Best 'Bang for your buck' IEM - Poll

[Chromatischism]

To me it depends on the 3-4k levels. If they are as high as Harman IE I prefer some upper bass bleed to counter balance. Overall my favorite is signature is IEF 2020 + slightly modified Harman bass. I don't see much improvement from IEF 2023, a step back if anything.

Yeah I have to revise my comment. I took another look at Harman IE 2019 and indeed the 3-4 kHz range goes way too high, and of course that is carried all the way to 8 kHz. Every time I EQ to what my ears perceive as neutral, and matching my home theater with Buchardt and Revel speakers, I end up closer to IEF 2023 than other targets I've seen. It sounds like my ears are similar to Crin's.

I have some new tips coming for my Truthear Zeros so I'll see if any of them change the tonal balance from the stock small bore tips. Have Spinfit CP145 and W1, and XELASTEC coming.

 

[tknx]

I prefer a slightly more V shape than Harman. But I love that Harman is there as a standard reference point.

 

[AudioKC]

You'd probably like Tacnchjim One DSP, it's very enjoyable in person.

View attachment 348341View attachment 348342

Shame that it does not work with iOS

 

[pk500]

I still think the Crin Zero Red is the best budget pick under $100. Terrific tuning for $55. But I can't wear them because the nozzles are so long that they feel like they're piercing my brain. I guess I know I'll never like Etymotic despite never trying Etys ...

A new contender for the best under $100 IEM: Simgot EA500 LM. Very fun tuning for $89. Not terribly V-shaped, but good bass and treble energy without sucked-out mids. Also VERY comfortable shells and nozzles for my ears.

 

[Chromatischism]

EA500LM looks more like a Harman-tuned IEM.

 

[markanini]

It's hard IMO to beat Moondrop Lan and Trutherar Red, and they have been out for ages in IEM-time, 11 months and 8 months respectively. Tanchjim One DSP has been the exception I've looked for but DSP is not for everyone.

In the above $50 range EA500LM is indeed getting lot's of positive attention right now. Being a 1DD without DSP limits the style of tuning that's achievable, most of the well liked ones have been V-shaped or Harman-ish with extra upper bass, like the EA500LM graphs.

 

[phoenixdogfan]

I still think the Crin Zero Red is the best budget pick under $100. Terrific tuning for $55. But I can't wear them because the nozzles are so long that they feel like they're piercing my brain. I guess I know I'll never like Etymotic despite never trying Etys ...

A new contender for the best under $100 IEM: Simgot EA500 LM. Very fun tuning for $89. Not terribly V-shaped, but good bass and treble energy without sucked-out mids. Also VERY comfortable shells and nozzles for my ears.

Yeah, I have them and I really love them. I switched to Devinus Velvet tips for both my Reds and my LM's. I would describe them as warm Harman. I wanted something that would favor male vocals, so my tweeks to the tuning were to bring up the lower midrange tuck at 750 hz by about 1.8 db, and to bring down some of the spiciness in the highs with a 2 db cut at 3500hz and a 1.5 db cut at 5 khz. My advice is to leave the big peak at 8 khz alone as it seems to add a lot of air.

 

[Corvuscorone]

Alle 50 dollarin hintaluokassa Simgot EW200 on mielestäni paras tarjous.

 

[muza_1]

After using them for few days I think the CCA Trio, around $30.00, are one of the best bang for bucks you can get.

 

[Chromatischism]

After using them for few days I think the CCA Trio, around $30.00, are one of the best bang for bucks you can get.View attachment 358223

Edit: didn't read properly. I shall sit in time out now.

 

[Jimbob54]

Have you listened to them?

I'm not sure what else they would be using them for

 

[USER]

After using them for few days I think the CCA Trio, around $30.00, are one of the best bang for bucks you can get.View attachment 358223

OK, I bit as I want something more comfortable for me than the Truthear Zeroes. This did it for me:

Hopefully there are no issues with distortion. I'm assuming that most iems have good distortion these days.

 

[muza_1]

OK, I bit as I want something more comfortable for me than the Truthear Zeroes.

I'm still waiting to see if anything matches the Harman curve better as I think that 2dBs makes an audible difference in the most audible range. (I think we are approaching a point where we should nit-pick and differentiate more as iems are now generally better made.) However, this did it for me:

View attachment 358288

Hopefully there are no issues with distortion. I'm assuming that most iems have good distortion these days.

I don't know if the Trio are more confortable than the Zero for everyone, they are heavy but I can wear them for a long time and I like them more than the Zero:Red and even if the switches seem gimmicky they work well if you want a bit more of bass or a bit less treble with out changing the sound signature although there are combinations that are too much.

As far as I can tell distortion is not a problem also I personally like a bit less of treble than Harman and this set is perfect also I quite like (I tend to listen at low volume) the little bump in bass for me it sounds better than the ones that have the bump in the mid-bass (+/-200Hz, like a lot of the most popular ones).

