KBEAR KB16 CEPHEUS

Let's get started. First off, let me take a moment to thank @KEEPHIFI or the opportunity to review this unit. I've had the pleasure of reviewing and purchasing several KBear IEMs and cables, with the personal BCD favorite the KB02 being the most recent one. Well, the KB16 is a significant step up from the KB02 in performance and numbering scheme. When @KEEPHIFI reached out asking if I would like to review this IEM, my interest was quite high, since I did read the initial impressions and reviews, and they were interesting to me, as I always get peak interest in dual DD bass. The Cepheus is 2DD + 6BA, and that's a tough nut in the hobby, with many IEMs with this configuration, and very competitive sector. So how would this latest entry (and most expensive) by KBear fare? Won't get too far ahead of myself, but the short answer is they acquit themselves wonderfully! This is a set that resonated with me, made it's way into my rotation, and for certain genres (Reggae + Acid Jazz), are now a pre-eminent IEM grab for that playlist. I'd been looking for a set that would take their place atop that genre, ever since I sold another purple reggae wonder, the Kiwi Ears Quartet, last year. So buckle your seatbelts and prepare for a 100% unbiased impression with heartfelt observations and thoughts. Now on to the FUN stuff!



The unboxing experience was short and fairly uneventful. Moderately sized box, with attractive branding and a photo of these purple beauties. Inside, we get the IEMs, a standard zippered carry case, three packs of tips, and a thin, silver cable in 3.5mm. The small size of the tips make them useless for me to use, and I skipped the cable, and used the perfectly synergized Tripowin Moonshadow cable in it's place. It's the perfect cable in colorway and wire alloy, like they were made for each other. I originally started with AZLA Crystal tips, but ended up using JVC Spiral Dots, as the fit, despite the longer nozzle pathway, has ergonomics that made it difficult to maintain a seal with longer, more cylindrical tips, but the mushroom Spiral Dots helped provide a more consistent seal. Crystals might work for another's ears, and the treble was much crisper with the Crystals, so YMMV? The faceplates are absolutely gorgeous, and one of my favorites. The purple and black colorway is vibrant and fun, and overall, aesthetically, it's pleasing, and once you find the right tips, ergonomically they feel fine in ear for long listening sessions. Now let's move on to what most of you are here for...the sound impressions!! But first, let's look over the published specs and the frequency response graph, then we get down to the nitty gritty.


THE SPECS :

KBEAR K16 CEPHEUS

TECHNICAL INFORMATION :




Frequency Response Graph courtesy of KBear. All rights reserved.

Frequency Response Graph courtesy of Kefine. All rights reserved.

PRICE : $249.00

Available for purchase at this location.

The Gear :

What did I use for my listening sessions for my review??

So with the KBear Cepheus, I used a variety of sources, and I did a lot of traveling with them. Spent a significant amount of time using the Sony WM-A306, both tethered to the Cayin Ru6, iFi Go Link Max, as well as the Nunchaku, and untethered. Also used was the Hiby R3 II untethered, as well as transport for the iBasso Nunchaku. I used tubes, which included the Cayin N3 Ultra and the Nunchaku, but that wasn't my preferred source chain, as I preferred the more brightish neutral DAPs and sources. The Sony NW-ZX300 and Sony NW-ZX100 were used, but aside from the A306 and R3 II, my main focused listening was with the FiiO JM21 and FiiO M21 (untethered and in Desktop mode when applicable). So a good variety of warm and neutral/neutral bright sources, so I could gather a solid grasp for how the drivers responded to various synergies.



Music used for the review and all my reviews in general?

Ezra Collective - Dance, No One's Watching
Robert Glasper - Canvas
Aki Rissanen Aleatoric - Aleatoric
Des'ree - I Ain't Movin'
Paul Booth - 44
Bob Marley & the Wailers - Survival
Rob Van Bavel & Joris Teppe - Dutch Connection
Kaisa's Machine - Moving Parts
Esperanza Spalding - Self Titled
Junior Kelly, Bounty Killer, and Capleton - The Good, The Bad, and the Blazin'
Martin, Glasper, 9th Wonder & Washington - Dinner Party
Juan Ibarra - La Casa
Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Drive By Jehu - Self Titled
An Abstract Illusion - Woe
Belnejoum - Dark Tales Of Zarathustra
Cryptosis - Celestial Death
Crownshift - Crownshift
In Aphelion - Reaperdawn
Cradle of Filth - The Screaming of the Valkyries
Shuffled Classic Rock, Reggae, and Pop Music playlist

