[Tzennn]

CSN can definitely be recommended for bassheads

Wait i think CSN bass just about "ok" they're quite slow and have like 5db less bass than blon bl01 (both stock and foam mod)

 

[unifutomaki]

AZ09 update:

Can’t really recommend these at the end of the day. Connection dropouts are regular enough to be annoying when walking around outdoors (even in fairly sparsely populated areas, mind) and can be triggered by the natural swaying of the phone in my hand as I walk.

Not to mention the fact that they have an annoying habit of waking up and connecting to my phone (thus snatching audio focus) even when they are inside the charging case and the lid is closed. I’m ready to cut my losses (of around 20 dollars) on these I think.

Sure, my XM4s probably don’t offer 300 dollars worth of sound quality, but the TWS part is rock solid on those. That’s also, in part, what one is paying for I suppose.

 

[whirlwind]

AZ09 update:

Can’t really recommend these at the end of the day. Connection dropouts are regular enough to be annoying when walking around outdoors (even in fairly sparsely populated areas, mind) and can be triggered by the natural swaying of the phone in my hand as I walk.

Not to mention the fact that they have an annoying habit of waking up and connecting to my phone (thus snatching audio focus) even when they are inside the charging case and the lid is closed. I’m ready to cut my losses (of around 20 dollars) on these I think.

Sure, my XM4s probably don’t offer 300 dollars worth of sound quality, but the TWS part is rock solid on those. That’s also, in part, what one is paying for I suppose.

Thanks for the update...could not put up with that when out for my walks.

 

[baskingshark]

AZ09 update:

Can’t really recommend these at the end of the day. Connection dropouts are regular enough to be annoying when walking around outdoors (even in fairly sparsely populated areas, mind) and can be triggered by the natural swaying of the phone in my hand as I walk.

Not to mention the fact that they have an annoying habit of waking up and connecting to my phone (thus snatching audio focus) even when they are inside the charging case and the lid is closed. I’m ready to cut my losses (of around 20 dollars) on these I think.

Sure, my XM4s probably don’t offer 300 dollars worth of sound quality, but the TWS part is rock solid on those. That’s also, in part, what one is paying for I suppose.

Thanks for taking one for the team.

Seems KZ is still hit or miss when it comes to their wireless gear, it is the usual suspects of crappy BT connectivity or lousy battery life that stunts their progress. I gotta say their eternal rival TRN seems to have better implementation for the TWS and BT products, though TRN QC is another story.

 

[unifutomaki]

Transplanted the ZEX back onto the stock cable and am driving it with the Earmen Eagle. Versus the AZ09, the background is blacker, the bass slam has tightened up once more, and the harsh/thin treble has mellowed out considerably.

 

[SybilLance]

Here is my take on CCZ Coffee Bean and Emerald, and comparison with DQ6 and ZEX and few more IEMs, as promised. Non-functional BA is the central feature of Emerald design, and CCZ “unique” approach to “tuning”.


CCZ Coffee Bean and Emerald + comparison of eight similar IEMs based on 10-mm DDs


The underlying hypothesis (and some initial expectation bias) was that CCZ could be just overhyped by “unbiased” reviewers reporting on free samples sent to them in a promotion campaign, while the primary “technology” is the same as used by other ChiFi (KZ, CCA, TRN), namely the 10-mm dual dynamic driver (d-DD).

I was also intrigued by the comments that the Coffee Bean (single d-DD) sounds nearly the same as Emerald (d-DD + BA (balanced armature)) that would imply that the BA is undermined in the design and/or used largely for the driver count. Similarly, I was disappointed recently by several “DD + 4 BAs” IEMs, such as ND-N10 and GS-GK10, for which I was not exactly sure about what their 4 BAs are doing. Lastly, testing individual drivers of CCA NRA upon dissection, I observed that the main contribution to NRA sound originates from the DD, while the new “EST” (which is hardly any EST) contributes in a more subtle way.

Consequently, the comparison is focused on IEM designs with the 10 mm dual DD and its different implementations: solo (Coffee Bean), coupled with a BA (Emerald, STM, CSN), with two more DDs (DQ6) and with “EST” (ZEX).

The compared IEMs and their main characteristics are listed in the summary table below together with the photo for the records.


Summary of the main parameters of compared IEMs.

