With Thanksgiving just a day away, and no bird on deck for tomorrow, my attention is turned elsewhere to the Noble Audio Khan announced today. Following on the success of their previous flagships, the Kaiser Encore and Katana, the Khan or Gengis Khan will stand as the audio company’s new flagship IEM.
Noble Audio Khan Announced
Officially, the name of this snazzy-looking earphone is the Noble Audio Genghis Khan, but Noble and others have already shortened this to Khan. And as a closeted Star Trek fan, I heartily applaud this move.
So far, the design of the Noble Audio Khan appears to mark a departure from the manufacturer’s usual choice of aluminum shells. Instead, this new flagship boasts a shell made from ABS plastic for a lighter (but no-less-secure) fit. The faceplates feature jewelry-grade M3 (Macro-Molecular Materials) composite metals.
The nozzle will employ a titanium construction for durability as well as comfort. Cabling will be gray and black, but no photos have surfaced yet showing exactly how it will look. (Our confidential contact at Noble, codenamed Deep Ear, claims this part is still in production.)
Drivers and Specifications
In regards to internals, the Noble Audio Khan will contain a total of six drivers. Here’s the breakdown:
- One 10 mm dynamic driver will handle the sub-bass and bass.
- Four Kowles Balanced Armature drivers divvy up the mids and highs.
- A separate 10 mm Piezo super tweeter will provide additional attention to the highs.
Confirmed specifications include a frequency range of 20 Hz to 25 kHz, 4-way crossover, a sensitivity of 109 dB at 1 kHz, and a nominal impedance of 19 ohms at 1 kHz. Harmonic Distortion lands at 1.7% at 1 khz.
The Noble Audio Khan currently touts a retail price of $2399, putting it squarely in competition with the Empire Ears Legend X ($2999) and the 64 Audio Tia Trio ($2299). However, Noble Audio and select authorized retailers are currently offering a special Preorder Price at $1919 for Black Friday. That’s a whopping 20% off, folks.
The only catch? The Khan won’t start shipping until March 2019, and production is estimated to sit at around 80 pieces per month.
However, you can bet your cranberries and stuffing we’ll be demoing it in the spring! So stay tuned for the Noble Audio Khan Review in March.
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