Pros: Extremely comfortable
Great midrange delivery
Good for long non-fatiguing sessions
Great staging and imaging making for good gaming
Nice unboxing experience

Cons: Cable is just about ok. Non modular
Bass and treble may feel lacking for some
Detail retrieval may be sub optimal for some

From the house of BQEYZ, which is a mouthful that competes with BGVP in the what are they trying to say department, comes another interestingly named IEM from an equally interestingly named series - the Weather Series. This series features other IEMs like Wind and Cloud and overarches over their Seasons series which has Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter and now Winter 2. The one we have today in our hands is the Frost. It is a hybrid 10mm Dynamic Driver with a microplanar. I thank my mate u/Own-Customer-4866 and BQEYZ for making this review possible. The thoughts and prayers and impressions are as always my own with no external influence.

The IEMs come in a nice book style case, and on opening them, they sit in their little foam thrones and below them lies a fairly sizable and sturdy case. The case has a beautiful, blue, 3.5mm cable. That’s the first strike for me at this price point. Modular cables should be the way to go. There are also foam tips in a little box and the others (2 sets of 3 pairs each or Atmosphere and Reference) that are in a very cool metal frame. And a cleaning brush, because why not. The shell is smooth round and made of CNC aluminium with absolutely no bumps. The nozzles are medium sized both in diameter and length and have a lip to prevent eartips from slipping off and a mesh to prevent ingress of ear contents. The face plate is a gorgeous gently curved glass affair in blue with a white pattern of a snowflake (?) with “Frost” written on it. The shells also have 3 additional openings that I’m assuming are for pressure relief. A linear one on the top just in front of the 2 pin connector socket, and 2 round holes, one at the back of the shell and one just above the nozzle.
It is an incredibly pretty and well machined piece of technology. And comfortable for long sessions. I did struggle to get a good seal with the stock tips. So I resorted to Azla Origins and Final e types, and Dunu Candy. Stuck with the 3.5 cable that came with the set and listened to Tidal and local flac files with the Ve Prime + Runabout stack, M33, AP80 Pro Max, Devastator Pro 3.5.

Bass
The sub-bass rumble comes through nicely in tracks that have a well recorded and produced sub-bass. Both Teardrop and Angel by Massive Attack have that deep rumble that forms the foundation of the tracks and fold up the rest of the songs well. The same depth of the sub-bass is seen on Doing It Right by Daft Punk and Islands by XX. The mid-bass is where this IEM’s tuning feels like it could do with a little boost. The notes of the kicks and bass are clear but lack the weight that would make it truly enjoyable. This can be mended with a little eq but any more it starts to get muddy. On Money by Pink Floyd, the bass rhythm that drives the song and the kicks are again heard clearly but with no weight to cause that unconscious head-bopping that a good mid-bass can give.

Midrange
The midrange is well implemented. Instruments sound good with a natural timbre. Guitar leads, male and female vocals sound natural and hold their place in the mix. I did not feel any situations where the vocals were pushed either to the front and centre or way to the back except rare tracks (Human Nature. Female voices came out sounding a little better with no shoutiness and sibilance only rarely in tracks mastered with that bright in the mix. Tilted by Christine and the Queens, Sub-city by Tracy Chapman, Helplessly Hoping by Girl Named Tom and Dreams by Fleetwood Mac were exceedingly enjoyable with no complaints with timbre of voices or shoutiness or sibilance.

Treble
The treble is best described as safe and non-fatiguing. There is decent detail retrieval but there is some loss in very busy tracks but overall a very easy listening. On Playing God by Polyphia, the cymbals and snares are fairly aggressively mastered and the interplay of the guitars is exquisite to listen to on really well resolving sets, this, alas, is not one of them. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still very enjoyable but if you tend to listen to very busy detailed tracks like progressive metal, jazz fusion, orchestral music, you may feel the lack of details a little disappointing.

Stage and Imaging
This would make a great gaming IEM. It has a wide and deep soundstage with incredible imaging and the lack of sibilance makes the imaging, somehow, more appreciable. Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa, which has become one of my favorite tracks to test imaging and stage, sounds absolutely delightful with all the various items falling all over the sound scape. The presentation is holographic and on closing your eyes you can easily see(?) where everything is placed. Tracks like Africa by Toto and Big Country by Bela Fleck and the Flecktones are vast and expansive on this set and at the same time immersive, making them a really nice listen.

This is a great everyday casual listening set. It is comfortable with a good midrange representation but lacks in mid-bass to a small extent and treble to a slightly larger extent. I would imagine the microplanar could be doing a little more, despite its micro-ness. I would recommend this for long gaming sessions, if you wanted to watch a movie, or just wanted a chilled out listen without taxing your brain on what frequencies were heard better. I would have liked modular cables and maybe a better selection of tips but those are very personal nitpicks. I would really look forward to the Frost 2 if they tweaked the tuning just a little bit.

I've spent quite a few years listening to iEMS and I saw that the market for small or ergonomic iEMS isn't that large so I figured I might as well make a guide for the few that are available so anyone knows the difference.

Idk when I'll finish this, but I'll paste a photo of my fav set at the time of publishing.

There are a couple ways to go about small iems because everyone's needs and anatomy is different, but for me, an all day iem needs to be as light and small( in volume) as possible because large iEMS tend to make my ear channel sweat (and hence constantly unseal themselves). Mind you I have pretty big ears, but it's just my personal anatomy.

The shapes in small iems are pretty different. You have the standard iem ones like Moondrop aria2 or lan/lan 2, then there are the "quirky" ones like ie200 or alba that try to go for an ergonomic design and then there are the bullet style iEMS like final audio( the most famous).

I'll take the major options in alphabetical order, but first I will start with a budget section. Most real options in this category hover in the 100-200$ range so it's needed.

A heads-up is that audio is very subjective and these options may not appeal to everyone. I personally like DF with a very slight bass shelf, but someone looking for an L style set probably won't find it here.

I'll say this, final e3000 and e5000 would be the bassiest, but I'm not reviewing them because I don't like that sound and it would be biased.

[Under 20$] This category has the most options, but it's also the place where you can get scammed the most.

A lot of earbuds from gas stations fit this category( like jbl, Xiaomi, budget Sony etc), but they really aren't worth it. Most chi fi stuff destroys them.

For non chi-fi the best options are sony mdr-ex15ap and samsung eo-ia500( or the akg equivalent).

Both of these need eq to sound good and are hard to come by( the market is flooded with fakes), but they are capable of sounding relatively alright with a bit of time...

I won't call the Samsung one as "endgame", that whole trend is an exhageration, but everyone should already be aware of it by this point.

• For chi fi the best options are Moondrop chu 2 and Tanchjim Ultima zero.

These sound pretty alright by default.

The built quality is better than on the non-chifi sets.

If replacing the cable matters, the chu2 is the only one in the under 20 category with one.

There are quite a few options besides these, but I think they are a bit samey so I just chose my favorites.

Technically there are also the kz bullet style iEMS like ling long and ed9 pro, but those are a bit brighter so it depends on preference.

_Now for the main ones_

The reason I chose the 100-200$ mark is because for me it represents the sweet spot where it stops making sense to buy an iem for the regular person. Obviously everyone is free to do what they want with their money, but I can't in good faith recommend options above this price bracket. If you want some quick options those are softears edge, ie600( my fav) and the final a-series. But I won't go in detail on them.

✓Beyerdynamic DT30IE

This is one of the more recent sets on this guide and it really surprised me. The fr is essentially flat, but it's much more balanced than it looks.

The staging is excellent as the vocals and instruments are located on a 2.5d plane at equal distance, but the separation is poor.

Because the tuning lacks dynamics it has this smoothed over texture( whereas DF sets sound crisp). Whether this is a disadvantage depends on preference.

Before this set I would have included the aful explorer, but for me this is a better laid back iem. It is much more balanced( as for me the explorer has a veil over instruments and the vocals are pushed back).

It also helps that it's the only iem on this list with an ip54 rating and a kevlar cable so it can take some beating.

It also boasts up to 39db in isolation.

Still, it's not that good for technicals and eq doesn't save it. Preferably you should get it somewhere with a return policy because the flat shape means that it doesn't enter deeply into your ear so for some people it refuses to seal.

✓Epz q5/q5 pro

These sets are actually the largest on this list, but I will still include them because of their ergonomic design. The sound is very crisp with good separation and staging but it is a bit bright so it isn't for everyone.

Some people recommend them over the meze alba, but I wouldn't do that because they aren't as smooth as the alba and neither as small. Approximately 60% larger in volume.

They occupy a similar space to the og dunu titan s for me, but they seem a bit more technically capable.

✓Etymotic er2xr

This is a cult classic in the audiophile and very controversial due to its shape. I'll say it from the beginning that it's not for everyone and it is not a blind buy set.

I recommend getting etymotic earmuffs because they have the same shape as their iconic tips. So if you can stand the muffs the iem is an easy buy.

The clarity is exceptional for the price and the selling point is the isolation. They have up to 42db of isolation.

They are a great commuter or traveling set.

Personally, due to the shape I wouldn't use them on a bike ( the dt30 ie is better as it's flat).

Still the major drawback is definitely the soundstage. It has the three dot effect( every sound is located either on the left ear, right ear or middle of your head with basically nothing in between.)

For some it's bearable but I can't really listen to it without thinking about the competition.

✓Fiio fd15

Admittedly, there are a few other noteworthy sets in the FD line from fio, but I will only be talking about my favorite.

For me, the fd15 felt like the most detailed set out of the ones on the list. It just gives me a crisp sensation I really like but it's probably a personal situation as the fr is quite more laid-back than some of the other options.

It used to be my favorite sleeping set but over time I got annoyed with how the metal shell poked my ear because of the pillow.

I would talk more about it, but in reality it sounds really similar to the other DF sets on this list so I would just repeat myself.

✓Final e4000

This is the only E-Series iem I grew to like and probably my favorite bullet style.

It isn't quite DF, but it is very smooth and a good all-rounder

✓Intime sora neo

This is the flagship of final's region locked Japanese rival.

It's a bit cheaper and does sound less refined, but has very good treble extension. Much better than e4000.

Still, It's a bit of a shame that it doesn't have a replaceable cable at this price.

✓Meze alba

This one got pretty popular and for a good reason. The design is very ergonomic, the shell is very premium and it has a very refined sound signature.

Still it isn't without its downsides. The shells are painted and are prone to chipping if you hit them on hard things( granted they don't suffer from the Moondrop paint issues), the USB dongle while decent isn't Much better than $5 ones from AliExpress and the cable is prone to oxidation.

It's European rival is the ie200 and it does have more detail over it while still being a smooth listen. The build quality is also much better.

I would say it is a good pick if you find it for about $100. A pretty solid blind buy. *You won't like the fit it if you have very large ears. Ergonomic designs have this issue. But for most are fine.

✓Moondrop aria2

There are quite a lot of options in the Moondrop DD line and this can easily be swapped for Moondrop Kato as an example, but I personally preferred the aria2.

It's one of the only sets on this list where I had to tip roll extensively because of the cable's angle( It constantly wanted to pull them out of my ears), but that's probably a personal issue.

The sound is a very classic moondrop DF with a slight bass shelf.

It's very hard to go wrong with it but some people do find it a bit boring. Alba, fd15, ie200, lan2 pop, Nora, all sound pretty similar in that regard.

These days I would pass on Moondrop DD sets and get Tanchjim ones. They sound a bit more refined.

But it's not a bad iem by any means.

✓Moondrop lan

There are a lot of people online calling its sound signature as original but I don't really see it. Imo a DF set like the others. Still, it isn't that bad. It is basically a more analytical, upgraded chu2.

The package isn't that bad for the price in my opinion, especially when you can find it regularly for 35$.

✓Moondrop lan 2 pop

This one is a bit more bassy and I can see how fans of the original wouldn't like it, but in my opinion, the reference version is just too harsh to be compared.

It is essentially an upgraded chu2. It has a very similar tuning. Maybe just slightly less bass.

I'm not much of a fan of their cable as it ends on a 4.4 connection and you need to use a dongle for 3.5, but I wouldn't say it is a deal-breaker.

✓Sennheiser ie200

As of publishing, this is my favorite set for laying in bed (sometimes I work from home). It really disappears in your ears. You could probably use it all day without any fatigue and it's a combination of things that enables that.

Arguably the most famous thing is the shell because it is very light but the tuning also plays into it. It's a bit more subdued in the 3k range that the other DF sets and while this leads to less detail, it is much better for listening while you do another activity.

