WATCH FULL REVIEW HERE: https://youtu.be/Xx_NWgsOv1E

PRICE: $79 (PHP. 3,940)

PROS: 

• Superb, natural timbre
• Clean but rich-sounding bass
• Great midrange note weight
• Safe and fatigue-free treble
• Good separation for a warm tuned IEM
• Solid set of accessories for the price
• Good comfort
• Beautiful aesthetics (bias)

CONS:

• Source sensitive (wants more power)
• Not the most tactile bass presentation
• Upper mids may lack a bit of energy
• Not the most detailed, airy or technical set
• Meh cable

WHO THIS SET IS FOR:

• Fans of HBB tuning but want something clean and warm
• People who want a non-fatiguing set
• People who want natural sounding timbre
• People who want a good looking and fitting IEM
• People who want a full-package set

WHO THIS SET ISN’T FOR:

• People who want the most the most technical-sounding set
• People who want the best value sound for the price
• People who want a more energetic and airy sound
• People who want a more tactile sound
• People who want a proper basshead set

RECOMMENDED GENRES: 

• R&B
• Soul
• Rock

SHORT REVIEW: 

The Xuan NV is by far the best tuned budget HBB set for those who are looking for a neutral-warm sound. It brings a harmonious balance of musicality and neutrality in one beautiful red package. While not the most technical sounding set, lacking a bit of low end texture and top end energy, it makes up for being well-accessorized with superb tone and timbre. 

FULL REVIEW

One of the benefits of collaboration IEMs between brands and reviewers is that you get a rather consistent level of sound to expect based on the reviewer’s preferences. And when a reviewer has developed such a distinct taste, you’ll know exactly where that kind of sound would fit your own preferences. 

HBB or Hawaii Bad Boy is one of the biggest creators to bring his sound to the masses with his numerous collabs that, due to the frequency of release, has the most successful collabs in the market today. While not every release is perfect, you’ll find a unit that will fit exactly your preferences. 

But how can you define a reviewer’s preference with one definitive set? Well, let’s talk about the Tangzu x HBB Xuan NV. 

DISCLAIMER:

The Xuan NV was sent over by Tangzu in exchange for my honest thoughts.  I am eternally grateful for the opportunity. I was not paid. Rest assured, my thoughts and opinions on this product will be of my own honest opinions and will not be affected by the facts beforehand. 

Audio is a very subjective hobby and as much as I try to objectively explain my thoughts and opinions, your mileage will vary. My preferences will also affect how I perceive the gear that I review. Sources and other accessories will also modify your experience. Lastly, my reviews should always be used only as a guide and not as the definitive bible. Trust your ears to know what’s good.

THE SECOND RODEO

While HBB has had multiple collabs with other companies, the Xuan NV only marks 1 out of the 2 times Tangzu and HBB have collaborated. The first is the highly successful planar-magnetic IEM called the Heyday. You may or may not have heard of it before, but I still think it’s one of the best-tuned planars to date. With this knowledge in mind, the Xuan NV raised hopes and hyped me up knowing how Tangzu was able to balance HBBs sound and my own bright-leaning preferences. So how does the Xuan NV fair compare not only to his own collabs but also the other sets that have littered the very competitive price range? 

UNBOXING:

As you may expect from Tangzu, the presentation of their products are top-notch. A beautiful artwork that is not your usual waifu and instead a very tasteful art that deserves to be hung up in an art gallery. It’s just so beautiful and the artists deserve all recognition for their work. 

Beyond that, we get a rather straightforward and clean layout of the IEM itself and the accessories. Although I will admit that mine came with the IEMs deep inside their foam thrones, which was a little sad but that realistically doesn’t matter. 

Here’s a full list of the inclusions: 

• 1 pair of Tangzu Xuan NV
• 1 cable
• Pleather button case
• 6 pairs of Tang Sancai (3 pairs of Balanced, 3 pairs of Wide)

When we talk about value, Tangzu has always kind of been at the fore front due to their accessory offerings. FuDu came with the Tang Sancai Balanced and Divinus, and now the Xuan NV comes with 2 pairs of their Sancai. And that is an insane deal for how much a 3 pack of Sancai cost. You’re essentially buying a $50 IEM (spoiler alert hehe) with $30 dollars worth of eartips with the Sancai. 

Outside of the Sancai, it also comes with a rather basic button pleather case that will protect your IEMs from scratches but not pressure from getting sat or crushed. It’s an alright case, but I expected better for the price considering what other bands could offer. 

BUILD & FIT

I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t biased with the color choice of Tangzu with the blood-like Red on gold and black accents. It’s literally my favorite color and the way that Tangzu executed the aesthetics of the Xuan NV is just absolutely perfect. Plus, the butterfly motif that they used on the packaging makes its way here with a rather genius idea of being able to put the set side by side to make the image of a buttery fly. 

