It is update season again, with iFi overhauling parts of its lineup. First up was the hip-dac 3, then the Diablo2 — and Neo iDSD2 arrived in tandem. I reviewed the original Neo iDSD almost 3 years ago, and found it to be lacking in the amp section. The DAC performance was excellent, but the meek amp output held it back from being a universal recommendation. iFi has taken the sweet time to refine all “controversial” aspects of the original. The amp section is noticeably improved with better power delivery into high impedance loads. Meanwhile, the...

Truthear has garnered a certain cult following, thanks to a fairly “solid” series of IEMs, albeit all of them in the <USD$100 range. The brand’s latest release, Nova, aim to change the strictly “budget” outlook of the brand. At $150, the Nova are the most expensive product Truthear has released so far. With higher price comes loftier expectations. Time to see how well the Nova can manage that weight. Note: this review originally appeared on Audioreviews. Sources used: Cayin RU7, Questyle CMA Twelve Master Price, while reviewed: $150. Can be bought...

It’s been over a year since the release of the Hidizs S9 Pro, so it was high time for Hidizs to release a successor. Enter the S9 Pro Plus, the latest dongle from Hidizs that neatly fills that gap for a “revision.” The older S9 Pro gets a decent price cut, and the even older S9 gets discontinued. So you get last year’s higher priced model for cheap, while those looking for the latest and the greatest have to spend a bit more. Fair enough, I guess, but are the upgrades worth the extra bucks, or is it wiser to go for the cheaper, older model? Let’s...

Sennheiser has a unique problem: it is its own competition in many aspects. Let me further clarify that statement. The HD 650 were released over two decades ago. Even now they remain relevant, a staple even when it comes to open-back dynamic driver headphones. So, how do you follow up a bonafide classic? There is no easy answer to that question. Sennheiser has been hard at work, trying to capture lightning in a bottle one more time. The weight of expectations bears heavier on the HD 660S2 than any other pair of mid-range headphones. Perhaps...

Moondrop has had a busy 2023, with multiple releases practically every month. The brand even updated some of its “greatest hits” models, and the Starfield II falls nicely into that segment. Sporting a revamped driver and acoustic architecture, the Starfield II promise wholesale upgrades over the long in the tooth OG model. Sequels rarely manage to live up to expectations, however, so their work is cut out for the Starfield II. Read on. This review originally appeared on Headphonesty. The IEMs were sent in by Shenzhenaudio for review. Design and...

Hisenior audio has been in the industry for years, mostly catering to the custom monitor market. While I have always wanted to try one of its IEMs, I never got around to it, until the release of Okavango that is. The driver configuration of the Okavango is quite comprehensive for their price tag: 1 Bio-cellulose DD + 6 BA drivers with true 4-way crossover are nothing to scoff at. Add to that the tuning switches and things certainly look interesting to say the least. This isn’t a numbers game though, so the driver count barely matters as long as...

A few months back, I reviewed the Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite. They seemed to have a safe, no-frills tuning that veered towards “too smooth” at times. Nonetheless, what stood out about them was the driver configuration given the price point. Similar themes re-appear with the Kiwi Ears Quintet that sport a quad-hybrid (also known as Quadbrid) setup for midrange pricing. In recent years, such driver setup has been exclusive to the TOTL or kilobuck IEMs, so the Quintet have already won the spec-sheet war. Sound quality is not proportional to the driver...

I will keep this review short and sweet, since the Moondrop Aria SE (Snow Edition) are more of a side-grade to the already reviewed Moondrop Aria (2021). The primary differences lie in the color, the driver (and corresponding tuning), and of course – accessories. I think Moondrop could have just named it something else entirely since apart from the shell – nothing else is in common with the Aria 2021. Then again, Aria 2021 is a very popular model, so it’s not a bad idea to piggyback on that popularity. Let’s see if the Aria SE can become popular...

It’s been a while since I have last reviewed a pair of KZ IEMs. Almost three years, to be exact. I missed out on quite a few KZ models in that period but from a tuning perspective, they were mostly more of the same. However, around the end of 2022, KZ began to churn out some interesting models in terms of tuning. That departure comes full-circle with the KZ D-Fi, which is aptly named in the sense that the tuning “defies” the typical KZ house-sound (V-shaped, in other words). Now, this is not a radical departure for KZ and some of their “signature”...

HiFiMAN is one of the few brands that offer the most expensive, alongside perhaps the cheapest, pairs of planar-magnetic headphones in the market. The HE400se are of the latter category and strangely enough, have a few of the latest technical breakthroughs employed by their more expensive siblings. It’s rare to see a pair of budget headphones offer so much on the spec sheet. So are the HE400se too good an offer to be true, or is the hype justified? Read on. This review originally appeared on Headphonesty. Packaging HiFiMAN has a simplified look...

