HEAD-DIRECT RE0 In-ear Headphones

I really wish the RE0s lived up to their promise.  They do sound really good, but they are clearly the product of cost-cutting.  I bought a pair, and within a month, one of the buds was cutting out, and soon there after failed completely.  I had them RMA'd, and within 6 months, the replacements began to fail (the adhesive that keeps the speaker part glued in to the casing is failing or has failed on both buds).  I would have paid 50% more for these headphones and been happy if they stayed in one piece, but now, I wouldn't be happy if they had cost 50% of what I paid.
 
tl;dr great headphones crippled by terrible materials and quality control.

I have rate these a half star for audio quality because they do not play sound anymore. There is a growing number of people who have experienced the terrible quality of these headphones. All of us have experienced the same: after a relatively short period one channel stops working. This is well documented in treads here on head-fi and on amazon.com that sells these headphones. As of this moment, the RE0's are rated #8 in the reviews. These phenomenal ratings reflect the fact that the RE0's sound fantastic when they work, however, this is not the full story. Buyers should BEWARE of the crap quality of these headphones.

This is the second time within a year these have developed a fault in the cables. This time it is in the mini jack connector, last time it was near the left earpiece. Needless to say I will not be returning these for a new pair that can develop another fault in the cable. This is unforgivable really. 
 
The housings are unnecessary heavy, and the supplied single flanged tips don't fit my ears well at all, the biflanges work somewhat but slips off the phones all the time.
 
The sound is pleasant, balanced and suits me fine, if I had a working pair I'd be listening to them now.
 
I don't know what to go for next time, but it will certainly never be from this crappy manufacturer.
 
 
 

First pair quit working (left channel) in six months. The replacement lasted 4 months and died a similar death. I don't go anywhere with them and they were used primarily at home and treated with care. I didn't bother any further follow-up. Sound was impressive. I liked these a lot and sorry they're rather disposable.

Average comfort, amazing value. Sound that belongs to 200$ range.

This review was written from the perspective of the average user, someone who will buy these for iPod use. I did not use an amp for this review because the average user more than likely won't have one.
 
Packaging:
Came in a hard plastic case, wasn't a fan of the yellow, but everything necessary came, including various ear tips. Not the best packaging, but it wasn't bad.
 
Comfort:
Before I had the RE0 I owned the Apple Dual Driver IEMs and various earbuds, even Skullcandy (don't ask why) and compared to them the RE0 ranked one of the worse. The first gripe is the terrible design of the IEM itself, I can't imagine anyone could have though it was a good idea to put ridges on the metal that is in direct contact with the ear. I've heard numerous complaints of irritation caused by the ridges, including myself. A friend suggested to try the double flanged tips. I tried but they were horribly flimsy and the sizes given were either too big, or too small. I generally fit in mediums, so I found this weird. I resorted to the basic tips. After fighting to get a decent seal, irritating my ear in the process, they were finally in and secure, though they were the least comfortable IEM I had ever had in, yes worse than Skullcandy.
 
Design:
The ridges make another appearance here. I want to reiterate, who thought the ridges would be a good idea? The cables were as thin and frail feeling as the Skullcandy's I had used in the past, which definitely isn't a good sign. The Apple Dual Driver IEMs cable certainly felt much sturdier.
 
Sound:
This is where the RE0 get the most praise, and I admit, they do sound pretty good. They sound was reminiscent of my Ad700, but for some reason not as fun to listen to. These are very cold sounding headphones, analytical if you will, in my opinion. I can't say I had fun listening to any genre on these, though, and I repeat, they do sound good.
 
The mids and highs were clear. There is no disputing this. For the price I think they may be the cleanest sounding IEMs in this department. The lows were very unimpressive. You could certainly hear them, but there was no feeling to them. The extension on them was non-existent. The bass was punchy, but very thin. 
 
The soundstage was pretty decent for an IEM of their price I must say, probably the best in this price bracket. No complaints here.
 
Isolation was nothing special here. I could hear my surroundings alright with no music playing. Microponics aren't  too bad compared to others.
 
Overall the headphones left me with an analytical feeling. I felt like I was dissecting each track, which made music listening very boring. These are also not good for varied genres, anything with distortion or heavy bass was unlistenable for me, the RE0 simply sucked all of the life out of them. They didn't really shine with any genre, but clean music sounded alright on them.
 
