crinacle's IEM Ranking List – In-Ear Fidelity

GRADES

S: Must try. Experience what the best has to offer.
A: While not at the top of the summit, Grade-A IEMs are still very respectable performers that would still be considered as some of the best by many.
B: Can essentially be described as “very good”, or excellent performers in their own right.
C: Average in the grand scheme of things, anywhere from “passable” to “good”.
D: The threshold for “bad” starts here.
E: The truly horrible.
F: The failures. One needs to literally sound broken to reach the depths of F-tier.

Value Rating

★: “Worth the price” (MSRP)
– Only those with a grade of “C” or above are considered for their first star.
– Discontinued models are not eligible.
★★: “Redefines the price bracket”
★★★: “Revolutionary” (For its time)
– Needs to be eligible for at least a ★ rating before ★★★ can be considered.
– Discontinued models may still be considered.

↓↓↓ READ THIS: Notes & Disclaimers ↓↓↓

The IEMs are ranked purely by sonic performance. Fit, isolation, durability, build quality etc. are ignored unless they interfere with the sound itself.

The IEMs are not ranked in terms of price-to-performance value. They are ranked according to what I think is “objectively” the best.

The IEMs in each tier are sorted alphabetically.

Most of the IEMs in this list are determined based off (universal) demo units from shops.

Customs tried will be specified as “custom”. A “Third party custom” is someone else’s customs that I forcefit into my ears. Any other use of the term “unit” will be universal.

The positions are not set in stone. I’m only human; I may miss out on certain details or traits that may only be apparent with repeated listening. Expect changes.

Ranks will be determined based on the best unit tried. Because of this, I am not accounting for unit variation. I cannot guarantee that what I’m hearing is what you will be hearing.

This will revert to the most recent unit tried if there is a significant time gap between the last and most recent times I tried a particular model.

Unreleased products will not be included in the ranking list until they are officially out of preorder stages or have production units sent to distributors. I will still be talking about them in my subreddit if I ever get the opportunity to try such units.

Prices are at MSRP in USD. Prices not directly available in USD are based off the exchange rate during the time of writing.

A (non-complete) list of IEMs that I’ve tried can be found on my measurements database.

If you can tell, a lot of IEMs on the database (that I’ve tried) are not in this list. This is could be due to lack of interest or lack of enough ear time to make a proper decision on tier placement.

Yes, this is the opinion of one person on the internet. Please do not get too offended if your favourite IEM isn’t graded as highly as you’d like. (vice versa applies)

This list is meant to be used as a reference point. I highly recommend against blind-buying and suggest to have a listen to the IEMs yourself. By all means, use this to shortlist what you should try in the future but don’t take it as gospel.

To aid searching, ranks without the + or – symbol will be marked with a “=”. That also includes the E & F ranks.

Ranking List Updates

Crinacle’s Headphone Ranking List: Public Release

The IEM boi dips his toes into the world of headphones.

