Pros:
- Great transparency in the mids
- Sparkly but non-fatiguing treble
- Commendable technicalities
Cons:
- Female 2 pin connectors have an awkward design
Introduction:
Hisenior is a company from China that produces in-ear monitors. They specialize in making CIEMs (custom in-ear monitors) intended for musicians but all models they have can also be bought in universal fit. The "U" in the name stands for "universal" since this variant is made for universal fit. As of writing this review, the FE3U retails for 249 USD. The Philippine circle of reviewers received one unit of the FE3U provided by Hisenior as a part of their international tour.
Specifications:
Driver units: 3 Sonion balanced armature
Impedance: 40 ohms
Sensitivity: 113 dB
Frequency response range: 15 Hz - 22 kHz
Source:
Poco X3 paired with iBasso DC03, Shanling UA1, Tempotec Sonata E35 and Zishan U1
Test tracks:
Africano - Earth Wind and Fire
Dark Necessities - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Gurenge - Lisa
The Chain - Fleetwood Mac
Monsters - All Time Low
Ours - Taylor Swift
Stay - Mayday Parade
Snuff - Slipknot
Yesterday Once More - Carpenters
So Slow - Freestyle
Aurora Sunrise - Franco
Attention - Pentatonix
Blue Bird - Ikimono-gakari
You're Still The One - Shania Twain
Anyone Who Knows What Love Is(Will Understand) - Irma Thomas
Salamin - Slapshock
AOV - Slipknot
Hey Jude - The Beatles
The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson
...and a lot more.
Unboxing and Accessories:
The FE3U comes in a rather large black box with a magnetic flap. Lifting the flap up will reveal the earphones inserted in foams with the cable already attached, and below it is the circular metal case. Underneath the foams are the accessories which include 7 pairs of silicone tips in 3 different colors, a single pair of foam tips, cleaning tool, and a microfiber cloth.
Build:
The shells are made of Egger allergy free resin. And like most IEMs with resin shells, the shells of the FE3U are smooth to the touch and have a glossy surface. The unit that we received is the transparent variant. Everything inside is visible including the balanced armature drivers, the crossover circuit, and the female 2 pin connectors. The faceplates have a glittery gradient color design and decorated with "febos" cursive lettering in silver color. The balanced armature drivers have a tube attached to their nozzles going to the main nozzle of the shell. The nozzles have a lip to hold eartips in place but it doesn't have a mesh filter.
I just wanna point out that the 2 pin connectors here have an awkward design. It is recessed but just partially, so the protruding male pins does not go in all the way through. I don't really see any benefit in this design aside from being just different.
The cable is a braided 8-core OCC (Ohno Continuous Casting) silver plated copper. It is a bit thick, slightly stiff and heavier than average. The male 2 pin connectors, chin slider, splitter, and gold plated 3.5 mm plug are all made of metal.
Now let's get to the sound.
Lows:
The lows have a tight presentation. Subbass has minimal impact, decays really quickly with a rumble that is barely heard and felt. The depth is below average. Midbass, on the other hand, has the same characteristics. Its weight leans on the thin side and has more of a thud than a thump type of sound.
Overall, the lows of the FE3U are flat sounding that some may find lacking. This type of tuning is good for studio and stage monitoring, and for audiophiles who aims for accuracy across the spectrum.
Mids:
The mids have a slightly forward approach with focus on the clarity. String instruments sound clear and crisp. Vocals have an above average level of articulation but partially leans to being thin. It does get a bit shouty sometimes especially female vocals but it stays comfortable more often than not.
Overall, the mids are what I consider to be the focal point of the FE3U. Even though it gets a bit too aggressive sometimes, this section is what makes the FE3U a contender in its price range.
Highs:
The highs are forward and have a slight boost. Treble reach is above average, and the same can be noticed with the decay. Due to this, combined with the flat nature of the lows, minute details in well recorded tracks can be noticed with minimal effort.
Overall, despite being elevated, the highs never sounded harsh nor sibilant. And just like the mids, the instruments in this section sound very clear and well-defined.
Soundstage and Imaging:
The stage has a slightly below average expansion. The depth expands significantly more than the width. Despite that, layering and instrument separation is great. Imaging has excellent transparency, and congestion is almost non-existent especially on well recorded tracks.
Conclusion:
The Hisenior FE3U is a vibrant sounding pair of IEMs that may serve two purposes at the same time; monitoring and providing that enjoyable technical performance that most audiophiles aim for. Naturally, it has its fair share of flaws, but at its given price, it is a great competitor in the arena of multi-BA IEMs.
Tags:
In-Ear Monitors