7Hz - Salnotes Zero

kz dq6 and my second is salnotes zero 1, the kz make me realize bass is part of detail to

Okay I have this problem with IEMs I'm hoping someone would help me solve. When I record my gameplays, there is always a static noise when the mic is on. I have [7HZ - Salnotes Zero](https://www.headphonezone.in/products/7hz-salnotes-zero?variant=42607177990332).

I find if you want to hear footsteps in gaming you want something with a bit of an upper mid/treble emphasis. Under $20 I think the ones that do this best are the Tangzu Wan’Er, the Original Moondrop Chu, and the Original Salnotes Zero.

Already ordered mine Those and the 7hz zero 2 I have the chu 2 They’re amazing The wan er too And the 7hz zero (original)

There are two tunings of the Castor, Neutral, and Bass Focused. The Bass Focused IEM is kinda slow and lethargic on the bottom end. But its a $20 IEM, and if its your first, you will be happy. The Harmon Neutral tuned version can come off as a little thin until you give it at least one switch up on the bass side. Upper mids its decent with tuning as well. But the sound stage they have is quite impressive for what they are, and the price they are sold at. If i had to choose from something like the Castor Neutral, or the ChuII, i would pick the ChuII, or the original 7hz Zero, or spend another $3 on the Ziigaat Nuo. If its the Castor Bass, i would go with the Zero2, or ChuII again. Just because it graphs more bass, doesnt mean its better bass.

I own a 7hz zero original. I like the neutral signature. But from you I learnt it's treble leaning. It lacks some mid bass, but I got used to it because I prefer clarity in the voice and nuance of sound. So I want to know about truehear Zero Red. Is it better than 7hz? I need a neutral at the same time, good sub bass atleast. And clarity with nuances. What would you say while comparing both. I want an IEM under 30 to 55 USD. And a suitable portal dac for the phone. Please help me with the upgrade.

I got my salnotes zero 1 for like 12 bucks and it made my $160 TWS sound like utter dog shit. Thing with Iems is you can get insane value with a tiny budget compared to wireless buds. $80 IEMS outperform virtually any Bluetooth buds on the market. Lossless, uncompressed, clear audio for the price of a big Mac combo

How is the directional audio (verticality) and footstep cues with Tripowin Vivace? EDIT: I just got 7Hz Salonotes Zero and they lack in that compartment, so would you recommend this or other IEMs for this use?

Most IEMs have detachable cables with either a 2 pin or MMCX connectors. You can certainly buy USB-C audio cables with either of those connectors and use them with whatever IEM you'd like that has a compatible connector. Unfortunately my s24 seems to have a fair amount of noise transmitted through the USB C port so Bluetooth sounds better. I like to use something like the Fiio BTR5, but that is just adding more expense. You can try something like the SalNotes Zero which you can get with a USB C cable for like $25 as a starting point to see how you like it. (It also can be bought with a standard 3.5mm cable, so make sure you get the right version of you try it).

I was looking for a USB C to two pin cable with a mic, but wasn't finding anything I really eant s to buy. Came across the salnotrs zero that came with such a cable for the same price as just the cables so it seemed like a nobrainer to give it a shot. I can't believe how good they are for $20 or so.

For 15$ and gaming, nothing beats salnotes Zero 1

please don't make the mistake of buying kz iems. just get the 7hz zero or zero 2. or you can buy truthear gate (best gaming iem under 2k). all of these are much better value than kz iems. kz iems have a terrible cable + they only give 3 pair of eartips inside the box & nothing else. while, tangzu wan'er or truthear gate or zero/zero 2 give you 6-7 pairs of eartips + a cleaning cloth or case to carry your iem + truthear gate has the best cable quality of any iem under 3k.

if you listen to both english & hindi songs, and prefer balanced sound then - truthear gate. but if you want a little bass heavy sound signature then 7hz zero 2. now, if you only listen to hindi songs, then tangzu wan'er 2. (note skip og wan'er sg as wan'er 2 is the upgrade & has better cables, better sancai eartips & better build.) these all sell for around 1.5k - 2k and skip everything else such as moondrop chu 2, any kz iem (dont ever buy a kz iem), skip og 7hz zero as well. SPECIAL: if you can spend around 3k, then just blindly go for 7hz G1. currently the best budget iem. proper v shape fun sound signature, with great clarity & separation. metal build. truly fantastic if you dont want reference grade & just wanna enjoy & vibe to your music with great clarity.

It's ok! .. Salnotes 7hz zeros are neutral.. Well the first thing i would recommend, is to change the eartip ..try the narrow bore small size. It helps to lower down the brightness .. But if you have already tried it , then from my limited experience i think you find the signature too bright for your liking .. hence you try iems with "balanced sound signature" ( Tangzu waner sg 1/2 ) . They are comfortable for medium size ear canals and hold up to their reputation .. decent bass and easy mids and treble.. If you want to add another signature you can try something from the KZ line up KZ ZSN PRO X. it has punchy bass and bright highs ..V shaped basically. Extra tips .. 1. Go to youtube, learn how to use the Wavelet app for EQing ur iems . 2. try practicing listening to audio at volume less than 30-40% .. specially for longer listening sessions . 3. you can also add a dongle dac & amp for slight enhancement . like Shanling UA mini. Audiocular D07 ( look for mic pass through) / hpz x ddhifi dongle dac and amp .. cheers.

I've got the 7hz salnotes zero (og). Every game sounds really nice and natural. You can try these as well. Usually goes for around 15$.

Hey, can you suggest safest iem. As I've found 7hz zero og fatiguing. Looking for the iem only for music purpose. Mostly for indian pop music. Around 30$

Should have bought cadenza but its never too late ig. Got the salnotes zero for under 20.

Got them recently, in love with them. My sibling hated the treble part but then he's not a bass head either. Bro likes neutral earphones and tbh, I consider these to be neutral. Just gotta learn the EQ part and make a bit minor changes. Thanks. What’s next if I get something that's not too heavy on the bass but different from the salnotes 0?

I only own 7hz 0. I love them. A little too harsher on the treble, more than I wanted, and loud. The instrument separation is there once your ear gets used to it. Don't expect it to blow your mind with its quality. The treble is shouty so it’ll get you a little time to adjust to that kinda sound profile.

For gaming you need to check imaging/soundstage of an iem. The better it is, the better you will know where the enemy is coming from. To find out go read reviews. https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/kz-zsn-pro-2.26992/reviews Plus less bass is better for competitive or multiplayer gaming so that the sound effects do not mask more important sounds but if you play single player then you will need that bass. **Remember boat bass is considered bassy or bass head in iem world. Here if they say it has good bass or balanced then compared to boat earphone it means it has ok bass and if someone says neutral then it has very less bass.** if you want bass, qkz x hbb or kz castor bass. If you want mainly for gaming then 7hz salnote zero and Simgot ew100p (have very less bass) For in between kz zsn pro 2, 7hz salnote zero 2 and moondrop chu 2 (kz n chu2 similar in sound for most part except treble, zsn can sound harsh for some songs) Tangzu waner are ok for gaming but great for music especially if you like vocal forward and prefer a decent amount of bass. How do you pick, compare reviews and also go to youtube type iem name and add this line, sound demo or sound test.

Kz zs10 pro, Artti T10, artti r2, Simgot ew200, 7hz sonus, 7hz zero, truthear zero red if you can spend a little more than truthear hexa.

7hz Zero, usbc+mic version, so I can at least take a phone call and use it as work headset if I forgot my modded koss.

I have the 7hz g1 but i only have 7hz zero 1st gen. I can say tho footsteps sound better in the 7hz zero than in the g1. Im no sound expert but just saying this by experience. Not saying g1 is bad.

As someone who yas 7hz g1 and 7hz zero. I can only say by exp im not a expert person for iem But for a game like cs2 i prefer the 7hz zero(not zero2) than the g1. Ecample footsteps in the g1 gets overwhelmed a little when theres like a lot of sounds compared to the zero. Overall i dont mind the g1. Just saying since a lot of people suggesting the g1. 7hz zero tho than the kz castor for cs2 also.

Yes 7hz salnotes zero.

(amongst the iems have I owned) s tier: kiwi ears ke 4 and truthear hexa a+ tier: Ikko OH10, Pula PA02, Shuoer s12 pro, Sennheiser ie200, Kefine Delci, Dunu Titan S OG a tier: Dunu Titan s2, Tanchjim One, pre revision CCA CRA+ A- tier: Binary Chopin, Tangzu Waner Studio, KZ PR2 pre revision, Tripowin Olina SE B+ tier: Kiwi Ears Quintet, Tangzu Xuan Ji, Simgot EW 200, Truthear Gate and Hola, Tangzu Wan'er SG B tier: Moondrop Chu 2 and OG, KZ EDA Balanced, Kiwi Ears Quartet, Moondrop Aria Snow, FiiO Jade Audio JH3, Tripowin Lea B- tier: 7hz zero OG, Truthear Zero Blue, Whizzer BS1 C tier: KZ CRN D tier: Moondrop Quarks honorable mentions: Koss KSC75 in A minus, Porta Pro in B, Moondrop Space Travel in B-, Galaxy Buds Plus and 2 in A minus along with Airpods Pro Gen 1, and Galaxy Buds 2 Pro in A plus.

For a few weeks now i own a pair of salnotes zero 7hz iems. They are connected via usb-c to my google pixel 7a. The Audio quality is good, but every so often the sound starts to crackle and the headphones disconnect while still being plugged into the phone. Do i have a broken pair of headphones or is this a general problem with pixel phones?

I really don't recommend KZ because it sounds generic compared to my Salnote Zero. I mostly recommend Tangzu Wan'er, Truthear's Hexa and ZERO, Salnote's ZERO and ZERO:2, Simgot EW200. KZ is decent but their whole lineup sounds the same, that overwhelming bass and fatiguing treble is the most cons of their products.

I really don't recommend KZ because it sounds generic compared to my Salnote Zero. I mostly recommend Tangzu Wan'er, Truthear's Hexa and ZERO, Salnote's ZERO and ZERO:2, Simgot EW200. KZ is decent but their whole lineup sounds the same, that overwhelming bass and fatiguing treble is the most cons of their products.

As someone who is heavily into speakers, the original salnotes zero is pretty true to neutral speakers. The original chu also. The simgot ew100p is a step above that. What do they all have in common? The adaptation of the Harman IE 2019 target for the b&k 5128 rig. Especially in the critical regions from 1khz-5khz. IMO that is the target you want an IEM to hit(at least up to 5000hz) if you are actually serious about accurate sound reproduction.

I've used 7hz Salnotes Zero's for games before and the directional audio was good enough for VR shooters. It's still not perfect but like, they're a $20~ pair of IEM's so they surpassed my expectations a lot.

