I had the chance to spend three weeks with the 7hz Legato, and four other IEMs, in return for my honest impressions. Thanks to
@Damz87 as always for organising.
The 7hz Legato I received didn’t come in its full retail package, however did have the leather case which is quite nice. I can’t comment on the tips, packaging etc. (which is sufficiently covered in other reviews) however the case is quite nice (if not a little on the large size) and the IEM feels well built. The cable isn’t anything special but no complaints here. The IEM is a dual dynamic driver, retailing for $109 USD.
I tested these using Final E tips, driven through my FiiO Q7, with a wide variety of music tried out.
I don’t generally read through reviews before writing mine however I had to with the Legato, my initial thoughts after listening for a couple of hours were not good. Seeing that they have an average of four out of five stars on head-fi had me scratching my head.
I listened to many of the tracks that others called out, and could pick out some of what they were getting at, but they’re such a one trick pony, with that trick being average, that I still don’t understand the rating.
Onto the breakdown:
Bass: Average (C+). The one highlight, the texture and detail isn’t great, but you get some impact and slam on certain tracks which can sound nice. It has decent weight, and feel. For bass focussed tracks I could see why you may consider these. Sub-bass was my favourite part, however mid-bass was not too bad either.
Mids: Below average (D-). Due to the elevated bass anything that exists in the region sounds dull and lifeless if bass is present. Where there isn’t much bass it can sound nice, guitar focussed tracks in particular were decent. Vocals sounded OK but quite shallow.
Treble: Below average (D-). They have a dark feel, which I don’t mind, however they clearly haven’t been tuned with treble in mind. Overall very soft.
Technicalities: Below average (D). This isn’t designed to be technical at all, it’s a bass focussed IEM.
Personal Preference: Bad (E). Not for me at all. I didn’t mind some post-rock tracks, along with guitar only music, however it’s worth noting that none of it sounded like it actually should. It’s an extremely coloured IEM.
Overall: None preference score (Below Average – D+), Overall Rating (Below Average D-). This are not the IEM for me, and I don’t think they’d be the IEM for most people. If you have some IEM’s already, and are after something bassy and not too expensive, maybe. They don't get a recommendation from me.
My rating table for this IEM:
Edit: As Head-Fi works on 1-5 I've updated my rating sheet, and subsequently this review, to fit.
My rating system:
Ranking | Out of 100 | 0-5 | 1-5 (Head-Fi) |
S+ | 100 | 5 | 5 |
S | 95 | 4.75 | 5 |
S- | 90 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
A+ | 85 | 4.25 | 4.5 |
A | 80 | 4 | 4 |
A- | 75 | 3.75 | 4 |
B+ | 70 | 3.5 | 4 |
B | 65 | 3.25 | 3.5 |
B- | 60 | 3 | 3.5 |
C+ | 55 | 2.75 | 3 |
C | 50 | 2.5 | 3 |
C- | 45 | 2.25 | 3 |
D+ | 40 | 2 | 2.5 |
D | 35 | 1.75 | 2.5 |
D- | 30 | 1.5 | 2 |
E+ | 25 | 1.25 | 2 |
E | 20 | 1 | 2 |
E- | 15 | 0.75 | 1.5 |
F+ | 10 | 0.5 | 1.5 |
F | 5 | 0.25 | 1 |
F- | 0 | 0 | 1 |