Tripowin Leá

Since the basics have been covered by the previous reviewers, I'll focus on sound.

You find the whole story at https://www.audioreviews.org/tripowin-lea-review-jk/

Equipment used: MacBook Air | Earstudio HUD 100 (low gain) with AudioQuest JitterBug FMJ.




Great channel balance.

Leá’s signature is warm-neutral, organic, but notes are lean. It is unbalanced to my ears with lack of bass dynamics and too much of an edge in the mids.
Bass is exceptionally tight and clean right down to the lowest frequencies, although it does not reach very deep into the sub-bass. Slam is lacking. The low end lacks bite and is too polite.

This politeness is turned into the opposite in the midrange. Vocals are lean, and pointy, though overall still reasonably organic. They are attenuated by an over-energized upper midrange and lack weight, though note definition is ok. Call it shouty, there is too much harshness and some body lacking in the mids for my gusto.

The midrange is simply a too edgy and lean. When turning the volume up to reach satisfaction in terms of vocals body, all I get is bleeding eardrums. It is like the torture of Sisyphus as the desired result is never achieved. At low to moderate volumes, the midrange is fine, though.
Treble rolls off way to early. Cymbals are frequently buried and lack substance. They are clean but lack weight.

Stage is relatively narrow and has decent depth and height. Imaging, instrument placement, and separation are surprisingly good. So are clarity and resolution. But bass kick is lacking, painted over and taken hostage by the strident, over-energized mids, which knocks the whole experience out of balance.

In comparison, the $20 Astrotec Vesna sound fuller, wider, and smoother — just way more cohesive. Notes are also much better rounded in the Vesna.

Concluding Remarks​

The Leá turn out to be too aggressive in the midrange and too dull at the bottom end for my ears. Some smoothness in the midrange is urgently needed. Technicalities are surprisingly good. They are average iems for listening at low to intermediate volumes in their price category. Build and haptic of the earpieces are excellent, though.
In summary, Leá offers nothing new, sonically. Another one for the lowest drawer in my desk.
Until next time…keep on listening!

Disclaimer​

The Leá was provided by Linsoul Audio for this review and I thank them for that.

Get it from Linsoul Audio.

The review sample was kindly provided by Linsoul in exchange for my honest and subjective evaluation.
The price is $25.99 and you can order it by Linsoul, using the following non affiliate link Linsoul.

Tripowin

Tripowin, which was established in 2019, is essentially a Linsoul in-house brand.
Reading at their website we learn that "At Tripowin, we use the latest and most advanced driver technologies in order to deliver incredible audio performance at a budget price. By focusing on uncompromising driver quality and engineering experience, we have created numerous audio solutions that have garnered international praise. Partnering closely with the audiophile community, we are always striving to create the best that sound beyond their price. It’s great audio that doesn't cost an arm."



Leá

The Leȧ is a budget friendly earphone that utilizes the latest generation of liquid crystal polymer (LCP) diaphragm driver to produce outstanding tonal balance and audio resolution.
This is the same 10mm driver used by several extremely popular models from other manufacturers, but they have further enhanced its performance by creating an acoustic chamber rather than a standard sound tube.
By eliminating the sound tube, they are able to reduce unwanted harmonic resonance while creating a more life-like soundstage and depth. Compared to previous generations of 10mm dynamic drivers, this LCP diaphragm has tighter surface tension and resistance, allowing for much quicker response and audible improvements in sound quality.



Build quality, appearance and fit

The compact and lightweight ear shells, which are made from metal, have an anatomically shaped design that follows the natural curves of the ear.
The sound tube is quite extended so the ear shell can be flushed quite deep in the ear cavity, ensuring a stable, tight fit and good passive noise attenuation.
The Leá feels comfortable and offers a stress free using experience, even after long listening sessions.
That is, if you are happy and comfortable with the three only pairs of ear tips that are included inside the package.

The design is rather uninspiring and dull, the black painted shells have a barely visible "Tripowin" logo engraved on them and they make a non attractive visual contrast with the shiny silver cable connectors.
An all black cable should be a better match.



Cable

The Leȧ comes standard with an upgraded silver-plated oxygen-free copper cable.
Using a 2-pin connector, the cable is interchangeable, allowing the user to mix and match the cable, as well as ensuring the longevity of the IEM.
The cable is thick and heavy with a bulky and ugly, plastic, splitter while the 3.5mm plug is not gold-plated but otherwise is well made, it seems durable and has low microphonic noise.
The 2-pin connectors seem to be fragile and frequent plugging and unplugging should be rather avoided.



