The Zeus predates my move over to flagship iems, somebody post a beauty shot for me and others who know nothing about the Zeus, please.
These were mine from back in the day. Ah... the good times.
As promised, below are my first impressions of the Zeus-XR after about a day of listen, as well as a rather spicy tale of what preceded my acquisition of this exceptional monitor.
The Spicy Tale
As with all CIEMs companies, the wait for a pair can (and probably will) be excruciating. This one, however, was a tad more frustrating than usual. I ordered my Zeus-XR during CanJam Singapore on the 12th of March 2017. When making the order, I had trouble picking a faceplate material I was happy with, until Jack offered me an exclusive Fire Burl faceplate that had so far been reserved for Korean retailers (you can see this specific faceplate on both EE's, as well as GSoundLab's Instagram pages). I was immediately taken by the look, and I accepted the offer. My wallet bit the bullet and I never looked back.
Cut to about eight weeks later, I contacted EE about the ETA of my Zeus-XR's. To my surprise (and subsequent frustration) DJ of Empire replied, saying my pair never even entered production because they ran out of this special Fire Burl. He then asked me to pick another option off of the Empire website, and then told me that my Zeus-XR would be rushed as soon as I made my decision. The frustration only grew as minutes later, both Empire and Music Sanctuary (the dealer I ordered my Zeus-XR from) posted pictures of a customer's Zeus-XR with the Fire Burl faceplate that I wanted. At the end of the day, it was merely bad timing and jealousy, but I'd be lying if I said my wounds weren't salty.
I spent the next couple of days looking for a custom material online that would resemble this Fire Burl or serve as a suitable substitute, only to find out that EE no longer accept custom materials. As DJ informed me, many of the materials that the customers sent over caused their cutting knives to break. Finally, I picked the Fallout swirl off of the web designer as I was a fan of its colours, and placed the order. About two-and-a-half weeks later, Calvin of Music Sanctuary informed me that my Zeus-XR had arrived, and while I was out of town, I had a friend collect it for me the day after. And, upon receiving the IEMs and putting them in my ears, I'll be honest, what I saw and heard almost made me entirely forget all the ruckus that came before it:
Fit and Build Quality
This is not my first Empire monitor (that being my Athena-ADEL), and so EE made the Zeus-XR based on my impressions stored on their file. The result is an IEM that, surprisingly (considering its driver count), is smaller, more flush, and more low profile than my Athena-ADEL. Fit is also slightly better than that of my Athena-ADEL, and that IEM is already the best fitting custom I have. It's secure, snug to the point where I cannot ever get an air gap to form when I flex my ears or chew, but it's also the most comfortable and least pressure-inducing of all of my IEMs. Until I'm fortunate enough to try out other CIEM brands, I can comfortable say that, so far, EE is king when it comes to fit and finish; two sure-fire hits in a row, colour me amazed.
The build quality is also absolutely top-notch. I called the Athena-ADEL the best built CIEM in my collection, and today, it shares its throne with my Zeus-XR. Free of bubbles or sharp edges, and adorned with two of the most beautiful faceplates I've ever had the pleasure of seeing, I'm honestly (strangely) somewhat glad that they ran out of Fire Burl now. Again, king.
Sound
Wow. What else can I say?
The Zeus-XR to me, is comprised of two of the most resolving, clear, vivid, life-like, and musical IEMs I have ever heard. The sheer amount of detail I am hearing from these monitors is outstanding. What struck me first is how absolutely linear the signature is. As I listen to a song and the myriad of frequencies weaved into it, from the bass, to the mids, and into the treble, I didn't sense any roll-off or recession throughout the entire spectrum. This is particularly noticeable with sounds that are typically in the background in the mix (i.e. echoes/reverb, backing instruments, decay in individual instruments). I'm not even talking about merely volume, but energy and dynamism as well. It feels like every single compartment (whether it be sub-bass, mid-bass, lower mids, mids, etc.) has at least one driver pushing it forward, meaning every individual instrument has body and power, and is never missing to the ear. I'm used to listening to a song multiple times and focusing on a different instrument with each repetition, but I don't have to with the XR, because every single instrument is served to me on a crystal-clear silver platter.
Starting from the bass, both R and XIV settings aren't for bassheads and that's clear at first listen. However, how it's tuned is beautifully natural, realistic, and effortlessly layered. In the XIV setting especially, where the bass is more prominent, I found no difficulty whatsoever in differentiating between the kick drum and the bass guitar in songs I use to test bass layering. Punch is not the most impactful or fun I've ever heard (it is not a dynamic driver after all), but speed is great, and decay is impressively realistic. Mid-bass is also where I find linearity and decay to be fantastic. A lot of the tracks I first played through the XR were drum-focused, ranging from Animals as Leaders (prog-rock) to Cleverson Silva (jazz), and the toms in every single track have some of the best decay I've ever heard from an IEM, truly an eye-opener even after listening to these tracks so many times during drum practice these past few weeks.
The mids on both XIV and R configurations are beautifully transparent, clear, and precise. To my surprise, it isn't as airy or sparkly as the demo unit I tried, but that could be attributed to either the SpinFit tips the demo unit had, or the cable currently attached to my pair, which is the Han Sound Audio Zen. @flinkenick's review of the Zen suggested it's a warm and thick sounding cable, which may explain the discrepancy. I'll definitely cable roll in the near future and note any differences that come about. As with the rest of the IEM's signature, it brilliantly balances clarity and naturalness; technical prowess and musicality. I've criticised other IEMs in the past for sacrificing one for the other, but the XR may be one of the best marriages of the two that I have ever had the pleasure of hearing. The midrange is also where I find the dynamics to be best in the IEM, and where the background is the blackest as well. As mentioned previously, this allows micro-details like reverb, decay, background instruments, etc., to really take a step into the spotlight, enriching the experience and imprinting the impression of TOTL clarity and resolution.
The treble is also a definite highlight of the IEM. Both R and XIV configurations manage to portray brilliant clarity, air, and detail retrieval without ever becoming strident or sibilant. This is a positive difference between my unit and the demo; the demo can become harsh with poorly mastered tracks. The treble is linear with the R, and slightly behind the mids in the XIV, making the former more technical, and the latter more fun and musical. The upper mids and the treble also help bolster pinpoint accurate imaging and a beautifully natural soundstage. I'd say the soundstage is not as open as that of my Athena-ADEL, but the XR crushes my Athena-ADEL in image placement, instrument separation, and L/R separation as well. Like I mentioned previously, every instrument in the song is infused with energy, dynamism, and punch, essentially giving it a life of its own in the composition.
End Words
In conclusion, the Empire Ears Zeus-XR, even with only a day to its name in my IEM collection, is in the running to be king above them all. It is perfectly built, stunningly gorgeous, endlessly enjoyable, technically marvellous, and it makes any piece of music I play through it sound... just, right. I look forward to further familiarising myself with it in the coming days, and sharing my continuously-developing thoughts with everyone here. If you have any questions, please ask away. In the meantime, I'll be sitting here with these gems in my ear
