I have the cadenza's rn and have tried the chu 2. I can say that the Cadenza's are better overall and its a nice experience in playing story-driven games + listening to music while chilling.
I can't say the same for FPS tho the imaging is not that good for me. I guess its better to have 2 options when buying IEMS. 1 for purely competitive gaming and 1 fun IEM for chill games + music listening.
I am very sorry to say this but GK kunten is probably your best choice.
I've tested out different ones and I own 3.
My first purchase was the Kiwi Cadenza's I've owned them for over a year, I love using them for vocals (examples: Wave to earth, laufey, and soft type of music)
I recently bought the GK kunten, and its just a fun IEM to use. Its good without eq and I use it in the gym. I'm not afraid about it getting dirty or wearing out since its just cheap (6 USD in my country). I love using it in the gym because of its bass it slams my ears even at half volume.
So my takeaway is it really depends on what you're gonna use it for, I switch around on what to use everyday but the only problem I have is the inclusions. GK kunten inclusions suck, the wires also suck, so I would suggest just buying it then get a good wire and eartips since they change how it sounds.
Because you want good passive isolation, you are going to want to avoid the Gate, the Bunny, the LAN, and the Wan'er. While i am a BIG fan of the Bunny, they might as well be open backed. Same with the Gate. The Wan'er also has a LOT of sound bleed.
The Vivace is a little better, followed by the Cadenza, the Zero2 and the Chu 2.
Overall, isolation wise, the Chu2 is the best on that list. But i would caution that, if you are going to be in the worship band, sweat is an issue. And 1: Metal Shells and Sweat usually means corrosion. 2: The Cadenza nozzles are WELL known for their corrosion. So...sadly, dont do that.
I would look at the Cadenza, or the Zero 1, not the 2. As they have a flatter bass profile, and a little more upper mids presence. Which will fit into the vocal range a little better for actual live monitoring.
Some other options i would look at are the TRN MT5, the Simgot EW100p, the BLON BL-03 II, Kinera Celest Wyvern Black, the Remix version if you want more vocal forwardness and less bass, and most importantly, tips tips tips. Get yourself some memory foam tips, and use them, this will GREATLY improve isolation and fit while playing. Or some foam filled silicone tips. To help reject outside sound.
I don't understand this. The Cadenza is a relatively small IEM, in shell size, shape, and nozzle diameter. So I can't fathom how small and obtusely shaped your ears would have to be to have issues with the KiwiEars Cadenza. Makes no sense to me at all.
Why these two?
Cadenza is a$30 IEM (Get the KB01 for $20, it's exactly the same)
And the other is an $80 dollar tribrid IEM. They aren't in the same class. So I am confused as to why these two??
The Cadenza is mildly better than the Chu2, but not enough to not call it a side grade. And the KB01 exists for Chu2 money if you really want to hear it.
The EW300 is sub mid. Lots of ear gain issues, and generally not that amazing. It's way over hyped, IMHO. If you want that tuning, get the TRN Shell, or the new Simgot EG280. I like it more than the EW300, ans it comes with a DAC that has EQ tunability via their app.
There is a lot a lot of good stuff at $50, and even better sub-$100. So it's weird to see two totally different priced IEMs as your choices.
The part of the shell that contacts your ear is the same between the two. The Cadenza has a little bigger booty. So it sticks out a little more, but both are equally comfortable. If you want to wear it under a winter cap, or side sleep, probably the KB01.
T10 is great. Vastly superior to thr Cadenza. But, 2 things...
1: Planars NEED Power. The more, the better. So you will need a decent Dongle DAC with good power to drive them..
2: If you have small ears, avoid the T10. It's round shape is not conducive to comfort. I have pretty average sized ears. Medium shading towards small and the T10 hurt my outer ear, I get hot spots, and extreme discomfort. Tip selection helps. And everyone's anatomy is different. But ve aware a lot of people find it uncomfortable, despite its fantastic sound quality.
