[CoiL]

I am presently working on a review of the MKP. My impressions: neutral, smooth, clean midrange and treble with good tonal accuracy, but the lower low end is too boosted to fit the rest. Moondrop should have tuned that 5-8 dB lower, which would increase clarity. Hard to call the present image balanced [=homogenous].

Some claim the bass is too weak. Can't follow that argument.

How long have You "burned" Your KPE and how much power (mA) are You feeding them?
I had same feeling in the beginning that bass was littlebit overtaking other FR range and that they could need some more clarity - that opinion changed after about 90+h of playtime.
I`m not 100% "burn-in" beliver but KPE was second IEM that did change with playtime to noticeably better. No brain-burn-in involved.
Also, KPE is very sensitive to tip rolling - what tips do You use?

mmk "2. "Balanced" is a tuning above neutral that sounds realistic and natural, it constitutes a mild V- shape not far away from neutral."
then it's balanced

If that description is balanced then my opinion is that KPE is very well balanced.
KPE has dead-flat mid-bass and slightly boosted extended sub-bass with zero bleed into midrange. Also very well extended highs with no noticeable peaks with my gear and for my ears.

Btw, that graph still looks little off with too realy roll-off @ 3kHz.

 

[plo009]

Hey guys!
Whoever wants to know my 1st impressions on KXXS vs Kanas Pro (KP), here you go!

Fit - The KXXS shell is bigger than KP's and KXXS' fit is a bit more snug for my ears. The KXXS has a wider lip which stops the ear tips from going further in whereas the KP's lip is a bit problematic in comparison as the ear tips tend to slide further in. Check the image below.




FYI, I used

• Same cable.
• Same ear tips but in different color (as you can see in the picture).
• Same source.

I also made it a point to level match the volume using a dBFS meter for precision. I use DAWs and a UAD Apollo audio interface for my tests, so I can make very small increments to make sure the levels are matched. Of course there will be a bit of tolerance error due to short ear memory time span while swapping the IEM earpieces.

Even though I tested them with my full test playlist, here are 3 songs from the current high on success artists Chainsmokers for ease, that you can refer while reading my comparison.

Chainsmokers - Somebody, Who Do You Love & This Feeling.




Sound Test - KXXS vs Kanas Pro

Let's starts by saying that KXXS and Kanas Pro have the same DNA, the same DLC dynamic driver. So they have the same sound framework and the differences are relative, like two sibling 2 years apart who have similar features.

Alright without further ado,

1. KXXS has more clarity and snap in the 2-4kHz which gives acoustic guitars and vocals the crispness and raspiness I like. They sound more realistic and lifelike. [Listen to the pre-chorus of Who Do You Love and This Feeling]
2. Vocals have more individual clarity in KXXS than KP. [Vocals in all 3 songs]
   
3. Drum tones sound equally good on both.
4. I think, with the added clarity, KXXS has a slightly wider soundstage.
   
5. Overall KXXS has better separation between instruments. [All 3 songs have a lot of layers]
6. KXXS has more sub-bass and overall more realistic feeling of bass impact. [Impact of the 808 sub-bass in the verse of 'Somebody', sub-bass in 'This Feeling' chorus and the buzzy bass in 'Who do you love']
7. When the songs get chaotic with lots of layers all over the sound field, KXXS handles it a bit better than KP.
8. Kanas Pro has * very slightly* more warmth in the lower mids. KXXS has better resolution and clarity in that region.

Well, KXXS still has the identifiable neutral-ish sounding character of the Kanas Pro but sounds a little more refined and exciting with better resolution, even if it is just a smidgen, which gets me excited about the song more. But honestly there is no denying the fact that the Kanas Pro is still an excellent IEM, being offered at a great price, and I would've been very happy with just the KP even if I didn't have this lucky opportunity of trying out the new KXXS.

But as of now, I like KXXS a bit more than Kanas Pro.

*Full review coming soon!*

Hi Animagus, I'm considering getting the kxxs as an upgrade from my hifiman re400 with slightly mid centric sound signature which I enjoyed for female vocals and long term music listening, would you recommend the kxxs? Many thanks

 

[ScottPilgrim]

How long have You "burned" Your KPE and how much power (mA) are You feeding them?
I had same feeling in the beginning that bass was littlebit overtaking other FR range and that they could need some more clarity - that opinion changed after about 90+h of playtime.
I`m not 100% "burn-in" beliver but KPE was second IEM that did change with playtime to noticeably better. No brain-burn-in involved.
Also, KPE is very sensitive to tip rolling - what tips do You use?

If that description is balanced then my opinion is that KPE is very well balanced.
KPE has dead-flat mid-bass and slightly boosted extended sub-bass with zero bleed into midrange. Also very well extended highs with no noticeable peaks with my gear and for my ears.

Btw, that graph still looks little off with too realy roll-off @ 3kHz.

Im using a (presumably) cirrus logic dac from iphone x now, and it sounds very very bassy but still has micro details but not glaring gobs of it.

Before i was using a sabre dac and mkp didnt sound THAT boomy imho.

All depends on the pairing.

 

[Animagus]

Hi Animagus, I'm considering getting the kxxs as an upgrade from my hifiman re400 with slightly mid centric sound signature which I enjoyed for female vocals and long term music listening, would you recommend the kxxs? Many thanks

Hey there! KXXS is very well tuned and I like it a lot. Vocals have good space and individuality. Good soundstage + on point imaging is the chemical X sprinkle on top. As for mids, they have very good resolution and separation for the price. I'd say unbeatable at $180-190 (whatever the KXXS will go for). I can recommend it without a doubt.