Value:
For the price these are not bad, but they are blindly recommended over much better choices. There are far more comfortable IEMs with a better build feel to them for under $100. Sadly though those IEMs MSRP for ~$100, these retailed for $250 at launch. For $79 I think they are fairly priced, but certainly don't deserve the praise they receive in my opinion.
 
Please keep in mind my ratings are in comparison to similarly priced IEMs, not $1,000 IEMs.

I got these in a parcel on the 13th after reading the reviews on Head Fi and elsewhere - (nearly all comparing them very favorably to much pricier options). The left headphone fell apart within one week of usage. Still waiting to hear back from the seller to see if I can source a new pair. So I'm back to using my Audéo PFE 112's for now... (no bad thing).
 
Bear in mind that I've only owned these for a week so far.
 
Sound Quality
The sound quality Is great for something in this price-range. This has already been said many times before so I won't go into too much depth, but the mid to high end is VERY detailed. They lack warmth and come across as very analytical IEM's quite similar to a pair of Etymotic ER-4P's, but  if possible, more detail in the mids - however, I'm no basshead but I found them overly cold/flat. I was forced to tweak the EQ.
 
After browsing head-fi I tried removing the filters and foam from within the body. This served to make them overly sharp at the high end and found that replacing the filters but leaving the foam out helped reign them in. I found using foam TX400's also helps with the bass (even though seal is inferior to the silicone caps). I believe this really helped the sound and makes them slightly warmer.
 
The sound-stage is impressive and very wide open. These are great (after modding - much much better) to listen to Classical and Jazz, even classic/proggy stuff - hammond organs really shine. Brass is awesome - I tested with:
 

• King Curtis (Live at Filmore West) - Memphis Soul Stew(ALAC)
• Charles Mingus (Let My Children Hear the Music) - Adagio ma Non Troppo (ALAC)
• Dmitri Shostakovich - String Quartet No. 15 in E-Flat Minor Op. 144 (1974) II- Serenade (Adagio) (FLAC)

 
All of the above sounded great. Crystal clear and wonderful clear separation between instruments and vocals nice fast attack. The funk was somewhat removed from King Curtis though... and similarly in other more bass heavy tracks.
 
Bass is detailed, not nearly as terrible as indicated in some of the reviews I've read it does seem lifeless - I found this depends heavily on the seal you get with which tips you choose.... I ran these through several amps. I used them on my imac through a mini 3 at home - this added a bit of warmth and helped out the bass. When on the move I found the E5 is a good (cheap) option to add a bit more drive - foam tips helped the bass here - however, I think they would benefit from a nicer amp.
 
Build/Comfort
I initially used the double flange silicon tips (which are huge) - these isolate exceptionally well, but after switching to the TX400 foam tips, I'm not going back.
 
I have to mention that these fell apart on me after 1 week. The left ear has also started to crackle in more bass heavy notes, but I blame dodgy E5 amplification for that - they were fine on my home amp.
 
Even with the quality of sound - if any headphone falls apart after a week of use I'm afraid it's a write-off. I could just be unlucky though as others don't seem to have had the same bad luck.
 
To be fair - it's just a superglue fix, but if I was out on the move and this happened, then it potentially could have ended up with the wires pulled out or worse. So far these have the worst build quality of any headphone I have ever owned - the cables have a weird memory to them (and they are kind of crappy cables at this price) - the newer version which I have has a banana shaped jack.
 
Overview
After playing with them and hearing the sound change (positively - I'm sure they got a touch warmer) after a week of  burning in and constant wear - I'm in agreement that these are a nice set of IEM's. If you get a 'good pair' and they don't fall apart on you, then great. However, I think they seem to be getting too much praise for what they offer. I'm certainly glad I didn't pay the full launch price for them.
 
I for one will be sticking with my PFE's for a while - they are far superior IEM's for very little more in price and it's preference I'm sure, but they seem to have a nicer quality and mellower bass. I'm honestly hoping for a full refund rather than a replacement set - but they'll make a nice backup pair if I get a replacement.

