finalE500 - Immersive 3D Live Sound In Ear Isolating Earphones for VR, ASMR, Gaming and 360 Music, 6.4mm Dynamic Driver, High-Resolution, Swing-Fit Eartips - Black

I have used a few pairs of Final IEM’s, and been impressed each time. They have hit upon a format of taking the same basic driver, and treating it differently throughout their models. These e500’s are (I believe) the most basic in their lineup, and in some ways it shows. No frills, basic packaging, with a standard range of tips, and a little Velcro cable-tie (actually quite useful!). Otherwise, it’s just the earbuds and that’s it. This is not a bad thing, as at this price, there’s no point in wasting money on excesses. I don’t feel the need for a display case for these.Fit and finish are great. I find the simple Final design to fit my ears very well, and I can wear these for long periods of time with no issue, with the included tips. I’d say that it’s easy enough to find foam tips that could increase comfort still further, but then good ones of those are approaching the price of the IEMs themselves. The plastic housing around the driver is similar to the more expensive e1000s, but without the cool two-tone effect.The cable is pretty good. Obviously non-replaceable, but seems sturdy enough, and is not particularly microphonic. To my eyes it looks to be absolutely identical to the one from the e1000, with the same sturdy right angle jack plug.Isolation is good. Obviously with current (March 2020) lock-down procedures in place, I haven’t tested them out and about in busy scenarios, but they are more than isolating enough to give me my own sonic world, sitting in the far corner of the living room from my wife’s home office.Sound wise, I am really enjoying these. They seem to be tuned similarly to others from the Final stable, with a generally even response, and just slightly boosted at the top and bottom. The highs are amply clear enough for casual listening, and not too over-exaggerated and peaky. Midrange is very controlled, and pleasant to listen to. These sound slightly ‘warm’ rather than particularly ‘analytical’ and that’s just fine by meDecent bass response from the 6.4mm driver, although this is the one area I could really discern much of a difference from the rest of the Final line. Whilst there was ‘enough’ bass, it wasn’t as controlled as some of their more expensive offerings. This difference was only really apparent with side by side comparison though, and casually I would be hard pressed to say which pair I was wearing by sound alone.The marketing for these e500’s suggests these are virtual reality/gaming headphones, but I couldn’t detect any more in the way of soundstage/headstage than any other IEM I have listened to. Nothing to be sneezed at, but not really spectacular.A previous pair of Final IEMs I compared in cost to a ‘good steak dinner’ and these e500s are barely the cost of a pretty mediocre steak dinner, but I still find them to be very solid, listenable IEMs that feel like they will stand up to the rigours of daily use and stuffing into pockets just fine. I continue to be super impressed by what the guys at Final are doing.

Brought the Final E500 to replace my Sony EX155AP earphones. Cable quality seems beefier than the Sonys for sure. Both are comfortable though I have to say the Sony's fit a bit better,Sound on the E500 are much more neutral, calm and relaxed. Personally, I would have preferred slightly less upper bass (100hz-300hz) as sometimes vocals can be a bit too warm sounding. Thankfully it does not mud up the rest of the frequencies and you can easily eq them. The treble is dialed back, especially after 10khz to avoid harsh peaks. I would have preferred a middle ground since the sound does lack this "airyness". Other than that, the sound quality is much better than the Sonys which sounded pretty crappy.For reference, the Sonys I had would tend overemphasise on hi hats, snares etc... which tend to make them sound very harsh and unlistenable at times. Even with EQ it still sounds off. Not to mention the upper bass is bloated and muddy whereas the E500 has better control in bass and much smoother treble.Overall I like the sound of the E500. Not mind blowing but better than an average pair of wired earbuds.

The audiophile universe is governed by the laws of diminishing returns. You could spend thousands of dollars on all sorts of ‘end-game’ toys for your ears and still yearn for something better. Or worse, that headphone you bought for 3000 dollars two months ago is now on sale for half that price. And so it goes.Unfortunately my wallet is not as cavernous as some, so I have to settle for budget-fi wherever possible. Every so often a product comes along that shatters the price to audio-excellence barriers - and leaves many an audio nut dumfounded how something that sounds so good can be so cheap.My first foray into awesome sounding headphones for teeny-weeny money was my purchase of the Koss KPH30i. Which for a long time I have regarded as the best value-for-money headphone in hi-fi. It’s not the most comfortable on-ear headphones, nor is it the best built - but for less than 30 dollars I found it’s balanced, detailed, resolving, yet fun sound signature hard to beat.That was until these Final E500 IEMs arrived on my doorstep.I bought the Final E500 from Amazon in the UK - it’s not available in the USA. At a mere £19.99 I believe it is the most affordable product that Final Audio from Japan makes. To put it into perspective - their D8000 Planar Magnetic headphones will set you back well over $4,000! Final Audio have been making high-end audio products since 1974, and are no doubt regarded with high pedigree in the audiophile community.So, for less than 20 Pounds Sterling, I thought I had nothing to lose with these headphones. And I was right.They come in a little white box with 5 pairs of (different sized quite excellent) colour-coded silicone tips - that’s it.Inside the E500’s ABS thermoplastic tubular housings are Final’s own 6.4 mm dynamic drivers. I might be mistaken, but I believe these are the same drivers used on their much more expensive E4000 model.The rubberised cable is attached and terminates in a 90-degree 3.5mm gold-plated plug.The design of the housing is based on many of the other of Final’s popular E-series IEMs - so it’s a tried and tested design.To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of IEMs, but these little light-as-a-feather wonders from Final are really comfortable in my ears for long periods of time, and can be even used for side-sleeping with. Note that there is a fair amount of cable noise if you touch the cables or if they rub against your shirt - but that sound disappears once the music starts.So, to the sound.Simply, wow! I couldn’t believe how incredible these sounded from the moment I started listening to music on them. They have a warm-ish V-shaped sound signature, with a relatively wide soundstage and incredible imaging. Stunning bass, luscious non-fatiguing highs and a beautifully defined midrange make these truly enjoyable to listening to music on. The feeling of immersive surround sound that you get from these is outstanding. The immediate feeling I got was that these were like the IEM version of my fantastic Beyerdynamic TYGR 300 R over-ear headphones. If you do not like to smile or enjoy having fun with your music, then do not buy the Final E500.One of my favourite reference tracks for testing headphones on is “Autumn Leaves” by Cannonball Adderley and Miles Davis. It’s a journey into sound like no other, IMHO. Miles Davis’s glorious horn never gets piercing and Sam Jones’s double-bass feels organic and alive on the E500. It feels to me like I was there with them in the recording studio. And what greater compliment to music can there be?Sony, Beyerdynamic, Blon, V-Moda, Edifier, Tin Hi-Fi, KZ, Koss and many other notable hi-fi brands have budget IEMs that vie for the title of budget IEM King.I admit that I have not heard many other IEMs, and therefore cannot give you an honest comparison with regards to other budget IEMs, but I find it hard to believe that any of them can beat the Final E500 for sheer bang-for-buck value.The end.