands/models.
A18s outperforms all of our IEMs (and most competitors) when it comes to maximum output, or max SPL. This refers to how loud the IEM can operate before audible driver distortion. Understanding that 99% of people don’t come close to distorting IEM drivers in normal operation, why make something that has such a high max SPL? Simply put, it increases clarity and transient response at all volume levels. Building something with vast headroom allows for the whole system to be less stressed and perform in a much more agile state.
Finally, while A18t sounds its best with ultra low noise and low impedance sources. understanding that professional musicians are often using devices that have higher noise and higher output impedance and often go between devices that have varying impedance between one another, we wanted A18s to offer the security of our Linear Impedance Design (LID) technology.
"A18s is my new go-to IEM. It sounds big and powerful like a full blown line array with subs, yet has the clarity and resolution of a studio monitor."
– James Berry (Monitor Engineer: Beyonce, Kings of Leon, Lionel Richie, Fantasia & Maxwell)
– James Berry (Monitor Engineer: Beyonce, Kings of Leon, Lionel Richie, Fantasia & Maxwell)
"It displays the additional driver headroom that will accommodate less dynamically processed inputs and mixes without saturation and distortion. Thanks indeed for working to lift the product offering to a better level than what is already in my opinion the best suite of product available to the market."
– Brad Law (Monitor Engineer: Hillsong United)
– Brad Law (Monitor Engineer: Hillsong United)
CUSTOMIZATION
Along with a number of acrylic shell options, there are dozens of faceplate colours and materials, which translates to hundreds of unique combinations. On top of all those options, you can even add custom artwork to make your IEMs truly one-of-a-kind. Left and right sides can be configured separately. Costs vary based on the options selected.
Also offered are a selection of connector types and cable. 2-pin connectors are an industry standard socket for IEMs, opening up more aftermarket cable options, ideal for audiophiles looking for flexibility. IPX (sometimes referred to as T2) connectors are moisture resistant snap-in sockets made by Estron A/S, which have proven to be a most robust choice for live music performers. Along with the socket you can choose between two cable colours and lengths.
TECHNOLOGY
3D-Fit for Custom IEMs
Exclusive technology preserves the detail of your ear impressions using a new process of digital rendering and 3D-printing. Compared to conventional wax-dip molding, this process reduces distortion in the impression for the most precise and comfortable custom in-ear monitors available. All of our Custom In-Ear Monitors and Custom Earplugs are crafted using this process.
The patented process of incorporating acoustical tuning features within an IEM’s shell allows for designs that would otherwise be impossible to build using traditional methods. We incorporate these advanced and uniquely complex features into the shell in order to manipulate the audio produced by the IEM.
Tubeless In-Ear Audio
64 Audio's tia is a patented IEM design methodology that aims to reduce unwanted resonance and distortion for a transparent and lifelike sound signature. A18s features two major elements of the tia system:
The tia driver is an open balanced armature speaker design that brings new meaning to resolution and transparency. It delivers airy, crisp, and microdetailed upper frequencies with characteristics not often found in a headphone or in-ear monitor. By opening a balanced armature, the diaphragm becomes fully unobstructed, unleashing the sound potential of the driver. This eliminates a lot of the vibrations and resonances that are inherent in conventional, closed balanced armature designs. With this new method of producing and delivering sound to the ear, conventional sound tubes and dampers are no longer necessary.
The tia single-bore design is a huge leap forward in eliminating unwanted tube resonance. The large bore itself serves as a sound-shaping chamber and aids the tia high driver in delivering a linear and coherent frequency response. Because of the extremely short sound path of the tia high driver, a remarkable high-frequency extension and smoothness is achieved. The large single bore also helps prevent clogging of the tip and obstruction of sound.
Air Pressure Exchange
Apex is a patented vent that releases air pressure in a sealed ear canal all while retaining a level of isolation; this venting alleviates listener fatigue and allows for a much more realistic soundstage.
