SIMGOT EA500

The brand SIMGOT piques my interest since 2018 when I read about the EN700 reviews that were circulated in Head-fi and other portable audio reviewer sites. Its metal shell along with its design aesthetics really pays my attention and I'm somewhat taking a liking on it. I actually yearning to have it at that time but it is quite unfeasible due to budget constraints.


After 5 years, In my leisure time, I do publish some review write-ups about portable audio products. I was offered to do a review for a new product from SIMGOT and I didn't hesitate to accept the offer as it is my chance to own a SIMGOT set.




What I have here is the SIMGOT EA500, their latest model for the entry-level portable audio market. This set has a single dynamic driver on its interior. The transducers that were implemented inside was a 10mm dual cavity dynamic driver with DLC (Diamond-like Carbon) diaphragm on which SIMGOT's claimed as a 4th generation. We are aware of the capabilities of DLC drivers like faster transients due to less distortion, tighter and a more precise bass, a good clarity on midrange and a shimmering highs.




The internals were housed in a shell chassis made of a solid aluminium alloy with a polished chrome-like finish surface in its cavity base. It also has well-placed vent holes on its cavity base. It has an innovative feature that it has a removable nozzle system where you can simply detach it and the good thing was the SIMGOT offers two types of nozzles with different tunings on which you can choose from based on your preferred closest target curve. The red ring nozzle tuning filter follows a typical Harman target curve while the black ring one has a signature SIMGOT tuning which is a modified Harman target. Another good thing of SIMGOT EA500 was its type of detachable interlocking system, it uses a proven 2-pin receptacle connector.




As for fitting and comfort, despite its all-metal built shell chassis, it perfectly rests well on my lug holes as I can wear it for a long listening session. We should expect a bit of weight on it as it is a metal shell but I can assure you that I don't feel any ear fatigue or other discomfort.





The product packaging of SIMGOT EA500 is rather utilitarian for its price bracket, it has a substantial amount of inclusion inside its medium-sized, square black coloured box. The presentation of contents inside are compartmentalised and well-organised, the pair of IEM shells are placed in a foam material, the eartips have its own box and while the rest of accessories are in a separate box.





The contents of inclusions are the following:

● Pair of SIMGOT EA500 IEM.
● a 2-core white coloured silver-plated OFC cable in a L-shaped 3.5mm termination plug.
● Velcro cable organiser.
● Capsule-shaped IEM zippered case.
● 3 pairs of medium-bored white ear tips of different standard sizes.
● Instruction manuals.
● Detachable nozzle filter for "Harman curve target" tuning.
● Detachable nozzle filter for "Simgot-Classic" tuning.
● Some spares ring indicator for detachable nozzles



SIMGOT EA500s are easy to amplify because it only needs a decent amount of power output from multimedia devices to be able to drive it to its fullest performance. You will be able to hear a dynamic, full-range sounding experience from EA500.





When it comes to tonality, SIMGOT EA500 has two detachable nozzle filters on which sound profile you choose from. Both of them are of a mild-U shaped sound signature. The one with the red nozzle ring is more closely aligning to the currently popular tuning, the Harman target curve, and the other one is the Simgot target curve with their own interpretation of their in-house and modified Harman target curve. Both sound profiles aim to sound more balanced and smoother response with some slight differences on the upper mids to brilliance treble.






LOWS/BASS:

Punchy, clean and accurate, those are the initial impressions that I hear on the EA500. The sub bass is more prominent on red-coloured ring nozzles as it gives more reverberations on synth-pop, old hip-hop, some pop and classic rock tracks especially with synthesisers, electronic drum machines and low-tuned bass guitars.

On the mid bass part, The black-coloured ring nozzles have more texture with ample note weight on how it will influence the sound characteristics for each bass-focus instrument and vocals.


Bass Guitars:

● Red ring nozzle - a bit hollowed, mellow sounding and with some raspiness on every pluck.

● Black ring nozzle - it has a sufficient heft, broader and has a sombre characteristic that gives a decent roar and growl.


Bass Drum Kicks:

● Red ring nozzle - once again a tad hollow, soft impact and with some rumbling sound.

● Black ring nozzle - Resonant and with a well-placed thud sound, At least more fuller sounding compared to the Red ring nozzle.


Bass-Baritones:

● Red ring nozzle - less darker, smoother and clearly more articulate, similar texture with lyrical type of baritone, "Noble Baritone".

● Black ring nozzle - At least, it has richer and fuller sound with sufficient depth. I'm basing it on the voice qualities of Barry White and Andrew Eldritch on this particular comparison.


Another surprisingly good attribute on its bass was its projection on the separation between the sub bass and mid bass.


