[Vidal]

You should connect line out to any line in but not phono which has a preamplifier stage and is for use for signals coming from turntables if I am not mistaken.

Most if not all high end standalone DAC as well pro-grade PC soundcards don't have built-in amplifiers, they just convert a digital signal to an electrical one which gets amplified in another device you connect them to, for example my lovely ESI Juli@ card.

Context to this discussion is also all the crazy statements made by Ruben in the last few pages...

As for the ZST issue, I've decommissioned mine as well as most of my other KZs it because they don't hold a candle to my better IEMs on my desktop setup, they scale up OK on lower end devices where my better IEMs can't fully express their potential however. YMMV.

 
The gold line outs on that card are 'RCA phono sockets' - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RCA_connector 
 
So you're following Ruben round trashing his opinions with nothing to add to the discussion? Grow up! Nothing Ruben has said seems crazy to me but you're behaviour certainly seems that way.

 

[chickenmoon]

Take over this discussion to the Sound Science board -which none of you would actually- and discuss further over there. The many audio engineers etc. who post over there would be happy to explain and not find my statements to be crazy at all chickenmoon...

What I find crazy is that you say that all sources are good enough, you just need good earphones invoking thousands dollars cables craze and the like to dismiss the notion that better source and amplication hardware yelds better sound from some earphones but perhaps i have completely misread you.

 

[chickenmoon]

The gold line outs on that card are 'RCA phono sockets' - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RCA_connector

They might be called like that but if you look in the back of any integrated amp or receiver you'l see plenty of those RCA sockets with generally only a pair of them being an actual phono socket.

 

[BWAS1000]

ED10s use 6mm nozzles. I found some Foam tips on Amazon. About $9 for 6 pairs.

Should the 5mm tips fit the ED10, and if I use the small tips on the ED10, and every other IEM I use, ever, should I get the small tips there too?

 

[Lotmom]

Hello Head-Fi'ers! I recently bought a pair of KZ ZST Candy Edition headphones, here are my impressions.
 
First, I'll start with the negatives, But don't get me wrong, I quite like these IEMs. firstly, The cables can be extremely hard to unplug from the earpieces, which for a removeable cable, kinda defeats the purpose. To some, these IEMs look a little Gaudy, but I won't really consider that a negative as it is all opinion. and the last thing, which really is just a gripe, is that there are no markings on the actual earpieces for Left or Right, which can be a little confusing.
 
Now for the positives. Let me preface this; these are my first pair of "good" IEMs. I've listened to the cheapest of the cheap all the way to the slightly less cheap of the cheap, but I have to say, these are the best I have owned. The bass is nice and punchy, the trebles are not too harsh, but very well defined. They drive quite well from my phone (Lg G3) and even better from my DAP (Fiio X1). I am in the process of tracking down my lost Fiio E11 amp, and will put up an update when I find it. I do find that sometimes higher (freddie Mercury) and slightly lower vocals can be a bit recessed, but nothing too bad.
 
Overall, for the $22CAD I payed for these, they are an absolute steal!

 

[rad7]

  Hello Head-Fi'ers! I recently bought a pair of KZ ZST Candy Edition headphones, here are my impressions.
 
First, I'll start with the negatives, But don't get me wrong, I quite like these IEMs. firstly, The cables can be extremely hard to unplug from the earpieces, which for a removeable cable, kinda defeats the purpose. To some, these IEMs look a little Gaudy, but I won't really consider that a negative as it is all opinion. and the last thing, which really is just a gripe, is that there are no markings on the actual earpieces for Left or Right, which can be a little confusing.
 
Now for the positives. Let me preface this; these are my first pair of "good" IEMs. I've listened to the cheapest of the cheap all the way to the slightly less cheap of the cheap, but I have to say, these are the best I have owned. The bass is nice and punchy, the trebles are not too harsh, but very well defined. They drive quite well from my phone (Lg G3) and even better from my DAP (Fiio X1). I am in the process of tracking down my lost Fiio E11 amp, and will put up an update when I find it. I do find that sometimes higher (freddie Mercury) and slightly lower vocals can be a bit recessed, but nothing too bad.
 
Overall, for the $22CAD I payed for these, they are an absolute steal!

Thank you for your review! I ordered mine today, paid $20 on Amazon. It is cheaper by $3 on Gearbest, but I did not want to wait for 3 weeks to get them 

  I am also a bit worried about the color of these, hope they are not too gaudy. I've heard many people complain about the stock cable too. KZ sells an upgraded cable that is supposed to be better (https://goo.gl/4fm1L7), but I think it doesn't make sense to spend another $8 for the cable. The whole point of most KZ headphones is to buy the best bang-for-the-buck i.e.m.s out there.

 

[ricemanhk]

  Thank you for your review! I ordered mine today, paid $20 on Amazon. It is cheaper by $3 on Gearbest, but I did not want to wait for 3 weeks to get them 

  I am also a bit worried about the color of these, hope they are not too gaudy. I've heard many people complain about the stock cable too. KZ sells an upgraded cable that is supposed to be better (https://goo.gl/4fm1L7), but I think it doesn't make sense to spend another $8 for the cable. The whole point of most KZ headphones is to buy the best bang-for-the-buck i.e.m.s out there.

Acoustically the upgraded cables don't sound that different to the stock ones.  But comfort-wise they are indeed better than the stock, and for $8 bucks still pretty cheap as a spare cable to use when the stock one breaks, which it will eventually.  Getting it as a bundle is usually cheaper than getting it separately later, and I haven't seen too many places sell the stock cable as a stand-alone replacement item.  For your reference, on their taobao store the ZST stock cable w/mic is listed for 20 RMB (2.9 USD) vs 55 RMB (8 USD) for the silver one.