May 24, 2020 13 Comments

Rank	Value Rating	Model	Price (MSRP)	Signature	Comments	Tone Grade	Technical Grade	Setup	Based on	Note weight	Ranksort	Tonesort	Techsort	Pricesort
S	★	qdc 8SL/Gemini/Anole VX	1410 (8SL) 2180 (Gemini) 2560 (Anole VX)	Neutral	Reference tuning with good tonality and top-level resolution. Similar tunings across top tier models.	S	S+	8/10BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-2	4	3	1	1410
S	★	Vision Ears VE8	2700	Warm neutral	Extremely coherent signature with a pleasing tuning and high technicalities.	S+	S	8BA	E1 demo unit	2	4	1	3	2700
S	★★★	64 Audio A/U12t	2000	Mild U-shape	Amazing bass (for a BA), top-tier resolution and detail-oriented signature.	S	S	12BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0	6	3	3	2000
S	★★★	Sony IER-Z1R	1700	Mild V-shape	Highly defined sound, realistic sub-bass focus and spacious imaging capabilities.	S	S	1BA 2DD	Personal unit	-3	6	3	3	1700
S-	★★★	64 Audio Tia Trio	2300	Neutral with bass boost	A more correct sounding version of the Fourte with slight cutbacks in staging and sheer resolution.	S	S-	2BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	1	10	3	7	2300
S-	★★★	InEar Prophile-8	1600	Neutral	Very "studio" like sound, heavy priority on technicalities	S	S-	8BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-1	10	3	7	1600
S-		Vision Ears Erlkonig	4800	Variable	Good tonality, high resolution and an overall decent all-rounder.	S-	S	13BA	Third party unit	2	10	7	3	4800
S-	★★	ThieAudio Monarch	730	Neutral with bass boost	A clean-sounding monitor with a bass boost near-exclusively in the sub-frequencies.	S-	S	2EST 6BA 1DD	Review unit		10	7	3	730
S-	★★	Hidition Viento	950	Variable	Best-in-class tuning and tonal balance with near-perfect coherency.	S+	A+	4BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-3	14	1	13	950
S-	★	Sony IER-M9	1000	Warm neutral	Neutral tonality, highly coherent and decent detail pickup.	S-	S-	5BA	Showfloor demo unit	2	14	7	7	1000
A+		Jomo Samba	Discontinued	V-shaped	Lively and engaging with big clarity and detail, perhaps too much for some	A+	S	8BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-4	16	13	3	99999
A+	★★	ThieAudio Clairvoyance	700	Neutral with bass boost	Inoffensive, pleasant tuning specialising in extremely balanced tonality and bass control.	S	A+	2EST 5BA 1DD	Review unit		16	3	13	700
A+		64 Audio A/U18 Tzar	3000	Warm neutral	A rather simple and "mainstream" tuning refined to an extremely high level.	A+	S-	18BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	1	20	13	7	3000
A+		Audeze iSine 20 (Cipher V1)	Discontinued	Harman-neutral	DSP corrects the glaring tonality issues and brings out the iSine driver's full potential.	A+	S-	Planar	Stereo SG demo unit	0	20	13	7	99999
A+		Jomo Flamenco	2200	Warm neutral	Tuned to be more pleasing and tonally accurate compared to the old Flamenco at the cost of sheer detail.	A+	S-	11BA	Showfloor demo unit	-4	20	13	7	2200
A+	★	Kumitate KL-Sirius	815	Neutral	Excellent technical ability, well tuned with a dash of Japanese flavour.	S-	A+	4BA	Third party custom	-4	20	7	13	815
A+	★★	Moondrop S8	700	Harman-neutral	More faithful to the Harman target compared to the A8, with a smoother bass response.	S-	A+	8BA	Oardio demo unit		20	7	13	700
A+	★	Campfire Andromeda (2020)	1100	Warm neutral	Basically an Andromeda without the treble spike and slightly boosted midrange.	A+	S-	5BA	Third party unit		20	13	7	1100
A+		Ultimate Ears UE18+ Pro Gen 2	Discontinued	Warm neutral	Somewhat reference tuning with emphasis on tonal accuracy and naturalness	S	A	6BA	Personal unit	3	24	3	21	99999
A+	★★	Moondrop Blessing 2	320	DF-neutral	Very well tuned from bass to treble, perhaps lacking in the last octaves of extension.	S	A	4BA 1DD	Review unit		24	3	21	320
A+		Empire Ears Legend X	2300	V-shaped	High resolution hybrid flawed only by lack of control in the bass regions.	A+	A+	5BA 2DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	1	26	13	13	2300
A+	★★★	Hidition NT6	1050	DF-neutral	If Etymotic made a multi-BA IEM, this would be the closest to that dream	A+	A+	6BA	Null Audio demo unit	-1	26	13	13	1050
A+		Jomo Trinity SS	2800	V-shaped	Highly detailed, well separated imaging though severely lacking in treble extension.	A+	A+	2EST 4BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit	-3	26	13	13	2800
A+	★	PEARS SH3	1100	Neutral	Great detail pickup and solid all-rounder, perhaps a little strident.	A+	A+	3BA	Third party unit	-4	26	13	13	1100
A+	★★★	Ultimate Ears Reference Monitor (UERM)	Discontinued	Neutral	The benchmark of an era, dead-flat with an upper treble boost	A+	A+	3BA	Personal custom	-3	26	13	13	99999
A	★★★	Campfire Andromeda (S)	1100	Warm U-shape	Highly coherent, easy-to-love tuning and spacious headstage	A	S-	5BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	2	28	21	7	1100
A		Elysian Hades V2	1550	Variable	Upper-mid forward signature with intense upper treble response.	A	A+	6BA	Showfloor demo unit		34	21	13	1550
A		Elysian Terminator V2	2500	V-shaped	A more intense, upper-mid forward Terminator V1 with the same level of technical ability.	A	A+	8BA	Showfloor demo unit		34	21	13	2500
A		Hidition NT8	1850	Neutral	Coloured neutral kind of sound that works better with Asian genres.	A	A+	8BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	0	34	21	13	1850
A		Hidition Waltz		Harman-neutral	Neutral-fun signature that works both as a reference monitor and a rock-out IEM.	A+	A	3BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	0	34	13	21	99999
A	★	qdc 4SS	700	Neutral	High clarity, high resolution reference-type monitor with spot-on tone.	A+	A	4BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0	34	13	21	700
A		StereoPravada SB7	2500	Bright DF-neutral	Technically proficient but marred by a sharp timbre. Interesting concept.	A-	S	7BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-5	34	31	3	2500
A		Tansio Mirai TSMR-12 "Zodiac"	1330	Neutral	Very clean, monitor/reference-style sound.	A+	A	12BA	Review unit		34	13	21	1330
A	★★	Fearless S8Z	590	Warm neutral	Solid all-rounder with a safe, pleasing tuning.	A+	A	8BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		34	13	21	590
A		Vision Ears Elysium	3200	Mild V-shape	First decent implementation of Sonion's EST tweeters.	A-	S-	2EST 1BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		38	31	7	3200
A	★★★	Sony MDR-EX1000	Discontinued	Bright DF-neutral	Outstanding imaging and detail retrieval though can be intense to listen to.	A-	S-	DD	Third party unit	-3	38	31	7	99999
A	★	Sony IER-M7	500	Warm neutral	Balanced across the board, though doesn't seem to excel in any particular area.	S-	A-	4BA	Showfloor demo unit	2	38	7	31	500
A	★★	Fearless S8F/S8Pro	490	V-shaped	Tonally pleasing V-shaped signature on a solid technical foundation.	A	A	8BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-3	42	21	21	490
A		FitEar MH334SR	2000	Warm neutral	A MH334 with more treble extension and more opened imaging.	A	A	4BA	Third party unit	3	42	21	21	2000
A		FiR M3	1200	Warm neutral	Interesting tubeless technology, though the imaging improvements are minimal.	A	A	2BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		42	21	21	1200
A		FiR M4	1900	Warm neutral	Too similar to the M3 to be worth the price markup.	A	A	3BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		42	21	21	1900
A		JH Roxanne	1745	Warm	Rich and smooth, perfect for male vocals	A	A	12BA	A2A Melbourne demo unit	4	42	21	21	1745
A		Jomo Trinity Brass	2800	Warm	The warmer of the Trinity models, sacrificing technical ability for a more pleasing and smoother tone.	A	A	2EST 4BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit	2	42	21	21	2800
A	★	Lime Ears Model X	1000	Variable	Technically capable IEM that goes from decently neutral to warm and smooth in a pinch.	A	A	4BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0	42	21	21	1000
A		Lime Ears Aether	1350	Neutral with bass boost	Excellent clarity and tone but marred slightly by slightly lackluster resolution	A	A	5BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	1	42	21	21	1350
A	★	Moondrop A8	667	Harman-neutral	An odd but surprisingly decent take on the Harman signature, with added midbass compared to the S8.	A	A	8BA	Oardio demo unit		42	21	21	667
A		Moondrop Solis	1100	Warm DF-neutral	A good implementation of the EST drivers with Moondrop's signature tuning specialties.	A	A	4BA 2EST	Review unit		42	21	21	1100
A	★	Massdrop x Noble K10	700	Neutral with bass boost	Very safe tuning, almost to the point of boredom. Does nothing wrong but nothing right either	A	A	10BA	Stereo SG demo unit	0	42	21	21	700
A		Noble K10 Encore	1850	Neutral	Reference oriented sound focused on technicalities	A	A	10BA	Stereo SG demo unit	-1	42	21	21	1850
A		Noble Katana	1850	Neutral with laid-back treble	Like the K10, except with less bass	A	A	9BA	Stereo SG demo unit	-1	42	21	21	1850
A		Oriolus MK2	1100	Warm	Lively yet non-fatiguing hybrid experience	A	A	3BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-2	42	21	21	1100
A	★	qdc 5SH	900	V-shaped	Fun, lively signature that retains high levels of performance.	A	A	5BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0	42	21	21	900
A		Stealthsonics U9 JDM	1100	Neutral with bass boost	Does away with the timbre issues of the standard U9.	A	A	8BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit	0	42	21	21	1100
A	★	Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (UERR)	1000	Neutral with laid-back treble	Warm with good tonality. Good all-rounder albeit definitely not a reference signature.	A	A	3BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	1	42	21	21	1000
A		Westone ES60	1300	Neutral with laid-back treble	Great timbre and well-tuned, held back by its resolution	A	A	6BA	A2A Melbourne demo unit	2	42	21	21	1300
A	★	ThieAudio Voyager 14 (V14)	1000	Neutral	Evokes a qdc-ish house sound, though stumbles in both tuning refinement and technicalities.	A	A	14BA	Third party unit		42	21	21	1000
A-		Sony MDR-EX800ST/MDR7550	350	Bright neutral	A more forgiving, warmer version of the EX1000.	A-	A+	DD	Third party unit	-2	44	31	13	350
A-		JVC HA-FW10000	2200	DF-neutral	Intense and shouty DF-style signature with solid resolution.	B+	S-	DD	Stereo SG demo unit		50	43	7	2200
A-	★★	Drop + JVC HA-FDX1	280	Neutral	Highly technical sound with a clean, well-tuned neutral signature.	A	A-	DD	Review unit		52	21	31	280
A-		Elysian Poseidon	1940	Neutral with bass boost	Good, inoffensive midrange tone and bass tuning, marred by the lack of low-level detailing.	A	A-	6BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		52	21	31	1940
A-	★★★	Etymotic ER4XR	350	DF-neutral	A more mainstream tuning of the ER4S/SR with slightly boosted bass.	A	A-	BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-4	52	21	31	350
A-		FiR M5	2800	Warm	Warmer than the M3 and M4 with lower resolution.	A	A-	1EST 3BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		52	21	31	2800
A-		Hidition NT6 Pro	1100	Neutral with bass boost	A V-shaped version of the NT6. The change in tuning kills the technical ability slightly	A-	A	6BA	Null Audio demo unit	1	52	31	21	1100
A-		InEar SD5	1100	Warm V-shape	Excels in timbre reproduction and has an overall pleasant signature.	A	A-	5BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	2	52	21	31	1100
A-	★	Moondrop Blessing	400	Harman-neutral	All rounder that comes the closest to the Harman Target.	A	A-	4BA 1DD	Review unit	-4	52	21	31	400
A-	★	NocturnaL Atlantis	600	Neutral	Reference signature with immense clarity and energy.	A	A-	4BA	Treoo demo unit	-3	52	21	31	600
A-		Sony Justear XJE-MH2 "Club"	2150	Warm DF-neutral	Nice, pleasant signature that is reminiscent of a more textured HS1551.	A	A-	1BA 1DD	Third party custom	1	52	21	31	2150
A-		Unique Melody Mason V3+	3200	Bright neutral	Decent resolution, nothing really special otherwise.	A-	A	16BA	Munkong Gadget demo unit		52	31	21	3200
A-	★	HYLA CE-5	915	V-shaped	Probably the best bass response I've ever heard. Thin-ish midrange that sounds unnatural on certain instruments.	B+	A+	1Piezo 2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-4	56	43	13	915
A-		HYLA TE-5B	1300	V-shaped	Similar to the CE-5 though ever-so-slightly thinner in the midrange.	B+	A+	1Piezo 2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-4	56	43	13	1300
A-	★★★	Shure KSE1200	2000	Bright U-shape	Easily at the top in terms of resolution and definition, but comes with a big treble spike and slightly odd mids.	B	S+	Electrostatic	A2A Melbourne demo unit	-5	58	57	1	2000
A-		Dita Dream	1800	V-shaped	Excellent resolution and detail let down by its metallic tonality and thin midrange	B	S	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-3	60	57	3	1800
A-	★	Acoustune HS1650	650	V-shaped	Well textured and energetic with a sub-bass focus.	A-	A-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-2	62	31	31	650
A-		qdc Dmagic	1900	Neutral	Probably the best triple-DD IEM out there by virtue of not being a hot mess tonally.	A-	A-	3DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		62	31	31	1900
B+		64 Audio N8	1700	Bassy	Sub-bass focus, rich and smooth yet relatively neutral in tone.	B+	A	8BA 1DD	Personal custom	4	64	43	21	1700
B+		Elysian Terminator	Discontinued	Warm V-shape	Well rounded smooth signature that doesn't offend.	B+	A	8BA	Showfloor demo unit	3	64	43	21	99999
B+	★★	Etymotic ER2SE/ER2XR	160	DF-neutral	Slightly less detailed than the ER4, but without the usual BA timbre.	A	B+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		64	21	43	160
B+	★	Fearless S6Pro	390	DF-neutral	Technical tuning with very forward detailing.	A	B+	6BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-3	64	21	43	390
B+		FitEar MH334	1900	Warm	Perfect for female vocals, but otherwise quite coloured	A	B+	4BA	Third party custom	3	64	21	43	1900
B+	★	Massdrop Plus	300	DF-neutral with bass boost	Reference-targeted sound with excellent clarity and detail, with a slightly more fun tuning.	A	B+	3BA	Review unit	3	64	21	43	300
B+		Oriolus Mellianus	2400	Mild V-shape	Thin and sterile signature that isn't the most natural, but still technically proficient.	B+	A	10BA	Third party unit	-4	64	43	21	2400
B+		Soranik Ion	1100	Warm	Clearly inspired by the 334, follows the same strengths in female vocals	A	B+	5BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	3	64	21	43	1100
B+	★	Tanchjim Oxygen	270	Harman-neutral	One of the best-tuned DDs tuned somewhat to Harman. Defined and detailed.	A	B+	DD	Review unit		64	21	43	270
B+		Unique Melody Maestro V2	2000	"Balanced"	It's... there. Hard to find words for this one	B+	A	12BA	Stereo SG demo unit	-3	64	43	21	2000
B+		Gaudio Nair	862	Neutral	Well-tuned neutral monitor bottlenecked by timbre and resolution.	A+	B	3BA	Review unit		70	13	57	862
B+		A&K T8iE	Discontinued	Neutral with bass boost	Hard-to-dislike tuning with excellent clarity and resolution	B	A+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	0	70	57	13	99999
B+		Beyerdynamic Xelento	1000	V-shaped	Like the T8iE, with a little more treble	B	A+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	0	70	57	13	1000
B+		Noble Khan	2300	U-shaped	Clean yet lean, solid low-end rumble but treble get splashy. Technical but lacking naturalness for top performance.	B	A+	1Piezo 4BA 1DD	Third party unit	-5	70	57	13	2300
B+	★★	AKG N400	155	Harman-neutral	Does away with the timbral issues of the Buds+ and sets itself as a superior.	A+	B	DD	Personal unit		70	13	57	155
B+	★	Acoustune HS1551	500	Warm V-shape	Warm and smooth tonality with a pleasing tuning not many would hate.	A-	B+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	3	74	31	43	500
B+		Custom Art Harmony 8.2	1300	Warm	Smooth and easy signature. No fatigue whatsoever. The definition of a lounging IEM.	A-	B+	8BA	Personal unit	5	74	31	43	1300
B+	★	DUNU DK-3001 Pro	470	Warm neutral	Well-tuned and coherent. Does little wrong and very easy to like.	A-	B+	3BA 1DD	Review unit		74	31	43	470
B+	★★★	Etymotic ER4PT	300	Warm neutral	Slightly rolled off treble with good detail and resolution, though imaging is too two-dimensional.	A-	B+	BA	Personal unit	-3	74	31	43	300
B+		Elysian Artemis V2	700	Neutral	A detailed, somewhat neutral-sounding IEM that should fit most people's tastes.	B+	A-	3BA	Showfloor demo unit		74	43	31	700
B+		FitEar TG334	1400	Dark	Like the MH334 with quite a bit less treble	A-	B+	4BA	Personal unit	4	74	31	43	1400
B+		HUM Reference	1300	DF-neutral	Basically sounds like a shallow-fit ER4S.	A-	B+	BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-4	74	31	43	1300
B+		Jomo Quatre	1500	V-shaped	Nicely tuned hybrid that serves as a good all-rounder.	A-	B+	3BA 1DD	Euphoria Audio demo unit	1	74	31	43	1500
B+		Unique Melody Martian	700	Neutral with bass boost	Well-tuned hybrid with excellent bass response and smooth midrange.	A-	B+	2BA 2DD	Stereo SG demo unit	2	74	31	43	700
B+		JQ Hua Jiang	750	Neutral with bass boost	Somewhat subdued and "safe" tuning with decent resolving ability.	A-	B+	2EST 6BA 1DD	Third party unit		74	31	43	750
B+		64 Audio tia Fourte	3600	W-shaped	Unique sound; high clarity and bass response with immensely wide staging, held back by a wonky tonality.	B-	S	3BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	-3	76	73	3	3600
B+		Campfire Solaris (SE)	1500	"Balanced"	Coherent and well balanced hybrid though with slight midrange hollowness.	B	A	3BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	0	78	57	21	1500
B+	★	Sony XBA-N3	300	Neutral with bass boost	Exceptional tonal balance only limited by its slightly smoothed over definition	A	B	1BA 1DD	ConnectIT demo unit	3	78	21	57	300
B+		NCM Bella	1050	U-shaped	Powerful bass combined with clean sounding mids, though perhaps a tad aggressive at times.	B	A	8BA 1DD	Review unit	-1	78	57	21	1050
B+		Vision Ears VE3.2	1200	Warm neutral	Almost VE8-like in tonality, but lacks its technical abilities.	A	B	3BA	E1 demo unit		78	21	57	1200
B+	★	FAudio Minor	520	Mild V-shape	Well-balanced tonality and tuning, held back by middling technicalities.	A	B	DD	Third party unit		78	21	57	520
B+		AAW ASH	800	Warm neutral	Smooth tonal balance with decent technicalities.	B+	B+	6BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	3	86	43	43	800
B+		Empire Ears EVR	800	Neutral	A nicely tuned flat-ish signature with good technical ability all around.	B+	B+	3BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-4	86	43	43	800
B+		Empire Ears Vantage	1400	V-shaped	A Legend-X-mini, essentially. Nice alternative on a "budget".	B+	B+	1BA 2DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	3	86	43	43	1400
B+	★	iBasso IT04	500	U-shaped	A nice improvement over the IT03 though midrange hollowness still exists.	B+	B+	3BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	-1	86	43	43	500
B+		Sennheiser IE800	800	Mild V-shape	Good bass with shimmery treble. Decent tonality.	B+	B+	DD	Jaben SG demo unit	1	86	43	43	800
B		HYLA TE-5T	1300	Upper mid focused	Very Japanese-sounding with a massive upper harmonic focus, too much for many genres.	B-	A+	1Piezo 2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-5	86	73	13	1300
B		AAW Canary	2170	V-shaped	Poor implementation of the EST driver. Decent in tonality and timbre, but that's about it.	B	A-	2EST 4BA 2DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		88	57	31	2170
B		Acoustune HS1670	800	V-shaped	Metallic and shrill timbre makes this hard to enjoy.	B	A-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		88	57	31	800
B		Dita Fidelity	1300	V-shaped	The more technical and less natural sounding of the Dita twins.	B	A-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-4	88	57	31	1300
B		Dita Fealty	1300	Mild V-shape	The more natural sounding and less technical of the Dita twins.	A-	B	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		88	31	57	1300
B		Empire Ears Phantom	1800	Warm	Heavy, rich and decadent, great for male vocals and bassy instruments.	B	A-	5BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	5	88	57	31	1800
B		Empire Ears Valkyrie	1600	Extreme V-shape	Lots of sub-bass with extremely thin mids. Adequate technicalities.	B	A-	1EST 1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		88	57	31	1600
B	★★	Moondrop KXXS	190	Harman-neutral	Well-tuned single DD with proper timbre and decent technicalities.	A-	B	DD	Review unit		88	31	57	190
B	★★	Moondrop Starfield	110	Harman-neutral	A cheaper KXXS.	A-	B	DD	Review unit		88	31	57	110
B	★★	Samsung Galaxy Buds	130	Harman-neutral	A surprisingly well-tuned TWS with the technical chops to boot.	A-	B	DD	Personal unit		88	31	57	130
B	★	Sony WF-1000XM3	230	Neutral with bass boost	Proper tonality, solid technicalities yet with a consumer-friendly signature.	A-	B	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		88	31	57	230
B		Ultimate Ears UE18+ Pro Gen 3	1500	"Balanced"	Perceived more neutrally compared to the Gen 2; less emotional, more boring.	B	A-	6BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0	88	57	31	1500
B		Kinera Nanna	900	Mild V-shape	Surprisingly well-extended for an EST implementation; somewhat blunted notes overall.	A-	B	2EST 1BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		88	31	57	900
B		64 Audio tia Fourte Noir	3800	W-shaped	A bassier and warmer Fourte though also strangely sharper and less technical.	B-	A	3BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	0	94	73	21	3800
B		Campfire Solaris (2020)	1500	Bright V-shape	Similar (but not identical) upper midrange problems to the original, with added sibilance.	B-	A	4BA 1DD	Third party unit		94	73	21	1500
B		Campfire Ara	1300	Bright neutral	Very resolving set of IEMs, triggers the "uncanny valley" effect with its tuning.	C+	S	7BA	Third party unit		94	91	3	1300
B		Final Audio A8000	2000	Bright V-shape	Technically strong but going too far with the treble emphasis.	B-	A	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		94	73	21	2000
B		DUNU Luna	1700	Mid-centric	Needs more work on the tuning front.	C+	S-	DD	Review unit		98	91	7	1700
B		AAW AXH (2019)	430	Bright neutral	Sharp treble though not to the point of being piercing. Decent rendition of the bright-neutral signature.	B	B+	4BA 1DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-3	100	57	43	430
B		Acoustune HS1501	500	Warm V-shape	A more textured, bassier and more energetic version of the HS1551.	B	B+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		100	57	43	500
B		AKG N5005	1000	Neutral with bass boost	Amazing bass control only let down by plastic timbre.	B+	B	4BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		100	43	57	1000
B		Campfire Atlas	1300	Bassy	Gobs of bass with added treble sparkle that prevents complete congestion and muddiness.	B	B+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	4	100	57	43	1300
B		Dita Truth Brass	Discontinued	Warm V-shape	Very nice tonal characteristics with good bass, though nothing special technically.	B+	B	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		100	43	57	99999
B		Dita Dream XLS	1850	Neutral	Standard Dita house sound with a non-standard bass roll-off. Decent, not amazing.	B	B+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		100	57	43	1850
B		DUNU DK-4001	900	U-shaped	A little shrill with slight cutbacks in tone compared to the DK-3001 Pro.	B	B+	4BA 1DD	Review unit		100	57	43	900
B	★	Fearless S4	290	V-shaped	Tonally accurate though can be a little heavy with its upper midrange.	B+	B	4BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		100	43	57	290
B	★	Fearless S5H	330	V-shaped	Similar if not identical to the S4, though with a little less upper mids.	B+	B	5BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		100	43	57	330
B	★	Fearless S6Rui	390	V-shaped	Similar to the S4/S5H though with smoother upper mids and treble response.	B+	B	6BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		100	43	57	390
B	★	FiiO FH5	260	Neutral with bass boost	Stellar bass response and decent technical ability, not much to fault.	B+	B	3BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		100	43	57	260
B		Noble Tux 5	1300	U-shaped	Deep, sub-bass focus with potentially sibilant treble. Scooped midrange.	B+	B	4BA 1DD	Stereo SG demo unit		100	43	57	1300
B		qdc Anole V3	600	Variable	The bassier of the Anole brothers. Better timbre but worse technicalities.	B+	B	3BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		100	43	57	600
B		qdc Anole V6	1100	Variable	The more mid-centric of the Anole brothers. Better technicalities but worse timbre.	B	B+	6BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		100	57	43	1100
B	★★	Samsung Galaxy Buds+	150	Harman-neutral	Tuned even closer to the Harman IE target compared to the original.	B+	B	2DD	Personal unit		100	43	57	150
B	★	Sony XBA-A3	480	Neutral with bass boost	Coherent hybrid with a warm-ish tilt to its tone.	B+	B	2BA 1DD	Third party unit		100	43	57	480
B		Sony XBA-Z5	700	"Balanced"	All-rounder. Somewhat neutral both in FR and tonality.	B+	B	2BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		100	43	57	700
B		VSonic GR07X	Discontinued	Neutral	Jack of all trades. Has all the fundamentals down to a T.	B+	B	DD	Personal unit		100	43	57	99999
B		ThieAudio Legacy 9 (L9)	550	Bassy	Bass a little too slow and sluggish with minor quirks in the midrange-treble transition.	B+	B	8BA 1DD	Third party unit		100	43	57	550
B		PEARS SH2	860	Neutral	An odd take on neutrality but not the worst.	B	B+	2BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		100	57	43	860
