Kiwi Ears Orchestra II - Rich and Fun!

 

General/Build/Packaging/Comfort

Kiwi Ears released their flagship IEM a few years ago which is the Orchestra. Today, we have the Orchestra II, which is supposed to be an upgrade for the Orchestra. It sports 10 BAs 

In terms of build quality, the shell is slightly big which is expected because it houses 8 BAs, faceplate is nice, it has a good and solid feel to it. It doesn’t have any vent on the IEM itself, so pressure build up might be an issue for some, I do not have any issues with the pressure build up fortunately. In terms of fitting and comfort, they do fit well and have a very good seal as well. 

The packaging is quite straightforward and eye-catching, definitely way better than how it was, bundled with a modular cable sporting both 3.5 and 4.4mm connectivity, several types of eartips, speaking of eartips, Orchestra II’s sound signature is quite sensitive to eartip change, so take your time and find the fit that works for you

Gears used for this review

• xDuoo XD05T

• Questyle Sigma

• Kiwi Ears Orchestra II Stock Cable and Eartips (Black Wide Bore)

• Cayin RU3

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

Orchestra II sounds very balanced to my ears, well bodied overall and the bass response is nice, not overly emphasised or lacking.  The treble is also very sparkly and airy, but then again, depending on the eartip that you are using. Note weight is also good overall, it will not sound thin nor overly thick. To my surprise, timbre is actually quite natural despite being a full BA set, if you were to nitpick and try hard enough, there are of course very minor BA timbre

Bass

• Orchestra II’s bass response is quite linear, or rather precise and tight

• Sub bass does rumble when the track calls for it, but slightly lacking in terms of extension, it still offers sufficient enjoyment for EDM unless you are looking for basshead kind of bass response, as i have mentioned earlier, Orchestra II is quite sensitive to eartip change and it changes the sound, Bass response is one of the range that will be affected depending on the eartip being used, the one that i am using for this review is the black wide bore which to my ears, gives a bit of boost on the lows

• As is to be expected from a full BA set, the speed is very good and it has no issues handling complex tracks, my favourites go to whenever I want to test the bass’s speed, Metallica’s Lux Aeterna and Slipknot’s People = Shit! All performed very well

• Mid bass has enough punch to it but of course it can be better

Mids

• Mid range is detailed and lush to my ears, sufficient warmth to it with good body

• Instruments which resides in the mid range has good note weight to it and full sounding, never once it sounded thin

• Upper mids are never harsh or shouty and they’re tuned rather safe, but that’s just me

• Vocal presentation is neither too forward or recessed, i would imagine it as several steps in front of me

• Both male and female vocal has good texture, female vocal is a little bit more forward compared to male vocal

Treble

• Treble on the Orchestra II is well done, some might find them too fatiguing but not for me, but certain eartips does boost the treble and make it quite forward sounding and induce fatigue

• What do you get from this sort of tuning is that it is smooth and never offensive, also no where near sibilant yet retaining good resolution

• Detail retrieval is good and the nuances can be picked up easily (in Hans Zimmer’s  Why So Serious, there are something that sounds like a rattle, it can be heard easily), and i would not consider this as analytical sounding

Soundstage/Imaging

• Soundstage is good but not exceptional, slightly out of your head with good depth, a little lacking in terms of height but good overall

• Imaging is the strong point for a full BA set, instruments can be pinpointed easily and it has very good separation and layering capability, on a certain tracks where a lot of instruments are playing, they don’t sound like they are being mushed together

Driveability

• Orchestra II is not hard to drive, but it does scale with power despite being a full BA set

• I am using it with xDuoo XD05T, there’s no hiss nor background noise and it is dead silent, occasionally when i crave more low ends, i turn on the bass boost on XD05T to give it more rumble and punch, and surprisingly, it does take the bass boost quite well and doesn’t mess with other frequency that much

Comparison (Tangzu Nezha)

• Not exactly a full BA set but 6 BAs with 1 EST

• Shell size and ergonomic wise, both are more or less similar

• Nezha’s tuning to my ears is slightly flatter and lacking body on the lows

• Soundstage is also slightly smaller compared to Orchestra II

• Nezha is warmer overall, despite sporting 1 EST, i find the treble performance of Orchestra II is better in terms of resolution, and more sparkles and air, Nezha is slightly more laidback sounding compared to Orchestra II

Final Thoughts

The Orchestra II no doubt is a good product, when I first listened to it, I have to admit that nothing really stands out, but as I listened longer with it, it started to grow on me and I appreciate the way it is. It represents the track the way it is supposed to sound (just my opinion), pure fidelity if i were to put it. Orchestra II is certainly not for bassheads, it is for someone who wants something that works well for most of the genres out there, at the same time it doesn’t add much coloration to the tracks. I have listened to Slipknot, Metallica, Billie Eilish, Faye Wong, Joji, Beatles and a lot more with the Orchestra II and they turned out alright with it. Recommended set!

*Orchestra II is being sent over for the purpose of this review. I thank LINSOUL for the opportunity. I am not influenced in any way to produce this review nor do I receive any monetary compensation.

Head over to the following link if you are interested in getting a pair!

Kiwi Ears Orchestra II - Non Affiliated