This and That:
Unique way the large packaging opens.
Many included accessories.
Large, heavy case with good cushioning inside. Offers enough space for the in-ear, the small container with the filters and even additional accessories.
The small container with the filters has them neatly organised. The included tweezers are useless for changing filters.
Shells made of plastic but look like metal.
Twisted cable that looks good. Unfortunately springy, somewhat stiff and very microphonic.
Same layout (left side inverted) and pin thickness as that of the Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10.
Three filter groups - two for the lows ("ULF" = sub-bass, located on the insice; "LF" = midbass, located on the outside), one for the mids/highs ("MF/HF" = midrange/treble, nozzle filter).Up to 36 (3 x 3 x 4) different tuning options.
Small filters; easy to lose. Should be changed in an appropriate environment and with patience.
Sound:
I'm only using low impedance sources as well as the largest included white silicone tips.
Personally, I'm using the Grey/Clear/Gunmetal combination the most.
Tonality:
ULF
|
LF
|
MF/HF
|
Clear
= Minimum
|
Clear
= Minimum
|
Blue
= Minimum HF
|
Grey
= Medium
|
Grey
= Medium
|
Gunmetal
= Medium MF & HF
|
Red
= Maximum
|
Black =
Maximum
|
Green
= Medium MF & Maximum HF
|
Gold
= Maximum MF & Medium HF
|
The ULF filters provide around 10 dB of adjustment range, mainly in the sub-bass (slightly below-neutral quantity to ca. 9.5 dB of boost).
The LF filters provide around 6 dB of adjustment range, mainly in the upper bass, however they also have an effect on the mid- and sub-bass as well as slightly on the midrange.
The MF/HF filters offer around 11 dB of adjustment range, mainly in the upper treble.
Either way, there are always some things that don't change but remain constant, such as that there is a dip located in the middle highs at 5 kHz. What doesn't change either is that the upper treble that is attenuated by the MF/HF filters is always relatively the most present at 8 kHz, and that the bass never spills into the higher fundamental range/low midrange.
Let's take a look at some specific filter combinations:
Grey/Grey/Gold:
This is the filter combination the FLC8s came with.
Sub-bass and midbass about 6 dB north of neutral (compared to an in-ear with diffuse-field flat lows, such as the Etymotic ER4SR/ER-4S); equal sub- and midbass quantity; no roll-off. No fundamental range bloom.
Somewhat boosted mids that are on the brighter side but also slightly sibilant on some recordings.
8 kHz peak that's slightly above neutral but not sharp.
Red/Black/Blue:
The bassiest and darkest sounding combination of all with an even downwards-slope from the sub-bass to the upper treble.
Sub-bass 9.5 dB north of neutral. Upper bass elevated by about 5.5 dB. Already at neutral level again around 400 Hz.
Mids somewhat on the darker side.
Relaxed treble.
Red/Grey/Gold:
Sub-bass focus with midrange focus.
Sub-bass elevated by 9.5 dB. Midbass and upper bass a bit less present compared to the black filters. Not a large difference but enough to make the sub-bass stand out more.
Mild midrange lift, mostly correct timbre.
Only slight upper treble lift.
Red/Black/Green:
V-shaped tonality.
Sub-bass 9.5 dB north of neutral. Upper bass elevated by about 5.5 dB. Already at neutral level again around 400 Hz.
Minimal 1 kHz lift. However when compared to the mids and highs, the mids are recessed and somewhat distant sounding.
Distinct 8 kHz elevation that can be a bit sharp at times.
Grey/Clear/Gunmetal:
The most neutral/reference signature. The one that is relatively the closest to that of my Etymotic ER-4S/the ER4SR, wherefore I like it the most.
Just marginally more preset bass and low root. Flat.
Pretty spot-on midrange. Correct vocal timbre, no colouration.
Somewhat recessed middle highs.
Upper treble slightly above neutral.
Resolution:
The resolution capabilities of this in-ear are simply stunningly high for the price and I go that far to say that the FLC8s can compete with my UERM in the midrange and treble department without problems. In the highs, the UE are very slightly more differentiated plus refined and also a bit more realistic despite their peak (in comparison, the FLC sounds slightly constrained/dull in the upper treble), but in the mids both in-ears are about on-par and honestly speaking the FLC8s sounds even more detailed in the vocal area, as it reveals more minute details while sounding very precise and natural.
Tiny details in the treble and mids are no problem for the FLC8s and fine details are presented and revealed in a very natural way. Speech intelligibility is very high, which should be obvious given the context.
In the lows, it looks a bit different, but that is simply because of the different driver types: although FLC8s’s bass is very fast and precise for dynamic driver standards, it doesn’t reach the precision, control and details of the UERMs' Balanced Armature driver when very fast and complex tracks are being played.
