Brainwavz B2 Quick Review

Brainwavz B2 Quick Review

Thanks to Advanced Headphones www.advancedheadphones.co.uk for the sample (AMP3’s sister site)

Brief: The DBA-02 has a twin.

Price: £99

Specification: Transducers/Drivers: Dual balanced armature, Rated Impedance: 40ohms, Frequency range: 20 ~ 20000Hz, Sensitivity: 110dB at 1mW, Maximum input power: 60mW, Plug: 3.5 mm 90-degree gold plated, Cable: High grade copper cabling, Cable length: 1.3 meters, 1 year warranty, Dimensions (Packaging): 175 x 150 x 52mm, Net Weight: 15g, Gross Weight: 162g

Accessories: 1 x Pair Comply foam tips, 3 x Pairs silicone tips (S/M/L), 1 x Airplane adapter, 1 x 1/4" adapter, 1 x Carrying case, 1 x Instruction manual / warranty card, 1 x Warranty card

Build Quality: Perfectly reasonable. The cable in particular is very nice.

Isolation: Excellent, I’d say they are among the best out there. They may not quite match Ety’s but they are easily enough to comfortable listen to on the Tube or that flight to go see auntie Mabel in New Zealand.

Comfort/Fit: Great. They sit a bit deep but that’s fine with me and I really couldn’t fault them. Comfort was great and fit was effortless.

Aesthetics: The cable looks fab and the bubs look not bad too. They do look much nicer with the red comply’s on and that’s why they are pictured with them on all the time. Otherwise they are reasonably nondescript, hide that big red tip and they are pretty much just black.

Sound: Fantastic. They are a truly excellent sounding Dual Balanced Armature IEM and they offer a level of performance that a few years ago would have cost twice what it does here. That said they aren’t perfect and may not be to everyone’s tastes. The bass isn’t hyper tight like on some BA stuff, the mids are not really dry but are closer to liquid than most other dual BA IEM’s are. The highs don’t have the intense drama of their close siblings the DBA-02 but then neither do they have the ear ravaging savagery either. They sit mostly in the middle of things and manage to do an extremely capable job of everything yet not quite excelling anywhere either. They really are very good though. One thing to note however is they can be horribly sibilant if you feed them a dryish, more neutral source. These undoubtedly love to be fed from a rich, warm source. When you do though they are remarkably even sounding and enjoyable. They really cannot otherwise be faulted. The lows offer a nice level of bloom and expansion for an armature while retaining most if its control and speed. The mids are clear and articulate with good air but also retaining enough liquidity to flow. The highs again offer easily enough detail to please all but not ravage you with the abrasive savagery found elsewhere. This does seem undramatic compared to some but I believe makes them a much more sensible long term livable proposition. They really are good stuff.

Value: Pretty excellent on the whole.

Pro’s: Excellent clarity and detail, good balance to its sound.

Con’s: Pair it up wrong and it can be horribly sibilant.