Review: Jomo Audio Trinity

Jomo Audio Trinity

Package:

I have not received a retail unit for this review. So I can’t really speak about what paying customers get. My Trinity came in a soft, round zipper case, that can protect your Trinity from scratches, but won’t withstand a heavy beating. I also got a hand full of silicone ear-tips.

Supplied with Trinity of course comes a cable. While the lower tier models of Jomo all come with an Ares II, Trinity comes with a plain and mediocre SPC wire. It looks like a customized Plastics One if you ask me. I have seen photos online where I spotted this cable, and it still surprises me that Jomo did not go with an Effect Audio cable.

Sound:

Ever since the release of Trinity I have been interested in it. Since Lieven does all Jomo reviews, with some exceptions, the Trinity was planned to be covered by him. Sometimes things come different than planned, and today I’m here writing about the Trinity. I’m always up for reviewing new and exciting gear. Let’s get on with it. I used the Whirlwind tips that came supplied with the Trinity.

Trinity has a pronounced bass department. It puts a lot of attention to the sub-bass regions and certainly knows how to throw a mean punch when needed. The dynamic driver really pushes a lot of air in the lows. It sounds organic, realistic but most of all fat. For bass-lovers this might be a delight, others who prefer a more neutrally tuned low-end it has the potential of being too much. Bass to me is not very dynamic, what I miss most is speed and precision. Mid and upper bass are heavy and full. This affects texture and resolution, as it can overshadow clarity.

Lower mids are strong and just like bass get a lot of weight and body. Mids overall are tilted towards the lower registers, and it’s no surprise the Trinity has a thicker and warmer sound. There is good levels of richness in mid-mids and lower mids, while upper midrange seems to be dryer sounding. Although the lower mids and bass are clearly more forward than the rest of the spectrum, it’s upper midrange instruments that seem to be most timbre-correct.

Vocals are somewhat too relaxed for my taste. They can sound too dense and too little energetic. This is an issue mostly for male vocals, rather than females. What I feel the Trinity needs to do better is transport emotions. Singers are not very engaging and I’m missing the connection to them. Even songs that ooze of emotions, don’t get me attached.

Jomo Audio Trinity

Jomo Audio Trinity

The midrange sounds a bit closed in and could do with more air in my opinion. I like agile mids, that have good clarity and energy. Instruments sound full and organic, but again, the most focus was on lower mids and deeper instruments.

Trinity’s sound stage is intimate, it does not create a massive venue, but rather puts you in a small concert room. A private event if you will. It puts the musicians close to you, without sounding holographic or open. Instrumental separation is good, but I could do with more air around the musicians and some extra sharpness. Imaging, just like separation, is achieved well. I can point instruments out quite easily in the constructed room.

Where I see room for improvement is resolution. Trinity does resolve on good levels, but other flagships I’ve heard do a better job. For this I often give a close ear to live audiences. I feel Trinity lacks a bit in definition and rendering to be at the top. Hybrids often come with coherence issues. Unfortunately Trinity is also affected by this, as the dynamic driver appears separated from the other drivers.

Treble has a laid-back tuning, where there isn’t a lot of sparkle or energy. Jomo gave Trinity a more relaxed top end, with a calmer approach. You won’t ever run into sibilance issues with Trinity. It will never pierce your ears with sharp highs either. If you are a treble-head, you might find this monitor unexciting.

Electrostatic tweeters have been praised as the holy grail of treble extension. In theory these little buggers produce sound way above what regular humans can hear. It all depends on the implementation and how you damp or control the drivers. Jomo wanted Trinity to have a treble-response that’s more ear-friendly. There’s no fatigue, no discomfort and definitely no sibilance.

Jomo Audio Trinity

Jomo Audio Trinity

A few of my points of critique I could solve by swapping out cables and ear-tips. The package Jomo provides, is not the one that pushes Trinity to its limits in my opinion. You can get higher resolution, less prominent lows, better extension and clarity. All you have to do is find different tips and throw out the cable. Slap something on like the Ares II or Virtuoso by Effect Audio and you’ll be surprised how much Trinity can change for the better.

Sources:

In my opinion hybrids are a lot tougher to get driven right, than full BA setups. Trinity is a harder to push monitor, and it really asks for a lot of power to get to my comfort level. In my opinion there aren’t many portable products that get Trinity to its potential.

Personally, I wouldn’t match Trinity with a source that’s too warm on its own. DAPs and DAC/Amps that bring in more body might make Trinity even thicker and more relaxed than it already is. For my taste that would be not the best. I prefer clarity, resolution and a sound that has nice body.

Lotoo – PAW Gold Touch

The Lotoo has become my daily driver since I got it last year. It’s a fantastic sounding product, that comes with a lot of power and flexibility. With the Trinity you get a controlled low end, that’s still placed more forward in the signature. You get a dense and heavy midrange. The PAW Gold Touch is known for its immense transparency in the mids. With Trinity I am not convinced as much of that.

Instruments are well separated, the stage is spread in almost even dimensions in width and depth. Though it seems to me, Trinity is stretching more into depth. Layering is good, and the same goes for resolution. You get good extension into lows, but not as much into highs.

Bass is full and round. It concentrates on sub-bass presence and does give a slower response. The Lotoo usually handles dynamic drivers very well, but I feel the Trinity could do with a tighter grip. Bass is a bit boomey and can stand out over the midrange, which results in resolution losses. Overall you get a more relaxed sounding monitor with a lot of bass.

Mids are dense and on the thicker side with a full bodied sound. Male vocals sound relaxed and somewhat tired. Female singers on the other hand are not as affected by this, they sound more alive and enjoy higher emotions. Treble is shy and laid-back. The extension could be better, and I feel there could be more sparkle, energy and brightness in them.

More about source-matching on the next page.

4.6/5 - (177 votes)
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A daytime code monkey with a passion for audio and his kids, Linus tends to look at gear with a technical approach, trying to understand why certain things sound the way they do. When there is no music around, Linus goes the extra mile and annoys the hell out of his colleagues with low level beatboxing.

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