[Sylmar]

So I have received some TRN IM1's yesterday... and guess what: they don't have the metal plates anymore, which is kinda disappointing. What's funny though is that I can't seem to find any info on when/why/if that has changed.



Soundwise in a quick comparison with the KZ ZSN: Bass sounds and hits great on the TRN IM1. Detail is great as well. However, the mids seem kinda sucked out, the V shape seems just too much. They sound awesome with some tunes, some seem a bit too bass heavy and some sound absolutely tinny due to the sucked out mids. I hope this will get better with some burn in. Due to the sucked out mids the soundstage also seems smaller and less open than on the ZSN. Overall I like the bass (except that it could be too much for some tunes) and the details but unless the mids open up a bit, I think the ZSN is the overall better IEM. I'd like to compare them to how the more traditional Grado headphones sound (ZSN) vs. the GS-1000 (IM1) for instance, just that it's the other way around with the soundstage and that the V shape is almost too much.

So the tuning of the ZSN is the Grado sound? It appears it's the sound profile I like best. Good info.

 

[MONVMENTVM]

So the tuning of the ZSN is the Grado sound? It appears it's the sound profile I like best. Good info.

I wouldn't put it that way necessarily, just in comparison to the TRN IM1 you could view it like that.

But yeah currently I'm more satisfied with the ZSN. Just feels more open, more musical, more natural, less dark and less bright at the same time. I've just listened to a drum and bass tune (Furney - Rhodeo Drive) that just seems absolutely off with the TRN. It's like all I can hear is a bass line and especially annoyingly loud high hats with a relatively small soundstage overall. Piano and vocals almost seem like they come through the background instead of being in the actual song. With the ZSN everything opens up and sounds bigger - not in the head like on the TRN but like a big orchestra. The high hats are not annoying either.

 

[Sylmar]

I wouldn't put it that way necessarily, just in comparison to the TRN IM1 you could view it like that.

But yeah currently I'm more satisfied with the ZSN. Just feels more open, more musical, more natural, less dark and less bright at the same time. I've just listened to a drum and bass tune (Furney - Rhodeo Drive) that just seems absolutely off with the TRN. It's like all I can hear is a bass line and especially annoyingly loud high hats with a relatively small soundstage overall. Piano and vocals almost seem like they come through the background instead of being in the actual song. With the ZSN everything opens up and sounds bigger - not in the head like on the TRN but like a big orchestra. The high hats are not annoying either.

I see. I agree on the ZSN, don't have the TRN's myself. The ZSN is a very likeable IEM for a lot of people and goes with all kinds of musical styles in my view. I do appreciate this IEM very much for what it brings to the mass market. I also like that it's a bit different to the rest in sound, it's far more forward sounding.
I think I remember that some TRN's had a problem with breaking easily. Maybe that's why they changed it. Bit weird though as the ZSN and CCA with their C10 seem to have no such issues.

 

[Slater]

Seems TRN quit putting that "metal" behind faceplates after issues one user had here - glue bubbles and finally backplate came off.

That’s unfortunate. They look much nicer with the metal.

If I were them, I would have just solved the problem with the glue bubbles. Maybe a different glue, a different glue mixing process, degassing the glue before application, etc.

 

[MONVMENTVM]

I see. I agree on the ZSN, don't have the TRN's myself. The ZSN is a very likeable IEM for a lot of people and goes with all kinds of musical styles in my view. I do appreciate this IEM very much for what it brings to the mass market. I also like that it's a bit different to the rest in sound, it's far more forward sounding.
I think I remember that some TRN's had a problem with breaking easily. Maybe that's why they changed it. Bit weird though as the ZSN and CCA with their C10 seem to have no such issues.

Yeah the aluminium plate came unglued... but then again the new plastic face plate appears to be glued on as well, so technically it could happen to them as well. The ZSN and CCA have screwed on plates.

 

[gazpl]

just got the nicehck n3 from that twitter deal a few pages back. only 2 weeks from china to germany despite new years Thanks Jim!

first impressions:

Packaging:
small basic box, i like it... i don't want/need fancy packaging
Accessories:
eartips: silicone 3 white sml, 1 gray m, nothing special
cable: 4wires transparent silicone coated together, 3.5mm angled plug nice strain relief, mmcx connectors have a 45deg angle and medium strong earguide (no metal rod, just stronger plastic/silicone). Looks good but feels a little thin

Newyears deal Accessories:
8core mmcx cable:
very soft, good braid with single wire coating, straight 3.5mm plug with very short strain relief (gonna mod this for sure), straight short mmcx connectors with soft silicone earguide. Looks & feels great

bt mmcx cable:
2wire silicone coated together from mmcx to battery, mesh coated from battery to remote. battery is actually 2 pieces magnetically hold together with micro-usb charging port. When worn battery is supposed to stay on the back of your neck with the remote in the front like a necklace. long straight mmcx connectors with very strong plastic earguides (no metal rod). came in a small hardcover zip box which is too small to fit much inside, might work for my sansa clip with cable and n3... but any larger player wont work. Necklace remote seems a little strange for me, not sure i'll use this one.

