Ubsound The Fighter Earphones Review - Expatinjapan

 Head Pie 

ubsound `The Fighter` review.​

A pleasant surprise at a bargain price.​

 

 http://www.ubsound.com/​

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Build
The aluminum build of ubsound The Fighter seems well constructed and durable. 
The Fighter is designed to fit a stylish form of mind. 
Where the cable runs into the IEMs looks to be sturdy but I wonder whether more stress support could be added there.
The housings could be smaller, and the nozzles longer, plus the housing closest to the earhole could be rounded off more.
The cable itself is of the flat variety and seems to avoid tangle issues because of it. 
The 3.5mm jack is gold plated.
But in general no real complaints apart the above minor details, they are built to stand up to everyday use.

 

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Sound
This is always a problem for reviewers, keep in mind that ubsound The Fighter retails on amazon.com for US$49 at the moment, and as such I will be assessing it within its price point and possible target audience.

I considered using my Centrance Hifi-Skyn or Shozy Alien to test these out but decided the target audience would be more the basic portable casual user of ipods, iphones etc and decided on using my ipod touch 6G as the source dap.

The Fighters had well over (recommended) 50 hours of time on them before I started into my review.

The first point one notices is the bass and there are clouds of them, sharp and clear. Its not fast bass.
The next thing one hears is the treble and then of course I searched for the mids, the mid range is there for sure but The Fighter definitely fits into the V shaped territory, or at the very least a U shaped territory.
Vocals are sweet and smooth and have enough breadth to please.
Instrument separation although not on the level of the big boys is pleasing, it can start to smear at high volumes.
Detail is present and engaging.
Distortion is low at most volumes.
For extended listening session it was non-fatiguing and rather smooth.

 

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Fit
Ubsound The Fighter comes with three sets of tips, as usual I opted for the largest size as it gives me the best seal usually.
The Fighter can be worn either hanging down style or over the ears, choose what is best for fit and comfort preferences, I found over the ear was my choice of preference.
The cable being of rubber can cause some microphonic noise.
Isolation is not absolute, but within the acceptable range.
I would also recommend tapering of the earphones housing shell for an easier fit, perhaps even a slight lengthening of the nozzle itself.

 

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Value
Well US$50, what could go wrong? Right, right, amirite?
These are one of the first attempts it seems by this rather new Italian company that has been active for four years, and they have done quite well within the price range.
The sound is acceptable out of my ipod touch 6G.
The  fit is also well within my desired zone of comfort.
Build is solid enough to last, but as usual I haven`t put them through any overly damaging stress tests.

 

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Overall
They say you get what you pay for, and this true of The Fighter, but you also get a little more. I was admittedly not impressed with this IEM in my earlier listening sessions and was dreading writing the review. As it got more hours on it and I got a good fit with the large tips and opted for the ipod touch as source I started to actually enjoy them.
Owners of TOTL Daps and IEMs won`t be the target audience for these I am guessing, but they are good choice for the afore mentioned as a casual set up for the gym, around the house etc and at a price that won`t back the bank.
I think most non critical casual users of phones and the like would enjoy these IEMs very much with their emphasis on the lows and highs which gives a dynamic and exciting feel. Also the V signature is perfect for commutes to balance the outside noise of buses and trains and their various movements.
All in all If your budget is within $50 dollars The Fighter is certainly worth a look.

I look forward to seeing what ubsound come up with in the future as they head into the mid range price point of earphones.

 

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A big thank you to ubsound for sending us The fighter for review - expatinjapan.  

 
 

Note: At the time of this review, the UBSOUND Fighter aluminum earphones are available for purchase at 48$ on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=ubsound) and 69$ on UBSOUND’s official online shop (ubsoundshop.com).
Official Manufacturer’s website for further information and customer service: www.ubsound.com
UBSOUND is an Italian company based in Milan and specialized in consumer electronics, specifically portable audio products like premium IEMs, Headphones, DAPs and DACs. The pronounce of their brand, listening to some videos, is “you be sound”, which at the end of the day sounds good imho.

