Simgot - EM6L

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...

Have been blown away by my simgot em6l.

Though it may be a tad harsh in the treble, the Thieaudio Legacy 4 is probably your best bet. If you want something more relaxing and better for all genres, then the Simgot EM6L unless you can find a second hand Moondrop Blessing 2 (original or Dusk) for less than $200. ETA: I haven't tried the Meze Alba yet, but I've heard good things about it and the Empyrean is fantastic for orchestral music.

Probably either my Simgot EM6L or KZ Zenith. Both are fairly warm, V-shaped tunings that play it safe but keep it musical. Zenith has tuning toggle switches you can mess with to slightly modify the sound and the EM6L is just nicely tuned out of the box. Nothing crazy from either of them, but I wouldn't be mad if they were all I had. Probably the best in the $50-150 price range, but I'd honestly save money for something better or stick with something cheaper like the Zero2 and CHU2 since it doesn't really get good until the $300+ area imho. I could be dead wrong about that, but that's just from my experience.

EM6L are indeed good for gaming, but 7Hz G1 were also a good surprise.

My pick would be the EM6L. They are very detailed and pretty comfortable to wear during hours.

great but with the qc caviat of the nozzle just falling off for some people if you don't want to risk that then i'd look into cca hydro or simgot supermix4

Mine was still under warranty with linsoul when one of the nozzle fell off. Contacted them and they contacted with simgot about this. Within two week I got a package from china with a two compound glue. It's definitely an issue, not sure if they fixed it since but all you need is some glue. I had worse QC issues with chifi.

Been using EM6L with spinfit W1 eartips and a usb c dongle I got from Amazon. Great for games

It's a great first choice. When you are ready for a little extra, try the EW300. Or for a little more, the EM6L. By the way... Out of curiosity are you playing PC or console? How are you setting up your IEM?

I just got the AFUL performer 5+2 and can’t recommend them enough. Upgraded from simgot em6l if that helps you

I get what you are saying about the overall sound not sounding coherent. I get what you are saying about the piezo driver timbre. I understand why the piezo driver sound is noticeable to you since reviewers have mentioned this. Some reviewers have noted the the EW300 bass is sluggish and lacks layering. This is a thing which I have noted on some Simgot IEMs such as the EM6L yet not on other Simgot IEMs such as the EW200. Is this perhaps what you mean when you say that the bass sounds bloated and not so much the strength but instead the cleanliness of the bass? I ask since the Chu II and the EW300 have nearly identical sound signatures from sub bass all the way up to the upper midrange. Please check out these frequency response graphs: [https://vortexreviews.squig.link/?share=Bad\_Guy\_Target,Moondrop\_Chu\_2,Simgot\_EW300\_Silver,Kefine\_Klean\_Silver\_Nozzle](https://vortexreviews.squig.link/?share=Bad_Guy_Target,Moondrop_Chu_2,Simgot_EW300_Silver,Kefine_Klean_Silver_Nozzle) The driver incoherence can be solved by using a really nice single DD IEM. Lately I have been really pleased with the technical performance of the Kefine Klean since the clarity of the macro details is very nice. More surprising is the clarity in the micro details which is very impressive for 50 dollar price tag. In other words, I did enjoy the moment when I started listening to the Klean.The Klean's bass is not bloated as in being muddy. I find the Klean's bass to be surprisingly clean with similar texture and detail as the bass on the EW200.

Kinera Celest Relentless is what I’m using right now for gaming and honestly; I’m adoring them compared to my tin hifi t4’s. They are very comfortable despite being on the larger side, I’m enjoying the crunchy sounds from guns reloading in games right now. From marvel rivals to darktide. Good tones. Will say if you’re a bass junky I’d not go for them. In gaming you shouldn’t rly put bass too high for competitive games. I’d say my top worth investment wise for gaming is these, simgot ea500, & EM6L.

How good is em6l? I got it 3 days back and everywhere I am just reading that supermix 4 was better, it was just 2K INR more here. Should I return my em6l. My main purpose of usage is fps gaming, mainly cs2 and valorant.

For me it was a night and day difference.

I went from the EM6L > Kiwi Ears Quintet > Orchestra Lite > Tea Pro > Monarch MK3. I head a difference with every step up. I prefer the Quintet over the Tea Pro because the Tea Pro treble is darker and smoother and sounds less detailed imo. The Monarch MK3 is just absolutely amazing imo. I hear details in songs I've never heard before. The detail in every aspect is just amazing, and they're fun to listen to. They also do some black magic with soundstage and imaging. The MK3 sounds bigger than some openback headphones I've owned.

Great post! I’ve used the EM6L for a long time and was very satisfied. At some time I wanted to try planar and got the Hidizs MP145, let me tell you – it’s blows the EM6L out of the water! Everything I loved about the EM6L was multiplied, huge soundstage and great separation with super deep and clean bass.

The MP145 is the way to go! The only thing which does the EM6L „better“ is size. They are quite small and do really disappear inside your ear. The 145 are quite big in comparison, what never ever bothers me, especially while I am sitting at my desk. The wider soundstage is really unmatched with the 145 which I really like. The hole dynamic range of the planar drivers can also be otherworldly and is awesome for intensive games.

sad, have had the EM6L for about 8 months, but the silver tip on my left ain’t attached anymore and falls off every time I take off my ear bud, everything else is fine

I think the tiers that really went "oh that was a definite bump in quality" is listening to the moondrop chu 2, then something like the simgot em6l, and the the apevoix Grit. Each one was just a clear improvement in better detail, more resolving, better dynamics and soundstage, etc. But honestly I have multi thousand dollar over ear headphones and after I got the Grit.... I don't know if there's really a better sounding iem under like 7 or 800 bucks. It definitely pegged the price to performance as far as it goes.

I am with you. I play a lot fps and other games, and also collect vinyl and listen to music via a good HiFi System. I tried the last weeks the EM6L and the Supermix 4 as all big youtubers recommand them or better hyped them. a lot who are deep in IEM and headphones and frequencies graphes recommand them no wait hyped them too. Over a lot other IEMs. From audiophile side, stay away from both. get some good over ears for 120-200€ and you will enjoy music. For gaming. Try you buds which comes with your cellphone and tell me that you cant play a game anymore. Get a IEM, when you will, for around 30€ and play. You will see there is no real difference specially in the mids and more in treble where all the relevant sound is located in your games. American maybe Asians love bassy boomy IEM but thats not for music nore for gaming. Save the money you will have same fun, wont kill less enemies but can spent it for other things. maybe another inexpensive pair of IEM \^\^ Oh and never follow the hyped stuff. find your own way.

airpods are actually an excellent iem for fast paced fps. And using EM6L you'll be lost in apex. And other games you dont need verticality and pinpoint precision so yeah, it doesnt matter.  Use really is important here

Em6L or Supermix4, top end being Kiwi Astral, Ziigaat Crescent, Punch audio martilo are going to be the top for gaming outside of spending $450-550, get a Dac and amp or an all in one combo, life will be perfect afterwords for gaming and everything else, movies even single player games. Highly recommend dx5ii for gaming and scalpel like clean precise sound, you'll be clairvoyant in FPS where sound is mandatory.

EW300(HBB collab) ... SM4 on sale EM6L(EM6L is exactly 100 USD).. EM6L is the best for the price bracket..

To expand on this as well since you said up to ~$100 - it might be a bit over that depending on sales pricing etc., but if you want a heavy, thumpy sort of bass then the Aful Explorer is good for that. I find it to be a bit lacking in eargain, so vocals can sound a but recessed or muffled, but it's much smoother and doesn't have that grittiness to the treble that the Castor has. It's also extremely comfortable. Tips make quite a big difference to how the Explorer sounds as well. The Simgot EM6L is worth a look as well. It's tuned quite neutral and it's been a while since I listened to it, but I seem to remember it having quite tight and punchy bass, especially considering how neutral it looks on a graph.

> Simgot EM6L (5) - endgame, great soundstage, great imaging, great sound separation. Can't recommend it due to it's nozzle QC issues. The EM6L has been the de-facto standard recommendation for gaming for a while now and it sounds like that shouldn't change, given that it still seems to outperform everything else. The nozzle issue is pretty overblown TBH. A lot of people get the impression that the nozzle actually breaks and that this is a common problem. The reality is that it's just a metal *cover* over the nozzle. And it's trivially easy to glue it back on if it comes off. AFAIR, I've seen a total of 3 posts in 2 years about this happening and every one of those people just glued the nozzle cover back on without any trouble whatsoever. It would obviously be better if it didn't have this point of failure in the first place, but a known mode of failure with an easy fix is a hell of a lot better than an unknown mode of failure that might not be fixable.

I would go with the EM6L out of that list. The Hexa fits your description except for soundstage, which is quite narrow. The EM6L has excellent imaging and a decent soundstage which is why it is one of the consistent top recommendations for gamers. It's also a fairly neutral sound. Bassier than the Hexa, but I'd say the Hexa bass is a bit below neutral and is a bit limp as well. The Aria 2 AFAIK is also a good choice. I haven't heard it but it's supposed to be very similar to the Kato, which I have. The EM6L is probably a bit ahead for technicalities though, especially stereo imaging. I haven't heard the Titan S2 but most reviews say it's not as good s the original Titan S, which I have and is a great IEM. If you can get the Titan S, it fits what you're looking for. Vocals are one of its particular strong points. You don't want the Legato, that's a basshead ridiculous mud-fest. The Fudu is also warm, bassy and a bit muddy. Not what you're looking for. Haven't heard the DZ4, nor can I recall seeing any reviews of it. A cheap dongle like the Apple dongle or JCally JM6 Pro should be all you need unless you're considering a planar like the Artti T10 (there are no planars on your list). There's no point in spending a lot of money on DACs as the difference they make to the sound is tiny, whereas the difference the IEM makes is huge. You just need one with enough power to drive your IEM and most IEMs don't need much.

At least on Amazon UK: * Simgot EM6L is at its all-time low of £83.19 * Moondrop Aria 2 is at £71.99 which I've not been following, but seems like a good deal. Both the grey & red versions are the same price. I've heard conflicting things about whether the Red has a new tuning or not. * Moondrop Stellaris is back! I think it's discontinued and there wasn't any stock for a while there. It's currently £62.99 and got down to £54 before selling out last time. This is very much "caution advised" and only consider buying it if you have a lot of tips to experiment with, or are going to EQ it. I found it sounds amazing with Dunu Candy tips, but they might not work for everyone and it's super-bright normally.

Don't even consider the S12 if you're at all treble-sensitive. You should take a look at the Simgot EM6L if gaming is a priority. Check out GadgetryTech on Youtube, he very highly rates the EM6L and it's probably the most commonly recommended IEM in that price range for gaming. It's a good all-rounder tuning for music as well. Haven't heard the Aether so can't say anything about that one.

