[iems0nly]

Hello fellow audio addicts!
I've now come to a point where i have collected enough earphones to make my own ranking list.

This is called Simple Man's Ranking because of the following 2 simple points:
I don't use any high end DAC/Amps to drive the earphones. I drive them using my smartphone, HTC10. I plan to upgrade to LG G7 or G8 once this dies on me.
I don't use FLAC or lossless tracks, etc., I use mostly 320 Kbps mp3s.

About my personal taste and preference:
1. I generally prefer Dynamic drivers as they sound more natural and realistic to me.
2. 90% of my playlist comprises of Blues and Jazz music in equal proportion. 75% of the music were recorded between 1965 and 1975. I do use remastered versions when available.
3. I don't have a sound signature preference/bias. If done right, i will love any tuning.

About the list:
The list is sorted by sound rating. There is no objective rule to the rating. It is purely based on how much i think they deserve based on my experience. The ranking is prone to change when i learn something new.

Ear-Time - Shows frequency of use for general listening.
0 - indicates that the IEM is not in my possession anymore.
1 - (min.) denotes IEMs that i pick up, mostly, only for comparisons
5 - (max.) these are IEMs i'm using on a daily basis.

Price (shows only approximate values)
(x) - denotes that they are discontinued or very very hard to get.
(x?) - denotes can't buy with confidence, too many fakes in the market.

Driver
D - Dynamic; BA - Balanced Armature Driver; n - number of drivers

Measurements
Dayton IMM-6 + PVC tube coupler + AudioTools
Please note that this is not a standard measurement rig. The FRs are useful just to get an idea about where the peaks and valleys are in the curve. Please take these with a tsp of salt.

Navigation
Hyperlinks under IEM redirects to detailed head-fi review.Hyperlinks under Measurement redirects to measurement image hosted is postimg.

That's it. Enjoy the list, and Don't forget music!