Disclaimer:
First of all I’d like to thank Head-Fi for the opportunity to write a subjective review on the best worldwide audio webzine.
Below you’ll find my honest review and opinion. I am in no way affiliated with their brand. Although, being an Italian guy, I’m obviously a bit proud as I’m talking about the only Italian brand of portable audio we have in Italy so far, but I’ve been as unbiased as possible while testing their IEMs and writing this review.

My background:
Please let me briefly introduce myself. This is BlackJackSound, an Italian student at the engineering University that, other than eating spaghetti, pizza and drinking good red wine, is also a deep follower of Head-Fi, who loves audio products like digital audio players, in-ear monitors, headphones on-ear/over-ear and amplified digital analogic converters. I generally write reviews in Italy and my main aim is to test each product with passion always considering build quality, the acoustic signature, the soundstage, the design and value for money first. I own a collection of around 70 audio products (IEMs, headphones, DAPs and DACs), therefore I hope my review will be appreciated by the huge Head-Fi community, always considering that these reviews are obviously written in my humble opinion. Lastly, I’m sorry if my English is not correct sometimes… Thanks

Introduction:
I read several reviews about the brand UBSOUND starting last year, then around 6 months ago I bought the Fighter IEMs inside a duty free airport store before a long trip, so I had the opportunity to do the first running-in period of the earphones in the sky while flying, using my iPhone with the off-line setting and listening to my favorite music (around 100 songs playlist) thanks to a good bank power, otherwise it wouldn’t have been possible with the iPhone battery only as you can imagine. Then I finished my running-in period with my I-Basso once I was back home. The first impression was good and also the following test during the weeks after, so this is why I’m writing this review as I love to share my experiences with gear tested.


MY OFFICIAL REVIEW OF THE UBSOUND FIGHTER ALUMINUM IEMs (elegant black color)


Packaging and Unboxing:

The UBSOUND Fighter IEMs are available in the market in 4 colors (black, white, red and blue), I bought the black version, opaque aluminum elegant black and iron grey, which perfectly match with most of my devices.
The packaging is very slim, simply elegant silky cardboard nice to touch with a double security seal. The front cover of the box displays their logo & motto, a picture of the earphones and the name of the model “Fighter”. The packaging design gives an immediate easy Italian style graphically speaking. On the back side of the box there are the main details in 5 languages, English, Italian, French, Spanish and German.
On the right and left side we find brief details, like compatibility with the main devices, serial numbers, official CE, FCC, RoHS certificates and the 2 years full warranty certified mark (which I do appreciate a lot, as with full warranty they mean you are covered for 2 years with a replacement in case of defective unit with a “new/sealed” unit, not a refurbished nor repaired one. Which is admirable compared to other IEM brands imho).
Inside you find 3 pairs of comfort silicon ear tips (L, M, S size), an elegant velvet carry bag, a multi-language user guide, a UBSOUND sticker and, obviously, the Fighter IEMs. I found the range of accessories quite poor compared to other brands, but at the end of the day what I really care is the build quality and the sound performance.

Technical Specifications:
- 8mm independent dynamic drivers
- Frequency Response: 20-20.000Hz
- Maximum Distorsion: <0,5%
- Sensivity: 92dB
- Impedence: 32 Ω

Housings – IEMs’ body:

The Fighter has a good build quality with an aluminum cone shaped body. They seem to be very light considering the robust material. The front hole is closed with a good quality metal filter which protects the 8mm independent dynamic driver from dust and ear wax. The 3 pair of ear-tips in S, M and L size are soft, comfortable and with a great soundproofing level in my opinion.