I didn't say harsh, I said treble forward.
And yes, the Cadenza is very zingy, and se have actually described it as "harsh", and can understand that. The Cadenza 2, while neutral, also has a lot of upper frequency harmonics, and air to the presentation. It COULD potentially be problematic.
What would be SUPER helpful, is if you could find an online tone generator with a slider that allows you to scroll through the frequencies, telling yoibwhat frequency it's at, and you can isolate which frequency is actually causing you to have discomfort, and then once we know what frequency/frequencies to avoid, we can look at sets that isolate that frequency more than others.
Because it may not even be "treble", it might actually be the upper midrange, or some other sympathetic frequency inside that upper mids to treble area.
If you go to squig.link and click on the EQ tab on the left of the screen, and scroll to the bottom, there will be a tone generator with a slider there.
Awesome. Just snagged red Kiwi Ears Cadenza's. Needed wired earbuds to wear when using my VR headset. Honestly really satisfied by the quality and comfort on these things for the 35 bucks I paid.
Cheers!
**Pretty but sound is decent** under $110
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Fosi Audio IM4. Black. I think silver looks good too but can't confirm; I have the black one. I was actually pretty surprised by the sound. Pretty good. Very pretty and elegant shell. Nicely designed. Sound is actually purty good.
Defiant. In emerald green. Gorgeous shell!!!!! Solid iem. But note it does have Quality control issues.
Dunu Kima 2. Get the Raven version for better artwork. Looks nice! One of the best iems at the $100 pricepoint.
Celest Wyvern Abyss original. Not remaster. Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous shells! More of a vocal set. Has no technicals, ie no soundstage or imaging. But great for vocals. I got it for 9 bucks.
Celest Pandamon 2.0. Purty shells. Beautiful shells. Chill sound. Pair it with Kiwi Ears flex eartips. I love the way it sounds. Very comfortable.
Xuan NV. Not gorgeous per se. But the box art is stunning. But the iems aren't ugly by any means. Great sound. Great vocals. Great bass. I dig it. Also comes with Tang Sancai eartips. Save those for another iem in the future. Those eartips brighten stuffy iems.
**Pretty shells but I'm not sure** under $110
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Letshouer S08. GORGEOUS shell. I can't find myself to enjoy it. It's a weird sound. I think Artii T10 (WAY WAY uglier) sounds better.
**Pretty shells but sound is eh** under $110
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Zero Blue 2 and Zero Blue 1. Very pretty shells. Don't recommend for sound. Gets very harsh and sibilant.
Cadenza v1. In purple. I bought it. Pretty. The sound is eh though. It's thin with male vocals. Pretty though. That purple color is gorgeous.
Chu 2. It's a pretty shell. Sound is eh. Thin-ish with vocals. Not full.
Cadenza v2 in Blue. Pretty shell. Recently checked it out. Still have it. Has a typical sound.
7hz G1. Pretty shell. I think it looks sick in white. Bought it. Too bright.
Simgot EW300. Shells look nice. I didn't care for the sound.
Celest Phoenix Call. Currently $69. Gorgeous! Absolutely gorgeous!!!!!!! But the sound is oh, so close but not there. :S I still kept it because I love its design. I like the clear one!
https://preview.redd.it/lnubp4i6qkkg1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=007704c2d634b3df2c5c4b51b196efc50aa20cfa
Celest Wyvern Abyss
Celest Pandamon 2.0
Most Kiwi stuff. Nearly all of them. With the exception of Quintet which seems to be built differently. But Kiwi Ears Belle was super tiny and comfy. Kiwi Ear Astral, no issues. Kiwi Ears Cadenza v1 and v2 pretty comfy.
As far as larger iems go, Zigaat Lush fits really well on me for some reason.
