Tanchjim FOLA Review and Unboxing: A $200 Customizable IEM

Disclaimer: I received this product in exchange for my honest review. The Metalverse is an independent website, and all opinions expressed are our own with no monetary incentive. We thank the team at TANCHJIM for giving us this opportunity.

Tanchjim

Tanchjim Audio, established in 2015 and officially registered in 2016 under Nanning Heavy Hammer Technology Co., has built a reputation for crafting exceptional single dynamic driver in-ear monitors. From their legendary Oxygen that dominated the under-$300 market for years to budget champions like the Zero and Tanya, Tanchjim has consistently proven that well-tuned dynamic drivers can compete with far more expensive multi-driver configurations.

The company's meticulous approach to tuning, utilizing advanced FEA (finite element analysis) simulation and their proprietary DMT (Dynamic Driver Technology) architecture, has earned them multiple Japan VGP Awards and recognition across the audiophile community. Tanchjim focuses on what they call "faithfully recreating the original sound," combining technical precision with musical enjoyment.

Meet the FOLA

The Tanchjim Fola represents the brand's mature evolution of their DMT5 architecture, first introduced in the well-regarded Fission. The Fola is priced at around $200 USD, and Tanchjim describes it as having an accurate sound reproduction across the whole frequency range.

The Tanchjim Fola is the brand’s newest release and features their single dynamic DMT5 driver. The double-chamber, double-magnetic circuit driver is designed to have better energy conversion, overall efficiency,y and reduce distortion.

Another notable feature is the 3 tuning nozzle options (Light, Standard, and Dynamic), which offer slight differences in sound character. The L nozzle focuses on treble, the S is the most balanced, and the D nozzle adds some body to the bass response.

Packaging

The Fola comes in Tanchjim’s signature anime styled packaging, which I think is a nice touch that seperates their branding from a lot of other packages. Overall, I was quite impressed by the unboxing for the Fola, at $200, there are a lot of accessories that many significantly more expense IEMs don’t even include.

What's in the Box?

Accessories

One of the most convenient inclusions is the termination options. The stock cable allows you to swap out the end of the cable from standard 3.5mm, 4.4mm, and even USB-C, completely eliminating the need for a separate adapter, which is always very convenient.

Tips

There are 6 pairs of included tips range from small to large with wide bore, and normal bore options. I found the wide bore to fit my ear well and provide a good fit.

Cable

The cable is good for the price range; it’s not overly springy and has a smooth, slight thickness to it that feels durable. The swappable terminations are an excellent feature and make the included cable one that you will definitely want to keep.

Case

The case is one of the better ones I’ve seen, especially for the price point. It has plenty of room for the headphones, good padding on the sides, and feels sturdy enough to protect from impact. It’s on the slightly larger side but isn’t so bulky that it won’t fit in a pocket.

Build Quality and Design

Opening the Fola's packaging reveals Tanchjim's attention to detail. The unboxing experience feels premium, with thoughtful organization and quality materials throughout. The earpieces themselves feature aluminum alloy chambers topped with scratch-resistant sapphire glass faceplates. These faceplates are seriously shiny, meaning they show smudges easily, but they are incredibly sleek and have a great aesthetic when clean. While the glass does attract fingerprints, it's scratch-resistant, durable, and I’m definitely a fan of the design choice here.

Sound Quality

The goal of the Fola is to offer a neutral sound with a huge amount of customization options via the Tanchjim app that allows for personal EQ and the 3 different nozzle options (L, S, and D) that change the sound profile slightly. The light (L) nozzle features more treble and a precise, less far-reaching bass response, the S (standard) nozzle has the most balanced sound, and the D (dynamic) will add a more full bass response with a slightly less energetic treble. We conducted our review using the S nozzle, which offers the most balanced sound and is also the default nozzle on the headphones out of the box.

Bass

The Fola's bass presentation has good sub-bass extension, while the mid bass has good impact that stood out slightly more than the sub-bass to me. You'll find a defined transient attack that delivers bass notes with appropriate weight and physicality. This is classic dynamic driver bass—natural decay, good speed, and coherent integration with the lower midrange.

The bass response feels good, but may be a little too polite for some—fortunately, this is easily fixable. If you desire more bass, you can change to the D nozzle and adjust the EQ using the free Tanchjim EQ app via the USB-C cable.

The bass emphasises quality and texture over quantity, which I think is handled well here, especially with the option to customize Fola's sound to bassier signatures.

Midrange

This is where the Fola really shows its strengths. The midrange has a slightly forward, vocal-centric tuning with a hint of warmth from the emphasized lower mids. Vocals sound organic, lifelike, and emotionally engaging. Female vocals particularly benefit from the upper midrange emphasis, presenting with clarity and detail while maintaining natural timbre.

The Fola does an excellent job of rendering both male and female vocals with proper weight and presence. Male voices have sufficient body thanks to the lower midrange warmth, while female voices showcase excellent clarity without becoming shouty or sibilant. The balance between detail retrieval and musicality is expertly managed here.

Instrument tonality falls squarely in the natural camp. Acoustic guitars have appropriate resonance, pianos maintain their dynamic character, and strings reveal texture without sounding thin or overly bright. The upper midrange boost provides definition and air without crossing into harshness, a common pitfall in this tuning approach.

