August 14th, 2021

SHOZY ROUGE REVIEW: FLAMBOYANT FLAMINGO

My experience with Shozy has been that of a love-hate relationship. The Hibiki SE is perhaps one of the hardest to describe IEMs for me. Yes it looks beautiful and I bought it for the looks alone, but I kept being on the fence about how to portray it. One day it would be pretty good, and then the other I would hate how it sounds.

This kept on going until I realised that I had owned the damn thing for about 2 years and still haven’t finished my review for it. So I can only say that it’s inconsistent. To know more, wait until I post the review for the Hibiki SE, but well, I have left it on the back-burner for 2 years, so don’t expect anything from me on that front.

The BG was my next Shozy purchase, and wouldn’t you know it the BG is quite good. But, the MMCX connections started failing on me, and the cable became oily, perhaps from the ear guides loosening up and leaking some fluid or the silicone material reacting with my sweat, I don’t know.

So one IEM with good build and “ehh” sound, and another good IEM with questionable QC, I didn’t really know what to expect with the Shozy Rouge. But, I am glad to say that the Rouge is a solid IEM with good build quality and does well to represent Shozy’s growth over the years in its tuning.

Ahh, Black Friday, the product of late-stage capitalism and excessive consumerism. But hey, sometimes you do get actually good deals out of it.
Usually, the Shozy Rouge retails for about 180 bucks. But on the Black Friday season this year, my local store sold this IEM at 100 bucks. Seems good, and that paint job is quite enticing, so I got it. Yeah no special reason for getting this thing, I just saw a deal and took it, lets dive in and see what the Rouge is all about.

UNBOXING

The Shozy Rouge’s box is… how do I put this… the barest of bones. Shozy did this with the BG, offering the MMCX version with a basic box with a stylized logo, and later crafting something more personal for the 2-pin BG. So perhaps in the future, the Rouge will have better packaging.

But this, this is generic and boring beyond belief. At least KZ put a render or an image of their earphones on the cover, which ranges from stylistic to cheap-looking, but it’s at least something. This is just a black cardboard box, with the Shozy logo on top. You could say it is minimalistic and tasteful, and I can sorta agree. However, with companies like Moondrop and their anime girl packaging, this can look quite pedestrian.

Opening the box, you are greeted with a carry case, with the Rouge inside. This box is quite similar to the one from the BG, but having a firmer feel and a brushed aluminum looking texture on top, definitely doesn’t feel like aluminum though.

ACCESSORIES

What do I say here, there are 3 pairs of tips (S,M,L) size and the Rouge IEM with its cable. That’s it.

At least the BG had the courtesy to include some extra double-flange tips and foamies, this is just a barren wasteland. I get it, we’re in a hard year with the pandemic and all, but if I got this for MSRP and not the Black Friday price, I would be a little ticked off to be honest.

Well, it makes life easier as a reviewer because there’s really nothing to say here, but as a consumer, I’m not that happy.

CABLE

The cable is apparently made by the Daikoku Electric Company, but it just looks sad. It’s a thin noodle with a pale greyish color. The contrast between the colorful Rouge and its monochromatic cable is real, and I guess the forgettable cable serves to accentuate the IEM itself.

But the pessimist side of me says this looks like a person in a mental episode combined with being bipolar, sometimes being joyful and happy like the colors of Rouge, and then breaking down to the sad, depressing mess of the cable’s drab color.

APPEARANCE

The Rouge is painted in a mixture of pinks, reds, and spots of glue with some dashes of yellow sparkles and topped off with a glossy coat. Looks a bit like a flamingo doesn't it?

Definitely a polarizing paint job, but I like it. It isn’t as “girly” as you would think given the choice of colors, but I could definitely see this being a gift to girls if that’s what you’re looking for.

The coat makes the Rouge a very reflective IEM, but as with the BG and most other IEMs I see doing this, the glossy topcoat will wear off after awhile or be dulled away with use. But at least when it is new it does look nice.

