QOA MARGARITA REVIEW

>>I am brazilian and I speak portuguese, so forgive my english, I’ll use translator tools to help<<

INTRO:

Firstly, I would like to thank my friend Geraldo Rocha, our dear aka TUTI, who lent me the IEM for evaluation, without him this evaluation wouldn’t be possible. TUTI is one of the great supporters in the Brazilian audiophile scene, so, my thank you so much to my friend! A big hug!

QoA – Queen Of Audio. We already know that the company is a subsidiary of Kinera, so if you find any similarities out there, don’t be surprised, as they are practically the same company. Today I will review the QoA Margarita, an IEM that has almost the same driver configuration as the Kinera URD, the difference is just one less dynamic driver in its composition.

QoA previous reviews: Vesper2

Price: $549 USD
Colors: Black or Black/Golden
Cable: Modular (No Mic)

QoA store:

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DdelWl5

SPECIFICATIONS:

Hybrid:

(2) Sonions EST65DA01 (for treble)
(1) 7mm Titanium Coated Diaphragm Coaxial DD (for bass)
(1) QOA Customize QA11021 BA (for mids)

– Frequency Response: 5Hz-50kHz
– Impedance: 61 ohm
– Sensitivity: 110dB
– Modular cable: 2.5mm, 3.5mm, 4.4mm gold plated (straight)
– Cable material: HP Silver Plated Copper (PVC)
– Cable size: 1.2m (detachable)
– Connectors: 2pin 0.78mm
– Shell material: 3D resin
– Weight: 2.5g

PHYSICAL ASPECTS:

Eartips. Let’s start with the Margarita eartips. Here came 2 types of silicone eartips (sizes S/M/L) and 1 type of foamtips (foam)(one size). As you can see the eartips in the photos, I thought the kit was very simple, mainly because the IEM costs US$549 dollars, so it’s not an entry-level IEM, but in my opinion it came with “entry-level” eartips. Kinera/QoA itself launched the Kinera Hodur costing $299 dollars and the IEM comes with a complete package of Final E eartips, so it would be ideal for an IEM costing almost twice the Hodur to come with a more elaborate kit. Anyway, even though the eartips here are nothing special, I was able to put on the gray & red ones and think they were good for evaluating the IEM.

-The review was made with the gray & red silicone eartips in size M.

Cable. The Margarita has a cable with modular plugs (2.5mm Bal, 3.5mm SE, 4.4mm Bal). This modular system used in this cable is great because it doesn’t make the plug too big. I had a slight problem with the modular cable of the Kinera Idun Golden, the plugs were very hard to detach, and the surface of the plug was very smooth, which made the hand slip. Fortunately, this Margarita was easy, the plugs can be easily detached. It may also be that because the product has been used other times, it ended up getting softer. The cable is really very beautiful, it draws a lot of attention, it’s a highlight in the product. Besides being beautiful it is also functional, isn’t heavy, doesn’t have microphonics, and it’s easy to roll up to store. The only two observations I make about this cable is that it tangles a little (nothing chronic), but it was also easy to fix, if you roll it up just right with your hand, it doesn’t present this problem, it depends a lot on the use and the user. And the other thing is that it presents slight memories (ripples) in its extension, very little thing indeed, I’m just being too critical. The cable comes with the chin slider and the piece brings efficiency for what it was intended to do.

Earhooks and Connectors. The earhooks are good, they have a good curvature, they didn’t generate any problem in the fit or comfort. The only observation I make is about the type that was adopted, which for my taste, I prefer that the earhooks are totally smooth, tubular style, without ripples. This is something very subjective, I prefer it to be tubular because it was the type that I tested that gave me more comfort. When the earhooks have that ripple, it may be that on some occasion it can generate discomfort. The Margarita connectors are 2 pin 0.78mm style (I prefer this type of connector because it doesn’t allow the connection to rotate). The Margarita connectors don’t have indication by letters (L and R – left/right) for the person to orient themselves, the only indication is by the colors under the connectors (red = right side). I think that an IEM of this price will be easier to be acquired by people who have been in the hobby for a while, so this issue of letters isn’t so necessary.

Fit. We know that this is a very subjective point, but it’s always good to share the experience because some IEMs have dubious designs but that in practice are Ok, while others have a design that seems Ok but in practice can bring some issues. In the case here of the Margarita the fit was very good, the stability is great, the IEM doesn’t swing, it has a well-filled body that occupies the spaces of the ear (but that doesn’t turn into a spacious IEM). I don’t see the Margarita as a wide IEM, but as a long IEM, so something I didn’t find interesting was that the IEM was protruding in my ear, of course it’s nothing absurd, just that maybe for those who have a very small ear then the IEM is very “out” of the shell. For me, the more discreet the IEM is, the better. The insertion I found to be average, fortunately I didn’t feel sensation of intra-auricular pressure. The isolation I found to be good.

