first of all, this subreddit is filled with dummies with no knowledge, who will tell you to buy shit brands like kz. skip kz. kz is only good if your budget is 69, cus thats what they do with you.
now the real talk. the usual good options:
1. TRUTHEAR GATE (best 3.5mm option under 2k, great cable, lots of eartips, a case included & great balanced sound signature)
2. MOONDROP CHU 2 (skip cus qc issues, v-shaped tuned, metal build, good cable, overall okayish)
3. TANGZU WANER 1 & 2 (1 has a warmer sound signature, okayish build, terrible cable, overall meh. 2 is more balanced, lots of tips & good ones too, better cable, better build. both are okay)
4. TANCHJIM BUNNY DSP (best type-c option around 2k, good everything)
5. 7HZ ZERO 1 & 2 (1 is neutral while 2 has more bass, still skip, they're okay at best)
6. 7hz G1 (blind buy, best iem around 3k, 7hz cooked here. get this! metal build, v-shaped tuned & greatly done too, good everything else)
Sorry but I only tested waner 1,
I Heard that waner 2 have emphasised some table and has batter cable
Personly I think waner1 still a good peek
Just try to find some good edition which has good cable quality (I guess green one)
There were no such issues with Jade Dragon Edition, SG2 Standard and SG1 resin shell and connector used to break though but that was fixed with Jade Dragon Edition, Red Lion Edition are build same but I think Tangzu’s manufacturing unit is not paying attention to QC that’s why customers are getting defective pieces.
Under 1800 the Waner 2 jade edition is the best although a red version is coming so you might like that better (the special editions usually have an extra carry case so they are overall more value for money in my opinion).
If you have big ears. Get kinera celest models. Abyss qing and pro. They are semi custom modeled so fits the earliest perfectly shell is big though. I have waner sg 2 and kinera qing and new abyss version . Waner is for more detail oriented but it get tired listening quickly while kinera is more for comfort.
Personally, after I bought my Aful Performer 5, I didn't have any thought of getting another one. I've been through the hurdle of buying cheap IEMs under $30 (CCA-CRA, Wan 'Er, Wyvern Abyss), and after my third cheap IEM, I decided to just blow it on the Aful Performer 5 and it basically provides me with everything I need and it plays my entire catalog of music exceptionally. There are obviously going to be newer and better ones than the P5, but I find it satisfactory for now.
GodSpeedASTRO
