[nadezhda 6004]

I've just received spinfit CP100 which I had high hopes for. Nope. It did not improve the sound in ZS 5 and 6. What a pity.
BTW, I've removed the foam from ZS3 and put it to ZS5. It did not improve the sound. Shall I use tea-bags instead as was recommended at Russian websites?

 

[WalterTorino]

I've just received spinfit CP100 which I had high hopes for. Nope. It did not improve the sound in ZS 5 and 6. What a pity.

Thank you! Ive just thought about this spinfits. Seems like better to forget about it Actually, i like my QKZ's foam ear cups - 5 pairs for only few dollars. Nothing unbelieveble but i like how they fit in my ears, make HF a little bit smoother and give some more volume to a bass. KZ ZS6.

 

[WalterTorino]

nadezhda 6004,
tea-bags is not a solvation to the problem, but you can try it. Some people say that it realy help. For me it worthless.
But I am one of the guys from Russian websites, so lets see what others will say about it

 

[Makahl]

nadezhda 6004,
tea-bags is not a solvation to the problem, but you can try it. Some people say that it realy help. For me it worthless.
But I am one of the guys from Russian websites, so lets see what others will say about it

In my experience, each tea brand has your own material. Usually, on the cheap ones it's all about paper-ish like this one over this. So each one will act differently with the acoustic impedance and how the peaks are going to be controlled. Also, you always can add layers to get higher acoustic impedance.

So, IMO the material's quality is the most important part for taming the peaks and get a good result. I've been using silica gel bags like this to tame the ZST's peak at the treble and it works better than the tea-bag which I got here.

 

[WalterTorino]

In my experience, each tea brand has your own material. Usually, on the cheap ones it's all about paper-ish like this one over this. So each one will act differently with the acoustic impedance and how the peaks are going to be controlled. Also, you always can add layers to get higher acoustic impedance.

So, IMO the material's quality is the most important part for taming the peaks and get a good result. I've been using silica gel bags like this to tame the ZST's peak at the treble and it works better than the tea-bag which I got here.

I agree with you. I didn't think about material quality of tea-bags. For sure there is huge difference btwn them.
Thank you for your advice, i'll try it

 

[Slater]

One doubt. I had buyed a Xioami piston colorful edition on gearbest more than a year Ago. At the time i only had KZ ate. The pistons 3 Where praised so well that i expected them to be on par or best than my KZ. I did some research and the pistons colorful edition should sound the same or close to original pistons 3. Well, i was Very dissapointed when they arrived. They Just sounded bad, with a Very low volume and with no punch. Anyone listened to these colorful Edition ? I heard someone talk well about pistons fresh Edition and It made me remind this. Maybe i got s falsefied piston ? They sounded so cheap by the time that i have never touched them again, and i think i lost them. They were Very cheap $$, so i was'nt actually mad, bit they were supossed to sound Very good. And they sounded Just like a earbud that comes with a ordinary smartphone. Like the Samsungs That comes with Galaxy S3, s4 etc. This is How they Would sound ? Or maybe New pistons deserve a bet. They could make a good gift.

I don't know much about the regular Pistons (2 vs 3 and the like), but I have read more than 1 person saying that 1 of the 2 (ie either the Piston 2 or the Piston 3) is poor.

It could be possible that you have fake ones, even though you purchased from Gearbest. Piston is a commonly faked IEM. And Gearbest was selling fake Xiaomi Pro HD not too long ago (they did not know, and since corrected the issue). The point is that it can happen to anyone. I ended up with counterfeit Sennheiser Momentums last year.

As far as the Xiaomi Fresh Edition, I have a set from Gearbest and once you remove the foam plug in the nozzle, they sound pretty good. Well worth the $3.99 I paid for them, but they aren't going to blow you away or anything like that. There's much better IEMs available, but you'll pay more than $4.

 

[Slater]

Don't know how legit this is, but I just found this earphone on eBay called the QKZ CK5 and it looks EXACTLY like the KZ ES3 but rebranded as "QKZ".
Do you know what's crazy though? Apparently they only cost $3! That's right, three bucks!!!

Regardless whether they're legit or not, I'm gonna pull the trigger and buy them just cause it's only $3. Once I get them, I will report back on here whether if it's fake or real. I'm really hoping on the latter as the original ES3 costs like 5x the price of that, so $3 would basically be considered free

Here's the link if anyone else wants to take the risk: https://www.ebay.com/itm/QKZ-CK5-Sp...dphones-Transparent-Bass-Earbuds/382289320952

I forget what those are, but they aren't ES3 rebrands. You can find them on Aliexpress. They are just single dynamic driver IEMs, and the cable isn't removable even though they look like removable KZ cables.

 

[Slater]

Hey y'all, long time lurker here. I'll get into a proper intro later but I'm finally breaking silence to ask a modding question.

I know the ZS3 uses a 6mm driver, and thus can accept other 6mm dynamics as drop-in replacements. Is there any reason they wouldn't fit the Knowles SR-32453-000? It appears to be a full-range entry-level balanced armature in a 6.4mm round package with a perfect front cover for accommodating the sound tube.

https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/knowles/SR-32453-000/423-1406-ND/5414411

In theory it could be a very cheap, easy, and interesting way to get started modding.

ZS3 uses 7mm driver, not 6mm.

And there is room to fit a 8mm driver without mods to the 'driver holder', and possibly room for a 9mm driver if you cut out the 'driver holder'.

You can also replace the stock heat shrink tubing 'sound tube' with a proper sound tube/nozzle, as @CoiL has done:

 

[NeonHD]

I forget what those are, but they aren't ES3 rebrands. You can find them on Aliexpress. They are just single dynamic driver IEMs, and the cable isn't removable even though they look like removable KZ cables.

Yeah they're actually called the fonge T01, I just thought they were the ES3 cause they're shaped really similarly.

 

[Slater]

Yeah they're actually called the fonge T01, I just thought they were the ES3 cause they're shaped really similarly.

Well, it's not a total loss. I have the Fonge T01, and it's not all that bad for a low-tier, single dynamic v-shaped IEM. Give them a try - perhaps you'll like them.

Although mine has a temperamental connection at the strain relief on 1 of the shells. It intermittently cuts out, but only when wiggled with some effort though. I rarely use them, but if they poop out I won't shed any tears as they were only a few dollars.

 

[CoiL]

I also have 2 pairs of Fonge T01... bought shells for modding (they fit ~10mm DD nicely and have even room for 2nd smaller DD), but unfortunately fit is not so good for me (I have small ears).
Soundwise they are L-shaped, muddy mids and soft highs, detail resolution is quite bad actually. Soundstage and imaging is mediocre.
But for 2$ - LOL, I`m amazed they work!

Sorry about OT.

 

[nadezhda 6004]

So, IMO the material's quality is the most important part for taming the peaks and get a good result. I've been using silica gel bags like this to tame the ZST's peak at the treble and it works better than the tea-bag which I got here.

Do you mean you take the fabric from this silica gel bag? How many layers?

 

[snip3r77]

I hope that the ZXR will have a more balanced sound and better than the ZS5/6 without the sibilance.

 

[Makahl]

Do you mean you take the fabric from this silica gel bag? How many layers?

yes! Only one layer at the nozzle. But, I think the one which I linked previously isn't exactly the same fabric as mine. The one which I'm using now has bigger pores: picture

 

[Wiljen]

No sign of DHL yet, I am wondering if they took Martin Luther King Day Holiday. The USPS did, but Fedex didn't so its a toss up.