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THE BIZ: CIEM COMPANIES IN CHINA & HONG KONG
August 12, 2013 · by CYMBACAVUM · in Audio, IEMs, Thoughts. ·
There’s no question that China as a country has come into its own as a superpower in recent years. Its economy is vibrant, its people are making money, and it is surreptitiously “catching up” to the West in many sectors of technology — it’s no surprise that the custom in-ear industry is booming there as well.

Already, China is the headphone and earphone capital of the world, with more ODM and OEM plants per capita than any other place. Not only do Shenzhen and its immediate surroundings make cheap $5 earbuds, they’re also primed to model the custom in-ear industry the same way: coalescing technologies, unifying designs, and diversifying branding opportunities. With so much flowing around town — ideas, parts, money — it’s hard to know what’s what! Still, there are many curious audiophiles that would like to venture into the world of Chinese customs. So, here is a primer on all the Chinese and HK-based CIEM companies (in no particular order):

Unique Melody

By far the best known (to the Western world) Chinese custom in-ear brand to come out of China, Unique Melody burst onto the international scene by way of head-fi, offering great-sounding products at a lower price compared to the then powerhouses of custom in-ear monitors, UE, JHA, Westone, etc. and at a build quality previously untenable by the big companies.

Unique Melody‘s main manufacturing facility is in Zhuhai, a city bordering Macau and Hong Kong. It’s come a long way since its modest beginnings, with its own unique entity and a fully fleshed-out product line that features the likes of the Mage, Miracle, and Merlin — all well-respected products in the hi-fi world.

Despite being one of the larger and more established CIEM companies in China, UM has not been without growing pains. In the beginning, they were ridiculed in China for making “shanzai” (山寨) CIEMs, and even now do not have a popular presence within the mainland, despite widespread popularity in the west.

They’ve also had some missteps with the Platform Pure 6, their own competitor to the JH Audio JH3A. While first touted as an ideal version of the JH3A, the PP6 has also had its own significant issues, leading to a lukewarm response amongst audiophiles and an undesirable price point. UM‘s marketing has also been somewhat inconsistent, with several dis****utors all jockeying for customers, leading to some botched orders and inconsistent customer service.

However, UM seems ready to come back strong in 2013, putting much in-house research and development into a triple dynamic driver model in the 3DD, with plans to use those drivers in other future models as well.

WEBSITE (UM GLOBAL, AUSTRALIA): HTTP://WWW.UNIQUEMELODY.CO
WEBSITE (UM INTERNATIONAL, STEPHEN GUO): HTTP://WWW.CUSTOM-IEM.COM


Unique Melody 3DD, pictured with the HiFiMAN HM-901 (Photo Courtesy of: AnakChan)
Rooth

UM’s lesser-known sister brand shares the same roof as Unique Melody and the two share parts sourcing and assist each other with labor (when one or the other is in high demand), but mostly maintain their own independent staff.

What makes the two stand apart is in the marketing. Whilst UM has long catered toward a worldwide audience and has multiple dis****utors around the globe, Rooth has kept its reach in East Asia, servicing clients in Japan, Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan. Its main dis****utor for global markets is Japan-based HFI International, but has a local dis****utor for Singapore (Null Audio Studio).

The Null Audio Elpis, one of the most affordable custom in-ear monitors around, is a single BA, single dynamic hybrid model designed and built by Rooth, but voiced by Null Audio.

Rooth also stands apart in its product lineup, featuring a larger model lineup that ranges from low to high priced, and even a limited edition 10-driver model, the LS10-1, which tops the driver count in today’s numbers oriented CIEM market. The full Rooth lineup has been previewed on CYMBACAVUM (click here to read the article).

While it currently limits its online presence to local retailers and listening booths, Roothis said to be re-hauling its brand image and launching with a global website soon, shedding its image as merely UM’s lesser known sister brand.


Despite having common roots, Rooth offers a product lineup substantially different from UM‘s.
A remold of the Sennheiser IE8 plus dual driver upgrade to IE8x3 is pictured here.
(Photo Courtesy of: Mr. T)
Thousand Sound (千音)

Popular with enthusiasts in China and Hong Kong, Thousand Sound is headed by Master Guohua Xu.

According to fans, Master Xu is a perfectionist and takes his time with his creations, building them to exacting standards, and his attention to detail is the reason why he’s so popular in China.

His most recent flagship, the TS853, is a triple bore, three-way, five-driver hybrid design that utilizes a dynamic low end. Such a type of complex design is matched only by Rooth’s LS-X5. While there are few online impressions this side of the great firewall, an avid Japanese customer did post his thoughts (here).