Accessories

The Leá comes in a simple package with three pairs of eartips and two extra, removable ear-hooks to assist with the fit.
A carrying pouch is not included.

Listening impressions

As per usual practice I left Leá playing music for 150 hours before listening.
The Leá is easy to drive and most of the listening was done with the FiiO KA1, Periodic Audio Rhodium and ddHiFi TC35B.

As uninspiring and humble the Leá might look the opposite is to be said of the sound which in contrast is inspiring and musically attractive.
The sound performance comes as a real surprise with a well balanced tuning that has decent technicalities for such a low cost earphone.
The Leá sounds coherent, smooth and slightly laid back with a natural and lifelike timbre, something rare at this price point where most earphones are heavily V-shaped or too bassy.



The bass is well extended without too much of a roll off, then gently downsloping to the lower mid-range keeping things clear and well defined without intruding into the mids.
The Leá is not a bass cannon but nonetheless a satisfying performer with modern music while the bass stays tight and controlled enough with plenty of clarity and well organized layering as to sound great with most demanding genres like classical music.
It is not too fast but you can't call it sluggish either, decay is quite relaxed and natural while the presentation can become powerful enough when it is needed without any severe boominess or loss of control.
The texture is full bodied and all instruments sound intense and weighty, not lean and fake.

The mid range is balanced and natural with a touch of upper mid-range emphasis that aids with clarity and vividness but thankfully you are not going to hear any shouting females or anything else annoyingly forward.
Voices and instruments sound very engaging with a harmoniously intense expression, realistic timbre and weighty texture.
The Leá is great for listening to vocal and choral music of all kinds like Antonio Vivaldi's sacred oratorio "Juditha Triumphans"



Treble is smooth and subdued but not too much as to sound muted and blunt.
The Leá is warm and slightly laid back but you can't say that it is lacking in vividness however it is not that sparkling and agile.
This is not a brilliant sounding earphone nor the most extended and analytical one but on the other hand it is fairly easy to the ear and forgiving of poor quality.
What mostly stands out about the Leá are the naturalness of the timbre, the tonal accuracy and the realistic timing of the decay.
The soundstage is decently wide and spacious with a pretty much accurate imaging and it can convincingly reproduce the ambience and the scale of the music.

Compared to the Jade Audio (FiiO) JD3 ($20)

The JD3 is more luxurious and beautiful looking with a bullet shaped design and a finish of higher quality.
It is less bulky and more lightweight but the Leá is equally comfortable thanks to the anatomical shape.
The cable on the JD3 has an inline microphone and is permanently attached to the ear shells but it is of high quality and certainly more lightweight and thinner than the Leá cable.
The JD3 is cheaper but it comes with a simple carrying pouch and four pairs of ear tips.



Sound-wise the JD3 tuning is more mainstream than the Leá with a "V" shaped sound signature.
Sub-bass reaches deeper while there is an extra bass / mid-bass emphasis but not at the expense of mid range clarity.
On the other hand, the Leá is more neutrally tuned in the bass region with better overall clarity, deeper layering and increased control however it is not as impactful and fun sounding.
Then the Leá is more forward in the upper-mids followed by a subdued treble whereas the JD3 is exactly the opposite.
The Leá has better mid range consistency with a natural timbre while the JD3 sounds less intense, more distant and slightly more artificial.
In contrast though, the JD3 is more brilliant sounding, faster and agile with extra clarity, better extension and deeper detail retrieval.
Both are definitely good for the asking price, with strong personalities that differentiate them from the crowd.
The JD3 is the party animal where the Leá is the more sophisticated classical music companion.

In the end

The Leá is a $25 earphone with a good price to performance ratio and a surprisingly mature tuning which will appeal to people who mostly appreciate natural timbre and tonal accuracy.
A nice addition to a well saturated market where everything sounds more or less the same, the Leá can be rightfully considered as your first reference sounding earphone.

Test playlist

Copyright - Petros Laskis 2022.

I should start off this review by saying that I never really wrote a review for an IEM before, so please take my opinions and descriptions with a grain of salt. My hearing is not great, either, but from what I have heard of these so far, I am quite impressed at the price I bought them for ($42.99 with custom cable).

NOTE: This review has been considerably edited since the time I own this pair of IEMs. With around 7-8 months under my belt with them, I can now say what I like and don't like a bit more confidently. Still, though, please take me with a grain of salt.