Simple Man's Ranking list

S.No	IEM	Driver	Price (USD)	Sound rating	Notes	Ear-time	Measurement
1	Ocharaku Keyaki Ti Plus	1D	550	9.5	Pet favourite. Polarising tuning, with greatly boosted upper-mids, distinct separation and unique positioning	1	Ocharaku Keyaki Ti Plus measurements
2	InEar Stagediver SD2	2BA	400	9.4	Excellent detail retrieval and timbre. TOTL	1	Inear SD2 measurements
3	Sony MDR EX800ST	1D	250 (x)	9.3	Perfect tuning, great timbre, with very poor isolation	1	Sony EX800ST measurements
4	Etymotic ER4XR	1BA	350	9.3	Neutral, extreme detail extraction and separation. Thin sounding.	1	Etymotic ER4XR measurements
5	Sennheiser IE 500 Pro	1D	599	9.3	Daily IEM. Great detail extraction, wide soundstage, reserved upper-mids, fatigue free tuning.	4	Sennheiser IE500 Pro Measurements
6	Japaear JE-555	1D	~350	9.3	Fastest dynamic drivers in my experience. Extremely detailed and natural sounding, without sacrificing bass quantity. Let down by impossible fit. These would be a real treat for modders.	1	Japaear JE-555 measurements
7	Ultrasone IQ	1D1BA	520	9.3	Immersive and exciting tuning. Treble slightly sharp. Big, but quick bass, vocals slightly recessed. Excellent soundstage depth and positioning	1	Ultrasone IQ measurements
8	Etymotic ER2SE	1D	130	9.2	Neutral and natural. Excels in timbre, with great detail retrieval without sounding thin	2	Etymotic ER2SE measurements
9	ATH CKR100iS	2D	400 (x?)	9.2	Favourite. Great tuning, perfect bass, with forward upper-mids.	1	ATH CKR100iS measurements
10	Ultrasone Tio	1BA	350	9.2	Intimate-neutral sounding. Great clarity and lush presentation	0	N/A
11	Ultrasone IQ Pro	1D1BA	350 (x)	9.2	Like IQ with more reserved bass. Mids slightly pushed back.	2	Ultrasone IQ Pro measurements
12	Donguri Syou Kurenai	1D	250 (x)	9.2	Exciting tuning, with upper mids boost. Typical Donguri tuning with bigger bass.	1	Donguri Syou Kurenai measurements
13	Ortofon E-Q5	1BA	120 (x)	9.1	Balanced, great timbre, details. Slightly bright	1	Ortofon E-Q5 measurements
14	Zero Audio Doppio	2BA	120 (x)	9.1	Balanced, great details extraction and exciting treble	1	ZA Doppio measurements
15	Donguri Raku	1D	120	9.1	Boosted lower treble. Bright and airy sound	1	Donguri Raku measurements
16	Azla Horizon	1D	~230	9.1	Balanced tuning with good bass impact and quantity. Nice surround stage, sounds just like room-speakers in your ears	4	Azla Horizon measurements
17	Co-Donguri Shizuku	1D	34	9.1	Boosted upper-mids, airy, rings like a bell. Tuned close to Donguri Keyaki Ti-Plus.	2	Co-Donguri measurements
18	Co-Donguri Brass	1D	120	9.1	Same as Shizuku, with slightly drier mids and tighter sound	2	Co-Donguri Brass measurements
19	TTR Surround Chonmage 3	1D	160	9.1	Natural bass with sub-bass roll-off. Great clarity and vocals. Brighter sounding, can get shouty at high volume	1	Chonmage 3 measurements
20	Olasonic FLAT4 Nami	2D	270 (x)	9.1	Made for treble heads. Great details. Hits sibilance easily. Extremely wide soundstage.	1	Olasonic FLAT4 Nami measurements
21	Yamaha EPH-200	1D	130 - 200	9.1	Clean sounding with great timbre. Excellent isolation and instrument separation.	1	Yamaha EPH-200 measurements
22	Zero Audio Zirco Pezzo (MOD+)	1D	~60	9.1	Modded! With this mod, these sound near neutral with the perfect quantity bass boost! Great clarity and positioning.	1	ZA Zirco Pezzo Mod+ measurements
23	Akoustyx R-220	2BA	199	9.1	Neutral, great detail extraction, exciting treble	1	Akoustyx R220 measurements
