ThieAudio Hype 4 IEMs – Impact2 Sonion Audiophile Experience
ThieAudio Hype 4 is a $399 USD pair of IEMs / In-Ear Monitors which is currently in pre-order on the Linsoul Website, and which comes with a strong selection of ThieAudio exclusive new technologies, including a new driver configuration, a new high-end cable, and the golden Linsoul support and warranty. Today we will be reviewing the Hype 4, and compare them to other midrange IEMS with a similar price point, including Yanyin Canon II (379 USD), HIDIZS MS5 (399 USD), Westone MACH 40 (600 USD), Jomo Audio P3 Percussion (425 USD), and iBasso IT05 (299 USD)
Introduction
ThieAudio is back with a new IEM or In-Ear Monitor, once again brought to the worldwide market by Linsoul, and this time Hype 4 is a model that has surprised me to the point where I was dumbfounded the first second I heard them, thanks to the midrange clarity and precision they have. Even better, they are comfortable, and for the first time we’re reviewing a white IEM, they are also superb in person. Linsoul has many deals and special offers on their website, but you can also purchase products fulfilled by Linsoul from Amazon, if you’re looking for twice the customer protection. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. I thank Liunosul and ThieAudio for providing the sample for this review, in exchange for my honest opinion.
PROs – Excellent transport case included with the IEMs, Superb Looks, Outstanding build quality, Detachable cables, Good default tips, transparent, flat sound with excellent bass depth, Perfect treble extension up to 18 kHz, Bass reaches 20 Hz and has a good presence, Tonality in the midrange is downright perfect, Superb Price / Performance Ratio.
Cons – Somewhat large shells hinder comfort, Tangle-Prone Cable, Sensitive to source noise, Analytical Super Revealing signature will show both the good and the bad in music.
Product Link
You can grab one from www.amazon.com here – https://amzn.to/3TEHHkF
Build Quality/Aesthetics/Fit/Comfort
ThieAudio went all-in this time around, and from earphones that looked stealthy and gamer-like, the new Hype 4 actually stands up to its name and looks like a full blown hype party, with the white version that I have being incredibly beautiful, having a special effect where it changes color depending on how the light is shining on it. The cable included is a high-end audiophile cable, or at least so it is called by ThieAudio, and it is a pretty standard cable in looks, not very heavy, but somewhat springy. The cable offers good support for the IEMs, it has flexible ear guides, which are good for the comfort, and it does not conduct a lot of microphonic noise, although the microphonics profile is on the midrange, and you will hear a noise if it brushes against clothing with a rough texture or short beard. There is a superb transport case included with the Hype 4, and the whole package is super good.
The cable is detachable and based on the 2-Pin connector, and the IEMs are ok in comfort, with the shells being rather large, but vented, so you can expect an averagely weighted IEM, with a larger shell, shallower it, but with no void or driver flex. The passive noise isolation is quite good, between -20 and -28 dBs, which is rather excellent. While I can totally feel that I am wearing the Hype 4, they are not becoming uncomfortable. Even the default tips work very well with no disadvantage to the wearing comfort, and I do not feel the need to upgrade the tips to ddHIFI ST35 as I do with most IEMs lately. Better cables can improve the ergonomics slightly, but the default cable is great for the price, just make sure to get the balanced version if you have a good source with a 4.4mm output.
To address some of the complaints music lovers had with the original Hype 2 that we reviewed, ThieAudio has introduced the Impact2, an implementation of an isobaric chamber design, with two dynamic drivers, for providing a fuller and deeper bass. This subwoofer design should help create the bass that the Hype 2 did not have. The treble is handled by latest gen Sonion e50 Hummingbird drivers, which have, at least from the paperwork, a higher dynamic range, lower THD or distortion, and better current handling, plus a much better treble and high-end extension, rivaling planar magnetic drivers and EST drivers. For the midrange we have the 26A drivers from Sonion, which are known for a low THD as well.
Driving the ThieAudio Hype4 is fairly easy, they do not need a lot of power, but they are sensitive to source noise and hissing. For today’s review I have tested pairings with IKKO ITX05, iBasso DX320 MAX Ti, iBasso DX240, JDS Labs Atom 2 Amplifier, FiiO Q15, Shanling Ua4, HIDIZS S9 PRO Plus Martha, HIFIMAN EF600, Hiby Digital M300, and Aune S9C PRO. Hype4 does not need a lot of power, but it needs a source with a clean output, and a source that has a warmer, brighter sound, as their default signature is a bit mid centric. This being said, the tuning is resolving and detailed, and a source that has zero grain is preferable. The best pairings have been with iBasso DX320 MAX Ti, the new iBasso DX260, Aune S9C PRO, and JDS Labs Atom AMP2, driven by the Atom DAC 2.
