CCA Lyra review: Professional earphones on a budget 

In-ear monitors (IEMs) are all means a product built for audiophiles, more so for professionals to help them monitor their own music. What usually staves off regular users is the price – IEMs are known to be super costly, with premium offerings often crossing the Rs 1 lakh price mark. But if you are on a budget, then Chinese company CCA’s offering might just be the right pick for you.
A ser brand to another IEM maker called Knowledge Zenith, Clear Concept Audio (CCA) is a somewhat popular name in the audiophile community. Their products make for a good buy for those on a budget. The CCA Lyra retail for Rs 1,590 and are affordable as IEMs. I’ve been using them for around a week now and here’s my review.
CCA Lyra review: What’s good?
In the box, you get the CCA Lyra (of course), along with two extra pairs of ear tips, a removable 3.5mm cable, and an instruction manual. If you’re new to the world of in-ear monitors, then the fact that the cable is a separate component, which arrives untethered from the earphones may take you surprise. Plugging those into the earphones is an easy process, though, so no problems there.
The CCA Lyra have a love-it-or-hate-it design
The design of the CCA Lyra is attractive. Everything here is transparent (Nothing Ear 1 who?) including the housing for the 3.5mm pin. The only aspect breaking character is the housing for the single button, which is white. Meanwhile, the earbuds themselves have this crystalline finish giving them a really unique look. The other side – the one that faces the ear – gives a nice peek at the innards. You can easily spot the dual magnetic 10mm single dynamic driver sitting in there with a couple of wires running through it. There’s a lot of wasted space, though, but that’s probably for passive noise isolation – the oversized casing ensures that most of your ear cavity is sealed. Build quality is decent for the price.
For someone who has only ever seen IEMs online and never tried them out, there was a bit of a learning curve involved with regard to wearing them. There are no “L” and “R” labels to ass you. The behind-the-ear design doesn’t help either. But once you get the hang of it, you’ll be rewarded with an excellent fit that stays put under any circumstance. The earphones also don’t cause discomfort during extended music lening sessions, although the wire that goes behind your ear does take some getting used to.
The CCA Lyra fit well and I never feel they’ll fall off, no matter what I’m up to
The CCA Lyra sound pretty great and score surprisingly well in clarity. The tuning has slightly more emphasis on bass and treble. But it’s not overdone at all, and people looking for something that produces balanced and natural sound should find it just fine. For someone who prefers more bass, the treble can feel a bit shrill at times. I felt that the audio was tuned perfectly for me, and never felt the need to play around with an equalizer app. I used the headset on my laptop and phone. They’re both mid-range products and drive the Lyra easily, meaning the earphones’ sensitivity will not be a point of concern.
The CCA Lyra has nothing to hide…literally
CCA Lyra review: Verdict
The CCA Lyra, despite being in-ear monitors, make for a great daily driver for general consumers, thanks to their well-tuned audio output. If you are looking for something that produced a balanced sound, you’ll enjoy them.  However, those who prefer more will be better off getting something like the JBL Endurance Run or the Realme Buds 2 Neo. The design is either something you’ll love or you’ll hate – there’s no in-between – so be sure to scan our images well before making up your mind.