Shuoer Tape PRO IEMs – Ships Fire Your Side Cannons!
Shuoer Tape PRO is the upgraded version of the original Shuoer Tape, but released at pretty much the same price of 150 USD. They still have pretty much the same tech, and come with a balanced cable also, but this time Shuoer Promises tuning too. The comparison list will include Hiby Seeds II, Kinera Freya, and 1Custom Junior.
Introduction
Shuoer is not a company that I ever had the luck to speak with, but I know that they are sold by Linsoul and I can totally recommend Linsoul as a shop. They have an excellent offer or products, including IEMs, DAPs, DACs, and pretty much everything made in China. The best part when ordering from Linsoul is that they have an excellent warranty, and if you don’t trust them enough, they are available on Amazon, so you’ll be covered by both warranties, Amazon’s excellent support, and Linsoul in the back, so you know you’ll have a good experience regardless what you order. This is a bit necessary since products made in China sometimes break and you may end up needing that support.
It should be noted that I have absolutely no affiliation with Shuoer or Linsoul, I am not receiving any incentive for this review or to sweeten things out. I’d like to thank Linsoul for providing the sample for this review. Every opinion expressed is mine and I stand by it. The purpose of this review is to help those interested in Shuoer Tape PRO find their next music companion.
Product Link
You can grab a pair of Shuoer Tape PRO IEMs from here: https://www.amazon.com/Linsoul-Electrostatic-Adjustable-Detachable-Audiophile/dp/B085HMZ9YZ
Packaging
First things first, let’s get the packaging out of the way:
The package is actually excellent, much better, and more elegant than that of the original Shuoer Tape. They also include the tuning parts now, and the cable is thicker, looks and feels better.
Build Quality/Aesthetics/Fit/Comfort
Shuoer Tape is really comfortable, small and portable. They have a fully metallic body with what looks like vents, but they isolate really well from the outside noise. The cable is extra thicc and actually weighs them down a bit, but since they are an over-the-ear design, all that weight is distributed on the ear and the IEMs end up staying quite comfortably in your ears.
The IEMs are mostly closed though, and offer a good amount of isolation, and they leak very little. There’s no driver flex, but they are voidy types that can feel suck your eardrums a bit.
There is no cable microphonics, but the cable is hard, not very flexible, and heavy. It adds to the weight. The IEMs are not the most ergonomic out there, and although they are mostly rounded on the inside, they do have a funny shape that sits slightly worse than most of the competition. They are fit for small, medium, and large ears though.
Shuoer Tape is easy to drive, easy to get loud, and doesn’t require a special source. Given their sound, a smoother, laid back and relaxed source is best, like FiiO BTR3K, and they do not like bright sources at all. There is some hiss when the source has it, so Hiby R6 won’t be a good pair for the Shuoer Tape Pro.
Youtube Video(s)
Shuoer Tape Original Video
Sound Quality
I know for a fact that Shuoer Tape PRO was not well received by a few reviewers, especially those who liked the original Shuoer Tape, but I wanted to start listening to them with a blank slate, so I listened to Shuoer Tape for many days, and on different occasions with many different sources to get a better idea of how they sound.
The overall signature can be described as really open in the midrange, having a very specific peak in the midrange that opens and gives them a very specific resonance. The bass is deep and thunderous, not very thumpy, but with excellent slam. The bass is colorful, all of it is clean and detailed, hard in texture and presentation. The lower mids and upper bass are recessed quite a bit, which makes the sound pretty thin, similar to the original Shuoer Tape. the treble is sparkly, but not fatiguing, recessed compared to that upper midrange peak, so they are airy, large sounding without being fatiguing. The sound is best at quiet and medium volumes. At high volumes they get quite shouty and that midrange peak can get deafening.
The bass is hard, impactful, slams nicely into your ears, and is very clean. There’s no sense of extra textures, no extra reverberations or extra / too much texture. The bass has excellent reach in the lows, with the sub bass having a really natural presentation. The mid bass is also healthy with body and lush. The upper bass and lower midrange is recessed and male voices sound a bit nasal and sucked out compared to female voices that are natural and sweet.
The midrange is marked by that specific peak. I am yet to identify the exact range where it happens, but it is excellent sounding at low volumes. At medium volumes, it is still excellent, but at high volumes it can be deafening, drafty and fatiguing. Male voices are a bit thin and nasal, where female voices are really sweet, warm and musical. Guitars sound juicy and engaging, where pianos sound perfectly ethereal, magical even. The soundstage is extremely wide and holographic, especially at low volumes. At high volumes, Shuoer Tape PRO gets quite shouty and forward, aggressive. Would bring an emotional tear to any metalhead’s eye, but would probably be too much for anyone who doesn’t want ultimate attacks. I appreciate that Shoer Tape PRO would be perfect for anyone listening to EDM, Low-Fidelity or RAP music. They are ok for rock and metal, Pop and even Jazz if you listen quietly. Not ideal for Post-Hardcore or music with trumpets.
