[Carpet]

Seems like TRN up their game with recent releases. Many have bad experience with bad QC in the past, hopefully they regain people's trust again. At the end we got a lot of great budget IEMs.
Thanks for the graph, looks like a v shape done right here. Event though bass shelf proportion isn't my cup of tea (too early to raise so too thick on 100-200hz for me) but i like north of neutral bass around 8db increment from 800hz neutral on sub bass and little bit punch at 50hz around 6db+.

The 2khz pinna is good under 10db , i prefer bit lower though. And most important TRN done good job on the lower trebles valley. They have valley to avoid splashy ringings at those area but without falling into "valley of trap" where a lot of manufacturer just drop entire 4.5khz - 7 khz, some with very low valley that almost reach neutral point. That will be safe from splash and ringing and sibilance but actually lot of lower treble at 6khz are missing. Some choose to little bit boost at 5khz over 6khz thats ok, but for me i still prefer 6khz boost.
Need more upper treble extension at 15khz for air but cant ask more for 60 bucks IEM.
Been long time since i buy TRN. Maybe i want to give a shot.

What is the DD made of?

And can you kindly check on the nozzle if there is any paper / nylon dampers on the grill or behind the grill?
Thanks a lot

DD is beryllium plated 10mm, probably the same one as TA1 Max.

 

[ASpencer]

In the quest to find my sound, six years ago I shelled out for the Shure 535 which carried a hefty price tag, especially back then, and the TRN ST5 basically matches the sound signature of that older IEM that costs eight times more. It’s also better built. The seams on one side of the Shure pair came apart, the flimsy plastic no match for the metal exterior of this TRN. It’s interesting to see the previous high end erode and a few people posting on YouTube reviews how Chi-fi has makes dropping big bucks on the top tier Shure entries now irrelevant.

 

[Redcarmoose]

In the quest to find my sound, six years ago I shelled out for the Shure 535 which carried a hefty price tag, especially back then, and the TRN ST5 basically matches the sound signature of that older IEM that costs eight times more. It’s also better built. The seams on one side of the Shure pair came apart, the flimsy plastic no match for the metal exterior of this TRN. It’s interesting to see the previous high end erode and a few people posting on YouTube reviews how Chi-fi has makes dropping big bucks on the top tier Shure entries now irrelevant.

Cheers!

 

[RingingEars]

In the quest to find my sound, six years ago I shelled out for the Shure 535 which carried a hefty price tag, especially back then, and the TRN ST5 basically matches the sound signature of that older IEM that costs eight times more. It’s also better built. The seams on one side of the Shure pair came apart, the flimsy plastic no match for the metal exterior of this TRN. It’s interesting to see the previous high end erode and a few people posting on YouTube reviews how Chi-fi has makes dropping big bucks on the top tier Shure entries now irrelevant.

It's kind of mind blowing isn't it? I did the same thing with Westone back in 2012. Like the Shure they were the king IEMs at the time and you payed for it. Flash forward to today and you get better tech, better sound, and so much more for your money. It's really a great time to be into head-fi.

 

[ASpencer]

It's kind of mind blowing isn't it? I did the same thing with Westone back in 2012. Like the Shure they were the king IEMs at the time and you payed for it. Flash forward to today and you get better tech, better sound, and so much more for your money. It's really a great time to be into head-fi.

The key are companies like TRN who are in it for the long haul. At the beginning, they were the butt of jokes and derision, but they kept issuing new IEMs and cables, leaving their prices low, but aiming to improve and overturn poor reports of QC. Even their detractors are noting the upswing. The ST5 has the same configuration as Shure's still astronomically priced SE846 and I'd be curious to A/B the two, but won't shell out for Shure's unreasonable price tags unless there's a rebate the same as the cost.

 

[zeissiez]

In the quest to find my sound, six years ago I shelled out for the Shure 535 which carried a hefty price tag, especially back then, and the TRN ST5 basically matches the sound signature of that older IEM that costs eight times more. It’s also better built. The seams on one side of the Shure pair came apart, the flimsy plastic no match for the metal exterior of this TRN. It’s interesting to see the previous high end erode and a few people posting on YouTube reviews how Chi-fi has makes dropping big bucks on the top tier Shure entries now irrelevant.

