T-Peos Baguette Dynamic Earphones

This short review is actually a part of a much larger review, thread and poll on the entire Altone series. Here is a link to the thread:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/774084/t-peos-altone-series-thread#post_11751591
 

 
 
The Baguette is an attached cable IEM with a HPS single dynamic 10mm driver. The cable is made of the same material as the rest of the recently released Altone line. The cable seems very durable and has a considerable amount of spring and memory to it. There is an inline universal remote with a single button function. The housings are made of what looks to be a combination of metal and heavy duty plastic. All in all the Baguette is a tough built and stylish looking monitor.
 
The Baguette caught me off guard with their sound. I was expecting them to sound similar to the warm and smooth T-peos, but to my surprise they were very balanced and probably the most neutral sounding IEMs of all the Altone earphones.
 
PRT was pretty decent. I was catching myself playing the hand drums on my desk a number of times with these. Their signature worked well with all genres, and with more popular genres the sub bass extension was impressive. All in all they had a tuning that was maybe just a touch midrange forward with a very faint roll-off in the higher frequencies. The only thing I could really identify as weaknesses in their sound was a sense of the driver getting overwhelmed during complex passages, and separation of sounds was not on par with more elite and higher priced gear. Other than that, these were a very fun sound that won’t leave anyone feeling cheated of their hard earned dollars.

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Before I start my review, I would like to Thank CTC Audio for providing me with a review sample of T-Peos Baguette IEMs in exchange for my honest opinion.  This IEM is available at http://www.ctcaudio.com/collections/t-peos/products/t-peos-baguette-dynamic-earphones

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How ironic that I'm coming off a review of T-Peos latest flagship Altone 350 model and jumping into a review of their budget Baguette model, at a fraction of a cost.  As a reviewer I often try to focus more on a design and a performance of headphones, leaving a price to be a deciding factor for my readers who I'm sure aware of diminishing returns as you go up in flagship status.  In case of Baguette I was caught by a surprise with quite an impressive sound signature and the exact same (though non-removable) cable as found in their flagship model.  Without getting too much ahead of myself with spoilers about these headphones, let me move forward with a review and let you know what I found when I got a chance to review these new IEMs from T-Peos.
 
Consistent with their "budget" status, Baguette arrived in a rather minimalistic plastic box with a clear display setting.  This way you can preview how they look before you even take them out of the box.  The back of the box had a comprehensive list with specifications and accessories.  The only comment is mentioning of "ear guide" which wasn't included, plus some minor misspelling.  Right away I noticed a close resemblance to a new Altone line of A150/250/350 models.  As a matter of fact, Baguette looks kind of like a scaled down A150 minus detachable cables.
 
Along with headphones, the only included accessories where 3 pairs of S/M/L eartips and a shirt clip.  Though eartips were generic, I had no problem using a large size pair without a need for tip rolling - actually got a decent seal!  I was a bit surprised they didn't include some cheap drawstring pouch to complete accessories set, but perhaps it's all part of distinguishing a budget version from other premium ones.  Nevertheless, I usually don't judge IEM by its accessories, unless we are talking about some fancy leather case.
 
Unboxing & Accessories.
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
As I mentioned before, Baguette design has a lot of resemblance to other newly introduced Altone models.  Made out of plastic (front end of the shell) and lightweight aluminum (on the back), it's small and lightweight.  There were no visible air vent pinholes, though hard to tell due to a new signature design with 3 spaced grooves on the back (similar to A150/250/350).  Each shell had a clear L/R marking so there is no confusion about it.
 
Wire connection to the shell has a nice strain relief, and from there going down you are looking at an identical quality cable as other A150/250/350 models.  Of course, cable is not removable like in Altone series, so that is another "negative" perk of a budget model.  But to be honest, it doesn't even matter since build quality of the cable and its connection to the shell is top notch.  Cable itself has the same L-shaped gold plated connector with a nice strain relief, identical y-splitter capsule with rubbery ends to form a strain relief, inline remote with a decorative metal plate around it and single multi-function button with mic pinhole on the opposite side, and twisted cable wires in a shrink-wrapped like rubbery shielding which makes wire to feel similarly springy. 
 
It even inherits the same microphonics when wire rubs against your cloth, thus a good idea to use a shirt clip.  For in-ear fitment of Baguette, I preferred a wire down rather than over-ear because springy nature of the cable and lack of cinch (not feasible due to inline remote on the right side) prevents wire from staying tucked in behind your ear.
 
And since we are on a subject of a cable and similarities to new Altone series, inline remote functionality was also identical with a single click Play/Pause/Call operation and double click to skip forward.  All was confirmed to work with my Note 4 as well as X1 and X3ii DAPs.  Quality of phone calls, in terms of people hearing me on the other side, was average for this type of cable.
 
Design.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
Uh, so how does it sound?  After a proper 50+ hours of burn in to give its 10mm dynamic drivers a good exercise, I was ready to analyze their sound signature.
 
T-Peos Baguette has a balanced sound with a decent low and top end extension and slightly mid-forward signature.
 
Starting with a bass, it has a rather well defined low end with a nice fast mid-bass punch and a textured sub-bass layer that comes through with a nice rumble, the balance between sub- and mid-bass was perfect to my ears, giving a nice weight to low end, and also well controlled with no bloat or spillage into mids.
 
Mids are a little forward, smooth and clear, lower mids are a bit thin, while upper mids are bright and clear but not super detailed, still having a nice level of detail retrieval without sounding too analytical or harsh.  I do have to note that thinner nature of lower mids also reflected on vocals having a little less body.
 
Treble has a good extension, crisp but not harsh, great for extended non-fatigue listening.
 
I found soundstage to be more intimate.  Separation of instruments was average with just an ok layering; position/imaging was limited by intimate soundstage, and this becomes more apparent when listening to high resolution files.
 
In comparison to other similar IEMs, here is what I found.
 
- vs Baguette, VSD3 has a little more sub-bass, smoother and a bit more detailed and balanced mids, treble not as extended, soundstage a little wider.
 
- vs Baguette, KC06A has a little more sub-bass, more aggressive mid-bass punch, more balanced but harsher mids, treble has similar extension, soundstage very similar.
 
- vs Baguette, IM50 has a little more sub-bass and stronger mid-bass punch, more balanced warmer/smoother mids, treble is not as extended, soundstage a little bit wider.
 
- vs Baguette, T1E has more sub-bass, similar mids just with a little more body, worse treble extension, slightly wider staging.
 
Conclusion.
 
As I mentioned in the intro of this review, I usually don't make a price the focal point of my write up.  But in this case I do want to mention that $69 price of Baguette makes it one great value considering its price/performance ratio, including smartphone support with inline remote/mic.  They are not giant killers, but they fit well in sub $100 category with other IEMs and have sound performance that can outshine the competition!  If you add to that a great build and excellent quality cable, T-Peos Baguette is definitely a great IEM to consider!