Kiwi Ears CANTA VS Etymotic ER2SE

IEM Comparison: Expert & Community Scores Side-by-Side

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Kiwi Ears CANTA and Etymotic ER2SE are in-ear monitors. Kiwi Ears CANTA costs $89 while Etymotic ER2SE costs $80. Kiwi Ears CANTA is $9 more expensive. Kiwi Ears CANTA holds a decisive 1.3-point edge in reviewer scores (6.5 vs 5.2). Etymotic ER2SE has significantly better mids with a 2.3-point edge, Kiwi Ears CANTA has significantly better treble with a 2.3-point edge, Kiwi Ears CANTA has significantly better dynamics with a 2-point edge and Kiwi Ears CANTA has significantly better soundstage with a 1-point edge.

Insights

Metric Kiwi Ears CANTA Etymotic ER2SE
Bass 6.5 5.5
Mids 4 6.3
Treble 7 4.7
Details 6.5 5
Soundstage 6 5
Imaging 6.5 5
Dynamics 5 3
Tonality 6 5.1
Technicalities 7.3 5.1

Kiwi Ears CANTA Aggregated Review Score

Average Reviewer Scores

Jays Audio Jaytiss
Z-Reviews

Average Reviewer Score:

6.5

Cautiously Favorable


Etymotic ER2SE Aggregated Review Score

Average Reviewer Scores

Jaytiss
Jays Audio Precogvision Tim Tuned
Super* Review

Average Reviewer Score:

5.2

Mixed to Negative


Kiwi Ears CANTA User Review Score

Average User Scores

Average User Score: n/a

Based on 0 user reviews

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Etymotic ER2SE User Review Score

Average User Scores

Average User Score: n/a

Based on 0 user reviews

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Kiwi Ears CANTA Gaming Score

Gaming Score & Grade

  • The gaming score is prioritizing technical capabilities of the IEM (Separation, Layering, Soundstage) and good value.

Gaming Score

6.9

Gaming Grade

B+

Etymotic ER2SE Gaming Score

Gaming Score & Grade

  • The gaming score is prioritizing technical capabilities of the IEM (Separation, Layering, Soundstage) and good value.

Gaming Score

5.1

Gaming Grade

C+

Kiwi Ears CANTA Scorings

Average Technical & Tuning Grades

Average Tunign Grade

B
  • Generally enjoyable tonal character with some noticeable unevenness. Maintains listenability while showing room for refinement in frequency balance.

Average Technical Grade

A-
  • Competent technical presentation. Handles separation and detail well in most tracks, with modest soundstage and acceptable imaging capabilities.
Mids C-
Midrange is passable but unrefined. Lacks detail and smoothness, with occasional harshness in upper mids.
Treble A-
Excellent treble: airy, extended and well-controlled. Great micro-detail retrieval without sibilance or harshness.
Dynamics C+
Decent dynamic performance. Good macro-contrast but micro-dynamics could be more nuanced. Satisfactory impact.
Soundstage B
Good soundstage with proper width and depth. Instruments have clear positioning with reasonable front/back placement.
Gaming B+
Respectable environmental presentation favors atmosphere over precision. Detects obvious directional cues while conveying game world ambiance.

Etymotic ER2SE Scorings

Average Technical & Tuning Grades

Average Tunign Grade

C+
  • Generally enjoyable tonal character with some noticeable unevenness. Maintains listenability while showing room for refinement in frequency balance.

Average Technical Grade

C+
  • Satisfactory technical performance. Handles basic detail retrieval adequately in most tracks. Maintains reasonable cohesion in simpler arrangements.
Bass B-
Average bass performance - present but unremarkable. Has reasonable texture but lacks depth and physicality.
Mids B
Good midrange presence with solid clarity. Vocals are clear and instruments have reasonable texture and body.
Treble C
Average treble performance - present but lacking refinement. Some graininess or splashiness affects clarity.
Dynamics D
Noticeably compressed dynamics. Musical expression suffers with weak transients and poor contrast between quiet and loud sections.
Soundstage C+
Decent spatial presentation with noticeable width. Some depth perception but height dimension remains underdeveloped.
Details C+
Decent detail retrieval. Handles most textures adequately though micro-details and ambient cues could be more pronounced.
Imaging C+
Decent positional accuracy. Good left/right placement with acceptable center image, though depth positioning is approximate.
Gaming C+
Fundamental left/right positioning with limited depth perception. Works for non-competitive gaming but lacks precision.

Kiwi Ears CANTA Reviews

Z-Reviews 7.5 * score normalized
Jays Audio 6 Reviewer Score
A- Tuning
A Tech
Bright set with lots of treble detail. Airy, splashy, and shimmery with great extension. Isn't sharp or metallic in the timbre, but not 100% "natural" either, comes down to preference. Mid-volume set, good with slower genres, not rec for high energy tracks, can get much at higher volumes. Favors female vocals, male could be a bit light and could use more power, but vocals aren't thin or shrill sounding like the Oracle MK2s. Not gonna float everyone's boat, but it's a unique listen (not the same planar tuning yay) and worth having as a collectors piece.

Jays Audio original ranking

Jays Audio Youtube Channel
- Jays Audio
Jaytiss 6 Reviewer Score
C+ Tuning
A- Tech
check links for more info:

Jaytiss original ranking

Jaytiss Youtube Channel
- Jaytiss
Mids: C- Treble: A- Dynamics: C+ Soundstage: B

Etymotic ER2SE Reviews

Super* Review 7* * score normalized
check links for more info:

Super* Review original ranking

Super* Review Youtube Channel
- Super* Review
Jays Audio 5.5 Reviewer Score
B+ Tuning
B+ Tech
Great detail & clarity. Fit took a long time to get used. Very clear and natural mids and treble. Lacks lower-extension, and couldn't handle bass notes on Time by Hikaru Utada (0:40+).

Jays Audio original ranking

Jays Audio Youtube Channel
- Jays Audio
Precogvision 5.2 Reviewer Score
B- Tuning
C+ Tech
See ER2XR but with less sub-bass.

Precogvision original ranking

Precogvision Youtube Channel
- Precogvision
Bass: C+ Mids: A- Treble: C+ Dynamics: C+ Details: C+ Imaging: C+
Tim Tuned 5 Reviewer Score
C+ Tuning
A- Tech
Great detail Intrusive fit

Tim Tuned original ranking

Tim Tuned Youtube Channel
- Tim Tuned
Bass: B Mids: A+ Treble: A-
Jaytiss 3.3 Reviewer Score
D Tuning
E+ Tech
Old, Treble for days.

Jaytiss original ranking

Jaytiss Youtube Channel
- Jaytiss
Mids: C- Treble: E+ Dynamics: E- Soundstage: C+

Kiwi Ears CANTA User Reviews

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Etymotic ER2SE User Reviews

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