Is this Spotify eq you mention exclusive to the app or is it using some system-wide built-in graphic eq?

In either instance, the easiest and most reliable way I'd say is to find some pink-noise on Spotify (if the eq is exclusive to the app and not something applied to every app capable of audio playback) and adjust the EQ so that it sounds as even as you can make it with what you have.

If there are treble spikes or too much bass, etc you will be able to hear it on pink noise and if pink noise sounds balanced so will music.

Hey man. Spotify’s Q factor is 1 and gain value ranges from -12 to +12. So use crinacle’s or a squiglink graph to adjust the FR, then apply it on Spotify. You may get confused with adjusting gain values: I screenshot the EQ and used the ruler from the photo editor: I zoomed it full and 1 gain value appeared to be 0.45-50 mms, so I checked again after every adjustment. Good luck lol

If it's the same equalizer I'm seeing on Google (bands for 60, 150, 400, 1000, 2400 and 15000 Hz), I think you just have to reduce the 2400 Hz band by around 2-3 dB to make the IEM less bright.

EDIT: If that's not good enough, I'm looking at AutoEQ's Shuoer S12 page and it has a fixed band EQ page. It doesn't have the same values to change that your Spotify EQ does, but maybe you can kinda start from there by changing the values that are almost similar?

Wow never heard this way of adjusting EQ, I’ll try it now, thanks for recommendation. Btw, the EQ only works within Spotify cuz it’s the only streaming that I have beside Apple Music however I cannot adjust EQ on Apple Music

Yes it is exactly the one you see on Google. Thank you , I will have a look at the thread you said

In that case, try something like this and try what I described above.

Thank you I will try that, not sure if I get exactly what you meant though

you’ll figure it out don’t worry

Yea I tried the same pink noise that you recommended and adjust it to my liking. Interestingly, the music sounds better if the pink noise is easy on my ears. However, once I turned down high frequency, I immediately recognized the loss in soundstage. Is it because Spotify EQ doesn’t work the same way with a system EQ or a proper app EQ? Thank you

Bright is what you mean? Lots of high frequencies? How do you output sound to headphones using dac?

What sound settings do you use in spotify? Is normalization on or off? Is the quality set to very high? Auto adjust quality on or off?

More high frequency can increase the sense of soundstage, so yes turning it down can reduce that. It's a balance to get something that sounds good both tonally and with regard to soundstage.

The thing is the the EQ is Spotify doesn't have a Filter to tackle the Glare at the 6-8kHZ region directly so any EQ used via that app will do well for everything under the 8kHz region until the actual glare that is causing you the fatigue and that has no band in the EQ to allow for direct targeting... You're better off getting the Qudelix 5K Bluetooth Receiver [https://www.amazon.com/Qudelix-5K-Bluetooth-Adaptive-Unbalanced-Balanced/dp/B088F7C976] (I know another expense... But trust me you'd thank me for that) Then with its accompanying app you can have a system wide solution that Apple for some stupid reason still hasn't implemented natively.

Also you need to set Normalisation in your Spotify settings to Quiet/Normal... Don't put it off

u/iBanshe3

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From FR graphs and my own experience with the Shuoer S12, I agree that it is the bump around 8 khz that makes the treble of the Shuoers so spicy. If Spotify does not offer to EQ that specific region, OP needs to find a different way (like the Qudelix you mentioned; I have the Fiio BTR and regret purchasing it because its EQ does not work correctly. Another question to consider: Does the iPhone support Hi-Fi audio codecs like LDAC, AptX HD?).

No iPhone is still stuck on aac... But aac is actually well mastered especially for Apple Music Master Albums. So there's no quality loss in aac... Thankfully the Qudelix has the aac codec so can rightly decode information sent via aac

u/greatconcavity

I’m not sure if I describe it correctly, bright to me mean sharp, for example the bass hits in a high frequency and produces a very sharp sound, it’s fatiguing after a bit

Yea streaming in highest quality possible with no normalization. No auto adjust quality

I really don’t mind paying extra however I listen music mostly on the go and I would love to minimize everything possible. Any other IEM would you recommend in the same price range? Maybe something with a warm-neutral signature? Thank you!

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Thought I need to share this. So I tried to play with different tips, none of them really gave me a complete seal. Foam usually gives best result for me on ER2 or my TWS Melomania 1+. However the stock foam on S12 even at its largest size still doesn’t seem to give me a complete seal. So I tried the stock medium white tip with black core, since it still doesn’t give me complete seal, I tried to push it really in, like deep inside my ear canals (almost similar deep like the ER2 but much more comfy) and wow a world of difference, sound stage open up more like holographic, treble tame down a bit since the bass is more present and overall a much warmer sound just to my liking. I guess I need to look for another tips or just keep using the stock and push them deep inside. If you haven’t try this, please try and let me know if that works for you as well. Now I see all the rave and hype about this IEM lol

Try other streaming services if possible. I notice that in spotify the sound is shifted to mid-bass frequencies. Also try to listen with normalization. I previously also listened without normalization and the sound went into mid-bass. When I turned on normalization, it became less pronounced and mid-high frequencies appeared. I can also say try to listen through spotify web, it uses aac codec in the ogg application.

I actually played with different tips and found out they all not seal in my ears probably. So I chose a stock medium black core white tips (not sure what it’s called) and pushed it real deep inside my ears (almost to ER2XR level but way more comfy) and holy crap what a world of difference. I think this is how the manufacture intended it to be. I am happy now, thanks for your help

Interesting, IEMs in general profit from tip-rolling, but maybe because of its short nozzle then S12 is especially dependent upon good tips?