EPZ G10: Is this a Budget Q5?
Pros
- Great variety of accessories which includes a splitter and light
- Very lightweight yet solid build
- Very comfortable fit (subjective)
- Unique aesthetic that glows
- Bass is tight and well controlled
- Clean midrange with a hint of warmth
- Treble is quite smooth with just enough sparkle
- Decent technicalities for the price
- Bass is a little light and pillowy
- Mid bass can be a little lacking at times
- Lower midrange can be a bit too thin
- Note weight and density can be slightly light
- Mediocre treble extension
Disclaimer
- Huge thanks to EPZ for providing a unit of the EPZ G10 for me to review. I really do appreciate it. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own, and are not influenced in any way.
- Please take this review with only a grain of salt, as everyone's hearing, fit, and gears may differ, so our experience may be different.
Price(MSRP)
- $35
- FiiO KA13
- Truthear Shio
- JCally JM6 Pro
Ear tips
Packaging
- Dunu S&S
Packaging
- EPZ G10 with a M sized generic silicone ear tips attached.
- Soft carrying pouch
- Very good inclusion, very practical to use as well.
- Most budget IEMs don't even come with a carrying pouch nowadays .. so they did a great job at including these.
- Good selection of ear tips.
- 3 pairs of double flange silicone ear tips (S, M, L)
- 2 pairs of generic silicone ear tips (S, L)
- Cable with built in microphone
- Build is okay for the price, but tangles quite a bit if not kept properly and can be a bit thin.
- Ear hooks are very comfortable though.
Build Quality
Fit
Tonality
- Build quality is decent for the price, shell is made out of resin.
- When the provided purple light is shined onto the shell, the shell will emit a pretty cool green glow for a short period of time. This is the first time I see something like this on an IEM.
Before shining them with the LED provided
After shining them with the LED provided
Fit
- Nozzle length and width are about average.
- Fits very comfortably for me and is extremely lightweight, once I put them on I don't notice them at all even after long hours of usage.
Tonality
- Harman
- There are some minor channel imbalance mainly in the sub bass region. Note that I graphed them right after I unbox them.
Bass
- Sub bass is a bit more prominent compared to the mid bass, mid bass can be slightly thin sometimes.
- Has a good, deep rumble to it and also good control.
- However, it sounds a bit thin, soft, lacking in overall impact and weight.
- Do note that my particular has some imbalances in bass region.
- Overall, the bass is decent, nothing too outstanding but not bad for the price either.
- Quantity is just sufficient, just enough to be engaging but definitely not for bass heads.
Midrange
- Lower midrange is clean, slightly recessed, with a hint of warmth to it.
- Male vocals sound a little thin and dry, lacking a bit of lushness
- Upper midrange is energetic but smooth.
- Female vocals sound very engaging and forward but not exactly to the point of being shouty to me.
- Due to the thinner lower midrange and the brightness of the upper midrange and treble, the overall note weight is noticeably on the lighter side.
- Most instruments in the midrange do sound good and natural without any oddities, so timbre is good as well.
Treble
- Treble is overall quite bright and have sufficient sparkle.
- It is also quite smooth without any noticeable huge spikes to my ears.
- Treble extension is mediocre, not very airy, personally I would like to have a bit more airiness to it here.
- Details in the treble can be perceived fine, without any issues, and it is not overly boosted in any way.
Technicalities
Resolution
- Resolution and detail retrieval is decent for the price, it isn't mind blowing but it definitely won't let you down either.
- Soundstage is quite good, nothing sounds too cramped or closed in, everything is spaced out quite nicely.
- Imaging and accuracy is decent, I am able to pinpoint positions fairly well most of the time.
- Separation and layering is decent overall, instruments and vocals are separated among each other and does not get too congested in busier tracks, but it does get a little mushed together in very busier tracks.
Comparison
EPZ G10 vs EPZ Q5
- Accessories:
- The Q5 offers 2 types of single flange silicone tips while the G10 offers 1 type of single flange and 1 type of double flange, so take note of this if you want to try out double flange tips.
- The Q5 offers a much better quality carrying case along with a cleaning cloth, while the G10 only offers a carrying pouch.
- The Q5 stock cable is also noticeably thicker and better quality compared to the G10 stock cable.
- Others:
- The Q5 box is a lot bigger, offering a more much more "premium" unboxing experience if that is your sort of thing.
- The Q5 MMCX connector offers a really bad experience in my case, and the G10 uses the usual 2 pin connector which I am very used to, which I did not encounter any issues.
- Bass:
- Even if the graph only shows minor difference, that is not really the case to my ears.
- The Q5's bass is significantly more snappy, tighter, impactful, and textured.
- On the other hand, the G10's bass is much more limp and soft.
- This could be because of the difference in driver as well.
- Midrange:
- Both performs quite similarly.
- Main difference to me would be in the upper midrange, where the Q5 is slightly more forward and energetic, but that's about it.
- Treble:
- Again, the graph is only showing minor differences here, but my listening experience tells me another story.
- The small bump in the 4-6k region made female vocals, a lot more "scratchy", sharp and sibilant to me, which is a totally different experience for me in the G10.
- However, the Q5 does offer better treble extension, at the cost of overall treble smoothness.
- On the other end. the G10 is significantly more smooth and easier to listen to in my case.
- Technicalities:
- The Q5 offers a far more superior in terms of technical capabilities compared to the G10.
- Transients and speed on the Q5 is significantly faster and more precise to my ears, while transients on the G10 tend to be mushier.
- Overall, based on my preference, I would pick the G10 as I am quite sensitive to the lower treble harshness in the Q5, and I don't like the MMCX connector on the Q5. However, if you're not as treble sensitive as me, the Q5 is just much more impressive package as a whole, with a much technicalities, and the price difference actually isn't that huge if you can get it on a deal!
Conclusion
- So, back to the main question, is the EPZ G10 just budget Q5?
- In my opinion, I don't think so. I think both IEMs have their very own pros and cons even if they graphed very similarly, so just pick them according to your preference.
- Overall, the G10 is a solid budget all rounder that comes with a surprisingly complete set of useful accessories. They also have a unique "glowing" aesthetic and great comfort.
- However, if you're looking for something that has a very lush and warm signature, or something that will absolutely wow you in this price range, then I don't think this is it.
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Thanks for reading!
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