A lot of people use the Celest Wyvern Pro for gaming because of the mic. Not sure how much they cost on Amazon though. Budget IEMs are fine for gaming, you could take a look at the 7hz zero (1 or 2), I've actually used the Zero 1 for gaming and they worked fine, they're also quite cheap.

if you are looking for actual flat tuning, there is the Tanchjim Zero witch which is pretty flat, but it has some boost on vocals and treble so it inst like totally balanced, but might work for startes with its reduced bass area. Second best would the Salnotes Zero original, not the 2, since its more balanced but not like super bassy nor super treble foward. Truthear gate might alse be an option since it has ever slighly less boosted upper mids and a similar controlled treble, but it also has slighly more bass than the Zero original. If you happend to not have the Gate available, simgot 100p its pretty similar but with a bit of more mid bass kick, and slighly less sub bass rumble, on the rest of the sound they are around the same.

The usual rec for gaming for cheap Is the Salnotes Zero, if you also want it for music, and want some bass, then the Salnotes Zero 2.

Not waner Man, the sound direction Is pretty basic, It might work for some games with audio help (i believe games like valorant have that) but anything else just wouldn't work that great. Your Best option if you dont care about bass Is the Salnotes Zero 1/OG, if you want some bass you will have to go up to the Zero 2, or either settle with something a bit less accurate like Chu2. I also believe that cheap IEMs like KZ Castor (i guess the gray/Harman version should work better for gaming, but Black/Bass version might also do the trick if you use the switches to boost the treble a bit) are fine-ish, but not not sure if they that well compares to Zero OG.

most common recs are salnotes Zero 1 if you care mainly for gaming and dont need much bass, otherwhise, either Zero 2 and Chu 2 should work fine, Waner is great for music but its soundstage its pretty mediocre, not really recomended for gaming.

I wont call the Zero 2 neutral bright, is actually just balanced, and even a bit on the bassy side, if you want a balanced, kinda neutral iem, actually Tangzu waner is closer to that, also focusing on vocals, its a good middle groun, if you want to test bassy, you can either go for the KZ Castor Pro Bass (there is normal and Pro verions, both with bass and harman verions, you want to go for the bass version) to test a bassy V-shaped iem, more energetic, nice punch, and then you can check the Salnotes Zero original for something actually more neutral bright, leaning to vocals and treble. Also, you have alternatives like the Tanchjim Bunny to the Waner, the Kbear rosefinch for a "bass canon", or the QKZxHBB for a bassy relaxed very warm set, for better or for worse tho, there arent that many "bright" options on the budget bracket.

After posting earlier, I was able to listen to the demo sound samples of the 7Hz Zero:2, the successor to the Zero:1. Using the original sound as heard through the DT-770 Pro as a reference, I did a deeper comparison between the Zero:1 and Zero:2. The Zero:1 had great resolution and a natural tone, but its bass response felt lacking, which made it a bit disappointing in terms of accurately conveying the original sound. In contrast, the Zero:2 seems to have effectively addressed that weakness. (The mids were actually better represented on the Zero:1.) I had the chance to listen to the original Wan’er version, but I haven’t been able to find a demo for the SE (Studio Edition), so I’m unsure how it performs. Just as the bass performance was improved on the Zero:2, I’m wondering—does the Wan’er SE also offer more accurate bass reproduction, closer to the DT-770 Pro?

salnotes zero 1 has a clean, bright and neutral sound.. salnote zero 2 has a same tuning with a bass boost and slightly lower upper mid.. which one to pick??? its all depend on what u need and what kind of music in your playlist.. kz edx pro is an old model so its not relevan for today standard but for someone who want iems with a tight budget, go for kz edc pro.. so much better driver quality, doesnt have an agresive v shape like edx pro which make it more balance (especially in vocal)..

Do you actually want "treble focused" or do you want neutral? These are not synonymous and too many people don't seem to know how to distinguishing these descriptors. A lot of unnecessary confusion arises because of this. The original 7Hz Salnotes Zero are not particularly treble focused. They are mostly neutral. Proper treble focused IEMs (but still relatively normal sounding) would be something like the Alpha & Delta D6, double your budget. The Salnotes Zero's treble quality is hard to match for the price. It can be more "treble forward" with the 7Hz H07 tips or the TRN T-Ear tips.

Yeah, I see what you mean. Many inexperienced people do indeed have their perceptions tainted by overly bassy/dark/v-shaped sounding earphones. You want actual neutral sound. The 7Hz Salnotes Zero is a safe bet then. Alternatively, the Simgot EW100P is supposed to sound similar, but I personally never tried it.

To my ears, the 7Hz Salnotes Zero (original) with the 7Hz H07 short barrel tips (these come with the 7Hz Timeless or can be bought on Aliexpress) sounds nearly identical to the Hexa, but with a more natural tone and timbre + better coherence + better note weight in the lower mids. The very slight decrease in resolution and separation does not justify the price difference for the Hexa. I'll keep saying this until I die. I suspect a nozzle filter mod on the Zero can improve it even further. The Zero's stock tips are very much bottlenecking its sound quality. It's possible my Hexa might have been defective or maybe I just don't like the sound of multiple-driver balanced armatures at all.

The OG 7Hz Salnotes Zero is fairly neutral if maybe a little bright on the high end. At $20 you're not going to get anything spectacular regardless.

You can get the Linsoul 7Hz Salnotes Zero for like $23 on Amazon, with Mic. They're not bad at all for gaming and they're dirt cheap.

Before buying your first set, think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - QKZ HBB v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for small ear canals) Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) Unless you can sample multiple sets before you buy, try not to blind buy one set using most or all of your budget. You’ll end up wasting money in the long run buying sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped IEMs.)

Best is subjective. The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection (take note, I’m treble senstive, so some of my classifacations may be a bit skewed)… * Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP * Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 * Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) * Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er * Treble leaning - 7hz Zero (original) If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs. If you have a little more money to experiment with... * Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 * Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza * Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue* * v-shape - Truthear Nova * Neutral - Truthear Zero Red* * Slight treble focus - Truthear Hexa * Treble leaning - Simgot EW200 and Simgot EA500LM *thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. I’m not a gamer, but I’ve noticed that gamers here often recommend v-shaped IEMs like the Zero Blue, the Truthear Nova and Simgot EM6L. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ or CCA - same company. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

Best is subjective. The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection (take note, I'm treble senstive, so some of my classifacations may be a bit skewed)… * Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP * Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 * Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) * Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er * Treble leaning - 7hz Zero (original) If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs. If you have a little more money to experiment with... * Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 * Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza * Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue\* * v-shape - Truthear Nova * Neutral - Truthear Zero Red\* * Slight treble focus - Truthear Hexa * Treble leaning - Simgot EW200 and Simgot EA500LM \*thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ or CCA - same company. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

That’s KZ for you. Before buying your next set, think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for small ear canals) Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) Unless you can sample multiple sets before you buy, try not to blind buy one set using most or all of your budget. You’ll end up wasting money in the long run buying sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped IEMs.) If you have a little more money to experiment with... Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue* Slight v-shape - Truthear Nova Neutral - Truthear Zero Red* Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa *large nozzles, not recommended for small ear canals. After trying various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (I bash KZ a lot here. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to get to you before your experience with them. If it’s any consolation, it happens to a lot of us.)

“Best” is subjective. The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… * Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP * Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 * Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) * Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er * bright-ish - 7hz Zero (original) (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs.) If you have a little more money to experiment with... * Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 * Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza * Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue* * v-shape - Truthear Nova * Neutral - Truthear Zero Red* * Bright-ish - Truthear Hexa, Simgot EW200 or Simgot EA500LM *thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

Short answer: That’s up to you and your ears. Long answer: The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… * Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP * Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 * Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) * Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er * Bright - 7hz Zero (original) (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs.) If you have a little more money to experiment with... * Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 * Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza * Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue\* * v-shape - Truthear Nova * Neutral - Truthear Zero Red\* * Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM * Bright leaning - Truthear Hexa * Bright - Simgot EW200 \*thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. You may want to take a look at the v-shaped Sennheiser IE 200, since they're a manufacturer that's crossing over from the music world to the audiophile space. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

Before buying your first set, think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - QKZ HBB v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) Unless you can sample multiple sets before you buy, try not to blind buy one set using most or all of your budget. You’ll end up wasting money in the long run buying sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. If you have a little more money to experiment with... Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 Warm - Truthear Zero Blue or Kiwi Ears Cadenza Slight v-shape - Truthear Nova Neutral - Truthear Zero Red Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa After trying various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like.

Sounds like you’re new to this space. The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) (If you can’t sample these before buying, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs.) If you’re willing to spend a bit more… Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue* v-shape - Truthear Nova Neutral - Truthear Zero Red* Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa *thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals.

Before buying your first set, think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - QKZ HBB v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) Unless you can sample multiple sets before you buy, try not to blind buy one set using most or all of your budget. You’ll end up wasting money in the long run buying sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. If you don’t mind spending a bit more on experimenting, then you can try the following (one might even end up your “endgame”)… Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 Warm - Truthear Zero Blue or Kiwi Ears Cadenza Slight v-shape - Truthear Nova Neutral - Truthear Zero Red Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa After trying various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like.

“Best” is subjective. The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set using most or all of your budget based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run, by buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs.) If you have a little more money to experiment with... Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue* v-shape - Truthear Nova Neutral - Truthear Zero Red* Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa *thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. After trying various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

The IEM world is quite different from the headphone world that you probably know as a musician. There’s a lot more variety (in terms of tuning) and personal preference is much more important (due to differences in things like ear canal dimensions). In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. What particular frequencies do you want to hear more? What do you want to hear less? If you really can’t sample IEMs first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er Bright - 7hz Zero (original) (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs.) If you have a little more money to experiment with... Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue\* v-shape - Truthear Nova Neutral - Truthear Zero Red\* Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa \*thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. If you’re looking to spend even more you might want to look into these… Bassy - iKKO OH10 V-Shape - Sennheiser IE 200 Vocal forward - Tanchjim Origin Treble forward - Letshuoer S12

The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection (take note, I’m treble senstive, so some of my classifacations may be a bit skewed)… * Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP * Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 * Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) * Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er * Treble leaning - 7hz Zero (original) If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs. If you have a little more money to experiment with... * Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 * Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza * Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue* * v-shape - Truthear Nova * Neutral - Truthear Zero Red* * Slight treble focus - Truthear Hexa * Treble leaning - Simgot EW200 and Simgot EA500LM *thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ, QKZ or CCA - same company. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

The IEM world has so much variety and your enjoyment would depend greatly on personal preference. What’s great for one person could be trash for someone else. In my opinion, the best way to approach this hobby is to sample numerous sets of various tunings. Try not to blind buy one set, using most or all of your budget, based only on recommendations. You may end up wasting money in the long run buying expensive sets with tuning you later realize you don’t prefer. Think about your tuning preference. Do you want a lot of bass (warm sound)? Or do you want more treble (crisp/bright sound)? Do you want something balanced (middle ground)? Or do want something with a bass boost with a treble boost (V shape)? If you want a boost in upper mids (vocal forward)? If you really can’t sample first, and can only buy, I recommend starting at the low end, then upgrading from there. This is my cheap starter collection… * Bassy - Tanchjim Tanya DSP * Slight v-shape - 7hz Zero 2 * Balanced - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) * Vocal forward - Tangzu Wan’er * Bright - 7hz Zero (original) (If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs.) If you have a little more money to experiment with... * Bassy - Blon x HBB z300 * Warm - Kiwi Ears Cadenza * Warm leaning - Truthear Zero Blue\* * v-shape - Truthear Nova * Neutral - Truthear Zero Red\* * Vocal forward - Simgot EA500LM * Bright leaning - Simgot EW200 or Truthear Hexa \*thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. Borrow or buy-try-return. After sampling various tunings, you might be surprised by what you like and don’t like. (Whatever you do, stay away from KZ. They’re a terrible company with shady practices.)

