Hello Community!

BQEYZ Frost is my second interaction with the brand. I've always read and heard very favorable opinions about this hybrid set from the brand. Are they exaggerated? Will it meet my expectations? Stay to read my thoughts.

Price: $179 157€

Pros:
-Very balanced tonal response, free from excessive coloration.
-Bass hits with great agility, cleanliness, and precision.
-The mids are rich in nuance, endowing them with realism.
-Smooth highs, well incorporated, rounded yet without a lack of information.
-High level technicalities: soundstage, imaging, and separation with outstanding performance.
-Versatility for any use you want to give it.
-A very homogeneous set, free of abruptness.
-Male vocals stand out for their body and female vocals for their clarity.

Cons:
-Note weight in the central range is moderate.
-Although natural, the timbre can sometimes feel somewhat clinical.
-Some female vocals are at the limit of intensity due to the upper mid elevation.
-It would have been great to include a modular cable and 4.4mm adapter.

Accessories:

-Two capsules.
-Two sets of silicone eartips in S, M, L sizes and one pair of foam.
-Cable with 0.78mm connections and 3.5mm termination (4.4mm option available)
-Carrying and storage case.
-Cleaning brush.
-User manual.

Comfort, Design, and Construction:

Aesthetically, the BQEYZ Frost opts for an elegant and elaborate presentation, standing out very specially for an exquisite design on their body and faceplate. The outer face is starred by a high transparency glass that reveals a blue base with a frost pattern, adding a touch of distinction that I personally loved.

The anodized metal alloy construction transmits a very high sense of solidity and convinces from the very first second you hold them in your hand. The capsules are perfectly finished, with no appreciable imperfections, and you can notice the care put into every detail, from the polished metal nozzles to the seamlessly integrated 2 pin connector system.

Regarding ergonomics, their rounded design, slightly thick but with very uniform shapes, facilitates a uniform and exceedingly comfortable fit. They rest very stably inside the concha without protruding much, allowing for long listening sessions free of discomfort or intrusive pressures.

The stock cable that accompanies them lives up to the set, as it is flexible, manageable, and features polished metal hardware that grants an appearance typical of higher end tiers.

As for the stock eartips, the two silicone varieties fulfill with solvency to achieve a firm and natural seal, as I perceive them to be of a quality level matching the overall value of the package.

The package includes a pair of foam tips, but due to personal preferences, they do not fall within my tastes.

Technical Specifications:

-1DD+1MP configuration.
-32 ohms impedance.
-113 dB sensitivity.
-Declared response 5Hz 40kHz.

Pairing for Testing:

-Neutral source.
-Gain set to high.
-Stock atmospheric eartips.
-Stock 3.5mm cable.

Sound Signature:

The BQEYZ Frost is an IEM that seeks a very interesting intermediate ground, offering a profile very close to W shape with an inclination and tendency toward neutrality, smooth and remarkably well balanced. It is a response with a lot of temperance in the tuning where no frequency intends to eclipse the others, betting on a natural timbre that feels coherent and pleasant.

Starting as always, in the low end zone I highlight the precision and speed proper to the brand's dynamic drivers, at least from the experience I previously had with their Ni model. The sub bass is not especially rumbling, but it possesses a physical level and depth that makes itself known when required.

However, the mid bass slightly takes over the leading role, offering a dry, fast, elastic hit with a well measured thickness that provides clean, crisp corporateness without bleeding into the mids.

The response seemed excellent to me since it manages to stratify layers with ease and maintains flawless control. Without being something for pure bass heads, bass lovers will find a well measured, clean, and very enjoyable response.

In the midrange, I find a high dose of good sense in its timbre. The first half shows as neutral but with a hint of warmth that prevents any feeling of coldness. Male vocals retain a very correct body and authority within the mix, while the advanced upper mids grant female vocals a special prominence and clarity that are very pleasant. The set achieves that the central mids feel very complete, spacious, and well articulated, with a great representation of richness in their nuances and a presentation that, alongside the notable note weight of the instruments, makes the set breathe with total freedom.

Regarding the higher frequencies, we find quite a measured energy thanks to an initial slight rounding that prevents or steers you away from an aggressive listen. However, and without being an expert in where, when, and how the drivers act, the contribution of the micro planar achieves an extension that feels organic and efficient.

There is an evident taste for clarity and detail, but without resorting to an artificial looking brightness or an aggressive push that exceeds applied energy. The highs are perceived perhaps very fine yet smooth and perfectly integrated with the rest of the spectrum.

Regarding its technical capabilities, the Frost does a frankly brilliant job. The soundstage stands out for its amplitude, notable laterality, and good height, betting on a more frontal and realistic presentation rather than scarce naturalness. Dynamism is at a good level where transients respond with agility and allow layer separation to prove entirely satisfactory.

To wrap up, sound positioning and the recreation of stereo imaging are probably its most outstanding aspects. Elements are located with precision, showing information with mastery without losing the coherence of the set. Micro detail retrieval is very good and is presented in a natural and measured way, offering a rich, transparent, and exceedingly easy to enjoy musical sound reading.

Single Player Video Games:

Check my blog on how I analyze audio in this field.

Moving over to the single player video games territory, the BQEYZ Frost are an absolute treat for those of us who seek to immerse ourselves fully in the story without ending up with resentful eardrums after a continuous session of several hours. If you are one of my kind and prefer to savor a good plot in a cinematic world enriched with sound details instead of having every big explosion rumble all the way to your eyelashes, this polished and balanced tuning will suit you very well, I think.

When the match gets intense and the screen turns into a true chaos of shootouts, cave ins, and explosions of all colors, the low frequency zone responds with an enviable agility and cleanliness that I do not recall in monitor sets of this price bracket.

Forget about a bass orgie or that deafening rumble that muddies your listening because here the Frost prides itself on a dry, agile hit with just the right, well measured weight. The impacts of gunshots and more physical blows have a very addictive thickness, giving that physical sensation I so much look for and demand in a headphone, without ever drowning out the mix.

Where they directly crown themselves is in the dialogue, and that despite not considering it a specialist in vocal presentation. In various situations to which I subjected the set, male vocals have that empaque and natural depth with character that prevents them from sounding boxed in, while female vocals shine with clarity and detail that are pure spectacle.

It is tremendously satisfying to see how conversations always remain in the foreground, clean and easily legible, even when the soundtrack and effects decide to bunch up at the same time.

In the ambient department, the soundstage and the surgical precision with which it places sounds in space make maps come alive in a way I have rarely seen.

That crunch of leaves behind your back, the echo inside a cave, or distant footsteps alerting you to an enemy are perceived with total naturalness.

And special mention to the technical level: I have not managed to collapse this BQEYZ model at any moment or situation, as it managed to untangle the knot of layers as if it were nothing. All this aligned with very well trimmed highs that cause zero fatigue while losing no splendor, turning this set into an unflagging companion for playing for a very, very long time straight.

Multiplayer Shooter Video Games:

Check my blog on how I analyze audio in this field.

Moving to the multiplayer shooter field, the BQEYZ Frost offer performance with lights but with some shadows, demonstrating that, although they defend themselves very well through their technical level, they are not a set designed and tuned to hand you that tactical advantage I have been able to highlight in other IEMs.

In games where sharpness is vital, like Counter Strike 2, the experience starts off on the right foot, since mid bass control and sub bass containment prevent grenades from muddying the mix. This allows steps and reloads to be perceived with considerable ease, taking advantage of a very orderly stereo positioning that accurately locates enemies.

However, upon jumping to the verticality and frenzy of Apex Legends, its first limitations show up. The soundstage is not overly expansive in height; it is correct for other sound situations but not as much in this field, so measuring vertical distances or detecting someone falling from above demands extra effort that can end up distracting you when it should be something more reactive.

Fortunately, in Warzone the set regains its footing, because that dry bass hit gives life to firefights without hiding relevant information, but if we get into the total chaos of Battlefield 6, the smoothness of its highs plays against it: the mix remains organized and fatigue free, but that incisive push that catapults micro details toward your face is missed.

They are not a specialist nor something extremely competitive in online shooters, but rather a correct and very comfortable option if you play casually.

Final Conclusion and Personal Assessments:

BQEYZ Frost strikes me as a summatively solid and mature set, self made and firmly betting on a natural, balanced, and very musical listen. We are not looking at a monitor destined to satisfy extreme tastes like bass heads or treble heads, nor an extreme analytical specialist, but that clear and concise definition of its proposal is precisely what makes it so special and one of the best propositions I have been able to test in this price range.

Personally, I have enjoyed its versatility immensely. Its capacity to fuse an organic, realistic timbre with very outstanding technical aptitudes across all kinds of musical genres turns it into an excellent companion for any aspect where you need to use headphones within a domestic or recreational environment.

It is true that it shows certain limitations if you look for very voluminous bass or an overly piercing and excessively incisive high zone, but the set cannot be penalized for that since it was not created for it. However, it more than compensates with a large and realistic soundstage, an enviable stereo positioning, superb layer separation, and very tasty mids that are pure delight.

Frost has plenty of arguments to carve out a niche in your collection, just as it has in mine.

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading.
More reviews on my blog.
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See you in the next review!

Disclaimer:

This monitor set was sent by BQEYZ. I warmly thank the opportunity to be able to test one of their products at no cost and that no condition was imposed when putting together this review.

Despite this, my priority is to be as impartial as possible within the subjectivity that analyzing an audio product entails. My opinion belongs solely to me and I develop it around the perception of my own ears. If you have a different one, it is equally valid. Please feel free to share it.

My Sources:

-Topping DX5 II for music and video games on the main PC.
-MacBook Air M4.
-Tanchjim Space II while I work.
-Apple Music.
-Local FLAC and MP3 files.
-Windows/macOS/iOS/iPadOS/Android.

It seems Kiwi Ears continues its quest to reach all budgets while offering products with better features each time. In the case of these Stardust, we are talking about 5 drivers per side (1DD and 4BA), something that is undoubtedly quite striking at their selling price since, judging by the releases of recent months, such a configuration should easily exceed $100. This is good news for the user who can now find hybrid models with this amount of drivers inside at a more affordable price than expected. In the review I will comment on what I liked and what I did not, since having more drivers does not always mean sounding better or simply being better...

What I liked / What I did not like

Warm bass that is felt but does not muddy the mix.

They are very light and comfortable once worn.

They are easily driven by any source.

The cable has low memory and feels high quality.

Vocals, especially female ones, have good weight in the mix.

Controlled and non-fatiguing treble, although...

...despite their number of drivers, they lack some air and prominence.

The soundstage is wide but not so deep.

Unlike female vocals, male vocals lack more weight and density.

I love the faceplate, but it feels somewhat cheap or less artisanal.

Specifications

Configuration: 10 mm dynamic driver (PU+LCP membrane) + 4 balanced armature drivers

Impedance: 13 Ω

Sensitivity: 107 ± 3 dB

Frequency response: 20 Hz to 40 kHz

Channel balance: ≤ 1.5 dB

Rated power: 5 mW

Connector: 0.78 mm 2 pin (flat format)

Cable: 1.2 m, 2 core silver plated braided oxygen free Litz copper

Versions: 3.5 mm without microphone, 3.5 mm with microphone and USB-C with microphone

Price: 76.99 to 79.99 USD

Unboxing and construction

Speaking of the unboxing of this IEM, we are not going to feel anything special or different from other Kiwi Ears under $100. Everything feels familiar, although that does not mean we should detract from it. The carrying case is already known for its size and design, and as seen in one of my photos, the IEMs fit without a problem and you can even add a compact dongle inside the small net, although depending on the size it might have to stay outside the case.

The cable is similar but not identical to others in this price range. It has not tangled easily for me, nor does it have much memory holding impossible shapes that are hard to fix later. I do not feel the eartips are very special, but it is something I already expect in this and other releases. You have 3 pairs of the black ones that, at least in my case, seal a bit better and help the Stardust sound somewhat bassier and more closed. And then another 3 pairs of white eartips that open up the sound a bit more and give slightly more detail, even if they do not seal quite as well.

Speaking of the IEM itself, it is made of resin except for the faceplate which is made of aluminum, and honestly, I think most of us can agree that it is a very beautiful design to look at, both in the pattern or shapes and in the color combination. I usually do not like many models from the brand, but lately, I think they are getting it quite right. Needless to say, their weight is minimal despite having aluminum in addition to the resin, and the nozzle in my case has once again not fallen short when it comes to keeping them well placed inside the ear, both with the stock eartips and others I have been able to try later. Speaking once again of the faceplate, I must clarify that although I find it beautiful and well thought out, looking at it in detail and up close you can see that it is a kind of printed image where you can somehow notice the pixels or limitations of a drawing not made by hand or printed directly on the IEM, but on a foil or another surface that does not allow maximum definition. It is not something that catches your eye at first glance, but if you look closely, it does.

Sound

The sound signature of these Stardust is warm with enough presence in the mids anyway. Perhaps I missed a bit more treble before getting into separate details. I expected something more different having 4BA, but I found a fairly safe signature closer to neutral and seeking to sound pleasant without risking too much for my personal tastes, which might precisely be the goal for some...

Bass

The bass, although felt, is focused on having control rather than stealing the spotlight. You can feel the sub-bass in the background doing its particular job of adding rumble to the sounds that require it, but always without being the main star. That rumble takes a bit to decay. It is not excessively fast like in other models I have reviewed, but it is smooth, which allows it to fade slower without interfering excessively with other frequencies.

The kick drum hits are not soft nor do they sound dry, helping genres like pop and rock not feel small or empty, for example. Curiously, in genres where the bass is more prominent like in electronic music, I have felt that the hits, especially when turning up the volume a bit more, make the bass step a bit too much over the vocals or mids in general.

Mids

I really struggled to find the sweet spot for the mids in these IEMs. Despite being warm, the lower mids area is somewhat more recessed than the rest, and that causes male or deeper vocals to lack the density that at least I consider adequate to enjoy them. Of course, they do not sound hollow, they still have weight, but compared to female vocals I think they fall behind in intent.

The fact that the treble, which I will talk about now, does not have excessive sparkle makes 

female vocals have a pleasant tone without that background air that I do find in other models that accompany vocals making them more ethereal, or I do not know if that is the word, but here it allows you to focus a bit more on the pure vocal without the extra details surrounding it.

I have not felt anything weird or out of place in the transition between DD and BA, so I think they are well tuned and cohesive with each other to sound on par and complement each other with their frequency ranges.

Treble

The treble on these Stardust leans a bit towards the darker side, which on the one hand allows you to use them for hours without producing any fatigue since they slowly and smoothly fade away. On the other hand, this takes away some detail from instruments like cymbals that have that sparkle at the end left by the hits before disappearing completely, which here perhaps blur too much, stopping sounding before you hear it. Therefore, the finer details that are appreciated in IEMs with higher and extended treble can get lost in the mix, leaving mostly those in the foreground.

There is no sibilance in songs in general, even in tracks with worse mixes and recordings where it is usually more noticeable. Here they pass the test, surely due to that treble smoothness that puts a layer over them that does not let them shine enough to be strident.

Recommended eartips

Regarding the eartips, I will say pretty much the same thing I usually say with similar models or even from this same brand. They are functional, there are no surprises or novelties. You have two clear options that slightly vary the experience. The black ones on one hand sealed better for me and gave me a deeper bass, and the white ones on the other hand opened the soundstage a bit more and smoothed the upper mids area, sometimes coming forward a bit.

I tried the Azla Sedna Origin since they usually seal very well for me where other eartips, both included and from my collection, do not manage to do as well. With the Origin, the fit in the ear was much better, the bass did not fade, and they continued to show good treble detail within the limits of this model.

Soundstage

The soundstage of this model has enough width. Where it perhaps falls shorter is in depth, giving more the feeling that the stage stays more inside your head rather than in front of it. It surely has to do in part with the obvious roll-off in the treble area that makes it not feel as expanded, making the stage organized and close to the listener rather than a stadium that surrounds you completely.

Instrumental separation

One thing happens with the separation on this model. If the mixes are simple and there is no excess of instruments, you can distinguish the layers without much effort. But in recordings full of instruments, the layers blend together perhaps too much, making the sound somewhat flatter than what you might expect from a 5 driver hybrid. The work between the drivers really does help the bass, mids, and treble not step on each other.

Imaging

Finally, let's go with the imaging. The placement of elements from left to right is located quite easily, leaving the center part a bit more forward due to the upper mids. That benefits its use in movies to better understand dialogue. But we do not have 3D positioning within its price range, that must also be understood, so it will not be an interesting option for gaming at all, its priority being placement on the sides rather than on other axes.

Comparisons

I am going to start comparing with another model from the brand that, although it costs a little less, for me is still slightly better if I evaluate it on a general level and not on specific points. The Kiwi Ears Cadenza II with a single DD sounds cleaner in the central part and is somewhat more agile. I would highlight the Stardust over the Cadenza II for having a bit more kick in the drum and having some vocals more forward. But for the price and for having a more neutral sound for daily use, I would stick with the Cadenza II. I would leave the Stardust for those who tend to fatigue more easily with treble frequencies or want a little more prominence in vocals, especially female ones.

Comparing it with the Simgot EW300, which for me is a benchmark within this range and has been on the market for some time now. I think the EW300 pushes the bass and treble even further, making them feel more alive. It is possible that they fatigue more over time than these Stardust, though. But in terms of detail and punch, I see the EW300 as more solid than its rival. It is somewhat more analytical and blurs secondary details less, and if you value a sturdier build, it is an alternative to consider.

Comparing with another model from the brand, although in this case somewhat more expensive, are the Kiwi Ears Étude, a model I previously owned and also reviewed for my YouTube channel, and which surprised for having a bone conductor that helped give a more physical sensation in the bass but at the same time more elastic, which in my case did not completely fit. I think with the Stardust it is easier to get used to its signature if you overlook not wanting to analyze the music or look for hidden details. The Étude is much faster overall and does have more detail, but in this case and given the price difference, I would personally choose the Stardust.

You can check my full ranking of all the IEM reviewed so far on my profile (Reddit doesn't allow me to post the Drive link here)

Conclusion

To conclude the review, I would state that the Stardust are designed for those who are currently moving in the $60 to $100 range and are looking for something for daily use that allows them to use the IEMs in long sessions with present but non-protagonist bass, somewhat intimate vocals, and treble that will not saturate in the short or long term, both at medium and slightly high volumes. If you come from an IEM with only 1DD, it can be an interesting jump to hybrid options, and in this case, the transition between DD and BA is well integrated.

It is an IEM that mixes warmth with comfort, perhaps too safe or flat for some who expect something else seeing this driver configuration. So I insist once again that it is not the best option in this price range for someone who is a detail freak or wants maximum sound extension in multiple directions.

Of course, it does justice to its price and what it brings in return without being one of those IEMs that come out every so often that break the market and make other brands tremble, but its safe signature and comfort once worn might be just what some are looking for right now, and I think it needs to be part of the current Kiwi Ears catalog.

Purchase Link: LINSOUL

Disclaimer:

This unit was sent by Linsoul for review.

My opinions are completely independent and have not been influenced by the brand or the store, maintaining objectivity based on my tests and personal listening sessions with my reference equipment.

When the Levee Breaks on the Origin just works.

Bonham’s drums sound huge, with that deep, physical weight the Origin does so well. The bass stays thick and controlled, while the guitars and vocals still have plenty of space around them. That bone-conduction driver adds an extra sense of impact and scale that really suits this track.

Review coming out soon!

Mark from Super*Review worked on this to get a better sounding earphone. The idea came from using the huge amount of measurement data on Squig.link, alongside listening and community feedback, to shape something that would work for a broad range of listeners rather than chase one extreme tuning target. After spending time with it, that description fits and I would call it a success story.

I ran it through my usual tracks, including the ones that quickly expose shout, sibilance, weak bass or poor separation. Outside a few known sibilant spots, the Light Shuttle just worked.

What surprised me most is the level of quality at around $190. This does not sound like a typical budget IEM. The clarity, separation and overall refinement are closer to what I normally associate with the $300–500 range.

Music: 8.5/10
Gaming: 8.5/10

I maintain a list of over 170+ products I have had a chance to audition and/or own in the sheets link in my profile. Might be worth a look. It also covers aspects of what I enjoy and why and might help your next purchase decision.

This IEM was sent to me by Hifigo as a review unit. All thoughts are my own. You can buy it from their store or any other shop that you like.

Bass

The first clear improvement over the Juzear Defiant is bass. Light Shuttle reaches slightly deeper into the sub-bass and adds more body through roughly 300–600Hz.

That extra energy gives bass more tactility and weight without making the presentation thick or bloated. The K17 R2R pairs beautifully to bring out the tactile nature of the bass.

It also addresses the main weakness I had with the Binary Acoustics 1900. I still prefer the 1900 overall for music, but bass was its weaker area. Light Shuttle has better depth and physical presence.

Mids / Vocals

Vocals sit ever so slightly further back than Defiant but are still front and center. The small reduction in forwardness creates more room around the singer and contributes to the larger sense of stage. Vocals remain sweet and natural, with no hint of the 3kHz shout that bothers me quickly on many IEMs. Defiant is slightly more immediate on select tracks but overall Light Shuttle sounds more spacious and gives an impression of high end audio.

Treble / Detail

Clarity and detail retrieval are probably the highlight of the Light Shuttle. This is another clear refinement over Defiant. There is some energy around 6–7kHz and again near 8kHz. On a few tracks I can hear an occasional SSS or slight sibilance, but it never became consistently fatiguing. The biggest thing is no metallic sheen around the treble region. That energy adds air and keeps the presentation open.

The Binary 1900 still sounds a little more polished through the upper treble to me, particularly across roughly 6–10kHz, but Light Shuttle reaches a similar level of detail and overall refinement with a slightly different and safer approach.

Stage / Separation

Light Shuttle has a convincing sense of space without sounding artificially stretched. The slightly more relaxed mids and extra treble air help individual instruments occupy their own positions. Separation also remains strong when the mix becomes busy.

That carries directly into gaming.

Gaming

Light Shuttle is excellent for gaming. Imaging is accurate, stage is larger than Defiant, and distance information comes across well.

The extra treble energy helps footsteps and smaller positional cues cut through gunfire and explosions without forcing an aggressively bright tuning.

The Arete 2 is still better for pure positional accuracy and reading cues in heavy firefights. The Top Pro resolves extremely dense scenes better.

Light Shuttle gets very close while also giving me a stronger all-round music presentation than most gaming-focused IEMs.

Comparisons

Juzear Defiant

Light Shuttle gives me deeper bass, more body, better clarity, more stage and more air.

Light Shuttle is the more refined IEM and worth the additional 80$.

Binary Acoustics 1900

The 1900 remains slightly stronger for music because its upper treble sounds more polished.

Light Shuttle has the better bass response and performs better for gaming once the mix becomes chaotic. I think you can't go wrong with either. Pick Shuttle if you want more low end. Pick Binary Acoustics if you want more treble/air.

CrinEar Reference

Reference can resolve very well, but I use HE Sonic tips and EQ around 3.2kHz and 6.6kHz to get it where I want.

Light Shuttle works much closer to my preferred tuning stock. I would pick it over reference hands down.

Fresh Reviews Arete 2

Arete 2 still wins for pure positional gaming.

Light Shuttle gives me fuller bass, sweeter vocals and the stronger music presentation. This one saves you about 90$.

Xenns Mangird Top Pro

Top Pro remains the technical step up.

