Introduction

MOONDROP is one of the more famous IEM brands today despite being under a decade old since inception. It has been covered multiple times already here and has even branched out to other product lines beyond just earphones. Likewise, there are over five instances of a product review here on TPU which involves a collaboration with IEM influencer Crinacle and brands such as FiiO, Truthear, SeeAudio, and 7Hz. Yet both MOONDROP and Crinacle are probably most known for their own collaboration in the past called the Blessing2:DUSK, which is a now-discontinued set that took the MOONDROP Blessing2 and changes tonality to make for a set of IEMs which was a big deal when it launched and continues to be relevant and compared to newer launches even today. When MOONDROP released the Blessing 3 last year, everyone had high expectations of the set which ended up being mediocre in multiple ways, but then anticipation built for a new Blessing 3: Dusk with Crinacle involved once again.


It took a year and there is a new Dusk out now. Except, it is titled MOONDROP x Crinacle DUSK with no mention of the Blessing series in it. Some of this is to do with the new DUSK being quite a bit more than just a re-tuning. It uses different drivers altogether, including micro-planar magnetic tweeters, to be a tribrid set instead of the hybrid driver configuration used in the Blessing 3. The tonality is different too, except the DUSK now takes advantage of what MOONDROP has been building up to over the last year, with a DSP cable to have pre-configured EQ profiles to further build upon the analog tuning of these IEMs. The MOONDROP x Crinacle DUSK thus has both analog and digital cables to check out in addition to different EQ profiles making it more of a Swiss army knife equivalent of IEMs. There is a lot to go over in this review thus, so let's thank MOONDROP and Crinacle, via SHENZHENAUDIO, for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp and begin with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

Anyone remotely familiar with MOONDROP products knows to expect a female artwork design on the product box and the DUSK in collaboration with Crinacle decides to go for an... inspired take on this. On the front is also the product name as well as the driver configuration used with factory frequency response curves and product specifications on the back. A look from the side confirms the use of an outer sleeve which can be slid out in either direction to reveal a cardboard box adorned with the same dotted pattern as on the outside. The packaging opens from the top akin to a gift box and presents the contents neatly as seen above.


MOONDROP has an accessory section on the underside of the lid which in turn has paperwork in the form of a multi-language product guide going over the use and maintenance of these IEMs, a postcard with the same artwork design as on the product box, a QC card and another card with social media information for the brand if you were so interested. The IEMs themselves come individually placed in a cardboard/foam sheet with machined cutouts to snugly protect them, and you will note plastic wrap over the faceplates for added protection on the way to you.


The storage/carry case which comes with the MOONDROP x Crinacle DUSK adopts a rectangular cuboid form factor and is large enough to easily accommodate the IEMs with the cable and ear tips attached. In fact, it's larger (wider) than many other IEM cases I've seen so far to where there is enough room for a portable DAC/amp too. It is a hard case that tries to look like real leather, down to the tanned brown finish, but is more likely to be protein leather based on how it feels and smells. The MOONDROP logo is punched into the top and the case uses a zipper mechanism to keep it closed. The zipper tag feels quite cheap, however, and I am not so sure whether the case will survive many open/close cycles without a hitch. Opening the case reveals a soft lining on the inside as well as a separate compartment on the underside of the lid where you can indeed place another accessory/source. The other accessories come placed inside the case in individual plastic bags. These include ear tips as well as an airline adapter, as seen above, and the IEM cables themselves.


MOONDROP is stingy on the ear tips front and this can come back to bite the brand as we will see later. While the Blessing 3, which is used as a base for the new DUSK to build upon, wasn't that much better with six sets of basic silicone tips in three sizes—two sets per size for whatever reason—this time we get a single type in the three sizes (S/M/L) in the form of MOONDROP's Spring tips with its relatively soft and translucent flanges. These are slightly more malleable in the ear canals as a result and can help achieve a good fit, but they can also buckle easier than I'd like and actually hamper the bass extension for some. More ear tips in the box would definitely have been preferable, but perhaps the inclusion of the digital cable forced MOONDROP's hand in terms of hitting a certain price point.