Review unit sent by T-Force.



T Force Yuan Li is the first set from T Force. I initially did not have any expectation on this set. Though, it actually blew me away with the tuning and how great it is. This set belongs to a few rare IEMs that I actually adore. Something that is very easy to listen and carry the emotion that I like it to have.

Source: SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK2 + iFi xCan

Signature: Balance

bass: A-
Nimble with density. Doesn't dig into the sub but has enough overall bass to be punchy and fun. This is not a basshead set either as I think the overall harmonic is balanced and non of them being annoyingly dip or peak. The speed of the overall attack is moderate to above average. The decay doesn't linger and this is the trait to have to counter the mids section.

mids: S-
Full and meaty without being bloaty. Probably one of the perfect note weights I've heard to date sitting with higher end sets. It is nowhere thick nor thin. Deliver with excellent lifelike timbre and perfect weight.

vocals: S
This is the one of the best I've heard. It has the lifelike DD timbre, correct note weight, sounds perfect all across male to female vocals, even on compressed tracks. No glare or grain. Vocal is fully textured and well separated from overall frequency (no bloat) but well blend with the instruments. Meaning it is coherent and at the same time no bloat. Yuan Li can be one of the top performers for someone who seeks for an analog vocal without being muddy nor overly smooth.

Highs: A
very smooth and quite extended. No weird artifacts or grain that usually from a DD. Liquid sound as it flows beautifully. Could be a bit too smooth for someone who is treble head but I find myself liking this a lot.

Comparison

Oxygen:
Oxygen has a lot more energy up top. Vocals do sound sweeter on oxygen but Yuan Li can sound more euphoric as you dial up the volume even better. Oxygen can sound shouty in comparison and Yuan Li is more balanced across the sound spectrum. Detail wise probably a little edge on Oxygen but don't expect much. Yuan Li has an edge regarding width and depth

Conclusion:
It is obvious that I like Yuan Li. It has the signature that is very rare to see in this era of bright and bassy IEMs. T-Force meanwhile tuned the Yuan Li to be balance. I could pledge this set to be one of the sets that I like to recommend if you are someone who likes balanced signature with lifelike timbre. The vocals do shine on this set!

Gallery:

Review unit sent by SeeAudio.


Bravery was a bit bright on the first listen and I realized that I need to change the tips to be smaller and hence deeper fit. That solved a lot of issues I had in the first place. Now, all the listening has been done with the small xelastec. Being a brighter through apple dongle and darker through SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK2 + iFi xCan. Bravery I could describe it as a neutral with bass boost. Probably an easy one of the recommendations at this price range.



Source: SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK2 + iFi xCan

Signature: Neutral with bass boost

Bass: B+
A hint of boomy and has a slight bleed to the spectrum when the subbass rumble and bass hitting. Very good timbre for the bass which is surprising even though it is a bit wooly. It slams with density but with a slight boomyness. Nothing to worry that it is still a clean execution. Overall resolution for the bass is a bit lackluster if it is being compared with its mids and highs. In short, excellent timbre for the BA bass but lack cleanliness and resolution.

Mid: A+
Resolving mids with smooth transition between the lows hence it gives a perfect weight and meat to the overall mids. Probably has a hint of plastic timbre but really this is really good. It is on the top tier of the BA timbre if you ask me. The details appears on the front. Something like shoving the details though it doesn't sound offensive at all. This perhaps due to the cramp staging that it has.

Vocals: S-
Neutral. Note weight of the vocal is about 1. Being 3 is thickest and -3 is the thinnest.The vocals seems has excellent texture and very resolving. I don't have much to complaint at this section but probably not euphoric enough for me to give a solid S. Since it is not offensive and sounds right to my ears, it deserves S-.

Highs: A-
Very well extended and it is unoffended. This set is quite sparkle with that regard without being sibilant or over the board. This has been tested with various kpop tracks that usually can be sibilant on certain bad sets. Well done with decent resolution though it is a bit on the dry side.

Staging and Imaging: B
Staging is on the cramp side. It appears less width that I would like to though the transients of the mids and highs are quick so it doesn't sound congested. Except the bass region which appears boomy. Imaging is OK ish and the instruments are well placed. The vocals are dead center and the layering is great.

Conclusion:
A solid set that is tuned toward neutral with bass boost. The whole spectrum appears inoffensive and very well priced. The only complaint is about the dryness of BA timbre especially on the highs sections. However, the bass appears great in terms of timbre. A great set from SeeAudio which I think quite apart from Yume. Technicalities wise, Bravery won for me but Yume has better tonality for the whole package but bottlenecked by its technicalities.

Gallery:

p/s: I've received Lyra Mini for an honest review and sent back to them.

I have a few quirks with this set that I didn't receive the proper foam for it and I decided to use my own. The full foam can be a bit too dark and the donut sometimes can be a bit peaky. Hence, I'm using a fully fledge desktop setup that I have to counter the bright signature that this set has.

Source: SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK2 DAC, Airist Heron 5 Amp
(Purposely using the Sanskrit as it is smoother sounding than my Matrix Audio X Sabre)

Signature: Neutral Bright

Bass: Bass is light with fast transient. Doesn't dig too deep but enough to give the presence. Probably can be something for DF hardcores. It is good that Lyra Mini is a DD set and hence there's DD timbre for the lows even it is not emphasized. Great bass when it is paired with a thick source. This means the Lyra is not easy to find pairing and talking about the price, yes it will cost more to get excellent source. I find it is balance when paired with high end source (warm source) but lackluster when I paired it with apple dongle for example.

Mids:
Great layering in the mids. Great resolution and nothing is congested. Plus, this is an earbuds that has a huge advantage of open sounding due to not fully isolated design. I am a fan of something is open sounding and I would like to give a great rating here. Again, this happens with a high end thicc source.

Vocals:
When it is paired with warm and thick source, this set actually excels. The DD timbre give a full emotion and smooth presentation. With an apple dongle? Or lower end source, nah... So, this is mostly due to pairing and the Lyra Mini is able to deliver an excellent tonality on vocals when it is paired with the right source. If you are non-source believer, you don't have enough experience, period.

Highs:
Nice and smooth. It has a typical DD highs that is a bit crowded when everything is coming at the same time but never annoys me as I have with the source given. Though, with low end source, it is straight up bad and piercing. So, it is up to you now, if you already have a warm and thick high end source, you can consider it but if you aren't, you know the drill.

Staging & Imaging:
Staging is big as it is an earbud obviously. For imaging, I probably will say it is an average for an earbud. Still has advantage than an iem alone and yeah don't talk about headphones/speakers, they are out of the league.

Comparison:

OurArt ACG: ACG is fuller but Lyra Mini probably has an edge for the resolution. However, the bass on Lyra is quick and this gives you advantage if you are gaming. Yes, you need to game with bass light and super quick bass. This is not about immersive-ness but quick response and pinpointing.

Conclusion:
Lyra Mini is not for someone who just started in the audio game. You need an excellent source to make it shine and yes that needs more bucks. The price is probably well placed as if you know what you are doing. Else, you just wasted your $100 for something you can't even drive it properly.

Disclaimer
I received this unit as a tour unit from @Zachik . Special thanks to him for making this happened.