Lately these are my favorites. I don’t know their exact sound signatures, but here’s how I’d describe them:
Celest Pandamon 2.0 (with Kiwi Ears Flex eartips) – Super small, comfy, and chill—similar vibe to the Aful Explorer. I actually prefer these over the Salnotes Zero, 7Hz Sonus, Crinacle Zero Red, Artii T10, Tangzu Waner 1/2, Kefine Klean, IE200, Truthear Hexa, Moondrop Lan Reference, Chu 2, FDX1, Blessing 2, Kiwi Ears Cadenza, Inawaken Dawn, Dunu Titan S, and Truthear Gate. It’s about $20, a total “grower.” Boring at first, but comfort and tuning make it great. Likely warm or neutral-warm.
Softears Studio 4 – Kicks ass. Especially on female vocals. I prefer it over all Meta-tuned and Harman IEMs.
Campfire Andromeda 2020 – Neutral-warm with massive soundstage.
Letshouer Cadenza 4 – On par with the Studio 4; I can’t pick a favorite between them. I can't describe how it sounds correctly and it's an IEM that shocked me because it (looks) like it'd be a Blessing 3 on graphs. Sounds nothing like anything out there. It's just an amazing IEM. I think it's U-shaped.
Etymotic ER2XR – Love these for sentimental reasons. My EDC setup—always in my work bag. I use the Final Audio E multipack with the red adapter and my own tips.
Dunu Kima 2 – The definition of neutral-warm to my ears. Filled the one gap in my collection (Lush, Dunu SA6 Mk2, Truthear Pure, S08, Explorer, etc.). The Kima 2 nails what I was missing.
For budget stuff which surprised me. Xuan NV and Defiant. Both are spectacular with female and male vocals. Great punchy bass. Xuan NV is a bit more...liberal with bass. Defiant sounds more...correct with bass. But both are giant killers. Though the Defiant feels like more of a dragon slayer.
**Iems that look good that sound pretty good**
Juzear Defiant, Celest Wyveryn Abyss, RSV Mark 1, Tea Pro, Dusk, Tanchjim Origin, Celest Pandamon 2.0 (I like it anyway), Yu9 Que, Elysian Pilgrim, EM6L (with Kiwi ears flex eartips), Dunu Kima 2, Sivga Que, Zigaat Lush, Misty Blue, Cadenza 4, Kiwi Ear Astral, Moondrop Variations, Twistura Woodnote, Fosi IM4 (but some eq may be needed), Xuan NV, IER M7, Kiwi Ear Orchestra Lite (in green), Tanchjim Fola, Softears Studio 4, Truthear Hola, Shure SE846, Andromeda 2020, Softear Volume S
**Iems that look good that I don't like the sound of**
Moondrop Blessing 3, Tipsy M3 (their shells looks sick), Chu 2 (used to like it but standards have went up), 7hz G1 (looks sick in white) (sounds bad tho), Kiwi Ears Cadenza (purple) (it's pretty but vocals are too thin), Mega5EST (pretty shell) (sleepy sounding to me), RSV Mark 2 (sick design) (but the bass gets overbearing over time), A bunch of Zigaats look nice but I didn't like them (Ziggat Arcanis, Zigaat Crescent, Zigaat Odyssey), Canpur Silver Flash, Inawaken Twilight (Harman 2019, hate it), Chopin (thin vocals), Letshouer S08 (sick in black) (I used to like it but don't like it as much anymore), Kiwi Ears Cadenza v2 (pretty faceplate but cookie-cutter sound), a crapton of Simgots have beautiful faceplates but I don't like how they sound (EW200, EW300, Supermix 4, all of them except EM6L), Crinacle Blue Zero (harsh), Crinacle Blue Zero 2 (harsh at high volume), Truthear Nova (gorgeous shell, quite a unpleasant sounding iem), Phoenix call version 1 (gorgeous shell but lackluster sound), Dunu Falcon Ultra (gorgeous shell but imo can get harsh at times)
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7Hz
7Hz x Crinacle Zero:2
76% positive of 493 users
Budget gaming pick, but poor cables and polarizing bass.
28Moch1
