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TLDR version on YouTube: TDLR - Ziigaat x Jay Estrella
The Zigaat x Jay Estrella were sent to me by Linsoul but the unit was arranged by Jay through Linsoul. I have had a couple of private messages about this set with Jay but his only request was that I try different tips to those included, more on that later in the review. Other than that, there have been no requests from Jay or Linsoul and, as always, I will do my best to be as unbiased as possible in my review.
Ziigaat official page: https://www.ziigaat.com/products/ziigaat-x-jays-audio-estrella
The Estrella can be purchased via Linsoul here: https://www.linsoul.com/products/ziigaat-x-jays-audio-estrella
As with all links that I publish, these are non-affiliate links.
To avoid being repetitive 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…
For those of you that don’t know who Jay is, he is the person behind Jays Audio, a review channel on YouTube (you can find the channel here: Jays Audio). The Estrella are his first collaboration and have been created together with Ziigaat, a company that have seen quite a bit of popularity in recent times.
Although I haven’t really spoken with Jay too much, I know him from HifiGuides, where he is quite active, and have exchanged a couple of private messages with him regarding the Estrella. Apart from actually arranging the review unit, the other messages were in relation to me trying different tips (he recommended wide bore or Sancai tips) and some clarification to what I may have read in other comments or reviews about the Estrella.
Regarding other comments and/or reviews, as usual, as soon as I knew I was going to review the set, I have not read any further reviews or in depth opinions on the Estrella. I told Jay this and let him know that I didn’t need any clarification, as I hadn’t read anything about them since they were released and received by the first reviewers.
On the tip subject, I have to agree that the included tips are not the best option for these IEMs, at least in my opinion (and Jay’s opinion also, based on the message). Usually I always use a set of tips from the included ones that come with whatever I am reviewing, unless they are terrible or I just can’t get a correct fit/seal. In this case, the included tips are not great but they are not terrible but, as I was requested to tip roll, I did so and I ended up settling on the Sancai tips as recommended by Jay.
Other than that, my review of these IEMs follows my usual procedure. In other words, I spent the office time during the week using them and then sat down and spent a few hours doing some more focused and critical listening with my usual test track.
Just as a last comment, before moving on to the review, let me mention that the Estrella are a dual dynamic driver paired with 4 balanced armatures and are currently available via Linsoul for $299 (around 270€), so they are not a budget set of IEMs but they are not in a high price bracket either.
Presentation…
The packaging is nothing really special, although it is a little more exciting than other Ziigaat sets I have received in the past. The cover shows the IEMs sitting in front of the moon over a galaxy background, which makes sense as they are called Estrella (star in Spanish).
Removing the outer cover reveals the typical Ziigaat inner box, inside of which we find the IEMs in their sponge cut outs and another box containing the accessories. The accessories consist of a storage case, the cable, a set of foam tips and three sets of silicone tips in 3 sizes.
Not really an amazing unboxing experience at the price point but if the build and sound are good, this can be forgiven.
Build and aesthetics…
Let's get the negatives out of the way first. The tips are not terrible but are not great, especially when paired with the Estrella, but the included cable is not exactly brilliant either. I mean, it does get the job done but it feels rather cheap and plasticky.
As far as the IEMs go, they are well built, comfortable and rather good looking. They have a black shell and faceplate but there is a silver glitter in the black shell and a sort of diffused glitter finish to the faceplate, fading from a coloured glitter on one side to a black center and a silver glitter at the other side, with a very subtle glitter to the whole background. To the naked eye they don’t stand out much but when they are hit with the right lighting, they seem to come alive, making them look much better than my photos can make them look.
I think the IEMs deserve plenty of praise and the storage/transport case is decent also. They may not be the most beautiful IEMs I have ever seen but I do think they are good looking and I have absolutely nothing negative to say about them. I did find it strange that there is no mention of Jay on the IEMs.
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.)
Before getting to my opinions on the sound, here is the usual graph of the Estrella in comparison to my personal preference target as usual:
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As I mentioned previously, I did some tip rolling as recommended by Jay and after trying various options, I settled on the Sancai, which are what I have used for this evaluation.
