[tgx78]

SE12 vs GT12

The vented BA bass of the both SE12 and GT12 works for me in both quality and quantity – it is not the most plentiful in the subbass region, giving up a bit of depth and rumble to sets such as the IER-Z1R and GS Audio’s own SE11, but it has a nice, healthy, balanced punch akin to the VE Elysium (also BA bass) and Fiio FD7. The GT12 is definitely not an enhanced-bass earphone like the SE12 but there’s a lot to like about the clean, natural low end. Their low end is similarly full and natural sounding with a decent definition and pace. Bass decays quite naturally for BA as well contributing to the naturalness.

The midrange of the GT12 is quite balanced and more neutral in tone. Whereas SE12 sound a little upper mids tilted and appears a bit more female vocals emphasized as a result. Next to the smooth, dynamic and liquid-sounding FD7, the midrange of the GT12 and SE12 are more transparent and has a “raw” quality to it. The midrange is also where the SE12 and SE11 differs most from mid-tier GS offerings such as the neutral ish GD5 and warm neutral GT12 can’t match the clarity of the SE12. Note thickness and clarity always make for a precarious balancing act and the SE12 performs as well as any other earphone I’ve heard on this front, making the Audiosense DT600 sounds a touch thin without yielding to it in clarity.

Moving through the upper midrange, the GT12 remains very smooth and pleasant. It has a little less upper midrange presence than SE12 but overall the sound is very close. In fact, out of all the universal monitors I used in my comparisons, the GT12 was closest to the SE12 in tone and balance. The GT12 has very smooth treble, too – it definitely isn’t lacking in treble energy but also isn’t as revealing of harshness or as critical of recording quality as the SE series. The DT600 sounds quite splashy in comparison while the Elysium is more similar, but still a touch brighter than the both GT12 and SE12. The presentation of the SE12 is open and airy whereas GT12 is a bit narrower and intimate. Soundstage size is good on SE12- about on-par with the DT600 and FD7 and more spacious and open compared to the less expensive GT12 - and overall imaging is just short of the Elysium and Z1R.

Timbre is very smooth yet distinctive with the SE12 and slightly smeared on the GT12. Time to try the SE8 next

 

[Lamim Rashid]

I just finished reading through this entire thread ..took longer than I thought it would. Of all the graphs I've seen the gt12 one appeals to me most because it seems to have the most tame upper range, only thing it's missing is the mid bass emphasis I like having. Are their any other models in the $150-$300 bracket with a tame and non fatiguing upper range? I'm very sensitive to peaky treble and upper midrange.

 

[nymz]

My custom ST1 has arrived and sounds good... But looks even better

 

[Tonytex]

SE12 vs GT12

The vented BA bass of the both SE12 and GT12 works for me in both quality and quantity – it is not the most plentiful in the subbass region, giving up a bit of depth and rumble to sets such as the IER-Z1R and GS Audio’s own SE11, but it has a nice, healthy, balanced punch akin to the VE Elysium (also BA bass) and Fiio FD7. The GT12 is definitely not an enhanced-bass earphone like the SE12 but there’s a lot to like about the clean, natural low end. Their low end is similarly full and natural sounding with a decent definition and pace. Bass decays quite naturally for BA as well contributing to the naturalness.

The midrange of the GT12 is quite balanced and more neutral in tone. Whereas SE12 sound a little upper mids tilted and appears a bit more female vocals emphasized as a result. Next to the smooth, dynamic and liquid-sounding FD7, the midrange of the GT12 and SE12 are more transparent and has a “raw” quality to it. The midrange is also where the SE12 and SE11 differs most from mid-tier GS offerings such as the neutral ish GD5 and warm neutral GT12 can’t match the clarity of the SE12. Note thickness and clarity always make for a precarious balancing act and the SE12 performs as well as any other earphone I’ve heard on this front, making the Audiosense DT600 sounds a touch thin without yielding to it in clarity.

Moving through the upper midrange, the GT12 remains very smooth and pleasant. It has a little less upper midrange presence than SE12 but overall the sound is very close. In fact, out of all the universal monitors I used in my comparisons, the GT12 was closest to the SE12 in tone and balance. The GT12 has very smooth treble, too – it definitely isn’t lacking in treble energy but also isn’t as revealing of harshness or as critical of recording quality as the SE series. The DT600 sounds quite splashy in comparison while the Elysium is more similar, but still a touch brighter than the both GT12 and SE12. The presentation of the SE12 is open and airy whereas GT12 is a bit narrower and intimate. Soundstage size is good on SE12- about on-par with the DT600 and FD7 and more spacious and open compared to the less expensive GT12 - and overall imaging is just short of the Elysium and Z1R.

Timbre is very smooth yet distinctive with the SE12 and slightly smeared on the GT12. Time to try the SE8 next

I've been debating about getting the GT12 or the X....my question is .....when you say treble is smooth..... graphically it seems more subdued than the DT300 or DT600. I like smooth treble but I like it present and after 7..8k it seems too rolled off....is this so....give me other comparisons....for example the GD3A or GD5 have perfect treble for me.....how does GT12 compare...I ask because graphs only tell half the story. Thank you

 

[RumbleWeed]

Some news:

GT12X: new drivers and better tuning. (this is coming out before the GD3C.)

