[sfwalcer]

Audio Technica CKR9 - Impressions

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Disclosure: I was generously included on a loaner tour of these, for which I am thankful. They have since moved on to those who have posted their impressions before me.
 
IMPORTANT NOTE: Anything to do with timbre is my personal very own opinion. Everything else is cold hard fact.
 
 
 

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Build and Finish
A bit plasticky, but very solid and what feels like reasonably thick plastic. I have no concerns of them breaking if, say, lightly stepped on by accident. The cable was mostly tangle resistant and felt thick enough to instill confidence. Besides the chromed ring on the outside of the earpiece, they have a very industrial look and feel. I like the design of the plug, a la recent Sony, and strain reliefs were adequate to instill confidence for those that worry about that being an issue. Other than that, it generally lacked any other flourishes that would make one go oooh and ahhh. I didn't have the original case or accessories to be able to comment on the entire package, but they did come in an Audio Technica case that was apparently from one of the BA based earphones and that was very nice case, but it is not the same as the one that comes with these, so if you want a nice case,  look at the ATH balanced armature earphones.
 
But realistically, i've developed pretty low expectations for finishing touches and especially design for earphones that aren't a ridiculously expensive universals, where the company's feel that if they don't make an effort on the design front, that people will complain about the price.
 
Fit
They are a bit, and surprisingly, large (not Red Giant A03 Ossicle ridiculous or anything, but large) and became mildly uncomfortable to the concha after about half an hour. Smaller ears may have a problem even fitting them inside the concha, which would make them very difficult and uncomfortable to listen to for any reasonable period of time. Over ear fit was not happening for me.
 
Dat Sound
The sound is something I've been coming to terms with for a while after they've been gone. It was harder for me to form an opinion on than most other earphones I've heard. This is mostly because it comes about 80% of the way to greatness, but then is just held back. I've mentioned in a few PMs that this is an earphone that takes two steps forward and one step back, and I feel now that this sort of defines the sound as a whole. Everything is almost there. And while that's great, its also disappointing, because nothing makes it out of that hole to be spectacular.
 
Its all about that... bass has great detail and speed with no real complaints about extension or being overemphasized. It is on the other hand slightly on the softer size of impact and the lighter side of weight. And for all the detail, it just has kind of a fluffy softness to the edges which hurts texture a bit, which is in stark contrast to it's upper midrange. The bass is also generally, imaged very near the listener, pretty much feeling in front of everything, not in terms of amplitude but just placement. It doesn't mask anything; it's place just feels... out of place. The VSonic GR07 CE has a similarly imaged bass in the foreground, if possibly a couple of dB more emphasis, but with similar speed and detail, and with better impact and cleaner edges to the bass notes, it can get out of the foreground better and has more inducement to a toe tapping experience. The Aurisonics Rockets on the other hand have less low end amplitude but have a much cleaner and more heft to the low end notes, no directional bias to the imaging and with better timbre.
 
The midrange is interesting. It's, again, not lacking for detail. As a matter of absolute fact, the peak at 4KHz that I hear, and that's has been corroborated by the CKR9ing masses, makes for a delightfully crisp midrange, which likely helps imaging. There seems to be a very slight dip in the lower mids in comparison to the bass and upper midrange in which dulls some vocals. Also, I do hear a significant drop in amplitude around 5KHz. While the detail in the midrange is crisp, it also feels very edgy and almost brittle at the tail end of notes. This is likely due to notes that flow across from 3-5KHz not being able to cleanly finish and almost cut off due to the drop after 4KHz. And this is probably what others have mentioned about the flaw in the sound. I hoped at first that this was due to fit or tips but trying a wide assortment of tips and insertion depths did little to alleviate this section of the frequency response. Timbre is generally good enough in the midrange, better than a lot of earphones, but suffers due significant frequency response shifts hurting tonality which aids timbre.
 
