[Adide]

@hakuzen great job, keep it up.
If you'll ever have the chance try this one, I expect it to have a fairly low impedance according to specs (6N OCC). Ergonomics are great, very soft and silky. It also has a chin slider. Ear guides are metal wire but I don't mind, I always use them and never remove.
Just got it recently so I don't know if it will turn green or not. I started to use dessicant in my cases recently as some suggested, I hope it will alleviate the problem.

6N Thin HIFI Earphone Cable for KZ zs10 ZS5 ZS6 UE18 JH13 W4r ZSE DIY Replacement 1.2m Audio Cable earphones Silver plated cable
http://s.aliexpress.com/3iQ3iQj2?fromSns=Copy to clipboard

 

[Thumpsy]

My zs10's arrived. They make a crinkling sound when I put them in my ears. Is that the dreaded driver flex I'm experiencing?

They sound alright but I prefer the zs6 so far.

 

[hakuzen]

I don't think it is such an imbalance. For a nomial impedance of 32 ohms and one volt, the imbalance between left and right channels comes out to be 0.054dB which is below the threshold of
audibility. Under exteremly careful conditions, we can differentiate 0.5 dB.

you are right.
my calculations say 0.10dB, though. and 0.27dB @11kHz, where zs10 impedance can go down to 11ohms. anyway, lower than those audible 0.5dB.

@hakuzen great job, keep it up.
If you'll ever have the chance try this one, I expect it to have a fairly low impedance according to specs (6N OCC). Ergonomics are great, very soft and silky. It also has a chin slider. Ear guides are metal wire but I don't mind, I always use them and never remove.
Just got it recently so I don't know if it will turn green or not. I started to use dessicant in my cases recently as some suggested, I hope it will alleviate the problem.

6N Thin HIFI Earphone Cable for KZ zs10 ZS5 ZS6 UE18 JH13 W4r ZSE DIY Replacement 1.2m Audio Cable earphones Silver plated cable

you can check measurements of orange and grey versions of that cable in my list. not a conductivity upgrade, but nice looking and comfort. it will turn green soon (coat isn't thick); i don't mind that, specially because it pairs well with green zs6.

 

[Slater]

My zs10's arrived. They make a crinkling sound when I put them in my ears. Is that the dreaded driver flex I'm experiencing?

Yes

 

[lmfboy01]

This is my goto at the moment, while I wait for ZS10 and ZSR...

 

[phower]

you are right.
my calculations say 0.10dB, though. and 0.27dB @11kHz, where zs10 impedance can go down to 11ohms. anyway, lower than those audible 0.5dB.


you can check measurements of orange and grey versions of that cable in my list. not a conductivity upgrade, but nice looking and comfort. it will turn green soon (coat isn't thick); i don't mind that, specially because it pairs well with green zs6.

Yes. For 11 ohms, the difference is 0.14dB. Still, this is below the threshold of audibility and we shouldn't fuss about cables. The only time cables matter is for loudspeakers whose impedance could drop to 2 ohms.

 

[Adide]

you can check measurements of orange and grey versions of that cable in my list. not worthy, except of aesthetics.

Almost sure it's not the same. Different plugs and y splitter. Mine also come in only one color.

 

[hakuzen]

Yes. For 11 ohms, the difference is 0.14dB. Still, this is below the threshold of audibility and we shouldn't fuss about cables. The only time cables matter is for loudspeakers whose impedance could drop to 2 ohms.

.. and zs5 v1, 4.8 ohms.
the only reason of measuring resistance of cables is because i found that my best cables do have better conductivity than the others. it's a signal of used materials, total section, and quality of the contacts and solders; although this doesn't make big impact on audio, it's a matter of perfectionism.

 

[snip3r77]

KZ ZS10 - MEASUREMENTS AND COMPARISONS: FREQUENCY RESPONSES AND IMPEDANCE

DISCLAIMER: All measurements by a friend of mine - using my iems. He lives only 50 m upstream along our joint gin & tonic pipeline. The following will be a shaken (not stirred) mix of his and my ideas and comments.

1. FREQUENCY RESPONSES
1.1. KZ ZS10
Observation: Strong V-shape. Slight mismatch of L and R channels above 2K.

Interpretation: V-shape explains the recessed mids. Whether the channel mismatch above 2K is a measuring artefact or reflects a manufacturing inconsistency beats me (but is sonically not significant).

1.2. COMPARISON ZS5 v1, ZSR, ZS10:
Observation: All three have a V-shape (or W-shape) with a trough in the midrange at around 700 - 900 K . All three curves climb to peaks in the lower treble 2 - 3 K region. The ZS10 has the most emphasized bass and treble peak of the three and therefore the most pronounced V.

ZS5 v1. and ZS10 have rather similar FR curves whereas the ZSR's curve shows less emphasized lower treble.

Interpretation: The strongly V-shaped FR curve of the ZS10 produced by 5 (!) drivers and the similarity to the ZS5 explains why owners of the other KZ multidrivers and/or audiophiles are not thrilled by the ZS10. The ZSR appears strongest in the mid and upper treble.

2. IMPEDANCE ZS5 v1, ZSR, ZS10
Observation: The impedance profiles of the ZS10 and ZSR are rather similar and contrasting to the ZS5's.