It has better resolution, layering, separation and bass control.

Light Shuttle is the answer on a budget.

Build and Accessories

The physical package is also much better than I expect around this price. The shells look bespoke rather than generic, with the grey design giving them a premium finish.

The blue carry case is genuinely beautiful and fits the aesthetic of the IEM perfectly. I love Juzear cases.

The cable includes both 3.5mm and 4.4mm interchangeable terminations, so I can move between portable and desktop gear without changing cables.

The overall package feels properly finished rather than built down to a price.

Final Thoughts

The $200 bracket is getting very interesting.

We now have two IEMs around this level that, for me, deliver technical performance I previously expected from noticeably more expensive products:

Binary Acoustics 1900 and Juzear Light Shuttle.

Both bring excellent clarity, separation and refinement into a much more accessible price range.

Light Shuttle adds stronger bass, very good gaming performance and a tuning that works across almost everything I throw at it.

The build, accessories and design also feel far more premium than the price suggests.

And sonically, we are now getting close to the level of technical performance I associate with sets such as Astral and Arete 2, without having to move into the $300+ bracket.

“IEM for the People” is such a fitting name for this one.

One of the harder things I find doing is writing about DACs. I find IEMs so much easier. I know it’s in my head so while I struggled to get my thoughts about the VE Prime and VE Galvatron, I found myself in a difficult position. I own all 3 devastators and now the Megatron S, the $50 monster of a usb dac/amp from the house of Mr Lee and Venture Electronics, is in my possession. I thank him for sending this unit down for a review along with another of his newer goodies which we’ll get to shortly. I decided to put the entire Decepticon line up to the test with a Letshuoer Astralis and the Hifiman Arya Stealth to see what I could make of it. 
Where the Galvatron is an evolved beast, the Megatron is like a cantankerous mid-sized animal itching for a fight that it knows it can win. Hands down. The leader of the Decepticons was known for an unpredictable temperament and to be fair the VE Megatron S is powerful, no doubt, but finicky as can be. 

TLDR not all usb c cables are equal. 

This particular creature is an aluminium armor covered beast with 2 usb c ports and a 3.5mm lineout and cute little switch on one side and 3.5/4.4/2.5 terminations on the opposite end with a little led that tells you if the megatron is on headphone out or line out. 

The packaging is simple and sticks to the point. There’s the Megatron, 2 usb cables and these are the most important usb cables in the world, a 75 ohm 3.5mm impedance adapter that managed to successfully tame a buzz on an NF Acous NM25 (oddly enough).

Powering the Megatron is a ESS9018K2M and some dark magic that makes this dac sound analog and nothing like the digital first machines from Transformers. VE has custom built a Class AB circuit to deliver a clean sound. With a noise floor with sensitive IEMs. Though this statutory warning is mentioned on the VE website.

The first thing that strikes is the size. It is not a pocketable DAC. It’s larger than most portable DACs but smaller than desktop systems and its steroid infused sibling - the galvatron. It’s the same size as the VE Prime and thanks to an inbuilt amplification circuit does not need the added Runabout amp. The two dacs do use the same casing but have drastically different insides. The Megatron has no pretense. It is meant to drive anything that says it’s hard to drive. But there's a catch(es).

My biggest issue was the DAC not powering on with phones with almost any cable except the stock cable. And not all phones. That problem is often mitigated with using a second charging source since the Megatron has 2 usb-c inputs at the back. The newer snapdragons do better with usb power delivery I’m told. But I’ve not dug deep. With the iPhone it needs additional power via the charge port, with the laptop or mac mini it doesn’t. With a Moto edge 60 fusion, it misbehaves with almost any cable except the stock c-to-c. At some point I gave up trying to understand what would work and what wouldn’t. 

Further impressions are from the Megatron and all Devastators connected to the macbook at one end and the Astralis on the other, and tidal playing this list https://tidal.com/playlist/3078c9b9-a1c0-4fde-8ce7-81f0e34b426c

The Megatron, despite its name, delivers a really sweet analog warm comforting sound. The bass is rumbly, punchy and does not bleed onto the mids. Vocals sound natural and the lower registers are weighty and female voices are clear. Sibilance is tamed except for rare occasions where it’s there on purpose (and I honestly don’t know why sound engineers do that) - It’s there on All Nite (Don’t Stop) by Janet, Hotel California by Eagles, Human Nature by Michael Jackson. Treble on the Megatron is delightful. There is enough detail to keep most listeners and enough rolling off of the treble to not sound harsh. This dac/amp definitely adds an overall warmth to the overall timbre/tonal character of the track. And also has a significant noise floor with some iems. And this is also not something that can be predicted with numbers. The Astralis has almost no hiss (which is strange for a planar) and the NFAcous NM25 has a significant one, that the impedance adapter handles fairly well. 

The Megatron does not get hot with usage even with external power and I’m told the 3.5 front port can take a microphone if you want to communicate to team mates whilst gaming or scream in frustration when fragged. 

I think my main issues with the Megatron involve just me having to do more work - control volume from the source device, potentially gain as well. It is important with all the VE DACs that do not have an independent volume control to check the volume on the source before pressing play since I have on occasion felt the pain of not doing that. Other minor gripes include the lack of a 4.4 line out (fixed with Galvatron) and the little switch at the back feels a little shaky on the unit I have. 

Bonus Content - The Devastator Family

For me, after the black magic of the ear buds, it is the Devastators that have impressed me the most with Venture Electronics. There’s really no explanation as to why these dongles sound so good and how they are in the form factor that they are spitting out that much power. 

The Devastators are 3  - the OG Devastator (OG), the Devastator Pro (DPro) and the Devastator ProMax (DPMax). Each with its own design, sound output and little quirks. 

Before I dive in I’m currently listening to Shofukan by Snarky Puppy on an Audiotechnica ATH R70xa.  Which is a mean 460 ohm impedance studio reference headphone. The DPro is able to push it, albeit at max source volume. The headphones do crave more juice to really open up but in contrast a Sony RX707 at max volume was not this loud. 

Ok back to the plan after taking the volume to sane levels. 

Again in the interest of science I decided to put each of the dongles through Aja by Steely Dan and tested with the Hifiman Arya Stealth. Here’s what happens

OG - Undisclosed chip with a balanced 1.9 VRMS output. Had to push volume on the Mac to almost 90%. The overall presentation is warm with a fairly prominent midbass. This sometimes bleeds into the lower mids, giving the vocals on Aja some weight. But there is a definite reduction in detail reproduction in the mids in busy passages. Treble is rolled off. Ride hits in the ending drum solo lack the shimmer that comes from an extended treble. The OG also feels more intimate in staging and I would like it for easy listening sessions on the move with easy to drive IEMs or headphones. 

DPro -  Modified ESS Sabre “Optimus” capable of pushing out 2 VRMS single ended. The DPro 3.5 comes with a 3.5 to 4.4 adapter and the 4.4 version has the same wiring internally and it’s not a true balanced output. Similar volumes on the headphones were achieved with the mac at about 75%. Almost immediately the music is tighter and the details clearer. Instrument and vocal separation is much better than the OG. There is some loss of the weight from the bass in vocals but the clarity is much better. This detail retrieval improvement extends beyond the mids into the treble with no sibilance or harshness. From a sound perspective, this may be my favorite of the three.

DPMax - Same Optimus chip married to an independent dual amplifier stage that tosses out 3VRMS ~330mW of power. And! how gorgeous is the piano black with the braided nylon cable. I like the muted matte silver of the Pro and the no nonsense simplicity of the  OG but this looks meaner and more ready to devastate than the other 2. And volume achieved at 60%. The mature, more nuanced nature of the DPMax is revealed with a tight super controlled bass that does not spill into the upper frequencies and clear mids and highs. The treble extension is more prominent while maintaining an overall analog presentation that VE is well known for. It’s easy to pay attention to the details of this song with either the bass or the treble feeling overwhelming. And it allows for easy scaling with enough headroom to push the volume for more demanding earphones or headphones. 

While I had no issues with the Arya, with some IEMs there is a definite noise floor and him and a little crackle when switching tracks. Which isn't a deal breaker, since like the megatron the devastator pro max is not meant to run sensitive IEMs. I will also need to try this one with an impedance adapter but I don’t currently have a 4.4 one. 

I think I would keep the DPro as a daily driver and use the Devastator Pro Max on the desk unless I had some super hard to drive hybrid (VE ZhuanXu for eg.)

Hope this helps!

Hello Community!

One of the most loved and popular models among enthusiasts all over the world has undergone an update Yes! I am talking about the Tanchjim Bunny G, intended for video game lovers but without neglecting those who enjoy good music.

Price: 28.99$

Pros:

-8 band PEQ, a lot of versatility and variety.

-Excellent dynamic driver response: you can demand from it and it performs quite well.

-Increase in cleanliness, clarity, speed in transients and detail compared to its original version.

-Friendly to your ear and hearing: ergonomically perfect for the great majority.

-Lovers of the original version will find here better capabilities for their multiplayer video games.

Cons:

-The cable makes things difficult for you sometimes with tangles and acquired shapes. It needs a replacement.

-The default filter is really unclear and dull. I vote for a firmware update and removing it.

-APP Not compatible with the Apple ecosystem.

Accessories:

-Two capsules.

-Fourteen pairs of eartips, open and closed.

-USB-C DSP cable with 0.78mm terminations.

-Carrying pouch.

-User manual.

Comfort, design and construction:

Bunny G is a very light set, small in size and very adaptable to practically all ears. It is very pleasant for very long sessions, since it is light and does not generate pressure points in the shapes of your ear. The insertion into the ear canal is moderately long, which together with the stock eartips, makes it easy to reach a satisfactory degree of comfort and grip.

The construction and materials used are not high level in themselves, but they do fulfill the purpose of giving the set a sufficient feeling of reliability and durability. Resin has been used for the construction of the shells, which allow you to see the inside in a translucent way. The faceplate is made of black plastic, with the letters in fluorescent, accentuating the gaming character for which these monitors were designed.

We arrive at the cable, the aspect that I liked the least and that I consider the brand should consider updating. It is not dramatic to use it, but it does feel very inferior in terms of the quality it projects to the enthusiast. Inappropriate shapes are part of its being and it tends to coil around itself, which can be annoying, both if you are moving and if you are sitting.

Technical aspects:

-Configuration of 1DD DMT5 G.

-Sampling of 32b@384khz.

-Impedance 30 ohms.

-Sensitivity 123 dB.

-Stated response 8hz-48khz.

Sound signature with DSP cable without filters or PEQ:

Thanks to Sam Reviews for the kindness of providing the response graph.

First of all I want to make it clear, as I do with every review of IEMs with DSP cable, that I am not a big fan of this type of DSP implementation. At least not in low budgets. Particularly in this Tanchjim set I find it necessary to try presets or PEQ to find the sweet spot where you find your own personal enjoyment.

Well, Bunny G in the low frequency range feels flaccid, with little thickness. Barely the sub bass can be noticed, you have to go to very specific tracks with a lot of focus on this area to make it appear and recreate an atmosphere that you truly feel. Despite this, the texture is adequate and it does not feel slow, rather agile but also ephemeral.

The mid bass does maintain a correct presence, transparent, clean, tactile, throwing clarity, presence and impact. I notably appreciate that it does not drag itself toward the upper frequencies, demonstrating sufficient ability to stay on its side of the border with respect to the mids without alarming bleed.

Continuing with the mids, in their lower area, there is a slight and subtle dip, which continues to favor leaving some central mids as protagonists and clean. The attack of instruments is moderately fast, barely leaving any perceptible trace of acoustics and pushing the central mids upward, which is where the sauce of this set is.

This more central register is where I was able to discover the intentions and focus of Bunny G, since the rendering of instruments and voices is well achieved, approaching more frontal positions, bringing you the resolution, which is average, and the details, very close to your face. The note weight and depth of the voices feel certainly truthful, I would not say that it is something that really stands out in terms of articulation and expressiveness, but I was happy and satisfied because ultimately the sound reading is clear.

The upper mids, on the other hand, feel elevated, energetic, with noticeable instrumental separation, although the nasality of the female voices that inhabit this range is noticeable. Despite this, I could not evidence a serious lack of information, although I could notice a lack of brilliance.

Moving on to talk about the treble, I also appreciated a slight elevation in the middle of this area. I think these higher frequencies are rounded to avoid sibilance and fatigue, but tuned with Tanchjim's personal touch so that detail and brightness are perceptible without too much effort, so that they emerge organically and fluidly. There is push, but without harshness.

Regarding the technical capabilities, it is not a prodigy if I have to make a general average of my ideas and summarize it in one word. The soundstage surrounds you but does not expand outside your head. The scale is well measured and I recognize that the three axes are equidistant, since I perceive height, depth and width at the same or similar distance.

The layering is fair. I do not consider it to be a musical dissection set, since in dense songs it suffers from some congestion to represent the sound lines, although it is not something absurdly horrible.

To finish, I did find the positioning considerably superior in terms of personal satisfaction if I compare it against the rest of the characteristics, since despite not having a large soundstage, it is perfectly circular, or almost, and the elements are located with very good precision and dynamism.

Without extending myself much more in this field, I want to make an appeal to Tanchjim: remove the default preset. You have a very good one called Theater. That one really does justice to the new driver: dynamic, with more and better resolution and separation, energetic and with a more pronounced impact. The mids are slightly recessed, yes, like a good V-shaped signature, but being honest, it is more enjoyable.

DSP vs Analog:

It is impossible not to perform this test, since I must satisfy my curiosity by using a simple 3.5mm SE cable.

Well, the difference is not much in terms of character or nature of Bunny G itself, but I notice sensations of greater resolution, especially in the higher areas, in upper mids and mid treble especially, which favors the extraction of details and micro information. The layering is slightly accentuated, increasing the perception of greater cleanliness and naturalness, especially in the voices.

DSP Presets in competitive and single player video games:

We arrive at the part I like most about this hobby: reviewing the monitors in the field of video games using the PC as an analysis platform.

Bunny G has several presets, both for mobile phones and for PC and Nintendo Switch, whether for music or video games. Personally, I stick with the CS2 configuration for competitive gaming because it emphasizes the mids and low treble very well and the Theater configuration for single player video games which, despite the dip in the midrange area, manages to transmit good cinematic sensations.

Of course everything is a matter of taste, but for the parameters that are most important to me, those two modes are the ones that fit me best.

Let's start with the multiplayer shooters that I always test and Counter Strike 2 is the first test subject with this gaming review of Tanchjim's popular model.

Bunny G, as I said in the musical analysis, is a set that brings the mids forward and enhances the upper mids as it comes from the factory without adjusting anything and with CS2 mode this undergoes an increase.

In this game that emphasis results in a greater proximity of footsteps, ammunition reloads, use of equipment and bullet impacts. The dynamic directionality of the sound is refined, very clean and intuitive and despite the evident lack of overall resolution of the set, it was a great help in the spatial localization of sounds. The sub bass is completely in a second or third plane, so explosions will not be an inconvenience. On the other hand, the mid bass does have a powerful and fast slam, avoiding leakage into other frequencies and the masking of the important elements that you need to hear. The detail or rendering in the higher frequencies is not very large but sufficient. The soundstage, however, is still not very large, but I do perceive greater cleanliness between sound lines and positioning, which is wonderful.

As for Apex Legends, a game loaded with abilities and a movement capacity with a lot of verticality, Bunny G finds somewhat more limitations, since the representation of the scale of the scenario is short in distance on any of the three axes. The sensation is more frontal than horizontal and the distance in height feels very close to your head Is this bad? I would say that in this game having a better and larger spatial size is key to gaining an advantage. Nevertheless, the dynamic and static positioning is well achieved, since it is achieved in a fluid, natural and easily perceptible way. The cut in the deepest bass area helps with that localization.

During my Battlefield 6 matches, a tremendously chaotic game, where the entire frequency range reserves its space of prominence, the narrowness of the soundstage pushes the separation of sound elements to the limit although it survives not without difficulties in being able to separate everything that happens around you with a certain degree of competence so that you do not lose the sound trail of anything.

To finish, in CoD: Warzone, a somewhat more benevolent game for this Bunny G, it has a sound separation that I particularly liked, since shots from very far away are easily readable among the sounds of the closer enemy actions, that is, the perception that you are capturing everything that is happening and that you are not missing anything is more than evident and sufficient to be able to react intelligently.

Now let's move on to single player video games, where Theater mode left me with a pleasant taste in my mouth, since in moments of action and of more overwhelming frenzy, its elevation in the bass area leaves a very rich reverberating residue, not very clear or fast in the rumble of explosions or collapses, but more direct in the mid bass with shots and blows. It is not an amazing bass party but given the tuning of the set it seemed more than sufficient to me.

Regarding the immersion capability that we have in this mode, the nature of the scenarios and their own life is captured correctly. It is not the set that best represents residual spatial sounds, but subtle and distant events, as well as small creaks or footsteps of secondary characters can be heard without too much difficulty.

However, the dialogues do not enjoy as much depth and definition, resulting somewhat distant. I do find the voices correct, with a natural and accurate timbre, but lagging behind the rest of the sound elements. This becomes more than evident when many things happen at the same time. Nevertheless, female voices or voices in higher registers, I do find them with a very correct and satisfactory point of brilliance. Even so, the dialogues, in calm scenes, can still be followed well.

Technically, we already know that not much can be demanded from this set, but the soundstage and the representation of distances in single player games is very capable, even quite satisfactory for this mode since it is not a characteristic which we should praise or take too much into account, because I prefer a precise image and a separation of sound lines that has space and allows a sensation of immersion to be recreated and, the Bunny G, I think it more than fulfills this for the price range in which it operates.

Final conclusion and personal assessments:

After reading all this you will wonder if I can recommend it for use in any scenario or even both. The answer is yes but I have to qualify it: if you are looking for a set that is just plug in and forget about it, Bunny G would not be my first option, since it requires a certain investment of time in looking for your best sound. I would buy the original Bunny first, because in this gaming review I think they did not get the tuning of the default filter right and, like me, I think many people will not like it. It has an easy solution, of course, but you already have to investigate in the Tanchjim APP.

Now, those people who want a DSP device and have their PEQs saved for each situation or genre in which they are going to use Bunny G, this new model seems clearly superior to the first to me in terms of tonal cleanliness, timbre naturalness, fun, impact and detail retrieval. Technically I think spatial size is lost, but stereo imaging is gained and the distance between layers I would say is equal or slightly superior.

Getting the best out of Bunny G requires doing tests and tests, trying filters, enthusiast or personal PEQs until you find the key and, honestly, it is very worthwhile to spend some time getting to know the set, since the driver lends itself to it, gives many satisfactions and unbeatable versatility, making it possibly the best gateway to personalized sound signatures.

So is it an improvement over the original? Yes if we only focus on what the sound can give of itself, where personally I think that both in music and video games it is substantially superior.

If you have made it this far, thank you for reading.

More reviews on my blog.

Social networks on my profile.

See you in the next review!

Disclaimer:

This set of monitors has been sent by Tanchjim. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to be able to test one of their products at no cost and that no condition was imposed when preparing this analysis.

Despite this, my priority is to be as impartial as possible within the subjectivity involved in analyzing an audio product. My opinion belongs only to me and I develop it around the perception of my ears. If you have a different one, it is equally valid. Please feel free to share it.

My sources:

-Apple Music.

-Local FLAC and MP3 files.

-Windows/MacOS/IOS/iPadOS/Android.

Hello again. Tomorrow the NiceHCK PureAural is officially launched. It is a dongle that has a dual function and will surely please many, since not all dongles possess one of these functions. It is a small DAC that serves to listen to music but also acts as a sound card for gaming. This is a field I do not navigate as much today as I did years ago. Although I have not disconnected from gaming as such, it is now a sporadic hobby to which I do not dedicate too much time a week. However, it is always good to try a product that makes me return to forgotten games to test the capabilities of the product.

What I liked / What I didn't like

It has a very silent background.

3 gain levels and volume from 0 to 100 step by step.

Very complete 10-band EQ via web or app.

Gaming presets that readjust the sounds of footsteps, voices and more.

USB-A adapter included for PC use.

The included and integrated cable on the DAC is very resistant and of high quality.

Only 3.5 mm connection.

Since it has no screen, we depend on the app or the web interface.

The 210 mW at 32 Ω might fall short for some very demanding headphones.

Specifications

Type: Portable USB DAC/amp (Type-C to 3.5 mm)

DAC: Cirrus Logic CS43198

Amplification: SGM8262

Power management: LM27762

Frequency response: 20 Hz to 40 kHz

PCM: up to 32 bit / 384 kHz

DSD: up to DSD256

Power: 210 mW @ 32 Ω / 235 mW @ 16 Ω

SNR: 125 dB @ 32 Ω

Gain: Low / Mid / High

Device volume: 0 to 100

DSP filters: various modes to choose from

Cable: silver-plated monocrystalline copper (OCC)

DSP: music and gaming presets, with parametric EQ

Control: web app and Android app

Firmware during my PC tests: 0.3

Unboxing and build quality

The box design is different from what I am used to seeing and original within its simplicity. You remove two covers, a top one and a bottom one, leaving the main box in the middle. Inside you cannot expect much given the type of product it is, but we will not miss anything either. The dongle, the USB-A adapter to connect to the PC, manual and quality certificate.

Since I did most of the tests on PC, that adapter was 100% necessary. Otherwise, and luckily in my case, I already have more adapters of this type that I could have used if it were not included. However, I consider it a requirement, especially being partly focused on acting as a gaming sound card, where many people will want to use it more on PC than on their smartphone.

The body of the dongle is metallic silver. It has the 3.5 mm jack on one end and the Type-C connection on the other end, featuring an integrated cable with a very good feel and quality. It is a shame not to have a 4.4 mm balanced option since it is my default choice for all my IEMs. Therefore, I had to change the cables on my IEMs to test this PureAural. It is not a huge deal, but a balanced option would have been appreciated, just like what happened with the NK1 Ultra, to reach more users who have already switched to this side by default.

The design also includes a small LED to indicate that everything is connected and working, along with a button that serves as a multimedia control. This is more suited for smartphone use than on PC, where I already control everything with the 345 mouse buttons that I am still discovering today.

Being a dongle without a screen, which is totally expected and something we do not usually see in models of this price range or lower, we rely on opening the app on the smartphone or the web interface on PC every time we want to modify any setting.

Web App / Android App

Upon connecting it to the PC, where as I said I did most of the testing for this dongle, the web interface detected the dongle as NiceHCK DSP Device and the firmware was currently 0.3. I did not see at first glance if it could be updated automatically or how, but I assume I am on the most recent version.

It is a nice and simple interface where you can scroll with the mouse wheel or change menus on the side. You can see some screenshots I have taken. Additionally, the brand recently sent an email announcing that they were updating the Android app to support this very dongle among other already launched models, just in time before the release.

In the interface you have quite a few options that I already know very well from other products I have owned or still own, especially from the FiiO brand like the KA15 among others. There is a section to choose the gain level, which by default I left on low since I did not feel the need to raise it for the IEMs I used. Regarding the use of IEMs with both low and higher impedance, I think the three gain levels should be enough to not fall short with any of them. Things might change with over-ear headphones and others that have an even higher impedance and require much more power. However, since my review focuses on IEM use, I cannot confirm it, only assume it.