The treble is sparkly and clean, and makes me feel like when listening to speakers with multiple drivers. The treble is clearly coming from a different speaker, has a different texture and speed, different presentation from the bass and the mids. We call this a coherency problem usually, and it means that the drivers were not equalised to work together properly, usually done by hand picking the drivers or doing a custom crossover. The treble is smooth in texture, natural in quantity, and overall it has an excellent presentation for all music styles. The midrange peak is what’s unnatural and made everyone hesitate when going for the Shuoer Tape Pro.
That peak is both their downfall and their ace, since the sound works exceptionally well if you listen quietly, or if you’re into the music styles they do well. Especially Low Fidelity music, ethereal music, slow music and rap sounds excellent. The more aggressive a song is, the more you’ll notice that peak as something negative. Eskimo Callboy, one of my favorite bands is really aggressive, while I love hearing PSY and popular pop songs on the Shuoer tape pro. Artists like Stromae play beautifully on the Shoer Tape PRO, but Metallica comes through as far more aggressive than it was intended.
To make a little clarification, their peak is in the midrange – upper midrange, so things do not sound plasticky. Rather it is the kind that emphasizes on certain cymbals and can make things hot / metallic.
Comparisons
For the comparisons part of today’s review, I picked a few other IEMs that are priced similarly to Shuoer Tape PRO. Those are 1Custom Junior, Kinera Freya and Hiby Seeds II. I will also compare them to the original Shuoer Tape, which I reviewed in video before.
Shuoer Tape PRO vs Hiby Seeds II (150 USD vs 130 USD) – Hiby Seeds II is much heavier than the Shuoer Tape PRO. They are more ergonomic though. In the end, the wearing comfort is similar. The tuning of the Seeds II is more V-Shaped, with a brighter upper midrange and treble, and a more holographic soundstage. Shuoer Tape PRO is more peaky in the mids, more rounded all-around in the bass, with more impact in the whole bass rather than just the sub-bass. Both are fairly colored sounding IEMs, so they’re flavors of a unique tuning.
Shuoer Tape PRO vs 1Custom Junior (150 USD vs 225 USD) – This one is actually easier to describe, because 1Custom Jr. is more natural and easier to recommend above the Shouer Tape PRO. The only disadvantage is that 1custom is not sold by Linsoul and as far as I know, not available on Amazon either. The comfort of the Jr. is better, because they are more rounded and ergonomic, but also they are larger and won’t fit small ears as well. The Jr. has a much more natural sound, which is easier on the ears, has no obvious peaks or dips, and is generally really easy to recommend to beginners. Shouer Tape is far more revealing, but is peaky, can be fatiguing and is not as natural in the mids or bass.
Shuoer Tape PRO vs Shouer Tape (150 USD vs 130 USD) – The package is much better on the new version. I didn’t really experience much difference with the new tuning mechanism, but I did experience a different sound. The PRO is actually not an upgrade from the original, but more of a sidegrade. The original had a traditional V-Shaped sound, or U-Shaped if you want to think of it that way. The new PRO has a peak in the midrange, making it quite colored and odd sounding, especially at first. Would recommend the original Shouer Tape for most folks unless you want to go all in with the detail and want a more forward midrange.
Shuoer Tape PRO vs Kinera Freya (150 USD vs 130 USD) – Freya is colored in general, is smoother, thicker to the point where it can be considered veiled. It is also much larger than the Shouer Tape PRO, so it fits worse than it. Shouer Tape PRO is much more revealing and detailed, brighter and more open sounding. It is also way more fatiguing and should be listened quiet for best results, where Freya works best at medium and high volumes where it gets shouty and compensates for the thicker and colored bass.
Value and Conclusion
Shuoer Tape PRO has excellent value actually, and if you do like their sound, they will prove to be a good friend for years to come. Having a non-typical sounding IEM means that it does have slightly lesser resale value when you want to upgrade, but that’s not an issue thanks to their lower midrange class price.
The package they come with is excellent, and so is the overall comfort and wearing of them. The cable will take more of a beating than the IEMs could ever withstand, and you could purchase them to swap the cables with another IEM from your collection if you wanted to. They will need some EQ to ease out their peaks, or at least something smooth, and this is why I can’t add them to Audiophile-Heaven’s Hall Of Fame in their current state.
This being said, for the overall clarity, resolution and detail they have, they make a terrific IEM, and as long as you’re not sensitive to their peaks and tuning, they should prove to be revealing and engaging.
At the end of today’s review, I hope your mind is clear and that I helped a bit with explaining how Shuoer Tape PRO sounds like. If you’re looking for something pretty revealing, and for something detailed, they are a good companion, just be wary that the sound is not very typical and unique to them.
Product Link
You can grab a pair of Shuoer Tape PRO IEMs from here: https://www.amazon.com/Linsoul-Electrostatic-Adjustable-Detachable-Audiophile/dp/B085HMZ9YZ
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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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