Lime Ears Terra

I’ve never reviewed a Lime Ears iem, I have only listened to their incognito iem that is a collaboration with Effect Audio that is due out soon, and it probably has a slight delay last I heard. This prototype is actually my first experience with the brand so this is an exciting time indeed to listen to interesting and different sets.





Driver:
The drivers are special but a DD + 6 BA driver set up. Here is the information from their website:

One 7mm Titanium-Diaphragm DD for infra-sub frequencies

Two BAs for low-mid frequencies
Two BAs for mid-high frequencies
One 2023 Knowles RAU New Generation BA for ultra-high frequencies

Packaging:
The packaging is pretty nice as it comes in a small box but I love the shape of these cubical boxes and it reminds me a lot of the Elysian products and upon opening you get a nice and fair unboxing experience. While 1200 is a lot of money, this is almost on the lower end and I’ve got to unbox many expensive sets in my time in the hobby. Suffice it to say that I enjoy the experience and find it a worth set for the price.

---

Appearance:

The Shell

The shell is special. I get to talking to a lot of people and Emil the designer is one of the more interesting people that I have met in the hobby. I got to hear more about the shell from him which is a cool experience. It took a total redesign of a resin shell and it is a unique shell. The aluminum feeling of it is very nice. The color is almost a light soft green that has the most vibrant faceplate that I’ve ever seen.





The design is clean and beautiful, and it is simple and robust. I love metal shells when done right, and I feel this one is done right. I love the beautiy of how it reflects light and how it feels in ear. Comfort is great and the design is unique and beautiful.

This is a Five axis which is complicated.



The Faceplate:
The faceplate looks great and has a swirling feeling, almost like fire or mystery. I like it a lot and can’t think of anything bad to say about it. It’s a resin shelled iem with purple, and multicolored stuff. This is one of the prettiest faceplates out there.

The CABLE!

The cable is nice but it is a bit stiff. There is a nice green cable that comes with some versions of this iem, I got the copper colored one and thing it is fine. I did a bit of my testing on another cable to ensure I could use it with certain amps and dacs and set ups at work.

Drivability and source gear

I didn’t find this IEM to be overly difficult to drive. I tried it on multiple sources, and on my singular DAP. I was not super sensitive either, and needs just enough power to be fun.

In contrast, some IEMs are harder to drive like the Dynaquatro from Binary. It didn’t seem to be picky or sensitive to impedance testing.

Tips:
There is a fair selection of tips in this iem. I love the W1 tips, and thought they were nice. And a nice addition.

The Case

It is a nice leather case with a nice build quality. It isn’t super special, but I do enjoy it a great deal. I like smaller cases that I could use. I use a lot of plastic boxes to carry around iems, so this is a treasure as it fits my use case very well.



Overall Sound

This is a U shaped set with a lot of bass and a lot of air and detail. It’s a unique beautiful sounds with great details, air, and a shimmer that is really fun and enjoyable.

Bass (20-60 Sub Bass, 60-250 Hz Mid Bass)

The details of the bass are strong, powerful and impactful but a little lacking in the over richness which can impact vocals. I feel there is a presence, and a cleanliness about the bass that makes it super impactful correct and enjoyable. This is almost a bass headset and it doesn’t disappoint as it hits my preference really well. So right tonally, agreeable, and it hits that bass levels that I would crave, without jarring me to a level of fear of what it will do next. It’s extremely good, and satisfying.

Midrange (250 HZ to 800 HZ Low Mids, 600-200 Hz Mids, 2000-5000Hz Upper Mids)

The mids are clean with a sprinkled amount of detail and air that is a bit interesting at times. The upper mids are a bit bright but nice and detailed. This is almost like a Harmon version, but sounds clean and airy in ear. Very enjoyable and awesome.

Treble (5000- 10000 Treble/Highs, 10000 ++ HZ Upper Treble & Air)

Air and details on this iem are very strong and detailed. I love the air and presentation of the air a great deal. But it is a bit of an acquired taste. It did at first glance come across a bit detailed. The treble is here and important part of any iem, and this is effectively done and sounds clean, natural and pure. I really like the air and details of this set and find them remarkable and non fatiguing.









