I would consider myself a bass head and Iām totally happy with the bass on the Tea. The dynamic driver hits perfectly for my tastes. The thing about the tea is itās incredibly well balanced. It is not about one particular element that it does well. Everything is well balanced. The sub bass is some of the best Iāve heard and itās well defined and impactful. The bass is not bloated and does not bleed into the mids. The mids are beautiful and the treble is just about perfect for me and Iām treble sensitive. The tea nails my personal preferences very well. The sound stage is also very wide yet natural sounding for an IEM of this price.
The only thing I might want more of is more detail, but that comes at the cost of long listening times which Iām not willing to give up how enjoyable and smooth the Teaās sound is.
EDIT: I forgot to mention, this is all with good isolating silicone tips. Foam tips give a different presentation that should be expected with foam vs silicon of course. Beware silicone with the Tea though. I had issues with suction in my ears and the bass disappearing until everything broke in. Now itās awesome.
I forgot to mention, this is all with good isolating silicone tips. Foam tips give a different presentation that should be expected with foam vs silicon of course. Beware silicone with the Tea though. I had issues with suction in my ears and the bass disappearing until everything broke in. Now itās awesome.
I 2nd this, very tip picky, but does come with 3 different types, and i had 3 different types myself, I felt the dekoni foam tips sounded/felt the best
@PapaEmeritus@ifrK guys thanks so much for going in depth. Ive came at headphones and iems from the production side, always chasing the ātrueā or āneutralityā, ive never bought for āfunā so seeing all of this has confused the hell out of meā¦All arounder because i just wanna use one set, i just cant see switching iems like i do headphones. My only point of reference is the Lighting Beats pair which i only use at work for pure convenience, Etymotic ER2XRās which will only be for iPad production work (sound design etcā¦) and Tin T2ās. Im really just ready to spend big on a great pair, skipping steps if you will. And just as you guys know its all option over load and some serious FOMO. I have Legacy 3ās coming in a couple so i think ill jump on the Tea train and compare, really donāt wanna spend Andromeda money yet but i have no issue if i can go staight to endgameā¦again thanks for your in depthā¦
I donāt have L3 in my stash, but i think iāve read every the comparison between L3 vs Tea in other sites/forum. In my honest&humble opinion, if you finally gonna only use 1 set and since you already order the L3, IMHO you should stick with L3 first and save your budget for future upgrade. L3 & Tea have its own shine (from what i read, L3 is better on bass & Tea have better clarity and detail on mids and treble, but the difference between that 2 set is not that far), and this is why i stick on Tea instead of having both. but again, since i dont have both sets, maybe other here that actually have both sets can give better opinion.
but if you decide to buy both sets, then IMHO you will own 2 sets that are top tier in $100-300 (or even wider) price range.
ya thats what i was going to do, get both and compare, but yes i do just need to spend time with the L3, really get to know what my preferences are. Curious though as to where alot of you guys go next, thatās why in my thinking i ask āwhat can i skipā
Where to go?..I enjoy my sets like I enjoy my foodā¦sometimes I need homely, comforting and warm, other times hot and spicy, oh then thereās all day snacking lolā¦add to that equation sources/sauces (see what I did there ) and tips = loads of audio fun and enjoyment
haha man sometimes i just wanna perfect the recipe but i totally get it, iems are a harder sell for me to change all the time, i guess im just wanting the all day snacker lol,
FiiO FH7 is a good allrounder, with 3 interchangeable filters that tweak the treble response, comfy fit with a DD that hits hard and fast but not sub deep, it has a circa w sound sig, with good mids and treble, the mid/treble timber is a tad off but not offensively soā¦I could happily listen to them all day long covering many genres without issue
I have the FH7 as well. In comparison to the Tea, I prefer the Tea. The FH7 is on the brink of too much treble for me. The FH7 sounds very nice and sounds more detailed than the Tea. The Tea has better sub bass and sub bass impact, and the Tea has a more natural and coherent balance than the FH7.
I enjoy both. For longer listening sessions and a more balanced tuning = Tea. Detail, as more treble = FH7.
I was in the same boat as you are. Iām not looking to build some big collection of different types of IEMs, Iām just looking for a couple that are good and accurate.
I agree with ohmboy that a good next step up for you is the Fiio FH7. Theyāre a really solid, agreeable, and technically proficient set from a reliable manufacturer. They sit at a real nice place with price to performance where the next step up from FH7 is Andromeda-tier.
The Tea is interesting but itās hard for me to recommend any of these smaller Chi-fi upstarts for much because of all the issues these firms are having with QC and unit variance. Itās just much more of a gamble with these firms than it is with more established brands. It is quite possible that the Tea could be better than the FH7, but are you sure youāre actually going to get it?
I forgot to mention, the Fiio FH7 build quality and extras are awesome. I also LOVE the fit of the FH7. The cable that comes with the FH7 is the nicest cable I own. The tips and carry case are awesome as well. The FH7 is how I was turned on to Spinfit tips!
Yeah, thatās a big benefit of the FH7. The tip selection is great, especially for beginners.
Based off of your impressions, Iād probably prefer the sound of the Tea to the FH7. The downside of the FH7 is that it puts out a bunch of treble detail at borderline irritating levels, and some of that detail is tuned incorrectly. Iād prefer less detail if it were tuned better and was more comfortable in the highs.
Despite that, I would likely still lean towards the FH7 to recommend, even if the Tea is a bit better and a bit less expensive. With the FH7, you can buy it, get it, and return it quickly and easily, and you can be assured that youāre gonna get what everyone else got. Canāt really say that about the Tea, where itās more of a gamble Iād say.
i do like the fact that its a known manufacturer and i totally get that, ive read alot of horror stories with some of the chifi brands, but not much on the Teasā¦i guess its just the option overload and fomo, like i know im going to have to try for myself because its all so subjective, thats why i tend to focus on sound characteristics more. Really should be asking what peoples baseline is. Idk, just glad returns are a thing
ya im finding out im definitely sensitive to highs, more so that i thought, and just knowing it has a sub bass focus is whats attracting me, i listen very loud so treble is always a concern. But i do agree that highs are so different from one guy to the next, decisionsā¦
) and tips = loads of audio fun and enjoyment 