KZ - Castor (Harman Target Version)

I had just the OG with Bass , very good The pro with bass is a different beast. If you want relaxed smooth thick bass , the OG is better , the pro has somewhat coloured enhanced mids and all cymbals sound the same . Imagine the old one note bass of cheap speakers , now flip this into treble . I prefer the OG bass than the pro bass

There appears to be a massive dip in the upper mids low treble on the castor pro bass . Also when there’s a lot of badly constructed treble in the track, the OG sounds better Another thing, at low volumes the OG carries the bass better I have both and like them both , but the OG version plays better on most tracks except where there is too much bass

I'm not sure I'd call the Cadenza a basshead tuning, but they certainly have plenty of bass. It gets deep and rumbly, with some punch but not as much as the Castor Bass (not sure about the Pro: apparently that's not as hard-hitting as the OG, which I have). The also have very smooth treble that's a touch darker than some similarly-tuned IEMs like the Chu 2, which adds to the overall warmth/bassiness, while they sill have good clarity, imaging, etc. Sometimes someone will complain that these have little or no bass and without fail it's because they aren't getting a proper seal. Make sure you try out all the tip sizes if you aren't hearing enough bass.

I own the OG castor and really want something that's lighter and slimmer. KZ went backward with the pros in terms of size and fit.

I own the Castor Harman (original version) and heard the Chu2. The Castor trashes the Chu2. Also, the Gate is said to be "not for everyone" and the build is not on par with the Chu or Castor.

The Zero:Red is a good-enough earphone with a generous package. Not much needs to be said. As for the KZs, I really don't know where the others are getting their sets from, since my older sets have lasted for 2+ years while my newer budget sets have no signs of failure albeit some wear and tear from constant use. If you want a technical Harman, then get the standard Castor. The KZ Saga balanced-version (15usd) is warm Harman-ish and the better 7Hz G1 (36usd). Same tuning philosophy but smoother treble and slightly more forward vocals.

you should look at their detailed description in yt so you can get the one which is better for your use. i think generally castor are better

This one with dunu candy tips and a nicer cable became my daily, I felt that it sacrificed some timbre for better technical performance compared to the other budget iems. Shame it's unofficially discontinued, I opened one up and one of the drivers was changed. So was the sound.

terms of vocals, nothing really beats the Tangzu Wan'er SG or the Wan'er 2. Maybe abit of treble, sparkles, and soundstage, that would be KZ Castor Silver. But vocals is still better for the Wan'er SG/Wan'er 2.

I am doing the reverse from you, I came from bassy IEMs to neutral or neutral-ish. My old daily driver was the QKZ AK6 Pro (left most, too boomy for my ears now) Then switched to the KZ Castor Bass (Very very V-shaped, big bass and big treble) -> Tested Tangzu Wan'er SG (Neutral Warm on my ears) -> KZ EDC Pro (U-shaped) -> Tested then switched to the KZ Castor Silver (Neutral Bright IEM) https://preview.redd.it/7fb6i40ommve1.png?width=8100&format=png&auto=webp&s=5639f5828253e1796037c4592d784a93bd3eb8b3

https://preview.redd.it/eamschpzsdte1.png?width=8100&format=png&auto=webp&s=64a34d73de9ac20e910cd7c60c1059ab51e04e8d I haven't noped out on any IEMs yet so far haha, lets see as I slowly grow my collection and future IEMs and upgrades. Maybe because I prefer mild or slightly coloured v-shaped/u-shaped either bright or warm. Maybe if I get the QKZ x HBB Hades I would nope out because of lack of treble and too much bass. **(from left to right, list is based on when I bought it)** 1. QKZ AK6 Pro (Original daily driver, memories) 2. KZ Castor Improved Bass (Current daily driver, may change to the KZ Castor Silver) 3. Tangzu x Headphone Zone Wan'er SG (tested and satisfied, collected) 4. KZ EDC Pro (tested and satisfied, collected) 5. KZ Castor Silver (currently testing, collected)

ah the Castor Silver or the Castor Pro Silver might really not sound as good as the Bass version direct being its tuned for more neutral signature (less bass) Than the bass version which is more into giving more bass, more immersion for games plus yeah you are using it directly to a device than via a separate DAC I use mine for the most part music listening and the Castor Silver for music production, I rarely play games nowadays. For the most part single player games on PC/Laptop or games with Co-op and lots of story.

KZ Castor Silver (Harman, personally best of both worlds, closest to the sound of EDC Pro with better general sound feel) PROS * Neutral sounding (Bright or warm, depends on the tuning) * Very versatile with tuning and EQ * Same with the Bass, better high clarity and details, technicallity better than the Wan'er SG * Closer to the Harman tuning than the two, so it sounds very harman tuning (Subjective, some dont like harman) * Its like your in between the Castor Bass and Wan'er SG, but without the cons of the Wan'er SG CONS * Treble bright, might be fatiguing for some * Accessories lack abit * Might be heavy feeling in the ears for some * Nozzle size might be abit larger than Wan'er (Personally they feel the same for me, needed to go for a smaller eartip on both) * SUBJECTIVE: Personally I don't like the stock eartips

And for your question, IEMs for gaming maybe at or under $20 or less. Tangzu Wan'er 2 * New and will improve the original Wan'er SG, 2-pin 0.78mm (better than QDC) * Pre-order and no reviews yet so far. Tangzu Wan'er SG * Mellow and easy to daily drive both physically and sound comfort wise, one of the best stock eartips I experienced. Best low sub-bass I experienced. * Might sound a tad muddy footsteps especially Valorant, uses QDC connector. Moondrop Chu 2 * Great all rounder for competitive gaming, light and small, metal case and 2-pin 0.78mm. * Bass might be lacking for some, and especially single-player games, might be abit treble harsh sounding for some. KZ EDC Pro * General all rounder, punchy bass with good clarity and highs. Great for general single-player games and maybe some online games as well. 2-pin 0.78mm and light to wear. Mellow and not treble harsh sounding. * Might muddies out footsteps especially Valorant KZ Castor * Silver version - A more versatile version of the EDC Pro, has the better soundstage a bit, can change sound feel from a neutral bright, neutral, and abit bassy. uses QDC and might be a tad heavier in the ears, treble harsh especially at its treble and mid focused tunings. * Bass version - Best avoid with competitive games, especially Valorant. But great with single-player games that are cinematic and has alot of cutscenes and environmental stuffs. QDC and heavy as well. KZ Castor Pro * Silver and Bass versions - same with the OG Castor, but a tad bit physically heavier. There are definitely better IEMs on slightly higher price range of $50-80, but they might be expensive for you. You can wait and save some more money for a more pricey set.

Ah oh, you could try vent blocking the ThieAudio though the sound feel will change. I don't know how pricy is this but, Audiosense DT600, unvented and bassy IEM Or maybe your ears will adjust to the Orchestra Lite, just like how my ears adjusted from the QKZ AK6 Pro (bassy boomy set) to a KZ Castor Silver (harman tuned)

tbh in the end, it boils down to 1. Tuning 2. Looks/Visuals 3. Accessories 4. And your music library or genres you listen 5. Treble sensitivity = sensitive, go to Safe tuning Kiwi Ears Cadenza is the safest tuning out in the two, but the tuning might not work with some music genres especially if you want a tad bit more analytical or technical. 7Hz Salnotes Zero 2 is a bit more technical-ish than Cadenza and with a tad bit more treble. The safe tuning is also up there with the Tangzu Wa'ner SG/2, which is fine for me but I still ended up with KZ Castor Silver because of abit more technical sound experience and generally abit more brighter feel. In the end its hard to say one is better or the other until you hear the difference between the two or atleast if you have a headphone then EQ it to either, or test your treble sensitivity via speakers or headphones. Personal experience based on my collection https://preview.redd.it/u014mhatspue1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8fba3241ae9d71167d526093ed0d263afe39ad07

https://preview.redd.it/snok346uz5we1.png?width=8100&format=png&auto=webp&s=75fafb1987a5ab7a8175735702e898f4e399a116 I have the Wan'er SG 1 (center), and these other IEMs on my collection Personally I still prefer the sound of the KZ Castor Silver or Bass. I don't know much about the ZS10 Pro, but basing on the squiglink. Wan'er 2 is more of a neutral warm, safe tuning (minimal treble) IEM Zero 2 is a mild V-shaped IEM, while not causing issues with the midrange that much ZS10 Pro is more V-shaped than the Castor Silver, and is treble brighter-ish and has abit more bass than the Silver but lacks bass vs the Bass version. In the end it really depends on your sound preference, music genres you listen in general, and comfort level on an IEM. I would definitely suggest to buy the Wan'er SG and the 7hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2 as well being those two are also cheap IEMs under $20. But if you cannot buy another one, if you have friends or people who can let you try their Wan'er or Zero 2. Same with u/Mrs_Doyles_Teabags, the IEM world is a journey to enjoy, and good luck on your IEM paths you take!

