Introduction

MOONDROP's relentless march of budget-friendly product releases continues. We've covered 10 different IEMs from the Chinese brand thus far, of which nine have been under $200 and the majority under $50. This race to the bottom led to multiple releases I could not cover because seemingly everyone was doing the same, and yet I will give MOONDROP credit for effectively kickstarting competition with the CHU that came out last year. There was a lot of hype around it at launch owing to it being one of the best tuned sets, costing under $20, and even coming with fancy ear tips in the box. It had its shares of issues though, be it the non-detachable cable that itself wasn't very nice to handle or the fatiguing upper mids and lower treble. The year since has seen several other competitors out and I suppose it was only a matter of time before MOONDROP decided to drop a second CHU on all of you.


The very first photo I saw of the teased CHU 2 confirmed a removable cable and that got people interested already. Then came news of a new driver system—still a single dynamic driver here—while retaining the smaller form factor that helps with fit and comfort of the original. MOONDROP also promised this was going to have more bass in a sign that the company was willing to accept the global market generally prefers more bass than its house target has, especially for IEMs targeting a more mainstream audience. Thanks to SHENZHENAUDIO for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp, as we begin our coverage with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Packaging and Accessories

Packaging for the MOONDROP CHU 2 is relatively simple in that the box is smaller than for most other IEMs we've covered. It comes sealed in plastic and manages to still squeeze out female artwork on the front for those who care about it. The company and product names are on the front with a factory frequency response curve on the back to go with specifications in English and Mandarin. The box opens up to reveal the IEMs snugly packed in a thick foam sheet with machined cutouts and the various accessories are placed in a separate cardboard compartment underneath. These include a multi-language user guide, a QC card, a small card containing more such artwork, and the carry/storage case itself.


We see this is the exact same case that was provided with the MOONDROP Droplet and LAN IEMs, both of which are also among the more affordable sets on the market even if the CHU 2 is a decent chunk less expensive than either of them. I wasn't a fan of the case back then and my thoughts have not changed since about the use of a button insert to close/open, which may not last long in good condition. There isn't the most space inside either, so this is one of my least preferred IEM case designs. Inside is the cable itself as well as a plastic zip-lock bag that contains the included ear tips. MOONDROP is providing only silicone ear tips here—the exact same as with the LAN—and we get three pairs in sizes S/M/L as seen above. These are fairly generic ear tips at that so this will no doubt be disappointing to those who wanted to see the the same MOONDROP Spring Tips we saw come with the original Chu.

Closer Look

Once more we are left with scraps when it comes to any information being provided about the cable that the MOONDROP CHU 2 comes with. This is an unwelcome trend with the company's releases in the last few months but it does seem to be a new cable not shared with the other MOONDROP IEMs I've reviewed. It begins with a right-angled 3.5 mm TRS single-ended connector headed to your source on a translucent plastic housing. The cable feels more pliable than I originally expected, but you will not mistake it for a premium cable given it can still get jumbled up in use and is slightly microphonic too. Perhaps going with a single sheathed strand is the reason for the noise, and the conductor inside appears to be silver-plated copper based on the color and design. The splitter is similarly simple and translucent as on the source connector housing and the other end has pre-formed ear hooks that terminate in two 0.78 mm 2-pin connectors that have plastic housings with a very subtle L/R marking to indicate the left and right channels, respectively. The various metal plugs are gold-plated for oxidation resistance.


The shells of the MOONDROP CHU 2 are very similar to that of the original MOONDROP CHU, down to the use of alloy cast zinc alloy cavities that form the shells. I appreciate the metal construction which can be more likely to withstand daily use compared to the usual acrylic resin, but then we see the same paint job done on the outside which I know by now won't age well—just ask owners of the MOONDROP CHU/Aria/Aria Snow Edition/Starfield/STELLARIS/others. The design is even simpler this time with CHU being anglicized for 竹 (Zhú, meaning Bamboo) and the continuation of bamboo stalks being painted on the de-facto face plates. There are also L/R markings on the side of these relatively small shells where we also see the expected 2-pin cable connectors placed in an angled housing. Note also the two pieces of the shells that are glued together. More expensive IEMs tend to hide the gaps better than on the CHU 2, but it's a non-issue as long as the glue does its job. Two vents on the inner side provide airflow to the acoustic chamber and minimize pressure build-up in the ears. The nozzle is a separate piece made of brass and angled in gently with a retaining lip at the end securing the ear tips in place. It is 6 mm at the widest spot, making aftermarket tip replacement harder than you might originally think. The outer part of the nozzle can be unscrewed to access the mesh filter placed inside to block contaminants from entering the acoustic chamber. If you find the filter gets clogged up, this makes it quite easy to replace with separately sold filters from retailers.


Connecting the cable is simple enough with the pre-molded ear hooks that go over the ears and L/R indicators helping identify what goes where. Push the 2-pin connectors into the IEM connectors as seen above until they fit in place via a friction fit. The other end then goes to the source of your choice wherein I had a good time pairing the CHU 2 with MOONDROP's own sources including the MoonRiver 2. The cable does clash with the shells color wise but it's admittedly low down the priority list for budget IEMs.