AUKEY EP-C3

| Double Dynamic Driver |

? AUKEY EP-C3, a custom/sport styled earphone with cheap price and interesting features. AUKEY is a brand that is massively producing almost any small electronic gadget that you can think about, they have also manufactured some earphones but they are not very famous in this field.

The AUKEY EP-C3 are meant to be used in a sport style like the KZ ZS3, KS ZST, Sound Intone E6, QKZ W1 Pro, Puma Bulldogs; with the cable above and around the ears. Usually this ergonomics offer stronger and more secure fit for intensive activities. The housings of the AUKEY EP-C3 are made of plastic but do not feel cheap nor fragile, they are somewhat transparent and have a memory cable to provide a better fit. Cable is robust and nicely designed with a very textured feel, the stereo plug is angled in 45 degrees.

AUKEY does not provide very specific technical information about the EP-C3 but one thing that they do promote is a double dynamic driver, the housings are semi transparent but very dark that still up to this date did not allow us to see clearly inside to verify if they are truly equipped with double dynamic drivers.

You can buy the AUKEY EP-C3 only in translucent black.

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AUKEY EP-C3 - Review

Tests & Scores

Weight

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Accessories & Packaging

The AUKEY EP-C3 come inside a hard box with 2 extra eartips and a hard carrying case.

^_9/10

Bass & Sub Bass

Bass coming from the AUKEY EP-C3 is super energetic, with very strong punch and lot of sub-bass depth right out-of-the-box without the need of any EQ. No bass will be lacking here.

Equalizing, mid-bass punch gets enhanced but mostly there is an incredible augmentation of depth.

Under our extreme bass tests the AUKEY EP-C3 could handle 50% of the maximum power of a Fiio E12 amplifier set to high gain and bass boost turned on (a custom basshead EQ was used too). The results were an insane increase of mid-bass punch and sub-bass depth, with an outstanding basshead rumble and impact that was way above the KZ ATE, SOUL K-POP, Rock Zircon, URBANFUN HiFi, below the Plextone X41M, Puma Bulldogs, Senfer 4in1, Sony MDR-EX800ST, Pioneer SE-CX8, above the Xiaomi Mi Quantie Pro Hybrid/Xiaomi Mi Piston 4/Xiaomi Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro, Elecom EHP-CA3580, Monoprice 8320, Vots QT100, Xiaomi Mi Pro HD and about the same with the KZ ZS2 or the KZ ZST.

^8.5_/10

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Mids & Vocals

Lower mids of the AUKEY EP-C3 are recessed but not extremely, just a bit too much as to make them sound laid back, most of this is thanks to the excess of mid-bass bleeding. Higher mids are not recessed and can get harsh with strong peaks. An EQ helps them to combat lower mids recession but higher mids get way too harsh.

^_6/10

Highs & Treble

Highs are darkish with a marginal level of detail, mediumly piercing and mostly not too sibilant. We found that they were more prone to sibilance with “ch” sounds than “s” sounds. With an EQ there was a significant improvement with much more open and brighter highs, added detail while piercing and sibilance levels remained similar.

^_6/10

Sound Leak

Sound leaking out of the AUKEY EP-C3 is noticeably reduced. Sound can be perceivable by people nearby but in normal situations they will not disturb at all. For the best earphone in this field you should check the KZ ATE.

^7.75_/10

Sound Isolation

Sound isolation is outstanding, way above any average earphone. The AUKEY EP-C3 are able to provide very high isolation even using low volume levels.

^9.5_/10

Comfort

With the sport style and custom-like design (something like the KZ ZST, KZ ZS3 or the KZ ED12) the AUKEY EP-C3 are exceptionally comfortable once you fit them deep inside the ears and adjust the memory cable to your preference. The fit is so tight that they will hold their position even under the most extreme activities, at the same time they do not generate pain or discomfort (if you are used to sport/custom styled earphones)

^10_/10

Response to Equalization

The response to custom EQ was good with significant and sometimes important improvement of some audio frequencies but also some negative aspects were introduced at times. Bass became madly strong (in a good sense) reaching top level basshead impact (if handled correctly and highly amplified); mids removed a good amount of lower mids recession but higher mids started to sound harsh; highs significantly improved with noticeable brightness and detail without enhancing sibilance nor piercing highs.

^7.25_/10

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Scores

• Accessories - 9/10
  9/10
• Design - 10/10
  10/10
• Bass - 8.5/10
  8.5/10
• Mids - 6/10
  6/10
• Highs - 6/10
  6/10
• Sound Leak - 7.75/10
  7.8/10
• Sound Isolation - 9.5/10
  9.5/10
• Comfort - 10/10
  10/10
• Response to EQ - 7.25/10
  7.3/10
• Value for Money - 8.75/10
  8.8/10

Summary

AWARDS

Pros

✅ Bass is very strong fun, punchy and deep

✅ Comfort and tight fit is outstanding

✅ Sound isolation levels are fantastic even with low volume applied

✅ If extremely amplified and correctly handled they can achieve top level basshead impact

Cons

❌ Mids and highs lack some performance

❌ Highs combination of darkness with piercing highs is not a good thing

Conclusion

The AUKEY EP-C3 are a budget priced earphone with some outstanding characteristics such as bass, sound isolation, fit and comfort. Unfortunately mids and highs do not provide the same level as the just mentioned aspects but they could be within acceptable levels for some listeners (depending on each listeners style and demanding level)
Obviously this is an earphone orientated to bass intensive music and is not trying to be an audiophile earphone. Their basshead level achieved during our extreme bass tests made them earn a position in our Top Basshead Charts and due to their exceptional and secure fit they gained a place in the
Best Earphones for Sports Chart.
The AUKEY EP-C3 can be safely recommended to bassheads, bass lovers, people that enjoy a bass intensive sounding style or whoever wants a sport earphones for fun or energetic activities.

8.3/10

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AUKEY EP-C3 Frequency Response

AUKEY EP-C3

Photos

AUKEY EP-C3

8.3

SCORE

8.3/10