A forgotten gem in the sub-$100 IEM Market

So the Rose Technics Star City 5 Pro was released a few months ago and definitely went under the radar of most of the community, possible its ‘generic’ sounding name did not help, this IEM deserves a special name, something like ‘Rose Technics Artemis’ or ‘Rose Technics Ceres’. But judging by the recent reviews, it is finally being rediscovered and having listened to it for the past month I think it is definitely time for people to discover this forgotten gem.

Read on to find out if it has everything you could want in a $100 IEM.

Introduction

So, the Star City 5 Pro comes with a hybrid configuration that includes one dynamic driver and two balanced armature drivers, the Star City 5 Pro aims to deliver a balanced, detailed, and engaging sound experience. It comes with either a MMCX or a 2-pin connector (my model came with MMCX ) and it currently $75.99 on Rose Technics website.

The Dynamic Driver is a 10mm Japanese LCP (Liquid Crystal Polymer) composite diaphragm dynamic driver unit and the BA’s are Danish and each earpiece includes a 3D-SLA printed resin chamber with CNC stainless steel rear cavity so over it is built with some nice technology.

But let’s get into the details of what you can expect:

Unboxing Experience

The Star City 5 Pro comes in a nice cleanly designed box:

Sliding out of the outside cover you get a nice looking box:

Opening this box reveals a nice booklet:

Removing the booklet reveals the IEM and a nice carrying case for them:

Taking out the covering case reveals its contents including some nice eartips:

I was especially impressed that these ear tips including a XL size (which is rare) as a regular user of a Dunu S&S XL eartips it was nice to see these larger sizes being provided.

Inside the high-quality carrying case, your cable, some more ear tips, and a nice surprise especially at this price point it comes with an usb-c dongle for your smartphone, so you can use it without a headphone jack:

We will measure some of the tips and the usb-c dongle later in the measurements section.

Build, Design and Comfort

The Star City 5 Pro features a unique design, combining resin and metal for both durability and aesthetic appeal.

I found the angle of the IEM to be excellent for my ears, this combined with the XL ear tips, the overall comfort and long term stability in my ears was excellent. I actually brought these out on some very long walks and never lost the seal and did not have to readjust the IEM in my ears.

The resin and metal construction not only enhances durability but also provides a unique styling.

Cable

I found the cable to be good, about what you should expect for this price, but it never tangled and has a nice shape around the ear:

The 3.5mm connector is solidly built:

As is the MMCX connector:

Sound Quality

The general sound profile from the Star City 5 Pro is a harman sound with excellent bass, a smooth and balanced midrange and some excellent treble. Everything is nicely done, and it is quite a surprise at the sub $100 price range to find no real weakness in the sound.

Bass

The Star City 5 Pro excels in delivering a well-balanced bass performance. The combination of precise sub-bass and punchy mid-bass creates a rich and immersive listening experience. This makes the IEMs suitable for a wide range of genres, providing both depth and clarity without sacrificing detail in the lower frequencies.

I found the bass excellent in classic audiophile tracks like James Blakes’s “Limit to your love” the bass was punchy but never overwhelmed the midrage or treble.

Mids

The midrange is well-executed, with female vocals standing out without being overly robust or too thin. I listened to a few Kate Bush albums (e.g. the Hounds of Love) while out on a few walks, and it was fantastic, really making those tracks shine. Male vocals sound good, though slightly less prominent. The midrange is transparent and detailed, leaning towards the brighter side without becoming harsh.

Treble

The highs are open and airy, with natural-sounding instruments and excellent layering. The upper treble has good extension, offering pleasant detail and sparkle but never sibilant. Even classic 80’s tracks like Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean (or whole Thriller album) had excellent crisp treble but not over whelming.

Soundstage and Imaging

The soundstage is remarkable, with notable width, depth, and height. It enhances the listening experience, particularly with live music and gaming environments. The precision in layering allows for clear instrument placement and separation, maintaining accuracy even in busy recordings, I really enjoyed some binaural recordings with this IEM, including “Perfume Genius” “Just like Love” which sounded beautifully layered and surprisingly open for an IEM.

Specifications and Measurements

Measurements

These measurements where taken with my 711 clone coupler and are available on my measurement database here

So lets get into some measurements.

First the Frequency response using the standard ‘wide bore’ eartips. This mostly shows good channel matching with some minor variations around 4K:

Note: I used the jm-1 target in this comparison - showing how close the Star City 5 Pro is to this newer target (other than some treble peaks which can be tweaked with some tip rolling).

I then measured some of the other ear-tips as Rose Technics provided a nice variety and for those wishing to tune the sound knowing which tips provide those tweaks is important: Note: As you can see you can tweak the bass and the treble with some tip rolling (I added a double-flange measurement to show some other variations).

Here are some of the ear tips provided with the Star City 5 Pro showing both the narrow and wide bore ear tips and those XL size that I really appreciate being provided:

Distortion

The distortion is well controlled, this is often where the hybrid configuration is vital - if you want to play loud without any possibility of hearing distortion:

Some comparisons with similar IEM’s

Here are some comparisons, you can hopefully see how well-balanced the Star City 5 Pro is compared to these highly rated (but more expensive IEMs) and also how much Rose Technics are improving with each new IEM launched as the Star City 5 Pro shows some definitely improvements over the excellent (in its price range) Quiet Sea:

USB-C Dongle Measurements

I decide it might be worth doing a comparison of the provided usb-c dongle compared to the Apple usb-c dongle:

Note: While the usb-c dongle measures exactly the same as the Apple Dongle - it was a few notches down on the volume control, so I imagine other reviewers heard differences due to different volume. I level matched the volume for the measurement above.

This was the distortion captured when measuring with the supplied usb-c dongle - you can compare it with the one above and see it is effectively exactly the same distortion:

So this is a good usb-c - not quiet as powerful as the Apple USB-C dongle but perfect for the Star City 5 Pro (and any other IEM in your collection).

Ratings

I gave the Rose Technics Star City 5 Pro a pragmatic 5-star rating, it is amazing what you can now get in the sub $100 price range, this easily competes with IEM’s in the $150 price range and when you add the usb-c dongle and the nice accessories it is an excellent bargain.

Conclusion

The Rose Technics Star City 5 Pro is a fantastic IEM. It offers a clean, powerful, and engaging sound. The inclusion of a variety of accessories, including a dongle and a very nice case, adds to its value.

The Star City 5 Pro is highly recommended for anyone seeking a high-quality, detailed, and enjoyable listening experience with a comfortable IEM’s and some great accessories.