QKZ x HBB Review

So, HBB has done it again, and this time by making a collab to deliver us an IEM that is targeted towards the budget category. And when we say budget, 20USD can't get more budget than that. So, how does it sound?

BUILD QUALITY & FIT

When we talk about QKZ, we all know what we're getting into - the literal definition of budget, in which getting a good pair that passes QC is a literal gamble.

But somehow, these don't have this problem.

HBB has stated in his videos that QC in general is related to factories rather than companies, and has said that the same factory that produced this pair also produced Crinacle's Truthear ZERO. Personally I have never seen a Truthear ZERO in person but with that aside, the QKZ HBB is one of the most aesthetic looking IEM that I have ever owned. Although the build is entirely made of plastic, the overall contours, the chrome lining around the faceplate, the metallic gold logos for both QKZ and HBB, all of these combined makes this pair look aesthetically premium.

On the hand, plastic is plastic but the overall unit doesn't feel hollow and has some decent heft to it.

One notable thing I would like to point out is the specific nozzle choice where HBB stated he added a lip on the nozzle to ensure tips fit perfectly, truly a person who has attention to detail covered when making a product.

In terms of fit, the shape is considered to be safe and does fit my ears, with a slight nitpick where the stock cable's angle will chafe my ear after wearing it for some time. Would probably recommend cable rolling but as it is, its fine enough for me.

SOUND

Source : Foobar2000 -> JCally JM10 Dongle DAC (CS43131) -> S.M.S.L. SH-6 Amplifier -> Stock QKZ HBB

Soundwise, the QKZ x HBB is a V shaped IEM with warm characteristics and with emphasis on the bass region. I'm gonna be honest, straight out the bat, this is literally an inverted CCA CRA+ , where bass is more emphasized but treble is reduced and sounds softer

BASS

The highlight of this pair's prowess, giving you a ton of bass with good control of amplification, texture, and definition

(albeit, overall the bass will sound slightly muddy if there is too much in the track)

• Subbass rumble is decent but sometimes can slightly bleed to the mids and drown it

• Kicks sound very thumpy with less crisp and airy to it, "boomy" if you would put it. This applies to low note synth bass and 808s as well

• Bass notes on the midbass range (100-300Hz) is captures the organic metallic resonance of bass strings when being played, making it sound as true as it is

  • (Anderson . Paak - Come Home)

• Bass extension is decent, making this region more presenting yet not overwhelming

• Very occasional bass bleed towards the lower-mids in certain tracks

  • (The Weeknd - Missed You; Amine - Compensating [808 kicks towards vocals]; Aimer - Ophelia)

• Note definition of bass region is definitely better than a handful of budget IEMs such as CCA CRA, CRA+, BL-03, Z200, maybe can be said that the bass region's technicalities is equivalent to a BL-01 except more boomy

MIDS

Overall? Recessed on the lower mids, anything beyond 1k sounds more forgiving and energetic

• Male vocals often sounds slightly hollow and recessed making it sound less intimate; certain times will be covered by some bass bleeds, (Tom Misch - Geography , Mac Miller - Swimming)

• Female vocals sounds more forward but often times will suffer slightly from sounding thin (YOASOBI - Encore, Aimer - Ophelia, Joji - Afterthought [BENEE's verse]) ; occasionally esses will sound sharp but never sibilant

• Instruments overall sound good with decent tonality but certain times feel slightly recessed; Notes nearing the upper mids (nearing 1k ) will not sound recessed, but if instruments and tracks are at the mid and lower mid range, will suffer from recessed characteristic

  • Plucked guitars sound natural enough with the aforementioned characteristic of bass strings being plucked-type of feeling for the notes ; Guitars played with distortion sound smooth and well-controlled

  • Piano notes sound warm and relaxed, often staying slightly behind the mix just a little bit with a smooth roll off feeling for notes

  • Electronic pianos will sound less digital, bearing some warmth to it

  • Trumpets will sound recessed and less strong but tonality is preserved, and possibly aided by the warm nature of the IEM

HIGHS

Overall underwhelming in terms of : Less bright and sparkly elements. But this is HBB we're talking about, if you heard the MELEs before the treble is equivalent to that to some extent

• Treble sounds decent albeit also suffers a little from the overemphasized bass, often times covering subtle high notes from the mix ; an example would be Joji's Slow Dancing In The Dark where the piano arpeggios in the chorus sound so weak due to the bass covering it.

• Piano keys often sound soft without that much energy to it, but has some sort of revereby decay to it (probably more dependent on the track mix )

• Hi-hats and snares and rides accompanied by its decent treble extension makes it enjoyable

• Guitar shreds at this range sadly do not shine as much and do not sound bright and crisp, often times sound like it has a threshold and does not get aggressive enough

• Synths on the high end will be more or less the same as pianos, sounding soft without much emphasis

TECHNICALITIES

Overall, the QKZ x HBB isn't the best nor the worst in terms of dynamics and separation. It decently dissects quite busy tracks, but whenever there's bass involved, it often steals the show and just makes everything sound less clear and just adds a veil of muddiness to it. Obviously this claim will be slightly overexagerating it but from my personal listening, the constant presence of bass throughout everything makes feel congested and tight.

Detail retrieval wise, testing with the JM10 would sound subpar. It definitely is decent, probably equivalent to something like the BL-03 but would fall short of something such as the BL-01 in terms of detail retrieval.

Soundstage for this pair I would say sounds right for it price, its wide enough but often times does not sound like it has that much depth to it when the track gets busy, making busy tracks with many things going on at once sound smooshed together

FINAL THOUGHTS

Honestly, the QKZ x HBB IEM might be a little too hyped up because of the collab. As it is, other than the overwhelming but well controlled bass (albeit there is a slight muddiness to it), the mids and the highs are just a tad bit warm to me. This honestly sounds a little more like a (pardon my stereotype but) consumer friendly tuning IEM, where the bass is emphasized more so for the unintuitive, it would sound powerful.

Personally, I like balanced tuning more but occasionally I do go back to the simple V shapes such as the BL-01 and the CCA CRA.

So in conclusion : the QKZ HBB is good for the price, there are better options out there.

The fact that it only checks 1 out of 3 boxes for good performance, I would rather gravitate towards other IEMs like the 2 I just mentioned.

***additional notes***

Testing it on the Questyle M15 boosts everything by a significant amount, making mids and treble more forward, bright, and stronger, but at this point it's more like testing the prowess of a strong Dongle DAC than anything else.