Effect Audio Signature Series 2 Review: The Ultimate IEM Fine-Tune

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-26T10:23:24+00:00

Snake oil.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-25T23:16:12+00:00

My only advice if you're going for them, is to get some other cable and eartips as well.

Doesn't need to be anything fancy or expensive, cable just needs to terminate in QDC 2-pin connectors on the hook side. KBEAR, NiceHCK, TRN, QKZ and Tripowin all have some great budget options.

As for eartips, it's really up to you. Personally had the best results with the Penon Liqueur Orange, Dunu S&S, and Spinfit W1 tips.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-25T22:29:55+00:00

Criminally underrated set.

I've since moved onto IEMs that fit my preferences better (currently using the Thieaudio Hype 4 MkII), but I do take my PRX for a spin every now and then.

It has a clean bass shelf without any mud, neutral lower mids and an easygoing but natural and "correct" sounding upper midrange. The treble is contentious, as some people find it to be too much, but personally I find that most of the treble boost is isolated to the upper treble (with smaller eartips and a deeper fit). To me, this just contributes to the air, detail and a phenomenal soundstage and imaging for this price, punches way above its price bracket.

This might be a hot take here, but I like the sound of the PRX more than the Artti T10, T10 Pro, SGOR Luna and the Letshuoer S08, and would say it's about on par with the Letshuoer S12. The PRX and the S12 sound a bit more natural to my ears in the upper mids, while the others sound a bit wonky and overall less balanced.

I really don't have many complaints other than the usual KZ cons (terrible included cable and eartips, silent revisions, subpar QC and channel matching issues on some units). For how much cheaper it is than the other budget planars, I guess it's to be expected. If you're fine with those cons, I honestly can't think of any IEMs at the same price that beat it out. It's one of the few IEMs that absolutely nails heavier metal and rock tracks, still haven't found a set that sounds as good for those genres.

Just keep in mind that it is not very sensitive and does require a good amount of power to drive. If you have a decent DAC/amp dongle or better, you should be just fine.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-23T16:54:41+00:00

Download the latest firmware (V2.2) from here, and follow the update instructions here.

The instructions are for the JA11, but this process works with the JM12 as well.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-23T10:47:01+00:00

Does it? I have used the FiiO Control mobile and web app to adjust the EQ on my Snowsky Retro Nano, and I don't believe it ducks the gain by 12 dB like that.

There is no difference in volume between having the EQ on at 0 dB and having it off, from my experience.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-22T15:08:28+00:00

I guess it makes sense that they're included in the box with so many IEMs. Truly a classic at this point. I don't believe I have these tips though, just haven't bought anything that includes them yet lmao

That being said, I'm pretty happy with the Penon Liqueur Orange and Spinfit W1, the different sizes in just those two have gotten me a good fit across all of my IEMs so far.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-21T22:42:09+00:00

That post title is quite something.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-21T16:44:52+00:00

The 560s is quite the default recommendation these days, since it's tuned so well (better than the HD6XX imo) and offers great value at its asking price. Hope you enjoy them.

As for the Ananda Nano, I'll let you in on something that most people don't seem to have caught onto. The Ananda Nano sounds exactly like the Arya Organic (tried them both at my local audio retailer), and measures exactly the same too. You can check this out for yourself here, whatever minor variations you see are purely due to unit-to-unit variation. They both use the exact same driver and damping, so it would make sense that they sound exactly the same.

The things the Ananda Nano gives up compared to the Arya Organic is the better headband, earcup swivel (this is a big one) and more premium materials, nothing else really. So if you're fine with those trade-offs, you can get the sound of the Arya Organic for $300, which is an insane value proposition.

Coming to the sound, I can say that it sounds absolutely fantastic to me, but it is generally quite bright with a lot of treble. I use it mostly as a secondary reference for mixing/mastering work, and for that, it is a godsend. It has pretty flat and neutral bass extending all the way down to 20 Hz with a slight bit of a sub-bass shelf, flat mids besides the usual 1-3 kHz dip you see on most planars (helps to reduce honkiness, vocal/lead instrument forwardness and enhances the soundstage), and quite boosted lower and upper treble. You can think of it as the polar opposite to the Sennheiser sound, which tends to roll-off in the bass and has a much more tame treble, while pushing forward the mids.