Graph:


Sound - Final Impressions

This is a strong fun sound. Is this IEM perfect? No. It has faults and isn’t the naturalist that other IEMs are. It lacks in the mid-range a little and has epic loud upper mids that some might want to EQ down. It is a proud and loud-sounding iem, that is dynamic and fun.

It’s a fantastic overall enjoyable set, that gets a recommendation. I feel most people will enjoy the sound as it’s rich and organic, and very bold.



Gifting/who is it for: I think this is a nice HiFi IEM to gift to someone, it’s just a nice package that is beautiful and unique. Everything about this IEM has a nice thematic feeling feels premium to unbox and is one of the better IEM unboxing experiences at around this price point. I see this as an exceptional gift to a friend, but mainly for people looking for a beautiful, fun, unique set that is fun and dynamic with good build quality.

This is not a set for bass heads, but it has a lot of bass, this is not a set for those that want the JM1 tuning neither. It’s a audiophile beautiful set with swagger and passion behind it. If you want a good set, that sound detailed with enough bass, this is for you.

Pairing: I used a Qudelix 5k for mobile, my dongle Dac iBasso DC07 for my laptop, and my JDS lab Atom 2 with a SMSL 6d-s for my Desktop PC. I also tried the IEM briefly on the Apple dongle as well. This IEM had no issues being driven. Typically I only find overears to have a hard time being driven and maybe some planar IEMs.


Summary-



This is a fantastic, mildly V-shaped set that I greatly enjoy. I love how it fits in the ears, and it is an instantly enjoyable set with a great overall tune. Nothing is glaring or poor with it. It’s just dynamic and enjoyable off the bat. Depending on your preferences it could be one of the best in the world at what it does,with great detail, air, and clean, well-represented bass. It has a theme and gets a strong recommendation from this reviewer, being one of my favorite sets of the year, maybe my favorite. We still have a few days to go before the year is out.

I'm also releasing a Youtube video of this at the same time. Thanks for reading until the end.

Lime Ears is a polish company based in Warsaw that makes both universal and custom in-ear monitors for musicians and audiophiles alike. Their latest product is the Terra, and it is a universal product that goes for €1099.

The Terra is a 6-driver hybrid product featuring a 4-way crossover and consisting of one 7mm titanium dynamic driver, and 5 balance armature drivers (two for low-mids, two for high-mids, and a single for upper treble).

Terra was provided for review by Emil from Lime Ears. Emil is an audio engineer by trade, and described this as an all-arounder IEM that was tuned for a lot of the similar music on my playlist (rock, jazz, and trip hop) in addition to metal rock music.




The aluminum shell has a light green anodize coating on it and is on the slightly larger size when compared to other IEMs. It is still very comfortable to wear, even on my smaller ears though. The faceplate features a colorful glittery display that changes color depending on the light and angle of view. It's really stunning and photos will not do it justice.

The product comes with the standard 2-pin cables and the specific one that came with my unit is a 2-wire copper cable that has gunmetal gray metal hardware connectors. The cable terminates with a 4.4mm balanced jack. This cable is very easy to handle and does not tangle. I really like it as it is also lightweight, soft and supple, and does not get in the way.

Lime Ears also has a collaboration with Effect Audio and there is an option to get the unit with the Cadmus 8W or the CODE 24C cables at a bundle discount from Effect Audio directly.

Terra also comes with a round leather case in green color. There is a soft suede interior that will protect the IEM and the cable, and may have some room for some small accessories like tips and a cleaning brush.

Sound Impressions​

The Lime Ear Terra has a well-balanced sound signature that has an elevated bass-range, a slightly forward upper-mid-range and a well extended treble. In general, I would refer to this as a slightly V-Shaped IEM, that is tuned well for an all-arounder. Some may find the mid-bass to be a little heavy if they are used to a leaner Harman-preference tuning, however it does fall closely in-line with what I consider ideal.




