[getclikinagas]

HIFIMAN RE300a/ RE300i InLine Control and RE300h (HIFI) Earphone
 
Impressions and reviews linked below
 

HIFIMAN RE300a/ RE300i InLine	HIFIMAN RE300h (HIFI) Earphone
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Specifics: Advanced ergonomics for comfort and extended listening Stylish design and light weight 3.5mm plug for regular earphone jack Driver diameter: 8.5mm Frequency response: 20～20KHz Impedance: 32 Ohm Sensitivity: 108 dB/1mW 1KHZ	Specifics: Advanced OCC cabling 3.5mm plug for regular earphone jack Driver diameter: 8.5mm Frequency response: 15 Hz-22 KHz Impedance: 16 Ohms+/-3.2 Sensitivity: 108 dB/ 1mW 1KHZ
Product Links: (Also available in black) Android: http://www.head-direct.com/Products/?act=detail&id=224 iPhone: http://www.head-direct.com/Products/?act=detail&id=225	Product link:   http://www.head-direct.com/Products/?act=detail&id=230

 
 
Full reviews:
 

1. twister6: The smallest and the most comfortable in-ears I have ever tested! AND RE300 vs RE300h comparison
2. thatBeatsguy: The HiFiMAN RE-300h: An Unexpected Journey IEM - On Head-fi /db-headphone
3. cuiter23: A different sound from HiFiMAN

 
Unboxing:
 

1. cleg: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DWitlFUZHM

 
Impressions:

  Impressions and short comparisons with RE272, RE400, RE600.
 

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Ok, my RE-300a have finally arrived. They sound as if you took RE-400, replaced the filter with the RE-272 one (which it seems to be identical to - same nylon grid), removed horn effect, dampened the driver some more - which is all good. And added a bass resonator around 200 Hz, which is not. I bet that the bass is boosted using the back vent and internal resonant chamber.
 
Generally highs are similar to RE-400 with actually less dark signature thanks to the filter mod, and evener thanks to reduced horn. Bass is way boosted, >6 dB, but those unafraid to use equalizer will be very well served.
These gain a lot given a good amplifier too. Off of the ancient phone itself, they get even bassier, much less controlled, "mushy". I suspect these issues are even more pronounced in RE-300h given the low impedance.
 
Out of the new FiiO E18 (review later) and my Lynx Hilo they're gorgeous, in fact I'd dare say better than RE-400 and RE-600.
The driver definitely is the same, it shares a bit of that "zigzag" signature which is specific to the series, but is apparently much more dampened - sacrificing highs loudness a bit more still than RE-600.
 
They're extremely resolving. Very much on par with modded RE-400, I'd dare say, even can come toe to toe with my HE-6 (de-etched with high end eq and some ). Without equalization they give huge "black metal cellar" feel due to darkish signature combined with bass boost.
I'll provide the EQ curves soon. (Low precision and high precision ones.)
 
Timbre is cleaner than all of the previous RE series with exception of RE-262/272 - no audible metallic resonance or any kind of plasticky timbre (as in RE0 of old). Bass decay is excellent.
Width resolution is better than the previous models, as is depth, even though just slightly. Though again, without eq you get the "cellar" effect, flatness and overly close presentation. I'd say very similar to being on stage without good monitors, speakers facing the other way around.
Channel balance is excellent - Hifiman didn't skimp on QC in this pair.
 
I recommend over the ear wear with relatively deep insertion (slightly deeper than RE-400), while using large biflange RE series tips, sadly not included with these. But then, the extra tip set is $10. Great seal is a must, otherwise you will get shrill treble while cutting bass.
Standard wear is also possible, but the asymmetric shell can make one or the other position more comfortable. For me, over the ear it is.
Ergonomics are excellent - but the sore lack of tips, especially larger ones, is troubling. The included tips are small biflange tips and medium cylindrical single flange. Same nozzle shape as in previous models, 4mm diameter, so Comply T200 should fit and if you try hard enough, Sony and VSonic 3.5mm tips as well.
 
