Pros: Versatile Tuning, Decent Technicalities, Clean and punchy Lows, Pleasant Mids and Highs
Cons: Not the Easiest to get a good Fit, Design (Fingerprint and Scratch Magnet)
Driver Setup: Dual-Magnet & Dual-Cavity Lithium-Magnesium Diaphragm Dynamic Driver
Price: US$89.99
Intro
Disclaimer: The Simgot EA500 LM was provided to us at no charge courtesy of Linsoul. However, this was done in understanding I was to give my honest thoughts and opinions of the EA500 LM. The Simgot EA500 LM is available for purchase here should you find yourself interested in a pair, or feel free to use your links.
This is only the second pair of Simgot IEMs I have tried. The EW200 being the previous one, was an entry-level option, which while decent, wasn’t something that stood out immensely in a crowded segment to me. This EA500 LM is Simgot’s second shot at the EA500, which upon some research was released a while back, and it was a time when the sub-$100 dynamic bracket was teeming with great options like the Aria, Starfield and Etymotic ER2s. Since then, I like to think the bar has been raised and it is interesting to see how we have progressed since then. The EA500LM seems to have quite a few changes even though the design language has pretty much remained consistent.
Accessories
The EA500 LM comes with a generous spread of accessories, including a hard zipper case and a black//gold detachable cable that looks quite well-designed and well-constructed. The choice of jack and Y-splitter are all subtly very classy and aesthetic and I am impressed with the overall feel and look of the cable.
On top of that, included are 2 extra sets of nozzles, on top of the stock Gold-coloured ones with red washers. There are also extra washers in case you misplace any. However, these washers are your best bet to distinguish the otherwise identical-looking nozzles. The red and black screw-in nozzles provide the EA500 LM with 2 tuning options that I will dive into in a bit.
Build Quality and Fit
The build quality is quite stellar for the asking price, with an elaborate tuning nozzle system, to the all-metal build and polished finish. Everything is well-designed and well-rounded, and the gunmetal-like finish on the metal buds gives off a premium vibe. However, this metal build with the smooth polished finish is also my gripe with the design. I am afraid it would be a huge fingerprint and scratch magnet, and the metal build gives these buds quite a bit of heft. Without a suitable ear tip, these kept falling out of my ear while I used them on the go. Only after I switched to the Xelastec tips did I find a good fit and it helped with the sound also.
Sound
Frequency response of the Simgot EA500 LM (Blue – Black Nozzle, Red – Red Nozzle)
Sources
- Kiwi Ears Allegro
- Fiio BTR7
- Lotoo Paw S2
Music listened to
- Jackson Browne
- The Carpenters
- Maroon 5
- Martin Garrix
- Kygo
- Cory Asbury
- NEEDTOBREATHE
- Coldplay
- Nutcracker Suite
- Martin Frost Clarinet Concerto in A
- The Eagles
- etc
Bass
The bass is quite tame and controlled on the EA500 LM. That said, it does have quite a crisp punch that is rather textured and extends into the sub-bass with a decent rumble. It also has a fast decay which I enjoy. This makes the lower end very clean and helps to make sure the mids aren’t muddied. Quantity-wise, it might not be the most bass-focused IEMs but I think it hits the sweet spot for me as a supporting role.
Mids
The mids are quite natural with enough body in vocals and instruments. It never sounds thin or shrill, despite being quite mids-forward. It’s not the warmest or smoothest of vocals and can be a little plain at times but I think it does a good job at detail retrieval and separation. This is especially noticeable on the black filters where the mids become slightly more forward and less warm-neutral sounding.
Treble
Highs on the EA500 LM is quite pleasant. It extends well and gives the IEMs quite an impressive extension and headspace. I’m guessing this helps with the IEMs reproduction of instrumental timbre which is done quite well (e.g. the cymbals and hi-hats) It also deftly avoids all sibilance and despite the forwardness in the mids, they were quite ok for me for longer listening sessions.
Overall
Having tried both red and black filters I think the stock red filters are the most versatile, whereas the black ones have slightly more air and activity in the upper mids and highs. The stock filters do sound a little warmer and more natural whereas the black filters seem to give the music the feeling there’s a bit more breadth of staging. I tend to like the black filters more with most of my music library. I liked the elevated vocals and the dry and fast-ish decay of the upper mids and highs, something I found addictive. However, I would imagine the stock filters are more versatile and would be more conventionally easy listening. That said it’s nice to have the option to choose and most of us would tend towards one and not change it after settling on one.
Comparison
Given how similar in price range and how close they were released, I wanted to do a short comparison to the recently reviewed Kiwi Ears Forteza. I enjoyed the Forteza and wanted to compare it with the EA500 LM which I enjoyed too. Between the two I would say I would pick the tuning and sound of the EA500 LM in a heartbeat. There is just more detail, separation, and breadth in the tuning. The tonality is also slightly more accurate to me on the Simgot. However, I just wish that the Simgots had a similar shell design to the Forteza with a similarly great fit to cement its ability to become a daily driver. Currently, I am just not too keen to be opting for metal earbuds with a difficult fit to be my earphone of choice in my commutes. This of course is a personal preference and your experience with fit may greatly differ.
Conclusion
I haven’t had the chance to try the original Simgot EA500 but I can safely say that the EA500 LMs are great. This reworked IEM seems to be getting quite a lot of things right, from its technical chops, to the tuning & tonality, and even its packaging and accessories. Simgot has shown that it was not messing around when they released these and did put a lot of thought and effort into the product. I especially thought the tuning nozzles were a creative touch, and though they may not be a feature we use regularly, it gives you that extra versatility to choose one and stick to it right out of the box. They do make a noticeable difference and unlike some other gimmicky ones I’ve had bad experiences with, I liked both tunings and could see myself opting for different filters to suite my listening preferences. The EA500 LM wins a very borderline A- and I would be more inclined to rate these better if they had a more comfortable fit for my ears. Nevertheless, this was a W for Simgot.
Overall Grade: B+
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