MIDRANGE:

The midrange of EA500 has a tad recession in the overall sonic frequency presentation. Despite that notch presentation, it stays neutral, with an ample amount of warmth, smooth delivery (red ring nozzle) and clean sounding (black ring nozzle) that sounds more balanced to listen upon depending on your tuning preference. Both male and female vocals will have some slight differences depending on the nozzle and it also extends up to the instruments' tonal colour.


● Red ring nozzle - It gives less textured depth on male voices to give a bit leaner presentation as it prefers more on lyrical baritones to have lighter, sweeter and smoother quality like Chris Cornell and David Bowie. On female vocals, Mezzo-sopranos fare better on this one as they have this velvety, tender and warmer tone like Annie Lennox and Andrea Corr. Strings like acoustic guitars sound a bit buttery and mellow with just enough sheen on every pluck while violins' sounds lustrous yet solemn and with a good sustaining sound, at least it doesn't sound muffled after all. Brass like trombones sound smoother with sufficient intensity and then the trumpets sound a bit rounded and darker. Percussive like snares and toms drums sounds sombre, substantial and rounded.


● Black ring nozzle - it has a considerable amount of texture and warmth to give more versatility on both male and female vocals and most instruments especially on woodwinds and strings. Baritone either dramatic or lyrical types have its lusher, velvety and quite prolific sounding, Eddie Vader of Pearl Jam and Alex Band of The Calling voices sound has its strength and depth. Countertenors like Lenny Kravitz, Geddy Lee of Rush and Robert Plant have their strong falsetto ranges to sound light, ethereal and vibrant. While tenor voices have these qualities of being brassy and bright that gives a penetrating and boisterous way of conveying its delivery from the famous Three Tenors to Freddie Mercury. On female vocals, Contralto has its sufficient richness and "bronzy" sound quality like Tracy Chapman and Toni Braxton. Mezzo-sopranos have a more musky, broader and even warmer sound on both dramatic and lyrical types like Annie Lennox, Sharon Den Adel of Within Temptation and Barbra Streisand. On Sopranos, it has this sense of openness, fairly energetic and ringy to give that crystalline, silvery and agile sound that even coloratura vocals like Diana Damrau and Olga Peretyatko will sound clearly and detailed. On instruments like woodwinds, it added a more airy and bright sound on flutes and a sonorous and lively sound on saxophone. Strings like acoustic guitars have these lingering resonant and crisp sounding on every pluck and strumming while violins have these vibrant, sparkling with a hint of shrill. Black nozzle added up some more brassy, eruptive and intensity on brilliance on trumpets, horns and trombones. As for percussion instruments, both toms and snares drums have sharper and more penetrating sound while pianos have a bright and silvery tone on it. Celestas have this bell-like and soft sounding which gives that distinct "heavenly" or in a royal court ball vibe.



HIGHS/TREBLE:

I'll sort out the comparison of treble quality of EA500 between its two types of detachable nozzles.

Red ring nozzle - Smooth, balanced but it is less airy. I hear those overtones of instruments or vocals are a bit lacking in my liking but at least it has no hint of sibilance and stridency.

It gives a more lustrous and duller sound on hitting cymbals. Hi-hats were depicted accurately on how EA500 exhibit its distinguishing sound of having shortened sharp buzzing sound.


Black ring nozzle - it added more emphasis on upper mids to brilliance treble to give a more glean, crisp and better treble extension which gives a more detailed and sparkle. It also has a tad of sibilance especially on sibilant-laden tracks that I've tested (Seventh Son of the Seventh Son by Iron Maiden is one example).


It gives more shimmer and sizzle on the cymbals strikes to give a good airy extension (for a single DD).



SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING AND OTHER TECHNICALITIES:

In general sound/speaker stage dimensions, it has an above average width, decent height reach and sufficient depth on its perceived position between front to rear. It gives me a good head room with its more concave presentation as it has more depth in front.

Imaging on EA500 is probably one of its strongest asset on its technical capabilities, as I was able to locate the placement of instruments and vocals on both sides of the channel in such a pinpoint manner. Separation and layering are also laudable on this set given my impressions on most single DD IEMs that I've tested doesn't deliver and usually fail on this particular technical performance (only the TANCHJIM Oxygen and SOFTEARS Twilight really impresses on the single DD IEMs). It has a good spacing on each element and it has its own distinct frequencies and good dynamic layering in a black sonic canvas for a single dynamic driver set which really amazes me.

On driver coherency, you will be able to gauge that SIMGOT uses a high-quality DLC diaphragm dynamic driver as it delivers a faster transient response without any sort of being out of phase or distortion sounding.

