[ayao]

Whew! Just ordered the 9.99 ZSR; time to hibernate until the next KZ model gets an introductory sale on GB (did the same with the 9.99 ZS5v1 and 5.99 ES3)

 

[Tyler Durden]

Where are the 9.99 ZSRs available from?

GearBest price is £12.79 when I look.

 

[ayao]

Where are the 9.99 ZSRs available from?

GearBest price is £12.79 when I look.

GearBest had a promo (15th - 21st Jan) where the first 20 units were sold for $9.99 (each day from 09:00 UTC). They sell out in seconds (less than 7 seconds yesterday)~

 

[hakuzen]

IMO, zs5 v1 have a messy design. 4 drivers in parallel, no crossover, ridiculous low impedance as result, 2 drivers kind of buried.. they distort easily when using limited current sources. but they sound pretty nice for the price; in reality, you get a good sounding 2 drivers hybrid iem, current hungry.
IMO, using crossover is needed, because you can get better quality in specialized drivers which have shorter frequency range, than full range drivers, for the same price, usually; and because you get reasonable total impedance.
so IMO, zs6 and zs5 v2 are better designed, and sounds better.. except for the excessive treble peaks. it's a pity kz didn't tune them appropriately. maybe some dampeners for the BAs would had done the job. anyway, by using a simple eq, impedance adapter, or by any of the mods explained in this thread, you get better sounding overall iem than zs5 v1.

guess we can't ask for better designed iems, better tuning, better QC, for the price they are selling. their quality-price rate is the best in their segment, imo. we'd pay more, if they'd decide to invest a bit more in tuning their BAs (more complex crossovers, dampeners...), other than easily misplaced foam pieces and irregular glued vents for the dynamic drivers (zs3, zst, es3). waiting for zsr, to check what have they done to tame the peaks of their double BA..

 

[CoiL]

It's amazing for me to hear people claim that the ZS5 v1 is better and less harsh than the ZS6. Absolutely amazing, i couldn't disagree more.

It`s amazing to hear opposite for me - and for reason - most ZS6 users USE FOAMS to tame treble. ZS5v1 is totally ok with highs even with silicone tips (I`m sensitive to highs btw).
Ok, ppl use foams... but ppl who don`t? They probably will hear ZS6 harsh. Now add ZS5v1 requirements into mix (low output impedance, amping, wide bore tips etc.) and You get that opinion You mentioned

Small sample size but I've heard two ZS6's and they were the same. My ZS5s were consistent too. I highly doubt treble response is the "issue", but instead signature preference and personal tolerances.

+1 and add some other source gear/amping/music etc. differences.

 

[nkramer]

That was my initial thought too. Why not start simple, a dynamic driver for the bass and lower midrange and a BA for the rest. But that would require a basic crossover at the least to get decent results. Look at all the $30 and under 1DD + 1BA designs out there. Nobody is trumpeting about the sound of any of them. That's not to say that some don't sound decent. Its just that what seems like a simple no brainer solution perhaps isn't.

I've purchased a number of the 1 + 1 design IEMs and I think a number sound good but nothing sounds really good let alone great. I'm increasingly being surprised by > $50 single driver solutions that sound more musical than these multi driver designs. Which seems counter intuitive to me. There's hardly any single driver home stereo speaker system. Even my beloved ribbon speakers have a 10" dynamic driver for 250 Hz and below. And most good dynamic driver speakers have 3 drivers to cover the spectrum.

I know what you mean. I also have westone 1 & etymotic er6i (both are single BA). er6i's my favorite (just wish they had a bottom end like a dynamic)

There's just something about BA's that I like so much.

 

[AKMW44]

Discontinued.

Oh well, thanks for replying

 

[Viber]

It`s amazing to hear opposite for me - and for reason - most ZS6 users USE FOAMS to tame treble. ZS5v1 is totally ok with highs even with silicone tips (I`m sensitive to highs btw).
Ok, ppl use foams... but ppl who don`t? They probably will hear ZS6 harsh. Now add ZS5v1 requirements into mix (low output impedance, amping, wide bore tips etc.) and You get that opinion You mentioned

The ZS6 is less harsh and sounds better with any source or type of tip that I've tried - that includes ZS6 with stock tips btw.

The ZS5 sounds and looks from the inside like the prototype of the ZS6.