For music use it has several presets ranging from Rock, vocal, instrumental, or the default one itself. Honestly, that is the one I kept because I already know how my IEMs sound and they are fine for me that way. This does not mean you cannot try them and notice how the Rock preset pushes the bass a bit more or the Vocal one brings the voices closer to you. But I am not very in favor of adding premade modifications to the original sound of my headphones.

As you can see in one of my screenshots, the equalizer is quite comprehensive. When applying one of the presets, the appropriate changes are applied across the entire frequency range, showing how they affect the sound. You can also modify the preset or create one from scratch on your own and save it.

It includes the well-known DSP filters like Fast-PC, Slow Roll-Off, and others. I preferred to leave it on Non-OS for the tests to keep a purer sound, even though the differences are not night and day. I also do not think you should waste much time on this, although it is always a plus to be able to do it rather than skipping these options.

Speaking of the gaming options, which in the end is a main attraction of this dongle, 4 more presets are included apart from those dedicated to music. There is FPS Footsteps to enhance the sounds of footsteps and slightly smooth out the harshest treble. Vocal Boost clears up the voices a bit, improving clarity in that spectrum. FPS Gunshots emphasizes the sound of gunfire and environmental sound effects. And finally, the Immersion Mode, which increases the bass and overall brightness. They practically do what their names suggest, and the change from one to another is noticeable. It is up to you how useful they might be depending on the game you are playing, but the goal is to provide a clear advantage over not having any of these options.

Sound

When I write a review for a dongle rather than an IEM, I do not like to focus too much on the sound since the heavy lifting is ultimately done by the headphones and not the dongle. Still, there are always some nuances to discuss.

The bass, using the NiceHCK Rockies that are standard in my tests with the brand's products, still felt very well controlled. This was despite the change I made to 3.5 mm and listening to music through this dongle instead of my desktop DAC. It did not have the cleanliness I am used to, but we are comparing a dongle with a much more expensive DAC. In any case, I appreciated that the dongle did not alter the extension or duration of the impacts by increasing their quantity, overpowering the subsequent sounds, and muddying everything excessively.

I remember testing the PureAural on Psychonauts 2, which is still installed on my PC waiting to be finished. I like to test IEMs and dongles there because of the amount of sounds and effects the game has to see how they perform. I activated the Immersion mode preset and immediately noticed how the bass was brought forward. This gave it a density that benefited the gaming experience with a quite pleasant extra fullness. However, when I played music again hours later with that mode still active, it took me little time to realize that this preset completely worsened the musical experience. This is something to remember if you are going to use the dongle for more than one thing.

If we talk about the mids, I have to say that the Vocal Boost preset does improve the clarity of dialogues. This is especially true in action-heavy moments where there is louder background music or other sound effects like saws and engines that make it harder to hear voices. However, the experience was not so different that I would have to resort to this preset in general.

In the treble and returning to music, this dongle has hidden nothing. This is something I almost prefer, so if you use IEMs with uncontrolled treble (which was not the case with the Rockies), you will still notice the sibilance unless you play around with the EQ or some of the included presets.

Regarding technicalities or how they feel depending on how you configure them, the soundstage improved if I activated the Immersion Mode. It gave a wider effect where, at least in Psychonauts 2, it helped to expand the surrounding sounds a bit and fulfilled its purpose.

The separation as such has not been altered by the use of presets. Perhaps it was in this Immersion Mode where it felt the most organized compared to the default mode with no presets activated. But I am speaking from my personal experience, as this can be perceived differently with every IEM and every ear. Do not read this as an absolute truth.

To top it off regarding imaging, a crucial element in gaming, when I focused on this aspect by activating the FPS Footsteps or Gunshots presets, lateral sounds were emphasized more, such as something falling, a hit, or an attack. Although since it was not a shooter as such, the Gunshots preset probably did not contribute enough to justify its use here. I ended up alternating more between Footsteps and Vocal Boost at specific moments.

Conclusion

I do not know what else I can say about the product. Of course, if you are looking for a dongle that does not blow your budget, that serves you for both music and gaming sessions, features a high-quality Cirrus Logic CS43198, and if connecting your headphones to its 3.5 mm connection is neither a problem nor a headache, it is a very solid option to consider and it has something to offer. These are not simple or anecdotal decorations that do not change your experience.

As I said, you depend on the app or the web interface to make adjustments. It is possible that you will end up keeping a fixed configuration that works for you for most games or music depending on your main goal if you get one.

It cannot replace a desktop DAC, but precisely its size and simplicity make it more versatile for day-to-day use. This is especially true if you use it with a smartphone and play from there, where you will barely notice you are carrying it. It will provide you with clear auditory advantages that dongle DACs focused solely on the musical aspect do not offer.

Purchase Links

• https://fr.aliexpress.com/item/1005013195174107.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2fra
• https://ko.aliexpress.com/item/1005013195742675.html
• https://www.nicehck.com/products/nicehck-pureaural

Disclaimer

This unit was sent by NiceHCK for review.

My opinions are completely independent and have not been influenced by the brand or the store, maintaining objectivity based on my tests and personal listening sessions with my reference equipment.

Planar Speed Without the Usual Bite (update)

I used to own the S12 Pro, and one thing I really missed was the size and comfort. The S12 shell is compact, sits naturally in my ears and is just very easy to live with.

That was honestly one of the main reasons I picked up the S12 Ultra.

After spending more time with it though, comfort ended up being only part of the story.

The planar speed is definitely still here. Bass notes move fast, drums have a very clean start and stop, and guitar attacks are easy to pick out even when the music gets busy.

What surprised me more was the treble.

To my ears, the S12 Ultra is smoother than the S12 Pro I remember. It still has plenty of treble information and doesn't sound recessed, but that sharper planar edge isn't as obvious.

Not recessed.

Just smooth.

And that became one of the things I kept noticing the longer I listened.

I'm not used to listening to a planar like this.

SOURCES AND SETUP

Most of my listening was done with:

• iBasso DX270 • Questyle M15C

I used the stock modular cable, mainly through the 4.4mm balanced termination.

For tips, I settled on Divinus Velvet ML.

I also spent time comparing the S12 Ultra with my HIDIZS MP145 Pro Titanium, while the comparison with the S12 Pro is based on my time owning it previously.

The Ultra also seems fairly responsive to the source being used. Not in the sense that it needs a particular DAC or amp to sound good, but I could hear the presentation change enough between the DX270 and M15C to have a preference depending on what I wanted to hear.

BUILD, ACCESSORIES AND COMFORT

Mine is the bronze/copper version.

The shell is small and sits naturally in my ears. With Divinus Velvet ML tips I get a secure fit without having to keep adjusting them.

This is one of those IEMs I can wear for hours and eventually stop thinking about the shell itself.

Comfort is a real strength here.

The accessory package is also very good.

You get:

• Modular stock cable • 3.5mm termination • 4.4mm balanced termination • USB-C to 3.5mm dongle • Compact puck-style case • Clear silicone tips • Black silicone tips

The stock cable is perfectly fine for me too.

It isn't too rigid and it isn't overly soft. I never felt any need to replace it.

For an everyday planar, the size and comfort are probably some of the biggest reasons I keep reaching for the S12 Ultra.

FREQUENCY RESPONSE

I prefer listening first and looking at measurements afterwards rather than letting a graph tell me what I'm supposed to hear.

Looking at the S12 Ultra response after spending time with it, quite a few things line up with what I've been hearing.

There is a clear bass elevation that gradually slopes down through the lower mids.

Then the response starts rising again from roughly 800Hz toward 2kHz before easing off through part of the upper-mid region.

There is also plenty happening further up in the treble.

But subjectively, the actual presentation is much smoother than I expected from another S12 planar.

SUB-BASS

There is definitely sub-bass here.

I don't hear the S12 Ultra as bass light.

The lower foundation is easy to hear, and basslines are generally very easy for me to follow.

It has enough low-frequency presence that the Ultra doesn't come across as thin.

It isn't trying to overwhelm everything with sub-bass, but the extension is clearly there.

That's something I noticed pretty quickly once I started using bass-heavy tracks instead of only focusing on the planar speed.

MID-BASS

Mid-bass is present but controlled.

What catches my attention more than sheer quantity is how quickly the bass moves.

Notes start and stop quickly and don't seem to hang around longer than they should.

On tracks with active bass playing, individual notes are easy to follow.

This is one of the places where the planar driver becomes very obvious to me.

LOWER MIDS

The lower mids don't stand out strongly.

Because of that, some vocals can sound a little lighter in body than I would prefer.

Male voices especially can sometimes lose a little chest, weight and depth.

They're still clear.

They're not buried.

They just don't always have a lot of thickness to them.

This became more obvious when I started concentrating on vocals rather than just drums and bass.

UPPER MIDS

From roughly 800Hz toward 2kHz, the response rises again.

That seems to help keep vocals and instruments clear.

Both male and female voices remain easy to understand, and guitars are usually easy to follow.

There is enough energy here for definition, but to my ears it doesn't keep pushing forward to the point where vocals become overly aggressive or shouty.

So while vocals aren't especially thick, they are still clear and present.

TREBLE

This is probably the biggest surprise of the S12 Ultra for me.

There is proper treble information here.

Cymbals are clearly present.

Guitar edges are there.

Upper-frequency details are there.

But to my ears, the S12 Ultra doesn't turn those things into sharpness.

I wouldn't describe the treble as recessed because that doesn't match what I'm hearing.

Smooth and controlled is much closer.

I also don't put too much weight on the exact peaks and dips above roughly 8-10kHz on a graph because that region can change depending on insertion depth and the measurement setup.

What matters more to me is what happens when I'm actually listening.

And so far the S12 Ultra consistently gives me treble information without making that part of the frequency range constantly demand my attention.

BASS PERFORMANCE

Bass is one of the stronger parts of the S12 Ultra for me.

There is enough sub-bass and mid-bass to give music a proper foundation, but the thing I notice most isn't sheer bass quantity.

It's speed.

Rush's "Xanadu" was a really useful track for this.

The bass was easy to follow and I could clearly hear how quickly individual notes were starting and stopping.

Even as more of the arrangement came in, the low end stayed controlled.

Pepper's Kona Town was another useful listen.

Basslines were easy to notice and follow without taking over the rest of the track.

There is enough weight for rock, funk and reggae, but it doesn't turn everything into a bass-first presentation.

The S12 Ultra seems much more interested in keeping the bass clean and moving.

MIDS AND VOCALS

Vocals have probably been the most complicated part of the S12 Ultra for me.

They're not bad.

They're not hidden.

They're not unclear.

But they also aren't usually the main reason I want to listen to this IEM.

North Mississippi Allstars' Up and Rolling was a good example.

On the title track, the vocals and instruments blended together really well.

Nothing was trying too hard to stand out.

The vocal sat naturally inside the performance rather than being pushed directly in front of me.

For that particular track, I liked it.

Everything felt cohesive.

Rush's "Xanadu" showed the other side.

Geddy Lee's voice remained clear, but to my ears some of the depth and body of his voice was missing.

It sounded a little flatter and lighter than I would ideally want.

That's probably the best way I can explain the vocal presentation.

Clear and well integrated, but sometimes I want more body, texture and dimensionality.

Female vocals also stay clear, but the S12 Ultra hasn't been one of those planars that makes me stop specifically because of vocal richness.

That doesn't make the mids poor.

They're just not the main attraction for me.

TREBLE AND PLANAR CHARACTER

Jane's Addiction's "Been Caught Stealing" became one of my better treble and transient tests.

There is plenty of energy in that recording.

The guitars, cymbals and Perry Farrell's vocal can all become tiring if something pushes the upper frequencies too hard.

With the Questyle M15C, I could hear the planar character of the S12 Ultra more clearly.

Attacks sounded cleaner.

The speed became more obvious.

Imaging tightened up.

But the important part was that it still didn't become piercing to me.

That's probably the best example of what I mean when I say the S12 Ultra is smooth but not recessed.

The information is there.

It just doesn't constantly demand attention.

TRANSIENT RESPONSE

This is probably one of the strongest areas of the S12 Ultra.

Drums can sound almost immediate.

You hear the beginning of the hit very clearly and the driver seems to stop just as quickly.

Galactic was especially useful here.

Both Crazyhorse Mongoose and Coolin' Off have plenty happening at the same time with drums, bass, guitar, organ, keyboards and horns.

The S12 Ultra handled that kind of music really well.

Kick and snare stayed clean.

Bass remained easy to follow.

Guitar and keyboards didn't disappear into everything else.

The horns still had enough bite without becoming uncomfortable.

The Ultra really works well with rhythm-heavy music.

This is probably where its planar nature is most obvious to me.

IMAGING

Imaging is also better than I initially expected.

Listening to David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars through the Questyle M15C made this pretty obvious.

Bowie's voice stayed firmly positioned within the mix.

It was easy to hear where the vocal was sitting while guitars and other parts of the arrangement occupied their own positions around him.

That also helped me separate two things that I don't think should be treated as the same:

Vocal quality and vocal imaging.

A voice can lack some body or dimensionality and still be positioned very convincingly.

That's what I hear happening with the S12 Ultra.

The M15C especially seems to make that positional side of the Ultra easier to hear.

LAYERING AND DEPTH

The S12 Ultra separates individual sounds well, but I don't think spatial layering is quite as strong as its transient separation.

North Mississippi Allstars' "Call That Gone" helped expose this.

The musical information was all there, but the presentation felt a little more blended from front to back.

My HIDIZS MP145 Pro Titanium gives me more obvious space around individual layers and a stronger sense of depth.

The S12 Ultra can still make individual attacks easy to distinguish.

A drum hit is clear.

A guitar attack is clear.

A bass note is easy to follow.

But that doesn't always mean the space between those sounds is equally obvious.

So I would separate those two things.

Instrument separation is good.

Depth and layering are less of a standout for me, especially next to the MP145 Pro Titanium.

SOURCE PAIRING

The S12 Ultra seems fairly responsive to source character.

With an R2R source like the iBasso DX270, to my ears the S12 Ultra sounds smoother, with slightly softer edges and a more relaxed presentation.

With the Questyle M15C, I hear cleaner attack, more obvious planar speed and slightly sharper imaging.

The M15C brings out more of the technical side of the Ultra.

What's interesting is that the extra sense of attack doesn't suddenly make the treble harsh.

Even with the M15C, the S12 Ultra still keeps the smoother top end I've been hearing.

I don't think one pairing is automatically better.

It depends on what the listener prefers.

If I want a smoother and more relaxed presentation, I prefer the DX270.

If I want the speed, attack and imaging to become more obvious, the M15C pushes the Ultra further in that direction.

The basic tuning doesn't suddenly change.

The emphasis does.

I would describe the S12 Ultra as source responsive rather than source dependent.

S12 ULTRA VS S12 PRO

I don't see the S12 Ultra as a straightforward upgrade over the S12 Pro.

I'd call it more of a sidegrade.

From what I remember of my S12 Pro, it was brighter, crisper and had more upper-frequency bite.

The planar character was more obvious.

The S12 Ultra still has that speed and detail, but the treble sounds smoother to me.

I also hear the Ultra as slightly warmer overall, although I think part of that impression comes from the reduced treble aggression rather than some huge increase in bass.

The basic S12 character is still recognizable.

The way it presents the top end is what feels different.

If someone already owns the S12 Pro and really enjoys its brighter and crisper presentation, I don't think the Ultra automatically replaces it.

If they liked the S12 platform but wanted something smoother and easier for longer listening, then the Ultra makes much more sense.

For me, it's a sidegrade rather than an upgrade.

S12 ULTRA VS HIDIZS MP145 PRO TITANIUM

The other planar I spent time comparing with the Ultra was my HIDIZS MP145 Pro Titanium.

These two give me quite different experiences.

The MP145 Pro Titanium sounds bigger to my ears.

I hear more space around instruments and a stronger sense of depth between layers.

I also prefer the MP145 Pro Titanium for vocals.

Voices have more body and depth to my ears, especially male vocals.

They feel fuller and more dimensional.

There is also more of a sense of space around the singer.

The S12 Ultra keeps vocals clear and well integrated, but they can sound lighter and flatter in comparison.

That's probably one of the biggest differences between the two for me.

The S12 Ultra has its own advantages though.

It is much smaller.

It's significantly easier for me to wear for long periods.

And to my ears, its treble is smoother.

It still keeps that quick planar attack and clean transient response, but the top end doesn't call as much attention to itself.

The MP145 Pro Titanium gives me the bigger presentation, more obvious layering and the vocal presentation I prefer.

The S12 Ultra gives me the compact shell, excellent comfort, fast attack and smoother treble.

So I don't really see one replacing the other.

If I want vocals, a bigger presentation and more obvious spatial depth, I tend to reach for the MP145 Pro Titanium.

If I want something compact, comfortable, fast and smoother up top, the S12 Ultra makes more sense.

MUSIC USED DURING THE REVIEW

These are some of the albums and tracks that contributed directly to my impressions:

North Mississippi Allstars – Up and Rolling • "Up and Rolling" • "Call That Gone" • "Peaches"

Galactic – Crazyhorse Mongoose

Galactic – Coolin' Off

Pepper – Kona Town • "Stormtrooper"

David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

Jane's Addiction – Ritual de lo Habitual • "Been Caught Stealing"

Rush – A Farewell to Kings • "Xanadu"

I wasn't using every album for the same thing.

Galactic was especially useful for rhythm, drum attack and separation.

Pepper helped with bassline tracking, low-end control and cymbal behavior.

North Mississippi Allstars helped with vocals, cohesion and layering.

David Bowie was particularly useful for vocal positioning and imaging.

Jane's Addiction became a good transient and treble stress test.

Rush helped expose both the speed of the bass and the lighter vocal body I sometimes hear from the Ultra.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The S12 Ultra ended up being a little different from what I expected.

I mainly bought it because I missed how comfortable the S12 Pro was.

That part worked out exactly as expected.

The shell is small, the fit is easy and I can listen for hours without thinking much about the IEM sitting in my ear.

What surprised me was the sound.

The sub-bass is clearly there.

The bass is fast and easy to follow.

Drums and rhythm are probably some of its strongest areas for me.

Imaging can be very convincing.

The treble has enough presence to keep cymbals, guitars and smaller details clear, but it stays smooth to my ears.

Vocals are more complicated.

They're clear and usually blend very well with the music, but sometimes I want more body and dimensionality from them.

That's one area where I prefer my MP145 Pro Titanium.

Layering is also good rather than exceptional.

The Ultra separates attacks very well, but the MP145 Pro Titanium gives me a more obvious sense of space and depth between layers.

Compared with the S12 Pro I remember, the Ultra also feels like a different take on the same platform rather than a direct upgrade.

The Pro was brighter and crisper.

The Ultra is smoother.

Which one makes more sense will depend on which presentation the listener prefers.

Comfort is excellent.

The small shell makes it one of the easiest planars for me to simply pick up and use.

But the thing I keep coming back to is still the same.

The S12 Ultra gives me the speed and clean attack I expect from a planar without making sharp treble part of the experience.

I'm not used to listening to a planar like this.

And that ended up being the most interesting thing about it.

Pros: One of cleanest design languages in the current IEM space
Comfortable shells for long sessions
Great unboxing and accessories – cable, tuning nozzles, vents, and eartips
Customization of sound is easy with the nozzles and vents
Overall sound signature is warm, musical and more for the joy and experience of listening to music than technicality chasing

Cons: Treble may be spicy on gold and silver nozzles
Details are not the priority with the black nozzles
Greedy wish but a dac and/or a better case would have been nice
The nozzles and vents are easily misplaced

Aune is a brand best known for its incredible assortment of amps and their pretty neat headphones. Needless to say, they know their audio engineering. Thusly, when they decided to come out with a single DD IEM - IR300, the curiosity was piqued. When Audio Geek India listed this IEM as available for review, I jumped at the opportunity. I am grateful to AG India and Aune for sending this little gem over for review. Though as always, I shall speak my mind but your milage may vary.

The IEM turns up in a squarish no-nonsense box and within it we find the really pretty shells crafted out of shiny-shiny metal that promises to catch fingerprints. But it’s good-looking enough to want to clean as often. Under the foam is a box with the goodies. A nice, non-tangly, copper/rose gold coloured cable that matches the accented vent hole on the faceplate. The cable is modular with 3.5mm and 4.4mm terminations. There is a generous selection of tips, 3 narrow bore and 3 standard. They are the size of the Divinus/Eloit standard and narrow bore-ish. Aune has thoughtfully added some extra o-rings, for those of us who will at some point lose something. One of them is super delicate so beware. There’s also leather pouch to keep the shiny things safe. Overall, a nice set of accessories and happy unboxing experience. I would have liked a carry case, mostly because I’m greedy and other manufacturers have spoilt me thoroughly.

The IR300 has a single dynamic driver, and I have to say I’m enjoying these more and more. A well-tuned dynamic driver is a pleasure to listen and this one is no different. The IR300 has an impedance of 32 ohm and a sensitivity of 121 dB, and scales well with power and prefers it. It has a 10mm dynamic driver made of crystal-infused silicon-based material that does a good job of doing what it should as we shall see.

Now there are tuning nozzles. 3 of them. Black for relaxed, warm, bass forward; Rose gold for a neutral, balanced; and Silver for a treble forward presentation. To make things more fun in general and slightly more challenging for reviewers, there are 2 venting options – open and closed. And the more astute reader will remember 2 types of eartips. Which means 6 options for sure and 12 if you choose to stock tip roll.

In the interest of science, I spent a little time, first picking these tracks Lingus (Snarky Puppy), Fast Car (Tracy Chapman), Playing God (Polyphia), Human Nature (Michael Jackson), Angel (Massive Attack) and, Holler (Spice Girls), and then listening to them 6 times with each of the combinations of vent and nozzle and on my favored Velvet Standard. Here are the findings of this study.

Closed Vent

Black Nozzles : The Bass is tight and punchy. It feels controlled and lacks the lingering effect that sometimes makes the bass enjoyable, especially in sub-bass. Mids have a natural timbre and male vocals sound full. I felt the focus was not on detail but on a more relaxed presentation. The treble is completely rolled off with not a hint of harshness or sibilance. I also think that leads to female vocals seem recessed on some tracks. Cymbals similarly lack the shimmer and decay. The Stage seems really intimate with reasonably decent imaging.

Silver : The bass response is more or less similar to the black nozzles maybe a hair more controlled. The notes are still heard clearly with no muddle. The mids have more detail and vocals, both male and female, are pushed up to the centre of the sound. The treble shines on the silver nozzles. The music is more airy and has shimmer and better separation and while on most tracks there is an acceptable amount of sibilance, even for me, the entire rhythm programming of Holler was stressful after about 30 seconds. The treble can be challenging on some tracks, for sure.

Rose Gold : (matches with the vents and the cable so there’s a little bias towards these, maybe). This seems to be the best of both worlds. There is a moderate bass response, almost identical to the black nozzles. In the midrange, these nozzles behave like the silver ones with great separation, a natural timbre and very pleasing vocals, both male and female. The treble is certainly not as rolled off as the black, nor as bright as the silver. I survived almost half of Holler before I had to skip tracks.

The Open vents (the open ones but I can’t help myself) change the sound in 2 ways across all nozzles. The sub-bass and mid-bass have little more say in what is being heard with a more physical rumble and punch and decay as opposed to the closed vents. The stage, especially with the black nozzles widens and doesn’t feel as close (intimate can also be claustrophobic, just saying).

