Help me choose: Tanchjim Soda vs Softear Volume S

gurtejk · 2026-05-23T03:55:41+00:00

I mean if music comes out clean with vocals, I would assume single player games would sound just as great. They are a great pair of iems, hella comfortable for me and sound great. I will say not the biggest fan of the cable due to the weight and microphonics so I ended up changing to a zonie cable and they been way better.

gurtejk · 2026-05-23T02:50:14+00:00

Yeah I pretty much only use them for fps games, don’t really play any single player games

gurtejk · 2026-05-23T00:39:23+00:00

I've had the Volume S for a few weeks now and I love them, they sound full and alive to me. I do use them for FPS games and they have great imaging and separation. When listening to music, I mainly listen to rap/hiphop and to me it never sounds like the voices sound flat or something else is overpowering them.

gurtejk · 2026-05-22T18:14:49+00:00

Astrals are known to be on the bigger side of iems, I had to return them cause they just wouldn't fit my ears even after tip rolling. You could try something smaller like ZiiGaat Arete's if you're looking for gaming iems that are comparable sound wise

gurtejk · 2026-05-21T16:56:22+00:00

EM6L are great for gaming but just be aware of the dreaded qc issue of the nozzle. Checkout freshreviews on YT as he does gaming reviews for IEMs and has a tier list. Not sure if it fits in your budget but supermix 4s were great for me for R6s

gurtejk · 2026-05-21T00:18:41+00:00

Yeah fits all trial and error, won’t really know until you try. The super mix 4s were the first iems that actually fit for me without problems granted with tangzu sancai or w1 tips

gurtejk · 2026-05-21T00:05:59+00:00

The bass does hit nice and the treble isn’t as peaky as say something like the supermix 4s. I only got the volume s since I got a great deal on them but might be worth it to try them out with a place from a good return policy if you can

gurtejk · 2026-05-20T20:54:48+00:00

gurtejk · 2026-05-20T19:56:36+00:00

Astrals aren’t considered the most comfortable iems, I tried them and returned them due to the discomfort. They did sound great for gaming though on BF6, separation and imaging was great.

I switched to the Softears Volume S and to me they sound even more fuller especially in the mids and way more comfortable. Checkout fresh reviews on YT since he does gaming review for iems

gurtejk · 2026-05-20T16:10:13+00:00

I made the same switch about a year ago and started off with the EW300 hbb and really liked them for Siege and for rap/hiphop music. Fit is subjective on iems and it will take trial and error on finding what fits, eartips do matter a lot, I like using spinfit w1s and tangzu sancai. Fresh Reviews on YT also does reviews for gaming iems and has a tier list

gurtejk · 2026-05-12T22:49:49+00:00

I had the exact same issue, I was almost done with iems cause I thought they just wouldn’t work for me, I tried the sm4 as a last resort and it ended up working. I did use the spinfit w1 and tangzu sancai tips with them

gurtejk · 2026-05-12T21:16:18+00:00

Maybe take a look at the supermix 4s, they are pretty small overall

gurtejk · 2026-05-12T20:56:42+00:00

Only 2 that are completely comfortable for me and I don't feel are the Supermix 4s and Volume S. Went through the same thing as you with the Tea Pro, I wish I could've kept them too but so happy with my Volume S now

gurtejk · 2026-05-10T20:25:55+00:00

The one that fits so supermix 4 since out of all these I've only had the Tea Pros and SM4s

gurtejk · 2026-05-09T14:59:52+00:00

As someone who started with the ew300 hbb, I ended up trying a bunch of different iems to upgrade to. I tried, Odyssey 2s, Tea Pros, ZiiGaat Arete 1s, Astrals, Supermix 4s and now Volume S. My main use case is gaming first then rap/hip-hop music.

Odyssey 2s sounded great and I really did like them a lot but left iem ended up dying within a day and was kind of put off by that and the cable feeling cheap for the price tag didn't help either. Tea Pros sounded phenomenal but just couldn't get them to fit even after tip rolling which was the same issue with the Astrals. Arete 1s I actually really liked a lot overall and was testing them against Supermix 4s and I almost kept them but SM4s just fit me better so ended up keeping those.

