Introduction

Symphonium Audio is a Singapore-based brand established in 2015, dedicating itself to in-ear monitors, as is typical for most start-up Asian brands given the popularity of IEMs over headphones there. The brand is composed of audiophiles who got deep enough into the hobby to realize the only things that would really appeal to them would be products they themselves designed. I appreciate their acknowledgment that the IEM life cycle is way too short these days, their company rather prides itself on taking its sweet time to build everything from the ground up to be durable, with longevity and quality not being a side note, as with most flavor-of-the-month products that briefly grab the attention span of your typical audio consumer. Symphonium Audio’s initial products fell prey to this vicious cycle, and I can’t speak for how good they were, but then came a collaboration with another fledgling Singaporean IEM brand—Subtonic—suddenly everyone was talking about a new entry getting rave reviews: Helios.

The Symphonium Audio Helios, or simply Symphonium Helios as it’s popularly referred to, is a success already. In that regard, perhaps this review is more about getting the word out to others who may become interested, in addition to sharing my own thoughts. It’s also not a brand new release either, the fact that I am still talking about it today—as are many, many others—confirms the Helios validates Symphonium Audio’s philosophy of designing and hand manufacturing IEMs that last the test of time. In many ways, the Symphonium Helios was also a proof of concept for some technological and engineering features co-developed by Subtonic, before integration to their own IEMs, so there’s hype around two sets of community-first companies, who dipped their feet then dived fully into the IEM manufacturing world. Thanks to both Symphonium Audio and Subtonic for arranging a review loaner for TechPowerUp, as we begin our coverage of the Symphonium Helios with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications