[TWidXugA]

How would you say the EJ07m compares to the LZ A7 with the black filter? I really love the LZ A7's with the gold and black filters, but I've been looking to take a leap to a higher end IEM, and so just wondering how the A7 holds up.

It is too early for me to make a good and fair comparison, even because I have a Tanchjim Tanya comming soon, so I can try its black filters on the ej07m. I am also going back and forward with tips, and they seemed to have opened up a bit with burnin (brain or otherwise). Initially I found the ej07m fatiguing, but it might also have been my fault for the volume it was at. Tip rolling seemed to help, and I am now using large Spinfits cp100, though some larger bore wide tips were also quite good.

I was expecting a massive sound improvement from the ej07m, and that didn't happen yet. In fact, for many tracks (e.g. Cory Wong albums) I prefer the Dunu EST 112 (with the tapped inner vent mod) and sometimes even the LZ A7 (monitor black), from a few A to B comparisons.

[EDIT] - It turns out I was suffering from the same resonance weirdness than was first reported by @redrol (his review is a better account than this write-up. btw). I finally got the Tanchjim Tanya and used its dampers on the ej07m, resulting in the somewhat contrasting edits below. All the fatigue is gone after using Tanchjim dampers, and my impressions of the ej07m are now generally much better (almost 180º turn). I should also add that tweaking the ej07m with dampers, grills, etc. was fun and they do respond really well to tip rolling.

Treble - Extension is about the same as the LZ A7 (it is great on the A7). The ej07m has better timbre, accuracy, resolution, effortlessness, but the LZ A7 has more bite (and so does the LZ A6), it is probably a piezo thing. Still, I prefer the ej07m for orchestral, and that was my number 1 use case for it. I also prefer the treble of the ej07m to that of the EST 112 due to its better extension.

Bass - The ej07m's sub-bass resembles more of a subwoofer, which is very satisfying at times, but that leaves something wanting in the mid bass occasionally, especially when listening to older electric bass centric tracks, like Jaco Pastorius's own "Jaco Pastorius" album. The Dunu EST 112 kills it in terms of bass resolution, and with the blocked inner vent mod, it gets closer in terms of sub-bass. The ej07m goes deeper than both the LZ A7 and the EST 112 though.

[EDIT] - Using tanchjim dampers means that the higher mids loose the weird focus, and the bass texture, especially that of the upper bass becomes very satisfying. Though impactful, the bass of the ej07m does not encroach on the mids in any way. It tends to sound like good bass in a good venue, with good sub-woofers, and reverberations that convey room size information. It is not there if not called for, and is well integrated with the earphone's dynamics and the rest of its sound signature. I still think that there is something to be said about the EST 112's mid bass resolution, that is still better and quite adictive, imho. The LZ A7 is not a contestant in this race, though it does not disappoint either.

Mids - This is where I would give it to the LZ A7, or the Dunu EST 112, or even the Fiio FD5. This is also where my views are further away from those of @redrol: While extremely detailed, the mids on the ej07m don't always sound completely natural, or even just satisfying, especially lower mids. I listen to a lot of classical guitar (I play classical guitar and flamenco), and guitars sound "thin" and horns can sometimes seem "nasal" on the ej07m. There was some improvement since yesterday, so I will not say the matter is closed. Plus tanya filters may change it. The LZ A7 is also very detailed, not OCD quantities of detail like the ej07m, but still plenty, and more natural.

[EDIT] - With Tanchjim dampers, these just sound silky smooth and natural, yet exquisitely detailed, throwing everything else out of the park. Guitars are extremely natural, horns spot on, with all the little details on display (air movement, clacks of keys pressed, etc). The EST 112 has a different flavour of this, with more evident macro detail and micro detailed pushed slightly further back, but the ej07m conveys the same information through different layers, and does that with better dynamics. The LZ A7 has excellent mids, but the detail, texture, layering with which the ej07m envelops its delivery of mids is just on another level.

Soundstage - The ej07m kills it completely, no contest.

Imaging - ej07m has ridiculously good imaging, it is something special.

Practicality - I thought it was harder for an earphone to compete with the LZ A7 in comfort, but the ej07m is extremely comfortable too - it is really tiny! However, sleeping with the ej07m is not great because of the rather annoying and loud driver flex, though the shell shape is good for that.

Build - Driver flex is really a major downside of the ej07m, imho. It is annoying, you listen to it every time you adjust the earpieces, and detracts from the premium feel of it. The metal shells of my $50 CCA CKX seem to be put together better than those of the ej07m - the seems of the faceplate of my ej07m are a bit wonky... hard to spot, but again, this is supposed to be a premium product for the price, even if the "m" stands for mass-produced.