Introduction
Etymotic is one of my favorite brands which easily has a consistent sound quality from what I experienced with them. Especially with the 2 of my ER2SE and 1 ER4SR. This time Etymotic tried branching its capabilities with multi-BA. If you ask me personally, I'm leaning for them to keep the R&D for their ER2 DD into a flagship tier. Enough with rambling, let's try digging on how EVO is doing.

Signature
Neutral Dark (it is not that dark, don't get me wrong, I can address it as the mellow Ety)

Source
Apple music lossless through iPod Touch 7th
1. Tanchjim Stargate: Overall balance and relaxing
2. Radsone ES100: Stage is significantly larger with a quirk of anemic sounding and not as dynamic
3. iFi xCan: Overall giving intensity for the overall harmonic (not a fan since it is fatiguing, it's the iFi xCan, not because of the set, I have this experience with anything through the xCan)



Looks
The cable is super thin. Almost like three times thinner than ER2 cable. Meanwhile, the chasis, the iem itself, is.. super heavy considering how light are their predecessors. I'm fine with the cable, I like it, it feels like *wireless*. To me the shell weight is a bit too much from my liking.

Sonic presentation

Bass A-
Interesting part that Etymotic chose to have two BAs to carry this region. How does it perform? Decent. The attack especially decay is quite natural to my ears. There is a hint of slower decay that delivers body to the mids. This time, you can enjoy EDM with this but it's not a basshead level. The rumble of the subbass exists and the midbass kicks. It's definitely bassier than ER2SE. Fortunately, this bass level is just enough to bring a body to the overall harmonic. Giving a *soul* to the sound without smearing to the mids. This also helps with the BA timbre. The BA timbre does exist but it's not at the level of "bad timbre". It is one of the good one. I can't recall it to be in the league of IER M9 or 64Audio U12T but it's good.

Mids A+
Here is the interesting part. There is noticeable less in your face here. It sounds more like the casual *audiophile* iem here without shoving it on your face. The thickness of the lower mids does help with the timbre to be natural. It is very relaxing and calm. ER2SE is definitely more "on your face" than the EVO. This one has lush mids and more width than depth. Overall its mids has no weird peaks.

Vocals A
Surprisingly both male and female vocals do have good body and weight to it. It is on the thicker side but never being too much. Perhaps, there is a little BA timbre but over-time you will get use to it pretty quickly as it's not that severe. For example, Frank Sinatra has enough weight on its vocal and IU does sound accurate. I don't classify this to be an euphoric vocal set but more like a safe choice.

Highs B+
This is important part for this set. I've heard a peak somewhere in the treble region when I used the dual flange. I bet it's due to my ear canal and the dual flange design. After switching it to a Shure smallest silicon tips, the peak is gone. Aside of that, the overall treble is not emphasized this time. It is well articulated but darker. The air is significantly less than what I heard from ER2SE. This means, EVO sounds mellow and less *open* than its predecessors. Advantage of this move is having a relax signature to enjoy music longer. Though, the tuning kit exist to change the ohms to your liking.

Imaging & Staging B+
First of all, I think Etymotic addressed the less on your face for the EVO. This makes thing perceived as more width than the previous ER2SE. However, I can hear more height on the ER2SE than the EVO. Separation/Layering is great but not something I would say remarkable, especially when I'm comparing it with Tanchjim layering, Darling. Imaging on EVO is also great. A bit different than the ER2SE as it is not as 2D as ER2. Again, height wise is not that great since the thickness of the mids lead to a middle staging being overly focused than the rest of the spectrum.

Genre
IU, Heize, Taeyeon, AKMU, Yerin Baek, Alesso, Martin Garrix, Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion and more.

Comparison

Etymotic ER2SE: 1 DD
Bass on EVO is greater with a slight BA hint. EDM sounds better on EVO than the ER2SE. ER2SE tends to sound thinner but the DD timbre does make ER2SE sounds more lifelike. The mids are richer on the EVO but a bit less separation than the ER2SE. Highs are noticeably less airy than the ER2SE. EVO wins the overall resolution even with a relax tuning but sounds a little closed than the ER2SE which perceives more air.

Tanchjim Darling: 1DD 2BA (CP145 Depth 2)
Overall harmonic is cleaner on the Darling than the EVO. Bass on the Darling has texture of the DD and a good amount of air. Mids of EVO is perceived thicker most likely due to less pinna gain. Highs are noticeably higher extended on the Darling than the EVO but EVO carries the details as well. Darling outclassed both layering and imaging of the EVO but EVO is no slouch either.

Conclusion
Etymotic's attempt on a multi BA is successful but with a different sauce to it. There is no more analytical sounding or a tool like their tuning in their previous model. Though, many people like them too. This approach will cater another part of people who wants Ety to be a relax set. The company answers it pretty good with a little quirk here and there. The tuning kit comes in handy if you think you need more treble or even mellower Ety. (That's gonna be too dark bro?) Different folks, different strokes. If you are finding a mellow Etymotic, I think you have found it here. $500 is a tough market but if you are finding a deep fit IEM with a top notch isolation, look no further.

Gallery

a DD marvel but not this time



Disclaimer: This demo unit is a loaner unit from Cayin; AndyKong and I personally add a Tanchjim Filter on the grill as I find it too bright for my preference.

tl;dr
One of the most resolving DD in the market with a caveat of its tonality. Too bright for my taste and didn’t work well with most genres. However, foam/filter could help a little bit even though it isn't enough to cover up some random peaks. The Fantasy DD is very competent on delivering bass texturing and impact. Imaging and layering are also impressive to say the least. Rating is low due to tonality alone but the DD is great.

Introduction
Cayin Fantasy is another set that I have heard from Cayin. The first one was YB04 with its N6ii combo which offered a smooth reference sounding. This time the Cayin approach is unfortunately too bright for my taste. Here’s my take on this set.


Looks
Medium sized IEM with a bigger than average nozzle but smaller than the Blessing 2 from memory. The nozzle has a screw mechanism which lets you access and be able to mod (if you are into modding). It comes with a big box Z1R style and has extruded 2 pin cable.

Sound signature:
Neutral bright (very bright)

Sources:
1. Tanchjim Stargate - one of the best one as it tames the highs a little bit
2. Apple Dongle - almost the same as stargate but smidge mushy in the lower mids
3. Ifi XCan - things are shouty here

Sonic presentation
Bass= S-
Bass is tight and has an excellent impact. The texturing is solid and I can state that this is one of the best DD for the bass region. Though, I need to warn you that with the tuning, the treble does bother you, so it is a bit hard to appreciate the lows from Fantasy’s DD. However, if you are fine with bass boost etc, the bass can shine. The bass can dig low as I was a bit goosebump on Yerin Baek-Hate You track where the bass sounds very impactful with perfect timbre. As for the bass spectrum, there is a hint of more mid bass than the sub, however the overall region is tight and hence there is zero bloat for this region. If you compare against the subbass and its midbass, there is a noticeable less pronounced subbass when you start listening to subbass focus tracks. Though, the attack and decay for the bass region I would classify as perfect.


Mids= B
I have a mixed feeling about giving a rank for its mids. The mids are very resolving with a good timbre considering it is just a single DD. However, the presentation is somewhat questionable. At least to my preference. Overall spectrum of its mids is a bit unbalanced to my liking. The uppermids is too emphasized. Though, it has no issue with the lower mids. The layering of its mids is excellent nevertheless and it also carries micro details effortlessly.

