[ShakyJake]

KZ ED9 MMCX Mod

Not done by me, but see details here:

https://imgur.com/a/RvH7yMu

There are more comments. some rather off-topic, on the reddit thread:

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/ays6c0/kz_ed9_mmcx_modded_new_improved_now_with/

 

[BadReligionPunk]

KZ ED9 MMCX Mod

Not done by me, but see details here:

https://imgur.com/a/RvH7yMu

There are more comments. some rather off-topic, on the reddit thread:

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/ays6c0/kz_ed9_mmcx_modded_new_improved_now_with/

I just busted a nut. I have to do that or die trying.

 

[Podster]

Yeah how sweet would nice Silver 16 core be on my black ED9’s

 

[LaughMoreDaily]

The ATR sure holds up well in 2019. Of course its doubled in price since I got it a couple years back.

PS: The Ate and Atr sound the same now?

 

[TreehornJackie]

I have the last version of ATE. The sound signature response of this version is the exact opposite of the old ones. The highs (10 khz+) are severly strident to the point where I had to stuff some tissue in the nozzle. Overall I don't like them. I think one should pay 10$ more and buy a better earphone. For this money they are good though but I still think there are better options out there (like SHE3590).
I also don't like the ED9. One filter removes the subbass completely while the other has no frontal vent. The latter makes the cable noise unbearable and decreases the soundstage. Furthermore, the lack of frontal vent combined witht heir heavy weight makes them very unconfortable when you're walking.

 

[mbwilson111]

The ATR sure holds up well in 2019. Of course its doubled in price since I got it a couple years back.

PS: The Ate and Atr sound the same now?

What did you pay a couple of years ago for your KZ ATR? It is only $7 now and that is what I paid one year ago.

 

[purplesun]

What did you pay a couple of years ago for your KZ ATR? It is only $7 now and that is what I paid one year ago.

I paid about US$7 for my ATR a month ago. Outside of 11.11 sale, I don't think I have seen it below $5.
Listening to my fave ATE variant now, the ATES. A big bouncy sound with less grainy treble that I hear in ATE and ATR. The cabling is a PITA though.
Did KZ ever make the ATES without the ear hook?

To new headfi members: Go buy KZ-ATES/ATE/ATR for a few bucks and never come back in again! It's crazy diminishing value from these 3 onwards.

 

[rambomhtri]

Holy Heaven!
I've just received a pair of 2nd generation KZ ZSN and I can totally say that the KZ ZS7 are better, noticeable better. The KZ ZSN have even slightly annoying highs/treble. I've bought them as a gift to a friend and also because they are so famous here and wanted to try them out, but I'm glad I purchased for myself the KZ ZS7 because I can say there's a clear big difference between the two. If you can go for the KZ ZS7, just go for them. The ZSN have the professional look and quality, may be they are more ergonomic and comfortable for some people, but in terms of sound I just got a little upset. I was expecting a very similar sound quality to the KZ7, almost unnoticeable difference; sad but true, they sound worse.

 

[neo_styles]

Got the E12a back from my boss after having lent it out to him for a week to try along with the KZ7 I encouraged him to order. He's the type of guy who wouldn't consider himself an audiophile in the least, but he does enjoy things that give him more excitement out of the music he listens to. Here's his very un-seasoned impression of running the KZ7 over the weekend in concert with the E12a:

He wasn't sure the amplifier would do anything to the overall sound at first, but was immediately blown away at how much more spacious the tracks he'd listen to seemed to get. The punches got even punchier (his words, not mine)! He also put on a relaxation app he usually listens to on the weekend for meditation because he wanted to see if he could pick up on some of the microdetails (my choice of words this time). What surprised him most was that he could hear one sound close to him and, on the same plane, more sounds behind it. Gave me the perfect opportunity to explain soundstage and imaging to him.

He also tried the E12a on some of his other earbuds and didn't hear much of a difference between amped and not-amped, but kept gushing over how there was a marked improvement over the ZS7 being amped vs un-amped. After begrudgingly returning the E12a to me, he's all smiles. I suppose that's one very enthusiastic pair of thumbs up

Now that I've got the E12a back in my possession, I'll spend the week using it along with my pair of ZS7 (on stock medium tips) and the A45 for DAP duties to see what my overall impressions are. Once the Opus#1 shows up, however, all bets are off.

 

[pbui44]

Got the E12a back from my boss after having lent it out to him for a week to try along with the KZ7 I encouraged him to order. He's the type of guy who wouldn't consider himself an audiophile in the least, but he does enjoy things that give him more excitement out of the music he listens to. Here's his very un-seasoned impression of running the KZ7 over the weekend in concert with the E12a:

He wasn't sure the amplifier would do anything to the overall sound at first, but was immediately blown away at how much more spacious the tracks he'd listen to seemed to get. The punches got even punchier (his words, not mine)! He also put on a relaxation app he usually listens to on the weekend for meditation because he wanted to see if he could pick up on some of the microdetails (my choice of words this time). What surprised him most was that he could hear one sound close to him and, on the same plane, more sounds behind it. Gave me the perfect opportunity to explain soundstage and imaging to him.

