Review - Tin Hifi T4 Plus

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TLDR version on YouTube: TDLR - Tin Hifi T4 Plus

The Tin Hifi T4 Plus have been sent to me by Linsoul for me to test and evaluate by means of this review. No specific comments or requests have been made and I will, as always, do my best to be as unbiased as possible. However, please remember that I did not have to purchase these IEMs.

The Tin T4 Plus can be found on Linsoul here: https://www.linsoul.com/products/tinhifi-t4-plus

As with all the links I post, this is a non-affiliate link.

Intro…

Todays review is the last of the Tin Hifi marathon, which has featured the C2, the C3 and the T4 Plus one after the other. All of these were sent to me by Linsoul at the same time and I decided I would do them in ascending numerical order, just because 😊

Saying that, while I have done these reviews in succession and I did compare the C2 and C3 when reviewing the C3, the T4 Plus is from a completely different series of IEMs so there is no reason to actually compare the three.

The T4 Plus uses a sigle dynamic driver and is currently priced at just under 120€ on Linsoul, which places it well out of the extreme budget options I have been looking at lately, although it is still not exactly an expensive set of IEMs (in comparison to many other models out there).

Presentation…

The box of the T4 Plus features cartoon artwork of the IEMs in outer space, with the text “Space Station” written across the bottom. I have absolutely no idea where this space reference comes from but at I guess it is a break from both the plain white boxes we usually receive from Tin (except for the recent robot). I can’t say that the box is something that attracts me but the packaging is the least of my worries when testing IEMs.

Removing the outer packaging reveals a box that is much more reminiscent of Tin Hifi (similar in finish to the T3 buds) inside of which we find the IEMs sitting in felt covered cutouts.

Beneath the top layer we find the accessories which are a bit of a change from the usual T series contents. We get a cable, a nice storage/carrying case, 3 sizes of 3 different types of tips and a clear plastic case in which one of the type of tips is stored.

While two of the types of tips are similar to those found in many models, the third type is something different. With previous editions of the T2 and T3 series (I don’t know about the OGT4 as I didn’t try those), Tin usually included at least one set of foam tips. In the case of the T4 Plus, we don’t get the foam tips but we get 3 sizes of hybrid foam/silicone tips. These are tips that have a soft memory foam style interior with a silicone cover over them. It is not the first time I have come across these tips but I can’t remember another set including them.

Build and aethetics…

The IEMs are clearly of the T series, maintaining the classic round shape with the connector being located on a barrel style protrusion on one side. They are still all metal, however, they have changed the colour scheme. Instead of the typical silver finish found on previous models, this time Tin Hifi have opted for a finish in various tones of copper. The shells are of a darker copper colour, with a lighter copper ring surrounding the faceplate. The faceplate is of a dark brown colour with some lighter speckles in the finish. The faceplate is not something that excites me but the overall colour scheme of the IEMs is something I like.

The cable also follows the same colour scheme with a two tone brown weave and metal hardware that matches the IEMs. They have kept with their recent conversion to two pin connectors (something I prefer) and also use their typical coloured ring (red right / clear left) to identify the correct side easily.

I really don’t have any complaints about the build or aesthetics of the IEMs but for some reason, I don’t find the fit and comfort as good as I have done on all the previous T series IEMs I have tried. Looking at them, I can’t spot the difference but for some reason, I have struggled to get them to fit easily, especially in my left ear.

I went through all of the included tips and the ones that work the best for me are the large silicone with red center. But even with these, I have to play around a little to get the correct seal. I thought that maybe my anatomy had changed over the Christmas period but I grabbed the T2 DLC and they fit fine, so I really don’t know why I am having issues with them. As always, comfort and fit is something that is 100% personal, so everyone will have a different experience, I just thought I would mention it.

Sound…

All tracks mentioned are clickable links that allow you to open the reference track in the streaming service of your choice (YouTube, Tidal, Spotify, etc.)

I said that I wasn’t going to compare these against the C series but due to the similarities in tuning, I will include the C3 on the graph for our usual look and comparison:

As you can see in the graph, the tuning of these IEMs is very similar to the C3 (or the C3 is similar to these, whichever way you prefer to look at it) except for a few small tweaks. Obviously, seeing that I was fairly positive about the C3, I am not going to hate the tuning on these but those little changes do make quite a difference.

Starting out at the bottom, as always, the subbass has plenty of presence to create that low end rumble in the tracks that call for it. The subbass is quite clean and coherent although it can suffer slightly when pushed too much. This isn’t a problem for me as 99% of the music I usually listen to doesn’t push the subbass enough to make cause problems for the T4 Plus but if you are listening to dubstep at over 100dB, then it is possible you may notice it 😉

The midbass is too present for my liking. The emphasis is not too bad but I do find it tiring when listening to tracks with a lot of focus in the 100Hz to 200Hz range, creating a bit of fatigue over longer sessions. As I have commented many times, I am not someone who likes too much emphasis on the low end, especially when it is mainly focused on the midbass, but if a set of IEMs manages to keep it clean and defined, then I can enjoy it. With the T4 Plus, the cleanliness and definition is not bad, making it ok for a lot of my music choices, yet when there are things that focus in those regions, then it can become tiring for me.

The center of the mids has that slight dip that all of the recent Tin models seem to have. This really isn’t something that is overly noticeable, unless you really look for it. In most music it does not affect the overall sound, only when something specifically resides in that area (mainly some kind of effect in certain electronic productions) is it noticeable, and even then it is not really an issue.

The upper mids and lower treble is actually my preferred out of all the recent Tin models I have tried. There is enough presence to give vocals clarity and definition but without them becoming overly shouty or harsh. Even Beth in “Don't You Worry Child” keeps her natural harshness but doesn’t become overy irritating (which is not something I can say on all IEMs).

The treble extension is also fairly decent for a single dynamic driver, and while it is not 100 smooth, it is still enjoyable. A little bit more sensation of air and openness would have been appreciated but it is still not bad in this regard.

I find the detail retrieval to be fairly good also, with a nice presence of detail and space between layers. These are not competing on the detail level of something like the IE600 but are still above average in my opinion. I actually find that the details in the in the upper mids are more noticeable on the T4 Plus than many other sets I have tried lately.

Soundstage and image placement is more than acceptable, although it is not really a huge soundstage. I did find that the instruments in “La Luna” were less spread out but the rear left guitar did seem to be pushed furher back, giving more space of depth behind me.

The isolation of the T4 Plus is good, well above average in almost all of the frequency ranges. Yes, it still lets low engine rumbles through but anything above the bass range is blocked quite well.

Conclusion…

I don’t have many complaints about the Tin Hifi T4 Plus. The only really irritating thing (to me) is the excessive midbass. Ok, I did have some strange issues with fit but once I got the right combination of tips and placement, they were comfortable enough.

In general they are a good set of IEMs but… and there is always a but… I think that the price may be their biggest flaw. I mean, they are still not exactly an expensive set of IEMs and I know that the race to the bottom in pricing that we have experienced lately distorts the real value of things, but we have some very good options at a fraction of the price.

Even without considering anything outside of Tin Hifi’s own line up, we have the C3 at less than 50€ which may not be quite as good as the T4 Plus but it is close. We also have the T2 DLC wich comes in at just 10€ more than the C3 and, in my opinion, sounds great. So, for the jump up to 120€ that the T4 Plus costs, we get a slight improvement in sound (depending on your tastes), a slight increase in performance (although I would need to do a side by side of the T2 DLC to say just how much) and we get more goodies in the box.

I have no complaints about the T4 Plus as IEMs but if they are worth the extra cash is only something you can decide.