Ultimate Ears Triple.fi 10 Pro Earphones Gun Metal Blue with Roadie Case

CK Moustache

100+ Head-Fier
Link to my review and measurement index thread where one can also find a full review overview, more information about myself as well as my general-ish audio and review manifesto: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/956208/




I only give full stars. My ranking/scoring system does not necessarily follow the norm and is about as follows:

5 stars: The product is very good and received the "highly recommended" award from me.

4 stars: The product is very good and received the "recommended" award from me.

3 stars: The product is good/very good, but not outstanding/special enough to get any of my two awards. ["Thumbs Up"]

2 stars: The product is only about average or even somewhat below that and somewhat flawed/flawed in some areas. [neither "Thumbs Up" nor "Thumbs Down"]

1 star: The product is bad/severely flawed to outright bad. ["Thumbs Down"]




Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10


Source:

Personal unit.


Miscellaneous:

I bought them from Amazon when they were sold off ridiculously cheap on Black Friday, and sort of regret not having gotten a second or third pair the same year or the next when they were discounted again.

Undoubtedly, they are true classics and probably the original definition of “v-shaped” sound in IEMs.

Several nice accessories came included.

I really like the tin carrying case. It doesn't only look and feel phenomenal and is very sturdy, but it's also padded on the inside. Easily one of my most-loved and most unique in-ear carrying cases.

I love the turquoise blue chrome/mirror colour design.
Somewhat unusual shape and geometry, but I like it, and it is also quite unique.

Build quality is good enough – the in-ears appear more fragile and less sturdy as well as less premium compared to my Shure SE425, but are overall still sturdy enough if treated well.

Unusual shell geometry but comfortable in my ears. The cable's memory wire ear guides definitely contribute to the good fit and comfort in my ears. Others may feel otherwise.

Okay-ish/average cable – springy but sturdy. Has got a chin-slider.
Two-pin connectors, however one of the Triple.Fi 10s’ rather unusual features is that their left side’s connector doesn't follow the standard of the "upper" pin being the "+" pin, but has the layout inverted (only on the left side).

Three Balanced Armature drivers per side, two acoustic ways, (oval) dual-bore architecture with dedicated acoustic dampers.

Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10 Carrying Case.png



Sound:

Largest included silicone tips.

Tonality:

V-shaped sound.

The Triple.Fi 10 are some of the most reactive in-ears to subtle output impedance deviations from 0 Ohms (even a perfect output impedance of 0.1 Ohms already shows measurable (but still inaudible) deviation effects), and become audibly darker in the highs the higher the output impedance of the device they are connected to is, even to the point of sounding “warm and dark”, with a downwards sloping response if the device’s output impedance is on the higher side.

The bass elevation starts to rise around 600 Hz and reaches its climax around 85 Hz with a quantity of about 8 dB compared to diffuse-field flatness, even though it is only a little less present between 100 and 200 Hz. Extension is flat and free of any roll-off down into the real sub-bass.
So yeah, the main focus is on the sub- and midbass, but the upper bass is already punchy as well and there is also some low fundamental range lift but no intrusive warmth (just a bit of pleasant lower midrange thickness).

The upper mids, presence range and middle treble are somewhat in the background, giving voices a rather distanced presentation in the mix with still good-enough timbre.

The area between 8 and 10 kHz is emphasised and on the bright side, with present/forward cymbals that have a rather metallic, however not sharp timbre.

In summary, they represent a quite traditional v-shaped fun/loudness tuning.

Frequency Response:

TF10 ER-4S-Compensation.jpg

Etymotic ER-4S-Compensation

This is also pretty much how I perceive them, although obviously without the excessively shown treble between 7 kHz and 16 kHz.

TF10 PP8-Compensation.jpg

InEar ProPhile 8 Compensation

Resolution:

Tight and fast bass, as it could be expected from the two small, non-vented BA drivers for low-frequency reproduction. Perceived bass details and texture fit well into the Triple.Fi 10’s performance category.

Good resolution and note separation (actually ultimately not even that far away from my UERM in a direct comparison, but still with a noticeable gap between them) but nonetheless still in a lower league when compared to my Audio Technica ATH-IM03, Westone W4R or Logitech UE900 when it comes to separation and actual micro details (not the fake stuff generated by elevations), especially in the midrange that just sounds quite two-dimensional and lacks “layering”.

Clean treble reproduction but not on the same level as some of the other, more modern v-shaped IEMs.

Soundstage:

Rather wide but with pretty much no spatial depth. Slightly elliptical, however in a flat way.

