We get to see a lot of brands raise their heads every year but only a handful of them successfully leave their mark and Kiwi Ears is one of them. They are new to the scene but they feel a lot more seasoned. They don’t have heavyweight IEMs but their list of IEMs are interesting and cater to a wide range of consumers. I have heard a handful of IEMs from Kiwi Ears, I liked the Quintet, I loved the Quartet too and the Canta is something I will recommend to anyone looking for a highly resolving V shaped IEMs. Their KE4 with the new Meta tuning was a big success too.
What I have here is an evolution of their planar IEMs, housing a single 15.3mm planar driver, Kiwi Ears Aether is definitely loaded with potential. Priced at just $169, it comes in only one color. Let’s find out what we are getting out of this large planar driver IEM.
I will like to thank Kiwi Ears for this unit.
Get one from here:
For our Indian viewers:
UNBOXING AND ACCESSORIES:
This time around Kiwi Ears has offered a more interesting unboxing experience. Lift the upper cover, we have a hard paper cover with some documentation in it, lift it and all we see are the earpieces stuffed in hard foam, ear tips are placed inside the box under it while the carry case with the cable is placed inside the paper box aside it. This is not fancy but definitely an interesting way of presentation, I must say. What I don’t like is the fact that this $200 IEM ships with a case that looks just like the Canta case and the cable too is nothing special. Here is my unboxing video.
BUILD QUALITY AND ERGONOMICS:
There isn’t a lot of info about the build but they have used medical grade Resin shell. I like this glossy black shell design and the sparkly black back plate with silver logo adds a bit of mystery to the design. It does not have a semi custom type shell but has the curves at the right places, offering stable and comfortable fit inside the ear. Another thing that helps is the lighter weight. It barely has any heft to it but has a bigger shell which might not fit tiny ears. There is little to no pressure exerted by the ear guides and it’s longer than average nozzle helps with extra stability too. It has a small vent on the inner shell and 3 aside the 2pin socket to let the planar drivers breathe.
CABLE:
Aether ships with a similar kind of cable that came with Quintet and KE4. I am glad to report that Aether pairs nicely with this cable. It sounds smooth, relaxed with good bass performance and pleasing tonality. Kiwi Ears has not mentioned anything about the cable but I guess it’s a copper cable.
This 4 core cable is well behaved, isn’t bouncy, supple, soft and decent looking too. One down side is the 3.5mm jack and Y splitters are heavy thanks to the metal jackets. I am a bit disappointed though, nearly every brand is offering modular cable for their IEMs in this price range but with Aether, we don’t even have the luxury to opt for a 4.4mm termination. I will definitely like to see slightly premium looks and modular design with future Kiwi Ear IEMs.
PAIRING AND EFFICIENCY:
It’s a known fact that planar drivers can handle a lot of power and they like good amount of power too. It’s not like Aether needs a lot of power to sound good but it definitely opens up with more power. I have used it with my mobile phone and that doesn’t make it sound bad but notes do not have enough depth and finer textures are missing.
While the Shanling UA6 manages to extract better finishing definition, depth, better sub-bass rumble and bigger stage. So.. Even though it’s not necessary to have a powerful source, it’s better to use one with Aether.
SOUND QUALITY:
I like what Kiwi Ears is doing. They aren’t playing safe. They are offering variety. They have various types of driver setups at different prices. They already have a high quality 12mm planar IEM under their belt in Melody. They have a planar hybrid IEM in Canta. Aether is not their first rodeo with planars, they know how to work these drivers and I like its huge stage, refined presentation and clean imaging. It has a huge 15.3mm planar driver and it’s got chops!! Tuned with a W shaped signature, its USP has to be its “smooth, mature tuning”. Unlike other planar based IEMs that tend to sound raw and edgy, Aether is a lot more refined and seamless. Tonality and timber are neutral, it doesn’t have any unnecessary sharpness to worry about. It does have a slightly oddly tuned lower end though. Maybe Kiwi Ears didn’t want to kill its more expensive IEMs? Lets Expand.
