Today I’m checking out the PEARS MC-8 Custom IEM which starts at around $780 USD
Disclaimer: PEARS sent us the PEARS MC-8 from Switzerland for this in-depth review. PEARS is not affiliated with Headfonia, and this review consists of my unbiased, sincere opinions.
About PEARS
Personal Ear Systems, or “P-EAR-S”, is a custom in-ear manufacturer from Switzerland. They’re the “First Swiss Made Custom Monitors Brand”, as stated on their website. The core team consists of two people; Samuel Harsch and Roberto Piacenti. Samuel was working full-time at a Swiss hearing aid company from 2005 to 2013 before deciding to go his way.
PEARS mostly works with musicians and they appeal to monitoring and stage performance. However, after experiencing their monitors so far, I can comfortably say that audiophiles like us can enjoy and use their monitors too.
When talking about PEARS, you might remember the first review we published in 2018. That was all about their still-flagship monitor; the SH-3 and it received the award of Best CIEM among a few, rightfully so. You can still see it on our Custom IEM Recommendations page.
This has been one of my favorite reviews ever, and I very much enjoyed writing it. Because amid all the driver wars and some 10-18 driver IEMs, this one was all about simplicity and flat frequency response. It is still one of the best IEMs I’ve used in terms of coherency, balance, resolution, and tonality. You can also check out my SH-2 review, which is a more bass-oriented version.
PEARS believes that reaching the best sound quality is not about the number of drivers. Instead, it is all about using as few as possible, with an optimized acoustic design. They only have a few models to choose from, and you can find one that suits you best here. PEARS started to offer universal IEMs in 2020, so if custom is not your thing, you can still experience one of their models.
MC-8
The PEARS MC-8 is the new model that PEARS released in February 2023. It’s a simple monitor, with a single moving coil driver. PEARS says that ”it’s been designed to deliver a clean and natural sound at an affordable price.”
Once again, PEARS goes on with its philosophy and doesn’t seek multi-driver complex IEMs. They rather stick to the plan and use the least number of drivers possible. They managed to impress us in the past with two and three-driver models, so I’m sure this one would be something. We’ll find out very soon.
Ordering Process
I had been in touch with the PEARS team for this review. You can always reach them during working hours without any problem. You can also use the contact form on their contact page and you’ll get a response in about 1-2 days. PEARS has been working on their website for a while and they have improved the ordering experience recently. Just go to the product page and pick your connector type, shell color, face plate, logo, and personal name.
There’s also a new interactive page for customization, so you can see an illustration of your presumed IEM. You first order the IEM and then you need to send your ear impressions, taken from an audiologist. In a few weeks, you get your custom IEM.
Be sure to check out the Pears Audio Facebook Page to see some designs in real photos and the latest news about the brand.
Customization
PEARS doesn’t have many fancy design options. They’ve become a bit more flexible and versatile since 5 years ago of course, but you shouldn’t expect any artisan designs as other industry-leading brands. However, one thing that they retain is their ultimate level of build quality.
At present, you can’t choose any shell colors with the MC-8 since it’s completely black without any options. For the faceplates, you can choose from 34 possibilities. My favorites are genuine wood faceplates like I requested for the SH-3 model before, but they cost more which I’ll mention below. You also have 4 different options for the stock cable, 2-pin, or MMCX.
If you have special & specific requests apart from those, I’m sure they can get it done for you. I always say I like slick and simple designs in terms of CIEMs, therefore I’m very happy with my pair. But surely some companies are way ahead on the customization side of things.
My sample has a dark fashion with a black shell and black faceplate. The metallic blue P-EAR-S logo tops the design nicely. With all of my other CIEMs, I chose to have clear shells with some combination of faceplates, but this design of the PEARS MC-8 looks subtle and unassuming which is nice and easy to wear without much attention from the crowd. It oozes business and seriousness overall.
Page 2: Packaging, Build, Fit, Price
Page 3: Sound
Page 4: Technical Performance, Comparisons, Conclusion
