Review - Tin Hifi T2 DLC

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Also available on YouTube in Spanish: Acho Reviews YouTube

The Tin Hifi T2 DLC have been sent to me by Linsoul for me to try them and share my opinions. They have not commented or made any requests, so my review, as always, will aim to be as unbiased as possible. Saying that, it is always good to consider the fact that these IEMs have not cost me anything.

The Tin Hifi T2 DLC can be found on Linsoul here: https://www.linsoul.com/products/tinhifi-t2-dlc

As always, this is a non-affiliate link and I do not gain anything by clicks or purchases via the link.

Intro…

If there ever was a model of IEMs in the budget category that made itself a name for a very long time (and is still talked about now) it is the T2 by Tin Hifi. The amount of times that the T2 has been talked about, recommended and praised is incalculable. They were the first set of IEMs that many picked up when looking for a “good balanced set at a budget price” and although budget IEMs have come a very long way since then, you will still see them brought up regularly in the budget IEM world. They really were a “stepping stone” for many people, opening up a world of budget sound that those people hadn’t really experienced until then.

Tin Hifi have released many many models since then, with varying degrees of success, yet I believe that the T2 is probably still their most successful model.

I can’t say when the original T2 were released but I believe I picked up my first set in 2018, which seems like centuries ago in this IEM world. I have to say that I was rather unlucky and had 3 out of 4 IEMs fail on me, all related to the MMCX connectors, which made me move on and also started my dislike for MMCX connectors (which have given me various problems over the years on different models).

As I just said, IEMs, especially in the budget world, have come a very long way since then and although Tin did recently release the original T2 with the connectors changed to 2 pin (well done Tin, although a little too late in my opinion), they have also just released the model that I am reviewing today, the T2 DLC. This new set is based on the original T2 IEMs but with a new DLC dynamic driver, aiming to put the T2 back on the radar.

Coming in at 59€ (at the time of this review), they are around 10€ more expensive than the original model (with the updated connectors). That is just outside the sub 50€ range, which I consider to be “extreme budget”, but still a price that can be considered a budget friendly set.

Presentation…

Opening the T2 DLC was a bit of a blast from the past. The packaging and the contents are all very similar, in fact almost identical, to the original T2 presentation.

Arriving in a black cardboard sleeve (rather than the white one of the originals), inside we find a box that resembles a book, yet is wider than it is tall. The cover of the box is also black (where the originals were blue) but inside we find basically all of the same contents that we did with the original T2.

In other words, we get the IEMs, the cable, a selection of silicone tips, some foam tips and the user manual etc.

I think that the original T2 were one of very few sets to include foam tips with the IEMs and it is nice to see that this tradition has been maintained. I used foam tips for quite a while before finally finding silicone tips that I preferred, and I still find them very comfortable to use now, even if they do age pretty quickly.

Build and aesthetics…

The build and aesthetics are also easily identified with the original model, sticking with the round shells made from aluminium which allow you to wear the IEMs orientated both up and down (although the cable has preformed ear hooks, so you would need to either swa the cable or remove the heat shrink to wear them “cable down”).

The aesthetics have been tweaked ever so slightly, with the center circle now being recessed just a tiny and featuring the Tin logo in the center. The connectors have also been switched to the 2 pin variant, which is something that I personally appreciate.

As far as the cable, it is a little different from the original and is actually the cable that Tin have included with other models of theirs. The cable is white, with silver hardware that matches the IEMs, and is rather simple but quite adequate for the job it does. Tin list it as an 8 Core silver plated cable in the specs, in case that is something that interests you.

Sound…

Let’s start with the important question, is the T2 DLC and upgrade from the original T2?

Although very subjective, I have to say that yes it is.

Ok, being totally transparent here, it is a long time since I last listened to the original T2, as the two sets I have only have 1 IEM working in total (so I can’t really rehash an impression with just one ear) but the impression that the T2 DLC give me is that they are certainly a step up in performance. I don’t remember the T2 ever giving me the sensation of being very detailed, their main attribute was the balanced tuning, and the T2 DLC do seem to have improved both in detail and in overall performance, including a tuning that matches my preferences (which will have evolved since back in the OG T2 days). But I’ll get to that in a moment.

