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Happy songs to everyone!

DUNU Titan 1 is a unique semi-open IEM. The shell is made of durable metal, and the 13.5 mm dynamic driver diaphragm is titanium-coated. It’s designed to be worn straight down, but still possible to loop the cable over the ear to reduce microphonics (mechanical cable noise when the IEM cable moves around and rubbing shirt or other object).




BIG thanks to DUNU for the review sample! I have used it for almost 3 months, when posting this review, and have no issue with the quality so far. Titan 1 build quality is very good, and the durability has been proven with more than 2 months of almost daily use.




Though for daily commute I prefer to use full isolating IEM than the semi-open one, but in some circumstances I do need semi-open IEM. For example when in office or casual listening at home, using semi-open IEM let me hear when someone call me, or when my phone ringing. The straight down wearing style is also useful when we need to unplug and plug it back frequently. Faster to wear than the common over the ear IEM. Titan 1 cable is sleeved with braided mesh from headphone jack to the Y split point. The sleeve helps a lot to reduce microphonics. So far I only heard mild microphonics when using Titan 1 while walking, not up to annoying level.




Out of the box, initial impression of the sound quality using stock eartips and iBasso DX90 as player, I had mixed feelings. On one hand, I like the detail, speed, clarity, and tonality around bass to midrange. On the other hand, I was annoyed by the rather metallic treble that causes moderate amount of sibilant. The treble is peaking at more or less around 7 kHz, depending on the eartips. The bass sounds good, good level and quality. The midrange is also good, very clear and detailed, and may sound a little dry with some eartips. Only the treble was rather too much. So to me it is not really a V shape tonality, only a little too much emphasize on the treble. The 13.5 mm Titanium coated drivers seem require some burn-in.

Passed the 200 hours burn-in, the level of sibilant did reduce, but not completely removed. At least now Titan 1 treble is much more acceptable than before burn-in. So during the first week, my early impressions with Titan 1 was pretty good but with some dissatisfaction on the treble, that to me sounds a little metallic and prone to sibilant. It sounds much better now after burn-in and 2+ months of use. I don't like the idea of burn-in, and I do prefer a good sounding IEM out of the box without burn-in, but I just share my experience here. It is not a brain adaptation because I didn't use Titan 1 exclusively during the last 2+ months, but other IEMs as well, such as DN-1000 and DN-2000. And I use the same player, iBasso DX90, most of the time. So, burn-in is a must for Titan 1, not a few days of regular burn-in, but at least a full 8 days to sounds best. Even a full 2 weeks is recommended when possible. But passed those 200 hours, the Titan 1 is quite rewarding, clean sound, good tonal balance with excellent detail and clarity.




During the first few weeks I mostly used the stock eartips, the translucent black medium bore with red core. Then I tried eartip rolling. To my surprise, some eartips significantly improved the sound characteristic of Titan 1. Using triple flange eartips for example, the metallic signature of the treble is practically nonexistent. Treble is smooth, transparent, and extended without any sibilant. Overall tonality is excellent, very good balance from bass to treble. Another excellent sounding eartips for Titan 1 is the double flange. It is just a tad less smooth, but most probably more comfortable for many than the triple flange. Both the triple flange and the double flange sound much better from the stock eartips. From this experience, I consider Titan 1 to be eartip sensitive, and eartip rolling is recommended to achieve the best sound quality.






Summary:
In my opinion, Titan 1 is a really good sounding IEM. With the right eartips, it has very linear and balanced tonality, with excellent detail and spacious imaging. With stock eartips, tonality is not very linear. Using the black wide bore & red core eartips, tonality is natural bright. While with the black green core (Sony Hybrid alike) eartips, Titan 1 sounds a little dark and bassy. The linear tonality is only achieved when using triple & double flange eartips. I would say the linear tonality using triple flange eartips is reference grade tonality, which rarely heard even on IEMs costing many times Titan 1 price. The level of detail retrieval and spaciousness is unlike many other dynamic drivers at this size and price category. Level of detail is comparable to a very good Balanced Armature IEM. And the semi-open design makes it sounds spacious with wide soundstage. The only thing I feel a bit lacking is the dynamic impact, not yet life-like dynamic. But don't get me wrong, Titan 1 is quite lively, and it never sounded lazy. Dynamic is very good, but just not yet life-like level. To me, Titan 1 is lacking a little more oomph on the bass region, not highly engaging for music with high energy. Bass sounds rich, detailed, and extends low, but not really powerful and impactful. But for other genres such as classical, and those which benefit from natural tonality, details, transparency, and spacious imaging, Titan 1 really shines. For me, DUNU Titan 1 is definitely a keeper. Kudos to DUNU!






Highlights:
Semi-open design; below average noise isolation.
200 hours burn-in and eartips rolling are highly recommended.
Quite revealing with excellent level of detail. Reveals sources or players sound signature quite well, and won't hide recording flaws.
Sounds best with Triple flange and Double flange eartips.


Pros:
Excellent detail with spacious imaging.
Very linear tonality with triple flange & double flange eartips.
Good quality durable metal housing.
Good cable construction, only mild microphonics (mechanical cable noise) from straight-down wearing style design.
No driver flex.
Very good design and quality earphone case.


Cons:
Require long period of burnt-in to achieve optimum sound.
Stock eartips are not optimum. Mild to moderate sibilant is expected when using some of the stock eartips. Requires other eartips for optimum sound.
Not suitable for noisy environment due to lacking of noise isolation.


Suggestions for improvement:
To include more eartips for more flexible sonic tuning, such as the triple flange, double flange, foam tips, spinfit, etc.
Factory burn-in to make it sounds good out of the box.
Multi-ways wearing style design, for both straight-down and over-ear wearing style.







Eartip Rolling

Titan 1 nozzle is rather small, only 4.3 mm. Please take note of this small nozzle neck size when getting eartips for Titan 1. Main player used for eartip rolling is iBasso DX90.





Triple Flange - 5 Stars - Reference Tonality



The triple flange I use is the pair I got from Brainwavz S5, similar to many generic large size triple flange. I saw similar triple flange on Amazon sold by Earphones Plus. I have also the triple flange eartips from MEElectronics M-Duo, but it doesn't fit Titan 1, too loose. So far, IMHO, the triple flange from Brainwavz is the best eartips for Titan 1. Sound signature is best described as 'Reference grade’. Perceived as flat and balance to my ears. Bass level is probably a little on the low side, but very tight with good texture. Low bass extension is slightly reduced, and overall bass level is slightly less than what I call realistic bass, but not bass anemic. Midrange and treble are very smooth, almost without coloration, with excellent detail. Gone is the bright and sibilant sensitive treble. Using the triple flange treble is silky smooth and transparent, in perfect balance with the midrange. For vocal, triple flange is the best eartips for Titan 1. Tonal balance is also excellent for pro audio monitoring, where bass level is good, only very slightly behind the midrange, but overall tonality is very natural & balanced. Not warm and not analytical. Very natural sounding to my ears. Detail and dynamic are excellent, vivid & lively. Though some people probably prefer the more fun sound signature with other eartips, I highly recommend purist to try Titan 1 with the triple flange. Probably the cheapest way to get 'Refence Sound Quality' without breaking the bank.




I asked a friend of mine to try Titan 1 with triple flange for more than half an hour. He is a veteran audiophile with more than $100k home speaker system. He said Titan 1 with triple flange has excellent midrange and smooth treble that sound smooth like a planar or electrostatic speaker system. But he prefers to have a little more bass. When I let him tried Titan 1 with SpinFit, he said he prefers the triple flange. I know not many people comfortable with the triple flange. But for those who are comfortable with the triple flange, it is a must try for Titan 1.



Double Flange - 5 Stars - Balanced Tonality



The double flange I used is also the pair from Brainwavz S5 stock eartips. The double flange from DUNU Trident is not compatible with Titan 1, too loose.






Pretty close to the triple flange tonality, double flange midrange and treble sound slightly less smooth. Also a tad brighter sounding than the triple flange. Overall tonality is still very balanced from bass to treble. Although the treble is not as smooth as the triple flange, but still smoother than the stock 'black large bore' & 'red core' eartips. Approximately close to SpinFit treble, just a tad smoother. Kind of in between the smooth treble of triple flange and the sparkling treble of SpinFit. Both triple flange & double flange are excellent eartips for Titan 1. Comfort wise, double flange probably the better choice, since it doesn't insert into the ear canal as deep as the triple flange. Comparing double flange to SpinFit, I prefer the double flange.

I asked another friend of mine, Leonard, a sound engineer, to try Titan 1 with the double flange eartips. He tried it for about 2 hours with various genres, and this is his comment:

"Titan 1 with double flange eartips were truly a sound revelation for my ears! The tonal balance is overall linear with a slightly enhanced treble that creates an open and detail revealing sound without altering the mix in any dramatic way. It shines especially on acoustics that occupies the upper range of the sound spectrum (cymbals, strings, light percussion, etc). I find this combination quite comfortable for prolonged use, making Titan 1 a suitable companion in studio for various mixing situations. It is not usual for me to get quickly impressed by something, but in this case I am beyond words."



SpinFit - 4.5 Stars - Natural & fun sounding with some extra treble sparkle.





Treble is slightly more sparkling with SpinFit, slightly brighter, more transparent, more sparkle, and not as smooth as the bi/triple flange. Bass level is also slightly more than the triple flange. Compared to the triple flange, tonal balance with SpinFit is slightly more V shape. Only slightly, overall can still be considered balanced. SpinFit is the next best eartips for Titan 1 after the double flange & triple flange. SpinFit sounds better than all the stock eartips, more natural with better soundstage, and seems to shift up the treble peak to higher frequency, so treble sounds less peaky and less sibilant than stock eartips ('black large bore' & 'red core').



Comply T500 - 4.3 Stars - Natural sound with excellent comfort.



IMHO not as good as the triple/double flange and SpinFit, but still sounds pretty good. Good option if comfort is an issue with triple/double flange, and SpinFit is difficult to get. Imaging is narrower than SpinFit, and there is a slight emphasize on the upper midrange that makes the midrange presentation is more forward than SpinFit. Treble is good with good extension and sparkles, and not prone to sibilant. No metallic color on the treble, better than stock eartips. Bass is probably same level as the triple flange, less than SpinFit. What is slightly lacking with the foam tips is the spaciousness & dynamic. Imaging is somehow lacking of depth when compared to triple/double flange and SpinFit. Don't get me wrong, the foam tips sounds quite open, not congested, but I don't hear much information of the room acoustic in the recording as good as triple/double flange and SpinFit. The dynamic also less lively, so overall tonal balance is good and natural, but lacking liveliness and dynamic punch. Sometime may sound a bit dull, sounds like the very low bass and the upper treble extension are rolled off a little, not as good as the SpinFit and the triple/double flange.



Comply S400 - 4.0 Stars - Similar to T500, with a tad less bass.

Similar sound signature to T500, with slightly less bass, that makes overall tonality sounds a little dryer. I prefer the T500 over the S400 for foam tips.



Stock Eartips:




Stock eartips: Black large bore - 4.3 Stars – Natural bright, slightly V shape.

The treble peak seems to be shifted up a bit than the red core eartips, somewhere in between red core and SpinFit, so slightly less sibilant than the red core eartips, but slightly more sibilant than SpinFit. Bass is slightly stronger than the red core eartips. Those who like bass the black large bore and the Sony hybrid alike eartips are the better option. Overall performance is about the same, probably slightly better than red core eartips, and slightly less than SpinFit.



Stock eartips: Translucent Red Core (medium bore) - 4.0 Stars – Natural bright, slightly V shape.

Bass sounds fuller with more volume than foam tips and triple flange, about the same as SpinFit. Midrange is slightly recessed and treble is slightly more sibilant than SpinFit. Overall is mildly V shape tonality. The only downside when compared to SpinFit is a little too much emphasize on the treble that makes Titan 1 starting to become prone to sibilant. Cymbals sounds rather glaring, and mild to moderate sibilant on pop recording vocal is expected. Overall tonality is not as natural as SpinFit.



Stock eartips: Black small bore with colorful core (Sony Hybrid Alike) – 4.0 Stars – Natural dark, bass emphasized.

The better stock eartips to avoid sibilant, but also the least transparent. Bass is more emphasized than other eartips, better choice for bass lover. Among the stock eartips this Sony hybrid alike eartips is probably the safest option, especially for those who is allergic to sibilant. Initially, before burn-in, I don't like this eartips, as the tonal balance sounds less natural. But after 200 hours burn-in, it is probably the better option among the other stock eartips for disco and pop music, but not for classical.




My DUNU IEMs:





Comparison

I use what I consider optimum eartips for every IEM in this comparison:

DUNU Titan 1: double flange from Brainwavz. IMHO using double flange for comparison is a more useful due to comfort issue of the triple flange for many people.
DUNU DN-1000: JVC EP-FX8M-B
DUNU DN-2000: Stock translucent grey eartips, with silver ring
Audio-Technica ATH-IM70: Large red bore eartips bought from Lunashop.


Compared to DUNU DN-2000:

DN-2000 sounds warmer, smoother, and more cohesive. Both have very linear tonal balance, but DN-2000 tonality to my ears sounds more balance, while Titan 1 has a little shelf up around the treble region, slightly brighter sounding than DN-2000. DN-2000 has better bass and low bass extension. Vocal sounds fuller and more intimate on DN-2000. DN-2000 also has slightly better instruments separation, especially for complex orchestra piece. Both have comparable spacious imaging. Detail retrieval is comparable as well, with DN-2000 being a little better. DN-2000 somehow manages to retrieve a very high level of micro detail without being analytical sounding. In my opinion, overall DN-2000 sounds better.


Compared to DUNU DN-1000:

DN-1000 is generally less bright and more bassy than Titan 1. Titan 1 sounds slightly leaner than DN-1000. Tonality wise, my personal preference is closer to DN-1000 tonality, I like full bass sound. DN-1000 sounds smoother and slightly more intimate, and overall sounds fuller. Vocal sounds fuller on DN-1000, and a little sterile on Titan 1. But please take note; this is with other eartips other than the triple flange. With triple flange, vocal is smooth natural, and doesn't sound sterile. Titan 1 is slightly more neutral in tonality. Detail retrieval is comparable between the two. DN-1000 is slightly more musically engaging due to fuller bass. But Titan 1 has better bass quality, faster with better detail and texture. Being a single driver IEM, Titan 1 does excel in coherency over the entire frequency spectrum, although DN-1000 can be considered triple drivers IEM with very good coherency, but still, frequency spectrum coherency sounds better on Titan 1. I would say, Titan 1 sounds technically correct, but DN-1000 is more musically engaging.


Compared to Audio-Technica ATH-IM70:

Titan 1 has better clarity, detail, spaciousness and treble extension. While ATH-IM70 sounds warmer and more intimate sounding, with much bigger and more engaging bass. IMHO, Titan is a more neutral sounding, but IM70 has more oomph on vocal and bass. I will take Titan 1 for classical, and IM70 for pop.




Players & Amplifiers Matching

Although Titan 1 has a rather low 90 dB sensitivity, but it is relatively easy to drive. Being a single driver IEM, it is not really affected with high output impedance of player / amplifier. I tested with HifiMeDiy Sabre USB DAC (UAE23) that has 200 ohms output impedance with no issue at all, tonality still sounds balance and natural. This is indicating that Titan 1 impedance is quite linear across the entire frequency spectrum. Also tested with smartphone, my Samsung Galaxy S4, Titan 1 sounds great as well.

Tube amplifier often has good chemistry with the slightly analytic signature of Titan 1. Titan 1 loves my Audio-Technica AT-HA22Tube headphone amplifier. It sounds wonderful with tube amp, especially for vocal, jazz, and pop. While for classical I still prefer my Yulong DA8 headphone output, smooth and detailed.




From all the players & amplifiers I tried, Yulong DA8 is the best sounding DAC+Amp combo for Titan 1. Somehow Yulong DA8 headphone output manages to keep the clarity and transparency at optimum level without any sibilant. Very lively, smooth and transparent. With Yulong DA8, all eartips that don't sound very good with other players, sound quite ok and acceptable. Most logical explanation probably due to the sound signature of Yulong DA8 that is smooth & detailed. Yulong DA8 headphone output with discrete 1 watt class A amplifier also sounds more dynamic and lively.

So far I don't find any issue with players or amplifiers. I tested Titan 1 with various sources, DAPs, DACs, and amplifiers, so far Titan 1 has always been easy to drive and player friendly.



DUNU Titan 1 is a great sounding IEM. A breakthrough of what 13.5 mm large single dynamic driver can achieve. Congrats to DUNU!














Specification (From DUNU’s packaging / website):
Type : Single dynamic driver inner ear monitor
Driver : 13mm dynamic Titanium “nano class” driver
Frequency Range : 10 Hz – 30 Khz
Impedance : 16 ohm
Sensitivity : 90 dB (+/-2 dB)
Headphone jack : 3.5mm gold plated
Cable : 1.2m – Y cable
Weight : 18g
IEM Shell : Polished metal



Equipment used in this review:

Earphones:
DUNU DN-1000
DUNU DN-2000
Audio-Technica ATH- IM70

DACs & Headphone Amplifiers:
Audio-Technica AT-HA22TUBE
Audioquest Dragonfly v1.0c
Bravo V2 Headphone Amplifier
Centrance DACport
iBasso DX90
Fiio X3 2^nd Generation
ifi micro iDSD (firmware 4.06)
ifi micro iCan
Samsung Galaxy S4
Yulong DA8

Computer & Player:
DIY Desktop PC: Gigabyte GA-H77-D3H-MVP motherboard, Intel i7-3770, 16 GB RAM, Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit SP1.
foobar2000 v1.3.3 (ASIO Proxy 0.7.1.2)



Some recordings used in this review:

Foreword

 
As the creator of the Titan 1 thread on head-fi, I have most of the information given here placed in the thread; however, this review is a coalescing and enhancement of the various aspects of the DUNU Titan 1 that I've previously discussed in the thread. Anything that I don't bring up here is probably found in the first post, or any of my other posts in the thread.
 
Special thanks goes to Andy H. and the rest of the Taiwanese office of DUNU-Topsound for their graciousness in accommodating me in their office, as well as their continued, forthright attitude toward improvement. I admire their hardworking spirit and hope for their continued success.
 
This review of the Titan 1 was made with a sample unit provided by DUNU. For specifications and a list of accessories, please visit the Titan 1 product page.
 

