KIWI EARS QUARTET: Four Sonic Profiles from Quad Drivers

Quartet is a group or composition of instrumentalists or singers consisting of four people. Most jazz band ensembles, modern pop groups and rock bands are of four piece line-up.

This is my second product review for Kiwi Ears, I did a review on their first entry level one, the Cadenza. It seems that Kiwi Ears naming conventions are based on orchestral and musical ensembles.

This is Kiwi Ears Quartet, This is Kiwi Ears latest offering on their entry-level segment. It has hybrid driver set-up consisting of dual dynamic drivers in "isobaric" set-up and two balanced armature drivers. The 10mm dynamic drivers' diaphragms have titanium properties; either it is made of a wafer thin alloy or a spray-coated one which Kiwi Ears maintain that it will give a well-extended and rumbling sub bass which it also produces a stronger and thicker mid bass. The balanced armature drivers (probably a newer generation of Bellsing) gives cleaner, detail and crisper quality on midrange and high frequencies.

The drivers were encased in a light, medium-size medical-grade acrylic resin shells of UIEM mould that are quite versatile on fitting to all ear sizes. The shells have black colourway with some swirls of purple colour to make it more appealing and the face plate have. At the top of the cavity base shell, there are two tiny toggle switches to attenuate or enhance some sonic frequencies to give a different flavour to the tonality of The Quartet.

The fitting of this set is quite good and comfortable as it rests well into my lugholes without any issues even on long listening sessions as I don't experience any listening fatigue. It really has a good sealing as it is able to block some external noises from the outside surroundings.

For an entry-level set, it seems that Kiwi Ears Quartet has a decent product packaging with a quantifying amount of good quality inclusions inside. It has a tad larger than usual rectangular-shaped box for an IEM with a noteworthy design to give a lively vibe presentation.

Here are the following contents inside its packaging box:

■ A pair of Kiwi Ears Quartet IEMs

■ A black coloured twisted 4-core OFC silver-plated copper cable in 3.5mm termination plug.

■ Colour black, square shape zippered IEM case.

■ 3 pairs of black-coloured, narrow bore ear tips in different standard sizes.

■ 3 pairs of white-coloured, narrow bore ear tips in different standard sizes.

■ 3 pairs of translucent grey-coloured, narrow bore ear tips.

■ Instruction manual.

With low impedance requirement and high sensitivity rating, It seems that Kiwi Ears Quartet is an easy to drive set that most multimedia devices with normal gain amplification will be able to power it to its fullest performance.

Since that Kiwi Ears Quartet has toggle switches to change its tuning mode, it will have some emphasis in some part of its frequencies spectrum but it is still leaning towards a warm, U-shaped sound signature.

As for its toggle switches for tuning modes, here are the settings:

(* Legend: ○ = up , ● = down)

○○ - Midbass to low midrange emphasis, some elevation and flatten upper mids to presence frequency region.

●● - Similar to ○○ setting but it presents a bit leaner yet more "balanced" sounding (probably due to some lesser gain or resistance output?)

●○ - A more bass boost focus tuning, the upper-mids and presence treble frequency are a bit subdued as it sounds a bit dark sounding in my liking.

○● - It has a noticeable added gain on the upper-mids to presence frequency to give a hint of shimmer on it.

Here are my observations on the sound characteristics from each section of the frequency range spectrum of Kiwi Ears Quartet

LOWS/BASS:

This is the most prominent part of the frequency as it has an authoritative, good haptics and boomy. It gives more emphasis on mid bass rather than sub bass in which I actually prefer but too texture on it will have its caveats as it sound a bit bloated in my liking especially on the ●○* setting that affects the quality of the midrange and syphons the gleaming quality of treble.

It has a decent sub bass response as I discerningly hear a faint rumbling sound coming up from synthesisers, low tone bass guitar, octabass and drum machines. As I mentioned a while ago, it focuses more on the mid bass part as it is well-textured that it gives denser note weight on bass guitars, bass kick drums and bass-baritone vocals. It gives a darker and duller sound on bass guitars as it growls while a fuller and gloomy sound on bass drums, and then on bass-baritone vocals, it gives a darker, heftier and more sonorous voices on the likes of Barry White, Andrew Eldritch and Peter Steele of Type O Negative.

