Lime Ears Terra

This hobby is an escapist's dream. Escape from daily routine and distress that's causing you via something as sincere and everlasting as listening to music. I believe that the power of music is still not fully understood since it works in mysterious ways. Allow it to do its magic on you and let your worries dissolve in melody.

Having had the possibility to try so many different sets in a relatively short time I felt obliged to go ahead and express my gratitude by trying to help some lost souls out there, just as I was when I first stumbled upon this weird hobby about wired earphones – so yesteryear! … I thought. Possibilities are seemingly endless and only by getting to meet the right people did I manage to jump onboard the train heading the 'right' direction without getting off-track thousands of times along the way. Make sure to understand the helping person's preferences and you too can find your footing and hit the ground running in no time.


We are deep into 2025 and I am still finding footing for my reviews. I'm avoiding all lengthy yet substance-light topics that are covered in marketing materials or are totally subjective, and instead focus fully on elucidating how the highlighted IEMs sound to my ears. This is also my 50th review released precisely a year after my first one (and totally unplanned, would you believe that! How the hula hoop is that possible?) which means an average of almost one review per week. Quite a strong showing, I have surprised myself too!

This is how I imagined setting it up: We will kick it off by mentioning the integral part of our hobby we often skip right by – the music! Followed by my graphics (that have been the main attraction ever since I incorporated them) and an explanation under each of those. To each of the usual suspects in IEM reviews I will then attach three adjectives and elaborate why I deem those describe the segment best. I will then check for the effect of source- & tip-rolling and IEM's scalability, continue with quick comparisons, and finish with a concise summary including who this set is (not) for.

I hope you find my newly revised approach an enjoyable and worthwhile read!



I am all about transparency, so to kick it off, this IEM was lent to me by Emil from Lime Ears with no obligations to review it or even talk about it, but since it's a marvelous thing it deserves coverage. They have no influence on what I write. And as always, I am grateful for the opportunity. All impressions were written using the Effect Audio Eros S II cable and Acoustune AEX07 small tips.


THE MUSIC

To better understand what I listen to and thus perhaps have a clearer view as to what I look for, hiding behind the Spoiler is my list of 90+ tracks (in alphabetical order) I skip through for reviewing purposes. This is of course only a snippet of my expansive playlists, but it should give you a rough idea. I am sure everyone can find something they are familiar with. I also warmly recommend trying any of these for yourselves on whatever setup you guys have!



THE THOROUGH GRAPHICS

By now, most of you have come across these playful graphics of mine. I have received so much positive feedback on these that I dare not leave them out going into 2025!


On the warm to bright axis these will land right around the neutral mark in my books. I ought to mention they can be tilted quite severely either towards warmth or brightness by sources – more on that further down the review. They sport a well above average technical prowess with great separation, layering and imaging, but they're not on top in that regard (see comparisons for more details).


They won't tip any of the scales far to either side. It's a well thought out tuning that covers lots of grounds as I think sets in this price range should – most of us strive towards an endgame set that could do it all and this comes mightily close. To my ears it's neither quick nor slow with a minor trend towards the former, where bass is eager to get out of the way and treble is never outpaced by the tune no matter the BPM. As said before, they are a technically well polished set with plenty of musicality to boot.


On the quarter circle playground, these sit a bit towards the energetic side of the playing field as well as more on that treblehead side, but this is down to sources too. Its energetic nature stems from lively low treble and good extension, not as much from bass playfulness. I find these a low-to-mid listening volume set, at higher volumes the high midrange and treble can get too forward & spicy for my ears.



Comfort is not the greatest for me personally due to a couple reasons. One is the very long and thick nozzle, but that one I did get used to. The second reason is that it has no scoop out in its shell to better fit my concha which results in a couple of sore spots after a while if I try to get a deep fit, but that is a me problem and it's honestly not too bad. Those unafraid of long and thick nozzles need not worry. The deep fit aids isolation, so this is a well isolating set despite not fitting perfectly into my concha. Onto the sound, starting with bass. This is handled by a single dynamic driver and a rather small one at that, but since I am all about balance and often prefer less bass this did not scare me away. So how does the DD do? Firstly, it's hugely dependent on source (more on that later), but all of these impressions are based on the source I spent most time with and felt best suits the Terra, the Chord Mojo2. Subbass is there when song calls for it. And it's unafraid to rumble and feel downright dirty with tremendous sense of control despite a well-extended and rich decay. Thankfully, I feel that the subbass shelf is perfectly judged and only joins the mix when necessary. Onto the midbass, there is sufficient punch and speed, but this will leave bassheads wanting more. Me personally am more than fine with it for the intended tuning Terra is going for. This is also where I tend to be very picky with how textured midbass is and I'm happy to report Terra outdoes sets like the Penon Voltage, whose bass was not up to kilobuck standards in my view. Terra treads these grounds carefully and focuses more on timbre of instruments that use this frequency band very deliberately. What that ends up meaning is that the bass, despite being a bit subdued, is constantly willing to provide a natural playback and never gets out of sorts. The amount of bleed or how it marries into the low midrange is well judged too. It's not dry and weak but cautiously musical and just present enough to not muddy the very sensitive low midrange where all sorts of chaos can occur when sets get that range wrong, especially in multi-driver sets where crossovers are everything. This won't be thick enough for those preferring a warm and more substantial sound over a neutral or even slightly bright one. How well the Terra does with both male and female vocals is truly special. I usually prefer either male or female vocals on any set, but here I am truly impartial. Male vocals are as full as can be without feeling bloated or too chesty, while female vocals are bitey and forward without a hint of sharpness, shrillness, shoutiness or sibilance. Lime Ears know what they're doing. Midrange needed some extensive and fully focused listening sessions before I truly started appreciating what they did here. It's neither a warm and wet midrange (stop your dirty thoughts), nor does it lean too cold and sterile. On top of that, its timbre is spotless and replays all instruments so true to life. What I do miss is a slight bit of detail retrieval, but that would probably mean boosting a particular spectrum which would throw off the naturalness and wholesomeness. Then we get into the treble and good things keep on coming. It's on that crisp side and can get a tad too much at times for my younger ears, but it does not throw off the balance or the musicality. I appreciate how separated everything feels, it's never a case of mushiness and veil, so macrodetails are beautiful. It's not too pleasant with very sharp and brightly or dynamically recorded songs such as Shivers by Ed Sheeran, but that sort of thing comes once in a blue moon in my listening sessions, so no trouble there. Overall, I appreciate the treble's honesty, and very good imaging and layering it provides very much. Cymbals & hihats are the right sort of splashy while maintaining that richness of overtones and characterful spice. It all gels together forming a stunning audio soundscape that grows on me with every listen. The way it is all intertwined and never feels heavy-footed or clumsy or caught off guard is why it's worthy of that kilobuck price tag.


Width is not the most impressive and gets surpassed by lots of sets, but it's not annoyingly shrunken and thus overly busy. Both height and depth are its strengths. It allows a good overlook of multiple performers at different distances and places them accordingly. Height which is always a tough one to describe is marvelous too and all performers are atop an imaginary platform with no weird pulls down low.


