Truthear Gate

[posvibes]

Since joining ASR I have accumulated a small collection of IEM's all of which are Truthear models plus the Chu II, thanks to Amir!

It matters not a jot which pair I use and how they differ one from the other, but I find them all crazily good and high fidelity performers. But the Gate's, they are probably my overall favorites with no EQ. They are by a long shot the most comfortable, although I use them with triple flange L sized tips.

My partner and I are thinking of downsizing considerably to move closer to city and our two children and brand new grandchild. I have so, so much stuff to get rid of just as far as my Hi-Fi gear is concerned. It is mind blowing to know that in the very unlikely case I had to be rid of everything I could still survive with just my I Phone, apple dongle, a streaming service and a pair of Gate IEM's.

 

[Matias]

Gate is really good, I spent all morning listening to it and it is physically and audibly very comfortable.

 

[markanini]

Gate is really good, I spent all morning listening to it and it is physically and audibly very comfortable.

Fit and comfort is a step up coming from 7Hz Zero?

 

[Matias]

I would say fit is comparable. And both fit me better than my favorite, the Reds. But this is so personal, people have all shapes of ears, so this is specific for me I guess.

 

[markanini]

I would say fit is comparable. And both fit me better than my favorite, the Reds. But this is so personal, people have all shapes of ears, so this is specific for me I guess.

I have a long session comfort issue with 7Hz Zero personally. But this will not be an issue for everyone. If I would generalize Gate is a safer shape.

 

[mc.god]

I have a long session comfort issue with 7Hz Zero personally. But this will not be an issue for everyone. If I would generalize Gate is a safer shape.

For me it is the opposite, Gate\Hola seems more comfortable at start but give me a bit more fatigue on long run than 7Hz Zero, but I agree that probably they are safer in a general way.

 

[markanini]

For me it is the opposite, Gate\Hola seems more comfortable at start but give me a bit more fatigue on long run than 7Hz Zero, but I agree that probably they are safer in a general way.

I could see that, the Gate nozzles are fairly large, even I start feeling something on marathon session.

 

[mc.god]

I could see that, the Gate nozzles are fairly large, even I start feeling something on marathon session.

I don't think it's due specifically to nozzle diameter, I measured with a caliper and Hola\Gate nozzle are practically the same as 7hz Zero:

Gate\Hola:
neck: 5.4 mm
flange: 6.3 mm

7Hz Zero:
neck: 5.5 mm
flange: 6.3 mm


I think it's more to how the nozzle is angled in relation to the internal face of the iem wen you rotate them to the right angle that give you good seal.
Also for me the presence of a wing on the back of the internal side seems to aid, Sonus (again same nozzle width) have that and they are the most comfortable for me overall.

 

[Matias]

I just donated the amount of a Gate for Amir to order and review one, so I am already looking forward to the review whenever it comes out.

 

[zonk]

Link to Truthear Gate measurements by oratory1990

 

[mc.god]

For anyone using Gate (or Hola) with stock wide bore tips, i just tried on the Tri Clarion (larger ones) and I find it a fantastic pairing, superb comfort and exceptional seal with no strange impact on FR if not an even deeper sub bass (maybe placebo).
Definitely worth trying given the very good sale you can find them at Aliexpress.

 

[Dazerdoreal]

Being a dorky nerd, I could not resist the urge to buy another IEM.

The timbre of the Gate is very good overall but indeed too much focused in the upper mid frequencies.
The Kiwi Ears ear tips helped here. They gave a subbase boost which kind of reduced the shoutyness and expanded the soundstage.

As typically in budget IEMs and particularly on this one, the one-note upper treble is the only aspect sound-wise which still might make you realize this is a cheap IEM. You have one peak around 13k and otherwise there is not much.

Otherwise this insane for below 20. There are still so many non-enlightened people who are not aware what great sound they can get for this price.

 

[mc.god]

Being a dorky nerd, I could not resist the urge to buy another IEM.

The timbre of the Gate is very good overall but indeed too much focused in the upper mid frequencies.
The Kiwi Ears ear tips helped here. They gave a subbase boost which kind of reduced the shoutyness and expanded the soundstage.

As typically in budget IEMs and particularly on this one, the one-note upper treble is the only aspect sound-wise which still might make you realize this is a cheap IEM. You have one peak around 13k and otherwise there is not much.

Otherwise this insane for below 20. There are still so many non-enlightened people who are not aware what great sound they can get for this price.

This is why although loving Gate, 7Hz Sonus remain my reference and preferred iems among ones i own

 

[Ste_S]

I really can't get behind the boosted upper mids/lower treble of the GATE:
View attachment 374663

EQing that area back down to Hola levels gives me instant relief.

The harshness/sibilance goes away and things start sounding "right" again.

Example song:

I've recently brought a pair of these and they absolutely have that 4k-ish problem. Without EQ, music outside of that range sounds great, but as soon as the music enters that range it's a bit *honk*.

