KZ HDS3

ø6mm Dynamic Driver

$5~$10
3.5/5.0

Meet the baby child of KZ HDS1 and KZ HDS2. These earphones combine the highs of KZ HDS1 with the bass power of KZ HDS2, and enhance them even further. What do you get? Great-sounding earphones. Punchy and deep bass (but still not too deep, considering the driver size), crisp mids and sharp and bright highs. However, the loudness is still insufficient.

Pros

  • A superb sound quality, combining both quick and powerful bass and sharp and crisp highs, and of course detailed mids.
  • The design and build quality of the housings is great, and the use of an entirely new cable among KZ products is refreshing.
  • Extremely comfortable to wear.

Cons

  • Doesn't sound too well on non-amplified sources.
  • Even though the sub-bass has been improved, it still can't get too deep, but it may be a driver size limitation.
  • The new cable that was used with these earphones is kind of stiff, and retains bends easily.
  • The splitter and the remote are the same thing here, which means the mic is too far from your mouth.

Package & Accessories

Package:

Corrugated fiberboard

Ear Tips - Single-Flange:

S+M+L, black (translucent), ø4mm bores

Build & Materials

Housings:

Metal, extra-small, ø4mm nozzles, rigid strain reliefs

Remote/Y-Split:

Plastic (glossy), single-button, soft strain relief

Cable:

TPE, 116cm, soft, mildly bent

Plug:

TPE + plastic (glossy), 90° angled, short, soft strain relief

Comfort & Fit

I had to use the L-size tips to get a good seal. Overall, these earphones are really comfortable, and you basically forget that they are in your ears.

Lows / Bass

The mid-bass and lower-mids are present, warm and quick. These earphones import the bass qualities from KZ HDS2, and there's even slightly more sub-bass added to the mix.

Mids / Vocals

Thanks to the improved lows and highs, the vocals finally sound warmer, but the maximum loudness still isn't sufficient and you must have an amplified source.

Highs / Treble

These earphones import the treble qualities from KZ HDS1, but add some extra emphasis to them, making them sound closely to KZ ED9, which also means they could get harsh sometimes.

Frequency Response

Published on 2016-02-04 23:21:35 (GMT)
AS06 ATE BTE C56R DT5 ED2/EDR1 ED3 Youth Version ED4 ED9 ED10 ED11 ED16 EDR2 ES3 GR HDS1 HDS2
HDS3
IE80 RX S3 ZS1 ZS5 (V1) ZS6 ZS7 ZS10 ZS10 PRO ZSA ZSE ZSN ZSR ZST