IKKO OH10 Obsidian IEMs – Detail Resolution Maxima

IKKO OH10 Obsidian IEMs – Detail Resolution Maxima

Ikko designed an IEM with a rather uninspired name for the presentation, as Obsidian does not necessarily explain the whole story, and the price of 160 USD is way lower than the quality I am hearing from the OH10. The main comparisons will be with Optimisation Elements Tita, BQEYZ Spring 2, BGVP Art Magic VG4. 

 

Introduction

IKKO is not a big house name yet, but with the stuff they have been releasing lately, they might as well become one of the best known names in audio. The IEM we are looking at today is named OH10 Obsidian, a black and somewhat heavy IEM but with the heart of a surgeon, considering the way it cuts and slices open songs and textures. IKKO is really reliable, they make high quality products, and all the products I’ve had from them so far survived, plus the company is super responsive and has good representatives. 

It should be noted that I have absolutely no affiliation with IKKO, I am not receiving any incentive for this review or to sweeten things out. I’d like to thank IKKO 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 IKKO OH10 Obsidian find their next music companion. 

 

Product Link

You can grab one from www.amazon.com here: https://amzn.to/3BVt82w

If you’re in the UK, you can grab one from www.amazon.co.uk here: https://amzn.to/3y7xVvz

And if you’re from Europe, you can grab one from www.amazon.de here: https://amzn.to/3l6uZLV

 

Packaging

First things first, let’s get the packaging out of the way:

The package of OH10 is the same as the package of Meteor, and Obsidian comes with a leather  pouch rather than a case, 4 sets of tips, each with 3 sizes. This is considerably better than most IEMs offer in the price. 

There is something like a shirt clip with a little fox, Ikko’s logo in the package too, which looks aesthetic, but most probably won’t be useful for everyone. 

 

Build Quality/Aesthetics/Fit/Comfort

The overall build is excellent, and although the Obsidian is a bit on the large side, they are really comfortable once I place them in my ears. I love the cable, which is both thin and well made. The ear guides seem a bit tight, but I can’t say I notice this while wearing the Obsidian. 

If driver flex is usually an issue for you, Obsidian is free of it, and that is true about hiss too, as it has zero hiss. Overall, the IEMs isolate fairly from the outside noise, but not quite as well as Etymotic or other smaller, deeper fitting IEMS. Speaking of fit, Obsidian, they are a shallower type of IEM. 

They are medium to drive, any high quality DAP will do just fine, like the Shanling M3X, FiiO M11, or iBasso DX150. The comfort is not exactly perfect because they are a bit heavy, but the silicone ear guides do an excellent job at supporting that weight in such a way that you don’t really feel it. 

 

Sound Quality

The overall sound can be described as slightly warm, fairly detailed, wide and airy. There’s a good amount of treble, but they never come through as harsh or sibilant, which is surprising given the price point. There’s a beautiful presentation of textures, especially male voices, and stringed instruments, and OH10 Obsidian sounds really detailed and clean. The bass has enough substance and presence to contrast the stronger treble, and this makes OH10 pretty much the perfect IEM for rock, metal, classical, acoustic. For EDM, Dubstep and Electronic music, I tend to prefer a thicker, more lush presentation, but especially orchestral music is magical played through OH10. 

The bass is uplifted above the absolute neutral, but Obsidian is not an overly warm or thick sounding IEM. Rather, the overall tonal balance edges more towards thin and airy, which is kinda cool considering the overall market that is full of thick and chub sounding IEMs. The bass is not the focus of the sound, but Obsidian surely does not lack in lows and sub lows, making for a really engaging and fun sounding IEM with the right amount of substance where it is needed. When listening to rock and metal, bass notes are played extremely clearly, and OH10 is able to keep up with quick drums, even with technical death metal and grindcore songs. 

The midrange is where the fun starts to happen. Especially in the lower mids, there is some uplift that makes the sound warm-ish and musical. There’s a good amount of detail, a wide stage, and a really excellent instrument separation for the Obsidian. I would call the sound analytical for the most part, as in the middle of the midrange, there is a slight dip, and after it the upper midrange starts to rise again, and that keeps on going forward in the treble. Stringed instruments, trumpets, and classical instruments in general are presented so darn well, they are better than on most 500 USD IEMs. I don’t know how, but the size, distance to the listener, texture, realism is absolutely spot on for those instruments. I’ve been testing Obsidian with Dethklok and their entire album Doomstar Requiem. Obsidian actually renders finer details and micro-details in an excellent fashion, with the upper midrange being fun enough for the sound. Guitar solos are natural with good textures and a colorful , vivid presentation. 