B	★	Bose SoundSport Free	200	Neutral	Solid tonal balance with wide soundstage, though not the best in detailing.	A-	B-	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		104	31	73	200
B		Moondrop Kanas Pro	Discontinued	Warm V-shape	Somewhat Harman-esque in tuning, not the best in terms of resolution.	A-	B-	DD	Review unit		104	31	73	99999
B		Vision Ears EVE 20	1550	V-shaped	Solid technicalities in tandem with an uninspired tuning.	B-	A-	6BA	E1 demo unit		104	73	31	1550
B	★★	Lypertek Tevi	90	DF-neutral with bass boost	Probably the closest thing to an ER2XR in TWS form.	A	C+	DD	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		112	21	91	90
B		AAW Mockingbird	1450	Neutral	A "nothing special" kind of sound that is neither wrong nor exciting, even on a technical level.	B	B	8BA 1DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		114	57	57	1450
B		ACS Encore	1130	Neutral	Good all-rounder. No slouch in the technicalities.	B	B	3BA	Jaben SG demo unit		114	57	57	1130
B	★	ARC Mira	410	Neutral	A well-tuned basic setup with strengths in versatility.	B	B	2BA	Showfloor demo unit		114	57	57	410
B	★	Audio Technica ATH-E70	400	Neutral with bass boost	Clean and clear sound with a slight warm tilt without losing treble sparkle.	B	B	3BA	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		114	57	57	400
B		Empire Ears Bravado	700	V-shaped	A basic hybrid sound with big bass and energetic treble.	B	B	1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		114	57	57	700
B		Empire Ears Nemesis	1600	V-shaped	A lot more treble compared to the Vantage.	B	B	3BA 2DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	1	114	57	57	1600
B		Fearless La Hire	610	Neutral	Well-tuned neutral-style monitor with subpar treble extension.	B	B	2EST 2BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		114	57	57	610
B		Fidue A91 "Sirius"	900	Mid-centric	Uniquely tuned hybrid. Not very powerful DD bass with Diffuse-Field midrange.	B	B	4BA 1DD	LMUE demo unit		114	57	57	900
B		FitEar F/A111	780	Warm neutral	A laid-back take on reference with Suyama's FitEar colouration mixed in	B	B	BA	Jaben SG demo unit	3	114	57	57	780
B		FitEar Parterre	1200	Warm	Intimate, smooth and laidback sound	B	B	2BA?	Jaben SG demo unit	2	114	57	57	1200
B		FLC8S	Discontinued	Variable	Very good technicalities with a well-tuned signature. Filters change the sound a lot.	B	B	2BA 1DD	Personal unit		114	57	57	99999
B		HUM Pristine Reference	1400	Warm	Good detail pickup and generally inoffensive. Much better than the universal.	B	B	2BA	Third party custom	2	114	57	57	1400
B		JH Audio JH13v2 Performance Series	1000	V-shaped	Good all rounder, slightly warmer and more coherent than the custom version	B	B	8BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		114	57	57	1000
B	★	Periodic Audio Be	300	Mild V-shape	Meaty with decent sparkle in the treble, whilst remaining clear and clean.	B	B	DD	Review unit		114	57	57	300
B		Rhapsodio Galaxy	Discontinued	V-shaped	Lively and engaging but avoiding fatigue still. Rare combo	B	B	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	1	114	57	57	99999
B	★	Sennheiser IE400 Pro	350	V-shaped	Heavy bass boost balanced out by good treble energy along with decent midrange tonality.	B	B	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		114	57	57	350
B	★	Shozy & Neo BG	280	Bright neutral	Well balanced tuning with decent resolution, though suffers from slight timbral issues.	B	B	5BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		114	57	57	280
B		Shure SE846	1000	Neutral with bass boost	Deep reaching bass but with an odd tonality in the rest of the spectrum.	B	B	4BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		114	57	57	1000
B-		ARC Oculus	570	Warm	Relaxing, warm signature with sub-par resolving ability.	B+	B-	3BA	Showfloor demo unit		116	43	73	570
B-		Audio Technica ATH-IM02		Warm neutral	Well-balanced, excellent tuning and good technical ability.	B+	B-	2BA	Third party unit		116	43	73	99999
B-	★	Audio Technica ATH-LS200	250	Neutral	Somewhat Diffuse-Field neutral with its own quirks. Good technical ability.	B+	B-	2BA	Stereo SG demo unit		116	43	73	250
B-		Custom Art FIBAE Black	500	Warm neutral	Smooth, neutral-ish signature that serves as an all rounder.	B+	B-	1BA	Third party custom		116	43	73	500
B-		Fearless Lancelot	1300	Warm	Rather generic tuning with no redeeming qualities for its price and status.	B-	B+	2EST 6BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		116	73	43	1300
B-		FitEar Private 333	1500	Bright	Very exciting and sharp signature. Almost seems like it's made for higher-pitched vocals.	B-	B+	3BA	Jaben SG demo unit	-5	116	73	43	1500
B-		Hifiman RE2000	2000	Mild V-shape	Lively sound with great technicalities and substandard tonality.	B-	B+	DD	A2A Melbourne demo unit		116	73	43	2000
B-		InEar Stagediver SD2	450	Warm neutral	Well-balanced, excellent tuning and good technical ability. Similar to IM02.	B+	B-	2BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		116	43	73	450
B-		Itsfit R3	305	Neutral	Similar to the lauded UERM, but without its resolution nor sparkle.	B+	B-	3BA	Review unit		116	43	73	305
B-	★	Jabra Elite Active 65t	190	Neutral	Excellent tonal balance and timbre, though technical ability isn't the best.	B+	B-	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		116	43	73	190
B-	★★	Sony MH755	8	Harman-neutral	Clean notes, proper sub-bass extension and a tonal balance beyond expectations.	B+	B-	DD	Personal unit		116	43	73	8
B-	★	Unique Melody MacBeth	600	U-shaped	Extremely clear but may be too thin for some.	B-	B+	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		116	73	43	600
B-	★	Audiosense DT200	150	Neutral	Excellent tonality. Just excellent tuning overall.	A+	C	2BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		124	13	111	150
B-		Empire Ears ESR	1000	Bright V-shape	Has the technical chops but is sharp and fatiguing.	B-	B	3BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		130	73	57	1000
B-		FitEar EST	1300	Warm	Smooth and relaxing listen, though definition is not its strong suit.	B	B-	1EST 1BA	Jaben SG demo unit		130	57	73	1300
B-	★	Apple AirPods Pro	250	Neutral	Somewhat Diffuse-Field tuning with a smooth and natural midrange tonality.	B	B-	DD	Third party unit		130	57	73	250
B-		ARC Pollux	285	Neutral	Well-tuned neutral single-BA IEM.	B	B-	BA	Showfloor demo unit		130	57	73	285
B-		Elysian Cora (2019)	1230	Neutral with bass boost	A decent hybrid weird slightly odd midrange tonality.	B-	B	4BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		130	73	57	1230
B-		Fearless S10 Genie	700	DF-neutral	Sounds like an attempt at DF-neutral gone wrong. Tonally evokes a sense of "uncanny valley".	B-	B	10BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		130	73	57	700
B-		Fearless HyperS 12BA	900	DF-neutral	Similar if not identical to the S10 Genie.	B-	B	12BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		130	73	57	900
B-		Kinera Nanna	850	Mild V-shape	Surprisingly good implementation of the EST tweeters, but lacking details.	B	B-	2EST 1BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		130	57	73	850
B-		Meze Rai Penta	1100	Warm V-shape	Pleasing tonality with subpar technical ability.	B	B-	4BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		130	57	73	1100
B-		Oriolus Forsteni	375	U-shaped	Great sparkle, deep-reaching DD bass and high clarity. Spacious staging.	B-	B	2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		130	73	57	375
B-	★★	Tin HiFi T4	110	Bright neutral	A worthy successor to the legendary GR07.	B	B-	DD	Review unit		130	57	73	110
B-		VSonic GR07 Classic	Discontinued	Mild V-shape	Well-balanced, well-tuned, good technicalities. The $100 benchmark since ever.	B-	B	DD	LMUE demo unit		130	73	57	99999
B-		Vision Ears VE4.2	1440	V-shaped	Decently tuned monitor with adequate resolution, but nothing that hasn't been done before for cheap.	B-	B	4BA	E1 demo unit		130	73	57	1440
B-		Gaudio Clariden	862	V-shaped	Somewhat reminiscent of a more mid-y Andromeda, though with extra wonkiness.	B	B-	3BA	Review unit		130	57	73	862
B-		Earsonics EM10	2300	Warm	Oddly low dynamics makes this sound rather dead and lifeless.	C+	B+	10BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	2	134	91	43	2300
B-		Stealthsonics U9	1100	Neutral	An otherwise capable hybrid caught out by nasally and odd midrange.	C+	B+	8BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		134	91	43	1100
B-		Westone W80	1500	Warm neutral	Nicely balanced, intimate and slightly dry. Perhaps the least Westone-sounding Westone.	C+	B+	8BA	A2A Melbourne demo unit	3	134	91	43	1500
B-		Hyla Nerva X	2730	Dark	Low dynamics, rolled off and nothing that it really excels in.	B-	B-	10BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		146	73	73	2730
B-	★	ikko OH1	140	Upper mid focused	Well controlled sub-bass focus, high clarity and has an inherent "Asian" signature.	B-	B-	1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		146	73	73	140
B-		qdc Fusion	920	Warm	Dulled transients and lacks detailing. Tonality is merely okay.	B-	B-	4BA 1DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		146	73	73	920
B-		Rhapsodio Solar	1550	Mild V-shape	An all-rounder to a fault. Truly a master of none.	B-	B-	10BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-1	146	73	73	1550
B-		Ultimate Ears UE6 Pro	700	"Balanced"	A capable hybrid with little weaknesses.	B-	B-	1BA 2DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		146	73	73	700
B-		Ultimate Ears UE7 Pro	850	Warm neutral	Good clarity and detail with boosted, warm bass and controlled treble.	B-	B-	3BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		146	73	73	850
C+	★★	BLON BL03	38	Warm V-shape	Very pleasing and safe tuning with subpar technical detailing.	B	C+	DD	Review unit		148	57	91	38
C+		Campfire Polaris V1	600	V-shaped	Pseudo-Japanese tuning focusing on female vocals and a very lively signature.	C+	B	1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		148	91	57	600
C+		Campfire Jupiter	800	"Balanced"	Great clarity and staging though with odd upper midrange.	C+	B	4BA	ConnectIT demo unit	1	148	91	57	800
C+		Custom Art FIBAE3	625	Mid-centric	A clarity-focused IEM. Weak in staging, perhaps too thin on the note weight but ultimately does its kind of sound without hiccups.	C+	B	3BA	Review unit	-4	148	91	57	625
C+		Empire Ears Wraith	3500	Dark neutral	A Zeus with almost nonexistent treble and clarity.	C+	B	4EST 7BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		148	91	57	3500
C+		FiiO FH7	450	V-shaped	What is otherwise a pretty good hybrid marred by a strange tonality.	C+	B	4BA 1DD	ConnectIT demo unit		148	91	57	450
C+		Itsfit Fusion	950	"Balanced"	Hard to pinpoint its exact signature, but the result is an odd tonality.	C+	B	1MS 2BA 1DD	Review unit		148	91	57	950
C+		JH Audio Layla	2725	Variable	Suppressed upper mids and odd treble tuning. Decent technicalities.	C+	B	12BA	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		148	91	57	2725
C+		KZ E10	60	DF-neutral	A little bright, almost edging on shoutiness, but overall a decent attempt at neutrality.	B	C+	4BA 1DD	Review unit		148	57	91	60
C+		Lime Ears Aether R	1350	Variable	A downgrade from the original with weirder midrange tonality.	C+	B	6BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		148	91	57	1350
C+	★★	QCY T5	35	Neutral	An odd take on a reference-style signature, but definitely not the worst attempt out there.	B	C+	DD	Third party unit		148	57	91	35
C+		Shozy Form 1.1	75	Warm neutral	Relaxing, non-fatiguing listen with minor cutbacks in detailing.	B	C+	1BA 1DD	Review unit		148	57	91	75
C+		Shozy Form 1.4	200	Warm neutral	Very similar to the Form 1.1 in both tone and technicalities.	B	C+	4BA 1DD	Review unit		148	57	91	200
C+		Urbanfun YBF-ISS014	60	V-shaped	Clear detailing marred slightly by an almost generic and sharp tuning.	C+	B	DD	Review unit		148	91	57	60
C+	★	ThieAudio Legacy 3	130	Neutral	Balanced tonality with a laid-back signature, nothing much to fault nor to praise.	B	C+	2BA 1DD	Review unit		148	57	91	130
C+		Tansio Mirai TSMR-5	430	Warm V-shape	Alright tonality, decent detailing but nothing that makes it stand out.	B	C+	5BA	Review unit		148	57	91	430
C+		Kumitate KL-REF Type-S	1350	Variable	Well tuned but unfortunately suffers from very odd timbre.	C	B+	3BA 2DD	Third party unit		154	111	43	1350
C+		FAudio Major	1400	V-shaped	Piercing sharp treble and overwhelming bass makes this hard to listen to.	C	B+	DD	Third party unit		154	111	43	1400
C+		AAW A3H Pro V2	370	Warm	Decent technicalities with well controlled bass and treble rolloff.	B-	C+	2BA 1DD	Personal custom		164	73	91	370
C+	★	Anker Soundcore Liberty 2 Pro	150	V-shaped	Impressive sub-focused bass response, limited by its shouty and sharp midrange and treble.	B-	C+	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		164	73	91	150
C+		Campfire Dorado	1000	Warm	Extremely coherent albeit slightly congested. Great for intimacy lovers.	B-	C+	2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		164	73	91	1000
C+		Campfire Vega	1300	V-shaped	Powerful bass, sharp treble and muffled midrange.	C+	B-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		164	91	73	1300
C+	★	Edifier TWS5	80	V-shaped	Good tone and bass response, but unfortunately lacking detail retrieval.	B-	C+	DD	Third party unit		164	73	91	80
C+		Elysian Artemis	600	Warm	Thick, warm and smooth signature without complete sacrifice in technicalities.	B-	C+	3BA	Review unit		164	73	91	600
C+	★★	Final Audio E1000	30	Neutral	Balanced tuning with good clarity and acceptable resolution. Surprising pick.	B-	C+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		164	73	91	30
C+	★	Final Audio E2000	45	V-shaped	Not too dissimiliar to a GR07, though lacking in that last octave of bass extension.	B-	C+	DD	E1 demo unit		164	73	91	45
C+	★	Final Audio E3000	55	Warm	A warmer, bassier E2000.	B-	C+	DD	E1 demo unit		164	73	91	55
C+		Final Audio E4000	180	V-shaped	Rather standard sounding, non-offensive and neutral in tone.	B-	C+	DD	E1 demo unit		164	73	91	180
C+		Final Audio E5000	280	Warm	Less treble than the E4000 for a slightly different flavour.	B-	C+	DD	E1 demo unit		164	73	91	280
C+	★	Final Audio Heaven II	90	Bright neutral	Solid technical ability though might be a little too sterile at times.	B-	C+	BA	A2A Melbourne demo unit		164	73	91	90
C+		Fostex TM2	300	V-shaped	A little thin, a little bright and a little shouty, but not bad overall.	C+	B-	DD	Third party unit		164	91	73	300
C+		iBasso IT01S	200	V-shaped	Balanced tuning, slight lean towards brightness. Should be pleasing for most ears.	C+	B-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		164	91	73	200
C+	★	Intime Sora	45	U-shaped	Well controlled bass boost with slightly skewed tonality. Potential is there.	B-	C+	DD	Third party unit		164	73	91	45
C+	★	Periodic Audio Mg	100	Warm	Not the most clear or detailed but a very clean sound with good timbre.	B-	C+	DD	Review unit		164	73	91	100
C+	★	Shuoer Tape	130	V-shaped	Decent technicalities but it basically screams in your face.	C+	B-	MS	Oardio demo unit		164	91	73	130
C+	★	Tanchjim Cora	50	V-shaped	Well-controlled bass boost, though coupled with a slightly odd midrange tonality.	B-	C+	DD	Oardio demo unit		164	73	91	50
C+	★	TFZ King Pro	170	V-shaped	Powerful yet controlled bass response, good snap in the treble, doesn't sacrifice too much in the midrange.	C+	B-	DD	Third party unit		164	91	73	170
C+	★	Tin HiFi T2	50	Neutral	Well-balanced tuning and an all-rounder signature that works for most.	B-	C+	2DD	Review unit		164	73	91	50
C+	★	Tin HiFi T3	80	Mild V-shape	Somewhat generic hybrid signature, tuned well with good transient ability.	B-	C+	1BA 1DD	Review unit		164	73	91	80
C+		Vive XE800	Discontinued	Mild V-shape	A mini GR07. Need I say more?	B-	C+	DD	Third party unit		164	73	91	99999
C+		ThieAudio Voyager 3 (V3)	160	Warm V-shape	Slightly esoteric signature that somewhat works.	C+	B-	3BA	Review unit		164	91	73	160
C+	★	NiceHCK NX7 Pro	132	Bright V-shaped	Superb midrange tonality marred by a painfully piercing treble response.	C+	B-	1Piezo 4BA 2DD	Review unit		164	91	73	132
C+		Audiosense AQ3	180	Bassy	Well-controlled bass despite the emphasis, limited by overall resolving ability.	B	C	2BA 1DD	Review unit		168	57	111	180
C+		MMR Homunculus	1700	Warm neutral	Not the worst thing out there, but also nothing special about it.	C	B	2EST 1BA 1DD	ConnectIT demo unit		168	111	57	1700
C+		MMR Thummim	4500	V-shaped	More resolving than the Homunculus, but also comes with bass bloat.	C	B	4EST 4BA 1DD	ConnectIT demo unit		168	111	57	4500
C+		Audio Technica ATH-SPORT7TW	200	U-shaped	Clean bass and decent midrange tonality, though comes with strident treble.	C+	C+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		182	91	91	200
C+		BGVP DM6	200	Warm V-shape	Warm tilt in tone, decent detail retrieval though definition is a little too smoothed over.	C+	C+	5BA	Third party unit		182	91	91	200
C+	★★	CCA C10	40	V-shaped	Surprisingly well-tuned hybrid from a KZ-style company. Definitely the best in its lineup.	C+	C+	4BA 1DD	Oardio demo unit		182	91	91	40
C+	★	FiiO F9	100	V-shaped	Good technicalities, average timbre, perhaps a little excessive on the highs.	C+	C+	2BA 1DD	Review unit		182	91	91	100
C+		iBasso IT03	260	U-shaped	Excellent bass and clarity. Hollow midrange and somewhat metallic treble.	C+	C+	2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		182	91	91	260
C+		IMR R2 Aten	500	Variable	Decent sounding mids with bass that ranges from bleeding to non-existent.	C+	C+	1Piezo 1DD	Third party unit		182	91	91	500
C+	★	Shozy & Neo CP	165	Warm	Reference-style tuning, decent tonal balance, solid technical ability.	C+	C+	3BA	LMUE demo unit		182	91	91	165
C+		TFZ Secret Garden	200	V-shaped	Decent bass response and peaky treble, not much to say.	C+	C+	2DD	LMUE demo unit		182	91	91	200
C+		Ultimate Ears UE11 Pro	1150	Bassy	Quite a bit of low-end emphasis. Overly-congested and smeared transients.	C+	C+	4BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		182	91	91	1150
C+	★★	Zero Audio Carbo Tenore ZH-DX200-CT	40	V-shaped	A well-tuned V-shaped signature that maintains solid midrange and excellent clarity.	C+	C+	DD	Personal unit		182	91	91	40
C+		KBEar TRI I3	200	V-shaped	Surprisingly decent tonality, though somewhat average in the grand scheme of things.	C+	C+	1BA 1DD 1Planar	Third party unit		182	91	91	200
C+		ikko OH7	950	V-shaped	Well-controlled bass response, though the rest leaves a lot to be desired.	C+	C+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		182	91	91	950
C	★	Advanced Evo X	60	Neutral	A well-balanced Bluetooth IEM. A very nice surprise.	B-	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		184	73	111	60
C		AKG N40	400	Variable	A rather typical hybrid tuned to the Harman Target. Nothing special especially for the asking price.	B-	C	1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		184	73	111	400
C		Audeze LCDi4 (No Cipher)	2500	"Balanced"	Low distortion, high resolution and excellent clarity marred by poor tuning which destroys timbre.	D	S+	Planar	Stereo SG demo unit	2	184	183	1	2500
C		BGVP ES12	1500	Variable	Slightly honky midrange tonality with the usual EST tweeter roll-off.	C	B-	4EST 8BA	Oardio demo unit		184	111	73	1500
C	★★	FiiO F3	25	U-shaped	Well-balanced U-shaped sound that's rather atypical of a chifi dynamic IEM.	B-	C	DD	E1 demo unit		184	73	111	25
C	★	FiiO F5	65	V-shaped	Typical chifi V-shaped sound, nothing much to report on.	B-	C	DD	E1 demo unit		184	73	111	65
C		Future Sonics MG5HX	875	V-shaped	Typical V-shaped DD signature with minimal focus on technicalities.	C	B-	DD	Third party custom		184	111	73	875
C	★	Massdrop x NuForce EDC3	100	Neutral	Well tuned, though not the most technical nor the most natural sounding.	B-	C	3BA	Review unit		184	73	111	100
C		Noble Savant 2	500	Warm	Decent tonal balance with subpar detail retrieval.	B-	C	2BA	Stereo SG demo unit		184	73	111	500
C		Oriolus Finschi	180	Bright	Energetic and bright, overall a well built hybrid that can be strident for some ears.	B-	C	2BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		184	73	111	180
C		Stax SR-001 Mk1 w/ CES-A1	Discontinued	Neutral	Sounds surprisingly dull and undetailed for a "true" electrostatic.	B-	C	Electrostatic	Third party unit		184	73	111	99999
C		Mangird Tea	300	"Balanced"	In a weird place, tonally. Not quite wrong enough to be "wonky", but certainly not right either.	C	B-	6BA 1DD	Review unit		184	111	73	300
C		Empire Ears Zeus-XIV	2730	Bright neutral	Top tier detail and resolution with poor tone and timbre reproduction.	D	S	14BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-4	186	183	3	2730
C		Acoustune HS1503	400	V-shaped	Shrill, odd timbre and way too intense for normal listening.	C-	B	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		190	133	57	400
C		Audeze iSine 10/20 (No Cipher)	400	Unique	Low distortion, high resolution and excellent clarity marred by poor tuning which destroys timbre.	D	S-	Planar	Stereo SG demo unit		190	183	7	400
C		IMR RAH	Discontinued	Variable	Not much point to the filter system when it's just varying degrees of mediocre.	C-	B	1Piezo 1Planar 1DD	Third party unit		190	133	57	99999
C	★	Moondrop SSR	40	DF-neutral	Probably as close as one can get to "true DF", though it's extremely shouty as a result.	C-	B	DD	Review unit		190	133	57	40
C		1Custom SA02		"Balanced"	Odd take on neutral with a coloured tonality.	C	C+	2BA	Jaben SG demo unit		202	111	91	99999
C		Alpha&Delta D6	95	Bright	Well balanced bright response. Good detail and doesn't sound odd in any place.	C+	C	DD	Review unit		202	91	111	95
C		BGVP DMG	140	Bassy	Decent tonal balance though bass response is not up to par.	C+	C	4BA 1DD	Review unit		202	91	111	140
C	★	FiiO FA1	100	Neutral	A pretty standard reference-style tuning that just works.	C+	C	BA	ConnectIT demo unit		202	91	111	100
C		Final Audio LAB 1	Discontinued	Warm	Pretty standard tuning that doesn't live up to its build, pricing or prestige.	C	C+	2BA	Third party unit		202	111	91	99999
C		Focal Sphear	150	Mild V-shape	Good timbre, good bass and well-balanced tuning.	C+	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		202	91	111	150
C		Kinera Odin	800	Neutral	Sounds like a rather basic tuning and a resolution not fitting of its driver count.	C+	C	8BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		202	91	111	800
C		Symphonium Audio Aurora	220	Warm neutral	Solid tuning, though average in technicalities.	C+	C	2BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		202	91	111	220
C	★	Tin Audio T2 Pro	50	Bright neutral	A T2 tuned with less sub-bass and more treble. High clarity but may not be for everyone.	C	C+	2DD	Review unit		202	111	91	50
C	★	Venture Electronics BIE	20	V-shaped	Generic V-shaped DD with alright midrange tonality and technicalities.	C+	C	DD	Third party unit		202	91	111	20
C		VSonic VS7	120	Warm	A less fatiguing, less technical version of its predecessor.	C+	C	DD	Review unit		202	91	111	120
C		BLON BL05	43	Bright V-shape	A more technical but far less pleasing BL03.	C	C+	DD	Review unit		202	111	91	43
C	★	KZ ZS10 Pro/ZSX	50	V-shaped	Typical chifi V-shaped sound, nothing much to report on.	C+	C	5BA 1DD	Third party unit		202	91	111	50
C		AAW Halycon	1450	Variable	A little too sluggish in the bass with fatiguing treble.	C	C+	4EST 2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		202	111	91	1450
C		Fearless Roland	1010	Dark	An almost total lack of treble results in a muffled, dark presentation.	D+	B	2EST 2BA 1DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		214	157	57	1010
C		AAW A3H (2019)	290	V-shaped	Emphasised midbass and upper mids. Generic hybrid.	C	C	2BA 1DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		222	111	111	290
C		AAW W100	Discontinued	V-shaped	Bassy and has that typical "chifi DD" sound.	C	C	DD	Jaben SG demo unit		222	111	111	99999
C		Audiosense T800	300	V-shaped	Generic tuning that's nothing special in terms of tonal accuracy nor technicalities.	C	C	8BA	Treoo demo unit		222	111	111	300
C		AVIOT TE-D01b/TE-D01d	177	V-shaped	Standard V-shaped siganture with passable transients.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	177
C		Campfire Comet	200	Warm	Rolled-off at the top end, warm and bassy single-BA sound reminiscent of Final's offerings.	C	C	BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	200
C		Campfire Lyra II	700	V-shaped	Campfire's take on a V-shaped dynamic sound. Wouldn't call it exceptional.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	700
C		CCA C12	50	V-shaped	Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.	C	C	5BA 1DD	Oardio demo unit		222	111	111	50
C		Creative Aurvana Trio	250	Warm	Surprising lack of BA timbre, but still rather average in technicalities.	C	C	3BA	ConnectIT demo unit		222	111	111	250
C		Dynamic Motion DM200H	180	V-shaped	Generic V-shaped hybrid without any special traits.	C	C	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		222	111	111	180
C		Earsonics SM3	Discontinued	Warm	Non-fatiguing, relaxing listen. "Normal".	C	C	3BA	AV One demo unit		222	111	111	99999
C	★	Edifier TWS1	50	V-shaped	Decent bass response, subpar treble, overall passable.	C	C	DD	Third party unit		222	111	111	50
C		Elysian Eros	400	Warm	Typical "dual driver" sound. Not very impressive.	C	C	2BA	Showfloor demo unit		222	111	111	400
