Pros: - Balance-neutral sound signature for mature listening
- Very decent driver performance. Good attack and decay
- Good technicalities for its price point
- Excellent fit, seal and isolation
- Very nice treble extension
- Bass oriented tracks are gratifying
- Average wide sound stage
- Commendable imaging
Cons: - Mid bass is lacking for my liking (subjective)
- overall tonality is on the thin side of things (subjective)
- drums specially snares occasionally sounds boxy
- cable could have been better if I’m being nitpicky
- inclusions are very basic
INTRODUCTION:
TINHIFI is one of the chi-fi brands that is quite familiar within the audio community. The T2 is their game changer and up to now is still relevant because of its neutral signature, clarity and details. It was followed by T2 plus, T3, and T1 which all received mix reviews from the community.
I would like to express my gratitude to Adrian Yambao for he is the one that pointed me into the direction to be in contact with Tinhifi. Thanks mate.
And now, I have the T3 plus which is quite odd because its configuration is only a single dynamic driver which is a different route from Tinhifi’s setups and a step away from their in house sound signature, which is neutral-bright.
DISCLAIMER:
TINHIFI is one of the chi-fi brands that is quite familiar within the audio community. The T2 is their game changer and up to now is still relevant because of its neutral signature, clarity and details. It was followed by T2 plus, T3, and T1 which all received mix reviews from the community.
I would like to express my gratitude to Adrian Yambao for he is the one that pointed me into the direction to be in contact with Tinhifi. Thanks mate.
And now, I have the T3 plus which is quite odd because its configuration is only a single dynamic driver which is a different route from Tinhifi’s setups and a step away from their in house sound signature, which is neutral-bright.
DISCLAIMER:
This unit is quite special for me, because it is my first sample unit provided by the company itself, free of charge. Don’t fret for my opinions here will not be swayed due to the fact that, it was provided for free. I would like to thank KEN from Tinhifi for arranging this deal.
My opinions here are completely my own. I am NOT in any way influenced of any form of incentive. This is purely my honest, subjective impressions and experience with the gear on hand. I cannot stress more that you should take this as a grain of salt for we have different perception to sound and what we hear. I always try my best to stick with the stock accessories that comes with the gear by default. You are free to try other methods such as tip rolling or cable rolling. Below are worth noting before concluding on what I say here:
My reviews are more on how music sound on our ears. The technical stuff like frequency graphs and the physics behind the tech and drivers used, I leave to other reviewers.
My opinions here are completely my own. I am NOT in any way influenced of any form of incentive. This is purely my honest, subjective impressions and experience with the gear on hand. I cannot stress more that you should take this as a grain of salt for we have different perception to sound and what we hear. I always try my best to stick with the stock accessories that comes with the gear by default. You are free to try other methods such as tip rolling or cable rolling. Below are worth noting before concluding on what I say here:
My reviews are more on how music sound on our ears. The technical stuff like frequency graphs and the physics behind the tech and drivers used, I leave to other reviewers.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Configuration: 10mm LCP (liquid crystal polymer) dynamic driver
Impedance: 32ohms
Sensitivity: 103db
Freq response: 10hz-20khz
PACKAGING:
The box is medium in size. Outer box is white in color, and is designed in the simplest way.
The inner box is gray in color. At the center is the Tinhifi logo with text “TINHIFI”.
The cover is somewhat a soft cushion underneath. With straps where a black Tinhifi card is attached and a document with T3plus’ details and reminders are stated. Much more like a user manual sort of thing.
Underneath this cushion cover you will find the IEM itself. Quite hard to pull out so be careful not to force and damage you’re new IEM.
Above the IEM, is a foldable cardboard and inside you will find the cable, ear tips, and a carrying pouch. The pouch is a basic one, and will not protect your IEM inside of your bag if pressure is applied. A hard case is suggested.
The ear tips is in S, M, L sizes and we have two kinds. The all black tips seem softer and wide bored. Again, I will assume that these are vocal tips. The gray tips with red accent are the stiffer ones. I will assume they are bass tips.
The cable is 4 core, oxygen free type. It was said that this is the exact cable included with Tinhifi’s T5.
I would like to add that a stock set up was used in this review as I have a mind set that I like to judge an IEM how it was intended to sound. Of course, don’t let me stop you from tip and cable rolling. This is just my personal preference when reviewing.
PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES:
The look of the T3plus reminded me of Seeaudio’s Bravery. That vanilla swirl and curves has the resemblance. And actually, this is what got my attention the reason I reached out to Tinhifi.
