TRI Draco Review: A brave budget Jackpot!

TRI Draco Review

‘Nice little well-built IEMs’- that’s what I felt when I first met the TRI Draco! And the first time I started to listen to it, I was like ‘WOW!’ They sound open and transparent while the signature stays warm to give you a nice musical feel. The semi-open back design produces a good soundstage but the instrument separation takes that advantage more! This is not a power hungry IEM, but more juice can scales it up quite a bit. And it is match well with the signature of the sources. Pair it with a warm source, the lower frequencies will come out with good texture while neutral and bright sources make the upper-mid & high frequencies shiny.

The stock cable and ear tips are good enough and match well with the Draco. But there’s always some room for improvement, right? I will cover this part solely in this review.

DISCLAIMER

KBEar was kind enough to send me the TRI DRACO to review. I am not affiliated with KBEar/TRI and of course, I was not asked for any copy-checking before publishing. All opinions shared in this ‘TRI DRACO review’ are my subjective thoughts.

One thing more: The review is based on my personal experience and what I hear using different sources. Your experience may vary due to personal preference and physical differences like the shape & depth of the ear canal.

For your personal purchase, checkout GEEK MART or KBEar for their fantastic products and promotions (non-affiliated link).

GEAR USED

●   DAP: Cowon Planue R2, Tempo Tac V3
●   DAC: ifi Hip DAC 2, Cayin RU7, iBasso DC 04 Pro, Dunu DTC 480, Fosi Audio DS-1, Celest CD-10, Celest CD-20 Hidizs SD8 Pro Robin, Moondrop Dawn Pro.
●   Smartphone: Poco X3
●   Files: Spotify & local Hi-Res FLAC & DSD files.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION

● Driver: 2 DD- 6MM Ti + 8MM LCP Diaphragm
● Frequency response: 20Hz-20KHz
● Impedance: 18Ω@1KHz
● Sensitivity: 105 dB @1KHz
● Cable: OFC silver-plated wire
● Pin Type: 2PIN-0.78mm
● Cable Length: 120CM
● Plug Type: 3.5MM SE Plug

WHAT’S IN THE BOX

● TRI Draco IEMs
● 9 pairs of silicon tips
● Silver-plated OFC copper cable (3.5mm plug)
● IEM storage box with TRI branding
● Some official papers

Product image courtesy: TRI

UNBOXING EXPERIENCE

Comes in a relatively small box with all the accessories inside. The IEMs are nested securely in a foam cutout, and under that, you will find a carrying box with TRI branding. Inside the carrying box lies the stock cable and three types of ear tips in three (S,M,L) different sizes.

TRI does a good job here by making the package small & effective. This is really a good approach.

BUILD QUALITY

The Draco is made from CNC aluminum alloy materials that feel sturdy & tough. It is small and doesn’t carry much weight. The back is semi-open, even the TRI logo with some cutouts in the side of the shell for air ventilation. The built quality of the shells is fantastic, with smooth finishing. The stock cable is also a good one with OFC silver-plated copper that has a 2-pin connector that connects well with the IEMs. It is soft, and the ear hooks don’t create any pressure over the ear. The cable is also tangle-free with bare minimum microphonics. Supplied ear tips are made from soft silicon, among which ‘Clarion’ is popular among audiophiles.

FIT & COMFORT

This is a very comfortable IEM and fits very well in the ear. Its small size and less weight make it an on-the-go gear that you can use as your daily driver. Due to its smooth finishing, it doesn’t create any uncomfortable feeling inside the ear, and on top of that, the ‘Clarion’ tips are also so comfortable. They are super soft with a wide boar, which helps to make the stage a bit wider. The soft cable is also comfortable to use for long periods of time. The semi-open back design and adequate air ventilation make sure that there will be no extra air pressure inside your ear canal while wearing it.

Overall, the TRI Draco is comfortable audio gear for everyday use.

SOUND IMPRESSIONS

The Draco is lean to the warmer side with its slight elevation in lower frequency. But the semi-open back design will give you a very comfortable and relaxed listening experience while the midrange and high frequencies will stay lively. It has a well-rounded mid-bass presentation over sub-bass and the vocal reproduction is fantastic with a good soundstage. The instrument separation is specious and the treble is airy & extended.

here is the frequency graph-

SUB-BASS

This IEM delivers quality sub-bass but the quantity is not that much. It will give you a refined & subtle sub-bass experience emphasizing a balanced response. It has a good body but a faint rumble due to the open-back style. You will only hear adequate sub-bass in bass-heavy tracks, while in normal ones it stays a bit quiet. But in a busy environment, you will lose it. That disturbs the whole enjoyment, especially for a warm head like me.

For those who love clarity and balance over sheer bass quality, Draco can deliver a satisfactory level of sound and this can be a good choice for the price.

MID-BASS

This is where Draco shines like a star, a true superstar. The mid-bass is so enjoyable and with fantastic quality. Driven by an 8mm LCP DD, the mid-bass delivers a satisfying impact with decent weight. It has a smooth extension, because of its open-back design. By extension, I mean, when the kick drums hits, the impact as well as the shiver delivered by the diaphragm is audible. This really feels fantastic to hear.

The mid-bass has a body with good texture and rumble that adds some warmth to the overall sound signature. The open-back style makes it even more transparent and well-shaped. Mid-bass lovers will love every bit of it.

