[CocaCola15]

Extremely insightful! Thanks for your help! I think I am going with the CA 1+. If it sounds that good, then price to performance is great, indeed.

I prefer foam tips as well, at least, with every iem I had. They just to work better for me. So if I get some, in the box, that's a plus.

Thanks!

I hope you will be happy with them. I just find them to be true road warriors, built like a tank, and excellent SQ. Check the online reviews of the M1+, too. Not just my POV. Not a fashion plate TW phone, but I could care less. And as I said, the foam tips are durable and Amazon.com has them if you need extras. I bought 10 pair, cost $20. They are only medium and small, which is odd. But both actually work for me (I bought medium from Amazon).

 

[jant71]

So, I got my pair of CCA CC1 TWS today. I think they are fine for the $21 I paid for them. Case is a decent size but pretty bland and a little plasticky. Don't like the USB C on the bottom or the LED being inside so it has to be open to see the battery gauge which is red/greed one light and not a four quarter dots type. Seem to act a little funny when inserting into the case at times. Twice so far the R side was blue in the case and not sure if you can't touch them cause they will turn on or what when docked. Touch control can be accidentally pressed but you can put them in, take out and adjust fit without ever setting it off.

Sound is pretty good but I think they deserve some run in to see what the dynamic ends up as. Soft tips(like the stock pairs) will give the treble some peakiness but the treble is fine if you have a good seal. Some good air and stage with decent extension to the ends. Detail is okay and would be nice if the dynamic shows more after some run in. Nice if a bit better but will never be amazing.

Compared to my other recent budget pair, the JVC HA-A8T, they are not as good. JVC are list price of $40 but should be $30 real soon so a similar price range to the $29 CC1. You get a better looking case that has sturdier plastic and the buds are easier to take out. You have four blinking dots to gauge the charging with the lid closed. The JVC have buttons and do control volume which the CC1 leave out. Neither has ambient but the JVC are Earpod like so you can hear through them if you pause. This also gives them an airy sound. Bass quality is nice on the JVC and doubt the CC1 will ever get that good. Both are SBC only but the JVC seems to be good on detail and resolution w/o aptX. Also the battery life at 6 hours vs 4 wins for the JVC. The CC1 are a little lighter and have no stem on them so a win there. The CC1 have more volume headroom and seem easy to drive using low 80's on the volume for me while the JVC approach 130 on the volume. CC1 will win for sealing out noise of course. CC1 wins for USB C. Both earphones have Asian accents but the CC1 is worse. Connected is announced like Connect-ade just like Gatorade.

I jumped on board for the $21 but even after quite a few KZ/CCA TWS models it seems they still have catching up to do even vs. budget stuff. They would make a nice gift for the normals but not so much for a discriminating Head-fier.

 

[SemiAudiophile]

Both earphones have Asian accents but the CC1 is worse. Connected is announced like Connect-ade just like Gatorade.

Exactly

I find the bass to be pretty adequate, engaging and punchy with foam tips. Not the best definition or quality but pretty nice for budget pair. Probably it's best quality compared to it's mids and treble.

 

[Stefanmz7]

Hey,so I have the Xiaomi Airdots-which have 7.2mm drivers and a DSP(according to the specs at least) I don't know about the impedance. Now I found those earbuds which I really like but according to their specs they have 6mm drivers and no mention of DSP. https://www.emag.bg/slushalki-phili...&X-Section=search&X-MB=0&X-Search-Action=view
https://www.philips.com.sg/c-p/TAT2205WT_00/2000-series-in-ear-true-wireless-headphones
so I was wondering are they gonna sound better just because they are phillips and they are more expensive(so you know better quality materials and drivers) or is it just smaller drivers worse sound? Which ones do you think will sound better Airdots which are cheaper but the specs are better on paper or the Phillips? which are more expensive with lower specs on paper?

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Hey,so I have the Xiaomi Airdots-which have 7.2mm drivers and a DSP(according to the specs at least) I don't know about the impedance. Now I found those earbuds which I really like but according to their specs they have 6mm drivers and no mention of DSP. https://www.emag.bg/slushalki-phili...&X-Section=search&X-MB=0&X-Search-Action=view
https://www.philips.com.sg/c-p/TAT2205WT_00/2000-series-in-ear-true-wireless-headphones
so I was wondering are they gonna sound better just because they are phillips and they are more expensive(so you know better quality materials and drivers) or is it just smaller drivers worse sound? Which ones do you think will sound better Airdots which are cheaper but the specs are better on paper or the Phillips? which are more expensive with lower specs on paper?

my vote for KZ SKS ($29 on Aliexpress). This wireless TWS is very nicely tuned, simply can't get wrong. It also uses latest bluetooh 5.2 chips from Qualcomm.

