Thanks for the immediate impression, and welcome to the forum.
Here’s my overdue review of the Moondrop Chaconne
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I recently recieved the new Smabat ST-10s (Black/Silver) for review from Sunny at Hifi Hear via Amazon.com. I was very impressed and here is my review of it:
Smabat are probably best known for their “Maze bass enhancement system” which uses an extended path to bolster the bass output, and which was inspired by transmission line speakers. This was featured in their two previous models, the ST-10 and M1Pro. This system has now been updated and has been renamed “Coiling-up space acoustic”
The Smabat ST-10s replaces the former ST-10 at the top of the range and is offered in two versions, the Black/Silver model reviewed here, which has an impedance of 40 Ohms, and the Black/Gold option, which has a 150 Ohm impedance. The driver is a 15.4mm dynamic unit with a triple sandwich configuration and titanium coated diaphragm and has been revised and improved.
The packaging remains similar to that of the original ST-10. The box is black with an embossed shiny Smabat logo. Opening the box there is a cover over the foam insert containing the earbuds. Below this there is one pair of foam covers, one pair of donut foams and one set of perforated rubber covers. Under the foam insert you will find the silver plated cable with MMCX termination, a faux leather storage pouch and an instruction manual. The presentation is very smart, but a few extra foams and earhooks would have been welcome.
The earpieces are constructed from CNC machined aluminium and feature a black reflective faceplate with silver edging and a white Smabat logo. There is clear channel identification and on the top edge there is a silver-coloured output vent for the bass enhancement system. This channels the bass output of the driver along an extended path in order to supplement the bass response… The supplied MMCX cable is of high quality silver-plated copper with a straight 3.5mm brushed aluminium plug and a matching Y-split barrel. There is also a clear plastic chin slider. The build quality is excellent.
As with the original ST-10 and M1 Pro, getting a good seal was essential in order to unlock the potential. I obtained the best results wearing them cable down, fitting earhooks from the M1Pro and using the supplied standard full foams.
The ST-10s was used with an Xduoo X20 DAP with a wide range of music across various genres, and auditioning was carried out after a burn in period of 100 hours. Similarly to the M1 Pro and ST-10, I found the ST-10s power-hungry, needing to increase the volume considerably compared to regular IEMs. This was partly necessary to offset the poorer isolation common in earbuds, but also due to the higher impedance.
The ST-10s delivered a sound which was a combination of the previous two models. It possessed the neutral/bright signature of the M1Pro, along with its expansive soundstage and treble extension, but added to this the power and authority of the ST-10. Moreover, the bass performance was superb with extra weight and depth. The new bass enhancement system managed to achieve a satisfying sub-bass response and, like its predecessor, sounded effortless and was reminiscent of listening to speakers rather than earphones.
Bass
The new “coiled-up acoustic space” produced a huge improvement in the bass. Sub-bass now had a satisfying rumble and extension yet remained clean and detailed. The introduction to “Nuvole a Colore” by Rondo Veneziano was a perfect example. The deep synthesised bass foundation was accompanied by violin and percussion and possessed abundant headroom with the powerful chords in the minor key delivering a strong emotional effect. Louis Thiry’s performance of Messaien’s “Desseins Eternels” reproduced the sound of a cathedral organ with all the atmosphere and texture one could wish for. The tonality was natural and airy and was reminiscent of listening to a high quality speaker system fed by a top class turntable, as the bass had a rich, “woody” analogue quality. Decay was also very natural, as evidenced in “Thus Spake Isaiah” from “Belshazzar’s Feast” by William Walton. In the version by the LSO under Andre Previn, the choral parts are underpinned by timpani and bass drum. The depth and resonance here was very natural and believable, adding to the realistic ambience of the recording, a classic by the “dream team” of Christopher Bishop and Christopher Parker.
Midrange
As with the previous ST-10 and M1Pro, there was little or no bass bleed. The generally neutral tonality of the ST-10s was a little warmer than the former models (which is a good thing) but still retained a natural and beautifully balanced quality. The cello and piano in “Bring him Home” by The Piano Guys, displayed an accurate and musical midrange. The harmonic richness, transient attack and authentic timbre combined to magical effect and conveyed all the feeling of the beautiful melody in this sensitive performance. Vocals also benefited from the superb clarity and resolution. Linda Ronstadt’s delicate vocals in “Winter Light” seemed to emerge ethereally above Zbigniew Preisner’s wonderful orchestral arrangement and portrayed the emotion of the story perfectly. Orchestral timbre was very impressive, too. The extended cor anglais solo in Sibelius’s “The Swan of Tuonela” possessed a very natural quality which blended seamlessly with the sombre yet powerful orchestral accompaniment. The other concertante parts also impressed in their accurate positioning in the excellent recording by the London festival Orchestra conducted by Sir Alexander Gibson.
