Moondrop - KADENZ

Time to get downvoted for my honest opinion: The Moondrop Kadenz Yes, single driver, but if you read reviews people compare it with the Blessing 3.  I've gone above 1000$ twice and regretted it both times. Single DD coherency cant be beat for me'

What's the bass quality like on the EW300? I just picked up Moondrop kazens and they have pretty amazing bass despite graphing a lot flatter than the EW300

Out of all my iems, the only stock cables I'm using is the moondrop kadenz and cvj aria.

Hi guys, a few months ago I saw an interesting format in the watches sub and I decided to take inspiration from it. I recorded the hours of my IEMs used in the last 2 months, in total I stopped at just over 400 hours, it was an interesting experiment especially to understand what I can sell and what is not used. I'll leave you some impressions and comments:) * Punch audio Martilo: In the end they were my most used between Work, Music, Gym and Gaming. I must say that lately I listen to a lot of phonk * Tangzu Tianpeng: They replaced my Bajie, excellent quality and accessories for more refined listening at home or excellent for gaming * Tanchjim Force: They are becoming my favorites, already heard at various fairs and lent by a friend, excellent aesthetic and design, sound similar to my beloved Meteor, but they are less goofy and therefore I can also wear them on trains or at work, I will definitely increase the hours * Moondrop Kadenz: Great all-rounders, simply top, but I'm using the Forces more for a similar sound. They're perfect for work. * Moondrop Meteor: Among my favorite flagships, but I'm more comfortable with the Tanchjim as they are more discreet, I listen to the Meteor at home in peace * Fatfreq Deuce: They were the most used for the same reasons as the Martilo, but I prefer the Punch Audio for design and comfort. The bass is perfect in both.

What's your budget? I don't listen to these artists much, but similar-ish artists like Sheena Ringo, Hikura Utada. My go to pair for late 90s-00s j-pop is Moondrop Kato (which is discontinued, and replaced by extremely similar Moondrop Kadenz). These are vocal forward with some bass, but not overpowering. On upcoming sale they should be available in the $150-170 range. Moondrop Aria 2 is much cheaper, but a bit more v-shaped, but should still be a good choice. Full price is around 99usd, and should be able to get a decent discount with 11.11 sale or black friday.

Out of dozens upon dozens,  Might be the KZ PRX with a bit of a bass boost goes boom for how enjoyable they are. That said actual best might be Moondrop Kadenz rn. PRX for relaxin tho 

Moondrop Kadenz, KZ Zenith/PRX PRX with a slight bass boost will absolutely shrek anything else for enjoyable sound.  Kadenz is crystal clear tho, so gucci. Zenith is balanced and I think beats 300$ hybrids

Kadenz All hybrids sound weird to me, either BA timbre or mismatched dynamic bass to ba mids.  Some comments I saw said it was close to Blessing 3 in sound and technicals/details. That sold me af because coherent single DD with hybrid technicals? My fav iem now

definitely the moon drop kedanz, they are good

Top 10, didn't bother to list more 1. HD6XX: After getting my hands on the HD6XX years ago, I don't get that "wow" feeling again no matter what I try. "Thanks to" the HD6XX whenever I try every HiFiMan, Meze, AKG, etc, I was like, 'That's it?'. HD6XX had ruined my headphones upgrade journey. 2. FiiO FT1: About a few months ago, I went to a Headphone Expo in Guangzhou, China. There I tested the FT1, it has that "oh this is nice" vibe to it which I haven't had since the Moondrop Cosmo. They offered a discounted price that I simply couldn't refuse so here I am. 3. Sennheiser Momentum 3: My travel/outdoor companion. Still one of the best built and sounds wireless over ear, no argument allowed. 4. Moondrop Kadenz: I got it at a decent price in China when released because of my membership of '客亭', a Chinese HiFi retailer.(Cheaper than KATO MSRP). My daily IEM whenever I don't feel like using my Anker A40. Sounds good, came with a nice dongle (ECHO-B), comfortable to me. 5. Sony MDR CD900ST: I bought second hand in Japan. Mainly for it's heritage and look. I use it for my studio as a secondary monitor at times. Sounds good, meh comfort and the The First Take scandal. 6. Sony MH750: My first ever "monitor", always got a soft spot for this IEM and goes back to listen to music with it. Sounds great, good comfort, compact. A bit bassy but overall sounds correct. Used it for mixing and composing in the past. Maybe it's nostalgia for it to be in the top 10. 7. Moondrop Chu 2: An IEM for testing equipment and arcade gaming. 8. 7Hz Salnotes Zero: A backup IEM for testing equipment 9. Nicehck DB2: I always use this to show people the disadvantage of BA driver. Sound good in the mid and bass because of the decent DD, missed the mark because of the BA driver handling the treble. 10. Soundcore Anker A40: A TWS for me to trash around. Sounds ok after EQ. Tbh, who needs HiFi audio quality when you're on the street or watching normal YouTube videos.

I would say Kadenz is a very good DD but it is bit overpriced in the current market. It's resolving and neutral but comes with the usual Moondrop 1DD criticism that that tuning is too safe and that it's not significantly different from the many other 1DDs that came before it like Kato. Really depends on how much you like Moondrop VSDF tuning to be honest. But I think most people would say it does not have the detail and wow-factor of other high-end DDs like Origin, EA1000, FD15, etc. And $200-ish dollars can buy you a hell of a hybrid these days. Maybe try something cheaper first. I think Zenith, EA500/LM, Unicrom, 4U give the Kato a run for it's money and maybe it's wrong to judge the Kadenz by the Kato but it really is 90% the same IEM. Try the Aria 2 or better yet a used/on-sale Kato.

IMO no, not anymore. Most people who have tried both seem to say the Tanchjim Origin is the better single DD set. And the Kadenz/Kato is now outperformed by hybrid sets in its price range. One note though, the finish on the Kadenz is bead blasted metal, so there is no paint.