Reecho Spring with a bonus impression of the Summer.
Aha the seasonal earphone. There are currently only two manufacturers that I know of that has done the seasonal earphone. The idea of having seasonal earphones makes a lot of sense. Much like how colors convey a certain emotion or mood. So does the seasons of the year. How does one convey a season in the form of an earphone?. I can see a bunch of sound folks sitting at a table throwing out ideas. Well for one you gotta have a colorful design. The sound has to be colorful as well because we are talking about Spring.
The design of the Spring jumps out with its light blue, aqua blue,lime green and golden orange pattern. It is most definitely a looker and has what looks like a hand painted semi custom resin design. The size of the Spring is compact and has a smaller form factor comparative to other similar designs. These are very comfortable to use for hours due to their physically smaller shell size and shape. Not only is the earphones themselves premium in looks but the entire package is excellent.
A larger roomy zip up case which I appreciate as most cases in the price range are so compact they barely fit the earphones and the accessories that go with them. Not the Spring, the larger brown case is again something you get with a much more premium package. The tips selection is good as it incorporates 3 different sets of silicone tips and two pairs of foams to use.
The cable is a good silver plated OFC copper cable in 8 cores. Though the color does not really match the shells as it is brown and black. Otherwise the set of accessories for the given price point is done really well.
Disclaimers: I would like to thank Penon audio for the review samples. If you feel the need to get yourself a set you can purchase the Spring
here and the Summer
here which are on sale as of this review. These are my interpretations of the Reecho Spring. The Spring was burned in for a week and sound analysis was done using my DAPs. Fiio M15, Shanling M6pro, M5s, M3s, Fiio X3ii,Ibasso DX160,Sony ZX300, IBasso PB3 and IFI Black label for amping.
The Spring incorporates a hybrid design utilizing a coaxial 8mm dynamic doing the bass to mids and a composite BA for the treble with a dual crossover design. Each driver that represents the sounds are clearly divided giving a clean separation from treble to the mids. I recognize this particular sound design on their higher end Reecho insects awaken for their bass BAs one for doing sub bass and another doing mid bass to lower mids. For the most part the sound is seamless but I do notice the treble has BA timbre for treble and the dynamic has dynamic timbre. Taken as a whole the sound you're gonna notice crisp detailed extended trebles and a smoother dynamic mids to bass presentation so not all that different from most hybrid designs so nothing out of the ordinary for hybrids.
Spring tuning leans more toward a neutrally tuned design which was a surprise to me as most of their earphones incorporate some bold bass including their summer earphones. The Spring here has the least amount of bass emphasis out of all their earphones making them sound a bit monitor-like which is not a bad thing. It is more a tuning based on balance, detail, precision and imaging. I like that Reecho explores different sound signatures in their designs which will appeal to enthusiasts that like these types of signatures.
Its sound design has good balancing with a moderate upper mids gain. Otherwise I am hearing equal footing for bass mids and treble for the Spring. Neutral tunings are great to pick off more details in the mids and treble and hence sound excellent for acoustic and instrumental scores that require accuracy, good timbre and detail. However the one aspect that I think could have been better, more due to the compact design but the difference between a higher end neutral design and an intro level neutral design has to do with stage presentation.
This exact tuning with a much wider grander stage and these would have clearly separated itself as something truly exceptional. As they are, the stage is somewhat intimate if not average for in ears, otherwise the tuning aspect of the Spring is solid with a lot of great attributes to the sound.
Treble sees the most emphasis toward the mid treble frequencies but also has some good extension for the upper trebles. While not the most accurate and capable of treble designs the treble has good presence and details well for the overall sound and blends nicely with the presentation of the Spring.
Mids sees a moderate upper mids emphasis for good clarity and presence. I find their technical performance to be average in scope and lacks a touch of depth, fullness and height to the mid bands but that also has to do with the neutral nature of the overall presentation. Otherwise It has very good timbre for the mids but comes off a bit lacking for dynamism. Mids do portray a good detailed nature and sounds complete but due to the relative flat monitor-like imaging for the sound, its presentation is not as layered or nuanced as I would have liked.