I run the Salnotes Zero with a Ruyi cable. Works great on my PS5. Another alternative I use is the moondrop lan but they are a recessed 2-pin cable so either run my external mic or just use the built in mic on the dualsense. As for DACs you can get dongle DACs such as the hiby FC1 or FC3, Hidisz S3 pro or go Bluetooth with Fiio BTR5k or hiby w3 ii which also support inline mics as well as usb c input. Or for a desktop fosi k5 pro can be found for cheap. *Edit for dac info and spelling

There are a lot of good options for gaming under $50. I personally use moondrop LAN, OG 7Hz Zero, new 7Hz Zero 2. I've even used the Sgor Luna and Artti T10 (planars) for gaming. From your music choice I would suggest something along the zero 2 which has decent but not overpowering bass.

I use 7hz Zero, Zero 2, and Moondrop LAN. All work great for gaming and situational awareness. I will occasionally break out my Dunu Titan S, but I find the others a bit better. I use a Kinera Celeste Ruyi cable with a boom mic on the zeros with no complaints about mic from friends I'm playing with.

Zero 2 is quite nice for the price. I have both the OG Zero and the 2 and find myself using the 2 much more often.OG Zero was the first item I bought, and they keep coming.

OG zero is really good for orchestral music, or as I like to use it, phone calls for work. I use my Zero 2 for gaming mostly as I have many other IEMs for music that suits my tastes better.

OG Salnotes Zero and use them everyday for work calls and gaming.

I use Salnotes Zero IEMs with the Behringer P1 amp.

Get a set of IEMs. Yes, I know that earbuds are cheaper. But you can get a pair of Salnotes Zero IEMs for 20 bucks off Amazon. If you're playing live you can pair that with a Behringer P1 headphone amp and you're ready to go for under 100 bucks. I did that and it was life changing.

I use Salnotes Zero IEMs, and I got rid of the silicone buds pretty much straight away and got memory foam ones. It almost completely cuts out the cymbal noise when I'm playing live. So much so, I have the soundguy give me some drums in the mix because I tend to play too hard when I can't hear myself. What monitor amp are you using?

And then you realise you enjoy all kinds of tuning and you become a hapless addict like the rest of us ! I like a bumping BLON 3 type sound when I’m out and about, but for an eyes closed at home session, the salnotes 7hz zero v1 have a presentation that is more source faithful and reward you for attentive listening

Moondrop chu 1, 2, LAN, Truthear gate, hola, zero blue, zero red, 7hz zero 1, 2, kiwi ears cadenza, tinhifi t2, dlc, … and the list goes on

Yeah there are so many options but for around the 50$ the Truthear Zero Red are kind of a reference point and have amazing value but the nozzle size is a bit girthy and is not for the faint hearted beginner ears unless you’re daring. Other than that for lower there’s Moondrop LAN with smaller metal body and good tuning and Tangzu Wan’er for people who prefer vocal forward mid focused sound and 7hz Salnotes Zero for a more powerful good bassy sound with good extension only for 20$. There’s a very good Simgot IEM which I’ve heard praises a lot but can’t remember the name. There are many other options that are just as excellent depending on your preferences in sound signature and design and what not.

I have the 7Hz Zero (v1) and Moondrop Chu2 DSP and I like the sound from the 7Hz but the fit and comfort of the Chu2.

The originals don’t have a lot of bass, it’s there but like the kid in the back of the room who whisper here in class.

Only my nozzle became slightly rusted, the shell was fine. I would get trio or just go with original 7hz salnotes zero. Zero 2 is more bassier and has better dynamics while the original was more cleaner and crisp.

i once brought a few cheap iems for a coworker who produces to try to get him into the iem hobby, he listened to a few and stated the first version of the salnotes zero sounded the most like his monitors back at where he produces , he went ahead and bought them

laugh at it all you want  but i know a producer . Dudes been producing and doing his dj tricks for over 20 years. i let him demo some of my iems and he really enjoyed the original Salnotes Zero. Stated they sounded the most true to his speakers, bought it the day after along with a cable

Hello, just to update. I chose to get the salnotes og. My thinking was to feel first iems with some budget ones if i am really going to like it. For the salnotes zero, i very much liked the sound and the clarity when it comes to voice and the bass were enough for me so it was a perfect first iem for me and will surely upgrade to the ones you suggested soon. Thank you!

I'd recommend reformatting your list with bullets, or put some double enters between them. I tried here but not sure if everything is marked right in regards to your large nozzles --- This is my cheap starter collection (take note, I'm treble senstive, so some of my classifications may be a bit skewed): - **Bassy** - Tanchjim Tanya DSP - **Slight v-shape** - 7hz Zero 2 - **Balanced** - Moondrop Chu 2 (good for smaller ear canals) - **Vocal forward** - Tangzu Wan’er - **Treble leaning** - 7hz Zero (original) - **Treble focused** - Moondrop Lan If you can’t sample, most newbies favor V-shaped or balanced IEMs. If you have a little more money to experiment with: - **Bassy** - Blon x HBB z300 - **Warm** - Kiwi Ears Cadenza - **Warm leaning** - Truthear Zero Blue* - **v-shape** - Truthear Nova - **Neutral** - Truthear Zero Red* - **Slight treble lean** - Truthear Hexa - **Treble leaning** - Simgot EW200 and Simgot EA500LM *thick nozzles, not recommended for narrow ear canals. --- Have you listened to Focal Clear OGs before? Any recommendations on IEMs similar to them? Really intimate female vocals, okay enough sound stage, really punchy bass, but overall very neutral, fun, and no EQ needed? Budget - lets say up to $300ish.

These were my second, "luxury" pair after my "test" pair of Salnote Zeros (OG). I don't dare take them out of my apartment. I lost my Salnotes and bought some Simgot ew200's for outside music, I can still hear the difference. Both are great but S12 pro are so detailed and bright.

Build quality alone makes it worth the 10 USD. Zero can have drivers go imbalanced or the faceplate loses its adhesion. Get SN if you have minimum budget or a trial to see what you like. I would also rec an aftermarket Nicehck cable or Xinhs cable, not a fan of EW200's.

My first IEM got beaten up cuz I sleep on them, they were KZ ZEX pro and the plastic holding the inserts for the pins disintegrated. I do still have my 7hz Zero OG though and they're still kicking strong.

I have them and love them. Please clarify

Salnotes Zero

It is not "doesn't have a really good bass". It is neutral. For a sub-1k, the clarity is great, the separation is 👌🏻. When tweaked using a good equalizer, the bass is nice. Pero okay, surely, not for the bassheads. Maybe not for you. Along with Salnotes Zero, I always hear Moondrop Chu (or Chu 2) as one of the better buys for this price range. I guess you've seen some people recommending Moondrop Chu/Chu2.

A 20$ iem won't be as good as a 500$ headphone but for the value each of them offer for their price, iems usually have more to give. My moondrop chu 2 is almost at par when it comes to gaming with my jbl 700bt and costs 3 times less. I'd suggest those or salnotes zero. If you have more cash to spare go for the Truthhear x Crinacle Zero BLUE ($50) to get the most bang for you buck.

even $20 iems sound better than those imo, something like salnotes zero

I heartily agree with all of this. I started about 18 months ago with a Kiwi Ears Cadenza. Since then I've bought a Fiio K7BT, BTR7, Ka11, K9 AKM and about a dozen different IEMs. These include all of the usual suspects, Wan'ers, Salnotes Zeros (& 2's), Crin red & blues, JH5s and others, up to an MP145. I've just ordered a Fiio FH7s - an IEM that I've wanted since I started. I'm telling myself now that it's my endgame - or at least my final IEM of 2024. Time will tell if I stick to it!

Well i only have the salnotes zero so them :D

I'm just a beginner in the audiophile journey. I currently own and enjoy the Salnotes Zero IEM( First IEM I bought). Now I feel like I need an upgrade in bass and overall clarity in vocals. If I get the EM6L, will it feel like a noticeable upgrade?

Ys. I bought my salnotes zero from headphonezone

My ears are small too, after trying multiple iems, this is what I think are some comfortable iems for small ears which i have owned. Sub $20 - Get Truthear Gate over salnotes zero Sub $150 - S12, ie200 Sub $200 - Meze alba (Most comfortable iem i have ever tried) Sub $600 - Symphonium meteor, ie600 Kilobuck - 64 audio

Maybe I am half deaf, but I returned them and kept my Salnotes zero. I thought the Salnotes had better clarity and more sparkle while otherwise sounding quite similar. I didn't get the hype tbh.

I use my humble Salnotes Zeros more then any other of my IEMs or full sized cans. They are so comfortable and the tuning just gets it right.

I just got my first iem too (salnotes zero) and I really love them after a tip upgrade (the nozzle size was a bit too big for me). They are really similar but from the reviews I saw the zero 2 has a little more bass and some small change in the treble (zero is brighter I think ?). More of a taste thing, I went with the og zero because I don't want too much bass. I was skeptical of the chifi hype at first. Like why do we go with chinese iem but not chinese headphones ? But the value for the monney cannot be beat in that price range. 30$ (canadian dollars...) Is double the price of some cheap 15$ earbuds from a random store but the chifi IEMs are SO much better than those. I know it's nothing new for people that are in the iem sphere since a long time but to me at least it's new and shocking. I always hated in ear earbuds because they hurt my ears, until I tried a pair of tws earbuds that fit my ears well. Now I'm down the rabbit hole of iems... But I like it it's perfect at work and easy to carry vs a regular headphone. Still prefer a headphone at home on pc tho.