Starting with my usual “Chameleon” test for the subbass, there is certainly a boosted presence in those lows. It is not to the point of being fatiguing but it is north of my personal comfort zone. Saying that, it doesn’t become too bloated in the low end, it still lets the other frequencies do their thing, it just has that extra rumble that will please those who like a nice thick low end.
With my other usual bass test, “No Sanctuary Here”, the extra emphasis on the low end works nicely to give it a more impressive low end, especially because it cleans up rather nicely into the midbass, avoiding things being muddy. It is like filling the lowest notes out and turning them into a think presence that doesn’t interfere with the low bassy vocals of the chorus, which manage to stay rather clear in that midbass zone.
Testing for midbass fatigue with “Crazy”, there is once again a thick low end but it is far from being too boomy in the reverb, keeping it clean enough for me to avoid fatigue and nausea. Daniela’s vocals are also nice and clean, with body to them and no real harshness in the upper ranges that can be found on so many sets. Her vocals may not be quite as up front as I would choose personally but they are still clear and have a very nice musicality to them.
I find that acoustic guitars have a nice amount of body to them which is smooth and while I wouldn’t call them a neutral representation of said instrument, at least what I consider neutral, they are a warm and lush representation which I find very enjoyable. I do find that at times, that warmth can place the vocals behind the guitar but it is not a bad experience, just a different way of hearing the tracks that can be very pleasurable.
Maybe the midrange is where things do take a step back, not in quality but in presence. Again referring to that low end that can “fill” the soundstage, vocals seem quite relaxed, missing maybe a little more sharpness to cut through. Once again, this is not necessarily a negative, depending on personal taste, but it does take vocals away from front of stage and place them further back into the mix.
The thing is, the upper mids are lovely and smooth, I have no complaints with them, they are just a little overshadowed by that low end in many cases. This does work very well for keeping harshness out of vocals in tracks that can become very harsh on many sets, such as Beth in “Don’t You Worry Child”.
Sibilance is also reduced in tracks such as “Hope Is A Dangerous Thing”, giving a smoothness to Lana Del Rey in the intro that I am quite a fan of. With the usual “Code Cool” sibilance test, I would say that Patricia Barber is at a sibilance level of -3 (on my non-scientific -12 to +12 scale).
Although the overall sound is rather smooth, the Estrella still manage to do a fairly competent job with detail. While the decay of the intro in “All Your Love” may not be amazing, it is still pretty good in comparison to many other sets. The vocal layers in “Strange Fruit” have enough separation between them to be clearly identified when focusing but at the same time, enough of a smoothness to be one very musical chorus when listening to the track as a whole.
As far as soundstage goes, with “La Luna” I find spacing and placement to be also very competent, with a nice separation between the surrounding instruments. The rear left guitar may be little more left than rear but it is still enough to give the sensation of coming from the back left. With something a little more complex, such as “Bubbles”, the placement is very good and the width of the stage is more than adequate to enjoy this track for what it is.
The Estrella are a very competent set of IEMs that come from a company that may not be the most known, collaborating with a reviewer who may also not be the biggest of names, but they have done a very respectful job.
The included accessories are not great but the IEMs are well built and the aesthetics work for them, which is a plus. You don’t need to change the cable (although it is cheap feeling) but I would certainly suggest playing around with different tips. I tried 6 or 7 types and landed on the Sancai but I honestly think that maybe trying more tips would probably give them even more of a nudge in the right direction for me.
There is an overall smoothness to the sound that is not lacking detail but does make things seem a little less lively. This is going to please some and not others. Personally I like just a little more aggressiveness to my vocals, especially when listening to things that are vocal and acoustically focused, but that does not mean I don’t enjoy the different “flavour” that the Estrella gives to many of these tracks.
The additional presence in the low end does fill out the sound quite a bit, which is something that I am sure that many will enjoy (I know I am in the minority with my bass preferences) and it does it without creeping into the midbass and lower mids, managing to keep things clear. It also gives a lot more body to certain instruments, even without boosting the midbass too much, which can once again be a positive or a negative, depending on personal preference.
Again, I feel that the Estrella are a competent set of IEMs that will work for a lot of people, especially those who like a bit more body to their music.
