[esfrost]

Okay, from the same seller. Spec list for the ZS5.

 

[vladstef]

I am very interested in this Knowles 30095 BA. Rose Mini2 (around 100USD) has the same one and people are mostly ok with it, some say it's sibilant, some that it extends well and isn't bad at all. ZS5 now offers 2 of these BAs (at 5 times lower price, go figure...), it is probably going to fix some of the irregularities that ZS5 v1 had with highs. Obviously, if things aren't properly tuned, they could put 5 of these BAs and achieve nothing. They are both in the nozzle with nothing to block their sound, I am very optimistic. Same goes for ZS6.

 

[Skullophile]

Ok so I tried complys with my ZS5 V1 and it sounded a little better up top.
I still have to take them apart and disconnect the BA that's not in the nozzle. Because I said I was going to. Here we go.



So I cracked open the shell with some tiny screwdrivers. Then removed that square piece of paper.


At the bottom there's what looks like a ba sticking out of that blue gunk. So I disconnected those two wires going I to it.


Two wires sticking out now. A green and a red.


Taped the wired to the plastic and taped the shell back on.

Plugged them in and....


They still work and I don't notice any significant difference between left and right. Later on I will disconnect the wires from the dd that's not in the nozzle. Since it might make sense if the sound is coming from the nozzle only.

 

[VinceHill24]

I am very interested in this Knowles 30095 BA. Rose Mini2 (around 100USD) has the same one and people are mostly ok with it, some say it's sibilant, some that it extends well and isn't bad at all. ZS5 now offers 2 of these BAs (at 5 times lower price, go figure...), it is probably going to fix some of the irregularities that ZS5 v1 had with highs. Obviously, if things aren't properly tuned, they could put 5 of these BAs and achieve nothing. They are both in the nozzle with nothing to block their sound, I am very optimistic. Same goes for ZS6.

The BA fyi is not a Knowles BA. This is a very common case in China IEM scene. Many manufacturer do not actually use Knowles BA in their IEM. Most are copycat BA which most of the time goes by the same name and there are currently 2 biggest BA manufacturer in China whereby many brands actually uses their BA and some of the BA code is actually named after Knowles BA model. Very blatant copy indeed but many in Chinese forums have said the performances of these China made BA are not up to par with a real Knowles BA but because they are cheap so a lot of time these Chinese IEM manufacturer just uses them instead of Knowles. Ever wonder what happened to Magaosi which had kinda like disappeared ? One of the reason is coz some buyer decided to open up the shell and when they realised the BA is not the Knowles BA as advertised so there they go reputation down the drain. So i think KZ is being careful for not making false claims on their BA driver coz it's not stated that it is Knowled anywhere. Some other cheap brands like **** which claims that they uses Knowles makes me feel doubtful too now.

 

[snip3r77]

I am very interested in this Knowles 30095 BA. Rose Mini2 (around 100USD) has the same one and people are mostly ok with it, some say it's sibilant, some that it extends well and isn't bad at all. ZS5 now offers 2 of these BAs (at 5 times lower price, go figure...), it is probably going to fix some of the irregularities that ZS5 v1 had with highs. Obviously, if things aren't properly tuned, they could put 5 of these BAs and achieve nothing. They are both in the nozzle with nothing to block their sound, I am very optimistic. Same goes for ZS6.

They need to tune it nicely. Hope they make it better with the ZS6

 

[snip3r77]

The BA fyi is not a Knowles BA. This is a very common case in China IEM scene. Many manufacturer do not actually use Knowles BA in their IEM. Most are copycat BA which most of the time goes by the same name and there are currently 2 biggest BA manufacturer in China whereby many brands actually uses their BA and some of the BA code is actually named after Knowles BA model. Very blatant copy indeed but many in Chinese forums have said the performances of these China made BA are not up to par with a real Knowles BA but because they are cheap so a lot of time these Chinese IEM manufacturer just uses them instead of Knowles. Ever wonder what happened to Magaosi which had kinda like disappeared ? One of the reason is coz some buyer decided to open up the shell and when they realised the BA is not the Knowles BA as advertised so there they go reputation down the drain. So i think KZ is being careful for not making false claims on their BA driver coz it's not stated that it is Knowled anywhere. Some other cheap brands like **** which claims that they uses Knowles makes me feel doubtful too now.

