Kinera Tyr

Summary: Unfortunately I am way too late for this review, but thought to do it anyway as it seems to go on sale on a lot of local places. In the current market situation the only reason to purchase this set instead of other is because of its Final tips set. Otherwise this is just not worth the money anymore in my opinion.

Sound signature: Bass forward

Overview:
This is a single dynamic driver iem with a 6mm micro dynamic driver with an impedance of 16ohms and sensitivity of 105db.

Box and accessories
In the box it comes with:
Earphone itself
2 sets of of tips, a basic set and a full set of Final audio tips (which are almost 15$)
Case



Build and Fit:
Build in general is ok price considered. The bullet style shells are made of aluminum, feels sturdy in the hands. Shells are fairlh small size. They are pretty light weight. Although the attached cable is average to kinda cheap feeling. Cable is a bit microphonic and is memory prone. The in line microphone is ok. Fit of the tyr is quite comfortable, even for long listening sessions. Score 4/5

Tested with
Source: cayin ru7, apple type c dongle
Eartips: stock, final
Tested with versatile genre of music

Sound
Bass
Although bass performance is its strongest suit, its very unsatisfactory in present circumstance. Tyr’s bass is handled by its single full range dynamic driver, thus it has the classic dynamic punch. Over all bass is quite extended from neutral giving more liveliness to the music. Sub bass and mid bass is linear with decent rumble and attack. This has a sense of physicality factor. Overall bass is quite prominent in the tracks. Bass notes are not as well separated and bass texture is missing. Speed is slow and boomy. Compared to its present competition bass quality is very poor. Score: 2/5

Midrange
As a whole midrange performance is hardly ok. Transition from mid bass to lower mids is poor. Vocals are warm and compressed. It lacks detail. Instruments lack the energy. Overall mids quality is lacking from its competitors. Score: 2/5

Treble
Treble is tuned smooth. There is ok energy and detail without it sounding harsh or sharp. It has ok resolving capabilities.Tyr sounds fairly spacious with ok sense of air. As mentioned already, sibilance is not an issue, at least to my ears. Score5/5



Technical performance (score: 3/5)
Soundstage: good
Imaging: good
Sound separation: meh
Dynamics: meh
Resolution: poor



Conclusion
As an earphone this does not justify buying it for 20$ anymore. The only logical reason may be to buy for the final tips which is 15$ and keep the tyr as a 5$ set , in which case its solid .
I know I am quite late for this review, but still decided to do so as it seems to go on sale pretty often.

Performance over size - Kinera Tyr Review

DISCLAIMER: While I am very into earphones and other audiophile stuff, I am not a expert in any way. I am a beginner so take this review with a grain of salt. Nevertheless I am confident with my ears so let's get started.
Following up their entry level IEM Kinera SEED, comes Kinera Tyr. Kinera's most affordable in-ear today, priced at ₱799. Tyr comes from a Norse god with the same name, in Norse mythology "Tyr" is the ancient god of war and the lawgiver of the gods. The bravest god of all. Let's see if it lives up to it's name.

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Specifications
Sensitivity: 105db ± 1db.
Impedance: 16 ohm.
Driver: 6mm Dynamic Driver.
Frequency Range: 20Hz-20kHz.
Plug Type: 3.5mm.
Cable Length: 1.2m.

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OOTB impressions:
The Kinera Tyr comes with Kinera's iconic hexagonal box, written in it is "All you need is Tyr". Inside the box are; user guide, small circle leather pouch, Kinera widebore stock ear tips, Final Type E ear tips, and Kinera Tyr. Looking at the build, it's quite basic. Earphone plug is small and compact, Y-split is basic looking, strain reliefs are basic. The shell of the Tyr is a bullet type shell, due to the driver it sports (6mm Micro DD). The build of the shell is very small and compact. The Tyr is easy to wear due to its size and form so there's no fitting issues.


Sound Impressions:

Source/s - Sony NW-A55, Pocophone F1

Tracks played - JPOP, EDM, Aviencloud's YT channel.

For me, the Kinera Tyr is a mature tuned V-shaped warm sound signature. Commonly when we say that a IEM is V-shaped, it is lively and energetic sounding but that's not the case with Kinera Tyr.

Bass - The Kinera Tyr packs a well controlled and punchy bass, with a quite fast decay. Due to it's V-shaped tuning, the bass presence really shows up. The texture of the bass is on the warm side. So while it is a strong bass, it's not overbearing or muddy whatsoever. Also the bass is so well controlled that there is almost no mid bass bleed, making the other details not overshadowed by the bass. Though in some busy bass tracks you'll notice some mid bass bleed, the the majority is that you'll not notice it at all.