SOUND IMPRESSIONS :

Dynamics : 5
Resolution : 3.5
Details : 3.5
Instrument separation : 4
Imaging : 4
Low End Impact : 4
Sibilance : 1 (weighted at 5)
Soundstage : 4

Overall score : 4/5

BASS/MIDRANGE/TREBLE :

The KBear KB16 Cepheus rocks. There. Got it out of the way! No, really, this IEM joins a short list of IEMs that caught me completely by surprise, as in I was not expecting much, and then got slapped in the face with something that performed well above my expectations, it's capabilities, and it's fun factor, along with the Juzear x Z Reviews Defiant (see the comparison section), Campfire Alien Brain, FatFreq Deuce, KZ AM16 Balance, and now add the Cepheus. What places the Cepheus on this list begins with the bass. It's rich, resolving, spatial, punchy, and energetic. While the sub bass is more subdued than the mid bass, it's not a sleeper. There's an awesome depth to the bass, and the sub bass does slam deep, just not rumble, that while it punches and resolves, creates a really rich and engaging low end experience. It's these characteristics that leap frogged it over many of my other bassy IEMs right to the top of the reggae, acid jazz, and hip hop playlists. Yeah, whether it's Bob Marley, Beenie Man, Lady Saw, Bounty Killer, Capleton, Junior Kelly or smoother crooners like Don Campbell, Mikey Spice, or Singing Melody, the Cepheus brings emotiveness, warmth, richness, and heft to male and female vocals, punch, detail, and energy to bassy tracks, without muddying up the transition between lower midrange and mid bass. It's warm and clean, even though it does mean you lose some detail retrieval and transparency in the midrange, but it's still musical as heck, and the bass holds down the fort admirably.

The midrange is sweet, warm, and immersive. While not the most resolving or incisive, the midrange is musical, and there's enough crispness to keep the midrange balanced and rich. Note weight is especially strong, with natural tonality, no hint of thinness, and with weighty resonance. Male and female vocals are emotive, warm, hefty, and with a forward richness. Immersive and center focused, while instruments are placed with depth and spaced nicely among the stage with above average spatial cues. There's a warm richness to female vocals from Ann Wilson to Lady Saw to Debbie Harry to Stevie Nicks that pulls their performances forward and graceful. No rough edges. So we are met with a dimensional and musical midrange that's just south of lush, but with an nice stage arch, leaving the listening front and center, in the middle of the action.

Treble is textured, natural, and smooth, with enough air and crispness to not be presented as dark, but close to what would be described as meta tuned. The treble is definitely pulling up behind the bass and the midrange, but again, for music like hip hop or reggae, where there's not a lot of treble information, it's a beautiful compliment. Treble heads and neutral heads won't necessarily find enough shimmer or sparkle, or enough air and extended harmonics to be satisfied, but I found that even listening to metal tracks like Master of Disharmony by Dimmu Borgir, One by Metallica, or The Conjuring by Megadeth, or classic rock like The Who - Who's Next, Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced?, or Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti, the crashes, splashes, hi hats, and rides have enough shimmer and presence to not be a distraction, and I didn't really leave me for want, and I'm a devout treble connoisseur! So don't expect to be wow'd by twinklies and sparklies (thanks Akros!), but it's crisp and airy enough to get the job done.

Comparisons :