Introduction

 
DUNU is no stranger to head-fiers around the globe; it's been making its footprint known around these forums for quite a few years now. The Titan 1 is the first dynamic-only product from DUNU in a while; they'd been concentrating solely on hybrid products for a span of nearly two years (and continue to refine those efforts), garnering critical and mass acclaim, so when they quietly slipped the Titan 1 into their late 2014 launch portfolio, few heads turned. It was a semi-open design that looked like it came from the early 2000s, and even if it did contain a titanium diaphragm, a good lot of head-fiers probably didn't expect much out of it. My head did turn because of my prior experience with half-open IEM designs. Early in 2010, my experience with the Superlux HD381F was a revelation that cost was not tantamount to sound quality. In 2012, the crystal-clear Phiaton PS210 reaffirmed my belief in the half-open IEM paradigm. It seemed consistently practicable for audio manufacturers to create a great sounding IEM with this "half-open" style. So when DUNU came out with a titanium-coated driver in this same body design, I knew they were up to something. While titanium-coated diaphragms are not new to the industry, they do have well-documented properties that make the sound they create desirable to audio enthusiasts. Thus, I took the initiative to post about the Titan 1 in the forums. To me, it represented a sweet spot in value and performance, at the expense of absolute sound isolation (which really isn't the strength of a dynamic driver IEM anyway). Slowly but surely, interested mounted, and the Titan 1 is now a well-regarded product in its price category.
 

Build, Ergonomics, Accessories

 
The Titan 1, made from cast metal components, is one of the more solid offerings in its price bracket. Build quality has never been an issue for DUNU; they're known for delivering robust builds at every price point, from the body to the cables, and even its accessories. It comes with a simple plastic hard case that, while not declared to be waterproof, probably can withstand a two second dip in a bowl of water because of the ruggedized rubber on the inside surface that extends all the way to the top of the case. DUNU continues its tradition of offering great carry cases with the Titan 1.
 
It has a ton of tips available, including a whole set of faux Sony hybrid tips, which is the tip that DUNU designed the Titan 1 around. DUNU also included another set of red core, dual-density silicone tips. Both sets were accompanied with a redundant pair, which makes the Titan 1 one of the most well-appointed IEMs in its price range. Personally, I settled on a third party brand of tips from RedGiant (see explanation here), but because these tips are difficult to come by unless you buy a pair of RedGiant IEMs, I won't attempt to recommend them to others. In fact, I hesitate to recommend specific tips for people, as everyone reacts differently to different tips.
 
 
Finishing of the cables above the Y-split is very good, almost Audio-Technica like in its texture; the thinness doesn't bother me. It's the cloth sheathing of the section below the Y-split that can be prone to tangling at times. Luckily, DUNU integrates its awesome rubber cable tie into all of its products, and that thing definitely promotes good storage habits. I don't imagine too many people shoving the Titan 1 into their pants pockets recklessly when coiling the cables in advance is so easy. I don't think I need to comment much on the quality of the Y-split and 1/8" plug; DUNU's cable joints are always well relieved.
 
The only thing is that, as a $115-ish unit, the kind of attention to detail paid to the metal finishing is limited. No one will really mistake the Titan 1 for something more expensive. The brush metal finish is more Timex to the K3003's Omega. However, as it does have a rugged metal body at this price point, I won't complain.
 
Comfort is great, personally. This sideways-mounted, half in-ear design tends to fit in most peoples' ears pretty well, and I never really feel any wear fatigue with the Titan 1. The body of the Titan 1 is small enough such that it should fit comfortably within most peoples' conchae with ease (even females'). When used properly, I don't anticipate any risk of them falling out of users' ears. The weight of the metal shells, however, will take some adjustment time for people used to very lightweight plastic-bodied earphones.
 

Design & Packaging

 
The aesthetics of the Titan 1 body lean toward the traditional; the sides exposed to the outside are reminiscent of the Sony MDR-EX90LP and the Superlux HD381F, while the inside half is similar to that of the Atomic Floyd Hi-Def Drum, along with a color coding ring of red or blue in the middle to denote right or left. As so, the Titan 1 isn't flashy in the least bit, save for the splash of chrome on the brushed finishing. Nevertheless, I doubt the Titan 1 would attract too many sticky-fingered bandits, and that may be a good or bad thing, depending on your perspective.
 
Here comes arguably the weakest part of DUNU's products --- the packaging and associated graphic design. The graphic design on the Titan 1, and quite a few of DUNU's other products, is a bit unrefined. It's not for lack of effort; it's obvious DUNU has taken great pains to illustrate all of the great features found within the Titan 1 and other products, but the execution doesn't quite work in its favor. Certainly, DUNU has gotten a lot better over the years, but the design still feels a little cluttered, a bit lacking in typographic awareness, and a bit try hard --- not everything absolutely needs to be explained on the box itself. There were quite a few rough inconsistencies with regard to typography; fonts would switch from Arial to Calibri to Times New Roman, ever so distracting to even the untrained eye. I was even surprised to see that the Chinese punctuation marks, normally set centrally in space, were set down low like their Western counterparts, which is normally an error created by WYSIWYG layout programs like Microsoft Word. I won't bother discussing the English grammatical errors --- I actually believe that's easily corrected --- many head-fiers could volunteer to copy edit these box descriptions.
 
Of course, being a company that spends the majority of its product development budget on R&D, DUNU delegates these graphic design responsibilities to a single product manager who doesn't necessarily have the kind of visual pedigree of a dedicated graphic artist and layout manager. If DUNU were to spend more money outsourcing its packaging design to a third party source, I suspect the Titan 1 would end up costing at least 10% more. That's 10% more burden on the consumer, as well as 10% more burden on the distributor, who doesn't necessarily want to take the risk of carrying products from a lesser known company. Nevertheless, I continue to encourage DUNU to take steps in improving their package design --- doing so probably begins with lessening the workload of that said product manager for a few weeks, allowing him to freely explore the realm of graphic design and typography, and having him return with a newfound sense of direction to bestow upon his fellow coworkers. I sincerely believe a boost in graphic design and layout will do wonders for DUNU's public image, especially for the all-important headphone market of Japan.
 

Sound

 
But enough with my snooty rant on design. Onto the good stuff. When I first listened to the Titan 1, this is what I thought:
 

...the Titan 1 sounds mildly V-shaped; there's a bit of lower midrange boost to accompany a 1-2k relaxation. Mid-highs and lower treble are fairly present, but the granularity of the treble is quite fine, so I don't feel that the Titan 1 is harsh at all. Bass speed is quite good. It's tight and solid feeling, with good slam when warranted. Detail levels and driver control are by far the best of the half-open IEM that I've had.

Click to expand...

 
People have different metrics for what they regard as good sound --- the Titan 1 will fit most peoples' definitions, as I surmise most will say, "Whoa, that's pretty good sound!" when they put them on for a few moments. With a longer listen, my thoughts evolved into these:
 

The overall signature of the Titan 1, [  ], is still a mild classical V-shape. The lows and highs take precedence over the midrange, which is clear but not forward positioned within the stereo image.
 
For this reason, I still find the midrange of the Sony MDR-EX1000 to be more transparent, despite the former Sony flagship's lower treble resonance that occludes some of the treble detail, its midrange is better formed, and thus its center image (which usually comprises vocals) projects deeply and three dimensionally. The same is true for some of the better CIEMs that I have --- their neutrally-tuned midrange responses enable their vocals and center image in general to project forward with warmth and body without sacrificing clarity.
 
On the other hand, the Titan 1 is good at delineating voices because of its elevated upper midrange and parts of the treble. Coupled with the fast transient characteristics of this titanium-coated diaphragm, the Titan 1 exudes excellent "edge clarity". However, because the central midrange portion is still a bit recessed in relation, imaging cues are relayed mostly side-to-side, with far less front-to-back information.
 
So yes, make no mistake, this is no back of a smoky jazz club, listening to a sultry-voiced siren kind of earphone. The Titan 1 is most at home when its given a lot to do, leaving the sprightly titanium-coated driver to sort out the details and separate out the instruments. Thus, the V-shaped response of the Titan 1 makes it palatable for many types of popular music where the beat, not the voice, is the focus.

Click to expand...

 

Bass

 
Thus, bass is where the titanium-coated driver makes its presence known best. It feels quick, and brings out multiple nuanced layers in bass-forward music. There is quite a bit of boost to the range, so the Titan 1 will sound thumpy enough for those that desire a little bit of kick to their bass drums. Thanks to the open feel and diaphragm material, however, the Titan 1 never smothers the listener with bass. I believe this is the best kind of bass response for those that want to hear a thumpy low end but still desire a clean sound. If only more mainstream earphones exhibited this kind of response...
 

Midrange

 
Midrange is a different matter. Depending on personal taste, you might run hot or cold with the midrange response. People who mostly desire to hear instruments and rhythm will be absolutely thrilled with the midrange on the Titan 1; vocals are never the centerpiece of music, but they also never sound muffled --- always clear.
 
However, I'm not so high on it because I just don't feel a lot of emotion to the midrange --- the laid-back midrange signature, to me, would be the Titan 1's biggest weakness. I hear a lot of detail, but to me, it doesn't do much to enhance a piece of music --- it's mostly just there and will never stand out as the centerpiece to a piece of music. Human beings, regardless of musical preference, are still emotionally most in-tune with, and physiologically most sensitive to the midrange, and thus for me, I tend to harbor very stringent standards for midrange performance in an IEM, regardless of price range.
 
To me, more analytical earphones like the Etymotic ER4, UERM, and even DUNU's own upcoming DN-2000J (which itself is slightly laid-back in the midrange) are able to convey the emotional component of music through their transparency and vocal definition. In the same price range, the HiFiMAN RE-400 also does a better job in this regard.
 
It's not to imply, however, that the Titan 1's midrange is bad. It's anything but. You'll be hard pressed to find more detail from other earphones competing against the Titan 1, especially as the upper midrange does have a bit of kick to it and is highly detailed.
 

Treble

 
The Titan 1 will be perceived by the majority of folk as being somewhat bright, especially in the context that the midrange is "recessed" with respect to the treble --- that alone gives listeners the sensation that the Titan 1 is "bright". The midrange, prominent is in the upper reaches, is typically responsible for vocal harmonics that often extend into the treble; thus, prominent upper mids and lower treble both add equally to the perception of brightness.
 
Brightness shouldn't be misconstrued as overtly harsh or sibilant, however. In general, I expect sibilance with many pieces of modern music these days. People should not be confusing recording sibilance with earphone sibilance. That said, the Titan 1 is a tiny bit prone to sibilance; the time course of it is very quick, however, so the sibilance is not bothersome. Rather, the overall brightness of the earphones can be a little off-putting at times. On a track like Stacey Kent's "So Many Stars", lower sibilance (6-7 kHz) is not the issue to my ears, as the decay speed is pretty quick. Yet, I tend to hear some 8+ kHz harshness, which I tend to call "sonic junk" rather than overt "sibilance".
 
The smoothness of the treble will depend on the tip pairing; it shouldn't be too difficult to find a pair of tips, whether they be silicone or foam-based, that help shape the treble to personal taste. Just be prepared to do some experimentation.
 

Sensitivity

 
The Titan 1 is remarkably easy to drive. It's sensitive to the point where it really takes very little for any underpowered iPod or laptop to easily drive it to loud volumes. As a low volume listener, I usually set the volume slider in the Windows environment at 2-4%. Luckily, the Titan 1 also still benefits from a higher quality source, as all things being equal, the Titan 1 is nevertheless still a low impedance (16 ohm), reactive load (dynamic moving coil). This means that better, more efficient and current and voltage delivery will allow the Titan 1 to perform better. So yes, if you want to amp it, you can. From my Resonessence Labs Concero HP, which outputs a nominal 3.5 Vrms, I'm also listening at 2-4% (usually 2%),
 
 

How I Use the Titan 1

 
So here's the part where most people would expect to see that because I have "better" equipment like TOTL CIEMs, the Titan 1 gets thrown in the dust bin. That assertion is simply not true. Because to me, the Titan 1 is remarkably easy to insert and remove, and performs well from a variety of sources, I find myself gravitating to it as my daily use desktop IEM. It's just easy to get along with. The isolation is at a level where fan noise is cut down, but won't prevent me from noticing a ringing phone call. At very low volume levels, the laid-back midrange is less of a liability because of hearing threshold levels.
 

Summary

 
With the titanium treatment to the Titan 1, DUNU has launched their "Titan Series" of products. I'm looking forward to seeing them further enhance this technology, and optimize it for use in future offerings. Already, the upcoming flagship DN-2000J, with an enhanced titanium-coated LCP woofer, is sound very good indeed, and I expect DUNU to continue this trend of excellence.
 
As a product, while not the versatile and isolating indoor/outdoor unit, the Titan 1 is an extremely capable IEM. It provides the listener spades of tactile detail with celerity, and while it isn't a product that will be tugging at your heartstrings, you'll still be able to hear just about everything else in your mix with immense clarity and transparency. For new entrants to the in-ear world, the Titan 1 is great because of its shallow, easy fit; newbies will undoubtedly be wowed by how clear it sounds. Veteran head-fiers will equally enjoy it as a speedy toy that transcends its price point with detail reserved for much higher-end products. Individuals craving an intimate, husky response will want to look elsewhere, but for nearly everyone else, the Titan 1 will be a very nice addition to their collections.

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Me: I am a 21 year old student living in a small town in India. I would like to call myself a music enthusiast, rather than an audiophile. I was inspired by music since childhood, and as the time passed, the passion of music grew in me, and that subsequently led me to join Head-Fi. Eventually, I found the pleasure of listening to music mainly by the HD600 and recently, by the seductive LCD2 headphones, and realized the true components of recorded music. I usually like to listen to Indian Classical Music along with Bollywood songs. My main listening genres include classical, vocal, instrumental, jazz and sometimes pop.  With time, my sonic preferences have very much grown. I avidly admire transparency, accuracy along with neutrality, and my favorite headphones are Sennheiser HD800 & AKG K812, & I generally prefer to listen to full sized gears. In an earphone or In-Ear Monitor as we call it, I expect very neutral, detailed sound delivery with a decent soundstage & transparency, accuracy along with a good comfort & reliability. Isolation should also be manageable, & the design of IEM should not harm our ears or ear canal.
 
I am an average consumer & a humble enthusiast, I love to pen down my thoughts, &  express my feelings. I do not receive for any sort financial benefits through this review. My articles are a purely my honest writeup aimed for fellow enthusiasts here at Head-Fi community. My profound thanks to Topsound team for arranging a sample unit of Titan1 earphones for my evaluation. 

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Intro:  Dunu-Topsound, or simply known as Dunu, is a famous Chinese IEM manufacturer. The brand was established in 1994 as an OEM parts maker; it has evolved since then to manufacture full scale IEM’s and has earned the esteemed ISO-9001 certificate. They also have numerous patents & rights with respective to their products.Their R&D headquarters is located in Taiwan, & factory & marketing offices in mainland China. Dunu has its self develped IEM making machineries & manufactures earphones in its own factory.The Titan1 is their latest IEM offering & uses a unique nano titanium coated diaphragm. According to Dunu, performs better than both BA & regular dynamic drivers.
 

 
 
Dunu: Delicate, Unique & Utmost
 
Specifications of Titan1 as per Dunu:
 
Drivers: 13 mm Dynamic
 
Rated Impedance: 16 Ω
 
Frequency Range: 10Hz-30 kHz
 
Weight: 18 grams
 
Pressure level: 90dB
 
Plug: 3.5mm Gold Plated
 
Cable: 1.2m

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Let’s proceed to the review,
 
Packaging and Accessories: The Titan1 arrives packed inside a strong and sleek Dunu style flip-open black cardboard box, on which features and other information have been mentioned upon. Once the box is flipped open, housing shell is seen resting inside a transparent window, the rest of cable and the accessories are packed inside the hard case. I can confidently say that Dunu has done some real premium packaging out here. The hard case can be lifted off to reveal the storage compartment, in which all the included accessories are present. Huge amounts of accessories included in the package, and again are made up of good quality. Packaging is done in a premium way “The Dunu Style” Really nice and satisfying.
 

 

 

 
List of accessories in the box, which include the following: 
 

 
Eartips: Plenty varieties of good quality eartips are included to fit almost any kind of ears.
 
Shirt Clip: To reduce microphonics and to secure the hanging cable to the shirt.
 
¼” Converter: To plug in the Titan in the 6.5mm headphone jacks.
 
Hard case: This hard fibre case is supplied to protect and store the Titan IEM.
 
Warranty card: Contains warranty information.

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Design and Build: The Titan has a good overall build quality. Design stands apart from rest of IEM’s as this has kind of hybrid mixed up design: half of earbud outer unit & nozzle similar to an IEM.
 

 
This helps in a increased driver size without compromising comfort. The Titan1 is semi-open design (observe the vents), and is not fully closed. The entire housing shell is made up of high quality hard plastic with a exterior steel finish. These are very light in weight. Dunu logo is printed on the rear side of the housing shell. Left and Right markings are easy to see, and are clearly indicated by colour code. Strain reliefs are well implemented, and do their jobs. Splitter is nicely finished, no nitpicks anywhere.
 

 

 

 

 
Plug is 90 degree angled and gold plated.  Overall, Cable has a good build. First half of the cable is rubberized, slightly thinner than expected, but alright does its job & and the second half has mesh finish to it.
 

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Comfort:  The Titan1 is comfortable enough to wear in general; it is light weighed & ergonomically designed. These IEM’s are shallow insertion type & does not irritate our ear canals, since the nozzle is quite short, hence fit depends partially on outer body. But to my ears, it did not quite fit properly & therefore requiring few adjustments after some time. Since Titan1’s are semi-open back IEM’s, these will not completely isolate the listener from outside noise. This level of isolation is not very good for a traveler in noisy surroundings, but manageable.

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Sound: Dunu's Titan1 has a very neutral, very clear & airy, detailed sonic character, but has slightly distant mids. It is very transparent and detailed. We have to keep in mind that, with in-ear IEM’s, sonic presentation may feel different with different fit. Therefore fit/angle is the deciding factor for sound being perceived by ears.
 

 
Burn in: These performed well right out of the box, and burn in provided little or no significant audible changes.  But on the safer side, Let’s say a playback of 20 hours provides very slight audible improvements. Bass prior to break-in is slightly loose, and eventually it becomes more accurate, Mids will sound more open, Highs become slightly smoother; soundstage opens up by a margin.
 
Lows: are accurate, tight and refined; but have a excellent impact and depth, owing to their new titatnium drivers.
 
Mids: Noticeably recessed, but airy and clear. Vocals, classical are not quite pleasurable.
 
Highs:  Detailed treble with slight grains and sparks. Unforgiving on bright recordings.
 
Soundstage: TheTitan1’s soundstage is very airy and circular soundstage. Depth is excellent. Instrument separation is very good.
 
I am really impressed by sound quality of these IEM’s (except mids). The Titan1 portrays music in such a way that, one feels as if the music is all around him owing to its semi-open design (excellent soundstage for an IEM in this price). But for listeners who love vocals or classical may be left disappointed. These are appreciably transparent in character. It has very airy, a vast 3D like soundstage.
 
Mids is definitely & obviously is recessed in the Titan1 & thus giving out a V shaped sound signature. It is the only thing to be compromised when switched over to Titan1. But in rest of terms, it provides in all sonic characters like accuracy, details, soundstage, instrument separation, imaging, dynamics and what not. Instruments placement & positioning is really great.   Neutral, detailed, transparent are the key words for Titan1. But presentation is in a ‘V’ form, with distant mids which appear to be recessive. Thre amount of acutal mid frequencies presented in the Titan is less about 15% when compared to a flat sounding IEM. Low volume listening is pretty impressive. One can hear these in very low volumes, yet it retains all the details & elements present in a track. Comfort and fit plays a vital role in sound being perceived to our ears.

