[courierdriver]

I haven't followed the Chi-Fi releases in a while and I'm looking for a new set of IEMs. I would like to purchase something with a similar fit to the KZ ZSN/ZS5 (as the KZ ZS10 fit me rather poorly) but with a better soundstage and overall better audio quality. Would the KZ ZS10 Pro or the KZ ZSX Terminator be good IEMs in my situation? Or do you have other recommendations for other KZ IEMs or even other brands?

I will try to help you out but I need some more info from you. First of all...what kind of genres of music do you mostly listen to? There is NO SUCH THING, as an earphone that "does it all the best". If you only listen to a specific genre or certain songs, it's easier to find the one iem that gives you the most enjoyment from that genre or select set of songs. If you like multiple genres (like I do), then you might wanna get several different sets to use when switching genres. Also, you don't mention the kind of sound signature that you like. Do you prefer bassy and warm, or highly detailed but more subdued in the bass? Forward midrange or laid back? Detailed treble or smooth with a big soundstage?
Edit: From what you have said in your post, fit seems to be a big priority. The ZS10 PRO shell is near identical to your ZSN/PRO, so you would definitely like the ZS10 PRO for comfort.

 

[Slater]

And I am now dangerously close to picking up a balanced cable for the ZSX just to see what happens with the ES100 in balanced mode.

Just remember that you must never plug or unplug the balanced cable to/from the ES100 while music is playing. Only do it while the unit is off or the music is paused. Otherwise, you can and will permanently damage the ES100.

 

[baskingshark]

Just remember that you must never plug or unplug the balanced cable to/from the ES100 while music is playing. Only do it while the unit is off or the music is paused. Otherwise, you can and will permanently damage the ES100.

Hmm that's interesting, does this apply to all DAC/AMPs or only the ES100? Is it due to a surge of current?

 

[Light - Man]

I don't think the comment to which you replied made much sense, he said don't buy the KPE you'll regret it, instead go for its sidegrade the KXXS. Ahem.

Find a signature you like, on the cheap, is a good idea. If you like Harman target you'll like the KPE/KXXS. You can try a cheaper moondrop to get a taste for example.

You might prefer the clarity of the T2 (or **** V2 rev 3 for more bass and less treble)

Or v-shape might be your thing (try KZ ZS7 to get a taste of it)

Once you know what you prefer, you can look for curves that are similar, it doesn't define timbre nor many other aspects, but gives you an idea of what *not to* buy at least.

Hey Citral, do you still have the V2 rev 3? I have it about a week now and find it very good with foam tips.

I should have the Blon hype-train edition next week and am curious to see if it lives up to all the recent excitement..........................

 

[citral23]

Hey Citral, do you still have the V2 rev 3? I have it about a week now and find it very good with foam tips.

I should have the Blon hype-train edition next week and am curious to see if it lives up to all the recent excitement..........................

I have it, but don't use it much, I use earbuds 90% of the time at work now and only take the V2 out when I need more isolation... which it doesn't really provide lol.

I still like its globally balanced tuning (I don't mean neutral, but that it's good all-around with no major flaw), but now that I'm accustomed to earbuds it has too much bass for me, bass that is also slow in decay, been spoiled with the extremely quick bass of the nicehck EBX and have a hard time going back now. (I use BK2 at work however as the EBX is too fatiguing on a lot of material, BK2 is a great all-rounder that is much warmer)

Blon I have and I think is super overhyped, BUT not if you're into ballads, (maybe pop? don't listen to that) or such. I'm listening mostly to hard-bop atm and apart from timbre that's really fantastic, they don't perform well for that genre (but maybe I have a dud, fast walking bass is slow and lags horribly on those). Still grab them when I want to listen to Ella Fitzgerald ballads for example, they really shine on slow material, female voices, sax...

I ordered the Tin T2 to compare with the V2, now that my taste has changed and I like less bass. Scared of the treble that many report as being too much, but we'll see, for 30€ no big deal.

 

[SomeGuyDude]

Just remember that you must never plug or unplug the balanced cable to/from the ES100 while music is playing. Only do it while the unit is off or the music is paused. Otherwise, you can and will permanently damage the ES100.

Not a concern, but I'm curious why that is. It seems so unusual.

 

[Slater]

Hmm that's interesting, does this apply to all DAC/AMPs or only the ES100? Is it due to a surge of current?

It’s a hardware design with the ES100. It is my understanding that it was not a flaw; it was designed that way on purpose. Protection circuitry would have affected the sound, and they wanted the sound as clean and uncolored as possible.

The instructions mention this, and there is a warning that pops up in the app if it detects when you do it.

As far as other balanced devices, I don’t believe it is only specific to the ES100. I’m pretty sure there are other balanced devices that are ‘unprotected’. But it depends on each device.

Somebody correct me if I’m wrong.

 

[lgcubana]

Hmm that's interesting, does this apply to all DAC/AMPs or only the ES100? Is it due to a surge of current?

My Monolith AAA 788 also has this protection safeguard. Even if your amp doesn't give you a warning or do a momentary pause, if you swap IEMs or headphones (during mid play), I would get into the practice of pausing/stopping the playback first, before doing the dirty.

In the Monoprice manual, they stipulate to this measure (of pausing the playback) to avoid *disparities that can occur when removing and installing a new plug; specific to the polarity/channels. Also, your buds/phones will probably have a different impedance. It would make the most sense (to me) to give your amp a chance to handshake properly

 

[gigaben]

I took a stab at taming the treble on the ZS6. Comply TX500 (with wax guard) helped a bit but treble was still too harsh for me. I ended up buying a sheet of nozzle mesh from a IEM DIY store on taobao, sure you can get them on AE as well. They have an adhesive along the outer rim of the mesh, easy to install and remove. These along with the TX500 seemed to do the trick, treble still has good extension but no longer piercing.

