[FastAndClean]

So I'm approaching around 20 hours on my KPE which I picked up from the previous Massdrop release. Finally the pair is starting to resemble all the praise around this forum. I was a bit concerned at first, as it sounded quite non-spacious & congested out of the box. All the while, I was benchmarking against my current IEM of choice, the Massdrop Plus (which sounds nicely open and airy). But now, in direct comparison, I can hear it about equaling the Plus on sense of space and openness, thank goodness. The thing I am most impressed by though is the freakin' bass. Damn. It just slams so low, and seems bottomless... without bleeding into the mids. Yet it never seems overdone, and just conveys what's in the music material if it's super low. I think it's about the best IEM bass I've yet heard, so well tuned.

Now I've also ordered a second-hand A8. Need to stop buying as well.

resolution of the bass is amazing, i was surprised that a lot of people think that there is not enough of it, for me they have a little bit more than neutral level of bass

 

[CoiL]

You're dead right.
Will you stop at the KP, the threads...and the modding do you reckon?

KPE backplate mod will probably be my last IEM mod, though, I wish to finish MH755 drivers inside ZS4 shells too, just curiosity about how well I can tune these to my taste and measure it with Dayton mic.

resolution of the bass is amazing, i was surprised that a lot of people think that there is not enough of it, for me they have a little bit more than neutral level of bass

I think most here get the bass "issue" littlebit wrong... it actually has perfect quantity and it improves a lot with burn-in.
But with certain music/recordings/instruments it can miss just a tinybit micro-detail and tightness needed to get the real-life timbre of instrument (for example contrabass strings slapping/clicking/strumming and correct acoustic sound of wooden body).
But I think we have already made some conclusions here:
1) KPE is very sensitive to source gear
2) KPE is very sensitive to tip rolling and fit(insertion depth)
3) KPE is very selective @high-mids/low-treble about vol. level depending on recording

...so results and impressions may vary.

 

[FastAndClean]

2) KPE is very sensitive to tip rolling and fit(insertion depth)
.

spot on, wide bore more treble, smaller bore, warmer smoother sound with less treble, i kind of like more treble so i use them with wide bore

 

[FastAndClean]

Top Tier

1. Shure KSE1200/1500
2. Moondrop Kansas Pro
(best recommendation i ever got)

Good

3. Westone W40 (balanced)
4. AKG N40
AKG N5005
1More Triple-Driver
Westone W40 (unbalanced)

Not so good

8. Shure SE535
9. The rest

Though the KSE 1200 were the best quality wise they showed me that soundquality doesn't automatically mean more enjoyment. So the only IEMs i'd really recommend are the Kansas Pro which i find incredibly good and outmatch even most of the sub 1000$ over ears i heard.

(btw. first post )

 

[rickyjb]

I've taken great interest in the Kanas Pro after reading about it, but have a couple questions if anyone has some thougts on it:
1) How are they in terms of detail compared to something like the Westone UM 50 Pro (v2)? I find these to have very impressive detail for their price, but would like a bit more low end, otherwise borderline perfect to my ears, due to their level of detail without getting sibilant or harsh ever.
2) As mentioned above, I'm looking for a bit of hefty low end grunt; recently I've taken a great liking to the Bowers & Wilkins P7/P9 headphones sound for that reason, listening to EDM and Metal a lot lately.... Will I be able to find anything remotely like this with the Kanas or any of Moondrops offerings?

Generally, if any of this sounds like it might work with the Kanas or if you have suggestions for any other IEM that might match something in these descriptions, please do let me know! Almost price no object really, and even over ears that do what the P7/P9 do, but better might be of interest...

I'm quite new to the KPE but I listen to a lot of metal and techno and find it works really well.For metal the separation of instruments is one of the most important aspects and it does a good job. I found burn in to make a huge difference here, symbals went from being poorly defined and too forward to now sounding correct and fitting in with the mix. It's like the timing of everything just improved or something (not sure how to explain it). For EDM I think the bass is more than adequate, I find it to be very controlled and the sub bass extension is great on some tracks for that low frequency rumble.

I don't have much to compare the KPE to other than a (cheap) planar headphone, the hifiman HE-400S. Completely different technology I know. When I first got the KPE I didn't think they would be able to match the HE-400S in many areas (if any) but after burn in (I think I'm at around 70-80 hours) detail retrieval is slightly better and sub bass sounds better. Still lagging a little in soundstage but that's completely expected given that the HE-400S are open backed. The one negative of the KPE is that they can sound a little harsh on some tracks and I find myself turning the music down more than I would have to with the HE-400S, which are a more comfortable listen.

This comparison may be absolutely meaningless to most people but I guess the acid test is which one would I reach for when I want to listen to music. It's pretty close at the moment which says a lot for the KPE given that I don't find them at all comfortable (waiting on eartips to arrive). Some songs really wow me and then some sound a little harsh or overly bright.

I'm using a Fiio M6 and Q1 Mk1 amp with Tidal.

 

[Random Lunatic]

So I'm approaching around 20 hours on my KPE which I picked up from the previous Massdrop release. Finally the pair is starting to resemble all the praise around this forum. I was a bit concerned at first, as it sounded quite non-spacious & congested out of the box. All the while, I was benchmarking against my current IEM of choice, the Massdrop Plus (which sounds nicely open and airy). But now, in direct comparison, I can hear it about equaling the Plus on sense of space and openness, thank goodness. The thing I am most impressed by though is the freakin' bass. Damn. It just slams so low, and seems bottomless... without bleeding into the mids. Yet it never seems overdone, and just conveys what's in the music material if it's super low. I think it's about the best IEM bass I've yet heard, so well tuned.

