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RHA T20 In Ear Headphone Review – Adjusted Lustre

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RHA T20 In Ear Headphone Review

RHA T20

Earlier in the year, esteemed maker RHA gave us a rather well built and very attractive in-ear, the T10, which is reminiscent of T2. The film, that is. Luckily the RHA T20 earphones aren’t on assassination missions; however they are starring in their own sequel which has just as many thrills and spills – even if the bodycount is non-existent.

Pros:

  • Well built
  • Tuneable with filters
  • Good selection of eartips

Cons:

  • Non-removeable cable
  • Some may find them heavy; they’re fine when worn

Design and appearance

Like its forerunner, the T20 has a very attractive pebble-like look and feel. The part of the cable which sits behind the ear (with wire to retain its shape) is coloured black as opposed to the silver of the T10. The driver capsules, yoke and jack housing are all of a stainless steel with a knurled effect on the jack housing and yoke.

Durability and Build Quality

It all gives a very good impression of build quality and durability. RHA’s 3 year warranty period on its products pays testament to this, and the T20 should stand up to a decent amount of abuse. The cable is coated in a soft rubber material which is a little bit grabby but by no means inconvenient to use. Strain reliefs on each end of the cable a excellent, although the yoke in the middle could do with a little bit more  by way of strain relief.

Comfort

All I can think of which may be a problem is the effect of those driver capsules when the earphones are donned on a cold day, although they’ll warm up before long. Other than that, the T20 is very comfortable. This design cannot be worn with the cable hanging straight down from the ear so may not be to everyone’s taste.

Sound isolation

Isolation is as good as any earphone of this design. With music playing, most exterior sound is banished leaving the listener alone with their chosen sounds. Be sure to experiment with the multitude of tips which are included, for the purposes of getting the best isolation and also the best seal with the ear, which vital for a decent sound from earphones.

Sound characteristics:

The RHA T20 includes 3 different filters which can be swapped for emphasised bass, emphasised treble or a reference tuning. For this review the reference filters were used. To check for any differences, a T20 was attached to a Chord Hugo along with a T10 at the same time and one placed in each ear. The same filter type was of course fitted to both models. The T10 has a much greater bass presence, but the new T20 trades that for much better control and definition. Midrange has more presence on the T20.

  • Bass

The T20 still puts out a decent amount of bass for a good ‘heavy foot’ under kick drums and synths. It goes down low, with a decent amount of width. There’s a buttery smoothness to it which makes for a comfortable and musical experience but it’s tight, leaving a little more room for midrange.

  • Mids

Midrange is slightly more prominent on the T20 (compared to the T10) although bass and treble still has a slight emphasis. Like the bass, it has a gentle musical quality and makes for a good feel of space. Reverbs are clear and relaxed, with features like vocal and harmonics very enjoyable indeed.

  • Treble

Treble is smooth which makes for a relatively warm sound overall; however the T20 is still there to pick up the details. Some may prefer a more top-heavy presentation, so the treble filter may well be worth a try.

Soundstage and Separation

There’s a good amount of width and depth here. The improved midrange makes for an excellent sense of space, which is further enhanced by superb separation and imaging. I’ve managed to pick out new instruments which are hard panned and relatively low in the mix in tracks I know well – not bad at all.

Music genres good for and why

The T20 was tried with a varied range of genres and does well with them all. They are as good with dance as they are with rock music with a good balance between bass presence and midrange action. Soundstage and separation prowess also lets genres such as jazz and classical shine, although perhaps use of the treble filter may be more appropriate for fans of these genres.

Summary

If you fancy a glint in your ear as well as your eye, the T20 from Glasgow-based RHA has a lot to offer. Both the build quality and the sound are solid, with superb separation abilities. The T20 is a worthy successor to the T10, with several sonic improvements.

Aurisonics Harmony In-Ear Monitor – Expert Review

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Aurisonics Harmony IEM Headphone Review

Aurisonics promises to make a splash with its new ‘Bravo’ series of In-Ears, as they want to ‘honor the people that we started this company for, the working musicians’. At the apex lies the Harmony model which packs a dynamic driver and a specially designed ‘dual hybrid-dynamic tuned tweeter’ into each capsule. We assume the dual-tweeter has been designed specifically for use with a dynamic driver in the Aurisonics Harmony so the two driver types complement each other; as the product name might suggest.