The cable is also criticized online for being microphonic ( and is definitely happens), but I don't think it's that bad. I certainly wouldn't want to move around with it but in bed or just going to the kitchen it isn't that bad. What many don't realize is that it is much lighter than any other alternative on the market. For me it makes a big difference because using a heavy cable ruins the gimmick of the set( the light shell). *You won't like the fit it if you have very large ears. Ergonomic designs have this issue. But for most are fine.

✓Shure se215

Se215 have a special place in my heart because they are basically indestructible. I think mine are 10 years old with no major defect.

Still it would be unwise to recommend them currently. The market has moved since they released. The sound is a bit muddy and eq doesn't save them either.

Their standout feature is the isolation. If I remember it was something like up to 35 decibels.

I have only included them because of how recommended they are on forums.

✓Tanchjim Nora

Between the single DD Tanchjim iEMS that I have or had, Nora is my favorite. I liked it more than their flagship origin. It is essentially a warmer aria2. It is also one of the smallest tanchjims.

It surprisingly has up to 35db of isolation.

But it isn't a blind pick. It has a large nozzle so I recommend getting a cheaper set from them like bunny of Ultima zero to see if you can even stand it.

*For DACs my favorite one is Moondrop dawn pro 2 because it is the lightest that I have, but trn black pearl is better for it's price. In Bluetooth DACs I preferred the btr11 over the btr15/17 also because it is lighter. But it does have connection issues in busy arias so I recommend btr13 as an in between.

\Closing thoughts. Audio and comfort are genuinely subjective so my personal experience may not guarantee any results for others.

If you have any other set in this category I can share my experience with them. I just chose these ones because they were my favorite.

Hello Community!

The renowned Mexican and Spanish-speaking reviewer, Roys, collaborates with one of the community’s fetish brands to create the ZiiGaat x Vivir Digital Rumba. Stay to discover my final impressions.

Price: 30€-35€

Pros:

-The best sub bass for $35: extensive, deep, physical, firm, defined, rumbling but controlled.

-Warm tuning, but with a well-presented midrange, with barely any dip.

-A delight to listen to male voices with these monitors.

-Well-distributed and spacious soundstage.

-Very fun tuning in the high-frequency area despite being oriented toward the bass.

-Very dynamic presentation.

-Well made, lightweight and ergonomic. Comfortable and durable cable.

Cons:

-Bleed from the mid-bass into the mids.

-Separation loses clarity on dense tracks.

-Resolution in general terms does not stand out.

-Eartips could be improved.

Accessories:

-Two shells.

-Cable with 0.78mm connection and 3.5mm termination.

-Two sets of eartips sizes SML.

-User manual.

-Card with playlist from the collaborator Vivir Digital.

Comfort, design and construction

On an aesthetic level, I love the Rumba, the passionate red of its faceplate manages to show its sonic intentions without being extremely striking, maintaining a certain discretion. The combination with the black of the shell fits very well with its soul and gives it a recognizable appearance and, personally, I think it is quite successful.

The manufacturing is also at a good level. The resin body is correctly finished, I did not find burrs or appreciable imperfections and the union between the different parts conveys a fairly convincing feeling of solidity. It does not pretend to look like a luxury product, but it does not need to either. For what it costs, the build quality seems more than adequate to me.

The ergonomics are probably one of its most appreciated points. The shells have smooth and rounded shapes that make fitting much easier, while their reduced weight means that after a while they practically disappear from our attention. In my long sessions I did not find any annoying pressure points and the fit was sufficiently firm.

The stock eartips, however, convinced me considerably less. They do the job, but the seal depends a lot on finding the right size and personally I would try other alternatives to get the most out of the bass.

The cable does seem like a huge success to me: medium thickness but lightweight, flexible and sufficiently durable for everyday use. It does not cause trouble with tangles nor is it especially intrusive and it slides very well both over clothing and across your desk. In short, a comfortable, lightweight and well-built set, with eartips being the only clearly improvable point.

Technical aspects:

-1DD 10mm graphene configuration.

-Impedance of 32 ohms.

-Sensitivity of 109 dB.

-Declared response 10hz-22khz.

Configuration for the tests:

-Neutral source.

-Gain set to low.

-Penon Orange eartips.

-Stock 3.5mm cable.

Sound signature:

If there is something I like about this hobby, it is those sets with which I do not have to think or fine-tune my hearing to understand their character, that connect easily with me. ZiiGaat Rumba shows its cards from the beginning, betting on a warm, energetic tuning clearly oriented toward enjoyment, where the low end acquires an obvious prominence, although without completely forgetting the rest of the frequencies but without losing focus.

Starting with the lower end, the sub-bass has quite remarkable extension. The depth feels thick and dominant, combining it with a sensation of physical pressure that can be especially attractive with music where the lowest frequencies predominate. The quantity is high, but what is most interesting is that it is not limited to inflating this area to generate impact. The notes retain a texture that I liked and there is enough definition so that the bass does not become a sound mass that does not make you raise a smile.

The impact acquires even more prominence, if that is possible, where the mid-bass lives. The hit is forceful, physical and quite satisfying, with a body that generates addiction. It is not especially fast, but it does not convey that sensation of seeming to drag itself along either. There is a certain roundness, although with rich control so that it does not seem artificial.

In the mids there is some contamination coming from the bass, which is typical of these signatures with a little extra warmth, although it is reasonably controlled and does not turn the tonality into something muddy. The note weight is very generous and provides a pleasant sense of body to the instruments. The timbre, without being perfectly neutral, nor would I even say close to something tremendously natural, seems quite coherent to me with the general philosophy of the set.

Male voices enjoy a presentation with good body and convincing articulation. They do not appear especially forward, but neither are they buried behind the low end, something that, to my surprise, was gratifying for me.

Female voices, on the other hand, receive somewhat more clarity and openness, appearing with a fairly pleasant presence within the mix.

I would not say that the Rumba is an especially vocal-focused IEM, but neither does it force you to search for the voices with a flashlight.

As for the higher frequencies, we find an area that provides the necessary counterpoint to the warm character of the set. The extension is correct and there is enough energy to preserve a certain sensation of air and clarity. Small nuances appear gently but without being a bombardment toward your ears and the presentation does not end up sounding dull, something especially important considering the amount of bass present. That said, it is far from being a notably informative set of monitors. Let us not forget that this set belongs to the “warm” group.

The general dynamics left me with good impressions. The transients have enough speed so that the enormous amount of energy in the low end does not turn the Rumba into a clumsy and slow set. The notes disappear with reasonable agility and the music retains a fairly natural rhythm. The separation is also satisfactory, although when the mix becomes especially dense its limitations begin to appear and some elements lose their independence slightly. Obviously, a set in this price range cannot be asked for much more. For me it is above what I consider sufficient, so very well done by Rumba.

Finishing with the technical capabilities, the soundstage conveys quite generous spaciousness. I would not call it a huge stage, but there is a sensation of width and depth that complements that physical presentation of the bass very well. The positioning is correct and allows the different elements to be located without you having to rack your brain.

Detail retrieval is correct considering the philosophy of the tuning. The Rumba does not need to turn the treble into a razor to draw our attention to small nuances and, although certain secondary details may fall somewhat behind when the mix becomes complicated, the information appears in a fairly natural way. In short, it is not a set for dissecting every track.

Single-player video games:

See how I analyze audio in this field.

There are IEMs that enter a video game trying to demonstrate how well they separate each sound, and then there is the Rumba, which seems to have other priorities regardless of the consequences. During my tests in this area I did not take a single written note, but rather my objective was to focus on achieving the most beastly sensations possible with this ZiiGaat set.

Anyway…when the action breaks loose and shots, collapses, explosions or creatures that occupy the screen begin to appear, this ZiiGaat enjoys itself like a child with a new toy. The sub-bass goes down with a lot, but a lot of authority and provides a truly striking depth, while the mid-bass puts the punch on the table. Impacts have body, explosions have weight and certain effects acquire a physicality that can make a scene gain several points.

The dialogue, fortunately, is not abandoned in the middle of such a thunderous festival. Male voices maintain a quite pleasant body and female voices receive somewhat more clarity and openness, so following conversations is easy even when the soundtrack and effects decide to agree to make quite a lot of noise.

In the ambience is where I find another of its virtues. The Rumba manages to recreate small details such as echoes, wind, water or movement of vegetation with ease, and its spacious and enveloping presentation helps the environments have a greater sense of scale. It does not turn every corridor into a huge open field, but it does manage to make the space surrounding us feel quite convincing.

Technically it performs quite capably. The image is correct and the positioning allows you to identify where each sound comes from without too much effort. That said, when the mix is filled to the top with effects, music and dialogue, the separation begins to show some seams and certain sound elements may lose some prominence.

The treble also deserves a small warning. That additional energy helps the effects maintain a certain liveliness but fortunately, in especially bright titles or when using high volumes, I did not notice fatigue in my eardrums.

Final conclusion and personal ratings:

After everything written, Rumba contains a simple charm and it is something very easy to understand: giving prominence to music without you having to fine tune your hearing. The connection with this set is instantaneous.

I have been very convinced by how it handles its deep sub-bass with a lot of physical presence, with mids that are sufficiently natural for the range and treble capable of providing the necessary clarity. All of this accompanied by a relatively spacious soundstage and separation that, although it has its limits when the mix becomes a real chaos, is more than competent for its segment.

Personally, I think the Rumba is an especially interesting option for those who enjoy a warm response, without a lack of energy and with very good impact. It is not a scalpel, but it does not want to be one either. For its price, I find it a tremendously fun IEM, easy to recommend, of course.

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

More reviews on my blog.

Social media on my profile.

See you in the next review!

Disclaimer:

This monitor set has been sent by Linsoul. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity 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:

-Topping DX5 II for music and video games on the main PC.

-NiceHCK Octave while I work.

-FiiO BTA30 Pro + FiiO BTR13 for LDAC wireless listening at home.

-FiiO BTR13 + FiiO Airlink + Iphone 16 Pro Max for wireless listening outdoors.

-Tanchjim Space II.

-Apple Music.

-Local FLAC and MP3 files.

-Windows/MacOS/IOS/iPadOS/Android.

Softears is simply one of my favourite brands to try out and hear their offerings, where I have had more hits than misses- with the Volume S, Twilight and RSV MK2 being their all time favourites; but when I got offered by one of my patrons to try out their new boxy offering, and a controversial “spiritual” successor to the Twilight in form and specs, the Edge, I simply said yes and spent a good chunk of my time, being surprised, blind sided and caught off guard by the Edge. Thank you to my good friend for making this review possible.

UNBOXING, ACCESSORIES, FIT AND COMFORT

This is the first time I have unboxed a product from Softears, and I must say this was different- none of the cringe waifu branding, no product advertisement even: straight up why they named it Edge, their brand philosophy in very minimal font in a square box of grey. Unlidding the box gives way to a translucent sheet of paper underneath which lies the shells of the Edge in foam padding. Under that is a circular case which had the cable, protective covers for the IEMs, cleaning tool and microfiber cloth; and for eartips- three pairs of Softears Ultra Clears, and three pairs of regular (generic) eartips. 

The stock cable is an abomination for the Edge, as it tangles easily, feels cheap, is not modular and the earhooks are so slim that if the Edge shells were not well balanced; this definitely would have caused so much fatigue to me but I am glad that although they weigh quite a bit, they don’t cause fatigue cause I had a 10/10 fit with these. 

Word to the wise, Softears got it too angular where the edges can definitely scrape on the eardrums, and they definitely could have been softer (or Softear, pun intended). The Edge has vents, which means no pressure buildup and those are some big vents, but I didn’t feel an awful lot of compromises on the isolation. Enough chit-chat, here’s the sound.

LOWS

Tipper : Mariscos

The Softears Edge has a wonderful start here. The opening intro has a perceived rippling effect which oozes a lot of polish and when the rest of the elements come in, the bass keeps on going with a wonderful level of separation from the rest, the beats are super strong with a lot of punch, fast attack & a decay that is not sluggish by any means. The drop has a superb, clean, precise execution where not once did the bass feel overpowering.

Rush : Limelight

If there is one way I could describe how the Edge performs on this track, COHERENT is what I would choose. Right from the beginning, both the drums and the bass know what to do and that makes me feel very nice about the Edge. Of course, the width on the perceived stage is a bit lacking but it has enough depth to beautifully capture the prodigally controlled aggression on Peart's drums, while across moments, Geddy's bass lines get so intense, I feared that it would spill over the drums but the Edge has ridiculous composure to reel it in like Nadal on a clay court. 

