Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite Universal 8BA IEM

A possible price-point leader:
The above is a big statement, and while the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite is not perfect, it does some amazing tricks! Just how balanced the “Lite” is, and how great the soundstage is……it’s totally understandable how popular it has become since its release. I only have experience with one other Kiwi ears release, The Credenza, and while I thought it was simply “OK” the Credenza has nothing really to do with what’s going on here today with the Orchestra Lite. Coming out around September of 2021, the original Orchestra was met with favorable reviews, accepted for the $499.00 price point it represented. Yet this “Lite” version seems to be causing much more havoc, a market disruption really. And for good reason, the regular Orchestra (which I haven’t heard) had the same 8 BA build, and the talk of the town is the Lite is actually tuned even better!

While the elephant in the room is if the two Knowles CI-22955 can actually provide the bass levels to kick the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite into standard music genre use? So? 2 bass drivers in each monitor, 4 BA bass drivers per pair. And to put it in prospective, there are really two kinds of listeners here. One that loves BA bass and fully understands what they are getting into when purchasing an all BA set. And….two, the listener who no matter what refuses to believe the idea of a BA bass producer will ever bring the bass dynamics and authority needed.

Me:
This review is written by someone who understands BAs. DD bass often has more authority, more reverberation and more kick. Such facts of life will never be argued about. But what does BA bass do, that DDs lack? It’s simply called detail. Yep, BA bass offers a window into the inside the bass note. Call it a more defined texture, there is a placement inside the stage that is unique to BAs, as well as a speed. This bass speed varies from bass BA installation to installation, but in general BAs across the entire frequency band will carry a faster attack. The issue is at times (really pretty much all the time) the decay is also faster. But I look at this as a plus due to creating a more provocative pace.

Summary:
To skip-to-the-chase here the Orchestra Lite provides wonderful separation of imaging into a price-point leading stage. Such attributes can come in handy for gaming or if you’re just into your music listening being portrayed this way. It’s safe to say the Lite holds a romantic level of ambiance due to this single feature. And while the treble isn’t totally bright, it is somewhat airy and spacious. The bass kicks hard for BA bass and adds togetherness.............being these are all BA drivers. Probably first noticed will be the midrange? The emphasis (in total) is the 2.5 kHz pinna gain area. This single bump is delineating the tone and personality of the entire Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite sound. Is it a good thing? It is, because the rest of the frequency supports such a stance, meaning everything is connected, and connected in a good way. What this does in the end is provide a very complete and subtle midrange focused IEM, while making the Lite well-rounded.

$249.00
https://www.linsoul.com/products/kiwi-ears-orchestra-lite?variant=43713163002073

Build:
There has been a number of folks who speculated as to the build here. Meaning some have proposed a vented area for the midrange to escape into a small chamber under the faceplate, others have speculated the bass BAs do such things? After spending sometime looking at the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite, it looks as if there are no vented BAs at all. As well as if there is a chamber under the faceplate, it would in-fact be so small as to not really do anything. That’s my answer, until someone actually dissembles a pair to prove me wrong.

You can pretty much see the top of the BAs under the faceplate and you can see none of them are vented.

IEMs like the DUNU SA6 have a dramatic (open) area for the bass BAs to resonate into, also the TSMR-5 shows an area where the BAs are mounted, and another half open and not filled with resin, to give resonance to the sound waves.

In the Lite we have 2 custom made Kiwi ears tweeters, 4 custom Kiwi ears midrange BA drivers and 2 Knowles Bass BAs combined into three sound channels each with their own corresponding prior nozzle filter and exit area at the nozzle. Before that each channel is procured into an electronic passive three-way cross-over..............splitting the three bands into their desired group, before being allocated to each BA set. The 0.78 2pin upon closer inspection is perfectly flush with the side-walls. With this pair cable-rolls were incredibly easy. At 7 grams a piece on my kitchen scale the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite were neither heavy nor low-weight but simply middle of the road. Such middle-ground I find absolutely perfect! When you combine the semi-custom shape and medical grade resin feel..............you arrive at really the best of places, offering all day listening! And while both cable guides or not seemed to work, I actually forgot to check which cables had cables guides as they were never needed for correct placement. Due to the solid resin construction (and semi-custom build) sound occlusion was optimal. You can choose either blue or green. The build offers kind of a double edge sword, in that they are super well made, but drop them and the entire shell can crack making them worthless. But as they are, no wire can cross, no tube can move out of place, yet also keep in mind they can never be worked-on either. Never opened-up and inspected, they simply are what they are. Some of the best built IEMs I have ever seen! Such a design chose to not included nozzle positioned BAs, as every BA is situated farther back.



