u/MetalDeep329

TL;DR

The Seraphim is a great V shape option that retails at $259 for anyone looking for a bombastic, exciting and contrasty sound signature with plenty of “technical performance” and surprising treble refinement while sacrificing mid range body and naturalness. It’s also extremely pretty.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by Jay and Linsoul for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I usually prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019) but I can appreciate a variety of sound signatures if they’re done well.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of aluminium, build quality feels great. The shells are super light weight despite being metal. There is a big rear vent and a wavy etched pattern on the faceplate which looks incredible irl, plays well with the light. This is definitely the best looking ziigaat iem yet. The nozzles are metal as well with a metal grill to prevent dust from entering the iem, ziigaat includes 2 pairs of spare mesh filters which is nice to see. The cable matches the shells really nicely as well.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: These iems are definitely on the larger side, with some semi custom contouring so it fits me well. The nozzles are super short so people with smaller ears should also be able to wear it since you’ll be relying on larger than usual eartips for a seal anyway. It’s a shallow fitting iem. Isolation is just average, not particularly open sounding like the large vents would indicate (which is a good thing for me).
• Cable & Accessories: The cable is genuinely great, it’s a thin and lightweight single wire stand that splits at the y split, matches the shells beautifully. Has a functional chin slider. It’s definitely one of the better cables I've handheld in the price range, it doesn’t feel thick and heavy for the sake of being premium, doesn’t have a ton of memory or feel stiff. The swappable termination is unnecessarily long tho, and it doesn’t have a screw to hold it, it’s just friction fit. So you have to hold it near the ziigaat logo to make sure the termination doesn’t come off. It comes with a big leather ziigaat hardshell case, 3.5 mm and 4.4 mm terminations, spare nozzle mesh and 3 sets of eartips, foam and translucent sticky eartips in grey and white, no complaints with the accessories.

The Sound

The Seraphim has a 2 DD + 3 BA driver config, tuned by Jay Audio to a V shape sound signature with inspiration from Subtonic Storm and Ziigaat Odyssey.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Seraphim has a ton of bass, almost a bit too much for my tastes but it is extremely well defined and quality bass. The bass shape pushes the sub bass more forward than the mid bass which isn’t my favourite style of bass (reminds me of harman ie 2019) but seraphim avoids the boomy and thin bass style of harman by adding way more mid bass (200 hz). As a result mid bass instruments like kick drums feel fast and tactile with adequate fullness, bass guitars sound super well defined with some of their gritty and abrasive characteristics overemphasized (due to the treble we’ll talk about later). Subbass is very well textured again, synth drops and low organ notes sound great, and the linear bass rise prevents a detached sub woofer style bass a lot of basshead iems like deuce have. Bass is probably the best part of the seraphim for me.
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): There is a very audible lower mid range dip (300 hz to 1 khz) which gives mid range instruments a hollow and thin presentation (very harman like here). I find this especially confusing since both the storm and odyssey (the iems which seraphim takes inspiration from) have the characteristic filled in lower mids of new meta sets but none of that is present on the seraphim. While this does give a good sense of spaciousness and excellent instrument separation, male vocals, guitars, pianos and most mid range instruments sound thin and lacking in body. Female vocals fare a bit better, they're exciting and lively and have none of the nasal and shouty characteristics of harman (gentle pinna rise and relatively relaxed 3k). The scooped mid bass to mid range transition does give the seraphim a detached bass presentation which I don't particularly like. Overall the midrange of the seraphim is super energetic and exciting but it’s far from natural, very coloured, contrasty and imo, the weakest part of this iem.
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 Hz to 20000 Hz): Treble is another strong suit of the seraphim imo, yes it is very boosted (particularly in the mid treble) but it is not peaky or harsh. The treble is surprisingly refined for what is a bombastic and exciting sound signature, there are no audible peaks or dips even via sine sweeps and as a result both the fundamentals and upper overtones of treble instruments are equally emphasized which I find a lot of iems struggle to do, usually emphasizing one over the other due to peaks or dips in my ear. The lower/mid treble boost gives kick drums, bass guitars and acoustic guitars that extra bit of edge and definition. There is also a considerable upper treble boost for ✨Resolution✨ which my warmpoo ears usually don’t like but the aforementioned lack of peaks makes it very tolerable. There is no added sibilance or zingy-ness to the tonality which a lot of iems with sore peaks (like heyday and davinci) have. I find this particularly shocking since jays audio and I usually have polar opposite treble preferences but the seraphim has one of the smoothest treble presentations I’ve heard.
• Subjective Technical Performance: The Seraphim has excellent imaging performance, instrument separation and upper treble detail retrieval, along with the contrast that comes with a V shaped tuning. I think anyone chasing “technicalities” in iems would be more than satisfied with the seraphim.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems:

• Dunu Davinci: Seraphim bass sounds more dynamic but the davinci has a way more natural and fuller sounding midrange. Upper treble peak ruins davinci treble for me while the seraphim is smoothened out. Seraphim is more comfortable with a better cable imo..
• Letshuoer Cadenza 4: Seraphim has significantly more bass and smoother treble, Cadenza 4 has a slightly more filled in and comparatively more natural midrange, but both are more scooped than I would like.
• Tangzu Heyday: Seraphim has better bass, better upper mids and is way less fatiguing and less zingy in the treble, is also significantly lighter despite both being metal, im just not a big fan of the heyday.
• Kiwi Ears Aether: Significantly less bassy and more filled in lower mids than seraphim but the aether treble is super punishing for me, and the lower bass shelf fails to balance it out only making it worse.
• Aful Explorer: Very different iems, explorer is much more full bodied than the seraphim with better male vocals but worse female vocals, bass on seraphim is a little better and overall the seraphim is much more livelier and higher res sounding due to upper treble boost. Explorer is more comfortable with better isolation.
• Truthear Pure: Wayy more natural than the Seraphim, much better mid range overall but it’s not nearly as exciting, contrasty or bombastic as the seraphim, I dont get the 7k peak on the seraphim like I do with the pure.

Who Should Buy This? 

• People who want an exciting and lively sound signature.
• People who enjoy contrasty sound signatures with boosted bass and treble
• People like harman but want more mid bass
• People who prioritize technical performance

Who Should Avoid This?

• People that want a natural or neutral iem
• People that want a warm or relaxing sound signature
• People that are treble sensitive

HiFiGo has a big October 6–7 Amazon Prime Day Sale and I picked four favorites that I think are worth considering, depending on the sound you like.

These are HiFiGo’s announced prices in USD for their Amazon US listings.

• AFUL Explorer — $95.99, 3.5 mm My favourite for a dark, smooth and enveloping presentation. There’s something very comfortable about its warm, mellow sound—it’s the sort of IEM that makes you want to settle into your music. If you prefer a relaxed listen, this would be my pick.
• Juzear Defiant — $79.99 (Rainbow / Green) An excellent execution of a V-shaped sound signature. This is my recommendation if you want plenty of energy and excitement from your music. It’s a much livelier option than the Explorer, so choosing between them comes down to whether you want excitement or relaxation.
• Juzear Nimbus — 3.5 mm + 4.4 mm: $46.99 / 3.5 mm + USB-C: $49.99 A great warm-sounding IEM under $50, with excellent accessories. The overall package is a big part of its appeal. If you want a warm presentation and a well equipped set on a smaller budget, this is worth a look.
• Dunu DaVinci — $239.99 Very natural, JM-1-style mids, with boosted bass and treble adding some extra excitement around them. Imaging and definition are excellent too. This is the one I’d consider if you want that natural midrange presentation alongside a more energetic low and high end.

Which of these would you pick?

TL;DR

The Kefine Loric is a genuinely good sounding iem, it’s another good old V but in the extremely competitive and saturated $30 price tier where we are spoiled for choice, good isn’t enough anymore. 

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by kefine for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With
Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, stock narrow and wide bore, kbear kb07, zisin tips, tanchjim tapb and coffee tips

Sources Used
I have the USB C version with a built in dac, so it was tested with that cable. There is no audible noise floor or distortion.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: Build quality on the loric is pretty good, its made of hollow transparent plastic with a metal faceplate. Someone pointed out that the faceplate looks like a nose and I can’t unsee it lol. They look very minimal and subtle, it’s a little boring for my taste but I can't complain for the price, would much rather have this than a gaudy looking red lion.
• Comfort & Cable: The loric has medium sized generic shaped shells, so you will be relying primarily on the eartips for fit. It’s a comfortable and lightweight iem with no sharp corners. One can easily wear it for hours. The cable it comes with is very very similar to the kiwi ears belle cable, a 2 wire braid that splits at the y split. I have the usb c version so mine comes with a mic and no chin slider. The dac on the cable seems fine with no audible hiss or noise floor, the cable has a play/pause and volume buttons. The loric comes with 2 sets of eartips, wide and narrow bores. It comes with a standard black pouch like the truthear gate and hola. I would've liked to see a hardshell carrying case and better eartips, especially when iems like the red lion offer so much value in the same price range.

The Sound

The Kefine Loric has a single DD configuration tuned like an old school V shape (boosted bass and treble).

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Kefine Loric has a huge bass boost in both the mid bass and sub bass region, which gives it a lot of “meat” and weight to the bass unlike the thin boomy bass elevation of harman adjacent iems. There’s plenty of rumble and impact, the boosted mid bass (100 hz to 300 hz) makes kickdrums sound full but a problem I usually have with iems that have a big bass boost is that the bass sounds slow and fluffy, which is unfortunately present with the loric as well, it’s that slow soupy bass you get with other bassy iems like the chu 3 and op.22 (bass dial on) which kinda muddies up the lower midrange on certain tracks too. Though I would much rather take a full bodied and slower sounding bass/midrange than a lean and thin sound (ideally something in between). If you’re someone that cares about instrument separation or enjoy the clean but boomy bass of harman iems, this won’t be your cup of tea.
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): The Loric’s bass boost definitely adds a ton of warmth and body to the midrange, gives male vocals a nice gravelly texture and keeps the fundamentals of midrange instruments full sounding unlike the sucked out thin sound of gate and bunny. The pinna gain is more aggressive than I would like (a bit too much 1-2k) which makes vocals, especially female vocals slightly more distant than I would like. But my issue with the loric comes from the boost 3-5k, while it gives plenty of edge and bite to guitars, snare drums and vocals, It also brings out the abrasive overtones of female vocals and other mid range instruments like electric guitars a lot more than I would like, this is a common tuning choice I see with other kefine iems such as the delci and klean that I’m not a fan of. Overall the midrange of the loric is fine, the edge caused due to the boosted presence region is balanced to some degree by the excess bass boost.
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): Mid treble is surprisingly relaxed compared to lower treble, partly due to the characteristic and very audible single dd 10k dip, and just like most single dds, treble is my biggest issue with the loric, the 10k dip give cymbals, hi hats sound somewhat muted and dull while over emphasizing the upper shimmer due to 11-12 k peak (with stock widebores). This makes the treble sound uneven, treble instruments sound sparkly and dull at the same time, While I do generally like relaxed treble but I still want the peaks to transition evenly.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Decent imaging, slow flabby bass. Worse instrument separation and less contrasty than harman sets in the price range like gate and cozoy d1.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems under $30:

• Cozoy D1: More contrasty and brighter sounding than Loric, better cable and comfort, smoother treble as well but loric has better mid bass and body.
• Truthear Gate: Also brighter and more contrasty, but i prefer the loric’s warmer and denser presentation especially when they both have similar treble issues. Gate comes with a better cable and eartips
• Truthear Hola: More reasonable bass levels, better built than loric with a better cable and eartips, both have the same treble characteristic, prefer the midrange on hola.
• Tanchjim Bunny DSP: Leaner and faster sounding than the loric but at the expense of a thin and fatiguing sound signature. Worse cable than the loric but is smaller, dsp cable so you can make it sound however you want.
• Tanchjim Bunny G: Similar to the bunny but with 8 bands, leaner, faster and higher res sounding than loric but the upper treble peak is even worse, absolutely needs the eq for me.
• Tangzu Waner 2 Red Lion: Less V shaped than loric, but also shoutier. Treble is wonky on both. Way better accessories on the red lion.

Who Should Buy This?

• People who want a bassy V shaped sound signature.
• People liked the kefine klean and want something similar for cheaper.
• People that want a usb c iem with no noise floor.

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who like neutral or bass lite iems.
• People who are treble sensitive.

TL;DR

The Tanchjim Bunny G, much like the recently released Ola 2 dsp is all about the companion app. The analog tuning is too bassy and the dsp default tuning is too bass-lite and shrill. But the 8 band PEQ means you can make this sound exactly like you want.

Context

The Tanchjim Bunny G was kindly sent to me by Tanchim for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of translucent black plastic, it’s the exact same shell as the OG Bunny but in a different color. Feels decently built with light weight shells, I’m not a huge fan of the green Bunny text. Seems to have a black dampener instead of the steel mesh protecting the nozzle this time. 
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: These iems are tiny, almost too small for my ears. You will be primarily relying on the eartips for seal and fit stability. They are also shallow fitting iem so it’s a very good shell for people with small ears. Isolation on these are pretty bad just like the OG Bunny due to the big front vent.
• Cable & Accessories: While the Bunny G’s cable looks the same as the OG Bunny DSP, it now features 8 bands vs 5 on bunny dsp, this is a huge upgrade. Along with a better and louder memes microphone without any gain adjustments needed. It comes with 2 sets of eartips just like the bunny (a set of standard narrow bores and short wide bores). Comes with a grey fabric pouch that does not offer much protection.