The Terra's bass range has a nice balance to it, coupled with the slightly recessed mid-range, gives it a rich and full-bodied experience. Bass guitars are heavy, and so are kick drum hits. I would characterize the low end as more euphonic and lush than quick and nimble. It's big, but without bloat, but some may find it a little lacking in super clear transparency. Sometimes textures sound a little smeared, but that is mainly in comparison with higher-tier products.

The mid-range and treble of the Terra is smooth and an easy, relaxing listen. There is a slight recession to the mids, but it is accompanied with a really nice upper-midrange and treble tuning that fits my preferences well. This makes it a wonderful all-arounder that does not have any glare, sibilance, or any fatigue. It is, instead, smooth, well-balanced, and realistic.

I've been jamming with The Cure's new outstanding throw-back album, "Songs of a Lost World", the past few weeks with the Lime Ears Terra. This "modern-Disintegration" album sounds really nice with Terra. On the track "Warsong", the opening bass and guitar intro is a fuzzy, layered soundscape and it comes across very well on the Terra. You can feel the impact of the kick drums and the various guitar effects are intricately laid out without too much overlapping blobiness here. It has enough good detail, and bass density that captures the complexity of the opening part of this track. On top of that, Robert Smith's vocals sound great on this IEM too.

On Emmylou Harris' "Wrecking Ball", a classic americana folk track from the early 90s, I find the Terra keeps her vocals in check. No sibilance, no straining, and it sounds fairly accurate, if not a little recessed. That's because I do feel that the bass and low-end of the track is a bit too elevated in this particular song with the Terra pairing. On the following track, "Goin' Back to Harlan", this is not a problem though, as the bass levels are much more balanced and in-line with Harris' vocals.

And finally, since Emil introduced this IEM to me with discussions about Seattle (where I am from) grunge music, I had to discuss how the Terra sounds on one of my all-time favorite Seattle grunge tracks, "Hunger Strike" by the super band before they were a super band, Temple of the Dog.

For those who never heard of this band, it was started as a tribute to Andrew Wood, the lead singer of Mother Love Bone. Andrew Wood's band was short-lived but featured members of original grunge rockers Green River (Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament) in it. Together with his close friend and roommate Chris Cornell (of Soundgarden) and Matt Cameron (of Soundgarden and future Pearl Jam) , the members of Mother Love Bone, enlisted the help of an unknown dude named Eddie Vedder to help do backup vocals and another friend Mike McCready to play guitars on several of the tracks on this tribute album. Well, following the success of this record, Vedder and McCready joined the remaining members of Mother Love Bone to form a band known as Pearl Jam, with Matt Cameron joining several years later after Soundgarden broke-up. And if you haven't notice by now, the Seattle Rock scene of the 80s and early 90s is all intertwined together and its glorious.

Okay, back to the Terra and "Hunger Strike." This track features a back and forth vocal onslaught from Chris Cornell (of Soundgarden) and Eddie Vedder (of Pearl Jam) with the backing band of the Pearl Jam boys. Since the Terra has a nicely balanced tuning with a slight emphasis in the mid-bass region, manly due to a slightly recessed mid-range, it does really well with the gritty vocals of both Cornell and Vedder. Both singers come across with power and control, as they should. The swirling guitars behind them are all doing their thing without any issues of overlapping muddiness. Cameron's drumming has impact and thunder, but not as thunderous as I have heard on other IEMs. Still, there is enough demonstrative force there to make this song very enjoyable.

Some Comparisons​

My normal daily-use IEM is the $6000+ Subtonic Storm. The Storm's bass is more incisive and controlled, but it is not as full and filling as the Terra. I personally prefer the Storm's bass qualities more, but it's a significantly pricier product.

I like Terra's smooth tuning through the mid-range and treble a lot. It reminds me a little bit of the Empire Ears Odin that I owned for a long time. Odin had a little more zing in the upper-mids and an airier treble, while the Terra is more intimate and more accurate sounding.