I regularly used a hyperx cloud 2 and I switched to a salnotes zero iem because of extreme temperatures in summer. I mostly play r6s, cs etc and the iem has been an awesome replacement. I have never felt that I would hear those footsteps better if I was using the hyperx instead.

I have salnotes zero, blon bl03, tin hifi t3 plus and airpods pro 2nd gen I find the Airpods Pro to be so much better than the others, the bass is so good. I think there may be something wrong with my ears. 😂 Even the audio quality is way better in airpods pro. Salnotes zero is the only one that comes close. I absolutely hate Tin T3 Plus. I shouldn't have wasted my money on it. Salnotes zero beats the shit out of it. Tin t3 sounds hollow with zero bass. For me it's ......Airpods Pro 2 > Salnotes Zero >> Blon bl03 >> Tin hifi t3 plus. That said, Tin T3 Plus is the best looking iem I have and fits like a glove. Such a shame that it sounds like shit.

Still looking but so far it's the Salnotes Zero (out of the it and the Chu II, QKZxHBB, and Xuan Nv)

What did you find underwhelming about the Zero and like about the Wan'er? Before you jump to the 80+ range from 20 it would be better if you had a good idea what you wanted. I found the jump in quality to be noticeable from those budget points but my favourite set I have is still a 20 dollar set because I like the tuning. Also what kind of games and what kind of music make a big difference, I like female vocals and jazz/classical music so the Zero is amazing to me but if you like booming bass or say played single player games you might not like it as much.

This was the exact IEM I came to recommend. I was working on a review, but decided they have been discussed to death, but they would fit OPs needs.

As a broke person (sim racing / audiophile / keebs / vr) there is something up with the dap side of the vr headset. So if you’re using a quest 3, stick with cheaper options that don’t require amplification or a resolving dac. Yes, I am saying to avoid getting the best iem and focus on getting an iem that can be sufficiently driven by the quest 3. The high end of this for me would be the ie200. Generally speaking, this is my favorite iem because of how small it is and the sound it puts out is tremendous. This is slightly out of your budget. It is however in my mind the nicest option. Moondrop chu ii is a very good starter iem. Salnotes zero (the og) also is a good option here especially if you don’t like the metal housing of the chu. Both of them come with an inline mic if you fancy that. I would avoid any bass monsters unless you’ve got a dac solution in place. Hbb hades comes to mind here. Going further down, tin c2 have some new releases coming out. Finally, I’m gonna rec the koss ksc75 and portapros- the 75s are perfect for the quest and the porta pros were on the cv1. Although not iems, these are great sound solutions. Finally, and only if you’re willing to stay on headphones for vr, I recommend the Sony mdr-mv1. Super comfortable and light weight. Punches way above its cost as far as sound quality goes. Edit: if you’re not using the 3.5 mm on the quest, ignore most of this as my perspective is that of a user who is using the sound solution built into the q3.

Big treble peaks at 11700 Hz and 14400 Hz

Same boat as you. Glasses, etc. still like my HD650. I’ve had various cheaper iems. Salnotes Zero, blon bl05, kz zsn, truthear zero red, salnotes dioko. Favourite for gaming/every day is the zero red, followed by the zero. But it’s mainly a fit thing, I use them with a modmic kimura.

Salnotes zero https://preview.redd.it/s77gzpq9sdte1.jpeg?width=216&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8c0530fc911a56917a392f1f70d4fb20325b5e56

Offensively bland with an unnecessary extra helping of treble. Imagine a bowl of dollar store vanilla ice cream. Now mix in some green beans. Offensively bland.

Hello from India too! I would suggest going for a IEM like 7hz Crinacle Zero 2 or G1, Also Salnotes Zero but i would spend a little more and get the USB DAC as well which would make a world of difference in PUBG.

If you are really keen on being scrutinous in determining the sound you like most, I highly suggest getting something in the $20 range and go up from there. Getting something neutral like the Tanchjim Bunny, Tangzu Waner (any edition), Salnotes Zero (1) or MoonDrop Chu II would be a great start. BUT just get one pair. So for example, you get the Tanchjim Bunny first. Listen to it for at least a month, then if you find anything in the frequency lacking or copious, then find your upgrade from your findings. I hope this makes sense. My biased answer is for you to get the Hexa or 7hz Zero as these are 2 of my favorite IEMs right now. Cheers.

If you are really keen on being scrutinous in determining the sound you like most, I highly suggest getting something in the $20 range and go up from there. Getting something neutral like the Tanchjim Bunny, Tangzu Waner (any edition), Salnotes Zero (1) or MoonDrop Chu II would be a great start. BUT just get one pair. So for example, you get the Tanchjim Bunny first. Listen to it for at least a month, then if you find anything in the frequency lacking or copious, then find your upgrade from your findings. I hope this makes sense. My biased answer is for you to get the Hexa or 7hz Zero as these are 2 of my favorite IEMs right now. Cheers.

Salnotes Zero. I use 1 but I have heard 2 is also good. For music, it's top notch choice, but for gaming there are better choices. The gaming ones are not as good for music tho. I would still say Salnote's decent enough for gaming too.

Og salnotes zero .... Top quality treble and non existent bass top notch clarity and soundstage best for gaming too

At this price yes

These are all great IEMs so good research there! Out of these, my favourite are the Tangzu Wan'Er 2 because of their V-shaped sound signature. I also have a pair of Kiwi Ears Cadenza tho. They are warm, chill and laid back. Out of all IEMs in this price range I would go Salnotes Zero :2 tho. Best in that bracket imo

I’m new to the IEM world and audio in general. I first bought the Salnotes Zero and I was a little underwhelmed. I just got in the Tangzu Wan’er and they are excellent for gaming and enjoyable for music but I’m still wanting more. For $20 I’m definitely not upset with my purchase. I don’t have the vocabulary or knowledge to explain what I want but like I said in the tittle how much do you have to spend for objectively goood not just good for the price. I’ve been looking at the project red and truthear hexa and im confident they would be a step up but im worried im gonna have the same feeling until I spend serious money. I’m open to any recommendations or advice. Thanks! I started down this path just for the gaming aspect but man it has reminded me just how much I love music

since youll be wearing it for longer hours, trust me, you need an iem which fits flush with your ear(like truthear gate), or has a small form factor (like Blon BL-03). Most of the offerings from kz, cca, and even tangzu have big shells which after sometime may hurt. My first iem was Salnotes Zero. Had such a pointy shape it started hurting after 15mins of use. Even tho i liked its sound, i had to return it. I say buy Truthear Gate, and a dac like KZ AM-01(i daily drive). Gate has a sound which you can listen to for hours, and it sits flush with my ear (my ears are big). Soo yea, try them out. One can always eq with wavelet to get a different sound signature, since eq is the only thing we budget sound enthusiasts got. Money? no bueno.

I have the Salnote Zeros, and they're pretty good for the price, but they do have a v-sound (scooping the kids aka more bass and treble) https://preview.redd.it/b5i1be2r7ike1.png?width=2400&format=png&auto=webp&s=74b42f924e3ff96af92f89fb411f0e867e0d924c

I've been thinking of making my own channel, because of the exact reasonings you came up with. Everyone seems to go "oh yeah this is good, definite buy worthy." And they are talking about the salsnote zeros. These are actually the worst iems ever, because they sound just as ankers sound, but at least ankers are wireless. I want someone to say "oh this is straight up garbage" GIVE US THE REAL OPINION! You can easily tell there is a bias in there videos, because the creators want to keep getting free items sent to them, for reviews.

You said "Balanced lang sana". Salnotes Zero is tuned for balance and has controlled bass...

The usual recommendation of entry point IEM are all good. Of course I don't have all but I do have some and in case you're new and don't know, I'll name a few so you can start looking into them to see which fits your tastes better: * Mooondrop Chu 2 - metal body and small, very nice pick * Truthear Gate * Tangzu Wan'er (normal, 2 and studio edition) * Salnotes Zero (both 1 and 2) * Kiwiears Cadenza * Simgot EW100 or 200 * Tripowin Vivace - I just ordered this to try it as it has been getting a lot of praise and is supposed to perform way above its price range * Moondrop Lan - this is about 40 dollars, above of what you mentioned but I love it. Super comfortable, very neutral and pleasing sound signature. Full metal body, which is always a plus for durability. On the current sale I think it may be on your budget. If you have any more question just send them.

I own both the ZSN Pro 2 and Chu 2 DSP. ZSN is a bit better for rock and EDM, but Chu 2 is preferred in a song that has female lead vocals. As for the DSP let's say it's just a bonus equalizer. I've tried the salnotes and am not a fan of the tuning.

I have kz, salnotes, qkz, trn and blon. I'd say my fave is the blon, sound quality and fit is perfect for me.

I have 10-ish different models in the 10€ to 150€ range, mostly for PUBG and about 3000 hours in the game. Here are my top picks: - Tripowin Vivace 35€ - Simgot EM6L 120€ - Truthear Crinacle Zero blue 60€ (need AMP&DAC) - QKZ x HBB 20€ In that order. For other games, the Simgot and Crinacle Zero jump higher. The next ones can do, but not competitive: - Moondrop Quarks DSP 15€ - 7Hz Salnotes Zero 25€ - Apple earpods 3.5mm 20€ - KZ Zex Pro Crn 40€ Can't recommend for PUBG: - Moondrop Chu 25€ - Brainwavz Omega 15€ I recommend checking Fresh Reviews on Youtube, he checked many pricier models...

This, 7hz Zero is exactly what OP is looking for

Salnotes zero 7HZ best IEMS for beginners under budget...

7hz Zero is better for games than the 7hz Zero 2 IMO, though the 2 is better for music. I haven’t tried any of the others.

The 7hz Zeros and EW200s are both the king of their price points. Agreed on both fronts. I think the EW200 punches far above its price though, can’t say that for the 7hz Zeros.

Was just about to recommend this before I saw your comment. It will definitely be a bit on the brighter side but it’d still be a fantastic reference neutral tuning for the price.

That's a big selection of vastly different IEMs. I'd start cheap and work out your preferences rather than diving straight in to the deep end. Try the Chu, Wan'er, 7hz Zero or something along those lines. Multiple budget IEMs are to me a much better value than a single high-end set, simply for the sake of versatility and finding your preferences. Some of those you listed I'd never recommend to a first time buyer.