Precise instrument positioning and separation.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Comparisons:

Logitech/Ultimate Ears UE900/UE900S:

The UE900 are tuned more balanced/neutral compared to the more v-shaped Triple.Fi 10 but ultimately not (flat) neutral either but have a relaxed upper midrange and thick lower mids.
The UE900 are less bassy and milder in the lower highs, with perceptively more linear super treble extension and therefore more subtle glitter/shimmer, whereas the Triple.Fi 10 are more distant, cooler sounding in the mids, especially compared to the UE900s’ thick lower midrange that spills clearly into the central midrange.

In terms of resolution, the UE900 are just a slight bit superior in direct comparison, even in the midrange, while bass attacks sound a bit tighter on the Triple.Fi 10 that seem to decay somewhat faster.

To my ears, the UE900s’ stage is even a bit wider, but has especially got some more spatial depth compared to the flat sounding Triple.Fi 10.
When it comes to instrument separation, the UE900 may be a bit ahead.

Custom Art Ei.3:

The Triple.Fi 10 are more v-shaped with the more distant, slightly hollow and thin appearing mids; a brighter, splashier treble elevation; and also somewhat (but not much) stronger bass emphasis.

The Triple.Fi 10 win in terms of bass attack, speed and tightness, while midrange details are a little higher on the Ei.3, whereas actual treble details are about similar.

In terms of soundstage width, the Ultimate Ears present the wider room, while the Ei.3 have got more depth and therefore the superior layering while instrument separation and imaging precision is on a pretty much similar level.

Audio Technica ATH-IM03:

To my ears, these are similar enough to the Ultimate Ears, albeit with a leading edge when it comes to technicalities.

Both are v-shaped, but the IM03 less splashy and metallic in the highs.
Bass-wise, the Audio Technica even have about one dB extra in the midbass, with pretty much similar bass quantity as the Triple.Fi 10 in the sub-bass and lower mids, which makes them sound just a little bassier and fuller as a result.
Voices appear less distant in the mix compared to the Ultimate Ears.
The upper treble peak is also located in the 8 kHz to 10 kHz area but not as present, which results in a milder, more realistic and less splashy elevation.

The IM03s’ additional way in the midrange definitely shows and they present quite a step up in this area, with the highs also being technically more proficient.
In terms of bass decay, though, the Triple.Fi 10 sound faster compared to the ATH-IM03 whose lower notes linger just a bit longer, giving them more “body”, while control is nonetheless great.

The Audio Technicas’ stage is audibly deeper than that of the Triple.Fi 10, and quite three-dimensional circular (ultimately it is a bit more on the oval side, though).

Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10.png



Conclusion:

True classics with a v-shaped tonality. They don’t really do anything wrong (while they do not necessarily particularly excel in any specific area either) and present a sound that still fits well into the ~400$ range with a punchy bass with fast, clean decay, and sparkly highs that resolve well enough to pull this elevation off; solely the “two-dimensional” midrange and flat soundstage are things that could be improved.
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corgifall

1000+ Head-Fier
Pros: Decent low end. At the time a real winner in the hifi world.
Cons: Recessed mids. Dull highs. Terrible fit for a lot of people. Terrible stock cable. Haven’t aged very well sound wise 13 years later.
While listening to my UE 6 Pro and writing up a review I decided to listen to my original UE triplefi 10 set which led to procrastinating on the UE 6 review and writing one up for this old pair instead. A little back story first though! Back in 2007 during my senior year of high school I had made a decision to upgrade from my crappy earbuds to something better. My dad being an audio engineer told me to try out the Shures or Ultimate Ears of the time. I really loved the electric blue color of the UE tf10 and after saving up for what felt like forever through my senior year and I got the tf10 for $400 bucks. I’ve owned this original pair since then and these had burned through 6 or more UE stock cables. Had the part of the shell that has the nozzle come off. The right driver definitely has a channel imbalance problem now that I listened to them again. That being said they’ve been through hell and back with me while growing up. I still love them and they were my gateway into the hifi world when I thought mp3s in 320kbps were the most hifi you could get and beats headphones were endgame.

Now let’s get to the review of the sound! My personal preference are a dynamic hybrid iem where I get good hitting bass and have a brighter treble with decent mids. I listen to a lot of genres but I hover in the classic rock, blues and edm music with some rap here and there.

Gear used
iPhone X with headphone adapter, FiiO m11, smsl sh8/su8 combo, and a good ol iPod nano!

Lows- They have a good low end. It’s borderline almost bloated but I’m not sure if it’s cause they’re 13ish years old or not. After listening to them again I was like “oh! These still have a nice low end” no thumping hit or rumbles though.

Mids- Recessed for sure. But at the time it blew my mind.

