[Impression] FiiO E02i Rocky

E02i is basically FiiO’s answer to those who want to use their iPhone with amp but also want the function of remote and mic. Inline amp isn’t exactly the most welcomed of solution among audiophile since line-out has always been the prime choice for amping. However, given how well iPhone’s (and Apple’s products in general) headphone-out behaves, and negative from double amping is outweighed by the convenient of having one device that can do it all. That’s what E02i is about – an amp with bass boost that also acts as remote and mic. Add in your favourite pair of IEM and you got yourself a minimalistic rig.

[REVIEW] Rock It Sounds R-10, R-11, R-20, R-30, R-50 and R-Shield

It seems to come from nowhere but suddenly the R-50 from Rock It Sounds is taking Head-fi like a storm. The company is using the same OEM/ODM company we have seen in Head-fi before, but manage to tweak the products to their own design. Here is a complete overview of their current line-up.

Happy Holidays... and an announcement.

Another year comes and goes, and we have seen the busiest year at this blog so far. I was a bit late last year, and even more so this years. For that, I'll like to apologize for those who are still waiting for review that are yet to come. However, there are also a few important announcements I'll like to make right after the break.

SM64

No, not the Nintendo Super Mario 64. 

EarSonics is replacing its SM3 with an upcoming new model called SM64 - three drivers, three ways, but interestingly with what they called an 'impedance corrector' in the crossover circuit. Is it the same kind of circuit used by TDK on BA200? Hopefully yes, as it will make the IEM much easier to pair with different sources. However, with impedance as high as 112ohm, I don't see much of a problem anyway. Yes it is on the higher side of things, but sensitivity is very high as well, so typical source like iPod should drive it loud enough.

From my audition of SM2 and SM3, EarSonics tends to sound way too laid back even as a stage monitor and totally out of my preference (and I do have a fairly loose preference for a person who collect IEM). Well, If SM64 carries the same house sound, I am not sure I'll like it either.

Oh, no price yet.

[REVIEW] DUNU Crater, Hawkeye, Tai Chi and I 3C-S

It has been a year and a half since DUNU comes back to the IEM market and they are still busy bolstering their line-up. DN-17 Crater, DN-18 Hawkeye, DN-19 Tai Chi, and I 3C-S are the latest models to hit the market and we will take a quick look over them.

[REVIEW] Meizu EP-40

Meizu, once a well regarded DAP maker in China, is now perhaps most well known for their M series of Android smartphone and their previous little ‘incident’ with Apple. While headset isn’t exactly their core business, they did however have release a few models in the past, mainly as accessories to go along with their smartphone. The EP-40 on the other hand seems to be more of an independent product.

[Impression] Tralucent Audio T1

Tralucent Audio is a fairly new comer in the portable audio world and they are Hong Kong based. They are better known for their dual BA, single dynamic hybrid universal IEM ‘1Plus2’ that has a custom shell. The T1 however is their offering to the portable amp market.

Buyer Guide 2012

At the end of last year, I wrote a buyer guide for InnerFidelity.com on recommending some solid IEM choice over different price range. As many of you know, sound signature is a major factor on how I like to recommend but obviously it is not easy to recommend each sound signature on every price range. Instead, I had focused on what I believe to be more easy going and enjoyable regardless of sound preference. This year, I have created a new buyer guide here for the new IEM. Those of last year buyer guide still make good buy, but the new selection are just as excellent in value as well.

 

Woo-tallic

Astrotec AM800 with its half wood + half metal housing look rather unique in its own right. It uses dynamic driver and will hit the market by December, but no other detail for now.

[REVIEW] RedGiant Audio’s A00 Malleus and A03 Ossicle

RedGiant is fairly new company to the IEM scene. With HQ in Canada and R&D in Taiwan, the two things that can be said on their products line-up are the uniqueness in design and the high degree of completeness over product concept – making them as much as a statement of taste as they are audio gears.

Old Brand, New Direction.

(Click for larger picture)

Maxell is one of Hitachi division that focuses on PC and portable media related accessories, such as fairly low-end earphones, recordable CD / DVD and such. The company has decided to reinvent the brand for higher end audio gear, and the first two offerings are the one BA + one dynamic hybrid DBA700 and the dual dynamic DD600. Priced at estimated US$120 and US$95, these seems to be too good a deal to resist and certainly a great move on Hitachi's part to introduce itself to a very competitive market. Both will hit the market at 10th of December in Japan and hopefully Hitachi won't keep them to the Japanese market only.