THE EFFECT OF SOURCES, TIPS & SCALABILITY




The effect sources have on sets is often overlooked or at least not as highly regarded as it perhaps should be. While I still maintain the stance that the transducer is of main importance, sources follow right thereafter. Certain sets will be more responsive to various DAC/AMPs, while others seem to remain relatively unchanged and unaffected by source-rolling. I have tried the Terra on iBasso DX180, Venture Electronics RA2B-FE + Prime DAC (shortly VE Stack), Chord Mojo2, Muse hifi M5 Ultra and HiBy R3II 2025. The DX180 remains my source of choice for that first listen to grasp what the set is all about. I was pleased to hear that Terra responded well and sounded very neutral to my ears with slight spice up top which takes the front seat. Switching to the Mojo added a welcome and tasteful bass boost while at the same time cleaned it up just a tad and made it smoother and more substantial. Treble is slightly rounded off too, which is appreciated too. Onto the VE Stack, which loves to boost the dynamic drivers if they're willing and on the Terra the bass gains what feels like at a minimum a 6dB low shelf sub 250hz. I do not like the way that makes the little 7mm DD work its backside off, so this is a poor pairing for certain. TM mode on the M5U is very similar to the DX180 which is not particularly surprising, while the VT mode with tube amplification adds this prettiness to the sound while adding a diffused sort of feeling which is great for a chill listen, but takes a step back in most technical aspects, bass speed and precision and treble velvetiness being the most noticeable. The doublesided capability of the M5U works great with the Terra which is susceptible to both modes and outputs what it gets fed. And the humble little R3II? It does alright, but it's a noticeable step back in sound playback in all aspects, which Terra is more than happy letting my ears know about it. Bass notes are less separated and full, treble is less crisp and detailed, midrange is not as layered and soothing.

Another particular subject that is still somewhat of a mystery and a taboo, is whether IEMs scale with sources, and if so, why? We know IEMs barely use any power to play. And thus the often heard 'headroom' argument seems a bit moot. But there are certainly other aspects of Amp design that are well over my head and still somewhat unexplored or at least unexplained. Terra likes power but is not too dependent on it. It also largely depends on the current and impedance characteristics, since the humble 7mm DD can feel overwhelmed and is not meant for big bass duties. Thus, Terra appreciates a modestly powered source that is beautifully resolving and allows the Terra to do its technical things well while maintaining a big chunk of musicality. See the previous paragraph to better understand what I am on about.


THE COMPARISONS

This is a treat! Look what I have lined up for this comparison: Thieaudio Monarch MkIII, Symphonium Crimson, 634Ears Loak2 TX01, & AFUL Performer 5+2. So, a DD/BA/EST tribrid, an All-BA, a Single DD, & a DD/BA/MP tribrid. Versus Lime Ears Terra, a DD/BA hybrid. Fantastic! All comparisons will be done via the Muse hifi M5 Ultra in TM mode.

1. VS Thieaudio Monarch MkIII



Since this MMk3 is a loaned unit without original accessories, I have used a Hisenior Whitewhale cable and Divinus Velvet eartips. Some differences are immediate standouts. These two split the listeners into two camps, one is a rather warm and lush MMk3 and the other is a more neutral, even neutral-bright at times, Terra. Second thing worth mentioning is the different shell shapes are bound to fit some and not others. I find the MMk3 more custom-like, but some might prefer Terra's nozzle angle and deeper fit.
Okay, onto the sound starting with the low lows. Subbass is more compact and muscular on the MMk3. It also decays longer and overall feels more present throughout, but isn't constantly nagging me and going »hey, look at me!«, so it's a well judged subbass. Terra is not as subbass-driven, but does it well with just a tad less of that thick feel and much less decay, the overall feel coincides with the fact that this is a much smaller DD surface area and less air is getting pushed about. Similar thing can be said about the midbass. Terra's might feel a bit quicker, but it's way less punchy and athletic. Still, fact is it works well with the rest of the tuning. Truthfully, low end is more impressive on the MMk3. Flowing into that low midrange territory, primarily I love to try bass guitars, male vocals and drums to determine the texture, speed, timbre and the level of naturalness. The layering and texture is better handled on the MMk3 which remains unstressed even when that low midrange gets crowded, but I might prefer the placement and naturalness of low male vocals, such as The Sound Of Silence by Geoff Castellucci, on the Terra. I often check the balance of midrange with guitars, Jinsei Iroiro by Yoshio Kimura is a cool track for it. I prefer how the guitars sound on the Terra which does less of that smoothening and remains more true to the bite and vividness of each guitar pluck. Overall, Terra's midrange is cleaner and drier, there will be songs that sound better or one or the other, plus it all comes down to preference. I find I prefer the way Terra does it, at least when I really want to delve deep into music and not just listen as background or as pastime. Terra's midrange is more forward but less spacious. Following all midrange intricacies is easier on the Terra because bass and treble are less pronounced than on the more V-shaped MMk3. As a final decider, I'm doing a piano + female vocal masterpiece, This Bitter Earth by Veronica Swift. Once more, the midrange of MMk3 is much smoother and never puts a foot wrong, but misses that slight bit of charisma, which the Terra captures better by providing a more delicate piano playback and places more of a focus on Veronica's gorgeous voice too. High midrange is skillfully done on the Terra in my opinion. Treble then, here's where the MMk3 is ahead with its ESTs, but those come with strengths and weaknesses. I actually find the Terra better flows towards its top end drop off, while MMk3 is much airier and perhaps helps with its imaging since the most minute of details are very precisely located. Overall, Terra is the set with livelier treble, but that's due to low treble, not extension or crispness. MMk3 never feels sharp, while Terra occasionally might. Tough to pick a winner, but for my preferences, the Terra might be ahead only just. But MMk3 will be the more impressive set upon first listen and might be the preference for both bassheads and V-shape lovers.


2. VS Symphonium Crimson



I'm using the stock cable on the Crimson and for tips I have settled with Penon Licqueur Orange to help keep these funny-shaped things firmly in my ears. The combination of Crimson's shell shape and stubby nozzles plus the non-vented shells is simply a poor design, no way around mentioning that. Anyway, I have managed to make them work and they sound good. Another thing to mention is Crimson is noticeably harder to drive, despite being on balanced cable and Terra on 3.5mm, it needed 50% higher volume setting to volume match it to Terra. Let's compare the two.
Terra's subbass is skull-rattling compared to Crimson's which is much less significant and pulled back. Nonetheless, it can go low and I don't miss rumble all that much except when that's the main attraction of the song, such as in The House Of The Rising Sun by alt-J & Tuka. Switching back to Terra is weird at first, since it almost feels too bassy. Going into midbass, still Terra is far ahead in quantity and feels more substantial. Crimson is bass-shy and has much less attack and drive. Any rhythm-based songs feel a bit like fish out of water. Drums are a bit fragile and hollow in comparison, but direct A/B exaggerates that and it's not as critical when you allow your ears to adjust. Midrange is airier and more open on the Crimson which makes especially guitars get that lovely crunchiness to their strings that I adore and the overall staging size is better than on the Terra. I prefer male vocals of the Terra since they do have a bit more of that chesty and supported sound. Both have their midrange tuned very well and there is no sense of shoutiness nor timbral issues. It then comes down to whether you want the mids a bit warmer and more intimate like Terra or more spacious and a bit more front and centered with additional brightness like Crimson. I feel Crimson's midrange is also cleaner in the sense it allows to better zoom in to any details – more resolving. Treble is truly well done on both, main differences are in their character. Both are perfectly free from any sibilance issues which is the first thing to check. Crimson's treble is livelier and not as balanced with bass, but it's extremely satisfying and so textured that every note is brimming with life. Terra is a bit less enthusiastic in the treble and it feels much denser or wet, which makes it an easier listen, but not as joyous. Treble is an event on the Crimson, but just a bystander on Terra. Again, impossible to choose which might fit someone better. I can see myself owning both no problem. This one gave me a hard time choosing a winner again, but I feel Crimson's resolution is a step above Terra's, so it wins this duel with the disclaimer that those that dislike BA bass or lots of treble can run away from Crimson and get Terra instead.


