TinHifi T2 Evo

disclaimer:    NiceHCK sent me the T2 Evo and the LZ A2 Pro for review.  I do not have any financial interest in TinHifi, NiceHCK, or any of their distribution partners.   I have received no compensation or instruction for this review.    If you have an interest in TinHifi follow them on Facebook, or to purchase the TinHifi T2 Evo,  see NiceHCK.    Black Friday sale prices are bringing the T2 Evo down in the $35-45 range currently making it an even better value.

 

Unboxing / Packaging:

The T2 Evo ships in a plain white Cardstock box with the Tin Hifi name and Logo and T2 Evo printed in gold on the front and the UPC and QR codes and address on the rear.   Again, no mention of what the contents are on the outer package so definitely not an western style big-box packaging.  Removing the outer layer of packaging reveals a white lift-top box with gold accents.   The earpieces are nestled in a foam layer with the remainder of the kit hiding underneath.   The kit includes a velvet carry bag, earpieces, cable, velcro cable tie, and 7 sets of tips.  This includes a set of foams and small, medium, large silicone tips of two different styles.

 

Build/Fit:

If you’ve been around the Chinese earphone market for any length of time you’ll recognize the typical Tin Audio style.  These are barrel style in-ears with the Nozzle at the front, the driver in the rear, and a band around the exterior of the barrel housing the connector.  It is roughly the same shell that is used in most of the “T” series which now includes the T2, T3, T4, T2 pro, and T2 Evo.  The T5 breaks tradition and does not share the same shape.   One differentiator between the T-series models is the face plate as each is stylized a bit differently.  The original T2 was a flat plate with the single vent offset toward the connector.  The Pro was very similar but the colored bands around the connectors have flat sides on the pro while they are round on the original.   The T3 added a ring around the outer 2mm of the face and the T4 had a starburst on the face and moves the vent.   The T2 Evo adds a Semi-circular vent opposite the connector that is color coded to index the earpieces.   The T2 Evo was very quickly dubbed the Mike Wazowski model due to its cyclops smile.    All of the barrel style T-series are an easy fit as they insert straight into the ear with the bulk of the body inline with the ear-canal and very little on-ear weight.   The all metal construction also offers good durability.

 

Internals:

Much like the aluminum exterior of the T2 Evo will look familiar to owners of other T-series models, the internals stay true to the previous formula as well with a 10mm dynamic driver with a carbon (DLC) diaphragm.     The T4 used a similar driver using Carbon nanotube while the T3 and T2 used a PU diaphragm (the T3 added a ba to the mix).   The T2 Pro used a 10mm and 6mm dynamic driver.    Tin Hifi has tried different combinations along the way but most have retained the foundation of the 10mm dynamic driver that made the original T2 a best-in-class offering and still helps it remain popular three years later.   This new model sees the 10mm driver improved and redesigned to be faster and more articulate while not losing the tonality that made a name for its parent.   The resulting rework has a nominal impedance of 32Ω and a sensitivity of 93 dB/mW which makes it a bit harder to drive than the original T2 but still well within the range that can be driven well with a phone dongle or tablet.   The T2 Evo does scale well with better sources both qualitatively and quantitatively as bass tightens up a bit with more power to the low end.   I found it worked well from the Questyle M12 or the Cayin N3Pro.

 

Cable:

The provided cable is silver plated copper in a 4 wire twsit from the jack to the splitter with a looser two wire twist above the splitter.    The Jack is a straight 3.5mm in a silver knurled aluminum housing that mates well to the earpieces.  A short strain relief and velcro cable tie are present at the cable exit point.   The splitter is also an aluminum barrel with a clear bead chin slider above it.  The north end of the cables have pre-formed hooks with matching aluminum housings for the mmcx connectors.   Left and right are well marked with both L/R markings and a red band on the right hand connector and matching red and blue bands on the earpieces.  The cable is very pliable and microphonics are kept to a minimal level by the earhooks.

 

Sound:

Bass:

The T-series have never been bass monsters and the Evo is not going to change that.  Sub-bass is present but not accentuated and roll-off becomes evident in the lower 40Hz range.  Those looking for an in-ear subwoofer can safely cross the T2 Evo off their list.   What sub-bass is there is well defined with good texture and impact, but it remains bass you hear rather than bass you feel like some of the more potent models.  The upside is for those of us that have been lamenting the bass takeover of recent years, the T2 Evo is near neutral.   It isn’t bass light, it just isn’t bass elevated.  Mid-bass follows the same pattern with good speed and definition and with enough slam to let you know it is present but it doesn’t take-over nor does it obscure the lower mids.  It’s fast and very articulate so listening to jazz with walking bass-lines or other complex bass pieces will be particularly satisfying.  Bass is somewhat dependent on tips and insertion depth as well so if your T2 seems lacking in impact, try tip rolling.

 

Mids:

Lower mids transition very smoothly from the mid-bass with lower vocals sounding just a touch warm if not quite as weighted as other presentations.  Guitar growl is quite good as the T2 EVO transients are quick enough to give a nice sharp attack and quick decay so the rasp is on full display.   Strings have good timbre as well with the upper-mid push giving violins the extra energy needed to sound more natural.    The upper-mid push benefits higher voices at low volumes but can border on harsh when higher volumes are in order.   Female vocals are step forward in the mix regardless of the overall volume and  as volume increases they can become fatiguing although I found no tendency to become sibilant.

 

Treble:

Lower treble continues the plateau started with the upper-mids and that same plateau extends through the treble range up to roughly the 8kHz mark.   This gives the T2 evo a very even, but very bright top end.  Lower treble has good detail and clarity but may be a bit too hot for the treble shy.   Snare rattle is crisp but cymbals can be a bit splashy with hi-hat bordering on metallic at times. Again this seems to be somewhat volume dependent as lower listening volumes seem a bit less prone to the splashy cymbal hits.  Top end air is fairly good in spite of an early roll-off but sparkle is limited which is probably a good thing as with the rest of the tuning it would likely be sizzle more than sparkle.    Final roll-off is somewhere around the 13kHz mark where it abruptly drops.

 

Soundstage / Imaging:

The stage of the Evo has nearly equal depth and width with a large concert hall type stage presented to the user and more than an average amount of height.   I found the echos and reflections in the Grateful Dead’s Throwing Stones better produced by the T2 Evo than on many much more expensive models.  Seating the orchestra is straight forward with no misplacement or gaps.  Instrument separation, layering,  and stereo separation are both better than average and help the EVO here.   There is some minor compression as tracks get brutally fast but less than I expected and again well better than a $49 spend should command.

 

Thoughts / Conclusion:

The TinHifi T2 has long been one of the go to recommendations for those looking for the best possible timbre in the budget market.  In recent years some of that has been usurped by the Blon BL-03 that has more than a passing similarity to the driver used in the original T2 when compared.   What both of these originals lacked was detail and top end.   With the reworked driver in the T2 Evo, speed is improved and transients benefit greatly which allows more detail to be exposed in the process.    The T2 Evo won’t please bassheads as it simply doesn’t elevate the low end beyond neutral and it will scare off the treble shy with its bright top end.  For the rest of us that live in the middle ground it offers a very natural tonality when used at normal listening volumes and does indeed improve on the original T2.    The Evo has better clarity than the original through out the spectrum which to me is a plus since it still has most of the best points of the original too.