Honestly? I love my 7HZ Salnotes Zero from Amazon. 10mm driver and they are comfy af

oh, i like hate bass tbh hence i bought 7hz and they had the perfect bass for my ears like wont mind a bass upgrade of 10-15% but its great as it wins on clarity

Hey I’ll recommend the simgot ew200 for sure also the 7hz salnotes zero aren’t bad for gaming either. Especially the spatial sound L/R location capability is great on the zeros. Under a $100, the simgot EM6L are great too

yeah, i dont know why everyone keep recommend the chu 2 and waner when the 7hz zero is what OP need, nothing else, just 7hz zero

Oof, we'll be here all day . Ok here is a list , whatever comes to mind ,, the list is going to be absolutely massive. 7hz Salnotes Zero (both 1 and 2) Moondrop Chu ( 1 and 2) Tangzu Wanner Ziigaat Nuo Kiwi Ears Cadenza Simgot EW200 Kefine Delci QoA Vesper 2 Moondrop Aria 2 Moondrop May Truthear Hexa Truthear x Crinacle Zero (all of them) Simgot EA500LM Final Audio E500 - E3000 7Hz Sonus Tanchjim Zero Tanchjim 4U Tanchjim Ola and Ola Bass HZSound Heart Mirror Pro Truthear Gate Kinera Celest Pandamon (both) Kinera Celest Plutus Beast

I got the 7hz Salnotes Zero. They are good, I like the detail in the treble (which some might find bright/sibilant) but the bass is anemic. I ordered the 7hz Zero:Two during lunch today. I understand it has a V-shape tuning, which should boost the bass I felt was missing in the original Zero. I also think a V-shape should work better for me, because I don’t like to listen at loud volumes. 65db is as loud as I ever get, so a V- shape tuning should mimic the “loudness” button that vintage receivers used to have for listening at low volumes at night. I’ll let you know what I think of the Zero:Two when it gets delivered last this week 🤜🏻🤛🏻 TL;DR I’d skip the Salnotes Zero (unless you hate bass 😝)

Agree with everything. These are $20 iems that comes with $9 eartips that Compete with $30 iems. I put it on the same level as kiwi cadenza and 7hz zero. Competition keeps heating up with a race to the bottom

Top 10, didn't bother to list more 1. HD6XX: After getting my hands on the HD6XX years ago, I don't get that "wow" feeling again no matter what I try. "Thanks to" the HD6XX whenever I try every HiFiMan, Meze, AKG, etc, I was like, 'That's it?'. HD6XX had ruined my headphones upgrade journey. 2. FiiO FT1: About a few months ago, I went to a Headphone Expo in Guangzhou, China. There I tested the FT1, it has that "oh this is nice" vibe to it which I haven't had since the Moondrop Cosmo. They offered a discounted price that I simply couldn't refuse so here I am. 3. Sennheiser Momentum 3: My travel/outdoor companion. Still one of the best built and sounds wireless over ear, no argument allowed. 4. Moondrop Kadenz: I got it at a decent price in China when released because of my membership of '客亭', a Chinese HiFi retailer.(Cheaper than KATO MSRP). My daily IEM whenever I don't feel like using my Anker A40. Sounds good, came with a nice dongle (ECHO-B), comfortable to me. 5. Sony MDR CD900ST: I bought second hand in Japan. Mainly for it's heritage and look. I use it for my studio as a secondary monitor at times. Sounds good, meh comfort and the The First Take scandal. 6. Sony MH750: My first ever "monitor", always got a soft spot for this IEM and goes back to listen to music with it. Sounds great, good comfort, compact. A bit bassy but overall sounds correct. Used it for mixing and composing in the past. Maybe it's nostalgia for it to be in the top 10. 7. Moondrop Chu 2: An IEM for testing equipment and arcade gaming. 8. 7Hz Salnotes Zero: A backup IEM for testing equipment 9. Nicehck DB2: I always use this to show people the disadvantage of BA driver. Sound good in the mid and bass because of the decent DD, missed the mark because of the BA driver handling the treble. 10. Soundcore Anker A40: A TWS for me to trash around. Sounds ok after EQ. Tbh, who needs HiFi audio quality when you're on the street or watching normal YouTube videos.

I'm interested but going to wait for reviews, even though I suspect like most previous Crinacle collabs there will be an intense wall of hype that doesn't necessarily reflect the reality. I have all 4 of the Crinacle Zeroes and don't really listen to any of them as they are all just "OK", but in each case I have at least one other IEM that I prefer in some way. The main thing that interests me about these though is that the Blue/Red are both very close to something I'd listen to a lot, were it not for the massive nozzle. My thoughts on them all: * 7Hz Zero - for this tuning I prefer the original Chu, other than the crappy fixed cable. Chu sounds more resolving. Both have issues with some treble grain so I don't think either is objectively better than the other in that respect. * 7Hz Zero 2 - sounds a bit blunted to me, for this kind of warm tuning it feels a bit too "safe" and I find the QKZ HBB beats it in every way other than looks. * Truthear Zero (OG Blue) - Was innovative in some ways but it's actually only about 70% target-compliant not "full Harman". The HBB Khan is basically the same IEM made slightly better (jftr, it literally *is* the same IEM, from the same factory, with a different faceplate and tweaked tuning - I believe even the drivers are identical). * Truthear Zero Red - This one stands out in that there still isn't anything with quite the same tuning around the same price, but I find it pretty meh in terms of technicalities. It causes far too much ear canal discomfort without a sufficient payoff to be worth it, so I basically gave up on trying to listen to it. I have enough other IEMs at similar price of just above that are better such as the Artti T10, Kefine Delci and Dunu Titan S - in fairness to the Red, none of these were available at the same price point when it released and none of them has quite the same tuning. Closest thing to a direct upgrade I have is the Juzear 41t, which is nearly 3x the price and has [venting problems](https://old.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1insj4z/some_thoughts_on_the_juzear_clear_and_myer_audio/). From what I've seen of the Blue 2 graphs, it sits somewhere between the OG Blue and the Red. The tweaked eargain is similar to the Khan, but it takes bass in the opposite direction, which looks more like the Red. It's also been said by some people that the Aoshida E20 is "the Khan with a smaller nozzle" Although personally I don't hear anything like that. It's a lot more neutral, so that's another comparison I'd like to see as it may be quite similar. In fact out of these, the E20 graph is the one that looks the most like the Blue 2. Now that Crinacle has his own IEM brand, I wonder if these will be the last ever Crinacle collab? What's interesting is that despite all the effort to make the nozzle smaller on these and Crinacle himself clearly acknowledging that it was a problem, people who have tried the 3 new CrinEar IEMs say that they all have huge nozzles.

For mixing/editing you might want to get something else instead, like the 7Hz Salnotes Zero (1 not 2). The others are too bassy. Apart from that I'll just repeat what I said [before](https://old.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1eeyshi/need_help_picking_my_first_iem/lfi3dvx/) about the difference between the HBB and the Castor. The Zero 2 is the compromise between the two, it's the least bassy out of these, but it's not neutral. Personally I would take the HBB for general music listening over the Zero 2 because the Z2 just tries to hard to be a jack of all trades and comes across as a bit boring. If you want something that's neutral enough for mixing/editing and still fun to listen to, look at the Tin Hifi C2 instead. Budget for Spinfit CP-100 tips as well, as those will bring the treble down a bit closer to neutral, otherwise it's a bit too U-shaped. It has a slight bass boost, but it's not too far from neutral to really cause any problems.

The original Moondrop Chu. *Not* the Chu 2 (which is v-shaped). The Chu is bright-neutral. It has a fixed, very poor quality cable, but it sounds great if that's the signature you're looking for. Slightly peaky in places in the treble, but it's $20 not $200, so this is nitpicking. Alternatively, the 7Hz Zero is more of a balanced neutral, with more bass than the Chu. A lot of people really like it, but I find it a bit dull and unengaging, whereas the Chu sounds more airy & open, with more micro-details coming through.

Not really in order, as different tunings: * Moondrop Chu 2 - mild v-shape, great IEM * QKZ HBB - warm/bassy, great IEM * Blon BL03 - fun v-shape (but the fit is terrible) Bright neutral has a few options - I prefer the original Chu but the crappy fixed cable lets it down. The 7Hz Zero is a bit better in that regard, but I don't think it sounds quite as good. Arguably it's better to pay the extra for the Moondrop LAN for this signature because it's the best one until you go up significantly, but OTOH it's also kind of overpriced for what it is (I think it's around $40 normally, but it's basically just a Chu 2 with less bass). The 7Hz Zero 2 is OK as well but I personally find it a bit of an overly safe middle ground between other, better IEMs. Like the QKZ HBB, if you want warm but don't want to go quite that warm. It's probably the one that's the closest competitor to the Wan'er, as a better all-rounder. Although I find the Wan'er has a stand-out feature in its vocals while being weaker elsewhere, but the Zero 2 doesn't have a single stand-out thing it does better than anything else. It could maybe get the award for the okayest $20 IEM, as it doesn't do anything bad, but nothing stands out as particularly good either. You also have things like the KZ EDC Pro as probably the best beginner IEM, for around $5. It's very close to the Chu 2 but a bit bassier and slightly less refined in the treble. Probably more comfortable than the Chu 2 and less prone to condensation issues. The KZ Castor Bass, around $15, is good for a really hard-hitting bass tuning, although it's not an all-rounder and the tuning is a bit grainy.

It's not 100% flat neutral (but nothing is in that price range), more U-shaped, but the Tin C2 is very good. It gets closer to neutral with Spinfit CP-100+ tips since those roll off the extra upper treble that they have, leaving it as pretty neutral with a slight bass boost. But they have very clean, well extended treble that IMO puts them quite ahead of the 7Hz Zero or Zero 2 for technical performance. Similar to the Simgot EW200 but that's a lot more v-shaped. Also the C2 has the best build quality out of any of those. The older one (which is now around $20) is closer to neutral than the 2025 version, which has a bit more sub-bass and sounds slightly more v-shaped. Both are very similar though. You probably wouldn't know there was a difference if you listened to them a day apart rather than A/B them side-by-side. If you want more of a bright-neutral with flatter bass, the Moondrop LAN is pretty good (around $40).

They all perform pretty similarly. I'd have to A/B to remind myself but I *think* the Chu 2 is slightly ahead of the rest. The Gate might be a bit wider sounding actually because it's a bit brighter than the Chu 2, but IMO it's not as well tuned as the others and can sound a bit "scratchy" at times. If you want to avoid too much bass, you will probably prefer the 7Hz Zero as it's a bright-neutral tuning (Chu 2 & Gate are both mild v-shape, Wan'er & Zero 2 are warm-neutral). With that said, none of these are basshead. Bear in mind that soundstage is a psychoacoustic effect anyway, so what sounds wider to one person might not sound like that to someone else. Very broadly, a slight v-shape with a lean towards more treble and less mid-bass will sound wider, but there's no guarantee everyone will hear it that way.