Packaging:
The packaging is rather simplistic and nothing that would significantly stand out. For $26 I guess you shouldn't expect a lot, but what's included is enough. Once you remove the foil cover, you get access to the foam cutout with the IEMs, a couple of spare tips and under the Tripowin logo paper sheet, the stock cable and silicone earhooks. You may have already noticed the other box on the left, and that's the custom cable (Zonie) I've ordered. I'll get to that later.
I think that this packaging can work very well with better materials, however. I'm not exactly a box guy and I recycle almost everything I can, so anything that's small and easy to dispose of is a big win in my book. If Tripowin decides to go for more environmentally-friendly materials, I can definitely see this working.

Build:
The IEMs themselves are actually rather impressive in their build quality. I've handled a few pieces of in-ears before, and this one stands out, cause it actually makes me feel confident in their quality. One thing to note is that the nozzles are also quite extended outwards (at least compared to my Panasonic RZ-S500s, with which the low nozzle extension cripples their comfort).
The same cannot be said for the stock cable, however. As soon as I removed the piece of plastic holding it together, it tried to uncoil and reach out at me from the box. I've tried using the Leás with the stock cable and I can't say I would recommend it - it tugged at everything possible and loved to tangle up. A custom cable can handle this problem quite nicely - the Zonie that I use is a remarkable improvement, albeit still around the average in quality, if we're talking custom cables. It's far more pliable, does not hold its shape in a particular degree and feels far nicer, albeit a more careful eye can notice minor quirks such as the individual wires splitting off a bit earlier than some would like. I have not bothered using the stock cable at all since trying them out for my first time.
There is also an issue that you should probably be aware of, depending on your climate. I move a lot between my current living place (around 700m above sea level) to the city I frequent, which is barely 200m above. There's a rather large difference in moisture, which unfortunately translates into the filters. This issue seems to, sadly, affect most Tripowin IEMs. This leads to the filters condensing over and blocking off some of the sound, which can really only be fixed by a complete filter swap. On the bright side, using filters such as those from the Tanchjim Tanya also tames the top-end a little bit more, possibly giving the Leá the edge they need. Depending on your climate and your ears, this will either not be a problem at all, or it will be a dealbreaker you should be aware of.

Comfort, fit:
The Leás are actually deceptively small. I managed to put them into my, for context, rather small ears without many problems, and the fit with the already installed tips is also decently sufficient. They seal reasonably well with some time to adjust them in my ears, although their comfort, or perhaps lack thereof, is something you should take into account. The tips are fine, but nothing outstanding that will make you want to wear these for hours on end. The tips are also not very easy to put on the nozzle.
If you're going to use custom tips, I believe the comfort of these would be quite competent and easygoing. I can manage about four to five hours tops before I really have to take them out.

Sound:
I'll put a TLDR here. Not V-shaped, leaning towards treble and mid-high frequencies. If you want something with more bass, I would recommend to look elsewhere.

I've tried them plugged into my phones (Xiaomi Poco X3 (running MIUI, now Lineage 19), Xiaomi Redmi 4X), Bluetooth DAC (FiiO BTR5 2021) and audio interface (M-Audio AIR 192|4), and they all reached a very comfortable listening volume about 30-50% way in (except the FiiO, which was at about 50/60 on low gain throughout every listening session I've had with them).

Other than that..I'd say for the price point I expected something in the classic veil of "give it bass, give it treble, forget 'bout the mids". Thankfully, that's not the case, and I actually find the Leá quite refreshing in this regard. Sub-bass is quite well controlled although not very strong. Personally, I don't mind, albeit a part of me would have liked a very minor increase, around 1-2db. I have moved from songs I'd love bass in a long time ago, but if you like music such as that, these don't have a tone you would find particularly pleasing.
However, I have found myself to enjoy the treble on these quite a lot. They feel detailed and decently clear, and surprisingly not harsh or tiring to my ears. This will absolutely be different for other people - I've got a couple kinks in my hearing as-is. Cranking the volume too high will make the treble sound quite hot, perhaps even harsh, at least according to the people I tested these on. If you're treble-sensitive, this is also an area you should be aware of. Timbre is about average. Nothing hit me as completely incorrect, but it's all just kinda okay.

Soundstage..well, it's a closed-off IEM. I didn't expect much and the result is still quite decent. Nothing outstanding being offered here.

Conclusion:
I quite like the Leá. Well, actually, I kind of love them. For their price, the tone they offer is quite different to most similarly-priced offerings, not being filled with bass.

Would I say these are the best under fifty dollars? No. Quite frankly, I don't own enough sub-50 IEMs to say that with certainty - the CCA CRA+ are on my radar right now. What I can absolutely say is that these offer a sound distinct and different enough to stand out in the sea of KZs, Blons and other V-shaped IEMs.

Weren't it for the stock cable, I probably would've given these a 4.5/5 instead of a 4. They are absolutely a pair you should consider, though.