As fo the quality of the build itself, it’s made from resin so don’t expect it to be as beefy as your full metal IEMs. But to give credit where it’s due, the resin that Tangzu used is quite impressive as it doesn’t feel ridiculously cheap like their Wan’er and reminds me a little bit of the $109 Kiwi Ears Quartet. At least to say, it’s a tough resin feel that doesn’t feel like it’d break if you accidentally dropped or even stepped on it. Don’t do that to your IEMs, though. 

As for fit, the Xuan NV fits like a damn glove in your ears. Just like their Wan’er which was a superb fitting IEM, the Xuan NV is a very comfortable and stable IEM to wear even for long listening sessions. I had 0 issues listening to this thing for actual hours on end as I didn’t experience any fatigue or pains. This also does not have any air pressure build-up or driver flex thanks to its dual vent that relieves the pressure. Pair that up with the Tang Sancai tips and you have the recipe for one of the most comfortable IEMs to wear for the price. It is on the larger side so sleeping with this isn’t really something I’d recommend unless you have gigantic ears.

Unfortunately, the cable is nowhere near as magical as the IEMs themselves. It’s a very similar cable to the ones they used for their previous sets under $100 which is really not my favorite cable. It’s a very grippy and tangle-prone cable that feels quite cheap, especially on the jack side. I don’t think it’s a horrible cable and no one should use it, I just wouldn’t use it myself due to how icky it feels, especially in the long term. It also has the tendency to irritate my sensitive skin more than other cables that I’ve tried, so I’m personally cable-rolling this to maybe something with 4.4mm in the near future. But comfort is not the only reason why I’d get a 4.4mm for these bad boys:

SOUND

Sound Signature: 

The Tangzu x HBB Xuan NV has a warm neutral that borders being slightly U-shaped. As a 2DD IEM, the timbre of this thins is immaculate. It’s very soothing, rich and relaxed which is a hallmark of HB sets, but this arguably does the timbre the best out of all his budget offerings. 

Source Pairing:

And this is where the Xuan NV might become a turn-off for some. The Xuan NV is quite hard to drive for an IEM. With an impedance of 8.5 and a sensitivity of 95db, this will eat up power like no other. Using this on a low-powered device will not bring out the full sound and using a dongle DAC with at least 2Vrms is recommended to really make the Xuan NV sing. The benefit of this is that the Xuan NV is a scaling monster. Throw this one a powerful source and the sound will improve exponentially. I also prefer pairing this with more neutral sources or brighter sources that will improve its upper frequency extension

Volume Levels: 

Topping DX1 – 11 o-clock

Bass

The biggest aspect of the Xuan NV that I was genuinely surprised with on first listening was how clean the bass sounds. Often, you find HBBs set to exude warmth and the cost of low end clarity and timbre, often sounding a little too warm or too thick that it masks the rest of the midrange. Not the Xuan NV. The bass on these genuinely sounds so rich while keeping a very smooth, clean, and unintrusive bass that just shies from being too warm. 

Listening to usually bass-shy tracks like Toto’s IV album gives a much needed richness that balances the older, brighter mixing with Xuan NV’s relaxed and clean low end presentation. It honestly feels like Tangzu and HBB tuned these to fit older pop and rock tracks that need rich but clean low end. 

Where the Xuan NV will vary depending on your source is tactility. The low end of the Xuan NV admittedly feels a little too smooth to my liking due to the subbass emphasis over midbass. This means that the tactility of bass instruments may feel a little too subdued in the name of cleanliness. This isn’t outright a bad thing as this has the intended effect of keeping the midrange sounding natural and rich without any bass bleed, but I just prefer a little bit more texture than what the Xuan NV offers. That is unless you throw this on a source that can emphasize the low end while keeping the rest of the frequencies untouched, which was the case when I plugged this into the Topping DX1. The combination of the power and its emphasis on giving the low end some texture truly made the Xuan NV sing unlike anything else. This is both a pro and con to my eyes (or ears in this case) as depending on your source, you might have a completely different listening experience to me. 

