Great sounding budget earphones for your everyday carry.
If you search for “in-ear headphones” on Amazon, the number of models that pop up are mind boggling. Many of those earphones are from companies that are definitely not household names, hence the reason why customer reviews, accurate or not, hold so much weight when selecting a product from there.
The earphones i’m reviewing today are from a company named Deivvox, one that falls into the “not household name” category, but their $29.99 set of earphones is getting rave reviews on Amazon, with 83% of the 103 reviews coming in at four or five stars. 67% of those are five stars. This was enough to spark my curiosity, and Deivvox was kind enough to send me a pair in exchange for an honest review.
Build Quality/Features:
The first thing I noticed when I opened up the envelope and pulled out the box was the nice packaging. It reminded me of the box that 1MORE puts their Triple-Driver In-Ear Headphones in, with the magnetic flip top and list of features on the inside.
Once you open the box, the metal earphones are displayed nicely alongside five pairs of ear sleeves, including three sizes of foam ear tips, and two sizes of silicone ear tips, with a third set of the silicone type, pre-installed on the earpieces.
Under the foam holding the earphones and ear tips is a small drawstring storage bag and small user manual. It’s a pretty nice setup for $30 headphones.
The earpieces are made up of sturdy yet light metal, with the company logo engraved on the side. The cable is fed into the front of the earpiece, which I thought was weird until I read in the manual that you can wear the earphones with the cable straight down or over the ear, which this placement facilitates. The only thing that I would’ve like to see would be detachable cables to allow for upgrade or replacement, but for the price this is forgivable.
Speaking of the cable, it looks like a braided cable with a grey translucent jacket, that is stiff in a good way, since it helps keep the cable from getting tangled. It also looks pretty nice next to the metal earpieces, control box, y-split, and 3.5 mm plug.
The aluminum 3-button control box which hangs between the right earpiece and y-split on the cable allows for volume/music control on most Android/Apple smartphones. It also allows you to answer/hang-up phone calls, and talk via the built-in mic.
Regarding the fit, while the earpieces are a little on the large side, their lightness, shape, and soft ear tips keep them comfortable. I had no issues wearing them for long periods of time. All in all, I was happy with the build quality.
Sound:
Like the build quality, I was also pretty impressed with the sound. I would call the sound signature u-shaped, with a definite emphasis on the treble and bass, but mids are quite present as well.
I really liked this mix, even though the treble came in a little hot at times, but not to the point of distraction. Top end detail was good. The Bass was very deep, and actually pretty detailed as well, adding nice rhythm and pace to the sound. These earphones are really fast and energetic, making them very good all-around performers that play well with all genres. This is good when you’re looking for a do it all pair to carry with you during the day.
I tested them using my LG V40 phone, Hiby R3 DAP, and iFi nano iDSD LE Dac/Amp along with Tidal on the laptop, playing many different artists including Daft Punk, Kendrick Lemar, and Luciana Souza. The Deivvox earphones did well with each one, with my only issue being a little brightness on some tracks with horns and strings. But in each case, the detail on both the top and bottom was very good, along with mids that while slightly in the back of the mix, were still very sweet.
In comparison with two of my other favorite earphones in this price range, the Final Audio E3000 ($49), and the KZ ZSR ($29), the Deivvox totally outclassed the ZSR with more detail overall, making the KZ earphones sound dull. However, I preferred the E3000 to the Deivvox in most cases with its beautiful mid-centric and spacious sound, but the Deivvox held it’s own, actually sounding a little better when it came to Electronic and Hip-Hop music, due to the deep bass and more energetic treble.
Conclusion:
The mix of nice build quality, good features, and great all-around sound makes these a good choice of earphones for everyday carry. I can see why they get so many good customer reviews on Amazon. These are a no-brainer for someone looking for good sound and phone headset capabilities on a budget.
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I’m an audio writer who started as a young audio salesman/consumer electronics professional back in the late 90s. That’s where I discovered the magic of 2-Channel sound. My thirst for great sound has led me on a delightful music quest that continues today.
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