Short answer: the Softears Studio 2, though neither ranks well in its class. It ranks #1233 of 1291 in-ear headphones by sound quality, rated 1.2/5, at $152; the Sivga Nightingale ranks #1267, rated 1.0/5, and costs $229, which makes this an easy call rather than a real tradeoff. Both are rated below 3.0/5 among the 1291 in-ear headphones, and the Truthear Nova, ranked #2 at $169.99, is a better place to start if sound quality matters.
What the Softears Studio 2 does well: Lower mids sit within about 0.5 dB of target, keeping voices and guitars natural. The tradeoff: Presence sits about 12.6 dB low with a 15.6 dB dip near 5.3 kHz, so vocals and instruments lose some bite.
Why pick the Sivga Nightingale: Upper treble lifts about 3.3 dB for extra air and sparkle. The catch: Presence sits about 12.6 dB low with a 13.1 dB dip near 3.5 kHz, so vocals and instruments lose some bite.
Buy the Softears Studio 2. It is rated higher for sound quality than the Sivga Nightingale and costs less, so only choose the other one for a particular feature it does better.
Still deciding? The full Headphones rankings cover every ranked option.
Lower mids sit within about 0.5 dB of target, keeping voices and guitars natural.
Amazon $152.00 eBay
Upper treble lifts about 3.3 dB for extra air and sparkle.
Amazon $229.00 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
| Softears Studio 2 | Sivga Nightingale | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $152.00 | $229.00 |
| Ranked | #1233 of 1291 in In-Ear Headphones | #1267 of 1291 in In-Ear Headphones |
| Form Factor | In-ear | In-ear |
| Back | Closed | Closed |
| Connection | Wired | Wired |
| Driver Type | Balanced armature | Planar |
| Drivers | 2 x balanced armature | 1 x 14.5mm planar magnetic |
| Impedance | 86 ohms | 16 ohms |
| Sensitivity | 127 dB/Vrms | - |
| Frequency Response | 5Hz - 40kHz | 20Hz - 40kHz (Manufacturer specified) |
| Harman Preference Score | 40 (median of 11 squig.link measurements, calibrated to AutoEQ) | 29 (median of 13 squig.link measurements, calibrated to AutoEQ) |
| Deviation From Target | 4.68 dB standard deviation | 5.73 dB standard deviation |
| Tonal Tilt | -0.78 (negative is warmer, positive brighter) | +0.72 (negative is warmer, positive brighter) |
| Sub-bass Extension | Falls 6 dB below target at 42 Hz (-7.1 dB at 30 Hz) | Falls 6 dB below target at 80 Hz (-13.9 dB at 30 Hz) |
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 Softears Studio 2 from animagus, atechreviews, audioamigo, bassaudio, fernandagunsan, flare, jaytiss, precog, sl0the, soundcheck39 and superreview; the Sivga Nightingale from achoreviews, aftersound, arn, audioamigo, cqtek, ianfann, lown-fi, musicafe, pw, soundcheck39, superreview, vortexreviews and vsg, all via squig.link.
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