Earphones that look like little lobsters? I don't think there's a better way to spend $60

The Rock Lobster earphones may sound like a funny proposition, but after using them for a few weeks, they're one of the best ways to spend $60 that I can think of. They're also going to make my list of the best budget-friendly IEMs with a bullet.

Marketed as an in-ear monitor (IEM) made for rock music, and with a frankly awesome aesthetic that's all its own, these little bastards are in fact really well tuned earphones that can handle any genre you can throw at it – and all for $60!

You get a warm, vocal-forward sound profile, that gives you a subtle tuning that's totally at odds with its basic badass vibe. This is a $60 IEM that isn't trying to bore your ears with a V-shaped, big bass, bigger treble, where's-the-mids profile! It wants you to enjoy that midrange too, and though I found some electronic music suffered from a 8kHz treble peak, on the whole the Rock Lobster IEMs gives you more detail than you have any right to expect from a $60 IEM.

Apos Rock Lobster: $60 at Amazon

I really like these IEMs, for both their sound and their look. There are lots of IEMs out there, but none of them look like this! And the sound is elevated bass, forward midrange, and a surprisingly good treble that doesn't just whack it up to irritating levels, and instead you get a U-shape sound profile that sound good with every type of music, not just rock.

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The sound, the price

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Marketing is essential for any product's success, and Apos has nailed it with the Rock Lobster in-ear monitors. That's because Apos tapped a pretty important source – their future customers.

Apos actually worked with audiophile enthusiasts, from the initial design of the IEM through to its sound profile. Along the way, Apos put out iterations to the community for feedback, and actually listened! One essential part of this was the realisation that music fans like mids as much as bass. Who knew?!

The community's message was clear: We've had enough of budget IEMs simply whacking up the bass and treble to make an exciting sound that misses so much of the detail that makes rock music (all music?) special. The Rock Lobster IEM offers a really great midrange – not too far back, and not too far forward. Listening to bands on the RL, all vocals and all the other instruments that live in the midrange, are just where they're meant to be. The result is a really well tuned IEM.

Now, it's not perfect. Listening to EDM, some tracks come across as a little peaky in the treble (even though the frequency response would suggest otherwise). Chemical Brothers' Piku starts to get a little grating, as that track is largely based on a crackly loop that hits higher frequencies. Hmm, maybe this 'Rock-only' thing isn't just marketing?!

However, the Rock Lobster can do smooth. It handles Antônio Carlos Jobim's So Dance Samba like a champ – Jobim's male vocal and the multi-female backing vocals combine into a rich wave of voices. Sure there's not amazing separation between them, but there's probably more than you'd expect from a $60 IEM.

The bottom line is, this is a bodaciously well designed set that sounds great, and that costs a fraction of the price of similarly tuned IEMs... hell, even if you add the leather clam shell carry case to your basket, it's still just under $100.