[PhonoPhi]

Really? I thought the cyan-shelled ZSN had a black back (same as the black-shelled ZSN)?

So you’re saying:

1. Black ZSN has black cover with brushed finish
2. Purple ZSN has silver cover with polished finish
3. Cyan ZSN has silver cover with sand blasted finish

I have only cyan and purple ZSNs.
The cyan plate is brushed and is rather grey to me than black (as in nice work of making it black by @mbwilson).

Here is a fast shot of purple (left), and cyan (middle) in comparison with CCA C10 (right) above.

 

[mbwilson111]

Really? I thought the cyan-shelled ZSN had a black back (same as the black-shelled ZSN)?

I have only cyan and purple ZSNs.
The cyan plate is brushed and is rather grey to me than black (as in nice work of making it black by @mbwilson).

Here is a fast shot of purple (left), and cyan (middle) in comparison with CCA C10 (right) above.

I should have taken a photo of my husbands @HungryPanda black ZSN next to my cyan when they arrived. The plates were the exact same... what I would call a dark grey. I would not even call the body of the black ZSN a true black as it is translucent. To me the plate and the body of the black blend together nicely. The grey with the cyan doesn't work for me ... I think silver would have been great or black... just not that in-between grey. But then, I am happy with non metal face-plates in pretty jewel-like colors I like the shiny silver with the purple but would have preferred the entire iem to be the purple.

 

[Podster]

Yeah, if you like the ZS3, you’ll like the ZS4 for sure. It improves the ZS3 in every way, and is like the ZS3 on steroids.

And don’t get me wrong, I personally like the ZS3 and own more than 1 pair. Heck, they were available as cheap as $4.99 at one point (which you can’t beat for that price).

I always felt that probably half of the complaints were really due to the source though.

With the foam mod, a better wired source, and amping, the ZS3 is actually a nice sounding IEM. When run from a low power source or with the Bluetooth cables, it sounds dull and lifeless.

The ZS3 came out around the same time as the original KZ Bluetooth cables, and a lot of people were running them on that crappy BT cable for working out and such. It was not a good matchup though, which I think contributed to the disappointment by many.

The tuning is dominated by bass, which is fine for some genres but not others.

Man, talk about late to the party, this thread moves faster than a California brush fire! You very well could be right on the ZS3 as I never gave them a fair chance before giving them away.
I use an amp with the 4’s most the time unless I’m running them balanced on my Opus #1 which I never did with my 3’s so I may have let that one get away. The ZSN Pro! I will say KZ themselves almost move as fast as this dang thread but I’ve just decided to back off and just stay here for fan support

 

[avitron142]

Does anyone know how the Penon impedance adapters work? Does it decrease hiss, or increase?

I can't tell if it's a cheaper version of the IEMatch or exactly the opposite.

 

[OopsWrongPlanet]

... and only one screw holding it.

Yeah, I'm waiting for the "4 screws holding" model myself.
I just have to figure it out once and for all how the number of screws and colour coordination make an IEM sound better.
LOL

 

[PhonoPhi]

Does anyone know how the Penon impedance adapters work? Does it decrease hiss, or increase?

I can't tell if it's a cheaper version of the IEMatch or exactly the opposite.

IEMatch is some version of a voltage divider (several resistors).
Impedance adapters, such as sold by Penon, use a single resistor to increase impedance.

IEMatch does a great job in essentially eliminating hiss when low-impedance multi-BA IEMs (such KZ AS 10) are powered by high-impedance sources (such as smartphones).

I ordered few impedance adapters last month, but still have not recieved them - slow boats ...

 

[avitron142]

IEMatch is some version of a voltage divider (several resistors).
Impedance adapters, such as sold by Penon, use a single resistor to increase impedance.

IEMatch does a great job in essentially eliminating hiss when low-impedance multi-BA IEMs (such KZ AS 10) are powered by high-impedance sources (such as smartphones).

I ordered few impedance adapters last month, but still have not recieved them - slow boats ...

Cool! Thanks.

I'm just worried the IEMatch may not be enough - the source I have is very hissy. Tube amp putting 2W per channel, even over-ears are crackling.

 

[1clearhead]

I don't know if what they're selling overseas are the same as the ZSN PRO's in China, but these are the ones I'm trying to grab!
The back plate is "green" and tuned differently from the other 3 ZSN's! ...Say what?

Chinese statement


English translation


Green Edition ZSN PRO's (bottom right)...while the other 3 are just original ZSN.

*Courtesy from taobao shopping website

-Clear

 

[PhonoPhi]

Cool! Thanks.

I'm just worried the IEMatch may not be enough - the source I have is very hissy. Tube amp putting 2W per channel, even over-ears are crackling.

IEMatch has two modes and should work in this case, I believe (I do not have any powerful amps though).
The only catch is dissipating (wasting) some portion of the power.

 

[mbwilson111]

The back plate is "green" and tuned differently from the other 3 ZSN's! ...Say what?

So they saw my attempt a few weeks ago to color mine green? But that was for my cyan ZSN...this one appears t have a black body.

 

[Slater]

ZSN Pro Ultra Edition:

- Genuine Carbon Fiber Faceplates
- Tuned more neutral
- Limited Edition 1 of 1



Not sure if I want to put the carbon backs on the purple or black ZSN.

I might engrave the backs too, as I have access to a CNC diamond engraving machine. I just need to figure out something cool to engrave on them (maybe the KZ logo, or simply L and R).

 

[B9Scrambler]

ZSN Pro Ultra Edition:

- Genuine Carbon Fiber Faceplates
- Tuned more neutral
- Limited Edition 1 of 1



Not sure if I want to put the carbon backs on the purple or black ZSN.

I might engrave the backs too, as I have access to a CNC diamond engraving machine. I just need to figure out something cool to engrave on them (maybe the KZ logo, or simply L and R).

That's sick! You should carve "Slater" in them Make them a proper custom.

 

[Slater]

That's sick! You should carve "Slater" in them Make them a proper custom.

You don't think either of these would look cool engraved on the face plates?

 

[pbui44]

ZSN Pro Ultra Edition:

- Genuine Carbon Fiber Faceplates
- Tuned more neutral
- Limited Edition 1 of 1



Not sure if I want to put the carbon backs on the purple or black ZSN.

I might engrave the backs too, as I have access to a CNC diamond engraving machine. I just need to figure out something cool to engrave on them (maybe the KZ logo, or simply L and R).

I would have them laser engrave “Mine, B**ch!” in Gothic Revival font.

 

[B9Scrambler]

You don't think either of these would look cool engraved on the face plates?

Either of those would be cool too. Old school logo gets my vote, lol. Maybe you could do that on one side and your user name on the other.