No, good IEMs don't come with a mic. There are some IEMs that have a mic option, but it's mostly the ultra-budget stuff. You can buy an upgrade cable that will work with any IEM, but personally I wouldn't recommend it for 2 reasons: 1. The occlusion effect (from having your ear canals blocked) makes your voice sound weird 2. The inline mic slightly reduces the sound quality of the IEM. If you're spending a lot of time on calls then unless you need more sound isolation, I'd get a flathead instead. You can get something the the Faaeal Iris 2.0 for about $5. It sounds surprisingly good for what it costs. Also you don't really want to be wearing IEMs all day, especially if it's mostly for calls. Having your ear canals blocked will lead to a build up of moisture and earwax, which is bad for the IEM and also bad for your ear canals. It's important to take breaks with IEMs both so that the IEM can dry out, and so that you don't get an ear infection. That's less of an issue with flatheads, although the foam covers can also cause some irritation. If you *only* care about calls then I'd have a look at Shokz bone conduction headphones. I have the OpenComm for this (the one with a boom mic). With these you have nothing in your ears so you can wear them all day without any problems at all. They sound like arse for music though. For gaming, an IEM is probably your best option, unless you just continue using whatever headset you have now for that. The Simgot EM6L is widely considered about the best IEM for gaming (if you spend more, it won't improve gaming performance past that point). And then get an upgrade cable with mic, or a separate desk mic if you want better sound quality. For cables, the main options are the Tripowin Zombur and Moondrop MC1 at mid-tier, or the Moondrop MC2 is probably the highest quality one. There's a cheap KBear one for about $3 if you want something that just works, but isn't the best cable (KBear make some good cables, but the one with the inline mic is their absolute cheapest cable). The quality of the inline mic on all these cables is about the same, AFAIK they all use the same capsule.

There is zero point in spending more than $100-ish on an IEM for gaming, unless you also plan to use it for general music listening most of the time (and know what you want). Gaming performance tops out with the Simgot EM6L, which is also a pretty solid all-rounder. If you're going to spend more than that you really ought to know what your tuning preferences are, which is only something you'll find out by trying other IEMs.

The EM6L is a pretty good all-rounder. Like I said if you're spending a lot of money on an IEM it's more about what you like than what suits a specific genre or use-case. There's no scale from worst to best, just different tunings (and some outliers that just aren't good). Someone suggested the Dusk which is probably a pretty safe bet if you really want to throw money at it without knowing what you like. It has built-in EQ so you can change the tuning easily and it comes with a number of presets that have been developed specifically for that IEM, so you don't need to actually learn EQ to use it. The only thing about the Dusk for gaming is that if you plan to use it with things like a PS5 controller then you'd need to swap out the cable, because it's USB C. It will work with a normal 3.5mm cable (and you can pick up a decent one for $5-20) but you do lose the EQ then. You may be better off starting with something dirt cheap like the KZ EDC Pro ($7) and using that to figure out what you would want in the longer term.

Thieaudio Legacy 2. Bear in mind that there's barely any accepted definition of neutral in headphones, and even less so in IEMs because the sound varies from person to person based on ear anatomy. Most of the bass-boosted new-meta IEMs released so far (KE4 and so on) sound either muddy or veiled to a lot of people, including the Truthear Pure which is more of a warm, down-tilted tuning, but some would also consider it neutral. The Legacy 2 is a bit older so doesn't follow that style of tuning, but it's not quite Harman either (which some consider v-shaped or u-shaped), it's closer to what most people subjectively say is quite neutral (mostly) and unlike the Hexa which has no bass, the L2 has slightly boosted sub-bass. The Simgot EM6L is also within the bounds of what some would call neutral, but it's bassier than the L2 and maybe a mild v-shape. Another neutral-ish option is the Dunu Titan S, which is a bit warmer and more vocal-forward. There's also the Aful Explorer which is quite L-shaped so I wouldn't really call it neutral, but it might fall within what you're actually looking for. It has more of a bass boost, but it's quite clean bass that doesn't muddying up everything else. But I do find vocals on it sound a bit recessed.

Haven't tried the SM4 but photos of it show a full-resin build, without the metal cover on the nozzle like the EM6L. The EM6L has a completely different build from all the other Simgots. At least the modern ones, from the EA500 onwards. It's also the only one with a QDC connector instead of normal 2-pin. I guess they used a different factory at that time and have since moved on. The EA-series are build like tanks. The EW200 isn't quite to the same level, but it's still pretty decent especially at its price-point. I think the EW300 also uses the same screw-in nozzles as the EA500/EA1000 series. Not sure about the EA2000 but that's another older one, not an upgraded EA1000. Also note that while it's not ideal that the nozzle cover falls off the EM6L, it is *just* a cover that holds the filter in place. It's a common misconception that the whole nozzle falls off, but that's not the case. That's why it can just be glued back in place easily. You can see it in OP's photo. The problem is finding a strong enough glue that won't come unstuck again too quickly, without risking accidentally getting some in the nozzle or making some other mistake that then can't be undone. Epoxy resin is probably the best, but you'd need to be super careful with it. Plus re-gluing a part just isn't something anyone should be expected to do ever, in an ideal world.

It's widely considered to be about the best IEM you can get for gaming, but it's also double OP's maximum budget. Not the best build quality from Simgot either. They probably changed factories after that, because it's the only one from their range with a QDC connector. Those can be more prone to snapping than 2-pin, although it's not as big of a problem on the EM6L as some implementations. But if it does snap, it ruins the whole IEM rather than just the cable, so you do need to be careful with them. Speaking of which, I did forget to mention in my reply to u/cartierisgod that they could probably just replace the cable on their Zero rather than buy a whole new IEM, unless the pins snapped off in the socket and it's impossible to get them out. There are a few past discussions about getting them out with pliers, tweezers, or as a last resort, superglue on a cocktail stick (that one is more likely to go wrong than work).

I haven't heard the Kai, but between the Hexa and the MagicOne, they are pretty comparable in terms of the midrange and I'd say the MagicOne is a bit nicer to listen to, but the Hexa is a better reference neutral. The MagicOne has a slightly "soft" sound where transients don't have as much of a sharp edge as they should ideally. This actually sounds very good and is great for relaxing, but it also sounds coloured. The MagicOne is slightly lacking in extension both in the sub-bass and the upper treble, whereas the Hexa has good extension both ends. The negatives of the Hexa are: * The nozzle is bigger than average, although not as huge as e.g., the Zero Red. It's short enough that shallow-insertion tips help if it's a problem and I find Zhu Rhyme tips work the best. * I'd say the bass is actually a bit below neutral, but tips choice helps and with a good seal it's pretty clear and avoids masking the mids. Again I find the Zhu Rhymes help with the bass, both to keep it sounding tight and linear, and not rolling off more than necessary. * The treble is slightly peaky, but it's not terrible * Soundstage is very narrow, but this shouldn't matter too much as far as a neutral reference is concerned. I'd say it's a slight colouration though as it goes the opposite way than something with an exaggeratedly wide soundstage. My preferred neutral reference is the Thieadio Legacy 2. It's slightly more upper-mid-forward than the Hexa, but both have pretty flat mids. The L2 tuning reminds me of the HD600. It has slightly more rolled-off treble than the Hexa, but that only matters if you care a lot about frequencies above ~12kHz. It's not really missing upper frequencies, but they are definitely quieter than true neutral. It's *smoother* than the Hexa though. Bass on the L2 is also a lot better than the Hexa. It's slightly boosted into the sub-bass, but the shelf starts low enough that there's no bass bleed. It's just enough that the bass is clear and present rather than sounding recessed. I also wouldn't discount the EM6L. I don't think it's really v-shaped and if you check a graph it looks very similar to the Hexa. I think it might sound v-shaped to some because it has much stronger bass than the Hexa, but IMO it's actually closer to neutral bass than the Hexa. Maybe a bit over, where the Hexa is a bit under. It's been a while since I heard the EM6L though, so take that with a pinch of salt - it's worth doing more research. I also wouldn't worry *too much* about the QC issues: it has a problem with the metal nozzle cover falling off, but it's literally just a cover, it's not the nozzle that actually breaks. It's very easy to glue back on. There's a post about it every couple of months. As far as thing that could go wrong with an IEM, it's not that bad and at least it has a well-proven easy fix. I'd be more concerned about the QDC connector, but I haven't seen any reports of that failing on the EM6L (whereas it fails all the time on the Wan'er).

What would you recommend for techno edm music I guess more sub bass focused? I almost bought this t10 pro until I saw your post, so under 200 usd for example aful explorer is marginally better for electronic? and also something like arcadia is more bassy than explorer? both explorer and arcadia are dd with ba so its better for the deep sub bass rumble than planar like t10 pro from what I understand right? for reference I have p1 max, em6l and truthear zero blue og, and I like best em6l for edm stuff ( with presets or EQ for warmer and more bass ) but I want to try bassier iems leaning to basshead, what are your insight, thanks man

Zsn pro acho que é v shape agressivo com muito agudo enquanto o edc pro é um vshape equilibrado e bem feito. Se vc gostou mesmo do zero blue que é um fone harman com bass boost então talvez deve gostar do supermix4 que também é harman. O Delci AE é um um fone mais warm é outra praia (tem bastante grave e agudos e médios-agudos recuados, graves de fones warm podem não ser limpos pra jogos), o Kefine Klean parece um v-shape bem feito e o em6L vi elogios pra jogos mas críticas que o bocal dele quebra/caí e não dura muito.

EM6L. I use them on a DAC and Special EQ but the Sound is great. Better than any other Headset I used in the past.

Its changeable nozzles. Cant change to different nozzles if glued. You're thinking about simgot em6l

Either the sm4, the quintet and maybe blessing 2 . May i suggest u the fatfreq deuce? Also in order to keep in mind your interest in gaming i think the sm4 is the best choice , ( deuce awful for competitive gaming but very immersive for single player) sm4 is kept in very much good consideration for footsteps etc etc. i have the EM6L and i have to say simgot has got better at lowering that annoying 5k and raising bass response.

100 percent on this. For the price these were my favorite set in that bracket.

Here’s another one for dozen you’ll be recommended, the EM6L. It’s generally very well regarded for gaming

Demoed the EM6L a while ago in a local audio store. It's good for the price in my country (around $70 or 80) but I'm not really tempted to buy it since the tuning is a bit V-shaped and mainstream-ish (well, you can EQ it). The technicalities are aight tho, definitely good for the price and can be decent for gaming, but yeah just not tempted to get it.

In my quest for the best gaming IEM, I've tried or owned the Tanchjim Oxygen, TripowinxHBB Olina, Softears RSV, Simgot EM6L, Letshuoer EJ07, Truthear Nova, and ZiiGaat Odyssey, among others not worth mentioning. Some $2,000 invested in my handicap of not being able to use open back headphones, which is most ideal for gaming by nearly every measure. Fuck me for having heatsinks for ears! What I've learned is that staging and, to a lesser degree, imaging are critical, yet often under appreciated when you see answers to the question of the best gaming IEM. By staging I mean being able to determine exactly where a particular sound (such as footsteps) is coming from in 2 or, ideally, 3 dimensional space, as well as distinguish it from other similar sounds coming from that direction that are even slightly nearer, farther, above, or below.  Currently, the ZiiGaat Odyssey, paired with DTS:X Headphones (worth paying for! Stick with balanced), Tripowin foam tips, and a decent DAC+AMP, is serving me the best in FPS games on PC like OW2, Squad, Battlefield, Marvel Rivals, and STALKER 2. Of all the IEMs I've tried, Odyssey's staging is the widest, most accurate, and most immersive for my ears. All the others I mentioned are varying degrees of "effective enough" at ensuring that I hear footsteps, but the Odyssey beats them all at telling me exactly where those footsteps are in 3 dimensions. It's also great for general purpose listening.

