Closer Examination

This section is a touch infuriating because of the lack of provided details, but Lime Ears is not to blame. You see, Lime Ears partnered with a well-known IEM cable manufacturer—PW Audio based out of Hong Kong—to include what by all accounts looks to be an excellent cable. To be more specific, this is a slightly tweaked version of the PW Audio No.10, a cable released by the company to commemorate its 10th anniversary. You would thus expect to find it on the anniversary series page along with No.5, but what little information I found came from random reviews and retailer pages. Email inquiries sent to PW Audio were futile too, and Lime Ears states the choice to pair the Pneuma with the No.10 cable to have been based on "wonderful synergy." The retail PW Audio No.10 seems to have a wooden splitter and everyone seems to agree that there are 4-core and 8-core options in MMCX/0.78 mm 2-pin flavors on one end and 2.5/3.5/4.4 mm connectors on the other.

This particular version is a 4-core cable, but ends up more substantial than some 8-core cables I have seen in the past because of thick 24 AWG wires, of which there are clearly plenty of individual strands, too. Strands of what I have no idea, and even the PVC sleeving is a guesstimation. I would assume it is a silver-plated copper core, also based on what Lime Ears told me since "fiber core" makes no sense, and this particular version goes from a 3.5 mm TRS plug to the 0.78 mm 2-pin plugs seen above. There's plenty of PW Audio branding, but overall looks and build quality are beyond reproach. Microphonics are nonexistent, and the cable did not have any memory retention or kinks, so it conformed better than the larger diameter would suggest. The ear hooks are more pliable than I anticipated, too, making for a very comfortable cable overall. I can also tell you that the cable resistance is ~0.8–0.9 Ω from end to end, at least as measured by my Fluke multimeter. The metal plugs are gold-plated for oxidation resistance, and there are L/R markings on the 2-pin plug housings for the left and right channels.


If there ever was a case where you need to see something in person to better appreciate it, the Lime Ears Pneuma is it. Pictures do not do these justice, but I sure tried my best to showcase these from various angles for a good idea of what they look like. Lime Ears wanted to do something special with the Pneuma since it involved several years of R&D and is their current flagship, and the theme of sacred geometry was chosen. The company also confirmed that the Pneuma, as with most of its products, came about without a price point in mind since it would have restricted looks and sound, and it got the creative juices flowing. All this resulted in a set of resin shell IEMs that are ~23x19x17 mm without the nozzle, which itself follows the T500 size used by Comply, and others. This means the Pneuma is large, rivaling many tribrids and larger planar driver IEMs in terms of size (think ThieAudio Monarch for a better idea). The all-resin construction does keep things lightweight, though.


Something the product page did hint at was a color-changing effect, and we have various shades of red and green based on the viewing angle. These are hybrid IEMs, and Lime Ears felt a concept of dynamism fitting too, represented by the color-shifting here. The geometric patterns themselves are similar to what we saw on the product box, which Lime Ears refers to as the "Seed of Life." The only thing I would have rather not seen are the large blue or red markings on the underside to probably denote the serial number and left and right channels, as they take away from the otherwise flowing design throughout the shell. The 2-pin connectors are inset to the side and not a cohesive part of the shell given the clear housing there, but that won't be visible in use. I mentioned before how Lime Ears is using a nozzle conforming to the T500 ear-tip size, and it comes with three unfiltered vents at the end of a metal nozzle with a substantial lip to better keep ear tips in place once installed. Be sure to continually clean the nozzle with the provided brush lest contaminants such as dust and ear wax get into the acoustic chamber.


Switches on IEMs aren't a new thing. The FiiO FH5s had a set of three switches on each channel, for example. Replacement nozzles and filters, in addition to vents and plug-in modules, are other ways manufacturers have provided customization options for the sound signature of IEMs. I have to say that the switch on the face plate of the Lime Ears Pneuma is one of the better such executions, being small enough not to detract from the appearance, black in color to further meld with the background, and tactile enough to clearly indicate whether the switch is in or out by feel alone. Lime Ears prefers to use the switch on/off terminology, but I will continue to refer to it as either in (into the face plate, middle photo above) or out (out of and away from the face plate, last photo above) during the course of this review.


At this point, you just install a provided set of ear tips or go with your own. The 5 mm nozzle diameter makes it conducive for use with many aftermarket tips, including the Comply foam tips. The two provided tips types both install easily, with the bore on the tips just under the nozzle diameter, and the retaining notch working very well as seen above. Both types in size M are demonstrated here, and the silicone tips are clearly longer than the Symbio ones, while both have nearly the same opening on the other end. Try different tips and sizes for the best-possible fit. Regardless of the tips you go with, the next step is to connect the cable by carefully pushing the 2-pin connectors in place. Be sure to match the channels correctly before connecting the connector of your choice to the source. I know there are many who prefer using IEMs throughout, but I like to use over-ear headphones when sitting down and IEMs/TWS earbuds on the go. I've paired the Lime Ears Pneuma with all the tested portable DAC/amps thus and personally liked the sound signature and handy EQ options of the iFi GO blu (review coming soon) as the source, paired to my phone or laptop.