[UPDATE] The rest of the world might see them at Jan, 2013. Rejoice!

[REVIEW] Astrotec AM90, AS100HD and AS200HD

Astrotec is a company that doesn’t seems to have much of a name in the headphone business, even though it has been found back in 2002 making and designing headphone for others. But with so many small OEM/ODM headphone companies in China, you simply won’t make a name unless you have something different to show for – and that’s exactly what Astrotec did a few months ago with the release of AM90 under their own brand, as one of the cheapest single balanced armature IEM in the market. They have also expanded their line-up with two small portable on-ears as well, among others. So far, budget market seems to be their main focus.

[REVIEW] SoundMAGIC HP100

I have had this pair of headphone for a couple of months now but the process of reviewing is quite a slow going, mainly because I was trying to find a really good setup to bring out the best of HP100. As the first pair of full size from SoundMAGIC, they have chosen to go for a more neutral and analytical sound. Though I personally consider myself a neutral and analytical lover with IEM, I tend to opt for something more warm with supra-aural and circumaural to compensate for the lack of isolation. After flittering with different setup, I think I have found my favourite combination and it is time to give HP100 its long delayed review.

Atomic Steel

Atomic Floyd has been known to make beautiful IEM in steel, the new PowerJax+Remote is no exception. MSRP is about US$160.

[Impression] Apple Nano 7G + Lightning-to-30pin adapter

It seems the Apple’s focus these days is more on iPhone and iPod Touch, but much less so on the other iPod line. I have been looking for a decent small DAP for a while now as my Fuze and C30 have started to show some age. The new Nano comes in just the right time as it has pretty much all the features I am looking for, particularly the support of Bluetooth since I am spending quite some time on BT headset these days. Anyway, I have been playing around with the new Nano 7 for a couple of weeks now so I thought I’ll post a quick impression in case anyone is interested.


Not my first choice of color, but beats pink or a week of waiting.

[Behind-the-Scene] The Sony MH1 R&D Story

Editor Note: ‘Behind-the Scene’ is a new segment here at InEarMatters.net that allows the innovators and engineers to tell us the story of their audio creation – from its conception, its goal, the research and development process to its fruition, and most importantly, they are told from the prospective of the creator but not through the mouth of the PR. While this is the first and only article of the series, I do hope that, in time, more manufacturers and their engineers can step up and come forth to tell us the story of their projects and products. It is about sharing the passions for audio, not selling it.

A few months ago I was contacted by Sead Smailagic, who is working for Sony Mobile as an audio designer / engineer, regarding possible review of some of the products that he has helped to develop. One of which is the recently reviewed MH1. As he had tried to explain some of the background story and engineering theory about this headset, I thought it would be great for him, as a real person who are actually involved in the research and development of a real product, to come out from behind the scene and tell you the story himself as a contributing author of my blog. Without further ado, here it is:-

*This article is available in PDF format and can be downloaded here. Due to the limitation of the website, you are recommended to download the PDF copy for larger view of all the graphs

----------------------------------
[UPDATE Nov, 6th 2012]

Editor Note: From time to time, I'll get called out as a shill. As an reviewer in an online world that is so full of fake writers, this does come with the territory. Instead of getting angry, I have learned to be in peace with myself and accept the fact that I can't prove to everyone or anyone that my intention is pure in an online world - and so, you must be your own judge on whether I can be trusted or not. 

Anyway, here is an article by another blogger that is pointing his/her finger at me, and argue that this article is 'commercially oriented excuses to sell a product". As I said, you be the judge - LINK. 

~ Tai / ClieOS 
---------------------------------- 

[Stock Headset Shootout] Apple, HTC, Samsung, and Sony.