Much like how more neutral presentations goes the mids lack a dimensional character; more advanced designs have a tendency to do better. Its imaging is more relegated to a single plane of sound vs having layers of it. And this is what I meant by the more monitor-like neutral tuning that is on the Spring here reveals. If accuracy is more your style of earphone these will most certainly be attractive in sound design for you.
Bass end is fast tight and has a moderate emphasis out of the three frequency ranges. Its linear bass quantity lines up with how I hear the tuning to be. Bass has no influence over the mids and is clearly defined in the region. Mid bass has a tight clean and agile but is not quite punchy enough for bass fans. Sub bass has a roll off in the sub regions and has what I consider a more accurate less colored bass end. It has a good but not world class level of texture for the sub bass but due to the lack of a real impactful bass tuning, bass comes a bit reserved on the Spring by design. You can’t have excessive bass for a neutrally tuned earphone so the bass tuning lines up for this type of tuning.
For folks that take a premium for dynamic timbre and treble clarity with the bass end to be complimentary more so than featured, that is how I am hearing the Springs bass performance.
Its stage, while more intimate than overly spacious or wide, is nicely imaged in being wider than deep or tall sound presentation. It's a more intimate presentation but not so dimensional in sound projection. There are no parts of the sound that sticks out hence the balancing for the Spring is done better than most of their other earphones including their much more premium Insects awaken. For the given price point I feel these are worth exploring as they have an easy to listen tuning yet detailed enough to not be missing out on any given part of the music you're listening to.
If you are a fan of neutrality there are not too many earphones in this price range that does neutral well like the Spring. Reecho has proven to me that they can tune different types of signatures which shows versatility and a know how to tune such earphones. I would love to see an evolution of this particular sound design they have done with an update.
Overall the Reecho Spring is most definitely worthy of consideration at their given price point especially for those that take a liking to more neutral presentations. They are very attractive, has decent passive isolation and are solid by design with an excellent accessories package. The Spring is Reecho's smallest semi custom ergonomic shell design and are comfortable for hours of listening. Overall you will get your money's worth in sound and comfort. As always thanks for reading.
Bonus review. Reecho Summer.
Sound signature of the Summer is a mild V shaped signature. This makes a lot of sense for the sound to be representative of hot days and cooler nights. How many evenings have you partied during warm evenings with friends and family with a neutral sound. No, you want that bass pumpin them clear details and a sound that is dynamic. Not too many folks are gonna party with a neutral tuned sound if you know what I mean. Their more neutral balanced take on sound is more what the Spring is going for. Not so much the Summer.
Summer is tuned a lot like their higher end Reecho insects awaken which also has a v shaped tuning but that one uses all BAs for its sonic reproduction. The Summer uses the tried and true dynamic driver in a dual format. One for upper mids and treble, another for bass and mids for its sonic reproduction and in doing so the strengths of the dynamic drivers are at full force on the Summer. Its got greater bass emphasis, impact and extension for its bass end vs their much more balanced neutralish Springs earphones.
What you get in the box is a very good set of accessories and a customized color themed 8 core Silver plated oxygen free copper cable in 8 cores. I find it interesting as this cable color would have actually matched better with the Spring color motif and the Spring cable would have matched better with the dark blue color for the Summers. I suppose if you own both sets you can interchange the cables for a proper color match up. I am a fan of the quality of the accessories Reecho has thrown in for both their Summer and their Spring. Not all manufacturers are going to give you tips that work well or a nice boutique like cable that enhances the sound of the Summers. This does not necessarily mean it is a good match for the tuning of the Summer however. Some careful thought was done for the whole thing. The tip selection is commendable. You get 3 sets of usable silicones and two pairs of foams to use. The best aspect of the accessories package is a nice and roomy brown zip up case. This case is great as not only all of the accessories fit in there but you can throw in a small DAP in it too.
