KZ - KZ AS10

KZ AS10. My guitarist swears his $$ sure iems are better but I’m not convinced. I sing so I get plenty of bleed in my vox mic to more than hear my kit. I run them through a Behringer P2.

I started with the S10 Pro but ended up getting a pair of AS10 since they are more bass pronounced and I gig with them. The S10 sound better overall, I just was able to hear my bass better in the mix during gigs on the AS10. Maybe it’s out wireless packs? Oh well.

I started with the ZS10 Pro but ended up switching to the AS10 after a gig or two, they had a little more distinguished bass that helped in our old setup before we could each control our own mix. Another cheap option to check out.

Same, did 2 gigs with them, even with faom ear tips, and still had a hard time hearing the bass. Bought a pair of the AS10's and have been using them since, got a little more bass response (esp mid-bass) out of those. If listening to music for enjoyment, the ZS10 Pros have more clarity especially at the low and high ends, but the AS10's just cut through better for bass with my bands' wireless packs. We've since got a new setup with a digital mixer, so I can set my own monitor's levels for each person and eq it, so that definitely helps more too and I bring my ZS10 Pros as backups since I can dial it in better.

These KZ’s are super standard for entry level in-ears. I know some pros who use them and actually prefer them to $$ custom molded ones, just because they don’t have to worry about babying them compared to the super high dollar stuff. I’ve used them a little and i think they’re great; it’s a great stepping stone until you can afford some real nice custom stuff from a company like 64 Audio. My daily drivers for in-ear gigs is the 64 audio A6t, and I love them - and man oh man do they sound good plugged straight in to synths too. Just be careful with that gain 😬

I know this thread is a couple of weeks old, but it's the thread that convinced me to order a pair of ND Planets, so maybe someone here can help. I have very little knowledge about the iem world because once I discovered KZ AS10s, I've just stuck with them. I've tried a couple of more expensive pairs, (I *think* Truthear Hexa was one I purchased but sent back), but they seemed inferior, so I have kept going back to the KZs. Even slightly more expensive versions of the KZs seemed a bit worse. However, I suspect I'm not getting a good seal, so I can't give them a fair chance. I'm going to order some new tips, but I'm not sure how to find the right size for them. Can anyone give me advice for that? I'm looking over the Top 10 IEM Eartips section of the sidebar, but I don't know how to know if they'll fit, although I'm sure it's obvious as hell. (I use Comply 500s for the KZs, are the Comply 600s the right size for the NDs, maybe?) Also, through this subreddit I recently discovered that I could use a FiiO KA11 audio adapter dongle to improve the sound, and maybe that would have made a difference when trying out the Hexa's? Sorry -- still learning, but grateful for all the information in this sub! (Also, one of the things I love about the KZs is that they're loud, so if anyone wants to recommend something better that's loud up to $100 I'd be happy to hear it! I use these for running and as in-ear monitors when I'm recording music at home.) edit: grammar #

Two unfortunate truths for you on this sub: 1. There aren't many musicians about. 2. The audiophiles and gamers that are here hate KZ. But I'm in a similar position to you. I haven't had customs or anything but I've got "better" IEMs according to these forums in the Chi-Fi market but rarely do I find any better for performing than KZ. I use the AS10 and ZS12 for different instruments. Both are cheap but give me clarity where I need it and the ZS12 are metal, so they travel around the most. Even the "crappy" cables they come with are far more comfortable to play in than any of the "better" cables from other brands. They seem more concerned with IEMs that work for the original purpose than pandering to the casual listening market. And they'd be far less worrisome to lose or break!

I tried KZ AS10 and DQ6, Blon BL-Mini and A8 Prometheus, Moondrop Kato, B2, B2 Dusk and S8, Softears Studio 4 and TinHiFi T2 Plus. Tin were trash. KZ AS10 was okayish but not really. DQ6 super comfortable, lightweight decent SQ for the price and comfort but nothing crazy. From Kato to B2/Dusk there's a significant step up in SQ. From B2/Dusk to S8 there's an improvement but it's not something crazy. The Blons sound OK, BL-Mini is quite decent in terms of price to performance, A8 are overpriced in terms of SQ but they look amazing. Both are lower in SQ than the Kato. Studio 4 sounds amazing to me, it's a more mid centric sound signature. The S8 has a more spacious sound and has more perceived space between instruments but the S4 is just godly in terms of it's timbre, everything's sounds just right, notes are weighty of I had to describe it somehow, and vocals are on another level altogether. I'll soon hear the RSV MKI. Thus far from this lineup I'd say diminishing returns start at the Blessings, now... The S4 I think is a justifiable step up, the S8 if you have the disposable income yeah, otherwise you spend more and you get more but not that much more. The S4 is cheaper than the S8 and I'd surely recommend the former. I guess it boils down to how much you are willing to spend. There is an improvement in SQ but it's definitely not a linear function, it's evidently logarithmic, just like horsepower in cars. I'm sure though there's plenty of snake oil sets out there. I'm sure if you bought the Hexa or the Nova and compare them with the Kato the latter would feel like a scam. That being said SQ is not the only factor, I have the Blons almost exclusively for how they look. I've met people that were like meh they all sound the same. I think I trust myself as I found the S8 underwhelming compared to the cheaper S4, and I really wanted to like the S8 as they look gorgeous, but I truly believe the S4 are the better pair. And bro, damn... those TinHiFi T2 Plus, 60 bucks? I wouldn't take them for free... Everything sounds like an out of tune banjo with only two strings left played by a crackhead that lost half his fingers.

I’ve used both the KZ models. Prefer the AS10 slightly. Really fantastic for the price IMO. Absolutely hated the sure IEMs. No experience with the others you mentioned.

The KZ AS10 had their day. But they are a 7-year-old IEM. Like how they were an advancement in Chinese IEMs that offered very good sound quality for the money compared to previous IEMs, there are now better for the same price. https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/truthear-x-crinacle-zero-red-iem-review.44865/ https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/truthear-x-crinacle-zero-blue2-iem-review.62096/ There are even cheaper that perform that well, but may not have the same build quality.

KZ ZS10 (or AS10 if you want more bass) are among the best budget IEMs. Get aftermarket foam tips for them and you're good to go!

I have kz AS10 IEMs and they sound fantastic. I use them with an Amazon wireless IEM system (Deborah) and it works great for my band. Way better than wedges. Would I take it on world tour? F no. But we're just playing local bars.