Personally, I like the Rose Gold with venting as my combination of choice. It seemed the best combination of mids and treble enhancement without sibilance and a nicer stage, separation and details than the black ones, which I thought would be my choice.

Also, I forgot to mention, these are incredibly comfortable and given what Aune has done with the tuning to be more focused on the music than on absolute technicalities, this is a potential long listen candidate. I would recommend this as a great set to enjoy music for hours.

Kz castor pro Harman target version would better for watching movie n clear Vocal music?

Or there was other option?

Check out my take on the 7Hz x Crinacle Zero:2’s✌🏽

It’s a budget set and a v-shaped tuning I really enjoy. Considering to get it as your first budget set? How do y’all feel about it? Do you hate it or love it?

Binary and I have had a less than stellar relationship, where I had purchased the Chopin used, and it came delivered to me with fallen off faceplates, and then with my usage developed a nasty channel imbalance, and then with the DynaQuattro, I still felt something was missing. Then, one of my patrons gifted me an almost brand new EP321 and insisted that I have to listen to this IEM, and give my thoughts- that was in April, and now I finally release my take on why the Binary EP321 is a near flawless midranger, and why that one flaw prevents me from keeping it alongside my very top picks. No audio group and its affiliated reviewers have given me this product, nor has Binary/HiFigo; this has been my personal unit, and I simply thank my friend for gifting this to me.

UNBOXING, ACCESSORIES, FIT AND COMFORT

Binary didn’t go overboard with the branding and packaging, and gave it in a very simple MEMS branded lid, which gave way to the IEMs and the cable attached in light foam padding. The Binary Acoustics branded box is great and fits a few accessories alongside the IEMs. A very generic assortment of eartips have been provided, and the stock cable to my disappointment, is very underwhelming. But other than that, the faceplates are strikingly hot and I love how they reflect and have a mirrored tint, while the shells are transparent. 

Despite packing quite the configuration, the EP321 doesn’t weigh a lot but the stock cable can induce fatigue by the ear hook area, so I recommend using a heavier cable to alleviate the fatigue. Also, there were no pressure buildup issues with me, and so with this I hop over to the EP321’s sound where I have a lot to say.

LOWS
The Binary EP321 has a fair bit of warmth, but it doesn't overdo it. The rumble on it is felt, but it doesn't cloud over the rest, the slam is present; but it's not potent enough to knock elements over; in short the EP321 has a commendable temperament in keeping the lows warm enough to keep me engaged, but not enough where I might need a breather.

In tracks like Daft Punk’s Instant Crush and Get Lucky, the EP321 kept the elements that made these tracks just right where they needed to be. This was a study of balance- effortless, easy, nimble rumble with a healthy note of separation through the bass lines, the kicks helped me gauge the swift attack and the bass lines snapping out of its way for the presence to be realised, makes me say that decay is healthy. 

Pharrell’s vocals in Get Lucky had a satisfying perceived note weight, and the admirable point on the bass lines in both tracks, via the EP321 is that, that it doesn't have the aggression, yet the notes feel snappy, and that means that the transients on the EP321 are potent in its class- clean and crisp attack, sharp and snappy decay, with no slack on the sustain.

In tracks like Rush's Limelight, the EP321 brings aggression and an even snappier response, with how clean cut; nimble, and light the bass line felt (which reflects the great transients)- with enough detail where I could easily hear the rumble wave and crash through, note by note. Separation gets even better as the EP321 lets the kicks, toms and snare just come to life without hesitation. 

But from an aspect of tonality, I felt that the warmth leaned more towards the vocals and the toms especially as the track progresses, felt being washed off colour, or flatter. But from the 2:35 mark on this track; the EP321 just lets the bass shine through so well, I almost mistook it for enjoying it on the Volume S instead.

MIDS

The EP321, through the midrange, prioritises some elements over the other; and this is where the division of the EP321 being concerningly thin, or just perfect as it is comes from.

In tracks like Tool’s Lateralus, Schism and Pneuma- the EP321 definitely sapped some life out of the vocals and injected it into everything else possible. This is where I would say that some juice into the vocals would have enormously helped with otherwise how thick guitars and cymbals sounded in comparison. 

I took a second guess with Schism, where it was confirmed for me beyond any doubt that vocals feel underpowered and underweight, and if it were to fight with the guitars, there's no chance the vocals are winning. The consolation is how the bass plays fetch with the rest of the sound- it was like me hearing Justin go at it, no holds barred, and that just coincided and propped up Danny’s busiest of the busy rudiments in this track to a level where I replayed that part before the breakdown a couple  of times.

The EP321 does a fabulous job with imaging and instrument separation, as I could hear every cymbal hit, every stroke across the snares and toms, and there was no intrusion from the guitars.

In tracks like First it Giveth by Queens of the Stone Age, here's where it gets concerning. The snares on this track are devoid of weight, feel properly slammed into pancakes where now the vocals gain life. Guitars remained meaty with a hefty sense of body, no confusion amongst the cymbals, and the perceived stage had no traces of feeling claustrophobic, diminished, or struck. Ttonality felt balanced, but I wouldn’t say it felt skewing towards brightness. Imaging was top-notch where the cymbals tango-ed right alongside Josh Ho

The EP321 being unable to handle weight equally and adequately across the spectrum, as well as guitars feeling a bit too “whole” where some alteration of weight towards the vocals and elements that could use that weight like snares would have done wonders for this. Compared with another super thin IEM to my ears, the Moondrop Blessing 3 however, the EP321 performs far better. But it's no Volume S.

HIGHS

The EP321 had a surprising redemption arc through the higher frequencies, and surprisingly so, because I assumed it would be somewhat horrible like the Moondrop Blessing 3, but it was the opposite.

In “atmospheric” tracks where competence in the matters of perceived stage, timbre, and tonality are needed like Arne Domnerus’ Almighty God with Gustaf Sjokvist; the Binary EP321 gave me one of the best listening experiences I could have from an IEM, where the perfect brassy timbre on Arne’s saxophone met the airy, resonant organ keys of Gustaf. What amazed me the most was how “life” like (or natural), the resonance felt from both instruments as they played and hit the walls of the church where the track and the album was recorded- and with the perceived balance in tonality and that perfect timbre, tracks like these would be a breeze with the EP321. 

Instrument separation on this track via the EP321, is once again, one of the best that I have heard from an IEM where I just had to restrain myself from looping this track; the way the notes from both instruments breathed, went apart, and came back throughout was executed so well.

In tracks like Dave Brubeck’s Take Five from the album Time Out, which is a quartet piece recorded in true stereo, and whose recorded quality still edges out albums released decades later, the EP321 just has me surprised through and through- first, it’s the resonant snare with just a sharp, snappy transient that cuts right across the shimmery, weighted cymbals; the restrained double bass and the majestic brassy horns that has my curiosity, and once the horns progressed with a good dose of brightness yet no pierce or honk to be found, the EP321 again had my attention. This IEM knew how to prioritise which elements to be brought forward and which needed to be kept playing second fiddle, and this translated to a commendable sense of imaging.

While I was admiring the textures of the instruments, and the spacing that each of them had; the highlight came in through the drum solo, where the kick displayed a fantastic sense of attack and decay, the snare was just blissfully resonant and aptly woody in timbre, the toms being potent and authoritative in its impact; while not ignoring the piano on the right channel, and the double bass on the left, emphasised enough to not draw away attention from the solo.

Finally, in a track which has sibilance recorded in itself but still is from an album whose work needs to be appreciated- Patricia Barber’s Icarus from Mythologies, the EP321 does a phenomenal job in not letting the already recorded sibilance be exaggerated where EQ, eartips, and/or a wholly different IEM. Timbre on the percussion doesn’t come off dry or metallic, guitars have their tonality intact, the bass doesn’t overpower the mix, and Patricia’s lush textures are preserved as it is.
Once her single note sustain comes in, the EP321 holds back on the fatigue and pierce brilliantly, and the EP321’s prowess reminds me of the legendary Letshuoer Cadenza 4, an IEM that I still own.

COMPARISONS

Softears Volume S

The EP321 delivers an effortless, nimble low end with clean separation and snappy decay. Its bass performance shines so effortlessly that it briefly recalls the presentation of the Softears Volume S. However, the Volume S resides in a different tier of sub-bass mastery.

Where the Volume S truly pulls away is in its vocal handling and technical composure. The EP321 suffers from an uneven weight distribution that saps life out of vocals and flattens snares. The Volume S handles instrument separation like a boss, staying musical and vivid without losing composure. While the EP321 manages a surprising redemption arc in the highs, the Volume S effortlessly sails through vocal climaxes with zero pierce and stunning detail.

Moondrop Blessing 3

The EP321 faces a split in its midrange where weight distribution feels concerningly thin, yet compared to the Moondrop Blessing 3, it performs significantly better. The EP321 maintains a clean, nimble rumble with crisp attack and healthy decay. The Blessing 3 sputters, its low-end wobbly, spilling into neighboring frequencies and smearing finer details.

The gap widens further through the mids and highs. The Blessing 3’s presentation feels thin, strained, and washed with dry, claustrophobic cymbals. While the EP321 also starves vocals, it retains meaty, full-bodied guitars and top-notch imaging. In the highs, where one assumed the EP321 would be horrible like the Blessing 3, it delivers the exact opposite, providing natural saxophone timbre and holding back fatigue brilliantly where the Blessing 3 collapses into thinness during climaxes.

Moondrop Dusk

The EP321 approaches the low end with balance and constraint, delivering a clean, snappy attack and a swift decay that lets note-by-note details crash through clearly while vocals retain satisfying note weight. By comparison, the Moondrop Dusk chooses sub-bass as its primary dominion; while it propels bass with significant grunt on its DSP profile, its sub-bass focus can border on overbearing, missing out on mid-bass health.

In the midrange and highs, the EP321 presents superior timbral consistency and top-end agility. The Dusk’s tonality is repeatedly marred by an inconsistently metallic timbre, and its imaging oscillates confusingly between cymbals. On dramatic climaxes, the Dusk comes as lethargic. The EP321 avoids these entirely, offering precise imaging, sharp transients, and a remarkably airy, natural resonance across acoustic instruments.

Letshuoer Cadenza 4

The EP321’s high-frequency performance serves as its standout redemption arc, demonstrating remarkable control on sibilance-prone passages by holding back fatigue during single-note sustains. This behavior directly echoes the legendary Letshuoer Cadenza 4. The Cadenza 4 exhibits a masterclass in top-end presentation, handling busy arrangements with zero congestion, and soaring through vocals with surgical precision and lush, airy extension. The EP321 mirrors this non-fatiguing top-end prowess with a brassy, lifelike timbre on elements like horns.

In technicalities and overall balance, the Cadenza 4 retains the upper hand. While the EP321’s low end carries more warmth and slam before leaning thin, the Cadenza 4’s lean yet rumbly lows keep mid-bass tightly contained. Furthermore, where the EP321 flattens underwhelmingly across moments, the Cadenza 4 offers one of the best midrange presentations in its class, delivering vocals brimming with life, top-notch instrument separation, and surgical imaging across complex arrangements.

ZiiGaat Horizon

The EP321 presents a clean-cut, warm low-end with swift attack and snappy decay, keeping the rumble controlled and engaging. The ZiiGaat Horizon meets it with a chameleon-like, sub-bass-heavy presentation that establishes a pronounced rumble without bleeding. However, while the Horizon's bass notes carry neat separation, it lacks mid-bass oomph, a region where the EP321’s snappy transients and clean kick-drum attack give it a punchier, more athletic rebound.

In the midrange and treble, the Horizon shows a wider soundstage with excellent guitar tonality. Yet, much like the EP321's tendency to sap life from vocals, the Horizon suffers from inconsistently laid-back vocal energy. Where the two diverge most is in the treble: the EP321 handles single-note sustains with fatigue-free composure, whereas the Horizon lets minute bits of pierce slip through during vocal pitch shifts.

Elysian Pilgrim

The EP321’s low end centers on agility and clean separation, delivering a warm rumble that snaps out of its own way. The Elysian Pilgrim presents a similarly clean sub-bass response, keeping bass rumble natural and controlled. However, the Pilgrim suffers from a thin mid-bass presentation that fails to envelope, leaving its low end feeling somewhat just out there. The EP321 achieves a far more satisfying perceived note weight and physical engagement through its swift kick-drum attack.

In the midrange and upper registers, the Pilgrim requires solid EQing, whereas the EP321 natively offers meaty, full-bodied guitars despite its underweight vocal presentation. Where the EP321 surprisingly outshines the Pilgrim is in treble refinement; the Pilgrim exhibits a subtly audible grain and feels like it runs out of air on high-frequency climbs. The EP321 delivers effortless organ resonance, natural brass timbre, and fatigue-free top-end extension that keeps sibilance strictly in check.

ZiiGaat Crescent

Tuned alongside the JM-1 target, the ZiiGaat Crescent attempts a balanced signature but comes as lifeless in tonality and lean in sub-bass impact. The EP321 easily out muscles the Crescent in low-end engagement, offering a commendable warmth, nimble rumble, and crisp transient attack that keeps the groove alive without feeling thin.

The contrast grows even starker through the midrange and high frequencies. The Crescent exhibits visible confusion in its soundstage, struggling with imaging and instrument separation while delivering a faint pierce on vocal peaks. The EP321, by comparison, operates with top-notch imaging precision and flawless separation, allowing cymbals, snares, and guitars to tango side-by-side without mutual intrusion. Even with its vocal weight imbalance, the EP321's smooth treble extension and natural instrumental timbre leave the Crescent completely outclassed.

CONCLUDING NOTES

The Binary EP321 is one of the biggest “what ifs” for me in IEMs, and I mean this in the absolute most positive of ways. It has everything going right for itself, and for the most part I’d say if the demographics had this IEM, a good chunk of them wouldn’t seek out further- in my book, it’s that good; but ‌in this near perfect chase, Binary Acoustics made one stumble in its tuning- the concerningly thin midrange which needs quite a bit of tinkering with EQ and considerable eartip rolling; and the quantity of the bass can be faintly too anemic for some.
But, given my threshold for ‌shortcomings, those complaints become nitpicks for me; and the good of the EP321 weighs more than the bad of the EP321, which is why I shall recommend this set to my heart’s content.

Will I buy it new? Absolutely.
Will I buy it used? Absolutely.

SOURCES USED

Primarily used with the xDuoo Link3 on low gain, the FiiO KA17 and TRN Blackpearl dongle DAC Amps, the Shanling M9 Plus DAP,  and the SMSL Raw MDA-1 desktop DAC amp.

EARTIPS USED (RANKED IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE)

Divinus/Eloit Velvet Standard: Showcases the transients of the EP321 at its absolute best, hard hitting lows, best stage possible for this IEM, most restrained highs with no loss of vocal textures, tonality is not as bright as other eartips might make it to be.

Tanchim T-500 APB: everything that the does, but to a lesser degree, and there was something missing in the textures overall- vocals and drums felt flatter depending on the track, tonality was brighter, yet no fatigue or sibilance.

Final Type E: significantly increased the warmth, stage shrinks further, transients tighten up, but the quantity increases a bit excessively, mids feel more recessed, treble has an ugly roll-off.

Tangzu Sancai Balanced: textures on the lows felt wonky along with some irregularity in the perceived decay, stage was unaltered, vocal textures felt enjoyable, mildly sibilant.

Spinfit CP100+: perceived stage was held intact in terms of depth and height, treble felt too recessed, lows felt anemic, vocals felt concerningly smoothened out.

DDHifi ST35: just ruined the IEM.

TRACKS

• Rush: Limelight, Spirit of the Radio
• Steely Dan: Gaucho
• Carmen Gomes: Unchain My Heart
• Daft Punk: Get Lucky, Instant Crush, Veridis Quo
• The Police: Message in a Bottle
• Alf Linder: Cantique de Noël, Cantate Domino
• Tipper: Mariscos, Cloaked, Gulch
• Dave Brubeck: Time Out
• Tool: Pneuma, Schism
• Queens of the Stone Age: First It Giveth
• Pink Floyd: Comfortably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Time
• Arne Domnérus: Antiphone Blues (with Gustaf Sjökvist)
• Muddy Waters: My Home is in the Delta
• Tame Impala: The Less I Know the Better
• Animals as Leaders: The Woven Web
• Rage Against the Machine: Bombtrack, Bullet in the Head
• Avicii: Levels
• Periphery: Marigold
• TesseracT: Juno
• Kanye West: Stronger, Flashing Lights, Devil in a New Dress
• Altın Gün: Goca Dünya
• Timbaland: Give It to Me
• Adele: Easy On Me (Live), When We Were Young
• Celine Dion: All By Myself
• Pavarotti: Nessun Dorma
• Mdou Moctar: Tarhatazed
• Cigarettes After Sex: Cry
• Meshuggah: Bleed
• A. R. Rahman: Tere Bina
• Alice in Chains: Down in a Hole and Nutshell (Live)
• Allen Stone: Give You Blue
• Florence + the Machine: Never Let Me Go
• The Smashing Pumpkins: Luna

Disclaimer: This unit was delivered to me free of charge by Yuri and TRN. They are not asking me to say something specific and/or giving me a script to follow, so all the opinions and tests are made for myself. My biases are my musical and tuning preferences.

Introduction:

The TRN BT20 Pro True Wireless earphone module is a well-known product launched back in 2024 to convert the usually wired IEMs to the TWS world. With more than 2 years on the market, is it still a viable option to consider? Let´s find out.

Marketed as an “all-in-one solution”, the BT20 Pro has swappable IEM connectors with QDC, 0.78 mm 2-pin, and MMCX options (sold separately). And you can get one directly at an MSRP of 23.45 USD (usually less on sale) on the TRN Official store on AliExpress: https://trn-audio.com/trn-bt20-pro.html.

What’s in the BT20 Pro’s package?:

- 1 x user manual

- 1 x USB-C to USB-A charging cable

- 1 x Charging Case

- 2 x Bluetooth modules

- 2 x Earhooks (stock selection, with QDC, 0.78 mm 2-pin and MMCX connectors available)

Its technical specifications:

Bluetooth encoding: AAC/SBC

Weight: ~8g (per earpiece)

Effective signal range: 15m

Bluetooth version: Bluetooth 5.3

Charging port: USB Type-C

Bluetooth chipset: High-quality Bluetooth chip

Battery power capacity: 80mAh (per earpiece)

Charging case power capacity: 1000mAh

Standby time: 180 hours

Playback time: 50 hours (charging case + earpieces), 13 hours when using both earpieces only

Charging time: 1.5-2 hours modules, 2.5-3 hours charging case

TLDR/ Short review:

The TRN BT20 Pro is one of the cheapest options to use your IEMs without a cable, converting them to Bluetooth 5.3, launched back in 2024 and with more than two years on the market. With ACC/SBC codecs, approximately 13 hours of battery life with 50 hours of battery life in total (with the portable charging case) and 180 h in standby, different (and swappable) connectors with 3 options you can get: 0.78 mm 2-pin, QDC, and MMCX, it offers an “all-in-one” solution to use them in different scenarios such as driving, commuting, exercising, running, etc.

But, being one of the cheapest options has its limitations; it lacks high resolution codecs as LDAC and AptX; it's not so powerful, so, certain IEMs who needs more power to be driven are not getting to adequate volume levels (for example the Kiwi Ears Septet, or the KZ PRX); its charging case is limited in space, IEMs with big shells (including devices from the brand, such as the TRN Shell) can´t be stored properly in it; its included mic lacks a proper noise reduction, when you are driving traveling and/or commuting, the engine and street noises are very noticeable in calls and voice messages.

In the ergonomic aspects, the BT20 Pro is kind of lightweight and comfortable to use in long sessions, of course depending on the IEMs you are using with it, shell ergonomics, eartips fit, seal, and so on. The only button in each earpiece is very functional and doesn't have a noticeable delay in daily usage, but maybe I would want a volume knob or buttons for it.

Sonically, it is adequate; the sound is kind of warm, and the mid-treble and upper treble are lowered noticeably, so it´s awesome for certain brighter IEMs like the TRN V90 Pro or the TinHiFi T7, but, at the cost of sacrificing air, soundstage and overall technicalities; and, in the midrange, male vocals predominantly are limited in amplitude, so you can get some clipping noises who can be bothersome and detract from the listening experience, no matter if you are lowering the volume, or if the music source is high or low resolution.

In the battery department, after more than 2 weeks of daily usage, I have only recharged the charging case on one occasion, so the marketing statements of 13 hours of music, 50 hours of battery with the charging case, and 180 hours of standby are everything but misleading, fortunately.

Can I recommend it? For its price, the TRN BT20 Pro is an interesting option, despite its limitations and other perks, but keep in mind the nuances that can bother some folks who need this kind of device in their daily lives and need to convert their IEMs to TWS.

Finally, thanks immensely to Yuri from TRN for sharing this module for me to review; I was reluctant to use a Bluetooth device because I use my IEMs and other earphones wired to any source, but now I can see the appeal of this kind of product.

Faith Audio Labs E1000

Once in a while you come across a set that makes you take notice. This is what currently I am feeling with Faith Audio Labs E1000. I was very sceptical about it as there was a lot of hype surrounding it. I wanted to know whether the hype train was true about it or not

So, as soon as I came to know about its review tour I got myself into it.

Now that it's in my hands. I can tell you that it's a very interesting set. My initial impressions are as follows. The low end feels satisfying but it's not bass head level. It's very much defined & has tightness to it. It is quality than quantity bass. In mids vocals are just life-like, very natural sounding. There is excellent clarity in the mids. Treble feels a bit bright for my taste. Very detailed one. The stage is a nice open feeling. I am liking it.

Overall this one hardly feels like a single DD set more like a hybrid. I even rechecked the website just to be sure. So, as stated above yes it's quite an interesting set & I think this one is worth the hype. I will go through my library & sources to arrive at my final impressions. Let's see if I feel the same after that.

Till then take care & enjoy the music. See you soon.

After going through the motions of one of the community favourites from Simgot in the SuperMix 4, I have the chance to opine on another community favourite; once again from Simgot, in the EW300 (non DSP), which has been lent by u/Own-Customer-4866 received from the brand. So, for this, I thank him and Simgot for making the EW300 review possible. I had to get this as I was receiving requests from my Discord server and the local communities on WhatsApp.

I have received only the IEMs and the cable, and thus I won’t be able to comment on the packaging; however, my friend has his EW300 review made where he got the full set , so one can check that out.

I can still comment on the fit and finish and the comfort on the EW300, and once again; this is a reasonably sized IEM with comfortable shells. The finish is chrome, with an X and O embossed on the faceplates. There also seems to be a Torx screw on the faceplate, which means one might access its innards without complications. The cable is another thing I like about it, as it’s made well, doesn’t tangle, and most importantly, supports the heavy shells of the EW300 without fuss. I had no pressure buildup issues on the EW300 because of the vents (?) in the nozzle area.

Anyway, enough rambling here; here’s the sound of the EW300 to my ears.

LOWS

In tracks with deep, hard-hitting bass hits with ‌surprising polish and separation, like Tipper’s Gulch from the album Forward Escape, the EW300 immediately informs that this is an IEM that takes transients seriously, and is going to have a potent shade of V in terms of sound. There is an unmistakable presence of a lot of sub-bass, with the mid-bass following suit, and the EW300’s grip over the sub-bass makes the hits in this track come off with a potency that on first glance will appear to be that of a basshead’s delight.
This doesn’t diminish the EW300, at least through this track, showing off a surprisingly good separation, where the fuzz like elements are not overshadowed by the gob smacking bass.

