At some point in my audio adventure, I got overwhelmed with IEMs, cables, DACs, and accessories. That’s exactly when I decided to minimize my collection. So I started looking for a practical solution to store and transport my collection.
I tried a lot of stuff including small plastic cases, original IEM cases and pouches that came with the gear, cases for HDDs like this, organizer boxes from IKEA, watch boxes, and even toolbox organizers that I modified with soft fabric to avoid scratching my gear. While all of it served its purpose, it was neither practical nor aesthetically pleasing.
But today we will talk about the brand-new ddHiFi CZ180 and CZ300 storage cases that solved my problem.
Disclaimer: I would like to thank ddHiFi for providing the samples for today’s review. No one paid me to make this review. I don’t offer any specific opinions. All thoughts expressed in this review are my own and are based on my experience with the product.
CZ180
CZ180 measures 200 × 120 × 60 (mm) and its interior measures 180 × 110 × 50 (mm). The case is made out of composite leather and comes in a nice color scheme. The top and bottom parts of the case have a green accent, and the middle section is brownish. According to ddHiFi, they got their inspiration from a coffee bean that changes color after it’s roasted. There is a ddHiFi logo on both the top and bottom part of the case along with the “Life and HiFi” slogan.
The exterior of the case is made out of composite leather. It’s durable and scratch-resistant, at least on paper, and the case has a quite well-made zipper.
The upper lid has 4 mesh pockets to store your dongles, cables, small ear tip cases, and accessories. Each mesh pocket measures 85 x 40 mm
Then there is also a divider that is filled with a sponge to protect the gear. This divider also has two additional pockets measuring 75 x 65 mm each. The pockets can comfortably accommodate cleaning cloth, additional cables, or some other small accessories.
And finally, there is a main compartment that is surrounded by suede. The dimensions of the main compartment with dividers removed measures 180 × 110 × 45 mm. But as it’s not a perfect rectangle, the useful space measures 170 x 105 x 45 mm.
🛒 ddHiFi CZ180 on Aliexpress
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CZ180 comes with 6 dividers that have velcro on it. So you can split and divide the main compartment according to your needs. While I’m not a big fan of velcro-based dividers in storage cases, they seem to do their job just fine.
The whole case is sewn with 7-needle stitching technology and tension-resistant nylon thread making it very durable.
In my scenario, CZ180 was enough to hold my FiiO X7 MK2 dap, Qudelix 5K portable DAC/AMP, two additional USB-C dongles, a pair of IEMs with the cable attached, 2 spare IEM cables, two charging cables, and two tiny ear tip cases. If you don’t need to carry your DAP around, you can easily transform the space and it will easily hold an additional 3 pairs of IEMs with cables and all of the above-mentioned accessories without a DAP.
CZ300
CZ300 is a larger case and it measures 320 x 220 x 100 (mm) and its interior measures 290 × 190 × 80 (mm). The case’s exterior is made out of 16A waterproof cotton that is specially treated to resist moisture and mold. On top of the case, there is a ddHiFI badge with a “Life & HiFi ” slogan. Just like the CZ180 it is also equipped with a YKK double slider zipper. On the side of the case, there is also a carry handle. The case is quite hefty coming at 800 grams but it is also compression-resistant so your gear will be safe.
Inside the case, we have an upper lid with 4 mesh pockets to store your dongles, cables, small ear tip cases, and accessories. Each mesh pocket measures 140 x 70 mm so it can accommodate a lot of accessories with ease.
Then there is a soft fabric divider with a zipper to protect the gear and separate the top portion of the case from the bottom part. This divider is filled with an anti-stock sponge, additionally contributing to the safety of your equipment. In addition, it keeps the main compartment isolated from dust and can be also used as a soft surface when you need to sort or rest your gear.
The main compartment is surrounded by foam-filled groves that are sewn to the internal part of the case. The dimensions of the main compartment with dividers removed measures 290 × 190 × 70 (mm).
The foam-filled grooves not only protect the gear from shock but also support the dividers that can be placed into the groves and partition the main compartment.
🛒 ddHiFi CZ300 on Aliexpress
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CZ300 comes with 1 long divider and 8 short dividers so you can split and divide the main compartment up to 10 zones according to your needs. The dividers also come with foam-filled groves so your gear is safe.
In my scenario, CZ300 can easily hold FiiO X7 MK2 DAP, iFi hip dac 3 DAC/AMP, Qudelix 5K DAC/AMP, VE Megatron DAC/AMP, a few small dongles like ddHiFi TC44 Pro, iFi Go Link, Moondrop Dawn 4.4mm, 4 different USB-C cables, iPhone camera adapter, USB converters, a bunch of impedance adapters, 7 IEMs with the cables attached, two spare IEM cables, IEM cable extender, an organizer for ear tips, 3 additional headphone cables and two additional small ear tip cases. And that’s the major part of my portable equipment.
My experience and conclusions
Talking about practical use, the CZ300 holds all my portable essentials in my studio, and when I travel, I just grab the CZ180 and relocate the needed gear there.
All in all, I think both cases are excellent value for the money and I’m glad we have a company like ddHiFi that has audiophiles in mind when making their products. Both cases are fantastic and with the flexibility they bring to the table, you can’t go wrong with either of them.
If you need something small and portable, CZ180 is the way to go. But if you need something bigger, go with the CZ300 which I think is amazing value for the money and nothing at this price point comes close to it.
And that concludes my review for today. If you’d like to see more content like this, consider subscribing to my YouTube channel for future updates. Thank you for joining me, and until next time, goodbye!
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