Vocals= B
Both male and female vocals are fine timbre wise. The noteweight of the vocals do sound natural to me, it is not thin and not thick. However, it suffers the same issue as I explained in the mids section. I found that I need to listen with a low volume with this set and at the same time I can hear a lot of details.

Highs= C
To my ears, the DD from Fantasy carries air but is overshadowed by its uppermids peak. Micro detail and nuance is scarily detailed considering a single DD. I’m impressed with its sheer resolution combined with separation. It is rare to see a very resolving DD in the market and Fantasy is one of them. However, the treble is too bright and unbalanced which lead to a lower rank.

Soundstage and Imaging= A+
The staging is spacious and has depth to it. Imaging is accurate and everything is easy to pick up. Center imaging, especially vocals does sound accurate. I think Cayin did a great job at this part and nothing to be complained about.

Eartips
I don’t mind the stock tips here. Go for foam is you need to reduce the harshness.

Song and Genre
IU, Heize, Taeyeon, AKMU, Yerin Baek, Alesso, Martin Garrix, Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion and more.

Comparison

Tanchjim Oxygen 1DD:
Going back to back with Oxygen really bothers me. One thing that Fantasy stood out is the resolution. Meanwhile, Oxygen has the edge for more easy going tonality but other than that Fantasy blew Oxygen away. The bass has a significant impact on Fantasy which makes the Oxygen sounds sluggish and impactless. Vocals on Oxygen does seem neutral too (here it perceives like having a slightly thicker than the Fantasy) but the mid bass is much more pronounced than Fantasy.

Etymotic EVO 3BA:
Since I have the EVO with me during the review session, let's take that as a consideration. So, EVO is a neutral dark. This is the opposite of Fantasy. EVO is not bright at all even in comparison with their ER series. Comparing EVO and Fantasy is absolutely pointless other than you are finding a different signature. If you want a mellow sounding, detailed, and don’t bother BA timbre, EVO will do better than Fantasy in that regard. Fantasy is not for everyone but for someone who seeks for a bright set and is also fine with eq or mod (mesh/foam/filter) for its DD sheer technicalities.


Conclusion:
Cayin Fantasy has one of the best DD in the market, even beating EX1000 in my memory. (in terms of sheer resolution and bass impact except the sub bass rumble). Unfortunately, the tuning is not for me. It is too bright to be accepted to the mass, this means Fantasy is not a set to be used for all genres. Some very well mastered tracks will be a huge success for Fantasy but the bad one will not make it. My suggestion is to be okay with modding (adding foam/filters), and enjoy the rest. However, the price is a bit too steep for someone to buy an IEM just to mod it in order to enjoy it. Judging from the overall market, if you are in a market for a single DD at $800 price mark, there are some more single DD iems that you can compare to, especially Dunu Zen and Oriolus Isabellae, which I haven’t had an opportunity to listen to yet. In conclusion, did I enjoy Fantasy? Hmm.. probably for its sheer technicalities but not solely on its tonality.

Gallery




Extra

TIME TO MOD?

Disclaimer
I received the KS1 from KBear for an exchange of my honest opinion.

Introduction
This is a budget single DD set from KBear to compete at $20 mark. There are a few $20 amazing DD's in the market lately, especially the new Tanchjim Tanya and the Final E500. The former went toward bassy neutral and the latter is balanced neutral. I chose “neutral” to mention that there are no weird peaks I can hear while listening to it. KBear on the other hand went for a V Shape iem. This time I will change my review style. I will bring Tanya and E500 together in the writings rather than giving bullet points.

Looks
This is an over-ear design iem instead of bullet from Tanya and E500. Very light weight plastic that comes with 2 pin extruded style.

Sound Signature
V-Shaped

Source
iPod 7th Gen + Apple Music Lossless
Radsone ES100
Dell XPS 13

Sonic presentation

Bass
Worst of the three. The Tanya comes on top while giving a good impact and not smearing to the mids. E500 on the other has a tilt for warmth but things never bloat and nothing is over emphasized. KS1 has an issue with a one note bass where it bleeds to the mids. Quite blunt with the transient.

Mids
KS1 is a v-shaped iem and hence the mids are recessed and sounded thin. E500 owns this part where it sounds balanced in the mix without being recessed. Meanwhile, Tanya has a slightly less forward mids but is covered up by lower treble, which overall sounds a bit upper mids and lower treble emphasized.

Vocals
E500 owns this part as well where both male and female sound very good on this set. KS1 on the other hand has a lower treble to dominate in vocals which give a perception of thinness and detail. Tanya is a bit mixed up depending on source as it can sound great with certain neutral source but recessed on certain sources; including Apple dongle usb C.

Highs
Treble is where KS1 has a bit of an edge. It doesn’t mean it excels. KS1 treble can be described as detailed but not piercing. E500 has a relaxed treble meanwhile Tanya has a hint of lower treble but nothing special up top.

Soundstage and Imaging
Staging on KS1 is fine, nothing bad or good. Kind of average. E500 has width but no height. Meanwhile, Tanya has height but not really width. One advantage that KS1 has is the layering. Even with a bass heavy tuning, it is considerably good for the asking price.

Song and Genre
IU, Heize, Taeyeon, AKMU, Yerin Baek, Alesso, Martin Garrix, Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion and more.

Verdict
KS1 is a budget single DD iem that is not for me. It has the clarity up top for the asking price but the mids are recessed for someone who appreciates vocals. The bass is a bit blunt with a one note perception. However, this doesn’t stop me from looking at more KBear sets, especially the Starshine that has good use of the EST driver for the graph. This review came short as I think the set is a bit average considering the competition given by Tanya and E500.

Gallery

Disclaimer: The Moondrop Blessing 2 is a demo unit provided by Stars Picker Audio Library, an audio cafe located at Kota Damansara, Malaysia. They did send this out for an exchange of a review. The review has no bias and I try to be as critical as possible.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StarsPickerAudio/

Looks: Medium sized IEM with a bigger than average nozzle. I don't have a single problem fitting the IEM but yours might vary. It comes with a carrying case and a set of eartips. The presentation is excellent in my opinion. The build quality of the IEM (2 pin) is solid and the cable (3.5mm) is great as well.

Signature: Neutral/DF Bright (VSDF according to Moondrop)

Bass: A
Not the fastest but you will be rewarded with a DD timbre. If you have been in the audio long enough, timbre accuracy is what you are finding for and Blessing 2 provides it. The dynamic driver in Blessing 2 is a bit of shocking where it sounds more that what it graphed. Especially the midbass punch. It is quite enjoyable that can give pleasure for certain tracks that focusing on midbass punch rather than 60hz subbass rumble. It falls a bit early lower down the 60Hz unfortunately which doesn't really shine in Hip Hop genre. Nevertheless, the subbass is not muted and can be EQed to a certain degree if you are that eager to get a little more rumble. I did this with iFi xCan and I find it quite exciting but don't expect a top tier subbass rumble.

Mids: A+
Mid is excellent but with a quirk but let me explain that in the vocal section as it's more about vocals than a casual mids. Aside from that, B2's mids resolution is impressive. It carries a hefty of information effortless in this regard. To add cherry on top, the mids has an excellent separation from the bass department that can ensure a free bloat enjoyment. Note that, the set is more toward on the uppermids than the lower mids which gives a vibe of neutral sounding. So, is this a straight champ for middle heads? wait...