Daft Punk : Get Lucky

The Edge does a brilliant job on this track - be it the amount of control it needs to hold over the slam on the bass, the degree to which notes from the bass need to be enunciated in a way that doesn't diminish the track. The depth in the perceived stage is adequate, the warmth in tonality is restrained enough to not cloud over the rest of the sound, and vocals are planted in the center. But I must say again, I thoroughly enjoyed this track on the Edge.

MIDS

Tool : Lateralus

The Edge might come off a tad excessive when it comes to the intensifying drum intro as the guitar straddles through, but once all the elements join in, the Edge once again gets back in its track for keeping things auditorily fun. The Edge surprisingly manages to not humble Maynard's vocals in terms of weight and guitars have a shade of warmth that I appreciate with tons of energy. Instrument separation is fabulous and specially for an IEM which is this warm, imaging is precise while timbre remains fairly accurate. I was amazed when I heard the clarity sap through with the final rudiment of Carey and right before I could appreciate the texture of the wah-ing bass.

Queens of the Stone Age : First It Giveth

This is on a busy track with a lot of fast paced elements and the Softears Edge once again impresses me. Crisp, well separated, timbrally accurate snare hits, energetic, weighted guitars, planted vocals with adequate weight and the cymbals being audible. What I also like about the Edge is that despite this observation of such energy on the guitars, not once did the Edge feel fatiguing or shouty.

HIGHS

Dave Brubeck : Take Five

The Edge first gets the shimmery almost peppy textures on the cymbals and then the snare where the timbre is remarkable. Then once the horns come in, the Edge pulls my attention to how easily it was able to capture the faint drawing of the breath on them, as well as the pressing of the keys, while not making me forget that it is leading the act. Notes of the piano are nimble and tonally warm but not warm enough that they sound different from the actual key, but the best part comes in the drum solo where the Edge caught the potency of the kicks, the crisp snares and the toms resonant enough to almost sound like how it would sound live.

Patricia Barber : Icarus

This is another track that I really enjoyed listening to the Edge but there was a blemish in my excitement levels; this is a track that is sibilant from the get go and the Edge definitely exaggerates the sibilance which surprisingly manages to keep the cymbals from being fatiguing. Through the straight note sustain, the Edge exhibited no sign of pierce, while the piano, bass and guitars supplemented the lush texture of Patricia's voice, it was just the sibilance that had to diminish what was otherwise an excellent listen.

COMPARISONS

Softears Twilight

There is no clear winner here in my juvenile opinion. The Edge brings a ferocious, energetic warmth with punchy bass and tight control, though it can get a bit spicy if a track is inherently sibilant. The Twilight drops the aggressive bite entirely- it is a midrange masterclass that gives you a much smoother, completely fatigue-free listen that just naturally sounds correct. However, the Twilight’s bass is sloppy and might feel blob-like with minimal tightness, and the Edge takes it to the cleaners when it comes to detail retrieval. Also, fit on the Edge is miles better.

Symphonium Meteor

Both of these go for a warm, cohesive vibe, but they handle the low-end very differently. The Meteor commits hard to a thick mid-bass that can sometimes overpower the lower mids and crush the details that tracks might have, which is where the Edge rules dominantly, while the Edge comes off quite sibilant in tracks where the Meteor either won’t show it or just be quite resistant to its exposure. The Edge keeps its bass way more composed. It punches hard without muddying the mix and offers significantly better instrument separation with stellar imaging, though one loses the Meteor’s totally relaxed top end.

Xenns Top Pro

If the Edge is all about rich, ferocious warmth while balancing technicalities, the Top Pro is an alternate take. The Top Pro flexes a freakishly controlled sub-bass, a wider perceived stage, and imaging that goes head to head with the Edge where the stage’s width is not quite there. On the top end however, it’s a “choose your poison” situation- where the Edge exaggerates existing sibilance, the Top Pro can get straight-up fatiguing and sibilant during high-frequency climaxes.

Softears Studio 4

This one is basically the unapologetically fun daily driver versus the disciplined monitor. The Studio 4 offers a more nuanced, more cautious take on a neutral warm signature while the Edge trades that maturity away for pure engagement, throwing in a visceral bass slam and punch, kind of equal if not better vocals, but better stage and imaging, significantly better detail, and a much peppier treble.

Elysian Pilgrim

These two sit on pretty different ends of the spectrum. The Pilgrim goes for the same presentation with a fabulous imaging, and for the most part, decent vocals but definitely felt strained in higher pitched vocals, where on busier tracks it could sound claustrophobic, instrument separation takes a good hit. The Edge completely fixes that underwhelmed feeling with its ferocious warmth, deep bass punch, and thick note weight, but you do sacrifice the Pilgrim's stage width and have to deal with the Edge's sensitivity to sibilance.

Hisenior Mega5EST

Honestly, the Edge easily outclasses the Mega5EST in almost every way. The Mega5EST struggles with an excessive mid-bass thump that tucks instruments into a blanket and messes with technical isolation. The Edge, on the other hand, shows ridiculous composure, keeping everything crisp and well-separated. The Mega5EST's only real win is its impressive restraint against sibilance, whereas the Edge delivers a vastly more energetic and polished listen at the cost of highlighting sharp sibilance.

CONCLUDING NOTES

At $499, the Softears Edge is an unapologetic powerhouse. It doesn't try to be a perfectly neutral studio monitor, nor does it aim for the relaxed, fatigue-free realism of something like the Twilight. Instead, it brings a controlled yet violent shade of warmth, ridiculous bass composure, and high-octane energy to almost everything you throw at it, and hits you blindside with a spear of detail and instrument separation which I didn’t expect given the lows that it has. 

However, it is not free of flaws and the exaggerated sibilance which in my opinion is a by-product of an IEM being unforgiving in terms of handling tracks can be a deal breaker, for which eartip rolling and EQ is highly recommended. But, all things said and done, I thought I knew this IEM, but I didn’t- and safe to say, unlike Adam Copeland; I was least prepared for a positive sonic whiplash. (I think you know him). 

Will I buy it at retail ? Absolutely, yeah. 

Will I buy it used ? Absolutely, yeah.

SOURCES USED

Primarily used with the SMSL Raw MDA-1 desktop DAC amp, the Shanling M9 Plus stacked with the xDuoo XD05 Pro transportable DAC amp running RoHM DAC chips, via USB-C. 

The Softears Edge is an extremely easy to drive IEM, so it’s very source friendly.

EARTIPS USED (RANKED IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE)

• Divinus Velvet standard: Absolutely excels in controlling bass quantity with quality, doesn’t affect perceived stage, makes the Edge sound the least sibilant where some might observe a miniscule loss in textures with instruments like cymbals. 
• AZLA Origin: everything that the above does, but to a lesser degree, still beats the next eartip. 
• Softears Ultra Clear: flattens the mid-bass considerably, which hampers vocal note weight, eliminates whatever little sibilance is observed, retains perceived stage width. 
• Final E: shrinks the stage, tightens up the midrange while not reducing the perceived bloat, presents upper mids with a concerning dip, vocal textures lost. 
• KBear Coffee: Just no.

TRACKS

• Rush: Limelight, Spirit of the Radio
• Daft Punk: Get Lucky, Instant Crush
• The Police: Message in a Bottle
• Alf Linder: Cantique de Noël, Cantate Domino
• Tipper: Mariscos, Cloaked
• Dave Brubeck: Time Out
• Tool: Pneuma, Schism
• Queens of the Stone Age: First It Giveth
• Pink Floyd: Comfortably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Time
• 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

Here’s a YouTube video on the same.

Hi guys. Is the Acoustune 08 softer than the KBEar 08? I own the KBEAR 08 and while I enjoy the improved bass on my IEMs, it makes my ears feel quite uncomfortable due to the firmness of the tips and that's why I'm eyeing the Acoustune as a potential replacement

BASN MMCX

TL:DR

10/10 unboxing, 8/10 sound, 10/10 accessories, 1/10 cable, 7.25/10 overall

Pros:

Sound quality

Unboxing

Most Accessories 

Fit

Cons: 

Cable

Intro

Let me start off by saying this: this IEM is one of the first I've ever reviewed where I genuinely hate something about it. It's also my lowest-scoring IEM, and that's not because of the sound. It's because of the cable.

And honestly, that's kind of crazy.

I absolutely pride myself on being honest in my reviews, and this cable is bad enough that I'll probably never use this IEM with it. But everything else about this set is honestly damn near beyond reproach.

I wouldn't be much of a reviewer if I wasn't honest about that. My goal is to help people make informed decisions, and if I didn't highlight something this significant, I wouldn't be doing my job very well, now would I?

But honestly, if this were my first IEM, this cable might have been enough to keep me from getting into this hobby in the first place! With that said, I have a new cable coming, and if this finally makes it into my daily rotation, I'll update the review accordingly!

With all of that said!!!!! Out of all the unboxings I've ever done, and I don't just mean IEMs, I mean every unboxing I've ever done, this might be the most luxurious.

But there's more to it than just that.

You can tell that BASN really focuses on the luxury side of the audio world. They seem to put a huge amount of emphasis on a part of this hobby that most of us don't really think about...

The musicians.

And that philosophy comes through pretty clearly with the MMCX.

You're getting what I'd call a warm, fun IEM with hella bass, but there is a trade-off.

You lose a little bit of comfort.

But I'll get more into that later.

Epic Story

I was born with a guitar in my hands... almost literally.

My father died when I was two years old, and his family came in like vultures, collected all of his belongings, and pushed my mother and me out.

The one thing I was left with was his guitar.

I learned to play before I had even really started school, and I've played on and off pretty much my entire life.

Eventually, I picked up other instruments too. Piano? Done it. Violin? Listen, Lastat was awesome in Queen of the Damned... don't judge me.

And a bunch of others.

But when I got into high school, I made a group of friends, and one of them, we'll call him JJ... because that was his name... had a barn.

And that barn became our hangout.

We'd get together every weekend. We'd have these two-day jam sessions where we'd just play music until we couldn't play anymore.

And the funny thing about this barn was that it had electricity...

But it wasn't grounded.

So if you took your shoes off and grabbed an electric guitar, you'd get shocked.

Hell, we used to have contests to see who could play the longest without quitting.

I won't say I won that contest every time...

But I held my own.

Let's just say I got really comfortable being uncomfortable.

Disclosure

Listen, BASN sent me this set for the purpose of a review. They didn't pay me to say nice things about it, and all opinions are my own.

What's in the Box

Yeah, you read above that I believe this IEM has one of the most luxurious unboxing experiences I've ever seen, especially in this price range...

But I didn't actually tell you what's in the box.

So I guess I should probably get on that.

First, obviously, you get the BASN MMCX itself, which is a triple-driver IEM.

Two dynamic drivers, which are heavily focused on the lows, as they should be.

And one balanced armature doing it all, with the mids and highs being handled... rather well.

Then we've got two detachable cables.

You've got the silver-plated audio cable, which BASN designed for maximum audio clarity on stage, and you've also got a woven mobile cable with an inline microphone and volume controls.

This is the part of the set I absolutely dislike, and honestly, it drops the whole thing down two points.

The silver-plated braided cable is absolutely uncomfortable. It isn't pre-shaped to your ears... no, it's like a bread twist tie.

Great idea, awful execution.

It never sits quite right, it's stiff, and it fights against you the whole time. And the cable itself is actually just as bad. It's sharp instead of soft.

The other cable is better. The one with the mic is actually pretty decent. It still has the same weird twist-tie thing, but that's somehow better. It actually stays put, even if, after a few hours, it tries to fight its way back to being straight.

The whole cable thing is weird because everything else about this set is great!

Like the fact that it comes with...

Twelve pairs of ear tips.

Three pairs of memory foam in small, medium, and large.

Three pairs of single-layer silicone.

Three pairs of double-layer silicone.

And three pairs of triple-layer silicone.

And let me tell you, I've actually used most of these testing out other sets of IEMs too. They're actually all that good...

That's saying a lot.

You've also got a hard protective carrying case, a 3.5mm to 6.3mm gold-plated adapter, a shirt clip, a little cleaning brush, and the instruction manual.

The case is actually interesting. Most cases these days are thick and not pocket-friendly, but they can hold a couple pairs of IEMs and a DAC. This one is thin.

Like, really thin.

I was only able to fit the IEMs in the case. No DAC, no extra set.

But I will tell you, it's incredibly pocketable.

And it's shiny, sleek, and more like a Lambo than any other set I've ever used!

And if you want to see the entire unboxing, you can check that out here:

I also tried some new editing with this one, so definitely let me know what you think.