Comfort. I found the comfort of the Margarita to be very good, the IEM has a very nice, very smooth surface without irregular parts, everything is very well rounded. The IEM is made with a very good resin, it was very light, it seems that it doesn’t even have a bunch of drivers internally. I didn’t feel any pressure point during the time I was evaluating the product, its design is very anatomical. Here I make the observation of the eartips that I used, certainly if I had used another eartip of higher quality I would have gained a little more comfort. We all know that the material used by the eartips can influence in this aspect, so here I reinforce the criticism I made about the eartips provided in the kit. The Margarita is an IEM that I managed to stay for a long time without taking off my ears, so I think it’s an interesting IEM for those who do long musical sessions.

Accessories. The accessories included with the Margarita are basically just a rigid case covered in synthetic leather, which is very similar to the case that comes with the AUNE Jasper. This type of case brings a very luxurious refinement to the product, I really like this type of case. It isn’t a magnetic closure, it’s a normal lid, but it’s very secure, it doesn’t open easily.

SOUND ASPECTS:

I understood the sound of the QoA Margarita as Warm – Mild V-Shape. The IEM has an emphasis in the bass region, and in the mids and highs I would put it as something more coherent and balanced. Besides the Margarita, I’m also evaluating the Kinera URD, I listened to the URD first and then listened to the Margarita, so, the URD is the only reference in this price range that I can base myself on (and even though they aren’t exactly in the same price range). The IEMs are quite similar in a certain way, although there are some small differences that already make the sound in both sound distinct. Both the Margarita and the URD are excellent earphones in terms of sound, but for my taste, I found the URD better… and you can’t also exclude the physical experience of each product, like: the accessory kit, the design, etc. If I were to compare the two in terms of sound, I would say that the Margarita is a little more energetic and fun than the URD, even though individually I don’t find the Margarita an energetic/fun IEM. Just like in Kinera URD, here in QoA Margarita happened the same thing regarding amplification, so I recommend that you look at the respective paragraph about this earphone’s amplification.

The quantity of bass of Margarita. Here I would put that the IEM has bass at a moderate to high level. The presence is quite audible. Certainly the frequencies of greatest highlight in this earphone (in my opinion). Still, the earphone doesn’t become a basshead, but I think it manages to contemplate people who enjoy a nice dose of bass in their earphones. The Margarita in my understanding has more mid-bass than sub-bass, so it has sub-bass but the mid-bass are a little more highlighted in the presentation. I didn’t feel any sensation of roll-off in this earphone’s bass, but as it presents more highlight in mid-bass, it’s expected that subs get a slight sensation of being lower. The extension is good. To those who have been following me for a longer time, they already know that I prefer a little more sub-bass than mid-bass, which is kind of the opposite presented here, it’s a matter of taste, the best scenario for me would certainly be a balance between these regions, but if I had to choose, I prefer a little more subs, that’s why I found in Kinera URD something more geared towards my taste.

In qualitative terms, the bass of the Margarita is full-bodied, full, warm, has mass, has weight, has body, has texture. It has a slight dose of physicality, especially after the changes I made in amplification. The impact has strength and vigor, although it isn’t something disproportionate, it’s possible to hear the bass drum in a well-defined and firm way. This impact is even different from what you have in Kinera URD, here in Margarita it is something more present and outlined, while in URD the impact is more “relaxed”. They aren’t boomy basses, they aren’t muddy basses, they aren’t muffled basses, and they are also not basses that invade the mids. I just thought that they can sound bulky in some circumstances, but they don’t lose quality. Percussion instruments like zabumba or alfaia have a very showy and firm beat, bass guitar notes sound full-bodied, guitars have a warmer timbre, especially with the heavier riffs, it makes the sound more visceral, more textured.

The mids of Margarita. The initial mids have a slight recess, and the upper mids have a slightly greater highlight. There’s a very good balance between the two regions, nothing sounds distant/recessed or too “in your face” (forwardness), aggressive, I would say it’s a region with a “linear” characteristic to the ears. The mids of Margarita as a whole have great definition, detail, clarity and transparency. Here – in my opinion – there’s an influence of the earphone’s bass in this region, which makes the sound warmer, lush. The timbre of the instruments ends up being more silky, more “heated”, without the frontality that some earphones have. The Kinera URD for example, I think it has a very discreet highlight more in this region, only actually the “fault” isn’t this region (midrange), but it is the bass region of the earphone that makes this happen. Trumpets play with life and at the same time without sounding hard, soprano sax – Kenny G in Songbird – sounds very melodic, without bothering.

