Knowledge Zenith (KZ) impressions thread
Nov 26, 2018 at 11:12 AM Post #38,536 of 63,982
no aptx. i asked many aliexpress sellers. its a realtek chip, not a qualcomm one. so no aptx for sure. aac dont know.

but maybe if you have some know how of android modding, you could get SBC bitrate mode working

SBC specifications allow higher bitrate than currently used by manufacturers(mostly 384kbit max). like up to 512kbit. so even if SBC 384kbit sounds like 192kbit AAC, with 512kbit its like ~ 33% more bitrate which should be audible improvement

https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/software-hacking/improve-bluetooth-audio-quality-t3832615


and in the case of the TRN BT20: bluetooth 5.0 has now support for 1MBit/s , so maybe you could go even higher with the SBC bitrate. some people have reported that they got 617-660 kbit/s working (and that with <5.0)
yeah since android 8, you have AAC, aptx, aptx HD, LDAC bluetooth codecs included in every phone. google has made a deal that its licence free now on android. only the "receiver" device has to pay licence fee for the codecs.

and who knows, maybe the TRN BT20 has AAC. we have to wait for the reviews

and regarding battery life, thats why i want to see something like TRN BT20 but with the new Qualcomm bluetooth 5.0 SoC. they should be up to 65% more efficient. so we could have ~10h play time instead of the ~5h. sadly there is not much info about the realtek 5.0 SoC, but looking from the specs on the aliexpress pages, it does not seem to be that the realtek 5.0 is that efficient

Just got a TRN-BT20. Confirm that it has AAC.

The good things are:
- Sound, connection and battery seems quite good. It's still playing well since last charge 4 hours ago.
- Stereo mode when making/receiving a call
- One-touch operation does activate voice control
- Pairing is easy

Not so-good things:
- One-touch operation does not work well as advertised: "press twice" does not trigger "next track"; "press thrice" does not trigger "previous track"
- Right ear hook sometimes drops connection for just 1 second, then reconnects immediately

Overall, quite happy with the purchase for a cost of around 27usd.

P.S.: Mine is a 0.78mm 2-pin hooked to a Kinera H3, paired to a Blackberry Keyone Black-edition.


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Nov 26, 2018 at 12:17 PM Post #38,537 of 63,982
20181126_211837~2.jpg

The TRN BT20 came in last Friday but couldn' t get the left/ right to pair up correctly as there was no instruction provided in the packaging.
Very thankful to Jim of NiceHCK for stepping and getting the instructions (in chinese) and sending it to me over the weekend. Kudos to him.

After pairing up, it was pretty straightforward every other time. Pairing with handphone was practically instant.

Sound:
It seems to be slightly brighter than my normal LG G6 Quad DAC on wired.
But otherwise, bass, mids and treble have not been obviously skewed to notice easily.

Plenty of power for the AS10 and ZS10. My volume control is at about 60-70% for ZS10 listening to Classical music. A notch less for pop. Another notch down when using the AS10.

Connection:
As noted, there were perhaps 3 'glitches' in the right pieces in about 2~3 hours of listening time. But generally connection was still solid between partitions up to maybe 7 meters away. I didn't try further.

Abnormalies:
In seated mode on the bus/ train, sound was basically like how you'll hear it with wires. But the moment i started walking with the phone in my hand, a stramge phenomena happened, the sound stage just strangely sounded like it had expanded to a few meters wider rather than the typical feel.
Not that it was bad, im fact I liked that effect! Not sure if Tinbilly had that 'out of body' experience too. :p

Fit: Wire is a little stiff, so if the curve doesn't fit your ears , it might pose comfort issues. It literally disappears behind the ears once worn. Very neat !

I would say its a good module for the US$25/+ I paid for mine.
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 12:59 PM Post #38,538 of 63,982
Nope :p. They aren't better than AS10, ZS10, ZS5v1. They're really good especially for the price, build quality, and design, but the hype around them is very bloated. It's almost as if the rest of head-fi finally tried chi-fi with the ZSN's.
I'm also thinking there might be some hype beasts working for KZ here... :wink:
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 1:12 PM Post #38,539 of 63,982


The TRN BT20 came in last Friday but couldn' t get the left/ right to pair up correctly as there was no instruction provided in the packaging.
Very thankful to Jim of NiceHCK for stepping and getting the instructions (in chinese) and sending it to me over the weekend. Kudos to him.

