INTRO

Ambitious and hungry, the HIDIZS MS5 Dark Angel flagship emerges with hopes and dreams of chanting hymns from the shadows. Utilizing four quality balanced armatures from Sonion combined with a custom liquid crystal kevlar fiber dynamic driver, the HIDIZS MS5 is designed to extract the finest essence from all your recordings like a vampire.

HIDIZS aims to be the one stop shop everything portable audio company with past excellent products we reviewed such as the S9 Pro DAC and the AP80 Pro X. The HIDIZS MS5 is the shot of Irish cream in your coffee with quick bass speed, a sprinkle of lively midrange and exacting microdynamics in the treble worthy of a premium title.

Disclaimer: HIDIZS provided these directly to Audioreviews prior to the pre-sale. We chose to skip the affiliate links, donating to any Super PACS, having wisdom teeth removed, and waiting in long lines. Pre-sale pricing is $379 directly from HIDIZS starting April 21,2023 12am EST, after pre-sale period ends retail is listed at $399 and will be available from other retailers.

PACKAGE CONTENTS

Inside the package of the HIDIZS MS5 Dark Angel you will get a premium accessory kit. The earpieces are a one piece anodized aluminum alloy shell designed to reduce fingerprints and maintain a long lasting durable finish. They are large and bulky which makes for handling easy, but those with smaller ears might find them too large.

The universal shape is not as tight fighting as the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk or the Shozy Form 1.4 which both fit me better. The MS5 right ear piece requires some readjustment from time to time. This is normal for me on a majority of sets. The Moondrop and Shozy tuck into my crevices better, where the MS5 floats. Fitment is an extremely personal experience.

Adorned on the outside for all the world to see, the dark angel panel face plate is made with a skin friendly resin, although the only time it comes into contact with skin is via fingertips from inserting into your ears. The Dark Angel nomenclature comes from this face plate, but I cannot help un-see a Venom Marvel character, or forgive me a bicycle helmet. Who knew we needed ear protection without the hearing protection.

Sandwiched between the aluminum cavity and the resin face plate is a rose gold colored mesh that is for decoration only. All venting is provided through a controlled vent port that is of exact size to make sure both earpieces have no discrepancy between sizing that would affect the bass response. The external vent port appears to be a white resistive balanced armature filter damper. Since it is molded in, modding with a different damper is unlikely.

Premium detachable cabling of the HIDIZS MS5 is made from a mixture of 504 strands of 6N single crystal silver plated copper and 6N copper braided to form a total of 8 stands of wires sheathed in black environmentally friendly PVC giving it a shiny darker appearance with a sticky feeling.

The cable is weighty yet flexible and combined with the formed ear hooks stays firmly planted. The chin slider is for decoration, if it were open completely instead of having wire channels it would freely move, but it binds against the cable too much so I opted not to mess with it.

This is one area that is somewhat problematic as the weight combined with the aggressive ear hook deforms my ear and applies extra pressure. For longer listening sessions users will find it irritating. I wish they would have opted for something lighter, but still of the same quality. Consider replacing it.

With a plethora of tuning options between the included library of ear tips for Balanced, Bass and Vocals, the HIDIZS MS5 also includes three pairs of tuning nozzles screwed into a piece of aluminum plate with laser engraved text to help identify.

I would have preferred the color name included on the plate and adding a spot for the balanced pneumatic gold colored nozzles. At least it was a much more premium way to include them as opposed to in a plastic bag or attached to a piece of plastic like the Drop JVC HA-FDX1.

The replaceable pneumatic sound tuning filter- as HIDIZS refers to the nozzles – have a piece of open-celled foam in the balanced and bass pairs, while the silver treble colored ones have none. The red bass pair contains a higher density amount to cut back on treble letting the bass become slightly more prominent. For those who really like to tweak, you can experiment with your own materials such as cotton, gauze, other foams, etc. You might want to consider a little removal thread locker to prevent them from unscrewing and getting lost.

As I peered into the open cavity while changing these sound tuning nozzles, I can see 4 guided tube openings via a plastic insert. One of those tube openings includes a white colored resistive balanced armature damper used to tune and tame resonances of the balanced armatures.

It uses 3 different balanced armatures from Sonion, the E50DT for highs, 2389 (dual armature) for mid/highs, and the 17A003 for the lower midrange. The combined dual armature is how they count four. The 10mm Kevlar center cone attached by a liquid crystal surround dynamic takes over the low end.

The three different sets of eartips for the HIDIZS MS5 each serve for different purposes. The Vocal eartips have a shorter thicker stem and a wider opening to allow more sound through at a closer point to the exit and allow for placement closer to your eardrum if allowed by fitment.

The ones marked Bass and Balanced appear similar for stem and opening sizing, the only difference I detect is the black bass ear tips have a thicker outer shell to better retain shape and to minimize sound leakage.

What flagship IEM would not be complete without a protective carrying case, and the HIDIZS MS5 provides a roomy premium leather zippered case. Inside it is coated with a fleece material to prevent moisture build up. Plenty roomy, the mesh pocket can hold some of the accessories. It’s  large for a pants pocket, but fine in a coat or bag. It’s the same size as the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk carrying case.

SOUND

Tested primarily with the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X , SMSL DO100/HO100/SU-9

Seems fitting to pair the HIDIZS MS5 with the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X for excellent power output, however I also tested with the LG G8. One thing to consider is that this is a low impedance earphone spec’d at 5.3 ohms, it does dip further to ~4 ohms around 1khz. That might be hard for some devices to drive properly in a different sense as output impedance of the device can impact high frequency response roll-off.

The overall sound signature of the HIDIZS MS5 is balanced with medium levels of boosted bass and elevated pinna gain. For once I get to not call this a Harman tuning, as they notch out an area that can be sensitive to some around 4Khz, and also ease into the upper midrange pinna gain instead of a straight climb to the peak and keep it fairly level out to 9khz. For the bulk of my listening I selected the balanced ear tips and balanced nozzles.

The bass nozzles soften the treble giving a more relaxed and non-fatiguing listening session, but the bass is more dominant and fuller. The treble nozzles allow free flow of everything the Sonion balanced armatures have to offer and really bring orchestral works to life with their light and airy capabilities.

Bass is full and warm, extension reaches the bottom and feels centered to provide nice balance between mid-bass and sub-bass. They have similarly wonderfully tight and controlled bass as the Shozy Form 1.4, but with the sub-bass of the Blessing 2 Dusk. The elevation avoids sounding too boomy and coming from some recent sets that boosted only the lowest last octave that could present as thin sounding, the HIDIZS MS5 is anything but. The tapering off is gradual but not bleeding, blending with the Sonion BA well. For me it tapers off before vocals start sounding too muddy and honky, instead a little chesty. If I EQ out around 250Hz it sounds closer to the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk.

Vocals deliver all the nuances and never sound strained unless the recording was over-driven. I definitely recommend using the vocal ear tips, as the upper registers are tamed with the smaller bores. Since it eases into the treble, the vocals feel a bit pulled back. The lower mid-range upper mid-bass tends to pull forward the staging. It is noticeable when switching back and forth with the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk.

Sliding into the treble, the HIDIZS MS5 delivers all the nuances you expect out of a flagship. While it may not have the air like qualities of the 7HZ Timeless, it delivers a superbly brilliant upper end. Listening to Queen’s Crazy Little Thing Called Love, you get a real sense of space as the drums sticks tap the edge of the drums, something the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk is also capable of.

One of my other favorite hybrids the Shozy Form 1.4 does not deliver that kind of technical ability to resolve that level of detail. I can really pick out the nuances of the different cymbal strikes, or the fluttering of the pads and levers opening and closing in a solo saxophone.

TECHNICALITIES

For classical fans or even acoustic rock fans, height information comes through excellent as I listen to Georgia Peach Acoustic Alchemy when the chimes in the beginning come in, the higher chimes propagate higher. The HIDIZS MS5 is a high resolution set without feeling over-blown or fatiguing sound wise. For those that find it to have too much presence might actually want to use the bass tuning filters.https://www.audioreviews.org/hidizs-ms5-review-2-review-ap/

When comparing the HIDIZS MS5 to the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk, they are nearly identically wonderful. The difference between the two becomes apparent in the staging. Since the HIDIZS MS5 has more upper mid-bass, the staging feels U shaped, with the extra bass pulling some instruments closer around the edges hence what I call U shape not to be confused with U shaped frequency tuning.

The Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk has a more even or straight position. As a result overall the HIDIZS MS5 sounds wide and forward, with depth front to back good, but overall the whole stage is closer.

Layering front to back is excellent with nothing ever feeling congested. Microdynamic detail retrieval is excellent. Nothing ever feels out of place. HIDIZS utilized excellent drivers and implemented the Sonion to their fullest ability. The multi-BA budgets do not even stand close, and I would hope not at this mid-tier pricing level ($150-500).

A HAPPY ENDING

The HIDZS MS5 Dark Angel swoops in and steals my attention away from my other favorites. The resolution and brilliance is superb. The use of the excellent Sonion balanced armatures combined with the fullness of the dynamic driver is a good match. The things some might not find appealing are the thicker lower midrange/upper midbass transition, forwardness of the stage, the heavy weight of the premium styled cable, and the bulkiness of the size.

Sometimes less is more, but overall I give it an A/B in tuning and an A- in technical abilities. One of my only favorites from HIDIZS. For those that prefer a diffuse field tuning from Etymotic or the Harman tuning, you will find these more energetic, but in my opinion in all the right places.

SPECIFICATIONS

GRAPHS

• Left vs Right
• Tuning filter comparison
• HIDIZS MS5 vs Shozy Form 1.4 vs Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk
• Impedance Plot

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

Get it from the HIDIZS store.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

The post HIDIZS MS5 Dark Angel Review (1) – Venom Protection appeared first on Music For The Masses.

INTRO

The TinHifi C3 is finally a mid-budget IEM tested at $49 that sheds the atrociously uncomfortable aluminum shell spawned from the OG T2. Utilizing an in-vogue PU+liquid crystal polymer (LCP) dynamic driver the C3 is a tonally friendly, simple and effective “Harman tuned” technically competent midfield IEM with minor blemishes in the treble region.

PACKAGE CONTENTS

The TinHifi C3 comes with a half braided half loose twisted silver plated detachable 2 pin cable. It has just enough stiffness to resist tangling but does coil somewhat. The chin slider moves freely with minor resistance.

The plastic housing is a smoothly finished 3D printed shell with a tastefully done carbon fiber faceplate that is devoid of any seams. Not overly showy in comparison to the Nicehck Bro carbon fiber look, it strikes a good balance between isolation and fitment. I stopped using the T4 because the shape isn’t a good fit for long periods of time, so this is a welcome concept.

The eartips are nothing to write home about, olive shaped with decent firmness. They have a short stem and medium bore opening. The package does not include multiple types, instead opting for 2 times of the usual S/M/L sizing. Missed opportunity to provide value if different styles had been included.

Tested with LG G8, HIDIZS XO and SMSL DO100/HO100.

SOUND

It seems most IEMs I have reviewed as of late have a mild bass boost and the Tinhifi C3 is no exception. Bass is punchy with good body it could be tightened up for improved speed. I do enjoy the rumble it provides to avoid sounding to dry, but it is not a basshead set or sub-bassy.

Lower midrange on the TinHifi C3 has good weight, sounding full and luscious. Midrange clarity has good depth and resolution sounding very natural.

Moving up the spectrum, the TinHifi C3 has a syrupy sweetness that is not tainted by peaky abnormalities in the response curve. The pinna rise is perfectly situated to prevent forwardness but it is modeled after the Harman target. Orchestral works sound natural with good timbre, but

The TinHifi C3 treble sounds mellow, inoffensive, lacking sparkle and airiness, it sounds washed over. Overall resolution and detail is what I would expect in this price range and sits in the background of mixes.

Sometimes cymbal crashes and horns do not have the bite to sound realistic. Some people might prefer this type of sound especially if looking for a relaxed listening session. I equate this as listening to a good sounding full range driver vs using a tweeter to cover the top end.

Overall it was touted as being tuned to follow the Harman curve, but I think this is more of a return to the older Chi-fi tuning from 4 years ago. Not everything has to be tuned to the Harman curve although it was studied as a very pleasing tuning (does not mean correct) for a good sample size of listeners.

TECHNICALITIES

The TinHifi C3 sounds closed in and not particularly wide sounding, depth spacing is great however. Timbre is quite good, but due to the washed out top end you loose some of the detail required to really differentiate instruments.

Isolation is above average, but since it leans towards a universal shape there is some loose areas not covered by the shell that allows some sound leakage from the outside unlike the KZ X Crinacle CRN shell.

COMPARISONS

TinHifi T2+ (~$60)

I thought we should compare a past TinHifi offering to see if they are making improvements with the Tinhifi C3. The T2+ was a well received neutral offering, the C3 is more V shaped. Midrange is more present on the T2+, the C3 however sounds cleaner in this area.

Bass feels lighter on the T2+, treble is grittier, and soundstaging feels compressed compared to the TinHifi C3. Cable looks similar but the C3 looks thicker and resists tangling a little better. The shell on the T2+ was nice and smooth but fits loosely compared to the C3.

CCA CRA+ (~$30)

The TinHifi C3 has a clearly nicer cable than the basic CCA/KZ cable on the CCA CRA+. The fitment of the CCA CRA+ is more universal than the TinHifi C3, but my right ear struggles on the CCA-highly personal.

