Reviews by dheepak10
I purchased the 7Hertz Timeless from AliExpress; no reviewers discount. The primary reason why I went for the Timeless is to look for a mid-tier offering that could help replace my Moondrop Dusk. I love the Dusk but the lack of treble extension is quite apparent on certain tracks which I listen often (The Thieaudio Clairvoyance is the reason why it is quite apparent to me). So, I though that the Timeless should fix this issue and I can manage with a slight V-tuning; probably even potentially replace the Dusk.
Let's get on how the story unfolded. I am not going to discuss much about packaging as almost every other review covers this part a lot. So I'll just say that, yes, the packaging and accessories are top notch for the price.
The stock cable is one of the best I have seen, irrespective of price range.
Tip selection & fit:
One of the most important aspect of every IEM experience is the tip selection. The default tips that came on the IEMs are pretty good and offer great seal, but not the best for these IEMs though. The pressure from bass is quite high. Replacing them with the stock dark blue helps relieve some of the pressure. Sony EP-EX11M offer a better tonal balance, while a short stem, wide bore silicon tip is the best in my opinion.
The Timeless is an odd shaped IEM. While fit was fine for my large ears, comfort on longer sessions were strictly average - the Antitragus of the ear gets uncomfortable after a while.
Sound analysis:
The first thing that I noticed with the 7Hertz Timeless is the bass - the sheer quantity of it. While I like sub-bass and a decent amount of mid-bass (Dusk, Clairvoyance), the Timeless I feel overdoes it. You can make do some of that with the right eartips for a better balance. Your brain can adjust to the additional mid-bass offered by Timeless.
However, the problem is not with the quantity, but the quality of the bass - there is a decent level of texture in bass notes, but they are too blunt, offering no impact. One of my favorite albums Thiruda Thiruda by A.R. Rahman has two amazing tracks, where bass impact defines the enjoyment of the track - Konjam Nilavu and Thee Thee. The Timeless sounds limp and there is no enjoyment on these tracks. Switching to Dusk immediately shows the difference a better bass driver can offer (though the Dusk itself doesn't have the tighest bass).
The other issue I had was the lower mids are slightly recessed. So, on tracks like Hotel California (Hell freezes over), the vocals don't excite and sound more heady.
The staging on the other hand is mixed - the width is decent, but the depth is stictly below average. I wasn't able to appreciate layering in music. The bass pressure further congests the stage to a noticeable extent and separation suffers. So I can recommend Timeless strictly for casual listening only.
Now that we have got all the negatives out of the way, lets focus more on the positive.
Sub-bass is done well and it is quite enjoyable - the texture is decent and the IEMs offer the rumble, where needed. Upper mids and treble extension are excellent. While I missed the airiness in some songs on the Dusk, Timeless was able to handle them much better than the Dusk. The treble itself, on the Timeless, can sound a bit artificial at times, but that is something that I did not notice often.
For a $200 IEM, the Timeless does a lot of things right, but for a $100 more, I would say that the Dusk is a much better option and that is what I decided to keep. To me, my entry level ER2XR is a better offering than the Timeless when it comes to the sound quality. So, I did sell the Timeless at the same price I got them for in 4 days, as I don't see myself going to them a lot (and I am not a hoarder
)
The Moondrop Kato is another competitive offering in the same price range as the Timeless and, from what I have heard from others, Kato is a better, well-rounded offering. While I wouldn't be going for the Kato (nothing new from the entry level offerings I have), it is something that you should consider before going for the Timeless.
Conclusion:
Timeless maybe the best tuned planar IEM, but as an IEM that I use to enjoy my music, they are not something that I would personally recommend. While there are likeable bits to the Timeless' sound signature, the ensemble doesn't excite. I wish that the next iteration can bring forth a well-rounded IEM.
Review setup:
Portable setup: Android Phone with UAPP > E1DA 9038S/9038D
Desktop setup: Galaxy Tab S7 with UAPP > Topping D50s > iFi iTube buffer > Headamp GL2
Timeless needs more current than what a regular mobile 3.5mm Jack can offer, but they don't need a desktop amp. A decent portable dongle should be sufficient.
Let's get on how the story unfolded. I am not going to discuss much about packaging as almost every other review covers this part a lot. So I'll just say that, yes, the packaging and accessories are top notch for the price.
The stock cable is one of the best I have seen, irrespective of price range.
Tip selection & fit:
One of the most important aspect of every IEM experience is the tip selection. The default tips that came on the IEMs are pretty good and offer great seal, but not the best for these IEMs though. The pressure from bass is quite high. Replacing them with the stock dark blue helps relieve some of the pressure. Sony EP-EX11M offer a better tonal balance, while a short stem, wide bore silicon tip is the best in my opinion.
The Timeless is an odd shaped IEM. While fit was fine for my large ears, comfort on longer sessions were strictly average - the Antitragus of the ear gets uncomfortable after a while.
Sound analysis:
The first thing that I noticed with the 7Hertz Timeless is the bass - the sheer quantity of it. While I like sub-bass and a decent amount of mid-bass (Dusk, Clairvoyance), the Timeless I feel overdoes it. You can make do some of that with the right eartips for a better balance. Your brain can adjust to the additional mid-bass offered by Timeless.
However, the problem is not with the quantity, but the quality of the bass - there is a decent level of texture in bass notes, but they are too blunt, offering no impact. One of my favorite albums Thiruda Thiruda by A.R. Rahman has two amazing tracks, where bass impact defines the enjoyment of the track - Konjam Nilavu and Thee Thee. The Timeless sounds limp and there is no enjoyment on these tracks. Switching to Dusk immediately shows the difference a better bass driver can offer (though the Dusk itself doesn't have the tighest bass).
The other issue I had was the lower mids are slightly recessed. So, on tracks like Hotel California (Hell freezes over), the vocals don't excite and sound more heady.
The staging on the other hand is mixed - the width is decent, but the depth is stictly below average. I wasn't able to appreciate layering in music. The bass pressure further congests the stage to a noticeable extent and separation suffers. So I can recommend Timeless strictly for casual listening only.
Now that we have got all the negatives out of the way, lets focus more on the positive.
Sub-bass is done well and it is quite enjoyable - the texture is decent and the IEMs offer the rumble, where needed. Upper mids and treble extension are excellent. While I missed the airiness in some songs on the Dusk, Timeless was able to handle them much better than the Dusk. The treble itself, on the Timeless, can sound a bit artificial at times, but that is something that I did not notice often.
For a $200 IEM, the Timeless does a lot of things right, but for a $100 more, I would say that the Dusk is a much better option and that is what I decided to keep. To me, my entry level ER2XR is a better offering than the Timeless when it comes to the sound quality. So, I did sell the Timeless at the same price I got them for in 4 days, as I don't see myself going to them a lot (and I am not a hoarder
)The Moondrop Kato is another competitive offering in the same price range as the Timeless and, from what I have heard from others, Kato is a better, well-rounded offering. While I wouldn't be going for the Kato (nothing new from the entry level offerings I have), it is something that you should consider before going for the Timeless.
Conclusion:
Timeless maybe the best tuned planar IEM, but as an IEM that I use to enjoy my music, they are not something that I would personally recommend. While there are likeable bits to the Timeless' sound signature, the ensemble doesn't excite. I wish that the next iteration can bring forth a well-rounded IEM.
Review setup:
Portable setup: Android Phone with UAPP > E1DA 9038S/9038D
Desktop setup: Galaxy Tab S7 with UAPP > Topping D50s > iFi iTube buffer > Headamp GL2
Timeless needs more current than what a regular mobile 3.5mm Jack can offer, but they don't need a desktop amp. A decent portable dongle should be sufficient.
Almost everyone who’s a IEM audiophile knows Etymotic brand, so I’m going to skip the intro part and directly get into the IEM .
Build, fit and packaging
The IEM shell oozes quality – exceptional fit and finish. Since I’m used to inserting the ER2XR deep into my ear canals, I realized that the Evo goes in much easier, and not as deep as I used to insert the ER2XR. So the fit is pretty comfortable. While the IEMs are heavy, once you have them on it is hard to notice them.
The cable is pretty thin, but definitely not fragile. As mentioned in other reviews, there is hardly any microphonic from the cable. The connector is a much more secure fit than MMCX or 2-pin connectors. I would like these to be adopted by more IEMs.
Tip Rolling
There are 2 options I had – triple flange vs double flange. I get better seal with the double flange tips, so I went with them for this review. The Triple flange doesn’t give me a good seal, so I end up losing a good amount of lows. Double flange it is going forward.
So how does it sound?
Considering that these are retailing for $500, I would say the sound is kind of a mixed bag.
The tonality is pretty good – what I’m used to, so I was right at home with how it sounded. The lows are handled pretty well; they dig deep but are devoid of any mid bass bloom. I personally would have preferred a bit more sub-bass than what it offers. On tracks like After Hours by The Weeknd and Kora by GoGo Penguin, the Evo produces enough low end to keep you engaged.
The biggest weakness is bass decay – the decay is much quicker than DD IEMs and they take away the natural lingering sound of percussions on tracks like Hotel California by the Eagles and Narumugaiye by A.R.Rahman.
No complaints on the mid-frequencies – they sound pretty natural. I would have preferred a slightly lower 2-3KHz range to avoid some in-your-face vocals.
The Highs are where things disintegrate – they definitely lack the airiness needed for certain tracks like Leave the door Open by Silk Sonic to shine. The opening sequence of this track sounds way different and much better on the Thieaudio Clairvoyance. On the Evo, the opening sequence sounds pretty meh. While this may not be noticeable in most tracks out there, I would expect a $500 IEM to handle this better. The rest is fine – quick fast decay in high frequencies help with the resolving abilities, so unless you are picky like me, you will enjoy this IEM.
The soundstage is pretty decent – you have enough width and depth to appreciate music. What’s really good is that the directional cues are pretty well rendered by the Evo and I hardly notice any congestion or overlap even on busy tracks like Pigalle by Kamaal Williams.
Conclusion
The Etymotic Evo, on its own, is a great IEM doing everything well except lacking some air in the higher frequencies. It definitely is much more resolving than its sibling, ER2XR, but the ER2XR sounds more natural in the lower frequencies
But you put it against the competition in the $300 to $700, you know that you are looking at the middle of the group and not top tier performance.
The Setup
The following setup were used during the review:
Build, fit and packaging
The IEM shell oozes quality – exceptional fit and finish. Since I’m used to inserting the ER2XR deep into my ear canals, I realized that the Evo goes in much easier, and not as deep as I used to insert the ER2XR. So the fit is pretty comfortable. While the IEMs are heavy, once you have them on it is hard to notice them.
The cable is pretty thin, but definitely not fragile. As mentioned in other reviews, there is hardly any microphonic from the cable. The connector is a much more secure fit than MMCX or 2-pin connectors. I would like these to be adopted by more IEMs.
Tip Rolling
There are 2 options I had – triple flange vs double flange. I get better seal with the double flange tips, so I went with them for this review. The Triple flange doesn’t give me a good seal, so I end up losing a good amount of lows. Double flange it is going forward.
So how does it sound?
Considering that these are retailing for $500, I would say the sound is kind of a mixed bag.
The tonality is pretty good – what I’m used to, so I was right at home with how it sounded. The lows are handled pretty well; they dig deep but are devoid of any mid bass bloom. I personally would have preferred a bit more sub-bass than what it offers. On tracks like After Hours by The Weeknd and Kora by GoGo Penguin, the Evo produces enough low end to keep you engaged.
The biggest weakness is bass decay – the decay is much quicker than DD IEMs and they take away the natural lingering sound of percussions on tracks like Hotel California by the Eagles and Narumugaiye by A.R.Rahman.
No complaints on the mid-frequencies – they sound pretty natural. I would have preferred a slightly lower 2-3KHz range to avoid some in-your-face vocals.
The Highs are where things disintegrate – they definitely lack the airiness needed for certain tracks like Leave the door Open by Silk Sonic to shine. The opening sequence of this track sounds way different and much better on the Thieaudio Clairvoyance. On the Evo, the opening sequence sounds pretty meh. While this may not be noticeable in most tracks out there, I would expect a $500 IEM to handle this better. The rest is fine – quick fast decay in high frequencies help with the resolving abilities, so unless you are picky like me, you will enjoy this IEM.
The soundstage is pretty decent – you have enough width and depth to appreciate music. What’s really good is that the directional cues are pretty well rendered by the Evo and I hardly notice any congestion or overlap even on busy tracks like Pigalle by Kamaal Williams.
Conclusion
The Etymotic Evo, on its own, is a great IEM doing everything well except lacking some air in the higher frequencies. It definitely is much more resolving than its sibling, ER2XR, but the ER2XR sounds more natural in the lower frequencies
But you put it against the competition in the $300 to $700, you know that you are looking at the middle of the group and not top tier performance.
The Setup
The following setup were used during the review:
- UAPP on Phone > E1DA 9038D (Tidal played Bit-perfect on UAPP)
- Laptop playing Foobar2k or Tidal in bit-perfect mode > Topping D50s > iFi iTube in buffer mode > Headamp GL2
KBEAR has been catering to the budget audiophile segment for quite some time and the S1 bluetooth cable is another product of theirs which does exactly what it aims for - nothing more, nothing less.
KeepHifi offered me this review sample for an honest review.
Here's their store link for reference: KBEAR Official Store link for S1
Packaging and fit
The packaging is pretty simple but presented well - the key items are the cable itself and the micro-USB charging cable.
Also, the cable has multiple connection options - MMCX, 0.78 mm 2-pin and TFZ 0.78 mm 2-pin. I received the TFZ option which is a perfect fit for the KBEAR KS2 – the company does offer this IEM along with the cable as an option, so no wonder it fits perfectly. Surprisingly, I was also able to use it
Convenience
Heads up - This is going to be the most critical section of the whole review!
The device has controls on the right side which include a play, volume + and volume – buttons. The microphone is housed between the play and – buttons. The right side houses the Qualcomm QCC3040 chip.
Pressing and holding the play button turns the device on and off, while long pressing when the device is off takes it to pairing mode. The S1 cable can be connected to 2 devices at the same time and switching between the two devices is easy.
The left side houses the 120 mAh battery and hence the case on the left side is heavier than the right.
While I do not have any reservations about the neck band style Bluetooth devices, the battery and control housing is what I have a problem with – these jump up and down when using this device for a running session, especially the left side. This causes unwanted microphonics which can make listening to music while on a run a pretty sub-par experience. This hampers the biggest convenience of wireless devices.
Sound
The cable has enough power to drive most IEMs – I tried with KBEAR KS2 and Thieaudio Clarivoyance.
The thing which is noticeable immediately on sensitive IEMs like the KS2 is that there is a noticeable hiss when you pause music and also during quiet passages in songs. Setting your phone Bluetooth output volume to max while reducing the volume on the cable does help alleviate this to some extent, but still very noticeable.
With the Clairvoyance, which is not as sensitive as the KS2, the hiss is better contained, though present.
Other than this particular annoyance, I did not notice any other issues from sound perspective – when connected in aptX HD mode on my phone and streaming lossless from Tidal, I was able to get sufficient details. The soundstage width and depth were almost the same I get with wires, in the case of Clairvoyance, which is definitely appreciable at this price point.
Call quality
The call quality is decent; the microphone pics up voice quite well. The background noise is controlled to some extent, but I would not be using it for taking calls when I’m outside on a windy day.
Conclusion
At $27, the KBEAR S1 does what basic Bluetooth cables are supposed to offer, while aptX HD can accommodate a certain level of critical listening. However, the battery and controls casing hamper it from being a true budget all-rounder of a Bluetooth cable. Hence, my rating of 3.5 out of 5 for the KBEAR S1
KeepHifi offered me this review sample for an honest review.
Here's their store link for reference: KBEAR Official Store link for S1
Packaging and fit
The packaging is pretty simple but presented well - the key items are the cable itself and the micro-USB charging cable.
Also, the cable has multiple connection options - MMCX, 0.78 mm 2-pin and TFZ 0.78 mm 2-pin. I received the TFZ option which is a perfect fit for the KBEAR KS2 – the company does offer this IEM along with the cable as an option, so no wonder it fits perfectly. Surprisingly, I was also able to use it
Convenience
Heads up - This is going to be the most critical section of the whole review!
The device has controls on the right side which include a play, volume + and volume – buttons. The microphone is housed between the play and – buttons. The right side houses the Qualcomm QCC3040 chip.
Pressing and holding the play button turns the device on and off, while long pressing when the device is off takes it to pairing mode. The S1 cable can be connected to 2 devices at the same time and switching between the two devices is easy.
The left side houses the 120 mAh battery and hence the case on the left side is heavier than the right.
While I do not have any reservations about the neck band style Bluetooth devices, the battery and control housing is what I have a problem with – these jump up and down when using this device for a running session, especially the left side. This causes unwanted microphonics which can make listening to music while on a run a pretty sub-par experience. This hampers the biggest convenience of wireless devices.
Sound
The cable has enough power to drive most IEMs – I tried with KBEAR KS2 and Thieaudio Clarivoyance.
The thing which is noticeable immediately on sensitive IEMs like the KS2 is that there is a noticeable hiss when you pause music and also during quiet passages in songs. Setting your phone Bluetooth output volume to max while reducing the volume on the cable does help alleviate this to some extent, but still very noticeable.
With the Clairvoyance, which is not as sensitive as the KS2, the hiss is better contained, though present.
Other than this particular annoyance, I did not notice any other issues from sound perspective – when connected in aptX HD mode on my phone and streaming lossless from Tidal, I was able to get sufficient details. The soundstage width and depth were almost the same I get with wires, in the case of Clairvoyance, which is definitely appreciable at this price point.
Call quality
The call quality is decent; the microphone pics up voice quite well. The background noise is controlled to some extent, but I would not be using it for taking calls when I’m outside on a windy day.
Conclusion
At $27, the KBEAR S1 does what basic Bluetooth cables are supposed to offer, while aptX HD can accommodate a certain level of critical listening. However, the battery and controls casing hamper it from being a true budget all-rounder of a Bluetooth cable. Hence, my rating of 3.5 out of 5 for the KBEAR S1
Basmitokay
i just bought this, and still waiting for shipment from china. can't wait to try this
Thieaudio is a relatively new entrant to the IEM market and have a good number of items in the portfolio. This is my first Thieaudio IEM which I purchased from Linsoul.
The shopping experience was pretty straightforward; Paypal always gives me confidence to spend my hard-earned money. The IEM is made to order as per Linsoul’s support team. The IEM shipped on the 3rd business day after order. Linsoul used DHL priority shipping and the package took 3 days to reach from China to Toronto, Canada.
Build and packaging
For a $700 IEM, the Thieaudio Clairvoyance’s packaging and accessories are pretty basic. The case is shared across the entire Thieaudio line and just a checkbox on the outside with a marker’s ink specifying what model you’ve received.
However, not all is boring as you are presented with the pearlescent shine of the IEM’s faceplate against a black background upon unboxing. The fit and finish is great on the IEMs – no complaints there.
The cable that accompanies the IEMs are quite exceptional and I don’t think you will ever need a cable upgrade over this one. The cable too has a shine to match the opalescence of the IEMs.
You also get a pair of Spinfits CP100 and 3 pairs of foam tips, along with a ‘leather-looking’ case. Sadly the IEMs don’t fit in this case and it is only to be used for accessories, and, a DAP or your portable DACamp, probably.
Fit and Eartips
Though on the larger side of UIEMS, the Thieaudio Clairvoyance is designed to fit most ears – I’ve had long listening sessions without any type of pain on my outer ears. My wife, on the other hand has tiny ears and the Clairvoyance fit her just fine; she did not have any room for adjustments, but she was fine with the fit (pics attached for reference).
As with all IEMs, tips always matter as they could vastly impact the tonality. The CP100 supplied are decent, but they are quite grippy and cause soreness in my ear canal, plus I feel that the sound is a bit boomy on those. So they are not the tips for me.
I then moved to softer, sticky tips. They worked perfectly fine and offer the best seal possible. However, they were still not for me as the bass quantity is more than what I prefer and the pressure exerted due to the bass notes can cause ear fatigue. I also tried the AZLA Sednafit Xelastec, but they are a bit too big even for size MS and the wide bore makes the treble too hot for my preferences.
Finally, I settled for Sony Hybrids EP-EX11 M tips which gives a nice balanced tonality for Clairvoyance's signature. It was just perfect. Another good set of tips is Spinfit 360 - the size S was good (M for commute when that extra seal and bass was needed). The soft silicon shell, in both these tips, while giving the right isolation, also helps the pressure escape while inserting into the ears, thereby resulting is less driver flex. Also, they are neither narrow bore nor wide which make them quite balanced sounding. With the Spinfit 360, bass can be overwhelming at times, depending on the track.
Note that I have had to use 1 size lower for all tips than what I usually use with other IEMs.
Now that the tips are sorted, there is another issue which you should be aware of with the fit – there is no front vent to relieve any pressure and this can cause driver flex when using tightly sealing tips. So you’ll have to take care to release pressure while inserting the IEMs based on the tips you’ll be using (The Spinfit 360 nullifies this for me and most soft shell tips should help alleviate this issue)
Drivability
The Thieaudio Clairvoyance can be driven from most devices, including your smartphone audio jack. However, based on the DAC and amp section the audio experience could vary significantly.
For example, I tried it on LG G6 with normal mode and there was a severe lack of soundstage depth and the presentation lacked the musicality; the line out mode was better, but nothing that I get from my preferred chain (described in the next section).
So, not all sources will be equal – but it will not be difficult to find the perfect source. I’m ending this discussion here as this could go off-topic
.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation
Source: FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) or Tidal Hi-Fi
Chain : Bit perfect playback through Foobar2k on Laptop > iFi Nano BL / Topping D50s > iFi iTube in buffer mode > Headamp GL2
The iFi Nano BL has a lot of depth perception and it helps bring out the layers in simpler tracks, but on complex demanding tracks, it cannot keep up with the timing and dynamics of the Topping D50s. Hence, I prefer the Topping D50s for the Clairvoyance and most observations noted here are with the Topping D50s unless called out specifically.
Let me start off by saying that the one thing I liked the most about the Clairvoyance is its tonality – it has the perfect balance of low end, euphonic mids and sufficiently airy highs. This helps the Clairvoyance present most genres of music pleasing to the ears – From the luscious bass-lines of The Weekend’s After Hours to the fast hi-hats of Dire Straits’ Sultans of Swing, you’ll rarely be left wanting more.
The one area which could be a hit or miss, based on your source is the instrument separation and positioning. Any decently implemented should help on this front.
On Dire Straits’ Sultans of Swing you get a full-bodied, yet incredibly bass guitar which does not interfere with the ongoing vocals or the super-fast hi-hats. The hi-hats have a precise and fast attack and decay. The layering on this song is what makes it brilliant and the Clarivoyance makes it a magical listen.
While I have not heard the Clarivoyance’s twin, the Monarch, the one track that could highlight the difference between the two is funkadelic’s Sexy Ways. This track has a bass guitar driving the rhythm section, while not on the forefront. The Clairvoyance is able to give it enough body without making it overwhelming (just how it was intended). This is yet another track which I used to evaluate the brilliant rendering of depth and layers in the track and the Clairvoyance delivers.
Is it Always Binary by Soulwax was never more enjoyable – the Clairvoyance places you right in the middle of the band in the presentation of the song. The percussions and synths on this song helps demonstrate the overall coherence with which the Clairvoyance renders music. Another such track which Clarivoyance handled with absolute ease was Vicious Delicious by Infected Mushroom – the fast synths were a pleasure to listen to.
I did try a couple of alt rock songs too with the Clairvoyance – Cockroach King (Haken), Thought Contagion (Muse) – while there is a slight lack of bite in the overdriven guitar riffs, the songs are still quite enjoyable. These aren’t particularly well recorded tracks, so I’m just listing a small observation with these.
One genre where the Clairvoyance is not very enjoyable is Post 2000 Electronic tracks - but that's more to do with Harman target curve than the IEM itself. These tracks don't get well with the mid-bass warmth offered by the Clairvoyance. That's just a subset of the vast library for most folks and definitely not something I worries me.
Finally to close the evaluation, I tried Hey Nineteen by Steely Dan and Dreams by Fleetwood Mac – these are quite well recorded tracks, particularly the former. The tonality of the Clairvoyance is a stand-out on these tracks where the balance across the spectrum makes them an absolute pleasure to listen to.
Select (Unfair) comparisons:
A lot of discussions on forums talk primarily about the tonality of the Clairvoyance. Well, the Sony MH755 and Samsung Galaxy Buds+ also have a frequency response which is very similar in tonality to the Thieaudio Clairvoyance. So why should pay a multitude of the prices of these IEMs to buy a Clairvoyance?
Well, tonality can only do so much as to make the sound pleasing to you, but technicalities take the listening experience a couple of notches up. Paired up with basic mobile phone, you will fret the decision that you spent a fortune on the Clairvoyance when the MH755 can give you the same experience. Bring a decent $100 DacAmp into the picture and these IEMs cannot match the rhythm control, dynamism, soundstage portrayal and coherence demonstrated by the Clairvoyance.
And once you have experience what a well-tuned IEM can offer, there is no going back to simple stuff.
Conclusion:
The Clairvoyance has an exceptional tonal balance, expansive soundstage and some brilliant drivers that make the listening experience quite immersive. So instead of adding many more adjectives, I would just say that I highly recommend the Clairvoyance and it is definitely ‘end-game’ material for most folks.
The shopping experience was pretty straightforward; Paypal always gives me confidence to spend my hard-earned money. The IEM is made to order as per Linsoul’s support team. The IEM shipped on the 3rd business day after order. Linsoul used DHL priority shipping and the package took 3 days to reach from China to Toronto, Canada.
Build and packaging
For a $700 IEM, the Thieaudio Clairvoyance’s packaging and accessories are pretty basic. The case is shared across the entire Thieaudio line and just a checkbox on the outside with a marker’s ink specifying what model you’ve received.
However, not all is boring as you are presented with the pearlescent shine of the IEM’s faceplate against a black background upon unboxing. The fit and finish is great on the IEMs – no complaints there.
The cable that accompanies the IEMs are quite exceptional and I don’t think you will ever need a cable upgrade over this one. The cable too has a shine to match the opalescence of the IEMs.
You also get a pair of Spinfits CP100 and 3 pairs of foam tips, along with a ‘leather-looking’ case. Sadly the IEMs don’t fit in this case and it is only to be used for accessories, and, a DAP or your portable DACamp, probably.
Fit and Eartips
Though on the larger side of UIEMS, the Thieaudio Clairvoyance is designed to fit most ears – I’ve had long listening sessions without any type of pain on my outer ears. My wife, on the other hand has tiny ears and the Clairvoyance fit her just fine; she did not have any room for adjustments, but she was fine with the fit (pics attached for reference).
As with all IEMs, tips always matter as they could vastly impact the tonality. The CP100 supplied are decent, but they are quite grippy and cause soreness in my ear canal, plus I feel that the sound is a bit boomy on those. So they are not the tips for me.
I then moved to softer, sticky tips. They worked perfectly fine and offer the best seal possible. However, they were still not for me as the bass quantity is more than what I prefer and the pressure exerted due to the bass notes can cause ear fatigue. I also tried the AZLA Sednafit Xelastec, but they are a bit too big even for size MS and the wide bore makes the treble too hot for my preferences.
Finally, I settled for Sony Hybrids EP-EX11 M tips which gives a nice balanced tonality for Clairvoyance's signature. It was just perfect. Another good set of tips is Spinfit 360 - the size S was good (M for commute when that extra seal and bass was needed). The soft silicon shell, in both these tips, while giving the right isolation, also helps the pressure escape while inserting into the ears, thereby resulting is less driver flex. Also, they are neither narrow bore nor wide which make them quite balanced sounding. With the Spinfit 360, bass can be overwhelming at times, depending on the track.
