TRIPOWIN X HBB KAILUA: Double Driver, Unabating Performer

Frieza is the current Emperor of Universe 7 in the Dragon Ball series. He is a cruel, vicious and genocidal maniac who conquers a multitude of planetary systems as part of his ever growing galactic empire. He also serves as one of the main antagonists and at the same time, an unexpected ally.

What in the sane mind I'm doing right now that I even put him as part of this product review?  Well if you check its colourway options, It really reminds me of that character with his evolution (yeah, mine is a black and purple variant that reminds me of his latest evolutionary power-up).

Enough of this fandom thing and let's get straight. This is TRIPOWIN's latest entry-level product and its a collaboration partnership with Chris Ballard a.k.a. Hawaiian Bad Boy on which we know that he is one of the most prominent portable audio reviewer in audio community with his ever-popular YouTube channel.

This is TRIPOWIN Kailua, Kailua is a beach town situated in Oahu, Hawaii which is also known to have some wetland marshes and scenic mountain cliffs aside from its well-maintained golden sand beaches. The word Kailua means "two seas" in Hawaiian language which really makes sense when it was named that particular area.

TRIPOWIN Kailua is an IEM with dual dynamic driver set-up. Like almost all dual dynamic drivers that I've tested up to this day, it always has different sizes. In case of Kailua, it has 6mm and 10mm drivers, both have DLC diaphragm coated with titanium nitrate for added resistance and durability. Both drivers are encapsulated in an ovular shape metal alloy shell chassis which are quite small and light so that it sits decently inside of my lugholes though there are some points that should be taken in consideration as you need better ear tips ( the included stock ones won't give me that best fitting, sort of loose and wobbling) just to have an optimum fitting. This set is still uses a proven detachable mechanism which is a 2-pin connector but there some issues to be address on this one as it has edges on its square shaped connector that rubs my upper tragus which causes some discomfort as I do some activity

The product packaging of the TRIPOWIN Kailua is rather spartan. It was packed in a compact-sized rectangular box with some pretty basic inclusion inside.

Here are the following contents inside of TRIPOWIN Kailua:

■ a pair of TRIPOWIN Kailua IEMs

■ a 0.78mm stock cable constructed in a high purity OCC copper wiring terminated in 3.5mm SE plug.

■ three (3) pairs of narrow bored ear tips in different standard sizes.

■ three (3) pairs of wide bored ear tips in different standard sizes.

■ Some paperwork like instruction manual, warranty card and Q.C. certificate.

TRIPOWIN Kailua has a good scalability on amplification and power output as this set is an easy to drive that its dual dynamic drivers are quite efficient that it only requires a minimal amount of power from its source to deliver a rich, well-optimised dynamic sound.

To determine its tonality, like all HBB preferred tuning target curves, the TRIPOWIN Kailua has a warm, U tob V-shaped sound signature as it has an elevated lows and high frequencies with a notch midrange (depends of the ear tips you are using). Overall, it approaches a more analogue-ish tonality.

LOWS/BASS:

As we are quite familiar with HBB's preference, he loves a quantifying bass response that is authoritative and robust as it suits well on his library tracks. The bass response of Kailua is rather surprisingly balanced on both sub-bass and midbass. A tad boomy and impacting one that it some point that it smears a little bit on midrange frequency.

It has a discernable rumble as I felt them from sub-bass focus instruments like low tuned guitar and synthesisers mainly synth-pop, dark wave and old school hip-hop tracks. The midbass has a good texture that gives an ample body and note weight on bass guitars, bass kick drums and bass-baritone vocals.  Bass guitars have that sombre and a tad hollow sound from them, bass drum kicks have those sustaining and thudding sound. Bass-baritones have enough heft to have wool-like sound from them.

MIDRANGE:

A midrange was indeed scooped in the overall presentation but due to some bass smears, it adds a texture and warmth on vocals and some percussion instruments to give a fuller sound particularly on most male vocals and contralto vocal types.

Kailua sounds really great on male vocals like baritones as it gives more depth and power to have that lush and rich sound as I enjoy listening to some operatic baritone vocals like Dmitri Hvorostovsky. Tenors have these brassy characteristics from their vocals. Listening on contralto vocals are pleasurable as they have that husky and smoky sound with their low chesty tone. Mezzo-sopranos and countertenors perform well as they have these smooth and musky sounds from them. On sopranos, its rather a mixed bag as soubrette and dramatic types sounds better as they have rather creamy and satiny sound while on lyric and coloratura types, they are rather inadequate to deliver that air and energy to sound gleaming and silvery but at least they don't sound dull and lethargic.

As for instruments, percussive like toms and snares have warm, deep and shuffling sound sound from them while a chordophone like piano have a warmer and mellow sound. Trumpets and trombones have a fuller and rounded sound while woodwinds like flute have a soft and mellow tone. Strings like acoustic guitars and violins, it has these bloom and lingering overtones on every pluck on the former while a more sensuous and calming sound on the latter instrument.