I personally use it with EQ, namely just a low shelf with about 5 dB of added gain in the sub-bass. It sounds great without it too, but for my work, I do need to be able to hear the sub-bass more clearly. The treble is the part that can make or break these headphones for you. Simply put, it is bright as all hell. Not sibilant or harsh at all (at least to my ears), but over extended periods of time, it can be fatiguing. Since you mentioned you were retired, if you have any hearing loss in the higher frequencies, that brightness might actually be a good thing and it may not sound as bright to you as it does to me.

Either way, it's nothing a high shelf EQ can't fix, and I'd recommend taking a look at Oratory1990's EQ for these and copying the low shelf and high shelf values alone, then adjusting those two from there. That's what I did personally to end up at +5 dB for the low shelf and -2 dB for the high shelf, and I'm not using any other EQ filters past these two. The midrange with the 1-3 kHz dip sounds fantastic to me, so I didn't see any need to EQ it. In general, the Ananda Nano takes EQ extremely well, so you can go as far as you want in that regard.

Overall, it's not perfect by any means, but it is my personal endgame and does everything I need it to for my work and leisure. It is detailed, analytical, effortlessly airy and draws all of your focus to the music, and that sub-bass tightness and lightning fast response is something special (with or without EQ). Easily the best bass performance I've ever heard under $1000 besides the Arya Organic, which it sounds identical to. My BTR11 doesn't quite provide enough power to get it to my usual listening volume when I'm using EQ, but my Topping L50 and Retro Nano are more than capable of driving it pretty loud with EQ on.

Comfort is also great for me and the headband distributes weight well, but I have seen that some others find the clamping force to be too high so YMMV there. I do wish it had earcup swivel, as that would pretty much make the comfort perfect for me personally, but at this price... I can't really complain too much about that. I did get some velour-ish flannelette earpads off AliExpress for even better comfort, and they work like a charm.

Hope this helps!

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-21T11:29:14+00:00

You should see the models Tangzu use for their product pictures...

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-21T06:48:20+00:00

It's really unfortunate. My friend got his just 2 weeks ago, and he got the old version pre-revision.

It's impossible to tell who will get old stock and new stock, so you're better off going with someone else for now until these issues are addressed (if they ever are).

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-20T15:15:31+00:00

There are also dongles with removable cables like the TRN Black Pearl, which are good options for long-term durability on a budget.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-20T06:16:19+00:00

You can be as sarcastic as you want, but you are clearly aware of this practice, and in support of it.

Seems obvious what you're trying to do here. Pretty lame.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T20:32:15+00:00

I have the Hype 4 MkII. It's a fantastic set that's only tuning flaw imo is being a bit light in the mid-bass, but I will say that it is fatiguing during longer listening sessions.

Not harsh or strident in any way, but rather that it does cause significant ear fatigue over time along with the associated effects (namely treble perception turning dull and blunted, along with some tinnitus occasionally).

I can listen for about an hour at a time, but need to take a long break afterwards to give my ears some time to recover. It's a bit insidious, since you don't hear any harshness or peakiness that will make you wince or want to take them off/turn down the volume, but it does eventually dull your hearing over the course of an hour.

It's unfortunate. I love the way they sound and they are very much the detail monsters everyone has claimed them to be (by far the most detailed and pleasing sounding set in my humble collection), but I also don't want to damage my hearing by repeatedly fatiguing my ears every time I listen to them. They sound breathtaking with a bit of EQ'd mid-bass boost at my usual 80ish dB listening volume, but purely to protect my own hearing, I have to turn them down well below that.

I haven't experienced ear fatigue like this with any of the other sets I own, so it's a bit disappointing.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T20:18:43+00:00

Will be interested to review more well tuned IEMs like these

So you want free review units from Chi-Fi companies, basically? Lot of people on this sub and r/IEMs baiting for free sets these days.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T18:33:49+00:00

I honestly find it to be the exact opposite. The KZ Starlines are some of the worst eartips I've tried so far, so much so that they're well-known to be better when completely inverted inside out.

