Affordable Pro Audio

Introduction

NF Acous or previously known as NF Audio is a Shenzhen based IEM maker that has their roots going back all the way to 2014. They have been rather inactive for the past few years with few and between releases but 2024 has seen a resurgence of their brand with releases such as the NA2, RA10 and RA15 to name a few and some of them have been received pretty well for their great performance. Recently they have decided to extend their professional line of IEM that is targeted for on-stage usage with their all new NM20, an upgrade from the NM2, and priced pretty decently for a professional usage IEM. With a price tag of 119 USD, how will they fare in the well saturated pool of IEM nowadays? We shall find out here.

But first a big shout-out to Ah Jeff from NotBrand or providing this tour sample for us to have an honest take.

Functions & Specifications

Before we start the review, here are the specifications of the NF Acous NM20;

The NF Acous NM20 can be purchased directly from their website as well as other platforms worldwide.

https://nfacous.com/products/nm20?variant=49768244642005

Packaging & Accessories

The packaging of the NM20 here is actually pretty nice and they do indeed look professional. They came in a medium sized cubed box that felt sturdy and designed nicely. The unboxing experience is unique and they open like a CD holder and the IEM is placed inside a round CD design with an iridescent look. Inside we are greeted with the necessities like 4 pairs of their own MS42 eartips in various sizes, a 4 core twisted silver plated cable, a 3.5mm to 6.35mm converter, a fabric hard case and the IEM itself. Pretty standard packaging but with a unique twist.

Design

The design here does have the feel of their other professional line products like the NA2+ but they are an all polycarbonate moulded IEM shell in blue, pink or gray colour. The faceplated has their logo printed on with metal sides. Design is simple and honestly, they do look like a budget type of IEM but they are well built as they do feel solid on hand. Fit is decent but isolation here is mediocre and not as good as other professional IEM like Shure, Etymotic and Westone as isolation is one of the important aspects for on-stage usage.

Inside the NM20 is packed with a single dynamic driver designed by then in house and they are named M2CL-100p. The driver is beryllium plated diaphragm with strong neodymium magnets and they are professionally tuned with its own high precision PCB mounted on the driver. The NM20 uses their patented technology named Clutter Trap to reduce the reflected sound making sound purer by 5 air pressure controlling damping nets and 2 tuning sponges that adjust the air pressure balance from the front and rear.

The nozzle here is metal built with a slightly large diameter with 6mm maximum width and they have a good length with a lip in the middle. There is a metal mesh covering to prevent dust or sweat from entering.

There is a vent hole situated at the side below the connectors and inner side of the IEM and there isn’t any driver flex present which indicates a well vented system.

The 0.78mm is a standard QDC type of connectors and they look to have a thicker gold plating on them.

Cable here is a 4 core high purity oxygen free cable with a twisted braid. They do look generic apart from their black rubber Y splitter and their nice 3.5mm plug. I would expect a more robust or better looking cable but given their low asking price, it is acceptable.

Gears Used for Comparisons

Songs list

Tone and Presentation

The tone here is surely a professional type of neutral flat tuning with a slightly bright sound signature. They have a wide dynamic range that doesn’t really emphasise on any frequency apart from their lean sub-bass. They are an accurate and transparent type of sound that has zero coloration to their sound that suits monitoring decently but not so much for a casual, fun listening. Coming from a dynamic driven sound, they have a rather wide field of sound that has a spacious, airy overall sound with good technicalities across the board.

Soundstage

Soundstage here is quite good as they provide a good width and height that is worthy of their asking price. They have a good 3D holographic soundstage that has great placement of sound and they are easily detected with a good source. Their air in here is also great and they give a breathy timbre that is quite enjoyable without any boxy feel. Isolation here is good but not great and that might be some issues when being used on stage with a loud scene.

Separation and Timbre

Separation here is superb and being a single dynamic driver IEM, they are able to produce a cohesive sound without any gaps and crosstalk from left to right separation is amazing with their wide stereo sound. Timbre here is breathy, natural and slightly dry and they indeed do show music as they are intended without major altercation.

Drivability

Rated at 132 ohms with a 108 db sensitivity, they are relatively easy to drive though some extra power will result in better dynamics and wider sound. As for the amount of loudness, they do have adequate loudness on whichever output you plugged it in and they are easy to match with sources as they are a flat signature IEM. They do scale up with better sources but only in a small margin but they are non forgiving IEM as they do show even minor flaws in badly mastered recordings but they do sound better with high bit rates tracks which can be great for critical listeners for monitoring to fine tuned their product They are not a sensitive IEM and don’t really pick up noise from noisy but on some low quality source like bluetooth, they do tend to pick up some noise marginally.

The Bass (Low)

The bass here is where I do think the flat bass presents its problem where they are on the lean side. They do have an accurate bass with great clarity and amazing detail retrieval capabilities but the mid bass flatness do make some genres like classicals, EDM or jazz a little lacklustre but they perform superbly on acoustics in general. Resolution here is good but transparency is great as they do showcase the bass as it is just that it lacks impact although having a tight slam. They certainly are not for bassheads but purists may like them immensely for their accuracy. Sub-bass here roll off pretty quickly and the sub-bass may sound a little muted but on the other hand, they do have an audible deep reach with an airy extension.

