Priced at an MSRP of 54 – 56 USD (with options for 3.5 mm, 4.4 mm, or USB-C cables), the Kefine Klean SV proves that a set designed essentially for musical enjoyment and critical listening doesn’t have to come at a high cost.
You can find it at Linsoul: https://www.linsoul.com/products/kefine-klean, HiFiGO: https://hifigo.com/products/kefine-klean-sv, Angelears: https://aehifi.com/products/kefine-klean-sv. Also, available in the official Linsoul, HiFiGO, Angelears and Kefine stores at AliExpress, Shopee, and other retailers online.
The Kefine Klean SV is a more than interesting IEM, it’s cleaner and brighter, with plenty of quality bass to balance the sound, with a neutral and warm tonality yet technically remarkable, bring by Kefine to offer a fun and appealing sound to experienced audiophiles and newcomers to the hobby for an affordable price.
- Driver Type: 10 mm DLC Diaphragm Dynamic Driver.
- Frequency Response: 20 Hz - 20 kHz.
- Sensitivity: 107 ± 3 dB.
- Process Materials: CNC-machined metallic alloy.
- Impedance: 32 Ω ± 15 %.
- Jack connector: SE 3.5 mm, 4.4 balanced, USB-C.
- Connection Type: 2 Pin 0.78 mm.
- Cable materials: 2 cores, silver-plated copper wire.
- Cable length: 1.2m ± 0.2 m.
- Weight: 10 g per side.
What comes in its package?
- Earphone x 2
- 0.78mm 2 pin 6N Cable
- 2 pairs of Interchangeable tuning nozzles (black and gold, the silver ones are installed on the earphones)
- 6 pairs of Silicone balanced bore eartips (Black/White and Gray in LMS sizes)
- 1 x User Manual
- 1 x Quality certificate
- 1 x Storage Box
Its cable looks very nice and well-built, is tight and sturdy, but I personally think it is kind of thin. It tangles easily but not produces translated vibrations. It matches nicely with the shells and has 2 pin connectors, so, if you got the opportunity to change the cable, you can do it.
The shells are made of CNC-machined metallic alloy with a simple yet beautiful faceplate with the Kefine logo in black letters. It’s well-constructed, the housing doesn’t seem prompt to micro scratches and fingerprints, so, for 54 USD you are expecting a quality product to last. It is comfortable to wear for long periods of time, with a silver nozzle installed and two other options more that fits well in my ears (6 mm diameter), but check if it fits you.
How the Kefine Klean SV sounds:
The Kefine Klean SV with its 10 mm DLC diaphragm dynamic driver configuration offers a very transparent, with enough bass, and neutral yet bright sound, with a good mild V-shaped tuning.
A nice subbass boost and midbass presence with a nice extension into the lower and high frequencies; and a technical capacity who competes hand-to-hand with sets in the same segment of price and sometimes punches above its weight, offering a neutral, bright but not so spicy and full of macro and microdetails IEM who offers an immersive, musical and analytical presentation of sound.
For this review, I used the white/black eartips included in its M size, finding the best synergy in comfort, fit and seal. The stock cable is fine as it is, I’m using the 4.4 mm cable they gave me, I don’t see the need to change it for this review. About the tuning nozzles I’m using, according to my tuning tastes the silver nozzles already installed on the set, I tried the black ones not liking its lack of detailing, and the gold ones, I find too bright and fatiguing for me.
Kefine gave me their new KA1 dongle to test the set, you can buy it at AliExpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005010361531415.html. It has a CX31993 chip and a warm/neutral firm. The graph is taken from Ducbloke who graphed the 3 tuning nozzles.
BASS:
The Kefine Klean SV offers a very decent bass shelf, with a good amount and high quality of subbass thump and midbass bump. It is transparent, very fast, correctly resolving, well extended into the lower frequencies, with outstanding impact and a natural decay. This time the midbass bleeds so slightly into the lower mids without mudding the male vocals.
In songs like “N2 Gether Now (feat. Method Man)” by Limp Bizkit, with the Klean SV you can feel the weight of the bass drops, the bass guitar and drum kicks in a good quantity and impact. In “Purity” by Slipknot, the Klean SV shows how those bass kicks and the excellent drumming by Joey Jordison is so well delivered, giving weight and presence to this classic nu-metal hit.
MIDS:
As I mentioned before, in the Klean SV the midbass bleeds a bit into the lower mids but male vocals and bass kick are not muddy, neither veiled. It is presented with enough note weight.
