Kiwi Ears Punch Review - Punchy and Clean Bass
General/Packaging/Build/Comfort
Kiwi Ears is no stranger to the community, i have the Punch today that is a collaboration between Kiwi Ears and HBB. It sports 1DD+2BA+2EST config, pricing is shifting towards the mid range market.
The packaging I would say is normal, similar to most of the Kiwi Ears stuff, i think it can be improved, the bundled accessories are fairly normal I would say, quite similar to those budget range from Kiwi Ears. Given the asking price, I actually expected more.
In terms of comfort, as you can see from the picture below, there aren't any sharp edges nor protruding edges, it fits very well and i don’t feel any discomfort even after prolonged listening sessions.
Gears used for this review
ddHifi Eye 3
ddHifi Grip
Aune S9c Pro -> Aune N7 Amp
Kiwi Ears Punch Stock cable and Eartips
Foreword
My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far
Sound
The Punch has a tonality of neutral and slight warmish sounding to my ears, i would say it’s meta tuning to me? With slight emphasis on the bass and smooth treble that is not overly energetic and offensive. Timbre wise, they are quite natural to my ears and very minor hint of BA timbre if I were to nitpick. Given this is a HBB collab, Bass is a must i guess, and it is done right in my opinion and i actually enjoyed it a lot!
Bass
The sub bass is rumbly and has good extension, i wouldn’t say it is bass head territory, but it is really rumbly and fun, especially when you are watching movie or even gaming with it
Mid bass has good body and it doesn’t sound thin, double bass pedal doesn’t sound bloated or lacking in terms of texture, Slipknot’s People = Shit, during the fast drumming, every hit can be heard clearly
Bass from the Punch is tight and clean, it exhibits no muddiness nor bloat
Transition between the sub and mid bass is quite balanced without sounding incoherent
I personally find the tuning of bass is done right to my preference,somewhere between fun and audiophile but not venturing into the basshead category
Mids
The mid range is slightly recessed but not to the point where it is veiled sounding
Vocal doesn’t sound recessed nor too forward, just right to my ears
Male vocal sounds full and with good body
Female vocal on the other hand is not as rich sounding, it is due to the upper mids being tuned to the safer side of things
The upper mids are generally quite safe sounding as mentioned, but again, it depends on your tolerance and sensitivity, and most importantly, the fit
Treble
Now, the treble, it is actually quite airy considering the Punch is quite a bassy set
Detail retrieval is good but it can be better
Extension is good
Soundstage/Imaging
The Punch’s soundstage is not that “big” sounding, a good width and height perception, separation is also top class
Imaging is very good,the instruments can be pinpointed easily in busy track like Slipknot’s Duality
The technicalities of Punch is average, but for a bassy set, it is actually good if you are comparing against other bassy set
Driveability
The Punch is not hard to drive, the ddHifi Grip and Eye 3 dongle that i have tested, both are able to push the Punch to its best
When switching over to desktop setup with my Aune S9c and the Aune N7, i did not notice a lot of changes, hence its safe to say that mid range dongles are good enough for Punch if you prefer dac
Comparison (Letshuoer’s EJ07M)
Switching over to the EJ07M for the purpose of comparison,i would say the tonality between the EJ07M and Punch is quite different
Priced at 899$ for the EJ07M vs Punch at 449$, in terms of value, the Punch definitely has a high price performance ratio compared to EJ07M
The tonality of the EJ07M is leaning towards neutral with a sub bass boost, not everyone is into this kind of sound signature, Punch on the other hand sounds a bit more fun with a little bit on zing on the treble
In terms of bass, the sub bass does have a bit more quantity compared to Punch, but the mid bass is slightly thinner than Punch
The mids does carry good body and it doesn’t sound as recessed as Punch, hence the vocal doesn’t sound as recessed and slightly more forward compared to Punch
Despite sporting ESTs, the treble is quite tame on the EJ07M, not as energetic compared to Punch, it can be a little too smooth at times, but extension is good and quite airy at the same time
Technicalities is slightly ahead of Punch but not by much
Shell size, EJ07M is slightly smaller with metal build, but it does exhibits driver flex most of the time and Punch does not do that
Final Thoughts
Having tested the Punch for almost a month, it is safe to say that it offers a very good and high price performance ratio. For a HBB collab model, it offers a fun bass tuning that is clean and not bloated, with treble that is done just right to complement this tuning,it does almost everything right for me, of course there are some cons if I were to nitpick, resolution and detail retrieval, but, given the nature of this tuning direction, i believe the Punch is supposed to be fun rather than analytical, i can live without the resolution as well as better detail retrieval. The Punch has been my daily driver since I received them, I have even put it up for comparison with the TOTL model from Letshuoer back then, and Punch definitely isn’t too far off and costs way less than the EJ07M. This is definitely an outstanding release from Kiwi Ears and I am definitely looking forward to their future collab if there will be any.. It deserves a 5 out of 5 stars. Highly recommended!
*The Punch is sent over by Linsoul for the purpose of this review. I thank them for the support and opportunity as always
Head over to the official store if you are interested in getting one, it is currently being priced at 449$
Kiwi Ears Punch - Non Affiliated
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