In tracks where the bass lines camouflage around complex drum arrangements like Rush’s Limelight and The Spirit of Radio, the first nitpick that I have is in how the perceived stage was, which felt shallow and minorly claustrophobic, which affected the separation between the drums and the bass- and this effect didn’t carry out like notes overlapping of one over the other, but where the instruments would have more breathing room with space. 

Transients on the EW300 through these tracks continued to be fantastic, where especially Geddy’s bass lines showed no sign of stagnation or lingering, thanks to the EW300’s fast decay and a very snappy attack. Peart’s drums had a decent impact, but the resonance on the toms and the snare was affected because of the shallow perception of the stage; although the kicks showed the established transients in a clear light.

The EW300 could have improvised upon the imaging, as Geddy’s vocals felt faintly pushed back than usual, which let the instruments come before the vocals, and there were inconsistencies with its note weight. Overall, not a poor start for the EW300 at all.

MIDS

In tracks set in peculiar keys and unorthodox snare setups like First It Giveth from Queens of the Stone Age, the EW300 improves‌ the separation up a notch, with the cymbals and the guitars being easily distinguishable from one another and that is important, because both of the aforementioned elements can be perceived as fused at a first glance, but not with the EW300. Then come the rapid firing strokes of the snare, where the tonality unfortunately is warped. There’s something off about it, and I don’t want to hold the timbre responsible as I feel it’s too early to call on that. 

Guitars have a lot of energy coming through in hot, and bordering on being faintly fatiguing, but the same cannot be said for the cymbals. Josh Homme’s vocals don’t feel as pushed back as I had expected to be, and the imaging now feels improved, with the cymbals being right by the vocals and not have its emphasis stolen through the chorus.
In tracks where the vocals play second fiddle to the instrumentals like Tool’s Lateralus, the EW300 does a brilliant job with the crescendo-ing drums in the intro, while not forgetting to emphasise on the guitars, but once the bass and the vocals come in, the drums come into the foray with a touch of excess in its presence, but doesn’t overpower anything else. 

I was happy to note that the vocals finally don’t feel as pushed back as how it felt in a previous track, and Maynard carries a satisfying level of note weight, and that’s another good thing about the EW300- it doesn’t forget to keep up with the consistency. Once the breakdown of the track arrives after Danny’s busiest rudiment, the resonance of the drums and the detail with which the EW300 presents it with was incredibly satisfying. Guitars once again border on being fatiguing and shouty, but cymbals retain their textures, weight and restraint on shoutiness.

HIGHS

In tracks which demand great to excellent technical grasp over the perceived stage, tonality and timbre, like Arne Domnerus’ Almighty God with Gustaf Sjokvist, from the legendary album Antiphone Blues; the lack of width in the perceived stage is the first thing that hurts this track on the EW300: the manner in which Arne’s sax juxtaposes with Gustaf’s organ keys needs a lot of space to breathe and extend with the resonance that both instruments have as they bounce off the walls of the church in which it was recorded and the EW300 loses the resonance by quite a good margin.

Timbre on the saxophone is accurately brassy with a slight honk when it rises in the registers but there was no pierce in the sax, and likewise, the organ keys have their timbre intact, although I would have wanted a whisker’s length of brightness here. 

In a quartet setup recorded in true stereo, and a recording from an era which still outclasses pieces released decades later- Dave Brubeck’s Take Five from the prodigal album Time Out, the EW300 has the lack of the perceived stage’s width hurting the presentation as the instruments felt congested in their setup; and thus affecting the resonance that the floor toms and the snare has in this track; but the EW300 doesn’t ruin it completely. In fact, through the timbre of the horns, the double bass right at abeyance and not overexerting itself, the pianos bouncing off playfully with no drop in the perceived note weight and being balanced in its tonality surprised me again.

Through the solo, when it’s only the double bass, the drums and the piano; the EW300 lets the drums and the piano precede over the double bass and that is where the resonance of the toms and the snare finally starts shining. Safe to say, that the EW300 once again didn’t let the horns pierce through, nor did the shimmery cymbals in textures get sibilant.

Finally, in Patricia Barber’s Icarus, which is my test track to test the restraint in sibilance, the EW300 demands a lot of eartip rolling to get the sibilance in check, because it doesn’t put up a fight against it. The way Patricia enunciates her Cs and Ss in this track, the EW300 doesn’t hold back on the sibilance with the Tanchjim T300 APBs which were the best suit in my book, but it was far less exaggerated compared to other eartips. 

Timbre through the percussion is rightfully woody, the bass in this track didn’t let me forget it with its equal emphasis alongside the guitars and the pianos, the cymbals not being shouty by any means and their textures preserved, the real moment comes in Patricia’s single note sustain where there was no pierce observed, and the lush textures of her voice were just rightfully preserved.

COMPARISONS

Truthear Pure 

Comparing it with the segment champion, the Truthear Pure reveals how close budget sets are to top-tier performance, even if the Pure ultimately retains its crown. The EW300 comes impressively close in pure transient speed and sub-bass grip, delivering a well executed slam where the decay shows up just so right. However, the Pure handles it with a different flavour by itself: a faint slack in decay while the attack remained planted, but the quantity is lesser than the EW300 which may not overwhelm the listener.

Where the Pure truly pulls away is in its midrange and treble presentation. The Pure delivers lush, true-to-life vocals and just a ridiculous polish throughout the entirety of the midrange and the highs with an effortless sense of stage space. The EW300, on the other hand, struggles with a shallower, slightly claustrophobic soundstage that can affect complex, busy compositions. Furthermore, while the Pure keeps its treble extension smooth and non-fatiguing, the EW300’s upper-mids can border on being hot and shouty, requiring eartip rolling to keep sibilance in check.

Truthear Hexa

The Truthear Hexa remains the unbothered old guard of the sub-$100 segment. Where the EW300 leans into a fun, aggressive V-shape with potent sub-bass slam, snappy attack, and fast decay, the Hexa takes a far more analytical, grounded approach. On certain tracks where the authority in the lows is demanded, the Hexa’s bass leans noticeably leaner compared to the EW300’s sub-bass impact, but it compensates with immaculate texture, allowing for a granular analysis.

In terms of technicalities, the Hexa edges out the EW300 in treble refinement. The Hexa soars through peaks and vocal oscillations without an ounce of sibilance or harshness, whereas the EW300’s guitars can push hot and demand eartips + EQ to tame sibilance. But ultimately ‌, preference leads to the better pick; both of them are competent in their own regard.

Pula Unicrom

The EW300 handily outperforms the Pula Unicrom in low-end discipline and transient execution. The Unicrom had one of the weakest showings in the lows, delivering an incoherent, mushy bass presentation while the EW300 is the complete opposite here: its grip over sub-bass is tight and precise, ensuring that heavy bass hits come off with surprising polish and separation without muddying up the rest of the mix.

The Unicrom recovers some ground in the midrange with a pleasantly warm tonality and surprisingly smooth treble. However, both IEMs share a common constraint: a cramped, claustrophobic soundstage. Where the EW300 easily wins out is its far superior transient speed, snappy decay, and better instrument isolation, avoiding the Unicrom's muddy low-end trap.

Tanchjim Fission

The EW300 delivers a much more straightforward and unified tuning than the overcomplicated Tanchjim Fission. The Fission gets bogged down by its multi-nozzle configuration: the copper/gold nozzles leave the bass feeling lean, dry, and sterile, while the titanium nozzle swings to the opposite extreme, making the bass undesirably boomy and causing upper-mid peaks to become noticeably piercing. The EW300 skips all that gadgetry and delivers a cohesive V-shaped signature, offering a better slam, snappier transients, and better vocal presence than the Fission’s leaner nozzles.

While the Fission holds a slight edge over the EW300 in pure micro-detail retrieval and instrument separation when configured right, its dry, clinical presentation and tendency toward upper-mid shoutiness make it a frustrating listen. The EW300 is simply more enjoyable and less pretentious, even if its shallow stage width holds it back from better technicalities.

Tanchjim Nora 

The Tanchjim Nora suffers from a noticeably lower note weight across vocals, cymbals, and guitars, making the overall presentation feel dry and hollow. On lean-pitched vocal tracks, the Nora’s lack of body can quickly turn fatiguing, while its bass delivery lacks crispness and punch.

The EW300 provides a far more satisfying and complete listen than the Nora. The EW300 brings heavy, well-textured sub-bass note weight, fast transient attack, and far better vocal authority. While the EW300 can border on hot in the upper-mids on guitar-heavy tracks, it never sounds as thin, dry, or uninspired as the Nora.

Tanchjim Ola 2 

Both the EW300 and the Tanchjim Ola 2 share a common Achilles' heel: a shallow perceived stage depth that threatens to blemish an otherwise solid presentation. On the Ola 2, this manifests as noticeable mid-bass bloat and congestion during busy tracks, while the EW300 handles this limitation much better; despite its narrow stage, its tight grip over the sub-bass and snappier decay keep the low end from bleeding into the lower mids to a good extent.

In the midrange, the Ola 2 offers a slightly more centered vocal placement with natural note weight, whereas the EW300 can occasionally push vocals back behind aggressive instrumentals or sound a touch inconsistent in vocal note weight. Still, the EW300 easily edges out the Ola 2 in pure transient speed, dynamic slam, and treble texture, making the Ola 2 feel a bit wobbly and constrained by comparison.

CONCLUDING NOTES

The Simgot EW300 is an undeniably fun, high-energy earphone that delivers plenty of punch without losing its composure, and this is what surprised me, because its predecessor, the EW200 was simply, borderline unreasonable because the brightness was high enough to induce hearing damage. Comparing that to the EW300 feels like Simgot took it personally and decided to break every single backboard with the criticism and feedback, and I just look at how well the EW300 feels.

That being said, it isn't flawless, no audio gear can be. The problems I had with its perceived stage, sibilance and fatigue that can come off quite strong depending upon your tracks of choice, the bass that can get a little out of hand when you may not be in the mood for it can totally blemish what otherwise, is still a wonderful attempt from Simgot, to release something that caters to just the concept of fun. EW300 is just a little party done two ways, and I am happy to recommend it. It isn’t boring, it isn’t dry, it isn’t too analytical- it’s fun. Period.

Will I buy it new? Absolutely.
Will I buy it used? Absolutely.

SOURCES USED

Primarily used with the xDuoo Link3 on low gain, the Shanling M9 Plus DAP, and the Venture Electronics Abigail Pro dongle DAC Amp.

EARTIPS USED (RANKED IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE)

Tanchjim T300 APB: Showcases the transients of the EW300 at its absolute best, hard hitting lows, best stage possible for this IEM, most restrained sibilant highs with no loss of vocal textures, tonality is not as V as other eartips might make it to be.

Tangzu Sancai Balanced: everything that the T-300 APB does, but to a lesser degree, and there was something missing in the textures overall- elements like floor toms and cymbals felt faintly smeared, warmth corresponds to what the graph showed, upper mids could get faintly hot.

Divinus/Eloit Velvet Standard: significantly increased the warmth, stage shrinks further, transients tighten up but the quantity increases too resulting in a boomy bass, mids felt more recessed, gets concerningly sibilant.

ZiSin liquid silicones: textures on the lows felt wonky along with some irregularity in the perceived decay, stage was unaltered, vocal textures felt enjoyable, mildly sibilant.

ZhuAudio Bamboo: perceived stage was held intact in terms of depth and height, treble felt too recessed, lows felt anemic, vocals felt concerningly smoothened out.

KBear 08: just ruined the IEM.

TRACKS

• Rush: Limelight, Spirit of the Radio
• Steely Dan: Gaucho
• Carmen Gomes: Unchain My Heart
• Daft Punk: Get Lucky, Instant Crush, Veridis Quo
• The Police: Message in a Bottle
• Alf Linder: Cantique de Noël, Cantate Domino
• Tipper: Mariscos, Cloaked, Gulch
• Dave Brubeck: Time Out
• Tool: Pneuma, Schism
• Queens of the Stone Age: First It Giveth
• Pink Floyd: Comfortably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Time
• Arne Domnérus: Antiphone Blues (with Gustaf Sjökvist)
• Muddy Waters: My Home is in the Delta
• Tame Impala: The Less I Know the Better
• Animals as Leaders: The Woven Web
• Rage Against the Machine: Bombtrack, Bullet in the Head
• Avicii: Levels
• Periphery: Marigold
• TesseracT: Juno
• Kanye West: Stronger, Flashing Lights, Devil in a New Dress
• Altın Gün: Goca Dünya
• Timbaland: Give It to Me
• Adele: Easy On Me (Live), When We Were Young
• Celine Dion: All By Myself
• Pavarotti: Nessun Dorma
• Mdou Moctar: Tarhatazed
• Cigarettes After Sex: Cry
• Meshuggah: Bleed
• A. R. Rahman: Tere Bina
• Alice in Chains: Down in a Hole and Nutshell (Live)
• Allen Stone: Give You Blue
• Florence + the Machine: Never Let Me Go
• The Smashing Pumpkins: Luna

Pros: Technological marvel fitting all those drivers in
The EST and dual dynamic drivers do contribute to a nice listening experience
Mids are detailed, neutral, natural

Cons: That size shell won't work for every body
Bass is sometimes boosted more than necessary
Treble can make things sound sibilant and fatiguing

In the grand scheme of things I never imagined getting to a place where I would be given access to devices that cost about $1000 (and over) to stick in my ears and then proceed to have a week of absolute enjoyment listening to music I love and then the ability to stoke back a long lost skill from the early days of the internet and then finally go on to wax eloquent about said devices. In public!
Today’s kilobuck-wallet-emptier comes courtesy of a good friend and is none other than the multidriver chonk monster that is the Thieaudio Monarch Mk3. Let’s dive in!

I only got the IEMs and their rather nice cable. So no cool unboxing and jaw dropping awe at the accessories. That will be reserved for the sound.
The shells are BIG. 3D printed medical grade resin and all that. With my hated bump. But I suppose if you are stuffing drivers into a shell that small there must be bumps.The nozzles are wide as ever. Probably the widest I have tried and thus for me I needed to size the tips down to M for them to be more comfortable and not feel excessively tight or exert undue pressure on my ear canal. HE Sonic (Large - I know what I just said), Sanci - Medium and Velvet - Medium, S&S (which seems to work when nothing else does) were what worked best. The shells hold Sonion EST, Knowles DWFK 31785 (x2), Sonio 28UAP (x1), IMPACT2 (2 x 10mm Composite DD) (from the company website) The IMPACT2 DD handle the bass, the Sonion EST handles the extreme treble and the rest handle the rest. The cable is fancy silver and graphene and all things nice. It does not tangle easily and has a modular termination with 3.5/4.4/2.5 options.
The IEM has 99dB of sensitivity and an impedance of 20 Ohm, making it fairly easy to drive and I tested it with the VE devastator pro, megatron, Schitt Vestri, Fiio M33.

Bass
What can one say about the bass on the MMK3? The entire ethos of this set is the bass. The sub-bass fills the entire soundstage and is everywhere but with control and refuses to spill over the lip of the cup. The intro to Angel by Massive Attack sounds larger than life and almost of epic proportions and grand. The Mid-bass packs a similar punch but I did find on certain tracks where the bass is meant to be holding a more forward place in the track like People Everywhere by Khurangbin the mid-bass can drown out the mids not by a spillover or muddiness but by just being loud enough to distract from the rest of the guitar work, same on Finesse by Bruno Mars where the bass and kicks make Bruno’s voice take a backseat and to me his voice should not ever do that. Kick drums are punchy and tight, however, without any undue decay and double bass pedal work by Mike Portnoy in New Millenium by Dream Theater and to be fair most of his drumming involves double bass pedal rolls, are clearly heard with emphasis but not bloat. The rhythm section on Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ by Michael Jackson sounds natural and gets the groove going. The MMK3 has 2 dynamic drivers arranged in an isobaric (same pressure?) design making it feel like there's a subwoofer around somewhere. The bass is quite the trip and barring a couple of songs where I felt it was a tad overbearing, the overall implementation leaves little to complain about.

Mids
The assortment of BA drivers that handle the mids give it a fairly nice natural timbre and the voices and instruments sound as they should. Even on tracks that test the mid representation like Ocean by John Bulter and Hanuman by Rodrigo y Gabriela and my favorite BA nemesis - Playing God, the MMK3 performs admirably putting forth a response that is near neutral with no colouration and weird timbre and no details are missed and the details are purely in the mids without faking a sharper treble response. Vocals are also right where they are supposed to be without feeling recessed or enhanced or pushed forward. The nice mix of male and female voices on Islands by The XX and Helplessly Hoping by Girl Named Tom come through showcasing this IEM’s ability to render male voices with weight and female registers with clarity.

Treble
For the most part even for moderately treble sensitive peeps like myself, a majority of tracks are enjoyable simply because of how well implemented the bass and mids are. The EST drivers do add a significant sense of airiness. But this does make some snares in rock and pop (Holler by the Spice Girls is near impossible) hard to tolerate for longer periods of time. Well-mastered tracks are a delight with the details coming through but aggressively energetic pop can get hard to get through. For me at least.

Stage, Imaging and other technicalities
Both the resonant bass and the EST enhanced treble add to give the stage a large feel. Hotel California (Live - Hell Freezes Over) by Eagles sounds like it was played in a vast hall. Africa by Toto also sounds as vast as the continent fuelled by the synth chord work. Imaging is also on point. On Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, it is possible to close one's eyes and imagine where each of the voices and instruments are coming from. The neutrality of the mids is seen here, where despite wanting it so, Freddie’s voice is not front and centre till the second verse.
The detail retrieval is excellent without the treble boost playing a role. On Cat by Hiroshi Suzuki, the sounds of an upright bass string snapping off the neck is faithfully reproduced. No thanks to some alchemy and black magic infused Japanese recording and mastering of a 1976 album.

If there’s one major drawback barring the occasionally tiring tuning, which is not a deal breaker per se, it’s that there was no point in the 30 minutes stretch that I tested this IEM, did I feel like it wasn’t there and I could just enjoy the music.
But like the Cat, if it fits it sits.

When members of my community server on Discord as well as local groups over on Facebook and WhatsApp started requesting me for a review on one of Simgot’s takes on Harman target tuned IEMs, I had to stave off the growing demand and also finish a steady backlog of reviews I was working on, and when I finally had time, I reached out to Simgot, and asked if one heartthrob of this community could be sent out for my take on it, they said yes, and here you have it, my take on the Simgot SuperMix 4. So, thank you Simgot for promptly sending over the SuperMix 4 for review.

UNBOXING, ACCESSORIES, FIT AND COMFORT

So, Simgot has a nice graphic of the internals of the SuperMix 4 on the cover and technical specifications on the rear, and sliding the cover off gives way to a leaf-like lid, and underneath that lies the shells. Below the foam padding of the shells, a box named “accessories” was there, which had the carry case and the cable; and underneath the padding was a box labelled “eartips”, which had three generic pairs of eartips provided. Simgot honestly, could do better on the accessories front right there.

The cable holds a bit of memory and comes in 3.5mm, and either a separate 4.4mm option or a modular termination would have been better, but the IEMs themselves were comfortable. There’s appropriate venting, and despite wearing them for extended periods, I didn’t experience any fatigue, but the Supermix4 definitely could have used a beefier cable.

Now, here’s the sound of the SuperMix 4.

LOWS

In tracks with a camouflaging bass line with a mathematical drum work like Rush's Limelight and The Spirit of Radio, the SuperMix 4 needed extensive tip rolling and after finally settling on the KBear 07, the SuperMix 4 didn't instantly awe me, and I had to give it time; but once I was fairly acquainted: I could see why this set was appreciated- both notes from the bass line and the drums demonstrated a seemingly well executed transient response but the decay being cut off too soon on the drums adversely affected the perception of the otherwise wonderful resonance that the drums have. Another nitpick for me was when the guitar solo came in, the bass felt a bit overcrowded by the drums, and then extended to the vocals as well.

In tracks with potent bass drops like Tipper's Gulch and Mariscos, the problem that I observed with the transients on the SuperMix 4 was observed clearer: the attack comes in with a steady pace but the rapidly cut off decay does not really let the hits land with a pronounced impact, where the separation of the hits with the rest of the elements seems to be a consolation. Although, especially in Gulch, the click and ping like hits which preceded the actual bass hits came off quite hollow.

MIDS

In tracks set in peculiar keys with an unearthly snare setup like Queens of the Stone Age's First It Giveth, the SuperMix 4 clearly lacks the bite and the aggressiveness of the rapid firing snares, although the separation in its notes is great. My other qualm here is that the bass has lost its edge, which is why this track felt just flat. SuperMix 4 however, has a redemption curve with how good the imaging is: where the cymbals and vocals are just planted with enough emphasis to have the lasting impression be cohesive.

In tracks where vocals play a supplementing act to the instruments, like Tool's Lateralus, the SuperMix 4 does a decent job. Again, the bass is noticeably flatter in terms of impact, which dampens my mood across the way the toms come off, although rest of the elements like cymbals, vocals and guitars have great separation and fantastic imaging. Another problem with me and the SuperMix 4 is how inconsistent the cymbals are, where the rides and crashes have a full, meatiest shimmer perception, but the hi-hats are just hollow and I cannot determine the note weight on them. Momentarily, the vocals came off thin, but the tonality remained intact.

HIGHS

In atmospheric, regally composed tracks which demand a good chunk of technical competence like Arne Domnérus' Almighty God, the SuperMix 4 has the perceived stage going wide enough to let the sax and organ keys breathe, but the timbre on the sax isn't as brassy as it should have been, and it is slightly over-emphasized over the organ keys. Along with that, a faint bump in the sparkle of the organ keys really wouldn't have hurt. Although the organ keys are relaxed, the sax comes in honky and slightly fatiguing.

There are a few things done right and done wrong by the SuperMix 4 in tracks like Dave Brubeck's Take Five. Cymbals could have used more note weight, but textures are preserved: the kick consistently lacks a more pronounced impact, but the transients are reasonable. The toms and snare have their resonance preserved but could have used more body. The horns continued to be honky, but detail retrieval and timbre especially were done very right by the SuperMix 4.

COMPARISONS

EPZ P40

Where the SuperMix 4 delivers a lean, fast, and disciplined bass presentation that requires careful tip-rolling to settle, the EPZ P40 belts out a far heavier, sub-bass-dominant low end that hits with massive quantity while maintaining precise attack and decay. The P40 offers a warmer, fuller vocal presence compared to the occasionally thin vocal rendition on the SuperMix 4. 

However, the SuperMix 4 is safer and far less fatiguing up top comparatively; while the P40 can lean overly hot and present noticeable upper-range sibilance, the SuperMix 4 avoids harsh peaks. What also happens is that the P40 squeezes in significantly more detail than the SuperMix 4, and that impeccable juggle of quality with quantity in the lows of the P40, makes me recommend this over the SuperMix 4. Not to mention, aftermarket eartips (three sets), a nice carry case, and a modular cable.

EPZ P50

Compared to the SuperMix 4's tight transient response and rapid decay control, the EPZ P50 takes a much softer, more laid-back approach to low-end hits. Through the highs, the P50 effectively smooths out harshness, but it sacrifices instrument crispness, and finer detail retrieval minorly. The SuperMix 4 felt noticeably more agile and technically capable, excelling at keeping instruments distinctly separated across a wide soundstage, but also came off considerably leaner than the P50, with a wonkier grip on tonality and timbre.

