I would like to extend a very special thanks to Tahsin Sevgel for his humility, generosity and humour throughout the process of welcoming me into his wild and wonderful world of handcrafted custom IEMs.
We often talk about bespoke design and smaller boutique companies in the world of custom IEMs, but few reach down to the brass tacks level of actually crafting each individual IEM by hand quite like Tahsin Sevgel.
Based in a rural town somewhere on the picturesque hillsides of Turkey, Tahsin is as much of an enigma as his quirky, creative designs. M3, his latest creation, follows two ultra-niche products that have gained a cult-like reputation, for better or worse, over the past few years, mainly because they dared buck the trend of ‘bigger and more’ equals better.
Warbler Prelude was the first, a single-BA design costing more than a pretty penny, introduced us to Tahsin’s idea of the ‘perfect midrange’, where bass and treble were utterly subservient to the fundamentals.
Tahsin’s own ‘Model 2’, released about six months ago, continued that theme, upping the driver count to two, and even though it was ambitiously priced at well over $3000 and persisted with the midrange-focused approach, still somehow showed up much pricier models pound for pound.
With Model 3 (M3 for short), Tahsin has taken on some of the feedback from his customers and wider community, tweaking the two-driver design to find a much better balance between bass, midrange and treble, while also making it more accessible and affordable.
You’re still paying a premium, $2,400 to be exact, but with that comes very flexible ownership and surprisingly generous transfer terms – something almost unheard of when it comes to customs that essentially have to be rebuilt from scratch for every new user.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s take a closer look at M3, and why I think you should put it up near the top of your list if you’re in the market for a custom IEM for stage or sofa.
Packaging and accessories
This is going to be the shortest part of this review, because essentially all you get with your new M3 is a hard-shell case (a nice one, though), and a basic 3.5mm cable (which you may as well bin because it’s, er, basic). Wait, there’s a cleaning tool in there somewhere, and I may or may not have seen a lint-free cloth as well. Jokes aside, don’t expect any fancy stuff here. It’s about a utilitarian package as you’re likely to see for any product, let alone such a pricey one.
Design and fit
This is where the whole bespoke shpiel gets really interesting. Never before have I been so intimately engaged in the process of creating my ‘own’ custom IEMs. From the very first contact, Tahsin invites you into his studio, sharing anecdotes and jokes in English (not his first language, mind you) which he wields very nimbly indeed. Ask questions and you get answers. Suggest ideas and he follows through.
I won’t bore you with all the details, but let’s just say we must have gone back and forth a dozen times or more just selecting the exact pieces of stabilised wood he would use on my shells. I even got to make some creative suggestions, like sprinkling gold foil flakes on the shells to give them more depth when photographed, which worked a treat.
The point here is that, this is about as close as you can get to having your own design as I’ve seen anywhere in the industry, since you’re working one-on-one with the guy making your IEMs. That Tahsin is so gracious and humble in his approach, and makes you feel important in the partnership, adds tremendous personal value to an otherwise transactional process.
None of this matters if the final design isn’t fit for purpose, and I must say, after one or two failed attempts (using older STL files I provided that, to be fair, weren’t very detailed to start with), my M3 pair fits me almost like a glove. I have very tricky ear canal shapes, and even though Tahsin took it upon himself to send me blank shell variations to choose from, I can still feel there’s room for improvement.
Still, if you’re not too fussed, you don’t have to be nearly as involved in the process as I was, and if you want to avoid any issues with fit, simply have physical moulds of your ears made and sent to Tahsin. Either way, what you’ll get is an extremely well-crafted pair of IEMs, with the full knowledge that should you need any tweaks or changes, you have a direct line to the guy who makes that happen.
Continue to M3 tech…
