TRI HBB Kai is the latest iem from TRI, the sub brand of KBear aimed towards mid and high segment. Meteor, I3pro and TK-2 are living proof of it. Now we have the collaboration iem with a famous youtube celebrity named HBB. Let’s see if it did good or not with its DLC diagram.
Pros__
Musical
Strong basses
Good immersion
No sibilance
Cons__
Background clarity is meh
Treble not full of life
Can get congested
Box and the Cable
The package is tiny and the carrying case is full. Driver units are protected in separate packaging like a jewel in transport. This is actually showing the value they give to their product.
Cable is a mix of silver and golden. Braided and looking strong. It is using .78mm connectors.
- Impedance: 36Ω
- Sensitivity: 114dB@1KHZ
- FR Range: 20~40KHZ
- Driver: DLC Dynamic
- Dynamic Diameter: 9.8MM
- Type: In-ear Earphones
- Cavity Material: Aluminum Alloy
- Interface: 2PIN 0.78MM
- Plug: 3.5MM Gold-plated
- Cable Material: OFC plated with silver
- Cable Length: 120CM±3CM
Sound
Let’s see it’s sound with Limehouse Blues.
<Live smooth jazz is a double edged blade and in my opinion, an iems score can be solely dependent on it if you do not take electronics into account.>
Contrary to my promise of going medieval on it, I am hearing a nice sibilance free (after playing my sibilance test track) and strong bassed (with tactile feedback when necessary at dubstep and huge drums of Haggard) and forward sound (with coherence). Dx300 and 40/100 UAPP and M gain are enough to reach this conclusion.
But this jewel has some downsides.. Live transparency and background resolution is low and treble is lacking shimmer. Can get congested at math rock too. However the fluidity is high and it’s giving it a musical time. But regarding all, if some iems are pretty successful at portraying the record; this Kai is mainly for fun. It’s like watching the cartoon of a dark themed old fashion movie with CGI effects.
Fun doesn’t always mean meh or bad. Kai is handling fun good. Crowded symphonic recordings and especially The Electro Suite say so.
Gaming
Good fun and technicalities in gaming. But you rarely feel the bass. However, in terms of immersion, it reminds me of the d13 and Dunu dm-480, which is nice. So in summary, despite the strong and not great control at basses in some genres of music; pretty good for gaming all around. But neither Aq4 nor HM at gaming.
Comparison
I am aware of the futility of comparing both due to i3 pros status but I am doing it after addressing this as a semi ripe form of it. So let’s see how many times i3pro betters Kai despite some years.
The background is pitch black in i3pro. Separation is at least 2 times higher. Math rock is full with dynamics and clearly distanced guitars. You are IN the stage. And treble is just like how it was. Crispy when needed. But it’s showing it’s age. Not as sharp as the record of 2022 record demand.(and some recent iems supply)
The pub is full of life with insane background details without overlapping basses. The clarinet is the star of the show. Live transparency is at more than x2 better than Kai too. This Kai is like a semi ripe fruit. See its mature form in i3pro 😉
Tri Kai Review Conclusions
A jewel looking and strong bassy but okay in all others. Perfect for electronic and pop. But please do not approach it with DT or math rock or any complex track. Thanks to TRI Audio (hence KBear) and keephifi for this review. A link you can buy https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B7B6DHMS