Highs- Super relaxed and calm. This was the best I had at the time so it sounded super detailed back then haha these didn’t age all that well.

Imaging- Average.

Soundstage- Intimate. No sources help open it up.

Cable rolling- I never really got into cable rolling with the tf10 since the left monitor was the opposite polarity of the right so getting cables made was hard. The original ue cable broke so many times I probably bought like 6 of them for the first 4 or 5 years of owning them. I still have a labkable....cable I got shortly after giving up on the horrible stock UE cable. I ended up not being a fan of that cable and after a few years I found out about null audio. At the time they specialized in tf10 cables and I got the lune Mk3 cable and that’s what’s been on there since. Whether the cables made a difference or not is hard to say. Both the labkable and null cable sound the same to me when swapping.

Amping
Amping doesn’t seem to do much if anything to these. They aren’t hard to drive at all. Even the clinical sounding FiiO m11 did nothing to the treble for the tf10. My smsl desktop combo just made the bass bloated. Balanced does nothing to them either.

Overall thoughts
I bust these out once in a blue moon to go down memory lane to remind myself what got me into the hifi world and I’ll say they still make me smile but when comparing them to a $200-500 set of modern iems these are most definitely lacking. They have a special charm about them though. Ask anyone who has owned a pair of the tf10 and they will probably say they love them too. My five star review is somewhat bias to the nostalgia I have with these. Had this review been from 2007-2008 I would of definitely given them a proper 5 stars. If anyone ever has a chance to sit down with a pair of the tf10 for a day or two I would definitely say do it.

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lsh40

New Head-Fier
Very good at performing EDMs and rock music. Owned for 2 years and gave it to my ex girlfriend. 

Eustachian

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Great highs, soundstage and finesse
Cons: Mids are slightly recessed, unusual fit
The TripleFi 10 noise isolation earphones by Ultimate Ears are a highly rated pair of earphones. These high performance headphones gave way to the term “triple-driver earphones” and became popular as they were known to be used by professional musicians and celebrities. With quality headphone reviews from stars such as Pete Wentz, bassist for Fall Out Boy, Grammy award winning artist Seal and Serj Tankian, former singer for System of a Down, Ultimate Ears products such as these TripleFi 10 noise isolation earphones are sure to be an ideal selection for a wide variety of needs.

If you’re a music enthusiast looking for an excellent pair of earphones, or a rising star in the world of music, these earphones can give you a feeling of being in a music studio. For the audiophile or hi-fi enthusiast, the Ultimate Ears TripleFi 10 noise isolation earphones provide a great listen, while a variety of musicians will find these earphones to be an excellent selection for performances or for backup earphones if customs fail. These earphones provide a professional level of sound you’re sure to love.



Choosing The Best Noise Canceling Earphones

Quality earphones are an investment that should not be taken lightly, unless you have hundreds of dollars to waste on sub-par selections, which is why it is important to consider various aspects of noise isolation earphones before making your selection. With the advancements being made in modern technology, picking something that is up to date and full of the most advanced technological features is vital. Considering aspects such as technological features, user reviews and components is necessary to make an informed decision. Some features to consider include:

* Sound Quality
* Comfort and Design
* Noise Isolation
* Price

You should also be aware of any additional features, such as warranties or guarantees included with the purchase. Considering each of these aspects for the best noise cancelling headphones is important to making the most informed decision for your next pair of noise isolation earphones. Let’s take a look at the Ultimate Ears TripleFi 10 noise isolation earphones and see how they rate.

Sound

As far as sound quality goes, these earphones are off the charts with their amazing sound! Across the board, users were blown away by the quality of sound coming out of these earphones. These earphones have a unique, triple (hence the name) armature speaker design that splits the sound to reproduce three different frequencies – high, mid and low range. This enables the ultimate listening experience.

The sound quality is also improved with audio filters designed to shape the sound, creating an experience that almost feels like you’re in the recording studio. Additionally, these earphones have an incredibly broad sound range to supply you with a thumping bass, blended mid range, and detailed treble sounds.Ultimate Ears TripleFi 10 Earphones

Comfort And Design

These earphones have a cord that can be custom shaped to your ear, just like professional monitors. Each earphone set includes several sizes of ear cushions so you can find the fit that’s right for you. Ear cushion options include three different sizes of soft silicone cushions, as well as foam cushions that provide a perfect fit every time.

The Ultimate Ears TripleFi 10 noise isolation earphones also feature a customizable fit. You can wear these earphones in two positions – either down like regular earphones or bent to fit over your ears, just like professional monitors. The cord is also designed to be tangle resistant.

