-Introduction-
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]I’m familiar with how Accutone does things now, both in their budget and flagship IEMs. It’s nice to see that they make a conscious effort to expand their product lines and fix their flaws. The Lyra is a testament to that, as it patches up many of the holes in the Accutone design philosophy that I’ve pointed out in the past. While it’s not perfect, the Lyra is still worth your attention.[/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]You can buy the Lyra from Accutone’s offical website here, for $29.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Disclaimer: This review is based upon a sample unit provided to me by a manufacturer or distributor in exchange for my honest opinion and un-edited words. I do not profit in any way from the writing of the review. I would like to thank Angus and Ada for sending me this review unit[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Preference and Bias: Before reading a review, it is worth mentioning that there is no way for a reviewer to objectively pass judgment on the enjoy-ability of a product: such a thing is inherently subjective. Therefore, I find it necessary for you to read and understand what I take a natural liking to and how that might affect my rating of a product.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]My ideal sound signature would be an extended sub-bass with a leveled, but textured, bass. The mids should be slightly less pronounced than the treble, but still ahead of the bass. I prefer a more bright upper range.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Source: The Lyra was powered like so:[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]PC optical out-> HifiMe SPDIF 9018 DAC 3.5mm out-> earphones[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]All music was served as MP3 @320Kbps or as FLAC.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]-Sound Signature-[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Initial Impressions:[/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Lyra places vocals in control of the song. Mids are slightly recessed, while I find treble to be slightly boosted. Bass however, is not greatly emphasized. Based on limited listening of random tracks, the bass does sound slightly muffled and unnatural. Bass is of a reasonable speed, but more on the slow side.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Treble: Songs used: White Flag, Midnight City, Outlands[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Treble certainly isn’t sparkly. In fact, it’s rather smooth and effortless. Surprisingly, throughout White Flag and Midnight City, the treble was able to break through the rest of the song without any trouble, leaving behind a good sense of clarity and a decent amount of transparency. Outlands, however did get a little shirked by the relaxed and tame nature of the treble. Violins that normally have a grand and epic presentation fell into a sort of dull lull, reducing the expansive nature of the song as a whole.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Mids: Songs used: Flagpole Sitta, Jacked Up, I Am The Highway, Good Life[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Mids are presented decently well, with solid articulation. It’s not going to wow you or blow your socks off (unless you are still running Apple Earpods), but still manages to surprise me. The Lyra somehow manages to articulate parts of the mids that many IEMs more expensive than it end up missing. Flagpole Sitta’s rich guitar detail is a good example of this, as is Jacked Up’s background guitar and piano.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Lyra, like I mentioned earlier, does place the vocals in the front, which really helps bring out the life in songs like the I Am The Highway and Good Life. While they did suffer from some minor distortion in the upper treble at higher volumes, I was impressed with how well the vocals remained separated from the rest of the song.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Bass: Songs used: Lights, Gold Dust, 99 Problems (Hugo Cover), Leave Me[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Bass took a little time to adjust to. While I first thought it sounded unnatural and muffled, my brain has burned in enough to vastly reduce the amount of trouble I was having with them. In fact, they now sound almost completely natural, albeit slightly pushed back. Songs like Lights and 99 Problems don’t falter too much, since a moderate amount of mid and sub-bass is enough to lend them a working sense of depth. But bass-heavy songs like Leave Me and Gold Dust are left out in the cold. While there is a decent quantity of mid-bass, the quantity of sub-bass is a little too low. However, it still maintains a great level of extension, reaching almost as far down as the Accutone Gemini HD with the red filters. Bassheads should look elsewhere for their daily dose of bone-shattering techno-drops.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Clarity: Songs used: Throne, Map of The Problimatique, I’m Not Alright[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]For the majority of songs, the Lyra is perfectly clear, and has minimal distortion. However, with songs such as Throne and I’m Not Alright, the weakness of the Lyra will start to show as its budget-grade dynamic drivers begin to reach their limits.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Sound Stage[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Sounds staging is pretty meh. It’s got a slight amount of width, with a slight amount of depth. Imaging is OK, but again, not great. Separation is decent, and better than I would expect from a $29 pair or earphones, so no complaints there. If you are looking for a symphonic experience, you should definitely save up some extra cash to get an IEM from a a higher price-bracket, as you will be hard-pressed to find a good performer at this low-end of the spectrum.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]-Packaging / Unboxing-[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Packaging is pretty meh as well. The box is structurally identical to the Pavo’s box. Customs really screwed with my Lyra, and ripped it. Sorry about that.[/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]-Build-[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Construction Quality[/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]This is where the Lyra truly shines. Accutone has checked every box on my list, both aesthetically, and structurally. The Lyra is available in three metallic colors, Space Grey, Gold, and Rose Gold. Here, I have the Space Grey version.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The driver housings are made from aluminum with a soft-touch matte finish. A pliable, but secure stress-relief system protrudes from the driver housings, protecting the premium-feeling cable from any haphazard forces that would be applied to it.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Speaking of the cable, take a look at this thing! It doesn’t look at all like something you would find of a $29 IEM.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]It appears to be made from copper, and is coated in a clear plastic layer. The cable feels sturdy and has a good thickness to it, but doesn’t have any memory to it. It is also smooth, so it doesn’t catch on random surfaces. Microphonics are present, but not as bad as some other IEMs I’ve tested. The cable terminates in a nice right-angled 3.5mm jack.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Controls[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Lyra comes equipped a “dual-os” microphone. While it sounds fancy, all it really means is that it works on both iOS and Android devices, which is still pretty cool. I’ve tested the controls on an HTC One M8, Nexus 6P, and iPhone 6+, and the Lyra had full functionality on all of them.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Comfort[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]While it’s not the best fit in the world, the Lyra is comfortable during extended listening sessions for me, and I don’t experience any driver flex. Unfortunately, no Comply is included in the box, so I don’t get the “disappearing” effect that they usually have on IEMs of this shape and weight.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Accessories[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Lyra is stocked with about what I would expect from a budget IEM: a standard Accutone pleather case, and two extra sets of generic eartips. The case is decent, but nothing special. Mine has some creases and bubbles on it that show themselves when I open up the magnetic flap, which is visually unattractive.[/color]