Packaging:
Coming in a small box, you can start to tell really all the emphasis was on the IEMs themselves. And while the more and more IEM reviews I do, the box-opening experience becomes even more important. Do the IEMs themselves seem to be protected in route? Is the box holding all that’s looked for with such a purchase? Does the warranty, user manual seem complete? How are the ear-tips packaged? Whats the case like? A first here at Redcarmoose Labs was the fact that the IEMs themselves were exactly at the level seen in the photograph, as repositioning for photos was not needed. And while the case is slightly cheap feeling, the original case that the first shipment came with was more substantial. I guess that during that first shipment Kiwi ears realized that the success of this product didn’t depend on which-ever case you supplied with the IEMs……a seemingly (by the pictures) nicer case or the minimal case we have going forward. Truly I’m particularly focused on all items included, but for the money of $249.00 this is still an incredible package, with the IEMs themselves truly being the gift here. These are the level of IEM that I easily see myself spending $550 to $650 for, so to splurge for an extra case, only because I love them so could be do-able. This in-fact in one of the few IEMs that I would actually get a second set of, fearing for the mortality of the first set. Nothing to do with quality of construction or anything, but I would be sick if I lost them. I have actually purchased back-ups for one headphone and two other IEMs in the past, as it’s better to be safe than sorry!



Cable rolls, DAP rolls:
While the included 4 core/7N oxygen-free cable offered incredible manageability it was only 3.5mm, so that in-and-of-itself asked for 4.4mm balanced attempts. Really anything to improve staging and tone was tried and tested. In summary different cable metallurgies and 4.4mm balanced brought about subtle changes in tone, yet (maybe) the Lite being so balanced in demeanor, every attempt met with listable sound replay. So to sum this up, yes a different DAP or cable did make subtle differences in replay, but none of the examples were really that different. Meaning there were never any sonic fires to put out, nothing ever to correct or diminish. It’s like whatever street we went down was the correct avenue!

In so many ways the Kiwi ears Orchestral Lite proved to be stead-fast in its personality, and it could simply be a question of taste if you choose to upgrade your cable, or amp.

Sony WM1A:
This was by far the biggest soundstage. Adding stage to stage, here we are maximizing the sonic attributes and arriving in a broad world of itemizations. Slightly faster becomes the bass than the Sony WM1Z, and slightly rolled-off is the treble. But all and all this style of maximum midrange was great. Often it is said, you can’t have to many mids, and this was that phenomena in a nut-shell.

Sony WM1Z:
Guessing would have you want what the Sony WM1Z does naturally to enhance the user experience of the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite. And sure enough the thought of sonic boosts inside the Sony WM1Z sound signature added realism and contrasts from what was heard with the Sony WM1A previously. Now the treble was boosted, not only boosted but spread-out into its very own personal treble “bubble” into the upper playback. This style of response was also met with the heaviest bass found. Yep here the DAP goes ahead to deliver the goods and tailor the sound by boosting the lower frequencies. But the question is how does the “Lite” respond to all this added contrast? Well, you may already know from the introduction to this section. Once again while the bass was clearer and more dramatic, and the treble was brighter, really the “Lite” went along with its daily routine and seemed very much un-phased by such tonal changes. Is this a good or bad thing? I’m putting this section near the start of the review because it simply goes to out-line what we have. A firm tone that is very even, complete and correct………..so much so that adding a different DAP or cable for that matter, didn’t ever add correction because nothing was ever wrong, nothing needed correction in the first place. So some IEMs need “fixes” to align the tone to what you want to hear, the “Lite” on the other hand was consistent and dependable, offering a style of easy going balance that went ahead and played-back all genres of music and went along with all devices.

