Dita Prelude IEMs Review – Crimson Nights Rise Again
Dita Prelude is a $159 USD pair of dynamic driver IEMS that come with their own dongle DAC AMP, an entry-level pair designed to bring color and joy to budget music listeners available in a single deep red, crimson color. Today we will review the Dita Prelude IEMs and also compare them with other IEMs briefly with more focus on the sound and performance of the prelude.
Introduction
Dita Prelude is a uniquely interesting IEM because Dita never made an entry-level pair of earphones before. Dita is a rather popular IEM producer and they also have not made a DAC AMP before, so Prelude will be the beginning of many things for the company and a fresh take on what a titanic company can deliver.
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Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4oxBZ1M
Build Quality – Design
Dita Prelude is a crimson red pair of IEMS with a single dynamic driver at the heart, and with the Ante DAC AMP Dongle included in the package, this is a useful USC Type-C dongle that allows you to use Dita Prelude with all the new smartphones.
There is very little technical information available about Dita Prelude beyond this, but we can mention that Dita Ante supports 32 Bit / 384 kHz data rates, and that Dita Prelude comes with a 3.5mm single ended jack. Luxsin X9 has an auto impedance detection algorithm and it is showing a 32 OHM impedance for the Dita Prelude IEMS.
Fit – Subjective Usage
Dita Prelude feels well made, and in fact it does not reflect its pricing. Despite costing very little, it is well made, comes with multiple types of eartips, both sticky and non-sticky, and it comes with a fairly flexible, high-grade cable. I am a bit sad that the cable is SE only, but they even include the Ante DAC AMP that is SE too.
You will have a good passive noise isolation, up to 24 dB and you won’t hear much from outside while wearing Dita Prelude. You will also feel a good fit, they coil tightly around my ears, providing a clean and crisp listening experience. All in all, it is an IEM that fits and feels nice. Despite using a dynamic driver, there is no driver void or flex, and Prelude is made of metal, but average in size, feeling even a bit small in my ears. I strongly favor the non-sticky eartips over the sticky ones.
Sound Quality
Pairings – To test the newDita Prelude, I have paired it with the Dita Ante, and with a selection of sources, including Rose Technics RT-5000, Dethonray Clarinet, iBasso DX340, Lotoo PAW GT2, FiiO K15, FiiO QX13, and Cayn RU9. Dita Prelude has an impedance of 32 OHMs, it is not sensitive to background noise and hissing, and it is fairly average to drive. It works well with the default Dita Ante DAC but you can squeeze more performance from it if you want to use a high end DAC AMP like Luxsin X9, FiiO K17, or iBasso D17 Atheris.
Overall Signature – Dita Prelude delivers a deep, punchy sound with a groovy bass, and a bright, airy, sparkly treble. It is not limited in any direction, has a forward voicing and brings forward female voices, although it dampens male voices slightly, creating a mostly bright and open sound with an open presentation.
Bass – Starting from the deep end, Dita Prelude reaches around 30 Hz down low, with a groovy, full bass presentation that gives bass guitars a defined, clean presentation. It is a super rounded, groovy, full sounding pair of IEMs. Quite interesting, but bass is uplifted above the midrange, even lower midrange, with the sub bass and lower mid bass being lifted, above which there’s a strong recess and upper bass is actually recessed in a bid to lower boominess and veiling.
Midrange – Dita Prelude is a bit recessed in the lower midrange, but makes up for it with a slightly aggro and forward upper midrange. This means that music is mostly emotional, violins and pianos are forward while female voices are forward and crisp, crystalline. Background instruments are pushed far into the background while the foreground is pushed right in your face. There’s a very clear distinction between layers and instruments, with a focus on clarity and crispness of the sound.
Treble – Per usual Dita tradition, Prelude is really bright, extends up to the highest octaves, up to 20 kHz, with a lot of air and treble sparkle, brightness at around 18 kHz still audible. Treble energy starts with 9 kHz, so you can expect to hear a lot of micro details and bits of information that are not present usually in the sound of other IEMs.
Dynamics And Textures – Dita Prelude has a clean texture presentation, zero grain, but a lot of information and micro textures revealed. I like how it is super detailed, while also dynamic. They have a wide dynamic range, but most music that sounds good with their V-Shaped, U-Shaped signature is compressed by default, so with the Prelude you won’t hear a lot of dynamic range because you’re likely to enjoy pop, EDM or rock which is heavily compressed. The IEMs have no fault and can handle dynamics well though.
Loudness Saturation Gradient – Dita Prelude sounds best at medium volumes, they get a bit aggressive very loud, but stay crisp and consistently detailed at lower volumes. Overall, if you want to call the sweet spot, it would be right in the middle, but they are consistent and can handle volume really well, both low and high. In fact, the driver is super capable and so is the IEM, no extra THD, no added resonance, I’d get the Prelude regardless of the volume at which you’re enjoying music.
Soundstage – Dita prelude sounds wide, and very deep. It is an IEM that enhances and emphasizes soundstage, renders music in a large space, with a strong separation between instruments. I like the way it handles rock, edm and even symphonic rock and metal, plus pop and EDM. The signature they bear is not ideal for classical, but from a soundstage perspective, it can handle classical too really well.
Value and Conclusion
Dita Prelude comes with a low price, but high performance, it is one of the only IEMs at this price point that comes with a separate DAC, and it has a performance that gives it a reason to exist in today’s market for sure. In fact, it has a sprint, clean sound with a deep bass, but the open and brilliant treble Dita is known for.
At the end of the day, Dita always delivers and Dita Prelude is another exceptional product from them, the first actually affordable IEM designed by the company, but it comes with a clean, crisp sound, deep crimson color, and a clean instrument separation being excellent if you listen to a lot of rock, EDM and modern music – a fully recommended purchase if you’re in the market for an entry-level IEM today.
PROs
- Crisp, sprint and clean sound
- Fun and affordable
- Small and ergonomic
- Comes with its own DAC
- Deep bass that easily delivers punch and depth
- Deep soundstage
- Bright and airy treble extension
Cons
- Can be a bit aggressive and forward in the voices
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4oxBZ1M
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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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