Today, Meldrick reviews the Hidizs MP143 Salt, which is a new 14.3mm planar driver universal IEM with tuning filters recently launched on Kickstarter. It currently has an early bird price of $99 upwards with an MSRP of $159.
Disclaimer: This sample was sent to me in exchange for our honest opinion. Headfonics is an independent website with no affiliate links or status. I thank Hidizs for their support.
To read more about Hidizs products we have previously reviewed on Headfonics click here. You can find the Kickstarter campaign here.
Please note that this article follows our current scoring guidelines which you can read in more detail here.
In today’s review, we take a look at Hidizs’ latest Planar Magnetic IEM, the MP143 Salt which was recently launched via Kickstarter.
Not to be confused with its sibling, the MP145, it comes with a slightly smaller 14.3mm driver at a more competitive $159 MSRP though it is quite a bit lower now during the campaign.
Coming in the middle of Hidizs’ IEM lineup, the MP143 Salt is placed within the same bracket as other beloved Planar Magnetic IEMs such as the Shozy P20.
To learn more about the performance, usability, and how the MP143 Salt compares against the competition in its price segment, you can read my full review below.
Features
The MP143 Salt uses the brand’s latest 14.3mm single FAST 2 planar magnetic driver. It is rated at 17Ω with a sensitivity of 103 dB @1kHz.
While this new driver is not as large as the driver inside the MP145, it has a new symmetrical N52 magnet array (7 per side) with a nano-level diaphragm claimed to help minimize distortion and increase overall efficiency.
With 3 different tuning nozzles and 2 sets of ear tips, the MP143 Salt comes with up to 6 different tuning configurations out of the box.
This grants listeners the flexibility of fine-tuning the IEM’s tuning to their preference or the genre of music.
In collaboration with Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), a leading wildlife charity, the MP143 Salt gets its name from “Salt”, a female humpback whale, the first whale to be given a name and is considered to be the most sighted whale in the world.
The MP143 Salt’s housing design is inspired by waves and the baleen plate found in whales like Salt.
Design
The MP143 Salt’s shell consists of a separate body and faceplate constructed from CNC Machined Aluminum. The material used is cool to the touch and has an anodized matte finish, coming in Blue, Silver, or Gun Black color schemes, with my review unit being the blue version.
The machined aluminum of the MP143 Salt shell feels quite durable and should be resistant to everyday dings and scratches that occur through on-the-go and desktop usage.
Compared to other metal IEMs with a glossier finish, I found that the MP145 was easier to keep clean from oils and fingerprints.
The faceplates use a ridged design similar to last year’s Hidizs MP145. The MP143 Salt’s ridges are much more streamlined. Instead of breaking the flat silhouette of the faceplate to form a fin shape at the center, the ridges merely accent the surface finish of the faceplate.
This gives the shell a simpler visual design that gathers less attention but still evokes more personality than most resin-based Chi-Fi IEMs.
The only overt branding on the IEM lies above the faceplate’s ridges, wherein a Hidizs logo is tastefully engraved in gray. The shell is bare aside from the detachable nozzle and the tuning vent right below it.
Comfort and Isolation
The MP143 Salt’s comfort is decent at best, nothing too exceptional but does not detract from the everyday listening experience.
Compared to Hidizs MP145 and other IEMs with a metal shell, the MP143 Salt is smaller and lighter. I was regularly forgetting that the IEMs were in my ears, and I never felt any weight-related discomfort.
Its simple shape makes it sit comfortably in my ear. I did not observe any sharp edges pushing against my ear, or feel the weight shifting away from my ear throughout the testing period.
For a vented IEM, the MP143 Salt has decent isolation performance. With no music playing through them, background conversations can be easily heard and low-frequency sounds such as Air conditioner units are not 100% blocked out.
With music playing, it does a better job blocking out background noise, but it is not a leader in sound isolation performance.
Stock Cable
The stock cable included is decent at best. Compared to the modular 3.5mm and 4.4mm found in newer IEMs well under the MP143 Salt’s price range, the cable that comes with the MP143 Salt stands no chance.
Even ignoring its simple design, the materials used to wrap each wire in the two-core cable feel cheap and lightweight. The cable does not exhibit any microphonics, but its light weight gives it a hard time maintaining its shape even while in use.
Additionally, the MP143 Salt’s cable was prone to tangling and getting wrapped up in the case. Even compared to the cable used in Hidizs’ MP145, the cable feels like it’s built with worse materials, and its tendency to get tangled makes it worse for daily use as well.
Packaging & Accessories
The MP143 Salt’s packaging, surprisingly, goes beyond normal packaging practices to minimize its environmental impact.
The outer box of the unit is fairly standard, coming in a black box with a picture of the IEM embossed in front, but the main difference lies within the box itself. The IEMs are housed in a tray composed of multiple cardboard pieces stacked on top of each other.
