KZ EDC PRO Review

[Is gangadhar shakthiman]

Disclaimer : My first attenpt to review properly . I never experienced premium sound, so review will be amateur type. I bought this and castor as a possibility to replace my favourite CRA (it got damaged).

Build and cable :

Cheaper plastic. Cable is regular KZ cable but with QDC 2 pin connector so cant be used with other kz/cca iems. Shell is light weight and small. Nozzle size is medium. So should fit most.Eartips are common KZ starline tips of 3 sizes.

Technicalities :

Its a single DD with impedence of 24db and is louder. Used with jcally jm06 pro, no extra benefits from it. Company says this has low distortion but i can hear zzz,sss sound when not playing music. This could be my unit.

I used phone and downloaded flac’s to review.



*** SOUND ***

I like neutral sound. I used tone generator and music to EQ to what i see as neutral. I am using Triple flange eartips.

I listen at moderate volume, even prefer lower than that but in some songs details are lost when volume is low.

From 1khz to 20khz

I am newbie in using Equalizer but i try my best.

Sub-bass :

Yeh jism in jism 2 has bass guitar sounds from 01:34-2:05. This iem produces it clear and loud in left side fully.

Yodha theme has bass small bass rumble at 0.55 and 1:05. Both times sub-bass can be felt like by body like earth shake.

Poolane kunukeyyamanta from I has Heart beat like bass beat every 2 secs mostly in entire song. Thats also reproduced by this well.

Bass :​

For this i used killing in the name. It has both subass and bass mix with drums. The drums are well seperated from sub-bass mix. The thump is deep and hot.

Overall the sub-bass is better than bass. A bit speedier bass attack would have been cherry on top. I felt bass is wet in some songs.

Mids :

I use extreme mids to check mids. You’ve got to have freedom has harsh skreaching tenor saxaphone( i guess) sound and Sadda Haq has guitar intro. Both cases it went smooth with no harshness.

Male vocals :

There are lot of songs to test in this zone since every person has unique vocals.

Tower of song has low tones bassy voice with good texture.

Motumaster from udaan has multille vocals. This iem does justice to that by clearly seperating each vocal all through the song but at 03:55 there’s chanting “butter chicken” , that part gets muffled and cant hear it. Sheher mein is similar to above song, has multiple vocals with fun energetic voices with normal talk between the song. This iem does good with this song as well.

Paper trails, Raamam raghavam are good songs too..this iem clean sweeps them.winner..

Note : vocals dont sound forward unless its a vocals centric song. This effects badly in songs like patkha guddi, it loses energy but retains full texture but the esscence of such songs is the quantity of voice and forwardness. I feel this is how that song was mixed.

Female vocals:

Hunter- Bjurk - this iem keeps singer voice forward and on top layer even when thumpy subbass going on. Drums are placed clear to right side. Sounds energetic. Even voice echos are clearly noticed..

Shirdi sai -99 songs - feels like semi classical song . Singer voice has lots of ups and downs in voice like when she says ‘sai’. No sibilance .. her voice feels deep, takes you to godly feeling. Tabla is seperated well. At 03:39 theres small background vocal which can be heard well on this.

Galliyan (shradha kapoor) unplugged - The opening trasition of humming sounds so good. The raw voice texture is so good. Feels like i am listening just few inches from her mouth..

Song bird by Eva casidy - her voice sounds soothening but not soft.. vibratos can be heard well. At parts like 02:22 the three singers are decently seperated just not ti sound mixed.

Kaisi paheli hai zindagani- the little emotions in voice like teasing, laughing , being tired are conveyed nicely with this.. vocals are put forward.

Breathing sound : I like hearing to these , feels part of voice texture. This iem does this only on voice centric songs like phir le aaya dil by Arjit and other few simple songs. In complex songs it fades away..

Treble :

Paataku praanam is filled with good level of treble. This sounds real smooth with no harshness but has little metalic timbre when simmering sounds come into picture.

In Radha kaise na jale the bell type sounds in starting few seconds of the song sound clear and piercing sharp but not fatiguing or harsh or too loud.

The lower,mid treble are super fine. I heard even iems of higher price dont do treble that well, so okay ig. On this upto 14khz its good for me with good loudness.

Seperation / layering : seperation is good actually.. paranoid android has full crazy sounds and vocals which are seperated well among clumsy sounds.. at 02:48, this goes crazy still vocals feels untouched. At 4:50 i hear four vocals along with guitar sounds.Three chorus and primary vocal are well placed (two on both sides).

