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TRUTHEAR x Crinacle Zero IEM Review

Rate this IEM

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 13 2.2%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 21 3.5%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 73 12.2%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 493 82.2%

  • Total voters
    600
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amirm

amirm

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My experience of FR measurements of stuff I actually own and use is that they very accurately describe bass response, and if it is overcooked and ruins the mids. And then there are the frequencies of the human voice. And that's what we notice, what we actually pay attention to and *hear*. The rest, unless truly awful, matters a lot less.
Very true and important lesson here.
 

Robbo99999

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Is that measured on a rigid and unchanging electro-mechanical device, or by some fantastic new method of measuring how the typical brain responds to stimuli? Which may vary from one individual to another?

To be clear, I am not disputing the usefulness or accuracy of these kinds of measurements. I'm suggesting that however useful these measurements are they do not *rigidly* define how they are actually experienced by actual humans using the same measured products. They are very useful, very interesting, make for easy comparison of certain aspects, and yet are not measuring hearing but something else which is in fact a mechanistic interpretation of a neurological and bio-mechanical experience.
I think here you're talking more about the relevance of if the Target Curve is the best curve for you as an individual based on your HRTF.
 

Robbo99999

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And another another thing (sorry, but it's late): With the upper bass bleed tamed the Moondrop Katos are much more enjoyable than these Truthears in another way: with the Truthears I experience that thing of three distinct points: "sound on the left, sound on the right, sound in the middle". With the Katos I hear a cohesive environment. No, not quite like loudspeakers but very close. Crossfeed not a temptation.
I didn't get that with the Truthears, for me the imaging was great, panning of effects were very smooth from left to right - definitely no "left blob" / "right blob" / "centre blob". Funnily enough what you described sounds quite similar to the way the HD600 works with me, but I didn't get that with the Truthears - which is good!
 

julian_hughes

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I didn't get that with the Truthears, for me the imaging was great, panning of effects were very smooth from left to right - definitely no "left blob" / "right blob" / "centre blob". Funnily enough what you described sounds quite similar to the way the HD600 works with me, but I didn't get that with the Truthears - which is good!
I'm not really referring to panning effects, though with new headphones I do check that (The beginning of Jimi Hendrix/War Heroes/01 - Bleeding Heart has a great panning effect which is a really nice excerpt if you are struggling to identify lossless vs lossy - it kind of subtly shrinks and diminishes even with very good lossy compression). I'm really referring to the impression of scale, something I notice most with orchestral music. With a good recording and headphone it feels coherent (I hesitate to say substantial or real, but there is an impression of that) but with some headphones/IEMs the same playback feels left, middle, right. Not disconnected but also not a seamless breadth. I get that seamless impression with the Moondrop Kato, as I did with Vsonic GR07 BE and Massdrop Plus before the damn things died on me. I don't quite get it with the Truthears, eq'd or not eq'd, silicone tips or foams. I suspect it is about fit or depth in the ear as it seems independent of eq. Another possibility that occurs to me is that it could be related to pressure in the ear, as these IEMs with big housings all seem to have one or two tiny vents. I wonder if this experience of pressure is something which ever gets measured by a test rig, or if it even could be. So I'm not questioning the value of measurements, or their accuracy for the most part, but I don't find that the FR curve tells everything important. It definitely identifies main characteristics and any big faults but I don't think it can always tell you if you'll enjoy the item, or why or why not.
 

julian_hughes

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(But for this post now, I don't really understand the relevance of your examples about twigs / shouting / sleeping / hair cells in your ear.)
I was offering examples of how hearing is a neurological phenomenon, albeit physically stimulated via a bio-mechanical conduit, and not a reliably reproducible mechanical phenomenon. And sometimes people definitely hear stuff which is not physically there. We get so fixed on electro-mechanical measurements (this is not a criticism of measuring!) that we seem blinded to the fact that these measurements are the product of an approximation of how we actually experience sound (hear) and of how we might experience the measured devices. Hearing is not mechanical, it is neurological, it occurs inside the brain, not in the ears. The brain can even alter those apparently mechanical responses in our ears as they happen. Naturally we try to understand sound and hearing by mechanical measurement, those are the tools we have, but we seem to have got convinced that a mechanical model is the be all and end all of understanding hearing and measuring hearing devices and then that gets narrowed down to a simple FR curve and then here we are arguing about why or why not an FR curve is all that.
 