Vocals: A-
Mids is the hardest part when it comes to a hybrid setup due to the DD and the BA crossover. I find B2 vocals randomly missing a body/actual weight in certain tracks (occasionally) even the track carries midbass punch as well. Yes, the vocal does sound very well in most of tracks but certain tracks can be a little "eh" moment for folks that do CARE about vocals and its weight. It is an excellent vocal performance nevertheless but if you are expecting a lifelike weight, that could be a downside. Why? The lower mids is not B2's strength which is an important aspect to deliver vocal which carries lifelike weight and body (emotion). With that said, B2 vocals note weight can be a little thin-ish but it is NOT too obvious at least. Other than that, I also suspect the BA timbre that could result this as well. You instead will have astonishingly clean vocals and well transparent. Take an example of ER2SE even with less lows than this but does carry a lifelike weight to the vocals. So, is it a deal breaker? Probably.. especially to vocal sluts out there that is particular to lifelike vocal reproduction. Though, I see an OPPORTUNITY for people that look for details and resolution at this price range.

Highs: A+
Straight up, upper mids to highs are the center of this set. It is brilliant! This is one of the B2's strengths and Moondrop pushes everything they can do. Highs are excellent. It is extended well and it is a bit on the "sss" side but it is not that bright that can kill your eardrum. However, I feel like B2's lower treble is a little 1-2dB beyond my liking (YMMV) that can lead to shouty/strident in that range. Aside from that, it is detailed and layered. Impressive price to performance ratio ever heard from me. Other than that is the air, something about 10khz+. Usually this range doesn't really carry much information but this range can give a different feeling to the overall sound. Last octave is not a deal breaker at this price range as any other sets in this price range can't even do this as well. (at least from my experience). The last octave critique is a bit of nitpick but it's a good thing for you to know.

Staging: A
Another B2's strength. Imaging and soundstaging are straight up excellent at this price range. It is sharp, layered and pinpointing. It places each instrument in a right place. It is not that deep due to the tuning but wide and well spread. The image of the vocal appears in front of the staging which is the main focus of the overall harmony.

Pairing (source):
1. USB C Apple dongle:
This is my benchmark for any IEM reviews. The reasoning is simple, I want to keep the source as neutral as possible to compare the sonic difference between them.

2. Matrix X Sabre > Airist Heron 5:
This is my own favorite desktop setup that I drive my HD800 and this has VERY deep, thick, lush, and grand presentation which will effect the sound of the of headphones or IEMs. I use this to see if anything can be scaled up or not but all the reviews are solely from USB C Apple dongle.

To answer the question about scaling up the Blessing 2. Short answer is yes. In what manners? Mostly about the midrange thickness. The lower mids are more prominent as well as the treble sounds more rounded. Other than that, the obvious thing is the imaging cleanliness and sharpness. The layering is outstanding and I can say that it is a night and day improvement. With that said, I recommend you to have a great grand sounding DAP to make Blessing 2 shines the BEST for portable use but the dongle is still good nevertheless.
Note that, there is a slight hiss with this setup but didn't bother me when I start playing some tracks on.

Comparison:

Etymotic ER2SE;
Timbre and coherency wise, ER2SE does edge. ER2SE falls short for the imaging and soundstage by a good margin. Blessing 2 boasts its uppermids to highs resolution effortless while still having a DD timbre at the lows. Vocals do sound more natural on ER2SE even with almost the same note weight at this section. DD on both can be EQed but the edge for Blessing 2. The midbass is more prominent on Blessing 2 and sound more airy. Both carries forward signature but none of them are too forward.

Campfire Audio Comet:
Timbre does edge on Blessing 2 but the coherency I would probably choose Comet. Both carries great imaging and soundstage but Blessing 2 is sharper meanwhile Comet does more in a 3D-holographic manner. Resolution straight up goes for Blessing 2 no question. Highs definition is marginally better on Blessing 2 which Comet does struggle at. Vocals sounded lusher on Comet with a heavier note weight. Overall, Blessing 2 does edge over Comet in every single aspect unless you want a warm and lush set.

Conclusion:
Did I enjoy listening to Blessing 2? Absolutely YES! Did I soaked into the music and "high" with this set? Hmmm... I need to think twice (pun intended). Nevertheless, Blessing 2 is still a $300 benchmark and has the ability to disrupt kilobuck iem market. This $300 set has an impeccable technicalities at this price range while also having an great tonality. Crazy good deal! What Blessing 2 best at? I simply can conclude, this is the most resolving uppermids and also highs at this price range while having above average staging, and dare to say it's the best I've heard under $500!

Gallery:

the Polite Beauty entry



Disclaimer: This set is provided to me for a review. I will send the set back to them and my view is literally non-bias. Also keep your mind straight that this set only costs $50 and my judgement can be a bit less “wow” since I will keep this review neutral without price bias. However, I will try my best to bring some iems those are in the price bracket or even a little bit more to tackle the view even better.

Ramble: DD “burn-in” is somewhat a controversial topic. For that note, I ran at least 10 hour before listening to it. I hate to be a “burn-in” believer but to get everyone on the track, I decide to follow the norm. I had my Kanas Pro back then trying to burn-in and end up without any difference even though the box claims to burn-in for 100 hours (err).

Introduction
First time I listened to this set, I thought it was a BA set (take it at your own preference). Hill Audio aimed for a balanced target and they almost hit it. Though the bass is a bit sluggish as in it does punch but doesn’t really carry the speed and texture. The mids is okay but the peak on 2khz and 4.5khz can sound odd in certain tracks, and can sound overly emphasized on certain tracks, like a piano. The pinna gain is fine. Fortunately, it is fast enough to not sound bloated and this is a good sign for a sub $50 set. The good thing about Mirage is it is not offensive or flawed enough to not consider it if you are in the $50 iem market. This beauty should be in your watchlist for sure when considering $50 iem.

tl;dr
Mirage is a bassy neutral that has decent extensions for both ends but with a little caveat of peak at 2khz that can bother the evenness of the entire frequency, an easy example is the high pitch piano can be accentuated. Considering this is $50, it holds a pretty decent place in this ballpark.

It has different filters though I just prefer the stock. 3 Filters
(Black filter for reference sound, Blue for smooth sound, Red for thick and warm sound.)

Look: S
I love the placement of the vent (right after the nozzle)
Driver flex is non existent
MMCX connection
The cable is smooth and very high quality
One of the most comfortable iems i've ever wear




Bass: B
Less dynamic than I expected
Not very much textured and kind of a blob (can be sluggish in fast track)
Good thing is, it does punch
The entire freq from subbass till upper bass hits (which means no muted issue)
You should not be feeling any issue with the entire lows except the technicalities

Mids: B+
Mids frequency is great
There is a good separation between mids and bass region
However, do take note that the speed of the bass can somehow mask the cleanliness of mids on certain tracks. It is not obvious but if you want a very clean sounding, you need to know about this.
Resolution wise is good on the asking price (neither good nor bad, average I would say)
The 2Khz peak can be shouty for a high pitch piano or anything related but it is not always there

Vocals: B
Vocals are pretty much toward neutral
Note weight is quite a mixed bag.
The vocals are clear but the timbre is not the most neutral to my ears.
It does not carry much emotion in this case.
Vocals is not the strongest trait for Mirage though it is clear and not muddy at all

Highs: B+
Highs are pretty good in consideration of chi-fi market with the treble roll-off trend
I prefer this over KZ line up.
It is smooth and well extended
I dig the highs pretty well for the asking price!