The CCA CRA+ more energetic sounding due to the heightened treble boost higher in the presence region. Bass has more decay sounding bigger on the CRA+, it does make the C3 sound tighter with a cleaner finish. It’s like the CRA+ adds some reverb to sound like a bigger room. The upper midrange is less strained on the C3 where the CRA+ adds some zing making it edgier.

KZ X CRINACLE CRN ZEX PRO (~$37)

Bass level and tonality of the TinHifi C3 and the Zex Pro are comparable, the speed seems relatively close as well. Where they differ is the midrange on the Zex Pro becomes more prominent especially with electric guitars and snares have more feature time.

The Tinhifi C3 adds further treble for cymbals, so the Zex Pro sounds really cut off up top. The KZ X Crinacle CRN also garbles the cymbals while the Tinhifi C3 keeps it together. Technically the TinHifi C3 does a better job, but not exceptionally better.

OUTRO

TinHifi C3 checks all the popular boxes of universal shell, “Harman tuned”essque, and a pretty good LCP single dynamic. For those that do not like the Harman tuning, need more bass or more detailed treble look elsewhere.

While I am surprised the LCP fails to deliver more detailed highs, I look at the price tag of $49 and tell myself that seems fair considering the Moondrop Aria costs double the Tinhifi C3. Solid budget upgrade offering if you have $50 to spend.

SPECIFICATIONS

GRAPH

• Left vs Right (New IEC711 coupler, gone is the tube coupler with Dayton UMM-6 mic)

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

I am thankful for Linsoul providing the TINHIFI C3 free of charge for experimentation.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

The post TinHifi C3 Review (1) – Peer Pressure Prevails appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Gear of the Year: 2022 marks the blog’s fourth year. We collectively published 100-150 articles, mainly product reviews, but also technical information (such as earphone modding). Apart from receiving review units from manufacturers and sellers, we also purchased a lot…and we borrowed from audiophile friends and colleagues.

Our list of earphone reviews is going towards 400, which is a very useful database. And one of the world’s biggest. In the DAC and amplification department we have also reached a respectable 70.

While we shrank from 8 to 6 authors, we essentially doubled our viewer numbers and currently record well over 1000 daily individual blog visitors (1377 on Black Friday 2022). But we remain humble, continue viewing our hobby as labour of love and focus on information for you, the reader, while not selling out.

Another very popular list is our Wall of Excellence, which hosts gear not approved by one of us, but by the whole team. This is a useful filter for you and should give you confidence in your buying decisions.

And yes, we searched for and found an exclusive sponsor in HiFiGo, who help us with our basic operating cost (web hosting). We still chip a lot of our own money in for mailing between us reviewers, import charges etc.

By having a single sponsor (and not Google ads) paying us a moderate flat fee, we don’t rely on viewer numbers. For you, this means no popups and no ads between paragraphs, nothing in your way when reading our articles. All advertisement takes place in the top toolbar and the sidebar. Feel free to check it out.

We also continue refraining from affiliate links as it still leaves a bad taste in our mouths.

As at the end of the previous years, we list our our personal favourites of 2022 – the portable audio we personally enjoyed most. There are no rules, we just tell you what we like. It does not have to be the latest. After all, the gear we use most is the best for us. Between us, the Dunu Zen, 7Hz Timeless, Final ZE3000, and Questyle M15 received the most mentionings. The Questyle M15 appears to be the most highly acclaimed dongle in the blogosphere period and may as well be the “Product of the Year” all around.

We don’t publish any “best of” lists as we have not tested all competitors in each category.

Enjoy this read and we wish you a happy and successful 2023!

We thank

And here we go…that’s what we enjoyed in 2022…

Alberto Pittaluga… Bologna, ITALY

My 18 readers know that I’m much more into enjoying better sound than into getting excited about sidegrades or other small changes from my existing preferences. I am the polar opposite of a marketing hype target individual – on pretty much any topic by the way. I mean: try and sell me a “better” (?) Moka coffee machine…

With that in mind, and considering that I’m not into this since yesterday evening, it’s quite logical that the list of the really significant items out of all those I come across over a year’s time is short. Here’s what I found in 2022 which is worth recommending.

IEMS

Intime Miyabi – a great piece of engineering ticking most if not all boxes for my tastes. Beyond details, one of the absolute best sound delivery experiences one can buy (well… some personal initiative is required to fetch it from Japan) below 500$… spending less than half of it. My report here.

RHA CL2 – I heard quite a few planar IEMs, and not a single one “closes the door” for me. Long story short, none offers me a well-articulated-enough sound experience out of the box, and none carries a driver good enough to be equalised into something I really like. The sole exception I ever came across yet is this RHA CL2 – a dated model indeed, which I had the venture to audition this year for my first time. More on this on my piece about it.

DAC/AMP Dongles

Questyle M15 – no doubt the “best overall quality” battery-less DAC/AMP (“dongle”) at any price. Paired with a small transport easily makes all sub-800$, and most sub-2K$ DAPs pointless in terms of sound quality delivery (some may still prefer “some” DAP for better pocketability convenience or specific features). Firstly reviewed in depth by Jurgen here, you can read my incremental notes here.

E1DA 9038SG3 and 9038D – the M15 is what it is, but it also is relatively expensive (almost 300€ once delivered to Italy). My previous experience taught that me that exclusively higher-tier (and price) dongles are able to deliver sound qualities worth investing in more money than the 9$ price tag asked for an Apple Dongle ($9). Then I found these two gems which fulfill the need for incredibly clean and powerful sound for less than half M15’s price, and 90% of its proficiency.

Biodegraded…Vancouver, CANADA

7Hz Timeless:
Despite a somewhat elevated and loose midbass, these have great overall tonal balance, smooth mids, excellent instrument separation and layering, and speed. Macrodynamics are on the soft side, which might not be for everybody; and the fit will be problematic for people with concha bowls on the smaller side. They work best with warmer, dynamic sources.

Durwood…Chicago, USA

Swimming in dongles I don’t have a favorite, Moodrop Dawn has the selectable gain, others like the Shanling UP3 have single and balanced outputs and controls. Take your pick. I would like selectable gain AND single ended/balanced outputs.

Desktop DAC goes to the SMSL C200 for best value and sound that hangs near the top dogs. I personally prefer separate pieces for the ability to have more connection options and swapping but for near double the price I don’t see double the performance. The SMSL SU-9 is excellent for me I ended up buying one on the second hand market. The SMSL DO100/HO100 is great too and bit more user friendly for the size.

For earphones I still love my Shozy Form 1.4 for the bass tuning, warm signature and superb fitment YMMV. There are lots of excellent performers if just factoring in sound and technical merits including the 7Hz Timeless and Moondrop Kato, but I struggle keeping them in place. For those starting out or not a lot to spend, my budget pick for what is available would be the CCA Lyra.

For TWS, I only have 3 pairs to compare-but if I don’t need ANC, I would pick the Moondrop Alice all day everyday. Review coming soon, they are a wireless Kato and they nailed all the important features (sound, battery life, control, fitment), form follows function.

Jürgen Kraus…Calgary, CANADA

In terms of earphones, I continue liking the JVC HA-FDX1, the Dunu Zen, and the Final E5000. The Zen remain my go-tos. New on my list are the LETSHUOER EJ7M (great allrounders), the Final A3000 & E3000, and the very articulate Dunu Talos. But the earphone I used most in 2022 is the superb Final ZE3000 TWS.

As to headphones, my Sennheiser HD 600 have received company by the Final Sonorous III. On the budget side, I added the excellent KTXPro1 to my Koss selection (Porta Pros, KPHi-30, and KSC75).

I am principally a “portable guy” who used to operate his iPhone with a dongle, mainly the AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt. Whilst the Cobalt remains a standard staple of mine, the excellent Questyle M15 (and here too) is a great alternative for my higher current-drawing headphones/earphones – and my personal product of the year 2022.

For driving full-sized headphones and single DD items, nothing beats the Apogee Groove. For Bluetooth DAC/amp, I exclusively use the very mature Qudelix-5K. And for earphone testing, I am still holding on to the totally underappreciated Earstudio HUD100.

The Hidizs AP80 Pro-X has proven a great dap for me, no matter if used alone or as transport with a dongle. The Sony NW-A55 with Mr Walkman firmware also remains in my collection of favourites. And the very crisp sounding Questyle QP1R remains my flagship dap. The biggest surprise for me was the Tempotec V6 dap…essentially a $500 device at half price.

For my desktop setup, I am holding on to EarMen Tradutto DAC in combination with the Burson Funk amp and AudioQuest analog and digital interconnects.

Kazi Mahbub Mutakabbir…Munich, GERMANY

Just like that, another year went by. This year was special for me as I got to visit High End Munich 2021 (which happened after a 3-year hiatus) and also got to meet some great reviewers and legends of the industry in person.

Best Headphones: This year, I have slowly transitioned from portable audio into desktop audio. A knock-on effect of that has been my growing headphone collection. What used to be a mere 4 headphones last year, has grown into a whooping 25 now.

Yup, I need another shelf.

Speaking of the best headphones, Hifiman HE-6se V2 got the most use this year from me. I still use the Sennheiser HD650 whenever I feel like relaxing, but for my playlist – the Hifimans absolutely slap!

That being said, they aren’t the best headphones that I’ve tried this year. That recognition goes to the venerable Stax SR-X9000. Still underrated in the summit-fi segment, these overtook Susvara for me in almost every aspect. They are build better, has better sense of space, bass is better defined and slams a bit harder, and of course – the ethereal treble is an absolute joy.

Too bad that the price tag (with energizer) makes these nigh-unobtainable for me. Doesn’t make them any less awesome, though.

Best IEMs: Dunu Zen remains my daily driver, and they scale tremendously with desk sources, so I am a happy camper.

Speaking of camps, Campfire Audio Holocene has sneaked their way into my daily rotation. Probably my most favorite Campfire Audio IEMs, ever. They deserve a lengthy, long-term review, which is in the pipeline.

This year I also had to wade through loads of “meh” IEMs, each mimicking a certain “scientifically perfect” (lol) curve in one way or another, and each sounding boring and unremarkable. But the one IEMs that kept the fire alive was the Softears Turii.

Exceptional in almost every sense, their fit is the biggest concern, but with Spinfit W1 tips (excellent tips btw, recommended) I found them stable enough to enjoy outdoors. Too bad that they’re discontinued.

The Softears Twilight is a spiritual successor of sorts. Doesn’t have the crazy sense of space that the Turii portray, but pretty much beats every other single dynamic I’ve tried under USD $1000 (and I have tried nearly all of the hyped ones by now). So yeah, Softears, take a bow!

Desktop DAC and Amp: Questyle CMA Fifteen takes the cake for the best all-in-one system that I’ve heard. Near-endgame for 99% out there I’d say. Drives almost everything with authority. What’s not to like? Oh yes, the price. Something’s gotta give after all.

As for standalone units, the best solid-state amp I’ve tried: Zaehl HM1. As for the best tube amp: Feliks Envy, or the Feliks Euforia AE. Two very different price-points, but both about the best tube amps you can buy right now.

DACs are a bit difficult for me to judge, and the ones I’ve tried this year couldn’t replace the Holo May L3 I tried last year, so that one still reigns supreme.

Portable DAC/Amp: Questyle came outta nowhere with the M15 (and here too) and seized the day. Nothing else comes close, really. On the higher side of the price, Chord Mojo 2 is an excellent device. For using with IEMs and moderately efficient headphones – that’s all you’ll ever need. The DAC section is kilobuck-level as well.

Surprise of the Year: Final ZE3000.

I do not like wireless stuff at all, mostly because of how poor and compressed 99% of them sound. This one caught be off-guard. I bought them only to review them, fully expecting to put them up for sale once the review is done.

Now, three months later, I carry them everywhere and despite the finicky touch controls, I keep coming back to them. Only the Sony WH-1000XM4 sound as good as them, and they cost 2x the price. To think that Final would come up with one of the best TWS IEMs around – didn’t see that one coming.

Then again, who else would be that methodical?

Loomis Johnson…Chicago, USA

IEMs:

Moondrop Starfield—my default rec to folks who ask me which <$100 phone to buy…big-sounding, with seamless coherence and as lot of PRAT.

7Hz Timeless—polarizing and imperfect (there’s some stridency at the highest frequencies), but technically very accomplished and highly resolving. The more I hear ‘em the more I dig ‘em.

Tin HiFi TWS Buds 3—light on features (no app, no ANC) but beautifully built and a really engaging listen, with very good imaging and instrument placement.

AXS Audio Professional Wireless Earbuds—generic-looking, with a modest soundstage, but probably the best-sounding TWS I’ve heard to date. 

Portable DAC/Dongles:

Xumee USB-C—lots of power and surprising finesse for less than the price of a six pack.

Hidisz S3Pro—a really refined performer which synergizes well with anything under 150 oHm.

Headphones:

1More Sonoflow Wireless ANC—you can pay a lot more for punchier sound or more tech features, but these are an awful lot of headphone for the money, with good noise-cancelling, an unforced natural tonality and fantastic battery life.

Koss KTXPro1—uber-comfortable and musical as hell; for $19 there’s no reason everyone shouldn’t own a pair.

Bluetooth Speakers:

Oontz Angle 3—diminutive, seemingly indestructible cheapo with surprisingly good bass output and an enveloping 3D soundstage.