I was totally enamoured with these earphones - they sound incredible and I couldn't believe how inexpensive they were when compared to competitors. With this in mind, I forgave the poor microphonics (i.e. noise from the cable hitting/rubbing against things) and need for an amp. The major issue is that the apparent build quality is far better than the actual build quality and they have a very high defect rate. On average, mine have been replaced every 6 months. I have treated them carefully and have a separate pair of cheap earphones for when I'm doing things which are likely to put a strain on them (e.g. running/gym). When they're replaced it is apparent that you do not get a new pair, you get a refurbished pair. They have now refused to replace my faulty earphones as their warranty period applies from the original date of purchase. So basically, it doesn't matter if they send you defective replacements. One of my mates who bought these on my recommendation has also returned his twice. They have offered to repair for about $30, but I expect them to go wrong again therefore have declined. I would suggest that they bump up the build quality and increase the price.

You don't need another review about how good these sound. But I had two pairs, both of which lasted only a couple of months before one ear went dead. I was keeping them wrapped around my ipod in my bag but wasn't abusing them. So either I had shocking luck or these phones are a bit fragile.

There's so much said about these.
 
I was positively enamoured with my Etymotic ER4Ps. I still am.
 
But I picked up a pair of RE0s cheapish. And sold my ER4Ps because these were half the price and almost as good.
 
The RE0s are smooth, clear, fast.
 
The only knocks against them are:
 
1) the fit of the different tips. They aren't as good in isolating sound as the tri-flange on the Etys. Also, I haven't found a perfect fit with any of them. And some are a real pain to put on.
 
2) The cable is really thin and feels fragile. I can imagine they wouldn't last if they got caught on something and yanked.
 
Otherwise, price-perfomance ratio puts these way ahead of single-driver designed IEMs.

I really enjoyed the RE0 for a while, but the sound was lacking bass. This happened if  it was not driven properly out of the uDac or any other amp. Straight out of the iPod, there was something 'off' and it wasn't natural. The RE0 doesn't go particularly low.
On the other hand, the highs are excellent. So are the mids. 
For the current price, they are a must-have.

Well I searched and searched everywhere I could to find a replacement for my Shure E2c's and with a little skepticism I went with the HiFi Re0s. I couldn't wait to try them out. I didn't really believe in the burn in time for buds but to my dismay these needed a few hours to really get the full body sound. I also had to replace the rubber tips with Comply foam from my local Radio Shack for a mere $15. So total I have spent $99 on these and I am happy to say I will be looking to purchase these again when need be. I was really worried I wouldn't find what I came to really enjoy from my E2c's. The E2c's had great bass and great sound isolation. The Re0 have a more full natural sound for less money. So i rated the value high but the isolation low because of what the E2c's provided. Comfort is only 3.5 because of having to go out and purchase after market tips. They are now stellar and fit better then my E2c's did, which I thought could never happen. Audio quality is only a 4 because I know there are better buds but for more money. The design is small and compact and so far seem durable, but the only worry is the cord is your basic quality. These are very affordable even for the average listener. These come highly recommended from me but who am I?

I had the Re0 since Late Feb and I  love it! I was hunting for a bargain at first and when I received mine I was like"meh" then after 50 hours the bass starts to kick in and mids is much warmer now after 200 hrs I ditched my full can(srh840) and removed the filter, much more sharper  but that is just me. I would highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for the best item under $100 and if you dont like the original tips try the sony hybrid tips($10 at sonystyle). 

Congratulation on the success and a big THANK YOU to HiFiMan for this exceptional earphone and I do suggest a less microphonic cable and maybe offer a wider color selection (Sorry I am baked

I've searched a bit to find a few cans that work with my lifestyle.  Portability is important to me so that rules out lots of great products.  I like that the RE0 is low profile, not attracting any attention.  The RE0 may be a perfect compromise between sound quality and price.   More expensive buds may be more articulate or image spectacularly, but it would be crushing to break or loose them in my day to day roaming around. If these cans sin it is only of omission.  To my ears they are quite musical.
 
I have numerous pairs of Apple's earbuds and I keep a pair in my briefcase, my gym bag and locker, etc, but they leave me longing in two ways.  I want more out of the sound because I know it's possible and I want better isolation.  The RE0 is a bigger improvement in sound than the price might suggest.  If I have a nit to pick it's that I'd like better isolation.  Clearly that is subjective and the RE0's come with multiple ends to try.  May be some day feeling flush I will pull the trigger on a pair of customs, but until then these work very well.

