Objectivist friendly and wallet friendly IEM?

[Nango]

Couple of far east Mfr of those IEM had to admit recently they did not built in the number of drivers they announced but only one or two where it said six. Also some of them announced to be beryllium coated where only plastic but cost north of 200$. Read on Head-Fi about it. Be aware, names were given as CCA and KZ among others with models featured by @crinacle who says "he knew nothing".

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/t78yuv

 

[WondrousHippo]

Couple of far east Mfr of those IEM had to admit recently they did not built in the number of drivers they announced but only one or two where it said six. Also some of them announced to be beryllium coated where only plastic but cost north of 200$. Read on Head-Fi about it. Be aware, names were given as CCA and KZ among others with models featured by @crinacle who says "he knew nothing".

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/t78yuv

Crin’s response here: https://crinacle.com/2022/03/07/the-crn-kz-situation/

Honestly pretty crazy but the CRN is still damn good for its price bracket even if KZ is a scummy company.

 

[Earfonia]

Couple of far east Mfr of those IEM had to admit recently they did not built in the number of drivers they announced but only one or two where it said six. Also some of them announced to be beryllium coated where only plastic but cost north of 200$. Read on Head-Fi about it. Be aware, names were given as CCA and KZ among others with models featured by @crinacle who says "he knew nothing".

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/t78yuv

The KZ CRN / ZEX Pro that I bought seems to have the driver configuration as per the advertised configuration. But I have no idea if they are decorative only.

Advertised config:

Photos of my KZ CRN:

Edited:
I just read the Crinnacle explanation:
"Upon my request (Crinnacle), KZ has also provided their own analysis of the crossovers on the CRN, which confirms that the magnetostat and BA are playing but at insignificant volumes relative to the dynamic driver:"

So they are not just decorative drivers, really connected to the circuit, but at insignificant volume level compared to the dynamic driver. So we can see KZ just has issue with the engineering, but not cheating with decorative drivers.

 

[Nango]

The KZ CRN / ZEX Pro that I bought seems to have the driver configuration as per the advertised configuration. But I have no idea if they are decorative only.

Advertised config:
View attachment 191075

Photos of my KZ CRN:
View attachment 191076
View attachment 191077
View attachment 191078


Edited:
I just read the Crinnacle explanation:
"Upon my request (Crinnacle), KZ has also provided their own analysis of the crossovers on the CRN, which confirms that the magnetostat and BA are playing but at insignificant volumes relative to the dynamic driver:"

So they are not just decorative drivers, really connected to the circuit, but at insignificant volume level compared to the dynamic driver. So we can see KZ just has issue with the engineering, but not cheating with decorative drivers.

After all that cheating you still do believe in "provided their own analysis" and so? That's quite amazing.

 

[Earfonia]

After all that cheating you still do believe in "provided their own analysis" and so? That's quite amazing.

Well, you have your point. Insignificant volume level could practically means as good as decorative drivers.
I just don't understand why they go to that complicated ways for a $30 IEM. Even if it is sold as a single DD IEM it is still a budget IEM and nobody will consider a $30 single DD IEM as an expensive IEM. There are many single DD IEM cost a lot more.

Probably the only way to know the real facts is to crack open my KZ CRN / ZEX Pro and measure it. But I guess I'm too lazy to do that.

 

[Earfonia]

I received the 7Hz Timeless (planar) today, first impression is very positive. I'm currently using them 2.5mm balanced with a Hidizs S9 Pro. Playing at ~10% volume gets quite loud already, so i expect it will be fine unbalanced too.

Fit is excellent (for me), they come with a nice metal carrying case and a pretty large collection of tips.

If anyone has any questions, i'll be happy to answer them.

I ordered Feb 10, and after few weeks the seller changed the delivery company, now almost 1 month it is still on the way

 

[GaryH]

So they are not just decorative drivers, really connected to the circuit, but at insignificant volume level compared to the dynamic driver.

AKA audiophile snake oil.

 

[Nango]

The KZ CRN / ZEX Pro that I bought seems to have the driver configuration as per the advertised configuration. But I have no idea if they are decorative only.

