[Luis1316]

Yes, I've also tried different tips with S8 ... and stood with original ones at the end ... to get the most natural top-end sparkle. Foam tips smooth this too much for me.
I haven't heard pure silver cable (Isn't it spc?), but spc adds some fatigue to Low/Hi hats specifically.
My last best combination is 7N occ + orig. tips

I also have gotten recently the S8. Have you tried the Spring tips? It's the most spacious sounding tips that I have tried with the S8.

 

[emperor22]

@MOONDROP Hi, I want to order some filters for Kato. The ones for Aria look similar to the filters on the nozzle. Is that what I should get?

 

[TioRi]

@MOONDROP Hi, I want to order some filters for Kato. The ones for Aria look similar to the filters on the nozzle. Is that what I should get?

Kato come with the same Ear Tips, it is a personal choice. It depends how the fit and feel in your ears.

 

[LunarLight]

@MOONDROP Hi, I want to order some filters for Kato. The ones for Aria look similar to the filters on the nozzle. Is that what I should get?

uhh, are you sure you want the filter? Kato has removeable nozzle, the filter and the nozzle is one (if i'm not worng) so just buy the whole nozzle, while Aria have removeable filters not nozzle, they are different.

 

[emperor22]

uhh, are you sure you want the filter? Kato has removeable nozzle, the filter and the nozzle is one (if i'm not worng) so just buy the whole nozzle, while Aria have removeable filters not nozzle, they are different.

It costs $13 to buy two pairs of nozzles, one brass, one steel, and I only use the steel ones because of the sound difference. The filters and the metal mesh can be removed and replaced and I already cannibalized the filters on the brass nozzles to use on the steel ones. The metal mesh included in the Aria filter looks identical to the one on the Kato, but I'm not sure if the filter itself will alter the sound compared to the stock filter.

 

[LunarLight]

It costs $13 to buy two pairs of nozzles, one brass, one steel, and I only use the steel ones because of the sound difference. The filters and the metal mesh can be removed and replaced and I already cannibalized the filters on the brass nozzles to use on the steel ones. The metal mesh included in the Aria filter looks identical to the one on the Kato, but I'm not sure if the filter itself will alter the sound compared to the stock filter.

Owh thats news for me, i just checked, it looks so close, if it can be removed i assume it might be the same, from my kato i can see thin white film that looks like Aria’s.
You can try buy the Aria’s filter

 

[oknenir]

Got my Kato the other day. Some initial impressions from an inexperienced listener...

Day 1.
Been listening to KZ ZSX the day before to have a point of reference. When I unpack the Katos they look so small. But are so heavy. Overall, the look is awesome!

Sound-wise, from the first minutes, Kato gives an immediate impression of more refined mids and treble, bass also, but not as apparent. At first got a little of "where are all the highs have gone?" feeling. I guess this is the difference between "cheap" shouty highs (upper mids?) and "refined" ones. On the other hand, this "lack" of highs lets you turn up the volume a little and enjoy the full spectrum of the music. After an hour or so there is no feeling of lack of highs anymore. What is also apparent is hearing new details unheard of in ZSXs, but mostly these sounds are various rustlings, fizzling, riffles and other record artifacts that don't seem to add value to the music, so not sure if I can call this an improvement

So first-day impression of the sound is "WOW", money well spent. I'll see how long it remains ))

A note on the fit & comfort though. Been a while since I unpacked a pair ofo IEMs, but I am pretty sure I usually take the M tips first and get a fit with those or L ones. The L spring tips here are a tad too small. Due to the weight of the IEM, one was getting out of my ear when I moved etc., so I only found a good fit with the foam L ones which feel a bit unusual though. The hooks are softer than KZs as well. Overall, it's much more hassle to get these on. With KZs (and TFZ kings) I just get them in and they're in the right place naturally, in pretty-much a single move.

Day 2.
As I get through more tracks I get a better impression of the sound signature. Which I would describe as "delicate". Or should I say "thin"?

I've switched between my TDA1543 DAC with Cayin HA-2i and Cayin RU6 (NOS mode) and found liking the latter more.

