Reviews by MusicalDoc8

So a budget IEM with bone conduction? Colour me curious! Mind you, first i listened to them, THEN i looked up the price. Why? Because i wanted to be honest about the sound impression with no preconcieved notion of their price range. By the way, the packaging forgoes any useless "pouches" and instead gives you about 18 eartips, of various types. I myself am sick and tired of money being sunk into "packaging", and i fully believe i rather have a cardboard box with just the IEM inside that focuses all the price on their actual quality, than those uselss stand-offish packaging. No i don't care if it's a sequoia you cut down to make the package, i need good sounding IEMs not a box for my stuff. If i want a wood box i go to my local carpenter and get it for 10 bucks.

Body Company - And One
Bass and well layered sounds, might not be a costly IEM but it does it job. Voice and instruments are well separated, with a good FR and extension.

Out Of Touch [Single Version] Hall & Oates
Highs are well rendered, the voice helped by the BC have a good weight, nothing feels recessed. A very pleasant experience!

Check Point Charlie - "Chesky Records 30th anniversary"
String instruments really shine, but the real MVP is that bass presence that helps giving the notes weight, and the KB02 have it in spades. Meaning you get a good FR with good technicalities and the right amount of bass.

Game Over! - Lazerpunk
Nothing like electric music to test a bit of highs extension and quality, and the KB02 delivers, never felt like it distorted or muddied them up.

Manifest Destiny - Jamiroquai
I keep confirming that the KB02 has been very solidly tuned, capable of separation and FR that shines way past its price point.



TL;DR:

When considered in a vacuum of price or competition, they already are a very solid IEM, easy to reccomend to anyone wanting to either gift them to a friend or to lure them in the audiophile world!
If you factor in the price, it becoems an immediate reccomendation. If back in my beginnings i had them, i think i would have skipped quite a lot of IEMs and would have had to shoot way higher before i could "feel" a difference. Definitely reccomended, and i am very happy of the introduction of high-tier technologies in lower price segments, it takes courage and spirit to try and make such advanced transductors in lower price ranges. It shows that there are companies that don't just price-gauge but instead care for the diffusion of high-quality components beyond something that, in this field, starts to feel like artificial "inflation" as seen in other countless companies, that think more cost=better sound.
Congratulations to KB Ear, I hope they will keep their desire for innovation and their etical pricing in their future. That to me means becoming a market-champion.


A sincere thanks to https://keephifi.com, that provided the review sample, and got me curious abuout this unit!

K-bear is on a killing spree, and in the best way!
I put them on, and....i really think these guys CAN distrupt the market. While the KB02 was a nice first step, the ZA-12 feel like a big step up!



Touch - Daft Punk
WHat can i say, one of my most enojoyable renditions and i'm a guy with a trifecta and the Anni23, so it's not like i get easily impressed. These little guys make me hopeful that in the future we might get TOTL price down to less than a quarter of what it is now.
A delicious bass, maybe a tad less impactful than the KB02, but everything else is really well made.

School's Out - Wig Wam
Big sound big impact big fun! that's how i'd describe the feeling i get. The male voice is well defined, and of course the bass underlines the notes. Good impact good extension and good FR means you get a complete expereicne when listening to them. I was suprised because i think separation and note weight are some of the most important features.

Call me Maybe (10 kings vs ollie green remix)
Lovely female voice, good bass base, maybe a little less detail on the highs that feel a bit less defined.


TL;DR

Another great IEM at amazingly low prices, another hard-to-pass IEM. The segment of cheap but great sounding IEMS keeps growing and it's wonderful news for us all audiophiles, even more so for those who are sick of the "MORE COST=BETTER SOUND" predatory approach of many companies that feeds on buyer's remorse.
The two DDs gives a nice impact to the bass, the mids are defined and the vocals are never drowned. In itself it's a solid IEM that gives you a proper frequency response and decent technicalities. Factoring in the price, it is another easy reccomend for both neophites of the audio world and for those who want a pair of IEM on the go that won't break bank but will pleasantly accompany you in your day.

A sincere thanks to https://keephifi.com, that provided the review sample! they shipped the unit very fast!

Never tried anything from Meze, so i was happy to try them. Let's see how they act:

Beat the devil's tattoo
Lighter on the bass, kinda wooly mids, decent treble. Nothing to write home about, but you got to keep in mind the audio segment.
Voices feel recessed.

"Song to my Son" Paquito D'Rivera - Portraits of Cuba
Seems this kind of song, more highs than lows, no vocals, can be enjoyed on the Alba. So for jazz fans, they are a good choice.

Hell March 1 (C&C Red Alert 3 Soundtrack)
Bass feels hollow, not much of an impact, separation is nothing to write home about. In the more complicated passages it's hard to discern the different sounds.

Something about us - Daft Punk
It's got some bass, but always feels a bit thin and the voices recessed.

Electrosphere - Ace Combat 3 OST
It's mostly highs and the alba seem to shine better on them.

Stone Crazy - The Beatnuts
Voice and highs are nice but still i think it sounds too thin on the bass.

The devil went down to georgia - Steve Ouimette
Guitars are good, but lower frequencies are still thin.

I had the chance to try these IEM and after listening to them for a little while, i ended up thinking that they are a "OK" iem, more attuned to the genres who rely on highs than anything that requires bass. It feels shallow and lacks any meaningful impact.

Overall, it's a decent pair of IEM, but if you are a basshead or prefer music heavy on bass or powerful vocals, you might want to look at other IEM sets.

Addendum: they have an USB c Adapter, but using it i think it's stuck on high gain or something, i had to tone my phone's audio all the way down to avoid going deaf. Maybe it's ment for other audio devices?