AUDIOSENSE DT100: UNBELIEVABLY ORGANIC SOUNDING ONE
Gents and gals who were frequently visiting on my blog site, Welcome to my another IEM review. And here it is, my fourth product write-up from one of my new favourite audio companies in China, Audiosense.
If you are following and reading some of my articles here about my assessment about Audiosense products, I always gave them a high mark due their tuning approach and the high quality of their products. Their DT300, DT600 and T800 really shows their sophistication and elan on what a mature tuning IEM should sounds like and for a decent price that will not break your bank account. And now I have their most affordable and starter set from their DT series, The Audiosense DT100.
Audiosense DT100 is a single Balanced Armature driver set-up. Like all Audiosense products, it uses a MMCX connector as their standard choice due to flexibility and ease for adjustments. Its shell is made of medical-grade skin-friendly resin shell moulded from 3d printing technology that will ensure its casing's contour to provide better fitting to most ear sizes. The choice of aesthetics for its faceplate is admirable and palatable-looking (I actually love seashell dishes) like its higher tier sister models, In this particular model they decided to choose an aqua blue colour scheme with a mother-of-pearl pattern. As I aforementioned about its single BA set-up, the said BA driver is a custom made full range BA from Knowles specifically for Audiosense as we are aware these companies have a good partnership.
The size of its shells is on small to medium proportion as it fits well into my medium-size lug holes without any discomfort on wearing them for long listening session. It has good sealing into my ears that it passively do a good noise isolation by blocking the external noises from outside surroundings. Even though that it doesn't have a vent hole, I don't encounter any unpleasant build up of air pressure coming from the BAs.
The Audiosense DT100's asking price is currently at US$109/£80. And it is available to most e-commerce platform. The packaging box is a white hue with a picture of a DT100 in a blue-green tinge background at the front and some basic informations of its specs in three languages namely Chinese, English and Japanese.
The contents included inside are:
- A pair of Audiosense DT100 IEMs.
- A white colour 19-core Silver plated copper MMCX connector cable
- a stone gray tinge medium-size IEM carrying case.
- 3 pairs of black ear tips with a green stem (reminds me of Sony eartips) in different sizes.
- 3 pairs of black stock ear tips in different sizes.
- an instruction manual
And Audiosense included an MMCX assist tool to detach easily the connectors.
Audiosense DT100 is an easy to drive IEM that even a decent source like smartphones and laptops can properly juice them up to its fullest potential with lots of dynamics and volume. They even scales better on high quality DAC/amps that usually found in some smartphones like from LG and DAPs.
The tonality of the Audiosense DT100 is on a balanced-neutral sound signature, you can consider them as a monitor-like warmish-neutral tuning due to its some elevation in bass, more linear mids and even leveled treble. People wants an analogueish warm tuning would definitely love this one.
Here are some sound characteristics based on my observation on Audiosense DT100 in each segment of audio frequency spectrum.
LOWS/BASS:
The DT100 bass is more presented in the audios spectrum on accentuated manner, well-precise, has a decent punchiness and has an agile transients.
The subbass performs satisfactory as it reach the depth range on low end spectrum as I hear some faint rumble and rustling noises on some electronic tracks from synthpop genre, knowing that this is just single BA not a dynamic driver and yet it could deliver that capability. Midbass has sufficient body that it will give an adequate note weight on some instruments like the authoritative and thudding sound of a bass, that resonant and growl sounding of a bass guitar and well-defined deep and natural presentation of bass-baritone vocals.
Despite that it has an elevated bass response, it relatively stays clean and assuredly well-controlled in the audio frequency spectrum as I don't perceive any some sort of bass bleed towards mids.
MIDS:
Undoubtedly, this is one of the strengths of this IEM on how mids are very appealing to its listeners, its naturalness, with some added warmth, transparent and accurate tonal colour.
Vocals on both genres are well presented, more forward, beautifully rendered emphasis on the natural timbre as male vocals sounds more deep, husky and guttural in any type of male vocal types and powerful, ethereal and sonorous of a a female vocals although I noticed in some female vocal-centric tracks that it sound more tremulous due to that weighty note that it gave more warm than it needed. Nonetheless, it is still pleasing to hear them.
