Brise Audio Fugaku

• Smirk Audio: World-class bass dynamics and slam. Coherent and fleshed out soundstage. Full-bodied notes. Slightly relaxed treble and lower mids. Upper mids slightly forward. Cons: Price, requires proprietary...

Subtonic Storm

• Smirk Audio: World-class resolution and layering. Extreme, almost exaggerated dynamics. Staging is large but not class-leading.

Elysian Acoustics Dio

• Smirk Audio: Excellent resolution and dynamics. Female vocals are extremely forward and the bass too elevated. Prototype demo unit from CanJam NYC 2025. Cons: Price, tuning.

Hercules Audio Moses

PMG Audio Apx SE

• Smirk Audio: Great resolution and layering. Great bass texture and punch. Mids have a small timbral issue. Refined, resolving highs. Analogue tone. Engaging yet non-fatiguing. Cons: Shells prone to cracking.

Canpur CP622B

• Smirk Audio: Highly technical with great tuning and vocals. Punchy mid-bass with great sub-bass extension. Can sound somewhat unexciting and dry on some sources. Cons: Poor quality stock cable.

Astell&Kern x Empire Ears NOVUS

• Smirk Audio: Excellent bass dynamics and texture. Cold timbre and driver flex. Otherwise excellent technicalities and solid tuning. Cons: Driver flex, cold timbre.

Fort Ears Mefisto

• Smirk Audio: Demoed with "Temptation" cable.

Elysian Annihilator 2023

• Smirk Audio: Top-tier resolution with world-class treble. Great dynamics. Could use better bass texturing. An exciting listen.

Alpha Omega Fulgrim

• Smirk Audio: Elevated, bouncy, and dynamic bass. Somewhat normal sounding midrange and highs; pleasant for sure, if somewhat boring. Overall good set with a questionable price tag. Cons: Poor price-to-performance...

Unique Melody Mason FS Soleil Tomb

• Smirk Audio: Highly resolving, technical, and balanced across the frequency spectrum. Is shouty/edgy in the upper mids/lower treble. Cons: Price, treble peak.

Aroma Audio Fei Wan

• Smirk Audio: Decent bass and lush, "wet" mids. Has a treble peak that can be pesky to some. Great overall techs. Cons: Price, treble peak, build quality.

Nightjar Duality

• Smirk Audio: Massive yet controlled bass. Lush timbre and well-extended, non-pesky treble. Bassy mode may be too bassy for some. Mids can be a touch forward on balanced mode.

Alpha Omega Omega

Unique Melody Amber Pearl

• Smirk Audio: Visceral bass, lush mids, and smooth treble. Great dynamics and overall techs. Cons: Price.

PMG Audio Apx

• Smirk Audio: Cons: Price.

Unique Melody x MusicTeck

FiR Audio Radon 6

• Smirk Audio: Engaging bass, decent mids, and vibrant highs. Suffers from coherency issues. Mids are a touch veiled. Decent staging except for depth.

Forte Ears Macbeth

Rhapsodio Supreme V3

• Smirk Audio: Cons: Price.

Quill Acoustics Satin

AME Mousa

• Smirk Audio: Cons: Price, bass bloat.

Unique Melody MEST Jet Black

Soranik MEMS-3S

• Smirk Audio: Demoed using AP1 energizer. Cons: Requires energizer. Some QC concerns.

Campire Audio Clara Ti

• Smirk Audio: Muscular bass with large bass notes. Male vocal timbre slightly odd, female vocals are nice. Some vocal grain present. Decent overall techs. Cons: Buy the non-Ti version for $1k less.

Letshuoer Cadenza 12

• Smirk Audio: Bouncy, liquid-like bass. W

Aroma Jewel

• Smirk Audio: Demoed on Eletech Victoria cable (not stock). Very fleshed out stage with convincing depth. Strong imaging, layering, and res. Bass can use more body and decay.

Empire Ears Odin

Unique Melody Multiverse Mentor

• Smirk Audio: Immersive soundstage. Euphonic, lush mids, and inoffensive treble. Lacks incisiveness and upper mids can get a little intense. Cons: Price.

Thieaudio Valhalla

Melodic Artification Alter Ego

• Smirk Audio: Textured, punchy bass. Great staging width, okay depth. Resolving midrange and slightly polite highs. Slightly dry timbre. Great all-rounder.

Vision Ears VE10

• Smirk Audio: Lush and mid-bassy set with no obvious tuning issues. Technicalities could be better at this price range.

Symphonium

Soranik MEMS-3

• Smirk Audio: Demoed using AP1 energizer. Cons: Requires use of an energizer.