Cable, 3,5mm Jack connector, Single button Microphone and Fit:

Honestly it’s my first experience with a flat wire and, at the end of the day, I would say it’s a nice experience: light, ergonomic, really tangle free, robust, without memory and soft to the touch. The right cable has a plastic single button remote control with an integrated microphone of good quality which works only to play-pause music and answer and hang up the phone calls. It doesn’t have any volume controller. The IEMs and their remote perfectly work with Android, iOS and Windows. The flat wire is Y-separated through a nice aluminum mold with the stylish Ubsound logo printed on it. At the far end of the wire there is a well heat-sealed rubber Jack with a 3,5mm gold plated connector. I think the Fighter in-ear earphones have a high level build quality and each single detail is quite accurate. In terms of IEMs’ fit, I’m really satisfied about their comfort used over the ear and straight down. I would say that when wearing the Fighter over the ear the slight microphonic effect is less prominent anyway.

Sound:

Signature
After several tests, I think the Fighter IEMs have an end-user friendly V-shaped & warm acoustic signature.

Bass
The bass frequency is quite robust, deep and smooth. Despite their powerful bass effect, the Mids and High frequencies are never impacted nor covered by their advanced bass. Even with a very high volume from an amplified DAC, the Fighter IEMs do not match any kind of distortion, leaving the bass very clean and nice to be listened.

Midrange
The Mid frequencies are a little behind compared to the advanced bass and treble which, being a V-shaped IEM, is quite in line with my expectation. However, even though the mids are a bit behind, probably thanks to the great effect of the middle-treble the sound’s details are quite present and rich enough to maintain a good level of voice and instruments. Also, this kind of sweet midrange give a very warm soundstage to these IEMs in my opinion.

Treble
The treble frequency is very precise, clean and advanced without hissing effects nor distortions even with an high volume. I appreciated the clarity of the Fighter’s treble a lot and enjoyed listening to all genres of music. I never found this clear treble in this price range honestly.

Comparisons:

Sennheiser Momentum IEMs (iOS version)
Even though it’s quite unfair to compare 100$ IEMs like the Momentum with 48$ IEMs like the Fighter, being in a V-shaped signature scenario I thought it was a good fighting to be implemented.
Starting from the end of my opinion, I think that the Fighter are definitely better than the Momentum, basically considering the value for money of both.
Regarding the Momentum, I do not appreciate that the volume controller on the remote works only with iOS or only with Android, I bought the iOS version as I mostly use them with an iPhone but it would have been nice to use it also with my girlfriend’s smartphone Galaxy S6… anyway, this is not the end of the world as I think the smartphone’s volume controller is always better than the remote one in my opinion.
The Momentum IEMs are V-shaped as well as the Fighter, with a slightly deeper bass compared to the Ubsound earphones but also a less detailed midrange which, in my opinion, generate a much too hard V-shaped sound. Therefore the Fighter’s acoustic signature is more warm, sweet and soft during playback.
Anyway, I’ll write and post a separate review of the Momentum soon here on Head-Fi.

DUNU DN-2000J
Ok, this comparison is 100% unfair in terms of price range: 330$ Dunu Vs 48$ Ubsound… no way.
Obviously the DN-2000J are a masterpiece, really rich of details and with a sound clarity I never tried in my life before. The signature is perfectly neutral and balanced, maybe a bit more V-shaped while using the bass ring included. However, what surprised me a lot is that from an iPhone 6 while listening to electronic music I would say that the Fighter’s soundstage is even better than the DN-2000… but, from a DAP or DAC, there are no comparisons obviously. Also for the Dunu IEMs, I’ll write and then post a separate review soon here on Head-Fi, before Xmas if I find few spare hours.


Devices used:

The Fighter’s tests were done with a Samsung Galaxy S6, an iPhone 6, an iPod Touch, an iBasso DX-50, an iBasso DX-90 and a Fiio X5, listening to several tracks of multi-genres music.