Endibol

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This is a review, listening tests and measurements of the Truthear Crinacle Zero IEM review. It was sent to me by @crinacle as he has been a consultant on the project. It costs US $50.
View attachment 230789

I like that it has a bit of "bling" but not too much. The cord is just the right length for me (many IEMs are too short for my use). It is super flexible with very little microphonics. You get two sets of silicone pads in three different sizes which suites me fine. I wear the largest one and it stays nicely put.

The claim to fame of this IEM is that it complies with the Harman target. Let's see if that is the case.

EDIT: These are the included tips and the ones used for measurement and listening tests:
View attachment 231027

Truthear Crinnacle Zero IEM Measurements
Let's start with our frequency response measurement:
View attachment 230790

I must say I was not prepared for such a tight fit to our target! Other than a hair droop at 20 Hz and a bit deviation here and there, the response hugs our target a wet towel! Very nice. This renders our difference frequency response kind of useless:
View attachment 230791

Distortion is good enough at lower levels but gets a bit much at maximum SPL:
View attachment 230792
View attachment 230793

Group delay is not revealing for IEMs and such is the case here:
View attachment 230794

Impedance shows evidence of some tuning in bass frequencies:

View attachment 230795

The low impedance means many amps and sources can drive it but it is very low. Sensitive is on the low side as well for an IEM:
View attachment 230796

Truthear Crinnacle Zero IEM Listening Tests
As usual I start with my female vocals. My first reference track had excellent warmth courtesy of proper low frequency response. This continued from track to track with tonality that was just delightful. It not only sounds "right" but also enjoyable. The sound you get is like the best speaker in best room with no room modes. Of course there is no tactile feedback so deep bass doesn't sound the same but you get the picture.

I cranked up the volume on it and it kind of gets loud but I thought the bass started to gradually get distorted. Not a practical problem as you are not going to want to listen at those unsafe volumes.

I am sitting here typing this review and listening to it and marveling how nice every track sounds!

Conclusions
What on earth are you doing reading the rest of this review? Go and buy one of these! I don't care if you don't listen to IEMs normally. You want this IEM so you know what correct tonality is, when you listen with other transducers such as headphones and speakers. Think of it as the tuning fork that a musician uses! This IEM needs to be in your arsenal.

For those of you who use IEMs as I do in summer months (headphones wear too hot), you are in for a treat for peanuts out of your pocket. The science works. Kudos to @crinacle for advocating this execution. We are indebted to you for your contribution here.

I am happy to strongly recommend the Truthear Crinnacle Zero IEM. It brings that incredible harmony of technical excellence and superbly low purchase price.

----------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
My set arrived today. It comes in a nice box with plenty of tips to pick from.. Sound is very, very good at first listen.
I have however one question: the cable comes with some sort of pre-defined curve at the ends where you plug them in the buds. What is this for? It doesn't feel very comfortable. Perhaps I am wearing them in the wrong way? Can anyone share a picture of how you are supposed to wear them?
Thanks
 

Grobbelboy

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My set arrived today. It comes in a nice box with plenty of tips to pick from.. Sound is very, very good at first listen.
I have however one question: the cable comes with some sort of pre-defined curve at the ends where you plug them in the buds. What is this for? It doesn't feel very comfortable. Perhaps I am wearing them in the wrong way? Can anyone share a picture of how you are supposed to wear them?
Thanks
You just bend the curve around your ears, like this:
148EFA9F-33F7-412A-A6F5-16D5B66ACCAB.jpeg
 

Razorhelm

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Just add to the subjective reviews, mine arrived today and I have been listening ever since, they sound great, bass is fantastic!

I have a Nokia XR20 phone which has a has a 3.5mm headphone jack and I wanted some IEMs with no EQ requirements to use with it and these have fit the bill perfectly. Very happy!
 

Multicore

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I got mine last week and tried them out today. They sound fine. I got these for reverence and balance while mixing.

Now my ears feel hot and itchy. I can't use IEMs for long.

The packaging is weird! What's with the adolescent erotica? And the instructions are printed in off-white 0.5 point font on an off-white paper. I had to scan it and apply image enhancement to be able to read it. I'll try to attach the PDF to this post.
 

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AdamG

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I'll be giving these as Christmas gifts to everyone I know.
I have always considered you a friend and I have added you to my Christmas Card list. ;)
 

Robbo99999

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I have always considered you a friend and I have added you to my Christmas Card list. ;)
Yeah, but you've already got one, I suppose you could sell it along! :D
 

movehome

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Why would you assume it's an adolescent?
I think it's a fair criticism of the product. I watch a lot of anime and read manga and they are almost always teenage (and younger) girls. Even girls down to the age of around 5 are sexualized in Japanese media.