Note that I have had to use 1 size lower for all tips than what I usually use with other IEMs.
Now that the tips are sorted, there is another issue which you should be aware of with the fit – there is no front vent to relieve any pressure and this can cause driver flex when using tightly sealing tips. So you’ll have to take care to release pressure while inserting the IEMs based on the tips you’ll be using (The Spinfit 360 nullifies this for me and most soft shell tips should help alleviate this issue)
Drivability
The Thieaudio Clairvoyance can be driven from most devices, including your smartphone audio jack. However, based on the DAC and amp section the audio experience could vary significantly.
For example, I tried it on LG G6 with normal mode and there was a severe lack of soundstage depth and the presentation lacked the musicality; the line out mode was better, but nothing that I get from my preferred chain (described in the next section).
So, not all sources will be equal – but it will not be difficult to find the perfect source. I’m ending this discussion here as this could go off-topic
.So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation
Source: FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) or Tidal Hi-Fi
Chain : Bit perfect playback through Foobar2k on Laptop > iFi Nano BL / Topping D50s > iFi iTube in buffer mode > Headamp GL2
The iFi Nano BL has a lot of depth perception and it helps bring out the layers in simpler tracks, but on complex demanding tracks, it cannot keep up with the timing and dynamics of the Topping D50s. Hence, I prefer the Topping D50s for the Clairvoyance and most observations noted here are with the Topping D50s unless called out specifically.
Let me start off by saying that the one thing I liked the most about the Clairvoyance is its tonality – it has the perfect balance of low end, euphonic mids and sufficiently airy highs. This helps the Clairvoyance present most genres of music pleasing to the ears – From the luscious bass-lines of The Weekend’s After Hours to the fast hi-hats of Dire Straits’ Sultans of Swing, you’ll rarely be left wanting more.
The one area which could be a hit or miss, based on your source is the instrument separation and positioning. Any decently implemented should help on this front.
On Dire Straits’ Sultans of Swing you get a full-bodied, yet incredibly bass guitar which does not interfere with the ongoing vocals or the super-fast hi-hats. The hi-hats have a precise and fast attack and decay. The layering on this song is what makes it brilliant and the Clarivoyance makes it a magical listen.
While I have not heard the Clarivoyance’s twin, the Monarch, the one track that could highlight the difference between the two is funkadelic’s Sexy Ways. This track has a bass guitar driving the rhythm section, while not on the forefront. The Clairvoyance is able to give it enough body without making it overwhelming (just how it was intended). This is yet another track which I used to evaluate the brilliant rendering of depth and layers in the track and the Clairvoyance delivers.
Is it Always Binary by Soulwax was never more enjoyable – the Clairvoyance places you right in the middle of the band in the presentation of the song. The percussions and synths on this song helps demonstrate the overall coherence with which the Clairvoyance renders music. Another such track which Clarivoyance handled with absolute ease was Vicious Delicious by Infected Mushroom – the fast synths were a pleasure to listen to.
I did try a couple of alt rock songs too with the Clairvoyance – Cockroach King (Haken), Thought Contagion (Muse) – while there is a slight lack of bite in the overdriven guitar riffs, the songs are still quite enjoyable. These aren’t particularly well recorded tracks, so I’m just listing a small observation with these.
One genre where the Clairvoyance is not very enjoyable is Post 2000 Electronic tracks - but that's more to do with Harman target curve than the IEM itself. These tracks don't get well with the mid-bass warmth offered by the Clairvoyance. That's just a subset of the vast library for most folks and definitely not something I worries me.
Finally to close the evaluation, I tried Hey Nineteen by Steely Dan and Dreams by Fleetwood Mac – these are quite well recorded tracks, particularly the former. The tonality of the Clairvoyance is a stand-out on these tracks where the balance across the spectrum makes them an absolute pleasure to listen to.
Select (Unfair) comparisons:
A lot of discussions on forums talk primarily about the tonality of the Clairvoyance. Well, the Sony MH755 and Samsung Galaxy Buds+ also have a frequency response which is very similar in tonality to the Thieaudio Clairvoyance. So why should pay a multitude of the prices of these IEMs to buy a Clairvoyance?
Well, tonality can only do so much as to make the sound pleasing to you, but technicalities take the listening experience a couple of notches up. Paired up with basic mobile phone, you will fret the decision that you spent a fortune on the Clairvoyance when the MH755 can give you the same experience. Bring a decent $100 DacAmp into the picture and these IEMs cannot match the rhythm control, dynamism, soundstage portrayal and coherence demonstrated by the Clairvoyance.
And once you have experience what a well-tuned IEM can offer, there is no going back to simple stuff.
Conclusion:
The Clairvoyance has an exceptional tonal balance, expansive soundstage and some brilliant drivers that make the listening experience quite immersive. So instead of adding many more adjectives, I would just say that I highly recommend the Clairvoyance and it is definitely ‘end-game’ material for most folks.
The KBEAR KS2 is a relatively new entrant in the crowded sub $30 IEM segment where there is a good number of 1DD + 1BA options.
Currently available for purchase on Aliexpress for $23, this one does not burn your payroll.
Note: The review unit was offered to me for free in exchange for an honest review by KBEAR representative. This however does not have an impact on my review.
Build, fit and packaging
The KS2 comes in a decent packaging box and the contents are organized pretty well. The contents are just the essentials – the IEMs, cable, eartips and a small manual.
Fit is fantastic – they are small enough to fit all ear sizes and comes with a 4 pairs of ear tips in total.
I did not feel comfortable using the stock ear tips as they have a lot of friction when in contact with skin. I replaced them with a softer, better quality one.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation
Source: FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) or Tidal Hi-Fi
Chain : Bit perfect playback through Foobar2k on Laptop > Topping D50s > iFi iTube in buffer mode > Headamp GL2
The impedance on this one is pretty low on this one; so I had to reduce volume by 5dB on the DAC.
As always, a perfect seal is essential to any IEM. A quick listen to the KS2 is enough to acknowledge that it is a well-rounded package for the price. The IEM has enough weight on bass frequencies and extends well into sub-bass frequencies. While the bass texture is not outstanding, it is good enough to have an enjoyable experience. Tracks like After Hours by The Weeknd and Get Lucky by Daft Punk are quite enjoyable on the tonality front, but also bring out the minor drawback on how the bass texture is not quite crisp – not something to worry for the casual listeners.
The mids and highs are tuned quite well and they are the highlight of this IEM. The BA excels in delivering sibilance free highs with sufficient details. Vocals are fleshed out well – neither too forward nor recessed. There is some bass bleed into the lower mids, and it is noticeable, but not so pronounced to cause annoyance.
While the KBEAR KS2 does well on most genres, I found that 80s classic rock like Africa by Toto, Take on me by a-Ha are much more enjoyable on these.
How does it compare to the humble Sony MH755?
Both have different tonalities and enjoyable, but MH755 easily outshines the KS2 in technicalities and offers a much cleaner listening experience that would satisfy most listeners. The only front where KS2 outshine MH755 is the soundstage presentation, which definitely has more space than the MH755. A track where you can easily notice the difference is Heartless by The Weeknd; KS2’s dynamic driver unit cannot catch up to the ups and downs of the track as fast as the MH755 does.
Conclusion:
The Kbear KS2 is definitely a good daily driver for most of us – the tonality is quite likeable from the get-go and most tracks are presented quite well by this IEM.
I definitely recommend to try this, if you get a chance – it offers way more than what it is priced at.
Currently available for purchase on Aliexpress for $23, this one does not burn your payroll.
Note: The review unit was offered to me for free in exchange for an honest review by KBEAR representative. This however does not have an impact on my review.
Build, fit and packaging
The KS2 comes in a decent packaging box and the contents are organized pretty well. The contents are just the essentials – the IEMs, cable, eartips and a small manual.
Fit is fantastic – they are small enough to fit all ear sizes and comes with a 4 pairs of ear tips in total.
I did not feel comfortable using the stock ear tips as they have a lot of friction when in contact with skin. I replaced them with a softer, better quality one.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation
Source: FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) or Tidal Hi-Fi
Chain : Bit perfect playback through Foobar2k on Laptop > Topping D50s > iFi iTube in buffer mode > Headamp GL2
The impedance on this one is pretty low on this one; so I had to reduce volume by 5dB on the DAC.
As always, a perfect seal is essential to any IEM. A quick listen to the KS2 is enough to acknowledge that it is a well-rounded package for the price. The IEM has enough weight on bass frequencies and extends well into sub-bass frequencies. While the bass texture is not outstanding, it is good enough to have an enjoyable experience. Tracks like After Hours by The Weeknd and Get Lucky by Daft Punk are quite enjoyable on the tonality front, but also bring out the minor drawback on how the bass texture is not quite crisp – not something to worry for the casual listeners.
The mids and highs are tuned quite well and they are the highlight of this IEM. The BA excels in delivering sibilance free highs with sufficient details. Vocals are fleshed out well – neither too forward nor recessed. There is some bass bleed into the lower mids, and it is noticeable, but not so pronounced to cause annoyance.
While the KBEAR KS2 does well on most genres, I found that 80s classic rock like Africa by Toto, Take on me by a-Ha are much more enjoyable on these.
How does it compare to the humble Sony MH755?
Both have different tonalities and enjoyable, but MH755 easily outshines the KS2 in technicalities and offers a much cleaner listening experience that would satisfy most listeners. The only front where KS2 outshine MH755 is the soundstage presentation, which definitely has more space than the MH755. A track where you can easily notice the difference is Heartless by The Weeknd; KS2’s dynamic driver unit cannot catch up to the ups and downs of the track as fast as the MH755 does.
Conclusion:
The Kbear KS2 is definitely a good daily driver for most of us – the tonality is quite likeable from the get-go and most tracks are presented quite well by this IEM.
I definitely recommend to try this, if you get a chance – it offers way more than what it is priced at.
The Simgot EM1 is a relatively new entrant in the crowded sub $100 IEM segment. Without any of the usual aces like dual dynamic driver or hybrid dynamic + armature drivers that you see frequently in recent time, this one purely relies on a single dynamic driver.
Currently available for purchase on Amazon.com for $60, the EM1 can also be purchased by direct mail to overseas@simgot.com for international destinations.
Note: The review unit was offered to me for free in exchange for an honest review by Simgot Technology Co. Ltd. representative. This however does not have an impact on my review.
Build, fit and packaging
The EM1 comes in a nice, big box and the contents are organized pretty well. While the package is big, the contents are just the essentials – the IEMs, cable, eartips and a small manual.
Fit is fantastic – they are small enough to fit all ear sizes and comes with a variety of ear-tips to suit every one.
The cable has 4 wires braided till the Y-splitter and then it is split to two per side. The wires after the wire splitter is on the flimsy side and can get tangled while unfolding for use, even when it is rolled and tied for storage. The heat shrink tubes for over-the-ear guides are pleasant and non-intrusive to use. The cable has a slider as well, but it doesn’t do its job and is fond of its resting position on top of the Y-splitter.
The 2-pin connectors remind me of the FiiO FH5 – looks pretty similar. Due to the protruded nature of the connector attached to the IEMs, most after-market cables will leave the connector portion exposed, while not hampering functionality.
The 3.5 mm plug is standard affair and no fancy gold-plating or gimmicky texture to it – does its job.
Tip Rolling
The EM1 comes with 2 sets of ear tips – each come in 3 sizes. The first set of tips is for mid-centric sound. These have softer material and short, wide bores. These do not offer great seal. I used the M sized tips of these and the sound was less warm and mid centric as specified, but not my cup of tea. So I did not spend more than 10 minutes with these tips.
The second set of tips are supposed to enhance the bass. These have narrow, longer bores and with the slightly firmer material, offer good seal. Even in the subway, these attenuated external noise to sufficient levels that I did not have to turn up the volume to enjoy music. As always, since there is no active noise cancellation, you do lose the impact of low frequencies in noisier environments. I use the L-sized tips and the rest of the review is with these tips.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation
Source: FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) or Tidal Hi-Fi
Chain 1: Bit perfect playback through the UAPP player on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC
Chain 2: Bit perfect playback through Foobar2k along with my laptop paired with the iFi Nano BL and line out to Headamp Gilmore Lite MK2 amp.
As always, a perfect seal is essential to any IEM. A quick listen to the EM1 is enough to acknowledge that it is a well-rounded package for the price. The IEM has enough weight on bass frequencies and extends well into sub-bass frequencies. While the bass texture is not outstanding, it is good enough to have an enjoyable experience from a small, dynamic driver configuration.
The bass lines on Steely Dan’s Cousin Dupree are rendered well by the EM1 – enough weight to keep you engaged and feel the impact. The texture on the other hand is not excellent but rendered enough that most of the folks won’t complain. The upper-mids have a peak around the 3k and 6k range which make the snare drums sound sharper than what they sound on my other headphones.
The highs are not well-extended like the lows but bring out enough detail while not sounding harsh and airy enough.
The vocals are neither too forward, nor recessed but positioned well. In fact, I love how the EM1 brings out female vocals in most tracks – quite engaging. Rebecca Pidgeon’s The Raven album is a perfect folly for your EM1 experience. Rebecca’s rendition of Spanish Harlem comes alive with nice, deep bass notes from the harp and these bass notes continue on a well-rendered layer. The vocals have enough warmth and lifelike texture. On the flip side, there are tracks like Birdy’s Skinny Love and Amanda Marshall’s Let it Rain, which have inherent sibilance in the recordings. The sharper upper mids of the EM1 is not a great pairing with such tracks – the vocals can sound metallic, nasal and quite sibilant.
Male vocals can be a hit or a miss based on the singer. To keep the bass from bleeding into the mids there is a dip in the frequency response in the 250 to 500 Hz region. On History Song by The Good, The Bad and the queen, it is easily appreciable that the EM1 keep the mids clean, but the flipside to that is lack of warmth in male vocals. To be noted that while the bass on this song, while satisfying enough on weight, leaves me wanting more when it comes to texture.
The stereo stage is rendered quite well by the EM1 – the width is good, depth is just average (we are talking $60 here). The title track of Michael Jackson’s Thriller substantiates this fact. Stereo width is pretty good – extends well beyond your head. Sadly, the EM1 is not one that renders layering on tracks very well – the driver is not fast enough and in busy tracks like Muse’s Madness, the EM1 cannot bring out the excitement when the track reaches its peak at around the 3-minute mark.
Select Comparisons
Tin Audio T2 – T2 is a sub $100 veteran that has been appreciated and recommended by many. Retails normally for $50 and can be bought as low as $36 during a sale. The T2’s midrange is exemplary, and vocals are rendered life-like. The EM1 cannot make the vocals as engaging as the T2. The higher frequencies on the T2 has a lot of air between notes and packs brilliance, however it can become a bit too hot to handle for some listeners. While the EM1 lacks the airiness, it still is good enough to be engaging for a varied genre of music, compared to the T2. The T2’s driver is slow in bass notes and that can have a big impact on the texture of the bass notes, and it also lacks the slam that the EM1 offers.
Between the two, my pick would be the EM1.
FiiO EX1 – Also sold as Dunu Titan 1, the EX1 is a semi-open IEM that was sold in the sub $100 price range. The EX1 is also a single dynamic driver like the EM1 but benefits from a faster driver renders bass texture much better than the Simgot EM1. The vocals are also much better in resolution and texture compared to the Simgot. The upper mids and lower highs is where the EX1 is a bit too hot to handle for me – on the not so well mastered tracks, these can be quite harsh. But on well-mastered tracks, the EX1 offer enough air and details and easily trumps the Simgot EM1.
Conclusion
For a small, dynamic driver IEM at the budget end of the spectrum, the EM1 is a good enough package for the average listener. Seasoned listeners will be left wanting more and that is expected as the Simgot EM1 is not positioned as an audiophile offering. While yu will not be surrounded by music on the EM1, it is engaging enough to be a daily-driver for the casual listener, especially those who like to listen to music on the go.
And guess what – this doesn’t drain your wallet.
Currently available for purchase on Amazon.com for $60, the EM1 can also be purchased by direct mail to overseas@simgot.com for international destinations.
Note: The review unit was offered to me for free in exchange for an honest review by Simgot Technology Co. Ltd. representative. This however does not have an impact on my review.
Build, fit and packaging
The EM1 comes in a nice, big box and the contents are organized pretty well. While the package is big, the contents are just the essentials – the IEMs, cable, eartips and a small manual.
Fit is fantastic – they are small enough to fit all ear sizes and comes with a variety of ear-tips to suit every one.
The cable has 4 wires braided till the Y-splitter and then it is split to two per side. The wires after the wire splitter is on the flimsy side and can get tangled while unfolding for use, even when it is rolled and tied for storage. The heat shrink tubes for over-the-ear guides are pleasant and non-intrusive to use. The cable has a slider as well, but it doesn’t do its job and is fond of its resting position on top of the Y-splitter.
The 2-pin connectors remind me of the FiiO FH5 – looks pretty similar. Due to the protruded nature of the connector attached to the IEMs, most after-market cables will leave the connector portion exposed, while not hampering functionality.
The 3.5 mm plug is standard affair and no fancy gold-plating or gimmicky texture to it – does its job.
Tip Rolling
The EM1 comes with 2 sets of ear tips – each come in 3 sizes. The first set of tips is for mid-centric sound. These have softer material and short, wide bores. These do not offer great seal. I used the M sized tips of these and the sound was less warm and mid centric as specified, but not my cup of tea. So I did not spend more than 10 minutes with these tips.
The second set of tips are supposed to enhance the bass. These have narrow, longer bores and with the slightly firmer material, offer good seal. Even in the subway, these attenuated external noise to sufficient levels that I did not have to turn up the volume to enjoy music. As always, since there is no active noise cancellation, you do lose the impact of low frequencies in noisier environments. I use the L-sized tips and the rest of the review is with these tips.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation
Source: FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) or Tidal Hi-Fi
Chain 1: Bit perfect playback through the UAPP player on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC
Chain 2: Bit perfect playback through Foobar2k along with my laptop paired with the iFi Nano BL and line out to Headamp Gilmore Lite MK2 amp.
As always, a perfect seal is essential to any IEM. A quick listen to the EM1 is enough to acknowledge that it is a well-rounded package for the price. The IEM has enough weight on bass frequencies and extends well into sub-bass frequencies. While the bass texture is not outstanding, it is good enough to have an enjoyable experience from a small, dynamic driver configuration.
The bass lines on Steely Dan’s Cousin Dupree are rendered well by the EM1 – enough weight to keep you engaged and feel the impact. The texture on the other hand is not excellent but rendered enough that most of the folks won’t complain. The upper-mids have a peak around the 3k and 6k range which make the snare drums sound sharper than what they sound on my other headphones.
The highs are not well-extended like the lows but bring out enough detail while not sounding harsh and airy enough.
The vocals are neither too forward, nor recessed but positioned well. In fact, I love how the EM1 brings out female vocals in most tracks – quite engaging. Rebecca Pidgeon’s The Raven album is a perfect folly for your EM1 experience. Rebecca’s rendition of Spanish Harlem comes alive with nice, deep bass notes from the harp and these bass notes continue on a well-rendered layer. The vocals have enough warmth and lifelike texture. On the flip side, there are tracks like Birdy’s Skinny Love and Amanda Marshall’s Let it Rain, which have inherent sibilance in the recordings. The sharper upper mids of the EM1 is not a great pairing with such tracks – the vocals can sound metallic, nasal and quite sibilant.
Male vocals can be a hit or a miss based on the singer. To keep the bass from bleeding into the mids there is a dip in the frequency response in the 250 to 500 Hz region. On History Song by The Good, The Bad and the queen, it is easily appreciable that the EM1 keep the mids clean, but the flipside to that is lack of warmth in male vocals. To be noted that while the bass on this song, while satisfying enough on weight, leaves me wanting more when it comes to texture.
The stereo stage is rendered quite well by the EM1 – the width is good, depth is just average (we are talking $60 here). The title track of Michael Jackson’s Thriller substantiates this fact. Stereo width is pretty good – extends well beyond your head. Sadly, the EM1 is not one that renders layering on tracks very well – the driver is not fast enough and in busy tracks like Muse’s Madness, the EM1 cannot bring out the excitement when the track reaches its peak at around the 3-minute mark.
Select Comparisons
Tin Audio T2 – T2 is a sub $100 veteran that has been appreciated and recommended by many. Retails normally for $50 and can be bought as low as $36 during a sale. The T2’s midrange is exemplary, and vocals are rendered life-like. The EM1 cannot make the vocals as engaging as the T2. The higher frequencies on the T2 has a lot of air between notes and packs brilliance, however it can become a bit too hot to handle for some listeners. While the EM1 lacks the airiness, it still is good enough to be engaging for a varied genre of music, compared to the T2. The T2’s driver is slow in bass notes and that can have a big impact on the texture of the bass notes, and it also lacks the slam that the EM1 offers.
Between the two, my pick would be the EM1.
FiiO EX1 – Also sold as Dunu Titan 1, the EX1 is a semi-open IEM that was sold in the sub $100 price range. The EX1 is also a single dynamic driver like the EM1 but benefits from a faster driver renders bass texture much better than the Simgot EM1. The vocals are also much better in resolution and texture compared to the Simgot. The upper mids and lower highs is where the EX1 is a bit too hot to handle for me – on the not so well mastered tracks, these can be quite harsh. But on well-mastered tracks, the EX1 offer enough air and details and easily trumps the Simgot EM1.
Conclusion
For a small, dynamic driver IEM at the budget end of the spectrum, the EM1 is a good enough package for the average listener. Seasoned listeners will be left wanting more and that is expected as the Simgot EM1 is not positioned as an audiophile offering. While yu will not be surrounded by music on the EM1, it is engaging enough to be a daily-driver for the casual listener, especially those who like to listen to music on the go.
And guess what – this doesn’t drain your wallet.
FiiO has always been a serious player in the personal audio category and it was quite evident right from their first association with Dunu for the FiiO EX1 and then with the F9 pro. Now with the FH5, they are trying to position themselves in the ‘serious’ audiophile category of personal audio.
A lot of design and thought process has gone into the FH5 and I will try my best to convey how the FH5 performs.
Build, fit and packaging
FiiO packaging is great and is loaded with eartips to cater to the masses. For the price paid, if they still wanted to include a single cable, I wish it were a balanced cable with a 3.5mm to 2.5mm adapter, instead of single 3.5mm cable.
The IEMs themselves have a nice, premium texture to them and paint quality is excellent. Though they look bigger in photos, they are a one-size-fits-all size and fits every adult in my household irrespective of the ear-size.
What is a pain point though is the size of the nozzle – it is clearly a size smaller and may result in poor seal and shallow fit of eartips. Flexible tips like the included balanced ones can slide out easily. Tip rolling is a must to find the right one for you.
The cable is a 4-core one, with each pair enclosed in a transparent silicon casing. The cable feels stiff and heavy. I wish that below the Y-splitter all 4-cores were enclosed in a single casing to reduce weight. The earhooks are perfect and keep the IEMs in place (once you have established seal).
The package also contains 2 cases – a hard, plastic case very reminiscent of the one that accompanied the V-Master by V-Friend, and a zippered fabric pouch to carry your collection of ear tips around (Don’t worry if you don’t have an ear-tip collection; the FiiO FH5 makes you a collector).
Tip Rolling
The FiiO comes with a multitude of eartips included and would satisfy the majority of populace. The only reason you would go for eartips elsewhere is to get a better fit and seal from a double-flange tip, depending on your ear type.
Me? I was content with the L-sized balanced tips and vocal tips supplied by FiiO. The bass tips were not giving me a good seal and I did not use them at all, apart from trying it once. The included foams are decent, but tend to make the FH5 sound a tad warmer.
With all that said, the “balanced” tips should satisfy the majority of the crowd and won’t need you looking elsewhere.
Personally, I liked the vocal tips which pushes the bass a bit back and lets the mids and lower treble stand-out. Those not used to forward vocals may find this a bit offensive; not me. With that said, this is not as fun as the balanced tip, which I found myself going back to often – something about that well-balanced warmth that makes me come back to the balanced tips, craving for more. Be advised that getting the vocal tips on is not for those who give-up easily.
For the purposes of the review, I have primarily used the balanced tips, unless mentioned otherwise. Vocal tips have been described too on certain tracks.
So how does it sound?
Well, this is what everything boils down to when you are spending INR 23k or USD 270 on a pair of IEMs, isn’t it? So, with the usual precedents established, we’ll get on with the FiiO performance.
The primary setup used in the review is my laptop playing bit-perfect via Foobar2000 or Tidal using the ASIO interface through the iFi Nano BL. I did also use my LG G6 with ES9218P SOC as the source, but the sound was not as engaging as with the iFi Nano BL; the mid bass was lacking and lifeless. So, I kept the G6 out of the review.
All files were FLACs - 16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96.
Dogs howling at a distance on both your left and right, someone walking over from one end of the room to another before a tense intro starts building up into a catchy bass guitar groove. Michael Jackson’s Thriller track in 24/96 PCM is quite engaging on the FiiO. The cymbals have a controlled brilliance that brings enough details on the track without being offensive or harsh. Vocals are quite engaging and well separated from everything else. Doors slam hard; bass has good body and well separated from the mids.
Most budget IEMs can do this. So what’s exceptional about the FiiO?
The FiiO is technically sound; for instance, the layering on the track is well rendered and you can clearly hear them coming together to make the track brilliant. The soundstage is exceptional – while it may not be wide like open backs, the width is well rendered and can appear to stretch out of your head; you may even look over your shoulder at times. The depth of soundstage is quite good; for instance, at the 4:17 mark there is a wailing vocals that is so life-like and well behind the space were all the action takes place. In fact, beyond the 4:17 mark, it’s all about enjoying the FH5’s technical prowess.
With the vocal tips, the mid bass and lower bass are pulled back quite noticeably and this makes you feel that the sound stage is more open, compared to the balanced tips. The mids are nicely accentuated helping the vocals shine, but you miss the bass guitar body on this track. But those who like the details without the bass coming in the way would enjoy the vocal tips a lot.
Moving on to The Police’s Synchronicity I, which can be a messy mish-mash of sounds on less-capable IEMs, the FiiO is all about coherence – fast, pulsating bass, nice reverb on the kick drums, energetic snare drums and again the same controlled brilliance on the highs. The FH5 brings this track alive and it never sounded so good.
On another track from the same album, Walking in your footsteps, the FH5 demonstrates that you don’t need open back feel the spaciousness of the sound.
The only grouse I thought I could pick with the FiiO was that while the bass dives deep it lacks the rumble that could engage users on a track like Flight of the cosmic Hippo by Béla Fleck, where you are presented with a platter of bass frequencies that range from 40Hz to 300Hz. But that wasn’t true – the issue was that the short nozzle and slippery texture of the balanced tips can result in the tips sliding out slightly, quite often, without you noticing and needs frequent adjustments to get the seal right. Voila! The missing rumble returns. With the vocal tips, you miss some of the bass body, but still have enough to enjoy an “actual” balanced sound. J
It was surprising to see that with 3BAs involved, there was no noticeable unnatural and sharp tone to the highs. The tuning of the FiiO does well for the most part, but it takes a track like Radiohead’s Creep, with inherent sibilance, to bring about the dark side of BAs – annoying, sibilant cymbal hits that makes it a painful listen.
