Some of you going into this review would have known about the Tin Hifi T2 (formally called as the Tin Audio T2) that "blows the world" for its ability to perform as a neutral IEM back then. Even today, I think it is still hold up quite well, despite a lot of new IEM have been released and taking the spotlight.

Despite my favor towards the Tin Hifi T2, I took the T2+ release as a grain of salt, although it does get my curiosity up since this is their second revision of the T2 which I am not sure the reason why. Let's see how it performs.

Before going into the post, if you are new, please read this before having any comments regarding my writing or point of view‌.

Information:

This Tin Hifi T2+ unit was provided by Linsoul in exchange for my honest review.

Build and Accessories:

Tin Hifi T2+ packaging
  • 2 sets of while silicon tips (S/M/L)
  • 1 pair of white foam tips
  • Unbalanced 3.5mm mmcx cable
  • Information and company cards
  • The IEM

If you are familiar with the T2 packaging, the T2+ overall is similar except for some small change that Tin Hifi has made.

To begin with, the cable has been improved. It is a 4-core braided silver cable with each core wrapped with 200D Kevlar fabric. It is quite smooth to touch although often prone to tangle. The 3.5mm jack has a straight, metal style and similar metal casing was applied to the MMCX ends. There is a Y-splitter with the company logo printed on. The cable has a decent chin slider too.

The design of the T2+ seems to follow similar styles as the P1 albeit is less "triangle" and more rounded. 2 vent holes can be found at the front or side of the IEM. Despite me having no problem wearing this IEM, there have been some issues with the T2+ fit so take that into account when you are looking for this IEM.

Sound:

When it comes to Tin Hifi's lineup, my impression is that most of their work are usually tagged as neutral, such words like "bright" or "flat bass" has always been sticking into my mind after every time I demo IEMs like T2, T2 Pro, T3+,... That is, until this comes:

Tin Hifi T2+ frequency response

You can imagine my surprise when I listen to the T2+ for the first time, it is probably one of the least Tin Hifi-Esque IEM that I got to experience. Not "bright" nor "flat bass", the Tin Hifi T2+ is a Warm V-Shaped IEM, spotting a ~7dB increase from the lowest point of 700Hz which makes it warmer than its older brothers by a significant margin. A surprising twist into their line up!

While the overall signature of the T2+ is welcoming, I have some problems with the execution of the IEM's lower region, mainly with its bass performance which was a little bit bloated, boomy, and lack rumbles from what I expected. Not to say that the T2+ bass is bad by any means, but knowing the development of the T2+, I would say the decision done by the team was "not optimal".

Tin Hifi T2+ pre-production frequency response - Credits to In Ear Fidelity

Personally, I would prefer less bass from the T2+ to prevent its technicality flaws from showing up but this is me nitpicking the IEM at this point. The T2+ bass is something that I expected given the price, it can be better for sure, but it is expected.

Now, the midrange is where I am more interested in the T2+. People within my circle have known that my expectation for the T2+ was a bucket grain of salt just because of its weird upper midrange elevation and to my surprise, it's quite good. Not much I could say about the T2+ midrange flaws because a lot of them are quite insignificant giving its price. Were if I would have to pick out the biggest problem among those small issues then that would be how female vocals sometimes sound like they are having a runny nose and that's it. The T2+'s midrange is just right for my ears, with nothing too forward or too thin/warm that can throw me up.

Treble performance of the T2+ is okay. Cymbal and hi-hats have decent sparkles but they can be a bit splashy. There is also some sense of sharpness which might be from the 5.5kHz peak that can be potentially offensive to some ears.
That being said, The T2+ is quite inoffensive to my ears, with no sibilance or harshness issues that would be too significant for me to mentions personally. I consider this as a plus in my book but YMMV.

Technicalities of the T2+ fall into the average among IEMs I have tried. Imaging and Soundstage performance is expected: there is some sense of instruments overlapping each other while having a slightly narrow stage which isn't something I would take for Instrumental/Orchestra. But, the IEM manages to produce some more details comparing to similar priced 1 DD set that I tried recently which does give the T2+ a bit more sound quality edge. And no, it's not a lot, just a bit.

Choice comparisons:

vs Tin Hifi T2:

If you have read my first impression post, you would know that I have said that the T2+ sounds like a different entity comparing to the T2. And even after A/Bing both of them, I still stand by this statement.

The situation with the T2+ and T2 isn't the same as the Blessing 1 and Blessing 2, where the latter is more of a refinement of the original model while still following the same tuning philosophy. The T2+ to me is more like an overhaul of the original signature, with little to no hint of the T2 "spirit" in it.

The original T2 is less bassy, less warm, and even thinner than the T2+. Not to mention that the sibilance issue on the T2 can be quite nasty to some people which I have seen some cases. Despite what I said about both IEM being different, current T2 owners can somewhat expect a more pleasant experience if they decide to get the T2+ as an "upgrade".

vs Moondrop SSR:

While the T2+ can be a better option than the SSR judging from the tonality of both IEM alone. I wouldn't say that the T2+ is necessarily better than the SSR.

While the T2+ is less shouty and shrill than the SSR to some people, the SSR has better technicalities over its competitor. From the clean, tight bass, to the soundstage which has some "over the ear" effect comparing to the T2+ whose bass is a little bit bloated and average imaging.

Depends on your music preference, I think the T2+ can be easily overshadowed by some decent "specialist" IEMs around its price. One favors technicalities (Or even, a worshiper of the Diffuse Field sound signature) can surely pick the SSR over the T2+ at any time - and this is only one of the few examples.

Conclusion:

Giving the sonic performance of the T2+, my recommendation with this IEM is a little bit odd...
Slapping anything into this IEM and I am bound to find a problem with it. But strangely, all of those problems are quite negligible giving its price which makes the T2+ a safe recommendation from me. You can argue to me that being "safe" means that the T2+ can be easily overshadowed by a lot of IEM. But honestly, I don't think so.

Overall, the Tin Hifi T2+ is a solid product from the brand this time around, well done!

Recommendation ratings: Recommended

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