My ears aren't terribly educated, nor do I listen to metal, nor do I have any idea how EA500LM sounds like but I got an EM6L and I too am a light bass and neutral/boring sound enjoyer so here goes my two cents for EM6L: * Smooth, detailed, good separation, neutral(ish) sound so nothing jumps out at you like crazy, super pleasant listen for me. * Bass is there but nowhere near bloaty, as a non basshead myself compared to my Sony WF-1000XM3 the sound is a lot calmer in terms of bass and really enjoyable to me. * Vocals(blues and classical rock) are clear and forward whilst not being artifically pushed forward if that makes sense. * Treble is there and clear but not strident I would say, even the trebliest of guitar solos sound pleasant. * But I usually rock them on mid volume(50% 65% on windows, 3.5mm jack so no type c or dac) not even close to full. I have the slight hunch that trebles might end up tiring with high volume long sessions but high volume in general is tiring to me and I think I am super sensitive to trebles so it totally might be me and I wouldn't be able to confirm it for you. * Sound stage is nice and wide * But again I didn't own or use too many in ears prior to this. I own the Sony mentioned and Galaxy Buds FE, I can say the stage feels wider compared to both and wide enough for me. * Comfort is superb for me, no problem at all running them all day everyday when I WFH with constant meetings or music going on for 8+ hours. * Units themselves are light can barely tell I have them on. * Cable is nice and light, soft aswell which combined adds to comfort IMO. Take all with a grain of salt, super personal and early in my audio journey kind of views. Also I think that EM6L's are a bit notorious with their nozzle issue, you can google it. I learnt about it prior to purchase but found the fix to be not too difficult so I didn't care, just a heads up.

delci ae is better for gaming than em6l but worse for music edit:/ all around for $99 letshouer s08, it's better for music than these and just as good forgaming as em6l still not as good as delci ae tho

Letshouer S08 is as good as EM6L for gaming, better for music, it's my favourite all around IEM under $200 msrp that said Kefine Delci AE is best for gaming under $100 but I don't enjoy it for music I think even their Klean is better for music but it's also slightly worse for gaming, it's amazing value tho you can get them for under $40 on sale

EM6L + Blon V1 but you should look for Jcally JM20, it's cheaper if you not going to use 4.4mm no point in getting V1 for more money

EM6L + Blon V1 but you should look for Jcally JM20, it's cheaper if you not going to use 4.4mm no point in getting V1 for more money

for gaming specifically Kefine Delci AE($90) > Kefine Klean($50) > EM6L($110) > Truthear Zero($60, aka. Blue 1) = Tripowin x 0diBi: Vivace($30) > Simgot EW300($80) = Truthear Zero:Blue2(70) = Truthear x Crinacle Zero: Red($65) = QKZxHBB($20) > Moondrop Rays($100) I prefer everything here except maybe Vivace and QKZxHBB over Delci AE for music tho, this is strictly for gaming how they stack up

Blue 2 if you're set on that price range. The Simgot EM6L and Supermix 4 are much better bang for your buck though.

I enjoyed the Simgot EM6L, but there's better options nowadays. I'd probably go for the Simgot Supermix 4

Simgot EM6L. I’ll probably eventually get the supermixes but I’m still really happy with my current pair. Really really happy.

none of these are good. simgot EM6L, and there is no comparison to this. its that good.

simgot ea500lm & EM6L are both better than ew300.

simgot iems are all variations of bright tunings, with each upgrade offering better soundstage, technicalities & detail retrieval. so ew200zero red is a good option for a gaming iem under $100 but falls shorts in staging when compared to EM6L, staging in zero red is not satisfactory for gaming. EM6L basically has the best soundstage, technicalities & detail retrieval under $100.

for fps gaming, iems are god tier. dont believe me? try simgot em6l.

if you want bass, then i dont recommend em6l. its best for fps gaming. i dont know much about gaming iems with good amounts of bass so im not going to recommend anything but you can always just eq & increase bass.

get zero red. its good for gaming (em6l is the best one). also yes you do need a dac. get fiio ja11 or ka11 (if you wanna upgrade to a flagship iem in future). you can

Simgot EM6L is a solid choice around the $110 mark and gets recommended for gaming a lot. If you want to spend less, the TRUTHEAR Zero: Red is another great option. You probably don't need a DAC. If you're getting enough volume from your PC and don't hear any electrical noise or distortion, you're good to go. FWIW, I recently did an analysis on Reddit data for IEMs. Basically ranked them by aggregated sentiment. Maybe you'll find it helpful (google RedditRecs). You can filter by your price range and for comments about gaming, and get a breakdown of what ppl have said about the most often recommended ones (disclaimer some links are affiliate they help fund the analyses).

EM6L, but imo there's no meaningful difference between the good ones even if they sound and stage very differently. I can hear the same things with a Zero Red, G1 or even KZ Libra and get used to the sense of distance etc while the bad ones make it hard toake out where the sound is coming from.

EM6L is as good as it matters. Would I take an AKG K 700-series headphone with EQ and an amp over them, yes, but that's twice the cost if buying used. There are meaningful differences between IEMs when it comes to gaming and varying senses of distance and thus soundstage (even if the term refers to speakers) regardless of what some people commented. EM6L fits most ears and are a nice experience overall.

Simgot EM6L is nice since distances sound more normal with them than many others and they almost all ears nicely. Haven't had time to test the Defiant for gaming, but overall I'm very pleased with them.

Not entirely sure, but some otherwise good IEMs are just bad for distinguishing direction. Channel matching is certainly one thing, but rarely big enough to be the reason. Not just tuning either it seems. IEMs like B2 Dusk, Timeless and Performer 5 if I remember correctly were rather bad for gaming compared to Zero Red, Vivace or EM6L which are perfectly good. Looping the same gaming recordings with the first ones I struggle hearing directions that already know in advance while with the others it's obvious.

Check out Fresh Reviews on Youtube. He reviews IEMs purely from an FPS gaming perspective. I bought the Simgot EM6L last year to play Valorant based on his recommendation, however he has since updated his tier list. From the list you provided he would claim the Kefine Delci AE is the best pick.

I tried the Cadenza briefly and it was decent. IEMs I had that lead up to the Aethers are the Kleans, Xuan Nv, Phoenix Calls, and EM6L. The Aether was a blind buy into a planar but each upgrade was looking for improvement in comfort, soundstage, and most importantly was detail/clarity. I was originally looking at the super mix 4.

The biggest for me was clarity and detail retrieval. My version of it was basically how clear and true to life classical music could be since I come from a string orchestra background.The Aethers were the first one that could keep up with the rapid fire string crossings in Hilary Hahns Sibelius. The EM6Ls for example wasn't muddy with it but just sloppy enough that it was like a high level highschooler versus a world class violinist. And the rest of the orchestra sounded incredibly real. Tight bass is nice, I don't like too much bass, though some other DD sets seem to be a tad bit more "natural". 300+ is a tight ask for me ATM. Are the Aethers that commanding up to that price point?

Competitive fps gamer here. Ascendent Valorant a few years ago if that adds anything. The Senn 560S has been king for me for the past 4. Sound stage, 3d imagining, and absolute comfort. It is open back tho. The kiwi ears aether has been pretty nice for me in marvel rivals too if you really want an IEM. I like it more than the EM6L.

I think it is good to find out what you like first. Take a good pair of headphones, maybe your Bose, and go to peqdb.com. You can select the headphones you use and find out which target curve you like. Then you can look for IEMs which hit that curve and are in your budget. This is how I got the Simgot EM6L, which were on sale for 80 euros. Which I am very happy with, but your choice might be different.

As other people said, nothing is better than plugging it through USB, but due to what you want to do, your BTR15 has Aptx LL (low latency) but your computer does not, so I'd say look for a USB Bluetooth emissior with Aptx LL and see if that improves. How are you liking the EM6L? I love them :)

I'm probably one of the few people in this sub that have a pair of the Wave on hand. I took a liking to them initially for two reasons. They are doing something right about the timbre of instruments. Sounds of violins, oboes and horns on a higher range sounds just right and compared favourably to some other expensive IEMs that I was trying like the IE600. The weight of the horns especially sounded really great. The front edge of their sounds are really clean. So drum sets are really impactful and scratches and articulations on the violins are clearly heard. I moved on to trying cheap Chi-Fi sets though and put it away. I just dug it out again and compared to my Truthear Hexa and Simgot EM6L which are roundabout the same price point. I think those two point still stands, but the overall tuning for the Hexa and EM6L are less fatiguing. I don't have a measuring rig, nor am I that proficient with audiophile lingo yet, so can't give you a good description of its tonality. They are clearly marketed differently to Chi-Fi IEMs though. Seems they've been bombarding facebook and other traditional advertising platforms rather than sending out free copies to audiophile reviewers. Also they seem to be meant for musicians monitoring feeds and not for enjoying music, though from the few reviews I've seen they don't seem to be tuned like typical monitor IEMs with recessed 1-3k for hearing protection. Anyway I liked them, but for a first pair its probably safer to get a cheaper Chi-Fi set that has been hyped by mainstream reviewers that have done measurements and the like as they probably appeal to more people.

Nah, the EM6L yes, but the ea500lm is so bright

For 100 you can get the simgot em6l and you won't be disappointed, they do everything

I had them all and I even tested tripowin vivace and in the end I ended up deciding on em6l. supermix4 hurt my ears, too much treble for me, ew300 good all round but imaging compared to em6l is far behind.

yes definitely. I didn’t think the supermix 4 sounded much better, but the highs were much more aggressive. I played for 1/2 hour and was in pain. It’s very difficult to review CS. Thanks to Amazon.es, I tested them all... I ordered them, tried them for 1/2 weeks and returned them. I also had the Zero Red, gate and hexa but the order for me was em6l, ew300, tripowin, red, supermix, hexa and gate.

I play cs2 only… My journey was Red Zero, Gate, ew300 and now the absolute best and for me perfect (tested supermix 4 too) are the Simgot Em6l. Perfect imaging, steps, the perception of distance is incredible.

Got it for around 4 yrs now, they cracked recently because it fell, as for the nozzle, it did fell off but it is pretty easy to put it back on for one last time. The glue they used on it isnt really good so when it falls off, just glue it. Pick a kind of glue that you can put only a little of it so it will not feel uncomfy when you use it

Ew300, em6l, supermix 4 Hybrids : DD + planar + piezo. DD + BA DD + BA + planar + piezo. All 3 are recommended for games.

