[Alpha Whale]

That Lord B9 knows what he's talking about with the ZS1 Still love my Garden Hose QKZ ZN1 Mini berry berry mucho I had the fabled ZN1 (I'm still confused to this day over the ZS1/ZN1 naming's) and worked well for a while but too much to fail on that one which the amp finally did but a neat concept for sure, thinking they should have just stuck with the non-amped version




For me once they dropped the amp and kept the garden hose they had something especially back then in a DD



@Alpha Whale the K4 is still my favorite wood iem and a tiny killer to boot Not to mention who don't love a sweet VJJ

Love the Newman's Own amp and I remember reading about that amped set from KZ veterans like you! I've been following the thread since Wokei and that irritating James Freeman guy (I think that's his name) that tried to force feed everybody his "one set for everything" opinion. I don't think he understood the joy of the hobby.

You, B9Scrambler, Eisenbrecher, Wokei, Slater and a few others were an inspiration to me. Just want to say thanks for your feedback through the years on this 50,000 strong (posts) thread.

 

[Podster]

If you go back to page 1846 (or around there) of this thread Circa 2018 you'll see my amped ZN1 rig with some other's, Greg (Slater) states his disappointment in how early his amp failed I believe

You are so right on Freeman not catching the drift, obviously had trouble thinking out the box LOL What's the use in being in a hobby if your not having fun with it right!

Not to poo in the KZ thread, think I own enough of them to stray just a wee bit I'm enjoying this little setup today and like so many Chi-Fi iem's here's one underrated especially with BGVP filters in them and dollar for dollar the Benjie DAP's are bang for the buck like my X6 here. Was worried when I bought it that it would not be as sweet as my S5's (seems I've got every color)

I talk to WOKEI weekly still and he's done a couple reviews recently but he's pretty busy taking care of his Mum these days and working he has little time for this stuff but he gets a pass from me always

 

[unifutomaki]

KZ once sold an IEM with a built in amp?? I learn something new every day

 

[Podster]

KZ once sold an IEM with a built in amp?? I learn something new every day

Indeed they did and when it worked it was very sweet however as mentioned it was not totally executed with longevity in mind

How silly looking was this array The good part was the amp probably weighed less than all the cable!

Funny story about this amp as well as my ES100, BTR3K and Qudelix K5. More than once if not a half dozen time I'm asked when people see one of these hanging on or clipped to me they've asked the same thing or told me they thought it was some kind of medical device on me LOL

 

[unifutomaki]

This is equal parts insane and cool. Rechargeable battery, tone controls, mic for calls, and an LED status display? All tied to a specific IEM? I'm amazed

 

[Slater]

Love the Newman's Own amp and I remember reading about that amped set from KZ veterans like you! I've been following the thread since Wokei and that irritating James Freeman guy (I think that's his name) that tried to force feed everybody his "one set for everything" opinion. I don't think he understood the joy of the hobby.

You, B9Scrambler, Eisenbrecher, Wokei, Slater and a few others were an inspiration to me. Just want to say thanks for your feedback through the years on this 50,000 strong (posts) thread.

Haha, Wokei was a trip. I hope he’s been OK nowadays. Same with TwinACStacks.

And who can forget the Marshall Mode guy (in a KZ thread of all places)?

Good memories

 

[Slater]

If you go back to page 1846 (or around there) of this thread Circa 2018 you'll see my amped ZN1 rig with some other's, Greg (Slater) states his disappointment in how early his amp failed I believe

You are so right on Freeman not catching the drift, obviously had trouble thinking out the box LOL What's the use in being in a hobby if your not having fun with it right!

Not to poo in the KZ thread, think I own enough of them to stray just a wee bit I'm enjoying this little setup today and like so many Chi-Fi iem's here's one underrated especially with BGVP filters in them and dollar for dollar the Benjie DAP's are bang for the buck like my X6 here. Was worried when I bought it that it would not be as sweet as my S5's (seems I've got every color)



I talk to WOKEI weekly still and he's done a couple reviews recently but he's pretty busy taking care of his Mum these days and working he has little time for this stuff but he gets a pass from me always

Yeah, I’m still salty about that to this day. It died after 2 months if I remember correctly.

I tried to buy another, but they were sold out by then. The problem was compounded by the fact that the ZN1 Mini came out, and a lot of sellers were confused by the 2 because the ZN1 Mini actually said ZN1 on it. So there were listings for the ZN1 (ie the amp version), but what you received was the ZN1 Mini (I know because it happened to me).