This is intended as a quick comparison of the stock headset you’ll get from buying a smartphone these days. For most part of its history, stock headset is more like a free gift from the cellphone maker and a tool of convenience. It is not until the smartphone era that companies start to include headset that are actually decent in sound quality. In the last year or so, we even see top-of-the-line smartphones begin to be marketed with brand name headphones. But here we are not talking about Beats or Monster, just 4 common models from 4 different companies that you most likely will receive in most of their smartphone line-up. Here is the shootout between the newly released Earpods from Apple, RC-E190 from HTC, EHS64AVFWEG from Samsung and MH750 from Sony.

Into the Blue

It would seem the limited red edition of SE535LE isn't enough for the Asia market, Shure is making a special edition of SE215 as well, in a blue housing no less. The new SE215SPE claims to have 'a newly tuned acoustic network to deliver detailed sound with extended low frequency performance' using the same micro dynamic driver. I never find bass to be lacking on the original SE215 and so I don't know if the new tuning will actually be a good thing or not. But one thing for sure, Shure is getting more and more Japanese with their marketing technique (as Japanese headphone companies love their limited edition of things).

[REVIEW] Sony MW1 - Smart Wireless Headset pro

When it comes to Bluetooth, the preconception of its sound quality is generally on the negative side, even from those who have never used a BT headset before – This is no doubt the result of reading too many a horror story over the internet. The idea of a BT headset for music seems more like a mix of compromise and convenience rather than serious audiophiles gear. We have seen claims of superior SQ from BT headset manufacturers for years, but most have failed to impress and some can be actually downright awful.

Back in the days, I used to own a Sony Walkman cellphone and one of Sony better BT headsets of the time (DRC-BT15, pictured at the later section of this review). The SQ of the BT headset isn’t anywhere great. At most, it might be comparable to a rather low entry level wired IEM these days. To be frank, I was more interested in the ‘smart’ part of the MW1 as an android user rather than the SQ part as an audiophile when I was asked to review it. As long as it sounds good enough, I would have been satisfied – but MW1 turns out to be a rather pleasant surprise.

Right In The Phase

Here is the latest episode of Head-fi TV where Jude, the HF-boss, interviews Jerry Hervey @ JHAudio and  Jen Rossi @ Lantos Technologies about the latest innovation on in-ear technology. Have to give it to Jerry for solving the phase issue that has plagued the multi-drivers IEM world for years.

via Head-fi.org

[REVIEW] Sony MH1 – The Best Kept Secret

Right when MH1 ‘LiveSound’ was first announced over a year ago by Sony Ericsson (*now ‘Sony Mobile’, after Ericsson sold its share of the company to Sony early this year), I wasn’t really paying much attention to it – Why wouldn’t I, or any audiophiles in that matter? After all, it is just a “headset” by the company’s smartphone division in Eupore, not from the famed headphone team in their Japan HQ. The bias kicked in and soon I have forgotten all about it. Fast forward to a couple of months ago, I was offered a chance to review the recently released Sony Bluetooth headset for Android, the MW1 ‘Smart Wireless Headset pro’, and find myself very impressed by the sound quality of - not only the BT unit itself, but also the IEM it bundled with. It turns out to be the shorten version of MH1 adapted for the BT headset. I immediately know it is an IEM that deserved to be reviewed as a standalone product before I can review the MW1. It will help to complete the story of MW1, and really give credit to the EU team that developed the excellent sounding headset.


Sony Ericsson MH1 in bulk packaging from DX.

Stuning Design

EXS from Korea has made some excellent IEM in the past, but they just go up a notch with the new single balanced armature X15. Price is set at a fairly affordable US$90.

Triple Tap

Not that we didn't see this coming - JVC just announced upgraded models of their 'Twin System' by incorporating a third driver and make it the world first triple dynamic IEM. Two models will be released: HA-FXZ200 and HA-FXZ100. The difference between the two models are (1) the silver plated OFC in the FXZ200 vs. the normal OFC in FXZ100 and (2) brass parts in FXZ200 instead of aluminium parts in FXZ100. Thought using three drivers, the front two micro drivers of FXZ200 / 100 seems to be the same, so it is still a two ways setup like FXT90 (which has two different micro drivers) *Early report suggests it is a three-ways after all. MSRP for FXZ200 is estimated at around US$280, which is about double what FXT90 is going for these days. I really hope the extra driver and all the brass are worth that price hike.

