Moondrop - Chu 2
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Based on 1 year's data from Mar 8, 2026 How it works
Liked most:
61
17
"This is where these things really shine. ... They sound amazing. ... For somebody who's best sound experience was the Airpods Pro 2 and cheap 5 dollar earbuds, these things are astronomical in sound. ... I felt like my 3rd eye was opening. ... I felt like a kid in 13th century England being shown an iPhone 16. ... The bass hits hard, the vocals are clear, every instrument and every whisper is audible, this thing is crispy."
"I payed $27 for them. Beat the beats, sony, and jbl earphones i have."
"These are crazy. ... They are so good that I believe that most people who have never experienced GOOD sound quality from IEMs, could use these forever and never feel the need to upgrade. ... For less than 20, these are some of the best value. ... I would pay 50 dollars for these and not even question it."
50
1
"The Chu 2 is still probably the best $20 IEM overall ... Tier S some time ago, for build quality e price and sound ... Yes they are the top value for that price range for me, consider also Moondrop chu 2"
"This is where these things really shine. ... They sound amazing. ... For somebody who's best sound experience was the Airpods Pro 2 and cheap 5 dollar earbuds, these things are astronomical in sound. ... I felt like my 3rd eye was opening. ... I felt like a kid in 13th century England being shown an iPhone 16. ... The bass hits hard, the vocals are clear, every instrument and every whisper is audible, this thing is crispy."
"I payed $27 for them. Beat the beats, sony, and jbl earphones i have."
21
7
"These things are VERY durable in my experience. ... I've accidentally sat on them, banged them against the wall and table, slept on them, my cat even grabbed them and ran away dragging the IEMs on the floor, and yet they still feel and function the same as DAY 1."
"The build is absolutely phenomenal for the price and I’d say better than my 300 dollar pair of Softear Volume S."
"the chu 2 have the aluminum body ... The Chu 2 is still probably the best $20 IEM overall ... Alu in this price range is unique build quality, usually you find plastic, the value is great for me :)"
31
3
"These things are MAD comfortable. ... They go in, they disappear. ... I've used these for 8 hours a day, sometimes more, and I cannot tell you of a single day or moment in the time span of 3 months where I've felt discomfort in my ears because of them. ... These things are incredibly comfortable. ... I have had 0 issues with the Chu 2 in terms of comfort. ... When I first got the Chu 2, the first thing I noticed was how it stays in perfectly and how it feels like it just disappears in your ear, so yeah the fit is good, I used the Chu 2 daily for 3 months with over 4 hours of listening time a day and I had no issues with fit and comfort. ... My sister and my mom also tried the Chu 2 and they have small ears, but also found no issues with comfort or fit. ... I'm pretty sure the Chu 2 works well for small ears. ... The nozzle size is about 5.7mm-6mm so pretty standard and shouldn't cause any real issues. ... I think if you're going for something comfortable with a good fit, the Chu 2 would definitely be my top choice for a first IEM."
"and the most comfortable (it's absolutely TINY)"
"It's the most comfortable pair for me. ... I still use them for sleeping because they are really comfy."
10
5
"For gaming I recommend you get the chu 2, it has better sound stage and imaging ... If you think about gaming over music pick the chu 2"
"for gaming they are a very good option as well. I play mostly FPS and hearing enemy footsteps have never been easier with these."
"Great all rounder for competitive gaming"
Disliked most:
7
26
"The only good thing about the Chu II is the metal build quality (unless you live in humid areas, then you're screwed)"
"it broke like in 2 years"
"the cable broke☠️ ... Too bad I got the dsp ones and the cable broke on me"
15
13
"But it doesn't have much bass."
"the bass lacks a little. It sounds muffled on some heavy bass songs."
"meh, too much bloated low end for my liking."
4
7
"less harsh than the "vaunted" Chu II."
"the upper treble sometimes felt shouty/peaky ... They are never peaky/shouty like the chu 2’s, meaning I can comfortably raise the volume without worrying the upper treble to pierce my ears for some tracks. ... I also noticed that I can listen to these for much much longer without feeling fatigued like my Chu 2’s, because of how neutral they sound. They are more exciting than the hexa but I can’t listen to them for over an hour because of so."
