Me: I am a 21 year old student living in a small town in India. I would like to call myself a music enthusiast, rather than an audiophile. I was inspired by music since childhood, and as the time passed, the passion of music grew in me, and that subsequently led me to join Head-Fi. Eventually, I found the pleasure of listening to music mainly by the HD600 and recently, by the seductive LCD2 headphones, and realized the true components of recorded music. I usually like to listen to Indian Classical Music along with Bollywood songs. My main listening genres include classical, vocal, instrumental, jazz and sometimes pop.
Intro: ME-Electronics is an established & popular US brand specializing in the area of Bluetooth headphones and IEM’s. They are based in Los Angeles, CA. Their products are all designed & developed in the U.S, but made in China by high standards. A151P Gen2. is In-ear Closed-back IEM offering which uses Single Balanced Armature Driver. The ‘P’ Version contains inline mic function. MEE recently updated the drivers of already excellent A151P model and hence the A151P Generation2.
MEE has a specific vision in making their products: Their products should have appreciable clean and clear sound quality & last long must be made up of good quality materials. Their products are very reasonably priced, accessible for a common music enthusiast. MEE provides are a great price/performance ratio on their entire product range.
MEE’s Motto: Music Enjoyment for Everyone .
Specifications of the A151P Gen2:
Type: Closed back, In ear with Passive Noise Isolation
Driver: Balanced Armature Knowles SR-31843
Frequency Response: 20Hz-19.5 kHz
Impedance: 32 ohms
Sensitivity: 111dB
Maximum power input: 30mW
Plug: Four pin, 3.5mm 90 Degree angled, gold plated
Cable: Braided, Kevlar® reinforced, tangle-resistant cable
Let’s proceed to the review,
Packaging and Accessories: The A151P Gen2 ’s arrive packed inside a strong cardboard box with a removable outer sheet, on which features and other information have been mentioned upon. Once the box is lifted open, The A151P Gen2 is seen resting on a transparent plastic. The cable is coiled off in the storage box, in eartips and user manual are present. Packaging is well done, which is safe yet attractive, nothing to complain about.
List of accessories in the box, which include the following:
Eartips: Silicone eartips of different sizes to accommodate ear canals of almost all sizes.
IEM Case: This case is a zipper closing type, used for storing the eartips and the IEM itself.
User Manual: Contains instructions to operate the A151P Gen2 and other warranty information.
Design and Build: The A151P Gen2 has an excellent overall build quality.
The entire housing shell is made up of high quality fibre, and is painted in gloss black colour and coated. These are very light in weight. MEE logo is printed on the rear side of the housing shell. Left and Right markings are easy to see, and are clearly indicated.
Strain reliefs are well implemented, and do their jobs. Mic button is firm and reliable to operate upon. Y splitter is nicely finished, no nitpicks anywhere. Plug is 90 degree angled and gold plated. Overall, Cable has a great build. It is light, braided flexible and does not get tangled. On the first look, this cable looks like a premium IEM’s spare cable. I could not notice the presence of any microphonics.
Comfort: A151P Gen2 ’s are very comfortable to wear in general, A151P Gen2 is light weighed & ergonomically designed. These IEM’s are deep insertion type, since the nozzle is quite long. The cables are supposed to be worn around the ear and down from behind the ears. Thus placing the IEM’s firmly in their place. These are also suitable while jogging, running or during gym time. Since A151P Gen2 ’s are closed back IEM’s, these will isolate the listener from outside noise. This level of isolation is very good for a traveller.
Sound: As for the most important part, the A151P Gen2 has a very neutral, very clear & airy , detailed sonic character. It is very transparent and detailed. We have to keep in mind that, with in-ear IEM’s, sonic presentation may feel different with different fit. Therefore fit/angle is the deciding factor for sound being perceived by ears.
Burn in: These impressed me right out of the box, and burn in provided little or no significant audible changes. But on the safer side, Let’s say a playback of 20 hours provides very slight audible improvements. Bass prior to break-in is lacking in depth, and eventually it becomes deeper, Mids will sound more open, airy and natural. Highs become slightly smoother; soundstage opens up by a margin.
(Image courtesy MEE) This graph shows, the new driver update will be much appreciated with respect to sound quality.
Lows: are accurate, tight and refined; but have a low impact and depth, owing to their BA drivers.
Mids: sound very neutral, airy and clear.
Highs: Detailed treble with slight grains and sparks. Unforgiving on bright recordings
Soundstage: Unlike majority of portable IEM’s, the A151P Gen2 ’s soundstage is more airy natural and circular soundstage. Depth is excellent. Instrument separation is very good.
I am really impressed by sound quality of these IEM’s. A151P Gen2 portrays music in such a way that, one feels as if the music is all around him (excellent soundstage for an IEM in this price). According to my observation, these cans sounded good in all genres I tried, and hence I also observed these are unforgiving to poor recordings. Hence these are appreciably transparent in character. It has very airy, a vast 3D like soundstage.
Bass impact/depth (in quantity) is the only thing to be compromised when switched over to BA from dynamic. But BA drivers provides in all sonic characters like accuracy, details, soundstage, instrument separation, imaging, dynamics and what not. The difference is easily audible & I feel BA drivers are best choice for IEM’s, if an enthusiast truly appreciates listening to all components & qualities of sound.
Instruments placement & positioning is really great. Neutral, detailed, transparent are the key words for A151P Gen2 . Its resolving power is very good, considering the price point.
Low volume listening is pretty impressive. One can hear these in very low volumes, yet it retains all the details & elements present in a track. Comfort and fit plays a vital role in sound being perceived to our ears. Especially in case of A151P Gen2, where the insertion is deep, if they fit in a wrong way, they will leak sound leading to missing details.
Amplification: The A151P Gen2 ’s are rated at 32 ohms, and designed to be power efficient, and hence are fairly easy to drive, and can be driven by almost any sources, smartphones and DAP’s. Although setup like an O2/ODAC does indeed increases accuracy, soundstage and dynamics noticeably, and the difference in quality is clearly audible for an attentive listener. Power is not very important aspect here, but a transparent setup indeed does help in increasing SQ;
Conclusion: I feel the A151P Gen2 ’s are really impressive pair of IEM’s, especially considering their price. Sound quality is phenomenal, is very pleasing, with great soundstage. I really like to listen to these cans. I have nothing but praises for the A151P Gen2 .
A151P Gen2 ‘s will replace the S0 IEM’s as my favourite IEM’s in 50$. The A151P Gen2 pleased me in every aspect considered by a music enthusiast. Overall A151P Gen2 will be an excellent purchase for IEM at 50$. In my opinion No enthusiast one can go wrong with these. Performs excellent when related to its price, and is worth every single penny spent.
The A151P Gen2 takes my strong recommendation all enthusiasts who love the true components of music for an IEM under 50$.
Pros:
1) Build Quality: The A151P Gen2 has a good Fibre/Rubber/plastic build. Cable build is just excellent and the new Knowles driver update is really appreciable.
2) Sound quality: Sound presentation here is very neutral, detailed, & airy. Its very much ‘ideal’ & accurate. The soundstage, instrument separation, clarity, resolution & speed cannot be found anywhere else at this price.
4) Value: After understanding all the qualities A151P Gen2 offers us, its undeniable fact that it also offers an unbeatable price/performance ratio for IEM’s under 50$.
Cons: Nothing at considering price point, Bass quantity will be a trade-off when shifting to BA driver IEM's.