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Amplification: The Dunu Titan1 rated at 16 ohms, and designed to be power efficient, and hence is very easy to drive, and can be driven by almost any sources, smartphones and DAP’s. Although setup like an O2/ODAC does indeed increases accuracy, soundstage and dynamics noticeably, and the difference in quality is clearly audible for an attentive listener. Power is not a important aspect here, but a transparent setup indeed does help in increasing SQ;

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Conclusion:  I feel theTitan1’s are really very performing pair of IEM’s, especially considering their price. Sound quality is excellent, is very pleasing, with a great transparency & soundstage. But in actual presentation, mids are presented in a distant fashion, probably due to its larger soundstage. This may not please enthusiasts who love to listen to classical and vocals. But again Dunu’s Titan1 is one of the most performing IEM available in 150$
 
 
Pros: Sound presentation here is very neutral, detailed, & airy. Its very accurate. The soundstage, instrument separation, clarity, resolution is appreciable, but mind the decreased mids. For me, this resulted in incompleteness & imbalance in sound spectrum in actual listening sessions. Value:  After understanding all the qualities Titan1 offers us, it is understood that it also offers a good price/performance ratio for IEM’s under 150$.
 
 
Cons: Mids are a trade off when going for the Titan1’s.
 

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Dunu TITAN 1 Review

Disclaimer: The following review is my subjective assessment of this earphone, which was kindly provided to me by Vivian of Dunu as a review sample. I am in no way affiliated with Dunu and I receive no monetary income for my reviews. The sound, build and comfort descriptions come from my subjective impressions of said product. I thank Dunu for this opportunity. I hope you enjoy the read ^_^

Introduction
- I received the Titan 1 in mid-April. My initial thoughts were that the Titan 1 is quite an aggressive and detailed earphone, surpassing my current favorite, the RE-400, in some ways. That said, it has a very different signature, so it would not be fair to compare them directly. While the two complement each other nicely, the Dunu can work quite well on its own and I imagine it could potentially become a favorite for many, as a well-priced travel companion.

Specifications:
Dunu Titan 1

Type: 13mm titanium dynamic driver, in-ear monitor
Frequency Response: 20Hz - 30KHz
Impedance: 16Ω
Efficiency: 90dB/mW [+-2dB]
Weight: 19g [with cable]
MSRP: ~129$

Equipment:
Media: HiFiMAN HM-601LE Digital Audio Player
Source: HiFiMAN HM-601LE DAP
DAC: HM-601LE integrated [TDA1543 chip]
Amplifier: HM-601LE integrated [OPA2104]
Headphones: Dunu Titan 1 via a 1/8 plug to the HM-601LE
Files: FLAC, 128-320kbps MP3, 256kbps AAC
Cables: N/A [Stock earphone cable]

Packaging/Accessories
- The Titan 1 comes in an exquisite packaging. The box itself is made from all-black and sturdy plastic, giving it a rugged and reinforced feel. It has a picture of the earphone in front and the specifications & contents list on the back. A flap on the right side is used to open up the box, revealing more information about the earphone on the left and a display-esque window on the right, showcasing the earphone and revealing some information about Max Barsky, bringing into sight a second flap. Pulling it finally showcases the beautiful earphones themselves, as well as additional ear tips and a very nice carrying case. This high quality case houses more tips and a ¼ adaptor plug. Finally, underneath the plastic mold that held the earphone and case, are the service and warranty cards. This is one of the most intuitive and classy packaging I’ve ever had the pleasure to unbox. There is no excessive bling, but the whole thing feels very luxurious and effective, containing all the essentials from the carry case to a plethora of plugs in a well thought out package. The quality it radiates is amazing and would no doubt satisfy many, regardless of price. Other headphone manufacturers should definitely take note of just how much packaging potential can be squeezed into a consciously priced product.
10/10















Build Quality & Design
- The Titan is exceptionally well built, while also being visually stunning. The housings are all metal with a nice heft to them. They are clearly marked with a blue circle for left and a red circle for right. Both shells and the cable have chunky strain reliefs to maximize durability. The cable itself feels very nice and does not tangle. It also has a patented coiling mechanism, which ensures the cable, when coiled, is always securely held in place and does not unwind. The splitter is metal as well and the adjustable piece stays securely wherever it is moved. The ¹/₈ headphone jack is angled and feels as great as the rest. Overall, I have had no quibbles with the build quality so far and there is little doubt that this exceptionally crafted earphone is built to last, while looking luxurious and feeling as solid as anything, no matter what price range.
10/10











Comfort/Fit/Isolation
- Due to the chunkiness and sheer size of the shells, they are not the most comfortable earphones and some adjusting had to be made to get them to sit well in my ears. That said, after some fidgeting I managed to get a comfortable and secure fit, in no small part thanks to the large and generous selection of included tips, varying from small to medium and large. I’ve settled on the stock smaller tips. The isolation on these is average due to their semi-open design. As you can see above, the Titan has some vents and while their sound leakage is minimal, they allow some external noises to leak in. I’ve used them for public transportation regularly and while I did not find it too bothersome, the closed RE-400, for example, offers superior isolation and comfort.
7.5/10





Bass
- This earphone has a very deep and punchy bass, with good tightness. This is probably the best bass response of all earphones that I had the pleasure to hear. The sub-bass is potent down to 30Hz, extending linearly to the mid and upper bass frequencies. The overall bass response is slightly elevated from what I consider neutral but it is not bass-heavy and there is no leakage to the midrange. Thanks to its even bass presence every bass instrument, as well as synthetic bass feels grand, sounds good and is just very enjoyable to listen to in general. The best thing is certainly the fact that despite this presence and nice impact, it really still remains pleasantly tight, without any mud or boom to mar the clarity. This is hands down my favorite mix of extension, impact and tightness and for accomplishing that the Titan gets full points in the bass department.
10/10

Midrange
- The midrange is smooth, slightly recessed even, but only compared to the potent bass and forward treble. The details still come through very well, even surprisingly so, considering the slight U-tilt of the Titan. It is mostly due to the linearity that the Titan displays all the way to 2KHz, which gives everything in that range a nice, smooth and rounded sound, without any abrasive peaks or subtracting dips. The first emphasis, albeit slight, is from 2 to 4KHz, which gives instruments and vocals in the upper midrange quite nice energy and rawness with especially guitar riffs sounding amazing. It might cause a slight abrasiveness or steeliness at times, however, and as such is not always welcome. Overall, the instruments come in surprisingly clear throughout, with those in the emphasized range having an extra sheen of energy and clarity.
8/10

Treble
- In the treble, things get a bit rocky as additional peaks and dips are introduced. There are peaks in the 5, 7 and 8KHz regions as well as a mild dip in the 6 – 7KHz area. At 8 KHz the treble starts to roll-off slowly, rolling off completely at around 15KHz. The series of peaks introduces a few negative elements, first being the way cymbals are presented. The cymbals have an unnatural tizziness to them, resulting in their steely presentation, which sounds more like a ‘tssss’ than a cymbal crash, followed by a decay that sounds artificial as the ‘tssss’ slowly disappears. Another being increased tendency to sound harsh with sibilants, where any emphasis on that particular range makes them sound harsh and unpleasant. The mild dip is not a problem on its own, though it might highlight some of the issues caused by the peaks. The treble has very good presence overall, with good extension and a fair amount of air, partially owing to the semi-open design as well. The treble is not bad, but it is certainly a bit rough and peaky and I would prefer a smoother, less aggressive and more rounded presentation. External noises also tend to drown out the lower frequencies somewhat, which does not do this issue any favors. I would say the peaks give the treble slightly too much presence overall, but the issue is mostly isolated to vocals and cymbals and dependent on mastering as well.
6/10

Vocals
A] Male
- Male vocals have good presence and heft, with decent clarity throughout. They never sound recessed or veiled, and voices have quite good air. The only complaint is with the sibilance, where ‘s’ and ‘t’ can sound too prominent and harsh. It is not always an issue but when the mastering is brighter, you will hear it. From my experience, female vocals tend to be more problematic with regards to sibilance.
8/10

B] Female
- Female vocals sound delicate with nice presence and come through very clearly. Again, there is no recession or veils and the sound is quite airy too. Once again, the only problem is sibilance with less than stellar mastering. I have quite a collection of female vocal music and most of it is listenable through the Titan. These are not always as enjoyable as I’d like, however, resulting in general harshness.
7/10

Sibilance
- Sibilance can be an issue with the Titans. I would say they are below average at coping with sibilance. They will not absolutely murder your ears but they won’t smooth it either. This should be attributable to the treble and presence peaks that are located in the upper midrange and lower and mid treble.
4/10

Soundstage
- The soundstage is excellent on these and is hands down one of the strong points of the Titan. Instruments sound very spacious and spread nicely across a large virtual space, evenly from left to center to right. Especially instrumental pieces can sound stunning, where the instruments appear and disappear in a vast plane. This is clearly a significant step up from my RE-400 IEMs where the soundstage is quite decent, but nowhere near this spacious. It is in part due to the enhanced treble, which improves soundstaging properties. This is certainly a very impressive display for any IEM, though the soundstage will always be a bit different and more diffuse sounding than that of a full-size headphone. Note that this is not necessarily a drawback and I, for instance, find this effect quite enjoyable. Certainly not bothersome in the slightest and the Dunu shines here.
10/10

Imaging
- Imaging capabilities are likewise great, with instruments being fairly easy to pick up. The peaks and dips in the frequency response do make certain instruments a bit more prominent in the mix and easier to pick up, while others are a bit more laid-back and slightly more difficult to pin down accurately. It is not a significant issue though and I think the Titan images exceptionally well, where all the instruments and voices pop up in their little locked spaces, without ever missing any important details. The slight variance in presence is not of much significance here as it has minimal influence on imaging prowess.
8.5/10

Instrument separation
- Instrument separation is likewise excellent, superseding the imaging capabilities. Airy instruments are well separated and locked in the stage, popping and disappearing as the track progresses. Congestion or instrument overlapping is never a problem with the large soundstage and stellar imaging, with no weird abnormalities in placement to be found. No part of the stage ever feels empty either, with even coverage, good presence and decent amounts of air whirling through the virtual scape. There is no denying the Titan packs a big sound, but it never falls short in the technicality department either.
9/10

Detail/Resolution/Finesse
- The Titan 1 always reveals all the important nuances and micro details that are present in the recording. In fact, doe to the aggressive treble they sometimes reveal too much. At times, I find such treble presentations to detract from detail perception, but the Titan rarely ever reached those levels in my setup. It offers detail and resolution in spades, with finesse falling slightly behind at times due to the occasional abrasiveness in the midrange andtreble but overall this earphone is very capable in all these areas.
9/10

Air
- The Titan is quite capable in terms of air reproduction, though I believe a more balanced treble would allow it to shine through even more. Still, there is never any lack of air. The instruments never feel congested, veiled or smoothed over. The semi-open design makes sure there is always enough breath. Overall, though air comes through nicely, I feel there is even more potential here and that some amount is indeed masked by the aggressiveness of the treble.
8/10

Timbre, Realism & Decay
- As touched upon, the cymbals are the most problematic and do sound off most of the time, at least to my ears. Other instruments like violins and guitars can also have a steely edge to them, but to a much more tolerable degree. The instruments do not sound as natural and real as I would like, sounding a bit forced and tinny instead. They do always have enough energy, which is advantageous, but I would trade a bit of that extra energy for a more realistic tone and decay. Not the worst offender, but not top of the class either. Fairly enjoyable presentation, if not completely accurate and lifelike.
6/10

Overall Cohesiveness/Balance
- The TITAN 1 is a slightly U shaped and colored earphone. There is very good presence and heft to the bass, with the midrange being smooth, while retaining the necessary amount of presence to avoid sounding recessed. The treble has some peaks and dips, which puts it on the aggressive and forward side, with an energetic and engaging presentation. With excellent soundstage dimensions, imaging capabilities and instrument placement, there is no doubt the drivers are capable of producing good music, though the tuning and the treble integration leaves some room for improvement. It does shine with many genres, especially instrumental music, but I would not classify it as a true all-rounder due to its energetic and aggressive signature. As is, it is not the most cohesive and balanced headphone, but it does surprisingly well when all the ingredients are mixed together to result in a spicy and generally tasty dish.
7.5/10

Subjective value for money/Conclusion
The aggressive and exciting signature is not for everyone, as some might prefer a smoother and overall mellower experience for travelling. Furthermore, there is stiff competition around the $100 range and below, spanning many good earphones. However, where the Dunu clearly pulls ahead is attention to detail and build quality, which are both exquisite for the price. The sound is also very good, especially bass response, soundstage and instrument separation, but it is not as uniformly excellent as the rest and preferences will undoubtedly play a part. If you prefer an energetic, slightly U-shaped but fairly balanced sound that is high on technicalities, wrapped in a visually stunning and well-built package, then the Dunu is the earphone for you. If you prefer mellow and smooth sounding earphones instead, then the Titan might not be the best bet. Disregarding preferences and taken for what it is, the Dunu TITAN 1 is a great earphone for the price, retailing for around 130$ and mostly sounding and certainly looking the part.
Overall Value 8/10

More Pictures
Titan 1

New earphones from Dunu are allways interesting, but earphones with brand new titanium diaphragm driver is even more interesting.

• Driver: 13mm Titanium Diaphragm Dynamic Driver
• Impedance:16Ω
• Sensitivity: 90+- 2dB
• Reproduction Frequency: 20Hz-30kHz
• Cable Length: 1.2m
• Plug: 3.5mm Stere Mini
• Weight: 18g

So, some brief impressions about Titan 1 from me.


As usual for Dunu — perfect box and accessories set. You'll get everything you can imagine: case, 6.3 mm adapter, lots of tips, providing different sound signature. Titan 1 box looks much more expensive then real cost of this earphones.


T1 are very comfortable, they looks like simple earbuds but with nozzles to guide sound into your ears. This is the perfect shape for earphones with big dynamic drivers (13 mm for Titan 1).


Build quality is outstanding. Dunu Topsound have great experience both in OEM market, and making own earphones, so Titan 1 have absolutely flawless build.


T1 have low impedance and isn't really sensitive earphones (only 90 dB), so they require good DAP or amp to drive them properly.

As for sound, T1 are really interesting. They offers more details than I've expected from single dynamic driver earphones, so sound is very clear and detailed. Lows are tight and punchy. T1 isn't fastest-bass earphones, but lows pretty impressive for me. Bass is nice controlled, and doesn't bleed to medium freq.

Mids are detailed and emotional. Despite T1 having somewhat V-shaped frequency response, mids are nicely defined and have all details.

Highs are nice for me, both in quality and quantity, but a friend of mine said that there is too much highs, so it can be person-dependent. Different eartips, supplied with T1 can help to tame highs a bit.

From all sources that I have, most of all I liked T1 with QLS QA360 and Cantrance HiFiM8 — they are neutral, and allow Titan 1 to show themselves in the best way.

For price about $130, Titan 1 is super-competitive earphones, offering both great sound and excellent outlook.

I'd like to thank Dunu for opportunity to evaluate Titan 1.

After trying the excellent value that is Dunu's Crius CN-13 ($27 on Amazon) I was curious to try more of their offerings, the Crius punched way over even its original price (around $60 was the original MSRP I was told). The Titan was the most intriguing to me, I loved the idea of a semi-open IEM and lets face it, they look incredible. Well Dunu actually reached out to me and asked if I wanted to try the Titan 1 and review it. I have to say, I'm glad I said yes!
 
For this review I'll be using  my rMBP 2015 with an LH Labs Geek Out 450, just playing AAC as after a lot of A/B testing, I cannot tell the difference between it and FLAC or ALAC with this setup. I'll also be using my Modi 2 Uber & Asgard 2 desktop setup, playing mostly FLAC. When I get to the song by song breakdown I'll specific which rig was used. I've found the Geek Out to be a bit more detailed on some songs but find them generally to have about the same level of sound quality and possess similar sound signatures with IEMs.
 
 
Packaging & Accessories
 
Dunu excels in this area, tons of earths to try and a great plastic case for storing your Titans and some accessories. You'll get a plethora of different tips, a clip, and a 1/8" to 1/4" adapter. The packaging and presentation looks great, instills confidence right upon opening them. There's plenty of great pictures on other reviews if you'd like pictures, feels unnecessary for me to include them. But if you want a specific picture of something, just send me a message and let me know!
 
 
Build Quality, Design & Comfort
 
I absolutely love the all metal design of these IEMs, they look stunning and inspire a lot of confidence in their durability. The cable is thinner than I usually prefer, theres a nice fabric jacket up until the split where it's your usual polyethylene jacket material. The strain reliefs actually seem to be pretty robust and I have a good feeling this cable will be quite durable, which is a huge thing I look for in a daily driver IEM that I want to take everywhere. I really do appreciate that Dunu took the time to design a cable with proper strain reliefs, it goes a long way in cable durability. Comfort-wise, I've worn these for hours at a time and hardly notice them, but they are a bit bigger than some of my other IEMs, they can't match the comfort of my tiny HiFiMAN RE-600s, but they are by no means uncomfortable. Also it's very easy to quickly put these on and get a good fit and seal  almost instantly, great for a grab and go IEM.
 
Overall I think the Titans are very well designed, well built and quite comfortable, especially for their larger size.
 
Sound
 
Right off the bat I can tell you the strong and precise bass impact really impressed me. It extends very low, but is also very precise, there’s no mud or unnatural decay. I think bassheads would be thoroughly impressed by the Titans, but they aren’t just a headphone for bassheads either, the quantity of bass is matched by its quality.
 
The midrange response on the Titans isn’t as easy to explain as the bass. Lower mids feel a bit more recessed with male vocals sitting back a bit further in the mix than more mid-centric headphones and IEMs. I also felt that guitars (especially downtuned guitars used in a lot of metal genres) sounded surprisingly smooth and lacked a bit of aggression that I normally look for when it comes to doom, black and death metal. That’s just more of a personal preference thing, the lower midrange just sits back in the mix, more relaxed. The upper mids, especially female vocals, sound absolutely breathtaking. There’s just the right amount of distance where it feels like their voice is just enveloping you but it’s not so distant that it loses too much intimacy or sounds veiled.
 
The treble response on these IEMs is quite pleasant. There’s a touch of airiness that compliments the Titans expansive soundstage but I haven’t found a track that makes the treble even minutely harsh or grating, even at very loud volumes. I think these are a really safe bet if you’re treble sensitive.
 
The soundstage on these is so impressive for an IEM. Much more of an outside-your-head experience than other IEMs I’ve listened to. Really gives jazz and more avant-garde drone and metal a lot of space and makes for a very enjoyable experience. For some albums though, especially very aggressive metal, it takes away from the focus and aggression of the music. This is a minor gripe and more of a personal preference thing.
 
