The Type of IEM I'm Looking For

I'm looking for a high-end, universal-fit in-ear monitor (IEM) that combines powerful, full-bodied bass with exceptional detail, instrument separation, soundstage, and natural timbre.

Sound Quality

• Bass: Deep, weighty, impactful bass with physical punch, excellent sub-bass extension, and realistic texture. Bass should feel substantial without overwhelming vocals or other instruments.
• Detail and resolution: Excellent retrieval of fine details, subtle textures, and low-level musical information without sounding artificially bright or analytical.
• Instrument separation and imaging: The ability to distinguish individual instruments clearly, even in complex recordings, with precise placement and a convincing sense of depth and space.
• Soundstage: An open, spacious presentation with good width, layering, and dimensionality.
• Tone and timbre: Natural, believable vocals and instruments with realistic body, warmth, and tonal character.
• Overall signature: Full-bodied, engaging, detailed, and natural. I want the physical impact of strong bass without sacrificing clarity, resolution, or musical realism. I do not want an excessively bass-heavy, thin-sounding, or fatiguing presentation.

Passive Isolation

Strong passive noise isolation is essential. I intend to use the IEMs in cafés, on public transportation, and while traveling. I prefer a well-sealed design that effectively reduces external noise without relying on active noise cancellation.

Isolation must remain effective with a comfortable, stable fit. I would prefer a design that does not sacrifice substantial isolation for pressure relief or a more open presentation.

Comfort and Fit

Long-session comfort is a top priority. I need to avoid both:

• Pressure, soreness, or discomfort inside the ear canals.
• Pressure or soreness against the outer ear, particularly the concha.

I prefer a universal-fit design with an ergonomic, relatively low-profile shell and appropriately sized nozzles. The IEM should remain comfortable and securely positioned for hours without frequent adjustment.

I am willing to invest in custom eartips if they improve comfort, seal, and isolation, but I do not want custom-molded IEM shells.

Technical Design Preferences

I am open to hybrid or all-balanced-armature designs, or other driver configurations, provided they deliver the required sound quality. I am particularly interested in designs capable of producing authoritative, well-textured bass while retaining excellent resolution and separation.

Driver count and specifications are secondary to actual sound quality, isolation, and fit.

Budget and Availability

My maximum budget is approximately US$1,700, although a less expensive model that meets my requirements would be preferable. I want a model that is genuinely available to purchase, ideally through a reliable retailer in Taiwan.

Essential Requirements

1. Strong passive isolation.
2. Excellent long-session comfort, without canal or outer-ear pressure.
3. Deep, weighty, impactful, well-controlled bass.
4. High resolution, detail, instrument separation, and imaging.
5. Natural tone and timbre, with an engaging rather than fatiguing sound.
6. Universal-fit construction, with custom eartips as an optional upgrade.
7. Current availability within budget.

The ultimate goal: An IEM that delivers powerful, satisfying bass alongside reference-level detail and musical realism, while providing excellent passive isolation and remaining comfortable for hours at a time. Sound quality, isolation, and physical comfort must work together; none should be sacrificed to achieve the others.

Everyone tells me I don't have an ear for music; I often can't tell the difference between different headphones, I don't perceive the difference between frequencies, and I very often hear music as a single whole without being able to break it down into separate parts played by different instruments.

I’ve listened to music in a store using the Sony XM4, Sony XM5, Sennheiser 4, Apple AirPods Max, Focal Bathys, and others. The only ones that truly impressed me with their level of detail—giving me the feeling that I was somewhere else and that the artist was singing just for me—were the Focal Bathys; I consider them the best headphones I’ve ever listened to.

I’d like to ask you to recommend headphones that will give me the same experience and level of detail, but for less money—I’m not ready to spend that much on headphones.

My budget is 400–450 euros (preferably less).

I’m located in the European Union.