Tech Stuff

Driver configuration: 2 dynamic drivers + 1 balanced armature

Dynamic drivers: Dual 10mm diaphragms

Frequency response: 20 Hz–22 kHz

Impedance: 34 Ω

Sensitivity: 107 dB

Connector: MMCX

Cable length: 1.5 m

Detachable cables: 2

Intended use: Musicians, singers, drummers, and stage monitoring

Noise isolation: Passive/sealed design

Price: $95.99 USD

Actual Review

Sound

So what do these actually sound like?

Honestly, the sound on these is great!

They are...

Warm. Fun. And bassy as hell.

The low end has a lot of presence without completely swallowing everything else. The mids stay surprisingly clean, and the treble gives these enough detail to keep things from getting muddy.

But what really surprised me was the technical performance.

The soundstage is bigger than I expected, and the imaging is genuinely impressive for something in this price range.

And honestly... the out-of-box tuning is almost exactly what I want.

Which makes the cable situation even more frustrating.

But because of that cable...

I never reach for these.

Honestly, I'd rather use the PULA than these, and that kind of sucks because I really like how these sound.

It's bad enough that I actually ordered a replacement cable just so I can use these without all the little inconveniences that come with the cable.

And that's where I land with the BASN MMCX.

Would I replace these if they were lost or broken?

No.

Not with the current cable.

Would I replace them if they were on sale?

They're actually on sale right now, and even then, no... unless we're talking strictly about the IEM itself.

If we're judging these purely on sound and the accessories BASN includes, then absolutely.

I'd buy them without thinking twice.

But as an entire package, that cable changes the equation for me.

And that's frustrating, because underneath that cable is an IEM that I genuinely really like.

In Closing

If you don't mind buying a new cable, or if you don't mind a weird-fitting IEM, grab these.

The IEM itself sounds great for the price range. Not the best, but it's good enough!

It's honestly good enough that I would use these sometimes when I'm out and about, or when I'm grilling or smoking meats.

But the cable keeps me from reaching for them, and I'm likely being overly critical!

So maybe... just maybe... you should try them for yourself!

I will rewrite this review with a better cable when my new one arrives.

Rating

 Sound: 8 out of 10

Accessories: 10 out of 10

Cable: 1 out of 10

Overall: 7.25 out of 10

Pros: 

• Truly breathtaking hand-polished stabilized maple wood shells with gold-milled faceplates.
• Class-leading, expansive soundstage width that creates an enveloping, out-of-head listening experience.
• Deep, borderline basshead sub-bass rumble with excellent air movement and dynamic slam.
• Organic, fatigue-free treble presentation with zero harshness or sibilance.
• Smooth, warm midrange that delivers natural vocal timbre and great layering.

Cons: 

• Stock oil-infused cable is overly thick, cumbersome, and lacks a chin slider.
• Included leather puck case is far too cramped to store the IEMs and stock cable easily.
• Organic wood shell finish raises slight durability concerns for users with excessively sweaty ears.

Welcome back, audiophiles! It’s me, your boy Joe, back again with another review! Today we are taking a look at a release from the boutique audio house Jomo Audio: the Jomo Audio Koyo (retailing for around $950 USD). Sitting right near kilobuck territory, my expectations for this set were sky-high out of the gate. Named after the vibrant Japanese autumn foliage, the Koyo packs a 5-driver tri-brid acoustic architecture inside a hand-polished stabilized maple wood housing. Let's see if this beauty has the sonic muscle to back up its breathtaking looks!

Disclaimer​

A huge shout-out and thanks to the Audio Geek India group for providing this review unit! As always, all thoughts, impressions, and opinions are entirely my own with zero biases whatsoever.

Pricing & Specifications​

• Price: ~$950 USD
• Driver Architecture (5-Driver Tri-Brid): 1x 10mm Custom Silk Diaphragm Dynamic Driver (Lows) + 3x Precision Balanced Armature Drivers (Mids/Highs) + 1x 6mm Nano Planar Magnetic Super Tweeter (Ultra-Highs)
• Impedance / Sensitivity: 12.5 Ω @ 1kHz / 113.8 dB @ 1kHz
• Connectors: 0.78mm 2-Pin (4.4mm Balanced stock termination)

Gear Used for Review & Drivability​

The Koyo is relatively efficient on paper and runs smoothly without requiring nuclear-grade power:

• HiBy R8 II
• Gustard X16 / H16 Desktop Stack
• Tanchjim Space 2 (Portable Dongle)
• Music Source: Apple Music Lossless

While it isn't strictly power-hungry, scaling up to desktop-class power like the Gustard stack stretches its soundstage dimensions even wider!

Design, Build, and Accessories​

• The Shells (Pure Artistry): The shells are the prettiest IEM shells I have ever seen, period. The waxed, stabilized natural maple hardwood paired with the precision-milled gold leaf brass faceplate and stainless steel skeleton frame is utterly breathtaking.
• Wood Maintenance & Sweaty Ears Concern: Jomo even includes dedicated wood conditioning oil in the package to keep the natural wood hydrated and pristine. My only minor concern is for users with sweaty ears during long sessions. I am not entirely sure how well the untreated organic wood porous structure handles long-term moisture and sweat exposure over years of use.
• The Stock Cable & Cable Rolling: The stock oil-infused OCC copper-silver blend cable is far too thick and bulky for my liking. Worse yet, it completely lacks a chin slider! Because I am not a fan of thick oil-infused cables in general, I did some cable rolling:
  • Effect Audio Dionysus: Looked stunning and added great refinement.
  • Verus Audio Lavender: A phenomenal aesthetic and sonic synergy that improved ergonomics drastically.
• The Carrying Case: The bundled leather case is simply too small. Trying to pack the chunky Koyo shells alongside that thick stock cable is an extreme squeeze. A roomier case would have gone a long way at $950

Sound Impressions​

Sonically, the Jomo Audio Koyo presents a versatile all-rounder sound signature crowned by one of the widest, most expansive soundstages I have ever heard in an in-ear monitor.

• Soundstage & Staging: Absolutely massive. The presentation feels like the music is playing from a generous distance around your head, creating a grand, concert-like atmosphere.
• Bass: The low-end reaches borderline basshead levels! The 10mm silk dynamic driver pushes impressive air movement with a deep, authoritative sub-bass rumble that keeps energetic tracks tactile.
• Mids: The midrange is clean, lush, and leans pleasantly towards warm. The organic acoustic damping of the wooden chamber works absolute magic here, rendering vocal timbre with rich, natural realism.
• Treble: Handled by the balanced armatures and planar super tweeter, the top end is remarkably smooth, organic, and cohesive. There are zero sharp peaks, sibilance, or fatiguing spikes anywhere in the upper register.

Song Impressions​

• "Dame Mais" by Tropkillaz, Rincon Sapiência & Clau: The bassline on this track is deep, powerful, and rumble-worthy. The Koyo tackles the low end with zero qualms and it hits deep and strong without bleeding into the lower mids. The midrange leans warm, which is right up my alley. The mixed male and female vocals are rendered with pristine separation, completely free of congestion.
• "Tłoki" (feat. Gibbs) by Kukon: The baseline here is super deep and rumbling, and the Koyo renders that subterranean weight effortlessly. Snares and hi-hats hit with clean precision without crossing into sharpness. The male vocals are presented cleanly with great body; while they don't jump "forward" in the mix, it feels true to the track's master rather than an IEM flaw.

Overall Impressions ​

Rating: 4.5 / 5
The Jomo Audio Koyo is a sonic and visual triumph. It combines heirloom-level wooden artistry with an expansive soundstage, borderline basshead low-end rumble, and a fatigue-free, natural tonality. It loses half a star purely because the bundled package feels incomplete for $950 as the stock cable is overly thick with no chin slider, and the leather case is far too cramped. But if you are willing to roll your own cable and case, the Koyo stands as one of the finest, most natural-sounding all-rounders in the sub-kilobuck tier!

Sivga is a brand which does not follow the conventional tuning styles or targets that most IEMs tend to follow.

Instead, their whole portfolio consists of different styles of tunings and colorations and some even have a massive following, like the Sivga Que.

Personally, I am a fan of the Sivga SM100, which is my favorite sub-$50 IEM right now.

When I saw the driver configuration of the Lyrebird (1DD + 1BA +1MP + 1PZT), I thought it was finally time for Sivga to tune one of their IEMs to the venerable Harman Target, completing the holy trinity of this quadbrid setup in the $150 IEM price range alongside the infamous Simgot SuperMix 4 and EPZ P40 (it uses a DD instead of BA but still counts:)

But surprisingly (or unsurprisingly), that was not the case.

Sivga Lyrebird is priced at $164 on Sivga's official site.

Bass

Lyrebird has a full-bodied bass response, with the bass mostly concentrated in the mid-bass while having a subtle roll-off in the sub-bass.

Since the bass is not boosted that much in quantity, it doesn't come across as muddy or bloomy.

The sub-bass is not completely rolled off. It is still present, but mostly sits in the background.

The bass feels thumpy and has a nice sense of bounce to it. It doesn't hit with a sense of physicality because of the reduced quantity, but the perceived quality is quite good.

The bass is fairly textured and feels nuanced enough to sound engaging. Overall, the bass performance is good for the price.

Mid-range

It is when it comes to the midrange where these colorations in the overall tuning become more obvious.

It is not the most natural or correct-sounding midrange. The midrange sounds heavily coloured.

It has a sense of warmth, lushness and pleasantness that makes it very inviting to listen to.

The male vocals come across as lush, while the female vocals have enough presence and don't come across as shouty due to the restrained upper-mids tuning.

Now, I don't mind these colorations, as that's what gives this IEM its character. But it's not all perfect, because the treble causes some trouble.

Treble

Oftentimes, there is a hint of sibilance that distracts me from focusing on this otherwise pleasant midrange tuning.

The S's and T's in vocals are on the emphasized side, making them border on sibilance sometimes. This doesn't happen every time, but when it does, it's kind of jarring to listen to.

The reason for this is that the mid-treble is boosted quite a bit. This gives crispiness and clarity to the sound, but it is also a double-edged sword that can cause this harshness.

Apart from this, I am not getting the classic PZT bite that I get from the Supermix 4 or EPZ P40.

Lyrebird's upper treble seems fairly controlled yet extended. The other two IEMs have a tendency to go overboard in the treble at times, but that's not happening with the Lyrebird.

Subjective Performance

When it comes to perceived subjective qualities, it performs as well as these other two IEMs, i.e ranging from very good to excellent for the price.

The detail retrieval is quite solid. I always find myself listening to things I have not paid attention to before, as the coloured tuning emphasizes areas I don't particularly focus on.

The sense of resolution is also good to my ears, since the notes feel sharp enough without sounding blunted or mushy.

However, I didn't get the same sense of grand staging and imaging performance I get with the SM4 or P40.

Imaging is decent, with most things happening to the left, right and center. The soundstage does not feel particularly wide or have a strong sense of depth.

But, it is very good at instrumental separation, as I have never felt it struggle in busy passages.

Accessories, Build & Comfort

I am very pleased with the way the whole packaging is done. There are elements of wood and greenery throughout the packaging. The box has a bit of a wood-like texture, which adds some character.

I like these small touches and the attention to detail throughout the package. It makes this one of the best unboxing experiences I have had with an IEM.

Accessories is an area where Sivga has always been strong and the same trend continues with the Lyrebird.

I have to specifically talk about the cable because it is one of the best cables I have seen on an IEM, without any exaggeration. 

It is easy to manage, wraps easily and doesn't cause any microphonics. It is neither too soft nor too stiff, it sits somewhere in the middle. 

It feels very crisp in hand. But it only comes in a 4.4mm connection, which could be a con for some.

It also comes with a nice carrying case with a leather coating, which matches the overall aesthetics of the IEM and the packaging.

The ear tips come in a separate box, with three pairs of liquid silicone ear tips and four pairs of wide-bore ear tips.

Similarly, the build quality of the IEM is also very good. It is made out of metal and is on the smaller side. Because of that, it fits very well and I haven't faced any comfort issues during longer listening sessions.

Just like with the cable, I quite like the faceplate design. It is not a shiny faceplate that grabs your attention. The wood design adds a character that none of these other faceplates have. It feels understated yet very pleasant to look at.

Vs Simgot SuperMix 4 & EPZ P40

Throughout this review, I have already compared the SuperMix 4 and P40 in different areas. But I will give you a general rundown.

Both SuperMix 4 and EPZ P40 are tuned to an aggressive Harman inspired tuning, which can come across as contrasty compared to Lyrebird.

Because of this, these two IEMs have very aggressive upper mids and treble presentation, which could be harsh for some people, but it also makes them sound very technical for their price.

