Pros — Wide soundstage and energetic, coherent, and clear “fun” sound with a great detail resolution right out of the box; easily and quickly “moddable” towards a smoother audiophile tuning to make it “punch above its price” (see body of text for details); great distribution: shipped by amazon and arriving within a few days.

HIFI WALKER sent me a pair of their A1 through amazon.ca upon request and did explicitly not object to any physical alterations “Please do whatever you need to fully test our earphone. Sincerely, HIFI WALKER”. It arrived in less than 48 hours. Thank you very much indeed.

A second, purchased sample, was modded by a friend, as described below. Both pairs were used for A/B-ing. We do not take credit for the mods. They are published elsewhere and you have to search the internet for it. We slightly modified the suggestions, though.

The rating of 4.5 stars refers to the modded version. Out of the box I would give four stars.

All measurements displayed here were done by my friend. The measuring coupler was two pieces of plastic tubing on the end of a Dayton iMM-6 microphone. No compensation was applied. These measurements should not be directly compared to other measurements except those done on the same device, for example the ones I have posted before.

In the last two years or so, the low-priced Chifi has revolved around the rapid progress in the development of hybrid drivers and it is generally silently perceived/advertised to us that more drivers generate a better sound. The problem with many of these hybrids is either the lack of a crossover or simply poorly tuned low-quality drivers both of which lead to unsatisfying tonalities referred to as “work in progress” by reviewers and owners alike and may have lead to pile-ups in their drawers…and in mine, too. Sonic shortcomings are sometimes (but not always) disguised by looks, that is fancy cables and earpiece designs, the latter occasionally “lifted” from high-end earphones. Since cables have

become detachable in most models, buyers are also tempted into buying snazzy “upgrade” cables that ultimately serve as eyecandy only (and yes, I have some, too). Are we increasingly forced to listen with our eyes rather than our ears?

Some of the world’s most competent manufacturers such as Sennheiser, Etymotic, Focal, or B&W have so far stayed away from hybrids (and detachable cables) and still focus on single drivers and sound quality over optical and technical gimmicks – but at a higher cost for the consumer. Sennheiser recently upgraded their classic single DD ie800 to the ie800S, which retails for $999. The $350 Etymotic ER4XR that sports a single balanced armature [BA] driver is on the “wall of fame” at innerfidelity.com. On the Chifi side, the ibasso IT-01 is a widely appreciated single DD at around $100. DDs have the advantage of delivering a coherent and balanced sound that is largely source independent. Some experienced Head-Fiers are well aware of this and, for example, still treasure the early, cheap, and (still) good sounding Knowledge Zenith single DDs. Today, the >$350 JVC FD01 is hailed by some as the best single DD on the market. Like me, you have probably never heard of it.

It came to my ears (pun intended!) that the inexpensive and rather non-descript looking, single DD HIFI WALKER A1 earphone, when modded, challenges these JCV FD01 in terms of “bass dynamics, detail resolution, and treble extension”. If this was true, we would have found one example in our search for a low-priced earphone that sounds like a benchmark. In the following, I will briefly describe the mod (full details can be easily found by a web search). I will attempt to establish whether and inhowfar the quality of the sound will have improved (in my opinion).

• Material: Aviation Aluminum-Alloy housing, custom oxidization colors
• Driver: Φ9.2mm, NdFeB dynamic + ø5 ETL
• Impedance: 16Ω±15%
• Sensitivity: 110±3dB@1KHz,1mW
• Frequency Response: 10 Hz – 70,000 Hz
• Rated Power: 2mW
• Cord: High-elastic stranded PU cord, 1.2m, black
• TRS: 24K gold-plated, Φ3.5mm, 3 poles, right-angled/straight
• Accessories: L/M/S silicone eartips, chin slider
• Price (at the time of this review): $48
• Company Website: https://goo.gl/7qJHXR

Amazon Purchase Links

The rather large, sturdy cardboard box is quite frankly a waste of space (and postage). It contains the earpieces, cable, and three pairs of rubber tips (S, M, L). There would have been room for a case…it is claimed that there should be a cable clip in the package but I could not find one (and neither could my friend).

The piston-shaped earpieces are made of an “aviation aluminum alloy” and are as robust as it gets.

Right (red) and left (blue) are colour coded. The shape is also used in the Accutone Pavo hybrid, and the double DD drivers Octone Dynamic Duo and Tinaudio T515.

The cable is not detachable and sturdy to the effect that some may call it springy (it is coated similar to the Soundmagic E10C), but it does not tangle up easily. And it features a practical chin slider – bonus. The three-button control works well on my iphone (I didn’t test it on an android phone but it should work there, too).

The HIFI WALKER A1 has the ergonomics, comfort, and fit comparable to the many other piston- shaped earphones in our collections. Works just fine for my ears. The same accounts for the isolation which depends heavily on the eartips used. The large included eartips sealed well and were comfortable for me. The sound sound did not noticeably change with the wide-bore “Tennmak Whirlwind” tips.

I used my iPhone 5S with and without the audioquest dragonfly black dac/amp. Even with the iPhone alone, the A1sounded good and was easy to drive.

As expected, this is a warm and bright sounding, V-shaped earphone with a particular emphasis on the low end. The bass is impactful, reasonably focused but it can be boomy – and it is well extended into the subbass. The mids are smooth and energetic with a natural timbre but could be a bit fuller bodied. There is no sibilance but a 3 kHz boost may add fatigue to some ears and cymbals can sound tinny. The treble is well extended with a 6–7 kHz peak that adds clarity. The overall sound is somewhat “analog” and coherent, and far from the harshness of some low-quality BA drivers. The soundstage is rather wide and not quite as deep. Resolution, instrument separation, and layering are all good. Nothing cool or cold here, sonically. In summary, the A1 is a safe bet, sound wise.

THE MOD

Is the modded A1as good as a >$350 earphone? I simply don’t know as there appears to be no rhyme or reason for current pricing. But I’d say it sounds like a more expensive earphone, at least up to $100. Or, in simpler terms, it sounds pretty darn good (especially with the satisfaction of this fool-proof modding experience).

Knowledge Zenith EDR2 (~$6): Sounds like the A1 with a huge veil and a limited and mushy soundstage. The A1 is much more refined and mature sounding and fans of the early KZ single DDs would certainly like it.

FR Graphs HIFI WALKER A1 vs. KZ EDR2