I had never heard of Advanced Wearable Audio before this week. But when my colleagues here at MajorHiFi shared their experience with this one, I was pretty excited to take a listen. The Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 is an in-ear-monitor with a lot of spunk, so I’m excited to share my thoughts with you today. Here is the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 Review!

Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 Review

In the Box – Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 Review

-Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101

-earhooks

-eartips

-zipping carrying case

Design – Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 Review

Driver Housings

The driver housings of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 are made of plastic, so they are quite light despite their larger size. Additionally, they fit well in my ears, especially because of the included earhooks and wide variety of ear tips. It seems like these would fit just about anyone, although if your ears are remarkably small, you may find trouble.

Once they were in place, the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 IEMs felt secure. Plus, their design is smooth and simple, sporting a sense of classiness because of their simplicity.

Cable

The cable of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 is coated in cloth so it has a sense of strength without all the bulkiness of other kinds of cables. Its connector is a balanced 3.5 mm connector and onboard the cable is a microphone for taking phone calls.

Sound – Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 Review

Low Frequencies

The low frequencies of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 are solid and have a little bit of emphasis. However, they are not dramatically emphasized. For example, when I was listening to the song Prince Johnny by St.Vincent, the full sustain of the kick was audible. However, the initial attack had the little low end boost so it stood out a bit and provided punchy power.

Middle Frequencies

The low middle frequencies of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 are strong and provide a lot of great energy too! Like the lows, they’re not overly emphasized so as to cause cloudiness. However, they do make bass guitars and electric guitars especially sound really big and really good! For example, in the song Golden Parachutes by Desaparecidos, the guitars sound huge and wide. Meanwhile, the bass is heavy but the two still have their own spaces and don’t step on each other’s toes.

The high middle frequencies of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 seem to have a bit of a dip. This cut helps to avoid harshness, but also takes a little bit away from their precision in the high mids. As a result, vocals sit a bit lower in the mix than normal, but it doesn’t feel like an overly dramatic cut.

High Frequencies

The high frequencies of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 are smooth and a little bit modest. As a result, the IEMs have a dark feel to them. However, the high frequencies still feel even. As a result, they maintain the ability to produce complex harmonics. For example, listening ot McCoy Tyner’s song Inception, his cymbals sound a bit quieter than normal. However, they are still full bodied.

Soundstage

The soundstage of the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 has a good sense of width and depth. The sense of height is a little less obvious because of the softer high frequencies.The depth is really well done and presents the mix in a lively and realistic way. For example, when I was listening to the song Roll with the Punches by Dawes, the guitars which are hard panned left and right sound wide, leaving lots of room for the vocal in the middle. Meanwhile, the drums feel centered and back in space, especially in contrast with the close, dry, and intimate vocal.

Overview – Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 Review

Overall, the Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 are a great choice for audiophiles on a budget! They go for $49 and have a strong low end and an smooth high end.

The Advanced Wearable Audio AWA-101 are available for the best price here:

AWA-101 at Audio 46

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