Listening to something like D’Angelo’s Untitled (How It Feels) feels like heaven on the Xuan NV, but just barely has enough texture to sound exactly the way I want. It has a realistic balance of thickness and cleanliness that I honestly haven’t heard in an HBB IEM ever and I am absolutely all for it. Especially once the first verse starts and that slow and soothing bass line plays, the Xuan NV is able to play that bass with such finesse and richness, unlike anything. I just wished it was a little bit more tactile/ 

Mids

By presenting the bass in a clean but rich way, the mids of the Xuan NV are one of the sweetest and smoothest sounding mids that I’ve heard in a set at this price. Instead of focusing on the minute details in vocals and instruments, it focuses on providing a very rich, balanced, and soothing sound that makes everything sound like it’s glazed in a very thin layer of honey that keeps getting redipped in every lick. Weird analogy, but that’s just how silky smooth the midrange of the Xuan NV is. Instruments and vocals have a very satisfying amount of body without any bloat from the bass. It might come across as a little thick for those who prefer a leaner midrange, but perfect for those who are sick of IEMs nowadays sounding either too thick or too thin in the midrange. 

Daniel Caesar’s vocals on Freudian were absolutely perfect, particularly in Get You where his usually thick and rich vocals sound cleanly thick on the Xuan NV. Vocal layering is also superb as his harmonies in this track are laid out in such a clean way. 

Due to this focus on cleanliness, however, you may find the upper mids lacking a little bit in terms of sparkle and energy. This is partially due to the upper mids and  treble presentation along with the focus on the low end but this is not a set that I’d personally pick up if I’m listening to female vocals. The thickness admittedly gives upper-frequency vocals a slightly husky and thick mask that might come across as lacking much-needed vocal energy on certain tracks. Its focus on the low end also affects upper-frequency vocals and instrument transients where it’s quite smooth on the Xuan NV compared to other vocal-centric sets. It’s not necessarily outright dull or overly smoothened as it still has a satisfying amount of energy, but it’s not a sparkly set either. 

Laufey is probably the perfect example in this situation with her mezzo-soprano vocals not really pairing well with the Xuan NV’s thicker overall sound. However, I will give credit where it’s due as compared to other warmer sets, the Xuan NV does Laufey’s vocals the best due to how clean the lower midrange was presented. Where Laufey’s vocals lacked on the Xuan NV is the upper frequencies where her vocals lacked the sparkle to balance out her thicker vocals. Listening to a track like California and Me with a very orchestral instrumentation, the low-end sounds clean and rich but the upper frequencies can sound a little too smooth. 

Treble

This is the aspect of the Xuan NV that, as a treblehead, made me both wish there was more of but at the same time, respected that it didn’t. The treble of the Xuan NV is simply inoffensive. No unnecessary peaks or emphasis which gives the treble a very safe sound that is perfect for long listening sessions. This has the effect of making it both one of the best sets for most people, but also limits it to being a relaxed set. Treble energy is undoubtedly soft and doesn’t provide sufficient energy for upper-frequency instruments and vocals to make them truly sparkle. It’s not dull per se, but if you’re used to sets with a lot of energy, the Xuan NV might come across lacking lacking a little bit. Extension isn’t also the most fantastic as airiness is quite audibly tamed to give way for the lower frequencies to shine (ironically). It’s not choked or low-res sounding by any means, but definitely not the most resolving set for the price.  

This, however, makes it perfect for older tracks with a brighter-leaning mix like the aforementioned Toto IV or Earth Wind and Fire’s Best Of Vol.1. I never experienced any harshness or edginess in the mix which made it such a smooth and soothing listen overall. Cymbals never crashed too hard and vocals never sounded overly sharp. But most importantly, nothing felt uneven. It’s such a smooth treble that I honestly could listen to music for hours on end without getting any fatigue. 

However, throwing this into jazzy tracks like Samara Joy’s Linger A While, Laufey’s Bewitched or Diana Krall’s discography, you’ll start to hear where the Xuan NV falls short due to the lack of upper-frequency energy to make their vocals truly sparkle. Pair that with the rather tame upper midrange energy and that leaves the Xuan NV not being the most ideal set for listening to female vocals. 

Technicalities: 

The Xuan NV is not the end-all-be-all for technical sets, which is to be expected when you consider its tuning philosophy. Warm sets, especially in the budget, don’t usually offer top-notch technicalities and resolving ability due to limitations on the driver as well as tuning. It doesn’t mean this sounds cheap by any means, but it’s not for those seeking a very technical sound. 

I will say that I am impressed with how this set does bass depth. Due to the clean, sub bass-focused low end, there is a somewhat expansive feeling of depth of field effect on low-frequency instruments that make them sound quite wide. 

Separation and layering were also surprisingly impressive for being a warm set. It’s not exceptional, but it separates and layers instruments better than other warm-leaning sets in the price, including HBB’s own collabs which I’ll talk about very soon.

