T20:
I am convinced the T20 is an earphone that pleases a whole lot of listeners, this is about as good as it gets in this price range without going to custom monitors. You won’t regret buying it.
T20:
I quite like RHA. Not only have they been putting great new products on the market but they all are really nice people. I have met several of them during shows and even the ones I have only emailed with are always very helpful and friendly. I get the feeling they all sincerely stand behind their products and that just shows in everything they do.
I was a bit surprised to see RHA release the T20 so soon after the T10 so the T20 must be something special, right?
If I remember well I had mixed feelings about the T10 back when I reviewed it. While build quality and fit were perfectly fine the T10s were always on the bass heavier side. I have to say I haven’t used them since the review, which mostly is a good indicator if I really like a product or not. That being said, the T10 –to me– was the best IEM in their line-up even if bass was always a bit on the leaner side. Some loved it, some hated it. But isn’t that always the case?
The T20, just like the T10 has a metal injection moulded, stainless steel construction and it uses interchangeable tuning filters to EQ the sound to your liking. The T20’s non removable cable is a multicore, reinforced, oxygen-free copper cable with gold plated connection. I quite like the cable: it’s “friction noise free” and the patent pending, mouldable over-ear hooks make it stay perfectly over and in your ears. I have a fairly small head and ears and the “hooks” could have been a bit smaller but they do work great. I was also pleasantly surprised to see RHA gives you a three year warranty.
The T20 also is High-Res Audio certified as it conforms to Hi-Res Audio standards as defined by Japan Audio Society. When you buy the T20 it will come in a very pretty box which will contain the T20 in-ear headphone, the tuning filters with their holder, a whole bunch of tips, a carry case and a clothing clip. Not bad at all but they do are $239,95 so that explains a lot. The 39g weighing T20’s sensitivity is 90dB and they have an impedance of 16Ohm. That makes them fairly easy to drive. The “old” T10 uses a regular dynamic driver while the new T20 switched to a new DualCoil™ dynamic driver. According to RHA the DualCoil™ dynamic driver technology is capable of outperforming conventional drivers in levels of resolution, clarity and detail.
Build quality & Comfort
This is where RHA scores big in my book, especially with the T-Series. The metal injection moulded units look gorgeous and their finish is superb. All the accessories from the carrying case to the filters and the filter holder have top notch build quality. And I just love the metal 3.5 plug with the spring strain relief system, everyone should do that.
The latest RHA’s are tiny and extremely comfortable, probably because of the moulding process. 85% of all universal monitors do not fit me and that sucks. Lately however I have been feeling quite lucky as the Rockjaw Alfa Genus V1 & V2, LMUE AD01, RHA T10 and Trinity Delta – all smaller designs – fit perfectly. I can easily listen to the RHA IEMs for several hours without my ears getting itchy or before they start hurting. Great job!
Sound
The filter system of course isn’t new and the filters basically are the same as with the T10. After the TOTL AKG it got quiet for a while for what interchangeable filters are concerned but lately a couple of brands like the popular Trinity and Rockjaw brand have also been using these filters. The funny thing is the Rockjaw filters fit the RHA monitors and vice versa. The Trinity filters are a lot bigger and don’t fit.
The T20, technically, is the best sounding RHA IEM of their line-up. It has the most balanced sound and is closest to being linear and neutral. And I absolutely mean that in a good way. Do note that the general impressions below are based on the reference filter (the grey one). The T20’s soundstage is quite good but you will always get a more inside your head sound. The space between the instruments is smaller and maybe that’s giving this perception also. The T20 on all filters sounds fast and very clear and I think it’s one of the strongest points of this monitor. At the same time the T20 is fairly detailed and especially vocals are really good. From bass to mids, I find the whole presentation to be pretty well balanced, even with the bass filter installed.
There do is still room for improvement on what timbre, depth and imaging is concerned. Bass is fairly tight and is perfectly in line with the mids section for my taste. That probably means that some of you might find the bass to be just above neutral. Sub bass can be on the looser side which I experienced with certain rap music but in general I am pretty pleased with the way the T20 is doing bass. Like I said it could have better layering and detail but this is something that is valid for the complete T20 and not just the bass. Using an amplifier with bass boost, like the Fiio Q1 which I am using right now, allows increasing the bass presence to beyond linear and neutral but the T20 does allow it without sounding wrong.
The mids section is very well done with a good level of detail and especially vocals are really nice to listen to. The attention does get drawn a bit to the slightly more forward sounding vocals, but I quite like that kind of presentation. Compared to higher end models it’s again the depth I am missing together with an airier presentation as they can now sound rather closed depending on the song and the recording. I find the treble to be reasonably extended and it always sounded lively and clear without ever giving the impression of sounding harsh or soft for that matter. Lively and energetic is what I would label it.
With the BASS filter installed (black one – of which I have gotten 4) you kind of keep the presentation of the mids and the treble but the bass gets extra weight and becomes a tad looser down below. I don’t find the filter to drastically change the bass presence, Fiio’s Bass Boost has larger impact on the bass than swapping the filters. With the Treble filter, it’s all in the name, treble gets a slight boost making then the overall sound signature a bit thinner. This isn’t my kind of sound. Personally I would say the reference filter is best, followed by the bass filter and lastly the treble filter.
Compared to the T10, the T20 has a more reference kind of tuning or audiophile tuning as you wish to call it, even with the bass filter installed. The T20 is the more linear and technically equipped monitor while the T10 will for sure please the bass heads among us more. Personally I would never call the T10 a bass heads headphone though, that’s something I’d rather say of RHA’s MA-600 IEM or the Fischer audio Eterna Rev. 1.
Sources
For most of the time I have been using the T20 straight from the AK120ii and the Luxury & Precision L5Pro, no amplification is needed by any means and the T20 will sound just like I described above. When I did use an amplifier it was the Fiio Q1 while I was at work and then the Q1 served as an AMP/DAC unit. I quite frequently turned off the Bass Boost though. So no, the T20 doesn’t really need an amp but you can (slightly) tune the T20 a little bit hardware wise. When I connected the T20 to Jan Meier’s excellent 9V battery operated Corda Quickstep (portable amplifier), the T20’s layering improved significantly. Lower bass got tighter and treble even got more energetic (sometimes even a bit too much).
I wouldn’t worry too much about synergy with your actual source, the T20 is easy.
Conclusion
In a short time RHA has come a long way. I wouldn’t be surprised if they would suddenly launch a full sized headphone in 2016. Or will they surprise us with an even better version of this IEM, named the T30? Anyway, RHA has become a brand to follow: a varied product line-up, reasonably priced IEMs with a good price/quality ratio, very good build quality and qualitative packaging. And then there’s the excellent comfort, stunning looks and good sound. What’s not to love?
The T20 is a wonderful IEM and to me it is their best one so far. I am convinced the T20 is an earphone that pleases a whole lot of listeners, this is about as good as it gets in this price range without going to custom monitors. You won’t regret buying it.
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