Brainwavz R3 Revised Edition

The Brainwaz R3 are my second pair of dual dymamic earphones and when I bought them I have very high expectations. This gigantic earphones doesn't deceive me and i'm glad to have them in my ever growing IEM collection.
 
First thing to know with this earphones is that the sealing is EXTREMELY important to taste their full capabilities, in all the tips that are included the memory foam was the only one to work perfectly with the sealing, other one was falling or making the sound distant and without bass impact.
 
Once you seal them properly your are gratified with a very addictive sound that can be described as wide, detailed, energic and gently V shaped. The bass is punchy and well extended but not over emphased, the mids are neutral and warm and the treble is smooth but present. The more impressive particularity about the R3 is the immense soundstage and above average instruments separation, it make the sound flow around your head instead of feeling stock inside of it. This can be very enjoyable for feeling the complexity of musical composition as well as imaging stereo sound.
Right now i'm listening 96-24bit Vulnicura by Bjork and it sound fantastic with the Brainwavz R3, the complexe instrumentation never interfer with the voice of bjork and texture are rendered fluidly, sub bass is present and mid bass is enough punchy to create a very energic whole, I can easily pick any details of the track and none of them feel congested or distorted, this album is a real treat with the R3!
 
For sure, some basshead will not find enough bass in this earphones, still, as an ancient owner of the Shure se430, I can say that the R3 are among the best dual earphones in their price range, compared with the Shure se430, they sound a little more warm and less analytical but I find them more fun sounding and less congested when it come to soundstage.
 
The construction is top notch and look like a tank, they are as big and subtle as a thank too tough, but for their size they are very confortable with the right tips (foam!).
The cable are big too and can be complicate to wear properly around the ear. As with most Brainwavz product, their alot of useful accesories that came with it too.
 
All in all, I'm really impress by the Brainwavz R3 and their good performance with all type of music I listen with them.

Packaging & Accessories
 
The R3’s box packaging comes with clear plastic window that showcase the IEM and its cable. Kudos to Brainwavz for the generous accessories where you will find :-
- 1 x Comply T500 tips
- 6 Single-flange silicone tips (3 pairs gray & black)
- 1 x Single pair of bi-flange & Triple-flange tips
- 1 x ¼ inch adapter
- 1 x Hard Zip-Case(excellent and imho ...one of the best case)
- 1-year warranty card
 
Build & Design
 
The Brainwavz R3 VII is a dual dynamic barrel shaped with each driver from each end shooting into the 90 degree angle nozzle that is situated in the center of the barrel. Imho this has to be one of the funkiest design for an IEM. The material used are aliminium and very light weight considering the size of these baby.The design of this IEM are meant to be over ear design but for me ....rather wear them down because the cable can't seem to stay secure for me ..ymmv. The cables are exceptionally "super thick" from the Y-split down to 3.5mm 45 degree jack cable with good strain relief.
The cable from the Y-split up comes with cable cinch is slightly thinner but imho still thick and retain some memory kink though the quality is good .... my question is why the THICK cable ?
The design of R3 is by far one most funkiest design in the market ....dare to be different and somehow the design do work in term of sound for me.
 
Comfort & Fit
 
Fit issue could be a problem for some users as the barrel are huge as well as the nozzle tip and over-ear design. Initially could not get a good fit and keep falling out until some tip rolling and finally settled with JVC Spiral Dots. The cable cinch is good as they keep the microphonic noise to a minimum level but the downfall is the thick and heavy cable is quite troublesome for on the go use ...also tried many times over the ear but the cable does not seem to want to stay put because of the sheer size n weight . But the worst part is the cable that is simply too thick and heavy for an IEM. Personally they are more suitable for home use ...ymmv.         
 
Sound
 
Equipment Used --- Fiio X5 and FLAC and high bit-rate MP3 files. The R3’s were also burned-in over 100hrs before review.
 
Bass
Very controlled, accurate and not over powering. The low fequency has fairly good extension with sub bass with the right amount of rumble to match with the overall sound. Also liking very much the texture and not too thin or thick sounding.
Guess what I'm saying ...bass is not bloated though for fast paced music ..prat(bit slow) might not be its strong quality but the word "smooth" does come to mind ....laid back but still punchy and musical to match the overall sound of R3. Basshead need not apply here.
 
