Mobileaudiophile

SIVGA Que Review: Classy Aesthetics & Stage Performance

Kindlefirehditaly

Disclaimer:

Good morning, readers! After the Kefine Delci, I got the SIVGA Que. For those who don’t know, Kefine is their sub-brand that is having a lot of success. Not having tried other IEMs from SIVGA, I will compare them with the Kefine ones.

Minimal, clean, serious design that inspires sound quality, aggressive price, 1DD in beryllium with a shell in zinc alloy and wood, and even a nice set of accessories. It seems like a bargain, doesn’t it?

I’m not an audiophile; I’m just a guy that likes to try out different IEMs and DACs and spends a lot of time listening to music.

So I’m not going to use super technical words to review it, but I will do my best to describe it.

Tech Specs:

Packaging:

Front Box
Back Box
Unboxing
Unboxed
First look

The packaging is of good quality, aesthetically, the front part is more oriented toward the Asian market in my opinion but honestly, the interesting part are the stock accessories that we find inside:

What inside?
Sivga Case
Inside the case
Tips
Cable

The best IEM case award goes to SIVGA. Big, sturdy, and made of imitation leather. Inside, we find a cable of undoubtedly excellent quality and a very good set of eartips. The only criticism I feel like making is the impossibility of choosing a cable with a balanced 4.4mm termination. In any case, the whole thing looks and feels decidedly premium. For the price, which is around 80 USD, it is definitely remarkable.

Tips
Case Detail
Earhook
Cable Strains

Design/Build quality:

SIVGA Que
Back & front
Stock tips
Nozzle removed

The SIVGA Que, however, does not cease to amaze; the quality of the shells is truly excellent; if they were not two zinc alloy spools but a CNC machining from a block of aluminum, it would have been the pinnacle of construction quality. But even so, the quality is truly excellent, and the decision to maintain a serious and minimal design, which I personally like a lot, gives me a feeling of a serious and quality product. The faceplates are made of wood and theoretically should be the rear part of the cavity, therefore contributing to an improvement in the sound. What I said I found in the product description but it should be disassembled to verify the actual communication between the wood faceplates and the internal cavity.

360° Reel

Surprisingly, I noticed that the nozzle can be changed or modified. I do not know if it was supposed to be equipped with interchangeable nozzles but honestly, they could sell them separately. In the internal part that faces the ear, we find two ventilation holes, one in the rear part and one in the front part of the driver. The beryllium driver can be seen by removing the nozzle; in my opinion, it is a particular driver or at least the front part seems to have a cone that restricts the output. The interchangeable nozzle is the most solid and massive I have seen so far; inside we find a tuning sponge.

Initial sound impression:

As I write this review, I am doing my first listening (actually after having already done a lot of tip-rolling), with which I had some unexpected events along the way. The first listen was a mix of shock and surprise. I don’t know why the sound was holographic and had a very strange 3D effect. A slightly exaggerated representation but my ears were somehow telling me to check the connections better.

Nice build quality
Connectors
Minimalist Desing
Wood Faceplate
Shape 1
Shape 2
Nozzle
Driver
Macro driver dome

On first listening to the Fiio KA11, the cable connected correctly, the 0.78mm pins were correct and there was nothing that suggested a problem. I decide to change the cable and dongle (Letshuoer Nebula and Fosi DS2), and all the strange things go away. I return to test the Fiio KA11, suspecting a problem, but nothing happens. Back to the stock cable, and it now works as well. The only conclusion was that somehow there was some surface oxide somewhere. The sound of the SIVGA Que remains impressive, holographic, and immersive, with bass that goes down a lot with a really excellent rumble and a pretty good extension. All this is seasoned with a lot of air. The voices are extremely accurate and attractive.

Tips Rolling?

The SIVGA Que, having a fairly pronounced nozzle, lends itself well to drop-shaped tips that, if in the correct size, allow for a slightly deeper insertion. The stock ones that arrive mounted work fine but have a slightly narrow hole for my tastes, so I opted for tips that are slightly more in line with the nozzle.

I tried the BGVP 07 and similar ones that work well, but the 08 tips work better. So to use a model that often turns out to be almost universal, I mounted the Divinus Velvet M. The originals work more than well anyway but if you have the possibility, try as many tips as you can.

However, the ones that gave an improvement and a reduction in mid-bass bleeding were the EPZ M100 silicone ones. They are not the most comfortable for the model in my case but they are definitely the ones that raise the sound quality the most.

Cable upgrade?

The stock cable is great, although my initial experience made me start the review with some prejudice against it. Currently, it hasn’t caused any problems so I’m inclined to say that there was oxidation somewhere. However, I have now totally converted to balanced cables on practically all my headphones or IEMs. In my case, I took the most expensive cable I had around, the Letshuoer Nebula. This change is a bit too drastic to recommend it to you lightly. Find something cheaper from Nicehck, Xinhs, or Kbear, and you’ll be happy. But I still want to tell you that the sound with the Nebula seems actually better to me. It could be a placebo effect due to past experience.