Note : As i raise volume imaging started to give up accuracy but details were slightly improved..

Detail retrieval : I feel its even below CRA, CASTOR. I can hear guitar plucks in clean song like tears in heaven.

In taal se taal i hear vocals at 0:05 secs

In mitwa theres a sound like stick taping on metal. I hear that sound clear and loud (in left side) through out the song except where ‘mitwa’ line comes.

In sposa son disprezzata at 4:16 i hear something poured into something..its lite and vague though..

In hotel california in the intro i can hear guitar resonance (echo’s) in right side. 0:28 the second guitar is loud and clear in left. 0:40 the cymbal strikes are shimmery has sparkle,long. The decay of third cymbal strike is long and smooth.all hi-hats are clear and loud. 02:40-02:55 i can hear guitar sustain’s . From 03:30 in cymbals hit i can hear the small drum stick taps on the plates.. its sharp..03:57 the drum hits has stereo effect, felt like sitting in middle of drums..

In some songs i hear a particular sound and pinpoint direction too but it sounds thin,lean, has less note weight and sounds distant , as if the sound is coming from far mountains..

Sound stage : I feel soundstage is natural which means it depends upon the song and doesnt artificially extend it. For example in ham aap ki aankhon me it occupies just 20% of headspace.. if its a well extended song i hear good soundstage, like its just outside ear . it has good height though..at 03:10,03:20 the string bend has weight but doesnt overpower other sounds but decay is faster…

Sibilance :

I used selena gomez wolves. I dont see any sibilance in this song. Also heard breathe into me , the S letter sounds as S with no sibilance.

Comparision to CCA CRA , CRA is way more better. Has better bass/treble extension. Bass bit is speedy and has better texture .Treble sounds metalic in CRA as well. Seperation/imaging is better but has bit narrow but artificial soundstage .

Get CRA, EQ it to your preference. It may sound like a 50-60$ iem if you got it right..

 

[Is gangadhar shakthiman]

Just to give some extra clarity. This iem is tuned to harman + significant bass boost. So on paper its good for many . With little EQ adjustments this beats the usual 20-35$ iems easily..CRA is at another league when EQ'ed.. people using CRA might understand this. The driver is capable of handling complez songs smoothly. This has depth/height to soundstage i never experienced. This is no slouch... Thanks for reading

 

[OK1]

Just to give some extra clarity. This iem is tuned to harman + significant bass boost. So on paper its good for many . With little EQ adjustments this beats the usual 20-35$ iems easily..CRA is at another league when EQ'ed.. people using CRA might understand this. The driver is capable of handling complez songs smoothly. This has depth/height to soundstage i never experienced. This is no slouch... Thanks for reading

I think all you have said is correct. I only challenge the assertion of the bass boost. Maybe if you listen loud, it feels rather boosted, but at normal and quiet listening levels, I do not think its that bassy. Also depends on the eartips. The stock KZ eartips tend to add a certain woofiness. I have since learned to not bother with them.

I've had much better results with the TRI Clarion - large. This has a wider bore than the stock, so comes across as clearer, with the TRI Clarion. The TRI Clarions are not expensive. Good fit for a low cost IEM, and a good fit for any IEM., in my opinion. I like to hear everything. And this eartip replacement helps with that.

I keep coming back to the word. Clarity. I would add, this IEM is unforgiving. You need to feed it good music, that was very well produced. Any average track, will be shown for what it is.

Hearing words in songs, has just gotten better.

 

[markanini]

My view of EDC Pro is that of a well executed V shape tuning. Not my favorite style of tuning but, but more enjoyable than I expected. I can't deny it's super impressive for it's price. It should make a great gift. I can hear a faint chirp when listening to voice recordings loudly, that's the only technical issue I can report.

 

[mc.god]

I'm using EDC Pro as beaters when commuting to my office, I find them all in all enjoyable, a bit too much v-shaped for my preference, especially too much bass, but it's ok for the use case since i walk through crowded streets and travel on noisy buses where leaner bass will be masked.
Pretty satisfied with them for less than €10, I have to say that the left 2 pin socket quickly became wobbly under the cable connector lateral pressure, hope it will not worsen with time.

