KZ - Vadar Series

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

KZ Vader is also a good one here. Whatever you buy, you should pair it with a DAC like the Audiocular D07 for proper output.

Wtf. Vader is bloody bright. Nowhere comparable to castors. Also have you tried the castor pros?

Personally I like the Trio and the Vader Balanced over any of the Truthear Zeros. You can get the Trio or Vader Balanced for under $30, and with a good cable from KBEar, you will still be under the price of the Zeros, and have better overall tonality, without the oddball shortcomings of the Zeros. I still feel, personally, that the Zero Blue is better than the Blue2. But I am in a minority for this opinion.

Well, I can recommend most of these.. The quality of sound for the price is the biggest reason. Please refer to my other reviews and the new ones I'll be posting soon. Within $25, the best recommendations are vader high res and castor pro bass.

Vader high res is good option, but it's not upgrade from zs12 pro x. I recommend Hydro. And za12 is noticeably better than zs12 pro x in resolution. Both has similar level of bass, and bright signature, but za12's instruments expression is better

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.

Well it depends of course on your music preferences, finances and source of music. May I suggest you disclose a couple of tracks you absolutely adore and would want to sound brilliant with the new IEM. Based on the genres you're into, the recommendations will change. Also mention your budget. Second, unless you are monitoring recorded/ live studio music, analysing technicals, you are not going to enjoy flat tuned iems that people generally recomend. Most people prefer iems with overall good textured thumping bass and sub bass rumble, clean strong vocals and airy crispy treble with a wide soundstage. If you have the option to physically try out IEMs before buying them, you might be able to first time right on purchase. Else, start small and go for starter iems and accessories. Once you are sure about what you like, you'll be able to research and find your endgame iem. I am listing some starter iems based on my listening preferences: Single Drivers. 1. Truthear GATe - Good single 10mm Dynamic Driver, fun sound tuning. Nice bass and vocals , smooth treble. Can be Equlised to make it amazing. Cons. Cheap cable, plasticy, needs 8 core upgrade cable to improve music quality and eq above 4 db boost. 2. Kiwi Ears Cadenza - Good single 10mm DD , fun sound, nice bass , smooth vocals, smooth treble. Can handle EQ well. Looks great. EQ can boost bass and treble and vocals . Cons. Bass is good you will love iems with more thump. 3. 7Hz Crinacle Salnotes Dioko - Single planar driver 14.5 mm. Clean tuning , focus on mids and vocals. Great for vocals and classical music. Can EQ will to boost bass and treble to sound amazing. Good looking set and kit Cons. Can sound muddy with EDMs with out EQ. 4. ARTTI T10 . Good single planar driver 14.2 mm. Great tuning , good bass texture , mids and lows. Sounds amazing on female vocals and instrumental tracks. Good kit, ok looks . Cons. Looks, needs EQ to boost lower mids for male vocals . Tambre is very planar and may sound different to sensitive ears. I recommend Truthear GATe with a better cable or the Kiwi Ears Cadenza as is. Multiple drivers. 1. Kz Vader. 3, 8mm dd drivers. Good bass, mids and treble. Nice soundstage, can handle eq boosts well. Good sound stage. Cons. Need cable upgrade to 8 core (qkz t1 cheap will do) . 2. Kz AM16 bass edition- 8 driver all BA. Good bass, good vocals and treble. Great musicality and comparable to expensive DD iems. Cons. Need better cable 8 to 16 cores. EQ is tricky as the low frequency BA driver is easy to boost , mids not so much. 3. Kz Castor Pro. 2 10mm DD driver. Good bass , good mids and treble.. Can be Equalised to boost bass and treble to sound like endgame bass iems like Punch audio Martillo . Cheap and dynamic. Cons. Need a 8 or 16 core cable (qkz t1) . With EQ this can amaze people . 4. Letshuoer DZ4- three 6mm DDs with a passive radiator. Great sound, good bass and treble. Sounds nice without EQ. Mid focused and perfect for vocals . Good kit and cable. Cons. Looks. 6mm dds do not handle much EQ. Sound is not the best for EDM. I recommend the KZ Castor Pro bass version or the Letshuer DZ4. With EQ and new cable the KZ Castor Pro or Vader will sound better than others.

vader hires is worse than bunny, elua is about same just built better

Wow more than me! My favs are ZS12 Pro X, Zenith, PR2 (black mesh), and Vader. How do you like the ZA12 and Hydro? I tried to get a ZA12 but it was a scam listing so I got a ZSN Pro X instead lol, at least it was free. Oh, and original CCA CRA, one of my favorite DDs to this day.

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

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