REAL WORLD USAGE:

Casual Use:

One of the benefits of a warmer sounding IEM is that it gives a deeper and more immersive listening experience on casual use, whether that’d be watching YouTube videos and Music Videos or even watching movies. The Xuan NV perfectly captures that balance by providing a deep sense of warmth without the muddiness to make vocals sound dull or sunken. It’s also perfect for clips that are a little too bright as it softens the upper frequencies really nice. Commutes are also fantastic on the Xuan NV thanks to the warmer tone, but it’s not going to block out lower frequency noise as well as pure basshead sets. Where I’m not as crazy on about the Xuan NV is the cable being really disappointing. I really do not like the texture of the cable and it caused a bit of discomfort over some time. I’d recommend cable rolling for comfort purposes. Also, it’s harder to drive so using this with your phone might make it sound a little soft or lacking. 

Gaming Use:

This is honestly where the Xuan NV shines. I’ve talked about using IEMs for gaming before and my favorite IEMs to use for Valorant specifically were warmer IEMs with shout tendencies. And while the Xuan NV doesn’t have shout tendencies, it has the warmth to bring out footsteps and low frequency sounds up without muddying up the mix. The upper mids being a little bit helps a lot in bringing the higher frequency sounds to be audible without harshness. Object separation and imaging where unfortunately not the best, but that’s to be expected for a warmer budget IEM. Regardless, this is honestly a fantastic gaming set that I’m more that willing to recommend for gamers who want an edge in their audio game

COMPARISONS

vs BLON x HBB Z300

Compared to HBB’s all metal collab with BLON, the Z300 offers a much warmer but oddly brigther sound compared to the Xuan NV. The Z300 has a rather odd peak somewhere in the mid treble that kind of makes it a little undesirable to listen to on higher volumes, but the bass is considerably thicker and more tactile on the Z300 compared to the Xuan NV. Technicalities on the two are quite similar, but the NV edges the Z300 out in terms of separation and layering thanks to a much cleaner low end. 

vs TRI x HBB Kai

Another darker sounding HBB set, the Kai offers a more tactile and richer low end presentation at the cost of a natural timbre that the Xuan NV offers. The Kai’s bass is one of the most tactile and textured bass I’ve heard in any HBB collab, but suffers from a rather abysmal treble roll off that the Xuan NV thankfully balances out with a flatter overall sound profile. Technicalities are also similar on the two, but the Xuan NV edges the Kai in separation and layering once again. 

vs QKZ x HBB

HBB’s cheapest collab to date, the first iteration of the QKZ x HBB was one of the most beloved Warm – Basshead set when it came out and is still one of the best budget basshead sets you can get. The Xuan NV is essentially a slightly tweaked but direct upgrade to the sound of the QKZ x HBB. Better timbre, cleaner but just as engaging of a bass presentation, better vocals, better resolving ability. Overall just a better IEM and a perfect upgrade for the QKZ x HBB

vs Truthear x Crinacle Zero: Red

Compared to the Zero Red, the Xuan NV takes on a very similar goal but diverts by focusing on the warmer, smoother and more relaxed sound but still keeping superb timbre all around. This is arguably the closest comparison that the Xuan NV will get because the Zero Red is not only sonically similar in tone and timbre, but also in aesthetics. It all comes down to whether you want a larger shell and a more “neutral” sound or a smaller shell with a “warmer” sound. Regardless, both are honestly solid competitors between each other and the only real difference is the amount of accessories that the Xuan NV offers compared to the Red. The Xuan NV offers 6 pairs of Sancai, after all.

vs QKZ x HBB Hades

I’ll be real, this a no competition for me. Hades is just pure bass and nothing else while the Xuan NV is more balanced and smooth. If you’re a diehard basshead, Hades is for you. If you’re literally anyone else, get the Xuan NV

vs Truthear Hexa

Arguably the closest in terms of graph, the Hexa provides a similar neutral sound with superb timbre, but edges the Xuan NV in terms of techical ability. The Xuan NV on the other hand provides a more natural, smoother and more soothing tone to the Hexa that some might find sounding a little too sterile. Both sets are great choices, but the decision lies on whether you want a warmer sound or a more neutral sound

CONCLUSION

While not the most revolutionary HBB collab set, the Xuan NV offers something that no other HBB collab has had so far in the budget. Warm sound without messing up the timbre. Great vocal weight and balance, natural sounding instruments and a very safe and inoffensive tuning that would be perfect for those who just want to relax and listen for hours on end.

Obviously, this is not for bright or technical lovers. This is a very relaxed set and it does not bring out the fine details in the music you listen to. It’s also not the most resolving set, so don’t expect this to punch above its price bracket in terms of fidelity. However, for what it’s trying to be, it’s one of the best-tuned HBB set that aims for a balance of musicality and neutrality. 

Thank you for reading my review on the Tangzu x HBB Xuan NV. If you would like to order one, consider using the non-affiliated link below: https://www.linsoul.com/products/tangzu-xuannv