Treble
The ST-10s treble performance maintained the high standards of the rest of the frequency range with clarity, detail and resolution being the watchwords. The crystalline synthesised introduction to “Ice and Air” by Canadian electronic artists Danna and Clement demonstrated the superb separation and precision on offer with the multiple electronic arpeggios clear and discrete even during complex passages of the dense production. The clean and crisp timbre of strings came to the fore in Rossini’s “String Sonata No.1” performed by The Age of Enlightenment Orchestra. The natural harmonics which define the various instruments were wonderfully differentiated giving each instrument real character and producing a very musical effect. Micro-detail was also effective here with subtle and delicate passages easy to discern. The ST-10s was also rhythmically adept and this showed well in Dave Brubeck’s “Unsquare Dance”. The unusual 7/4 time signature produced an infectious rhythm which was highlighted by the handclaps and drumstick work which continued throughout the piece, supported by double bass. The excellent transient response added to the excitement.
Soundstage
As with Smabat’s previous models, soundstage proved to be one of the strengths of the ST-10s, being extensive in all three dimensions with layering, separation and imaging being of the highest standard. The electronic sound effects, guitar parts and synthesised elements in Walter Holland’s “Shades of Night Descending” displayed this to great effect. The ST-10s was able to reproduce a wide spatial field and this was borne out in Kevin Braheny’s “Desert Walkabout” which is an electronic sound picture featuring the “Mighty Serge” synthesiser and Kevin’s expressive Lyricon work. This gave the impression of a huge soundscape populated by delicate percussive elements, gentle chordal passages and electronic nature sounds. Martin Fry’s vocals in “All of my Heart” by ABC really shone in Trevor Horn’s excellent production. As he sings the title line the reverb is removed from his vocal part, bringing the voice into a more intimate space. Contrasted with the rest of the complex production, this was very effective.
Conclusion
Having already tested the two previous models and being very impressed, I was keen to hear the latest iteration and I was not disappointed! There were improvements in all areas, with the best of both previous earbuds being retained and enhancements realised across the board. Bass was deeper with more impact and midrange was clearer and even more detailed. Treble received extra extension and soundstage built on that of the M1 Pro with added focus and separation. Overall the sound was very organic and natural and extremely musical. The build quality is even better than before, and the fit, too, appears to have improved. These ST-10s earbuds are most definitely for music lovers!
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Another excellent review. Great stuff.
The Smabat ST-10S is a neutral-sounding high-end earbud that retails for $119.99 at the time of this review. I previously reviewed its predecessor, the ST-10, which I considered a “high-water mark for earbuds.” The Smabat ST-10S improves on the ST-10 in many respects. Specifically, the Smabat ST-10S is a more neutral-sounding earbud than its predecessor. There is less bass emphasis overall and the upper midrange is less intense and shouty. The lower treble is also less forward, which may make the ST-10S more palatable to treble-sensitive listeners. The technicalities and overall resolution of the ST-10S are slightly better. Overall, I consider the ST-10S an upgrade to the ST-10 and it earns my recommendation.
My full review is available on my blog: https://medium.com/bedrock-reviews/smabat-st-10s-review-b0898455e43b?sk=72948fae77a3aab2940d4290d9f7d839
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More than a review, this is a bit of a discovery and my impressions on what I have discovered, as I really don’t have anything to compare these to… yet.
As always, my review is available in Spanish on my blog (link in my profile).
RY4S…
As a bit of a background, I was discussing earbuds a while back with someone I know and I mentioned how much I hate them, being uncomfortable and sounding thin and… well… crappy.
As someone who likes earbuds, his answer was obviously “That is because you haven’t tried the modern offerings”. Which is a very true, I haven’t tried the modern versions, in fact, in the past 20 years or so, the only earbuds I have owned have been those given to me free, either on a flight or a train, and they certainly haven’t made it to my ears.
