Introduction

The Tripowin brand has been covered multiple times before on TechPowerUp, be it with the bassy budget set that was the TC-01 at $50 or the even better value for money option in the form of the Lea at $25. The brand proved it had the chops to go further and still impress with the Olina released earlier this year in collaboration with audio reviewer HBB (Hawaiibadboy). I thought the Olina was a good set overall but could have been tweaked for more balance in the higher frequencies in particular. As it turns out, both Tripowin and HBB had something cooking up just for this.


Today we examine the Tripowin x HBB Olina SE that's been termed a 2022 special edition release, despite the original also having come out this year! The timeline might be short but Tripowin says there's an updated driver on top of a different tuning incorporating feedback from users of the original Olina so I am interested to see whether it addresses the one issue I had that stopped me from making the Olina my go-to benchmark for $100 and even beyond. As seen above, the face plates also get tweaked to ensure there is no confusion as to the two versions of the Olina. Thanks to Linsoul for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp as we go about with our examination of the new release, beginning with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Packaging and Accessories

Packaging for the Tripowin x HBB Olina SE certainly follows what we saw used for the Olina itself, including with a plastic seal over the product box. The front of the box has a black base that allows for the art design to shine. This includes the subtle Tripowin x HBB branding all around the background, angled upward, and a render of the IEMs with the product name on top. The product name and some salient marketing features are found on the bottom, and the same background is on the back and sides, where we also find contact information for Tripowin in addition to the product specifications. We now see that this is all an outer sleeve over an inner cardboard box, and it is similarly black with just the Tripowin name on the front.


The box opens up sideways as seen above, where we see a soft foam inner lining as well as more foam inside the box to hold and protect the contents on their way to you. Machined cutouts hold the two individual IEMs, and a large carry and storage case. Below the foam piece is a Tripowin warranty policy card that probably should have been on the top instead. The case is the exact same as what we saw on the Olina, with its solid thick puck in form factor. It's a soft, foam-lined cylindrical case that is a deep blue and comes with the Tripowin logo stamped into the top, with stitching galore on the sides keeping the fabric cover in place. The stitching is neatly done, but this case is not the easiest to carry around in your pockets, it is more suitable to chuck into a bag. It is lined with a protective felt layer inside, and there is plenty of room to place the IEMs with the cable and a few spare ear tips, as shown by all the accessories already placed inside out of the box. I also appreciate the ten sets of replacement nozzle filters included here, but I am not sure whether it will help those who had the Tripowin Olina, and Mele before, affected by supposed humidity issues. I never had any such problems on my end so I can't really speak on this.


Tripowin includes two types of silicone ear tips with the Olina SE that each come in three sets of sizes S, M, and L. These two types primarily differ in overall ear-tip length, which in turn affects insertion depth into the ear canal. Stiffness of the outer flange also differ slightly and in turn affects how well they mold to your specific ears. Foam tips haven't been included, so try these all out to see if you get a good seal before shopping for other options.

Closer Look

The cable that comes with the Olina SE is, as you might have guessed by now, the exact same as that which shipped with the original Olina. I don't have an issue with this necessarily but so far it's been a lot of the same for a supposed special edition. The color of the cable also fit the aesthetics of the original Olina better with its blue face plates whereas the Olina SE adopts a black color scheme, to where a black cable would have been nice if I could nitpick. Thankfully it is plenty functional in being quite easy to re-shape, but it's also a touch microphonic when rustling against my shirt or even a desk, so a cable pin would have been nice to include in the box. The cable has a straight 3.5 mm TRS connector going to your source, with the housing having the Tripowin logo. The conductor is high-purity oxygen-free OCC (Ohno Continuous Cast) copper, and the splitter has HBB's logo on it. The cable cinch is unfortunately looser than I'd like and just falls off in use more often than not. The pre-formed ear hooks have a curve that should work well for most people, and these can also be re-formed under heat from a heat gun or hairdryer. Tripowin is using standard 0.78 mm 2-pin connectors which have a clear/red plastic housings for the left/right channels.


