[kmmbd]

Kinera Celest Gumiho​

First Impressions​

Received the Celest Gumiho, which piqued my interest due to the "Square Planar Driver", that has a voice-coil like dynamic drivers, but the magnet assembly is arranged in a plane on both sides, as is normal for planars. This specific driver type is mostly limited to low and mid frequencies, so Kinera added a BA driver to take care of the highs.

Packaging is pretty neat for a $50 pair of IEMs, and the included accessories are of good quality.

I received the bland black version. The white version is currently unavailable due to production issues. The one with the artwork was a bit too "on-your-face" for me.

The nozzle mesh has an interesting design. Generally, the Gumiho are very comfortable to wear. One of the slimmer planar IEMs out there.

As for the sound, it's a V-shaped tuning that's mostly well done. The sub-bass boost seems a bit extreme on graph, in reality it doesn't sound so boosted. Male vocals are a bit recessed. Female vocals are where these IEMs shine. Excellent overall, probably one of the best female vocals I've heard in this price bracket. Probably the standout aspect of these IEMs.

Imaging is good, separation was nice too. The main problem area is that mid-treble peak around 8kHz, which can make treble sound splashy at times. Also the strong BA timbre in the treble is there all along. Changing tips can help to minimize this somewhat.

This also leads to above-average resolution, as the upper-treble takes a nose-dive post 10kHz.

Overall, a solid offering, and one I can recommend to most people if they're not too averse to BA timbre and want some nice bass along with warm-ish mids and great female vocals.

 

[greymousetaxi]

anybody here try the USound Megaclit?
uses MEMS speaker technology, curious to try it myself but dont see any reviews. graph looks interesting, with a customizable dsp, not sure how it works, very interesting i must say.
https://www.digikey.com/en/product-highlight/u/usound/megaclite-4-0-usb-c-headphones

 

[pbui44]

anybody here try the USound Megaclit?

Yes: quoted before the edit.

 

[greymousetaxi]

Yes: quoted before the edit.

i did it on purpose, its a great name. hahahah!

 

[FreeWheelinAudioLuv2]

i've absolutely loved the megaclit's i've come across in my lifetime. always special.

 

[Barndoor]

i did it on purpose, its a great name. hahahah!

haha, that made me laugh

 

[Redcarmoose]

Planar Magnificence!

 

[Carpet]

Planar Magnificence!

Particularly interested to hear how these stack up vs P1 Max.

 

[Redcarmoose]

Particularly interested to hear how these stack up vs P1 Max.

WANGZU ZETIAN WU Thread.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-new-tangzu-audio-zetian-wu-planar-in-ear-monitor.965184/

I do have two more planar IEMs on the way, one today and one more in a few days. I have listed the ones I currently own in a tier list.

My tier list would look like this.........maybe?
A) WANGZU ZETIAN WU
B) RAPTGO HOOK-X
C) TINHIFI P1 Max
D) 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Dioko
D) Kinera Celest Gumiho



The thing is each is special and provide a unique experience. I'm more about size of presentation and deep-end so? The HOOK-X has size but the WANGZU ZETIAN WU has a more focused bass.........it's probably warmer. The WANGZU ZETIAN WU is just even more my sound, but the HOOK-X takes a close 2nd.

 

[Redcarmoose]

https://www.linsoul.com/collections/all/products/tinhifi-t2-dlc?variant=43419306328281

TINHIFI T2 DLC
Dual 10mm DLC Dynamic Driver In-Ear Earphones
$59.00 USD

I never heard the original T2, but this is a great combination of function and looks. First impressions are tight but adequate bass, nice wide soundstage, but probably the greatest thing they do is have better treble than many single full-range DDs. There is also a unique quality they have that makes them stand out from the pack, I'm not sure how to identify what that is yet, it may be a style of smoothness and cohesiveness, what ever it is it's something. SO very beautiful in person!

 

[r31ya]

https://www.linsoul.com/collections/all/products/tinhifi-t2-dlc?variant=43419306328281

TINHIFI T2 DLC
Dual 10mm DLC Dynamic Driver In-Ear Earphones
$59.00 USD

I never heard the original T2, but this is a great combination of function and looks. First impressions are tight but adequate bass, nice wide soundstage, but probably the greatest thing they do is have better treble than many single full-range DDs. There is also a unique quality they have that makes them stand out from the pack, I'm not sure how to identify what that is yet, it may be a style of smoothness and cohesiveness, what ever it is it's something. SO very beautiful in person!

have you tried the Tinhifi T2Plus?
if yes, how is it compared to that old darling

 

[baskingshark]

For sony fans, they are releasing some new DAPs in the ZX and A series: https://thewalkmanblog.blogspot.com/2022/10/new-sony-a-and-zx-walkmans-are-coming.html

Though it seems they are android based DAPs, which may be a deal-breaker for some.

Info courtesy from @bryaudioreviews , thanks!

 

[Redcarmoose]

have you tried the Tinhifi T2Plus?
if yes, how is it compared to that old darling

Sorry I've only heard the TINHIFI P1 Max and the TINHIFI Tin Buds 3 TWS. Very limited TINHIFI experience. Though I'm very happy with this new one, yet I have nothing exactly to compare it with. So I'm simply interpreting it on its own, by its own merits.

​

 

[Redcarmoose]

For sony fans, they are releasing some new DAPs in the ZX and A series: https://thewalkmanblog.blogspot.com/2022/10/new-sony-a-and-zx-walkmans-are-coming.html

Though it seems they are android based DAPs, which may be a deal-breaker for some.



Info courtesy from @bryaudioreviews , thanks!

I know, I avoid Android like the plague, though I'm happy for others if they enjoy/partake in such objects. Nothing lasts forever!

 

[darmanastartes]

My two most recent deliveries:

https://bedrock.squig.link/index.html?share=Moondrop_Stellaris



And speaking of IEMs that sound like the Moondrop Aria...

https://bedrock.squig.link/index.html?share=TinHiFi_T2_DLC