Eminent Ears Ruby Review: New Flagship Gemstone in Town
Today, a new face has come across our review table – the Eminent Ears Ruby. Before pulling off the actual review, let me touch base on what people would first wonder: ‘Well, who are they?!’ Eminent Ears is a fresh, premium brand from Hong Kong that arose just last year, in 2024.
Well actually, 2024 is when they made an official and global debut on the scene, while their R&D and founding of the brand started quite some years ago, in 2019. Eminent explained that their decision to launch the brand emerged from simply doing research/making IEMs as a hobby among a few close friends, and eventually, they decided to make this into an official, running brand/company.
“It all started when one day, one of us just asked: if we enjoy listening to music with IEMs all around the world, why not try to make one ourselves? Thus, our journey began in 2019, just as a group of friends, researching how the drivers work, buying them off the Internet, putting them into printed IEM shells, and seeing how it goes.
Fast-forward to five years later, in early 2024, we got to a point where we believed we had something really good in our hands, an IEM prototype that we believe is good enough for the global stage. We wanted to show that to the world, just to see how people feel about it. We replicated that prototype into a shiny red shell, designed our official Eminent Ears logo, and just like that, our first real IEM project was born: The Ruby.“
Those who are staying in tune with the IEM scene/hobby must’ve already heard about Eminent Ears or even owned/auditioned for their first debut IEM, named Ruby. Well, I’d say that’s enough intro explaining Eminent Ears, so let’s cut to the chase and jump into the review! Ruby is a 1DD+4BA+4EST tribrid IEM and is priced at $2300. Let’s see and listen to how it sounds and also compare it to other IEMs.
Elegant, Tidy Package
Ruby comes in a packaging box that reminds me of one that comes with a luxury jewelry product (perhaps also because of the elegant Eminenet Ears logo). With a black/gold color tone, removing the outer sleeve reveals a protective paper slip and the IEMs. The earpieces are stored nicely on top, and a carrying case is placed on the bottom. Other than the earpieces, Ruby comes with a leather case, a custom Vortex stock cable, 3 pairs of Vocal eartips, 3 pairs of Balanced eartips, and a user manual. The carrying case has a nice leather finish with a soft texture on the inside, but the size is on the smaller side – the earphones could fit in but need to roll up well to do so, and using a thicker cable than the original stock cable would probably not fit into the provided case. However, the positive side is that they’ve paid good attention to the eartips and cable, overall making a decent offering for the accessories. For the cable, we’ll talk further below.
Earpieces: Subtle yet have the Gemstone Visuals
As the name hints, Ruby has a red faceplate topped with red, glossy shards of layers to give that three-dimensional, jewelry-like gloss and shine. While the design factors are rather simplistic, this simplistic yet in-depth faceplate with its solid black body gives Ruby quite a luxurious look. I wouldn’t say the design would be Ruby’s ‘wow factor,’ but it is not underdone either. I’d say this level of design suits well with its jewelry concept – the ruby, in particular. Although Ruby’s resin body is black, it’s technically a mixture of black and red; there are very subtle touches of deep-red (or scarlet) glitter spread across underneath the black coating if you look closely, which actually aids Ruby’s ‘subtle yet rich’ design concept.
Ruby’s cable termination is done with flush 2pin standard sockets, which offer a tight connection. The inner earpiece design is shaped very ergonomically with good nozzle length and enough curvature angle as the body is shaped towards the nozzle, providing one of the most secure and omnivorous fitting experiences. The insertion is deep and secure, making it easily wearable for those with smaller ears.
Technical Details & Highlights of Ruby (1/2)
Let’s now talk about the technical side of this earphone. Ruby is a tribrid, 9-driver IEM consisting of 1DD+4BA+4EST. Ruby’s proprietary 10mm berrylium-coated dynamic driver handles the low frequency. Eminent Ears states that they’ve designed the diaphragm and the woofer chamber that would allow Ruby to bring out a distinctive bass presence, making the low frequencies more dynamic and impactful.
Alongside, Ruby features Eminent Ears’ special technology: the ICRS (Individual Chamber Resonance System). This technology was invented based on the arrangement of an orchestra and the acoustic design of concert halls, and by individually dividing and placing each driver in their ideal position, Eminent Ears describes this allows Ruby to achieve a soundstage in both horizontal and vertical dimensions.
Technical Details & Highlights of Ruby (2/2)
The 4 balanced armatures cover the mids and mid-highs – 2 of which are Knowles drivers, and the other two are custom-made BA drivers by Eminent Ears. Through the “meticulous tuning” process, as they state, the 2 Knowles BAs cover the low mids and mids to create a seamless transition from the dynamic driver woofers in both texture and nuance. The two custom BAs cover the upper mids and highs. Eminent Ears highlights that they’ve ensured these 4BA drivers make prominent, high-resolution vocals while having the ‘connecting-bridge’ role that keeps the entire sound spectrum in harmony and cohesive, focusing on not leaving gaps between as the sound frequency transitions to another.
Lastly, the 4EST super-tweeters are responsible for the ultra-high frequencies. These custom-tuned Sonion EST drivers give its jewelry-like shine, “adding a hint of brightness” to the overall sound. Well, let’s soon see how they’ve executed the tuning on the next page.
Special Cable: Collaboration with Vortex Cables
Born in Hong Kong, Vortex Cables is one of the hottest potatoes in the custom cable industry/hobby – and all by good means. While their custom cables are being widely used across the communities, Vortex Cables have been gaining further exposure through collaborations with various IEM brands – and Eminent Ears is one of them to hold hands with Vortex Cables.
Ruby comes with a custom-grade Vortex cable exclusively built for Eminent Ears, a Litz 4-braided SPC alloy wire cable. Plug and Y-split are made of light, durable stainless steel. The Y-split has Vortex’s iconic triangular logo while the other side is engraved with Eminent Ears’ logo. The audio plug is terminated in 4.4mm. This Vortex stock cable is extremely soft, light, and pliable, making it easily adaptable for those who are reluctant to bulky, microphonic upgrade cables. The benefit of this cable is that it’s just as comfortable and easy to handle as a typical stock cable without being flimsy in both build and sound quality. Below are the further specifications for the IEM and the Vortex cable:
IEM Specifications
- Plug: 4.4 mm
- Drivers: 1 DD + 4 BA + 4 EST
- Interface: 2 Pin ( 0.78 mm )
- Sensitivity: 103 dB
- Frequency Response Range: 20 Hz-20 kHz
- Impedance: 60 Ω
- 5-Way Crossover Design
- Tuned Together with Vortex Cables
Vortex Cable Specifications:
- Material: Silver-Plated Copper Alloy
- Braiding: 4-Braided
- Diameter: 1.6 mm / Core
- Interface: 2 Pin (0.78 mm)
- Plug: 4.4 mm Balanced
- Plug material: Gold-Plated Copper
- Metal parts: Oxidized Aluminum Alloy
- Cable length: 123 cm (±2 cm)
- Cable structure: Independent Winding LITZ Structure
- Protective cover: PVC
Next Page: Sound Impressions / How Does the Ruby Sound?