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Showing 1 of 23 conversations about:
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 2, 2017
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Alright! The Nuforce HEM1 is now on Massdrop! There aren't many reviews online, so I hope I can give you guys some idea of how these little IEMs perform.
I personally own a pair of these HEM1 IEMs for about 4 months now and they sound really good. It has a balanced sound signature that is very easy to like. It has a fast, energetic sound which is lively and engaging, which pairs very well with Phones/DACs/DAPs with a warmer sound signature. Sound Staging and instrument separation is exceptional given it's price point. I personally pair it with the Astell & Kern AK Jr.
Bass is present and quick but not overwhelming. For reference, Bass is less punchy as compared to something like the Audio Technica ATH E40, however this is kinda expected considering it sports a BA driver instead of (Dual) Dynamic drivers that the ATH E40 uses. Sub bass extension is pretty good, but I wouldn't consider it exceptional.
Mids and trebles are where this little things excel. Vocals, Male and Female alike are crisp and clear. Guitar strums, plucks and rumbles are satisfyingly crunchy. Treble is notable, but not intrusive. It, at no point, sounds shrill or sibilant and is very easy to listen to for long hours.
Comfort and noise isolation for this IEM is I would say, EXCEPTIONAL. It is on par, if not better than my ATH E40 in terms of isolation (in which the E40 is known to have a very good noise isolation by the way), and is wayyy better than my Sony EX650APs and a few other IEMs that I own. Comfort is unparalleled to most other IEMs on the market in my opinion. It is extremely light and sits with a negative profile in my ear. It does not feature a memory wire ear hook, but uses a heat shrink rubber tube as the ear hook, although I personally do prefer memory wire typed ear hooks such as the one on the ATH E40 but that is just my personal preference.
In conclusion, I would say get them. I personally got them at a discounted SGD$129 (Originally SGD$179). The price Massdrop is offering is quite a steal. I have a friend who even commented that these IEMs, quoting "It( the NuForce HEM1) could battle the Nobel Savant at $800+ in terms of sonic performance." These IEMs have a lot going for it at a really reasonable price and I think you really can't go wrong with these IEMs for casual/easy listening. The HEM1 excels in genres such as pop, acoustic and jazz/blues IMO. I hope this little review helped anyone who may be interested in getting this IEM, but do take my words and opinions with a grain of salt. Have a nice day everyone, stay safe! :)
Nov 2, 2017
loopmanxe
1
Nov 2, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoHow they preform with electronic music. At the moment I'm using JVC ha_fxd70 and I cant find similar to them. Many thanks in advance for your reply!
Nov 2, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 2, 2017
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loopmanxeHi there :) I find these perform pretty well with electronic music too actually. Because it uses BA drivers, the clarity is better than using Dynamic(aka moving coil) drivers in general. But I believe for electronic music, the tempo is generally faster than the genres I mentioned above, so "sound decay" is an important factor when considering IEMs for electronic music. In this department, I feel the HEM1 excels because the sound decays pretty fast, which means all your electric guitars + synthesizers + what have you, will not sound like a garbled mess. I do have Daft Punk's Random Access Memories Album in 16bit FLAC and I find the HEM1 does hold itself in this Album, tho I find the bass to be less hard hitting than some other IEMs... Hope this helped? Haha :)
Nov 2, 2017
onoduras
54
Nov 3, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoHey man, if you don't mind - how does the HEM1 sound with metal? You may see above that I've been uninmpressed by the NuForce x Massdrop EDC's. The clarity is there, but when the sound stage fills up (especially with artists like Devin Townsend and his wall of sound) the upper end sounds recessed and the whole thing just ends up being a bit muddled and lacking any kind of crispness. I listen to contemporary power and atmospheric black metal a lot so sound stage and clarity are both important. My current daily cans are ATH-M50x, which have a nearly perfect sound for my tastes (a bit too much bass in some cases, but the upper registers are lovely and crisp. Biggest weakness with them IMO is the lackluster stereo field, which the NuForce EDC's offer beautifully). I appreciate it!
Nov 3, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 3, 2017
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onodurasHey yo! So sorry bro I won't be able to help you on this one. I have never in my life listened to metal before. I tried going on youtube to listen to the track Deathray by this Devin Townsend guy you mentioned. I feel that it sound pretty fine actually, the separation of the vocals and the bassline is very clear. The bass was quick and with just enough heft to it. But do take my words with a grain of salt as I have NO FRAME OF REFERENCE AT ALL to how metal should sound like.... Sorry bout this.
Anyways, my At-Home daily drivers are actually the ATH-M40x, in which I prefer the more neutral sound and less boomy bass as compared to the M50x. I find the mids and treble clarity comparable to the M50x. My Go-Outside daily drivers are the ATH E40 which sounds kinda like the M50x but in earphone form. The Bass on the ATH E40 is just Mmmmm <3
Nov 3, 2017
onoduras
54
Nov 3, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoThanks dude. I really appreciate you making the effort to check that out! "Deathray" is actually a really good song to test, so that was a good random choice. :D On the EDC's the vocals seem recessed into the mix, so I think the HEM1 might be ideal.
I've actually been debating getting the ATH-M70 because I read that the sound is more neutral, and like the M40... But now that you say the E40 sounds pretty similar to the M50 then I may just plan to get some of those. I like my M50x's a lot but they are just, well, BIG. :P
Nov 3, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 3, 2017
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onodurasYou're welcome yo! I just feel that the HEM1 is really what it should be, it sports a single BA driver and BA drivers are known for their clarity and mids and treble performace. But they generally lack the prowess in the bass department. True that this IEM wouldn't be for bassheads, but bass isn't lacking either. I g8nd it just nice... The tonality of the HEM1 is extraordinary for it's given pricepoint.