I am using stock black tips and couple of USB DAC/amps for this review.
BASS:
This is something unexpected. Kiwi Ears knows how to tune an IEM for high quality bass but those IEMs use DD for the lower end which is not the case here. Melody wasn’t great with the lower and it seems there is a minor issue with the Aether too. Let me put it bluntly, it’s mid bassy. Which isn’t a bad thing for some of us but it lacks a bit with the sub-bass too, that’s a downer for me. It has decent extension and rumbles but gets easily overshadowed by the mid bass bump. Mid bass thought is prominent, isn’t overly heavy or slow. It’s just lacks dynamics and can sound a bit monotonous and boring. Area of impact is decent. What’s interesting is, it doesn’t move air inward but vibrates it in a confined area and has centrally weighted notes which gives it a feeling of deeper hits. Aether doesn’t have a great layered delivery, notes get slightly mixed up at the mid body region. It just sounds a bit limited in this regard. Decay is a bit on the slower side which lets the notes precipitate but doesn’t get too heavy. Upper bass notes tell an unusual story, it’s not clean in 80% instances as we are dealt unwanted softness but occasionally, when the note is slightly higher in the spectrum, offers good control and cleanliness.
MID RANGE:
With a W shaped signature we get above par details and clarity. From here on, Kiwi Ears exhibits their refining capabilities with the aether. It not the smooth type and doesn’t compromise with resolution or definition but doesn’t have the rawness and jitter of other planar and hybrid IEMs. There are no rough edges here. It’s the triangular body of the notes that helps with this, they originate with a wider base at the floor while finishing with right amount of energy at the top. Yes, the floor isn’t the cleanest but put it through a decently powerful source and Aether can separate back and foreground instruments without feeling veiled. Thanks to its huge stage, Aether has the grandness to it and macro dynamics are superb.
We are treated with one of the best vocals from a planar IEM in this price. Male vocals have the right amount of throat emphasis and fullness to them while female vocals enjoy very good sharpness and good height. It’s the texture and clarity of movement within the note that makes it special. Vocals enjoy very good finishing energy too. Instruments on the other hand are slightly less forward but maintain very good transparency and clarity. Aether is a neutral sounding IEM when it comes to tonality and timber. It has superb reverb effects which makes it more cohesive and engaging. Upper mids are slightly more energetic but has no peaks or uncomfortable sharpness to worry about.
HIGHS:
Thanks to its huge stage, Aether sounds super spacious and even though it doesn’t have a very agile, lively or sparkly treble range, it manages to keep me seated. What it has is the resolution, thanks to this nicely developed stage, even though it doesn’t have a lot of transparency, has cleaner and well defined notes. Treble extension is decent. Clarity and definition up till the mid treble range is very good with good amount of air between instruments. Notes do lack a bit of finishing energy and if you like this slightly smoother presentation, this is an excellent IEM to have. Layering and separation is above average. It doesn’t stack notes one above another but what it can do is separate back and foreground instruments without much issues. Cymbals and violins do sound slightly blunt and less transparent when compared to higher end IEMs but Aether doesn’t do half bad here.
STAGE AND IMAGING:
One thing that sets Aether apart from the competition is the stage and imaging. This stage is much bigger than the competition and brings in soothing transient effects with good amount of air between instruments. We get a well rounded stage with very good height width and above average Z-axis presence. Aether has a class leading stereo imaging. Most of the vocals generate inside the head and end out of it. Bass notes hit and move in & upward, giving a unique kind of experience. Some mid range and most of treble notes find themselves placed totally out of the head and the good thing is it doesn’t lack flexibility with cue placement.
Sonics as I mentioned earlier are very good with excellent background presence and transient effects. Yes, the contrast and separation of back and foreground instruments isn’t the best but it’s still is above average.