Otherwise, these continue the trend of Truthear's IEMs with the wide bore nozzle giving my large ears a good seal. I wish Truthear would bring back the Hola, as that was the perfect balance for stock tuning and good fit for me.

 

[1337wafflezz]

Ok so…I had recently settled on double flange and those were amazing truly! The bore size was bothering me though too chunky even for the gate’s nozzle and so I tried some small triples.
HOLY. CRAP.
Same benefits as double flange but somehow even smoother treble and with proper seal they are bass MONSTERS. But still not muddy in any way.
>non recessed mids
>hella slapping bass
You guys have to try deep insertion tips this absolutely transforms them.
Listener recently just squiggled the gate on the 5128 and I believe the machine’s perception is actually pretty good! I overall agree with the 5128’s take on the gate’s tonality with normal tips. If the normal line is how the gate sounds with shallow tips? My blue line is how it sounds with triple flange. It is nothing short of amazing. Think sennheiser HD650 mids up to 3000hz but much better treble extension and a proper MEATY bass boost as opposed to before where gate was “harmanish” 150hz-500hz tucked mids.
Now it’s a full blown HD650 but with proper tweeters and subs in a single DD for $20. Un. freaking. real.
I am now lovingly dubbing these gateymotics…or would they be gatetymotics? Whatever lol let me know if you come up with a better name
Hope i’m not hyping it up too much. Deep insertion tips are a menace to get used to so please don’t say I didn’t warn you. it’s not all rainbows and sunshine but if your ears are compliant then…wow.
maybe the tang sancai narrows will have the same or similar effect as double/triple flange

 

[Matias]

I have been using my Gate more lately too and it is a darn good IEM, very well balanced. I think it is currently my favorite around 20 USD, more than both 7Hz Zero 2 and Zero 1.

The cheap chassis is so light and the mold both make it so comfortable!

I also enjoy looking the driver through the window. It's been months and it is still cool.

 

[mc.god]

Ok so…I had recently settled on double flange and those were amazing truly! The bore size was bothering me though too chunky even for the gate’s nozzle and so I tried some small triples.
HOLY. CRAP.
Same benefits as double flange but somehow even smoother treble and with proper seal they are bass MONSTERS. But still not muddy in any way.
>non recessed mids
>hella slapping bass
You guys have to try deep insertion tips this absolutely transforms them.
Listener recently just squiggled the gate on the 5128 and I believe the machine’s perception is actually pretty good! I overall agree with the 5128’s take on the gate’s tonality with normal tips. If the normal line is how the gate sounds with shallow tips? My blue line is how it sounds with triple flange. It is nothing short of amazing. Think sennheiser HD650 mids up to 3000hz but much better treble extension and a proper MEATY bass boost as opposed to before where gate was “harmanish” 150hz-500hz tucked mids.
Now it’s a full blown HD650 but with proper tweeters and subs in a single DD for $20. Un. freaking. real.
I am now lovingly dubbing these gateymotics…or would they be gatetymotics? Whatever lol let me know if you come up with a better name
Hope i’m not hyping it up too much. Deep insertion tips are a menace to get used to so please don’t say I didn’t warn you. it’s not all rainbows and sunshine but if your ears are compliant then…wow.
maybe the tang sancai narrows will have the same or similar effect as double/triple flange

Thank you, it's interesting, I'm not using Gate for a while now (I'm rotating periodically through all my different iems), I have a pair of unused triple flange tips so I'll try them out for sure.

 

[1337wafflezz]

Thank you, it's interesting, I'm not using Gate for a while now (I'm rotating periodically through all my different iems), I have a pair of unused triple flange tips so I'll try them out for sure.

I’ve had experience with a lot of different eartips to varying success. Most have a small difference in sound quality…I think triple flange is different for two simple reasons
1. The tips actually have a legitimately different insertion depth.
Most other tips are just adjusting bore size and comfort. I think the theory one this would be that therefore your canal resonance peak changes. For instance no matter what tip I use my canal resonance for shallow tips is somewhere around 7khz. The deep insertion actually pushes that back. Pair that with the fact that gate naturally has a dip around 10khz?…and, voila. Dip+resonance peak =theoretical perfect treble
2. For some reason these increase lower mids and bass.
I don’t think it’s a seal issue per se I get good seal with most shallow insertion tips. to my ears it sounds very similar to the 5128 representation. Despite not being blatantly Harman, a lot of people’s ears and confirmation from new measuring methods kinda show that welll…pretty much *all* “neutral measuring” iems have tucked Harmanish mids, gate is certainly no exception. The bass boost so to speak is the same deep insertion as it is for shallow but the mids increase and the boost starts from there making it sound more warm and full(but not muddy oddly enough).
My guess scientifically speaking might be since the sound is closer to the eardrum the lower frequencies are more focused maybe? idk, I can’t explain it.
I’ve never tried a “meta” tuned IEM but I presume that they sound similar to gateymotics. This is what these tips do. They downtilt the bass+mids and shift any resonance peaks for (usually) smoother treble.