Introduction
Have you ever jumped on a hype train? Lately, there are so much hype about the recently released Ksearphone Little Black Bell – S (LBBS) earbud. With the mind full of curiosity, I decided to get one myself and see if it’s worth the hype. Kaisheng Temperament or Ksearphone is a China-based company who mainly make earbuds. The company is mostly well known due to their extremely expensive top-of-the-line earbuds such as the Bell Ti Plus and Omyoji. On the flip side, the LBBS is considered as an entry level earbud which is much more affordable and going to be interesting for me to see how well it will do in the grand scheme of things.
Packaging & Accessories
Packaging of the LBBS can be considered as proper and complete for the asking price. Most earbuds that I own usually came in a plain sealed plastic bag or in a case. But the LBBS is came with a medium-sized black box and inside, it contains some compartments and boxes which is similar to when you are unboxing an IEM. Accessories that are included in the box are full foams, donut foams, a pair of ear-hook guide, and a warranty and product information card.
Design & Build Quality
Ksearphone is very much known for their one and only bell-shaped design in which they extensively sample the ear mold data for Asians ears. The LBBS follow this design and the shape is very different to the classic stem down MX500 and PK style shells. The diameter of the shell is measured at 16.2mm and it is extended horizontally to mimic the shape of a bell. Despite the bigger sized diameter, the fit and comfort is excellent since there are no pulling forces which normally exerted on the other two shell designs. Going into the details, the LBBS has a 15mm dynamic driver with N52 magnet and the shell is made of CNC metal, but it is superbly light. This S version of the LBB, comes with 2 core cables but they are insulated with fabric sleeves and terminated with 3.5mm jack (non-mic). Apart from that, with the included ear-hook guide included in the box, the LBBS can be wore “over the ear” IEM-liked style as well. The only con about the build is the non-existence channel markings on the LBBS except the “KS” marking which actually indicate the right channel.
Specifications
- Driver unit: 15mm single dynamic driver
- Impedance: 30Ω
- Sensitivity: 106 dB (±3%)
- Frequency range: 10 – 40000 Hz
- THD: <0.5% @1KHz
- Cable length: 1.2m±5cm
Retail Price & Where to Get
This is a self-purchased unit. Ksearphone LBBS is currently priced at RM200 through Kaisheng Technology official store on Taobao, but the prices varied widely on Shopee Malaysia and AliExpress.
AliExpress : ksearphone – Buy ksearphone with free shipping on AliExpress
Source Pairing
- Windows 10 Laptop > Realtek HD Audio 3.5mm output > Ksearphone LBBS
- Sony NW-ZX300 (Walkman One Warm) / iFi hip-dac / Fiio Q5 (AM3D) / TRI TK-2 > Ksearphone LBBS
Test Tracks
Tonality
LBBS has a tonal balance that I would call the “audiophile” tuning, which is far from the typical V-shaped sound signature owned in most Chi-Fi earbuds. The LBBS is a neutral sounding earbud with perhaps being slightly bright. In spite of the neutrality, LBBS is never boring or sounds flat. In fact, there’s enough energy in the bass and treble to make the sound enjoyable and a bit more balanced. Depending on the person’s view towards neutral sound, LBBS can be an all rounder for most types of songs.
Bass
Subbass roll-off is expected in earbuds in general, and this includes the LBBS though it wasn’t as bad as most people suggested it to be. Just to add, one should understand that the bass “feeling” of an earbud is very different from an IEM because of the nature of their designs and ergonomics. That being said, as a neutral type of bass along with its great impact and punch, LBBS far from being anemic and lifeless. Most importantly, the bass performance is great in terms of details, clarity, and speed.
Midrange
Midrange of LBBS is centered more towards the upper register of that mids such as female vocals and bright instruments. Thus, the overall sound of this earbud is mostly about the clarity and transparency although with the caveat of tiny bit of thinnest in the lower-mids, resulting in male vocal to be slightly bright than usual. However, detail retrieval in the midrange is great at this price point.
Treble
Finally, the highlight of this earbud is the treble performance. It is smooth, never harsh, but highlighted really well. The upper extension is also excellent with great sense of air to provide natural timbre and open soundstage to the overall sound. Micro-detail in this department is therefore can perform notably well with respect to its price point.
Soundstage & Imaging
In terms of technicalities, sound-staging is the strong attribute of the LBBS. As an earbud, the soundstage width and height are extensively wide and tall, respectively. There is also a sense depth in the soundstage but perhaps because of the neutral bass, the soundstage depth cannot be really felt. In terms of imaging placement, it performs at the above average performance.
