[Zerohour88]

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ZS10 indeed. They seem really full of drivers

As for the one you linked above, 1.8K bux in HKUSD, or normal USD?

Because AFAIK the HK$ are much lower than the typical USD, meaning that it doesn't cost quite that much.

At that high number of drivers, group delay, and proper crossovers are much more of an issue than the number of drivers... Also comfort can be problematic... Would be curious to hear something so insane


I think both FH5 and IT04 have high quality BA drivers whithin though

CTZ-42 is 1.8k USD, or around 12k yuan. It seems crazy, but IMO its just a show of force from the small CIEM makers based in china. Not surprisingly, they sell more of the CTZ-24 (450 usd-ish) rather than the 42. Other up-and-coming CIEM makers also producing universal includes the Hisenior (who made the loved B5+) and Senhear (supposedly make their own custom BA)


yup, Fiio FH5 and Ibasso IT04 have high quality drivers. The thing I was alluding to is that both of them are priced very differently even when the config is the same (3BA Knowles+1DD), using either different tiers of Knowles BA or just more complicated tuning (BA numbers listed seems different though, so I suspect a mix of both). Honestly, I think they're quite capable of judging the SQ of their product and pricing them accordingly to compete.

 

[Zerohour88]

So yeah, looks like I just hit the jackpot with another whimsical buy on taobao, think this is the first time that actually happened lol

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=561404246164

Binary Acoustics Unicorn
It's a single BA IEM with a very very smooth sound signature, I could practically not detect a hint of peak in the entire spectrum. Now this usually means complete lack of excitement (like Soundmagic PL50) but not with these, feels like they roll off juuust right to give you enough clarity and excitement while sparing your ears from pain. Speed is typical of BA IEM, fast with good details. Bass is very surprisingly competent, I probably have heard dynamic IEMs with weaker punch and weight than these (Dynamic Motion DM100). They're still not a basshead IEM at all but the bass could punch well when called for and there's enough of it to support the entire spectrum it doesn't feel anemic at all, everything has good weight on them contributing to good timbre. Vocals are creamy smooth, front and center, I think it's just at the right spot for me but it could be a tad too forward for some people especially those used to today's popular V-shape signature. Highs are very smooth yet have this bell-like clarity on them, note that they could feel veiled if you're coming from a clearer phones, but it should not take long to acclimatize to the sound signature and forget about it. Positioning and headstage may be the biggest surprise to me, they envelop your head with fairly good depth and width, musics could come from all directions depending on the tracks, it does not feel claustrophobic in the slightest. Micro details are there, not the type that jump on you, but you can easily pick them up if you pay close attentions.

These are so smooth and technically competent enough, it's one of the best IEMs I've come across to if I just want to comb through my playlist regardless of recording quality. Quite amazing what you could get for your money these days.

Note that these IEMs apparently just got an updated BA driver model in early June this year, so some of the older comments may not be representative of the current model's sounds

Care to make some comparison to IEMs you've tested? Judging from the FR graph supplied, its quite flat. If its a poor-man's ER4 at 60 bux, that'd be a steal. Granted, the 1-year warranty would be hard to claim, plus no detachable cable.

though the construction is simple enough that repairs wouldn't be anything major

 

[thejoker13]

even with Knowles or Sonion, you can buy cheap ones (relatively, of course). The recent IT04 and FH5 comes to mind. Both quad-hybrid with Knowles BA but different price-bracket. With IT04 getting rave reviews, dreams of matching Andromeda-tier performance at half the price seems closer and closer. There's still the FH7 in the wings from Fiio, their TOTL model.

Yes, I agree. He was referring to KZ cutting cost and having 5 drivers for 50.00 though. That cheap cost is because of using cheap Chinese drivers and not Knowles like the fh5 etc, and they cost 300-500, so significantly more than the KZ. You won't see kz use Knowles or sonion drivers and charge 50.00 by cutting cost somewhere else.

 

[thejoker13]

So I've had my Toneking T4 for over 16 hours of ear time now, and I feel very confident in talking about them and their sound. These things are amazing for the price I paid for them and are now in the top 3 best earphones in my collection.
First off, they have a very quality looks and feel to them as they are filled bodies and not hollow, with a nice weight. They fit my ears like a glove and I can wear them for hours at a time with no discomfort.
These are the cleanest and clearest sounding iem's that I own, with a top shelf detailed flat / balanced sound signature. The treble extends forever and is extremely clear and airy and is the best treble I've had the pleasure of hearing.
In my opinion, the T4's bread and butter is that they're supremely coherent. They're 4 drivers that have a grand soundstage, while sounding like a perfectly tuned single driver. I've never heard anything like it, and I struggle to find the words to do them justice.
The T4 has gorgeous mids and aren't recessed at all and are close to being the star of the show, except they come in second to the glorious treble. The T4 has a nice analytical sound, without being cold or thin sounding. They really are something truly special and I hope Toneking has great success like they deserve because they know how to tune an iem. If anyone has any questions I'll do my best to answer them. Well, I've got to get back to the music now, so I'll chat with you all later, haha.
Also, I paired these with a pure silver cable and comply foam tips and feel they're the perfect combination.