3. VS 634Ears Loak2 TX01



These two are tough to compare in separate categories, so I will provide a brief overview instead. Loak is a much more intense and energetic listen than Terra in just about all aspects. It is much more bass-heavy, treble is spicier, but never annoyingly so, and midrange is more upfront and grainier. The overall experience is a much more dynamic one and whether that's a welcome thing is down to preferences and mood. I believe going into depths in this comparison is a bit moot. These two make a killer One-Two combo, so just get both, easy!


4. VS AFUL Performer 5+2 (P7)

Right upon first listen, the P7 is bassier and less refined up top with more quantity of both bass and treble. These two are indeed similar in some regards, but the step up in quality is bigger than I expected, so let's go through it. Double bass is better refined on Terra sounding fuller and more cohesive, but the P7's bass quantity is a bit ahead and thus fills up this slight quality gap by volume. Similarly, drums are a bit more plasticky, hollow, and less pleasant on P7. This really helped me put Terra's bass into perspective. It is a clear step up from something like the P7. Midbass punch, however, goes to P7. It's snappier with better onset, seems less stressed and more eager to kick. Still, don't get it mistaken, the decay and accompanying overtones are sweeter on Terra and ultimately make it a more grown up listen with timbrally more correct bass guitars and drums. Midrange on Terra is obviously handled by better BAs that reduce that slight metallicness and digitalness compared to P7's where the BA character is more present, especially noticeable in male vocals when swapping between the two in a matter of seconds. Female vocals are clearer and better placed on Terra too, the flow between different vowels and different vocal placements (chest/mix/head/falsetto) is better polished and they never feel like they're done by different drivers – the image of the singer is very strong whereas on the P7 certain parts can get a bit dislocated or blurry. Talking of which, imaging is far superior too, surprisingly, since I really thought P7 was rather strong in that regard as well. Well, that's what 4.5x the price gets you. Treble is where P7 does very well against its peers and it competes strong even with the big dogs, but the finesse is lacking. I still appreciate the microplanars and their ease to provide airy yet natural treble, but Terra's BAs outdo it in naturalness and are better tuned. Easy W for Terra in all aspects, but P7 is still a gem in its price range, fits wonderfully, and sounds more energetic than Terra, so when the mood is right and in certain instances, I might still reach for P7 over Terra.






THE CONCISE SUMMARY

Firstly, a huge Thank You to Emil from Lime Ears for arranging this wonderful item for me to sample. I have thoroughly enjoyed these last few weeks. Just seeing this gorgeous item right there along with the rest of my collection was a beautiful sight and one I could get used to without much trouble. Summary reads like this: Terra is a beautiful IEM in a high-quality shell with slight disclaimers about its fit for some. It sounds perfectly balanced and responds to sources tremendously. Once you find the right source pairing, Terra rewards with very intricate bass that has the right amount of decay and always sounds natural instead of overblown. Midrange is rich and textured with no timbral issues to mention and leans just a bit bright to allow all vocals to shine with perfect shout- and sibilance control. Treble is perhaps a tad shy for those who prefer more shine, but it provides a great support to midrange and never feels pushed. Ultimately, Terra is one I'd highly recommend to neutralheads, but demoing it first is advisable, especially to sample its fit and marriage with your own sources.

Thanks for reading my 50th review and stay wonderful.

Disclaimer:
I’d like to thank AudioGeek for including me in the tour of the Lime Ears Terra. The impressions shared here are based on my experience with the IEM over a few days. There has been no influence on me to write anything positive or negative about this IEM.

Introduction:
Lime Ears is a polish IEM brand known for their innovative designs and craftsmanship. Although the brand has been around since 2010, this is the first time I’m trying something from them, hence, I’m super excited. The Lime Ears Terra features 6 drivers with a 4-way crossover. The drivers include one 7mm Titanium-Diaphragm DD for infra-sub frequencies, two Knowles BAs for low-mid frequencies, two Knowles BAs for mid-high frequencies and a customized Knowles BA (aka HERO Super Tweeter) for ultra-high frequencies.



The IEM features a Polymer Impregnated Synthetic Opal (PISO) Multi-tone Crystalline Bello Opal Faceplate which, to be honest looks gorgeous and gives the Terra a distinctive look. The IEM is priced at 1099 Euros, which puts it pretty much in the premium segment of IEMs. Although I couldn’t find any information regarding the impedance or sensitivity of the IEM, based on my usage, it was easily driven by both my DAPs (Sony WM1AM2 and FiiO M23). In fact, it sounded great even off the FiiO BTR17.

The IEM comes with a copper cable. The unit I received came with a 4.4mm BAL termination. Apart from that, the IEM comes with a pack of SpinFit W1 eartips. For this review, however, I chose to use Azla SednaEarfit Crystal v2 eartips simply because they offered me a better seal and made the IEM sound a bit more nuanced in comparison to the stock tips.

Sound Impressions:
The Lime Ears Terra has a mid-forward presentation overall. That being said, the bass, although more focussed on the mid-bass, has a fair amount of rumble. Bass hits sufficiently deep yet is tight and punchy with quick decay. There seems to be more focus on quality than quantity, hence the bass has amazing texture, but is somewhat limited in terms of oomph. Bass response is quite natural sounding though it is not something that’d please bass heads.

The mids are clearly the highlight of the Terra. The mids have sufficient weight and vocals, both male and female, sound natural and lifelike. Overall, the Terra delivers nuances in the vocals beautifully and given the open and spacious presentation, the Terra delivers a very immersive and rich listening experience.



The treble is crisp with sufficient air and plenty of sparkle and very well controlled. It has the right amount of openness and crispness to make instruments sound lifelike without any harshness or unwanted peaks. This is what I’d call sweet treble that just hits the right spot for someone like me who is quite treble sensitive.

Technically, the Terra is exceptional in terms of resolution / details. It can handle complex tracks like a pro. Layering and separation too is very good and is perhaps a notch above the price point. The Terra has a sufficiently wide and deep soundstage, resulting in a highly immersive holographic presentation that wraps your senses with music from all sides.

Conclusion:
If you’re looking for a kilobuck IEM with exceptional mids that delivers an expansive and immersive listening experience, the Lime Ears Terra is a no-brainer.

Lime ears Terra has a colorful faceplate and made of Aluminum so lightweight and super comfortable and it’s a feel good factor.Its a mid focused iem and I enjoyed it’s unique tuning it’s like easy to listen for long sessions.

Thanks to Sandeep Agarwal and Audio Geek "Brother_Hood of Audiophiles"

The IEM is constructed from lightweight aluminum materials, which makes it durable and the cable is easy and solid build.

I started listening on the weekend and it was much needed peaceful music session and it’s was a great long listening session … and I have paired with Cayin N7 DAP (source) with offline music and Aroma Amp.

