7Hz x Crinacle Zero:2 IEM Review

[staticV3]

Anyway they are so good I can hear the noise from the headphone socket (realtec 1220 sound card) of the pc for the first time. Or at least that is what I think it is. irritatingly this means I need to spend some money (not a lot of money admittedly) on a DAC to clean up the signal.

A $10 Apple dongle is all that you need

 

[Palladium]

A $10 Apple dongle is all that you need

Yup, even when the output is nerfed to 0.5V max on Android its still more than loud enough for my Truthear Zero Red on a bus commute.

Doubly so when better performing ones are often much bulkier while similarly sized ones have more measured distortion.

 

[markanini]

A $10 Apple dongle is all that you need

CX dongle is even better.

 

[TedBaker]

Thanks - I was thinking anyway the Qudelix for all my HPs off my PC which is my normal usage. I'll get a dongle for the phone though as you say. On these IEMs I noticed the buzz for the first time. I guess IEMs are more sensitive to noise. I have Sony Bluetooth IEMs XM4 and they are totally dull in comparison and thin. Never really liked them and I think they cost 10x as much. First time I have tried wired IEMs.

 

[phoenixsong]

Thanks - I was thinking anyway the Qudelix for all my HPs off my PC which is my normal usage. I'll get a dongle for the phone though as you say. On these IEMs I noticed the buzz for the first time. I guess IEMs are more sensitive to noise. I have Sony Bluetooth IEMs XM4 and they are totally dull in comparison and thin. Never really liked them and I think they cost 10x as much. First time I have tried wired IEMs.

For you this iem is a great start; for me it's a great ending. Both of us are happy

 

[InfiniteJester]

Well, you made me buy more stuff. Congratulations.

We will see how well they fare against the much more expensive FH9.

 

[Grobbelboy]

Thanks - I was thinking anyway the Qudelix for all my HPs off my PC which is my normal usage. I'll get a dongle for the phone though as you say. On these IEMs I noticed the buzz for the first time. I guess IEMs are more sensitive to noise. I have Sony Bluetooth IEMs XM4 and they are totally dull in comparison and thin. Never really liked them and I think they cost 10x as much. First time I have tried wired IEMs.

Not a bad idea to get a Qudelix (also easily useable with a phone) if only to be able to apply the suggested EQ by Amir, which instantly makes the Zero 2 endgame audio gear.

 

[InfiniteJester]

Or a tactile identifier like the little dots on the left headphone as on some Sennheisers.

You mean an "L" in Braille?

"L" being, notoriously, the first letter in the word "left".

Exactly, for your ears. I did say it was for those who have hi-res subscription, using the Apple dongle will be a waste of money for them.

Some people says 128 kbps MP3 sounds excellent, some thought CD quality is good enough, but if that’s their standard I don’t expect them to be here. I just thought most of the members here would want something more.

Again, my comment was for hires subscribers who I thought would be the majority here, I was wrong.

Given the "science" in the title; has ever been shown that people can distinguish v0 from lossless at ABX tests?

Can you distinguish Hi-Res?

ABX High Fidelity Test list

A set of browser-based ABX tests comparing lossless and lossy music samples

abx.digitalfeed.net

I myself only scored very slightly above chance (64% or something like that, I truly don't remember). And that was just probably the effect of randomness over a normal distribution.

 

[InfiniteJester]

Well, they came this morning.

The most impressive thing that you can find about them is how unimpressive they are. They have no jaw-droppings flaws or shortcomings once you have applied to them some decent tips (SpinFit W1) and the Crinacle AutoEQ.

These are completely unremarkable IEMs, which, at this price, is a huge win. I would say that 20 years ago you would have gotten some disgusting piece of slime-producing intra-aural apparatus after paying what I paid for these (19,66€); but keep in mind that the tips that I'm using, and that I find essential, cost 18,43€; that the really useful Poweramp equalizer costs 1,49€, and that the required dongle, which is now a must, costs at least 10€ (I have an Apple one and an Ifi GO Link for the more beefy stuff, given the issue with the Apple dongle, Android and the UE; [PD: do NOT buy Samsung's dongle]), and you are getting your introductory/cheap hi-fi experience for a hair less than 50€.

Still a pretty good deal, though. And probably one of the most reasonable entry points to this hobbie. But I believe that you need good tips and the EQ if you want a well-rounded sound with these.

Should you believe the hyperbolic claims about how perfect they are? I don't think so.

They sound correct, they are very comfortable, they are visually pleasing (I went with the silver ones) and they don't have any gimmicks to grab your attention.

They would make a good gift for someone who is not yet into hi-fi. But if you already have some good IEMs, you probably won't be needing these. I must add that these are probably 85%-90% up to what really expensive IEMs will give you. Law of diminishing returns and so on. And you probably don't really need anything more than these, except if you are absolutely nuts, which I am.

My vote goes for "fine".

