Best IEMs from $100 - $200

Gizaudio x Binary Chopin

• If Harman wasn't boring and had a few drinks
• Harman tuning with excellent bass, clean mids, extended treble, and balanced tonality with great detail.
• Solid set, thin mids. Slightly bright at times.
• Best Collab IEM in years. It's a nice clean tonality. Fantastic vocal presentation. Added low end warmth.

Kiwi Ears Airoso

• A sightly more airy/detailed EW300 with better timbre. Warm leaning all rounder with good dynamic contrast.
• Rich thick, enjoyable. Benchmark for me. Just epic.

Juzear 41T

• This is a colored sound, I don't like it but I can see how others might.

Kiwi Ears KE4

• Just get Odyssey it's better. Warm/bassy with solid vocal and treble extension (not buried) that scales really well with good treble air to not sound too intimate. Has a fuller noteweight with one of...
• Great Meta tuning. Could use more detail, not very engaging. Solid reference.
• It's boring. So boring, like mega boring to the max.
• Pros: Almost dead neutral tuning in the best of ways. Cons: Lacks excitement, bass is alright.
• New Meta tuned IEM. This gives you a bass boost and it's not the best bass. If you want the Hexa + Bass this is what you want.

EPZ P50

• Clean balanced tuning done right. A better tuned MEGA5EST & MOONDROP Meteor with fuller low-end, and more treble extension, same tech, but more dynamic - also half the price. A Mega5EST with better...
• For me this has some oddities. It would be higher if those weren't there.
• Pros: Beautifully done tuning all around. Cons: Nitpick: Bass dynamic could be better.
• Bass can be a little bit on the distracting side if you are looking for a neutral sound signature. Contrasty meta-tuning.

CCA HYDRO

• The best KZ so far, tuning swithces allow lots of options. Good tech, all-rounder sound with bass boost, but, KZ.
• When this hits, it's just a treasure. Insane value.

Kiwi Ears Aether

• Clean, balanced, with slight air boost in the treble. Bass sounds like a DD with great texture. Cheaper better tuned P5+2. Not as smooth as Timeless 2 with more dynamic contrast with a slight sizzle...
• Not for bassheads, but one of the best planars I've ever heard.
• A little bit spicy in the treble (like the other planars). Relaxed upper mid-range. Warmer tuning than S12. It's a decent IEM

AFUL Explorer

• High volume set, very immersive, scales great with no sharpness, wide staging, enough detail/extension, good bass, just crank it up and enjoy the music.
• Smooth, relaxing tuning, great bass with good slam, rich mid-range, safe treble. Upper mids may be too relaxed for some, treble is a bit dark. Perfect for rock and metal.
• I own two and gave two away. So yeah, I kinda like it.
• Relaxed upper mid-range. Vocals sound a little bit more forward than instruments. Smooth treble performance.

Ziigaat LUSH

• A cleaner more technical AFUL Explorer with a more open sense of space and airier treble. High volume set. Very smooth and balanced at higher scaling - has a "Lush" and full sound. Mid-volume sounds...
• Mid mid focused set, I dig it.
• Nice take on new-meta tuning. A little bit more relaxed but nice.

Pula PA02

• Just get Odyssey it's better. Dreamy/airy treble presentation with genres like indie, slow-rock, ballads, singer-songwriter. Immersive/forward vocals that scales nicely. Bass is ok, a little boomy....
• Great tuning, fantastic vocals.
• Great tone, lacks dynamic treble, but overall solid for the price and very enjoyable.
• Pros: Great across the board. Cons: Bass decay slightly too short.

Simgot Supermix 4

• Endgame Harman, one of the smoothest IEMs I've heard with Tangzu Sancai tips (regular). Some units might be hotter in the treble/pzt timbre
• Harman tuning. Soft bass, bright sound, metallic timbre.
• Way too much upper mids, also gets a little off sometimes.
• Pros: Harman with more treble energy. Cons: Can be too spicy.

Truthear Nova

• NEED FOAM TIPS makes the treble smooth and clear. Very clean harman sound with smooth but well extended treble/one of the best treble under $200, no roll-off. The pinnacle of trying not to offend...
• Harman tuning, great detail. Lean vocals, could use more bass. A solid reference.
• Nice set, great bass. Too much upper mids.
• A little bit thin and shrill sounding. Hexa costs half as much and it's the better IEM.

Moondrop Kadenz

• Literally a more fancy Tangzu Xuan NV. Sounds basically the same but just with better packaging, cable/case, and build... but for $100 more?? Nah
• Great Cohessiveness and tonality. Upper air is very nice.
• Nice physicality and punch. Better bass as most basy IEMs. Okay technicalities. Image Separation is not the widest but decent.

Moondrop Kato

• For $200, I'd probably recomend other iems. But it's solid.
• A slight improvement over the KXXS all-round in the technical department.
• Pros: KXXS with better vocals and details.

