I always feel new companies entering the IEM game have an extremely hard time without good support from the community in advance. Truthear has the backing from Crinacle who helped tune their first IEM, the Zero. I think having a first IEM that is a collab is a safe bet for new companies. Plus there is a higher chance that the IEM will be tuned well. I always like trying out new stuff and I was asked to check out the Zero a bit before Crin announced it so I was interested to see what the Zero might sound like coming out of nowhere.
Quick shoutout to Shenzhenaudio for sending the Zero to review. While I always appreciate the chance to test and review products sent in from manufacturers or dealers, it never affects the rating of my reviews.
Gear Used
IPhone 12 pro with headphone adapter, Lotto PAW S1, AUNE BU2 and SMSL SU-9 feeding the SP400 amp.
Looks and fit
The shell is on the larger size but it reminds me of the universal 64 audio shells a little size and shape wise. It has a beautiful faceplace which is a blue and black swirl with some glitter in there. The color changes from a blue to a purple at certains angles depending on lighting which I really like. The comfort was pretty good and if I can fit spinfit tips on an IEM, I’ll almost always go with those. With the CP360 on the Zero, I had very good comfort for long sessions. I think most people will find these comfortable with the stock tips.
Isolation and sound leakage
The Zero has a vent at the top near the connector so it does let some sound in but it’s very minimal. Not as good as a sealed unit but still alright. At louder volumes it doesn’t really leak sound from the vents which is nice so I can easily recommend these for plane trips or in quieter areas. Still might have to lower the volume a tad depending on the situation.
Packaging and accessories
Inside the box we get a little cardboard box with a drawing of the mascot on it as well as all the standard warranty and user guide cards inside of it. Under that we get the IEMs, a leather-ish case that has the cable inside and under that a bunch of different tips. I think for a simple $50 IEM, this is a good set of accessories and I rather liked the presentation here.
Sound(overall)
These final impressions were done off the SMSL SU-9 connected to the SMSL SP400. These impressions are what the Zero sounded like to my ears. This was also using the CP360 eartips from Spinfit. Things like ear tip selection and DAC/amp selection will produce different results and impressions vs what my ears hear on my specific gear.
The tuning goes for a bass/upper mid focus. The 10mm DD driver is the star of the show here IMO and the bass hits fairly hard without sounding muddy or bloated. It has a very good bass overall. It is able to produce slam and impact at a slightly different level than I’m used to. I’ve been lucky to hear quite a few different hybrid designs in the past but the bass just hits very differently on the Zero. It sounds fast and clear but it rumbles and slams harder compared to other hybrids. The bass isn’t bass cannon territory however. While it does rumble really well, the decay in the bass is too fast for me to call it a bass head IEM like some other IEMs I’ve tried in the past. The mids are fairly neutral sounding up till the upper mids. Instruments sound calm at first but things like guitars can get a little harsh and the same goes for vocals. I find most vocals fine but it can get a little too sharp at times on some female vocal tracks. It’s still fairy manageable compared to other IEMs in this price bracket. The treble is a little lacking overall which was somewhat a bummer. When compared to other IEMs in this price range, it’s still completely acceptable to me. It just sounds tame and slightly metallic at times. As a person who really likes drums, things like snare hits or cymbals just lacked some detail and energy overall. Overall detail retrieval is about average but the upper mid focus helps offset some of the loss the treble has too so it gets a pass from me. The Zero sounds like a “fun” tuning to me overall so I would say this is perfect for those not hunting a detail heavy/treble intensive IEM under $100.
Soundstage/Imaging
Soundstage is about average in both width and depth. I didn’t find anything unique going on here and don’t have much to say because of it. I think imaging is acceptable, I wasn’t able to pick out as much in the background but I have no issues with it at this price.
Sensitivity/Drivability
The Zero didn’t require a lot of power to get to a volume I like. I think any dongle will provide enough power to run the Zero to high volumes. It is somewhat sensitive but I didn’t notice any hiss using it single ended or balanced with any amps I had on hand.
Stock cable
The stock cable is a black glossy rubber braided cable that is on the simple/cheaper side. I think it works perfectly fine but it does get tangled when I pull it out of a portable case with the way I wrap my iems for storage. I personally prefer a thicker cable but I plan to leave the stock cable on the Zero and use it as is. I didn’t cable roll other than to check hiss via balanced.
IEM comparisons
Moondrop Aria(Snow Edition)
The Aria has a warmer overall tuning neutral “safe” tuning. I think the bass hits better on the Zero but the Snow Aria has a more relaxed and thicker bass. The Mids are more balanced on the Snow Aria which lacks a little of the upper mid spike the Zero has. Vocals do come in better on the Snow Aria. The treble is more detailed on the Aria but both lack some upper energy and while the Aria is better in terms of balance, I very much like the Zero over the Snow Edition Aria.
CCA CRA+(with Chu mention)
So while both the Moondrop Chu and CCA CRA+ are extremely well tuned sub $50 IEMs, I like the CRA+ over the Chu by leaps and bounds due to the bass. As such, I’ll be doing this comparison against the CRA+. The CRA+ is a V shaped bass head IEM to me but both the Zero and CRA+ handle their bass very differently. The CRA+ sounds very “bassy” with a longer decay which makes the bass sound more full. I personally like the bass on the Zero over the CRA+ but both sound good down low. The mids are a little more detailed on the Zero and I found vocals sounded more controlled on the Zero. The CRA+ slaps you around with alot of treble and it's more intense than the Zero. The treble is more lively on the CRA+ and makes for a better perceived detailed IEM but I’m not usually into brighter treble so I like the Zero over the CRA+. Both are good options and I have a hard time picking between the two.
Amping Combinations
Aune BU2
The BU2 is a brighter source IMO and this was probably my favorite source gear for the Zero. It keeps the bass quality but it adds a little extra energy to the treble that I think the Zero needs help with. It still felt brighter in the upper mids and I felt the mids sounded the same as the desktop gear I did my impressions on. I think the staging was slightly wider on the BU2 but depth stayed the same. I would say stick with something brighter to help the Zero shine a little.
Lotoo PAW S1
A warmer source like the PAW S1 is normally my preferred dongle but I found the Zero lacked a little too much energy for my tastes. The bass stays strong and the mids are the same but the S1 lowers the upper mids a little which made the Zero sound neutral and lacking energy. Since I found the treble weak, the S1 didn’t do anything to help the Zero. I found the Zero had a bigger stage on the S1 and it overall had a thicker sound that I ended up not being a fan of.
SMSL SU-9/SP400
The sound impressions are always based on this SMSL stack. The Zero doesn’t need a full size desktop setup to sound good and I honestly didn’t notice any scaling going up from the low end to the high end. I believe the best sound I was able to get from the Zero came off the desktop stack but I was equally happy from the Paw S1 dongle.
Overall thoughts
Is this the new king for the sub $100 range? For me personally, it's a no since the standard Aria still exists. I really like the standard Aria and it remains my favorite sub $100 IEM recommendation but I had a lot of fun with the Zero. The bass on the Zero hits just right for my tastes and I think this is a very good first attempt for Truthear. As such, I can easily recommend the Truthear Zero! Especially for the price. I really enjoyed both the looks and sound of the Zero and I’m gonna keep a close eye on this new company to see what they come up with next. A shoutout goes to Crin as well for helping them tune this as well. Thanks for reading!!
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