Edifier R1280DB Bookshelf Speakers—I gave a set of these to the owner of a cannabis dispensary, whose customers rave incessantly about how good they sound even before imbibing.

Desktop DAC:

SMSL SU-6—a more than capable DAC, with excellent bass control and a very detailed (if occasionally overbright) high end; digital preamp and Bluetooth functionality are big plusses. Outstanding value.

KopiOkaya…SINGAPORE

The editor: although KopiOkaya retired a year ago (on his own terms), he keeps his eartips compendium up to date. His list has been a cornerstone of this block and its most successful article. It currently records somewhere between 80,000 and 100,000 views.

Best under $50 IEM:

7HZ SALNOTES ZERO

Best under $100 IEM:

DUNU KIMA

Best IEM of 2022:

SOFTEARS TURII Ti

Best dongle DAC/AMP of 2022:

QUESTYLE M15 (here and here)

Best portable DAP of 2022:

TEMPOTEC V6

Best budget DAC/AMP combo:

SMSL SH-9 THX AAA-888

Best desktop DAC of the 2022:

HOLO MAY KTE (KITSUNE EDITION)

Best desktop headphone amp of 2022:

QUESTYLE CMA FIFTEEN

Best eartips of the 2022

SPINFIT W1

Most outstanding audio product of 2022:

QUESTYLE M15 (here and here)

And This Was The Previous Year:

The post Gear Of The Year 2022 – Our Personal Favourites appeared first on Music For The Masses.

A device gets attached to this Wall of Excellence when based on our private and of course subjective experience it performs so well within its technical and price category as to even discourage considering homologous alternatives.

If it ain’t here, WE don’t want it!

Please note that our WoE will not be limited to devices we actually published a review of. Nonetheless, all WoE devices have for long time been or still are part of our operative gear.

We start small and plan to expand our wall according to merit.

This Site is being consistently updated…please bookmark it and keep checking back!

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In-Ear Monitors

Past excellences, now discontinued or superseded

Headphones

Digital Audio Players (“DAPs”)

Desktop Amplifiers

Desktop DACs

Desktop Integrated Headphone DAC/AMPs

Portable Headphone Amplifiers

Portable Integrated Headphone DAC/AMPs

Headphone DAC/AMP “Dongles”

Dongles are little DAC/amps without battery that are powered by their source device.

Past excellences, now discontinued or superseded

Accessories

The post Wall Of Excellence DRAFT appeared first on Music For The Masses.

INTRO

We have previously reviewed the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X DAP as well as their original AP80, but HIDIZS decided to release a red copper colored version in limited supply. Not entirely happy with the GUI on my Sony NW-A55 DAP, I obliged to see what the highly regarded digital audio player can do over the equally regarded Sony DAP. Jürgen already covered it very well so this is a second look at a fresh awesome color at a price of $269.

Disclaimer: Unit was provided free of charge by HIDIZS and they provided the high quality images and a non-affiliate discount code AUDIOREVIEWS5 if you purchase direct from their store. Otherwise you get to experience my unaltered opinions that are not always as appreciated by my better half.

GOOD & BAD

IMPORTANT OBSERVATIONS

The red copper HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X is a striking color and is limited to 499 units which is printed on the box, get it while you can. Ah the FOMO (fear of missing out) of a limited production run, always an interesting gamble as it surely drives sales, but also at the risk of losing sales for those that miss out. It is a really awesome color in person though and easier to spot in a dark bag. Given that it is constructed of red copper, like Pokemon it will slowly evolve oxidizing to a red brick color making it a collectible artwork according to HIDIZS. How long that takes is beyond my knowledge. In its current form it matches the color of a US penny.

I was totally unprepared for how heavy the HIDIZS AP80-Pro X is constructed, it feels as heavy as my phone but at a quarter of the physical size. If you are worried about damage, they do offer cases but currently only in Black or Blue…maybe a red copper case is in the works?

The Hiby OS 3.0 user interface is loaded with many tuning features and things I find useful like file based browsing and semi-easy playlist creation. However, it does not support M3U8 playlist files. Be prepared to do some conversions to M3U format. Also, you have to create a playlist on the device first so it makes a folder called “playlist_data” and then you can put your M3U playlists into there for it to recognize them. The other option is clicking on playlist files when using the file browser option.

This is a GUI limitation but the Hiby OS has trouble with long song titles/artists and it seems only PowerAmp on Android accommodates long song titles. I do not know if I am alone on this pet peeve, but I wish interfaces would either wrap, scroll or design the layout to fit longer text. The image below shows PowerAmp is slightly better at dealing with it. Note the display on the HIDIZ AP80 Pro-X is not that blurry in real life, my camera was not cooperating late at night.

Another feature I like but seems mundane, the TRRS 4 pin option to allow external controls to change track, play/pause etc. I use this when mowing the yard, out for a hike or generally on the move. The Sony NW-A55 is sorely missing this basic feature that we take for granted in smart phones.

QUIRKS

The HDIZS AP80 Pro-X constructed of a metal shell did not appreciate the extra static electricity generated from my gym attire, and would transmit blips of static just from walking with it in my workout shorts. I imagine one of their leather cases might minimize this possibility, unfortunately without a case to test this theory, just keep it in mind if you are more active than someone whose idea of exercise is walking the dog.

One time it was clicking while it played a DSD track, the problem went away when I started another track and returned to the DSD file. This is superficial so not something to break up over.

The bluetooth transmitter option froze on me and turned the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X off. It worked fine after it restarted so not sure what I did that caused it to throw a fit.

USB MODES

The HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X has 3 USB modes – Dock (Charging only), Storage Mode (transfer files), or Audio (USB DAC mode). The USB DAC mode adds further value to the AP80 Pro-X Swiss army knife device of having a highly competent USB DAC as well. Smart phones can’t do that.

SOUND

Compared to LG G8 and Sony NW-A55 using 7HZ Timeless, Shozy Form 1.4, Oppo PM-3

Given that the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X uses a slightly newer ES9219C compared to the ES9218P found on the LG G8, it is hard to really discern any differences sonically. If anything it has a slightly cleaner noise floor and more output power. It has a neutral output with good staging and a little sharper in the treble.

The Sony on the other hand sounds just a trivial smoother and perhaps flatter in the soundstaging. The AP80 Pro-X sounds more three dimensional as if emphasizing the upper-mids lower treble. The Sony tends to be more precise in the upper treble noticeable on the cymbals. Listening to Tom Sawyer by Rush, the AP80 Pro-X blends it to a smoother finish.

BLUETOOTH

Bluetooth capabilities on the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X just add to the value of such a small but capable DAP. Connection is strong. It can work both ways to as either a bluetooth receiver/connected to a phone or a transmitter/connected to headphones. So not only do you get a DAP, you get an excellent sounding portable bluetooth receiver.

FINALE

Given that the Sony NW-A55 is no longer in production, the HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X is the model to get in the same price range. It offers so much functionality in such a small package it’s hard not to be impressed with its generous output power and wide array of features, some of which I surely missed. The limited edition red copper color is just money physically speaking, we all need a splash of color because black can be boring.

While battery life is only worth a single day’s use, it charges within an hour and you are ready to go again cranking up that volume knob. The HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X Red copper color comes in at a higher price of $269 compared to their standard black, grey or blue, so if you do not want to pay a premium for the special color those come in under <$200.

SPECIFICATIONS AND IMAGES

Find the fine details on the HIDIZS AP80 PRO-X Product Page. For the general specs, check out Jürgen’s analysis of the regular AP80 Pro-X.

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

Get it direct from HIDIZS Store and use this non-affliate discount code AUDIOREVIEWS5 to receive 5% off.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

The post HIDIZS AP80 Pro-X Red Copper DAP Review (2) – Striking It Rich appeared first on Music For The Masses.

INTRO

With many brands trying to go full fancy dynamic driver the $169 Kinera Idun Golden or Idun 2.0 sticks to the Hybrid route with the dual BA + dynamic driver configuration. This appears to be an “upgrade” version of the original Idun, unfortunately I do not have the original to compare so we have to use our imaginations or check out some other reviews. They utilize 1 Knowles BA driver, one custom BA from themselves for the mid and top range, and the bass is rounded out with a controlled 7mm titanium dynamic. What ensues is a wonderfully neutral leaning upper presence extravaganza of pleasure for jazz and classical.

Disclaimer: HifiGo provided this review piece free of charge and let me speak my mind without influence. You can purchase it here.

GOOD TRAITS

• Wonderfully flexible interchangeable single ended 3.5mm/6.35mm or 4.4mm balanced cable
• Sweet treble
• Easy going bass
• Good sized carrying case with faux wood coloring

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• A little more bottom extension haptic

COMFORT / ISOLATION

Kinera Idun Golden at $169 comes equipped with three sets of eartips, one set of wide bore, one set of medium bore and then 2 pairs of foams. The wide bore really lets the treble do it’s business, and the small bore causes a slight increase in midbass output. I prefer to go with the widebore tips since the increased bass from small bore always feels a bit artificial to me at the expense of closing off the treble output.

Fitment is deep and isolating with the widebore tips placing the molded nozzle tubes closer to the end of the eartip ensuring a less obstructed channel to your eardrums. The shells are on the larger side and the nozzle has no lip so the eartips do tend to slide off sometimes and get stuck in my ears. It is a very artistic design that looks more like jewelry than something vanilla and plain.

The cable included with the Kinera Idun Golden is a extremely flexible braided quality feel with a tight and solid connection end where the user can swap the 3.5mm single ended for a 4.4mm balanced connection. It also comes with a 3.5mm to 6.35mm adapter.

The final piece of what I expect with a mid-level set of IEM’s is an included carrying case which the Kinera Idun Golden fulfills. The case is right sized, zippered and has a wood grain look to match their tree motif.

SOUND

Tested with my LG G8 and also equipped with the Moondrop Dawn balanced DAC dongle.

I like my bass extension and the Kinera Idun Golden plays it safe with a type of extension that is more heard than felt. The 7mm dynamic driver does cover it in an inoffensive softness that is pleasing to bass averse listeners. The bass has a small bookshelf sound signature with a quick transient snap. Others might feel it has a blunted effect if expecting a little more rumble. It strains to deliver the throb required for EDM style music from Bob Moses. It avoids coloring the lower midrange because of the neutral signature.

The midrange is a bit unforgiving on overly hot pop and rock music. There is a forwardness to vocals, maybe a slight ring to the tail end which can lead to some sharpness or coarseness. Male vocals are masked a bit by the lower treble peaks. With rock they get lost behind the guitars and feel muted. Female vocals sound delicate without any shrillness and I find they are nicely balanced within the music.

The treble really shines brightly on the Kinera Idun Golden, stringed instruments really come alive. I sense some smearing however. For those that like to get horny, these will excite your eardrums in that nature. Guitars are heavily favored as well. Cymbals have some bite but the shimmer finishes softly in an exciting way.

TECHNICALITIES

The Kinera Idun Golden has excellent depth and height with somewhat good width extension driven primarily in the midrange treble. Staging and imaging can feel a bit crowded sometimes. They are highly sensitive, and so the use of a balanced dac dongle feels overkill fortunately the Moondrop Dawn has a lower gain setting available, I would prefer to stick with more volume control. Since the impedance of the dynamic is actually about 160ohms while the impedance it lower for the BA drivers, use of power is almost a requirement to extract the proper bass control.

COMPARISONS

The Kinera Idun Golden midrange and treble really cause it to stand out to something like the Moondrop Kato ($179) that utilizes a Harman tuning model of extended bass enhancement and a softer treble experience. Orchestra and jazz seem to benefit for the Kinera tuning, however it doesn’t have that bottom umph the Kato dishes up more inline with the rest of the response. The Kinera Idun Golden just livens it up instead.

Compared to another go-to favorite of mine the Shozy Form 1.4 ($199), the Kinera Idun Golden again is balanced in the opposite direction. Whereas the Form 1.4 covers you in warm and luscious extended boosted bass and a very mellow but even treble with minor midrange lift, the Kinera Idun Golden midrange and treble magnify the vocals and stringed instruments in a way that feels very uplifting and the bass only serves not to detract from the main attraction.

CONCLUSION

The Kinera Idun Golden is a midrange /presence centric, bookshelf bass with a nice treble finish. It works wonderfully for jazz oriented music and also for classical, but fails to pack a punch for rock, EDM or modern style music. The cable options are plentiful and it is a solidly built one at that. I can see myself using this for a change-up to my usually preferred tuning. I rank this as a nice to have, but not my one sized fits all option.

SPECIFICATIONS

PACKAGE CONTENTS

• One pair of Kinera Idun Golden ( Idun 2.0 ) in-ear monitors.
• One 0.78 2 pin 8 cores OFC + OFC with silver plated cable.
• Modular Adapter 4.4mm & 3.5mm
• K-07 Balanced Eartips ( Red, Green, Yellow Colour ) : Sound balanced and stereo
• K-285-02 Vocal Eartips ( Skin Colour ) : Release high frequencies, pleasant vocals
• Two pairs of Foam tips.
• PU Case with inner velvet protection.
• 3.5mm to 6.35mm adapter.
• User Manual

GRAPHS

• Left vs Right
• Small bore vs Wide Bore eartip
• Impedance Plot

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

Get it from HifiGo Store

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

The post Kinera Idun Golden (Idun 2.0) Review (1) – Hybrid Maverick appeared first on Music For The Masses.

