First thing you will notice is Diamond’s lush and meaty mids. KPE does mids texture better but on certain tracks it can sound anemic and dry. Clarity, detail and resolution-wise, both earphones are identical with no harshness or spikes in the upper-mids and treble. Diamond’s bass has more authority and body (as if you have added a subwoofer). You will gain low-end rumble but it never overpowers the rest of the frequency spectrum.

Diamond does have some mid-bass bleed but it doesn’t cloud the music. In fact, this makes bass guitar sound fuller and more engaging. Diamond throws a bigger, wider, taller, more intimate soundstage, with KPE’s stage is a bit more laid-back. More intimate here doesn’t mean “breathing-into-your-face”. To put this into simpler context, it is as if you have upgraded your concert sitting from a $80 to $100 ticket. The stage is still in front, just more up-close with your favorite band or singer. KPE does something very well, and that is to put the listener at ease.

Because everything sounds so distinct and clean. Diamond on the other hand, brings the listener into the music, together with the artists. This earphone wants you to be part of the performance, not sitting among the audiences. So, which earphone do I prefer? BOTH… If I want to unwind and be taken away by the music, I will listen to KPE. But if I am in a groovy mood and want some fun in my music enjoyment, I will grab the Diamond.

More on the Diamonds, including three full reviews, on this site soon.

Also of interest:

The post First Impression: KBEAR Diamond vs. Moondrop Kanas Pro Edition (KPE) appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Full Review FINALLY HERE.

Some photos of the TRN V90 [HERE]…but you probably have already seen them.

My verdict is that these TRN V90 are stellar (after the tinkering described above) — they are capable earphones independent of price. Anybody who has them on order can look forward to a treat. The sound can be characterized as balanced and tepid (warmish)…not quite neutral, maybe Harman Target, but certainly not sterile or dark. The upper midrange, although there is a prominent peak, does not come across as uberenergetic or even screamy.

Their bass builds on the TRN V80 [review HERE]…nicely textured, silky, with a decent, very pleasant kick, but never overbearing…no mid-bass hump. Vocals are very well sculptured, something the TRN V80 and most if not all KZs lack. Truly fun listening to vocals as they don’t get sharpened by overambitious upper harmonics. Treble is smooth…I find the cymbals unusually crisp and clear…while nothing it strident or grainy. Technicalities are also good: stage is wide with a healthy depth…in fact, it goes somewhat towards “cavernous”…very good spatial cues. Good attack at the low end and transients don’t smudge on the high end. Tonal accuracy is also nothing to complain about: works well with classical music (although the Blon BL-03 are a bit more authentic…but those don’t have the V90’s kick). 

In summary, the company threw a bunch of cheap drivers in a pot, stirred well, and out came a very tasty soup that makes one ask for a second serving. The tuning work is excellent. Last but not least, don’t forget: you need Spiral Dots for the sound (at least if your ears are similar to mine) and that 8-core “Tiger” cable as shown in the photo above…for mere vanity. It is called TRN-T1 and is below $10 (0.75 mm and 0.78 mm versions available; the 0.78 mm version works best…according to an Asian reviewer, both fit but one will cause the V90 to lose its virginity, the other just fits but will wiggle after a while). Product page does not exist and I won’t offer product links, as I received the V90 earphone and cable unsolicited from TRN. You have to find that stuff yourself. Happy now?

The post TRN V90 Quickie — Losing Its Virginity To The Tiger? appeared first on Music For The Masses.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

A simple DIY exchange of filters and tips plus a substantial price drop have turned the Yinyoo D2B4 from an ugly duckling into an attractive white swan.

FROM THE UGLY DUCKLING…

By Jürgen Kraus

When the Yinyoo D2B4 were released earlier this year, they received a very lukewarm reception from most sides: overly bassy, muffled, and at $150 perceived as overpriced. Biodegraded was one of the reviewers right HERE on this blog whereas I did not weigh into the discussion at all. I simply didn’t like the overly recessed midrange at this price point.