Anime and manga are popular worldwide, and especially in Asia, so it's probably sound marketing to put some sexy anime teen on the cover of products.
 

Jimbob54

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Well, my pair is stuck in local delivery company purgatory.

The backlash will be underway before I get chance to lavish the praise. FOMO.
 

Multicore

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Why would you assume it's an adolescent?
I'm not sure it was an assumption that I made, more like an impression that I got. It just seemed that way.

I chucked it out together with the card envelope inside. The remaining box is black and has the word ZERO on it. It can be on my desk without embarrassing anyone.
 

respice finem

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Please do. :)
The eagle has landed :)


with cable and earpieces.jpg

I will be able to do only basic listening testing right now (using my laptop), being in the process of moving house, and will edit this post when I'm done. So, take it with a pinch of salt, and please remember it's all subjective anyway.

Some general remarks: The included earpieces should fit everybody's ears - the first time the largest are too large for mine (approx. 9mm outer ear canal diameter). When connecting the cable, polarity is to be observed, obviously, and the manual shows how to connect it properly. The cable, arched at the last few cm, is supporting the fit of the IEMs nicely, so they're not likely to loosen up when I move my head. The cable itself is supple and not "microphonic". No "chemical" smell too after opening the package.

My sample came with a slightly asymmetrically mounted left "grille", IDK if it will be audible, I hope not. Am a bit anxious to try and push the "slanted" one (see pic) in deeper, yes, there is a spare pair included, but no idea how to get the mounted ones out... If I don't hear any asymmetry etc., I'm inclined to leave it as it is.

asymmetric grille assembly.jpg


spare grilles.jpg

OK, now I know how lousy a laptop's headphone output can be :p I'm hearing its idle noise already, and at maximum level it's not loud enough, oh well...
I guess I should not make definitive statements about the sound in this situation. I'll wait (up to 6 weeks alas), until everything is ready at my new location and then listen again, using a "serious" system. I'll report back again, if I can't edit this post any more, I'll do another.

A quick sound check seems OK, is the preliminary result. I can't hear any negative impact of the slightly slanted grille either.

Finding the right earpieces is a bit tricky though: The second largest pair proved to be still too large for me (I hear my own pulse), the third largest is bordering on too small (its thin "lip" probably still seals, but it feels like it doesn't). I decided to try the black foam pair (I guess this was the one used for testing) and this fit immediately. Seems to be something like memory foam. I feel like it made the bass tighter too, but not sure (see above). The catch: I don't hear my pulse with these, but I hear my muscles "working" to keep my jaw from falling (no sh!t) :oops: - luckily only when it's quiet and with no music playing. Probably this is normal, and I'm just not used to wearing IEMs, will try to adjust to it.
 
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USER

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Some additional thoughts:

After spending more time with the IEMs I realized that they are very uncomfortable to wear due to their in-ear thickness. My ear canals were getting irritated. I really do think these are a tough fit for anyone that generally uses small sized tips. I was only able to use the foam sized tips and they began to fall apart very quickly, so that was an additional issue. It got to the point that I could not see myself using them. I never realized I had such small ear canals.

However, some good news: I purchased the following tips, which were recommended here (in size small): https://audio46.com/products/moondrop-mis-tip-t55-sponge-eartips

They made a big difference in comfort. They are just a little bit thinner than the supplied tips. While not as comfortable as other IEMs I've had, they are now usable to me. So if you feel like something is off, I recommend trying these.

PXL_20220924_154554676.MP.jpg
 
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Kevbaz

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The eagle has landed :)


View attachment 233041
I will be able to do only basic listening testing right now (using my laptop), being in the process of moving house, and will edit this post when I'm done. So, take it with a pinch of salt, and please remember it's all subjective anyway.

Some general remarks: The included earpieces should fit everybody's ears - the first time the largest are too large for mine (approx. 9mm outer ear canal diameter). When connecting the cable, polarity is to be observed, obviously, and the manual shows how to connect it properly. The cable, arched at the last few cm, is supporting the fit of the IEMs nicely, so they're not likely to loosen up when I move my head. The cable itself is supple and not "microphonic". No "chemical" smell too after opening the package.

My sample came with slightly asymmetrically mounted "grilles", IDK if it will be audible, I hope not. Am a bit anxious to try and push the "slanted" one (see pic) in deeper, yes, there is a spare pair included, but no idea how to get the mounted ones out... If I don't hear any asymmetry etc., I'm inclined to leave it as it is.

View attachment 233042

View attachment 233043
To be continued...
That’s odd mine didn’t come with spare grilles, wonder if it depends on what batch.
Kev
 
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