 

[sodesuka]

Care to make some comparison to IEMs you've tested? Judging from the FR graph supplied, its quite flat. If its a poor-man's ER4 at 60 bux, that'd be a steal. Granted, the 1-year warranty would be hard to claim, plus no detachable cable.

though the construction is simple enough that repairs wouldn't be anything major

I wish I could

Just sold most of my remaining IEMs in similar price range (recently Ostry KC09 which I liked but hadn't heard for months, and Toneking Nine Tail which I bought only for the cable).

I do remember that the way these present sound is different than pretty much all single dynamic driver IEMs I've ever had (ranging from Soundmagic E80, pinnacle P1, to Periodic Be and Flares stuff). Feels like they're faster and just more smooth in general for better or worse, can't say more than that as I don't believe comparing aural memories would do any good, at least in my case.

I could compare to Flares Gold if you want, but it's not really fair when they're so far apart in price point...

 

[chinmie]

So yeah, looks like I just hit the jackpot with another whimsical buy on taobao, think this is the first time that actually happened lol

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=561404246164

Binary Acoustics Unicorn
It's a single BA IEM with a very very smooth sound signature, I could practically not detect a hint of peak in the entire spectrum. Now this usually means complete lack of excitement (like Soundmagic PL50) but not with these, feels like they roll off juuust right to give you enough clarity and excitement while sparing your ears from pain. Speed is typical of BA IEM, fast with good details. Bass is very surprisingly competent, I probably have heard dynamic IEMs with weaker punch and weight than these (Dynamic Motion DM100). They're still not a basshead IEM at all but the bass could punch well when called for and there's enough of it to support the entire spectrum it doesn't feel anemic at all, everything has good weight on them contributing to good timbre. Vocals are creamy smooth, front and center, I think it's just at the right spot for me but it could be a tad too forward for some people especially those used to today's popular V-shape signature. Highs are very smooth yet have this bell-like clarity on them, note that they could feel veiled if you're coming from a clearer phones, but it should not take long to acclimatize to the sound signature and forget about it. Positioning and headstage may be the biggest surprise to me, they envelop your head with fairly good depth and width, musics could come from all directions depending on the tracks, it does not feel claustrophobic in the slightest. Micro details are there, not the type that jump on you, but you can easily pick them up if you pay close attentions.

These are so smooth and technically competent enough, it's one of the best IEMs I've come across to if I just want to comb through my playlist regardless of recording quality. Quite amazing what you could get for your money these days.

Note that these IEMs apparently just got an updated BA driver model in early June this year, so some of the older comments may not be representative of the current model's sounds

Any info on what's specific type of BA driver it is using?

 

[sodesuka]

Looks to be an in-house made one. Don't know any more specifics than the infograph they have on their store...

I also don't have much experience with BA IEMs, got Soundmagic PL50 (very boring and un-dynamic) and Fidue A83 (I remember these having wide soundstage and that's it) long time ago. So maybe it's just normal for a single BA to sound like this nowadays.

 

[SilverLodestar]

So I've had my Toneking T4 for over 16 hours of ear time now, and I feel very confident in talking about them and their sound. These things are amazing for the price I paid for them and are now in the top 3 best earphones in my collection.
First off, they have a very quality looks and feel to them as they are filled bodies and not hollow, with a nice weight. They fit my ears like a glove and I can wear them for hours at a time with no discomfort.
These are the cleanest and clearest sounding iem's that I own, with a top shelf detailed flat / balanced sound signature. The treble extends forever and is extremely clear and airy and is the best treble I've had the pleasure of hearing.
In my opinion, the T4's bread and butter is that they're supremely coherent. They're 4 drivers that have a grand soundstage, while sounding like a perfectly tuned single driver. I've never heard anything like it, and I struggle to find the words to do them justice.
The T4 has gorgeous mids and aren't recessed at all and are close to being the star of the show, except they come in second to the glorious treble. The T4 has a nice analytical sound, without being cold or thin sounding. They really are something truly special and I hope Toneking has great success like they deserve because they know how to tune an iem. If anyone has any questions I'll do my best to answer them. Well, I've got to get back to the music now, so I'll chat with you all later, haha.
Also, I paired these with a pure silver cable and comply foam tips and feel they're the perfect combination.

You’re really tempting me with these impressions! I’ve never had a Toneking IEM before, so maaaaaybe I’ll have to get it—you know, for scientific reasons. Can you compare them with any other IEMs? Like maybe the Tin T2 or the FLC8S (which I ordered from Amazon a couple days ago and got an empty package this afternoon...)

 

[SilverLodestar]

Also, does anyone know if these BA Unicorns will ever be available on AliExpress? They look pretty good just from the FR graphs, but I’ve never dealt with Taobao before.

 

[chinmie]

Like maybe the Tin T2 or the FLC8S (which I ordered from Amazon a couple days ago and got an empty package this afternoon...)

that story is a stuff of nightmare

 

[chinmie]

Looks to be an in-house made one. Don't know any more specifics than the infograph they have on their store...

