Posted by Pros: Comfortable despite its size
Great fidelity and note clarity
Good reproduction of Vocals
Non fatiguing treble
Great Imaging
Cons: Boring unboxing and accessories
3.5mm termination only
There is a BA timbre that catches on some tracks and makes them difficult
Playing God doesn’t sound good on it.
Tech Specs
Driver Setup: 1 high-performance dynamic driver + 4 balanced armature drivers
Impedance: 26Ω ± 15% (@1kHz)
Sensitivity: 119dB/Vrms (@1kHz)
Frequency Response: 8Hz – 40kHz
Build: 3D-printed resin shell with a CNC-processed metal faceplate.
Cable: Detachable high-purity silver-plated OFC cable with a 3.5mm termination.
So I borrowed this one from a friend to take a stab at Simgot’s famous line up of IEMs. Which means all I took were the IEMs in a nice case. The packaging is a cardboard box with 3 pairs of eartips, a carry case, the IEMs and a cable. Now the cable has 2 things that I find hard to abide by – QDC connectors and a 3.5mm termination. So I had to swap with a TRN modular cable.
This is a nicely shaped IEM, no struggle or discomfort despite long uses. I used it with Final E tips and Alza Origins, note that both suppress the highs and boost the bass. The nozzle is longish and makes for a good seal with these tips, though Dunu S & S should work well too. The nozzle also has a nice mesh, to basically keep the insides of the IEM safe from the insides of my ear. The face plate is machined metal, so while being pretty, it is a fingerprint magnet. But let’s get down to business.
First order is getting down to the low end of things. Angel by Massive Attack seems to lack that soul-crushing drone that it starts with, meaning sub-bass rumbles are lost to the mid bass. Which in turn can’t really separate the kicks from the bass. The bass is slow and feels insipid and muddy. This could be attributable to the single dynamic driver. On tracks like Didi, the live version from 1,2,3 Soleils, the bass kicks in about half a minute into the song. The notes are clear and well textured but the bass lacks weight and is slow to decay. Overall I would not rank this high on the list of basshead iems, if it even made it to the list.
The mids is where the BAs really come through. Horns and synthesizers in Lingus by Snarky Puppy are brought to the front and centre. Guitars both acoustic and electric sound lovely and pushed forward without being in your face. Helplessly Hoping by A Girl Named Tom, is a lovely 3-part harmony and an acoustic guitar, and sounds excellent on this set. There are moments in the upper mids where I feel the BA timbre peaks through in higher male voices. Tracy Chapman’s voice in Subcity and Gimme one Reason is lush and out there without being overly shouty, but again the BAs make their presence felt. Playing God by Polyphia managed to make this set a little difficult to listen to. Nothing that a slight EQ could not fix but that discomfort was real to me.
The top end is nicely done. With details coming through fairly adequately without sibilance. Snare hits and cymbals sound authentic without being harsh. On Milan by Karsh Kale the hi-hats and snares kick in at about 3 minutes and settle into the track comfortably, and around 6 min when the drum machine and tabla decide to get it on, the details are clean, clear and present. On Dreams by Fleetwood Mac (since the entire Rumors album was recorded with a treble friendly engineer), Mick Fleetwood’s drum work sounds as it was meant to be and non fatiguing.
Imaging, staging, separation and the like
The IEM has a narrow-ish stage but extremely good imaging. On Bubbles by Yosi Horikawa (which is mental, you should listen to it if you haven’t) the direction and spacing of all the sounds were easy to identify but it felt like the track was happening in a smaller room than an airplane hangar.
Instrument separation is adequate barring the muddy bass and that weird thing happening in the mids with the BAs.
This would make a great gaming IEM, with the excellent imaging that it manages to provide. I would have liked the stage to be better, the bass to be a little bassier and a little tweaking of the upper mids and this would be an easy recommendation.
I’m off to hunt for its elder brother the EM10 to see how they hold up against each other. If you are a gamer and are going to be with this set for long periods of time and you don’t listen to Polyphia, go forth!