Introduction –
Plunge Audio is a small boutique CIEM lab located in Calgary, Canada, which has made monitors for several fairly well known Canadian and international artists. The Producer is their triple driver CIEM priced below their flagship Engineer models at $1100 CAD, and has a very well extended neutral sound signature, that is very easy to listen to for extended periods as well as providing plenty of detail and bass impact.
Disclaimer –
These are my own personal pair, purchased by my hard earned tax return, and this review is my own words. Plunge Audio has no input into this review at all.
Accessories –
The included goodies are pretty standard for a CIEM. The monitors come in a very nice pelican case which has custom engraved wood panels, including your name and phone number, hence the Velcro covering
(don’t want y’all calling me!). Included is a cleaning tool, and a very nice custom cleaning cloth.
Design –
Being A CIEM, personalization is the name of the game here! I opted for a Buckeye burl faceplate with a blue-purple transparent shell (along with Simon, the owner of Plunge Audios’, autograph on the faceplate) and I couldn’t be happier with how they turned out. The shells themselves are SLA 3D printed and have no visible defects at all, which speaks to the attention to detail Simon puts into his work. The faceplates were chosen by me from a strip of wood from the bucket of materials Simon has, (and he has everything from exotic wood, to pcb boards, to pizza tins, to carbon fibre), which added to the personalization of the monitors.
The connections are your standard 2 pin connectors; however, they are recessed into the shell which is nice and adds a nice sleek look when the cables are attached. The stock cable is a 48 inch cable with pre formed rubber earhooks, and a jacketed cable. It’s honestly the best stock cable I have had the pleasure of using, and I don’t think many will need to change it out. The only down side with it is the slider is somewhat fiddly to use. However, I opted to have Simon make me a custom silver braided cable just because I like the look of braids more than a jacketed cable.
Fit and isolation are on point, I did require a couple small fit adjustments to my right ear, but can happily report that I am now able to keep these in an entire day with no discomfort at all, and as a result, I may end up being hit by a car due to their amazing isolation. The canals aren’t as deep as some monitors, but they are nice and wide, resulting a nice ‘full’ feeling when worn and are never painful. 10/10 for comfort.
Sound –
I have well over 150 hours into these monitors by now, and haven’t noticed any changes in sound, and I don’t anticipate it changing in the future. They do like amping, with a nominal impedance of 87 ohms and 105db/mw at 1khz. I am using my Fiio A5 with an iphone 4 as a source.
Tonality-
The Analog producer is a very well balanced, IEM which leans to the slightly warm side of neutral. It has amazing extension and clarity with top tier imaging and staging, and is never fatiguing or sibilant.
Bass-
The bass on the producers is very, very nice. It is extremely well extended, with lots of detail and speed, with top tier resolution. The bass is never boomy, but instead is perfectly tuned to be inline with the lower and upper midrange. It won’t shake your head, but it has amazing impact and detail, and is tuned almost perfectly. Balanced and neutrality is the name of the game with these monitors.
Midrange-
I would not call the producers a mid centric IEM, but they do have a sense of smoothness to the mids which makes them wonderful to listen to for long periods of time. Vocals are never recessed, and string instruments come through with amazing detail, clarity and timbre. No noticeable dips, and no over emphasis in the 3-5 kHz range which means female vocals are never grating or sibilant. Truly some of the best mids I have yet heard in an IEM to date. Smooth, detailed and refined, they are a treat.
Highs-
The treble section is remarkable as well. Amazing extension, up to 18-20kHz is well presented, and adds to a very open and airy sound, seriously, some of the best imaging and sound staging I have heard in an IEM. The highs are never harsh or sibilant in any way, and are incredibly detailed and fast. Again, balance and extension is the name of the game here, the highs never feel behind in the mix, nor are they too forward, but instead right in line with the bass and mids.
Soundstage and Imaging-
The producers are one of only a few IEM’s which can actually pull off a “out of head” caliber soundstage. The staging is wide, with very accurate placement. Seriously, one of the biggest surprises for me was how well these things can image and how wide their soundstage is, considering they are an IEM. Must be the recessed sound tubes acting as a sort of resonator or something, cause its impressive.
Conclusion-
The producers are a very well tuned monitor, which has amazing extension, a vast soundstage and slightly smooth, neutral tonality. Build quality is excellent, and Simon will really go above and beyond in his efforts to accommodate custom tunings and designs. I really do not have enough praise for Simon in his tuning and build of his monitors, and encourage you to check out Plunge Audio next time you are in the market for a new set of CIEMs.
https://www.plungeaudio.com/
Plunge Audio is a small boutique CIEM lab located in Calgary, Canada, which has made monitors for several fairly well known Canadian and international artists. The Producer is their triple driver CIEM priced below their flagship Engineer models at $1100 CAD, and has a very well extended neutral sound signature, that is very easy to listen to for extended periods as well as providing plenty of detail and bass impact.
