Review - Thieaudio Legacy 2

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Also available on YouTube in Spanish: Acho Reviews YouTube

The Thieaudio Legacy 2 have been kindly donated by Linsoul in exchange for this review. They have not requested anything specific, however, as I always point out, even though my review will be as sincere and unbiased as possible, it is always good to consider the fact that these IEMs have not cost me anything.

You can find the Thieaudio Legacy 2 on the Linsoul website here: https://www.linsoul.com/products/thieaudio-legacy-2?_pos=8&_sid=9e8800030&_ss=r

(as always, this link is non-affiliate, meaning I do not receive anything in exchange for you visiting or purchasing through said link)

Intro…

To be honest, I hadn’t really been keeping up with the Thieaudio product line. I mean, I know Thieaudio, as it is a brand that is mentioned quite a lot in the IEM world and has uite a fame for some of their higher end models, but I really didn’t know much about their price models or price points. I remember the Legacy 3 interesting me at one point but I never actually got to hear it.

After spending time with the Legacy 2 to form my opinion on it, without even knowing its price, I decided to check it out on Linsoul. I was surprised to find that there are also various other models, such as the Legacy 3 I mentioned, along with the 4, 5 and even 9. I thought that maybe the Legacy 2 was an older model but some quick investigation showed that it is actually newer than the other models in the series, so I was somewhat confused by the naming scheme. However, after a bit more reading, I realized that the model number matches the driver count, which now makes sense to me.

The Legacy 2, as I just mentioned, has 2 drivers in each side, a proprietary 10mm beryllium dynamic driver along with a Knowles ED29689 balanced armature, a driver that has been used on some other very well regarded IEMs.

I must say that I was actually surprised to find that the Legacy 2 sells for $89 (less than 80€), as I actually thought the price would be higher. It is slightly above the sub 50€ bracket that I mention in many of my reviews, IEMs that I consider very budget orientated, but at its price it is still a very economical IEM in the scheme of things.

Presentation…

The Legacy 2 arrives in a largish black box covered by a black cardboard sleeve. The sleeve is all black and simply says Thieaudio on the front. Sliding the box out from inside the sleeve surprisingly reveals a box that is identical to the sleeve, simply black with Thieaudio on the lid.

Inside the box we find the IEMs with their 2 Pin cable attached, along with a selection of silicone tips, a rather nice blue (imitation) leather case with magnetic closure and the usual QC card, warranty card and even an instruction manual.

I have absolutely no complaints about the contents included for the price, it is much more than is included with many other models at similar (or more expensive) price points and there is nothing really missing.

Build and aesthetics…

Thieaudio uses a semi transparent blue shell for the Legacy 2, with a faceplate that has a kind of resin marble effect. I must say that I actually like the look. It is colorful enough to be different from so many other brands but at the same time is not overpowering nor does it stand out too much.

The IEMs themselves are very lightweight and are shaped in a way that I find very comfortable. I have been using the stock tips with them and I have been able to listen for hours without any issues in regards to comfort. There is no filter on the outside of the end of the nozzle, which actually has two smaller openings, to which the drivers are routed via their tubes.

The included cable is also pretty nice. It is a 4 core braided cable, with silver coloured connectors and split, which does have a few loose weaves here and there but nothing to complain about. The chin slider is transparent plastic rather than matching metal but it works as it is supposed to and does not seem out of place.

As far as build and aesthetics, I find that they are a nice set of IEMs that seem well built and are certainly comfortable for long sessions, even if this is something that is obviously a very personal thing.

Sound…

Now, where to start with the sound… My quick description of the sound would be pleasant, not overpowering, just generally a comfortable tuning. There is really nothing that jumps out at me in a bad way from the Legacy 2, although there is nothing that really jumps out at me in a great way either.

I suppose the word mediocre would come to mind but I think that mediocre is more negative than positive and I really don’t think that there is anything really negative about the Legacy 2, it is just not exciting. I have been using these IEMs daily for a week and at no moment did I ever feel that they were doing anything wrong, but I didn’t get any “wow!” moments either.

In the subbass regions, there is quite a bit of extension down to the lower regions, without the lowest notes seeming to roll off but there isn’t any boost either. I didn’t find that songs with deep sub bass came across as powerful in those regions, but they didn’t really come across as lacking either. The usual “Chameleon” work out proved to have enough sound to appreciate the subbass but didn’t really rumble like it does on other sets.

Moving into the mid and higher bass areas, again, presence is correct and bass is as present as it needs to be without being overdone. As you all know (unless this is the first review of mine you read), I am not a bass head, so take that as you will, but I found the bass to be nicely balanced as far as tuning. When I looked at a graph after listening for a few days, I was surprised to find that the bass actually shows to be more elevated than I would have guessed. It is higher than my usual preference in the bass region but it did not give me that impression.

I think that the main reason for it not giving me that impression is that the bass is rather smooth, without really standing out. Listening to “Black Muse” by Prince, I can really say that there is any lack of bass presence but once again, it doesn’t really stand out like it does on sets with more exciting bass response (even sets that actually have less bass as far as tuning). As a bass player, I automatically pay attention to bass lines even when I don’t want to, but the Legacy 2 doesn’t make me do that. The bass just doesn’t seem to stand out, but when I actually make an effort to listen to it, there really isn’t anything wrong, it just forms part of the overall music (which is what it should do, but usually doesn’t in my case because I am always unconsciously paying attention to it).

Moving into the mids, I feel I am going to start being repetitive. I listen to a lot of acoustic and vocal music and the mids sound fine but again, not exciting. Listening to “Strange Fruit” by Dominique Fils-Aimé, again her vocals were fine, no harshness, nothing particularly missing or added, but it did not come across as it does on so many IEMs with particularly good mids. Again, I need to stress that it does not do a bad job of the mids at all, in fact it doesn’t make a bad job of any of the frequencies, it just doesn’t excel at them.

Up in the higher regions, this is the area that I usually find most faults on economic IEMs and again, I can’t really fault them. They are clean, they are not harsh, there is no sibilance, there are no weird boosts. Yes, they could extend a little further but I really can’t complain that they roll off too early, or lack air, or any of that. Again, they just don’t stand out.

As far as soundstage and placement of images in that stage, well, the width is typical for an IEM. It is again not bad but is nothing out of the ordinary. The placement of images is decent although not amazing, but I think that this is more due to the fact that everything is sort of coherently balanced, there are no real background details that stand out. It does not give the impression of being a very detailed set of IEMs but if you actually look for a specific detail that you know should be there, it usually is, it just doesn’t amaze with details.

Conclusion…

I may have given the impression that the Legacy 2 are not good IEMs but that is a long way from being true. They are good IEMs, there really isn’t anything bad about them, but they are just an overall safe and coherent presentation of music.

I really don’t think anyone could say that they hate the Legacy 2 (well, this is the internet, I’m sure plenty of people can) because there really isn’t anything to hate about them. I think that they are a set of IEMs that you could literally buy for anyone without knowing their preferences and they would be a safe bet.

My conclusion is that the Legacy 2 is a good set of IEMs that is a safe bet, something that doesn’t really excel in anything particular but doesn’t really fall behind in anything particular either. If there is something specific you want from a set of IEMs, then I think that there will always be an option that will be better at that specific task but the Legacy 2 is an all rounder that will just do its job without complaint.