Shure - AONIC 4

Shure Aonic 4 has completely won me over.
I have always been a huge fan of SE 215s.Those are the best IEM that I have ever owned and will always be, or so I thought.
Design: A smaller form factor combined with the frosty see though design is just unique
Comfort: I wear this overnight and wakes up without even noticing that it's still on. Need to say more?
Sound Quality: Initially I thought there isn't much difference in sound signature from a SE 215. Oh boy I was wrong. My suggestion, wear it at least for a week. Let it adjust to your ear. Find the right ear buds and you should be in the good spot

For a background, the max I spent on an Iem was less than 7 k. Have owned v moda, 3 to 4 Kz’s and lately gave up on these to try lypertek tevi tws experience.. thi was a flagship comeback to Iem’s. Skeptikal about the bass I somehow made up my mind to try. My first Shure. When I plugged it on I couldn’t put it off for an hour so. All my collections came so lively and original. The songs I used to skip I listened fully enjoying the new way Shure flat signature was getting on to me. Sennheiser HD 598 was my main driver the bass there is never too less. Here these live up to its motto in the box. Detailed sound and distinct separation. That’s never sacrificed. So the bass is lively when it occurs as intended. Never boosted. This actually helps the user to enjoy every corner and synchronised beauty of any song. Worth the money. The company’s research actually is way ahead than competitors. Lives up to its flagship Iem’s category in headphone zone. Cable is fairly nice and works a charm. Shanling UP2 was my companion. Amp dac is never required. But better sound control of quality witnessed.

Of late there is a trend of users opting for Chinese manufacturers due to better value to price ratio. In the past i have tried some of these renowned brands such as Vsonic, Shangling, 1more. The build quality in these earphones were pathetic, vsonic gr07 which some still consider to be really good was built like something a first grader would build out of clay. The plastic wasn't even molded properly and when i would stick them in they would poke my ears. The shangling tws were also horrible, the case was flimsy, the buds would never pair and it seems like it was built with some pathetic quality of plastic.

Having bashed the above chinese brands, i come to Shure. The shure SE215 have been my go to earphones for exercise, casual listening, travelling and every possible use. I have been very rough with them, my dog had a go at them but they still worked like a charm. Over 7 years I used two of them, both lasted about the equal time. I have also tried the RHA t20, but they were not to my liking, too bulky, poor sound signature and irritating cable. So when i was looking to invest in a new pair of IEMs and noticed that Shure had launched the aonic series, they caught my eye.

Firstly the price, they retail for about 300 USD, which converted is 21k INR, including takes and import they should cost easily 30k. But they are roughly the same 300 USD price, this is always a nice sign. Secondly the fit for me is classic shure, absolutely perfect sealing. in fact these block out more noise than sonys noise cancelling 1000mx3 both in ear and over ear. Cant hear traffic/bus/train rides with these on. Then comes the sound, Shure are supposed to be balanced but these ones have a lot of Bass, I am not sure if its the price range that makes the earphone quality at another level or its just these pair. It is so clearly evident when you listen to "In the air tonight" by Phil Collins as the transition to heavy bass is slow and evident. Coming to vocals take the song "Ik Onkar", voice is extremely clear and feels you are in the studio itself.

The final test is "Maggot Brain" by Funkadelic, the playback is flawless, the transition from highs to the lows is epic.

My only regret is not going for the Aonic 5 due to price constraints.

(PS i am using these with apple music loseless and earman eagle DAC)

Chi-fi has spoiled me. Comparing the Aonic 4 to my KZ AS10, one thing becomes immediately apparent that sound quality is not even in the same league. The AS10 is incredibly detailed but very bulky and not very stable - the seal needs frequent readjustment.
But design is the strong point of these 'brand phones'. Aonic's fit is so secure you can sleep with them with only mild soreness in the morning whereas AS5 will give you ear cancer if you try to sleep with them!
Shure gives a plethora of tips and while the foam ones are very comfortable, they last only a couple of months inside my waxy, smarmy earholes so I don't use them. My tips of choice is the triple flange which provides the securest fit. Surprisingly, the AS5 provides just as much 'loud roomate' isolation as the Aonic 4, as long as you don't move much.
Overall, happy with the purchase of a pricey, classy wired IEM in the era of wireless, sealed battery, dies-within-2years everything!

1 year update: the buds still works but the cable has already seen two replacements. Static charge issues and a weird "clink" noise has developed that needs rotating the mmcx connector to mitigate. So much for great build quality! My AS10 is still going strong. Overall, I'm revising the rating to 3 stars because for the price I expected better. The only advantage it has over the KZ is the thin nozzle which allows me to easily mod the 3M triple flange ear plugs on to it.