[EDIT] - Using foam tips cut in half (like @redrols) mitigates the driver flex, though I personally now prefer how the ej07m sound with Spinfits cp145. Driver flex is an allmark of the ej07 series, and should be expected. Once the earphones are in place there is no more flex, and I was assured by @redrol that it doesn't damage drivers. Might be a small price to pay for such an amazing bass.

 

[TWidXugA]

Writing my previous post got me thinking that I might really be experiencing the same issue reported by @redrol, leading him to use the Tanchjim Tanya's filters/dampers. While there are many good aspects that are immediately apparent with the ej07m, I do experience fatigue at higher listening volumes. Yet, I intuitively want to reach out to the volume nob to get a fuller sound, so something may well be off, and that may explain my underwhelming experience with its mids.

 

[Rush87]

It is too early for me to make a good and fair comparison, even because I have a Tanchjim Tanya comming soon, so I can try its black filters on the ej07m. I am also going back and forward with tips, and they seemed to have opened up a bit with burnin (brain or otherwise). Initially I found the ej07m fatiguing, but it might also have been my fault for the volume it was at. Tip rolling seemed to help, and I am now using large Spinfits cp100, though some larger bore wide tips were also quite good.

I was expecting a massive sound improvement from the ej07m, and that didn't happen yet. In fact, for many tracks (e.g. Cory Wong albums) I prefer the Dunu EST 112 (with the tapped inner vent mod) and sometimes even the LZ A7 (monitor black), from a few A to B comparisons.

Treble - Extension is about the same as the LZ A7 (it is great on the A7). The ej07m has better timbre, accuracy, resolution, effortlessness, but the LZ A7 has more bite (and so does the LZ A6), it is probably a piezo thing. Still, I prefer the ej07m for orchestral, and that was my number 1 use case for it. I also prefer the treble of the ej07m to that of the EST 112 due to its better extension.

Bass - The ej07m's sub-bass resembles more of a subwoofer, which is very satisfying at times, but that leaves something wanting in the mid bass occasionally, especially when listening to older electric bass centric tracks, like Jaco Pastorius's own "Jaco Pastorius" album. The Dunu EST 112 kills it in terms of bass resolution, and with the blocked inner vent mod, it gets closer in terms of sub-bass. The ej07m goes deeper than both the LZ A7 and the EST 112 though.

Mids - This is where I would give it to the LZ A7, or the Dunu EST 112, or even the Fiio FD5. This is also where my views are further away from those of @redrol: While extremely detailed, the mids on the ej07m don't always sound completely natural, or even just satisfying, especially lower mids. I listen to a lot of classical guitar (I play classical guitar and flamenco), and guitars sound "thin" and horns can sometimes seem "nasal" on the ej07m. There was some improvement since yesterday, so I will not say the matter is closed. Plus tanya filters may change it. The LZ A7 is also very detailed, not OCD quantities of detail like the ej07m, but still plenty, and more natural.

Soundstage - The ej07m kills it completely, no contest.

Imaging - ej07m has ridiculously good imaging, it is something special.

Practicality - I thought it was harder for an earphone to compete with the LZ A7 in comfort, but the ej07m is extremely comfortable too - it is really tiny! However, sleeping with the ej07m is not great because of the rather annoying and loud driver flex, though the shell shape is good for that.

Build - Driver flex is really a major downside of the ej07m, imho. It is annoying, you listen to it every time you adjust the earpieces, and detracts from the premium feel of it. The metal shells of my $50 CCA CKX seem to be put together better than those of the ej07m - the seems of the faceplate of my ej07m are a bit wonky... hard to spot, but again, this is supposed to be a premium product for the price, even if the "m" stands for mass-produced.

Thanks for the write up!
It makes me want to stop chasing an unicorn and be happy with what I have (A7, SA6, HA-FDX1, PP).
Your comments about the mids (horns sounding thin) and bass (being like a subwoofer) makes me think the EJ07m isn't for me.

 

[TWidXugA]

Thanks for the write up!
It makes me want to stop chasing an unicorn and be happy with what I have (A7, SA6, HA-FDX1, PP).
Your comments about the mids (horns sounding thin) and bass (being like a subwoofer) makes me think the EJ07m isn't for me.

To be fair, I think I may have the same issue reported by @redrol, and that may well be behind some of the weirdness in the mids. I will report back when I get the Tanya filters.

