MUSE HiFi Power IEM Review: Beautifully Built Planar Magnetic IEMs
Over the past few months, we have seen a sudden rise in the Planar Magnetic Driver IEMs. Tin HiFi, 7Hz, Shuoer, have done their part in this by releasing some excellent IEMs like the P1 Plus from Tin HiFi, Timeless from 7Hz, and S12 from Shuoer. I for one, have been a fan of Planar Magnetic driver IEMs, the latest Shuoer S12, P1 Plus are two of my favorite IEMs around the 200$ price bracket. A few weeks back a new name came up in the Chinese HiFi audio industry, Muse HiFi. Entering the HiFi IEM market, Muse HiFi has introduced a planar magnetic driver set, the Muse HiFi Power. I have never heard of Muse HiFi before, and I believe this is their very first pair of in-ear monitors in the international market. So without wasting any more time, let us begin with my take on the Muse HiFi Power.
Disclaimer:-
A huge shoutout to the Muse HiFi team for organizing a review tour of the Power in my country. I happen to be a part of the tour and got the pair for auditioning for a few days. The unit has undergone about 100 hours of burn-in before it reached me(after a reviewer before me). I have used the pair for about a week now. Rest assured, all the impressions in this review blog are completely my own without any influence from anyone else. They might be affected due to my personal preferences for listening to music, which is mostly neutral with a slight sub-bass boost. If interested, you can purchase the Muse HiFi Power from HiFiGo from the link below or by clicking here.
MUSE HiFi Power Planar Magnetic Driver In-ear Earphones
Unboxing & Package Design:-
Power comes packed in a plain black rectangular cardboard box with a simple slip-on cover. The outer slip-on cover here has the Muse HiFi branding logo printed on the front along with their brand slogan. At the back of this slip-on cover, we have key features of the Power IEMs written in multiple languages including Chinese, English, and more. There’s also brand information and address at the back of this cover. Inside, the main cardboard packaging has the same front as the outer silicone cover, but here the box has a nice textured finish. Backside here is plain with nothing printed. Our latest set of planar magnetic IEMs is sitting firmly inside a foam layer with a grey-colored carry case at the top layer inside the package. The stock cable is inside this carry case. At the bottom layer, we have two small boxes with multiple sets of silicone ear tips. There’s also a user manual inside the package.
Package contents:-
>Muse HiFi power earphones.
>Sleeved 3.5mm terminated two-pin cable.
>Grey-colored magnetic earphone carry case.
>12 pairs of silicone ear tips(3x White silicone ear tips, 3x grey silicone ear tips, 3x black silicone ear tips, 3x black silicone ear tips with red tubes).
>User manual.
Design & Build Quality:-
The ear shells of Muse HiFi Power have a slightly big size. They have a semi-transparent dark grey inner cavity through which we can have a look at the internals under proper lightning. The shells boast elegant and classy looks with their designer faceplates. Each earpiece has a unique design on its faceplate with waves of glittery golden and black shades. Around the faceplates, we have a rose-gold colored metallic frame that adds to the look of the pair. In terms of design and looks, the Muse HiFi Power has got some points in its favor. The pair looks beautiful, classy, and quite elegant. Even though they have used a glittery finish in the faceplates, they don’t look blingy or hot, the color combination here is actually very good.
With resin cavities, the shells are lightweight. Although one might find them big, they are quite comfortable to wear. The ergonomics are beautifully managed here to achieve a comfy fit.
The cable here, I find it pretty good. It has a sleeved finish with a metallic Y-splitter, chin slider, connector covers, and termination plug cover. It has gold-plated 3.5mm termination and 2-pin connectors. Near the connectors, we have firm memory foam support that helps in achieving a comfortable fit. I personally like Sleeved cables, and I liked the cable as much as I liked the design of the pair itself.
Fit & Isolation:-
Shells are slightly big, but lightweight. For me, I have medium-sized ears, the fit was very good. I don’t find any issues in fit or isolation with the set. Both the shells sit firmly into my ears and don’t fall off. They don’t apply any additional pressure on my ears, very comfy wearing experience.
Driving The Muse HiFi Power:-
The biggest issue faced by Planar Magnetic driver IEMs is their power requirements. Tin HiFi P1 and P2 were very solid IEMs but they were able to take boatloads of power. But over time this thing is slowly changing with newer technologies in IEMs. 7Hz Timeless was pretty well off straight from a smartphone. And I will say the same here for the Muse HiFi Power. The pair ran pretty well straight off my Redmi Note 10 Pro. Although I always recommend using a dedicated DAC/AMP(Moondrop Moonriver 2, and more)or audio player(Shanling M3X) for best performance with Hi-Res signal decoding.
