Opera Factory OM1

The cheaper OS1 ($20 with fixed cable) is not very special without EQ. Just kinda "meh" with too much high end. But it's very pushable in EQ (explained below) and I was able to get a sound that I love from it. But the cable was faulty right out of the box and it only lasted a few weeks.

So I got the OM1 ($40 with removable cable). It's much more bassy right out of the box but it doesn't sound amazing as it is. It's pretty hollow sounding and a little muddy. but with some EQ it can sound really nice and bassy. Here's what I'm using right now:



This looks a bit extreme but as the title says this is a basshead review. But with this tuning I can hear everything really well and it sounds really crisp.

I lowered the treble a lot because my ears are really sensitive to the high end so I find any sibilance very uncomfortable (on any listening device).

Now to explain what I said above. - What I mean by pushable EQ is that I can change the sound a lot and get really powerful bass without getting distortion or other weird things happening. It's an important thing for me because many earphones/headphones just turn to crap when you try to do any major EQ.

In my first attempts to EQ the OM1 I got really muddy results. Muffly and woffly if those are words.

What worked for the OS1 didn't work here.

On the OM1 I had to heavily lower the gain in the frequency range from 125 to 500hz in order to reduce this newly found muddiness (see screenshot above).

I think I could get better results if I had a an app with more granularity (more points of adjustment or at least being able to select exactly which frequencies I'm tuning) but it's good enough for now.

Here's what I had to do for the OS1 to get a roughly the same sound.



You can see the same range of 125 to 500 hertz is much weaker on this IEM which is why I had to push it up so far.

And it looks like my high frequencies are super low but this is just because I had to push the low frequencies up a lot more than this app allows from the middle position - so I had to push the highs down and then raise the overall volume. - The end result is not weak high frequencies but rather it provides an additional bass push.

My aim is to get really thumpy deep bass while still hearing the vocals and instruments nicely. And I was able to do that pretty damn well with both IEMs.

Both of these IEMs can be pushed in EQ further than most others I've used. However I'm fairly new to the recent wave of chi-fi IEMs so I can't say exactly how they compare to other similarly priced chi-fi options currently on the market.

(Note - you gotta use a good EQ app to get good results and maybe also watch some tutorials on EQing. Wavelet is the only great one I found on Android - thanks to Crinacle for the recommendation - but otherwise you'd probably want a dedicated device like the ES100 MKII or a PC or I assume most portable DAPs have decent EQ.)

CONCLUSION:
It's worth 40 bucks. Get one if you love bass and have a device with good EQ abilities.

It can make even music with weak bass sound like a Billie Eilish mix. - Like Deadmau5 and even Paramore's old albums.

And it can make Billie Eilish sound like she's pulling the soul out of your body and smacking it repeatedly with a sledge hammer.

For 40 bucks it's a pretty great deal.

And pick up an extra cable because I don't know how long these last.

Greetings!

This is a blast from the past review, as the Opera Factory OM1 was released back in the year 2018. I have owned this IEM since then, and has been one of my guilty pleasure IEMs that I bring out once the mood arises.

I believe that some IEMs of the past are worth noting for despite the ever-changing landscape of Chi-Fi audio. There are some real gems out there that has been forgetten by time and obscured by more popular releases in the past. Although this particular IEM made its rounds of popularity upon release, the hype slowly fell as the Chi-Fi industry continued to pump out new releases per month in that period.

Let's continue with the review!


𝙋𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙜
- Presentation
Many people say "don't judge the book by its cover". That DOES NOT APPLY when it comes to this IEM right from the get go. It demands your attention once it is served in your plate. The packaging is unique with its cylindrical box with the words "On The Road!" boldly stapled on its facade. The company's name is greatly highlighted with a painted hip-hop lettering vibe on the lid of the box, with the same theme carrying over on the sides of the box.


- Product
To be frank with you, I did not remember the time when I unboxed these IEMs. I searched up YouTube videos to jog my memory of it, and indeed, I experienced the same unboxing as others out there. You are presented with the IEMs themselves once you pop open the lid, greeting you with its bombastic blings with its different coloration per IEM side (Red for L, Green for R) and gold accents. There are no eartips attached to the IEM upon presentation.
- Particulars
Upon taking off the foams that hug the IEMs upon initial presentation, you will be greeted by an eye-popping red cables for the IEM. We see the same gold accents encountered in the IEM on the ear hooks, adding more flair to the already-grandiose looks. It may not be as good-looking in the pictures I have provided due to the years of wear-and-tear it has gone through, but trust me, they are a sight to behold back then. We also see a little bag of average S,M,L eartips at the end of our unboxing journey.