C		Fearless Start	180	V-shaped	Typical chifi V-shaped sound, nothing much to report on.	C	C	DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		222	111	111	180
C		FitEar Air 2/Titan	1700	Warm V-shape	Generic hybrid sound. Doesn't really perform up to par either.	C	C	1BA 1DD	Jaben SG demo unit		222	111	111	1700
C		Fostex TE100	1800	Warm neutral	A little boring and dead in dynamics. Not fun but not really reference either. Average.	C	C	1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	1800
C		iBasso IT01	110	V-shaped	Nothing really stands out as "excellent" to me, but it does a lot of things well and little wrong.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	110
C		iBasso IT03w	260	Bright V-shape	Its sibilant and sharp treble is a tough trait to endure.	C	C	2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	260
C		IMR R1 Zenith	Discontinued	Variable	Not very detailed with a persistently odd tonal balance regardless of filters used.	C	C	1Piezo 1DD	Third party unit		222	111	111	99999
C		JH Billie Jean	350	V-shaped	Follows the JH house sound but otherwise nothing special.	C	C	2BA	AV One demo unit		222	111	111	350
C		JH Michelle	500	Warm	Still sounds typically "JH" with a slightly V tuning, with slower transients and a non-fatiguing signature.	C	C	3BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	500
C		JVC HA-FW01	380	Dark	Very heavy and very dark sounding IEM whose signature marrs technical ability slightly.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	380
C	★★	KZ ZSN Pro	20	V-shaped	Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.	C	C	1BA 1DD	Oardio demo unit		222	111	111	20
C		KZ S2	50	V-shaped	Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.	C	C	1BA 1DD	Review unit		222	111	111	50
C		MEE Pinnacle P1	200	Warm V-shape	Upper midrange emphasis with soft, warm bass. Nice for mainstream listening.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	200
C		Nuarl NT01	150	Warm V-shape	Generic V-shaped tuning with not much clarity or detailing capability.	C	C	DD	Oardio demo unit		222	111	111	150
C		Nuarl NT100	100	V-shaped	Generic V-shaped tuning that doesn't stand out technically from other similar IEMs.	C	C	DD	Oardio demo unit		222	111	111	100
C		NuForce HEM1	150	Neutral	Reference tuning with tonal balance. Unfortunately limited by its technicalities.	C	C	BA	E1 demo unit		222	111	111	150
C		Oriveti New Primacy	300	Warm neutral	Rather balanced, almost neutral hybrid. All rounder.	C	C	2BA 1DD	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		222	111	111	300
C		Rose BR5 Mk2	305	Neutral	Not a bad IEM, though BA timbre comes in strong with this one. Not the most technical but it does the job when called for it.	C	C	5BA	Third party unit		222	111	111	305
C		Shure SE535	500	Mid-centric	Tonally dead. One-note bass. No treble worth mentioning.	C	C	3BA	Stereo SG demo unit		222	111	111	500
C	★	Simgot EN700	100	Mid-centric	Good clarity and energetic signature.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	100
C		Stealthsonics U2	250	V-shaped	Sharp, emphasised treble and boosted bass, sounds more mainstream than audiophile.	C	C	1BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		222	111	111	250
C	★	TFZ 5S	80	V-shaped	Warm and somewhat slow in transients. Good timbre, average tuning.	C	C	DD	LMUE demo unit		222	111	111	80
C	★	TFZ King	100	V-shaped	Better tuned than the 5S with a little extra treble which improves clarity and overall staging.	C	C	DD	LMUE demo unit		222	111	111	100
C	★	Tiandirenhe TD1	25	V-shaped	Generic V-shaped DD with alright midrange tonality and technicalities.	C	C	DD	Third party unit		222	111	111	25
C		Ultimate Ears Triple Fi 10 "TF10"	Discontinued	Warm	Decent tonality and timbre. Not as detailed as the new kids on the block but has the fundamentals down.	C	C	3BA	Personal unit		222	111	111	99999
C		Unknown Custom UCD-2	220	Warm V-shape	A common 2-driver signature with passable resolution.	C	C	2BA	E1 demo unit		222	111	111	220
C		Tin HiFi T2000	110	V-shaped	Pretty standard chifi V-shaped sound, nothing special.	C	C	2DD	Review unit		222	111	111	110
C		iBasso IT00	90	V-shaped	Basically a IT01.	C	C	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		222	111	111	90
C		QoA Mojito	400	Neutral	Average tuning, average technicalities.	C	C	6BA	Review unit		222	111	111	400
C-		FiiO FA7	300	Warm	Boring, overly warm tuning that lacks detailing.	C-	C+	4BA	ConnectIT demo unit		224	133	91	300
C-		Jabra Elite 75t	180	U-shaped	Overdone sub-bass response, sharp treble, thin midrange.	C-	C+	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		224	133	91	180
C-		Tin HiFi P1	170	Warm neutral	One of the rare few IEM-style planars with proper tonal balance without EQ, but lacking detail retrieval.	C+	C-	Planar	Review unit		224	91	133	170
C-		Tin HiFI T1	36	Warm	Could use some more high frequency response. Seems like squandered potential.	C+	C-	DD	Oardio demo unit		224	91	133	36
C-		Ultimate Ears UE5 Pro	600	Warm	Dead dynamics, overly warm and congested.	C+	C-	2BA	Jaben SG demo unit		224	91	133	600
C-		Gold Planar GL20	150	Warm	The usual "open-backed planar IEM" sound of "wonk".	D-	A+	Planar	Third party unit		224	211	13	150
C-		HUM TT	500	Neutral	A misguided attempt at neutrality with virtually no treble extension.	C+	C-	2BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		224	91	133	500
C-		CCA C16	100	V-shaped	Shouty and bassy at the same time. Not a great combo.	C-	C+	8BA	Third party unit		224	133	91	100
C-		AAW Nightingale	1000	"Balanced"	Horribly tuned midrange that sounds wrong and lacks energy.	D	B	Planar	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		240	183	57	1000
C-		FiR M2	800	V-shaped	Shrill, unnatural tone in an otherwise acceptable technical package.	D	B	1BA 1DD	Showfloor demo unit		240	183	57	800
C-		Spiral Ears SE5U	2000	"Balanced"	Weird phasing, horrible tonal balance with near zero regard for treble.	D	B	5BA	Third party custom		240	183	57	2000
C-		1More Quad Driver	200	"Balanced"	Okay-ish technical ability in a mainstream tuning. Can get congested.	C	C-	3BA 1DD	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		244	111	133	200
C-		AAW Nebula Two	150	U-shaped	Excellent clarity and wide staging due to semi-open design. DD bass manages to shine through.	C	C-	1BA 1DD	Null Audio demo unit		244	111	133	150
C-		Anthem Five E2	150	Bassy	Lots of bass and not a lot of treble to balance it out. Alright midrange tone but resolution is poor.	C	C-	1BA 1DD	Review unit (custom)		244	111	133	150
C-		Brainwavz B400	150	Neutral	Dulled transients and dynamics makes this a boring listen.	C	C-	4BA	Third party unit		244	111	133	150
C-		Campfire Nova	500	Neutral with laid-back treble	Somewhat dead-sounding with no shimmer or sparkle in the upper registers.	C-	C	2BA	ConnectIT demo unit		244	133	111	500
C-		Cayin YB04	500	"Balanced"	An odd take on neutrality that sounds weird and uneven.	C-	C	4BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		244	133	111	500
C-		Fatfreq Eden	220	"Balanced"	A strange sounding monitor with no clear direction in its tuning.	C-	C	2BA	Third party unit		244	133	111	220
C-		Fostex TE-02WP	Discontinued	Neutral-bright	Balanced and clear. Very good value.	C	C-	DD	A2A Melbourne demo unit		244	111	133	99999
C-		Heir Audio Tzar 350	Discontinued	Bright	Its detail would be appreciated if it didn't come with ear-splitting treble.	C-	C	2BA	Third party unit		244	133	111	99999
C-		Heygears Anora	80	Neutral with laid-back treble	Very good tuning, well-balanced signature.	C	C-	BA	LMUE demo unit		244	111	133	80
C-		Shanling ME100	120	V-shaped	An odd take on the typical "chifi DD" sound, rolling off the bass for extra clarity at the expense of tonality.	C-	C	DD	Review unit		244	133	111	120
C-		Sennheiser IE40 Pro	100	Neutral	An odd take on a balanced signature that sounds dead and lifeless.	C	C-	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		244	111	133	100
C-		Stealthsonics U4	500	Warm	An odd character, simultaneously bassy and thin at the same time.	C-	C	4BA	Showfloor demo unit		244	133	111	500
C-		Super Audio "Supermeme" 2BA+2DD	150	V-shaped	A decently tuned V-shaped hybrid with energetic upper midrange. May be intense for some.	C-	C	2BA 2DD	Personal unit		244	133	111	150
C-		TRN BA5	70	V-shaped	Low resolution, passable tonality.	C	C-	5BA	Third party unit		244	111	133	70
C-		Ultimate Ears Live	2200	Warm	Soft, muddy, low resolution and lacks any sort of definition.	C	C-	6BA 1DD	Music Sanctuary demo unit		244	111	133	2200
C-		Campfire Solstice	1500	Warm	Doesn't sound like an Andromeda at all. A muddy, husky mess.	C-	C	5BA	E1 demo unit		244	133	111	1500
C-		Yinyoo Ash	20	V-shaped	Wonky tone and sharp treble is not a great combo.	D+	C+	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		248	157	91	20
C-		Lear LCM-BD4.2	1030	Bright V-shape	Harsh, overly-textured and extremely fatiguing. Excellent technical ability completely shut down by tuning and timbre mismatch.	D	B-	4BA 2DD	Treoo demo unit		256	183	73	1030
C-		Rhapsodio Zombie	1800	Bassy	Not the cleanest bass and with coherency issues that shouldn't exist for an IEM of its asking price.	D	B-	8BA 1DD	Review unit		256	183	73	1800
C-		Advanced Elise	30	Bassy	Boomy and heavy sounding. Smoothed over details but not the worst out there.	C-	C-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		266	133	133	30
C-		BGVP Q2	100	Bright neutral	Poor bass, thin notes, shouty midrange and sharp treble.	C-	C-	2BA	Review unit		266	133	133	100
C-		Campfire Polaris V2	500	Bassy	Overwhelming amounts of bass only slightly balanced out by a midtreble emphasis.	C-	C-	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		266	133	133	500
C-		Elysian Minerva	900	Warm V-shape	Wonky tone with blunted notes, not very revealing.	C-	C-	4BA	Showfloor demo unit		266	133	133	900
C-		Fearless Crystal Pearl	200	Warm	Veiled, weird sounding and lacking details.	C-	C-	2BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		266	133	133	200
C-		I-INTO i8	25	"Balanced"	Somewhat downsloping signature. It's an IEM that exists.	C-	C-	3DD	Third party unit		266	133	133	25
C-		Kinera Idun (Deluxe)	140	V-shaped	Not a bad hybrid, considering Kinera's track record.	C-	C-	2BA 1DD	Third party unit		266	133	133	140
C-		KZ ZS3	10	V-shaped	Simple DD tuning. It's an IEM that exists.	C-	C-	DD	Oardio demo unit		266	133	133	10
C-		Meccaudio ME-04		Neutral	A not-quite-neutral "neutral" monitor.	C-	C-	4BA	E1 demo unit		266	133	133	99999
C-		Noble Falcon	156	V-shaped	Harsh midrange with strong bass and treble. Very mainstream sound.	C-	C-	DD	Stereo SG demo unit		266	133	133	156
C-		Oriveti Basic	100	Bassy	Lots of sub-bass rumble with an energetic midrange. Roll-off for non-fatigue.	C-	C-	DD	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		266	133	133	100
C-		Pai Audio DM2A	140	V-shaped	Weird midrange. Oddly similar to the Kinera IDUN.	C-	C-	2BA 1DD	Third party unit		266	133	133	140
C-		Sennheiser Momentum In-Ear	100	V-shaped	Fuzzy, typical V-shaped sound but nothing too egregious.	C-	C-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		266	133	133	100
C-		Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless	300	V-shaped	Similar but not identical to its wired counterpart. A weirdly tuned V-shaped response.	C-	C-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		266	133	133	300
C-		Stax SR-001 Mk1	Discontinued	Warm	Sounds like an old-school on-ear headphone from the 80s.	C-	C-	Electrostatic	Third party unit		266	133	133	99999
C-		Venture Electronics Duke	Discontinued	Warm	Oddly tuned dynamic, but at least it's not the Monk IEs.	C-	C-	DD	Third party custom		266	133	133	99999
C-		Whizzer A-HE03 "Kylin"	160	Warm V-shape	Odd tonality and lacklustre technical ability overall.	C-	C-	2BA 1DD	Review unit		266	133	133	160
C-		Westone 4R	Discontinued	Dark	Low resolution, extremely blunted and narrow imaging.	C-	C-	4BA	Third party unit		266	133	133	99999
D+		Advanced M5-5D	650	Bright neutral	An otherwise capable hybrid unfortunately let down by its ridiculous treble spike.	D+	C	4BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		268	157	111	650
D+		fineEars TSH-HR1000K	70	V-shaped	Pretty decent tonality but is severely lacking details.	C	D+	DD	Third party unit		268	111	157	70
D+		Noble M3	600	V-shaped	Strident and harsh midrange only saved by its somewhat competent bass presentation.	D+	C	1MS 1DD	Munkong Gadget demo unit		268	157	111	600
D+		Rose Mini2	110	Warm	It's somewhat natural in timbre but lacks a lot of technical proficiency.	C	D+	2BA	Third party unit		268	111	157	110
D+		Unique Melody ME1	760	Warm	Soft transients, low definition and odd timbre makes this the worst planar I've listened to.	D-	B	Planar	Stereo SG demo unit		268	211	57	760
D+		Warbler Prelude	1100	Dark	Rolled off on both ends with a very typical single-BA sound.	D+	C	BA	Third party custom		268	157	111	1100
D+		Hidizs Mermaids MS4	270	V-shaped	Somewhat weird tonality, nothing much to say beyond that.	D+	C	3BA 1DD	Third party unit		268	157	111	270
D+		Audio Technica ATH-IEX1	1200	V-shaped	Sounds weird, sounds wrong, needs a complete overhaul.	D	C+	2BA 2DD	Stereo SG demo unit		274	183	91	1200
D+		Hifiman RE1000	1000	V-shaped	A strange take on a V response. Intense yet with no upper treble to speak of.	D	C+	DD	A2A Melbourne demo unit		274	183	91	1000
D+		Jade Audio EA3	50	Bright V-shape	Painful treble. Very painful.	D	C+	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		274	183	91	50
D+		Advanced GT3 Superbass	200	"Balanced"	Acceptable resolution though the tone is off in many ways. Filters don't seem to address that issue.	C-	D+	DD	Personal unit		290	133	157	200
D+		Cozoy Trio	450	Unique	Odd tuning, doesn't sound too bad but it's overall not very impressive at all.	C-	D+	3BA	E1 demo unit		290	133	157	450
D+		KZ AS16	125	V-shaped	Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.	C-	D+	8BA	Oardio demo unit		290	133	157	125
D+		Master & Dynamic MW07	300	V-shaped	Extremely boosted treble and bass. Prioritises wow factor over fidelity.	D+	C-	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		290	157	133	300
D+		Shure SE215	100	V-shaped	Sounds like a typical dynamic IEM. Slightly bloated bass and narrow staging.	C-	D+	DD	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		290	133	157	100
D+		Symphonium Audio Mirage	150	Dark	Typical single-BA sound that doesn't offer anything special.	C-	D+	BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		290	133	157	150
D+		Advanced Model X	Discontinued	V-shaped	Extreme treble and bass response to a fault.	D+	D+	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		314	157	157	99999
D+		Fearless S5T	330	Warm	Tonally off and lacking details. Not enough bite or energy either.	D+	D+	5BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		314	157	157	330
D+		Jaybirds Vista	180	V-shaped	Extremely scooped out midrange with piercing treble.	D+	D+	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		314	157	157	180
D+		Kinera SEED	50	"Balanced"	Lacking in bass extension and tonally skewed too much to the higher frequencies.	D+	D+	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		314	157	157	50
D+		Unknown Custom Quad 2.0	390	V-shaped	Low-resolution, low-detail, passable tonality.	D+	D+	4BA	E1 demo unit		314	157	157	390
D+		Unknown Custom Juno	640	Variable	Something odd going on in the midrange. Same issues in resolution.	D+	D+	6BA	E1 demo unit		314	157	157	640
D		1More Triple Driver	100	V-shaped	Subpar tuning with unfortunately thin midrange. Flat bass, not in a good way.	C-	D	2BA 1DD	Stereo SG demo unit		316	133	183	100
D		Advanced GT3	200	V-shaped	Sharp, shrill and overall unpleasant.	C-	D	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		316	133	183	200
D		Advanced M5-1D	400	V-shaped	Typical chifi DD sound. Nothing special.	C-	D	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		316	133	183	400
D		Earsonics Blade	610	Warm	Typical Earsonics house sound of "screwed up midrange", now with DD bass.	D	C-	2BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		316	183	133	610
D		Earsonics Stark	1540	Warm	Typical Earsonics house sound of "screwed up midrange", now with DD bass.	D	C-	4BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		316	183	133	1540
D		Eternal Melody EM-2	290	V-shaped	It just sounds "meh" to be. Nothing much to say.	C-	D	2BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		316	133	183	290
D		Sennheiser IE80S	350	V-shaped	Warm, bassy, congested and lacking in dynamics. Oddly sharp yet lacking in sparkle	C-	D	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		316	133	183	350
D		Astrotec Delphinus 5	500	"Balanced"	Sounds plain wrong. Instruments are nowhere close to how they should on proper gear.	D-	C	5BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		322	211	111	500
D		1More Stylish	100	Bassy	Pretty standard "consumer signature" that panders to those who want bass and nothing else.	D+	D	2DD	E1 demo unit		340	157	183	100
D		AAW ACH/Kingfisher	190	Warm	Persasive warmth just puts a blanket on all the transients. Lacks definition.	D+	D	1Piezo 1BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		340	157	183	190
D		Ambient Acoustics AM7	1750	Variable	Unreliable switches, mediocre technical ability and the tone is slightly off.	D+	D	7BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		340	157	183	1750
D		Audiofly AF160	430	Dark	Not just dead but almost completely devoid of treble. Double whammy.	D	D+	3BA	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		340	183	157	430
D		B&O Beoplay E8	350	"Balanced"	An extremely odd take on a neutral sound signature that simply doesn't work.	D+	D	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		340	157	183	350
D		CCA A10	60	Bright V-shape	Typical KZ-style tuning with even shoutier midrange.	D+	D	5BA	Oardio demo unit		340	157	183	60
D		Effect Audio Symphony	890	Warm	A muddy, overly warm sound with that struggles with surface-level detailing.	D	D+	3BA	Third party unit		340	183	157	890
D		Fidue A71	80	Bassy	Boomy and bleeds into the mids. Not a lot of definition.	D+	D	2DD	E1 demo unit		340	157	183	80
D		Jomo PLB	510	Dark	Bloated, congested and oh-so-slow.	D+	D	3BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		340	157	183	510
D		Jomo Haka	365	Dark	Mushy, blobby and low resolution.	D+	D	BA	Euphoria Audio demo unit		340	157	183	365
D		Sennheiser IE500 Pro	600	Dark	Heavy, undefined sound with bloated bass and little energy.	D+	D	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		340	157	183	600
D		Origami Audio Silver	900	Warm	A slow, plodding mess without the courtesy of having a decent tuning.	D+	D	DD	E1 demo unit		340	157	183	900
D		AAW A2H-Pro V2	220	Dark	Good coherency but sub-par tuning and sluggishy slow.	C-	D-	1BA 1DD	Jaben SG demo unit		344	133	211	220
D		KZ ZST	30	V-shaped	Decent bass. Odd timbre. Odd tuning.	C-	D-	1BA 1DD	Third party unit		344	133	211	30
D		Ambient Acoustics AM16		"Balanced"	Sounds weird and is completely average in pure technicalities. Disappointing.	D	D	16BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		366	183	183	99999
D		Ambient Acoustics AM24		"Balanced"	See above. Perhaps even slightly worse.	D	D	24BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		366	183	183	99999
D		Audio Technica ATH-CK3TW	100	V-shaped	Loose and uncontrolled bass in combination with a sharp and piercing treble.	D	D	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		366	183	183	100
D		Campfire Equinox	1500	Bassy	Extremely different from the Atlas. It's a lot worse.	D	D	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		366	183	183	1500
D		Earsonics SM64v2	500	Warm	Weirdly incoherent and disjointed. Good warmth, though.	D	D	3BA	AV One demo unit		366	183	183	500
D		Fearless ACME8	1100	Bassy	Weird and bloaty bass in conjunction with tonally weird midrange.	D	D	8BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit		366	183	183	1100
D		NuForce Primo 8	500	Dark	Tone is off, detailing is low, things sound wrong. Lies on a spectrum of "average" to "no".	D	D	4BA	E1 demo unit		366	183	183	500
D		Sound Linear Fitz 10 Flat	2200	"Balanced"	It sounds dead and boring. Nothing about it stands out at all and it doesn't even achieve the passing mark for technicalities.	D	D	10BA	E1 demo unit		366	183	183	2200
D		TFZ 3S	65	V-shaped	It's okay. It's a Chinese dynamic IEM, nothing special.	D	D	DD	LMUE demo unit		366	183	183	65
D		Unknown Custom UCD-3	270	Warm	Mushy, blunted transients with a warm yet strangely sibilant tuning.	D	D	3BA	E1 demo unit		366	183	183	270
D-		Nuforce HEM4	330	Warm	Dead as a doornail. Missing bits and pieces in its tuning.	D+	D-	2BA	Jaben SG demo unit		368	157	211	330
D-		Nuforce HEM6	450	Warm	Refer to the above.	D+	D-	3BA	Jaben SG demo unit		368	157	211	450
D-		Audio Technica ATH-CKS5TW	150	Dark	Muddy bass with virtually nonexistent treble.	D	D-	DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		394	183	211	150
D-		RHA CL750	100	Bright	Ear-piercing treble makes it hard to listen to.	D-	D	DD	AV One demo unit		394	211	183	100
D-		Rhapsodio Clipper	55	Extreme Bass	Lots and lots of bass. Slams you in the face with bass.	D	D-				394	183	211	55
D-		Seahf AWK-009	15	Bright	Phasing issues, weirdly incoherent and yet a strangely compelling listen.	D	D-	DD	Third party unit		394	183	211	15
D-		Shozy x AAW Hibiki	60	Bright	Sharp, shrill tonality. Average everything else.	D	D-	DD	Personal unit		394	183	211	60
D-		Audio Technica ATH-CKR7TW	250	Bright	Shrill, sharp and screams in your face.	D-	D-	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		422	211	211	250
D-		Effect Audio King Arthur	7000	Dark	A joke, both in price and sound. Nobody's laughing.	D-	D-	16BA	Third party unit		422	211	211	7000
D-		Kinera YH263	70	Bassy	Almost nothing but bass. Zero semblance of any sort of balance.	D-	D-	DD	Review unit		422	211	211	70
D-		TFZ 1S	40	V-shaped	A little bloated at times and definitely congested.	D-	D-	DD	LMUE demo unit		422	211	211	40
E		RHA CL1	280	Bright	So much treble to the point where nothing sounds correct. Like raining metal balls on a tin roof.	E	B	DD	AV One demo unit		1055	998	57	280
E		Unique Melody 3DD-Ti	700	Bright	It's not the quantity of the treble, but the quality. Reserved only for the most esoteric of tastes.	E	C+	3DD	Stereo SG demo unit		1089	998	91	700
E		Hifiman TWS600	200	Mid-centric	Telephonic mess. The worst TWS IEM I have ever heard.	E	C-	DD	ConnectIT demo unit		1131	998	133	200
E		Kinera H3	100	Extreme V-shape	Completely off timbre, extremely recessed midrange and sharp, painful treble.	E	C-	2BA 1DD	Personal unit		1131	998	133	100
E		AAW A2H Pro V1	Discontinued	Dark	Dead, bloated, congested. Feels like I have to strain to hear even surface-level detailing.	D	E	1BA 1DD	Jaben SG demo unit		1181	183	998	99999
E		Campfire IO	300	"Balanced"	Tonality and timbre is all sorts of wrong. Lacks the technicalities to redeem it.	E	D	2BA	Third party unit		1181	998	183	300
E		Fender Thirteen 6	1800	Dark	Instruments sound wrong. Everything is underwater. Help.	E	D	6BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		1181	998	183	1800
E		JH Audio Diana	700	Dark	Mushy transients and the detailing capability of free phone earbuds.	E	D	3BA	ConnectIT demo unit		1181	998	183	700
E		oBravo Ra C-Cu	10000	"Balanced"	An indescribable affront to God and humanity both in sound and pricing.	E	D	1AMT 1DD	Third party unit		1181	998	183	10000
E		Sensaphonics 2MAX	850	Bright neutral	Odd timbre. Technical ability isn't even that great.	E	D	2BA	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		1181	998	183	850
E		Sensaphonics 2X-S	750	Bright neutral	Sharp and shrill yet surprisingly dead. Like shoving blunted icepicks into your ears.	E	D	2BA	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		1181	998	183	750
E		Sensaphonics 3MAX	1050	Warm	It's a slight improvement over the 2MAX but not by much.	E	D	3BA	Jaben Melbourne demo unit		1181	998	183	1050
E		Geek Wold GK3	20	Dark	Incoherent, imaging is all over the place and sounds like a mess.	E	D-	3DD	Third party unit		1209	998	211	20
E		Shozy x AAW Pola	800	Dark	Dark, muffled, veiled, muddy, congested etc. etc. basically every permutation of similar descriptors.	E	D-	2EST 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit		1209	998	211	800
E		Fischer Omega Spark	60	Bright	Someone should harvest their drivers for tweeters since I hear nothing below the upper mids.	E	E	DD	E1 demo unit		1996	998	998	60
E		Sendiy M1221	200	V-shaped	It literally sounds out of phase. It's an accomplishment in itself.	E	E	1BA 1DD	E1 demo unit		1996	998	998	200
E		VE Monk IE Smalls	Discontinued	Dark	Sounds exactly like what would happen if you shoved an earbud driver into an IEM housing.	E	E	DD	Third party unit		1996	998	998	99999
F		VE Monk IE Biggie	Discontinued	Dark	Absolute mud and congestion. Could work as a subwoofer since it barely plays anything above 500Hz anyways.	F	E	DD	Third party unit		1997	999	998	99999
F		Delta Air complimentary earphones	0	Complete failure	It's a telephone in IEM form. It is physically unable to play bass or treble.	F	F	DD	Third party unit		1998	999	999	0
F		Oppo MH130	14	Complete failure	The horribleness of this can only be experienced in real life.	F	F	DD	Third party unit		1998	999	999	14
F		SIA complimentary earphones	0	Dark	Its full potential can only be unleashed by an Airbus A380.	F	F	DD	Personal unit		1998	999	999	0