The Tin Hifi P1 Max are a safe choice for listeners who would like to experience the planar-magnetic sound without the typical lean mids and the brightness of other models – but at the expense of technicalities.

Pros — Good cohesion, decently weighty vocals; zero shoutiness; good build and cable.

Cons — Not much mid bass kick; not very sparkly or energetic; rather fast note decay; not the largest headroom.

Introduction

Tin Hifi are an established name in the Shenzhen audio scene. Their initial claim to fame was the famous T2 (under their previous brand name “Tinaudio”), a neutrally tuned $50 earphone, that stuck out within the masses of V-shaped budget models.

The company has released iems that were perceived as hit and miss (we reviewed many of them) – and their signature design was always metallic shells, often nicely polished. The P1 Max deviate from this presentation not only with a completely new appearance but also with a new sound.

TL;DR: the Tin Hifi P1 Max don’t have the usual ChiFi weaknesses of overcooked upper midrange and lean, recessed vocals. Whether they stand out against their competitors in a tight market is another question. Read on.

Specifications

Physical Things and Usability

In the box are the shells, a cable, a series of eartips, a storage bag, and the standard paperwork. The earpieces are of a bulbous shape and made of resin, very similar to the Shozy 1.4. They are light, not too big, therefore comfortable for me, and just refreshingly different from the average offerings.

I also like the cable: it has no microphonics and the right rigidity while looking rather inconspicuous. The included eartips didn’t work for me so that I used Spinfits.

Tonality and Technicalities

The overall signature of the P1 Max is neutral-warm, articulate, cohesive, unobtrusive…with the typical planar-magnetic timbre (“fast note decay”) but lacking the usual brightness and lean midrange — at the expensive of other technicalities. The “flattest tuned” and therefore least offensive, but also technically least capable of the sub-$200 planar magnetics I have tested (LETSHOUER S12, 7Hz Timeless). The P1 Max excel through their cohesion (“jack of all trades, master of none”) and just play and play without getting annoying – hence they are probably underestimated by many.

The P1 Max have a somewhat unusual bass. It is reasonably tight (somewhat boomy with the stock tips), digs deep into the sub-bass, but lacks mid-bass kick. It is robust but misses layering, the punch is hard enough, but there could be more of it. A one-trick pony. Bass lines are usually somewhat subtle and dry. This may be a combination of the rather linear low-end tuning and the planar-magnetic driver technology.

The midrange is not as bright and lean as typical for a planar-magnetic, there is no shoutiness at all, a huge advantage over the S12 and Timeless. Vocals are of medium note weight and of good note definition, they are not recessed and quite intimate – they are not breathy and lean but nicely firm and compact. They are well placed in 3-D space. Midrange transparency is quite good. There is also no sibilance!

Treble resolution is ok…but treble is somewhat dry and devoid of sparkle. Cymbals are well defined and fast decaying, an artifact of essentially all planar magnetics. They can also be tizzy.

Although headroom is not the greatest (compared to S12), there is good spatial cues. You are not standing in a Football stadium but in a smaller, more intimate club. The soundstage is average in the big picture. The other technicalities such as imaging, separation, and layering are average for the price.

Timbre is typically planar magnetic: decay is rather fast, which can make the presentation a bit dry and analytical. Cellos sound just too robotic. This leaves the impression of a well accentuated sound often bordering on hard (the opposite of soft and lingering), but it is never harsh, strident, or aggressive.

In summary, despite my bickering, the P1 Max have no dealbreaking flaws and their strength is cohesion….and a good haptic and fit.

The LETSHOUER S12 is technically superior over the P1 Max with much better staging, bigger headroom, more bass kick, more energy, but it is also on the bright side with the leaner vocals. The 7Hz Timeless is also on the leaner side in the midrange and has this pronounced mid bass-hump not everybody likes. The P1 Max is overtaking from behind but in the slow lane.

In the meantime, another planar magnetic contender has appeared – highly advertised – and as a consequence – hyped: the Salnotes Dioko. I have not tested it but looked at reviews (such as this one). The earpieces are rather large (potential comfort/fit problems), the midrange is somewhat lean and pushed back, and the top end is boosted to the point that it is harsh and bright, while bass and the resolution and other technicalities are apparently very good. The tenor is that the Dioko is a polarizing model. Since a direct comparison with the P1 Max is not possible, all I can say is that this Tin Hifi is on the safer side.

Concluding Remarks

I tend to say, the best earphones are the ones we use. And the Tin Hifi P1 Max may be such a candidate. I can enjoy them for hours. They are lively enough not to be boring and cohesive enough not to be intrusive.

Technically and energetically behind the competition, they make up by not having any obvious flaws and turnoffs such as an overwhelming mid-bass hump of the 7Hz Timeless or midrange brightness of the LETSHOUER S12. The T1 Max are the safest sub-$200 planar-magnetics out of the three I have tested, which is in agreement with their frequency response graphs.

Their biggest strength is that they are spectacularly unspectacular…and therefore usable. Well usable. I just took the Tin Hifi P1 Max on my summer trip to Europe as my go to.

Until next time…keep on listening!

The post Tin Hifi P1 Max “Big Panda” Review (1) – The Meat-And-Potato Planars appeared first on Music For The Masses.

INTRO

The HIDIZS MD4 aims to please everyone with 12 tuning options combined between switches and eartips. If you haven’t checked out some of their other greatest hits such as the S9 Pro Dongle or the AP80 Pro-X, I suggest you go have a look. The HIDIZS MS1 Mermaid got mixed reviews from us, but I took on the challenge of seeing what they cooked up. Cue up the cheesy montage of movie dress-up scenes and come along for the director commentary.

While there feels like an overabundance of single dynamic mid-tier IEMs, HIDIZS MD4 decided to stick with the more complex full balanced armature 4 driver setup. The shells have built-in 3D printed sound tubes to make sure sound exits correctly and not just bouncing around inside the shell like budget offerings. It has all the ingredients of a proper mid-tier IEM, and caters perhaps to an eastern audience.

Disclaimer: These were free-ninety-nine from HIDIZS, and they sent me the white ones because I didn’t specify. Tested at $169 at the time of review.

GOOD TRAITS

• Generous complete package (case, tips, cable)
• Excellent Fitment (For me)
• Isolation
• Various tuning options

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• Non-splashly cable
• Technical abilities clouded
• Case is too big to fit comfortably in a pants pocket.
• Hot tuning can lead to strained treble
• Impedance dips to around 5 ohms, source and power can impact sound

PACKAGE CONTENTS

While I don’t comment on packaging normally, I did enjoy the easy of which the HIDIZS MD4 box opened. Inside were the earphones, followed by 3 different types of tips, and finally the square leather carrying case that make it impractical to fit in your pants but looks uber cool pulling out of a bag. The cable is 2 twisted strands a notch above budget offering twisted cables, and it does the job of not transferring too many microphonics.

The shell of the HIDIZS MD4 is large solid metal with a fancy marbled stone appearance faceplate offered in White, Black and Blue and matching painted shell color. Nozzle length is Goldilocks for me, as well as the shape. Surprisingly, the switches were solid and hard to switch without some small tool like the included earpiece cleaning brush. I had always assumed these switch based earphones might have an additional mode of failure for later in life, but these switches feel high quality.

ADJUSTABLE PARAMETERS

Based on their product page:
0,0 (off, off)=default treble enhanced
1,0 (on, off)=Balanced
1,1 (on, on)=Bass Enhanced
0,1 (off, on)=Warm

Let me describe the three types of eartips of the HIDIZS MD4 that do what they say:
1) Balanced=Firm full length stem with firm medium opening size
2) Bass=Olive shaped, medium length stem with medium firmness, larger opening than balanced set and squishier opening
3) Vocal=Shorter is length, shortest stem that is also thinner that is only thick on the very bottom, wide opening, very soft and squishy.

The bass tips clearly increase the upper bass thickening vocals and sounding a bit too full at times depending on 1,0 mode or 1,1 mode. With 0,0 or 0,1 this is a way to balance out the sharpness of the treble. For me the 0,0 with the bass tips was a good match, while the 0,1 is sort of jarring on both ends of the frequency spectrum.

Vocal Tips with mode 0,1 is a lot of upper midrange to take in, not my desired tuning, but for those that really want to be immersed and have a very forward experience this is it. 1,1 mode was well balanced bordering on nothing exciting. I enjoyed them most with 1,0 mode, and 0,0 was not as sterile as 0,0+balanced tips.

Balanced tips work best with modes 1,1 and 0,1 although 1,0 is good too if you want to really warm it up. These come installed by default with 0,0 which for me was too clinical sounding. Again personal preferences, I seem to lean to towards warmer sets these days, but can appreciate other tunings depending on mood. That is what makes this set so great.

SOUND

Reviewing a set like the HIDIZS MD4 is one of the more challenging endeavors due to the fact of having to pick a tuning and give a general description or trying to portray all combinations. While I used the 1,0 mode with the vocal tips as my preference, I might point out some other combos that highlight other things better.

Overall the HIDIZS MD4 bass is quick and snappy with not much emphasis down low. Utilizing the dual bass balanced armature drivers centered around a midbass hump, everything through the lower midrange sounds a bit colored and chesty. Between tips and switches, the bass/lower midrange can be colored or less colored to your liking.

Midrange is probably the weakest area, depending on tips it goes from sounding a tad dull, to edgy and pushing the envelope. I feel that one of my better vocal oriented sets is the TinHifi T2+, and the HIDIZS in mode 0,0/1,1 just can’t reach that level of transparency for example listening to some Holly Cole Trio – I Can See Clearly Now.

HIDIZS MD4 treble is nicely done and knows that wideband elevation makes for an exciting listen. Again using the tips and switches is it easy to dial in some extra boost and air to make them sound very delicate or really sterile without ear piercing. They can run rather hot sounding, the lower treble boost is on average 10-13db, but if we look at a smoothed 1/3 octave it doesn’t appear as boosted and my ears agree. The graphs make it appear worse than it sounds, so I included the 1/3 octave for reference which is more inline with how our brains interpret adjacent bands.

TECHNICALITIES

For being a four BA 3 way, I was hoping for some good separation, instead the HIDIZS MD4 feel a little narrow and congested on busier pieces. Timbre is not something I would associate with these, instead they come of more analytical and PA speaker sounding. Width and depth are balanced between the two, neither stands out.

Isolation is excellent, but that also depends on fitment for some. Sensitivity is on the lower side, but driven from my LG G8 with no issues. Some power helps given the low impedance. A good dongle would easily drive these as well.

QUICK COMPARISONS

The HIDIZS MD4 even in warm setting does not compete with one of my warm favorites the Shozy Form 1.4 ($179) , the Shozy bass is just excellent with more depth and fullness, and the MD4 just sounds more forceful than the sweetness of the Shozy as you continue up the spectrum.

Comparing to the Moondrop Kato ($179), the MD4 bass is thicker and less resolving, but the treble actually sounds more restrained towards the top. I attribute that to the super wide bass lower midrange hump. Width and depth are comparable, the Moondrop sounds less congested due the cleaner bass profile.

FINAL REMARKS

While the HIDIZS MD4 does not meet my preferred tuning style given the colored lower midrange and lack of bass fullness, others might like this style and it does take the edge off the hot treble. It’s all relative as they say. I love the fitment and the isolation, but this is one of those YMMV scenarios. The value proposition is that you get 12 tunings for the price of $169, but the tunings are not drastic changes but more nuanced. If your focus is towards accentuated treble with a colored bass profile, these might be up your alley.

SPECIFICATIONS

GRAPHS

• Left vs Right
• Balanced Eartip Switch Comparison
• Bass Eartip Switch Comparison
• Vocal Eartip Switch Comparison
• Switch Comparison Normalized and 1/3 octave smoothing
• Eartip Comparison 1/24 octave
• Impedance

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

Get it direct from HIDIZS or from other retailers.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

The post HIDIZS MD4 (Review) – Hit With Switches appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Instead of first impressions, we offer completely flavour-neutral optical treatments before following up with our exhaustive reviews of the products’ performances.