The Sound

The Tanchjim Bunny G has a 1 DD configuration, It comes preloaded with the default sound preset and there are 7 other official presets available on the Tanchjim app. Here’s a quick rundown of all the presets

• DSP Default: Very lean sounding, less than neutral bass and lightly scooped lower mids, quite a bit of mid treble bite makes it very clean and clear sounding.
• Ambient Mode: Pretty much identical sounding to default.
• Classical Mode: Loses all the bass, combined with the already lean midrange makes it way too bright and shouty sounding.
• Instrumental Mode: Very similar to default again but with slightly scooped lower mids and mid bass, makes it clear but tinny.
•  Natural Mode: Best mode for me, adds a much needed bass shelf making it sound a lot fuller but treble peak + lean midrange are still present.
• OST Mode: Sounds clean but boomy, a lot like harman aka good instrument separation and sub bass dominant bass presentation.
• Pop & Theatres Modes: Very very similar to each other, both are thin, bass lite with lots of upper mids.

As clear none of the stock presets were my cup of tea, I made my own eq (adjust treble according to liking after sine sweeps)

• Preamp: -3.0 dB
• Filter 1: ON PK Fc 50 Hz Gain -1.0 dB Q 0.20
• Filter 2: ON PK Fc 400 Hz Gain +2.0 dB Q 0.50
• Filter 3: ON PK Fc 1700 Hz Gain -3.0 dB Q 1.20
• Filter 4: ON PK Fc 3200 Hz Gain +3.0 dB Q 2.00
• Filter 5: ON PK Fc 7000 Hz Gain -6.0 dB Q 1.50
• Filter 6: ON PK Fc 15000 Hz Gain -10.0 dB Q 5.00

Since I love a warm bassy set with jm-1 midrange and relaxed treble, this has been my go to eq for the Bunny G, with 2 bands left for spare.

The App

Tanchjim genuinely has the best dsp companion app, with a community eq forum, game specific eq options, and a 8 band custom parametric equalizer (gain -10 to +10 db, Q 0.1 to 5.0, pre amp -8 db to + 4 db), microphone gain slider (-15 db to +15 db). 

Compared to the OG Bunny DSP

The Bunny G is pretty much the exact same iem but now in a different color, with 3 more additional PEQ bands and a better microphone. This is basically a no brainer if you liked the Bunny DSP.

Compared to the OLA 2 DSP

The Ola 2 DSP also features the same 8 band peq but comes with a much nicer feeling cable and a more comfortable shell, tho the Bunny G is very compelling for the half the price since it offers the exact same feature set.

Who Should Buy This? 

• People with small ear canals.
• People that are new to iems and want to learn EQ and figure out their preferences.
• People that want an IEM for gaming
• People who want a lean, fast and bright sound signature under $30

Who Should Avoid This?

• People that are upper treble sensitive and don’t want to eq
• People that use their iems analog only 
• People that want good isolation.
• People who have the Ola 2 DSP

TL;DR

The Tanchjim Bunny G, much like the recently released Ola 2 dsp is all about the companion app. The analog tuning is too bassy and the dsp default tuning is too bass-lite and shrill. But the 8 band PEQ means you can make this sound exactly like you want.

Context

The Tanchjim Bunny G was kindly sent to me by Tanchim for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of translucent black plastic, it’s the exact same shell as the OG Bunny but in a different color. Feels decently built with light weight shells, I’m not a huge fan of the green Bunny text. Seems to have a black dampener instead of the steel mesh protecting the nozzle this time. 
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: These iems are tiny, almost too small for my ears. You will be primarily relying on the eartips for seal and fit stability. They are also shallow fitting iem so it’s a very good shell for people with small ears. Isolation on these are pretty bad just like the OG Bunny due to the big front vent.
• Cable & Accessories: While the Bunny G’s cable looks the same as the OG Bunny DSP, it now features 8 bands vs 5 on bunny dsp, this is a huge upgrade. Along with a better and louder memes microphone without any gain adjustments needed. It comes with 2 sets of eartips just like the bunny (a set of standard narrow bores and short wide bores). Comes with a grey fabric pouch that does not offer much protection.

The Sound

The Tanchjim Bunny G has a 1 DD configuration, It comes preloaded with the default sound preset and there are 7 other official presets available on the Tanchjim app. Here’s a quick rundown of all the presets

• DSP Default: Very lean sounding, less than neutral bass and lightly scooped lower mids, quite a bit of mid treble bite makes it very clean and clear sounding.
• Ambient Mode: Pretty much identical sounding to default.
• Classical Mode: Loses all the bass, combined with the already lean midrange makes it way too bright and shouty sounding.
• Instrumental Mode: Very similar to default again but with slightly scooped lower mids and mid bass, makes it clear but tinny.
•  Natural Mode: Best mode for me, adds a much needed bass shelf making it sound a lot fuller but treble peak + lean midrange are still present.
• OST Mode: Sounds clean but boomy, a lot like harman aka good instrument separation and sub bass dominant bass presentation.
• Pop & Theatres Modes: Very very similar to each other, both are thin, bass lite with lots of upper mids.

As clear none of the stock presets were my cup of tea, I made my own eq (adjust treble according to liking after sine sweeps)

• Preamp: -3.0 dB
• Filter 1: ON PK Fc 50 Hz Gain -1.0 dB Q 0.20
• Filter 2: ON PK Fc 400 Hz Gain +2.0 dB Q 0.50
• Filter 3: ON PK Fc 1700 Hz Gain -3.0 dB Q 1.20
• Filter 4: ON PK Fc 3200 Hz Gain +3.0 dB Q 2.00
• Filter 5: ON PK Fc 7000 Hz Gain -6.0 dB Q 1.50
• Filter 6: ON PK Fc 15000 Hz Gain -10.0 dB Q 5.00

Since I love a warm bassy set with jm-1 midrange and relaxed treble, this has been my go to eq for the Bunny G, with 2 bands left for spare.

The App

Tanchjim genuinely has the best dsp companion app, with a community eq forum, game specific eq options, and a 8 band custom parametric equalizer (gain -10 to +10 db, Q 0.1 to 5.0, pre amp -8 db to + 4 db), microphone gain slider (-15 db to +15 db). 

Compared to the OG Bunny DSP

The Bunny G is pretty much the exact same iem but now in a different color, with 3 more additional PEQ bands and a better microphone. This is basically a no brainer if you liked the Bunny DSP.

Compared to the OLA 2 DSP

The Ola 2 DSP also features the same 8 band peq but comes with a much nicer feeling cable and a more comfortable shell, tho the Bunny G is very compelling for the half the price since it offers the exact same feature set.

Who Should Buy This? 

• People with small ear canals.
• People that are new to iems and want to learn EQ and figure out their preferences.
• People that want an IEM for gaming
• People who want a lean, fast and bright sound signature under $30

Who Should Avoid This?

• People that are upper treble sensitive and don’t want to eq
• People that use their iems analog only 
• People that want good isolation.
• People who have the Ola 2 DSP

TL;DR

The Tanchjim Bunny G, much like the recently released Ola 2 dsp is all about the companion app. The analog tuning is too bassy and the dsp default tuning is too bass-lite and shrill. But the 8 band PEQ means you can make this sound exactly like you want.

Context

The Tanchjim Bunny G was kindly sent to me by Tanchim for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of translucent black plastic, it’s the exact same shell as the OG Bunny but in a different color. Feels decently built with light weight shells, I’m not a huge fan of the green Bunny text. Seems to have a black dampener instead of the steel mesh protecting the nozzle this time. 
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: These iems are tiny, almost too small for my ears. You will be primarily relying on the eartips for seal and fit stability. They are also shallow fitting iem so it’s a very good shell for people with small ears. Isolation on these are pretty bad just like the OG Bunny due to the big front vent.
• Cable & Accessories: While the Bunny G’s cable looks the same as the OG Bunny DSP, it now features 8 bands vs 5 on bunny dsp, this is a huge upgrade. Along with a better and louder memes microphone without any gain adjustments needed. It comes with 2 sets of eartips just like the bunny (a set of standard narrow bores and short wide bores). Comes with a grey fabric pouch that does not offer much protection.

The Sound

The Tanchjim Bunny G has a 1 DD configuration, It comes preloaded with the default sound preset and there are 7 other official presets available on the Tanchjim app. Here’s a quick rundown of all the presets

• DSP Default: Very lean sounding, less than neutral bass and lightly scooped lower mids, quite a bit of mid treble bite makes it very clean and clear sounding.
• Ambient Mode: Pretty much identical sounding to default.
• Classical Mode: Loses all the bass, combined with the already lean midrange makes it way too bright and shouty sounding.
• Instrumental Mode: Very similar to default again but with slightly scooped lower mids and mid bass, makes it clear but tinny.
•  Natural Mode: Best mode for me, adds a much needed bass shelf making it sound a lot fuller but treble peak + lean midrange are still present.
• OST Mode: Sounds clean but boomy, a lot like harman aka good instrument separation and sub bass dominant bass presentation.
• Pop & Theatres Modes: Very very similar to each other, both are thin, bass lite with lots of upper mids.

As clear none of the stock presets were my cup of tea, I made my own eq (adjust treble according to liking after sine sweeps)

• Preamp: -3.0 dB
• Filter 1: ON PK Fc 50 Hz Gain -1.0 dB Q 0.20
• Filter 2: ON PK Fc 400 Hz Gain +2.0 dB Q 0.50
• Filter 3: ON PK Fc 1700 Hz Gain -3.0 dB Q 1.20
• Filter 4: ON PK Fc 3200 Hz Gain +3.0 dB Q 2.00
• Filter 5: ON PK Fc 7000 Hz Gain -6.0 dB Q 1.50
• Filter 6: ON PK Fc 15000 Hz Gain -10.0 dB Q 5.00

Since I love a warm bassy set with jm-1 midrange and relaxed treble, this has been my go to eq for the Bunny G, with 2 bands left for spare.

The App

Tanchjim genuinely has the best dsp companion app, with a community eq forum, game specific eq options, and a 8 band custom parametric equalizer (gain -10 to +10 db, Q 0.1 to 5.0, pre amp -8 db to + 4 db), microphone gain slider (-15 db to +15 db). 

Compared to the OG Bunny DSP

The Bunny G is pretty much the exact same iem but now in a different color, with 3 more additional PEQ bands and a better microphone. This is basically a no brainer if you liked the Bunny DSP.

Compared to the OLA 2 DSP

The Ola 2 DSP also features the same 8 band peq but comes with a much nicer feeling cable and a more comfortable shell, tho the Bunny G is very compelling for the half the price since it offers the exact same feature set.

Who Should Buy This? 

• People with small ear canals.
• People that are new to iems and want to learn EQ and figure out their preferences.
• People that want an IEM for gaming
• People who want a lean, fast and bright sound signature under $30

Who Should Avoid This?

• People that are upper treble sensitive and don’t want to eq
• People that use their iems analog only 
• People that want good isolation.
• People who have the Ola 2 DSP

TL;DR

The Simgot Supermix 4 is what you get when an iem prioritizes technical performance above all else, it has excellent detail retrieval, imaging and instrument separation but zero warmth. This is an iem for a very particular type of listener who prefers a cold and analytical presentation.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by the Simgot for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With
Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, stock narrow and wide bore, kbear kb07, zisin tips and coffee tips.

Sources Used
Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro (note that the supermix 4 is extremely impedance sensitive, sources with high output impedance add a huge bass boost).

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The supermix 4 looks extremely clean and minimal, with a black resin build and metal faceplates. The faceplate have a circular copper like ring on them which looks cool, they're generally built well but like a lot of chifi multi driver iems, they have exposed tubes at the nozzle without a steel mesh protecting them, so I would recommend using kiwi ears flex or zisin tips if you're worried about stuff entering the nozzle.
• Comfort & Cable: The medium-large semi custom shells fit me well and are comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, I could see people with small ears having trouble getting a good fit. The SM4 comes with a very nice 2 wire braid that splits at the y split, it's thin but not cheap feeling, lightweight and supple, the chin slider is functional as well. I would've liked to see swappable terminations especially when much cheaper iems have great swappable termination mechanisms nowadays. It comes with 1 set of generic narrow bores ear tips which is super disappointing. Simgot really needs to include multiple styles of eartips given the asking price of the iem. It also comes with a nice pill shaped carry case and a velcro cable tie.