Madness by Muse is rendered with conviction by the FH5 – Bellamy’s vocals are well separated from the multiple layers of sound that ensue from the 3-minute mark onwards, packs enough texture and sounds life-like. In fact, vocals are, for the most part, reasonably sound. Take, for instance, Seinabo Sey’s I owe you nothing, the FH5 showcases excellent vocal positioning while putting out deep, textured bass notes along with enough space for the uneasy, distorted harmonium (I guess) tune. The singer is right at the center with a lot of action happening all around her and the space is conveyed with conviction by the FiiO FH5. The singer’s other track, Breathe, is equally rendered with deep bass notes and excellent kick drum with well spaced-out violin layer.
Whatever I threw at it, the FH5 was simply superb and that brings us to our conclusion.
Conclusion
The FiiO FH5 is a well-done masterpiece, period. They are comfortable, one-size-fits-all and sound great, while at that.
While I couldn’t find an issue with the sound signature and technical prowess demonstrated by them, I wouldn’t say the same about the design. A slightly longer nozzle would have done wonders for the fit and seal. Still, a few repeatedly adjustments for the seal is not going to prevent me from giving them the full 5-star rating they deserve for their sound.
A lot of design and thought process has gone into the FH5 and I will try my best to convey how the FH5 performs.
Build, fit and packaging
FiiO packaging is great and is loaded with eartips to cater to the masses. For the price paid, if they still wanted to include a single cable, I wish it were a balanced cable with a 3.5mm to 2.5mm adapter, instead of single 3.5mm cable.
The IEMs themselves have a nice, premium texture to them and paint quality is excellent. Though they look bigger in photos, they are a one-size-fits-all size and fits every adult in my household irrespective of the ear-size.
What is a pain point though is the size of the nozzle – it is clearly a size smaller and may result in poor seal and shallow fit of eartips. Flexible tips like the included balanced ones can slide out easily. Tip rolling is a must to find the right one for you.
The cable is a 4-core one, with each pair enclosed in a transparent silicon casing. The cable feels stiff and heavy. I wish that below the Y-splitter all 4-cores were enclosed in a single casing to reduce weight. The earhooks are perfect and keep the IEMs in place (once you have established seal).
The package also contains 2 cases – a hard, plastic case very reminiscent of the one that accompanied the V-Master by V-Friend, and a zippered fabric pouch to carry your collection of ear tips around (Don’t worry if you don’t have an ear-tip collection; the FiiO FH5 makes you a collector).
Tip Rolling
The FiiO comes with a multitude of eartips included and would satisfy the majority of populace. The only reason you would go for eartips elsewhere is to get a better fit and seal from a double-flange tip, depending on your ear type.
Me? I was content with the L-sized balanced tips and vocal tips supplied by FiiO. The bass tips were not giving me a good seal and I did not use them at all, apart from trying it once. The included foams are decent, but tend to make the FH5 sound a tad warmer.
With all that said, the “balanced” tips should satisfy the majority of the crowd and won’t need you looking elsewhere.
Personally, I liked the vocal tips which pushes the bass a bit back and lets the mids and lower treble stand-out. Those not used to forward vocals may find this a bit offensive; not me. With that said, this is not as fun as the balanced tip, which I found myself going back to often – something about that well-balanced warmth that makes me come back to the balanced tips, craving for more. Be advised that getting the vocal tips on is not for those who give-up easily.
For the purposes of the review, I have primarily used the balanced tips, unless mentioned otherwise. Vocal tips have been described too on certain tracks.
So how does it sound?
Well, this is what everything boils down to when you are spending INR 23k or USD 270 on a pair of IEMs, isn’t it? So, with the usual precedents established, we’ll get on with the FiiO performance.
The primary setup used in the review is my laptop playing bit-perfect via Foobar2000 or Tidal using the ASIO interface through the iFi Nano BL. I did also use my LG G6 with ES9218P SOC as the source, but the sound was not as engaging as with the iFi Nano BL; the mid bass was lacking and lifeless. So, I kept the G6 out of the review.
All files were FLACs - 16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96.
Dogs howling at a distance on both your left and right, someone walking over from one end of the room to another before a tense intro starts building up into a catchy bass guitar groove. Michael Jackson’s Thriller track in 24/96 PCM is quite engaging on the FiiO. The cymbals have a controlled brilliance that brings enough details on the track without being offensive or harsh. Vocals are quite engaging and well separated from everything else. Doors slam hard; bass has good body and well separated from the mids.
Most budget IEMs can do this. So what’s exceptional about the FiiO?
The FiiO is technically sound; for instance, the layering on the track is well rendered and you can clearly hear them coming together to make the track brilliant. The soundstage is exceptional – while it may not be wide like open backs, the width is well rendered and can appear to stretch out of your head; you may even look over your shoulder at times. The depth of soundstage is quite good; for instance, at the 4:17 mark there is a wailing vocals that is so life-like and well behind the space were all the action takes place. In fact, beyond the 4:17 mark, it’s all about enjoying the FH5’s technical prowess.
With the vocal tips, the mid bass and lower bass are pulled back quite noticeably and this makes you feel that the sound stage is more open, compared to the balanced tips. The mids are nicely accentuated helping the vocals shine, but you miss the bass guitar body on this track. But those who like the details without the bass coming in the way would enjoy the vocal tips a lot.
Moving on to The Police’s Synchronicity I, which can be a messy mish-mash of sounds on less-capable IEMs, the FiiO is all about coherence – fast, pulsating bass, nice reverb on the kick drums, energetic snare drums and again the same controlled brilliance on the highs. The FH5 brings this track alive and it never sounded so good.
On another track from the same album, Walking in your footsteps, the FH5 demonstrates that you don’t need open back feel the spaciousness of the sound.
The only grouse I thought I could pick with the FiiO was that while the bass dives deep it lacks the rumble that could engage users on a track like Flight of the cosmic Hippo by Béla Fleck, where you are presented with a platter of bass frequencies that range from 40Hz to 300Hz. But that wasn’t true – the issue was that the short nozzle and slippery texture of the balanced tips can result in the tips sliding out slightly, quite often, without you noticing and needs frequent adjustments to get the seal right. Voila! The missing rumble returns. With the vocal tips, you miss some of the bass body, but still have enough to enjoy an “actual” balanced sound. J
It was surprising to see that with 3BAs involved, there was no noticeable unnatural and sharp tone to the highs. The tuning of the FiiO does well for the most part, but it takes a track like Radiohead’s Creep, with inherent sibilance, to bring about the dark side of BAs – annoying, sibilant cymbal hits that makes it a painful listen.
Madness by Muse is rendered with conviction by the FH5 – Bellamy’s vocals are well separated from the multiple layers of sound that ensue from the 3-minute mark onwards, packs enough texture and sounds life-like. In fact, vocals are, for the most part, reasonably sound. Take, for instance, Seinabo Sey’s I owe you nothing, the FH5 showcases excellent vocal positioning while putting out deep, textured bass notes along with enough space for the uneasy, distorted harmonium (I guess) tune. The singer is right at the center with a lot of action happening all around her and the space is conveyed with conviction by the FiiO FH5. The singer’s other track, Breathe, is equally rendered with deep bass notes and excellent kick drum with well spaced-out violin layer.
Whatever I threw at it, the FH5 was simply superb and that brings us to our conclusion.
Conclusion
The FiiO FH5 is a well-done masterpiece, period. They are comfortable, one-size-fits-all and sound great, while at that.
While I couldn’t find an issue with the sound signature and technical prowess demonstrated by them, I wouldn’t say the same about the design. A slightly longer nozzle would have done wonders for the fit and seal. Still, a few repeatedly adjustments for the seal is not going to prevent me from giving them the full 5-star rating they deserve for their sound.
The Tin Audio T2 has been around for over a year now and is well appreciated in many forums. Since a lot is known about these IEMs, I will only be concentrating on my take on them.
Build, fit and packaging
The T2 has a good presentation while unboxing. The IEM housing is made of metal and can be worn cable-over-the-ears or the regular cable-down-the-ears. If you go by the red for right and blue for left terminology, the fit won’t be great.
I switch the left and right housing (MMCX cable helps) and wear them over-the-ear and the fit is good.
The cable looks quite industrial, but is sturdy and should last the distance.
Tip Rolling
The T2 comes with 3 pairs of silicon tips and a pair of blue foams tips. While the silicon tips are good, I feel that foam tips help improving the lows. The included foam tip is L-sized and doesn’t fit most folks.
So while I recommend the use of foam tips with the T2, it is better to buy T200/T400 tips that fit you.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player, along with my laptop paired with the iFi Nano BL through Foobar2000 (ASIO).
A quick listen to the T2 is enough to acknowledge the nice, forward lower mids with enough texture to make vocals sound lustrous. Rebecca Pidgeon’s The Raven album is a perfect folly for your T2 experience. Rebecca’s rendition of Spanish Harlem comes alive with nice, deep bass notes from the harp and these bass notes continue on a well-rendered layer. The vocals have enough warmth and lifelike texture. The T2 presents the violin, piano and shakers (whatever that is) with excellent separation and nice presentation of the headspace (or soundstage, if you want less fancy). While the presentation of the stage is intimate in the T2, it sounds quite open for a closed back IEM and showcases sufficient width.
So does that mean, the T2 is perfect? Not so soon.
Madness by Muse is a test track that I often use in my reviews, so no surprise that it features here as well. The first thing that will strike you is the good balance across the frequency range the T2 offers. While bass lacks weight (kick drums), it doesn’t lack texture; bass attacks and decays faster than most IEMs in its price range, but there is an evident slowness that is exposed in tracks such as these and this has a negative impact on the texture of the dubstep bass loop that plays throughout the track. While many may consider it a bright-sounding pair of IEMs, there is some veil in the upper mid-range; Matt Bellamy’s vocals, while clean for the most part sounds a bit held back. Highs are clear and have a good amount of airiness, but have a slight, artificial nature to them – not as bad as poor BA implementations, but just noticeable. While this does not hamper the listening experience, it can be evident when you try the same tracks on different earphones. More on artificial sounding treble later.
Layering is decent, not exceptional – after the 3-minute mark when the track unleashed euphoria, the T2 handles well until the 3:45 mark when it get a bit too much for it – layers are not more distinguishable, and the kicks and snare drum beats lack impact. However, the vocals and highs still have a good clarity and airiness present which is the saving grace; could be the second driver.
Moving over to The Wall by Pink Floyd brings forth the biggest weakness of the T2, the sub-100 Hz notes lack weight. On Goodbye Blue Sky, the distorted bass note (50-60 Hz) that plays around the 40-second mark of the track sets the precedent for the anxious, brooding mood of the track. The T2 cannot give it enough emphasis and in turn cannot portray the track’s mood in its entirety. What saves it are the well-rendered and well-separated acoustic guitar notes, vocals and the decent width on chorus vocals. Same is the case with Another Brick in the Wall Part 2; while the bass guitar (70-80 Hz) has enough texture, it does not have sufficient weight to excite the mood of the track.
Hey You from the same album, brings forth the second flaw in the T2 – not as big as the first one; the treble sound a bit artificially boosted around the 8 KHz region. While this improves the airiness and brings about a nice sparkle on the ride cymbals, the notes sound slightly artificial, especially around the 3-minute mark. The bass guitar on this track plays around the 90 – 120 Hz range and has enough weight and is enjoyable.
Contrary to what most people opine, the T2 does not lack in soundstage width. In fact it is sufficient wide for close back IEMs when you pair it with a good source. The title track of Michael Jackson’s Thriller substantiates this fact. Stereo width is good - just extends beyond your head, just enough eidth. The same can be said for depth as well. To give credit to the T2, most of the competition in its price range just offers a 2-dimesional sound stage – you hardly get any sense of depth, while the T2 has enough to offer to make it stand apart.
What would have been an enjoyable experience is marred by the boosted 8-12 Hz region; the ride cymbals on this track are borderline piercing with noticeable sibilance. While it works on certain genres, it doesn’t work for all.
Moving on to Cockroach King by Haken, the track starts with a good amount of energy – drums are good, but not quite impactful. Stereo width is good when the vocals start and the airiness is evident when the ride cymbals come in, but the cymbals sound like they are played using the wire-brush instead of the drum stick – you get the sound and presence, but it lacks the sheen. While the bass speed is average, the highs are fast enough – cymbals have a nice decay, evident at the 4:20 mark – there is enough pause between every hit of cymbal.
While my review of the T2 may sound quite critical, I still like it for what it offers at a price of $35 (discounted during sale period). A slight tuning change would have resulted in a much better-rounded IEM.
Does the vent mod fix the presence of sub-100Hz frequencies?
The front vent, near the nozzle can be modded with tape, blue tack to increase the resonance and get more bass out of the T2, but the bass can be boomy. Another alternative is to reduce the vent size by making a hole on the tape. This will increase the base to your desired level without making it too boomy. Sounds good right? There is always a flipside and in this case 2 – it can result in driver flex due to the pressure while plugging them into your ear and the sound stage width and the openness is impacted adversely. So, I don’t recommend it.
Other significant details:
The T2 MMCX cable is the one that works best for the T2. With better quality cable, I can see improvement in soundstage but the bass is less pronounced and treble is peakier. The T2 cable controls the treble to some extent while giving it a better low end. The T2 cable when used with my Airman AHE-150 earbuds make them quite bassy, compared to other MMCX cables.
Conclusion
Tin Audio T2 is a stepping stone into the audiophile world for those who are used to bassy IEMs. While the T2 has its own share of drawbacks, the beautiful mids and excellent separation offered by them, make them perfect for vocal driven tracks and they are hard to beat at that.
Build, fit and packaging
The T2 has a good presentation while unboxing. The IEM housing is made of metal and can be worn cable-over-the-ears or the regular cable-down-the-ears. If you go by the red for right and blue for left terminology, the fit won’t be great.
I switch the left and right housing (MMCX cable helps) and wear them over-the-ear and the fit is good.
The cable looks quite industrial, but is sturdy and should last the distance.
Tip Rolling
The T2 comes with 3 pairs of silicon tips and a pair of blue foams tips. While the silicon tips are good, I feel that foam tips help improving the lows. The included foam tip is L-sized and doesn’t fit most folks.
So while I recommend the use of foam tips with the T2, it is better to buy T200/T400 tips that fit you.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player, along with my laptop paired with the iFi Nano BL through Foobar2000 (ASIO).
A quick listen to the T2 is enough to acknowledge the nice, forward lower mids with enough texture to make vocals sound lustrous. Rebecca Pidgeon’s The Raven album is a perfect folly for your T2 experience. Rebecca’s rendition of Spanish Harlem comes alive with nice, deep bass notes from the harp and these bass notes continue on a well-rendered layer. The vocals have enough warmth and lifelike texture. The T2 presents the violin, piano and shakers (whatever that is) with excellent separation and nice presentation of the headspace (or soundstage, if you want less fancy). While the presentation of the stage is intimate in the T2, it sounds quite open for a closed back IEM and showcases sufficient width.
So does that mean, the T2 is perfect? Not so soon.
Madness by Muse is a test track that I often use in my reviews, so no surprise that it features here as well. The first thing that will strike you is the good balance across the frequency range the T2 offers. While bass lacks weight (kick drums), it doesn’t lack texture; bass attacks and decays faster than most IEMs in its price range, but there is an evident slowness that is exposed in tracks such as these and this has a negative impact on the texture of the dubstep bass loop that plays throughout the track. While many may consider it a bright-sounding pair of IEMs, there is some veil in the upper mid-range; Matt Bellamy’s vocals, while clean for the most part sounds a bit held back. Highs are clear and have a good amount of airiness, but have a slight, artificial nature to them – not as bad as poor BA implementations, but just noticeable. While this does not hamper the listening experience, it can be evident when you try the same tracks on different earphones. More on artificial sounding treble later.
Layering is decent, not exceptional – after the 3-minute mark when the track unleashed euphoria, the T2 handles well until the 3:45 mark when it get a bit too much for it – layers are not more distinguishable, and the kicks and snare drum beats lack impact. However, the vocals and highs still have a good clarity and airiness present which is the saving grace; could be the second driver.
Moving over to The Wall by Pink Floyd brings forth the biggest weakness of the T2, the sub-100 Hz notes lack weight. On Goodbye Blue Sky, the distorted bass note (50-60 Hz) that plays around the 40-second mark of the track sets the precedent for the anxious, brooding mood of the track. The T2 cannot give it enough emphasis and in turn cannot portray the track’s mood in its entirety. What saves it are the well-rendered and well-separated acoustic guitar notes, vocals and the decent width on chorus vocals. Same is the case with Another Brick in the Wall Part 2; while the bass guitar (70-80 Hz) has enough texture, it does not have sufficient weight to excite the mood of the track.
Hey You from the same album, brings forth the second flaw in the T2 – not as big as the first one; the treble sound a bit artificially boosted around the 8 KHz region. While this improves the airiness and brings about a nice sparkle on the ride cymbals, the notes sound slightly artificial, especially around the 3-minute mark. The bass guitar on this track plays around the 90 – 120 Hz range and has enough weight and is enjoyable.
Contrary to what most people opine, the T2 does not lack in soundstage width. In fact it is sufficient wide for close back IEMs when you pair it with a good source. The title track of Michael Jackson’s Thriller substantiates this fact. Stereo width is good - just extends beyond your head, just enough eidth. The same can be said for depth as well. To give credit to the T2, most of the competition in its price range just offers a 2-dimesional sound stage – you hardly get any sense of depth, while the T2 has enough to offer to make it stand apart.
What would have been an enjoyable experience is marred by the boosted 8-12 Hz region; the ride cymbals on this track are borderline piercing with noticeable sibilance. While it works on certain genres, it doesn’t work for all.
Moving on to Cockroach King by Haken, the track starts with a good amount of energy – drums are good, but not quite impactful. Stereo width is good when the vocals start and the airiness is evident when the ride cymbals come in, but the cymbals sound like they are played using the wire-brush instead of the drum stick – you get the sound and presence, but it lacks the sheen. While the bass speed is average, the highs are fast enough – cymbals have a nice decay, evident at the 4:20 mark – there is enough pause between every hit of cymbal.
While my review of the T2 may sound quite critical, I still like it for what it offers at a price of $35 (discounted during sale period). A slight tuning change would have resulted in a much better-rounded IEM.
Does the vent mod fix the presence of sub-100Hz frequencies?
The front vent, near the nozzle can be modded with tape, blue tack to increase the resonance and get more bass out of the T2, but the bass can be boomy. Another alternative is to reduce the vent size by making a hole on the tape. This will increase the base to your desired level without making it too boomy. Sounds good right? There is always a flipside and in this case 2 – it can result in driver flex due to the pressure while plugging them into your ear and the sound stage width and the openness is impacted adversely. So, I don’t recommend it.
Other significant details:
The T2 MMCX cable is the one that works best for the T2. With better quality cable, I can see improvement in soundstage but the bass is less pronounced and treble is peakier. The T2 cable controls the treble to some extent while giving it a better low end. The T2 cable when used with my Airman AHE-150 earbuds make them quite bassy, compared to other MMCX cables.
Conclusion
Tin Audio T2 is a stepping stone into the audiophile world for those who are used to bassy IEMs. While the T2 has its own share of drawbacks, the beautiful mids and excellent separation offered by them, make them perfect for vocal driven tracks and they are hard to beat at that.
A lot of interesting stuff from the east, and this time it is by a pilot who loves music making some interesting earbuds under the brand name “Airman”.
The Airman family offers various buds at difference impedance levels – 32, 64, 150, 180 and 400.
The 150, 180 and 400 have a “vented” enclosure, which I understand is a modification to the shell’s inners, and it does wonders for the soundstage.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Airman.
https://www.facebook.com/AirmanHifidelityEarphone/
Build, fit and packaging
Once you open the outer packaging, you are greeting with a simple transparent, stickered plastic box, within which you have the earbuds and two pair of good quality foams and 2 “Hi-res” stickers. Each case is numbered and mine is No. 011 of the AHE-150 model.
No brownie points for fancy unboxing experience here!
The MMCX plug seem firmly fixed to the buds and should last the distance.
Note: There are no cables included in the box.
While fit is the same as most EMX500 shells, the thing that makes a difference here is the extra length of the shells with the MMCX connector, combined with the plugs in the cable, will almost be touching your cheeks. So, choose a cable that doesn’t have a big plug for the MMCX connector. Chubbier folks might find this an issue.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
Without foams – Sounds good but the bass extension is not as deep do to the lack of a good seal. Also, the upper mids are a bit ‘in-your-face’ type and can be tiring.
Full foams – The foams included make them too bassy that its intolerable. Also the rest of the frequency range sounds muffled. The included full foams are definitely not be used.
Donut foams – Same impact as full foams – better avoided.
Thin foams – The perfect sweet spot – the upper mids are tamed to a good extent while the bass extension is better due to the seal.
I feel the AHE-150 sound their best with thin foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these thin foams.
So how does it sound?
The following combinations were used to evaluate the musicality of these buds (all files were FLACs - 16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96)
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself.
There is no mention of burn-in by Airman and I have not subjected this earbud to any burn-in. It sounds good straight of the box and has a decent time of at least 25 hours prior to the review. Also, since there are no cabled included with the AHE-150, I used one of my very good quality MMCX cables for the review
Before I start the review, I would like to say that these earbuds are purchased by me with my own money at the MSRP and I received no discount or request from the seller to review them.
Two things catch your attention immediately, when you try the AHE-150. The first thing is the bass – ample, deep and quality bass. Get a good fit and it can feel the lower bass frequency vibrations. Though I have tried a score of earbuds and more, never has any earbud of any shape offered such great bass body – either they lack in quantity when providing great quality or lack in quality while providing boomy, bloated bass. The Moonbuds Bunting was the closest that came to a perfect neutral bass response.
Turn on Bassline Riddim by Vato Gonzalez and you will get what I mentioned about the bass – great body, goes deep and packs a good amount of texture. The cello’s timbre is quite satisfying at the beginning of Taska Black’s Leave me. Continue on the track, there are some nice bass synth lines that the AHE-150 renders exceptionally to excite the inner-basshead within everyone.
Let’s try an acid test with Lorn’s Acid Rain. The track starts of with nicely weighted and textured bass note. At the 22-second mark, there is an impactful blow of bass, which I can only describe as a sledgehammer blow to the head. The impact is only intensified when an even powerful blow lands at the 41-second mark – I could feel the bass vibration in my bones. However, the vocals are too sharp and hissy and doesn’t give a good listening experience once they set in – the upper mids are a bit sharp and its to blame.
Switch to Sharpness by Jamie Woon, the AHE-150, still satisfying bass along with a good vocal presentation. Upper mids are quite energetic. The tiny clicks in the song are rendered well and give a fair idea of the width of the soundstage offered.
That is the second thing that catches attention – the amazingly wide sound stage. Nina Simone’s Feeling Good is a great example – starts off with a pitch black background and then Nina starts crooning; her vocals have enough warmth and is perfectly positioned – neither too forward nor recessed. Great timbre on the trumpet. The strings and piano playing together at around the 1:20 mark give a fair idea of how wide the soundstage is. This, when combined with the perfectly centered vocals of the singer, give a great perception of the soundstage width. Another track of Nina, I put a spell on you, again demonstrates the exceptional presentation of the sound stage offered by the Airman AHE-150, while rendering the nostalgic atmosphere of the song quite well.
In fact, most songs of the 70s and 80s that relied on stereo in their presentation are rendered beautifully by the AHE-150. Steely Dan’s Aja is immensely satisfying on the AHE-150 – good weight and texture on the centered bass guitar, all the tiny details in the upper mids and highs rendered exceptionally well, while presenting a life-like open sound stage. Cymbals have sufficient sparkle to excite the hairs in your ear canal, but the brilliance is lacking slightly. Move on to the 4:45 mark, the AHE-150 shows what it is capable of – good timbre on the saxophone, great texture on the bass guitar, nice sparkle on the cymbals, good weight and decay on the fast drums, well separated piano notes – did I mention that all of these play together on the track? Go past the 7-minute mark and it only gets better. The presentation would have been perfect, if only the levels of brilliance of the cymbals was more satisfying. The only earbud that does better (in my collection, of course) is the Moonbuds Bunting (Did I say only? That’s because the Moonbuds Nightingale that are with me currently, aren’t mine. J). Another immensely enjoyable track on the AHE-150 is The Doors’ Riders on the Storm.
Paired with the iFi Nano BL which keep crosstalk minimal, the separation of vocals and various instruments are quite exceptional. Throw a busy track like Way too Long by Bent Knee – not a problem for the AHE-150. The tracks starts with nice snare drums and distorted guitar – the AHE-150 renders the energy quite well, but the extra warmth that it offers in the lower frequencies do come in the way of the presentation. This track is best served cold! J That apart, the exceptional singing of Jessica Kion at the 3-minute mark is well separated from the highly energetic instruments. The guitar distortion is, again, well rendered and packs good energy, but the extra warmth offered by the AHE-150 does take away some of the fun. Well, that’s a minor niggle which most may not even notice.
The vocals and guitars on Iktara by Amit Trivedi and Tochi Raina sound exquisite. The guitar notes at the beginning have a satisfying sparkle and are sufficient wide, centering your attention of the vocals. The chorus encompasses the listener quite well and the bass guitar has satisfying weight and texture.
Conclusion
With so many MX500 shell earbuds floating around, the Airman AHE-150 is a breath of fresh air in its unique presentation of music with its excitable bass and vast sound stage. At an attractive price tag of $49, the AHE-150 goes straight to the top of my list of ‘Best earbuds under $50’.
Since it is made by a pilot, will it offer a clearer presentation of the pilot’s announcement on flights? Dream on!
The Airman family offers various buds at difference impedance levels – 32, 64, 150, 180 and 400.
The 150, 180 and 400 have a “vented” enclosure, which I understand is a modification to the shell’s inners, and it does wonders for the soundstage.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Airman.
https://www.facebook.com/AirmanHifidelityEarphone/
Build, fit and packaging
Once you open the outer packaging, you are greeting with a simple transparent, stickered plastic box, within which you have the earbuds and two pair of good quality foams and 2 “Hi-res” stickers. Each case is numbered and mine is No. 011 of the AHE-150 model.
No brownie points for fancy unboxing experience here!
The MMCX plug seem firmly fixed to the buds and should last the distance.
Note: There are no cables included in the box.
While fit is the same as most EMX500 shells, the thing that makes a difference here is the extra length of the shells with the MMCX connector, combined with the plugs in the cable, will almost be touching your cheeks. So, choose a cable that doesn’t have a big plug for the MMCX connector. Chubbier folks might find this an issue.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
Without foams – Sounds good but the bass extension is not as deep do to the lack of a good seal. Also, the upper mids are a bit ‘in-your-face’ type and can be tiring.
Full foams – The foams included make them too bassy that its intolerable. Also the rest of the frequency range sounds muffled. The included full foams are definitely not be used.
Donut foams – Same impact as full foams – better avoided.
Thin foams – The perfect sweet spot – the upper mids are tamed to a good extent while the bass extension is better due to the seal.
I feel the AHE-150 sound their best with thin foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these thin foams.
So how does it sound?
The following combinations were used to evaluate the musicality of these buds (all files were FLACs - 16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96)
- LG G6 as source playing bit perfect through the UAPP player in USB out mode with the iFi Nano iDSD BL DacAmp.
- Tidal app on my laptop to play bit-perfect thru the iFi Nano BL.
- Foobar2000 on my laptop to play bit-perfect via ASIO thru iFi Nano BL.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself.
There is no mention of burn-in by Airman and I have not subjected this earbud to any burn-in. It sounds good straight of the box and has a decent time of at least 25 hours prior to the review. Also, since there are no cabled included with the AHE-150, I used one of my very good quality MMCX cables for the review
Before I start the review, I would like to say that these earbuds are purchased by me with my own money at the MSRP and I received no discount or request from the seller to review them.