 

[profusion]

How is the SKS bass compared to dq6?

PS
Do you by chance have apple watch if yes how is the connectivity (without phone) for running for example?
I need some cheap TWS for running and movies watching with TV, i got Tronsmart Ace but they have poor SQ and isolation since they are buds and falling from years constantly

 

[Caipirina]

This is a bit 'Blast from the Past' material, but I need help with my TRN BT20S which I just dug up again ... I recall I did not have much love for them as they came with a mean hiss with the TRN iems I had bought them with ... and I vaguely recall that I have pairing issues back then as well, but somehow got them to work ... but no such luck today ... I googled, I found that reset guide on youtube .. I am doing all the steps, but it appears that the 2 sides are not properly connecting ... but they are somehow tied to each other ... after reset and then turning on again, only the left side blinks, indicating pairing willing ness (voice prompts come ONLY from the right though) and in the BT menu of phone I only see TRN L (not just TRN) and when I connect that, then I get music ONLY from the right bud! I have been doing that reset, unpairing, trying other sources dance several times now ... was there another special trick?

 

[AmericanSpirit]

How is the SKS bass compared to dq6?

I prefer SKS's bass over DQ6's XUN driver, good sense of punch and thorough resonance, more tactile and transient is more elastic. The "Oomph" experience is very unique on SKS.
And the good part is that although being KZ IEM, SKS isn't traditional KZ house tuning, more matured and laid-back, which makes KZ's BA timbre more subtle.
They used 30019 driver (not a typical 30095), which I recall it's the tweeter driver KZ used for ZAX.

Not a magically super high-tech layered bass like of those LCP / Pure-beryllium, still a good chunk of punch like those of bery-coated one.
I enjoy this over CCA CSN, and maybe due to its bass resonance, I enjoy it over KBEar Lark and all KZ IEMs simply due to the matured tuning. Hope I could pull an FR chart but I can't find any.

Good thing is that because it's simple 1BA+1DD, the linear phasing of those multi-BAs does not kick SKS's back too much, I found SKS performs a very smooth transition from frequency to frequency. Not a technical monster, but pretty much forgivable from its welcoming tuning.

SKS with Bass-boost type thin-skinned black ear tip(and wide bore), on AptX, makes rock, acoustics, pops, EDM, jazz, fusion, classical and neo-classical a very surprisingly engaging experience, mainly due to wide sound stage and thorough resonance, one of surprise from a company like KZ to make contrabass tonality a heart-thumping one.

It definitely a bass-heavy one, I can recall this wide-sound stage bass presentation to THX-certified movie theatre, while DQ6 is more of a live house type bass presentation.

 

[tiagopinto]

Yeah, I have Amazon Music (3mo trial) and HD is bundled in. If you're going for it just for the purposes of listening to albums (meaning you're not planning on using a ton of discovery features) it's honestly a no-brainer because it's only $7.99/mo so well cheaper than the rest. Their Ultra HD is like 3100kbps or something silly like that and the regular HD is somewhere in the 800s so no matter what you're doing good.

The only major downside to Amazon, to me, is that you can't transfer playlists from other services to them. That's a big problem because I tend to pick my favorites on Spotify/Tidal/etc and then export them via Soundiiz to each other, so not having ANY of my playlists really sucks.

Wow, didn’t know this existed. I mean, Soundiiz! Is it free? Reliable? Thanks.

Edit: just looked into it, it’s paid, at least for what I wanted it to do. As much as I respect they have to profit from their developing efforts, and I very much do, I am not willing to get another monthly cost, as small as it may be. When all these subscriptions add up, it’s crazy.

 

[profusion]

I prefer SKS's bass over DQ6's XUN driver, good sense of punch and resonance, more tactile and transient is more elastic. The "Oomph" experience is very unique on SKS.
Not a magically super high-tech layered bass like of those LCP / Pure-beryllium, still a good chunk of punch like those of bery-coated one.

Thanks i added more questions editin the post but probably you missed them

 

[Caipirina]

my vote for KZ SKS ($29 on Aliexpress). This wireless TWS is very nicely tuned, simply can't get wrong. It also uses latest bluetooh 5.2 chips from Qualcomm.