The Sound

The Supermix 4 has a quadbrid 1 DD + 1 BA + 1 Planar + 1 PZT configuration tuned very close to harman ie 2019 with an upper treble boost.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Supermix 4 is basically harman ie 2019 to a tee, making this an extremely sub bass forward bass presentation. The sub bass is well extended, deep and rumbly, giving basslines and synth drops have a ton weight however the extreme mid bass (100-300hz) tuck means kick drums sound blunt and detached with that subwoofer style bass rather than a warm full bodied punch. This lack of mid bass also gives it absolutely zero bleed into the lower midrange which some people associate with good instrument separation and clarity. I however would much rather have a warm, linear and filled in bass shelf from lower mids even if it means a little bit of bloom and bleed. The mid bass - lower mids scoop absolutely kills the note weight of most mid bass instruments, bass guitars sound particularly thin. I can only describe the supermix 4 bass presentation as thin and boomy sounding bass.
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): The midrange starts with that scooped 350 Hz to 400 Hz transition which completely strips away any lower mids bloat at the expense of a lack of body to male vocals, acoustic guitars and other fundamentals of mid range instruments. It very clearly prioritizes mid range clarity and separation above all else. Female vocals are pushed super forward (almost artificially boosted), sounds very aggressive and close but surprisingly, not nasally like they're out of breath. This is very much a female vocal forward iem for people who like an extremely energetic presentation. Thankfully, there isn’t much presence glare or sibilance for what is a very bright and energetic set. Overall the supermix 4 is an anti mud iem, it gives you excellent instrument separation and clarity, with aggressive female vocals and thin male vocals. This will be a stark contrast for people coming from muddy and bloated consumer-fi iems.
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): The mid treble is surprisingly smooth and well controlled enough as to not add sibilance and splash, no obvious peaks with sine sweeps either however, instead of rolling off after 10 khz, the supermix 4 maintains a very boosted upper treble till 20 khz. This gives the supermix 4 an insane amount of air and wispyness to the tonality. It brings out all the micro upper treble details and throws it in your face. Treble instruments like cymbals, hi hats, snare drums and synth overtones have a crazy amount of shimmer as expected, with a bit of metallic timbre, the treble boost combined with the absolute lack of lower mids warmth gives the Supermix 4 a very scratchy and dry tonality. Very resolving iem for sure at the expense of fatigue.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Whole point of this iem, excellent imaging and micro treble detail retrieval, very clean and well separated midrange thanks to the lower mid range scoop. Mid bass punch is quite poor tho.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems under $200:

• Aful Explorer: These iems couldn’t be more far apart, explorer is much more warmer and denser sounding, the vocals are much more restrained as well. Not nearly as resolving and well separated as the supermix 4 but the explorer is way more comfortable to listen to.
• Truthear Pure: The benchmark warm iem for me, supermix 4 sounds much drier in comparison with worse mid bass impact but the pure has way more mid bass bleed. Supermix 4 is more resolving with better imaging and separation again. 
• Kiwi Ears Aether: Aether has a more full body mid range presentation but the treble is way more piercing than the supermix 4 for me. Supermix 4 is more ergonomic to wear.
• Letshuoer Cadenza 4: Cadenza 4 is way more natural sounding than the supermix 4 but is still detail oriented with good instrument separation. Upper treble is more piercing on the cadenza 4 while the supermix 4, despite clearly having a lot of air, maintains an even boost throughout. Both are comfortable to wear.
• Tangzu Heyday: Better bass dynamics than the supermix 4 along with a slightly warmer midrange but has much more zingy and splashy treble. Supermix 4 sounds clear with better separation.

Who Should Buy This?

• People who look for technicalities above all else.
• People who enjoy boosted upper treble or airy sounding iems.
• People who like a sub bass dominant bass presentation.
• Fans of harman ie 2019.

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who want a neutral or natural sounding iem.
• People who are treble sensitive..
• People who are looking for a warm and relaxing sound signature.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nebula is a great execution of a V shaped sound signature without the thin midrange and punishing upper mids and mid treble usually associated with it. If you’re someone looking for a great all rounder iem around $120 or an alternative to the defiant without the qc issues, this is a very strong option to consider.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by the HifiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With
Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, stock narrow and wide bore, kbear kb07, zisin tips and coffee tips.

Sources Used
Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The nebula seems to be made out of hollow resin with metal nozzles. The faceplates have a “nebula inspired” design which plays with the light, looks different at different angles. It looks a lot like the epz p40, personally I find this a bit too flashy but a lot of people seem to like it. There is a vent on the side which is built into the shell (common complaint with the defiant), there is no driver flex and the nozzles seem well glued in. Fixes all of the issues people had with the defiant.
• Comfort & Cable: This is a fairly large iem with large nozzles so it’s a no go for people with small ears, it’s a semi custom shell so it fits me very well, isolation is surprisingly strong as well. It comes with a very nice 2 wire braided cable similar to juzear’s other iems like the nimbus, fiesta and defiant. There is a swappable termination mechanism which has a screw to hold on to securely while still being short. The nebula comes with 2 sets of ear tips, a generic narrow bore and shorter wide bore tips. I wish it came with a hardshell carry case instead of a pouch tho, it’s hard to put the iems inside the pouch and even the cheaper defiant comes with a hardshell case.

The Sound

The Juzear x Koto Nebula has a tribrid 1 DD + 3 BA + 1 Micro Planar driver configuration tuned to a V shaped sound signature by kajikaji.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The nebula is a V shaped iem imo, which means elevated bass (more quantity than i’d prefer) but the bass on nebula is fantastic, it’s the ideal bass shape for me even if its a bit too much in quantity. The mid bass hits super hard with a lot of mass while still sounding super tight, none of that loose pillow like bass which a lot of bass boosted sets sound like. The sub bass is well extended with very good texture, bass guitars sound great. The filled in 200 hz and almost linear rise from 300 hz to 20hz compared to harman makes bass instruments so much more true to life and filled in. Kickdrums hit with good body and definition rather than a detached subwoofer style thud.​​ The filled in mid bass and lower mids mean it wont sound as “clean” and separated as other popular harman sets but i much prefer the nebula’s approach to bass/
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): The lower midrange remains nicely filled in providing a much needed warmth and body to the sound. It helps to fully reproduce the fundamental frequencies of male vocals, acoustic guitars and piano instead of thinning them out and over emphasizing the upper overtones like harman does. There is a gentle pinna rise from 1k which peaks at around 3.1k to my ears. The ear gain is definitely on the relaxed side which makes female vocals sound way less forward than harman sets. The rich lower mids combined with relaxed upper mids gives it a “syrupy” characteristic to vocals which I love, reminds me a lot of the pure tho the nebula is a bit more exciting. If you’re used to shouty and nasal sounding female vocals this might sound low res to you. Since there is no mid bass/lower mids tuck the midrange blends very well with the bass, although at the cost of some contrast and instrument separation. I would’ve liked to see a bit less 2k to make vocals sound nearer but this is still a very solid execution.
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): The nebula has the right amount of mid treble for me. It sounds crisp and provides adequate shimmer to hi hats, cymbals and snare drums without getting fatiguing. Mid treble generally sounds smooth without any obvious peaks or dips but the same can’t be said about the upper treble, there is a noticeable 13k peak. A lot of iems do this to add “detail” but it just ends up adding a zingy and wispy characteristic to the sound, especially when coupled with the slightly relaxed mid treble it only brings out the harsh overtones of treble instruments. I had to eq this down. There is no added sibilance as well.
• Subjective Technical Performance: The nebula has very good mid bass slam while still being tight, sub bass is well textured and extended. Very solid imaging as well, and the 13k peak for resolution haha.

 

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems around $100:

• Aful Explorer: One of the most popular iems in the price range, the explorer is a much smaller and more comfortable shell, that's also wayy darker than the nebula with recessed vocals and upper treble roll off. Nebula is a lot more exciting sounding that will probably be preferred by more people. Nebula has a better cable as well but doesnt come with a hardshell case.
• Truthear Pure: The nebula has way more bass with a more comfortable shell, i prefer the pure’s midrange more than the nebula but i usually like warmpoo iems with non peaky upper treble. 
• Truthear Hexa: I prefer the nebula’s warmer mid bass and much much better bass dynamics, mid treble is way less peaky on the nebula. Better comfort and cable on the nebula as well.
• Aful MagicOne: Much better bass presentation on the nebula, warmer mid range and smoother mid treble. Magicone has better upper treble and comfort imo, also isolates better.
• Simgot Supermix 4: Nebula has better mid bass punch and a more true to life mid range but it doesn't sound as clean and technical as the supermix 4 due to the comparative more relaxed mid treble and filler lower mids. Nebula has a better cable

Who Should Buy This?

• People looking warm V shaped iem.
• People who enjoy a bass boost but not basshead levels.
• People liked the defiant but were scared of the qc issues.
• People who want a relaxed, syrupy male and female vocal presentation.

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who enjoy harman tuned iems.
• People with small ears.
• People sensitive to upper treble spikes.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nebula is a great execution of a V shaped sound signature without the thin midrange and punishing upper mids and mid treble usually associated with it. If you’re someone looking for a great all rounder iem around $120 or an alternative to the defiant without the qc issues, this is a very strong option to consider.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by the HifiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With
Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, stock narrow and wide bore, kbear kb07, zisin tips and coffee tips.

Sources Used
Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The nebula seems to be made out of hollow resin with metal nozzles. The faceplates have a “nebula inspired” design which plays with the light, looks different at different angles. It looks a lot like the epz p40, personally I find this a bit too flashy but a lot of people seem to like it. There is a vent on the side which is built into the shell (common complaint with the defiant), there is no driver flex and the nozzles seem well glued in. Fixes all of the issues people had with the defiant.
• Comfort & Cable: This is a fairly large iem with large nozzles so it’s a no go for people with small ears, it’s a semi custom shell so it fits me very well, isolation is surprisingly strong as well. It comes with a very nice 2 wire braided cable similar to juzear’s other iems like the nimbus, fiesta and defiant. There is a swappable termination mechanism which has a screw to hold on to securely while still being short. The nebula comes with 2 sets of ear tips, a generic narrow bore and shorter wide bore tips. I wish it came with a hardshell carry case instead of a pouch tho, it’s hard to put the iems inside the pouch and even the cheaper defiant comes with a hardshell case.

The Sound

The Juzear x Koto Nebula has a tribrid 1 DD + 3 BA + 1 Micro Planar driver configuration tuned to a V shaped sound signature by kajikaji.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The nebula is a V shaped iem imo, which means elevated bass (more quantity than i’d prefer) but the bass on nebula is fantastic, it’s the ideal bass shape for me even if its a bit too much in quantity. The mid bass hits super hard with a lot of mass while still sounding super tight, none of that loose pillow like bass which a lot of bass boosted sets sound like. The sub bass is well extended with very good texture, bass guitars sound great. The filled in 200 hz and almost linear rise from 300 hz to 20hz compared to harman makes bass instruments so much more true to life and filled in. Kickdrums hit with good body and definition rather than a detached subwoofer style thud.​​ The filled in mid bass and lower mids mean it wont sound as “clean” and separated as other popular harman sets but i much prefer the nebula’s approach to bass/
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): The lower midrange remains nicely filled in providing a much needed warmth and body to the sound. It helps to fully reproduce the fundamental frequencies of male vocals, acoustic guitars and piano instead of thinning them out and over emphasizing the upper overtones like harman does. There is a gentle pinna rise from 1k which peaks at around 3.1k to my ears. The ear gain is definitely on the relaxed side which makes female vocals sound way less forward than harman sets. The rich lower mids combined with relaxed upper mids gives it a “syrupy” characteristic to vocals which I love, reminds me a lot of the pure tho the nebula is a bit more exciting. If you’re used to shouty and nasal sounding female vocals this might sound low res to you. Since there is no mid bass/lower mids tuck the midrange blends very well with the bass, although at the cost of some contrast and instrument separation. I would’ve liked to see a bit less 2k to make vocals sound nearer but this is still a very solid execution.
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): The nebula has the right amount of mid treble for me. It sounds crisp and provides adequate shimmer to hi hats, cymbals and snare drums without getting fatiguing. Mid treble generally sounds smooth without any obvious peaks or dips but the same can’t be said about the upper treble, there is a noticeable 13k peak. A lot of iems do this to add “detail” but it just ends up adding a zingy and wispy characteristic to the sound, especially when coupled with the slightly relaxed mid treble it only brings out the harsh overtones of treble instruments. I had to eq this down. There is no added sibilance as well.
• Subjective Technical Performance: The nebula has very good mid bass slam while still being tight, sub bass is well textured and extended. Very solid imaging as well, and the 13k peak for resolution haha.

 

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems around $100:

• Aful Explorer: One of the most popular iems in the price range, the explorer is a much smaller and more comfortable shell, that's also wayy darker than the nebula with recessed vocals and upper treble roll off. Nebula is a lot more exciting sounding that will probably be preferred by more people. Nebula has a better cable as well but doesnt come with a hardshell case.
• Truthear Pure: The nebula has way more bass with a more comfortable shell, i prefer the pure’s midrange more than the nebula but i usually like warmpoo iems with non peaky upper treble. 
• Truthear Hexa: I prefer the nebula’s warmer mid bass and much much better bass dynamics, mid treble is way less peaky on the nebula. Better comfort and cable on the nebula as well.
• Aful MagicOne: Much better bass presentation on the nebula, warmer mid range and smoother mid treble. Magicone has better upper treble and comfort imo, also isolates better.
• Simgot Supermix 4: Nebula has better mid bass punch and a more true to life mid range but it doesn't sound as clean and technical as the supermix 4 due to the comparative more relaxed mid treble and filler lower mids. Nebula has a better cable

Who Should Buy This?

• People looking warm V shaped iem.
• People who enjoy a bass boost but not basshead levels.
• People liked the defiant but were scared of the qc issues.
• People who want a relaxed, syrupy male and female vocal presentation.