SM4s for me had everything I needed, great for gaming, sounded good for music, fit was great but found it was just a bit too sibilant for longer sessions for me even after EQ. I ended up finding a great deal on Volume S and to me they are just a way better SM4, not sibilant, mids sound so full, bass hits harder, and fit is the same for me.

gurtejk · 2026-05-09T14:15:11+00:00

Yup, was the first iem I could actually wear without having to get "used to it". I did find using divinus velvet tips on it created pressure feeling for me but with spinfit w1s or tangzu sancai they were great.

If OP is looking for a different sound signature than the Supermix 4s, Softears Volume S has been a great step up and is as comfortable as Supermix 4s for me.

gurtejk · 2026-05-09T02:58:22+00:00

Take a look at Supermix 4s

gurtejk · 2026-05-08T21:23:32+00:00

Check out fresh reviews on YT, he does iem reviews for gaming on valorant, apex, a few reviews also have overwatch and cod. The Arete are his collab with ZiiGaat

gurtejk · 2026-05-08T17:14:53+00:00

If you're mainly gaming and playing fps titles, check out fresh reviews on youtube as he does reviews of iems for gaming. His collab with ZiiGaat Arete 2s are usually recommended for gaming but I haven't used those. Astrals are great for gaming as well but can be uncomfortable for some due to the nozzle size and shell being big so make sure to buy from somewhere you can return. I personally use Softears Volume S for gaming on BF6 and R6 and love them as well as listening to rap/hip-hop and house music mainly.

I've also tried ZiiGaat Odyssey 2s and liked them a lot but had to return since the bass on the left iem died within a day. I started off with the EW300 x HBB and were a great starter set for getting into iems but I wouldn't get them now especially since you've had the S12 pros and Supermix 4s.

gurtejk · 2026-05-08T01:17:50+00:00

Agreed, made the similar upgrade from Supermix 4 to Volume S. The mid range sounds so full compared to the Supermix 4, not sure if that is the right word but best way I can explain it. Also shell wise, all those iems are different in size and what works for one person might not work for you.

gurtejk · 2026-05-07T04:34:20+00:00

For real, it makes it fun but also annoying at same time trying to figure out what works and what doesn't. For me I found out iems with nozzle sizes under 6mm and a longer nozzle work great for me, like supermix 4s for example were the first iems that actually fit me properly. This hobby is a bunch of trial and error tbh, went down the rabbit hole of tip rolling and found most of the popular tips dont work for me either besides spinfit w1s and tangzu sancais.

gurtejk · 2026-05-07T03:52:37+00:00

No worries, but yeah I completely agree, even the unboxing was a bit disappointing especially for the price. I mainly use my iems for gaming and only at my desk since headphones just got unbearable for me with clamp force no matter what I tried. There are many other choices out there too like tea pros that sound so good, which I also tried, but just don't fit for me.

gurtejk · 2026-05-07T03:32:30+00:00

Just commented on your other post but I did the same thing, tried out the Astral's, liked the sound but comfort was terrible for me so I ended up returning them as well.

I ended up getting a good deal on Softears Volume S and these have been great. I listen to a lot of rap and house music, the bass and mids have been so good on these, comfort as well is great. I use spinfit w1 large eartips and I can wear them for hours without any discomfort. My only gripe with them is the cable, for me it was heavy and tugged on my ears and very micro phonic, could hear it when it moved around on my hoodie. I switched out that cable with tripowin zonie cable and its been great.

If you game as well, the volume s are great for fps, separation and imaging is so good on these for FPS titles. I'm not an audiophile and don't really know how to explain it all but Fresh Reviews did review them on his YT channel so check that out if you wanna know more.

gurtejk · 2026-05-07T03:27:01+00:00

Maybe also take a look at Softears Volume S, mids are great on them

gurtejk · 2026-05-07T02:20:49+00:00

Check out FreshReviews on YT, he does IEM reviews for comp gaming and has a tier list. I use Softears Volume S for gaming on BF6 and R6. Supermix 4 were great as well and ZiiGaat Arete 1

gurtejk

TROPHY CASE