In any case, considering the underwhelming build, the potential need for dampers to get a good sound, and the driver flex, there are far too many cons to spend this kind of money on the ej07m. Unless the Tanya filters make it sound god like... That may well be possible, I can see the potential lurking inside...

 

[redrol]

just try the filters.. haha

 

[TWidXugA]

Filters should arrive somewhere this week, fingers crossed!

Two more observations:

• The ej07m doesn't seem to like "high gain" modes on amps/daps, and that goes for my Oppo HA2, ifi iDSD micro, and Fiio M9 Dap. It helps with the issues with the mids, and makes the bass more cohesive with the rest of the sound.
• A trick to get rid of the driver flex is to use foam tips cut in half, just like @redrol's...

 

[redrol]

Filters should arrive somewhere this week, fingers crossed!

Two more observations:

• The ej07m doesn't seem to like "high gain" modes on amps/daps, and that goes for my Oppo HA2, ifi iDSD micro, and Fiio M9 Dap. It helps with the issues with the mids, and makes the bass more cohesive with the rest of the sound.
• A trick to get rid of the driver flex is to use foam tips cut in half, just like @redrol's...

I really wish there was a good way to extend the tip while not creating a resonance peak (my ear problem). Unfortunately I don't really see a way other than Shuoer extending the bore tube at the factory.

 

[TWidXugA]

A quick update: while my Tanchjim Tanya is yet to arrive, I've spent several hours today trying to sort out the mids "weirdness" in the ej07m. Using eq I arrived at the conclusion that the "weidness" is centred around 5Khz, and pushing that band down yields a decent improvement. I also tried farfetched things, like using LZ A7 dampers coupled via a relatively long foam tip: results varied in success, but this was by no means comfortable, and none of the dampers was fully satisfying.

It turns out I also had lying around some extra "sticker" grills from my past Blon BL03 modding. These are too small for the ej07m nozzle, which is wider, but since I had plenty, I decided to give them a try. These are not supposed to have any damping effect, they are just grills, to prevent dirt and grime from getting in:

- Lo and behold, the fatigue and mids "weidness" are gone for the most part, meaning that acoustic guitars have a good body and horns don't sound "nasal"! So I am still on @redrol's track, since it does seem like there is some weird resonance going on here, that is solvable by some nozzle filtering/damping/obstruction. This is a night and day difference btw, placebo is unlikely.

I will still try the Tania filters/dampers, as I don't think that my current mod is ideal, since the grills I have cover the nozzle outlet only partially. I will feedback when I do.

 

[redrol]

A quick update: while my Tanchjim Tanya is yet to arrive, I've spent several hours today trying to sort out the mids "weirdness" in the ej07m. Using eq I arrived at the conclusion that the "weidness" is centred around 5Khz, and pushing that band down yields a decent improvement. I also tried farfetched things, like using LZ A7 dampers coupled via a relatively long foam tip: results varied in success, but this was by no means comfortable, and none of the dampers was fully satisfying.

It turns out I also had lying around some extra "sticker" grills from my past Blon BL03 modding. These are too small for the ej07m nozzle, which is wider, but since I had plenty, I decided to give them a try. These are not supposed to have any damping effect, they are just grills, to prevent dirt and grime from getting in:

- Lo and behold, the fatigue and mids "weidness" are gone for the most part, meaning that acoustic guitars have a good body and horns don't sound "nasal"! So I am still on @redrol's track, since it does seem like there is some weird resonance going on here, that is solvable by some nozzle filtering/damping/obstruction. This is a night and day difference btw, placebo is unlikely.

I will still try the Tania filters/dampers, as I don't think that my current mod is ideal, since the grills I have cover the nozzle outlet only partially. I will feedback when I do.

The Blon 03 stock screens are filters but you must be talking about something else.

Isn't it crazy how well this 'mod' works?! I actually stuck the Tanchjim filters on my Blon 03 and low and behold they opened them up! So basically they are a winner.

 

[TWidXugA]

The Blon 03 stock screens are filters but you must be talking about something else.

Isn't it crazy how well this 'mod' works?! I actually stuck the Tanchjim filters on my Blon 03 and low and behold they opened them up! So basically they are a winner.

Indeed, the Blon 03 stock screens are filters, but those I used on the ej07m were plain grills such as these (not exactly these, the link I used is now dead).

Crazy to say the least! This stuff feels like alchemy!

 

[rhys4peace]

It is too early for me to make a good and fair comparison, even because I have a Tanchjim Tanya comming soon, so I can try its black filters on the ej07m. I am also going back and forward with tips, and they seemed to have opened up a bit with burnin (brain or otherwise). Initially I found the ej07m fatiguing, but it might also have been my fault for the volume it was at. Tip rolling seemed to help, and I am now using large Spinfits cp100, though some larger bore wide tips were also quite good.