1. Position – It’s pretty comfy and stays in place well, so I don’t have to keep adjusting it during long sessions. That’s a big plus for me. 2. Accuracy – The sound is clear and detailed, which really helps when you need to hear footsteps or gunshots and figure out where they’re coming from. 3. Small details – It picks up on the little things like ambient sounds and directional cues really nicely, which makes the game feel more immersive. 4. Soundstage & Cons – The soundstage is decent, giving a good sense of space, but it’s not super wide compared to some pricier headphones.

okay, for starter, i only got em6l and tea pro for now. if i can describe it, the em6l sounds... loose, like it sounds good, but it doesn't engage much. now if we're talking about tea pro? the sounds grab you tightly like it's saying, "Look at me only." one thing i found funny, when i do a/b comparison test on a 8d video on barbershop, i find that, yeah i can feel the snipping scissors, i can hear the footsteps of the barberman on em6l but like i said, it's just good enough. but when i put the tea pro, i can accurately tell where he is, what he is doing, and heck, the snipping scissors felt so real it tickled my ears and brain. i did a little illustration for this, i hope this can explain a bit [here it is](https://imgur.com/a/Ti7p5ue) edit: the box in the image is supposed to represent the soundstage. so while the em6l is wide, it is somehow narrow too. while the tea pro is, well, wide in width and height.

Literally coming to comment this, grabbed some simgot em6ls for tarkov and they’re a game changer

I now have iems, and the difference in imaging between them and my old Astros is night and day. It's incredible how much clearer directional audio is. Before these I had a pair of studio headphones too. The beyer Dt990 pros. I loved these, one of the most comfortable pair of headphones I've ever put on. My only complaint is they were veryyy bright, which made them great for footsteps, but that extra whatever in the high pitch frequencies made them pretty exhausting for long sessions, 4+ hours or so. OP also left out closed back vs open backed headphones. Closed back for enclosed sound stage, cuts out most of the ambient noise in your environment, great for if you play in a loud area. Open back = let's in outside sound, and also let's your sound out, so not exactly great if someone is trying to nap behind you. Open backs have better sound stage (distance) than closed backs, I don't remember if one has better imagine than the other though

I mean we are on the warzone sub lmao. Yes, I do play warzone with them. If you click my profile you can see me wearing them in recent video posts. I use the sigmot em6l currently. They seemed to be consistently rated as fantastic for fps games in the 100$ price range. Now that I know I enjoy iems ill bump up to the $250/300 range whenever I want to upgrade. I also got a different cord and diff ear buds for them. Dt990s - yes that's exactly what I mean by bright. Any high pitch noise was pretty harsh. Gunshots, tje drop plane, KILL STREAKA, omg fucking PAs were so brutal for some reason. After long sessions it was very tiring on my ear drums. You CAN eq that treble out of the headsets, there's a super popular eq curve put there specifically for tje dt990s, but i never did it myself. On the iems, it's not actually the sound that's tiring, its the feeling of the ear buds. Possibly bc my tips may be sized slightly to small (or big? Idk i need to play with the different tips I got again). It's really not bad, just slightly uncomfortable after a 4+ hour session. Infinitely better than the tired feeling my ears would sometimes get from the Dt990s

You can get cheaper iems too. The 100-250$ price range has some great options for gaming. My 1st pair were the sigmot em6l at around 110$. I'd recommend them to anyone as a 1st step to see if they even liked using iems

I have the EM6L and if you think they’re end game, my god, the Xenns Top that I have would blow your mind.

I have these. I do not use them for FPS gaming. They are strictly used with a Bluetooth adapter at work. The footstep resolution was god awful. In order of budget for decent footstep imaging on IEMs, Kefine Klean($50), Kefine Delci AE($75), Simgot EM6L ($100), Simgot Supermix 4 ($150). I have the Supermix 4s and am able to pinpoint footsteps just fine. The Kefine Cleans are really good for the money, just make sure you use the silver nozzle for gaming if you go that route.

Moondrop just released the Rays at $99. It comes with a DSP USB c cable that you're able to store tunings on. The stock tuning is performing pretty well in fps games. Another good one is the Simgot EM6L. If you ever think about stretching a little bit the Simgot Supermix 4 is excellent if you can get it around $130 or so.

Mmmm, I'd go with EM6L or EW 300 from your list. I was Imm 1, and I use KE4's for gaming, not the best, but gets the job done (I previously was using Truthear Hexas). My radiant friend, has been using Super Mix 4's for about 6 months, and before that he was using Dunu Kima's. We both play Extraction shooters on the side like ABI and Tarkov, and we're able to clearly recognize what direction sounds are coming from, and each specific sound (footsteps, voip, nades, etc). Kefine Delci AE wouldn't be a bad pick either, have heard good things, I just haven't tried them yet. I have the OG Zero Blue, and I think they're okay for gaming, definitely worth the price though.

em6l is by far the best bang for buck tbh, just under 100 on sale and great for gaming. not the best for music for that price range though, magicone it's probably better

I have the EM6L connected to the FiiO K11. My favorite IEM for gaming. Do you purchase for gaming or music?

I’m not an audiophile by any means, but I went from the cheapest steel series headphones to the simgot em6l and I’m happy with how they sound in control and the tlou 2

Truthear Nova if u can get a promo to 100$ or Truthear zero's ( blue or red both good for 40$/50$) Don't get em6l - they are good in only comp games (you can hear the footsteps , directions etc but for me its sounds off, have a muddy feel) , Nozzle - issues (falling apart ), super smooth nozzle causes tips to pop out

I have the Salnotes Zero:2 and Simgot EM6L, the EM6L are ok for EDM (my main music I listen to as well) but separate really well and have tons of detail, so you can hear each synth and sound super well. However they are light on bass. The Zero:2 have more bass but can be a little muddy, I wouldn’t say they are overpowering bassy though. I recently had a chance to listen to the Kiwi Ears Cadenza and the QKZ X HBB. The HBB have crazy amounts of bass that never felt overpowering to me, I really enjoyed them for heavier bass EDM. However, for overall I really really really enjoyed the Cadenza for basically anything and everything. Solid bass for EDM with a surprising amount of detail for a single dynamic driver, good separation, decent soundstage, and it handled every other genre well (I also listen to classical, country, rap/hip-hop, rock, and R&B). I am highly considering selling my Zero:2 and getting Cadenza because it sounds super similar but technicalities are way better on the Cadenza. 7hz Dioko is pretty solid as well if you want to try planar, they sound BIG! It’s the only way I can think to describe them.

I own the EM6Ls and I love them for gaming and music. If you get a good seal they have really good quality bass imo. It doesn’t rumble your brains like a FatFreq or Kiwi Ears x HBB Punch would (I haven’t heard them but I know those IEMs have oodles of bass) but it’s solid. The treble is a smidge high for me in some tracks, but it’s not often that it is. I thoroughly enjoy them

I have never heard them, but I know they supposedly image and soundstage a little better. I like the soundstage of the EM6L and love its imaging, it’s very accurate. You can compare FR graphs and see the difference in sound, I think the super mix has a little more treble but I don’t remember off the top of my head

EM6L have no competition in their price range. I have them and they are truly impressive for gaming and great for anything else. But for under 24$? I honestly don't know and would not recommend anything for gaming for that price. The only option would be Tripowin Vivace for around 29$ or a bit less on sale, but they have no mic option AFAIK.

Don’t get EM6L, because of the build/nozzle issues. They are great IEM but not worth the money because of their bad quality control and nozzle design.

If for gaming exclusively, get yourself a set of Simgot EM6Ls. They have their reputation for a reason.

Truthear or Simgot are both great budget gaming IEMs. You don’t need much more than what either of these brands offer for gaming usage. My personal favourite is Simgot EM6L but Supermix 4 has been said to be slightly better. YMMV.

My SM4 suddenly died from a day to another and I haven't been able to get a replacement or repairment since it was a review sample. I liked it a lot. The Defiant tuned very close in terms of low-end but they have more bass punch, whereas the Simgot were a bit less dynamic in that regard. However, the SM4 were more detailed and sparkling up top and the imaging and soundstage were slightly better. I'd say go for the Supermix 4 if you can handle some brightness and if you have the budget. Instead, go for the Defiant if you want a less emphasized treble yet with slightly inferior technical performance, punchier/more tactile and more textured bass and if you want to save some money.

I second the EM6L specially for R6

Dt900 pro x with upgraded pads and a ifi zen dac v2. I’ll sometimes use my simgot em6l iems I think best bang for your buck though is iems

For FPS em6l is what I’d go for. Much more comfortable and better imaging. I think they’re a sleeper in this area. If you want a relaxed, smooth set you can wear for hours without fatigue, for a little more money as well: Xuan Nv but look out for quality issues.

I’m a bit skeptical of tier lists. For instance here I’d say em6ls and EW300s are underrated. And your mileage will vary greatly if you don’t use a dongle for some of these because motherboard audio can make some sound horrible. Especially planars or even the Zeros.  The main thing is the bang for the buck. You can get great IEMs for a low price that will compete with much higher priced headphones. Imaging has more to do with the sound design of the game than anything else. 

I'd say for games like CS2/Valorant, you should definently get the EM6L and for more immersive types of games get the Supermix.