The treble continues the tradition of having an excellent detail, and if you didn’t tell me the price, I would’ve assumed that the Obsidian cost about 500 USD or more, that is how good the resolution and soundstage are. The treble extends nicely in the upper treble, with extensions worthy of a much more expensive IEM. I am happy to say that they have enough treble bite and sparkle for me, and OH10 sounds pretty much perfect for my ears, when I’m in the mood for some rock and metal. 

 

Comparisons 

The main comparisons will be with BQEYZ Spring 2, BGVP Art Magic VG4, and Optimisation Elements Tita. All of them have a similar price to IKKO OH10 Obsidian, and all of them have a really good quality too, so things should be fair and square. All of the competition has better cables than OH10. All of those IEMS have detachable cables. 

You can use basically anything to drive OH10 as it is not sensitive to hiss, and not overly power hungry either. The overall presentation of the IEM is balanced-neutral, so any source works well with it. I used Lotoo Paw 6000, Astell Kern SE180, and iBasso DX300 the most while writing this full written review. 

IKKO OH10 Obsidian vs Optimisation Elements Tita (160 USD vs 170 USD) – Tita has a smaller body, but is not more comfortable than OH10, as the IEM bore is a bit larger, and that does create some wearing fatigue in the long run. All of the competitors have better cables than OH10, and Tita is not an exception. The overall sound is considerably thicker, warmer, more lush and with more body for Tita. OH10 has a more airy sound, a much wider soundstage, with more space between instruments, better overall clarity, more detail and more focus on treble. I prefer OH10 for orchestral, rock and metal, also for classical. Tita works much better for Electronic, J-Pop, Dubstep and most contemporary pop music. 

IKKO OH10 Obsidian vs BQEYZ Spring 2 (160 USD vs 170 USD) – Spring 2 is similar in tuning to OH10, but they have a smaller body. Despite this, they are not lighter. Spring 2 works equally well for most music styles, but the soundstage is a bit wider, with more air and instrument separation, and the timbre is much better for classical on OH10. For electronic, dubstep and most aggressive electronic music, Spring 2 sounds better, more satisfying, whereas the more limited bass of OH10 sounds better for acoustic instruments, metal and rock. 

IKKO OH10 Obsidian vs BGVP Art Magic VG4 (160 USD vs 230 USD) – The comfort is better on OH10 Obsidian than it is on VG4, as they have a smaller, more ergonomic shape. The weight is higher on the OH10. The actual sound has more soundstage, more treble sparkle, and more detail on OH10 Obsidian, while it has more thickness, more substance and a more midrange-forward presentation on VG4. You could say that OH10 is a bit mid-recessed, while VG4 is more midrange-forward from those two. I would generally go with Obsidian for most Rock, Orchestral, Punk, Pop, and wide-sounding music, and would go with VG4 for Jazz, Grindcore, EDM, Industrial and Dubstep. 

 

Value and Conclusion

The value of IKKO OH10 Obsidian is actually much better than most of the IEMs offered in the price range, and regardless of the price range. They are simply put, an exceptional IEM with exceptional qualities. The overall package compliments the excellent sound, and if you want detail + resolution, Ikko made sure that their IEMS can deliver, OH10 being what I would be willing to consider one of the most detailed IEMs I’ve heard, sub 500 USD. 

I actually am going to add it to Audiophile-Heaven’s Hall Of Fame, and I can say that I am really into the sound, and I will be looking forward to hearing more IEMs from IKKO in the near future. 

If you want one of the most natural sounding IEMS, one of the most live sounding IEMs and one of the most detailed / clean IEMs in the sub 500 USD price range, then IKKO will totally deliver with their OH10, and should make you happy for a long time to come. 

 

Product Link

You can grab one from www.amazon.com here: https://amzn.to/3BVt82w

If you’re in the UK, you can grab one from www.amazon.co.uk here: https://amzn.to/3y7xVvz

And if you’re from Europe, you can grab one from www.amazon.de here: https://amzn.to/3l6uZLV

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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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