Disclaimer –
These are my own personal pair, purchased by my hard earned tax return, and this review is my own words. Plunge Audio has no input into this review at all.
Accessories –
The included goodies are pretty standard for a CIEM. The monitors come in a very nice pelican case which has custom engraved wood panels, including your name and phone number, hence the Velcro covering
(don’t want y’all calling me!). Included is a cleaning tool, and a very nice custom cleaning cloth.
Design –
Being A CIEM, personalization is the name of the game here! I opted for a Buckeye burl faceplate with a blue-purple transparent shell (along with Simon, the owner of Plunge Audios’, autograph on the faceplate) and I couldn’t be happier with how they turned out. The shells themselves are SLA 3D printed and have no visible defects at all, which speaks to the attention to detail Simon puts into his work. The faceplates were chosen by me from a strip of wood from the bucket of materials Simon has, (and he has everything from exotic wood, to pcb boards, to pizza tins, to carbon fibre), which added to the personalization of the monitors.
The connections are your standard 2 pin connectors; however, they are recessed into the shell which is nice and adds a nice sleek look when the cables are attached. The stock cable is a 48 inch cable with pre formed rubber earhooks, and a jacketed cable. It’s honestly the best stock cable I have had the pleasure of using, and I don’t think many will need to change it out. The only down side with it is the slider is somewhat fiddly to use. However, I opted to have Simon make me a custom silver braided cable just because I like the look of braids more than a jacketed cable.
Fit and isolation are on point, I did require a couple small fit adjustments to my right ear, but can happily report that I am now able to keep these in an entire day with no discomfort at all, and as a result, I may end up being hit by a car due to their amazing isolation. The canals aren’t as deep as some monitors, but they are nice and wide, resulting a nice ‘full’ feeling when worn and are never painful. 10/10 for comfort.
Sound –
I have well over 150 hours into these monitors by now, and haven’t noticed any changes in sound, and I don’t anticipate it changing in the future. They do like amping, with a nominal impedance of 87 ohms and 105db/mw at 1khz. I am using my Fiio A5 with an iphone 4 as a source.
Tonality-
The Analog producer is a very well balanced, IEM which leans to the slightly warm side of neutral. It has amazing extension and clarity with top tier imaging and staging, and is never fatiguing or sibilant.
Bass-
The bass on the producers is very, very nice. It is extremely well extended, with lots of detail and speed, with top tier resolution. The bass is never boomy, but instead is perfectly tuned to be inline with the lower and upper midrange. It won’t shake your head, but it has amazing impact and detail, and is tuned almost perfectly. Balanced and neutrality is the name of the game with these monitors.
Midrange-
I would not call the producers a mid centric IEM, but they do have a sense of smoothness to the mids which makes them wonderful to listen to for long periods of time. Vocals are never recessed, and string instruments come through with amazing detail, clarity and timbre. No noticeable dips, and no over emphasis in the 3-5 kHz range which means female vocals are never grating or sibilant. Truly some of the best mids I have yet heard in an IEM to date. Smooth, detailed and refined, they are a treat.
Highs-
The treble section is remarkable as well. Amazing extension, up to 18-20kHz is well presented, and adds to a very open and airy sound, seriously, some of the best imaging and sound staging I have heard in an IEM. The highs are never harsh or sibilant in any way, and are incredibly detailed and fast. Again, balance and extension is the name of the game here, the highs never feel behind in the mix, nor are they too forward, but instead right in line with the bass and mids.
Soundstage and Imaging-
The producers are one of only a few IEM’s which can actually pull off a “out of head” caliber soundstage. The staging is wide, with very accurate placement. Seriously, one of the biggest surprises for me was how well these things can image and how wide their soundstage is, considering they are an IEM. Must be the recessed sound tubes acting as a sort of resonator or something, cause its impressive.
Conclusion-
The producers are a very well tuned monitor, which has amazing extension, a vast soundstage and slightly smooth, neutral tonality. Build quality is excellent, and Simon will really go above and beyond in his efforts to accommodate custom tunings and designs. I really do not have enough praise for Simon in his tuning and build of his monitors, and encourage you to check out Plunge Audio next time you are in the market for a new set of CIEMs.
https://www.plungeaudio.com/
