[malifact]

Hello, as the title says I am looking for a pair of wireless ear buds with a neutral / bright signature. Something similar to the Etymotic sound. I have tried out a few different ear buds, but the sound is too warm for me. In terms of design, I would prefer something that sits in the ear rather than the Apple AirPods style. I already have custom IEMs and headphones and so my maximum budget is around $130 (though I can go above this if necessary). Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

[baskingshark]

Hello, as the title says I am looking for a pair of wireless ear buds with a neutral / bright signature. Something similar to the Etymotic sound. I have tried out a few different ear buds, but the sound is too warm for me. In terms of design, I would prefer something that sits in the ear rather than the Apple AirPods style. I already have custom IEMs and headphones and so my maximum budget is around $130 (though I can go above this if necessary). Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Maybe there's an alternative option, which is using some BT adapter thing such as the TRN BT20 or BT20S, which allows you to use your existing detachable MMCX or 2 Pin IEM and connect it to the BT adapter, so u can preserve the sound signature of the IEM u already own.

I have both of them, quite cheap, about $30ish USD. BT20S is water proof and has better battery life with Apt-x.

 

[assassin10000]

Wireless as in TWS (true wireless stereo)?

Have a peak at crinacle's guide. One of the best resources that I know of:
https://crinacle.com/guide/tws/

KZ E10 seems to be the closest but it is an IEM.


There are very few non-isolating (earbud style) TWS. The Sabbat X12 pro or X12 Ultra being the only well recommended one. But it is not neutral/bright.


You may be better off with a BT20, BT20S, UTWS1 and a MMCX earbud. The Ourart ACG, Nicehck EBX or original Smabat ST-10 would be my recommendations.

There is the newer ST-10S, but the black/silver version was supposed to be re-tuned slightly warmer, the black/gold may be ok but is a 150Ω bud and at or above your $ range. Especially combined with a TWS adapter, bt dac/amp or cable.

 

[malifact]

Thanks for the responses. I would rather not buy an adapter, as I tried using a friend's before and didn't it comfortable when wearing glasses. I am not concerned with how isolating the ear buds are and an IEM is fine. The important thing is the sound. Yes and sorry I meant true wireless stereo.

 

[assassin10000]

Buds+ would be my recommendation then. I would just EQ the bass down as they are Harman tuned. You might be ok with the bass as they are not warm or muddy, ymmv.

Can be found within your budget.

 

[malifact]

Thank you all for the responses. I actually ended up buying the BT20S and it has been working really well. I will consider getting the AKG N400 if they are released in my country, as their sound signature sounds like it would suit me.

 

[purplesun]

If you're still looking for wireless IEMs, the Fiio FW1 released last week uses the same Knowles BA as their wired FA1. The wired FA1, in reviews, seem to have the sound signature that you`re looking for. The wireless FW1 uses apt-x codec and should be within your budget but it's brand new, so still quite difficult to get one right now.

EDIT: Info is incorrect. FW1 and FA1 do not use same BAs.

 

[jant71]

If you're still looking for wireless IEMs, the Fiio FW1 released last week uses the same Knowles BA as their wired FA1. The wired FA1, in reviews, seem to have the sound signature that you`re looking for. The wireless FW1 uses apt-x codec and should be within your budget but it's brand new, so still quite difficult to get one right now.

Whoah, hold on there. They never said it was the same one as in the FA1 just that they are both Knowles. It might not sound the same esp. in a BT implementation. FA1 is 33357 and FW1 would seem to be 31305 I think(the pic does not show the last digit).

 

[purplesun]

Whoah, hold on there. They never said it was the same one as in the FA1 just that they are both Knowles. It might not sound the same esp. in a BT implementation. FA1 is 33357 and FW1 would seem to be 31305 I think(the pic does not show the last digit).

Very sorry if I had put out the wrong info; I had thought I read that they both used the same BAs.
Anyway, I am hoping to get the FW1 in the next few weeks and will chime in again with their sound signature.

 

[purplesun]

Been listening to FW1 for past 2 days (bought from taobao). IMHO, it scores well as a mid-fi iem for commuting & exercising. The included tips tame the sound too much. Changing to wider bore tips opens up the sound. Generally, not much energy above 7khz or below 100hz. A slight v-shaped sound (Harmann-ish) between the 2 extremes on wider bore tips. Warmish sound with some bass bloat and respectable mid/vocal performance. Complex music content can sound a bit compressed. IIRC, I think it sounds a bit like a less bassy KZ-ATE with less grainy highs (on wider bore tips). 5 to 10 metre line-of-sight wireless distance. Good signal-to-noise floor.

Tested with several BT sources via AptX: R3Pro, SR25, Pixel 3/UAPP app. Samsung Tab A(2017)/Tidal app & LattePanda(Win10)/Tidal app. LattePanda gets the best bass/treble extensions but at the expense of hitting diaphragm excursion limit on stronger music content. Less aggressive music content or playing Spotify-processed content remedies that problem.

For those still using their Bragis: Cleaner sound with better bass/treble extensions on The Headphone and even more so with Dash Pro, both via AAC. Am using modded kickstarter sleeves which gives much better ear seals than stock - on both models.