WayneAnderson
New Head-Fier
Kinera has been teasing an in-development product as a successor to the H3 IEMs whose ergonomics vs price point gained traction at release, despite an overly bright sound and disappointing sibilance which led to some sound distortion. Still, the H3 offering at only $75 to $99 USD through various distribution channels offered a 2 Balanced Armature plus Dynamic Driver combination with excellent ergonomics at a reasonable price point. With standard production availability date on the IDUN still to be announced, I have in my hands one of the handful of limited edition sets that went out the door!
A couple weeks back, I happened to be up at 4 in the morning on a Sunday to start a trip to Spain for work. Fortunately, the early hour did not go to waste as Kinera happened to open the special edition ordering on Ali Express around the same time and before leaving for the airport, I was able to place order number 2 of the 20 pieces made available!
The IDUN Limited Edition arrived this weekend from China, and this post will share some product features and first impressions from the first day and a half of listening. (It's early yet, full sound signature required a "burn in" period in the H3s of around 50 hours or so for the sound signature to settle, so I may not have reached that point yet if there is one with these IDUNs). One feature discussed on the company Facebook page and teased over a few months - a premium Kinera-branded headphone plug barrel and splitter bead - is not present in this model. (It's not clear if the silver aluminum beads are for the production Idun or a future product.) Fit and finish of the final production Idun set may be slightly different as well. The faceplate on the limited edition model is a burgundy stabilized wood over gray color combination, rather than the announced "standard version" clear and blue color combinations.
First, the name. As the Kinera team has released iterative products, they seem to also be becoming more savvy as well on marketing the brand. As first the "Kinera" brand has provided a branding presence for Dongguan Yutai Electronics Co, Ltd (aren't you glad we don't have to keep typing that?), so also we have seen the company progress in naming released products. From the good ole' "BAM03" and "BD005", Kinera realized that for one of the first major entries into the international market, they would need a more straightforward model designation and Kinera branded the prior year's set the "H3".
Earlier this year, Kinera released the "Seed", focused on the next iteration in their line of smaller IEMs, and the first time using a more recognizable english identifier. Finally, with this new set of earphones to market, on April 29 the company announced (after a series of "hint" images over a few weeks) they would be called the "Idun". While perhaps a bit of an obscure reference, Idun is a viking goddess which imparts immortality, and a key protector and provider of spring and growth, and a representation of beauty in that mythology. Those more familiar with Greco-Roman mythology might compare her to Persephone, with the addition of life-giving apples needed by other norse gods. The ideas to bring forward from a marketing standpoint are those of renewal, spring, youth, and beauty.
I don't mind admitting that the name is a bit pretentious after "Seed", to jump from suggestions of small growth straight to a deity reference, so the real question I have had for the last couple months - can the company deliver and continue the leaps and bounds in product quality that successive generations of IEM product have demonstrated?
With this limited edition run of the Idun, one of the immediate things that I noticed was that the cable in this generation is far more substantial than the H3 and even the prior Seed model from earlier this year. Only two days after the naming of the new headphones, Kinera released that the Idun would be paired with an 8-core copper silver cable. The quality is obvious from the first seconds of opening the package, and in the hand. Signal driven off of even a basic Samsung S8 is clear and strong, with minimal cross talk/static from being carried. Compared to the H3, the difference is clear, with no need to assert which pair is which, the cable alone can tell the tale, the difference between the two is that strong.
The 0.78 dual-connector interface returns, although this is another area where the pre-production "limited edition" disclaimer applies. While the standard version options have been confirmed to also use the same interface, the connector from cable to IEM body may be a pre-production part. The included connector is firm and reassuring however feels cheap in the hand. I believe this is the same part from the Seed. In any case, it is still an upgrade from the prior H3 model, offering greater protection to the connection itself, a tighter fit to the IEM body, and also adding small visual rings for immediate identification of the left/right headphone.
This limited edition uses the splitter and plug barrel hardware from the Seed, which I still find an "upgrade" verses the prior model of the H3. The H3 used aluminum hardware that was nonetheless bulky, and ultimately resulted in a slightly bent pin on my older IEM set. The new pin configuration is smaller in both diameter and length, and better proportioned to the new thicker cable. In Kinera's user community, the company has also teased aluminum hardware, although it is unclear whether that hardware relates to the Idun or some future product.