Current Photography

1. BQEYZ Autumn vs. BEQYZ Summer (Jürgen Kraus)
2. Hidizs MM2 (Jürgen Kraus)
3. IKKO OH2 vs. IKKO OH1S (Jürgen Kraus)

Vintage Photography (prior to March 2022)

1. AME Custom Argent Hybrid Electrostatic (Jürgen Kraus)
2. Anew X-One (Jürgen Kraus)
3. Blon BL-05 Beta (Jürgen Kraus)
4. Blon BL-05 Beta (Jürgen Kraus)
5. Blon BL-05 MKI & MKII (Jürgen Kraus)
6. BQEYZ Spring 1 (Jürgen Kraus)
7. BQEYZ Spring 2 (Durwood)
8. CCA CA16 (Durwood)
9. Drop + JVC HA-FXD1 (Jürgen Kraus)
10. Fidue A65/A66 (Jürgen Kraus)
11. FiiO FD1 (Jürgen Kraus)
12. FiiO FHs1 (Jürgen Kraus)
13. Hill Audio Altair • RA (Jürgen Kraus)
14. iBasso IT01 V2 (Jürgen Kraus)
15. Hilidac Atom Pro (Jürgen Kraus)
16. Ikko OH1 (Jürgen Kraus)
17. KBEAR Believe (Jürgen Kraus)
18. KBEAR Diamond (Jürgen Kraus)
19. KBEAR hi7 (Jürgen Kraus)
20. KBEAR KB04 (Jürgen Kraus)
21. KBEAR Lark (Jürgen Kraus)
22. Kinboofi MK4 (Jürgen Kraus)
23. KZ ASX (Jürgen Kraus)
24. KZ ZSN Pro (Slater)
25. Moondrop Crescent (Jürgen Kraus)
26. Moondrop Illumination (Jürgen Kraus)
27. Moondrop Kanas Pro Edition (Jürgen Kraus)
28. Moondrop SSP (Jürgen Kraus)
29. Moondrop SSR (Jürgen Kraus)
30. Moondrop Starfield (Jürgen Kraus)
31. NiceHCK Blocc 5N Litz UPOCC OCC Copper Earphone Cable
32. NiceHCK Litz 4N Pure Silver Earphone Cable (Jürgen Kraus)
33. NiceHCK NX7 (Jürgen Kraus)
34. NiceHCK NX7 Pro (Jürgen Kraus)
35. Queen of Audio Pink Lady (Jürgen Kraus)
36. Revonext QT5 (Slater)
37. SeeAudio Yume (Jürgen Kraus)
38. Senfer DT6 (Slater)
39. Sennheiser IE 300
40. Sennheiser IE 500 PRO
41. Shozy Form 1.1 and Shozy Form 1.4
42. Shozy Form 1.4 (Jürgen Kraus)
43. Shozy Rouge (Jürgen Kraus)
44. Simgot EM2 (Jürgen Kraus)
45. Simgot EN700 Pro (Slater)
46. Smabat ST-10 (Jürgen Kraus)
47. Tin Hifi T2 Plus (Jürgen Kraus)
48. Tin-Hifi T4 (Jürgen Kraus)
49. TRN-STM (Jürgen Kraus)
50. TRN V90 (Jürgen Kraus
51. TRN-VX (Jürgen Kraus)
52. Whizzer Kylin HE01 (Jürgen Kraus)

The post Photography appeared first on Music For The Masses.

INTRO

Thanks to Whizzer for giving us a chance to check out the new Whizzer Kylin HE03D, they did not arrive in a whiz or a jif as expected, but got hung up in the delays our ongoing pandemic has created. Like the similar named Whizzer roller-coaster at the local Six Flags, they provided me with some form of entertainment watching the tracking and perusing their product page on Aliexpress.

The original HE03 was a 3 driver hybrid. Instead these are a $199 ($159 pre-order price) DLC (Diamond Like Coating) 12mm dynamic driver with premium styled packaging, nice “vegan” leather case and 3 different types of easy eartips promising to accentuate various aspects of the earphones. Satisfyingly, they did provide the enhancements they promised so off to a good start.

While I find no enjoyment removing things from boxes and rarely critique packaging, I can see they wanted the unboxing experience to feel premium, with magnetic flaps that satisfyingly snap shut including the manual nicely tucked behind another magnetic flap in an envelope labled “Work of Whiz”.

Upon opening it reveals a jewel like faceplate presentation. The Diamond Starburst is reflected by the 3D curved glass surface in a very beautiful artsy aesthetic. They are correct that different angles catch the luster of the Starburst design by J.IDEA+ Studio.

These attention grabbing solid construction flagship earphones focus on a tight boosted mid-bass reproduction with a neutral middle and an unassuming wobbly top end and an array of eartips for simple tuning. This has to be the longest intro I have ever written.

Disclaimer: Provided free from Whizzer with the only stipulation to review them by February 9^th, unfortunately shipping delays forced me to fail at the only request. I don’t blame others though so pretend this is February 9th as you read this.

GOOD TRAITS

• Feels premium, materials are all top notch
• Varying eartip designs that alter the sound in easily definable ways
• Tight controlled bass due the Helmholz resonator M.D.B.S Denisity System
• Relaxed sound signature non-fatiguing

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• Can sound a little dark with the reference eartips, sharp with the soundstage tips
• Resolution impacted by the wobbly treble
• Sounds crowded on a smart phone, amplification helps
• Bass hump higher in frequency impacting sub-bass reproduction

DESIGN

The Whizzer Kylin HE03D sports a full metal shell with tight fitting 6N OCC 2 pin cables marked only one side with a red dot that matches the red dot on the right shell, no other markings to indicate the channel.

Inside there a 5^th generation 12mm DLC dynamic controlled by a Multiple Damping Balance System (M.D.B.S) Density system aka Helmholz resonator to control the airflow in and out of the cavity, while taming offensive resonant frequencies of the cavity of the shell. This is said that in combination of the front cavity pressure damping, it better controls the overtones and noise.

Since this is more of a semi-open system rather than typical venting designs with smaller vents, the Whizzer Kylin HE03D isolation is below average. This is the fourth generation of the Kylin series so I guess maybe that is where the “D” comes from in the naming convention.

PACKAGE CONTENTS

Case

The Vegan leather case is fits the jeweled nature of look they were going for, although just as I found with the TinHifi T4 case, feels a bit too bulging in my pocket. It snaps closed via magnets, just like the rest of their packaging

Easy Eartips

Like Goldilocks, I set out to test the ear-tips, first the “Reference” tips with a large protrusion, they tend to darken them up too much for me, sucking the top end life out allowing the user to focus more on the warmth of the low to middle range. They went on the nozzle and fit well.

Next up was my typical large mouth “soundstage” marked tips I usually go for that included 4 pairs, while the other two kinds only had the typical 3 pair sizing. These caused sharpness and metallic timbre to jump out of the shadows. Again the diameter fit well with the nozzle sizing.

Surprisingly, I preferred the final narrow opening “vocal” tips as it balanced out the traits I picked up with the widebores. The diameter of the vocal tips are smaller, so it takes some finesse to attach. The rest of the review will be based on the vocal tips.

SOUND

Tested with LG V30, Sony NW-A55, Liquid Spark Dac + JDS Labs Atom

To quickly describe the sound, it is warm W absent of sub bass with an emphasis in midrange over upper treble. Right away it was clear the Whizzer Kylin HE03D focused a lot of energy on a tight controlled bass probably due to lows falling off a cliff, with warmth into the lower midrange to add fullness to female vocals.

Sort of similar to open back headphones with a quick fall off. The bass hump is so wide that the bleed is not noticeable, but the lack of sub-bass is disappointing for me.

Treble is subdued but avoids sounding dark unless you choose the reference tips. I liken it to using a fullrange driver to cover midrange and treble- it does a pretty good job at covering the range, but you loose some dynamics that a separate midrange tweeter combo achieves.

Electric guitars take front and center stage with this type of tuning, but I find cymbals to be lacking some shimmer due to the W roller coaster. There will be fans of this type of tuning, but others might find it a little dull and washed out sounding on some instruments.

TECHNICALITIES

I find the Whizzer Kylin HE03D narrow sounding even with the soundstaging tips, I blame it strictly on the lack of upper end extension. As a result of the narrow stage, instrument spacing takes a hit as well.

The resolution is there, clarity is good, but sparkle would aide to bring it up a notch. Phasing is good, but timbre sounds a little metallic.

COMPARISONS

Shozy Form 1.4 ($189)

The Shozy Form 1.4 and the Whizzer Kylin HE03D share a similar warm subdued treble tuning, the Whizzer has a tighter dead bass feel, more focus in the vocal department, the Shozy Form 1.4 sounds sharper due the tight peak in the treble along with a bit more sparkle and luscious more elevated bass. The Shozy Form also comes off as less congested, but it s also a 5 driver hybrid.

Moondrop Kato ($189)

The Moondrop Kato sounds thinner in the bass department given that the bass elevation resides in the sub-bass region compared to the midbass centric Whizzer Kylin HE03D. The Whizzer bass has some more overtones than the Moondrops, but transient speed is fairly close.

Given the Moondrop Kato includes sub bass the winner is the Kato. Hoping back and forth, the VSDF tuning on the Moondrop will sound edgier and more forward in the vocals compared to the Whizzer.

Those who like more focus on the midrange sound will prefer the Whizzer, but at the expense of clarity, vividness, and just the right amount of sparkle to make things interesting that the Moondrop brings to the table.

Tforce YuanLi ($119)

Originally I was going to compare to another Moondrop (Kanas Pro), but chose the Tforce Yuanli instead since it is also a DLC driver albeit a 10mm vs the 12mm of the Whizzer Kylin HE03D. The Whizzer bass is better articulated, but both carry a similar warmth.

The soundstage is less recessed on the Whizzer, whereas the Tforce has more manufactured depth as a result of the V tuning. The Tforce also exhibits a sharpness in the treble, but it messes with the timbre. So while it sparkles more, the boost is too narrow and the Whizzer sounds more balanced in that regard.

I would rather see a broad lift instead of the Tforce’s narrow treble peak. While the Tforce Yuanli is a more exciting tuning, I would prefer the mellow tuning of the Whizzer Kylin HE03D for longer listening sessions.

OUTRO

The build quality and look is a stunner for the Whizzer Kylin HE03D, the tuning is great for those who don’t want the emphasis to be on the treble or the sub bass. Fit is great, feels very smooth, but are also on the larger heavier side. Nice range of eartips and a fancy looking carrying case fit well in this price bracket.

Personally I would prefer more treble extension and a slight lift while pushing the bass peak lower to bring in sub-bass to round out the tuning and give it more pizzazz, but that might not have been the goal.

I cannot comment on how this fourth generation Kylin model compares with some of the earlier models, but from a design standpoint it is very gorgeous to ogle at. It has tough competition in this mid-tier price bracket, and it is not going to be a majority crowd pleaser, not that there is anything wrong with that.

SPECIFICATIONS

GRAPHS

• Left vs Right
• Eartip Plots
• Whizzer Kylin HE03D, Moondrop Kato, Tforce YuanLi Overlays

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

Get it from the official Aliexpress Store, or various distributors of your liking.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

The post Whizzer Kylin HE03D (Review 1) – Can Anybody Beat The Whiz!? appeared first on Music For The Masses.

INTRO

Lately there seems to be more and more flat driver tech infiltrating the in ear headphone market. Flat drivers differ in how they produce sound in comparison to dynamic drivers. Flat diaphragm driver like planars rely on the bending characteristics of the material itself to produce sound waves, whereas in direct opposite the dynamic driver tries to maintain it’s shape through various geometries and materials to stiffen it up so that it can act as a piston and minimize bending waves. These two concepts are transverse (planar bending) and longitudinal waves (dynamic piston).

This year I had considered the PMV PP flat planar but then 7hz exploded onto the scene with the 7Hz Timeless 14.2mm flat planar IEM with much fanfare. I succumbed to the temptation and bought a pair to see if this hype was warranted. By now this is probably the 101^th review of these, so I took my time to get on board. 7Hz Timeless dazzles with it’s resolving sub-bass infused Harman tuning or U signature, with analytic grace.

Disclaimer: I had some Amazon gift cards burning a hole in my pocket so I purchased during the 11.11 weekend sale from Hifigo on Amazon. We buy our own stuff sometimes believe it or not.

GOOD TRAITS

• Generous eartip selection
• Clarity, Resolution
• Above average isolation
• Lightweight

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• Bass is tuned very low, the transient speed does not match
• Not the prettiest of the bunch
• Channel matching throughout the treble
• Needs more than a smart phone to shine.
• Missing holographic elements

PHYSICAL / PACKAGE

The shape is interesting, the flat round faceplate hides a rather simple shell. The flatness and grooves provide a simple and painless way to insert them into your ears. With rounded shells, I find myself fiddling and losing my grip sometimes.

An unassuming silver twist detachable cable with a simple earhook comes with the 7Hz Timeless. It coils well, and does a good job of avoiding microphonics. They took my favorite qualities except for one, the mmcx connection. Cable snobs will find it boring looking.

The carrying box seems overly large and heavy, looks awesome sitting on my desk and could be used as a defense mechanism in a pinch by chucking at ones head. Surprisingly it doesn’t appear much larger than the Moondrop Kato case and will definitely allow you to know if you forgot to put it into your pocket.

PACKAGE CONTENTS

• Detachable MMCX Silver cable
• Metal carrying case
• 3 sets of S/M/L eartips -Medium Bore, Small Bore, Bowl shaped medium bore with carrying cases

SOUND

Tested with LG G8, Sony NW-A55 and Liquid Spark DAC+JDS Labs Atom

First the very noticeable sub-bass is front and center and the fact it goes so low and is boosted causes some speed issue for me given the rest of the quick and precise nature of the 7hz Timeless. The lift in the bottom end really lets upright bass and bass drums fill your head with extreme lows, but not in the basshead ear tickling ways. Since the slight boost is pushed so low, there is no bass bleed into the lower midrange.

Velvety smooth vocals complement the rise into the upper midrange, there is excellent darkness that allows the midrange to feel the space or environment of the recording. Horns and present flare and sharpness that provides realism, these are not for relaxed listening but instead for enjoying the nuances of the music and deep listening sessions.

Acoustic guitar plucks are rendered with such resolution as to not get lost in the macro details. Snares, cymbals crash through with sharp well defined precision. Sibilance is non-existent unless purposely in the recording, and there is plenty of airiness to make these a lively set.

TECHNICALITIES

Resolution and transparency is outstanding for the 7Hz Timeless. Width and depth are equally balanced and height information comes through as well. It is really hard to find any faults other than they need some power to extract their full potential. On the sensitivity topic, the LG G8 did just ok but I found myself at the higher volume range.