# After a few months of my first mega list of options under $50 dollars...  \---------- ***Click here for the sub $50 list:*** [https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/s/WfhfLLl0np](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/s/WfhfLLl0np)  \---------- ... Finally, after so much corrections and problems, I can post my next list, I’m sorry for coming this late though, I hope people still finds it useful, this time, I came with options ranging from around $110 dollars (counting in discounts) down to $60 for those looking for a little more advanced options, either to make an upgrade to your cheaper IEMs, or to get started in the hobby, in any case, you are welcome.   Unlike the first list, this time I won't detail so many things before listing options, if you want to know about where to possibly buy IEMs safely, which reviewers to check on YouTube for second opinions, and even understand a bit more of the terminologies used in the “audiophile lingo”, please check out the Sub $50 list, this one has two parts and explains a lot of this already.   \---------- # PLEASE DO TAKE IN MIND: That I’m just a single person doing this compilation of information, this list is based off the general impressions of various trustworthy reviewers on these iems. This is **NOT** a ranking list, this **NOT** my personal best picks, and I do **NOT** own all of the iems on the list. This IS just a list for you to have alternatives to pick of fairly recent, good, safe-ish iems to pick from.   There is so much a single person can do, so, **if you see any glaring error** with the description of any iem, or if you think there is any model left out that should be on this list, **please do let me know**, remember that this list only goes up to $110 because it will drop down to under $100 often on discounts, please do not mention iems over $110 or under $60.   Here, before I start, I'm just going to make some specific clarifications that people should keep in mind when looking to buy any IEM in this price range. Do consider that **I’m being very superficial here**, this is **not** full audio engineer knowledge being explained in a simplistic way, rather, this is more like **summarized general concepts** to help people grasp basic ideas that they could need to know when entering the hobby. \---------- ***Over-reach Update:*** Per request of various people in the post, I will be adding iems around $120-$130 to consider grabbing if you see it below $100. # Gaming Update: As quite a lot of people have been asking for gaming options, ill make this update marking iems with performance rakings from the "WALLHACK CERTIFIED IEM TIER LIST" of Reviwer Fresh Reviews, who is pretty well known for recomending iems for gaming use, just be aware that this does not reflect my opinion about each IEM nor does it ensure that you will have an excellent video game experience just because its listed. The Fresh Reviews system gives letter grades where “S” is the best grade, going down from S-A to C+, where C+ means that they are the minimum sufficient to be able to play video games with. The way I will mark it would be putting the score besides the name "(with FRS: “Mark obtained”)" (FRS = Fresh Reviews Score), example: Truthear Zero Red (FRS: C+), if you don't see this mark, it means that either Fresh Reviews did not consider it good for gaming, or did not review the product. \---------- # Relevant clarifications:  **---** * **“Hybrid IEMs = Better?”** A constant question you see these days is “are more drivers better than one?” and the answer is always: in budget price ranges? absolutely not, especially under $100. What mostly dictates the sound quality and technicality of a headphone is the quality of the driver(s) used, it doesn't matter if an earphone has 20 drivers per side at this price range, if another company is selling you one with only 1 driver, and people say it's good, that's because it usually is, the amount of drivers in lower price ranges means almost nothing, there may be extra benefits of having more drivers, but those benefits are not a “game changer” in this price range, pick based on performance, use case and sound preference, not on driver config…UNLESS you dislike the way that one specific type of driver produces sound..  \--- * **“What’s a Planar?”** IEMs that only use planar drivers are a special thing because usually drivers of this type offer very good and balanced technicalities in general at this price range, you know: separation, detail, resolution, soundstage, and all those terms you have heard. What happens is that most of these drivers also have some disadvantages that pay in return for the techs, among them the most common ones are: * That some people consider that the noise they produce in vocals and treble sounds somewhat “metallic”, which can be annoying or distracting. * \- * The second problem is that usually planar drivers, at least in this price range, do not have the most textured or impactful bass, they may have good bass presence and rumble, but they usually do not get to be as intense and feel as physical as a good dynamic driver can. * \- * And finally, planar drivers usually require a decent amount of amplification from a DAC to perform to the best of their capabilities, if you plan on choosing a full planar IEM, you really, ideally, should be running them with a DAC, unlike other driver types or even hybrid configurations at this price range, a planar IEM can exhibit noticeable changes in sound and performance when not properly amplified, especially reducing their overall technicalities and sounding less clean than they should. IF YOU CAN, hook them to a good dongle DAC with a 4.4mm cable for the best amplification possible. That's why, when I say that a planar will need “good application”, I mean that you'll probably want to use something more than the typical apple dongle recommendation to move a planar earphone, mostly just to make sure you are powering them correctly.  \--- * **“Should I get a dongle DAC?”** And the last point, although speaking of amplification again, above $50 you really should start considering getting a dongle DAC for your IEMs, because, while even at this price point, most iems could work pretty fine without it, you could likely end up leaving some performance “on the table” if they are underpowered. It is not obligatory for you to get one, specially if you dont get a planar, but also don’t be surprised if your iems doesn’t give you enough volume or if your new iems doesn’t seem to perform as great as most people say, you don’t need anything too fancy, just try a basic dongle dac in the $15-$40 price range, the normal cheap rec is the Apple dongle (US version), but you can always get something a bit more durable, and then judge your experience based on it. And if it’s possible to you, specially with planars, using a 4.4mm cable (on a compatible DAC) to get the most energy out of your dac will ensure that your iems aren’t under-amplified in most cases, is not a must in any way, shape of form, but you could try it if you can (but please, just dont use 3.5mm to 4.4mm adapters as those could damage some of your equipment if they are made improperly). By the way, the reason why i recommend a 4.4mm is because you can easily get more energy out of your same dac (if it has both conections, of course) using a 4.4mm vs the 3.5mm on the same DAC, you can always, get a very decent 3.5mm DAC too.   \---------- # SUB $100 IEM MEGA PICK LIST: (This list now cover iems mostly\* down from $60 up to $100, with some extra options that could be around $120, but that could be picked below $100 if on sale, please take that in mind. The prices listed are just the stock price, often lower on sales). ***Purchase links disclaimer:*** The links included are affiliate links, but make sure to check vendor reviews when you make any AliExpress purchases. The links have no influence on which IEMs are recommended or picked for the list.   \----- # BASSY IEMs. The option for people looking for a bassy, rumbly, thumpy or just warm and relaxed experience, if you want good bass, check here. **NOT EVERYTHING HERE IS BASS HEAVY.**  \----- * ***($109) 7hz Legato (FRS: C+):*** The bass canon pick under $100, plenty of quality bass for your basshead needs, with just enough of upper half energy on the sound to not be unusable. It’s recommended to be used with things like wide bore eartips for extra clarity. Technicalities are a bit below average since the heavy bass isn’t the best for detail, but still very competitive, the basshead upgrade path from the QKZxHBB. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mqJdKzH)  \----- * ***($90) Tangzu Fudu (FRS: B-):*** A relaxed, bassy and smooth experience, most people say they are pretty comfortable, but the nozzle is slightly on the large size. It has an overall clean-ish sound, nice and warm-ish well-done vocals, and smooth treble. Average good technicalities despite the extra bass and the smooth presentation. Should Work for gaming, although bass could be a bit too distracting for competitive. Also, the bass is not super powerful, as it is more of a relaxed set, so don’t get it just for the amount of bass it has, but also for the style of sound. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mqvuzOT)  \----- * ***($75) Kefine Delci/AE (AE FRS: B):*** A pretty good bass leaning iem, some consider it the step up from the BLON BL03, as it manages to have great bass qualities while still presenting nice enough vocals and detailed treble. There is some warmness in vocals, not the cleanest sound from the price range, but it makes for a more relaxed and bassy listening experience, that manages to be engaging when it needs to be, especially with the pretty thumpy and rumbly bass. Vocals are natural enough despite the extra warmness, just not the main focus of the iem. The treble is on the energetic side, but not too intense that it makes it a V-shape. Technicalities are fine for the price range, but the bassy sound just makes it a not so “clear” sounding iem, a better if you are into bassy stuff. If you would like the performance of the Delci for bass, but also would like to be able to use it for gaming, check the Delci AE with the interchangable nozzles for 2 tunings and more versatile usage. Not a common recommendation for gaming, at least not for competitive gaming. But the usual bassy recommendation under $100. Check it out here (Regular): [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mKaEwxD) Check it out here (AE): [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mKT5q5H)  \----- * ***($70) TRN White Tiger:*** Funny and energetic, yet not aggressive, bassy V-shaped iem, nice bass quality for the price, with good balance between sub-bass and mid-bass, the bass does have a bit of muddiness (bleed) to it, but doesn’t drown the vocals at all, is tastefully done and vocals are fine enough, the treble is a bit forward, but nothing too intense, nice technicalities for the price, an alternative to the Titan S2 if you feel like lacking bass and too much vocal energy. It comes with 3 different tuning nozzles, so check each one, but most people likes the green or red ones. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mMYoBHt)  \----- * ***($99) Letshuoer S08 (FRS: B-):*** Bassy focused approach to a planar iem, nice rumbly bass, although not the most physical or hard hitting one since it’s a planar, but it definitely does a better job with the bass than other planars around this price point, it still shares all those great technicalities of planars under $100, but also still requires good amplification, that said, it is slightly less "power hungry" than other planars in the list, so an “apple dongle” type of dongle might be just enough, but if you can get something better, could be the better option. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mL3X5zv)  \----- * ***($120) Aful Explorer:*** Warm-bassy, Inmersive IEM. The bass is rumbly, thick, with body, but its not on the intense/super punchy side, sub-bass over mid-bass approach. Vocals are on the clean side, with some Energy, but not pushed as foward as on balanced sets, not that natural in the upper vocals though. The treble is enough, smooth and detailed, but is not that detailed or open feeling, safer relaxed treble over detailed and clear sound. Technicalities overall are good for the elevated price. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mNhhRI3) \----- * ***($126) CCA Hydro:*** V-shaped, clean-cut Harman style bass, energetic IEM. The direct step-up all the way down from the Castor Bass and the CCA Rhapsody. The bass sacrificies a little bit the amount for extra quality: control, tactile thumpy punch and clean deep rumble, still giving good body to deep male vocals with minimal "bload", you can always boost it up a bit with the tuning switches though. Vocals mamage to be correct and Somewhat natural and detailed, they pop out enough and dont get as thin as other V-shaped iems. Treble is on the energetic side, maybe could be borderline too intense for some, but it also manages to give nice detail while not being too aggressive with it, be aware if you are sensitive to treble tho, this time, the bass cant be boosted too much with the switches to balance things out, also, the sound of the treble could come as a bit "metallic" for some thanks to the driver config. Technicalities are decent but stock price is a bit too high. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mPV3RvZ)   \---------- # BALANCED/NEUTRAL IEMs. Here you will find anything with just enough of both bass and treble for your music needs, some might lean a bit into the bass, others might have some extra treble, but the lean is not big enough to call it bassy or bright. **NOT VERYTHING IN HERE IS “NEUTRAL"**.  \----- * ***($80)*** [***Dunu Titan S2***](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1h8nzjb/the_rekindled_spark_dunu_titan_s2_review/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) ***(FRS: C+):*** A mild V-Shaped balanced iem with an edge on vocals, specially female vocals, pretty engaging energy, it uses some extra bass and treble to balance things out compared to the original Titan. The bass is pretty rich and clean, but it also loses a bit of body on male vocals vs the OG Titan, still warm, just not the same focus, it has good punch to it and decent rumble, with focus on the mid-bass but not too boosted over sub-bass, and has decent texture, overall great bass quality. The vocals, because of the V-shaped style, do sound slightly less natural than on the OG, but they aren’t as recessed as other V-shape sets. The treble quality is good but could come as a bit too forward in some cases, so it can be a bit fatiguing for some, especially for people sensitive to treble. Technical performance is great overall, above average, good detail retrieval, some say that it could almost compete with planars. but the soundstage is not as big as other options, in resolution is competing with benchmark iems like hexa. Should work for gaming. It also should work well for Rock music genres, even with busy tracks. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mOdiyY7)  \----- * ***($70-$80) Simgot EW300 (Comes with Type-C/DSP option) (FRS: C+):*** A balanced yet energetic iem that breaks with the “Simgot has peaky treble” tradition. Nice allrounder sound, punchy bass, good decently natural vocals, enough treble presence, and good technicalities for the price. A warning is that the iem could feel a bit heavy resting on the ears for some. Should work for gaming. This one comes in 3 versions: Normal, HBB and DSP - They are all almost the same, just pick based on connection necessities, price and looks (sound is just barely different that it could be just unit variance as well – in the words of some reviewers). Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mskLcPh)  \----- * ***($90) Simgot EA500LM (FRS: C+):*** Balanced, Neutral leaning, yet V-shaped sound, still the treble could be a bit too much for some, but it’s very well controlled compared to other options from Simgot. Bass has good texture and quality, and it’s more boosted than in the EA500 so it balances the sound more, it is not too boosted still, so with presence but not the main focus. Vocals are good, correct and natural, but also forward and energetic. The treble has also presence, but not too much; in reference to vocals and bass, is not as extra boosted for the V-shaped kind of sound. Some people consider it detailed and smooth, but others still can find them a bit too intense, so, again, a warning for treble sensitive people. All in all, works like a more energetic Titan S2, with also great technical performance, slightly above average, it favors a nice and natural kind of performance rather than ultra-wide soundstage and very obvious detail retrieval, still resolution is pretty good for the price, fighting above its price range with the Hexa and the S2. It comes with interchangeable nozzles, try them all, but most people seem to like the gold and red nozzles better. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mqBqcnt)  \----- * ***($90) Moondrop Aria 2:*** A pretty balanced, natural, good performing IEM that remembers a bit the sound of the Tangzu Waner, just overall cleaner, and with very upgraded technicalities according to its price range, very safe sound with just enough of everything in punchy bass, natural vocals and detailed treble, plus an average overall technical performance for the price. Should work for gaming. If you don’t know what to pick, this is your best starting point. Several people, however, do not like that the build quality is not that excellent, especially the paint scratches easily and moondrop as a brand sometimes does not have the best quality control. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mOIoiwJ)  \----- * ***($80) Truthear Hexa:*** A balanced, neutral leaning iem with a sub-bass boost. Is a set that focuses ln detail and performance, a somewhat clinical sound that might not be too engaging for some, but excellent technicalities for the price. Bass is decent and detailed, but the small amount of mid-bass could be too little for a fair amount of people. The vocals are nice and natural, but also not that energetic, and the treble is mostly detailed and controlled, with maybe some slightly too boosted areas in the lower treble, so, because of the small amount of warmness in the bass, some people can find the Hexa a bit bright sounding (sound leaning into the treble), with some female vocal energy being also pushed forward, if you are sensitive to treble is not the safest pick. Be aware that the nozzle is quite large, so comfort might not be that great for some, Woks pretty well for gaming, as this is usually the technical benchmark to beat under $100. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mt0zJjz)  \----- * ***($80) Tangzu XuanNV (FRS: B-):*** A vocal forward, slightly warm sounding iem, good bass dynamics but not the main focus, a bit extra boosted on the upper mids (female vocals lean), but most people consider them smooth and not fatiguing. Treble is there and has enough detail but is nothing too impressive. Just a very nice, pretty safe sound. Average technicalities for the price. Be aware that they need some good amplification to work the best. Nozzle leans to the large side but doesn’t seem to have much fit problems for people. It’s a pretty safe pick if you don’t know what to pick, but you know you like vocals. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_m0DwmLZ)  \----- * ***($110) Kefine Klanar:*** Pretty detailed balanced (borderline U-shaped) iem that leans a bit to the bass, so plenty Energy on bass and treble too but nothing too much, although vocals could feel slightly on the background for some people, it has just enough energy there, so vocals don’t thin out. It’s a planar so great technicalities, plenty detail and clean bass, but will need some extra energy to perform to the best of its capabilities, and bass probably is not going to be the punchiest, since it’s a planar iem; I should also mention that the treble could be borderline too energetic for very sensitive people. This one is considered a cheaper Letshuoer Z12/S12 pro. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mMIgDej)  \----- * ***($100) NiceHCK F1 Pro:*** Pretty similar to the Klanar, kinda balanced, but this planar leans some more into the vocals and treble over bass, with a good but controlled amount of bass, plus some crisp highs, not recommended for people sensitive to treble. It might be the closest one to the sound of the Letshuoer S12 tuning, with even slightly less bass. Being a planar, will have great overall technical performance, clean sound, and should work for gaming. Will need good amplification as most planars do. And the bass on planar, like this one, will not be the strongest or physical one. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mP9caUx)  \----- * ***($70) Artti T10:*** A very affordable balanced planar, it has a decent boost on the sub-bass for some rumble, clean mid-range and nuanced enough treble that is sparkly but can be a bit too intense for some people (similar to simgot models). It’s supposed to have the same driver tech as more expensive iems like the Letshuoer S12, so, if you don’t mind the basic build quality, it’s a very good, technically competent, cheap alternative, although it might just had some more Sub-bass and less treble than the S12. It does also need some good amplification as with the other planars, ideally a 4.4mm power output. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mOJiup9)  \----- * ***($110) Simgot EM6L (FRS: B/B-):*** V-shaped Neutral, somewhat bright leaning iem. Bass is there, it warms the sound, but for the price is nothing impressive, not as clean as other options and it could feel like somewhat soft or not that texturized/punchy, under $100 other picks have some better quality, it’s just decent enough. The vocals are forward, clear but not as clean, not that natural, even a bit on the warm side of sound, so with body, especially male vocals, but that can play against female vocals. The treble is forward in the sound, with maybe a bit too much energy, but that manages to not be super aggressive, some consider it pretty smooth actually, so you will hear it, but you might not “feel” it as much, it do adds a lot of detail and helps with the openness of the sound. Technical performance is where this iem is notorious, while the soundstage is not the best, the tuning paired with the overall good-for-the-price technicalities, helps a lot for uses like gaming, usually considered the default best budget gaming pick around this price range. For music is just not going to be the most technical or detailed listening, just be aware that people very sensitive to treble could still find it a bit too much. **Some people have had the nozzle or filters of the iem falling off, usually fixed by glueing them back on, but you should know this info.** Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mqM2p3z)  \----- * ***($65) Moondrop May (Comes with Type-C/DSP only):*** A soft V-shaped iem, with good technicalities for the price. The whole point of them is to be used with the DSP cable and the Moondrop app to personalize the tuning with sound pre-sets or a bit of EQ. Also works fine with a 3.5mm Jack with the stock soft V-shape sound, but you will have to provide the cable. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mP5XKDz)  \----- * ***($80)*** [***Dunu Titan S***](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/s/wxjSiXSolr)***:*** Neutral, vocal focused iem so it could feel a bit shouty for very sensitive people. Bass is decent in quality, but the quantity is around what most balanced neutral iems have, maybe even a bit extra boosted on top, and it focuses on mid-bass over sub-bass. The treble is quite well controlled and not that pushed foward, its smooth and precise but could lack some sparkle for some, vocals are very nice, very clean and natural, being the main focus as said earlier. Resolution and overall technicalities are good, resolution is the strongest part since it was above average when first launched, but somewhat average nowadays, the rest of the techs are just fine for the price, the S2 does present an overall decent technical upgrade over the original Titan. As a warning, the nozzle fits a bit deeper than other iems, so do expect the extra reach inside your ear. Should work for gaming, but I wouldn’t recommend it because of mid-range focus, ir could be a good vocal upgrade from Waner. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mM6hN4B)  \----- * ***($89) Kiwi Ears Canta:*** Energetic and balanced Vocal focused iem with some bright leaning to it. The bass is a kind of a V-shape approach, where the focus is more on a nice bass punch rather than sub-bass rumble, however, because of the treble, the nice bass qualities would not be as apparent, it is not the focus of the sound but is there and does a very good job. The vocals are very clear, detailed, clean, but also very forward, it could even get a bit sibilant or shouty for some tracks, so this is an energetic kind of tuning, more of a “W” shape than a “V”. The treble has presence, clarity and detail, but it can get unnatural thanks to the extra emphasis, although is not that aggressive. The tuning does make for a wide soundstage, but overall technical performance is just slightly above average, with an edge on separation and detail, at the cost of the intense sound. The EW300 is a more relaxed, balanced version of this one. Despite the technical performance though, doesn’t seem like the best pick for gaming. Check it out here: [Linsoul.](https://www.linsoul.com/products/kiwi-ears-canta?srsltid=AfmBOor8SGQG1NeTFgA-LY3I0SSdC_HvyTyZtY4bdj_CMLzKrCOqHwyc)  \----- * ***($77) Sivga Que:*** Balanced U-shape-Ish IEM that has an interesting balance between nice bass and crips treble. Bass is impactful, has a decent amount of rumble but it’s a clear mid-bass over sub-bass kind of sound, gets the job done but is not the most texturized or detailed bass. The vocals are a bit warm, mostly the male ones, so it has nice body to it, while managing some cleanness with the bass, is not the most natural, but is also not as thin, muddy or as unnatural as other similar sets can get, the area of female vocals is pretty forward, most people didn’t find it shouty, but it has the potential to be, at least for very sensitive people. The treble has presence, it brings good detail to the sound, but it manages to not be too intense or sibilant, just energetic enough. Technicalities are pretty good for the price, with some extra detail on top thanks to the mentioned treble style. It should be able to manage rock music even with busy tracks. Should work for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mtfpmTh)  \----- * ***($70) Tanchjim 4U:*** A balanced/Neutral iem with a switch system that lets you go from a warm iem, a sound style that reminds of the (R.I.P.) Truthear Hola, to a neutral balanced set, to a neutral bright-ish set, to a full neutral, vocal focused, set. The overall sound and technical performance is fine, but it is nothing impressive for the price, maybe even a bit outdated thanks to recent releases around the same price, safe in the treble too, not too intense. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mNYKbZ1)  \----- * ***($99) Ziigaat Cinno:*** Slightly warm, very correct sounding iem that is great for people both sensitive to treble and shoutiness, a bit of a "flat-liner" in the sound but maintains some musicality to it, with a natural enough sound. Technicalities are fine for the price, nothing too impressive. Should work pretty good for more detailed music genres like classical music. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mNDingn)  \----- * ***($140) Aful MagicOne:*** Balanced-warm leaning IEM. Technicalities are somewhat below average for the price\* but it works well in this (sub $100) price range. Bass is not the most Detail, punchy or rumbly, is overall a bit too smooth, but also pretty relaxed. The vocals are nice and natural-ish, but there is warmness from the bass, not the cleanest typw of sound, but it plays into the relaxed balanced sound. Trebel is smooth but detailed, not underboosted, foward enough to balance things out. An interesting, relaxed pick if you dont want going for bassy stuff like the Fudu. It doesnt seem to work well for gaming. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mtDTpsR) \---------- # BRIGHT IEMs. Here you will find the focus on vocals and treble: reduced bass amounts, very natural vocals and even sparkly trebles, anything for that high-pitched clarity and detail. **THERE IS GOOD QUALITY BASS IN HERE TOO**.  \----- * ***($120)*** [***Dunu Kima 2***](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1gk0xcm/i_challenged_they_delivered_dunu_kima_2_review/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)***:*** Balanced (a bit bright leaning) Neutral IEM With an excellent performance for natural vocals. Bass has very good replay, but its not the most Detailed, punchy or rumbly, it works more as a complementary approach to the tuning, the focus is on mid-bass over sub-bass, and its not too boosted, sub bass is also fairly reduced. The mids are natural, clear, clean but with body, transparent-like, excellent timbre, nothing shouty. Treble is clear, foward thanks to the reduced bass, detailed but very well controlled, pretty smooth. Overall technicalities are just fine for the price, it has great detail retrieval although is not too obvious about it, Soundstage is just fine and instrument separation is not the best out here, but all in all is fairly competent. Could work for gaming, but wouldnt recomend it. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mO6feEP)  \----- * ***($60) 7hz Sonus (FRS: B-):*** A very affordable Neutral-bright leaning IEM, a step up from the Salnotes Zero OG, great technical performance, above its price tag. A clean, neutral and natural sound, with a lean into the vocals and treble. Good but controlled bass, with decent quality in the hit and a boosted sub-bass rumble. Treble is nice and detailed, but not that bright, not that boosted. The biggest downside is the hybrid driver configuration which some people say is not totally cohesive, like there is a small separation between bass and the rest of the sound, but not a deal breaker for most people. Just watch out that for some it could some a bit Shouty on the vocals. Considering the cheaper price on the list, the overall technicalities are above average for the price, or on average with some more expensive iems in this list. This one is considered kind of a “Mini-Hexa”. Nozzle leans to the larger side. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mOUBJJ5)  \----- * ***($80) Simgot EA500:*** A bright V-shape-ish iem that also has some warmness to the vocals, so, not the most neutral because it has some sound coloration. Pretty good bass quality, over quantity, has good but somewhat forward vocals, specially energetic female vocals, the treble is quite forward but can get fatiguing or even harsh for some. Technicalities are just decent for the price. This iem is for people that like bright sound without overlooking the bass, a possible upgrade path from the Ziigaat Nuo. Not recommended for people with sensitivity to Shoutiness and harsh treble. It comes with 2 tuning nozzles that don’t show much difference but try both just to make sure. Check it out here: [AliExpress.](https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mtyc6Bh)  \-----   \---------- # Final comments. Thanks again for the good feedback for this post, remember again that im just one person and can make mistakes, so please mention me if you see anything wrong.   If you are looking for more overall information on IEMs, or the sub $50, look here:    ***Click here for the sub $50 list:*** [https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/s/WfhfLLl0np](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/s/WfhfLLl0np)   I hope this list is of some help, and if you need to know more, don’t be afraid to ask… although this is honestly mostly how high in price my knowledge goes, and I don’t know much about dongle DACs, so, I will do my best to help as I can.   ***I hope you like what you pick from here, all feedback is well appreciated, good luck, the Budget Knight bids farewell, good luck... O.E. :)***