Detail retrieval is also spectacular in my book, even better than my RE-600. Heavily layered music is such a treat to listen to on the Titans, instrument separation is impressive and it never sounds unnatural. You’ll discover new sounds and textures you’d never heard before. This is probably my favorite aspect of the Titan.
 
Now we’ll get to a song by song breakdown of how these sound:
 
Sleep - Dopesmoker (Stoner Doom Metal)
Rig used: FLAC CD Rip — Schiit Modi 2 Uber — Asgard 2
 

 
This is one of my favorite albums of all time and it’s a great benchmark for me, personally. The Titans killed it on this one! The bass and the kick drum have incredible punch and authority, gets your head banging right away! Though usually I feel heavy guitars don’t quite have enough presence with the Titans, that was not really the case here, they have a great low-end rumble, but the mids are still very much present. Man that bass though…. so good! This album and the Titans are a great pairing.
 
Kamasi Washington - The Epic (Jazz)
Rig Used: LH Labs Geek Out 450
 

 
Warm and smooth with an expansive soundstage really helps this album live up it’s title. I can’t really pick out a flaw here, every instrument is presented and separated very naturally and it just feels like this how this album is supposed to sound. It’s very heavily layered and complex and the Titan keeps up no problem. Even with saxophones, trumpets, an organ, drums and other percussion and a choir all playing at the same time. Really it’s kind of hard to explain, you just have to listen to this album with the Titans, even if you hardly like jazz.
 
Myrkur - Self-Titled EP (Black Metal)
Rig Used: LH Labs Geek Out 450
 

 
As I said earlier, female vocals sound incredible on the Titans and this album shows it off quite well, the clean singing sounds downright ethereal here with that fairly large soundstage. Instrumentally, there’s definitely a darker sound signature imposed on this album which may be your thing, but I prefer more brightness and aggression with black metal. If you’re someone who complains about not being able to hear the bass in black metal music, you’ll hear it here. The guitars sound too smooth and warm here, not cold and cutting enough for my preference. That said, plenty of fans of black metal prefer a darker sound so this could be right up your alley.
 
Taylor Swift - 1989 (Pop)
Rig Used: LH Labs Geek Out 450
 

 
I may like sulking in my room and listening to black and doom metal a lot but sometimes I’m looking for something a little more pleasant and catchy! I’m not too big on pop culture and top 40 radio, but I do love listening to Taylor Swift occasionally. This album sounds just euphoric on the Titans. Bass response extends deep but keeps up quite well with the driving driving rhythms on a lot of her songs. Taylor’s voice is the star of the show here and it sounds amazing. If you like a lot of modern pop music (especially female artists), you have to try out the Titans!
 
Chrome Sparks - Goddess EP (Electronic, Chillwave)
Rig Used: LH Labs Geek Out 450
 

 
The warm nature of the Titans and the expansive soundstage really lend to making a very relaxing listening experience with this EP. Deep bass and shimmering synths layer perfectly and you can really hear all of the different sounds and textures used in making this album. I’m blown away by the clarity and detail. The Titans are great for electronic music too.
 
Radiator Hospital - Torch Song (Indie Folk/Rock)
Rig Used: LH Labs Geek Out 450
 

 
Again, the Titans are imposing a bit of a warmer signature here. Bass guitar sounds thick and very present. Guitars are lacking a bit of brightness and sparkle. Female and male vocals both sound excellent though. Clear and detailed and more intimate, despite the generally wider soundstage these IEMs usually exhibit.
 
 
Conclusion
 
Well there’s plenty more music to discover on the Titans but I have to cut the review somewhere. Leave any requests for impressions with certain albums in the comments and I’ll certainly get back to you.
 
I must say, I’m overall very impressed by the Titans. They come with a solid array of accessories and tips and a nice little case for transporting them. They are quite comfortable for being a bit bigger IEMs and I found getting a good seal to be quite easy with the right tips. I love that Dunu did not skimp on the cable, while I haven’t had these long, the cable inspires a lot of confidence in me due to its very flexible nature and ample strain reliefs on three different point of the cable (termination, right before the splitter, on each monitor). I wish every company that made IEMs implemented strain reliefs like on the Titans.
 
Sound-wise, they are incredibly detailed, wow! Breathtaking soundstage for an IEM in the $100-$150 price range and very authoritative bass that never sounds muddy or too slow. Highs are well balanced and never piercing or fatiguing in my experience.
 
My only gripe is that I prefer a bit stronger midrange presence since I listen to a lot of guitar based music. For me, the guitars sound a little too smooth and warm on a lot of albums and the lack the same presence that the bass commands. This isn’t an issue of quality though, just personal sound signature presence.
 
If you enjoy electronic, pop, hip-hop and/or jazz, I can’t recommend the Dunu Titan 1s enough, they are absolutely stellar with these genres. If you listen to rock, metal or other guitar based music and like a smoother, warmer character to your music, then you’ll like these as well. There are plenty of IEMs out there that offer ‘fun’ sound signatures that often lack detail or natural instrument separation but the Dunu Titan 1 is not one of them. 
 
Note: In the interest of full disclosure these were sent to me from Dunu for review and I did not purchase them. Thank you to Dunu for letting my try these excellent IEMs.

It was about a year ago give or take a few months I was introduced to my first Dunu product, DN-1000 hybrid and boy was I impressed at the performance it offered for $200 USD. As anyone on Head-fi would know the Chinese company Dunu aren't strangers to the portable audio scene and recently they've developed something new for us to check out, actually, one of many new products. So today lets take a look at their "half in-ear" designed and christened Titan 1.

I must thank Dunu for the sample!
 
 


 
Price: $115 from Penon Audio: http://penonaudio.com/DUNU-TITAN1  

(Can also be found on eBay from other sellers)

Dunu website: http://www.dunu-topsound.com/
 
 
The earphones use a 13mm titanium coated diaphragm which apparently helps retain an energetic natural sound, it's a little different to your regular IEM design as the insertion is only 'half insertion' so to speak. Rather than a common in-ear monitor this Dunu product is designed to be worn half way between an ear-bud and full monitor (worn down). What this means is you're still inserting a tip into your ear but not quite as deep as your commonly found IEM, (Dunu DN-1000) for example.
 
Specs:
 
 

Type	Single dynamic driver inner ear monitor
Driver	13mm dynamic titanium “nano class” driver
Frequency Range	10 Hz – 30 Khz
Impedance	16 ohm
Sensitivity	90 dB (+/-2 dB)
Plug	3.5mm gold plated
Cables	1.2m, fixed
Weight	18g
IEM Shell	Polished metal

 
 
 
Virtual unboxing:

The carton your new toy arrvies in is well thought out giving a real feeling of gratification as you get through the wrapping. Its very much comparable to Beats by Dre experience with the heavy cardboard box and door / flaps that open outwards. I actually like the layout, especially some of the included information presented. It shows Dunu care about the presentation of their products and for the price of just $115 roughly this stands out being one of the best packaging experiences I've seen.
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
Design / Build / comfort / Isolation:
 
The housings themselves are quite sturdy made from polished metal, they look the piece too with their almost mirror finish, its the kind of end result in person that shimmers or sparkles when the right light angle hits it, this might be a plus or a minus for you but rest assured in person they certainly look the part. Each housing weights approx 4.4 grams (with no tip)  so Dunu managed to keep the weight down whilst containing these huge 13mm drivers.
 
That's one thing about this design, because of the concept you're able to fit a large dynamic driver into the housing which is a good thing for increasing head-stage and sound properties. You can see where Dunu were going with the concept all along. Whether it be to fit the large drivers or comfort which we'll talk about later, the entire design simply works.

Rubber strain reliefs, as you'll see below are quite long and sturdy, the cable has been sheathed, everything's been thought out well to cover any missing pieces. Even the jack with its chrome plated appearance will stand the test of time. So much so, I found it quite hard to fault any of the build on this product.

Let's not forget that sheathed cable below the Y-spilt once again which really makes the cable feel durable, you won't be stretching or breaking it in a hurry with this statement - it just feels very strong, robust and firm below the Y-Spilter.
 
Moving onto comfort, due to the design they're incredibly pleasing to wear. One can lay on their side in bed if they wish, the housings once sealed naturally become invisible to feel, this is a great thing in conjunction with the soundstage we're going to speak about later as there's nothing better than not feeling an IEM in your ear whilst music is all around you. Higher the comfort better the experience you're going to have focusing on music and this is one very strong area of Dunu Titan.

Isolation, one would think due to the half in-ear design and venting that isolation is terrible well, not the case. Whilst you're able to have a conversation and possibly hear cars passing you in the street the level of isolation is more than acceptable. Of course, you shouldn't expect the world to be blocked out but one might just be surprised, I know I was.
 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 
 
Accessories:
 
Included in Titan 1 package is quite an assortment of tips and a nice carry case, not much as we've seen with the Dunu DN-1000 packaging last year but that to some extent was a little overkill for anyone. For those unaware DN-1000 package came with so many tips and little assortments it was kind of overwhelming but very welcome from Dunu in the long run and user experience. This time round they've supplied 3 different types of tips, one really nice hard clip shut carry case, a shirt clip and 3.5 - 6.3 adapter. So toned it down fractionally.

Let's take a look at the tips first, adapter and shirt clip.
 
As you can see there's a set of Sony hybrid clones in S/M/L (this is what I use by default on Titan 1)
 
 There's also another strange looking set with a flush front and some red core tips (which are different from Heir tips btw)
 

 

Last but not least the excellent hard plastic carry case which simply screams a much welcomed feature, its perfect size for storing your product, also able to keep in your pocket. So many companies have their own little bizarre concept on carry cases, most of which look great but don't really serve their purpose correctly. I can see this time round not only does the case look the part, remain strong and sturdy its also small enough to simply slide in a shirt pocket with room to spare.
 
 

 
 

 
 
Sound Quality:
 
 
Most of my listening was done during this review lead up with Cowon J3 running 16/44 FLAC files. I have other DAPs here that worked quite well such as FiiO X1, iPod Touch 4G, Cowon iAudio 9, Sansa Clip Zip, Colorfly C3, practically any source will drive Titan with its 16ohm impedance however for me the main pairing was Cowon J3.
 
 

 

In a nutshell:

in the nut of a shell Titan's sound leans towards being slightly bright and semi-analytical, its tuning isn't terribly far from neutral but does lean toward having a slight emphasis in the upper regions which makes it sound quite clean, clear and high in detail, clarity. The bass is a fraction forward but nothing to really mention in regards to taking any control over the presentation. Whilst the treble is quite shimmery and a little strident at times this is really only if you lift the volumes to extremely high levels or listen to poorly mastered tracks in the high end. Timbre is also quite natural and the entire presentation leans towards quite an organic one due to the dynamic diaphragm with impressive soundstage.
 
Let's find out more though.


Bass:

Like I said above the bass on Titan isn't really forward but does a good job showing presence if the track requires, its one of those cases you've probably heard before where a low end tends to behave itself only coming out to play when called upon. Texture and clarity are good and does a fine job staying away from the mid-range. I've come to hear the bass leaning into sub-bass territory regions than mid-bass so there's no bloating or clouding into the lower-mids, just very clean right through and quite accurate for the price range.  Would it be for a bass-head? Hmm, probably not though not a bass light earphone by any means.
 
 
Mids:

At the heart is where the real magic occurs, the mids are very detailed for this price, whether it be the tilt in tonality helping Titan be revealing I can say confidently this product exhibits more detail than my Vsonic GR07 MK2, (which I do enjoy), the timbre is natural has good presence but sounds a little thinner than usual, like we said above the tonality makes Titan sound quite analytical to an extent and the note weight is a contrast of this. I especially think the mids are well suited to female vocals, acoustic, but not limited to EDM, or ambient music, it can also pull off Jazz very easily. So really the genre question can be tailored for anything with this earphone.

I must double express the detail levels especially in the upper mid-range are very high on this earphone for its price, you won't find many others that can perform at this level in detail retrieval so smoothly. Its certainly a stand out feature and one that shouldn't be ignored for anyone looking at getting the best bang for your buck!
 
 
Highs:
 
Up in the top end its well behaved with decent extension though nothing over the top  its not rolled off in anyway and certainly showing detail at all times. if anything sometimes it can sound a little metallic if pushed too hard, which gives the earphone a shimmery, tinny sound but this is quite an extreme from my testing, for most parts the high end of Titan stays in check and quite comfortable, so you shouldn't have any problems at all if highs tend to bother you. 
 
 
Soundstage / spaciousness:

If one word comes to mind its the word 'spaciousness'. I'm not certain how Dunu did it, whether be the venting, large drivers or design aspect but the soundstage on Titan is definitely a strong point also the head-stage is quite large (the actual size of each instrument or vocal) the image itself. I have no problem hearing samples cueing up outside either side of my ears and the amount of air due to the drivers tuning is quite high. Center channel depth is also very good hearing samples layer themselves way back through the stage. The staging is one strong point of Dunu Titan beside that high amount of detail we mentioned. Very very capable indeed and gives the listener an appealing, entertaining experience.

Its an absolute pleasure laying down in the dark listening to some of my favorite albums with Titan, listening to instruments cue around me. Its worth the $100 odd just for this alone despite everything else we've talked positive about this product. If you're fan of soundstage you really need to check this out, something goes hand in hand with the comfort, air and staging which just screams a great bedtime listener. 

 
Separation / imaging:

More strong points, whilst the separation isn't strongest of all earphones I've heard I don't believe it needs to be, it does a good job, never smears or become congested. When you add the imaging on top along with this separation its about what you've expect for the price-range,  doesn't excel or fall behind. just doing its job whilst keeping everything in check. The imaging however does quite well as it has lots of room to space instruments out due to the large stage, placing each sample inside is quite easy. Let's not forget that large head-stage again which gives each sample quite a big image inside your head overall.
 
 

 

Conclusion:
 
I have no problem recommending this product for anyone, whether they're into high-end or mid-stream the beauty is Titan 1 manages to pull it all off for $100 and you really need not worry about the lower price once you've heard it. To me it meets that fine line where it does enough 'and some more' also one of those products that makes me think 'do I I really need anymore'. Not all products I review do this but occasionally one comes along where I think 'this is all you really need", Titan does that job perfect. Throughout the review I was trying to find faults and things to dismiss but the only thing I  found was treble and its sometimes metallic sheen if pushing Titan into extreme volume levels.

In short, its a product I highly highly recommend if not for the soundstage and detail then for the high comfort levels and build it offers. A few years ago $100 (roughly) wouldn't get you anywhere near this performance let alone an entire package of such quality. So by all means go ahead and buy one, you can thank me later!

~H20

My search for the perfect pair of buds is finally over! I have long waited for the perfect set of earphones. A pair that not only sounds good, but looks good, and is comfortable. A pair that not only isolates sound, but also sounds open at the same time. Enter the DUNU Titan 1s. These are so good that I can't believe it. At a price of only $118 at the time I bought it, these are a ******* amazing deal. I just returned the RHA T20is that I bought a week ago. Comparing these two popular buds, the RHA loses in comfort, portability, design, sound and openness. The only thing that the RHA is better at is isolation, but not by far. Additionally, I feel that unless you are going to be in a very loud environment constantly, it is better to be able to hear a bit of what is going on around you. I plan to use these earphones while biking, eating, walking, at home, in bed, at work, in the library, at school, on the bus, and on the plane. Basically, whenever I don't need to be talking to people. The only drawback that I noticed from the reviews before buying these was isolation, looks, and the fact that it is made in China. I can confirm that isolation is not a problem, looks is debatable and very subjective, and feel free to ignore it being made in China because it is much better than any other American or European earphone I have ever tried.

Sound: 10/10
Better than RHA t20i at 249.99. Better than V-Moda Crossfade LP 2 199.99Better than BlueBuds X 169.99, better than Audio-Techinica M50x 199.99
Sounds very playful. 
Bass: Extremely Strong, clear,
Highs: Extremely clear
Mids: Very good

Isolation: 8/10
Enough to block chatter, not so much that you wouldn't be able to hear a car honking it's horn

Comfort, 9.5/10, a bit tight but that may be necessary for a good fit
Tried on the default set of earbuds attached to the model and they fit amazingly. Haven't bothered to try on the other buds for a better fit.

Openness: 10/10
Perfect mix of closed and openness
These are indeed very open, does leak a bit of sound, just look at the design, it has a unique 7 open hole design. Sounds spectacular. Like you are in a club or music room.

If this doesn't convince you, feel free to check any other reviews. But, seriously. I've done WAY too much research already and this is the final result.
Also, you will regret not getting these.
About me: College student, spend most of time in library, dorm, biking to class.
 
Day 2 Update, Lowered to 4.5 Stars, Can't believe I didn't even notice that these had mediocre wire, and no in-line mic. Still very worth it; nothing is perfect and these are well worth the sacrifice of the mic and in-line control.
 

 
Before I begin, I would like to sincerely thank Vivian at DUNU for providing the review sample of the TITAN 1 in this review. Please note that I am neither affiliated with DUNU or any of its employees, nor am I being compensated for writing this review (aside from being provided the review sample). All opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own unless otherwise specified, and all pictures are taken and owned by me. YMMV.
 
Delicate, Unique, and Utmost – these are the three words that DUNU adopts as its philosophy for creating their IEMs. If you’ve been around the forums of Head-Fi for a while, you’ll probably know DUNU as a popular company based in Taiwan, manufacturing great bang-for-buck IEMs that rival that of top-end Western IEMs. This week, we’re taking a look at their latest release – the Titan 1. Early impressions and reviews state these are some of the best IEMs in their price range – how do they stack up? Find out after the break.
 

~~ Aesthetics ~~​

Packaging, Accessories

The packaging, I have to say, is pretty fancy for an Asian company. I mean, other Asian companies have packaging for IEMs that range from the ordinary (Brainwavz) to the blatantly frugal (Final Audio Design). The Titan comes in a solid box which opens via a flap on the right side. Specifications are listed on the left side, and some marketing babble on the back. Opening the flap, you’re treated to a tease of the Titan 1 through a small window in yet another flap. Under the first flap, you have a more detailed description of the Titan 1’s features in English and Chinese, as well as a frequency graph. The inner flap seems to be dedicated to someone named Max Barsky. Whether he’s affiliated with DUNU or not I have no idea, as the flap makes no mention of his connection to DUNU whatsoever. Pretty dumb, if you ask me, but let’s move on. Opening the inner flap, you finally have the Titan 1 in its full glory, along with some eartips and its included hard case.
 
(Just a Thought: As fancy as the box feels, though, I can’t help but notice how the package is undoubtedly Chinese. Grammatical, typographical, and typesetting errors are here and there, the choice of font is horribly tasteless, the imagery feels shoddily plastered-on, and overall it just doesn’t cut it for me. I know I’m just ranting here, but that’s my opinion, so feel free to agree or disagree however you want; but…ew.)
 
Taking out its contents, you are treated to a Brainwavz-like shower of accessories, with 9 pairs of eartips, a hard plastic case, a shirt clip, a 3.5 to 6.3mm adapter, and a one-year warranty effective from the date of purchase. If there’s anything wrong with this collection of accessories, it’d probably be that the opening mechanism of the hard case is a little worrying. Otherwise, no complaints here. Let’s continue.
 