Treble

The Fola's treble is well-controlled and smooth, extending nicely without introducing harshness or distracting peaks. There's brightness without sting—cymbal crashes have shimmer and decay, hi-hats maintain sparkle, and brass instruments sound appropriately metallic without becoming piercing. The Fola has a very nicely balanced treble tuning that feels transparent while keeping sibilance and sharpness to a minimum.

This is mature treble tuning that prioritizes long-term listenability. You won't get the hyper-detailed, etched presentation of some analytical IEMs, but you also won't experience fatigue during long listening sessions. The treble provides enough air and extension to keep the presentation open and transparent while maintaining the Fola's signature warmth.

Technical Performance

The Fola's timbre is impressively natural for a single dynamic driver. Notes have proper weight and decay, instruments sound convincing, and there's minimal artificial coloration.

Soundstage presentation feels above average for a sub $200 IEM, with especially notable width from left to right. The stage feels spacious and airy thanks to the semi-open acoustic design and air vents, allowing music to breathe rather than feeling congested.

Imaging and instrument separation are also strong here. The Fola excels at placing sounds precisely in space, making it easy to follow individual instruments in complex mixes. Layering is handled competently, with busy tracks remaining coherent rather than collapsing into mush. This technical capability makes the Fola particularly appealing for gaming, where positional audio cues matter.

Comfort and Isolation

The Fola's lightweight construction and compact shells make them comfortable for most users, though the nozzle is on the shorter side, making the fit somewhat more shallow than some other IEMs. The metal shells did fit very comfortable in my ears, not causing pressure points during listening.

Eartip selection becomes crucial with the Fola. The included T-APB pressure-balancing tips work well for many users, but those with smaller ears or those seeking deeper insertion may need to experiment with aftermarket options. The good news is that the Fola responds well to tip rolling, allowing you to fine-tune both comfort and sound.

Isolation is above average at 32dB, effectively blocking out environmental noise for commuting and office use. It's not isolation-focused like deep-inserting designs, but it's more than sufficient for most audiophile IEMs for daily use scenarios.

The Tanchjim App Experience

The companion app (available for Android, IOS, and Windows) adds a great feature to the Fola package. It's stable, easy to navigate, and doesn't require invasive permissions. The parametric EQ implementation is straightforward, allowing you to adjust the Fola's signature to your preferences or compensate for source coloration.

Tanchjim provides official presets tuned using industry-standard measurement equipment, and there's a community forum where users share and review custom EQ profiles. This can make the tuning process a lot faster for those who don’t have as much experience with EQ—you can experiment with different signatures without needing deep technical knowledge.

The virtual 7.1 and 5.1 surround sound features are interesting additions for gaming and movies. While they don't replace true multi-channel audio systems, they do provide enhanced spatial cues that can improve immersion in gaming and help with positional awareness in competitive titles. The effect is most noticeable in FPS games where directional audio matters.

That said, the virtual surround can sound artificial with music, adding a diffused, "club-like" quality that doesn't suit critical listening. It's best treated as a specialized tool for specific content rather than an all-the-time feature.

The PC app version worked well for me, but notably, the Tanchjim app did not detect the Fola on my mobile device (iPad) via the USB-C cable.

Comparison: How Does the Fola Stack Up?

Tanchjim Fola vs Moondrop Aria/Aria 2 ($80-120)

The Aria series represents excellent value in neutral-warm tuning, and they share some DNA with the Fola's balanced approach. The Fola, however, steps up in technical performance—better imaging, superior separation, more refined treble, and significantly better accessories. The Aria has more sub-bass extension, while the Fola focuses on mid-bass punch and clarity. If you already own an Aria and love its signature, the Fola represents a meaningful upgrade in refinement and versatility.

Tanchjim Fola vs Tanchjim Origin ($260-300)

The Origin is Tanchjim's previous single-DD flagship and costs $60-100 more. Both IEMs the same driver technology and similar cable and nozzles. The Origin has some added vocal warmth and a more mid-bass heavy sound, while the Fola has a more life-like timbre and natural sound with a imaging and microdetail advantage. Both are great IEMs, though the Fola comes across more refined and neutral than the Origin.

Final Verdict

The Tanchjim Fola represents everything the brand does well: careful tuning, natural tonality, excellent build quality, and thoughtful feature implementation. At $200, it delivers a complete package that considers how modern listeners actually use their IEMs—switching between sources, adjusting sound on the fly, and expecting premium accessories without paying flagship prices.

This isn't an IEM that tries to wow you with extreme tuning or shock-value technicalities. Instead, it wins you over through balance, maturity, and versatility. The Fola sounds "right" across a wide variety of music and offers an impressive level of customization options that are rare in the sub $200 range.

For $200, it's one of the most complete IEM packages available, earning a strong recommendation for anyone seeking a balanced sound with room to make it your own.

Technical Specifications

• Driver Configuration: Single dynamic driver with DMT5 architecture
• Impedance: 16Ω ±5%
• Sensitivity: 126dB/Vrms
• Frequency Response: 2Hz – 48kHz
• Total Harmonic Distortion (THD): <0.056% @1kHz, 94dB
• Isolation: Up to 32dB passive noise isolation
• Cable: Modular interchangeable cable system
• App Support: Tanchjim app for Android and Windows