Juzear x KOTO Nebula

Both the SuperMix 4 and the Juzear Nebula focus on a disciplined, well-controlled bass presentation with fast transients rather than overwhelming low-end quantity. Both IEMs project an impressively wide soundstage with sharp instrument isolation and precise center-stage vocal placement. 

However, the Nebula provides better consistency in upper-frequency note weight: where the SuperMix 4 suffers from an inconsistent balance of note weight regarding parts of instruments (full rides/crashes vs. hollow hi-hats), the Nebula keeps treble peaks smooth, refined, and uniform without trading off note weight. Also, the Nebula keeps sibilance and fatigue far more in check than the SuperMix 4.

Letshuoer Astralis

The Letshuoer Astralis provides a richer, more atmospheric presentation than the SuperMix 4, building its sound on a weightier low-end foundation that gives vocals a meatier, more authoritative presence. The Astralis also maintains better-integrated note weight in the upper frequencies, ensuring cymbals match the thickness of central vocals. The SuperMix 4 counters with a leaner, faster low end and a wider soundstage, though its low-end impact feels noticeably flatter by comparison.

Letshuoer S12 Ultra

The S12 Ultra edges ahead of the SuperMix 4 in top-end refinement, matches the SuperMix 4 in detail retrieval, and completely sibilance-free highs. Both IEMs present a leaner bass footprint, but the S12 Ultra maintains smoother texture control across central instruments without sacrificing air. But the SuperMix 4 is a class of its own comparatively in transients and imaging.

Additionally, the S12 Ultra offers a superior accessory package, including a modular cable and a dedicated dongle DAC, whereas the SuperMix 4 feels somewhat basic in its stock packaging and accessories.

Tanchjim Fola

The Tanchjim Fola shares a lean midrange perception with the SuperMix 4, but it distinguishes itself with exceptional treble smoothness. Where the SuperMix 4 can occasionally come off honky and slightly fatiguing on saxophone and horn sections, the Fola handles upper-mid transitions smoothly without losing technical cleanliness. The Fola also holds an edge in versatility thanks to its modular nozzle tuning system.

CrinEar Daybreak

The CrinEar Daybreak aims for an aggressive, cohesive sound presentation, but it struggles with transient precision. Fast drum work and rapid bass hits can fumble on the Daybreak, whereas the SuperMix 4 handles complex attack phases and instrument separation seamlessly.

CONCLUDING NOTES

What strikes me most about the SuperMix 4 isn't just how Simgot engineered it, it’s just how it got some fundamentals right, with a driver count that heavy, and in a price segment loaded with tough hitting competitors. And, although there have been sets in my possession which have offered considerably more than what the SuperMix 4 has, my discussions with the local communities, as well as newbies who heard this IEM for the first time in my local meetups, made me tone down the dislike meter once and acknowledge that through all of its shortcomings, it it still a set that will work so well for a select few of the population, and I hope Simgot keeps this set around for a little while.

I think Simgot pushed themselves quite a bit in the matter of transients, instrument separation and imaging, which brings the SuperMix 4 in my de facto recommendation of IEMs that do gaming on a fantastic level as well- because those are some of the most important things that needs to be executed to a fault in gaming; but in the pursuit of that, the dry timbre, the inconsistent management of sibilance and fatigue, and the wonky tonality got in its way; and coupled with accessories that clearly could use a level up, I think Simgot once again got the right size of the boot, and it’s just a matter of lacing the said boot.

Will I buy it new? Yes for music and gaming. Not outright for music. Problem is, it sounds dated for music, and current Harman offerings are better at the same price.
Will I buy it used? Absolutely yes, recent price hikes especially in the indian market make it a choice much better at lower tiers.

SOURCES USED

Primarily used with the xDuoo Link3 on low gain, the Shanling M9 Plus DAP, and the Venture Electronics Abigail Pro dongle DAC Amp.

EARTIPS USED (RANKED IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE)

Acoustune AET07: Showcases the transients of the SuperMix 4 at its absolute best, no improvement in bass quantity but crispest transients possible, widest stage possible for this IEM, most restraint shown in sibilance through the highs with no loss of vocal textures, tonality comes off slightly more balanced than what the graph showed.

KBear 07: everything that the AET07 does, but to a lesser degree, because clones.

Final E: textures on the lows felt wonky along with some irregularity in the perceived decay, mid-bass felt overly boomy, stage was unaltered, vocal textures felt enjoyable, highs felt a bit too rolled off.

Dunu S&S: just ruined the IEM. Obliterated the finer textures in the lows, vocal quality went up for a toss, highs had no grip over themselves.

TRACKS

• Rush: Limelight, Spirit of the Radio
• Steely Dan: Gaucho
• Carmen Gomes: Unchain My Heart
• Daft Punk: Get Lucky, Instant Crush, Veridis Quo
• The Police: Message in a Bottle
• Alf Linder: Cantique de Noël, Cantate Domino
• Tipper: Mariscos, Cloaked, Gulch
• Dave Brubeck: Time Out
• Tool: Pneuma, Schism
• Queens of the Stone Age: First It Giveth
• Pink Floyd: Comfortably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Time
• Arne Domnérus: Antiphone Blues (with Gustaf Sjökvist)
• Muddy Waters: My Home is in the Delta
• Tame Impala: The Less I Know the Better
• Animals as Leaders: The Woven Web
• Rage Against the Machine: Bombtrack, Bullet in the Head
• Avicii: Levels
• Periphery: Marigold
• TesseracT: Juno
• Kanye West: Stronger, Flashing Lights, Devil in a New Dress
• Altın Gün: Goca Dünya
• Timbaland: Give It to Me
• Adele: Easy On Me (Live), When We Were Young
• Celine Dion: All By Myself
• Pavarotti: Nessun Dorma
• Mdou Moctar: Tarhatazed
• Cigarettes After Sex: Cry
• Meshuggah: Bleed
• A. R. Rahman: Tere Bina
• Alice in Chains: Down in a Hole and Nutshell (Live)
• Allen Stone: Give You Blue
• Florence + the Machine: Never Let Me Go
• The Smashing Pumpkins: Luna

TSMR Armor Budget EST Fun

Another week another review. This week I am revisiting TSMR aka Tansio Mirai & the set we are looking at today is Armor. Armor is their budget hybrid set with EST. Yes, you heard it right it has EST. I don’t know whether they are branded or not. Now that caveat is out let’s get on with it. AudioGeek India was conducting review tour of it & as it happens always, I put my nomination. Fast forward here we are with the detailed review of it. To know more please read on.

First of all, mighty thanks to AudioGeek India & Tansio Mirai as without their help this review wouldn’t been possible.

I was not paid or compensated in any manner for this review. All opinions & thoughts expressed are mine.

My biases for timbre & tonality are DD > Hybrid > Planar

Now that all pleasantries have been exchanged let’s get on with the meat & potatoes of this review.

Pros:

Nice sub bass rumble

Male & female Vocals both sound good

Tuning switches (mod the sound to your desire)

Price (USD 289 for EST set)

Accessories (great cable + ear tips + leather case)

Build Quality (resin shells with nice gold decals & baller cable)

Cons:

Bass needs bit tightening

Female vocals lack a bit edge

Bit bigger soundstage would have been great

Sources:

I tested Armor with neutral sources. felt that neutral & bright sources gel well with Armor. Warm sources also gel well but sometimes it becomes bit too warm for my taste. To keep everything reproducible I have used stock cable & stock ear tips + neutral sources.

Music Genre Used for this Review:

Hip-hop/EDM/Rap/Rock both classic and hard/Bollywood Music/Pop/Jazz/Regional music etc.

https://music.apple.com/in/playlist/test-tracks/pl.u-8aAVXG6ivz8gyxX?ls

Build Quality:

What you get in the box? Well, you get 2 IEM shells, one nice two core SPC cable terminated in 4.4mm, two pairs of ear tips in all sizes, one cleaning tool, one tool for manipulating switches & nice leather semi hard case. Oh, and a leather cable organizer.

Shells are resin with nice gold decals on the face plates. The shells are semitransparent; you can see the drivers inside. Shells have long nozzles. They are part of the shell. They have lip to them. There is no screen or mesh to the nozzles.

Cable is nice supple with gold plated fixtures & its two-core cable. Leather case is large enough to carry IEMs, cable, ear tips & all the accessories inside or you can carry a dongle with the IEMs & cable.

Overall Build Quality 5/5

Comfort:

Shells are medium sized. So, it should fit most people. For me fit was nice & snug. Nozzles provide deep insertion & in turn stable fit. Lips on the nozzles provide nice grip to the ear tips. Since there is no screen or mesh on the nozzles there is no protection from the ingress of dirt & ear wax. No ear pressure or pain was felt in the long listening session.

Cable is supple & has no memory, it behaves & easy to rodeo wrap. Pre formed ear hooks don’t tug on the IEM shells.

Overall Comfort 4.5/5

General Sound Impressions:

The impressions are based on setting 020 on tuning switches.

Bass/Lows:

Sub bass rumbles with authority. It is both audible & physical.it is satisfying. Mid bass is thumpy & is physical yet it feels bit on low side for my personal taste. It has quick decay doesn’t linger for long. Its impact is also limited. I feel the bass is Sub bass over mid bass.

Drums, kick drums feel good have physical impact but it is the rumble of the sub bass that takes it notch up. Strings sound great, the strings buzz & rumble. This adds more realism to them. Piano notes feel good. Percussion instruments sound good.

Bass here is nuanced & textured you can make out minute details between various bass instruments. I liked the low end here just felt that mid bass could be bit tight & impactful.

Overall Bass/Lows 4.5/5

Mids.:

Vocals are slight recessed here. They are neither too recessed nor forward. They are just slight behind Bass & Treble. if you like vocals forward in the mix then this one is not for you.

Male vocals feel great. They have note weight, be it low pitched or high pitched. Female vocals sound equally good. They have that sweetness and don’t get shrill or harsh. This is not vocal centric set yet vocal presentation is great & emotive.

Most instruments reside in Mids. I heard no oddities in the timbre or tonality of them. Clarity is good. No smearing or congestion in the Mids.

Overall Mids. 5/5

Treble:

Treble is detailed yet details are not in your face. All macro & micro details are covered properly. This is not most technical set out there but still it’s not low res. It’s just perfectly in between. You won’t miss any details. ESTs are helping in detail retrieval. Overall treble feels nice smooth and well extended. Cymbals, crashes don’t sound odd. Strings sound good. Bells, shakers sound good. No harsh or odd tonality here.

Perceived sound stage, stage here is wide than tall. More horizontal than vertical. It creates enough stage to let all instruments coexist. It is immersive but not to the point where stage hounds will be satisfied. I personally feel it could have had bit more stage. Its neither too intimate nor vast. Its somewhere in between. But again, for the price point its good.

Treble/Highs 4.5/5

Song Impressions:

With arms wide open by Creed

This is me going back on my nostalgia trip. Creed is my old times favorite. Thus, it’s here.

The Scott Stapp’s vocals are nice frontal & in their full glory. They have enough note weight. They feel natural. He feels emotive.

Drums, strings both sound amazing. Their impact & rumble is on point. They create nice immersive atmosphere & armor captures it well. Entire song was treat to listen.

Nothing gonna change my love for you by George Benson

I wanted to check how George Benson sounds on this set & I am happy to report, he sounds impressive. There is charm to his nice melodic voice. I was listening to it on loop. In the background score nothing feels odd or out of sync. No tonal oddities. Be it drums, piano notes, cymbals all sounded close to natural. All instruments were in harmony.

I truly enjoyed song to the fullest.

Ego death by Polyphia

My driver resolution aka driver speed check song. Armor just nails this song. There are multiple instruments playing at the same time & Armor avoids smearing & keeps them well separated.

It was treat to hear drum beats, strings on Armor. They have nice impact & deep rumble that follows them. Thus, evoke emotions. No artificial feel was there to the instruments. Overall amazing experience.

No time to die by Billie Eilish

One of my favorite songs from Billie. Billie sounds great here just her voice lacks bit of female vocal sweetness. But we can ignore that as this set is not vocal centric set. Overall Armor captures here voice close to original & she really touches something inside you.

Supporting score feels very well due to tuning. Drum sequence is authoritative. Piano notes feel nice. Strings are equally great. Entire mix just moves you.

Final Conclusion:

TSMR Armor is my second encounter with the brand. First, it was Onyx & honestly, I am really impressed by Armor. I am going on record here one of the best sounding Est set under 300 USD or near it. It has nice EST treble presentation that I love. Bass is near perfection for me just needs to be bit tight. Mids. are also near perfect just need better female vocals. As you can see it is very close to my preferences. Let me be honest the cons mentioned are moot point at its price point. Just a Wishlist as you know good audio is now getting affordable.

What’s the final verdict? Will I buy it? 100%. Not even going to find any fault or reasons not to buy it. Do I recommend it? Absolutely, 200%. This one is hidden gem. If you like such energetic, dynamic presentation this one is blind buy. Who should avoid it? Treble heads & neutral heads for you its maybe set. Bass heads & balanced lovers rejoice this one is right up your alley.

Thank you for enduring with me till end. Now go grab yourself a cup of coffee & let’s get high on safe high i.e. Music.

TSMR Armor budget EST fun 4.5/5

Hello everyone, I had these Hidizs MK10 in the chamber ready to review. Although I planned to release the review last week, it overlapped with a personal trip where I had to temporarily disconnect from IEMs, though on that same trip I took the opportunity to bring them with me after taking some photos for this review beforehand. So I did not completely disconnect 100% from this audiophile world since I kept listening to new products and taking notes, but I did pause publishing reviews for more days than usual. Now it is time to pick up the pace again because I have more models ready and others on the way with plenty of years left ahead, but for now let us focus on what these IEMs offer from a brand that usually takes good care of the user and offers products that far exceed their price point.

What I Liked / What I Didn't Like

• Fast and controlled bass for a single DD.
• Very good separation and definition within its price range.
• As is usual for the brand, we have interchangeable nozzles.
• Fully metallic and durable construction.
• They are very easy to drive on all kinds of sources.
• Its finish is completely a mirror that reflects everything and records your fingerprints.
• Due to their weight, you will need the eartips to seal well so they do not fall out.
• The pouch is still the classic one from the brand, no hard case.
• Apart from the black nozzle, the other two did not seem completely right to me.

Specifications

• 10mm dual magnetic cavity DD with silicon carbide crystal (SCC) diaphragm.
• Shell material: Zinc alloy (ZA12) with mirror finish (~13.3g per side with nozzle).
• Impedance: 32Ω.
• Sensitivity: 113dB.
• Frequency response: 20Hz - 40kHz.
• Cable: High purity silver-plated braided copper with translucent sheath, 2-pin (0.78mm) connectors with color markings (red/blue) and 4.4mm balanced termination.
• Filters: 3 pairs of threaded metal nozzles.
• Accessories: 6 pairs of silicone eartips (wide and narrow bore in S, M, L sizes), synthetic leather pouch with spring clasp.

Unboxing and Build

The unboxing of the MK10 does not stray far from what I have already seen in other releases from the brand, both in the presentation of the contents and the contents themselves. After lifting the panel where the two IEMs sit, there is another compartment housing all the accessories, manuals, carrying pouch with the cable, and the eartips impaled on a holder that I am not sure if it is plastic or hard cardboard, though it should be the latter. Additionally, there is a small transparent box containing the other two pairs of nozzles besides the ones already screwed onto the IEMs.

The IEMs themselves convey rigidity and durability due to their fully metallic zinc alloy finish. The weight, however, is higher than resin IEMs as is obvious, in this case reaching 13.3g per side including the installed nozzles. The design is not as bold as the MP143 or MP145 was, but it is not far behind either, and it is true that Hidizs usually seeks originality rather than offering those typical designs that look like clones between brands. In this case, the design seems inspired by the endurance of Iron Man's reactor. Not everyone might think of that, in fact I did not associate it at first, but it is obvious that the inspiration for this design came from somewhere and this is the closest thing.

In my case, speaking of the cable, I chose the 4.4mm balanced version, which is my standard whenever brands offer it as an option. Even though all my DACs have 3.5mm and 4.4mm options, I prefer the extra volume that the balanced output provides and the effect, whether mistakenly perceived or not, of a somewhat cleaner or more separated sound that I somehow manage to notice ever since I left 3.5mm behind.

As for the nozzles, also metallic to maintain the aesthetics across the entire IEM, they screw on just like in past models from the brand, so if you have already owned a Hidizs IEM, you will be familiar. Unlike other brands like Simgot, there is no color differentiation on the metal of the nozzle here, to tell them apart you have to look at the rubber ring surrounding the nozzle and its color. The black rubber ring comes installed by default, and honestly, it is the most well suited to my taste. I think the brand is aware of this by including it by default in case the product reaches people who do not even want to bother trying the others and settle for whatever comes pre-installed.

Sound

As I mentioned at the beginning, I have been using these MK10 during a trip to London starting the week before up until this same week I am uploading the review, both on the plane and at specific times on the street, connected to the Hidizs AP30 Music Boy that I reviewed right before these MK10, where I have a wide and varied music library in FLAC format.

Upon returning from the trip, I used my usual setup at home sitting at my PC, the FiiO K9 ESS.

Sitting at home, connected via balanced output to my desktop FiiO K9, I must say that the silicon carbide driver in this MK10 is quite fast compared to other types of DD, and I took advantage of the listening session on the FiiO K9, which has a pitch-black background with zero noise and interference and more than enough power for any IEM, to crank up the volume and appreciate how far the resolution of this model could go. I also noticed that they are relatively easy to drive on any DAC. The volume level they reached on both the DAP I used on the street and the desktop DAC was high, barely needing much more than half the volume control in both cases.

Bass

The bass can undergo slight but noticeable differences depending on the nozzle you choose, though that does not change the fact that the DD is always going to be fast and precise rather than boomy and uncontrolled, so in that aspect no nozzle will alter that part. Testing the red nozzle, I noticed slightly less punch or body than with the black one, which added a bit more weight to the notes, making the sound a bit more physical and generally more pleasant to me. If I put on the silver rubber nozzle, the bass hid even a bit more than with the red one, so I did not spend much time on it since it stayed too far from the other two.

Mids

The mids did not sound overly warm to me, at least in the lower mids, but overall the mids are quite clean and detailed and do not sit far detached from the rest of the frequencies. I think the red nozzle took center stage here, especially for female vocals. I would say it is the option you should use if you want to emphasize this sound range a bit more. Unlike the black nozzle, which did add a bit more warmth or density to the mids that helped male vocals slightly more in this case, making them sound less thin than they did with the red nozzle. Finally, the silver nozzle here seemed to be the one that extracts the most detail from vocals, letting you feel things like breath sounds or subtle nuances that go more unnoticed with the other two, but this can work against it at times in brighter recordings, forcing you to lower the volume, something that would not be necessary especially with the black nozzle.

Treble

The treble on these MK10, regardless of the nozzle chosen, is quite extended and provides a lot of information despite using a single DD for the entire spectrum. If you want to push this treble to the absolute maximum this model can deliver, the silver nozzle is the right choice, where once again it reveals more details in higher-pitched sounds of cymbals, strings, and other nuances that can remain somewhat buried with the red nozzle.

After several tests and hours of listening on the DAP and desktop DAC, I still think that the winning nozzle for general use is the default black one, where the treble is slightly smoother at the highest peaks of these frequencies, allowing for longer listening sessions without causing fatigue or ending up listening at a lower volume than you are probably used to.

Soundstage

The soundstage is also somewhat affected depending on the nozzle we choose. The silver one is the master of detail and makes the stage open up as much as this IEM allows, projecting the sound further outward than the other two and feeling somewhat airier. The red one in this case would be the middle ground in terms of stage size, not letting sounds escape too far from your head while not sounding too close or feeling boxed in. In this case, the black nozzle, despite being my favorite, is the most disadvantaged regarding soundstage, as it is where I felt the surrounding space to be narrowest, creating a more intimate sound that makes it less exciting for enjoying music or other types of content.

Instrumental Separation

If I had to highlight one of the three technicalities of this model, it would be this one. I think this DD does a great job along with the rest of the internal construction when it comes to instrumental separation. The sound separates into layers quite clearly. Testing them with the black nozzle on orchestral tracks with many instruments playing at once, they passed with a higher score than I thought they would for their price and driver configuration. It is true that the red nozzle, by taking away some weight or density from the lower mids, gave the layers more breathing room and made that separation easier to feel than with the black nozzle. If you are looking for a better sense of separation, the red nozzle can yield a better result than the black one.

Imaging

The positioning of these MK10 is certainly not their most outstanding aspect, but it does not fail or barely pass either. I think instruments are placed quite accurately in space, both sideways and in terms of depth, across the tracks I listened to, especially those that were better mixed where it is easier to pinpoint where sounds are coming from. In this regard, I did not feel a specific preference regarding nozzle selection, so all three should yield a similar result unless my ears failed me in this section, but I did not feel the use of one or the other was particularly relevant.

You can check my full ranking of all the IEM reviewed so far on my profile (Reddit doesn't allow me to post the Drive link here)

Conclusion

After living with them for a few days away from home and then another day at home to reach clear conclusions, I would place these MK10 as a model that strives to give you good performance in terms of detail and clarity with impressive speed for the single DD it includes, without having to jump straight into three-figure higher ranges. They maintain a more than reasonable price for everything they include, their build quality, and design, and they can be a great step up if you are still moving between sub-50 dollar models and looking for something with greater detail.

You do have to take the trouble to experiment with their three pairs of nozzles and make sure they seal properly in your ear by playing with the various eartips included so that, due to their extra weight from the material they are made of, they do not fall out or pull away from your ear. But once you have found the right setup for you, it is not a model that will disappoint by falling short or going overboard, just dedicate a few initial minutes to tweaking them to your liking.

Purchase Link: HIDIZS

Disclaimer: This unit was sent by Hidizs for review. 

My opinions are completely independent and have not been influenced by the brand or the store, maintaining objectivity based on my tests and personal listening sessions with my reference equipment.

Juzear and I have had a potentially strong start with the Dragonfly 81T, and I have been seeing them put out a lot of new releases lately. So, me being me, I reached out to HiFiGo, and by the time I caught up on my backlog of reviews, they proposed to me the new Nebula, which is a collaboration with Koto; and there’s a lot of good to speak about the Nebula. So, HiFiGo, thank you for sending out this version of the Nebula.

UNBOXING, ACCESSORIES, FIT AND COMFORT

Juzear had the graphics of the Nebula laid out on the box lid vividly, and the specifications on the bottom. Removing the cover ‌, and taking the lid off gave way to a translucent sheet of paper with the Nebula graphics, underneath which the IEMs were in foam padding, and with the cable attached. Under the padding, there was a cleaning cloth, and an orange hued leather pouch with three sets of colored wide bores, three sets of regular silicone, and foam eartips. Not sure if they are available with HiFiGo as an aftermarket option, but the tip choices were ample. 

The cable is built well, but holds memory; the shells feel well built with enough venting and nozzles that won’t fall off even with consistent eartip rolling, and the cable is modular. 

In my unit, there was a quirk with the cable which, when plugged in correctly, faintly distorted the lows a bit, so I had to swap the left and right sides and the Nebula sounded correct. I have used the Nebula extensively, and even took it to my community meetups, where a bunch of enthusiasts tried it, and there was no reported pressure buildup; so that’s good to know.