KZ Castor Silver can be bright and very technical, separation of bass and midrange is decent, not mudding each other than the Bass version. While still giving clarity and sparkles with some ok technicalities and soundstage. But it definitely follows harman tuning. The Aurora Ultra is more technical than KZ Castor Silver because of its hybrid planar+DD setup, so it can handle faster transients and changes in the music than DD only. Only issue is unsure if it would be all good with direct to device than using a USB-C DAC, being a planar set it might need some power

1500 INR? * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver * KZ EDC Pro If you can at least push it at 2k INR, I would suggest * Tangzu Wan'er SG 2 * Tangzu Wan'er SG * Truthear Gate * 7Hz x Crinacle Zero 2 * Kiwi Ears Dolce * Moondrop Chu 2 Prices are HeadphoneZone, Audio Store, and Concept Cart If Amazon * KZ EDC Pro above 1.5k INR * Tangzu Wan'er SG 2 * Tangzu Wan'er SG * Truthear Gate * 7Hz x Crinacle Zero 2 * Kiwi Ears Dolce * Moondrop Chu 2 * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver

yeah as long as you buy the Silver, not the bass. The silver is more all-rounder than the Black bass version which is more into EDM/Pop

- KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver - KZ EDC Pro - Tangzu Wa'ner SG/Wan'er SG 2 - 7Hz Salnotes Zero/Crinacle Zero 2 - Truthear Gate - Tanchjim Bunny

tbh all budget ChiFi has meh QC or some of its quality reduced, especially under the 3-4k INR. As long as you take good care of your IEM, they will last long, cheap or expensive. [Here is my beginner's guide for IEMs,](https://www.reddit.com/user/NinjaSiren/comments/1jil8re/beginners_intro_guide_to_iems/) including how to protect these little stuffs This QKZ AK6 Pro that is below or above 1k INR lasted with me for 3 years and still running, QKZ is one of those IEM manufacturers that is known to have iffy issues. (Btw KZ not same as QKZ, different companies) https://preview.redd.it/tz0tlx4e49te1.jpeg?width=4272&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=584f698dcd0a4488307e52f7e48f599ff7e0c052

All under 3k INR (based on ConceptKart website) Neutral (including warm and bright) * Tangzu Wan'er SG (neutral warm) \*\* * Tangzu Wan'er 2 (neutral warm) \* * Tanchjim Bunny DSP (neutral bright) \* * Tanchjim One DSP (neutral warm) * Moondrop Chu 2 DSP (neutral bright) * 7Hz Salnotes Zero (neutral bright) * Truthear Gate (neutral balanced) \* * Kinera Celest Wyvern Qing (neutral balanced) \* * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver (v-warm-ish to neutral bright) \*\* V/U-shaped (including warm and bright) * Tanchjim Bunny 3.5mm * Tanchjim One 3.5mm * 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2 (mild v-balanced) \* * ND Planet (v-warm) * Rose Technics (Roseselsa) Aurora Ultra (v-warm-ish) \* * Moondrop Chu 2 3.5mm (mild v) * DUNU Titan S2 (v-balanced) \* * BLON BL-03 (v-warm) * BLON BL-03 II (v-warm) * Kiwi Ears Dolce (u-bright) * TRN Conch (mild v-bright) * Moondrop Chu 2 3.5mm (mild v-balanced) \* * Kinera Celest Wyvern Abyss (mild v-warm) * Tangzu Shimin Li (mild-v bright) * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Silver (mild v-warm-ish to neutral bright) \*\* * KZ Castor/Castor Pro Black Improved Bass (v-bass to v-bright-ish) \*\* * KZ EDC Pro (u-warm) \*\* * KZ EDX Pro (v-bright) (\* recommend | \*\* personally I own)

Chu 2 is ok, just that it might sound abit less fun with single-player games because of lack of enough bass. As well as recent issues with broken 2-pins and them getting stuck within the IEM. (very fixable and cable replacement) Tangzu Wan'er SG is a safer for the ears set, less treble crazy, but personally it sounded abit low mid muddy (but generally its all fine) KZ Castor, I am still waiting for my Silver version (but I liked the EDC Pro, similar-ish to the Silver Castor). I have the Bass, which is better for me vs the Wan'er SG, better sparkle and technicalities.

1. **are you treble sensitive?** *if yes* then I cannot fully approve KZ Castor either Bass or Silver (as its tad bit treble crazy in some of its tuning) If not treble sensitive, yeah KZ Castor Silver Harman you can go for neutral bright to neutral warm (bassy, like Wan'er SG with abit more technicality) with the tuning switches. KZ Castor Bass is abit more bassy than the Harman, its also low mid muddy and abit mid recessed, but I get more technicalities and sparkle with it. But Tangzu Wan'er SG or Wan'er 2 is a more mellow IEM, great for long duration listening with no issues with treble, decent mid clarity and vocals. Bass is also decent with good sub-bass, but personally I find it abit low mid muddy and less technical and sparkle. KZ EDC Pro is my middle of the road between the Castor and Wan'er, it has enough sound sparkle and brightness while maintaining some clarity in the mids and still a bassy and punchy bass. While not making too much harsh trebles. This would be subjective, as you might have a different sound experience.

If you are going for the Castor or Castor Pro for general use, do not go for the Improved Bass version (even if its being advertised by many YouTubers) The Silver Harman is the way better Castor for general use, I have the OG Bass version as well. Its great for music but with gaming it gets muddied. Castor/Castor Pro Silver > Castor/Castor Pro Bass Terms of the Wan'er 2, from the people I ask and comparing vs the original Wan'er SG. Seems its a minor upgrade, better bass and mid separation (less muddy mids), and better cable with the inclusion of their Sanchai eartips. But the tuning is still the original Wan'er SG with its slighty anemic treble and sparkles (personally)

If you are going for the Castor or Castor Pro for general use, do not go for the Improved Bass version (even if its being advertised by many YouTubers) The Silver Harman is the way better Castor for general use, I have the OG Bass version as well. Its great for music but with gaming it gets muddied. Castor/Castor Pro Silver > Castor/Castor Pro Bass Terms of the Wan'er 2, from the people I ask and comparing vs the original Wan'er SG. Seems its a minor upgrade, better bass and mid separation (less muddy mids), and better cable with the inclusion of their Sanchai eartips. But the tuning is still the original Wan'er SG with its slighty anemic treble and sparkles (personally)

They are for the most part similar in general sound experience and tuning. Just that Castor Pro has abit more clarity and minor details vs the original. Though the Pro is abit more larger in size and abit heavier. Like a little bit. Both are good tbh, though I personally go for the og version. If you want less treble with them, then you go for UUDD switches.

|WARM|BALANCED-ish|BRIGHT| |:-|:-|:-| |Tangzu Wan'er SG (neutral warm)|Moondrop Chu 2 (mild v-bright-ish)|7Hz Salnotes Zero (neutral bright)| |Kiwi Ears Cadenza (neutral warm, with a touch of bright)||Simgot EW200 (mild v-bright)| All of them are good at their price point, but basing on your other IEMs, you prefer a mild-v tuning, either abit bright or abit warm. * KZ Castor Harman (Silver) which is a neutral bright to mild v-warm from switches * 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2 which is a mild v-balanced with a warm-ish feel * KZ EDC Pro is a u-balanced with a touch of warmness Kiwi Ears Cadenza has better brightness and air vs Tanzgu Wan'er SG, and personally experienced some minimal lower midrange mud with the original Tangzu Wan'er SG. Tangzu Wan'er SG 2 kinda fixed most of the issues with the original Wan'er SG, but its still a neutral warm IEM. Simgot EW200 has more energetic and brighter sound signature than KZ Castor Silver (Harman), but KZ Castor Silver has better soundstage and image separation vs Simgot EW200. Moondrop Chu 2 is the smallest on all of these, but might lack overall sound experience abit vs both the KZ Castor Silver and 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2. 7Hz Salnotes Zero is more neutral bright, lacks bass impact vs 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2. (fairly similar to KZ Castor Silver at DDUU/DDDU switches) * So if you want a little bit more warmness but retaining some balanced feel, Kiwi Ears Cadenza * If you want more treble energy and abit more analytical, Simgot EW200 * If you want a small IEM, Moondrop Chu 2

