INTUAURA Impact

Disclaimer

The Impact IEM has been sent by INTUAURA, I really appreciate their support to bring you content about their products.

All of my opinions are my own; I do not receive any payment to promote any product in an unethical manner. And this case was no exception.

My video review: SLP Impact review

You can buy them directly on their Website:

INTUAURA Impact - Price $109.99 USD

Pros

• Punchy and dynamic bass

• Well tuned single dynamic driver

• Easy to drive

• Very comfortable and lightweight

Cons

• The cable feels and look cheap

• Thin sounding vocals

Accessories

1 pair of Impact IEM + carrying case

120 cm 3.5mm cable - 0,78mm 2 pin

IEM carrying case

INTUAURA card

6 pairs of Eartips

Technical specifications:

Model name: Impact

Transducer Type: 10mm High Internal Damping Diaphragm Dynamic

Frequency response: 5 - 30,000 Hz

Sensitivity: 123 dB/mW @1kHz; Nominal Impedance: 19 Ω

Housing: 3D printing of medical resin + CNC-machined aluminum alloy

Sound - How I perceive it?

As for the sound, I can say I liked them, especially the strong bass punch they deliver.

They have enough power to deliver that clean punch, maintaining a fairly noticeable presence in the sub-bass without being too overpowering.

I highly recommend to burn-in (yes, I believe in that process) I don't think they should be judged after just one listen without having played some music for at least 30–40 hours. Is this something the user shouldn't have to do? Of course not, but this happens with all brands and models

Bass

The bass sounds clean to me—no rumbling or that lingering decay. If you're into heavy bass, this model won't deliver that, but it has enough to reproduce this frequency range well.

Textured, dynamic, fast and punchy is as I can describe its sound, overall.

Mids

I also really liked the midrange on these earbuds; you can really hear that bass extension. They have a smooth transition because they don’t stand out in the 200–250 Hz range, which is where I personally tend to notice a muddy, congested sound.

These mids have enough body and weight to make voices sound natural; the only thing they’re lacking is volume. Maybe with an extra 1 dB, they would have been perfectly balanced

Treble

As for the highs, I have to say you can’t really judge them on first listen. The first thing I noticed when I took them out of the box was a somewhat annoying peak around 7–8 kHz. There was also noticeable sibilance in the 5–6 kHz range.

I could hear the driver straining—not literally, but I could sense that the driver was struggling to reproduce sustained high notes with much presence. It was only in this frequency range that I noticed distortion due to the sheer amount of treble.

These peaks decreased significantly after the burn-in process. Usually, the way I do this is by leaving them connected to my iPod, playing music of different genres at various volumes for at least 15 to 20 hours. With these Impacts, it took more like 40 hours or so.

I wouldn’t say they’re the smoothest or the most detailed, but they do have a good amount of treble. I still notice the occasional sibilance, but it’s nowhere near what some other reviewers have mentioned. That said, if you’re sensitive to this frequency range, they’ll likely tire you out pretty quickly.

Conclusion

Personally, I liked them; for me, the best parts are the punchy bass and the warmth of the midrange. I’d only recommend them if you can find them for the price they were at the beginning of the year—around $75—because at that price, they’re definitely worth the money.

Thanks to INTUAURA for sending me their product so I could write this review.

Design

As for the design, there’s an “X” on the faceplate, which is made of fairly thin aluminum, and the interior is resin—which, at least on this model, varied between a reddish-brown color and this wine-red/black shade, which is the version I received.

The nozzle filter seems pretty basic to me; overall, I don’t think the build quality matches the price they’re asking for. They’re lightweight, which doesn’t necessarily mean they’re poor quality—I have other headphones in the $150–$200 range that are also quite lightweight but feel much better built than these Impact.

The fit is good; they don’t stick out when you wear them, and because they’re so lightweight, you can wear them for quite a while without feeling any discomfort.

Power requeriment:

I didn’t notice a significant difference depending on the source. What stood out most to me was how the bass became more prominent just by connecting them to a DAC dongle, and how the treble was slightly reduced depending on the sound signature of your source.

My recommendation would be to pair them with whatever you have, depending on your preferences. If you don’t like treble, try pairing them with something more neutral or warm so as not to further emphasize those frequencies.

DAC/AMPs used:

Fosi K7

Fiio KA13

Arturia Audiofuse

Macbook Air M1 3.5mm jack

Soundstage

As for the soundstage, I think they have good stereo width. They don’t have much depth in the bass, but thanks to the driver’s responsiveness, they offer good instrumental separation.

They don’t provide the most precise representation of sound positioning within a song, though I do find the way they open up the stereo field somewhat “fun”—perhaps due to those peaks in some high frequencies.

They’re quite enjoyable for narrative gaming, plus they’re easy to amplify if you want to use them connected directly to the controller, but if you want to use them for competitive gaming, they wouldn’t be the most precise option.