MALE VOCALS

I have a little complaint about the male vocal section of this earphone. I love warm & meaty male vocals. Because in my point of view, that brings out deep emotions in the lyrics. But it’s missing here. While it produced male vocals with good texture, it has a bit thin tone in it. Even vocals like Mark Knopfler, James Hetfield, and David Coverdale seem thinner. The depth is nice but I miss the fuller presentation that I love. It is more on the relaxed side with a lot of air in it.

Progressive rock lovers will love this kind of presentation as most of these genres benefit from high-pitch-thin vocals.

FEMALE VOCALS

While the male vocal has less thickness, the female vocal presentation is something extraordinary for female vocal lovers. It presents the upper mid-range with spark & shine. For that, the female vocals come out as powerful as you want. The open back adds sweet transparency to it to make it more enjoyable. But in high-pitch notes, it may create some fatigue for certain listeners who are sensitive to higher frequencies.

But the clear, vibrant female vocal presentation with emotional resonance will give you an engaging and intimate listening experience. Which is a fantastic positive side of it.

INSTRUMENTS SEPARATION

Draco is exceptional here if you consider the price point. It has balanced tuning with a semi-open back architecture, which helps to separate instruments and occupy their own space. This allows instruments like guitars, pianos, and other string instruments rendered with clarity. It creates a good sense of dimension, especially when the vocals mix with the instruments. Though sometimes the warmth in mid-bass can soften the precision slightly.

It’s well capable of offering you a well-rounded, coherent listening experience that enhances the enjoyment of complex musical arrangements.

TREBLE

Treble is really enjoyable with spacious and crisp upper-frequency responses. Take a look at the graph, its not elevated; so it’s on the safer side. It has a good extension and lots of air due to the semi-open back style. Higher frequencies play with a good sense of smoothness and don’t create any fatigue even in longer listening sessions. On top of that, the airiness plays a very good role here by creating a buttery silky environment which will give you a fantastic listening experience.

This IEM is capable of delivering a very good definition to your music by adding sparkle, airiness, and good extension in the treble, while its slight warm tuning keeps the high frequencies smooth & pleasant.

SOUNDSTAGE

This is a semi-open back-style IEM, but you can’t expect a wider soundstage from it. But that doesn’t mean that you will feel it too intimate or boringly congested. What I mean here is, that open or semi-open-back IEMs tend to deliver comparatively wider soundstage, which is missing in Draco, in my opinion. You can feel the space between instruments easily and the soundstage depth is impressive here. That will give you a ‘pseudo-3-D-like’ experience with good layering and positioning across various frequencies.

This is an IEM which have a good balance between immersive & technical performance making it a well-suited audio gear for listeners who value a wide stage but are not strictly focused on analytical detail.

TECHNICALITIES

Dynamics

The dynamics of the Draco are intense, making for a very involving sound with an inherently realistic sense of scale. It also has a very capable transient response, which handles quick changes in volume and impact beautifully and brings a satisfying immediacy to instruments and voices in the performance.

Speed

Speaking of speed, the dual-dynamic driver setup, where an 8mm LCP driver is responsible for low frequencies and a 6mm titanium driver takes care of mids and highs, gives the Draco the ability to deliver quick, controlled bass. That said, mid-bass prominence sometimes makes the sound warmer and thicker, which may not fully match the precision in terms of speed of more analytical IEMs.

Analytics

The Draco’s analytical performance is decent, but this is where clear detail retrieval really shines, especially in bringing out subtle textures in the midrange and treble. The open-back design enhances the soundstage and provides a rather spacious feel, but it is tuned with a smooth, mid-centric warmth rather than a strictly analytical sound, making it better suited for relaxed listening rather than intense analysis.

CABLE & TIP ROLLING

May favorite part of testing any IEM is rolling cable & tips. The stock cable of TRI Draco is a very low-profile one and goes very well with it. But still, I shuffled the cable to find the difference in sound quality. If you want a bit of upper-midrange and treble shine, use a pure silver cable. And for bold low frequency, a pure copper cable is well enough. In terms of balanced sound, I use NiceHck MixPP & Dunu Lyra mini and both work very well.

Supplied ear tips are good, especially the ‘Clarion’ which is one of my favorite tips. But it loses the body & texture of bass while pairing it with Draco. So, I roll tips and find that Dunu candy is a perfect match. It reduces some sibilance in upper-midrange while producing lower frequencies with good body & texture. this kind of sound is very enjoyable to me. They are also very comfortable & fit well in my ears.

RECOMMENDED FOR

● Budget-conscious audiophiles
● Mid-bass lovers
● Powerful female vocal lovers
● People who love smooth upper frequencies
● Who loves spacious soundstage
● Audiophiles with basic sources

NOT FOR

● Bass heads
● Who loves sub-bass over mid-bass
● Those who love warm male vocals
● Analytical listeners
● Who are searching for IEMs with wider soundstage

CONCLUSION

In the end, I can only say that TRI Draco is a little budget monster that is capable of delivering a well-rounded sound that hits way above its price point. It’s a budget-friendly audio gear, priced at only $52, with an enjoyable warm signature that is focused more on mid-bass. With its semi-open back design, it produces a comparatively wide soundstage and superb instrument separation while staying strong with lively vocal delivery. Moreover, the treble is smooth, airy & extended. Also, it’s not a power-hungry IEM, so you don’t need to invest a lot in sources.

If this is all you need, just have an audition first and then grab it.

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