[IEMagnet01]

See below from |Joker|

Fidue A63 ($55) & A81 ($299)





Fidue is a new IEM brand coming out of China, founded by experienced headphone designer Benny Tan. From the company’s about
page, Fidue sands for:



F —— Fidelity: Natural original voice of high fidelity.


I —— Inspired: The resonance of soul.


D —— Durable: Long-lived quality.


U —— Unique: The unique design.


E —— Enjoyable: Enjoy happily.



Regardless of the brand story, the company’s two very first earphones are interesting for their sound alone.









When I first started listening to them I wasn’t sure of the pricing, but I remember thinking that the A63
 would be very comfortable under $100. Turns out it’ll be priced closer to $50, which makes it look like an excellent value.



The packaging is quite nice on the A63 – not as lavish as with the higher-end model, but rather handsome and understated. Accessories include 5 types of silicone eartips and a soft pouch.



I do have an issue with the housings – I don’t understand why they made the metal edges so tall and sharp. The corners hurt after a while unless I switch to bi-flanges and position the housings farther in the ear. Not quite a deal breaker, but it could definitely have been more comfortable.



Sound-wise I like these a lot – better than the similarly-priced Astrotec AM-800
, for example. Nice clarity and detail, not too much bass, but still punchy. Vocal clarity is absolutely fantastic on these – better than with the VSonic VSD1, I think. With the pricing I’m seeing this one appears to be a winner.









The pricier A81
 model takes it up several notches in terms of design. The packaging is extravagant – it greatly reminds me of the $1300 AKG K3003
. The earphones come with a nice carrying case, gorgeous leather-covered storage case, foam and silicone eartips, shirt clip, and two cables – a headset cable with inline mic and remote, and a higher-quality stereo cable with no headset functionality. Overall the packaging and accessory set are not one bit less impressive than any of the flagships from western brands.



The housing design of the A81 is reminiscent of the Ultimate Ears 900
 in the way it fits in the ear. It’s meant for over-the-ear wear and includes two interchangeable cables. The sockets are 2-pin, but unique in the way the connectors are designed. As a result the A81 cables don’t really work with other 2-pin earphones. The housings of the A81 are not small, but the earphones are comfortable. The only issue I’ve found so far is a bit of driver flex on insertion, which can cause a channel imbalance unless corrected.



The 10mm dynamic drivers of the A81 utilize titanium composites. At first I wasn’t too impressed with its sound, but it has grown on me over the past month. It’s got quite a bit of bass but seems to maintain composure pretty well – a touch of mid-bass bloat but nothing drastic. Bass depth is good. Mids and highs appear to be pretty flat and smooth, and the A81 not overly warm or thick despite the bass boost. Soundstage is pretty nice as well – the MOE-SS01
, for example, sounds quite congested next to it.



Overall it’s definitely not a bad-sounding set but there are sub-$200 sets that I expect will be stiff competition – the VSonic GR07BE
and RHA MA750 for example, so time will tell how well these compete on value.



The two Fidue earphones will be reviewed in full.



Fidue A63 manufacturer’s page
 | Fidue A81 manufacturer’s page
 | Fidue A63 on ebay.com
 | Fidue A81 on ebay.com

Exactly what I thought. He liked the cheaper version better, was more complimentary of the cheaper version, and though he likes the design of the a81, he also said the $300 had bass hump, took him longer to get used to, and thought there were comparable IEM's at a cheaper price point..so thanks for sharing that review. I might look into the a63 if the Piston don't work out?

 

[Arvan]

I found another rather good looking iem... A dual dynamic i guess? It looks like it´s made out of the right stuff but who knows.
 
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Core-v2-in-ear-earphones-headset-ring-double-wire-flat-cell-phone/1205223505.html

 

[jekostas]

The Corecools have been discussed a few times, and the general consensus was that they were overly bassy and the overall sound quality suffered because of it.

$30 is cheaper than what they were selling for elsewhere though. At that price they may be worthwhile.

 

[IEMagnet01]

I found another rather good looking iem... A dual dynamic i guess? It looks like it´s made out of the right stuff but who knows.

