They definitely have the potential to be fantastic. I wish I took more time With them but the OG EJs were staring me down 
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Fair fair 07s do not play nice, they need ALL of your attention 
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Enjoy them but they sure can’t be reviewed, as they’re not representative of the actual Cadenza experience.
Aw welp, who fuckin’ cares?
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For $2200 EJ 07 with a bit more bass and treble, holy shit… 
Someone hasn’t learned their lesson yet.
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DZ4 & Kara review out 
Both were a nice surprise!
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Another tierlist letsgoo
What’s everyone’s favourite v-shape? (Mine’s the MH755 still LOL)
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So @hawaiibadboy is back with another collab, a more retro vibe this time. I got the freeza colorway (shoutout to him and linsoul), but, how do they sound? And can the Kailua be the next $100 benchmark? Well, let’s just jump into it.
Starting with the overall sound the Kailua is very well-rounded with a slight focus in the treble. You can think of them as a more exciting Olina SE if you well. Low-end wise the bass is not only fast, but also tactile and thumpy. The drop and rumble at 4:30 on Time By Hikaru Utada extends deeply and I can feel the bass vibrating my ears. Now, you’re not going to get the same quantity of bass as the Quartet, in other words the Kailua isn’t a basshead set, however, the bass texture is solid, well-defined and controlled, and for most people who aren’t bassheads - you’ll be satisfied with the amount.
I found hiphop tracks to have enough momentum in the low-end as well being exciting and engaging without the treble going overboard. With that said I wouldn’t call the Kailua a neutral signature either, so it’s not going to be as clean as the Hexa which does instrument separation and layering better, but it’s no slouch either, and I haven’t ran into any bloat or congestion.Although there is some warmness to the vocals it’s rather nicely balanced out by the extra treble energy, and it reminds of a better version of the BLON Z300 with more complete treble extension. There is an added sweetness to female vocals on tracks like Say It By Yorushika and Butterfly by Loona, which I really dig.
At mid-volume I think the energy level is perfect, but if you’re going to be blasting then probably look at the Kara since electric guitars and female vocals will start getting too sharp on songs like the Strangest Thing by War ON Drugs, and KPOP stuff. With that said, I think the Kailua is another great all-rounder, and if your library consists of a lot of different genres, aka you just hit shuffle all the time, then these will do the job really well. However, I do have a bone to pick with the dynamics and staging. Now, you’re not going to experience any stabbing peaks or anything, but the frequent dips and scoop in the uppermids and treble can lead to a bit of masking in the 5K and 10K regions.
As a result, although the staging is still fairly open, it does give me a sense of certain spots missing in the stage, or dark spots, as well as parts of the vocals being blunted, for example on Traces of Time Raine’s voice isn’t completely extended and open versus the TOP. It’s not super obvious unless you compare it to something else that has better extension (like the TOP), but regardless, I thought I should just point that out.
And for this reason alone I’d still take the Olina SE instead because it’s smoother dynamically and more even, as well as having that holographic staging. However, the Kailua does have more pronounced bass and treble, and again basically a more lively and engaging Olina SE. For me my library works better with a cleaner tuning, but if you want a slight-v, then go for the Kailua.
Next, comparing it to the Hexa the Hexa is going to be cleaner overall with a slight bump in separation. It’s not going to be as engaging as the Kailua and falls into the vanilla or “boring” and inoffensive side of things, and vocal and midrange wise I’d still take the Hexa because they’re better separated with notes being more complete and less uneven even though they feel lighter/less lively than the Kailua. As for Bass and treble the Kailua is more exciting and sharp in its presentation, more resolving in the texture with the low-end slamming much heavier and more impactful.
Comparing it to the DZ4 - it varies. At mid-volume the Kailua is much better, more resolving, extended, open, and detailed, and just overall the better pick. However at high volume the DZ4 outshines it in vocals and dynamics, especially on slower/simpler songs. So it really depends on your library and listening volume - for me I tend to listen to a lot of ballads where the vocal-centric tuning of the DZ4 really shines with the vocals being more powerful, open, and extended, but, the drivers in the Kailua do feel faster and does better in busier tracks where the DZ4 can have a difficult time keeping up (along with the whole PR controversy).
