The sheer amount of selection we have in the audio hobby can sometimes be daunting, especially if you haven’t already found your preferences or if you haven’t already tried a large amount of gear. This is certainly the case with in-ear monitors (IEMs), but what someone new to the hobby might not know is that the accessories included with the IEMs (or that we buy separately) can make a huge difference in our enjoyment of the IEMs themselves.
When I first re-entered this hobby a couple years ago after an 8 year hiatus, the Moondrop Kato had just been released. I got caught up in the hype train and ordered a pair for myself – I did not love it. The cable was heavy and cumbersome, shells were too heavy and small, and the included eartips, the brand new (at the time) Moondrop Spring Tips,were a terrible fit for me. I couldn’t manage to get a good fit and wasn’t able to hear Kato as it was intended and returned it.
As a result, I thought very poorly of the Kato and when I built out my tier list later on, I was sure to rank the Kato very low on my list. Fast forward a couple years and I’ve managed to build up a decent collection of eartips. I decided to give the Kato a spin again, recently, and to my surprise, it was a much more enjoyable experience!
But jumping into the world of IEM accessories (eartips and cables) can seem like another rabbit hole. Thankfully there is a plethora of information scattered out there in the community with suggestions on where to start. You might even be surprised to learn that some IEMs come with accessories that are worth buying just for the accessories themselves! From high-quality cables to great eartips, some IEMs come with everything you need to get the most out of your listening experience. Let’s explore how some IEMs have accessories that make them all the more appealing!
- Final E500 – $20
Buy these for the Final Type-E Eartips!
The Final E500 is a budget IEM that is very well regarded by Mark over at SuperReview. It’s not an IEM that I particularly enjoy but they are a decent backup set to throw in your bag in case you need it – my E500 has been relegated to my Nintendo Switch case. The star of the show is the full set of E-Type Eartips included. These eartips would cost almost as much if not the same as buying the IEM + eartips! Final E-Type eartips are well regarded as supremely comfortable and they are used by a lot of people to solve tricky fit issues – if you are having trouble fitting a certain IEM, definitely give these a spin – they might be the solution you’re looking for! Keep in mind, these are narrow bore tips so they may slightly accentuate the bass and tame treble peaks. - Truthear Hola – $19
Buy these for the excellent cable!
I’m not sure what many other companies are doing, including sub-par cables that are tangly, cumbersome, memory prone, microphonic, or a combination of all of these things. But Truthear is on top of their cable game. The Truthear Hola is one of the recent contenders in the budget-fi game, well known for it’s warm-balanced tuning, and while the IEM itself is well worth the asking price, the cable is an absolute home run. Clean, simple, well-behaved, and aesthetically pleasing, the cable is, quite frankly, better than a lot of cables I’ve seen included with IEMs costing many, many times as much (looking at you 64Audio). At the asking price of around $20, you get an IEM well worth that asking price and a cable that I would be happy to have paid just as much if not more for. - Moondrop SSR/SSP – $35
Buy these for the excellent cable!
Before the Truthear Hola came around, this was the IEM to buy for the nice cable. While not my preferred tuning, this one is a bright neutral tuning, Mark at SuperReview loves the SSR and SSP (the bassier SSR). It’s a decent budget reference IEM but what’s even better is that the cable included with these IEMs is nothing short of fantastic. A different aesthetic from the Truthear cable, this one is also clean, simple, and well-behaved! - Moondrop Chu – $20
Buy these for the Moondrop Spring Tips!
The Moondrop Chu was the budget darling of the hobby for quite some time before the recent onslaught of budget contenders. And while it might now just be one IEM choice in a crowded space, it comes with a full set of Moondrop Spring Eartips. These are supremely comfortable, wide-bore eartips that many swear by. For many, these are their favorite eartips and buying a set of these will cost almost as much as buying a Chu. Why not give the Chu a try?
Buying IEM accessories separately can sometimes add up. The above are some IEMs that are worth buying just on the value of the accessories included. What are some other budget IEMs that come with accessories that you absolutely love?
