64 Audio Fourté Blanc Review

November 9, 2022 3:37 pm

Over the years, 64 Audio has been making some of the best audiophile IEMs on the market. Various selections from their library like the U12t and U18t have garnered a ton of acclaim for being the standard for a level of detail and accuracy capable in IEMs. The Fourte is also one of those models, and it has been envisioned twice now. This second and final revision is set to offer a new interpretation of its premium sound. This is the Fourte Blanc. A limited edition IEM set to just 500 pieces, and I have one to review. Is this the best reimagining of the Fourte?

What You Get

Fourte Blanc IEMs
2-pin 3.5mm pearl premium cable
- Extra custom 4.4mm silver-core cable
Carrying case
Cleaning tool
Clip
Six pairs of silicone ear tips
Three pairs of foam tips

Look and Feel

While the Blanc takes the shape of all other universal IEMs from 64 Audio, its aesthetic is very much its own. Its ceramic white shell is stunning and combined with a splash of color on its front plate, the Blanc becomes a real eye-catching earphone. The cables it comes with add to its prestige too, especially the extra 4.4mm silver-core cable. If you find 64 Audio’s UIEMs to have a good fit, then the Blanc will fare the same way.

Design

The Blanc integrates three precision balanced armatures and a single dynamic driver. 64 Audio makes sure each region of frequency has its own dedicated unit, with the three armature drivers relegating highs, high-mids, and mids, while the dynamic driver outputs the lows. A four-way crossover system helps organize the signal path between these driver units. With a low 10 Ohm impedance, you should be able to drive the Blanc from a variety of sources. Using the 4.4mm cable with a portable DAC/Amp gave me the best results, and most of the sound section will be based on that.

Soundstage

There is almost an immediate wow factor to the Blanc’s soundstage. From the first track, the Blanc bursts out of the gate with an expansive display. It stretches far out beyond the earphone’s outer shell, and never thins out. The extreme left and right channels receive as much power as the rest of the image, engulfing your headspace with accuracy and immersion. Dueling guitars showcase their fullest performance, while still having room to breathe. Tracks like “More Than This” by Roxy Music feature clean, reverberant guitars that get to perform their expressive notes and textures in a vast stereo environment.

What’s interesting here is the size of the sound elements. The imaging isn’t actually all that tall. It doesn’t totally lack depth, but the stereo field will appear a lot more linear than you might be expecting. Instruments still show dimension, but the plain they are placed on is flat. It’s like a straight line of full musicality that gives you great separation and complex layers. They stack on each other well and are able to demonstrate clear performances with enough space to capture the intended scale of a mix. Sprawling tracks from the likes of Russian Circles on their album “Gnosis” feature these bombastic distorted guitars, and the Blanc makes them sound huge. Even when presented linearly, the Blanc is able to give performances their proper due in size and scope. It makes me think that the Blanc doesn’t need to have that much spaciousness and holographic dimension in order to deliver a soundstage with depth. The Blanc is just so natural and accurate in every way already.

Low End

If you’re looking for more depth on the Blanc, give its bass something to work with. A majority of tracks I tested on the Blanc gave me a deep resonance with excellent power. The impact here is simply phenomenal, delivering a bodied form with a vast amount of detail. Sub-bass texture shows great extension and vibrates the tone that feels like it’s in your chest. It’s a rich timbre that gives the sound signature a fantastic weight. You also get great dynamics from the region too, reserving its most meaty and cinematic elements for the right tracks. The Blanc is bass-heavy, but only when it needs to be. It never coats the frequencies in a bloated mess of thickness or overextended warmth. This bass is still clean, and its resolution is natural in the mix. Each band of frequency is properly articulated, adding greater separation for more resolving clarity.

Mids

In the midrange, the Blanc starts to calm down a bit. The response is not recessed but the tone doesn’t appear as lively as the original Fourte. Its timbre is a lot more neutral this time around, taking a bit of a backseat to let other regions express themselves more. Some of that defiant, growly energy from the bass comes through in the low mids. This makes metal and electronic tracks show a lot of drive, and the Blanc pairs excellently with all their adjacent genres. Acoustic instruments feature plenty of detail too. Guitars don’t have quite the crispness, but can still display an intimate performance well. Piano notes have a nice quick hit but smooth out on their sustain. Tracks like “Triangle” from Badbadnotgood show good extension in its piano section, it’s just not as forward. Vocals will be though, as they’re the most revealing part of the mids. They appear larger than a lot of sound elements do in the midrange, obtaining the most gain in the upper mids.

Highs

The highs get the Blanc to reenter the fold and deliver a waft of lively details. Their frequency content is completely clear, and the treble has nothing to hide. There is a shine to them, and they can brighten some elements in a controlled manner. Some will find this response a bit harsh, but the highs are always completely natural. Even though they have more energy and extension, the highs should be easy to digest. If you can get past their stronger profile, then you’ll find they have a lot of fidelity to offer. Ultra-high frequencies are very clear, making textures feel more organic than artificial coloration. It all feels realistic to the performances, and when the highs are properly highlighted, the Blanc makes them glisten. It’s crisp and vivid in all the right places.

Summary

With the Blanc, the Fourte is better than ever, especially if you’re a bass head. Everything that goes through the Blanc sounds enormous thanks to its massive low-end response and incredibly wide soundstage. The highs also do a great job of heightening performances, but the mids are surprisingly more neutral. It also has a fantastic style with a good universal fit and two great premium cables. If you already own the Fourte, there are some changes to consider. Those who like the Fourte but want more bass and soundstage should absolutely pick up the Blanc before it’s gone. The Blanc is also just a great option for an endgame IEM, but if you don’t get it in time you’ll always have the original Fourte, even though the experience won’t be the same.