Introduction

Cresyn is a relatively unknown brand, but they are the OEM behind boatloads of different headphones branded under different names. Cresyn recently decided to launch a full range of headphones and in-ears and brand them under their own name promising better value for money and something for everybody. The earphones we got for review are dubbed the Cresyn C750E and are their best bet at a balanced armature based in-ear solution. Featuring a slim design and a decent bundle they aim to take a piece of the market from the other sub $100 in-ears. The tip mounting system is the same as that featured on Shure and recent Westone in-ears so there should not be any problem with getting decent after market tips for these in-ears.

The Package

The C750Es ship in quite a flimsy box which could easily get damaged during shipping. I would definitely check the earphones for damage the moment they arrive so that in case of a fault the retailer would have no chance but to do a warranty exchange.


The bundle is alright but nothing fancy. Besides the earphones, you get three sets of tips, a shirt clip, and a carrying bag. The bag is OK, but it provides no protection on the move whatsoever.


A thing that surprised me a bit was that this relatively cheap set of in-ears has a high quality cable. Usually the first things manufacturers do to save cost is to fit the earphones with a cheapish cable, this is not the case with the C750Es.


It is so nice to see that you get a shirt clip supplied with the in-ears. Usually you have to buy these separate. Since these Cresyn earphones feature a medium stiff cable the shirt clip is definitely an invaluable piece of kit.


Tip wise the Cresyn C750Es come with three sets of single flanges. The tips look a lot like the single flanges that Shure and Westone ship with their most recent earphones.


Another nice detail featured on the Cresyn in-ears is the fact that the cable entry has a small internal rubber damper on it. This should help reduce the amount of microphonic noise being transmitted to the earpiece from the cable.


Like any balanced armature based in-ear solution the Cresyn C750E earphones feature a small acoustic filter, which both keeps debris from falling into the driver but also tunes the frequency response.

Performance

The earphones were tested on my normal portable rig which consists of a Cowon D2 hooked up to a Ray Samuels Audio Tomahawk earphone amplifier. These particular earphones are not the most expensive on the market, at only $100 they are aimed at the normal consumer looking for great sound quality on the move, who does not want to spend boatloads of cash on a near perfect portable rig. One of the things you notice straight away with the C750Es is the fact that you can achieve a quite comfortable fit, due to the well designed tips and exterior part of the shell. The shell does not look that ergonomic, but it actually steers clear of the exterior part of your ear nicely (assuming you have normal shaped ears).

The bass is relatively rich, but not able to match the definition the Klipsch X10s or Super.fi 5s for that matter. It is a wee bit less refined and snappy, but I would still describe their bass performance as very good due to their relatively low price. If you are looking for a midpriced solution that has a good bass response then the C750Es should definitely be on your short-list. They do not come close to match the thrilling bass performance of earphones such as the Westone 3s or Sennheiser IE6-7-8s. If you compare them to a set of in-ears like the Head-Direct RE2s which are a fair bit cheaper these output more bass, but lack a fair bit of low end definition. The midrange is a bit on the warm side which is nice.
Overall I would probably describe the sound of the C750Es as musical and slightly midcentric although not nearly as much as the RE2s. The real let down with the Cresyn C750Es are the highs, here they just completely fall apart. Coming from the reasonably well defined and rich sound midrange to a fatiguing high end. The upper midrange is not unaffected and is quite sibilant which is a shame because from the bottom up the C750Es where shaping up to be a nice set of musical in-ears. For the price this flaw is acceptable, but I would perhaps be hesitant to lay down the cash for them if I were the type that goes nuclear after 5 minutes of listening to a harsh mastered recording.

Sound stage wise these in-ears are pretty normal, no better or worse than any other balanced armature midrange in-ears I have heard. The earphones do handle microphonic noise very well both because of the shirt clip, but also because of the cable that is a bit softer than what is used on for instance Head-Direct products. Noise attenuation wise these are right up there with all the other fully closed solutions yielding about -26 dB attenuation, which is enough to dampen public transit noise and plane engines sufficiently to get a good listening experience on the move.