Advertised config:
View attachment 191075

Photos of my KZ CRN:
View attachment 191076
View attachment 191077
View attachment 191078


Edited:
I just read the Crinnacle explanation:
"Upon my request (Crinnacle), KZ has also provided their own analysis of the crossovers on the CRN, which confirms that the magnetostat and BA are playing but at insignificant volumes relative to the dynamic driver:"

So they are not just decorative drivers, really connected to the circuit, but at insignificant volume level compared to the dynamic driver. So we can see KZ just has issue with the engineering, but not cheating with decorative drivers.

Photoshop'd the pics?? Com'on!!

 

[Earfonia]

Photoshop'd the pics?? Com'on!!

I don't get it. What do you mean? I took the pics using my mobile phone and resize for smaller size. No photoshop. The note for BA driver is just added to show the driver, I use freeware, Faststone Viewer to add notation only.
Do you really think I try to defend KZ? Come on!

 

[Earfonia]

Just arrived today. I tried a few planar IEMs in the past (Audeze & TFZ) and none were sound good to me. But this 7Hz is a game changer for planar IEM. Not my neutral standard, but fun and lively V-shape tuning. Tasteful V-shape tuning, not overdone. Mids is still pretty good, not recessed. Only listened to it for less than an hour, need more time to get familiar with the sound quality. Will measure it one day when I'm not busy.

 

[staticV3]

After all that cheating you still do believe in "provided their own analysis" and so? That's quite amazing.

Here's an independent analysis:

 

[Nango]

I don't get any single word nor what the titles say but from his gesture, attitude and speaking I would say he confirms they are cheating, something is wrong on the charts he shows .....right ;-) ?

 

[staticV3]

I don't get any single word nor what the titles say but from his gesture, attitude and speaking I would say he confirms they are cheating, something is wrong on the charts he shows .....right ;-) ?

 

[Earfonia]

I don't get any single word nor what the titles say but from his gesture, attitude and speaking I would say he confirms they are cheating, something is wrong on the charts he shows .....right ;-) ?

Turn on the English subtitle. Same conclusion, drivers connected but to soft to contribute anything to the sound. Practically decorative drivers.

 

[someguyontheinternet]

To elaborate a bit on the points in the korean video:

1. The drivers are connected to the circuit and play sound, but at very low levels
2. The magnetostatic driver seems to be intentionally placed in a manner which severely dampens it's perceived output
3. The BA driver placement seems to be ok, but is tuned to not produce much output

One thing he points out is that the supposed EST driver is actually a magnetostatic driver rather than a EST driver. He mentions that EST drivers typically cost about 150$ per pair and are therefore usually only found in very expensive products.

Note: I am not familiar with the different driver types and inner workings of IEMs and therefore cannot comment on the validity of the provided information

 

[Ambient384]

AKA audiophile snake oil.

It funny how KZ just embarrassed the multi driver IEM fans, Nearly every review on the KZ that tuned out to be 1 DD had folk say they didn't like the BA timbre?. Pretty much rendered there gripes with the Ety ER4SR being single BA void.

 

[wacomme]

No. Never. When insert deep enough .. Oh wait have you insert deep enough?? Er4 needs to be inserted deeper than er2 for enjoyment.
If insert deep enough, it will probably be the best bass you'll ever have, extremely deep but no elevated bass no mud.

I have a pair of old ER4P/S IEMs. I love the sound, but they are just painful to wear for more than 20 minutes. I've tried many ear tips, but I continue to have a lack of comfort. Suggestions?

 

[Ashimaru]

I have a pair of old ER4P/S IEMs. I love the sound, but they are just painful to wear for more than 20 minutes. I've tried many ear tips, but I continue to have a lack of comfort. Suggestions?

I'm not John, but I want to help you.
When I first started using Etymotic, I practiced getting used to the triple flange deep insertion for a week until it became comfortable. Actually you just need to get used to it and try to find the direction of your ear canal (usually the direction is slightly upwards).

 

[Aperiodic]

I have a pair of old ER4P/S IEMs. I love the sound, but they are just painful to wear for more than 20 minutes. I've tried many ear tips, but I continue to have a lack of comfort. Suggestions?

The new dual-flange tips are much more comfortable than the older triple-flange tips.

 

[staticV3]

I can't wear the new dual-flange tips for more than 10mins without intense pain. Even size S is too large for me. The standard fit triple flange is fine for hours.

Ear tip comfort is entirely subjective, so recommending to others what works for you is completely useless.

We all have to try different tips ourselves to find what works best.