As it may be obvious, everything in this comment is just my opinion. Others may believe things that are completely different from what I believe, and that is entirely fine. If you want objectivity; please, go back to the very appreciated graphs.

 

[markanini]

Well, they came this morning.

The most impressive thing that you can find about them is how unimpressive they are. They have no jaw-droppings flaws or shortcomings once you have applied to them some decent tips (SpinFit W1) and the Crinacle AutoEQ.

These are completely unremarkable IEMs, which, at this price, is a huge win. I would say that 20 years ago you would have gotten some disgusting piece of slime-producing intra-aural apparatus after paying what I paid for these (19,66€); but keep in mind that the tips that I'm using, and that I find essential, cost 18,43€; that the really useful Poweramp equalizer costs 1,49€, and that the required dongle, which is now a must, costs at least 10€ (I have an Apple one and an Ifi GO Link for the more beefy stuff, given the issue with the Apple dongle, Android and the UE; [PD: do NOT buy Samsung's dongle]), and you are getting your introductory/cheap hi-fi experience for a hair less than 50€.

Still a pretty good deal, though. And probably one of the most reasonable entry points to this hobbie. But I believe that you need good tips and the EQ if you want a well-rounded sound with these.

Should you believe the hyperbolic claims about how perfect they are? I don't think so.

They sound correct, they are very comfortable, they are visually pleasing (I went with the silver ones) and they don't have any gimmicks to grab your attention.

They would make a good gift for someone who is not yet into hi-fi. But if you already have some good IEMs, you probably won't be needing these. I must add that these are probably 85%-90% up to what really expensive IEMs will give you. Law of diminishing returns and so on. And you probably don't really need anything more than these, except if you are absolutely nuts, which I am.

My vote goes for "fine".

As it may be obvious, everything in this comment is just my opinion. Others may believe things that are completely different from what I believe, and that is entirely fine. If you want objectivity; please, go back to the very appreciated graphs.

I agree with most of your points. After all Amirs reviews all have a subjective section too, so I've got your back if anyone wants to argue with your experience.

 

[CedarX]

They have no jaw-droppings flaws or shortcomings once you have applied to them some decent tips (SpinFit W1) and the Crinacle AutoEQ.

Crinacle AutoEQ: which “target” are you referring to in AutoEQ?

 

[phoenixsong]

Well, they came this morning.

The most impressive thing that you can find about them is how unimpressive they are. They have no jaw-droppings flaws or shortcomings once you have applied to them some decent tips (SpinFit W1) and the Crinacle AutoEQ.

These are completely unremarkable IEMs, which, at this price, is a huge win. I would say that 20 years ago you would have gotten some disgusting piece of slime-producing intra-aural apparatus after paying what I paid for these (19,66€); but keep in mind that the tips that I'm using, and that I find essential, cost 18,43€; that the really useful Poweramp equalizer costs 1,49€, and that the required dongle, which is now a must, costs at least 10€ (I have an Apple one and an Ifi GO Link for the more beefy stuff, given the issue with the Apple dongle, Android and the UE; [PD: do NOT buy Samsung's dongle]), and you are getting your introductory/cheap hi-fi experience for a hair less than 50€.

Still a pretty good deal, though. And probably one of the most reasonable entry points to this hobbie. But I believe that you need good tips and the EQ if you want a well-rounded sound with these.

Should you believe the hyperbolic claims about how perfect they are? I don't think so.

They sound correct, they are very comfortable, they are visually pleasing (I went with the silver ones) and they don't have any gimmicks to grab your attention.

They would make a good gift for someone who is not yet into hi-fi. But if you already have some good IEMs, you probably won't be needing these. I must add that these are probably 85%-90% up to what really expensive IEMs will give you. Law of diminishing returns and so on. And you probably don't really need anything more than these, except if you are absolutely nuts, which I am.

My vote goes for "fine".

As it may be obvious, everything in this comment is just my opinion. Others may believe things that are completely different from what I believe, and that is entirely fine. If you want objectivity; please, go back to the very appreciated graphs.

You mentioned that these offer 85-90% of what really expensive iems would. How are these numbers derived? What would that extra 10-15% consist of? Are these numbers obtained through level-matched blind listening tests? If you'd only give these a "Fine" rating despite their performance to price ratio, what would you give a "Great" and why?

 

[Booker]

I have had it for almost two weeks. I came across this review for no reason, but after reading Amirm's review, I decided to give it a try. The original TH ZERO caused pain in my ears within an hour due to the ergonomic design. However, the 7Hz ZEROes are quite flat. Also, the left earpiece did not seal properly, so it was always out of place. I purchased the SpinFit CP 100 to address these issues and have been very pleased with it. I am not the person to describe the sound signature in comparison to the TH ZERO.

 

[threni]

You mentioned that these offer 85-90% of what really expensive iems would. How are these numbers derived? What would that extra 10-15% consist of? Are these numbers obtained through level-matched blind listening tests? If you'd only give these a "Fine" rating despite their performance to price ratio, what would you give a "Great" and why?

