Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini IEM

| Dynamic Driver |

🎧 As always when getting the freebie earphones included with your smartphone you have no clue of the technical specifications as manufacturers very rarely provide detailed information about them. The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini earphones share the classic Samsung clean white design, constructed entirely in plastic and being overall comfortable and very light. Particularly this model has a round cable with a rubbery material that helps to be less prone to tangling but still this generation didn’t have the better flat cable like the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 iem. They have an inline microphone and a 3 button control (play/pause, volume up, volume down) When reviewing some of the stock iems that Samsung has provided with some smartphones we have seen that many show a very respectable sound quality overall. So, looking at the tendency so far we are giving the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini earphone a test drive in our review HQ to see what are the results. F

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Accessories & Packaging

Once again when looking at free earphones included with your phone you cannot pretend to get many extra accessories for them; 3 eartips are included and nothing else.

^6_/10

Bass & Sub Bass

Bass is prominent, sound signature is warm and bassy, mid-bass is mostly predominant, sub-bass has good depth; overall bass is nothing like the anemic bass from the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 iems, instead they are totally the opposite.

bass is nothing like the anemic bass from the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 iems, instead they are totally the opposite

Equalizing to emphasize bass frequencies produces a very notable enhancement on sub-bass deepness. If trying to push them for basshead levels by adding a Fiio E12 amplifier set to high gain and bass boost turned on; the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini earphones showed an incredible tolerance reaching 70% of Fiio’s maximum power without distorting or falling apart. Under the aforementioned conditions, basshead rumble and impact achieved are very respectable, above KZ ATE‘s impact (with less deepness on sub-bass) and below the Monoprice 8320.

^7.5_/10

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Mids & Vocals

Mids are recessed due to the mid-bass frequencies bleeding onto mids and vocals, making them mildly muffled. In general they are more recessed and less present than the mids on the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 iem.

^5.5_/10

Highs & Treble

Overall they are recessed but still can be distinguished, there is a hint of sibilance with specific songs prone to sibilance. Highs are more recessed on the Samsung Galaxy S4 mini earphones than on Note 4’s iem.

^6_/10

Sound Leak

Exactly same performance as Note 4’s iem, the sound that leaks out of these earphones is noticeably above average, leakage levels are unacceptable for many situations. You will not be able to keep much or any privacy on your listening sessions.

^5_/10

Sound Isolation

Once again identical to Note 4’s iem, fitting is loose and gives space for too much reduction on their capacity to isolate from surrounding environmental sounds. They fail substantially on this assignment.

^4_/10

Comfort

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini earphones share the same housing design as many other stock iems included with Samsung smartphones; they are made entirely of plastic, light and very comfortable to wear, put on and take off. The cable being more prone to tangling are a little less comfortable than Note 4’s.

^8_/10

Response to Equalization

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini earphones respond very well to custom equalization of bass frequencies adding mostly great deepness to sub-bass. On the other hand, mids respond badly to eq when trying to bring them a little more forward harshness arises quickly and they become fatiguing. Highs can be enhanced slightly but sibilance will be emphasized too.

^5.5_/10

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Scores

Accessories - 6/10
6/10
Design - 6/10
6/10
Bass - 7.5/10
7.5/10
Mids - 5.5/10
5.5/10
Highs - 6/10
6/10
Sound Leak - 5/10
5/10
Sound Isolation - 4/10
4/10
Comfort - 8/10
8/10
Response to EQ - 5.5/10
5.5/10
Value for Money - 10/10
10/10

Summary

Pros

Very respectable bass performance
Very comfortable to use
Can handle inexplicably insane amount of amplification power

Cons

Because of mid-bass bleed, mids might be too muffled for some
Sound isolation performance is terribly bad

Notes

A free iem included with your phone that performs excellent regarding bass and pretty well on mids and highs. If you like fun and punchy sound, they are a very respectable earphone that you can be happy with, without needing to buy anything else.

6.3/10

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Specifications

Type	Dynamic
Driver Unit	Unknown
Sensitivity	Unknown
Power Capacity	Unknown
Impedance	Unknown
Frequency Response	Unknown
Diaphragm	Unknown
Magnet	Unknown
Cord	Y-type, round cord
Cord Length	1.2m
Plug	Stereo mini plug
Weight (Without Cord)	Unknown
Supplied Accessories	3x Earphone tips

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Photos

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DISCLAIMER

We highly discourage anyone from trying to apply our testings to your own earphones, the risk of damaging or permanently breaking your iems is absolutely probable to happen. With our standardized equalization and amplification tests we push the limits of the earphones to the extreme. If anyway you decide to do so, we cannot be held responsible of the damage done to your equipment. Do it at your own risk.