The PAC480 cable 4.4mm:
After trying the bottom four cables (in this list) I got my curiosity-up, wondering. Wondering if adding the smooth copper adds of this cable would do the trick? And while there have been other (IEM) examples of re-alignment and found success with golden-light this cable produces, nothing that much was changed. I mean yes, I heard the PAC480 personality right off, but other that smoothing out the upper replay and adding a slight warmth down below? It was way less “active” than previously guessed. So much so that I would say there was a difference but nothing to write home about.

The Obsidian cable 4.4mm:
OK, OK I will admit that this was the single cable change-out I was most looking forward to. Why? Really the Obsidian and the Leo Plus were the two cable favorites in use with my 10BA Noble Audio Encore Universal. Why? Because they actually cleaned-up an already clean bass, adding texture and blackness of background. Both cables seemed to expand out the midrange and itemize the attributes into fully focused spectacles of instruments or vocals. This simply made what IEMs I connected to them more vivid and real sounding. And sure enough, here was the case too, only the Obsidian (somehow) was even better than the Leo Plus? More vivid owning-up a perfect example of how BAs can be affected to the better direction, by reducing (what sounds like) distortion and improving clarity?

The Leo Plus cable 4.4mm:
Really same as the Obsidian cable but to a lesser existent. Though the magic here was the actual cable feel and texture. Meaning I was almost swayed over simply by such heavenly ergonomics the Leo Plus held? Such a cable uses silver-gold and palladium to infuse sonic personalities into the IEM. And while yes, there were small differences, I’m not sure in this case if the price to performance is warranted. Meaning most of the time the Leo Plus changes everything for the better in my experience, as it’s actually one of the single best $249.00 cables out there…..but in this situation and for the added cost, it’s not really mandatory. But…..but….if you find value in the reality of a small percentage of change using the Obsidian or Leo Plus, by all means use them.

The G4 cable 4.4mm:
Once again any results were small and not of any giant consequence. I’m not saying this is a bad thing, if anything the way the Kiwi Orchestra Lite positions itself, there is never any need for concern. Meaning many times a cable and ear-tips is needed to do something……..you know to try and align the tonal response into something correct, from bad, or sometimes wrong. Here just like all the above we are met with a style of cemented-in musicality and smoothness. A form of non-wavering audiophile treats which can’t be swayed one-way or another.

Now to end this DAP/Cable change out section. Really such changes make small real differences, but maybe even less differences that ear-tip changes? And while of course there is pay-dirt to be found in cable and DAP rolling.......it was never a question of me not ever liking the IEM response. Typically an enthusiast would try to over-come some attribute which he or she thought was lacking………maybe either the treble emphasis or bass emphasis could be questioned here? And of course the “Lite” responded to such changes, but in the end 90% of the way the “Lite” was, was perfectly fine………and stubbornly (it) refused to vary from the stance it held!

The included 4 core/7N oxygen-free cable:

Ear-tips:
Nine different sets of ear-tips are included. While they are totally usable and nice, truly a choice of tips, yet I was looking for a wider ear-tip. And while these “ultra-wide” ear-tips I use could run the danger of diminishing the bass, that’s the chance I take for seeking the widest stage possible. Such enhancements affect the width, the thickness and the up-and-down placements of the perceived sound particles. Where often I will re-coil and use the included ear-tips, often there is a specific reason such tips have been included in the packaging, but here no. Meaning I tried the included tips and felt my choice of an ultra-wide silicone “donut” shaped tips was the way to go. Due to the superior shape and size of the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite.......really I had a variety of tip choices as never was a certain tip needed to get fit.