Shozy P20

• T10 PRO better. Unique tuning with "speical sauce", warm but also sparkly in the treble without the uppermids becoming shouty (tamer uppermids). Great for kpop/jpop/pop and even hiphop and rock....
• The most non planar planar.

NICEHCK NX8

• An Explorer with better vocals but doesn't scale as well. Odyssey and Arcadia better for clean and bass sound.
• Great tonality, solid bass impact. PZT timbre.
• Nice overall tuning, best thing NiceHack has ever done.

SIMGOT EM6L

• A solid budget choice. Hard to think of a more neutral set than this.

Tangzu Zetian Wu

• Pros: Good mild v-shape tuning with little to fault. Cons: Not ideal soundstage for the price.

Tin Hifi T4

• A worthy successor to the legendary GR07.

Tin Hifi P1 Plus

Dunu Kima 2

• Warm-neutral, relaxing set, great cable, build, and accessories. Vocals are a bit soft, not fully extended, could use more air, but overall decent if you want a comfortable listen
• Just fantastic dynamic driver. Hard not to love it.

AFUL MagicOne

• The resolution and clarity at this price is so lovely.
• Sounds quite good but not exceptional. Not a lot of depth. Nothing is sharp or aggressive. Take it for what it is
• Pleasant female vocals and decent bass. Male vocals are forward and treble has some grain.

Simgot EA1000

• The only Passive Radiator iem that doesn't make me want to vomit.
• Technical performance is pretty solid. Bright leaning V-Shaped signature, but tasteful.

LETSHUOER s12

• The most refined S12 to date. Smoothest treble out of all the S12, and very little Planar timbre while keeping up the great tech and detail.
• I think the s12 is fine, the pro and z12 don't add too much value
• Pros: Planar with the most "wow" factor. Spacious heead stage. Cons: Treble can be too much.

Meze Alba

• Aceptable, but not great value.
• Build Quality and Fit are stand out. Fantastic Fit. Sound-Wise very engaging. Cons: Little bit sharp and contrasty.

Moondrop KXXS

• Well-tuned single DD with proper timbre and decent technicalities.
• Excellent timbre; not the most resolving set, but very easy on the ears.

DUNU Talos

• It's a fine set, but my excitement is dulled by it's price.
• Sounds best with the BA switch off. Somewhat thin, mid-treble oriented sound.
• Pros: Very well tuned, well balanced. Cons: Could use more air.

Letshuoer DX1

• Dynamic, vibrant, and contrasty vocals with good balance and scaling. Natural, full, and immersive with scaling and not peaky. One of my fav vocals under $200.
• Fit is odd, but great flat iem at the cost.
• I don't get the point of this IEM. Not offensive sounding. Sound-wise unengaging.

Kefine Klanar

• A cheaper S12. Almost identical sound and tuning. Good value. Look for aliexpress deals.
• At $120, I'd still go with the NicHCK F1 pro.
• Pros: Cheaper S12 Pro/ Z12.

Thieaudio Legacy 4

• Well-tuned if technically lacking in comparison. Could use some more power in the bass.
• Good tonal balance, but can be fatiguing. Sounds like it's trying too hard.

LETSHUOER Z12

• Clean, impactful bass, great detail, fast transients. Upper mids are a bit intense, bright treble, planar timbre.
• Very V shaped. Enjoyable. 60 dollar cable included with it.

Moondrop Starfield

• A cheaper KXXS.
• See KXXS. Just slightly less upper-midrange.
• Cons: Might be too relaxed.

7Hz Salnotes Dioko

• Bass sounds oddly restrained and treble still has some oddity. Solid enough otherwise.

Moondrop Kanas Pro

• Somewhat Harman-esque in tuning, not the best in terms of resolution.
• A KXXS with less treble extension and slightly poorer resolution.

Tanchjim Kara

• Clean and natural midrange focused signature that's right up my alley. Open and airy staging with great instrument layering. Still very resolving even though it lacks the last bit of treble detail....
• Has nice treble, good technicals. But it's super expensive for me.
• Pros: Very smooth and organic midrange, great treble. Cons: Lacking some bass dynamics.
• Cons: Better options for the price.

Tin Hifi P1

• One of the rare few IEM-style planars with proper tonal balance without EQ, but lacking detail retrieval.

Kinera Celest Relentless

• Slight v-shape with good tech and detail, treble can be too much but has that sizzle and sparkliness some people will like.
• V-shaped tuning, powerful bass, great technicalities. Bright treble. Foam tips improve the sound a lot.

LETSHUOER s12 pro

• A less bright timeless/S12.
• It's very similar to the z12.

Tanchjim Hana 2021

• An Oxygen with more bass and note-weight but at the cost of slightly worse imaging and detail.
• Essentially a cheaper Tanchjim Oxygen.
• Pros: Cheaper Oxygen with small cut back in details.