then go for a single DD IEM or 2DD with neutral or harman/harman-ish tuning, avoid going hybrids or planars. With the price range there are decently ones but I am unsure if they include a cable with included microphone, excluding every IEM we already listed before: * Kefine Klean \* * Tripowin Vivace \* * Moondrop Lan * Inawaken Dawn Ms \* * Kinera Celest Wyvern Pro * Tanchjim Bunny * Tangzu Wan'er SG 2 \* * Simgot EW100/EW100P * ZiiGaat Nuo \* * Truthear Gate \* * ISN Neo 1 \* * BLON BL-03 * BLON BL-03 II * BLON BL-05 * EPZ Q5 Pro \* * TKZK TK-02 * KBEar KB01 * KBEar KB02 \* * KZ Castor Harman (Silver) \* * KZ Castor Pro Harman (Silver) * KZ EDC Pro (\* recommend)

https://preview.redd.it/oc5qk49gnqze1.png?width=2400&format=png&auto=webp&s=9aa9538b56e361c6da5d2c43aba4962eff6c12fd SGOR Adonis should be also good for you, though its more v-shaped than the Salnotes Zero 2, with abit more upper midrange energy (which means female vocals and lead sounds will be more pronounced) But male vocals might get thinner abit, but advantage for the Adonis maybe slightly better on soundstage and image separation vs the Salnotes Zero 2, because of its semi-open back design (Like the KZ Castor Silver, at the UDUU switch setting)

difference is more into maturity, general sound experience, and refinement. but it definitely depends on your preference tuning(s). I previously came from the original KZ Castors (both Bass and Silver Harman), then jumped to KZ AM16 Balanced, but I have already experienced few higher end IEMs around 50-200 USD. AM16 Balanced, especially if bought on a discount or at low price (just like mine at $33 locally here in the Philippines, but in the US it might be around $50-60). Better terms of detail retrieval, instrument separation, and "soundstage" vs the Castors (even if I EQ them to a similar preference EQ I like) But with a little bit more pricy set than the AM16 Balanced, because of its deep V-shape tuning and a little bit more refinement on those more expensive sets, those sets sound better overall. (specifically Ziigaat Odyssey 1) Though personally the AM16 Balanced with PEQ is getting there, sounds wonderful, though definitely those two sets are better, But definitely I know now what to upgrade to and most likely I know what are my end game sets. Until I don't need to EQ. My Mild-V/U shape EQ is around the Xenns Mangird Tea Pro and Ziigaat Odyssey 1. https://preview.redd.it/enkhr59aqhyf1.png?width=2400&format=png&auto=webp&s=35e8f417e92d2acc4f2be3885944fbb1a67f9a52

Castor Pro (Silver) might be touch bit brighter (abit more leaning towards neutral bright) than the OG Castor Silver, OG Silver seems to have a little bit more smoother sound experience than the Pro Silver. OG Silver, even in FR graphs is more versatile from neutral bright to a Mild-V warm-ish tuning. On the Tangzu Wan'er SG 1, yes its really warm and chill sound experience, though same with your guess it sounded abit too relaxed. Wan'er SG 2 changed that, so you can definitely go for that one as well. If you like bass, then Castor Bass definitely. Imaging wise its better than Tangzu Wan'er SG 1, though male vocals gets drowned, female vocals does not get affected as much. This based on my own personal experience on all 3 https://preview.redd.it/pq76zelzj8xf1.jpeg?width=9720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1e9a811c03703d0c885fd03d7a806392ba2ec491 Though in the end, these are just subjective and personal opinions, everything will end up on your own preferences, likes, and dislikes.

The original EDX Pro is really more on the V-shaped bright tuning, and many don't like its bright tuning. If you really like bass, Castor Harman is not your IEM. I would either suggest going to like Saga Bass or Castor Bass, or Dawn. Castor Harman (1100 switches), Gale, EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga Balanced is more leaning towards balanced-ish tuning. Castor Harman (0000 switches) is more leaning to mild-V shaped bright, (0011 switches) neutral bright tuning Terms of improvement or any differences, if you want versatility and easy to adjust to almost any tuning, go for the Castor Harman (tuning switches and EQ) If you want to not fiddle with switches and/or EQ, go for the EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga series.

EDX Pro 2 and Saga Bass would definitely be a slightly more warmer set than EDC Pro. EDC Pro would be similar-ish in bass and mids with the EDX Pro 2, but a brighter treble, abit closer to balanced than warm or bright. But the EDC Pro was original reference tuning for many newer KZ IEMs, like the EDX Pro 2 and Saga Bass. They just refined the sound overtime, Zenith was the pinnacle of that tuning, especially alot of people really preferred the warmer sound. Even other KZs have been tuned to a tamer treble than classic KZ sets. Though recent new new releases have been using the Castor and Castor Pro Bass tuning with refinements on treble, and bass for the bass versions of the new KZ IEMs. https://preview.redd.it/rwodxqaqc3yf1.png?width=2400&format=png&auto=webp&s=cef5c06819544d7d3340234c1640b7dc24e72474

The original EDX Pro is really more on the V-shaped bright tuning, and many don't like its bright tuning. If you really like bass, Castor Harman is not your IEM. I would either suggest going to like Saga Bass or Castor Bass, or Dawn. Castor Harman (1100 switches), Gale, EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga Balanced is more leaning towards balanced-ish tuning. Castor Harman (0000 switches) is more leaning to mild-V shaped bright, (0011 switches) neutral bright tuning Terms of improvement or any differences, if you want versatility and easy to adjust to almost any tuning, go for the Castor Harman (tuning switches and EQ) If you want to not fiddle with switches and/or EQ, go for the EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga series.

The original EDX Pro is really more on the V-shaped bright tuning, and many don't like its bright tuning. If you really like bass, Castor Harman is not your IEM. I would either suggest going to like Saga Bass or Castor Bass, or Dawn. Castor Harman (1100 switches), Gale, EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga Balanced is more leaning towards balanced-ish tuning. Castor Harman (0000 switches) is more leaning to mild-V shaped bright, (0011 switches) neutral bright tuning Terms of improvement or any differences, if you want versatility and easy to adjust to almost any tuning, go for the Castor Harman (tuning switches and EQ) If you want to not fiddle with switches and/or EQ, go for the EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga series.

The original EDX Pro is really more on the V-shaped bright tuning, and many don't like its bright tuning. If you really like bass, Castor Harman is not your IEM. I would either suggest going to like Saga Bass or Castor Bass, or Dawn. Castor Harman (1100 switches), Gale, EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga Balanced is more leaning towards balanced-ish tuning. Castor Harman (0000 switches) is more leaning to mild-V shaped bright, (0011 switches) neutral bright tuning Terms of improvement or any differences, if you want versatility and easy to adjust to almost any tuning, go for the Castor Harman (tuning switches and EQ) If you want to not fiddle with switches and/or EQ, go for the EDC Pro, EDX Pro 2, and Saga series.

Neutral Warm \\\_ * Tangzu Wan'er SG/Wan'er 2 Neutral Bright \_/ * 7Hz Salnotes Zero * KZ Castor Silver (Harman, DDUU) V-shaped \\/ * 7Hz x Crinacle Salnotes Zero 2 * Kinera Celest Wyvern Pro (Mild V) * ZiiGaat Nuo (V-bright) * Kiwi Ears Dolce * Moondrop Chu 2 * Tanchjim Bunny 3.5mm * Tanchjim One 3.5mm * KBEar KS2 * QKZ x HBB * KZ Castor Silver (Harman, UUDD) * KZ Castor Black (Improved Bass) U-shaped \\\_/ * Tanchjim Bunny DSP * Tanchjim One DSP * KZ EDC Pro

7Hz Zero 2 is good on gaming. With the KZ Castor (it depends on what Castor you wanted) as there are 2 version of the Castor. Silver Harman Tuned and Black Bass Boosted Tuned: Black Bass Boosted Tuned is usually recommended by majority of the YouTuber reviewers, but its only great for EDM, Hip-Hop, and Rap music and not so good for competitive gaming personally, but great for single player games. Silver Harman Tuned is more versatile, can be tuned either for gaming and/or music. And can handle more than the Bass Improved version and also decent for general gaming as well.