I still think that the ZS5 are amazing for their price and modding flexibility though.

 

[Dark Helmet]

I find that the treble on ZS6, with the ALO Rx to be much more tame and tolerable, however they still sound a bit unnatural and step forward a bit too much on certain tracks.

 

[ivo001]

As a double flange, I find the twinbaldes CP220 pretty long already. I don't think twinblades are really worth the price as the idea that it will twist inside your ear is pretty normal for a tri or bi flange with deep insertion (I will have to try them tomorrow as it's been CP100 day).

The CP100 is something that can solve a problem that I had with single flange fit. Less soundstage perhaps compared to my experience with CP220 M2. Got a nice seal but I'm wondering if sibilance isn't worse than with the KZ stocks which have a wider bore. Will go back to the twinblades tomorrow...

Have you had the chance to compare CP100 to CP220 yet? I got the CP100 myself on KZ ZS5 now and they go in very deep and I like them so far. I don't have any double/triple flange tips, so wonder if i'm missing out on something.

 

[Toastybob]

My ZSR arrived. Unfortunately, some combination of the angle, diameter, and length of the sound tube makes them uncomfortable and eventually painful if worn for more than a short time. This occurs with the small ZS3 tips and even the small KZ whirlwind tips pushed all the way down on the nozzle, which barely increase the diameter. In contrast, the ZS3 fits me perfectly.

 

[Toastybob]

I've had the same issue with a ZS5 nozzle which came off and I fixed it with cyanoacrylate glue. I think that now it sounds exactly like before.

Just around the circle where the black nozzle attached to the silver or blue housing?
I'm guessing it wouldn't help me, since it sounds like one or both of the BAs are damaged and they are night in the end of the nozzle.

 

[CoiL]

The ZS6 is less harsh and sounds better with any source or type of tip that I've tried - that includes ZS6 with stock tips btw.

That`s the thing - it`s Your subjective opinion and preference with Your gear and hearing/sound perception - You can`t generalize this opinion to everybody
I personally can`t claim that ZS5v1 is less harsh in highs due to different revisions of ZS5 and different gear/music ppl use against ZS6 but I get more impressions by users thinking ZS6 is overly sharp (and need foam tips) than with ZS5v1. With ZS5v2 it`s different story and I still think some ZS5 users mix up v2 and v1 due to bad look at nozzle BAs and not willing to remove grills to be 100% sure.
With my gear though, I can`t say ZS5v1 is anywhere near harsh! ZST colorful (the good batch) and **** 4in1 sound noticeably more harsh to me (latter being harshest)... and once again, I`m quite sensitive to treble, especially around 6.2-7.5kHz. And I also don`t think my gear is overly warm/soft sounding - I have modified it a lot and now my sources are neutral-sided with slight warm tilt (in stock they were quite warmish though).
ZSTc treble spike I got almost eliminated with Auvio red core smallest tips. **** 4in1 issue got a lot better using high-impedance cable + spiral dot tips.
With latter mentioned "mods" I think they line up as follows (harshest treble to least treble harshness): ZSTc > 4in1 > ZS5v1.
This doesn`t mean my sound preference order though, which is as follows (best to not so good):
ZS5v1 > ZSTc > 4in1. Why? Because 4in1 sounds too dry/dull and lifeless with lot of music I listen.
ZSTc has slight W-shape signature and it`s more pleasant to listen with lot music. But ZS5v1 kind of sits between them with largest immersive soundstage which I totally crave for ;P

But this is JMSHO , others may vary

 

[charlescc2]

What upgrade cables have you guys tried with the ZSRs and how is it working out fit wise? Wondering how it fits with the plastic ends of the silver braided cable (I have them in my ZS6s as I've been afraid to mess with cutting) and how the straight plugs from other upgrade cables work out (I see the cable it comes with has angled plugs).

 

[Makahl]

With my gear though, I can`t say ZS5v1 is anywhere near harsh! ZST colorful (the good batch) and **** 4in1 sound noticeably more harsh to me (latter being harshest)... and once again,

Wait... I'm not aware of this. Is there some bad batch of ZST? If yes, what's the change coming from a "good batch"?

I've read about ZS3 the last batch from GearBest has an impressive number of drivers failing but never heard anything about ZST.