Etymotic ER2XR

• An ER2SE with better bass control.
• Great tuning with natural vocals and safe treble. The fit.
• Legendary iem. But I can't even.
• Controlled bass and darker treble. Narrow imaging, but solid technicalities for a single DD.
• Pros: Great detail and solid tuning. Cons: Intrusive fit.

Samsung Galaxy Buds+

• Tuned even closer to the Harman IE target compared to the original.
• Better bass shelf than the OG Buds, but with setbacks in the strange treble and timbre.

7HZ FIVE

• V-shaped, a lot of bass, good slam and impact. Fun and exciting. Texture is ok, layering and separation not that clean. Uppermids are sharp. Vocals are husky/congested and sharp somehow. Lack of air...
• It's not terrible, but just not remended at the price.

Sennheiser IE 200

• Just not for me. Tried multiple times, never found engaging.

Tanchjim Hana

• Somewhat strange upper-midrange tonality. Not a "mini-Oxygen".
• Treble just not good, too much upper mids as energy.
• Singers sound like they're choking.

Ikko OH10

• Your standard "chifi V" but done fairly well. Decently technical.
• Great bass response and surprisingly good treble extension if you can hear the 15kHz peak.
• Pros: Power bass with good details.

Sony WF-1000XM3

• Proper tonality, solid technicalities yet with a consumer-friendly signature.

Ikko OH1

• Well controlled sub-bass focus, high clarity and has an inherent "Asian" signature.

Tripowin x HBB Olina

• New HBB Xuan NV is just the way to go over this.
• Exellent tonality and shimmer (for a DD); nonetheless, could possibly benefit from better layering chops.

SeeAudio Yume Midnight

• Pros: Great tonal balance. Cons: Bass can be mushy.

TINHIFI T5S

• A good bassy set. Great low-end texture and slam. Forward bass presentation (bass in your face). Heavier than Legato but not as well-controlled and open.
• Great tonal balance, only lacks in imaging and highs.

Aful Magic One

• Balanced and neutral with slight warmth in the mid-bass. Male vocals are great on these, weighted but still has edge and sharpness to the end notes, but can get sharp at higher volumes. Male vocals...

Dunu Kima

• Sounds good. Smooth and Fast. Definate upgrade to the Dunu Titan S.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro

• More lower mids than your average Harman-tuned IEM, but works in its favour by being more pleasant.
• A warmer interpretation of the Harman curve and pretty horrible imaging.

Etymotic ER2SE

• Great detail & clarity. Fit took a long time to get used. Very clear and natural mids and treble. Lacks lower-extension, and couldn't handle bass notes on Time by Hikaru Utada (0:40+).
• Old, Treble for days.
• See ER2XR but with less sub-bass.
• Pros: Great detail. Cons: Intrusive fit.

Sennheiser IE200

• Great dynamics and scaling. Very good treble timbre and extension... but $150?? Low-end is soft, boring, and pushed back. Mid-range and vocals are recessed. Same level of clarity and tech as cheaper...
• Redefines expectations in its price bracket for single-DDs. Impressive treble extension and technicalities if a bit dry sounding.
• Pros: IE600 style tuning with less upper mids and treble details. Cons: Stock tips and gimmick sucks.

SeeAudio Yume

• Vocal benchmark along with EPZ P50 until Volume S, OG Oracles and RSV for most - natural and open vocals. Midranged focus, can use better bass texture and treble extension.
• Class-leading tonal balance butchered by subpar technicalities.
• Pros: Great tonal balance with beautiful vocals. Cons: Yume Midnight exist.

TRI Starsea

• Deep bass and good treble. Mids/vocals can sound reccessed. Good imaging and separation. No real complaints.

Moondrop Starfield 2

• Bright harman/DF, great detail, but a bit sharp and shrill

Fiio FH3

• Does come off as sort of a broken FH5, but the FH5 elements are mostly there.
• Decent iem, Not baddly tuned, but not great technicals for me.
• Bloated bass and general congestion issues.

Moondrop Stellaris

• Needs EQ to shine.
• Shrill and thin sounding to the point of unnaturalness.

Moondrop KXXX

• See KXXS. Just slightly bassier.

TINHIFI T4 Plus

• A bright harman/df, and brigther T4.
• Decent iem for a bud sytle iem. Not terrible. Last iem I buy off a Z-review.
• Pros: Relatively well tuned slight V-shape signature. Cons: Slightly distracting cymbals.

BGVP DMG

• Decent tonal balance though bass response is not up to par.

Letshuoer Galileo

• Clean and neutral signature with empahsis in the midrange. Best vocals before Orch Lite $100-->Replaced by DZ4.