To bring the specs back to your attention:

SPECIFICATIONS

• Product Name: Yinyoo D2B4 in-ear earphone
• Earphone Type: in-ear hybrid, 2 coaxial dynamic bass drivers (10 mm) & 4 balanced-armature mid & treble drivers
• Impedance: 19 Ω +/- 2% @ 1 kHz (but see below)
• Sensitivity: 102 dB/mW
• Frequency Range: 20-40 kHz (whatever that means)
• Distortion: 12% or <3% @ 1 kHz @ 1mW, take your pick (see below)
• Interface: 3.5mm TRS straight plug, gold plated
• Connector: MMCX
• Cable: 1.2 m ± 3 cm; silver-plated 4-core copper, no microphone
• Colours: black or blue
• Purchase Link Aliexpress
• Purchase Link Amazon

But some simple modifications unleashed the D2B4’s true potential. Following the recommendation of the audiofool, I removed the original tuning filters and replaced them with these third party ones. And I started using Tennmak Whirlwind wide-bore tips (which probably made little to no difference to the large stock wide-bores). And no, no “upgrade” cable needed, the cable works just fine.

These physical changes to the earphone resulted in a totally different tonality: the bass was dialed back, which brought the vocals forward (while remaining somewhat recessed). The soundstage opened up to considerabely to an above average width with a good depth. This combination produced a cavernous effect with a great spatial cues and transformed me into a walking concert hall. The overall image was warm, relaxed, and soothing. Great tuning for on the go since fit and seal were good, too.

This shows the importance for the manufacturer/seller to carefully select the accessories so that a product can succeed in an ever tighter market.

Keep on listening!

…TO THE PRETTY WHITE SWAN

By Biodegraded

After he changed the nozzles and experimented with tips, JK suggested I have another listen to these. Because the issues I had with them were more around technicalities and timbre than tonality, I was skeptical that I’d like them any more than I did in stock form. However, I was pleasantly surprised.

I tried three different sets of wide-bore tips, all in medium: Tennmak Whirlwinds (following JK); JVC Spiral Dots; and a pair of unknown provenance of similar length and bore diameter to the Whirlwinds but a bit wider (translucent skirts and brown stems, if anybody might recognize the description). The Whirlwinds and Spiral Dots weren’t successes for me, the former, being not quite wide enough to give me a good seal with the shallow insertion dictated by the Yinyoos’ large bodies, giving me a thin sound, and the latter, even with the vented nozzles, pushing the bass up to unrealistic levels. The brown/clear ones, though, gave me a nicely balanced tonal profile. With the original nozzles, I didn’t feel the stock tips gave me the excessive level of bass that others have complained of, but rather that the bass was rendered poorly – ‘muddy’ was the term I used.

Listening further with the brown/clear tips, I found bass quality to be significantly improved over how I remembered the stock units sounding, with a better balance between low and mid bass and a cleaner, tighter texture. At the other end, the treble also seemed improved. I thought the treble of the stock configuration had decent timbre, not decaying overly fast as so often with BA IEMs, but it was also hissy and emphasised sibilance where it was present. While still prone to a bit of these characteristics, the highs of the new configuration were a much more pleasant listen.

On first review [HERE] I’d also remarked on the disconnected/incoherent nature of the overall presentation. Whether I was being overly critical then, whether my ears are more forgiving this time, or whether the different nozzles and tips really helped with this I don’t know, but that aspect seemed improved as well.

To summarize, fitting the vented M6 nozzles and experimenting with different wide-bore tips really do help these earphones. I’d now say they’re very competent hybrids whose sound is now up with the promising impression given by their construction and ergonomics, and at the new lower price they’re well worth considering.

DISCLAIMER

The review unit was supplied by Yinyoo upon their suggestion — we at Audio Reviews thank them for that. Note that this particular specimen incorporates the latest retuning as of 2019-03-20 including a new cable. The sole purpose of this review was to independently test the Yinyoo D2B4’s technical and practical capabilities. 