In the production version, they may want to consider some basic strain relief above the headphone jack's barrel. The lack of protection in the cable was a point of contention in the prior "Seed" product, and resulted in cable replacements by the company and a public announcement on the quality issue. In this limited edition, the substantial cable offers a fair degree of protection against the same problem, but for production, a basic sleeve for a half inch or inch above the barrel could go a long way to offer just a little more wear resistance for the cable insulation.
Compared to the H3, the ergonomics which were almost universally liked, have been mostly preserved. There seems a slight increase in the size of the IEM body - again an acrylic mold, although the faceplate surface appears to be slightly reduced. While the weight of the cable adds slightly to the felt weight on each ear, wearing these IEMs for several hours is a comfortable experience with no surface protrusions to cause significant fatigue. The pair I recieved did have a slight "lip" in the acrylic mold around the sides of the faceplace, however the depth of the body is enough that this portion of the surface was away from my skin and did not affect the functional ergonomics.
Fit in my ear for both IEMs was solid, staying in place in casual wear. These IEMs are not constructed for sport or active wear, lacking reinforced ear hooks and other considerations, however the limited edition model was fine for walking around a little bit and stayed securely in-ear without causing irritation. Kinera has also resolved one of the challenges of the early H3 releases by adding a lip on the headphone tip barrel, to assist tips with staying in place.
The limited edition came with almost no accessories, and as a "pre production" offering, does not represent a fair basis on which to judge expected retail offerings in this space. I will say, that if someone from Kinera reads this, they need to step up the earphone tips provided with the Idun at release, the LE-included tips really let the side down, so thin and inexpensive a rubber mold that the lip made only a minor difference. The tip has released in my ear a couple times already. Again, they have a chance to solve this for retail so don't judge the forthcoming standard version yet, however this would also be something to pay attention to in future retail reviews.
Kinera has asserted in the user community that the new Idun has an entirely new sound profile from the prior year's H3 design. In the H3, reviews were critical of an imbalanced sound signature which emphasized treble to a significant degree, and the H3 also suffered from a dynamic driver which did not handle certain frequencies well, introducing some sibilance. Unfortunately, certain forms of audio - like voice audio books, or tracks which already feature some plosives from the studio recording - could become difficult to listen to in the H3 over time. The fairly sensitive signal, reasonable bass performance, and overall sound quality in other aspects of the frequency range, and outstanding ergonomics, however, has kept the H3 "down the order" in my IEM rotation for use as a long-distance airplane set.
With the Idun, initial sound impressions are of excellent detail across many audio types. The sound signature still appears a little bit "bright" to my ears, without necessarily a bass enhancement to call it "v-shaped". Thankfully the sibilance of the past H3s appears to have been resolved to a significant degree, although I have noticed vocal character quite a bit. The difficulty at this early step is judging whether I am "searching" for them given the prior H3's weakness in this area, or whether they are truly more pronounced. I've done same-track switches between the Idun and the Primo 8s from Optoma as well as the classic Turbine Copper Pro from the shop formerly known as Monster Audio. All in all, definitely a bit more treble, bass is slightly to the light side for my taste, and the plosives/minor sibilance are within a tolerable range, if a bit more noticeable either objectively or subjectively.
Volume and clarity are good overall, with a greater degree of sensitivity off of low quality drivers - like my smartphone - versus the company's prior H3 product.
Listening with higher quality sources, including Creative Audio's Sound Blaster ZxR and the PreSonus Studio 2|6 demonstrated the same tonal characteristics, if perhaps a slightly more balanced audio signature, and enhanced volume and clarity, as expected.
Not having equipment of my own to measure frequency spectrum performance, the manufacturer asserted sound curve hints at a mellower sound profile than the H3, but may suggest emphasis of certain frequencies when they released it earlier this month. (This curve graphic shamelessly borrowed from Kinera's own Facebook community post.)
As a headphone community, we live in a fortunate time, when China based audio manufacturers are releasing new products, driving spectacular competition on quality and capability in headphones at price ranges that casual users can afford. With the Idun, I think it can be fairly stated that a great value is had here, even if the sound signature hints slightly to the modern sound ascetic versus a fully neutral "reference" profile. The clarity of the new headphones and performance at volume are well-received here, which together with outstanding ergonomics will see this new Idun IEM in my regular use.
At the expected price of around $130 US at release, the Idun represents a compelling value for a very comfortable hybrid driver IEM. I would happily pay that again in the retail market, after my first day and a half with this pair. Compared to the company's prior H3 entry, the Idun offers a mellower sound profile which is closer to neutral, although bright, with reasonable clarity even from a low quality smartphone source. I'd still like to see the treble from vocals a bit over time. Buyers who use an amp or better audio equipment will have a better experience, getting the most out of the hardware in each ear. As the company moves to retail, buyers will appreciate the cable construction, but those sensitive to the barrel or connector hardware (e.g. would return these if they didn't like the connector) may want to wait for a retail review before jumping in.