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Core-v2-in-ear-earphones-headset-ring-double-wire-flat-cell-phone/1205223505.html

These are shaped almost identical to the Meelectronics M-Duo. They are also a cheap dual dynamic. I was seriously looking into the M-Duo, but impressions kept coming up with a similarity to the JVC FXT90, and that scared me.

 

[IEMagnet01]

I pulled out my VSonic GR99LE today. Listening to Deep Purple's Machine Head with them. Best el cheapos I've owned in looooong time.

 

[mochill]

Its beautiful

 

[mochill]

Get the dunu dn900 for a hybrid iem ....look's promising

 

[IEMagnet01]

My X3 is schedules to arrive via DHL tomorrow, as are my Piston and my Sennheiser CX150. I already have the DN-1000 coming in, so no need for the lesser DN-900. I also have the Havi B3 coming, and if the Havi's are equal to my M200 and my DUNU, then I'll be selling both. 

 

[SibeiKnowHow]

Just got my Astro AX30s half an hour ago, so far im impressed. This is a hybrid IEM, 1 dynamic 1 BA, roughly 60 SGD, same price as the Fidue A63. Got another hour before class to play around with it, but i'll post my 10 minute impressions up anyways
 

1. Build and finish is typical Astrotec, sleek and well constructed. The cable has a very smooth rubber finish on it, and the housings are large but not overly so, i feel it fits in my ears better than the Havi B3s
2. It has a very neutral feel to it, with a slightly bassier feel, although it doesn't bleed into the mids. The treble is bright, there is a slight sibilance, i will say that i prefer a brighter and hotter than most people (think DBA-02 treble), so i'm not particularly sensitive, however if you're not into that you might reconsider these. 
3. Decent clarity through the spectrum, soundstage is larger than the RE400, and the vocals are quite prominently displayed, especially the female vocals, which pretty much collaborates with reports on Baidu. The AX30 picks up most details well enough on both ends, although not as well as the Havi. 

 
There have been reports on Baidu once again of a number of AX30s having their left or right driver cut out, so im praying that this does not happen on mine.
 
Will get pics up when my phone stops crapping out on me.

 

[sfwalcer]

  I found another rather good looking iem... A dual dynamic i guess? It looks like it´s made out of the right stuff but who knows.
 
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Core-v2-in-ear-earphones-headset-ring-double-wire-flat-cell-phone/1205223505.html

 
+

The Corecools have been discussed a few times, and the general consensus was that they were overly bassy and the overall sound quality suffered because of it.

$30 is cheaper than what they were selling for elsewhere though. At that price they may be worthwhile.

 
+

These are shaped almost identical to the Meelectronics M-Duo. They are also a cheap dual dynamic. I was seriously looking into the M-Duo, but impressions kept coming up with a similarity to the JVC FXT90, and that scared me.

^ Welp if you must know, those Corecoolios are alright but nothing special. Unmodded they are like bass cannons, with pretty nice mids and a kinda' rolled off treble. Bass gets in the way of the overall clarity that's for sure.....
 
It's all documented here:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/683007/the-hype-appreciation-thread/630#post_9959375
 
Have a feeling that these Pistons are gonna be a 2.0 version of these thanks to one special person. hoho

But those Piston seems like they have mo' potential.

 

[Wokei]

Looks like the very good Moxpad seller has also listed the Havi on Aliexpress, with ePacket shipping to the US.

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/HAVI-B3-sport-Earphones-with-Mic-for-MP3-player-MP5-MP4-Mobile-Phones-in-ear-Earphone/639551_1605672790.html

Just make sure to request the version you want, if they even do that. This would be good for people unsure about using Taobao forwarding services.

Thanks bhazard for the heads up on the good Moxpad seller as I have chatted with him and suggesting that he bring Havi and KZ products to his shop..the last we chat... He said he will need time to source Havi and KZ and voila now he has them. Also check with them.. He also both version of Xioami silver and gold.. Which he assured me are the real deal and not copy... He also said other seller in Alivexpress are not making life easy to other seller by selling copies. Though they sell at USD27 more expensive considering other member have got it for USD20 from ibuygou.