IEM	Drivers	DD	Impedance (Ω)	Sensitivity (dB/mW)
CCZ Coffee Bean	DD	10 mm dual	18	111
CCZ Emerald	DD + BA	10 mm dual	16	110
KZ DQ6	3 DDs	10 mm dual	24	112
KZ ZEX	DD + “EST”	10 mm dual	25	103
KBEar Lark	DD + BA	10 mm “bio”	16	105
TRN STM	DD + BA	10 mm dual	24	106
CCA CSN	DD + BA	10 mm dual	22	112
CCA CA4	DD + BA	10 mm older	23	107

I have not included the IEM price in the Table, given common price variations with location and discounts. In a brief comparison: Lark being most expensive at $30, CCA CA4 and CCZ Coffee Bean being the most affordable at ca. $15, with the rest of IEMs in the range of $20-$25.


In lieu of disclosure: I have purchased all the compared IEMs (AE, Amazon) using my own personal funds. I do not have any affiliation with IEM manufacturers. Hence, my assessment and comparisons are biased only by my personal subjectivity and limitations.


Limitations and biases: Plenty! First, my music selection/preference that is largely classical music, with occasional klezmer and related genres. Then I strongly value resolution, especially realistic (to my ears) reproduction of bowed and plucked strings, over tonality. Furthermore, I do think that music should feel and sound engaging. For this reason, I strongly favour fast and resolving BAs and am biased that DDs are not able to reproduce violin sound faithfully (DDs are like little drums: drums can’t sound like violins!): OK, hopefully enough to convey the idea of my biases.


Justification for IEM selection and components of the test setup

IEMs: The primary comparison is of Coffee Bean with the Emerald and then with DQ6 and ZEX, as the KZ recent successful IEMs sharing the same (or similar) 10-mm dual DD driver. CCA CSN was added due to its similar to Emerald (and Melody) configuration of DD + BA, though the CSN DD is likely XUN judging by its shape. Then KBEar Lark (likely gen. 2) was selected as one of the highly praised IEMs with DD + BA. I could not also help to include TRN STM as a survivor from the “for parts” bin. STM first made be laugh by the mid-high BA occupying most of the nozzle (vs. tiny “high” 30095 or similar “custom” BAs in this class of IEMs), but then STM sound was quite agreeable and the green (emerald-like) colour is nice, so here it is. The last, but not least, representing the older generation of DD + BA is CCA CA4. CA4 was subjectively slightly more preferable to my ears than similar ZSN and ZSN pro (while ZSN pro X sounded less agreeable to me and joined the part bin; IEM cruelty is still not a criminal offense, the last time I checked). Eight is a good number, while ZAX mentioned in some comparison with CCZ is in a different league.

Source: Tempotec E44 with Samsung S10 and Tempotec V1A as transports. Tempotec E44 has been selected for it excellent synergy with dynamic drivers. It helps with faster transients and crispiness and is very clean to make DDs sound tighter and more engaging. E44 is a balanced source, so all IEMs were tested with balanced cables.

Tips: Wide-bore (similar to Spiral dots) tips– with the simple idea of minimum sound attenuation by tips – were used for all IEMs other than CCZ. CCZ own “patented” tips were sufficiently wide-bore not to constrain their nozzles, their fit was nice, and thus they were used directly. I did try other tips after being less impressed with CCZ and made sure that the tips were not a factor.

Cables: Cables do matter! But then their job is just to conduct well and very importantly for me to feel comfortable. For the conductivity, all cables were below 0.4 Ohm (single 1.2 m wire), well below the values to matter for IEMs with the impedance of 16 Ohm and above, which were tested in this comparison (see the Table). For the fit, I prefer 16- (and lately 24-) core cables that are thick and that do not have plastic ear guides in order not to interfere with the best IEM fit/position in the ear. I do not hear any difference between copper, spc and silver. I did use the same “paragraph B” two-pin cable that fits all the connectors for direct one-on-one comparisons. Then for those who may think that cables can matter beyond the differences in conductivity, I caved in and did add a “graphene” cable extender (courtesy of Xinhs). Furthermore, I appended a specially designed antiparallel male-male graphene cable (again Xinhs totally unique creation, patents pending) not directly in the IEM circuit but to cancel any effects of quasiparasitic inductance and other unwanted audiophilic bias altogether.

These special cables assertively added signal maturity, resolution potential and overall total musicality, you know, I know, we know. Enough about cables!