Treble was pretty non-offensive. Not much to write to be honest. No sibilance, etc. Nothing really special either. Nothing really jumped out at me, pro or con, so that's where this ends.
 
One of the more interesting aspects is presentation. While not particularly wide, depth was solid and height was surprisingly good. Images were a little smaller than I'd like in comparison to the stage height, proportion-wise, but nothing critical. Due to the softer more diffuse bass across the front of the stage images were both crisp and clean, but at the same time, they were a bit... stifled. They were set in a stage which felt a bit thick. This is where they reminded me of the Sony XBA-H3. It's a bit more cohesive that the H3, from memory, but it also didn't have that bright fireworks in the sky on a dewy night feeling, that spark of imaging wonder that felt at the least new and fresh for an earphone. This has that same kind of dewy feeling, except it wasn't out in a park, it was more in a large warehouse. A lot to be excited about in its imaging prowess, but it didn't emotionally hit that high note for me.
 
What I get from the CKR9 is a solid performance that doesn't wow me but doesn't bother me. I never had the feeling that I wanted to get them out of my ears quickly, which is definitely a great thing, but I never felt a reason to really want to put them in my ears either. They have a lot of offer but also a lot of missed opportunities, which is what I get from a lot of earphones these days, from low all the way to the high range. What I told people via PM as my first impressions of them I think is still the best expression of them that I have: They are a two steps forward and one step back kind of IEM. But hey, that's still one step forward.

^
Welp that is pretty much what i just posted about them albeit in A LOT less eloquent way.

 
Good stuff meng!!!

 
Thought I DO have the urge to rip it outta' my ears when that crispy uppermid range makes my ears ring in a short tyme on my X5/C5 combo. : P
 
OVERLY CRISPY MIDS CAN BE FATIGUING!!!

 

[kameenadesi]

Time for my experience with the CKR9. Vlenbo was kind enough to allow me to hear them for a week or so. Thank you sir!

Quite hesitant to get a CKR9 myself. Thought they would be popular and I said early enough that I thought the CKR9 would probably be the most popular of the whole line up. I think not wanting to try a pair myself was first gen jitters. I really hesitate with first gen products these days. Quite a few in the past and now I can resist pulling the trigger easier than before The CKR9 is a product I think has a few first gen bugs to be worked on. Nothing horrible but worth noting.

I do wish they put more thought and effort into the design. I have already mentioned these things to a few people. A chin slider would have been nice and maybe a little effort on the Y joint. Fine for similar Y joints on cheap products because they are just that, cheap. Would like better on the CKR9. The plug and top of the housing are capped in a glossy plastic which is exactly the same as that on my CHX7. At 3X the price it could have been a better material. Cable is good but still not the most tangle resistant. Can't complain about it outside of the Y, slider, and plug capping. Not sure why they didn't stick with a more traditional design than placing the tube where they did. For me, it made getting the optimal sound hard. Tip rolling is not about tweaking or experimenting so much as trying to avoid issues. Medium tips become just a bit too small for me with the CKR9. Problems like losing seal in my left ear or not getting a good enough seal if the tips are short etc. Then larger tips gave driver flex in the right and maybe a seal where the CKR9 slowed and became a bit overly thick. Very few tips worked for optimal sound and fit. Sort of a M/L thing in between medium and large is needed unless the medium tips were long enough or the small a bit narrower. The CKR9 were fiddly and difficult for me and probably didn't have to be.

 As for sound reality, when I got them to sound right, they do a good job. For ultimate sound reality I would like them to have more extension on the ends, more transparency, and be truer to source. Can't complain for their price level though. Not the most true to source so synergy applies more than performing equally well across devices. The CKR9 sounds better on my Iriver E300 on the Power Drum EQ than it does with the FiiO X1 or X1/E11K rig.