Two things catch your attention immediately, when you try the AHE-150. The first thing is the bass – ample, deep and quality bass. Get a good fit and it can feel the lower bass frequency vibrations. Though I have tried a score of earbuds and more, never has any earbud of any shape offered such great bass body – either they lack in quantity when providing great quality or lack in quality while providing boomy, bloated bass. The Moonbuds Bunting was the closest that came to a perfect neutral bass response.
Turn on Bassline Riddim by Vato Gonzalez and you will get what I mentioned about the bass – great body, goes deep and packs a good amount of texture. The cello’s timbre is quite satisfying at the beginning of Taska Black’s Leave me. Continue on the track, there are some nice bass synth lines that the AHE-150 renders exceptionally to excite the inner-basshead within everyone.
Let’s try an acid test with Lorn’s Acid Rain. The track starts of with nicely weighted and textured bass note. At the 22-second mark, there is an impactful blow of bass, which I can only describe as a sledgehammer blow to the head. The impact is only intensified when an even powerful blow lands at the 41-second mark – I could feel the bass vibration in my bones. However, the vocals are too sharp and hissy and doesn’t give a good listening experience once they set in – the upper mids are a bit sharp and its to blame.
Switch to Sharpness by Jamie Woon, the AHE-150, still satisfying bass along with a good vocal presentation. Upper mids are quite energetic. The tiny clicks in the song are rendered well and give a fair idea of the width of the soundstage offered.
That is the second thing that catches attention – the amazingly wide sound stage. Nina Simone’s Feeling Good is a great example – starts off with a pitch black background and then Nina starts crooning; her vocals have enough warmth and is perfectly positioned – neither too forward nor recessed. Great timbre on the trumpet. The strings and piano playing together at around the 1:20 mark give a fair idea of how wide the soundstage is. This, when combined with the perfectly centered vocals of the singer, give a great perception of the soundstage width. Another track of Nina, I put a spell on you, again demonstrates the exceptional presentation of the sound stage offered by the Airman AHE-150, while rendering the nostalgic atmosphere of the song quite well.
In fact, most songs of the 70s and 80s that relied on stereo in their presentation are rendered beautifully by the AHE-150. Steely Dan’s Aja is immensely satisfying on the AHE-150 – good weight and texture on the centered bass guitar, all the tiny details in the upper mids and highs rendered exceptionally well, while presenting a life-like open sound stage. Cymbals have sufficient sparkle to excite the hairs in your ear canal, but the brilliance is lacking slightly. Move on to the 4:45 mark, the AHE-150 shows what it is capable of – good timbre on the saxophone, great texture on the bass guitar, nice sparkle on the cymbals, good weight and decay on the fast drums, well separated piano notes – did I mention that all of these play together on the track? Go past the 7-minute mark and it only gets better. The presentation would have been perfect, if only the levels of brilliance of the cymbals was more satisfying. The only earbud that does better (in my collection, of course) is the Moonbuds Bunting (Did I say only? That’s because the Moonbuds Nightingale that are with me currently, aren’t mine. J). Another immensely enjoyable track on the AHE-150 is The Doors’ Riders on the Storm.
Paired with the iFi Nano BL which keep crosstalk minimal, the separation of vocals and various instruments are quite exceptional. Throw a busy track like Way too Long by Bent Knee – not a problem for the AHE-150. The tracks starts with nice snare drums and distorted guitar – the AHE-150 renders the energy quite well, but the extra warmth that it offers in the lower frequencies do come in the way of the presentation. This track is best served cold! J That apart, the exceptional singing of Jessica Kion at the 3-minute mark is well separated from the highly energetic instruments. The guitar distortion is, again, well rendered and packs good energy, but the extra warmth offered by the AHE-150 does take away some of the fun. Well, that’s a minor niggle which most may not even notice.
The vocals and guitars on Iktara by Amit Trivedi and Tochi Raina sound exquisite. The guitar notes at the beginning have a satisfying sparkle and are sufficient wide, centering your attention of the vocals. The chorus encompasses the listener quite well and the bass guitar has satisfying weight and texture.
Conclusion
With so many MX500 shell earbuds floating around, the Airman AHE-150 is a breath of fresh air in its unique presentation of music with its excitable bass and vast sound stage. At an attractive price tag of $49, the AHE-150 goes straight to the top of my list of ‘Best earbuds under $50’.
Since it is made by a pilot, will it offer a clearer presentation of the pilot’s announcement on flights? Dream on!
Another interesting bud from the far east and this time it’s the Moonbuds Nightingale from Vietnam. I had reviewed the Moonbuds Bunting earlier and given it a full 5-star. Being the ultimate TOTL in the Moonbuds range, does the Nightingale match up to the Bunting or do a 1-up? Read on!.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Moonbuds.
https://www.facebook.com/MoonbudsOfficial/
These buds are loaned to me by a friend for the review, so these are officially not mine, unless I choose not to return these back to him.
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a zippered pouch with Vietnam artwork on it – loved it! What more, there was a wooden case with the buyers name etched on it – even better! There is a good amount of colourful foams included in the package – donuts and regular. The foams are of good quality, especially the full foams. You also get a nice, Moon-branded, faux leather cable organiser.
The housing is the comfortable Yuin shell, which fits me perfectly with foams on. Without foams, I don’t get a good seal on them – big ears. The shell material is of good quality and comes etched with Moonbuds logo. The Nightingale comes in white colored shells by default with markings for left and right. The buyer went for custom shell colors – red and black. Looks like the red was painted over a white shell; both shell don’t have the marking for left and right. With the regular build, you shouldn’t have this issue.
The cable is always unique in the Moonbuds family and the Nightingale is no different – a combination of Gold and Silver colored cables – 4-cores in total; 2 to each side. The cable of the Nightingale looks better than the ones in the Bunting and Moon has confirmed that it is of better “quality”. While he hasn’t specified the properties of the cable, I suspect they are SPC (Silver Plated Copper). The cable looks premium and has good looking, black colored, Nightingale branded 3.5 mm plug. The Y-Splitter is of carbon fiber texture, while the cable slider is just a fancy, non-functional, jewel ball. Overall the cable is quite light and has no microphonics issue and is quite flaunt-worthy.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
Without foams – The earbud is hardly felt in the ears and they are most comfortable, but I don’t get a good seal, so the sound lacks the warmth, but the highs are still quite manageable.
Full foams – I feel they are too warm with full foams, while the sparkle and brilliance in the highs take a hit. Also, the mids have a veil on them.
Donut foams – The warmth is same as full foams, but the mids and highs are much better. However, I don’t like the tonal balance with the donut foams
Thin foams – Just the right warmth while letting the mids and highs shine without any issues. Sadly thin foams are not include with the package.
I feel the Nightingale sounds their best with thin foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these thin foams.
So how does it sound?
The following combinations were used to evaluate the musicality of these buds (all files were FLACs - 16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96)
The Nightingale has an impedance of 16 ohm and good sensitivity and doesn’t require too much power to drive and sounds good from my LG G6 directly while using its ES9218P SoC. The iFi has better crosstalk and showcases better channel separation and a wider soundstage, while having a slightly extended bass (compared to the LG G6)
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself and finally the source setup itself.
Moon Harvester recommends a burn-in period of 70 hours for these earbuds and I always ensure that the buds have more than recommended burn-in period on them prior to the review.
Before I start the review, I would like to say that these earbuds are a loaner from a friend of mine and not purchased by me. Hence, I do not have any sentimental attachment to the product driving the review.
The Nightingale is warm sounding with good control on the bass texture. Turn on Flight of the cosmic Hippo by Béla Fleck, you are presented with a platter of bass frequencies that range from 40Hz to 300Hz presented with conviction by the Nightingale. A very clean presentation of the guitar in the mid frequencies along with nice levels of brilliance on the cymbals. Travis Scott’s Stargazing has some interesting bass lines with oodles of texture – presented well by the Nightingale. While the vocals are rendered well, the extra warmth on the bass doesn’t give them enough space to stand apart – the vocals are slightly forward but not as enagaging, as it was in the case of the Bunting. The upper mids have more presence and the claps are slightly aggressive. The sound stage is good overall.
Moving on to Seinabo Sey’s I owe you nothing, the first thing that is immediately noticeably is the excellent soundstage on the Nightingale – wider than usual with a good amount of depth. While Seinabo’s vocals are rendered well, the texture leaves you a wanting more. This is the only weakness of the Nightingale. It is not that mids lack texture, but at this level you expect very engaging mids. There is a good amount of speed and texture on offer at both the lower and mid frequencies as seen on Infected Mushroom’s Vicious Delicious. The extra width perception of the soundstage makes this track a brilliant listen on the Nightingale, especially at the 3:35 mark when the track goes ballistic, the entire spectrum comes alive and sounds great – a really capable driver.
Going to my ever dependable review track – Madness by Muse, it confirms everything that was observed so far – highly energetic electronic drums in the upper mids, well rendered vocals, good texture on the bass synth. The layering is rendering quite well – there is enough to distinguish between the multiple layers of music post the 3:30 mark. The only issue is that vocals appear slightly cramped for space due to the extra warm upper bass frequencies.
To appreciate the excellent soundstage on the Nightingale, you should try the tracks from 70s and 80s which heavily relied on stereo in their presentation. One such track is Lady in Cement of the late 60’s by Hugo Montenegro. The sound stage width and depth are exquisite on the Nightingale. The ride cymbals are not that prominent on the track, but the Nightingale has enough extension to bring out the details. Instrument separation is quite good too.
Conclusion
Moonbuds have quite an interesting lineup with the Nightingale as the top of the offering and it does offer top-notch audio experience with its impressive sound stage and imaging. I still prefer the Bunting over it though, especially owing to the lustrous mids showcased by the Bunting.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Moonbuds.
https://www.facebook.com/MoonbudsOfficial/
These buds are loaned to me by a friend for the review, so these are officially not mine, unless I choose not to return these back to him
.Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a zippered pouch with Vietnam artwork on it – loved it! What more, there was a wooden case with the buyers name etched on it – even better! There is a good amount of colourful foams included in the package – donuts and regular. The foams are of good quality, especially the full foams. You also get a nice, Moon-branded, faux leather cable organiser.
The housing is the comfortable Yuin shell, which fits me perfectly with foams on. Without foams, I don’t get a good seal on them – big ears. The shell material is of good quality and comes etched with Moonbuds logo. The Nightingale comes in white colored shells by default with markings for left and right. The buyer went for custom shell colors – red and black. Looks like the red was painted over a white shell; both shell don’t have the marking for left and right. With the regular build, you shouldn’t have this issue.
The cable is always unique in the Moonbuds family and the Nightingale is no different – a combination of Gold and Silver colored cables – 4-cores in total; 2 to each side. The cable of the Nightingale looks better than the ones in the Bunting and Moon has confirmed that it is of better “quality”. While he hasn’t specified the properties of the cable, I suspect they are SPC (Silver Plated Copper). The cable looks premium and has good looking, black colored, Nightingale branded 3.5 mm plug. The Y-Splitter is of carbon fiber texture, while the cable slider is just a fancy, non-functional, jewel ball. Overall the cable is quite light and has no microphonics issue and is quite flaunt-worthy.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
Without foams – The earbud is hardly felt in the ears and they are most comfortable, but I don’t get a good seal, so the sound lacks the warmth, but the highs are still quite manageable.
Full foams – I feel they are too warm with full foams, while the sparkle and brilliance in the highs take a hit. Also, the mids have a veil on them.
Donut foams – The warmth is same as full foams, but the mids and highs are much better. However, I don’t like the tonal balance with the donut foams
Thin foams – Just the right warmth while letting the mids and highs shine without any issues. Sadly thin foams are not include with the package.
I feel the Nightingale sounds their best with thin foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these thin foams.
So how does it sound?
The following combinations were used to evaluate the musicality of these buds (all files were FLACs - 16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96)
- LG G6 as source playing bit perfect through the UAPP player in USB out mode with the iFi Nano iDSD BL DacAmp.
- Tidal app on my laptop to play bit-perfect thru the iFi Nano BL.
- Foobar2000 on my laptop to play bit-perfect via ASIO thru iFi Nano BL.
The Nightingale has an impedance of 16 ohm and good sensitivity and doesn’t require too much power to drive and sounds good from my LG G6 directly while using its ES9218P SoC. The iFi has better crosstalk and showcases better channel separation and a wider soundstage, while having a slightly extended bass (compared to the LG G6)
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself and finally the source setup itself.
Moon Harvester recommends a burn-in period of 70 hours for these earbuds and I always ensure that the buds have more than recommended burn-in period on them prior to the review.
Before I start the review, I would like to say that these earbuds are a loaner from a friend of mine and not purchased by me. Hence, I do not have any sentimental attachment to the product driving the review.
The Nightingale is warm sounding with good control on the bass texture. Turn on Flight of the cosmic Hippo by Béla Fleck, you are presented with a platter of bass frequencies that range from 40Hz to 300Hz presented with conviction by the Nightingale. A very clean presentation of the guitar in the mid frequencies along with nice levels of brilliance on the cymbals. Travis Scott’s Stargazing has some interesting bass lines with oodles of texture – presented well by the Nightingale. While the vocals are rendered well, the extra warmth on the bass doesn’t give them enough space to stand apart – the vocals are slightly forward but not as enagaging, as it was in the case of the Bunting. The upper mids have more presence and the claps are slightly aggressive. The sound stage is good overall.
Moving on to Seinabo Sey’s I owe you nothing, the first thing that is immediately noticeably is the excellent soundstage on the Nightingale – wider than usual with a good amount of depth. While Seinabo’s vocals are rendered well, the texture leaves you a wanting more. This is the only weakness of the Nightingale. It is not that mids lack texture, but at this level you expect very engaging mids. There is a good amount of speed and texture on offer at both the lower and mid frequencies as seen on Infected Mushroom’s Vicious Delicious. The extra width perception of the soundstage makes this track a brilliant listen on the Nightingale, especially at the 3:35 mark when the track goes ballistic, the entire spectrum comes alive and sounds great – a really capable driver.
Going to my ever dependable review track – Madness by Muse, it confirms everything that was observed so far – highly energetic electronic drums in the upper mids, well rendered vocals, good texture on the bass synth. The layering is rendering quite well – there is enough to distinguish between the multiple layers of music post the 3:30 mark. The only issue is that vocals appear slightly cramped for space due to the extra warm upper bass frequencies.
To appreciate the excellent soundstage on the Nightingale, you should try the tracks from 70s and 80s which heavily relied on stereo in their presentation. One such track is Lady in Cement of the late 60’s by Hugo Montenegro. The sound stage width and depth are exquisite on the Nightingale. The ride cymbals are not that prominent on the track, but the Nightingale has enough extension to bring out the details. Instrument separation is quite good too.
Conclusion
Moonbuds have quite an interesting lineup with the Nightingale as the top of the offering and it does offer top-notch audio experience with its impressive sound stage and imaging. I still prefer the Bunting over it though, especially owing to the lustrous mids showcased by the Bunting.
OurArt is a boutique audio equipment manufacturer. Prior to the TI7, I have only seen MMCX cables of OurArt. Recently they have ventured into earbuds and IEMs. The TI7 is an interesting pair of buds with a completely new housing and a titanium coated driver. The effort that has gone into the design and engineering of these buds is commendable. With MMCX buds catching up pretty fast, the TI7 is offered with MMCX connectors as well.
These earbuds can be purchased from Penon Audio, a reliable retailer of boutique earbuds. At the time of this review, these earbuds are retailing at $59.
https://penonaudio.com/ourart-ti7.html
Disclaimer: These earbuds were sent to me as a review sample by Penon Audio.
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a nice, cardboard box. The box has a nice opening and closing action – similar to watch cases. There is a tiny manual in Chinese. We are also provided with 7 pairs of donut foams an 2 pairs of regular foams and the quality it good as well. There is an interesting, plastic shirt/collar clip too, that I haven’t seen before (Need to explore on how to use them).
The buds themselves are quite interesting – nice metal housing with an open faceplate that seems to give a exposed-driver type look. The buds have MMCX connectors, but I was unable to remove the cable that they came with. Even when my pulling force was good enough to leave some nail marks on the connectors, I was just unable to disconnect the cable. The standard cable looks industrial for a premium looking earbud, especially due to the paint texture on them. A simple, black colored cable would have looked better. The cable has plastic Y-splitter and cable slider; the cable slider works quite well.
The 3.5mm jack is L-shaped and a heavy one too. Looks good though!
The housing is smaller than the MX500 shell that is normally seen on earbuds and they are quite comfortable. The can be worn cable down or cable over ears (as intended by the manufacturer). I like wearing them cable down as I get a better seal that way and the adjustments for fit are more easier.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
The TI7 comes fitted with donut foams, which I feel offer the best balance for these buds.
Without foams – Due to their smaller size, they don’t give a good seal, which impact bass quantity.
Donut foams – A good balance across the spectrum – adds the right amount of warmth.
Full foams – Same as donuts, but can be a bit miserly on the details of the highs. The donut still has some exposed vents which aid the highs.
Thin foams – Did not try these.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
From my initial hearing, I found the TI7 presenting a more laidback, relaxed sound signature instead of the energetic signature the is usually seen on most boutique buds. The analogue sounding TI7 does evoke some nostalgia for the interesting buds of the past.
I start the test with Alice Cooper’s Welcome to my Nightmare. The track begins exhibiting a sufficient, but not too wide soundstage offered by the TI7 and some good texture on the bass guitar. What is immediately evident is how relaxed the track sounds – there is a controlled brilliance on the treble, but the lack of extension is immediately discernible. The sound is primarily focused in the mid-range and the highs lack sparkle, but what you also get is a good speed on the bass guitar and cymbals. This track, not being a busy one, is rendered quite well with enough separation – the electric piano at around the 2:45 mark is particularly quite engaging. What I would have preferred is some of that glimmer of the upper mids for the highs as well.
I switch on to the next track, Cold Little Heart by Michael Kiwanuka. This track can get hot on a few IEMs and earbuds that own, but not on the TI7. There are two good bits about this track – the lustrous vocals and the holographic presentation of the nostalgic sounding chorus. While the TI7 does a great job on the vocals and make them sound life-like, the chorus is more two-dimensional and lacks the excitement that I get on other earbuds. Again the mid-centric sound signature is quite evident. While there is enough separation, the lack of treble extension makes it appear as it the airiness is on short supply.
So how does the TI7 handle the alt genre of music?
Enter the synth-pop Fall in Love by Phantogram. The TI7 shows that analogue sounding doesn’t mean that it is quite boring. On the contrary, it can still handle varied genre of music; just not all. On this track, the texture on the bass synth is absolutely delectable (for lack of a better word). Sarah Barthel’s vocals stand-out well and don’t get swallowed by the bass synth, and when there is no bass synth layer, the vocals are exceptional sounding. There is no bass bleed into mids that I could notice. While the track is not quite energetic sounding on the TI7, it still sounds quite good. The only issue I have is that the micro details are hardly present. Change to Get Lucky by Daft Punk, micro details are on short supply here as well and you would need to pump the volume up a bit to find it in the background. But what you will notice is that the speed is quite good in both ends of the spectrum. The bass guitar in this track shines on the TI7 and texture is beautifully rendered.
The lack of extension at the lower end of the spectrum is quite noticeable on tracks like Don’t by Ed Sheeran and All or Nothing by Wyclef Jean and Naughty Boy. On the former, the TI7 can draw blanks on certain bass notes and appear that the sound is slightly inconsistent. But they have enough oomph for the bass on tracks like All of Nothing; may not be satisfactory to bass-heads and even borderline bass-heads, but it’s all about bass quality on the TI7 – ample texture and a fast attack.
What about metal-heads about whom reviewers hardly speak of?
This one is certainly not for you folks. I don’t listen to hardcore metal, but do engage in some progressive metal and some alt-metal, time and again. Tune on to Uprising by Muse, there is no uprising in the energy levels offered by the TI7. If this was the first time I were to hear this track, I would have stopped half-way around. The Cockroach King by Haken is rendered much better than the previous track, but the snare drums on both tracks don’t exhibit the raw, lively percussive sound that they offer. The over-driven guitar, on this track, is not something the TI7 is comfortable with. What sounds great is the piano at around the 2:50 mark. The TI7 can handle some varied genres of music, but they are certainly not for all genres, and definitely not for metal-heads.
The TI7 is technically sound, for the most part. The layering on tracks like Madness by Muse and Caribbean Blue by Enya are rendered decently. Sadly, the layers lack the dynamism on the latter and do not engage me. On the former, the layers are rendered better, but I would have preferred them to be separated more. On simpler tracks like Tiny Monsters by Puscifer, the layering is much better rendered. Also, this track having most of its sound in the “unextended” range of the spectrum, sounds pretty good on the TI7.
Conclusion
The OurArt TI7 is a great attempt at offering good technical performance at an affordable price. While, its analogue, mid-centric sound signature may not suit all genres of music, they can still get a smile on your face for most chartbusters that people usually listen to.
These are the perfect pair of buds for work and sleep, due to the comfort and non-fatiguing sound they offer; after all you need good hearing to listen more.
These earbuds can be purchased from Penon Audio, a reliable retailer of boutique earbuds. At the time of this review, these earbuds are retailing at $59.
https://penonaudio.com/ourart-ti7.html
Disclaimer: These earbuds were sent to me as a review sample by Penon Audio.
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a nice, cardboard box. The box has a nice opening and closing action – similar to watch cases. There is a tiny manual in Chinese. We are also provided with 7 pairs of donut foams an 2 pairs of regular foams and the quality it good as well. There is an interesting, plastic shirt/collar clip too, that I haven’t seen before (Need to explore on how to use them).
The buds themselves are quite interesting – nice metal housing with an open faceplate that seems to give a exposed-driver type look. The buds have MMCX connectors, but I was unable to remove the cable that they came with. Even when my pulling force was good enough to leave some nail marks on the connectors, I was just unable to disconnect the cable. The standard cable looks industrial for a premium looking earbud, especially due to the paint texture on them. A simple, black colored cable would have looked better. The cable has plastic Y-splitter and cable slider; the cable slider works quite well.
The 3.5mm jack is L-shaped and a heavy one too. Looks good though!
The housing is smaller than the MX500 shell that is normally seen on earbuds and they are quite comfortable. The can be worn cable down or cable over ears (as intended by the manufacturer). I like wearing them cable down as I get a better seal that way and the adjustments for fit are more easier.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
The TI7 comes fitted with donut foams, which I feel offer the best balance for these buds.
Without foams – Due to their smaller size, they don’t give a good seal, which impact bass quantity.
Donut foams – A good balance across the spectrum – adds the right amount of warmth.
Full foams – Same as donuts, but can be a bit miserly on the details of the highs. The donut still has some exposed vents which aid the highs.
Thin foams – Did not try these.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
From my initial hearing, I found the TI7 presenting a more laidback, relaxed sound signature instead of the energetic signature the is usually seen on most boutique buds. The analogue sounding TI7 does evoke some nostalgia for the interesting buds of the past.
I start the test with Alice Cooper’s Welcome to my Nightmare. The track begins exhibiting a sufficient, but not too wide soundstage offered by the TI7 and some good texture on the bass guitar. What is immediately evident is how relaxed the track sounds – there is a controlled brilliance on the treble, but the lack of extension is immediately discernible. The sound is primarily focused in the mid-range and the highs lack sparkle, but what you also get is a good speed on the bass guitar and cymbals. This track, not being a busy one, is rendered quite well with enough separation – the electric piano at around the 2:45 mark is particularly quite engaging. What I would have preferred is some of that glimmer of the upper mids for the highs as well.
I switch on to the next track, Cold Little Heart by Michael Kiwanuka. This track can get hot on a few IEMs and earbuds that own, but not on the TI7. There are two good bits about this track – the lustrous vocals and the holographic presentation of the nostalgic sounding chorus. While the TI7 does a great job on the vocals and make them sound life-like, the chorus is more two-dimensional and lacks the excitement that I get on other earbuds. Again the mid-centric sound signature is quite evident. While there is enough separation, the lack of treble extension makes it appear as it the airiness is on short supply.
So how does the TI7 handle the alt genre of music?
Enter the synth-pop Fall in Love by Phantogram. The TI7 shows that analogue sounding doesn’t mean that it is quite boring. On the contrary, it can still handle varied genre of music; just not all. On this track, the texture on the bass synth is absolutely delectable (for lack of a better word). Sarah Barthel’s vocals stand-out well and don’t get swallowed by the bass synth, and when there is no bass synth layer, the vocals are exceptional sounding. There is no bass bleed into mids that I could notice. While the track is not quite energetic sounding on the TI7, it still sounds quite good. The only issue I have is that the micro details are hardly present. Change to Get Lucky by Daft Punk, micro details are on short supply here as well and you would need to pump the volume up a bit to find it in the background. But what you will notice is that the speed is quite good in both ends of the spectrum. The bass guitar in this track shines on the TI7 and texture is beautifully rendered.
The lack of extension at the lower end of the spectrum is quite noticeable on tracks like Don’t by Ed Sheeran and All or Nothing by Wyclef Jean and Naughty Boy. On the former, the TI7 can draw blanks on certain bass notes and appear that the sound is slightly inconsistent. But they have enough oomph for the bass on tracks like All of Nothing; may not be satisfactory to bass-heads and even borderline bass-heads, but it’s all about bass quality on the TI7 – ample texture and a fast attack.
What about metal-heads about whom reviewers hardly speak of?
This one is certainly not for you folks. I don’t listen to hardcore metal, but do engage in some progressive metal and some alt-metal, time and again. Tune on to Uprising by Muse, there is no uprising in the energy levels offered by the TI7. If this was the first time I were to hear this track, I would have stopped half-way around. The Cockroach King by Haken is rendered much better than the previous track, but the snare drums on both tracks don’t exhibit the raw, lively percussive sound that they offer. The over-driven guitar, on this track, is not something the TI7 is comfortable with. What sounds great is the piano at around the 2:50 mark. The TI7 can handle some varied genres of music, but they are certainly not for all genres, and definitely not for metal-heads.
The TI7 is technically sound, for the most part. The layering on tracks like Madness by Muse and Caribbean Blue by Enya are rendered decently. Sadly, the layers lack the dynamism on the latter and do not engage me. On the former, the layers are rendered better, but I would have preferred them to be separated more. On simpler tracks like Tiny Monsters by Puscifer, the layering is much better rendered. Also, this track having most of its sound in the “unextended” range of the spectrum, sounds pretty good on the TI7.
Conclusion
The OurArt TI7 is a great attempt at offering good technical performance at an affordable price. While, its analogue, mid-centric sound signature may not suit all genres of music, they can still get a smile on your face for most chartbusters that people usually listen to.
These are the perfect pair of buds for work and sleep, due to the comfort and non-fatiguing sound they offer; after all you need good hearing to listen more.
With the earbud scene catching up in the east, a lot of independent earbud artists have evolved, most of them hand-making their gems.
Moonbuds are one such buds made by Moon Harvester of Vietnam. The Moonbuds lineup has some interesting earbuds and the Crescent is the base model in the lineup.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Moonbuds.
https://www.facebook.com/MoonbudsOfficial/
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a zippered pouch with Vietnam artwork on it – loved it! There is a good amount of colourful foams included in the package – donuts and regular. The foams are of good quality, especially the full foams. You also get a nice, Moon-branded, faux leather cable organizer.
The housing is the usual MX500 shell, which fits me perfectly, but those with smaller ears may find it uncomfortable. But Crescent is an earbud that needs to be used with foams, so fit is a bit on the tighter side. The shell material is of good quality and comes etched with Moonbuds logo.
The cable is the best thing about the Moonbuds Crescent, but it has its fair share of pitfalls too. There are 2 variants of Crescent – one with 4 core cable and the one, which I have, with 8 core cable. In both variants, half the cores are copper and half seem to be SPC (Silver plated copper), with the pure copper core being the thicker one.
