Mosie_OnAmazon

Great IEM earbuds, Musicians Review

After four months of using these KZ ZAR buds, I am happy I went with these. I did a lot of research before I pulled the trigger on a pair of IEM earbuds. So, I felt it appropriate to post my experience of what I purchased here on Amazon. Here's my thoughts:BUILD:As a drummer and vocalist, I will admit I’m very hard on my gear, including my headphones. Sticks hit the wires, they get yanked out of my ears due to aggressive playing style, they bounce off of gear and so on.- After four months the wires still seem brand new, very flexible and the jack connection is still solid.- I love the unique twisted wires from the jack to the separator.- The outer cases show no sign of wear.- I also really like that they use the 2-pin "C" style to connect the wires to the body of the IEMs, as they do not spin like the round "new style" connectors. Those are much harder to put in on the fly, if you are in a rush or have removed one in the middle of a song. It's really very hard to do with one hand...UPGRADED WIRES:The manufacturer KZ, talks about upgraded silver wires. I don’t know how much this helps the audio, but given the build quality, I assume it does.- You don’t get much noise traveling through the wires to your ears, from it rubbing on your clothing or hitting your body, like you do from lower end earbuds with thinner wires/cables.- I also really, really like the fact that it is braided differently from where it comes out of the jack up to the splitter. An obvious upgrade and giving a bit more substance so it hangs nicely and does not get twisted up, but not too heavy.- Something not mentioned in the description; the wire that comes out of the earbuds has about a 3-inch sheathing to keep the two wires in place, which helps for supporting in the wires, direction so they stay together and not get caught on your ears. I had no idea this would be as beneficial as it is.(It’s hard to see in my picture, my thumb is holding the wire in place where the sheathing stops.)SOUND:The 8 drivers per ear are well balanced, I can hear the music in great detail.These are not ultra flat but not dull either. They are well balanced without overly V-curved either, in their frequency responses. The imaging and separation are good enough to tell the two guitarists apart when the levels are equal. Bass is loud and clear, but not hyped or overbearing. Like any set of earbuds, you're not going to get sub bass prominent in a full range mix. However, I can hear the 80K range that my bass drum produces. I have my kick drum higher in my mix, and the drivers do not have a problem separating that low end vs. the vocals and guitars without any frequency cancelling out or dominating the others.NOISE CANCELING:KZ's marketing says "You could conceivably not notice the apocalypse if you had these on."Well...Let's scale it down a bit folks. Without an internal DB meter, I cannot say if they are "capable of blocking up to 36 dB of noise" as noted.- However, what I can tell you that with just drums and three vocalists in my IEM mix, I can hear the bass and the guitarist (that always, always play too loud), now at a reasonable level. That's a huge win for me! - I do have to remove one ear to hear talking between songs, IF it is not done into a microphone.CONS:The only downside is they 'can' hurt the top of my ears after prolonged use. This is because when you put them in what feels like the natural position to go in, the wire harness sits against the front/top of your ear.THE FIX:After putting them in, rotate both of the IEM's forward, and there is no pressure on your ear.THE BOTTOM LINE: Overall I really like these IEMs.This level of IEM's would cost a lot more several years ago. Gave a 5-star rating and would buy these again if needed, or for the price, as a backup. These will be my main in-ears for now.PS ... IF YOU PURCHASE:An accessory I purchased on Amazon that I really recommend is the KZ–AZ09. You'll need the model with the C pin. It is a Bluetooth attachment/upgrade ear hook that attaches in place of the wire, so you can wear them as normal earbuds. While I’ve only used them once on a plane, they worked flawlessly. Connected to my iPhone seamlessly, and the set up was great listening to movies on a cross-country trip. It really let me experience the separation of the 8 drivers per ear.Ver más

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lag0matic

9 de junio de 2026

Awesome IEMs - at a budget price.

I got these while recovering from an injury that made headphones that go over the head hard to wear. Coming from Audeze LCDGx headphones (about 800$) I had pretty lowe expectations - and was very surprised. The cable that comes with them is great - the fit is fantastic when you use the proper ear tip. They're comfortable, and the sound quality is much better than I ever expected. They're quite isolating - compared to my open back headphones, but that's to be expected!Ver más

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David Kelly

8 de abril de 2026

Great earbuds for the price....no case.