The Sony NW-A55 was a better fit so this is probably one of the bigger shortcomings given IEM’s are normally geared for mobile use. Given their extreme analytic qualities, I find longer listening sessions can be fatiguing because the 7Hz Timeless really demands your attention.

COMPARISONS

Shozy Form 1.4 ($180) vs 7Hz Timeless ($180-$220)

Warmer bass, damped treble, thicker vocals is what stands out when swapping to the Shozy Form 1.4, my go to IEM these days. It offers a more relaxed presentation for nights when I want to wind down. The 7Hz Timeless instead offers a thinner lower midrange with deeper bass registers and more sparkle and more cymbal shimmer. The Timeless invites a more critical listening experience due to the flat soundstage. The Shozy Form 1.4 shell feels more premium, and might add a subliminal cue despite being near the same price bracket.

BQEYZ Spring 2 ($140-170)

Presence region is enhanced on the 7Hz Timeless, just more shimmer and air compared the BQEYZ Spring 2. The Spring 2 sounds warmer with fuller vocals due to the higher frequency bass hump veering towards midbass, it lacks the control of the Timeless as well. The treble enhancement on the 7Hz Timeless gives the appearance of more resolution and clarity but both are solid performers. Transient speed is quicker on the Timeless.

Moondrop Kato ($190)

7Hz Timeless has a flatter soundstage and a U shaped signature vs VSDF signature on the Kato. Bass on the Kato has a 2 channel stereo large tower vibe while the Timeless is rocking a 2 channel system with an audible subwoofer. The Moondrop Kato is more forward and brighter, while the Timeless has an enhanced cymbal linger. Weight is also a factor, both the cable and shell of the Moondrop Kato offer a more premium feel due to the heft factor, but it is also more noticeable compared to the lighter and nimble 7Hz Timeless. The cable on the Kato is approaching lamp cord thickness boundaries. The eartips on Moondrop Kato are superior and have that Alza Xelastec stickiness feel, while the Timeless offers a generous pick of off the shelf tips. Read up on Jurgen Kraus’s detailed review of the Moondrop Kato for more info.

WRAP UP

Given the many glowing reviews for the 7Hz Timeless I have to agree the praise is real for available planer IEM options despite it’s flat sounding 2D staging. Another purchase I whole heartily feel was “worth it” and “nice to have”. For those that enjoy squeezing out extra resolution from the first and last octaves or U shaped signature, put these on your short list.

Finally a planar IEM that we have been waiting and hoping for. In comparison to value, there are better options if non-planar IEM’s are factored in, such as the Moondrop Kato that provides better technical abilities and an overall whole premium package. By the time this is published another planar follows very closely in the footsteps of the 7Hz Timeless, so they did something right.

SPECIFICATIONS

GRAPHS

• Left vs Right
• 7Hz Timeless vs Moondrop Kato
• 7Hz Timeless vs BQEYZ Spring 2

Contact us!

DISCLAIMER

They can be purchased at various sellers. Mine were purchased specifically from Hifigo on Amazon here.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

You find an INDEX of our most relevant technical articles HERE.

The post 7Hz Timeless Review (2) – Planar Power! appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Gear of the Year: 2021 marks the blog’s third year and the second with 8 contributors. We collectively published almost 200 articles, mainly product reviews, but also technical information. Apart from receiving review units from manufacturers and sellers, we also purchased a lot…and we borrowed from audiophile friends and colleagues.

We are a heterogeneous bunch not pressed into templates by commercialism. Each of us enjoys maximum freedom. None of us gets paid. And it is this variety that makes this blog interesting. Two of us, Baskingshark and Kazi, have been drafted to also write for Headphonesty, which gives them more exposure and also access to very interesting gear.

Our main focus has traditionally been on earphones – we have reviewed almost 300 – but particularly DACs and amps also caught our attention this year.

As at the end of the previous years, we list our our personal favourites of 2021 – the portable audio we personally enjoyed most. There are no rules, we just tell you what we like. After all, the gear we use most is our best. And we attached some of this gear to our newly created Wall of Excellence, which averages all our opinions.

Enjoy this read and we wish you a happy and successful 2023!

We thank

Most of our reviews would have not been possible without our 2021 cooperating partners. We thank:

ADV, Allo, Apos Audio, Astell & Kern, AudioQuest, Azla, Blon, BQEYZ, Burson Audio, Campfire Audio, Cayin, CCA, Dekoni, Dunu, ddHiFi, EarMen, Easy Earphones, Fiil, Helm Audio, Hidizs, HifiGo, ifi Audio, IKKO Audio, KBEAR/TRI Audio, Keephifi, Khadas, Knowledge Zenith, Meze, Moondrop, Musicteck, NiceHCK, OneOdio, Penon Official Store, Pergear, Sennheiser, Shanling, Shenzhenaudio, Smabat, Snake Oil Sound, SpinFit, Tempotec, Tin Hifi, TRN Official Store, Unique Melody, Venture Electronics, Whizzer Official Store, Yaotiger Hifi Audio Store. Don’tkillusifweforgotyoujustsendusanotandwefixit. 

For the companies: you can check for your products/yourself in the search field on the right-hand side.

We also thank the private sources that supplied us with loaners.

And here we go…that’s what we enjoyed in 2021…

Alberto Pittaluga…Bologna, ITALY

I’ve come accross quite a few interesting pieces of gear in 2021, mixed / hidden amongst piles of shameful crap. Nothing new, is it ? I’ll try to make a succint list of the most significant stuff I auditioned here. Most of these devices are also now part of my operative audio gear.

IEMS

Dunu ZEN (discountinued, was $ 699,00) : beyond spectacular microdynamics, resolution, layering and technicalities in general. A masterpiece.

iBasso IT07 ($899) : the sole real “direct upgrade” to Ikko OH10 I encountered as of yet. Same presentation, twice the refinement, at more than four times the price.

Oriolus Isabellae ($ 599) : somewhat “more V-shaped” alternative to Zen, delivering very similar technical prowess.

Ikko OH1S ($143) : a potential new join into the our World of Excellence roster as a sub-200$ allrounder

Headphones

Final Sonorous-II  (€ 300) : arguably by far the best neutral-tuned closebacks in their price category, staging and imaging easily compete with many lower tier openback alternatives.

Sennheiser HD600 (€ 310) : not a novelty for anybody but me, I’m sure. Quite simply: I got my first HD600 pair in 2021 and that’s why I’m listing it here. I presume no one needs a description. Do you?

Earbuds

Rose Mojito ($259) : superbly neutral-tuned high end earbuds with strong bilateral extention, beyond spectacular mids and vivid, refined highs in a fully holographic stage, with plenty of resolution and dynamics.

K’s Earphone Bell-LBS (€ 59,25) : mid centric buds delivering superbly organic vocals – both male and female – and very good trebles

K’s Earphone K300 (€ 28,59) : unreal sub-bass extension for an earbud, they deliver a very nice V shaped presentation while drawing an incredibly sizeable 3D stage. Presentation remembers a bit Ikko OH10, but in earbud form.

DAC/AMPs

Ifi Micro iDSD Signature (€ 749) : top sub-$1K mobile dac-amp. Very high quality DAC reconstruction paired with superbly transparent amping stage with power to spare for the most demanding planars and power deflation options to optimise low impedance IEM biasing. Truly a full step ahead of the competitors’ pack.

DAPs

Cowon Plenue 2 MK-I (€ 835) : hopped on this recently when I found a impossible to turndown openbox deal. Starting from my direct experience proving that there’s pretty much no game between proprietary-OS DAPs vs commercial-OS (read Android) DAPs, the former being in by far better position to achieve superior output sound quality, Plenue 2 represents a great companion to my QP1R offering a different / alternative optimal pairing opportunity for a few of my preferred IEM drivers.

DAC/AMP Dongles

This year’s experience proved to me that exclusively higher-tier (and price) dongles are able to deliver sound qualities worth the comparison with battery-equipped alternatives. Simply put: pretty much nothing until an Apogee Groove ($200) is really worth the price difference compared to the super-cheap Apple Dongle ($9), and even on the Groove some caveats apply (power needs, amp stage competibility).  That said, I really had pick one device “in the midfield” I’d pick the :

Questyle M12 ($139,99): while still not worth an inclusion on our Wall of Excellence, yet M12 runs circles around pretty much all similar or lower priced competitors I assessed in terms of extension, note weight, clarity and technicalities.

Biodegraded…Vancouver, CANADA

Doesn’t have anything to report this year.

Durwood…Chicago, USA

Shozy Form 1.4 has still been my go to earphone due to it’s warm inviting nature, great technical abilities and it feels great in my ears.

7Hz Timeless is another good buy late in the year for me, it’s a little more sub-bass plus analytical counterpart to the Shozy that has nudged the BQEYZ Spring 2 out of the way. A more detailed review is coming.

I rediscovered the Senfer UES for a quick throw around set, was hoping the Senfer DT9 was a slight improvement, but alas the Senfer UES sticks around instead. Sony MH755 is also perfect for quick on the go usage where I don’t need the universal fit in-ears.

Tempotec impressed me enough to consider the Sonata E35 for when good phone DAP’s are finally dead. Other than that, dongles are not my thing, and I have issues with some of Sony’s GUI decisions on the NW-A55 mainly related to playlist creation and long text support.

Lastly, the Questyle CMA Twelve would be an awesome DAC/amp combo to have, but my needs are more mobile. Perhaps when life slows down, but there are other bucket list items such as the Burson Playmate 2, RebelAmp, the Ruebert Neve RNHP, or RME ADI-2 that look interesting as well. Maybe someone will loan me one in 2022?

Jürgen Kraus…Calgary, CANADA

Earphones have traditionally been our main trade and there’s not many that stuck with me this year. First and foremost, I was impressed by the immersive and engaging sound of the single DD Dunu Zen that further excel in microdynamics. They are still very popular within our team.

Moondrop finally got it right with their tuning in the smooth and very pleasant sounding Moondrop KATO single dynamic driver. This model is generally well received. The JVC HA-FDX1 are still my standard iems for equipment testing, and an honourable mention goes to the Unique Melody 3DT for the clean implementation of 3 (!) dynamic drivers.

Another iem that fascinated me is the Japanese Final E5000. On the market since 2018, and very source demanding, this iem can produce a bass texture beyond belief. I have become a bit of a Final fanboy, as their products are unpretentious and natural sounding…and they fit my ears very well. I also purchased the Final E1000, E3000, and A3000…which get a lot of usage. No surprise that our Wall of Excellence is decorated like a Christmas tree by quite a few of these Japanese earphones and headphones.

Expanding my horizon into other devices, the Sony NW-A55 is a user-friendly digital audio player with great sonic characteristics and signature-altering 3rd party firmware options. But, most of all, it updates its music library within a minute or two. For the ultimate portable enjoyment, I discovered the Questyle QP1R dap...sounds simply amazing with the Final E5000. Found the dap on Canuck Audio Mart.

Dongles, battery-less headphone DAC/amps that turn any cheap phone into a decent music player, were big in 2021. Around since 2016, the market caught on to these devices. But out of the mass of dongles tested, the 2019 AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt was the most musical to my ears. I also like the AudioQuest DragonFly Red and the EarMen Eagle (replacing the EarMen Sparrow which I sent to Biodegraded). For earphone testing (and bigger cans), I still use the excellent Earstudio HUD100.

For my full-sized headphone needs with my notebook, I discovered the powerful Apogee Groove, a current-hungry dongle DAC/amp that has been around since 2015. I am even portable around the house. As to headphones themselves, I am still happy with the Sennheiser HD 600 and HD 25, but also with the Koss Porta Pro.

For my desktop setup, I identified the EarMen Tradutto as being a fantastic DAC in combination with the Burson Funk amp. Currently testing the Tradutto with my big stereo system.

In summary, I learnt a lot in 2021…

My Take Home this Year

• The latest is barely the greatest…many old brooms get better into the corners
• Influencers are not always right (…to say it nicely)
• Measurements are overrated
• Timbre (degree of naturalness of sound) is underrated
• Source is super important and also underrated
• Group pressure through hype may become a sobering experience
• That groomed YouTube stuff is boring

Kazi Mahbub Mutakabbir…Munich, GERMANY

This year was very educational for me when it came to audiophilia. I got the chance to try out truly summit-fi setups and realized how good a system can sound. This also resulted in a sense of yearning where you keep comparing the gears you own with the ones you cannot own, at least not yet. Nonetheless, without further ado.

Headphones: The one headphone that has stuck with me throughout the year is the Hifiman Susvara. They won’t flatter anyone with the build quality but when paired with the right amp they sound astonishing. One of the most natural sounding headphones out there with exceptional timbre. A must listen.

Honorable mention goes to the Final D8000. Supreme bass that’s pretty much unmatched. On the budget side, I really liked the Final Sonorous-III. They are underrated and under-appreciated.

IEMs: When it comes to in-ear monitors, I have a hard time picking any single one of them as all of them fall short in one area or another. Nonetheless, the one IEM I’ve used the most throughout the year is the Dunu Zen. There is something truly addicting about their sound that makes me come back to them time and again.

However, the Zen is not the best IEM that I have heard throughout the year. That would probably be the Sony IER-Z1R or the 64Audio U12t. In the relatively budget realm, the 7Hz Timeless took me by surprise with their planar speed and excellent bass slam.