The Mids

Midrange here has a mild forward mids with a clinical sound that is neutral and they do lean towards the upper midrange to give it a slightly bright sound. It has a good balance of body, albeit slightly dry, and along with flat sound, they are an accurate midrange with their spaciousness. The amount of details here is superb and they excel more towards the macro details and no slouch on the micro details retrieval capabilities. Clarity here is above average with a great resolving sound with near zero coloration in their overall sound that gives them a superb transparency that has good accuracy and natural sound giving an unaltered midrange. Vocals here are great as they sound a little intimate with a good upper end brilliance that contributes to a lively sound but they do lack an organic sound to make them lusher. Instrumentals sounded great with a clean, clear and accurate sound especially with strings with adequate amount of air but with certain low frequency instruments like oboe, bass and some drums seems to sound a tad dry.

The Highs

The high range has a neutral presentation with a good extended range that has a good amount of air and they do have a slow roll off a good decay. Their amount here is actually slightly lifted but they are smooth while having a good energy for a lively sound that suits a wide range of genres. Detail retrieving capabilities are great and they sounded natural with a crisp and great sparkle. Clarity here is superb with a fast pace of sound but they do tend to sound splashy on fast tracks like EDM or metal making them a little over saturated but only marginally. Resolution here is great with a vivid uncoloured sound that is accurate and natural free of any weird metallic timbre. Treble here is balanced with a slightly intense treble that gives a rather lively high range with superb clarity.

Comparisons

VS TangZu YuXuan Ji

The recently released TangZu’s YuXuan Ji and they are indeed a beauty and no slouch in their performance as well. It is an all zinc alloy IEM that has a rather similar tuning with a flat neutral signature but with a slightly boosted high range. They are priced at almost half of what the NM20 retail price.

High range on the YuXuan Ji does have a bigger quantity but the do sound a little more peaky but less splashy. Details and clarity on both are rather similar but the NM20 has better transparency and they are more accurate. Treble on the YuXuan Ji is more intense while the NM20 is more balanced.

Midranges on the NM20 aren’t as forward and they do have better space but the YuXuan Ji does slightly thicker with better upper mids brilliance but they are on the harsher side. Transparency is again better on the NM20 but only marginally. Details are better on the YuXuan Ji but separation does sound better on the NM20.

Bass quantity on both is very similar with a flat response and an extended bass. Sub-bass on both is also similar with an early roll off sound but the YuXuan Ji does have a better rumble with a deeper reach. Mid bass on the NM20 does sound tighter and slightly more textured along with a more natural bass.

Soundstage on the YuXuan Ji does sound wider and taller but only marginally

Synergy

FiiO Q7

The brick beast of portable DAC/amplifier, the Q7 and they are great for test driving almost all my gears to try to bring out the maximum potential. It is a powerhouse when it comes to driving power and they are packed with all the features you will need making them a good DAC amp in terms of power and usability. They have superb neutral sound with rather low noise for in-ears and can bring out a lot of details on certain IEM. The NM20 doesn’t need much power to sound their best but the clean source from the Q7 will bring out some refinement for the NM20.

The bass the Q7 provides here is tighter and they have better texturing with a slight amount added in the mid bass. Sub-bass does a deeper rumble that increases the immersion but only marginally. The bass does resolve better with a more vivid sound and they have an airier bass that makes the bass less lean.

Midrange has a more neutral sound and possesses better resolving capabilities along with better detail retrieval. They have a slight forward sound and they do retain their transparency with some addition on the upper mids brilliance . Upper midrange does sound less shouty and smoother but marginally. There is some improvement in their spatial sound giving a more accurate placement of sound . Vocals sounded a little thicker but just a tiny bit without sacrificing their transparency.

High range has an extra kick and they do sound more energetic without being harsh. Details stayed the same but they do sound a tad bit extended with an airy sound. Sparkle does sound sweeter with the same crisp decay.

Soundstage is wider and taller with an accurate placement while increasing air.

Who Is It For?

The NM20 is mainly targeted for those who want an affordable on-stage monitoring IEM that has perfect transparency producing an accurate representation of music. That being said, this IEM isn’t for a fun, energetic listening though it is possible for certain users, it lacks lushness and can be dry in their sound presentation. It is not suitable for bassheads but the highs may cater to treble heads for their slightly strong presence. For gaming, they are decent for their spacious, accurate sound but for movies they do lack immersion.

Final words

So have the team of NFacous created something that fits their goal for the NM20? I would say yes as they are indeed pure monitoring earphones that have the accuracy and being as transparent as a distilled water and they are perfect for those who want a more affordable IEM for professional usage. There are some caveats like the design where they do look cheap along with a mediocre cable but they are solidly built. The sound presentation here might deter those who yearn so for a fun listening experience due to the sterile sound but there is no denying their superb clinical sound that usually cost more than what they are asking for and that is a job well done.

I would rate this product a 3 and half over 5 stars.

Pros

• Good overall technicalities
• Accurate professional
• Solid built with great fit
• Good unboxing experience
• Nicely accessorised
• Wide dynamic range
• Good cohesion and separation
• Great overall details
• Accurate overall presentation
• Superb clarity with decent detail retrieval capabilities
• Crisp high range
• Airy overall sound
• Good soundstage width
• Highly resolving sound with perfect transparency

Cons

• Splashy upper mids
• Designed looks like a budget IEM
• Isolation isn’t the best
• Lacking the fun aspect
• Midrange a tad thin
• Bass lack volume
• Sub-bass roll off
• Average cable quality
• Only available in 3.5mm single ended