Hidizs Mermaid MS2

TLDR - Amazing for the price, they have exceptional clarity and instrument separation for the price, with enough bass for all but the most adamant bass head, and very good treble without being fatiguing. They’re quite large, so maybe not ideal for sleeping on your side with them in, but light enough to not cause problems otherwise. Consider buying better silicone tips like JVC spiral dot plus or Final Audio type E, or even better yet good foam tips like Comply 500 series (I recommend the originals with tech defender, as the nozzle is not removable for cleaning)


**This is not a sponsored review, however these were sent to me as a review unit from Hidizs

Disclaimer: I am not a paid reviewer and as of now have only received this one product as a “review sample” with no requirements other than an agreement to post a review somewhere of my choosing. No one has any input on what I say, no one sees my reviews before they’re posted, and I’m not going to pull punches on a product.


Devices/accessories used:

Hidizs AP80 (main playback device used, all files on device are in FLAK 16 bit 44.1khz unless otherwise stated)

Fiio Q5 (for streaming Spotify from an iPhone 11, connected through usb)

Stock (or equivalent) single ended 3.5mm cables unless otherwise stated

Comply foam tips used for all IEMs unless otherwise stated


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Manufacturer lister specifications -
Knowles RAD 33518-P183 Balanced Armature
10.2mm Large Dynamic Driver
Eco-Friendly Resin Body
Frequency Response 20Hz-20kHz
Sensitivity 112dB
Impedance 18ohm


Presentation and accessories -
White cardboard box with foam insert holding both IEMs, cutout foam under containing accessories and documentation
It comes with a really nice case for the price, covered in a brown leather feeling material I would assume to be PUL, and lined with a very soft velvety fabric. The lid has a mech pocket for tip and dongle storage, and it closes with a pretty solid embedded magnet.
The included cable is quite nice as well, with both silver and copper wiring. It’s your typical twisted pair from the 3.5mm plug to the splitter, with each of the pairs having another twisted pair within the clear sleeving Which run to the 2 pin ends. It has very little memory, and is soft and pliable. I haven’t had it tangle on me so far, which is impressive in itself. There are fairly aggressively curved ear hooks on the 2 pin ends, which I like a lot since many ear hooks I’ve used on IEM cables just seem to hang out too far behind my ears (and I have pretty big ears.) the plug and splitter are black with rose gold accents. The chin synch actually works great too, which is a complaint I have about more IEM cables than not. Even when hanging one side down loose, it doesn’t slack off at all.
As for eartips, they include 6 pairs total, 3 “crisp” and 3 “balanced”, all silicone. I am not a fan of them, as with most silicone tips they bother my skin, and I found the sound through them a tad underwhelming. I tried my Final Audio Type E tips, and they worked pretty well, but I still went to my Comply foam tips for the best seal and comfort (using the ones with wax guards, as these IEMs do not seem to have removable nozzles)
The IEMs themselves look quite nice as well. I received the black colorway, and the outer face has a reflective foil surface under a layer of resin that gives it a sort of diamond appearance, with the Hidizs logo and name on or near the surface. Under the face the resin is transparent, showing off the dual drivers and crossover system.


First impressions - I was fairly impressed from the moment I opened the box, especially with the included case and premium cable plug and splitter. I wish I had received the red unit, as I think it’s the best looking version of this design (I bought the MS1 in red, and they look amazing) but I’m still more than happy with these. Same as with the MS1, the 2 pin cable input is very tight, so I’d be slightly concerned about eventually breaking a pin off if you change cables out often, but I highly doubt that will be a common issue. The sound immediately had me excited to test these out with all my favourite tracks.
The highs sound crisp, the mids seem pretty full bodied, and the bass is just about right in quantity and accuracy. I can see these being my go to general use IEMs. The Chu 2 might still see use as my dedicated bass IEMs, but the more present mids in these have me questioning if it’s worth it.
One little detail that annoyed me ever so slightly is the printing on the top of the IEM. Instead of having the model name or just leaving it clean, they have Hidizs.com printed on both IEMs. Super minor gripe, but it’s a detail I wish they’d change on their lineup. (the MS1 have the same thing, and again no model name)


Comfort - Definitely on the large side, and they stick out further than I would like. Not going to work for sleeping on your side if you have small ears or otherwise can’t insert the nozzles very far into your ears. They have your typical wide bore nozzle, so some people may struggle to wear them comfortably at all, but as always that’s generally true of nearly anything that isn’t made by Etymotic or Shure with about a 3mm nozzle diameter.


Music used to test -

-Lovesong - Adele
Everything just sounds right. Adele’s voice is front and center, with the instruments making themselves known in each ear. Because of the separation of instruments in this song, you hear the vocals right in front of you even with IEMs, in a way that reminds me of listening to music mastered in 3.1/5.1 with vocals coming almost exclusively through the center channel. For how much is going on in parts of the song, everything manages to stay separated quite well with these.

-Illusion - VNV Nation
Vocals are full and the way they’re mixed comes through great. The ends of verses reverb slightly while seeming to fade from front and center to further behind where some of the instruments and synth come from (intentional with the recording, and it stands out really well here.) Positioning and space is really nice.