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who enjoy harman tuned iems.
• People with small ears.
• People sensitive to upper treble spikes.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nebula is a great execution of a V shaped sound signature without the thin midrange and punishing upper mids and mid treble usually associated with it. If you’re someone looking for a great all rounder iem around $120 or an alternative to the defiant without the qc issues, this is a very strong option to consider.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by the HifiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With
Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, stock narrow and wide bore, kbear kb07, zisin tips and coffee tips.

Sources Used
Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The nebula seems to be made out of hollow resin with metal nozzles. The faceplates have a “nebula inspired” design which plays with the light, looks different at different angles. It looks a lot like the epz p40, personally I find this a bit too flashy but a lot of people seem to like it. There is a vent on the side which is built into the shell (common complaint with the defiant), there is no driver flex and the nozzles seem well glued in. Fixes all of the issues people had with the defiant.
• Comfort & Cable: This is a fairly large iem with large nozzles so it’s a no go for people with small ears, it’s a semi custom shell so it fits me very well, isolation is surprisingly strong as well. It comes with a very nice 2 wire braided cable similar to juzear’s other iems like the nimbus, fiesta and defiant. There is a swappable termination mechanism which has a screw to hold on to securely while still being short. The nebula comes with 2 sets of ear tips, a generic narrow bore and shorter wide bore tips. I wish it came with a hardshell carry case instead of a pouch tho, it’s hard to put the iems inside the pouch and even the cheaper defiant comes with a hardshell case.

The Sound

The Juzear x Koto Nebula has a tribrid 1 DD + 3 BA + 1 Micro Planar driver configuration tuned to a V shaped sound signature by kajikaji.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The nebula is a V shaped iem imo, which means elevated bass (more quantity than i’d prefer) but the bass on nebula is fantastic, it’s the ideal bass shape for me even if its a bit too much in quantity. The mid bass hits super hard with a lot of mass while still sounding super tight, none of that loose pillow like bass which a lot of bass boosted sets sound like. The sub bass is well extended with very good texture, bass guitars sound great. The filled in 200 hz and almost linear rise from 300 hz to 20hz compared to harman makes bass instruments so much more true to life and filled in. Kickdrums hit with good body and definition rather than a detached subwoofer style thud.​​ The filled in mid bass and lower mids mean it wont sound as “clean” and separated as other popular harman sets but i much prefer the nebula’s approach to bass/
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): The lower midrange remains nicely filled in providing a much needed warmth and body to the sound. It helps to fully reproduce the fundamental frequencies of male vocals, acoustic guitars and piano instead of thinning them out and over emphasizing the upper overtones like harman does. There is a gentle pinna rise from 1k which peaks at around 3.1k to my ears. The ear gain is definitely on the relaxed side which makes female vocals sound way less forward than harman sets. The rich lower mids combined with relaxed upper mids gives it a “syrupy” characteristic to vocals which I love, reminds me a lot of the pure tho the nebula is a bit more exciting. If you’re used to shouty and nasal sounding female vocals this might sound low res to you. Since there is no mid bass/lower mids tuck the midrange blends very well with the bass, although at the cost of some contrast and instrument separation. I would’ve liked to see a bit less 2k to make vocals sound nearer but this is still a very solid execution.
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): The nebula has the right amount of mid treble for me. It sounds crisp and provides adequate shimmer to hi hats, cymbals and snare drums without getting fatiguing. Mid treble generally sounds smooth without any obvious peaks or dips but the same can’t be said about the upper treble, there is a noticeable 13k peak. A lot of iems do this to add “detail” but it just ends up adding a zingy and wispy characteristic to the sound, especially when coupled with the slightly relaxed mid treble it only brings out the harsh overtones of treble instruments. I had to eq this down. There is no added sibilance as well.
• Subjective Technical Performance: The nebula has very good mid bass slam while still being tight, sub bass is well textured and extended. Very solid imaging as well, and the 13k peak for resolution haha.

 

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems around $100:

• Aful Explorer: One of the most popular iems in the price range, the explorer is a much smaller and more comfortable shell, that's also wayy darker than the nebula with recessed vocals and upper treble roll off. Nebula is a lot more exciting sounding that will probably be preferred by more people. Nebula has a better cable as well but doesnt come with a hardshell case.
• Truthear Pure: The nebula has way more bass with a more comfortable shell, i prefer the pure’s midrange more than the nebula but i usually like warmpoo iems with non peaky upper treble. 
• Truthear Hexa: I prefer the nebula’s warmer mid bass and much much better bass dynamics, mid treble is way less peaky on the nebula. Better comfort and cable on the nebula as well.
• Aful MagicOne: Much better bass presentation on the nebula, warmer mid range and smoother mid treble. Magicone has better upper treble and comfort imo, also isolates better.
• Simgot Supermix 4: Nebula has better mid bass punch and a more true to life mid range but it doesn't sound as clean and technical as the supermix 4 due to the comparative more relaxed mid treble and filler lower mids. Nebula has a better cable

Who Should Buy This?

• People looking warm V shaped iem.
• People who enjoy a bass boost but not basshead levels.
• People liked the defiant but were scared of the qc issues.
• People who want a relaxed, syrupy male and female vocal presentation.

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who enjoy harman tuned iems.
• People with small ears.
• People sensitive to upper treble spikes.

TL;DR

The Cozoy D1 is an excellent value proposition. It gets the basics like fit, comfort, build quality and cable right and goes for a very refined version of Harman IE 2019. If I had 3k to spend on an IEM, I would just get this.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by u/MournfulMonk, TAS and Cozoy for review, all thought and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Tanchjim Space 2, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: the D1 is made of hollow plastic with metal nozzles. It has a mesh to protect the dampeners unlike some iems in the price range. D1 feels fairly well built, especially for the price but there are some iems with metal shells such as the chu 3. There is a vent on the side near the 2 pin connector. The right vent is colored red and the left vent is blue which is a nice detail. The Cozoy D1 comes with 2 sets of eartips, a short narrow bore and a double flange surprisingly, never seen with a budget IEM before. The faceplates are of a slight purplish blue with some shimmer to them and an out of place COZOY text lol. I would've liked to see more subtle branding to let the beautiful faceplates shine. Also would've liked to see a carry case included.
• Comfort & Cable: The D1 is a medium sized semi custom shell which I find exceptionally comfortable, partly thanks to how lightweight they are. The cable included is a very nicely braided purple cable that matches the faceplates well. This is probably my favorite cable under 5K. It's lightweight, comfortable and well behaved. Isolation on these is just average. Since the shells are semi custom, they fit snug in my ear so I wasnt entirely relying on the eartips for fit stability which is nice.

The Sound

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): Cozoy D1 is an IEM that's tuned adjacent to Harman IE 2019, which means it's a subbass forward bass presentation with comparatively recessed mid bass, the subbass is nicely extended and low reaching. Bass guitars have good texture to them. But since the mid bass is restrained, kickdrums do not have enough punch or tactility to them, the mid bass is still faster and more snappy than the likes of Chu 3, nimbus and Belle though. Still, if you're someone that prefers more thump and attack in their bass than subbass rumble, you should not be looking at harman iems. Cozoy D1 does not have my preferred bass shape (way too much sub bass to mid bass ratio) but I could see many people enjoying the clean, anti mud bass presentation of the D1.
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): One thing harman ie 2019 esque sets are known for is scooping out the lower mids and pushing the upper mids. This results in a fairly detached bass presentation compared to the rest of the mix for me. The lower mids dip on D1 also causes male vocals to not have adequate weight and body to them. This mids scoop combined with the upper mids boost gives it a very female vocal focused midrange, while the detached sub bass, excess pinna gain do give it a very bombastic sound signature which is good for impressing people who are new to iems, it gets too much after a while. One thing Cozoy D1 does well (and all harman sets) is that they keep the sound signature extremely clean. So if you're coming from mass market consumer stuff with excess mud this thing is the polar opposite. The presence region boost gives a nice edge and definition to the upper overtones of mid range instruments. It's vocal focused, yes. But the female vocals are way too intense to the point they sound unnatural imo. The 2k elevation + 3-6k boost gives a nasal and glare-ey characteristic to vocals, like they're out of breath sometimes. Overall the D1 has a very very exciting and energetic midrange (almost too energetic) while maintaining pretty much zero bass bleed (almost to a fault). 
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): Treble is where most budget iems and single DDs fall apart for me due to the characteristic 10k dip and 13k peak but the Cozoy D1 handles it shockingly well. There is zero audible upper treble spike which often results in a zingy tonality, Cozoy D1 completely avoids this, further the mid treble is really smooth for me as well save for the slight 10k dip (better a dip than peak lol). Treble instruments like cymbals sound natural with adequate shimmer to him. Overall the D1 has some of the best treble presentations I've heard from a single DD. It has none of the plasticky timbre that stuff like Kefine Klean, Truthear Gate, Truthear Hola, Wan'er SG etc.. have. The smooth treble makes it a really good eq platform for people who are still learning it. I'm quite upper treble sensitive and the D1 gives me zero fatigue in the treble.
• Subjective Technical Performance: The Cozoy D1 has excellent sub bass rumble and instrument separation thanks to its tuning, along with good imaging. Treble is rolled off around 18Khz for my ears and I would've liked snappier and harder hitting mid bass.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems:

• Tangzu Red lion: More bassy, similarly scooped out mids, much less intense in the vocals. Cozoy D1 is more comfortable, better built, has a nicer cable and most importantly, doesn't have the nasty upper treble spike, worse tips tho
• Truthear Gate: My previous go to rec for a budget IEM, they're both harman tuned but the D1 has much smoother treble tho. D1 is also more comfy, better built with a nicer cable.
• Moondrop Chu 3: Slams harder, more muddy, not as intense in the vocals, has design flaws like oxidizing nozzle, D1 has a nicer cable and none of the oxidation.
• Tanchjim Bunny DSP: All the official presets have a brutal undampened upper treble spike that kills the iem for me, but you can EQ it out tho. D1 isolates better with a much nicer cable and fit.
• 7Hz Salnotes Zero 2: Another one of my fav recs for a budget IEM. Zero 2 is more bassy with significantly less intense vocals. The cable on zero 2 is much worse (borderline unusable) with slightly more pronounced the upper treble (still quite dampened).
• OoopusX OP.22: The OP.22 has a significantly more natural midrange and tone along with an awesome bass dial but man the comfort and cable are awful. D1 is significantly more comfortable with a much better cable, that uses a standard 2 pin instead of QDC.

Who Should Buy This?

• People looking for this first iem
• People who enjoy harman style sound signatures.
• People who are upper treble sensitive like me.
• People who want a well built, comfortable and good looking iem.

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who want a natural or neutral sounding iem.
• People who prioritize mid bass.
• People who want a metal shell.

TL;DR

The Twistura Woodnote is a very interesting iem, it has a unique tuning which isn’t really my cup of tea but I can see many people liking it. It comes with a fantastic accessories package along with excellent technical chops (detail retrieval, bass quality and imaging). It’s a very compelling package for $130 USD.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by u/Own-Customer-4866 for review, I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The Woodnote is made of CNC machined aluminium, feels super solid in hand. It has a removable nozzle mechanism which seems well threaded and solid as well. Build quality is excellent on the woodnote but it does have a random silicone flap at the bottom for the faceplate for some reason, It serves no function as far as I can tell and seems like it could come off over time. Idk why twistura decided to include this but it looks cool I guess. Both sides have a Twistura branding along with a small emblem. These look fine imo, nice and understated. Nothing to write home about.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: The woodnote is a shallow fitting iem for me, I struggled to get a good seal despite the abundance of included ear tips. I had to settle on audiocular flexfit and atmos L for a good seal. It’s a medium sized generic shell with no semi custom moldings so you will be relying entirely on the eartip for fit stability. The earpieces are fairly light weight and comfortable to wear for long periods of time. Isolation on these are average, probably due to the large vent on the top and a smaller vent on the front.
• Cable & Accessories: Twistura nailed the accessories on the Woodnote, it’s probably the strongest aspect of this iem. Comes with an excellent 2 wire braid copper coloured cable with swappable termination (the unit i received has a qc issue at the termination so used it with 4.4 only). A very pretty purple hard shell carry case, 3 sets of nozzles, an abundant selection of eartips (4 very different sets). A short widebore set with a spiral core, a narrow bore set with green core, trn-t style liquid silicone set and a standard bore set. This should be the benchmark for any iem that costs over $150 imo.