MIDRANGE:

The presentation on midrange frequency of this set is a bit recessed especially on some female vocals and rhythmic instruments but it has this lushness and insouciance that gives more texture and warmth.

The ●○* mode and to some extent, the ○○* mode setting gives more emphasis on low baritones and contraltos albeit it is a bit overdone in my opinion as it sounds too warm and too robust and chesty sounding on contraltos singers like Annie Lennox and Tracy Chapman. The ○●* and ●●* modes gives a more balanced presentation on baritones and contraltos then more natural approach with fairly presence on countertenors and mezzo-sopranos as it gives an angelic, smooth and velvety to give that captivating and very pleasant on my listening escapades to track some vocal qualities from Andreas Scholl, King Diamond of Mercyful fate, Andrea Corr and Stevie Nicks on her younger years on Fleetwood Mac. It is also noted that all tuning mode settings doesn't give me that satisfaction on what I prefer on tenors and soprano as it sounds less energetic, spicy and dazzling sound even the ○●* mode which supposedly added more bright but still not enough.

On instruments, strings like acoustic guitars gives off a warmer and buttery sound while on violins, it sounds austere and a tad muffled with it. Brass like trumpets and horns have full and rounded sound then a gravelly and darker on trombones especially on ○○* and ●○* modes. Woodwinds fares a bit better on ●○* ans ●●* modes as it gives mellow, rich and graceful on flutes while saxophones and clarinet sounds warmer yet it has melancholic and sombre characteristic on it. On percussive instruments, snares and toms have dark and muffled sounds on them, timpanis have dull and booming sounds on them. Then on pianos, they have a warmer, luscious and rich tone that usually found on some European antique pianos.

HIGHS/TREBLE:

The treble registers on Kiwi Ears Quartet are either balanced or dark sounding depending on tuning mode. ○○* has a decent energy but still dull and dead, ●●* and ○●* modes has a decent sparkle and smooth albeit a bit relaxed in my liking as my treble-head side says more energy and sparkle. And then on ●○* mode, this way too dark sounding and muffled as treble extension is almost non-existent. In general, Quartet's treble has its evenness in its presentation that it will not giveus a jarring sound nor sibilance.

Due to its smooth nature, it gives a dull and soughing sound on cymbals strikes while the hi-hats sound a bit warmer but its shortened sizzle still remains. The treble extension is rather paltry on this one as it has meagre sparkle with a subdued and suppress harmonics.

SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING AND OTHER TECHNICALITIES:

Overall, the sound field dimensions of this set are rather average on width, depth and height. It is like I'm in a small pub on how I perceive it within my head room as it feels spatially confined.

Its imaging has a typical two-dimensional stereo presentation where I was able to  estimate the location of instruments, vocals and other elements. Separation of instruments and vocals was decent enough but the layering capability is rather ill-defined and vague as both frequency and dynamic layering are poorly produce that it will struggle on complex tracks like orchestra, movie scores and jazz that has a multitude of well-arranged instruments or vocals.

The drivers inside have a good cohesion as it performs a decently fast transient response without any sort of distortion. Even though it seems the dynamic drivers are a bit slow and bloated, it wasn't that case after all as it was an intention of the tuner to sound like that.

It has a strong and solid fundamentals on resolving macro-dynamics but it has meagre performance in exhibiting and extracting micro-details as it sounds blunted and grainy. It appears to be that tonal colour of the Quartet is on an organic side but its unwarranted warmth on it makes it have a more analogue-ish vibe with it.

PEER COMPARISON:

GS AUDIO GD3B

◆ They are on the same price braket and also have a similar build and driver set-up though GD3B has lesser quantity in number of transducers but better on quality as its dual balanced armature drivers uses a more premium one which is SONION. It doesn't have any toggle switches to make it more complicated. The product packaging of GD3B is rather modest and bare bones to its asking price.