In comparisons to more similar-priced products in the kilobuck range, I have the IER-Z1R and the Symphonium Titan and Hidition Viento in my rotation.

The Titan has similarly smooth mids and treble as the Viento-B Custom, but with a much fuller and bigger bass shelf. The Viento-B is definitely a reference-tuned IEM, and the Terra takes that reference sound and adds more body with the trade-off of less incisiveness.

When I compare it with the Symphonium Titan, they are similarly tuned through the mids and treble. The Titan has a massive bass shelf that sets it apart but they are like siblings -- one is quieter and more stable (Terra) and the other is the big bold one (Titan).

Finally, with the Sony IER-Z1R, there are a lot of similarities here in the general tuning profile. The Z1R has a bigger subbass impact though, and a little more zing up top. It's more dynamic than the Terra is, but its biggest weakness is its huge IEM shell shape and weird fit that makes it very hard for me to wear for any lengthy period of time, no matter how many mods I throw at it to improve comfort.

Comfort is not an issue with the Terra.

Final Thoughts​

Lime Ears has done a good job with the Terra. It is tuned to be an all-arounder, and I think they met that task. I used it across my diverse library of music and I did not find it lacking for any song. If there were any nitpicks, I'd say that the bass texture is just a bit average in its price range, but the rest of the tuning is really solid. There is no issues with sibilance, fatigue, or timbre here, and so the small critique is minor in the end.

Lime Ears Terra

Lime Ears is a Polish In ear company started in 2010 by their founder and designer Emil. Who reached out to me for a review of the Lime Ears Terra. I have to admit I have been so caught up in Chi fi IEMs as most of Headfi is right now, that it was quite the surprise to be able to audition how “others do it”.

After researching Lime Ear IEMs, my curiosity got the best of me and I just couldn't say no. Lime Ears products have nothing to do with the mass manufacturing processes of the Chinese made IEMs. Seems they are all handcrafted out of Poland with precise custom sound tunings out of their site here. The Terra was loaned out to me by the kind folks at Lime ears for the purpose of a review.

I have to admit I have been oblivious to Lime Ears and their history of making fine IEMs throughout the years. I am all too happy to have found out about them through my research and review process here. It's not a name that was immediately recognizable to me and upon reading about their numerous prior IEMs and reviews. One thing is very clear to me, these guys are serious about higher end sound. I had to know more and more importantly I had to hear a set for myself. Besides, the profile pic of Emil looks like the type of guy you would want to have a beer with to pick his brain about geeky sound stuff. Case in point exhibit A

The Terra was burned in for a period of a week's time and is now ready for evaluation using my sources. Ibasso DX300Max, Ibasso PB5, Ibasso DX180, Fiio K9pro ESS, Fiio M15S, M15, Shanling M6pro, IFI Signature, IFI Gryphon. The review sample is to be returned to their owners at Lime Ears after reviewing. I appreciate hearing my first ever Lime Ears IEM. Thanks to Emil for the audition.

The Terra comes in an olive green square box. Nicely packaged with an included thinner nicely resolving pure copper cable in 4.4mm balanced termination inside a round puck sized all leather case. If I was a guessing man, I feel this cable is much more resolving than your standard copper variants hence they are perhaps a UPOCC or OCC variety. The cable provided is a nicely matching highly resolving copper cable in 4.4mm balanced termination. By no means is the cable a standard copper variant. It does match well with the Terra sound but like most good things that goes into your ears. I am certain you will experiment with cables and sources. The good news there is that the Terra scales amazingly to upgraded cables and sources. Comes with a complete set of foams and Spin fit silicones, a small pouch and a cleaning tool. Just my opinion but if you find yourself using the cleaning tool often. You need to consider cleaning out your ears more frequently, just saying. Onto the reader.

