Performance

Judging the performance of headphones is always a hard thing to do because there are no real benchmarks you can put them through, at least none that will give a definitive answer. The OVC TC20s provided me with a really good seal with the original medium sized single flange tips. I tried out both the large and small tips, but they were either too big or small for my ears. I am sure that the majority of users will be able to get a good seal with these in-ears due to their straight design.

The TC20s sound quite good price considered, but you should not expect it to be able to compete with the more expensive offerings from the bigger companies. The OVC TC20s provide a really good seal and are easy to insert which is always a good thing, but from thereon there is not that much to get excited about.

Their midrange is reasonably good, it is quite neutral for a budget earphone. The highs are rough compared to earphones such as the VSONIC R02-PROs, Head-Direct RE2s, Ultimate Ears Super.fi 3 Studios. The bass is a bit anemic and lacks a lot, both quantity and quality wise in order to be considered good.

The sound signature is really cold and lacks a lot of finesse both when it comes to bass and treble. It makes the music sound flat and perhaps a bit dull to listen to. They are not nearly as musical as the VSONIC earphones nor the RE2s, but then again they only cost half as much and are not as tricky to get a good seal from compared to the VSONIC R02-RPOs. The bass is there, but it lacks punch and a great amount of depth. Almost the same goes for the highs, they sound a bit artificial and distant at times.

They do not sound bad by any means, they just sound a bit cheap. The sound is a bit more hollowed out and thin. It also lacks body and strength across the spectrum.

Noise attenuation of these earphones is right up there with the majority of seal earphones. They provide roughly the same amount of isolation as my VSONIC R02-PROs, but are not quite up there with the Sleek-Audio SA6s. If isolation is an important factor you should not rule out these incredibly cheap OVC earphones. Add the fact that the seal is easy to obtain they are worthy of consideration if you can live with a somewhat compromised sound quality.

Microphonic noise is a real issue with the OVC TC20s, it is not quite as bad as the VSONIC earphones I recently reviewed, but they are not that much better.

Durability

The TC20s are hard to beat durability wise because of their simple and solid construction. They are so simple and do not have any odd details on them, which definitely helps their durability. The rubber stress relief on both the earphones and the mini-jack is well-made and will absorb a lot of stress if you yank the cable. Everything is bonded well together and there are no cracks in the body or any other manufacturing errors to be noted.

Overall the OVC TC20s are a remarkably solid construction with no weak points I could identify.