When you seal a miniature speaker in an ear canal, the air inside becomes trapped. As the speaker produces sound, it moves the air and causes the eardrum to work excessively. The pneumatic pressure exerted on the eardrum causes ear fatigue. Apex relieves this pressure, allowing the eardrum to move naturally, so you can comfortably listen longer.
Apex enables air to move freely in the ear canal, which extends the perceived soundstage and allows for a more natural listening experience. Everything from inserting, wearing, and removing the IEMs becomes a much more natural and painless process.
Apex is implemented in A18t via interchangeable modules, so you can quickly switch between different levels of isolation and sound signatures. Although the modules technically only affect the low frequencies, this psychoacoustically affects your perception of the whole frequency range.
- The m20 module (included and fitted by default, -20dB noise isolation) offers the most relaxed presentation with rich sub-bass. Experience the type of isolation you'd expect from a conventional IEM, minus the ear fatigue.
- The m15 module (included, -15dB noise isolation) is a popular choice for maintaining a balanced signature and airy presentation that allows you to hear some more of your surroundings.
- The mX module (sold separately, -10dB noise isolation) lowers the bass quantity, opening up the soundstage, enhancing instrument layering, and reducing isolation even further for ambient awareness.
Linear Impedance Design
One of A18s’ main features that sets it apart from A18t is the addition of our patented LID technology. Because of its uniquely flat tonality, A18t is very picky when it comes to power; you really want to make sure you’re driving it with an ultra low noise and low impedance (<.5ohms) headphone amplifier to get the intended frequency response.
Smartphones, body packs, amps, and DAPs produce audio with different output impedances. The interaction of the earphone impedance curve with the sources may result in the same IEM sounding different with different sources.
Understanding that professional musicians are often using devices that have higher noise and higher output impedance, and often go between devices that have varying impedance between one another, we wanted A18s to offer the security of LID.
LID is a proprietary circuit that corrects the non-linear impedances of the multiple driver-sets that comprise this eighteen-driver IEM, restoring proper interaction with the source and preserving the desired sound signature, so you can enjoy the same sound reliably across sources.
IN THE BOX
- A18s Custom In-Ear Monitors
- 64 Audio Personalized Protective Case
- Dehumidifier
- Cleaning Tool
- Shirt Clip
- 48" or 64" Detachable Professional Cable
- m20 apex Modules
- m15 apex Modules
- Round Sticker
- Product Manual
SPECIFICATIONS
Driver Type/Count
Eighteen precision balanced armature drivers
Driver Configuration
1 tia high, 1 high-mid, 8 mid, 8 low
Frequency Response
10Hz – 20kHz
Sensitivity
106 dB/mW @ 1kHz @ 1mW (84mV)
Impedance
8Ω Nominal
Crossover
Integrated 4-way passive crossover
Isolation
-20dB with m20 apex module (included)
-15dB with m15 apex module (included)
-10dB with mX apex module (sold separately)
Due to their bespoke nature, there are no returns on custom earphones once ordered.
When you purchase from Bay Bloor Radio, our expert staff will assist with each step of the custom fit process. Universal demo earphones are available in-store to assist you in selecting the right model.
Because of the many variables involved in creating a custom product, sometimes a fit adjustment may be needed. For this reason, 64 Audio offers a 30 Day Fit Guarantee to ensure that your IEMs fit comfortably and retain a proper seal.
If a fit adjustment is required 64 Audio will need the IEMs sent back for the shells to either be shaved down or built up in the specified problem areas. 64 Audio may, at their discretion, rebuild your IEMs for which new impressions may be required. In some cases, prior to starting the rebuild process, empty test shells may be sent to you to determine if the adjustments have corrected the fit issue. The cost of two-way international shipping, import, and brokerage for all refits is $49 + tax. Customers may alternatively choose to ship items back to 64 Audio at their own expense. Cosmetic properties such as the height of the IEMs due to space required for drivers, cable connectors or faceplates are not considered a defect and would not be covered under the fit guarantee.
Specs
Dimensions
About 64 Audio
Personal Attention, Expert Advice
We’re here to answer your questions and help you make the right choice.
Service Department
Our advisers and technicians are standing by to assist after your purchase.