 

Design, Build, Microphonics

The “D” in DUNU stands for “Delicate.” Though I can’t say that about their build (they’re hardly delicate), I can say that about their design. DUNU paid delicate and meticulous attention to the little details that adorn the Titan 1. Now, let’s start with the housings. If you haven’t noticed already from the pictures, you’ll see that each housing has a coloured metal ring in blue and red. These serve as very useful left/right indicators – a design feature I more often see on Western-branded IEMs. I’m pretty glad to see an Asian brand implement this useful detail, leaving something other local competitors could learn from (Brainwavz, I’m looking at you). Now, going down the fabric-reinforced cable, we have a rubber thingamajig hanging around below the Y-split. What is this, you ask? Well, to put it simply, it’s kinda like a twist tie, which is used to keep the cables together when you’re not using them. This design feature, now, is literally one-of-a-kind. Fellow audiophiles, let’s face it: what brands, aside from DUNU, utilize this rubber tie? Now, I mean, we’ve all seen twist ties supplied with IEMs, but what about the actual twist tie on the cable, always at the ready whenever you need it? As far as I know, nothing comes up – in fact, DUNU even patented the design (so I guess that means you probably won’t see that little thingy in other IEMs in the future…). As they say, “the little things often matter the most”; in DUNU’s case, this couldn’t ring any truer.
 
The “UN” in DUNU stands for ‘UNique.’ Well, I can’t argue with them about that; the design of the Titan 1 sure is one-of-a-kind. I could pretty much say these are the missing link between earbuds and IEMs – and as you can see from the pictures, I’m pretty sure you would agree with me there. First off, the earbud characteristics: the Titan 1 has a huge 13.5mm dynamic driver in those housings, and as such simply sits on the outside of your ear canal. The IEM characteristics are the angled nozzles which form a seal in those canals.
 
And finally, we have the final “U,” which stands for “Utmost.” And I have to say, they nailed that word square in the forehead. DUNU took utmost care to ensure the Titan 1 becomes an IEM that will last. Full metal housings, metal Y-split, metal right-angled jack – nothing feels like they’re about to fall apart anytime soon. The cable from the Y-split down is reinforced with fabric, which is a nice touch. The Y-split is a little scantily-clad, however, and I would like longer strain reliefs on the housings, but aside from that the build is great.
 
 

Fit, Comfort, Isolation

 Being a semi-open IEM (or a hybrid IEM, if you will), the fit also stands on an interesting middle ground between earbuds and IEMs. I personally hate earbud-style fit with a passion – the large drivers press against my ears very painfully. However, this is not the case for the Titan 1, as their hybrid design allows the 13.5mm driver to sit comfortably outside the ear canal while the nozzle does the rest. If I might add, the driver actually seems to work like wing-tips like those I see on some sport-oriented IEMs (or the DUNU DN-2000), and actually help in providing a more secure fit. The Titan 1 is also very, very comfortable, and I could wear them for hours on end without any issues. However, their design prevents them from being able to be worn around-the-ear which I prefer.
 
The isolation on the Titan 1 is much like its design – semi-open, if you will. It leaks a pretty good amount – enough for people to hear it play at normal listening volume in a quiet room. Its isolation is also pretty much the same – even with music playing at a normal listening volume, I could hear the clacking of my keyboard pretty clearly. However, this is only in closed-in conditions and doesn’t really reflect the performance I get when out and about. Using Comply T-400 foam eartips outside, their isolation wasn’t that bad, and the din of the city streets pretty much nullifies the tiny noise that leaks from the Titan 1, so in short, it’s not that bad. Silicone tips tell a slightly different tale, with worse stats across the board here, but otherwise it’s actually nice to have a little less isolation for a little more awareness outside.
 
(Just a Thought: Early into the review process, I found that the Titan 1 doesn’t really fit Comply tips and other eartips with a wide entry bore very well. To fix that I performed a little mod which involves taking the nozzle of an eartip you don’t use, and cutting it down to size so it fits in the dent of the Titan 1’s nozzle. Make sure the eartip you’re using has a nozzle only slightly wider than the nozzle itself. Do this right, and you can fit wider-bore eartips and Comply eartips at your will. However, you will have to take the ring off to fit the stock eartips on.)
 
[On Second Thought: The T-500s may not fit on the Titan 1 without performing a mod, but smaller Comply eartips like the T-200 do.]
 
 

~~ Sound ~~​

Specs

 
 
 

Equipment, Burn-in

The source equipment used in this review is my iPod, iPad, and my PC, all running the Titan 1 unamped. For the EQ test, I use EQu (iOS app) and Electri-Q (on PC via Foobar2000). As always, my list of test tracks can be viewed here for reference, although I will mention a few songs in the review for a more specific point of reference. If a link is available, I’ll also link it below. The eartips used in the review are mainly Comply T-400 tips, as well as a few other sets.
 
Prior to writing this review, the Titan 1 was burned-in for at least 50 hours (the actual number is actually over 100) with music, games, and movies. Over that time, I didn’t notice any changes in sound quality, so if you’re worried that you need to burn them in for over 200 hours, then rest assured. Before I go any further, please take all the following opinions with a grain of salt, as my tastes will probably differ a lot from yours.
 
Anyways, without further ado, let’s begin!
 
 

Sound Quality

My impression of the Titan 1 at first listen was simply: Wow. I was impressed from the very first listen, so much that I spent a lot of time listening to them while they burned-in. They were that impressive. Let’s take a look as I answer why.
 
Bass:
To be honest, I expected very little to come out of the Titan 1 in the bass department, mostly because of its unassuming earbud-IEM hybrid form factor. But I had no idea what was waiting for me when I played my test tracks. Despite their semi-open design, they had a surprising amount of bass punch and extension which makes them great for bass-heavy genres like rap and EDM (Going Quantum - Raw). They are well-separated from the rest of the audio spectrum and have zero bass bleed that I could detect. The low-end also has very good control, speed, and a neutral tonality, which allows them to reproduce acoustic and electric bass really well (Daft Punk – Give Life Back to Music). However, the Titan 1 does lack the quantity that bass-lovers will be looking for (sorry, guys), but for me, the Titan 1 has me covered here.
 
 
Midrange:
I had very high expectations for the Titan 1’s midrange. I really did. It’s safe to say, however, that the Titan 1 exceeded those expectations with flying colours. Their midrange is amazing. Compared to the rest of the spectrum, they are slightly recessed – and you can notice this in certain bass-heavy tracks – but cue up some acoustic instrumental tracks, and the midrange takes centre-stage. It has exceptional clarity and a neutral tonality that reproduces practically everything in the book – from pianos to synthesizers, vocals to vocoders (Daft Punk – Within) – without fail. It also has very good micro-detail retrieval and isn’t as forgiving to bad recordings as a lot of other IEMs I’ve tried – this might not be a very pleasing aspect to a lot of people, but it’s a very welcome quality to me. Now, couple that to its huge, expansive soundstage and you have a midrange package that’s impossible to pass up.
 
 
Treble:
Now here’s where things start to vary on the Titan 1. Depending on the eartips you use, the treble of the Titan 1 can be painfully sibilant or smooth and snappy. Using the stock narrow-bore eartips, the sibilance isn’t as bad as I stated it is at first. However, switch to the included wide-bore eartips and you will probably see hear what I mean. A quick fix for this, though, is when you have Comply or other foam eartips lying around that you could use. The ones I use (T-400) really dull down the sibilance while still retaining the crisp, airy goodness of the treble. But as I stated earlier in the review, you will have to perform a little mod to fit the Comply tips in, so that will be another thing to consider if you want to use Comply eartips with them.
 
 
Soundstage/Presentation:
Oh God. Oh Lord. The soundstage on the Titan 1 is heavenly. Playing an epic orchestral piece through them (Cœur de Pirate – Metal Gleamed in the Twilight), the sheer amount of space really brings on a whole new perspective to the track – and I’ve listened to it dozens of times before. The air between each of the instruments, the layering, the imaging...the song simply comes alive in a way none of my other IEMs could ever achieve. And don’t get me started on pianos and guitars (Yiruma – Indigo). It’s simply breath-taking.
 
But let’s pause for a moment, and get right back down to earth for a bit. Like I said, the soundstage is big. Very big. Bigger than the Brainwavz R3, which has the biggest soundstage out of all my IEMs currently (that is, until now). It’s also very airy, which adds a lot of space for instruments to breathe and really shine as I’ve also mentioned. Presentation and imaging is easily one of the best I’ve heard for an IEM at this price.
 
 
(Just a Thought: The Titan 1 clearly has everything going for them, that’s for sure; but alas, my pair just so happened to have a slight channel imbalance between the drivers. The difference is about 3dB maximum [the right earpiece is louder], which honestly isn’t a huge difference, but a difference nonetheless. Most of the time, I don’t seem to notice it, but at certain times I do notice it, and when I do, it becomes a very glaring issue. I start to notice it very randomly, however, so there’s a chance it could be just me. But I still believe it’s a physical channel imbalance, which is most likely caused by a QC glitch or something like that. Most of that usually happens by chance, so I’m not going to start to complain about it.)
 
 
Summary:
I can’t really summarize the sound of the Titan 1 in 1 sentence, but I’ll give it a try anyway: The Titan 1 is one of the best-sounding IEMs in its price range – and easily the best I’ve ever heard so far. If you want me to describe it concisely, though, you’re out of luck if you’re too lazy to read the whole section. Apparently I’m too lazy to sum it up myself.
 
 

Other Media

Games:
If my infatuation with the Titan 1’s overall signature is any indication, their gaming performance is currently unmatched by any of the IEMs I have in my collection right now. Excellent clarity, impressive soundstage, and pinpoint imaging all roll up to create one Titan of a gaming IEM. It easily blows any “gaming” ‘phones, headphones or IEMs, straight out of the water at this price.
 
Movies:
I’ve said this several times before in my reviews, but I’ll say it again – I’m not a very big fan of movies, and as such I don’t watch them often. In turn I don’t really have a very well-versed opinion on an IEM’s performance with movies. However, it’s not that different from music, so to sum it up, the Titan 1 is a very good IEM to watch movies with, with its impressive soundstage, depth, and control over the entire audible spectrum.
 
 

EQ Response

I honestly never found myself EQ’ing the Titan 1 while I reviewed them, mostly because they already sounded perfect to me with the Comply eartips. However, they were pretty responsive to EQ when I attenuated down the treble to smoothen it out.
 
Apparently, the Titan 1’s gargantuan drivers are also capable of becoming basshead IEMs with some EQ. They ran perfectly fine with a 10 dB boost (boosted like so) without distorting one bit, so bassheads, you might still have hope after all with the Titan 1. These drivers are really, really capable.
 
 

Value

The DUNU Titan 1 is priced at a staggering $130 retail, but you can see it normally go for an even more shocking $115 in most retailers. Now, I know $130 isn’t staggering per se – I mean, even I myself could afford this – but the resulting price-to-performance ratio of the Titan 1 is. Having some of the most well-rounded packages for an IEM I have ever seen so far, there’s no doubt the Titan 1 is a bargain at this price.
 
 

Comparison

I found that, though the DUNU Titan 1 is pretty amazing when reviewed per se, their true value and performance really shines when you place them amongst other IEMs in their price range. Let’s see how they stack up.
 
Versus Master & Dynamic ME03 ($160):
Previously I crowned the M&D ME03 as one of the best – if not the best – IEMs I have in my current collection. Well, I guess his crowning didn’t last very long, as the Titan 1 very quickly took its place and now sits upon that throne. Though the ME03 still sound really good, the Titan 1 easily edges it out in terms of…well, pretty much everything. The low-end is deeper and has more rumble. The midrange is clearer, more neutral, and has a more analytical reproduction of instruments. The treble is, after fixing the sibilance, snappier, airier, and smoother. The soundstage, well...like I said, the Titan 1’s soundstage is currently unmatched by any of my IEMs. Ever.
 
 
Versus Brainwavz R3 ($130):
A fellow $130 contender, the Brainwavz R3 was a great IEM that held up to everything I threw at them – literally – with their top-class build quality coupled with great sound. But the Titan 1 is kind of the other way around – in short, top-class sound coupled with great build. Compared to the R3, the Titan 1 has deeper, stronger bass, crisper treble, and overall a more full-bodied sound. The Titan 1’s soundstage is also noticeably deeper, resulting in a more realistic presentation of instruments. I can’t make this any clearer: the DUNU Titan 1 is the winner in this matchup.
 

~~ Conclusion ~~​

They say nothing in life is perfect. Well, I guess that’s probably true. But in the case of the DUNU Titan 1, it’s pretty damn close. The Titan 1 easily has one of the best – if not the best – sound signatures at this price, but in order to do that, it needed to make some sacrifices. Luckily for us, DUNU knew what sacrifices to make, and in doing so they created what is for me the best IEM at $130. Period.
 
 
 

Shout-Outs, Gallery

I’d just like to again sincerely thank Vivian at DUNU for providing the sample unit of the TITAN 1 for review. Reviewing the Titan 1 was a lot of fun and I really hope to see some more offerings from DUNU this year (like their upcoming flagship IEM, the DN-2000J). As always, the rest of the images taken in this review can be viewed here.
 
As always, this is thatBeatsguy signing off; thanks for reading!
 
 

Changelog

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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DUNU has been around for quite a while now (earlier as an OEM) and have managed to have a recommended IEM or two in the budget price brackets. Their higher offerings, the DN1000 and DN2000 triple hybrids, wowed Head-fi and cemented DUNU as a force to be reckoned in the 200-400$ bracket. The Titan-1($115) comes barging into a very crowded and competitive price segment, that has seem a few gems prevail the hype storm. Will the Titan 1 be one of those gems we will still talk about a few years down the line?
 
Packaging Accessories and Build
 
 
 
At 115$, the packing is pure class. The thick double flap (magnetic) cardboard box, layout, and accessory list makes for a pleasing experience before the first listen.
The accessory list is extensive and I was able to find a secure fit for my narrow ear canals in no time (small Sony-hybrid like tips). I do feel that double/tri flange tips should also be included, for a shallow fit IEM like this. Quite a few people on the Titan 1 thread have found the sweet spot with multi-flange tips (For ex. See earfonia’s review)
 
The cable is half cloth half rubber. The cloth half isn’t prone to kink like the RE400 and does a pretty good job in suppressing microphonics. However, the same cannot be said for the rubber half which easily picks up mechanical noise. The best solution for this is to wear them cable-up, but this is not possible unless the channels are swapped. The 3.5mm jack is beefy and the strain relief seems sturdy enough to do the job. Time will tell if the Y spilt holds up. The strain reliefs exiting the housing are relatively thinner and inflexible. In the first month of use, I took extremely good care of them, and decided to put them to the test throughout the second month “for the greater good” (no case, buried in bags, stuffed in pockets, used as a bungee cord etc etc.. you know… the usual stuff). Happy to report that, other than a few scuff marks on the outer face, everything looks as good as new. “Excellent build” is the two month verdict.
 
Special mentions:
 
 

1. The carry case is classy. All black, very sturdy, rubber padded inside, Anti slip base, nice click to close, maybe a touch shallower than I hoped.
2. The Rubber belt-like clasp on the lower cable is a very nifty. I do not know of other IEMs that have this feature. If you do know of one, you know what I’m talking about. Quick storage and retrieval is a breeze. I think DUNU has patented this design, but I hope to see this on all IEMs.

 
Comfort and isolation
 
 
The colour coded metal housings are the half in-ear type. This design allows a large diaphragm to be placed nearly perpendicular to your ear canal and also allow some interesting vent designs. The Titan 1 housings are almost 1.5 cm in diameter and the angled nozzles are 0.5cm to 0.75cm in length. They fit just perfectly in my concha and anti-tragus, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a few complained of discomfort. The vents are positioned in a unique way. 11 small circular vents on the inside face of the housing and one vent on the outside face just under the stem.
 
As you can imagine the isolation, with this level of venting, should be poor. I found that the isolation wasn’t as poor as proper open back IEMs like the Signature Acoustics O16. The Ostry KC06(which isn’t an open IEM) also offers similar levels of isolation. The Titan-1’s are not ideal or advisable for use on the go, unless you need poor isolation of course (to aid spatial awareness).
 
Efficiency and perceived frequency response
 
The Titan-1 is pretty efficient and was easily driven by my Sansa Clip, LG G2 and Geek Out 450. The Geek Out 450 sounded better rounded than the other two (not by much though), and has been used for the Sound section below.
 
The sub-bass rolls off below 25Hz (quiet setting). The climb from the sub-bass to mid bass feels like a gradual curve. This gradual climb only seems to dip a tiny bit around 600Hz and 1300Hz. There are slight bumps around 2200Hz and 4800Hz before I notice a small dip at 8600Hz. There is a growing emphasis through and beyond the transition from the upper mids into the treble. Except for a peak at around 12.8KHz, the treble was well behaved before it dropped off at 17.6KHz. On the whole, I was impressed at how controlled and smooth the sweep sounded compared to my other sets. Onto the real-world tests now:
 
Sound
Primary list of music used
 
Bass: The Titan 1 has the come-only-when-called-upon type of bass. This description is reserved for IEMs that deliver are able to maintain a very clean background and deliver a surprising bass kick out of no-where. This capability gets slightly weaker as we climb into the Titan 1’s midbass.
The overall decay is fast but lingers a tiny bit beyond “fast”. I suspect the housing-design/sense-of-space also has something to do with this. What this does is, deliver a dash of warmth that contributes to the organic experience. The detail retrieval is very impressive (This is something you will read over and over throughout this review). The gradual mid-bass hump could do with a little more refinement (more about this in the RE400 comparison). This is also more apparent because of the transparency throughout the rest of the range.
 
Mids: There has been a mix of opinions on the extent of midrange recession. I would classify the signature as a mild V shape that is not blatantly obvious in a majority of my music. The U is quite apparent when switching from a neutral/mid-forward IEM or on tracks with some inherent midrange recession (that gets exaggerated). After two weeks of using the Titan 1, I never felt like I was missing out on detail in the midrange and only on occasion (15%) wished for more midrange emphasis. Female vocals have better presence compared to the male vocals(extend will vary depending on the recording)
 
Highs: The detail retrieval is astonishingly good. I have read a few reports of slight harshness/sibilance. I’ve probably lucked out with the tips, because I haven’t heard the treble cross the line. There is undoubtedly a slight treble emphasis but it only gets jarring at very high volumes. This lack of harshness contributes to the organic signature. However on the whole, it lacks some delicacy and finesse (see RE272 comparison). The treble can be considered edgy depending on the recording and listening volume, but I did not find it fatiguing.
 
Stage, space and imaging
 
The sense of space/stage is attention grabbing in the beginning (early listening) and then settles into a very natural enveloping stage that is starkly discernible when A/Bing with other IEMs. The L/R extension is above average, but that is not the (most) impressive bit. With most IEMs the sound cues start to fill your head, and after a certain virtual distance, start to feel confined. This is different from the positioning of individual cues ion the stage. The former has more to do with the “space” the cues occupy. On the Titan 1 the sound cues begin to fill your head and then radiate beyond. This feature in particular is very impressive and sounds very natural. The lesser than average isolation is a trade-off for the excellent sense of space that the Titan 1 offers.
 