As for me, I used the Muse HiFi Power with a variety of sources including NuPrime Portable USB DAC/AMP, Astell&Kern SP2k Cu DAP, and Redmi Note 10 Pro smartphone. I never faced any issue with any given device.
Sound Impressions:-
Being listening to the Muse HiFi Power for some time now I appreciate its sound and like its presentation. The pair has got a fast lower end with decent sub-bass rumble, delicate, smooth midrange, and nicely extended treble frequency response. Muse HiFi has given a pretty smooth and in-offensive tuning to the Power. The pair shows very good clarity and resolution for its price bracket. All this is presented with a decently wide soundstage presentation. Muse HiFi not only produces a wide soundstage but also maintains pretty good air on the stage. Instruments and vocals are nicely separated and can be recognized precisely. Technically the Muse HiFi Power is quite good. Now let’s discuss different frequencies.
Lower-End/Bass Response:-
As I stated earlier, Power produces a quick bass response. The pair shows very good control presenting us with good texture on slams in the mid-bass region and at the same time having a decent rumble in the sub-bass region. It maintains a balanced presentation with its lower end, although I would have loved slightly more punch here in the lower end. Please don’t get me wrong here, Power doesn’t lack details or extensions in the lower end, it just isn’t as punchy as I prefer. Speed and decay are good, an extra bit of punchiness is needed for my taste. I tried to EQ the set, adding about 4-5dB to the 50-150Hz segment improved the output and made it more to my liking.
Midrange:-
I loved the Power for its midrange presentation. It’s actually very beautiful and smooth. Lower mids sound slightly recessed, but upper mids are decently forwarded. The transition between the lower-end frequencies and mid-range frequencies is clean. Vocals have a nice texture to them, they sound slightly forward to me too. Both the Male Vocals and Female Vocals have a clean textured presentation to them. They have good tonal weight to them too, I don’t notice them going overly warm or bright at all but they sound slightly warmer than neutral. Instruments such as guitars, and pianos show excellent details in the mid-range segment.
Treble:-
Treble with the Muse HiFi Power is clean and detailed. The extensions here are very good with a smooth and inoffensive tuning. Though I notice the notes in the treble to be a bit leaner, but they sound precise and not harsh at all. The pair doesn’t lose its resolution or clarity in high notes. There is no noticeable sibilance or harshness at all. Although a little bit of thickness in the treble section would have made it more to my liking.
Soundstage, Layering, Dynamics:-
Muse Hifi Power produces a wide soundstage presentation with good airiness characteristics. Imaging and dynamics are average as per the 200$ price bracket, they are decent. Liked the soundstage here. It creates an immersive presentation while maintaining a nice wide stage.
Muse HiFi Power Vs Shuoer S12:-
Shuoer S12 was one of the most recent Planar Magnetic IEMs that I recently tried. It became an instant favorite for me with its smooth and lively sound presentation, how does it compare against the Muse HiFi Power? Let’s find out.
>S12 has a more neutral approach to its sound. Muse HiFi Power sounds a little bit more analog in its tonality.
>S12 bass has got slightly better punch, the speed for both the units are similar.
>Power has got bigger shells, S12 is comfier for longer hours. Although both are lightweight and I don’t have any issues with either of them in fit or comfort.
>Power Treble has a safer tuning, S12 has got an extra bit to its treble. No, it doesn’t sound harsh or brittle or sibilant but has a better sense of energy in S12. Power is better suited if you are treble sensitive.
Muse HiFi Power Vs 7Hz Timeless:-
I got to listen to the Timeless a few months back. I have a brief memory of its sound. Here’s my take between the Power and the Timeless.
>Timeless has got a better punch in the lower end, deeper too.
>Power has got smoother and more natural sound presentation than the Timeless.
>Timeless also had a little bright sound, S12 is tonally warmer than Timeless.
>Timeless detailing was excellent, the same can be said for the Power although power is softer in its presentation, Timeless is snappy and a little sharp.
>Power I feel to be comfier for me out of the two.
Final Words:-
Despite their first product in the international market, Muse HiFi has given us a pretty solid performer in the form of Power. The pair packs an enjoyable sound performance. The competition for Muse HiFi Power is tough with the release of the latest P1 Max from Tin HiFi too while I have not heard the latest P1 Max yet, Muse HiFi Power has a smooth and inoffensive tuning to its sound. I hope it will keep its place in front of the P1 Max too as it has over the other two we just compared above. I find the Power to be an enjoyable set with solid built, unique design, and at the same time easy on the pocket!!
