AUDIOSENSE AQ7 INSIGHT: Neutralheads, Midcentrics and Trebleheads, Unite!
"The Devil is in the details".
So how does this quote connect to this review article? Well this is how I simply described this product capability as a tool for audio professionals or just for an apparatus for an audio enthusiast either for critical listening or just a simple enjoyment.
As some of you already know, I'm a big fan of Audiosense products as I previously did a lot of product reviews from them many times. I can proudly declare that not a single Audiosense product has really failed my expectations. That's how I undoubtedly adore Audiosense on how they presented their products and make sure it is up to the high quality standard.
What I have here now is their latest flagship model, The Audiosense AQ7 "Insight". It's actually an improved model with some revisions over its predecessor, the original AQ7. Based on the users' feedback of AQ7, Audiosense decided to tweak and modify some supposedly shortcomings of the previous model and AQ7 "Insight" is the result of it.
Audiosense AQ7 is a hybrid driver set-up IEM consists of single dynamic driver and 6 balanced armature drivers. Its 10mm single dynamic driver has a titanium diaphragm which has the most durable and yet light among the current existing type of dynamic driver that will deliver a more resonating, crisper and faster bass response. The balanced armature drivers that complemented it are the ones who handle the lows, mids and highs and it is also noted that Audiosense has a very strong relationship with Knowles and we all know that Knowles is one of the premium BA driver manufacturers out there. All transducers are its own sound tube channels to have better reverberation and separation among its specific frequency range.
The shells of AQ7 insight are made of high quality medical-grade resin moulded in a 3D printer. Medical-grade resin supposedly has a very skin-friendly attribute and whenever I touch it to feel its texture, it really screams premium. There is a capsule-shaped vent hole on it with some micro holes on its filter. As for fitting and comfort, it really snugs well into my lug holes and I can use it for a long listening without any discomfort and irritation.
Moreover, like all Audiosense products, AQ7 Insight still uses a MMCX connector which is somehow durable and resistant to wear and tear on daily usage given that I have a number of Audiosense IEMs among my collection and I don't encounter any issues on it. But there are some minor inconveniences on this set as I experience some driver flex in every time I lightly tap on the housing. (The right part has it.)
As for packaging and included accessories. Audiosense is one of IEM companies that presented their products very satisfyingly and impressively with some good quality accessories of its inclusions. It has a colour black, rectangular-shaped box that is identical with its DT200-DT600 cousins.
Here are some included accessories inside of the box:
A pair of AUDIOSENSE AQ4 shells.
A light copper 8 strands, 19 core OFC cable with an L-shape 3.5mm termination plug in a MMCX connector.
MMCX removing clip
Three (3) pairs of AUDIOSENSE S400 eartips of different standard sizes.
Three (3) pairs of AUDIOSENSE GT40S eartips of different standard sizes.
Three (3) pairs of AUDIOSENSE AT400 foam tips.
An instruction manual
A pelican-like container IEM case
A cleaning tool with ear wax remover and brush.
Audiosense IEMs are usually easier to drive sets and scales well to all sources due to low impedance rating and a substantial sensitivity mark. Even on decent devices like smartphones, it is already a good volume output and delivers a very good dynamic sound quality.
In regards to its tonality, Audiosense AQ7 Pro manifests a distinct "reference-neutral" sound signature in my ears as it has a tight bass response with more emphasis on the midrange and treble. Others might find this set as a bright mid-centric IEM.
Here are some of my observations on its characteristics of each part of the frequency range spectrum.
LOWS/BASS:
Tight, precise and articulate are the characteristics that instantly exhibit to my auditory perception. This is my preferred bass quality in my tonal preference as It perfectly fits well with midcentric tuning in my opinion. Sub bass is definitely present on this one as I discerningly hear those rumbling and reverberating sounds.
Midbass is more prominent on this one for it has a decent texture to deliver an ample note weight on the lows. It is a decent growl on bass guitars to sound broad and more resonant, a sustaining and thudding characteristic in bass kicks and bass- baritones has very enough heft and deep not to make the vocals sound hollow and less appealing.