The cable is nicely braided with 8 cores all the way till the Y-splitter, post which point there are 4-cores to each earpiece. Oddly, the Y-splitter is much higher up than I am used to. While this does not pose a problem, it renders the cable slider almost useless.
The quality of material is top-notch for an entry level earbud – the 3.5mm jack housing is plastic with a carbon fiber texture; the Y-splitter and cable slider are metal and reek of premium-ness. That said, all these metal parts add heft to an already heavy cable. While this does not impact fit, this amplifies the microphonics from the cable. If you are the head-banging type, you will realise that gravity is around and adds more oscillations to the cable than in the case of a lighter cable.
With quality material used, the Crescent should easily last the distance.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
The Crescents are intended to be used with foams and by the admission of its maker, he prefers to use the Crescent with donut foams.
Without foams – The fit is the most comfortable without foams, but the sound is on the thinner side and lacks warmth – mids are not lovable and treble extension all you hear mostly.
Full foams – The airiness is impacted a lot, sounds claustrophobic. On the plus side, bass quantity is boosted a lot.
Donut foams – Donut foams fit in a way that a few sound holes on the faceplate are exposed, both sides. While the airiness is lesser compared to without foams, these still offer decent levels of airiness and treble detail, while adding a lot to the warmth and bass quantity. Bass can become overpowering.
Thin Foams - Perfect for the Crescent - no muffling of the upper mids and highs, while giving a perfect body for the bass.
I feel the Crescent sound their best with thin (less denser) foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these thin foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the Crescent.
Moon Harvester recommends a burn-in period of 100 hours for these earbuds and these buds have more than that on them.
With the Crescent, Moon tries to satisfy lovers of most genres of music – the Crescent is quite musical sounding and offers a nice, deep bass along with a cleanl treble. Mids are not to my liking, but get the job done.
On the first test track, Cockroach King by Haken, the Crescent starts off well – a good amount of energy in the guitar and drums, the cymbals have a nice sparkle and quick decay, shows decent width when the vocals start of – left, right and mid. Then comes the part where a fourth layer of vocals is added behind the listener – no problem; there is enough depth to distinguish the 4th vocal from the mid one. All good so far. What is quite noticeable is the slightly recessed vocals – yes, the Crescent has a slight V-shaped signature and a good one at that.
Fast-forwarding to the 3:35 mark, vocals, organs, cymbals, drums all come together – the crescent is not a very spacious sounding earbud and separation gets hit. Going past 4-minute mark, the track unleashes a myriad of sounds – the cymbals have a quick decay, but lack the presence, and sound a bit tinny. The bass response on the other hand shows good speed and the drums are enjoyable. Around the 6-minute mark, the track gets busier. While the Crescent shows decent separation, the lack of space between the instruments is highlighted again. The mids is where it sounds slightly congested. Some boost at the upper mids would have helped - the overdriven guitar usually stands out in this act, but not in the Crescent. Bass is still quite satisfying. Past the 7-minute mark, still exhibits a decent amount of coherence. but vocals struggle to stand apart in the crowd. There is noticeable bass bleed into the mids. It one tough track, but the Crescent does well for the most part.
So the finding so far are a good, satisfying and fast bass response; slightly recessed mids with noticeable bass bleed, clean upper mids that could use some boost; the right amount of highs with the right amount of sparkle and speed, but slightly lacking in presence. Not too bad so far.
Let’s get a bit deeper on vocals first.
Breathe by Seinabo Sey shows good texture and rendering of vocals, but doesn’t sound commanding like it usually does – there is a lack of warmth in the vocals. Bass bleeding into the mids is again quite visible at around the 1:10 mark. The strings stand apart, but vocals struggle to find their own space between the strings and kick drums. Another track to showcase mids is Cold Little Heart by Michael Kiwanuka, and this time the Crescent does a great job to bring about a nice texture on the vocals, clean for the most part. What is also rendered well is the nostalgic chorus vocals that is presented with a good amount of width. This isn’t a busy track; separation is good; instruments have their own space, even at times when the track gets slightly busy.
The only difference between the first track and the second is that the latter has a lot going on in the upper mids and highs, where the Crescent excels. Upper bass and lower mids is where the Crescent fares poorly.
Changes by Faul & Wad Ad shows the range the Crescent can deliver – impressive width, meaty, deep bass note, nice, clean vocals on the chorus and just the right amount of highs. There is a clicking sound at the beginning of the track all the way till the 1-minute mark and it is quite well rendered switching between 1 and 0 quite fast. There is faint sibilance audible on the chorus vocals, it is a part of the track itself, so nothing to worry there. The saxophone stands out well; the bass while satisfying and deep, is scant on texture. The Crescent display good extension at both ends of the spectrum.
For those who love the deep bass IEMs can deliver and would like to try earbuds, Crescent would be a perfect switch. The bass is fast and can go deep, even on tracks like Royals by Lorde. Don’t expect it to be skull shattering though.
Switching over to Thought Contagion by Muse, Crescent again delivers a satisfying rendering, vocals and all, as long as you are okay with the lack of that extra space between instruments. Bass has to be the best area where the Crescent does a great job – beefy, yet tight. Serve it Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino by Arctic Monkeys, the Crescent give a satisfying experience – lots of texture on the bass guitar, nicely separated highs. Vocals are good for the most part, but bass bleed is visible again. I would have preferred some more airiness, even with the donut foams on.
On a track like Tum Tak by A.R. Rahman, where there is a faint bass guitar playing a few notes at the beginning of the track, the Crescent still manages to give a nice texture to the notes while giving you a great feel on the bass note. Switch to Madness by Muse, a track which is all about different bass frequencies and texture, Crescent satisfies your “inner” bass-head. As a plus, Matt Belamy’s vocals are rendered well albeit a bit nasal. Layering is just about average – not enough airiness between the various layers to give you that euphoria past the 3-minute mark, which this track is capable of delivering.
Get Lucky by Daft Punk has is another track that has enough bass texture on offer and the Crescent again shows how great its bass response is – fast decay, good texture. This track’s tempo can be easily impacted by bass speed, not on the Crescent where the bass is meaty, yet excellent in speed. The Crescent also brings about a good amount of micro details on the song. Vocals is just one are which doesn’t shine on the Crescent – but has good presence and clean for the most part.
The Crescent has a good amount of depth to its sound-stage, not too deep, but enough to give a holographic rendering of the sound-stage and it is evident on a track like The National Anthem by Radiohead, alongside a meaty bass guitar and sparkly hi-hats. The Crescent does reasonably well even during the complex passage at around the 3-minute mark when trumpets and pipes are blaring and again during the second complex passage at the 4:30 mark. Not great when it comes to separation, but how many ever instruments are present, bass has a nice weight and texture to it.
The biggest acid test for the Crescent was however the humble September Song by Agnes Obel. The track is characterized by fast piano notes across two different octaves. The lower octave demands really fast bass response and the Crescent delivers, but separation of notes take a hit and this is critical for a track like this one.
Conclusion
The Crescent is the what you get at the entry point into the world of Moonbuds – a great first attempt. It has a likeable V-signature with excellent bass and decent highs. The mids are mixed bag – you’ll love vocals on a higher octave while you might not get the best from a singer who is singing in a lower octave. Once again, I would like to reiterate the fact that the Moonbuds Crescent are a great entry point for IEM enthusiasts into the world of earbuds.
Moonbuds are one such buds made by Moon Harvester of Vietnam. The Moonbuds lineup has some interesting earbuds and the Crescent is the base model in the lineup.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Moonbuds.
https://www.facebook.com/MoonbudsOfficial/
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a zippered pouch with Vietnam artwork on it – loved it! There is a good amount of colourful foams included in the package – donuts and regular. The foams are of good quality, especially the full foams. You also get a nice, Moon-branded, faux leather cable organizer.
The housing is the usual MX500 shell, which fits me perfectly, but those with smaller ears may find it uncomfortable. But Crescent is an earbud that needs to be used with foams, so fit is a bit on the tighter side. The shell material is of good quality and comes etched with Moonbuds logo.
The cable is the best thing about the Moonbuds Crescent, but it has its fair share of pitfalls too. There are 2 variants of Crescent – one with 4 core cable and the one, which I have, with 8 core cable. In both variants, half the cores are copper and half seem to be SPC (Silver plated copper), with the pure copper core being the thicker one.
The cable is nicely braided with 8 cores all the way till the Y-splitter, post which point there are 4-cores to each earpiece. Oddly, the Y-splitter is much higher up than I am used to. While this does not pose a problem, it renders the cable slider almost useless.
The quality of material is top-notch for an entry level earbud – the 3.5mm jack housing is plastic with a carbon fiber texture; the Y-splitter and cable slider are metal and reek of premium-ness. That said, all these metal parts add heft to an already heavy cable. While this does not impact fit, this amplifies the microphonics from the cable. If you are the head-banging type, you will realise that gravity is around and adds more oscillations to the cable than in the case of a lighter cable.
With quality material used, the Crescent should easily last the distance.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
The Crescents are intended to be used with foams and by the admission of its maker, he prefers to use the Crescent with donut foams.
Without foams – The fit is the most comfortable without foams, but the sound is on the thinner side and lacks warmth – mids are not lovable and treble extension all you hear mostly.
Full foams – The airiness is impacted a lot, sounds claustrophobic. On the plus side, bass quantity is boosted a lot.
Donut foams – Donut foams fit in a way that a few sound holes on the faceplate are exposed, both sides. While the airiness is lesser compared to without foams, these still offer decent levels of airiness and treble detail, while adding a lot to the warmth and bass quantity. Bass can become overpowering.
Thin Foams - Perfect for the Crescent - no muffling of the upper mids and highs, while giving a perfect body for the bass.
I feel the Crescent sound their best with thin (less denser) foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these thin foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the Crescent.
Moon Harvester recommends a burn-in period of 100 hours for these earbuds and these buds have more than that on them.
With the Crescent, Moon tries to satisfy lovers of most genres of music – the Crescent is quite musical sounding and offers a nice, deep bass along with a cleanl treble. Mids are not to my liking, but get the job done.
On the first test track, Cockroach King by Haken, the Crescent starts off well – a good amount of energy in the guitar and drums, the cymbals have a nice sparkle and quick decay, shows decent width when the vocals start of – left, right and mid. Then comes the part where a fourth layer of vocals is added behind the listener – no problem; there is enough depth to distinguish the 4th vocal from the mid one. All good so far. What is quite noticeable is the slightly recessed vocals – yes, the Crescent has a slight V-shaped signature and a good one at that.
Fast-forwarding to the 3:35 mark, vocals, organs, cymbals, drums all come together – the crescent is not a very spacious sounding earbud and separation gets hit. Going past 4-minute mark, the track unleashes a myriad of sounds – the cymbals have a quick decay, but lack the presence, and sound a bit tinny. The bass response on the other hand shows good speed and the drums are enjoyable. Around the 6-minute mark, the track gets busier. While the Crescent shows decent separation, the lack of space between the instruments is highlighted again. The mids is where it sounds slightly congested. Some boost at the upper mids would have helped - the overdriven guitar usually stands out in this act, but not in the Crescent. Bass is still quite satisfying. Past the 7-minute mark, still exhibits a decent amount of coherence. but vocals struggle to stand apart in the crowd. There is noticeable bass bleed into the mids. It one tough track, but the Crescent does well for the most part.
So the finding so far are a good, satisfying and fast bass response; slightly recessed mids with noticeable bass bleed, clean upper mids that could use some boost; the right amount of highs with the right amount of sparkle and speed, but slightly lacking in presence. Not too bad so far.
Let’s get a bit deeper on vocals first.
Breathe by Seinabo Sey shows good texture and rendering of vocals, but doesn’t sound commanding like it usually does – there is a lack of warmth in the vocals. Bass bleeding into the mids is again quite visible at around the 1:10 mark. The strings stand apart, but vocals struggle to find their own space between the strings and kick drums. Another track to showcase mids is Cold Little Heart by Michael Kiwanuka, and this time the Crescent does a great job to bring about a nice texture on the vocals, clean for the most part. What is also rendered well is the nostalgic chorus vocals that is presented with a good amount of width. This isn’t a busy track; separation is good; instruments have their own space, even at times when the track gets slightly busy.
The only difference between the first track and the second is that the latter has a lot going on in the upper mids and highs, where the Crescent excels. Upper bass and lower mids is where the Crescent fares poorly.
Changes by Faul & Wad Ad shows the range the Crescent can deliver – impressive width, meaty, deep bass note, nice, clean vocals on the chorus and just the right amount of highs. There is a clicking sound at the beginning of the track all the way till the 1-minute mark and it is quite well rendered switching between 1 and 0 quite fast. There is faint sibilance audible on the chorus vocals, it is a part of the track itself, so nothing to worry there. The saxophone stands out well; the bass while satisfying and deep, is scant on texture. The Crescent display good extension at both ends of the spectrum.
For those who love the deep bass IEMs can deliver and would like to try earbuds, Crescent would be a perfect switch. The bass is fast and can go deep, even on tracks like Royals by Lorde. Don’t expect it to be skull shattering though.
Switching over to Thought Contagion by Muse, Crescent again delivers a satisfying rendering, vocals and all, as long as you are okay with the lack of that extra space between instruments. Bass has to be the best area where the Crescent does a great job – beefy, yet tight. Serve it Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino by Arctic Monkeys, the Crescent give a satisfying experience – lots of texture on the bass guitar, nicely separated highs. Vocals are good for the most part, but bass bleed is visible again. I would have preferred some more airiness, even with the donut foams on.
On a track like Tum Tak by A.R. Rahman, where there is a faint bass guitar playing a few notes at the beginning of the track, the Crescent still manages to give a nice texture to the notes while giving you a great feel on the bass note. Switch to Madness by Muse, a track which is all about different bass frequencies and texture, Crescent satisfies your “inner” bass-head. As a plus, Matt Belamy’s vocals are rendered well albeit a bit nasal. Layering is just about average – not enough airiness between the various layers to give you that euphoria past the 3-minute mark, which this track is capable of delivering.
Get Lucky by Daft Punk has is another track that has enough bass texture on offer and the Crescent again shows how great its bass response is – fast decay, good texture. This track’s tempo can be easily impacted by bass speed, not on the Crescent where the bass is meaty, yet excellent in speed. The Crescent also brings about a good amount of micro details on the song. Vocals is just one are which doesn’t shine on the Crescent – but has good presence and clean for the most part.
The Crescent has a good amount of depth to its sound-stage, not too deep, but enough to give a holographic rendering of the sound-stage and it is evident on a track like The National Anthem by Radiohead, alongside a meaty bass guitar and sparkly hi-hats. The Crescent does reasonably well even during the complex passage at around the 3-minute mark when trumpets and pipes are blaring and again during the second complex passage at the 4:30 mark. Not great when it comes to separation, but how many ever instruments are present, bass has a nice weight and texture to it.
The biggest acid test for the Crescent was however the humble September Song by Agnes Obel. The track is characterized by fast piano notes across two different octaves. The lower octave demands really fast bass response and the Crescent delivers, but separation of notes take a hit and this is critical for a track like this one.
Conclusion
The Crescent is the what you get at the entry point into the world of Moonbuds – a great first attempt. It has a likeable V-signature with excellent bass and decent highs. The mids are mixed bag – you’ll love vocals on a higher octave while you might not get the best from a singer who is singing in a lower octave. Once again, I would like to reiterate the fact that the Moonbuds Crescent are a great entry point for IEM enthusiasts into the world of earbuds.
With the earbud scene catching up in the east, a lot of independent earbud artists have evolved, most of them hand-making their gems.
Moonbuds are one such buds made by Moon Harvester of Vietnam. The Moonbuds lineup has some interesting earbuds and the Bunting is one earbud which promises TOTL performance. I suspect that they are named after the singing bird, Bunting, similar to how the top offering of Moonbuds is based on the Nightingale.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Moonbuds.
https://www.facebook.com/MoonbudsOfficial/
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a zippered pouch with Vietnam artwork on it – loved it! What more, there was a wooden case with my name etched on it – even better! There is a good amount of colourful foams included in the package – donuts and regular. The foams are of good quality, especially the full foams. You also get a nice, Moon-branded, faux leather cable organizer.
The housing is the comfortable Yuin shell, which fits me perfectly with foams on. Without foams, I don’t get a good seal on them – big ears. The shell material is of good quality and comes etched with Moonbuds logo.
The cable is always unique in the Moonbuds family and the Bunting is no different – a combination of Gold and Silver colored cables – 4-cores in total; 2 to each side. While Moon hasn’t specified the properties of the cable, I suspect they are SPC (Silver Plated Copper). The cable looks premium and has good looking, chrome colored 3.5 mm plug, Y-Splitter and cable slider. The Y-splitter and cable slider are made of metal. While they feel solid, they don’t add too much to the weight of the cable. The cable has no microphonics issue and is quite flaunt-worthy.
The quality of material is top-notch for price paid. With quality material used, the Bunting should easily last the distance.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
The Buntings are intended to be used with foams and by the admission of its maker, he prefers to use the Crescent with either donut foams or full foams.
Without foams – The earbud is hardly felt in the ears and they are most comfortable, but I don’t get a good seal, so the sound lacks the warmth and the treble is slightly on the higher side.
Full foams – The warmth is perfect and the treble is just right. Foams don’t impact the airiness on these, in fact foams aide to get the perfect tonal balance in these earbuds.
Donut foams – Donut foams have the same warmth as full foams, but the sound is a lot brighter and not my cup of tea.
Thin foams – Sounds like donut foams, minus some warmth.
I feel the Bunting sounds their best with full foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these full foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the Bunting.
Moon Harvester recommends a burn-in period of 70 hours for these earbuds and my buds have more than that on them.
A lot of people use the term TOTL sound quite often, especially when it comes to handmade earbuds. So I was quite curious how TOTL sounds, so when Moon offered me a discount for the review piece, I quickly grabbed on to it. And boy, I must say, the Bunting delivers what it promises.
The very first test track is the humble September Song by Agnes Obel, which most earbuds struggle to get it right. You need a fast bass response to render the quick notes of the lower octave and a clean mids to handle the higher octave. The Bunting gets it right – notes have the right attack and decay and shows a good amount of dynamism as well. Overall the track was enjoyable on the Bunting.
Throw a song like Saturdays by Twin Shadow, you get satisfying drum beats, great texture on the bass, clean and airy highs on the triangles. Amidst all this, the vocals stand apart and shine through. I may not be able to put the satisfaction that the Bunting delivers on the track in words, but this track just comes alive on the Bunting. A smidge more warmth would have been orgasmic, but the amount of dynamism from these tiny drivers are superb.
Vicious Delicious is as delicious as it can get – great texture on the synths that span over a range of frequencies, accompanied by nice weight on the kicks. Notes are in and out before they can linger in your mind. You may feel that your brain is playing catchup to the speed and dynamism shown by the Bunting on this track by Infected Mushroom. The width on offer is excellent as well. Nothing to complain, just sit back and enjoy the performance.
The bass the just the right quantity (though I sometimes wanted 5% more), but the bass quality is just too perfect – cannot ask for more. Mids are on a different level altogether – they are neither too forward, nor recessed – right where they ought to be (well, according to my preference). Even on a track like Way too long by Bent Knee, the vocals of Jessica Kion’s vocals shine through amongst the ride cymbals, overdriven guitar, snare drums around the 3:30 mark. There is no bass bleed into the mids and the vocals are clean as ever. Tracy Chapman never sounded better on her Fast Car track. The track just comes alive at the 2-minute mark when the drums, guitar and cymbals come together and amidst all this, Tracy Chapman’s voice is as clean and clear as it could – sounds beautiful.
Layering is exquisite too - be it a simple one like Tiny Monsters by Puscifer or Madness by Muse or Caribbean Blue by Enya, the Bunting has enough space to distinguish between each layer of music without any overlap whatsoever.
With the nice soundstage width on offer, combined with amazing separation between instruments and clean, realistic vocals, the Bunting is just perfect for Steely Dan tracks. Aja cannot be anymore beautiful on a such a tiny driver – crisp, sparkly cymbals with a quick decay, impactful drums and an excellent texture on the saxophone and the bass guitar, you are placed right in the middle of the band at around the 4:45 mark. The rendering of the highs is just too perfect around the 7-minute mark – cymbals and triangles in all their glory accompanied with great, impactful drums. I guess I should stop my review right here – it cannot get any more perfect.
So what do I do, I indulge in some guilty pleasure with some of my favorite A.R. Rahman tracks:
- Narumugaiye from Iruvar,
- Thee Thee from Thiruda Thiruda,
- Aao Balma from his Coke Studio performance
- Chanchan (Aao Re Sakhi) from the soundtrack of Water.
Each track sounds better than the previous, but Thee Thee is a totally different experience – so dynamic and full of life.
Conclusion
Moon Harvester told me that the Bunting offers TOTL sound and is almost as good as Nightingale, which he claims his best. Bunting sings its heart out and delivers everything that was promised. If Bunting is just his side act and not the finale, I am now left wondering how great is the Nightingale is in that case.
Moonbuds are one such buds made by Moon Harvester of Vietnam. The Moonbuds lineup has some interesting earbuds and the Bunting is one earbud which promises TOTL performance. I suspect that they are named after the singing bird, Bunting, similar to how the top offering of Moonbuds is based on the Nightingale.
These earbuds can be exclusively purchased from facebook page of Moonbuds.
https://www.facebook.com/MoonbudsOfficial/
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds come in a zippered pouch with Vietnam artwork on it – loved it! What more, there was a wooden case with my name etched on it – even better! There is a good amount of colourful foams included in the package – donuts and regular. The foams are of good quality, especially the full foams. You also get a nice, Moon-branded, faux leather cable organizer.
The housing is the comfortable Yuin shell, which fits me perfectly with foams on. Without foams, I don’t get a good seal on them – big ears. The shell material is of good quality and comes etched with Moonbuds logo.
The cable is always unique in the Moonbuds family and the Bunting is no different – a combination of Gold and Silver colored cables – 4-cores in total; 2 to each side. While Moon hasn’t specified the properties of the cable, I suspect they are SPC (Silver Plated Copper). The cable looks premium and has good looking, chrome colored 3.5 mm plug, Y-Splitter and cable slider. The Y-splitter and cable slider are made of metal. While they feel solid, they don’t add too much to the weight of the cable. The cable has no microphonics issue and is quite flaunt-worthy.
The quality of material is top-notch for price paid. With quality material used, the Bunting should easily last the distance.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of any earbuds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature. Foams help with seal and can be used to customize the warmth and bass on offer.
The Buntings are intended to be used with foams and by the admission of its maker, he prefers to use the Crescent with either donut foams or full foams.
Without foams – The earbud is hardly felt in the ears and they are most comfortable, but I don’t get a good seal, so the sound lacks the warmth and the treble is slightly on the higher side.
Full foams – The warmth is perfect and the treble is just right. Foams don’t impact the airiness on these, in fact foams aide to get the perfect tonal balance in these earbuds.
Donut foams – Donut foams have the same warmth as full foams, but the sound is a lot brighter and not my cup of tea.
Thin foams – Sounds like donut foams, minus some warmth.
I feel the Bunting sounds their best with full foams and the rest of the review to follow is compiled with these full foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the Bunting.
Moon Harvester recommends a burn-in period of 70 hours for these earbuds and my buds have more than that on them.
A lot of people use the term TOTL sound quite often, especially when it comes to handmade earbuds. So I was quite curious how TOTL sounds, so when Moon offered me a discount for the review piece, I quickly grabbed on to it. And boy, I must say, the Bunting delivers what it promises.
The very first test track is the humble September Song by Agnes Obel, which most earbuds struggle to get it right. You need a fast bass response to render the quick notes of the lower octave and a clean mids to handle the higher octave. The Bunting gets it right – notes have the right attack and decay and shows a good amount of dynamism as well. Overall the track was enjoyable on the Bunting.
Throw a song like Saturdays by Twin Shadow, you get satisfying drum beats, great texture on the bass, clean and airy highs on the triangles. Amidst all this, the vocals stand apart and shine through. I may not be able to put the satisfaction that the Bunting delivers on the track in words, but this track just comes alive on the Bunting. A smidge more warmth would have been orgasmic, but the amount of dynamism from these tiny drivers are superb.
Vicious Delicious is as delicious as it can get – great texture on the synths that span over a range of frequencies, accompanied by nice weight on the kicks. Notes are in and out before they can linger in your mind. You may feel that your brain is playing catchup to the speed and dynamism shown by the Bunting on this track by Infected Mushroom. The width on offer is excellent as well. Nothing to complain, just sit back and enjoy the performance.
The bass the just the right quantity (though I sometimes wanted 5% more), but the bass quality is just too perfect – cannot ask for more. Mids are on a different level altogether – they are neither too forward, nor recessed – right where they ought to be (well, according to my preference). Even on a track like Way too long by Bent Knee, the vocals of Jessica Kion’s vocals shine through amongst the ride cymbals, overdriven guitar, snare drums around the 3:30 mark. There is no bass bleed into the mids and the vocals are clean as ever. Tracy Chapman never sounded better on her Fast Car track. The track just comes alive at the 2-minute mark when the drums, guitar and cymbals come together and amidst all this, Tracy Chapman’s voice is as clean and clear as it could – sounds beautiful.
Layering is exquisite too - be it a simple one like Tiny Monsters by Puscifer or Madness by Muse or Caribbean Blue by Enya, the Bunting has enough space to distinguish between each layer of music without any overlap whatsoever.
With the nice soundstage width on offer, combined with amazing separation between instruments and clean, realistic vocals, the Bunting is just perfect for Steely Dan tracks. Aja cannot be anymore beautiful on a such a tiny driver – crisp, sparkly cymbals with a quick decay, impactful drums and an excellent texture on the saxophone and the bass guitar, you are placed right in the middle of the band at around the 4:45 mark. The rendering of the highs is just too perfect around the 7-minute mark – cymbals and triangles in all their glory accompanied with great, impactful drums. I guess I should stop my review right here – it cannot get any more perfect.
So what do I do, I indulge in some guilty pleasure with some of my favorite A.R. Rahman tracks:
- Narumugaiye from Iruvar,
- Thee Thee from Thiruda Thiruda,
- Aao Balma from his Coke Studio performance
- Chanchan (Aao Re Sakhi) from the soundtrack of Water.
Each track sounds better than the previous, but Thee Thee is a totally different experience – so dynamic and full of life.
Conclusion
Moon Harvester told me that the Bunting offers TOTL sound and is almost as good as Nightingale, which he claims his best. Bunting sings its heart out and delivers everything that was promised. If Bunting is just his side act and not the finale, I am now left wondering how great is the Nightingale is in that case.
dheepak10
Yes these came with the buds. I guess you call always ask Moon for some extra ones upfront. BTW he is quite generous with foams - Mine came with at least 10 pairs (donuts + full).
WillSound PK32 is quite different from the usual WillSound buds – a smaller Yuin shell and a vastly different sound signature from the rest of the WillSound lineup. These earbuds retail on Rholupat.com with 2.5mm and 3.5mm connectors and ship internationally. I have included the link below:
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-pk32-25mm.html
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case which is shared across the WillSound family of buds and come with 4 pairs of dense, white foams. The foams are of good quality.
The housing is a Yuin shell, this time around. For those will smaller ears and those who struggle with the size of MX500 shells, the Yuin should offer some comfort. The shell material is of good quality. The cable and jacks are same as the MK1.
The cable has a nice pearlescent shine to it; doesn’t tangle easily and offers no unwanted microphonics. The Y-splitter and 3.5 mm jack lack the premium feel of the MK2 and MK3, but get the job done.