In resolution proficiency on both macro-dynamics and micro-detail on EA500. On a red ring nozzle, it exhibits a more firm macro-dynamics but its detail retrieval isn't that resolving and somewhat a bit blunted on parsing its nuances and subtleties of information from an audio track. While the black ring nozzle seems to fare better on micro-detail retrieval on how it was extracting and revealing some information due to its emphasis on the upper-mids which give an edgier definition.

Tonal colour seems to be natural and balanced on SIMGOT EA500 but when using a black ring nozzle, it gives a bit brighter timbre.



PEER COMPARISONS:


DUNU KIMA

■ Both IEMs have newer generation DLC dynamic drivers on their internals that were also housed in metal alloy shell chassis. While the EA500 has a mirror-plating surface, KIMA has a sandblasted surface to give a grip and texture while touching it. KIMA has better accessories inside the packaging box in quantitative and even quality but a bit pricey compared to EA500.

■ Both have similar sound signatures which are U-shaped. It has a bit tighter bass, a tad leaner and more transparent midrange and a safer treble response which is a bit laid-back sounding and less airy especially on comparing it to SIMGOT-target curve nozzle.

■ Technicalities-wise, KIMA has an average to above average sound/speaker stage dimensions on width, depth and height. It has a more 3D-like presentation compared to a concave spatial presentation on EA500. Resolving capabilities are similar on both sets.




MOONDROP ARIA

■ On its transducers, it uses an LCP (diaphragm dynamic and it is also enclosed in an aluminium alloy shell chassis. On packaging and its included accessories, Aria fare better on number of inclusions has more ear tips, nozzle filters to choose from and even a tweezer.

■ On tonality, both have a U-shaped sound signature, Aria focuses more on sub bass rather than mid bass, a more recessed and even leaner midranger which gives a less dynamic sound and even an odd presentation which has an emphasis on the upper mids then a sloped and dips on presence to brilliance region which gives a less brighter and subdued sparkle which affects the detail and clarity.

■ It has an inferior technical capabilities, from a mere average soundstage width, just a basic two-dimensional stereo panning, decent separation and poor rendering on layering which gives a more congested and disorder presentation on some complex tracks like orchestras and musical movie scores. It even has a curdled macro-dynamics and a less construe on detail retrieval.


As I put up a conclusion of this review, this is a few moments where a single DD set impresses me and on how it outweighs its flaws with more impressive capabilities on tonal and technical aspects. SIMGOT EA500 is a one of the marvellous and truly an exceptional set that is quite a rarity on under US$100/£81.

For sure that its tonality doesn't reach the quality level of some mid-rangers and TOTL single DD sets but its technical aspect gives you an idea and probably a prelude towards the best possible technical performance that most mid-rangers and high-end single dynamic driver sets can only achieve.


SIMGOT EA500 is currently available at LINSOUL, Just click the link HERE and I can guarantee it that it is a non-affiliated one.





SPECIFICATION:

MODEL: SIMGOT EA500
IMPEDANCE: 16Ω
SENSITIVITY: 123dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 10Hz – 50KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M
PIN TYPE: 2-PIN CONNECTOR (0.78MM)
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm
DRIVER UNIT(S): (1) DYNAMIC DRIVER


Some Tracks Tested: ( * = 16-bit FLAC, ** = 24-bit FLAC, *'* = MQA, '*' = DSD, *'= .WAV)

Alison Krauss -When You Say Nothing At All *
Jade Wiedlin - Blue Kiss**
Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks **
Mountain - Mississippi Queen *
Queen - Killer Queen **
Guns N' Roses - Patience *'*
Eric Clapton - Tears in Heaven '*'
Sergio Mendes- Never Gonna Let You Go '*'
Pearl Jam - Daughter **
Roselia - Hidamari Rhodonite *
Assassin - Fight (To Stop The Tyranny)*
Celtic Frost- Visual Aggression *
New Order - Blue Monday *
The Corrs- What Can I do (unplugged version) *
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child *
The Madness- Buggy Trousers *
Metallica - Motorbreath **
Mariah Carey- Always Be My Baby *
Destiny's Child - Say My Name *
Malice Mizer- Au Revoir *
Mozart - Lacrimosa *
New York Philharmonic Orchestra - Dvorak- Symphony 9 " From the New World." *
Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold (Sting cover)*
Michael Jackson - Give In To Me *
Exciter - Violence and Force *
Diana Krall - Stop This World **
Debbie Gibson - Foolish Beat *'*
The Sisters of Mercy – Lucretia My Reflection**
Suzanne Vega – Luka **
Lauren Christy – Steep *
Ottoman Mehter - Hucum Marsi *
Diana Damrau - Mozart: Die Zauberflöte*



P.S.