Rank

Value Rating

Model

Price (MSRP)

Signature

Comments

Tone Grade

Technical Grade

Setup

Based on

Note weight

Ranksort

Tonesort

Techsort

Pricesort

★

qdc 8SL/Gemini/Anole VX

1410 (8SL)
2180 (Gemini)
2560 (Anole VX)

Neutral

Reference tuning with good tonality and top-level resolution. Similar tunings across top tier models.

S+

8/10BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-2

1410

★

Vision Ears VE8

2700

Warm neutral

Extremely coherent signature with a pleasing tuning and high technicalities.

S+

8BA

E1 demo unit

2700

★★★

64 Audio A/U12t

2000

Mild U-shape

Amazing bass (for a BA), top-tier resolution and detail-oriented signature.

12BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

2000

★★★

Sony IER-Z1R

1700

Mild V-shape

Highly defined sound, realistic sub-bass focus and spacious imaging capabilities.

1BA 2DD

Personal unit

-3

1700

S-

★★★

64 Audio Tia Trio

2300

Neutral with bass boost

A more correct sounding version of the Fourte with slight cutbacks in staging and sheer resolution.

S-

2BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

2300

S-

★★★

InEar Prophile-8

1600

Neutral

Very "studio" like sound, heavy priority on technicalities

S-

8BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-1

1600

S-

Vision Ears Erlkonig

4800

Variable

Good tonality, high resolution and an overall decent all-rounder.

S-

13BA

Third party unit

4800

S-

★★

ThieAudio Monarch

730

Neutral with bass boost

A clean-sounding monitor with a bass boost near-exclusively in the sub-frequencies.

S-

2EST 6BA 1DD

Review unit

730

S-

★★

Hidition Viento

950

Variable

Best-in-class tuning and tonal balance with near-perfect coherency.

S+

A+

4BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-3

950

S-

★

Sony IER-M9

1000

Warm neutral

Neutral tonality, highly coherent and decent detail pickup.

S-

5BA

Showfloor demo unit

1000

A+

Jomo Samba

Discontinued

V-shaped

Lively and engaging with big clarity and detail, perhaps too much for some

A+

8BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-4

99999

A+

★★

ThieAudio Clairvoyance

700

Neutral with bass boost

Inoffensive, pleasant tuning specialising in extremely balanced tonality and bass control.

A+

2EST 5BA 1DD

Review unit

700

A+

64 Audio A/U18 Tzar

3000

Warm neutral

A rather simple and "mainstream" tuning refined to an extremely high level.

A+

S-

18BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

3000

A+

Audeze iSine 20 (Cipher V1)

Discontinued

Harman-neutral

DSP corrects the glaring tonality issues and brings out the iSine driver's full potential.

A+

S-

Planar

Stereo SG demo unit

99999

A+

Jomo Flamenco

2200

Warm neutral

Tuned to be more pleasing and tonally accurate compared to the old Flamenco at the cost of sheer detail.

A+

S-

11BA

Showfloor demo unit

-4

2200

A+

★

Kumitate KL-Sirius

815

Neutral

Excellent technical ability, well tuned with a dash of Japanese flavour.

S-

A+

4BA

Third party custom

-4

815

A+

★★

Moondrop S8

700

Harman-neutral

More faithful to the Harman target compared to the A8, with a smoother bass response.

S-

A+

8BA

Oardio demo unit

700

A+

★

Campfire Andromeda (2020)

1100

Warm neutral

Basically an Andromeda without the treble spike and slightly boosted midrange.

A+

S-

5BA

Third party unit

1100

A+

Ultimate Ears UE18+ Pro Gen 2

Discontinued

Warm neutral

Somewhat reference tuning with emphasis on tonal accuracy and naturalness

6BA

Personal unit

99999

A+

★★

Moondrop Blessing 2

320

DF-neutral

Very well tuned from bass to treble, perhaps lacking in the last octaves of extension.

4BA 1DD

Review unit

320

A+

Empire Ears Legend X

2300

V-shaped

High resolution hybrid flawed only by lack of control in the bass regions.

A+

5BA 2DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

2300

A+

★★★

Hidition NT6

1050

DF-neutral

If Etymotic made a multi-BA IEM, this would be the closest to that dream

A+

6BA

Null Audio demo unit

-1

1050

A+

Jomo Trinity SS

2800

V-shaped

Highly detailed, well separated imaging though severely lacking in treble extension.

A+

2EST 4BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

-3

2800

A+

★

PEARS SH3

1100

Neutral

Great detail pickup and solid all-rounder, perhaps a little strident.

A+

3BA

Third party unit

-4

1100

A+

★★★

Ultimate Ears Reference Monitor (UERM)

Discontinued

Neutral

The benchmark of an era, dead-flat with an upper treble boost

A+

3BA

Personal custom

-3

99999

★★★

Campfire Andromeda (S)

1100

Warm U-shape

Highly coherent, easy-to-love tuning and spacious headstage

S-

5BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1100

Elysian Hades V2

1550

Variable

Upper-mid forward signature with intense upper treble response.

A+

6BA

Showfloor demo unit

1550

Elysian Terminator V2

2500

V-shaped

A more intense, upper-mid forward Terminator V1 with the same level of technical ability.

A+

8BA

Showfloor demo unit

2500

Hidition NT8

1850

Neutral

Coloured neutral kind of sound that works better with Asian genres.

A+

8BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1850

Hidition Waltz

Harman-neutral

Neutral-fun signature that works both as a reference monitor and a rock-out IEM.

A+

3BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

99999

★

qdc 4SS

700

Neutral

High clarity, high resolution reference-type monitor with spot-on tone.

A+

4BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

700

StereoPravada SB7

2500

Bright DF-neutral

Technically proficient but marred by a sharp timbre. Interesting concept.

A-

7BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-5

2500

Tansio Mirai TSMR-12 "Zodiac"

1330

Neutral

Very clean, monitor/reference-style sound.

A+

12BA

Review unit

1330

★★

Fearless S8Z

590

Warm neutral

Solid all-rounder with a safe, pleasing tuning.

A+

8BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

590

Vision Ears Elysium

3200

Mild V-shape

First decent implementation of Sonion's EST tweeters.

A-

S-

2EST 1BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

3200

★★★

Sony MDR-EX1000

Discontinued

Bright DF-neutral

Outstanding imaging and detail retrieval though can be intense to listen to.

A-

S-

Third party unit

-3

99999

★

Sony IER-M7

500

Warm neutral

Balanced across the board, though doesn't seem to excel in any particular area.

S-

A-

4BA

Showfloor demo unit

500

★★

Fearless S8F/S8Pro

490

V-shaped

Tonally pleasing V-shaped signature on a solid technical foundation.

8BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-3

490

FitEar MH334SR

2000

Warm neutral

A MH334 with more treble extension and more opened imaging.

4BA

Third party unit

2000

FiR M3

1200

Warm neutral

Interesting tubeless technology, though the imaging improvements are minimal.

2BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

1200

FiR M4

1900

Warm neutral

Too similar to the M3 to be worth the price markup.

3BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

1900

JH Roxanne

1745

Warm

Rich and smooth, perfect for male vocals

12BA

A2A Melbourne demo unit

1745

Jomo Trinity Brass

2800

Warm

The warmer of the Trinity models, sacrificing technical ability for a more pleasing and smoother tone.

2EST 4BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

2800

★

Lime Ears Model X

1000

Variable

Technically capable IEM that goes from decently neutral to warm and smooth in a pinch.

4BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1000

Lime Ears Aether

1350

Neutral with bass boost

Excellent clarity and tone but marred slightly by slightly lackluster resolution

5BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1350

★

Moondrop A8

667

Harman-neutral

An odd but surprisingly decent take on the Harman signature, with added midbass compared to the S8.

8BA

Oardio demo unit

667

Moondrop Solis

1100

Warm DF-neutral

A good implementation of the EST drivers with Moondrop's signature tuning specialties.

4BA 2EST

Review unit

1100

★

Massdrop x Noble K10

700

Neutral with bass boost

Very safe tuning, almost to the point of boredom. Does nothing wrong but nothing right either

10BA

Stereo SG demo unit

700

Noble K10 Encore

1850

Neutral

Reference oriented sound focused on technicalities

10BA

Stereo SG demo unit

-1

1850

Noble Katana

1850

Neutral with laid-back treble

Like the K10, except with less bass

9BA

Stereo SG demo unit

-1

1850

Oriolus MK2

1100

Warm

Lively yet non-fatiguing hybrid experience

3BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-2

1100

★

qdc 5SH

900

V-shaped

Fun, lively signature that retains high levels of performance.

5BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

900

Stealthsonics U9 JDM

1100

Neutral with bass boost

Does away with the timbre issues of the standard U9.

8BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

1100

★

Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (UERR)

1000

Neutral with laid-back treble

Warm with good tonality. Good all-rounder albeit definitely not a reference signature.

3BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1000

Westone ES60

1300

Neutral with laid-back treble

Great timbre and well-tuned, held back by its resolution

6BA

A2A Melbourne demo unit

1300

★

ThieAudio Voyager 14 (V14)

1000

Neutral

Evokes a qdc-ish house sound, though stumbles in both tuning refinement and technicalities.

14BA

Third party unit

1000

A-

Sony MDR-EX800ST/MDR7550

350

Bright neutral

A more forgiving, warmer version of the EX1000.

A-

A+

Third party unit

-2

350

A-

JVC HA-FW10000

2200

DF-neutral

Intense and shouty DF-style signature with solid resolution.

B+

S-

Stereo SG demo unit

2200

A-

★★

Drop + JVC HA-FDX1

280

Neutral

Highly technical sound with a clean, well-tuned neutral signature.

A-

Review unit

280

A-

Elysian Poseidon

1940

Neutral with bass boost

Good, inoffensive midrange tone and bass tuning, marred by the lack of low-level detailing.

A-

6BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

1940

A-

★★★

Etymotic ER4XR

350

DF-neutral

A more mainstream tuning of the ER4S/SR with slightly boosted bass.

A-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-4

350

A-

FiR M5

2800

Warm

Warmer than the M3 and M4 with lower resolution.

A-

1EST 3BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

2800

A-

Hidition NT6 Pro

1100

Neutral with bass boost

A V-shaped version of the NT6. The change in tuning kills the technical ability slightly

A-

6BA

Null Audio demo unit

1100

A-

InEar SD5

1100

Warm V-shape

Excels in timbre reproduction and has an overall pleasant signature.

A-

5BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1100

A-

★

Moondrop Blessing

400

Harman-neutral

All rounder that comes the closest to the Harman Target.

A-

4BA 1DD

Review unit

-4

400

A-

★

NocturnaL Atlantis

600

Neutral

Reference signature with immense clarity and energy.

A-

4BA

Treoo demo unit

-3

600

A-

Sony Justear XJE-MH2 "Club"

2150

Warm DF-neutral

Nice, pleasant signature that is reminiscent of a more textured HS1551.

A-

1BA 1DD

Third party custom

2150

A-

Unique Melody Mason V3+

3200

Bright neutral

Decent resolution, nothing really special otherwise.

A-

16BA

Munkong Gadget demo unit

3200

A-

★

HYLA CE-5

915

V-shaped

Probably the best bass response I've ever heard. Thin-ish midrange that sounds unnatural on certain instruments.

B+

A+

1Piezo 2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-4

915

A-

HYLA TE-5B

1300

V-shaped

Similar to the CE-5 though ever-so-slightly thinner in the midrange.

B+

A+

1Piezo 2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-4

1300

A-

★★★

Shure KSE1200

2000

Bright U-shape

Easily at the top in terms of resolution and definition, but comes with a big treble spike and slightly odd mids.

S+

Electrostatic

A2A Melbourne demo unit

-5

2000

A-

Dita Dream

1800

V-shaped

Excellent resolution and detail let down by its metallic tonality and thin midrange

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-3

1800

A-

★

Acoustune HS1650

650

V-shaped

Well textured and energetic with a sub-bass focus.

A-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-2

650

A-

qdc Dmagic

1900

Neutral

Probably the best triple-DD IEM out there by virtue of not being a hot mess tonally.

A-

3DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1900

B+

64 Audio N8

1700

Bassy

Sub-bass focus, rich and smooth yet relatively neutral in tone.

B+

8BA 1DD

Personal custom

1700

B+

Elysian Terminator

Discontinued

Warm V-shape

Well rounded smooth signature that doesn't offend.

B+

8BA

Showfloor demo unit

99999

B+

★★

Etymotic ER2SE/ER2XR

160

DF-neutral

Slightly less detailed than the ER4, but without the usual BA timbre.

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

160

B+

★

Fearless S6Pro

390

DF-neutral

Technical tuning with very forward detailing.

B+

6BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-3

390

B+

FitEar MH334

1900

Warm

Perfect for female vocals, but otherwise quite coloured

B+

4BA

Third party custom

1900

B+

★

Massdrop Plus

300

DF-neutral with bass boost

Reference-targeted sound with excellent clarity and detail, with a slightly more fun tuning.

B+

3BA

Review unit

300

B+

Oriolus Mellianus

2400

Mild V-shape

Thin and sterile signature that isn't the most natural, but still technically proficient.

B+

10BA

Third party unit

-4

2400

B+

Soranik Ion

1100

Warm

Clearly inspired by the 334, follows the same strengths in female vocals

B+

5BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1100

B+

★

Tanchjim Oxygen

270

Harman-neutral

One of the best-tuned DDs tuned somewhat to Harman. Defined and detailed.

B+

Review unit

270

B+

Unique Melody Maestro V2

2000

"Balanced"

It's... there. Hard to find words for this one

B+

12BA

Stereo SG demo unit

-3

2000

B+

Gaudio Nair

862

Neutral

Well-tuned neutral monitor bottlenecked by timbre and resolution.

A+

3BA

Review unit

862

B+

A&K T8iE

Discontinued

Neutral with bass boost

Hard-to-dislike tuning with excellent clarity and resolution

A+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

99999

B+

Beyerdynamic Xelento

1000

V-shaped

Like the T8iE, with a little more treble

A+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1000

B+

Noble Khan

2300

U-shaped

Clean yet lean, solid low-end rumble but treble get splashy. Technical but lacking naturalness for top performance.

