Head-Fi Basshead IEM thread (lists page 1)

[vapman]

KL-REF bass are truly deep and hits very low. you can feel the punch and airness of the bass at very low frequencies. that being said, i felt that there is a slight dip in sub/mid bass.

and KL-SANKA is a 4 driver or 6 driver(switch on)

I was a little confused about the KL-SANKA, so with the switch off it's 4 driver and you can turn on or off the other 2? Thanks for the clarification

 
 
There may have been a slight dip in bass on the KL-REF but it was made up for with impact & accuracy. I didn't notice any lack of bass that bothered me. With the bass port set to maximum the KL-REF is a true basshead's dream. In fact there were some songs I was using to test bass that weren't bassy songs per se, but had LOTS of sub-20Hz activity, and the KL-REF reproduced it flawlessly. On top of that, there were songs that were extremely bassy on the
 
Also I have to note that there are songs I thought multi driver IEM could not do because conflicting sub & mid bass in the same song would turn the 2.5 into a muddy mess on the bass. On these the Sony IEMs were better as they did not get muddy, but the sub bass portion of the song was barely audible. With the KL-REF this conflicting sub+mid bass wasn't only fully clear & present, it had impact far beyond what the 2.5, taped 7550, anything else  I know of is capable.
 
 
I've owned the 2.5, and the KL-REF with bass port set to 100% destroys it. The KL-REF is the only thing that sounds like putting your head right next to my Hafler DH-500 driven stereo with subs.
 
 
Glad HBB made a video review on the FLC8. now that he said it's basshead i'm interested to try it out
 
However I've been thinking about cleaning house to make room for the KL-REF because now that I've heard it.... nothing else I have is any fun to listen to anymore. I miss the bass so bad. It's like i'm in a long distance relationship with the KL-REF.

 

[thejammonster]

How were you able to try out CIEMs? Do they make universal fit versions?

 

[vapman]

How were you able to try out CIEMs? Do they make universal fit versions?

They provided large size tips for all the CIEMs which i can only assume means they were designed for someone who uses large size tips.
I was unable to try them for this reason. I just looked at them and appreciated how nice the aesthetics were.
 
edit: i should make it clear for those reading that i only can fit small size IEM tips

 

[Hawaiibadboy]

 
They provided large size tips for all the CIEMs which i can only assume means they were designed for someone who uses large size tips.
I was unable to try them for this reason. I just looked at them and appreciated how nice the aesthetics were.

I'm in the process of getting some head time with these.

 

[thejammonster]

How were you able to try out CIEMs? Do they make universal fit versions?

They provided large size tips for all the CIEMs which i can only assume means they were designed for someone who uses large size tips.
I was unable to try them for this reason. I just looked at them and appreciated how nice the aesthetics were.

edit: i should make it clear for those reading that i only can fit small size IEM tips

Wait I'm confused, maybe it's just the wording. You posted your impressions of the sound on the REF and SANKA but then said you weren't able to try them?

Also has anyone is the US been able to get their hands on Kumitate Lab CIEMs? I was able to get the gist from Google Translate on their site but have no idea on availability or shipping to the US or elsewhere.

 

[Pacman123]

Yeah I also translated their site and it was hard to read. They give minimal details on their CIEM'S in terms of specs.

 

[jmills8]

They have been around for some time but have focused on the local Japanese market. Two years ago I read their iem build was perfect. No shop in Hong Kong sells it but I am waiting.

 

[vapman]

Wait I'm confused, maybe it's just the wording. You posted your impressions of the sound on the REF and SANKA but then said you weren't able to try them?

Also has anyone is the US been able to get their hands on Kumitate Lab CIEMs? I was able to get the gist from Google Translate on their site but have no idea on availability or shipping to the US or elsewhere.

Ah, i see where the misunderstanding was.
 
There are 4 Kumitate models I tried  - KL-REF, KL-SANKA, KL-AKARA 2014 and KL-KANON. Those they had all size tips for, and they were the same size as a ASG 2.5 or any other Aurisonics IEM. I tried all those a lot.
 
They also had a bunch of IEMs/CIEMs that were reshelled into ear-specific custom molds. Some were CIEMs originally, some were other brands, but none of them were Kumitate made, they were Kumitate modified. Those are what I thought you meant when you said CIEMs.
 
I tried the 4 KL's and didn't try the stuff like the rehoused JH16 cause I had no way to possibly fit them.
 
I don't know anything about buying them. I was going to keep my mouth shut until I knew but I couldn' help it.

 

[thejammonster]

Cool. I didn't see those models available as universal fit. Maybe they're just for demoing?

 

[vapman]

Cool. I didn't see those models available as universal fit. Maybe they're just for demoing?

Yeah, it's possible they were. I'm not exactly sure how it works! I would get them in a non-custom form because I'm not sure what added benefit there would be. they were ridiculously comfy and sounded great. Just a slight bit smaller than I remember the aurisonics being.
 
Still want those kickers dangit. Anyone got the kickers AND the arrow 5tx?

 

[thejammonster]

@Luckbad has both

 

[vapman]

I remember his review of the Kicker saying that amping didn't gain you a whole lot, but I also think he hasn't owned the 5TX for a while.
 
I see the ASG 2.5 selling for $700 at a bunch of stores still and I'm just wondering who is buying them at that price. I thought they were okay at the price I paid (around 360 I think) but I would have been really disappointed if I had paid full price for them.
 
The KL REF I would have no qualms putting down $1k for that. The biggest issue is coming to terms with spending that much on headphones, but I already know they decimate the 2.5;s.

 

[Luckbad]

The Kicker does benefit from amping, it just doesn't need an amp to hit pretty hard.

It won't scale as far as the larger driver Aurisonics or Sony earphones with an amp and bass boost, but it will scale.

 

[vapman]

The Kicker does benefit from amping, it just doesn't need an amp to hit pretty hard.

It won't scale as far as the larger driver Aurisonics or Sony earphones with an amp and bass boost, but it will scale.

Do you mean less impact, less low end extension or both?
 
I can deal with slightly lower bass amounts than the 2.5 but is it really less bass than the XB90EX?
 
I just hope you don't have to turn them up like the 2.5's to get satisfying bass impact. if you get good bass at lower volumes i'm happy.

 

[Luckbad]

 
Do you mean less impact, less low end extension or both?
 
I can deal with slightly lower bass amounts than the 2.5 but is it really less bass than the XB90EX?
 
I just hope you don't have to turn them up like the 2.5's to get satisfying bass impact. if you get good bass at lower volumes i'm happy.

 
You get good bass at lower volumes and unamplified. The Sony can hit harder if you turn the volume way up, amp it, and boost it.
 
If you want basshead earphones that can hit harder even at lower volumes, these are the best I've come across.