ERJI.NET PAGE: HTTP://WWW.ERJI.NET/READ.PHP?TID=520827
TAOBAO STORE: HTTP://SHOP35979424.TAOBAO.COM/


Thousand Sound‘s triple-bore, five-driver hybrid CIEM, the TS853 (Photo from: ERJI.net)
Guiling (桂聆) (a.k.a. G-Customs)

Located in Guangxi Province, next to Guangdong Province (the electronics manufacturing capital of the world), Guiling is the brainchild of one Master Fuwen Xiao, a former engineer for Rooth. In typical Confucian Chinese custom, Master Xiao left the city to return to his family home in Guangxi, perhaps to take care of his parents.

While Xiao has his own line of ‘CX’ monitors, they’re believed to be derived from his previous designs at Rooth, and now freelances for companies looking for in-roads into the CIEM market. For example, G-Customs in Singapore is the English-speaking retailer for Master Xiao, while Stage93‘s self-branded custom products seem to be designed and built by Guiling as well. Oridio in Hong Kong is responsible for the Cantonese market.

ERJI.NET PAGE: HTTP://WWW.ERJI.NET/READ.PHP?TID=830208

TAOBAO: HTTP://SHOP35825172.TAOBAO.COM/


Last year, Mr. T requested Master Xiao to build him a custom driver upgrade of his old DBA-02, pairing its TWFK-30017 with a Sonion 33A007, along with with a special semi-custom shell. (Photo Courtesy of: Mr.T)
BK

While BK is supposed to be one of the oldest custom in-ear manufacturers in China, it seems to have disappeared of late, perhaps swallowed by some other company and repackaged into other forms. It was the first in China to create a CIEM version of the Etymotic ER4, and has even made acrylic-shelled clones of the ER4.


Translucent ER4s: not an everyday sight. (Photo from: Baidu)
Lisound Earphone

This new company is actually not so new; Lisound is actually a hearing aid companylocated in Fuzhou, but has only recently branched out into custom in-ear monitors.

They seem to be taking a mass consumer approach to CIEMs, rather than catering specifically to musicians, sound engineers, and audiophiles.

People that understand Mandarin Chinese can view this video introducing Lisound as a brand.

WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.LISOUNDEARPHONE.COM/


Lisound joins an increasing number of manufacturers to use the MMCX coaxial connectors in their removable cables. (Photo from: Lisound)
Beat Audio (比特科技)

Yes, Beat Audio might be at times mistaken for Jimmy Iovine’s Beats Audio, but if you’re an audiophile, you may have heard of Beat Audio for its headphone upgrade cables. They also make relatively obscure CIEMs.

While the brand doesn’t have a great reputation locally, it does offer some interesting features in its products, such as a three-pin “TT-X” configuration — no idea how it works, though.

Beat also has a sub-brand under the guise of Wan Xuan, and offers the WX i9 PRO, a single driver dynamic model that employs FST technology — another mysterious technology.

Overall, Beat Audio is just shrouded in mystery — its cables too. We here atCYMBACAVUM don’t quite know what to think.

ERJI.NET PAGE: HTTP://WWW.ERJI.NET/READ.PHP?TID=925547

TAOBAO: HTTP://BEATHEADPHONE.TAOBAO.COM/


Beat Audio‘s BA19PRO — no “TT-X” here, but equally as mysterious. (Photo from: Taobao)
AudioSense

In its Taobao de******ion, AudioSense proclaims that it was created in 2012 as a collaboration between a ‘famous’ acoustic engineer and a brand developer. Mmm, okay.Honestly, it isn’t even known if AudioSense has its own production facility — they could be contracting with someone else. Either that, or it is a purely DIY effort using known driver combinations, such as the ready-made Knowles GQ-30710 in their AS2dual-driver model. It does look like, however, that AudioSense also has AS3 and AS4models. Let’s not crucify them, yet.

TAOBAO: HTTP://ERJIHOME.TAOBAO.COM/?SPM=2013.1.1000126.3.3PZ6DN


The AudioSense AS2 employs the Knowles GQ-30710 driver assembly, no question about it — very little acoustic engineering required. (Photo from: Taobao)
AM Audio

Like the last couple of CIEM companies introduced, not much is known about AM Audio, except that it has a single driver universal model that looks remarkably similar to the Rhapsodio R-1L.

AM also seems to have several other CIEM models. Given Rhapsodio’s status as a finder and reseller of select products from China, it’s possible that AM Audio is the source of the R-1L and perhaps some of their other products as well.

TAOBAO: HTTP://SHOP69781868.TAOBAO.COM/


Looks like the Rhapsodio R-1L… (Photo from: Taobao)
SSLN (似水流年)

“Sì Shuǐ Liú Nián” is a Chinese idiom that approximately means, “years flow like water“, pointing to the swift and continual passing of time. Perhaps SSLN‘s sound signature flows like water? Perhaps.

