KNOWLEDGE ZENITH (KZ) LING LONG: Unusually Well Executed

Ling Long: 玲珑 means either delicate, intricate or exquisite according to the online Chinese-English dictionary.

And what I have here is the KZ Ling Long, It is KZ's own take on a bullet style earphone. As far as I know, they released a bullet-style earphone before. No need to introduce Knowledge Zenith or KZ as we already know their reputation and their still dominant position in the ultra-budget/ entry-level segment in the audio market.

KZ Ling Long has a single 6mm dynamic PET (polyethylene terephthalate) diaphragm dynamic driver and chambered into high quality magnetic structure to give a improve its performance of its electric flux on its drivers to deliver a more organic, more transparent and less distortion on its sound quality. It was housed in a light aluminium alloy shell of semi-opened back design which gives a less heft and its overall ergonomic design is more of a utilitarian and minimalist approach. KZ claims that its nozzles undergo a CNC-milling process to give the best possible insertion inside our ears. This earphone is a non-detachable OFC cable with a L-shaped termination plug of 3.5 mm SE.

This set is quite comfortable as it rests well into my lug holes without any issues unlike some more expensive sets which has similar form factor and has a decent sealing as it blocks some external noises coming from the surroundings. This bullet-style design even  gives us more options on how we will wear them, either like a wired earbud or the cables behind our ear just like an IEM.

Like most KZ products, KZ Ling Long product packing is simple. It has packed in small, light brown-coloured box with basic inclusion but this is quite different as KZ decided to include an earphone case.

Here are the contents inside the box:

■ KZ Ling Long in-ear earphones

■ a hard PVC plastic IEM case.

■ 2 pairs of narrow-bored, white-coloured ear tips of different standard sizes. (small and large)

■ Instruction manual.

As for amplification and scalability rating, KZ Ling Long can be driven decently but you need to crank up a volume level a bit to achieve better dynamics and fuller range sonic quality so that we can enjoy its engaging and enveloping sound. It can be amplified with decent power output from either smartphone, tablet or laptop but putting them into better sources like DAPs and desktop Amp/DAC will even show KZ Ling Long's full potential.

The tonality of KZ Ling Long is leaning towards having a balanced-warmish tuning and takes a more U-shaped sonic profile. It has an elevated bass and treble and then a neutral midrange.

LOWS/BASS:

Initially, on my first impression about its bass quality, KZ Ling Long has a good punch with decent depth and quite precise on its delivery. It has a good balance on both sub bass and mid bass.

It has an adequate rumbling sound and reverberation produced from sub bass-focus tracks that I've tested from synth-pop to electronica. It has a sufficient texture on its mid bass as it gives an ample, balanced note weight on specific instruments such as bass kick drums, bass guitars and bass-baritone vocals. Bass kick drums have a sustaining and thudding sound on them while bass guitars have an earthy and broad sound of every growl and roar from either riffs, fills or solos. And bass-baritone vocals have an ample dense and dark sound quality on how they project their guttural voices.

MIDRANGE:

The midrange presentation of the Ling Long has noticeably slight recession in the overall frequency range spectrum but it has a sufficient warmth to provide some textured, balanced and decent clarity on both instruments and vocals.

Both male and female vocals are well-balanced and have a good consistency on their respective texture. On male vocals, baritones have its an ample warmth and smoothness on them, countertenor have their distinctively pleasant sounding characters due to their agile and light vocals while tenors have its enough fullness and energetic to deliver that juicy sound but I do some nitpicking on this one, probably it has a bit lacking of brassy and spiciness that I really want on this particular vocal type. As for  female vocals, it gives that rich and throaty quality on contraltos, a mildly fiery and tangy sound on mezzo-sopranos. And then on sopranos, it fares better on lyrical ones rather than dramatic and coloratura types due to lack of energy and range but at least it gives that silky sound on the lyrical-types. Instruments on this one seems sounds quite balanced too that it gives buttery sound on guitars, vibrant and luscious sound on violins, a substantial and velvety sound on toms , a mellow and shuffling sound on snares, a warmer and soft tone on a piano, a smoother and darker sound on trombones and a mellow and even more sombre sound on saxophones.

HIGHS/TREBLE:

The treble quality of KZ Ling Long is very balanced, smooth and somehow linear. There is a peak on the upper mids area but that one gives enough boost on vocals and percussions. Sibilance is well-controlled and there is no hint of harshness on them.

 On the presence range, it has a sufficient shimmer to give enough clarity and details on how it gives a rather lustrous yet resonant sound on cymbals. It also has a decent sparkle on the KZ Ling Long to give an average extension on its air.

SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING AND OTHER TECHNICALITIES:

I can assure you that the technical performance of this set isn't its strongest asset based on my observations for long listening session

On its overall sonic field dimensions, it has an average to above-average sound/speaker stage width, a decent height reach and decent depth from front to back which gives a decent head room within my aural spatiality.