𝘽𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙌𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 & 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙩
The IEM's shell is entirely made of plastic, and sadly, it feels cheap. Its far from the medical grade resin we get from the Chi-Fi offerings of today. Despite its cheap feeling, it has withstood the test of time. I have owned this IEM for almost 4 years by the time of this review; none of the plastic have broken and/or chipped off in its years of servitude. There is a slight presence of metal in the shell by a form of some gold-colored pin, but I reckon this was put just for the bling factor rather than functional purposes. I must say that the ink that Opera Factory used in printing the phrases present in the shell are REALLY high quality, as there are no paint chipping/fading to be seen. Other companies should take note, lol.
The cheap feeling of the IEM bodes well for the comfort of this IEM, as it weighs as much as air when you put it inside your ear. I must say, out of all the IEMs I have in my possession, this is the most comfortable. Its small form factor also greatly contributes to its comfort in my ear, as it sits snug and tight. Despite its angular/pointy design on the front of the shell, the back provides ample curvatures that really hug your ear once inserted. It greatly helps with isolation from outside noises, provided that you partner it with eartips that fits your ear nicely. The OM1 does not protrude out of the ears like other bigger IEMs out there, which really helps if you want to listen to it while lying down in your bed. I can definitely wear this IEM throughout the day without me noticing its physical presence on my ears.



𝙎𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙


𝘔𝘜𝘚𝘐𝘊 𝘜𝘚𝘌𝘋:
𝘛𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘦 - 𝘍𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭
𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘦𝘭 𝘑𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴𝘰𝘯 - 𝘋𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴
𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘞𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘦 - 𝘓𝘦𝘵'𝘴 𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘷𝘦
𝘋𝘢𝘧𝘵 𝘗𝘶𝘯𝘬 - 𝘋𝘰𝘪𝘯' 𝘐𝘵 𝘙𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵
𝘋𝘢𝘧𝘵 𝘗𝘶𝘯𝘬 - 𝘎𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘛𝘰 𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤
𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 - 𝘔𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘴 𝘗𝘵. 1
𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 - 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘯𝘦𝘮𝘺 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦
𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 - 𝘡𝘦𝘳𝘰 𝘛𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦
𝘔𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢 - 𝘍𝘪𝘹𝘹𝘹𝘦𝘳
𝘚𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳 - 𝘚𝘶𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵
𝘚𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱 - 𝘚𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤 𝘛𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘯
- Signature
Oh, the OM1. I vividly remember the hype this one had in the audiophile community once it was released, as it promised bass like no budget IEM have ever delved in before. I didn't even audition the IEM like I previously used to do (shoutout to Techshop28 Audiophile Gadgets Store for letting me always in your store back in 2018), I just blindly bought the IEM based on its hype. And boy, did it deliver on its promise.
B A S S. That's it. That's the review.
Just joking. The sound signature of this IEM is like that greasy yet scrumptious burger: you know its not good for you and is objectively bad, but you just keep on biting into it like your other guilty pleasures. Its the bloated V-shaped tuning with bass taken to its extremes, thumping your soul like you owe it money.
As previously said, the bass on the OM1 is overwhelming. Bassheads are to be delighted by the substantial amount of mid-bass thump and boom it provides. Bass lines rumble the ear canal with fullness and integrity, while kick drum lines progressively rattle your insides. The substantial amount of mid-bass boost leads to the eventual leak into the mids, leading to times that it traverses into dark muddy/murky aural territory once a particular song has a warmer production value.
As described before, the OM1 is one of the prime examples of v-shaped tuning taken to its extremes. The mids on this bad boy are taken aback, making the signature more hollow upon further listening. It makes for a pseudo-mids experience: the overwhelming amounts of bass bleed makes you first think that the mids are intact, while the truth is far from it. Vocals are affected by this pseudo-mids experience, both male and female vocals are in-front for the first few listens, but there comes the realization that its the bass bleed that makes it happen. It makes the experience full at first but hollow in actuality, harkening back to the burger analogy I made earlier.
The treble on these are average at best. Most of the clarity is derived from the mid-treble territory; cymbals and higher female registers having good body yet with no sparkle. There is still the v-shape tonality wherein treble is felt, but there is the lack of shine that those type of signatures typically have. The lack of treble extension is immediately heard and felt, as I can imagine it is a decision to make the bass more in front.
- Soundstage
The soundstage for these IEMs are above average. They offer that expansive aural territory, thanks to the ingenious move Opera Factory did to these. The single DD driver is oriented in a unique way: instead of it facing towards the nozzle of the OM1, it faces towards the outer shell. The benefit of doing this is it gives the driver more air and space to work with, utlizing the entirety of the shell as a room for frequencies to play with. This results in good imaging and representation of both channels, with them being cohesive. Drum tom roll volume is consistent throughout the left ear, center, and to the right ear. The only problem that it faces is still its overwhelming amounts of bass booming throughout its aural landscape: it lessens the expansiveness of its soundstage. Its bassy warm tonality damages its good soundstage, which is disappointing.