The material feels like resin, light in weight and honestly you can feel that it is indeed in the sub 100$ tier. The base part, again, is smoky translucent, and you can clearly see the dynamic driver placed near the nozzle.
On to how it sounded to my ears.. please do note, that I have spent at least 30 hours of playback with T3plus and I will state here that there was a change in the burn in process. I’m not igniting another debate whether burn in is a fact or myth but to my ears, the T3plus changed throughout this process.
LOWS:
The lows are sub bass focused. Which is good if your playlist consists mostly of modern tracks and bass-oriented tracks. Presentation is clean, quick and punchy. I listened to The Weekend’s Dawn FM album and was quite satisfied how lows was presented here. Now…
I’m not really into modern tracks that much. And a lot of my playlist is not bass oriented. And mid bass plays a large role on my playlist. This is where T3plus almost turned me off. Mid bass is pushed back here. I can still remember the first hour I listened to it, I was like “Where the hell is the bassist?” but as I’ve stated above, T3plus did undergo at least 30 hours of playback and at this point, the mid bass is more forward than it did out of the box. As to my liking, it is still pushed back. Nonetheless, the lows here have good reproduction, very very clean and no bleeds to mids at all. I just wished, there a was bit more of that mid bass.
MIDS:
Again, mids are very clean here. Has good texture and timbre. There is an occasional boxy sounding snares from the drums but very rarely. Mids are not pushed back, yet not forward either.
One thing I can point out is, compare to my other IEMs, namely BQEYZ Autumn and TFORCE Yuan li, the mids of T3plus is on the thin side. Guitars can sound a bit thin to my ears but yet again, this is very subjective. I have peers that really appreciate rock tracks with T3plus. But not thin enough to put a smirk on my face. Still mids here can be appreciated. I’m a mid-centric guy so I like my mids a bit more lushful and rich.
Vocals are nice and good. But not as engaging as other IEMs I’ve auditioned or own. Yet nothing to hate here. In fact, T3plus gives a somewhat decent vocal tracking. You can hear harmonies very clearly. A sample test track I’ve tested here is Fleetwood Mac’s Gold Dust Woman. It is not as engaging but the clarity and vocal separation is there.
TREBLES:
Trebles have good extension here and free of sibilance. I cannot remember a track that gave me a sour face for being shouty. One favorite track of mine to test shoutiness is TOTO’s Hold the Line and T3plus passed with flying colors. It has a good amount of openness and sparkle for some micro details to push through.
Conclusively, the trebles was kind of harsh at first, but it tamed down after the burn in process I mentioned above.
FIT & ISOLATION
Now this is the best part. I would pick T3plus any day just for its comfortability, fit and seal. I can safely say this is on par on some IEMs designed to be with musicians on stage. Never fell off my ears, never felt fatigue on ears, and even slept on it. The weight is light and it is as if you are not wearing an IEM. It is like one of those running shoes that feels like you are bare foot. That is how good T3plus is to wear. Just pure comfortability.
SOUNDSTAGE AND IMAGING:
Stage is above average. I can sense width, and some depth that is commendable. I listened to Fleetwood Mac’s 2 cd album, which contains a lot of guitars and instruments, and I can sense a wide stage. Nothing spectacular here but it is there.
Imaging is quite nice too, I can’t say it is perfect or accurate but positioning and panning of instruments is very desirable. Never felt congested even on busy tracks.
COMPARISONS:
Sorry guys, I know almost everyone is comparing this to Moondrop’s Aria. Unfortunately I don’t have an Aria so I can’t really say. I believe the T3plus is a good set on its own right and it has a rightful place in the sea of cut throat chi fi products out there.
SOURCES AND GEARS:
Here are some tracks I usually listen to when reviewing:
That’s the way of the World by EWF
Africa by TOTO
The Girl in the Other Room by Diana Kral
Balmorhea album All is wild, All is Silent
Sila by Sud
Smooth Escape by D’Sound
Never too Much by Luther Vandross
P.Y.T by Michael Jackson
Ain’t no Sunshine by Eva Cassidy
Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC
Another one bites the Dust by Queen
Good times bad times by Edie Brickell
Alice in Wonderland by Bill Evans
Ain’t it Fun by Paramore
Redefine by Incubus
Far Away by Nickelback
Lovesong by Adele
Lingus by Snarky Puppy
Harvest for the World by Vanessa Williams
Love Bites by Def Leppard
No Such Thing by John Mayer
As by Stevie Wonder
Whip Appeal by Babyface
Ain’t Nobody by Chaka Khan
Futures by Prep
Landslide by Fleetwood Mac
Every Summertime by NIKI
SADE tracks
AC/DC tracks
Queen tracks
Configuration: 10mm LCP (liquid crystal polymer) dynamic driver
Impedance: 32ohms
Sensitivity: 103db
Freq response: 10hz-20khz
PACKAGING:
The box is medium in size. Outer box is white in color, and is designed in the simplest way.
The inner box is gray in color. At the center is the Tinhifi logo with text “TINHIFI”.
The cover is somewhat a soft cushion underneath. With straps where a black Tinhifi card is attached and a document with T3plus’ details and reminders are stated. Much more like a user manual sort of thing.
Underneath this cushion cover you will find the IEM itself. Quite hard to pull out so be careful not to force and damage you’re new IEM.
Above the IEM, is a foldable cardboard and inside you will find the cable, ear tips, and a carrying pouch. The pouch is a basic one, and will not protect your IEM inside of your bag if pressure is applied. A hard case is suggested.
The ear tips is in S, M, L sizes and we have two kinds. The all black tips seem softer and wide bored. Again, I will assume that these are vocal tips. The gray tips with red accent are the stiffer ones. I will assume they are bass tips.
The cable is 4 core, oxygen free type. It was said that this is the exact cable included with Tinhifi’s T5.
I would like to add that a stock set up was used in this review as I have a mind set that I like to judge an IEM how it was intended to sound. Of course, don’t let me stop you from tip and cable rolling. This is just my personal preference when reviewing.
PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES:
The look of the T3plus reminded me of Seeaudio’s Bravery. That vanilla swirl and curves has the resemblance. And actually, this is what got my attention the reason I reached out to Tinhifi.
The material feels like resin, light in weight and honestly you can feel that it is indeed in the sub 100$ tier. The base part, again, is smoky translucent, and you can clearly see the dynamic driver placed near the nozzle.
On to how it sounded to my ears.. please do note, that I have spent at least 30 hours of playback with T3plus and I will state here that there was a change in the burn in process. I’m not igniting another debate whether burn in is a fact or myth but to my ears, the T3plus changed throughout this process.
LOWS:
The lows are sub bass focused. Which is good if your playlist consists mostly of modern tracks and bass-oriented tracks. Presentation is clean, quick and punchy. I listened to The Weekend’s Dawn FM album and was quite satisfied how lows was presented here. Now…
I’m not really into modern tracks that much. And a lot of my playlist is not bass oriented. And mid bass plays a large role on my playlist. This is where T3plus almost turned me off. Mid bass is pushed back here. I can still remember the first hour I listened to it, I was like “Where the hell is the bassist?” but as I’ve stated above, T3plus did undergo at least 30 hours of playback and at this point, the mid bass is more forward than it did out of the box. As to my liking, it is still pushed back. Nonetheless, the lows here have good reproduction, very very clean and no bleeds to mids at all. I just wished, there a was bit more of that mid bass.
 |
| Looking like a familiar IEM..the Bravery |
MIDS:
Again, mids are very clean here. Has good texture and timbre. There is an occasional boxy sounding snares from the drums but very rarely. Mids are not pushed back, yet not forward either.
One thing I can point out is, compare to my other IEMs, namely BQEYZ Autumn and TFORCE Yuan li, the mids of T3plus is on the thin side. Guitars can sound a bit thin to my ears but yet again, this is very subjective. I have peers that really appreciate rock tracks with T3plus. But not thin enough to put a smirk on my face. Still mids here can be appreciated. I’m a mid-centric guy so I like my mids a bit more lushful and rich.
Vocals are nice and good. But not as engaging as other IEMs I’ve auditioned or own. Yet nothing to hate here. In fact, T3plus gives a somewhat decent vocal tracking. You can hear harmonies very clearly. A sample test track I’ve tested here is Fleetwood Mac’s Gold Dust Woman. It is not as engaging but the clarity and vocal separation is there.
TREBLES:
Trebles have good extension here and free of sibilance. I cannot remember a track that gave me a sour face for being shouty. One favorite track of mine to test shoutiness is TOTO’s Hold the Line and T3plus passed with flying colors. It has a good amount of openness and sparkle for some micro details to push through.
Conclusively, the trebles was kind of harsh at first, but it tamed down after the burn in process I mentioned above.
FIT & ISOLATION
Now this is the best part. I would pick T3plus any day just for its comfortability, fit and seal. I can safely say this is on par on some IEMs designed to be with musicians on stage. Never fell off my ears, never felt fatigue on ears, and even slept on it. The weight is light and it is as if you are not wearing an IEM. It is like one of those running shoes that feels like you are bare foot. That is how good T3plus is to wear. Just pure comfortability.