So, it’s pretty safe to say that for most people the Kailua is still the better pick over the DZ4 as the DZ4 is more of a niche set that focuses on vocals and scaling, and you also do get more bass and treble extension as well with the Kailua. Much more lively and engaging in other genres. With that said, do I think the Kailua is the new $100 benchmark… not quite. I think if it didn’t have the dips in the 5-10K then perhaps since the drivers are very good, but for me the better all-rounder would still be the Olina SE, which is also Chris’ set, so, I guess he wins either way.
Thanks for reading 
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Sorry I haven’t been around becauae of some personal issues, but I’m stoked that you dig them. I think every earbud aficionado should have a pair in their lineup.
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Hey everyone, so I got a pretty big announcement to make. As you can tell from the title of the video below, this will be my last video/review for a while. I’m not sure when, or if I’ll be making more, but for now this is where my journey pauses, and the reason being is that… I’ve found my purpose.
There’s a very important goal I want to fulfil in the next 3 to 5 years. I know this reveal may throw some of you guys off since it seems like I just throw out memes and act goofy all the time (lol), but the thought of “living a meaningful life” has been on my mind for the last 7 years or so. I’m 25 right now, so ever since highschool I’ve been searching and trying to find this answer.
Initially I thought maybe it’s through family, or perhaps our connections with others, our relationships, or maybe even success and Legacy. But what I’ve found to be the closest thing to the “truth”, the meaning of life–or whatever you want to call it, is that it starts with ourselves… to first reach our own potential physically, mentally, in the talents we’re given, to fully heal and be at peace, to be our genuine selves, and really live in the little time we have.
It’s definitely a bit nerve racking since I’ll be heading into unknown territory (aka most likely unstable financial wise, I mean I got some money saved up but it’s not gonna last more than 5 years). It feels like I’m stepping into a deep abyss: dark, challenging, but at the same time I can’t help but feel uplifted and excited for the journey to come, as difficult as it may be. I mean, if we’re going off logic alone it makes more sense for me to just keep growing my channel since it’s doing extremely well.
Now, I’m not trying to brag or anything, but 70-80% of my videos get more views than my subscribe count, which is kinda nuts because the average engagement is like 20% views of your sub count, and a REALLY good engagement rate is around 40-60% on average (excluding viral videos), and my lowest engagement is like 50-60% average, so ya, I’m kinda killing it out here. The comment section and the community is also amazing, booming, and engagement in general is just amazing thanks to you guys, and again I truly appreciate all the support you’ve shown me.
Fun fact, I also started getting monetized recently, and I made a whooping… $4.05!! Wooooo. So based on this trajectory if I keep posting consistently for the next few years I’ll be easily able to make this my full time job, probably 50K subs if I’m not lazy. But the thing is, although I love audio gear and nerding out with you guys on the most recent releases…
In the end, this is a hobby, not my purpose or life goal. And it would be irresponsible and wasteful for me to not at least try to fulfil my potential, and in a sense my duty because I know I can help a lot of people with what I’m about to pursue.
It also just takes too long to make a video where that time, money, focus, and energy could be allocated elsewhere. Currently, it takes me 2 to 3 days to listen to an IEM, another day to script and record, and another day to edit and make the thumbnail. So in terms of total hours spent it adds up to around 18 to 20 hours per video while working full time and trying to balance other life stuff. Now, this all feels very first-world problemy, because it is, there’s just no denying that. I’m extremely lucky and grateful to be in the position I’m in, and really to be in this period of time in history to even be able to have the luxury to contemplate things like meaning and purpose.
I take a look at myself, and my own circumstances to what’s happening in some other parts of the world and the past, and I’m just truly grateful for all the opportunities and freedom I have to be able to even pursue this. I mean I could’ve been born as a dung beetle, a fly, or as a monkey in the Stone Ages, but here I am, a somewhat intelligent being (sometimes) that is able to ponder and experience all of the misery, suffering, as well as the beauty of life. Which is why, it would be almost disrespectful and in a way shameful, and definitely regretful to waste this opportunity since many others simply don’t have this chance and would kill to be in my position.