Cable is finally made out of polyurethane, not some weird hardening silicone/kevlar/whatever and looks sturdy - we'll see if it actually is. Does not tangle or kink easily. Sliding cable cinch is not present unfortunately, but the shirt clip is included.
Microphonics are ok with either style of wear, generally not unpleasant, as they're low-frequency.
Shell seems to have been lacquered to achieve smoothness - the texture of the tip end suggests ABS to my fingers, but I might be wrong there. Mold is high quality - the injection mark is visible, but hides under the tip.
No tactile mark of Left/Right channel, but it shouldn't be necessary due to the microphone, which is placed on the left channel
 
Unfortunately, my ancient Android phone doesn't recognize the new style button control (the other new one does) - I couldn't test that as the shop had the iPhone version - but the microphone works well and with good quality.
 
Isolation is medium, worse somewhat than RE-400/RE-600, probably due to much more venting. The almost 1 mm, paper filtered vent is located behind the strain relief and is very unlikely to be obstructed by accident.

 

  Yes, call it terribly muddy and all. I actually have RE-400, RE-600 and HE-6 and some more non-Hifiman headphones for comparison. Maybe next you'll call my HE-6 with FocusPad-A terribly muddy too. It was bit muddy off the uncontrolled LG GT540 out, which is somewhat a fail on Hifiman side, that the headphone designed for portable use needs an actual good amplifier to shine. Some of the FiiO ones are good enough for it, as is Leckerton and probably a bunch of other amplifiers with low output impedance.
Giving the exactly wrong tips (sleeves) for it is not quite the best of moves either.
 
It's not muddy at all given proper source and I have a few of those.. It's super dark and bassy. It's like you took RE-400 and applied hard bass boost onto it after fixing some of the flaws. Yes, it's technically actually a slight bit better than RE-400 and its twin brother RE-600. The bass decay is actually even once you equalize it, no bleed or one note bass in this one. Highs are even more refined than RE-400, on par with RE-600. I'd bet one salary in that the driver is an evolution of RE-{4,6}00 one with even more damping - the shell is only vastly different. Even the resonances match - they're only a bit frequency shifted down and correspondingly wider.
 
Have a rough equalization curve. I'll be more precise later.
 

 
Quote:

  The bass boost is unfortunately a bit too high in frequency to be called nice - it's extremely warm giving the sound a "cellar" feel and making it overly intimate. Or "backstage" if you prefer. The result sounds flat and narrow only due to the spectrum.
Some people might like this kind of presentation, I much prefer neutrality, therefore the equalizer. The bass is around 7.5 dB boosted, reaching 9 dB in upper bass. The highs are 3 dB cut in those dips with a roll off on highest end - just like in RE-400 and RE-600, except with resonances shifted quite a bit down. (1.5kHz)
 
Wery much unlike the large boost in, say, Sony MH1, which was around 100 Hz and therefore gave them "powerful" sound - but that in-ear is much less articulate and accurate. The main difference is that I can spot no harmonic distortion in these despite the extreme bass. Remember how all of RE series have none of it? This one does not either and additionally does not have any added reverberation or resonance at all unlike the rest making detail stand out yet bit more.
 
The old adage is still true: it's easier to remove than to add - in this case, it's much easier to remove the bass boost than to add good bass decay to another in-ear.
 
Here's an accurate eq with judicious application of sine and bandlimited pink noise sweeps. Loudness calibrated using my usual audiobook and radio speech technique to 40 sones. (puts most music and sines quite a bit louder) I'm lacking a few tiny parametrics to correct the residual ripple (0.5 dB) mismatch between left and right channel - that is not critical though. With the accurate equalization, they do retain the warm and prominent bass character, but no longer does it cover everything and hide detailed highs. There is a sensation of enormous but well controlled bass power behind every bass note. More contrabass, melodic and rounded (due to longer than typical for IEMs high bass decay), rather than electronic kick and impact, but that is better for most genres I've checked, even electronic music. Not bass bleed, because if the higher bass is not present, the difference is not really audible either.
 