As I praise the naturalness of its mids, The instruments sounds even closer to be a life-like one. On how you hear the every plucking string of string instruments like the guitar as they sound articulately and crunchy, the brazeness and blaring sound of a wind instruments like horns and saxs, the rich and resonant sound of a piano and the sustaining precise and sharp sounding of snare drum.
Overall, the blending of instruments and vocals are harmoniously stellar to sound more in natural and musical side rather than to be more analytical.
HIGHS/TREBLE:
The treble of DT100 is more on a relaxed and smoother in delivery, It still has sufficient detail retrieval on its definition and harmonics value.
Due to less peaky uppermids, harshness and gratiness is absolutely absent, same with the non-existent sibilance that will give some annoyance on long term listening experience.
Cymbals sounds more on natural side, not too shimmer nor muffled as it gives an decent airiness that gives off some satisfying extension, hi-hats sounds more warm and tight. In general, the treble of this one doesn't give you that glistening and scintillating sensation that it will affect the overall resolution and clarity but it manage to deliver a competent detailing of micro-contrast.
SOUNDSTAGE AND IMAGING:
Substantially, it has an above average dimension in width, a more emphasis on depth reach and a decent height on its perceived sound field , think of a medium size bar room.
Imaging surprising performs well as I can pinpoint on each placement of instruments and vocals with a decent sense of spacing and gaps on each other but my only slight whining on this one that layering aspect needs an improvement as it give off a slight flaw on a already good 3D-like holographic spatial chamber.
For the conclusion of this review, it is still comes up in my thoughts on how a single full range BA managed to deliver an unexpected tuning. How does it sounds very natural and has a pleasant tonality that it doesn't sound too "digital" or a metallic timbre of a usual BA set. Audiosense render us a very mature tuning that give us a relaxing and nostalgic moments on how good is a analogueish warm sound that focus more on musical enjoyment rather than focusing on being too critical and clinical sounding one.
SPECIFICATION:
MODEL: Audiosense DT100
IMPEDANCE:18Ω
SENSITIVITY: 103dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20Hz - 22KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.25M
PIN TYPE: MMCX Connector
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm
DRIVER UNITS: 1 Knowles Balanced Armature
PROS:
- Well-tuned balance sounding IEM.
- Smooth and relaxing tuning.
- Good midrange quality.
- Surprisingly coherent sounding set.
- A good quality IEM case.
- Alluring-looking resin shells.
- Sufficient bass quality.
CONS:
- MMCX connector (subjective for I'm more leaning on 2-pin connectors except for QDC type ones).
- Wish for more resolution and micro-detail retrieval.
- Layering of instruments needs further improvement in some tracks.
Some Tracks Tested: ( * = 16-bit FLAC, ** = 24-bit FLAC, *'* = MQA, '*' = DSD, *'= .WAV)
Alison Krauss -When You Say Nothing At All *
Jade Wiedlin - Blue Kiss**
Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks **
Mountain - Mississippi Queen *
Queen - Killer Queen **
Guns N' Roses - Patience *'*
Eric Clapton - Tears in Heaven '*'
Sergio Mendes- Never Gonna Let You Go '*'
Pearl Jam - Daughter **
Roselia - Hidamari Rhodonite *
Assassin - Fight (To Stop The Tyranny)*
Celtic Frost- Visual Aggression *
New Order - Blue Monday *
The Corrs- What Can I do (unplugged version) *
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child *
The Madness- Buggy Trousers *
Metallica - Motorbreath **
Mariah Carey- Always Be My Baby *
Destiny's Child - Say My Name *
Malice Mizer- Au Revoir *
Mozart - Lacrimosa *
New York Philharmonic Orchestra - Dvorak- Symphony 9 " From the New World." *
Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold (Sting cover)*
Michael Jackson - Give In To Me *
Exciter - Violence and Force *
Diana Krall - Stop This World **
Debbie Gibson - Foolish Beat *'*
P.S.
I am not affliated to AUDIOSENSE nor receive monetary incentives and financial gains as they provide me a review unit for an exchange of factual and sincere feedback from yours truly.
Once again, I would like to thank Elaine Wong for this providing this review unit, I truly appreciate on her generosity towards me and other reviewers.
If you are interested this IEM product from AUDIOSENSE, Just check their FB Page and E-commerce sites links below:
FB:
https://m.facebook.com/AudiosenseIEMs/
Official Site:
Aliexpress:
AUDIOSENSE Official Store
https://a.aliexpress.com/_mKQN5we
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