[Jaytiss]

I was talking about the MS5 review.

Yikes, they weren't very moderate with the MS5. But I havent' seen a glowing review yet.

 

[Jaytiss]

You know, this IEM is an interesting one. At times, I did feel like I was being pretty harsh on it. But at the same time, I felt I could also have been harsher. The first two days I was listening to it, I seriously did not like its vocal tone. It sounded really, really off to me. After I had some brain burn-in/adjustment time it was better of course but I still can't forget how tonally off it sounded at first. And I mention in my review that I did start to enjoy music later with it, primarily thanks to the large bass response, but IMO I felt like I was waving away a lot of what I didn't like to try and focus on what I liked. It's a really hard balance to strike between being unique and not just another copy-paste of the Harman target and being "good". I find it harder to write a full review on a Harman target copycat than something like this where I can pick apart all the little bits that I like/don't like. Hidizs unfortunately landed more on the stuff that I didn't like.

What it came down to for me was the price. $500 is a LOT of money these days when IEMs like the Blessing 2 Dusk and 7Hz Timeless exist. And it's clear the Hidizs can offer it for $379. At best I can say the Hidizs matches them in techs. Or maybe very slightly surpasses it here and there if you're extra generous. But even if you don't mind the Hidizs tuning, it's still more than double what those IEMs cost. I find that hard to justify. Just like how it's getting harder and harder to justify the original DUNU SA6 even though I still greatly enjoy that IEM.

Believe it or not, the marketing campaign didn't affect how I felt about the MS5. That's why I only had a couple paragraphs at the end talking about it. I've seen ChiFi companies ask for all sorts of tracking links before. Just this time, the scale was much larger at over 40 reviewers. But I did feel that it was very important to be transparent that this was a big marketing push from Hidizs AND that any links people see might be affiliate links. I could've gone quite a bit harder on that angle to be honest. I actually had written up another chunk talking about how I saw a post on Head-Fi where it was found that reviewers were trying to sell the unit even before the price was officially announced. I didn't choose to include it in the end as I felt that it ultimately wasn't relevant for the review and my little disclaimer had sufficed.

And to be clear: I don't fault anyone for adding tracking links. Tracking links themselves are good for a company to know if a reviewer's work is being read and if there's a return on investment for their marketing campaign. For smaller reviewers, I understand this can be extremely important to build credibility. It's the kickbacks that gets messy when it's not fully transparent. I only skimmed a couple reviews while writing mine and the ones I saw didn't mention the affiliate links at all but still had them in. I specifically asked Hidizs for a non-affiliate code to share which was the 5OFF I included in my review.

If it was just Hidizs sending the gear to a bunch of reviewers, it would've just been a note in the intro. Companies like Linsoul send out ChiFi like candy to everyone. It's all the extra stuff that came with it that suddenly needed a bit more attention. But to be fair to Hidizs, IMO they didn't push the issue that hard. They just asked me to add the links. I told them no. They had no issue with it. I wouldn't mind reviewing Hidizs stuff again in the future. But I doubt they would let me after this

I appreciate your honesty. For me, a 400-ish dollar iem is a tough blind buy. So I need to know everything. I'd love to hear the iem, but your review pretty much responates with what I've read and deciphered from other reviewers. It is over priced, and not a great iem value at it's price. (This is my take on what others have said.)

 

[LitilSnild]

Ugh, this is a bit too much for my brain. I was here to talk about shiny audio stuff, and I don't know what's happening at this point.

Hidizs’ timing for the release was very unfortunate. They had a two-year gap between the B2 Dusk and B3’s release, and any other time in between would've been better. Personally, it made my review feel awkward and outdated because the product I was comparing against is discontinued and I don’t have access to its direct competitor.

Having 40 reviewers is a lot of people and oversaturation of reviews doesn’t help marketing. It can easily look like sponsored pieces even though it isn’t.

While I thought the affiliate stuff wasn’t that bad, I agree that there should've been a non-affiliate option. It’s fortunate that they are willing to learn and I hope they don’t repeat these mistakes because it probably was a unique opportunity for most.

Ignoring the odd stuff, I had a lot of fun doing this. While this wasn't the first time I've done a review, it's rare for me to do an audio review and probably the first time receiving something for it.

That's enough rambling from me. Have a great day and I hope we cross paths again!