 
Caveat emptor: as with all kinds of accurate equalization, you will need crossfeed or a likewise simulator. Otherwise the soundstaging a line through your head with indeterminate depth, as if listening to reverberation of music instead of music itself. With such DSP, it is beautiful 3D rendition instead.
--
The main problem of these is that they're way mistuned out of the box. The timbre is as if you took RE-272 capabilities in the upper vocal range and extended it to cover bass and low vocal registers as well - it has the same smooth bell-like timbre while having much less of a peaky character, in addition to huge bass power when called for. It is a huge suprise in something as inexpensive as these. Air is not quite as agile and ethereal though, but reasonably close. Were it not for the tuning... out of box tuning ruins them, even for bass-heads - too much high bass.
 
I forgot to mention volume handling capabilities - these are very robust against high levels and not losing a lot when played quiet as well. Very good job in this field.
 
I wonder if they'll be able to keep all of this goodness while slightly improving the highs and fixing the tuning. That'd be worthy of RE-1200 moniker.

Originally Posted by tinyman392 
 
Measurements and short impressions.
 
Got a pair of RE-300i to play with for a little while.  Slight imbalance between drivers < 4 dB (100 Hz - 8 kHz), however, I do have some measurements in, look very similar to the RE-400 and RE-600.  Overall sound has a warm, lush midrange with a slight thickness overall.  Treble is soft, detailed, and offers excellent separation, though lacks a bit in presence at times.  The bass focus gives beautiful reverbs that offers a larger sense of space.  Really impressed with HiFiMan's 50 dollar offering.

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Linked and quoted from CNET

Just do it: Toss your ear buds and get a decent headphone

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

The Audiophiliac reviews the Hifiman RE300, a new low price model from a high-end headphone-maker.

1. by Steve Guttenberg   
   
     @AudiophiliacMan
2. November 22, 2014 6:11 AM PST

 
 
Whenever I'm on the New York subway I see lots of folks using the free ear buds that came with their phones, and I think that's a shame. It's not just the buds' so-so sound, those little buggers provide zero isolation from external noise. To be clear about this, ear buds rest on the outer folds of your ears, in-ear headphones like the new Hifiman RE300 fits inside your ear canals. So they function like earplugs, suppressing some of the noise around you. Right there, that's the biggest difference between ear buds and in-ears, because once you're not forced to play music loud enough to overcome external noise you can turn the volume down. In-ear headphones also produce another benefit: deeper, more powerful bass than most ear buds.

The thing that first grabbed me about the RE300's sound was its sweet demeanor, it's not bright or overly bassy. Its mellow character makes even harsh MP3s easy on the ears. The RE300's soft, forgiving nature lacks the crisp detail of the next model in the Hifiman line, the RE400, so if you crave maximum resolution go for that one.

With electronica wizards Aphex Twin's new "Syro" album the RE300 the low bass beats and thumps have plenty of weight; Boards of Canada's chugging "Happy Cycling" set my toes a tapping. Acoustic music sounded pleasantly rich, vocals are natural. The orchestral strings floating through Annie Lennox's new "Nostalgia" record sound like the real thing.

The RE300's driver size is listed as 8.5mm. This headphone boasts above average sensitivity, 108 dB/1mW, and its low impedance, just 16 Ohms, makes it super-easy to drive. Even the feeblest phones and MP3 players will rock your world with a set of RE300s. I credit the incredibly tiny ear pieces with this headphone's above average comfort (the image at the top of this page doesn't show show the proper scale of the two headphones).

There are three RE300 models, I used the RE300h, it has a "straight" cable, but if you need a mic and inline controls, opt for the RE300a for Android phones or a RE300i for iPhones (those last two have 32 Ohm impedance ratings). One concern, some users have noted the RE300's bulky, L-shape 3.5mm plug has compatibility issues with some phones in cases.

 
All three RE300 models come in black or white and sell in the US for $49, they will soon be available in the UK for £35, and in Australia for AU$59. The RE300 is terrific, but the RE400 is definitely worth paying a little extra for. Right now it's $79, £59 in the UK, and AU$99 in Australia.


 

 

 

RE300h, RE300a and RE400 comparison
 

Spoiler: Click for full impressions

  Okay, this is my first post on head-fi, but I guarantee you that I am quite the audiophile especially when it comes to finding the best sound for money. I'm all about sound quality for the best dollar. Great sound tests the "law of diminishing returns" Gods of capitalism, so I respect Hifiman for setting new standards of their affordable cans and IEMs with great sound.
   