He also tried the E12a on some of his other earbuds and didn't hear much of a difference between amped and not-amped, but kept gushing over how there was a marked improvement over the ZS7 being amped vs un-amped. After begrudgingly returning the E12a to me, he's all smiles. I suppose that's one very enthusiastic pair of thumbs up

Now that I've got the E12a back in my possession, I'll spend the week using it along with my pair of ZS7 (on stock medium tips) and the A45 for DAP duties to see what my overall impressions are. Once the Opus#1 shows up, however, all bets are off.

Geez, tell your boss to get his own FiiO A5, too.

 

[neo_styles]

Geez, tell your boss to get his own FiiO A5, too.

I've got a spare Schiit Fulla 2 somewhere in storage at the house. Just need to motivate myself to go rummaging through the closet to pull it out. If he likes it enough, we'll make something work.

 

[maxxevv]

Holy Heaven!
I've just received a pair of 2nd generation KZ ZSN and I can totally say that the KZ ZS7 are better, noticeable better. The KZ ZSN have even slightly annoying highs/treble. I've bought them as a gift to a friend and also because they are so famous here and wanted to try them out, but I'm glad I purchased for myself the KZ ZS7 because I can say there's a clear big difference between the two. If you can go for the KZ ZS7, just go for them. The ZSN have the professional look and quality, may be they are more ergonomic and comfortable for some people, but in terms of sound I just got a little upset. I was expecting a very similar sound quality to the KZ7, almost unnoticeable difference; sad but true, they sound worse.

I would have been very surprised if that were not the case.

KZ definitely price their products according to what each technically can deliver and which target market its meant for. If they were similarly priced, perhaps the differences would have been only in the signature instead.

Got the E12a back from my boss after having lent it out to him for a week to try along with the KZ7 I encouraged him to order. He's the type of guy who wouldn't consider himself an audiophile in the least, but he does enjoy things that give him more excitement out of the music he listens to. Here's his very un-seasoned impression of running the KZ7 over the weekend in concert with the E12a:

He wasn't sure the amplifier would do anything to the overall sound at first, but was immediately blown away at how much more spacious the tracks he'd listen to seemed to get. The punches got even punchier (his words, not mine)! He also put on a relaxation app he usually listens to on the weekend for meditation because he wanted to see if he could pick up on some of the microdetails (my choice of words this time). What surprised him most was that he could hear one sound close to him and, on the same plane, more sounds behind it. Gave me the perfect opportunity to explain soundstage and imaging to him.

He also tried the E12a on some of his other earbuds and didn't hear much of a difference between amped and not-amped, but kept gushing over how there was a marked improvement over the ZS7 being amped vs un-amped. After begrudgingly returning the E12a to me, he's all smiles. I suppose that's one very enthusiastic pair of thumbs up

Now that I've got the E12a back in my possession, I'll spend the week using it along with my pair of ZS7 (on stock medium tips) and the A45 for DAP duties to see what my overall impressions are. Once the Opus#1 shows up, however, all bets are off.

The ZS7 is actually really easy to drive in my experience, quite surprised at his observations. Possibly his original source was really poor or he was listening at a marginally higher volume with the E12A without realising it.

On my Sabaj Da3, on balanced output, I put at level 6 or 7 out of 40 with my Foobar2000 / PC volume at about 1/3 only.
Really low drive requirements compared to say the ZS10 which would be at about 11 /40 and the PC volume at about 1/2.

But think you just created a monster ...

 

[neo_styles]

The ZS7 is actually really easy to drive in my experience, quite surprised at his observations. Possibly his original source was really poor or he was listening at a marginally higher volume with the E12A without realising it.

On my Sabaj Da3, on balanced output, I put at level 6 or 7 out of 40 with my Foobar2000 / PC volume at about 1/3 only.
Really low drive requirements compared to say the ZS10 which would be at about 11 /40 and the PC volume at about 1/2.

But think you just created a monster ...

Definitely agree with you that they're easy to drive, which is why I was really surprised at his feedback. His source is usually a S9+ which is pretty middle-of-the-road in terms of ability to power equipment. But a monster...yeah, I definitely own up to that. Half the team uses KZ now. The others are hopelessly bound to their Airpods and will probably never transcend. Can't win 'em all.

 

[maxxevv]

Perhaps you should introduce the TRN BT20 coupled to the ZS7 instead for the Airpod bunch !

 

[neo_styles]

Perhaps you should introduce the TRN BT20 coupled to the ZS7 instead for the Airpod bunch !

I can already see it now. You mean I actually have to set these up with, like, the Settings menu? No thanks. Sometimes you have to pick the battles you know you can win.