Due to its tighter sound nature, the bass bleed on this one is practically absent as it delivers a cleaner, accurate and segregates itself from other frequency ranges. This is not definitely a bass preference for a basshead listener.
MIDRANGE:
This is the strongest asset of this set as I mentioned that its midrange is more prominent and projecting. I am a sort of midcentric listener and I want mids presented more forward and detailed and AQ7 insight doesn't fail my expectations. The mids are presented very sterile, well-detailed, translucent and neutral.
Female vocals seem to have more benefited on this one as it has sufficient texture and yet is transparent. It is very versatile to all female vocal types and registers from a denser contralto (which is quite uncommon) to a well-extended and powerful sopranos. The quality of female vocals on AQ7 Insight are mesmerising, ethereal and captivating in my ears. While male vocals have enough gruff, guttural and rounded to have sufficient thorough quality.
As for instruments, strings are plainly more prominent on this one as it adds a crisper and brighter sound on an acoustic guitar (sometimes, a tad dry) and a vibrant and metallic sound on a violin. Percussives like snare drums have this sharp and shrill sound in every strike to beat. Brass like trumpets has a more strident and sharper tone and horns have a ponderous and robust sound on which AQ7 Insight accurately reproduces them. Piano has a brighter tone that it sounds brilliant and clear but sometimes a tad brassy.
For sure that this midrange boost, it will absolutely be likeable to most midcentrists like me but the transition on elevation between mid to upper mids might give some issues to listeners who were sensitives on this particular part of frequency spectrum and they might be too honky or nasally sounding.
HIGHS/TREBLE:
It is secondly the most prominent in the overall frequency range of this set. Treble seems to have a clear, clean, detailed and airy one. I like this kind of treble as it adds some clarity and fidelity.
Upper mids to presence treble treble are noticeably peaky but good thing that it doesn't have that harshness and gritty that I usually hear on unrefined upper mids boost. Occurrences of sibilance is minimal to none which I enjoy some tracks that tend to be sibilant-laden without hindrance. Cymbals sounds have a good shimmer and gleam that extends well. Hi-hats have a distinctively shorted and "chicky" sound that AQ7 Insight conveys to the listener correctly.
Moreover, It definitely has a very airy and sparkling sound that it is well-extended across brilliance treble without some roll-offs that might have dampened the harmonics.
This is one of the best treble qualities that I've encountered recently in an entry-level to midrange category.
SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING & OTHER TECHNICALITIES:
"Goddamn! what a spacious and expansive head room that this set has" This is actually my initial utterance on how the soundstage was presented on the AQ7 Insight. It is well-proportioned in my opinion, has a wide sound field that is quite spacious in my headroom, has a good height ceiling and the depth is well-defined on how the front and rear are presented on this one.
Imaging is absolutely impressive on this set on how it pinpoints the placement of instruments and vocals very accurately in a perceived spatial field. Separation has indeed a sufficient gap and spacing on each element that you will hear on the track. Layering is even more impressive on this one on how frequencies and distinct dynamic characters of each tone of instruments and vocals are arranged very orderly that a complex, multi-instrumental tracks will be played effortless.
Coherency of the drivers delivers a very cohesive and homogenous sound on how dynamic drivers and multi balanced armature drivers complement well that decay, sustain and attack on the performance of each driver are harmoniously well-executed. Tonal colour tends to be more brighter, north of being sounds organic.
As for resolution and resolving capability, macro-dynamics is presented solidly and micro-detail retrieval is even more impressive on how it capture a lot of data and infos from the track in a very sharp definition.
PEER COMPARISONS:
Fearless Audio Roland (2019, around £576/US$615)
While both IEMs are of hybrid driver setup, Roland has another type of driver inside which is a Sonion EST. To sum it up, Roland has a single DD, dual BA drivers and dual Sonion ESTs. These IEMs are also comparable when it comes to aesthetics as their resin shells are even moulded via 3D printing. Roland uses a more proven and durable connector which is a 2-pin connector. Presentation of their respective product and inclusions of quality accessories are evenly matched on both items.