The price of the Terra is give or take roughly $1200. A $1200 IEM nowadays in the Chi fi world usually means you have some ESTs or BCs involved. But for me, regardless of newer sexy drivers being used at the price range it comes down to how the IEM was tuned and how the drivers used were implemented. I will gladly take a well designed and tuned hybrid vs the use of expensive drivers that don’t really add to what the sound is doing but only raises the price. Case in point the Terra is a hybrid which uses some premium drivers in the mix in an all metal aluminum shell. The bass dynamic is a 7mm titanium dynamic that I have a fondness of and I will tell you why in my reader. Uses 5 BAs for the important bass to treble in its sound balancing. Two BAs representing lows-mids, two BAs presenting mids to highs and a single Knowles RAU BA specialized for upper trebles. A 4 way crossover design with some very fluid transitions and cohesion going on for its sound make up.

The shell of the Terra is an aircraft aluminum metal design in a pewter green tint. Its back shells has a unique multicolored colorway called a Polymer Impregnated Synthetic Opal. They stand out for their clean yet colorful looks finished off with smooth rounded edges for the housing. Their physical size is what I consider on the larger side for universal hybrids and with one clear distinction, it has a longer stem for the nozzle. Just my opinion but I appreciate a longer stem in an IEM that was made to go into your ears vs the shorter nozzles. However I can see a possible fitment issue with folks that have smaller ears to fit these correctly. I am seeing some mixed reviews on their comfort but for me anyways they were comfortable for prolonged use. The Terra has some decent passive isolation due to all the metal it is using on its design. The other aspect I find advantageous is that these are not as heavy as you would imagine. Fairly light vs other all metal designs that I have reviewed in the past.

Inside the longer stem, houses their RAU Knowles driver I was told was specifically modified to handle the upper treble extension and articulation. The BA in the nozzle aspect is something that I am familiar with as Fiio has done this exact same design in their hybrids with some mixed results. The idea of the BA in the nozzle is to get at your ears more quickly for one, less distortion and resonances with a pure sound is the goal. And much like the other IEMs I have reviewed in the past with the BA in the nozzle, you will most certainly hear a full range of treble emphasis for the Terra sound tuning. Which leads me to the sound of the Terra.

The Terra sound is what I consider a reference neutral type, a U shaped tuning but one using highly resolving drivers in the mix. I consider it a reference tuning because the Terra has refinements you don't hear in cheaper audio stuff that tries to do the same type of tuning using much cheaper drivers. The overall tonal character is airy, energetic, clean,well balanced, highly technical with details that pop. If you thought neutral tuned IEMs were boring, the good news about the Terra is that it is the antithesis of boring. Music sounds fresh, alive which is helped out by a larger than average headstage for universal IEMs. Its sound presentation is decidedly spacious and deep for IEMs. The sound presents a bit like a higher end open headphone like in imaging and presentation. But then unlike open headphones, these have superb sub bass rumble with a deep hitting organic texture most open headphones can’t do. Not to mention decent passive isolation. If you're the type that loves you, some sparkle to your sound. Well let me tell you about that. The Terra has sparkle for days and while that might sound a bit fatiguing. I don’t feel the treble steps out of bounds or is tuned in excess of balance. Treble articulation is just one aspect of what the Terra sound is about, but there is a whole lot more going on.

A traditional u shaped tuning means mids are deliberately tuned a bit behind the bass and the trebles. This generally gives a wider sense of space for your IEM sound and the stage of the Terra is the first sound element that I appreciated. It has a nicely wide, fairly deep stage to its sound make up for IEMs. Has more depth than height of sound but that depth of sound does well to bring out a full scope of the layering for its sound presentation.

The other aspect of the sound is just how technical and precise the sound is. Technical for IEMs means. Its sound presentation has excellent imaging, a wide spacious stage, superior sound separation, accurate details in all forms, a clean tonal and timbre aspects to its make up. I do notice a bit of BA timbre for its sound but that will happen to most technical sets that are utilizing balanced armatures. BA timbre is best characterized as a rigidness to timbre and at times with metallic overtones. Thankfully the Terra sounds natural and more accurate in tonal and timbre aspects to my ears than not. I took my time in trying a variety of sources and more importantly did some cable and tip rolling and if you pair them with the wrong source, cable and tips, the trebles can have a touch of glare with a thinner note weight. On the other hand, using a nice dynamic warmer sounding source with the right tips and cable pairing for the Terra, the sound becomes world class with a high level of technicalities, fantastic imagining and a clean tonal presentation that is crucial for what I consider reference grade sound.