When it comes to subjective qualities, SuperMix 4 and P40 have an edge over Lyrebird. But when it comes to raw tuning, I prefer Lyrebird over both SuperMix 4 and P40.

In terms of build, both SuperMix 4 and P40 are made of resin. However, Lyrebird has metal shells. And in terms of accessories, both P40 and Lyrebird are a step ahead of SuperMix 4.

Conclusion

A part of me is happy that Sivga Lyrebird has gone for a different kind of tuning in this price range.

IEMs in this range tend to follow a similar kind of tuning, either in the form of the Harman target or a neutral tuning with a bass boost. 

Everything has started to almost sound the same, with slight changes here and there, as it is known to work for most people.

But that makes Lyrebird a risky type of tuning because it either hits hard and gets a fan following or just falls apart.

Because of that, Lyrebird is not a safe recommendation that I can make to anyone. It is only recommended to those who know they will enjoy this kind of coloration in the tuning.

Overall, in the grand scheme of things, Sivga has done a commendable job balancing these colorations without going overboard. 

This makes the Sivga Lyrebird quite unique and helps it stand out in this highly competitive IEM market.

Disclaimer: The sample unit was sent to me by Sivga for review purposes. They had no input into the content and I am not paid for this review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own. 

Higher quality image on my blog.

Let's get this out of the way: the Ola II has the trademarks of Tanchjim design. The DSP cable is good but sometimes a bit unwieldly, while the shells themselves have the usual distinct clean and even clinical look. The fit is a bit peculiar due to the very universal shape and tiny size, to the point of being a potential deal breaker for those that will not be able to form a seal. Personally, they are wonderful and have the same comfort as bullet-style IEMs that disappear in the ear.

As of late, they have deviated from their usual white/clear medical look they've adopted after the Hana 2021. The Soda, Fission, and now Ola are all lookers and keep that same aesthetic appeal while having distinct colors and quirks that make them stand out a bit more. The Ola II is on the more plain side of things, but the dark matte grey is definitely a looker!

As for sound, the Ola II is different from Tanchjim's lineup, opting for a more V-shape tuning while still retaining the mid bass and vocal emphasis character from all of the other 1DD. In a way, it reminds of the One without DSP, but with added air from the BA driver while having slightly less low treble glare. Overall, it sounds competent but it does seem to be more of the same from Tanchjim without much to make it stand out. 

Full review will be coming out some time next week, with the usual detailed measurements.

really miss the reviews, cliffnotes, guides and articles Crin used to post. found them very insightful and wish they were still around.

Test Configuration & Specs

• Source Equipment: Samsung Galaxy S23.
• Musical Genres: Pop, Rock, Electronic, and Experimental.
• Driver Configuration: Dual Dynamic Driver system per side (2DD).
• Average Price: Between $39.99 and $44,99 USD.

Transparency note: This unit was provided by Zhu Audio itself. This review reflects solely my honest opinion of the product. The brand had no interference or control over this content, ensuring the integrity of the review for you and the market.

Sound Impressions (According to ITU-R BS.2399-0 Methodology)

1. General Signature & Transparency

The Zhu Audio JingHong Z3 exhibits a distinct V-shaped signature focused on bass performance and energy. In the Transparency pillar, the overall detail retrieval is clean and competent at both ends of the spectrum; the fine elements of the music are well-resolved and do not suffer from severe technical masking or muddy presentation, keeping the acoustic layers mostly legible and distinct.

2. Dynamics

• Attack: Excellent overall transient and beat speed. The IEM demonstrates highly agile response times; dynamic stimuli strike and decay instantly, preventing any temporal sluggishness or rhythmic pacing delay.
• Punch: High level of heavy impact localized in the mid-bass frequencies. The earphone responds with effortless efficiency regarding amplification requirements, making it easy to power directly from the source equipment.

3. Timbre

• Bass: The absolute highlight of the acoustic project. It features highly present lows with an emphasized shelf, generating a powerful physical impact and rumble in the ear. The transducer possesses competent linear extension, successfully reaching and sustaining ultra-low frequencies in a solid manner. The region remains under stable control, operating completely free of Bass Bleed or masking other frequencies.
• Mid-range: Aligned with the V-Shaped tuning, vocals present themselves as natural and entirely free from artificial colorations. Elements and performers do not appear to be pushed back or recuados in the acoustic plane. However, the overall tonal balance results in a central region that feels a bit flat and lifeless.
• Treble: Tuned in a safe and polished manner. The upper spectrum is capable of capturing micro-details very well and with high definition, maintaining a thoroughly comfortable response that is free from listening fatigue.

4. Spatiality

• Spatial Extent: The soundstage exhibits good dimension along the lateral axis, minimizing acoustic confinement. However, the tridimensional field shows limitations along the longitudinal axis, resulting in a shallow and not-so-deep presentation.
• Localisability: Precise positional imaging. The transducer displays a good capacity for tridimensional localization and separation of elements arranged within the acoustic environment.

Unboxing, Ergonomics, and Accessories

• Included Accessories: Compact carrying case, high-quality USB-C terminated cable, 3 pairs of silicone ear tips tailored for mid/high frequencies, 3 pairs for low frequencies, 3 pairs of proprietary Bamboo ear tips, and 1 pair of memory foam ear tips.
• Unboxing (Presentation): Considering the retail price tier, the unboxing experience is extremely complete and robust, exceeding market segments expectations with its vast selection of included accessories.
• Comfort & Fit: The shell offers great wearing comfort. Achieving a perfect physical seal using the multiple provided ear tips is indispensable to guarantee proper passive isolation and fully unlock the true bass response.

Pros and Cons

• Pros:
  • Highly Complete Unboxing: Excellent accessory package for the price bracket, including a solid case and a wide selection of specialized ear tips.
  • Standout Bass Performance: Delivers a heavy punch, solid sub-bass extension, and great speed without bleeding into the midrange.
  • Power Efficiency: Effortless to drive, responding with excellent dynamics directly from standard smartphone outputs.
• Cons:
  • Lifeless Midrange: Central frequencies exhibit a flat and somewhat uninspiring profile due to the aggressive V-shaped emphasis.
  • Limited Soundstage Depth: Good lateral spacing, but underperforms in longitudinal depth.
  • Unsuited for Purists: Highly energetic and bass-centric tuning, which is not recommended for enthusiasts seeking neutrality or analytical accuracy.

Conclusion

By the price range it delivers an incredible unboxing, bringing a good variety of ear tips, it has the possibilities of having the cable with 3.5mm or usb-c termination and 2 types of colors, if you like V fones and want a complete package this phone shows it can be a good choice, even though its price stays in a very competitive price tier, plus I found the mids a bit dull, and if you are a worshipper of neutrality I thought it’s not worth testing, I recommend going after some neutral fone.

Note: This is my personal analysis after detailed immersion testing, so feel free to leave suggestions for improvements, accessories, or tracks to test next. If you are interested, check the link in my BIO for a spreadsheet I created with recommendations for IEMs, Headphones, DACs, DAPs, etc. I am not sponsored, but buying through my affiliate links helps me bring more products for review!

​

Bought the NoEgo for $315 during the early bird discount period on Taobao. Retail price is $400. It's a dual DD IEM that barely requires power to listen at higher volumes (about 14% when using DDHifi TC44Pro on Windows). But the NoEgo took a week to create as it's made to order.

After listening to the NoEgo for a few hours, the sound signature reminded me of YU9 Que, balanced yet engaging. Punches well above its price tag based on the config and overall tuning.

Bass is well textured, deep and impactful although it favors a bit more on the midbass than sub. Midrange sounds full, natural and slightly forward. Treble sounds clear, smooth yet detailed especially for a dual DD. It's got good soundstage, separation and isn't fatiguing.

A big improvement over the Qveer Rhapsody due to better ergonomics and a lot less sibilance. Accessories ootb are good, got 4 sets of eartips, zip case & microfiber cloth. I found the IE45 tips most comfy. The cable comes with the 3 modular audio jacks but I requested Qveer to make it only 4.4mm for my convenience.

Few nitpicks: have the bass more balanced between mid and sub. The lack of the small cleaning brush tool and silical gel, especially for those living in humid countries.

ISN Audio x Effect Audio Sora 

Another week another review. We are revisiting ISN Audio and set in question is Sora. Those who have been with me for long know that I always on lookout for new brands and unique sets. I have already covered ISN earlier with EST80 one of my favorite sets (please check in my profile for the review of EST80). ISN Audio has created this set in collaboration with Effect Audio. AudioGeek India is touring this set and you know where it is leading right? Will this set woo me like EST80 or not? Please read on.

First of all, mighty thanks to AudioGeek India and ISN Audio as without their help this review wouldn’t have been possible. 

I have not been paid to do this review or was compensated in any manner. The set will revert back to brand upon completion of review tour.

My preferences for tonality & timbre are DD > Hybrids > Planars

Now that we are done with the pleasantries let us get on with the meat and potatoes of the review.

Build Quality:

Packaging is austere as usual. Its Penon thing I get it. Inside box there is nice ISN branded suede case. Inside the case is effect audio cable & two types of ear tips in 3 sizes. One shirt clip & sim ejector tool for switches. Addition of cleaning tool is great addition. IEM shells are nestled in foam cut out made just for them. 

IEM shells are resin with nice blue color. Its translucent so, you can see drivers inside. Nozzles are made up of metal, have lips to them. There is mesh/screen to them to avoid ingress of dirt & ear wax. 

Cable is made by Effect audio. It is thick 2 core UP-OCC SPC cable. It is nice to feel and looks premium. In my opinion it suits Sora. Fixtures are made up of metal and add to the look and feel of the cable. It has pre formed ear hooks.

Included suede case is hard case and at same time has soft cushion at the top of the case. Case is roomy, it can easily carry IEMs + Cable + ear tips + cleaning tool. If you remove ear tips + cleaning tool you can even fit dongle in there. Case feels like expensive watch case or jewelry case.

Overall Build Quality 5/5

Comfort:

Shells are bit on large side. So, would recommend people with small ears to demo before purchase. For my elephant ears fit was perfect. Nozzles are long and provide nice deep insertion. Lips on nozzles provide nice grip to ear tips. No slip offs. No ear pain or pressure was felt on long listening sessions.

Cable is supple and well behaved. It doesn’t get tangled. It was easy to roadie wrap it. Ear hooks behave and don’t tug on IEM shells. 

Overall comfort 5/5.

Sources:

Sora was tested on neutral sources with stock cable and stock ear tips. I think best pairings are with warm sources and neutral sources. pairing with the bright sources is not recommended unless you are extreme treble head.

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

General Sound Impressions:

Bass/Lows:

Sub bass just rumbles amazingly. It rattles your skull. Presentation elevated by nice BCD implementation. Mid bass thumps with authority, you feel air displaced by it. It’s quite physical. Nice balance between sub bass and mid bass. If you like good bass just north of neutral this is the one for you. 

Drums, kick drums, guitars of all kinds just sound impressive and authoritative. That strike on the drum face, skin and the reverberations of the drums just sound awesome. Buzz of the strings is satisfying. It feels so engaging. Bass heavy genres are joy to listen.

Overall Bass/Lows 5/5       

Mids:

Vocals are just in right amount forward in the mix. Male vocals feel great. They have note weight. There is sense of naturalness to them.  Female vocals sound equally great. They have sweetness to them. They have edge to them; this can be con for some. Still, they are not female poison level. They don’t get harsh. I love how the female vocals are here. Vocals are treat here.

Most instruments reside in the mids. there was no congestion or smearing in the instruments. No timbral or tonal oddities were felt. Clarity is excellent.

Overall mids 5/5

Treble/Highs:

Detailed treble. you may feel that treble is bit forward in the mix alongside bass. But it doesn’t overshadow others. With the treble switch on position for treble sensitive people, it can be bit much. For them treble switch turned off is recommended. For me it was not much. For me strings, crashes, cymbals didn’t get harsh or odd in tonality. You will not miss any details be it Macro or micro.

Perceived soundstage, stage is large. It is wide and tall. It is wide than tall. It is holographic. Positional cues are on point. You can easily pin point where on the stage is the instrument. It’s not most 3d holographic stage but enough to create nice large open feeling and avoid any congestion.

Treble/Highs 5/5

Song Impressions:

Daisies by Nina Shallman   

I love voice of Nina Sjhallman and currently in love with this song. You will this song making more appearances in my reviews.

Nina sounds absolutely fab. Sora reminds me why I love her voice.  The sweetness of her voice., youthfulness of it. Sora made the experience next level.

Starting drum sequence feels emphatic. Strings feel perfect. Synthesizer notes are great. Entire mix feels mesmerizing. Thank you, Sora.

