No, @vadinoy, they were some silicone aftermarkets.

You state. Specialist cable, allowing for a style of bass control and clarity through diminishment of the lower midrange, clearing the path for vocals to emerge... Is this the main mechanism that cables can alter the perception of the sound in you opinion? Got a link to any cable comparisons you have done/

@David Haworth,
Well, the cable change can do a number of things.

And not specific to the X....................
We are all looking for either a style of balance with an un-balanced IEM. Or maybe looking for a wider stage.........it can be so many things, maybe someone wants a diminished bass response. So a more expensive cable doesn’t always work as maybe the two personalities of IEM and Cable don’t mix, or you don’t get what you are after? Changing the vocal placement and texture could be one advantage.

My cable comparisons are throughout most of the reviews I write, I couldn't possibly put them into one place..........I'm too busy writing the next review. Good idea though.

Great review, how I find them as well.

@Colin5619 thanks, appreciate it. Good to hear someone who has the same reaction.

I wish the Artti T10 had a good looking shell like the Pandamon 2.0 and it would be perfect

Wow @carrots99 how is the ARTII T10? Seen many good reports from users about it, but never had the privilege to try it.

thank you for the measurement, does someone have the measurement of the first version at hand?

I want to meet Lee of Elysian one day just to see how his ears look like. Don't understand why he insists on supplying W1 for all of his creations whilst a deeper fit just works better.

Enjoying these with Kasey too. Top review

@David Haworth thank brother. I appreciate your kind words man

@Jacobal I owned both Ronin and these. Imo these were better for me. The ronin's I felt were a bit boring. Nothing sticks out. It's an alright "do everything" kinda iem. At that price the RN6 or 622B do that role much better while each being special.

Special mention about the RN6, which are very nice sounding indeed. The CP54e still have my preference soundwise, but it’s a close call. Price wise, no need to discuss it…

Great review ! They seem similar in many ways to the Noble audio Spartacus. Nothing better than a bassy set with great technicalities

i'm quite interested in trying these, not only because they are the KZ flagship... but I've not tried a BA-only set. But I have the Symphony and am loving it,,,

Nice review, have ordered a pair, my KZ ASTs have the left channel body, breaking at the cable join. However the KZ AST is still the premier KZ model, the most expensive also.

Tried mine out a little last night… I got the one with switches and so far I need the bass turned all the way up. I see what you mean about it not being the best for EDM… the bass lines are not very impactful. The Symphony would be better for that but again, I got the AS24 because the Symphony has too much bass for some songs, particularly songs with kick drums. The AS24 seems to have better, more dynamic vocals though… so far I’m not sure I’ve found a new KZ at that I think is a true all-rounder but I need to keep testing the AS24 before I write a review.

I am curious as to how this sounded as I am a big Chord fan & the Questyle M15 sounds like a 'mini Mojo 2' - it is also one of only two dongles I've ever thought was impressive (It's also the one I bought as I got it for about 100 USD 2nd hand & the other one I liked, the L&P W4 was 250 2nd hand. I hardly use a dongle so the cheaper the better).

I've heard so many people claim their new toy (OP this isn't aimed at you; you haven't claimed this) is better than a Mojo 2, but I find that very difficult to believe - recency bias is fortunately something I have become immune to & I don't think a lot of people are very good at being objective... eg I understand why people love HD600's but I personally find them dull as dishwater.

Mojo 2 cult members have you heard this thing & how does it measure up?
I only own two portable dac/amps; a Mojo 2 & another Mojo 2 in case I lose/break/forget to charge the other.

I bought both at the same time a few weeks ago, and spent quite a bit of time A/B ing them ignorer to definitively choose which one to ultimately keep. I did not have a particular bias one way or the other and both had practical features that made the decision difficult. After a few weeks of this testing , to me I can confidently say while both are impressive, for sound quality the CMA 18p wins out in the end for its sound qualities. It is really a wonderful sounding device!

CMA18P is too noisy for IEM's unfortunately. Mojo2 reigns supreme, if even a little less convenient. (No LDAC) The CMA18P requires the leather case from the jump to protect it from sliding/scratches. Works fine with the RN6 but the EVO and Campfire offerings, the background hiss on pause with cellphone processing noises passed through is unacceptable for 700$ I really wanted a portable version of the RME ADI 2 chip, but this wasn't it. Hopefully a future revision brings the background down and I would 100% recommend it. I originally wanted to replace my BTR7 with this for in the pocket OTG LDAC use case with wired as a back up.