Softears RSV

As an audiophile, I have come across some in-ear monitors (IEMs) that make me question my listening abilities. The RSV is one of those IEMs. Not only is it difficult to review, but it is also hard to recommend at its current price without knowing the listener's taste in detail. I don't believe this IEM is a "blind buy" worthy purchase, yet you should take the opportunity to audition if possible. However, I will provide you with a framework to decide for yourself. Instead of listing the pros and cons, I will explain my experience. So please take the time to read this article thoroughly.

Softears is a company that I find quite intriguing. With products like the remarkable Twilight or the exceptional Studio 4, this company has made a name for itself in the audiophile world. Their reputation mainly stems from their high-quality balanced armature (BA) drivers.

This is a 5BA IEM and comes with a moderately sized shell which looks beautiful. Fun Fact - I got the same review unit as Timmy from Gizaudio & I haven’t encountered any unit variation story till now.



Timber

I have to talk about its timber characteristics first otherwise it would be very hard for me to paint the picture of its tonality accurately.

Timber makes or breaks an audio experience for me. I am a huge fan of HD600 mainly because of its timber. Similarly, I don’t like headphones/IEMs that can’t project exact timber (many planars). And I am glad to say this IEM is very pleasing in terms of timber reproduction.

The violin sounds velvety, it contains the body in great tonality. Lower registers are very lifelike as well as upper registers. If you are sensitive to treble, you are covered since they produce upper registers with zero sibilance, and no peaks whatsoever. I can listen to Vivaldi for hours in this IEM.

The guitars sound smooth. Classical guitars sound exceptional too, Tarrega/Segovia covers sound delightful and chocolatey. Acoustic guitars miss the upper registers a bit. Eric Clapton Live Concerts/Robert Johnson Covers missout on the crunchiness, but still holds the timber very well. Electric Guitars sound beautiful for almost every tone. The tamed-down upper frequencies help a lot.

The Drums sound very realistic too. Drums are the hardest instrument to reproduce due to their complex heterodyning characteristics. Some IEM overuses the bass, and some underuse the tactility. I am happy to say this IEM is close enough to replicate the sound of drums. Where it falls behind is the Cymbals. The transient nature is not there in the timber, it just feels lacking in the air. Trailing edges are very missing from the range.

Wind Instruments also are done very nicely, with good body and texture but also lack in sizzle and shine. But it can be a very good way to handle these instruments for treble-sensitive people. I do miss the brightness and it feels a little dark to me.

The Cello/Bass feels very lifelike. It will provide you with a feeling that the bass is playing in a club, due to its subtle bass elevation it doesn’t overpower the real feel of the bass in the mix.

The timber of the vocals is the highlight here. They are simply outstanding and very balanced in textural information. Nothing is over or underused. From male to female, deep voices like Paul Anka & Frank Sinatra to thin voices like Ariana Grande & Zayn Malik sound super good. You will be immersed in the vocal tonality of this IEM.

All of the instruments I mentioned above acquire a similar base to portray themselves. They sound very analogue-like. In 2024 there are very few audio products that can give the vintage & rich sound tonality. I am not into this type of signature because they sacrifice on few fields of the spectrum. But if you chase this vintage CD-like tonality, this IEM won’t disappoint you.

The reason I explained it timber is so that I can accurately describe its tonality.

BASS

You can’t expect bass from this set. Not that it produces BA Bass with a low-quality attack and decay, but it is very tasteful. We all know that subdued bass is very much needed for mid-centric IEMs. The thing that bothered me the most was the sub-bass. It is understandable to have more midbass for thump and slam but Softears could’ve improved its subbass quantity. In some genres, it feels disconnected from the midbass which is also very low in quantity.
So when does the bass become a problem? Whenever you would expect a slam, it will sound underpowered. Daft Punk is a no-go for this IEM. Changing tips also doesn’t help that much.
Although the attack and decay are very analogue-like. Fast enough to make the whole FR sound clean and the decay is slow enough to maintain a natural feel while giving it a transient response at the end/roll off.