A+

1Piezo 4BA 1DD

Third party unit

-5

2300

B+

★★

AKG N400

155

Harman-neutral

Does away with the timbral issues of the Buds+ and sets itself as a superior.

A+

Personal unit

155

B+

★

Acoustune HS1551

500

Warm V-shape

Warm and smooth tonality with a pleasing tuning not many would hate.

A-

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

500

B+

Custom Art Harmony 8.2

1300

Warm

Smooth and easy signature. No fatigue whatsoever. The definition of a lounging IEM.

A-

B+

8BA

Personal unit

1300

B+

★

DUNU DK-3001 Pro

470

Warm neutral

Well-tuned and coherent. Does little wrong and very easy to like.

A-

B+

3BA 1DD

Review unit

470

B+

★★★

Etymotic ER4PT

300

Warm neutral

Slightly rolled off treble with good detail and resolution, though imaging is too two-dimensional.

A-

B+

Personal unit

-3

300

B+

Elysian Artemis V2

700

Neutral

A detailed, somewhat neutral-sounding IEM that should fit most people's tastes.

B+

A-

3BA

Showfloor demo unit

700

B+

FitEar TG334

1400

Dark

Like the MH334 with quite a bit less treble

A-

B+

4BA

Personal unit

1400

B+

HUM Reference

1300

DF-neutral

Basically sounds like a shallow-fit ER4S.

A-

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-4

1300

B+

Jomo Quatre

1500

V-shaped

Nicely tuned hybrid that serves as a good all-rounder.

A-

B+

3BA 1DD

Euphoria Audio demo unit

1500

B+

Unique Melody Martian

700

Neutral with bass boost

Well-tuned hybrid with excellent bass response and smooth midrange.

A-

B+

2BA 2DD

Stereo SG demo unit

700

B+

JQ Hua Jiang

750

Neutral with bass boost

Somewhat subdued and "safe" tuning with decent resolving ability.

A-

B+

2EST 6BA 1DD

Third party unit

750

B+

64 Audio tia Fourte

3600

W-shaped

Unique sound; high clarity and bass response with immensely wide staging, held back by a wonky tonality.

B-

3BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

-3

3600

B+

Campfire Solaris (SE)

1500

"Balanced"

Coherent and well balanced hybrid though with slight midrange hollowness.

3BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

1500

B+

★

Sony XBA-N3

300

Neutral with bass boost

Exceptional tonal balance only limited by its slightly smoothed over definition

1BA 1DD

ConnectIT demo unit

300

B+

NCM Bella

1050

U-shaped

Powerful bass combined with clean sounding mids, though perhaps a tad aggressive at times.

8BA 1DD

Review unit

-1

1050

B+

Vision Ears VE3.2

1200

Warm neutral

Almost VE8-like in tonality, but lacks its technical abilities.

3BA

E1 demo unit

1200

B+

★

FAudio Minor

520

Mild V-shape

Well-balanced tonality and tuning, held back by middling technicalities.

Third party unit

520

B+

AAW ASH

800

Warm neutral

Smooth tonal balance with decent technicalities.

B+

6BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

800

B+

Empire Ears EVR

800

Neutral

A nicely tuned flat-ish signature with good technical ability all around.

B+

3BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-4

800

B+

Empire Ears Vantage

1400

V-shaped

A Legend-X-mini, essentially. Nice alternative on a "budget".

B+

1BA 2DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1400

B+

★

iBasso IT04

500

U-shaped

A nice improvement over the IT03 though midrange hollowness still exists.

B+

3BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

-1

500

B+

Sennheiser IE800

800

Mild V-shape

Good bass with shimmery treble. Decent tonality.

B+

Jaben SG demo unit

800

HYLA TE-5T

1300

Upper mid focused

Very Japanese-sounding with a massive upper harmonic focus, too much for many genres.

B-

A+

1Piezo 2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-5

1300

AAW Canary

2170

V-shaped

Poor implementation of the EST driver. Decent in tonality and timbre, but that's about it.

A-

2EST 4BA 2DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

2170

Acoustune HS1670

800

V-shaped

Metallic and shrill timbre makes this hard to enjoy.

A-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

800

Dita Fidelity

1300

V-shaped

The more technical and less natural sounding of the Dita twins.

A-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-4

1300

Dita Fealty

1300

Mild V-shape

The more natural sounding and less technical of the Dita twins.

A-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1300

Empire Ears Phantom

1800

Warm

Heavy, rich and decadent, great for male vocals and bassy instruments.

A-

5BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1800

Empire Ears Valkyrie

1600

Extreme V-shape

Lots of sub-bass with extremely thin mids. Adequate technicalities.

A-

1EST 1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1600

★★

Moondrop KXXS

190

Harman-neutral

Well-tuned single DD with proper timbre and decent technicalities.

A-

Review unit

190

★★

Moondrop Starfield

110

Harman-neutral

A cheaper KXXS.

A-

Review unit

110

★★

Samsung Galaxy Buds

130

Harman-neutral

A surprisingly well-tuned TWS with the technical chops to boot.

A-

Personal unit

130

★

Sony WF-1000XM3

230

Neutral with bass boost

Proper tonality, solid technicalities yet with a consumer-friendly signature.

A-

ConnectIT demo unit

230

Ultimate Ears UE18+ Pro Gen 3

1500

"Balanced"

Perceived more neutrally compared to the Gen 2; less emotional, more boring.

A-

6BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

1500

Kinera Nanna

900

Mild V-shape

Surprisingly well-extended for an EST implementation; somewhat blunted notes overall.

A-

2EST 1BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

900

64 Audio tia Fourte Noir

3800

W-shaped

A bassier and warmer Fourte though also strangely sharper and less technical.

B-

3BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

3800

Campfire Solaris (2020)

1500

Bright V-shape

Similar (but not identical) upper midrange problems to the original, with added sibilance.

B-

4BA 1DD

Third party unit

1500

Campfire Ara

1300

Bright neutral

Very resolving set of IEMs, triggers the "uncanny valley" effect with its tuning.

C+

7BA

Third party unit

1300

Final Audio A8000

2000

Bright V-shape

Technically strong but going too far with the treble emphasis.

B-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

2000

DUNU Luna

1700

Mid-centric

Needs more work on the tuning front.

C+

S-

Review unit

1700

AAW AXH (2019)

430

Bright neutral

Sharp treble though not to the point of being piercing. Decent rendition of the bright-neutral signature.

B+

4BA 1DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-3

100

430

Acoustune HS1501

500

Warm V-shape

A more textured, bassier and more energetic version of the HS1551.

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

100

500

AKG N5005

1000

Neutral with bass boost

Amazing bass control only let down by plastic timbre.

B+

4BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

100

1000

Campfire Atlas

1300

Bassy

Gobs of bass with added treble sparkle that prevents complete congestion and muddiness.

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

100

1300

Dita Truth Brass

Discontinued

Warm V-shape

Very nice tonal characteristics with good bass, though nothing special technically.

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

100

99999

Dita Dream XLS

1850

Neutral

Standard Dita house sound with a non-standard bass roll-off. Decent, not amazing.

B+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

100

1850

DUNU DK-4001

900

U-shaped

A little shrill with slight cutbacks in tone compared to the DK-3001 Pro.

B+

4BA 1DD

Review unit

100

900

★

Fearless S4

290

V-shaped

Tonally accurate though can be a little heavy with its upper midrange.

B+

4BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

100

290

★

Fearless S5H

330

V-shaped

Similar if not identical to the S4, though with a little less upper mids.

B+

5BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

100

330

★

Fearless S6Rui

390

V-shaped

Similar to the S4/S5H though with smoother upper mids and treble response.

B+

6BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

100

390

★

FiiO FH5

260

Neutral with bass boost

Stellar bass response and decent technical ability, not much to fault.

B+

3BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

100

260

Noble Tux 5

1300

U-shaped

Deep, sub-bass focus with potentially sibilant treble. Scooped midrange.

B+

4BA 1DD

Stereo SG demo unit

100

1300

qdc Anole V3

600

Variable

The bassier of the Anole brothers. Better timbre but worse technicalities.

B+

3BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

100

600

qdc Anole V6

1100

Variable

The more mid-centric of the Anole brothers. Better technicalities but worse timbre.

B+

6BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

100

1100

★★

Samsung Galaxy Buds+

150

Harman-neutral

Tuned even closer to the Harman IE target compared to the original.

B+

2DD

Personal unit

100

150

★

Sony XBA-A3

480

Neutral with bass boost

Coherent hybrid with a warm-ish tilt to its tone.

B+

2BA 1DD

Third party unit

100

480

Sony XBA-Z5

700

"Balanced"

All-rounder. Somewhat neutral both in FR and tonality.

B+

2BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

100

700

VSonic GR07X

Discontinued

Neutral

Jack of all trades. Has all the fundamentals down to a T.

B+

Personal unit

100

99999

ThieAudio Legacy 9 (L9)

550

Bassy

Bass a little too slow and sluggish with minor quirks in the midrange-treble transition.

B+

8BA 1DD

Third party unit

100

550

PEARS SH2

860

Neutral

An odd take on neutrality but not the worst.

B+

2BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

100

860

★

Bose SoundSport Free

200

Neutral

Solid tonal balance with wide soundstage, though not the best in detailing.

A-

B-

ConnectIT demo unit

104

200

Moondrop Kanas Pro

Discontinued

Warm V-shape

Somewhat Harman-esque in tuning, not the best in terms of resolution.

A-

B-

Review unit

104

99999

Vision Ears EVE 20

1550

V-shaped

Solid technicalities in tandem with an uninspired tuning.

B-

A-

6BA

E1 demo unit

104

1550

★★

Lypertek Tevi

DF-neutral with bass boost

Probably the closest thing to an ER2XR in TWS form.

C+

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

112

AAW Mockingbird

1450

Neutral

A "nothing special" kind of sound that is neither wrong nor exciting, even on a technical level.

8BA 1DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

114

1450

ACS Encore

1130

Neutral

Good all-rounder. No slouch in the technicalities.

3BA

Jaben SG demo unit

114

1130

★

ARC Mira

410

Neutral

A well-tuned basic setup with strengths in versatility.

2BA

Showfloor demo unit

114

410

★

Audio Technica ATH-E70

400

Neutral with bass boost

Clean and clear sound with a slight warm tilt without losing treble sparkle.

3BA

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

114

400

Empire Ears Bravado

700

V-shaped

A basic hybrid sound with big bass and energetic treble.

1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

114

700

Empire Ears Nemesis

1600

V-shaped

A lot more treble compared to the Vantage.

3BA 2DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

114

1600

Fearless La Hire

610

Neutral

Well-tuned neutral-style monitor with subpar treble extension.

2EST 2BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

114

610

Fidue A91 "Sirius"

900

Mid-centric

Uniquely tuned hybrid. Not very powerful DD bass with Diffuse-Field midrange.

4BA 1DD

LMUE demo unit

114

900

FitEar F/A111

780

Warm neutral

A laid-back take on reference with Suyama's FitEar colouration mixed in

Jaben SG demo unit

114

780

FitEar Parterre

1200

Warm

Intimate, smooth and laidback sound

2BA?

Jaben SG demo unit

114

1200

FLC8S

Discontinued

Variable

Very good technicalities with a well-tuned signature. Filters change the sound a lot.

2BA 1DD

Personal unit

114

99999

HUM Pristine Reference

1400

Warm

Good detail pickup and generally inoffensive. Much better than the universal.

2BA

Third party custom

114

1400

JH Audio JH13v2 Performance Series

1000

V-shaped

Good all rounder, slightly warmer and more coherent than the custom version

8BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

114

1000

★

Periodic Audio Be

300

Mild V-shape

Meaty with decent sparkle in the treble, whilst remaining clear and clean.

Review unit

114

300

Rhapsodio Galaxy

Discontinued

V-shaped

Lively and engaging but avoiding fatigue still. Rare combo

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

114

99999

★

Sennheiser IE400 Pro

350

V-shaped

Heavy bass boost balanced out by good treble energy along with decent midrange tonality.

ConnectIT demo unit

114

350

★

Shozy & Neo BG

280

Bright neutral

Well balanced tuning with decent resolution, though suffers from slight timbral issues.

5BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

114

280

Shure SE846

1000

Neutral with bass boost

Deep reaching bass but with an odd tonality in the rest of the spectrum.

4BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

114

1000

B-

ARC Oculus

570

Warm

Relaxing, warm signature with sub-par resolving ability.

B+

B-

3BA

Showfloor demo unit

116

570

B-

Audio Technica ATH-IM02

Warm neutral

Well-balanced, excellent tuning and good technical ability.

B+

B-

2BA

Third party unit

116

99999

B-

★

Audio Technica ATH-LS200

250

Neutral

Somewhat Diffuse-Field neutral with its own quirks. Good technical ability.

B+

B-

2BA

Stereo SG demo unit

116

250

B-

Custom Art FIBAE Black

500

Warm neutral

Smooth, neutral-ish signature that serves as an all rounder.

B+

B-

1BA

Third party custom

116

500

B-

Fearless Lancelot

1300

Warm

Rather generic tuning with no redeeming qualities for its price and status.

B-

B+

2EST 6BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

116

1300

B-

FitEar Private 333

1500

Bright

Very exciting and sharp signature. Almost seems like it's made for higher-pitched vocals.

B-

B+

3BA

Jaben SG demo unit

-5

116

1500

B-

Hifiman RE2000

2000

Mild V-shape

Lively sound with great technicalities and substandard tonality.

B-

B+

A2A Melbourne demo unit

116

2000

B-

InEar Stagediver SD2

450

Warm neutral

Well-balanced, excellent tuning and good technical ability. Similar to IM02.

B+

B-

2BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

116

450

B-

Itsfit R3

305

Neutral

Similar to the lauded UERM, but without its resolution nor sparkle.

B+

B-

3BA

Review unit

116

305

B-

★

Jabra Elite Active 65t

190

Neutral

Excellent tonal balance and timbre, though technical ability isn't the best.

B+

B-

ConnectIT demo unit

116

190

B-

★★

Sony MH755

Harman-neutral

Clean notes, proper sub-bass extension and a tonal balance beyond expectations.

B+

B-

Personal unit

116

B-

★

Unique Melody MacBeth

600

U-shaped

Extremely clear but may be too thin for some.

B-

B+

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

116

600

B-

★

Audiosense DT200

150

Neutral

Excellent tonality. Just excellent tuning overall.

A+

2BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

124

111

150

B-

Empire Ears ESR

1000

Bright V-shape

Has the technical chops but is sharp and fatiguing.

B-

3BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

130

1000

B-

FitEar EST

1300

Warm

Smooth and relaxing listen, though definition is not its strong suit.

B-

1EST 1BA

Jaben SG demo unit

130

1300

B-

★

Apple AirPods Pro

250

Neutral

Somewhat Diffuse-Field tuning with a smooth and natural midrange tonality.

B-

Third party unit

130

250

B-

ARC Pollux

285

Neutral

Well-tuned neutral single-BA IEM.

B-

Showfloor demo unit

130

285

B-

Elysian Cora (2019)

1230

Neutral with bass boost

A decent hybrid weird slightly odd midrange tonality.

B-

4BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

130

1230

B-

Fearless S10 Genie

700

DF-neutral

Sounds like an attempt at DF-neutral gone wrong. Tonally evokes a sense of "uncanny valley".

B-

10BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

130

700

B-

Fearless HyperS 12BA

900

DF-neutral

Similar if not identical to the S10 Genie.

B-

12BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

130

900

B-

Kinera Nanna

850

Mild V-shape

Surprisingly good implementation of the EST tweeters, but lacking details.

B-

2EST 1BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

130

850

B-

Meze Rai Penta

1100

Warm V-shape

Pleasing tonality with subpar technical ability.

B-

4BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

130

1100

B-

Oriolus Forsteni

375

U-shaped

Great sparkle, deep-reaching DD bass and high clarity. Spacious staging.

B-

2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

130

375

B-

★★

Tin HiFi T4

110

Bright neutral

A worthy successor to the legendary GR07.

B-

Review unit

130

110

B-

VSonic GR07 Classic

Discontinued

Mild V-shape

Well-balanced, well-tuned, good technicalities. The $100 benchmark since ever.

B-

LMUE demo unit

130

99999

B-

Vision Ears VE4.2

1440

V-shaped

Decently tuned monitor with adequate resolution, but nothing that hasn't been done before for cheap.

B-

4BA

E1 demo unit

130

1440

B-

Gaudio Clariden

862

V-shaped

Somewhat reminiscent of a more mid-y Andromeda, though with extra wonkiness.

B-

3BA

Review unit

130

862

B-

Earsonics EM10

2300

Warm

Oddly low dynamics makes this sound rather dead and lifeless.

C+

B+

10BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

134

2300

B-

Stealthsonics U9

1100

Neutral

An otherwise capable hybrid caught out by nasally and odd midrange.

C+

B+

8BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

134

1100

B-

Westone W80

1500

Warm neutral

Nicely balanced, intimate and slightly dry. Perhaps the least Westone-sounding Westone.

C+

B+

8BA

A2A Melbourne demo unit

134

1500

B-

Hyla Nerva X

2730

Dark

Low dynamics, rolled off and nothing that it really excels in.

B-

10BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

146

2730

B-

★

ikko OH1

140

Upper mid focused

Well controlled sub-bass focus, high clarity and has an inherent "Asian" signature.

B-

1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

146

140

B-

qdc Fusion

920

Warm

Dulled transients and lacks detailing. Tonality is merely okay.

B-

4BA 1DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

146

920

B-

Rhapsodio Solar

1550

Mild V-shape

An all-rounder to a fault. Truly a master of none.

B-

10BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

-1

146

1550

B-

Ultimate Ears UE6 Pro

700

"Balanced"

A capable hybrid with little weaknesses.

B-

1BA 2DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

146

700

B-

Ultimate Ears UE7 Pro

850

Warm neutral

Good clarity and detail with boosted, warm bass and controlled treble.

B-

3BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

146

850

C+

★★

BLON BL03

Warm V-shape

Very pleasing and safe tuning with subpar technical detailing.

C+

Review unit

148

C+

Campfire Polaris V1

600

V-shaped

Pseudo-Japanese tuning focusing on female vocals and a very lively signature.

C+

1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

148

600

C+

Campfire Jupiter

800

"Balanced"

Great clarity and staging though with odd upper midrange.

C+

4BA

ConnectIT demo unit

148

800

C+

Custom Art FIBAE3

625

Mid-centric

A clarity-focused IEM. Weak in staging, perhaps too thin on the note weight but ultimately does its kind of sound without hiccups.

C+

3BA

Review unit

-4

148

625

C+

Empire Ears Wraith

3500

Dark neutral

A Zeus with almost nonexistent treble and clarity.

C+

4EST 7BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

148

3500

C+

FiiO FH7

450

V-shaped

What is otherwise a pretty good hybrid marred by a strange tonality.

C+

4BA 1DD

ConnectIT demo unit

148

450

C+

Itsfit Fusion

950

"Balanced"

Hard to pinpoint its exact signature, but the result is an odd tonality.

C+

1MS 2BA 1DD

Review unit

148

950

C+

JH Audio Layla

2725

Variable

Suppressed upper mids and odd treble tuning. Decent technicalities.

C+

12BA

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

148

2725

C+

KZ E10

DF-neutral

A little bright, almost edging on shoutiness, but overall a decent attempt at neutrality.

C+

4BA 1DD

Review unit

148

C+

Lime Ears Aether R

1350

Variable

A downgrade from the original with weirder midrange tonality.

