[Steve Guppy]

So, after a bit of research and lots of deliberation, I finally plumped for the iBasso IT03 as my 1st foray into proper IEM's and as an upgrade to my beloved 1more Triples.

And i have to say my 1st reactions were shockingly bad!! Where was all this bass I kept reading about? So the quest for finding the right tips began. And after trying all that I had, including the ones provided, some other silicones, some Inair and Comply foams, and some Symbio W mediums, still they sounded terrible! At this point I thought I'd made an expensive mistake. But, as the saying goes, patience is a virtue (something I have little of), and it was only after experimenting with twisting them in different directions, that I realised that I wasn't seating them properly in my ears. The instructions with them didn't really work for me either, so that didn't help my inexperience.

So now I've got my tips down to some bi-flange silicones and some small bore Inairs (I know purists will stop reading now, but they suit my listening preference, with plenty of bass and taming of the bright trebles). Obviously this may change as they burn-in

So all in all, in finally really enjoying these IEM's. And they really do sound fantastic .

Special mention at this point to @Grimbles for the gift of the 2.5mm balanced cable. Plugged into my FiiO Q1II's balanced output, they sound even more open, with a bigger sound stage and incredible detail and separation.

 

[davidcotton]

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/ibasso-audio-it03.807881/

May be of some interest/help to you!

 

[yong_shun]

IEMs are very tips dependent and again it depends on your ear shape again. Glad that you find a suitable tips.

 

[Steve Guppy]

IEMs are very tips dependent and again it depends on your ear shape again. Glad that you find a suitable tips.

I returned the iBasso soon after that post because the right mmcx connection stopped working after 3 days. THREE DAYS! For a £300 item. Simply unacceptable at that price. The company were slow in responding to my emails too. I've changed them for some FH5's, which were built better, looked nicer, sounded pretty much identical, and were still less after including a 2.5mm balanced cable in my order! I'm now using symbio tips with them, and they are the best I've yet to find.

 

[WhatToChoose]

I returned the iBasso soon after that post because the right mmcx connection stopped working after 3 days. THREE DAYS! For a £300 item. Simply unacceptable at that price. The company were slow in responding to my emails too. I've changed them for some FH5's, which were built better, looked nicer, sounded pretty much identical, and were still less after including a 2.5mm balanced cable in my order! I'm now using symbio tips with them, and they are the best I've yet to find.

I have consistently seen iBasso build quality issues in their IEM reviews, and that has kept them off my radar. There are numerous brands with far superior build quality with excellent sound, such as Noble Audio, Campfire Audio, Sony, RHA Audio, etc

 

[yong_shun]

I returned the iBasso soon after that post because the right mmcx connection stopped working after 3 days. THREE DAYS! For a £300 item. Simply unacceptable at that price. The company were slow in responding to my emails too. I've changed them for some FH5's, which were built better, looked nicer, sounded pretty much identical, and were still less after including a 2.5mm balanced cable in my order! I'm now using symbio tips with them, and they are the best I've yet to find.

iBasso is killing themselves by poor QC LOL

 

[yong_shun]

I have consistently seen iBasso build quality issues in their IEM reviews, and that has kept them off my radar. There are numerous brands with far superior build quality with excellent sound, such as Noble Audio, Campfire Audio, Sony, RHA Audio, etc

Campfire Audio is one of my favourite too!