Havi B3... Here I come yipppeeee

 

[bhazard]

  Just got my Astro AX30s half an hour ago, so far im impressed. This is a hybrid IEM, 1 dynamic 1 BA, roughly 60 SGD, same price as the Fidue A63. Got another hour before class to play around with it, but i'll post my 10 minute impressions up anyways
 

1. Build and finish is typical Astrotec, sleek and well constructed. The cable has a very smooth rubber finish on it, and the housings are large but not overly so, i feel it fits in my ears better than the Havi B3s
2. It has a very neutral feel to it, with a slightly bassier feel, although it doesn't bleed into the mids. The treble is bright, there is a slight sibilance, i will say that i prefer a brighter and hotter than most people (think DBA-02 treble), so i'm not particularly sensitive, however if you're not into that you might reconsider these. 
3. Decent clarity through the spectrum, soundstage is larger than the RE400, and the vocals are quite prominently displayed, especially the female vocals, which pretty much collaborates with reports on Baidu. The AX30 picks up most details well enough on both ends, although not as well as the Havi. 

 
There have been reports on Baidu once again of a number of AX30s having their left or right driver cut out, so im praying that this does not happen on mine.
 
Will get pics up when my phone stops crapping out on me.

I thought the AX30 and AX35 weren't available until March? Any seller I should consider purchasing from? I'm interested in the AX35 for the neutrality. (I would also grab it as the cheaper dynamic/armature hybrid over the Inearpeace if it was that good).
 

Thanks bhazard for the heads up on the good Moxpad seller as I have chatted with him and suggesting that he bring Havi and KZ products to his shop..the last we chat... He said he will need time to source Havi and KZ and voila now he has them. Also check with them.. He also both version of Xioami silver and gold.. Which he assured me are the real deal and not copy... He also said other seller in Alive press are not making life easy to other seller by selling copies. Though they sell at USD27 more expensive considering other member have got it for USD20 from ibuygou.

Havi B3... Here I come yipppeeee

Yes, he has the new Somic detachables too. Very good seller, and if he keeps bringing in good stuff like that, I will be purchasing quite often from him.

 

[IEMagnet01]

Pictures with the AX-30 please.

 

[SibeiKnowHow]

  I thought the AX30 and AX35 weren't available until March? Any seller I should consider purchasing from? I'm interested in the AX35 for the neutrality. (I would also grab it as the cheaper dynamic/armature hybrid over the Inearpeace if it was that good).

 
Not gonna lie but i find that the AX30 itself is already quite neutral, and i heard similar things about the AX35, but i couldnt find any reviews on Baidu comparing the two, so i just decided to stick with the AX30 as it is 20 SGD cheaper.
 
I bought the AX30s from this guy, so idk if you guys could get your shippers to ship these overseas: http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.3.mUYGq0&id=36171117195
 
So i can't quite imagine what Astrotec means when they say that the AX35 are more neutral, personally i find the AX30 neutral enough (or perhaps i've spent too much time away from my DBA-02).
 
Anyways, pictures (apologies for the camera quality)
 
The Box:

 
Inner Packaging, Tips are underneath the foam
 

 
IEMs themselves, with a case at the back from the vendor
 

 
Comparison with my Macbook Keys
 

 

[marone]

I purchased many Chinese headphones in the past 6 months. Only one or two were keepers.

The list, price in Chinese Yuan.

Evo Plextor D500 177
Sennic ST-80 85
Liberalism IR-S21 45
Bingle "Denmark" B-850-M 145
Somic MH432i 85
Salar DJ A100 96
Edifier H840 129


The Somic 432i is nowhere near as good as the 463 is claimed to be, do not buy it.
The only ones that were above mid-fi were the Bingle and the H840.
Perhaps the Evo Plextor, it sounds like a muffled version of the 681.

Forget the rest.

The 840 sounds and looks like a CAL! 1.0 clone. I have the CAL.
The Bingle appears to be a Monoprice 839 clone, but I do not have the 839.

The absolute winner of the group is the Edifier. I actually listen to this in my can rotation. It has toe-tapping quality. I put it on and forget to think and just enjoy the music. This is a rare quality in any headphone. All of the others are unworthy of consideration when compared to the SuperLux at similar price point. The 850 is supposed to sound even better than the 840 and the price is 199 Yuan.

I went out to find a gem, got one, and 6 duds. Took one for the team, so to speak. The good thing is that one can try out 6 pairs of cans for under $130CAD.

I encourage anyone to just order some unknowns from TaoBao.