 

[OK1]

The EDC Pro made me feel like a complete fool. You may note I have deleted my initial response. Almost scared to say anything about any IEM, cos hindsight is 20 20. You look back and wonder how you could have said such things, when you know better.

The one thing I can say for sure, is that one's opinion of listening devices, are a function of what else, one has heard.

The second thing I can say for sure, is that people's opinions are also based on their objective. What are they hoping to hear, why do they listen?

I'm searching for the most natural, unhyped reproduction, which is most likely going to throw up every small difference, between tracks, productions, mixes, and allow me hear into the audio. I'm a hobbyist audio engineer for over two decades, who now has started to work professionally - freelance. Typically I'd just use the regular professional gear like Senn HD 650, and I already own an AKG K702, if I need headphones.

Got interested in IEM's about a year ago, while exploring the whole new world of DAC dongles. At least it was new to me cos my usual beat would be use a professional or prosumer audio interface. I was shocked to discover that the consumer DAC's were easily beating budget and even high end professional DAC's in measurements such as SINAD. But on the other hand, consumer DAC's tend to be somewhat not very specific, or not focussed on things like a super flat frequency response. Some professional DACs, in professional audio quote FR, as consistent as +/-) 0.1dB, 20Hz to 20KHz. Some even better, so its a case of swings and roundabouts.

Back to IEM's. Have delved predominantly in KZ/CCA IEM's - in this order of acquisition.. CCA CRA (2023 Revision), ZVX, Polaris, EDC Pro. 7Hz Zero 2 was acquired at the same time as the EDC Pro. In the midst of this, I also acquired an ARTTI T10, which blew my mind. I had never heard anything so seemingly detailed.

Clearly our human senses are not fixed, but relative. When we have been in a warm place, any lower temperature feels cooler, and vice versa. I wish when most of us make comments, we could also include a bit of info about where we are coming from, and why we listen, and what we are looking out for, what our preferences and priorities are, and any caveats.

This is getting long. Will break it up into a couple of posts. Hopefully it will read better.

 

[OK1]

The EDC Pro made me feel like a complete fool. You may note I have deleted my initial response. Almost scared to say anything about any IEM, cos hindsight is 20 20. You look back and wonder how you could have said such things, when you know better.

The one thing I can say for sure, is that one's opinion of listening devices, are a function of what else, one has heard.

The second thing I can say for sure, is that people's opinions are also based on their objective. What are they hoping to hear, why do they listen?

I'm searching for the most natural, unhyped reproduction, which is most likely going to throw up every small difference, between tracks, productions, mixes, and allow me hear into the audio. I'm a hobbyist audio engineer for over two decades, who now has started to work professionally - freelance. Typically I'd just use the regular professional gear like Senn HD 650, and I already own an AKG K702, if I need headphones.

Got interested in IEM's about a year ago, while exploring the whole new world of DAC dongles. At least it was new to me cos my usual beat would be use a professional or prosumer audio interface. I was shocked to discover that the consumer DAC's were easily beating budget and even high end professional DAC's in measurements such as SINAD. But on the other hand, consumer DAC's tend to be somewhat not very specific, or not focussed on things like a super flat frequency response. Some professional DACs, in professional audio quote FR, as consistent as +/-) 0.1dB, 20Hz to 20KHz. Some even better, so its a case of swings and roundabouts.

Back to IEM's. Have delved predominantly in KZ/CCA IEM's - in this order of acquisition.. CCA CRA (2023 Revision), ZVX, Polaris, EDC Pro. 7Hz Zero 2 was acquired at the same time as the EDC Pro. In the midst of this, I also acquired an ARTTI T10, which blew my mind. I had never heard anything so seemingly detailed.

Clearly our human senses are not fixed, but relative. When we have been in a warm place, any lower temperature feels cooler, and vice versa. I wish when most of us make comments, we could also include a bit of info about where we are coming from, and why we listen, and what we are looking out for, what our preferences and priorities are, and any caveats.

This is getting long. Will break it up into a couple of posts. Hopefully it will read better.

Then I watched this video. Sorry I won't as some may prefer discuss the video, best you watch and make up your own mind. I have a lot of respect for Akros, cos he is a formidable reviewer, who spends a ton of money buying so many IEM's, DAC's, and multiple copies of IEMS's at various times, to check quality control issues. Of course there are other excellent reviewers. But when someone puts 12 plus IEM's on a table, and sometimes many more, in a comparative review, and he has many of these mega comparisons. on his channel, you have to respect their views, and at the very least - check, and listen for yourself. Akros does not publish on Squig.links, to the best of my knowledge. Just in case anyone is looking out for these.

