TRUTHEAR x Crinacle Zero IEM Review

[Chromatischism]

If these hold their own with my $400 Periodic Be's, I'll really have some soul-searching to do...

They will sound significantly different.

 

[Chromatischism]

For the people who keep saying the Zero does not follow Harman and that it’s got too much energy 2-5khz… for under $100, is there an obviously better option that delivers everything else but fixes that problem? What is your alternative?

I use the FiiO FH3 currently and would say they don't need EQ, but could based on preference. I take 1 dB off the treble but nothing surgical. Others may leave it as-is. I tend to be sensitive to highs.

I tried the Auto-EQ to Harman with Wavelet and it sounded awful.

 

[GaryH]

For the people who keep saying the Zero does not follow Harman and that it’s got too much energy 2-5khz… for under $100, is there an obviously better option that delivers everything else but fixes that problem? What is your alternative?

I keep googling names being dropped here, like Moondrop Variations, ThieAudio Monarch Mk2, Softears RS10, etc… these are all at least $500, but many are $1000+. Let’s compare apples to apples here in the budget category.

I got the Sony MH755 for $5 and the AKG N400 for $48. You might be able to find them somewhere. The MH755 is a bit 'warm'/bassy for some, but I think most find that less objectionable than being 'shouty' as people are describing the Zero.

 

[Toroid]

Ordered these based off of Amir's review. Looking forward to hearing these!

 

[Garrincha]

For the people who keep saying the Zero does not follow Harman and that it’s got too much energy 2-5khz… for under $100, is there an obviously better option that delivers everything else but fixes that problem? What is your alternative?

I keep googling names being dropped here, like Moondrop Variations, ThieAudio Monarch Mk2, Softears RS10, etc… these are all at least $500, but many are $1000+. Let’s compare apples to apples here in the budget category.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, there is the 7Hz Salnotes Zero for about $25 which follows quite nicely the Harman target, almost exactly as much as the $320 Blessing 2 Dusk, which is already pretty close. It has also quite low distortion (see here https://www.hypethesonics.com/iemdbc/), so is easyly amendable to EQ ad libitum.

 

[posvibes]

Thank you @amirm for your services to the consumers

Hear, hear!​

 

[DarwinDaDude]

Another key point about IEMs: everything I talk about and the research relies on proper seal. If you lose that seal, bass response drops and tonality heavily shifts to high frequencies. You must assure complete seal or you will think high frequencies are accentuated. This is like a seesaw. Remove the bass and balance is completely changed.

Newly registered and first post (longtime fan of site and its scientific approach)
This is the first product that I bought after reading innumerable amirm's reviews over the year(s).
My reference is Koss PortaPro (LOL) which to my ears has great bass (that distorts at higher volumes) and somewhat recessed mids and highs. Only headphone I have used since 1990s! I don't EQ it and I listen to mostly AAC files (low res). I have tried a few other Koss headphones including a noise cancelling model but always went back to the PortaPros.
And I'm also new to IEMs
My initial impressions: WOW!
Resolution is fantastic. I'm hearing new subtleties in music that I have listened to all my life and didn't know those sounds were there!
The music with the IEMs over the audible frequencies seems to be very well balanced. Since there is so little distortion at the volumes I listen to, it is less fatiguing and quite enjoyable. To my ears there was no 'shoutiness' except in occasional recordings (poor mastering?). Even these didn't sound bad with the IEMs

However bass, at first blush, seemed lower than that of the Koss.

I second what amirm said: proper fitting is key to obtaining bass.
I haven't tried all the sizes and different bore diameters. I started out with the smallest size ones with the larger bore size. I had to jam them in quite tight in the canal to get decent bass. Now I'm testing the largest sized ones. Easier to seal, but slightly lower bass than the Koss.

Great headphones for $50. I hope they last as long as my PortaPros!