Let’s start with the usual look at the graph of the T2 DLC, with my personal preference target and the original T2 for reference. At the risk of being repetitive (I say this in almost every IEM review), my personal preference target is just a rough guide, it does not guarantee that I will like something that sticks close to it, nor hate something that doesn’t.

Starting off with the lowest notes as always, we can see that the T2 DLC has increased the presence in the subbass ranges, no longer presenting the roll off that the original did in these frequencies.

Putting them through the usual “Chameleon” test, I find that the subbass is at a level that I find pleasant and enjoyable, without being overly present nor lacking rumble. Those that prefer more of a brain rumbling subbass may not agree with me but in my case, I find it works well.

Moving over to “Royals”, with a subbass that is slightly less controlled than “Chameleon”, I find that the T2 DLC does a good job of keepin the low notes tight and while it is not groundbreaking, it certainly performs well enough.

In the midbass section, things are a little more present that I like. However, it is not a midbass that I find offensive. It works well to give classic rock some warmth in those lower electric guitar and bass notes, while still being clean enough to sound fairly balanced with newer productions.

With acoustic guitars, the midbass presence gives plenty of warmth and body, and while it is not what I would consider 100% correct in the timbre department, it is close and it does give a nice tone to tracks like “Hurt” by Johnny Cash.

The mids are well maintained throughout and the climb into the presence area in the upper mids is smooth, matching my personal preferences very closely. In fact, the T2 DLC is a good example of something that I have mentioned in many other reviews regarding the upper mids. I am quite sensitive to the 5kHz mark and sets that have a peak in that region come across as very harsh and uncomfortable to me. However, in the case of these IEMs, while there is plenty of presence in the 5kHz region, it is not a peak but rather a “plateau” that covers the 2kHz to 5kHz range. This makes things sound much smoother to my ear, giving a good presence without becoming harsh. This obviously depends on the recording of tracks but in general it works very well for me.

As we move into the higher ranges, I find the extension to be good, with a nice sensation of air and presence. Sibilance is kept in check well, tested as always with “Code Cool”, which is quite a pleasant listen on the T2 DLC. There is still a presence of sibilance on certain parts of “Hope is a Dangerous Thing”, which proves that they are not overly dampening sibilance, just controlling it well.

Details are not bad either. I wouldn’t say they are amazing but they are good enough for tracks to not sound smoothed over or missing info. In the case of the intro to “All Your Love (Turned To Passion)”, they present the reverb and other background details fairly well, with them being easy to appreciate. Ok, we are not talking high end planar levels of detail, nor IE600 DD levels of detail, but they are still more than acceptable. It may become difficult to

Soundstage is not the widest, falling into the “average” range that I find 90% of IEMs to fall into. However, image placement is decent enough, making layers such as in “Strange Fruit” be easily placed and identifiable. In busy tracks with many layers, it may not be quite as easy to place and track the individual sounds but I feel that is more due to the detail than the placement.

Isolation of the T2 DLC is not bad but not excellent either. They should work well enough for normal use while surrounded by normal noise levels, yet they will suffer if used on a plane, train or other places with constant low rumbling noises.

Conclusion…

I honestly think that the T2 DLC are the most enjoyable tuning I have heard from Tin Hifi so far, making them a very worthy successor to the original T2 model. They are not perfect and they may verge on being a very “safe tuning”, yet I think they have done a good job here.

I reviewed the T3 Plus a while back and basically said that they were enjoyable because Tin had tuned them similar to many other successful models from other brands. In this case, Tin have taken a similar tuning with a few tweaks that push it even more towards my preference.

They are not perfect of course, the details are not the best and the driver does seem to struggle with very complex and detailed tracks, yet in general, they do a job that I have no complaints about.

I could probably list a few more things that I feel could be improved yet I feel they should be given credit where it is deserved and the Tin Hifi T2 DLC certainly deserve it in my opinion.