ZEN by DUNU: our first model designed around next-generation driver platform ECLIPSƎ

[DUNU-Topsound]

I kind of figured it would be basically you four that DUNU chose. You guys are all doing solid and appreciated work for the community. I hope DUNU doesn't go fully into the design-by-community route and still keeps some of their heart and passion in it also. The driver tech here is really something neat.

Passion and precision methodology need not be mutually exclusive!

 

[kmmbd]

Dunu Zen + Lotoo PAW 6000 + Cayin C9 is perhaps one of the best "combos" I've ever heard. The C9 is frankly incredible and even with the very faint hiss at high gain, I can't let go of them. The PAW 6000 is no slouch but with the C9 the transparency goes up another notch. Zen sounds almost grandeur in this setup, absolutely love the presentation.

 

[F700]

Dunu Zen + Lotoo PAW 6000 + Cayin C9 is perhaps one of the best "combos" I've ever heard. The C9 is frankly incredible and even with the very faint hiss at high gain, I can't let go of them. The PAW 6000 is no slouch but with the C9 the transparency goes up another notch. Zen sounds almost grandeur in this setup, absolutely love the presentation.

The ZEN are my 2nd preferred IEMs of all time so far. They require tips, cable and dac/amp matching, but the sound is highly addictive. A small little wonder.

 

[Ace Bee]

I know it's very late to the party, but nevertheless, I auditioned the Dunu Zen and reviewed it here:

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/zen-by-dunu.24863/review/26646/

 

[deafdoorknob]

Zen Pro is already available in Hong Kong for around USD 820, meanwhile the same retailer is offering 40% off the og Zen…

more on Zen Pro
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/precogs-iem-reviews-impressions.937468/post-16487545

 

[Scubadevils]

My Zen up for sale, not getting enough use lately so best it finds a new home!

https://www.head-fi.org/classifieds/dunu-zen.10368/

 

[Ace Bee]

My Zen up for sale, not getting enough use lately so best it finds a new home!

https://www.head-fi.org/classifieds/dunu-zen.10368/

What are you preferring over it?

 

[Scubadevils]

What are you preferring over it?

Sennheiser IE900

 

[JAFHIFI90]

Besides the quality of their technical, engineering and luxury products at competitive prices, I respect DUNU's transparency in providing detailed explanations of their products through their accounts. They show you respect when you want to ask them, they answer you honestly and in detail, and that's what we really want and need.
I own, DK-3001 PRO which is my favorite IEM's, now I want to jump and upgrade to ZEN PRO

 

[chaiyuta]

Does anyone have a chance to trial-listening both DUNU Pro and FDX or FD7? I would like to hear your impression.

 

[biostik]

I have a question about the size of the Zen vs Fiio FD5 for the people who had both in the hand/ ears. What about the size/ weight vs the FD5 ? Also, are the nozzles not so thick as the FD5 ? With the FD5 after a while my ears get sore and the right side I have to adjust every few minutes because they pop out.

 

[SHOOTINGTECHIE]

I have a question about the size of the Zen vs Fiio FD5 for the people who had both in the hand/ ears. What about the size/ weight vs the FD5 ? Also, are the nozzles not so thick as the FD5 ? With the FD5 after a while my ears get sore and the right side I have to adjust every few minutes because they pop out.

Hi there , i have had both the DUNU zen and FD5 and for me i think Zen was a better fit to my ears , the nozzle was from memory a bit smaller and fits better to my ear.
weight wise - i would give it to Zen i think but they werent bulky , and shell is tidy bit small from memory , so may be thats why it was a better fit.
What you might wanna try is get a better pair of Eartips that have longer bore like Rha or something cheap like KZ reverse starlines or CP100 that stick pretty easy to ears and help...

 

[JinxDynamic]

It seems folks are already discussing the ZEN PRO. We'll make a formal announcement about it in the coming days, and we'll address why we decided to release it so close in succession to the ZEN then.

The short answer is that ZEN is all about introspection, and ZEN PRO is a manifestation of our desire to continually look inward and reexamine ourselves. Even as we were releasing ZEN back in December, we were already looking at how the ECLIPSƎ driver could be improved upon.

Without getting into the details, the driver originally introduced in the ZEN has been reworked in a number of small but critical areas. A major question we wished to have answered was whether all this effort brought about a listening experience that was commensurate. Thus, we designed a small pilot study intended to examine:

1. whether individuals felt the ZEN PRO was better than ZEN (tested with 20 different descriptors of various aspects of sound)
2. whether individuals were consistent with their blind listening impressions, before and after seeing a frequency response curve
3. how we can further evolve the ZEN platform for derivative products in the future

To do so, we designed three different lengthy questionnaires. The first established baseline characteristics of the listeners' assessments of the original ZEN; the second polled the listeners on their assessments of the ZEN PRO following a listening session (blinded to measurements of the ZEN PRO and blinded to details of the product). The final component asked listeners to reflect on the consistency of their findings after having seen measurements of the ZEN PRO, and after having been briefed on details of the product.