◆ GD3B has a balanced-neutral sound profile as it has a punchy bass to make it a bit more tidy compare to the Quartet, a neutral yet textured midrange and tad brighter treble response which makes it an overall more refined sounding compared to GD3B.

◆ On technicalities, GD3B is undoubtedly superior in all aspects from a wider sound/speaker stage, a concave imaging presentation, good separation and better layering. Even resolution capability GD3B is even more competent on detail retrieval.

CVJ MEI

◆ MEI has a solid aluminium alloy shell chassis and like Quartet it has toggle tuning switches and also of a hybrid driver set-up but lesser in quantity as it has only one single dynamic driver and 2 balanced armatures. MEI is a bit cheaper because it has some compromises on quality of its stock cable and at the same time, the quantity amount of inclusions included inside its packaging box.

◆ MEI has a distinctive 4 tuning modes; a dark, warmer bass focus tuning, smooth U-shaped tuning, a bright V-shape tuning and a bright U-shaped. The smooth U-shaped tuning is the best one in my opinion on how it presents a more mature and refinement of its sound quality as it has clean basa response, a more neutral and vibrant midrange that gives an ample texture on vocals and instruments and a tad sparkling and smoother treble register.

◆ Even on technical aspects, CVJ MEI fare even better compared to Quartet from sound/speaker stage, better separation and layering and even better resolving on detail definition. Imaging and coherency performance are similar on both devices. The only thing that Quartet will win over MEI if the latter's tuning mode is on that single dynamic driver tuning mode which I consider it as a badly tuned one.

To put my conclusion regarding on Kiwi Ears Quartet. Kiwi Ears takes a different approach when it comes to tuning philosophy of this set compared to some of their products as they try to approach that fun, musical and engaging tonality over a high fidelity, very detailed and technically competent sound that Kiwi Ears is known for.

In my opinion, the Kiwi Ears Quartet is more of an experimental set as they try to garner more audio enthusiasts who want another tuning flavour on their listening experience. This set is definitely for listeners who only want an enjoyable and pleasant listening experience. This is a highly recommended one to casual type of listeners and novice audio enthusiasts out there.

Kiwi Ears Quartet is now available at LINSOUL, For those interested party who wants to purchase this product, just click the non-affiliated link below:

★★KIWI EARS QUARTET - LINSOUL★★

And also, check out my previous reviews of other Kiwi Ears products:

● Kiwi Ears Cadenza

SPECIFICATION:

MODEL: KIWI EARS QUARTET

IMPEDANCE: 32Ω

SENSITIVITY: 110dB

FREQUENCY RESPONSE:  20Hz – 20KHz

CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M

PIN TYPE: 2-PIN CONNECTOR (0.78MM)

PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm

DRIVER UNIT(S): (2) DYNAMIC DRIVERS + (2) BALANCED ARMATURE DRIVERS

PROS:

△ Beautiful and well-crafted acrylic resin shells.

△  Quite lightweight and probably has one of the best UIEM-style shell form factor when it comes to fitting and comfort as it snugs well into my lugholes.

△ Working toggle switches.

△ Good quality stock cable.

△ A plenty amount of ear tips to choose from

△Good quality IEM carrying case for stowage.

△ Easy to amplify as it scales well to all known sources.

△ A warmish U-shaped sound signature that will be likeable to majority type of casuallisteners.

△ Robust bass response.

△ Warm and textured midrange 

△ Smooth and relaxed treble register.

△ Analogue-ish tonality the will gives a more pleasant and engaging listening experience.

CONS:

▽ Occurrences of mid bass smearing across to other frequencies due to its boomy nature that it sounds a bit bloated.

▽ Will not give a lively, vibrant and energetic sound on sopranos and tenors 

▽ Too warm sounding in my preference on sound quality.

▽ Overall mediocre technical performance.

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 KIWI EARS 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 LINSOUL especially to MS. KAREENA TANG for providing this review unit. I truly appreciate their generosity and trust towards me and other reviewers.