The Sound

The Twistura Woodnote has a 10 mm single Dynamic Driver with swappable tuning nozzles. The instrumental and standard nozzles look nearly identical, the standard nozzle seems every so slightly darker and instrumental slightly silvery.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The woodnote is a mid bass forward iem but that doesn't mean it has a ton of mid bass, in fact it’s fairly bass-lite. The mid bass it does have is extremely good though, it’s very fast and snappy bass (helped by the presence boost). It’s exactly the kind of bass I love. The bass shape reminds me a lot of Tanchjim sets (mid bass forward with not a lot of subbass while still being basslets). The sub is not super well extended and low reaching though, not a lot of texturing either but overall I still quite like the bass shape of woodnote, good mid bass matters to me far more than subbass (bass on this reminds me of hd600). The upper bass to lower mid range transition is also on point, no complaints here.
• Mids (300 hz to 6000 hz): Now while the upper bass to lower mids transition and lower mids texturing is very good and the filled in lower mids give it nice body (thick male vocals) this iem simply has way too much upper mids (and lower treble for my liking). It brings out the worst parts of upper vocal overtones forward while adding unnecessary sibilance to it. It has a fairly regular pinna gain till 2k but it suddenly shoots up at 3k and maintains a significant elevation till 6k which makes female vocals, cymbals, percussion way too intense for me. That said, I could definitely see this tuning appealing to people who focus on clarity and contrast above all else because of the big presence boost. The included gold and silver nozzles only boost this region further haha. 
• Mid & Upper Treble (6000 hz to 20000 hz): While I find the 3-6k boost fatiguing, it does give very good definition to snare drums, acoustic guitars and cymbals, though some of this is also mitigated by the characteristic single DD dip at 10k which makes some of the upper overtones of treble instruments more muted than I would like. I hear a slight peak around 11k to 12k but this is more of a nitpick revealed during sine sweep rather than something that affected real listening unlike most single DDs (also it’s overshadowed heavily by the upper mids and lower treble lol).
• Subjective Technical Performance: The Woodnote is a highly technical sounding and resolving iem. It puts all the upper frequency details in your face, has a ton of contrast along with excellent imaging. This is a very “Hi-Res” sound iem haha. If you prioritize technical performance you will probably like this. Note: I believe tech is entirely a byproduct of tonality and not because more expensive iem use better drivers or something.

Overall the woodnote has a very interesting tuning that I've never heard before. It certainly has some lower mids warmth but I would classify this as a bright sound signature. And instead of pushing the mid/upper treble like most brightly tuned iems do, this one pushes the lower treble/presence region forward which I've never seen before.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular iems:

• Truthear Hexa: Woodnote is way more colored, significantly better mid bass and higher res sounding, I do however prefer the hexa’s more natural midrange and comparatively relaxed pinna.
• OoopusX OP.22: Op.22 is more natural sounding with better midrange but it’s not as technically impressive as the woodnote, significantly worse bass and “resolution”, smoother treble tho.
• Aful MagicOne: Worse bass dynamics overall but less shouty midrange, but it’s much more comfortable with superior isolation, better looking shell. Not as resolving as woodnote.
• Truthear Pure: Much better mid range, more natural and less fatiguing. Better mid bass and subbass on the pure but it’s definitely lower res sounding for people who care about technical performance.
• Aful Explorer: Much much darker than woodnote, kinda the polar opposite of woodnote. Recessed pinna and more elastic bass compared to Woodnote’s excessive pinna and more snappy bass. Explorer is more comfortable for me with better isolation.
• Juzear Nimbus: Woodnote has faster, more snappy bass, nimbus has a more natural pinna and midrange, much more relaxed. Woodnote is again more detailed.
• Dunu Davinci: Prefer woodnote’s bass and upper treble but the davinci has a significantly more natural midrange, woodnote is more comfortable and more resolving in the upper frequencies. 
• Twistura Delta: Delta to me sounds like every other bassy V shaped budget iem, it’s slow and soupy bass compared to woodnote’s snappy attack. I do actually prefer the delta’s more relaxed pinna compared to woodnote but I hear a much more offensive upper treble peak on the delta, which seems better dampened on the woodnote.

Who Should Buy This?

• People looking for an excellent accessories package.
• People who prioritize technical performance and detail retrieval.
• People who want a metal shelled iem.
• People that are treble tolerant

Who Should Avoid This?

• People who want a natural or neutral sounding iem
• Fans of JM-1 or Harman style tunings
• People who are sensitive to upper mids and low treble

The Woodnote could be purchased here (non affiliated link): https://twistura.com/products/twistura-woodnote-flagship-10mm-dynamic-driver-hifi-wired-in-ear-monitor-iem-earphones

TL;DR

The Tanchjim Space 2 is a feature rich well built source with excellent dsp capabilities, but it faces stiff competition from all the other excellent dacs in the price range such as TRN Black Pearl, Fiio Retro Nano and Snowsky Melody which are often cheaper than the space 2.

• Sound Quality: 10/10 
• Build Quality: 10/10
• Value: 6/10 (retails for $90)

Context

Tanchjim Space 2 was kindly sent to me by Tanchjim for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I don’t really care or notice the difference between DACs and AMPs on most iems provided they are clean and transparent. Features and build quality matter far more.

Design & Build

• Aesthetics: The Space 2 is a tiny dac with 3 colour options, grey, blue and black. It has a transparent window near the usb port from which you can view the internals. There is a Tanchjim branding at the top and space ii at the bottom side. There is a screw which seems to hold together both the top and bottom panels. Overall the space 2 is a nice clean looking source.  
• Build Quality: Best part of the space 2, it is a super well built source made of solid metal with no unnecessary opening that some other dacs like the moondrop dawn pros have. Both the usb port and 3.5/4.4mm ports feel rock solid with no wobble. The buttons feel very reassuring unlike the retro nano. The volume up button is raised compared to the volume down button.
• Accessories: The space 2 doesn’t come with anything other than a short usb c to c cable that's nice and flexible with a transparent housing and gold plated connectors. It’s just short enough to not be cumbersome when used with my phone and feels super supple unlike the stiff cables fiio likes to include with their sources.

 

Specs & Sound

The Space 2 has dual CS43131 dacs with 3.5 mm SE and 4.4 mm balanced connectors that output 235 mW at 32 ohms. It has PCM 384kHz and DSD256 support which the retro nano lacks. 

The Space 2 sounds clean and transparent with no audible noise floor, the 10 band eq lets you add any coloration you want to the sound. No complaints when it comes to sound.

App & Features

The most important part of a portable source for me is the app, and Tanchjim has the best app in the game imo. The app lets you add a 10 band custom parametric eq (Q range 0.1 to 5, Gain -10 to +10 db) along with a ton of community presets to choose from.
The space 2 has 100 steps of volume (non linear and separated from OS) and outputs 235 mW at 32 ohm (not the most powerful but good enough to drive 99% of iems to deafening volumes). I like that you can press and hold down the volume buttons to keep on increasing or decreasing the volume, better than the retro nano where you have to keep clicking for every step of volume. 

The app has low gain and high gain options (2Vrms and 4Vrms), wave filter options, game specific eq enhancements (specific for titles or aspects like bullets, footsteps etc), microphone gain settings, and Class AB/H switcher despite not having dedicated op amps. Along with a DRE switch for the notorious cirrus hump and channel balance slider. 

Note: The pre amp on the eq page only ranges from -8 to +4 despite allowing for -10 to +10 gain for some reason.

Noise Floor & Hiss on Sensitive IEMs

Some DACs have pretty significant noise floor with my single DD iems, particularly dongles with cx31993 dac and max 97220 amp setups but I’m happy to say I hear absolutely none with the Space 2. 

Pros

• Very well built source
• Excellent DSP implementation
• Great app support

Cons

• Not the most powerful source for its price
• No display to view volume or bit rate.

It’s hard for me to recommend the Tanchjim space 2 where there are other dacs that offer the same features for less money.

So How Much Should You Actually Spend On A Source?

If you’re looking to buy your first dac, the most commonly recommended options in the community are $10 dongles with cx31993 (sometimes with max97220 amps). However I would push you to spend more for a dac with a removable cable with dual CS43131 dacs around $40 if you can as budget dongles with fixed cables are notorious for failing near the usb c connector. They also have an audible noise floor with a lot of my single dd iems (particularly ones with cx31993 and max97220 such as audiocular spark, jm6 pro, nicehck nk1 max, d07). Not only are they more durable, they’re usually better built with peq support, much higher power output, dedicated hardware volume buttons and are way more likely to last your audio journey. 

Here’s what I recommend:

• Jcally JM12 - $5 DAC,  could be flashed with ja11 firmware for eq (not super accurate) only get it if you’re powering iems and cannot spend more
• TRN Black Pearl (Black/Pre-Revision) - $37, Best bang for your buck, has everything like peq, removable cable, dual cirrus logic dacs.
• Snowsky Melody - Alternative to Black Pearl, $40, same 10 band peq, dual cirrus logic dacs with a better app from a more reputable brand.
• Snowsky Retro Nano - $60, gets you everything you need from a portable source like bluetooth, peq, removable battery, wired playback, phone mode but loses out on dsd256 and maxes out at 16-bit / 96 kHz if you care about that stuff.
• Crinear Protocol Max - $90, Overkill for iems since it has wayy too much power. Get it if you want to power headphones with room to spare, connects to hangout graph tool for easy eq.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nimbus is a great offering for $55 with exceptional metal and glass build quality, modular tuning nozzles, and a great modular cable. It has a warm, bassy and fatigue free sound signature with smooth, safe treble, though people who are used to brighter tuned iems may find it dull. 

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by HiFiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro with the 3.5 mm termination.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of solid cnc machined metal shells, build quality feels excellent. The shells are medium sized with relatively short nozzles, it should fit most ears fine. The faceplate is made of blue coloured mirrored glass which I’ve never seen before. There is a juzear branding on the left faceplate and the right faceplate has nothing on it. The blue glass looks extremely clean to me, I love how reflective it is and surprisingly it doesn't attract fingerprints. I love the clean and polished aesthetic of the nimbus and the build quality is second to none, some of the most premium feeling iems I've handled. The removable nozzle mechanism seems well threaded.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: Fit on the nimbus is fine, no issues for me here. It’s a shallow fitting iem so you’ll be relying on a bigger eartip to seal well. It also doesn't stick out of my ears at all so this could be a good option for sleeping, especially considering how well built the shells are. There are two front vents on each ear piece so the isolation on these are just average. Overall the nimbus is a very comfortable iem to use because of both the shell and sound signature.
• Cable & Accessories: The nimbus comes with a 2 wire braid that splits at the Y split. It’s probably the best cable I've seen at this price tier. It’s just the right amount of flexible so it doesn't feel sloppy or stiff, with a great interchangeable termination system that is short and is held on with a screw (best possible implementation). The cable has a grey and silver braid with matching dark grey hardware. The Chin cinch is also very functional. It also comes with 3 different styles of eartips, a soft narrow bore in dark blue, a more bulbous and stiff kb07 style eartip and a short widebore set. It’s great to see multiple styles of tips being included with a budget iem, also comes with 3 sets of nozzles that each change the sound (white, red and black), a polishing cloth, a light blue carry pouch  and a 4.4 mm termination. The accessories on the nimbus are excellent.

The Sound

The Juzear Nimbus is a single DD iem that has a warm and dense sound signature with different nozzles that change the sound and surprisingly well controlled treble. I primarily used it with the black nozzles since I liked them the best.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Nimbus has well extended, deep reaching subbass with good rumble and texture. It has a nice filled in mid bass boost but it feels like slow bass, kickdrums sound more on the thuddy side, nimbus lacks that extra bit of punch in its attack, I would definitely prefer it to have more fast and snappy bass. Bass guitars could use a little more edge and bite to give them more definition (I'm guessing this is due to relaxed low-mid treble).  Bass shape is generally nice especially if you’re coming from harman iems like truthear zero blue or gate, it’s way less boomy. 
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): The nimbus has a warm sounding midrange for sure, especially with the black nozzles, female vocals sound fairly natural and way less shouty than say old meta sets like zero red and zero blue (or even the red nozzles). Male vocals don’t sound as full as I would like and it lacks the “glow” I love when the ear gain is even reduced with more filled in lower mids (pure does this well). I do think the slight lower mids scoop here makes sense given the dampened low-mid treble to still keep it from sounding overly warm. The red nozzles have the most noticeable impact on the midrange, it brings forth the 2k and 4k more and ends up making the female vocals sound more nasal. White nozzles are kind of a middle ground. People that come from harman/old meta tunings and want more energy in their female vocals will probably prefer the red nozzles though.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): I find the mid treble on the nimbus is very smooth and safe. Cymbals, hi hats, and snare hits sound very natural with zero glare or metallic sheen. This makes it extremely non fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. However, I would still like a touch more energy here. It misses that sharp, crisp bite on cymbal strikes, and anyone transitioning from brighter, Harman tuned or V shaped sets will likely perceive this tuning as blunt or dull. I hear a small peak at 7.2 Khz during sine sweeps but it is not bothersome during listening at all so I didn’t bother with eq. There is zero added sibilance as well.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): The nimbus has excellent upper treble dampening which prevents the upper treble shrill I usually get with single DD iems, the upper treble is also very relaxed which could cause people to perceive it as less “technical” or not “resolving” enough but I’ll take the nimbus’s smooth and relaxed upper treble over a piercing peak any day. It is well extended to 18 Khz with rolled off (but still audible) around 20 Khz.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Thuddy mid bass, relaxed mid and upper treble could cause people to hear it as less resolving especially if they come from treble boosted iems, reasonably good imaging.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular budget iems:

• Truthear Hola: Nimbus has significantly smoother treble and comparatively more natural midrange. Much better built as well.
• 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2: nimbus again has a more natural mid range, much more dense sounding, much better cable and shell. Both are very smooth and dampened treble.
• Tanchjim Bunny Dsp: Nimbus is significantly denser and warmer sounding, doesn’t have the brutal upper treble spike, much better cable and build.
• OoopusX OP.22 (neutral): Op.22 has wayy less bass than the nimbus, it’s significantly brighter but I prefer op.22’s treble presentation. Nimbus is much more comfortable with better bass, better built shells and much nicer cable 
• Truthear zero red: Probably the most popular $50 iem. Nimbus has smoother mid/upper treble and less shouty vocals. Much better cable and shell as well.
• Truthear Pure: Better mid bass punch, warmer more filled in midrange compared to nimbus, nimbus has smoother mid treble. Build quality and cable is much nicer on nimbus.
• Truthear Hexa: Nimbus has wayy more bass than the hexa with fuller sounding midrange with a lot of body, less peaky in the mid treble than hexa but if you’re coming to nimbus from the hexa you'll likely find the nimbus dull.
• Aful Explorer: My benchmark for a warm and dense sound signature, the explorer takes a way more restrained approach to vocals makes it sound much more recessed. Bass on the explorer feels more rubbery/elastic compared to nimbus which is more thuddy. Nimbus strikes a nice balance here, where if you want a warm sound signature but find the explorer too dark, nimbus is a great middle round.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want a well built iem with great cable and accessories.
2. People that want a warm dense sound signature.
3. People sensitive to mid treble looking for a non fatiguing iem.