Oriolus Traillii Ti

FitEar Creator

Noble Audio Onyx

Canpur CP54E

Canpur CP74E

• Smirk Audio: Punchy bass with some bass body bloat. Pleasant, euphonic vocal timbre with good note body. Decent treble minus the lower/mid-treble dip.

qdc x MusicTeck Emperor SE

AME Raven

Craft Ears Omnium

Symphonium x Elise Audio Europa

qdc 8PRO

Thieaudio Monarch MK3

• Smirk Audio: Elevated, well-textured mid-bass. Pleasant mids. Elevated upper-treble may be pesky to some.

Symphonium Helios

• Smirk Audio: Exceptional treble with solid bass. Great techs. Some may find the midrange a bit clinical. Fit will be a dealbreaker to some. Cons: Poor fit.

Symphonium x Elise Audio Helios SE

• Smirk Audio: A better-fitting Helios with a bass lift. Excellent bass and treble. No glaring weaknesses.

Symphonium Crimson

• Smirk Audio: Excellent bass, dynamics, and resolution. Very large soundstage with great imaging. Mid/upper-treble may be too elevated for some.

64 Audio U12t

• Smirk Audio: Good resolution and dynamics with great imaging. Smooth, slightly recessed upper-mids with an upper treble peak.

Sony IER Z1R

• Smirk Audio: Visceral, hard-hitting bass, sparkly treble, and a large, spherical soundstage with impressive height. Fit may pose a challenge for many. Cons: Poor fit.

Dunu Mirai

64 Audio Volr

• Smirk Audio: Well-textured, satisfying bass. Vocal timbre is slightly off. Upper-treble peak can get a little hot. Cons: Unnatural vocal timbre.

64 Audio tia Tri

• Smirk Audio: Rich bass with a mid-bass emphasis. Treble has a few peaks that can get spicy. Cons: Harsh treble peak.

Nostalgia Audio Tesseract

Elysian Diva

• Smirk Audio: Forward, hyperpigmented vocals. Great tuning and solid techs. 3-way bass switch adds tuning versatility. An exciting listen. Cons: Build quality concerns.

64 Audio U4s

• Smirk Audio: A tastefully colored U12t with a more intimate soundstage, a cutback in technicalities, and more bass realism.

qdc Emperor

Unique Melody Maven II

FATFreq Grand Maestro

Nightjar Singularity

• Smirk Audio: Rich bass with great overall tuning. Pleasant timbre. Resolution could be better. Treble could use more liveliness.

Elysian Acoustics Apostle

Thieaudio Monarch Mk2

Softears

Oriolus Traillii

Campfire Audio Trifecta

Unique Melody MEST Indigo

Unique Melody MEST MK3

Noble Audio AGIS II

FiR Audio Xenon 6

Symphonium Giant

Thieaudio Prestige LTD

Campfire Audio Alien Brain

FlipEars Legion

Noble Audio Shogun

Dunu x Gizaudio Davinci

FlipEars Aegis

Oriolus Monachaa

• Smirk Audio: Very nice bass and decent treble. Midrange timbre and decay sound off. Technicalities are average for its price range. Cons: Poor techs/price, vocal timbre off.

FiR Audio Krypton 5

Letshuoer Mystic 8

Ice Labs Prismatica

Ice Labs Prismatica Gold

Symphonium Titan

FiR Audio Neon 4

7th Acoustics Supernova

• Smirk Audio: Rich, honeyed timbre. Well-tuned with solid techs. A very smooth listen. Could use better resolution and incisiveness.

Symphonium Audio Meteor

• Smirk Audio: U-Shaped warm tuning that is as easy to love it as it is to rec it. Despite being a full BA, the bass has great qualities to it. Great techs given the price and tuning. I had to buy one myself.

CrinEar Meta

Moondrop S8

• Smirk Audio: Very resolving with a sweet, pleasant timbre. Good mids and treble. Average bass. Upper-mids may be shouty to some.

Elysian Pilgrim Noir

• Smirk Audio: Cons: Similar to Pilgrim OG at twice the price.

Elysian Pilgrim

Hisenior Mega5-EST

• Smirk Audio: Well-tuned and great techs at this price point. Lacks dynamics and the mids are a little lean. Otherwise a great all-rounder.

FATFreq Scarlet Mini

Moondrop Variations

• Smirk Audio: Great tuning, neutral timbre, and a satisfying bass with a sub-bass focus. Solid all-rounder.

Truthear Nova

• Smirk Audio: Borders C+

qdc x FitEar Superior EX

Aful Explorer

Final Audio E500

inTime Miyabi Mk2

Softears Volume S

AFUL MagicOne

• Smirk Audio: Pleasant female vocals and decent bass. Male vocals are forward and treble has some grain.

Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk

• Smirk Audio: Great midrange with a natural timbre. Could use better bass and treble quality/extension. Mids may be too forward for some.