C+

6BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

148

1350

C+

★★

QCY T5

Neutral

An odd take on a reference-style signature, but definitely not the worst attempt out there.

C+

Third party unit

148

C+

Shozy Form 1.1

Warm neutral

Relaxing, non-fatiguing listen with minor cutbacks in detailing.

C+

1BA 1DD

Review unit

148

C+

Shozy Form 1.4

200

Warm neutral

Very similar to the Form 1.1 in both tone and technicalities.

C+

4BA 1DD

Review unit

148

200

C+

Urbanfun YBF-ISS014

V-shaped

Clear detailing marred slightly by an almost generic and sharp tuning.

C+

Review unit

148

C+

★

ThieAudio Legacy 3

130

Neutral

Balanced tonality with a laid-back signature, nothing much to fault nor to praise.

C+

2BA 1DD

Review unit

148

130

C+

Tansio Mirai TSMR-5

430

Warm V-shape

Alright tonality, decent detailing but nothing that makes it stand out.

C+

5BA

Review unit

148

430

C+

Kumitate KL-REF Type-S

1350

Variable

Well tuned but unfortunately suffers from very odd timbre.

B+

3BA 2DD

Third party unit

154

111

1350

C+

FAudio Major

1400

V-shaped

Piercing sharp treble and overwhelming bass makes this hard to listen to.

B+

Third party unit

154

111

1400

C+

AAW A3H Pro V2

370

Warm

Decent technicalities with well controlled bass and treble rolloff.

B-

C+

2BA 1DD

Personal custom

164

370

C+

★

Anker Soundcore Liberty 2 Pro

150

V-shaped

Impressive sub-focused bass response, limited by its shouty and sharp midrange and treble.

B-

C+

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

164

150

C+

Campfire Dorado

1000

Warm

Extremely coherent albeit slightly congested. Great for intimacy lovers.

B-

C+

2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

164

1000

C+

Campfire Vega

1300

V-shaped

Powerful bass, sharp treble and muffled midrange.

C+

B-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

164

1300

C+

★

Edifier TWS5

V-shaped

Good tone and bass response, but unfortunately lacking detail retrieval.

B-

C+

Third party unit

164

C+

Elysian Artemis

600

Warm

Thick, warm and smooth signature without complete sacrifice in technicalities.

B-

C+

3BA

Review unit

164

600

C+

★★

Final Audio E1000

Neutral

Balanced tuning with good clarity and acceptable resolution. Surprising pick.

B-

C+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

164

C+

★

Final Audio E2000

V-shaped

Not too dissimiliar to a GR07, though lacking in that last octave of bass extension.

B-

C+

E1 demo unit

164

C+

★

Final Audio E3000

Warm

A warmer, bassier E2000.

B-

C+

E1 demo unit

164

C+

Final Audio E4000

180

V-shaped

Rather standard sounding, non-offensive and neutral in tone.

B-

C+

E1 demo unit

164

180

C+

Final Audio E5000

280

Warm

Less treble than the E4000 for a slightly different flavour.

B-

C+

E1 demo unit

164

280

C+

★

Final Audio Heaven II

Bright neutral

Solid technical ability though might be a little too sterile at times.

B-

C+

A2A Melbourne demo unit

164

C+

Fostex TM2

300

V-shaped

A little thin, a little bright and a little shouty, but not bad overall.

C+

B-

Third party unit

164

300

C+

iBasso IT01S

200

V-shaped

Balanced tuning, slight lean towards brightness. Should be pleasing for most ears.

C+

B-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

164

200

C+

★

Intime Sora

U-shaped

Well controlled bass boost with slightly skewed tonality. Potential is there.

B-

C+

Third party unit

164

C+

★

Periodic Audio Mg

100

Warm

Not the most clear or detailed but a very clean sound with good timbre.

B-

C+

Review unit

164

100

C+

★

Shuoer Tape

130

V-shaped

Decent technicalities but it basically screams in your face.

C+

B-

Oardio demo unit

164

130

C+

★

Tanchjim Cora

V-shaped

Well-controlled bass boost, though coupled with a slightly odd midrange tonality.

B-

C+

Oardio demo unit

164

C+

★

TFZ King Pro

170

V-shaped

Powerful yet controlled bass response, good snap in the treble, doesn't sacrifice too much in the midrange.

C+

B-

Third party unit

164

170

C+

★

Tin HiFi T2

Neutral

Well-balanced tuning and an all-rounder signature that works for most.

B-

C+

2DD

Review unit

164

C+

★

Tin HiFi T3

Mild V-shape

Somewhat generic hybrid signature, tuned well with good transient ability.

B-

C+

1BA 1DD

Review unit

164

C+

Vive XE800

Discontinued

Mild V-shape

A mini GR07. Need I say more?

B-

C+

Third party unit

164

99999

C+

ThieAudio Voyager 3 (V3)

160

Warm V-shape

Slightly esoteric signature that somewhat works.

C+

B-

3BA

Review unit

164

160

C+

★

NiceHCK NX7 Pro

132

Bright V-shaped

Superb midrange tonality marred by a painfully piercing treble response.

C+

B-

1Piezo 4BA 2DD

Review unit

164

132

C+

Audiosense AQ3

180

Bassy

Well-controlled bass despite the emphasis, limited by overall resolving ability.

2BA 1DD

Review unit

168

111

180

C+

MMR Homunculus

1700

Warm neutral

Not the worst thing out there, but also nothing special about it.

2EST 1BA 1DD

ConnectIT demo unit

168

111

1700

C+

MMR Thummim

4500

V-shaped

More resolving than the Homunculus, but also comes with bass bloat.

4EST 4BA 1DD

ConnectIT demo unit

168

111

4500

C+

Audio Technica ATH-SPORT7TW

200

U-shaped

Clean bass and decent midrange tonality, though comes with strident treble.

C+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

182

200

C+

BGVP DM6

200

Warm V-shape

Warm tilt in tone, decent detail retrieval though definition is a little too smoothed over.

C+

5BA

Third party unit

182

200

C+

★★

CCA C10

V-shaped

Surprisingly well-tuned hybrid from a KZ-style company. Definitely the best in its lineup.

C+

4BA 1DD

Oardio demo unit

182

C+

★

FiiO F9

100

V-shaped

Good technicalities, average timbre, perhaps a little excessive on the highs.

C+

2BA 1DD

Review unit

182

100

C+

iBasso IT03

260

U-shaped

Excellent bass and clarity. Hollow midrange and somewhat metallic treble.

C+

2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

182

260

C+

IMR R2 Aten

500

Variable

Decent sounding mids with bass that ranges from bleeding to non-existent.

C+

1Piezo 1DD

Third party unit

182

500

C+

★

Shozy & Neo CP

165

Warm

Reference-style tuning, decent tonal balance, solid technical ability.

C+

3BA

LMUE demo unit

182

165

C+

TFZ Secret Garden

200

V-shaped

Decent bass response and peaky treble, not much to say.

C+

2DD

LMUE demo unit

182

200

C+

Ultimate Ears UE11 Pro

1150

Bassy

Quite a bit of low-end emphasis. Overly-congested and smeared transients.

C+

4BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

182

1150

C+

★★

Zero Audio Carbo Tenore ZH-DX200-CT

V-shaped

A well-tuned V-shaped signature that maintains solid midrange and excellent clarity.

C+

Personal unit

182

C+

KBEar TRI I3

200

V-shaped

Surprisingly decent tonality, though somewhat average in the grand scheme of things.

C+

1BA 1DD 1Planar

Third party unit

182

200

C+

ikko OH7

950

V-shaped

Well-controlled bass response, though the rest leaves a lot to be desired.

C+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

182

950

★

Advanced Evo X

Neutral

A well-balanced Bluetooth IEM. A very nice surprise.

B-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

184

111

AKG N40

400

Variable

A rather typical hybrid tuned to the Harman Target. Nothing special especially for the asking price.

B-

1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

184

111

400

Audeze LCDi4 (No Cipher)

2500

"Balanced"

Low distortion, high resolution and excellent clarity marred by poor tuning which destroys timbre.

S+

Planar

Stereo SG demo unit

184

183

2500

BGVP ES12

1500

Variable

Slightly honky midrange tonality with the usual EST tweeter roll-off.

B-

4EST 8BA

Oardio demo unit

184

111

1500

★★

FiiO F3

U-shaped

Well-balanced U-shaped sound that's rather atypical of a chifi dynamic IEM.

B-

E1 demo unit

184

111

★

FiiO F5

V-shaped

Typical chifi V-shaped sound, nothing much to report on.

B-

E1 demo unit

184

111

Future Sonics MG5HX

875

V-shaped

Typical V-shaped DD signature with minimal focus on technicalities.

B-

Third party custom

184

111

875

★

Massdrop x NuForce EDC3

100

Neutral

Well tuned, though not the most technical nor the most natural sounding.

B-

3BA

Review unit

184

111

100

Noble Savant 2

500

Warm

Decent tonal balance with subpar detail retrieval.

B-

2BA

Stereo SG demo unit

184

111

500

Oriolus Finschi

180

Bright

Energetic and bright, overall a well built hybrid that can be strident for some ears.

B-

2BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

184

111

180

Stax SR-001 Mk1 w/ CES-A1

Discontinued

Neutral

Sounds surprisingly dull and undetailed for a "true" electrostatic.

B-

Electrostatic

Third party unit

184

111

99999

Mangird Tea

300

"Balanced"

In a weird place, tonally. Not quite wrong enough to be "wonky", but certainly not right either.

B-

6BA 1DD

Review unit

184

111

300

Empire Ears Zeus-XIV

2730

Bright neutral

Top tier detail and resolution with poor tone and timbre reproduction.

14BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

-4

186

183

2730

Acoustune HS1503

400

V-shaped

Shrill, odd timbre and way too intense for normal listening.

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

190

133

400

Audeze iSine 10/20 (No Cipher)

400

Unique

Low distortion, high resolution and excellent clarity marred by poor tuning which destroys timbre.

S-

Planar

Stereo SG demo unit

190

183

400

IMR RAH

Discontinued

Variable

Not much point to the filter system when it's just varying degrees of mediocre.

C-

1Piezo 1Planar 1DD

Third party unit

190

133

99999

★

Moondrop SSR

DF-neutral

Probably as close as one can get to "true DF", though it's extremely shouty as a result.

C-

Review unit

190

133

1Custom SA02

"Balanced"

Odd take on neutral with a coloured tonality.

C+

2BA

Jaben SG demo unit

202

111

99999

Alpha&Delta D6

Bright

Well balanced bright response. Good detail and doesn't sound odd in any place.

C+

Review unit

202

111

BGVP DMG

140

Bassy

Decent tonal balance though bass response is not up to par.

C+

4BA 1DD

Review unit

202

111

140

★

FiiO FA1

100

Neutral

A pretty standard reference-style tuning that just works.

C+

ConnectIT demo unit

202

111

100

Final Audio LAB 1

Discontinued

Warm

Pretty standard tuning that doesn't live up to its build, pricing or prestige.

C+

2BA

Third party unit

202

111

99999

Focal Sphear

150

Mild V-shape

Good timbre, good bass and well-balanced tuning.

C+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

202

111

150

Kinera Odin

800

Neutral

Sounds like a rather basic tuning and a resolution not fitting of its driver count.

C+

8BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

202

111

800

Symphonium Audio Aurora

220

Warm neutral

Solid tuning, though average in technicalities.

C+

2BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

202

111

220

★

Tin Audio T2 Pro

Bright neutral

A T2 tuned with less sub-bass and more treble. High clarity but may not be for everyone.

C+

2DD

Review unit

202

111

★

Venture Electronics BIE

V-shaped

Generic V-shaped DD with alright midrange tonality and technicalities.

C+

Third party unit

202

111

VSonic VS7

120

Warm

A less fatiguing, less technical version of its predecessor.

C+

Review unit

202

111

120

BLON BL05

Bright V-shape

A more technical but far less pleasing BL03.

C+

Review unit

202

111

★

KZ ZS10 Pro/ZSX

V-shaped

Typical chifi V-shaped sound, nothing much to report on.

C+

5BA 1DD

Third party unit

202

111

AAW Halycon

1450

Variable

A little too sluggish in the bass with fatiguing treble.

C+

4EST 2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

202

111

1450

Fearless Roland

1010

Dark

An almost total lack of treble results in a muffled, dark presentation.

D+

2EST 2BA 1DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

214

157

1010

AAW A3H (2019)

290

V-shaped

Emphasised midbass and upper mids. Generic hybrid.

2BA 1DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

222

111

290

AAW W100

Discontinued

V-shaped

Bassy and has that typical "chifi DD" sound.

Jaben SG demo unit

222

111

99999

Audiosense T800

300

V-shaped

Generic tuning that's nothing special in terms of tonal accuracy nor technicalities.

8BA

Treoo demo unit

222

111

300

AVIOT TE-D01b/TE-D01d

177

V-shaped

Standard V-shaped siganture with passable transients.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

177

Campfire Comet

200

Warm

Rolled-off at the top end, warm and bassy single-BA sound reminiscent of Final's offerings.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

200

Campfire Lyra II

700

V-shaped

Campfire's take on a V-shaped dynamic sound. Wouldn't call it exceptional.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

700

CCA C12

V-shaped

Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.

5BA 1DD

Oardio demo unit

222

111

Creative Aurvana Trio

250

Warm

Surprising lack of BA timbre, but still rather average in technicalities.

3BA

ConnectIT demo unit

222

111

250

Dynamic Motion DM200H

180

V-shaped

Generic V-shaped hybrid without any special traits.

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

222

111

180

Earsonics SM3

Discontinued

Warm

Non-fatiguing, relaxing listen. "Normal".

3BA

AV One demo unit

222

111

99999

★

Edifier TWS1

V-shaped

Decent bass response, subpar treble, overall passable.

Third party unit

222

111

Elysian Eros

400

Warm

Typical "dual driver" sound. Not very impressive.

2BA

Showfloor demo unit

222

111

400

Fearless Start

180

V-shaped

Typical chifi V-shaped sound, nothing much to report on.

Music Sanctuary demo unit

222

111

180

FitEar Air 2/Titan

1700

Warm V-shape

Generic hybrid sound. Doesn't really perform up to par either.

1BA 1DD

Jaben SG demo unit

222

111

1700

Fostex TE100

1800

Warm neutral

A little boring and dead in dynamics. Not fun but not really reference either. Average.

1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

1800

iBasso IT01

110

V-shaped

Nothing really stands out as "excellent" to me, but it does a lot of things well and little wrong.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

110

iBasso IT03w

260

Bright V-shape

Its sibilant and sharp treble is a tough trait to endure.

2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

260

IMR R1 Zenith

Discontinued

Variable

Not very detailed with a persistently odd tonal balance regardless of filters used.

1Piezo 1DD

Third party unit

222

111

99999

JH Billie Jean

350

V-shaped

Follows the JH house sound but otherwise nothing special.

2BA

AV One demo unit

222

111

350

JH Michelle

500

Warm

Still sounds typically "JH" with a slightly V tuning, with slower transients and a non-fatiguing signature.

3BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

500

JVC HA-FW01

380

Dark

Very heavy and very dark sounding IEM whose signature marrs technical ability slightly.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

380

★★

KZ ZSN Pro

V-shaped

Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.

1BA 1DD

Oardio demo unit

222

111

KZ S2

V-shaped

Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.

1BA 1DD

Review unit

222

111

MEE Pinnacle P1

200

Warm V-shape

Upper midrange emphasis with soft, warm bass. Nice for mainstream listening.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

200

Nuarl NT01

150

Warm V-shape

Generic V-shaped tuning with not much clarity or detailing capability.

Oardio demo unit

222

111

150

Nuarl NT100

100

V-shaped

Generic V-shaped tuning that doesn't stand out technically from other similar IEMs.

Oardio demo unit

222

111

100

NuForce HEM1

150

Neutral

Reference tuning with tonal balance. Unfortunately limited by its technicalities.

E1 demo unit

222

111

150

Oriveti New Primacy

300

Warm neutral

Rather balanced, almost neutral hybrid. All rounder.

2BA 1DD

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

222

111

300

Rose BR5 Mk2

305

Neutral

Not a bad IEM, though BA timbre comes in strong with this one. Not the most technical but it does the job when called for it.

5BA

Third party unit

222

111

305

Shure SE535

500

Mid-centric

Tonally dead. One-note bass. No treble worth mentioning.

3BA

Stereo SG demo unit

222

111

500

★

Simgot EN700

100

Mid-centric

Good clarity and energetic signature.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

100

Stealthsonics U2

250

V-shaped

Sharp, emphasised treble and boosted bass, sounds more mainstream than audiophile.

1BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

222

111

250

★

TFZ 5S

V-shaped

Warm and somewhat slow in transients. Good timbre, average tuning.

LMUE demo unit

222

111

★

TFZ King

100

V-shaped

Better tuned than the 5S with a little extra treble which improves clarity and overall staging.

LMUE demo unit

222

111

100

★

Tiandirenhe TD1

V-shaped

Generic V-shaped DD with alright midrange tonality and technicalities.

Third party unit

222

111

Ultimate Ears Triple Fi 10 "TF10"

Discontinued

Warm

Decent tonality and timbre. Not as detailed as the new kids on the block but has the fundamentals down.

3BA

Personal unit

222

111

99999

Unknown Custom UCD-2

220

Warm V-shape

A common 2-driver signature with passable resolution.

2BA

E1 demo unit

222

111

220

Tin HiFi T2000

110

V-shaped

Pretty standard chifi V-shaped sound, nothing special.

2DD

Review unit

222

111

110

iBasso IT00

V-shaped

Basically a IT01.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

222

111

QoA Mojito

400

Neutral

Average tuning, average technicalities.

6BA

Review unit

222

111

400

C-

FiiO FA7

300

Warm

Boring, overly warm tuning that lacks detailing.

C-

C+

4BA

ConnectIT demo unit

224

133

300

C-

Jabra Elite 75t

180

U-shaped

Overdone sub-bass response, sharp treble, thin midrange.

C-

C+

ConnectIT demo unit

224

133

180

C-

Tin HiFi P1

170

Warm neutral

One of the rare few IEM-style planars with proper tonal balance without EQ, but lacking detail retrieval.

C+

C-

Planar

Review unit

224

133

170

C-

Tin HiFI T1

Warm

Could use some more high frequency response. Seems like squandered potential.

C+

C-

Oardio demo unit

224

133

C-

Ultimate Ears UE5 Pro

600

Warm

Dead dynamics, overly warm and congested.

C+

C-

2BA

Jaben SG demo unit

224

133

600

C-

Gold Planar GL20

150

Warm

The usual "open-backed planar IEM" sound of "wonk".

D-

A+

Planar

Third party unit

224

211

150

C-

HUM TT

500

Neutral

A misguided attempt at neutrality with virtually no treble extension.

C+

C-

2BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

224

133

500

C-

CCA C16

100

V-shaped

Shouty and bassy at the same time. Not a great combo.

C-

C+

8BA

Third party unit

224

133

100

C-

AAW Nightingale

1000

"Balanced"

Horribly tuned midrange that sounds wrong and lacks energy.

Planar

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

240

183

1000

C-

FiR M2

800

V-shaped

Shrill, unnatural tone in an otherwise acceptable technical package.

1BA 1DD

Showfloor demo unit

240

183

800

C-

Spiral Ears SE5U

2000

"Balanced"

Weird phasing, horrible tonal balance with near zero regard for treble.

5BA

Third party custom

240

183

2000

C-

1More Quad Driver

200

"Balanced"

Okay-ish technical ability in a mainstream tuning. Can get congested.