Comfort & Fit:

Right
Left

Honestly, after several hours, I feel some discomfort, which I believe is simply due to the fact that I am using the Nebula cable, which, being a bit uncomfortable, creates pressure points but not due to the shape of the SIVGA Que shell. Personally, the shape seems to me to be free of edges or particular shapes that could create situations of discomfort. I have definitively paired them with the EPZ M100 and the Nebula cable. The setup is far from cheap but it is spot-on.

Equipment used for the testing above:

Device:

Software:

DAC:

Final sound impression:

I can’t tell you if the setup I put together is a possible lethal weapon but the result is beyond all expectations, honestly. I don’t know how but single DDs are becoming more and more competitive. The soundstage is extremely wide considering that it is a single 10 mm DD and it is really surprising; the tone remains quite natural (I don’t notice strange colorations on the vocal side), and the bass that at first glance seemed excellent is not at the level of the Kefine Delci. It has a marked presence but lacks texture or rather definition, that hides well but that appears in more complex tracks where there is also bleeding in the mid-bass. The extension in the highs makes it a bright V-shaped (not for everyone).

If you play with the tips, you can slightly reduce some of these aspects. In my case, the cable also improved the performance.

Treble

Despite the treble extension being quite remarkable, there is no particular possibility. Many macro and micro details can be easily captured thanks to this brilliance. It must be said that it may not be tolerable for everyone, especially the most sensitive. The beryllium driver has considerable potential and Sivga has exploited it.

Mids

The mids are forward. Surprisingly, the voices are in the foreground and maintain a natural tone. Honestly, the mids are, in my opinion, really well done and difficult to criticize. Both male and female voices are coherent and appear to have more dimension, they have something immersive that contributes to the soundstage. Same thing with the musical instruments.

Bass

The bass has a particular presence that I was not able to understand immediately. I think the perception of the low frequencies is particular, too, because they are bright and the highs tend to steal the stage a bit. Basically, their presence is authoritative but they seem diluted with too much air, which makes them slightly lacking in texture. This sensation varies a lot based on the musical genre you are listening to. Modern and very complex genres are not the best, but a bit of R&B, soul, or jazz on the Sivga Que is really remarkable.

Honestly, after installing the EPZ M100 tips, I had very little left to criticize about the low frequencies.

Bass Test

Soundstage and Imaging 

The soundstage is truly fantastic; we are beyond the ears in all imaginable directions. The image is clear and defined and the separation of sounds is precise. All this is accompanied by a truly remarkable amount of detail. I think I have never heard a single driver in this price range have such an open and detailed sound stage. It even surpasses the EPZ Q5.

You get a multi-layered perception of sound; each track unfolds differently than other IEMs I own. The SIVGA Que have their own unique way of representing music. They have remarkable holographic and multi-dimensional representation capabilities.

Could the sound be improved?

Nozzle with tuning sponge
Sponge removed

Since the nozzle can be removed, you can make a small and reversible modification. I decided to remove the tuning sponge and try them with the nozzle completely free and I think the bass is somehow richer in texture. Clarity is also increased very slightly. In my opinion, I prefer it without the sponge. I suggest you do your own experiments since you only need a toothpick or electronic tweezers to remove them.

Comparison:

vs EPZ Q5

The EPZ Q5 remains one of my favorites for those who want to delve into this hobby. The tuning, its tone, and its coherence make you enjoy every moment of listening. The soundstage is wide and airy but maintains a certain composure. The only flaw is the MMCX connectors, which I hate deeply. They are the most delicate connectors ever and if they are not of excellent quality, they ruin very quickly. It is easier to tolerate the treble brightness.

vs Kefine Delci

The Kefine Delci (now available in AE version) is one of the best entry-level IEMs you can imagine. It manages to maintain a high and clean bass response while not drowning out any of the other frequencies, making for a fun but precise sound. For personal taste, I prefer the tuning of the Delci but the SIVGA Que undoubtedly has a much more immersive soundstage and superior technicality. But the bass on the Delci seems to have a better texture to me.

Conclusion:

The Sivga Que is an IEM that I really like aesthetically. I think that an IEM from a serious brand should aspire to a similar aesthetic. It’s a shame they didn’t opt ​​for a CNC-machined shell that would have been lighter. The type of driver chosen is of excellent quality; the magnets repel each other despite the metal shell. The choice of tuning is quite interesting, even if it is a V-shape, or rather, the way this IEM sounds gives a completely different perception from many other single DDs that I own. It is very rich in energy; the bass is not the most defined and focuses more on the quantity that is camouflaged by the presence of sparkling trebles. Having become sensitive to the bass, I notice that the bass still moves a lot of air in the auditory canal.

It is a somewhat particular effect but in practice it is not as present as on the Delci. But in the end, with the various upgrades made, it has become a little monster of resolution and detail with an excellent low-frequency response. I recommend tips that have a great grip, like those in liquid silicone and, if possible, a balanced cable. The source is also very important; I noticed big differences from the Fosi SK02 to the Fosi DS2, and for some reason the bass response is much more authoritative on the DS2.

8.5/10

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Pros: 

Cons: 

More information and where to buy (no affiliations):

Exit mobile version