The mids have a dip going until 800 Hz then it is forwarded and enters a warm and smooth pinna gain with a remarkable transparency and resolution, with a 3 kHz and 5 kHz peaks to add to the feel of those drums, guitars and keyboards, female vocals are forwarded as well, not so shouty.
In songs like “Over the Middle” by Forbidden you can see how the Klean SV delivers an impressive display of clarity and details to the mix; the thrash metal legends shines with it. In “These Nights” by Cannons, the female fronted dream pop band transports you in a journey of emotions, the Klean SV delivers the music with excellence, nice song btw.
TREBLE:
In this segment of frequencies, the Klean SV is very clean, crisp and sharp without too much harshness, handling the sibilance nicely, complemented with a nice 10 kHz dip to use the IEM at mid to high volumes, but this is not a high-volume set, it tends to be spicy and fatiguing.
In songs like “Falling Down” by Atreyu, is shown all the drums and guitars details and colorations in the production of the track, no frequency overcomes another one. In “Holy, Holy” by Geordie Greep you can just put the Klean SV in your ears, the full of nuances and so catchy song is delivered almost perfectly.
TECHNICAL CAPACITY:
The upper treble in the Kefine Klean SV extends nicely, presenting an airy but not so expansive sound, the soundstage is expansive, and it gives you a nice sensation of space and depth. The imaging is average for its price; good layering of instruments and resolution tends to be at pair with its peers.
In songs like “Hotel California (Live on MTV, 1994)” live version of the song found on the Hell Freezes Over album by The Eagles, you can feel inside the scenario in which they recorded the music, jamming the busy and groovy classic in all its greatness.
With complex and busy tracks like “Long Live the Misanthrope” by Soilwork in their Live in the Heart of Helsinki album, you can be sure to hear all its microdetails and instruments in the song just to headbang to the music and feel the live gig.
Comparisons:
Kefine Klean SV vs. Kefine Klean og:
In this case, the Klean og has a more bassy and warmer sound, so, less dry and brighter than the Klean SV. Another thing with the Klean og it’s than it’s more an all-rounder and so less fatiguing in long sessions than its twin brother, so in this case I prefer the Klean og, it definitely conserves its legendary character as my favorite IEM under 50 USD.
Kefine Klean SV vs. Inawaken Dawn ms:
The Inawaken Dawn ms is the direct competitor to the Klean og: it got more bass, and it is even warmer than the last. In comparison, the Klean SV you got a more analytical/technical than musical approach, it is more technically proficient (better soundstage, imaging and layering of instruments). It’s a thing of preference and in this case, I’m preferring the Inawaken Dawn ms more organic and musical tuning over the Klean SV.
Kefine Klean SV vs. TINHiFi C3 MKII:
The TINHiFi C3 MKII is a similarly priced IEM and another direct competitor to the Klean SV, with a more balanced approach and perhaps less subbass extension than the Klean SV, but has more midbass to compensate that brighter and spicier tuning that the Klean SV has, so, I like the Klean SV a lot, but in this case, the tuning of the C3 MKII is more enjoyable for me, no matter its less analytical character.
Closing thoughts and conclusions:
The Kefine Klean SV stands out as an interesting offering and one of the best options to buy in the under 60 USD segment, its quality bass delivery balancing that naturalness and brightness, and its added technical capacities put it as a complement rather than a upgrade to the Klean og, making it ideal for seasoned audiophiles and trebleheads who want a very high-quality audio experience at an affordable cost.
The Klean SV with its 107 dB sensitivity and 32 ohms of impedance is easy to drive, even with a low powered source, but my advice goes to try with source interchanging to it to scale. With a warm/neutral source like the Kefine KA1 it is added that very desirable warmth to use it for longer sessions, and with a neutral source it doesn’t lack bass, but it is more analytical than musical (sources with CX43131 chips for example).
Can I recommend it? It depends if you like riding close to the sun with that neutral bright tuning! The Kefine Klean SV is more a sidegrade than an upgrade to the Klean og, yet it is one good option for its price segment and offers a mesmerizing sound, with the Kefine seal of quality, it is now in my collection, and I’m not giving it away soon.
Again, thanks to Collin Yang and Lina Pan from Kefine for giving me this IEM, to testing it, enjoying it and giving me the reasons I needed to recommend it. Thank you, the reader, for visiting my review, and happy listening!