24	Sennheiser IE 400 Pro	1D	350	9.1	Like IE500 pro with more mid-bass and upper-mids. Relatively brighter sound	1	Sennheiser IE400 Pro measurements
25	Final E5000	1D	270	9.1	Bedside IEM. Dark sounding, thick and smooth tonality, with good detail extraction in the treble. Works best at low volume	1	Final E5000 measurements
26	Final E4000	1D	150	9.0	Lush sounding with smooth tonality. Amazing vocals	2	Final E4000 measurements
27	FAD Heaven IV	1BA	120	9.0	Balanced, very natural sounding - towards lush. Like E-Q5, less bright	1	final Heaven IV measurements
28	Acoustune HS1004	1D	200 (x)	9.0	Sounds like EX800ST, with bigger bass. Great soundstage, reverberating bass.	1	Acoustune HS1004 measurements
29	JVC FX750	1D	180 (x)	9.0	Warm and natural sound. Better treble body than FX1100, slightly lesser detail and space	0	N/A
30	JVC FX1100	1D	270	9.0	Big bass.Warm and natural sound. Great timbre. Good treble details sounding slightly thin	0	N/A
31	ATH E40	2D	99	8.9	Amazing IEM with slightly coloured tuning, wide stage, Great details with rough micro-definition. Male vocals sound a bit nasal. Finicky fit	1	ATH E40 measurements
32	Sennheiser IE 40 Pro	1D	99	8.9	Balanced sound, with great treble extension.	1	Sennheiser IE40 Pro measurements
33	FAD Piano Forte II	1D	35	8.9	Best vocals, lacking sub-bass, good clarity	1	FAD Piano Forte II
34	Ultrasone Pyco	1D	150	8.9	Intimate sound with tight bass and great treble. Good positioning	0	N/A
35	Massdrop Plus	3BA	200	8.9	Great details. Full sounding. Typical BA, plastic, timbre. Lacks refinement.	0	Massdrop Plus measurements
36	JVC FXT90	2D	78 (x)	8.8	My gateway drug. V shaped. Great bass, and treble clarity.	1	JVC FXT90 measurements
37	ATH E70	3BA	400	8.8	Great details, dark tonality, slightly muffled female vocals, hits sibilance readily.	1	ATH E70 measurements
38	Final E3000	1D	50	8.8	Does nothing wrong. Punchy bass, with smooth treble.		Final E3000 measurements
39	Final E2000	1D	40	8.8	Similar to E3000. Smooth sound, with airy treble	1	Final E2000 measurements
40	Azla Azel	1D	~60	8.7	Slightly bassy sound with good timbre and tonality. Nice mids and smooth, airy treble	1	Azla Azel Measurements
41	Zero Audio Zirco Pezzo (Stock)	1D	60	8.7	Stock sound Perfect bass quality and quantity. Strident highs and hits sibilance easily. Bright sounding	1	ZA Zirco Pezzo measurements
42	iSound MUIX IX3000	1D	35	8.6	Balanced sound with great tonality. Full sounding.	1	MUIX IX3000 measurements
43	Sonicast Dirac + MK2	1D	51	8.5	Good sub-bass impact, scooped lower mids, good treble. Neutral tone, bright sounding.		Sonicast Dirac + MK2
44	iBasso IT01s	1D	179	8.4	Balanced, full sounding, somewhat warm IEM with decent soundstage	1	iBasso IT01s measurements
45	FAD Adagio III	1D	50	8.3	Thumping, rumbling bass and shimmery treble. Very V shaped, and very exciting sound	0	N/A
46	JVC FR65S	1D	~60	8.3	Beautiful looks. Very balanced sounding, close to neutral. Quick bass with zero bloat. Leans slightly towards bright. Great IEM with a shallow fit!		JVC FR65S measurements
47	ATH LS50	2D	50	8.2	Decent detail retrieval and separation. Forward mids. Slight lack of clarity+definition. Very good all-rounder	1	ATH LS50 measurements
48	Akoustyx R-115	1BA	120	8.2	Linear bass, intimate sound, great male vocals, honky female vocals, laidback treble	1	Akoustyx R-115 measurements
49	Zero Audio Carbo Tenore	1D	45	8.2	Balanced sound, great allrounder	0	N/A
50	Fender Puresonic Wired	1D	45	8.2	Big bass, good vocals. Slightly muddied mids, shimmery treble. Commercial tuning done right!	1	Fender Puresonic Wired measurements
