Inear StageDiver 4: Well Tuned

In the beginning, before burn in, the mids sounded very recessed and muffled but that changed quickly. On some recordings however, the mids can still sound a bit recessed. Mids are neutral and linear compared to the bass and highs. They’re not the most spacy and airy mids I have ever heard but at the same time I haven’t heard a lot of (custom) 4 drivers that sounded more open either. The mids like the bass is fast when needed and they have lovely detail, clarity and precision. The upper mids have a slight peak making voices a little more forwarding sounding.

Treble on these universals is pretty good and sounds sparkling. It isn’t the most extended but isn’t overly soft either, it’s somewhere in between. Treble sounds more forward than the mids, and this in combination with the bass gives you a wide V-curved sound. In a classic V-curve you would get bass and treble where the mids would be all the way in the back but the StageDiver 4 isn’t that extreme. We here have lightly boosted bass, linear mids and more a bit more focus on treble. I wish I could show you the SD4 Frequency curve as it explains the wide V-curve best.

Overall the StageDiver 4 is a rather forgiving earphone that’s very easy to listen to. It’s not the most airy or spacious headphone and while balance and imaging are pretty good, the sound is more inside your head. An intimate presentation you could call it. Besides good instrumental separation there’s a good level of detail, great clarity and speed. From bass to treble the SD4 sounds tight and I find it to be very well tuned. It sounds especially good with dance, rock and vocally strong music.

That also means that Inear themselves actually accurately described the sound of their monitor and that, for once, is a refreshing change for a reviewer. The SD4 is easy to drive and doesn’t really need an external amplifier to make it sound good. While typing this I’m listening to the SD4 straight from the AK240’s headphone out. No extra amp needed. While the SD4 easily matches will all of my DAPs, I didn’t really like the combination with the Fiio X3 Second Generation I recently reviewed. Like I said, the SD4s mids can sometimes sound recessed and for some reason this happened most of the time when I was using the X3 SG as a source. Too bad.

What if I say I’m not like the others?

I like how Inear managed to create a 4 driver with yet again a different sound signature. The StageDiver 2 was of the analytical kind, and while it is really detailed it could have a little more bass. That’s probably exactly what they were thinking as well because their SD3 basically was the SD2 with a lot of extra bass. A bit too much in fact to keep it balanced. Both had their strong points and there issues and now we have the SD4. The SD4 is the most natural sounding monitor out of this lineup. It’s combining the detail and softened bass of both previous monitors and I my opinion the SD4 is the best one yet.

So is it as good as a custom 4 driver monitors? I’d say it’s close but it’s not quite like a custom monitor yet. The only other 4 driver I have in my collection is the Cosmic Ears CE4P. I used to have the BA4F but I paid CE to upgrade it to a CE4P. I will be reviewing this one as well over the next couple of months. Anyway, the custom IEM still is more comfortable as it fits like a glove. Because of that perfect fit you also get the best sound. The CE4P to me is a more linear tuned monitor and they’re actually closer in sound than you might think. The last universal multiple BA driver I tested was the CypherLabs C6IEM, and while I quite liked that one, the SD4in the end is the better monitor. Sound is more controlled, it’s faster and it’s more precise. Treble also is further extended as in the C6IEM, something a lot of people will love to read.

Conclusion

Initially I wasn’t convinced at all with the sound quality of the latest Inear creation. Luckily for me burn in, believe it or not, fixed the issue and it turned out to be a pretty darn good universal monitor in the end.

With the wide V-curved sound signature and excellent bass I’m sure a lot of people will prefer the SD4 over the SD2 and SD3. I can fully recommend the SD4 if you’re looking for a monitor that has good bass, strong vocals and sparkling treble. The StageDiver 4 is available directly from Inear’s website or via one of their partners. The SD4 doesn’t come cheap and goes for just shy of 700€. That’s a lot of dosh and you can easily find custom IEMS for this kind of money. Customs aren’t for everyone though. If you don’t feel like going to see an audiologist, paying for getting impressions taken, sending them to the lab and in the worst case scenario having to send your finished monitors back for a refit, then these universal SD series might be what you’re looking for. They’re the closest you will get to customs, fit and sound wise. It comes with a price tag but they do are hand made in Germany…

There actually also is a custom version of the SD4 which is called the LivePro 4. You can find more info here. I’m pretty sure you would get an even better sound stage and detail level with these full customs but I haven’t heard them myself.

For me personally, this is one of the first, if not THE first universal I would use myself when I’m not reviewing. And that says a lot.

 

4.1/5 - (22 votes)
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Lieven is living in Europe and he's the leader of the gang. He's running Headfonia as a side project next to his full time day job in Digital Marketing & Consultancy. He's a big fan of tube amps and custom inear monitors and has published hundreds of product reviews over the years.