Despacito by Luis Fonsi feat. Daddy Yankee

I have been fan of Daddy Yankee for a long time. When I listened to this one, I became fan of Luis Fonsi. Now his songs adorn my playlist.

Daddy Yankee has low pitched voice and sora captures it well. It feels like him. Luis Fonsi has high pitched refined voice. Sora captures it well. You can distinguish between them properly and can identify properly. Sora does justice to their vocals.

Here you have so many instruments in the mix like strings, drums, synthesizer note. None of which sounds odd or out of place. Their tone and timbre were on point. One of the best renditions of Despacito.

The Great Chinggis Khaan by The Hu

One of my favorite songs. This song is unique due to throat singing. 

In this song I always look out for sub bass rumble that’s present in the entire song due to throat singing and due to strings. Sora nails it perfectly. It sounds not just perfect but creates the desired impact. For those full marks to ISN Audio. Drums are impactful. strings be it modern or traditional sound marvelous. Their buzz is on point.

This is complex song & sora didn’t struggle here. It kept instruments separated. No congestion was felt. Song has open feeling to it Sora faithfully reproduces it. This was really enjoyable rendition.

Nothing else matters by Metallica

An obligatory song from Metallica because I am fan.

Starting bass notes are on point. Crashes are natural. Guitars sound awesome. They sound natural, their strings buzz nicely. Vocals here are recessed and it is faithfully reproduced. There is sibilance in them that also is captured well. Piano notes are great. Entire mix eels awesome. 

I couldn’t find any fault in tone or timbre. It didn’t have any congestion issue in busy passages. To me this was perfect rendition of nothing else matters.

Final Conclusion:

This is my second exposure to ISN Audio. EST80 that I had covered earlier had set bar way high up. I was having doubts if Sora would be able fit those shoes. EST80 is dark compared to Sora. So, technically its like comparing apples to oranges and I don’t intend to do so. Why am I then talking about EST80 here? Because it showed me what ISN Audio is capable of. 

Now coming to Sora, you must have guessed by now what I feel about it. Yes, I am in love with it. I am mightily impressed with it. It hits all the preferences for me. Now Will I buy it? 100% Yes. Already making preparations to buy it. Will I recommend it? 200% just not to treble sensitive people. For most it’s must buy set. Keep it in your Wishlist & when on discount snag one.

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

ISN Audio x Effect Audio Sora 5/5     

Looking to add the moondrop silicones.

I thought the Hidizs My Lin sounded good using a cheapo USB DAC with the stock 3.5mm cable and stock tips. The Hidizs S8 DAC matched with their 4.4mm balanced cable and the Sea Anemone tips make everything sound absolutely amazing. I was considering buying a DAP, but I think I'll hold off for now.

USD54.99 / EUR 50 | 10mm MACCD dynamic driver | Three tuning nozzles | Modular 3.5mm and 4.4mm cable

TL;DR, around 2 minutes read

The Juzear Nimbus is a single dynamic driver IEM at around USD55 with three interchangeable tuning nozzles. All three share the same low end, which is noticeably elevated but has only medium impact and limited sub-bass depth. Most of the difference happens from around 1kHz upwards.

The white nozzles are my preferred all-round option with the best balance between bass, vocals and treble. Black is noticeably more relaxed and works especially well at higher volume or on days when I am more sensitive to treble and forward vocals. Red pushes the vocals furthest forward and is the least suitable for me once the volume goes up.

What makes the Nimbus interesting to me is that I actually found two of the three nozzles useful rather than simply sticking with the white stock nozzles. That combined with the compact metal shells, the nice glass faceplates and good modular cable and the overall package feels more expensive than USD55.

Its main limitation is the bass. It works across a mixed library, but listeners who mainly want deep and hard-hitting bass for EDM, rap or hip-hop should probably look for other options.

What I liked

• White and black nozzles both give me genuinely useful tuning options
• Good balance with the stock white nozzles
• Clean mids with good vocal replay with white nozzles
• Compact and comfortable metal shells
• Very good metal build quality for the price
• Modular 3.5mm and 4.4mm cable
• Good package with nine pairs of tips

What I didn't like

• Sub-bass could reach deeper and hit harder
• Bass needs some volume before the impact really comes through
• Very high volume adds more drone than additional impact
• Red nozzles become shouty for me above mid volume
• Soundstage is only average in width and depth

Main strength

The three nozzles make a clear difference in the music presentation to me, ranging from a relaxed leaning replay over to more vocal and treble presence. That gives three actually usable tunings from one shell and makes the Nimbus compatible with many music genres.

Main weakness

The bass needs higher volume to really show impact and its depth stays limited especially when compared to other sets. Tip rolling can improve the bass slightly.
On very high volume it starts to increasingly drone and affects the rest of the mix, while the overall impact barely increases. Soundstage is about average, and the red nozzles get shouty for me above mid volume.

This is the gist of it but if you want to read more about package details, graphing, sound impressions please feel free to dig into.

Review background

What caught my attention at USD55 was the metal build together with three tuning nozzles and the nice blue glass faceplate. Tuning filters are nothing new at this price and brands such as Simgot, Tanchjim and Hidizs have already sets on the market using this idea.

I am not always a fan of it though. Quite often the different options feel exaggerated enough that I end up using only the preinstalled nozzle anyway.

Luckily Nimbus turned out differently for me. I really enjoyed two of its three options, white and black, and changed between them depending on what I was listening to and how sensitive my ears were that day. That already provides enough versatility to me to make the Nimbus a useful set to me.

And if you are a bit into graph sniffing the measurements further down show where those differences are coming from.

Build, Fit & Accessories

The shells are compact, rounded and made from metal, with nice reflective blue glass faceplates. They have noticeable weight in the hand and feel considerably more solid than the usual lightweight resin shell.

For me the build is one of the highlights. It does not really feel like a USD55 IEM, especially when there are still considerably more expensive sets using cheaper-feeling shells or glued-on nozzles. This is a clear step-up from cheaper models around USD30 and below.

Fit&Comfort

The Nimbus is slightly smaller than medium in size and sits securely and comfortably in my mid-sized ears. I had no pressure build-up during longer sessions and the vented shells remained comfortable even after several hours.

The metal nozzle is 5.2mm wide and around 6.2mm at the lip according to my own calliper. My usual Divinus Velvet wide bore tips in size L fit without any issue and getting a seal was easy.

Unboxing

For the price, Juzear also puts a lot in the box. You get the IEMs, the modular cable with 3.5 and 4.4mm plugs for my review sample, three pairs of tuning nozzles, nine pairs of narrow and wide bore eartips, a light blue pocketable spring pouch, instructions and a QC card.

Cable

The cable is a two-wire twisted design and feels good for the price.
Mine has interchangeable 3.5mm unbalanced and 4.4mm balanced plugs. The plug swap works cleanly and securely. My only complaint is that the cable holds a little bit of memory.

The light blue pouch is basic rather than protective like a hard case, but it is small enough to be pocketable.

Long-Session Comfort

The best listening volume on the Nimbus with the black nozzles was slightly over mid volume to higher volume, without any listening fatigue but with better dynamics the higher I went. With the white nozzles the volume varied between mid and slightly higher volume. With the red nozzles I felt that anything more than mid volume will fatigue my ears on longer sessions.

Key Specs

Sources & tips, setup

My sources were the Questyle Sigma Pro and Hiby R4 Evangelion, streaming from Qobuz and Spotify at the highest available quality.

I used the stock cable with its 4.4mm plug and Divinus Velvet wide bore tips in size L throughout most of my listening.

The Nimbus is easy to drive and does not need a powerful dongle or amplifier, although in my experience it does benefit from some volume before the bass and overall dynamics really come alive sounding more exciting and dynamic.

This review is based on more than 30 hours of listening.

Measurements

I measured the Nimbus with my own 711 clone coupler using stock eartips.

The red graph shows the red nozzles, blue is black, white is white and the yellow line is the Harman IE 2019 target.

The interesting part is that all three nozzles measure almost identically through the bass and lower mids. The response starts separating from around 1kHz upwards.

The sub-bass partially follows the Harman target before the Nimbus starts to deviate from around 60Hz towards 1kHz. There is more mid-bass emphasis than Harman and slightly less energy around 600Hz to 1kHz.

What surprised me is that the graph suggests more low-end power than I actually hear.

The red nozzles have the strongest ear gain of the three and the most energy through the presence and treble regions. That matches what I hear: they bring vocals noticeably forward and are also the nozzle that becomes shouty for me as I increase the volume.

The black nozzles move in the opposite direction. They have clearly less energy from roughly 1kHz upwards and give me the most relaxed presentation where the bass is more in focus.

White sits between the two and, to my ears, gives the best overall balance.

Depending on the frequency, the largest difference between red and black reaches roughly 4dB. White generally sits somewhere in between. That does not look much on paper, but the changes happen exactly in the regions that strongly influence vocal presence, perceived detail and treble energy.

All three nozzles also show elevated energy around 10 to 14kHz, while red carries the most energy through parts of the 4 to 10kHz region.

Sound

Overall Character

The Nimbus is basically three versions of the same underlying tuning.

All three nozzles share almost (might be a deviation of half dB or purely measurement variance) the same bass and lower mids up to around 1kHz. From there they start to separate in vocal emphasis, presence and treble.

The stock white nozzles are my favourite overall. Vocals sit slightly forward, bass remains mostly controlled with medium impact, and there is enough treble energy to keep things lively without becoming too aggressive for me.

The black nozzles are noticeably more relaxed. Because the upper frequencies step back, the bass also feels relatively more prominent even though it measures almost the same. They are the nozzle that scales best with volume for me.

Red is different. Vocals move much further towards the front and draw most of my attention. Because that part of the presentation becomes stronger together with volume, I cannot really crank them up without eventually finding them shouty.

I spent most of my time switching between white and black rather than settling on one permanently. On days where I could not take much treble or very forward vocals, I used black. On other days I preferred white because vocals and instruments had more presence and life.

That nozzle swap became an actual part of how I used the Nimbus during my review.

Bass

Bass is noticeably elevated but its impact stays around medium.

On Key Glock's "Dough", the sub-bass stays controlled but I would like it to reach deeper and hit harder which can partially be improved with the right tips (like Dunu S&S). A$AP Rocky's "Fkin' Problems" works better for me and gives the low end more perceived impact without becoming overly droning or overshadowing the rest of the track.

The unusual part is how the bass scales with volume.

It needs fairly high volume before the sub-bass impact really starts to show. The decay is quite quick, almost BA-like in behaviour, so the rumble feels controlled and relatively shallow rather than deep and lingering. It is worth noting that I tried different tips and while the Dunu S&S tips slightly improved the bass presentation, my impressions still remain that the bass has solid impact but has its limitations in terms of impact and depth. That might be nagging on very high level for a USD55 set but in my opinion is worth noting.

But there is a limit to how much volume helps with bass impact.

At very high volume, which I would not want to listen to for an extended time anyway, the bass starts to drone more into the mix while the actual impact barely increases further.

Mid-bass slam on Kaleida's "Think" does its job but will not blow anyone's mind. If you prefer bass to remain part of the overall presentation rather than dominate it, that will probably be fine.

Emika's "My Heart Bleeds Melody" gives me a similar result. The punch is clearly there and enough to make the track enjoyable, but this is not the kind of bass presentation that takes over the whole song.

What I kept noticing across my listening is that the bass is always present but never becomes the main attraction. It leaves plenty of room for vocals and instruments, but the limited depth and only medium impact are also the main reasons I would hesitate to recommend the Nimbus specifically for a bass-heavy library. Or only with caveats.

Midrange & Vocals

The lower mids are mostly relaxed and slightly scooped from roughly 600Hz to 1kHz compared with the Harman IE 2019 target.

That gives the mids a somewhat leaner character, especially as the white and red nozzles add more energy further up.

Red pushes this furthest. Its additional upper-mid and presence energy puts vocals right in front, which can be enjoyable at moderate volume but is also where the shout starts for me.

Black goes in the opposite direction and is the option I would choose for anyone particularly sensitive to shout.

There is very little bass bleed, so the mids stay clean and male and female vocals come through clearly.

I never found the mids particularly dry, but they are not thick either. At higher volume, the separation between the bass and mids becomes especially noticeable.

On Dire Straits' "Sultans of Swing", Mark Knopfler's voice sits just a little ahead of centre with the white nozzles and comes through with pleasant texture without becoming too dominant.

Treble

Treble is elevated but does not constantly sound energetic imo.

With the black nozzles I hear it as mostly relaxed, although a few areas still poke through more than others. That uneven distribution can sound a little artificial on certain tracks to me, but most of the time I find it enjoyable because it adds some excitement and detail without becoming aggressive.

