INTRO:-
We might not associate Rosewill with earphones but is well known for its IT peripherals like cables, computer components, small home appliances and gaming accessories like cases keyboards, mouse, headsets, speakers and PSUs.
Recently Rosewill decided to jump into the audiophile world and have introduced the EX-700 and its subordinate the EX-500 with budget buyers in mind, both are "Hi-Res" certified earphones which comes in only one colour option gun metal, which in person looks as good as anything else. Officially priced at $70 and $60 respectively are currently going for $40 and $30 on newegg.com which is a value that cannot be achieved easily, why? I will tell you in the sound and comparison section.
Both these earphones have a dynamic driver and a balanced armature placed inside their housing making these some of the cheapest hybrid earphones on the market. The EX-700 has a 8mm dynamic driver and the EX-500 has a 12mm dynamic driver. The ex-700 is a straight barrel and the EX-500 being slightly angled.
For the price these two earphones are retailing, they don’t really have any competition in their price bracket but I had recently compared the EX-700 with the Meze 11 neo and the 12 classic which were the talk of the town back then and I find the EX-700 performing fairly well when compared to those two. I will add another earphone to the comparison the Brainwavz B100.
Look out for comparison of these 2 again with the EX-500 in the mix.
ACCESSORIES AND MISCELLANEOUS:-
Both these earphones have exactly same sets accessories, once you open the front flap, you are greeted with the earphone itself and you will find 6 pairs of tips inside the box, in S/M/L sizes. The clear set of tips are said to enhance the treble (we will find out if it does that or not) and the darker set are the usual ones we get with most of the earphones these days.
There is a spring operated faux leather carry case with Rosewill engraved on it, looks neat and works fine. There is a user manual which sums up the package contents.
Ergonomics and fitment:-
The EX-700 as I said earlier has a straight barrel and the EX-500 has a slightly angled design and both should stay in ear easily, but just like the Meze earphones these two too tend to slip out of my ears easily with both types of tips, more so with clear ones thanks to their more conical shape. Both are comfortable, I find the EX-500 a bit more thanks to its angled design and slightly bigger size which holds on to my ear better.
Isolation is average on both if you get a good seal, EX-500 being a bit better at it.
Cables & remote:-
Both the earphones have exactly same cables, supple, not heavy, internally braided and really low on microphonics. There is not much stress reliever at the earphone end, has a small y splitter and ends with a 90 degree 3.5mm jack. Both these earphones have a one button remote built into their left earpiece cable. Remote works fine with all android devices and call quality is good too.
SOUND QUALITY:-
Both these earphones have similar sound signature, warm, slightly darker upper mid range and brighter treble. This signature feels really good and I find this signature slightly better than the Meze house sound.
Both these earphones scale well with my mobile devices, Lenovo P2 and Asus zenfone 2 to be precise and don’t need any type of amplification to sound good. And FYI I have burned these earphones for more than 200hrs and is using both the stock tips for this review.
We will start with the EX-700 and later I will tell you guys how its differs from the EX-500.
Bass:-
EX-700 has bassier signature with stock dark tips. EX-700's bass hits with good amount of slam and moves good amount of air while sub bass providing good amount rumble to it. I won't call this bass extension as "deep into the sub bass" like the Meze 12 classic (which for me has the best subbass presence in this price bracket without the mid bass hump) but it does reaches to respectable depth and is good enough at making its presence felt. decay can be described as slow at best when compared to earphones like the Meze 12 classic and Brainwavz B100.
Slower decay results into a bass which feels heavier and full bodied, thankfully it doesn't interfere with other parts of the spectrum even when it's a bit more anxious to make its presence felt.
There is some mid bass presence which is bothering with tracks which lack deeper bass notes like "Good for you" from Selena Gomez. It sounds fine with tracks like "Hello" from Adele.
Even though the bass is slow and dominant its well controlled and does what its supposed to do.
Mid range:-
Mid range of the EX-700 cannot be exactly categorized as balanced but its not much V shaped either. It feels forward till the bass and treble doesn't come out to show their supremacy over the spectrum.
It has impressive instrument and vocal clarity, there is some micro detailing too. Yes, it lacks the accuracy and clarity we can find with more expensive earphones but it's bright signature makes up for it as it makes the EX-700 sound more alive and eager to go.