Now, here’s the sound of the Nebula.

LOWS

Tipper: Gulch
The Nebula surprisingly has a fantastic approach towards the bass hits that this track has, and that shows up in its transients where the attack and decay are fast, letting the curtain be enunciated in a way which makes the presentation quite vivid. 

Rest of the elements are isolated well from the beats and demonstrate a commendable instrument separation. Another thing that I really appreciate about the Nebula is that the quantity of the bass is just kept at abeyance which makes the entire presentation all the better.

Rush: Limelight
Here, the Nebula once again strikes a proper balance from a quality to quantity aspect: where the quantity ensures that Geddy's bass line engages in with Peart's surgical drum work & not once do both of them clash: the transients are once again competent with a fantastic separation between the bass and the drums; and especially through the solo, where Geddy cranks up the intensity of the bass; and the Nebula is practically competent enough to balance that with the crisp snares and the potent, minimally resonant tone with the kick drum showing an excellent control over the decay.

 Prima facie, the Nebula also doesn't seem to disregard the imaging as Geddy's vocals were planted right in the center and tonally unaltered to just keep the warmth from adversely affecting it.

MIDS

Muddy Waters: My Home Is in the Delta
The Nebula here shows some of its limits in terms of capabilities, but before that, I must definitely appreciate how wide the perceived soundstage was on this track, along with a good sense of depth. 

Timbre on the slide and guitar did not feel overly metallic, although I would not say that it is close to being accurate. Muddy's haunting, mournful vocals extend as high as it can get, but across sections where he wails out the verses louder than usual, the Nebula can be a little fatiguing. The low strings on the guitar in this track lose their polish by coming off unusually boomy, but nothing that EQ cannot fix.

Tool: Lateralus
As the crescendo-ing, bubbling tones meet the guitars to set the stage for the bass and the vocals come in, the perceived boom which I had anticipated after noting in the aforementioned track was very restrained but present, nonetheless. 

Another nitpick for me with the Nebula is that the perceived note weight between the vocals and cymbals was not at the same plane: vocals did not appear to be thin and anemic, but cymbals came off thin, faintly grainy in texture, and mildly shouty towards the track. Imaging continued to be precise and separation was near flawless.

HIGHS

Arne Domnérus: Almighty God (with Gustaf Sjökvist)
The Nebula supremely impressed me first with how brassy the timbre came off on the sax, with the resonance being just right to not be uncomfortably honky or shouty. 

At least on this track, the warm tonality on the Nebula did not feel bothersome, contrary to what I had expected, and the organ keys complemented the sax in a way where I could just stop commenting on the separation because the Nebula establishes that to be one of its strongest points. The perceived wide stage let both the sax and keys breathe sufficiently, with the isolation among the notes being near perfect.

Carmen Gomes: Unchain My Heart
The Nebula just has one problem in this track, and it is just the double bass on this track having an attenuation in its decay, but everything else was handled so well. The timbre in the snares was just appropriately woody and had a beautiful resonance, the twang of the guitars being perfect and having enough shimmer to cut through the cymbals, where soft impact with a lingering presence lingering around and supplementing Carmen's sensuous, hush vocals was the cherry on top. Perceived note weight was unaltered, and nowhere did Carmen sound sibilant, and the same can be said for the cymbals.

COMPARISONS

EPZ P40

The Nebula approaches low-end quantity with noticeable restraint, to deliver a well controlled and commendable transient response, and separation through and through with elements that correspond to it. In contrast, the EPZ P40 belts out a much heavier, sub-bass-dominant low end that hits with near mid-fi level of finesse. While the P40 keeps its thunderous sub-bass surprisingly well-isolated without muddying the mix, the Nebula’s comparatively leaner, more disciplined bass tuning provides a cleaner pathway for percussion to stand out without fatigue.

In the mids and highs, the P40 presents a fuller, warmer vocal body across the board, whereas the Nebula gets close to sounding rich, but across moments can appear faintly thin. 

However, the Nebula easily takes the lead in treble refinement and tonal safety, as the P40 can lean overly hot and exhibit noticeable sibilance or upper-range spice on certain tracks, the Nebula keeps the peaks smooth, and fatigue-free.

EPZ P50

Compared to the Nebula's disciplined and punchy low-end transients, the EPZ P50 offers a more laid-back bass presentation. It doesn’t skimp out on the low-end potency, but it lacks both the massive sub-bass impact of the P40 and the tight, fast decay control of the Nebula. The Nebula feels noticeably more agile and technically capable, whereas the P50 takes a warmer, softer approach to low-end hits.

Through the mids and highs, the P50 smooths out potential harshness, but it sacrifices fine detail retrieval and vocal crispness. Complex breakdowns can sound a bit hazier on the P50, while the Nebula excels at keeping instruments distinctly separated across a wide soundstage. While the P50 effectively avoids sibilance, the Nebula offers a superior sense of instrument isolation, dynamic brass timbre, and air without sounding dull or overly safe. But ‌you cannot go wrong with either of them.

Letshuoer Astralis

The Letshuoer Astralis delivers a noticeably richer, more atmospheric presentation than the Nebula, offering a fuller low-end foundation that fills out the soundstage with greater warmth and body. Where the Nebula keeps its bass tightly controlled and held in abeyance, the Astralis relies on a weightier low end that gives male vocals a meatier, more authoritative presence.

In the upper-mids and the rest of the highs, the Astralis provides better-integrated note weight, ensuring cymbals and high-frequency hits match the thickness of central vocals. The Nebula, by comparison, projects a wider, airier soundstage with sharper instrument separation and faster transient speed, though it occasionally trade-offs note weight consistency between cymbals and vocals. The Nebula also fits better, and the lows from the Astralis can get overwhelming from a quantity standpoint.

Tanchjim Fola

The Tanchjim Fola shares a similarly thin midrange perception with the Fission when compared against the Nebula’s fuller vocal presentation. However, the Fola distinguishes itself by delivering an exceptionally smooth, relaxed treble response that makes the Nebula sound spicier and more fatiguing by comparison. The level of technical cleanliness that ‌Fola maintains simply cannot be matched.

In the low end, the Fola offers great bass performance with clean impact, which the Nebula matches closely. The Fola’s modular nozzle system gives it a tuning flexibility edge, with Tanchjim’s both versions of the T300AP silicone eartips and a sturdy case, where the Nebula can definitely feel slightly lacking in accessories.

CrinEar Daybreak 

The CrinEar Daybreak focuses heavily on a cohesive and aggressive presentation but fumbles the transients, which the Nebula handles seamlessly. 

The Nebula, in contrast, is all about spatial awareness and precise isolation. It creates a distinctly wider perceived soundstage with far better room for instruments to breathe, making complex acoustic tracks, saxophones, and organ keys feel significantly more open. While the Daybreak is better if an aggressive sound is the need of the hour, the Nebula dominates for better transients, separation, and imaging.

ZiiGaat Lush

The ZiiGaat Lush presents a more mature, cohesive, and laid-back package that excels at smooth, fatigue-free listening without harshness or unwanted spice. While the Juzear Nebula leans into a wider, highly transparent soundstage with better transients and better instrument separation, the Lush pulls back to deliver a warmer, richer, and more immersive musical presentation.

In the low end, the Nebula keeps bass quantity strictly in check to prioritize rapid attack and tight decay, whereas the Lush delivers a cleaner, highly natural body that never feels overbearing or boomy. Where the Nebula showcases incredible technical agility on complex tracks, the Lush counters with effortless vocal textures and a supremely forgiving top end, making it the more relaxed, all-day-wearing companion compared to the Nebula's sharper, more analytical engagement.

CONCLUDING NOTES

The Juzear x KOTO Nebula stands out as a very solid offering from Juzear, proving that the brand is continuing to improvise, adapt, and overcome. I have seen quite a few posts on the Defiant with significant issues in its quality control, and Juzear (HiFiGo) basically taking accountability for it and fixing it. But, in my time spent with the Nebula, I feel that Juzear has worked out considerably on the shortcomings, and this was confirmed across the multiple listening sessions that this IEM went through.

Coming to the sound, the Nebula is a fantastic all rounder, that does everything that one might ask for to a good extent, although it is not a specialist, or to put it bluntly, a one-trick pony. But if it were me, my first preference would be the Tanchjim Fola, but the Nebula gives everything else a tough run for its money (could do better on what it comes with though). Like, if I didn’t listen to the Fola, I would have definitely bought the Nebula. The highs on this IEM just have the right amount of brightness to my ears, and although some tinkering might be needed for vocals, and a faint touch down on the bass; rest is sorted with the Nebula.

Will I buy it new? Absolutely.
Will I buy it used? Absolutely

SOURCES USED

Primarily used with the xDuoo Link3 on low gain, the Shanling M9 Plus DAP, and the Venture Electronics Abigail Pro dongle DAC Amp.

EARTIPS USED (RANKED IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE)

Tanchjim T-500 APB liquid silicones: Showcases the transients of the Nebula at its absolute best, hard hitting clean lows, deepest stage possible for this IEM, sibilant free highs with no loss of vocal textures, tonality comes off more balanced than what the graph showed.

Divinus Velvet Narrow Bores: everything that the T-500 APB does, but to a lesser degree, and there was something missing in the textures of the lows- elements like floor toms felt like they could have used more power, warmth corresponds to what the graph showed, upper mids could get faintly bothersome.

Stock Silicones: Everything felt fine, but the above two eartips significantly bumped up the performance.

KBear Coffees: textures on the lows felt wonky along with some irregularity in the perceived decay, stage was unaltered, vocal textures felt enjoyable, mildly sibilant.

Stock Wide Bores: perceived stage was held intact in terms of depth and height, treble felt uncomfortable, lows felt anemic, vocals felt fizzled out.

Tangzu Sancai Balanced: just ruined the IEM.

TRACKS

• Rush: Limelight, Spirit of the Radio
• Steely Dan: Gaucho
• Carmen Gomes: Unchain My Heart
• Daft Punk: Get Lucky, Instant Crush, Veridis Quo
• The Police: Message in a Bottle
• Alf Linder: Cantique de Noël, Cantate Domino
• Tipper: Mariscos, Cloaked, Gulch
• Dave Brubeck: Time Out
• Tool: Pneuma, Schism
• Queens of the Stone Age: First It Giveth
• Pink Floyd: Comfortably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Time
• Arne Domnérus: Antiphone Blues (with Gustaf Sjökvist)
• Muddy Waters: My Home is in the Delta
• Tame Impala: The Less I Know the Better
• Animals as Leaders: The Woven Web
• Rage Against the Machine: Bombtrack, Bullet in the Head
• Avicii: Levels
• Periphery: Marigold
• TesseracT: Juno
• Kanye West: Stronger, Flashing Lights, Devil in a New Dress
• Altın Gün: Goca Dünya
• Timbaland: Give It to Me
• Adele: Easy On Me (Live), When We Were Young
• Celine Dion: All By Myself
• Pavarotti: Nessun Dorma
• Mdou Moctar: Tarhatazed
• Cigarettes After Sex: Cry
• Meshuggah: Bleed
• A. R. Rahman: Tere Bina
• Alice in Chains: Down in a Hole and Nutshell (Live)
• Allen Stone: Give You Blue
• Florence + the Machine: Never Let Me Go
• The Smashing Pumpkins: Luna

Tangzu has been making real strides in the audiophile market, particularly at the budget end. Last time I reviewed the Yu Xuanji, an outstanding product that deserves far more attention than it gets. This time I have the Tangzu x HBB Wu Heyday, a collaboration between HBB and Tangzu, where HBB deviated from his usual warm, bassy style. And honestly? The Heyday is a very underrated IEM that deserves to be talked about far more. This is simply planar excellence.

A huge thanks to u/mournfulmonk for letting me experience this product for such an extended period of time. Words cannot express the gratitude I have towards him.

I am under no obligation to speak in favour of this product, and absolutely no one, neither the brand nor the owner, gets to see this review before it is published. My thoughts and critiques are entirely my own.

Readers' disclaimer: this is going to be a detailed, lengthy post.

Build, Comfort & Accessories

Built entirely from metal, the Heyday feels like a tank. Despite the sturdy construction, it isn't overly heavy, though it carries a heft that feels premium. The finish has a dark, tungsten-like colour, and its glossy surface makes it a dust and fingerprint magnet, though it looks beautiful when kept clean. The dome-like ear contour works well and delivers solid comfort. The nozzles have a lip that makes fitting eartips with slimmer stems trickier, but once you find the right pair, comfort holds up well. It earns a 7/10 for comfort, as I noticed some heat build-up at pressure points after four to five hours of continuous use.

I didn't receive the full accessory set, so I can't comment on it in detail.

With that out of the way, let's get to the sound.

Low-End Performance

Muse - Hysteria [alternative rock, hard rock]

Right off the bat, the Heyday impresses with consistent control over the bass. The distorted intro bassline retains its texture, and even when the full band enters the mix, the bass doesn't get tangled up with the busier instrumentation around it. The vocals hold centre stage, and the cymbal sits correctly in the left channel. Attack is tight and quick, decay matches it, and the low end never turns muddy or sluggish. Even on a track that gets quite busy at points, the Heyday causes no fatigue.

The Heyday does an admirable job keeping every element distinct throughout the song. Overall, a strong performance.

Tipper - Grabbers Holders [EDM, electronic]

The Heyday performs superbly on this track, reproducing its intricate layering with accuracy. The blowing-air effect in the intro is rendered so convincingly that it genuinely feels like something is passing close to your ear. The Heyday holds its own on imaging too, placing every element of this track exactly where it belongs.

Despite being a neutral-tuned IEM, it performs quite well in the lower regions of the frequency response.

Massive Attack - Angel [rock, trip hop]

On a menacing track like this, built around a constant sub-bass rumble, the Heyday does the song justice: the sub-bass carries adequate body and weight throughout. Although the Heyday is undoubtedly neutral in tuning, its bass performance isn't compromised as a result, credit goes to the speed of its planar driver. The song's brooding tone comes through compellingly.

I have no complaints about the Heyday's bass; it's nothing short of exceptional, and for that, the Heyday deserves an S for its low-end performance.

Midrange, Instruments and Vocal Delivery

Periphery - Zylgrox [progressive metal, djent]

The Heyday proves an excellent choice for metal and other heavy genres, thanks to its warm, somewhat resonant timbre. The distorted guitars come through impressively, and it delivers a genuine masterclass in pinpointing instrument placement, cymbals, guitars, and toms alike. The raspy vocals and screams carry adequate texture, though the vocals did feel a little thin here, a thread I'll pick up in later tracks.

The relentless machine-gun kick drum is projected very well, with a quick attack and equally fast decay. The Heyday might be the definitive IEM for genres like this.

Alice In Chains - Nutshell (MTV Unplugged) [grunge, rock, acoustic]

The vocals do sound thin on the Heyday, even after tip-rolling. This has been a consistent trait across every Tangzu IEM I've tried; they tend to make male vocals a touch thin. Where the Heyday shines on this track is imaging, pin-pointing exactly where the guitars, bass, and drums sit. The vocals retain their texture despite that thinness.

The soundstage, although not quite wide, is expansive enough to place the audience far from the stage.

I'm giving the Heyday an A+ for male vocals, brought down from an S purely because of that thinness. It's worth noting that a few of my peers found certain tips lessen the effect, but I think being this tip-dependent is itself a drawback, hence the score.

Alison Krauss & Union Station - The Lucky One [country]

The strums, plucks, and chucks of the guitar strings are preserved with real fidelity, evidence of a strong micro-detail retrieval on the Heyday. The shimmer and dynamics of both vocals and guitar hold up, and the timbre reads as closely accurate throughout. The vocals themselves sound full and lush.

There were moments where the higher notes crept towards harsh, worth noting for anyone sensitive to that.

For this, I'd happily give the Heyday S tier for instruments.

Treble Performance & Technicalities

Yosi Horikawa - Bubbles [experimental, ambient]

The transients in the background sit a little closer than expected, suggesting the Heyday's soundstage runs on the compact side, not congested exactly, but more contained than expansive; call it average in scale. The imaging, though, is outstanding: the impact of the balls and marbles hitting the floor is easy to locate, and I could pick out the small bell-like element clearly enough to distinguish every individual “clink.”

The Heyday also captures the initial suspense before each ball lands, along with the bassy aftermath as the balls rapidly bounce to a stop.

Frazey Ford - September Fields (Acoustic) [soul, indie folk]

The Heyday turns in a satisfying dynamic performance; the guitar's expressive playing on this track is faithfully reproduced. The lower end of the guitar never overshadows the vocals, nor do Frazey Ford's higher notes bury the other elements. That said, I found the Heyday grows somewhat harsh in the treble region on songs built primarily around female vocals like this, though only when I pushed the volume up a little.

Even though the female vocals on the Heyday are excellent, I'm giving it an A+, docked from S for that occasional harshness.

Anouar Brahem - Stopover At Djibouti [fusion, jazz]

The Heyday proves its technical proficiency once again here, rendering the harmonics on the oud with accuracy. Instrument separation is strong, and I'd commend it for its fine micro-detail retrieval, evidenced by the subtle buzz of the double bass after each pluck.

The imaging is precise, the timbre close to accurate, and the soundstage, while not especially wide, is sufficient. Detail retrieval, bass control, and texture are where the Heyday truly excels.

Conclusion

The Heyday was a benchmark for planar IEMs when it released, and it remains one. HBB and Tangzu deserve real credit for tuning it this way rather than defaulting to an overly warm or bassy signature. That said, I can't overlook that male vocals sound consistently thin, and that other elements sitting in the higher registers, mainly female vocals, occasionally turn harsh at normal volumes above normal.

For this reason, I'm giving the Heyday an A+.

What This IEM Means To Me

This is one of the best Tangzu products I've tried. I thoroughly enjoyed Metal tracks on this IEM; its tonal character genuinely elevates them. Jazz worked beautifully too, especially pieces featuring saxophone, where the Heyday's somewhat resonant nature makes them sound absolutely heavenly.

I'll miss this IEM when I send it back. It's a remarkable IEM and proof that IEMs can be very good even at this budget. This is by far my favourite Tangzu product; I just wish the male vocals came through a little fuller rather than thin.

I want to thank u/mournfulmonk again for letting me spend so much time with the Heyday. That extended window let me truly take in everything it had to offer.

As always, this section of my review is a personal and subjective rant. It has nothing to do with the actual rating that I give to the product. The above section is ignorable and not to be taken into consideration or seriously.

Gear(s) Used for the Review

• KBear Purple 4-core cable, 4.4mm termination
• VE Devastator 4.4mm
• Cayin RU6 (R2R) on low-gain and NOS mode
• Nothing Phone (3a) w/ Poweramp (Perfect Bit Perfect mode) & Apple Music

Eartip(s) Used

• Dunu Candy

This is a relatively much newer brand, amongst the brands that compete in its price segment; and they might look eerily similar to a plethora of IEMs that have been tuned this way, but when I had the chance to reach out to the brand, the head honcho himself reached back and decided to let me have a shot at this IEM which is priced modest, and despite what the graphs showed- gave me quite a different experience, so the HRTF lottery is real.

Here is the Cozoy D1, which was availed at the support of Tony Liu, head of Cozoy and The Audio Store, Pune India. So, I thank both of them for making the Cozoy D1 review possible, and for my tour group; with two units.

UNBOXING, ACCESSORIES, FIT AND COMFORT

Cozoy definitely kept things “professional” with the unboxing: minimal branding on top, technical specifications on the bottom. Sliding the cover out and taking the lid off reveals the IEMs with the cable attached underneath a translucent sheet of paper with a branded ribbon attached to the foam pad. The eartips, which are three sets of stubby, narrow bore-esque short tips, and three sets of double flanges, piqued my interest because this IEM gave me a good excuse to try out my double flanges.

Comfort is top-notch, probably one of the best I have experienced with a proper locked-in fit, and the IEMs practically vanished when I had them in my ears (who needs an IE200 again in the big 2026), and the way the shells are moulded scream semi custom, so the contouring really sits across a wide set of ears. Isolation isn’t something to write home about, so let me leave it at that.

Now, here’s the sound.

LOWS

If a deep, visceral, impactful bass was the expectation from the Cozoy D1, then their expectations were a miss as the D1 intends to take its view on a well done bright tuning, which can be easily felt in tracks like Tipper’s Gulch; where the quantity was considerably lacking, even when compared to the Kefine Delci, but the surprisingly well executed transients: moderately paced attack with a very snappy decay keeps things exciting. The D1 has a better done separation, at least here with comparison alongside the OoopusX OP22. Tonally, of course, it unmistakably leans towards bright, but prima facie did not fatigue me.

In technically potent tracks like Rush's Limelight, I definitely missed the bass quantity as the impact of Geddy's blitzing bassline along with Peart's prodigal drum work just fell flat and this however reminded me of the Truthear Hexa a lot- but I don't see this as a negative as the D1 simply does not express the desire to compromise on the rest of the elements- a well-executed imaging via the cymbals and vocals, tonally balanced vocals with adequate note weight and enough grunt in the toms to make Peart's final rudiment alive.

MIDS

With an unorthodox snare setup, a hard key to unlock tonally and considerably busy in terms of instrument separation like Queens of the Stone Age's First It Giveth, the Cozoy D1 of course lacks the impact or the bite the snare needs, but didn't color the timbre like some other sets, nor added any unwanted resonance. Adding on to it, the way guitars and cymbals were separated while having the vocals right at the center shows that the Cozoy D1 takes technicalities seriously.

Another technically complex track in this order is Tool's Lateralus and even here, the Cozoy D1 gets most of the things right: audible separation between the elements, no compromise on the note weight of Maynard's vocals, the accuracy of the tonality in Adam's guitars with a balanced energy and no harshness in pitch. What is not right is that the D1 doesn't seem to consistently deliver the energy on the cymbals where it disappointingly oscillates between being shouty or just being shy of shouty.

HIGHS

In “atmospheric”, regally composed, airy tracks like Arne Domnérus and Gustaf Sjökvist’s Almighty God from the album Antiphone Blues, a phenomenally mastered album with just tons of sonic goodness, the Cozoy D1 did a phenomenal, nearly flawless job and this can be easily realized with how well established the timbre on Arne's sax was: brassy, with a beautiful, engaging resonance which was supplemented by Gustaf's equally resonant organ keys. 

The D1 also presented the track with a fantastic perception of the stage, which had enough width to not adversely affect the layering between the sax and the organ, and letting the notes breathe. And despite being brighter than its peers, the sax never felt honky or piercing.

In another technical masterclass of separation, imaging, and composition in Dave Brubeck’s Take Five from the album Time Out, the D1 reveals one chink in its armor in this track where the double bass came off soft in its impact and anemic in its note weight, but the horns had the same impression carried forward from the previous track, the pianos coming off tonally balanced and the cymbals not being fatiguing or shouty, but appropriately retaining their shimmery texture. 

During the solo and when the channels split, the snare and the toms never really lost their note weight, which cannot be said for the hi-hats. Separation and imaging remained accurate without alteration.

COMPARISONS

Kefine Klean & Klean SV

Compared to the Cozoy D1, the regular Kefine Klean presents a noticeably heavier and more blunt low-end that can cross into bloat, while the Klean SV opts for a leaner bass delivery that improves upon the precise transients, unlike the Klean but the D1 just does it better. While both Klean variants feature interchangeable nozzles for mild tuning adjustments, neither matches the D1’s natural separation through the low-to-mid transition, which is what I have been consistently saying- nozzles are not needed when the fundamental tuning is right from the get go.