How does it sound ?

It’s a sounds more musical and focused on midrange with well balanced tone, the sub bass is slightly less and the bass has been tightened.The vocal got much better after trying different tips.Finally I settled with spinfit ear tips which best suits me.The Bass is controlled and sometime few tracks feels like yeah !! we need more sub bass !!

The mid-range is nice as the tonality is good to the music i listen to.

I liked the way the whole album Adele 19 for female vocal and Abbey road by Beatles for male vocal sounded sweet.

The treble is smoothing and rightly done so no sparky and sensitive.The sound stage is engaging with the track “Take Five by Dave Brubeck”.

Thanks to #LimeEars Terra

LIME EARS TERRA

Let's get started. So I'd like to start by thanking @Jaytiss for the loaner opportunity to review this unit, and @He_Is_Emil from Lime Ears for providing the demo unit. This was much appreciated from both of you. So this would be my first shot at listening to a Lime Ears product. Now I've heard about them for several years, but just haven't been afforded the opportunity to put one of them in my ears until now. I must admit, I was looking forward to this greatly, as I haven't had the chance to listen to something that costs $1.200USD since I purchased the Jerry Harvey Audio Roxanne many years ago (little aside...I did not like it that much. Huge disappointment). So I had apprehensions about the Terra living up to expectations? As you can see from my introduction, the answer to that is a huge affirmative! But we'll get into WHY it did, otherwise, this wouldn't be a review, now would it? The shell is greenish, with a gorgeous faceplate that changes colors at different angles, which is an affect similar to the faceplate effect of the AFUL Performer 5+2. The shells have a really long nozzle, and it's sorta wide too at the tip, so any tips with thinner stems might be a bit of a chore getting on? The shells are on the large size, but ergonomically such that I had no problems wearing them comfortably for long periods of time. I also imagine it's this large shell that assists in getting this vast soundstage despite not sporting a BCD in it? Ok now, so buckle your seatbelts and prepare for a 100% unbiased review with heartfelt observations and thoughts. Now on to the fun stuff.



The unboxing experience is short and sweet. There was none. This was a demo unit sent directly to me by jaytiss, so what I got was the green Lime Ears puck style storage case, which is very high quality leather, and the IEMs, along with a copper Effect Audio cable. It's a nice cable, and for most of my listening, i used it in conjunction with a XINHS Red Flame 4.4mm cable. So no tips, no accessories, so let's move on...



So now that we have the "unboxing" experience out of the way, let's move on to the sound? That's what you're all here for anyways!! It's time to get it on!!...but first, let me share with all of you some information about the IEMs themselves. Internals, specs, and a graph? Fun times indeed!

THE SPECS :

Lime Ears Terra :

Technical Information :​

Frequency Response graph provided courtesy of Audio Discourse @ Squiglink

PRICE : $1,199

Available for purchase at this location.

The Gear :

What did I use for my listening sessions for my review??

For this IEM, I kept playback mostly to the Cayin N3 Ultra (Modern Tube mode, No EQ, H gain, Slow roll off filter, untethered) + the FiiO JM21 w/iBasso DC Elite. I also used the Hiby R3 II (H gain, 4.4mm, No EQ, untethered), and the Sony NW-A25 (4.4mm adapter, untethered). This is a broad swath of sources and amps, with various degrees of power abd sound signatures. The warmest, most bassy sound came from the A-25. The brightest cleanest sound from the JM21 untethered (4.4mm, H gain, NOS filter) as well as tethered to the DCE. There were no hiss issues, driveability issues, or any general sonic problems using all of these sources, and the IEMs sounded great, with high performance from all the sources.



Music used for the review and all my reviews in general?

Ezra Collective - Dance, No One's Watching
Robert Glasper - Canvas
Alfa Mist - Antiphon
Mareike Wiening - Reveal
Avishai Cohen - Brightlight
Bob Marley & the Wailers - Survival
Rob Van Bavel Trio - Dutch Weather
Kaisa's Machine - Taking Shape
Junior Kelly, Bounty Killer, and Capleton - The Good, The Bad, and the Blazin'
Dominik Eulberg - Avichrom
Abysmal Dawn - Phylogenesis
Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Drive By Jehu - Self Titled
Cognizance - Phantazein
Crownshift - Crownshift
In Aphelion - Reaperdawn
Cradle of Filth - Nymphetamine
Shuffled Classic Rock and 80's Pop Music playlist

SOUND IMPRESSIONS :

Dynamics : 5
Resolution : 4.5
Details : 5
Instrument separation : 4.5
Imaging : 5
Low End Impact : 3
Sibilance : 1 (no sibilance)
Soundstage : 4.5 (orbital)

Overall score : 4.5/5

BASS/MIDRANGE/TREBLE :

The Lime Ears Terra is a wonderful testament to how design and shell size can make a huge difference in the size of the soundstage and the preciseness of the imaging. This is exactly what you're getting here. It's the first thing that jumped out at me while putting these through the rigors of my playlists. The stage was orbital (i.e. width, height, and depth, with information entering the scene from different angles, with spaciousness and dynamics. There's a high degree of instrument separation and imaging is near pin-point, so we have excellent accuracy and spatial cues throughout the midrange and lower treble region. Detail retrieval is also superb, and it's allowed to shine through thanks to the clean and clear midrange, which is spacious and uncluttered. Now the bass doesn't provide a lot of warmth to aforementioned midrange, so though I would call it a far cry from dry, it's just on the border of being clinical, and there is a noticeable lack of energy in the mid bass, that lower midrange area where there's punch and snap. Now, the bass isn't pillowy or soft, but at the same time, it does not hit hard in the mid bass (that's in the sub bass). So anyone looking for a lot of midbass, lower midrange energy and punch, this just won't do it for you, but there's enough to make most genres enjoyable. Bass is resolute enough so that you get a measure of incisiveness and note presence. This means the bass isn't slow or lumbering, or one noted, but layered in micro details. You will hear the low end, while there's a nice sub bass presence to help you feel thumps and drops (Big Boi - Kill Jill, Dominic Eulberg - Avichrom). Yes, there's rumble, but since there's not enough energy in the upper bass region, I wouldn't recommend this as a basshead set. This is linear bass, with rumble. This clean transition goes from the mid bass to the midrange, with almost no bleed or influence.

The consequences of this clean transition is just as it sounds ; you get a clean, clear, midrange with not a lot of warmth, but the ace with the tuning is that it's not really a problem when it comes to getting any thinness or dryness in the mids. Now it's not the thickest, or most musical midrange, but timbre is natural, note weight on pianos, cellos, and guitars really good, and there's a nice present tone and plenty of resolution, that says, we are TOTL and you are getting your monies worth! There is a grand fullness to the midrange that makes the sonics very special. It's not plasticky, metallic, or slappy, but full, natural, and incisive. The orbitalness allows the instruments to pop, side to side, front to back, and sometimes at eye level, and the scene is so clear, that you rarely miss any information being delivered, even in very busy passages (Cradle of Filth - Medusa & Hemlock, In Aphelion - Reaperdawn). There's never any smear, and refinement is the name of the game. The midrange is the star of this show, and though there's a sense of neutral balance between the lows, mids, and highs, so I wouldn't necessarily call the midrange "forward", it's got a level of tonal incisiveness and refinement that this is where the Terra begins and ends with strength!