Vocals are nicely sharp and favours female vocals more than male. Male vocals sound slightly sharper than usual as the notes slightly deeper and faster with decay. Overall the enegy is good. Instruments on the hand sound fantastic with sharper and deeper presentation.
Sound stage is good for an earphone. It has good height but not equally wide or deep which restricts it from being exceptional.
When compared to earphones like the Meze 12 classic EX-700 sounds slightly metallic, less meatier and sharper.
Treble:-
It’s the treble which sets this earphone apart from others. It doesn’t shy away from energetic and sparky notes presentation. With plenty of sharpness it can sound seriously detailed (even though it lacks micro detailing) and engaging. One should keep in mind that even though its sharp it's not too sharp and not bothering at all.
Instruments are nicely separated and well layered too, it would have been nice if the stage had a bit more depth to it.
Treble extension is another thing which sets it apart from most of the earphones in this price range. Advertized for having ultra high resolution and it shows.
EX-500 VS 700 :-
I have to say both these earphones have exactly same sound signature and characteristics. Both are V shaped, the 500 a bit more so, but both are tuned to sound similar.
The 500 produces bass which is bigger and has more impact, moves more air with similar amount of sub bass presence and body. Decay is slightly slower and mid bass is a bit more prominent, extension is a bit more recessed but still reaches deep enough. The 700 feels a bit more dynamic overall.
Mid range is a bit more V shaped and lacks some details that the 700 can pull off, some instruments sound a bit less on energy. Vocal are equally good but sound stage is slightly smaller all round.
Highs too are slightly less sparky but that's a good thing for most of the users. Has similar layering and separation for instruments but feels a bit more cramped thanks to smaller stage size. This too shows exactly same type of characteristics when switched to treble friendly clear tips.
The difference is really small, an average listener will be hard-pressed to tell the difference in sound quality except the stage.
With Clear Treble Tips:-
Ex-700 has good bass and acceptable amount of treble spark and extension with the stock darker tips. With the clearer treble tips bass is slightly less pronounced at the mid bass region, sub bass too loses some thump but feels snappier with better decay.
Upper mid and treble gets noticeably boosted with sharper notes which grabs attention as it makes the earphone sound more detailed even when it lacks micro detailing, thankfully notes are not overly sharp or energetic to make the listener feel uncomfortable. Treble tips as named gives a good boost to extension too as the darker tips sound a bit dull as we go deeper into the spectrum.
Treble tips brings some changes to the mid range too, while darker tips make it sound a bit more forward and meatier, clear tips makes it sound sharper, clearer, slightly recessed with marginally better accuracy. It would have been nice if there were a tip which can make it sharp and forward at the same time.
I prefer the sound with the clear tips but if you like your music calmer at the upper end you will use the darker tips more often.
COMPARISONS:-
VS Meze 12 classic:-
Even though the 12 classic is priced more than twice of what the EX-700 is retailing for, these two compare really well. 12 is a bit more balanced, has smaller bass but has better sub bass impact and extension is better. It doesn't have the mid bass hump that is there with these two earphones. Has better decay.
Mid range is slightly more defined and more forward with slightly better details, sound stage on the other hand is slightly deeper but smaller overall when compared to the EX-700 but better than the EX-500.
Treble of the 12 is similar in characteristics of these with treble tips but is less forward and lacks some bite. It has similar attack and sharpness but feels slightly dull. Layering and instrument separation is slightly better.
VS Brainwavz B100:-
B100 is a fantastic earphone with BA inside and the best balance of this lot, has better sub bass impact and rumble, doesn’t have the mid bass hump, has better decay and is more agile.
Mid range sounds a bit more flatter, notes go up but doesn’t go down making it sound a bit trimmed at the bottom. It has better clarity attack and accuracy, instruments too are better defined. Sound stage is like a dome, bottom half missing. And is considerably smaller than the EX-700 and slightly smaller than EX-500.
Treble is good but doesn’t have the attack or extension of these two. It lacks much clarity up top and sounds veiled in comparison.
CONCLUSION:-
I have to say these two are fantastic earphones for the these are retailing for. One just can't go wrong with these and the value for money ration is as high as it can, even better than those Chinese earphones. It's just un beatable.
If you are looking for an earphone for around $40-30.. Take my words for it and go for one of these. If you can live with that mid bass hump.. These two are fantastic earphones to have. Durable and versatile.
I hope you guys are having an awesome time, cheers. Enjoy.
