[PeterDLai]

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My CKN70s arrived today. Tenso blows me away with their speed. Order to delivery was just 5 days.

 
I'm jelly of you guys on the East coast; the entire process is super quick until it hits the customs office in LA for us on the West coast.
 
Looking forward to more impressions and comparisons!

 

[Dsnuts]

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My CKN70s arrived today. Tenso blows me away with their speed. Order to delivery was just 5 days.
 
These are simply put, astonishing. I did a little burn in, put them on, and realized my jaw was on the floor 20 minutes later. These CKN70s are as special as I thought they would be. They are a definite upgrade over the CKN50s. This sound is something else. It’s rather similar to my XBA-30s, actually. Everything is pretty balanced and sounds effortless. Clarity, speed, and detail are top notch.
 
The bass is wonderful. It is full and powerful with armature-like control and precision. It's very much like bass from moving armature tech (a mix of dynamic and BA tech). The CKN70s deliver whatever the song calls for. These can be polite and controlled, or drop in with some eye opening power.
 
The mids are lush and beautifully layered. They are smoother than the mids on the CKN50s. Voices are nice and clear and sound very real. Live rock music is stunning with these. Guitars have a great bite and crunch.
 
The highs have this great snap and energy to them. Like the rest of the sound, there is great control and smoothness. The forwardness is the right amount to add some extra excitement and liveliness to the music, without being overbearing.
 
Those of you on the fence about these need to stop sitting and go get a pair. These could be the best IEMs I have ever heard.
I’m saying all of this and they haven’t even been fully burned in yet. Time to let the burn in commence. I’ll save the showdown with my current #1 XBA-30s for later.

Adding fuel to the fire here.!

 

[Carlsan]

Quote:

Great first impressions man, and very tempting for me to buy a pair. Do you own the s500? I want to know how the bass is on the CKN70 compared to them before making the purchase.
Also, how is the isolation on these? I travel on public transport so would need it to be decent enough, something that the s500 doesn't do well enough. I mostly listen to Hip–Hop, Pop & Rock. Would this IEM suit these genres?

Thanks.

Adding my own thoughts, as I've had them for a couple of weeks.
Isolation is good, of course depending on ear tips.
I think they sound really good on the type of music you listen to. Deep bass extension, punchy bass, smooth mids, and good highs that seem rolled off some, all with great detail and good speed.
 
My complaints about these are two:
1. The J cord is a bit  of a pain, even though it does seem to be high quality.
2. The cable does have a lot of micro-phonics, you really need to use a clip if you move around a lot with them.
 
Otherwise, they are excellent.

 

[mugen3]

Quote:

Great first impressions man, and very tempting for me to buy a pair. Do you own the s500? I want to know how the bass is on the CKN70 compared to them before making the purchase.
Also, how is the isolation on these? I travel on public transport so would need it to be decent enough, something that the s500 doesn't do well enough. I mostly listen to Hip–Hop, Pop & Rock. Would this IEM suit these genres?

Thanks.

 
I did have the S500s before, for a short time. IIRC, the bass on the CKN70s has the same great presence in the music. Quality wise I can't imagine the CKN70s being beat. The bass on these is a special beast. A perfect combination of the strengths of dynamics and balanced armatures. They have everything in spades - power, slam, texture, laser precision.
 
The isolation is very good, these will block out everything on the train or bus. Hiphop, pop, rock, everything I threw at the CKN70s sounded marvelous.
 
Ds, you need to get the XBA-30s one day. They are a lot like the CKN70s, but are tuned more toward the strengths of BAs.

 

[PeterDLai]

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I took half the day off from taking stuff down and throwing stuff in my car and such. Went to the local Radio Shack on Danny's tip about these tips.
 

These cost $5 but are some of the best tips you can buy for the cash. Stock pile em. 
 
I just got to my shop where I have been burning in my CKN70.. I just put them in my ears for the first time in 3 days of straight burn in..The sound does get smoother and the treble is not as forward as I heard them on open box. It sounds extremely nice right about now but I can tell I am about half way there. These things impress me every time I throw them in my ears.

 
For those that are interesting in getting some of these, take advantage of this offer: $10 off $20+ in-store purchase at RadioShack.

 

[Kamakahah]

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For those that are interesting in getting some of these, take advantage of this offer: $10 off $20+ in-store purchase at RadioShack.

 
Wow thanks for this. I totally doubled up. Gonna grab a bunch of tips. You should post this in the deals thread if you already haven't.

 

[Carlsan]

Yes, thanks for the coupon, I know where I'm going tomorrow.