Nicehck n3:
hardware:
all metal shell, fused together from 2 parts. There is a small noticable groove between the parts and you can see that they are not 100% aligned (see stock photos on ali, it's minor but visible there too). Still very solid and no rough edges at all. mmcx connection is sturdy but you don't need any tricks to remove again.

fit:
awesome fit, smaller than i expected. Only a tad bigger but more compact than my se215 (se215 has longer nozzles and extra housing for reversing the mmcx connector direction). That little notch at the opposite edge of the n3 nozzle hugs my inner ear great and they are not moving at all. I also like the angle of their nozzles much better than the se215.

sound:
disclaimer: I've only been listening to mp3s on the sansa clip for 2h and only have the se215 to compare, highly subjective, you have been warned. I usually listen at low to moderate volume levels and am allergic to piercing highs (i had to 'fix' the 8khz peak on the se215 with -5db)

bass: deep and fast. great level of detail even with fast double-bass-drums or complex progressive rock.
mids: guitar strings almost come alive. male voices might sound a bit brighter, but that may be the more dull se215 speaking. female voices are awesome.
highs: bright, a bit sparkling but not piercing, lots of detail (e.g. the snares at the start of tool - vicarious are at another level compared to the se215, even without eq)

isolation:
pretty good, almost missed the phone ringing right on my desk

sound leak:
very low... there's only one vent on the inside of the shell. when i cover the nozzles with my thumbs leaving the vents open i can't hear anything from more than 10cm away (keep in mind i listen at low volume, ymmv)


pretty impressed for 50$. They beat the se215 by quite a margin

 

[loomisjohnson]

just got the nicehck n3 from that twitter deal a few pages back. only 2 weeks from china to germany despite new years Thanks Jim!

first impressions:

Packaging:
small basic box, i like it... i don't want/need fancy packaging
Accessories:
eartips: silicone 3 white sml, 1 gray m, nothing special
cable: 4wires transparent silicone coated together, 3.5mm angled plug nice strain relief, mmcx connectors have a 45deg angle and medium strong earguide (no metal rod, just stronger plastic/silicone). Looks good but feels a little thin

Newyears deal Accessories:
8core mmcx cable:
very soft, good braid with single wire coating, straight 3.5mm plug with very short strain relief (gonna mod this for sure), straight short mmcx connectors with soft silicone earguide. Looks & feels great

bt mmcx cable:
2wire silicone coated together from mmcx to battery, mesh coated from battery to remote. battery is actually 2 pieces magnetically hold together with micro-usb charging port. When worn battery is supposed to stay on the back of your neck with the remote in the front like a necklace. long straight mmcx connectors with very strong plastic earguides (no metal rod). came in a small hardcover zip box which is too small to fit much inside, might work for my sansa clip with cable and n3... but any larger player wont work. Necklace remote seems a little strange for me, not sure i'll use this one.

Nicehck n3:
hardware:
all metal shell, fused together from 2 parts. There is a small noticable groove between the parts and you can see that they are not 100% aligned (see stock photos on ali, it's minor but visible there too). Still very solid and no rough edges at all. mmcx connection is sturdy but you don't need any tricks to remove again.

fit:
awesome fit, smaller than i expected. Only a tad bigger but more compact than my se215 (se215 has longer nozzles and extra housing for reversing the mmcx connector direction). That little notch at the opposite edge of the n3 nozzle hugs my inner ear great and they are not moving at all. I also like the angle of their nozzles much better than the se215.

