Here’s an old review I wrote a few months ago but haven’t gotten around to posting. Finally have a bit of time to clear through my backlog. Thanks Hidizs for this providing this unit.
Hidizs Mermaid MS2 Review: Vocals Galore
Review written by @Fc-Construct
Review unit provided by Hidizs
Introduction
As far as ChiFi goes, Hidizs is a brand that some may have heard of in passing but not haven’t paid much attention to. They’re mostly known for their affordable DAPs and portable amp/DACs though they have started to branch out into making IEMs. For today’s review, I’ll be looking at one of those IEMs, the Hidizs Mermaid MS2. Priced at $90, it’s a hybrid IEM with a 10.2 mm DD and a single Knowles BA setup. To be honest, I’m always a little apprehensive about reviewing gear at this price range considering how hyper competitive it is. Hopefully the MS2 will be able to stand its ground.
What’s in the Box?
The unboxing experience is pretty nice. Open the box and the IEMs are seated right on top. Below is a black box with a brushed aluminum top showcasing the Hidizs logo. Inside contains the 6 pairs of generic silicon tips and the 2-pin cable. The case has a magnetic lid and a rubberized inlay. I really like the stock 2-pin cable. It’s looks good, is well built, light, and supple with no cable memory. There is a little cable noise, however.
The IEM shell has a 2-layer faceplate where the outer part has the Hidizs logo that casts 3D-like shadow on the opalescent inner part. Unfortunately, it looks a lot better than it feels. The lightweight plastic used for the shell doesn’t evoke a sense of luxury. Still, it plenty comfortable for me and for the price that’s about all I ask for.
Sound
Generally, whenever I get a new IEM in the budget class from a manufacturer without prior history of excellence, I expect the worst. For the MS2, I thought it was going to be an ugly, bassy mess. I was wrong. The MS2 is a very vocal forward IEM with a bright signature. On the technical front, it’s nothing outstanding but solid. I’ll admit I was lukewarm on it at first listen but as I spent more time with it writing this review, I’ve come to enjoy it. The MS2 works particularly well for genres like rock and metal where its upper mids clarity works overtime.
Frequency response of the Hidizs Mermaid MS2. Measurement taken with an IEC-711 clone microphone. Comparisons can only be made to other measurements taken by this specific microphone. The peak at about 8-9 kHz is an artifact of the microphone. It likely does not actually exist as depicted here.
Bass
The bass of the MS2 is elevated enough to carry the beat of songs but isn’t the main star of the show. For the overall tuning, I think there’s a good balance of bass quantity. As for downsides, it doesn’t have a ton of depth and rumble to give low end oomph. Though it’s punchy, it’s dry and a little soft. Subbass notes sound rounded out without a strong sense of impact. Where the bass meets the lower mids, it starts to sound smeared and drum notes aren’t well distinguished there. On the upside, the MS2’s bass has a sort of lightweight quality to it. It’s pretty fast and doesn’t muddy up the MS2 too much. Bass guitar lines are coherent and well defined. Drums notes are a quick touch and don’t linger needlessly. For that reason, the bass of the MS2 particularly excels in (alt) rock, metal, and punk, those sorts of genres. I find that if you turn up the volume past a certain threshold, the bass quality perceptually improves and gains a confident step to the presentation of the notes. Just be careful with the volume.
Mids
The upper mids are the real focus of the MS2. But it steals too much of the spotlight. It’s a very vocal forward IEM and depending on what you’re used to or what you can tolerate, the MS2 has a good chance of sounding shouty. Personally, even though I have a pretty high tolerance for lots of upper mids, I’d say the MS2 crosses the line of being too much, especially at first listen. I definitely need to watch the volume knob on the MS2 unlike a few other IEMs where I can turn up the volume quite a bit before being overwhelmed by vocal overload. The upper mids energy of the MS2 brings a ton of clarity particularly with the electric guitars, snare, and vocals. They cut cleanly right through the mix without a moment of hesitancy with a nice bite to them. Though you could argue that it borders on being strident, I wouldn’t call it harsh. There’s a hint of sharpness to its sound and sibilance on some tracks but not enough to cause discomfort. Of course, your mileage may vary depending on your sensitivities.
With this much upper mids, you’d think the MS2 would sound thin. It’s… not so bad. The lower mids have sufficient volume to dissuade this notion. In fact, I’d say the bass actually bleeds into the lower mids and causes smearing in that region as mentioned above. My guess is that it’s an incoherency issue at the crossover with the DD and the BA. A little unfortunate as it is a stain on the overall sound quality and enjoyment for me. Though the mids may potentially be too intense for some people, I think Hidizs has gotten more right here than wrong.
Treble
The treble of the MS2 is lively, crisp, and sparkly. However I think some of that BA timbre comes out here in the highs. The decay of notes sound brittle. Coming straight off the upper mids is plenty of energy in the lower treble that brings a crispness to the sound that makes notes pop. From there, the MS2 has a 6 – 7 kHz dip that isn’t totally “correct” but helps it from being too bright. This sort of dip isn’t uncommon; a less exaggerated version of it can be found on the DUNU SA6. The effect of the dip manifests as a sort of unevenness to timbre. For the cymbals, you get the initial attack but the subsequent ring out is overly softened. For some tracks, it helps the MS2 be forgiving as it masks bad recordings. In others, it manifests as a sort of incoherency. Past the dip is another burst of energy heading into the upper treble region. Here is where the MS2 gets its touch of sparkle. Unfortunately, it doesn’t extend too far with the upper treble so the air that I’d like to see accompany the sparkle is missing. With better and better tuned IEMs nowadays, I find that sometimes the treble is overly dampened in pursuit of having a safe, unoffensive treble. While that’s a fair strategy, I like my IEMs to have a bit of treble spice and the MS2 offers that.
Presentation:
The staging is OK on the MS2. Both soundstage width and imaging are about average. You’d think an IEM with so much upper mids would sound totally in your face but that’s not the case. Yes, the vocals are very much pressed forward but the other instruments aren’t painfully congested. Like many IEMs, there isn’t much stage depth or layering. It ends up sounding relatively flat and compressed to an extent.
On the resolution side, it’s about what I’d expect for the price. Notes are clear with a good sense of definition. However some may critique it as having “fake detail” due to the MS2’s abundance of upper mids and treble energy. While I don’t fully agree with that line of reasoning, I do think that the MS2’s presentation feels superficial. When listening to a few of my other reference IEMs, they have a better sense of nuance and refinement, a subtle depth to the sound that adds greater enjoyment. The MS2 is a genre specialist as its lightweighted bass and upper mids clarity lends itself well to fast paced and busy tracks. My alt-rock tracks sound great while modern pop and hip-hop songs are rather middling.
Should You Buy It?
Possibly. The MS2 wouldn’t be the first IEM I jump to as a recommendation, but you know what, if you primarily listen to rock and metal tracks and can stomach a ton of vocals, the MS2 is not a bad choice at all. Those songs are comparatively elevated on this IEM. Admittedly, the price of the MS2 makes it a tricky proposition when other well-regarded IEMs like the Tin HiFi T4, MoonDrop Starfield, and Etymotic ER2 are right around the corner. Still, I do think that it does enough to differentiate itself on the tuning front to warrant a moment of consideration even if it isn’t the front runner of the budget IEM landscape. If you know what you’re getting into with the Hidizs Mermaid MS2 (which you should after this review), I think you’ll be reasonably happy with the outcome.