When Amir, the founder of Audio Science Review, measured the Truthear x Crinacle Zero in September 2022, he wrote that he was not prepared for how closely it matched the sound he was looking for. He told readers to stop reading and "Go and buy one of these!" He called it "the tuning fork that a musician uses," a reference for how correct tonality should sound. That is Truthear's whole idea. Each model is tuned toward a target curve, a published recipe for how much bass, midrange and treble most listeners prefer. Crinacle, the reviewer who consulted on the Zero, says the target behind the Nova is the tuning that statistically the most people would like. Truthear backs that up with careful building, and its shells are made with a precise 3D printing method the company says is usually reserved for high-end earphones. Truthear suits listeners who want an accurate, measured sound on a modest budget.

The Zero is still the obvious first pick, and the newer Zero:RED comes with an adapter that adds a little more bass. If you want more detail, David Becker of Prime Audio recommends the Hexa, and he hears "a nice blend of warmth and neutrality" with "top-notch" isolation from its small shells. The Nova is the step up, and Crinacle says it hits its target "probably better than any IEM out there in the world today." Whatever you buy, try more than one set of ear tips. McCullough Audio moved the Nova to wide-bore tips such as the Spinfit Omni and heard the treble smooth out and the bass come back, and Kurt of Headfonics got a deep fit and more bass from the included double-flange tips. Watch what you plug them into. Amir warns against using the Zero:BLUE2 with the headphone jacks on many receivers and computers, which can shift its sound. On the tightest budget, Amir measured the single-driver Gate as "basically distortionless."

Truthear started in 2022, and its first product was the Zero, tuned with Crinacle as a consultant. By November 2022 it had a follow-up, the Hexa, Truthear's first hybrid. Its early measurements looked so much like Moondrop's Blessing 2 that, Jin Soh reports, many hailed it as a "budget Blessing." The Hola, a single-driver set, joined it at the entry level, and Crinacle counts it among a trio of inexpensive sets that changed what listeners expect from a starter IEM. In 2023 came the Zero:RED, Crinacle's second Zero, and Griffin Silver of headphones.com wrote "Crinacle has yet again raised the bar." He added, "I'm genuinely not sure I've heard smoother treble in an IEM." Crinacle reckoned Truthear was "4 for 4" by the time the Nova arrived late that year as the brand's most expensive model. The Gate followed in 2025, and Amir closed his review of it with "For once, the name of the company matches what it delivers!" Truthear now also makes planar and dynamic headphones, wireless earbuds and the SHIO USB DAC dongle.