In the end, this set is not made for bass heads & that should be clear by now. Nor it will satisfy the majority of the Hi-Fi Audience. If we compare it with something like Aful Performer 8, it will fall behind. I would’ve liked a more elevated sub-bass (+3dB @20Hz) just to maintain the uniformity of the midbass with it.

The resolution is not also that good in the bass region. The craving for a DD in this IEM stayed with me for the entirety of the audition.



Midrange

The midrange in this IEM is what makes it so special. As I told earlier with its timber characteristics, I very much like this IEM. Everything sounds very natural and vivid. The realism is present in great quantity. Textural information is there, not as much as Performer 8 but not also as low as IE600. You will certainly feel that the elements are very natural in presentation not too in your face and not too laid back at the same time.

The head voice in this IEM is a bit much for me to handle. Not that it is sharp or sibilant, but it separates the head voices in the mix way too much to a point where everything else falls apart and you might start feeling unattached with the song. Most of the songs I listen to daily consist of head voices.

The chest voice as well as nasal vocals came out very natural. But still, I missed the implementation of a DD. You will miss the authority in some places where it might lack a bit of confidence.


Treble

Treble in this IEM nothing to write home about. It is very inoffensive but not up to a point where it might sound dark. The air frequencies are present but not enough to make the soundstage feel spacious (This is a complete discussion since many tuning methodologies can be used in the ear gain region to make the soundstage larger ).

But what this treble does to the sound is very sweet and inoffensive. Although I will talk about its resolution later on, the treble is tuned in such a way that details come to your notice in a very subtle way. Without being sharp/sibillant. In one word it feels chocolatey. Fluid, enriched with note weight, sweet.


Resolution

Details and Resolution are perceived in the audio community very differently. I think of the resolution to be the ability to bring out every element in the mix and for details, I mean how nuances it can project to our ears, be that the micro contrast or textural information.

I am not very happy to say that the RSV is very average in its resolution capability. Normal tracks won’t be a problem but complex mixes will not be resolved. Although it won’t feel congested or claustrophobic, it will just deny the presence of certain instruments in mixes.

For details, they are also very average. On one hand, they can produce textures well but on the other hand, due to recessed treble, certain elements of the instruments are very hard to notice. For example - Long lasting tone in pianos/any other acoustic string instruments. The time of holding a note is less than the price point so, you might crave some details in this area.

Soundstage

This IEM is not a soundstage monster. RSV will give you a proper soundstage that won’t feel claustrophobic or expansive. It will be big enough to place instruments outside your head but small enough to make vocalists very personal and engaging. The soundstage in IEMs is pretty tricky since they rely on your HRTF and Pinna Compensation, so I can only give you my experience with it, which is very average.

Drivability

The drivability of this IEM is very good. It runs very fluently on almost all dongle DACs. From very cheap Dongle DACs like Abigail Pro/Apple Dongle to Moondrop Dawn Pro. The FR range does not change as such but the features like Separation and Treble Refinement increase ever so slightly with more expensive Dongles.

Conclusion

Although I do recommend this IEM not with a smiling face. This price point holds contenders like Twilight / Hype 10 / Supernova. So, I recommend everyone to try this at least once before spending the MSRP. If you get this anywhere around USD 300, it is a steal. Especially if you're a mid-range enthusiast.

Pros -

1. Vocals
2. Timber
3. Inoffensive tuning
4. A very accurate sense of Neutrality
5. Note weight
6. Cohesion of BA drivers

Cons -

1. Air Pressure due to no ventilation
2. The depth of the shell is a bit much
3. Shell quality feels cheap
4. Sometimes sound dark
5. Low resolution in this price range
6. The nozzle is big & slippery

Reference Sound V, commonly known as RSV is a five-BA premium set of in-ear monitors from Softears. Softears, for all those who don’t have any idea about them, is a close brand to Moondrop. They mainly deal in premium stuff with “Volume” being their most affordable pair at 285$. RSV is a younger sibling to one of their flagship the RS10. It is designed as an all-BA set and marketed as a reference-tuned set(by its name). It actually came out last year and grabbed a lot of attention in the HiFi audio community for its sound tuning and performance. It got my attention ever since its release, I was just waiting for a sweet deal to come towards my way. It took a while, but I grabbed the Softears RSV at a discounted price from HiFiGo last month. After spending a good month with the set, today I am here to share my opinion and impressions on the same. Without wasting any more time, let’s begin.