Note Weight (Focusing on vocals)
Even though it has an early rise in the bass region (from right to left), it does as well climb earlier for the pinna gain just right after the bass. These lead to thinner note weight. This is not too thin by any means but if you are finding some meaty vocals, this is not for you.

Imaging
A good soundstage and imaging of an iem priced at $50. I would say this is not its weakness at this price range. I’ve heard worse even at higher prices.

Filters
I need to be honest here, I don’t do much detail on this as after I swapped one of them, I notice it does reduce the details. I believe the filters are just different meshes which reduce sound waves. If you like more bass, probably you will like it as it will make the Mirage darker and you can crank the volume up more.

Comparison

ER2SE ($70 if you are lucky enough with discounted price, though it is hard to find in my own country, Malaysia)
Considering Mirage is $50, a higher price of ER2SE has the edge right away from the tonality to start with. It is easier on the ears, not with the fit though lol. The mids on ER2SE is leaner and has the resolution better than Mirage. Bass quantity on Mirage is greater thus giving more thump. Highs I could say Mirage could be almost the same but probably Mirage has a tad more air. When it comes to staging and soundstage, Mirage has an upper hand here. Spatial cues on is better on the Mirage and it is great for this price.

Final E500 ($21 it is more than usual price if you are living in Malaysia.)
I personally love the E500 very much. E500 has the spatial cues even better than more expensive IEMs out there. Comparing Mirage staging with E500 is hard. E500 has the edge in this region. However, if you want more bass, Mirage is for you as the E500 is a mid-focussed IEM. The vocal note weight on E500 is greater even with lower bass as it has lower pinna-gain and 200hz warmth. This lead E500 sounds fuller in the mids than Mirage. I would recommend Final E500 if you have less budget to start with.

Tin T2 Pro ($50 same price)
Just forget about the T2 Pro and get this instead. Clearly Mirage is better in many ways. The T2 Pro is too bright and the vocal is thin and shrill.

KZ ZS5 ($20 first version)
ZS5 is a V shape IEM and Mirage is better balanced than ZS5. Highs on ZS5 can be sibilant and Mirage did better in this regard. Bass on ZS5 is tilted toward lower bass and Mirage is more even. Mirage basically is more polite due to more balanced tuned overall.

Conclusion
The build quality of Mirage alone is worth more than the asking price. The shell is very well made and the cable is one of my first “wow” factors from my experience. Hill Audio as a company has a bright future if they keep improving the little thing consistently. Mirage is their brand new flagship which only costs you $50 and has decent sound quality. Before considering Chi-Fi, do keep in mind that there is Mirage around the corner to cater you in this price range. If you are Malaysian, you have an advantage on customer service which is very important. I’ve had a lot of bad experiences when dealing with Chi-Fi. AliExpress is one of the worst platforms if you are thinking of after sales service.
Rating: Overall is 4 stars considering price. As unbiased price judgment, this is 2.5 stars.

Gallery:

Disclaimer: This demo unit is a loaner unit from Stars Picker (Malaysia), we agreed to exchange the unit for a review by holding a full amount of cost. The demo comes without a full package which means it doesn't have the official box, tips, etc. Just an IEM and its cable.
FB: https://www.facebook.com/StarsPickerAudio/
Check em out!

tl;dr
Very balanced tuning with a competent resolution from lows to the highest but a little caveat at the lowest region (could be lower than 60Hz, unfortunately I have no measurement rig).

Introduction
The tuning of OH800 reminds me a lot of a successful Sony’s second flagship, ier-M9. Neutral. While they both almost share the same tuning, M9 sounds warmer because of a slower mid-bass and a late rise of the pinna gain. However M9 has better bass in the lowest region which is missing in OH800 (it has the sub bass but muted compared to M9). OH800 on the other hand boasts its mids and highs for being balanced and more controlled, I would say better than M9. The resolution of OH800 is top-of-the-line and better than M9. This is neither a warm-sounding IEM nor dark. OH800 carries everything and I’m shocked on how this is being tuned very very well.

Build and comfort: The nozzle is not protrude and the body is in a medium size.

Sound signature: Balance

Sources:
1. 9038s (2.5mm balance cable) - I thought I liked it at first but I was wrong. This pairing only focuses on mids and highs with much less dynamic. It is rather flat and boring.
2. Apple Dongle - Balance (add IEMatch and it is my favourite pairing)
3. Ifi XCan - mixed review, not a fan.

Sonic presentation
Bass= A-
Lack sub bass region, no sub bass rumble (Hip Hop listener is not gonna enjoy it)
Mid and upper bass are accurate and has the rumble when it is called
Not the most dynamic compared to top-tier BA bass like ier-M9 but the transients are better.
Some EDMs are just fine but when it comes to subbass focus EDM, it falls short

Mids=S-
It has sweet pinna gain
Very detail without BA timbre
The separation in the mids region is great and musical
It is balanced through mids (it is really a balanced set)
Music goes through together with vocals well without anything being in front of another

Vocals=S-
Excellent lifelike vocals performance that has enough note weight to not sound thin or overly thick
No bass bleeds whatsoever
Very well separated from the rest of instruments in the track
Background singers are also excellent
No problem with duet (male & female) tracks
Placement of vocals is just right, not too forward, not in a blanket (I prefer with IEMatch)
Very well textured both male and female BRAVO!

Highs=A+
Smooth and well extended top end
Carries micro-detail effortless
Can be lacking of bites in certain tracks like classical, etc. Mostly hi-hats if you are a treble head, depending on which tips are used (foam definitely kills the highs).
-advantage; kpop doesn’t sound sibilant at all

Imaging=B+
This is where OH800 falls short. The imaging needs to be improved quite a lot. The instrument placement is lacking. Though, it has great separation to not feel congested. A touch of imaging could lead this set to another level of excitement.

Eartips
Tips selection are important, find the smallest tips that are sealed and fit the deepest. They are indeed can be altered with different tips.

Test Track
spoiler, I write this while listening to them, so probably you will get some OH SO GOOD! Etc etc...
Test Track (listened with iPod Touch and IEMatch on high setting)

13 Test Track Spotify Link:

Paint by Moonmoon: (Male vocal centric)
Well textured! Male vocals sound sweet here. The ending part with multiple male vocals gave me goosebumps. Really. It is crazy that you still can hear the main vocalist while also each of the background vocals. BRAVO!

Love Alone by IU: (Female vocal centric)
IU sounds LOVELY. You can hear her vocal texture. Full of emotions, I can’t find any bad things for this track. The guitar also sounds grand. No “thinness” just full of emotions and well delivered. Again BRAVO!

Angel by Chancellor and Taeyeon: (Duet Male and Female vocals)
Very airy. Very musical. No problem, OH800 is top of the line delivering vocals male and female as I said earlier. Taeyeon sounds godly here. OMG it is that gooood! I started to crank the volume higher and highhhh...

Every End of the Day by IU: (Female vocal centric with complex music)
Again, this is a hard track.I hardly find any set that can do well separating the instruments in the track. Happily OH800 performs very well with a caveat of blurry imaging but excellent separation. It’s good and easily one of the top sets that I’ve ever heard.

POPSICLE by UHSN: (Imaging, complex, separation song)
OH800 delivers the track with plenty of resolution and nothing is jumping across the frequency. It is well balanced but not the most dynamic either. I’m fine listening to this but it is not the best I’ve ever heard. Mostly due to imaging. It is just left and right, failing to give an exact place for each instrument. The best I’ve heard was KSE1200 which is months ago.

