Today we are taking a look at the $249 USD Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite In-Ear Monitors.
Disclaimer: Linsoul sent us the Orchestra Lite for this review. As always, I am here to share my honest experience with the product.
Kiwi Ears
Kiwi Ears is a relatively new company that has quickly made a name for itself in the audiophile community. The company is known for its price to performance focused in-ear monitors (IEMs), which are sold and fulfilled through Linsoul. Kiwi Ears has managed to make a strong impression in the audio industry with its commitment to quality and comeptitive pricing.
Every pair of Kiwi Ears earphones is meticulously handcrafted by a dedicated team of engineers, ensuring a high level of attention to detail and quality. Importantly, customers can purchase with confidence, as Linsoul provides a one-year warranty on all earphones, ensuring peace of mind when it comes to potential repairs or service needs. Now, without further delay, let’s delve into the review and explore the Orchestra Lite.
The Orchestra Lite
The Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite is a competitively priced, handcrafted in-ear monitor that stands out in its price bracket with its eight balanced armature drivers. This model is a cost-effective iteration of the original Kiwi Ears Orchestra, which debuted back in 2021. It retains the acclaimed tonal balance and the same number of balanced armature drivers, but at half the price. The Orchestra Lite is equipped with two custom tweeters for the treble, four custom midrange balanced armature drivers for the mids, and two large balanced armature drivers for the lows.
In addition, the Orchestra Lite employs a three-way passive crossover, utilizing five independent passive components. This design enhances the sound quality and minimizes total harmonic distortion. The monitor comes with a lightweight 2-pin 4-braid oxygen-free copper cable, designed for comfort during both stage performances and portable use.
According to Linsoul, each unit undergoes two separate rounds of quality control inspections to ensure optimal performance. As of the time of writing this article, the Orchestra Lite is available for $224 USD, down from its original price of $249 USD. This promotional price will be valid until June 19th.
Specifications
Drivers: x2 High, x4 Mid, x2 Bass Balanced Armatures
Crossover: 3-Way
Socket: 0.78-2Pin
Housing: Acryclic Resin
Nozzle: Wide, Mesh Grille
Cable: 4-braid Oxygen-Free Copper – 1.2M – 3.5mm – 0.78 2-pin
Impedance: 16Ω
Sensitivity: 112dB
Packaging & Accessories
The Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite is presented in a compact, hard-cardboard package that immediately captures attention with its eye-catching design. The front of the box features the Kiwi Ears logo and an artistic representation of the IEMs, reflecting the brand’s attention to aesthetic detail. The packaging is not only aesthetically pleasing but also ensures the safe arrival of the product.
Upon opening the box, you are greeted with the Orchestra Lite earphones securely nestled in protective foam padding, with the model name prominently displayed. Beneath the foam cradle, an inner compartment houses a selection of accessories and a small zippered carrying case. The earphones are accompanied by a white-colored, 4-braid oxygen-free copper cable that is supple, light and relatively thin.
The Orchestra Lite package also includes a product manual and a quality assurance card, along with three sets of different eartips, totaling nine pairs, allowing you to customize the fit to your preference.
Overall, the Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite comes with a comprehensive set of accessories. The attention to detail, especially considering the price point, is commendable and speaks to the brand’s dedication to customer satisfaction.
Design, Build & Fit
The Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite is a meticulously crafted product made of skin-friendly resin. Available in two faceplate colors, green and blue, the design looks elegant with its cloudy swirl pattern and translucent faceplates and shells. I’ve always liked the swirl pattern and think it’s quite eye-catching. Since these are hand-made faceplates, the pattern varies from unit to unit so each pair is unique.
The build quality of the Orchestra Lite is quite good. The 3D-printed, UV-cured resin shells have no imperfections and feel solid in the hand, indicating their durability. The shells are semi-custom, anatomically shaped to fit comfortably in the ear. The shell clarity is amazing, you can see all the components inside the shells, without any obstruction. The original Orchestra offered a pretty good fit, so my expectations were already high.
In terms of fit and comfort, the Orchestra Lite is very good and fully met my expectations. Despite their relatively large shell size, they fit snugly and comfortably in my ears without any discomfort. However, as with any large earphones, fit can be subjective and vary from person to person, so it’s a good idea to try them on before you buy, especially if you have small ears.
Overall, the Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite is a well-made IEM that looks and feels like a much more expensive IEM.
The review continues on the next page. Click here or use the jump below.
Page 1: Kiwi Ears, Orchestra Lite, Packaging & Accessories, Design, Build & Fit
Page 2: Sound, Low, Mid, High, Technical Capability, Comparison, Last Words