A Short Disclaimer:-

RSV is my personal bought unit here. I grabbed it at a discount in exchange for my review for the same. I might be biased in this review based on my own listening preferences, apart from that nothing affects the impressions or opinions stated by me in this review. My personal preference is a smooth, lively sound with good bass, rich vocals, and a good amount of detail. At the time of this write-up, RSV retails at 729$. I won’t bore you with any technical details, you can check them out at the HiFiGo website from the link below.

https://hifigo.com/products/softears-rsv-rs5-5ba-in-ear-monitor-earphone-iem

You can also read my review on Gizaudio here.
In order to save some amount on customs, I avoided the retail package(as my package had a few different pairs of IEMs). I will be skipping over the unboxing part, and start directly on the Design & Build Quality of the RSV.

Design & Build Quality:-

In 2022, we have seen multiple IEMs with heavy driver counts with a compact shell structure. With Five BA drivers per side, one might expect the RSV to also have a compact shell design. But that’s not the case here. The shells of Softears RSV are big, I won’t call them huge because I have tried even bigger shells(Z1r, Solaris, etc), But yeah the shell are bigger than usual. They have pretty amazing Carbon Fiber styled face covers with gold flakes spread in between them. The entire shell is made using resin material, so despite being big, they are not lightweight.

If you look closely at the pair, you will notice Softears has designed the pair with an ergonomic design. That actually contributes to getting a good fit with the set. The pair looks pretty amazing, the carbon fiber face covers work in their favor giving the ear shells a rich and premium look. The included stock cable feels good as well. It’s a four-core cable with PVC outer covering. It’s soft and doesn’t tangle that easily. I got a 3.5mm terminated cable.

Fit & Isolation:-

Fit is a hit or miss with the RSV. While the lightweight design works in its favor, the big size might give trouble for people with small ears. I also got some issues in getting a good fit initially even though I have medium-sized ears. Not a good fit with Final Audio Type E tips. Personally found it best with Azla Sednaearfit Light and SpinFit W1 ear tips, good isolation, and comfortable fit. Although it creates a vacuum-like feeling every now and then. Once you achieve a comfortable fit, it provides great isolation from the surrounding noises as well.

Driving The Softears RSV:-

Fairly easy to power. You don’t need to give a lot of amping to get the best out of Softears RSV. Just treat it with a decent Portable DAC/AMP or a portable digital audio player and you are good to go. I used it mainly with HiBy RS2 and Shanling M7 for most of my critical listening sessions. I have also tried it with Questyle M15 USB DAC/AMP. Easily powered by all three of these sources. Here are my favorite combinations.

HiBy RS2+Softears RSV:-

RSV takes benefit of the Organic tone of the RS2 and delivers class-leading vocals with the RS2. The tonality, and timbre of this combination is simply amazing at the cost of a little bit of resolution here or there. RSV+RS2 brings some of the best vocals I have heard to date.

Softears RSV+Shanling M7:-

Excellent synergy with the M7 from Shanling. The resolution here is better than what we had with the RS2 and also shows a wider sound field. M7 also tightens the bass on the RSV, it feels punchier and better controlled.

Sound Impressions:-

TBH, I was super excited about the RSV. I have heard so many good things about it around the community that I was just losing control when the pair was in shipment haha. When I received it, I literally got goosebumps hearing it for myself as the pair delivers an amazing sound with a great musical factor to it. More than reference as its name suggests, the RSV sounds musical and engaging. RSV can easily be regarded as a mid-range focused set with a lovely midrange. It packs a wonderful midrange with rich vocals. I find it to have a pretty solid bass response for an all-BA set. It produces good rumble in the sub-bass region with a decently slamming mid-bass region. Overall, I would say, RSV delivers a sound that one will enjoy for hours and hours without losing interest or without getting fatigued even once. Pretty amazing ain’t it!!

