Hiby Digital Xeno HiFi IEMS – xMEMS Dynamic Dual DAC Alchemy Of Sound
Hiby Digital Xeno is a newly launched IEM priced at around $150 USD, which is the first to combine the new MEMS Driver technology with a dynamic driver, and produce what can be called the ultimate entry-level IEM, for both sonic quality and customizability. Today we will take an in-depth look at the new Hiby Xeno and explore what it brings to the table and how it differs from all the other IEMS available on the market.
Introduction
Hiby Digital is launching a Crowdfunding campaign for their newly designed and upcoming Hiby Digital Xeno IEMs, with a multiple-driver setup, aiming to bring us the most technologically advanced entry-level IEM and to dominate the Chifi market. Hiby Digital is a sub brand of Hiby, the creator of the operating system for most DAPs in the pre-Android era of the DAP history. Hiby still makes the Hiby Music app, the one I use every single day at the gym, and they are popular thanks to their high-end DAPs and excellent customer support. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. Huge thanks to Hiby for providing us with the sample for this review.
PROs – First xMEMS implementation that actually takes advantage of the driver’s unique tuning and technical precision, good comfort, with small IEMs that offer a decent passive noise isolation. There is no microphonic noise, and the maximum volume is very loud, with a V-Shaped tuning, warm and full bass, sharp and crisp treble, and with a recessed midrange that gives music space to breathe.
Cons – The Y-Split DAC / AMP gets warm during usage, some background noise when no music is playing.
Product Link
Hiby Xeno should be explored on the Hiby Store here – https://store.hiby.com/products/hibydigitalxeno
Build Quality/Aesthetics/Fit/Comfort
Hiby digital has only a few products under the new brand for casual and entry-level products, but the new Hiby Digital Xeno cmes with an integrated DAC, and non-detachable cables, so the IEMs have a casual design for the more casual listener. This being said, the technical data shows a good maximum SPL of 116 dB, and a THD lower than 0.1%, with a weight of each IEM of just 5 grams. The Type-C USB connector is designed to go into your smartphone or windows PC, and the wire used for the Xeno is a Silver Plated Oxygen Free Copper, with a length of 1.35 meters.
The drivers at the heart of the Hiby Digital Xeno are a combination of Mems Solid-State Silicon speakers, combined with a 10mm Graphene Dynamic Driver. Hiby promises full compatibility with Switch and other USB 1.0 devices, and it promises to offer a latency-free sound for gamers and casual users. There’s an omnidirectional microphone embedded in the thick Y-Splitter for the cable, and it also features 4 buttons for controlling the IEMs, with a Function button, Play/Pause Button, Vol – and Vol + dedicated button. The latency measured by Hiby is around 15 ms, or lower than a single frame of content. The Glossy surface does not get scratched easily, and it is comfortable when I am wearing the Xeno, while the somewht tight ear hooks keep them securely inside of my ears.
Although this is somewhat hidden in the paperwork, Hiby Xeno is compatible with both Android and iOS iPhones, as Hiby Music will offer exclusive music playback with the Xeno, offering strong lossless playback support, and support for USB Audio Exclusive Mode is included, so Hiby Xeno can theoretically bypass the Android system oversampling if using Hiby Music to play the sound. To take full advantage of the Mems driver, Hiby implemented a specially designed 3-D Printed housing, and each driver has its own chamber. The xMEMS drivers found inside of the Hiby Xeno are the Cowell all-silicon solid-stage drivers, which are in theory 150 times faster in response than traditional drivers. To fully take advantage of the drivers, Hiby also employed a LSW Metal Rear Chamber which reduces stationary waves and should bring the driver performance to the maximum.
We also see PCM 384 kHz / 32 Bit support, as well as DSD 128 support in the Xeno, as inside the Xeno Hiby integrated a strong combination of the ES9018C2M and the CS43131 DACs working in synergy. The reason Hiby implemented two different DACs is that each DAC is dedicated to a group of drivers, so they independently decode and amplify the digital signal, taking advantage of the individual driver technology, and optimizing the sonic result. This means that Hiby has a digital crossover that splits the data between the DACs before said data reaches each DAC. As this is fairly new technology, and as Hiby is the designer of the Magic DSP processing that gave them a fair share of their current popularity, Hiby also includes PEQ or Parametric EQ for their Xeno, which should allow you to squeeze the most performance out of the Xeno.
Subjectively, Xeno feels open, they provide around 10-15 dB of passive noise isolation, but are rather small and ergonomic. There is a good sense of comfort, there is no driver flex and no void while wearing the Xeno. The Silver cable is a bit stiff and has a bit of a memory effect, but that’s below the Y Split, which is also a remote in the Xeno, so the actual comfort is ok. There is a microphone inside of the Xeno, and it has a crisp, detailed sound for the person on the other end, although it picks up on the background noise and if you brush it against your clothes. The eartip size is standard, and I replaced the original ear tips with ddHIFI ST35, per my usual testing. There is some amp noise in the background at times, but it is minimal in volume, and will be ironed out with firmware updates. Using the Hiby Music app on Android yields the best sonic results, it disables the Android on-board volume, and will bypass the Android SRC sample, to give you the best sonic performance possible. There is a complex DSP possible with the Xeno, and there are still huge updates coming to it, but it is currently usable and even sounds excellent on the default sonic profile. The cable is exceptionally good at not producing microphonic noise when brushing against my cheek. The DSP profiles can be changed without installing anything, but you will hear when you hit gold with the default music profile. One thing I was not expecting is that Hiby Xeno does not get warm at the USB Type-C connector like most IEMS with this kind of connector, but at the Y-Split Remote / DAC, which gets warm to the touch, although not dangerously hot during usage.
