Kiwi Ears x Z Reviews Serene - Fantastic Closed Back

 

General/Build/Comfort/Packaging

This year has been a very good year for Kiwi Ears, offering quite a number of IEMs and Headphones that are highly competitive in terms of sonic performance as well as price. I have reviewed quite a number of the brand’s offerings and I have positive experience with most of them with the exception of a few.

Today I have the brand’s latest headphone, Serene, a closed back planar driver headphone tuned in collaboration with Z Reviews. I must say, the outlook, build quality is rather solid. Packaging wise it is rather standard and the accessories are a little let down because it doesn't include a 4.4 balanced cable or at least a storage pouch.

In terms of comfort, the clamping force is just right, not too tight nor loose, the earpads are also very soft and have the properties of memory foam. I have no issue listening to it for several hours.

Gears used for this review

• Nipo A100

• Questyle Sigma

• Kiwi Ears x Z Reviews Serene

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 Impression

The Serene to my ears has a warm and lush sound profile. Can clearly hear that the emphasis is on the mid bass rather than sub bass, mids are quite lush and treble is not dark at the same time. The mid bass does have some resemblance to dynamic driver, in terms of timbre, it does have some planar sheen but not really noticeable to the point where it will cause you some distractions. A very enjoyable and fun sounding headphone that will certainly please everyone

Bass

• Starting with the bass, it’s safe to say the bass has very good speed, linear sub bass extension

• It has a good punch, Slipknot’s People = Shit!, especially during the intense drumming during the opening, Serene has no sweat in keeping up

• The sub bass has very good extension, although it doesn’t extend that deep, but for the asking price it is really good

• The bass response is not basshead kind of presentation, but to my ears, they are sufficient and will present themselves well when the track calls for it

• Bass has good texture overall and doesn’t sound thin

• The bass doesn’t bleed into the mids at all

• As with most collaboration with Z Reviews, the bass is the highlight, Serene is no exception, but the good thing is, they are quality bass instead of boomy or bloated

Mids

• The mids are quite lush to my ears

• Vocal for both male and females has good textures and they don’t sound thin and nasally

• Upper mids are generally safe to my ears and not shouty even on higher volume

• The mid range is good overall and it has quite good resolution in the mid range

• Vocal positioning is neither too forward nor recessed, picture if as 2 to 3 steps away from your face

Treble

• Treble response has plenty of energy yet it is not harsh nor sibilant, but do bear in mind that everyone has got different level of tolerance for treble, to my ears, they are not harsh nor anywhere near sibilant

• Fast and snappy transient response

• Very good resolution

• Good detail retrieval, micro details can be picked up easily

• I noticed that the treble out of the box is a little unrefined, but after the burn in period of about a day or so, i left it there with music playing on loop, the treble is slightly smoothed out and more refined

Soundstage/Imaging

• For a closed back, i am actually very impressed with the soundstage, it sounds spacious and wide, very perceivable as out of your head

• Instruments can be picked up easily where it is coming from

• Good separation and layering

Driveability

• The Serene is not hard to drive, but it scales very well with amplification

• Pairing it with the Aune S9c seems to give more body overall, with mode 2 filter, the vocals and mids are slightly being pushed forward, which personally i kinda like it

• Pairing it with a powerful portable dac/amp such as the Questyle Sigma as well as Nipo A100, both offers a different sound tuning but very capable amplification, the Questyle offering a flatter response while Nipo A100 offers an even bigger sound stage while retaining similar sound profile

Comparison (Fiio FT1)

• First, the build quality, The FT1 definitely runs circle around the Serene in terms of build quality, featuring wooden faceplate, but in terms of weight, Serene is definitely on the lighter side

• Both are using different transducers, FT1 a dynamic driver whereas Serene is planar magnetic. Both are closed back headphones

• in terms of tuning, the FT1 has a somewhat a more v shaped approach to the tuning, focusing more on the sub bass and treble

• Bass is lighter in terms of quantity, sub bass extension is not as good, it does roll off quite early, but mid bass is quite punchy and has good speed and texture

• Perhaps the strong point for the FT1 is the timbre, they’re lush and full bodied, vocals for both male and female has good texture, possibly due to it being a dynamic driver as well as wooden cup

• Soundstage is not as out of head compared to Serene, 2D-ish, just slightly out of your head, but separation and imaging is rather good

• It doesn’t scale that well with amplification, mid range dongle and entry level desktop dac/amp will do the job just fine

Final Thoughts

The Serene is definitely one of my recent favourite closed back planar magnetic driver headphones that I have tested. For an entry level headphone, it is really good and definitely up to the expectation in terms of sonic performance as well as build quality, and I'm really surprised by its capability in terms of the sonic performance as well as its technicalities. Not to mention that the price is highly competitive as well given what it has to offer. It doesn't require a beefy amp to sound good yet it does scale very well with better source and amplification. Priced at 159$, the Serene offers a very good value in terms of price performance ratio, this is a highly recommended headphone from me if you are looking for some fun sounding sound signature without breaking the bank!

*The Serene was sent over by Linsoul for the purpose of this review, I received no monetary compensation nor was I influenced in any way to produce this review.

If you are interested in getting a pair, head over to their official store to grab one now! 

Kiwi Ears Serene Linsoul Store - Non Affiliated