Noble Audio Kadence Review

Comparisons

The VE7 is a king in clarity in its price range, and it’s one of my personal favourites. Its package is just as impressive, and the universal model fits like a custom with its provided SpinFit tips.

The Kadence matches the VE7 in terms of clarity and transparency. It has a wider sound stage, and a more cohesive sound overall with a smoother and more natural timbre. Its tonality is a bit thicker, especially in the treble. The VE7 has a thinner sound but it’s crisper and more extended in the treble, and it has more sub-bass.

If you prefer brighter monitors with good bass, the VE7 is a great option. If you prefer a flatter frequency response, go with the Kadence. It’s personally hard to decide for me between the two, but I think Kadence sounds a bit more truthful and coherent.

Here’s another of my favourites, the Pneuma. Its design is much more impressive of course, as well as its build, although that bass switch is a bit questionable for the long term. The sound of this Lime Ears offering is bassier, with great texture and rumble. Its midrange is more colourful, with a bit of warmth. It also plays the mid-range a bit shouty compared to the Kadence.

They both offer great sound-stage. Kadence impresses more with its width whilst the Pneuma impresses with its depth. The treble of the Pneuma is thinner and a bit more impressive in terms of sparkle. Overall it’s certainly the more impressive one here, but that’s the point of the Kadence. It’s not built for fun, it’s built for reference sound. Kadence is more easy-going, natural and colourless. It’s more coherent and it has better separation with a wider stereo image with excellent clarity.

Tough choice, I would pick both for different moods and purposes.

The IE900 has a terrible fit in my experience, but I can’t deny it’s extremely smaller in footprint when compared with Kadence. Sound-wise the IE900 is very close to neutral tuning as well, but its treble is much brighter and that caused me fatigue over long periods. However, I can’t deny its excellent stereo imaging, separation and resolution.

I think Kadence is just a bit better in terms of separation though, and its mids have more naturalness and better timbre. The IE900 gives a more analytical sound, and the Kadence is a bit more pleasing in terms of timbre. Kadence edges out for me, especially for its fullness and definition.

Conclusion

After all of the crazy hybrid IEMs that we come across in the market, Noble Audio launched an 8BA IEM, and that feels like a breath of fresh air. Just for a moment, forget about that heavy slamming bass and perfectly bright and crisp treble. Just enjoy a perfectly natural, coherent, well-balanced and highly resolving sound with excellent definition in all ranges.

The Kadence is a very audiophile-focused IEM, and I think a true audiophile would praise all of its abilities. It has every bit of quality you possibly would ask if you’re a lover of reference sound. Some people get bored of that, and some like it. And if you like that type of sound, this is one of the most balanced and cohesive monitors out there.

The Noble Audio Kadence is a new Recommended Buy and it’s now featured on our Best UIEM list here, where it’s in good company.

Page 1: Noble Audio, Kublai Khan, Package, Build, Design, Fit
Page 2: Sound
Page 3: Technical Performance, Cables
Page 4: Comparisons & Conclusion
4.4/5 - (43 votes)
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A keen audiophile and hobby photographer, Berkhan is after absolute perfection. Whether it is a full-frame camera or a custom in-ear, his standpoint persists. He tries to keep his photography enthusiasm at the same level as audio. Sometimes photography wins, sometimes his love for music takes over and he puts that camera aside. Simplistic expressions of sound in his reviews are the way to go for him. He enjoys a fine single malt along with his favourite Jazz recordings.

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