 

[khighly]

Does This iem is better than the expensive iem like sennheiser,byerdyanamic,or etc.. Cuz your description on zst colorful is just pissing me off,does the sound really good? Or better than campfire audio layla huh?

I can't really comment on those headphones since I don't have any and likely never will.

However, if someone tells you that the ZST's are bad, they're deaf or lying.

If you spend a week lisltening to the ZST's, your brain will turn them into priceless IEM's. I just tried with Pearl Jam - Soon Forget again and by the end of the first song with my eyes closed I could easily well which way his head was moving and the intricate reflections off of different parts of the ear. It really is wild.

I'd be interested in blind tests of the ZST versus something comparable in sound signature in the Campfire Audio line.

 

[zabunny94]

Oh come on now Ruben, they could be magic stickers:rolleyes: Everyone remember the magic stones http://www.stereotimes.com/acc120211.shtml :blink: I've often wondered just how much R&D can go into a 5 foot piece of copperh34r: My personal limit has always been $50 because at $50.01 I start to become skeptical I sure wish my colored ZST's would get here

Just a while ago, someone in Indonesian audio group saw a store repackaged ZST and rename it as Z2C and price it at around $55(IDR 750.000). Its not even an official rebrand, just taking out ZST from its package, print a cardboard box with"hi res" logo(I suspect illegally) and call it a day.

What's even funnier is that same store also sells qkz w1 pro for $20, even though you can get it locally for $5. And you can get blocked in their instagram if you mention KZ ZST

 

[Mus1c]

I can't really comment on those headphones since I don't have any and likely never will.


However, if someone tells you that the ZST's are bad, they're deaf or lying.


If you spend a week lisltening to the ZST's, your brain will turn them into priceless IEM's. I just tried with Pearl Jam - Soon Forget again and by the end of the first song with my eyes closed I could easily well which way his head was moving and the intricate reflections off of different parts of the ear. It really is wild.


I'd be interested in blind tests of the ZST versus something comparable in sound signature in the Campfire Audio line.

since you say that i will buy the zst.

 

[Lotmom]

I can't believe I forgot this, but I bought these from Penon audio! Arrived at my front door within a week and a half, and even came with a little penon Velcro strap! I'd highly suggest getting them from there

 

[VShaft]

Just wanted to add my 2 cents to the "to amp or not to amp" discussion, since I have been in the same situation as the original poster of that question.
 
To me, the following is indeed the truth: I do need an amp to make full use of my KZ IEM's.
 
Why? Well, because I've got a crappy source. It's a Ruizu X02. And bless the little guy for what it can do, having its pricing in mind. It plays whatever you throw at him, has extendable memory, and a battery that lasts forever. It can drive any IEM loud enough, but leaves a lot wanting in the sound quality department. Only I didn't know that at first.
 
I bought my first ever KZ, an ATE-S, and plugged it un-amped to my Ruizu. It sounded okay. Definitely better than my previous IEM. A couple of days later I plugged them into my laptop for the first time, and whoa! A night and day difference - and that's with whatever basic DAC HP put in there. I was blown away, and realized how bad my poor Ruizu sounded.
 
So I did some searching, and eventually got to FiiO A1. I bought it as the most affordable solution to my immediate needs.
 
Again, the most basic of amps. And yet, again a night and day difference when paired with the Ruizu. The A1 is amp only (no DAC), and I know amps should not alter the sound signature. But, the FiiO does that to an extent, which in turn makes my Ruizu sound smoother and fuller (I don't know how to describe sound in proper terms yet). The bass has more presence, is finally actually felt, the mids are more pleasant, and the highs are not as harsh. The whole sound signature is simply - better. Personally, I'd never go back to listening the Ruizu un-amped. It's torture. The A1 makes a difference even on the laptop, though less noticeable.
 
I know, it's obvious that what I really need here is a better DAP, and I also realize that on a multi-hundred dollar DAPs/audio setups there's no need for amps. But, frankly, I don't think there are many out there who'd use their $500 DAP with a $5 IEM, so I guess there's a lot more Benjies and Ruizus paired with KZs, than there are iBassos, Aunes and Cayins. And to the former, an affordable portable amp is not a bad investment (and you can always use it even when you upgrade).

 

[Saoshyant]

If you can afford something like the Fiio M3 or xDuoo X2, they're both relatively inexpensive and should be more than sufficient for the task.  I'm sure there are other inexpensive suggestions, too.

 

[loomisjohnson]

   
That what has been most impressive about them for me. A nice step above everything else KZ currently offers in that regard especially.

got in a little more listening time with the zst. and can better opine that they are the most technically accomplished kz, in the sense of having the best detail retrieval and layering/soundstage. because they're so immersive, they make even familiar recordings sound fresh and engaging. i do wish that they had more midrange presence--male vox and electric guitars in particular are a bit reticient and lack some body. still, these hold up quite well against the stars of the $30-40 hybrid class. now, i'm still not sure if they'll displace the ed9 as my favorite kz--the ed9 is still the most organic and natural sounding--and the zs3 has less detail/refinement but more oomph, but the zst is definitely on another sonic level than previous releases.

 

[chompchomps]

Look what came in the mail! 

 
Time to give this a go. Ordered the purple tho. bummer the carbon ones came. If i like it might just order one from gearbest or when theres a sale! 
 
If anyone is curious or does not know, the silver cables have a memory portion at the usual position. and im glad the KZ came with starline tips pre-installed! 
 
Loving the soundstage thus far!