Taurus is really tuned for a more neutral-ish or neutral bright preference. Its close to my JM-1 +10 dB bass shelf PEQ of my AM16 Balanced. But for my mild-v preference, ill rather pick OG Castor Harman at 1100 or Castor Pro Bass for more bass-focused tuning. Or just use my AM16 Balanced with no EQ, Taurus would just be a side or downgrade personally. But I know some will buy this set as their first.

I have seen a comment (maybe from Audio Amigo) where the Soundbrenner might just be a rebadged TRN ST2 shells with an additional BA driver. Seen frequency response graphs of it somewhere from ASR Forums, wacky and maybe shouty and shrilly graph. https://preview.redd.it/05hgzaaiqxqf1.png?width=2400&format=png&auto=webp&s=bc1d239095b5772b4ab21beb2e973abb64f6a65d I would personally stay away from the Soundbrenner if this is the actual graph, I would rather personally use my KZ Castor, AM16 Balanced, or my EDC Pro over this. In your case, go ahead and buy the Kefine Klean!

Newer KZ sets like the ZS10 Pro 2 are semi-open backs, but they are not really open-backs they still has significant noise cancellation passively. All because of eartip rolling, invest on other eartips. I myself has the KZ Castor, it has a big hole on its bottom with filters. You could kinda hear stuffs outside a bit, but with the right eartips and volume you can't even hear the outside even people yelling.

2 recomendations, if you havent use the tuning switches, play around with those, and tye spinfit CP155, they will help a lot with fit, im rocking the OG Castor bass with those.

Castor Og (talking about the bass versions tho) has more focus on mid bass punch and less on sub-bass rumble, being also a more energetic, kind of V-shaped, clean sound, but that makes the mid range sound thin and/or on the background, the Pro kinda fixes most of this adding more sub-bass rumble and reducing a bit of mid bass punch, and also reduces a bit the v-shaped sound so mid-range is not so pushed to the back, but it also increases the size of the nozzle (the part of the iem that goes into your ear canal) when the OG castor was already on ther big side of nozzles, so yeah, wound should be an overall upgrade, although not by much, but the comfort took a hit for some people.

For the price both are fairly good, but is possible that Zero 2 would have the technical edge over castor by a tiby bit, and also, the Harman version isnt that impressive to begging with, the bass version is usually recomended for its really good bass quality despite lower price, Harman is just fine-ish, either way, the biggest differences would be that: Zero 2 would have a more bassy and warm sound while the Castor Harman would feel brighter (more focused on vocals and treble) that could help with details, but also make it feel more intense than needed, and even with the tuning switches, bass on the harman castor wont be as especial or good as on the Castor Bass version*. that said, given that you also want to do some gaming, Zero2 is more commonly used for that as it works quite decently, so yeah, all in all, Zero 2 is the safer option here in terms of your use case.

Z300 is too much bass for people that dont like bass, and too little for bassheads, is and in all, not that great for a bassy iem, Castor is probably the best bass centric iem under $50, there are other iems with good bass, but arent as bass centric (like Dawn Ms or Kefine Klean).

Both have the same dual drivers (as I’ve read) but the Pro version moves their positions inside the shell. Apparently this also adds to the better sound of the Pro, regardless of the tuning, the drivers arraignment makes the sound waves “better”. Is that true? Idk but it sounds plausible. As far as the actual tuning, to me, the Pro is better but it isn’t some might and day difference. Both original and pro versions are really good for their price and sound profile. Either one is a good choice for bassheads. If you have the choice the Pro version is the one to get. If you can only get the original version you’re not missing out on much and would be quite satisfied with the original version.

Based on ONLY what you(OP) said about your usage, between those 2 IEMs the Castor Harmon is the better option. The 4 switches on the Castors control “Bass/Bass/Mids/Treble”. By default they are all in the Off position. Turning on both Bass switches will give you a nice and easily noticeable increase in bass response. The EDC Pro is an amazing sounding IEMs for how cheap it is, but that’s the thing, it is cheap. The materials used for the EDC Pro are of the lowest quality. This may not matter to you but just doing a simple side by side comparison of the Castors to the EDC Pro, Castors have a far better build quality. I would seriously look into getting the Saga bass version. Even the Saga Balanced version sounds “better” than the Castor Harmon versions and the Saga Bass has a noticeable boost in the low end over the saga balanced while still retaining its clarity.

eh the non bass version of kz castor is okay

Is the soundstage better than the Hola? My left Hola earbud got damaged, so I'm considering buying a new one. So far, I've only tried the Castor. While it was good, it lacked the soundstage of the Hola.

For me, Wan'er is better than Castors. I've used both and prefer wan'er 8/10 times.

Look at the KZ Castor they are tunable with the 4 dip switches on the back and they sound great and punch way above the price range.

Hello. I am no means an audiophile and do not have a lot of IEMS tested. Currently owning only KZ castor Harman (Silver) And the improved bass (Black color). If in case i make any mistakes other could correct me. And im only sharing personal experience as a nooby and personal opinion. So since i have switched to the IEMS going to be honest in my personal experience i personally prefer using the IEMS over the gaming headsets. (Only experience before iems was gaming headsets like Corsair virtuoso se, Razer kraken v2, Hyperx cloud 2, and Sony headphones like Sony wh-1000xm3, Sony linkbuds s, Sony wh h910n aka h.earon and some other Sony XB headphones) Reason i wanted to switch to the IEMS was i needed a descent headphones/iems to use with my PC since because of the over ear headphones i had migraines and a lot of of them i had. To the point that i could not play games or even watch the contact im consuming for more then 30 min a day. After switching to IEMS i noticed the sound stage felt a little bigger then the Corsairs i still have and sounded much better with out even using any EQ app on my pc. If being honest i personally doubt that IEMS are leagues a head against higher end Headphones that considered good in audiophile community. Since the IEMS are small there will be limitations. I would even say it would be compering Desktop pc spec against laptop. Similar but not quite. And from what i have read in this group my personal opinion is that the IEMS over 100 maybe even over then 150 have the diminishing returns. If i look at them as a regular consumer then 80% of people might not even feel a big of a difference between iems that cost 150 euros/dollars against any other wireless headphones that consumers buy. But this is only my opinion. So personally since im on a budget i do not see a point buying iems that more then 70 euros (Since im from EU) Becasue a lot of them are definably providing me all i need for musing and playing video games. (Only now considering buying some other options to get a little bit better experience then my KZ castor Harman tuning version) Apologies if i wrote in a mishmash tried to share some experience from a nooby side. And apologies if i have offended anyone.

https://preview.redd.it/9vn2rdkh3n1e1.jpg?width=872&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a1dbead2f7930e6cf4dbde1b42fcfd4ff9daef44 Hello everyone. I would like to share my experience with the KZ castor that i own my self right now as a casual gamer. (Further in the info i will reefer Harman tuned- Silver and improved bass - Bass) But note that this my personal experience and opinion. This is my first time writing and small informative review for others. But hope this could help other people of choosing for there needs. As i stated in my original post that i bought IEM for replacing my gaming headset since i had Migraines using them. [https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1fehzds/i\_have\_finally\_bought\_my\_first\_iems/](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1fehzds/i_have_finally_bought_my_first_iems/) Over all I'm quite happy with my purchase of the Silver and Bass Castors. But to explain which one is better for gaming would be quite hard. Since I'm not audiophile. But i will try my best to explain my experience. Maybe this information will be useful to other buyers. (Note that there is already released a KZ cast or pro versions for both earbuds at the time writing this post.) Games i have tested them in: 1. Destiny 2 2. Lethal company 3. Hogwarts Legacy 4. God of War Ragnarök I do not play much competitive games so i have not tested them there. The Silver Castor. (Switches setting used Originally UUDD now UDUD) If to explain how they sound then they would be quite fun for there tuning. They would be lightly warm sounding. That allowed me to enjoy playing games with these IEMs. If we are talking about position in games it was actually quite easy understand where everything is and distinguish it. I was quite surprised how these earbuds performed for the games. Knowing that the bass is not that strong (BASS heads would love these) it made the game more immersive for me. I would not say that these would be 100% for everyone. But considering there current price they are really decent for the everything. Especially with there switches that are build in. Since you can adjust them on the fly. The Bass castors (Switches settings UDUD) Well regarding the Improved Bass model is quite popular in the community (Referring to the posts that often pops up of new IEM users). And now i understand why. The tuning actually is considered similar to the Silver version but increased bass. For music listening they are my favorites even compared to my Sony Linkbuds S earbuds. And i often love listening music with increased bass. (I'm kind of bass head). To be fair I'm using them more often then the Silver version. Since i prefer them to watching the content and even for the gaming. I love how the base improves the impressiveness in the games especially for the Single player games. With the settings i have sett i still able to understand where everything is located in the games. Of course other might not be able to enjoy them with the switches settings im using but they give me the bass and the clarity in everything. Conclusion To conclude i would say the following. If you are looking for IEMS for gaming the consider the following : Silvers for Competitive gaming. Since these would have much better clarity and sound stage because of the less bass. Considering that the awareness is the most important in competitive gaming then these would be best choice in my opinion. The improved bass for casual gaming and sometimes Competitive gaming. But of course if the Bass that is what you want then this is your choice. When it comes to the music it Depends what music genre you are listening. On these regard i will not be the best one would explain since i mostly listen to Rock, Metal, Pop, Hip-hop and country music (I know a bit strange combination). But for these genres i preferred much more the Improved Bass version over the Silver ones. For more detailed info about the settings i was using this info [https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1f4sgg4/whats\_the\_right\_settings\_for\_kz\_castor\_harman/](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1f4sgg4/whats_the_right_settings_for_kz_castor_harman/) So the credit goes to the person from this post.

