HiFi Mai Tai

Families are always complicated just ask Darth Vader. That said the Skywalker family is pretty simple next to the KZ family even if you include Rey as a Skywalker. Having examined the KZ family tree I have concluded that the KZ Vader Pro must be the middle child. Its the only thing that makes any sense. The younger child is the KZ Castor Pro (possibly now replaced by the KZ Duonic). The eldest child must be the KZ Decet. And yup just as I said that leaves Darth Vader as the middle child. No wonder he was so unstable. In such a family it must be hard for the KZ Vader Pro to standout and perhaps it is living in the shadow of its younger sibling. But is that really fair? Should we be giving the KZ Vader Pro more attention? More love? Well lets find out in the Bartender’s KZ Vader Pro Review.

KZ Vader Pro Review – The Cocktail:

The KZ Vader Pro is a triple dynamic driver for which I paid £24. Triple dynamic drivers aren’t that common but nor are they that rare. They certainly wouldn’t be considered critically endangered liked Hawkbill Sea Turtles or Scalloped Hammerhead Sharks but maybe would be classified as vulnerable like Olive Ridley Turtles and Great Whilte Sharks. No idea why I went with a shark and turtle comparison, there are literally hundreds of animals I could have picked.

The frequency range also makes for interesting reading. Unless your a dog or an elephant only half of the frequencies made by the KZ Vader Pro will be audible. And you probably thought this was going to be full of Star Wars references but no today is all about animals. Most adults can’t even hear the full 20-20000 Hz range so extending to 45,000 Hz offers nothing. I do understand the argument for going beyond the range of human hearing. It is nice to think that my dynamic drivers are not being pushed to their limits and are coping comfortably but this range is a little ridiculous. Its just a peacock showing off. It looks impressive but unless your another peacock it isn’t actually doing anything for you (at least not in the way its intended).

Drivers:10mm Long Stroke Dynamic Driver, 2x 8mm Dynamic Drivers
Frequency: 5 to 45,000 Hz
Impedence: 18 Ω
Sensitivity: 106 dB

KZ Vader Pro Review – The Taste Test Setup:

Taste test wise things continue as per usual. Still sticking with the Moondrop Dawn Pro 2. Still using my Tripowin Zonie cable. I guess there is a little sea turtle in me. I just keep coming back to the same beach. Or actually maybe in my case a little house cat. I just never leave.

After playing around with the tuning switches I settled on 1110. The intent behind this arrangement was to try and add some body and thickness to the sound. But more on that later. I am getting ahead of myself. Pulling at the leash.

DAC/AMP: Moondrop Dawn Pro 2
Cable: Tripowin Zonie 4.4mm (Balanced)
Eartips: Stock (Silicon)

KZ Vader Pro Review – The Non-Audio:

As ever for KZ IEMS the complete package is IEMs first and pretty much only. I didn’t even take the cable out. Probably should have done though. I don’t want you to think I am sloppy and lazy. Oh well I am sure its fine. Someone will correct me if indeed this is a better cable than normal.

The KZ Vader Pro do have a style. I think they are trying to be edgy and sharp. Darth Vader on a skateboard maybe. It does sort of work. I did think about rating their style a little higher but I didn’t. I didn’t because I still find them boring. Less Darth Vader on a skateboard and more grey dog sleeping on a slap on concrete in Swindon on a grey over cast day. I could go on but I think you get the point. That or I lost you with the Swindon thing. Swindon is most famous for a roundabout and that’s it. Just like Milton Keynes. If you are a roundabout fan then I just planed your next holiday.

The KZ Vader Pro are a typical size and shape. They fit me well and probably with better eartips would be perfectly comfortable but when using the stock tips they are only close to perfect.

Accessories: Drink Only (Noting Else Worth Talking About)
Style: Well Liquor (An Angular Mirror. Useless & Covered in Figure Prints)
Build: Dish Washer Proof (Just Don’t Scratch It)
Comfort: Sat in the Booths (Not Bad At All)

KZ Vader Pro Review – The Audio:

I am just gonna come straight out and say it. I don’t like this cocktail. The KZ Vader Pro are not the IEMs for me.

The bass is not awful but it can feel slow. I have often associated a slightly slower bass with texture and rumble but in the case of the KZ Vader Pro I do not feel that it is the case. Its a little slow, a little flat and a little hollow. It is fairly clean and successfully avoids the other sections of the music without feeling to distant but equally it only brings the bare minium. Its like a teenager being asked to do chores. They will likely get it done but there is no knowing when, the end results won’t be satisfying but technical the task will have been completed.