Summer has an energetic brighter tuning with a good amount of treble emphasis and just as energetic for the bass end.
The 8mm dual dynamic being used for the sound for the Summer has good resolve and has the ability to reproduce fundamental technical performance for the Summer. Its stage is not particularly wide but gives a good overall picture of your tunes with an accurate yet brighter tonal flavoring to the sound. Its shaper tonal character is a bit unforgiving of badly recorded material. Its imaging is good and there is no part of the sound on the Summer that sounds dull or veiled. The stage comes off as wider with decent depth but lacks a bit of height in its presentation. Sound separation is average for the price point but its macro details and timbre is a standout on the Summer sound signature.
The trebles of the Summer are tuned to enhance details therefore casts a brighter tonal shadow upon the upper mids with a moderate treble spike somewhere between 5- 6Khz. This causes the overall sound presentation to have a brighter tonal character. Clarity is good on the Summer but has a slight edgy effect on vocal performances due to a moderate spike in the area. Stringed instruments benefit from the clean tonal influence of the treble tuning adding a sharper influence for timbre and has an overall clarity in detail but comes off a bit forced. Trebles has a slight metallic overtone but has good extension and imaging for the region. For what is there it is competent, rangy and extended in what it does but sounds just a touch edgy in the process.
Like you don’t do stuff in the Summer time that is just a bit edgy, especially with them no good friends of yours, I am just saying.
Upper mids take on a cooler tonal character and are highlighted more for female vocal performances. Not so much for male vocals. The lower half of the mids is not necessarily recessed but it certainly is not forward sounding. It sounds a bit laid back in the mix for the region and for folks that do not enjoy a forward sounding IEM the Summer overal does not project the sound to be forward or is it overly dimensional. Mids has an undertone of clarity and timbre is good but lacks a bit of body and fullness to the mid bands.
Mids does a good job presenting your music with a clear brighter tone but for an earphone that goes by the name of Summer it is most definitely brighter than warm at any region of the sound excluding the bass end. Perhaps it is trying to portray the rays of the sunshine via sound. The included cable I can tell is a resolving SPC type cable but does not compliment the Summer for a better tonal balance. It makes them sound a touch brighter than it already is actually. The cable is resolving so you do get a better sense of definition and the sound is even cleaner using this cable but it also seems to accentuate the treble end a bit too in the process.Trying out a less resolving pure copper cable matches better. The included cable enhances details alright which the stock tuning does plenty well enough without an enhancing cable.
The bass end is tight, fast and while enhanced, sounds accurate for the most part and I do like the bass end of the Summer more than the moderately emphasized Spring. But at the same time I have heard what Reecho can do for bass in their SG-03 to really separate itself from the rest of the pack when it comes to bass. Sub bass is the best aspect of the Summer bass presentation as it has good impact and reach but at the same time the bass end is not exactly spectacular or does it stand out as being something different. Bass is blended well with the tonal character of the Summer but it isn't the last word in authority or texture. I suppose I was expecting a bit more from the bass end but for the given price point it is a good bass end but nothing outstanding.
Summer has a moderate V shaped signature which fits well with Summer nights blasting them tunes but at the same time is not so refined a sound as I would have liked and with Reechos very first cable mismatch for the tuning I have seen from the group. Its brighter tonal character will not be for everyone and folks that are particularly sensitive to brightness would do better with Reecho's Spring earphones. There are redeeming factors to the tuning as they sound very good for female vocals that are recorded well and exhibit good timbre for instruments with a clean presentation. The Spring I feel is a more mature better balanced product. The Summer represents Springs' younger brother who is not quite ready for the spotlight. You figure for a product called Summer it would have a part of the sound with some warmth to the tuning but they went the opposite and did bright instead. Summer is not all about warm hot days. It also has bright sunlight that casts its brighter morning rays across the globe and I suppose that was the angle Reecho has taken. Thanks for taking the time to read.