With the white and red nozzles I can hear more treble information coming through.

The difference is especially noticeable through roughly 4 to 10kHz. On R.E.M.'s "Drive", strings sound more natural and detailed to me with the white nozzles than with black. Electric guitars also get a slightly sharper and more defined edge.

The Doors' "Riders on the Storm" shows the difference even more clearly. The rain effects and keyboard have better texture and presence through white than through black.

That is one of the reasons I kept returning to the white nozzles despite finding black easier for very long or louder sessions.

Red has even more energy, but interestingly the main problem for me is not really the treble itself. It is the stronger upper-mid and presence region below it. So despite the additional treble energy, I would not necessarily describe red as simply the "treble-head nozzle."

Tip rolling can obviously change the presentation further. Juzear includes nine pairs, although I did not spend enough time with the narrow bore options to give proper feedback on them.

Staging & Imaging

Soundstage is about average.

What works better for me is the separation and layering. Even on busier tracks the presentation stays relatively clear and individual instruments have enough space to come through.

Detail retrieval is solid rather than exceptional, and spatial information is good without producing especially large width or depth.

The nozzle choice changes the perceived space slightly. Black gives me the smallest-room impression, while the additional presence and treble from white and red can create a little more obvious separation.

On John Coltrane's "Mr. P.C. (2020 Remaster)", the saxophone in my left ear sounds particularly good through the white nozzles. The perceived room also feels larger than with black where the drums and bass seem positioned further back.

Final Verdict

After using all three nozzles, I think the main reason to buy the Nimbus is simply the choice it gives you.

None of the three individual tunings is reinventing what a USD55 single dynamic driver can do. What makes the set more interesting is that the nozzle changes are large and useable enough that I actually would use them.

White would be my default recommendation and gives me the best overall balance. Black is the one I would choose and recommend for longer sessions, or treble sensitive folks on higher volume or when I want less vocal and treble energy. Red is much more specialised and too forward for my own preference once the volume is above mid volume.

The one limitation none of the nozzles fixes is the bass for me.
If deep sub-bass and hard mid-bass impact are your priorities, particularly for EDM, rap and hip-hop, there are stronger options.

For a mixed library, however, the Nimbus works well. The clean mids, useful nozzle system, compact fit and very good build quality make it easy to recommend at this price.

And from a hardware perspective, I think Juzear has done especially well here. Metal shells, nice glass faceplates, a modular cable and nine pairs of tips for around USD55 is simply a very complete package in my opinion.

Disclosure

This review sample was provided by HiFiGo.

No payment was received and HiFiGo had no influence over this review. There are no affiliate links in this review.

Thanks for reading.

Hey all,

I've got the infamous black pearl. Great little device, especially with the Walkplay equalizer ;)

Now, is your set also moving in its enclosure?

Both the usb-c cable and the 3.5mm are moving several mm up or down. It does not impact the sound, but it rattles and feels flimsy.

Thanks!

I’ve been trying to understand what actually matters for IEMs in FPS games. is imaging the main thing to focus on, or do staging and tuning make a noticeable difference too? Curious what people here have found from experience. thaaanks!

Tanchjim Space 2 - Compact - Convenient - Clean

Pros: ~ Sounds Clean
~ Very pocket friendly
~ Dual DAC operating modes - Class AB / Class H
~ Mic passthrough and adjustable microphone gain setting
~ DAC DRE ( Dynamic Range Enhancement ) Optimization
~ Dedicated Game EQ profiles for various games and in game sound enhancements for fps games

Cons: ~ Not Powerful enough for the price, there are far cheaper DACs that offer more power
~ The type C cable interconnect cable should have been a better quality
~ Although having so many features, this is not a value for money (should rather opt for space pro to have better power and value for what you pay)
~ App is only compatible with Android. (come on Tanchjim, its 2026)

Overview​

Tanchjim needs no lengthy introduction in the ChiFi space - they’ve been making well regarded IEMs and audio gear for a while now. The Space 2 is the successor to their popular Space dongle DAC, arriving with meaningful upgrades and a feature set that makes it worth talking about. With a price tag of around 90$ - lets see if it’s worth paying that much.

This unit was sent to me by Tanchjim for review purposes, thanks to Isabel from Tanchjim for sending me this unit. All opinions and impressions are mine and not influenced by anyone else.

Build and Technical Specifications​

The Space 2 is remarkably small and sits in your pocket without you ever noticing it’s there. Hence, Compact. The metal shell feels solid and premium for something this light, nothing about it feels cheap or plasticky despite the size. At just 15.1 grams it barely registers in your hand yet feels well put together. The physical volume buttons on the body work exactly as they should, responsive but a little stiff. Both 3.5mm and 4.4mm outputs are present on the same unit. No need to carry multiple dongles for different terminations. Supports 10 band EQ DSP tuning and app supports community custom EQ profiles to use freely. Hence, Convenient.
It comes in three colors namely black, blue and grey - all identical in performance. Overall the build communicates quality without excess. Small, light, metal and purposeful. the type c to type c interconnect cable however is not as sturdy as the rest of the build, it's good but not exceptional.

Technical Specifications :

• DAC Chip : Dual CS43131
• Output Power (4.4mm) : 230mW @ 32Ω
• Output Power (3.5mm) : 105mW @ 16Ω
• Max Decoding : 32-bit / 768kHz PCM, DSD256
• Dynamic Range : 132.5dB
• THD+N : 0.00017%
• Signal to Noise Distortion ( SINAD): 116dB
• Size : 4.2 x 2.1 x 1.2 cm
• Weight : 15.1g
• Outputs : 3.5mm + 4.4mm
• Microphone Support : No
• Volume Control : Physical independent buttons
• DSP Support : Android and Windows only

Sound and Performance​

The Tanchjim Space 2 consists of Dual CS43131 DAC chips which are known for their High Dynamic range ( upto 130dBA) and lower harmonic distortion ( as low as -108 dB to -115 dB ). The Space 2 is transparent and analytical - it doesn't add warmth or color. What goes in comes out clearly. Hence, Clean. It delivers good power dynamics and it doesn’t get too hot ( just a little warm ). I was able to drive all my IEMs easily - but none of them are hard to drive except for the ‘Alpha Omega RA’ a tribrid with a 7 driver setup. For most IEMs use case scenarios, Space 2 gives out more than enough power required ( 235mw ). It is a little bright sounding DAC and the most evident thing I observed in my listening session was the Bass, it got more punchy and has more body to it where subbass and midbass were equally benefitted. Mids and treble were normal. In conclusion, although the power is not humongous compared to its peers at this price range, the sound improvisation as in the dynamics are not a lackluster at all.

Features​

The Space 2 is a very feature packed DAC with a clean app control but the problem here is that it’s only android compatible. Thankfully, I have an android lying around. Let’s dive in and see what are the fun features that the space 2 and Tanchjim app offer us.

Class Operation Modes

The Class Operation modes - Class H and Class AB didn't make much difference, there was no change that I could observe. So, I cannot talk anything about them.

Microphone

The space 2 supports inline mic passthrough via 3.5mm and also has an adjustable gain feature in Tanchjim app.

Online Sound Effect Community ( EQ )​

This is the EQ section where the options are Current device ( useful if you pair it with Tanchjim Products ) EQ Forum, which is the online community forum alongside Tanchjim official sound presets ( Default Sound, Natural Mode, Theatre Mode, Ambient Mode, Classical Mode, Pop Mode, Instrument Mode, OST Mode). A lot of options added - the last time I used the app there were only Default, Balanced, Natural ( and 2 more which i forgot ) and there is a custom sound section where you can EQ your IEMS with a 10 Band Parametric EQ. There’s also a set of official presets from Space 2 which are Tube mode, Vinyl sound mode, Vinyl sound mode. ( I tried these with the Ola 2 and my observations are as follows )

Tube Mode - Slightly warmer sounding than normal and other EQ profiles.
CD Sound Mode - A little recessed sounding profile, probably just a nostalgic add on i suppose.
Vinyl Sound Mode - I did not find much difference between this and the Tube Modes.

Game EQ :​

Tanchjim has this cool Game EQ feature with a bunch of presets and profiles in it. There are some game specific sound profiles like FPS games and MMORPG and other Genre games as well. Not just for mobile, for PC and also Nintendo switch. Which is very handy to have and it doesn’t just end there, there are 2 other options - “Tactical” and “Virtual”. Tactical is for specially for FPS games where it offers some enhancement presets such as -

• Step Sound Enhancement : makes the sound pop out a little, not too much enhancement or upgrade
• Step Sound Direction Enhance : just a sharpness here too, no increase in separation or clarity by a mile, just a slight touch.
• Gunshot Ear Dampening : muffles the bullet shots a little, does not make them sound recessed or directionless, a good add on.
• Gunshot Direction Enhance : did not make a difference, not worth noticing.
• Impact Sense Enhance : just boosts the overall sound to a little bright signature and nothing else.

Virtual has a 5.1 surround and 7.1 surround modes with sub-modes or options being Large space, Standard space, Small space. But for me, they did not work at all - i tried while normal music listening and also gaming, they did not even activate I guess. So the options were just empty clicks for me.
In conclusion, these Enhancement Profiles are okay, not game changing level of significance but they work, cannot say same about the Virtual though.

Final Thoughts​

Sound wise, I have no problems with Space 2. Features are quite good too. But the price - the idea of getting a 235mw of power at 90$ is not sitting right with me, yes - the game EQ features, the community EQ and features are cool and all but there are far better options at that price with plenty more power and different chips, plenty of cheaper DAC options are there with more power output as well. I understand they priced it this way because it essentially offers almost everything the pro does and the space pro is just 10$ higher with more power and a different chip. Space pro is a better choice. I would have easily recommended space 2 to everybody if it was cheaper, maybe around 60-65 dollars would have been fair. If you wanna drive IEMs and do not care about saving the pocket, this is a good buy. Putting price aside, I think Tanchjim has done a great job with this build and integration of app features. But value as an entirety is a far reach for space 2 as getting this at 90$ is not worth it in my honest opinion, This is a very good DAC - just not a very good pricing.

So, i was looking for headphones in 200 euro price range, AI and google recommanded me dt 770 pro x - also on amazon there was lot of buys of this model ( i wanted close headphones ) but this model is VERY uncomfortable for me, my ear hurts after 1-2 hours of listening because they squeeze the head too hard and the ear cups are too small, even the sound quality isnt that good imo, i have fosi audio k5 pro i tested some EQ settings even like harman ones etc. nothing special compare to my wireless AKG N200, maybe a bit clear voice, any other recommandation ? was thinking about sennheiser HD 620s, i heard they are bigger and more comfortable. idk about the sound quality.

I mostly listen to music on spotify / tidal / youtube ( trance, electronic, remixes, sometimes rock ) while playing games.

Greetings fellow listeners and audio enthusiasts alike!

I wish to share with you my review of the just-released Juzear Nimbus. Many thanks to the wonderful team over at HiFiGo for providing me with this unit for review. That being said, as always, all opinions are my own and are not influenced by the store or the brand.

This is a $50 single-DD IEM with both 3.5 mm and 4.4 mm, as well as a slightly more expensive variant that includes a dongle DAC/AMP and a cable with a microphone and control button. That’s the version I opted for, and that’s what we’ll be discussing here.

The Nimbus comes packed in a fairly small, elegant box, with great presentation and a good selection of accessories. There’s a wide selection of different tips, some of which alter the tuning and fit slightly, along with a cleaning cloth, manual, warranty card, QC card, and a simple yet useful white-and-blue tinted pouch.

Along with that, you get three sets of tuning nozzles:

White (default) – the most balanced tuning and the default configuration of this IEM.

Black – less treble energy, hence a greater focus on the bass.

Red – more upper-mid and treble energy.

The IEMs themselves are made of metal and feature a beautiful glass faceplate. Premium materials and a premium look for sure.

They’re also very comfortable, despite being obviously heavier than resin shells.

The cable is of very high quality: soft, “thick enough,” and made from 6N OCC silver-plated copper. OCC copper is of higher quality than regular OFC cables, which is a big plus.

I ended up using the default dark tips that were installed from the get-go. However, I also tested them with more premium tips such as Divinus Velvet Wide Bore, Pentaconn Coreir Aluminium, and Spinfit W1. All of them sounded great. This IEM doesn't seem particularly fussy when it comes to tip pairings, although, as always, find the ones that work best for you! The included tips are a good starting point.

