DUNU - Studio SA6 MK2 / SA6II

DUSK(default dsp) - neutral, non-fatiguing, but still fun sa6 mk2 (u can buy it cheap) - super non-fatiguing and musical, bass off mode is more warm than neutral, still highly recommended mega5est - satisfies your description perfectly except the price is a bit higher Neutral: mega5est > DUSK > sa6 mk2 non-fatiguing: mega5est \~= sa6 mk2 > DUSK acoustic: mega5est >= DUSK >= sa6 mk2 vocal: sa6 mk2 > DUSK >= mega5est

Could try something with EST and very smooth extension if you want minimal masking like HBB Punch which is basically a KE4 with ESTs, though you're going to want to eq the bass down on punch if you want technical. Or you can try something bright like the Braindance. Also harman tuning overall like Volare/Variations would be good as they have a midbass tuck which leaves a clean impression and wider stage, or a bass-light airy harman like Studio4. Lower mids and 3k scoop can also open up the stage a lot, make everything sound very wide and enveloping and leave a very technical impression/much more layering/better perceived detail retrieval like SA6 mk2 (or ultra if you can find one) which are tuned rly similarly to Anole VX. EPZ P50 could be a good more affordable choice it's still a tribrid, with microplanars handling the treble.

Hi all. My small ears (*literally* toddler-sized) have been somewhat of a barrier for my enjoying IEMs in the past years, but now that I have come to learn more about IEM and eartip sizes, my enjoyment has grown considerably. So I thought I’d do a quick guide for beginners with small ears, as it took me years (and too much money…) to figure out what fits me and what doesn’t. Hope it helps. **IEM body and nozzle sizes** One of the most important factors for a good sound is **whether you can get a deep fit or not**, as that makes a *huge* difference to the treble. I define a deep fit as being able to *comfortably* push the tips into your ear canals, so that no part of the tips are in your outer ear, but the near-entirety of the tips are in the canals. The first step to getting a deep (and comfortable!) fit is picking an IEM that is sized to your ears. A good fit for small-eared people is **largely dependent on a good shell size and a small nozzle diameter**: **IEM sizing** * It is unfortunately very uncommon to know the exact size of the IEM body; you just have to rely on reviewers describing the IEMs as “small” or “medium”. * A smaller size is good, but not everything. I actually prefer a well-shaped CIEM style IEM like the SA6 MKII or the Yanyin Mahina to very small options like the IE600. * More important for me personally is the **nozzle diameter at the widest point**. With my tiny ears I can fit a relatively big shell size, but any nozzle diameter over 5.8mm is simply a no-go. The cutoff point for everyone will be different, but I think anything under 5.5mm will fit most, if not all small-eared people. * Nozzle diameters is an exact measurement you can often find online, but it’s sometimes a challenge to find. For budget IEMs AudioAmigo always includes a nozzle diameter and is a great resource; otherwise it’s just a question of googling it and hoping someone on Head-Fi mentions the nozzle diameter. I find that using quotation marks after the IEM name (i.e., Aful Explorer “nozzle diameter”, or Aful Explorer “nozzle size”) gives good results, or ask ChatGPT to try and find it for you, it’s also quite good at that. * As for brands that I can personally recommend for not only making amazing IEMs, but also doing so with relatively small shells and small nozzle diameters, I can recommend anything from **Aful** (usually 5.5mm), **64audio** (usually slightly under 5.5mm, and **Yanyin** (4.5mm with a lip of about 5.5mm). Yanyin Moonlight 2023 is currently my favourite IEM. If you really have tiny ears and need the smallest possible diameter, the answer is **Etymotics** with ER38-14A Small Beige Foam tips. CIEMs are good if you have a unique ear shape. Feel free to suggest other brands in the comments. **Eartips** Once you have an IEM that fits you well, you might need to get small aftermarket tips. * Included stock tips are rarely small-ear friendly. I define small tips as anything under 11mm in diameter, but this varies with the stiffness of the tip and so on. For me, my goldilocks zone for tips is 10-10.5mm. Smaller will mean a bad seal, larger will mean too much pressure on my ear canals. * Let’s get straight to my recommendations for small tips. Impressions are based on my hearing, nothing final, just to give you a quick impression. * **Spinfit CP100+ in SS size**. 10mm. The most comfortable tip I’ve ever tried. Slight bass boost, very slight air boost. I suggest you start with these. * **Whizzer SS20 in SS size**. 10mm. Very cheap tips. Very short and small, good if you don’t want to go too deep or need a close fit for Bone Conduction Drivers (these were perfect for my MEST MKIII). Increases upper mids and soundstage. * **Moondrop Spring in S size**. 10mm. Very small and sticky, but the walls are too hard for me. I don’t like these, but many do, and they’re relatively cheap. Increases treble generally. * **Whizzer ET100 in S size**. 10.5mm. Interesting shape, though the end bit is too hard for me, I still quite like them. Increases upper mids, reduces bass. * **Spinfit CP240 in S size. Double flange**. These make the treble sound amazing, but I don’t like the fit. Buy if you like the idea of dildo’ing your ear canal. * **Dunu S&S in S and M sizes.** 9mm and 10mm. The smallest tips you can get probably, but they just don’t really work for me. Still, I do recommend them, many people swear by them. Reduces bass, increases soundstage. * I haven’t tried these yet, but all these also measure under 11mm: Azla Sednaearfit Light SS, Spinfit Omni SS, Divinus Velvet SS, Tanchijm T300 S. Well, that’s about it for this small guide. Hope it helps!