Occupied by Rich Brian: (Subbass and imaging track for male)
Oof! OH OH no way. Where is the subbass? There is no subbass rumble here. The soundstage is also just average and it shows during the intro of the song. OH800 does not shine in hip-hop sadly.

Your text by Sundial: (Soundstage and pinpoint imaging test)
The soundstage is just average, probably quite narrow. Everything is separated but man OH800 really needs some more imaging. It has a hefty resolution but in a flat plane. No holographic feeling here.

Bad guy by Billie Eillish: (Subbass and layering for female)
The bass in this track is not as low as Occupied by Rich Brian but OH800 suffers a bit to deliver this in a fun way. Quite not-really-dynamic kind of bass here. Billie sounds amazing still.

Psychosocial by Slipknot: (Multiple metal instruments track)
Rocks sound safe here. It is smooth. Hardly for me to bang my head. Everything is okay but not enough bites. The resolution is good though.

Feel Special by Twice: (Pop electronic music)
KPOP electronic sounds so pleasing. NO SIBILANT OMG. You can hear the details in this track which is hard for other sets due to sibilant. It is an eye-opener for me to finally listen to the details in this music. Last time I heard the details only with KSE1200.

Blah Blah Blah by Armin van Buuren: (EDM, almost dubstep but not a hardcore dubstep)
OH800, midbass no problem. So I can still enjoy this track very well. Tons of details. No sibilant again. Though, keep in mind it is still a BA bass.

Cumbe by Rodrigo y Gabriela: (Can be a “typical” audiophile track?)
Things sound grand here. I like the guitars, it is a lifelike guitar. Not thin, not thick. Just a good grand sound. For the bass, mid bass are just fine but don’t expect a dynamic rumble kind of bass. I still enjoy it very much. Start banging my head at the end of the track. Great one.

Chicken Noodle Soup by j-hope and Becky G: (Pop Hip Hop Top 40 Hitz kinda of track, New waves)
I think kpop is really an OH800 forte. You hardly find anything sibilant with this set. The bass is fast and great. Can’t complain much.

Comparison
I would leave this one empty for this time. Comparison without AB them together is not really accurate but you can ask me down in the comment and I will "recall" as far as I can. These are previous sets:
IER M9
YB04 (review unit)
iSINE 20
Campfire Solaris
EX1000
ER4SR
CL2
Empire ears EVR
Anole VX (3Day audition unit)
Meze Penta (review unit)
KSE1200
Andromedas V3
EX800st
Fearless La Hire
ER2SE
Fearless S8 Pro
BGVP DM7
Kanas Pro
Fidue A83

Conclusion
Oriveti has an impeccable start with its flagship set. $800 price range has a hefty price competition with a lot of tribrids coming out like Thieaudio Monarch & Clairvoyance to name a few. There are things that need to be improved but most of them are just from technicalities of the BAs that they have with. The tuning is excellent and I would say it competes TOTLs’ tuning out there. The transients are also great. It is shockingly balanced throughout the frequency and musical at the same time. It is even better when added the IEMatch, to me personally this gives so much more balance throughout the frequency and makes things even resolving and musical at the same time. This set is on the top in terms of resolutions from mid bass till highs but fall short at the very low. I would say the resolution is still below VX but with emotion and definitely above ier M9 (Big thumbs up!). When you start listening to vocal songs, R&B, etc, this set SHINES!

Gallery (nothing with the Comet's box, it happened that the box was there during shoot)

Before I start my review, thanks to AndyKong for sending me YB04 with N6ii for a review!


Introduction
Build and comfort: These are outstanding! Metal build I believe. This set is really comfortable and it comes with many tips; balance, vocal, bass, double flange, and foam.

Sound signature: Interesting tuning. This is almost like etymotic reference tuning. I will give two different sources here; apple dongle and n6ii pairing

1. Apple dongle: The bass is lean. The mids is smooth and lush. Highs are well extended and really musical.
   
   
2. N6ii 3.5mm T01: Straight up very musical. N6ii is indeed a musical dap that has a touch of warmth by giving bigger note weight. I certainly believe that there is a slight bump on 150Hz-250Hz for the warmth. With this warmth, there is like a perfect weight on vocals. Very crystal clear and musical mids. The bass is still in the leaner side but this time it is just better. More weight. For the highs; again, this is very well extended and very musical. Really musical pairing. I have an eq preset for Spotify Apple to mimic the N6ii, it’s not 1:1 same but you will get an idea at least! (Spotify EQ below for you to try)

Spoiler: To me personally, I happen to like 3.5mm on N6ii rather than its balance. The single ended seems more airy and open. Very wide soundstage than the 4.4 out. Weird. 4.4output happens to slam better but it has significantly narrow soundstage. Choose which you like the most.



Sonic presentation

Bass: The subbass is not really well extended but the mid and upper bass are well executed to give weight for vocals. This is not for dance/EDM type of song if you are into it.

Mids: With N6ii pairing, this set is AMAZING. Crystal clear and very lush mids. Separation of the mids is really pleasant and beautiful. Without the n6ii, just take this as less musical but the crystal clear retains.

Vocals: Both male and female vocals are excellent. It is almost like this set is designed for vocals. Lush and clear vocals with perfect weight. Regarding the tonality, by having n6ii, the tonality is excellent. Without n6ii, you need to increase the note weight a little bit in eq.

Highs: Very well extended! To me personally, this is a better set of Empire Ears EVR if you compare the highs. Straight up beating Rai Penta and EVR in terms of highs iirc.

Staging and Imaging: pinpoint imaging but not exceptional.

Soundstage: Width; very wide! Depth; Average

EarTips: I prefer best with balance tips that comes in the box. Yes, with N6ii pairing or EQed Spotify to mimic N6ii signature.


Test Track

13 Test Track Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1NDXTjaSGKqIAO5vz4yTEl?si=MxnBiWh0RleJ7aAqo7I-ow

Paint by Moonmoon: (Male vocal centric)
No doubt, no problem for male vocals. Pleasing sound, has a great weight for male vocals. The clarity is great too! The ending part with multiple male vocals is also very musical and well separated.

Love Alone by IU: (Female vocal centric)
Beautiful female vocals! It has weight, air, and clarity. There is no bass bleed at all to my ears. It is not even “too forward” kind of vocals and I like how it placed the vocals.

Angel by Chancellor and Taeyeon: (Duet Male and Female vocals)
A very well recorded track and hence YB04 delivers it beautifully. Male and female, both sounded very good. Very airy and musical at the same time. Layering is excellent too!

Every End of the Day by IU: (Female vocal centric with complex music)
Hard track and happily I would say this set did well. The layering capabilities with the soundstage performance helped a lot. The vocals is again smooth and does not sound strained at all.

POPSICLE by UHSN: (Imaging, complex, separation song)
Imaging is excellent but not outstanding as KSE1200 but again this is super great considering its price. It handles the complex and crowded part very well. Not harsh at all and very musical.

Occupied by Rich Brian: (Subbass and imaging track for male)
Again, this is not a sub bass oriented IEM. However the subbass is very clean. The male vocals here are really well pronounced, crystal clear and smooth. Such a pleasing tone and the imaging is great!