Conclusion:

I think the Ubsound Fighter aluminum in-ear earbuds are globally very good, in terms of acoustic performance and build quality, with an excellent value for money in my humble opinion.
I wouldn’t suggest the Fighter for those who only like a flat signature in this price segment.
I would also recommend a good running-in period for the drivers of at least 50/70 hours for the Fighter, as I noticed a great improvement after that point, especially in clarity and details.
Lastly, I think that this Italian company Ubsound is a brand to keep an eye on seeing how they worked with the Fighter, especially keeping an eye on their upcoming projects on their website.

Thank you very much for reading and see you soon with my next review.
Bye, BlackJackSound.

This review is for the Ubsound Fighters, let me introduce myself before I get started. My name is Adam I am 38 years old and have been into audio equipment since I was in high school. In the past 2 years headphones and iem's have become my main hobby. I am not an audiophile, but a collector or hoarder of audio equipment. My journey to Head-Fi all started when I did a search on the web for a new pair of ear buds, and just about every search landed me here. Since my first search I made an account and started to review headphones and ear buds and never looked back.  It's know secret the reviews on Head-Fi get more traffic and more views then most pro-forums combined.
 
Before I get into my review let me start off by saying I aim my reviews at the average Joe or Jane and use simple terms, so the average consumer can understand them since that's what brought me here from the beginning. So if your into to reading a long reviews with graphs, meters, charts, levels, and audiophile terms skip down about 234 pages and I am sure you will find a review like that. My reviews are so easy to understand a caveman will understand what I am saying. There is nothing wrong with the other kind of reviews, but after 10 minutes of reading I just want to know if they sound good, I don't care what your graph says or your spl meter says the only tools I trust are the ones my uncle used to grab if I did something wrong. Ok that's enough of my rant you guys probably skipped down anyway.
 
I would like to say thank you to Clara at Ubsound for sending me a review unit out, I am not an employee or am I being compensated for this review. This review is based on my honest opinion, and all pictures were taken by me. The Fighters come in 4 different colors and can be purchased directly from this link for $69.90
 
UBSOUND FIGHTERS
 
Who are they, well I didn't know either until a saw an add somewhere on line, UBSOUND is actually pronounced "You Be Sound". Fighters were released for European sales in June 2014 and to the US market February 2015. They will also be releasing an on ear headphone in July of 2015. Further down the road into 2016 they will hopefully have there line of DAPs, DAC's, and over ear headphones released. Ubsound was founded in 2011 by its CEO Marzio Gasparro in Milan, Italy. Every day there seems to be a new company popping up, due to the high demand of mobile listening devices. And what's better then having more options to choose from. Music is as subjective as it gets every one hears and likes different kinds of music. It's not like how I know for a fact I am so good looking I should be a model, my looks are not subjective I am just that beautiful. Just kidding if that were true I wouldn't be single writing reviews, ok I really do enjoy writing reviews it's my hobby and down time. So let's get right into it. http://www.ubsoundshop.com/en/12-fighter-series-earphones      http://www.ubsound.com/
 
SPECIFICATIONS 
 
Driver                                    8mm dynamic
Sensitivity                             92dB/mW
Frequency Range                 20-20.000HZ
Impedance                           32 ohms
Max Distortion-max              <0.5%
Flat Wire Cable                     1.2m
Plug                                       3.5mm          
 
 

 
 
PACKAGING 
 
Ubsound Fighters come in a small plain cardboard box, based on price this is what is expected. The front of the box has a hi-res photo of the Fighters, the back of the box has all the specifications in just about every common language. That's about it for the box, it gets it to point A and B safely.
 
 
ACCESSORIES
 
1 pair of ear buds
S,M,L silicone tips
Manual
Ubsound Sticker
Black velvet pouch
 
 

 
Who doesn't like accessories, it's like icing on the cake. Ubsound includes everything you need to get you up and running, I do prefer a hard shell case for tossing them into a gym bag or book bag. They include every size you need of silicone tips for proper fitment. The sticker is a nice touch since I like to fill the outside of my tool box at work with stickers.
 