15 Comments

  • Reply April 7, 2015

    George Lai

    I’m not sure how it can be a “universal custom” as that is oxymoronic. Earwerkz has the Supra too, a “universal custom”. To me, these are universal IEMs whose shell are just shaped slightly differently to attempt to rest against certain parts of your ear.

    • Reply April 7, 2015

      Headfonia_L.

      The Earwerks also is a universal custom. You should compare the inner part to one of your custom monitors, it’s more than just an attempt to rest against certain parts.

      The Inear “shape” is also trademarked and can’t be used by other companies, if I’m not mistaken

      Maybe I’ll get the chance to try the Supra out one day

      • Reply April 7, 2015

        George Lai

        The trademarking aspect will be interesting because if it is so, ear tips manufacturers could also trademark their ear tips shape. Let the battle begin, I say.

        • Reply April 7, 2015

          Headfonia_L.

          Have you seen what’s happening with JHAudio vs 1964Ears?

          • Reply April 7, 2015

            George Lai

            Indeed I have though that only proves the relative incompetence of patent offices in general.

  • Reply April 7, 2015

    d marc0

    Another awesome review Lieven! Thank you…
    I have the SD2 and I really dig it. Most of the time the bass is enough for me but I can’t deny that a bit more bass is more than welcome. I’m glad that they added that to the SD4 but how is the soundstage and airiness compared to the SD2? They’re the most important characteristics in the SD2 that made me keep them as my daily driver.

    • Reply April 7, 2015

      Headfonia_L.

      Thank you!

      I think both are about the same from what I can remember. the SD3 just sounds more analytical because the bass impact isn’t really there. In the SD4 the bass s more present and kind of hides that part from the SD2. Could you demo the SD4 before you buy it?

      • Reply April 7, 2015

        d marc0

        Unfortunately, there’s no distributor in Melbourne, AUS yet. Last time I got in touch with Marco Ramisch, they were still trying to find a dealer. I gave a few suggestions but no news yet.
        This just makes the decision harder for me… my next IEM will either be the Velvet or the SD4.

      • Reply June 9, 2015

        willy vlyminck

        I will demo the SD3 and 4 next week in Roßdorf

        • Reply June 9, 2015

          Headfonia_L.

          Do try the SD2 as well, especially the SD2 and SD4

          • Reply June 9, 2015

            willy vlyminck

            I will Lieven,thx for the tip, Ideal for me would be a Sound as far as IEM´s go between the IE80 and the Grado GR10, with the soundstage and bass of the first and Detail and naturality of the latter. The Fidelio L2 gives me the best of both worlds at home, but on the go I like something similair , from there my intrest for the SD Serie, which also gets great Reviews in the German Audio press.

          • Reply June 19, 2015

            willy vlyminck

            I did yesterday, but still a bit confused, the session was relative short, but with the SD2 I immediately did hear an improvement on my IE80 and the fitt is just perfect, as I seems to have a mainstream ear 🙂 . The SD4 sounds more effortless which shows specially on vocals, this remind me of the Grado GR10 but with far more grunt, altough still musical instead of analytical even if the detail richness is no less than impressive. I will however settle for the SD2 as it is good enough for my music and the quality or non quality of the recordings, think of early seventies progressive rock.I was equally impressed with the iBasso 50 soundwise, which I also used partly as player beside my iPhone, and FiiO x1. The most impressive player however is the Calyx,which I used with my own memory card. Maybe the greatest player money can buy, with beautifull classic looks as an extra.

    • Reply June 9, 2015

      willy vlyminck

      Where do you miss that bit more bass? It is always difficult to guess if one doesn´t know the Music you listen to. I want enough bass for Music where the bass guitar is very important, , like Primus, Rage Against the Machine, Kin Crimson, Magma,to Name a few.

    • Reply June 19, 2015

      willy vlyminck

      The main difference for me, that the SD 4 sound more effortless, and this shows specially in vocals, which are more beautifull, almost like the Grado GR10. Incredible detailed withhout sounding analytical, of course it depends a lot on the music you feed them, as well as the player.The SD2 for example sounded really great with the iBasso 50 and high quality recordings.I think I will go for the SD2 as well in the end as I mainly listen to progressive rock, with only few audiophile recordings, exeptions are ” dark Side of the Moon”, “Tubular Bells”, “Fragile” by Yes, Most recordings of ReR and Cuneiform also sounds very very good, certainly to that point that an investment in the SD2 make sense. I also did listen to bass heavy stuff like Chrome Hoof´s Black Gold, and the Rickenbacker did blast in your ears very powerfull, so for my music the SD2 will do but again the SD 4 do all more effortless which makes it possible to listen for hours without any problem.

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