Whats the current go to £200ish usb dac amp my ifi hipdac has finally given up the ghost (I used it plugged in and killed the battery I know) and needs replacing, I liked the ifi bass button and the nice volume nob its has, It will be used at a desk 100% of the time as I'v got my btr5 for portable use, I listen to iems (blon bl3 & jojo, moondrop aria & quarks) and headphones (hd6xx, meze 99's, koss kph40&30, )

The sennheiser and ult wear are on sale for 270 CAD and 200 CAD. I checked some reviews on sennheiser momentum 4 and ult wear and i found that there is a major hinge problem with the ult wear and they easily break where as in the sennheiser i saw lots of reviews saying they have connectivity issue and dont connect to the device properly.

I am waiting for the reviews on sound core space 2 pro

Those who have used these headphones pls give me suggestion.

The sennheiser and ult wear are on sale for 270 CAD and 200 CAD. I checked some reviews on sennheiser momentum 4 and ult wear and i found that there is a major hinge problem with the ult wear and they easily break where as in the sennheiser i saw lots of reviews saying they have connectivity issue and dont connect to the device properly.

I am waiting for the reviews on sound core space 2 pro

Those who have used these headphones pls give me suggestion.

So, I already have some good IEMs but I was aiming to get some different stuff, for reference, I have the moondrop dusk, the kiwi astral and my microphone is the Shure MV7x I was trying to find some reviews and people that bought the ATH-R70xa and the Audient iD4 MKII I work from home and Im always listening to music and playing some competitive games aswell, do you guys thing r70xa and the audient id4 mkii is a good fit for this type of use? would it be better to buy other stuff since I have a shure mv7x. Pls let me know im kinda newbie T-T Im from portugal and my budget is around 500-750 Euros

I have a 60$ budget and looking for a solid headphone with a good audio and a decent mic. So let me know if it's a good headphone or not(and if you tried it tell me about the software cuz I heard a lot of people talking bad about it). And thank you

Hi everyone,

I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to over-ear headphones, but I'm looking for a solid pair under $70 (around 500 RMB).

My music library mainly consists of:

• Vocals & Acoustic/Indie: (Mac DeMarco, Daniel Caesar, Tyler, Laufey, ...)
• Instrumentals: Piano solos and a lot of Anime OSTs / Visual Novel soundtracks.
• Alt-Rock / Light Punk: I also listen to bands like Radiohead and tracks like "Hello Juliet". I'm not exactly sure about the specific genre, but they feature a lot of instruments and have a light punk rock or alternative vibe.
• Nightcore: (Occasionally, for an energy boost).
• In terms of sound signature, I guess I'm looking for something that is detailed and has a sweet/natural vocal presentation. I want the high notes (like piano keys, cymbals, or high-pitched Nightcore vocals) to sound clear, crisp, and airy, but not so sharp that they hurt my ears after a while. For bass, I just need it to be punchy and well-controlled—not muddy or overwhelming, especially when things get busy with multiple instruments in rock tracks.
• I've had good experiences with IEMs from Moondrop and Tanchjim before, so I naturally leaned towards their over-ear offerings. Right now, I'm eyeing the Moondrop Edge 2 and Tanchjim Rita because they seem to fit my preferences (and I really dig their aesthetics!).
• However, I've read some mixed reviews regarding the build quality, comfort, and overall sound tuning of both models, and to be honest, it's a bit overwhelming for a beginner like me to fully grasp all the technical details. I'd really appreciate your thoughts on these two options.

Also, I'm completely open to other recommendations under $70 if you think there are better alternatives for my specific music taste!

Thanks in advance for the help!

Hi there,

I have the chance to pick up the Grell oae2 at just under $500 Australian, which is quite a deal, BUT, I have no chance to hear it before purchase, I also can’t find any sound samples on YouTube, I am a little worried regarding the reviews, especially from Headphones.com, it get’s top marks in many areas, but when people say…it’s not something I can recommend, it’s different etc. I worry that some reviewers may just be playing nice due to the makers’ reputation. Please reply if you own the oae 2, and anyone that knows where I can hear some samples?

Currently I own the Edition XS and Senn HD550 that may fall into a similar category.