I am not affiliated to SIMGOT nor receive monetary incentives and financial gains as they provide me a review unit for an exchange of factual and sincere feedback from yours truly.

Once again, I would like to send my gratitude to LINSOUL especially to MS. KAREENA TANG for providing this review unit. I truly appreciate their generosity and trust towards me and other reviewers.

General/Build/Packaging/Comfort
SIMGOT has been on fire lately with their releases, make no mistake that the releases are not a hit and miss, rather more of a quality release that received numerous positive feedbacks from the audiophile community. I have not heard their previous release, hence the EA500 is my first experience with SIMGOT’s product.

Let’s talk about the packaging and build quality, in my opinion, it is a wise move for SIMGOT to not follow the “waifu” trend on the packaging, i personally is not fond of those and most of the Chi-FI brands starts to use the “waifu” printing on their packaging box and its getting out of hand. I have to say, this is a rather positive unboxing experience as I rarely write that much about the unboxing part. I am greeted with Pascal’s quote “Don’t try to add more years to your life. Better add more life to your years.” in which i totally agree with, quality rather than quantity. The box contains the IEM itself, OFC cable, a roomy storage case, the additional tuning nozzle, extra black and red silicon ring.

Build quality is solid on the EA500, doesn’t feel heavy and fits very well in my ears, and I wore them for several hours without feeling any discomfort. The only downside is that it is a fingerprint magnet



Gears used for this review

• Earmen Angel Dac/Amp
• iFi Gryphon
• Macbook Air M2 3.5 Out
• iPod Touch 5th Gen
• EA500 with stock cable and stock eartips

Foreword
My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far

Sound Impression ( Stock Nozzle with Red Silicon Ring )
EA500’s tonality is leaning towards neutral with slight warmth to my ears. Timbre sounds very natural to my ears and it has quite a good body to it overall with sufficient note weight to it. Good tuning in my opinion, musical sounding at the same time with good technicalities.

Bass

• Bass on the EA500 is not lacking by all means, maybe just a touch light but overall it has good quality bass with sufficient quantity, but still will not please bassheads
• It has good textures and body to it, doesn’t sound loose and thin
• Mid bass has good slam and punch to it, listening to Metallica’s Lux Aeterna is very pleasing as every hit on the drum be can felt
• Sub bass rumble is there when the track calls for it, doesn’t really extend that deep, it is evident in Hans Zimmer’s Why So Serious, slightly lacking the rumble
• The speed is also excellent on the EA500, handling complex tracks with ease without sounding muddy and bleeding into the mids

Mids

• The midrange is good with sufficient note weight, not sounding too thin and quite lush to my ears, this is based on my listening experience with EarMen Angel’s DAC/AMP, switching it to iFi’s Gryphon, it doesn’t sound as lush as the Angel
• Vocal positioning is not too forward nor laid back
• Female vocal has the energy to it and good texture
• Male vocal that has low baritone voice such as Zhao Peng retains the warmth and texture to it, it doesn’t sound thin at all, very pleasant experience
• The upper mids are not shouty at all and it does very well in terms of giving the female vocal a slight boost

Treble

• Treble response on the EA500 is crisp and smooth, no hint of darkness within the range
• Non sibilant nor offensive even when you crank up the volume
• Good amount of air and presence and contributed to good sense of staging and imaging as well
• Detail retrieval is good and i can hear the nuances distinctively without having to try hard, an example of such track is Faye Wang’s 旋木，the finger slides from the guitar can be heard easily

Soundstage/Imaging

• Soundstage for EA500 is good for the price, having a good sense of width, depth, a little lacking in height but very good overall. It is quite spacious sounding, listening to orchestral or live tracks is very enjoyable on the EA500
• Imaging is also a strong point for EA500 as well, instruments can be pinpointed easily even on complex tracks such as Slipknot’s People = crap!, well layered and good separation

Driveability

• EA500 is not hard to drive, give it something like Apple’s Dongle is actually sufficient to get good sound and listening volume out of it
• However, when you feed it with more power, it sounded even better, tighter bass, and a little more punch, also sounded more open, this is when i turned on the gain+ mode on Earmen Angel, feeding it with 7.2 vrms via the SE out and extracting more “sonic performance” out from the EA500, impressive scalability

Sound Impression on Black Silicon Ring Nozzle

• From the bass response to the mids, it is more or less similar sounding to my ears
• Vocal positioning however is more forward compared to red ring nozzle
• Female vocal is even more lively compared to red ring nozzle, this is due to an early rise on the upper mids, i find the female vocal to be very enjoyable on this nozzle, but i can’t say the same for those who are sensitive with the upper mids boost, do take into consideration that your experience might vary
• Soundstage is slightly smaller on this nozzle, but imaging capability is excellent
• The treble is also being boosted to give more resolution and better perceived detail retrieval capability
• I would say this is a more of an analytical kind of tuning compared to the red ring nozzle which is balanced or safe