The treble is a bit of an enigma. It's an enjoyable type of enigma I like to call peek-a-boo tuning. It's similar to the tuning philosophy of the AFUL Explorer or Letshuoer Cadenza 4. What I mean by that is that the treble shows itself when called upon, and can be called upon to deliver shimmer, air, and texture, but it's not all the time. It's not front and center. It's peek a boo. So this leads to a more refined and relaxed brightness. So yeah, there's enough incisiveness and shimmer that you can call it bright leaning, but it's tuned so that it never gets crispy, but crisp, never edgy, shouty, or metallic. No. The texture and tone stays shiny and controlled, with a measure of refinement you would want to expect from a kilobuck IEM. This is the IEM that both treble sensitive and treble connoisseurs can enjoy equally, and feel confident in their purchase.



OVERALL :

The Lime Ears Terra is balanced, technical, bright and incisive yet smooth, and immersive. It's a visit to a grand concert hall, with expert acoustics and positioning. It's being enveloped in music, where you aren't missing a beat or a note or a whisper. It's precision and refinement. Now granted, the Terra could use a bit more lower mid energy and excitement, but it doesn't ever venture into boring, despite the treble's tuning, or the lack of mid bass impact. I think it's because of the expansiveness, the imaging, the sub bass thump, and the brightness, that the Terra can overcome these faults and really shine as an example of what kilobuck IEMs can offer when it comes to this level of price to performance. It easily out-performs the Sennheiser IE800/IE900, the JHA Roxanne, the Dita Answer (Truth Edition), and goes toe to toe with the 14BA per side AFUL Cantor. This is one of Lime Ears' more "affordable" options, so if the performance of the Terra is any indication of the performance of more higher priced sets from Lime Ears, I want to get my ears on them ASAP!

COMPARISONS :

For the Terra, since I don't have any IEMs in my rotation that are anywhere near the price range of the Terra, I'm skipping doing a comparison, as it wouldn't be fair to any other IEM that I can dig up, but as mentioned earlier, they can go toe to toe, or exceed the Kilobuck IEMs I have been exposed to, so take that as the off hand comparison, and that the Terra would be in the conversation for any of those others. It's that good.

CONCLUSION :

The Lime Ears Terra has been a true blessing for this fella. It's a fantastic near all-arounder, speaks my language fairly fluently, and I was marveled with the stage and spatial cues for an IEM without a BCD in sight. For a treble connoisseur, it was a pleasure. I got lost in the reggae, the jazz, the funk, the blues, the classic rock, and the metal. I was treated to a high level of performance that is very rare to find in the sub $1,000 category, which is where most of my rotation lies. The comfort level is superb, and again. despite the large shells, comfort was supreme, and I was able to wear the Terra for long periods with little fatigue. They are solid metal shells, so I don't see these failing even with heavy usage, and you can expect to put these through the paces and get much use out of them, because they are engaging and enveloping. They are right in the ballpark of BEST OF THE BEST I've ever heard, and I've heard over 200 IEMs since the start of my musical journey. Certainly top 3. This is quite the indictment of just how good the Terra are, and just how much I enjoyed this experience. If you find yourself with the opportunity to listen to these IEMs, have the money to buy them outright, or you happen to attend CanJam, do yourself the favor and take the plunge! You will NOT be disappointed, as this is a kilobuck IEM worthy of it's price!

RECOMMENDATION LEVEL : KILOBUCK BOSS LEVEL - HIGHEST 9/10.

Thank you so much for reading and remember to be water with your audio luv! When you do...AUDITORY ZEN UNLOCKED!

With many thanks to the enigmatic Emil Stolecki of Lime Ears, and courtesy of the Audio Geek USA Tour (and extra special thanks to @Dsnuts for the introduction to Lime Ears!), I have had the absolute pleasure of demoing Emil’s latest release, Terra. Hailing from Warsaw, Poland, the Lime Ears Terra is a 6-driver hybrid IEM with a single 7mm dynamic driver and five balanced armatures. This must have been my year to cover Polish IEMs having just recently demoed the Craft Ears Omnium while also owning a Custom Art Fibae 5 (F5)! I think that’s the Polish triumvirate of IEM makers – am I forgetting anyone?? Clearly, Piotr Granicki of Custom Art/PMG is on a very serious roll with his newest APXSE, a $6000 TOTL release that is sweeping through the polls in the Head Fi Watercooler; I have heard them and they deserve all the accolades they are getting. And while Piotr continues to explore the very high-end of the industry, Emil Stolecki and Lime Ears are playing counterpoint with the low-priced, but high-end Terra.

The brainchild of Stolecki - part of the previously mentioned triumvirate that makes up Poland’s IEM audio scene, along with Jed Nowicki of Craft Ears, whose excellent Omnium I recently demoed and reviewed (and of course, the aforementioned Piotr Granicki of Custom Art/PMG Audio rounds out the three) – Lime Ears similarly caters to musicians and audiophiles with high-end IEMs that stand toe-to-toe with his Polish, and global, competition. Coincidentally, I have found working and communicating with these three guys and buying/receiving directly from Poland to also be an absolute pleasure and they are truly talented masters of their craft. So, I am becoming quite the Polish IEM consumer and wow, do they all have a lot to offer, not the least of which is Mr. Stolecki’s Terra, the beauty I’m writing about here.

The Terra, at €1100 euro (available directly from limeears.com), is in the low-end of high-end pricing, or the high-end of mid-fi pricing, depending on your POV. Interestingly, this is essentially the same price as the very well-received F5 which is a 5-driver tribrid (with some planar goodness in its shells). The Terra is also a counterpoint to the F5, with a tuning that is based in the same thick and syrupy sound, but presents a far more open, warm/neutral style that might be said to be around 50% of the way between the F5 and Omnium (neutral/bright) tunings. This does result in an all-around IEM that is beautiful, comfortable and very competitively priced for what it delivers.

In a world of “whose got more drivers”, Terra plays it cool as a hybrid with “just” 6 drivers – a powerful but diminutive 7mm dynamic driver for lows and 5 balanced armatures to round out the rest. Listening to Terra makes me remember what I always think of when listening to my F5, you don’t need giant shells or 10+ drivers to make a banging IEM (just ask Ken Ball of Campfire or Bogdan of Fir!). Though I will say that the Terra does have a large-ish shell, much larger than F5, but it does not affect comfort or fit (for me) whatsoever. It’s wearable for hours on end comfort-wise – but is it worth spending that much time with?? Yes, absolutely, and it belongs right alongside F5 and all of its competition as it sings a beautiful tune!

Out of the box, you are immediately stunned by the beauty of the faceplates and their colorations, which change depending on the angle and type of light they are in. They are mesmerizing and gorgeous evoking colors of autumn! The package comes with a leather puck-style case that can hold the IEMs and cable which appears to be a 4w Effect Audio Ares. TLDR; cable is serviceably good, but not ideal, and a cable upgrade is highly recommended - I had to do the same with my F5 (and felt the same need with the Omnium – some brilliant Polish cable maker needs to emerge and service these talented guys!). The unboxing itself was very nice with a small box (thank you!) that contained everything you need – the IEMs, cable in 4.4 balanced, leather puck case and lots of tips (ultimately, my own Divinus Velvet tips worked best for me). You can see from the pics that it’s a nice package that will easily store.

