S12 Series

ew200 is quite a bright signature. if you like that then i'd go for a more traditional planar like s12 which will give you some of the most detial and separation in the price s08 is great but could also sound way too mellow in the treble if you liked ew200

name of the game, make sure return policy is good and don't feel bad about buying multiple at the same time to try. my s08 had issues but s12 has been perfect

I’ve had it with the Meze alba, s12 pro 2024, kiwi ears astral and now monarch mk4! Great feeling

My journey was something like this: Got Hifiman Re400 Waterline back in 2016. It was neutral. Loved it. One year after the cable insulation fell apart. Audio Technica IM70. Harder hitting bass. Highs were a little subdued. Used it for 2 years. Then the cable connector stopped working and I couldn't find a cable replacement as connector was proprietary. Asked a friend to get me Ibasso IT01 from US in 2019. I do not remember much about its sound. But the connector was mmcx and it sucks. One of the earpiece ended up with a loose connection. Between 2019 and 2021, I got Dunu Dk2001, Obravo Cupids and Bravado. Liked them, specifically Bravado and Dunu. But Bravado had driver flex and it was very bad in that aspect. Sold all of them off. End of 2021 after Covid restrictions were lifted in my country, I had switched jobs and I was looking for some better iems (I could invest some more money into them). Fortunate meeting with a dude (who turned out to be a very good friend later on) made me experience some iems and those blew my mind. And luckily for me, he was looking to sell all of his iems as he was in need of money. Inear PP8. Blew me away. I bought it off him. Then Oriolus MK2 (bought it for my then gf and now wife), Oriolus Mellianus (detail monster without being harsh). Pears SH3. I understood with SH3, it is the tuning that matters and not the number of drivers. Bought both Mellianus and SH3 from him. And all at very good prices. All of this was between 2021 and 2022. Starting 2022, I got a few more iems. Oriolus Isabella. Such beautiful mids. I eqed the lowend. Gave me a lot of joy. Next was Oriolus Szalayi. I was looking for an iem pair with heavy lowend. Sza delivered. It is still my favorite pair. With Isa, I started on the single dd path. I got FAudio Dark Sky next. Wonderful sound. Then I had a chance to buy Inear SD5 wooden shell. Loved it too. Thicker lowend than PP8, but PP8 was still better as an alrounder. I got Letshouer S12 and liked it but the upper mids sounded harsh to me. I changed the cable to one with a mic and it is relegated as my calling iem. I was looking for a cheap but good iem pair that I can use while travelling. Bought Juzzear 61T. Liked it a lot as it has very good lows and mids and highs were good too. My wife liked how it looked and sounded and thus it became her iem. She has two now. Last year I bought both Blon BL03 i and ii for regular use, and they still are my daily driver. And with this I was all done with my iems. I got out. Start of this ear, I started looking into flathead earbuds. Started with VE Monks lite. Then got for myself the Fiio cheap flathead pair. Then two of the Faaeal earbuds and Ry4s. I will get one last earbuds pair sometime later and then drop out. During Corona, I was stuck at my hometown and since I packed lightly hoping that I will be back for work, I packed lightly. But alas, I was stuck at my home for about 2 years without my dap and iem. So, what I have done now is, I have kept most of my favourite iems back at hometown in my room. Rest are with me. This way no matter what and where, I just need to carry my dap and I will always have iems to listen to music.

Letshuoer S12. I expected it to be bright, shrill and sibilant. But it was just a really fun listen. Also Beyerdynamic TYGR 300R, I didn't expect much considering I don't really like 99% of their headphones, but I was pleasantly surprised.

I compared a bunch of IEMs at audio shops. While I don't remember which IEMs sounded brighter to me, I can recommend the Letshuoer S8 for its clarity and balance of bass and treble. I listen to a lot of EDM and pop (US, K-pop, J-Pop, Eastern European, Latin/Spanish), and one of the things I compared was the, for lack of a better term, drop in Zedd's Spectrum ("we'll RUN where lights won't chase us"). The S08s had that IT factor in Spectrum, and the sounds did not bleed together. I found it was similar to the Simgot EW300, but I chose the S08 because it wasn't as bass heavy, felt more balanced, and I presumed I wouldn't be as fatigued listening to them. That being said, I do not like my music too bright. I think the S12 might have been brighter than the S08, but I felt the S08 had a crisp, clear sound that accentuated what I was looking for. I'm told my preference is V-shaped.

S12 2024 if its available, unless you like the spicy treble and punchy mids of the s12 pro.