Lower-End/Bass Response:-

The bass response with the Softears RSV is pretty satisfying. The pair packs a good punch to it with rumbling sub-bass and a pretty good mid-bass response. Although, it shows its BA character(DD one’s are punchier and more deep hitting), but it delivers enough to complement the other regions well. I would say, the mid-bass takes a front-row presentation compared to the sub-bass. Bass response with the RSV is mostly tight, it is controlled well within its region. Even with bass-heavy tracks such as Bad Guy by Billie Eilish, RSV maintains its clarity and doesn’t lose its control on the lower end.

Midrange:-

Lower-end transients smoothly into a lovely midrange response. RSV showcases its magic and charm with its mesmerizing midrange presentation. I find the vocals to be the center point of attraction with the RSV. Both male and female vocals are pretty with the RSV, they showcase a beautiful tone and a rich texture to them. While writing my notes for the RSV, I played one of my favorite tracks for vocals, “The Blower’s Daughter” by Damien Rice, and man, oh man, I am out of words. The pair showcased every last bit of emotion in the song with great presence. IMO RSV is something that vocal lovers should definitely give a try to. Coming towards instruments such as acoustic guitars, pianos, etc, they maintain the rich presentation of the RSV in the midrange segment. The pair never loses its tone, showcasing everything so smoothly and brilliantly I would say.

High-Frequencies/Treble:-

RSV delivers a smooth, non-fatiguing treble response. The pair might feel overly smoothened for some users that love energetic highs. The upper treble region rolls off and takes away some details as well from the pair. Overall, I would say the smooth treble contributes to providing a relaxing, musical experience with the set at the cost of some details.

Dynamics, Staging, Resolution, Imaging, and Instrument Separation:-

Softears RSV has an immersive soundstage with good depth. The resolution and imaging with the set are above average. The instruments are very well separated and are presented nicely.

Some Amazing Tracks with Softears RSV:-

Hotel California by Eagles(Hell Freezes Over):-

I personally love the amazing intro of this track. RSV showcases the entire intro beautifully, right from the guitars to the bongo and then the vocals, absolutely brilliant to listen to with the RSV.

Songs From Different Times by Jack Savoretti:-

This is a beautiful acoustic track with a lovely guitar and absolutely brilliant vocals. RSV’s midrange brings the best out of this track and presents a lovely listening experience throughout the track.

Son of a Preacher Man by Dusty Springfield:-

This track is a beautiful combination of multiple instruments, and lovely female vocals, RSV handles it well and presents you with a musical presentation. Vocals are always a star of the show with drums complementing from the right side and chorus vocals from the left side. Great track.

In my experience with the Softears RSV, the pair is an ideal match for acoustic and vocal-centric genres. Well, that’s about the sound part from my side for the Softears RSV. Now let’s compare it against the CA Andromeda, another multi-BA set with a similar 5 BA driver per side configuration.

CA Andromeda Vs Softears RSV:-

I had the pleasure to own CA Andromeda 2019 earlier this year. This photograph is from my archives. I won’t be able to do an in-depth comparison between the two as the Andromeda sound is from my memories of it.

>Tonally RSV feels more natural and accurate.

>RSV has a better note definition for instruments. Andromeda sounds leaner in this department.

>Andromeda is much more detailed.

>Andromeda has better resolution than RSV.

>RSV sounds immersive and intimate, and Andromeda has a grand soundstage.

>RSV is smoother musical sounding, while Andromeda is more towards the analytical side.

A Short Suggestion:-

If you are a user of RSV and find it a bit dull or less energetic to your liking, treat your pair with the new Effect Audio Eros S cable and experience the change for yourself. I just loved the pairing, Eros S brings a better, livelier treble response. It also improves the staging a bit.