Sound Quality
Pairings – As both DACs are inside of the Xeno, you cannot pair them with an analog source, only digital, so I have been using my Samsung S23 Ultra and my computer to drive the Xeno and to power them.
Overall Signature – Hiby Xeno sounds deep, V-Shaped, dynamic, punchy and very detailed. While it is very early to really commit myself to the idea of a solid state audio driver, the speed of the treble is the fastest I have heard, yet it has zero grain and aggressiveness, Xeno sounds really detailed, clean and crisp without sounding aggressive and sharp. It is beautiful in sonics, and if you didn’t read my words above, you wouldn’t know that there are two separate DACs playing at the same time, the processing is done beautifully with no errors. The bass is deep, treble is sharp and bright, with the midrange slightly recessed, slightly distant but crisp and detailed, the tuning perfect for Dubstep, EDM, Pop, Anime / Manga Music, and basically any kind of J-Rock, J-Pop and Eastern music in general. It even works well for rock and metal, revealing groovy bass notes nicely, along with crisp guitar riffs. The sound is on the hard side, with a hard impact, and solid impulse response.
Bass – Until we reach the treble, most of the sound you hear will be produced by the Graphene coated dynamic driver, and the bass is deep, warm, big, lush, with a full and punchy presentation. I was concerned about a lack of power, but Xeno easily reaches 120 dB and above, with very little distortion, both drivers holding well to loudness and high SPL levels. I just had a short otitis case, and now have healed, and I gotta tell you, I missed listening to music, and part of why you’re seeing a lot of headphone stand and accessory reviews on Audiophile-Heaven is that I took some time to work on those while my ears healed and I could wear earphones again. The bass starts at 20 Hz, and it has a lot of energy in the sub-bass, with strong warmth up to 100 Hz.
Midrange – The mids of the Hiby Digital Xeno are clean, somewhat distant, creating the impression of a poor seal at almost all times. I often have to check if the IEMs are still inside of my ears, but the seal is not broken, Xeno creates a really open sound that feels and sounds like you’re listening top speakers, like the music is coming from around you, or even distantly from somewhere far away, and the same happens with voices, which sound much more distant than bass notes, or sharp cymbal hits. There’s a strong sense of detail, resolution and clarity in the midrange, and Xeno seems to make female voices sweet and enjoyable, and it is a bit happy in the sound, creating more emotion and an impressive sound for female voices than it creates depth and seriousness for male voices.
Treble – Here is where the xMEMS driver actually becomes more noticeable, and it creates a fast, really fast sound with excellent sharpness and resolution, although without killing the musicality and smoothness in music. Somehow, Hiby matched the treble extension and resolution perfectly with a fluid and slightly wet character, it sounds as you’d assume a silicone driver would sound like, somewhat rubbery, with a dampened impact, but very enjoyable and playful. It is crisp, sharp, well defined, but never harsh, nor fatiguing, although there is enough excitement in the sound for a lifetime. The treble extends up to 20 kHz, but it has a uniquely soft character so it feels much less fatiguing, although the texture of metal in a cymbal crash is never reproduced as metal, it is always like a softer effect.
Dynamics / PRaT / Textures – The sound is dynamic, punchy and has a fast impulse response in general, although the treble has an infinitely faster impulse response than the bass and the midrange. You can hear where the xMEMS driver kicks in and how it sounds much faster than the midrange, and it is like adding the Aperion Audio RST MKII Super Tweeters to a pair of speakers, it adds the treble extension and sharpness without making the sound too edgy. The result is a sound that has both warmth, depth but also sharpness and extension.
Volume Control – The sound gets better at louder volumes, with a crisper, more dynamic presentation, more punch and a higher degree of clarity at those volumes. At lower volumes, the sound is more v-Shaped, with the midrange being even more distant, to the point where it feels like the IEMS are not being worn, and the music is just playing in the room. It is a fun presentation, but not universal, and the background noise of the AMP is more noticeable. Xeno is very capable of reaching high volumes, has enough driving power and headroom to really allow for a lot of DSP. I recommend trying Hiby’s PEQ, Graphic EQ and MSEB, they are excellent.
Soundstage – If this was not quite clear, Xeno has a huge soundstage, extends really well laterally, vertically and in depth, creating a lot of space in music, pushing voices really far away from you when the song allows for some distance, but bringing them forward and in your face for rock and metal, basically exaggerating the size of the staging a bit, to create a really engaging and emotional tune. I like this vivid and colorful, contrasty and spacey presentation. The eartip selection will be important too, the default eartips create an even wider soundstage than the ST35, but the bass and comfort is a bit better for me with ST35.
Value and Conclusion
For around $150 USD, Hiby Digital Xeno has a crisp, dynamic and punchy sound, with a good resolution, excellent details, and with very few shortcomings. In fact, the only shortcomings I can truly say it has is that the background noise can be audible at times, but this should be fixed with future updates, so overall the comfort is great, and sonic punches above the price point.
If you’re looking to support, test and experiment innovation, Hiby Digital Xeno is the first IEM implementing the new Cowell xMEMS drivers that is worthy of considering for daily usage the sound is superb, and with Hiby Digtial running a crowdfunding campaign for it, you should be able to have a ton of fun with it, a fully recommended purchase for anyone who wants to be the first to hear the latest word in audio tech.
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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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