The post Yinyoo D2B4 Review Update: Revisited & Reloaded appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Very tip-dependent; double flanges or wide silicons tend to maximize bass impact and quality. Build is okay but not premium-looking; isolation is good, not great though fit and comfort are just fine. Overall, their somewhat exaggerated midbass gives them a slight incoherence and keeps them from endgame status, although they are definite keepers which excel with certain genres.

The post NiceHCK HK6 Review – Ruthlessly Revealing appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Slater has already written an extensive review of the CCA C10 here at Audio Views. You find it HERE.

CCA C10—big sounding multidriver hybrid from KZ’s Lexus division. Similar in presentation to the ZS7—somewhat warm and balanced, with forward-sounding vocals—although the C10 are smoother and less artificially juiced—they sound comparatively analog and natural as a result. Comfortable; isolation is average.

Note texture is rich and juicy; soundstage is wide, though somewhat low and less enveloping and holographic than the ZS5/ZS6/ZS7, and instrument placement is credible, though layering could be better—the performance seems two-dimensional on some material.

Bass is voluminous , impactful and visceral, though not highly sculpted or fast; decay is relatively slow and there’s an over-emphasis on the midbass which blurs some detail.

Midrange is forward and has a lot of body while treble is a bit rounded off and very slightly grainy at times; these are less revealing but also less strident and easier on the ears than the ZS5/ZS6 and are quite forgiving of poorer sources. Drums in particular sound quite lifelike. More energetic playas like the ZSN or TRN V80 show more detail and give rockers more of a sugar buzz, while the BQEYZ BQ3 are “technically” better in the sense of sounding less coloured overall. However, the C10 are actually the first KZ model I’ve heard since the ED9 that have this sort of unforced spontaneity and these point to a very promising direction.

Non-Disclaimer: I bought these. Photo by Slater.

The post CCA C10 Review – Second Opinion appeared first on Music For The Masses.

JK adds: The Tennmak Dulcimer is a single-dynamic driver earphone with a frequency range of 20-20000 Hz. I purchased mine for below $14.

The post Tennmak Dulcimer Review – Noteworthy! appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Mildly U-shaped; tonality is a bit brighter than neutral, though more natural-sounding and less prone to sharpness; note texture is leaner than the ZS5/ZSR. Soundstage is of average width and depth, though uncongested; stereo imaging is very good. Bass quantity varies greatly with tip selection (the stock tips render them very bass-shy, while foams substantially increase depth and impact); when optimally shod the bass is slightly elevated, very well-controlled and mostly free from bleed. Mids are nicely forward, while treble is somewhat smooth and nicely detailed, although less transparent than the ED9; overall effect is very pleasant.

These lack the fist-pumping excitement of the ZSN and expansive stages of the pricier KZ hybrids like the ZS5 and ZSR and present less information but are more sonically accurate and less tiring for extended listening. Compared to the quite impressive new ZS7, the ED16 sound leaner and flatter, though they actually have a less synthetic timbre. 

An earlier review of the KZ ED16 by Jürgen Kraus is also on this site [Here].

The post KZ ED16 Review (2) – A Second Look appeared first on Music For The Masses.

Soundwise, v-shaped and “consumer tuned,” with alot of extension at both ends and notably more treble detail and emphasis than the zs3. Source sensitive; these can sound somewhat veiled and hollow but opened up considerably through my lg v30, with mids moving forward and drums sounding more realistic. This is a bright phone and with most silicon tips treble can get very splashy at the extremes; foams will tame the treble but slightly deaden the rest of the spectrum. i hear the stage as fairly low and narrow, altho (like almost all KZs) imaging is vg. note texture isn’t quite as rich as the zsr/zs5 though bass is better controlled than either–upright bass in particular is well-reproduced. these lack the refinement of the trn v80 and the physicality of the multidriver KZ hybrids, but driver coherence may be better on the zs4 (probably because it’s design is less ambitious).

Overall, I’d rate them a notch below the more expensive ZSR, ED16 and ZS5 on the KZ pantheon, although they certainly have their virtues and may improve with further tip rolling.

MEASUREMENTS

The post KZ ZS4 Review – A Lot of IEM For A Few Shekels appeared first on Music For The Masses.