Comparisons: The Titanium Trifecta
 
HIFIMAN RE400: The RE400 needs no introduction to the Head-fi scene. This 100$ titanium pellet has a warm neutral/slightly mid-forward signature with smooth treble. The Titan 1 is bassier, slightly V shaped with more emphasised treble. Not an obvious comparison here. The Titan 1 has the edge in sub-bass presence and as a result, presents similar levels of detail in a more noticeable/obvious manner and is is more enjoyable. The story is not the same when we climb into the mid-bass. Head-to head, the Titan 1 mid-bass seems woollier and less refined in comparison. The RE400 also edges the Titan 1 in mid-bass details retrieval and presentation. Both may not sound ideal(mid-bass response), but I find the RE400 to be more natural in this regard. The midrange is more linear on the RE400 and is more forward compared to the Titan 1 whilch has relatively recessed lower mids but more prominent upper mids. The level of detail is at similar levels, with the RE400 sounding relatively drier. The smooth treble is a contrast from the Titan 1 which is sounds edgier and more in-your-face, in comparison. Perceived detail retrieval is higher on the Titan 1 but I think the RE400 does remarkably well(but is not as upfront about it). The soundstage and space presented by the Titan 1 is more natural and enveloping that the more conventional RE400(in this regards).
On the whole, I feel they are both technically adept and cater to slightly different audiences. I would recommend the Titan 1 over the RE400 as a transition IEM for someone wanting to venture into neutral waters(before diving head-first).
 
HIFIMAN RE272: This legendary, now discontinued titanium micro-driver beauty is my absolute benchmark for treble detail-retrieval and presentation. The Titan 1 reminded me of the detail retrieval and nuances the RE272 brought out in my music. They differ mainly in presentation of that detail. Both, I will say, have emphasized highs (more so on the Titan 1). Both stay clear of sibilance or harshness(at normal listening volumes). Both have similar levels of detail(RE272 is slightly ahead). The similarities however end here. The RE272 manages to serve up this detail on a smooth black granite platter, while the Titan 1 chooses an ornamental shiny platinum platter. It is very easy to get lost in all the RE272 detail. The Titan 1 however, makes you take notice of every detail but not in an annoying way. 
 
Conclusion:
 
The pleasing all-rounder signature, excellent build, accessory list, and extremely competitive price is a winning formula when competing in a crowded price segment.
 
What DUNU has done is take a neutralish/detail-oriented IEM and add just the right amount of pizazz. While there is room for some tweaking and refinement, I think the Titan 1 will weather the hype and gain a place in the top recommendation lists for all-rounder IEMs ~100$. I am definitely looking forward to the next iteration.
 
Bonus: Some subjective drivel:
I am sensitive to sharp/peaky treble and cannot stand a recessed midrange(but I always try to make sure I stay as objective as possible in my review). That said, I didn’t find myself frowning with the Titan 1 singing in my ears. Yes, the midrange is slightly recessed and the treble is a little emphasized, but they never cross the line. Some expert tuning right there. I still break out the RE400 for that beautiful midrange and the Ostry KC06 when I need to be pumped up. The RE272 is the special one. It is undoubtedly my detail and treble presentation benchmark.
I don’t particularly enjoy the Titan 1 at very low listening volumes(before sleep/studying etc.). The midrange slips just beyond my threshold and distracts me. I have the relatively midforward RE400 for that.
 
I would like to thank Vivian (DUNU) for giving me the opportunity to share my honest opinion on the Titan 1. I would also like to apologize for the delay. I just wanted to get it right, so I spent as much time as possible carefully internalizing the signature.
 

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Thanks for reading. Do let me know if you have any thoughts on where I can improve my reviewing style(For ex: Not descriptive enough in XXX section).
Always remember that each reviewer will have a slightly different take on the sound. It is important to go through as many reviews as possible and build a consensus of what the IEM will sound like. You could also pick a reviewer a two who you feel has similar tastes/perception as you (from reference reviews).
Other reviews of the Titan 1 can be viewed at this link. Let us know if you have any questions regarding the Titan 1 over at the main thread. Tomscy2000 has organized the impressions and review links in the OP so that will be the best place to start.
It goes without saying that auditioning something is the best way to go. Every other option is a distant 2^nd, 3^rd and so on, but we need to work with what is possible.

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Thanks to Vivian from DUNU, I was able to listen to the best IEMs I place in my ears. I have reviewed a few IEMs such as the MEELEC M9, A151, CC51, M-DUO, JVC FXT90 and recently the Havi B3P1, but I have never heard and seen anything like the Titan 1. It's like combining the FXT90's Soundstage depth (it's slightly deeper than that), the Havi B3P1's rendering of detail and the sturdiness of the M-DUO (the Titan 1 is definitely sturdier though). I have auditioned the Titan 1 for at least 50 hours and it had a few changes from the bass to treble and everything in between. 
 

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Specifications:

1. Driver: 13mm Titanium Diaphragm Dynamic Driver
2. Impedance:16Ω
3. Sensitivity: 90+- 2dB
4. Reproduction Frequency: 20Hz-30kHz
5. Cable Length: 1.2m
6. Plug: 3.5mm Stereo Mini
7. Weight: 18g

 
I used my neutral, yet warm Xuelin IHIFI 770C (EQ Settings: Rock) for this review.
 
I will focus on several categories in this review and those are: 
 
Build Quality/Accessories/Fit/Isolation/Sound Quality/Sensitivity 
 

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Let's start with Build Quality:
 
This is one of the most impressive parts of the Titan 1. The bottom half of the cable is braided with a nylon material below the the metal Y-Split and above the metal right angled jack. The Y-Split says DUNU on it, along with Titan 1. Although right above the Y-Split, there's the think rubber cord. The strain relief is great. It's reinforced and compliments the sturdiness of the Titan 1 well. Along with that, there's the metal housing and the titanium coated diaphragm to ensure longevity and excellent sound quality. There are vents on each earpiece and that's probably for enhanced the soundstage and clarity. Finally, there's the Blue and Red Color Coded earpieces. The left earpiece has a blue ring around it. The right earpiece has a red ring around it. The nozzle is at a 120 degree angle and it has a hexagon shaped vent on the nozzle. Along with DUNU's signature D's on the back of each earpiece. The last feature the Titan 1 has is the rubber wraparound on the nylon cable for properly wrapping the cable. The great thing about the cable with that it doesn't have any memory cable issues and very little cable noise. 
 
Accessories:
 
9 Pairs of eartips (3 Pairs Red and Black) 1PS/1PM/1PL which are similar to the Havi B3P1 eartips. 6 Pairs are black 2PS/2PM/2PL. 
 
A Small Carrying Case with a rubber stopper on the bottom (Similar to a Pelican Carry Case you would see with Westone IEMs, but a weaker and smaller version, still great though).
 
3.5mm to 6.5mm Gold Adapter 
 
Shirt Clip.
 
Fit: I used the small single flange eartips and I was good to go. Those with any type of ears will greatly appreciate the fit and comfort of these IEMs. I can wear them for hours upon hours with no discomfort. The best way to wear the Titan 1 is in a cable down style. Over the ear is slightly tricky.
 
Isolation: It's average. It works okay in noisy areas, but you will have to crank up the volume. 
 
Now here's the big part of the review.
 

Sound Quality: 

Bass: 4 Words to explain it. Quick. Impactful. Clean. Detailed. It's because of these, it never intrudes into the midrange frequency at all. Even if the bass doesn't hit hard enough for bassheads, it can still satisfy those who like punchy bass. It's definitely more powerful than the Havi B3P1. It's bass performance is around the lines of my FXT90. That's why I loved my FXT90 for a long time. It works pretty well with any Electronic Music like Dubstep, Trance, Hard Dance and some of the faster sub genres such as Japanese Hardcore and Hardcore. I listened to Out The Speakers (Feat. Rich Kidz) by A-trak, Milo and Otis (MP3-320 kbps)(Sub Genre: Trap) and you can hear the pulsing bass without interfering the midrange. It's powerful, yet controlled. You can hear the bass fluctuating from deep sub bass to just below mid bass quite clearly. 
 
Midrange: This part of the frequency is what give these IEMs life. The midrange frequency is quite detailed. The level of detail sometimes dwarfs my B3P1 in comparison. The female and male vocals are quite surreal at times, although it depends on the audio quality and type you are listening to. I listened to Yesterday (Extended Mix) by DJ THT (MP3 320 kbps)(Sub Genre: Hard Trance) and if you close your eyes, it sounds like she's saying "Yesterday" towards you in such a natural voice at the front and middle of the stage. Even tracks with any form of guitar performs well through the Titan 1. I listen to a lot of Rock and Metal and I just can't get enough of the crunch from the electric guitars and amazing acoustics from the drums and cymbals. The track that fully demonstrates that is Angel Halo by Rio Hamamoto (MP3 320 kbps)(Genre: Rock). There's no upper midrange sibilance to speak of. That's probably one the reasons why I can listen to the Titan 1 for hours.
 
Treble: This part of the frequency adds on the life. It's bright, but not sibilant. It's not laid back either. It's slightly energetic, but it's also quite detailed. I listened to Moon Trance by Linsdsey Stirling (256 kbps) (Sub Genre: Instrumental) and I was captivated by her violin performance in that track. That was all I was focused on. It was accurately rendered and I found myself playing that track over and over again 5 times. Due to the energetic nature of the Titan 1, the airiness of the treble was not lacking at all. 
 
BTW, which brings me to the Soundstage.
 
Soundstage: This part of the Titan 1 is amazing. It's quite large, but not as large as the Havi B3P1 (10% smaller, not a big deal). It doesn't matter anyway, I'm quite content with the width and depth. The depth of the soundstage is definitely deeper than the B3P1. 
 
Imaging/Separation: I'm impressed with the imaging. The Titan 1 is vivid. Pretty similar to the Havi B3P1. Maybe exactly the same, but the detail rendering of the Titan 1 gives it the edge and outpaces the B3P1 by a small margin. I listened to (Don't Fear) The Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult (MP3 320 kbps) and demonstrates the imaging quite well. Now as for the separation, it's also quite similar, despite the Titan 1 having a slightly smaller soundstage. Even though the Titan 1 has a smaller soundstage, the separation is definitely better though. I can hear more spacing between the vocals and instruments. 
 
Last part of the review.
 
Sensitivity: The Titan 1 is very easy to drive. I matched it with my Xuelin IHIFI 770C and it didn't require any amping. Every volume notch I turn it up to, it gets steadily louder. I find myself having the volume at 22-26/70 on my Xuelin IHIFI 770C. I even matched it with my not-as-powerful Elephone P3000s Smartphone and I still didn't have to put it up to maximum volume. 
 

Conclusion:

The Titan 1 not only demonstrates high build quality, but it also demonstrates high sound quality. For those of you that are looking for a balanced set of IEM. That has excellent build quality, above average accessories and great fit. Along with a great soundstage and with excellent imaging and separation that's easy to drive. Plus if you don't mind the average isolation for under $130, then look no further than the Titan 1. 
 
Overall Score: 93/100

Before I start my review I would like to Thank DUNU for providing me with a review sample.  Also, I would like to mention that you can still get Titan 1 at remarkable $115 from Penonaudio: http://penonaudio.com/DUNU-TITAN1
 
Nowadays not too many headphone manufacturers are willing to take risk thinking outside the box.  I guess when it comes to headphones, it's not an easy task to re-invent the wheel and still make it sound good, so it's more typical to see a traditional earpiece shell design (bullet/cylindrical shape or some modified "bean" shape) with a single or multi driver config using dynamic or BA or hybrid combination of both drivers.  But if "UNique" is a part of your brand name and design philosophy, you can expect some very pleasant surprises just like I found with my previously reviewed hybrid driver ALPHA earbuds or this new dynamic driver TITAN 1 hybrid-housing (semi-earbud shell with an angled nozzle) earphones from DUNU.  As a matter of fact, I don’t even recall auditioning another single dynamic driver IEM which in a blind test could be mistaken for a hybrid 3-way in-ear monitor.  The second I took Titan 1 out of the box and put them in my ears - I was blown away by a performance of this 13mm single dynamic driver IEM with a titanium coated diaphragm.  Here is what I found.
 
Though I already have been spoiled with unboxing experience of DUNU Alpha earbuds and have seen premium packaging of other DN hybrid models, I was still very excited with Titan 1 box in front of me.  From a high res cover image to a detailed description of the design elements and the list of included accessories, you can see how much pride DUNU takes in their product.  Flipping the magnetic cover of the box open reveals more detailed info about these headphones and a display setting with earpieces, the case, and some of the eartips.  With DUNU, no matter if it's their $50 or $300 model, you can always expect a premium packaging and a very generous selection of accessories.
 
Unboxing pictures.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Looking closer at the included accessories, you will find a total of 9 eartip pairs in three groups with Sony look-a-like hybrids (S/M/L), narrow bore red-core hybrids (S/M/L), and wider bore silicone tips (S/M/L).  You also get 1/4 adapter and a shirt clip which comes handy since Titan's cable has some noticeable microphonics.  Also, included is a very cool hard shell storage case.  With so many manufacturers using generic storage pouches or zipper cases, this one is a rather unique slim hard shell plastic case with a non-slip rubber padding on the bottom and a layer of interior rubber lining.
 
Accessory pictures.
 

 

 

 

 
Moving on to a design, you will see a few common elements carried over across different premium DUNU models.  Starting with a headphone connector, you have a gold plated right angle plug in alloy housing with a rather long and durable strain relief.  From there you have a fine braided cloth sheathing cable going up to a common side of y-splitter where it also has a nice strain relief at the joint.  As an attached bonus, you will find DUNU's signature rubber cable wrapper which comes handy in cable management when you ready to store your headphones.   Y-splitter has a form of a slim alloy cylinder with a matching retractable chin slider.  Cables going up to earpieces have a soft rubber shielding and a decent strain relief at the joint of the housing.  As I mentioned before, there is noticeable microphonics contributed by this cable which you can mitigate by using a shirt clip.
 
Shells itself look like a piece of art.  They have all premium quality metal alloy body and a color-coded accent ring (red for the right side), though there is also metal etching with L/R marking.  Looking from the back you can mistake it for a typical earbud design, but once you flip it to the other side - you will see a short angled nozzle.  For me it was a perfect arrangement since I have a rather wide and shallow ear canal opening and inner-ear which can't accept earbuds.  Here, with a selection of red-core large hybrid tips, I was able to get a perfect seal which yielded an excellent bass quantity!  Furthermore, on the inner side of the earbud disc you have a total of 11 air vents which contribute to an amazing soundstage at a price of a very noticeable sound leakage to the point where Titans sound like semi-open IEMs.  In my opinion, it's a small price to pay for such a great sound performance.
 
Overall fitment was excellent, very comfortable, and hardly even noticeable due to a rather lightweight metal housing.  Shells were not sticking out of my ears by too much, and headphones were sitting comfortably flush, to the point where I was able to lie down with my ear facing the pillow without being pocked.  Of course, YMMV since we all have different inner-ear anatomy.
 
Design detail pictures.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
I started this review with a bold statement that in a blind test you can mistake Titans for a hybrid driver IEM.  Typically it's not an easy task to achieve a wide dynamic tuning with a decent bass performance and detailed presentation of high frequencies utilizing a single dynamic driver.  Thus you either have to look for ultra wide bandwidth drivers, like those found in DITA Answer, or settle for a partitioned hybrid design with a mix of dynamic and BA drivers.  In case of Titan 1, DUNU was able to tweak a tuning of their single titanium driver, creating what appears to my ears as a v-shaped cut in lower mids separating bass and upper mids/treble to achieve such “hybrid” separation.
 
From what I’m hearing, I found the sound of DUNU Titan 1 to have a smooth bright detailed tuning (approaching analytical level) with a noticeable bass emphasis, definitely north of neutral.  The lows and highs balance each other quite nicely, and you have a decent separation of instruments and vocals with an impressive imaging/position.  Also as I mentioned before, soundstage is wide and airy and feels like a performance from semi-open headphones.
 
In more details, bass has a nice extension with a rather polite level of sub-bass rumble (comes out to play more only when called upon) and a fast mid-bass punch.    Bass is well controlled, no sign of spillage into lower mids.  Mids are very clean and detailed, but not peaky or harsh.  They do sound a bit thin due to a leaner lower mids, but overall tonality is quite organic which shows itself extremely well in presentation of vocals.  Treble is bright and crisp, but not too bright or harsh, more on a smooth side.  Obviously, not even a sign of sibilance.
 
I know, some might ask, can it stack up to "real" hybrids?  It definitely leaves my recently reviewed TTPOD T2 in the dust where Titan has a better extension of lower end, a much better retrieval of details in upper mids/treble, and wider soundstage.  I also enjoyed it more than Altone 200, where Altone has a deeper bass impact and its higher frequencies are much brighter and harsher in comparison to Titan.  It also has an advantage over some other dual hybrids like AX-35 and DGS100 where those had either too much bass bloat with not so clear low end or more veiled upper mids.  In comparison to A83, Titan took a step back where it wasn't able to keep up with Fidue's deeper sub-bass, fuller body more natural mids, and slightly improved soundstage, though you have to keep in mind A83 is almost 3x the price of Titans.
 
In conclusion, I was very impressed with a performance and a design of DUNU Titan 1 headphones.  Everything from a durable build quality to the amount of included accessories, from a premium packaging to a rather innovative shell design, and a single titanium driver tuning resulting in a sound signature with a balance of smooth analytical highs and clear lows – demonstrated a true thinking outside the box.  The only downside remark I have for Titans was a poor sound isolation with nearly semi-open sound leakage which resulted in my wife kicking me off the couch because these headphones were "super loud" lol!!!  Also, its hybrid shell design combining earbud and angled nozzle might not be everyone’s cup of tea if you require a deeper in-ear insertion.  But if those limitations are not of you concern, DUNU Titan 1 is one fine in-ear headphones to consider!

Most about these IEMs is already said in many reviews already out there so keeping it short. SQ is brilliant. Sounded clearly a notch better than Shure SE215 to me. Could easily be the best sub 100$ IEMs out there in terms of sheer sound quality. Lacks in isolation department. Knocking off the half star just because, at asking the price, the design could have been better from durability perspective.

I try to keep my reviews simple and understandable so I don't go into a large amount of detail with each part. There are others here that do an excellent job at very in depth and detailed reviews. I'll leave that to them.
 
It's been a while since I have been involved in this hobby but occasionally I log into the site to check things out and message some people. Due to this, I haven't had any experience with Dunu before. I have only briefly heard of them when browsing the site. I logged in recently and had a message from Dunu offering me a chance to listen to the Titan 1. I'd like to start by thanking Vivan and Dunu for contacting me and giving me a chance to hear the Titan 1. I received the Titan 1 on January 19th and I have been listening to it as often as time allows. I've gotten acquainted with how it sounds with all the genres I listen to and I feel pretty comfortable with my overall thoughts on the Titan 1.
 