  No doubt I can hear the difference between westone W40 vs hifiman RE-400, but for a fraction of the cost the RE-400 is by far the best headphone I've ever heard. I don't know how to quantify dollars for sound, but if there was a metric the RE-400 would win. The RE-400 has the clearest mids I've heard from an IEM, and the clarity and smoothness of their highs are just awesome. My problem with the RE-400 was that mid-bass and low bass was a bit to be desired. No, I'm not a bass head, but hearing guitars, drums, and some electronic versions of bass is just flat out fun. The RE-400 has very tight bass, but I need my fiio E12 additional bass setting to push more power to the lower frequencies, and even then it was just okay. The RE-400 is best with acoustic guitars, strings, pianos and vocals, but is not a rock, hip-hop, electronic type IEM. 
   
  Insert the Hifiman RE300 ... I bought both the 300i and the 300h, and yes there is a significant difference between the two. I don't care for mic's and controls on the cables because that's what a damn phone is for. I hate that "professional" reviews point this "deficiency" out, and grade poorly. To me, there is no added convenience to have an inline mic and volume control features, but I guess it is a market demand for the non-audiophile types. 
   
  I had a three fold setup to test different configurations:
  Setup 1 - iphone 5c (all with 16/44.1 files)
  Setup 2 - iPod 6th gen with the fiio E12 connected with an L9 line out cable (all with 16/44.1 files)
  Setup 3 - Audioquest's Dragonfly 1.2 out of my MacBook Air using Audirvana Plus (all with 24/96+ or 16/44.1 files)
   
  Music types: Zac Brown Band, Foo Fighters (album and live), Michael Jackson (Thriller Album), Violin Concerto No. 1, Alicia Keys, Bruno Mars, Linkin Park, John Mayer, Hans Zimmer,  Daft Punk, The Band Perry, Aloe Blacc, and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (obviously I love all kinds of music)
   
  I did comparisons with the RE300i, RE300h, and RE-400 IEMs. 
   
  The obvious thing I could immediately hear is the loudness of the RE300H versus the RE300i. There is an obvious answer why, and that is the RE300H is a 16ohm IEM where the RE300i is a 32ohm IEM. Higher impedance = less current on voltage drive amps (which is pretty much all of them). The i and H IEMs probably have the same drivers, it's just with the mic integrated or different cable type they were forced to a different wiring configuration to the drivers (speculation of course). Who knows why, but I can tell the difference right away.
   
  I agree with the previous posts ... first thing I noticed was the bass with either the i or H. With country and rock songs, I could feel the punch of the bass drums. With the string instruments I could hear the cello after the bow had pushed against the strings. With the hip-hop and electronic music the bass hits were just something I've never heard from a Hifiman IEM. I did a quick comparison to a set of JVC IEMs (which are just all bass and nothing more), and the bass was so much cleaner. Hifiman IEM Bass, where have you been!
   
  The mids were neither sacrificed with the i nor H from the RE-400. I do, however, think there is a little bleed-over of the RE300i in the mid bass 200 - 400 Hz frequency ... Nothing a little equalizing can't take of. I heard none of this bleed with the RE300H, however the lower vocals on both the i and H were a little too much. Needed to tone down a bit. Something the RE-400 had a clear improvement. The RE300i started to tail off at the higher end of the vocal spectrum and not do well in the highs.
   
  Finally, the highs of the RE-400 are still superior than either of the RE300i or the RE300H. I do, however, think the RE300H is still very good. Symbol clashes, hand claps, and percussions sound clear, and really weren't too far behind the RE-400. I hate bright highs, and that is not hifiman at all. I do think that the RE300H has harsh highs somewhat (like too much harsh, as opposed to piercing bright). The RE300i, however, did not sound good at the top end. To me, sounded muddled, and really required some equalizing to help, but the deficiencies were too much to really get the i's to an adequate state (at least for me). 
   