This is completely different from every single IEM I’ve unboxed thus far, with most opting for foam pads or plastic trays. According to Hidizs, this decision was made in line with their goal to minimize plastic waste.
This initiative doesn’t stop with the IEMs, the included tips are stored in a clever cardboard “hook”, wherein the tips are ‘skewered’ in place.
By doing so, Hidizs created packaging free from single-use plastic bags, consistent with the environmental preservation practices of the charity they collaborated with for this product.
The included cable is quite spartan; however, the included pouch is constructed out of decent materials. The additional 2 pairs of tuning nozzles and ear tips make the MP143 Salt one of the more versatile sets in the price range when it comes to tuning.
Sound Impressions
Bass
The MP143 Salt offers a balanced low-end focusing on mid-bass rather than sub-bass.
Modern pop and hip-hop tracks lose some energy and low-end grunt through the MP143 Salt. Low-frequency 808s and kick drums sound deflated on the MP143 Salt, sounding devoid of texture and note weight.
While the sub-bass presence is modest and lacks the chest-rumbling impact, the mid-bass is prominent, providing a satisfying warmth that adds body to bass guitars and electronic elements.
In modern pop tracks, the background synth keys are clearly defined, delivering a thick, enjoyable punch without bleeding into the Mids.
The mid-bass emphasis does not translate into the bass guitars of more traditional funk and disco tracks, instead making itself heard through continuous synths that envelope the whole track.
This level of mid-bass creates a textured sound that rumbles throughout the entire track, contrasting well with the cold and analytical mid-range presentation of the MP143 Salt. The
The MP143 Salt performs exceptionally well in Jazz-funk fusion tracks, where its mid-bass adds richness to the synths, giving tracks a wider and well-rounded, full-bodied feel.
With its unique emphasis on mid-bass over sub-bass, the MP143 Salt may not satisfy bass-head listeners, but it does well in utilizing mid-bass synths and similar tones to paint a textured soundscape.
Mids
The mids on the MP143 Salt have a forward presentation with vocals taking center stage. This emphasis on vocals comes at a slight cost to naturalness, as the timbre leans toward a metallic and somewhat grainy quality.
This is evident when compared to more organic-sounding competitors like the MP145, where the MP143 Salt’s presentation feels less organic.
String instruments, while present, don’t share the same level of emphasis as the vocals and can come across as thin, lacking in note weight. Especially in complex mixes, keys, and electric guitars tend to get drowned out by high-frequency instruments and the boosted vocal presentation.
Simpler pop tracks reveal this metallic tonality in the strings, and the graininess in the mids is reminiscent of the metallic trailing sounds of hi-hat cymbals.
This graininess does not cause any discomfort or sibilance, it just gives the sound a hollow-sounding timber that is technically proficient at the expense of some enjoyability.
While instrument separation is decent, the tuning makes it challenging to pick out individual instruments in the midrange, resulting in a sound that, while detailed, can feel overly boosted in the vocal range.
Treble
The treble on the MP143 Salt is sharp and detailed, with a noticeable emphasis on cymbals, chimes, and other metallic instruments on the upper end of the frequency response.
Hi-hat hits and snares have a crisp, energetic quality that stops just short of sibilance, providing a bright and lively top-end. However, similar to the mids, there is a metallic edge to the treble, particularly in instruments that occupy the upper registers.
This can be both a strength and a weakness. While it enhances the clarity and detail in tracks with complex high-frequency content, it can also contribute to a slightly artificial sound.
The microdetail articulated by the MP143 Salt is superior to its peers in the price range, but it does so at the expense of a more natural sound presentation.
The MP143 Salt’s treble shines once again in Jazz-Funk fusion tracks, where the piercing high-end synths are well-articulated, showcasing the unit’s strong imaging capabilities without losing coherence in the overall mix.
The treble is competitive in its microdetail retrieval and sheer resolution, however, its presentation of high-end frequencies has a metallic timber that may detract some listeners.
This metallic timber does not mean that it expresses sibilance. The MP143 Salt excels at ensuring energy and detail are articulated without causing fatigue.
Imaging
The MP143 Salt excels in imaging and instrument separation, making it easy to pinpoint sounds within the soundstage and delivering individual notes with impressive clarity.
Among other IEMs in its price range, its ability to detail and place each instrument in the mix is particularly noteworthy.
However, the MP143 Salt’s soundstage doesn’t quite reach the full 360-degree depth that its competition and peers provide. This more intimate soundstage gives vocal performances a more emotional and powerful impact.
The MP143 Salt offers a moderately wide stage that, though not enveloping, still creates an enjoyable listening environment for more intricate compositions.
Click on page 2 below for my recommended pairings and selected comparisons.