Now I've also ordered a second-hand A8. Need to stop buying as well.

Really want to hear how that goes - I'm seriously considering getting one of those, but cant find any reviews or impressions of the A8

 

[Random Lunatic]

I'm quite new to the KPE but I listen to a lot of metal and techno and find it works really well.For metal the separation of instruments is one of the most important aspects and it does a good job. I found burn in to make a huge difference here, symbals went from being poorly defined and too forward to now sounding correct and fitting in with the mix. It's like the timing of everything just improved or something (not sure how to explain it). For EDM I think the bass is more than adequate, I find it to be very controlled and the sub bass extension is great on some tracks for that low frequency rumble.

I don't have much to compare the KPE to other than a (cheap) planar headphone, the hifiman HE-400S. Completely different technology I know. When I first got the KPE I didn't think they would be able to match the HE-400S in many areas (if any) but after burn in (I think I'm at around 70-80 hours) detail retrieval is slightly better and sub bass sounds better. Still lagging a little in soundstage but that's completely expected given that the HE-400S are open backed. The one negative of the KPE is that they can sound a little harsh on some tracks and I find myself turning the music down more than I would have to with the HE-400S, which are a more comfortable listen.

This comparison may be absolutely meaningless to most people but I guess the acid test is which one would I reach for when I want to listen to music. It's pretty close at the moment which says a lot for the KPE given that I don't find them at all comfortable (waiting on eartips to arrive). Some songs really wow me and then some sound a little harsh or overly bright.

I'm using a Fiio M6 and Q1 Mk1 amp with Tidal.

That brightness is what I really fear, and why I currently love the Bowers & Wilkins P7/9; because i'm sick and tired of not being able to turn up good music without my ears bleeding... And only slightly beating the HE-400S in detail makes be rather worried considering I have a westone UM 50 pro and IE800 on hand to compare to; the IE800 has a good amount of detail, and also beats the HE400, but the UM50Pro mk2 is well ahead of both on pretty much all technical aspects (one of the most resolving IEMs I've heard short of the Katana), its just a bit too neutral in the bass for my current taste, want some more oomph.
Now this is ofcourse all relative, so it might be better than what I'm reading in your wording, but I'm always rather skeptical

 

[redrol]

You know what I love about the KPEs? The harmon tuning. The louder you turn up, the better these things sound (to me). They sound the best of anything else Ive heard at loud levels by far.

I'm a basshead and goddamn do the KPEs bring it. I MEAN DAMN! Best bass on anything I've personally heard.

 

[cn11]

I just received the second-hand pair of A8 I got here on the classifieds... Good grief, this IEM is incredible. More to come, re: vs the KPE. Want to spend some time figuring out the pros/cons until then.

 

[FastAndClean]

I just received the second-hand pair of A8 I got here on the classifieds... Good grief, this IEM is incredible. More to come, re: vs the KPE. Want to spend some time figuring out the pros/cons until then.

yes please

 

[redrol]

2nded. Those A8s look amazing and expensive as hell.

 

[Makahl]

You know what I love about the KPEs? The harmon tuning. The louder you turn up, the better these things sound (to me). They sound the best of anything else Ive heard at loud levels by far.

I'm a basshead and goddamn do the KPEs bring it. I MEAN DAMN! Best bass on anything I've personally heard.

Indeed. I love its all-rounder ability.

The fact that I can go to electronic to prog-metal and it still sounding incredible is awesome. My Ety ER4B is also great and a tad faster for prog-metal/rock/gaming but when it comes to electronic it's like turning the subwoofer off (not to mention putting them on and taking them off takes some doing, and whenever someone is asking me a question at the office I hate to go through the whole process of removing it so KPE's fit/comfort is also a winner here).

I was listening to Jon Hopkins and Recondite yesterday and damn I never felt the sub-bass rumble going that deep in IEMs before, I can't even imagine people wanting more of it (I just can imagine it's due to lack of seal) -- atm I'm using the stock ones L.

 

[redrol]

Yeah, I can't imagine anyone wanting more sub bass than what the KPEs can do. It's outstanding for bass lovers.

 

[FastAndClean]

Indeed. I love its all-rounder ability.

The fact that I can go to electronic to prog-metal and it still sounding incredible is awesome. My Ety ER4B is also great and a tad faster for prog-metal/rock/gaming but when it comes to electronic it's like turning the subwoofer off (not to mention putting them on and taking them off takes some doing, and whenever someone is asking me a question at the office I hate to go through the whole process of removing it so KPE's fit/comfort is also a winner here).

I was listening to Jon Hopkins and Recondite yesterday and damn I never felt the sub-bass rumble going that deep in IEMs before, I can't even imagine people wanting more of it (I just can imagine it's due to lack of seal) -- atm I'm using the stock ones L.

i have the ER4S and i love them, i like how fast and clean they are (my user name is because of them) but the KP add another dimension to electronic music, wide and deep, something that Ety don't have

 

[Random Lunatic]

Does anyone have the chance to do a descriptive comparison to a Sennheiser IE800? In terms of tonality, detail retrieval, soundstage etc?