Bunny. I think the sound stage of the Castor Harman is nicer. But your ears might not hear that. Otherwise the detail retrieval, driver quality, and fit and finish of the bunny is much better than the KZ. Unless you ABSOLUTELY need the 3.5mm, get the DSP version, and get the Tanchjim Android App, and use the DSP. It's absolutely fantastic to just be able to change the tuning on thr IEM. No stupid dip switches, no fidly knobs, just click, apply, and go. And it will remember your last setting, SK if you plug it into another USB device, it will keep whatever tuning is set.

If soundstage is the most important thing, then og castor harmman is also a very good choice. But vader also has a wider soundstage than castor bass, and is more technical and instrumental. I would recommend vader more.

**Castor:** Has punchy mid bass. The slam hits hard, but with a compromise on thin mids. Treble is sharp. Sub bass is sub par. If you only care about the mid bass slam, go for it. Keep in mind, Castor can have distortion on the treble. It's not as EQ friendly, at least for my standard. And I don't even make drastic changes. **Castor Pro:** Has lesser mid bass as compared to Castor, but the strong sub bass presence makes it overall good. The mids are not thin, it's neutral-ish but definitely not as warm as Chu 2. It's just fine. Treble is well done here. Can be sibilant for some people, but not as much. The upgrades here are definitely the balance in tonality and resolution. This has good sound imaging too. It's bassy yet balanced due to not lacking in treble. Compared to Pro, castor sounds horrible to me.

The OG Castor secondary driver is trash. It was different from the Pro. I'm pretty sure, one driver is decent and the secondary one is sub par on Pro but it's way better than OG Castor. The upgrade was 8mm secondary dynamic driver to both 10mm.

**KZ Saga Bass Edition:** If you want bass, alongwith no compromises on Mids and Treble. KZ Saga is overall the best due to its superior tonality. You can listen to various genres unlike the others. **QKZ x HBB & Rosefinch:** Strong Sub bass, warm vocals, lacks details in treble. This is great for Hip Hop, but might not enjoy other genres. The same goes for Roseflinch. **KZ Castor/Castor Pro:** Castor has more Mid bass, punchy bass. Decent rubble. Thin mids, shouty treble. Castor Pro is more balanced, it's the best of both worlds, KZ Saga has better tonality, but Castor Pro has slightly better technicalities. It's very EQ friendly. https://preview.redd.it/0vpgb08z7r8e1.png?width=2400&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2d12b0acf442af8984f685492e0f7fe1c82a41e8 KZ Saga is overall best imo, due to how it's tuned.

I have been producing with castor for almost a year before it broke and i will tell you how much improvement it gave to my mix. While it is still a cheap IEM it still gives a massive difference compared to cheapy pay at my local market. I think while training your ear is good you also have to take into account what gear you are using. Castor not only improved my mix somewhat but also improved my daily music commute experience. I think spending a little bit will not make you better in mixing overnight but it will at least help your mixing activities much more comfortable.

If you compare drastically different sound signature, of course it sounds different. Like if you compare kz castor (harman) vs hexa (dead neutral). If you compare similar sound signature, you probably need to ab to notice it.

So I finally got my Zero 2 and I'm impressed by its tuning. I'm rocking a KZ Castor Silver before buying this and Zero 2 is definitely an upgrade for me in terms of bass and sound quality. Since I want a variety of iems to experience eargasm, what IEMs do sound like Zero 2 or even better under $50?

KZ is definitely good but I have an experience of quality issue with them. The plastic in my KZ Castor Silver's pin port got chipped off after 6 months. I don't even remove the cable or do anything. Back to this reco, is it fine for Jpop or Kpop listening?

Wyvern is better for smoother, more relaxed listening. Balanced leaning barely bright. It’s a great set. Castors (both) are better for that analytical listening. Bass version is better for that more bassy kind of listen while Silver is better for that more detail oriented listening. If your looking for a warm super bassy listen, consider the KZ Dawn Silver.

Out of the 3? Wyvern. It’s a great set but it has smooth details so it’s not the most analytical set. Castor Silver has less sub bass than the Wyvern. Castor silver is also more bright leaning with sharper details. If you want a smooth relaxing set, the Wyvern and IgniteX Beast are great sets for that. The Castor Silver is more bright and analytical. I personally would pick the Wyvern for a relaxed and smooth listen. I have all the IEM’s mentioned above.

i have both truthear gate and kz castor personally i think that vocals are very muted on castor and rest is boosted too much and they dont have a punchy bass while gate has everything balanced bass isnt outstanding but its more punchier i enjoy gate more cuz its also smaller fits better and it feels more premium

well i have both of them also now i have experience with more expensive iems and i can easily say that gate is a lot better than castor dont worry gate will handle every genre u listen to i listen to almost everything and gate never fails to deliver a good listening experience compared to castor so gate easy recommendation for every genre castor isnt bad but its just worse compared to gate

Hello, I use 1000 switches setting with the Rhapsody. And I also use a pair of KZ Castor (Harman) with 1100 setting. I like Castor and Hola, but I prefer the Rhapsody, it's more my taste, just it has very large shells like the Castor. For comfortable listening the best of these are the Hola, but the sound is more muffled. When I don't use an Iem I listen music on a pair of Q acoustics 3020i or a pair of 3030i I love the two. I also thought to S08, Delci and also the Sivga Que. But I don't know what is the best for acoustic instruments. Looking at the shell geometry, I think the Sivga are more comfortable than the other two. The other one I thought was the Simgot EA500 LM. But I don't want harsh treble or too metallic sound. And maybe it's the case with this pair, don't know. Thank you for your suggestion, it helps me.

DUDE HASHDAJDASJDHA WE ARE SHARING ALMOST THE SAME ROUTE LMAOOO My first IEM's were some cheap random brand ones, but they got exactly the SAME design as those QKZ of yours, idk they were like 2USD from ali, then got my KZ Castor (Silver) tho using them UUDD, and just got the Wan'er, they were slightly more expensive for me than the Castor (with mic cable), but the sound feels extreeeeemely dull to me, they having a lot of eartips add a plus but it's just wasn't for me I guess (the cable was also kinda worse in comparison ngl). I was wondering which tips you prefered, apparently one set are the "bass" ones and the others the balanced ones, not sure which one them as I thought they were the same, I'm using the black ones myself.

I have the KZ Castor harman it’s okay overall a little flatish and bass is pretty absent base on my experience using it. You get less accessories when you buy it. I dont own the Tachjim bunny but i saw the accessories it includes, it seems pretty much a good pick over the castor for the value imo

Glad the rankings helped! Dual Drivers can be better, but it is not necessarily always the case. I'd highly recommend either picking up the Cadenza or the Zero 2 as those are both safe options that are great for someone starting out! The Castor has a ton of bass and might not be for everyone

Planars are really bad for anything metal, thrash and little lackluster mix tracks from 80s metals, rocks. Any cheap DD is a better option. Maybe Timeless is an exception. My experience with KZ PR2 with even a FiiO KA11 was not so good. My Castor is far better for metal and rock. Fortunately, my current single DD is miles ahead of both PR2 or Castor. For me personally, DD >> Single Planar for most cases for such type of music.

kz castor silver is a good choice.. i bought it july last year and it still solid..

It would recommend KZ Libra X (silver one) or KZ ZVX if you want something in that direction. Both have fairly balanced tuning and decent bass. Kz castor harman have clean bass that is nice if that what you want. But if you want fun punchy rumbly bass, this aint it. Or get KZ Castor pro bass for good quality fun bass but still not overwhelming like the og castor bass.