Interpretation: ZS10 is very well behaved for a multi-BA: essentially flat at ~33 ohms (the mfr spec says 32, that's probably right, depending on the phones the rig can be up to 2 or 3 out) to ~3k, then dropping off through the treble. Compared with the ZS5 (crazy low) and even the ZSR this is pretty good. This means bass vs midrange of the ZS10 will not be expected to change in level with the output impedance of the amplifier used. It might of course change in level or (more likely) quality because of the quality of the amp or DAC, but that's a different issue. Increased output impedance of the source should tame treble in the ZS10 and ZSR, and slightly boost treble in the ZS5. My friend is generally surprised by the smooth impedance curve; he had expected a bumpier ride from the 4 BA drivers.

3. CONCLUDING REMARKS
The FR response curves show why people who like vocals will likely prefer the ZSR over the other two models. The curves also confirm my earlier ZS10 impressions posted in this thread. People who liked the ZS5 v1 will probably like the ZS10 for the same reasons. The ZS10 has better detail so that ZS5 fans would likely view them as an improvement. (Apart from its upper treble peak) my friend and I still prefer the ZSR.

I can imagine how sharp is it as compared to the zs5.

Why there is a dip at the FR for zxr?

 

[snip3r77]

This is a testament that tin plated copper can often be just as good (if not better) than silver plated copper.

Plus so many "silver upgrade cables" are in reality simply tin plated copper, it's not even funny.

@hakuzen, do you mind sharing a link to the last 2 cables?

Do you prefer good copper or silver ?

 

[Slater]

Do you prefer good copper or silver ?

Well, I have no pure silver cables of my own, only silver-plated copper, pure copper, and tin-plated copper.

And, while others may agree or disagree, I personally feel the major influencing factor for sonic differences in cables is related to impedance. Sure, good solder, good connectors, flexibilty, microphonics, shielding, etc all play a part, but I'm strictly talking about the perceived (and highly debateable) difference in sound.

With that said, if I had my choice, my preference would be whatever cable provided the best quality construction with the lowest possible impedance (and thus the lowest possible impact/coloration of the sound). I've seen good, as well as bad, examples of both (as far as impedance).

I will also say that (other than NASA-level stuff), critical mil-spec cable is almost always silver plated copper. Read into that what you want.

 

[snip3r77]

Well, I have no pure silver cables of my own, only silver-plated copper, pure copper, and tin-plated copper.

And, while others may agree or disagree, I personally feel the major influencing factor for sonic differences in cables is related to impedance. Sure, good solder, good connectors, flexibilty, microphonics, shielding, etc all play a part, but I'm strictly talking about the perceived (and highly debateable) difference in sound.

With that said, if I had my choice, my preference would be whatever cable provided the best quality construction with the lowest possible impedance (and thus the lowest possible impact/coloration of the sound). I've seen good, as well as bad, examples of both (as far as impedance).

I will also say that (other than NASA-level stuff), critical mil-spec cable is almost always silver plated copper. Read into that what you want.

Most don't provide resistance value when you want to purchase

 

[Slater]

Most don't provide resistance value when you want to purchase

Agreed. I'm talking after-the-fact.

For example, I have the black (copper) and silver-plated TRN cables. The silver TRN cable has lower resistance between the 2, so that is the one I prefer.

However, I have numerous KZ cables - a stock (copper) one vs a silver-plated cable. The silver-plated cable has lower resistance, so that is the one I would prefer.

That is an example that there isn't a blanket answer to copper vs silver-plated. It varies by cable and by manufacturer. And as you mentioned, most don't provide resistance values up-front. That's why it's so useful that @hakuzen has been kind enough to provide measurements for a number of cables.

 

[Otto Motor]

I pretty much have 0 doubts that this measurement is done with front vent closed or your unit simply has that vent closed by glue or some other substance. No DD of this size can push this much bass while being vented in the front.
Play a bit with vent holes and see what you find. Perhaps tape the 2 back vents and see how much the bass drops. Firstly I would seal the front vent and do the measurement again.

Summary of the blabla below:
1. Vents were not closed.
2. Mismatch between Phonograph and friend is normal as each rig is different. What counts is the differences between the curves of different models on the same rig.
3. Therefore, the differences between ZS5, ZSR, and ZS10 are real because the measurements were internally consistent.
4. I personally trust my friend (with no commercial interest) more than the ad-laced phonograph that earns cash with every purchase through their site.

The long version:
This would mean that both vent holes were closed equally, considering the matching bass segments of L and R on the curve. Hardly possible.

The guy who preformed the measurements told me: vents were not closed, and he has had bass up more than that in measurements of other phones. The bass driver on these is 10 mm, pretty big for a multi-driver hybrid. He wants to emphasise - yet again - that his homebrewed measurement coupler is its own thing, so these results shouldn't be taken as absolutes, only as showing relative characteristics (for 'phower' to note, too; please don't compare these measurements to the Olive-Welti or any other target curve developed using a particular commercial measurement rig). So ideally, people who've heard one of these should look at the results and develop their own 'mental compensation curve' between its curve to what they hear. Then they'll be able to interpret the measurements of the one(s) they haven't heard.

The ZS10 front vent does have some sort of filter behind it, so it's not entirely free-breathing. Punching this out would reduce bass, as would, as vladstef says, taping up the rear vents. Modders might have fun with that - but the point of these measurements was to compare the 3 models in stock form.

 

[KainHighwind]

Hi guys, is is there anyway to make ZS5 high notes kind of "lower", it's too sharp and produce an "ssssss" sound, especially the climax part of the song, it's annoying... Thanks!