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Reddit Reviews
vader hires is worse than bunny, elua is about same just built better
KZ Sonata, AS24/Pro, ZS12 ProX (down switches) and some of the Harman/Hi-res versions of their more budget stuff like Vader. Tanchjim Ola or 4U/Fission with the bass dial turned down. Or for a KZ 1DD The Zenith is very good and very neutral with down switches. Hexa can sound "wooly" without EQ sometimes so I don't think it would be clear enough for you. A good alternative with similarly linear bass and overall brighter would be the Twistura Sigma or ZS12, depending on if you want vocal or lower treble prominence. https://preview.redd.it/3nirp16onyef1.png?width=2095&format=png&auto=webp&s=0c768cd3893981b6b26271ab63362290d9d50dca
KZ Vader high resolution Quite cheap and extremely good for its price. Already better than most part of my non-iem collection
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
KZ Vader has been my favorite in the under $50 bunch. Gate looks so frail. Though the anime girl on the box almost always makes me buy it…
i bought kz vader + dac and it was good naman for both gaming and music
Wtf. Vader is bloody bright. Nowhere comparable to castors. Also have you tried the castor pros?
Long story short: when I bought my first IEMs back in June to listen to retrowave, I got the Castor Pro Harman and a dongle DAC with the same chips as yours. I had the same reaction you’re having now: they sounded thin and kind of lifeless. My ears were used to my earbuds, which have way more low-end, so I didn’t get the hype at all. I kept using them for a few days, and then one night, really late, when everything was quiet, it finally clicked. The issue was the seal. During the day I wasn’t getting a proper seal, so I couldn’t really hear what they were capable of. Once I did, I started noticing details I had never heard before. Even genres I didn’t care much about suddenly sounded amazing (jazz, strings, dream pop, electronic, etc.). I was impressed enough that I bought a second set because I read somewhere they were better (Vader). They’re not better, just different. Fast forward to today, I now own around 10 sets (mostly budget ones), plus a Bluetooth module, multiple cables, different eartips, and all that. For me, it came down to two things: getting a good seal, and giving your brain some time to adjust to the subtleties.
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