I also don't have much experience with BA IEMs, got Soundmagic PL50 (very boring and un-dynamic) and Fidue A83 (I remember these having wide soundstage and that's it) long time ago. So maybe it's just normal for a single BA to sound like this nowadays.

thank you. have you by any chance ever heard the etymotic iems? I'm curious on how the unicorn compares to them

 

[sodesuka]

thank you. have you by any chance ever heard the etymotic iems? I'm curious on how the unicorn compares to them

No I haven't, sorry :/

This IEM actually gets me curious on them though. I've had some bias on balanced armature before, but maybe it's time to rethink that ha.

 

[Zerohour88]

I wish I could

Just sold most of my remaining IEMs in similar price range (recently Ostry KC09 which I liked but hadn't heard for months, and Toneking Nine Tail which I bought only for the cable).

I do remember that the way these present sound is different than pretty much all single dynamic driver IEMs I've ever had (ranging from Soundmagic E80, pinnacle P1, to Periodic Be and Flares stuff). Feels like they're faster and just more smooth in general for better or worse, can't say more than that as I don't believe comparing aural memories would do any good, at least in my case.

I could compare to Flares Gold if you want, but it's not really fair when they're so far apart in price point...

Haha, I would say that's not really fair to the Unicorn. Pity that you couldn't compare it with the Toneking and P1 (which is still quite good even now).

Mid-forward with a naturally wide soundstage, colour me intrigued. I suppose the cable option doesn't really change much? This being non-removable cables and all, it'd be quite sad if microphonics became an issue.

 

[thejoker13]

You’re really tempting me with these impressions! I’ve never had a Toneking IEM before, so maaaaaybe I’ll have to get it—you know, for scientific reasons. Can you compare them with any other IEMs? Like maybe the Tin T2 or the FLC8S (which I ordered from Amazon a couple days ago and got an empty package this afternoon...)

Oh man, I'm sorry to hear about your 8s! I've never heard of something happening like that, especially from Amazon. I hope you can get sorted out soon!
I can't give much of a comparison to the T2 because I only heard them for a little bit and wasn't really impressed with them, but admittedly didn't spend much time with them. I do own the FLC8S though, so I can try and be of some help with that comparison.
The 8s is obviously tunable so it would depend on what filters you'd use as to how it'll sound. My favorite filters with the 8s is black/gray (subbass) gray (midbass) and gold (mids and treble). I find this to be the best balanced sound I can get using my LG V20 as my source.
I actually find them to be somewhat similar with the 8s configured like I stated before, and the T4 using a pure silver cable and tx400 comply foams on both iem's. I find their bass quality similar, with the T4 edging out the 8s on bass layers showing more details. They extend similarly to my ears, but the 8s has a little more of a midbass punch, somewhat overshadowing the subbass, while the T4 seems even from subbass to upperbsss quantity. The mids are again pretty similar, with a somewhat forward presence and excellent details once again, with the T4 coming in ahead again of the 8s in quality. I find the 8s to have a peak in the mid frequencies that give some glare or sharpness that the T4 don't have. Both have a ton of details in the mids, but the T4 are smoother and non-fatigueing in my opinion. The 8s and T4's treble both extend greatly and provide alot of resolution, but again the 8s have some glare that can become fatiguing after awhile, while the T4 just provides tons of sparkle and shimmer without any sibilance whatsoever. The treble is the highlight of their show to me, and they amaze me at much resolution and shimmer they provide while still remaining easy to listen to and remain natural with their timbre.
Both soundstages are similar once again, but I find the 8s to have a little better depth, while the T4 edges out the win in width.
I consider the FLC8S to be a more "fun" sounding earphone, while the T4 is more reference sounding, with a more natural timbre.
The T4 has been a shocking revelation for me, as I consider the FLC8S to be a great value at 400.00 (I have the 100.00 FLC pure silver cable installed) and I got the T4 for 220.00 and that included the pure silver cable in that price. The T4 is now the best price to performance iem I've ever heard and deserves the spotlight and attention as such!
I find the T4 to be basically a more refined flc8s, and at half the price.....wow.
I should mention that the Toneking T4 being a semi custom fits me like a glove but your mileage will vary. I also found them to fit even better by going one size smaller in tips, just as something else to note. I bought my pair from hotfi on aliexpress and they shipped quickly, just as a plug for them and their good service.

 

[sodesuka]

Haha, I would say that's not really fair to the Unicorn. Pity that you couldn't compare it with the Toneking and P1 (which is still quite good even now).

Mid-forward with a naturally wide soundstage, colour me intrigued. I suppose the cable option doesn't really change much? This being non-removable cables and all, it'd be quite sad if microphonics became an issue.

I remember P1 having really recessed vocals (female especially), pretty nice twingy treble and so-so bass. Quite hard to drive too, hardest among all IEMs I've ever owned.

Not sure if the cable changes anything sound-wise as I only have one the white/silver coated copper one. It's a little springy especially when used over-ear and yeah it's microphonics when worn straight down, not so much over-ear (which the manual, which has surprisingly competent English text, suggests you wear). Actually, I just tried wearing them straight down (I wear all my IEMs over ear, even the straight barrel shapes) to check microphonics, and the headstage narrowed down somehow lol, not sure how.