Final Thoughts
I have a very positive experience with EA500 and I definitely look forward to trying out their upcoming products when I have the chance. EA500 is a solid product overall that offers versatility with the swappable nozzle, although this is nothing new in the industry, but it does offer the user to switch to different kinds of tuning whenever they feel like it. With all things considered, this is not to say that EA500 is perfect and without flaws, or perhaps i shouldn’t say flaws because i’d be instilling my own preferences instead of properly reviewing the IEM itself, i would say if the bass quantity is slightly boosted while retaining the same quality and control over it, it would make the overall listening experience more “musical”. EA500 gets an easy 4.5/5 from me.

*EA500 is being sent over for the purpose of this review. I thank LINSOUL and SIMGOT for the opportunity. I am not influenced in any way to produce this review nor do I receive any monetary compensation.

Head over to the following link if you are interested in getting a pair!

SIMGOT EA500 - Non affiliated

Yet again Simgot has proved that they know the business of IEMs tuning. Like the predecessors which I personally loved, this EA500 was easy to like from the get go. The sound itself being faithful to traditional dynamic drivers neutral organic timbre, with some hint of modern vibrancy.

Not forgetting the versatile, two sound profiles by just simply swapping the nozzles. I must admit I like the stock red nozzle better, but for some music genres where flatter and crisper upper frequency is needed, like for classical and instrumentals, the Black nozzle will suit just fine. The key thing is, it is easy to swap the nozzles.


Simgot Audio Discord: https://discord.gg/YWfvwSzzvN
EA500 on Linsoul: https://www.linsoul.com/products/simgot-ea500

SIMGOT EA500 - Full Metal Jacket.

SIMGOT EA500 SPECS:
4th Generation Single 10mm Custom DLC dual-magnetic-circuit & dual-cavity driver.
Full CNC Shell
High quality mirror plated finish
Dual Detachable Tuning Nozzle's
Silver Plated OFC 3.5mm Cable
Semi Recessed 0.78 2 Pin receptacle.
Easy to drive 16 Ohm resistance
Very High 123-124 db/Vrms sensitivity needs very little power to get loud
Frequency response range is listed as 10Hz-50KHz
Useable Frequency response rage is listed as 10Hz-20KHz

SHOUT OUT TO SIMGOT for providing me this review sample.
More information can be found here and non-affiliated purchase link: https://amzn.to/3lTSPgl

YouTube Video Review can be found here:

Subjective Part of my Audio Review -

I share my impressions as I hear them with my ears.
As all our ears are different shapes & size so what I hear as bright or bass heavy -you might hear as dull and Vise-Versa; just something to be mindful of.

My version of what my perfect balanced IEM is: Good Sub Bass, with a warmer tone weight but faster and a nice transition into lower bass that adds the correct note weight to male vocals without too much bleed to effect female vocals with too much added thickness. I want to hear guitar plucks sounding with good intensity and tone.
Male vocals should sound correct and female vocals not to thin or forward.
Highs need to good extension and no sign of sibilance.
Instruments need to have correct tonality and sound natural.

For reference my favorite IEM is the Xenns Mangird UP with it's EST drivers that add sparkly enhancement only and not forced in a smooth natural way I prefer the fast speedy bass of the Beryllium Coated Driver.

My music Library is widely varied from; Metallica, Great White, Cowboy Junkies, Pink Floyd, Adelle, Melisa Ethridge, Fleetwood Mac, Five for Fighting, Manskin, Poncho Sanchez, Jimmy Smith, Chopin, The Crystal Method just to name a few. When not listening to my test tracks the majority is Jazz or Alternative Rock especially Female Rock. Lorde, Halsey, Alanis Morrisette, Evanescence.

All depends on my mood. If I want to chill out I listen to artists like the, - The Who, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Dire Straits and Dead Can Dance just to name a few.
If I want to have a beer and just get lost then some Jazz , Miles Davis, Poncho Sanchez, Jimmy Smith, Ray Brown Trio.
If I want to rock out then some AC/DC, Bad Co, Great White, Led Zeppelin, Robert Plant, Metallica.
And Those Times I want to get into vocals then Lorde, Halsey, Biff Naked, Alanis Morrisette hit the spot.
I mention all this so you get a sense of my library and what I like when I make my audio impressions other than the playlist

