Cryzor
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2016
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Elibuds Sabia first impressions
An earbud with a huge and impressive sound (and a touch of craziness)! The Elibuds Sabia sounds amazing considering the price. But it's not for everyone.
About me
I'm a long time forum lurker and this is my first post. I probably qualify as an earbud geek and hobbyist music producer but I don't pretend to be an expert.
Earbuds I own: Yuin pk1, Yuin pk2, Yuin pk3, Blox be5, Blox be7, VE Asura, VE Monk and some other random ones I never use.
The Product
The packing is simple and the buds come with three pairs of foams. Two standard and one donut. I bought the so called Thailand edition and from what I understand only the boxing differs from the standard edition. The build quality is very basic (VE Monk style cable and housing).
Driver: 14.8 mm
Frequency Response: 20hz – 20Khz
Sensitivity : 112 dB, 32 ohm
They were about 30 USD in the store I bought them from (in Bangkok).
The Story
I went to my favourite headphone shop in town to buy the VE Monk+. They were out of stock so the staff recommended to have a listen to the Sabias instead, and so I did. Fired up Spotify on my phone and started out with Daft Punk's Get Lucky and I was immediately blown away by the huge sound coming out! Couldn't believe it. So wide and so big. Listened to a few other songs and they all sounded great. And so I decided to buy a pair and went home thinking I made the best deal ever.
When plugging them in at home I got slightly disappointed when I realeased what the sound signature really was like. I listened to some ol' stinky rock tracks and the Sabias did not deliver as well now. After trying some different styles I started to get a grip. The Sabias are very colored and because of that they seem to be a bit too sensitive about the content you throw at them.
So, what sound to expect?
Brutally big bass response! But don't get scared. The Sabias are truly pushing the limit when it comes to bass extension in earbuds. Feels like one's chest is resonating while using these. Obviously this feature will come at a price; there are other parts of the sound missing, especially the lower midrange (non-scientific guesstimate 200-800 hz) seems weak. The lack of low midrange fools your brain to believe that the bass is huge. It's all about getting the balance right. The highs are surprisingly smooth, airy, and detailed (although bordering to harsh depending on the song). The overall SQ is very impressive though (wide stage and good separation, well beyond the competition in this price range).
Seems to be about the genres
My technical theory is that if a song lacks sub 80-ish hz content it will probably sound weak in the Sabias. Such a song usually has more content in upper bass/low midrange and this is where the problem is. The Sabias have a heavy dip in this range and that is what makes certain songs sound thin. Some genres and some types of music will benefit from the Sabias and some will not. As a sidenote I found that warm and dynamic acoustic music sounded very detailed and pleasant in the Sabias.
Judgement
Even though the bass is very emphasized it doesn't sound bad or boomy in any way. If a song contains well sounding bass content it will be nicely reproduced by the Sabias and you'll most likely be impressed. It's just a bit too emphasised for my taste. The sound signature may be described as cold and sometimes harsh. A cold sounding song will sound even colder in the Sabias! I want to stress that in general the sound coming out is truly impressive! Especially when considering price.
Comparing to VE Monk
Considering the price range these are like monks on steroids. For 30 USD they're worth every penny. The Sabias offer a more detailed and premium sound but the Monks will outshine them in some genres (rock perhaps) by having a much more balanced and warm signature.
Comparing to VE Asura
The sound quality in general matches the Asura but the Sabias offer a completely dfferent signature. The highs are of similar type but harsher than the Asura. The Asura really shines in the midrange whereas the Sabias shine in the bass range.
Comparing to Blox be7
The closest match in overall sound (in my collection) is probably the Blox be7. Wouldn't say they're similar but the frequency curve should at least be of similar character. The Sabias offers even deeper bass response and much better highs. Be7 has a more balanced sound overall though.
If there will be a Sabia 2.0, here's the wish list
- Less emphasis on the bass but keep the low reach
- A bit more punch in the low mids
- Possibly tame the highs just a bit
- Just keep everything else as is!
Bottom line
If you want something that sounds huge and impressive for a low price (and will accept that some genres might not sound great) the Sabias are a fun and worthy addition to the collection. For the price it's really a no-brainer. On some well produced tracks they sound better than anything I've heard (high end cans included). On some tracks they sound weak and thin, but never terrible. I think Elibuds focused too much on pushing the limits for earbud sound and I hope they'll make another bud that is less extreme. I'm looking forward to buy more products from them. All in all, strong buy recommendation!
