Short answer: a tie on sound quality. Both are rated 3.3/5 (#912 and #958 of 1369 in-ear headphones) at nearly the same price ($9 vs $7.59), so choose on features and fit.
Why pick the Kiwi Ears Melody: A broadly balanced tuning with a preference score of 66 against the Harman target. Watch for: An uneven response, 2.4 dB standard deviation from target.
The case for the Rose Technics Photon Pro: A published AutoEQ preset corrects its response toward the Harman target, so a few minutes of EQ setup closes most of the gap. The catch: An uneven response, 2.7 dB standard deviation from target.
Buy the Kiwi Ears Melody or the Rose Technics Photon Pro on features: they are rated the same for sound quality at close to the same price.
Looking for alternatives? See the complete Headphones rankings.
A broadly balanced tuning with a preference score of 66 against the Harman target.
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A published AutoEQ preset corrects its response toward the Harman target, so a few minutes of EQ setup closes most of the gap.
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Specifications Side By Side
| Kiwi Ears Melody | Rose Technics Photon Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 9.00 | 7.59 |
| Ranked | #912 of 1369 in In-Ear Headphones | #958 of 1369 in In-Ear Headphones |
| Form Factor | In-ear | In-ear |
| Back | Closed | Closed |
| Harman Preference Score | 66 (median of 17 squig.link measurements, calibrated to AutoEQ) | 65 (median of 3 squig.link measurements, calibrated to AutoEQ) |
| Deviation From Target | 2.39 dB standard deviation | 2.70 dB standard deviation |
| Tonal Tilt | -0.81 (negative is warmer, positive brighter) | -0.42 (negative is warmer, positive brighter) |
| Sub-bass Extension | Within 6 dB of target down to 20 Hz (+0.3 dB at 30 Hz) | Within 6 dB of target down to 20 Hz (-1.2 dB at 30 Hz) |
| Driver Type | Planar | Dynamic |
| Drivers | 1 x 12mm planar magnetic driver | 1 x 8mm PEK PU dynamic driver |
| Impedance | 18 ohms | 32 ohms |
| Sensitivity | 102 dB | 100 dB |
| Frequency Response | 5Hz - 40kHz | 20Hz - 20kHz |
| Connection | Wired | Wired |
| Weight | - | 0 lbs (1.8 g) |
Frequency Response Compared
Both headphones’ measurements overlaid on the Harman target. Above the target sounds louder in that range, below it quieter. Each curve is the median of several independent measurements, shifted so its 500 Hz to 2 kHz average sits at 0 dB, so only the tuning is compared.
Measurement data: the Kiwi Ears Melody from audioamigo, bassyalexander, boizoff, cqtek, hbb, ianfann, jaytiss, kazi, kuping-sensi, mmagtech, musicafe, practiphile, pw, soundcheck39, tonedeafmonk, vortexreviews and vsg; the Rose Technics Photon Pro from audioamigo, digaoreviews, elrics, lumerion and soundignity, all via squig.link.
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