Your text by Sundial: (Soundstage and pinpoint imaging test)
The soundstage is wide. Everything is separated well and being placed at the right places. Very beautiful tone and the male/female voice is gorgeous too. No bass bleed at all. Pinpoint imaging great.

Bad guy by Billie Eillish: (Subbass and layering for female)
The subbass is controlled and lean since this is not a sub bass oriented IEM. The layering of multiple female vocals is flawless. Again, the vocal performance on this set is beautiful. I stress this again, with N6ii pairing or EQed Spotify to mimic N6ii signature.

Psychosocial by Slipknot: (Multiple metal instruments track)
The separation of guitars, drums, etc are well presented. The vocals are well presented. There is no any weird peaks on highs that can ruin your experience. I like how it sounds.

Feel Special by Twice: (Pop electronic music)
Very good sounding. I love how YB04 handles electronic music without sounding harsh at all. The N6ii also helps a lot making this set even more musical.

Blah Blah Blah by Armin van Buuren: (EDM, almost dubstep but not a hardcore dubstep)
Not the best set for you to dance in the club however the highs are well extended without sounding harsh. It has a minimal amount of bass for you to enjoy it but other sets can do better for you if you are an EDM banger. Imaging is very good though.

Cumbe by Rodrigo y Gabriela: (Can be a “typical” audiophile track?)
Excellent separation for all instruments. The guitars and the drums do not sound congested at all. Bass is controlled and hence the guitar sounds clear. The imaging is excellent!

Chicken Noodle Soup by j-hope and Becky G: (Pop Hip Hop Top 40 Hitz kinda of track)
Sounds great on this set though it can be better with bass impact if you want to enjoy this kind of track. However, the vocals performance is always on point!


Comparison

YB04 vs EVR:
This has been a few weeks since Ive heard EVR so, take this with a grain of salt. However I can remember that EVR vocals presentation is superb. However, the highs are a bit veiled as in it rolls of pretty early before creating airy kind of feeling. For the bass the department, I can recall that both of these sets are almost equally the same. It doesn’t have much impact on this region but lean with warmth. YB04 excels on highs since the iem extends quite a bit and give the airy feeling.

YB04 vs Rai Penta:
Even Rai Penta is a hybrid with a DD bass, Penta doesn’t emphasis on bass. The bass is lean and just because of it is a DD bass, I can feel the DD texture in the bass region even though it doesn’t slam that much. For the mids, I think both sets are great. The mids and vocals can be a be a little difference but both are excellent. And again for the highs, YB04 exceed the highs of Penta. It has more details but still retain the smoothness and deliver music in a musical way.


YB04 vs IER M9:
Straight up M9 is a fuller sounding IEM. M9 with hybrid tips sounds intimate and engaging but not really open as YB04. However, with a bigger bore tips, M9 performs outstandingly good with amount of warmth and kick and still maintain the crystal mids and highs. Pairing it with N6ii is so musical and full of emotion. YB04 on the other hand tends to be a leaner side and still have tons of warmth to make the music rich. Just the A B comparison makes the M9 fuller than YB04. Without A B comparison, I can easily say YB04+N6ii pairing is full and musical and still a great set for a detail pickup. Plus, YB04 has above average soundstage!

The unique/Conclusion:
This is a good example of reference tuning that still carries musical emotion to it. It has warmth in the mids and vocals that made this set sounds emotionally engaging. The soundstage in term of width is really one of the factors for this IEM, really wide and well separated sound. However, it performs the best with N6ii. Hence, I tried my best to imitate the signature of N6ii into my Spotify Apple equalizer in order for you try it. Again it is not 1 to 1 sound but the idea is there at least. Picture attached; you can try with any eq app if you have it. Also, I love to bring Ipod/Apple dongle here because that's one of the most clean neutral source for me to know the benchmark of a specific IEM. Again, YB04 is a reference musical sounding with excellent vocals delivery!


-EQ for Signature imitation-

OVERVIEW
Build and comfort: These are outstanding! One of the best comforts no doubt.

Sound signature: Smooth but not dark at all. Bass is flat with bump on midbass. Mids are excellent. Highs are good with a decent amount of extension. This is the IEM that will give soul to the vocals. Seriously, easily one of the top in my list! I LOVE THE VOCALS ON THIS! I like how it sounds tbh, basically for my playlist, Kpower Vocals, Dalkom Cafe etc. It is like a smooth/vinyl like sound.

DETAILS
Bass: Focusing on midbass with decent amount of subbass. Both are tight and not bleeding. Not really for basshead i would say but i like this kind of bass!

Mids: Excellent mids. Beautiful without any noticeable bass bleed. Good, any iems that has bass bleed is a big no no for me.

Vocals: Both male and female vocals are excellent. Yes, this set has no problem delivering vocals.

Highs: Well extended. Not “surprising good” but not bad at all. Just good. Meaning, can be better. I would say, if the highs technicalities is top notch mimicking VX, KSE1200 etc, easily this is my endgame.

Staging and Imaging: I would say this set delivers the imaging well but not exceptional.

Soundstage: IEMs level of soundstage but really airy and open.

Tips: I prefer best with Symbio W (the one with foam inside), Spiral dot is haze haze (worse imaging)

TEST TRACKS:
13 Test Track Spotify Link:
This test tracks contains almost everything to test about the performance.

Paint by Moonmoon: (Male vocal centric)
The male vocal sounds lush and no bass bleed, beautiful! The separation of the vocal and the instruments behind are well separated. This delivers the vocal with full emotion and soul.


Love Alone by IU: (Female vocal centric)
Female vocal sounds forward but controlled. The guitar is well separated. There is no obvious bass bleed to the vocal. So there is nothing that makes female vocal sounds thick. Again, beautiful vocals!


Angel by Chancellor and Taeyeon: (Duet Male and Female vocals)
This is a well recorded track. It is almost impossible to sound bad with this song. Both male and female vocals in this track is detail and this set delivers it in a smooth way.


Every End of the Day by IU: (Female vocal centric with complex music)
This is a bit tricky song for an IEM to be good for this track on handling the background music while giving shine on female vocals. Unfortunately, this set gives average impact on this song. While the female vocalist is forward but the background music feels lacking. Not enough highs separation.


POPSICLE by UHSN: (Imaging, complex, separation song)
Again, this set doesn't really shine. It is more relaxing than giving a wow feeling towards the track. Certain IEMs will make the sound at 0:17 amazingly well with imaging capability. This set is tuned to be relaxed and to be worn for hours without any fatigue issue.


Occupied by Rich Brian: (Subbass and imaging track for male)
The high pitch that moves left and right at the beginning of the song is presented well. No obvious flaw on that. The subbass unfortunate isn't that powerful to give impact to the track. The male vocal is fine nevertheless.


Your text by Sundial: (Soundstage and pinpoint imaging test)
The soundstage is mostly IEM level while not being congested and everything is separated well. Polite sound and the male/female voice is fine too. No bass bleed at all. Pinpoint imaging is not the greatest but again everything is well separated.


Bad guy by Billie Eillish: (Subbass and layering for female)
Again, the subbass is controlled, it is more midbass than subbass and hence the subbass will not give much impact. Due to that, there is no flaw on female vocals. The layering of multiple female vocals can be heard easily, no flaw on that.


Psychosocial by Slipknot: (Multiple metal instruments track)
The separation of guitars, drums, etc are well presented. Not really vast separated but not congested at all. The vocals are well presented. Mostly making metal becomes a bit relaxed and lush sounding. Take it with your own preference.