Music: Being gentle on DDs, I started with piano (Sibelius by Leif Ove Andsnes) and marimba (Silence by Christoph Sietzen) music, all flac files. Then I recollected that I recently got Ultimate Demonstration Disk by Chesky and used Correnteza by Ana Caram for the demanding treble and more; the latter naturally dominated the comparison by its virtues and sheer beauty.



Brief comparison notes

Coffee Bean: Very good first impression. Nice feeling of spaciousness and some perception of a wide stage. On the limiting side is the marginally acceptable mid-bass: both in quantity and quality and associated tubbiness. The treble is quite surprisingly extended, but the quality of the treble is definitely limited: the DD struggles to deliver well-resolved overtones. The rubberized wings of the shells feel nice, they may be helpful for long-time wear (not my case). Tips are quite useful and interesting being somewhat unique. The cable, on the other hand, reminded me KZ of 3+ years ago and were put away right away not to hurt anyone’s feelings.

Emerald: Not much different from the Coffee Bean indeed as the first impression. Then hardly much different to the point: what is with the BA? To answer this question, I removed the top plate (after the NRA disassembly struggle, just the good word and a very hot plate did the job in 2 minutes!) and started with measuring the resistance of the drivers.

To my surprise, it looked like an open circuit on the BA. Then I disconnected one of the wires of the BA and compared the total resistance at the connectors: the same (!!) at (15.8 ± 0.2) Ohm. Then naturally, listening to one earpiece with the disconnected BA and the second “as is” did not show any difference: channel imbalance, etc. So the guys at CCZ decided not to spoil their good DD design and just added the BA as the decoration and for the higher asking price! As you could read out there” “nicely tuned custom BA”, and for CCZ “sound designers” the best-tuned BA is a dead BA! So much for the positive Emerald reviews out there… Perhaps, the budget saved by not using functional BAs was diverted for plentiful review samples! For those guys who genuinely liked Emerald as a part of their CHiFi experience- they should feel fortunate - any simple single DD, like EDX and now EDX pro will perfectly do J
Not that a single-DD implementation of Emerald is any bad, it just should not be worth more than $10 by any means! Then the Emerald top plate (I opted for blue) is reminiscent of some appliance and feel to me IKEA-like in its brutal frugality.

DQ6: In comparison to CCZ above? Well, not much of comparison to my ears. DQ6 offers so much more: less intrusive, less honky bass and so much more resolving, functional and engaging treble. True, treble can be a bit too much for some. I get a bit of this feeling in Correnteza, but then fatiguing but not unnatural. After all, to dampen treble a bit is so much easier rather than trying to enhance non-existent or to correct unnatural. Check @RikudouGoku mod for DQ6 –very helpful.

ZEX: I was surprised how noticeably more limited ZEX felt in comparison with DQ6. I did enjoy ZEX with E44 when I first got it, very decent and the shell design is so pleasing to my eyes. Then side-by-side with the coherent DQ6, ZEX is not totally helpless or undermined. Yet, in ZEX the DD does most of the job, assisted by “EST” in the treble in a more limited way. ZEX treble is mostly nice and definitely unique (that rigid suspended magnetic plate, that KZ opted to call “EST”, does some interesting job with overtones), but definitely less natural for some music reproduction, e.g. at the beginning of Correnteza. A bit to the defence of ZEX, for the less demanding piano music it can sound nice, and I can see that some may like it more compared to DQ6.

Lark: The DD sound of Lark is a bit in a different class, more punchy and tight, and then the BA is there when needed but less intrusive and to your face. Treble is nice, resolving, and close to DQ6 in quantity. Lark feels much more natural than ZEX, while DQ6 feels more coherent in many aspects. A close call for DQ6 vs. Lark for me. Then listening more: Lark sound is more gentle and pleasant while still resolving. DQ6 is more engaging and fun and a bit more affordable, as a decisive punch in this close battle for the top in this comparison.

STM: I do like STM sound that feels less DD (well, the BA is blocking most of the nozzle). Then the sound of the mid-high BA (?50019) is not intrusive, so to my ears STM sometimes felt preferable to Lark based on fast initial impressions. Though upon a closer direct comparison, less refinement of STM becomes noticeable. As well, many may object the gentle bass of STM, especially compared to a more punchy Lark.

CSN: The most bass-head IEM by far in this comparison. The bass is a bit overwhelming for me. Then the treble is quite reasonable: the BA is definitely there and does it job, but not quite overwhelming as in some (largely older) KZs, and definitely not a decoy as in Emerald. If bass is the preference, then CSN should win over Coffee Bean and Emerald, as well as the rest of the compared IEMs.