Who should avoid this?

1. People who equate resolution with aggressive treble
2. People that want something neutral.
3. Fans of harman or V shaped tunings

Conclusion

There are not a lot of warm and dense sounding iems in the $50 tier and the nimbus fills this gap pretty well. It's a great iem for anyone looking for a well built iem they can listen to for hours and hours without getting fatigued. It’s also a great value package that comes with an excellent cable that’s better than anything else you’ll find in the price range.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nimbus is a great offering for $55 with exceptional metal and glass build quality, modular tuning nozzles, and a great modular cable. It has a warm, bassy and fatigue free sound signature with smooth, safe treble, though people who are used to brighter tuned iems may find it dull. 

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by HiFiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro with the 3.5 mm termination.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of solid cnc machined metal shells, build quality feels excellent. The shells are medium sized with relatively short nozzles, it should fit most ears fine. The faceplate is made of blue coloured mirrored glass which I’ve never seen before. There is a juzear branding on the left faceplate and the right faceplate has nothing on it. The blue glass looks extremely clean to me, I love how reflective it is and surprisingly it doesn't attract fingerprints. I love the clean and polished aesthetic of the nimbus and the build quality is second to none, some of the most premium feeling iems I've handled. The removable nozzle mechanism seems well threaded.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: Fit on the nimbus is fine, no issues for me here. It’s a shallow fitting iem so you’ll be relying on a bigger eartip to seal well. It also doesn't stick out of my ears at all so this could be a good option for sleeping, especially considering how well built the shells are. There are two front vents on each ear piece so the isolation on these are just average. Overall the nimbus is a very comfortable iem to use because of both the shell and sound signature.
• Cable & Accessories: The nimbus comes with a 2 wire braid that splits at the Y split. It’s probably the best cable I've seen at this price tier. It’s just the right amount of flexible so it doesn't feel sloppy or stiff, with a great interchangeable termination system that is short and is held on with a screw (best possible implementation). The cable has a grey and silver braid with matching dark grey hardware. The Chin cinch is also very functional. It also comes with 3 different styles of eartips, a soft narrow bore in dark blue, a more bulbous and stiff kb07 style eartip and a short widebore set. It’s great to see multiple styles of tips being included with a budget iem, also comes with 3 sets of nozzles that each change the sound (white, red and black), a polishing cloth, a light blue carry pouch  and a 4.4 mm termination. The accessories on the nimbus are excellent.

The Sound

The Juzear Nimbus is a single DD iem that has a warm and dense sound signature with different nozzles that change the sound and surprisingly well controlled treble. I primarily used it with the black nozzles since I liked them the best.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Nimbus has well extended, deep reaching subbass with good rumble and texture. It has a nice filled in mid bass boost but it feels like slow bass, kickdrums sound more on the thuddy side, nimbus lacks that extra bit of punch in its attack, I would definitely prefer it to have more fast and snappy bass. Bass guitars could use a little more edge and bite to give them more definition (I'm guessing this is due to relaxed low-mid treble).  Bass shape is generally nice especially if you’re coming from harman iems like truthear zero blue or gate, it’s way less boomy. 
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): The nimbus has a warm sounding midrange for sure, especially with the black nozzles, female vocals sound fairly natural and way less shouty than say old meta sets like zero red and zero blue (or even the red nozzles). Male vocals don’t sound as full as I would like and it lacks the “glow” I love when the ear gain is even reduced with more filled in lower mids (pure does this well). I do think the slight lower mids scoop here makes sense given the dampened low-mid treble to still keep it from sounding overly warm. The red nozzles have the most noticeable impact on the midrange, it brings forth the 2k and 4k more and ends up making the female vocals sound more nasal. White nozzles are kind of a middle ground. People that come from harman/old meta tunings and want more energy in their female vocals will probably prefer the red nozzles though.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): I find the mid treble on the nimbus is very smooth and safe. Cymbals, hi hats, and snare hits sound very natural with zero glare or metallic sheen. This makes it extremely non fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. However, I would still like a touch more energy here. It misses that sharp, crisp bite on cymbal strikes, and anyone transitioning from brighter, Harman tuned or V shaped sets will likely perceive this tuning as blunt or dull. I hear a small peak at 7.2 Khz during sine sweeps but it is not bothersome during listening at all so I didn’t bother with eq. There is zero added sibilance as well.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): The nimbus has excellent upper treble dampening which prevents the upper treble shrill I usually get with single DD iems, the upper treble is also very relaxed which could cause people to perceive it as less “technical” or not “resolving” enough but I’ll take the nimbus’s smooth and relaxed upper treble over a piercing peak any day. It is well extended to 18 Khz with rolled off (but still audible) around 20 Khz.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Thuddy mid bass, relaxed mid and upper treble could cause people to hear it as less resolving especially if they come from treble boosted iems, reasonably good imaging.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular budget iems:

• Truthear Hola: Nimbus has significantly smoother treble and comparatively more natural midrange. Much better built as well.
• 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2: nimbus again has a more natural mid range, much more dense sounding, much better cable and shell. Both are very smooth and dampened treble.
• Tanchjim Bunny Dsp: Nimbus is significantly denser and warmer sounding, doesn’t have the brutal upper treble spike, much better cable and build.
• OoopusX OP.22 (neutral): Op.22 has wayy less bass than the nimbus, it’s significantly brighter but I prefer op.22’s treble presentation. Nimbus is much more comfortable with better bass, better built shells and much nicer cable 
• Truthear zero red: Probably the most popular $50 iem. Nimbus has smoother mid/upper treble and less shouty vocals. Much better cable and shell as well.
• Truthear Pure: Better mid bass punch, warmer more filled in midrange compared to nimbus, nimbus has smoother mid treble. Build quality and cable is much nicer on nimbus.
• Truthear Hexa: Nimbus has wayy more bass than the hexa with fuller sounding midrange with a lot of body, less peaky in the mid treble than hexa but if you’re coming to nimbus from the hexa you'll likely find the nimbus dull.
• Aful Explorer: My benchmark for a warm and dense sound signature, the explorer takes a way more restrained approach to vocals makes it sound much more recessed. Bass on the explorer feels more rubbery/elastic compared to nimbus which is more thuddy. Nimbus strikes a nice balance here, where if you want a warm sound signature but find the explorer too dark, nimbus is a great middle round.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want a well built iem with great cable and accessories.
2. People that want a warm dense sound signature.
3. People sensitive to mid treble looking for a non fatiguing iem.

Who should avoid this?

1. People who equate resolution with aggressive treble
2. People that want something neutral.
3. Fans of harman or V shaped tunings

Conclusion

There are not a lot of warm and dense sounding iems in the $50 tier and the nimbus fills this gap pretty well. It's a great iem for anyone looking for a well built iem they can listen to for hours and hours without getting fatigued. It’s also a great value package that comes with an excellent cable that’s better than anything else you’ll find in the price range.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nimbus is a great offering for $55 with exceptional metal and glass build quality, modular tuning nozzles, and a great modular cable. It has a warm, bassy and fatigue free sound signature with smooth, safe treble, though people who are used to brighter tuned iems may find it dull. 

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by HiFiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro with the 3.5 mm termination.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of solid cnc machined metal shells, build quality feels excellent. The shells are medium sized with relatively short nozzles, it should fit most ears fine. The faceplate is made of blue coloured mirrored glass which I’ve never seen before. There is a juzear branding on the left faceplate and the right faceplate has nothing on it. The blue glass looks extremely clean to me, I love how reflective it is and surprisingly it doesn't attract fingerprints. I love the clean and polished aesthetic of the nimbus and the build quality is second to none, some of the most premium feeling iems I've handled. The removable nozzle mechanism seems well threaded.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: Fit on the nimbus is fine, no issues for me here. It’s a shallow fitting iem so you’ll be relying on a bigger eartip to seal well. It also doesn't stick out of my ears at all so this could be a good option for sleeping, especially considering how well built the shells are. There are two front vents on each ear piece so the isolation on these are just average. Overall the nimbus is a very comfortable iem to use because of both the shell and sound signature.
• Cable & Accessories: The nimbus comes with a 2 wire braid that splits at the Y split. It’s probably the best cable I've seen at this price tier. It’s just the right amount of flexible so it doesn't feel sloppy or stiff, with a great interchangeable termination system that is short and is held on with a screw (best possible implementation). The cable has a grey and silver braid with matching dark grey hardware. The Chin cinch is also very functional. It also comes with 3 different styles of eartips, a soft narrow bore in dark blue, a more bulbous and stiff kb07 style eartip and a short widebore set. It’s great to see multiple styles of tips being included with a budget iem, also comes with 3 sets of nozzles that each change the sound (white, red and black), a polishing cloth, a light blue carry pouch  and a 4.4 mm termination. The accessories on the nimbus are excellent.

The Sound

The Juzear Nimbus is a single DD iem that has a warm and dense sound signature with different nozzles that change the sound and surprisingly well controlled treble. I primarily used it with the black nozzles since I liked them the best.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Nimbus has well extended, deep reaching subbass with good rumble and texture. It has a nice filled in mid bass boost but it feels like slow bass, kickdrums sound more on the thuddy side, nimbus lacks that extra bit of punch in its attack, I would definitely prefer it to have more fast and snappy bass. Bass guitars could use a little more edge and bite to give them more definition (I'm guessing this is due to relaxed low-mid treble).  Bass shape is generally nice especially if you’re coming from harman iems like truthear zero blue or gate, it’s way less boomy. 
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): The nimbus has a warm sounding midrange for sure, especially with the black nozzles, female vocals sound fairly natural and way less shouty than say old meta sets like zero red and zero blue (or even the red nozzles). Male vocals don’t sound as full as I would like and it lacks the “glow” I love when the ear gain is even reduced with more filled in lower mids (pure does this well). I do think the slight lower mids scoop here makes sense given the dampened low-mid treble to still keep it from sounding overly warm. The red nozzles have the most noticeable impact on the midrange, it brings forth the 2k and 4k more and ends up making the female vocals sound more nasal. White nozzles are kind of a middle ground. People that come from harman/old meta tunings and want more energy in their female vocals will probably prefer the red nozzles though.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): I find the mid treble on the nimbus is very smooth and safe. Cymbals, hi hats, and snare hits sound very natural with zero glare or metallic sheen. This makes it extremely non fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. However, I would still like a touch more energy here. It misses that sharp, crisp bite on cymbal strikes, and anyone transitioning from brighter, Harman tuned or V shaped sets will likely perceive this tuning as blunt or dull. I hear a small peak at 7.2 Khz during sine sweeps but it is not bothersome during listening at all so I didn’t bother with eq. There is zero added sibilance as well.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): The nimbus has excellent upper treble dampening which prevents the upper treble shrill I usually get with single DD iems, the upper treble is also very relaxed which could cause people to perceive it as less “technical” or not “resolving” enough but I’ll take the nimbus’s smooth and relaxed upper treble over a piercing peak any day. It is well extended to 18 Khz with rolled off (but still audible) around 20 Khz.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Thuddy mid bass, relaxed mid and upper treble could cause people to hear it as less resolving especially if they come from treble boosted iems, reasonably good imaging.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular budget iems:

• Truthear Hola: Nimbus has significantly smoother treble and comparatively more natural midrange. Much better built as well.
• 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2: nimbus again has a more natural mid range, much more dense sounding, much better cable and shell. Both are very smooth and dampened treble.
• Tanchjim Bunny Dsp: Nimbus is significantly denser and warmer sounding, doesn’t have the brutal upper treble spike, much better cable and build.
• OoopusX OP.22 (neutral): Op.22 has wayy less bass than the nimbus, it’s significantly brighter but I prefer op.22’s treble presentation. Nimbus is much more comfortable with better bass, better built shells and much nicer cable 
• Truthear zero red: Probably the most popular $50 iem. Nimbus has smoother mid/upper treble and less shouty vocals. Much better cable and shell as well.
• Truthear Pure: Better mid bass punch, warmer more filled in midrange compared to nimbus, nimbus has smoother mid treble. Build quality and cable is much nicer on nimbus.
• Truthear Hexa: Nimbus has wayy more bass than the hexa with fuller sounding midrange with a lot of body, less peaky in the mid treble than hexa but if you’re coming to nimbus from the hexa you'll likely find the nimbus dull.
• Aful Explorer: My benchmark for a warm and dense sound signature, the explorer takes a way more restrained approach to vocals makes it sound much more recessed. Bass on the explorer feels more rubbery/elastic compared to nimbus which is more thuddy. Nimbus strikes a nice balance here, where if you want a warm sound signature but find the explorer too dark, nimbus is a great middle round.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want a well built iem with great cable and accessories.
2. People that want a warm dense sound signature.
3. People sensitive to mid treble looking for a non fatiguing iem.