I respect Paul Wasabii also - another Youtuber, who also publishes on squig.links. IT was one of his reviews that convinced me to get the EDC Pro.

 

[OK1]

Then I watched this video. Sorry I won't as some may prefer discuss the video, best you watch and make up your own mind. I have a lot of respect for Akros, cos he is a formidable reviewer, who spends a ton of money buying so many IEM's, DAC's, and multiple copies of IEMS's at various times, to check quality control issues. Of course there are other excellent reviewers. But when someone puts 12 plus IEM's on a table, and sometimes many more, in a comparative review, and he has many of these mega comparisons. on his channel, you have to respect their views, and at the very least - check, and listen for yourself. Akros does not publish on Squig.links, to the best of my knowledge. Just in case anyone is looking out for these.

I respect Paul Wasabii also - another Youtuber, who also publishes on squig.links. IT was one of his reviews that convinced me to get the EDC Pro.

On the strength of this video, while I had previously thought that the EDC Pro was definitely better than the ZVX, and probably about as good as the Zero 2. I went about revisiting the EDC Pro. Hitherto I have not, much of a spectacular opinion of either the EDC Pro, or the Zero 2. The ZVX has gone faulty. After I wore it to sleep one night, by the next day it had a serious imbalance between earpieces - now a piece of metal. Maybe turn it into an abstract art piece, like the banana taped to a surface, which recently sold for millions. Madness. I digress.

Yes it was OK, but in my opinion, the T10 was completely in another league. Famous last words. The challenge with anything one says publicly, is, like a politician, it's set in stone, and the Internet never forgets. How does one go back to re-edit previous opinions. Pretty difficult.

I spent a few hours, taking my flagship ARTTI T10, and comparing with the EDC Pro. Going back and forth, the following picture emerged. This is my current opinion. It may change, so caveat emptor.

Anything which adds, subtracts, delays, resonates, extends, shortens, modifies, the original in any way, is a form of distortion. From my listening, after a few days.

The T10 has something, that modifies the audio, adding a sheen, some kind of space and reverberation, to the audio, which is subjectively pleasant, but is a form of distortion, if the previous sentence portrays what I have lumped together as "distortion". The EDC Pro, clearly does not exhibit this behaviour as much as the T10.

I do not want to get into any differences of opinion, on the why's. Simply giving my opinions. These IEMs are not expensive, and anyone can buy them and compare for their own education, and entertainment.

All I can say at this time, is I am so grateful I watched that video. It saved me a lot of money. I was almost about to invest in an S12 2024. An expensive baby. Comparing the T10 with the EDC Pro, brought out to me what maybe is what some call the Planar timbre. I heard it finally.

The EDC Pro in comparison, has an exactness, a start and stop of the edges of notes, beats, that is audibly more precise than the T10. The T10 may be subjectively more fun to listen to, but that is not my priority. I'm looking for exactness. Add nothing. For my needs, I definitely prefer the EDC Pro.

This is a huge unbiased statement, I have every reason to have buyers remorse, and big up the T10. But sorry, I eat humble pie. Based on my comparison, I am now wary of planar magnetics. IT was obvious to me on initial comparison that the T10 was even more V-Shaped than the EDC Pro. And all the king's EQ's could not fix the T10, nothing in the world, can remove that smearing that I hear it adds, to all audio, like a coating, a sheen. But that is not what I am looking for. And the EDC Pro showed up the T10 for what it is, a bit of a painter, dressing up the music. I need precision, and that is what I hear more of in the EDC Pro.

TBC

 

[OK1]

On the strength of this video, while I had previously thought that the EDC Pro was definitely better than the ZVX, and probably about as good as the Zero 2. I went about revisiting the EDC Pro. Hitherto I have not, much of a spectacular opinion of either the EDC Pro, or the Zero 2. The ZVX has gone faulty. After I wore it to sleep one night, by the next day it had a serious imbalance between earpieces - now a piece of metal. Maybe turn it into an abstract art piece, like the banana taped to a surface, which recently sold for millions. Madness. I digress.

Yes it was OK, but in my opinion, the T10 was completely in another league. Famous last words. The challenge with anything one says publicly, is, like a politician, it's set in stone, and the Internet never forgets. How does one go back to re-edit previous opinions. Pretty difficult.