Noise Isolation

These earphones fit comfortably inside your ear to create a secure seal that will block up to 26 dB. The foam cushions, only available with premium models such as the TripleFi 10 option, create the perfect seal to lock all the musical sound inside your ears while keeping outside noises at bay.

Additional Features

This pair of earphones comes with a hard case that’s ready for the pocket so you can safely transport these earphones anywhere. Additionally, the TripleFi 10 noise isolation earphones come with a variety of jacks so you can use a wide assortment of devices.

Pros Of Ultimate Ears Triplefi Noise Isolation Earphones

Incredible sound that will blow you away!
Individualization of three different frequencies
Super broad range
Versatile cord design
Customizable fit
Noise isolation of up to 26 dB
Available at half price
Hard carry case
Jacks included
Cons of Ultimate Ears TripleFi Noise Isolation Earphones

Size of the ear buds
Only available in one color
Price

These earphones are listed at $399.99, but they are available for much less if you search the right places. Amazon has these earphones listed at a significant discount. Used pairs can be picked up for about thirty dollars less than the new price. While this may seem like a steep price for a pair of earphones, it is important to realize that these are highly advanced earphones that use a patented technique to give you the best quality level of sound every time. Musicians are known to use these earphones as backups to their custom fitted earphones, indicating that the TripleFi 10 earphones are an extremely high quality choice.

squallkiercosa

Headphoneus Supremus
Pros: Visceral bass response, clear and powerful.
Cons: Mids are kind of weak
I noticed so much praise around here that my expectations were quite high and I gotta say: I was not disappointed at all. There's little new we can say about such a famous/infamous IEM. I bought a pair to reshell them and try customs so I can't comment about build quality. Not really a fan of V-shaped signatures but this one is special, some people can argue about the overwhelming bass hiding mid-details, but again, the TF10 are really wonderful! Highly recommend them!

Hijodelbrx

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Sound Quality
Cons: Fit (for some)
I bought these to replace my old friends; the UE Super Fi 5, that broke after 7 yrs due to MY mishandling.  I'll try to keep this short as SO MUCH has been written about these classic earphones!  I'm a longtime audiophile (30+ yrs!).  TT - Linn LP12/Lingo/Ittok IV/Ortofon Blaupunkt, CD - Arcam FMJ CD 23T, Amp - Music Reference RM9 (tube), Preamp - Audio Research LS15 (tube), Phono Preamp - Audio Research PH3 (tube) , Spkrs - Spendor S100, this makes up the bulk of my rig, along with racks, cables, and a few other toys.  I've got an Ol' School headphone rig -  Sennheiser HD600's with a Musical Fidelity tube headphone amp, that I've owned for close to a decade.  While my system isn't the best of the best or the latest and greatest, I'm confident in my ability to determine good sound.  That said, the fact that one can achieve this level of sonic performance with a pair of buds straight out of a stock Ipod (a mid-fi component at it's best) is nothing short of a miracle!  I'll add that flip-flopping (reversing) the earpieces should be considered mandatory!  I never did this with my SF5's as I only learned of this method recently (here!), it's been a revelation in every way, the earpieces along with the all-important 'seal', 'lock' into position and don't budge 'til you decide it's time.  I paid less for the TF10's than I did for the SF5's, an absolute win-win for me!  At the price these bad boy's can be had for now, it's a no-brainer!
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lin0003

Headphoneus Supremus
Pros: Sound Quality, Great for a Basshead & Treblehead, Great For Price That You Can Get Them For
Cons: Recessed Midrange, **DODGY CABLE**
I traded my beloved IE8s for these just less than a week ago. All of this is tested on my HDP-R10, Samsung Galaxy S3 and my Sansa Clip+. 
Everything said in this review is how I hear and I am in no way affiliated with UE or against them. 

Design and Comfort:
I actually really like how these look. Personally, I think that the "Gunmetal Blue" looks very cool. It comes with detachable and easily replaceable cables, which is good because I have never ever come across a worse cable. It is very still and coming from the nice and soft cable of the Sennheiser IE8, the cable and memory wire was definitely a pain to gt used to, but I have already bought a "Dark Lord" cable from a Head-Fier and I'm waiting for it to get here. I also have to say that I have fairly small ears and after an hour or so of wear, they become pretty uncomfortable, which I think has something to do with how the housing of the IEMs are positioned.  If your budget permits, I would recommend you to look into reshelling them into a custom. It comes with a very nice case which UE claims is crushproof. It certainly feels the part, but I have no intentions of smashing a brick on them to test it out. 
Sound:
Bass:
I don't see myself as a basshead and have to really EQ to get the sound that I want on the TF-10s. To me, the bass without any EQ sounds a tiny bit bloated and hits too hard. However, quality of and detail in the bass is very good. I think that some details are hidden by the bass. I love the low bass rumble in many of my songs. Many people will probably ask what the differences between the Sennheiser IE8 and these are. I will do a comparison of the TF-10 to the IE8 in every section. 
IE8 vs TF-10 Bass:
I sort of agree to ProjectDenz on this. The IE8's bass is very hard hitting and is bloated to me. It reverbs a bit more than the TF-10. This can be both a good and bad thing. The TF-10 has better quality bass and slightly less bass overall.