In the marketing material of the Legacy 4, ThieAudio promises that this is an earphone designed and made for professionals. I think it serves this purpose rather well, it comes with a strong passive noise isolation, deeper and more secure fit, a stealthy cable, and a flat sound with a perfect midrange, all those being wanted by and recommended for musicians and professionals working in the music industry.
Sound Quality
Overall Signature – ThieAudio went for a signature and tuning similar to the Hype 2 that we reviewed, but this time around they put in a much better bass extension, a mid centric, or at least flat midrange, and an exceptional resolution / detail revealing ability. The treble can extend up to 18 kHz easily, but it is presented with less strength than the midrange, and although the bass touches 20 Hz, it is about as strong as the midrange in strength and presence. The soundstage is wide and shallow, instruments are presented all in a rich layering and although the number of effects and instruments is far higher than with any IEM I heard in the price range, it keeps harshness and aliasing under control, having natural textures. The tuning has excellent voicing for both male and female voices, but it favors female voices across all music styles, and all timbers of female voices, as it has the effect of bringing voices really close to the listener.
Bass – One of the main downfalls of ThieAudio products has always been a lower amount of bass with an early rolloff, so the new Hype 4 comes to change everything, as now Hype 4 can touch down at 20 Hz, having a fairly strong sub bass and presence / body for instruments across all music styles. The bass actually feels like it is added a bit much even to music which naturally rolls it off earlier, such as metal, and we have a strong bottom end, a punchy bass, you can hear the double pedal in all rock and metal songs, a deep rumble and excellent weight to double bass in jazz, and the typical dampened and thick heavy bass line in rap and edm music. When an earphone has issues with the bass, it is often hard to find a single song where the bass sounds good, while with Hype 4 all songs have a bass that sounds excellent, so all styles and music types are welcome.
Midrange – Hype 4 has a mid centric sound, everything in the midrange is louder than with V-Shaped, U-Shaped or neutral IEMs, it brings voices close to the listener, along with all the other instruments, and has a rich presentation. Hype 4 also makes everything really easy to hear and understand, all special effects, synths, micro details, everything is put under a magnifying glass, you hear details better than I see them through a macro lens. Female voices are especially sweet, and it feels like Hype 4 was designed by someone who listens to a lot of J-Rock, J-Pop and ACG music, as the special brightness and how open the upper midrange is, relative to the shallower lower midrange brings all music from Asian countries to a blooming highlight. The THD is surprisingly low, there is literally no distortion regardless of volume or how loud the music was, and this makes all music pleasing, I can listen to Metallica’s albums that have tons of clipping, like St. Anger, and they sound brilliant, Hype 4 handles artifacts and extreme distortions in the source signal with ease, playing the loudest music with control and detail / resolution. This is likely thanks to the low distortion of the drivers, which are not adding any self noise to the sound. The tuning tends to make emo music stand out, the sound is emotional, clean and enjoyable.
Dynamics / PRaT / Textures – The general feeling with Hype 4 is that they sound really clean and controlled, textures are present, rich, but controlled, avoiding sounding distorted or too sharp, and this is to admire, they can show the grungy texture in the guitars of songs like ChuggaBoom – Fat Guy In A Little Coat, without making the guitars or any part of the song feel harsh. Both the clean and screamed voices are clean and natural, while guitars are playing all around me. We get an airy cymbal crash that is playing shyly in the background, while drums take a more forward positioning. The guitars and voices are clearly the foreground elements, you hear every riff and chugg in the guitars, and each spoken word is incredibly clean and clear. You can even hear the synths playing in the background during the chorus, which are not audible with most IEMs.
Soundstage – With a mid centric sound, we usually have an intimate sound, but Hype 4 manages to project music widely, although not very deep, so the sound is holographic, expanded laterally but shallow in depth. Instrument separation is exceptional, and you hear each individual instrument, you hear each musical note, each synth texture isolated well from the mix, in an analytical fashion, and there is a good sense of space between those instruments. The deep and punchy bass helps define each instrument by giving it proper weight and body, while the airy treble helps keeping things defined and each individual instrument separated from the others.
