Truthear GATE $17 IEM Review

[renaudrenaud]

Got my pair this weekend. I prefer the Zero2 (probably because this is what I use every day) but no problem at this cost.

One annoying point is the fact the gate is not able to be plugged with the balanced cable I use for the Zero2, the hole inside the plastic part is too small. Not a question of sound quality I am able to hear, but a question of convenience with better quality cable with no knots.

 

[Tell]

So after owning a pair of Truthear Gate a year my mic-cable, or perhaps the buttons more precisely has started to live their own life. At times they will just press randomly, even if I barely move, triggering play/pause, track changes and some annoying voice assistant that I've tried turning off completely on my Android but it's still there for some reason.
Don't know if it's bad luck or the cable in general with these that sucks.
I've ordered a new one, lets hope it lasts longer than a year!

Apart from that, I love these things! I had a pair of Zero 2 before but I prefer these things, mostly because of the cleaner and more subtle looks. Soundwise they're close enough for me to not care. Having that said I do EQ them quite precisely to be flat using a Jcally JM20 Pro, but plugging them into my phones 3.5mm port with no EQ (or maybe sometimes a low and high shelf for some overall tweaking) still sounds great, even quite loudly!

 

[Honken]

I do EQ them quite precisely to be flat

By what measure?

I too love these things to bits. Shortly after my last message in this thread my then current pair died, one side got quieter than the other and no amount of isopropyl alcohol dosing and tweezer surgery would resuscitate it. Had a few other pairs of Gates at home so I just threw the now dead pair in the electronics bin, it lasted a long time, and then I bought ten more pairs for less money than I'd pay for a halfway expensive pair of IEMs.

 

[sonitus mirus]

Got my pair this weekend. I prefer the Zero2 (probably because this is what I use every day) but no problem at this cost.

One annoying point is the fact the gate is not able to be plugged with the balanced cable I use for the Zero2, the hole inside the plastic part is too small. Not a question of sound quality I am able to hear, but a question of convenience with better quality cable with no knots.

I purchased both the Zero2 and GATE at the same time, opened and used the Zero2 first, and have not even worried about the GATE as the Zero2 is practically perfect. Looking at the profile of each, the Zero2 seems more likely to have a bit more bass, so I never even considered using the GATE.

 

[Tell]

By what measure?

I too love these things to bits. Shortly after my last message in this thread my then current pair died, one side got quieter than the other and no amount of isopropyl alcohol dosing and tweezer surgery would resuscitate it. Had a few other pairs of Gates at home so I just threw the now dead pair in the electronics bin, it lasted a long time, and then I bought ten more pairs for less money than I'd pay for a halfway expensive pair of IEMs.

By Amirs measure. Sure the high end is a bit unsure but the low end is easily EQd.

My Sony WF1000XM4 that cost ten times more than these also got one side that started to get quieter after about two years and at around the same time got a bad battery. Managed to swap out the battery but not fix the quiet bud. Won't be getting a new pair of those!
And fyi my first pair of Zero 2 also got a quiet earbud. So sure it would be nice with better build quality of these things, but seeing one can't even trust a pair 200 EUR bluetooth earbuds it all feels like a gamble anyways.

 

[kekus]

By Amirs measure. Sure the high end is a bit unsure but the low end is easily EQd.

My Sony WF1000XM4 that cost ten times more than these also got one side that started to get quieter after about two years and at around the same time got a bad battery. Managed to swap out the battery but not fix the quiet bud. Won't be getting a new pair of those!
And fyi my first pair of Zero 2 also got a quiet earbud. So sure it would be nice with better build quality of these things, but seeing one can't even trust a pair 200 EUR bluetooth earbuds it all feels like a gamble anyways.

You might have clogged the nozzle filters with earwax. I saved a few earbuds from the same issue by simply removing the filters with tweezers.

 

[Matt S]

By Amirs measure. Sure the high end is a bit unsure but the low end is easily EQd.

My Sony WF1000XM4 that cost ten times more than these also got one side that started to get quieter after about two years and at around the same time got a bad battery. Managed to swap out the battery but not fix the quiet bud. Won't be getting a new pair of those!
And fyi my first pair of Zero 2 also got a quiet earbud. So sure it would be nice with better build quality of these things, but seeing one can't even trust a pair 200 EUR bluetooth earbuds it all feels like a gamble anyways.

How do these sound, subjectively, vs your Sony WF1000XM4s?

 

[Tell]

You might have clogged the nozzle filters with earwax. I saved a few earbuds from the same issue by simply removing the filters with tweezers.

Yeah I have checked, but it's unfortunately not as easy as that.

How do these sound, subjectively, vs your Sony WF1000XM4s?

With no EQ the Sonys sounds like crap, it's muddy with to much upper bass while lacking lower bass and much of the treble. With EQ they can be quite close, but can't play loud enough for me since I need to EQ them quite hard.
Also when walking there's too much noise from your steps which I find really anonying. The ANC is great though which makes them preferable when traveling, but seeing I rarely do it I can't be bothered to try to fix them or buy new ones.

 

[Honken]

By Amirs measure. Sure the high end is a bit unsure but the low end is easily EQd.

To Harman 2019 then? I was pulling your leg a little, if one EQ'd IEMs to flat then they would sound pretty bad.

 

[Tell]

To Harman 2019 then? I was pulling your leg a little, if one EQ'd IEMs to flat then they would sound pretty bad.

Ah yeah of course, "Flat" to a Harman Would be a fun test to EQ something to completely flat, actually a bit curious how it sounds!