Pros:

  • Tuning is really well thought out
  • Soundstage is immersive
  • Cable is light but strong

Cons:

  • Few eartips/accessories supplied
  • Some may find high-mid frequencies a little sibilant

Design & Appearance

The Harmony model is fairly typical of an in-ear monitor headphone, with large capsules for enhanced isolation and an ‘over the ear’ cable. The earhook parts of the cable are bendable to help keep it in place and the braided cable is relatively thin, but seems strong.

Durability & Build Quality

The capsules themselves appear to be made like pebbles in all aspects apart from weight; the cable is light and the Y-splitter on the cable is strong with good strain reliefs. A 90 degree jack sits on one end, whilst the removable cable attaches to the earphones by means of a cylindrical push on/pull off connector which is free to rotate, likely so the earphones and cable are more easily stored in the accompanying semi-rigid zip-up case.

Comfort

Aurisonics have taken pains to design a capsule which fits 95% of human ears, as they have averaged out measurements taken from thousands of ear scans. These are obviously adult ears and I would guess that most scanned ears belonged to males, as the capsules are fairly large. The trademarked ‘Sureseal’ tips consist of a grippy type of rubber which is good at isolation but may irritate the ears if the earphones need to be removed and replaced often; as an alternative, Complyfoam tips in ‘200’ size were found to fit well although no official information exists on Complyfoam’s site at this time.

Sound isolation

The isolation is good; the rubber eartips do keep a good amount of unwanted noise out once they are in position. The standard eartips were found to lend themselves best to a shallow insertion into the ear.

Sound characteristics:

Using a Chord Hugo DAC/Amp as source, the Aurisonics Harmony gives a warm, yet crisp presentation overall. In spite of the hybrid/multi driver configuration, the Harmony’s sound melds well and delivers a perfectly whole impression of the audio. The model name ‘Harmony’ is well chosen.

  • Bass

The Harmony packs a punch in the bass department and starts low. It’s almost as if bass with the Harmony is felt before it’s heard. The bass is there in quantity and carries a lot of weight within a presentation, yet it is well controlled and doesn’t get in the way of the midrange. There’s a smooth chunkiness to it which is very appealing. It also tends to supply what’s required, and doesn’t get ideas of its own if a particular genre such as classical has no need for bass in certain sections. It can certainly make a reappearance during crescendos though, with added impact.

  • Mids

Mid-range gives an excellent range of harmonics to instruments, bringing them to life. A recording’s perceived space is impressive if acoustic, and studio-applied reverbs are certainly not lost on the Aurisonics Harmony. It’s very clear and well rendered. Vocals come through loud and clear, with backing vocals also easy to follow. There may be a chance of an issue with sibilance in the high-mid area for some; however we all have different sensitivities to higher frequencies of course. Overall, the midrange gives an impression of neutrality despite the slightly enhanced bass.

  • Treble

High hats and cymbals are well defined and natural-sounding; the accent is on neutrality so the top end is pretty smooth and musical. Like the midrange, it finishes off harmonics nicely and puts flesh on the bones, giving a nice feeling of presence. Definition is sharp and sounds resolve very well; percussion appears very lifelike and helps along the Harmony’s excellent separation..

Soundstage & Separation

Here is a special part of the Aurisonics Harmony’s appeal; these IEMs really do envelope the wearer in the presentation. Soundstage is deep and wide as a canyon, and the bass/midrange complements this with an added feeling of space for a very large and realistic effect. Separation puts everything in its own space and even with a lot going on, no congestion results.

Music genres good for and why

The Harmony can pretty much do it all; it seems to bring out just the right combination of strengths within each genre tried. Dance music/Hip Hop benefits from a distinct bass and clear but smooth treble. Jazzy compositions give a full sense of space and atmosphere. Classical conveys the same, but with a full and impressive weight to proceedings such as when timpani are struck.

Summary

The Aurisonics Harmony may be primarily aimed at audio industry professionals but it will hold a lot of appeal with end-users too. It brings just the right amount of good stuff to any genre, resulting in a very enjoyable listener experience.