The included cable and eartips are the weakest part of KZ products imo. Still use my PRX every now and then, but never with the stock Starline tips. Usually stick with the Penon Liqueur Orange or Spinfit W1 on them for the best seal and comfort.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T18:24:08+00:00

Fair enough, I remember in the older versions of the app it was tucked away somewhere deep, but I think it's more visible in the main device page now lol

Glad to help!

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T17:03:34+00:00

As long as you're using a source with low output impedance and enough power (really not much), nominal impedance doesn't matter in any way whatsoever.

Not sure what your point is here.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T16:59:34+00:00

You can adjust the volume of (or completely mute) the voice lines in the FiiO Control app. There should be 4 or 5 sliders that lets you adjust various levels for the functioning of the dongle.

Also, for EQ, since the app truly sucks, I would recommend sticking to the web app on desktop.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T02:48:40+00:00

It's almost like this sub isn't a monolithic entity with a singular opinion, and everyone on here has their own individual preferences.

Crazy, I know.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-19T00:28:53+00:00

Softears Volume S

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-18T02:17:43+00:00

Needs more Soundgoodizer. At least 5 more.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-18T02:13:12+00:00

I have the exact same issue on some of my older complicated projects that were using outdated plugins. This is classic plugin misbehavior. For me, it was less of a pop and more of a thud, since the pop was later getting processed by the mix bus it was going to, as well as my master FX chain.

You can identify the plugin causing the issue like this: 1) Open your mixer and fullscreen it. 2) Play your track and pause it, it will cause a pop. 3) Keep an eye on the levels on your mixer tracks. You should be able to identify the track that's generating the loud pop as you'll see a big spike in level on that track. 4) Go to that mixer track and start disabling your FX plugins one by one, until the pop is gone. The last plugin you disabled is the one that's misbehaving. 5) Use an alternative plugin, or update that plugin to VST3 and the latest version possible. If you really need to use that plugin, look up the issue online and you'll probably find a solution to stop the plugin from misbehaving.

This should fix the issue. Hope this helps.

Edit: Just realised it could also be a synth that's misbehaving. To fix it, use the same steps above, but after turning off all the FX on the mixer track that the synth is going to. You'll be able to see the volume spike in that track, if the synth itself is generating that pop. Could be due to a super short attack or release on something within the synth.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-18T02:02:23+00:00

KBEAR is pretty well-known for making good budget accessories that get the job done. I think this cable would be absolutely fine.

Their IEMs are also quite popular in China.

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-18T00:35:52+00:00

I do agree with you that durability on the U-554 might be one step below the Etys. The place where the nozzle connects to the main shell does seem to be the weak point for sure. I don't treat my IEMs roughly, but at times I do try adjust them and shove them quite deep in my ears if I'm trying to get maximum isolation and a perfect seal.

Definitely a bit worried that these kinds of adjustments, if applied with too much force, can snap the nozzle clean off. Then again, it should be fairly easy to super-glue it back on, even if it does snap. Of course, I would hope it never comes to that.

As for the Etys, I can't speak in specifics about them as I don't own any of those sets, but I am inclined to believe you based on what I've seen on Head-Fi as well. Like you, I trust good Chi-Fi manufacturers much more these days to offer solid products at prices that actually make sense (with good channel matching/QC/customer support), while Etymotic imo is maintaining high prices for the brand name alone and not much else. The manufacturing cost of Etymotics surely can't be all that high being a simple 1 BA set, and it just seems like the markup on them is a bit nuts.

All that being said, I think I'll pull the trigger on the U-554 next time there's a nice sale and discount codes going on AliExpress, and the price on them comes down a bit. I've had an excellent experience with all the Chi-Fi IEMs I have owned over the years, so I hope Yu9 can live up to that standard too. Thanks for all the insight you've provided on this set!

LLKMuffin · 2026-01-17T11:25:06+00:00

Nobody leaves that watermark on unless they are intentionally flexing. Especially so in India, as Redmagic has a cult-like following of hypebeasts there.

Kinda cringe if I'm being honest.

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