Budget IEMs you can listen to for hours - Kiwi Ears Cadenza Review

The Kiwi Ears Cadenza are touted as one of the best budget picks for those looking for high-fidelity audio under $50. There are even multiple color options for you to match the earbuds to your style. But does the sound of the Kiwi Ears Cadenza match your preference?

What’s it like to use the Kiwi Ears Cadenza?

For a budget option, the Kiwi Ears Cadenza are built pretty well. The earbuds that house the 10mm drivers are made of plastic, making the earphones lightweight, but prone to fingerprints and microscratches with their glossy shell. Most photos online show off a colorful shell, but the set we received isn’t that bright and colorful unless they’re in direct sunlight.

The earphones fit well in my ears and come with an excess of eartip options. This is great if you tend to have issues with finding a proper fit with earphones. Using the Cadenza for six or more hours isn’t a problem, but I did notice they feel warm in my ears over time. The included wire doesn’t have a mic, but it is supple enough that I don’t feel it tug the earbuds. Looking at the Kiwi Ears Cadenza page, the warranty states that the wire specifically is only 3 months, compared to the 1-year warranty of the earbuds themselves. That’s fine, but it doesn’t inspire any confidence in the wire.

What are the best features of the Kiwi Ears Cadenza?

The Kiwi Ears Cadenza have a soft wire and an array of ear-tips to pick from, ensuring you have the best possible fit. There are also multiple colors to match your style, from blue, green, purple, and red. As old-school wired earphones, that’s about all you get for features here.

How does the Kiwi Ears Cadenza connect?

The Cadenza earphones come with a cable terminated in a 3.5mm connector. With an impedance of 32Ω, there is no need to get a separate amp to drive the Kiwi Ears Cadenza.

How well do the Kiwi Ears Cadenza block out noise?

The Kiwi Ears Cadenza blocks out a decent amount of noise. They don’t feature any active noise cancelling, but they slightly decrease some low-end hum and a decent bit of high-pitched whine. Our testing shows that the passive isolation can block out up to 10dB of low-frequency noise and up to 30dB of high-frequency noise, which is about average for IEMs.

When trying to listen to people talk, they sound a little muffled but still understandable. With some music playing, I can still hear people in the background, but they don’t stand out too much compared to the music. Sounds like the shrill screech of un-oiled brakes on a truck is considerably less painful, but definitely noticeable.

How do the Kiwi Ears Cadenza sound?

Most people will enjoy the way the Kiwi Ears Cadenza sound. They don’t over-emphasize bass or treble, so you can listen to them for hours without fatigue.

Multi-Dimensional Audio Quality Scores (MDAQS)

The chart below shows how the Multi-Dimensional Audio Quality Score (MDAQS) algorithm from HEAD acoustics assesses the sound of the Kiwi Ears Cadenza. The sound quality is rated on a scale from 1.0 (very bad) to 5.0 (very good).

The Kiwi Ears Cadenza have an impressively high Timbre score, meaning that most people are going to enjoy how they sound without needing to adjust with an equalizer. The Distortion score of 3.6 is a bit lacking, but still within the range of what most people find difficult to notice. The Immersiveness score of 3.4 is within the typical range for most IEMs.

Reviewer’s notes

Editor’s note: This review uses a hover-enabled glossary to describe sound quality based on a consensus vocabulary. You can read about it here.

Objective Measurements

Our measurements show that the Kiwi Ears Cadenza isn’t too far off the SoundGuys preference curve. These IEMs slightly under-emphasize bass compared to our curve, but the sub-bass is closer to our preference. Along with the bass, the mids are noticeably recessed around 500Hz. In the treble, there is a slight peak at 11 kHz, but otherwise there are no strong deviations.

Can you use the Kiwi Ears Cadenza for gaming?

For story-driven games, dialogue doesn’t get lost in the middle of action and background music. Games like Stardew Valley, which tend to have a lot of high-pitched instruments in the background, aren’t overly fatiguing with the Kiwi Ears Cadenza. If you’re into action games, the Cadenza lacks the low-end punch to feel immersed in the action, making explosions fall flat. Trying to locate the positions of sound in competitive shooters is difficult. The Cadenza do have a great sense of depth, but sound slightly too narrow. In Apex Legends, I couldn’t pinpoint the sound of another character with a lot of accuracy. On the other hand, audio cues don’t get lost in the mix in games like DOTA2. When a fight breaks out, it’s not difficult to listen for those cues, though you’ll still need to pay attention.

On the gaming comfort side of things, I found the Kiwi Ears Cadenza get warm over time, but never hot, through over 6 hours of use.

Should you buy the Kiwi Ears Cadenza?

Other than colorful shells not matching the expectations from most of the Kiwi Ears Cadenza photos, there isn’t much to complain about. At $35, the Kiwi Ears Cadenza are a great value pick for those on a budget, and looking for a sound that doesn’t over-emphasize bass or treble. If you’re looking for loads of detail from your IEMs, you might need to spend a bit more. But if you’re looking for something affordable and non-fatiguing, the Cadenza are a good choice. For the gamers out there, the sound of the Cadenza has a positive effect in story-driven and cozy games, but isn’t as great in action games or competitive shooters.

What should you get instead of the Kiwi Ears Cadenza?

These days there are a lot of great budget IEMs on the market. The Tangzu Wan’er S.G. costs less than a typical dinner night out while still delivering great sound quality ($24.99 at Amazon). Note that the Tangzu IEMs do provide a bit more bass than the Kiwi Ears Cadenza.

If you are willing to spend a bit more, the Truthear Hexa are worth checking out ($67.99 at Amazon). The Hexa are worth the money if you want a bit more detail in the highs compared to the Kiwi Ears Cadenza. They also come with a very unique carrying pouch that looks great.

Kiwi Ears Cadenza review: FAQs