I recommend looking into the following:
yeah the ER2 should be a good one and in the budget, if they are in the US that is.
You mean the NM2+ not the NM2 right?
Well…
Thanks for some recommendations, but what do you think about drivers for midrange acoustical instruments?
Would you purely go for single or double DD like tin or would you consider some other DD+BA hybrids like the new KBEAR Lark or maybe QoA Vesper?
Still single DD. With double DD, you will have to deal with coherency, although timbre shouldnt be an issue since it is DD but the resulting naturality will still be harder to get right with that config instead of a single DD.
That makes sence, but I think tin t2 is double DD, isnt it?
And people fkin love it
yes the T2 is double DD. I think that the biggest reason why the T2 was so hyped and loved, is that it simply didnt have any competition in the market with that type of sound it has. So it wasnt because it was superior to its rivals, it simply didnt have any rivals. I believe the T2 was one of the, if not the cheapest iem with that sound profile.
Nowadays we got more competition and I cant really see why the T2 would still dominate the market besides from past name recognition.
The heart mirror should be around the same price and is a single DD.
You also got the Moondrop SSR, but that one might be a bit more…unsafe as a recommendation when I dont know your tolerance for treble. So I wont rec that one and I havent heard it either.
Interesting semi-rant XD
Anyway… my thought process was quite simple.
Im pretty sure he would like something with clear mids and lower bass than usual harman tuned iem…
But i feel like there is not many single DDs in budget category that arent harman (or V-shaped).
That is true that there arent a lot of options in that budget range for that tuning.
Well, I recommend you read up on the heart mirror. Seems to be great. Although if budget allows, I really recommend the Tanchjim Oxygen, stunning iem.
Never heard of them tbh.
But looking at aliexpress listing, they look nice, have a solidly looking mic cable, come with some tips…
I ll find a graph and some review, but they seem like a great option…
Thx man.
np, they are new iems.
You can find some reviews here: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/hzsound-heart-mirror.24597/reviews
What would you say are the competitors for the tin T2? I have the Starfield which a lot of people say is the logical upgrade, but I think the sound of the Starfield is way different from the T2.
Are the ER2SE comparable in terms of sound signature?
lol, the Starfield is VERY different from the T2 going from the graph:
The ER2SE looks more similar although it does look like it is brighter since it got less bass and more treble.
The competitors to the T2 in the same price range would most likely be the T2 Plus, Heart Mirror and the SSR. Not a lot of options here for sure.
whoa, someone pays for crin’s graphs XD
lol, I only subbed for like 2 months to unlock it.
Its very useful thats for sure.
The buzz around the Tin2 had everything to do with the price. I enjoy mine, and they are fun, but I feel certain there’s better now esp for classical music. I’d be tempted by the Starfield or the Ety.
I use my T2s with Shure Bluetooth adapters, which I use when I run or mowing the lawn or something. BC they are adequate and I won’t cry if I lose them. That said, I bought the Shure adapters with intention of mating them with my Shure 425. Those are neutral and natural sound and great for classical…except they have zero bass, I realized. Not enough even for classical. So I switched them out for the Tin.
yeah, price and a lack of other option if one didnt want the other option, which was mainly V-shaped iems lol.
I actually meant the NM2. The NM2+ is over $100.
The Etymotic ER2, ER3, ER4 SE/SR versions are diffuse field neutral, and are reference tuned. If you don’t want much bass, you can’t go wrong with them, and they can still be a reference IEM, even if you eventually buy $3000 IEMs. The Etymotic ER2 is my recommendation, as it has a DD, and has the most natural sound, plus it is the least expensive.
ER2SE is less than $100 now on Amazon US. https://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-ER2SE-Studio-Earphones/dp/B07NSQBK1X
You can find inexpensive IEMs that aren’t HARMAN, such as every IEM I previously mentioned.
oh, I havent heard much about the regular NM2.
When in doubt and you need warm sounds, BLON BL03s! Don’t forget to replace the cables and ear tips of those though, since the stock parts are not that really good. But yeah, this is my go to multi-genre IEM, BL03s when in doubt.
The 03 certainly has very very good timbre. But tonality wise, it is a bit too warm for violins which are very important for acoustic music. And it might not be technical enough for those music since there is a lot of things going on.