GD3C: They are working on "vents & structure optimization" and confirmed to be following my target.

I'm pretty sure ill endd up with ST4 AND GD3C! I cannot for the life of me remember your Target Curve! Any chance you can post it again?

 

[RumbleWeed]

My custom ST1 has arrived and sounds good... But looks even better

They look SOOO good. What. Cable is that?

 

[Lamim Rashid]

I really want one of the S lineup iems but none of them have very tame looking treble. The gt12 treble looks verryyy remarkably like the mangird tea. I hope they keep the treble tame in the gt12x and add a little mid bass.

Here's tgx78's graph vs the fd7, this was the most similar graph I could find. Now look at super review's fd7 graphed against the tea under it.

I actually like how the gt 12 FR curve looks overall a bit more than the teas, but I think it could use a bit more bass since it doesn't have a DD.

 

[RikudouGoku]

I'm pretty sure ill endd up with ST4 AND GD3C! I cannot for the life of me remember your Target Curve! Any chance you can post it again?

https://rg.squig.link/

 

[mndless]

https://rg.squig.link/

It'll be very exciting to see how they end up tuning it. Especially since Fearless has launched a suite of new sets with pretty attractive graphs.

 

[twiceboss]

GT12 on graph looks good. Balance curve without any splashy peaks.

 

[nymz]

They look SOOO good. What. Cable is that?

Thanks! The cable is a custom I made some months ago from Xinhs store

 

[mndless]

Thanks! The cable is a custom I made some months ago from Xinhs store

It's very thematically consistent with the black and gold IEMs. They look great together. Hopefully they sound even half as good as they look. Have you figured out what genre of music that set is suited for?

 

[RumbleWeed]

graphed

77

https://rg.squig.link/

Oh yeah i remember now
If GS tune the GD3C LIKE this i will instantly buy blind! That's Sub-Bass is beautiful, it sort of reminds me of the Msngrid Xenns Up. Fingers crossed they do tune it to your Target

 

[RumbleWeed]

It's very thematically consistent with the black and gold IEMs. They look great together. Hopefully they sound even half as good as they look. Have you figured out what genre of music that set is suited for?

Yes that's what i liked the combination liooks awesome. Iv been looking at different cables from Hakugei & XINHS to match the the #A29 &,#A30 Iv matched the XINHS Graphene Cable For #A29 and the Hakugei Rainbow Unicorn
Cable for #A30.
It took a while to find them cos i didnt just want them to match in colour bus also in sound and these are great cables!

 

[Lamim Rashid]

For anyone wondering cause I was bored, I figured out some rough guestimate costs of the SD7 and mangird tea because they both cost $300. They are tuned very differently so dont think of this of a which iem is better comparison, I just wanted to see how much value GS audio was packing into their S series IEMs, and hopefully this comparison will give us some sort of indicator. I use soundlink for most of the costs since they are reputable and are known to carry genuine parts.

Mangird tea
2 * Knowles RAD-33518 for high frequency - around $5 each (source)
4 * Sonion 2600 for mid frequency - around $26 each (source)
1 * DD (no idea how much this costs*)
Estimated BA cost (per ear): $115

GS Audio SD7
2 * Knowles twfk for ultra high frequency - 3 different models available ranging from $22-27 (source)
2 * sonion 2389 for mid-high frequency - $19 for dual, $11 for a single (source)
2 * sonion 37 series for mid bass - around $23 per dual (source)
1 * 10.2mm DD for sub-bass (no idea how much this costs*)
Estimated BA cost (per ear): $79-$89

*details on the DDs used are too scarce to get an estimate

So roughly, the BA configurations cost close to the same. Sadly we have no idea what other components are used for tuning, damping, the crossover circuitry, dynamic driver, etc so it's still hard to say which IEM has more $$ in components and material stuffed into it. Seems like they are both within in the same rough ballpark. Mangird looks like they spent a lot more of their budget on mids for the Tea, while the SD7 has a more spread out configuration.

After looking at those two IEMs I realized it's a hard comparison to do when a DD is involved so I tried to find a popular all BA set that actually lists the driver models used for comparison, landing me on the Voyager 3, which should hopefully be an easy comparison to the ST3, both of which are around $150.

ThieAudio Voyager 3
1 * Knowles ED-29689 for Highs - around $8 each (source)
1 * Knowles CI-22955 for Mids - around $12 each (source)
1 * Knowles CI-22955 for Lows - around $12 each (source)
Estimated BA cost (per ear): $32

GS Audio ST3
1 * Sonion 23 Series for Highs - $19 for dual, $11 for a single (source)
2 * Sonion 37 Series for Lows - around $23 per dual (source)
Estimated BA cost (per ear): $34

So basically around the same cost. It is worth noting that the ST3 only has a two way frequency crossover, and the Voyager 3 has a three way crossover. So I guess which iem is better will still come down to driver choice, tuning and crossover configuration/quality. Doesn't look like GS audio's S line is any different from other reputable IEM brands value wise, at least when it comes down to driver choice.