sound:
disclaimer: I've only been listening to mp3s on the sansa clip for 2h and only have the se215 to compare, highly subjective, you have been warned. I usually listen at low to moderate volume levels and am allergic to piercing highs (i had to 'fix' the 8khz peak on the se215 with -5db)

bass: deep and fast. great level of detail even with fast double-bass-drums or complex progressive rock.
mids: guitar strings almost come alive. male voices might sound a bit brighter, but that may be the more dull se215 speaking. female voices are awesome.
highs: bright, a bit sparkling but not piercing, lots of detail (e.g. the snares at the start of tool - vicarious are at another level compared to the se215, even without eq)

isolation:
pretty good, almost missed the phone ringing right on my desk

sound leak:
very low... there's only one vent on the inside of the shell. when i cover the nozzles with my thumbs leaving the vents open i can't hear anything from more than 10cm away (keep in mind i listen at low volume, ymmv)


pretty impressed for 50$. They beat the se215 by quite a margin

thanks for this--i've been eyeballing these to use with my lg v30, since they're rated at a higher (55ohm) impedance--there's virtually no press on these

 

[gazpl]

thanks for this--i've been eyeballing these to use with my lg v30, since they're rated at a higher (55ohm) impedance--there's virtually no press on these

i guess the higher impedance is due to the piezo tweeter. there is a small difference in volume level when swapping the se215 with the n3... for similar listening volume i have to use -30db for the n3 where i use -32db for the se215.

Another thing i noticed with the n3 is that theres sometimes an almost inaudible clickclickclick when pausing a track on the sansa clip... goes away when you replug. On my laptop out theres an audible white noise with volume 0, goes away if you mute... both of these are not present with the se215.

 

[Dagobert]

Have been away for a while and a lot happened in the chi-fi section here The last item i just bought are the Anker soundbuds slim +. My very much loved DZAT DF10 broke down (which to me are the best i heard so far). I wanted some Bluetooth buds for working out but didn't want to spend too much that's how i ended up with the Anker. For the price there are good but i miss mine DZAT's and now looking around for some Bluetooth iem's that sound similar to them.

I will try mine best to be a bit more active here and now
Greetz!

 

[Almazbek]

thanks for this--i've been eyeballing these to use with my lg v30, since they're rated at a higher (55ohm) impedance--there's virtually no press on these

How is Lg v30? Is there a significant difference in SQ?

 

[Lurk650]

The Zero Audio Carbo Tenore have no bass - just none, but what they do great is everything above of the base. That's why Verge wrote a raving review about them years ago I think. (I was so disappointed with the purchase that this review actually helped me in the chifi hobby )

Anyway: the Carbo Tenore has an amazing soundstage and separation, giving a real orchestral vibe to classical pieces and more analoge genres. And then you try a pop song on them and you want to bin them.

Well. I still thank The Verge for their review.

OH WOW! POST 500!

You need your got a defective pair or need a better seal. They have a substantial amount of bass.

 

[NymPHONOmaniac]

Seems TRN quit putting that "metal" behind faceplates after issues one user had here - glue bubbles and finally backplate came off.

Yep, its what I think...being this member ahah, but i was surely not alone I guess.I think metal place is too sensible to temperature change and create problem with the glue that stick togheter the 2 pieces of housing...its unfortunate because its way more beautifull with it. Sometime chifi begin mass production too fast...they should test more there stuffs for futur quality issue...its just a disaster and who know if having metal in the back do not interfer with sound rendering reverberation a little?

Anyway, im confuse about people saying IM1 is very bassy....i think i need to repair mine and test them back, i do lot of ear tips rolling to achieve proper sound.

 

[NymPHONOmaniac]

The Zero Audio Carbo Tenore have no bass - just none, but what they do great is everything above of the base. That's why Verge wrote a raving review about them years ago I think. (I was so disappointed with the purchase that this review actually helped me in the chifi hobby )

Anyway: the Carbo Tenore has an amazing soundstage and separation, giving a real orchestral vibe to classical pieces and more analoge genres. And then you try a pop song on them and you want to bin them.

Well. I still thank The Verge for their review.

OH WOW! POST 500!

Oh, did not read verge reviews...its from headfi review I get interested by these.

When you say no bass...do you talk about no pumped up impactfull bass? Like, when you listen to jazz can acoustic bass dig low or have some body??? Sometime I feel people wanna say something is not V shape or enough bassy. Looking at the graph, it look like to have some bass for sure:

Edit: perhaps it lack punch tough, lower end being more focused than mid bass.

 

[HungryPanda]

I have the Carbo Tenore and there is enough bass when I listen to music. You need a good seal with them

 

[daid1]

For me the BIE is a $20 iem, it's far far away from being a giant killer or anything. It's smooth and inoffensive but lacks in detail retrieval, instruments sound kinda plastic and off like lacking in dynamics and natural reverb. Don't get me wrong, it's a decent iem, but the hype surrounding it is trying to turn it into a TOTL performer and it is not that.

Which tips do you use? Because I have a totally different opinion