Just received the KZ ZS10 Pros (35$US without the mic). Neutral with a bit of sibilance.
When I saw the graphs I was like “well, close enough!”. But apparently the FR on my pair is more like the black line (10khz peak) than the blue line.
ZS10 Graph:
Raw Graph, ZS10 vs ZS10 Pros:
They’re also the weirdest thing to put in your ears correctly, because of the wire going over your ears… and, probably, all the weight of the IEM going over your ears/ear conduit too.
Still, they’re great at not-extremely-loud volumes. If you mainly listen to metal and/or electronic music, loud, do not buy this, you’ll go deaf (Note: I’m treble sensitive. So, that’s perfectionism. If you like Beyerdynamics, the treble won’t bother you, you’ll love the KZ ZS10 Pros).
Edit: After two days, I say they’re neutral with “a bit of” sibilance only. Neutral AF (except there’s a dip at 1khz) detailed AF, fun AF!
Anyway. This is decent technology (one dynamic driver and 4 balanced armatures!), and you can hear it. Sounds clear – sometimes sounds “airy” like you don’t have 'em in your ears – and the depth is impressive. Yes, depth. As if you were at the show. The 10khz sibilance peak also helps that, because, well, 9 out of 10 shows I go to, the sound guy adds +5dB to +10dB the cymbals anyway…
The cheap AF range:
With the 10$ HJE-120/125s, you crank the volume, because you want to hear more of the music, but you can’t, because you hear everything… but there’s no detail. Still, whatever you listen to, you can crank the volume. No sibilance at all. With the small tips, for my small ears, they’re Neutral AF. They’re the best for travel/walking/bus/etc. Because you won’t go deaf with the volume a touch higher than normal to mute your environment, and you won’t listen for details outside anyway. Good luck finding better for 10$.
With the KZ ZS10 Pros, you hear more detail. More depth. More “air”. Transparency. Cleanliness. Instrument separation… And that’s on my old Samsung Note 3!!! They’re the best “cheap AF” headphones (They’re 35$ without the mic!) for critical listening.
I’d be curious to plug them to something else than my old smartphone, but I ordered them with the microphone, so I received… a 4-pole connector. Oops. Still, they’re already impressive. I’ll buy the standard cable soon (if possible), I want to know how blown away I’ll be when I plug them in a better source.
My equalized KSC75s not only have bass, they have sub-bass, and they’re not driven to distortion because I don’t listen to them at 80+ dB_SPL, I just use them in quiet environments, and overall they’re pure soundstage joy with no FR complaints to mention. All they’re missing that you can’t really fix is speed/detail, the most extreme sub-bass and highs, and maybe massive slam.
I know my jaw will probably drop when I’ll get the T50RPs in 2-3 weeks but… we’re in the cheap AF headphones/earphones thread. 