VERDICT:
Packaging:
Build Quality & Comfort:
Sound: (objectively) / (subjectively)

𝗚𝗼𝗷𝗶-𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗘𝗤 𝗦𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀:

+3db at 125 (2.0 Q) - Low Shelf
+3db at 480 (1.2 Q) - Peak
+3db at 922 (2.0 Q) - Peak
+3db at 2.6k (1.7 Q) - Peak
+5db at 12k (2.5 Q) - High Shelf

Intro
The OperaFactory OM1 self-confidently poses as a monitor for the stage and promises a "super bass". But it doesn't promise too much. The OM1 is a classic V-signature in-ear, with a rocky design and great wearing comfort.

Handling
When ordering, we receive a round, high carton box with the slogan "On The Road" in graffiti lettering. The box contains a red 4-core cable without remote/microphone and the in-ears. These have an individual design and stand out from the crowd, which I find positive. One notices that the OM1 is really aimed at musicians and therefore also for stage use.

Whether this is also suitable for it in terms of sound is still to be clarified.
But the workmanship and haptics speak for the OM1. In addition the flexible cable, which introduces a new adapter, as we have already seen with the new KZ ZSN (2-pin with protruding plugs on the in-ear and a cover on the cable), which makes it almost impossible to break the pins. The OM1 is very comfortable to wear and the robust reinforcement of the earbuds makes it extremely secure. The isolation is excellent, which is equally important for stage use.

If you like it a bit more fancy/obtrusive, you'll quickly get used to the design of the OM1.

Sound
The OM1 delights us with a warm V-signature, which is nothing special in itself, because it has been heard a thousand times, or something similar, but that doesn't mean that this in-ear is no fun. Even a good V-signature has to be done first.

The bass, however, is a bit too emphasized for my taste. It dominates the whole sound too much. In the mid-bass it tends to become exhausting and attacks the mid-range. Nevertheless it can give a drum kit or bass riffs a real impact and thus give any kind of rock music, or metal draught, liveliness and simply bumps. I would dam the higher bass range a bit to give the midrange more space.

These are taken back signature-typically and are honestly not exactly the hobbyhorse of the OM1, at least with the bass. Guitars sound wonderfully full and dynamic, but unfortunately the voices don't reach the listener when it gets more complex. I would have liked a bit more momentum in the higher mids to get the voices back to the front and to make the guitars crunchier. But this can be easily adjusted with an equalizer. You also have to mention that the OM1 tries to cover the whole frequency spectrum with a dynamic driver. But this can be done better.

The highs are very relaxed and without any significant peaks. They try to oppose the bass in the same way as the mids, which makes them a bit more successful and allows them to shine more.
Details can be seen and the separation also works, but is mediocre at best. The stage is also rather intimate.
Basically the signature can also be called L-shaped.

Outro
Are the OM1 really suitable for the stage?
I would say conditionally and also dependent on what possibilities you have. If you have the possibility to create your own monitor mix and chase it through an equalizer, then that's for sure. Otherwise I would recommend the IEMs bassists and especially drummers, because in this area the OM1s play really well and many embroidery transducers will enjoy playing the bass drum with the OM1. The design is suitable for the stage as well as the feel of the earphones.

Otherwise these in-ears are recommended to all others who like to listen to rock and love bass. In the long run it is too much for me personally, because even bass can be tiring at some point.

BUY HERE
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Whizzer Opera Factory OM1.




The CRUNK IEM. I would like to give a shout out to my fellow headfiers and earphone addicts around the world. This earphone here was provided to me for a review. Can be purchased here. This here is my take on these phones. As an enthusiast and someone that enjoys music of all types and earphones of all types. I will judge these phones based on the type of phone and what audience it is reaching for.




Upon receiving the OM1s in the round jewelry box. Once opened you get to see the shells in translucent red and green. These will not get mistaken for any other iem in the market that is for sure. They stand out as being distinct. Mimicking a fake gem like quality to the shells these are made for over the ear applications much like the many conch shell type earphones we see in the market today. What makes them stand out is that translucent red left and green right for the housing. Finished off by a red braided cord.