"They may disappoint bass-heads, but for anyone who strives for true audio reproduction, this is the IEM for you. "
 
I'm not a bass head, but I don't hear true audio reproduction.
Yes the bass response goes down low, evident in a song like  Nick Cave Red Right Hand, where the almost sub-bass frequencies (<50Hz) are clear. But I do perceive a slight dip around 50-100Hz. So in an acoustic track the double bass can be hard to hear, in a rock track the kick drum lacks punch, the bass guitar lacks depth. It's only slight, the rest of the spectrum sounds beautiful, but the EQ down low does not sound flat to me. That's out of the box tested on iPod nano first gen, iPod 5th gen, ipod 4th gen and iPhone 4s.
 
Added note: I've started using these with the rubber tips from my Ultimate Ears and it improves the bass response slightly. I think the rubber tips on the RE0s are too hard and it's hard to get a good airtight seal. 
 

Great IEM for it's price. Produces a very detailed, transparent sound. Not for the basshead but personally I think the bass is just adequate, not too overwhelming. I just love these phones

The are SO many things the RE0 does amazing well.  Treble extension is crazy without any graininess or fatique.  Bass extension is also very low, but the bass body is probably too polite.  The bass decays too quickly to give a sense of bass warmth and body, and the bass impact is too tame. 
 
But this bass response is from the RE0 unamped.  Suprisingly, a simple little $25 Fiio E5 with it's bass boost really improves the RE0 -- even more so than my $120 iBasso T3 (no bass boost on it).  The E5 gives a slight bass boost and a very slight treble cut (to help the sense of the bass boost) -- but the treble cut does no harm at all to the awesomeness of the treble response, extension and smoothness.
 
The one thing the RE0 does lack is a sense of space around instruments.  It's not that it gets jumbled in busy music passages -- the instrument layering is just a bit 2-dimensional, a bit flat.  But that's a technical aspect that many people won't recognize nor be bothered by.  It doesn't prevent me from enjoying the RE0.

In short: I love these headphones; they are an incredible value and all head-fiers should pick a pair up. While they are not as "fun" as my Grado cans or Fischer Audio IEM's, the RE0 has a neutral sound and can easily distinguish between instruments. Cymbals and acoustic guitar sound lifelike and while the bass impact may be below average, the accuracy of the lows on the RE0 have me preferring them to the lows on my bass-centric Fischer Audio Eterna.
These are an incredible value at 79.99 and everyone should at least consider them for their next IEM purchase.

I have bought RE-0 when I was looking for some portable headphones, but didn't want anything bigger than in-ear ones. I have searched for more expensive ones when I came to RE-0. The price was 99 USD, which was less that I planned to pay. Reviews were highly positive.Since I don't travel much, for me it looked like a good value for money.
 
Overall quality is very good. Soundwise, they are very detailed, perhaps too much I can hear things I have never heard before. Take it as you wish, I mean it in good way... Some might miss that familiar boomy bass. RE-0 bass is definitely present, but very tight, precise and clear. I don't mind that "flaw" (if you want to call it this way). Acctually with most songs I prefer it.
 
Design is OK, everything you can expect from headphones price at 79 USD (as I write it).
 
Comfort - RE-0 come with plenty of tips, I would suggest clear bi-flanges.
 
Isolation is just average, sufficient in most cases, but expect some noise, especially in very noisy enviroments (transportation)
 
I was quick decision for me. For the price, I would recommend it to everyone who seeks excellent, detailed sound for a very reasonable amount of money. The only disadvantage might be that tight bass.

I really like the sound of this buds but the right channel stopped working after just one month without any reason. I think it's the same problem, others also described in the forum. I emailed Head-direct and asked hem what to do. Since I thought it was a cable break in the right ear itself, I openend it (to fix itt myself). After seeing that was not the issue I hoped they still want to take a look at it. After a good and friendly conversation by email I'm added to the replace warranty plan. Even after saying I opened them by myself (normally the warranty voids). I really appreciate the service they give. Now awaiting the replacement to write a review.