(Since this is my first post I couldn't post any photos, might update the post later)
An earbud with a huge and impressive sound (and a touch of craziness)! The Elibuds Sabia sounds amazing considering the price. But it's not for everyone.
About me
I'm a long time forum lurker and this is my first post. I probably qualify as an earbud geek and hobbyist music producer but I don't pretend to be an expert.
Earbuds I own: Yuin pk1, Yuin pk2, Yuin pk3, Blox be5, Blox be7, VE Asura, VE Monk and some other random ones I never use.
The Product
The packing is simple and the buds come with three pairs of foams. Two standard and one donut. I bought the so called Thailand edition and from what I understand only the boxing differs from the standard edition. The build quality is very basic (VE Monk style cable and housing).
Driver: 14.8 mm
Frequency Response: 20hz – 20Khz
Sensitivity : 112 dB, 32 ohm
They were about 30 USD in the store I bought them from (in Bangkok).
The Story
I went to my favourite headphone shop in town to buy the VE Monk+. They were out of stock so the staff recommended to have a listen to the Sabias instead, and so I did. Fired up Spotify on my phone and started out with Daft Punk's Get Lucky and I was immediately blown away by the huge sound coming out! Couldn't believe it. So wide and so big. Listened to a few other songs and they all sounded great. And so I decided to buy a pair and went home thinking I made the best deal ever.
When plugging them in at home I got slightly disappointed when I realeased what the sound signature really was like. I listened to some ol' stinky rock tracks and the Sabias did not deliver as well now. After trying some different styles I started to get a grip. The Sabias are very colored and because of that they seem to be a bit too sensitive about the content you throw at them.
So, what sound to expect?
Brutally big bass response! But don't get scared. The Sabias are truly pushing the limit when it comes to bass extension in earbuds. Feels like one's chest is resonating while using these. Obviously this feature will come at a price; there are other parts of the sound missing, especially the lower midrange (non-scientific guesstimate 200-800 hz) seems weak. The lack of low midrange fools your brain to believe that the bass is huge. It's all about getting the balance right. The highs are surprisingly smooth, airy, and detailed (although bordering to harsh depending on the song). The overall SQ is very impressive though (wide stage and good separation, well beyond the competition in this price range).
Seems to be about the genres
My technical theory is that if a song lacks sub 80-ish hz content it will probably sound weak in the Sabias. Such a song usually has more content in upper bass/low midrange and this is where the problem is. The Sabias have a heavy dip in this range and that is what makes certain songs sound thin. Some genres and some types of music will benefit from the Sabias and some will not. As a sidenote I found that warm and dynamic acoustic music sounded very detailed and pleasant in the Sabias.
Judgement
Even though the bass is very emphasized it doesn't sound bad or boomy in any way. If a song contains well sounding bass content it will be nicely reproduced by the Sabias and you'll most likely be impressed. It's just a bit too emphasised for my taste. The sound signature may be described as cold and sometimes harsh. A cold sounding song will sound even colder in the Sabias! I want to stress that in general the sound coming out is truly impressive! Especially when considering price.
Comparing to VE Monk
Considering the price range these are like monks on steroids. For 30 USD they're worth every penny. The Sabias offer a more detailed and premium sound but the Monks will outshine them in some genres (rock perhaps) by having a much more balanced and warm signature.
Comparing to VE Asura
The sound quality in general matches the Asura but the Sabias offer a completely dfferent signature. The highs are of similar type but harsher than the Asura. The Asura really shines in the midrange whereas the Sabias shine in the bass range.
Comparing to Blox be7
The closest match in overall sound (in my collection) is probably the Blox be7. Wouldn't say they're similar but the frequency curve should at least be of similar character. The Sabias offers even deeper bass response and much better highs. Be7 has a more balanced sound overall though.
If there will be a Sabia 2.0, here's the wish list
- Less emphasis on the bass but keep the low reach
- A bit more punch in the low mids
- Possibly tame the highs just a bit
- Just keep everything else as is!
Bottom line
If you want something that sounds huge and impressive for a low price (and will accept that some genres might not sound great) the Sabias are a fun and worthy addition to the collection. For the price it's really a no-brainer. On some well produced tracks they sound better than anything I've heard (high end cans included). On some tracks they sound weak and thin, but never terrible. I think Elibuds focused too much on pushing the limits for earbud sound and I hope they'll make another bud that is less extreme. I'm looking forward to buy more products from them. All in all, strong buy recommendation!
(Since this is my first post I couldn't post any photos, might update the post later)