51	Acoustic Research E10	1D1BA	~120	8.2	Exciting tuning, big meaty bass juxtaposed with BA clartiy in upper-mids and highs. Coherence is lacking	1	AR E10 measurements
52	Carot One Titta	1D	50	8.2	Balanced sound, very clean and open sounding	0	N/A
53	Final Adagio V	1D	80+	8.2	Treble head. Possibly the fastest dynamic driver, with extreme detail retrieval. Botched by rowdy, unbearable treble. Very bright	0	N/A
54	JPRiDE 1984 Freedom	1D	60	8.1	V-shaped tuning, with aggressive treble details, somewhat recessed mids and impactful, defined bass.	1	JPRiDE 1984 Freedom measurements
55	Moondrop Crescent	1D	30	8.1	Balanced sound. Slightly recessed mids. Decent all around, good detail extraction for the price	1	Moondrop Crescent measurements
56	MEE Pinnacle PX	1D	100	8.1	Balanced, pushed back vocals, peaky treble, thin sounding	1	MEE Pinnacle PX measurements
57	LG Quadbeat 3	1D	Stock	8.1	Big bass impact, full sound, well balanced.	1	LG Quadbeat 3
58	Advanced M4	1D	35	8.1	Great build. Balanced sound, very good clarity for the price	1	Advanced M4 measurements
59	Carot One Quasi Titta	1D	25	8.0	Open sounding, flat tuning. Lacking sub-bass below 100. Very true and uncoloured sound.	1	N/A
60	Moondrop Nocturne	1BA	90	8.0	Decent sound with good BA clarity. Nothing stands out	0	N/A
61	ATH CKM500	1D	50	8.0	Open sounding, very good IEM with great bass and treble (from memory)	0	N/A
62	Flare Audio R2A	1D	100 (x)	7.9	Big bass, warm sounding IEM. Great male vocals. Peaky and thin treble	1	Flare Audio R2A measurements
63	Panasonic HJE450	1D	25	7.8	Balanced sound tilted towards V, good allrounder.	0	N/A
64	Zero Audio Carbo Basso	1D	55	7.7	Bassy tenore. Exciting sound	0	N/A
65	Xiaomi Hybrid Pro 2	1D1BA	20	7.7	Meaty impactful bass, with great detail retrieval. Upper mids can get a bit hot. Tuned for the masses	0	Xiaomi Hybrid Pro 2 measurements
66	Soundmagic E10C	1D	50	7.6	V shaped. Tuned for the masses.	1	Soundmagic E10C measurements
67	Zero Audio Duoza	2D	80	7.5	Bass-head. Gets muddy. Laidback mids. Exciting treble	1	ZA Duoza measurements
68	Rock Zircon	1D	10	7.5	very V-shaped with thundering bass. Still displays good clarity in the mids with bright highs. Better than Duoza	0	Rock Zircon measurements
69	AKG Y23U	1D	50	7.5	Commerical tuning with decent clarity and big bass	0	N/A
70	Boat Basshead 100	1D	5	7.4	Did not try. Colleague wanted these measured- a popular budget earphone from India.	0	Boat Basshead 100 measurements
71	Advanced Model 3	1D	70	7.3	Big bass, slightly muddied mids, shimmery treble. Tuned for the masses	0	Advanced Model 3 measurements
72	JVC FXH10	1D	~20	7.3	Big warm bass. recessed mids. Shimmery highs. Decent IEM for the price	1	JVC FXH10 measurements
73	Aoslens In-Ear Stereo Earphones	1D	15	7.2	Good V-shaped IEM, with good bass and clarity	0	N/A
74	Soundmagic E18S	1D	10	7.2	Decent V shaped IEM, tuned for the masses	0	N/A
75	Xiaomi Piston 2	1D	25	7.2	Muddy bass, mids, airy treble. Decent clartiy	0	N/A
76	LZ-A2S	1D1BA	50	7.0	Fun sound, with muddied mids and exciting, boosted treble - typical chinese tuning	0	N/A
77	TRN V20	1D1BA	15	6.8	Typical chinese fair, with boosted treble and muddy bass	0	N/A
78	JVC FR45S	1DD	50 (x)	6.8	Bright sound, lacking warmth. Good detail retrieval. Possibly lack of sub-bass	0	N/A
79	HCK 5 BA Wood grain	5BA	120	5.0	Crappy tonality, muddy all around	0	N/A
80	Friday - Piano Forte fake Chinese	1D	40	4.5	Boosted mid-bass and mids, lacking treble. Crappy sound	0	N/A