Sources: E1DA SG3, Shanling UP5, Geshelli JNOG J2 with AKM4493 chip. Truthear SHIO (Dual Cirrus Logic 43198 DAC Chips)
DAP/TRASPORT: From Lenovo Laptop with Tidal, iBasso DX160 (Dual Cirrus Logic 43198 Dac Chips), Samsung S22 Ultra with DSD Files.
Amps: LoxjiP20 & XDUOO MT-604 tube hybrid amps and Topping A90D Amp 4.4 Pentagon Balanced Out - Unless stated
Tips Used for the EA500 were the JVC FX09 Spiral Dots that are very wide bore.
Cable I used Stock and Hakugei Joyful voice Tri-Element 4.4 Balanced

My Format that I like to use is that I will list the music tracks I used & why with my musical impressions of the playback using that track with the notes I took during my time with the EA500

*My Notes are not meant to be full sentences just my thoughts written down at the time and transposed.
**Remember these are critical listening notes write it as I hear it, not overall impressions**
***Listening done with RED NOZZLE and 4,4 balanced off of Topping A90D, Geshelli AKM J2 Dac as source with iBasso DX160 as transport only 3.5mm to COAX Dig out.

Total Time 2:34:29 - 33 Tracks

#1 "Beautiful Blue" by Holly McNarland
(I love Holly's vocals should be crips clear vocals with the right edge to here vocals)
"A bit thin on ESS and super clean dacs doesn't need it already resolving enough, perfect voice"

#2 "Give Me One Reason" Tracy Chapman
(I love her voice and the way it is recorded listen for the strums on the guitar - I have seen Ms. Chapman live a few times; so In my mind, I try and remember how she sounds like 5ft from me as I was blessed to experience)
" Guitar was bang on tone and perfect vocals, tons of air and extension, backup singers were nicely presented in the mix"

#3 "Paradox" by M.E.B.
(Great female vocals listening for accurate piano at 0:11, bass hits at 0:28 and vocals at 2:00)
"Bass hits were nicely done fast with a surprisingly warm decay"

#4 "Rock Me" by Great White
(80'S Baby, Double Kick drums at the beginning of the first track I am listening to how fast it hits how solid is the bass and what's the decay like. An ideal replay here would be fast, powerful bass with nice note weight to feel it in your chest so to speak if you were at a concert.) ( With "Rock Me" same thing but I am listening for the bass guitar drops on this track it should be quite low)
"Bass had some nice note weight on RED nozzle Not as much with Black one, Bass goes lower than graph would suggest. Intimate stage very open still and the bass hits were faster."

#5 "Wheat Kings - Remastered" by The Tragically Hip
(Sense of stage and Male vocals)
Very 3D stage , nice extension in the highs lots of wicked vocals and guitar details."

#6 "Chemical Mentalist" The Crystal Method
(Bass, more bass fast and lots of it - How does it do end of the story - Huge Smile or poo emoji?)
"Love the hits , so sweet with this track, can be played very loud great for music like this."

#7 "Its Time" by Labrinth, Sia, Diplo
(3 very different singers and their voices come together. I use this because it’s a cool track and at higher volumes lesser IEM's get sibilant. Piano doesn’t get washed out and Vocals at 2:30 should blow your little mind)
"Good separation + Back up details , clear separation and tonality of all three vocals. You could tell when there was one singer or all in the mix. One of the best presentations of this track I have heard. Piano has the correct sound and could clearly be heard in the mix and did not get washed out"

#8 "All My Friends Are Here" Joe Satriani
(In this track you can hear Joe playing dead Center with the busy and very separated L & R licks added in and then he brings you back to center with some crazy and very hard-to-play Descending A Major rifts! As Joe described this song as "A rock guitarist trying to control a wild beast"
"Massive width + good depth you can hear L + R effects closer to the front and main track in center farther back. Descending A Major rift was perfect and clearly discernable!"

#9 "The Antidote Is In The Poison" GoGo Penguin
(Modern Jazz at its best. Powerful, Dynamic track full of emotion and snappy bass. Fantastic track to listen to how well Micro Dynamics are conveyed and get a good sense of the IEM's ability to convey that to the listener.)
"Very 3D , plucks + air are nice bass was surprisingly present because the resolving power is fantastic of the dynamic driver brought it out effortlessly."

#10 "Angel" by Massive Attack
(Say it with me - massive textured bass drops )
"The EA500 didn’t have the lowest extension this song deserves , but and a big one - the bass and droning , cascading hits were presented with very nice texture well done SIMGOT - Metal Cavity magic ?"

#11 "Bring Me Some Water" by Melissa Ethridge
(I like this track to hear Melissa's voice and see if the transducers (speakers) reproduce her voice to how edgy I think it should be.)
"Guitar and bass at beginning was epic, OMG Vocals!"