Man, that last paragraph is gonna make you a pariah on “audiophile” subs. Hell, the 7Hz Zero is as technically exemplary as the Truthear for half the price.

I honestly don't get all the amazing reviews the Supermix 4 get. my first pair of iem were 7hz Zeroes, which for 20ish euros price are really impressive. With nothing to compare them with, I couldnt find anything to fault them but this being an audio hobby, I had to get something better but what ? So looking around, I eventually found Jay's iem rankings and saw that he recommended Simgot ew300 as a beginner set...so I looked at some more reviews, all of them being very positive, so I bought them for 80e. It's hard not to be impressed by the build quality and looks of the EW300. Soundwise, it is a step up from the Zeroes, in term of mids clarity which is enough for me to the justify the purchase. All in all I have been very happy with them. I still think the Zeroes are quite close sound and comfort wise but they are just not as beautiful an object. But, I had to get something better, so I went back to Jay's list. I obviously was not ready to spend 300+e on a pair, so looked at what he had as great value....which led me to the Supermix 4. Here it gets extremelly confusing. I don't like overpowering bass. I want bass extension along with great mid clarity, and so many opinions of the SM4 mentioned how bassy they were, so that put me off and had me looking for an alternative....read some more, confronted them with more expensive alternatives Elysium, Shure s12...then I started to get a sense that a lot of opinions are completely off base and contradictory. Saw some EW300 video reviews that were completely at the opposite of my experience soundwise....After much back and forth, I eventually decided to get the SM4. If Jay's list brought me to the EW300 that I really enjoyed, how could I not like the SM4? Today they arrived.....and oh boy am I disappointed. First thing, the comfort level is terrible, They re quite thick with a short nozzle, therefore they don't fit nicely in my ears like the EW300 do. But what about the sound? First of all, the stock cable they come with is quite thicker than the EW300's which anyone would assume is a sign of greater quality...I put on a first song, and I'm taken aback at how tiny they sound, whereas the EW300 and Zeroes sound expansive. Do they requite burn in? probably but my other iem sounded pretty good right away. Is it the cable? so I exchanged it with the EW300's cable. That improved drastically the sound, making it more open and expansive but still, it didnt sound as good and one question popped up right away....where is all that bass people were talking about? There is no meat on the bones when listening to them. Such a lean sound. The EW300 has a lot more bass without ever being bassy. So, I'm not exactly sure what are all these reviews about.... As for the equipment I used them with. Directly wired to an Audio GD r11 mk2 Dac/preamp/Headphone amp. I also used them wirelessly with a Fiio btr3k bluetooth dac/amp. Anyway, even if they had sounded great, they would have been returned because the comfort is really bad. I guess I'll stick with the EW300 a long long time because I dont see myself spending 500-1000e for a marginally better sound at the probable expense of comfort. These more expensive iems all seem to me to be quite bigger.

honestly, if I'm being dead serious I could have probably stopped at the 7hz Salnotes Zero for $25 just for something to play games with. Currently rocking the Ziigaat x Fresh Reviews Arete, with Spinfit W1 tips and Drop cable. I mostly use iems for gaming, since I don't have to worry about pressure on my glasses, and if I'm just listening to music I have cans that I prefer for better sound stage/bass.

7Hz Salnotes Zero is better for gaming than Zero:2, if you want something for gaming $30 Tripowin x 0diBi: Vivace blows them away

7Hz Salnotes Zero is only usable one in that price range, but $40 Moondrop SSR is so much better, try getting that on some sale or something if you can

most of these $20-ish IEMs are pretty much all same sound quality, detail level, QKZ Odin, Moondrop CHU II, Truthear GATe, 7Hz Zero, 7Hz x Crinacle Zero: 2, Wan'er SG, Wan'er SE but for what you are looking for QKZ Odin will imo be the best choise, Wan'er SG is also good but their build quality is step or two below everything else on the list

No joke. I just got some 7hz Zeros and man... I am impressed with how they sound. They remind me of my old AKG K612 Pro cans, but in an IEM...for $20 dollars lol.....I think I paid like $140 or something at the time for the K612s, and then almost $400 for my Audio Technica r70xs, but these $20 dollar IEMs man...where were these 6 years ago? IEMs have improved massively over the past 5 years and I'm all for it.

IEMs and headphones are always better than dedicated gaming headphones. When I used to play Valorant - I used Salnotes 7Hz Zero, now moved to Sony headphones. IEMs give you better seal.

I’ve had the regular 7Hz Zero (although it’s likely Crinacle also tuned that too considering he’s everywhere in the audiophile industry) for about a year or two now and they’ve held up great. For casual music listening and tactical shooters I’ve never had an issue and they blow most “gaming headsets” under $100 out of the water. Great pickup if you’re someone who uses an external mic or just wants some inexpensive, good-sounding IEMs around.

My fucking ears were already small when I was 10 and still they decided to stop fucking growing, so I'm stuck with these small abominations that make it hard to properly choose IEMs and earbuds. I already own a pair of Samsung Galaxy buds 2 which fit fairly well with the smallest nozzles, still not great but good enough. I've also tried the 7hz Salnotes Zero but they definitely feel too big both with the smallest tips and in general with the body itself, making them quite uncomfortable after several minutes. I know already that the Moondrop Chu II get recommended quite often as a cheap option in this category, but I also wanted to know what are other good options in more expensive tiers Edit: thank you all for the many helpful responses, I definitely have plenty models to check out now

I've purchased a couple budget IEMs over the past few months as I introduced myself into this hobby. I started with the 7hz Salnotes Zero, then got the Truthear x Crinacle Zero:Red, and most recently the Simgot EW300 DSP. I have been listening to all kinds of music from various genres (mainly different EDM, rock, and a few others). I have also been using them for gaming as I previously use the Steelseries Arctis Pro. The difference in sound and the shear level of detail I hear in the music is remarkable. I have been trying different ear tips for the EW300 as I find the fit to be not that comfortable compared to even the Zero:Red which I think are quite large for my ears and stick out quite a bit. I love the sound of all of them but the profile for the EW300 is just great. I got into EQ a bit to see what all the hype is about and started AutoEQ to other IEMs I have been interested in. Doing research on everything, it has become quite an obsession I must admit. I understand the graphs and enjoy being able to visualize sound. I'm still learning about DACs and why they are important. I plan in the future to get another IEM that is more economic than the EW300 and have been looking into the ZiiGaat Odyssey as well as the Xenns Mangird Tea Pro. I set my EQ for the EW300 to match the Tea Pro and the sound is just that much better. The bass is clear and punchy and the miss and highs are detailed and accurate. There's not much of a point to this post. I'm not looking for information or suggestions really. Any information is always great, but I more just wanted to say thank you to the entire community for making this hobby one that is enjoyable and easy to get into. It has become my new obsession and I plan to stick with it for as long as I live. Music is my life and without it I'm sure I would be lost in this crazy world.

Hi and thanks for the amazing write up, I feel like I’ve learnt a ton from reading it! Sorry to butt in with a noob question, but when you say “EQ’ing up to a graph,” does this mean doing it with a headphone measurement coupler? Or is this something you do by ear? I fell into this rabbit hole after attempting to EQ my Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW2s to not sound like a puddle of mud and haze (read: Harman target because that’s all I knew of at the time). I managed to successfully do it with sine sweeps, and then some refinement purely by intuition and A/B tests with my Linkbuds S with AutoEQ. Essentially, I’m just wondering if this method you’re talking about is something I can do, or if I should just stick to sine sweeps+pink noise (I’m gonna have to look into the pink noise). And in case you’re wondering how I ended up on this subreddit, I’m now the proud owner of a set of 7hz Zeros and Kiwi Ears Airosos :) Edit: And yeah, I was genuinely shocked at the result I got with the SQ1s after about few sessions of tweaking and listening. They’re quite an enjoyable pair of earbuds now, with some oddly satisfying details that I can hear without all the haze

Out of the options I think 7hz Salnotes Zero is great

Yeah I was considering a Chu 2 but people talk about the nozzle issues and it makes me worried. I just went with a 7hz Zero, but I'm trying to get more into iems. Your review is the top Reddit post on Google search now so congrats I guess.

Here are a few deals I would like to mention. The slightly better and newly released Truthear Gate is also on sale for $20 at Amazon. If you prefer a brighter sound the original 7hz Zero is $7 less on AliExpress.