Final Words for Softears RSV:-

Personally, I liked the RSV. Its musical presentation is captivating and holds you with its super sweet vocals and smooth treble response. Not to mention, the pretty solid bass response that complements its lovely midrange as well. Till now, I have only heard the praises about the RSV, After listening to it, I am also adding myself to the list of its lovers!! If you want something with lovely vocals, and smooth instruments, RSV will surely be a good companion for your musical journey!!

Preamble: Outside of QDC, I've always avoided the inevitable "giant killer" hype train that follows the locomotive of each Chifi release(s), which has devolved into outright apathy overtime. Chifi is an overly crowded market with a buckshot spread of products wider than Apple's yearly refreshes (and perhaps to Apple's envy). While those with smaller budgets might rabidly swear by the price/performance ratio of those products, those of us with slush funds to blow through (or a local store to visit) have found it to be a mixed bag. With prices following the mainstream brands out of the stratosphere and into space, but lacking the equal gain in quality that I expected to accompany it, that has me hesitant to spend any sort of funds to even listen to something that has decent accolades by the more famed members of the community. So while there have been releases that I'm interested in, hearing will most likely be relegated to a loan from local friends.

Softears has been making rumblings in the western market with the release of 4 models with a relatively wide range of prices. Their association with Moondrop of Blessing 2 fame, certainly caught my eye and warranted a look beyond the 5 seconds it takes me to go from curious to scoffing at a chifi release. The accolades from the community among the various models also demonstrated an increase in quality, complexity and know how as you go up the range rather than the normal "drop a cheaper than it would normally cost iem into the market" modus operandi that chifi like to take. So clearly I treated @riverground to lunch for bringing the RSV (among other things) to a meet up. Of course, my thanks to @ryanjsoo for sending the RSV over to us Canuck bois (Pls send us more stuff to try)

The RSV definitely impressed me and I'm keen to hear the RS10 down the line myself. Despite being a traditional all BA setup, it punches above it's weight for the price bracket that it belongs to. I have a particular affinity for 5 BA setups, as I find that tends to be a balance of price and performance. For those competitive Yu Gi Oh players, a 5 BA setup is like having the perfect starting hand in a meta deck, or drawing into whatever card you need to get a combo started. Something like the Andromeda is akin to running Future Fusion in to Five God Dragon (which is a great opening depending on the meta of course), but rather bland and expected. RSV is more akin to Yami Yugi drawing the 5th piece of Exodia on Kaiba's triple Blue Eyes (Monarch, Clairvoyance, Monarch MK II) *Note that I have listened to none of those at the time of writing*. Like the aforementioned 5 card combos, the RSV is greater than the sum of it's parts and can win the match in one fell swoop, draw your cards duelist.

Turn 1-----------Left Arm
Design: Despite being only a 5 BA setup, the RSV takes from the chonky shells and nozzles that are also bread and butter to Moondrop's lineup. I was unable to get my Radius Deepmounts nor my Symbio Ns on the nozzle at all so the lack of a lip seems negligible since tips that do fit will most likely stay firmly in place. I had no issues with fit, but folks with smaller ears may have issues. The shell opts to go for a dark classy look with some gold flakes sprinkled here and there. This will not attract any attention beyond a slight glance in public. The stock cable is fairly pliable and supple and I had no issues with comfort. Cable swapping would probably be relegated more to the realm of aesthetics or for termination as required by the source in use.

Testing: As mentioned, the thickness of the nozzles made it impossible for any of the tips that I use to even get on so I stuck with the stick tips. The RSV isn't hard to drive and was set at 40 klicks at low gain off the 3.5 input of the WM1A. I did play around with high gain, but the only noticeable benefit from that was a lower listening level than a change in my perception of the sound. No hissing at all for those with sensitive ears.

