Alright, I got mine about 2 weeks ago but only got to put some time in with them over the last week, so here’s some thoughts:
Unit / Accessories
- Although I ordered them from Linsoul on 11.11, mine are also the “SOWE” version with the marking “EJ07009” on each piece. I was hoping for the Shuoer faceplates, but these still look nice enough.
- Mine also came with the black fabric cable with the balanced to single-ended cable. I do not like the stock cable one bit (it holds shape too well, oddly stiff with almost no weight to them, the single-ended connector is WAY too long and awkward to use in most situations), although I have no balanced source to test it with which may change my mind a bit.
- Speaking of cables, there’s something fucky these units and cables. Of the 2-pin cables I have on hand, an older Plussound X series and a HifiHear (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TSBHX5K), the bass response drops almost completely. With the OH-1 and OH-10 cables, the bass is present, but not as full as it should be. With the EJ07 stock cable and the Kanas Pro cable, they are perfect. The only other IEM I have ever experienced this kind of issue with is the Andromeda, whose frequency response, especially in the lowend, changes wildly based on source impedance. At first I thought I was crazy, but I tried the other cables with the Kanas Pro, Massdrop Plus, my OH-1 and OH-10…no problem. Testing all of the cables with other compatible units (Kanas Pro female connectors are recessed so they’re a no-go with the Ikko cables, Massdrop Plus is practically proprietary, etc) there is no such issue with any of them. I don’t have a multimeter on hand, so I can’t actually test for impedance differences, but it has to be either that or a power delivery issue given the drastic differences on the EJ07.
- The weird cable/sound issue carries over across different sources and amps (tested on Cowon Plenue D and Topping DX3 Pro), so there’s that. These do love the juice, like @exowastaken said. I managed to power them to reasonable levels on my Samsung Note 8, but I would recommend an amp or beefy DAP if you want to take these on the road.
- The units themselves are chunky bastards, but they are in no way uncomfortable. Not particularly heavy, either.
- These do not have a perfectly round nozzle (and have no lip), and as such, not all tips will fit that great. Symbio N and W hybrids, for instance, actually popped off of the nozzles and were just stuck in my ear while sitting there listening to them a number of times. Spinfits were a pain to get on, but worked alright. Spiral Dots and TCM Tornados (the poor man’s Spiral Dot) seemed to grip the stem alright, but were almost impaled on it. I had the best success with stock silicones from the Echobox Finder, which I have unfortunately never found a generic version of. Think long silicones, about a 3.5mm bore, good and grippy.
- While all units have 3 bores for the sound tubes with no grill, I’ve seen some variation in units across the units in hands across the internet. Mine only have a filter in the sound tube for the dual-BA driver.
- Build quality is pretty great for what they are, but there is one weird quirk: The crossover boards aren’t completely seated/glued into place in the housing. You can hear them tapping inside the housing if you nudge or shake them a lil’ bit. Hasn’t presented an issue while listening and I don’t think it has any long-term effect on durability, but…odd.
S O U N D - These are a 3-way setup, and they sound like a good 3-way setup. Everything is well represented here, and these are tuned in a way that I think almost anyone would find agreeable.
- Highs are present and detail abounds, but I have yet to find them fatiguing or sibilant at all unless I crank the volume up to wholly-unreasonable volumes.
- Mids are great and vocals are VERY natural and pleasant IMO.
- Bass is different from what I expected. Sub-bass rumbles with authority, although the mid-bass is neutral but good. Even though you have the visceral quality of a dynamic driver, the bass is more like a BA in terms of control and decay than any other DD I have ever heard. It took some getting used to because I spent the prior week with just my OH-10, but I have to say that I like it a lot. The EJ07 is definitely NOT a basshead IEM, but it’s not lacking in lowend either, IMO. Would make a good pairing with the OH-10 or BL-03 for when you absolutely, positively must rattle your brain. For anyone who’s got the Tin T4 (which I also spent the week breaking in), IMO the EJ07 has a similar lowend to the T4, but with a substantial subbass increase from 20hz dropping down to about even at 100-125hz.
- Soundstage, imaging and separation is among the best I have ever heard in an IEM. I turned my head thinking that I heard something to my side a number of times as I was listening to them for stretches.
Closing thoughts - The total package (cable, 3 sets of silicone tips, green UFO case) is pretty meh for the asking price of $800 and change, but the EJ07 themselves were worth every penny to me. I could probably be happy with just these for the rest of my life. Now, I’m not going to sell off everything else I own because variety is the spice of life, but these are staying in my collection forever. Would I recommend that you go out and buy a pair? Probably…not. Unless you’ve got cash to burn and want a shiny new toy really badly, it’s a significant investment, and there are some quirks to them, but I will say this: This type of setup, with the DD/BA/Sonion Electret driver? This tech will trickle down and get cheaper, and you need to keep your eyes on it. We’re living in a age of wonders, and there’s always more just around the corner.