-The Chain - Fleetwood Mac
Vocals seem a hair quiet compared to channel specific instruments. Comparing to my Etymotic ER2xr, it’s a *very* slight vocal dip with the MS2. Bass guitar and drums that come in at about 2:08 fill the soundstage phenomenally and provide great contrast to the relatively quiet and more separated sections of the song.

-Father and Son - Cat Stevens
I keep being surprised by the separation and imaging these manage to pull off. Every instrument comes from its own location and is clear as day

-Frgt/10 - Linkin Park
This song has a very solid sub bass line that keeps up through nearly the entire song, and these keep it under control well for the most part. It seems to get a little bloated in a couple sections, but still doesn’t seem to bleed into any other frequencies

-What’s the Difference - Dr. Dre
Everything is well placed and layered, with nothing disappearing in the cluster of sounds. The “Do not miss the beat” that cuts in at about 0:58 actually caught me off guard, as it stood out in a position that nothing in the song held. It was like something suddenly coming through an intercom between the music and my brain. I’ve never heard that part stand out quite that well. Xzibit’s voice has a ton of body, and the verses with Dre and Eminem contrast each other really well.

-From the Dirt - Khiva (Streamed though Spotify high quality)
This is one of my go-to sub bass tracks, and these handle it really well. No bloat, no bass bleed, nothing.

-Ghost in the City - The Crystal Method (Streamed though Spotify high quality)
Imaging is great, the synth from about 2:28 to 3:15 comes forward a bit, without overlapping the vocals. Vocals themselves stay on top of everything, even when going wide into the areas that the instruments and synths generally sit


Highs - Very clear and crisp where they need to be, without getting too sharp. I haven’t noticed any songs that sound overly sibilant or fatiguing. I’ve fallen asleep listening to music with these and never woke up to take them off from it being too much, or from having a headache.

Mids - Solid. Good presence, and well detailed, even with heavy bass tracks. These are definitely tuned around the Harmon curve to some extent, so a bit of a dip in midrange is expected, but not to any problematic amount.

Lows - Very clean and punchy, while still pumping out reasonable sub bass. Not bass heavy, at least not to my ears, but also not flat by any means. Initially I thought I’d want to eq a bit more sub bass in for drum & bass and other electronic music, but I think it’s actually great as is. I’d be worried about muddying the mids a bit at that point.


Soundstage - It sounds like about 180 degrees wide, with a little bit of forward space, but not a ton. For IEMs I think it’s pretty solid. It even sounded like a few sounds came from slightly higher than others. Instrument separation is really good


Difficulty to drive - Easy. Very easy actually. Tested with the Fiio Q5 amp (so I could see on the analog volume dial exactly where each IEM sits) and my Etymotic ER2xr take a surprising amount more power to drive than these. The Truthear Hola are similar, and the Moondrop Chu 2 are even more demanding. You’ll have no problem running these off basically any device.


Comparisons -

-Etymotic ER2xr
Wow, I wasn’t expecting another IEM at this price point to ever compete with the Etys, but the MS2 actually outperforms them… the imaging and treble are both better with the MS2. The soundstage is very close, but the imaging and separation is SO much better. The ER2 just sound a bit more cramped and really busy sections of songs start to blend. The bass is similar in quality, but the MS2 definitely have more, which is all up to preference. I’d say the ER2 are a bit more flat, with much softer highs. If you can actually handle full insertion with the ER2 like you’re supposed to, they’re fare more comfortable overall, can give a much better seal, and end up flush with the outside of my ears so I can wear them in place of earplugs under a full face helmet.

-Moondrop Chu 2
The Chu is top dog for a well tuned budget IEM, but the Chu 2 is no slouch either. The increased bass can satisfy any bass head, but the overall detail suffers a little bit for it. They’re still by far my favourite budget IEMs, but they can’t hold up in most other areas vs the MS2. The bass is more detailed on the MS2, but for the price difference that’s not a big concern. The Chu 2 still gets a handful of wins though… There’s of course the bass head friendliness, the metal construction is much nicer in hand, and the fit is MUCH better. The Chu 2 are relatively tiny, and sit nearly flush with the outside of my ear when pressed against my pillow. The nozzle diameter is still an issue though. In case I didn’t make it clear, the Chu 2 have all of the bass.

-Truthear Hola
The Hola are Truthears answer to the Chu, with a detachable cable like the Chu 2, but without the bass cranked to 11. The details on the Hola are respectable for the price, maybe a touch better than the Chu 2 in all areas, but just can’t keep up with the MS2. I could recommend the Hola to someone that doesn’t care a ton about headphones/earphones, but if sound quality is a concern, just get the MS2. There are two small wins I have to give to the hola. First is the metal construction (not sure how it works, the don’t feel metallic, but they say it’s a metallic pressure casting.) The included tips are also better overall. They come with both narrow and wide bore tips, and I find that the wide bore tips are the only stock tips with any IEMs listed here that are comfortable to me, and actually sound good. I’d still default to comply tips though, and that’s what I used for the comparison.