PAIRING WITH CABLES:
I barely have cables in the $50 price range but just to check if cables can affect the imaging and dynamics of the Aether I paired it with Effect Audio AxC. More expensive but I just wanted to check how the Aether responds and just like majority of Planar IEMs, Aether doesn’t change drastically. This pairing is more balanced sounding, offers slightly better sub-bass and less pronounced mid-bass, mid range gains a bit more height and definition, treble too gains better clarity and extension. Even when all these things changed, these changes aren’t big enough.
Paired it with a Bqeyz $30 SPC cable and this makes Aether sound warmer and fuller across the spectrum, with bigger mid bass bloat and thickers vocals, affecting overall clarity across the spectrum.
So.. I will say.. Don’t bother buying an expensive cable for your Aether. This doesn’t respond with enough positivity to cable changes. Maybe that is why Kiwi Ears didn’t bother offering a better, modular cable with it.
COMPARISONS:
VS AIROSO:
Planar vs Hybrid is an interesting comparison for sure. And hybrid definitely shows it’s supremacy with end to end clarity while the refinement level of Aether is in a different level.
Airoso has much better sub-bass extension and deeper notes. Has much better atmospheric diffusion. It can easily pass as a bass head IEM. Has big area of impact too. Lovely and better dynamics and contrast too. Can hit upper bass notes cleanly. Love the authoritative hits, full, heavy and meaty. Mid range of Airoso is not as open as the Aether but it has taller and more precise notes. It doesn’t offer as much texture or cohesion but definitely offers more finishing definition and resolution. It too doesn’t have any upper mid sharpness to worry about. Highs too are more agile and sparkly than the Aether. It doesn’t have as much air between instruments but has better transparency and extension.
Aether has wrose lower end, now way it’s mid bassy, less dynami bass can compete with the Airoso. It’s mid range is smoother with better texture and more throat emphasis and clarity. I love the extra bit of space , aiding sonics. Highs of Aether aren’t as technically capable as the Airoso and are less extended too. It has a much wider and airy stage. Has better back and foreground separation too.
Somehow, when powered properly, Airoso sounds more balanced than the Aether while with power, Aether opens up the stage and gains a bit more depth.
Vs Melody:
I have had the Melody and loved that but this is a total different sounding IEM. Melody has a 12mm planar and had a mid forward tuning but Aether is V shaped. Melody lacked with resolution and definition at both ends but Aether is much better. It has a bigger stage too so no competition between these two when it comes to technical abilities but we can compare these two nevertheless.
Aether lacks sub-bass extension, Melody isn’t great either. Aether has a prominent mid bass bump that is affected by slower decay making it less dynamic and contrasty. Melody has faster decay and offers better clarity, and better layers. Mid range is where Melody shows it’s vocal skills, tall and textured notes with superb male vocals and good female vocals. Instruments though lack finishing definition and clarity. They kind of sound muffled. Aether lacks the note height with vocals but has similar tonality, timber and fuller notes. Instruments on ther other hand are much better with energy, have better finishing definition, height and clarity.
Highs is where Aether cleanly pulls ahead. Has much better clarity, finishing definition, sonics, layering and air. Melody doesn’t have the treble stage, lacks proper bite and clarity.
CONCLUSION:
I have been reviewing IEMs since 2012. I have heard a lot of IEMs in a lot of price ranges, seen a lot of changes in this industry too. But I have no doubts in stating that, planars drivers have bought a new dimension to this hobby. I love this IEMs and I have no issues in putting Aether up there, with the best IEMs under $200. It has flaws. Obvious, clean and clear type of flaws but that’s not limiting its other aspects.
It has refinement level of a $600 IEMs, it has stage size like a $400 IEM, it has details of a good $200 IEMs but sadly has a mid bass bump like a $50 IEM. Build is decent too so I am not complaining. I do not suggest changing cables but if you have something that can reduce mid-bass, please try that with Aether. This is a recommended planar IEM with a graceful tuning.
I will love to see a follow-up to this soon with slightly better build, less mid-bass and a modular cable and that my friend will be a fantastic IEM to have.