I guess to get a higher rating than fine it'd have to do a bit more than simply accurately reproduce the input signal.

 

[InfiniteJester]

I agree with most of your points. After all Amirs reviews all have a subjective section too, so I've got your back if anyone wants to argue with your experience.

Thanks, friend. I would love to read what you don't agree with. I'm here fundamentally to learn and I would like to know where you differ. Cheers!

Crinacle AutoEQ: which “target” are you referring to in AutoEQ?

I'm currently using this:

In Poweramp equalizer, as stated.

I also tried the one based on the 711 measures, which I know that are regarded as inferior, but, while I found the sound clearer and with more presence, I ended up thinking that it was fatiguing and went for the more controlled and well-rounded sound derived from the B&K measure.

You mentioned that these offer 85-90% of what really expensive iems would. How are these numbers derived? What would that extra 10-15% consist of? Are these numbers obtained through level-matched blind listening tests? If you'd only give these a "Fine" rating despite their performance to price ratio, what would you give a "Great" and why?

Maybe I made a mistake by providing numbers; I surely made a mistake by not using a ∼ before said numbers. They reflect my subjective experience, and they are not derived from any objective measure. It was not my intention to not make this clear, but I struggle a bit with words in general and with this language in particular. I derived my opinion from constantly testing them against my most expensive IEMs, the FH9. I couldn't blind match them, because they feel different enough that I could never mistake one from another except if I, somehow, shut down my tactile perceptions. I know about expectation bias and I know that the price and the build "quality" may influence my auditory perceptions; may, I insist, because I'm very skeptical of the research on automaticity and biases; you can read a good explanation to what I mean here:

Against Automaticity

An explanation of why tricks like priming, nudge, the placebo effect, social contagion, the “emotional inception” model of advertising, most “cognitive biases,” and any fiel…

carcinisation.com

That extra, again: completely subjective percentage points (which were a poor way to express myself, I insist), came from my experience of soundstage, imaging, separation and holography, all very ethereal categories, I know, but let me elaborate. I get the impression, which may not be replicable, but you can read above what I think about automaticity, that the sound of the semi-open FH9 surrounds me better and provides increased immersion and positioning. I'm not aware of an objective metric that would allow me to precisely measure those perceptions. I know that Rtings tries to measure this, but, as far as I know, that is mostly relevant to headphones and not IEMs. Of course, regarding to soundstage, separation and imaging, even the 101€ HE400se, which I like very much, blows FH9 out of the water, and any decent speaker blows any of my headphones.

I listen to very layered and complex music and I sometimes get the impression of the Zero 2 sounding inferior at reproducing very exigent albums. I may provide a list of the things I have been listening to if you want to test by yourself. They sometimes sounded a little thin, lacking punch, weirdly positioning things and, in my personal experience: while still good, not completely satisfactory.

I know that multiple drivers on an IEM are a very controversial thing for a variety of reasons. But it exists the possibility that they play a role here. I don't truly know.

I only evaluated them against my preferred listening experience. If I need to evaluate them in a cost to performance measure, they would get probably an A. They are a better deal than the FH9s for sure.

I hope that I have clarified what I meant by the things I wrote. Please, ask to me to elaborate anything you may like and correct me if you think that I'm wrong. I'm here to learn.

I guess to get a higher rating than fine it'd have to do a bit more than simply accurately reproduce the input signal.

While I understand your point, I would refer you to my previous reply if you want some further clarification.

 

[markanini]

I agree with most of your points. After all Amirs reviews all have a subjective section too, so I've got your back if anyone wants to argue with your experience.

Only that I can't corroborate your experience on the IEM, I only owned it's predecessor 7Hz Zero.

But you are absolutely correct that anything can be overhyped, and personal evaluation is required for IEMs.

 

[InfiniteJester]

Btw, an image of the mentioned IEMs, as I know that you are supposed to prove that you really have the things you are talking about. I have read a lot of mockery of people who review things and only show stock photos.

 

[mc.god]

Very different FR, surely it will affect spatial perception, but I agree that there are many hardly measurable points contributing in forming our subjective experience with IEMs and HPs.

 

[InfiniteJester]

Very different FR, surely it will affect spatial perception, but I agree that there are many hardly measurable points contributing in our subjective evaluation of IEMs and HPs performance.

View attachment 351959

I use the treble filter, though. Which, according to the source you provided, doesn't change things much, but I don't think that that is true. And that makes me doubt the measuring.

Balanced:

Treble (the one that I use).

 

[mc.god]

I use the treble filter, though. Which, according to the source you provided, doesn't change things much, but I don't think that that is true. And that makes me doubt the measuring.

View attachment 351972

Balanced:

Treble (the one that I use).

Well, I did't check on Crin's site, his BK5128 measurements are surely most reliable, especially in the treble area:

Anyway that was just to get an idea of the FR differences between the 2 iems that surely impact spatial and imaging perception.