-MS1
I bought a set of MS1 while waiting for my review sample MS2 to come in, as I’d never heard any Hidizs IEMs before. The tuning of the MS1 sounds very similar to the MS2, with a bit more bass. Said bass is a bit less detailed, and a little boomy (kind of like that of a lower end automotive sound system with lower end 12” subs in the trunk.) The MS1 is probably one of the better budget IEMs overall, and I’d take them over the Hola, but they compare similarly to the MS2. The construction is VERY similar, with the same resin shell, tight 2 pin connections, and reflective inlaid foil on the face (just a checkered pattern instead of the fractal diamond like design of the MS2.) Even the cable is very similar, just without the silver and copper combo (instead opting for “silver plated” OFC copper) and less fancy hardware (the plug has a cheap slotted rubberized strain relief, but at least the rest is metal.) I think the MS1 sound better than the Hola, and definitely have more detail than the Chu 2, with bass sitting between the two (in both quality and quantity)
It’s actually impressive just how similar the MS1 & MS2 are, with one just sounding like a watered down version (since it really is… single “dual circuit” *just a dual voice coil?* DD vs BA/DD, and cheaper cable/packaging.)


Closing thoughts - I’m beyond impressed. For the price (normally $100USD, currently on sale for $63) they are phenomenal. They will take the place of my current go to IEMs for anything but under helmet use due to their size. In time I’ll be comparing them to any higher end IEMs I can get my hands on to test, but I don’t feel the need for anything more at the moment. I think next on my list is a new set of over-ear headphones to take the place of my Denon AH-D600. These are easy recommendations to almost anyone that uses wired IEMs regularly and can find the value in better clarity and instrument separation. They’re not quite “budget” like the Chu/Chu 2, Hola, or little brother MS1, but especially when on sale, even average casual listeners could benefit from the step up in price bracket.

Finally, thank you to Hidizs for sending me this review unit

This is my review of Hidizs Mermaid MS2. Listening to them has been a great surprise, as they are a very good sounding IEM for an extremely affordable price.
Note: Hidizs has kindly sent me a pair of Mermaid MS2 for this review. While appreciate their kindness, this will not influence my opinion in any way.



Structure and Fit

The Mermaid MS2 are a hybrid IEM, which use two drivers per channel. The low frequencies are taken care of by a 10.2mm large dynamic driver, which manages to produce full bodied bass frequencies, while the middle and high frequencies are managed by a balanced armature driver, which, thanks to its fast impulse response, can render tiny details and separation layers precisely. This hybrid nature exploits the best of the two technologies to cover the full spectrum, and confers the IEM a quite high sensitivity (112 dB), thanks to the inherently high efficiency of balanced armature drivers.

While not small, the MS2 is very ergonomic and sits perfectly in my ears. I am positively surprised by this because, frequently, several other multi-driver hybrid IEMs I tried feel quite big in the ears (as an example, Dunu DN-2002 and 3001), because of a large housing, but this is not the case.

The MS2 comes with a quite wide selection of single flanged silicon eartips. Personally, because of the shape of my ears, I prefer to use comply foam tips or dual flanged tips that I have bought separately. Regardless, what is important here is to reach a correct seal (for sound) and have a comfortable fit (for the user).



Aesthetically, the MS2 can come in a dark color palette or, like in my case, a marine-light blue color palette, which I find gorgeous. The Mermaid MS2 is designed to be worn upside down, passing the cable over and behind the ear.
The removable cable has an almost pink color, it’s a high quality braid of 2 braided silver wires and 2 braid OFC wires, and it’s extremely flexible, which adds to the overall comfort and absence of microphonics. The cable connectors to the earpieces are 2-pins per channel and, just like the 3.5 mm jack, looks very sturdy.


Sound Quality

The MS2 is energic, full bodied, natural sounding and detailed.
On the bass side, while it lacks the ultimate depth, it has the right amount of midbass to be both powerful and create the “foundation” for the remaining parts of the spectrum, and to not feel rubbery nor cavernous (no excessive resonance). While “deep bass” is desirable (also because of the difficulty to achieve it), the midbass (and more in general, what is in the middle) is more important because it has many more chances to ruin the sound if rendered incorrectly.
The midrange is natural, slightly warmish, an area around 2 kHz might be very slightly recessed (probably, just in comparison to the midbass and lower midrange) but it never sounds distant.
The high frequencies are very slightly accentuated, improving clarity, layering and spatial capabilities, without showing any hints of sibilance.
The overall picture is that of a vivid, present, balanced sound.



Bottom Line

Hidizs Mermaid MS2 is a wonderful earphone. It has very good tonal balance, it is neutral, smooth and pleasant to listen to. It’s a great all arounder with all music genres.
As already stated, it’s very ergonomic. On the website, it’s stated that the dark colored version and the blue-marine colored version have some differences in fit, so, having tried the latter, I would definitely go with that.
The Mermaid MS2 is built like a tank, comfortable, beautiful and uses great materials. The removable cable is fantastic in quality and flexibility.
Furthermore, it comes with a high quality carrying case (which, to me, looks true leather).
All these features at under 100$ were unthinkable until few years ago, which make it a bargain and a safe purchase even at higher budgets.