Who should avoid this?

1. People who equate resolution with aggressive treble
2. People that want something neutral.
3. Fans of harman or V shaped tunings

Conclusion

There are not a lot of warm and dense sounding iems in the $50 tier and the nimbus fills this gap pretty well. It's a great iem for anyone looking for a well built iem they can listen to for hours and hours without getting fatigued. It’s also a great value package that comes with an excellent cable that’s better than anything else you’ll find in the price range.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nimbus is a great offering for $55 with exceptional metal and glass build quality, modular tuning nozzles, and a great modular cable. It has a warm, bassy and fatigue free sound signature with smooth, safe treble, though people who are used to brighter tuned iems may find it dull. 

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by HiFiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro with the 3.5 mm termination.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of solid cnc machined metal shells, build quality feels excellent. The shells are medium sized with relatively short nozzles, it should fit most ears fine. The faceplate is made of blue coloured mirrored glass which I’ve never seen before. There is a juzear branding on the left faceplate and the right faceplate has nothing on it. The blue glass looks extremely clean to me, I love how reflective it is and surprisingly it doesn't attract fingerprints. I love the clean and polished aesthetic of the nimbus and the build quality is second to none, some of the most premium feeling iems I've handled. The removable nozzle mechanism seems well threaded.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: Fit on the nimbus is fine, no issues for me here. It’s a shallow fitting iem so you’ll be relying on a bigger eartip to seal well. It also doesn't stick out of my ears at all so this could be a good option for sleeping, especially considering how well built the shells are. There are two front vents on each ear piece so the isolation on these are just average. Overall the nimbus is a very comfortable iem to use because of both the shell and sound signature.
• Cable & Accessories: The nimbus comes with a 2 wire braid that splits at the Y split. It’s probably the best cable I've seen at this price tier. It’s just the right amount of flexible so it doesn't feel sloppy or stiff, with a great interchangeable termination system that is short and is held on with a screw (best possible implementation). The cable has a grey and silver braid with matching dark grey hardware. The Chin cinch is also very functional. It also comes with 3 different styles of eartips, a soft narrow bore in dark blue, a more bulbous and stiff kb07 style eartip and a short widebore set. It’s great to see multiple styles of tips being included with a budget iem, also comes with 3 sets of nozzles that each change the sound (white, red and black), a polishing cloth, a light blue carry pouch  and a 4.4 mm termination. The accessories on the nimbus are excellent.

The Sound

The Juzear Nimbus is a single DD iem that has a warm and dense sound signature with different nozzles that change the sound and surprisingly well controlled treble. I primarily used it with the black nozzles since I liked them the best.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Nimbus has well extended, deep reaching subbass with good rumble and texture. It has a nice filled in mid bass boost but it feels like slow bass, kickdrums sound more on the thuddy side, nimbus lacks that extra bit of punch in its attack, I would definitely prefer it to have more fast and snappy bass. Bass guitars could use a little more edge and bite to give them more definition (I'm guessing this is due to relaxed low-mid treble).  Bass shape is generally nice especially if you’re coming from harman iems like truthear zero blue or gate, it’s way less boomy. 
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): The nimbus has a warm sounding midrange for sure, especially with the black nozzles, female vocals sound fairly natural and way less shouty than say old meta sets like zero red and zero blue (or even the red nozzles). Male vocals don’t sound as full as I would like and it lacks the “glow” I love when the ear gain is even reduced with more filled in lower mids (pure does this well). I do think the slight lower mids scoop here makes sense given the dampened low-mid treble to still keep it from sounding overly warm. The red nozzles have the most noticeable impact on the midrange, it brings forth the 2k and 4k more and ends up making the female vocals sound more nasal. White nozzles are kind of a middle ground. People that come from harman/old meta tunings and want more energy in their female vocals will probably prefer the red nozzles though.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): I find the mid treble on the nimbus is very smooth and safe. Cymbals, hi hats, and snare hits sound very natural with zero glare or metallic sheen. This makes it extremely non fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. However, I would still like a touch more energy here. It misses that sharp, crisp bite on cymbal strikes, and anyone transitioning from brighter, Harman tuned or V shaped sets will likely perceive this tuning as blunt or dull. I hear a small peak at 7.2 Khz during sine sweeps but it is not bothersome during listening at all so I didn’t bother with eq. There is zero added sibilance as well.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): The nimbus has excellent upper treble dampening which prevents the upper treble shrill I usually get with single DD iems, the upper treble is also very relaxed which could cause people to perceive it as less “technical” or not “resolving” enough but I’ll take the nimbus’s smooth and relaxed upper treble over a piercing peak any day. It is well extended to 18 Khz with rolled off (but still audible) around 20 Khz.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Thuddy mid bass, relaxed mid and upper treble could cause people to hear it as less resolving especially if they come from treble boosted iems, reasonably good imaging.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular budget iems:

• Truthear Hola: Nimbus has significantly smoother treble and comparatively more natural midrange. Much better built as well.
• 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2: nimbus again has a more natural mid range, much more dense sounding, much better cable and shell. Both are very smooth and dampened treble.
• Tanchjim Bunny Dsp: Nimbus is significantly denser and warmer sounding, doesn’t have the brutal upper treble spike, much better cable and build.
• OoopusX OP.22 (neutral): Op.22 has wayy less bass than the nimbus, it’s significantly brighter but I prefer op.22’s treble presentation. Nimbus is much more comfortable with better bass, better built shells and much nicer cable 
• Truthear zero red: Probably the most popular $50 iem. Nimbus has smoother mid/upper treble and less shouty vocals. Much better cable and shell as well.
• Truthear Pure: Better mid bass punch, warmer more filled in midrange compared to nimbus, nimbus has smoother mid treble. Build quality and cable is much nicer on nimbus.
• Truthear Hexa: Nimbus has wayy more bass than the hexa with fuller sounding midrange with a lot of body, less peaky in the mid treble than hexa but if you’re coming to nimbus from the hexa you'll likely find the nimbus dull.
• Aful Explorer: My benchmark for a warm and dense sound signature, the explorer takes a way more restrained approach to vocals makes it sound much more recessed. Bass on the explorer feels more rubbery/elastic compared to nimbus which is more thuddy. Nimbus strikes a nice balance here, where if you want a warm sound signature but find the explorer too dark, nimbus is a great middle round.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want a well built iem with great cable and accessories.
2. People that want a warm dense sound signature.
3. People sensitive to mid treble looking for a non fatiguing iem.

Who should avoid this?

1. People who equate resolution with aggressive treble
2. People that want something neutral.
3. Fans of harman or V shaped tunings

Conclusion

There are not a lot of warm and dense sounding iems in the $50 tier and the nimbus fills this gap pretty well. It's a great iem for anyone looking for a well built iem they can listen to for hours and hours without getting fatigued. It’s also a great value package that comes with an excellent cable that’s better than anything else you’ll find in the price range.

TL;DR

The Juzear Nimbus is a great offering for $55 with exceptional metal and glass build quality, modular tuning nozzles, and a great modular cable. It has a warm, bassy and fatigue free sound signature with smooth, safe treble, though people who are used to brighter tuned iems may find it dull. 

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by HiFiGo for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro with the 3.5 mm termination.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of solid cnc machined metal shells, build quality feels excellent. The shells are medium sized with relatively short nozzles, it should fit most ears fine. The faceplate is made of blue coloured mirrored glass which I’ve never seen before. There is a juzear branding on the left faceplate and the right faceplate has nothing on it. The blue glass looks extremely clean to me, I love how reflective it is and surprisingly it doesn't attract fingerprints. I love the clean and polished aesthetic of the nimbus and the build quality is second to none, some of the most premium feeling iems I've handled. The removable nozzle mechanism seems well threaded.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: Fit on the nimbus is fine, no issues for me here. It’s a shallow fitting iem so you’ll be relying on a bigger eartip to seal well. It also doesn't stick out of my ears at all so this could be a good option for sleeping, especially considering how well built the shells are. There are two front vents on each ear piece so the isolation on these are just average. Overall the nimbus is a very comfortable iem to use because of both the shell and sound signature.
• Cable & Accessories: The nimbus comes with a 2 wire braid that splits at the Y split. It’s probably the best cable I've seen at this price tier. It’s just the right amount of flexible so it doesn't feel sloppy or stiff, with a great interchangeable termination system that is short and is held on with a screw (best possible implementation). The cable has a grey and silver braid with matching dark grey hardware. The Chin cinch is also very functional. It also comes with 3 different styles of eartips, a soft narrow bore in dark blue, a more bulbous and stiff kb07 style eartip and a short widebore set. It’s great to see multiple styles of tips being included with a budget iem, also comes with 3 sets of nozzles that each change the sound (white, red and black), a polishing cloth, a light blue carry pouch  and a 4.4 mm termination. The accessories on the nimbus are excellent.

The Sound

The Juzear Nimbus is a single DD iem that has a warm and dense sound signature with different nozzles that change the sound and surprisingly well controlled treble. I primarily used it with the black nozzles since I liked them the best.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The Nimbus has well extended, deep reaching subbass with good rumble and texture. It has a nice filled in mid bass boost but it feels like slow bass, kickdrums sound more on the thuddy side, nimbus lacks that extra bit of punch in its attack, I would definitely prefer it to have more fast and snappy bass. Bass guitars could use a little more edge and bite to give them more definition (I'm guessing this is due to relaxed low-mid treble).  Bass shape is generally nice especially if you’re coming from harman iems like truthear zero blue or gate, it’s way less boomy. 
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): The nimbus has a warm sounding midrange for sure, especially with the black nozzles, female vocals sound fairly natural and way less shouty than say old meta sets like zero red and zero blue (or even the red nozzles). Male vocals don’t sound as full as I would like and it lacks the “glow” I love when the ear gain is even reduced with more filled in lower mids (pure does this well). I do think the slight lower mids scoop here makes sense given the dampened low-mid treble to still keep it from sounding overly warm. The red nozzles have the most noticeable impact on the midrange, it brings forth the 2k and 4k more and ends up making the female vocals sound more nasal. White nozzles are kind of a middle ground. People that come from harman/old meta tunings and want more energy in their female vocals will probably prefer the red nozzles though.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): I find the mid treble on the nimbus is very smooth and safe. Cymbals, hi hats, and snare hits sound very natural with zero glare or metallic sheen. This makes it extremely non fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. However, I would still like a touch more energy here. It misses that sharp, crisp bite on cymbal strikes, and anyone transitioning from brighter, Harman tuned or V shaped sets will likely perceive this tuning as blunt or dull. I hear a small peak at 7.2 Khz during sine sweeps but it is not bothersome during listening at all so I didn’t bother with eq. There is zero added sibilance as well.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): The nimbus has excellent upper treble dampening which prevents the upper treble shrill I usually get with single DD iems, the upper treble is also very relaxed which could cause people to perceive it as less “technical” or not “resolving” enough but I’ll take the nimbus’s smooth and relaxed upper treble over a piercing peak any day. It is well extended to 18 Khz with rolled off (but still audible) around 20 Khz.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Thuddy mid bass, relaxed mid and upper treble could cause people to hear it as less resolving especially if they come from treble boosted iems, reasonably good imaging.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular budget iems:

• Truthear Hola: Nimbus has significantly smoother treble and comparatively more natural midrange. Much better built as well.
• 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2: nimbus again has a more natural mid range, much more dense sounding, much better cable and shell. Both are very smooth and dampened treble.
• Tanchjim Bunny Dsp: Nimbus is significantly denser and warmer sounding, doesn’t have the brutal upper treble spike, much better cable and build.
• OoopusX OP.22 (neutral): Op.22 has wayy less bass than the nimbus, it’s significantly brighter but I prefer op.22’s treble presentation. Nimbus is much more comfortable with better bass, better built shells and much nicer cable 
• Truthear zero red: Probably the most popular $50 iem. Nimbus has smoother mid/upper treble and less shouty vocals. Much better cable and shell as well.
• Truthear Pure: Better mid bass punch, warmer more filled in midrange compared to nimbus, nimbus has smoother mid treble. Build quality and cable is much nicer on nimbus.
• Truthear Hexa: Nimbus has wayy more bass than the hexa with fuller sounding midrange with a lot of body, less peaky in the mid treble than hexa but if you’re coming to nimbus from the hexa you'll likely find the nimbus dull.
• Aful Explorer: My benchmark for a warm and dense sound signature, the explorer takes a way more restrained approach to vocals makes it sound much more recessed. Bass on the explorer feels more rubbery/elastic compared to nimbus which is more thuddy. Nimbus strikes a nice balance here, where if you want a warm sound signature but find the explorer too dark, nimbus is a great middle round.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want a well built iem with great cable and accessories.
2. People that want a warm dense sound signature.
3. People sensitive to mid treble looking for a non fatiguing iem.