The Shozy Rouge form factor is similar to that of its sister models, the Form 1.1 and 1.4. The difference is with the nozzle, which is a part of the resin body instead of the metal bores used with the Form IEMs. The Rouge’s nozzle had separate sound bores for the dynamic driver and BAs, which I did not expect to see at its 180 dollar MSRP, but is a welcomed development.

As with most Shozy IEMs, the comfort of the Rouge is supreme. Its soft contours fit my ear with ease and the lightweight shell plus the thin cable make for a mostly non-fatiguing wearing experience.

SOUND

TECHNICALITIES

Very good detail retrieval for the price, especially if you can get for Black Friday prices. High in resolution, slightly unnatural but sharp and precise imaging.

Instrument separation is very noticeable due to mid peak creating distance between vocals, hi-hats, cymbals and other elements and good detail retrieval. This can be said as gimmicky, but it works on me so shrug. Positioning of instruments is pretty undefined, though this can be said for most low and mid-end offerings, so not good but not bad either.
Tonality is bright neutral, skewed somewhat by mid emphasis and treble which is a love-or-hate affair.

Soundstage is average, mid emphasis makes some songs sound wider, others narrower. More width than height.

BASS

Very conservative, is somewhat defined with little decay, slightly more subbass emphasis than midbass, but low frequencies overall not really that present. Almost no bass detail and very low rumble, mostly exists to assist other frequencies.

Tip rolling can increase bass presence. Tips with solid, rigid cores and relatively small bores (like stock tips) are reccomended. For instance, Final Type E tips do what they usually do, warms up the sound a bit at a cost to subbass and slight penalty to slam and dynamic range.

MIDS

The forward peak in the midrange is very sharp and precise, targets very specifically female vocals and cymbals. Female vocals very forward, distinct in the mix, has high amount of detail and always domineering the song. Male vocals a bit more hit or miss depending on the singer, sometimes sounds a little too sharp and lightweight.

Despite the very specific emphasis of vocals, the Rouge more often than not targets the right frequencies and makes for a very fun and up-front feeling vocal presentation. There is also a false sense of “air” which makes for a nice presentation, hence the “flamboyant’ descriptor.

Sounds a little intense, but mostly manageable and adds flair to songs if paired with warm sources (Ibasso DC02). Bright sources (LG V20) refine the mids, but can be a bit too hot for my taste. I can hear the slightest hint of BA timbre at higher volumes, but lower volumes sound fine and natural, maybe just a bit sharp.

HIGHS

Can be slightly sharp and sibilant in some songs, but mostly well handled with no grain or artifacts. Actually has treble details instead of just “sizzle” . Cymbals and drums surprisingly well-tuned, behind vocals but high amount of detail.

Due to tuning, makes song have a little glare (but in a good way), helps older songs sound more “hi-fi” than they really are. With bright sources like the LG V20 with its ESS Sabre, the treble can be brittle at times, but not that often. This implementation is a little flawed in that it can be very nice in some songs and glaring in others, but pretty good in most cases.

SONGS

Mariya Takeuchi - Plastic Love

The warm, blunted nature of the song makes the Rouge’s tuning complement it quite well. The boosted highs and vocal emphasis give the song a hi-fi feeling, though some can see this as being too artificial (however I do like this presentation). Maybe 1% of the time the vocals feel a little out of place, but overall very emotive sounding and forward.

Apashe - Green Crack (ft. Wifisfuneral)

On the heavier side of EDM, the Rouge starts to struggle. Green Crack is a relatively simple track, but it's mix is already very forward in terms of the grunge of the vocals, and the Rouge's "sharpening" effect on the top end make it just a little too clean. The little dynamic driver in the Rouge also can't provide that subbass needed to really get you fired up, regrettably.

MAGIC!- Rude (Zedd Remix)

This is where I think the Rouge's tuning shines the most: the lighter genres of EDM. It's sizzly highs enhances electronic genres, really playing into the processed nature of these tracks, and giving them a bit of airiness and just enough sharpness to feel like songs have extra clarity. It's mids are still very ever-present in the mix, making for a very clear and "effervescent" presentation. The drop works well too, with tasteful bass, though a little bit more would have been welcomed.