Vocals - While I said that the mids are extremely recessed doesn't mean that the vocals are way down below. In fact in some tracks with not a lot going on, it gives off a U-shaped sound presentation. The male and female vocals are well presented. The vocals are warm and smooth sounding and adapts to other genres of music. Highs are a bit rolled off. While the vocals are recessed, it is not overshadowed by the bass or treble at all. Thanks to the well controlled bass and it's treble presentation, the vocals were still able to shine.

Treble - The treble in Kinera Tyr are warm and realistic sounding, however the treble is rolled off. Meaning it doesn't goes high compared to the likes of Moondrop Spaceship. This might seem of a downside for those who like some sparkle in the treble. However, due to its rolled off treble. There is no hot treble peaks whatsoever. Meaning there's no ear piercing treble that you can hear in Kinera Tyr. May it be rolled off, but the treble in Kinera Tyr is still enjoyable nonetheless.

Soundstage and imaging are average, there's nothing much to comment here.


Overall, the Kinera Tyr is a V-shaped warm sounding IEM that has a mature tuning. This is very good for long listening sessions, as you can avoid treble fatigue. The bullet type shell is also very comfortable to the ears. This is definitely a thumbs up for me. I definitely recommend it. It also has a mic which is a plus.

I was offered a pair of Tyr for a review. They didn’t look like much at first glance, but the first impression can be deceiving so I accepted the offer. Few long weeks later, thanks to COVID-19, when I already forgot about them, they arrived at my doorstep. I put them through their paces to see what are they made of.

PACKAGE, BUILD, FIT
In the small hexagonal box you’ll find just bare essentials. There’s a flat leather-like carrying case that looks stylish, ear tips and earbuds themselves. For the low price of $29 I couldn’t ask for more. The cable is not detachable, it looks thin and doesn’t tangle at all. On the bad side, it is very microphonic and you can hear every rub against your clothes. Earphones themselves look to be made of aluminum. They’re very small and light. Once fitted properly into the ear they stayed there securely.

Both tangle-free but microphonic cable, as well as small and lightweight earbuds remind me of Sennheiser Momentum In-ear I reviewed recently.



SOUND QUALITY
I hooked them to several of my DACs including Dragonfly Black. They proved quite easily driven and not picky about the source so I settled with Hidizs Sonata HD attached to my phone.

The sound signature is V-shaped with prominent bass notes, recessed lower mids, and some prominent upper midrange and higher frequencies. What this means is that bass is pleasantly punchy and weighty. It’s not that fast and well-controlled but it is also never that bloomy and blurry to become overbearing. At this price point that is always a plus. The midrange, on the other hand, is not the kind I’m really fond of. There’s a peak around 3-4 kHz giving that hard and thin feeling to vocals. Than there’s another peak around 6-7 kHz to add some sibilance to those vocals too. Both of these are elevating that upper part of voice registers, sharpening them artificially, and leaving me wanting for more body and fullness.

EQ-ing them a bit proved really helpful in my experience. I did this inside of my Hibby player:

250 Hz + 1 dB
500 Hz + 2 dB
1 kHz + 1 dB
7 kHz – 2 dB

And the sound became much juicier and more pleasurable to my ears.

Outside of the frequency response, things are working nicely. We have decent drive and energy that are making these a fun listen. Dynamics are fine too, as good as any in-ear I heard at this price range.



COMPARISON
I’ll just quickly compare them to two models.

**** **** – are bigger and heavier IEMs with a detachable braided cable that is quite prone to microphonics. **** sound juicer and fuller with vocals, more smooth and much less sibilant. I can imagine some would choose Tyr for more bass and treble boost that brings excitement. Not me, between the two, I’d choose **** every time.

Sennheiser Momentum In-ear – made by Sennheiser but caries some striking similarities. Tangle prone but microphonic cable, lightweight approach, and good fit are all the same. Hefty bass, recessed mids, lean and sibilant vocals… again the same. Any difference? Well yes, in styling, brand, and pricing.

CONCLUSION
Kinera Tyr will not change the landscape of the affordable IEMs market. Their sound signature has its quirks and it’s not really my cup of tea, but they do have their qualities. For anyone liking a V-shaped approach and sharpened upper midrange, these can offer decent fun. They’re small, light, and carry a reasonable price tag.

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