Whether one is better than the other simply comes down to personal preferences. For me the TF10 sounded better in the bass department with Trance music and the IE8 sounded a lot better with Hip-Hop style music." 

This is what ProjectDenz wrote and I agree with it. 
Midrange:
IMO, this is the TF-10's weak point. Some may say that the mids are not recessed. I however, believe that they are. Upon the first listen, I could immediately tell that the midrange was recessed and sounded quite distant. If you have something like a Westone, switching to a TF-10 will take a lot of getting used to. However, EQing fixes this easily and makes it very enjoyable again. 
IE8 vs TF-10 Midrange
Both of those IEMs have a recessed midrange and I would say that without EQ, IE8 wins by a tiny margin, but with EQ, TF-10 can be better

Treble:
Perhaps the strongest part of these is the treble. It is hard to describe, but at the top end, there is a sparkle to it. It extends very high and there is no sibilance whatsoever. Occasionally, these do cause listening fatigue. Some say that BA IEMs don't burn in, but I could have sworn that the treble because less harsh after I got around 100 hours on them. 
IE8 vs TF-10 Treble:
At times, I found the IE8's treble to be a little veiled and the TF-10's treble to be excessive. However, I feel that there is more detail in the treble of TF-10. The Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10 win here.

Soundstage:
Soundstage is good, but nothing special and truly cannot compete against the IE8. The IE8 wins by quite a large margin here. However, I think that instrument placement is around the same for those two. Maybe, the TF-10 is a tad bit better. 
Detail:
There is much more detail in the TF-10 and you can hear things that weren't very clear or in some extreme cases, unnoticeable on the IE8. The TF-10 wins by quite a bit here.
Conclusion:
These IEMs are truly impressive an to me, a good upgrade to my IE8s. I would say that if you found them for under $150, grab it immediately. The sound signature is on the warm side and V shaped. I wouldn't recommend these if you love in your face midrange, but otherwise, these are an extremey good pair of IEMs. However, I believe that they have recently been discontinued. Their successor, the UE900 is supposedly better and more neutral. I look forward to trying one of them out. However, the main gripe that I have with them is that they have too much sparkle at times and it easily causes listening fatigue.
I would recommend that you use an amp with them, as without an amp, they hiss quite a bit and can get very annoying. 
 
Edit: Dropped a star because after listening to them after hearing similarly priced IEM, they really aren't that impressive. 
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jimbob54
jimbob54
I got mine in the UK for £150. Very very good buy. A big step up from my Shure E2. Sadly dont stay put as easily as the Shures. I find the black rubber tips Shure sell work well on the TF10s, slightly better fit for my ears than the UE supplied ones.
lin0003
lin0003
Some people get custom tips or get them shelled to a custom, but I think that that's overkill for a $200 IEM.

NzNuTz

New Head-Fier
Pros: Great sound quality and removable cable
Cons: comfort, fit and stock cable quality
It's my first IEM.
For this price it sound great and have removable cable. So you can upgrade cable for better sound quality. 
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but it's not fit and comfort for my ears. 
frown.gif

 

ender323

500+ Head-Fier
Pros: Great sound, removable cable
Cons: Cable quality
Audio quality-These things sound awesome. Knock out anything in the price range, compete with Westone 4s and Shure 535. Discontinued, so really low price.
Design-These are huge. Really big. If you can get them to fit right, not an issue,though they look a little odd.
Comfort-Pretty comfortable. Big though, can't lay down.
Isolation-Really good with the included Comply tips.
 
Two small caveats. The foam tips dirty quickly due to their color, and will need to be replaced as they become saturated with wax. The cable is awful. It retains its shape from packaging, full of kinks. The memory wire by the ear pieces can punture the wire.
I love the case that came with these. Its really nice. And the cables are replaceable, which I plan to upgrade. The treble is overbearing, and very fatiguing with the silicone tips. If you get the Complys to fit really well, the bass picks up and sounds awesome. Push them into your ear a little harder while wearing them-does the bass pick up? If so, they aren't in properly.

