In-Ear MonitorOverreview

Truthear x Crinacle Zero:BLUE2

The bassiest Zero yet — and the one the reviewer class turned on, over its treble.

57 sourcesUpdated
$65Typical US price

Score aggregates reviewer opinions across topics.

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Truthear x Crinacle Zero:BLUE2

The short version

What to know.

A $65 dual-dynamic IEM co-tuned with Crinacle that takes the original Zero's bass-heavy 'subwoofer' concept and nudges it closer to the Harman 2019 target, with the most sub-bass of any Zero. On twenty-six measurement rigs it sits about 1.5 dB over Harman in the bass, on target through the mids, and about 3 dB over at 8 kHz — a graph reviewers read in opposite ways. Nearly everyone agrees the treble leans bright and is heavily tip-dependent (the foam tips trim the 8 kHz peak, the silicone tips don't), that resolution and imaging are strong for the money, that the cable is a big upgrade, and that its very low impedance makes it unusually source-sensitive — a phone or motherboard jack adds bass and mud. They split on nearly everything else: whether the big bass is deep and clean or simply too much; whether the mids are natural or thin and sterile; whether the whole tuning is 'Harman done right' or an over-cooked V that a dozen rivals do better; whether the slimmer nozzle finally fixed the fit; and whether, at $65, it is a recommendation or a pass. The reviewer aggregate leans negative; owner ratings lean positive, with a recurring one-channel-dies durability complaint.

About this product

The March 2025, $65 (or $70 with a second inline-mic cable) dual-dynamic-driver sequel to the 2022 Truthear x Crinacle Zero — the 'Blue'. Not the warmer, leaner Zero:RED (which shares the drivers), not the single-driver GATe, Hola, Pure or Nova, and not 7Hz's Zero 2. Ships with foam and silicone tips (Crinacle says it was tuned for the foam) and a 5 Ω 'Bass+' adapter. Still $64.99 at Truthear and Shenzhen Audio as of September 2026.

The Truthear x Crinacle Zero:BLUE2 is the sequel to the earphone that started the modern budget-IEM boom: the 2022 Zero, whose twin-dynamic design — one 10 mm driver doing nothing but bass — gave $50 in-ears a low end people didn't expect. Co-tuned again by reviewer-turned-tastemaker Crinacle, the Blue 2 keeps the 'subwoofer' idea but pushes it further toward the Harman 2019 target, adds a slimmer 6.2 mm nozzle, a far better cable, a 5 Ω bass adapter, and — as its co-tuner says outright — a tuning meant to be heard through the included foam tips.

At $65 it lands in the most crowded corner of the hobby, wearing both Crinacle's name and the original's gamer-favourite reputation, and it has split opinion more sharply than almost any set at the price: the measurement-minded and the gamers rate it highly, while a striking share of the reviewer class — including several who loved the original — call its treble a deal-breaker and point buyers to the cheaper Zero:RED. Plenty of opinion to average; more disagreement than usual to map.

A good fit for

  • Bass lovers who want a deep, sub-bass-led Harman tuning — and the adapter if they want more
  • Competitive and casual gamers who want precise positioning and a fun, contrasty sound
  • Listeners who use, or don't mind, foam tips
  • Owners of the original Zero who liked the idea but not the nozzle
  • Low-volume listeners — several reviewers say the loudness-contour-like tuning shines there
  • People who EQ — it responds well to a treble cut and to a lower-mid fill

Think twice if

  • You're treble-sensitive and won't use foam tips — silicone can turn glassy, and the peak is where ears differ most
  • You want full, weighty mids and intimate vocals — the Zero:RED or a warmer set will suit you better
  • You want a neutral, reference tuning for critical listening
  • You have small ears or struggled with the original Zero's nozzle — it's slimmer, not shorter
  • You'll run it straight from a phone, console or motherboard jack and don't want extra bass
  • You need a set that survives rough use — one-channel failures within the first year are the recurring owner complaint

The reviewer consensus

Agreement &
disagreement.

