The LETSHUOER DZ4 was kindly provided free of charge in exchange for an honest review. I didn’t receive monetary or any other kind of compensation and I don’t use affiliate links. The price of the DZ4 is $89 and you can buy it from LETSHUOER online shop.
LETSHUOER DZ4
The LETSHUOER DZ4 is an earphone that utilizes a unique configuration of triple 6mm, titanium diaphragm, dynamic drivers and a single 6mm passive radiator. The three dynamic drivers each perform their respective roles, delivering excellent high-frequency performance, rapid transient response, and unleashing three times the sound energy. A four-way acoustic tube and two-way crossover together with carefully selected Knowles acoustic damping material ensure stable sound transmission. The drivers are connected to the dual-pin receptacle via a flexible printed circuit (FPC) crossover board.
Appearance and fit
The ear-shells of the LETSHUOER DZ4 are a fusion of metal and resin. The faceplate is made from CNC-milled anodized aluminum with a semi-open design where an orange decorative “Z” pattern acts as a venting port. The main body of the chassis is 3D printed from resin material to a shape that follows the ear anatomy. At 5g per ear-piece, the DZ4 is super lightweight and thanks to the ergonomically shaped ear-shells it fits well and offers a comfortable wearing experience even after prolonged listening sessions but passive noise attenuation is average due to the semi-open design. The LETSHUOER DZ4 is a really well made earphone with high quality craftsmanship and a smooth finish that is scratch resistant and doesn’t attract fingerprints.
Cable
The DZ4 features a detachable cable with the 2-pin 0.78mm interface that ends in an aluminum 3.5mm plug with a strain relief. It is a braided design with four cores of silver plated copper, a high quality cable that is flexible, durable, tangle resistant and free of microphonic noise. It would be nice if there was the option for the buyer to order it with a plug of his choice.
Accessories
The LETSHUOER DZ4 comes with a hard-plastic cylindrical case that is sturdy but not that pocket friendly, and two types of silicone ear-tips in three sizes each.
Power requirements and associated gear
With 16Ω impedance and 104dB of sensitivity, the LETSHUOER DZ4 is really easy to drive but quite vulnerable to source noise while it scales well up to a certain point. Driving it from your phone’s 3.5mm jack will not do justice to it and I would suggest using at least a decent USB DAC dongle like the iBasso DC03 Pro or the Shanling UA1 Plus. As per usual practice the DZ4 was left playing music for about 50 hours before listening evaluation.
Listening impressions
What a pleasant surprise was the LETSHUOER DZ4! Balanced, natural and very musical sounding, one of the most enjoyable and tonally accurate earphones I have tested lately no matter the price. As a matter of fact the audio performance far exceeds the asking price and it didn’t take too long for the LETSHUOER DZ4 to become one of my favorite earphones.
The tuning of the DZ4 is well balanced and leads to a tonally accurate reproduction of all acoustic instruments and voices. The low-end is neutralish with good sub-bass extension and without any significant mid-bass emphasis or any kind of bleeding into the mids. The bass is surprisingly tight and controlled with great clarity and definition for the category while it sounds weighty, full bodied and impactful. Great low-end response both for its natural tuning and the technical performance alike, the DZ4 will please almost everyone, be it a critical or a more casual listener.
The mid-range is impressive, not only because of its highly organic and very musical nature or its tonal richness but also for its varied and colorful harmonies, sound properties that all of them contribute to add to the overall sense of realism. Resolution, clarity and articulation are punching well above the category while the texture is weighty and full bodied with well defined shapes.
The treble tuning is also well executed and very natural, it is extended and energetic yet smooth and forgiving but without lacking in detail retrieval and clarity. Resolution and refinement are still better than someone would expect from a $89 earphone and what is really interesting is the absence of artificiality and that the texture is weighty and full bodied in accordance with the rest of the frequencies. I guess that this is the benefit of using three drivers of the same type to cover the whole frequency range instead of going the hybrid route. Driver integration is also excellent and the LETSHUOER DZ4 sounds very cohesive.
The semi-open design of the DZ4 helps a lot to make it sound open and spacious with a moderately wide soundstage that never feels congested. Don’t expect very deep layering or the best sense of holography but still the DZ4 is quite grand sounding with satisfying positioning accuracy.
Vs LETSHUOER S12 Pro ($135)
The S12 PRO is another earphone by LETSHUOER that utilizes a custom, 14.8mm large planar magnetic driver. The S12 Pro is also well made, lightweight and comfortable as the DZ4 and additionally it comes with a higher quality and more compact carrying case and a modular cable with three plugs.
The S12 Pro is more technical sounding with greater clarity and definition, more tight and controlled in the bass with deeper detail retrieval but it is also leaner, slightly less impactful and it has a tuning that significantly emphasizes the upper treble instead of sounding smooth as the DZ4.
In the end
The LETSHUOER DZ4 is a hell of a surprise, it is so natural, musical, engaging and tonally balanced that it almost reminds of the LETSHUOER Cadenza, the company’s flagship. Yes, that good is the LETSHUOER DZ4 and there is nothing much left to add than that it is one of the best reasonably priced earphones for both critical and casual listening to all kinds of music, a great all-rounder that is going to satisfy a great variety of users.
Copyright – Petros Laskis 2023.
+ Balanced and smooth tuning + Good sub-bass extension + Musical and engaging + Great technicalities for the category + Natural timbre without treble artificiality + Open sounding with good imaging + Lightweight and comfortable + Excellent build quality + High quality cable + Sturdy carrying case + Impressive value for money - Sensitive to source noise - Average passive noise attenuation - No option to order it with a balanced cable
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