Note: There is already an updated version of the PK32 with a different cable and a slightly different tuning, but the driver remains the same. So characteristics exhibited in this review should might hold good for the newer version too.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of the Yuin shell buds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature.
Those with bigger ears, like me, who are quite comfortable with the MX500 shells, will not get a good seal with the PK32 and when used without foams, will have a sound that is devoid of the essential warmth and bass response. Those with medium sized ears, may have an advantage here when worn without foams.
The foams included are full and dense – offer more warmth than necessary while having an impact on the mids and highs. I did not prefer them.
With thin foams, the mids and highs were not noticeably impacted, but the warmth was still lacking.
Donuts were perfect for these, but I would recommend the use of a donut foam with a slightly larger hole to expose 2 of the 3 rows of vents on the faceplate. My foams were or medium density and added the right amount of warmth while having no impact on mids and highs.
The review to follow is compiled with these donut foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. More so in the case of PK32 where the seal depends on the size of the ears and the foams used. With donut foams, the sound signature for most users will be the same with just the difference in the amount sub 1KHz frequencies.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the PK32.
The PK32 is one earbud where there is a noticeable change in sound signature after a good burn-in. I don’t believe in the concept of burn-in and haven’t noticed any significant change in the sound signature of most earbuds after burn-in, but if the maker recommends it, I do it prior to review. But I got to admit that the PK32 becomes better after burn-in. Willy recommends at least 100 hours of burn-in on these buds.
With the PK32, Willy has tried to satisfy lovers of most genres of music – the PK32 is quite musical sounding. According to me, the mids of the PK32 are quite good compared to the rest of the frequency range and they are impressive on acoustic tracks.
Breathe by Seinabo Sey shows the impressive rendering of vocals on the PK32 – reasonably forward and texturally rich mids. Sadly, there is some bass bleed into mids that is quite visible at around the 1:10 mark. This apart, the PK32 displays nice separation between the vocals and all the strings along with reasonable width and some decent kick drums. Another track to showcase mids is Cold Little Heart by Michael Kiwanuka, where the PK32 shows nice texture on the vocals, clean for the most part. What is also rendered well is the nostalgic chorus vocals that is presented with a good amount of width. Separation is just about average; instruments can use some extra air between them.
One thing which I have mentioned repeatedly on the both tracks above is the nice stereo width showcased by the PK32. This is quite noticeable on tracks like Decks Dark by Radiohead; the width on offer is better than what is seen on the WillSound MK series. What is noticeable again is the bass bleed into the vocals – there is some visible restraint on the vocals due to the accompanying bass guitar. Still the vocals sound almost realistic with good texture on this. At around the 4-minute mark, when the track gets busy, separation take a small hit – definitely could benefit from some airiness.
Changes by Faul & Wad Ad shows the range the small PK32 can deliver – impressive width, meaty, deep bass note, nice, clean vocals on the chorus. Though there is faint sibilance audible on the chorus vocals, they remain well separated from the bass and the saxophone. The saxophone has some bass bleed impacting its separation, but nothing to worry about. This track presents all key frequency ranges and the PK32 laps it up with ease; not like the MK2, but pretty well. That said, sub bass rolls off sharply below 60-70 Hz and can draw some blanks on tracks like Royals by Lorde.
Not just the width, the depth on offer is also quite good too; not like the levels seen on MK2 or MK3, but much better than MK1. Even on complex tracks like The National Anthem by Radiohead, the PK32 does reasonably well – retains the bass texture throughout the track, even during the complex passage at around the 3-minute mark when trumpets and pipes are blaring. What doesn’t impress is the ride cymbals that sound digitally compressed. But during the second complex passage at the 4:30 mark, it is quite evident that the PK32 definitely needs more airiness – the track feels claustrophobic, for the lack of fishing time for a better word.
Get Lucky by Daft Punk has enough bass texture on offer and the PK32 fumbles – the texture is not as clean as its cousins – the MK2 and MK3. The airiness on this track is better than others listed so far and micro details are ok for the most part and sometimes are hidden by the bass and vocals. Speed is good enough not to impact the tempo of the track.
On a track like Madness by Muse where various bass frequencies are served on a platter, the PK32 demonstrates a slight slowness on the bass notes that impacts the texture. Also, the vocals don’t stand out and shine like in the case of the MK2 and MK3. Layering is just ok; there is a slight overlap between the layers of music in play after the 3-minute mark and the track is more warm than what I usually prefer.
The History Song by The good, the bad and the Queen is another interesting track for imaging and bass quality. While the bass notes have a good weight, the texture is quite average. Nevertheless, the vocals are well separated on this track and instrument separation on offer is good enough for the track.
One last track which has featured in almost all WillSound earbud reviews is Shibuya by Covet. The PK32 takes a stroll in the park with this track – be it the bass guitar or snare drums or the ride and crash cymbals, the PK32 does a good musical rendering of this track. Definitely it could use some extra airiness, but it is well done for the most part. In fact, the cymbal decays are much better rendered on the PK32 than on the MK3, which excels in all other areas.
The biggest acid test for the PK32 was however the humble September Song by Agnes Obel. The track is characterized by fast piano notes across two different octaves. The lower octave makes is difficult for the PK32 as the track demands really fast bass response; separation of notes on PK32 take a hit.
Conclusion
The PK32 is the lesser known member of the WillSound family, and comes in a different packaging with the Yuin shells. These will have the most polarizing opinions as well as the sound highly depends on the foams used. Nevertheless, the PK32 are done right when it comes to musicality and sound reasonably big. These are definitely recommended for those into acoustic music, while others will be pleasantly surprised as well.
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-pk32-25mm.html
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case which is shared across the WillSound family of buds and come with 4 pairs of dense, white foams. The foams are of good quality.
The housing is a Yuin shell, this time around. For those will smaller ears and those who struggle with the size of MX500 shells, the Yuin should offer some comfort. The shell material is of good quality. The cable and jacks are same as the MK1.
The cable has a nice pearlescent shine to it; doesn’t tangle easily and offers no unwanted microphonics. The Y-splitter and 3.5 mm jack lack the premium feel of the MK2 and MK3, but get the job done.
Note: There is already an updated version of the PK32 with a different cable and a slightly different tuning, but the driver remains the same. So characteristics exhibited in this review should might hold good for the newer version too.
Foam Matching
Foams are critical to get the right sound out of the Yuin shell buds and choice of foam have a greater impact on the sound signature.
Those with bigger ears, like me, who are quite comfortable with the MX500 shells, will not get a good seal with the PK32 and when used without foams, will have a sound that is devoid of the essential warmth and bass response. Those with medium sized ears, may have an advantage here when worn without foams.
The foams included are full and dense – offer more warmth than necessary while having an impact on the mids and highs. I did not prefer them.
With thin foams, the mids and highs were not noticeably impacted, but the warmth was still lacking.
Donuts were perfect for these, but I would recommend the use of a donut foam with a slightly larger hole to expose 2 of the 3 rows of vents on the faceplate. My foams were or medium density and added the right amount of warmth while having no impact on mids and highs.
The review to follow is compiled with these donut foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. More so in the case of PK32 where the seal depends on the size of the ears and the foams used. With donut foams, the sound signature for most users will be the same with just the difference in the amount sub 1KHz frequencies.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the PK32.
The PK32 is one earbud where there is a noticeable change in sound signature after a good burn-in. I don’t believe in the concept of burn-in and haven’t noticed any significant change in the sound signature of most earbuds after burn-in, but if the maker recommends it, I do it prior to review. But I got to admit that the PK32 becomes better after burn-in. Willy recommends at least 100 hours of burn-in on these buds.
With the PK32, Willy has tried to satisfy lovers of most genres of music – the PK32 is quite musical sounding. According to me, the mids of the PK32 are quite good compared to the rest of the frequency range and they are impressive on acoustic tracks.
Breathe by Seinabo Sey shows the impressive rendering of vocals on the PK32 – reasonably forward and texturally rich mids. Sadly, there is some bass bleed into mids that is quite visible at around the 1:10 mark. This apart, the PK32 displays nice separation between the vocals and all the strings along with reasonable width and some decent kick drums. Another track to showcase mids is Cold Little Heart by Michael Kiwanuka, where the PK32 shows nice texture on the vocals, clean for the most part. What is also rendered well is the nostalgic chorus vocals that is presented with a good amount of width. Separation is just about average; instruments can use some extra air between them.
One thing which I have mentioned repeatedly on the both tracks above is the nice stereo width showcased by the PK32. This is quite noticeable on tracks like Decks Dark by Radiohead; the width on offer is better than what is seen on the WillSound MK series. What is noticeable again is the bass bleed into the vocals – there is some visible restraint on the vocals due to the accompanying bass guitar. Still the vocals sound almost realistic with good texture on this. At around the 4-minute mark, when the track gets busy, separation take a small hit – definitely could benefit from some airiness.
Changes by Faul & Wad Ad shows the range the small PK32 can deliver – impressive width, meaty, deep bass note, nice, clean vocals on the chorus. Though there is faint sibilance audible on the chorus vocals, they remain well separated from the bass and the saxophone. The saxophone has some bass bleed impacting its separation, but nothing to worry about. This track presents all key frequency ranges and the PK32 laps it up with ease; not like the MK2, but pretty well. That said, sub bass rolls off sharply below 60-70 Hz and can draw some blanks on tracks like Royals by Lorde.
Not just the width, the depth on offer is also quite good too; not like the levels seen on MK2 or MK3, but much better than MK1. Even on complex tracks like The National Anthem by Radiohead, the PK32 does reasonably well – retains the bass texture throughout the track, even during the complex passage at around the 3-minute mark when trumpets and pipes are blaring. What doesn’t impress is the ride cymbals that sound digitally compressed. But during the second complex passage at the 4:30 mark, it is quite evident that the PK32 definitely needs more airiness – the track feels claustrophobic, for the lack of fishing time for a better word.
Get Lucky by Daft Punk has enough bass texture on offer and the PK32 fumbles – the texture is not as clean as its cousins – the MK2 and MK3. The airiness on this track is better than others listed so far and micro details are ok for the most part and sometimes are hidden by the bass and vocals. Speed is good enough not to impact the tempo of the track.
On a track like Madness by Muse where various bass frequencies are served on a platter, the PK32 demonstrates a slight slowness on the bass notes that impacts the texture. Also, the vocals don’t stand out and shine like in the case of the MK2 and MK3. Layering is just ok; there is a slight overlap between the layers of music in play after the 3-minute mark and the track is more warm than what I usually prefer.
The History Song by The good, the bad and the Queen is another interesting track for imaging and bass quality. While the bass notes have a good weight, the texture is quite average. Nevertheless, the vocals are well separated on this track and instrument separation on offer is good enough for the track.
One last track which has featured in almost all WillSound earbud reviews is Shibuya by Covet. The PK32 takes a stroll in the park with this track – be it the bass guitar or snare drums or the ride and crash cymbals, the PK32 does a good musical rendering of this track. Definitely it could use some extra airiness, but it is well done for the most part. In fact, the cymbal decays are much better rendered on the PK32 than on the MK3, which excels in all other areas.
The biggest acid test for the PK32 was however the humble September Song by Agnes Obel. The track is characterized by fast piano notes across two different octaves. The lower octave makes is difficult for the PK32 as the track demands really fast bass response; separation of notes on PK32 take a hit.
Conclusion
The PK32 is the lesser known member of the WillSound family, and comes in a different packaging with the Yuin shells. These will have the most polarizing opinions as well as the sound highly depends on the foams used. Nevertheless, the PK32 are done right when it comes to musicality and sound reasonably big. These are definitely recommended for those into acoustic music, while others will be pleasantly surprised as well.
WillSound MK3 is the third earbud in the popular WillSound MK series that is quite popular on Head-fi and on Earbuds Anonymous group in Facebook. These earbuds retail on Rholupat.com with 2.5mm and 3.5mm connectors and ship internationally. I have included the link below:
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-mk3.html
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case and come with 4 pairs of dense, colorful foams – mine were black and green. The foams are of good quality.
The housing is the usual MX500 shell, which fits me perfectly, but those with smaller ears may find it uncomfortable. The shell material is of good quality. The MK3 housing, cable and connectors are entirely black in color and have a nice, premium feel. The wire splitter and 3.5 mm jack are of great quality; the jack is particularly heavy and looks premium.
While the rest of MK3 looks built to last, the cable feel quite dainty and not so robust like the rest of the WillSound lineup. The wires are on the thinner side, especially after the wire splitter. While they offer no microphonics, they can get tangled easily, if not stored properly. Once tangled, you need to be really patient to separate them out.
Foam Matching
The MK3 is neutral to warm sounding without a lot of extension at the higher frequencies. I find foams – dense, thing or donut drastically changing the sound signature and this makes a significant impact on the higher frequencies. Hence, I recommend the use of MK3 sans foams and this is how this review has been compiled.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. So while I may be able to hear a good amount of sub-bass, others may not; while I may find the highs perfect for longer sessions, others may find it fatiguing during a long session.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the MK3.
The MK3 is a bit of a dark horse when compared to the rest of the WillSound lineup (no reference to its black colour intended). While the other buds in the WillSound lineup each have a unique, musical sound signature, the MK3 is more analytical in its sound signature – no frequency range has an emphasis and has a clean, neutral to warm signature. That said, the MK3 has the most powerful magnet in the entire MK series and this influences the sound by a good margin – the super-fast bass response, for starters.
Billie Jean by Michael Jackson has quite natural sounding snare drums, accompanied by a nice bass riff that shows enough texture characterized by a fast response. The response at the top is also quite clean and fast and a very realistic sounding treble. The extension at the higher frequencies is unlike other Willsound buds – on tracks like Anonymous Club by Courtney Barnett, there is a faint, distant ride cymbal playing that is quite faint on the MK3 while on the MK2 it is easy to notice that instrument in the scheme of things. This is not necessarily bad; on the contrary, listening for longer duration is aided by the natural sounding treble response and it spares you hearing fatigue.
Get Lucky by Daft Punk has enough micro details on offer and the MK3 brings them out quite well, I just wish that there was a little more airiness and sparkle on offer to make the micro details stand out. What stands out though is the fast attack and decay of the bass notes accompanied with the great texture. In fact, bass quality is exceptional on the MK3. On a track like Madness by Muse where various bass frequencies are served on a platter, the MK3 delivers them quite well with ample texture and speed on display.
Mid-range frequencies have always been done quite well on all WillSound earbuds and the MK3 is no different. On Madness, with all the bass dynamism on display, there is still no hint any bass bleed to the mids; Matt Belamy’s vocals are perfectly centered and sound quite intimate and realistic, even with all the layering in play after the 3-minute mark. Layering is done well, but not ‘MK2’ well – the lack or airiness and sparkle at the highs does weigh down a bit here. Thought Contagion by Muse is another track where the bass quality is highlighted quite well.
The MK3 is in fact a perfect bud to enjoy most Steely Dan tracks – Two against nature with its fast, textured bass and quick, holographic cymbals and multiple layers of sounds, are handled with much aplomb by the MK3 while displaying sufficient width and an excellent separation of instruments; Hey Nineteen with reference quality mastering, sounds reference quality on the MK3.
Agnes Obel's September Song, is an acid test for most earbuds - the track demands a reasonably fast bass response to handle the reverb of the lower octave piano notes, while demanding enough airiness for the notes in the higher octave. While the rest of the WillSound lineup, including the better reviewed MK2 does not deliver this track well, the MK3 gets it right and to be honest, I had immense satisfaction on the track with these buds.
One track which was more enjoyable on the MK3 than any other WillSound earbud is the History Song by The good, the bad and the Queen. Perfect weight on the bass notes, well separated vocals, nice instrument separation and a decent depth of sound stage on offer. In fact, depth on offer is almost as good as the MK2. Even on complex tracks like The National Anthem by Radiohead, the MK3 does everything right, well almost, the lack of sufficient airiness at the highs does impact the separation, just a bit, on complex tracks like this one, nothing that would worry you on 95 of the 100 tracks that we listen on a regular basis. Shibuya by Covet is another track where this is noticeable – this track has cymbals that decay slower than most tracks and at around the 2-minute mark and the 5-minute mark where consecutive slow-decay cymbals are presented, the lack of airiness impact the separation between the two notes a bit. The same track on the MK2 clearly sounds a notch better.
What is just above average though is the sound stage width on offer – quite similar to the MK2. A little bit more width on offer would have made these one of my favorite buds. This is quite noticeable on tracks like Decks Dark by Radiohead; while the width is sufficient to make the sounds seemingly originate from outside the perimeter of your skull on this track, at the 3:30 mark when the bass guitar plays on the left and bass note of the piano in the center, there is just enough space to differentiate the two instruments, while on earbuds like the HiFi Boy Dream, the amount of space between these two instruments is quite vast. Honestly, I am being quite demanding here – on most budget buds, you can’t even differentiate that there are two instruments in play, while on the MK3 I’m complaining that I need some more space between them J. Well, that in itself should say lots about what the WillSound range of buds have to offer at around $30.
Conclusion
The MK3 is a remarkable earbud in the WillSound lineup – more analytical than musical sounding, unlike its siblings. While it has a whole lot going for it – exceptional bass quality, lustrous mids and natural sounding highs, the lack of sufficient airiness and sparkle at the highs does have a small impact on the layering and separation and it loses a star for that. The MK3 once again emphasizes the fact that price is not something that defines a great quality earbud.
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-mk3.html
Build, fit and packaging
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case and come with 4 pairs of dense, colorful foams – mine were black and green. The foams are of good quality.
The housing is the usual MX500 shell, which fits me perfectly, but those with smaller ears may find it uncomfortable. The shell material is of good quality. The MK3 housing, cable and connectors are entirely black in color and have a nice, premium feel. The wire splitter and 3.5 mm jack are of great quality; the jack is particularly heavy and looks premium.
While the rest of MK3 looks built to last, the cable feel quite dainty and not so robust like the rest of the WillSound lineup. The wires are on the thinner side, especially after the wire splitter. While they offer no microphonics, they can get tangled easily, if not stored properly. Once tangled, you need to be really patient to separate them out.
Foam Matching
The MK3 is neutral to warm sounding without a lot of extension at the higher frequencies. I find foams – dense, thing or donut drastically changing the sound signature and this makes a significant impact on the higher frequencies. Hence, I recommend the use of MK3 sans foams and this is how this review has been compiled.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC or Tidal Hi-Fi played bit perfect through the UAPP player.
I write this in most of my reviews - the key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. So while I may be able to hear a good amount of sub-bass, others may not; while I may find the highs perfect for longer sessions, others may find it fatiguing during a long session.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the MK3.
The MK3 is a bit of a dark horse when compared to the rest of the WillSound lineup (no reference to its black colour intended). While the other buds in the WillSound lineup each have a unique, musical sound signature, the MK3 is more analytical in its sound signature – no frequency range has an emphasis and has a clean, neutral to warm signature. That said, the MK3 has the most powerful magnet in the entire MK series and this influences the sound by a good margin – the super-fast bass response, for starters.
Billie Jean by Michael Jackson has quite natural sounding snare drums, accompanied by a nice bass riff that shows enough texture characterized by a fast response. The response at the top is also quite clean and fast and a very realistic sounding treble. The extension at the higher frequencies is unlike other Willsound buds – on tracks like Anonymous Club by Courtney Barnett, there is a faint, distant ride cymbal playing that is quite faint on the MK3 while on the MK2 it is easy to notice that instrument in the scheme of things. This is not necessarily bad; on the contrary, listening for longer duration is aided by the natural sounding treble response and it spares you hearing fatigue.
Get Lucky by Daft Punk has enough micro details on offer and the MK3 brings them out quite well, I just wish that there was a little more airiness and sparkle on offer to make the micro details stand out. What stands out though is the fast attack and decay of the bass notes accompanied with the great texture. In fact, bass quality is exceptional on the MK3. On a track like Madness by Muse where various bass frequencies are served on a platter, the MK3 delivers them quite well with ample texture and speed on display.
Mid-range frequencies have always been done quite well on all WillSound earbuds and the MK3 is no different. On Madness, with all the bass dynamism on display, there is still no hint any bass bleed to the mids; Matt Belamy’s vocals are perfectly centered and sound quite intimate and realistic, even with all the layering in play after the 3-minute mark. Layering is done well, but not ‘MK2’ well – the lack or airiness and sparkle at the highs does weigh down a bit here. Thought Contagion by Muse is another track where the bass quality is highlighted quite well.
The MK3 is in fact a perfect bud to enjoy most Steely Dan tracks – Two against nature with its fast, textured bass and quick, holographic cymbals and multiple layers of sounds, are handled with much aplomb by the MK3 while displaying sufficient width and an excellent separation of instruments; Hey Nineteen with reference quality mastering, sounds reference quality on the MK3.
Agnes Obel's September Song, is an acid test for most earbuds - the track demands a reasonably fast bass response to handle the reverb of the lower octave piano notes, while demanding enough airiness for the notes in the higher octave. While the rest of the WillSound lineup, including the better reviewed MK2 does not deliver this track well, the MK3 gets it right and to be honest, I had immense satisfaction on the track with these buds.
One track which was more enjoyable on the MK3 than any other WillSound earbud is the History Song by The good, the bad and the Queen. Perfect weight on the bass notes, well separated vocals, nice instrument separation and a decent depth of sound stage on offer. In fact, depth on offer is almost as good as the MK2. Even on complex tracks like The National Anthem by Radiohead, the MK3 does everything right, well almost, the lack of sufficient airiness at the highs does impact the separation, just a bit, on complex tracks like this one, nothing that would worry you on 95 of the 100 tracks that we listen on a regular basis. Shibuya by Covet is another track where this is noticeable – this track has cymbals that decay slower than most tracks and at around the 2-minute mark and the 5-minute mark where consecutive slow-decay cymbals are presented, the lack of airiness impact the separation between the two notes a bit. The same track on the MK2 clearly sounds a notch better.
What is just above average though is the sound stage width on offer – quite similar to the MK2. A little bit more width on offer would have made these one of my favorite buds. This is quite noticeable on tracks like Decks Dark by Radiohead; while the width is sufficient to make the sounds seemingly originate from outside the perimeter of your skull on this track, at the 3:30 mark when the bass guitar plays on the left and bass note of the piano in the center, there is just enough space to differentiate the two instruments, while on earbuds like the HiFi Boy Dream, the amount of space between these two instruments is quite vast. Honestly, I am being quite demanding here – on most budget buds, you can’t even differentiate that there are two instruments in play, while on the MK3 I’m complaining that I need some more space between them J. Well, that in itself should say lots about what the WillSound range of buds have to offer at around $30.
Conclusion
The MK3 is a remarkable earbud in the WillSound lineup – more analytical than musical sounding, unlike its siblings. While it has a whole lot going for it – exceptional bass quality, lustrous mids and natural sounding highs, the lack of sufficient airiness and sparkle at the highs does have a small impact on the layering and separation and it loses a star for that. The MK3 once again emphasizes the fact that price is not something that defines a great quality earbud.
The HiFi Boy Dream retails for around $89 at the time of the review on Penon Audio.
https://penonaudio.com/hifi-boy-dream.html
I was given a review sample by Penon Audio free of charge, and this, in no way, influences my review of these earbuds.
Build, Packaging and Fit
The earbuds come delivered is one of the most professional packaging I have ever seen from the east. Penon Audio gets the applause for this. The packaging is simple, yet a practical jewel-box case with magnetic closure. Nicely lined in a foam base, are presented a case containing the earbuds and foams, an in-flight adapter and a 6.35 to 3.5 mm adapter. Also, present is a nice, blue, Velcro cable organizer with Penon branding.
The earbuds are made entirely of metal with plastic rings. There are 4 colours on offer – coffee/black, gold, rose gold and silver. The cable has an interesting look – exposed copper internals in a transparent case. The cable also has a transparent splitter and a chin-slider and comes with an L-shaped plug.
The earbuds are on the larger side and this combined with the smooth, slippery nature of the material does not result in a great fit. I had to dabble with various foams before I found the perfect fit and position to enjoy them. More on that in the later sections. Fit, in general, is a nightmare and it loses half-a-point solely due to the fit.
Foam Matching
The most important bit prior to the actual review, in case of earbuds, is running through the entirety of foam types available at every nook and corner of the house and in the case of the HiFi Boy dream, it was quite critical for me – I can’t use them without foams like most other buds; they just won’t stay put.
That said, the following foam types were tried –
Stock Donut foams – Dense, covers the rear vents significantly, resulting in a very warm sound with slightly booming bass. Also, the nice sparkle at the top is no more a sparkle.
Generic Donut foams – Sourced off Aliexpress, less denser, bigger face area. Much better sound that stock foams, but didn’t indulge me.
Thin Foams – Sourced from my Willsound MK2 box, the perfect combination of warmth and sparkle. This is the foams in which I would be reviewing these earbuds.
Setup for the review
The basic premise for the review was my LG G6 with music sourced from Tidal via UAPP and local FLAC files – 16 bit and 24 bit. The music files were all played bit-perfect through UAPP app.
In a normal review, this section would end here, but in the case of the HiFi Boy Dream, there more. So take a look at the picture below (The human ear anatomy. Source: here):
When worn like normal earbuds, the HiFi Boy Dream seems to be lacking in the bass section with poor extension into sub-bass frequencies. Initially, I felt the same about these, but then, with a little adjustment, my earbuds were now wedged between the ‘Tragus’ and the ‘Antitragus’, which makes they directly face at the ear canal and voila the bass is much better and they have a nice extension too. So this is how I normally wear the Hifibou Dream during my listening session with them – not comfortable for longer session. Also, getting the fit right takes some time.
Wait, we are not done yet. One last thing. On initial listening listening, the Dream seems to have a V-shaped sound with noticeable recessed mids. I increased the volume to get the mids to a level of forwardness that I appreciate and the rest of the review was done at this volume.
So, how do they sound?
With the volume set to my levels of preference, they HiFi Boy Dream has a nice Holographic feel to it – primarily due to the soundstage width it offers, combined with the V-shaped signature.
So, let me start with something the HiFi Boy Dream is excellent at – the width of the soundstage. Decks Dark by Radiohead starts with different instruments on left and right at quite a distance and the voice perfectly centered. Bass guitar is meaty, snare drums lack the bite but have a decent impact. At around the 3:30 mark, the same bass note is played in the piano and bass guitar and can be heard distinctly – the piano on the center and the bass guitar to the left, while the right plays a higher rolling note. If you try this track and think ‘What is this guy on? I only hear a single bass instrument playing at around the 3:30 mark with the exception of 1 note’, then it is time to upgrade J. That said, the haunting nature of the track comes out alive on the HiFi Boy Dream.
Maggot Brain by funkadelic starts off again with impressive width being demonstrated by these earbuds throughout the entirety of the track. The over-driven guitar and piano together make such a psychedelic groove and the HiFi Boy Dream gets its so perfect that you can close your eyes let the electric signals of your brain go on over-drive.
While the width demonstrated by the HiFi Boy Dream is excellent, the same cannot be said about the depth. The depth displayed on tracks like Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa and The National Anthem by Radiohead are strictly average. In fact, on the latter, the holographic feel of the track doesn’t come out well and it sounds quite 2-dimensional with very little in the direction of the 3rd plane. Also, the smoothed out rendering of vocals doesn’t work great on this track. Moreover, when the track gets busy, two things are brought forth:
- the exceptional instrument separation displayed by the HiFi Boy Dream with sufficient airiness to the sounds
- the artificial/digital sounding highs; while every instrument sounds true to nature in the cacophony, cymbals are more of a digital simulated sound and the decay is quite slow, making 2 subsequent hits fuse together.
