Ikko OH-1: Thumping Meteor

IKKO Audio is a Chinese earphone manufacturer who aims to provide high fidelity music for music lovers in a way that integrates with the current digital era and provide a natural, comfortable experience. Ikko is one of the fastest growing brands in IEM market. OH-1 aka Meteor is a new addition in their collection.

At a first glance, OH-1 looks like a beautiful IEM with unique design and sturdy retro look. The earpieces itself feel well build and fits so comfortably. The overall design has a premium feel to it with a metallic matte hammered look.

OH-1 comes in a nice packaging. The outside cardboard sleeve is adorned with Ikko brand logo and its waifu character sets the tone of this product. Inside the sleeve is a stylish looking black box where all the items ornately arranged. The rather interesting item inside this box is a tiny broach which has Ikko symbol protruding from it. Box also packs a beautiful vintage style leather pouch with a string to tie it close.

Disclaimer:
I have received Ikko OH10 as part of review circle sent from Hifinage (India) in exchange of honest reviews. All impressions of sound are subjective to my own listening and my sources and is based on my experience with IEMs of similar hardware configurations and price range. One can purchase the same from the following link.

Sources:
For this review the unit has been paired to A&K SE100 (ES9038 Pro), Fiio Q5 (AK4490), LG V30+ and Vivo X50pro. No additional amplification is required by this IEM.

Pros: 1. Intimating and Engaging Sound
2. Spectacular Bass Response
3. Airy relaxing treble Response
4. Good Mids presence
5. Very good build quality and fit

Cons: 1. Average Soundstage
2. Stock cable could have been of better quality

High:
The highs are well tuned for an IEM of this price range. Lower treble spectrum is slightly more emphasized as compared to upper treble. There is good room for airiness and not any specific point of time treble gets piercing. It does not meant that it lack details, it is quite crisp at times and instruments like cymbals sounds very much distinctive such as in "Love Story by Taylor Swift".

Mids:
There is a good presence of mids in ikko- OH1. The mids are clear and sound natural but bit recessed so that overall it sounds very musical. Both lower mids and upper mids are perfectly tuned, considering Male and Female vocals sounds just fantastic over it. Although I would say that the upper mids have bit more energy as compared to the lower ones.
I enjoyed listening to "Céline Dion's My Heart Will Go On (Live in Boston, 2008)" with good details in electric guitars, violins, flutes but specially the immersive vocals and a relaxing presentation. On the other had "There is a Kingdom-2011 Remaster by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds" sound much engaging with fantastic vocals, drums and cymbals along with fine detailed strokes of piano in background.

Lows:
Lows are the area where OH-01 stand out a lot. It offers a powerful sub-bass with very good extension to it along with punchy mid-bass. The overall bass response is very clean, tight and controlled. There is no muddiness or bleeding to mid region and compliments to all major instruments like guitars, violins and pianos. It is quite fun and engaging listening to any kind of EDM , POP, HIP-HOP music over it. I enjoyed listening to complete album of "Bass Rani by Nucleya" on it, that rumble was so good and overall presentation was musical and engaging.

Soundstage/Imaging/Separation:
The soundstage and imaging is average, but has an overall intimidating sound signature. Do not expect much depth and width out of it but has very good separation and imaging as per price point of view.

Final Verdict:
Ikko OH-01 is a very intimidating, musical and bass emphasized IEM. I personally loved the fun sound signature and the way both male and female vocals shines on it. The sub bass has a perfect rumble and immediately sets a groovy mood. Along with an awesome bass response it has well defined mid range and detailed treble. The build quality is also top notch and comes with nice packaging and accessories. If one is looking for a bass emphasized smooth and relaxing sound in a budget then it is the perfect IEM.

Comparisons (OH-1 vs OH-10)
The OH-10 I would say is entirely different IEM w.r.t OH-1. The OH-10 is entirely a V-Shaped signature and bit aggressive and energetic the OH-1 is slightly mid-centric with sort of laid-back signature. Although look wise both of them look similar, OH-10 gives impression on of glossy metallic finish and is heavier as compared to matte finish of OH-1.