I'm back in gaming, and to find out, once and for all, I bought all these devices at the same time to test, this is what I found. The graph above is related ONLY to the around 360º imaging accuracy, the vertical and depth you can see it below. The HD58X and Truthear Zero are the pinnacle of the around imaging accuracy, between the two, the Truthear Zero is a hair above, because the sound is more forward, more about this later. The 7Hz Salnotes Zero comes close in second, but the more broad precision makes so when turn 180º to shoot most of the time you miss the spot to slight right or left, so you have to spend a few microseconds to fix your aim, resulting in a significant higher response time compare to the other two. All the others I don't think are suitable for competitive shooting games, but some are suitable for casual and adventure games. INDIVIDUAL Reviews (Remember that my DAC has more bass and less treble as sound signature, if you're going to copy my EQ keep that in mind and make the necessary adjustments) ## Truthear x Crinacle Zero (Blue) ## This is my favorite and the only one I use for gaming*. It has all I ever wish. It's the only IEM that the sound doesn't feel inside your head, on a blind test I would think this is a Closed Back Headset. The only aspect the HD58X does better is depth imaging, but I prefer the forwardness of the sound of the Zero Blue over the HD58X, more about this on the HD58X review below. Out of the box the default EQ has a claustrophobic sense of space, it's very narrow, yet you still receive audio cues from outside your sense of space, making the depth imaging very strange, confusing, and breaking your immersion. That's what people usually refers as "unnatural sound stage" when talking about this IEM for games. After a few days, I realized the sense of space it's nothing more than constant feedback of sounds around you, for example, with very minuscule sound close to you, when you hear enemy you unconsciously compare the sound of the enemy with this sound, and gets the feeling of his distance based on the distance of this small sound close to you. By boosting the frequencies, I have all the small sounds of the environment, to unconsciously build a sense of space, by doing this IEM jumped from B grade to S grade, it amplified the sense of space, and now matches and improves the depth imaging. But EQ this guy was not easy, this IEM has 2 drives, one exclusive to bass, and you feel it, no matter what is happening the bass is strong and steady, to the point it was eating all the other frequencies. As always, I tried every single ParemetricEQ Profile available on AutoEQ, but I think they just destroyed the quality of the sound it has originally. So, as suggested by Crinacle, I created a ParemetricEQ to turn the Blue version in the Red Version, and it worked, it sounds much better, then I just had to boost individual frequencies to get ideal for gaming. For music, I disable this boost. The only precaution you need to have with IEM is related to its huge nozzle, with other all IEMs I use the large tip, but with this I had to back down to the medium, I also have to make sure I'm using it straight and parallel, or the nozzle will hurt. *(it has only one scenario that would make choose HD58X over this, you can see it on the review below) ## Sennheiser HD 58X ## Another very good for gaming, and the most comfortable headset I ever used, but I still prefer the freshness of the IEMs. I don't know if it is because it's an open back headset, but I feel the sound it's not forward enough, initially even appeared muffled, but after boosting all frequencies as much as could, without interfering with the pristine sound quality it has, it got better, but it's still not in a level I would like. Those are the two reasons why I replaced it with the Zero for gaming when I'm playing single player games. The only reason I would choose this over the Zero is because it is the only device that doesn't interfere how you listen to your own voice, when you talk is like you are wearing nothing, it's useful for multiplayer, recording and streaming. ## 7Hz Salnotes Zero ## A very good all around IEM, its only flaw is its poor depth imaging, there is just close or far, nothing in between, surprising it's still able to give you an illusion of space around you. The around and vertical imaging it's not pinpoint, but it's good enough for casual play. It's my favorite for watching anime and movies, to this kind of media I prefer the closer / inside your head type of sound, so I can hear all details equally. It also has the best noise isolation by far, I can't barely hear stuff even with no sound playing. For being versatile, cheap and for having an excellent noise isolation, it would be one I would choose for commute and travel. ## TANGZU Wan'er S.G ## The brightest of all devices, it reproduces details on treble that no other does. But the downside is that get you tired really fast. On music, it has this huge sound stage (it feels a little artificial, like an echo effect), way bigger than the HD58X that is an Open Back Headset. In games, this translates to a huge sense of space. Unfortunately, the poor imaging makes it unsuitable for games. ## HyperX Cloud Alpha ## An $80 disappointment, it sounds good enough, but it has a poor imaging, making it unsuitable for gaming. Yes, a gaming headset that is not suitable for gaming. Because of the shape of my head, I can use for 1 hour max, before the pain on the top of my head becomes unbearable. The only positive side it that the sound is not inside your head (like HD58X and Truthear Zero). ## Moondrop Chu 2 ## It's with pain in my heart I have to give it an C. It has the best sound, especially bass, for gaming of the $20 IEMs (it sacrifices treble, but it is not noticeable in games just in music), but it's poor in imaging. The imaging is so poor that you can only know the side (like north, south) but there is none in precision, to the point I had to look if I connected the cable right. OUTRO And that is it. I bought all devices with my own money. I wish to test the SIMGOT EM6L, because if two drivers can do this, imagine 5. But being fully satisfied with the Truthear Zero, I see no reason to buy one. Specially by the fact that is a stupid rule of 92% tax on products over US$ 50 in my country. But if Linsoul send me one, I would pay the tax and gladly review it. So if you like this post, sent it to them and asks if they can send me one. If you have other IEMs worth up to US$50 you would like me to take a look at, let me know below. The Blue to Red ParametricEQ: Preamp: -3.1 dB Filter 1: ON PK Fc 20 Hz Gain 3.2 dB Q 1.100 Filter 2: ON PK Fc 100 Hz Gain -1.3 dB Q 0.700 Filter 3: ON PK Fc 160 Hz Gain 1.9 dB Q 1.800 Filter 4: ON PK Fc 510 Hz Gain 2.2 dB Q 0.500 Filter 5: ON PK Fc 2600 Hz Gain -2.4 dB Q 2.000 Filter 6: ON PK Fc 3900 Hz Gain 0.7 dB Q 2.000 Filter 7: ON PK Fc 5600 Hz Gain -3.8 dB Q 2.000 Filter 8: ON PK Fc 8800 Hz Gain -1.5 dB Q 2.000 Filter 9: OFF PK Fc 0 Hz Gain 0.0 dB Q 0.000 Filter 10: OFF PK Fc 0 Hz Gain 0.0 dB Q 0.000

Personally, at 2k INR. None will have the clarity and details for some and many audiophiles. It kinda starts at least at the 4k-5k INR or above. If you want some details in this price range, go with a bright sound signature or V-shaped with prominent bright or trebles. Neutral Warm * Tangzu Wan'er SG \*\* * Tangzu Wan'er 2 \* Neutral Bright * 7Hz Salnotes Zero * KZ Castor Silver (Harman tuning, DDUU switches) \*\* * KZ Castor Pro Silver (Harman tuning, DDUU switches) \*\* * KZ x Angelears Libra X V-shaped * 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2 \* * Tanchjim Bunny 3.5mm \* * Tanchjim One 3.5mm * KZ Castor Silver (Harman tuning, UUDD switches) \*\* * KZ Castor Pro Silver (Harman tuning, UUDD switches) \*\* U-shaped * Tanchjim Bunny DSP \* * Tanchjim One DSP * DUNU Titan S2 \* (\* recommend | \*\* personally owned)

All under 3k INR (based on ConceptKart website) Neutral (including warm and bright) * Tangzu Wan'er SG (neutral warm) \*\* * Tangzu Wan'er 2 (neutral warm) \* * Tanchjim Bunny DSP (neutral bright) \* * Tanchjim One DSP (neutral warm) * Moondrop Chu 2 DSP (neutral bright) * 7Hz Salnotes Zero (neutral bright) * Truthear Gate (neutral balanced) \* * Kinera Celest Wyvern Qing (neutral balanced) \* * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver (v-warm-ish to neutral bright) \*\* V/U-shaped (including warm and bright) * Tanchjim Bunny 3.5mm * Tanchjim One 3.5mm * 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2 (mild v-balanced) \* * ND Planet (v-warm) * Rose Technics (Roseselsa) Aurora Ultra (v-warm-ish) \* * Moondrop Chu 2 3.5mm (mild v) * DUNU Titan S2 (v-balanced) \* * BLON BL-03 (v-warm) * BLON BL-03 II (v-warm) * Kiwi Ears Dolce (u-bright) * TRN Conch (mild v-bright) * Moondrop Chu 2 3.5mm (mild v-balanced) \* * Kinera Celest Wyvern Abyss (mild v-warm) * Tangzu Shimin Li (mild-v bright) * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver (mild v-warm-ish to neutral bright) \*\* * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Black Improved Bass (v-bass to v-bright-ish) \*\* * KZ EDC Pro (u-warm) \*\* * KZ EDX Pro (v-bright) (\* recommend | \*\* personally I own)

Have you considered 7 hz zero ? The imaging on them is immaculate and hence I would say they are better for your purpose. Another good choice is final vr2000 though a bit over budget. I have these and nothing comes close to them in gaming

Why don't you consider the zero again ? The gate is also said to be really clean sounding.

Went from 7hz zero to Truthear Nova, also a 1DD 4BA setup. Main thing is seperation, the frequencies don't mush together. I honestly don't enjoy hearing normal speakers anymore lol. Quality is better, but I'd expect that when they cost over 5x more. A well built and tuned 1DD can probably sound better than a bad multiple driver setup though. I haven't heard the ew200 or zs10pro x so I can't compare them for you, but I've heard that the ew200 are one of the best single DD IEMs out there. TBH if I were you I'd just save up for a better pair, I don't think it'd be much of an upgrade.

I really love my 7hz Salnotes Zero, I always produce when I travel with them, they are not expressive and powerful like some other options, but in fact they have great quality in equalization

I have 7hz Salnotes Zero (first gen, two of them because they're crazy cheap now, like $12), CCA CRA, KZ ZST (which have a Fiio bluetooth set attached), and Shure SE215s. The SE215s are definitely the best as actual on-stage monitors since they have much better isolation (like earplugs that play sound, not just earbuds), but they're a bit above your budget at $100. The others are all pretty cheap, around a $20 price point, but those would all be good enough to practice with (and I've used them for exactly that). Going higher end will definitely get better quality, and the upgraded cables are *really* nice (I have [this](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09Z6XZQG3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1) on my SE215s, it's harder to justify a $20 cable for $20 IEMs, but it flows really nicely). For more expensive but not $100, the Truthear x Crinacle Zero stood out at ~$50 having a dual driver for better bass response, but I haven't had a chance to try it out. I know it's not the only one with dual (or more) drivers, I think it was just the cheapest when I was doing more digging. I ended up getting the Shures though.

I would say ZSN pro 2 that has v shape signature instead of these if you like energetic music to get you pumped up. For melodies 7hz salnotes zero is a much balanced iem. Also these are usually much cheaper on headphonezone.

Imo buying zero again would be the best choice, because from what I've seen from all the reviews they are good for clarity and detail when it comes to budget options.

Glad to help, I found it just now while searching, listening trough my lets say neutral sounding 7Hz zero, and those Kiwi Ears Quintet sound really good, but don't know if its thier proper presentation, but the midrange and actually also the bass is also deecent, but in comparison to other more bashead iem's they sount rather on the more neutral side, also a bit bright and the upper sounds are lacking something. Was listening to the comparison between ikko OH10s vs Kiwi Ears Quintet, that part with the elctronic music was bass on the OH10s really nice, then came the Quintet wit that bright signituere and after that my ears just cudnt addapt or something because the OH10s sounded way different, and that wasnt only on one track, also the jazz part good for OH10s, other parts were in favour for Quintet. Wold need to listen to more of those.

7hz Salnotes Zero or Tangzu Wan'er is good based on your preferrence. Wan'er does have a mic included in their cable. Or you could get the Tangzu Wan'er Studio Edition, it has less bass than the original Wan'er making it leaning to more neautral sound. I would like to also add the KZ-D-Fi, this is not a safe buy not for its tuning but due to its brand. Chu 2 is is more like a V-shape sound. Better get the Chu 2 DSP for a cleaner sound. Truthear Zero Red is trully great but be aware of its nozzle size as some have fit issues of them.

This is the way. I've been using IEM for like 20 years now, with pretty good ones for like 15 years. I still bought these KZ when the chifi-hype really kicked in. Didn't like them at all compared to my UE900 or Etymotic, but how would I know if I don't try things? My UE900 have been broken for 6 or 7 years now, but I never replaces them with IEM in that price bracket. One thing is that I like Hexas way more already and don't need to pay more, but it's also fun to explore. Before I pay 400€ again I'd rather buy a bunch of 20€ IEM, like I did with the 7Hz Zero, even if they're worse than others I own. I still have to try Wan'ers and the Bunny, I think, I never tried planars as well, stuff like that. It's a hobby, and everyone should do whatever is fun to them within that hobby. There's no "wrong".

