KEFINE Klanar IEM Review

Introduction:

KEFINE is a new brand focusing on portable audio products. The brand name KEFINE (Kəfaɪn) comes from the combination of the founder name Ke (Kə) and the word “Refine”. KEFINE is planning to provide refined audio products for music lovers with affordable price. The first product is a new Planar Driver IEM named Klanar that has been inspired from the word Planar. The Klanar features a 14.5 mm diameter customized Planar Magnetic Driver located inside a 5-Axis CNC machined Aluminum Alloy shell that has a pretty small size and comfortable shape.

Disclaimer:

I would like to thank KEFINE for providing me the Klanar Planar IEM as review sample. I am not affiliated with KEFINE or any third person beyond this review and all these words reflect my true, unaltered opinions about the product.

Price & Availability:

The actual price for the KEFINE Klanar is $119.00 USD. More information’s can be found under the link below;

• KEFINE Klanar Planar Driver IEM (Audio 46 USA)
• KEFINE Klanar Planar Driver IEM (AliExpress)
• KEFINE Klanar Planar Driver IEM (Linsoul)
• KEFINE Klanar Planar Driver IEM (HiFiGO)

Package & Accessories:

The KEFINE Klanar came inside a black box that was wrapped with a white cardboard sleeve that shows illustrations of the IEM and some product related brandings and specs on the top and rear surface.

Inside the box are the following items/accessories;

• 1 x KEFINE Klanar Planar Driver In-Ear Monitors
• 1 x 2-Pin Detachable Cable with 3.5mm Headphone Plug
• 3 x pairs of Balanced Silicone Ear Tips (S, M, L)
• 3 x pairs of Bass Enhance Silicone Ear Tips (S, M, L)
• 1 x Zipper Case

Design & Build Quality:

The KEFINE Klanar has a sturdy monitor housing made of a 5-Axis machined single piece of aluminum alloy with a black anodized finish. The monitor housing is designed to be as small as possible, with a shell wall thickness of only 0.2mm at the thinnest point.

Inside the monitors is a 14.5mm large planar magnetic driver unit with a PET composite diaphragm, N55 magnet and customized driver construction.

The faceplate has a simple and elegant design, featuring the KEFINE logo in the center of a circular shape.

The inner cavity has two openings, the L (left earpiece) / R (right earpiece) makings and the slightly angled sound nozzle. On the top of each nozzle is a metal filter in order to prevent the insertion of unwanted particles such like dust or earwax, which has a nice texture. Here are also a two pressure relief holes.

On the top of the monitor shell is the 0.78mm diameter 2-Pin female connector interface that offers a tight connection.

The KEFINE Klanar comes with an innovative 4 core dual-wire cable design combines two distinct components, which is the OFC (Oxygen Free Copper) litz wire with a brown and the silver-plated copper litz wire cable with a black insulation outlay.

Each core features 54 strands that makes 216 strands in total.

The cable has a braided design and a relative soft TPU insulation that shows a pretty low amount of microphonic effect.

The 2-Pin connectors do have a plastic housing; the L/R markings are not very visible. Near the left and right connectors are heat shrink ear guides for extra comfort on the go.

There cable comes with a metal y-splitter & chin slider with a black anodized fisnish, while the y-splitter sports the Klanar branding on its surface.

The detachable cable is available in two different headphone plugs terminations, which are the one with a 3.5mm Single Ended interface and the one with a 4.4mm Balanced (TRRRS) plug interface that you can chose when your order the monitors. My review unit came with the 3.5mm Single Ended plug variant that features a straight profiled metal housing with the same black fisnish that has the KEFINE branding.

The build quality of both the monitors and the detachable cable is decent!

Comfort & Isolation:

I relay like the monitor shape of the KEFINE Klanar, which fits perfectly to my medium sized ears and it does not hurt my concha even after longer listening periods. The passive noise isolation of the monitors is on an average level that is sufficient suitable for the use in relative noise environments such like a bus or a train.