Thanks amirm for the great reviews and this one in particular!
Cheers all
-----------------
Music source: Ripped from CDs or LPs or downloaded from iTunes (mostly AAC but some in MP3 format).
Player: iPhone 13 mini with Apple lightning to headphone adapter
Max volume tested: Three-quarters of the way up. However not all music was ripped to the same sound level. So some songs were louder than others
Truthear x Crinacle was ordered from Amazon and shipped by Shenzhenaudio (box was sealed i.e. was not a return item)

 

[GaryH]

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, there is the 7Hz Salnotes Zero for about $25 which follows quite nicely the Harman target, almost exactly as much as the $320 Blessing 2 Dusk, which is already pretty close. It has also quite low distortion (see here https://www.hypethesonics.com/iemdbc/), so is easyly amendable to EQ ad libitum.
View attachment 231908

Channel matching isn't great:

And unit variation is even worse - sample 3's bass is almost 5 dB below Harman:

 

[Chromatischism]

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, there is the 7Hz Salnotes Zero for about $25 which follows quite nicely the Harman target, almost exactly as much as the $320 Blessing 2 Dusk, which is already pretty close. It has also quite low distortion (see here https://www.hypethesonics.com/iemdbc/), so is easyly amendable to EQ ad libitum.
View attachment 231908

Not bad but seems to be a bit bass shy.

 

[Garrincha]

Channel matching isn't great:
View attachment 231909

And unit variation is even worse - sample 3's bass is almost 5 dB below Harman:
View attachment 231911

You are right, these are differences like night and day and you would easily hear all this. And clearly, every measurement is exact to 0.001dB so all these differences are significant!

 

[GaryH]

You are right, these are differences like night and day and you would easily hear all this. And clearly, every measurement is exact to 0.001dB so all these differences are significant!

If you can't hear a 5 dB shortfall in bass I don't think you have to worry about which IEM to choose at all - they'll all sound the same to you

 

[Garrincha]

If you can't hear a 5 dB shortfall in bass I don't think you have to worry about which IEM to choose at all - they'll all sound the same to you

I was not talking about the divergence from the Harman curve, but the channel and item variation, which is much lower and even well possibly withing the measurement bracket. But others have tried to teach you this, maybe you just do not want to understand this.

 

[Talisman]

Channel matching isn't great:
View attachment 231909

And unit variation is even worse - sample 3's bass is almost 5 dB below Harman:
View attachment 231911

In the end I got the 7hz salnotes, listening to them without equalization I was not particularly impressed, I heard them very bright and a bit thin on the voices. it's as if something is missing in the mid-bass,
to be clear I prefer the Sennheiser momentum in ear that I own.
Equalized after some work I found a good setting and they are enjoyable, but nothing that makes me tear my clothes.
As ridiculous as it may seem to many, the headphones that I liked the most as a basic EQ, and that I find most enjoyable and fun to listen to, are very mundane second generation airpods. They have a perfect equalization for my taste

 

[RHO]

I have this harman tuned crinacle zex pro and it sounds horrible.

Yes, it does. Try to EQ 8kHz down 5dB and 12kHz up 5dB (both q=2) as a start. That makes a huge difference. I guess there's a resonance @ ~8kHz. This overlaps the resonance from many measurement rigs, so it doesn't really stand out in many frequency graphs.

 

[Garrincha]

In the end I got the 7hz salnotes, listening to them without equalization I was not particularly impressed, I heard them very bright and a bit thin on the voices. it's as if something is missing in the mid-bass,
to be clear I prefer the Sennheiser momentum in ear that I own.
Equalized after some work I found a good setting and they are enjoyable, but nothing that makes me tear my clothes.
As ridiculous as it may seem to many, the headphones that I liked the most as a basic EQ, and that I find most enjoyable and fun to listen to, are very mundane second generation airpods. They have a perfect equalization for my taste

Bright would mean elevated treble, but they are nowhere above the Harman target, so it must be the target itself that you find bright. And thin on voices, well, maybe, but only on the 'sibillant' spectrum from 3-8kHz it is a bit recessed, but only so as the highly acclaimed Variations. The only significant difference to the Variations is the missing bass shelf below 200Hz.

 

[Talisman]

Bright would mean elevated treble, but they are nowhere above the Harman target, so it must be the target itself that you find bright. And thin on voices, well, maybe, but only on the 'sibillant' spectrum from 3-8kHz it is a bit recessed, but only so as the highly acclaimed Variations. The only significant difference to the Variations is the missing bass shelf below 200Hz.