SOUNDSTAGE AND IMAGING:
Stage is above average. I can sense width, and some depth that is commendable. I listened to Fleetwood Mac’s 2 cd album, which contains a lot of guitars and instruments, and I can sense a wide stage. Nothing spectacular here but it is there.
Imaging is quite nice too, I can’t say it is perfect or accurate but positioning and panning of instruments is very desirable. Never felt congested even on busy tracks.
COMPARISONS:
Sorry guys, I know almost everyone is comparing this to Moondrop’s Aria. Unfortunately I don’t have an Aria so I can’t really say. I believe the T3plus is a good set on its own right and it has a rightful place in the sea of cut throat chi fi products out there.
SOURCES AND GEARS:
Here are some tracks I usually listen to when reviewing:
That’s the way of the World by EWF
Africa by TOTO
The Girl in the Other Room by Diana Kral
Balmorhea album All is wild, All is Silent
Sila by Sud
Smooth Escape by D’Sound
Never too Much by Luther Vandross
P.Y.T by Michael Jackson
Ain’t no Sunshine by Eva Cassidy
Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC
Another one bites the Dust by Queen
Good times bad times by Edie Brickell
Alice in Wonderland by Bill Evans
Ain’t it Fun by Paramore
Redefine by Incubus
Far Away by Nickelback
Lovesong by Adele
Lingus by Snarky Puppy
Harvest for the World by Vanessa Williams
Love Bites by Def Leppard
No Such Thing by John Mayer
As by Stevie Wonder
Whip Appeal by Babyface
Ain’t Nobody by Chaka Khan
Futures by Prep
Landslide by Fleetwood Mac
Every Summertime by NIKI
SADE tracks
AC/DC tracks
Queen tracks
And many more… I always listen to High resolution format, being the least quality 16bit/44khz FLACS be it offline or online.
VERDICT:
As I’ve said, the T3plus is a commendable set in its own right. At first, I was turned off on its lack on the mid bass, but despite of that, I appreciate its neutrality and balance. Its clean sound, no bleeds to mids, superb comfortability, somewhat good technicalities, and sibilance free trebles.
Who is it for? Bass heads will appreciate it because this set is sub bass focus. It has that rumble to be praised. Treble heads might also dig the good extension on top. Treble sensitive will not smirk on this one. Well at least for me. Mature listeners will love its clean, neutral and balance sound signature. The one thing I can comment on the negative side, is its thin nature on the overall sound. But it is not that thin to turn you off.
Do I recommend the T3plus? Well, yes I do. It is a warm welcome addition to my collection and even though I have IEMs that are above its price point, I can’t help myself but listen to it every now and then. If you are just starting in the hobby, and is maturing away from v-shaped tuning sets, this will be a good start for you.
Again, this is purely my own experience and opinion on the product at hand. I can’t enforce more, your mileage may and most likely vary.
Thank you TINHIFI for providing me this set. I appreciate the gesture and I hope this review will somewhat help you guys innovate and improve on your upcoming products. Cheers!
Interested in purchasing T3 plus? Links below:
aliexpress store:
on pc: https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_pulldZb
on phone: https://a.aliexpress.com/_msvJaK6
official website store
www.tinhifi.com
VERDICT:
As I’ve said, the T3plus is a commendable set in its own right. At first, I was turned off on its lack on the mid bass, but despite of that, I appreciate its neutrality and balance. Its clean sound, no bleeds to mids, superb comfortability, somewhat good technicalities, and sibilance free trebles.
Who is it for? Bass heads will appreciate it because this set is sub bass focus. It has that rumble to be praised. Treble heads might also dig the good extension on top. Treble sensitive will not smirk on this one. Well at least for me. Mature listeners will love its clean, neutral and balance sound signature. The one thing I can comment on the negative side, is its thin nature on the overall sound. But it is not that thin to turn you off.
Do I recommend the T3plus? Well, yes I do. It is a warm welcome addition to my collection and even though I have IEMs that are above its price point, I can’t help myself but listen to it every now and then. If you are just starting in the hobby, and is maturing away from v-shaped tuning sets, this will be a good start for you.
Again, this is purely my own experience and opinion on the product at hand. I can’t enforce more, your mileage may and most likely vary.
Thank you TINHIFI for providing me this set. I appreciate the gesture and I hope this review will somewhat help you guys innovate and improve on your upcoming products. Cheers!
Interested in purchasing T3 plus? Links below:
aliexpress store:
on pc: https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_pulldZb
on phone: https://a.aliexpress.com/_msvJaK6
official website store
www.tinhifi.com
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