- The earpieces
- Cable
- 6 pairs of ear tips (one softer set and other one with firmer wall)
- Paperwork
The packaging is okay for the price. The outer sleeve has a nice mecha armor suit design with Mech Warrior C2 2025 branding. Upon opening the box, the IEM shells are presented at top on foam with the cable, eartips and paperworks underneath the foam.
Build and Design:
The Tinhifi C2 2025 looks almost the same as the original C2. The sleek mecha design looks classy in black color which I have here. It has a semi open back design just like the original one. The only two things that are different from the original C2 is the build material and the cable. This time the shells are made of aluminum instead of plastic. The nozzle is made of metal with polished silver color. Although the cable is better than the original one, it’s just okay. Its flimsy but usable. But the stock cable doesn’t do it justice. I found a good cable can bring out the full potential of this IEM unlike the stock one.
Fit and Comfort:
The fit is pretty good on this IEM. It gives a nice snug fit with decent isolation. But the comfort part is not that well for me. For short listening periods, it doesn’t create any comfort issue. But with longer listening sessions the edges create pain and discomfort on my ear. But note that my ears are rather spread out than average people. So this particular discomfort might not affect many of you. As for the cable, it is pretty easy to manage and is as easy to get tangled.
Sound Quality:
The Tinhifi C2 2025 has a balanced mid-focused sound with some character in bass and treble. Let me break it down:
- Bass:
The bass is not particularly powerful but I enjoyed the bass here. It has some decent speed and the fast roll off makes the hits sound cleaner which is the mid-bass part. The sub-bass has good extension and has adequate rumble which doesn’t sound all that lacking. It sounds clean without any distortion or seeming out of place. The sub-bass doesn’t overpower anything and keeps a nice presence to keep up with rest of the frequency range. The ultra-low sub-bass in “Jaws – Sleep Token” can work as a good example for.
Mid-bass here is punchy and textured. the fast decay results in a cleaner and speedy mid-bass with each hit giving a satisfying tactile feedback. The fast decay means the after-effect from each drum hit is pretty short to almost none existent, which explains the clean, fast and fairly detailed mid-range. It’s definitely not at bass-head level or even close but has enough amount to satisfy majority of users. As the mid-bass decay is fast, the sub-bass rumble fills the spot for giving an immersive bass presentation which doesn’t sound lacking. Overall it can give a pleasant bass performance which I enjoyed quite a bit.
- Mid-range:
The mid-range here is a bit forward in the presentation. The instruments seem to retain their natural tonality which is originally meant to display. The male vocals have good body but may lack a bit of fullness or warmth in stock configuration. It retains the natural tonality of the vocals here with a rich and engaging vocal presentation. Due to the clean mid-bass and slightly forward mid-range, the vocals have a nice focus in the mix resulting is engaging experience.
The female vocals sound crispy yet smooth. There’s good amount of air in female vocals and quite detailed. In some tracks it can capture some articulations of the vocalist’s performance as well. The upper mid-range sits in a nice position where the female vocals benefit from harmonious, detailed and emotional presentation without exerting too much energy. It’s nothing special but sounds rather satisfying with half of the female vocals that I listened to with this IEM. The other half, not that emotional but still nice sounding.
The Instruments presentation caught me off guard. I didn’t expect this kind of tonality and character from this set at all. The tonality is pretty much neutral but the slight forward mid-range and energy altogether showed an amazingly vibrant play. The notes sound musical, vibrant and engaging due to the nicely done upper-midrange. The instrument clarity and separation deserve praise as well.
- Treble:
The treble is lively, detailed, well extended and sparkly. It sits on a place where it balances well with the lows and other frequency regions. The lower treble has good extension also has nice clarity. The detailed treble with the slightly forward upper-midrange makes for a lively presentation. The upper treble has some nice sparkle but the air is just average (average means pretty good). It can push some macro details well. The energy here is just right, enough to blend in with rest.
- Technical Performance:
Technicalities here is above average in most part. The stage width and depth is just average but height is above average in this price range. Imaging is just okay. It can give a feel which direction the sound cues are coming from but it’s not precise. In terms of instrument separation, it can potentially compete with the best ones in its price segment. Detail retrieval is pretty good as well. dynamic range and transient response is average here.
Source and Tip-rolling:
I tried a couple of ear tips with the Tinhifi C2 2025 where the ePro Propeller and NF Audio MS42 ear tips stood out the most. The ePro Propeller sounded more open with better extension in treble also a bit more controlled mid-bass. The NF Audio MS42 Offers fuller mid-bass, smooth and engaging overall experience.
As for source pairing, it is somewhat easy to drive. Warm leaning or neutral sources are recommended here. It shows good speed, control and details in mid-bass and treble with somewhat capable clinical source as well.
Conclusion:
Tinhifi sure has improved quite a bit here from the original C2. But the question is can it hold a spot in the crowded market? I think it can! The way the C2 2025 shows a clinical yet engaging sound signature, it can stand out in the crowd with the right setup. That being said, the stock cable can’t utilize its full potential. But if you upgrade to a good enough cable and get the right ear tip for you, this can potentially be one of the best ones in its price segment. The Tinhifi C2 2025 is one of those IEMs that I didn’t hold high expectations for but it grew on me with time. Those who like controlled, tight and speedy bass with well extended detailed and vibrant treble, and are willing to upgrade stock accessories, this set is recommended.