A couple weeks back, I happened to be up at 4 in the morning on a Sunday to start a trip to Spain for work. Fortunately, the early hour did not go to waste as Kinera happened to open the special edition ordering on Ali Express around the same time and before leaving for the airport, I was able to place order number 2 of the 20 pieces made available!
The IDUN Limited Edition arrived this weekend from China, and this post will share some product features and first impressions from the first day and a half of listening. (It's early yet, full sound signature required a "burn in" period in the H3s of around 50 hours or so for the sound signature to settle, so I may not have reached that point yet if there is one with these IDUNs). One feature discussed on the company Facebook page and teased over a few months - a premium Kinera-branded headphone plug barrel and splitter bead - is not present in this model. (It's not clear if the silver aluminum beads are for the production Idun or a future product.) Fit and finish of the final production Idun set may be slightly different as well. The faceplate on the limited edition model is a burgundy stabilized wood over gray color combination, rather than the announced "standard version" clear and blue color combinations.
First, the name. As the Kinera team has released iterative products, they seem to also be becoming more savvy as well on marketing the brand. As first the "Kinera" brand has provided a branding presence for Dongguan Yutai Electronics Co, Ltd (aren't you glad we don't have to keep typing that?), so also we have seen the company progress in naming released products. From the good ole' "BAM03" and "BD005", Kinera realized that for one of the first major entries into the international market, they would need a more straightforward model designation and Kinera branded the prior year's set the "H3".
Earlier this year, Kinera released the "Seed", focused on the next iteration in their line of smaller IEMs, and the first time using a more recognizable english identifier. Finally, with this new set of earphones to market, on April 29 the company announced (after a series of "hint" images over a few weeks) they would be called the "Idun". While perhaps a bit of an obscure reference, Idun is a viking goddess which imparts immortality, and a key protector and provider of spring and growth, and a representation of beauty in that mythology. Those more familiar with Greco-Roman mythology might compare her to Persephone, with the addition of life-giving apples needed by other norse gods. The ideas to bring forward from a marketing standpoint are those of renewal, spring, youth, and beauty.
I don't mind admitting that the name is a bit pretentious after "Seed", to jump from suggestions of small growth straight to a deity reference, so the real question I have had for the last couple months - can the company deliver and continue the leaps and bounds in product quality that successive generations of IEM product have demonstrated?
With this limited edition run of the Idun, one of the immediate things that I noticed was that the cable in this generation is far more substantial than the H3 and even the prior Seed model from earlier this year. Only two days after the naming of the new headphones, Kinera released that the Idun would be paired with an 8-core copper silver cable. The quality is obvious from the first seconds of opening the package, and in the hand. Signal driven off of even a basic Samsung S8 is clear and strong, with minimal cross talk/static from being carried. Compared to the H3, the difference is clear, with no need to assert which pair is which, the cable alone can tell the tale, the difference between the two is that strong.
The 0.78 dual-connector interface returns, although this is another area where the pre-production "limited edition" disclaimer applies. While the standard version options have been confirmed to also use the same interface, the connector from cable to IEM body may be a pre-production part. The included connector is firm and reassuring however feels cheap in the hand. I believe this is the same part from the Seed. In any case, it is still an upgrade from the prior H3 model, offering greater protection to the connection itself, a tighter fit to the IEM body, and also adding small visual rings for immediate identification of the left/right headphone.
This limited edition uses the splitter and plug barrel hardware from the Seed, which I still find an "upgrade" verses the prior model of the H3. The H3 used aluminum hardware that was nonetheless bulky, and ultimately resulted in a slightly bent pin on my older IEM set. The new pin configuration is smaller in both diameter and length, and better proportioned to the new thicker cable. In Kinera's user community, the company has also teased aluminum hardware, although it is unclear whether that hardware relates to the Idun or some future product.
In the production version, they may want to consider some basic strain relief above the headphone jack's barrel. The lack of protection in the cable was a point of contention in the prior "Seed" product, and resulted in cable replacements by the company and a public announcement on the quality issue. In this limited edition, the substantial cable offers a fair degree of protection against the same problem, but for production, a basic sleeve for a half inch or inch above the barrel could go a long way to offer just a little more wear resistance for the cable insulation.