Dunu SA6 MK2 is around $500 but you’ll never need any other headsets ever again.

Mid-high: Moondrop Variations, Sa6 Mk2 (530€) Both better than all you wrote. High: 7hz Supernova, Monarch Mk2 (800-900€) And there are much more better +1400€ For me, of your list I think best overall will be Estrella, Tea pro and Odissey. Different tunning.

Ive demo’d the mega5est before in Japan. It’s a fantastic all rounder, there’s no genres it performs poorly in. But as others have said, it lacks any specific tuning oddities to be especially exciting to listen to. I own a SA6 mkII. It is well tuned for female vocals and most genres where you aren’t looking for bass impact and slam. The lack of a dynamic driver makes the more anemic BA bass noticeable. Other than that however, it is a well tuned iem. I have tried someone’s pair of meteors a while back, so these impressions are a little more fuzzy. I wasn’t too happy about how there was no venting in the iem. As a result, the isolation was excellent, but the pressure feeling in the ear was unpleasant enough for me to dismiss owning a pair altogether. I will say however that I probably liked its tuning more than the SA6mkIIs. It has a U shaped tuning with more emphasis on the bass and treble, which can make it more engaging to listen to. As a result, this one has more coloured tuning compared to the previous 2 iems. I prefer iems with this type of tuning, as my favourite pair is the 64audio u4s. However, it is less natural sounding than the others due to this. To be honest, I personally would just get a pair of Hype4s. I find them more interesting to listen to, and they have enough technical performance to satisfy most people. However, if you want something that sounds mostly neutral and safe, the mega5ests are good. You might want to include what kinds of music you listen to, and what are you looking for in an iem when asking for a recommendation

I would argue that the Dunu SA6 has a very nice cable, the SA6U and MK2 also have very nice cables. I didn’t like the hulk mini at first but it gets better with use. They wrap easily, don’t kink whatsoever, and generally are very well behaved. Plus they feel like they are built like a tanks

I would argue that the Dunu SA6 has a very nice cable, the SA6U and MK2 also have very nice cables. I didn’t like the hulk mini at first but it gets better with use. They wrap easily, don’t kink whatsoever, and generally are very well behaved. Plus they feel like they are built like a tanks

I'm quite pleased with them. I started in iems in the wrong direction, the expensive ones. So far my history is shure se846, Noble k10, campfire Solaris, anole vx, empire ears legend x, and then Oriolus traillii. Then I wanted to get into headphones the same way, settled with the dunu sa6 mkii and fatfreq maestro mini for my iems. Found a good deal on tea pros, got em and it's what I listen to the most now. I do miss some lushness in the mids, but my music is better suited to v shape anyways, probably my ideal would be u shape (EDM, pop, hip hop) and I only got it because I heard it was good for gaming. It's so good at all of that, that I listen to it more than the Stax setup I bought. At retail price, I'd strongly consider it. At sale or good condition second hand, it's an instant buy for me

I listen to lots of metal, highly recommend dunu SA6 mk2. Very full sound, highs are present but not harsh.