Specifications:
Frequency response: 20Hz to 20kHz
Impedance: 16Ω
Sensitivity: 112dB
Cable connector: 0.78mm 2pin

Features:

• 8 BA semi-custom design ​
• 3 way passive crossover ​
• 2 CI-22955 Knowles BA woofers ​
• 4 Customized midrange BA drivers ​
• 2 Customized BA tweeters​

Sound Design:

Bass:
There is this all-together-ness. Now when I say that.......part of it is tune, but of course the other part comes from all the drivers being BA drivers. Now that may be obvious but I need to point out that while BA/DD/EST or BA/DD hybrids are my favored way to go, all BA IEMs take second place above Planar drivers or even single full-range DDs. All BA IEMs have a sound, a character, and most all of them are really BA brothers and sisters…..doing often the same style of replay. Where the question is if they are able to get enough bass or not. There is a thickness that can be found regardless of all of them sounding in-a-way the same. And that my friends is one of the most important things that separates them. As here the bass is not a focus in reply...and not an afterthought either. The bass is an integral part of the experience, but a slight cable roll, DAP roll or tip-rolls may still be crucial for your full emersion into the sound field, regardless of what I said about evenness and correctness earlier! If you look at the graph (and disregard any sales talk) you will see there is a start in roll-off from 50Hz back to 20Hz. And that thick-ness all the way up to the start of the midrange is how I hear them. Meaning they sound like the graph posted here. While the bass is sculpted, it’s also thick in the upper region, which goes to add to this “extra” warmth. Such a warmth goes to make the “Lite” easily accessible to really any style of music! In fact (contrary to what you may guess) there is just enough push in the bass for both heavy bass music like Rock or EDM. When in-fact this was my main concern after seeing graphs (before the Orchestra Lites arrived) that this style of bass can be either hit-or-miss. As it seems to really be dependent on over-all balance and not critical of the amount of bass dBs offered.

Midrange:
These are midrange IEMs…….you can take that to the bank. What does that mean for you the listener? For starters it means vocals are super nice…….and not like Vocal specialist IEMs, but really perfectly balanced IEMs that do it all. It means that while listening to female vocals or male vocals you can start to appreciate the pinna gain. That somehow the vocals are positioned exactly right. Now while not perfect, there is almost nothing perfect, but there are perfect (individual) items in replay. Here we are given well done vocals in relation to price-point. But it’s the over-all whole package that makes the value start to shine. What I’m trying to say is it is when you find vocals more than adequate, but then switch to Orchestra music and find the midrange to be spacial and provocative........you then, and only then truly get a hand hold on what you have here. There is this nice set of reverberations that only BAs do, and that’s part of the ambiance that’s taking place. Timbre……none of this would matter if the timbre wasn’t close to correct. Yes, while there is a slight amount of BA timbre, it’s really played down, maybe it’s the tuning that plays it down………I probably would call it this slight sheen which blankets everything……there is no real way to avoid this……but there are ways to deal with it. The best way is to simply spend time with the IEMs to somehow acclimate to this rendition of color? Because really it all comes down to one single thing. Are the IEMs musical and can I listen to music with them in my ears? And the answer for me is yes, they work. They are complete and correct even and correct. Though you may read of reviewers liking them better for gaming than listening to music, and that is a blanket statement right there, I don’t game, so I can’t say.

Treble:
Rolled-off and not at all noticeable, but at the same time not noticeable for leaving anything out either! Here we are not “wowed” by the tactile snow-flake sparkles positioning and re-positioning themselves. They (the trebles) are simply there and of the utmost utilitarian-workable amount, yet not showing. Not showing or even positioning themselves for examination. Is that bad? It really it goes to reinforce the fact that the midrange (when done right) can almost do it all. If there is enough support with-in the bass balance and treble inclusions……then the midrange starts to flourish and give soul. That my friends is what these are all about. They are not for treble heads, but present for you the best midrange for the money, if that meant that the treble is allocated to second position, well then so be it. When we speak of a balance and a creativity in tune…the trebles are factored in there somewhere, it is just not in the limelight.