Compared to the H3, the ergonomics which were almost universally liked, have been mostly preserved. There seems a slight increase in the size of the IEM body - again an acrylic mold, although the faceplate surface appears to be slightly reduced. While the weight of the cable adds slightly to the felt weight on each ear, wearing these IEMs for several hours is a comfortable experience with no surface protrusions to cause significant fatigue. The pair I recieved did have a slight "lip" in the acrylic mold around the sides of the faceplace, however the depth of the body is enough that this portion of the surface was away from my skin and did not affect the functional ergonomics.
Fit in my ear for both IEMs was solid, staying in place in casual wear. These IEMs are not constructed for sport or active wear, lacking reinforced ear hooks and other considerations, however the limited edition model was fine for walking around a little bit and stayed securely in-ear without causing irritation. Kinera has also resolved one of the challenges of the early H3 releases by adding a lip on the headphone tip barrel, to assist tips with staying in place.
The limited edition came with almost no accessories, and as a "pre production" offering, does not represent a fair basis on which to judge expected retail offerings in this space. I will say, that if someone from Kinera reads this, they need to step up the earphone tips provided with the Idun at release, the LE-included tips really let the side down, so thin and inexpensive a rubber mold that the lip made only a minor difference. The tip has released in my ear a couple times already. Again, they have a chance to solve this for retail so don't judge the forthcoming standard version yet, however this would also be something to pay attention to in future retail reviews.
Kinera has asserted in the user community that the new Idun has an entirely new sound profile from the prior year's H3 design. In the H3, reviews were critical of an imbalanced sound signature which emphasized treble to a significant degree, and the H3 also suffered from a dynamic driver which did not handle certain frequencies well, introducing some sibilance. Unfortunately, certain forms of audio - like voice audio books, or tracks which already feature some plosives from the studio recording - could become difficult to listen to in the H3 over time. The fairly sensitive signal, reasonable bass performance, and overall sound quality in other aspects of the frequency range, and outstanding ergonomics, however, has kept the H3 "down the order" in my IEM rotation for use as a long-distance airplane set.
With the Idun, initial sound impressions are of excellent detail across many audio types. The sound signature still appears a little bit "bright" to my ears, without necessarily a bass enhancement to call it "v-shaped". Thankfully the sibilance of the past H3s appears to have been resolved to a significant degree, although I have noticed vocal character quite a bit. The difficulty at this early step is judging whether I am "searching" for them given the prior H3's weakness in this area, or whether they are truly more pronounced. I've done same-track switches between the Idun and the Primo 8s from Optoma as well as the classic Turbine Copper Pro from the shop formerly known as Monster Audio. All in all, definitely a bit more treble, bass is slightly to the light side for my taste, and the plosives/minor sibilance are within a tolerable range, if a bit more noticeable either objectively or subjectively.
Volume and clarity are good overall, with a greater degree of sensitivity off of low quality drivers - like my smartphone - versus the company's prior H3 product.
Listening with higher quality sources, including Creative Audio's Sound Blaster ZxR and the PreSonus Studio 2|6 demonstrated the same tonal characteristics, if perhaps a slightly more balanced audio signature, and enhanced volume and clarity, as expected.
Not having equipment of my own to measure frequency spectrum performance, the manufacturer asserted sound curve hints at a mellower sound profile than the H3, but may suggest emphasis of certain frequencies when they released it earlier this month. (This curve graphic shamelessly borrowed from Kinera's own Facebook community post.)
As a headphone community, we live in a fortunate time, when China based audio manufacturers are releasing new products, driving spectacular competition on quality and capability in headphones at price ranges that casual users can afford. With the Idun, I think it can be fairly stated that a great value is had here, even if the sound signature hints slightly to the modern sound ascetic versus a fully neutral "reference" profile. The clarity of the new headphones and performance at volume are well-received here, which together with outstanding ergonomics will see this new Idun IEM in my regular use.
At the expected price of around $130 US at release, the Idun represents a compelling value for a very comfortable hybrid driver IEM. I would happily pay that again in the retail market, after my first day and a half with this pair. Compared to the company's prior H3 entry, the Idun offers a mellower sound profile which is closer to neutral, although bright, with reasonable clarity even from a low quality smartphone source. I'd still like to see the treble from vocals a bit over time. Buyers who use an amp or better audio equipment will have a better experience, getting the most out of the hardware in each ear. As the company moves to retail, buyers will appreciate the cable construction, but those sensitive to the barrel or connector hardware (e.g. would return these if they didn't like the connector) may want to wait for a retail review before jumping in.
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