  As for the sounds in the different configurations, the RE300H paired with any of the configs sounded great. A good DAC like the Dragonfly 1.2 pushed the highs and vocals well. The Foo Fighters Skin and Bones Live album is just unreal with these IEMs. They aren't bass head IEMs, but the presence may be too much for those who despise bass overpowering other spectrum. For me, it's absolutely perfect balance for Rock Music and Country. The RE300H sounds great with the pairing of the iPhone, especially with my fiio E12 amp. I don't think the additional bass switch is necessary, but if you want to have fun with Rock and Hip-Hop, it's punchy and tight.
   
  I do not like the sound from the RE300i's I've decided. Too little on the high mids and the highs are not good enough, and the bleed of the mid-lows. Probably adequate at the $50 price tag for sure, but average is the best word that describes it. The pairing with the iPhone was what sealed the deal for me for the RE300i review. When on the dragonfly 1.2 DAC, the high's started to appear, but certainly not with the awful iPhone DAC and amp. This is funny to me because the point of having the RE300i is to pair with the iPhone with the additional features, but the sound really is not there. However, at the $50 price tag, good deal compared to some of the more popular consumer brands.
   
  The RE300H is phenomenal for its price tag at $50. Sacrificed highs for an enormous improvement in the lows when compared to the RE-400. Instruments sound good on these, it almost feels like I'm stealing from Hifiman at this price tag.
   
  So that gets me into some speculation ... why did Hifiman decide to put different models out? Were they not getting enough sales from the RE-400 because people who want more features in the product require a mic and controls? And I realize good cabling can make a world of difference, but why such a difference between the two models with the impedances and frequency specs (RE300i is 20 - 20k and RE300H is 15 - 22k)? I believe this is a blatant attempt to show the world that Hifiman can build quality for "convenience" and make good sales with the RE300i, but if you just keep things simple, pay attention to details such as good cabling, it can make the world of difference. I also think at the price point, Hifiman is basically waving on the competition as to say "come guys, keep up". 
   
  Some other things to note ... the drivers on these IEMs are much smaller than I thought they were going to be. The plastic casing looks larger in the photos (caution: objects in picture look larger than they appear), but they are clearly smaller than my RE-400. The fit is perfect for me, and the isolation is very good. Aesthetically these are bad ass, if that matters to you.

  Overall, the RE300H is one of the best IEMs for the dollar at this price point, and the RE300i is good but not great. Sure, $600 pair of headphones will sound better, but that is obvious at the price points. IEMs at the RE300 price point that manufacturers JVC, skull candy, beats, and Monster exist, but only expose certain frequency spectrum to trick regular consumers in thinking they sound good. The RE300H is an IEM that is balanced, and sounds great with many different types of music. Great buy, great job Hifiman once again, and thank you for the additional bass for the non-audiophile music types.

 
First Impressions
 

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

I just got the white ones in. eBay guy said the blacks are 16ohm and the white are 32. He's sold out of both. I was going to return them for the blacks, but I'm starting to like the white and the sound is amazing. They sound identical to my re400s with a digizoid. The fit is much better. I threw on larger rubber and they stay in much better than my 400s.

I'm looking forward to my commute tomorrow.

  

After a day of burning in. The bass seems a little mellowed, but still enough. The mids and highs are still on par wth the 400s.

The biggest advantage is the fit. The 400 always needed some adjustment to be perfect. These stay put.

The cord on these are a little stiff though. I hope that improves.

I'm using just an iPhone 6 for these btw

  

Just got my used pair in, after comparing with pictures these don't have any left/right markings, so going to use my red/blue tips from my sold Dunu dn-k to keep track. Man, these things have tiny housings.

Time to run them off my X5 and see the result.

I hate to admit it, but this might outdo my VSD3.

   
 

Before I begin, I want to thank HiFiMan customer service and Yu to be specific. Once they contacted me, he was quick to send me a new pair of RE-300 in two days, after the other got "lost in the mail." Great CS, guys.

So the RE-300 comes in a rather subdued plastic box, but it was easy to open and was quite aesthetically pleasing. Inside we had the really nice looking RE-300, a shirt clip, replacement filters, and a couple non descript tips.