IEMagnet

New Head-Fier
Pros: clarity and instrument separation. bass. highs are superba!
Cons: lacks transparency with mp3's even 320. ever so slight sibilance in the vocals sometimes
I must have HUGE ear canals, because with the large silicone tips provided in the box, I got a perfect fit with an impeccable seal! Now i simply get the most amazing sounds ever from an IEM i've owned, and i've owned MANY! I must amend to say that the simply stellar sound quality extends to FLAC (lossless) sources. The TF 10's tend to struggle a bit with mp3's. Even the 320 and V0 quality files. You lose about 10-20% of the sound stage and depth with mp3 files. Still....worth every penny, and I must laugh at those who complain about it being a bad fit or uncomfortable ect ect. I sleep with mine in. As i stated earlier I got an impeccable fit. I love my TF 10's. Now on to the Sennheiser IE80's and Westone 4's. 
wellhiddenmark
wellhiddenmark
Personally, I think these IEMs sound good, but the build quality is so appalling as to make them a complete waste of money. My first pair had failed bass drivers within a few months. I had to wait over three months to get them replaced under warranty. The replacements quite literally fell to pieces. The glue holding them together failed on one. Couldn't face the faff of replacement after extensively being fobbed off by UE support. Binned. Total waste of 250 GBP. WILL NEVER BUY ULTIMATE EARS AGAIN. Cheap, Chinese junk.

Audio-Phile

100+ Head-Fier
So far they're great...with the Comply tips they isolate very well and are very comfortable as well.  The detail is amazing, and the soundstage is about the best you can expect from a universal IEM.  Separation, as expected with a 3 way crossover high-mid-low setup, is great.  Can't recommend these enough, and at the prices these are going for now you'd have to be crazy not to buy them.
ender323
ender323
They aren't high-mid-low, actually. They are are dual-armature bass driver, and a single treble driver.

passion-audio

New Head-Fier
Pros: looks great, great treble and bass, removable cable, wide stage
Cons: weak mid (foggy), few people can wear this
after listening to TF10 for 2hours i decided to write a review of it
1. there's only few people WHO can wear this earphone for me i can't it'd fell off when i put it in my ear
2. the mid isn't that good since there's no mid driver (JH5 doesn't have mid either but the mid isn't as bad as the TF2)
but the stage - when you listen to orchestra songs the TF10 can separate the instrument very well comparing to other universal IEMs
 
 
i would recommend this to people who listen to:
•jazz
•orchestra

Byakushiki

500+ Head-Fier
Pros: Fit, Better cable, Replaceable cable, Balanced, Slightly Fun
Cons: Frail looking pins, price fluctuations
9.2.12 (or 2/9/12 for US)
 
I received a very small USPS package with my supposedly "new in open box" TF10's. The box, actually, was still sealed, and was from the Amazon Black Friday sale. For a brand new TF10, it's a pretty good price considering it's much after Black Friday. Anyways, some pictures of the box and what was inside...And what it looks like now. And no, dual flange does not mean massive ear aches.
 
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Sound-wise: Out of the box, they felt slightly V-shaped in FR. Vocals weren't as emphasized as I liked, and there was a bit of bass emphasis. On my HP TouchPad, the sound felt slightly hollow and very distant, although still enjoyable. The treble was clean and unoffensive to my ears, although YMMV depending on how sensitive you are to treble. Even the sparkly songs (Endless Story) didn't cause any fatigue, despite the obvious treble emphasis. Despite all of that, I felt it could use an extra mid driver to spice up the midrange to my liking but it really isn't as recessed as some say. Dual flanges did stop the slight bass bleed, so that helped a bit. Definitely great for the price though. On a higher power source like a laptop, with the noise attenuator (aka impedance switch/increase), it's quite a balanced sounding earphone. Vocals feel airy, natural and anything but recessed. Much more forward and natural sounding for female and male vocals. Overall, it can be a hit or miss IEM. For me, I think it's a home run.
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Comfort and appearance?
I looked and felt like Frankenstein so I decided to go ahead and jump into the flip mod and not a single regret was had. Dual flange and flip mod made for a very comfy fit, although they still stick out a bit. I'm probably not sleeping with this puppy on. Maybe a Westone UM1 or something of the like, but definitely not this. Too much risk of breaking the cable and then forcing me to go reshell. Now this may put more strain on the memory wire, but I used it as more of a clip, like those clip on headphones so the IEMs stay put no matter how fast I'm moving.
I'll give you guys a picture of what I mean with them still sticking out a bit though.
IMG_20120209_162223.jpg
Yeah, I'm not sleepin' with that thing sticking out of my ears.
 
