The RHA T20i headphones has an excellent build, a comfortable and elegant design and powerful sound. The T20i, comes with the ‘Made for iPhone’ designation and an in-line microphone, which bumps its price up by $10 over the otherwise identical T20. Both look pretty much the same as their predecessor T10 / T10i models, whose attractiveness has been recognized with a Red Dot product design award. The molded steel provides a neat, durable carriage for the technology within and has a universal appearance that wouldn’t be out of place in almost any context.
With the T2Oi, RHA fixed all the problems that the predecessor T10 had. They have a better sound and design. Made of a solid metal build, a molded section of cable to be used as an ear hook, and the ability to swap out physical filters to adjust balance near to treble or bass. We got to try out the T20i in-ear headphones, and while they’re expensive and not for everyone, they’re certainly worth a look to anyone willing and able to spend a lot of money on good audio. We certainly enjoy headphones with convenience of not having cord all over the place.
Design and Comfort
The RHA T20i have a similar design to the RHA T10. They are single-driver earphones, using dynamic drivers. The headphones are beautifully crafted out of polished, injection molded steel, giving them a sleek expensive look. Visually, the only real difference between t10 and t20i is the use of a reassuringly thick black cable instead of a grey one,
The earphones are meant to be worn around the ear instead of the usual arrangement with the cable handing straight down. This has the double advantage of helping the buds stay in your ear while exercising and reducing microphonics, the sound made when earphones are constantly hitting your body which can cause sound distortion.
The earphones come with different sizes of tips. You get two sets of small, medium and large sizes, two sizes of double flanged tips, and two pairs of the foam ones. Its better you test all the tips to see which ones suit your ears and are most comfortable.
Both the tips and filters come with their own steel holsters which is a nice touch all in a stylish leather carrying case for all the items so you don’t damage the headphones or lose any of the accessories. We love our music and these earphones give great quality sound no matter what genre you are playing.
The best feature about the T20i is the fact that the cables are detachable. T20 model which cost just 10 bucks less has cables that can’t be detached. The 10 bucks will definitely afford you more style and comfort especially because you have no cables hanging which is really a good thing for those who don’t care for the cables.
Apart from this, the RHA T20i has a frequency range of 16-40,000Hz, with a sensitivity of 90dB and an impedance of 16Ohms. The headset comes with three sets of interchangeable tuning filters and ten pairs of ear tips: six silicone pairs, two double-flanged pairs and two memory foam pairs. A carry case and shirt clip are also included in the package. The earphones weigh 39g, and have a 1.35m multicore oxygen-free cable.
The interchangeable filters included are black (bass), silver (reference) and gold (treble). They can easily be screwed on or off by hand, although some care should be taken when doing this as the filters are small and can easily be lost. Each filter offers a slight sensitivity boost within its range, while retaining the overall sonic signature of the earphones.
Sound Quality
RHA T20 series has better sound quality than the T10 ones. T20 fixes the sound issue that was prevalent in the previous earphones. The RHA T20 brings you balanced sound. It doesn’t let the prevailing bass overpower the music and start flattening over the other frequency ranges, which is one major update to these earphones.
The audio is delightfully balanced, and there are no harsh volume spikes when listening to tracks with extremely low or high frequencies. The sound very clear with just the right bass which by the way can be adjusted manually to your preference. If you enjoy the sometime too technical sound that is found in high end earphones, you will so love this pair.
With the T20i, guitars, bass guitars, snare drums, strings, piano, vocals, all sound clear and distinct. The virtual soundstage is a little wider than your local cheap earphones that have range notes all mussed up and don’t have clarity.
The RHA T20i uses dual-coil drivers. According to RHA, DualCoil dynamic driver is engineered to deliver refined, high resolution audio with a neutral tonal balance. The T20’s DualCoil dynamic driver features an additional voice coil situated within an annular magnet; each coil operates independently to produce part of the frequency range. This unique configuration ensures ultra-efficient performance and true-to-life sound reproduction across all genres of music. This results in clearer audio.
The Tuning Filter System design used by RHA enables the user to detach the very tips of the earphone and replace it with a pair designed to boost bass, or boost treble manually. This all depends on the preference of the user. It’s really great that they have allowed the user the choice to pick how he listens to music. Personally, I quite enjoy the bass setting. Once you switch from the neutral to base the difference is so noticeable. Try changing up the tips with the bass or treble and experience how different music sounds with this quality earphones.