Looks are first though. They give you the initial impression of what to expect. When I received my Titan 1 box it made me feel confident about how the Titan 1 will sound. The Titan 1 is well packaged, looks nice, and was easy to open. There are many assorted eartips which made is easy for me to find the right fit. There's a nice and slim little carrying case to help you bring them around. These IEMS are actually quite small for their design. They are much smaller than I expected.
 
Now, onto the sound:
 
First impressions - Initially I said that these have great clarity and a good sense of space. I also mentioned that these have bass that's a little on the lean side. I still agree with this today. They have a bit of a V shape but I feel like some of this is attributed to the overall distance and sense of space you get with the Titan 1.
 
What makes the Titan 1 good?
 
The Titan 1 is a very good IEM. There are some things that it does very well and would make someone want to buy it. First, the Titan 1 has a spacious sound with excellent instrument separation. I love listening to classical, OST's, jazz, and other similar genres with it. It has a big and wide sound which makes it great for pinpointing instruments, making things appear like they're coming from different places, and dealing with layered music where there are multiple vocal tracks, background vocals, or other things. Next, it has excellent clarity. The Titan 1 has slightly boosted treble and light mid bass. This, combined with the spacious sound allows for excellent overall clarity. While the Titan 1's midbass is not terribly impressive I find it to be very good for listening to bass lines, especially in lower-sub bass levels. I highly recommend this to people who love orchestral music, jazz, movies, clarity, and a wide soundstage. I found these a dream when listening to certain music genres as mentioned previously. You want details? You want separation? You want great lower bass? It's all here for you.
 
What are some things that might turn you off from the Titan 1?
 
As mentioned above, while the Titan 1 has great clarity, spacing, and lower bass I personally find that the mids leave a little to be desired. I would say mids are the main weak point of the Titan 1. There is nothing especially wrong with the mids of the Titan 1, but with the IEM's presentation it is not well suited to certain genres and music. One thing I always value in an IEM is the mids, specifically vocals. I love listening to really vocal oriented music sometimes. When I listen to that kind of music I would not pick the Titan 1. The presentation is too laid back for me. If you want that intimate feeling of a singer singing to you then this is not for you. While some IEMS put you on stage or in a small room with the music, the Titan 1 does not. It's more like an auditorium, comparatively speaking. Everything sounds a bit distant and this has the most impact on vocals. There are a couple more notable things - like the design. You can potentially wear these over the ear but it will depend on the person and personal fit. These are designed to be worn cable down. I prefer over the ear myself. The last thing I want to mention is sound leakage. Some people have apparently reported this. I can see how it may be an issue but I think it's "something to think about, not something to worry about" if that makes sense to you. If you are in a crowded library during mid terms and you like to listen to your music really loud then maybe you need to consider it. Otherwise I don't think this is an issue.
 
If I could change one thing..
 
I would change the vocals and make them a little more intimate sounding. Is this possible? I don't know. But if it were possible, that's what I would do.
 
Final thoughts:
 
The Titan 1 is a very respectable IEM. Dunu did a great job on this one. The price seems good for what you're getting. People who value clarity and soundstage should definitely look into buying a pair of these. They are excellent at what they do and come at a great price. I would recommend these most to people who primarily listen to instrumentally oriented music such as OST's, classical, jazz, and progressive rock (think Opeth - Damnation). For people who listen to music that requires a lot of bass impact like hip hop, dubstep, or vocal oriented/poorly recorded music then I would probably look into buying something else.
 
That being said, everyone has different preferences and I always encourage you to try something over just listening to another person's opinion.

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Intro:-
 
  This is my first earphone from DUNU-topsound, one of the most talked about Chinese earphone brand with some high performing earphones like DN-1000 and Dn-2000 decided to up the ante with the Titan-1, their dynamic driver flagship, It’s been quite a Few months since its inception and is received with high praise from most of our fellow head-fier, Priced sensibly to go head to head with similarly priced Flagship dynamic drivers from other manufacturers, price ranges from $120 - $180(130 euro). It’s loaded with 13mm Nano class T-diaphragm to produce the best sound possible. And full metal design means no problems with built.
 
  It was supped to face tough competition from segment leaders like RE-400, Brainwavz R3 and GR-07 and maybe from IM-70, But let me clear some dust here, IM-70 is incompetent here, so do is VSD-5, I am not going to bother with the IM-70, but I will compare it with VSD-5, RE-400, and R3, and even if I don’t have a GR-07, I have AN-16 (you know what it is right?, if no, keep calm, I will explain it to you) to take its place.
 
 This time around, I am gonna leave these comparisons towards the end with a dedicated segment, still I can’t stop myself from comparing at times. Do I love comparing?
 Shell we go? Oh, How can I forget, I would like to thank DUNU and Vivian for giving me a chance to review this earphone, and let me tell you, I will be hard on it, and the biggest threat is GR-07, AN-1 in my case.
 
 About me, I like balance, no problem with V-shaped sound till its got enough details, a bigger stage and good layering will do wonders. And not much bothered about bass till it is fast, but prefer more sub bass, I will forgive everything if its got pace and mids and highs are taken care of. I love spark with my highs, I won’t kill for spark but spark is what makes a phone feel alive, too much will kill the
cat





and too less will kill the cat too (I know I am not making much sense), don’t like to play around EQs but I have mine applied.

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Accessories ergonomics and Miscellaneous:-
 
  DUNU has been really generous when it comes to accessories, DN-1000 comes with huge no of tips, 2 pairs of comply tips, spacers and a bigger carry case. Titian-1 comes with 9 pairs of tips. Three of each type,
Sony





hybrid styled (small bore), red core type (medium bore), and black wide bore tips. I wonder if I am asking for too much as this much tips is plenty but guess what, I would have liked a pair of comply tip out of the box, and maybe a bi-flange pair? Really, am I asking for too much?
 
  It comes with a nice hard case but is slightly on the smaller side, it helps with portability but a bit small for the earphone to be comfortable, my personal opinion obviously.
 
  And what I really missed in the box is a cable clip, I like those clips. It keeps the wire in its place, keeps it from getting caught up with other things too.
 
  What I have no complains about is ergonomics, nothing to complain about fitment, no complains what so ever, only niggle I can think of is, it’s on the heavier side and as its shallow with fitting with a half in-ear desing, there is an outside chance of the earpieces falling out of ears. 90 degree gold plated plug means I am a happy man. Cable is really nice, it’s like RE-400, but better, stronger and Microphonics is kept to low level, so that one can enjoy the music without worrying about that annoying noise, comes with a nice chin or cable slider too, and about stress relievers, its fine and the jack end, and okay at the earpiece end, its good enough and nothing to worry about.
  No need to find L/R marking, Look for the ring, Red is right and Blue is left, or to make things easier, you cant wear them in the wrong ear.
 
 And you can wear this over you’re your ears too!! What else you want?
 Sadly isolation is not good, there are vents on the inner side that leak and lets noise in.
 That’s it. We are going into the main business end, Sound quality!!
 
 
 

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Sound Quality:-
 
  Let me start by confirming that Titan-1 has been burnt in for more than 180 hours. I use my J3 as the primary source, and Zenfone 2 or Redmi 1s at times, both have impressive control and SQ. And I would like to confirm that Titan-1 doesn’t need an amplifier to perform to the mark, you can use your mobile device to drive it. But amplifying doesn’t hurt either. You can use your fiio amp to boost some bass if you want.
 
  These have a on your face kind of details, not as much as ER-4p or Doppios as they make you eat even when you don’t want to. Sound signature is V-shaped, and more enjoyable than say RE-400 and R3. Has superb micro detailing, and every region does its thing nicely. Wont call its smooth but cohesive will be the right word. Everything holds its own place and that makes it a smooth operator. Extension at both ends is impressive and sonic ability too is really nice, can sound metallic at times.
 
  Unlike other, I don’t like to refer to tracks in specific but I compile a few tracks, some of the constant ones are James blunt – 1973(my fav track), will.I.am –freshly (for bass), Adele - set fire to the rain, Paul lindford and Chris vrenna – most wanted mash up, Plan-B – playing with fire, Tinie Tempah- wonderman feat Ellie Goulding and George Barnett- super hero in a ball. Recently added John newman Calvin Harris – blame.
  So lets start with Bass:-
  We should thank Brooko as he did some measuring for us, and found out that it can do as low as 15 hertz, but sadly audible for the machine, for us it was close to 25 I think. Not sure, but for me, bass on these is enough, sadly midbass is more prominent, it would have been nice if sub bass had kept up with mid bass, it’s not bad but not as prominent and its presence is dwarfed in front of mid bass, moves enough air but slam is smaller when compared to S5. Texture and details is intact, another good thing is decay, its fast, and I love its pace, which R3 and S5 were slower at, even if it has missed on some sub bass, and have more mid bass, faster decay has solved most of the things.  First thing is no bleeding or anything what so ever. Thankfully, mid frequencies too are nicely merged with the bass region. Even with raised bas region, resolving details with its precision and finishing ability is enough to say that its bass is done right.
  Let’s move on to Mids:-
  As we already know it has a V shaped signature and mids are left in the valley, but does it have Details!! Not slammed on your face like doppios or T2 but man!! It’s got better detailing here, even when in the valley, its detailing and precision is enough to win my appreciation. I love its clarity and thanks to the stage it’s easy to pick instruments and their placement. Best thing is that listing to female vocals specially Adele, Jessie j and Ellie Goulding is a pleasure. Thanks to its more energetic upper mid range.
 
  Notes are thick, and are kind of dark still warm at the lower region, makes male vocals ( when compared with female) slightly slower and poised at times, which is a good thing as male vocal needs some thickness and energy, if not as excellent and cohesive as female vocals, it’s still is really good.. Another good thing is texture, and finish is good. Best thing is, it can patch up some harshness of guitars and make them sound composed and intact even when the track has some distortion. There are no audible dips which results in smoother transaction from lower to upper mid.
  Overall mids got good body, awesome clarity and details. Notes have impressive depth transparency and separation. Timber is good too, can’t ask for much.
 
  It has bigger stage when compared to other IEMs but its shape is slightly odd with nice depth but its gets narrower with distance, like a cone, impressive never the less. With placement and layering, imaging is impressive too.
   The Highs:-
  Where is spark, spark kahan hai!! Haan hai hai, thand pai gi sadey nu. Look at this Spark!! I was dying for this I think, look at its sharpness details layering positioning and clarity, it’s like a katana, cutting through without any blood on itself. Nicely moves on from mids to highs, with increase in energy and sharpness.
  Listen to that cymbal, that’s what I call a crashing with serious body and precision, but when you up the volume, it can hurt, will irritate and annoy, but no sibilance to be precise. Lower treble is slightly emphasized but are not splashy or anything but give more energy to cymbals and other instruments.
  It has impressive resolution to be precise.
 
   
 
   

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 NOW, comparisons:-
 
First one up is R3:- More balanced and smoother, no emphasis on any part of the spectrum, don’t have that mid bass bump or lack of sub bass, but loses with decay, slightly slower, lack some clarity, body and micro detailing of Titan-1. Has better cable and isolation, sounds dull in comparison. Titan-1 is more reveling and has better transparency, has impressive highs with sharpness. Vocals on R3 is more even for both gender, it’s neutral and doesn’t have thicker lower mids.
 When it comes to staging R3 is more even, depth is good with better width, titan-1 has even better depth but width gets narrower.
 
 Over all I will give it to the Titan-1 but R3 is equally impressive with its balance.
 
 RE-400:- Similar to R3 but has better bass control and precision, decay is impressive when it comes to bass. Lower Mids on RE-400 have some veiling, highs are good with good extension but Titan manages to make a better impression with better energy, precision and similar extension. Sadly RE-400 lacks some low end extension, sonic ability is similar but I will have to give it to RE-400 as it edges ahead. Titan-1 wins with micro detailing. Re-400 is smoother overall where Titan-1 has impressive highs.
 Stage of RE-400 has good depth but width is narrow and even overall. I don’t need to tell you that Titan-1 has more depth.
 
 I give it to Titan-1. Unless you want some serious balance.
 
AN-16:- Has better sub bass and more extension, doesn’t have that big mid bass bolt, decay is slightly faster. Mids have similar body and are more forward, which makes it more balanced, timber is impressive and don’t sound metallic like Titan-1. Notes are thick but not as deep, similar layering and precision, resolving details is slightly better with mids, sounds more vivid. Where AN-16 loses is at highs. It lacks that much of energy, but enough to keep me seated. Stage has far lesser depth but is wider hence sounds flat.
 
I am confused, can’t pick one, I think one should have both, pick as per your mood. Sadly one can’t have AN-16 anymore.
 
VSD-5:- this one is interesting, V-shaped but not as much as Titan-1. VSD5 lack much details and transparency with the mids but it’s got better bass and depth, impressive sound signature, really cohesive, most cohesive one of this lot. Stage is slightly lacking with depth but its imaging is really impressive. If VSD5 had some more micro detailing, transparency and reveling abilities, I would have picked it over Titan-1.
But for now, Titan-1 wins with a big margin.
 

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Let’s conclude our proceedings:-
 
 Titan-1 is an impressive earphone and ready to take on heavy weights of its price range, dealing in home runs or say sixes and fours only. The best part was its sparky highs. Ability to have composer even with bad tracks is appreciable. Its micro detailing, transparency, reveling ability and imaging with stage is outstanding.
 It’s not exactly Balanced, but will please the crowd with its impressive clarity and signature. And for me Titan-1 will be slotted just below doppios along with AN-16, only because of its slightly V-shaped signature. Address that and it will stand shoulder to shoulder with even more expensive earphones, earphones 2-3 times of its price.
 This much is good much I think.
That’s it from me guys, Have a good day. Enjoy!! And thanks for reading.
 

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 Cheers!!

Preamble:

Before I start with my actual review, I want to give out a big thank DUNU-Topsound for providing me with a sample of the Titan 1 in-ears (http://www.dunu-topsound.com/TITAN1.html) in exchange for my honest opinion and evaluation.

Founded in February 1994 originally as an OEM manufacturer, the Chinese company DUNU has developed in the past few years and launched many in audiophile circles highly appreciated IEMs, whereof the Titan 1, an in-ear with semi-open design that reminds me more or less of an “earbud with a nozzle”, was one of their most appreciated and discussed in-ears in the last time.
This review on the Titan 1 IEMs of the company DUNU that is well known for their titanium-coated drivers is the “upbeat” of a following comparison with the new models Titan 3 and Titan 5.


Technical Specifications:

Price: ~$115
Driver type: dynamic, 13 mm, titanium-coated
Frequency response: 20 H – 20 kHz
Sensitivity: 90 dB (+/- 2 dB)
Impedance: 16 Ohms
Cable length: 1.2 m


Delivery Content:

Typically for DUNU, the Titan 1’s delivery content is quite good, although not as impressive as with their more expensive models.

The packaging is valuable, sturdy and designed with the typical DUNU-style. The front shows a large picture of the in-ears, the back gives information about the delivery content with corresponding little pictures and more information about the in-ears. The left side features the technical specifications in various languages; the right has got a strap for opening the magnetic lid and features the words that DUNU stands for: “Delicate Unique & Utmost”.
On the inside, the left side of the upper side’s lid describes the assets of the titanium coating, gives information about the metal bodies and shows the effects of the titanium layer in a frequency chart. On the right side, there is an introduction of a musician called Max Barsky as well as a small plastic screen with the in-ears behind.
With the help of another strap, this side can be opened up as well and reveals the in-ears as well as a warranty card, a really nice carrying case (more about that later on), a cable clip, a 6.35 to 3.5 mm adapter as well as three different styles of silicone tips in three different sizes (among are the pre-installed Sony-like hybrid silicone tips, hybrid silicone tips with red stem as well as flat wide-bore silicone tips). Therefore, the consumer can chose his preferred style of tips that also have a slight impact on the overall sound signature.
 

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Aesthetics, Build Quality:

The silver in-ear bodies are made of stainless steel, feature a premium build quality, have got classical “L” plus “R” side markers as well as DUNU logos and letterings. As a very convenient feature, both sides have got circular, coloured rings in the centre for very easy side identification.
Apart from the sound outlet holes in the nozzle, I count at total 12 other perforated holes in the metal housings which make the Titan 1 somehow a mixture of in-ears and earbuds.

The L-shaped 3.5 mm connector which contains the serial number as well as the y-split with the “DUNU” and “Titan 1” lettering and the chin-slider are made of the same silver metal.
The very flexible cable is cloth-coated below the y-split, which on one hand feels great, looks great and reduces microphonics, but on the other may fray over time and lose the great looks. The cable for sure features DUNU’s patented cable management tool which I really got used to over time on the DN-2000J, wherefore I also like it on the Titan 1, although I’d like if it was removable for sportive activities when the source device is in no pocket (just like Fidue’s more or less similar tool which is removable), but that’s just my minor preference and no negative point in the evaluation.

With a firm press on the button of the nice carrying case, the lid snaps open. The bottom on the outside has got a rubber mat that is skid-proof on most surfaces. The lower half of the case’s inside is bolstered with rubber, but the upper is unfortunately not and has only got a hard plastic surface.
 

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Comfort, Isolation:

The semi-openly designed in-ears are best worn like earbuds with the cables straight down, which works out quite nice, however people with very small auricles may have fit issues, which is definitely no problem for me who has quite large conchas, wherefore the in-ears sit very comfy in my ears. Once the chin-slider is moved up, microphonics are lowered and not too present.
Wearing the Titan 1 true-sided with the cables over the ears is possible in my case and without many comfort issues, but “doesn’t feel right”, wherefore I recommend inserting the IEMs like you would for wearing them with the cables straight down, but after that you guide the cables over the ears, which is easily possible due to the low y-split and reduces microphonics even more.

As the in-ears follow a semi-open design, isolation is pretty low, although still audibly better than with earbuds or most full-sized open-back headphones and not as bad as I thought after having read some impressions.


Sound:

Although I don’t believe much (if at all) in burn-in of in-ears, I have fully burnt the Titan 1 in before listening, just as it is recommended for them.
My main source devices were the iBasso DX80 and DX90 as well as sometimes the iPhone 4 (which is jailbroken and tweaked for a better music experience) and LH Labs Geek Out IEM 100. Music material was mainly stored as FLAC and WAV files, but I also used some 320 kBps cbr MP3 files.

The following sound impressions were written down based on listening with the red-core hybrid tips, as they subjectively offered the best sound quality for me.