Pairing & Drivability:

The KEFINE Klanar is not a hard to driver Planar IEM despite its relative large 14.5mm diameter Planar Magnetic Driver unit. It has an rated impedance of 16Ω and a sensitivity of approx. 105dB, which makes it compatible with sources like a USB DAC/AMP dongles (FiiO KA1) or smaller sized DAP’s (Hidizs AP80) with limited amplification capabilities. However, I have heard an audible improvement in terms of sound performance when I have hooked the Klanar to a desktop amplifier like the FiiO K9 and Topping DX5 Lite, which showed a better sense dynamics and a more expansive soundstage presentation.

Technical Specifications:

• Model                          : Klanar
• Driver Unit                  : 14.5mm dia. Planar Magnetic Driver
• Sensitivity                   : 105dB +/- 3dB
• Impedance                  : 16Ω
• Frequency Response : 20 Hz – 40 KHz
• Connector Interface   : 0.78mm dia. 2-Pin
• Plug                            : 3.5mm Single Ended or 4.4mm Balanced
• Cable Length              : approx. 120cm

Equipment’s used for this review:

• IEM’s             : KEFINE Klanar
• Sources         : FiiO M11 Plus, FiiO K9, FiiO KA13, Topping DX5 Lite

Albums & Tracks used for this review:

• Adele – My Little Love (Spotify)
• Randy Crawford – On Day I Will Fly Away (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Hayley Westenra – Odyssey Album (Dezzer HiFi)
• Dionne Warwick – Walk On By (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Sarah McLachlan – Angel (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
• Sertap Erener – Aşk (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Edith Piaf – Non Je Ne Regrette Rien (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Diana Krall – So Wonderful (DSF)
• Aretha Franklin – I Say A Little Payer (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Sonya Yoncheva – (Giuseppe Verdi) II Trovatore, ActI (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• George Michael – Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• David Bowie – Heroes (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Elton John – Rocket Man ((Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Barry White – Just The Way You Are (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
• Isaac Hayes – Walk On By (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Sting – Englishman in New York – (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
• Eric Clapton – Wonderful Tonight (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• B.B. King – Riding With The King (Tidal Hi-Fi)
• Dave Gahan – Kingdom (Tidal Hi-Fi)
• U2 – Sunday Bloody Sunday (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Billie Eilish – Bad Guy (Deezer HiFi)
• Imagine Dragons – Believer (Deezer HiFi)
• Bro Safari, UFO! – Drama (Deezer HiFi)
• Armin Van Buuren – Vini Vici (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Daft Punk – Doin’ it Right (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Jo Blankenburg – Meraki (Spotify)
• Lorde – Royals (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
• Massive Attack – Angel (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
• Toutant – Rebirth (Deezer HiFi)
• Gogo Penguin – Raven (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Gogo Penguin – Murmuration (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Portishead – It Could Be Sweet (Spotify)
• Max Richter – On the Nature of Daylight (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Charly Antolini – Duwadjuwandadu (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Ferit Odman – Look, Stop & Listen (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Chopin – Nocturn No. 20 In C-Sharp Minor (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Fazıl Say – Nazım Oratoryosu (Live) (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Vivaldi – Le QuarttroStagioni “The Four Season” (Deezer HiFi)
• Otto Liebert & Luna Negra – The River (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Lunatic Soul – The Passage (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Deftones – My Own Summer (Shove it) (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Metallica – Sad but True (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Metallica – Master of Puppets (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Opeth – Windowpane (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Megadeth – Sweating Bullets (Tidal Hi-Fi)
• Rush’s – Leave That Thing Alone (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Slayer – Angel of Death (Spotify)
• Liquid Tension Experiment 2 – Acid Rain (Spotify)
• Yosi Horikawa – Bubbles (Spotify)

The Sound:

The KEFINE Klanar is an In-Ear Monitor that impresses with its clarity, power and fun tuned sound. It has a warm touch to its tonality that complements its lively and detailed sound profile. The bass is strong and controlled, the midrange is transparent and natural, and the treble range is produced in a smooth and relaxed manner, which avoids any shoutiness even at higher volume levels.