Music examples:
The more I do this the more I realize, that to chose a couple songs to describe how playback is, is the ultimate description of IEM character. Here I will chose the first song to truly showcase what the “Lite” does almost perfect, and the second song to make pointers as to how the “Lite” is almost complete and enjoyable…..musical really, but not perfect and why. These two songs in essence provide enough (musical) experience the same as 10 song descriptions. Why, because they are at the extreme of good playback and showing the ultimate challenge in DUB bass. All the rest of music I found almost stayed somewhat in the middle. Really the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite is a well rounded do-all style of IEM.



Ghost
“EP Hunter’s Moon”
44.1kHz - 24bit

First off the most striking thing is just how vivid the upper treble guitar introduction is. This being my (perfect) song for the “Lite” will showcase this guitar effect in being not only harmonically rich, but expanded out into the stage and showing correct timbre. This strummed guitar comes in starting at 00:00. At 00:04 the vocals come in, and while I have heard slightly more involved examples of this vocal passage, I’m not sure I ever heard $249.00 sound this good? Prior to the vocals there is a down-beat at 00:03 that has emphasis in both the bass and drums, showing an opening to the song…….kind of a sonic introduction. But that’s also the rhythm in full effect. Probably the first thing we notice is the bass is tight and secure, found in the pocket, yet fast and clean, without much reverb or baggage. There is nothing wrong with this, it’s just (with other IEMs) I have heard the bass more thick and beefed-up before. Neither way is right or wrong, but simply an alternate way to approach the number. From the 00:09 to the 00:12 mark we are gifted with the most gorgeous drum accent which is not only spread out into the stage, but holds correct tone. Actually these drum effects are profoundly BA paradise due to their quick attack and decay! The piano keys at 00:22 to 00:23 are both bright and sparkly………hence their purpose here. I could go on except really the song is repetitious in a way, reintroducing the same predictable sonic charms. Hence the description about the “Lite’s” personality holds true and un-wavering. Yet at the 01:50 mark we are gifted with splash cymbals……and as such we start to hear both a competent replay showing them for what they are, except in a non-emphasized way. Again nothing wrong here, it’s just that imaging wise and separation wise they (the cymbals) stay close to home. A lead guitar shows up at 01:58 and is both a style of climax for the song and a test of our Lite’s ability to add contrast into the song structure………and once more I will proclaim that I have heard this slightly other ways, but I’m not sure I’ve ever heard $249.00 become so complete?



KMFDM
“In Dub We Trust”
Hyena
44.1kHz - 24bit

Here we already know what the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite does well, now let’s challenge it. I want to view it in the worst way possible. Seriously why choose payback to gift it an easy task, I want to cause trouble now! In-fact I choose my mid-centric Sony WM1A and 4.4mm Obsidian cable, along with super-wide-bore tips, we are asking for trouble here. But once again the “Lite” showcases a balance and in-a-way is conservative in replay. The vocals are a tad bright (thin) and not showing the best note-weight, yet that can be forgiven, as it’s not what the song is about. The DUB bass is what we want to experience, as it is pushing this style of playback. Surly we wouldn't choose this particular song for the Lite. The truth is the DUB bass is not authoritative, the Lite is simply not heavy enough. Yet truth to be told this is not a DUB album (only this song is).The whole rest of the album is totally great with the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite! And….if you are wondering why I didn’t try and address the issues with maybe a more bass-centric DAP, or a narrower nozzle-bore set of ear-tips, it’s because they really would have not made that big of a difference anyway!


Side-by-sides:
DUNU SA6 $549.99
You could imagine this comparison coming-up! Using the same two songs as above, it was surprising how much I liked the DUNU SA6, and I forgive myself for saying the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite was a DUNU SA6 killer, because it’s not, at least with this music it’s not. The SA6 not as bright, with a pushed back pinna that simply doesn’t offer such contrasts. More flat and even almost, and I can’t believe I’m saying this about the SA6 in comparison to what is perceived as the Lite being smooth and flat? The Lite is way bigger, like a third bigger in size. But yes, the vocals are more forward with the Lite, though bass is very much even between to two. The Lite’s soundstage is slightly more involved where the SA6 is more separated and warmer to a point. Remember there are two more BAs in the Lite and you can hear them. Where the stage is more right to left with the SA6..........now there is an added element of imaging, if it’s good or not it’s up to the listener. In the end the SA6 offered-up a slightly warmer tone, which still holds (the) value in being a careful “realistic” rendition of our music. If the SA6 is worth over 2X the money I can’t say?