Source: Instead of going with separate sections for amps, DACs and such, I will just consolidate them into one.

Best desktop amp I’ve tried: Accuphase E380. One of those rare speaker amps that sound great with headphones.

Best portable amp I’ve tried: Cayin C9. It is the only review loaner in the past year that I have wanted to buy with my own money. I probably will, soon, budget permitting.

Best DAP: Lotoo PAW 6000, even though it can’t power difficult loads.

Best dongle: L&P W2. The only dongle that I found to be good enough to replace some DAPs.

Best DAC: Holo May L2. The price is extremely high but so is the sound quality. Exceptionally natural and neutral tuning. Another must listen.

And that’s a wrap. Have a great Christmas, and see you on the other side!

KopiOkaya…SINGAPORE

Too many lists…I focus on eartips…

Best EARTIPS of 2021

Most versatile eartips: SpinFit CP-100+
Best budget eartips: Audiosense S400
Best eartips for bass: FAudio “Instrument” Premium Silicone Earphone Tips
Best eartips for vocal: Azla SednaEarFit Crystal (Standard)
Best eartips for treble: BGVP S01
Best eartips for soundstage: Whizzer Easytips SS20
Most comfortable eartips: EarrBond New Hybrid Design

Loomis Johnson…Chicago, USA

Gear of the Year (and other Favorite Things)

SMSL SU-9 DAC/Preamp—one of those pieces that makes you seriously question why anyone would spend more. A seriously good DAC which is even better as digital preamp.

Hidisz S3 Pro DAC/Dongle—lacks the juice to power challenging loads, but has an uncanny knack for enlivening and improving more efficient phones. Very refined, with impeccable bass control.

Cambridge Melomania TWS—ancient by TWS standards, and its rivals have more features and tech, but this may still be the best-sounding TWS you can buy.

Shozy Rouge IEM—like a really hot girl you get smitten by the beauty before you even delve into the substance. Properly driven, however, these sound just as good as they look, with estimable staging and clarity.

The Beatles, “Get Back” Documentary—as probably the only person on earth who hasn’t seen Lord of the Rings I was gobsmacked by how brilliant this film looked and sounded. The real surprise for me, however, was how natural  a musician John was—unburdened by technique, but soulful and  exploratory.  Poor George invokes your pity—a good writer forced to compete with two great ones– while Ringo wins the award for Best Attitude.

Bob Dylan, “Desolation Row”—I always found the lyrics impenetrable and a bit sophomoric, but the Spanish-influenced lead guitar part is incredible, with scarcely a phrase repeated throughout the full 11 minutes. I’d always assumed it was Mike Bloomfield, but it’s actually the harmonica virtuoso Charlie McCoy, who also plays the trumpet part of “Rainy Day Women”.

Reds, Pinks and Purples, “Uncommon Weather” In hope of finding something genuinely fresh I dutifully listened to the most-touted 2021 releases before fixating on this one, which (predictably) sounds exactly like 80s Flying Nun and Sarah bands.

And This Was The Previous Year:

The post Gear Of The Year 2021 – Our Personal Favourites appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Cons — Elevated upper midrange may require micropore tape, not the greatest bass extension, a bit analytical; short nozzles/potential fit issue, mediocre cable.

Executive Summary

The Unique Melody 3DT is a gently U-shaped, marginally warm-bright sounding triple-DD earphone of excellent articulation that will appeal to most of us.

Introduction

Unique Melody from Guandong Province of China have been around since 2007. In these almost 15 years, they have built a reputation of designing audio products of the highest quality. This is my first encounter with the brand. And since I am a dynamic-driver aficionado, the 3DT with its three independent dynamic drivers is a most interesting model for me to analyze.

Yep, the Unique Melody 3DT is innovative in that its largest (!) 10 mm CNT (carbon nanotube) driver is responsible for the treble and mids, and their two smaller 7 mm compound drivers are covering the low end. The idea behind the tri-dynamic design is minimizing distortion. And it works as we will see.

Specifications

Physical Things and Usability

In the retail box are:

• Unique Melody x Dignis case x1
• Unique Melody 3DT x1
• 2-pin 0.78mm silver cable x1
• Warranty card x1
• Ear tips x8
• Unique Melody-branded cleaning cloth x1

The shells are 3D printed and their outer material is “stabilized wood”, a mixture of soft, porous wood and resin, which results in a dense, impervious material. Each of the shells is unique in appearance and therefore has a custom look.

The shells are bulbous and somewhat big but also light, very similar to the Shozy 1.4’s. They are therefore rather comfortable – and insulation is excellent. I did not find them to be fingerprint magnets so that the included cleaning cloth is a bonus.

The nozzles are found being too short by some, which can provide fit problems. This is easily fixed by replacing the short-stemmed stock tips with long-stemmed ones (Azla SednaEarfit Light, long stemmed, worked well for me). Unique Melody could have included a long-stemmed set at this price.

The cable…well…it works well, has no microphonics and there is nothing really wrong with it…in fact, it is almost identical to the one that comes with the $600 Sennheiser IE 500 PRO. But it is tightly braided with a rather hard-shell material so that is appears somewhat brittle. It is certainly not the most pliable one. And it tangles easily.

The zippered storage case is pure luxury. Very nice.

Tonality and Technicalities

Equipment used: Questyle QP1R; Sony NW-A55; MacBook Air & AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt/Astell & Kern PEE51; Azla SednaEarfit Light silicone eartips (long stemmed).

TL;DR: The 3DT’s overall signature is “well timbred”, marginally warm with a bright tilt, wrapped into a gentle U with slightly recessed vocals, and an overall excellent articulation and technical capabilities. All three drivers are rather nimble. Overall presentation is cohesive.

The low end is rather speedy for a dynamic-driver iem. The two 7 mm drivers create a controlled, well-textured bass that does not reach down as deep as some wished. This results in a subtle rumble at the bottom. A thumpy mid-bass hump is avoided – something my ears would not appreciated anyway. There is enough punch for me, decay is rather quick for a dynamic driver. I’d call the low end well dosed, articulate, and it does not smear upwards into the midrange.

This articulation continues into the midrange and treble. Vocals are a bit recessed and neither thick or thin but somewhere in between. They are well defined and sculptured and NOT aggressive, although they receive some energy from a boosted upper midrange. This elevation introduces some brightness to the overall warm signature. A mod is offered in the next chapter to mitigate this.

Treble extension and resolution are very good. There is great definition and body at the top end. The highest piano and violin notes are hit with accuracy, and cymbals sound rock solid. There is no sibilance.

Soundstage is rather wide and not so deep (but deep enough), and may not be the tallest. But it makes for good spatial cues. Note definition is great, note weight is intermediate. Timbre is excellent and layering and separation are good. The image could have some more air, however.

If I had a personal criticism it would be the driver speed pushing the signature towards analytical – it could be a tad more engaging. The three drivers interact flawlessly without an transition creating a coherent image.

Unique Melody 3DT modded

The 3DT’s 3-5 kHz area range may be a bit “spicy” for sensitive ears (but only a bit). Taping the nozzle screens off with surgical 3M micropore tape (don’t use Johnson & Johnson) removes some energy from this area without altering the bottom end. It also does not affect technicalities such as resolution and staging negatively.

The resulting frequency response is much more palatable to most ears and should have been implemented by the manufacturer. We have offered this technique for many earphone models and even dedicated an article to it. This mod is cheap, easy to do, and fully reversible.

Unique Melody 3DT Compared

I compare the Unique Melody 3DT to two single dynamic drivers, the $250 JVC HA-FDX1 and the $190 Moondrop KATO. The JVCs come sonically close to the 3DT but are a tad behind with a narrower stage, less clarity in the lower midrange, and not as tight a bass. The 3DT are slightly punchier with better spatial cues. These differences are, however, relatively small.

The Moondrop KATO are “fatter” and warmer sounding than the first two, which stems from their comparatively looser bass and a richer lower midrange. Vocals in the KATO sound fuller and more analog, but at the expense of note definition and midrange clarity. The 3DT sound more analytical and technical compared to the more relaxed and “casual” sounding KATO. An analogy would be a BMW M3 sportscar with a tight suspension vs. a Jeep Cherokee.

Concluding Remarks

The Unique Melody 3DT is a most interesting, innovate triple dynamic driver design packed in 3D-printed “stabilized wood” shells, with an articulate, organic sonic signature that will appeal to most listeners. It has no deal-breaking weaknesses and, unsurprisingly, comes with the recommendation of some audio forums.

As the company’s first offering to my ears, and considering their good reputation, my high expectations were met in full. The 3DT is one of these rare “Can’t-Go-Wrong” products. Very enjoyable.

Note: when I started this review, the Unique Melody 3DT was priced at $350, but the price had dropped to a rather competitive $259 at the time of publication.

Until next time…keep on listening!

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Easy to drive with a mobile, although amping with a modest dongle better controls the slightly tubby midbass region and gives these a bit more crispness. Somewhat tip-sensitive, with narrower silicons giving ‘em a bit more subbass depth.

My more learned colleague describes the Tforce’s tuning as  “diffuse field near neutral” (I would have called it balanced), which isn’t to say it’s flat—there’s some added emphasis in the midrange which pushes vocals forward and provides for good clarity.

Coherent, in the manner of good single DDs, with clean instrument separation; tonality is slightly warm and pretty natural, without shrillness or artifacts, while resolution is likewise good though missing some low-level detail and subtleties in drumbeats and acoustic guitar strings.

Analyzed aspect-by-aspect, it’s hard to find fault with the Yuan Li—it’s a capable, professionally-executed phone. However, my visceral reaction is that it opts for safety over excitement—compared to peers like Moondrop Starfield or the Shozy 1.1/1.4, the Yuan Li lacks a bit of high end extension and  sizzle and come off not so much as dull but as unengaging.

The Yuan Li would make a good entry drug for someone looking to enter this IEM rabbit hole—it does very little wrong and much right. However, you’d hope that subsequent releases from its maker will amp up the PRAT.

Disclaimer: Borrowed from Durwood who received them free of charge from HifiGo which sells them on their website here and also on Amazon.

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Cons — Uninspiring bassy sound.

Executive Summary

The LZ A2 Pro offers a warm, bassy sonic signature but deserves more overall refinement.

Introduction

Lao Zhong Audio, better known as LZ Hifi Audio, is a Chinese company that specializes in in-ear monitors. Their versatile A7 model was highly acclaimed by reviewers and customers alike, and we are no exception.

The A2 Pro follows the tradition of the classic A2 series, now with a triple-driver hybrid configuration.

Specifications

Physical Things and Usability

In the box are the earpieces, the cable, two sets of eartips (S/M/L) in a nice plastic case, a metal storage box, and the paperwork. The earpieces are made of resin and are therefore light, however bulky, and reminiscent of the Shozy Form 1.4 and Unique Melody 3DT. The relatively short nozzles feature a lip.

The hybrid earphone cable features 8 strands consisting of 4N oxygen-free copper “OFC” (99.99% pure) and silver-plated OFC cores. It has 2 pin/0.78 connectors and a 3.5 mm plug. The soft PVC outer material makes it extremely soft and pliable.

Despite the short nozzles, the earpieces fit me very well with the blue-stemmed stock tips. Comfort is great, isolation is not. The LZ A2 Pro is easily driven with a phone.

Tonality and Technicalities

Equipment used: MacBook Air; Earstudio HUD100, blue stock tips.

That graph tries to to tell us two things: a “healthy” bass and something weird going on in the midrange (and perhaps in the treble). When listening, that midrange peak is not of concern, at least not to the extent one would expect it.

But the low end dominates the sonic reproduction, although it is not outright basshead material (yet). Lots of rumble from a good extension, which helps characterizing the LZ A2 as a warm earphone. Unfortunately, the low end is a bit crude and uncontrolled for an iem at this price. Bass is punchy, rubbery, thumpy, and somewhat fuzzy, it deserves a bit more contorl/refinement and finesse. And it bleeds shamelessly up into the lower midrange.

This pushes male vocals back and cuts into midrange clarity and resolution. Note weight in the lower midrange is lean. Male and female voice sound somewhat “breathy”/overly airy and not very robust, in cases hollow and nasal. And they are steadily attacked by the low end. All this makes for a somewhat congested and hollow midrange. Bass and midrange appear as a single goo.

Treble is reasonably well extended, however that 8-9 kHz peak causes some weird tizziness.

Soundstage is deep but rather narrow caused by the dominant low end. I feel I am sitting in a tunnel. Dynamics is very powerful, there is a good heft. Timbre is somewhat off so that classical music sounds unrealistic.

Concluding Remarks

I wished I could sugarcoat this, but I can’t. We have experienced the LZ A2 Pro 100 times before. They are poorly tuned, overly bassy and unbalanced, and therefore uninspiring. You could get a much better earphone for cheaper, for example the Moondrop Aria at $80. A fancy faceplate is the only interesting feature of this earphone. In the overcrowded market, there are simply better options.

Until next time…keep on listening!

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The LZ A2 Pro was supplied unsolicited by NiceHCK Audio Store for my review and I thank them for that.

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A device gets attached to this Wall of Excellence when based on our private and of course subjective experience it performs so well within its technical and price category as to even discourage considering homologous alternatives.

If it ain’t here, WE don’t want it!

Please note that our WoE will not be limited to devices we actually published a review of. Nonetheless, all WoE devices have for long time been or still are part of our operative gear.

We start small and plan to expand our wall according to merit.

