7Hz x HBB Elua's Review - Bombastic Fun!

 

General/Build/Packaging/Comfort

7Hz released two budget IEMs recently, one is the gaming series G1 and another is the one I have with me today, the Elua, a collaboration with HBB, Elua sterns from hawaiian word and it means two, which also point to the fact that Elua is an IEM with dual DD config. The shell is full transparent with aluminium like faceplate. The nozzle is on the slightly shorter side but not really an issue for me as it fits and seals quite well. If fit is really an issue, using an ear tip with a longer stem will help. 

The packaging itself is rather straightforward and minimal, the usual 7Hz’s colorful eartips with various bore sizes, wide and narrow, the IEM itself, as well as the cable. Every 7Hz’s release, I noticed this, doesn’t matter the price point, the included cable is always good quality and good looking and has good synergy with the IEM itself.

Gears used for this review

• Aune S9C

• Rog Ally Z1 Extreme

• 7Hz Elua with stock cable and eartips

• Fiio JM21

• Sony ZX300

• Dita Navigator

Foreword

My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far

Sound Impression 

The Elua’s  tuning is leaning towards a slight V shape and it has quite a bit of energy on the top end which I personally think is something different from the usual HBB’s collab. Timbre sounds quite natural to my ears and it has quite a good body to it overall with sufficient note weight to it. Out of the box, the treble is really all over the place, but after I put it through the loop of pink noise for approximately 20+ hours, it got so much better

Bass

• Bass on the Elua is not lacking by all means, It is punchy has good quality bass with very rumbly sub bass, this will definitely please the bass heads

• It has good textures and body to it, doesn’t sound loose and thin

• Mid bass has good slam and punch to it, listening to Metallica’s Lux Aeterna is very pleasing as every hit on the drum be can felt

• Sub bass is slightly more prominent compared to mid bass and rumbles when the track calls for it, the transition to mid bass is also fairly smooth 

• The speed is also excellent on the NM20, handling complex tracks with ease without sounding muddy and bleeding into the mids

Mids

• The midrange is good with sufficient note weight, not sounding too thin and vocal positioning is not too forward nor laid back

• Female vocal has good energy to it and good texture

• Male vocal that has low baritone voice such as Zhao Peng retains the warmth and texture to it, it doesn’t sound thin at all, very pleasant experience

• The upper mids are borderline shouty depending on tracks, but i am not that sensitive to it so overall it is very pleasant for me, and it does very well in terms of giving the female vocal a slight boost

• Slightly recessed in the mids, but not really a deal breaker

Treble

• Treble response on the Elua is energetic but not harsh nor sibilant

• Good amount of air and presence and contributed to good sense of staging and imaging as well, resolution is very good for the asking price

• Detail retrieval is good and i can hear the nuances distinctively without having to try hard, an example of such track is Faye Wang’s 旋木，the finger slides from the guitar can be heard easily

Soundstage/Imaging

• Soundstage for Elua is good for the price, good sense of width, depth, a little lacking in height but very good overall. It is quite spacious sounding, listening to orchestral or live tracks is very enjoyable

• Imaging is also a strong point for Elua as well, instruments can be pinpointed easily even on complex tracks such as Slipknot’s People = Shit!, well layered and good separation, i even play games with it, enemies sneaking up on you can be heard quite clearly

Driveability

• The Elua is not hard to drive, any mid range dongle will do just fine

• It scales quite well with source whereby not so much on the amplification

• Pairing it with Sony’s ZX300 tilts the overall spectrum to the slightly warmer side with a thicker note weight, whereas on the JM21, it is not as warm but quite dynamic overall 

Comparison (QKZ x HBB Hades)

• Sporting similar configuration, but the Hades is purely on the warm side of the spectrum featuring thumpy bass and thick note weight

• Bass on the Elua is much cleaner and has better sub bass extension compared to Hades

• Hades does requires quite a bit of power to sound slight better

• Treble very smooth and there’s no peak at all

• Technicalities is below average for the asking price, Elua is leading ahead in terms of technicalities

• I would say Hades is a rather niche product catering to only a particular genre of music, definitely not an all rounder

Final Thoughts

I have quite a positive experience with the Elua overall other than the slightly rough upper mids. Elua is a solid product overall especially at this price point. 

With all things considered, this is not to say that Elua is perfect and without flaws, as i mentioned earlier, if the upper mids can be slightly smoothed out, it will be a really solid product especially at this price point.  All in all, the Elua is definitely worth recommending if you are looking for some daily banger and you are willing to do some tip rolling to sort out the upper mids.

*7hz Elua is being sent over for the purpose of this review. I thank Linsoul for the support as always. I am not influenced in any way to produce this review nor do I receive any monetary compensation.

Head over to the following link if you are interested in getting a pair!

7Hz x HBB Elua - Non Affiliated