The artificial treble is seen, not just on this track, but on some other too and is instantly noticeable on live tracks where the sound of audience applauding is captured – the claps sound like a very poor quality recording. Even on tracks like Shibuya by Covet, where the ride cymbal is in play almost throughout the track, they don’t sound quite satisfying owing to the artificial nature of their rendering and the slowness of cymbal decay. In fact, I would say this issue is the Achilles’ heel of the HiFi Boy Dream.
Rendering of the layering in tracks is another strength of the HiFi Boy Dream – tracks from artists like Enya, Muse and Puscifer play great on the HiFi Boy Dream.
The Dream has a lot of things going for it and the driver speed is another one of those. On a track like Get Lucky by Daft Punk, where the tempo of the track is easily affected by the speed of the bass response, the Dream renders it with a tempo which I felt was faster than what I am used to, in general. The bass guitar notes start and decay in a fraction of a second and has the perfect amount of texture and every micro detail is served on a platter.
Vicious Delicious by Infected Mushroom is a track which benefits a lot from a fast driver and the Dream renders it exceptionally well with the synth notes of various frequencies and speed of these notes taking you to wonderland. At around the 2 minute 40 mark, the kicks get super-fast and the bass notes of the Dream are in and out before you can notice it.
Das Spiegel by Chemical Brothers is a track that you would generally not appreciate on a regular earphone – the sound is more of 1s and 0s in quick successions. On the HiFi Boy Dream, this track comes alive and is so fast that your brain has to catch-up on what just happened. Such a clean performance!!
When it comes to bass notes, the Dream is nothing short of spectacular, it can dig deep into the lows on tracks like Breathe into me and Deep by Marian Hill – both mid-bass and sub-bass quite impressive. Breath into me is an acid test for most earbuds and you can hear some blanks in the bass notes, but not on the HiFi Boy Dream.
Once adjusted to the right volume, the mids of the Dream are no slouch either; Ed Sheeran’s voice on One has the right amount of texture and warmth, no emphasis on nasal sound or graininess which is usual seen associated with slightly boosted upper frequencies. Fret noise sounds natural and kick drums have the right amount of weight and reverb. Skinny Love by Birdy is another track with comes with built-in sibilance – the Dream renders it almost true to the source, albeit some smoothness to the vocals.
Conclusion:
The HiFi Boy Dream is a wonderful earbud and at the price of $89 is a perfect upgrade to most of us who dwell in sub $50 earbuds. It would have deserved a full 5-star, if not for the slowness of cymbal decay that it portrays in most tracks and the fit. I detest the fit; sadly, it’s all about the fit – if you get it right, you’ll love these, else you may not see yourself using these on a regular basis. But I got to give it to the Dream, it is a well-tuned earbud that delivers on more occasions than not and leaves you wonder, where’s the hype-train for such an impeccably tuned earbud.
https://penonaudio.com/hifi-boy-dream.html
I was given a review sample by Penon Audio free of charge, and this, in no way, influences my review of these earbuds.
Build, Packaging and Fit
The earbuds come delivered is one of the most professional packaging I have ever seen from the east. Penon Audio gets the applause for this. The packaging is simple, yet a practical jewel-box case with magnetic closure. Nicely lined in a foam base, are presented a case containing the earbuds and foams, an in-flight adapter and a 6.35 to 3.5 mm adapter. Also, present is a nice, blue, Velcro cable organizer with Penon branding.
The earbuds are made entirely of metal with plastic rings. There are 4 colours on offer – coffee/black, gold, rose gold and silver. The cable has an interesting look – exposed copper internals in a transparent case. The cable also has a transparent splitter and a chin-slider and comes with an L-shaped plug.
The earbuds are on the larger side and this combined with the smooth, slippery nature of the material does not result in a great fit. I had to dabble with various foams before I found the perfect fit and position to enjoy them. More on that in the later sections. Fit, in general, is a nightmare and it loses half-a-point solely due to the fit.
Foam Matching
The most important bit prior to the actual review, in case of earbuds, is running through the entirety of foam types available at every nook and corner of the house and in the case of the HiFi Boy dream, it was quite critical for me – I can’t use them without foams like most other buds; they just won’t stay put.
That said, the following foam types were tried –
Stock Donut foams – Dense, covers the rear vents significantly, resulting in a very warm sound with slightly booming bass. Also, the nice sparkle at the top is no more a sparkle.
Generic Donut foams – Sourced off Aliexpress, less denser, bigger face area. Much better sound that stock foams, but didn’t indulge me.
Thin Foams – Sourced from my Willsound MK2 box, the perfect combination of warmth and sparkle. This is the foams in which I would be reviewing these earbuds.
Setup for the review
The basic premise for the review was my LG G6 with music sourced from Tidal via UAPP and local FLAC files – 16 bit and 24 bit. The music files were all played bit-perfect through UAPP app.
In a normal review, this section would end here, but in the case of the HiFi Boy Dream, there more. So take a look at the picture below (The human ear anatomy
. Source: here):
When worn like normal earbuds, the HiFi Boy Dream seems to be lacking in the bass section with poor extension into sub-bass frequencies. Initially, I felt the same about these, but then, with a little adjustment, my earbuds were now wedged between the ‘Tragus’ and the ‘Antitragus’, which makes they directly face at the ear canal and voila the bass is much better and they have a nice extension too. So this is how I normally wear the Hifibou Dream during my listening session with them – not comfortable for longer session. Also, getting the fit right takes some time.
Wait, we are not done yet. One last thing. On initial listening listening, the Dream seems to have a V-shaped sound with noticeable recessed mids. I increased the volume to get the mids to a level of forwardness that I appreciate and the rest of the review was done at this volume.
So, how do they sound?
With the volume set to my levels of preference, they HiFi Boy Dream has a nice Holographic feel to it – primarily due to the soundstage width it offers, combined with the V-shaped signature.
So, let me start with something the HiFi Boy Dream is excellent at – the width of the soundstage. Decks Dark by Radiohead starts with different instruments on left and right at quite a distance and the voice perfectly centered. Bass guitar is meaty, snare drums lack the bite but have a decent impact. At around the 3:30 mark, the same bass note is played in the piano and bass guitar and can be heard distinctly – the piano on the center and the bass guitar to the left, while the right plays a higher rolling note. If you try this track and think ‘What is this guy on? I only hear a single bass instrument playing at around the 3:30 mark with the exception of 1 note’, then it is time to upgrade J. That said, the haunting nature of the track comes out alive on the HiFi Boy Dream.
Maggot Brain by funkadelic starts off again with impressive width being demonstrated by these earbuds throughout the entirety of the track. The over-driven guitar and piano together make such a psychedelic groove and the HiFi Boy Dream gets its so perfect that you can close your eyes let the electric signals of your brain go on over-drive.
While the width demonstrated by the HiFi Boy Dream is excellent, the same cannot be said about the depth. The depth displayed on tracks like Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa and The National Anthem by Radiohead are strictly average. In fact, on the latter, the holographic feel of the track doesn’t come out well and it sounds quite 2-dimensional with very little in the direction of the 3rd plane. Also, the smoothed out rendering of vocals doesn’t work great on this track. Moreover, when the track gets busy, two things are brought forth:
- the exceptional instrument separation displayed by the HiFi Boy Dream with sufficient airiness to the sounds
- the artificial/digital sounding highs; while every instrument sounds true to nature in the cacophony, cymbals are more of a digital simulated sound and the decay is quite slow, making 2 subsequent hits fuse together.
The artificial treble is seen, not just on this track, but on some other too and is instantly noticeable on live tracks where the sound of audience applauding is captured – the claps sound like a very poor quality recording. Even on tracks like Shibuya by Covet, where the ride cymbal is in play almost throughout the track, they don’t sound quite satisfying owing to the artificial nature of their rendering and the slowness of cymbal decay. In fact, I would say this issue is the Achilles’ heel of the HiFi Boy Dream.
Rendering of the layering in tracks is another strength of the HiFi Boy Dream – tracks from artists like Enya, Muse and Puscifer play great on the HiFi Boy Dream.
The Dream has a lot of things going for it and the driver speed is another one of those. On a track like Get Lucky by Daft Punk, where the tempo of the track is easily affected by the speed of the bass response, the Dream renders it with a tempo which I felt was faster than what I am used to, in general. The bass guitar notes start and decay in a fraction of a second and has the perfect amount of texture and every micro detail is served on a platter.
Vicious Delicious by Infected Mushroom is a track which benefits a lot from a fast driver and the Dream renders it exceptionally well with the synth notes of various frequencies and speed of these notes taking you to wonderland. At around the 2 minute 40 mark, the kicks get super-fast and the bass notes of the Dream are in and out before you can notice it.
Das Spiegel by Chemical Brothers is a track that you would generally not appreciate on a regular earphone – the sound is more of 1s and 0s in quick successions. On the HiFi Boy Dream, this track comes alive and is so fast that your brain has to catch-up on what just happened. Such a clean performance!!
When it comes to bass notes, the Dream is nothing short of spectacular, it can dig deep into the lows on tracks like Breathe into me and Deep by Marian Hill – both mid-bass and sub-bass quite impressive. Breath into me is an acid test for most earbuds and you can hear some blanks in the bass notes, but not on the HiFi Boy Dream.
Once adjusted to the right volume, the mids of the Dream are no slouch either; Ed Sheeran’s voice on One has the right amount of texture and warmth, no emphasis on nasal sound or graininess which is usual seen associated with slightly boosted upper frequencies. Fret noise sounds natural and kick drums have the right amount of weight and reverb. Skinny Love by Birdy is another track with comes with built-in sibilance – the Dream renders it almost true to the source, albeit some smoothness to the vocals.
Conclusion:
The HiFi Boy Dream is a wonderful earbud and at the price of $89 is a perfect upgrade to most of us who dwell in sub $50 earbuds. It would have deserved a full 5-star, if not for the slowness of cymbal decay that it portrays in most tracks and the fit. I detest the fit; sadly, it’s all about the fit – if you get it right, you’ll love these, else you may not see yourself using these on a regular basis. But I got to give it to the Dream, it is a well-tuned earbud that delivers on more occasions than not and leaves you wonder, where’s the hype-train for such an impeccably tuned earbud.
The V-Master has a unique housing - though it is a bit bulky compared to the MX500 shell, the bell shaped curvature of the housing does not cause any physical fatigue on the ears. The quality of plastic on the housing is good and it should last the distance.
What is the achilles heel of the ergonomics of the V-Master is the cable. While there is an honest attempt to make it look pleasing and interesting, the cable is quite stiff and reasonably heavy and can put you off sometimes. If I were to recable my earbuds, the V-Master would be one of the first.
The splitter has a nice carbon fibre texture. The amphenol plug is weird - it is too tight for my laptop and the laptop does not recognize the earbuds. While it fits perfectly on my LG G6, it is quite loose on my Nexus 4 and just fits the FiiO A1 amp. I have never had such a problem is any other 3.5mm plug amongst the gear I own. Another head-fier friend, Gaurav (@Guggga), did make the same observation to me.
The V-Master comes with a single pair of foams in a unique case. Every V-Master earbud is numbered and mine is No. 533.
At the time of the review, the V-Master can be purchased for $80 (inclusive of shipping). I got a slight discount for offering a detailed review of the earbud, but that has no impact on my opinion.
So how does it sound?
While the specs of the V-Master is not entirely known, my guess is that the sensitivity is low and hence it requires a decent amount of amp to make them deliver. Straight out of a smartphone, they sound flat and lack any dynamism.
That said, a humble FiiO A1 is sufficient to drive them. For my test, I used my LG G6 with an impedance adapter and my laptop. Since, the V-Master does not get detected by my laptop, I had to use the impedance adapter with my laptop as well to make my laptop understand that there is something plugged into the 3.5mm port.
That said, the V-Master sounds better with a brighter source to deliver a decent level of details on the tracks.
Like all my earbuds, I tested the V-master without any foam cover. Foams boost the bass at the cost of details and as you will see, from the test tracks, details are at a premium on the V-Master.
We start straight away with an acid test.
Track 1 - Acid Rain by Lorn - This track is an acid test for most earbuds; however wonderful they are, most earbuds tend to struggle delivering the intended bass on this track. The track start with a bass synth and the V-master does well in rendering the texture and weight of this note, but then at the 21 second mark comes a deep bass kick. The V-Master needs some good amping to deliver a satisfying note, else it just falls flat. On my LG G6, the Hi-Fi DAC in Normal mode doesn't have sufficient juice to drive the V-Master to good level. I had to trigger the high-impedance mode with an impedance adapter to get the max out of the V-Master. While it delivers the bass on this track, the V-master does struggle and it is quite evident; the reason - the bass rolls off a bit early and it does not have sufficient weight at the low end. Definitely an acid test for the V-Master.
If the Acid Rain was rendered well, the next track would have been 'Breathe into me' by Marian Hill, but on initial listening, this track was rendered similar to the previous one and hence I did not test it further on this track.
Track 2 - Rapper's Delight by The Sugarhill gang - The first billboard topping rap song, has a nice bass guitar riff throughout the track. V-master gets the texture quite very and has enough weight to make an impact - the bass is clean, but definitely not fast enough. One the positive side, there is no noticeable bleed to the mids. Vocals are quite well rendered - clean and reasonably forward. The highs are a mixed bag - the ride cymbals are barely heard when accompanied with vocals; the claps are reasonable well rendered, but don't have the intended impact on the track. The disappointing part with then the electric piano and the electric guitar start playing together - the slowness of the driver is evident as it could not give enough separation and distinction between the two instruments. The treble has some extension but it start rolling off slowly after the 5K mark. There is a sparkle for the cymbals and reasonable airiness, but that is when they are not masked by the mids.
The upper mids and highs definitely leave me wanting more, but then for those who listen to music for long durations, this will definitely be a boon - you will not be fatiguing your sense of hearing.
Update: With the iFi Nano BL into picture playing bit perfect, the highs are improved, but still lack any sort of sparkle or brilliance.
Maybe it is time for some Daft Punk
Track 3 - Lose yourself to dance & Get Lucky by Daft Punk - Lose yourself to dance makes the slowness of the V-Master quite apparent - there is a bass guitar that plays over the bass synthesizer and the V-master fails to highlight the bass guitar. The texture is rendered poorly as well. Also, the track has a beautiful chime at the beginning and at interludes - the magic is lacking on the V-Master. Since the driver is kept busy by the bass notes, the mids are not clean as well - vocals are not satisfying. The track becomes a mess at around the 3 minute when it gets too busy. The only saving grace on this track is the reasonable rendering of the layering and the stereo width and imaging which the V-master gets right.
Get Lucky doesn't go as deep on the lows as the previous track. There is some apparent slowness in the bass notes, but the V-master still pulls through this track quite well. But what is unforgivable is that the details, which this track is generally known for, are missing for the most part.
So what I have learnt so far is that the V-Master is not for all genres of music - casual pop music can be enjoyed for hours with a likeable sound signature and you can listen to it for long hours without getting tired. But on demanding tracks, it may leave the demanding listeners left wanting for more.
So where does the V-Master fare well?
Track 4 - Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics - The bass synth is satisfying and the haunting vocals are rendered well. Sound stage is sufficiently wide and channel separation is great. So, throw a track that doesn't get busy and the V-Master giving you a satisfying listening and decent layering.
Track 5 - Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa - The V-master gives a decent holographic feel on this track - the width and depth are good. What is lacking is the layering - the chimes are almost non-existent but that is the intended sound-signature.
So this again reaffirms that when you are not out testing the V-Master, it does reasonably well, but you start treating it like TOTL earbuds, then you will not be satisfied.
Conclusion:
V-Master is a decent attempt by V-friend group of enthusiasts. While the V-Master has a likeable sound signature, the choice of a driver that evidently lacks speed is what lets it down. However, it gives a satisfying and non-fatiguing listening session for most casual songs and on the plus side you get a nice sound-stage with satisfying width and depth. Just don't subject it to critical listening sessions.
What is the achilles heel of the ergonomics of the V-Master is the cable. While there is an honest attempt to make it look pleasing and interesting, the cable is quite stiff and reasonably heavy and can put you off sometimes. If I were to recable my earbuds, the V-Master would be one of the first.
The splitter has a nice carbon fibre texture. The amphenol plug is weird - it is too tight for my laptop and the laptop does not recognize the earbuds. While it fits perfectly on my LG G6, it is quite loose on my Nexus 4 and just fits the FiiO A1 amp. I have never had such a problem is any other 3.5mm plug amongst the gear I own. Another head-fier friend, Gaurav (@Guggga), did make the same observation to me.
The V-Master comes with a single pair of foams in a unique case. Every V-Master earbud is numbered and mine is No. 533.
At the time of the review, the V-Master can be purchased for $80 (inclusive of shipping). I got a slight discount for offering a detailed review of the earbud, but that has no impact on my opinion.
So how does it sound?
While the specs of the V-Master is not entirely known, my guess is that the sensitivity is low and hence it requires a decent amount of amp to make them deliver. Straight out of a smartphone, they sound flat and lack any dynamism.
That said, a humble FiiO A1 is sufficient to drive them. For my test, I used my LG G6 with an impedance adapter and my laptop. Since, the V-Master does not get detected by my laptop, I had to use the impedance adapter with my laptop as well to make my laptop understand that there is something plugged into the 3.5mm port.
That said, the V-Master sounds better with a brighter source to deliver a decent level of details on the tracks.
Like all my earbuds, I tested the V-master without any foam cover. Foams boost the bass at the cost of details and as you will see, from the test tracks, details are at a premium on the V-Master.
We start straight away with an acid test.
Track 1 - Acid Rain by Lorn - This track is an acid test for most earbuds; however wonderful they are, most earbuds tend to struggle delivering the intended bass on this track. The track start with a bass synth and the V-master does well in rendering the texture and weight of this note, but then at the 21 second mark comes a deep bass kick. The V-Master needs some good amping to deliver a satisfying note, else it just falls flat. On my LG G6, the Hi-Fi DAC in Normal mode doesn't have sufficient juice to drive the V-Master to good level. I had to trigger the high-impedance mode with an impedance adapter to get the max out of the V-Master. While it delivers the bass on this track, the V-master does struggle and it is quite evident; the reason - the bass rolls off a bit early and it does not have sufficient weight at the low end. Definitely an acid test for the V-Master.
If the Acid Rain was rendered well, the next track would have been 'Breathe into me' by Marian Hill, but on initial listening, this track was rendered similar to the previous one and hence I did not test it further on this track.
Track 2 - Rapper's Delight by The Sugarhill gang - The first billboard topping rap song, has a nice bass guitar riff throughout the track. V-master gets the texture quite very and has enough weight to make an impact - the bass is clean, but definitely not fast enough. One the positive side, there is no noticeable bleed to the mids. Vocals are quite well rendered - clean and reasonably forward. The highs are a mixed bag - the ride cymbals are barely heard when accompanied with vocals; the claps are reasonable well rendered, but don't have the intended impact on the track. The disappointing part with then the electric piano and the electric guitar start playing together - the slowness of the driver is evident as it could not give enough separation and distinction between the two instruments. The treble has some extension but it start rolling off slowly after the 5K mark. There is a sparkle for the cymbals and reasonable airiness, but that is when they are not masked by the mids.
The upper mids and highs definitely leave me wanting more, but then for those who listen to music for long durations, this will definitely be a boon - you will not be fatiguing your sense of hearing.
Update: With the iFi Nano BL into picture playing bit perfect, the highs are improved, but still lack any sort of sparkle or brilliance.
Maybe it is time for some Daft Punk
Track 3 - Lose yourself to dance & Get Lucky by Daft Punk - Lose yourself to dance makes the slowness of the V-Master quite apparent - there is a bass guitar that plays over the bass synthesizer and the V-master fails to highlight the bass guitar. The texture is rendered poorly as well. Also, the track has a beautiful chime at the beginning and at interludes - the magic is lacking on the V-Master. Since the driver is kept busy by the bass notes, the mids are not clean as well - vocals are not satisfying. The track becomes a mess at around the 3 minute when it gets too busy. The only saving grace on this track is the reasonable rendering of the layering and the stereo width and imaging which the V-master gets right.
Get Lucky doesn't go as deep on the lows as the previous track. There is some apparent slowness in the bass notes, but the V-master still pulls through this track quite well. But what is unforgivable is that the details, which this track is generally known for, are missing for the most part.
So what I have learnt so far is that the V-Master is not for all genres of music - casual pop music can be enjoyed for hours with a likeable sound signature and you can listen to it for long hours without getting tired. But on demanding tracks, it may leave the demanding listeners left wanting for more.
So where does the V-Master fare well?
Track 4 - Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics - The bass synth is satisfying and the haunting vocals are rendered well. Sound stage is sufficiently wide and channel separation is great. So, throw a track that doesn't get busy and the V-Master giving you a satisfying listening and decent layering.
Track 5 - Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa - The V-master gives a decent holographic feel on this track - the width and depth are good. What is lacking is the layering - the chimes are almost non-existent but that is the intended sound-signature.
So this again reaffirms that when you are not out testing the V-Master, it does reasonably well, but you start treating it like TOTL earbuds, then you will not be satisfied.
Conclusion:
V-Master is a decent attempt by V-friend group of enthusiasts. While the V-Master has a likeable sound signature, the choice of a driver that evidently lacks speed is what lets it down. However, it gives a satisfying and non-fatiguing listening session for most casual songs and on the plus side you get a nice sound-stage with satisfying width and depth. Just don't subject it to critical listening sessions.
Willsound MK1 Rev. 2 is another popular budget earbud on Head-fi and on Earbuds Anonymous group in Facebook. I purchased the MK1 and MK2 both in their second revision together.
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-mk1-new-batch.html
Since most will be curious to know the difference in sound signature between the two, the review will use the same tracks that were used in my impression of the MK2 Rev 2 and there will be references to the MK2, when necessary.
I had a conversation with the creator of the buds and understood that each Willsound earbud uses a different driver. That makes the MK1 and MK2 more cousins than siblings. This makes me appreciate the effort gone into identifying the right driver and tuning for a unique sound signature for each earbud in the Willsound family
Unlike the MK2 which look plain in their white coloured housing, the MK1 Rev. 2 comes in a premium looking red colored housing with top notch paint quality. The faceplate is metal as well and adds to the premium"ness" of the earbud. The cable is neon red color and is quite flexible; in fact, the cable is very likable and they do not cause any unwanted microphonics while listening.
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case and come with 4 pairs of of-white foams. The foams are of good quality as well.
Foam Matching
I use all most earbuds without foam covers - I feel that foam covers, thick, thin or with a hole in the center, affect the airiness of the highs and sounds claustrophobic. While the MK1 is still fine with the thin foams, I do not prefer the thicker foams included with the MK1. Thin foams complement the warmth that is on short supply and add a decent amount of weight to the mid bass, while not impacting the mids and highs.
My impressions to follow are on mixed use of thin foams and without foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC and Tidal Desktop app on my laptop.
The other key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. So while I may be able to hear a good amount of sub-bass, others may not; while I may find the highs a bit hot for longer sessions, others may find it perfect.
Track 1 - Shibuya by Covet - The warmth is just right on this track - bass guitar is where it usually belongs and not in the front of soundstage like in the case of the MK2; the snare drums sound exceptionally good with controlled reverb and when the medley of the snare drums, bass guitar, cymbals and electric guitar play together, the separation at the lower mid frequency does not have sufficient air between the instruments and the texture of the bass note does not come out clearly (Maybe a slower bass attack/decay? Will test this further in the tracks below) On the other hand, the hi-hats and ride cymbals have a brilliant, satisfying sparkle and a nice airiness to the sound. There is no bass bleed into the lower mids. The sound-stage depth on offer is limited, so I don't feel like I'm on the drummer's seat, but more like an audience watching a band play.
Track 2 - Two Against Nature by Steely Dan - The first thing you'll note on this track is the brilliant rendering of the cymbals like the case of the earlier track. Width on offer is quite good and separation is decent too. The rendering of the layering of music is not as highlighted as in the case with the MK2. The bass note has a good texture but decay feels a bit slower. Vocals are recessed a smidge but many listeners may like it this way
Track 3 - Royals by Lorde - This track emphasizes the observation mentioned above - clean bass with no impact on mids. But then it also shows that the decay of bass notes are on the slower side and the texture is impacted - there are times when the bass texture is hardly audible. While the MK1 offers a clean balance of sub and mid bass frequencies, the slowness of the driver in the lower bass frequencies does have an impact on its bass performance. On the brighter side, this won't be noticeable on most pop tracks.
Track 4 - Madness by Muse - The perfect track for bass and vocal quality. This track reveals something new on the MK1 - the mids, around the 1KHz range is a bit amplified which brings about a nasal quality to Matt Belamy's voice. Also, I suspect that there is dip around 500 Hz to keep the bass clean and separated from the mids which can highlight to the nasal quality of the sound as the warmth is kept in check. While the bass texture is well rendered for the most part, there are times when it get a bit busy and the rendering suffers. Width and separation on offer are good. When the track gets busy, separation in the sub 2KHz frequencies take a hit.
At around the 3 minute mark when the track unleashes euphoria, the layering is strictly average and bass texture takes big hit. It did not give me enough satisfaction and this is my favorite part in the entire track.
Track 5 - The National Anthem by Radiohead - The MK1 struggles a lot on this track. While the bass riff is nice and meaty and treble extension and airiness show up nicely on this track when it is simple enough at the neginning, this track highlights two things where the MK1 flounders - sound-stage depth and separation when the track gets busy. The width, in fact, is wider than its cousin, the MK2, but the sense of depth is quite limited. With the extended highs and well controlled mid bass, I expected the MK1 to ace the separation stress test at the 3-minute mark of the track, when every random instrument is given an open invitation to the cacophony party. While the MK1 does try to give a sense of the happenings of the track, it just could not keep up with the happenings on the track. While you can forgive it for such lapses, I strictly don't recommend it for serious listening. For regular, simple tracks, the MK1 showcases a likeable signature with extended highs.
2 Bonus tracks here to reaffirm the finding - Sound-stage depth and Bass speed
Bonus Track 1 - Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa - The rendering of depth is decent, the pebbles and balls dropping on the ground are rendered well, but the 3D feeling is not present as the lower frequencies are rendered just average and also at the 4-minute mark, when the track gets busy, depth and separation suffer.
Bonus Track 2 - Get Lucky by Daft Punk - This track is all about speed, texture and separation. Bass attack has decent speed, but decay is slow, but it is good enough not to impact the tempo of the track. This is one track where I feel the tempo is impacted significantly due to bass speed. The slowness reported above was observed in the lower bass frequencies and this track relies mostly on the mid and upper bass frequencies and hence the rendering of speed and texture are quite decent. Separation is good for the most part, nothing new from what has not been stated already. Pharrell Williams' voice has a nice texture to it and is reasonably forward.
Update (11-Jul-2018): Recently tried Seinabo Sey's Breathe on the MK1 - the bass performance was below par, a bit boomy and was lacking in texture. Tried the review tracks again and updated the rating to reflect my opinion.
Conclusion
Willsound MK1 offers sufficient performance for a regular listening session - clean, likeable sound signature with nice extension towards both end of the spectrum. The more you use it, the more you will appreciate its sound signature - handles most genres of music quite well. More demanding users may find themselves wanting a bit more out of it.
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-mk1-new-batch.html
Since most will be curious to know the difference in sound signature between the two, the review will use the same tracks that were used in my impression of the MK2 Rev 2 and there will be references to the MK2, when necessary.
I had a conversation with the creator of the buds and understood that each Willsound earbud uses a different driver. That makes the MK1 and MK2 more cousins than siblings
. This makes me appreciate the effort gone into identifying the right driver and tuning for a unique sound signature for each earbud in the Willsound familyUnlike the MK2 which look plain in their white coloured housing, the MK1 Rev. 2 comes in a premium looking red colored housing with top notch paint quality. The faceplate is metal as well and adds to the premium"ness" of the earbud. The cable is neon red color and is quite flexible; in fact, the cable is very likable and they do not cause any unwanted microphonics while listening.