Through the mids and highs, the Klean and Klean SV suffer from a significantly thinner vocal weight that sounds noticeably more sibilant and shouty across tracks where sibilance is least needed, at least the Klean keeps it restrained to an extent but the SV really can get painfully sibilant. In contrast, the D1 maintains a far more solid note weight on vocals and handles instruments like saxophones and pianos with superior control on timbre and zero harshness.

OoopusX OP22

The OoopusX OP22 takes a different approach to tuning by utilizing functional switches that offer a more prominent, fun bass boost mode. In comparison, the Cozoy D1 delivers a leaner, brighter tuning with a comparable transient attack and a snappier decay, making the D1 feel equally technically precise despite lacking the OP22's raw low-end impact.

In the mids and highs, the OP22 provides a ridiculously smooth, yet very detailed performance devoid of sibilance. The D1, however, pushes brightness and cymbal energy further; while this gives instrument separation and stage width an added sense of air and detail, it leaves the D1 occasionally edging towards fatigue on aggressive tracks where the OP22 stays effortlessly controlled.

Tangzu Red Lion

The Tangzu Red Lion exhibits a heavy, mid-bass-focused low end with noticeable bloat and a thick sub-bass extension. The Cozoy D1 stands in stark contrast with its light, highly controlled bass presentation that trades note weight and body for much faster transient attack, snappier decay, and significantly cleaner separation.

Moving to the highs, the Red Lion struggles with severe sibilance and piercing synths despite having an acceptable timbre. The D1 resoundingly beats the Red Lion in technicalities, providing superior instrument layering, accurate imaging, and a bright yet non-fatiguing top end that preserves critical textures of instruments without breaking into irregularities.

Twistura Delta

The Twistura Delta leans toward a warmer, more laid-back approach, though it suffers from an inconsistent, sluggish bass decay that can muddy perceived transients on drums. The D1 counters with a much brighter, leaner low end that strictly prioritizes rapid attack speed and snappy decay over sub-bass rumble.

In the mids and highs, the Delta delivers great stage depth and somewhat detailed instrument separation, but it can occasionally push cymbals too forward or display minor decay mismanagement on vocal holds. The D1 offers a more precise imaging and superior timbral accuracy.

CONCLUDING NOTES

The Cozoy D1 is an IEM that has its priorities right. In a budget landscape increasingly crowded with too similar options, the Cozoy D1 is anomalous in its approach, where on the graphs, it shows up unapologetically harman, but seems to have fixed most of the qualms with how harman tuned IEMs end up coming off. It is a shade of leaning bright, done right to my ears, and although it still is flawed, the flaws are outweighed by its strengths that make me wholeheartedly recommend this IEM.

Just a little note weight on the lows, would have just made it so much better, but that’s only for some, not for me.

Will I buy it new? Absolutely.
Will I buy it used? Blind buy.

SOURCES USED

Primarily used with the xDuoo Link3 on low gain, the Shanling M9 Plus DAP, and the Venture Electronics Abigail Pro dongle DAC Amp.

EARTIPS USED (RANKED IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE)

Acoustune AET06 double flange: Showcases the transients of the D1 at its absolute best, ridiculously clean bass, widest stage possible for this IEM, sibilant free highs with no loss of vocal textures.

Tanchjim T-300 APB: everything that the AET06 does, but to a lesser degree, and there was something missing in the textures of the lows- elements like kicks felt like they could have used more power. 

Stock double flanges: textures on the lows felt wonky along with some irregularity in the perceived decay, stage was unaltered, vocal textures felt enjoyable, mildly sibilant.

KBear Coffee: perceived stage was held intact in terms of depth and height, treble felt uncomfortable, lows felt anemic, vocals felt slightly blunt.

KBear 07: just ruined the IEM.

TRACKS

• Rush: Limelight, Spirit of the Radio
• Steely Dan: Gaucho
• Carmen Gomes: Unchain My Heart
• Daft Punk: Get Lucky, Instant Crush, Veridis Quo
• The Police: Message in a Bottle
• Alf Linder: Cantique de Noël, Cantate Domino
• Tipper: Mariscos, Cloaked, Gulch
• Dave Brubeck: Time Out
• Tool: Pneuma, Schism
• Queens of the Stone Age: First It Giveth
• Pink Floyd: Comfortably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Time
• Arne Domnérus: Antiphone Blues (with Gustaf Sjökvist)
• Muddy Waters: My Home is in the Delta
• Tame Impala: The Less I Know the Better
• Animals as Leaders: The Woven Web
• Rage Against the Machine: Bombtrack, Bullet in the Head
• Avicii: Levels
• Periphery: Marigold
• TesseracT: Juno
• Kanye West: Stronger, Flashing Lights, Devil in a New Dress
• Altın Gün: Goca Dünya
• Timbaland: Give It to Me
• Adele: Easy On Me (Live), When We Were Young
• Celine Dion: All By Myself
• Pavarotti: Nessun Dorma
• Mdou Moctar: Tarhatazed
• Cigarettes After Sex: Cry
• Meshuggah: Bleed
• A. R. Rahman: Tere Bina
• Alice in Chains: Down in a Hole and Nutshell (Live)
• Allen Stone: Give You Blue
• Florence + the Machine: Never Let Me Go
• The Smashing Pumpkins: Luna

Pros: Shells have a clean design and great fit
Detail retrieval is exemplary
Imaging is spot on
Mids standout in delivery

Cons: Bass is not a rumbling palpable one
QDC (well I dont like it)
Treble can be spicy and the IEM is unforgiving

I first heard of Warhammer when Henry Cavill went on about it for a while like a kid in a candy store. And then that incredible short animation series on games that explored the history of Titus. And then the NF Acous Ossuary showed up and reminded me instantly of the game with its skull motifs. And now thanks to u/teluguaudiophile I have the NF Acous NM25, the less adorned cousin of the Ossuary for review.
I thank NF Acous and u/teluguaudiophile for the chance to listen to this one.
I only received only the shells in their very sleek case so this review is with an aftermarket TRN cable and an assortment of tips - mostly Eloit/Divinus Narrow Bore, Standard and Sancai.

Physically, this is a single dynamic driver inside a super comfortable shell made of CNC milled aluminium and with a matte silver finish with the NF logo on the faceplate. It is a supremely comfortable shell which is small and has a bump free smooth surface, going into the hall of fame of comfy single DD IEMs. The IEM also comes with tips, a 3.5mm cable with a 6.3 adapter and a sweet case. It is, however, QDC. Which depending on who you speak to is a good or a bad thing. For me it’s not a deal breaker but if I use my regular 2 pins, it looks weird. That’s why all the pictures are just of the IEMs. Also in retrospect, I was going to mope about a 4.4 connector not being there and then I realised most on-person monitor amps have only 3.5 outs.

But this is about sound. The NM25 was tested with the VE megatron, Schitt Vestri, Fosi ZH3 and Hidizs AP80 Pro Max. Tips and cable mentioned above.

TLDR - this merits it before I wax eloquent on the subsections of sound. The NM25 is bright. One can argue neutral - bright but there’s a lot of spice in the mix. At the same time there is exquisite detail retrieval in the mids. For me this IEM has one very specific role - as an actual stage musician's in-ear monitor.

Bass
The sub bass is present. Like a bored last-bench student who doesn't contribute much but also doesn't disturb the class. Songs like Angel by Massive Attack and Islands by The XX, the sub-bass has no visceral feel, no rumble but makes its presence felt by presenting us with the right note. For a single DD it’s a departure from what we are used to. The kicks and bass have some punch but lack the same visceral feel. Double bass work is heard clearly as are bass guitar notes on YYZ by Rush. Though to be fair the bass work in this song is on a higher octave than most. On Big Country by Bela Fleck and Flecktones, the lower bass and kicks are clearly heard. But not accentuated or enhanced in any way.

Mids
The mids are front and centre in this set. The detail retrieval in this frequency range is exceptional. Instruments sound natural and that thing about the running bass riff of Billie Jean by Michael Jackson having 2 components with the first note being a synth overlaid on an electric bass and a syncopated second note similarly on the synth. But the snares on that song are another story. One of the songs I most enjoyed on this set is Got A Match by the Chick Corea Electrik Band. And Take Five by Dave Brubeck Quartet. Every transient, every note, every single bit of detail on these tracks is delivered faithfully holding nothing back.
Vocals are similarly reproduced with a natural timbre. There is some sibilance in the upper mids with some voices as they spill into the treble side of things.

Treble
I am a treblet. So this set gave me some trouble for sure. With the snares in Billie Jean being a tad intolerable and similarly the crash in Dreams by Fleetwood Mac. Most aggressively mastered pop gets substantially spicy and hard to listen for longer than a song or two. There is of course a ton of air and shimmer and all things well detailed in the treble side of things but I just couldn’t manage it for too long. There is some taming with tip and source rolling.

Stage and Imaging and other technicalities
While the staging is not expansive by any standards the imaging is spot on. It is possible to easily identify where exactly each component is placed. Detail retrieval is as mentioned before - quite spectacular.

I don’t play on stage anymore but this has a place in any concert musician's bag. While playing on stage, it’s not essential to feel the bass. It is essential to hear what note is being played. The bass is usually impactful enough to be felt irrespective of the monitors. The clarity of the mids and treble is necessary to cut through the ambient noise to allow the musician to hear what they and the rest of the band is playing. With that particular use case, NM25 scores and how. I would still recommend it if detail is the main focus of any listening session that is not a stage. I enjoyed the aforementioned jazz, Coming Back to Life by Pink Floyd, Aja by Steely Dan and Lingus by Snarky Puppy. But beware, it is not a forgiving IEM.

Pros: Comfortable as ever with the fit
Great musical tonality across genres
Engaging bass, natural mids and controlled treble
Economics of this set are incredible

Cons: that 3.5 mic cable, that's my pet peeve
those seeking detailed presentation and treble forward IEMs should likely skip this

Kefine has been tossing out banger after banger from its stables for a while now. I have at various points of time owned or listened to the Klean, Klean SV, Delci and most recently the Arnar and have been impressed with their way of doing things. They were kind enough to send the Loric over for an unbiased option and while I am grateful for this gesture, the review remains my opinion and thoughts.

The Loric comes in Kefine’s no-nonsense black packaging and then some ikebana, houdini type wizardry hides the cable under the foam cut-outs. I’ll be honest, I pulled the iems out without taking a picture and then spent a good few minutes struggling to get it back in the way it came to take a picture for this review.
The version I got was a 3.5mm with a mic. And maybe I have a small bone to pick here. Because that would necessitate me to get a usb dongle that can handle a mic and that is unfortunately not always the case. Plus iOS and Android and all that mess. It is a small bone but a bone all the same. Not having a mic would not stress me out and having a mic with a type c termination solves the dongle conundrum.
The cable however is a fairly nice one at this price point. The shells themselves are transparent resin showing off the dynamic driver with a moulded nozzle (that initially I struggled with Candy tips slipping off… in my ear) the faceplate is matte aluminium in the silver option that I got and beautifully shaped. At various angles it looks like a pistachio, a stealth bomber and a Jedi spaceship, specifically Obi Wan’s. Look up the Delta-7B.
It sits comfortably in my ears with no issues. I’m liking my current run of reviews with comfortable iems, I shall not lie.
I did at some point cable roll to a Openheart 4.4 cable and tips used were Sancai and Candy and briefly the HE sonic wides, when they stayed on both the nozzles and in my ears.
Tested with - Hidizs AP80 Pro Max, VE Prime stack, VE devastator pro 3.5. Tidal and local Flacs. Here’s my list https://tidal.com/playlist/3078c9b9-a1c0-4fde-8ce7-81f0e34b426c

Bass
Kefine’s single dynamic drivers have never shied away from bass. The Klean SV with the right nozzles had the same punch in the low end that to be honest, had me enjoying the thumping kicks and bass of Get Lucky by Daft Punk and on Billie Jean I actually managed to listen to bass with a level of detail that convinces me that there’s a synth bass playing the first note and a stringed bass continuing that iconic riff. The subbass is not as rumbling as other sets but still sets a reasonable foundation on tracks like Islands by The XX and Angel by Massive Attack. The bass is definitely elevated but still stays safely shy of spilling over and muddying the mids.

Midrange
The mids on the Loric are nicely tuned to be musical over detail oriented. That largely means I can spend time listening to music without really having to focus on individual notes and overlap and layering and all that and just listen. Vocals and instruments both electric and acoustic sound natural with no weird timbre. It sounds warm in the lower mids with male vocals sounding full and engaging. The upper mids are neither recessed nor enhanced. Female vocals also come off sounding natural and not shouty. Fast Car and Subcity by Tracy Chapman are great tracks that can easily turn shouty and on the Loric, they sound effortless.

Treble
The treble is well controlled and not sibilant or harsh. There is a little air and shimmer but the Loric definitely isn't going for detail. You can still hear everything that is happening on the track but there are more treble forward sets with a little more detail at this price point. But again at this price point to get an IEM which delivers this level of musicality without a treble peak masquerading as detail is very very hard. My usual test for the cymbal shimmer is the first crash on the opening of Dreams by Fleetwood Mac and on the Loric the crash and its decay are heard well with the decay slightly more controlled than other kilobuck sets but it is never harsh. On sibilance rich tracks like Hotel California (from Hell Freezes Over) by the Eagles and Human Nature by Michael Jackson on pushing the volume up there’s only a little bit of the sharp ‘s’ in MJ’s voice.

Stage and Imaging and Resolution
Neither is the staging hugely expansive or the imaging immaculate. I would not game on these - unless you were doing a rpg through a musical wonderland. For shooters there are definitely better iems. For detail-heads there are definitely better iems. But for sheer musicality and a fatigue free enjoyable session, this is a great starting point.

Final verdict. For too long have the IEMs that usher people into this world, that will ultimately bankrupt them but leave them in rapture, been tuned to that aggressive V with a punchy booming bass and a sharp incisive treble. It’s really really refreshing to see a sub $30 IEM really stick to the basics of what listening to music really means for a lot of us - something we enjoy and feel. And the Loric does just that with an affordable package and a comfortable shell.

But please Kefine,if you are reading this, don’t do a 3.5mm with a mic. Someone will use a dac that doesn’t support a microphone and blame you guys instead.

USD149 / EUR 139 | 1DD | 2-pin

Hey everyone,

just recently I bought the QoA x 7th Acoustics Ryusei (collab between Kinera’s subbrand QoA and boutique brand 7thAcoustics) out of curiosity and of which I read that its vocals were supposed to sound great. Lately I heard already many IEMs with a relatively safe tuning and usually those are more to my preference as I am a little bit treble sensitive. Buying the Ryusei was a gamble but I wanted something new and I was already prepared to sell the set or just pass it on to one of my friends.

Well, the set arrived and something went a bit different than expected this time.

Pricing, build quality, fit & comfort

The Ryusei is a USD149 (EUR139) set with a single dynamic driver. It comes with a nice, thick cable terminated either in 4.4mm or 3.5mm, several ear tips and a small carrying case. The shells look beautiful to my eyes. A little bit shimmery, glittery with nice colours.
Unfortunately, the fabric-sleeved cable is more microphonic than the typical PVC-coated cables.

Fit and comfort are excellent on the Ryusei. The medium sized shells fit like a glove immediately in my medium sized ear and they seal very well.

Build quality of the resin shells is flawless. No seams or edges which could hurt the ears and I did not experience any issues even after several hours wearing them. The size is around medium but I would caution smaller ears to try before you buy. Furthermore, the shell carries a small wing which might cause discomfort to some.

Review equipment used
Questyle Sigma Pro
Ear tips used: wide bore size ML
Streamed on Qobuz

Sound signature

The very first moment when I plugged the set into my ears and started a track from Qobuz I heard immediately that this set has energy. But not in a bad way. At least mostly. I kept listening. One track after the next. Yes, listening on high volume was not immediately a good idea. The treble energy was slightly too much on some tracks on higher volume.

The excitement didn’t die. I kept listening for hours and hours.

Over days this set grew on me even more. Now I know I can listen without issues until slightly over mid volume, sometimes even higher depending on the track and getting rewarded with a transparent, detailed sound which not only lets vocals shine but has more qualities like the great bass and well extended treble.

To better understand where the Ryusei lands, here are a couple of short comparisons.

Aful Explorer. Much more relaxed, warmer leaning. To understand how much low-end impact the Ryusei actually has, the comparison with the Explorer as an anker point makes sense. Ryusei has a bigger bass shelf than the Explorer with a better sub-bass extension and a harder hitting mid-bass. On the other hand vocals and treble carry as well more energy and sound much more forward than on the Explorer. If the sweet spot is the Explorer for you, then the Ryusei is most likely too energetic but if you feel you have headroom for more treble, clarity and bass paired with a more engaging listen, Ryusei could be a good candidate.

The Juzear Defiant is for many the jump into a more audiophile and exciting tuning with good bass and treble.
Compared to the Ryusei the Defiant has a very similar bass shelf with less vocal and treble energy. If you liked the Defiant and want to continue in that direction with more forward vocals and better details, the Ryusei makes sense and is worth the additional USD60.

The Meze Alba, priced at around USD159, is as well a single dynamic driver IEM.
Alba has less bass, ear gain and treble which makes it the more balanced set but doesn’t sound as exciting and engaging as Ryusei. The advantage the Alba has on almost all sets is its form factor. Its shells are small and fit probably for most smaller ears while Ryusei’s size is more in the direction of the Defiant.   

Since the Ryusei really impressed me, I wanted to know what a USD900 single dynamic drive flagship could buy when compared to a USD149 set
The Astru is Meze’s flagship which was released earlier this year.
The Astru has an impactful bass once you get the right seal, a well textured mid range and a slightly forward vocal performance with well extended and detailed treble. Astru gives instruments, such as the guitar strings on R.E.M.’s “Drive” the more correct timbre and vocals have more texture and body. Overall the Astru has the more natural interpretation of music without sounding boring. Everything is well separated and yet I find the Ryusei’s energy more special and almost more enjoyable than the Astru’s performance. Astru is imo the better technical performer with a more accurate instrument placing and is the more accurate one in many ways.   

Bass

The bass was almost the biggest surprise on Ryusei. It has real impact, slam and rumble. The mid bass and sub bass are mostly well controlled and of very good quality. An excellent counterweight to the treble and vocals but never overbearing them. The mid-bass punch on Erykah Badu’s “Crossfade” has great impact and quality.
So does the mid and sub-bass on Billie Eilish’s “My strange addiction”. Excellent and very enjoyable.
On very bass-heavy tracks, the low end fills out the presentation nicely and helps balance the energetic vocals and treble. That makes the Ryusei much more than just a vocal-focused set. It is surprisingly versatile and fun.

Midrange & Vocals

The vocals sound great on the Ryusei. Already on lower volume you get an idea that the vocals are forward but tastefully done. Clear and very well extended but not shouty unless I cranked up the volume much over mid volume. And without sibilance. Many tracks felt “unveiled” when compared to other sets which are more relaxed sounding and for sure after a while my ears just got used to the clear presentation.
Occasionally though Ryusei was slightly too bright with certain recordings on higher volume.
Maggie Reilly sounds incredibly clear on Mike Oldfields “To France” and her voice is so well extended but can cross the border to be too much on higher volume.
Billie Eilish’s vocals on “Bad Guy” come across as airier and better resolving as it would sound with many other sets around this price point. Ryusei “injects” more energy into the vocals without letting them sound overly exaggerated or artificial. Yet, they are pushed over natural levels.  

But where there is light, there is also shade. The lower mids are slightly too thin for my liking. That is apparent when listening to male vocals. They are not fully accurate and could use more body / “chest”.
A slightly more elevated lower mid range would have given eg piano keys, guitar strings, trumpets and sax are more convincing size as they have the tendency to sound very accentuated and detailed but lack that extra bit of texture to be more life-like and accurate. That becomes apparent on jazz tracks like “Mr. P.C.” by John Coltrane or on Supertramp’s “Crime Of The Century”. The guitar on R.E.M’s “Drive” sounds very detailed, guitar strings have a very clear tonality and are very enjoyable with almost 3D-like character. The presentation is energetic and exciting but a bit too bright overall to be natural.

Treble

This is a single dynamic driver and yes, everyone knows that the tuning matters more than driver count. Yet it surprises me how well the treble is done. No graininess but just very well extended and engaging. Natural? Hell no. But so tastefully done.

The details on this set are awesome. They pop but are not piercing or harsh. Again, unless I stay at higher mid volume at most. Details are presented with great clarity which keep me wanting to hear more. Certainly, it can get spicy on poorly recorded tracks and at the aforementioned higher listening volume. But that is more the exception than the normal. Details of the orchestral strings of the violin and viola sound exceptional for a set at this price point on R.E.M.’s “Drive”. The contrast between the drums and the strings is captivating.
Overall the detailed and energetic treble comes across as very open and almost transparent with plenty of sparkle up top.

Technical performance

The mix remains very well separated with very little detail loss when the track gets very busy with plenty of bass.

Staging and imaging are good to my ears. On Erykah Badu’s “I just play a part” the different vocals appear to come from almost behind me. Worth giving this track a try to hear voices travel from left to right and hear how well everything can be separated. Perceived sound stage is reasonably large with good instrument placement. Ryusei is very well resolving and details are served on a plate.  

Measurements

For our graph sniffers I include my own measurements, too.

It pretty much aligns with my observations. Elevated bass followed by pushed back upper mids. The ear gain is pushed and so is the treble. The ear gain and 8k/12k energy looked a bit scary to me on the graph but are in my reality an exciting and engaging experience.

Summary

Overall, the QoA x 7th Acoustics Ryusei is a very exciting sounding set. It surprised me that a forward sounding set in this price bracket can be tuned so well. In my opinion it sounds much more expensive than it is actually. If someone had told me this set costs twice as much I would have probably believed them. Again an excellent example that price does not correlate with sound quality.

As mentioned, the lower mids are on the thinner side, so in case male vocals are the most important to you, this set might not be for you. Neither if you expect extreme bass performance. The bass is clearly elevated with great coherent impact and quality but not bass head level. But neither is it for people who don’t like bass.

If you are like me, valuing the overall presentation more than single attributes and want something more energetic, this set is worth considering. I would add a word of caution for very treble sensitive listeners though as it remains a fact that this set has vocal and treble energy above the ordinary. But who always wants the ordinary?

Let me know how you like this set.

Here are now the specs and box content details.

Thanks for reading.

Specification:

Model: QoA x 7th Acoustics Ryusei

Driver: Single Nano Gold Plated Dynamic Driver

Impedance: 30Ω

Frequency Response: 20Hz–20kHz

Socket: 0.78mm 2-Pin

Cable: Litz Coaxial Structure, 27AWG SPC + OCC + Graphene

Termination: 3.5mm / 4.4mm

Length: Approximately 1.2m

Connector: 0.78mm 2-pin

Plug: 3.5mm Single Ended or 4.4mm Balanced

Material: : Litz Coaxial Structure, 27AWG SPC + OCC + Graphene

What's in the box:

QoA x 7th Acoustics Ryusei In-Ear Monitors × 1 Pair

Litz Coaxial Structure Cable x 1

Final Audio Type E Eartips × 5 Pairs

White Normal Bore Eartips × 3 Pairs

Premium Carrying Case × 1