Наушники — Noble Audio Van Gogh

The Van Gogh is a wired universal in-ear monitor made by Noble Audio, a US firm set up by John Moulton in 2013 whose work covers both custom and universal earphones. Released in November 2025, it sells for USD 699. Its name and look come from the painting Starry Night, and each faceplate is hand-finished in a swirling pattern of blue, green and yellow, so no two pairs are identical.

Key specs that matter

Every earpiece holds four drivers in a hybrid layout. Low frequencies come from one 8 mm dynamic driver with a magnesium-aluminium diaphragm and a dual-magnetic circuit. Two Sonion E Series balanced armatures cover the midrange, and one Knowles RAD Series balanced armature handles the treble. Frequency response is rated at 20 Hz to 20 kHz, sensitivity at 107 dB and impedance at 29 ohms.

Engineering and use context

The shell is a low-profile resin body shaped for a natural fit and for passive isolation from outside noise. The nozzle is metal and ends in a crown-shaped grille. Connection to the cable is through standard 0.78 mm 2-pin sockets, which makes the lead replaceable. The stock cable uses eight cores of OCC copper in a four-wire braid, has a smoky blue-grey tint, carries the crown logo on the Y-split and connectors, includes over-ear hooks and comes with a 4.4 mm balanced plug as standard. The box holds regular and double-flange silicone tips, each type supplied in S, M and L, a soft velvet pouch, a cleaning brush and a Noble logo sticker. Compared with the three-driver entry model in the range, the Van Gogh moves to a larger count of balanced armatures from two suppliers and a smaller dynamic driver dedicated to bass.

Pairing

The balanced termination suits digital audio players, dongle DACs and desktop headphone amplifiers equipped with a matching output. A source with only a 3.5 mm single-ended socket needs an adapter or an alternative 2-pin cable. Jim Moulton has been a 50 percent owner of Noble Audio since 2018, and the firm also produces wireless models such as the Falcon Pro and the FoKus Prestige alongside its wired range.

Alternatives

Noble's lower-priced wired option is the Knight, a tribrid with a 10 mm dynamic driver, a Sonion balanced armature and a piezo super tweeter.