"For Chu 2, if you dont mind shouty vocals and peaky trebles then it's fine, maybe?? It's not for me."
6
3
"Also, the chu 2 were pretty mediocre for gaming. ... Too much bass made hearing footsteps hard. ... I play CODM a lot (one of those ranked sweats)"
"In FPS games there is no soundstage."
"I don't think these are the best for gaming, there are definitely better ones ... There are better options for gaming"
3
4
"And they fall out of my right ear, which requires larger tips for a sealed fit,"
"Chu 2 dsp is solid if u have small ears, I didn't like the fit so I went with the Tangzu SG 2."
"The cable and eartips were awful and i bought other ones."
1800xavier 1.0From $200 to $1000 there’s practically no gain its like 800 extra for like 3% gain but from $20 chu2 to $200 iems omg the sound is so amazing all those extra drivers help so much it’s like your rediscover musice once you step into $100+ iems it’s impossible to listen to budget sets
AcceptableVersion233 1.0use mine while playing bass. it highlights too many mistakes lol
AdamoCZ 1.0Alright so everybody here has an opinion, most of them based on "trust me bro". There is a bunch of ~20usd iems, all of them having very similar tuning (tuning is ALL that matters in the sound of earphones/headphones). A lot of them, because they are cheap, come with bad cables that break over time (cables are usually the nost fragile thing on this stuff). Thus I would recommend the Truthear Gate, it comes with a cable that is far better than even cables that vome with iems costing 5x the price. Under 100usd, I would recommend the the Truthear Pure. It is tuned to be what we call neutral now (jm1 and -1db/Oct. Tilt), leaning a bit warm. KZ is... questionable. Some praise it for its price to performance, others hate it. What we are certain about is that they do not sound *objecitevly* correct, not even close to it sometimes. On top of that, they got questionable QC... and marketing practices (paying reviewers, silent revisions for the worse...) 7hz Salnotes Zero:2 - is a good option with a solid tuning, but many find it uncomfortable. Edit: The moondrop chu2 is also a solid option, but I would still go for the Gate.
Altrebelle 1.0I WHOLE HEARTEDLY AGREE WITH YOUR POINTS: https://preview.redd.it/vwxf7i53neye1.jpeg?width=2377&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9aafdf70e38f01e9e6e88692e4c7f79caca103d8 This is MY collection...and I'm very early in the journey. I don't have the budget, knowledge or experience to blind buy a 500USD+ set of in ears that may or may not fit my ears or my preferences. While my journey doesn't completely fit OP's blueprint...I have/had the same thought process regarding purchasing IEMs. Not pictured are the Moondrop Chu 2 and 7Hz Sonus. I started with the Chu 2, 7Hz Zero 2 and Kiwi Ears Cadenza. From listening, watching and reading reviews...I was able to learn about all the terms, labels, and vocabulary to describe what I like or don't like. I threw money at the Wyvern Abyss...I mean...LOOK AT THEM😂. The Kz Castor Bass was a curiosity buy...want to hear if a set touting bass response was really that bassy. My next steps were the NiceHCK F1 Pros, Kiwi Ears Canta and the 7Hz Sonus. The F1 Pros and the Sonu were on sale at the time of purchase...good value and able to narrow things down more for myself. I knew I liked the planar sound...I have a set of open ear planar cans. The F1s felt disappointing (until I tip rolled) The Sonus was about much for my taste (in the mids) The Cantas were quite nice for me. By this point...I had a good grasp of what I was looking for and the direction (s) I want to go in. AFUL Performer 5+2 is currently my go-to...for all around listening. Sourced from R2R DAC lined out into a desktop tube amp. It's like a warm blanket on crisp bright and snowy winter day. I picked up the Hexa because I wanted to hear the hype...and yes...they definitely fulfill the hype and then some. I've EQed my IEMs... especially the planar. They can mimic the sound...but it's only a part of the equation. I now rotate through 3-4 sets at my desktop listening station. The cheapo ones all have 3.5mm out for around the house or for bed. If they break...ill decide if I want to replace. Tip rolling is a journey of itself. Some tips can dramatically change an IEM and rescue it from the bottom of the pile. My Planars now sport foam tips...easing off the treble was huge. Anyway...long post...if you got this far thanks for sticking with my diarrhea of words. TLDR: I agree with the OP
