Kefine Klean SV's Review
General Info/Comfort/Build/Packaging
Kefine is a relatively new brand in the market, but has been churning out impressive gears at different price ranges. Today I have the Klean SV edition, which is an improved version over the original Klean.
Upon unboxing the unit, I was very surprised with the build quality, the unit itself is very solid and it does hold some weight of its own, very solid feel, and it certainly doesn’t look cheap for sure. The packaging is good and up to expectation, it comes with two types of eartips, cable, hard storage case, as well as the IEM itself.
In terms of comfort and fit, it sits very well in my ear and I do not feel any discomfort throughout my listening session, no protruding edges that cause discomfort as well.
Gears used for this review
Nipo A100
xDuoo XD05T
xDuoo Link 3
Foobar2k Offline DSD Files/Flac, Tidal Streaming
Kefine Klean SV Stock Cable and Eartip (also tested with 4.4 and Type C cable)
Sound Impression (Silver Nozzle)
Out of the box, I would say the Klean SV is not as refined in terms of bass, and treble. After putting the unit in my burn in rig, for approximately 50-60 hours, the bass has improved, tight and good control, treble is slightly more refined and doesn’t sound edgy.
Tuning wise, for silver nozzle it is rather balanced as the name suggests. Timbre sounds natural to my ears, the note weight is neither too thin or too thick
Bass
The sub bass definitely has enough rumble to it when it’s called for,but it is definitely nowhere near basshead territory, for tracks like Billie Eilish’s bad guy, you can notice that the rumble doesn’t extend that deep
Mid bass has good slam to it and it doesn’t bleed into the mids, keeping the mid range clean
Very good speed for the price, capable to reproducing the drumming of Metallica’s Lux Aeterna’s high speed drumming without sounding muddy
Bass texture and control is good overall for the asking price
In terms of speed, it is good for the asking price
Mids
The mids are clean overall and they’re neither recessed or forward, somewhere in between, but this change with different nozzle
Vocal positioning is slightly forward, but not overly in your face nor intimate
Male vocal especially Zhao Peng who sings at low baritone is slightly lacking texture, doesn’t sound as full, but with the black nozzle, It is pleasant sounding
Female vocal sounds very pleasant as well, listening to Faye Wang’s song, i would say the voice is rather sweet and well textured, and also thanks to the slight boost of the upper mids, it is also very lively
The upper mids as i mentioned earlier, good energy and lively, but never once shouty (this ultimately depends on individual’s tolerance)
Treble
The treble is rather energetic and lively, but it is not offensive, certainly hold its ground at the price point
Detail retrieval is good based on my listening experience with this nozzle, this set is not tuned to be super analytical set anyway
Cymbals and hi hats are not prominent due to the nature of the treble, but they are not overly recessed as well with relatively good texture
The treble is nicely tuned in general and not offensive even when you crank the volume up
Soundstage/Imaging
Klean SV’s soundstage is not overly huge nor 2D-ish, it is slightly wide with good width and depth, this is again depending on the eartips used, with the stock narrow bore eartips, the perceived stage size is slightly narrower, switching to Eletech’s Baroque, the perceived stage size is slightly bigger with wider and taller stage, as well as depth, this is evident especially listening to live recorded songs (Zombie, Live from Bludfest by YungBlud)
Imaging is good, not pinpoint accurate but it also doesn’t sound like everything is mushed together
Driveability
Kefine SV is not hard to drive, but it does scale with amplification, higher power output dongle does offers a better control in terms of bass, tighter and doesn’t sound as loose, better dynamics overall as well
With Nipo A100, the staging is wider and bigger than usual due to the nature of the tuning
Differences between nozzles
Black
This nozzle offers the smoothest treble rendition compared to the other two, it is less airy
Bass on the other hand is boosted in terms of quantity, slightly more rumble and punch, but not day and night kind of difference when compared with the other two nozzles
Mids are slightly recessed and not as forward
Soundstage is slightly more intimate sounding due to lacking air
This is suitable for those who prefers a very smooth treble response and prefer slightly more bass
Gold
This nozzle offers the most air and detail in the midrange compared to the other two
Bass is leaner but remains fast, those who crave more bass will not like this tuning
Biggest stage size for me because of the air, i personally find that this nozzle is the most technical and very good in terms of imaging and soundstage, but it is not a tuning that works for everyone due to the pinna gain
Comparison (Dunu Titan X)
In terms of tuning, they are slightly different, Titan X is slightly warmer and tame compared to Klean SV
Sub bass roll off quite early compared to Klean SV, but mid bass hit harder than Klean SV
Build quality is more or less similar, both are solid to hold and fits very well in ear
Titan X sounds a little fuller due to its slight warm nature, whereas Klean SV has slightly thinner note weight(depending on the nozzle used), timber performance for both are equally good
The Klean SV is more versatile in terms of tuning with swappable nozzle, Titan X on the other hand only has a single sound signature
Soundstage of Titan X is slightly bigger in comparison to Klean SV with black nozzle, with gold nozzle offering the biggest stage
Go for Titan X if you prefer a warmer and less exciting treble, Klean SV if you want something more technical
Cable Rolling (Klean SV with Silver Nozzle)
On top of the standard 3.5mm cable, i was also sent the 4.4 and type c cable from Kefine, i will be describing my experience with both the cable
Swapping over from the 3.5mm to 4.4 cable, there’s a noticeable improvement in terms of overall dynamics and control, bass is tighter and slightly more punch, but no noticeable change on the treble
Swapping over to the type c cable, bass and mids does not have much differences in terms of sound, treble is slightly tamer to my ears, other than that, it works quite well with Klean SV and eliminating the need to bring additional dongle
Final Thoughts
Klean SV is a solid product overall, it does everything right even the price point, this is not to say that Klean SV is without any cons, the treble can present itself as overly energetic for those who are sensitive in this region, but then there’s the black nozzle to bring down the brightness at the expense of technicalities. A solid product in the segment nonetheless, you won’t have much to lose, you are getting several tuning in a single IEM, what more can you ask for? Recommended? Yes!
*a big thanks to Kefine for sending this over for the purpose of this review
Head over to their store if you are interested in getting a pair:
Non Affiliated Links
International
Linsoul: https://www.linsoul.com/products/kefine-klean
Hifigo: https://hifigo.com/products/kefine-klean-sv
Angelears: https://aehifi.com/products/kefine-klean-sv
Malaysia
Shopee: https://my.xiapibuy.com/product/1637670808/44028580908/
Lazada: https://www.lazada.com.my/products/i4853751940.html?urlFlag=true
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