The cable is thick, but very malleable. Great strain relief (TTPOD T1e can learn from this) at the jack. The mic is out of the way, and not intrusive. I don't use mics, so I don't care about usability or clarity, so that's for someone else to review.

Now with about 5 hours of burn in, this is practically out of the box, with the exception of the 5 hours on the burn in station. I used my X1, IPhone 6, and my Rockboxed Sansa Fuze. The tips are JVC spiral dots Large.
The first detail that jumped out at me, and let me preface this by saying I've owned the RE-0, RE-Zero, RE-262, and RE-400 previously, so I'm well versed in the HiFiMan sound. That first detail? BASS!!! The RE-300 has a bass depth, thud, slam, and presence that no other RE model had. It's not even close. These are the most bass heavy RE IEMs ever produced.

Now there is a trade off for this. The high end sparkle that was such a hit with the 0 and the 262 are long gone. What you get is a treble decay and timbre for reminiscent of the ZERO or 400. The treble is smooth. Baby butt smooth. I had to pull out my Tenore, as the treble seemed so familiar to me, and sure as rain is wet, the HiFiMan tuning specialists have been paying attention to the hype the Zero Audio Tenore have been garnering on head-fi, because the highs are so similar to the Tenore, that I couldn't tell the difference between the two doing an a/b. The roll off, timbre, and decay are nearly identical. This might excite some, and turn off others who are looking for an Ostry or TTPOD bright IEM? These are the opposite of bright.

The mids are where these are at. This is a midcentric IEM. Voices simply are presented as smooth as butter, with ZERO sibilance. Female voices soar. Male voices are strong and forward. The mid bass emphasis does seem like there could be slight bleed, but it more than likely is just my not being used to a HiFiMan product that's got copious amounts of bass. There just feels like a slight veil. Like the slight veil or warmth I get from my B3? The mids are detailed and resolving. The bass has a lot of speed, and guitars are forward and presented with power. This might be even greater, and imaging better, if the treble wasn't so smoothed out. This is a mid centric IEM with strong bass presence, with that now legendary RE clarity and layering, with characteristics that seem to lean towards a "hybrid" of the Tenore/Bassos and the Havi B3. I personally prefer these to the Tenore because of the bass. The mids and highs are similar, but the bass clinches it for the RE-300. Now let me say that the soundstage is wider on the Tenore, but not by too much. I would place the soundstage of the RE-300 as equal to the Pistons, but they crush the Pistons due to the 300 not having deeply recessed mids. On the contrary. They don't provide the detail, soundstage, or imaging of the B3, so the Havi win there, BUT the 300 don't require an amp to shine, and they fit better, are more comfortable, and have more QUALITY bass presence and quantity than the B3, so for a daily reacher, these would be superior to the B3. For fun listening with the detail to still do critical listening ON THE GO, the RE-300 are the new contender for kings of budget on the go. The housing is kinda reminiscent of the RE-262, only smaller and less invasive. These are as comfortable as the SHE3580 or CX300II. Comfort and great sound right out of the box, yo!!

So what's got me even more excited is the possibility of the bass getting tighter, and the details and resolve getting even smoother and more present as they burn in for 24 hours, 50 hours, and 100 hours (yeah that's for you, mochill). As for in the now, these have just jumped ahead of my Tenore, Pistons, T1e, and Doppio for what will be my every day commute IEM. The Havi B3 still reign supreme as far as soundstage, detail, balance, and transparency, but these single dynamic driver IEMs don't require an amp, and have much better bass. For $49 bucks, you just can't go wrong. Light, aesthetically pleasing, great cord, and solid, fun sound. How can you GO WRONG? You can't. I recommend the RE-300 highly for your on the go music needs. Thanks HiFiMan. Well done.

Let me say that if you are into listening to metal, the RE-300 are amazing for metal. Been listening to American Sharks and Slayer, and the power and synergy are wicked! I'm loving this.

....the HiFiMan RE-300, after 24 hours of burn in, are so awesome! The bass is so refined, well rounded, and strong, and those mids!! Baby smooth and lush! Loving these, with incredible comfort and isolation.