The voices. Both types – female/high or male/low – were good, but in my opinion Margarita manages to perform a little better with lower voices, the timbre of this type of voice becomes more imposing, with a feeling of filling up, full-bodied. So you can put a higher voice here that the earphone will play very well, now in my opinion contralto, tenor, baritone and bass are the types that will have a slightly better highlight will extract more texture. Comparing Margarita to URD I preferred what was presented with URD because for me URD is a little more “dry” in this region (obviously speaking in comparison from one to another earphone).

Coming at the treble, in quantitative terms, I think the treble of the Margarita are at a moderate or moderate to high level. I put this “from moderate to high” because in comparison with the Kinera URD, the Margarita already has a little more presence in the treble region, although individually I don’t think the Margarita has high treble. Indeed for those who have a sensitivity with treble, I would indicate the URD, already for those who have no problem at all, then the Margarita. I didn’t feel any sensation of roll-off here in Margarita, already in URD I witnessed a low, a lesser intensity in the higher sounds. I think that way Margarita can have an extension even better than URD (even though in URD I was able to hear everything from my library without feeling absences).

The treble in qualitative terms. The treble of Margarita are versatile, lively, fast, have great definition, good airy, without peaks, without coloring. The sparkle of Margarita’s treble is a little more accentuated than that of URD, while that of URD sounds more natural and soft, that of Margarita is a little more energetic and bright. The details are great and are at a micro detailing level, in the song “Sonhei – Lenine (live in Cité remastered)” it’s possible to hear Ramiro Musotto (percussion) playing a cymbal that generates a vibration that lasts for a long time in the presentation. The treble of Margarita aren’t strident, they aren’t harsh, they aren’t sharp, they aren’t fatiguing, and they don’t have sibilance (songs that already have some sibilance in the recording the earphone is on the limit but doesn’t bother). Hi-Hats present themselves with good detailing and without sounding harsh, chimes has sparkle and life, drum cymbals have great definition, half-moon tambourine has great resolution.

Soundstage. The sensation of soundstage I found very good. In depth the earphone develops well, the sounds present themselves with a good sensation of distance, generating a good spatiality. In height and width it also has a very good level, the sounds don’t sound compacted. The Margarita resembles the URD in this technicality, only it doesn’t have that slight frontality in the upper mids that the URD has, so then the sound even recedes more than the URD. The sensation of spatiality of Margarita isn’t something out of this world, but added to good instrumental separation, the level is above average.

Imaging. The instrumental separation I found excellent. The stereo image of the earphone is very good. It is possible to listen to all instruments playing very clearly in their places. Here I think that URD takes a discreet advantage, mainly because URD has less mid-bass, and then the presentation becomes more “linear”, in Margarita the bass (bass instruments) occupy more space than I would like. But so, this doesn’t make the presentation jumbled up, it’s just a matter of that spaces between some instruments will decrease because the bass sound will have a characteristic of more expansiveness, they will occupy more presentation (it will depend on recording too), in URD I already think that this factor is more balanced (remembering that separation can also vary according to recording and other processes during music production).

Driver Flex Test. The QoA Margarita has a dynamic driver (DD) in its composition, so we need to test if it makes the driver flex noise. From my tests here, the Margarita showed no signs of driver flex during the time I was evaluating the IEM.

Amplification. I used the DAC/AMP dongle Questyle M15 connected to my notebook to do this evaluation. The output used was the 4.4mm Balanced and the device with selector in “Gain” mode, that is, with gain activated. The volume used was level 35% of the 100% available by the Windows volume scale. It was basically the same configuration I used in Kinera URD, so, I also think that Margarita will do better with some equipment that has a greater amplification power than the trivial of smartphones, tablets, iPads, etc. Simpler dongles may not do a very good job with this IEM. Now, this is just a recommendation, someone may listen to the IEM with a weaker source and be pleased with the result, so it is partly subjective (in my opinion).

---

Music is subjective, so below is the list of some musical genres that I personally think that was better with this IEM. Remember that were only few genres and few artists tested. If I describe that one genre was better and the other don’t, it doesn’t mean that you can’t listen to your favorite music genre with this IEM and love it. So, here goes:

PLAYLIST LINK:

Graphs by HBB:

Thank you so much for being here!

Consider follow us on Facebook and Instagram to get all the news!

• Instagram
• Facebook