7 / 12topics divide opinion
trebledetaildynamicsbuildisolationbassmidstonalitysoundstageimagingcomfortvalue
5 Mostly agree7 Divided opinions

Common ground7

  • It's a bass-boosted, bright-tilted take on Harman 2019 — the bassiest and most V-shaped Zero — and a fun tuning rather than a neutral-reference one.
  • The treble leans bright and is extremely tip-dependent: the included foam tips trim the 8 kHz peak, the silicone tips expose it, and Crinacle tuned it for the foam.
  • Imaging, separation and resolution are strong for $65 — the reasons it keeps being recommended to gamers.

Points of contention7

  • Bass: 'deep, clean and the highlight' vs 'too much — thick, slow, and it drowns the mids.'
  • Midrange: 'neutral, clear and natural despite the bass' vs 'lean, thin and sterile — no note weight.'
  • The tuning itself: 'within measurement error of Harman, done right' vs 'an over-cooked V — Harman but worse.'

A closer listen.

12 topics · 7 divided
Left: criticalRight: positiveTighter lines: more agreement

Bass

Leans positiveDivided opinions
Reviewer sentiment59 supporting sources
CriticalNeutralPositive

Band: opinion spread · Dot: weighted average

Sources split: a large majority hears a deep, sub-bass-led low end that stays clean and separated from the mids — for many the highlight; a weighty minority hears the same shelf as too much, thick and slow, and the 5 Ω adapter as overkill. Several of the 'too much' reports trace to high-impedance sources.

Measured

Across 26 squig.link rigs the shelf averages +10.8 dB at 20 Hz and +5.3 dB at 100 Hz (500 Hz reference) — 1.1 to 1.8 dB over the Harman IE 2019 target — and is back on target by 200 Hz, with a shallow −0.6 dB tuck near 270 Hz. The 5 Ω adapter adds +3.5 dB at 20–60 Hz and trims 1.5–2 dB above 2 kHz on every rig; a 10 Ω source adds +5.8 dB, a motherboard jack +9 to +11 dB. Versus the original Zero on the same rigs the Blue 2 has 5.7 dB more at 20 Hz but 1.5 dB less at 100 Hz; versus the Zero:RED, 3.9 dB more at 20 Hz.

vs. listeners — The shelf is a modest 1.5 dB over Harman — so 'too much bass' is partly a Harman-vs-not preference and partly a source story: from a phone, console or motherboard jack the impedance interaction adds the same bass the adapter does, and the 'muddy, overpowered' owner reports came from exactly those sources.

Where it splits
Deep, clean, well-separated — the highlight.75%

“producing some of the best bass response I have heard in an IEM. It is deep, thundering and extended”

Audio Science Review (amirm)
Too much — thick, slow, and it drowns the mids.25%

“many of the hits in the bass just sound suffocatingly thick”

Headphones.com (listener)
Link to this topic

The hardware

Specifications.

Checked

Design

Type
In-ear monitor
Drivers
1 × 10 mm dynamic (solid silica-gel suspension, LCP dome, N52 magnet — bass) + 1 × 7.8 mm dynamic (polyurethane suspension, LCP dome, N55 magnet — mid/high)2DD
Housing
DLP 3D-printed resin shell (HeyGears), redesigned faceplate

Electrical

Impedance
5.8 Ω
Sensitivity
119.5 dB/V≈ 97.1 dB/mW
Frequency response
20 Hz – 41 kHz

Connection

Cable
Detachable
Connector
0.78 mm 2-pin
Plugs supplied
3.5 mm

Manufacturer-published figures, not measurements · from truthear.com.

Follow the evidence

Sources 57

1–6 of 57 sources

Read with context

Limitations & method.

As of

What to keep in mind 6

  1. This is a read of where opinion sits as of September 2026, eighteen months after launch, in the fastest-moving price bracket in the hobby — new Harman-style budget sets arrive constantly and several reviewers already point to cheaper rivals.

  2. How bright the treble feels — and how balanced the whole thing sounds — depends heavily on whether you use the silicone or the included foam tips, and on your own ear canals; Crinacle tuned it for the foam, and most of the harshest verdicts were reached on silicone. If you dislike foam tips, factor that in.

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