Turn 2-----------Right Arm

Bass: The RSV's is eerily similar to other notable 5 BA setups like the Andromeda 2020 and the Phantom right from the get go: A clear mid bass bias providing good slam and impact, but also good sub bass extension that isn't cut off early. It firmly establishes that we are long past the days of "BA Bass teehee" and that BA bass is competitive and can come close to DDs. This is a refined and warm bass that comes across as fun but without being overwhelming at any point. The bass shelf is clean with no bleed into the mids at all, but still provides ample body for the lower mids to shine. However the aforementioned iems do differ in one way with the bass: the lack of treble to balance out the bass makes them rather dark. While the RSV leans slightly towards the brighter side in comparison. The bass tuning while not innovative or particularly interesting, comes together with the rest of the frequency in a manner similar to the MMR Balmung.

Turn 3-----------Left Leg

Mids: The mids are forward on the RSV and at times it came into shouty territory for me. That seemed more track dependant to me overall though rather than the forwardness. The linear lower mids actually benefit rather well from the body and warmth afforded by the bass and male vocals sound astoundingly well. Female vocals benefit as well from this, but this seems to be inversely proportional as the vocalist goes up the register. For lack of a btter descriptor, the RSV felt like it was unable to scale properly up the register. It's a "Do y'all have some more upper mids" situation where I feel the RSV could have boosted the upper mids a tad bit more. As a whole the RSV convys emotion in the mids much better than other 5 BA setups, with it being a step up from the Andromeda 2020, and a couple steps up from the Phantom. No one with upper mids sensitivities could complain with the RSV and those that find the Phantom's drop off too much are going to appreciate the RSV.

Turn 4-----------Right Leg

Treble: Low count BA driver setups tend to suffer in the treble department, hence the creation of tech like CFA's TAEC and 64 Audio's Tia to allow for better than expected treble extension with a limited amount of drivers that can be allocated. Unfortunately it appears that BA treble and lower driver counts are still mortal enemies requiring a third party to settle their differences and let the treble truly sing. For the price, the RSV's treble extension is good but honestly it just can't compare to the likes of TAEC and Tia equipped iems. Where it does win, is in the tuning. RSV has good lower treble energy which by virtue of simply being existent unlike the Phantom's. Similar to the Andromeda 2020 it also has good air. Where it vaults to victory is what I consider the biggest mistake made on the Andromeda 2020: Treble sparkle. The almost non existent sparkle on the 2020 is even more egregious than the Phantom's non existent treble to my ears. While merely a good amount and not great or outstanding, the RSV's tuning to me is superior to the tech used in the 2020 and the Phantom.

Turn 5-----------Exodia

Conclusion: Given the price of the RSV, interested parties will have to curb their expectations. And not just in the tangibles, but alo the intangibles. In a market filled with wide soundstages, the RSV is relatively narrower. Imaging is good and can handle tracks that are busy to an extent, but Scandal's Oyasumi is definitely going to be doing the opposite and keeping you up at night when the extent of the RSV's imaging hits your ears. In part to the narrower soundstage but also technical limitations, the RSV is not as dynamic as it's peers, but good enough for it's signature

Taken at face value and it's pieces, the RSV is deceiving like the 5 pieces of Exodia, they're useless at best and a waste of resources at worse. But when assembled, both are greater than the sum of it's parts. The RSV might not have the treble extension tech that it's peers have, or the technical acumen. But it's incredibly enjoyable: warm and intimate, emotional but balanced.

But when things like the Thieaudio iems exist at the same price bracke, you just have to ask: "But Kuro...."

So one more thing, one thing that sets the RSV apart from the rest of the price bracket that I saved for last: Positional cues. IEMs generally don't handle positional cues as well as we would like them to be. Even on my beloved Odin, I still find myself wishing they were better. Then came the Balmung...at an eye-watering price but I waxed poetic about it's incredible handling of positional cues. Surely this would be impossible to scale down onto a lesser technology flatbed? Up till now it was a definite no. Now's it's tentative yes. While there are other factors of the RSV that make it similar albeit scaled down Balmung, it's positional cues are exactly what I'd expect from a scaled down version of Balmung's final attack. I debated calling this review Baby Balmung or Balmung Jr, but finally decided against it as that would imply the RSV having a technical acumen beyond what it does. Even so, for that MRSP?!

EXODIA (RSV) OBLITERATE

Congratulations Duelist, you have won the match!