INTRO:-
I don’t think even one of you are unaware of OnePlus. Still, OnePlus is a is a Chinese manufacturer founded on 16 December 2013 and has grabbed plenty of attention for its flagship killing Mobile phones, the most famous one being the OnePlus One. At this time they have 3 mobile devices, OnePlus 2, which was released a few months ago, and OnePlus X, a compact flagship was released a few weeks ago.
But what we have here is their latest addition to their list of accessories (after they relesed their sand back cover for iPhone) OnePlus Icons!!
Icons is an earphone for android devices, loaded with a 11mm driver unit and a 3 button mic and remote unit. Designed like a premium earphone, packed like an expensive mobile priced at just $50, if you are an Indian (like me) you will be paying 2999 for this.
Before we get into the main business area, I would like to show my gratitude to OnePlus, Bridget and Shirothi for this Review unit. Thank you.
PACKAGE, ERGONOMICS & MISCELLANEOUS:-
Unlike other earphones in this price range, Icons comes in a premium looking mobile style Red colored box. No cutouts to highlight the earphone inside but that is not necessarily a bad thing. The top cover of this box has a nice texture and if you see closely you will find an engraving of the earphone on it.
Neat looking box. With branding kept to the bottom right and top left only, open the top cover and you will find some branding on a black flap with OnePlus logo and their tag line "NEVER SETTLE". Under that lies the real deal.
There is a small magnetic flap pouch for storage, two extra pairs of ear tips and an user manual. Thats it. Nothing fancy at all. Not even a cable clip.
Now i have to admit that this earphone is big. Made out of plastic, the shell is not exactly big but it’s their solid and long stress relievers which make these look huge. Even if these are on the bigger side, fitment is not a problem for me but can be bothersome for those with small ears, you can go over ear if you want to. Angled design means this earphone has shallow fitment. Ergonomics is not bad, but I won’t call it as good as q-JAYS and is not comfortable if you sleep sideways with this earphone on.
Due to its angled design Isolation is not exactly good but manageable. Stock tips are okay but I am using
Brainwavz red core tips as they provide better isolation. Don’t expect to jog with this earphone, please!! This is not made for activities like these.
This earphone does lack any kind of supple stress reliever at the earpiece end, some protection is found at 3.5 mm jack end. There is no cable or chin slider, most headsets doesn't have one.
The cable is one of the best i have experienced in terms of microphonics, not much microphonic and good for under $100 for sure. It’s externally covered with braided cloth type material and rubbery after the Y splitter, just like piston 3. Feels strong enough and will survive some heavy yanking. Remote unit can be found on the right cable.
Even if this earphone is big, it is one of the most elegant and premium looking earphones under $100.
REMOTE AND MIC:-
I own a few android devices, 1S, zenfone 2 to name some and let me tell you that this earphone works flawlessly with all of my mobile devices. Microphone clarity is top class too. Only problem with this remote is that its buttons are stiff and slightly difficult to get a hold of.
It's functions are similar to other 3 button Mic units. Single press of the middle button will play or pause music and will receive calls, double click will jump to the next and triple click will go back to the last track. Other two buttons will increase or decrease volume. If you have a MI device, you can configure these volume buttons to skip tracks too.
SOUND QUALITY:-
Usually When I review a $50 earphone I don’t keep my expectations high. either they are good or average. Mostly they are good. But Icons is better when compared with other $50 earphones, in the ballpark of meelec A151p 2nd gen to be precise, Mee has a flatter, more analytical approach, Icons is slightly more fun to listen to. Balanced? You can say that, V shaped? Not exactly but highs are elevated which helps it to sound more detailed.
Overall its signature is warm, slightly bright.
And just for your information, I have burned these in for more than 80hrs. And i have to admit that this earphone sound fantastic out of the box. No need to amp or anything, Icons is loud enough, louder than q-jays and Piston-3.
As I had plenty of time, I tried various type or tips, narrow bore, wide bore, long short and I can tell you that wide and short tips sound the best with Icons.