COMPARISONS

Shozy BG

The Rouge's cable sucks, but still better than BG's cable which becomes slimy and oily feeling after a while. Build quality is roughly the same, with the BG being heftier probably due to filled shell,but I still prefer the Rouge's 2-pin over MMCX any day of the week.

The BG uses a closed off shell, which can have a “suction cup” effect typical of all BA resin builds that can cause discomfort after awhile. Conversely, the Rouge’s vented shell exibits no such effect, and is also lighter (probably hollow on the inside). Of course, this also means the BG does a better job of isolation than the Rouge.

The Shozy Rouge matches the Shozy BG in detail retrieval performance and overshadows it with a more mature tuning that knows its niches instead of an almost competent sound that can be just slightly wonky enough to feel “off”.

However, the Rouge’s bass may only be okay, but still better than the BG's bass, which can be a little lacking. Rouge's bass also doesn’t “bottom out” like the BG’s bass thanks toa dynamic driver rather than a BA handling the low-end.

Hibiki SE

The stabilized wood of the Hibiki SE rules, and I would love to see it again on newer Shozy offerings, Rogue’s colors are nice, but very divisive and niche. IMO still not as good as Hibiki SE.

The Hibiki SE’s shell is much more loose fitting and is still supreme in its comfort, thought juts out of your ears much more and shallower fit despite somewhat longer nozzle.

Hibiki SE has more prevalent bass, much thicker texture and more quantity. Bass decay on Hibiki SE is also much more lingering.

Hibiki SE's sound is also warmer,whilst Rouge has a somewhat leaner signature.

That said, Hibiki is outclassed everywhere else, mids much more grainy and messy, highs are recessed and sounds really dull. Again, a display of how Shozy’s tuning has matured.

Moondrop SSR

Some say the Rouge is an upgrade from the SSR, and I can sorta see that. However, it is an upgrade from the perspective that you want a sound signature that has a distinct upper mid bump. If you want a straight up upgraded IEM that does DF neutral sound signature, this is not it, maybe try Etymotics or the Blessing 2 ?

More of an upgrade with a similar tuning direction than a direct upgrade.

SSR while lacking bass and sounds unrefined, is definitely more “neutral” than the Rouge, which is highly colored. SSR sounds a bit cold whereas Rouge sounds bright, if you want a clinical signature the Rouge is not gonna be an upgrade.

Still worth a shot though, try it out maybe you’ll even like the Rouge more than how the SSR is handled.

Kinera Freya

i'm putting the Freya in here for comparison if only because it has a pink version that looks similar to the Shozy Rouge.

But let me be clear, the Shozy Rouge is clearly the better IEM. The Freya's shell whilst fancily painted, is big, and its shape create a wedge in your ears which become uncomfortable for long listening sessions.

And the sound, the Rouge wins by a wiiiiiiiiiiiiiide margin. The Freya's sound is a mess, sporting an extra BA over the Rouge, yet its technicalities are about the same if not worse. And the sound signature of the Freya is a mess, a bloated V-shape thats crude, and is utterly mediocre. I struggle to find anything worthwhile about the Freya's sound. At least the Rouge is tuned for a niche and does it well, the Freya has.... nothing.

Sound wise, I wouldn't buy the Freya for 50 bucks, let alone 250, thats 70 over the non discounted price of the Rouge. The Freya is all show and no substance, only buy it if you really like the looks. But trust me, just get the Rouge.

CONCLUSION

If you want an IEM with a mid and treble emphasis, there won't be much else like the Shozy Rouge: a showcase of Shozy's matured tuning direction, a product that plays well to its niche, at a good price. Trust me, the flamingo color scheme looks much more attractive in real life then my pictures show.

And, should you find it at 100 dollars, then you've got yourself quite a bargain of an IEM, that also looks great.

PERCIEVED FREQUENCY EMPHASIZATION