Imaging is rather a typical two-dimensional, stereo panning presentation as I hear the placements of vocals and instruments on both sides of each channel but it doesnt give  an exact position as the presentation itself is rather hazy. It has a decent separation as it give a decent gap but layering is a challenging one that it doesn't give a distinction on both frequency and dynamic layering of each tone from instrument which might be problematic on more complex tracks like orchestras, jazz and movie scores.

On resolution capabilities, it focuses more on  macro-dynamics rather than micro details. Macro-dynamics is more dominant as it shows a more physicality on its note definition while resolving on details and nuances from an audio track isn't particularly impressive.

As for coherency of its drivers, it has a very fast , better handling on its transient note and not a hint of distortion. The timbre of this set was natural and balanced sound with just slightly warmth on it.

PEER COMPARISONS:

SOUNDMAGIC E10

■ I've tested this one as a demo unit a long time ago in a local HiFi Store around 2018. It also has a similar form factor but more bulkier and also made of high quality aluminium alloy and it has more solid cable in my opinion.

■ It has a more V-shaped sound signature with punchy and precise bass response and even cleaner, a more recessed midrange but it has a better clarity and definition and treble is a bit brighter that it has that detail and sharpness.

■ On technicalities, it is actually more decent compared to Ling Long, a tad more spacious soundstage, better separation and more improvement on layering those it still struggles on complex tracks and better detail retrieval.

ETYMOTIC MC3

■ To be honest, almost all Etymotics give me a very unpleasant fit and a discomfort on my ear canals including this model as I can't take a long listening session on them. But Etys can give you the possible sound isolation like the MC3

■ As for tuning, they are rather more on "balanced-neutral" tuning. Its has tighter bass, more neutral and too linear midrange up to treble which gives a more boring, dry and almost lifeless sound from MC3. Treble is subdued, too laidback and doesn't have a sparkle.

■ Technicalities isn't MC3's asset, as it has a narrower sound/speaker stage, a glutinous and compression of elements which gives a dismal separation and layering aspect.

To sum up my conclusion about this product, It looks like KZ is finally upping their game when it comes to tuning, which leaves a good impression on me. A non-detachable cable is indeed the unfavourable feature of this set as I really prefer a removable cable in my all ear/head gears. But with its mature tuning and natural tonality, I won't mind its primary con and I will definitely recommend this one to budget-conscious audio enthusiasts out there.

It's a laudable achievement for KZ that they really fulfilled their promise to deliver some well-tuned products at a cheap and affordable price.

KZ Ling Long is now available at KZ's official store at Shopee. Check the link below.

◆◆SHOPEE◆◆

SPECIFICATION:

MODEL: KZ LING LONG

IMPEDANCE: 25Ω

SENSITIVITY: 103dB

FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20Hz – 40KHz

CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M

PIN TYPE: NON-DETACHABLE

PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm

DRIVER UNIT(S): (1) DYNAMIC DRIVER

PROS:

△ Cheap and affordable set.

△ Finally, a proper IEM case.

△ Quite comfortable to wear for a bullet-style in-ear.

△ A versatile warmish-balanced tuning.

△ Fairly punchy bass.

△ Smooth treble response.

△ Well-done textured midrange

△ Sibilance is well-controlled.

△ Easy to drive set.

CONS:

▽ Non-detachable cable.

▽ Occasional microphonics on its cable.

▽ Driver flex at the right part.

▽ Determining its channel indicator is a struggle.

▽ Average technical capabilities.

Some Tracks Tested: ( * = 16-bit FLAC, ** = 24-bit FLAC, *'* = MQA, '*' = DSD, *'= .WAV)

Alison Krauss -When You Say Nothing At All *

Jade Wiedlin - Blue Kiss**

Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks **

Mountain - Mississippi Queen *

Queen - Killer Queen **

Guns N' Roses - Patience *'*

Eric Clapton - Tears in Heaven '*'

Sergio Mendes- Never Gonna Let You Go '*'

Pearl Jam - Daughter **

Roselia - Hidamari Rhodonite *

Assassin - Fight (To Stop The Tyranny)*

Celtic Frost- Visual Aggression *

New Order - Blue Monday *

The Corrs- What Can I do (unplugged version) *

Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child *

The Madness- Buggy Trousers *

Metallica - Motorbreath **

Mariah Carey- Always Be My Baby *

Destiny's Child - Say My Name *

Malice Mizer- Au Revoir *

Mozart - Lacrimosa *

New York Philharmonic Orchestra - Dvorak- Symphony 9 " From the New World." *

Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold (Sting cover)*

Michael Jackson - Give In To Me *

Exciter - Violence and Force *

Diana Krall - Stop This World **

Debbie Gibson - Foolish Beat *'*

The Sisters of Mercy – Lucretia My Reflection**

Suzanne Vega – Luka **

Lauren Christy – Steep *

Ottoman Mehter - Hucum Marsi *

Diana Damrau - Mozart: Die Zauberflöte*

P.S.

I am not affiliated to KNOWLEDGE ZENITH nor receive monetary incentives and financial gains as they provide me a review unit for an exchange of factual and sincere feedback from yours truly.

Once again, I would like to send my gratitude to KZ especially to TYVAN LAM for providing this review unit. I truly appreciate his generosity and trust towards me and other reviewers.