But im a degenerate and I support upgrades. GO AFUL PERFORMER 8 BOI!!!!!! It feels like a direct upgrade to the Hexa. EM6L is smooth sounder but QC's a bitch so get them from reputable resellers

I got the EM6L off an auction to use as my daily beaters and I was very impressed that it was only a $100 iem. Haven't used the others you've listed but the EM6L would be solid for music/gaming.

I have been searching as well, most people say the SIMGOT EM6L is probably the best all-rounder out there and excellent for gaming, but I also found [this review](https://youtu.be/964toi7t7Ac?t=16m35s) that mentions the compression of the controllers can make them more bassy and probably the EA500 can perform better in that case, both are in the same price range. Personally I will go for the EM6L, they have a really sweet discount in Amazon right now.

Check out the Linsoul SIMGOT EM6L. I got these specially for FPS gaming and they are a god send! I HEAR EVERYTHING.

I just got my supermix 4 and it's not bad. It has ear wings so it is more like custom fitted iems. It might not fit everyone's ears and it's a lil uncomfortable for me. The Em6l is also half the thickness of the supermix 4 and has a more universal fit. My Em6l nozzles came off but a drop of super glue fixed that. I enjoyed the soundstage and imaging on the supermix 4 more but the Em6l is 90-95% of the way there. For almost $50 less, the Em6l is a much safer option and better buy. I'm glad I have both tho. I love the supermix for music.

It is great for a relatively neutral slightly brighter set that works well for gaming and music. It has a decent soundstage and imaging for the price. I like it but generally just use it for gaming because I prefer the sound profile of other sets I have for music, but I could definitely live with it if it was my only set.

The sets I have right now are: Hype 4 Aful Explorer Letshouer S12 Pro Simgot E6ML Letshouer Z4 Of those the Hype 4 and Explorer get the most use for music but I don't really like them as much for gaming. The Hype 4 holds its own, but is almost too detailed for gaming (also a lot more expensive). The Explorer has too much sub bass and ruins gaming IMO, but it is extremely comfortable and a lot of fun for music. I prefer the S12 Pro for music over the E6ML, but the E6ML is slightly better for gaming. Mainly I find the difference to be with gun shots and vocals (especially the main character in Destiny Rising) the S12 Pro can sometimes exhibit simbiliance-type effects. That said, if I was buying only one set of those two, I like the S12 Pro better (comfort is better, build quality is better, and generally the details are outstanding). The z4 works very well for gaming, is great for vocal and live audio, but it is not a great general set (though I paid 28 USD for it so I don't mind too much, as it is a niche specialty set in my mind). The only other I have been eyeing is the s08, which has a decent reputation for gaming and is supposedly a more detailed/speedy Explorer - that sounds like an interesting combination to me.

people in the replies giving you bad advice. i suggest simgot em6l or the kefine delci ae. i have the em6l and it is very precise in it’s horizontal delivery. i had trouble with its verticality, but it could’ve been due to hrtf enabled in valo settings. the only one i suggest to NOT get are the blue 2’s (first ones are fine).

hexa + apple dongle, don't waste your money on a more expensive DAC to start out with, it really only influences the sound minimally. I'd rather spend the cash on a better pair of IEMs. hexa are nice for a clean analytical sound but the EM6L are still balanced but a bit more rounded and warm compared to the hexa and they tend to have fewer issues with the fit (hexa nozzles very large and people tend to complain about that). the Titan S2 could be an option as well but a lot of people find them shouty. no experience with the dz4 so I can't say anything them but the aria are more v shaped and the fudu (while I do love them) are very warm and soft and you might miss out on some detail in the highs which makes them bad if your expectation is for something truly balanced. legato are just not priced well for how they perform imo but maybe someone else who has more experience with the set can speak to that.

I ran DT1990 Pro with a Fiio K5 Pro for 3 years now. Recently picked up on the iem hype since some streamers were using them. Ordered some Simgot EM6L with memory tips. I run it on the K5 Pro with similar settings, gain less obviously. Had some issues with them slipping on the silicone tips but the foam solves this. In games I feel like the EM6L are no competition. Directional hearing, separation and clarity is levels above on the DTs. Ofc they cost twice as much but the EM6L are also considered to be pretty good. I‘m not willing to spend equal or more money compared to my existing solution because the comfort is not an issue for me. The DTs I don‘t feel even after a long session whereas the iems are there. I don‘t think I will spend equal or more on iems compared to my existing solution since it has no benefit for me personally. Maybe this helps someone with a good headset solution on the fence wanting to give EM6Ls a shot. I‘m an Ex-EFT Player and now play ABI.

At the top of your budget, the em6l gets recommended a lot. I tried it and it performed pretty great. I use the SM4 now, but that's mostly because I was using them for music and wanted more bass. Otherwise, tripowin vivance, Crinacle Zero red/blues all get recommended quite often for gaming. I used the reds for a bit and they worked well, they were just uncomfortable for me since I have smaller ear canals and wasn't aware of tip rolling until after I returned them.

+1 for the em6l, and also the vivance. In line mics for IEMs aren't great. If you're on PC you're better off getting a standalone mic. Fifine am8 is solid for a decent budget option. If inline is a must, check out the kinera or kimura.

S08 are one of Letshouer's best planars; very DD-like in its timbre and tonality. I own much of their lineup and this remains in my rotation to this day, alongside sets that are far pricier (including other planars). That said, I wouldn't necessarily recommend these for gaming. Upper mids and treble are the two major areas of the frequency range that are critical for gaming cues; the S08 has a warmer, more relaxed presentation, with more forward sub/mid bass. Lower frequencies narrow the soundstage and will typically make IEMs sound more intimate and "in the head," and emphasized sub/mid bass can cause some masking higher up in the frequency range. The S12 2024 is a better option and not much more expensive. I also still regularly recommend the EM6L (and while I own the S12 2024, the EM6L is what I run 90% of the time while gaming).

I own some of those $1200 IEMs, and I use none of them for gaming. Many of them make poor gaming sets, with a few exceptions. The IEMs I have used most often are the Simgot EM6L, Supermix 4, Crinicle Zero Blue/Blue 2, Thieaudio Hype 4, Xenns Tea and Top Pro, Meze Alba, and Letshuoer S08 & S12 Anniversary. The one I recommend most is the EM6L. It has consistently been my go-to for competitive gaming most of the time. Coincidentally, it's one of the cheapest sets in my rotation. Unfortunately, recency bias often often plays a major role in what is recommended in the community, which is why you don't see it as often in these types of recommendation threads, but a good tuning remains good forever -- which means many budget sets may be getting more attention recently, but they haven't necessarily dethroned the EM6L. The most critical areas of the frequency range for gaming is the upper mids and treble. The EM6L excels in these areas, offering great detail and clarity, with enough bass extension and emphasis to round out the tuning, but without losing detail in the mids. Imaging and soundstage is solid for an IEM, and they're comfortable enough for long periods of time, with the exception that the nozzle can be challenging for users with smaller ear canals. The other sets I often fall back on for immersive/single-player gaming is the Letshuoer S08. Up from there, the Hype 4; both are warm and fun, with the Hype 4 providing stronger bass performance, albeit typical Thieaudio "rounded" bass, and not as incisive as the S08's faster, more immediate planar slam. On the higher-priced midfi side, as mentioned above, the Hype 4 is one of my go-tos for immersive games, and the Top Pro is my competitive set of choice. It is like the Tea Pro, but with more controlled lower frequencies, and better detail and clarity. The Tea Pro is often recommended for gaming, the Top Pro improves on that tuning. It doesn't quite hit Volur-levels of "holographic" soundstage and imaging, but it is an exceptional set for its price. TL;DR: do not spend more than $500-$600 on a gaming IEM, and to be honest I wouldn't even recommend spending that much. I have dozens of IEMs in my collection, and my favorite gaming sets are on the budget side. Do I still use the Top Pro and Hype 4? Yes, but not as often as the EM6L and S08, and you could get by using the former for every use case -- I just like the S08 enough that I enjoy weaving it into my day-to-day as much as possible.

If you can save more, the Simgot EM6L is worth every penny, although well outside your budget. Below that, the Kefine Klean is another good option. If you should ever need a mic down the road, the original Truthear x Crinicle Zero:Blue or Blue 2 are worth looking at as well; I prefer the original, which is a little less harsh in the upper treble.

Expense is relative. One the budget side (or what I would consider budget), the Truthear Blue and Blue 2, Kefine Klean and Simgot EM6L. The latter is my default recommendation for gaming IEMs below the $300 price point. I own dozens of sets, from budget to summit-fi, and yet I game on the EM6Ls 90% of the time. No need to spend more, even if you can.

If you want an all ‘rounder, the Mangird Tea Pro is the best option in your price range. That said, even with dozens of IEMs, from budget to summit-fi sets, I run the EM6L 90% of the time. The Tea Pro is markedly better when it comes to media consumption, but the EM6L is no slouch there either, being somewhat mid-forward, but with excellent bass and treble and very strong imaging for a budget set. Whatever you choose, it’s best to avoid sets with emphasized lower frequencies as it will narrow staging and impact the clarity of your mids. Upper mids and treble are where most gaming cues live and is thus the most important area of the frequency range for gaming — hence why the EM6L is such a good option at its price. Other sets I’ve run for games that I’ve also thoroughly enjoyed; Thieaudio Hype 4, Crinicle Dusk, Xenns Top Pro, Meze Alba, Truthear Blue and Blue 2, Letshuoer S08 and S12 2024.