Volume Control – For an IEM to have a good volume control, it should sound good at all volumes, and not change the sonic character too much across volume, just like a camera should work well in both well-lit and dim environments to be truly useful. ThieAudio Legacy 4 works well at all volumes, and in fact, it is one of the few IEMs that can hold its ground so well at ear bleeding levels, it can push 100 dB – 115 dB just fine, with zero extra distortion. The sound gets louder and more dynamically compressed the louder you go, the detail becomes better at higher volumes, and the overall tonality stays the same, the soundstage expands slightly in the width, but instrument separation stays the same across all volumes. The louder you go, the more intimate the voices get relative to the background instruments, which makes all music sweeter, more emotional and more personal. A lot of the wow effect of Hype 4 comes from them having this compression effect, and just like a telephoto lens for camera, they will bring forward and foreground together effectively, creating a really pleasing image.
Treble – With a good reach up to 18 kHz, Hype 4 has the kind of sound that you’d only hear about from stories, the treble is crisp, sharp and airy, but it has no metallic ringing, no fatigue and no aliasing or harshness. The treble does not have any specific peak, although the entire upper midrange is higher in presence and energy relative to the lower midrange, which makes all music sound a bit light, airy and open, while low-pitched instruments sound slightly less thick and weaker than with a fully neutral tuning. This being said, the effect is rather minor, and overall Hype 4 creates a tuning that is easy to enjoy with all music styles, but which is especially delish with J-Rock, J-Pop, EDM, Emo music and anything with strong emotion, or where you’d want to hear the voices a bit closer to your and more direct.
Comparisons
ThieAudio Hype 4 vs Westone MACH 40 (399 USD vs 600 USD)
Build – Mach 40 is a much smaller earphone, which goes much deeper in your ears. It is easier to find replacement eartips and a replacement cable for Hype 4, and it is easier to get Hype 4 to sound good, as the sound does not vary as much with the fitting, but Mach 40 can offer an improved seal from the outside noise, and after you get a good seal, they feel more like a custom than Hype 4. Both are easy to drive, Mach 40 is further a bit more sensitive to source quality and especially to source background noise.
Sound – Sonically, both IEMs are mid centric with a somewhat warm and powerful bass, both have a good amount of bass, although the bass of the Hype 4 is deeper and more rounded, the midrange is cleaner and more open, and the treble extends more towards 18 kHz, while Mach 40 rolls off in the treble earlier, creating a feeling of smoothness and less stress on the sound. Mach 40 is a bit better for monitor usage, it extracts more detail along with grain from the midrange, while Hype 4 is more musical and smoother, more natural in the textures.
ThieAudio Hype 4 vs HIDIZS MS5 (399 USD vs 399 USD)
Build – MS5 is about as large and as heavy in person when compared to Hype 4, although the shell of MS5 is slightly more comfortable, while the shell of Hype 4 is slightly lighter. Both IEMs have zero driver flex and zero void. The default cable of MS5 is of a higher quality, it is thicker, sturdier, but heavier too and conducts rumble and deep noise more than the cable of Hype 4 which is lighter and conducts microphonic noise less. Both IEMs work well with most sources, but Hype 4 is more sensitive to source noise and hissing, while MS5 is more isolated from it. Passive noise isolation is slightly stronger on the Hype 4.
Sound – It is clear that here the two companies went in different directions, and MS5 sounds warmer, thicker, deeper and has a more bass focused sound, or rather a V-Shaped sound as the treble is stronger too, and the midrange is recessed, while Hype 4 has a smoother treble, less bass, and a more forward midrange, more mid centric sound, and more resolution in the midrange, where it is able to reveal and show more clarity and precision. If you’re a basshead or someone who likes a V-Shaped sound, MS5 is a better choice, while if you’re looking for the most detailed sound possible, with a stronger midrange, Hype 4 should be able to deliver it more.
ThieAudio Hype 4 vs Jomo Audio P3 Percussion (399 USD vs 425 USD)
Build – Both IEMs have about an equal comfort level, although P3 Percussion has a lighter, thinner cable that’s more stealthy and which would work better for monitoring and live music. The passive noise isolation is stronger on the P3 Percussion, which is about as sensitive to source noise as Hype 4, and both come with a nice transport case, although the one P3 Percussion comes with is a touch nicer. Both IEMs can feel comfier with aftermarket tips.