So, giving him the benefit of the doubt, I started reading a thread on HF regarding earbuds. The thread is over 3000 pages long and I admit to skipping a few pages and skimming over a lot of posts but I was intrigued by some of the highly recommended options at very low prices, like, under 10€?!?! For a cheap skate like me, that kind of price is something that interests me, especially when people were praising them.
As I made it towards the end of the thread, the sale on AE started and I thought I would order a couple of these cheaper pairs, giving me an idea of what people are talking about. I must admit that my hope was that I would hate them like I used to and would avoid falling into another rabbit hole.
One of the models I ordered was the RS4Y with MMCX connectors and in the 300 Ohm version. I have no idea who makes them, it says Shenzen Rongyuan Technology on the plastic bag they came in but I don’t know if that is the brand or not, so I’ll just refer to them as the RS4Y.
After a couple of weeks with them, and with the other sets not arriving yet (so I have absolutely no comparison point) these are my impressions and discoveries of a sub-10€ earbud.
Build and Comfort…
Let’s get the comfort part out of the way first, they are not comfortable. At least, I don’t find them comfortable. Before the more knowledgeable earbud owners say anything, no I haven’t tried different covers, only the foam covers they came with, I am a complete noob in this field so I will do some comfort experimenting in the future. Which, as I am willing to keep trying, probably means that they are not that terrible, at least my ears aren’t blistering and I have worn them for many hours over the past few weeks.
As far as build, well, they are a cheap, lightweight, plastic enclosure with MMCX connectors that are not screwed in all the way. As you can see in the photo, the connectors protrude from the bottom and the shape of the earbud housing stops the thread from entering the whole way.
I have had some bad experiences with MMCX connectors lately but these don’t seem to be bad. They are not overly tight but hold the cable well.
On the subject of cable, the cable I am using I purchased from the same store on AE and is an 8 core cable with a 2.5mm TRRS termination. The cable is actually nicely made and I really like the feeling of it, however, it wasn’t included in the price of the earbuds (which is not surprising at 7€!).
There really isn’t much else to say about construction. The packaging was a simple plastic bag and included 3 sets of sponge covers.
Sound…
When discussing earbuds with the person I referred to above, he was saying that they are like having miniature set of open back headphones. In the case of the RY4S, I have even seen mentioned that it is like a miniature HD600.
Being honest, I am very surprised at the overall sound of these, I expected something much worse. I can actually see the reference to open back headphones as, in comparison to IEMs, they offer much more of an open feeling.
In the bass region is where these seem to suffer the most, although they are not actually that bass light, they have much more bass than I expected. The bass is very dependent upon placement and fit of the earbuds and it did take me awhile to be able to find the sweet spot but now that I have spent more time with them and I am used to putting them in, I can find the correct spot pretty quickly.
That sweet spot does actually present a fair bit of bass, which is well defined and clear throughout the whole of the bass region. I was listening to the album “Until The End Of Time” by Tupac and halfway through decided to swap over to the Moondrop Starfield (after only listening to the RY4S for various days) and I was surprised to find that the increase in bass was not very apparent.
Listening to some of the tracks from my usual test list, “Smooth Operator” is well balanced as far as bass goes, without me feeling it is lacking too much. “Way Down Deep” by Jennifer Warnes has a good bass presence, sounding better to my ears than on other IEMs that have too much bass (this song is very easy to make overpowering with too much bass).
In songs that are dependent upon a lot of bass and sub-bass, this is where the RY4S suffers, as the bass rolls off pretty quickly when moving down towards the sub-bass region. “No Mercy” by Gustavo Santaolalla sounds hollow, as though it is being played on a drain pipe, due to the lack of sub-bass. It is the same with “Bury a Friend” by Billie Eilish, although I don’t miss it too much in this case as I again find it too easy for this song to become overpowering.
As we move into the mids, I think that these are the strong part of this headphone. Voices are nicely presented and have a nice rich tone to them, sounding pretty natural. In reference to the comment about these being a mini HD600, I’m afraid that these are a long way from that point, but are still respectable, especially when factoring in the price point.