[REVIEW] Sony XBA-1 and XBA-4

For quite some time after the success of E888 earbud in the late 90’s, Sony seemed to have quitted the serious earphone market and only interested in the consumer level products. It isn’t until 2008 that EX700 marked the return of Sony to the higher end earphone world. But even so, their attention were focused solely on single, large diameter dynamic transducer based IEM (i.e. the EX series) and reluctant to venture out from their comfort zone. Thus you can imagine that it came as quite a surprise for many when Sony suddenly announced the balanced armature (BA) based XBA series about a year ago, which subsequently has became the main line of portable earphone for the company.

The Dynamic Duo

Nocs of Sweden announced a new dual dynamic IEM called the NS600 Crush. Though they are still relatively rare when compared to dual BA, dual dynamic seems to be catching up in the market trend. MSRP is $150.

Updated Look

Originally announced about three months ago, Phiaton is getting ready to release their latest 'Half In-Ear' model, the MS200, for US$150. You might think they have gone the way of Beats in design, but actually the red scheme is always part of the MS series even before Beats' association.

[REVIEW] Sony MDR-EX600

This review might come a bit late for some as the EX600 (as well as its big brother, the EX1000) has been discontinued by Sony in some places (mostly in the West), probably in an effort to shift the market’s attention to their balanced armature based XBA series. The good news is that the IEM is still available on the open market as well as in East, so it won’t disappear from our reach just yet. Up till the release EX700 a few years ago, Sony had mostly dropped out of the business of high quality earphones (in-ear and earbuds alike), which left the market they once almost dominated to their competitor. While EX700 does mark a comeback for Sony to the portable world, the IEM itself is far from perfect. The overly bright and sibilant sounding IEM still causes my ears to ring just by thinking about it, even though it is one of the best performing flagship dynamic driver IEM of its time. The EX600, which comes almost two years later with a designated model name that might looks to be a class lower than the EX700, is actually a total upgrade.

Next Flagship

 (click for larger picture)

Here is the look of the next HifiMan flagship, the RE600 on the background. The guy in the middle is none other than Hifiman's boss, Fang himself, whom is in a PR event at Taiwan showing off the company's latest products, including their next gen top-end DAP, the HM901. 

There is also RE400, rumored also to be the co-flagship, but it is not shown at the event.

(source: erji.net)

19(v)64EARS

1964EARS is releasing their 6 drivers, dual high, dual mid, dual bass, custom IEM named the 1964-V6 soon. Costing only $650 at introduction (*meaning the price might go up later), it is one of the more affordable 6 drivers around.

October: The SONY Month

For the past few months, I have had the privilege of working with both the local and oversea Sony divisions for review samples acquisition as well as in-depth discussion over R&D on IEM and related tech. You might not know it, but getting a review sample from a big company is much harder than you think (unless you are working with big, established site like CNET, I imagine), which is why you don't see a lot of big brand names popping up in here as I have to regulate my own budget to get them and I only have that much to work with (i.e. a single flagship means I have to miss out on two~three cheaper models). Even rarer is the opportunity to talk to the engineer that develop these models.

Sony, which was once a giant in the earbuds world, started kind of slow in the IEM era. But they are definitely working hard on catching up with the competition since last year with the release of several really good sounding IEM. With October being declared as the 'Sony month' here at In Ear Matters, you can of course expect more Sony review, but we will have comparison with other IEM and gears as well - including Bluetooth headset comparison and stock smartphone headset shootout (the new EarPod included!). Last but not least, we will have an article from a contributing writer (whom is an Sony engineer himself) telling us about the intricate process and tech in IEM R&D. This will be our first 'Behind-the-Scene' article and hopefully we will have more in the future. All and all, this will be an interesting month :)

[REVIEW] EOps noisezero Sport+

Never heard of an IEM brand called EOps? How about Michael Young? I don’t blame you, especially if you don’t usually pay attention to world of style and tech design. EOps is sort of a mix between tech and fashion/style design firm where they specialize in life style products, from designer headphone and speaker to backpack, and they have been working with Michael Yong, a multi award winning designer from UK, for quite some time now. They have done a few recycled materials based products/projects in the past, but this time they are partnering with Coca-Cola for a little more brand recognition. The IEM itself is manufactured using PET plastic recycled from Coca-Cola bottle and the whole product contains about 20% of recycled material. While recycling is definitely a good thing, does it actually good as an IEM?