After pairing up, it was pretty straightforward every other time. Pairing with handphone was practically instant.

Sound:
It seems to be slightly brighter than my normal LG G6 Quad DAC on wired.
But otherwise, bass, mids and treble have not been obviously skewed to notice easily.

Plenty of power for the AS10 and ZS10. My volume control is at about 60-70% for ZS10 listening to Classical music. A notch less for pop. Another notch down when using the AS10.

Connection:
As noted, there were perhaps 3 'glitches' in the right pieces in about 2~3 hours of listening time. But generally connection was still solid between partitions up to maybe 7 meters away. I didn't try further.

Abnormalies:
In seated mode on the bus/ train, sound was basically like how you'll hear it with wires. But the moment i started walking with the phone in my hand, a stramge phenomena happened, the sound stage just strangely sounded like it had expanded to a few meters wider rather than the typical feel.
Not that it was bad, im fact I liked that effect! Not sure if Tinbilly had that 'out of body' experience too. :p

Fit: Wire is a little stiff, so if the curve doesn't fit your ears , it might pose comfort issues. It literally disappears behind the ears once worn. Very neat !

I would say its a good module for the US$25/+ I paid for mine.

How is your experience with the one-touch operation?
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 2:14 PM Post #38,540 of 63,982
I'm also thinking there might be some hype beasts working for KZ here... :wink:

ultimately its all up to readers to interpret the "hype". People are recommending the ZSN, but not making it clear to the less-informed occasional readers that "yes, it is good, but for $20 range." Which is why I prefer reviews like b9scrambler or crinacle, putting their foot down and saying "this is the level of technical ability for this particular IEM", instead of skirting around marketing terms.

It might seem like common sense that a company wouldn't butcher their own flagship by releasing a cheaper model that outperforms, but not a lot of of people have those, apparently.
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 2:29 PM Post #38,541 of 63,982
Nope :p. They aren't better than AS10, ZS10, ZS5v1. They're really good especially for the price, build quality, and design, but the hype around them is very bloated. It's almost as if the rest of head-fi finally tried chi-fi with the ZSN's.


In general I agree with this after pouring through the last twenty pages or so. On the other hand the build quality, detachable cables and tuning speak volumes about where Chi-Fi can go. B9 hit the nail on the head when he stated "$20 Has Never Gone So Far".

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/kz-zsn-knowledge-zenith.23357/

It seeems that $20 might be the high end as some have picked up a ZSN for $12+/- which is near comical when price-to-value comes into play. It's a win-win for the enthusiasts.

On another note, I need to pick up an AS10 and compare it to my modded BA10 for similarities because the BA10, though not perfect, is GREAT! My modded BA10 (foam and screen removed) just trounces my ZS5(v1), mostly on timbre, which I wasn't expecting. It'll be interesting to hear your thoughts, B9's thoughts and Panda's thoughts on the AS10/BA10 versus the ZS5(v1).
 
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Nov 26, 2018 at 3:05 PM Post #38,542 of 63,982


The TRN BT20 came in last Friday but couldn' t get the left/ right to pair up correctly as there was no instruction provided in the packaging.
Very thankful to Jim of NiceHCK for stepping and getting the instructions (in chinese) and sending it to me over the weekend. Kudos to him.

After pairing up, it was pretty straightforward every other time. Pairing with handphone was practically instant.

Sound:
It seems to be slightly brighter than my normal LG G6 Quad DAC on wired.
But otherwise, bass, mids and treble have not been obviously skewed to notice easily.

Plenty of power for the AS10 and ZS10. My volume control is at about 60-70% for ZS10 listening to Classical music. A notch less for pop. Another notch down when using the AS10.

Connection:
As noted, there were perhaps 3 'glitches' in the right pieces in about 2~3 hours of listening time. But generally connection was still solid between partitions up to maybe 7 meters away. I didn't try further.