And yea, if given a chance, try the e40 too! But be warned that the fit and comfort may not be for everyone as you can see the E40 driver is pretty large and the nozzle bore are pretty large too
(Comparison with the HEM1)
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Nov 3, 2017
ripsterarmy99
153
Nov 4, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoHave you heard the Mee M6 pro? If so how do they compare?
Nov 4, 2017
Astro_Seven
182
Nov 4, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoI'm tempted to get these because I love the EDC but I'm worried the bass won't be sufficient.
Nov 4, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 4, 2017
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ripsterarmy99Yes I've heard the M6 Pro. The sound stage is more compressed and staging is not as wide as the HEM1. Clarity is no match either... The M6 Pro is slightly bassier and mids are just ok...
On a side note, the M7 Pro is even bassier than the M6 Pro. So much to the point it slightly overshadows the everything else which I didn't like at all. I wasn't impressed by neither the M6 Pro or the M7 Pro tbh
Nov 4, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 4, 2017
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Astro_SevenI haven't heard the EDC ... My EDC hasn't arrived yet, but soon haha.
The bass on the HEM1 is quick. I would describe it this way - When the bass comes, it hits fast with just a good amount of weight, and then quickly dissapears. I personally like it because I'm more of a "vocalphile". But in all honesty, if you like bass, I'm pretty sure the EDC would suit you better. Or, you can look at the Sony MDR EX650AP. Retails for around SGD99 and the bass and mids on those are just *insert high pitched excited screech here*
Nov 4, 2017
Astro_Seven
182
Nov 4, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoThank you for the recommendation... the only problem, though, with the Sony, is the lack of detachable cable :(
Nov 4, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 4, 2017
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Astro_SevenYea, thats indeed true. And you're welcome btw :)
Nov 4, 2017
Tiyako
3
Nov 6, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoHello! @Unicrogrillamo Thank you so much for your opinions on the Nuforce HEM1! I just got the blue color version 2 days ago and i can't agree more with your impression of it! These are indeed comfortable and can pretty much take on any genre...but they do indeed excel with pop , acoustic and jazz. The bass is present , tight but not suitable for bass heads. The soundstage of the HEM1 isn't too bad but i think they can be definitely tuned to a wider soundstage with the next revision. They are truly comfortable and enjoyable as a daily driver!
Nov 6, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 6, 2017
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TiyakoHaha you're very much welcome! :) As for the narrow-ish sound stage, if I am not mistaken, a wide sound is hard to acheive with IEMs which offer very good isolation, especially in this price bracket. I can't be absolutely sure if this is the trade off - isolation for soundstage.
Anyways, hope you enjoy your new HEM1! :D
Nov 6, 2017
onoduras
54
Nov 6, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoThanks again, man... This drop comes at an awkward time for me and based on your comments I think I should wait until I can risk buying something I won't like. The fit on the EDC is awesome but it seems as though I should get the ATH-E40 first, and save up for one of the multi-driver HEMs. I had to sell off my EDCs (with some sadness) because to me the sound is just a bit too muddy for my taste, and I can't enjoy their comfortable isolation. Thanks for all your comments!
Nov 6, 2017
Astro_Seven
182
Nov 6, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoIS the ATH-E40 really that good?
How about comfort? I think Lachlan of Lachlan likes a Thing on YouTube said they are kind of big.
Nov 6, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 6, 2017
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onodurasyou're welcome! :) Don't risk it if you think you wouldn't like the HEM1s haha. If you are interested in the ATH E40, I highly recommend you get to audition it at a headphones store first as the fit of the eartip might not suit you. Also when you're there, do try it with the iFi iCan Nano Amp. it sounds pretty darn amazing!
Nov 6, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 6, 2017
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Astro_SevenJust saw his video haha, yes I agree the nozzles are quite big and might not suit everyone. Definitely not as comfortable as the HEM1 in terms of fit, but still usable. If you can look past these, the IEM is really good. Audition it if you can! Try different genres, see how it handles. The sound is pretty neutral with a small boost to the bass.
Nov 6, 2017
Astro_Seven
182
Nov 7, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoAlthough I live in the NYC area, I don't know where to go to audition the E40 in particular. I will tell you, however, I am generally an Audio-Technica fan.. just never heard any of their earphones.. If the E40 has the Audio-Technica house-sound, with good punchy bass, then I'm interested.
Comfort is a concern regarding the E40.. one reason I like this NuForce styling is that I find it immensely comfortable.
Nov 7, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 7, 2017
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Astro_SevenHere in Singapore there are many places to audition headphones haha :) and yes, the E40 has an Audio Technica house sound. In fact I said the same thing when I auditioned the E40. The ATH E70 does not however have that AT house sound
Nov 7, 2017
Tiyako
3
Nov 7, 2017
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UnicrogrillamoI guess this is unfair....because my previous daily iem was the JH 16 pro custom IEM....the performance of it totally spoiled me....the sound stage on it made me forgot I was using an iem...and not a head phone...I've been trying to find a universal with a similar signature to the JH 16pro...since it is a big hard to use when I'm out and about.
Nov 7, 2017
Unicrogrillamo
26
Nov 7, 2017
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TiyakoTrue JH is a high end IEM manufacturer, but again, it is in a whole new price range as compared to the HEM1, at least. Plus the topic of audio is all about subjectivity.
Nov 7, 2017
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