As always, like everything when it comes to "quality" from food to electronics and to even more subjective quality of results such as music, everything has to start at the source. For example, my daughter's $20ish Tangzu Wan’Er, Vs my $400ish Shanling ME600 had almost no difference listening to one of her tracks which she "captured" via YouTube but when listening to another track that I bought from HDTracks, there's a world of difference. But to answer your question, only you can decide if spending xxxx of dollars is "worth it". For most, the $60ish KZ ZS10 Pro2 or the $70ish KZ ZS12 X or even the $40ish 7hz Zero is more than good enough. Also in my opinion, diminishing returns especially with the really excellent chi-fi IEMs starts at around the $150-$250 mark. For most users, owning any of the "fan favourite" around this price range is the sweet spot where you get the most bang for your dollars. Do you "need" to buy the "better" iEMs? No. But if you can afford them, understand that while there will be improvements, it's exponentially more expensive, and the "WANTS!" is great, why not?

I know there's a quite a few people who have been waiting for me to finally make this post. I apologize for the delay, I was still waiting for an iem to be delivered. A little background: I've been an fps gamer all my life. I used to play cod semi-profressionally and participated in both online and LAN tournaments for money. The main fps games I play today are apex, cod and siege. Ever since I discovered the audiophile world with studio headphones I was amazed how much better headphones sounded compared to gaming headsets. Fast forward to present day and I am now into IEMs and discovering which ones are the best for gaming. As a disclaimer my thoughts and opinions are my own. I understand there are YouTubers such as Fresh Reviews, Ryan Ho, and Gadgetry Tech that may or may not agree with my takes. So please take my thoughts and opinions with a grain of salt as I am just a chill guy who likes to game competitively. The way I determine if an iem (or headphone) is good for gaming is by 3 main categories: soundstage, imaging, and sound separation. A good and accurate soundstage has good width (x), height (y), and depth (z). Imaging, or stereo imaging, is the spacial perception and ability to perceive the precise placement of sounds. Essentially directional audio. I.e left, right, center, back, top left, etc. Sound separation in a iem or headphone is the ability to pick up different sounds at once without it overlapping each other. So the ability to hear explosions go off, gun shots, gadgets, footsteps, etc without distorting the other sounds. With that being said here's the list of iems that I've tried each with a short review and a rating out of 5 for gaming (3 is usable, anything less is not): CCZ BC01 Pro (1) - way too bassy, bad vertical directional audio. Better options CCZ BC04 Pro (2) - same issue as the BC01 but a much more tolerable bass. Better options Moondrop Chu 2 (1.5) - sound is okay, soundstage felt narrow to me. Imaging was okay. Sound separation was below average. Premium feel and build but I didn't like how heavy they were on my ears. Better options Truthear Gate (2) - sound great but not good for gaming. Narrow soundstage, imaging is okay, below average sound separation. Better options Truthear Zero Red (?) - literally couldn't fit in my ears properly without severe pain. So I couldn't test the IEM and returned it. Will be testing the zero 2 tho Truthear Hexa (4) - comfort is not that good, better than the zero reds tho, soundstage and imaging is okay, sound separation is decent. Also not a fan of how they sound tbh. Too neutral for me Tripowin Vivaci (3) - nearly identical to the zeros 2 in technical performance but I like the zero 2 more in terms of overall sound. And for $5 more you can get the 7Hz G1 which is better than both 7Hz Zero (2.5) - a bit too bright, zero 2 is better 7Hz Zero 2 (3) - average soundstage, decent imaging, below average sound separation. Best $20 iem imo, better options as you continue to go up in price 7Hz G1 (4.5) - a Klean but cheaper with a more fun v-shaped sound signature, get this if you're on a budget 7Hz Sonus (4.5) - the most underrated iem for gaming, great imaging and great soundstage but average sound separation. EW300 is a bit better cuz it has better sound separation Kiwi Ears Canta (3.5) - a bit too bright for most people, good imaging, okay soundstage, below average sound separation Kiwi Ears Quartet (4) - best soundstage imo, super comfy fit, imaging is okay and sound separation is average Kefine Klean (4.5) - a better Delci, better sound separation and arguably better sound signature imo Kefine Delci (4) - good soundstage and imaging, slightly above average sound separation Simgot EW300 (4.5) - nearly endgame but still needs better sound separation. Simgot EM6L (5) - endgame, great soundstage, great imaging, great sound separation. Can't recommend it due to it's nozzle QC issues. Otherwise I probably wouldn't use any other IEM for gaming but this Simgot Supermix 4 (3.5) - not endgame. Might get some hate for this but I was really not impressed by this iem for gaming. It had a narrow soundstage and okay imaging, good sound separation tho. EM6L is way better Other IEMs I am planning to review: ND Planet, Tangzu Waner 2, KZ EDC Pro, Truthear Zero 2 Blue, and Kiwi Ears Airoso Note - in the end I recommend the 7Hz G1, 7Hz Sonus and EW300. The DT 900 Pro X and 770 Pro X are my reference headphones for directional audio for competitive fps games. Those headphones essentially make me feel like I have wall hacks and the iems perform 85-90% as good. The best was definitely the EM6L where I felt nearly no difference in performance with my headphones but I can't recommend it because of the nozzle QC issue. It is an easy fix by super gluing it back on but that shouldn't even happen for an iem worth $110 in the first place. With that being said I will still review iems (and headphones) above and below the respective prices but I feel that you will be perfectly happy with the performance of the iems I recommended. Side Note: I'm currently in the process of building a website with the best gaming peripheral recommendations which includes not only iems but headphones, keyboards, mice, monitors, even pro controllers and more. Hope you all have a blessed day and find this helpful in your purchasing decision!

I'd pair a Simgot EW200 or 7hz Salnotes Zero with a USB C to 3.5 dongle dac (Apple's is good and $9), and that will give good sound for a mobile setup. The dac gives better sound, and you can also use different cables or iems if you get more.

Zero red ♥️

Update: I ended up deciding to buy 7hz salnotes zero. The decision was based on if I would like how a larger nozzle would fit in my ear. I can say that for the $20 they costed it was well worth it. I am leaning towards the truthear hexa as my next pair. Thanks all for the advice

Well only you can really answer that. The last mind-blowing IEM I’ve heard was a $20 7hz Salnotes Zero. Bought that literally on a whim. Mainly because of the 20% off Amazon coupon. Couldn’t believe how good that was for the money.

For a planar maybe your source device isn't as powerful as it might need. Getting a dac will help but you'd need to use it in dac exclusive mode otherwise it'll still be the phones DAC driving it (which lacks power) And to use this mode (bit perfect also is what it's called) you'd need a paid app like UAPP or download some MP3 and use Hiby music player which is free (there's usb exclusive mode in it). Id recommend trying Hiby with download music files (320 kbps MP3 or flac) and use a dac with it like the Abigail pro, conexant cx-pro ( i had this), or any dac with a cx31993 chip (just don't get kensound or such from Amazon ig). They cost around 1k. And most importantly you just need time to settle in to the sound signature.... Planars are resolution baddies, and besides the lstshoer s08 is quite well regarded as a planar. I'm positive with a dac in exclusive mode and some time to adjust to the tuning will change your view. I have the 7hz zero as well but I know quite well how much difference it and my dunu Titan s has that I still despite liking the zeros tuning more, always love listening with the Titan.

I love the 7HZ Zero but I feel like I could only recommend them to someone who already has a bit of experience with bright IEMs. I would recommend you to start Tangzu Wan'er or its studio edition. They are more of a completely neutral or neutral warm sound. If you want something fully warm without many treble Tachjim Bunny is a good option.Finally, if you want a good IEM with a V-shaped sound, I recommend KZ Saga Bass, KZ ZVX Pro or KZ Libra Balanced.

Sgor Luna at below $30 is a great option. Truthear Zero at around $45 (2 DD) is a great starting point. It has plenty of bass quality and quantity (one driver acts as subwoofer, the other handles mids and highs). T10 (single large planar driver) is awesome too, but it isn't great to look at. Planar bass packs a tight punch. It's different than bass from dynamic drivers though. At around $65-$70 (on sale): S08 and Aful Explorer. I've been using the 7hz zero on the road while maining Truthear Zero at home. I have Dioko for when I want brightness and that planar sound. Recently I went shopping for something new and ended up with: 1) KZ Castor Bass (good bass, fun, connector for KZ Az09 pro bt adapter). 2) Waner 2 (to try the new release and for Sancai tips) 3) Letshuoer S08 (expecting this dark planar to be my new main IEM. Also has a bunch of accessories I wanted). 4) Aful Explorer (similar to S08 in sound signature but with different, multi-driver tech). Plus I like its shell design. Have fun with your pick.

Iem user for over 10 years now. Never had any issues with iems. Wanted to tey hps anf got Lcd2c. Sold it off and went back to my iems. Speakers are still king followed by iems to me. Budget ones that you can look into are: Waner Zero/Zero 2 Chu ii Gate Blon 03 i/ii

a 20-50$ iem will sound much better than any non audio brand 10$ earphone and even rival 100-150$ wireless earbuds like a samsung or oneplus. an 200$ iem will sound better than an airpods, these are just logically normal things. when it comes to actually comparing against over ear headphones or speakers. under 100$ generally iems will be the best but there are some good like 70-80$ headphones that rival them. around 100-500 or even 1000$ you really cannot beat over ear headphones for sound quality, once you spend multiple thousand dollars then speakers rule. but these categories arent really comparable since they are used in different situations most of the times. people mostly use iems outside, headphones in front of a computer and speakers in the living room. I can say that on well mixed tracks you can definitely hear a difference, it does not make the song different or anything like that but you pick up on new details when comparing a 30$ iem to a 150$ one, but usually the more important one is the sound signature of it, some are very flat and neutral some are made for bass some are made to be the most clear and detailed some are focused on male or female vocals its all depending on your personal preference. personally when listening to just popular rock songs I do notice that 150$ ie200s have more detailed guitar sounds and more separated drums than 25$ 7hz zero's in terms of really high end iems, they arent really supposed to be competing with normal headphones or speakers but trying to get as close to them while still being portable and private so you can use them anywhere. at home I would not use my iems since I already have decent over ear headphones that are much more comfortable and are open back, but ofc I cant use them on the train so I use my iems. going into iems its probably a good idea to not spend a ton of money, 20-30$ options like 7hz zero2 or tangzu waner will sound much better than what you have in every way you can imagine for not much money, if you go up to like 80$ they will become more detailed and technically better but the general sound of the music wont change much. in the end they are just a piece of tech not anything elite or smart or whatever, like 1000$ iems and such are a niche and stuff most people wouldn't care about them, but more affordable ones are just objectively great value if you care about sound.

My recommendation will be 7 hz zero https://www.headphonezone.in/collections/beginner-audiophile-iems?sort_by=manual&filter.v.price.gte=2000&filter.v.price.lte=3000