INTRODUCTION
EarAcoustic seems to be a familiar name now, especially since Intium Indonesia became the official distributor of EarAcoustic in Indonesia. But if you didn't know, they were formerly known as TheFragrantZither or abbreviated as TFZ, a name very familiar to audiophiles from around 2020 and earlier.
The Cipher is the result of a collaboration with an artist from China named ZKAAAI. Will it be good for its quite affordable price? Let me listen first...
*This IEM was reviewed using the stock 3.5mm cable, stock eartips size M, with a moderately deep fit.
Sources used:
ACCESSORIES
Accessories are one of the strong points of IEMs from EarAcoustics Audio; everything feels luxurious and special. The Cipher is no exception, featuring an actual picture of the waifu, Ms. ZKAAAI herself.
Here are the contents of the box:
CONFIGURATION & DRIVEABILITY
The Cipher X ZKAAAI is an IEM with a single 10mm dynamic driver featuring a Nano-Crystal Ceramic Dome, with an impedance of 22 ohms and a sensitivity of 110dB/mW. In short, this IEM should be easy to drive, but interestingly, I turned the potentiometer knob on my KAEI TAP2 all the way to 12 o'clock and still found it comfortable due to the IEM's inherent tonality.
Using the Fosi Audio K7 also made this IEM shine more. Because this IEM is (surprisingly) non-detachable, I couldn't try it with my ST2 Pro, but yeah, you'll need a bit of power to make this IEM shine. The cable itself also includes a microphone.
FITTING
The body is made of plastic... I think? And it's very light in the ears. I wore this for hours without any fatigue; it even felt like not wearing an IEM at all. The provided eartips are also quite decent and comfortable to use.
SOUND IMPRESSION
BASS:
Just like a red carpet to highlight the main star
If you're the type of person who would ask, "Where's the bass?" then stay away from this IEM.
The Cipher is not an IEM with impressive bass, it's not big, nor is it bass that amazes me. It's there, only as a thump in some songs like hiphop, for example, the opening of "In da Club" by my buddy 50 Cent, but it feels somewhat muted and lacking a surrounding presence.
Drum hits also feel a bit slow in their transient response.
It seems the bass is tuned specifically not to overwhelm the main star, which is...
MIDRANGE:
The femme fatale has taken the stage!
Yes, the midrange. Specifically, female vocals.
Perhaps because the Cipher is a collaboration with ZKAAAI, it was made to highlight female singers, which I really like. The presentation is firm, aggressive, but never harsh.
Seriously, I was a bit worried listening to this IEM because the Cipher is tuned to let you turn up the volume. I found no harshness in Utada Hikaru's vocals in "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence," which can sometimes be ear-piercing.
Even with energetic yet weighty female vocals like Ado, the energy is still captured clearly, and all the shouts feel clear and safe from any piercing sensation.
On the other hand, vocals like Shawn Mendes still work, although I'm not too fond of the male vocal presentation overall; it's somewhat lacking weight, less "heavy" and "chesty."
TREBLE:
Quite ironic that it is wild yet tamed.
I can enjoy the treble without any piercing sensation or the desire to lower the volume. It's suitable for those with sensitive ears.
Even so, the treble is quite sparkly and has a sense of airiness in every song. The execution of the treble is pretty good, but I'm not too fond of the cymbal sizzle, where the decay sometimes feels unnatural... it's like there's a sense of reverb or echo.
The wail of electric guitars feels fierce and aggressive, even at listening volumes higher than what I normally use.
TECHNICALITIES
SOUNDSTAGE:
Good left-right width with a decent sense of depth, although the layering is just average. It feels open and wide but not like a vast field, more like a band playing in a classroom back in your school days, similar to that.
The sense of reverb/echo creates a perception of width, but it still feels artificial.
IMAGING AND LAYERING:
The imaging is quite okay, but the layering is just average. Although not pinpoint accurate, I can still get a good sense of sound direction with the Cipher.
TIMBRE:
I can't call the timbre 100% natural. There's an artificial sensation that makes you consciously "aware" that you are listening to a recording.
SYNERGY
Plugged directly into a laptop is actually sufficient, but this time I prefer my trustworthy KAEI Design TAP 2. It adds a sense of firmness and slightly reduces the "floaty" sensation that otherwise feels less natural or artificial.
The included eartips are also sufficient, and since the IEM is non-detachable, you don't need to bother buying extra accessories.
COMPARISON
VS. Tangzu Wan'er 2
In terms of tonality, the Wan'er is more balanced, but technically, I still favor the Cipher. I'm not too fond of the Wan'er 2's staging, which feels like there's an "empty space" in the center. Imagine having a PC gaming setup usually with three screens for center-right-left, well, the center screen is missing.
FINAL VERDICT
This is my third review of an EarAcoustic product. They have recently emerged and are "boldly" branding everywhere, which I really admire.
The Cipher could be a top choice if your playlist has lots of female singers, especially J-Pop like Ado.
If you didn't know, I'm currently running a TAI x PAPI giveaway for 3 pieces of the EarAcoustic Cipher x ZKAAAI. You can check my profile by clicking my name in the TAI group.
Again, thanks to Intium Indonesia for giving me the opportunity to review this IEM and for providing samples for the giveaway as well.
SONGS USED:
• Frank Sinatra – Fly me to the moon
• Avril Lavigne – Sk8ter Boi
• Lisa – Money
• Hans Zimmer – Pirates of the carribean
• Blackpink – Typa Girl
• 50 Cent – In da Club
• Nao Touyama – off
• Utada Hikaru – Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence
• Linkin Park – Faint
• Eminem – Till I collapse
• Versailles – Philharmonic Quintet – Silent Knight
You can check my playlist here!
Check EarAcoustic Audio At KEEPHIFI
REFERENCES
Product link (non affiliated) : https://www.earacoustic-audio.com/ProDetail.aspx?ProId=106
Frequency response : https://aftersound.squig.link/?share=IEF_Neutral_2023_Target,EARACOUSTIC_X_ZKAAAI_ANALOG
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