 

[littlenezt]

don't mind me, I'm here just reading things escalated very quickly while listening to the Hidizs MS5

edit :

My take on the MS5 regardless of the drama, "It's all about preference"
Though I must admit the MS5 is a very unique IEM with "audiophile" / "niche" tuning and I really welcome it because most of the IEM market is very crowded with all harman target IEM and its pretty boring (atleast for me).
It just like every other IEM release is offering harman or just harman modified again and again, just with different technicalities and different shell. (don't get me wrong, I have nothing against harman tuning tho)

Also let me remember us, that audio is really subjective, what sounds best to you / me might not work for others.

 

[littlenezt]

So sorry to hear that, I'm an Indonesian myself as you already know.
Shame on them, whoever it was (though I admit my kepo-ness is triggered, I won't ask any further).

Take a deep breath, man.
Wish you get better.

sssshhhh... haaaaaahhh.....
amen,
thanks bruh !

 

[Bella Juan]

Anyone returning thier samples- postage paid of course?

Anyone submit your review for review prior to posting?

Never had a organization ask to filter reviews before shockingly unscrupulous.

What a shotty company Hidizs is.

Thank you for providing valuable feedback on our product. Here, we would like to clarify and explain some necessary points regarding your concerns:

1. We notice that you are one of our public reviewers and have been selling our MS5 sample product on the secondary market. We actually have contacted you through email promptly on April 24th and informed you that we do not want our free samples to be used for resale. If you are not satisfied with our new product, MS5, we welcome you to return it back to us, we will cover the shipping cost for sure.

2. We value every audiophile’s opinions and feedback, we are not here to criticize or blame you, But we would like to respond to some of the accusations you mentioned that we believe were actually misunderstanding. We understand that everyone has their usage habits and needs, and we respect your ownership of the sample. However, we do not want our free samples to be used for resale. Hidizs has always maintained a fair and impartial attitude towards every user since its establishment, and we will always do so in any situation.

3. Our public review campaign was designed to listen to the feedback and opinions of people from different countries, industries, and IEM preferences to help us produce better products that meet customer’s needs in the future. We value all feedback, but we hope that comments are genuine and impartial.

4. Regarding your mention of requesting an early review audit, We want to clarify that we do not require all reviews to be positive. We value all feedbacks and respect everyone's personal opinions, and the only hope is that the reviews are true and unbiased. If you are willing to send us a review before the release, we will provide you with better review suggestions from the perspective of a product producer. This includes suggestions on product matching and comparisons, and provides professional answers to your questions. We would also appreciate it if the reviewer could provide us with a link to the review after it is released so that we can share it on our official social platforms for more people to see.

Finally, we want to reiterate that we hope we can respect and understand each other. If we find that you have used our free samples for resale, we may consider not inviting you to participate in our future plans because we need to be responsible for our brand, customers, and other reviewers.

 

[FcConstruct]

Thank you for providing valuable feedback on our product. Here, we would like to clarify and explain some necessary points regarding your concerns:

1. We notice that you are one of our public reviewers and have been selling our MS5 sample product on the secondary market. We actually have contacted you through email promptly on April 24th and informed you that we do not want our free samples to be used for resale. If you are not satisfied with our new product, MS5, we welcome you to return it back to us, we will cover the shipping cost for sure.

2. We value every audiophile’s opinions and feedback, we are not here to criticize or blame you, But we would like to respond to some of the accusations you mentioned that we believe were actually misunderstanding. We understand that everyone has their usage habits and needs, and we respect your ownership of the sample. However, we do not want our free samples to be used for resale. Hidizs has always maintained a fair and impartial attitude towards every user since its establishment, and we will always do so in any situation.

3. Our public review campaign was designed to listen to the feedback and opinions of people from different countries, industries, and IEM preferences to help us produce better products that meet customer’s needs in the future. We value all feedback, but we hope that comments are genuine and impartial.

4. Regarding your mention of requesting an early review audit, We want to clarify that we do not require all reviews to be positive. We value all feedbacks and respect everyone's personal opinions, and the only hope is that the reviews are true and unbiased. If you are willing to send us a review before the release, we will provide you with better review suggestions from the perspective of a product producer. This includes suggestions on product matching and comparisons, and provides professional answers to your questions. We would also appreciate it if the reviewer could provide us with a link to the review after it is released so that we can share it on our official social platforms for more people to see.

Finally, we want to reiterate that we hope we can respect and understand each other. If we find that you have used our free samples for resale, we may consider not inviting you to participate in our future plans because we need to be responsible for our brand, customers, and other reviewers.

Thank you for the response. I think the idea of the Free Public Global Review program was fine, just not the part where affiliate links were provided where reviewers would be reimbursed. Something to think about in the future if you want to do this again...