The sound is powerful and the bass has the clear power something that you can’t find in the cheaper options. The volume is just right without being overpowering
RHA T20i earphones are intended for people who value their sound quality above anything else. This microphone enabled earphones are just perfect for listening to music and answering a call. The noise cancellation makes them all better for urban areas where noise is immeasurable. When answering, or calling, you still need to pick up you phone and hit the call button. This is a small downside which we hope they will address with their next release.
On the design front, RHA has gone all-out with the T20i to make headphones that both looks and feels like a high-end product. The 3.5mm jack is encased in a durable stainless steel casing, while a tightly coiled spring protects the cable from fraying or breaking near the end. But I still feel that in terms of design, audio and versatility, they comfortably give you your money’s worth. That’s despite the fact they’d set you back $250 if you decided to spend on them.
Redefining Premium
Quite possibly the best-built in-ears we've had the pleasure of reviewing, the RHA T10i headphones defined exactly what premium meant. Coming from a small British company that dabbles exclusively in the in-ear market, the T10i was an innovative product that offered unique features such as interchangeable tuning filters and an immersive sound. The new flagship of the RHA product range, the $250 T20i looks and feels almost the same as its predecessor, thanks to the use of the same injection-molded stainless steel casings and interchangeable tuning filter system.
Apart from this, the RHA T20 has a frequency range of 16-40,000Hz, with a sensitivity of 90dB and an impedance of 16Ohms. The headset comes with three sets of interchangeable tuning filters and ten pairs of ear tips: six silicone pairs, two double-flanged pairs and two memory foam pairs. A carry case and shirt clip are also included in the package. The earphones weigh 39g, and have a 1.35m multicore oxygen-free cable.
The interchangeable filters included are black (bass), silver (reference) and gold (treble). They can easily be screwed on or off by hand, although some care should be taken when doing this as the filters are small and can easily be misplaced. Each filter offers a slight sensitivity boost within its range, while retaining the overall sonic signature of the earphones.
The weight of the earphones means that they cannot stay in your ears without support, and therefore rely on the flexible cable to hook behind your ears. The vast number of ear tips provided means that you'll likely find ones that fit you well. overall, we're happy with how comfortably and securely the T20 fits, as well as the level of sound isolation it offers.
The cable is perhaps the only part of the RHA T20 that doesn't live up to expectations. It's rubber-coated with a smooth texture, making it extremely tangle-prone. Although it feels sufficiently sturdy, it doesn't quite have the premium look and feel as the rest of the unit, and untangling the cables all the time can be a little bit frustrating. Like the casings, the 3.5mm plug and Y-splitter are metal as well.
Performance
Starting with the black bass filters, the boost to the bass frequencies was marginal, but it could definitely be felt. It was gentle and unobtrusive, giving the sound just a hint of aggression without becoming too overbearing and attacking. The general sonic signature definitely favours the mid-range, with specific variation around the upper-mids. This keeps the sound detailed, gentle and comfortable, with excellent performance in the upper-mid frequency range.
There was less thump and attack to the sound, instead keeping to a natural sonic signature as much as possible. The sound is revealing and open, with plenty of detail to be found as well as excellent separation of sonic elements. The earphones offer an excellent, wide-open sound stage, highlighting just how capable they are in achieving a true high-resolution sound.
Pros
- Tough steel shells
- Much-improved sound over T10
- Rich and quality sound
- Detachable cable
Cons
- No hands-free remote
- Some top-end rivals offer similar soundstages at lower price points
Verdict
The best, and most important, thing I can say about the RHA T20i is that they just let me enjoy my music. RHA subscribes to the school of thought that headphones, like a camera’s lens, aren’t supposed to embellish or affect the signal. They are meant to convey it better, and that’s what this pair of earphones does. And just like a good camera, the T20is continue to work well when I crank up the intensity: even at max volume, they remain composed and distortion-free. Their detail is almost excessive. I have no hesitation to recommend the T20i if you can afford them. It hits all the right notes: neutral sound, looks beautiful, comfortable to wear, durable, comes with accessories, warranty and customizable to your fit.