Simgot EM6L, still one of the best gaming IEMs at any price. I have dozens of IEMs, from budget to summit-fi, and yet the EM6L is still my main gaming set. Supermix 4 is a great IEM for casual listening, if you enjoy its tuning. EM6L is much more upper mid and treble forward, the two most import areas of the frequency range for gaming cues.

EM6L for competitive gaming; depending on budget, the S08 or the new S12 Ultra for single-player/competitive titles. Alba is a good contender for middle ground between both. All of the IEMs will provide better passive noise isolation than the FT1, so less ambient noise. The Alba is the exception here, with a more open-style design that lets in more room noise.

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!

last year I spent over $2,500.00 on IEMs, tips, and dongles. in chronological order: Pula PA02s B tier, an all rounder, excellent. Simgot EM6L B+ tier, just sounded great! A little too spicy. Ziigaat Doscinco, and Cinoctres. The Doscincos are bass boosted all rounders both are A tier, The Cincotres are more neutral and suppose to be more monitor like and dry. they are A tier also, just a little different than that Doscincos. I bought Thieaudio Hype 4's next. They have just as good of bass as the Doscincos, with better mids, and some airy, slightly sizzling treble. I rank them A+ because they are just about perfect all rounders. If you A, B with the Ziigaats you can hear that they just are better sounding, but like only 5%. The Hype 4s are not cheap, I bought a pair for a good friend of mine, and she loved them and bought a pair for her niece! A+ Then I got some Hisenior Mega5-ESTs and they are the best IEMs, or headphones I have ever heard! I bought them after reading tons of reviews and watching this review on YT: [https://youtu.be/vWWofORMPZU?si=cNgIrUOHXbOWQrFE](https://youtu.be/vWWofORMPZU?si=cNgIrUOHXbOWQrFE) MEGA5ESTs are reference level legendary IEMs now, and they influenced the whole industry as they sound better than many over $1k IEMs they are S tier I use Divinus Velvet big bore tips, and Ducbloke's PEQ tuning. they are music Heaven, fit good, not chunky at all, and you can listen for hours with out getting tired, or I can. finally I got the MEGA5-EST Bass+ edition. Same, but not as good to my ears A- tier Xiaoliang Qian Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 thanks for asking. The Mega5's some say are boring because they are a quite natural and neutral sounding. My experience the bass is quite good, the mids are just about perfect, and the treble is airy, sparkle, fantastic! The sound stage is holographic. Over all I praise these to the moon, they are magnificient. if you want a alternate in this type of sound "Meta" or JM-1 tilted the Nice HCK Rockies are almost and exact clone of this same type of tuning. You don't need and PEQ, or even use an EQ if you don't want to. This tuning has been so successful it is being done with other lesser, and premium IEMs (over $1k) Recently Aful came out with their best IEM ever, Thieaudio has the Monarch MKIV, and FiiO's FX15 with eight EST drivers was released! I am looking at my endgame. Good chance it will be one of these sets. Also the older UM Mest MKII is of great interest to me.

Was in the same boat as you a year ago. Also nova pro wireless user. I ended up buying the em6l after seeing gadgetry recommend. And they’re pretty gnarly. And adding eq with sonar makes them even better for sure, and sometimes I actually like the flat signal better. The issue I have with the em6l is that ear tips constantly came off. The nozzle doesn’t have a lip to hold them on. And then nozzle screen came off along with the ear tip once. I had to get a left replacement in full. Warranty covers them. Easy experience IMO. Took about 3 weeks because they send em from overseas. However. While the em6l is pretty great, I’ve since moved to the supermix 4. I haven’t really looked back since. Primarily I’m an apex enjoyer. Valorant. Warzone. Most fps. Do alot of music production (metal stuff). They do the job. I use the gadgetrytech apex super mix eq and the warzone eq for each game respectively. Otherwise. I keep the flat signal. Their tuning is legit. And also. I run them out of soundblasterx g6. Stereo no processing. The dac provides a heavy kick. And they have audio profiles that are pretty solid. Shoot me a message if ya need anything!

EM6L are golden dude. I started with the Linsoul kz zs10’s. And those were pretty aight. And I moved up to em6l and those were awesome for sure. Especially coming from nova pros. At least for me. The ONLY reason I went up to the super mixes was because of the nozzle losing the screen. Didn’t feel like waiting three weeks for replacement. I do happen to like them better. But I will say. They’re not far off from the em6ls. As far as DAC’s go, I can’t really recommend anything as I’ve only used the g6 and before that I was using my focus rite audio interface. I don’t have much experience with anything else.

I bought my brother a copy for Christmas in December 2023 and after about 6 months of using it on his commutes the same thing happened. My copy is still fine but I don't commute with it. One of my favorite IEMs under 200 next to the Aful Explorer. I would love to see a EM6L v2 to address these issues and further improve on the tuning. Love the channel BTW ✨

I use the EM6L + FiiO K11. I tried the SuperMix 4 but still prefer the EM6L

I have both and prefer the EM6L over the SM4 for gaming. I also like the Moondrop Ray since it uses USB C.

Kefine Delci AE if under $100. If you can go a little more or use coupons and coins on AliExpress, Go for the Simgot EM6L.

The Simgot EM6L is one of my favourite IEM releases in the last couple years, and it’s been one of my top recommendations and daily drivers that I use myself. But I’ve heard some complaints about the metal nozzle falling off, leaving the eartip and nozzle stuck in your ear. I had this happen myself about a year ago, but I thought nothing of it and glued it back on at the time, thinking mine might have been an outlier. Since then I’ve heard of it happening to others, and it just happened to my set again.

Thank you! I really appreciate it. These were one of my favourite IEMs, but I don’t feel comfortable to recommend them if this is a widespread issue.

I'd be going IEM's for sure if I didn't need an attached mic and didn't mind wired. The crinicle reds tuning would be good for warzone, but with that budge, the simgot em6l would be even better. They're always praised about in paritcular for a good FPS gaming set. For headphones then sennheiser/drop pc38x or sennheiser 560s (if budget can allow for a few more dollars). Although at that point you're in hifiman edition XS price, and that's end game audiophile headphones that would good for both gaming AND music. Any of the above are absolutely going to blow away any "gaming headset" from acrtis, turtle beach/astro/hyperx, etc. All these are pretty well known for specifically doing FPS gaming well. Gadgetrytech on youtube has good videos on several of them.

Nice review mate I just recently started getting into to audio space and tried some IEM's at first i had the Sennheiser IE300 but the EM6L are better for gaming imo

IF you asked this question a week ago i would of said the IE200, they are great for gaming and i was comparing them too Truth hear blues, and EM6L which are all great for gaming. Just picked up the Linsoul SuperMix4 and they are absolutely fantastic iems, no issues at all and i can find fault with all the others i listed above - iem falls out easily EM6L or ear tip too big Truthhear, housing scraping the ear IE200 using all different tips/cables and then i seen someone mention that the SuperMix4 are a way better version of the EM6L for a little more money, and if you was thinking of buying the EM6L then get the SuperMix4. Well i did and everything is great - audio clarity clear, comfort , cable length/ strength perfect. Honestly i could of saved myself 400dollars if i just got the SuperMix4 first.

many people are suggesting the EM6L which are great no doubt but if you can expand the budget pick up the Linsoul Supermix4 they are same brand but just a more perfect IEM for a little more money and well worth paying that extra.

Ill just say it. Don't trust any reviewer unless you try alot IEMs and know ur tuning preference then check their reviews and if his/her tuning are pretty similar to urs, trust their tierlists. For gaming is very well know, EM6L is almost endgame, while the ew300s is actually enough.

IMO the upgrade is like, The G1 then EW300 and the EM6L. You don't need anything above that for gaming.

Bit late to the party but just wanted to add my experience if anyone comes across this helpful tier list. The Simgot em6l vs the Simgot Supermix 4. I had to give the Simgot em6l a try based on your rating and comments. I enjoyed them out of the box leaning towards favoring female vocals. Gaming wise they are phenomenal, just plug and play no EQ needed at all. Now the cons, only tips that would give me a good seal are Comply T-500. Dunu s&s & SpinFit CP145 did not work as I could not get them deep enough for a good seal. I was also concerned over the longevity of the em6l as the known metal barrel coming off. As I forced to run foam tips I could see this happening pretty darn fast. I bought the Supermix 4 and agree with you. The tuning of the em6l out of the box is better for both music and gaming. However, EQ'ing the SM4 really brought them to life. Male vocals now how more depth and weight, the bass can be there if I want it. Gaming its the same story, out of the box I would not rate the SM4 anywhere near the em6l. A bit of EQ'ing and I now have my perfect EFT profile. 100% the fit and comfort & quality of the SM4 is worth the extra for me. Perfect seal with SpinFit CP145 avoiding the tedious at times foam tips. So to sum up, if you want a IEM that you do not want to EQ for both gaming and music at the £100 price mark the em6l is the definite winner. I got my Supermix 4 at only £20 extra. It you do not mind a bit of EQ'ing and would like a bit more bass when needed and superior fit and build quality the SM4 is for you.

definitely Simgot EM6L, though it’s near the top end of your budget, could look at second hand if that’s an option for you as well

Despite the drawbacks, the em6l is the smoothest simgot in their product lineup. Give foams a try when listening to music.

I would recommend you the Truthear Hexa and the Simgot EM6L. The Hexas are on the more neutral side and some would call it boring. For me, I just like it as nothing in its sound is offensive and sometimes I just want to just chill out. The EM6L on the other hand, is a V-shape tuned set that has a pleasant treble that doesn't stab my eye and just enough bass to have some semblance of balance with the treble. While I really don't subscribe to the "gaming IEM" opinion, there are at least lots of people who think the EM6L is excellent for gaming.

I've tried Cadenza, Pure, S12, EM6L, Kiwi Ears Astral and ZiiGaat Arete. The jump from cadenza to em6l is larger than em6l to astral/arete. So something in that 125-175 will be good. I use fresh reviews tier list as a rough guide. Everytime I have put more money in and gone higher up tier list I generally find meaningful improvements and I've settled now on the Aretes. The highest scoring one in your budget is the ZiiGaat Lush. (I can't link the spreadsheet but its in his youtube description)

I've tried Letshuoer S12, Simgot EM6L, Kiwi Ears Astral, Ziigaat Arete and briefly the Softears Volume S. In terms of ability to pinpoint enemies the Astral, Arete and Volume S are the best but EM6L is close. So any of those will generally do you well. Imo the S12 and Volume S are too treble leaning and just makes it generally unpleasant to listen to most the time. The Astral is very V-shaped and has a tonne of bass which can be fun for some games but in competitive ones gets annoying (I had to EQ them to bring the bass down). For me the Arete and EM6L is more subtle and simple and I have no desire to EQ it. Also the tea pro is probably just not worth that amount of money, from my testing after £200 you really hit diminishing returns fast. I personally use the Aretes.

I own em6l and aria 2. Pretty good for gaming because of the stage.