I spent a few hours, taking my flagship ARTTI T10, and comparing with the EDC Pro. Going back and forth, the following picture emerged. This is my current opinion. It may change, so caveat emptor.

Anything which adds, subtracts, delays, resonates, extends, shortens, modifies, the original in any way, is a form of distortion. From my listening, after a few days.

The T10 has something, that modifies the audio, adding a sheen, some kind of space and reverberation, to the audio, which is subjectively pleasant, but is a form of distortion, if the previous sentence portrays what I have lumped together as "distortion". The EDC Pro, clearly does not exhibit this behaviour as much as the T10.

I do not want to get into any differences of opinion, on the why's. Simply giving my opinions. These IEMs are not expensive, and anyone can buy them and compare for their own education, and entertainment.

All I can say at this time, is I am so grateful I watched that video. It saved me a lot of money. I was almost about to invest in an S12 2024. An expensive baby. Comparing the T10 with the EDC Pro, brought out to me what maybe is what some call the Planar timbre. I heard it finally.

The EDC Pro in comparison, has an exactness, a start and stop of the edges of notes, beats, that is audibly more precise than the T10. The T10 may be subjectively more fun to listen to, but that is not my priority. I'm looking for exactness. Add nothing. For my needs, I definitely prefer the EDC Pro.

This is a huge unbiased statement, I have every reason to have buyers remorse, and big up the T10. But sorry, I eat humble pie. Based on my comparison, I am now wary of planar magnetics. IT was obvious to me on initial comparison that the T10 was even more V-Shaped than the EDC Pro. And all the king's EQ's could not fix the T10, nothing in the world, can remove that smearing that I hear it adds, to all audio, like a coating, a sheen. But that is not what I am looking for. And the EDC Pro showed up the T10 for what it is, a bit of a painter, dressing up the music. I need precision, and that is what I hear more of in the EDC Pro.

TBC

In all cases, I do use EQ, to fix the worst offences, as I deem fit. via AutoEQ predominantly, so its automated. Using StaticV3's target., for all IEM's I audition.

It cost me a tidy sum, but the T10 is now in retirement. I've stopped listening to it. I had to face the truth that the EDC Pro was revealing to me, about the shortcomings of the T10. The Polaris, showed me how bloated the bass of the EDC Pro was, so I added a further layer of EQ to tame that.

While Frequency response may explain some of these observations, I think it goes beyond just frequency response, to what I can call driver accuracy, some drivers are adding stuff. So far the EDC Pro is my TOTL, of the few IEM's I own. At 1st it may seem thin, and weedy, in comparison, everything is whisper thin, in the placement in the stereo field, i.e too exact, you know exactly where everything is, and this can be a bit of a disconcerting experience, so many bits of ear candy from all over the place, in the audio, that was blurred on other IEMs.

Whatever I write here, means nothing. The EDC Pro is inexpensive enough for many to be able to get one, and hear for themselves. Maybe I got lucky and got a golden sample. I paid about $6, for my copy.

Channel balance on the EDC Pro is definitely better, than on the T10, i.e my copies of both of these.

The edges of audio is more rounded on the T10, smoother, kind of more controlled. Definitely the more comfortable, more relaxed listen. T10 more cohesive, like everything was recorded in the same virtual space. All the audio blends together. T10 also has a thumpier bass, but also not a pin sharp one, like on the EDC Pro. T10 demands to be heard at lower volumes. Stereo placement is more defined on the EDC Pro, and says beam me up Scotty - raise the roof on volume, higher please.. Pin sharper. T10 has more of a bottom end, more bass. T10 sounds "analog", while EDC Pro is more clean, drier, more intimate, more in your face. Surprisingly the EDC Pro portrays more stark detail. I did not expect that.

Princess of China - Rihanna/Coldplay - lots of distorted sounds. The T10 smooths this out, rounding off the rough edges. Blends things, while the EDC Pro portrays each element distinctly. EDC Pro, more accurate, to me. T10 makes everything sound nicer. EDC Pro does this only when the music has been exceptionally produced. EDC Pro. A definite achievement. KZ - well done. Stunning. Never expected this. A re-education of me.