Trebles of the Terra is a strong suit. A lot of how we perceive both macro and micro levels of details for our music stems from how we perceive the trebles in our music we listen to. The Terra does a wonderful job especially noticed in its treble articulation and present trebles with very good sparkle and shimmer to the sound. Treble imaging is done exceptionally well and I am certain jazz fans will love just how detailed and extended the treble sounds on the Terra. Lime Ears calls it a HERO super tweeter, its upper transients, air, nuances and its treble tonal presentation are some of the better I have heard in the price range that is not using a set of ESTs. Truth is, way before ESTs were ever invented. Folks were finding ways to extend and utilize the trebles like how Lime Ears has done it for the Terra.

However not all is perfect for the treble emphasis on the Terra. I do notice a moderate emphasized 8Khz region, not to be confused with a spike in the region, which means your crash cymbals for rock music will have a slight bit of extra bite to the treble notes. A spike in the region would mean rock and metal music would not be listenable at all but that's not the case for the Terra. The Terra is very transparent to the signatures of your sources. I do notice on more neutral sources that is where this emphasized 8khz region will clearly make you notice.

On one hand the detail level is top notch for the trebles but for folks that listen to poorly recorded music, it's not going to be so forgiving and will expose flaws in the recording. Where they seem to excel is for acoustic and vocal music. Orchestral, folk, blues and Jazz genres are what these excel at. However since they have a capable impactful quality bass end it makes something like EDM, pop and reggae music actually engaging. I don’t feel they sound bad for Rock and metal music in general but its unforgiving highly detailed nature will most definitely expose poorly recorded stuff. Live music sets sound absolutely sublime with them however.

Source matching.
To get the absolute best pairing for sources using the Terra. It will be the warm dynamic sounding source pairings that will rise to the top. IFI signature, Fiio M15s, Shanling Daps, IBasso DX300 & IBasso PB5 which turned out to be my absolute favorite source used on the Terra. A transparently detailed IEM needs a bit of coloration for it to shine. Hence its the warmer sources that pair extremely well with them. I also suggest pairing them with cables with a bit of gold plating to help with a richer tonal character to flesh out the sound even more so.

Mids of the Terra is broad and wide in how it sounds. Its imaging is impeccable and precise. Mids layering is also done nicely. It's not the most dimensional sounding mids I have heard but its excellent sense of depth to the sound does a remarkable job not to make the Terra sound flat and uninspired. Mids have a decided clean neutral tonal character with accuracy in mind and does a wonderful job with detail on a macro level. Vocal clarity and scope is where it should be in the mix and has excellent perceived imaging that is some of the best I have heard at its price point. The natural clean well layered tonal character means your music comes with vibrance and an energy I appreciate about the Terra. Making them one of the best IEMs I have ever used for lower volume listening. To get that clarity it does have more upper mids presence vs the lower mids. It's not the most full bodied sound or the most textured but for folks that prioritize clarity and accuracy that results in an energetic sound profile for the Terras sound experience. The Terra is as technical as some of the best I have heard in the upper level mid fi IEMs. I am used to reviewing Penon IEMs where mids have more substantial body and forwardness as that is a part of their house sound. I have yet to hear other Lime Ears IEMs to know what tuning angle these guys go for but if I am to judge based on how the Terra sounds. These guys seem to be very high on the traditional headphone reference sound signatures. The Terras remind me of a mix between Fostex, Audio Technica, AKG and Beyer Dynamic type sound signatures. So the sound tuning was immediately recognizable to me even on open listen.