However, although I find the tonality of the mids to be nice, I am not overly impressed by the speed with which a lot of the instruments that fall into the midrange are resolved. In tracks that have a lot going on with acoustical instruments, it is easy for the earbuds to start falling apart and struggle to keep up with some of the passages. This causes the songs to sound a little congested and removes the nice tonality of the mids that are much more apparent on simpler tracks. I found this on tracks like “Black Muse” by Prince, where the mids seemed muddy and not well defined. Another example is “Hotel California” (Live acoustic version) where the intro sounds great but when all the instruments are playing together in the main part of the track, again the mids feel congested and make it difficult to pinpoint each instrument.
Up in the treble area, I didn’t find these to be sibilant at all, in fact, I would say they are closer to missing treble than having too much. I didn’t feel that they were lacking too much treble but I think that they could present a little more without moving out of the comfort zone, a little more “air” would be appreciated. Some of my usual tracks for testing treble, such as “Only Time” by Enya, “Hope Is A Dangerous Thing” by Lana Del Rey and “Violent Crimes” by Kanye West, were all presented without sibilance.
As far as timbre, they are not bad. Listening to acoustic instruments and vocals, which makes up a lot of my listening time, guitars and basses did not sound strange and had the body and life that I like to hear. I wouldn’t put them on the level of some of my preferred IEMs or headphones for timbre but they don’t do a bad job.
Soundstage and imaging is decent, better than on the majority of IEMs in the lower price brackets, with a nice width and imaging that places things correctly, although, again, it is not a “wow” factor.
As far as speed and resolution, I already mentioned that it is missing in the mids and I would venture to say that it is not great throughout the whole range, although it is not terrible either. I think the frequencies that seem to resolve better and with more speed, without getting congested are the higher bass areas. Listening to some solo bass tracks, with slap and other techniques, they held their own surprisingly well. However, when it is a busy track, I feel that these details are overshadowed by the congested mid range.
One thing worth noting about these earbuds is that they are pretty power hungry. I know that they are 300 Ohm but that doesn’t always translate into being too difficult to drive. In the case of the RY4S, I needed to set the M2X to high gain and set volume to around 55 in order to listen at my usual (quiet) listening levels. Using the Loxjie P20, which actually works surprisingly well with these earbuds, I found myself at around -28 which is actually a few points higher than when I am listening to the HD6XX.
Conclusions…
While I wasn’t absolutely amazed by the RY4S, I was pleasantly surprised. It is true that these earbuds offer a good performance for their price, in fact, they offer a good performance for 5 times their price.
I still find them uncomfortable but not too uncomfortable to use. Maybe using other covers will improve comfort but I will find out in the future.
As I said at the beginning, I don’t have anything to compare these too so I cannot say if they are great earbuds or not, but I do not feel that I have wasted my money. I could probably find enough coins in the center console of my car to buy a set of these, plus a cable and some replacement covers, and still have change left over. For the quality of sound that I have received for that investment, they are pretty darn impressive.
I don’t think that I have been sucked into a rabbit hole, as I won’t be rushing out to spend hundreds of euros on other models, but if this is an example of what you get price/performance wise, then I expect that some of the higher end models must sound amazing.
Once I receive the other models I ordered, I will come back with some comparisons but for now, let’s just say that I am happy with my purchase.
(My apologies for the terrible photo quality in this post, I was having a bad day 
)
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Thank you Paul, much appreciated!
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I am always looking for the one ear bud to define them all. My personal journey has taken me from the early 90’s ear buds to present day. I’ve gone through so many from cheap stuff to over $300 Moondrop Chaconne ear buds. And each time, I’ve come back to Earth with the Yincrow X6.
They are $10 and they sound great with a nice tonal balance and good timbre. They do lack a bit of resolution but do the trick. But alas, I keep looking for the next best thing every few months. My latest journey accumulated a few more mediocre to bad IEMs including the hyped up and special collaboration bud called the Ear Buds Anonymous, which was tuned by community members from Facebook’s Ear Buds Anonymous group and Penon Audio.
It sounds like mud.
That said, I am not reviewing that set today – nope. Today I will be taking a look at the $130-150 Smabat ST-10s Gold Edition. The price fluctuates on this set based on sales and other promos, but I purchased these for about $140 on Amazon.com a few months back.
Unboxing
The ST-10s series from Smabat has removable mmcx connectors, which allows for cable swapping, and a design meant to be worn with cables over-the-ear instead of the traditional cables down. The metal housing is lightweight and feels well-built and attractive. The cable that came with this unit is finely braided with gold and silver colored sheathing that matches the gold-tinted metal housing.