I am ok paying for something different, but I am averse to throwing money away.

Please and thank you 😊

P.S. Is it easy to drive?

I owned sennheiser RS127s for a while, long before getting into the audiophile realm. even after, i have relied on them as they have stellar range since their pure analog signal transmission doesnt make them prone to cutting out due to missing bits, the signal just gets noisier the further you move away, which is fine...

they have a few glaring issues that im slowly working my way through.

the first succesfull upgrade was getting an RS140 base station which lets you turn off the compressor

for the next step i wanna upgrade the headphones sound itself. i have found that the headphones sound better when cupping the meshes with my hands, which leads me to believe one of the other weakspots, the tiny driver, would benefit from being in a closed echochamber.

now this is a more involved mod so i was looking for pointers on how to approach this (also maybe find out wether or not a driver upgrade is an option here)

Just watched the review for the T8V on the channel since I have the opportunity to switch to the T8V (from the the current T5V i own) for music listening. I know studio monitors aren’t made for music listening, but if you’re listening to a high quality track it really doesn’t matter if it’s hifi equipment or studio equipment.

I have a room that’s 3 meters by 4 meters, and I was wondering if the T8V would be too big for my room and if anybody has any experience with this. TIA!

My Usage is for long run meetings and good comfortable wear with ANC and decent sound quality

I have three headphones in my mind - WH-CH720N

This two
Ath-M50X , Sennheiser ACCENTUM Plus(if price drops in sales )

Please suggest for long term and good performance among three?

My Usage is for long run meetings and good comfortable wear with ANC and decent sound quality

I have three headphones in my mind - WH-CH720N

This two
Ath-M50X , Sennheiser ACCENTUM Plus(if price drops in sales )

What would you suggest for long term and good performance ?

I just got a pair after wanting to get audeze headphones for like 10 years.

Anyone else still using them?

What a great device the LGV30+ is, the UI is simply great.

My modifications, Volume(e) app enables next track and last track via volume rocker, works smoothly while in the pocket. Wavelet APP, no need to stuff around with EQ, it’s just great for my ears.

The UI “Android PIE” no updates, but who cares, the inbuilt media player enables the Quad Dac for high resolution audio, can access individual playlists as well as favorites etc. from the home screen.

Stripped out all the bloatware.

Got it second hand for $150 Aust, value for money 100%

Anyone else done similar, are there any other app’s that can build on this solid experience.

I just got a topping DX5iI and it’s not powering my verum 1 or 2 very well and I find that it reaches a hard limit at certain volume levels and gets shouty or looses coherence completely, also I find the toppings image dept to be severely lacking, I have a hilidac beam 2 that powers my verum not at wide or big but with. Better depth, musicality than the topping. I also had an idsd micro that recently died that did an ok job, but that’s 11 years old and didn’t have balanced, I also own am xduoo TA-10 and that cannot support the verum at all since it turns to much after about a 32 ohm load is presented to it.

I was thinking of getting the A&D alpha since it’s 9 watts but I need something that has lots of current and headroom and is rated at 8ohm preferably. I want to avoid getting a speaker amp at this point. Because I would more than likely buy a tube amp if that was the case.

Any body who listens to metal and has these headphones I would appreciate your feedback.

Finally I got my set! Definitely still worth the hype. They really sound like much more expensive ones. Hats off to Zeos for this contribution to the community. 👏

I'm about to buy headphones and i'm really confused between these 2 one got better bass according to what i could find but
Z1 doesnt have much real reviews since it was launched just some months ago
on the other hand duke is a long runner and got real heavy volume of reviews.
I want good amount of bass and im just stuck 50-50 between them
any opinions?

Hi!

I'm thinking about trading my Sony WH-CH720N headphones (they're in near-new condition) for a pair of AirPods Pro 2.

I use an Android phone, not an iPhone. Do you think this is a fair trade?

Which one has better sound quality, ANC, battery life, comfort, and overall value? Also, what should I check to make sure the AirPods Pro 2 are genuine before going through with the trade?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!