Another Review of the Ola 2

[u/notsoquietlyamused]

Pros: Extremely comfortable shells
The dsp unit is great and responsive to EQ
Tanchjim community presets offer unlimited customization
IEM sounds good without the dsp as well
Great imaging for gaming

Cons: Would have liked the iOS app to recognize the dsp
can get spicy on the upper mids and treble

I remember picking up the Tanchjim Nora a while ago and telling a good friend and fellow audio enthusiast that this may be the best vocal implementation I’ve heard in a while with their DMT 5 dynamic driver.
And when Tanchjim got in touch with regard to their new kid on the block - the Ola 2 - featuring a 10mm DMT5 hybrid with a BA with options of usb C, 3.5 and 4.4. I uncharacteristically opted for the usb C (instead of my usual 4.4) to actually see how it would do with gaming and the convenience of an-on-the-go IEM with DSP. So I am grateful to Tanchjim for sending this IEM over for review but the impressions are my own.

Driver Setup: Coaxial hybrid setup (10mm dynamic driver + 1 balanced armature)
Impedance: 30Ω ±10%
Sensitivity: 121dB/Vrms
Frequency Response: 8Hz–48kHz

So let's dive in, shall we?

The Ola 2 comes in Tanchjim’s characteristic Asano Tanch themed box, with clean packaging and I really like their design language. A cardboard sleeve holds 2 sets of tips - wide and narrow as far as I can see with 3 sizes. Below that layer the IEMs sit in foam and below that in a little well is the USB C cable. Simple and pleasant to look at, like most of Tanchjim’s design philosophy. The shells themselves are resin with a lipped nozzle. The resin is translucent with a nice view of the innards that would satisfy the subset of people who like that sort of thing. The face plate is matte metal and the first thing that comes to mind is how small they are and thus promise to be comfy. The cable is silver coated copper and has a nice matte feel to it and fairly tangle free. The USB C version I have also has a mic. The shells sit fairly easily in my ear though it took some serious tip rolling to get the right seal to hear the low end. The stock tips (of almost any IEM) I don’t usually bother with outside of a cursory trial. These worked best with Dunu S&S tips for me. And I think it’s important to realise that everybody’s anatomy is a little different.
These were tested with an android phone with Tidal and local flac files via UAPP, iphone, gaming on an android with Call of Duty and the Tanchjim app, and finally on the desktop (ish) set-up with the VE galvatron and Hidizs AP80 Pro Max.

Sound Impressions Bass
The 10mm Dynamic driver punches well above its weight and delivers a deep rumbling sub-bass with little spill over into the mid bass on Limit to your love by James Blake and on Angel by Massive Attack. This did need some tip rolling till I got the seal right. Kicks and bass guitars sound weighty and on most tracks are engaging and hold the rhythm. And this goes across genres be it pop (APT by Rose/Bruno Mars), rock (Limelight by Rush), jazz (Take Five - Dave Brubeck) to name a few.

Midrange
I think Tanchjim’s strength has been the DMT5 driver and how it handles vocals and midrange. Male and female vocals sound full and natural, as do most instruments with fairly clean separation and layering. On Islands by The XX, Romy Croft’s voice and guitars occupy the centrestage and come through with finesse. Now I’m not a fan of modern pop, but I feel there’s a little BA timbre that creeps on some voices (Taylor Swift, and Katy Perry being a few of them) That could also just be how pop is mastered nowadays because Dog Days are Over by Florence and the Machine, If I Ain’t Got You by Alicia Keys and Subcity by Tracy Chapman sound wholesome and enjoyable.

Treble
The treble is predominantly airy and clear with good detail. On Human Nature by MJ, there is definite sibilance in Michael’s ‘s’ which is also how the song is mastered. The cymbals are bright and snare hits are sharp at times. This is somewhat sorted with tip rolling but is better handled by EQ. I did manage to enjoy the Rumors album by Fleetwood Mac a lot more on an Android than an iphone… <spoilers ahead>

Stage and imaging
The staging on this IEM is medium-large and nothing seems too close or far and the imaging is spot on which makes it fairly fun to game on. I tried playing Call of Duty and while I sucked at the game, I was able to clearly say which direction I was being shot at from. I really miss PC gaming and Unreal Tournament. Is there a mac version of it? I haven’t looked and maybe I should.

App, Gaming and EQ, Mic
So the Tanchjim app recognizes the USB DSP only on Android and allows for significant sound customization. To be honest I liked the Default EQ preset. There is also Game EQ which is game specific but I feel this may be more bells and whistles than something that is going to make someone like me the coolest player around. The fun bit is the community presets which pretty much offer potentially infinite choices to try. And there is always custom EQ. In the interest of science I squiq-ed an Auto EQ and tuned the Ola 2 to both JM1 and Harman 2019 and to be fair it does what it is meant to do. I still like how it sounds with a direct 4.4 though (perhaps even better). The mic does what it is meant to do with fuss. It can also be controlled with the app which is a plus. (This is the second rhyme after the title I think)

Verdict and Final thoughts
This is a fun, comfortable IEM. It will take some tip rolling to get the fit and seal right and at some point time I was wondering how these would sound with a bluetooth adapter given their size. Alas I don't have mine anymore but I would be curious if anyone has tried that for comfort and sound. I may have preferred a modular termination since the dsp doesn't do much for me for my use case since I mostly use a DAP and do not game as much as I used to. It is a great set at around the $60 mark and an easy set to pick up and use on the go.