C-

3BA 1DD

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

244

111

133

200

C-

AAW Nebula Two

150

U-shaped

Excellent clarity and wide staging due to semi-open design. DD bass manages to shine through.

C-

1BA 1DD

Null Audio demo unit

244

111

133

150

C-

Anthem Five E2

150

Bassy

Lots of bass and not a lot of treble to balance it out. Alright midrange tone but resolution is poor.

C-

1BA 1DD

Review unit (custom)

244

111

133

150

C-

Brainwavz B400

150

Neutral

Dulled transients and dynamics makes this a boring listen.

C-

4BA

Third party unit

244

111

133

150

C-

Campfire Nova

500

Neutral with laid-back treble

Somewhat dead-sounding with no shimmer or sparkle in the upper registers.

C-

2BA

ConnectIT demo unit

244

133

111

500

C-

Cayin YB04

500

"Balanced"

An odd take on neutrality that sounds weird and uneven.

C-

4BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

244

133

111

500

C-

Fatfreq Eden

220

"Balanced"

A strange sounding monitor with no clear direction in its tuning.

C-

2BA

Third party unit

244

133

111

220

C-

Fostex TE-02WP

Discontinued

Neutral-bright

Balanced and clear. Very good value.

C-

A2A Melbourne demo unit

244

111

133

99999

C-

Heir Audio Tzar 350

Discontinued

Bright

Its detail would be appreciated if it didn't come with ear-splitting treble.

C-

2BA

Third party unit

244

133

111

99999

C-

Heygears Anora

Neutral with laid-back treble

Very good tuning, well-balanced signature.

C-

LMUE demo unit

244

111

133

C-

Shanling ME100

120

V-shaped

An odd take on the typical "chifi DD" sound, rolling off the bass for extra clarity at the expense of tonality.

C-

Review unit

244

133

111

120

C-

Sennheiser IE40 Pro

100

Neutral

An odd take on a balanced signature that sounds dead and lifeless.

C-

ConnectIT demo unit

244

111

133

100

C-

Stealthsonics U4

500

Warm

An odd character, simultaneously bassy and thin at the same time.

C-

4BA

Showfloor demo unit

244

133

111

500

C-

Super Audio "Supermeme" 2BA+2DD

150

V-shaped

A decently tuned V-shaped hybrid with energetic upper midrange. May be intense for some.

C-

2BA 2DD

Personal unit

244

133

111

150

C-

TRN BA5

V-shaped

Low resolution, passable tonality.

C-

5BA

Third party unit

244

111

133

C-

Ultimate Ears Live

2200

Warm

Soft, muddy, low resolution and lacks any sort of definition.

C-

6BA 1DD

Music Sanctuary demo unit

244

111

133

2200

C-

Campfire Solstice

1500

Warm

Doesn't sound like an Andromeda at all. A muddy, husky mess.

C-

5BA

E1 demo unit

244

133

111

1500

C-

Yinyoo Ash

V-shaped

Wonky tone and sharp treble is not a great combo.

D+

C+

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

248

157

C-

Lear LCM-BD4.2

1030

Bright V-shape

Harsh, overly-textured and extremely fatiguing. Excellent technical ability completely shut down by tuning and timbre mismatch.

B-

4BA 2DD

Treoo demo unit

256

183

1030

C-

Rhapsodio Zombie

1800

Bassy

Not the cleanest bass and with coherency issues that shouldn't exist for an IEM of its asking price.

B-

8BA 1DD

Review unit

256

183

1800

C-

Advanced Elise

Bassy

Boomy and heavy sounding. Smoothed over details but not the worst out there.

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

266

133

C-

BGVP Q2

100

Bright neutral

Poor bass, thin notes, shouty midrange and sharp treble.

C-

2BA

Review unit

266

133

100

C-

Campfire Polaris V2

500

Bassy

Overwhelming amounts of bass only slightly balanced out by a midtreble emphasis.

C-

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

266

133

500

C-

Elysian Minerva

900

Warm V-shape

Wonky tone with blunted notes, not very revealing.

C-

4BA

Showfloor demo unit

266

133

900

C-

Fearless Crystal Pearl

200

Warm

Veiled, weird sounding and lacking details.

C-

2BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

266

133

200

C-

I-INTO i8

"Balanced"

Somewhat downsloping signature. It's an IEM that exists.

C-

3DD

Third party unit

266

133

C-

Kinera Idun (Deluxe)

140

V-shaped

Not a bad hybrid, considering Kinera's track record.

C-

2BA 1DD

Third party unit

266

133

140

C-

KZ ZS3

V-shaped

Simple DD tuning. It's an IEM that exists.

C-

Oardio demo unit

266

133

C-

Meccaudio ME-04

Neutral

A not-quite-neutral "neutral" monitor.

C-

4BA

E1 demo unit

266

133

99999

C-

Noble Falcon

156

V-shaped

Harsh midrange with strong bass and treble. Very mainstream sound.

C-

Stereo SG demo unit

266

133

156

C-

Oriveti Basic

100

Bassy

Lots of sub-bass rumble with an energetic midrange. Roll-off for non-fatigue.

C-

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

266

133

100

C-

Pai Audio DM2A

140

V-shaped

Weird midrange. Oddly similar to the Kinera IDUN.

C-

2BA 1DD

Third party unit

266

133

140

C-

Sennheiser Momentum In-Ear

100

V-shaped

Fuzzy, typical V-shaped sound but nothing too egregious.

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

266

133

100

C-

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless

300

V-shaped

Similar but not identical to its wired counterpart. A weirdly tuned V-shaped response.

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

266

133

300

C-

Stax SR-001 Mk1

Discontinued

Warm

Sounds like an old-school on-ear headphone from the 80s.

C-

Electrostatic

Third party unit

266

133

99999

C-

Venture Electronics Duke

Discontinued

Warm

Oddly tuned dynamic, but at least it's not the Monk IEs.

C-

Third party custom

266

133

99999

C-

Whizzer A-HE03 "Kylin"

160

Warm V-shape

Odd tonality and lacklustre technical ability overall.

C-

2BA 1DD

Review unit

266

133

160

C-

Westone 4R

Discontinued

Dark

Low resolution, extremely blunted and narrow imaging.

C-

4BA

Third party unit

266

133

99999

D+

Advanced M5-5D

650

Bright neutral

An otherwise capable hybrid unfortunately let down by its ridiculous treble spike.

D+

4BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

268

157

111

650

D+

fineEars TSH-HR1000K

V-shaped

Pretty decent tonality but is severely lacking details.

D+

Third party unit

268

111

157

D+

Noble M3

600

V-shaped

Strident and harsh midrange only saved by its somewhat competent bass presentation.

D+

1MS 1DD

Munkong Gadget demo unit

268

157

111

600

D+

Rose Mini2

110

Warm

It's somewhat natural in timbre but lacks a lot of technical proficiency.

D+

2BA

Third party unit

268

111

157

110

D+

Unique Melody ME1

760

Warm

Soft transients, low definition and odd timbre makes this the worst planar I've listened to.

D-

Planar

Stereo SG demo unit

268

211

760

D+

Warbler Prelude

1100

Dark

Rolled off on both ends with a very typical single-BA sound.

D+

Third party custom

268

157

111

1100

D+

Hidizs Mermaids MS4

270

V-shaped

Somewhat weird tonality, nothing much to say beyond that.

D+

3BA 1DD

Third party unit

268

157

111

270

D+

Audio Technica ATH-IEX1

1200

V-shaped

Sounds weird, sounds wrong, needs a complete overhaul.

C+

2BA 2DD

Stereo SG demo unit

274

183

1200

D+

Hifiman RE1000

1000

V-shaped

A strange take on a V response. Intense yet with no upper treble to speak of.

C+

A2A Melbourne demo unit

274

183

1000

D+

Jade Audio EA3

Bright V-shape

Painful treble. Very painful.

C+

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

274

183

D+

Advanced GT3 Superbass

200

"Balanced"

Acceptable resolution though the tone is off in many ways. Filters don't seem to address that issue.

C-

D+

Personal unit

290

133

157

200

D+

Cozoy Trio

450

Unique

Odd tuning, doesn't sound too bad but it's overall not very impressive at all.

C-

D+

3BA

E1 demo unit

290

133

157

450

D+

KZ AS16

125

V-shaped

Nothing much to say; typical KZ-style tuning with shouty midrange and subpar technicalities.

C-

D+

8BA

Oardio demo unit

290

133

157

125

D+

Master & Dynamic MW07

300

V-shaped

Extremely boosted treble and bass. Prioritises wow factor over fidelity.

D+

C-

ConnectIT demo unit

290

157

133

300

D+

Shure SE215

100

V-shaped

Sounds like a typical dynamic IEM. Slightly bloated bass and narrow staging.

C-

D+

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

290

133

157

100

D+

Symphonium Audio Mirage

150

Dark

Typical single-BA sound that doesn't offer anything special.

C-

D+

Music Sanctuary demo unit

290

133

157

150

D+

Advanced Model X

Discontinued

V-shaped

Extreme treble and bass response to a fault.

D+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

314

157

99999

D+

Fearless S5T

330

Warm

Tonally off and lacking details. Not enough bite or energy either.

D+

5BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

314

157

330

D+

Jaybirds Vista

180

V-shaped

Extremely scooped out midrange with piercing treble.

D+

ConnectIT demo unit

314

157

180

D+

Kinera SEED

"Balanced"

Lacking in bass extension and tonally skewed too much to the higher frequencies.

D+

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

314

157

D+

Unknown Custom Quad 2.0

390

V-shaped

Low-resolution, low-detail, passable tonality.

D+

4BA

E1 demo unit

314

157

390

D+

Unknown Custom Juno

640

Variable

Something odd going on in the midrange. Same issues in resolution.

D+

6BA

E1 demo unit

314

157

640

1More Triple Driver

100

V-shaped

Subpar tuning with unfortunately thin midrange. Flat bass, not in a good way.

C-

2BA 1DD

Stereo SG demo unit

316

133

183

100

Advanced GT3

200

V-shaped

Sharp, shrill and overall unpleasant.

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

316

133

183

200

Advanced M5-1D

400

V-shaped

Typical chifi DD sound. Nothing special.

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

316

133

183

400

Earsonics Blade

610

Warm

Typical Earsonics house sound of "screwed up midrange", now with DD bass.

C-

2BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

316

183

133

610

Earsonics Stark

1540

Warm

Typical Earsonics house sound of "screwed up midrange", now with DD bass.

C-

4BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

316

183

133

1540

Eternal Melody EM-2

290

V-shaped

It just sounds "meh" to be. Nothing much to say.

C-

2BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

316

133

183

290

Sennheiser IE80S

350

V-shaped

Warm, bassy, congested and lacking in dynamics. Oddly sharp yet lacking in sparkle

C-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

316

133

183

350

Astrotec Delphinus 5

500

"Balanced"

Sounds plain wrong. Instruments are nowhere close to how they should on proper gear.

D-

5BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

322

211

111

500

1More Stylish

100

Bassy

Pretty standard "consumer signature" that panders to those who want bass and nothing else.

D+

2DD

E1 demo unit

340

157

183

100

AAW ACH/Kingfisher

190

Warm

Persasive warmth just puts a blanket on all the transients. Lacks definition.

D+

1Piezo 1BA 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

340

157

183

190

Ambient Acoustics AM7

1750

Variable

Unreliable switches, mediocre technical ability and the tone is slightly off.

D+

7BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

340

157

183

1750

Audiofly AF160

430

Dark

Not just dead but almost completely devoid of treble. Double whammy.

D+

3BA

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

340

183

157

430

B&O Beoplay E8

350

"Balanced"

An extremely odd take on a neutral sound signature that simply doesn't work.

D+

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

340

157

183

350

CCA A10

Bright V-shape

Typical KZ-style tuning with even shoutier midrange.

D+

5BA

Oardio demo unit

340

157

183

Effect Audio Symphony

890

Warm

A muddy, overly warm sound with that struggles with surface-level detailing.

D+

3BA

Third party unit

340

183

157

890

Fidue A71

Bassy

Boomy and bleeds into the mids. Not a lot of definition.

D+

2DD

E1 demo unit

340

157

183

Jomo PLB

510

Dark

Bloated, congested and oh-so-slow.

D+

3BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

340

157

183

510

Jomo Haka

365

Dark

Mushy, blobby and low resolution.

D+

Euphoria Audio demo unit

340

157

183

365

Sennheiser IE500 Pro

600

Dark

Heavy, undefined sound with bloated bass and little energy.

D+

ConnectIT demo unit

340

157

183

600

Origami Audio Silver

900

Warm

A slow, plodding mess without the courtesy of having a decent tuning.

D+

E1 demo unit

340

157

183

900

AAW A2H-Pro V2

220

Dark

Good coherency but sub-par tuning and sluggishy slow.

C-

D-

1BA 1DD

Jaben SG demo unit

344

133

211

220

KZ ZST

V-shaped

Decent bass. Odd timbre. Odd tuning.

C-

D-

1BA 1DD

Third party unit

344

133

211

Ambient Acoustics AM16

"Balanced"

Sounds weird and is completely average in pure technicalities. Disappointing.

16BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

366

183

99999

Ambient Acoustics AM24

"Balanced"

See above. Perhaps even slightly worse.

24BA

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

366

183

99999

Audio Technica ATH-CK3TW

100

V-shaped

Loose and uncontrolled bass in combination with a sharp and piercing treble.

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

366

183

100

Campfire Equinox

1500

Bassy

Extremely different from the Atlas. It's a lot worse.

ConnectIT demo unit

366

183

1500

Earsonics SM64v2

500

Warm

Weirdly incoherent and disjointed. Good warmth, though.

3BA

AV One demo unit

366

183

500

Fearless ACME8

1100

Bassy

Weird and bloaty bass in conjunction with tonally weird midrange.

8BA

Music Sanctuary demo unit

366

183

1100

NuForce Primo 8

500

Dark

Tone is off, detailing is low, things sound wrong. Lies on a spectrum of "average" to "no".

4BA

E1 demo unit

366

183

500

Sound Linear Fitz 10 Flat

2200

"Balanced"

It sounds dead and boring. Nothing about it stands out at all and it doesn't even achieve the passing mark for technicalities.

10BA

E1 demo unit

366

183

2200

TFZ 3S

V-shaped

It's okay. It's a Chinese dynamic IEM, nothing special.

LMUE demo unit

366

183

Unknown Custom UCD-3

270

Warm

Mushy, blunted transients with a warm yet strangely sibilant tuning.

3BA

E1 demo unit

366

183

270

D-

Nuforce HEM4

330

Warm

Dead as a doornail. Missing bits and pieces in its tuning.

D+

D-

2BA

Jaben SG demo unit

368

157

211

330

D-

Nuforce HEM6

450

Warm

Refer to the above.

D+

D-

3BA

Jaben SG demo unit

368

157

211

450

D-

Audio Technica ATH-CKS5TW

150

Dark

Muddy bass with virtually nonexistent treble.

D-

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

394

183

211

150

D-

RHA CL750

100

Bright

Ear-piercing treble makes it hard to listen to.

D-

AV One demo unit

394

211

183

100

D-

Rhapsodio Clipper

Extreme Bass

Lots and lots of bass. Slams you in the face with bass.

D-

394

183

211

D-

Seahf AWK-009

Bright

Phasing issues, weirdly incoherent and yet a strangely compelling listen.

D-

Third party unit

394

183

211

D-

Shozy x AAW Hibiki

Bright

Sharp, shrill tonality. Average everything else.

D-

Personal unit

394

183

211

D-

Audio Technica ATH-CKR7TW

250

Bright

Shrill, sharp and screams in your face.

D-

ConnectIT demo unit

422

211

250

D-

Effect Audio King Arthur

7000

Dark

A joke, both in price and sound. Nobody's laughing.

D-

16BA

Third party unit

422

211

7000

D-

Kinera YH263

Bassy

Almost nothing but bass. Zero semblance of any sort of balance.

D-

Review unit

422

211

D-

TFZ 1S

V-shaped

A little bloated at times and definitely congested.

D-

LMUE demo unit

422

211

RHA CL1

280

Bright

So much treble to the point where nothing sounds correct. Like raining metal balls on a tin roof.

AV One demo unit

1055

998

280

Unique Melody 3DD-Ti

700

Bright

It's not the quantity of the treble, but the quality. Reserved only for the most esoteric of tastes.

C+

3DD

Stereo SG demo unit

1089

998

700

Hifiman TWS600

200

Mid-centric

Telephonic mess. The worst TWS IEM I have ever heard.

C-

ConnectIT demo unit

1131

998

133

200

Kinera H3

100

Extreme V-shape

Completely off timbre, extremely recessed midrange and sharp, painful treble.

C-

2BA 1DD

Personal unit

1131

998

133

100

AAW A2H Pro V1

Discontinued

Dark

Dead, bloated, congested. Feels like I have to strain to hear even surface-level detailing.

1BA 1DD

Jaben SG demo unit

1181

183

998

99999

Campfire IO

300

"Balanced"

Tonality and timbre is all sorts of wrong. Lacks the technicalities to redeem it.

2BA

Third party unit

1181

998

183

300

Fender Thirteen 6

1800

Dark

Instruments sound wrong. Everything is underwater. Help.

6BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

1181

998

183

1800

JH Audio Diana

700

Dark

Mushy transients and the detailing capability of free phone earbuds.

3BA

ConnectIT demo unit

1181

998

183

700

oBravo Ra C-Cu

10000

"Balanced"

An indescribable affront to God and humanity both in sound and pricing.

1AMT 1DD

Third party unit

1181

998

183

10000

Sensaphonics 2MAX

850

Bright neutral

Odd timbre. Technical ability isn't even that great.

2BA

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

1181

998

183

850

Sensaphonics 2X-S

750

Bright neutral

Sharp and shrill yet surprisingly dead. Like shoving blunted icepicks into your ears.

2BA

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

1181

998

183

750

Sensaphonics 3MAX

1050

Warm

It's a slight improvement over the 2MAX but not by much.

3BA

Jaben Melbourne demo unit

1181

998

183

1050

Geek Wold GK3

Dark

Incoherent, imaging is all over the place and sounds like a mess.

D-

3DD

Third party unit

1209

998

211

Shozy x AAW Pola

800

Dark

Dark, muffled, veiled, muddy, congested etc. etc. basically every permutation of similar descriptors.

D-

2EST 1DD

Zeppelin & Co demo unit

1209

998

211

800

Fischer Omega Spark

Bright

Someone should harvest their drivers for tweeters since I hear nothing below the upper mids.

E1 demo unit

1996

998

Sendiy M1221

200

V-shaped

It literally sounds out of phase. It's an accomplishment in itself.

1BA 1DD

E1 demo unit

1996

998

200

VE Monk IE Smalls

Discontinued

Dark

Sounds exactly like what would happen if you shoved an earbud driver into an IEM housing.

Third party unit

1996

998

99999

VE Monk IE Biggie

Discontinued

Dark

Absolute mud and congestion. Could work as a subwoofer since it barely plays anything above 500Hz anyways.

Third party unit

1997

999

998

99999

Delta Air complimentary earphones

Complete failure

It's a telephone in IEM form. It is physically unable to play bass or treble.

Third party unit

1998

999

Oppo MH130

Complete failure

The horribleness of this can only be experienced in real life.

Third party unit

1998

999

SIA complimentary earphones

Dark

Its full potential can only be unleashed by an Airbus A380.

Personal unit

1998

999

In-Ear Fidelity

If it's not on the list, it doesn't exist

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ranking list

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Crinacle’s Headphone Ranking List: Public Release