You can PM me if you'd like to know anything specific.

 

[Isloo]

Hey there! KXXS is very well tuned and I like it a lot. Vocals have good space and individuality. Good soundstage + on point imaging is the chemical X sprinkle on top. As for mids, they have very good resolution and separation for the price. I'd say unbeatable at $180-190 (whatever the KXXS will go for). I can recommend it without a doubt.

You can PM me if you'd like to know anything specific.

Do you know how it compares to the KPE? Is it an upgrade or side grade? I love the KPE, but a little more bass would be good. Thanks.

 

[surfgeorge]

Do you know how it compares to the KPE? Is it an upgrade or side grade? I love the KPE, but a little more bass would be good. Thanks.

There's an easy option to boost bass a bit on the KPE, buy a roll of 3M Micropore tape (Amazon) and stick a tiny piece over the front vent on the nozzle. That will restrict (but not block) the airflow and boost bass, especially sub-bass by a few dB.

 

[Animagus]

Do you know how it compares to the KPE? Is it an upgrade or side grade? I love the KPE, but a little more bass would be good. Thanks.

Yup I did just that a few pages back. Here you go - https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...ressions-thread.894139/page-174#post-14965892

 

[Isloo]

There's an easy option to boost bass a bit on the KPE, buy a roll of 3M Micropore tape (Amazon) and stick a tiny piece over the front vent on the nozzle. That will restrict (but not block) the airflow and boost bass, especially sub-bass by a few dB.

Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll give it a go. I put on some foam tips today, which has helped a bit.

 

[Isloo]

Yup I did just that a few pages back. Here you go - https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...ressions-thread.894139/page-174#post-14965892

Thanks. Not sure how I missed that!!

 

[chickenmoon]

Do you know how it compares to the KPE? Is it an upgrade or side grade? I love the KPE, but a little more bass would be good. Thanks.

Kanas (not pro) has more bass.

 

[Isloo]

Kanas (not pro) has more bass.

Thanks for the suggestion. However, as I already have the pro, I was thinking of trying something else. Ideally, I want something with bass closer to the dm6, but with the clarity and natural sound of the KPE.

Edit: It is only on some tracks I wish there was more bass.

 

[CoiL]

All depends on the pairing.

Yeah, forgot to mention that. KPE is very source sensitive and imho pairs very good with neutral, slightly warmish source signature.

 

[Otto Motor]

How long have You "burned" Your KPE and how much power (mA) are You feeding them?
I had same feeling in the beginning that bass was littlebit overtaking other FR range and that they could need some more clarity - that opinion changed after about 90+h of playtime.
I`m not 100% "burn-in" beliver but KPE was second IEM that did change with playtime to noticeably better. No brain-burn-in involved.
Also, KPE is very sensitive to tip rolling - what tips do You use?

If that description is balanced then my opinion is that KPE is very well balanced.
KPE has dead-flat mid-bass and slightly boosted extended sub-bass with zero bleed into midrange. Also very well extended highs with no noticeable peaks with my gear and for my ears.

Btw, that graph still looks little off with too realy roll-off @ 3kHz.

I burnt them in for 100 hrs as suggested in the manual -- I also don't believe in burn-in but had never tried them ootb. And I use the included large tips with an iPhone SE (my co-blogger used the audioquest dragonfly). Reading Crinacle's "unboxing", he talks of a Harman target curve tuning...which features too much bass for many.

Don't forget, I report my very own subjective opinion. In a review, a personal preference should not matter, I will report as is.

There is no doubt that the KPE is a good iem, I just feel it could be made better easily...

 

[Otto Motor]

mmk "2. "Balanced" is a tuning above neutral that sounds realistic and natural, it constitutes a mild V- shape not far away from neutral."
then it's balanced

I'd prefer this graph, still V-shaped but probably actually balanced [German: ausgewogen] sounding.

I went on record stating that I am missing some mid bass, and finding the bass a bit slow.
“Dragonborn” https://tidal.com/track/70826985 shows that quite ruthlessly
And on Stravinski’s “Firebird” https://tidal.com/track/77607310 I had the feeling that the timbre of strings was slightly off.
But they excel with Aurora https://tidal.com/track/44774293 with magically floating vocals and thumping, rolling sub bass

Would be interested in your take on that.

Not there yet.

Btw, that graph still looks little off with too realy roll-off @ 3kHz.

Not mine, har har (but same rig setup). Here is mine. Different horizontal scale, which clearly shows an exaggerated bass relative to the upper mids. I'd call this off balance. What is good for my ears is that the hump is relatively low down (on the horizontal scale).



That bass may be a dealbreaker for me. Against popular opinion will I not keep "my" free review unit but pass it on to the next reviewer (at my own shipping cost). One of my basic underlying questions always is whether I'd fork out the money...needs to be established for this one. After testing a few +/- $150 iems yesterday, I plugged in the "old" black Brainwavz B200...a real treat and a hard one to beat: superb sound and tiny shells. Sadly, that model was replaced by a crappy one without any bass.

The black B200 never received any hype, and it was largely bypassed in the reviewosphere, left out between the B100/150 and B400.

 

[redrol]

Yeah well, I don't hear it like that, Also I use my IEMs on the go which means I need more bass. This is why the KPE is so popular, it works in so many circumstances , and very well.