Treble is more like the RE-400. These are truly the first HiFiMan with prominent bass.

The sound has opened up much better with burn in. The soundstage and instrument separation has become greater, with an overall smooth presentation, with a VERY mature bass. Very refined bass and smooth treble. No peaks or peakiness AT ALL. These to me play like a RE-400 or RE-ZERO with a bass presence not found in any HiFiMan product. Mid centric with accurate highs with lovely timbre but short decay/roll off. It's the bargain of the year IMHO at $49.

 

  So, this first impression is a bit difficult for me to write. As a big Hifiman IEM aficionado and current owner of a pair each of the RE-ZERO, RE-262 and the RE-400, my initial reaction to the RE300h is that of huge disappointment. I guess I can see why Hifiman might tune these the way they did at this price point, but it is a big departure from their signature sound and not in a good way.
 
Here is my subjective impression of the sound: It has a very veiled top end, no real bottom end, unnatural mid bass with a very noticeable 'cardboard drums' effect, virtually non-existent soundstage and terrible instrument separation. It reminds me of my lawn mowing/gym IEM Sennheiser CX380 (yuck!).
 
The RE-400 blows this out the water and is a no-brainer choice even at double the price, and at $79 it is an absolute steal. If iPhone/Android controls are important - at the cost of compromising on sound quality - there are other IEMs I would rather choose with better construction and reliability
 
On the plus side, these are unbelievably comfortable to wear, and that's saying something given how comfortable the RE-400 are themselves. Insertion depth and isolation are better in comparison to the 400 as well. I just wish Hifiman didn't move away from their analytical/balanced sound with these new IEMs
 

 
 

 

[eyal1983]

But why is it white...
 
I noticed that the number does not imply for the signature;
HE-400 is completely different than the RE-400
so RE-300 is not a small HE-300.. that's a partial consolation.

 

[WNBC]

I was going to purchase one for my wife today but when you go to the website to order there is not a choice of the "i" or "a".   Are there RE-300 variants?  The advertisement makes it look like two different versions of the RE-300.

 

[getclikinagas]

  I was going to purchase one for my wife today but when you go to the website to order there is not a choice of the "i" or "a".   Are there RE-300 variants?  The advertisement makes it look like two different versions of the RE-300.

Good point. They do refer to the android and iPhone versions separately. Guess you could leave a note after check-out to specify which version you'd like.
 
Maybe @TeamHiFiMAN could clarify for us? 
 
 
Anchor5
Link
Anchor6

 

[eyal1983]

If I had to guess..
i=iPhone
a=Android 
(?)

 

[getclikinagas]

  If I had to guess..
i=iPhone
a=Android 
(?)

 

  HIFIMAN RE300a/ RE300i InLine Control Earphone
 

 

[WNBC]

I think it must be a glitch in their system.  Based on the images there are two versions and one should be able to specify which one upon checkout.  I went all the way through checkout and there was no place to indicate which one I wanted.  I didn't use Paypal checkout which may have a place to leave a note but people just using their CCs have no place to indicate which one.  

 

[.Sup]

Would be interesting to see hear how this compares to RE-400.

 

[redrich2000]

white = FAIL. It's not 2006 ***.
Wake me up when the RE400i is released.

 

[WNBC]

Agreed, why not offer at least 2 colors?  I will still get a pair for my wife because she uses the stock Apple bud for her phone which is already white and she likes the mic control.  I'm hoping the quality control on the cable for the RE-300 was made a high priority.
 
 
Quote:

  white = FAIL. It's not 2006 ***.
Wake me up when the RE400i is released.

 

[tinyman392]

I actually don't mind the white.  Though the design does somewhat remind me of Apple buds  

 

[mochill]

I don't mind the color as well , only care about the sound

 

[BluePhoenixHD]

Anyone got a pair of these yet? They look awesome, they look like the would be super comfortable but waiting on everyone's impressions.

 

[supatrupa]

I already have the RE-400, but Im considering buying these for the inline controls.  I wonder how the sound would compare.

 

[WNBC]

I just ordered a pair for my wife to use with her iPhone 6.  I'll give them a listen prior to the hand-off.