Soundstage and precision: Not quite as airy as dynamics but still plenty of space. It isn't extraordinarily precise either(compared to UM3), though it does beat out my other headphones by quite a bit. It is definitely more than enough to pick out where a missile is, barreling towards you at two and a half times the speed of sound.
 
Isolation/Sound blocking: Dual flange is more than enough for being outside and about. Enough to walk undisturbed but still hear the idiot's red SUV barreling at me going 50mph.
 
Build: The earphone itself is pretty tough and I like how it appears with the flip mod. It's fairly flush to the ear, but even when noticed, appears quite professional and unobtrusive. The electric blue can grab a bit of attention though in the wrong places. With the detachable cable, the pins breaking are my only concern. It seems maybe Westone pins might fare better since they are thicker. It's either that or I'll ask for recessed connections when they are reshelled.
 
Overall, it's quite a competent build and sounds quite nice. UnEQ'd, and depending on your source, they may sound a bit recessed or overly emphasized in the midrange depending on source. Feed them enough power, and they'll show you great potential. I may just try to get an E6 for this. Out of the box though, I can say this: I love'em already.
 
Scratch that, you need at least a small amp. My smartphone and laptop can't drive them to 100% potential.
 
 
Tracks used...
Endless Story-Yukari Tamura
My Dearest-Supercell
mezzo forte-Minori Chihara
Launch, White Devil, Gotta Stay Fly, Naval Warfare, Beyond the Canal, Horizon, Release - Ace Combat Assault Horizon Original Soundtrack
A Light Illuminating the Depths, Rush Out!, Aoi Kiseki, Termination-Falcom Sound Team JDK
Alchemy, Little Braver, Shine Days, Run With Wolves, 23:50 - Girls Dead Monster
And many more. I couldn't stop listening
etysmile.gif
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ulnevrgtit

Head-Fier
Pros: powerful well articulated bass, crystal clear high, seperation
Cons: SIZE/COMFORT, recessed mids, highs can be a bit too much
...everyone's said all that needs to be said about these iems.
 
One of the best values around imo...if you can get them in your ears.  Once in, they sound great but do have their downsides.  The high and lows are fantasic, both in quantity and quality.  The mids have good quality, from what I can hear of them...quantity is not there though.
 
Luckily, I been able to find a reasonable seal with some aftermarket tips...barely.  However, they are uncomfortable after more then a couple hours and when they go in/out. Worth the trouble for the acoustics but disappointing that ue would allow problem that is so easily remedied get in the way of what is otherwise a great product.
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Leynar
Leynar
Try getting after-market cables? some of them provide more comfort
ulnevrgtit
ulnevrgtit
Parall3l - I have been looking into a reshell from Fisher hearing...reading alot of reviews an so forth. I think I will eventually go for this but really want a solid set of backups before I send them out. It sounds like it can take some time with potential refit/reshells based on other user comments/reviews. I have been looking into some earsonics sm3 or westone 4s as another backup/complimentary pair. I also want a new DAC so we'll see.
Do you have/had triplefi's with a reshell?
Leynar - Funny you mention it. I just ordered some Westone replacement cables. However, the cables have never really been my issue regarding fit/comfort. My stock ue cables work just fine but I imagine they will eventually go and I wanted to give the westone's a try.
Do you have any aftermarket cables for triplefi that you can comment on (null, westone, etc). I am a bit concerned about reeming the connectors on the triplefis with the westone cables as ive heard the pin diameter is larger. Ive heard the connectors are a bit longer as well but i can solve that with a file.
Parall3l
Parall3l
I've never owned any custom shelled iems, I'm currently saving up for the 1964 Q. I hear that all customs are extremely comfortable. Theres also options for adding more drivers to your TF10 I hear.

tf10charged

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Love it
love it!

i2ehan

Aka: Nightcrawler, Oof Oink
Was flipping items from the classifieds on eBay.
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mephiska

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Sound fantastic
Cons: durability
Fit was an issue, these are HUGE!  Not for small ears, and getting good seal is important to get the best out of them.  Walking would break the seal with every step, even with foam tips.  You really have to push them in to get them to stick, and even then they'd work their way out.
 
The cable also has a bendable bit embedded in them to make a U for wearing them over the ears.  It was a nice feature but made putting them in your pocket difficult and the cable got tangled very easily.  
 
Also, the bass driver in one of the earbuds died after one week.  I felt overall the durability of the design was suspect and prone to failure.  They didn't "feel" like the high end IEMs I was expecting.  I sent them back to Amazon.

ledhed2222

New Head-Fier
Pros: Great sound, very balanced and objective
Cons: Uncomfortable and just-ok isolation compared with others
Before buying these, I had the Etymotic ER6s and now I have the Klipsch Image S3s.  I'll be comparing the Triple Fis to these.
 