Love mine and takes EQ really well.

I would recommend avoiding shopping by driver configuration as the final tonality and sound is not directly determined by the quantity / variety of drivers present in the IEM, it's a little more complicated then that. As for direct suggestions, if you already like the sound of the FH5, which I have tried for a while and enjoyed a lot as well, I would recommend you the following ones: - Dunu SA6 Mk2 - - > probably my favorite Iem of all, the semi-custom shell design helps a lot with the isolation and the sound is extremely balanced and spacious I've been using them for about 2 years at this point, pretty much my default daily driver (aka the one I most easily pick from my collection when I don't know which one to chose for the day) - 64audio U4s - - > almost a direct upgrade of the SA6 mk2, with a lot of tuning options for the bass (64audio apex modules, which are interchangeable plugs that tune the amount of sub-bass and bass) I've used them for about a few months, but even tho they sounded better overall than the SA6 mk2, I payed for them over double and the comfort and isolation was inferior to them. Ended up selling them to make budget for other iems to try - Unique Melody MEST Mk2 - - > probably my endgame iem, the sound is pretty much perfect for me, the bass hits hard, the spacial presentation is amazing, the amount of detail is astonishing. The comfort is better than the u4s, but lesser than the sa6mk2 Still have them, I keep them as my office iems (so I get to use them often without needing to move them around) They're hella pricy tho... Quick relative recap: Dunu sa6 mk2: Sound 8,5/10 Comfort & isolation 9,9/10 Price 9/10 64audio u4s: Sound 9/10 Comfort & isolation: 6,5/10 Price 7/10 UM Mest mk2: Sound: 9,9/10 Conform & isolation: 8,5/10 Price: 5/10 Sound measurement of all the iems mentioned: https://squig.link/?share=Harman_Adjusted_Target,Super_22_Target,IEF_Comp_Target,Fiio_FH5,Dunu_SA6_mkII_(off),64_Audio_U4s_(m20),Unique_Melody_MEST_mkII (the sa6mk2 have a little bass switch that enhances slightly the bass quantity, the u4s has the apex modules which tune the bass, you can select them from the graphing tool) Final suggestion, which I have just thought of: Custom iems, such as the A-line from 64audio, which would give you the best possible fit, comfort and isolation by giving you an Iem made EXACTLY for your ear. The price goes way up and reselling them would be complicated.

IEMs:- Campfire Andro 2020 > Shure se846 > Sennheiser ie800 > Dunu sa6 > Sony mdr ex800 > Sony xba N3 > final a4000 > Sennheiser ie200 > etymotic er2xr > Sennheiser ie600 > Kiwiears Cadenza > Shure se215 > blon bl03 > Moondrop Space travel Headphones:- Audeze LCD2C > AKG K701 > hd600 > hd660s > hd6xx > hd650 > Meze 109 > Koss porta pro > Grado sr225 > Grado sr80

Its more fun trying iems around 100-200 range than searching end games. This is interesting because I owned ie200 at some point. I quite enjoyed the base with tape mod. Found it better than ie800 and dunu sa6 I had then. I kept for that reason alone, but in the end, I didn't need it and sold it away.

I own a bunch of IEMs including several high end sets. Currently I believe the best set I own is the 64 Audio U12t, but the sets I use the most often are the SeeAudio Yume and Dunu SA6. I use those two sets the most because I often spend several hours wearing IEMs and find them comfortable and non-fatiguing. The tunings of both also align extremely well with my preferences.

Tea pros, Arcanis, volume s, dunu sa6, sa6est, isn h60, any hybrid, tribrid, or multi BA iem around $300-600