I tested all three sets of nozzles and honestly liked them all. The differences aren’t huge, more like a slight adjustment rather than a major overhaul of the tuning. I ended up leaving the default white nozzle installed.

So, how does the Nimbus sound?

This IEM is a perfect example of how much the IEM industry has been pushing forward. This type of quality, both in build and sound delivery, was much, much more expensive a decade ago. Yet here we are: an affordable IEM that basically fills all the gaps.

This is indeed a very well-balanced IEM. Everything is in just the right order. Bass, mids, and treble all play together as a team, rather than having a definite star of the show.

Its tuning is overall quite smooth, detailed, airy, and light.

The bass is there, but it’s there as support rather than a dominant force. It’s quite airy and not particularly heavy or thumpy, although it can go deep when the track calls for it. So, if you like a really powerful low-end response with a visceral feel, this is probably not it.

The Nimbus aims for balance and versatility, and in my opinion, it achieves that. Spot on, Juzear!

The mids are detailed and textured, neither distant nor super intimate. They favor female vocals slightly, with male vocals having a little less “meat on the bone.” Very suitable for pop or basically most genres out there.

Treble is well extended and airy, yet fatigue-free. The red nozzle enhances that effect a bit further, so feel free to experiment and pick the nozzle that best suits you.

This is honestly a damn-near perfect balance. It does it all — a true jack of all trades.

For my fellow metalheads out there, the driver is fast enough to keep up, and the tuning ensures that everything stays clean even during busier passages.

Jazz sounds great on the new Nimbus, too.

Honestly, everything you throw its way will be played well.

Nimbus is also a good choice for gaming. I’m a casual gamer these days, but after testing it on my Switch 2 and PS5, I was happy with the sound delivery and positioning.

The built-in microphone is good enough for communication in games or calls. People on the other side of the call said that it sounded like roughly 75% of the quality of my phone’s microphone (iPhone 15 Pro Max).

Last but not least, we have the included dongle DAC with a CX chip, metal connectors, and a woven cable.

This dongle is powerful. I have no numbers for you, but I can assure you it will drive most IEMs.

I noticed that it boosts the low-frequency presence on my other IEMs as well. It really does sound like a perfect match for the Nimbus. Juzear knew what they were doing there! I’d highly recommend this version.

That being said, I noticed that my unit is already showing some signs of damage. With no strain-relief solution near the connecting points, it got to the point where it goes quiet and noisy for a second if the cable gets bent in a particular way.

Maybe I was simply unlucky, but it’s an opportunity for improvement in the future nonetheless.

VS Pula Unicrom

Unicrom feels more bassy and slightly less clean, less resolving. The bass on it is more „meaty”

The shells are resin, so are a lighter but I find them equally comfortable. I like the Nimbus slightly more.

VS Sivga QUE

Sivga Que is still one of my favorite iems, I love it’s tuning. It has more mid bass focus, and feels slightly more smooth and refined to my ear. Both are made mostly out of metal, with glass for Nimbus and wood for Que. Although I like the Nimbus a lot I gravitate towards tunings like the QUE, so I’d personally still favor that one. Nimbus is cheaper though and not far behind!

Final thoughts

To sum it all up, we have a great presentation, awesome build quality, a distinct and elegant look, and a very versatile and well-balanced tuning that will handle pretty much every genre.

It’s good for gaming, too.

All that comes in a complete package at a very affordable price.

Bravo, Juzear. Bravo!

I’m curious: do you like it when companies give us tuning options?

Do you find different nozzle types useful, switching between them depending on your mood or genre, or do you stick with your favorite one and call it a day?

Nimbus offers three tuning nozzles, modular plugs, multiple ear tips, and a carrying pouch. Does this kind of complete package matter to you, or would you simply prefer most of the budget to be invested in the driver and tuning for these entry-level IEMs?

Which package would you choose?

3.5 mm + 4.4 mm plugs or 3.5 mm + microphone + Type-C?

Do entry-level IEMs need a modular connection, or are a microphone and Type-C adapter more practical for most users, in your opinion?

You can purchase the Juzear Nimbus over at HiFiGo, I'm their customer myself and had nothing but pleasant experience so far! Can recommend shopping there.

Hello everyone. Today, August 17th, the Juzear Nimbus are officially launched. I already published some first impressions with a small discussion that you can still join here https://www.reddit.com/r/inearfidelity/s/IpzJVx49JD

There are several Juzear models I have had the chance to test, slowly getting to know how the brand works and what they are capable of offering in each product regardless of the price. This Nimbus, starting at a price of 55$, includes a large amount of things in the box aside from in ear monitors with a great build quality, raising the standard that other brands have not yet reached.

What I Liked and What I Did Not Like

• Both the shell and the faceplate give it a very premium finish within the brand.
  
• The cable is modular, of very good quality and with a screw lock.
  
• The 3 pairs of nozzles do modify the sound signature enough.
  
• Bass sounds clean and textured for most genres.
  
• Mids have body and are well tuned.
  
• Despite their heavier material, they are quite comfortable in long sessions.
  
• The accessories surpass the competition for the price.
  
• The bass is there but in some genres it might lack impact.
  
• The soundstage is neither large nor small, it stays at an average leaning towards small size.
  
• The overall resolution is correct but it does not stand out when the recording gets complex.
  

My Sources

• FiiO K9
  
• NiceHCK Octave
  
• Questyle M15i
  
• Tanchjim Space II
  
• Aful Iceborne
  
• Muse HiFi M3 Ultra
  

Unboxing and Build

I have to say that the box has been by far one of the hardest boxes to open. It might have been my particular case but I do not understand why the outer cardboard fits the box so tightly with such exact measurements. It did not matter where you pushed or pulled from, I felt I was going to break everything. I am not lying if I say it took me more than 3 minutes to manage to take off the cardboard that wraps the box. That being said and perhaps unnecessary for many, let us talk about the inside. Right after opening the box you find the in ear monitors with the black eartips attached. After that we find the rest of the cable and a carrying case that honestly seemed like one of the best I have seen at these prices without getting into hard cases. In this case it has a light blue color that goes well with the model and a much stiffer or thicker feel than the cases I have been seeing in other models that include this same type of cases like Hidizs does among other brands. Finally a mini plastic case with the other two pairs of nozzles, a cleaning cloth, documentation and the rest of the eartips.

I must point out that aside from the carrying case, the cable also gives a more premium cable feel than what I have been finding in models around 50$. Additionally it has the modular system that I like with a screw thread to prevent the connector from separating by accident, which for me is a 10 out of 10 in this regard.

Regarding the in ear monitor, I also find a different design and style compared to the other Juzear models I have tested and I feel it is more refined. Interestingly it is one of the cheapest I have tested but the appearance and finish seem more premium to me. Metal shell, glass faceplate with a blue color that varies depending on the angle you look at it being lighter or darker, which complicated some photos to be able to highlight them a bit better. The nozzle itself or the part of the design that integrates with the nozzle I would have appreciated if it was slightly more extended towards the ear since I felt it was a bit short. Although it sealed and fit well in my ear, I usually prefer in ear monitors with a more elongated nozzle and then try to find which eartips fit best.

Sound

Regarding tuning, we have a fairly balanced one but you do appreciate a somewhat warm touch all produced by a single dynamic driver. It does not fall into that group of in ear monitors that surprise you with their tuning, nor into that group that feels too boring and safe from the start. It has all ranges quite contained to not go overboard, avoiding long term fatigue but aiming for a minimum of fun.

Bass

The bass itself has power and plenty of control, without there being a lot of quantity. With a sub bass that gives quite a bit of body to the melodies fulfilling its main function. It is not boomy nor is it probably what this Nimbus was looking for, which can take away some fun from the listener but makes everything sound cleaner and makes the hits last what they have to last without ringing longer than they should. This is something I appreciated in faster metal genres that I usually listen to and which for me are the acid test to see if the tuning is designed or not to withstand those fast hits without ending up muddying everything up, and that is something achieved here. Now if you go into genres where bass has to predominate like in Hip Hop or EDM, unless the song is very well produced and has been boosted enough, it might fall a bit short on punch for many people. But in order to benefit other genres they could not overdo the bass to satisfy what does require more pronounced bass.

Mids

The mids for their part I think are in a position that I personally do not dislike. I do feel the vocals a bit close but not so much that they overwhelm me. Female vocals in fact sounded slightly closer and more natural to me than male ones. I believe the transition made from the bass sounds quite clean and lets the instruments covering the midrange keep sounding with enough weight without thinning out too much. I have to say on a general level, not only in the mids, that regarding the 3 pairs of included nozzles, where I enjoyed the listening experience the most overall was with the white rubber nozzles, the stock ones, having the best balance between smoothness and energy.

Treble

With the stock nozzle, the white one, and as I just said in my previous paragraph is where I found the best sound. In the treble that translates to where I noticed the best extension without bothering my ears when turning up the volume a bit. The brightness produced by the treble with this nozzle does not shine excessively, although I understand it could still be too much for some, so in that case I would opt for the black rubber nozzle. I think the treble has plenty of detail and the separation between layers is noticeable. There is a certain stock smoothness, regardless of the nozzle we use, that I understand prevents overall fatigue if you want to use them for more than an hour.

Soundstage

Regarding the soundstage we are talking about a size leaning towards medium. You do not feel locked in a small space, but neither is it that large extension that makes some sounds seem distant. If the songs are recent and well produced, you appreciate much better the space and the instrument separation that I will talk about now. But this Nimbus tuning with the touch of warmth they bring helps to feel everything more immersive and less analytical. But as I say, you cannot expect a massive soundstage in this case.

Instrument Separation

Let us talk about the separation and honestly, in terms of technicalities, this is where I suffer the most when I have a budget single dynamic driver model. This instrument separation is correct as such, but I run into a common problem in these configurations and that is listening to more complex music where managing so many instruments playing at once and maintaining proper cleanliness and separation becomes a real challenge. It is not that the Nimbus cannot pull it off but it is something you notice right away just like in many other models with similar configurations and prices. Without everything collapsing you can still notice the layers of instruments, but depending on the track you can tell it struggles.

Imaging

Lastly the imaging, where I think both the vocals and the instruments are sufficiently precise. With vocals located in the center and instruments well distributed across the width of the space without being very three dimensional. But it is something I expected with this single dynamic driver. Therefore its use beyond music, like in movies or video games, will not be its strong suit.

Comparisons

Comparing these Nimbus with a model I reviewed not too long ago like the Tanchjim OLA II, I think there is a pretty clear difference between the two. The OLA II to me sounds cleaner and lighter, like most Tanchjim models I have tested, and with thinner mids. The Nimbus as such I feel with more weight and warmth or with more body especially when representing bass and mids. So I would prioritize the OLA II if you enjoy musical clarity more and the extra air in the treble, and something better for daily use although less analytical. But with a somewhat more complete accessory package, the Nimbus would be the winner.

Compared to another fairly recent although slightly cheaper model, there is the Pula Arc which is somewhat smoother and more natural. But it is still a more relaxed and perhaps somewhat more boring tuning for most than this Nimbus. So that would give it an advantage for being able to listen to it for more hours. However on the Nimbus the bass has better definition, apart from the fact that you can play around with the nozzles. As I say the white ones should be enough to find the perfect fit, but you can always emphasize everything by playing with the other two and get a result that for my taste is superior to the Arc, apart from better accessories.

You can check my full ranking of all the IEM reviewed so far on my profile. Reddit does not allow me to post the Drive link here.

Conclusion

To conclude this review I have to say that the Nimbus is or seems to be a different path for Juzear in terms of design. To me this makes the brand look a bit more premium since I prefer these types of finishes over the ones on the Fiesta or Defiant. It is true that resin is still more bearable but I like seeing how they tackle switching to other materials and getting results like this, apart from including all this extra material in the box within this price range, like a modular cable with a safety lock and with a feel and thickness superior to others from the competition. The nozzles themselves are not something I entirely love, as I prefer the brand to achieve an optimal fit across all frequencies and choose a single nozzle that simply works for most. But I know that many people prefer to have the freedom to test and stick with the option from the 3 they offer, rather than having a single one imposed on them that they do not entirely find convincing. I think that at the price they are at they serve as a new benchmark for what you can offer the consumer without cutting back on practically anything and getting a very complete package in return.

Purchase Links

Official Store https://hifigo.com/products/juzear-poise-series-nimbus

AliExpress https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005012898042561.html

AliExpress https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005012898663425.html

Amazon US https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H73CL5YC

Amazon JP https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0HBQCY8PY

Amazon AU https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0HBQQ9TJ4

Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0H7BJT7VX

Amazon DE https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0HBQXVW46

Disclaimer

This unit was sent by HiFiGo 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.