I was expecting a massive sound improvement from the ej07m, and that didn't happen yet. In fact, for many tracks (e.g. Cory Wong albums) I prefer the Dunu EST 112 (with the tapped inner vent mod) and sometimes even the LZ A7 (monitor black), from a few A to B comparisons.

Treble - Extension is about the same as the LZ A7 (it is great on the A7). The ej07m has better timbre, accuracy, resolution, effortlessness, but the LZ A7 has more bite (and so does the LZ A6), it is probably a piezo thing. Still, I prefer the ej07m for orchestral, and that was my number 1 use case for it. I also prefer the treble of the ej07m to that of the EST 112 due to its better extension.

Bass - The ej07m's sub-bass resembles more of a subwoofer, which is very satisfying at times, but that leaves something wanting in the mid bass occasionally, especially when listening to older electric bass centric tracks, like Jaco Pastorius's own "Jaco Pastorius" album. The Dunu EST 112 kills it in terms of bass resolution, and with the blocked inner vent mod, it gets closer in terms of sub-bass. The ej07m goes deeper than both the LZ A7 and the EST 112 though.

Mids - This is where I would give it to the LZ A7, or the Dunu EST 112, or even the Fiio FD5. This is also where my views are further away from those of @redrol: While extremely detailed, the mids on the ej07m don't always sound completely natural, or even just satisfying, especially lower mids. I listen to a lot of classical guitar (I play classical guitar and flamenco), and guitars sound "thin" and horns can sometimes seem "nasal" on the ej07m. There was some improvement since yesterday, so I will not say the matter is closed. Plus tanya filters may change it. The LZ A7 is also very detailed, not OCD quantities of detail like the ej07m, but still plenty, and more natural.

Soundstage - The ej07m kills it completely, no contest.

Imaging - ej07m has ridiculously good imaging, it is something special.

Practicality - I thought it was harder for an earphone to compete with the LZ A7 in comfort, but the ej07m is extremely comfortable too - it is really tiny! However, sleeping with the ej07m is not great because of the rather annoying and loud driver flex, though the shell shape is good for that.

Build - Driver flex is really a major downside of the ej07m, imho. It is annoying, you listen to it every time you adjust the earpieces, and detracts from the premium feel of it. The metal shells of my $50 CCA CKX seem to be put together better than those of the ej07m - the seems of the faceplate of my ej07m are a bit wonky... hard to spot, but again, this is supposed to be a premium product for the price, even if the "m" stands for mass-produced.

Thank you so much for the write up!
Think I might end up steering clear of the ej07m's then. The mids dont sound like what I want out of it, but even more so, I don't think I can justify $600USD on something with driver flex.

 

[TWidXugA]

Thank you so much for the write up!
Think I might end up steering clear of the ej07m's then. The mids dont sound like what I want out of it, but even more so, I don't think I can justify $600USD on something with driver flex.

Well, regarding the mids, I can say they are really great once the ressonance issue is fixed with a damper or grill in the nozzle like we've been discussing. The question here is if it is worth buying an IEM knowing that you have to mod it from the get go. But if you do it... the sound is supperb. Does say something about Shuoer QC however.

Driver flex seams to be more of an allmark of the ej07 family of earphones rather than a blattant flaw, as I understand it now. It is the price to pay for a deep, impactful bass that magically doesn't encroach on the mids. It is not any less annoying because of it though.

 

[redrol]

I agree driver flex is something the EJ DD driver just does.. but only on insertion. On the other hand, ever DD that flexes (3DT, EJ07/m, and others) all have extremely good bass. I look for this as a feature knowing that the bass will be sick.. oddly enough.

Don't give up on the mids on this set. When they are good they are GOOOOOOOD. Just takes a bit of damper.

 

[rhys4peace]

Well, regarding the mids, I can say they are really great once the ressonance issue is fixed with a damper or grill in the nozzle like we've been discussing. The question here is if it is worth buying an IEM knowing that you have to mod it from the get go. But if you do it... the sound is supperb. Does say something about Shuoer QC however.

Driver flex seams to be more of an allmark of the ej07 family of earphones rather than a blattant flaw, as I understand it now. It is the price to pay for a deep, impactful bass that magically doesn't encroach on the mids. It is not any less annoying because of it though.

$600USD was already a little outside my comfort zone when it comes to IEM money, so potentially having to mod it out of the box meant I just couldn't justify the purchase, at least not now.

 

[TWidXugA]

[removed duplicate post]