 

[o0genesis0o]

I've just seen on Twitter this interesting article from Hidizs about the tuning choices of MS5. My ears should be somewhat similar to the author of the article as we both like the treble nozzles: https://www.hidizs.net/blogs/blogs/...-dark-angel-from-the-frequency-response-curve

It's still a mystery to me why cymbals and hi-hats sound uncanny with MS5, though I agree with all other discussions in the article about the frequency response of MS5.

 

[Vandammmmma]

I've just seen on Twitter this interesting article from Hidizs about the tuning choices of MS5. My ears should be somewhat similar to the author of the article as we both like the treble nozzles: https://www.hidizs.net/blogs/blogs/...-dark-angel-from-the-frequency-response-curve

It's still a mystery to me why cymbals and hi-hats sound uncanny with MS5, though I agree with all other discussions in the article about the frequency response of MS5.

Agree.

But since someone mentioned it again,
I did some reversible modding to MS5 by putting a little, like really really tiny piece of cotton in the treble nozzle.
It needs to be thin enough so it will feel more open compared to the balanced nozzle, yet thick enough to tame the treble.

After I spent some time with it, I find my preferred tuning.
Basically like your stock treble nozzle without any cymbals and hi-hats sound uncanny like you mentioned before.
When I said it, I mean it literally. NONE.
It's gone, poof.

So I suspect, the problem lies in the metal filter/cotton tuning.
I think changing the metal filter to paper or make a thin layer of paper inside gonna work better, since that's basically what I do with the tiny piece of cotton.

I'm gonna try change the filter some time later.

Also, I do agree with the article that you can tune this to your preferrable tuning without losing that MS5 uniqueness.
That's basically what I did since day 1 I received mine.

 

[littlenezt]

I've just seen on Twitter this interesting article from Hidizs about the tuning choices of MS5. My ears should be somewhat similar to the author of the article as we both like the treble nozzles: https://www.hidizs.net/blogs/blogs/...-dark-angel-from-the-frequency-response-curve

It's still a mystery to me why cymbals and hi-hats sound uncanny with MS5, though I agree with all other discussions in the article about the frequency response of MS5.

pretty good article from Hidizs especially on part where it explains which frequency corresponding to what sounds being produced.
That article alone could help someone who's blind on reading FR graph to understand frequency graph more.

I'm still using the MS5 daily with my noodle thin Moondrop Line T cable to achieve super deep insertion + bass nozzle + stock bass ear tips,
at least for me the "uncanny-ness" is gone when wearing the IEM with deep insertion, probably the uncanny cymbals and hi-hats is due to sound reflected on your ear canal?
with super deep insertion, now even with balanced & treble filter there is no uncanny cymbals and hi-hats for me, it only affect how bright and forward the overall treble being rendered

 

[o0genesis0o]

pretty good article from Hidizs especially on part where it explains which frequency corresponding to what sounds being produced.
That article alone could help someone who's blind on reading FR graph to understand frequency graph more.

I'm still using the MS5 daily with my noodle thin Moondrop Line T cable to achieve super deep insertion + bass nozzle + stock bass ear tips,
at least for me the "uncanny-ness" is gone when wearing the IEM with deep insertion, probably the uncanny cymbals and hi-hats is due to sound reflected on your ear canal?
with super deep insertion, now even with balanced & treble filter there is no uncanny cymbals and hi-hats for me, it only affect how bright and forward the overall treble being rendered

Super deep insertion pushes the resonance peak further to the air region. That might be the cause.

I need to borrow a Kublai khan and check the treble again. Maybe it’s just how an IEM with 8k focus renders cymbals and hats.

 

[Hanesu]

What it came down to for me was the price. $500 is a LOT of money these days when IEMs like the Blessing 2 Dusk and 7Hz Timeless exist. And it's clear the Hidizs can offer it for $379. At best I can say the Hidizs matches them in techs. Or maybe very slightly surpasses it here and there if you're extra generous. But even if you don't mind the Hidizs tuning, it's still more than double what those IEMs cost. I find that hard to justify. Just like how it's getting harder and harder to justify the original DUNU SA6 even though I still greatly enjoy that IEM.