If clarity and detail matters to how you like to hear your IEM sound, the Terra is exactly this. Its detail level is on point as are its other technical elements at play. When you listen to other IEMs after the Terra, they kinda sound a bit dull sounding in comparison. On the opposite token if you love some warmth in tonal qualities and a forward mids character. I would look elsewhere. I don't feel the Terras mids are recessed by any means, they are certainly not a forward mids presentation let me put it that way. Again the reason why a warmer sounding source matches so well with the Terra is that it needs that bit of warmth from the source end of things to make them sound the way I am hearing synergistically. A bright neutral source is not recommended as you will get the Terra to not sound all that great.

Bass. Here is where these have a bit of a surprise to my ears with some special sauce sprinkled on top. The bass was tuned with some enhanced sub bass emphasis, just enough bass impact over neutral in its mid bass tuning overall. It does have some nicely textured, organic sub bass rumble for its sound. Which means it's more accurate in emphasis vs being flavored too much. True bass lovers crave a beefy mid bass note. You're not going to find that with the Terras. It's more of an audiophile sub bass focused accurate bass experience. The nicely textured quality sub bass notes was the reason why the specialized 7mm Titanium dynamic was used for the Terra. Mid bass seems to be a combination work of one set of the dual BAs and the 7mm Titanium dynamic. The speed and tightness of the mid bass punch is top notch but when bass extension calls, it is the work of a fantastic 7mm Titanium dynamic. Bass definition as well as its impact is done very well with this particular set up as the sub bass notes are where the Terras supreme texture lies and for fans of low digging deep bass notes, the Terra is very proficient with a high quality well defined bass note. Its decay and sustain for bass is once again very natural in quality. I have always been a fan of the Titanium drivers bass ability and the Terra using this driver makes a whole lot of sense. I am a basshead at heart so I love a good quality bass end and while the emphasis is more on the accurate side of things the sub bass rumble is very satisfactory. The bass end was tuned to stay well clear of any of the mids hence the reason why the mids clarity works well on the Terra.

I have been reviewing a lot of IEMs this year using 2x dynamics for bass usually in coaxial form and one suggestion I have for the Lime Ears crew is that they need to try using two of these fantastic dynamics for the bass end in a coaxial form. Where one bass dynamic is capable, double that ability and you got a bonafide uber impactful quality bass end. What's on the Terra is satisfying but I can’t help suggest the potential there for even greater bass ability. I can’t even begin to imagine two of these bad boy titanium dynamics in a push pull array fully vented enclosure inside one of your IEMs dong the bass end. Some food for thought.

In the end
The Terra is one of those IEMs that you can turn to for listening engagement with accuracy and detail. I have heard IEMs that are even more detailed believe it or not but then anything more detailed in presentation over the Terras and it would end up being a bit of a fatigue pie. Sometimes a bit too much is not a good thing. The Terras are presented like a fine glass of wine, highly nuanced, some sweet overtones in the form of ample sparkle and shimmer for the highs, clean clear and well imaged for its mids with a organic rumbly low end. It's energetic and sophisticated but fundamentally correct in its presentation. A fine mix of highly technical with a good splash of musical. If neutrality and accuracy is what you prefer in your sound listening environment with a bit of extra treble and sub bass emphasis thrown in. This is where the Terra is at its best. I can fully understand what the crew at Lime Ears has made here. These are clearly playing a part of a higher end sound design. These aren’t for the casual or are they for the young. It's for the seasoned audiophile that would like an acoustically treated room inside the Terra shells that brings out your audio in the best of ways. Clean, clear, accurate, a broad stage for IEMs and highly detailed in all parts of the sound. If that sounds appealing for you. Look into Lime Ears, their line up. I have no reservations in recommending to my fellow enthusiasts the Lime Ears Terra.

So my time with the Terra is over but I am very glad to have had the honor of auditioning one of Emils handy works in the Terras. I appreciate the opportunity to see how “others do it.” For me what is universally high end be it from China or Poland is universally high end, and the Terra is a fine example of what the Polish can do. I now have a whole new appreciation for Polish fi, let me put it that way. A shout out and a hearty thanks to you Emil and appreciate the Terra team. The more folks from other parts of the plant that make higher end IEMs, the better our hobby is in my book. As always, Thanks for taking the time to read.