We want to take this moment to thank @Precogvision , @MRSallee , @antdroid , and @Resolve for taking their time to participate in our small but time-consuming pilot study.

We recruited these four reviewers because:

1. they have great (stellar) reputations within the portable audio community and are well-regarded for their critical listening skills, as well as their honest critiques on audio products,
2. they all have their own electroacoustic measurement apparatuses,
3. they all have had prior experience listening to and reviewing the ZEN,
4. they were all located within a 1000 mile radius of one another, making shipping in quick succession a possibility.

Needless to say, the study went smoothly, and we hope to expand the scope of a study of this type to future products, with more study subjects.

Initial analyses on the collected data indicate a clear positive preference for most aspects of ZEN PRO's sound, but fall outside the realm of statistical significance, likely because of the extremely low number of study subjects (n=4).

The critical blinded listening assessment was most revealing of the differences in sound characteristics between the ZEN and ZEN PRO. Respondents were asked to grade, on a scale of −5 to +5, how ZEN PRO performed relative to ZEN. Positive numbers favor ZEN PRO more strongly, and negative numbers favor ZEN more strongly.

The mean, standard deviation, and 95% confidence intervals (calculated via T-score with n-1 degrees of freedom) for the 20 categories of sound are tabulated below.

Sound Descriptor​	x̅ ± σ​	95% CI (df = 3)​
Overall Tonal Balance​	+ 1.75 ± 1.50​	(−0.63, +4.14)​
Bass Texture​	− 1.00 ± 0.82​	(−2.29, +0.29)​
Bass Layering​	− 0.75 ± 0.96​	(−2.27, +0.77)​
Bass Extension​	− 0.50 ± 0.58​	(−1.41, +0.42)​
Midrange Resolution​	+ 0.75 ± 1.50​	(−1.63, +3.13)​
Excessive Vocal Forwardness​	+ 1.00 ± 0.00​	(+1.00, +1.00)​
Vocal Realism​	+ 1.25 ± 0.96​	(−0.27, +2.77)​
‘Shout'​	+ 1.25 ± 0.96​	(−0.27, +2.77)​
Sibilance​	+ 0.25 ± 2.50​	(−3.72, +4.22)​
Harshness​	+ 1.00 ± 1.41​	(−1.25, +3.25)​
Treble Presence​	+ 0.25 ± 1.71​	(−2.46, +2.96)​
Treble Extension​	+ 1.00 ± 2.16​	(−2.43, +4.43)​
Treble Smoothness​	+ 1.50 ± 1.00​	(−0.09, +3.09)​
Timbral Realism​	+ 0.50 ± 0.58​	(−0.41, +1.41)​
Dynamic Range Reproduction​	− 0.75 ± 0.96​	(−2.27, +0.77)​
Soundstage Size​	+ 0.25 ± 0.50​	(−0.54, +1.04)​
Imaging​	+ 0.75 ± 0.50​	(−0.04, +1.54)​
‘Air'​	+ 1.00 ± 1.63​	(−1.59, +3.59)​
Transient Speed​	+ 0.25 ± 0.50​	(−0.54, +1.04)​
Overall Resolution​	+ 0.75 ± 0.96​	(−0.77, +2.27)​

16 of 20 sound categories were signed as positive, indicating a mostly positive preference for ZEN PRO. Non-parametric statistical tests have not yet been performed, and thus no conclusions have been drawn.

However, on an informal level, the data is a positive sign for us, as it suggests we did substantially improve on the ZEN PRO relative to the original ZEN, even with a very limited sample size.

The OG Zen sound very good to me and my impression of it is not the same as Precogvision.

I understand how he felt the Zen is dark and compressed, I felt the same when I listened to the Zen with low volume but when you turn up the volume a little its a whole different story.

Zen to my ear has a W-shape signature with high mid forwardness definitely not V-Shape. Super subbass extension and detail, Mid is very transparent and full with nice nuances, low treble is one of the best I've heard full of energy, sparkle and never piearcing. I don't feel the higher treble need more extension really.

The mid bass need to be a littler tighter and a little more quantity to even with the subbass. The high mid could be tamed down a notch to reduce the forwardness.

TBH honest I'm little worry when you guys take opinion from someone who find Zen has V-shape signature. Please let it be good.

 

[Tristy]

Any update to when the Zen Pro will be available worldwide?

 

[DUNU-Topsound]

Any update to when the Zen Pro will be available worldwide?

It is available now: https://www.dunu-topsound.com/zen-pro

We'll be making an announcement on Head-Fi within the next few hours, as well as on social media.