Fearless Audio S6 Rui $479
People may wonder why I’m using IEMs that are double the price of our “Lite”? Truth to be told this is the arena that I hold the Kiwi ears to be in. In fact before my test here today, I was guessing that possibly the S6 Rui may be put to shame? Let’s find out!

The S6 Rui into place:
Wow, somehow the Obsidian cable is making the (remembered) BA timbre issues lesser. Also I was guessing the bass and treble to be way better with the Lite, but no this playback is amazing? Hunter’s Moon is really the song for the S6 Rui! Especially how the separation is occurring? Probably the biggest difference here is the treble imaging. Yep the itemization out into the S6 Rui stage, of both treble and upper midrange….the fact that its hands down better than the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite. The only thing though is the Fearless S6 Rui is great in short term listening with all these fireworks, where for long-runs in playback the Lite finds itself way more forgiving!

More ramblings:
While seemingly reserved and critically positioned in replay……………..the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite is anything but lite.

Finding the “Lite” version to be all inclusive and vivid for what it attempts to do……........call me surprised. The beginning of the surprise started before I even heard the “Lite”.........with just seeing all those (pictures) of the BA drivers positioned behind those filters! Such details started to arouse curiosity. Graphically the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite seemed like maybe it should be called the Orchestra Plus? Yet graphs only show partial frequency response, a regular FR graph doesn’t even go so far as to show note timbre or note decays.

If the bass is not kicking, then what’s it all worth? And in-fact besides how great I viewed the FR to be......found as correct, complete and even……still I had fear about the bass.

And surprisingly those fears are still the main focus of this review. As yes, to me there is enough, but I can’t guarantee the bass will be the quality you’re looking for? Why? Because in a way it’s called unique.

Unique bass:
That's a word just a way to optimize a deficit right? You know when something is not quite complete you go ahead a call it unique. Like the polite way your Grandmother used to call stuff “different”. You remember those times, right? Different was a way of describing things that weren’t exactly correct……..so they were different. But everyone knew what she meant, she didn’t have to say anything more. With the above said, really it’s far more. The bass is unique, unique in that it’s correct but not as physical as found with modern DDs. Sure there is a reason why everyone and his brother put out a DD. And in some ways this particular IEMs represents the past.

From a simpler time when BAs ruled the world. But more than that, at times the bass sounds sub-bass focused then at times it’s more mid-bass focused. And frankly, it’s not a bad thing, but it makes you take note. Both times the actual bass itself is still behind the scenes. Part of sub-bass shows-up in a song and is introduced as hidden bass. What that means is the BA has ability to reproduce such bass artifacts, yet chooses to introduce such them at an unexpected time. This results in a surprise….and in-fact the term for this is called surprise bass or hidden bass. If you have never heard such thing, it may be one of the most desirable feature the “Lite” has, besides the midrange?

Because there are two reasons for taking note of a sound quality in playback. One is faulty replay, where stuff doesn’t sound natural, the other is a new twist on a playback you know...........inside of that twist is a surprise. The surprise is that a tone is new and different. Different because you never heard it exactly that way before, but it is acceptable due to it being correct! Part of the very reason we even want new IEMs is to experience our music library in a new and different way, a new and “other” correct way of listening to the same songs.

Should you get an all BA set if you haven’t heard one before?
Full BAs sets are their own thing. To really like them you kinda have to climb-on-board with their character. And the character they present is unique…..especially in the bass. But for the money here is 8BAs all tuned and sculpted for success. Really this style of tune does not do much wrong, and does a number of things right. Probably the main feature is that its got great mids and a sumptuous soundstage........and a lot of sound for the money.