Juzear x Z Reviews Defiant ($99.00) : This IEM was chosen for comparo, due to this being a new release, but also this is what I consider a gatekeeper at $100.00. It does a lot right for a relatively low price. So to make the comparison, the bass mid bass impact, snap, and energy go to the Cepheus. Now sub bass rumble and slam is superior in the Defiant. ZEOS tuned the Defiant to have sub bass presence, and it does have that, but the mid bass impact and transition from mid bass to lower midrange is softer with the Defiant, and delivered with more heft and warmth by the Cepheus. Midrange is more forward, more incisive, and just more forward in the Cepheus. The Defiant's midrange, though cleaner, clearer, and less warm than the Cepheus, is more recessed, so the Cepheus just sounds fuller and more forward, while the Defiant is softer, and lacks a degree of energy. The Cepheus sounds more exciting, and it's more musical across the midrange. Treble is close to even. We're talking maybe just a touch more air and shimmer in the Cepheus, but not by much, and that's negligible. Both are meta tuned, but if I were to choose a slightly more energetic or exciting top end, I'd give it to the Cepheus. Soundstage dimensionality and spatial cues are also quite similar. Maybe the Cepheus has more depth, but again, it's almost too close to call. I think the Defiant isn't too far behind the Cepheus, and the price difference isn't small, but the technical aspects of both are, so if you want a more balanced, cleaner, and more detailed midrange, then the Defiant would be an excellent choice for someone not wanting to spend more than a hundo. If you want more excitement, bass impact, and treble incisiveness and excitement, along with a much more warm, musical, and vocal forward midrange, then paying extra for the Cepheus is a no-brainer. Diminished returns that return you a much more musical, fun and energetic listen. Advantage : KBear Cepheus.

Letshuoer Cadenza 12 ($2000.00) : So you thought I'd choose the Cadenza 4? You'd be wrong! How on earth are you comparing a $250.00 IEM with a $2,000 IEM! Because if you thought diminishing returns was a thing between the Defiant and the Cepheus, upon closer inspection, the concept of diminishing returns is loud and clear between the C12 and the Cepheus! So when I compare these two, you're essentially getting refinement with the C12, but not necessarily better technicalities or performance. You're getting cleaner and more refined technicalities and performance. So the bass, which rumbles more with the C12, also has a much cleaner sub bass floor, but it does not punch as hard, or delivers as much energy. It's just a more rumbly, cleaner and clearer bass delivery. No note resolution is cleaner and more refined in the low end, but the Cepheus is more fun, more impactful, and more energetic. The midrange isn't as precise as far as imaging, instrument separation, detail retrieval, and transparency, but the Cepheus is more incisive, has more forward vocals, a warmer, more musical approach to the midrange, while the C12 just delivers a leaner, cooler, less expressive midrange. It's more correct, but is it more fun? I don't think so. The Cadenza 12 treble is fairly close in texture, air, and shimmer to the Cepheus, and probably falls right in between the Defiant and Cepheus. Cepheus delivers a more exciting and crisper treble, while the treble of the Cadenza 12 could be described as being more controlled, more tonally accurate, more refined harmonics and texture, with a clearer picture. I'm guessing the C12 has better incisiveness, but the crispness and top end energy is easily in the court of the Cepheus. So is the C12 worth almost 10x more than the Cepheus? Well, depends if you want to chase that 10-15% more refinement and clarity? If you don't give a damn, and just want to lose yourself immersive in the music, and just toe tap and dance, then no. You can save yourself the coin, and just buy the KB16. You're not even getting more stage and fullness with the C12. The Cepheus might be even fuller and more dimensional? But you're getting a much less "fuzzy" view with the C12. It's microscopic in intent, while the Cepheus is telescopic in execution. Advantage : Letshuoer Cadenza 12.



CONCLUSION :

The KBear KB16 Cepheus shocked and surprised me. I went in not expecting much, and ended up getting one of my favorite IEMs for reggae, acid jazz, hip hop, and you can even use it for metal and classic rock. It might be a bit too bassy and lack enough crispness and natural tonality to work for classical music or instrumental, but hey, maybe folks want safe treble and a bit of bass warmth in their classical tracks? All I know is that for my bass heavy library, this is one of my very top performers, and has come along and dethroned the Kiwi Ears Quartet as the Reggae music BOSS par excellence. 2DD + 6BA that's not tuned for the mainstream, not tuned for audiophiles, and not tuned for bass heads, but it's tuned for lovers of music, who want to immerse themselves, without needing to be analytical or critical, but delve deep into the beat, the swing, and the musicality. Is the Cepheus worth the asking price? Absolutely it is. It's a warm champion, and it's also got swing and a quick step. It's got warmth and class. So classic rock lover or reggae rude boy? Crack open the wallet, and you won't be disappointed.

RECOMMENDATION LEVEL : REGGAE AND HIP HOP BOSS LEVEL - HIGH 9/10.

Thank you so much for reading and remember to be water with your audio luv! When you do...AUDITORY ZEN UNLOCKED!