KATO

moondrop kato. moondrop as a brand overall. terrible terrible TERRIBLE qc

I love the tuning but it would have been great to use them for more than a couple months

Moondrop kato, i had it, its V shape sound with a great bass sound. Kiwi, and KZ iems are great too However there’s many options at this price range,

Some background: I currently mainly use the Moondrop KATO (previously Aria), and I find it to be the most comfortable for me. I also have the Timeless 7hz, but it doesnt fit well into my ears, so I ended up benching it because my ears start to hurt after an hour or two. I listen to a lot of R&B, Rock/alternative rock, New Age, Classical, Ballad, J-pop, and more recently, K-pop. That said, I also really like vocals, with Ado being a good example. Budget: \~$200-300. I'm willing to spend a bit more if it is worth it. I also want to use it with my phone since I can't really do that with the KATOS, as they're quite heavy, so I can't walk around with them. This isn't a hard requirement, but is something I would like. I've been eyeing the Tanchjim FOLAs, but I'm not sure if there's something else I should be looking at, like the Origin or Force instead.

The Timeless is okay, but I honestly prefer the KATOs in every way, just that the treble/highs can peak a little high sometimes, causing it to be a little harsh on my ears, and it's why I'm using the brass nozzles. For the most part, I'm just looking for something similar but with a more controlled treble. So like imagine the KATOs but the peaks are less harsh. I currently have them EQ'd to where the top (~20 kHz) is gently brought down because of this, but the upper mids and high do have a decent boost. I value vocal clarity and presence, and I don't care too much about the bass "hitting" strongly. I was mainly looking for something clean, kind of bright, and has good details. From what I read up, the FOLAs and Force were the most similar, but it seems like I can't quite find a good comparison of the two. From the charts, Force seemed the most similar to the KATOs, but the FOLAs have a smooth fall off for the highs I believe, which is what I think I'm looking for, but I'm not sure.

I was mainly concerned with the weight factor because they might fall out of my ears. I've never actually tried walking around with them since I use them on my desktop, but me just moving around can get it loose, which is why I was worried. It's probably an ear tip issue, but if it's not an issue for you, I hope it'll be fine for me if I do get any of the Tachjims.

I honestly don't know what exactly I like, especially since I EQ'd my KATOs, so it's not exactly "stock." I actually really like my KATOs post EQ, just that the treble can peak a little high sometimes, causing it to be a little harsh on my ears, but that's also why I'm using the brass nozzles. I'm also not a "basshead." With my EQ, I have it as this: (Bass & sub bass) 20-200 Hz: Almost flat with a slight cut. (Low mids) 200-500 Hz: Noticeable dip to reduce "mud" and thickness, making mixes sound cleaner and less boxy. (Midrange) 500 Hz - 2kHz: Close to flat with tiny tweaks (short incline, then flattens). (Upper mids and highs) 5-10 kHz: There's a clear boost, but it's not insanely high. (Very top) ~20 kHz: It is gently brought down to lessen that harshness I was talking about earlier. For the most part, I would say I'm just looking for something similar to the KATOs but with a more controlled treble. So like imagine the KATOs but the peaks are less harsh. I value vocal clarity and presence, and I don't care too much about the bass "hitting" strongly. I was mainly looking for something clean, kind of bright, and has good details. From what I read up, the FOLAs and Force were the most similar, but it seems like I can't quite find a good comparison the two. From the charts, Force seemed the most similar to the KATOs, but the FOLAs have a smooth fall off for the highs I believe, which is what I think I'm looking for, but I'm not sure. I'll read the post you linked, but I'm honestly not sure what I should be looking for in terms of describing these IEMs.

Wow, this actually looks like what I'm looking for. Thank you for this recommendation, I'll be sure to look into it. Do you by any chance know how it sounds? I don't know the terms, but stuff like being able to differentiate between instruments, clarity of notes, etc. And are there any issues with the iems themselves? Like clogging, etc

Moondrop kato i buy for 50$, tanchjim origin for 120$. That’s my impressive

I also own the Kato. If they sound boring now, might be worth trying getting new set of nozzles and replace your current ones. In my case, although the old filters looked clean, they actually muffled the sound. I just figured it's really easy to clog this filter and it won't be obvious because the change in sound will be so gradual that you wouldn't realize it's not what they should sound like. Now I try to replace the filters once every three months and store it with silica bag that I also regularly replace  If you do replace the nozzles with some new ones, do let me know what you think. In my experience, it practically made my Kato brand new again; really textured bass, sparkly treble, and warm mids.

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.

The MOONDROP KATO is one that has me evaluating my choices for higher end purchases.