After a while, the engagement in music got reduced... fatigue? You know, this feeling when you're not really happy with the sound and are looking for ways to "improve" something... Then I remembered about the interchangeable sound filters. Switched from default Steel ones to Brass. Nothing apparent changed in the sound signature, but the enjoyment was back. As usual, brass is better for sound than stell Not sure if from the change in sound or from "doing something to improve the sound". We'll see.

Day 3.
Day 3 is starting today, I'll see what it brings.

Ok, day 3 lead me to the understanding that the fatigue and even some brightness came from the foam tips. I went back to the spring tips and this was not a problem anymore, Katos can be enjoyed for hours in a row. The fit problem still persists though, I need to adjust them once in a while, more so if I chew something etc. The isolation is not great either. Assuming the largest stock tips are of size L , I thought about trying the XL ones, but the idea of "trying" one type of tips for €15 doesn't excite me (same for the springfits mentioned here).

This is ridiculous, considering that the cheap KZs just fit and isolate perfectly. Btw, I'll see the KZ tips fit and work well on Katos.

Sound-wise, the sound of Katos is on the "light" (the opposite of dark, but not really bright) side, for my taste it lacks some midrange thickness, I am wondering if this can be rectified with EQ?

Did you do a burn-in?

On day 1 I just put them in as soon as I got them out of the box. After that, I left them playing music every night while I was not using them.

 

[emperor22]

Owh thats news for me, i just checked, it looks so close, if it can be removed i assume it might be the same, from my kato i can see thin white film that looks like Aria’s.
You can try buy the Aria’s filter

Ah, thanks for the closer look. Yes, the thin film (the filter) does look similar, but I still can't be sure that they're identical to the filters on the Kato and that it won't alter the sound.

 

[emperor22]

Ok, day 3 lead me to the understanding that the fatigue and even some brightness came from the foam tips. I went back to the spring tips and this was not a problem anymore, Katos can be enjoyed for hours in a row. The fit problem still persists though, I need to adjust them once in a while, more so if I chew something etc. The isolation is not great either. Assuming the largest stock tips are of size L , I thought about trying the XL ones, but the idea of "trying" one type of tips for €15 doesn't excite me (same for the springfits mentioned here).

This is ridiculous, considering that the cheap KZs just fit and isolate perfectly. Btw, I'll see the KZ tips fit and work well on Katos.

Sound-wise, the sound of Katos is on the "light" (the opposite of dark, but not really bright) side, for my taste it lacks some midrange thickness, I am wondering if this can be rectified with EQ?


On day 1 I just put them in as soon as I got them out of the box. After that, I left them playing music every night while I was not using them.

I think the spring tips are what give warmth to the sound. If you observe this when using the spring tips, try listening to some music and insert the housing as deep as you can and see if the sound changes. If it does, it might be worth it to get the XL sized tips.

 

[oknenir]

If you observe this when using the spring tips, try listening to some music and insert the housing as deep as you can and see if the sound changes. If it does, it might be worth it to get the XL sized tips.

When I do that it seems to be bringing the mids forward and making the sound a bit grainy. What is the conclusion?

 

[goodvibes]

When I do that it seems to be bringing the mids forward and making the sound a bit grainy. What is the conclusion?

Sounds like you're still not getting a seal. If you normally use a medium tip, go back to that and try the deep insertion again. Pushing too large a tip deeper can also make it deform and lose seal.

 

[emperor22]

When I do that it seems to be bringing the mids forward and making the sound a bit grainy. What is the conclusion?

I meant if the bass and lower mid increased, then obviously you have a seal problem, as lack of seal might not seem apparent but is enough to make or break an IEM's sound.

 

[oknenir]

Sounds like you're still not getting a seal. If you normally use a medium tip, go back to that and try the deep insertion again. Pushing too large a tip deeper can also make it deform and lose seal.

I meant if the bass and lower mid increased, then obviously you have a seal problem, as lack of seal might not seem apparent but is enough to make or break an IEM's sound.

Tried the M ones, exact same thing - pushing them in doesn't affect the bass, only the mids/highs.

 

[goodvibes]

Tried the M ones, exact same thing - pushing them in doesn't affect the bass, only the mids/highs.

What's your source?

 

[oknenir]

What's your source?

Currently, while testing things at my desktop, switching between 2 diy mutlibit DACs amped by Cayin HA-2i and an iFi ieMatch+, but the intention is to use with Cayin RU6.