I do appreciate the approach as AT did a good job in many aspects. Stage is well done for being fairly even in all three dimensions. Layering and imaging/positioning is also good. Bass, mid, treble cohesiveness is also very good. Good clarity, decay, and timbre throughout only let down by some transparency problems in the upper mids and upper treble(didn't sweep or anything to get specific). There is a good amount of detail and resolution and they perform well in being natural and "real" sounding.  

Sound signature-wise, I really liked them but didn't love them. I think a bit of the new AT house "fun" sound is gone. Not exactly a better version of things like a CKS1000 or CKN70 signature. Phones like those have a certain "hook" which is less so with the CKR9. Have to admit I enjoy the bass and mids on the FX32 better than the CKR9. The CKR9 is best with the best synergy and the most perfect sound it can bring. When not optimal there just doesn't seem to be as much "fun" to fall back on and be more forgiving about. I can forgive the FX32 not having the extension or quality of the CKR9 or the reference Tenore because of the bass and mids quality and enjoyability. Thus I sold the Tenore in favor of the little JVC and even enjoyed the JVC more than the CKR9 before they left me.

The CKR9 came out here in the U.S. with a street price as low as $190 and I think that you get enough sound for that price. Still, for me to purchase a pair, I would like a better/more elaborate fit kit, a design that worked better for me, and a bit of quality improvement on some of the cable and plug accents. Some things to shoot for on a possible CKR90?? Certainly gonna keep an eye on the next incarnation!

Maybe you're hearing it with the wrong tips. Try small biflange tips. I do agree that audio technica could have extended the treble and bass further but I honestly believe the CKR9 is the cream of the crop in ATH's IEMs. (For now...)
To get the ideal sound you would need a perfect fit via the biflange tips in my opinion.
I still believe this is top tier sound.
In my opinion the CKR9 sounds more like the best balanced armature I've ever heard, rather than a dynamic in ear monitor, due to its bass.
What I hear right now is superbly detailed instruments, clear treble and mids, detailed vocals, an adequate bassline which can get deep when called for, and an intimate soundstage which is mostly in your face but can have expansion when the track calls for it.
The best part of the CKR9 is that it is very engaging even compared to most other dynamics I have heard before.

 

[SyedZ2ez4]

Maybe you're hearing it with the wrong tips. Try small biflange tips. I do agree that audio technica could have extended the treble and bass further but I honestly believe the CKR9 is the cream of the crop in ATH's IEMs. (For now...)
To get the ideal sound you would need a perfect fit via the biflange tips in my opinion.
I still believe this is top tier sound.
In my opinion the CKR9 sounds more like the best balanced armature I've ever heard, rather than a dynamic in ear monitor, due to its bass.
What I hear right now is superbly detailed instruments, clear treble and mids, detailed vocals, an adequate bassline which can get deep when called for, and an intimate soundstage which is mostly in your face but can have expansion when the track calls for it.
The best part of the CKR9 is that it is very engaging even compared to most other dynamics I have heard before.

+1 try the spiral dotz tips too, I settled with these.

 

[jant71]

Maybe you're hearing it with the wrong tips. Try small biflange tips. I do agree that audio technica could have extended the treble and bass further but I honestly believe the CKR9 is the cream of the crop in ATH's IEMs. (For now...)
To get the ideal sound you would need a perfect fit via the biflange tips in my opinion.
I still believe this is top tier sound.
In my opinion the CKR9 sounds more like the best balanced armature I've ever heard, rather than a dynamic in ear monitor, due to its bass.
What I hear right now is superbly detailed instruments, clear treble and mids, detailed vocals, an adequate bassline which can get deep when called for, and an intimate soundstage which is mostly in your face but can have expansion when the track calls for it.
The best part of the CKR9 is that it is very engaging even compared to most other dynamics I have heard before.