 

[OK1]

Further listening between the Zero 2 and EDC Pro. The bass is more controlled and defined on the Zero 2, and Zero 2 is more 3D, with all the elements in the music, blending together so it has the sound stage as well as the precise positioning of elements, into one cohesive relaxed image. Darker yes. yet detailed enough. The voices, come across as more natural, not as strained as on the EDC Pro. Less fatiguing on the Zero 2. So its a hard choice, which presents the audio best. Looks like the EDC Pro recesses the lead vocals somewhat. Like there is a suck out in the mids. Voices are definitely brighter and somewhat strained on the EDC Pro, in comparison to the Zero 2. Overall signature is "drier", on the EDC Pro, but the sense of front to back is somewhat lost on the EDC Pro, in comparison to the Zero 2, EDC Pro being more left to right, which it does well - easy to position elements in the stereo field, but the sense of what is in front of what is not as prominent as on the Zero 2. Reverb and spacious clues better on the Zero 2.

So its a - it depends.

EDC Pro :

If I want to focus on details - the EDC Pro. More of a V shape, with missing mids. Buzz and Tizz, Lows and Highs. EQ does not seem to be as effective in dealing with the excess of the EDC Pro. Maybe a further attempt may achieve this, will see. So less EQ applied to the EDC Pro, almost none, cos it did not improve the balance. Makes you want to increase the volume, but at some point in time, when it gets loud, starts to become fatiguing and too harsh.

Zero 2 :

More balanced - The Zero 2, definitely less fatiguing. Easier to listen to, without being distracted by elements. Definitely sounds more natural. Especially voices, with the bass more controlled. Zero 2 responds better to EQ. Definitely Zero 2 - sounds much better balanced, at all volume levels. Never getting into harsh territory, unless one is playing at ridiculously loud levels. You decide how loud you want to listen, and the sound signature does not change too much, whatever the loudness level.

T10 :

Now back to the T10, fantastic sound, almost like a blend of the EDC Pro and the Zero 2, taking elements of both, separation yes yet blended together. The highs, can be a bit splashy, just a bit. High hats and that, But some of that can be fixed with EQ. Impossible to get that impression of thickness out of the mind, like things have been doubled, almost like everything has this chorus-y, reverb--y extension coating. Makes it a more engaging listen. You feel the bass on the T10, not just hear it, it definitely goes low, very low, real low, without stepping on any thing else. Can't get the - larger than life, exaggerated impression, out of my mind, It's nice, its kind of detailed, but like chorus-y and reverby-effects, the dilute the detail somewhat, the start and stop of sounds is somewhat blurred. Hard to listen to this on a long term basis. One hypothesis is that there is a frequency variation, between the ear pieces. Even mono sources sound weird, I think that's where the indistinct sonics is caused by. Each ear, hearing something slightly different, with very slightly different timing, so it sounds lush, like unison mode on a synthesizer, where the same note has many variants on either side of the fundamental origin note, so it sounds nice and creamy, larger than life. That's ok on a single sound, but then applying that incoherence to an entire mix, now that is an error, It becomes tiresome. Why? The ears are struggling to resolve the incoherence, all the time. Finding it impossible to resolve each source to a pin point.

Then I had an idea, could I push the earpieces in a bit on both sides, and then the coherence, I had been struggling with, on the T10, improved. Not saying it was perfectly resolved. But definitely improved, significantly improved, the lead voice in mono at the center, came together, like a camera lens focussing. Better. Now that's new. And the splashiness was better resolved. Nevertheless, I still think there is an element of incoherence, which I would attribute to driver variations, between the left and right.

I do not think there is a best. The T10 - with the placement adjustment, is definitely the more immersive. 3D. With the best depth. Smooth, but sounds false. Can't run away from that impression of exaggeration. For quiet listening - yes it would be the T10, but can't get the lack of precision, out of my mind, but this only comes across, in comparison to the Zero 2.

Current Conclusion. :

Finally settled on the Zero 2, as the best compromise. It does need a bit of loudness, just a bit, to hear everything properly. But this seems the most authentic, if a bit - just a bit bright, but not harsh bright, just bright, at least to my ears, but guess it could be a reflection of what is in the music. At this time, it's the Zero 2 that comes out on top. Another shock. Cos a while ago, I could not get on with the Zero 2. Pinpoint resolution of all elements, most natural sounding, Responds to EQ, Balanced. Yet definitely NOT dull, in any way. Zero 2 reminded me somewhat of listening to a decent pair of studio monitors, like Genelecs. (further to applying EQ to the Zero 2's.)