Sound – The sound of both is somewhat mid centric, both have a warmer bass, but the bass depth of Hype 4 is better, it reaches more sub bass in quantity, it shows more bloom in the lows, while P3 Percussion has a more purist sound, it is more linear, more neutral, cleaner and crisper. Drums are much faster on the P3 Percussion, but midrange is more evident, more detailed and cleaner on the Hype 4. Both IEMs are rather excellent for rock and metal, but Hype 4 emphasizes female voices more, while P3 Percussion makes male voices sound deeper, fuller and better defined.
ThieAudio Hype 4 vs iBasso IT05 (399 USD vs 299 USD)
Build – Both IEMs are comfortable, but IT05 has a somewhat heavier shell, which is metallic, yet it has a more natural fit, and occupies less space inside of my ears. IT05 comes with a better metallic transport case, it comes with tuning filters, better cables included in the package and generally they are a better deal and overall package. The passive noise isolation is stronger on the Hype 4, both IEMs are about as sensitive to hissing and source noise, although IT05 can scale more with a high-quality source.
Sound – Sonically, we have polar opposites here, with Hype 4 sounding mid centric, sweet, musical and fluid, while IT05 has a strong treble, strong sub bass, and a more dynamic sound. A sound being dynamic means that there is a huge difference between the loud and the quiet parts of the song, so IT05 is technically superior for having a higher dynamic range, but the way Hype 4 sounds like it is applying compression over everything brings details easier in the foreground, and can feel like the resolution is quite a bit stronger. Both IEMs are enjoyable with universally all music, but IT05 is better if you prefer less midrange forwardness and a wider / deeper soundstage, while Hype 4 sounds better if you prefer a more intimate sound.
ThieAudio Hype 4 vs YanYin Canon II (399 USD vs 379 USD)
Build – Those are both beautiful IEMS that I can recommend to the modern fashionista, both sport a fairly good cable, although Canon II has a nicer default cable. The comfort tis about equal, both are about as heavy and as large, although Canon II is slightly more ergonomic, Hype4 feels tighter in my ears and applies a bit more pressure on my ears. While both are easy to drive, both are sensitive to source noise.
Sound – We have a detailed midrange with both the Canon II and Hype 4, both bring forward the voices in music, both have a good clarity and resolution, although Hype 4 has its own coloration, where it brings everything in your face, revealing details which Canon II is not able to reveal quite as easily, although Canon II sounds more natural and traditionally good, it is a more typical tuning, while Hype 4 has coloration which can sound unnatural at times. Both IEMS are fully recommended though, Hype 4 for how musical and sweet female voices sound through it, while Canon II for how nice the bass and depth of the sound is, and also for how sweet the midrnage is.
Value and Conclusion
While we’ve seen great price / performance ratio from Linsoul before, ThieAudio Hype4 made me wonder if some of the flagships I’ve been reviewing have even been serious about their sound all along. I’m talking here about considering that it could dethrone Sennheiser Ie900, not just any flagship, that’s about how much resolution, technical performance and clarity Hype4 can have. The package is also solid, so Hype 4 feels like it is properly worth the asking price, and could even stay competitive even if it was priced 600 USD at release, rather I’m happy we have this kind of product that pulls on the market to bring the prices of other products down, by offering more for less money.
Given how much fun ThieAudio Hype 4 has been to use and how good it performs for the price, I will be awarding it the Audiophile-Heaven Hall Of Fame award, and adding it to the Hall Of Fame, as an excellent option for those who want to enjoy music, stay on a budget and looks hip as hecc while doing it.
At the end of the day, if you’re looking for a high performance IEM with technical abilities typically found in much pricier IEMs, with a mid centric sound that brings the beauty out in female voices, musicality and resolution in lead guitars, and which gives you an intimate experience with each song they’re playing, ThieAudio Hype 4 is an excellent choice and a fully recommended earphone today.
Product Link
You can grab one from www.amazon.com here – https://amzn.to/3TEHHkF
Technical Specifications
Drivers – 4 Balanced Armatures + 2 Dynamic Drivers
Impedance – 17 Ohm
Cable Interface – 3.5mm
Sensitivity – 105dB (±1dB) @1kHz
Frequency Response Range – 10Hz-22kHz
Plug Type – Detachable 0.78mm 2Pin
PRICE – $399.00 USD
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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