TEAC inCore ZE-1000 Hi-Definition In-Ear Stereophones - Matte Black

I was hesitant at first to purchase these given the fact there were no reviews and the highlight in the discription seemed to be the patented 5 flanged silicon tip that looked like a corkscrew ??? But when the TEAC ZE-1000 went on sale at Amazon for 76% off the MSRP I decided it was worth the gamble to try this (dual BA) IEM and pushed da button. Well I'm glad I did as I was pleasantly surprised by how good they sounded . Over the years I have purchased similar priced IEM on sale. So I will do a general comparison of the TEAC ZE-1000 with the following IEM all of which I purchased on sale for about the same price as these ( +\- $15). The Brainwavz B2, (dual BA), Logitech UE 700 (dual BA), HiFiMan RE-262 (dynamic) and Klipsch X10 (BA). All of which I think sound very good.Accessories. Basically all are very similar the ZE-1000 comes with a soft platic zippered case, 1/8 to 1/4 adapter, airplane adapter and 3 (s,m,l) 5 flanged silicon tips. So as long as they fit thats all you should need, none of these earphones come with a mic or phone controls.Build. The build quality on all of them are similar and none really stand out.Comfort. The Klipsch X10 are the most comfortable IEM I've ever worn in fact when the music stops you forget there still in. The other are very comfortable also, the TEAC's for me are the least comfortable. I think it's from the 5 flanged tip, I can feel the edges of the flanges rubbing against my inner ear, it's not uncomfortable but you can feel them in your ears. The tips actually fit me well and are the only one I don't use the Comply tips to get a proper fit. I have yet to try these in a noisy environment so I can't comment on there real world isolation.The ZE-1000 are rated at 16 ohms but it takes as much power to drive them as the HiFiMan RE-262 which are rated at 150 ohms so I would recommend an amp to properly drive them. When running them through my receiver both the ZE-1000 and the RE-262 would have to be 20% higher in volume then the other 3 IEM to achieve the same sound level. The Brainwavz B2, UE 700 and Klipsch X10 are much easier to drive and sound good right out of my portable device.Sound: I used all CD's and plugged into my 125 Watt receiver while watching some sports on TV (Mute) for the below comparisonsCompared to all the other earphones the TEAC ZE-1000's were the clearest most detailed sounding IEM, you could hear all the layers of every instrument and the slightest nuance in every song. You could distinguish all the background instrument and the seperation and dynamics of each one. The highs and midrange were crisp and clear never being overly bright or tinny. This is one IEM that I can say you will hear new details in your music you never heard before. I also own the HiFiMan RE-ZERO which I think is a very detailed earphone and bought it down to compare with the ZE-1000, well the ZE-1000 was cleaner sounding and had better detail with much better lower mids and bass impact then the RE-ZERO. The upper mids and highs are very fast with good dynamics and can handle anything thrown at them. The detail on the ZE-1000 sometimes made the other earphones sound as though they had a filter on them thats how detailed they sounded. The bass and lower midrange is good and tight and on most songs sounds very good but I think the Brainwavz B2 and UE 700 both have better bass impact and the Klipsch X10 has deeper bass which sound better on a wider variety of songs and genres. If you listen to music that requires deep low bass and a lot of bass impact the B2, UE700 and X10 are a better choice.The TEAC ZE-1000 sounded best forFemale vocalist: Alison Krauss,Kasey Chambers,Dixie Chicks,Sade,Leslie Ritter,Sara McLachlan Etc.Music with any Brass: Chicago TA, Blood Sweat & Tears, Earth Wind and Fire and even Cake Etc.Music with lots of instruments and background: Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull,Moody Blues, David Byrne Etc.Classical Symphonies: The Great Symphonies which you can clearly distinguish all the different instruments playingSinger Songwriters: Peter Gabriel, Cat Stevens, Boz Scaggs, Joe Jackson, Donald Fagan, Tom Petty Etc.Accoustical Music: Al Stewart, James Taylor, America, Dashboard Confessional Etc.Real Country Music: Wilie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Jimmy Dale Gilmore, EtcThey also sounded great playing The Beatles, Steely Dan, Stevie Wonder, Fleetwood