 
What, I hear it pretty much the same as sfwalcer and vwinter cause it was the same pair(vlenbo's) but it was harder than it could have been tip-wise to do so. I think it falls short of top tier sound but is one of the top sounding for $200. For top tier I would still like the more bass extension(can't beat the FX32 which is $15), bigger stage, more air, clarity, and transparency(aka sound reality) which my E0921 beat them for, mids with some more inflection/emotion, better treble tone/timbre(again beaten by the E0921), and better decay across the whole range(not saying the CKR is bad in these things but I've heard better). I am a hard marker. Long ago I tweaked an older UE out nicely and said that the ETY ER4 was like hearing a bell through high quality speakers and the modded UE was like hearing it in real life. So, I am not gonna be able to say the CKR9 as good as the best armature I have heard cause it falls quite short of that for me. Of course it is the old YMMV thing again and I have been here for 12 plus years. To me the CKR9 is a "getting there" phone, on the right track but not there yet.
 
I haven't heard them but it sounds like the CKR10 is the cream of the crop right now for AT dynamics. From those I know who have spent time with both.

 

[vlenbo]

Maybe you're hearing it with the wrong tips. Try small biflange tips. I do agree that audio technica could have extended the treble and bass further but I honestly believe the CKR9 is the cream of the crop in ATH's IEMs. (For now...)
To get the ideal sound you would need a perfect fit via the biflange tips in my opinion.
I still believe this is top tier sound.
In my opinion the CKR9 sounds more like the best balanced armature I've ever heard, rather than a dynamic in ear monitor, due to its bass.
What I hear right now is superbly detailed instruments, clear treble and mids, detailed vocals, an adequate bassline which can get deep when called for, and an intimate soundstage which is mostly in your face but can have expansion when the track calls for it.
The best part of the CKR9 is that it is very engaging even compared to most other dynamics I have heard before.

 
+

  +1 try the spiral dotz tips too, I settled with these.

There's a good reason why I sent this in-ear to vwinter, jant, and sf.
 
They're pretty open minded, tenacious, and persistent in finding the sweet spots for in-ear monitors.
 
Vwinter originally did not tip change, but finally struck gold in fixing the frequency problems he had with the ckr9s. Unfortunately, the dip in the 5khz went unchanged for him. The bi-flange meleec tips had helped me fix part of the 5khz problem, but then the midrange's tonality changes quite a bit, and not for the better imo.
 
Jant had been searching for the best synergy AND tip fit regarding the ckr9's sound. I would only slightly agree about the bass extension, but I definitely would complain about the treble extension. However, knowing Audio technica, the treble would have been sibilant to the core of the ckn70's.
 
Sf already went for tip changes and definitely changed synergy with the ckr9s so the upper midrange wouldn't sound so crisp and brittle for him. Once I again, I find this odd since on my end the upper mid range is only forward enough to create some minor sibilance in certain tracks. The midrange sounds a sliquidy smooth as the ck10s, which is a double ba in-ear that I compared. Thats the ba everyone loved, and the ckr9s can possibly replace it for good.
 
Now it will be doctor jazz's turn, and he probably will have similar findings.
 
I'd rather they risked leaving the treble region as linear or slightly dipped as possible.
 

   
What, I hear it pretty much the same as sfwalcer and vwinter cause it was the same pair(vlenbo's) but it was harder than it could have been tip-wise to do so. I think it falls short of top tier sound but is one of the top sounding for $200. For top tier I would still like the more bass extension(can't beat the FX32 which is $15), bigger stage, more air, clarity, and transparency(aka sound reality) which my E0921 beat them for, mids with some more inflection/emotion, better treble tone/timbre(again beaten by the E0921), and better decay across the whole range(not saying the CKR is bad in these things but I've heard better). I am a hard marker. Long ago I tweaked an older UE out nicely and said that the ETY ER4 was like hearing a bell through high quality speakers and the modded UE was like hearing it in real life. So, I am not gonna be able to say the CKR9 as good as the best armature I have heard cause it falls quite short of that for me. Of course it is the old YMMV thing again and I have been here for 12 plus years. To me the CKR9 is a "getting there" phone, on the right track but not there yet.
 