Fastness:
BAs are the fastest way to hear your music. Due to their very methodology they can provide a new and different tone. Yet with-in this tone is a faster take-off and a faster note fall-off. BAs always have a slight metallic “tone-color” which is simply a make-up of how they produce music, there is no avoiding it. What is accomplished nowadays is better tone-color. They do this maybe a few different ways, one is that this tone color is a single greatest concern in making new BA drivers…..they know this is something they need to work on to push the new inventions of balanced armatures forward. The second way they maybe do it is through tuning, which means that the FR is distributed to such an extant as the metallic sheen is diminished before it even gets started. So you will kind-of hear the way they get it diminished by playing the treble more subdued. Often the case will be with Hybrids is they will blend the treble and almost bury the metallic tone. Here though the over-all tone is really good, it has to be because it’s out-in-the-open…..so to speak.

Imaging:
Imaging is another thing that BAs have no problem accomplishing. Simply speaking transient response is connected to imaging and normally the faster the transient response, the clearer the imaging into the stage takes place. And that in-fact is exactly what we have here. Precise and vivid imaging into the stage, though what takes the cake is the extra effect of outsider images which populate the exterior of the stage.



Conclusion:
The Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite is quite the IEM. I mean where else can you find such a thing? It’s original in that it has a total of 8BAs a side, all that gear inside, plus they are relatively big, bigger than the DUNU SA6 and way bigger than the Fearless Audio S6 Rui. My tests were surprising as I kinda thought BA timbre would be more noticeable with the S6 Rui? These tests are simply the way testing goes, where it can go either way, whatever it is it’s the reality perceived at the time of testing. Often an IEM in you ears has you emotionally downgrade that IEM is sitting on a shelf from 5 years ago. That my friends is called the new toy phenomena, and it’s real. But this in-a-way isn’t about side-by-sides because your not probably looking to spend $479.00 or $549.99. For half that price you are a lot closer than you would guess. Me (using sound memory) even thought the Lite was better than those other two pricier IEMs! But truth to be told it was almost equal, and that’s where we are in the market today in 2023. It took some time, but truly this is a watershed event in sonic offerings. It’s just that the Lite is actually, careful and conservative, well thought-out and orchestrated, if you’ll forgive the term here. The Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite is a grower, a slowly understood tune, that doesn’t come off showy or full of fireworks upon meeting. The affinity comes slowly to appreciate the subtle nuances provided, and lucky for us, those nuances show-up on their own schedule and at their own pace. It’s common for reviewers to get a second opinion on the Lite the day after the day after they first laid hands on it. If you want to get a pair I’ve done all I can to provide you with clues as to its demeanor. I have done all I can to prepare you for knowing what the build and sound are fully about. I could have done more side-by-sides and more music examples, but in the end the results would have been a variation of the same……..as there is something about the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite that is incredibly consistent? It will get its message across much the same way using different cables and different DAPs. Even ear-tips only make so much difference. So for that quality actually I adore the Lite, being stubborn to deliver the same qualities no-matter what you feed it.

$249.00
https://www.linsoul.com/products/kiwi-ears-orchestra-lite?variant=43713163002073

Linsoul website: https://www.linsoul.com/
Linsoul Aliexpress Store: https://ddaudio.aliexpress.com/store/2894006
Linsoul USA Amazon Store link: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=merchant-items&me=A267P2DT104U3C

Disclaimer:
I want to thank Kareena of Linsoul for the love and the Kiwi ears Orchestra Lite review sample.

Disclaimer:
These are one persons ideas and concepts, your results may vary.

Equipment Used:
Sony WM1Z Walkman DAP MrWalkman Firmware 3.5mm and 4.4mm
Sony WM1A Walkman DAP MrWalkman Firmware 3.5mm and 4.4mm
Sony TA-ZH1ES DAC/AMP Firmware 1.03 with adapter and 1/4 inch plug
Electra Glide Audio Reference Glide-Reference Standard "Fatboy" Power Cord
Sony Walkman Cradle BCR-NWH10
AudioQuest Carbon USB
UA3 Dongle DAC/Amplifier 3.5mm and 4.4mm
Samsung Android Smartphone 3.5mm output