The TripleFis have an incredibly balanced sound and exceptional bass output that doesn't sound fake or pumped-up.  They might be a tad on the bassy side, but coming from someone who listens to a very wide range of music, from Classical to Folk to Metal to Electronica, it wasn't overkill; any genre of music sounds good on these buds.  The TripleFis are loud too; you'll be playing your iPod at 75% volume, at the most.  The Etymotics, on the other hand, were weak in the low end and had trouble getting loud (although they never distorted).  The Klipschs, though the cheapest of the three, are tinny and fake sounding in comparison.
 
The only possible complaint about the sound I can make is that it lacks "character".  I'm not one for subjective qualifiers, but what I mean is that the sound is perhaps too objective, too clinical.  This almost certainly a result of the Triple Fi's very flat frequency response curve.  In the end, this is a great problem to have; I'm essentially accusing the Triple Fis of being too accurate.  Still, my Etymotics, despite their low bass output, seemed to have a little more "soul", whatever that means.  
 
In summary, the TripleFis sound more like a pair of studio monitors than stereo speakers; they can handle anything you give them without distorting or straining, they're loud, they're neutral, and they sound accurate.  These would be a great set of buds to make music with, as well as listen to music on.  However just like with speakers, sometimes you want a little inaccuracy, a little spunk; some of the best home stereo speakers are as good as they are because they're NOT hyper accurate like monitors.  Overall, though these are excellent sounding headphones.
 
So yeah, the sound is great, but what would you expect for $300?  My real complaints are with the comfort and the seal.  I'm a man of average height and weight, but these buds were way too big to comfortably sit deep in my ear.  I had to jam them in while yanking my ear up, and even then they felt like they should go in deeper.  And before you think it: yes, I was putting them in correctly.  These are just biguns.  As a result, they would ALWAYS come loose when I ran (although never when I walked around) and the noise isolation was just decent.  Furthermore, they hurt my ears after an hour or so.  Both the Etymotics and the Klipschs, in comparison, are more comfortable, stay in no matter what, and get much better isolation.  I had these for a year and a half before I lost them and bought the Klipschs, and even though the Klipschs definitely sound worse, they are so much more comfortable, practical, and effective at noise isolation that I might already like them better for day-to-day use.  On a more positive note, I never had reliability problems with the Triple Fis in that time, despite shoving them in my pocket every day and wrapping them around my iPhone; I thought they were built to last.
 
The final thing to keep in mind is that I only paid $70 for these (one day deal on Amazon).  For that price, they were damn worth it, but I would absolutely not pay more than $120 for these.  Despite their great sound, the Triple Fis have lackluster isolation and are flat-out uncomfortable.  If you see them on sale pick them up, but I say otherwise look elsewhere.
 
 
 
(A side note: I had the headset model with built-in mic and remote.  I haven't had other headsets to compare it to, but I'll say that the mic was not that useable for phone calls; people could never really hear me if I was outside around mild traffic.  The remote was more useful than I thought it would be, however.)
 
 

braswes

New Head-Fier
Pros: sound, isolation, fit and finish
Cons: goofy looking, doesn't stay in ears during vigorous activity
got these during one of the Amazon gold box specials.  Wow.  My new everyday phones.

rroseperry

Headphoneus Supremus
Pros: detailed, solid bass, good synergy with some players, good build
Cons: fit is a problem for many, not great for all types of music
I jumped on these when Amazon had them on sale.  I had only been on Head-Fi for a month and was looking around to expand my listening horizons. I've had them for nearly a month, but hadn't reviewed them because I wanted to get past the new toy period and listen to them over an extended bit of time and with lots of different material.
 
Fit was an issue initially. They're huge and I have smallish flush ears. There was a lot of rubbing on the right pinna until I did the flip thing and put on Comply TX-500 tips.  The best fit has come with medium Sony hybrids.
 
But even before I got the fit right, I was in love. I have the RE0 and Etymotic ER6 and ER-4P. All of these are "analytic" phones, full of detail and cool. They're all great in their fashion, but the TF10s have made me jump in my chair twice.
 
The first time was listening to Janelle Monae's "Tightrope"  There's a kick drum at the beginning that just pops with these iems.
 
The second time was Saint Columbe's "Sonnerie de Sainte Germaine".  This is 17th century chamber music. The viola da gamba rips like a crosscut saw.
 
I've read about the recessed mids with these phones and it's true, they don't work well for everything. I don't think they're good for rock music. But they've been great with  John Zorn's guitar work and other mid-centric music for me.  I don't think they're great with the EQ on my Cowon iAudio 9. But they shine with the Clip+ and iH140.
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