BONUS: Over Ears

S.No	Headphone	Driver	Price (USD)	Sound rating	Notes	Ear-time
A	Grado GW100	1D	250	9.75 (Wired)	A revelation. Wide open and extremely detailed. Soulful mids with smooth, warm bass. Lacks sub-bass impact for EDM	2
B	nura Nuraphone	2D	399	9.4	Great details, clarity, customisable bass quantity and rumble control	1
C	German Maestro 8.35D	1D	200	9.3	Balanced sound - near perfect, slightly leans towards birght	4
D	ATH MSR7SE	1D	300	9.3	Balanced sound - with excellent separation, leans a little more towards bright	2

 

[slowpickr]

I just love ranking lists. Thanks for your efforts. The Sony Mdr-ex800st is my current favorite (tape modded since I listen mostly to electronic music).

 

[MrDelicious]

Good post.

 

[iems0nly]

Thanks, @slowpickr @MrDelicious .

 

[baskingshark]

Nice review!

Though I feel some IEMs scale better with a good DAC/AMP rather than from a simple phone, so might be worth a punt to invest in a cheap one. In fact some nice USB cable DAC/AMPs can be gotten for sub $30 USD, and I find they make the sound quality better than from my simple android phone (I personally use a HIDIZS/Tempotec sonata HD DAC/AMP at 25 USD).

I also prefer the timbre and tonality of single DD IEMs as I listen to jazz like you, but I think multi BA/hybrids have their role in generally having better clarity and details/instrument separation than the single DD IEMs. Maybe purveryors of music genres that require more details will be more keen to use BA IEMs than DD ones?

 

[iems0nly]

@baskingshark Thanks for the feedback.
I do have a dragonfly DAC, and i agree that they make a bit of a difference by driving them louder.
But, using them for my daily listening is impractical and tedious. I know that even if i buy a good DAC/AMP they will be sleeping most of the time tucked away in my cupboard.

So, for my practical use and purposes, i evaluate simply by using my phone (which is my daily music player) to drive the IEMs.

About the BA angle, yes., i completely agree that a good, well-tuned, BA will trump any Dynamic driver in terms of sheer detail extraction and speed -this is why the top spot is taken by a dual BA IEM.
For the music i listen to, and for my taste, i see that too much speed (like ER4XR) kind of takes away from the musical enjoyment, and i also notice that a certain lack of speed (like the relatively slower BA of SD2) aids in timbre by giving them a natural decay.

That said, I do see why some may prefer BAs over Dynamics. I guess it comes down to what turns one on, musically

 

[iems0nly]

Which IEM should I buy next ?
I'm considering JVC FW03, JVC FW7, Rockets, or maybe Faudio Passion.
Anyone looking at this thread can help me decide. Will place an order beginning of next month

 

[papa_mia]

Appreciate the efforts brother.

 

[baskingshark]

Which IEM should I buy next ?
I'm considering JVC FW03, JVC FW7, Rockets, or maybe Faudio Passion.
Anyone looking at this thread can help me decide. Will place an order beginning of next month

I have no experience with those sets in your post but massdrop is currently selling the JVC HA FDX01 @$250usd, which has three tuning filters to change sound signature.

It seems initial reviews are saying the timbre is the best part about it. I was sitting on the fence for very long but decided not to get it in the end as the FR looks like a subbass roll off and I'm a basshead unfortunately.

 

[iems0nly]

I have no experience with those sets in your post but massdrop is currently selling the JVC HA FDX01 @$250usd, which has three tuning filters to change sound signature.

It seems initial reviews are saying the timbre is the best part about it. I was sitting on the fence for very long but decided not to get it in the end as the FR looks like a subbass roll off and I'm a basshead unfortunately.

Thanks! I considered the FDX01 and also the FD02. But, i think i might not get them after all. I'll wait for more impressions on the massdrop model.

 

[iems0nly]

I will surely get FW7, very affordable. FW03 measurements are sweet. They also barely have any impressions online.
I mostly tend to buy stuff with very minimum reviews/impressions - so as to have this double satisfaction of being of service to the community

 

[baskingshark]

@iems0nly since u like DDs, there's a super hypetrain model now in the CHIFI thread, the BLON BL-03, single driver DD. $28 USD.
I'm waiting for my set but the initial reviews all like it for the timbre and tuning. And seems it is suitable for jazz and acoustic type genres. I thought why not for 28 bucks.
But seems the nozzle is short so some of the headfiers use longer nozzle aftermarket tips like spinfits or they do some mods (check out the forums).

 

[iems0nly]

@iems0nly since u like DDs, there's a super hypetrain model now in the CHIFI thread, the BLON BL-03, single driver DD. $28 USD.

This piques my interest. Many thanks, i'll check it out.

 

[iems0nly]

ibasso IT01S will be my next single dynamic! Looking forward to checking them out

 

[iems0nly]

Been listening to the IT01-S the last few weeks. Fit is a little problematic. Using small eartips to get a relative good fit.
They sound decent. To be honest i expected a little more from them. Still tip rolling to find the best tips.
Will take another 2 weeks before placing them on the ranking list.