 
BUILD AND FIT
 
The Fighters are for sure pretty stylish and have some good weight to them without being overly heavy. The cable is flat and made of a non slip rubber with a matte finish, being flat helps with it becoming tangled. I have to say it is pretty good at staying tangle free. A  straight 3.5mm plug that is gold plated is also coated in a matte black rubber, there is good strain relief though out anywhere it's needed. Ubsound Fighters housing is made of aluminum and is painted to a nice satin finish. The faceplate is shiny aluminum with a machine circular finish stamped with there logo in white paint.
 
Where the cable splits for each ear piece you will find a rather large Y splitter that's made of metal painted black with the logo in white. The Y splitter actually weighs them down a little bit and can cause the ear buds to come out if you don't have them placed in your ear correctly. These also have a 1 button control and mic attached to the right cable, the control is set about 7 inches down form your ear.
Each ear piece has a L and R on the rubber grommet for strain relief, underneath the housings there is a small hole for the dynamic drivers to breathe. Removing the tip will reveal a metal screen to keep dirt and dust out.
 
 



 
 
The over all build quality is top notch, you won't be finding to much plastic on these except for the cable. Isolation is right where it should be for this kind of ear bud, they kept a good amount of ambient noise out. These where really comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, the only thing I would change on the design is the size of the Y splitter and the weight of it. Just from the build quality and quality materials these should be able to take some abuse in harsh environments.
 

 

 
 
 
SOUND
 
You probably skipped to this section by now so go back and read the rest of the review (to be continued) just kidding. So how do they sound, even before I received them through some emails they told me the sound signature was a V-Shaped sig. I don't use specific tracks since everyone doesn't listen to the same thing as I do, but I don't know why you wouldn't listen to what I do because my tastes are impeccable and trust me Polka music is fun. Ok really, the main source I used was my Astell & Kern AK100II I also used my Samsung Alpha since there made for portable use. I used just about every kind of format file that I have, from WAV, FLAC, to highly compressed MP3 files. Ubsound Fighters are easy to drive so no amping is required knowing they were tuned with a V-shaped sig I had an idea of what kind of music to throw at them.
 
Let's start off with the low end, expecting heavy bass I was not disappointed listening to 1990's freestyle. Mid-bass is more prominent then sub-bass and it hit's hard, it does extend into the lower mid's. At some volumes it does become distorted and a bit muddy. Depending on what kind of music your listening to the bass sounds more controlled, like Hip-Hop, Rap, and Dubstep the lower registers sound better then listening with Classic, Rock, or Live music.
 
The mid-range is quite smooth but can lack clarity and detail adding to there overall signature of V shaped. Mids sound better listening to music with soft toned vocals. The high frequencies are one of the Fighters stronger points, and  they are not extended so far to pierce your ear. Upper registers sound more natural then the rest of the frequencies and have more transparency. Compared to Sure SE215's the 215's bass is more controlled, but the Fighters mid-bass hit's harder but sacrifices detail. Fighter's mids compared to the 215's sound more laid back, the higher notes of the Fighter's has better extension and more clarity.
 
Using them for phone calls the Fighters performed pretty good, the caller on the other end came through clear without back round noise or any hissing. I used them to call my mother and she couldn't tell the difference if I was using a hands free device. The 1 button control worked ending the call with no problems, it also work for the music functions as well.
 
CONCLUSION
 
My overall 2 cents, V-Signature is not my go to sound, I am more of a Neutral kind of guy and natural I never used body enhancing substances but it's hard to tell I am like a card board cutout for a fitness magazine, not really I am short and shaped liked a fire plug.  If you are looking for a V shaped ear bud these might be right up your alley. Or if you like a lot of bass these could be for you, the tuning of the Fighter's sounds like they would be very popular with the younger generation of people especially teens and preteens. They are built with quality materials and have a nice modern look to them that will appeal to many. Thank you for reading I hope this helped anyone interested in these, until next time.