[Impression] Tube Amp BL-2 - Portable Miniature-tube Amp from China

The BL-2 is a little tube amp from a fairly new Chinese amp manufacturer called ‘Tube Amp’. Perhaps not the most ingenious of naming, they do however only focus on portable tube amp. The DIY’er behind the company began his own quest of building a portable tube amp years ago, and has successfully launched a commercial model named BL-1 (with subsequent reversions) even before starting up the company. BL-2 is his latest update and replacement of BL-1. It has a MSRP of RMB2600 in China, roughly equal to US$410. As far as I know, no official international dealer besides a few in Hong Kong and Taiwan for the moment. The discontinued BL-1 on the other hand can still be found on eBay for around $290 with shipping included.

Another Day

Sunrise has been awfully quiet for a little over a year now, mainly because they lose some of their main international dealers. They are however still active in China, released several new products over the last few months. Now they are ready to go back to international market again with these updated models, including several earbuds (Feeling 2, Dragon 2, etc) as well as USB DAC and amp, though detail is not yet released. They have also teased us with stunning rendering of new models they are working, check it out after the break.

Tiny DAC, Big Sound – Impression of Stoner Acoustics UD100 vs. ODAC

Stoner Acoustics is a fairly new start up by a DIY’er that has been pretty active in the local (Malaysia) audiophile community. By no mean his first project, the UD100 is however his first commercial product under the new company and it is aimed to deliver maximum bang for the buck sound quality with a minimalistic design for US$49 / RM138

New Comer

It would seem we have a new headphone company popping up just about every other days now, but here is one with a really interesting first offering: Tralucent Audio is selling their first IEM model, the '1Plus2', as in one dynamic + two BA, I presumed. But it is not just your typical hybrid IEM: first, it is a custom-shell universal (much like stuffs from Heir Audio or Aurisonic). Second, it uses a single large bore design instead of the typical separated sound tube. This means all three drivers are outputting to the same large bore (see in the picture above). In a way, this is almost like the AKG K3003 with a different housing. Not as expensive as the K3003, but not cheap either. At $880 a pair, it is right around the same price range as some mid- to top-range custom.

[PREVIEW] Brainwavz M5

It doesn’t seem that long ago that I reviewed the M4, a dramatically different sounding IEM from all the previous M-series from Brainwavz. While it is a good step-down alternative to the more expensive B2, it received kind of a mixed feedback from the original M series users. As expected, those who are used to a warm mid don’t always like the more V-shaped sound signature of the M4. However, the new M5 might just bring back some of the old fans.

[Impression] FiiO E09K QOGIR

Okay, here is the reversion of FiiO E9, now called E09K QOGIK. In case you have no idea what ‘QOGIK’ means, it is another name for the K2 Mountain, the second highest peak in the world. The original E9 is designed as a desktop headphone amp. It has the ability to let E7 (and latter in time, E17 Alpen) docks on top of it and utilities the line-out signal from the USB DAC. Of course, it will take any analog source as well. Basically the idea is to leave E9 at home for driving full sized headphone while using E7 for on-the-go. E09K is overall built on the same idea and design, but with upgrade features, some coming straight from user feedback.

Anew

Almost a year ago, Sony announced their first balanced armatured based IEM, the XBA series. Just a short while ago, they announced the latest addition to series, namely XBA-10, XBA-20, XBA-30 and XBA-40 (showing above). To be frank, besides using two new colour schemes and switching the cable from OFC to PCOCC (a type of OFC nonetheless), I don't detect any difference between the the current XBA series to the new addition by looking at the product pages,. In fact, the spec as well as the MSRP are identical between the old and the new series. If I had to guess, I'll say the new series looks much like a yearly minor reversion rather than actual upgrade. Well, time will tell as the new series will be released soon.

Back in the Game: UE900

Although the rumour about a new flagship universal IEM from UE has been circling around for quite a while now, the company, now part of Logitech, has shown very little sign of an actual release. The old flagship, Triple.fi 10, is one of the oldest flagship in the market, released since 2008. Here we finally have the UE900, a quad drivers (dual bass, one mid and one treble) balanced armature IEM with a price tag of $399. Given it is priced the same as TF10, this means it is highly likely the old model will finally get phased officially.