The FLC8s’s bass character is quite typical for that of a (really good) dynamic driver and it is not too hard to tell that it is no BA woofer, but on the other hand, this dynamic woofer driver is very detailed on its own and sometimes, especially with less complex and rather slow music, it is quite difficult to say whether it is a dynamic or BA driver, although the bass doesn’t stand in the room straight to the point but is a bit more room-filling.
Using the red sub-bass filters though, the bass softens more and becomes spongier, clearly revealing that it's a dynamic driver.
It beats the more expensive DUNU DK-3001 in terms of resolution and is pretty much comparable to the much pricier Fidue A91 Sirius when it comes to details, and even somewhat exceeds its midrange resolution.
Soundstage:
The FLC8s’s soundstage is quite wide.
There is also a good amount of depth, though it is just about one quarter less distinct than the width, creating a somewhat more oval than circular soundstage.Regarding instrument separation and spatial precision, the in-ear is technically really strong, as single elements are precisely placed and separated.
It's a very capable hybrid in-ear in general.
Conclusion:
Grey/Grey/Gold:
This is the filter combination the FLC8s came with.
Sub-bass and midbass about 6 dB north of neutral (compared to an in-ear with diffuse-field flat lows, such as the Etymotic ER4SR/ER-4S); equal sub- and midbass quantity; no roll-off. No fundamental range bloom.
Somewhat boosted mids that are on the brighter side but also slightly sibilant on some recordings.
8 kHz peak that's slightly above neutral but not sharp.
Red/Black/Blue:
The bassiest and darkest sounding combination of all with an even downwards-slope from the sub-bass to the upper treble.
Sub-bass 9.5 dB north of neutral. Upper bass elevated by about 5.5 dB. Already at neutral level again around 400 Hz.
Mids somewhat on the darker side.
Relaxed treble.
Red/Grey/Gold:
Sub-bass focus with midrange focus.
Sub-bass elevated by 9.5 dB. Midbass and upper bass a bit less present compared to the black filters. Not a large difference but enough to make the sub-bass stand out more.
Mild midrange lift, mostly correct timbre.
Only slight upper treble lift.
Red/Black/Green:
V-shaped tonality.
Sub-bass 9.5 dB north of neutral. Upper bass elevated by about 5.5 dB. Already at neutral level again around 400 Hz.
Minimal 1 kHz lift. However when compared to the mids and highs, the mids are recessed and somewhat distant sounding.
Distinct 8 kHz elevation that can be a bit sharp at times.
Grey/Clear/Gunmetal:
The most neutral/reference signature. The one that is relatively the closest to that of my Etymotic ER-4S/the ER4SR, wherefore I like it the most.
Just marginally more preset bass and low root. Flat.
Pretty spot-on midrange. Correct vocal timbre, no colouration.
Somewhat recessed middle highs.
Upper treble slightly above neutral.
Resolution:
The resolution capabilities of this in-ear are simply stunningly high for the price and I go that far to say that the FLC8s can compete with my UERM in the midrange and treble department without problems. In the highs, the UE are very slightly more differentiated plus refined and also a bit more realistic despite their peak (in comparison, the FLC sounds slightly constrained/dull in the upper treble), but in the mids both in-ears are about on-par and honestly speaking the FLC8s sounds even more detailed in the vocal area, as it reveals more minute details while sounding very precise and natural.
Tiny details in the treble and mids are no problem for the FLC8s and fine details are presented and revealed in a very natural way. Speech intelligibility is very high, which should be obvious given the context.
In the lows, it looks a bit different, but that is simply because of the different driver types: although FLC8s’s bass is very fast and precise for dynamic driver standards, it doesn’t reach the precision, control and details of the UERMs' Balanced Armature driver when very fast and complex tracks are being played.
The FLC8s’s bass character is quite typical for that of a (really good) dynamic driver and it is not too hard to tell that it is no BA woofer, but on the other hand, this dynamic woofer driver is very detailed on its own and sometimes, especially with less complex and rather slow music, it is quite difficult to say whether it is a dynamic or BA driver, although the bass doesn’t stand in the room straight to the point but is a bit more room-filling.
Using the red sub-bass filters though, the bass softens more and becomes spongier, clearly revealing that it's a dynamic driver.
It beats the more expensive DUNU DK-3001 in terms of resolution and is pretty much comparable to the much pricier Fidue A91 Sirius when it comes to details, and even somewhat exceeds its midrange resolution.
Soundstage:
The FLC8s’s soundstage is quite wide.
There is also a good amount of depth, though it is just about one quarter less distinct than the width, creating a somewhat more oval than circular soundstage.Regarding instrument separation and spatial precision, the in-ear is technically really strong, as single elements are precisely placed and separated.
It's a very capable hybrid in-ear in general.
Conclusion:
Offers many filters to tune the sound to one's personal preference. Very high technical performance. Unfortunately very microphonic cable.