What's the Best Vision Ears IEM for me in 2022?

Vision Ears was born in 2013 out of a love for music, design, and – in particular – IEMs designed to enhance the music listening experience. Initially targeted primarily to musicians, VE expanded to provide IEMs to both musicians and audiophiles. While they have an expansive selection on IEMs at a variety of price points, at Bloom we primarily carry the upper end of their lineup which includes a number of audiophile favorites.

Vision Ears EVE20 - $1450

EVE20 is a six-driver balanced armature IEM with 2 drivers for the bass, 2 for the mids, and 2 for the treble. Sonically, you get tight bass, natural mids, and crisp sparkling highs that are similar to EVE20’s big brother in the lineup, the VE 8. The goal in its design was to use simplicity to create a great sound. EVE20 was also produced in limited quantities adding exclusivity to its allure.

Aesthetically, EVE20 has a transparent shell and red translucent faceplate. The design lets you see the care attention that Vision Ears pays to their wiring and driver position, and lends a sort of sci-fi touch to its look.

Vision Ears Elysium - $2280

Elysium is an IEM built around the concept of using a dynamic driver for the midrange in a multi-driver setup, rather than balanced armature. While dynamic drivers are often used for bass due to the degree of physical impact they can create, dynamic drivers also produce some of the most natural musical timbre of any driver type. Vision Ears’ specially designed acoustic chamber delivers detailed, realistic mids along with a deep, fast balanced armature bass, and well-extended electrostatic treble.

Elysium uses similar design cues to EVE20, with a mix of transparent and translucent elements giving you a window into the inside of the IEMs. In contrast to EVE20’s red, Elysium’s greens and blues make a good complement to its lush sound.

Vision Ears VE8 - $2420

Vision Ears VE8 bridges the gap between the stage reference performance a musician needs, and the detailed but musical experience audiophiles love. The mids are rich and detailed, the treble is transparent and smooth while the bass gets just a touch of extra power to provide an engaging, dynamic, impactful sound signature. Surprisingly, the eight balanced armature drivers are configured 2 for the bass, 2 for the mids, and 4 for the treble, but perhaps those extra drivers in the treble is what enables them to create a crystal clear sound with a liquidy smoothness.

VE8 is available as a custom model with a wide variety of designs and finishes, but the universal version gets a translucent green shell with a tasteful striped design on the faceplate. 

Vision Ears EXT - $2960

If VE8 is the perfect balance between audiophile and stage performance, EXT adds a touch more musicality and pushes the sound signature a little bit further from a reference sound. EXT has incredible technical performance with stunning resolution as well as a wide and deep soundstage and holographic imaging. There’s a great sense of separation between instruments and strong definition in the highs, as well as thick, tight bass. EXT brings technical performance together with a great tuning for an incredible audio experience.

EXT has a striking design, featuring a purple aluminum faceplate with a circuit board-like pattern etched into it. EXT also has a unique fit with a universal mold that aims to create a tight custom style fit to ensure the best sound reproduction and experience.

Vision Ears Phönix - $3900

Phönix uses 13 drivers to take many of the best attributes from across the Vision Ears line and bring them together in a true flagship performance. Phönix takes EXT’s powerful, dynamic bass and its crisp highs, and mixes in rich mids with a realistic, natural timbre and detailed presentation. The 3D image is immense and beautifully crafted, giving you an IEM with speed, precision, musicality, and a huge sense of scale.

Phönix has a luxurious look, with a ruby-red faceplate and the option for either gold or black trim. The faceplate is engraved with a golden phoenix, the IEM’s namesake. Phönix has a similar tight fit to EXT, giving you perhaps the closest thing you can get to a custom fit in a universal design.

Which Vision Ears IEM is right for me?

While there are clear similarities across the Vision Ears line – particularly in the crisp, crystalline treble and the way each model balances reference detail with musicality in its own unique way – each also has its own personality that separates it from the rest of the Vision Ears lineup. For a more neutral sound that leans towards a reference delivery, EVE20, VE8, and Phönix give you essentially three different performance levels for a detailed, neutral sound. Elysium gives you something with a warmer, more euphonic sound. EXT is the fun one in the crowd with just a little more emphasis in the bass and in the treble that hits with an engaging, energetic sound.