 

[Slater]

I took a stab at taming the treble on the ZS6. Comply TX500 (with wax guard) helped a bit but treble was still too harsh for me. I ended up buying a sheet of nozzle mesh from a IEM DIY store on taobao, sure you can get them on AE as well. They have an adhesive along the outer rim of the mesh, easy to install and remove. These along with the TX500 seemed to do the trick, treble still has good extension but no longer piercing.

I have yet to find these in bulk on Aliexpress, and have been looking off and on for the last year or so.

If anyone knows of an Aliexpress seller that has these, I’d appreciate the info

 

[Zerohour88]

got the KZ ZSX for testing a whole week, surprising that the fit is quite good (the protrusions are misleading for fit from pics, tbh), also quite liked the tuning (not enough upper-mids for me, but it should be ok for everyone else). Very minor hiss out of my SE4 Sabre DAC, so it definitely needs a low OI source (sounded good and hiss-free out of the Apple dongle).

also I kinda get what ant meant by TOTL tuning, it really does sound like some of the TOTL I've tested before (albeit worse). Not gonna be throwing out the Andro or EX1000, for sure. Its a bit polite.

all in, as expected from KZ, gradual improvements for each newer models. I'll probably revisit their newer model after a year or so to see what's up.

 

[lgcubana]

I have yet to find these in bulk on Aliexpress, and have been looking off and on for the last year or so.

If anyone knows of an Aliexpress seller that has these, I’d appreciate the info

Self adhesive, Metal mesh, which could be layered (with an offset), for a filtering effect:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/330...chweb0_0,searchweb201602_9,searchweb201603_52

For myself, I'm looking at Balanced Armature Damping Damper Plugs filters, for my KZ ZS4:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/325...chweb0_0,searchweb201602_9,searchweb201603_52

 

[Slater]

Self adhesive, Metal mesh, which could be layered (with an offset), for a filtering effect:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/330...chweb0_0,searchweb201602_9,searchweb201603_52

For myself, I'm looking at Balanced Armature Damping Damper Plugs filters, for my KZ ZS4:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/325...chweb0_0,searchweb201602_9,searchweb201603_52

Thanks for posting those. I was actually looking for the nylon fabric type, like the ones that were posted from Taobao.

 

[Phantomize]

I will try to help you out but I need some more info from you. First of all...what kind of genres of music do you mostly listen to? There is NO SUCH THING, as an earphone that "does it all the best". If you only listen to a specific genre or certain songs, it's easier to find the one iem that gives you the most enjoyment from that genre or select set of songs. If you like multiple genres (like I do), then you might wanna get several different sets to use when switching genres. Also, you don't mention the kind of sound signature that you like. Do you prefer bassy and warm, or highly detailed but more subdued in the bass? Forward midrange or laid back? Detailed treble or smooth with a big soundstage?
Edit: From what you have said in your post, fit seems to be a big priority. The ZS10 PRO shell is near identical to your ZSN/PRO, so you would definitely like the ZS10 PRO for comfort.

Thanks. Preferred genres are rock/metal/blues with some classical, jazz and house thrown into the mix as well. Sound signature wise, I'm seeking a detailed sound with a big soundstage (I hope that's enough information?).

 

[ShakeThoseCans]

I haven't followed the Chi-Fi releases in a while and I'm looking for a new set of IEMs. I would like to purchase something with a similar fit to the KZ ZSN/ZS5 (as the KZ ZS10 fit me rather poorly) but with a better soundstage and overall better audio quality. Would the KZ ZS10 Pro or the KZ ZSX Terminator be good IEMs in my situation? Or do you have other recommendations for other KZ IEMs or even other brands?

The Chi-Fi scene is new for me as well. But I have the ZS-10 Pro on my ears as I type this. It actually has pretty decent fit, it's reported to be more comfortable than the old ZS10. Can't tell you much about the ZS-10 Pro quality, though, as I haven't spent enough time with it.

What you might want to do is take a look at CCA as well, because that is a sister brand of KZ that retunes their components into what are often softer or more natural sounds.

A new generation of KZ / CCA flagships just arrived, the ZSX and C12 are receiving positive reviews. And the 11.11 sale is coming up.

However, you might also want to look into the TFZ brand. Since you like soundstage and audio quality, you might want to consider the King Pro. It has maybe the best soundstage, detail retrieval, and imaging of anything I own. Downside is that it is a bit bright, and the tuning is not quite as natural as some of the better DD IEMs you can get.

Another, cheaper option is the TRN offerings. I bought a V80 last year for $26 that blows away anything in that price range in terms of soundstage and imaging, but it is a synthetic tuning and the mids are recessed. (If synthetic tuning is okay with you, also consider the **** **** for $16, people here like it for its technicalities). TRN V90 is now available, gonna buy it next.

People who are experienced here have been saying good things about the BQEYZ Spring 1 (not so bassy, but very good sound and allegedly BIG soundstage), the BQEYZ KB100 (deep soundstage, good separation, isolation), NiceHCK M6 (good separation) and NX7.

For what it's worth, I'm finding the ZS7 the most interesting of the 5 KZ/CCA that I own. It has juiced treble and bass, producing a more exciting sound, serious bass, and seems to have a better soundstage than the other KZ/CCA. Housing fit and cable are problematic, though.