As a professional audio engineer, I wanted something slightly above average but, if lost wouldn't ruin my day.These were a good choice for my application.....airplane travel. hotel room or queuing up channels during a show.They have a decent sound for watching movies or listening to music. They seem to be well built and a good value for the price. My only issiue is they do not have any type of storage case or pouch which is a downer.Overall a good set of isolation earbuds for the price.Ver más

1 persona la encontró útil

Tyler

12 de octubre de 2024

Fantastic.

As someone who has only recently tried an IEM, these were my second pair. My first being FiiO JH3s which are half the price. If you can appreciate the details in the sound your hearing these are leaps ahead the first pair I bought. While at a hardware level these have much more driver behind them and it shows. I paired these with a DAC and it only got better.My Pros.•Huge bass range, these hit new lows I didn’t know I knew existed. I’m usually a speaker listen and the low end clarity on these shocked me.•The mid range follows the low with great clarity. Great volcals that don’t feel washed out by the bass. There is clear separation.•Build quality is great they feel solid in the hand while also being light weight. The connector is reinforced and feels very secure, something I had issues with my first pair.•Fit is great. I don’t even realize they’re in, they stay in. Enough said.•Cable is very flimsy in a good way, seems to be just rigid enough to not tangle. The connectors on both sides are very high quality.My Cons.The high end leave a little to be desired. This is my opinion others may feel differently but I find the higher side of things to be sometimes subdued by the low end and mid range, there is great tone but it’s not as sharp as other headphones I’ve used. I knew this going in as I wanted the low end kick these have•NO CASE! I would have really liked to have at least seen a soft carrying pouch or a hard case, but nothing. For $100 it seems like that could’ve been added. My $50 FiiOs came with a sweet hard clear case and I’ve actually now used that as my case for these.As my second set I can confidently say I’m content…for now. These are a very nice set of IEMs that I feel are totally worth the money.Ver más

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Amazon Customer

13 de febrero de 2026

All Drummers and Bass Players need these KZ ZARs!

This is a must have for all musicians and singers alike. I've been drummer for many many years and did not realize the importance of having in your monitors. Not only has it protected my hearing, but I hear everything crystal clear, and it has no doubt improved my performance as a drummer and backup vocalist. I was so impressed with these that I also purchased some additional in years, KZ KAX model in ears for the rest of my band, including bassist, guitarists and singers. My bassist also uses these KARs because of the extreme clarity of all the sounds we're in need of hearing, from the lows, mid and higher ranges. Simply cannot beat the quality and value KZ provides with both ZAR and ZAX in ears. I've paired these with Donner in ear amplifiers for both models and it works perfectly. Did I mention how great they feel? They come with small medium and large silicone tips, and I prefer the medium size. It provides great noise isolation, and allows me to have extreme focus compared to wearing earplugs, much less nothing at all which is very damaging. I have tennitus, and for many years after each rehearsal or live gig, my ears ring for days if not weeks, because I was using expensive ear plugs along with having a monitor blasting at me within a few feet away.Aside from having extreme clarity, having an overall pulse on my performance and everybody else, I noticed immediately that my ears did not ring anymore after rehearsals or shows. However keep in mind is important that you control your volume safely on your in-ear amplifier, because you can still push the boundaries and the ringing is back. I have mine set at 50 to 75% volume with the full mix coming from the board, so as my ears fatigue over a couple hours, I have some wiggle room to bump it up a little if needed. I recommend these all day long. Don't spend any more, or less, if you were a bass player or drummer these are for you.Ver más

Amazon Customer

23 de marzo de 2026

Wow...just wow.

Was recently at CanJam NYC 2026. Listened to lots of headphones. Sennheiser 820s, numerous from Meze and Hifiman and Fostex. This $99 IEMs have most of them beat with the exception of the Fostex TH1000rp which was driven by a Violectric headphone amp. Those were phenomenal. But these KZ KARs, for $99 put most other cans to shame. The sub bass on these are just...wow. it's like those ghetto cruisers with dual 15 inch subs in the trunk driving by with the rattling license plate. Haha. I think being IEMs they have a bit of an advantage pushing sound right into the ear canal but still, they are just so resolving. It's great when you can hear texture of the vocals.Ver más

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