#12 "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" Annie Lennox
(A Bach-inspired Hammond Organ M102, I seriously love it and its unique sound with Annie's voice this is so cool)
"Amazing Extension and sparkle."

#13 " So Cold " Holly McNarland
( Vocals on this track are further back in the track and L & R upfront good track for testing depth of stage and vocals - Sub Bass at the very beginning has a nice drop.)
"Very Well done"

#14 "Shape Of My Heart" Sting
(in this track I am listening to the sound of the guitar pulls and slides. How well does the IEM give an emotional presentation of the mix between the vocals and the bass.
"Perfect Pulls , as was Sting voice."

#15 "Wishing You Would Stay" by The Tea Party with Holly McNarland
(Love this track. With this song and this band, it was the first time having a guest vocalist. Holly McNarland has a great voice and I have seen her live a few times front and center getting sweat on. Listening for Holly's voice being forward in the mix and not sibilant.)
"Vocals were wicked but the dynamics and playback were outstanding in every song I get the felling the E500 presents with huge passion as long as it is instilled into the mix"

#16 "Avenue A" Tom Cochrane and Red Rider Live from the Symphony Sessions
(This track with more resolving IEM'S you can hear the guitar pulls and slides with a sense of open spaciousness and grandeur)
"Big stage so natural like you are in the middle of concert 100' from stage . Tom's voice was real. Strings at 1:30 so nice!"

#17 “Eden” Hania Rani
( The way Hania has recorded this track with the mics on the strings in the body of the piano is incredibly unique and such a unique presentation you can hear the string's tension at the beginning, Bass kicks in at 1:40 and goes low that’s what I am listening for)
"Piano notes were perfect , the secondary mics were clearly noticeable with the special way Hania Rani records her music not a easy thing to pick up."

#18 “Summertime” Louis Armstrong & Ella Fitzgerald
( This Track has both legendary artists Simply listening to Louis and Ella’s voices and of course, the Piano and trumpets how accurate and lifelike )
"Trumpets have perfect bite + tone , Ella + louis were perfect."

#19 “Blue Train” Poncho Sanchez
( Trumpets here are silky or should sound that way with good timbre, overall mix how does it present, and of course Poncho’s drums )
"Macro-dynamics were huge Drums are so great."

#20 “ My Girl “ Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
(Listening for instrument placement and stage and this track gives a good sense of dynamics and excitement with lots of dynamics in the mix)
"Xylophones were cool in the mix really came out at the beginning , Big stage and so smooth yet dynamic. What a great listen, volume keeps going up."

#21 "Iconic" by Alanis Morissette
(More edgy female vocals to give you the chills)
"Oh yes , Amazing at 0:38 Alanis's voice changes with the mic position. This so cool first time I heard this and not will be listening for it on everything."

#22 "The Day That Never Comes" Metallica - Live with the SFO from S&M2
(Big open stage good depth of stage excellent recording with a excellent orchestral opening)
"Yeah huge stage 3D 0:56 Bass hits fast + nice weight."

#23 "Tricycle" by Flim & BB's
(Turn this one up and wait till 0:28 seconds- Have Fun Dynamics test)
" Not the best replay missing some authorities at high volume was very good almost there."

#24 "Thriller" by Michael Jackson
(Great song to listen for stage and imaging)
" Great 3D stage not sibilant on RED at beginning on Black YES."

#25 "Team" by Lorde
(Female vocals if your lover of those this is a great track)
"Very unique presentation SIMGOT House Sound coming to life."

#26 “ Wake Up “ Oliver Mtukudzi
(Oliver Mtukudzi is an African Musician and prolific guitarist and Vocalist. He sings with a mix of South African styles sometimes in English sometimes mixed like in this track and includes the traditional drumming styles of the Korekore. TUKU MUSIC at its finest – Listening for vocals, bass lines, and clarity – and because it is just fun! Right at the beginning you have some very cool snaps and instrumental)
"Natural vocals at beginning + Oliver's voice was perfect , good depth between singers front Back Up female vocals and Male Main."

#27 "Brothers In Arms" by Dire Straits
(Intro and dynamics or distant thunder, and Iconic Mark Knopfler's vocals Bass hits at 2:12)
"Thunder at beginning was well presented not droned out + Mark Knopfler was perfect again."

#28 "Keith Don't Go" - Live Version by Nils Loftgren
(Acoustical Guitar absolutely amazing recording - Tonality and male vocal clarity)
"You have to listen to this live recording , the Music that belted out of EA500 was breathtaking to listen to."

#29 "Somebody I used To Know" by Goyte & Kimba
(A huge stage and Vocals listen for excellent separation and stage, Vocals at 1:38 and female 2:38 and micro-dynamics
" Just Wow love vocals the unique way it is replayed back on the EA500 just love the way it does the stage."