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case and come with 4 pairs of of-white foams. The foams are of good quality as well.
Foam Matching
I use all most earbuds without foam covers - I feel that foam covers, thick, thin or with a hole in the center, affect the airiness of the highs and sounds claustrophobic. While the MK1 is still fine with the thin foams, I do not prefer the thicker foams included with the MK1. Thin foams complement the warmth that is on short supply and add a decent amount of weight to the mid bass, while not impacting the mids and highs.
My impressions to follow are on mixed use of thin foams and without foams.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC and Tidal Desktop app on my laptop.
The other key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. So while I may be able to hear a good amount of sub-bass, others may not; while I may find the highs a bit hot for longer sessions, others may find it perfect.
Track 1 - Shibuya by Covet - The warmth is just right on this track - bass guitar is where it usually belongs and not in the front of soundstage like in the case of the MK2; the snare drums sound exceptionally good with controlled reverb and when the medley of the snare drums, bass guitar, cymbals and electric guitar play together, the separation at the lower mid frequency does not have sufficient air between the instruments and the texture of the bass note does not come out clearly (Maybe a slower bass attack/decay? Will test this further in the tracks below) On the other hand, the hi-hats and ride cymbals have a brilliant, satisfying sparkle and a nice airiness to the sound. There is no bass bleed into the lower mids. The sound-stage depth on offer is limited, so I don't feel like I'm on the drummer's seat, but more like an audience watching a band play.
Track 2 - Two Against Nature by Steely Dan - The first thing you'll note on this track is the brilliant rendering of the cymbals like the case of the earlier track. Width on offer is quite good and separation is decent too. The rendering of the layering of music is not as highlighted as in the case with the MK2. The bass note has a good texture but decay feels a bit slower. Vocals are recessed a smidge but many listeners may like it this way
Track 3 - Royals by Lorde - This track emphasizes the observation mentioned above - clean bass with no impact on mids. But then it also shows that the decay of bass notes are on the slower side and the texture is impacted - there are times when the bass texture is hardly audible. While the MK1 offers a clean balance of sub and mid bass frequencies, the slowness of the driver in the lower bass frequencies does have an impact on its bass performance. On the brighter side, this won't be noticeable on most pop tracks.
Track 4 - Madness by Muse - The perfect track for bass and vocal quality. This track reveals something new on the MK1 - the mids, around the 1KHz range is a bit amplified which brings about a nasal quality to Matt Belamy's voice. Also, I suspect that there is dip around 500 Hz to keep the bass clean and separated from the mids which can highlight to the nasal quality of the sound as the warmth is kept in check. While the bass texture is well rendered for the most part, there are times when it get a bit busy and the rendering suffers. Width and separation on offer are good. When the track gets busy, separation in the sub 2KHz frequencies take a hit.
At around the 3 minute mark when the track unleashes euphoria, the layering is strictly average and bass texture takes big hit. It did not give me enough satisfaction and this is my favorite part in the entire track.
Track 5 - The National Anthem by Radiohead - The MK1 struggles a lot on this track. While the bass riff is nice and meaty and treble extension and airiness show up nicely on this track when it is simple enough at the neginning, this track highlights two things where the MK1 flounders - sound-stage depth and separation when the track gets busy. The width, in fact, is wider than its cousin, the MK2, but the sense of depth is quite limited. With the extended highs and well controlled mid bass, I expected the MK1 to ace the separation stress test at the 3-minute mark of the track, when every random instrument is given an open invitation to the cacophony party. While the MK1 does try to give a sense of the happenings of the track, it just could not keep up with the happenings on the track. While you can forgive it for such lapses, I strictly don't recommend it for serious listening. For regular, simple tracks, the MK1 showcases a likeable signature with extended highs.
2 Bonus tracks here to reaffirm the finding - Sound-stage depth and Bass speed
Bonus Track 1 - Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa - The rendering of depth is decent, the pebbles and balls dropping on the ground are rendered well, but the 3D feeling is not present as the lower frequencies are rendered just average and also at the 4-minute mark, when the track gets busy, depth and separation suffer.
Bonus Track 2 - Get Lucky by Daft Punk - This track is all about speed, texture and separation. Bass attack has decent speed, but decay is slow, but it is good enough not to impact the tempo of the track. This is one track where I feel the tempo is impacted significantly due to bass speed. The slowness reported above was observed in the lower bass frequencies and this track relies mostly on the mid and upper bass frequencies and hence the rendering of speed and texture are quite decent. Separation is good for the most part, nothing new from what has not been stated already. Pharrell Williams' voice has a nice texture to it and is reasonably forward.
Update (11-Jul-2018): Recently tried Seinabo Sey's Breathe on the MK1 - the bass performance was below par, a bit boomy and was lacking in texture. Tried the review tracks again and updated the rating to reflect my opinion.
Conclusion
Willsound MK1 offers sufficient performance for a regular listening session - clean, likeable sound signature with nice extension towards both end of the spectrum. The more you use it, the more you will appreciate its sound signature - handles most genres of music quite well. More demanding users may find themselves wanting a bit more out of it.
Willsound MK2 is a quite popular budget earbud on Head-fi and on Earbuds Anonymous group in Facebook. So many people recommended this earbuds that I could not resist buying them. In fact, I went ahead and purchased the MK1 Rev. 2 as well.
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-mk2-new-batch.html
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case and come with 4 pairs of thin, black foams. The foams are of good quality as well.
The housing is the usual MX500 shell, which fits me perfectly, but those with smaller ears may find it uncomfortable. The shell material is of good quality. While some people get a black baffle face-plate, mine was all-white. Unlike the MK1 which have a nice, flexible cable, the MK2's cable while robust, is a bit stiffer and can get tangled at times. The wire splitter and 3.5 mm jack are of great quality; the jack is particularly big and looks premium.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC and Tidal Desktop app on my laptop.
I use all my earbuds without foam covers - I feel that foam covers, thick, thin or with a hole in the center, affect the airiness of the highs and sounds claustrophobic
The other key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. So while I may be able to hear a good amount of sub-bass, others may not; while I may find the highs perfect for longer sessions, others may find it fatiguing during a long session.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the MK2.
Track 1 - Shibuya by Covet - The track sounds warmer than usual - bass guitar is a bit more forward in the soundstage, but the texture is just right; the snare drums sound very realistic and when the medley of the snare drums, bass guitar, ride cymbal and electric guitar play together, you can spot each instrument separately. The only bit where separation is lacking is between the bass guitar and kick drum. The ride cymbals have a nice air to them and very fast attack. The bass bleeds a bit into the snare drums at around 500 Hz but the clarity of these drums at the upper mids are intact. The drum fills sound magical and it feels as you, the listener, are the drummer with the other musicians playing around you.
Track 2 - Two Against Nature by Steely Dan - The first thing you'll note on this track is the decent width and excellent separation offered by the MK2. The next thing is the well rendering of the layering of various notes together. The bass note is well textured and has the right amount of weight and displays fast decay. Vocal is right where it ought to be - neither too forward, nor recessed.
So, it looks all good so far, but the bass which seems a bit ambitiously boosted in the upper region and bleeds into the lower mids.
Track 3 - Royals by Lorde - This track emphasizes the observation mentioned above. The sub-bass frequencies are well rendered and texture is crisp but mid-bass bloom is quite evident. Lower notes of Lorde's voice are impacted by the bleed. Since, there is nothing else noteworthy to test on this track, moving one to the next one (one of my favorites).
Track 4 - Madness by Muse - The perfect track for bass and vocal quality. MK2 excels on this tracks - bass texture is rendered very well as in the above tracks, but attack is bit slower than expected, while it demonstrated good bass speed in other tracks. Matt Belamy's vocals shine on this track and MK2 renders it nice and intimate with oodles of texture. In fact, MK2 handles both male and female vocals with much aplomb.
At around the 3 minute mark when the track unleashes euphoria, the layering and sound stage width are excellently rendered, giving a nice "surround" experience while displaying decent instrument separation - Every note and instrument does not stand out with lots of air in between the instruments, but neither does it get lost in the crowd.
So, lets get more into instrument separation
Track 5 - The National Anthem by Radiohead - The MK2 does well on the track - Nice, weighty bass, excellent sound stage width and depth demonstrated. No other budget earbud delivers this well at the beginning of this track - the MK2 sound surrounds the listener. In fact, MK2 will make you like this track, which otherwise, on incompetent earbuds, sounds flat and as a cacophonic pile-up of instruments. The vocals have a nice haunting feel to it, as intended. At around the 3 minute mark, when the cacophony increases and gradually reaches its peak, the MK2 still holds its ground to a decent extent - I can no more say that each instrument is well separated and stands-out on its own, but I can still here the number of different instruments in play. This does not mean that MK2 is lacking in separation; in fact, it is quite decent in this aspect, but at the end of the day, it is just a budget earbud that punches way above its weight.
Now that almost all aspects are tested, let me throw in a bonus track
Bonus Track - Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa - Close your eyes and try to ascertain where each sound is coming from. The MK2's sound stage has good width, depth and height. And on binaural tracks, you can also feel the sound coming from the front of your head, which is quite good.
Conclusion
Willsound MK2 performs quite well, whether the price factor is taken into account or not. For a regular listening session, it offers more than sufficient performance. In fact, I use them as one of my daily drivers at home and at work. The sound signature of this bud is quite likeable, though a few, like me, would prefer a bit less of the mid bass.
And for all those who are happy with their sub $10 earbud, this one is a perfect upgrade.
http://www.rholupat.com/custom-earphone/willsound-mk2-new-batch.html
The earbuds have a nice, branded, zippered case and come with 4 pairs of thin, black foams. The foams are of good quality as well.
The housing is the usual MX500 shell, which fits me perfectly, but those with smaller ears may find it uncomfortable. The shell material is of good quality. While some people get a black baffle face-plate, mine was all-white. Unlike the MK1 which have a nice, flexible cable, the MK2's cable while robust, is a bit stiffer and can get tangled at times. The wire splitter and 3.5 mm jack are of great quality; the jack is particularly big and looks premium.
So how does it sound?
Here's the setup for my evaluation - FLACs (16/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96) on my LG G6 with ES9218p DAC SOC and Tidal Desktop app on my laptop.
I use all my earbuds without foam covers - I feel that foam covers, thick, thin or with a hole in the center, affect the airiness of the highs and sounds claustrophobic
The other key factor that is to be considered while reading my opinion below is that earbuds may sound different to different individuals based on the shape and size of your ears and how the earbuds fit and how they are positioned and your hearing sensitivity itself. So while I may be able to hear a good amount of sub-bass, others may not; while I may find the highs perfect for longer sessions, others may find it fatiguing during a long session.
So, with all that said, let's get into the actual performance of the MK2.
Track 1 - Shibuya by Covet - The track sounds warmer than usual - bass guitar is a bit more forward in the soundstage, but the texture is just right; the snare drums sound very realistic and when the medley of the snare drums, bass guitar, ride cymbal and electric guitar play together, you can spot each instrument separately. The only bit where separation is lacking is between the bass guitar and kick drum. The ride cymbals have a nice air to them and very fast attack. The bass bleeds a bit into the snare drums at around 500 Hz but the clarity of these drums at the upper mids are intact. The drum fills sound magical and it feels as you, the listener, are the drummer with the other musicians playing around you.
Track 2 - Two Against Nature by Steely Dan - The first thing you'll note on this track is the decent width and excellent separation offered by the MK2. The next thing is the well rendering of the layering of various notes together. The bass note is well textured and has the right amount of weight and displays fast decay. Vocal is right where it ought to be - neither too forward, nor recessed.
So, it looks all good so far, but the bass which seems a bit ambitiously boosted in the upper region and bleeds into the lower mids.
Track 3 - Royals by Lorde - This track emphasizes the observation mentioned above. The sub-bass frequencies are well rendered and texture is crisp but mid-bass bloom is quite evident. Lower notes of Lorde's voice are impacted by the bleed. Since, there is nothing else noteworthy to test on this track, moving one to the next one (one of my favorites).
Track 4 - Madness by Muse - The perfect track for bass and vocal quality. MK2 excels on this tracks - bass texture is rendered very well as in the above tracks, but attack is bit slower than expected, while it demonstrated good bass speed in other tracks. Matt Belamy's vocals shine on this track and MK2 renders it nice and intimate with oodles of texture. In fact, MK2 handles both male and female vocals with much aplomb.
At around the 3 minute mark when the track unleashes euphoria, the layering and sound stage width are excellently rendered, giving a nice "surround" experience while displaying decent instrument separation - Every note and instrument does not stand out with lots of air in between the instruments, but neither does it get lost in the crowd.
So, lets get more into instrument separation
Track 5 - The National Anthem by Radiohead - The MK2 does well on the track - Nice, weighty bass, excellent sound stage width and depth demonstrated. No other budget earbud delivers this well at the beginning of this track - the MK2 sound surrounds the listener. In fact, MK2 will make you like this track, which otherwise, on incompetent earbuds, sounds flat and as a cacophonic pile-up of instruments. The vocals have a nice haunting feel to it, as intended. At around the 3 minute mark, when the cacophony increases and gradually reaches its peak, the MK2 still holds its ground to a decent extent - I can no more say that each instrument is well separated and stands-out on its own, but I can still here the number of different instruments in play. This does not mean that MK2 is lacking in separation; in fact, it is quite decent in this aspect, but at the end of the day, it is just a budget earbud that punches way above its weight.
Now that almost all aspects are tested, let me throw in a bonus track
Bonus Track - Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa - Close your eyes and try to ascertain where each sound is coming from. The MK2's sound stage has good width, depth and height. And on binaural tracks, you can also feel the sound coming from the front of your head, which is quite good.
Conclusion
Willsound MK2 performs quite well, whether the price factor is taken into account or not. For a regular listening session, it offers more than sufficient performance. In fact, I use them as one of my daily drivers at home and at work. The sound signature of this bud is quite likeable, though a few, like me, would prefer a bit less of the mid bass.
And for all those who are happy with their sub $10 earbud, this one is a perfect upgrade.
Disclaimer: This review unit was purchased by me with my own moolah ($60 for the early user combo package) that was offered to members on the FB group. This is my unbiased opinion, based on my listening preference.
Packaging:
The combo package included the following items:
- Monk IE Smalls
- Monk IE Biggie
- Monk Espresso
- Premium Metal case
- 3 cables - Espresso, SPC and the regular cable with mic (all 3.5mm TRS opted by me)
- Black, narrow bore, circular silicon tips (4 pieces of each size - S, M, L, XL)
- White, wide bore tips (4 pieces of each size - S, M, L)
- Black, triple flange tips (4 pieces, single size)
This early combo package may not be available for long. Looks like the new package will be a $40 one with either the Biggie or Smalls with a single cable.
Post the combo offer, there is talks that the Biggie might be priced in the $100 to $150 range.
Setup for the review:
Mine is a poor man's setup
- For the sake of this review and for my usual listening sessions, I pair my earphones with my LG G6 (with ES9218P DAC from ESS) or with my Asus laptop. I don't use any sort of equalization unless explicitly mentioned. I have a few free FLAC samples, else it is primarily Google Play Music at highest quality settings. So in a nutshell, I'm a regular bloke who likes music.
Build and Fit:
The Biggies are constructed almost entirely out of plastic mold, except the rear plate which appears to be metal (probably aluminium). The are finished in a pearlescent black paint, which gives it a premium look.
The mold is essentially two pieces (back and front) glued together. The joint surface is not a perfect; a slight overlap on one side is observed (May not be the same with all pieces). The back plate look to be aluminium and it also contains a vent.
The ear-tip extension is fairly short. While tip is around 4mm, it gradually becomes bigger till the point it meets the driver enclosure. This can cause some discomfort after some 90 minutes and hence they may not be suitable for extended listening sessions, if you are trying to insert them deep to get a seal.
But, apparently, the Biggie is not intended to be experienced with a tight seal. According to Lee from Venture Electronics, the Biggie has to be used with a wide vented, short tip that does not give a good seal and allows movement of air between the tip and the ear canal.
Tried with this way, the Biggie can be worn for a bit longer, provided you like their sound signature.
If you try to get a good seal, you'll notice that there is too much mid-bass that makes the sound boomy and unpleasant. So the rest of the review will be with based on how the Biggie is intended to be worn.
Review of the Sound signature:
The package has too cables - Espresso and SPC. With the treble rolled off pretty early, I don't fancy the sound with the Espresso cable, so the rest of the review is based purely on how the Biggie sounds on the SPC cable.
Lee, from VE, recommends 50 hours of burning in; my Biggie at the time of this review has at least twice that amount. Did burning-in make a difference? NO!
The Lows are all about the mid-bass - 100Hz to 500 Hz. Below 100 Hz the bass is rolled off and no Sub-bass can be heard, yet due to the shallow, vented fit, the lows will not satisfy a basshead. The bass is noticeably slow too. In a track like 'Das Spiegel' by 'The Chemical Brothers', the slowness of the driver is quite evident; you don't get to hear the impulse sounds, but the track sounds like any other regular track. Also, the instrument separation is something that is not convincing in the Biggie and on this track, it is quite exposed. On 'Royals' by Lorde, all I hear is vocals accompanied by faint beats at the background. If everyone heard 'Royals' on the Biggie, it may not have become a chart-buster. Same is the case with 'Madness' by Muse; the beats and bass synthesizer are just accompaniments to vocals.
The Mids are the only positive about the Biggie, in my opinion. Due to the amplified mid-bass region and the slowness of the driver, a good amount of lower mids tend to get masked by the Upper bass region. Due to this, the vocals don't stand out separately but become a part of the music. But the mids are not all that great; they are amplified till about 1k or 2k range and then the upper mids around 5k are rolled off. This can result the voices being shouty at time on tracks and gives them a tinny sound. Since the upper mids between 2k and 8k range are rolled off, you don't get the clarity of the voice. "Bassically" by Tei Shi is another track where the vocals refuse to shine. But it does well on acoustic tracks like "One" by Ed Sheeran, where not too many instruments are present that represent the lower frequency range. Ed Sheeran's voice on this track sounds nice, albeit a bit shouty.
The Highs are quite disappointing. On a track like 'Get Lucky' by Daft Punk, you miss all the minute details along with the nice low bass. All you again hear is the vocals again and the occasional hi-hats around the 3k frequency, as rolling off starts just a bit after this. On a track like 'Rose Rouge' by St Germain, the slowness of the driver is again very evident as the hi-hats decay very slow, and once the trumpet/saxophone starts, the hi-hats disappear in the background. 'Sultans of Swing' sounds too warm and the microdetails are hardly present and the instruments are not separated that well; lacks the airiness and sparkle that is present in this song.
Coming to the soundstage, the width is decent and the sound can radiate just outside the head, but not as wide as you would expect with the recommended vented fit. The depth is not that great though.
Comparisons with other single DD IEMs:
KZ ATR - I bought this one for $5 from Gearbest. These IEMs are also single DD with an over-the-ear fit. Compared to the Biggies, these have a nice and deep bass response and a better treble. The Highs are rolled off in the ATRs as well, but not very early and offers enough details, but lack in airiness. The mids are recessed to some extent, but still a better sounding signature.
FiiO EX1 - Well, this one costs $100 and is a single DD IEM as well. This comparison is mainly due to the fact that the Biggie might be priced above this price point in the future. Coming back to the comparison, the FiiO EX1 wins hands down across the frequency spectrum - deep and fast bass, precise mids, sparkly and airy treble. Also, it possess one of the best soundstage in any IEM I have tried so far. In fact, FiiO EX1 is my favorite IEM for indoor use.
UiiSii HM7 - I purchased these for $5.59 from Gearbest. At this price, these come with a metal body and sound eons better than the Biggie. These lack sub-bass as well, but the mid-bass is quite satisfying, and the highs are excellent too. Mids are slightly recessed and the soundstage is not that wide. But this little one has an excellent sound signature and is the best Bang for buck in budget IEM range.
Other significant points
Conclusion:
I was quite excited about the Biggie based on the hype created in the VE clan in FB, but was left very disappointed. Though I liked it initially, it just took me a couple of other good IEMs in the sub $20 range to change my opinion. I rarely use them now; in fact I took them out, after a long hibernation, just for this review.
Going by the talks on the FB group, there are chances that this IEM might be priced in the $100-150 range after the initial combo offer is over. At this price range, it would definitely not be my cup of tea.
Packaging:
The combo package included the following items:
- Monk IE Smalls
- Monk IE Biggie
- Monk Espresso
- Premium Metal case
- 3 cables - Espresso, SPC and the regular cable with mic (all 3.5mm TRS opted by me)
- Black, narrow bore, circular silicon tips (4 pieces of each size - S, M, L, XL)
- White, wide bore tips (4 pieces of each size - S, M, L)
- Black, triple flange tips (4 pieces, single size)
This early combo package may not be available for long. Looks like the new package will be a $40 one with either the Biggie or Smalls with a single cable.
Post the combo offer, there is talks that the Biggie might be priced in the $100 to $150 range.
Setup for the review:
Mine is a poor man's setup
- For the sake of this review and for my usual listening sessions, I pair my earphones with my LG G6 (with ES9218P DAC from ESS) or with my Asus laptop. I don't use any sort of equalization unless explicitly mentioned. I have a few free FLAC samples, else it is primarily Google Play Music at highest quality settings. So in a nutshell, I'm a regular bloke who likes music.Build and Fit:
The Biggies are constructed almost entirely out of plastic mold, except the rear plate which appears to be metal (probably aluminium). The are finished in a pearlescent black paint, which gives it a premium look.
The mold is essentially two pieces (back and front) glued together. The joint surface is not a perfect; a slight overlap on one side is observed (May not be the same with all pieces). The back plate look to be aluminium and it also contains a vent.
The ear-tip extension is fairly short. While tip is around 4mm, it gradually becomes bigger till the point it meets the driver enclosure. This can cause some discomfort after some 90 minutes and hence they may not be suitable for extended listening sessions, if you are trying to insert them deep to get a seal.
But, apparently, the Biggie is not intended to be experienced with a tight seal. According to Lee from Venture Electronics, the Biggie has to be used with a wide vented, short tip that does not give a good seal and allows movement of air between the tip and the ear canal.
Tried with this way, the Biggie can be worn for a bit longer, provided you like their sound signature.
If you try to get a good seal, you'll notice that there is too much mid-bass that makes the sound boomy and unpleasant. So the rest of the review will be with based on how the Biggie is intended to be worn.
Review of the Sound signature:
The package has too cables - Espresso and SPC. With the treble rolled off pretty early, I don't fancy the sound with the Espresso cable, so the rest of the review is based purely on how the Biggie sounds on the SPC cable.
Lee, from VE, recommends 50 hours of burning in; my Biggie at the time of this review has at least twice that amount. Did burning-in make a difference? NO!
The Lows are all about the mid-bass - 100Hz to 500 Hz. Below 100 Hz the bass is rolled off and no Sub-bass can be heard, yet due to the shallow, vented fit, the lows will not satisfy a basshead. The bass is noticeably slow too. In a track like 'Das Spiegel' by 'The Chemical Brothers', the slowness of the driver is quite evident; you don't get to hear the impulse sounds, but the track sounds like any other regular track. Also, the instrument separation is something that is not convincing in the Biggie and on this track, it is quite exposed. On 'Royals' by Lorde, all I hear is vocals accompanied by faint beats at the background. If everyone heard 'Royals' on the Biggie, it may not have become a chart-buster. Same is the case with 'Madness' by Muse; the beats and bass synthesizer are just accompaniments to vocals.
The Mids are the only positive about the Biggie, in my opinion. Due to the amplified mid-bass region and the slowness of the driver, a good amount of lower mids tend to get masked by the Upper bass region. Due to this, the vocals don't stand out separately but become a part of the music. But the mids are not all that great; they are amplified till about 1k or 2k range and then the upper mids around 5k are rolled off. This can result the voices being shouty at time on tracks and gives them a tinny sound. Since the upper mids between 2k and 8k range are rolled off, you don't get the clarity of the voice. "Bassically" by Tei Shi is another track where the vocals refuse to shine. But it does well on acoustic tracks like "One" by Ed Sheeran, where not too many instruments are present that represent the lower frequency range. Ed Sheeran's voice on this track sounds nice, albeit a bit shouty.
The Highs are quite disappointing. On a track like 'Get Lucky' by Daft Punk, you miss all the minute details along with the nice low bass. All you again hear is the vocals again and the occasional hi-hats around the 3k frequency, as rolling off starts just a bit after this. On a track like 'Rose Rouge' by St Germain, the slowness of the driver is again very evident as the hi-hats decay very slow, and once the trumpet/saxophone starts, the hi-hats disappear in the background. 'Sultans of Swing' sounds too warm and the microdetails are hardly present and the instruments are not separated that well; lacks the airiness and sparkle that is present in this song.
Coming to the soundstage, the width is decent and the sound can radiate just outside the head, but not as wide as you would expect with the recommended vented fit. The depth is not that great though.
Comparisons with other single DD IEMs:
KZ ATR - I bought this one for $5 from Gearbest. These IEMs are also single DD with an over-the-ear fit. Compared to the Biggies, these have a nice and deep bass response and a better treble. The Highs are rolled off in the ATRs as well, but not very early and offers enough details, but lack in airiness. The mids are recessed to some extent, but still a better sounding signature.
FiiO EX1 - Well, this one costs $100 and is a single DD IEM as well. This comparison is mainly due to the fact that the Biggie might be priced above this price point in the future. Coming back to the comparison, the FiiO EX1 wins hands down across the frequency spectrum - deep and fast bass, precise mids, sparkly and airy treble. Also, it possess one of the best soundstage in any IEM I have tried so far. In fact, FiiO EX1 is my favorite IEM for indoor use.
UiiSii HM7 - I purchased these for $5.59 from Gearbest. At this price, these come with a metal body and sound eons better than the Biggie. These lack sub-bass as well, but the mid-bass is quite satisfying, and the highs are excellent too. Mids are slightly recessed and the soundstage is not that wide. But this little one has an excellent sound signature and is the best Bang for buck in budget IEM range.
Other significant points
- Lee, from VE, says that you either love the Biggie or you hate it. I concur with him; there are some folks who love them and then there are folks like me.
- There is a myth in the FB group that Biggies are quite hard to drive and benefit from a good amp. That is not true - The Biggies are rated 80 ohm and are easy to drive and quite loud through mobile phones. My LG G6 drives them with ease even with the Quad DAC turned off. They benefit very little from an amp.
- The soundstage width was hyped to be extremely huge in the FB group; I beg to differ - it is just decent. KZ ATR and **** XBA 6in1 have better width even with a completely sealed fit.
- The SPC cable has memory wire which I found irritating in the beginning, but quite used to it now.
- The SPC cable is slightly prone to slight micro-phonics and doesn't hinder the music experience.
- The Espresso has no micro-phonics whatsoever and easily the most comfortable cable.
- The SPC and the cable with mic come with a nice chin slider.
- Another myth on the FB group is that burning-in "opens" them up. Well, it is just a myth!
Conclusion:
I was quite excited about the Biggie based on the hype created in the VE clan in FB, but was left very disappointed. Though I liked it initially, it just took me a couple of other good IEMs in the sub $20 range to change my opinion. I rarely use them now; in fact I took them out, after a long hibernation, just for this review.
Going by the talks on the FB group, there are chances that this IEM might be priced in the $100-150 range after the initial combo offer is over. At this price range, it would definitely not be my cup of tea.
Trick is to use a tip, a size smaller than what you would for a shallow fit IEM, to get better isolation and comfort while getting the best of the bass boosted DF tuning.