Review - Kefine Klanar

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TLDR version on YouTube: TDLR - Kefine Klanar

The Kefine Klanar have been sent to me directly by Kefine in exchange for the publication of this review. As always, I will make every attempt to be as unbiased as humanly possible. Kefine have not made any requests or comments and all opinions are my own.

I cannot find an official page for Kefine but the Klanar are available through all of the usual stores that sell IEMs online.

To avoid being repetetive in my reviews, you can find all the info about how I create the reviews, equipment used, how I receive the products and how to interpret my reviews by visiting: About my reviews

Intro…

Kefine is a new brand and the Klanar are their first set of IEMs. As an entry into the IEM world, they have opted to go with a 14.5mm planar driver and are priced at a little over the 100€ mark.

I can't really give you a back story on them as I don't know it but when they reached out to me, I was happy to give them a listen.

It's true that they have picked a segment, the planar magnetic IEM segment, that is quite crowded at the moment, yet the price is an interesting one, coming in at the lower end of the current planar options, so let's see how they did.

Presentation…

The box is a plain black one, with a lift off lid, that arrives inside a white cardboard sleeve. The front shows an image of the IEMs, along with the brand, model and "Planar IEM" on the front. On the back we get the basic specs, along with another image of the IEMs, and that is about it. The outer packaging doesn't do much to stand out, but that is not a complaint as I don't listen to the packaging. I would rather packaging be basic and the contents get the attention.

Inside the box we find that the packaging stays simple, with just a piece of foam with two cutouts for the IEMs and a larger one for the storage/transport case. The case is a simple grey semi rigid type with Kefine on the top and contains the additional silicone tips. In total there are 7 sets of tips included, with 3 different sizes and two core sizes, that are nothing special but do the job and are what I have used for this review.

Build and aesthetics…

The IEMs are almost as simple as the packaging, using a generic shape with Kefine written in white text and a white circle on a black faceplate and shell.

By simple I am not being negative here at all. No, they are not something that is going to jump out and grab your attention, which is often a very good thing, but they use a metal faceplate on a dark plastic shell that does not look out of place and honestly look to be well built (although only time will tell).

Due to the simple, generic shape of the shells, they should be comfortable for the vast majority of users and I am no exception here. For long listening periods I did not find them to create any discomfort at all.

The included cable is a four core brown and black weave, with a metal 3.5mm connector and splitter, along with plastic two pin connectors at the IEM end. As with the whole package so far, nothing is special but nothing is offensive, I can't see the aesthetics being a negative at all.

Sound…

All tracks mentioned are clickable links that allow you to open the reference track in the streaming service of your choice (YouTube, Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify, etc.)

Ok, so far we have a very generic set of IEMs and when we get to the sound, we could expect the same, seeing that the driver used in these IEMs is one that we have seen in many other models so far. The majority of those other models have been on the better side of things, although there have been a few that were let down by the tuning. In the case of the Klanar, I must say that I feel they have done a good job.

Here is the graph of the Klanar in comparison to my usual personal preference target:

It's been a while since I said it, so I will remind people that my target is not a "be all end all" as far as tuning. While that reference is a good guide to my personal preferences as far as tuning, it doesn't mean that I don't enjoy other sound signatures that deviate from it (or that I always enjoy those that are close to it).

Now, let's do my usual round up referring to my test tracks that I always use for detailed listening and review references.

Starting off with the subbass, there is plenty of presence in these areas with the Klanar. "Chameleon" has a lot of rumble in those low ranges, which is made even more present by the boosted midbass range that follows it.

To be honest, it is a little too much for my own tastes, making things a little overpowering for me in those lower notes, however, for those that do like plenty of low end, there is no denying that it does it well.

Let's face it, "Chameleon" is a track that is exaggerated in the lower ranges (being one of the reasons that I use it for testing), so moving on to something that is more focused in the midbass than the subbass, such as "Sun Is Shining", that exaggerated low end cleans up quite a bit. There is still plenty of midbass for those who want it but we are no longer surrounded by a wall of rumble.

Here the midbass does seem more controlled and refined, with a decent overall performance even if a little elevated for my tastes.

If we focus on my usual midbass fatigue test track, which is "Crazy" by Daniella Andrade, I do not find the midbass tiring. This is always a good sign to me as, when midbass is overly present and not well controlled, I will quickly feel nauseous and even get a headache before the end of the track. Again, it is noticeable that the presence is above what would be my preference for this track but the quality is there to keep it from being a negative.

As we move into the mid range, here there is a noticeable lack of presence. This can make male vocals lack presence in their midrange, sort of hiding them behind the bass. With female vocals backed with acoustic music, such as Daniella Andrade in the track I just mentioned, or Sara K. in "All You Love Turned To Passion", this is not as noticeable. There is plenty of presence in the upper mids to bring clarity to them even if there is a bit of mid presence lacking.

This lack of mids stands out more when we have more complex tracks, especially with male vocals, such as "Get Lucky" or something more rock like Rage Against The Machine in "Killing In The Name Of", where Zac is slightly overshadowed by those thunderous bass and guitar notes.

One thing I will say is that Kefine have done a very good job elevating those upper mids to bring clarity and counteract the bass presence, without making the IEMs shouty or thin. Looking at the graph I would have expected things to be very shouty but it is not the case.

As we move into the upper treble, there is a bit of roll off which is noticeable but does not sound bad. It just adds to that V shaped signature that the Klanar are aiming for.

Details are as good as on many other sets that use this same planar driver, with the lower ranges being very well presented as far as details go, unless we have the wall of rumble that is "Chameleon" of course 😉

Sound stage I would say is about average for a set of IEMs, which is not bad for something that has this amount of bass presence. The bass can fill the sound stage quite nicely and while things are not milimetrically placed, that extra clarity of the upper mids does allow a nice stereo separation.

Conclusion…

I think that the Klanar are a very respectable first entry for a new company. They have kept things very simple with the design and presentation, chosen a sound signature that should appeal to the masses and spent their resources on getting that part, the most important part, right.

They are not my favourite sound signature but they are a very enjoyable presentation that I have had no issue listening to over the past week. Again, I feel that the tuning they have decided to go with is something that is not going to stand them apart from many other brands in the segment but they have made a good job of it.

When you are new, you can take the risk of doing something completely different and either make a huge impact or fail miserably and make your first impression a bad one, which is something that will follow you for quite some time. In this case, Kefine have opted to do something simple and I think that they have set a good foundation to grow upon.