This Site is being consistently updated…please bookmark it and keep checking back!

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Geek Wold GK10 is currently being hyped like no other, I actually jumped on these when I saw piezo hybrid prior to seeing any hype. Air and sparkle can be fun so they seemed interesting enough especially at their price tag.

You don’t see too many piezo hybrids sub $70 (Nicehck NX7 is the most inexpensive I know) this particular IEM is a 2DD, 1BA and 2 piezo hybrid. The titanium dynamic driver handles the bass, graphene (coated?) handles the mids, BA the lower treble and the ceramic piezo the upper treble.

The promoters set my expectations high, but is the Geek Wold GK10 a main act or the opening act? I suggest having a read through our past reviews of the Nicehck NX7 and BQEYZ Spring 2 to familiarize with what other acts might be competing for the top spot in the piezo hybrids.

Since the Olympics just wrapped up, I equate the Geek Wold GK10 to a long distance track runner with short legs, working real hard to keep up with the more majestic stride of the smoother runner.

It’s fun to watch but ultimately not going to end up on the podium. The reference here though is a $170 IEM to a <$50 IEM so it needs to be taken in context. Now that the real expectations are set, please have a look.

GEEK WOLD GK10 SPECIFICATIONS

• 1 balanced armature for high frequency
• 2 piezoelectric ceramic for ultra-high frequency
• 7mm graphene diaphragm dynamic for middle frequency
• 8mm dome titanium diaphragm dynamic for bass
• Panel: stable wood
• Shell material: ABS+PC
• Impedance: 8Ω
• Sensitivity: 106dB
• Frequency response range: 20-30kHz
• Cable material: 8-strand silver-plated
• Connector: 2pin 0.78mm
• Cable length: 1.2m

OUT OF THE BOX CONFESSIONS

Some of these are hard to classify as a pro or a con, so you get to decide.

• Connectors were hard to push in, made a creaking sound when I finally used enough force to insert the 2 pin. Afterwards there didn’t seem to be any issue removing and reinserting.
• Shells are on the lighter thinner plastic side, reminds me of some of TRN’s budget models IM series. It sacrifices premium build feel for a more practical lightweight disappears in your ears concept.
• Eartips, I had to go up a size from my usual medium and then the midbass nature makes an appearance.
• 6 ohms on the box, 8ohm listed on the web. Measurement below confirms 6 ohm if not closer to 5 ohm. High output impedance sources beware.
• The wood faceplate is unique as a snowflake and yes they are heart shaped. Love at first sight? The wood faceplate is offest, I did a double take thinking the faceplates had come off in shipment.
• The cable is of the tight twisted variety it is not afraid to show it’s kinky side.
• They stay put in my ears, but isolation is average.

PROS

• Unique wood faceplate
• Stays in my ear YMMV
• Smooth piezo tweeter implementation

CONS

• Low Impedance makes it susceptible to cable impedance and source output impedance
• Average isolation
• Bass tuning is centered high and wide
• Left vs Right level differences

GEEK WOLD GK10 PACKAGE CONTENTS

• Removable 2 pin cable
• 2 sets of eartips S/M/L
• Carrying Pouch

THE IMPORTANT SOUND STUFF

Equipment Sources LG V30 / Liquid Spark + JDS Labs Atom

The Geek Wold GK10 is a V shaped signature with bright treble and peaky bass centered in the midbass region. It roughly outlines the Harman curve expect for a few peaks in the response. I have seen the controversy about graphs and perceptions…more on that in a bit. I can only comment on the set received.

The bass has a quick decay but at the same time boomy and thick sounding. Lower registers drop quickly off only to come in later with a slight lack of control, be prepared for all vocals to sound boxy. But wait you say, my set doesn’t sound like that so yours must be defective? The plausible idea is that there is glue covering the vent hole altering the tuning giving them a unit to unit inconsistency.

The other possibility is something I have come across now twice recently, using certain sized tips the shell prevents deep penetration to get that seal needed for proper bass reproduction. What you end up with is a loose seal that helps mask the peakiness of the bass hump. The same result can be achieved by sticking something between the stem of the eartip and nozzle so that it “leaks”.

If comparing the other piezo hybrids, the Nicehck NX7 wins hands down with it’s sub-centric non-bleeding bass, while the BQEYZ Spring 2 comes in second only due to less quantity of the wide hump.

There is a third possibility, consider the fact the hump covers the whole lower octaves similar to trekking up a very long gradual hill to only realize later how tall that hill actually gets. Our brains work very well in relative terms, not so much in absolutes, in others words this rise can be masked.

Mids on the Geek Wold GK10 are pushed into the background with rockiness in the waters presenting some audible grain consistent with IEM’s in this price bracket. Females and male vocalists sound rather chesty as expected with such a midbass hump. I am also picking up some ever slight edginess as we move into the upper mids. The BQEYZ Spring 2 excel in the midrange over the Nicehck NX7 and the Geek Wold GK10 coming in third.

The upper mids and treble come in hot and heavy giving the old noggin a lot to process. They are lively and energetic with a peak near 5khz. Snares are soft and cymbals have no real wincing impact that can easily occur with the Nicehck NX7 leaving just the splash at the end-think shhh instead of catshhh.

The BQEYZ Spring 2 is cleaner and more cohesive. It’s easy to see the treble is the star of the show since it is not offensive. Many IEM’s in this price bracket have trouble controlling treble to extent that it is either piercing or subdued. It’s a tough call here, I prefer the BQEYZ Spring 2, but others might decide the softer presentation of the Geek Wold GK10 might be preferred. The Nicehck NX7 looses terribly unless you want to chase away a wild pack of wolves.

TECHNICALITIES

The Geek Wold GK 10 presents a wide stage with medium depth with only vocals sitting in the background. Separation of instruments is acceptable but easily bested by the 3 times as expensive BQEYZ Spring 2. I get the feeling there might be no crossover in these relying solely on driver overlap and natural roll off of the drivers.

I pick up smearing throughout the midrange so this is perhaps the reason. I might be mistaken but I did not find any literature that mentions a crossover division of frequencies. Geek Wold might want to mention that if it exists. If you didn’t want to spring for the Spring 2, this is an alternative with a recessed midrange in comparison.

Soundstage does present nice width and height with only a minor dip in depth through the mids. The piezo super tweeter adds some ambiance to give some air, but not to the level of the BQEYZ Spring 1 or 2.

OUTRO

The Geek Wold GK10 will enjoy the 15 minutes of fame until the next shiny toy comes out, there is currently no one else offering a hybrid with a ceramic piezo super tweeter at this price range. I have to be realistic, it is not a giant killer or something that can compete in higher price brackets.

Enjoy it for what it is, a sub $50 hybrid and pretty to look at less smooth Harmon tuned IEM heavy on the midbass. After some brain burn re-calibration, I have to let my hearing adjust back to my daily favorite, the Shozy Form 1.4.

GRAPHS

• Geek Wold GK10 Left vs Right
• Geek Wold GK10 vs BQEYZ Spring 2 vs Nicehck NX7
• Geek Wold GK10 Impedance Plot

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Cons — Sound is strongly eartips dependent, can be bright.

Executive Summary

The Whizzer Kylin HE03AL is a cohesive warm-bright, nimble earphone that scores in almost all aspects.

Introduction

With the abundance of multidriver earphones in the last few years, the size of the earpieces appears to have increased exponentially. This may be a consequence of the number of drivers packed into the shells, but even single-dynamic driver earphones appear to have grown. Apart from that, many shells appear to approach a few uniform designs. The listener has to stuff huge cherries into their ears and almost nobody appears to find anything wrong with that.

When choosing my earphones for the day, comfort, and therefore size, shape, and weight play a big role. A good example are my infamous, now discontinued UE 900S that feature four balanced armature drivers in very tiny shells.

Whizzer shows that it can be done. The company is currently having success with the highly rated $80 HE01, an articulate and fun-tuned single dynamic-driver iem. The earpieces come in a unique teardrop shape that provide an excellent fit. While the roségold design may polarize the audio enthusiasts, it stands out from the large uniform fraction of the rest.

Whizzer carried this principal shape over to their new HE03AL (not 100%), a 1+2 iem, which distinguish themselves from their competition through their appearance.

Specifications

Physical Things and Usability

The earpieces come in a very high-quality blue leather case, which may not be the most portable one. The earpieces are made of high-grade magnesium-aluminium alloy, and their haptic is as good as it can be. They are not only small but also light, and their nozzles are relatively long with two lips.

The 5N silver-plated copper cable is reminiscent of the ones that come with some Moondrop models: it is silver-white, with a round cross section, and is not too rubbery, rather light, drapes well around my body, and the connectors are made of metal. The earhooks are relatively elastic and do not strangle my ears. There is minor microphonics. Whizzer want to sell you their $79 GSC5N upgrade cable, but I find the stock cable just fine for me, as it is light. Works.

Also in the box are two sets of silicone eartips, black wide-bores, and whitish narrow-bores. The accessories are completed by a little soft brush and the usual paperwork.

Ergonomics is very good, the small earpieces with their long nozzles fit my ears like a glove. Very comfortable for many hours of listening pleasure. Isolation is not the greatest, but this may vary between sets of ears.

Tonality and Technicalities

Equipment used: MacBook Air/iPhone SE with AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt; EarMen Eagle with AudioQuest JitterBug FMJ, Earstudio HUD100, ifi Audio iDSD Nano BL; stock tips.

A sonic characterization of the HE03AL is somewhat tricky, as the sound is rather tip dependent. But independent of tips, I’d characterize the HE03AL as cohesive and moderately warm, organic, and musical, closer to a “clean” single dynamic driver than a BA multi. This, combined with its small, light, ergonomic and therefore well fitting earpieces make for a pleasant, fatigue-free listening over longer periods.

The stock tips worked best for me. I also tried tip rolling but had no luck: SpinFit CP145 and CP500 did not improve anything and the Azla SednaEarfit introduced a muffled upper bass.

The white narrow-bore “reference” tips are bulbous in shape and rather long, and they have the thicker membrane of the two stock sets. They are made for deep insertion. The black wide-bore “soundstage” tips are rather short and wide. They are stitting shallower in your ear canals. Both kinds are short-stemmed and work well with the long nozzles.

Sonically the white tips dial the low end back and move the vocals forward. As a side-effect, this brings the upper midrange out and some may perceive the sound bright. Paradoxically, these “reference” tips create the better 3-D scene.

The black tips add to the bass and move the vocals back into the trough of a U-shape. That bass balances the upper midrange elevation, which essentially switches the midrange glare off and avoids shoutiness.

Different strokes for different folks.

All this is not reflected in my measurements, for two reasons: first, I always use the same standard tips for all earphones, and second, I could not get consistent results with the black tip as the coupler refused to work with the thin membane.

However, measurements with my standard tis show a 13 dB pinna gain from 1 to 2 kHz is followed by a 4 kHz peak, resulting in a broad upper midrange plateau. The elevated 4-5 kHz region can introduce grain and harshness to many ears, but can be mitigated with eartips, as seen above.

Independent of tips, the low end is well dosed with a natural decay. Extension into the sub-bass is good but not the greatest, neither is slam, although there is a good rumble with the black tips. Call it “relaxed”.

If you want a healthy bass kick, the HE03AL offer a more natural sounding solution instead. Fast bass lines are clean, precise, but subtle. “Composed” is the best fitting term for the low end, and more so with the white tips than with the black ones. Bass is thumpier and punchier with the black tips.

Vocals in the lower midrange are very nicely rendered and brighter with the white tips. Note weight does not suffer from the upper midrange glare with the white tips. Black tips cause some bass bleed that enhance the recessed male vocals. Note definition is very good and there is plenty of air.

The lower treble drops somewhat off with cymbals in the 7 kHz are being recessed and subtle, but still well defined and crisp. This does not really compromise the treble experience much as the 10 kHz comes to help. Treble resolution and details very good and there is no danger that the upper treble is fatiguing to anybody.

According to the subtle low end, soundstage is not as immersive as in the Dunu Zen, for example. the baser black tips make the stage deeper and limited in width, and the white tips cause the opposite.

Spatial cues is good, you can pinpoint musicians on the stage nicely. Resolution and microdynamics are average, and macrodynamics benefits from amplification. Resolution suffers when the stage is crowded.

Timbre is astonishingly natural but can be coated with a film of brightness, depending on tips. The BAs do not introduce that “glassy” BA timbre.

Whizzer Kylin HE03AL Compared

The $240 NiceHCK Lofty single DD has more depth and weight, is bassier, but is overall much less coherent and balanced. The $220 Akoustyx R-220 has a significantly flatter, neutral tuning with a much lesser low end that comes very close to Etymotic’s tuning. The $200 Shozy Form 1.4 sounds less organic but is technically better.

Concluding Remarks

With the HE03AL, Whizzer have released an iem that distinguishes itself from its competition already by its appearance. I would classify this iem as a great allrounder: it is attractive looking and feeling, well-made, comfortable, and it sounds musical, engaging, and pleasant. All little wheels work well together, the wow effect may come later. And it will…

I’d recommend the HE03AL to people who have saved their money for ONE earphone in the $200-250 class. For you, it will cover all the bases. And I assign some longevity to it. It is good enough to still serve you well 3 years down the road.

My wife has had a single earphone, the Hifiman RE-400. I gave her the HE03AL as an upgrade. The perfect iem for somebody like her.

Until next time…keep on listening!

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