The mid frequencies are where for me it goes really wrong. There is a thinness here. This really is that cheap 40gsm paper that always brags about being recycled and is a very displeasing off white color. I don’t need double corrugated cardboard but it would be nice if it where thick enough that I couldn’t see through it. This thinness is carried through to the vocals. Vocals have no weight. No substance. They are house of cards waiting to fall over. Male vocals particularly suffer. Some female vocals do have a nice sharpness that can sometimes sound great but most the time everything sounds thin and weak.

Like the bass the treble is not awful. It has a high clarity and can at times shimmer but can also be harsh or clashy. If you are treble sensitive then I would be cautious and if you are a treble head then defiantly look elsewhere. I am honestly not sure what kind of treble they were going for here. Its not relaxed though sometimes lacks energy. Sometimes its too energetic. Possibly some tip rolling could help with this. Underneath there might actually be a good treble here but you have have to look quite hard.

In the treble there is pretty good detail but overall detail is held back by the bass and mids. At no point is the detail exceptional but it can at times be impressive. It is always good to hear fingers on the frets, background conversations, creaking wooden stools. They are all here but certainly not as distinguishable as other IEMs such as the KZ ZA12.

I do not like the overall presentation of the sound here. It feels cluttered but also as though the space has been filled by nothing. The sound is so thin that there should be plenty of room of it and yet it doesn’t all fit. The sound stage is pretty normal with pretty normal stereo separation but its the imaging that hold it back. There is no depth to the position of the instruments and picking out an instrument as being behind another is a challenge.

The Base Spirit (Bass): 66.38 % (This One Isn’t Wearing the Trousers)
The Modifier (Mids): 55.73 % (Caught Airport Flu)
The Sweetener (Treble): 65.98 % (Did I Remember Toothpaste?)
The Vocals: 56.33 % (Trying to Sing Whilst Standing in the North Sea)
The Garnish (Details): 68.88 % (A Crisp Lager. Pleasant but Nothing Special)
The Presentation (Technicals): 61.49 % (Standing Alone But Feeling Crowded)

KZ Vader Pro Review – The AI Opinion:

This a new feature that I am trying out. How well will it work? I don’t know but here goes anyway.

In this section I have asked Google’s AI mode to predict a score for the to be reviewed IEM prior to publishing my review. To get this prediction I have asked that it predict a score based upon the scoring system employed by me here at the HiFi Mai Tai beach bar. That’s it. It is as simple as that. I could be doing myself out of the job here. But got to embrace the modern world etc. And if AI is gonna take my job I am going to go down fighting. Hopefully it proves itself rubbish and there is nothing to worry about.

So the KZ Vader Pro. What does AI think?

The Base Spirit (Bass): 84.00%
The Modifier (Mids): 74.00%
The Sweetener (Treble): 82.00%
The Vocals: 79.00%
The Garnish (Details): 83.00%
The Presentation (Technicals): 85.00%

Similar to the last cocktail review (TRN Dolphin) AI thinks I should have rated this much higher. It agrees with me that the mids and the vocals are the weakest aspects of the sound but all of AI’s ratings are shifted up.

I guess there must be a lot of positive reviews for the KZ Vader Pro that or AI is making stuff up (can never rule it out). As the AI opinion is so different from mine I would encourage you to look at a few other reviews (I am sure you were going to do that anyway).

KZ Vader Pro Review – Summary & Comparisons

Some quick comparisons.

First up is the CVJ Nightelf. The CVJ Nightelf is also a triple dynamic driver IEM at a very similar price point. However, these IEMs are not the same. They are very different. The CVJ Nightelf is much warmer resulting in a much fuller sound. Next to Vader the Nightelf is one very chonky elf both in terms of sound and the size of the shells. I wasn’t especially sold on the CVJ Nightelf but I would take in over the Vader Pro without hesitation.

Next up is the KZ Duonic. Possibly the KZ Vader Pro’s little brother or maybe more like its cousin. The KZ Duonic is also much thicker (probably everything is thicker than the KZ Vader Pro) and the bass of the KZ Duonic is so much more enjoyable.

Finally its the KZ Decet. Possibly the KZ Vader Pro’s big brother. To me it does feel like the KZ Vader was meant to balance out the KZ Decet. The Vader Pro would reduce the bass lift the upper mids and generally make a brighter less bass focused sound. Both of these cocktails have dipped lower mids/upper bass. They are tying for that subwoofer sound. In the case of the KZ Decet this has been done really well but for the KZ Vader Pro its unfortunately the opposite story.

So to summarize. If you are on audio diet and want something low calorie then maybe the KZ Vader Pro is for you. If you want to sacrifice flavor for clean health then go ahead I won’t stop you. And if you need me I will be at the bar with the real drinks. The drinks that taste of something. The drinks that have substance. The drinks that I enjoy.