Let’s do the usual.
LOWS:-
As i said earlier, its balanced, but its not lacking by any means, i had not used an dynamic driver earphone in its price range that has this much of bass precision. Its just as much as the track has. It can pound when called upon and go flat when not wanted. No nonsense. And that's what I was not expecting from it. I was like, really? $50?
Its full when required and flat when not called upon, moves enough air thanks to those vents on the front. It doesn't slam like a bass cannon, it slightly softer but still has enough slam.
I have to admit that it lacks some sub bass quantity but its not lacking at all. Bass doesn't go as deep as some bass cannons like JVC XX earphones or XB90EX but goes as deep as E50 and Meelec 151 2nd gen. Mid bass has a hump but nothing offensive as its more soft than harsh. Upper bass is there and makes its presence felt but doesn't bother.
You could have sensed from above that it has awesome decay speed and doesn't bleed into mids. Icon's bass can be explained as something that is middling E50 and A151 2nd gen.
All in all it’s a bass that isn't fatiguing even after annoyingly long listening sessions. It has something else that might annoy. We will talk about that later.
MID RANGE:-
For me, mid range is the life of an earphone. It has the most amount of details and holds the base of its quality and Icons just can’t disappoint unless you like thicker notes. If you are okay with sharper notes presentation, you will enjoy these with a smile on your face as you just can't believe how precise this earphone sounds!!
I won’t call it full bodied but its healthy enough, notes have required amount of depth and presentation is more than acceptable.
Doesn't matter what type of vocals you are listening to, everything sounds clear and to the point. Thanks to its sharper presentation female vocals sound enchantingly beautiful.
There is an elevation in its upper mid region which helps instruments like piano and guitars shine.
I am not going call this the most reveling earphone I have heard in its price range. Even when these do lack some micro and nano details, you will find this reveling more than its price tag suggests.
Did I forget to tell you that its mids are slightly in the valley? Just like Titan-1, still a bit more balanced as titan-1's high end is borderline sibilant and mid bass has more elevation.
HIGHS:-
If you are sensitive or intolerant to shining and sharp highs, do have a listen before you buy this. Icons don't have a high end as bothering or sibilant as GR-07 but its sharp never the less and it’s this sharpness that gives it it's “more detailed than others" advantage.
It’s not something like Titan-1, not even balanced, it is there in between. Thanks to this sharpness cymbals and violins sound vivid and beautiful. Sibilance is nowhere to be found, doesn’t matter what type of music you are playing. Sadly things do sound grainy.
Extension is not as good as A151 2
nd gen still it reaches high enough.
Sound stage is one of the plus points of this earphone. It is comparable to Titan-1 bit more rounded, lacks some depth but has good width and height.
Layering and separation too is done right for its price range. Nothing more can be expected from an earphone at this price range.
SUGGESTED IMPROVEMENTS:-
- Tune the mid bass down a bit, add some sub bass, Mid range can be done better with added thickness, highs should be more balanced to suit average consumers (its fine for me but there aren’t many who enjoy this much of energy with their highs).
- Sounds slightly grainy overall, which needs refinement.
- Even when this earphone looks good, those solid stress relievers are huge, and nozzle can be longer which will help isolation.
- Add a cable clip and few more tips.
- Slightly bigger pouch will be better.
CONCLUSION:-
I have to say it’s a good attempt from OnePlus, things are done pretty well. Icons sound satisfying to me.
It’s not the most detailed earphone or something that sounds ground breaking for its price, but is better than earphones like Sound magic E50 and VSD2/S, Brainwavz S1/S0 and comparable to VSD5.
If you are looking for an Elegant looking earphone that doesn’t pour out bass, sounds precise with good vocals and instrument clarity, one should consider this for $50.
And if you want Headset goodness with above mentioned attributes, OnePlus Icons Should Top your list. A Thumbs Up from me.
Some more pics.
Cheers guys, Enjoy, have a nice New Tear.