 

[PeterDLai]

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Wow thanks for this. I totally doubled up. Gonna grab a bunch of tips. You should post this in the deals thread if you already haven't.

 
Done. Something that might also be worth using the coupon on is a 4GB Sansa Clip Zip for $19.99+tax after coupon as it's on sale until tomorrow (currently $34.99 at Amazon).

 

[7S Cameron]

Quote:

Great first impressions man, and very tempting for me to buy a pair. Do you own the s500? I want to know how the bass is on the CKN70 compared to them before making the purchase.
Also, how is the isolation on these? I travel on public transport so would need it to be decent enough, something that the s500 doesn't do well enough. I mostly listen to Hip–Hop, Pop & Rock. Would this IEM suit these genres?

Thanks.

The S500s are my favorite headphones ever. But the more mental and physical burn in is taking place with these CKN70s, the more I'm thinking they might pass my S500s.

 

[sfwalcer]

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The S500s are my favorite headphones ever. But the more mental and physical burn in is taking place with these CKN70s, the more I'm thinking they might pass my S500s.

hey hey isn't there some rule about comparing iems to headphone is a total no no??? Seems like that old school mentality is out the window with these micro CTN drivers and 3x dynamics/ multi chambers etc, tech used in IEMs. It is a fair comparison nowadays between the two, just crazy how fast iem tech has evolved.

 

[Kamakahah]

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Done. Something that might also be worth using the coupon on is a 4GB Sansa Clip Zip for $19.99+tax after coupon as it's on sale until tomorrow (currently $34.99 at Amazon).

I would but I already picked up a clip+ for 20$ that just came in. It was refurbished, but honestly there is nothing that would indicate it isn't totally new. Threw Rockbox on it, and now i'm just waiting for the rest of my portable gear to come in: CKN-70, C&C BH, and a custom BTG-Audio interconnect for them. Ahh the waiting, feels like being a kid at Christmas again.

 

[Lifted Andreas]

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I would but I already picked up a clip+ for 20$ that just came in. It was refurbished, but honestly there is nothing that would indicate it isn't totally new. Threw Rockbox on it, and now i'm just waiting for the rest of my portable gear to come in: CKN-70, C&C BH, and a custom BTG-Audio interconnect for them. Ahh the waiting, feels like being a kid at Christmas again.

 
Luckily on Head-Fi you can feel like that everyday, especially if you got the cash. 

 
Btw, any chance someone could send me some of those Auvio tips. They arent available in Europe. 

 

[Gee Simpson]

I did have the S500s before, for a short time. IIRC, the bass on the CKN70s has the same great presence. nice in the the music. Quality wise I can't imagine the CKN70s being beat. The bass on these is a special beast. A perfect combination of the strengths of dynamics and balanced armatures. They have everything in spades - power, slam, texture, laser precision.

The isolation is very good, these will block out everything on the train or bus. Hiphop, pop, rock, everything I threw at the CKN70s sounded marvelous.

Ds, you need to get the XBA-30s one day. They are a lot like the CKN70s, but are tuned more toward the strengths of BAs.

Wow they sound like the perfect IEM's for me. Oh and btw you would make a great salesman as your impressions have made me go for these I won't be purchasing them today though, probably Tuesday.

Sorry if I missed it but can anyone give me a tutorial thingy on how to use Tenso as I've never used it before. Also, what tips are recommended for these? Would my JVC FX101's work well with them? Sadly I can't find the Auvio tips here in the UK. Any suggestions welcome

 

[Kamakahah]

Luckily on Head-Fi you can feel like that everyday, especially if you got the cash. 

Btw, any chance someone could send me some of those Auvio tips. They arent available in Europe. 

I'm going out later to pick up 4 packs of them so I can make use of the coupon. Probably 2 small, 1 medium, 1 large. I usually use small, but just in case I wanna be sure. What size do you use? I could probably send some your way. Though I have no idea what postage would look like, or be worth it for that matter.

 

[Dsnuts]

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Wow they sound like the perfect IEM's for me. Oh and btw you would make a great salesman as your impressions have made me go for these

I won't be purchasing them today though, probably Tuesday.

Sorry if I missed it but can anyone give me a tutorial thingy on how to use Tenso as I've never used it before. Also, what tips are recommended for these? Would my JVC FX101's work well with them? Sadly I can't find the Auvio tips here in the UK. Any suggestions welcome

Here you go. http://www.head-fi.org/t/632273/jvc-ha-fxz-100-200/1500#post_9016343