This is something I need to try before I die, so I might as well do it now while the iron’s still hot and my body’s still healthy.
Basically I’m going to be focusing on 3 things:
Film and cinematography
Storytelling and writing, poetry
Music
I’ve actually been doing art ever since I was in elementary, although I didn’t get serious about it until only a few years ago, cause you know, I was a dumb kid. My first major was actually in design, but I’ve been pretty rusty lately, so I’m going to take a year to really polish my skills in those areas, as well as learning film and getting better at singing and producing before releasing new content, which is why I’ll be needing all the time and focus I can get to do so, hence why I’ll need to pause the reviews. Basically, you can view this as a training arc.
These are not only my skill sets, and “talents”, but also happen to be what I’m heavily passionate about which is why I’m going to use the combination of the 3 to positively impact the world and others around me. It’s currently the 30th of July, and I’m going to give myself around a year, maybe more, maybe less, who knows, whatever the end date is I just want my work to be as high quality as possible.
If you guys want to witness my journey then check out my new channel - there’s nothing there yet, but if you’re just here for the IEM and memes, then I understand as well, and thank you again for all the support. I’m truly grateful and blessed for the time I was able to spend here, and for all the friends I was able to meet, like Elysian and LEE for example.
Ok jokes aside, if you guys still want me to review stuff I could try if I get some spare time, but it would be either in a talking-head format like the goodbye video, or maybe I’ll start a patreon and hire someone else to edit the memes or something. Let me know your thoughts.
But ya, that’s pretty much it. Shoutout to the OGs that helped my learn so much about audio @nymz @hawaiibadboy @Rikudou_Goku I’d tag everyone else, but you know who you are I most likely won’t be as active here as before, but thank you for all the memories, and being a part of my “audio review phase” of life… I’ll see you guys whenever.
Take care everyone. Until then!
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Hmmm, yeah. This place is getting boring. Pity! To be honest, I’m also thinking of leaving it for the time being, but that’s hardly going to make it any more interesting. 
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Love you, Jay. I’m proud of you for seeing the trail you want to blaze and going for it.
Good luck to you on the journey ahead, and sucks to be anything in your way because you’re gonna smash it!
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You know, I thought the Upgrade Guide would be enough, but it just doesn’t feel right. So fuck it, one last heist with the boys since ya’ll are wondering too:
Will most likely be selling these after though 
So if you want first dibs let me know now LOL
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Best regards on the new journey and self reflection. You’ve been a tremendous force in the forums and your videos have been a fresh and inviting change to the review format. Definitely lurk around and every once drop some Jay knowledge and memes without detracting from your goal. Keep my phone number handy and if you ever find yourself in South Florida hit me up.
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Have loved your videos ever since you started releasing them - glad to know that you enjoy the process but also happy that you recognize there are other things you can be putting your energy into.
Best of luck!
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As sad as i am to see one of my preferred reviewers go, I am thrilled seeing someone making this leap of faith to go for it and live his passion. I wish you all the will, joy and luck you need in your journey. Please keep us updated from time to time: i’d love to see your first creations.
And as a vocal lover, I would love to hear you sing!! With all the gear we have, we should certainly hear any default to help you improve 
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Thank you for your wishes Mag 
Will miss chatting with everyone here, and I’ll definitely come say hi if I ever visit Florida. I’m glad I was able to have some sort of positive (I hope) impact while I was here, but I’ll be lurking and maybe drop a random review here and there 
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Thank you man! I appreciate all the support throughout these few months. I’ll definitely will be needing the extra energy with all the workload coming up, but I’ll still drop a random review here and there hehe
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Of course man! When I think the quality is to my standards I’ll be sure to let y’all know Means a lot that you guys enjoy my reviews - this leap is definitely needed. Best wishes to you, and everyone here in whatever they’re pursuing~
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Leaving on a high note! I like it. Your content is fantastic. Thanks for the honesty and reviews.
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