#30 " Flight Of The Cosmic Hippo" by Bélla Fleck & The Fleckstones
(Excellent recording and Bango bass should hit hard and low with nice mic of piano weight)
" The EA500 going to make me a banjo fan."

#31 " New Orleans Is Sinking " By The Tragically Hip."
Listening to Gord's Voice without enough MB his voice will sound thin on this song.
" Great male vocals as well know Canadians rep so well! EH!."

#32 " T.V. Song" By The blue Man Group
The whip at beginning has to sound real, then the PVC B.M.G. stereo separation and then 10' big ass drum hits at 1:26
" Not bad but showing the EA500 one weakness for sub bass big hits"

#33 "Electrified II" by Yello
How well does the playback just trip you out and pull you into the stage and presentation think Ferris Bueller's` Day Off on LSD
"Yello oh hell YES!"

COMPARISIONS FOR REFERENCE:

Sennheiser IE200: $200
On the IE200 the stage is more L+R , more intimate yet the stage sounds closer to you and more like a studio recording rather than live. Whereas the EA500 changes its stage per song and is more true to the recording.
The IE200 plays lower in sub frequencies but not nearly as authoritive in its bass texture.
Vocals more recessed on the IE200 whereas the EA500 vocals are slightly forward in comparison to the two.

IKKO Obsidian OH10: $120-$150 now FEB 2023
The OH10 has a wider stage not nearly as 3D as the SIMGOT.
Both ends of the music spectrum Bass and certainly more high frequency energy you can expect from the OH10.
The OH10 has more bass and with greater speed.
The EA500 plays with a more neutral playback whereas the OH10 sounds more colored.
The EA500 beats the OH10 in detail retrieval and resolution.

AUNE Jasper: $299 Thanks Eric Lab "NymPHONOmaniac" for your loaner for this comparison.
The EA500 has a tad more bass , but with more texture.
Vocal clarity is just slightly more resolving and natural because of the added mid bass on the EA500 with a slightly more forward presentation both have outstanding vocals.
The Mids are slightly warmer on the Aune Jasper - my personal preference.
There sounds like a bit more air and extension in the highs of the Simgot EA500 making female vocals clearer.
The Jasper cant quite keep up with the 3D stage of the EA500 both are excellent but I give the nod to the SIMGOT here.
The shorter nozzle of the Aune Jasper makes it harder to get a good seal and more tip dependant.
The Jasper needs twice the power to get to the same volume level defiantly harder to drive.

SUMMARY & FINAL THOUGHTS FOR: SIMGOT EA500
I reached out to Simgot for this one in part because I saw it online , It looked so premium and well built and it peaked my curiosity so Simgot sent me one and I am sure glad they did and here we are 5 days later 16 Hours in ears and 100 hours burn in.

First thing I will say about the EA500 is that is not a Harman tuned typical sound , well it sort of is but throw in a bit of house SIMGOT sound tuned two alternate ways and you have this wonderful IEM being born.
I saw these IEM's and what can I say there is a special place in my heart for full on metal shells, it certainly does something special for the IKKO Obsidian OH10 and the same exact thing can be said for the EA500!
There should not be as much bass with the weight it has looking at the graph curve.

The vocals both male and female on a warmer source is perfectly weighted and hits a very rare balance between weight and airiness.
At first listen I thought the EA500 sounded warm, after lots of hours they seemed to become more natural in a very neutral balanced way and my favorite tuning was the RED Nozzle's sound signature.
I am treble sensitive and the EA500 hits the perfect mix for me of highs without and fatigue or sibilance.
Stage is very 3D and the EA500 presents it in a very Intimate in your head space with nice depth and width as well as good height if the tracks was meant to be played back like that.

Whatever the EA500 uses for its DD it’s a wonderfully resolving unit. Very rare from my observation to find such as driver and certainly not at this price point. If you can pick out the micro dynamics and emotion of the music with a neutral clean playback, true to its recording and without adding or changing the music - that’s special in my opinion.

Rock, Jazz, EDM, Orchestral, Vocal, all great on the EA500 , you noticed I left out some bass heavy genre for good reason its not for those and wont give you the correct playback.

Final takeaway: I has been a very long time when reviewing a IEM where I just zoned out because I was enjoying the music and forgot I have something in my ears. When listening to the EA500 that happened more than once. That’s a very powerful statement and the ultimate testimonial to how much I enjoy these IEM's.

I can see a EA500 CULT being born and have a following like the OH10 a IEM that you wont ever sell.
Thanks so much, Cheers from the Tone Deaf Monk.