Feel Special by Twice: (Pop electronic music)
This sounds good tbh. Some electronic can be peaky on certain sets but this set is almost has no peak at all. You can hear the female vocals and everything balance. The imaging is average but the separation is quite good.


Blah Blah Blah by Armin van Buuren: (EDM, almost dubstep but not a hardcore dubstep)
Again, electronic music can be peaky at times but this set delivers a smooth sound. The bass focuses on midbass but not subbass. Easy to listen to.


Cumbe by Rodrigo y Gabriela: (Can be a “typical” audiophile track?)
Excellent separation for all instruments. The guitars and the drums do not sound congested at all. Bass is controlled and hence the guitar sounds clear. Less impact to make this track sound “wow” but take it with your own preference. Sometimes people like how smooth this set is.


Chicken Noodle Soup by j-hope and Becky G: (Pop Hip Hop Top 40 Hitz kinda of track)
This sounds great on this set even without high amount of subbass. The male and female vocals are clean. Separation is great and not congested at all.

One bonus track for you to appreciate my bias IU.

COMPARISONS: THE MOST INTERESTING PART
Comparison: (most of these are more than 20/30hours of listening, should have no problem)


KSE1200:
A bit beyond this price but KSE is superior in almost every way except if people wanting for a relaxed sounding iem. Subbass is better on KSE while still maintaining its mids. However, KSEs vocal can be thin sometimes so Penta can be a better option if u are dead set on vocals only. Highs, I would say it is almost impossible to challenge KSEs highs capabilities in delivering technicalities.

Andromeda:
Andro sounds even thicker due to midbass. Vocals I would say sounds better on Penta but on both lows and highs extension, Andro leads. Andro also owns in terms of soundstage and imaging capabilities but with the exception of thicker vocals.

EX1000:
Both of these has almost flat lows but ex1k is exceptional in terms of DD bass. It can be raised up without any problem. Ex1k can be peaky to some but Penta is going to be lush sounding and will be a better set to listen for longer period.

CL2:
The vocal tonality for vocal centric is where cl2 shines better than Penta. But penta is more coherent throughout any genres. CL2 shines a lot on vocals, classic etc. CL2 has its own soul in vocals. Textured, clarity, etc in presenting vocals both male and female but Spiral dot is a must. However, CL2 vocals are not lush as penta. So if u are vocals whore, do choose between these two and which one u like; intense or lush.

iSINE20:
this is a different thing. 20 has its own open sound but the tonality can be a bit wonky at times. Penta is a safer tonality, better timbre I would say.

ER4SR:
This is thin neutral sound. Opposite to Penta. In short, just everything on penta is opposite to 4SR. Dry and clinical.

Anole VX:
VX is famous with technicalities and its boosted subbass. I personally not a fan on the boosted bass but really appreciate the technicalities that VX can give. I do need to use symbio W to tame the quantity of bass. The highs on VX is controlled and really really well extended resulting a detail monster. However comparing with KSE, KSE has all those technicalities but deliver it with next level staging, left, right, front, back, left back, right back etc. Bringing VX to compare with Penta is a bit out of league. I mean Penta is for smooth listening but VX is for aggressive listening.

IER M9:
Hehe this is the real battle between these sets. Remember I said Penta has the vocals with emotion and everything? but the highs are not really well tuned, vinyl-liked etc. So M9 to me solved the problems on Penta. With deep sealed tips, M9 can give the plenty amount of bass but brings the vocals almost the same level. The interesting part with M9 is the imaging. King of imaging. Better than Andro and almost on par with KSE1200. This is the reason why I gave Penta 4 stars and i hope Meze can improve the highs on the next model and will be one of the best tuned iem by far.

The unique, The Conclusion, The End:

Penta is like a vinyl sound to me. The vocals are full of emotion and if you are a vocal whore, this set will give you the best feeling ever. Penta lets a lead singer to have the best microphone in the stage to sing to you and give the backup vocalist the standard microphone resulting that you will get the most out of the lead singer. Meanwhile, Anole VX gives everyone on stage each microphone and sing together resulting that you will hear everyone of them but nothing special. Penta is one of the best iems for vocals period. You just need to have an extended listening since Penta will never wow u at first. Having a demo and listen to this at home is the best way to judge the Rai Penta.

Credit to Meze, Andy Kong for sending this unit for a review from me. I hope this review will help you out there since this is most iems comparison ever.

my Top 10 iem for benchmark: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/rank-the-iems-youve-heard.454855/page-140#post-15243715

I'm a simple man
I write what I hear and not gonna use any artistic terms

This is...

a Chord Hugo 2.

From the image you can see I placed it on a XSabre DAC.
What about my past experience:
I have tons of Headphones and Dac Amp experiences including TOTL eg. XSabre DAC, Mojo, ifi BL, ifi iCan, Heron 5..etc HD800, TH600, HD6xx, 400i, Elear, TH900..etc OK enough with my experience!

This review is gonna be short and straight to the point.

Source: Mostly 44khz and 96Khz from Foobar2000
Comparing with: XSabre>Heron5 and XSabre>iFi micro iCan SA
Pairing: For now I have HD800 and that's the headphones that I do like to find the best dac amp

Lows: High impact, not boomy and it is well controlled (neutral to me)
Mids: Lots of details and im impressed with the size form (can be musical sometimes)
Highs: Not overly extended which I preferred (not the best for HD800 for highly electronic music)

Comparing:

XSabre>Heron5
Lows: the lows on Heron 5 is a tad better for HD800 cuz it give a lil more meat


Mids: Hugo 2 shines better which gives better airier mids with a lot of details
Highs: Heron 5 is a better pair with HD800 that roll the treble a lot smoother
Conclusion: these 2 gives different signatures. Hugo2 is more toward musical analytical and Heron 5 is musical enjoyable.

XSabre>iFi micro iCan SA
Lows: Poof the Xbass just blows everything. The Xbass is well design which not making mids sounds bad. Or perhaps a tad killing the mids? but who cares with HD800, you'd really need some lows!
Mids: Compare to Heron5, this has a tad more details (but really small). Hugo2 has kind of the same signature of the mids but with better meat. iCan is like trying to achieve the Hugo2 signature but a bit tinny. Compare to the price? Why not.... XSabre helped a lot though
Highs: Both Hugo2 and iCan is not the best for HD800 but bearable. Not gonna let your ears bleed for sure. Just Heron 5 is a well known with the smooth laid back signature.
Conclusion: iCan could give impressive result with smaller price tag but remember I pair it with $1000 dac.

Conclusion:

Hell yeah, this $2k price tag can compete with TOTL <$2k desktop dac amp. If you do really need it to be mobile, yes this is the best shi* you could get but prepare your bank.
If you stay at home, you can try to find other dac and amp combo which actually have tons of variation to make you desktop dac amp shines to your audiophile* life.

So far, HD800 is a better pair with XSabre>Heron 5 that I have. Certain tracks, Hugo2 can give a better Sound Quality, but to enjoy? This Xsabre>Heron5 are the best to keep with if u have HD800.

Also from what I read and listen in a review video, Chord Hugo TT will give you more musical experience compare to Hugo2. So, prepare you bank and get that instead!

One more of the sexy Hugo 2 picture for you to enjoy!


Ps: I deducted one star because of the price which you can get better if you need a desktop dac/amp. I would give 5 if I am a portable type of guy