This review has written after a burn-in period of about 60 hours. I have used the stock balanced silicone ear tips and the stock 4core cable that are included inside the package. My sound impressions below are based on my auditions with devices like the FiiO M11 Plus ESS (DAP), FiiO KA13 (USB DAC) and Topping DX5 Lite (Desktop DAC/Amplifier).

Bass / Midrange / Treble / Soundstage & Imaging:

The KEFINE Klanar is a pair of IEMs that delivers a deep and powerful bass response, thanks to its 14.5mm Planar Magnet Driver that enhances the subbass area. The subbass region is one of the strengths of the Klanar, as it provides a satisfying level of depth, authority and extension, while listening to songs like Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy”, Daft Punk’s “Doin’ it Right” and Imagine Dragons’ “Believer”, which are reproduced with a great sense of punch and rumble.

The midbass region is another aspect where the Klanar excels, as it produces a warm and full sound that complements the subbass region. The midbass region does not exhibit any signs of distortion or bleeding, and handles instruments like bass drums, bass guitars and pianos with ease.

The KEFINE Klanar offers a pretty musical midrange presentation that is produced with a warmish tonality and in a fairly natural and balanced manner. The midrange of the Klanar is not affected by the lower frequency area, which surprised me since the bass is quite pronounced and is rendered with a good level of clarity and resolution, thanks to the well-adjusted upper midrange region.

The lower midrange of the KEFINE Klanar shows a moderate amount of body and depth when I have listen to male voices like Dave Gahan, Sting or Isaac Hayes and to instruments such like a violin and guitar, where I would wish a bit more body/fullness. The upper midrange on the other hand sounds more pronounced and lively compared to the lower midrange area and adds some good level of brightness and sparkle to the sound. Female voices and instruments like flutes, clarinets that have reproduced in a pretty clear and detailed manner and the grade of resolution is quite decent.

The lower treble region of the KEFINE Klanar is well rounded and is able to enhance the sense of clarity and brightness of this area. Strings, percussion and soprano voices do sound in general crisp and well defined. The lower treble region does not sound harsh or ear piercing, but rather smooth and balanced, which makes it ideal for longer listening periods and enjoyable for a wider variety of genres.

The mid treble region shows an audible roll-off that was audible when I have listen to cymbals and brass instruments. However, it does not make the Klanar do sound too dull and muted in this area. When it comes to the upper treble register, I can say that it adds some good sense of airiness and spaciousness to the sound. The Klanar performs well in this area, as it sounds airy and wide, and does not show any unwanted over sharpness. It is rather smooth and natural in this area, while the extension is a bit short.

The KEFINE Klanar has a suitable soundstage for a relative precise instrument placement. It offers a pretty airy and spacious soundstage atmosphere, while the sense of depth and wideness of the stage is on a sufficient level for a product at this price level.

Conclusion:

The Klanar is a successful step by KEFINE in to the world of In-Ear Monitors. It has a robust build quality and offers a comfortable wearing experience. This small and compact monitor is equipped with a relative large 14.5mm Planar Magnetic Driver that is able to produce a musical sound experience with its powerful yet controlled bass response, warmish but transparent and clean midrange tuning, and a treble presentation that offers enough airiness and sparkle without to sound muted or shouty in this area.

Pros & Cons:

• + Musical and Enjoyable Overall Sound Profile
• + Fats, Controlled and Punchy Planar Bass Response
• + Transparent Midrange Presentation
• + Smooth Treble tuning that offers an efficient sense of airiness and sparkle
• + Good Built Quality & Ergonomic Monitor Shape
• + Decent 4-Core mixed hybrid cable available with 3.5mm SE or 4.4mm Balanced Plug

• – Some roll-off around the Mid Treble area
• – Lower Midrange is missing some body and depth
• – Mediocre Unboxing Experience

Thank you for the Read!