Luckily didn't buy the Magaosi

 

[Octave0]

KZ ES3 Arrived this morning, never listened to them yet ....

 

[TheWongWrong]

KZ ES3 Arrived this morning, never listened to them yet ....

You've got your ZSTs plugged in wrongly friend

 

[Octave0]

You've got your ZSTs plugged in wrongly friend

Lol I know I just wanted to take a quick pic with them next to the ES3.

 

[skeej]

Dang, I already ordered..

I'm kinda bummed because I ordered the ES3 on the 24th of August already, and according to the tracking number it's still "pre-advised". So basically my ES3 is still lying in some GB warehouse while it's being sold for quite a bit less at this moment. Oh well.

One thing I know for sure is I'm probably not gonna resist getting the ZS6, but will restrain myself and wait for a sale to pop up

 

[TheWongWrong]

Lol I know I just wanted to take a quick pic with them next to the ES3.

Ah that's good then. I was prepared to witness you having a revelation.

 

[Francisk]

KZ ES3 Arrived this morning, never listened to them yet ....

Do let us know how the ES3 compares to the ZST once you plug in the ZST correctly to ensure that the sound is not "out of phase" (hollow sounding)

 

[Octave0]

Ah that's good then. I was prepared to witness you having a revelation.

I detach my iem's from the cable & store them, I just grabbed a cable & stuck them on quick for a pic lol.

I had the ZSE come last week had bad channel imbalance only one side worked Gearbest sent another unit out, hope these ES3's are without defect.

 

[Modulus]

Just as a heads up. Outside of some flash sales that offer more enticing discounts for very limited quantities of products Gearbest puts its products on sale, most of them, every other week.

If you miss a particular sale of theirs it's not a big deal and their sales discounts aren't spectacular anyway. If you want my advice, hold your money until someone reviews them unless the $10 are completely expendable to you.

I would agree with this. I bought the ZS5 when they were on presale, from one of the big Aliexpress sellers. I paid something like 32 euro, including silver cable. This was a good enough deal that I jumped into the pre-sale. But the price almost immediately dropped down to 20 and now 17 very quickly. There's no point getting a pre-sale item imo.

Another thing I will add while I'm at it. Why can't KZ make the silver cable with in-line controls? The rubbery, sticky, microphonic cable is the biggest weakness of their IEMs. I really hate it and don't understand why this is not something they would address.

I've been using my ZS5 daily, cycling 5km to work and back every day, and longer rides on weekends. The sticky cable is horrible, and the controls not particularly reliable, as much as I love the sound of the IEM itself.

If you're listening KZ, please update your cables. I would pay 10 euro for the sliver cable with in-line controls

 

[Slater]

The BA fyi is not a Knowles BA. This is a very common case in China IEM scene. Many manufacturer do not actually use Knowles BA in their IEM. Most are copycat BA which most of the time goes by the same name and there are currently 2 biggest BA manufacturer in China whereby many brands actually uses their BA and some of the BA code is actually named after Knowles BA model. Very blatant copy indeed but many in Chinese forums have said the performances of these China made BA are not up to par with a real Knowles BA but because they are cheap so a lot of time these Chinese IEM manufacturer just uses them instead of Knowles. Ever wonder what happened to Magaosi which had kinda like disappeared ? One of the reason is coz some buyer decided to open up the shell and when they realised the BA is not the Knowles BA as advertised so there they go reputation down the drain. So i think KZ is being careful for not making false claims on their BA driver coz it's not stated that it is Knowled anywhere. Some other cheap brands like **** which claims that they uses Knowles makes me feel doubtful too now.

FYI, KZ makes their own BA drivers. Their logo is even laser engraved on the driver body. Unlike some other IEM manufacturers who claim to be using Knowles drivers, KZ is very open and honest about using their own drivers.