CA4: Still competitive to my ears, the BA is there and does it job for the V (or W) profile that works reasonably for me. Definitely, new DDs are more capable in tightness and punchiness and have a more extended range, but then I still would choose good old CA4 over new CCZs due to my subjective affinity to the BA sound.


Conclusions

With the recent amazing progress of ChiFI, many recent IEMs sound great for $20. The competition is fierce, while major innovations are really limited (some credit can be given to KZ for the “EST” efforts but much less so for the results, at least at the moment). Then there are many companies there to take an advantage of the available part bin to create their “premium products” out of thin air. Through the promotions, the “good words” are spread, and here we are with the Emerald, a single DD with the non-operating BA receiving all positive attention and then sold for $20-$25 instead of $10 or less… CCZ seems to be not the only company that uses BAs only (or largely) for the driver count. Enough of CCZ, after this and Plume, they should be done.

As for the rest of comparison, DQ6 really shine. The DD treble is there, and if the treble can feel a bit too much for you - the great @RikudouGoku’s mod is out there. ZEX feel less refined compared to DQ6, but the new driver there is real and can sound nice (though not necessarily all the time). Lark is definitely a capable nice hybrid that deserves its a bit higher price. STM is an interesting design with a somewhat unique and quite agreeable sound, a keeper for me. CSN can definitely be recommended for bassheads, and the BA does work in CSN, but tuned to be gentler not to overshadow the bassheadness, while adding a touch of sparkle and resolution. CA04 hold their own for me, the older DD is less capable and refined, but the good old KZ/CCA “V” (or W) still does a decent job to my ears.

A comprehensive and engrossing comparative presentation, PhonoPhi.

The disconnected BA in the CCZ Emerald raised my eyebrows and elicited a chuckle from my husband when I showed your findings to him. It'd be fun to hear or read what others have declared in their reviews about the positive effects on the treble the BAs have, if indeed this disconnection were true for every unit. It's a wicked thought, for sure, but I'm grinning as I tap this comment.

As for cables, other than differences in conductivity, the only other things that matter are plugs (naturally), aesthetics and ergonomics. Those antiparallel doohickeys to counteract quasiparasitic and other such multi-syllable pseudo-scientific oddities do nothing but add nonsense and variances to pollute your audio chain. (Tongue in cheek)

Oh! I'm glad you have Chesky's Ultimate Demonstration Disc. Rebecca Pidgeon's Spanish Harlem has always been my first track when testing for resolving capabilities and sibilance. Do you also have their Ultimate Headphone Demonstration Disc?

 

[voicemaster]

AZ09 update:

Can’t really recommend these at the end of the day. Connection dropouts are regular enough to be annoying when walking around outdoors (even in fairly sparsely populated areas, mind) and can be triggered by the natural swaying of the phone in my hand as I walk.

Not to mention the fact that they have an annoying habit of waking up and connecting to my phone (thus snatching audio focus) even when they are inside the charging case and the lid is closed. I’m ready to cut my losses (of around 20 dollars) on these I think.

Sure, my XM4s probably don’t offer 300 dollars worth of sound quality, but the TWS part is rock solid on those. That’s also, in part, what one is paying for I suppose.

Exactly the same thing happened to mine too. I just need to rest my hand behind my head and the connection will dropout for a brief moment with my bluetooth transmitter about 2 feet away. It was okay for desktop usage, but my biggest problem with it is the volume. The volume increment is too high in my case.
Hopefully the pro version is much better in connection and volume.

 

[unifutomaki]

Exactly the same thing happened to mine too. I just need to rest my hand behind my head and the connection will dropout for a brief moment with my bluetooth transmitter about 2 feet away. It was okay for desktop usage, but my biggest problem with it is the volume. The volume increment is too high in my case.
Hopefully the pro version is much better in connection and volume.

If only these companies would just build a good product from the get-go, there would be far less e-waste going around…

 

[SybilLance]

AZ09 update:

Can’t really recommend these at the end of the day. Connection dropouts are regular enough to be annoying when walking around outdoors (even in fairly sparsely populated areas, mind) and can be triggered by the natural swaying of the phone in my hand as I walk.

Not to mention the fact that they have an annoying habit of waking up and connecting to my phone (thus snatching audio focus) even when they are inside the charging case and the lid is closed. I’m ready to cut my losses (of around 20 dollars) on these I think.