Mac, Dire Straites and SupertrampFor most Classic Rock Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Eagles, The Cars, Foreigner the other earphones sounded slightly better because they brought out more of the bass drum impact and artists like Anberlin, Daughtry, Creed and Goldfinger sounded better with the other earphones for the bass impact as well.In general I thought music that needs a good driving bass impact more than great detail sounded better with the Brainwavz B2, Logitech UE 700, HifiMan RE-262 and Klipsch X10.I'm not trying to say that the ZE-1000 lack good bass because on a lot of songs their bass sounds very good.Of all the listed earphones all have strengths and weaknesses and each in its way sound very good and the differences are in most cases minute, only by listening to them side by side can you really distinguish the differencesNow which one sounded the best for all types of music. It's really close and comes down to personal preferances and taste as sound is very interpretable. For me1) Brainwavz B1 They have the best bass impact on all types of music a sooth midrange and good detail2). TEAC ZE-1000 Clearly the best detail and clarity with excellent dynamics and seperation, The bass and lower midrange is tight and very good on most songs but the Brainwavz can reproduce bass impact on a greater variety of genres.3) HifiMan RE-262 but just barely, They are smooth sounding and music just flows out of them4) The Logitech UE 700 are a very good sounding earphone with good tight bass, smooth mids and good detail where these fall short is that they distort at only moderatly high volumes.5) Klipsch X10 Which have the deepest bass of all but slightly lack the others in detail and dynamics.I also did a quick comparison straight out of my 80GB Zune with WMA Lossless files1) The Brainwavz B2 again sounded the best overall2) The Klipsch X10 sounded better probably because they are easy to drive and you could get the full impact of these at lower levels3) TEAC ZE-1000 They still had great detail but lost some of there bass impact and dynamics4) Logitech UE700 They once again sounded very good but distorted at higher volumes on the Zune5) HiFiMan RE-262 These sound a bit hollow right out of the ZuneThe ZE-1000 and the HiFiMan RE-262 sound signature changed the most straight out of the Zune most likley because they were the hardest to drive and the Zune doesn't have the power to push them So these do need a seperate amp.Well after this lenghty comparison I believe the Logitech UE 700, HiFiMan RE-262 and Brainwavz B2 are all discontinued. If you can find them I would recommend all of them especially the Brainwavz B2 for under $100The Klipsh X10 is currently at a great sale price and is a very good overall earphone especially if you like solid low end bass. As far as the TEAC ZE-1000 I would highly recommend buying them as they are still 76% off the MRSP and a great value at this price, just get them soon before the price goes up you won't regret it......

I don't know if people are aware that this originally went for $400 and then was reduced to $250 for quite some time. Granted it's only two ba drivers but covers full spectrum for 20 to 20,000.you absolutely have to use the tips that come with it a permit air in between the layers to give the sense of stage and to kill some of the simblance. Extremely tiny extremely fun and phenomenal packaging the best case I've ever seen for a regular headbud. And actually can take a little bit of amplification.definitely worth 20 bucks and the store seller newfangled networks is the absolute best customer service!!!!!

the sound is antiquated, congested, and lacks finer details for a dual BA design. Thopugh the fit is comfortable, and the innovative accordion tips providing exceptional isolation, the build quality is terrible, as the ear pices come apart at the aluminum ring, and needed to be glued back together. On top of that, the sound lacks finer details, has rolled off highs, and just a run of the mill sound. The bass is actually very good for a dual BA configuration, with a punchy and solid presence. If only the highs weren't so rolled off and the mids not very clear. Just needs more soundstage, clarity, and spacing.

Ok for the price as the fit is good, but the SQ is meh. My pair had a short in the left bud and I tossed them.

Bass is a little low, but an eq fixes that. Highly recommended!Eight more words are required. These are words.