Knowledge Zenith (KZ) impressions thread

[jananan78]

Warm regards, I hope with the AS16 pro we will both be happy. Just to point out that in this case it is not a hybrid, but pure BA.

yes i am aware. that's why hope the BA bass can live up to the hype, else i will just keep it for classical and instrumental stuff

 

[RingingEars]

yes i am aware. that's why hope the BA bass can live up to the hype, else i will just keep it for classical and instrumental stuff

It looks like my AS16 pro will be here today. I'll post my initial impressions later.

 

[brsdrgn]

Ill take my words back.. skipping again lol

You made me laugh.

I think waiting a little longer is better. I'm super curious about these though.

Looks like accessories still s... I see transparent looking tips. However, it has been a while since I purchased my last kz so Idk if they changed it before.

 

[loganzhengx]

嗯，该死的。
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004651439982.html









他们实际上有一个我以前从未见过的新平面驱动器。

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/auto-eq-for-kz-esx.964427/

 

[loganzhengx]

ESX 是一个有趣的。这是迄今为止我收藏中最低音的一套，即使在切换到 AET07 提示之后，我仍然认为它听起来相当朦胧和低分辨率 - 凹陷的人声，遥远的镲片，吉他缺乏咬合力，声音有一种整体的空洞感。然而，我时不时地拿起它们，当我不去想这些事情时，仍然觉得它们很有趣。

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/auto-eq-for-kz-esx.964427/

 

[loganzhengx]

我得到了 ESX，是的，听这些真的很有趣。低音很多，不会流到中音和高音，中音不像我想的那样悠闲/凹陷。我害怕它们会像 DT770（32 欧姆还是 80 欧姆？），但它们非常好。高音几乎处于边缘。足够热，但在你真正增加音量之前不要打耳洞。细节是存在的，但它们有点难以挑选，尽管有这么多的低音，但分层比我预期的要好。成像也比我预期的好。但只有一件事我不明白，那就是声场。声场大佬们在哪里？也许是因为提示？老实说，我对小费没有意见，它们很舒服，不会滑倒，一点也不热。如果我将切换到 Kbear07，提示音场会打开吗？根据评论，我对声场寄予厚望，但它显然缺乏。我有 M40x，我猜这些就像他的兄弟 M50x。

总的来说，即使没有合适的声场，我也很惊讶它们有多好，如果有声场，这些将是价格范围内的真正杀手。良好的低音，不错的中音，可控的高音，价格足够的细节，非常好的成像。

错过了引人入胜的声音哈哈。

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/auto-eq-for-kz-esx.964427/

 

[loganzhengx]

也许我被我的 A4000 宠坏了，但 ESX 声场在我的耳朵里充其量只是平均水平——就像绝大多数 IEM 一样。不可怕，但不是令人惊叹的 3D 全息或任何东西。

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/auto-eq-for-kz-esx.964427/

 

[RingingEars]

It looks like my AS16 pro will be here today. I'll post my initial impressions later.

AS16 pro
Holy clarity Batman. Ok. This is a tuff one. I'm going to have to spend some time with these. initial impression is they are ultra clear. I don't know if these are for me honestly. I had a pair of HD800 a few years ago and sold them because they were just to revealing for me which I guess is why I like the HD6.. variants. The AS16 pro remind me of that same HD800 sound signature.
I will stick with it for a few days, but so far I'm on the fence.

 

[Carpet]

If the graph is legit, the pinna gain looks like 12 - 13 dB which is a bit worrisome.

True, but it's peaking at 2.5kHz and falling off nicely after that. So 5kHz doesn't look annoyingly boosted. Sub-bass and treble extension both look good. Certainly won't be as laid back as P1 Max.

 

[ScrofulousBinturong]

AS16 pro
Holy clarity Batman. Ok. This is a tuff one. I'm going to have to spend some time with these. initial impression is they are ultra clear. I don't know if these are for me honestly. I had a pair of HD800 a few years ago and sold them because they were just to revealing for me which I guess is why I like the HD6.. variants. The AS16 pro remind me of that same HD800 sound signature.
I will stick with it for a few days, but so far I'm on the fence.

I'll buy them off you if you decide to part with them

 

[RingingEars]

I'll buy them off you if you decide to part with them

Don't get me wrong. I don't dislike them. They're just not the sound I prefer, but I'm trying to be a little more open minded in my older age. I'm going to give these an honest chance and see if they grow on me. On certain songs these things really shine. Ghost Call me little sunshine is great. The Who Eminence front not so much...

 

[ScrofulousBinturong]

Don't get me wrong. I don't dislike them. They're just not the sound I prefer, but I'm trying to be a little more open minded in my older age. I'm going to give these an honest chance and see if they grow on me. On certain songs these things really shine. Ghost Call me little sunshine is great. The Who Eminence front not so much...

I hope you enjoy them and post more of your impressions!

Also, listening to The Who goes well with your username.

 

[DynamicEars]

True, but it's peaking at 2.5kHz and falling off nicely after that. So 5kHz doesn't look annoyingly boosted. Sub-bass and treble extension both look good. Certainly won't be as laid back as P1 Max.

My concern is on too much sub bass even the shelf is good, and that 2.5khz is too much. That area is difficult to tame / damper. Blockage tame that area, but will made bass smeared. If that graph is correct and already dampened, its hard to retune with mods.
Timeless also have 2.5khz peak, had to tame it down without bloating bass but best i can do made 4-6 khz lower too (i wish i can boost the 4-6 khz a little bit, while need to tame the 7-8khz mountain)

 

[baskingshark]

My concern is on too much sub bass even the shelf is good, and that 2.5khz is too much. That area is difficult to tame / damper. Blockage tame that area, but will made bass smeared. If that graph is correct and already dampened, its hard to retune with mods.
Timeless also have 2.5khz peak, had to tame it down without bloating bass but best i can do made 4-6 khz lower too (i wish i can boost the 4-6 khz a little bit, while need to tame the 7-8khz mountain)

Agree 100%. While graphs don't tell the full story, they do hint at what the IEM will sound like tonally, and I'm quite scared of the upper mids region here.

I've no horse in this race (not really a fan of planar timbre), but with so many planar IEMs being released on a monthly basis (Kinera, DUNU and Moondrop are gonna release their planars soon), there's really no harm waiting for first adopter reviews before springing a purchase on this KZ/CCA planar.

 

[Carpet]

Agree 100%. While graphs don't tell the full story, they do hint at what the IEM will sound like tonally, and I'm quite scared of the upper mids region here.

I've no horse in this race (not really a fan of planar timbre), but with so many planar IEMs being released on a monthly basis (Kinera, DUNU and Moondrop are gonna release their planars soon), there's really no harm waiting for first adopter reviews before springing a purchase on this KZ/CCA planar.

If they were offering a 20 - 30% discount to sweeten the deal for early adopters, I would probably blind buy this. But there is no limited window of opportunity here so I will wait. KZ releases are often on reviewers desks pretty early on. We aren't even waiting on nuanced reports. At this price we are looking for "non-disaster" assessments. As long as these perform reasonably well, they are an interesting option for variety. Although these are cheap, we only get KZ level of accessories, which pushes them closer to Dioko in terms of real cost. Regardless of how that Pina gain sounds, these are going to be a huge gateway entry in the planar market. I think it would be a safe bet, that Kinera, DUNU and Moondrop aren't going to undercut these.

Do I expect them to out perform Muse, Kirin, P1 plus - I bloody hope so
Do I expect them to outperform Timeless or Hooke X - no
Better than Dioko - maybe?
Would they be an interesting contrast to Giant Panda - yes