I did my listening through all of my DAPs, often with a ibasso PB5 tube amp connected. All sounded great, with a nod to the Luxury and Precision P6Pro and the Hifiman EF400, both warm r2r sources that accent the Terra very nicely. Terra was easy to drive on all of my equipment.

So how does Terra sound? To my ears, Terra is a warm-to-neutral tuning with a U to W shaped profile. Bass is tuned more tuned to the sub, but both sub and mid bass are punchy, deep and viscerally satisfying. But this is a very balanced set, not a basshead one, or a specialist. The bass is top quality and in perfect quantity to maintain its balanced sound, but it’s not ground shaking bass. The treble is of equally good quality and extension while never straying into sibilant or fatiguing territory. It’s transparent, clear and crisp yet still smooth treble that creeps up on you, not being the obvious star of the show, but reminding you it’s there to service all of that airy goodness up high along with thwacks and plucks of strings, high hat hits, stray sounds, and did I say air? But this is a very balanced treble that stays very natural and unobtrusive. This all surrounds clear, unveiled and forward mids with vocals dead center with natural expansion, and it is these mids that tend to steal the show in the Terra.

Natural is a good word for Terra’s sound reproduction from top to bottom, actually. Everything sounds natural and not artificial or exaggerated. This also corresponds with the excellent coherence and timbre demonstrated by Terra. And I get no hint of BA timbre. As mentioned, with all that air comes a fairly wide stage with admirable depth that spreads in a linear way and wraps around the ears like an oval mask across your head. Not a 3Dish or super holographic presentation, but one more based in natural sound that wants to highlight the instruments and recordings, not its own technical prowess, not that it lacks technical prowess at all. Its separation, layering and dynamics are superb and reek of TOTL tuning.

I can’t help but compare my F5 to Terra, being they are the same price, have similar driver counts, and are both from Poland! At the outset, F5 is a darker sound which is not as balanced, and it’s a bit more V shaped where Terra is very balanced. Terra has a more open stage with more air, and clearer mids. Thinking of the Polish IEMs I’ve become familiar with, Terra’s tuning is more neutral and balanced. However, Terra has a slightly warm sound to its balance, with thick note weight that sounds fulsome and, yeah, natural. So it really can tick a lot of boxes for most audiophiles or musicians.

I mentioned above that the stock EA cable was good but not great. Thankfully, Terra reacts very well to cable rolling, and even going just from the stock EA Ares to an EA Eros II 8w was a huge improvement. It also sounded great with my other EA Signature 8w, the Cadmus/Ares mix, so it doesn’t necessarily need a Cleo Octa or Chiron, but something better than the stock will significantly boost the experience you can have with Terra.

So, Emil Stolecki and his Lime Ears (gee, I wonder why it’s called Lime, Emil?) has created an affordable high-end set of IEMs in the Terra that compete with sets at twice the price. Terra sits firmly alongside other sets in this price range that also hit higher than their price, like F5 and Penon Voltage, and competes head-on with them offering a brilliant, musical and emotive tuning that doesn’t lack for details or much of anything in its balanced approach. A great, all-around IEM at a competitive price – gotta love it, and gotta keep an eye on Lime Ears and what Emil is working on!

TL;DR: Smooth, balanced sound in an excellent package

Overview/History
Hi all.

Back again with another review and I'll be checking out the Lime Ears Terra. I didn't quite have the chance to check out the Terra at SoCal CanJam but heard extremely good things from a few people attending.

So, when I got the opportunity to check them out for a home audition? Say no more!



Lime Ears is a small boutique out of Poland. They've been releasing IEMs for sometime now and this is their newest iteration and likely the biggest push that I've seen them make into the market. The Lime Ears Terra is a 1DD (7mm) + 5 BA IEM that retails for about $1,199. Kilobuck alert is on. Let's get into it!

Disclaimers: This unit received is an informal tour hosted by Lime Ears. I received absolutely no instructions and the following is all my own subjective opinion. Thank you again, Lime Ears for the opportunity!

Build Quality, Comfort and Accessories
Photo dump time!









The Lime Ears Terra comes in a pretty substantial box. Excellent overall presentation that feels premium. The IEMs themselves also feel very well built with a beautiful faceplate. IEM is in a metal shell which feels great in hand.











The only issues I have with the build are the smooth'ish nozzles. They're quite extended (maybe not quite the same penetration into the earholes like the Cantor) and smooth which make it difficult for a lot of tips that aren't extra grippy. I measured the Nozzle Lip as 6.3mm



The Terra comes with a carry pouch, case, tips, cleaning tool and a partnered cable that I believe is from Effect Audio.







Tip Rolling
Tip rolling was done with the Terra - I tried the stock tips which aren't that bad for fit. I felt like they took away a bit of the bass energy that I was hoping to keep so I did some tip rolling. Here's my top fits:

Stock: Comfortable but I felt like it took away from the bass a small smidge more than other tips. Still, not the worst stock tips I've ever tried.
Dunu S&S: My work horse. Keeps the stage open, keeps a lot of the bass energy - excellent combination.
Radius Deep Mount: Also a great fit with these tips as they kept a lot of the bass to keep things lively but presented a bit more balanced sound for mids/treble.
Fiio HS20: Same as the Radius Deep Mount, I enjoy the fit of the HS20 and this is a good combination together with enhancing the bass but also keeping everything else lively. Probably my favorite tips to use with the Terra.

Cable
The Terra is listed as a partnered IEM with Effect Audio and this cable reminds me a lot of other Effect Audio cables that I've tried in the past.



This set is a bit on the less pliable side but not a bad stock cable at all. Not distractingly memory prone.

Sound
So, how do the Lime Ears Terra sound?



There's a lot more emphasis done with the Terra to provide excellent clarity, resolution, technical performance while doing a great job of keeping some musicality to the playback. I would probably say this is more of a U-shape type of sound signature with not too much loss on the bass (though I could use more), very pleasant mids, and excellent treble.

There's a great balance overall paid attention of not veering too far to one category of being warm, bright, dark, etc. - it's just a pleasure to listen to.

Gear Tested On: Primarily streamed music via either dedicated Streamer, Laptop or Phone
Phone chain: Pixel 8 Pro -> Abigail Pro
Phone chain: Pixel 8 Pro -> Muse Hifi M5 Ultra
Streamed Music Chain Workstation: Raspberry Pi4 w/ Volumio -> JDS Labs Element IV
Streamed Music chain: WiiM Mini -> JDS Labs Atom DAC+ -> JDS Labs OL Switcher -> Geshelli Labs Archel 3 Pro

*My Audio Preference and Score Disclaimer*: To preface my breakdown, here's my sound preference. I tend to prefer warmer sound. I enjoy good sub-bass extension with enough mid-bass to feel the music. I prefer more fuller sounding mids to match my library. My preference is for smooth treble extension; while I'm not treble sensitive, I'd probably lean more towards 'safer' treble tuning for longer listening. I also tend to listen at either medium to louder listening volumes (reasonably loud).

In addition, all scores listed below are typically (unless otherwise stated) rated/scored as it relates to it's peers in the same price group.

Lows/Bass: Shocker! I could use more bass. End segment.



Obviously as someone who enthusiastically loves bass and enjoys bass energy no matter the type of music I'm listening to, the Lime Ears Terra does an admirable job. The sub-bass feels more emphasized vs mid-bass so you're not getting necessarily a very punchy bass playback.