View attachment 231930

I guess it's possible that I find the curve too sharp for my taste, although it's odd considering my speakers are klipsch ....
maybe I missed the bass below 200, especially in comparison to the sennheiser momentum in ear. Although I must say that they held up well with the android equalizer with the ten band "RE equalizer" software and I liked them more. but wanting to use them also with a normal mp3 without equalizations I am oriented for the restitution, I don't really know whether to try other more "full" headphones or to abandon the idea and keep my sennheiser

 

[DanielT]

(Yep, I'm not the one challenging the validity of the Harman Headphone Curve)

Neither do I, actually. I'm just curious how Harman/Olive did when they/he tested and evaluated.
Moreover, it seems to be a reasonable starting point to start from that curve. State point and probably end point.

I'm more concerned about practical details such as fit in my ears, bass leakage, find a performance wise good/ok and fairly powerful USB C Dongle I can plug into my mobile together with TRUTHEAR x Crinacle Zero IEM.A dongle that can withstand some rough handling as I will sometimes have it in my pocket when I go for walks. I think about such practical details more than Harman Headphone Curve.

 

[RHO]

I guess it's possible that I find the curve too sharp for my taste, although it's odd considering my speakers are klipsch ....
maybe I missed the bass below 200, especially in comparison to the sennheiser momentum in ear. Although I must say that they held up well with the android equalizer with the ten band "RE equalizer" software and I liked them more. but wanting to use them also with a normal mp3 without equalizations I am oriented for the restitution, I don't really know whether to try other more "full" headphones or to abandon the idea and keep my sennheiser

I would look at the bass shelve and/or proper seal. Any IEM with a bad seal sounds too bright. But bringing the bass shelve up to Harman could also help with a better balance and reduce the brightness in the sound signature.
Also filling in the hole between 4 and 6kHz could make you reduce volume a bit and make the 3kHz "peak" not stick out as much, resulting in a more balanced sound.

 

[Robbo99999]

Newly registered and first post (longtime fan of site and its scientific approach)
This is the first product that I bought after reading innumerable amirm's reviews over the year(s).
My reference is Koss PortaPro (LOL) which to my ears has great bass (that distorts at higher volumes) and somewhat recessed mids and highs. Only headphone I have used since 1990s! I don't EQ it and I listen to mostly AAC files (low res). I have tried a few other Koss headphones including a noise cancelling model but always went back to the PortaPros.
And I'm also new to IEMs
My initial impressions: WOW!
Resolution is fantastic. I'm hearing new subtleties in music that I have listened to all my life and didn't know those sounds were there!
The music with the IEMs over the audible frequencies seems to be very well balanced. Since there is so little distortion at the volumes I listen to, it is less fatiguing and quite enjoyable. To my ears there was no 'shoutiness' except in occasional recordings (poor mastering?). Even these didn't sound bad with the IEMs

However bass, at first blush, seemed lower than that of the Koss.

I second what amirm said: proper fitting is key to obtaining bass.
I haven't tried all the sizes and different bore diameters. I started out with the smallest size ones with the larger bore size. I had to jam them in quite tight in the canal to get decent bass. Now I'm testing the largest sized ones. Easier to seal, but slightly lower bass than the Koss.

Great headphones for $50. I hope they last as long as my PortaPros!

Thanks amirm for the great reviews and this one in particular!
Cheers all
-----------------
Music source: Ripped from CDs or LPs or downloaded from iTunes (mostly AAC but some in MP3 format).
Player: iPhone 13 mini with Apple lightning to headphone adapter
Max volume tested: Three-quarters of the way up. However not all music was ripped to the same sound level. So some songs were louder than others
Truthear x Crinacle was ordered from Amazon and shipped by Shenzhenaudio (box was sealed i.e. was not a return item)

You'll need to the use the tips that have the smaller inner diameter to get the Harman Bass you see in the measurements. The tips with the larger inner diameter are designed to have less bass. So, you'd choose the tips with smaller inner diameter and choose the outer size that fits your ear. So you'd be wanting to choose a pair from the ones I circled in red in following pic:

And another users pics that show the same thing, to see the difference more clearly:

 

[Robbo99999]

Channel matching isn't great:
View attachment 231909

And unit variation is even worse - sample 3's bass is almost 5 dB below Harman:
View attachment 231911

To be fair, that's not bad channel matching and not bad unit to unit variation. That unit to unit variation would be audible though as it looks like a tad over 1dB Low Shelf 105Hz variation for the Salnotes, so I know from using EQ that this would be an audible difference, but I still think that is not bad when it comes to channel matching & unit to unit variation.