I am a big fan of the shell shape and size from the Olina, and if there ever was to be something re-used on the Olina SE then I am glad this is one of them. It's a CNC-machined aluminium alloy shell that allows for the acoustic chamber to be cavity-tuned, and the shape is also taller than wide, with a slight taper at the bottom that fits the average human ear concha quite well. Unique to the Olina SE is a black anodized scratch-resistant finish compared to the gunmetal gray before and then gone are the fancier wispy blue face plates in favor of a turtle motif etched on the metal plate to continue the Hawaiian theme. There's no resin here thus and arguably the Olina SE will bear drops and blunt hits better too. There is no HBB logo on the sides this time round and this is a very clean look that makes the Olina SE a stealthy set for travel and use in even crowded public transport. The shells continue the use of flush-mounted 2-pin cable connectors and have vents on the same side as well as on the inner side where we also see L/R markings for the left and right channels, respectively. The Olina SE has relatively short nozzles that are angled inward more than most, likely to also account for the shell not being the typical ergonomic design as with semi-custom IEMs, and the metal nozzle is machined out of the same piece of aluminium comprising the shells to make for a durable construction. A retaining notch on the end of the nozzle better keeps the ear tips in place on this ~5.5 mm diameter opening, which has a mesh filter to prevent contaminants from entering the acoustic chamber.


Fitting the ear tips is fairly simple owing to the short nozzle which also happens to be of average size relative to the provided tips. Seen above are the two types of included size M silicone tips, and note how the notches on the nozzle further secure them in place. The two different types vary in overall ear-tip length, but try them both to see what works best for you. Having different sizes available helps with a good fit, and do not feel as though both ears necessarily need the same-sized ear tips, either. Note how the black set has a larger bore opening than the gray one, which can affect the sound signature, too. Regardless of which tips you go with, the next step is to connect the cable by carefully pushing the 2-pin connectors in place and making sure to match the left and right sides correctly, which are held there by friction alone. The 3.5 mm TRS connector then goes to your preferred source.

Fit and Audio Performance

Seen above is the right side of the Tripowin x HBB Olina SE installed in an anthropomorphic pinna that does well in showing my own experience with these. I have average-sized ears and found the size M gray silicone tips to work best not just in terms of a good, secure fit with decent passive isolation, but the bore and flange combination making the sound signature more balanced. The uncommon design with a more vertical approach as opposed to an angled ergonomic one might have one think the fit could be an issue, but the Olina SE is quite good for a few different reasons. For one, the petite form factor makes it more amenable even for those with a smaller ear concha, and the nozzle angling inward and extending further in with these ear tips in particular makes for a secure fit with a good seal. Memory foam tips might do better yet, but can dampen the sound signature, especially in the treble range, to where you need to account for this if you go that route. As it was, the Olina SE snugly fit in my ears to no surprise, given the Olina did just as fine in this regard. The cable also works well enough, with the pre-formed hooks going over and behind the ears for another point of contact and support. The two vents don't make this the most isolated set I have used, but allow for pressure balance without being semi-open and affecting the seal. The IEMs also have an average weight of ~8 g each to where these aren't physically fatiguing, even after multiple hours of continuous use. I'd still recommend taking a short break every so often for your health as well as to minimize any potential humidity issues in the nozzle itself.

As for the driver used here, Tripowin is using what it calls the 2nd generation version of the CNT-coated dynamic driver used in the original Olina. This is a 10 mm transducer that has a single-cavity acoustic chamber and the updates come in the form of a reinforced suspension to increase the diaphragm tension further for a more responsive and quicker driver response, on top of slightly elevated bass extension too. The rated impedance is the same average value of 32 Ω whereas the sensitivity has gone down ever so slightly from 110 dB/mW to 109 dB/mW—no practical difference, the Olina SE is still quite easy to drive off even a good dongle, let alone portable DAC/amps such as the impressive Qudelix-5K and the Questyle M15.