I must say, I don’t understand all this noise about whether an IEM should cost 120$ more or less while prices of so called flagships have gone up to 6000 Dollars?!
Why are only so few people blaming the „big names“ Unique Melody, Noble or Oriolus for what they do, while relatively unknown brands get bashed for also trying to get a piece of the cake?
In the end, to me they are all doing the same thing in their own way…

 

[littlenezt]

I must say, I don’t understand all this noise about whether an IEM should cost 120$ more or less while prices of so called flagships have gone up to 6000 Dollars?!
Why are only so few people blaming the „big names“ Unique Melody, Noble or Oriolus for what they do, while relatively unknown brands get bashed for also trying to get a piece of the cake?
In the end, to me they are all doing the same thing in their own way…

well said a bit unfair towards Hidizs side IMO

 

[FcConstruct]

I must say, I don’t understand all this noise about whether an IEM should cost 120$ more or less while prices of so called flagships have gone up to 6000 Dollars?!
Why are only so few people blaming the „big names“ Unique Melody, Noble or Oriolus for what they do, while relatively unknown brands get bashed for also trying to get a piece of the cake?
In the end, to me they are all doing the same thing in their own way…

I mean, people do make fun of those extremely overpriced products as well. It's just that not many people can actually get a chance to hear them because they cost so much that it's impossible to try it unless you have a demo shop nearby or a very rich friend. If you don't have a chance to try it, you don't have a chance to criticize it. And if you do criticize it, some of the people who own it might get mad at you because you for trash talking their favorite products that they spent thousands on. For example, I had the chance to demo the $3,375 Campfire Audio Trifecta and wrote an impressions review here where I criticized its sound. It wasn't the most well-received around certain parts of Head-Fi. Or see my 64 Audio Fourte review for another example where I didn't like something that costs a lot of money.

So if you're doing what Hidizs did, which is send out their stuff to 40 different people, that opens up themselves to a wider range of praise and criticism. You should be very confident of how good your product is if you're planning to send it out to that many people.

The other thing to consider is that reviews are written for certain demographics. If we're talking about a midrange product like the MS5, that's a certain demographic of buyers where value is very important because they might only be able to afford one midrange IEM and need to make the right choice after saving up for a long time. If we're talking about the ultra high-end such as $3-4k IEMs, that demographic of buyers clearly doesn't have any issue with money. At some point in this hobby, products goes from "value for money" to "high-end luxury item where price is no object". So when we talk about the MS5, yes the competition becomes a very important question. How can I tell someone to spend their hard-earned money on the MS5 when I personally would rather spend it on like the 7Hz Timeless or MoonDrop Blessing 2 Dusk? Likewise, I wouldn't recommend the Trifecta or Fourte. But if someone had enough money to buy those, I'd say they probably couldn't care less about my opinion.

 

[littlenezt]

I mean, people do make fun of those extremely overpriced products as well. It's just that not many people can actually get a chance to hear them because they cost so much that it's impossible to try it unless you have a demo shop nearby or a very rich friend. If you don't have a chance to try it, you don't have a chance to criticize it. And if you do criticize it, some of the people who own it might get mad at you because you for trash talking their favorite products that they spent thousands on. For example, I had the chance to demo the $3,375 Campfire Audio Trifecta and wrote an impressions review here where I criticized its sound. It wasn't the most well-received around certain parts of Head-Fi. Or see my 64 Audio Fourte review for another example where I didn't like something that costs a lot of money.

So if you're doing what Hidizs did, which is send out their stuff to 40 different people, that opens up themselves to a wider range of praise and criticism. You should be very confident of how good your product is if you're planning to send it out to that many people.

The other thing to consider is that reviews are written for certain demographics. If we're talking about a midrange product like the MS5, that's a certain demographic of buyers where value is very important because they might only be able to afford one midrange IEM and need to make the right choice after saving up for a long time. If we're talking about the ultra high-end such as $3-4k IEMs, that demographic of buyers clearly doesn't have any issue with money. At some point in this hobby, products goes from "value for money" to "high-end luxury item where price is no object". So when we talk about the MS5, yes the competition becomes a very important question. How can I tell someone to spend their hard-earned money on the MS5 when I personally would rather spend it on like the 7Hz Timeless or MoonDrop Blessing 2 Dusk? Likewise, I wouldn't recommend the Trifecta or Fourte. But if someone had enough money to buy those, I'd say they probably couldn't care less about my opinion.

I agree and disagree with you here friend, while your argument is pretty good and tbh its true the demographics for exotic audio clearly doesn't have any issue with money, while your review might be not so positive on the MS5, what about others that have great experience with the MS5? that doesn't instantly make their review and opinion invalid either my friend.

just let me remember us again, audio is pretty subjective things and having 40 opinion and review is pretty helpful for the end users to make their own judgement based on all of the available review.

of course positive and negative review is expected from sample of 40
but some negative review doesn't instantly make the positive one invalid and vice versa, positive reviews doesn't makes the negative one invalid either.
lets just take a breath and keep calm, we human have own opinions on things and let end users make their own judgement