Abnormalies:
In seated mode on the bus/ train, sound was basically like how you'll hear it with wires. But the moment i started walking with the phone in my hand, a stramge phenomena happened, the sound stage just strangely sounded like it had expanded to a few meters wider rather than the typical feel.
Not that it was bad, im fact I liked that effect! Not sure if Tinbilly had that 'out of body' experience too. :p

Fit: Wire is a little stiff, so if the curve doesn't fit your ears , it might pose comfort issues. It literally disappears behind the ears once worn. Very neat !

I would say its a good module for the US$25/+ I paid for mine.

Any info on setting up? I can get it only out of one ear at a time!
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 3:19 PM Post #38,543 of 63,982
Ooh, think I’ve got it.

Push and hold both on simultaneously and eventually you will hear two jingles and it will turn off, then turn them both on and after a while I heard another jingle and they are synced

Listing now with KZ ZS5v1 and it’s heavenly.

Have tried the official KZ bluetooth, TRN BT 3, TRN BT10 ... and while each has been better than the last there was always something not just right.

None of that with the BT20, wish I had saved my money and waited!
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 5:31 PM Post #38,544 of 63,982
Just got a TRN-BT20. Confirm that it has AAC.

The good things are:
- Sound, connection and battery seems quite good. It's still playing well since last charge 4 hours ago.
- Stereo mode when making/receiving a call
- One-touch operation does activate voice control
- Pairing is easy

Not so-good things:
- One-touch operation does not work well as advertised: "press twice" does not trigger "next track"; "press thrice" does not trigger "previous track"
- Right ear hook sometimes drops connection for just 1 second, then reconnects immediately

Overall, quite happy with the purchase for a cost of around 27usd.

P.S.: Mine is a 0.78mm 2-pin hooked to a Kinera H3, paired to a Blackberry Keyone Black-edition.


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Ooh, think I’ve got it.

Push and hold both on simultaneously and eventually you will hear two jingles and it will turn off, then turn them both on and after a while I heard another jingle and they are synced

Listing now with KZ ZS5v1 and it’s heavenly.

Have tried the official KZ bluetooth, TRN BT 3, TRN BT10 ... and while each has been better than the last there was always something not just right.

None of that with the BT20, wish I had saved my money and waited!

Well, crap. I guess I'll have to try the BT20 too then. And my BT10 should be showing up this week (I hope)...
 
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Nov 26, 2018 at 6:07 PM Post #38,546 of 63,982
In general I agree with this after pouring through the last twenty pages or so. On the other hand the build quality, detachable cables and tuning speak volumes about where Chi-Fi can go. B9 hit the nail on the head when he stated "$20 Has Never Gone So Far".

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/kz-zsn-knowledge-zenith.23357/

It seeems that $20 might be the high end as some have picked up a ZSN for $12+/- which is near comical when price-to-value comes into play. It's a win-win for the enthusiasts.

On another note, I need to pick up an AS10 and compare it to my modded BA10 for similarities because the BA10, though not perfect, is GREAT! My modded BA10 (foam and screen removed) just trounces my ZS5(v1), mostly on timbre, which I wasn't expecting. It'll be interesting to hear your thoughts, B9's thoughts and Panda's thoughts on the AS10/BA10 versus the ZS5(v1).

For $12 the ZSN is an absolute no brainer. The build quality alone and detachable cable are worth that. ZST could probably be discontinued when they sell all of their stock as this is a great replacement with a similar sound signature.
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 6:08 PM Post #38,547 of 63,982
Well, crap. I guess I'll have to try the BT20 too then. And my BT10 should be showing up this week (I hope)...
Please let us know if your BT10 is wired out of phase.
 
Nov 26, 2018 at 6:11 PM Post #38,548 of 63,982
For $12 the ZSN is an absolute no brainer. The build quality alone and detachable cable are worth that. ZST could probably be discontinued when they sell all of their stock as this is a great replacement with a similar sound signature.

It is interesting that you compare it with the ZST. The ZST is my least favorite KZ (of those I own). I hear a harshness in vocals. But I love my ZSN. I have the Purple one and have ordered the Cyan as a backup. I notice some people are calling it green and some photos do look that way. Cyan should be more a a blue green. I guess I will find out when it gets here.
 

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