In this review, I’m taking a close look at the high-end Forte Ears Mefisto universal IEM. The unit is selling for $2,899 USD.
Disclaimer: Forte Ears is not related to Headfonia. They sent me the Mefisto IEM free of charge, to be featured on Headfonia.com.
Forte Ears
You could say that Forte Ears still is a reasonably new company in the personal audio universe. They showed the prototype of their first IEM, the Romeo back in 2024.
The man behind the brand is Riccardo Yeh, and that might ring a bell to some as he was in charge of Hifiman’s International sales from 2013 to 2018. On the Forte Ears website, we find the following:
Inspired by CEO Fang’s excellence in planar driver technology and sound aesthetics, he created his flagship IEM prototype: “Romeo”. The widespread acclaim of “Romeo” spurred the establishment of his own brand, Forté Ears.
Forté Ears is a brand that reflects Riccardo Yeh’s profound love for Western opera and built upon his extensive expertise in the Hi-Fi industry. Forté Ears is dedicated to creating IEMs that are not only technically superior but also rich in artistic inspiration.
Each model under the Forté Ears brand will be derived from characters from opera, art song, ballet, and other theatrical arts. These characters’ images, personalities, and background stories serve as symbolic inspirations for product design and tuning direction.
The brand aims to create products that leave a lasting impression on users, combining technical excellence with a deep appreciation for the artistry and emotional impact of music.
Are you still following? Good! Forte ears for the moment has four IEMS in their product line-up, and they are the following: MACBETH (+Ambition upgrade) and MEFISTO (with Temptation upgrade).
It is the latter IEM that we’re looking at today, so let’s get going.
Forte Ears Mefisto
The Mefistofele Project is the second opus from Forte Ears and it – according to them – came to life when Riccardo discovered Ael’s work and was captivated by its quirky, offbeat charm. Their shared passion for storytelling led to the creation of the Mefisto Neufcat, a fusion of two creative worlds—where opera meets rebellion, and sound.
In the part on sound we’’ shortly get back to how this translates in the Forte Ear Mefisto’s tuning. The IEM itself is a hybrid and it features four Balanced Armatures, dual 7.8mm LCP Dynamic Drivers and one Nano Diaphragm Planar Magnetic Driver (Aria).
Technology wise the Mefisto is using FE’s Diabolic Isolation System (D.I.S – to maximize bass energy output), an Acoustic Resonance Chamber (ARC) and the Forte Relay Circuitry System (FCR) with a 4-Way Crossover. Head over to Forte Ears website to learn more about their tech.
All the drivers and tech are housed in a 3D-printed universal shell with the traditional 2-pin connector system. It is closed with a Sterling Silver face plate. But more on that later in this article.
Cable and tip wise, the Mefisto is using an Eletech cable (4W pure stranded design with 25 AWG Silver + SPC + Copper) and Eletech Baroque Stage tips (the newly updated version of the original Eletech Baroque).
The Mefisto also is/was available with a Tour De Force Package, a globally limited edition of only 200 sets. This package sports the Temptation Upgrade Cable. Our version we got for review is the regular version, with a demo label.
Price, Box & Accessories
We expect a lot when we’re talking about a universal high-end and top-tier IEM selling for $2,899 USD, but the Forte Ears and the Mefisto seriously deliver.
This box and the whole presentation actually are the first highlights of the Mefisto. The delivery (box) is probably one of the nicest I have seen with an incredible eye for detail. Do check the images to get an idea of the precision and luxury of the packaging.
On the inside of the box we find a leather carrying case, the Eletech tips and cables as well as a Forte Ears labelled cleaning cloth. There also is a nice and larger sized Mefisto cloth, which I use to let the IEMs rest on when I am not using them.
Instead of the D07 labelled plastic cover you see in the pictures, I would have loved to have seen some cable adapters. Our Mefisto is terminated with a 4.4mm plug.
All-in-all the Mefisto delivers a gorgeous package with a delightful unboxing experience. It also comes with a nice set of accessories though an extra adapter or two would have been nice.
Build Quality & Design
The whole Mefisto theme, as the packaging also shows, is all about the opera. And that brings us to the second highlight of the Mefisto, the design and the face plates.
Not only do they have a stunning, super detailed church like design, resembling glass stained windows. They are actually made from Sterling Silver and they feature tiny red accents in the center and in the logo. Call me impressed!
To me the Mefisto is seriously stunning inear monitor, but of course this is very subjective.
The Forte Ear Mefisto’s shell is 3D-printed and it is flawless. The faceplate closing, wax filter, 2-pin connector and the air vent are all sitting perfectly flush in the shells. Same goes for the provided cable, but as we already know from Eletech, their quality always is spot on.
Simply put, a stunning IEM with excellent build quality. No doubts about that.
Comfort & Isolation
Hybrid, universal IEMs with special technologies nowadays are always larger in size. It’s not something I like or prefer (I’ll wear the Sennheiser IE series each day) but it doesn’t seem to bother most of the universal IEM clients.
If you’ve been following me over the last 15 years, you probably also know I have a strong preference for custom IEMs. My ears just have a difficult time when using universal shells, especially if they are larger in size.
With the Mefisto, my ears near the IEM’s canal just start to hurt after 15 to 20 minutes and then I have to take a 5 minute listening break for things to get back to normal. That’s probably just because of my small ear canals though. The Mefisto’s canal isn’t particularly large, au contraire.
While the Mefisto does nicely fit in my ear shell, it sticks out quite a bit outside of my ears. But I guess that’s considered as normal nowadays, even if it makes me look like I have tiny ears.
I do have to add that the Mefisto is kind of heavy (Sterling Silver anyone?), even if that is no issue when using them. It never feels like they want to fall out (Newton) and the cable does a really good job keeping the ear pieces in place. The cable is comfy and it doesn’t snug the ear pieces down either.
So if you can live with the weight and size of a typical modern Hybrid IEM, then there’s nothing to worry about here.
From an isolation point of view, Mefisto performs well and it isolates extremely well in both directions. The cable never picked up any noise either.
But enough said about all of this, let’s find out how it performs!
Sound – Intro
This is the chapter in which we find out how the companies describe their product’s sound. For the Forte Ears Mefisto we find the following:
In the Faust and Mefistofele operas, Mefisto’s commanding voice symbolizes both temptation and enchantment and this IEM captures that essence, delivering a sound that is both seductive and mesmerizing.
Our design philosophy aims to avoid unnecessary driver stacking, which can lead to increased impedance and diminished performance. Instead, each driver is purposefully integrated to complement the others, ensuring a cohesive and balanced sound profile.
This methodical approach allows us to deliver an unparalleled auditory experience, true to the essence of opera and musical plays, capturing every nuance and emotion intended by the performers.
Does that mean this IEM is only good when listening to classical music? Let’s find out!
The article continues with the part on sound on the second page. Click here or use the jumps below.
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