Instead, you get excellent quality bass where notes are extremely detailed. The sub-bass is deep sounding when a track calls for it, instruments have proper note weight and good decay so things aren't too analytical or dry sounding. The bass isn't the most engaging but plays well with the overall sound signature that the Terra is presenting.

I, of course, could use a bit more bass but this would be a very pleasant listen to most ears that aren't hedonistic with their bass preference.

Bass Score: 8.5/10 - TL;DR: Quality bass with sub-bass being the emphasis. Detailed yet not dry playback that's just engaging enough to not be boring.

Mids: The mid range for the Terra is extremely well done. It sounds very natural yet detailed providing excellent playback of music.

Most of the emphasis is on detail and female vocals. Instruments such as guitars and piano shine well here sounding correct and elevated. Female vocals have proper air and elevation to keep them lively but never to the point of them being shouty. They sound very natural and full.

If I was going to nitpick, I do feel like the lower mids could use a bit more warmth and full'ness into the male vocals. That's not to say that the vocals don't sound lush or anything but I think female vocals excel more. But, this is a nitpick - overall the mids are excellent and it's a great sign if I'm having to grasp at something in order to add what I would improve.

Mids Score: 9/10 - TL;DR: Natural, detailed, relaxing mids with extra energy for female vocals. Could use a bit more warmth for male vocals

Treble: Resolving. Technical. Detailed. The Lime Ears Terra does a fantastic job of tuning the treble without ever getting close to being unbearable. It feels like it's tuned to be on the safer side with initial listening but, with extended time, it's actually pleasantly elevated.

There's a definite inclusiveness to treble notes that feels crisp and sparkly. The air is proper where you'd expect it for a higher end IEM.



But the best part of the treble energy is that for as elevated as it is, there is no sibilance and it's controlled where even higher volume listening works and isn't fatiguing.

It's one of the better performances for IEMs in this price range while being able to balance the analytical, detailed playback without letting it sound too dry.

Treble Score: 9.25/10 - TL;DR: Excellent non-sibilant treble energy. Very incisive sounding with proper air and detail.

Detail, Separation, Imaging, Overall Soundstage, Etc.: The technical performance for the Terra is excellent. There's an effortless amount of capability in the Terra that helps really tie in the overall sound.

Imaging and separation of instruments is clear and detailed. Everything comes off extremely precise.

Soundstage also is properly wide with depth of field being very good. It never feels like anything is presented too close nor too recessed or pushed back; everything is properly placed and engaging.

The technical performance is one of the stars of the show for the Terra and really does hit above it's price point. It's not just good for $1k, it's just straight good.



Technicalities Score: 9.25/10 - TL;DR: Excellent sound stage and separation. Very well done and hard to find any fault here.

Library Recommendations:
For general library recommendations, I think the Terra does well with a lot of genres of music but may struggle with things such as hip-hop or tracks that you'd typically want more bass. Top types of genres that I'd recommend would really be based around:

Rock Music
Female Vocal centric music
Orchestra
Jazz
Modern Music

But, that being said, I don't think the Terra is... terrible for other genres.



It's not bad at all as a general all rounder if you seek more details/treble. As a resident basshead, though, I'd likely go with other options when I'm opting for something to really have my head rattle. But, for a relaxed yet detailed listening and those types of genres, the Terra works out very well.

Comparisons:
Comparisons! Look at this (photo)graph.



Thank you Super*Reviews for your graphs. The Cantor, Lime Ears Terra, and the BGVP Phantom all graph similarly to a point before deviations but, overall, they have some similar characteristics. For a high level comparison though, let me break it out.



Aful Cantor:



The Cantor and the Terra share very similar characteristics with the Cantor having a bit less bass, a bit more sparkle (still controlled and not harsh or metallic sounding), and a bit more of a detailed/analytical type of playback. The Lime Ears Terra has a bit more bass, maybe a little less treble but a bit more musical or warmer especially in the mid-range than the Cantor. For my preference, I think I would prefer the Lime Ears Terra > Aful Cantor but you're still getting an incredible package for something that's also a bit more price friendly in the Aful Cantor. It's not a drastic pick, either. It's very close. It's just some subtle differences that really make me put the Terra ahead.

BGVP Phantom:



Another similar graph/sound signature IEM but the BGVP Phantom also has BCDs. Here's my honest take; BGVP Phantom > Lime Ears Terra if I cared only about music. If I cared a bit more over fit, the Terra fits better to my ear. The BGVP Phantom graphs as having less bass but, actually, the bass on the Phantom feels a bit deeper, fuller in the mid-range and has a bit more of that immersion factor due to the BCDs being very well implemented here. If I was going to do a full three way comparison, the Cantor is probably the most analytical, the Phantom is the warmest sounding, and the Terra is in the middle.

Of course, I'd prefer the warmer/fuller sound of the BGVP Phantom. But, I do think it's close and I feel like the Terra fits a bit better in my ear with better access to tips (nozzle on the BGVP Phantom are super short. SE fixes this but SE also has less bass so... yeah, none of that). But, yeah, I think it's close again and more of a preference thing. Terra will be a bit more resolving than the Phantom and have better control over the treble and technical aspects but the Phantom will be warmer sounding and a bit more lively. Can't go wrong with either.

Other Things to be aware of:
Really, there aren't too many things to be concerned about with the Lime Ears Terra. They just work (very well) and I haven't encountered any issues. They can be a bit heavy and I hate smooth nozzles but, otherwise, they're very straight forward and a great set.

Volume Listening: The Terra does extremely well with moderate/moderate high volume listening. I would also say that it can handle higher volume listening (giving you a bit more bass and vocals) without sounding sibilant or grainy. There isn't too much of a limitation with the Terra.

Source Synergy: The Terra is on the easier to drive side. That doesn't mean it won't respond well to more power but it's not entirely necessary. The Terra also works extremely well with Tubes or warmer sources. It's not the most responsive to these changes (like the Dunu BrainDance) but it handles very well and synergizes together with warmer sources.

Special Sauce/Personal Bias Score: 9/10 - TL;DR: Great package and performance overall - very flexible with sources and a great kilobuck contender.

Conclusion:
The Lime Ears Terra is an extremely versatile IEM that balances expertly on the line of providing excellent technical performance with musical tonality.

You get technical performance that punches above it's price point with great imaging, great sound stage while it manages to stay away from being too boring or analytical sounding. There's just enough warmth to make this a great all-rounder and a great package of an IEM hitting just about that kilobuck mark.

Consider me a fan of the Terra; I'm excited to see more from Lime Ears.



(Just give me some more bass, sir!)





Final Weighted Score: 9/10 - An extremely good 4.5/5 - an easy recommendation for anyone looking for a step up in technical performance without breaking the bank (too much)

Video review here:


Thanks for reading!

This is a copy of my review over at Headphones.com: https://headphones.com/blogs/reviews/lime-ears-terra-this-is-not-new-meta-i-like-it. Sharing it here as well for visibility!

Introduction​

Not too long ago the IEM world seemed to be all about “the new meta”. So much so that I wrote a buyer’s guide navigating the landscape. But in the grand scheme of things, many IEM companies have turned a blind eye to this tuning approach (intentionally or not). And it’s not hard to understand why: audio is a luxury hobby where boutique brands rather focus on crafting high-end products with a unique vision than trying to compete in a ruthless race-to-the-bottom.