Who should avoid this?

1. People who equate resolution with aggressive treble
2. People that want something neutral.
3. Fans of harman or V shaped tunings

Conclusion

There are not a lot of warm and dense sounding iems in the $50 tier and the nimbus fills this gap pretty well. It's a great iem for anyone looking for a well built iem they can listen to for hours and hours without getting fatigued. It’s also a great value package that comes with an excellent cable that’s better than anything else you’ll find in the price range.

TL;DR

The Moondrop Chu 3 is a decent $25 IEM, but it feels more like a sidegrade than an upgrade over the Chu 2. It trades some of the Chu 2’s sub-bass and shoutiness for a much more mid-bass heavy presentation, slightly less piercing upper treble and somewhat more natural vocals but retains the same general tuning style. For some reason, the nozzle is not removable on the chu 3 despite still being brass. If you already own the Chu 2, I’d skip this one and save for something like the OP.22 or Truthear Pure.

Context

This iem was kindly sent to me by Shenzhen Audio for review, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips, coffee tips and stock tips.

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are fully made of metal with a brass nozzle just like the previous chu 2 but for some reason moondrop decided not to make this one removable, this is a major bummer since these nozzles are known to get oxidized in humid environments. So if you're from a humid area always store these in a case with silica gel when not in use. The shells feel very durable and high quality just like the previous ones. These now come in a new silver colour that looks clean, there is a moondrop branding on the right earpiece and a single stripe on the left. Build quality is very good overall, it’s built much better than other sub $30 iems.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: Fit has always been a strong aspect of the chu series and the chu 3 has the exact same fit as chu 1 and 2, comfort is excellent and the shells just disappear in your ears. The shell barely sticks out of my ears even with L size stock eartips so this could be a great iem for sleeping, cable is very light as well. They are very comfortable to wear for hours and hours, no complaints here. Isolation is average.
• Cable & Accessories: The chu 3 comes with a single strand 2 pin cable splits into 2. The cable has a right angled termination and is available in 3.5 mm only. It also comes with 3 sets of generic eartips, a soft carry case and a cable tie. The cable feels just fine, it’s better behaved than stuff like the 7hz zero 2’s cable but it’s definitely worse feeling than the tangzu waner 2 and truthear gate’s cables, the cable has no chin slider either. Overall the accessories are fine but I would've loved to see a nicer braided cable and more eartip options especially considering how much value competitors like the tangzu waner 2 red lion provides (bring back the spring tips for chu please!).

The Sound

The Moondrop Chu 3 has a single dynamic driver configuration that's supposedly tuned to the jm-1 according to moondrop’s marking materials but in actuality it’s not really jm1.

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The chu 3 has a TON of  mid bass, it slams hard with a lot of weight. Bass instruments like kickdrums and bass guitars have nice punch and texturing to them but it’s not as tactile/snappy/fast as I would like (still great for $25) so it’s definitely slow bass. The sub bass shelf has been lowered compared to the chu 2 so it doesnt rumble as hard but still has good extension and physicality, definitely prefer the more mid bass forward bass presentation of the chu 3 over the chu 2. The bass on this reminds me a lot of the Kiwi Ears Belle. I still think the chu 3 just has way too much bass quantity just like its predecessor, even though the bass shape is different. Moondrop needs to chill with the bass levels on their budget stuff but I understand the chu series being most people’s first iem and them wanting tons and tons of bass coming from consumer stuff.
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): This is where Moondrop's marketing seems misleading. While Moondrop describes the Chu 3 as being tuned to JM-1, its lower midrange recession and elevated 1–2 kHz region make it much closer to the older meta style tunings than an actual JM-1 presentation. The midrange is very similar to the chu 2’s midrange but with comparatively restrained 3k to 6k. The lower midrange scoop does balance the mid bass boost and keeps the mid range instruments well separated without sounding muddy, vocals are a bit too forward due to the elevated 1-2k region just like the chu 2. I was particularly excited to see an actual JM-1-style tuning at this price, so this is probably my biggest disappointment with the Chu 3.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): Treble is always the worst part about single DDs for me and the chu 3 is no exception, the characteristic single dd 10k dip makes treble instruments like cymbals sound slightly blunt while emphasizing the upper overtones due to the 13k peak which adds a bit of sizzle. If you want a good treble presentation I think it’s worth spending $10 more for the op.22 which solves all of the problems I had with the chu 3.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): The familiar upper treble behavior (13k peak) I often encounter with single DD sets is present here as well which I'm not a fan of but it is significantly dampened compared to chu 2. While still not ideal it’s definitely an improvement over the chu 2, reminds me of salnotes zero 2. This will cause some people to perceive it as less exciting and sparkly compared to its predecessor tho.
• Subjective Technical Performance: Mid bass is more on the thumpy side with not a lot of speed or tactility, the lower mids scoop keeps the midrange mostly clean and well separated while preventing bass bleed. Pretty much what I would expect given its tuning. Characteristic single dd 10k dip hurts treble detail and brings out the most offensive qualities with the 13k peak.

Comparisons

Compared to some other popular budget iems:

• Truthear Hola: Arguably the best budget iem from 2023, less V shaped compared to the chu 3. Much more reasonable bass levels and less aggressive vocals. Both have the same treble issues.
• 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2: My favorite $25 iem, way more sub bassy than the chu 3 and doesn’t have as much of the usual upper treble zing for a single dd. Cable, build and comfort are worse than chu 3.
• Tanchjim Bunny Dsp: On the default present it is extremely basslet, colder and brighter midrange with an even more brutal upper treble spike. But the best part of the iem is that you can eq it to sound however you want.
• OoopusX OP.22: The best sub $50 iem, follows an actually modern neutral target (still not jm1) while not having any of the treble issues like single dd sets, not to mention the bass dial. Comfort is much worse than the chu 3. 
• Tangzu Waner 2 Red Lion: Way more mid bassy while the waner 2 is more sub bassy, chu 3 has a more natural pinna unlike the waner 2s which shift the pinna backwards a little, it makes them wayy too vocal forward. Red Lion is built worse but has much nicer accessories tho.
• Truthear Pure: Better mid bass tactility, much more warmer and richer mid range and doesnt have any of the treble issues
• Truthear Hexa: much much less mid bassy but still has better attack, comparatively more natural midrange, has a sharper mid treble peak but smoother upper treble.
• Kiwi Ears Belle: Similar bass shape but with much more aggressive vocals, doesn’t have quite as much upper treble zing, worse build but better cable.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want a full metal shell that’s comfortable to wear even for small ears.
2. People that want a mid bass heavy thumpy iem.
3. People coming from mass market consumer stuff like wireless headphones, tws etc..

Who should avoid this?

1. People that are sensitive to upper treble like me.
2. People that want a more balanced approach to bass.
3. People who live in humid areas

Conclusion

Most sub $50 iems tend to be tuned very similar to each other, usually some variant of harman ie 2019 or ief 2020 and the chu 3 is no different, it’s a slight variation of the chu 2 sound signature that takes 1 step forward (less shouty vocals) and takes 2 steps backwards (non removable nozzle, price increase in most regions). If you already have a chu 2, there is no reason to upgrade to the chu 3, i would encourage you to save up a bit more and get the op.22 or even better, the truthear pure or hexa.

TL;DR

The Dunu x Gizaudio DaVinci is a solid overall package for people who want an iem with a big bass and treble boost (V Shaped) for around $300 without losing out on a very natural midrange along with excellent accessories.

Context

This iem was kindly loaned to me by u/tarunvader_10 for review. I generally prefer iems that are non sibilant with relaxed upper treble and upper mids and raised lower mids that add body to the sound (kinda the opposite of harman ie 2019).

Eartips Tested With

Audiocular flexfit, Audiocular atmos, roseselsa qt superbowl, kbear kb07, zisin tips and coffee

Sources Used

Audiocular Spark, Fiio Retro Nano, Macbook Port, Fosi K5 Pro.

Design, Build, & Comfort

• Aesthetics & Build: The iems are made of hollow resin with a stabilized wooden faceplate with a metal nozzle and wax guard, there is a vent with 4 holes on the side. These iems feel good quality in the hands but I do wish it was filled resin especially for the price. The wooden faceplate is very nice, each unit has a different pattern. There is a silver dunu text on both ear pieces. Dunu always makes good looking well built iems and the davinci is no exception.
• Fit, Comfort and Isolation: The Dunu DaVinci is definitely a large iem, with a chunky non ergonomic shell I don’t find these very comfortable to wear for long periods of time. The stock cable has aggressive preformed earhooks which also digs into my ears. Isolation is just average due to the 4 ventilation holes. Overall comfort on these is sub par, dunu really needs to start making more ergonomic shells especially given how big these are.
• Cable & Accessories: Accessories are always the strongest part of dunu iems, even on their cheaper offering and the DaVinci being $300 comes with everything you need such as 3 different sets of really nice eartips, the dunu S&S, dunu Candy tips and some bulbous tips. It also comes with a cleaning tool and a nice hard carry case that’s the right size to fit the iem, a dac and some silica gel packs comfortably. Now it comes with a dark brownish cable that feels very premium, with the best swappable termination system I’ve seen. It has a screw holding the plug so it wont come off like friction fit cables while still being very short. The cable does feel stiff which most expensive cables do, It has nice gunmetal colored hardware and a functional chin slider. The cable also matches the iem aesthetically, excellent accessories overall.

The Sound

The Dunu DaVinci has a 2 DD + 4 BA hybrid driver config, tuned to follow the “new meta” midrange by Timmy from Gizaudio (and now Hangout Audio)

• Bass (20 hz to 300 hz): The davinci is a very bassy iem with around a  6-7 db boost over jm-1 diffuse field. In short I find the bass quite overwhelming for its style of tuning. The mid bass hits hard with a lot of mass while still maintaining good definition/tactility. Bass guitars and kickdrums have a nice edge to them partly thanks to the elevated 4-6k and upper treble.While the bass shape itself is good on the davinci it just has wayy too much of it to the point where it drowns out the rest of the mix.
• Mids & Low Treble (300 hz to 6000 hz): The strongest aspect of this iem, the davinci has a very lush and natural sounding midrange since it’s based on jm-1 while avoiding sounding warm like other jm-1 esque iems such as the pure. Vocals sound correct and full however they are overpowered by the excessive amounts of mid bass. This was common with the 2024 wave of new meta tunings which took the jm-1 df and added a ton of unnecessary bass and treble which did not let the best part of jm-1 shine through, its midrange. Overall the davinci does have a surprisingly good midrange presentation for what is a V shaped iem.
• Mid Treble (6000 hz to 10000 hz): Mid treble is smooth for the most part, there is substantial elevation from 4k to 6k compared to jm1which gives treble instruments an extra bit of sparkle and presence and I hear a small peak around 7.3k but It’s nothing major. Mid treble is very solid overall on the davinci.
• Upper Treble (10000 hz to 20000 hz): Here's where this iem falls apart, there is a massive upper treble spike at 13k which makes everything sound super sharp. The entire tonality comes across and “zingy” sounding which I cannot stand. While I expected the sharp upper treble to get balanced by the massive bass boost, it unfortunately still sticks out sorely. 
• Subjective Technical Performance: The bass texturing and definition are spot on and the 4-6k elevation and 13k peak makes everything aggressive and sparkly which some might associate with technical performance, if you’re one of those people the davinci will probably satisfy you.

Comparisons

Compared to some other iems I have with me at the moment:

• Truthear Pure: A better implementation of jm-1 imo, comparatively relaxed bass and treble presentation lets the jm-1 midrange shine. Pure has a less offensive upper treble but worse mid treble due to brutal lmr.
• Truthear Hexa: DaVinci has much much better bass and denser mid range, but worse upper treble again. Davinci is also less peaky in the mid treble region.
• Fatfreq Deuce: Much less natural sounding midrange and much more shouty compared to the davinci due to scooped lower mids and boosted upper mids, upper treble is bad on both but the davinci has better mid treble. Deuce is much more subbassy.
• Punch Audio Martilo: Again like the deuce is significantly less natural than the davinci but it does do upper treble better for my ears unlike the deuce and davinci, davinci has better mid bass punch than the punch audio martilo which rumbles way harder.
• Aful Explorer: Much more denser and darker sounding than the davinci, slightly less peaky mid treble than davinci and rolled off upper treble. Explorer is more subbassy and the mid bass feels more elastic while the davinci hits harder with more weight. Less natural midrange than davinci again.

Who should buy this?

1. People that want an aggressive V shaped sounds signature with still a natural sounding midrange.
2. People that want an iem with a lot of definition and sparkle aka a “technical” sounding iem.
3. People that want a good accessories package including a great assortment of eartips, terminations, a good cable and case.

Who should avoid this?

1. People that are sensitive to upper treble like me.
2. People with small ears.
3. People who want a neutral or mid forward set.
4. People who don't want a ton of bass.

Conclusion

The DaVinci suffers from all the common pitfalls of the 2024 ‘new meta’ wave of iems like the mega 5est, Moondrop Dusk, kiwi ears ke4, project meta etc.. which added an unwanted bass shelf and overcooked treble for no reason and letting an anatomically ideal mid range suffocate under all that bloat. It’s not an iem that stood the test of time imo.