In addition to the cable, the ST-10s comes with a set of foam and silicone driver coverings, and a fabric carrying pouch.
Sound Impressions
The ST-10s Gold is a special 150 Ohm version of the ST-10 which itself is an evolution of Smabat’s ear bud designs from the recent past. One of the unique features of Smabat’s line of ear buds is their “maze” chamber which enhances bass performance in both quality and quantity, which is typically something that traditional ear buds lack.
In actual use, I found the bass quality and quantity on the ST-10s to be quite good for ear buds. It’s not as full and deep as a good set of In-Ear Monitors (IEMs), but more than enough for most all music, and similar to that of an open-back headphone.
The ST-10s has a nice open soundstage and good resolution, and a sound that does remind me more of an open-back headphone than it does an IEM, which is generally how I feel of traditional ear buds – a cross-over and middle ground from the portable IEM and the larger headphones.
Where the ST-10s does have some trouble is the upper mid-range, which I feel is overly exaggerated and needs to be toned down a bit. There’s just too much of a sharp emphasis in the 1-3KHz region of the frequency response that some music comes off too aggressive and forward. Outside of this problematic area, I find the ST-10s Gold to sound extremely pleasant and close to a nicely tuned headphone.
All is not loss though. For some music, this emphasis isn’t too bad, for others, particularly female vocals and guitar music, it can be a bit much for my ears. I worked on perfecting an EQ that I makes this a better all-arounder, while improving the subbass performance to reach deeper, and I found a nice happy medium in the settings below:
Wrap-Up
Even without EQ, I do appreciate the sound quality and general tonality of the ST-10S Gold, however with the small changes in EQ, I am very happy with using this set. I have been using them quite a bit lately, more so than my IEMs and on-par with my over-ear headphones. While the Yincrow X6 really does not require any EQ at all to sound more correct to me, the technical performance of the ST10S is on another level.
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So are my Audeze iSINE 20s and LCDi3 earbuds or IEMs? Or neither?
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umm they are umm in-ear planars 
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They are the equivalent of the platypus of the headphones, instead of neither I would say they are both.
I have been having some strange problems with several pairs of wired headphones I’ve been using with my iPhone 8 lately.
I’ll plug them in for the first time and, then, about a month later, one of the speakers goes out or mostly goes out. What I mean is that, when I move the jack around in the adapter, the audio sometimes comes back but goes away again if I move the jack around even slightly.
You may have a dirty lightning connector. The apple store can clean it if you can’t. You might try some canned air and some electronic cleaner. (Caig DeOxIt is probably the best commonly available, CRC also makes one - you want something for electronics, not something to clean and lube fan motors. WD-40 also makes a Specialist Contact Cleaner Spray - I haven’t tried it.)
Also get a new Apple Dongle (Lightning to 3.5mm) for about $9. Look for a genuine Apple one. It doesn’t pay to save $3 on a clone.
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Hey you guys! I’ve been looking for a nice pair of IEM’s to chuck in my ears whenever and I have heard that the Moondrop Chus are an awesome choice. (Crinacle, other IEM reviewers, etc,). I mainly listen to Indie Rock, Progressive Metal, and Jazz. And I have a nasty liking for tight puncy bass. I find it fun! Are the Chus fit for me? Or is there anything else you would reccomend/mention at that range? (~40 bucks max).
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Seeing that you are looking for IEMs, check out: The Ultra Cheap IEM Thread
You might want to start at the end and make your way back as there are lots of models in there since 2018.
Personally I prefer the 7Hz Zero to the Chu, but that doesn’t mean you will.
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I have a set of the Chu’s and am very happy with them after a fit of tip rolling to find ones that would fit & seal for me. I ended up using the small tips that came with the Chu’s, where everything thing else I need mediums or larges, go figure.
@SenyorC give out good advice, the Ultra Cheap IEM Thread has given me a lot of ideas and IEMs for cheap.
Mark Gosdin
I accidentally sent my daily/jogging earbuds through the wash and now need to replace my Bose Pros with new, cheap, but good earbuds- been looking at AirPods but know there are plenty of other wired and wireless options I’d consider before.
Call me hipster but I’m reluctant to default to Apple’s ubiquitous AirPods, so wondered any recommendations for <$150 wireless OR wired ear buds for durable, yet quality daily use.
Well all the hype anorl I thought it worth a punt?..The wait
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