The topic of today’s review is one such boutique brand. Lime Ears is a Polish IEM company that’s been around for longer than I’ve been in the hobby. I remember pining over their products in my early days, admiring the handiwork of their custom shells. But as the IEM market rapidly advanced, Lime Ears was one of the many brands that was forgotten amidst the ChiFi boom. So it was to my surprise when Emil at Lime Ears reached out asking me if I’d like to review their newest universal IEM: the Lime Ears Terra. Coming in at €1,099, it sits right at the entrance to the kilobuck range where it’ll face fierce competition from superb IEMs. Let’s see how it fares.

What’s in the Box?​

The Lime Ears Terra is a 1 DD + 5 BA hybrid IEM with a 4-way crossover. What might be of note is its 7 mm titanium dynamic driver and a new generation Knowles RAU super tweeter driver positioned right at the nozzle for extended treble. Accessories wise, you get the typical IEM suite of:

• 2-pin copper cable with a 4.4 mm termination. It’s a 2-core braid and well built. It’s soft and supple, though there is a good bit of cable memory.
• A set of SpinFits and foam tips in S/M/L.
• A black cloth pouch and green puck-style carrying case with a little cleaning tool inside.

What makes the Terra stand out is its absolutely enchanting build and design. The faceplate is a mosaic of synthetic opal with a different iridescent shine from every viewing angle. The pictures in this review do not do it justice. The shell itself is an anodized aluminum with a tasteful tint of green. It is on the bulkier side however, and the nozzle side is larger than average at 6.2 mm. It’s also unvented which can be a bit of an issue without the pressure equalization. Personally, I found that using the Divinus Velvet tips solved any fit issues I had with it and I’ve worn it on lengthy plane rides.

Sound​

As alluded to in the intro, the Terra is NOT an IEM tuned with the population average anatomical baseline (DF HRTF) + 10 dB downwards slope (AKA “new meta”) in mind. In fact, the marketing for the Terra talks about it being “enhanced take on the beloved Harman curve” which is a prime example of target curve abuse. The Terra is in fact, NOT Harman either, unless we call anything with a bass shelf and an upper mids presence a Harman variant. Latching on to buzzwords is a bad idea.

Anyway, here is the frequency response graph of the Lime Ears Terra. It’s a largely balanced sounding IEM with a sizable bass presence, clear upper midrange, and controlled treble leaning on the brighter side. I have few complaints about its tonality as a whole. It’s an IEM that you might listen to at a show or local meet and go “yea that was nice”. Nothing outstanding tonally, but nothing offensive either. It’s a strong all-rounder.

Bass​

The bass of the Terra is competent. A 7 mm titanium driver may belie the expectation of a super explosive, super tight sounding bass response. However, the bass shelf and tuning of the Terra gives it a rounded, warmer, and fuller sound instead. It blends fairly well into the lower mids without having that sharply distinct bass shelf presentation. But that isn’t to say the Terra isn’t punchy; notes are cleanly defined and decay quickly enough to give space to the next. It just isn’t quite as incisive as I thought it would be. In a sense, this is the classic dynamic driver vs. balanced armature bass response experience (obligatory disclaimer that driver technology does not determine sound). The Terra is that good dynamic driver with a big presence. My nitpick here is that the Terra’s bass could use a bit more texture to color the rumble.

Mids​

The midrange of the Terra focuses on vocals due to hump around the 1 - 1.5 kHz region. I call this a “vocal front” and is noticeable tonally when you compare side-by-side with one of those new meta IEMs. It pulls the vocals forward and shifts its energy lower, with a little less presence and upper harmonic brilliance, and a little more huskiness and thickness. As a result, there’s minimal sibilance or harshness on the Terra. Personally, I wouldn’t mind a touch more brightness to the vocals to really ride atop the mix of a busy song with poorly mixed vocals, but in slower tracks I have no complaints.

The Terra’s tuning also enhances the many instruments that live by its midrange energy such as the snares. The crack of the head is snappy while the body maintains weight and depth thanks to the bass shelf amplifying the lower mids. Likewise, acoustic and electric guitars have excellent definition in both the picking of the strings and the richness of the strumming. Chamber strings sing alongside the vocals. I will note that the Terra does better in music with physical instruments than those with digitally constructed tracks. Despite the recession in the midrange we see on the graph, it’s not something that I notice in actual listening. There’s an overall great sense of balance across the instruments.

Treble​

I’m a fan of the Terra’s treble. It’s marked by a controlled elevation in the lower and mid treble region before tapering off in the upper treble. You get a crisp shine to the notes that isn’t overly sharp or peaky. There’s no overexaggeration for the sake of it, nor does the Terra dampen the treble to the point of death. I’ll point out that the Terra isn’t an airy sounding IEM, but to my ears, this is an excellent implementation of a realistic sounding treble. Hats and cymbals are given space to play but never steal the spotlight. To be honest, I’m a little surprised as I expected that the fancy Knowles RAU super tweeter sitting in the nozzle would be blasting my ears with excessive treble. But it seems like Lime Ears did the sensible thing and properly tuned the Terra.

Presentation​

The Terra’s musical presentation is at the level of what I’d expect a good high-end IEM to be at. Soundstage is sufficient to not feel closed-in all the time and imaging is accurate. There is a sense of depth so music isn’t all flattened onto a single plane. Layering is commendable as instruments play cleanly around one another and I can easily track any given one. The Terra isn’t an IEM that exudes resolution or hones in with detail retrieval, but I don’t find it lacking. Notes don’t bumble into one another and lead lines are clear. Dynamically, the Terra is less of an explosive beast and more of one that consistently brings a satisfying amount of weight and depth in tracks that call for it.

Comparison to the 64A U4s and Symphonium Helios​

The 64 Audio U4s and Symphonium Helios are among the top IEMs I’d recommend to anyone looking to buy an IEM at the $1,000 mark. Both are excellent IEMs with a balanced tonal profile, though in different ways. The U4s takes the warmer, lusher end of the spectrum while the Helios favors a lean and bright signature. The Terra falls right between these two. Its dynamic driver bass is similar to the U4s’ rich low end. It’s more distinct with its shelf, but not to the extent of the Helios where there’s a very clear subbass delineation. Like the Helios, it has a treble brilliance that shines through, but softens the sharpness and airiness for a smoother sound. To an extent, this Goldilocks nature might be a bit of a double-edged sword as it dilutes the identity of the Terra. But at the same time, it makes the Terra a solid recommendation for someone looking along these lines. The final knock I have against the Terra here is that I find it a little less technically competent than the U4s or Helios. An honorable mention amongst the three, rather than a front-runner.

64 Audio U4s review | Symphonium Helios review

Should You Buy It?​

Yes. The Lime Ears Terra is a strong all-rounder IEM. It’s apparent that its creator Emil put careful thought into its design to ensure customers get not only a beautifully crafted IEM, but one that actually sounds good and works well across anything you throw at it. Something that cannot be said of many brands out there. It’s not “new meta”, and that’s OK. I enjoyed my time with the Terra from the moment I unboxed it. While I did have some minor nitpicks here and there for improvements, the Terra is a complete offering. The price tag of €1,099 is not trivial, but then again, if you’re shopping at this price bracket you’ve already accepted the luxury tax. Though the Terra didn’t rise up to being my instinctive first choice, I have no hesitations about adding it to my recommendation list.

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.

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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.