You want to stand out. You got it. Looks aside what really matters is the sonics. The look at me shells has a certain toyish look and charm about them that I am sure younger brash pre teens might actually like. But for most mature enthusiasts these might be a bit too bold looking. I am not too proud to say I wore these outdoors to try out their isolation and yes I did get the look from some of the teens around town more odd that a middle aged man would have what looks like fake jewelry in his ears. Hey gotta test out the fit and how they do in real life applications right?


The build is actually pretty good. With a comfy fit and good amount of isolation too. Sorry to break the news to you but the shells are made of plastic. How can that be? Who doesn't want to walk around with jewel encrusted ear pieces in your ears. Nothing says your serious about your audio like jems stuffed in your ears for earphones. Until we get the actual thing. Hey we have the OM1s.


I give credit where credit is due. At least it isn’t yet another copy of the same looking shell design by numerous others.


Specs:

10mm dynamic

Sensitivity 110 db

Impedance 16 Ohms

Frequency 20hz-40Khz

2 Pin 1.2Meter cable


Let's get down to business so what makes these stand out?

It is all about you guessed it. BASS. And I mean copious amounts of it. Like you haven't heard in a long time type of BASS. It clearly says on the advertisement. “Splendid bass tuning in ear monitor.” Bass tuning is right. Splendid. Don’t know if I would use that word but BASS in big lettering is how they should market these.


The sound tuning is best described as CRUNK. Bigness where it counts. An abnormally big bold strong bottom end boosted to at least a good 16dbs of mid bass. You know your in for a good time when them bass notes dominate the entire spectrum. Who needs mids or highs. I certainly don’t. Mids are so overrated cus all you need is that boom boom. Highs actually have some presence. That is when there is no low notes that are present. Sound signature is a deep V shape signature. It is Bass first always all the time then what is left of the treble then the mids.


Looking at the shells. These are actually designed really well for one thing and one thing only. The earphones use a reverse firing technique as the larger dynamic driver faces outward on the shell to give the BASS some serious space and a lot of air which includes the entire back chamber for that BASS to gain momentum. You got that right the entire shell is used as a BASS chamber.


Sound makes good use of space as the recessed mids which are dominated by the mid bass actually has decent imaging but that is if there isn't much bass in the tune.. Mids lack depth or any real presence but who cares as long as that bass gives your ear lobes a message every time. Have you ever been in a club too long? No?. You should try holding your head in front of them speakers for an hour. Good times.



These are trunk of funk simulators. Have you ever been in your best friends ride who threw on all subs and no midrange speakers in his truck? Uncanny. OM1 is what you need for that type of bass drowning simulation. Excellent for those moments when you want to simulate that time in your life when you experimented with so much bass it didn’t matter if you couldn’t figure out what tune your hearing as long as you got that bass line. Clearly heard from the next 10 cars around you. For you these will bring out that grin all the time every time.


One note bass is called upon. Bass so big there is no sense of finesse or tightness. Who needs tight bass when you have more bass for that. You want textured bass? Again who cares about that when you have even more bass for that. I ain’t playin homey. We are talking big time Xtra BASS.


Treble actually has some presence when called for but not even close to the bass end when that is called for. So you get where this is going. It is all about that stupid mind numbing, club going, low rider 64 Chevy impala vato cruisin, smoking a spliff while sandwich eating, thinking them girls are lookin at you, thinking them folks next to your low rider is thinking you're all that cuz you got dat! BASS!



Now that is cool. No need for any of that cus you get all that packed in this power house of an earphone in the OM1. OM1 stands for OH MYGAWD 1 mo time!!.. Which is what people say when they hear this. You can’t escape the presence of this. You can’t throw them in your ears quick enough. Are you man enough to handle all this? Ya you. Are you good enough to handle all this?


If you find yourselves worthy. They are the bassiest earphones I have heard in a long time if not the bassiest I have heard period. It is more mid bass than sub bass so bass bleed is gonna be dominant. And we all know Bass domination is definitely CRUNK! You need more bass in your life?. These are what the Dr. ordered.


Hey It ain't all about just that bass line. These are the closest to a THX theatre set in your ears so movies and games have that POW POW. Which makes for some entertaining cinematic explosions and gunfire in both mediums. Bonus OH MYGAWD 1 mo time!!


In the end these earphones are fun. They will remind you of the days when Panasonic and Sony used to have Xtreme BASS boost on everything they used to make for cassettes and CD players. Cuz we all love some Xtra Bass. Who don’t. They get a hearty 3 stars which stands for 3X more bass than you will ever need for 3X the fun. As always happy listening and try not to crank up the bass too much you might disturb the neighbors.