I am a sucker for SE535-like tuning, i.e. full sounding midrange and accurate reproduction of vocal, as opposed to V-shaped, scoped midrange tuning. I sold it because the poor technicalities and poor extensions. I browse through the graphs, and found Audiosense DT300, and it’s a sound reminiscent to the 535, but with better bass. After this success, I’m on the hunt again, and I’m glad to hear that the ST5 fits the signature. Do you think the technicalities of the ST5 anywhere close to the 535?

 

[ASpencer]

I am a sucker for SE535-like tuning, i.e. full sounding midrange and accurate reproduction of vocal, as opposed to V-shaped, scoped midrange tuning. I sold it because the poor technicalities and poor extensions. I browse through the graphs, and found Audiosense DT300, and it’s a sound reminiscent to the 535, but with better bass. After this success, I’m on the hunt again, and I’m glad to hear that the ST5 fits the signature. Do you think the technicalities of the ST5 anywhere close to the 535?

That's hard for me to answer since the comparison in price point is part of my evaluation. That's a continual subtext to what I'm hearing. Some have cited the ST5 as having a V-shape, but not everyone. I will say on instrumentals, particularly a few soundtracks, the 535 and ST5 sound almost indifferentiable.

Upon further introspection, some of the definition of the 535 is sharper, but the point is... a sixty dollar IEM nearly matching the performance of a pair that still sells for five hundred dollars is no small feat.

 

[bhazard]

TRN seems to really shine in the $50-100 range. The ST5 impressions make it sound like an improved TA1 Max (which I love). That's awesome.

 

[saldsald]

Just had some condensation issues with the ST5 but fixed by temporarily removing the front metal grill. Also confirmed it does affect the sound a little.

 

[Nimweth]

The key are companies like TRN who are in it for the long haul. At the beginning, they were the butt of jokes and derision, but they kept issuing new IEMs and cables, leaving their prices low, but aiming to improve and overturn poor reports of QC. Even their detractors are noting the upswing. The ST5 has the same configuration as Shure's still astronomically priced SE846 and I'd be curious to A/B the two, but won't shell out for Shure's unreasonable price tags unless there's a rebate the same as the cost.

I think the Shure 846 is 4BA and the ST5 is 1DD + 4BA so not quite the same configuration, but your point is valid.

 

[RingingEars]

The key are companies like TRN who are in it for the long haul. At the beginning, they were the butt of jokes and derision, but they kept issuing new IEMs and cables, leaving their prices low, but aiming to improve and overturn poor reports of QC. Even their detractors are noting the upswing. The ST5 has the same configuration as Shure's still astronomically priced SE846 and I'd be curious to A/B the two, but won't shell out for Shure's unreasonable price tags unless there's a rebate the same as the cost.

I'm actually glad I was on hiatus during this time. I have read about the jokes and issues surrounding these companies in the past and I'm glad I missed the drama or I may have just overlooked so many great products...

 

[linecur]

Has anyone had a chance to hear them yet, pls?

 

[ChristianM]

Does ST5 sound like T3 Plus LCP driver or it's just like KZ & CCA driver (metallic, etc.)?
I only have experience with KZ IEMs and T3 Plus and T3 Plus is way way better than all 4 KZs I had.
But ST5 is Beryllium plated so I was wondering if ST5 is better or equal sounding as T3 Plus.

 

[saldsald]

Does ST5 sound like T3 Plus LCP driver or it's just like KZ & CCA driver (metallic, etc.)?
I only have experience with KZ IEMs and T3 Plus and T3 Plus is way way better than all 4 KZs I had.
But ST5 is Beryllium plated so I was wondering if ST5 is better or equal sounding as T3 Plus.

The tone may depend on your source, cables and tips. I have the T4 not the T3 plus and the ST5 is a clear winner for me in both tonality and technicality and the T4 is a better version of the T3 plus if I am not mistaken.

 

[ChristianM]

The tone may depend on your source, cables and tips. I have the T4 not the T3 plus and the ST5 is a clear winner for me in both tonality and technicality and the T4 is a better version of the T3 plus if I am not mistaken.

I have Fiio M3K, I used stock cable and gray/red tips with T3 Plus. I like the warmer sound of T3 Plus and looking for a new IEM as I sold my T3 Plus due to fit and comfort issues.