Intro
KATO has been teased several times in Moondrop’s facebook page. Featuring swappable nozzle and also new eartip designed specifically for it. Namely the Spring tip. I am very lucky to have received Kato for the purpose of review. Let’s find out if it is worthy to add into your collection.
Packaging
The packaging as usual has the Moondrop’s anime style boxing. I had to tore the box a little just to get the inner packaging out as it was so tight and I couldn't get it out. LOL.
Once you unbox the inner packaging, you are greeted with a very well presented packaging. An ear tip carrying case consists of the new Spring tip as well as foam tip. A carrying case, extra nozzle
The stock cable that comes bundled is a high purity copper silver plated cable in a 4 core stranded structure. The cable itself is very soft and doesn’t tangle easily despite it looking a little thicker than the usual cable
10/10 for the packaging
Build and Comfort
The unit that I received is a Mirror Finished unit. Fingerprint magnet for sure if you ask me, at the same time it is also a beauty to be looked at. There is also another unit with Matte finish if you prefer that.
Comfort wise, I have no issue with it as the size is just nice and fits my ears well. No hard edges protruding that causes discomfort. I wore them straight for 4-5 hours straight during my test and comfort and soundwise makes me don’t want to take them off!
Overall a 9/10 for build and comfort
Source
Foobar2k -> Audioquest DragonFly Red -> Moondrop KATO (Spring Tips+Stock Cable)
Cayin N3 Pro (Solid State) -> Moondrop KATO (Spring Tips+Stock Cable)
Specifications
Driver: 10mm-ULT dynamic driver Diaphragm: the 3rd generation DLC composite diaphragm Socket: 0.78-2Pin sunken design Housing: MIM stainless steel Nozzle: stainless steel *2, brass *2 Cable plug: 3.5mm stereo single-ended plug Frequency response range: 10Hz-45kHz (IEC61094, Free Field) Effective frequency response range: 20Hz-20kHz (IEC60318-4, -3dB) Impedance: 32Ω±15% (@1KHz) Sensitivity: 123dB/Nrms (@1KHz) Distortion: < 0.15% (@1khz, AES17 20khz, A-weight)
Sound
*I listen to a wide range of songs thus I don't fixate on a single sound signature. I like whatever sounds good to my ears. F.Y.I, not a graph guy here. So if you are looking for objective measurements you may skip my review..
The tonality to my ears sounds neutral and warm. Overall presentation is very organic and smooth to listen to, they are very immersive, that is probably due to KATO’s deep soundstage. The timbre here sounds very natural and organic. Doesn’t sound harsh even at high volume for some JPop tracks. Out of the box, the bass is a little lean, after burning them in for a while and they are a lot punchier and tighter, everything started to smoothen up.
Bass
The bass here is realistic, you will not be getting those boomy bass where it’s bloated and muddy
Tight and punchy
The quantity is just right, not too much that make it sound boomy nor muddy, basshead need to look elsewhere
Sub bass presence can be felt on EDM tracks like Armin Van Buuren’s Ping Pong, but don’t expect it to be basshead level, it is adequate for you to enjoy the track. At least for me
9/10 for the bass presentation
Mids
The vocal is very natural, not shouty at all
Good amount of body and sufficient warmth to give that kind of smoothness to the overall presentation
To my ears the mids are very well done in the sense it doesn’t give off any kind of harshness or any peak that i can heard/detect
9/10 for the mids as well
Treble
Very smooth sounding
Not harsh and no sibilance
Good amount of details and micro details
Very good treble extension as well
Less energetic due to it being smooth in nature, not a concern for me as i preferred the overall smooth presentation
Overall very smooth sounding and there’s nothing to complain about it
9/10 for the treble presentation
Soundstage/Imaging
Soundstage is good, feels very wide and depth is not lacking, i have that kind of immersive feeling when listening to KATO
Imaging is good as the instruments can be pinpointed easily
HRTF experience is also very good. Doesn’t feel in your head kind, does have some 3D to it
Instruments separation is also above average and you will not find them overlapping the instruments nor vocals
8/10 for soundstage and imaging
Driveability
Very easy to drive, even off Apple’s lightning Dongle
Benefit from good source
Good synergy with AudioQuest’s DragonFly Red
Doesn’t benefit much from more power as swapping over to a balanced SPC cable doesn’t seem to give a very audible difference in terms of dynamics. Stock single ended cable is good enough in my opinion
Comparison with Steel Nozzle vs Brass (We’ve Just Begun by Sinne Eeg)
Bass response sounded more or less the same to my ears
I do notice that the reverb effect is a little more pronounced on the Brass nozzle compared to the Steel nozzle, feels a little more 3D
Brass sounded more open compared to Steel to my ears
The difference is very minor but audible
Comparison with Tanchjim’s Hana 2021
The reason for this comparison is because both of them are at similar price points.
Hana 2021 sound a lot more energetic
Hana 2021 can be a little too aggressive on high volume
Slightly brighter than KATO
Less body in the bass
Treble is crisp and sparkly on the Hana
Detail retrieval and imaging,both KATO and Hana is more or less the same to my ears
Both are in the similar category, ultimately you need to look at which signature or tuning you are leaning to.
Final Thoughts
There are several contenders in the price bracket of KATO. I don’t have them all and I only managed to listen to Hana 2021 and compare it against KATO. My preference is leaning towards KATO due to it being so much smoother than Hana 2021. Hana 2021 has too much energy to my taste, at some tracks where it is supposed to be laid back but when i listened to it using Hana, the excessive energy was put off to me, where by KATO presented the song the way it is intended, laid back and smooth.
KATO managed to nail every genre that I threw at it, at least in my library which consist of metal, rock, jazz, classical music, ost, jpop etc etc. It definitely is an all rounder to me.
Many people kept asking if this is an upgrade over Aria or a sidegrade. I don’t have Aria with me anymore but based on my memory, KATO is way better than Aria in terms of detail retrieval, bass reproduction and soundstage and imaging.
A solid 4.5/5 from me. Highly recommended!
*A big thanks to ShenZhen Audio and Cloris for including me in this tour, if you are interested in getting the KATO. Do make sure to check out the store linked below: They are priced at $189.99 at the time of writing and come with an extra upgrade cable Line “K”, be sure to not miss out on this offer! SHENZHEN AUDIO *Non affiliated