Tonality:

The Titan 1’s general tonality can be described as having a bassy character with a mildly v-shaped tendency.
The lows are very even without real roll-off down to 25 Hz and extend from the low registers of the sub-bass up to the middle fundamental tone area. The emphasis is quite present with about +6 dB compared to more neutral in-ears (like the Etymotic ER-4S), though lows don’t appear bloated which is also because of the quick and arid bass impact (more about that further below). The mids appear a bit less present and also have got some emphasis in the upper mids/lower highs, wherefore voices are a shade on the brighter side, just as with the Fidue A73, which I personally like better than overly dark mids (and for those who are wondering, the Titan 1’s mids are not really obviously too bright, but just brighter that you may actually be used to and only with the Sony-Style Hybrid tips, but become – at least in my ears – tonally correct with the red-core tips).
At 7.5 kHz, there is a moderate peak in my ears, which is, along with the slightly relaxed middle treble, most likely the main reason why the Titan 1 is often perceived as mildly v-shaped.
There is nothing to criticise about the upper treble extension above 10 kHz, as it is pretty good and there is a nice amount of subtle super-treble sparkle.

Tuning Options:

Just as with most of DUNU’s in-ears, the Titan 1 comes with a good selection of ear-tips that shape the sound more or less obviously.
The black Sony-style hybrid tips have got minimally brighter upper mids that are quite identical to the Fidue A73. The red-core hybrid tips make the mids appear more correct in my ears and sound overall a shade darker; the black wide-bore tips subjectively lower the mids and treble even more, wherefore the whole sound appears bassier.
By the way, the middle and upper treble sound a bit artificial and unnatural in my ears when I use the Sony-style tips, but that problem gets solved with the red-core tips which also seem to add a little resolution to the highs.

Resolution:

The resolution is on a very good level and among the best of dynamic driver in-ears in the price range of around $100+. The Titan 1 sounds very clear, clean, vivid and lively, but there is one thing that perishes a bit, namely the mids: they are not really recessed, but their resolution lacks a bid behind the lows’ and highs’ resolution, wherefore voices sound a little shallow (it is a bit like with the Logitech UE900: the mids’ resolution is really not bad at all, but the bass and treble are better in this regard, wherefore the mids appear a bit excluded in comparison).
Treble is sparkly and detailed with good air and differentiation, just as the quick, textured and responsive bass that somehow gives a teaser of how the DN-2000J’s lows sound (although the Titan 1 surely does not reach its light-footedness, details and texture and sometimes appears a tiny bit blunt in comparison, but does a really great job). The bass department is very arid and fast for a dynamic driver, with an excellent bass speed and transient speed in general.

Spatial Presentation:

Just as I have expected, the soundstage is really widely extending to the sides, with a remarkable depth, as well as layering and an easy-going character.
Regarding size, the Titan 1 is quite similar to the Brainwavz R1 or UERM, though with a bit less width, but with the same sheer limitless seeming depth.
Layering is very well done with good spatial separation for dynamic in-ears, and musicians as well as sound elements are placed pretty well in the imaginary room. What I like the most about that imaginary soundstage is, as just said twice, the quite inexistent seeming borders to all sides.

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In a short comparison with:

Brainwavz M3:
The M3 is in my opinion currently the best dynamic driver in-ear in Brainwavz’ product portfolio and among my personally favoured dynamic in-ears around 100€ (and above). It has got a fairly balanced signature with a good spatial presentation, especially regarding layering, although there could be some more width, but this IEM sounds extremely natural for its price.
The Titan 1 is among the best in-ears around $100 as well, though it does not necessarily outclass the M3, but is rather a very good alternative with a different flavour and a better build quality. In some areas the Titan 1 better than the M3, but also a tad inferior in others. The M3 is the more balanced IEM out of the two and probably a shade more natural and authentic as well. The Titan 1 resembles a more “modern”, mildly v-shaped sound signature and may be really wowing at first listen, but once the new toy syndrome has ebbed away a bit, a more objective comparison is possible and the technical differences appear closer than they seemed to be before. All in all, the area where the M3 shines in comparison is the midrange resolution which is probably the IEM’s greatest strength and reminds me of a Balanced Armature’s detail retrieval and speech intelligibility. Other than that, the treble detail is pretty close on both in-ears, although the Titan 1 might be a tad better by the thickness of a razor blade. In the bass department, the DUNU is the overall winner with the more even extension and the overall quicker impact, better control as well as speed and seizable texture.
When it comes to the soundstage, the M3 is definitely no slob at all and has got a remarkable spatial depth with smooth layering, but the Titan 1 is even a bit better – its soundstage is very widely extending in all directions, with a better width than the M3’s and a borderless extension to all sides. Instrument separation and –placement is a bit better as well and so the Titan 1 is overall the slight winner with a more organic yet at the same time responsive and quick low-range.
And therefore the Titan 1 is one of the better in-ears in the price range around $100, with a good spatial and open presentation, yet it is also not perfect, though it comes close to that status in some areas.


Conclusion:

The Titan 1 feel very nice and are really well built and definitely among the better models in their price range, although they also do not outclass other in-ears. What you get though are very spacious and roomy sounding in-ears with a modern and well-made street sound without any harshness or annoying dips – the sometimes described over-present treble is definitely nothing I hear, although the mids are rather on the brighter side.
The Titan 1 does many things right for the price, but there are some things as well that make me rate it with “only” 4.5 instead of 5 stars: one thing is the midrange resolution that is a bit lower than in the other areas. The bass is very responsive and quick for a dynamic driver and has got a nice body while maintaining a good slam and speed, but it also sounds a tiny bit blunt at times, which is the second little drawback. The third is the cable’s nylon coating which feels and looks really nice, but will fray over time (there are already some small signs of it).
The Titan 1 is a technically and sonically great in-ear in its price range with a valuable build quality and a nicely extending soundstage with loads of air and quite precise instrument placement plus layering, but it is no “competitors’ destroyer” and has some little drawbacks which however don’t stop it from being really really nice in-ears.

All in all, I come to a distinct “thumbs up” and rating of 4.5 stars (94%) that are very close to being five – if there was no nylon coating or the mids’ resolution was a tiny bit better (compared to the treble and bass), it would have been a straight 5.

Since there are already other introductions and unboxings of the Titan 1, I will not discuss the contents of the box and go straight to my impressions. 
 
Disclaimer: I did not purchase my Titan 1 but I was sent a review unit by DUNU; the review unit arrived on the 03/02/2015 and I’ve listened to it since then. 
 
 
Build Quality & Comfort

 
 
The body is made of metal right to the nozzle which ensures rigidity unlike some earphones with plastic nozzle despite having a metal body. 
The ear piece of the Titan 1 is not exactly light but, the weight is not noticeable when worn because of the way they fit.
Despite the rather large body of the earphone, it fits very well and is quite comfortable.
 
The cable design is similar to that of the RE-400, with a plastic coating on the top half and fabric sheath from the y-splitter downwards.
However, I feel that the Titan1 executed this design far better than the RE-400, with the fabric side being more supple and less microphonic.
It also has strain reliefs in the right places (under the ear piece, under the Y splitter and above the 3.5 jack)
 
 
Con: The rubber cable tie is quite large and non-removable... It is also not the easiest to use
I would prefer some velcro strip like the one on my CT-200 which can be removed and can be rolled up easily when not used.

 
 
 
 
Sound
I will mention the aurisonics rockets as a comparison every now and then as it was my main IEM even though they are at a different price range.
The aurisonics rockets is the IEM that has made me stop buying any new IEMs since I received them.
 
Soundstage
The first thing that jumped at me was the sheer size of the sound stage of the Titan1. 
It doesn't have the same depth as the Aurisonics rockets that makes me check if the sound are actually from my speakers, but it is still very wide !
I love using this IEM when playing on my electric drum set as it provides a very realistic sound and able to recreate side panning of each pads. 
 
After playing with all the tips I noticed that I got different sound signatures from them. This could be accounted due to the difference in bore size/ fitting/ materials used. 
 
The IEM came with 3 sizes of 3 differently designed tips; (S/M/L) of red tips, hybrid black tips and plain black silicone ones.

 
The ones I used and compared are the ones that fit my ears best and are shown below 
from left to right (L\L\M) The large black ones simply don't fit at all.

 
 
 
General sound quality/signature 
The sound signature is quite balanced, although, it sounds much more "fun" than analytical.
The bass is quite impactful with a strong presence that would satisfy even bass heads. 
However, it won't creep up when not needed making the IEM suitable for most genres. 
Although it does not have as strong of a punch as to something like ATH-IM70, the presence is well defined.
Both the sub-bass and mid-bass are presented in a balanced proportion 
The mid range is lush and warm yet still very clear; both male and female vocals sound very nice.
It is also clean from bass leak which I'm sure everyone would appreciate. 
The Titan 1 is quite detailed although it is not at the level of aurisonics rockets, however, I would say the earphones are way above average at its price range. 
The treble is present at just right amount with some sparkle and is non sibilant or harsh.
I personally am not very good at pointing out what’s good in the highs but I can definitely point out when something is wrong (sibilant/ too bright/ splashy; none of which were present in Titan1)
 
Differences between tips
 
 
Red hybrid tips: These are the first tips that I tried and I had it on for about 2 weeks. These tips made the IEM sound a bit more airy and a tad brighter than the others but still with impactful bass. 
However, it’s not as warm as the other hybrid tips
 
Multicoloured hybrid tips : I quite enjoyed the Titan1 after sticking with these tips to the point that it's now my daily driver. In comparison to the red tips these gave a slight warmer tone to the mids/low mids and a notched down highs, giving it a smoother “tube-like” sound relatively speaking.
 
Plain black tips : These tips have a larger bore size in comparison to the other two which might account for the difference in sound signature that I experienced. I'm not a fan of these ones because they are a bit too warm and the bass becomes a bit too thick. After a while it becomes a bit tiring for me to listen to. This is just my own preference and others might actually prefer this sound. 
 
I alternate between the black and red tips depending on my mood
The difference in sound signature that I experienced could be accounted due to the difference in tip sizes so your mileage may vary.
 
Overall score for sound (8.5/10)
 
Isolation :
Tip-dependent. Good (7/10) at best, not great due to a vent at the back of the ear piece and shallow fit.
 
Leakage:
More than average “half in-ear design” (6/10)
 
Microphonics:
Almost absent, the cable is well designed and the way they fit almost eliminates microphonics. It is still present at a low but ignorable level when songs are playing.
(8/10)
 
With the overall practicality of this IEM ,my other headphones and IEMs have been getting almost no hours.  I’ve been using this IEM a lot more than my aurisonics rockets / CTM-CT200 simply because of the following reasons :

• They can be powered easily and sound good out of any device including smartphones
• They can be taken in/out of the ears a lot more easily
• They won’t fall out despite “imperfect tip seal” due to the design of the ear piece
• They have a fun sound signature that suits a lot of genres
• Interestingly they sound excellent with my DTX522K electric drum set, providing wide soundstage and realistic sounds

 
 
 
TLR
 
Pros:

1. Great sound quality, awesome soundstage
2. Sound signature is fun (balanced with bass boost) and would be liked by majority of people
3. Great build, comfortable
4. Great accessories
5. Easy to drive
6. Priced just right, performs better than competitors at its price range

 
Cons:

1. Low impedance – may hiss
2. Leaks substantial amount of sound
3. Hard case given is quite small; barely fits the IEM
4. Cable wrap is large and non-removable
5. Large ear piece – can’t sleep with them on

 
 
I would recommend this IEM for sure but I want to emphasise that people should try an IEM before they buy wherever possible. For the price and the package that you get however, it is unlikely that you would be disappointed by the Titan1.
 
 
Apologies for cluttered format / any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Specifications:
Driver: Titanium Diaphgram Dynamic Driver 13mm
Sensitivity: 90+- 2dB
Reproduction Frequency: 20Hz-30kHz
Cable Length: 1.2m
Plug: 3.5mm Stere Mini
Weight: 18g
Comes With:
1 x Titan 1 Earbuds
1 x Carrying bag for storage
1 x 3.5mm to 6.3mm gold adapter
1 x Gold plated 3.5mm plug and rigid alloy splitter
Paste

 I would like to give a shout out to Vivian and Dunu-Topsound team for giving me an opportunity to review these earphones. It took me a while to get these properly burned in but was definitely fun to hear them along the way. Dunu does recommend that owners of the Titan 1 burn in the earphones for roughly 200 hours. I will get into what this does for the sound later but for now I have to agree 100% on this. These actually sounded fantastic out of the box. You can certainly hear their potential and their sound signature but to really get the Titan 1 Dunu wants you to hear. You have to remember these drivers have a titanium coating that make the drivers very stiff. Perhaps only second in stiffness to the carbon nanotubes JVC uses. 
 
Dish type earphones are my forte and got me started a while ago with the MP8320 and various Audio Technicas  that use this design but these here Titan 1s to me was a complete surprise in many ways. I always thought Audio Technica's dish style earphones were always among the best in the category but these have come along to say otherwise. I applaud audio manufacturers that come out with something new. Something exciting in the much crowded field of earphone design. However design is one aspect that works only if the sound follows suit and these here earphones does just this. To me 2015 so far has been all about raising the bar. What do you get for that magic $100 plus number now a days?
 
First there was Zero Audio's DuoZA earphones with their large but light pill like housing using dual drivers that is one of the best sounds for the money hands down. Then these Titans 1 was getting some attention. I can say with certainty not only does the Titan 1 hang with the DuoZA but does a few things better. I am a fan of both these earphones as they both have raised the bar on what to expect for your money. Both have a different tuning/sound of course and there for I honestly think both are worthy of your collection.
 
So lets start the read. I would like to start with the design of the earphones and what you get in the package.

 
Out of the box the Titan 1 gets a good arrangement of earphone tips, 1/4in stereo adapter, shirt clip, nice plastic case and very nice looking metal dish type earphone.

 
The all metal housing has a very quality feel and build to them. In fact here is where the Titan 1 gets the thumbs up. The solid design of these earphones is quality. It would not surprise me one bit if these earphones lasted longer than your average earphone. The cord is a solid rubberized and while it does transmit some microphonics it is no more than average in the external noise category. For guys looking for absolute quiet, microphonics free sound these will not work for you. These are more of a semi open design than anything closed in but this is the trade off for the sound these have. These earphones are not a large earphone by any means. They are about the size of your average earbud actually without the thick foam covering. So while these certainly look nice and fit easy enough for your average ear shape, how does this design lead to a better sound?
 

 
On first listen soon after I took these pics these had a clarity and a proper stage for earphones that I immediately appreciated. Nothing bothers me more than earphones that have that in your head stage and muddiness in sound. The first thing that caught my attention was how deep the treble sounded. A little bit harsh on open listen but I had a feeling burn in would help the treble get proper. And proper it has gotten. I mentioned earlier that there are a few sound traits that I feel the Titan 1 does better and while the treble extension and detail can be debatable regarding both of these earphones. These have a sizzle and shine in the treble region that not too many earphones can do. Looking at the treble and bass enhancement of these earphones due to the titanium coating.
 

 
So what does this optimized difference do for these earphones? The raised treble and bass regions are right. However what one needs to know is that this doesn't mean harsher,sharper and a  peaky fatiguing treble with a bloated or bigger bass. The Titan 1s are described to be V shaped in sound, however after the longer extended burn in Dunu recommends, I can say it is more of a U shape in sound than a V. Treble for being "enhanced," I am finding a non fatiguing controlled treble range that clearly has some of the best depth, attack, shimmer and decay among single dynamics. I would have kept my GR07 if the treble was more like it is on the Titan 1s. 
 
One of the best way to hear micro details in the treble region is how high hats are portrayed. Flat and one note these are not.High hat rides for jazz or rock music takes on a dimension that makes it seem like you are hearing BA levels of detail for the highs. Natural reverb from the drum kit which lesser earphones just do not portray is easily heard on these earphones. So it went from a somewhat strident with potential for a true treble greatness that actually went there with the burn in. As of today I am not hearing any grain or stridency at all in the treble region.
 
Basically what the 200 hours of your time burning these earphones does is tighten the Titan 1s sound. The treble region as well as the bass while the mids actually fill out and come a bit more forward because the treble and the bass tightens and refines a bit more than on open box. I remember when I first heard the Titan 1 the center band of the mid section did seem a bit more reserved than the upper and lower regions. Today I am not hearing this reservation and this has helped out in the imagery of the earphones which is spot on by the way. One of the strong suits of these earphones how good the imagery is. Well recorded music with layers of sound that should be in a particular area of the recording are portrayed with ease on these earphones. The ability of the treble region on these earphones made me realize just how important treble is to the overall sound an earphone portrays. The treble lends to the overall clarity and tonality of the sound and while these earphones have a tonality that leans more toward neutrality another aspect that separates these earphones is the full bodied bass region. 
 
Bass to me is just as important to the overall sound while the mids portray most of what we hear in an particular tune the bass end of these earphones can be described as enhanced. But not in the way we associate, enhancement. When you guys read that these have extra bass. Does Sonys XB sound comes to mind? Bass is enhanced in the way that the treble is enhanced. The bass has tightness, speedy attack, well textured and comes warm and full bodied. Which if you think about it we got a mostly neutrally toned earphone in sound,  regarding the mids, while the treble has that shimmer and precision that adds to the clarity. The bass end has its own set of dynamics. Not only does it keep up with the rest of the sound. From memory every single titanium coated phone I have heard the bass had a HD quality to them. These are no exception. Bass that is enhanced in a recording be it for hip hop or pop music to rock  these let you know the low end was enhanced in the recording. Lesser bass enhanced earphones the bass region is always there meaning you get bloat when your music does not need that extra bass. You can tell the quality of the low end of these as music with no low end enhancement has. No low end enhancement. The ability of the bass end makes the sound of the Titan 1 versatile and has the type of bass that I would consider very solid quality. Sure there will be guys that say it is a bit much for a true neutral sound. I don't think Dunu was going for a true neutral sound from the get go. The ability of the warm agile bass lends to most types of music and stays away from other frequencies of sound.
 
So what I am hearing from the Titan 1s is something that single dynamics do not really do, a clearer distinction for the treble, the mids and the bass. 3 separate tonalities. Bell like clarity for treble, neutral spot on imagery rich, clear mid section and a full bodied warm low end with great ability.  How many single dynamics have you heard that can do this?
 
The mids of these earphones while taking a bit of a step back from the enhancement of the treble and the bass region is actually done very well. What makes or breaks a sound is how clear the mids are and the mid bands of these earphones not only have the clarity that is set throughout the overall sound but the imagery and depth of the mids are excellent. Vocals have distinct clarity in the region and while male vocals could use a bit more fullness, vocal and instruments natural reverb and depth is heard much like the treble region. Sound balance is key in stage perception and to me these have a wider stage perception and a bit if extra clarity due to the mids taking a bit of a step back from the treble and the bass. A truly balanced earphone will not get you what the Titan 1 does. If the mids were more forward in the mix here perhaps the clarity, perceived stage and imagery might suffer a bit.
 
In the end, the duoZAs are actually the better balanced earphone and actually has the larger stage to do it, requiring a larger stage to do this.  But the Titan 1s has a one of kind shimmer in the treble region that make the duoZA sound a bit reserved in comparison. A warm full bodied quality bass end and imagery that is among the best for a single dynamic easily in the price range. Do I recommend the Titan 1s? Considering these earphones have handed the CKM series of earphones from AT their collective arses in sound. Considering this is one of the best sounds for the price. Absolutely..