 

[CedarX]

After using them for few days

This actually brings a great point about IEMs: after a few days… there is always a better bang for your bucks—I trust all the above recommendations to be correct!

So, pick a few of these recommended IEMs, and listen to them until you despise them, or have exhausted all possible EQ trick: that may be the best bang for your bucks… not any IEM in particular.

By always chasing “the best bang” IEM, I end up with… several IEMs in their box unopen.

 

[USER]

After using them for few days I think the CCA Trio, around $30.00, are one of the best bang for bucks you can get.View attachment 358223

Just got them. Overall I like them and am happy with the purchase, however, for me they need a touch of EQ because of that small bass bump at 80dB. They don't fully pass my bass test otherwise, which consists of the tracks below.

Edit: The problem is worse with the switches turned off, which boosts the bass much more, almost counter-intuitively. With the switches up you get something like the first graph, which is much better, but for that final bit I prefer the results with EQ because Harman 2019 gives all the bass I want already.

Remember that the measurements available for this IEM were taken with knock-off couplers, so caveat emptor. I don't believe there are professional measurements available as of these comments.

Supposedly I am getting these results.

But I hope for more and possibly better measurements in order to gain confidence. I remember having to bring down the bass on my Truthear Zero EQ lower than the Harman 2019 target I got it to hit, so I am one of those people that needs *slightly* less bass. But then I listen to both modern and older music and I adjust my target to modern music, which has much more bass. With older stuff I would likely be happier.

I was playing them louder than I thought, so hopefully that's good news about distortion.

Anyways, there is no perfect IEM so I don't mind EQ. I am impressed with the build quality. Much more comfortable for me than the Zeros because the nozzle is thinner, if overall in total they are a little on the heavier side. I appreciate the minimal and small packaging. I'd rather my money go to what counts and I don't like waste. For the price I'd do these any day. Still considering the Truthear Novas though, but I'm positive I'd still need EQ at this point.

 

[markanini]

Just got them. Overall I like them, however, they need EQ for me because of that bass bump at 80dB. They don't pass my bass test otherwise, which consists of the tracks below. Too much bloat.

View attachment 358524

Supposedly I am getting these results. But I hope for more and possibly better measurements in order to gain confidence. I am still working on this EQ, which is based on the squig.link processor, which isn't high resolution, I think. I remember having to bring down the bass on my Truthear Zero EQ lower than the Harman 2019 target I got it to hit, so I am one of those people that needs *slightly* less bass. But then I listen to both modern and older music and I adjust my target to modern music, which has much more bass. With older stuff I would likely be happier. Nonetheless I don't like that hump.

I was playing them louder than I thought, so hopefully that's good news about distortion.

Anyways, there is no perfect IEM so I don't mind EQ. I am impressed with the build quality. Much more comfortable for me than the Zeros because the nozzle is thinner, if overall in total they are a little on the heavier side. I appreciate the minimal and small packaging. I'd rather my money go to what counts and I don't like waste. For the price I'd do these any day. Still considering the Truthear Novas though, but I'm positive I'd still need EQ at this point.

Most of those tracks are produced deliberately dry with an upper bass focus, just saying.

I'm not here to provide damage control for KZ though. I'm skipping this one because I tried four other KZ IEMs in the last year based on good graphs and good reviews, and they are collecting dust because my Truthear and Moondrop IEMs are what I end up coming back to for listening enjoyment.

 

[USER]

Most of those tracks are produced deliberately dry with an upper bass focus, just saying.

That's the point of the test. Regardless, the production is all high quality. Those are all giants in their genres, and they have helped shape modern music, so it isn't arbitrary either.

 

[markanini]

That's the point of the test. Regardless, the production is all high quality. Those are all giants in their genres, and they have helped shape modern music, so it isn't arbitrary either.

How does this song sound? It should be warm and bassy but clear enough in the drums and vocals.

 

[USER]

How does this song sound? It should be warm and bassy but clear enough in the drums and vocals.

Edit: these comments are with the switches turned off, which boosts the bass. It is counter-intuitive but the sound is more balanced with all the switches on even though you are raising bass and treble.

Without EQ the bass notes take over everything (not necessarily the bloom) and it is hard to focus on anything else.

I find that if you get this right, generally most things sound good. Of course there is bad or odd production but you can't dwell on that..

 

[markanini]

For my ears, right at the border of where the bass could be too much for me. That's with my EQ that brings it down 0.2dB or so from Harman. (Maybe. I'd need to have better measurements to know.) Standard, the bass notes take over everything (not necessarily the bloom) and it is hard to focus on anything else.

I find that if you get this right, generally most things sound good. Of course there is bad or odd production but you can't dwell on that..

Maybe the bass is excessively elevated in the IEM then. You played with the switches too or no?

I just find it useful to have a mix of familiar test tracks, some that are very standard, others that stress various frequency ranges. I would trust someones impressions more if I knew they did this. I shared some tricky songs mostly focused more on mids and treble in a different thread: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/headphone-and-iem-killer-tracks.44973/