I tried the KZ castor with the inline mic. The iem sound was good, but the mic was weak. KZ has upped their game this past year. Linsoul on Amazon sells them. Some they sell as new, but they are returned items. I filled a complaint with Amazon about this issues. I got to keep the pair they sent me, plus amazon sent me another pair for free.

Waners, Castors, Abyss, Cadenza, Moondrop Chu 2, Blon bl3 2 are some iems you can consider. Most iems these days are good enough for flac music in this price range, only the tuning differs. As they're wired, they dont have a battery to degrade so they can ladt you forever. Just keep them away from sweat and moisture of any kind since that damages them. Considering most iems are 3.5mm, you will need a dac which converts type c to 3.5mm (digital to analog) and lets you take full advantage of your iems as it improves the sound and volumes as well. Even if you have a 3.5 on your phone or laptop, a dac will make the iems sound better.

I have the silver castor pros too but they don't drive as well directly on a ps5 controller compared to the bass version for some reason. Plus the punchy bass is sooo immersive. I'm not playing competitive games just fun single player stuff. Def using the silver ones on my laptop though!

They're so good. Idk why I enjoy them so much. I even have the Letshuoer S08 and I use the castor more

Get ready for the "Why get many cheap iem instead of one overpriced iem?" Comments. 😅 Great collection! Love my KZs. My ZS10 Pro X and castor puch way above their price. The linglong was a great surprise too

kz castor harman yeeeesssss

I have this and the HBB QKZ as my cheap bass iems….I really like the Castor but the QKZ HBB are better, I think they’re the best sounding budget ($20 range) earbuds I’ve ever tried, and I’ve tried almost all the normally recommended iems in that price range

I had an EDX Pro as my first IEM, then I got an EDX Pro X and a Castor for free on Temu. By far, the Castor is much better than both EDXs, but also a bit more expensive. The EDX Pro X was a bit more balanced than the EDX Pro, but with less bass and less agility in fast-paced songs (although the difference is not big). I recently tried the EDC Pros. Their tuning is very good. According to the graphs, the SGOR Venus has a similar tuning to the EDC Pros but with less bass, but I can't say much about them since I've never tried them. I only mention them as an alternative to KZ, since, as everyone knows, KZ isn't a brand with a very good reputation, although they're not bad as first IEMs.

I have experience with the last three and say Waner 2 first, castor last. Can't say the value of that boom mic but the wyvern (green?) is good on its own. I'm using the waner 2 on my PSVR2 and it's excellent, can't believe it's a $20ish IEM

I love the castor blacks. I don’t need another iem.

Buy a KZ Castor. Make sure it’s the black version. It has more bass.

To keep it simple, yes the other version is clearer with less bass. It is not expensive. To plug them into your phone get an Apple dongle dac. It is very cheap as well. Hope you like them.

Try out the KZ Castor Harmon Improved Bass edition or the KZ Castor Pro Bass Edition. Affordable, and surprisingly fun to use.

The Punch is good. For a better Deuce, look for a cheap Aoshida E20. In the budget range, my basshead iems to go: 7hz x HBB Elua, Castor Bass og, Saga Bass, Libra Balanced, KBear Rosefinch

Sadly i don't have the Rosefinch, the others i think in my budget sets are the ones i go for when you talk about bassy boyz, not in any ranking, i love those cheap bangers. But if i want to recommend the best among those, the Elua, Castor Bass og and Rosefinch are the most basshead sets, with Rosefinch being the big cannon and Elua an underdog mini Deuce, the E20 is just a better and cheaper Deuce, lol.

the OG castor bass are my go tos for anything hardstyle (uptempo, raw style etc) lol, they’re incredible for that but for everything else i would absolutely not pick them 💀

They sound better with DAC. There's clearly a difference between listening to my OG Castor Bass straight out of the phone/PC, and when I connect it through my Fiio JA11.

Small list of the ones I recommend for beginners with budget 1. Moondrop chu ii 2. Kz castor (original or pro) if you like bass, pick the black one 3. 7hz Zero Red 4.sgor adonis

You can also get KZ Castor Harman Target edition, I use the same with my Boss Katana 50 and they have been great since the past year

Well I only have them Simgot supermix 4… and I’m such a sucker for the harman target so I luv them, the treble is soooo smooth, the fit, the looks I love then. I’m considering a new cable tho.

Smart move — the Cadenza is a great baseline for a relaxed-but-clear sound, but if you want to explore different tunings before investing more, here are 3 budget IEMs that each take you in a *distinct* direction: **1. 7Hz Zero 2** – Neutral-bright and analytical. Much flatter in the bass than the Cadenza, with crisp upper mids and clarity-forward tuning. Great for vocals and detail, less warmth. **2. KZ Castor (Bass side)** – V-shaped and bassy. This gives you that fun, punchy low end with some extra energy up top too. Totally different presentation from the Cadenza — more contrast, more spice. **3. Tangzu Wan’er SG** – Mid-centric and warm. Smoother treble, fuller mids, and soft bass. Not as technically sharp as Zero 2, but excellent for chill listening and vocals. Each of these emphasizes a different part of the spectrum, so trying all three gives you a decent “flavor map” to figure out what you want more (or less) of in a future upgrade. Also, if you're interested in a more strategic deep-dive on how to actually *learn* what you like and avoid wasting money as you climb, I wrote this breakdown you might find helpful: [How to Actually Learn What You Like in IEMs (and Stop Wasting Money)](https://www.reddit.com/r/iems/comments/1kd6j1t/how_to_actually_learn_what_you_like_in_i)

Bass isn't that good for games like Val, I'd go with the harman and see how I like it from there. The IEMs aren't crazy expensive. Also, the USB C dac should work on pc without problems

It really depends on what kind of sound profile you are looking for. Castor is a more capable iem in my opinion. You should check out frequency response graphs of the iems. It may give you an idea of how they sound. It's explained on the headphonezone website. There are two versions of the Castor, bass (black) and harman (silver). If you want to experience a bass head tuning this can do it well. The bass version is a fun set, not particularly correct sounding. The harman might do a better job of that ( I haven't tried the harman). The stock tips on castors are just okay. I highly recommend latex liquid silicone tips from conceptkart. Polaris is a balanced sound, still a v shaped tuning but not as pronounced as the others. It is easy to listen to but in the end is not as resolving as the castor bass. It can bring out some details but there are better iems that do it well. It is still a great beginner set if you are tight on budget. It has decent levels of bass and fairly smooth treble presentation. Widebore tips are recommended with Polaris. I have not tried the zex, partly because of some reviews mentioning harsh treble. I am a bit sensitive to treble, but overall it should give you an energetic sound. With good amounts of bass and treble. The driver combinations and features are different for these iems.

KZ Castor. No bass, shouty, just hurting my hearing

Yes, I meant the Harman version. Their bass is very very lean. The switch adds bass, but it's sound doesn't fit the rest of the tuning. The Castor Bass is much much better.

My personal journey to find the perfect audio setup that works for me was long and expensive. Put simply, I tried a ton of the gamer-focused headsets first. Went through a lot, and some of them were actually decent, but in the end, I realized the truth: gamer headphones are not a good value. They put more resources into the branding and aesthetics than they do for actual audio quality. The one exception to this was the Sennheiser/Drop PC38x. These are wired open back headphones with a built-in mic. For me, these were far and away the best sounding "gamer" headphones I ever tried, and it wasn't even close. The open back really opens up the soundstage, which, at least for me, really helped with directional audio. The convenience of the built-in mic was definitely a bonus too. Sadly, it looks like they are no longer making these... maybe Drop or Sennheiser still makes something similar but I haven't looked. I ran the Astro a40's for a long time too. These also have an open back design, but I always found them to be a bit too harsh, and I spent WAY too much time trying to tweak the EQ to get them to sound good. The terrible software didn't help matters either. IEM's are all the rage now. I was skeptical at first, but have found this to be the best way to go. IEM's were always kind of a niche item that was historically expensive for a decent set, but over the last few years, a TON of really good IEM's have hit the market for super cheap. My current favorite set are the Truthear Crinacle Zero Reds. You can find them on sale pretty often for around $50. If that's too much, there are a lot of great options in the $15 - $50 range too. The KZ Castors come to mind: I think I got mine for like $25 and I like these almost as much as the Zero Reds. The Audiovance Vibes 202's are good as well and can be had for around $30. I like them because they sound really great, and I like the cables they come with. And of course, everyone loves the Moondrop Chu II. I have those as well and they are indeed quite good, especially for the price (around $20). The amazing thing is that all of the IEM's I mentioned above sound way better than the in ear monitors I used to use back in my days of playing live music... and they literally cost hundreds of dollars less. It blows my mind. The one downside to IEM's is the lack of a built-in mic. This is easy to get around if you are playing on PC, but a little less convenient if you play on console. I have a dedicated mic for my setup since I do a lot of music recording so it isn't a problem, but if you need a built-in mic, there are cables for IEM's that you can buy that have a little mic built in. I can't really speak to how good they are, but I would think that would work ok plugged directly into your Xbox or PS controller. Anyway, I didn't set out to write a book here when I started this post, but there it is... TLDR; iems are the way to go. Even the Moondrop Chu II's sound significantly better than even the most expensive gamer-focused headsets. And that's before you even consider cost. If you are like me, and your earholes don't generally like earbuds, you may need to experiment with different tips to find something that is comfortable enough to wear for long periods, but once you do it is awesome, and definitely worth the trouble.