As for tonality, Roland is more of a mild-U shape sound signature. It has a more warmer and natural sounding due to a more textured compare the transparent and more neutral AQ7 Insight. Bass is more punchy, mids is a bit recessed but has more lusher and thicker while AQ7 Insight focuses more on transparency, clarity and resolution but still has a decent texture not to sound lean. Another noticeable difference in this comparison is the treble register, despite Roland having an EST driver, it has less airy extension and less shimmering compared to AQ7 Insight but it is smoother. For an all-rounder tonality, Roland is a more of a safer bet.
Technicalities are definitely better on AQ7 Insight, Roland has above average technical capabilities as it has less expansive soundstage but still remain in a more natural headroom proportion, separation and imaging is good and satisfactory. Resolution capabilities like clarity, detail retrieval and transparency, AQ7 Insight is way better in my opinion.
DUNU SA6 (2021, around £515/US$550)
Dunu SA6 is also a multi-driver set-up just like AQ7 Insight but the difference is that it has an all balanced armature drivers from premium brands like Knowles and Sonion. Dunu SA6 has a bass vent hole switch to add more bass quantity (I didn't even switch on this one, when I tested one before). It uses a 2-pin connector which in my opinion is a better implementation. As for shell aesthetics, they are equally a looker.
The sound signature of Dunu SA6 is more of a balanced-neutral tuning, and it has a substantial note weight and enough warmth to have more balanced sounding without any compromises of clarity, detail and texture. AQ7 Insight focuses more on transparency, detail retrieval and cleanliness. Treble on Dunu SA6 is less airy and yet it is way more smoother. Both have superb mid range quality, between texture and transparency, which do you prefer? In an all-rounder tonality, Dunu SA6 will be more pleasing and compelling to listeners who want to have a transition between fun sounding to analytical while AQ7 Insight is more of a tool for experienced hi-fi enthusiasts as it is for more analytical listening or a professional tool for audio engineers.
Dunu's SA6 technical capabilities are just above average while AQ7 Insight has an excellent mark in that category, Soundstage and resolution capability are where AQ7 Insight dominates over SA6.
To think that this is currently the most expensive set that I have been reviewing for now and it really amazes me on how it performs almost flawlessly that it really hit my tuning preference. Superb tonality and unmatched technical performances is what AQ7 Insight has to offer.
Another to be noted that AQ7 Insight isn't an all-rounder set in my opinion as it caters only to specific listeners which are neutral heads and midcentrics. Bass heads and fun sounding fanatics will having a second thoughts if it will fit on their preferences.
Would I still recommend AQ7 Insight to everyone? For me, it's a big yes if you want to try another flavour of a new listening experience then it's definitely worthy to try it out.
Audiosense AQ7 Insight is available to purchase and you can check the link here if you are indeed interested.
Check out my other reviews on Audiosense products:
SPECIFICATION:
MODEL: AUDIOSENSE AQ7 INSIGHT
IMPEDANCE: 13Ω
SENSITIVITY: 110dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20Hz – 22KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.25M
PIN TYPE: MMCX CONNECTOR
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm
DRIVER UNIT(S): (1) DYNAMIC DRIVER + (6) BALANCED ARMATURE DRIVERS
PROS:
Beautifully crafted resin shells
Neutral and clean sounding
Open sounding and superb vocal clarity.
Tight and precise bass response.
Airy and very detailed treble quality.
Spacious soundstage/headstage.
Superb layering and separation.
Like all Audiosense products, plenty of good quality inclusions.
CONS:
Some listeners who are treble-sensitives might find the sudden elevation of its upper mids peak might be unpleasant to them.
Driver flex (probably depends on physiological structure of ears)
Definitely not a fun-sounding set.
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 *'*
The Sisters of Mercy – Lucretia My Reflection**
Suzanne Vega – Luka **
Lauren Christy – Steep *
P.S.
I am not affiliated 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 Bradley Loo and Elaine Wong for providing and facilitating this review unit, I truly appreciate their generosity towards me and other reviewers.
as always. detailed and fun to read mate!
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