I haven't heard them but it sounds like the CKR10 is the cream of the crop right now for AT dynamics. From those I know who have spent time with both.

+1, hope you weren't offended. 

 
 
There is hope that the revision may actually be realized in the future. The ckr99 or ckr90 may eventually exist and fix these problems that you guys find unappealing. For me, I'm sticking with this in-ear as I've been disappointed with impressions of the altones, the dunu 1000 (though it's not to say that it sucks, just that the sigs are not for me), and fidue a83 (due to its fit problems).
 
This is why I said the ckr9s tick all my boxes. It has enough bass quantity to satisfy my "bassophile" needs, the quality is tight, and extension for me reaches up to 30hz with 25hz being barely audible for me to discern. Impact could be better in the subbass, but it's enough for me to be honest. The midrange is indeed sweet and the vocals (females anyway) have great emotion imo. The males definitely needs work, and slightly more crispness as I hear it almost as warm as the ckm500. The highs do not become sibilant to the point where I start to abhor them (aka re700, bleh).
 
The ath-msr7 I have to admit seems more promising as they cannot mess up fit with that headphone. In addition, that headphone at least has some extra accessories (though they should have included a better pouch and a pair of extra pads) to make the headphone worth that $300 in japan. From impressions, the highs are definitely more extended than say the m50x, less bass but slightly better impact, mids have a slight forwardness that SHOULD BE harmless if the 5khz is linear or slightly below the 4khz, and above average staging.

 

[jant71]

I wouldn't be offended by anything myself. Nor the other way around if I come off as audiophile snobbish. If they are not in my top 5 doesn't mean they aren't very good and of may be someone else all time or current favorite.
 
As for the MSR7, they sound good so far from the reports but I'd probably go for the new woody from the reports of it's sound and, importantly to me, the 170 grams weight. The MSR is just bigger than I would like. Of course the woodie would make my wallet lighter as well.

 

[vwinter]

  ^
Welp that is pretty much what i just posted about them albeit in A LOT less eloquent way.

 
Good stuff meng!!!

 
Thought I DO have the urge to rip it outta' my ears when that crispy uppermid range makes my ears ring in a short tyme on my X5/C5 combo. : P
 
OVERLY CRISPY MIDS CAN BE FATIGUING!!!

 
Haha, when I read your impressions, I considered just quoting them and going "what he said." and calling it a day. 

 
Yea, I'm generally more ok with the 3-5Khz emphasis, which is pretty openly known around here. Actually I recommend trying raise the 5KHz region on these with a parametric EQ by like 6-7 dB to see how one likes that, with stock tips.
 

   
+
There's a good reason why I sent this in-ear to vwinter, jant, and sf.
 
They're pretty open minded, tenacious, and persistent in finding the sweet spots for in-ear monitors.
 
Vwinter originally did not tip change, but finally struck gold in fixing the frequency problems he had with the ckr9s. Unfortunately, the dip in the 5khz went unchanged for him. The bi-flange meleec tips had helped me fix part of the 5khz problem, but then the midrange's tonality changes quite a bit, and not for the better imo.
 

 
Sorry if I was unclear in my impressions. There were no tips that I found that were a drastic enough positive change from the stock tips so I ended up using the stock tips that came with the package after tip rolling. Most tip changes ended up hurting the presentation too much for any small changes in the FR that were positive and I didn't feel the cost-benefit relationship was good enough. I didn't get to try the Meelec dual flanges though; couldn't find my set in time.

 

[vlenbo]

   
 
Sorry if I was unclear in my impressions. There were no tips that I found that were a drastic enough positive change from the stock tips so I ended up using the stock tips that came with the package after tip rolling. Most tip changes ended up hurting the presentation too much for any small changes in the FR that were positive and I didn't feel the cost-benefit relationship was good enough. I didn't get to try the Meelec dual flanges though; couldn't find my set in time.