IEMs is the way. Just get KZ castor with a nice audiocular dac

I love my KZ Castors definitely recommend.

IMHO castor > wan'er 2 if you compare just the IEMs, without the accessories.

First of all: I am not an expert in hi-fi. I'm just a simple man who was looking for good IEMs, and this is only my subjective opinion. The IEMs I was looking for should cost between $50 and $150 and should have balanced, lively bass with pleasant treble that does not tire the ears. So far, I have tried many IEMs and tested them on my PC and smartphone without any additional devices. No DAC, no amp. It was important to me that they were ready to use right out of the box. For me, good sound is when it is carried by lively bass and deep frequencies that guide you through the music, especially for drum and bass and metal. Low frequencies, and especially bass, form the basis of a good listening experience; that's the primary purpose of why I prefer hi-fi headphones, to get into it. My rotation: **≈ 50$ IEMs which I tested:** LINSOUL TANGZU Wan'er LINSOUL SIMGOT EW200 MOONDROP CHU II LINSOUL 7Hz x Crinacle Zero:2 KZ Castor LINSOUL KZ ZS10 PRO 2 LINSOUL KZ ZS10 PRO X **≈ 100$ IEMs which I tested:** LINSOUL SIMGOT EW300 ARTTI T10 Pro TRUTHEAR Hexa Surprisingly, only two of the IEMs I tested impressed me with their overall bass reproduction. I couldn't decide between the KZ PRO 2 and the ZERO BLUE 2, but in the end I chose the BLUE 2 because it offers the best overall package. For me, the ZERO BLUE 2 is simply badass right out of the box. These were the only IMEs that had this deep sounding I was looking for. https://preview.redd.it/fm66t5fl5uef1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=87099e1c617e96b62bb51f28fe01520ebe96a0c6 https://preview.redd.it/pyn3x43m5uef1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=721c67332e8f8dd3db7ed8ac6e948c098e174871

I should have bought kefine klean instead of the kz castor.

Good point. Thats why i did tons of research after buying my first iem and dap which are kz castor and sony a35. Was overwhelmed with the vast number of iems and daps. Wanted to try it all in every price point but later decided it was not worth spending so much money so bought what i think is the best for me which was the wm1a and tea pros combo and sold my kz castor but kept my a35 as a backup. Now i can say i reached my endgame and no longer need to buy another device except when my current one breaks.

oh that's worrying as I use KZ castors for my daily use like office calls, fps games, music but the volume is always around 50-70%, I hope you recover from the damage take care

Kz casters cause I’m cheap, but they are better sounding than all the other headphones in my house and according to my mum sound and feel better built than AirPods

From that list Castor or Castor Pro but honestly I prefer Vader Balanced, Zenith, AM16, and ZS12 Pro X as my favorite KZ IEMs.

My 2nd IEM(After Kz Castor) and my favourite one among the 2❤️

Yes, to my taste Zero 2s are better than Kz Castor. Good layered seperated music experience, good balanced bass, not too overpowering or fatiguing the ears, good vocals.

Agree. Zs10 pro 2 ( uppose to be upgrade ) are crap.Too bright and harsh heights. Vocals sound weird to me. Also overhiped to me are Castor Bass,HBB ''gaming'' collab. I have KZ Castor,QKZ x HBB ( these 2 are the crappiest ) Vader,Zs10 pro,PRX,and CCA Rhapsody. Rhapsody are the only ones that are good for me as a bass head.NIce sub bass rumble,punchy mid bass,present vocals,no harsh or piercing heights ( like zs10 pro 2),Decent wide soundstage.THey just sound good. Took me a while to make them comfortable,was about to give up on them. Definitely i recomend them for a basshead They need short steam eartips ( i shorten the stock ones ) to make them usable for 6,7-10 hours.Otherwise they push too much in your ear canal and cause pain due big nozzle. I ordered some eartips that suppose to work with them ( **Zhulinniao Zhu Rythme** ) but they are in transit and i didn't try them yet. I'd give them a try if u are a basshead.THey are good.

[Kz castor](https://s.shopee.ph/2B1Rl1Sztn) if looking for something affordable. [Pr2](https://s.shopee.ph/5puk88IXCi) naman if maluwag budget for the IEM.

Scandals and haters aside, I genuinely believe that most KZ IEMs are at least impressive, if not great. IMO the Castor and Castor Pro are probably the best for the price. That said, the ZS 12 Pro, shoots way above its weight.

i also want to buy that .. I've done some research with the help of some AI and seen some yt videos and read some posts and threads in reddit... I used kz castor last year and kz zs10 pro x around 3 years back but honestly didn't like it overall.... now will you plz share ur views or experience about ew300 thanks in advance

im selling 3k$ worth of amps, dacs, headphones, iems just because I accidentaly heard Kz castor (harman, white, UP UP DOWN DOWN).. no joke

way way way... im selling 3k$ worth of amps, dacs, headphones, iems just because I accidentaly heard Kz castor (harman, white)... 

Hi! You commented on my post and I thought I’d come by to give some advice! I would typically recommend the wan’er 2 as a first pair of iem’s but considering their large shell size they might not be for you. The Chu 2 are a great set absolutely and can be upgraded directly to the LAN 2 ref also from Moondrop. I wouldn’t recommend going for the ie200 because they cost a good amount of money but they take on a neutral tone which might be to your preference, I personally prefer a “fun” sound and therefore don’t use them often. Also consider tip sizes. If you find your canal is too small, most iem’s offer small tip sizes and you can find even smaller aftermarket, in which case I recommend the wan’er 2 as they have my favourite ever tips in the stock box that I use for all my iem’s. Don’t spend more than needed, I would recommend the KZ castors, Cadenza, Wan’er 1 or 2, Chu 2, or, if it’s in your budget, the LAN

I would say iems but depends upon one's use case. I am using OnePlus buds and kz castors. I like castors more for gaming and media consumption on pc but I use buds in the gym and in public places.

If you are a bass guy, KZ castor, if you want not only the bass but every other thing, tangzu wan'er, Do not buy from Amazon/Flipkart those are a rip off. I had a pretty bad experience with conceptkart, so I would recommend The headphone zone but the choice is yours to make.

KZ Castor or KZ D-Fi if there's a sale

They're very popular because of their price/sound quality ratio. You'd usually have to pay 20-30usd for that quality from other brands. There's a summer Sale now on Ali. You can get the Castor or the Castor Pro or D-FI for less than 10usd each if you have enough coins

Bruv you don't need a specific style of earphones to hear footsteps in bgmi. Anything that gives stereo audio is all that you need. For music? Hell Yea, the castors sound amazimg

The Zenith is the best one by a large margin for me, the Gale would be my second choice (EDX Pro 2 has the same tuning and about 2-3dB more bass, I prefer the balance of the Gale though, both are an incredible value for the price (+/-$8-9)). I have or had at some point the Hydro, PRX, Saga (both), Castor (both), Libra (hi-res and balanced), ZVX, ZVX Pro, Vader Balanced/Trio, ZS12 Pro X, EDC Pro, D-Fi and Polaris, of this sets I like the Saga Balanced the most.

kz castor (better bass response)

After some research and a being bit tired of using wired headphones,I decided to buy my first pair of iems (Sennheiser ie200), and found them to be a significant improvement in sound quality of both airpods pro (2nd gen) and Sony WF1000xm4 (though I think the latter is still pretty good). Out of curiosity, I also purchased a pair of KZ Castors, just to see the difference between a pair of 100$s and a pair of 10$s. While I wouldn’t exactly call it ‘night and day’, the difference is still fairly obvious, even for a complete layman. The ie200s sound quite a bit richer, fuller, and, well, ‘closer’(sorry again for the lay description, haha). The comfort of the ie200 is really outstanding, as they are positively tiny and fit snugly in my ears. The sound quality is excellent, too, at least to me. Quite well balanced, good bass, clear trebles, and just overall very ‘smooth’ and enjoyable to listen to. I find myself pulling them out, ignoring the inconvenience of chords, just to listen to my favourite songs with them, whereas with the bluetooth buds I only want to wear them when I’m commuting or working out. That said, I think the KZs are also quite good indeed, both in terms of sound and build quality(the metal part on the Castors actually feel a bit premium), especially when you consider the price, and I would have no problem recommending them to anyone who doesn’t want to spend more than 20 bucks on earphones. (At least until they break or stop working, as I heard can be a problem for inexpensive chi-fi iems. But yeah, still good value.)