Well, at least its top of the line SSLN-T2 model is quite interesting, with dual ED drivers in one tube and what appears to be an FC/HC/WBHC driver in another tube.

TAOBAO: HTTP://SHOP41755.TAOBAO.COM/


Nice engravings! (Photo from: Taobao)
ZW (战舞定制)

Having gained early recognition for his detailed explanatory videos on how to DIY custom in-ear monitors, ZW is a one-man operation that does everything. In fact, he works so hard, he has to take his shirt off. Check him out, or hit up his QQ at 223874986! He likes big drivers, single bores, long walks on the beach…

Okay, okay, kidding aside, we here at CYMBACAVUM do believe he deserves to be commended for his efforts in explaining to the greater Chinese-speaking community the complexities of designing and constructing custom-molded in-ear monitors. He does also offer some interesting designs, such as the ZW433.

BAIDU PAGE:HTTP://WWW.BAIDU.COM/P/%E6%88%98%E8%...AE%9A%E5%88%B6

TUDOU VIDEO CHANNEL: HTTP://WWW.TUDOU.COM/HOME/_99744956

TAOBAO: HTTP://SHOP67998757.TAOBAO.COM/


ZW, the shirtless CIEM master! (Photo from: Baidu)
DUNU (a.k.a. TopSound)

TopSound is an OEM turned branded earphone maker (under the DUNU name) with corporate bases in Taiwan and production facilities in China. While known for its value-priced universal-fit IEMs, DUNU silently makes a custom-fit model, the DC4, a four-driver four-way design, utilizing a TWFK for the mids and highs, a BK for the low-mids, and a CI for the lows.

From de******ions, the DC4 seems to have DUNU’s typical house sound, with a warm midrange and relaxed highs.

WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.DUNU-TOPSOUND.COM/


The frequency response of the DUNU DC4, as measured by a Brüel & Kjær 4157-equipped HATS, matches subjective impressions. (Graphic from: iMP3.net)
Heir Audio (a.k.a. Micro-DSP)

Based in Chengdu, Heir Audio is quite a bit of distance away from the prime Guangzhou-Shenzhen beltway of electronics manufacturing. Heir Audio was founded by a Texan audiologist, John Moulton (aka ‘Wizard’), and a family friend, David Tao Jiang, under the Micro-DSP umbrella. Micro-DSP is a Canadian company known for its SpeechEasy product, a stuttering-assistance device developed in conjunction with the Janus Development Group, the company responsible for Gorilla Ears, a North Carolina-based CIEM company.

With unique, inimitable aesthetics and aggressive pricing, Heir Audio quickly took the audiophile market by storm in 2012 and ushered in a group of (sometimes rabid) fans that loved the Heir Audio look. While its universal-fit models have been hit with mixed reviews (click here to read thoughts on the Heir Audio Tzar 350), its flagship model, the 8.A, has been praised as a wonderfully rich, bass-forward model that pleases audiophiles with its enveloping presentation. These qualities led CYMBACAVUM to include Heir Audio in our Best in the Biz: The Top CIEM Companies in 2013 list.

However, Heir Audio is currently undergoing a dark period of transition. Amidst rumors of labor disputes, company founder John Moulton abruptly left the company, along with a small cadre of his trusted staff members in late May of 2013. The new, “Wizard-less”Heir Audio will have a lot to prove in these coming months, on whether or not it can sustain the momentum it built up in 2012. The verdict is still out on whether or not it can recover from the loss of its core team members, and its main art direction in the Wizard. Only time will tell.

WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.HEIRAUDIO.COM

ALIBABA: HTTP://MICRO-DSP.EN.ALIBABA.COM/PRODUCTLIST.HTML


Heir Audio 4.A, shell and engravings by Dr. John Moulton a.k.a. ‘Wizard’
(Photo Courtesy of: Mr. T)
LEAR (by Forever Source Digital)

Proudly waving the Hong Kong flag, LEAR and its parent company Forever Source Digital lay claim to being the Cantonese port’s first wholly domestically researched and produced custom in-ear shop.

LEAR is headed by Tatco Ma, a main with a thirst for audio knowledge, as he’s been credentialed as a THX-certified professional and inducted into the AES (Audio Engineering Society). Their flagship model, the LCM-5 has already garnered very positive reviews from users across the net, and LEAR isn’t stopping there, announcing their first universal model, the LUF-4, in August 2013.

Website (LEAR): http://lear.hk/

Discussion Forum (Forever Source Digital): http://fs-digital.net/forum.php


LEAR‘s first custom-drived universal-fit IEM, the LUF-4. (Picture from: head-fi)
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И? Правильно было бы выложить ссылку на источник в теме обсуждения iem. Ничего интересного в статье не увидел, цель создание отдельного топика непонятна

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