 
Then this means that the bi-flange wouldn't have made much of a difference. It may fix the 5khz, but the 3-4 khz region sounds...odd. Timbre depreciates as you use the meleec flanges.
 
In conclusion: AT needs to revise this for three steps forward to occur.
 
Glad you guys posted your impressions. I did not expect my thread out of all things, but I am actually happy you guys did in a way. You're very welcome for sharing the ckr9s, and thank you guys for being open about it. Hope this tour wasn't a complete waste of time. 

 

[jant71]

   
Then this means that the bi-flange wouldn't have made much of a difference.
 
Glad you guys posted your impressions. I did not expect my thread out of all things, but I am actually happy you guys did in a way. You're very welcome for sharing the ckr9s, and thank you guys for being open about it. Hope this tour wasn't a complete waste of time. 

 
Depends on the bi-flanges.

 
 
Grado is good for sound actually and obviously would make sfwalcer etc. happy as far as comfort as they would keep the CKR off/out of the ears enough..

 

[kameenadesi]

the second biflange in the pic^ is similar to what I'm using, Meelec biflanges. Amazing open and airy sound, really. Im impressed with CKR9 and truly believe its the best audio technica besides CKR10 which i havent heard yet.

 

[jant71]

Those in the pic are Grado, the new Brainwavz bi's(a bit different), Sennheiser, and Meelec. Of course there are different ones from Mee, the balance gray bi's, the black generic, and the Senn-like ones that are last in the picture(clear for less bass and black for slightly more bass). I have to look as I have the other Mee type but didn't look hard enough for them.
 
Still not sure the CKR9 beats the CK10 with the right amp but of course there may be the right amp for the CKR9. Obviously coming from different starting points since I would want an amp to make the CK10 low end blossom in the right way and an amp to push the CKR9 high end the right way. Not really into chasing amps for the phones instead of the other way round so I sold the CK10 and didn't purchase the CKR. Standalone I would rate the CK10 a little bit higher. I wonder if Joker would as well since they are the highest scoring AT on his list so far IIRC. Maybe he will get a hold of the CKR's.

 

[ZapX629]

These dropped to $168 on Amazon, so I went ahead and got myself an early Christmas present. I'm hoping this will be one of those things that I can use for a couple years while I stick to the budget stuff to try new sounds. I've become an ATH convert after falling in love with these IM70, so hopefully these will be a long mainstay as well. 
 
I was considering the IM02, but I've heard those were very source dependent and audio quality dependent. I'm thinking the CKR9 will also be better to keep that nice full sound in the same vein of the IM70.

 

[SyedZ2ez4]

  These dropped to $168 on Amazon, so I went ahead and got myself an early Christmas present. I'm hoping this will be one of those things that I can use for a couple years while I stick to the budget stuff to try new sounds. I've become an ATH convert after falling in love with these IM70, so hopefully these will be a long mainstay as well. 
 
I was considering the IM02, but I've heard those were very source dependent and audio quality dependent. I'm thinking the CKR9 will also be better to keep that nice full sound in the same vein of the IM70.

Coming from the IM70 to ckr9s is a good upgrade IMO. I have auditioned the IM70 extensively and found it quite impressive myself and a worthy upgrade from the IM50. But Ckr9s are superior to me in sq,soundstage,quality of bass and timbre. Lets see what you think of them when they arrive 

 

 

[kameenadesi]

These^

http://www.meelec.com/product_p/tipset3-bf50m-mtn-gy.htm

 

[ZapX629]

Got these today. First impression is "WOW. Such Real", though I don't think I've ever heard fatiguing mids before. Highs, sure. Bass, oh yeah. But these vibrant mids are new to me. Gotta spend some time with the new babies and get back to you guys. I'm happy for $160, though I could see the mids being an issue. Definitely worthy of the "Reality" moniker though.