I even tried to take mine apart to fix it, and the circuit board and solder joints etc was made so cheaply it basically self destructed in my hands to the point that it was beyond repair.

I still have the stupid thing in a ziplock baggie with the false hope that one day I can rebuild it like Steve Austin.

 

[Podster]

Yeah, I’m still salty about that to this day. It died after 2 months if I remember correctly.

I tried to buy another, but they were sold out by then. The problem was compounded by the fact that the ZN1 Mini came out, and a lot of sellers were confused by the 2 because the ZN1 Mini actually said ZN1 on it. So there were listings for the ZN1 (ie the amp version), but what you received was the ZN1 Mini (I know because it happened to me).

I even tried to take mine apart to fix it, and the circuit board and solder joints etc was made so cheaply it basically self destructed in my hands to the point that it was beyond repair.

I still have the stupid thing in a ziplock baggie with the false hope that one day I can rebuild it like Steve Austin.

Well you would have to build it like Steve Austin if you wanted to last say more than 2 months Eric is doing well but his Mum is getting up there and requires a lot of care. I'll send him your regards next time we are up on what's app

 

[Podster]

A lot of great KZ history in this thread With all the new and fancy KZ's that have come out in the past 5-6 years I believe this is still one of my favorite looking KZ's ever and sound wise they can almost keep up with my ED9's The craziest thing is this entire setup cost me a hair over $36 and it still can please most listeners

 

[Wgibson]

@Alpha Whale no KZ EDX in your list? For ~$7 or less, you should grab it. Pretty impressive for what it is. They aren't too difficult to pop open either, the crystal color would be good for projects.

 

[PhonoPhi]

A lot of great KZ history in this thread With all the new and fancy KZ's that have come out in the past 5-6 years I believe this is still one of my favorite looking KZ's ever and sound wise they can almost keep up with my ED9's The craziest thing is this entire setup cost me a hair over $36 and it still can please most listeners

Each time you show this image - it reminds me of my first Audiophile (KZ-heritage(?)) IEM that came after Sony XB50, and cost about $36 alone from Amazon... took all the physical abuse, and still strong and very competitively sounding

Speaking of new, and call it an expectation bias, I am very-very happy with wide-nozzle ASX:

No frequency gaps, no choking and quite extended but not harsh treble, and very airy

I'll think I'll now get a black one (the poor nozzle donor will be less-loved ZSN Pro X).

I also ordered DQ6 today to fully experience the might of multi-DD KZs!

My first post (and the main reason to join HeadFi) was in this thread, and now it is my 1000-th post here

 

[alamnp]

Each time you show this image - it reminds me of my first Audiophile (KZ-heritage(?)) IEM that came after Sony XB50, and cost about $36 alone from Amazon... took all the physical abuse, and still strong and very competitively sounding


Speaking of new, and call it an expectation bias, I am very-very happy with wide-nozzle ASX:

No frequency gaps, no choking and quite extended but not harsh treble, and very airy

I'll think I'll now get a black one (the poor nozzle donor will be less-loved ZSN Pro X).

I also ordered DQ6 today to fully experience the might of multi-DD KZs!

My first post (and the main reason to join HeadFi) was in this thread, and now it is my 1000-th post here

same here, without KZ, there will be no Head Fi prolly.

KZ got me started with this hobby

 

[rayliam80]

same here, without KZ, there will be no Head Fi prolly.

KZ got me started with this hobby

KZ ZS6 along with an LG V30 purchased around the same time re-ignited my interests with headphones/earbuds/iems and helped me to further appreciate my CD/FLAC rips collection.

 

[courierdriver]

same here, without KZ, there will be no Head Fi prolly.

KZ got me started with this hobby

Headfi was around before KZ but they were about either DIY or crazy expensive iems and headphones. While this super expensive stuff is still available and talked about on the forums, I think that the KZ thread has a huge number of posts and subscribers. What this shows is that there are many more people who want great sound, without spending a fortune. When I joined headfi back in 2005, it seemed kinda like an online version of Stereophile. Lots of great reviews and opinions of stuff I couldn't afford. Ten years+ later, the less expensive stuff from brands like KZ became something I could aspire to.

 

[JazzVinyl]

Head-Fi was a popular place to talk about DIY projects when it first began. Lots of people were making their own cmoy amps, back then.