Disclaimer: The unit was sent by TangZu for review purposes but all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Build and Fit
It's hard to believe just how robust such affordable earphones have become. how can the brands use such dense metal in the chassis at this price point? i don't know, i also don't care to be honest. excellent build quality at any price point, let alone this. No one should complain regarding the build quality.
The cable however is a bit sticky and rubbery for my liking but i'm not complaining. The carry case seems a bit useless because it's just a bag, offers no kind of protection and its a bit of a fuss to open and close it. the case feels more like form over function to me. but again, you can get a hard case for dirt cheap.
Amp Needs
The shiminli encounter edition needs no dedicated amp to sound its best. it works just fine from a phone or a usb dongle dac just fine.
Sound Quality
The good thing that stands out on first listen is that this earphone is sufficiently detailed sounding. it is not the "in your face" kind of forced detail but natural resolution. the midrange is quite detailed and it captures all kinds of texture there is to capture. can it compare to a higher end planar earphone? no, but you will not be missing much.
layering of instruments and vocals is also done right, and the sound isn't claustrophobic at all. everything is layered well. i would however say that the midrange is slightly forward, and the vocals are slightly pushed forward, but it is not fatiguing at all. because of this you might miss the small tonal changes that happen in real time but you get a good dose of detail. so you get some, you lose some. bass quantity is sufficient and on the neutral side, but it has good amount of detail in this region. treble is more on the smooth side which is not fatiguing. some cons? although there is very good amount of detail, the timbre is just slightly off in the midrange. but it is something one will get used to very quickly. the soundstage is decent for the price range and is similar to many of the earphones out there in the price range but what is better than most of the usual earphones in this price range is image specificity.
Conclusion
At its price range, the build quality definitely stands out on top. the sound is also quite detailed for the price and the shimin li encounter edition checks most of the boxes.
Build and Fit
It's hard to believe just how robust such affordable earphones have become. how can the brands use such dense metal in the chassis at this price point? i don't know, i also don't care to be honest. excellent build quality at any price point, let alone this. No one should complain regarding the build quality.
The cable however is a bit sticky and rubbery for my liking but i'm not complaining. The carry case seems a bit useless because it's just a bag, offers no kind of protection and its a bit of a fuss to open and close it. the case feels more like form over function to me. but again, you can get a hard case for dirt cheap.


Amp Needs
The shiminli encounter edition needs no dedicated amp to sound its best. it works just fine from a phone or a usb dongle dac just fine.
Sound Quality
The good thing that stands out on first listen is that this earphone is sufficiently detailed sounding. it is not the "in your face" kind of forced detail but natural resolution. the midrange is quite detailed and it captures all kinds of texture there is to capture. can it compare to a higher end planar earphone? no, but you will not be missing much.
layering of instruments and vocals is also done right, and the sound isn't claustrophobic at all. everything is layered well. i would however say that the midrange is slightly forward, and the vocals are slightly pushed forward, but it is not fatiguing at all. because of this you might miss the small tonal changes that happen in real time but you get a good dose of detail. so you get some, you lose some. bass quantity is sufficient and on the neutral side, but it has good amount of detail in this region. treble is more on the smooth side which is not fatiguing. some cons? although there is very good amount of detail, the timbre is just slightly off in the midrange. but it is something one will get used to very quickly. the soundstage is decent for the price range and is similar to many of the earphones out there in the price range but what is better than most of the usual earphones in this price range is image specificity.


Conclusion
At its price range, the build quality definitely stands out on top. the sound is also quite detailed for the price and the shimin li encounter edition checks most of the boxes.