NF Audio NM2+

• Good detail and separation. Shouty upper mids, and bright treble.
• Tonality can get a little intense and is fairly underwhelming, though surprisingly resolving.

SoftEars Studio 2

• HIGH VOLUME SET (at least 75dbs+). Warm, comfy, vintage-like sound with great immersion. Vocals are somehow still clear at higher volume and not overly dark. Not very good tech to $$ value wise, but...
• Sound underwater.
• Plasticky and lo-res. Upper-midrange sounds scooped out which contributes to large imaging but nothing else commendable about this.

7th Acoustics Proxima

• Sounds similar to an ER3 from memory, but possibly worse.
• Pros: True "IEF Neutral" IEM, can be "A" tier with easy EQ. Cons: Bass lacks fun and life.

SeeAudio x Crinacle Midnight

• Great vocals and mids. Sub-bass boost and smooth treble. Overall great tuning but lacking in upper frequency details and imaging/seperation. Average soundstage.
• Impressive treble extension and tonality, but generally sounds compressed on both ends of the spectrum.

Audiosense DT200

• Excellent tonality. Just excellent tuning overall.
• Mid Focused set.
• Pleasant tuning but unremarkable detailing.

Ikko Opal OH2

• A more balanced interpretation of Ikko's usual sound.

LETSHUOER D13

• Slightly too shouty and comes across as a mildly dirty V-shape for some reason.

BQEYZ Autumn

• Slightly sharp around 3-5kHz, but decent enough otherwise. Cool magnet filter system, bass filters sound best.

Kiwi Ears Quartet

• Lot's of variety with slamming bass.
• Silly fun V shaped set, but very not neutral.

QDC Neptune

• Tuning and configuration is simple but goes a long way when implemented well.

Fiio x Crinacle FHE Eclipse

• I like it but it's a bit harsh in the treble.
• Sounds bloated and congested; bass surprisingly has little texture.

Nothing Ear 2

• Absolute cacophany of sound; comparable to blown laptop speakers. Razor sharp upper-midrange and thin lower-mids.

TinHifi T4

• A harman/df or waner with a better driver.
• Solid tuning and technical chops for the price, not much to complain about here.

Thieaudio Legacy 2

• Pleasant tuning marred by low-level detailing and downwards compression.

iBasso IT01X

• Warm sound signature that could use some work in the technical department.

Vsonic GR07 Bass Edition

• Rather than a bassier GR07, this seems more like a darker GR07.

NF Audio NA2+

• Sharp transients and solid imaging, but goes overboard with the upper-midrange and mid-treble.

Final Audio A4000

• The usual Final Audio house-sound.

Tanchjim Echo

• Low-level detailing and dynamics with a resonably decent tonality.

Simgot EN700 Pro

• Generic V-shape tuning with middling technicalities.

Tin Hifi T5

• Generic V-shape tuning with middling technicalities.

Fiio FD3

• Too much 5kHz lends to unwanted sheen. Sounds like a Fiio IEM, not much else to say.

Thieaudio Legacy 3

• Balanced tonality with a laid-back signature, nothing much to fault nor to praise.
• Pleasant tuning that's too dark for my preferences. Seems to have some QC issues.

Thieaudio Voyager 3

• Slightly esoteric signature that somewhat works.
• One usable setting; leave it at 01 to get the upper-mids back.

BGVP DM6

• Warm tilt in tone, decent detail retrieval though definition is a little too smoothed over.

Shozy Rouge

• Sounds surprisingly to certain units of the Kinera IDUN (the same driver config too).

Moondrop Alice

• Pros: Lively vocals and balanced tuning. Cons: Poor User Experience.....

TinHifi T5

• A bright v-shaped harman/df, and a T4 Plus with more uppermids focus.
• Not the upgrade from the T4 that audiophiles wanted. Tin's regression to the common denominator.

Campfire Satsuma

• Basically a rehashed Comet in a negative profile fit.
• Ostensibly rolled-off on both ends of the spectrum, but could be worse...I guess.

Vsonic VS7

• A less fatiguing, less technical version of its predecessor.

CCZ Plume

• Can an IEM possibly sound more generic?

Jaybirds Vista

• Extremely scooped out midrange with piercing treble.
• Generic mainstream tuning and low-level detailing.

Shuoer Tape Pro

• An attempt to fix the original Tapes by targeting not the upper mids, but the treble. Just makes things worse.
• "I tried the most dynamic songs, and nothing. The Tape Pro taped everything shut. Sorry. Move on." - Antdroid

Shure SE215

• Sounds like a typical dynamic IEM. Slightly bloated bass and narrow staging.
• A relic of the past that should be avoided by any self-respecting audiophile who wants good sound.

Ikko Gems OH1S

• A major regression from the OH10. Zero bass with a thin, fatiguing midrange and treble response.

BGVP NS9

• Treble extension taken too far. No, really. It hurts to listen to this one.