One of the more interesting bit of the story is, most of the current UE models have disappeared from UE website, leaving just UE350, UE500, UE600 and UE900 listed. Is that a sign that Logitech is cleaning up the current line-up, or maybe even trying to refocus the brand back to a more up-scaled market? I certainly think UE700 deserved to be kept as an intermediate choice.

In any case, I am glad to see Logitect/UE is finally releasing a new flagship universal IEM and not just pushing their custom IEM market.

LEAR - Back for More

I received this baby last week but have to send it back for a minor refit (common for custom,in case you don't know). Hopefully it will be back by the end of the week or likely early next. It is the new custom flagship from LEAR Hong Kong, called the LCM-5. It is dual high, dual mid, single bass in three bores / three ways configuration. MSRP is around US$900.

My first impression of LCM-5, though short, is extremely positive. Well worth the title of flagship.

[update] The LCM-5 has returned and the fit is perfect now :)

On the other hand, LEAR is also releasing a new portable amp called the FSM-02 MK2. It is basically a minor reversion (on the casing) of the FSM-02 that has been released not too long ago. No words on the price yet, but hopefully not too far from the $260 original FSM-02. [update] I was told there are other internal improvement as well, which of course add to the final cost and price.

AKG's 2nd

AKG's Chinese distributor is showing a model that is supposed to be the company's second flagship model under K3003. It is called K374, dynamic driver based, comes in three colors (red / black / white) and has a price tag around $150.

Least Expected: Ultrasone and Musical Fidelity

Here are two companies I don't expect them to release IEM. But then again, almost every other company is releasing a model or two of their own, so why not?

Ultrasone is showcasing their upcoming US$770, single dynamic + dual BA hybrid IEM called the "IQ", in the Hong Kong High-End Audio Visual Show. Head over to Engadget for the story.

British audio company Musical Fidelity is releasing an IEM of its own as well, called EB-50. It is a single BA based IEM with an estimated US$240 price tag.

New Image

When Klipsch released its first IEM (X10) a few years ago, it was nothing but awe from the community. But things took a turn for the worst when they decided to release variants of the S4 instead of bringing true innovation to the tablet. Even the Reference S4 is not what I'll call an upgrade over the original S4. The good news is, they are coming out with a new X series IEM called the X7i, supposedly a step down model from X10i featuring a proprietary single BA driver, ceramic housing and price tag of $200. Let's hope it will bring back the glory days.

[REVIEW] Blox TM7

A few months ago when Blox sent me the M2c for review, they also included a yet-to-be-released earbud labeled ‘BX3’, a prototype intended to be their next flagship. Though an excellent sounding earbuds on its own and better than M2c on certain aspects, it isn’t quite the ‘killer’ as one would expect from a model that will eventually replace M2c. Perhaps M2c is just too good of an earbud for the price (with top-tier performance no less) that it is hard to surpass with any good length. Fast forward to two weeks ago, Blox contacted me again about sending me the finalized BX3, which is now officially called the TM7. Frankly, I wasn’t keeping my hope too high at the time. Based on the BX3 prototype, I knew it should be really good sounding as well. But the question is, will TM7 be good enough to make M2c users swing, especially with the much more expensive price tag? That doubt eventually gets stamped out on the day I received TM7 – as I still remember that my usual 5 minutes brief audition before committing the earbud to burn-in somehow turned into a 2 hours long enjoyment, I know this is really something special. As I sat on the sofa listening to song after song that day, the only things that lingered in my mind are the awe for the sound and a clear thought: This isn’t the old BX3. It is a totally new beast of its own.

Designer + Brand

Interesting thing happens when you put a well regarded designer and a big beverage brand together on a mission to save the world. Okay, maybe not exactly a world-saving mission, but recycling in style is never a bad thing, especially if you can listen to music while doing it. Enter Michael Young, Coca Cola and the tech design firm EOps with their NOISEZERO Sports+ IEM that has 10% of recycle plastic bottle inside. It certainly looks good, but will it sound good as well? Regardless, I am always a big fan of titanium driver so hopeful this isn't going to be disappointing. General release is early August but not info on price yet. Lets also hope this won't get a designer price as well. [Update] The price is around US$103.