Has anyone compared the SKS with the old T1 which are also 1BA 1DD (and no longer available). I still enjoy their sound sig quite some.

 

[AmericanSpirit]

How is the SKS bass compared to dq6?

PS
Do you by chance have apple watch if yes how is the connectivity (without phone) for running for example?
I need some cheap TWS for running and movies watching with TV, i got Tronsmart Ace but they have poor SQ and isolation since they are buds and falling from years constantly

I didn't like the apple watch's battery life and got myself one of Huawei's smartwatch (surprisingly the app is still working on US AppStore!)
Ah but I usually run with phones on my hand, so I can't answer that smartwatch hooked TWS impression

 

[AmericanSpirit]

Has anyone compared the SKS with the old T1 which are also 1BA 1DD (and no longer available). I still enjoy their sound sig quite some.

I have their old S1D, battery life and SQ both got improved, not as V-shape as S1D.

 

[hifi80sman]

Hi All,

First and foremost, thanks to all for all of the informative posts. I never post here as I don't have much in the way of valued input generally, so I typical just read. That being said, I thought I would give my thoughts on the B&W PI5s that I bought and received today. I purchased these in hopes of an improved music listening experience as my number one goal, but possibly for use in my home office for conference calls, etc. I use Air Pods Pro for that currently or an external BT speaker. Below is a summary of my initial tests:

Media player used - iPhone 12 Pro (I used this for neutrality across the headphones)
Earbuds used - Air Pods Pro, B&W PI5, B&O E8 v1, B&W PI3 (will explain non TWS below)
Songs used - No Light No Light-Florence and the Machine, Holloway Blvd-Pogues, Judith-Perfect Circle, Neon Moon-Brooks and Dunn, Flight Response-Days of the New

I will be honest, after listening to the first two songs across the three TWS sets, I put the Airpods and E8s away as there was really no comparison in the range and fullness with the PI5s. I then decided to break out the PI3s as a comparison set. The PI5s are actually very comparable in range and fullness to the PI3s to my surprise. I don't have the ear sensitivity as some of the audiophiles here, but I am quite impressed with the audio performance of these.

Additional functionality thoughts
The ANC and ambient pass through are decent, but the Air Pods win this front so far. The PI5 case is very portable and has both wired/wireless charging ability, which works well. I have had no issues pairing the PI5s with my phone or my Sony MP so far. The case has a small button used for pairing new devices which is a bit hard to press if you have big fingers, but it works ok for me. In addition to sound quality, a big must for me was fit. The E8s left a bad taste in my mouth as they would pop out and are a bit clunky sitting in my ears. So far, the PI5s are very comfortable in my ears and do not feel like they are going to fall out every time I turn my head fast. They come with S/M/L tips, with the Large fitting me best and seating nicely. I will try and update as I use them more as some folks have had BT sync/drop issues with the higher end PI7s, but I have not as yet. I actually let the phone on my patio table and walked 20-25 feet away around the side of my house and no drops. Shout if you have any questions or want me to try something out.

A little late to the party, but thanks for the feedback. I just ordered a pair today for order pick up at Best Buy, so we'll see! I had the PI3 when it was on sale at Costco and thought it sounded great, however, the design was a bit fussy with fit, so I ended up returning it. If the PI5 sound similar, I'll be a happy camper.

The PI7 look compelling, however, $399 for a pair of TWS is a little much, especially since I stream Apple Music from my iPhone and iPad Pro most of the time (or at the gym).

 

[assassin10000]

This is a bit 'Blast from the Past' material, but I need help with my TRN BT20S which I just dug up again ... I recall I did not have much love for them as they came with a mean hiss with the TRN iems I had bought them with ... and I vaguely recall that I have pairing issues back then as well, but somehow got them to work ... but no such luck today ... I googled, I found that reset guide on youtube .. I am doing all the steps, but it appears that the 2 sides are not properly connecting ... but they are somehow tied to each other ... after reset and then turning on again, only the left side blinks, indicating pairing willing ness (voice prompts come ONLY from the right though) and in the BT menu of phone I only see TRN L (not just TRN) and when I connect that, then I get music ONLY from the right bud! I have been doing that reset, unpairing, trying other sources dance several times now ... was there another special trick?

With them off, hold both power buttons for 10-20 seconds. However long it takes for them to do 2 sets of descending tones.

Then power them on for 3-5 seconds to self pairing mode. Both should blink blue fast, then press one button for a second. Once they pair one side will go dark and the other will blink red/blue.

Now pair to your device.