Mids
The shining star of R3 imho .....slightly mid forward but "smooth" and  really good for long listening session. The words that comes to mind are creamy and lush especially the vocal ie. not "in your face" and not fatiguing though the details retrieval and clarity do lack a bit.
 
Treble
Highs extends decently and very polite with right amount of crispness that will really appeal to people who are sensitive to sibbilant or sharp peaky treble. Overall the presentation is "smooth" with decent clarity and retrieval which goes well with even the most aggresive music or recording. Though for my taste ..the clarity could be better which to me makes the treble sounds a bit dull and lack the sparkle in overall sound.
    
 
Summary

Very easy to like .....balanced sound across the spectrum ....the bass, mid and treble don't stand out or over shadow but the cohesion of it all ......very smooth sound which will appeal to someone that is looking for all rounder IEM for variety of music genre. No pictures are in this review cuz for the life of me ....no skills in that department and previous review have ample photos to showcase this milk bottle.
FYI....these R3 are bought and not given as free sample in exchange for my honest review.

First of all I'd like to thank Brainwavz and Audrey for giving me a chance to check out the Brainwavz R3 IEM.
 
The specs:
Transducers/Drivers: Dual Dynamic, 10mm 
Crossover: Passive 
Rated Impedance: 32ohms 
Sensitivity: 95dB at 1mW 
Frequency range: 20Hz ~ 20KHz 
Maximum input power: 2mW 
Cable length: 1.4m, Y cord, OFC Copper. 
Plug: 3.5mm gold plated, 45 degree. 
 
 
Built and accessories:
I’ve now reviewed and used quite a few of Brainwavz offerings and I’m spoiled with them having great built and accessories, the Brainwavz R3 are no exception. The accessory pack is very good with many tips and a great zippered case to store them when not in use.
 
The retail package is also great as usual.
 

 

 

 
 
Probably the most special about the R3’s is the design, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever tried or even seen before. Despite the design being unusual I find them to be very comfortable to wear. The aluminum housings also feel very well done and they really seem built like a tank. I also like the massive cable and y-slit and the R3’s as a total feel very well built and should hold up for a long time.
 

 

 

 
 
The R3 is a bit more hard to drive than your average IEM but works fine out of portable devices although it scales very nicely with better sources (more so than the S0 and S5 that I’ve recently reviewed).
 
I've let them play for over 100 hours and I've not found any weaknesses to the way they're constructed. I've been using them with my HTC One M7 phone, FiiO X3 dap and with my Geek Out720 playing music from my computer.
 
Sound:
For this review I've used them paired with my FiiO X3 feeding a Cayin C5 amp.
 

 
The tips used for the review was a pair of medium sized JVC spiral dots. I've used these tips because I found them to present the sound from the R3's most to my liking among all the ones I've tried with them. As a matter of fact I was almost finished with this review when I tried the spiral dot on the R3 and the positive effect they had on the sound forced me to do some changes to it.
 
To make the spiral dots fit properly I added an small rubberband on each stem so that the tips doesn't go too far down on the stem:
 

 
The sound signature of the R3 is mid centric, warm, full and a bit laid back. The soundstage is above average in both width and depth. The highs are smooth without any sibilance. I could have wished for some more extension in the highs but with the spiral dot tips it’s really not much missing. The bass is well controlled with very little bleed into the midrange. The quality of the sub bass is also good although I wish that the deepest bass would have a bit more impact. With the right tips and a good seal it’s not much missing though and these are by no means bass light IEM’s. The midrange is the star on the R3’s, it makes me think of my modded Fostex T50RP’s with its full, warm and smooth nature. Voice reproduction is very good on both female and male voices and clarity is also good. Separation is only average and with music where there’s much going on things tend to get a bit unfocused and mixed up.
 
Summary:
The Brainwavz R3 is really good with some music but not so good with other. If you enjoy a mid centric sound and listen to  music like Sade, Annie Lennox, Lorde, Ben Howard, Bruce Springsteen and Leonard Chohen (you get the picture) the R3’s are an excellent choice. If you listen to modern pop music, metal and alternative rock you might want to consider other alternatives.
 
I happen to enoy a lot of the music with which the R3 works very well so for me this is an excellent IEM that I’ve got no problem recommending it to my friends with the same taste in music.