bryaudioreviews
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Hidizs MS5 - First Impressions
Just received the Hidizs MS5. Here are my first impressions. Hidizs MS5 is Hidizs latest Hybrid IEM, coming in at a pre-sale price of $3XX usd. It sports a single LCP dynamic driver + 4 Sonion BA Drivers. It comes with 3 different type of eartips (balanced, treble, bass). I've tested them all and the Balanced eartips sounded the best to me, so the entire first impressions below will be done based off of that.
In terms of sound signature, I would describe it to be "Warm U-shaped". Overall tuning here is quite balanced. In terms of sonic presentation, Bass, Mids, and Treble sounds slightly forward in the stage while vocals take a step back.
As a whole, I have no issues with the tuning here. However, I would prefer a bit more upper mids as I prefer my vocals a bit more forward. Also, this kind of "warm U-shaped" tuning is kind of like a double-edged sword. Yes, they are overall quite "balanced" and will work with a wide variety of genres, but they also sound "flat" in a way - which makes the MS5 sound quite undynamic.
There are 3 tuning nozzles that come with the MS5 - Bass, treble, and standard. FR measurements do not show many differences, but to my ears, the differences are noticeable - albeit nothing major.
1. Bass nozzle:
Bass makes midrange sounds slightly fuller and treble slightly darker. Vocals sound thicker too but also can be a bit honky - especially male vocals.
2. Treble nozzle:
Treble makes midrange sounds slightly thinner and treble a bit brighter. Vocals sound more forward and open. However, the treble can come off as a bit harsh with this nozzle on.
3. Standard nozzle:
The best of both worlds. A great balance between the Bass nozzle and the Treble nozzle. This is my favourite tuning out of the 3. Bass and mids are full sounding yet not overly thick, treble is smooth overall whilst still sounding lively, and vocals sound just about right.
Inspecting deeper into the nozzle to see what's the difference (other than the colour), you can clearly see what Hidizs did to tune the MS5 differently (pictures below). The "bass" nozzle has a higher density foam in it, the "standard" nozzle has a lesser density foam in it, while the "treble" nozzle has no foam at all.
The higher-density foam of the Bass nozzle is probably what darkens the treble a bit and adds more warmth to the bass/mids. While as for the treble nozzle, the lack of any type of tuning foam is probably what makes the midrange and treble sounds thin and harsh. Full review coming soon. Feel free to check out my squig to look at the measurements yourself. I have measured all 3 different tuning nozzles, and to test out the 5.3 Ohm impedance of the MS5, I've also done measurements using sources with OI <1 Ohm, <2 Ohm, and a source with high OI impedance.
https://bryaudioreviews.squig.link
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