Separation & Timbre
LBBS dynamic driver is not a top-of-the-line grade driver but for what it’s worth, it is still surprisingly capable with quite fast speed and transients. Because of the transducer, instrument separation and layering are noteworthy for the price. Listening to metal and rock fusion type of songs are still great in my opinion. And of course, with less demanding genres such as acoustic, jazz, and instrumental, LBBS can perform extremely well. Timbre wise, LBBS is simply a natural sounding earbud. There is no artificial or plasticky kind of sound like in snare drums or cymbal crashes.
Drivability & Synergy
LBBS has a 106 dB/mW and 30 Ω sensitivity and impedance, respectively. The numbers are fairly sensitive and should perform perfectly with any type of source. Nonetheless, having a dynamic driver inside, the LBBS can benefit with better source and amplification. In the regard of synergy, warm or neutral source such as Sony DAP, TRI-TK2, and Fiio Q5 will give the best sound quality especially in terms of resolution, note weight, vocal warmth, and soundstage performances.
Comparison
VE Monk SM:
Venture Electronics Monk Slim Metal is a new model earbud by VE priced at around RM120. The tonality of the SM is little different with the LBBS. SM has brighter tuning as compared to more neutral sounding LBBS. Bass perform quite similar for both of them, but SM driver seems to be slightly faster and tighter. SM mids is more intimate than LBBS, vocal positioning is much closer to you or more “in your head” type of sound. Also, the upper-mids of the SM is veiled probably due to lack of pinnae gain at the 2kHz. As an instrumental song lover, I prefer the LBBS because instruments sound much clearer here. Treble of the LBBS is airier and tuned better than the SM in my opinion. Because the SM has the potential to become harsh depending on the songs and in terms of vocal, it is prone to become sibilant at times along with some “nasal” sound in the vocals. In terms of technicalities, the LBBS wins in most of the areas for example, resolution, detail retrieval, layering, transient speed, and soundstage width. In contrary, SM has slightly deeper staging and more focused imaging accuracy.
Blur 256 PK32:
Blur 256 PK32 is a custom-made earbud by Wong Kuan Wae whom based in Singapore with a price tag around RM700. The Blur has a completely opposite sound to the LBBS which means it has a warmer sound. Subbass goes deeper with the Blur as well as much more solid and stronger mid-bass. Midrange is more balanced with the Blur meaning both male and female vocals perform better, but the LBBS has better clarity due to more forward upper midrange despite being thinner in the lower midrange. Treble is obviously more prominent on the LBBS while the Blur has smoother and slightly roll-off upper-treble. Technicalities wise, the LBBS is more than impressive since it has more or less the same resolution, imaging, and instrument separation as the Blur. Perhaps a little bit better than the Blur. Moving on, since the Blur is better in the bass department, thus soundstage depth and low-end detail are also better. On the other hand, since the LBBS is airier than the Blur, soundstage is seeming to be slightly more open and wider. All in all, the Blur is suited for song such as the modern mainstreams (R&B, Hip-Hop, Dance, Electronic, Pop, etc), and big-scaled symphony and orchestras. Meanwhile, LBBS is more suited for fast-paced genres such as rock, metal, and epic soundtracks. In addition, genres such as acoustic, jazz, ambient, and classical are suitable for both of them since they’re both have natural timbre.
For Who?
Ksearphone LBBS is an earbud that is for anyone who’s looking to upgrade from their ultra-budget earbud not only in terms of sound quality but also for every day uses. The design is unique and seriously ergonomic which should fit most of Asian ears. In terms of sound quality, the LBBS is tuned specially for the “audiophile” or neutral lover but with that little bit of “fun” in mind which will definitely cater towards the normal consumers as well.
Conclusion
As far as the market is concerned, the likes of Vido and Monk Plus are the well-known or the default recommendations for ultra-budget earbud, but there are certainly not many offerings in the sub-$50 price range, unless if you’re into custom earbuds. Therefore, I think Ksearphone LBBS has successfully fill in this price bracket, which soon might become the talk of the town for a solid neutral-balanced sounding earbud. The dynamic driver in the LBBS is not a TOTL or flagship level-performance by any means because that’s what the Bell Ti Plus or Omyoji is for, but the performance-value ratio is indeed superbly high on this one. Besides that, having an excellent ergonomic design and easy to drive requirement, the LBBS is a perfect choice for normal consumers to use it during their working hours, attending video conferences, as well as enjoying their entertainments.