Sure, my XM4s probably don’t offer 300 dollars worth of sound quality, but the TWS part is rock solid on those. That’s also, in part, what one is paying for I suppose.

Glad I haven't experienced any of these, and I've been using the AZ09 with the ZAX outside when gardening or inside while cooking or any of those things a retired senior citizen does, for months now (posted my impressions here last July, I think). Since the AZ09 utilizes AAC, I mainly use my dated iPhone 6+, through the Audioforge EQ app playing 16-44.1 flacs and 320 kbps mp3s as source. For Android (Poco X3 Pro) I've made AAC the default Bluetooth audio codec, then made sure the proper Bluetooth audio bit and sample rates (16-44.1) are switched on, all in developer options. The X3 Pro has good implementation of the AAC codec and also automatically enables HD Audio in developer options whenever a Bluetooth connection is established to an audio device. My Android music player is Neutron Player Pro.

So no dropouts whatsoever unless I leave my phone inside when I go out to the garden or I start to go beyond the threshold distance of ~10 meters between phone and the AZ09.

 

[SybilLance]

Sometimes unreliable bluetooth connections or frequent connection dropout problems occur between bluetooth TWS devices and phones that have been upgraded or updated to newer or latest Android versions. And oftentimes these could be fixed by rolling back the default Bluetooth Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP) version from 1.4 to 1.3 in developer options.

 

[unifutomaki]

Sometimes unreliable bluetooth connections or frequent connection dropout problems occur between bluetooth TWS devices and phones that have been upgraded or updated to newer or latest Android versions. And oftentimes these could be fixed by rolling back the default Bluetooth Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP) version from 1.4 to 1.3 in developer options.

I use an iPhone 12

 

[SybilLance]

I use an iPhone 12

Hmm...My husband does, too. The Pro Max. And he hasn't mentioned any such problem with his AZ09/ZAX, which he got even earlier than I did. To be fair he doesn't use his as much as I do mine; only when he's at his desk and using his laptop, with his phone beside it.

 

[r31ya]

Hopefully the AZ09 Pro with proper Qualcomm 3040 chip and hopefully good antenna and battery, will much better for daily use.

 

[PhonoPhi]

Wait i think CSN bass just about "ok" they're quite slow and have like 5db less bass than blon bl01 (both stock and foam mod)

I can agree that I would be the least qualified person to advise to bassheads. CSN was definitely most bass-intense in the discussed comparison. E44 helps with the bass tightness a bit, but the Lark is definitely better in tightness but not a basshead IEM

A comprehensive and engrossing comparative presentation, PhonoPhi.

The disconnected BA in the CCZ Emerald raised my eyebrows and elicited a chuckle from my husband when I showed your findings to him. It'd be fun to hear or read what others have declared in their reviews about the positive effects on the treble the BAs have, if indeed this disconnection were true for every unit. It's a wicked thought, for sure, but I'm grinning as I tap this comment.

As for cables, other than differences in conductivity, the only other things that matter are plugs (naturally), aesthetics and ergonomics. Those antiparallel doohickeys to counteract quasiparasitic and other such multi-syllable pseudo-scientific oddities do nothing but add nonsense and variances to pollute your audio chain. (Tongue in cheek)

Oh! I'm glad you have Chesky's Ultimate Demonstration Disc. Rebecca Pidgeon's Spanish Harlem has always been my first track when testing for resolving capabilities and sibilance. Do you also have their Ultimate Headphone Demonstration Disc?

Thank you for your kind words.
I still have Emerald and can do more tests, but it started to feel antithetical - instead of enjoying the music trying to prove that someone did not what they should...

If someone would not have a chuckle about the "antiparallel alignment", they are welcome to contact me for more details

Exactly, the Spanish Harlem is my go to for internal comparisons.

Somehow I did not know about the separate "headphone" disk, and now I got it, thanks to you

 

[whitete]

How's the connection quality? I just ordered the pro version 2 days ago which I hope has better connection as it has the new Qualcomm 3040 chip and also AptX. I have the original AZ09 and the connection cutting out alot. It was unusable when I use it inside food court in a mall.
I also ordered the TRN BT30 and the official store in AE sent me the wrong item (BT3S).

I’ve had the pro version for about a week and the BT connection is much better. I like the AZ09 Pro better than the BT20s.