Short answer: the Lime Ears Maris. Both are rated 3.4/5 for sound quality (#883 and #892 of 1291 in-ear headphones), and the Lime Ears Maris costs $2,799 against $3,300 for the Vortex Reference, with sound quality a draw, the lower price decides it.
Why pick the Lime Ears Maris: A flagship with coaxial dynamic woofers, six armatures, electrostatic tweeters and bone conduction drivers, with a solid Harman score of 66 across ten measurements. Watch for: Treble sits about 3.7 dB below target, so it sounds dark next to its price rivals, and it measures behind the cheaper Lime Ears Terra.
Why pick the Vortex Reference: A broadly balanced tuning with a preference score of 66 against the Harman target. The catch: Treble about 2 dB below target from 3 to 10 kHz, which can sound dull or veiled next to brighter headphones.
Buy the Lime Ears Maris. Both are rated the same for sound quality, and it costs $501 less than the Vortex Reference.
Looking for alternatives? See the complete Headphones rankings.
A flagship with coaxial dynamic woofers, six armatures, electrostatic tweeters and bone conduction drivers, with a solid Harman score of 66 across ten measurements.
Lime Ears eBay
A broadly balanced tuning with a preference score of 66 against the Harman target.
Bloom Audio $3,300.00 eBayPrices on this page were last checked October 16, 2026 at 5:46 PM UTC. Product prices and availability are accurate as of that date/time and are subject to change; the price and availability shown on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
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Specifications Side By Side
| Lime Ears Maris | Vortex Reference | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2,799 | $3,300.00 |
| Ranked | #883 of 1291 in In-Ear Headphones | #892 of 1291 in In-Ear Headphones |
| Form Factor | In-ear | In-ear |
| Back | Closed | Closed |
| Connection | Wired | Wired |
| Driver Type | Multi-driver | Hybrid (2 DD + 2 Passive MEMS) |
| Drivers | 2 x 8mm coaxial dynamic + 6 x balanced armature + 2 x electrostatic + 2 x bone conduction | 2 x dynamic drivers (including 8mm Al-Mg dome woofer) + 2 x passive MEMS tweeters |
| Harman Preference Score | 66 (median of 10 squig.link measurements, calibrated to AutoEQ) | 66 (median of 3 squig.link measurements, calibrated to AutoEQ) |
| Deviation From Target | 2.33 dB standard deviation | 2.45 dB standard deviation |
| Tonal Tilt | -0.97 (negative is warmer, positive brighter) | -0.75 (negative is warmer, positive brighter) |
| Sub-bass Extension | Within 6 dB of target down to 20 Hz (+1.6 dB at 30 Hz) | Within 6 dB of target down to 20 Hz (+0.3 dB at 30 Hz) |
| Impedance | - | 23 ohms |
| Sensitivity | - | 102 dB/mW |
Frequency Response Compared
Both headphones’ measurements overlaid on the Harman target. Above the target sounds louder in that range, below it quieter. Each curve is the median of several independent measurements, shifted so its 500 Hz to 2 kHz average sits at 0 dB, so only the tuning is compared.
Measurement data: the Lime Ears Maris from aden, animagus, audioamigo, ducbloke, eliseaudio, jaytiss, koi, practiphile, pw and superreview; the Vortex Reference from bloomaudio, dchpgall and joycesreview, all via squig.link.
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