Had I been a YouTube reviewer, I would have littered a ton of “fire” emojis across this review title. The thumbnail would allude to something akin to “shut-up and buy it”, while a somewhat disturbing image of my agape face would round-up the level of bewilderment and bemusement that the M15 has evoked. Sadly, in the written form, I am but slave to the words. Questyle M15 is the flagship dongle in the brand’s lineup, and overall, perhaps the best dongle one can buy. Sadly, such sweeping generalizations do not favor anyone, and everything is reliant...

SMSL has become immensely popular in recent years, thanks to the consistent delivery of well-measuring and well-specced source devices that match or undercut the competition in terms of many objective metrics. The DO300 DAC is the latest in line of products that have a very impressive spec-sheet while the asking price is relatively modest. DO300 is also one of the first DACs to utilize the latest and greatest ESS Sabre ES9039MSPro chip, sporting class leading distortion figures and dynamic range. There is also numerous input and output options to...

Venus is the second planet from the Sun. The Moondrop Venus are the second headphones in Moondrop’s lineup. Apt naming, I guess. Moondrop’s first-ever headphones, the Void, are an unfortunate disaster. They have an atrocious build, the pricing is way off-the-mark, and the sound is lackluster. The Venus are priced even higher, sport a planar magnetic driver, and have swapped the creaky plastic for aluminum and leather. An all-around improvement, prima facie, but how do they sound, and can they dethrone the status quo? This review was originally...

unu has been busy lately, trying to fill-up the price segment gaps in its lineup. The Dunu Titan S have been very well-received and offer a clarity-focused tuning that is fairly unique in the sub-USD$100 market. Enter Dunu Kima, the slightly more expensive brethren of the Titan S that head towards the opposite direction. Whereas clarity was the name of the game for the predecessor, the Kima relies on warmth and organicness to differentiate themselves. Is the change in tuning the only trick that the Kima can pull up their sleeves, or are there...

Kiwi Ears had one of the “underground hits” of recent years in the form of Kiwi Ears Orchestra: a multi-BA offering that offered a smooth tuning and promised performance akin to the kilobuck mainstays. While I never heard the original, the Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite, the brand’s latest offering, landed at my doorstep recently. The paper specs are impressive, especially once you consider the price. The frequency response graph looks great on paper. Let’s see how much of that paper spec translates into real world performance. Note: the ratings given...

HarmonicDyne is primarily known for headphones rather than IEMs. The PD1 were its first pair of IEMs, but due to some tuning quirks, those never quite took off in terms of popularity. Enter the HarmonicDyne Devil, a second attempt at IEMs by the brand. The marketing pitch boasts two years of R&D and a novel diaphragm material to enhance the sound further. Let’s see how much of that translates into real-world performance. Linsoul provided the HarmonicDyne Devil for evaluation. Price while reviewed: USD$200. This review originally appeared on...

INTRODUCTION Those who have been following the Chi-Fi scene for a while would surely have come across Rose as a brand, and their penchant of cramming sizeable amount of drivers in an inconspicuously tiny shell. The Rose QT9 MK2S is no different, and they sport a 1DD + 4BA configuration in a shell that’s small enough to sleep while wearing. In terms of driver config, Rose Technics competes well with the peers, but that alone does not ensure success in this cut-throat market. Let’s see if the QT9 MK2S can carve a spot for themselves in the...

INTRODUCTION Reviewer collaborations are all the rage now. At the beginning, it was more of a novelty than a marketing shtick. At present, it’s rarer to not see a “tuned by X influencer” tag instead. Truthear is a relatively new brand, but they chose to collaborate with Crinacle for their very first mainstream offering. Crin has been tuning IEMs for a while, and some of them have been quite popular e.g. the Blessing2 Dusk. Truthear Zero is the latest in the line of Crinacle-tuned IEMs and has a rather unique dual-driver setup where one driver acts...

Getting out of your comfort zone to expand your horizon is easier said than done. Such an endeavor is met with hardships, failures, and oftentimes – ridicule. Companies take serious risks when trying to do something new. Moondrop is one of the most established IEM manufacturers around. So when Moondrop announced its upcoming range of headphones across various price points, it was met with commendation and skepticism. Everyone had one question: will these headphones be any better than the already established options on the market? The Void are...

Final is a company that rarely, if ever, follows current trends. They took their sweet time before unveiling the ZE3000, their first pair of mainstream TWS IEMs. In the past, they did some collaboration IEMs in the form of the EVA series, but the ZE3000 truly kickstart their wireless lineup. Unfortunately, the market is teeming with competition, and newcomers are often met with familiar failings. Do Final manage to avoid the pitfalls and stand out amidst a sea of also-rans? Or are the ZE3000 bound to be overshadowed? Let’s find out. This review...