Today we take a look at the $459 USD HiBy Crystal 6 In-Ear Monitors.
Disclaimer: HiBy sent us the Crystal 6 IEMs for this review, free of charge. I only covered customs taxes and fees. All thoughts and experiences with the product are naturally my own. You can find more about them here. Let’s get to it.
HiBy
HiBy Music is a company that specializes in the research & development of portable audio devices. They have been in the industry since 2011. They designed and developed a wide range of products from DAPs to various Bluetooth devices.
HiBy is a very innovative company and they have a huge R&D team with over 40 professionals. Their HiBy Music App has a user base of 2 million users in over 100 countries around the globe.
You can find all of our HiBy reviews here.
HiBy Crystal 6
HiBy Crystal 6
HiBy’s current Crystal line-up has two products. HiBy Crystal 6 and Crystal 4. The number in the product name also indicates the driver count of the earphone so the Crystal 6 has 6 balanced armature drivers per side and the Crystal 4 utilizes 4 balanced armature drivers per side. The series feature custom-made, epoxy-filled, universal acrylic shells.
Since both of the products have transparent shells, the internal parts and the drivers are easily visible. The Crystal 6 features custom-made wood faceplates, and no two earphones sold look exactly alike. Apart from that, HiBy states that they used a 4-way crossover and 4 independent acoustic tubes to maximize the performance output of the earphones.
Packaging & Accessories
HiBy’s Crystal 6 comes inside of a colorful, brilliantly designed cardboard box. The outer cover has abstract artwork on the front side and is dominated by pink, purple, and blue hues. I really like the design of the box as it feels premium and you get a feeling that something colorful and exciting lies inside. Upon unboxing it, you are welcomed by a set of tips that are categorized by HiBy according to their effect on the sound. There are 4 categories and 10 pairs of tips in total. Categories are as follows: crisp, balanced, bass, and memory foam. The memory foam tips only come in medium size and the rest of the tips come with 3 standard sizes, S-M-L.
Apart from tips, the Crystal 6 comes with two custom cables. There is something quite interesting here because the alloy type of the wiring change with the terminations of the cables. The single-ended cable features silver-plated copper (SPC) wires and the balanced alternative features OCC (Ohno Continuous Cast) copper. I will cover their sound signature differences in the sound section.
The earphone sides of the cables are terminated with a custom 0.78mm 2-pin connector specifically designed for the Crystal series. You won’t be able to use these cables with your regular 2-pin IEMs. However, you can use your existing 2-pin cables with regular connectors with the Crystal 6.
HiBy also included a leather carrying case with the IEMs. The carrying case has a rigid structure and the navy blue leather texture feels quite premium in hand. The inside of the case is covered with softer material so it won’t scratch your IEMs inside. Lastly, you get a small brush to clean your IEMs. To sum this section up, the accessories that come with the product are quite satisfactory. In terms of both variety and quality, HiBy Crystal 6, offers a good unboxing experience.
HiBy Crystal 6
Design, Fit & Build Quality
The Crystal 6 has a custom, epoxy-filled acrylic body so it is as rugged as the acrylic IEMs get. It looks and feels much better than a standard, injection mold, or plastic universal in-ear monitor.
The transparent resin makes it easy to see the sound tubes, drivers, and other internal components of the IEM. The resin quality and craftsmanship are top-notch. I can’t see any bubbles or shell imperfections. The Crystal 6 features a wood faceplate that is unique so no two IEMs look the same. The blue and green on the wood texture look very elegant, both on the ear and in the hand. HiBy states that they have studied the analysis of anthropological pinnae statistics and optimized the Crystal 6’s shape accordingly.
So how is the fit? First of all, the Crystal 6 is not a big earphone despite having 6 BA drivers per side. Actually, when you take a look at the components inside the shell, it can actually be described as small. My experience has been quite positive during my time with the Crystal 6. The IEM sits inside my ear’s concha and is held tightly by the helix lock without any discomfort due to the rounded, optimized shape. This in-ear monitor might be one of the most comfortable IEMs I’ve tried lately so we can say that the engineers of HiBy optimized the shell very well, at least for my ears their anatomical structure. I don’t think you will have fit issues with this IEM unless you have abnormally small ears. I often forgot that I was wearing it!
Furthermore, it is nice to see that HiBy continued with metal mesh nozzles instead of acrylic nozzles. Metal mesh filters are much easier to clean and care for compared to the multiple small bores of the acrylic nozzles. Extra durability is certainly another plus, of course. I am quite satisfied with the overall design, build quality, and fit of the Crystal 6. I think HiBy nailed this IEM in terms of usability and durability.
The review continues on Page Two, after the click HERE or by using the jump below.
Page 2: Sound Quality, Technical Performance, Stock Cables, Comparisons, Last Words