In your list, I vote for the Wan'er S.G. To me it's the most balanced and sounds the best. The Castor is definitely more bassy, and the Zero is pretty similar to the SG. If you can wait, I'd hold out for the Wan'er 2 and it's reviews.

My recommendations would be -Truthear zero: Red. Be carefull as the nozzles are abit large. -truthear zero: blue 2: has really small nozzles copared to the reds. Dont go with kz as they have bad qc and nost of their products break within months.

Not all but the kz castor and the castor pro my friend has both broke in a month more or less. It sounds good when it works but not otherwise

MORMOQUE EP-06 Metallic Wired... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9TSWJ4P?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share These for unintrusiveness. KZ Castor when I want better quality. Or over the head senheizer

Enjoy your iem! You can set the 1 and 3 switch to up so that the bass improved.I have one of these and really love it.

I was in the same boat and just bought a few pairs sight unseen - here’s my take on the ones I own (my references are the OG AirPod Pros, Pro 2, Sony XM4s, Grado 125i): These last few weeks I’ve used the KZ Castor Bass, Letshuoer S08, Simgot SuperMix 4 KZ Castor: Not the same level as OG AirPod Pros, treble is a bit muffled. Wouldn’t really use them over AirPods, but hey they were dirt cheap Letshuoer S08: Got them for a steal ($95AUD / $60USD). Great technicalities, instrument separation is amazing. Very interesting sound, can be a bit fatiguing on the treble. Bass is tight but punchy enough. I would put them equivalent to AirPod Pro 2. SuperMix 4: Fuller bass compared to the S08 but it doesn’t hit as acutely (if that makes sense), treble is smoother and easier to listen to. Would say they are still an AirPod Pro 2 equivalent or slightly better Of the 3, the S08s are the ones I keep going back to cause they are always interesting to listen to. Like others have said, the S12 or S12 pros might be worth a try as the S08s are so good already and its meant to be an improvement on top of that - but be careful of the treble Edit: For reference I normally listen to a lot of electronic, dance, pop

I recommend to choose on the basis of your music preference, but castor is good for bass , tangzu for vocals , https://preview.redd.it/594207ilsyre1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=45c7d8ae407cb16602086e85c31d5c6f4dd38f71

If u wait too long ull miss a great deal on conceptkart,com for a beginner i recommend kz castor ₹1330;, deal ends today #

I have both in bass versions. Original has more bass but less clarity and pro has less quantity of bass, but it's cleaner and nicer cleared highs. If you want more bass go for the original castor bass, if you want a more balanced sound with still having more than average bass get the pro bass.

Try iems. I use kz castor

Kz castor if you want bass na may highs pa dn

Average skullcandy crusher/kz castor enjoyer

Get a KZ Castor bass and glue the front vent. You'll have bass for days, more than you bargained for.

Im a casual gamer on PC, mostly I play FPS game like PUBG, CS2, Squad and Battlefield. I mostly use KZ Castor and KZ PR3, I have CCA CRA, Salnotes Zero, JBL Quantum, Razer Hammerhead v2, Razer Hammerhead duo and couple of other budget iem. KZ castor has more boomy bass, so its great if u need more immersive sound with a lot of explosion and gunshot like Battlefield and Squad. But you can still tell what happen, where and how far.. But, when I need direction and detail like footsteps sound and gunshot direction I use KZ PR3.

>While it is still a cheap IEM it still gives a massive difference compared to cheapy pay at my local market. Without a doubt. KZ Castors have a smoother frequency response and are a better match to Harmon Target than many of the more expensive, popular full sized studio headphones https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?attachments/kz-castor-tuning-adjustable-dynamic-dual-driver-earphone-iem-harman-target-2-frequency-respons-png.368042/ For example, now look at the Sony MDR 7506 https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?attachments/sony-mdr-7506-frequency-response-measurements-png.103799/ Or the Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?attachments/beyerdynamic-dt-990-pro-measurement-250-ohm-headphone-frequency-response-png.109720/ The Castors are objectively better for mixing. So it's no longer true that you can't get good IEMs for under $50 that are good for mixing. You just have to know which ones to buy, just like for more expensive headphones Here's another good cheap pair https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/truthear-gate-17-iem-review.61784/

Kz Castor is technically superior to Gate , but has a bad tuning...If you know how to EQ , Castor's output becomes much better than the Gate....But Gate is more Comfortable than Castor for wearing.

KZ Castor, Moondrop Chu II, Tangzu Wan’Er SG II are all great and less than $40

1. I would say the Castor. The gale is good too and one bonus is that it comes with a DAC in the cable. But if you can get the castor with a cheap dac I think that would be the better pick. 2. The Bass version puts more emphasis on the lower frequencies and the H target is a more "appealing" tuning, It's a sound that must people would probably like. 3. Are you talking about the Castor and Castor Pro? The regular Castor has 2 DDs in a 10mm + 8mm setup and the Pro has a 2 dd setup with 10mm + 10mm. It's basically the same but like every so slightly better. Just for for the cheaper one.

I don't recommend getting any IEM bub 10 USD. Save up 6 more usd and get the KZ Castor.

I would say so

It gets good starting from 1000 and upwards. I'm currently using the Kz Castor (1200Rs i think) and it's already very good.

I use the chu 2 and they are great, my fav out of the 3 pairs of KZ ones and another one I can't remember.. Second would be the KZ harman. Both are around the $30-50 mark on Amazon. Chu 2 is definitely more comfortable, especially paired with the Comply T500 memory foam eartips.

I got Moondrop Chu 2 DSP last month for 2300. Before that I had KZ Castor working perfectly fine but had to change as my new phone only has Type C . The iems smaller so it doesn't hurt the ear much. And the sound is no doubt the best one in this budget. The treble to me seems a bit spicy and that's the only con for me till now. Will update if i find any other issues.

Got mine for 4$ on aliexpress

KZ Castor/Krila, Tangzu Wan er, 7hz Zero 2. No EQ needed (for me at least) or if you want EQ, search AutoEQ for available setting and tweak it to your own liking. Great audio doesn't require money these days (in IEM space at least)

I currently use kZ castor IEMs and I've found them to be decent. Not too fatiguing and you don't need them loud.

Ooo DA, clar, 7Hz Zero 2 le bate grav, până și KZ Castor sună mai bine

I like my Castors better than my Castor Pros. No bass whatsoever.

The ZS10 Pro 2 are one of my favorites, both in design and sound ✌🏾 https://preview.redd.it/b9kr63sespyf1.jpeg?width=6944&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b2a129590e21732700427c025ef7a9330ff8301a

Thanks bro, I bought to try and sell 😁 only then have I had the opportunity to go little by little looking for one or some that I like So far my favorites are the Castor Harman, Vader HR and the ZS10 Pro 2. And which ones are your favorites or which ones have you been using? ✌🏾 https://preview.redd.it/miwmgezoxpyf1.jpeg?width=9248&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4a416eccdeadf077e90c1e5d95b08d54ca1d2bdd

Ive been rotating between the kz castor, tripowin viviace, and truthear zero. Castor for bass and vivace and red just based on what im feeling. But I do feel like the vivoace is a little bit better

KZ Castor is probably the cheapest bass iem you can get thats still insane quality.

I have the KZ Castor for like two weeks and they're awesome!

i think KZ castor is pretty good.

OG castor Harman? 🤔🧐 I'm tryna break it's tuning by heavily EQ'ing it. But unfortunately it responds well to wired EQ presets.

On the ultra budget I would say KZ Castor/EDC Pro, then Crincale Red of you want more bass around 50$ and around $100 if you like a nice V shape signature the Juzear defiant or Truth ear pure if you want neutral+bass boost around $90.