HIGHS/TREBLE:

The treble response of this set is rather balanced as it has a sufficient shimmer while retaining some smoothness due to some noticeable dip between upper mids to the presence part of the treble region. Those dips will allow it to subdue some unwanted harshness and sibilance. That sufficient shimmer will also give an ample crisp and detail.

Regarding its brilliance treble, it has an adequate sparkle but its airy extension is rather meagre and lacklustre in my opinion. But at least it gives a lustrous sound on cymbals and accurate tone on hi-hats to have the shortened buzzing sound to give that distinct "chick" sound.

SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING AND OTHER TECHNICALITIES:

The overall sound/speaker stage dimensions are pretty average on how I perceive them spatially as it has an average on wideness and height but has good immersive depth from it to give me a rather passable headroom.

As for imaging and stereo presentation, Kailua is quite two-dimensional in presenting its spatial field as I was able to locate decently the placement of instruments and singers. It has a decent separation but the layering is nothing to be elaborate about as they perform rather unexceptional as I expected mostly on these sets in this price range and typical dual-DD set-up. It seems that it won't play well on more complex tracks like jazz ensemble, orchestras and symphonic power metal as it struggles to replay all instruments there.

It has decent resolution capabilities as it gives a more solid macro-dynamics while it has decent micro-detail retrieval as it performs fairly on extracting some nuances from a sonic background on an audio track.

PEER COMPARISONS:

QKZ X HBB KHAN

■ This is another project of HBB, it has a similar driver implementation which also has two dynamic drivers. The shell of Khan is an unoriginal design but it offers a better fitting and comfort compared to Kailua. The product packaging of KHAN is a bit better as it has a commemorative coin and storage case but less choices on ear tips.

■ Tonality-wise, both sets have similar sound signature which is warm V-shaped, Khan bass response is more robust and authoritative that it is so prominent that it bleeds across the frequency range. Treble is somehow a bit dark compared to Kailua as it subdues the detail quality and clarity of sound. Technical capabilities of these sets are eerily similar with the exception that Khan resolution capabilities aren't that good as it has a poor micro-detail retrieval as its definition is blunted and overly smoothen.

7HZ LEGATO

■ It has a similar driver implementation set-up compared to Kailua but it has a larger dynamic driver which handles the low frequencies. The shell chassis of LEGATO has a more solid build quality with some components like capacitors that simply handle the crossovers. And this set is even more pricey but its product packaging and quantity of inclusions are justified for its price.

■ Despite that they have similar sound signature but Legato has even more authoritative and even ear-shaking bass response. It also noted that it has less shimmering treble compared to the Kailua but it doesn't sound as dark and dull unlike the QKZ KHAN. On technical aspects, Legato has a tad wider sound/speaker stage and presents a more solid note and fundamentals on macro-dynamics.

To end my assessment of this set. At first impression, I'm not particularly impressed by how it sounds as this type of tuning isn't my cup of tea and some fitting issues that I encountered. But as some days go by while I'm conducting listening tests on this one to my preferred library, I just realised that it has some strong aspects that make Kailua more interesting that should be noted.

This is probably one of the most likeable among HBB's collaboration products that I really enjoy listening to. Can I recommend this IEM to other audio enthusiasts? Yes, it is, I can certainly recommend this if you are  either a fan of HBB's target curve with similar track library of his or if you came from a typical consumer type of tuning who wants a significant improvement on sonic qualities.

TRIPOWIN Kailua is now available at LINSOUL, you can check the unaffiliated link below.

★★TRIPOWIN X HBB KAILUA - LINSOUL★★

You can also check out my previous reviews of other TRIPOWIN products:

● TRIPOWIN CENCIBLE

● TRIPOWIN RHOMBUS

SPECIFICATION:

MODEL: TRIPOWIN X HBB KAILUA

IMPEDANCE: 19Ω

SENSITIVITY: 106dB

FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 12Hz – 36KHz

CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M

PIN TYPE:  2-PIN CONNECTOR (0.78MM)

PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm

DRIVER UNIT(S): (2) DYNAMIC DRIVER

PROS:

△ Small, lightweight shell chassis.

△ Three colourway options to from for preferences.

△ Substantial amount of ear tips to choose from.

△ Warm U to V-shaped sound signature for music genre flexibility.

△ Punchy bass response.

△ Good for baritone and contralto vocals.

△ Safe and inoffensive treble response.

△ Acceptable detail and clarity for a dual dynamic set-up IEM.

CONS:

▽ Needs better ear tips as stock ear tips doesn't fit well to my lugholes. Need to look at other third party ear tips for better fitting and isolation.

▽ That square edges at the 2-pin connector is quite a bit sharp as it rubs on my upper tragus that causes some discomfort.

▽ Recessed midrange presentation.

▽ Most technical aspects of this set are rather average and scant.

▽ Treble air is meagre.

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*

Type O Negative - Black No.1 *

Felix Ayo - Vivaldi: Presto **

Three Tenors - Nessum Dorma *

Mercyful Fate - Witches' Dance *

P.S.

I am not affiliated to TRIPOWIN 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 KAREENA TANG of LINSOUL for providing this review unit. I truly appreciate their generosity and trust towards me and other reviewers.