if you can afford 2 sets...get the Salnotes zero 2 and either the Chu2 or the Wan'er. They should have different enough sound signatures that you can start making a decision which you might like. Watch the reviews for the two sets you buy. Learn the lingo...and what it is you're hearing. That knowledge will help you when you're looking for an upgrade later on
OP... don't get rid of your Astral. Someone else mentioned it already...but it's a lack.of reference that has you second guessing. EQ (parametric EQ) is a good tool. It can help you fine tune the sound of the IEM to your liking. But...the IEM should sound good to you out of the box. HD550...hmmm... just go for the legend. Save for the HD600. I wrote down my experiences and things I learned as a beginner [Posted here](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/s/u2D7CWFQw9) Go and find all the reviews you can on the Astral. Listen to the terminologies and try to associate what you hear from the Astral. Then pick up a budget set or two (if you want to learn) watch those reviews from the same reviewer. See if you can hear what they are hearing...and establish a frame of reference. Hope that makes sense. Outside of that...you picked a really good IEM. Stick with it. HD
check the community recs for under 50...that's where I started (kiwi ears cadenza, Moondrop Chu 2, and the 7Hz Salnotes x Crinacle Zero 2) There should be enough of a difference between 2 of those sets to start getting a frame of reference. You'll likely hear the differences between those and your Astral
AnyJester 1.0Decent headphones recommended to me on a synth discord I’m on. I like them. https://www.amazon.com/Moondrop-CHU-II-Performance-Interchangeable/dp/B0CB8HHS8V
I wanted to say I thought they were pretty flat and good for mixing but I couldn’t remember. I’m a novice among novices who midlife crisis’d into some gear.
BlackCountryWolf 1.0Tangzu Wan'er, Monndrop Chu II, Salnotes Zero 2 - they're all cheap as chips and you wouldn't go wrong with either of them!
No worries, you just need to find a style that you prefer. I probably use Dunu Candy eartips the most.
BLAZE5Z 1.0I had the Moondrop chu2 before this and a Razer BlackShark V2 headset and this sounds sooo much better.
I’m still somewhat new to this hobby lol, I only had the chu2 before this but I have tried the Blessing 3 and others, I’m still learning about the terms lol
The Chu2 had more bass and that thump, these have a neutral signature, this sounds very good and in games the footsteps are very clear and do not get muffled. The biggest issue I had with the Chu2 was the moisture issue which causes it’s filters to get clogged, I cleaned them regularly but this time it finally gave up and the filters were out of stock.
bnoufil145 1.0Moondrop Chu2 for me.
CappAlfredo 1.0Just picked up the super mix 4s, do you recommend a dac? I have two other IEMs (64audio Duos & [Moondrop CHU II](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CB8HHS8V?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1)) but the footstep audio for both are almost impossible to hear. Would a dac make any improvement in that freq range or do you recommend EQs? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Just picked up the super mix 4s, do you recommend a dac? I have two other IEMs (64audio Duos & [Moondrop CHU II](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CB8HHS8V?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1)) but the footstep audio for both are almost impossible to hear. Would a dac make any improvement in that freq range or do you recommend EQs? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Just picked up the super mix 4s, do you recommend a dac? I have two other IEMs (64audio Duos & [Moondrop CHU II](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CB8HHS8V?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1)) but the footstep audio for both are almost impossible to hear. Would a dac make any improvement in that freq range or do you recommend EQs? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Civil-Health-3018 1.0If you live in a cold and humid city, don't buy the chu, it has condensation issues due to its metal shell
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