REVIEW: Brainwavz S3
 
 
Specifications: (from Brainwavz site)
 
Driver: 8mm Dynamic
Rated Impedance: 16 Ω
Frequency Range:  16Hz - 22kHz
Sensitivity: 96 dB @ 1 mW
Cable: 1.3m, Y-Cord, Flat, Copper
Plug: 3.5mm Gold Plated
 
MSRP: $79.50
 
Warranty: 2 years
 
Official product page: LINK
 
Packing & Accessories:
 
The S3 arrives in the same box as the previous S1 and S5 and, as usual, Brainwavz are very generous with their accessories pack:
 
3 pairs of silicone single wide bore eartips (S/M/L)
3 pairs of silicone single narrow bore eartips (S/M/L)
1 pair of silicone bi-flange eartips
1 pair of silicone tri-Flange eartips
1 pair of Comply Foam tips T-400 in M size
1 Shirt Clip
Case
Velcro Cable Tie
 
 
Build & Design:
 
Like the previous S-series models, the S3 carries a very good (outer) build quality. The cable remains pretty much the same, flat and well relieved on both ends; still, too thick, rubbery and quite springy. Like the S5, the S3's cable also ends in a straight plug. The earpieces are obviously made of metal, but designed for a regular cable-down fit, although less ergonomic and would stick out much more. It has no memory effect but is strong in microphonics, mainly with the cable down fit.
 
On a short note regarding the phone use, I only got to try it with a Samsung Galaxy model and there wasn't a 100% controls' compatibility.
 
 
Fit, Comfort, Isolation:
 
Unfortunately, the S3 fall behind the S5 and even the S1 here. While the S5 were quite good and noticeable better than the S1, I find the S3 to be a bit tricky/finicky to fit correctly. While not really uncomfortable, it's not easy to achieve a proper fit and a lasting seal, regardless the tips in use. The housings have some sharp edges too that might be tiring after some use. The cable is a bit annoying and a shirt clip is recommended. Isolation is decent for a dynamic based earphone and the Comply Foam tips might help a bit more.
 
Sound:
 
The last S3 is probably the more balanced model of the Brainwavz S series I tried, with an arguably more natural presentation. The S1 offered a very heavy bass in a quite V-shaped signature, and the S5, while undoubtedly much improved, still carried a lively signature as well. The S3 tends to present things in a more accurate and less colored way. It's not to say  that the S3 could classify as a 'reference' sounding IEM, but in comparison to the older S5 it shows a less artificial tonality, more intelligent positioning and smoother, though not exactly coherent, presentation. Another advantage is that the S3 it don't emphasize a specific frequency over above the others giving a more complete and better rounded overall sound.
 
The low end on the S3 is tight and punchy, and even though much less in terms of quantity than the most of enhanced bass in-ear which boost a stronger impact, it's still north of neutral. Bass depth is just decent and rolls-off a bit early at the bottom, but manages to keep a good amount of detail and texture, and it's safe from any serious mid-bass bloat and bleed that the previous S models had. It's similar to the Fidue A65 and Soundmagic E50 in bass balance, but those two can offer a more realistic and convincing, and a touch deeper lower end. The closest IEM in bass dept. should be the FA Mini Consonance, even though it sounds less spacious than the S3.

The midrange presence is very good. While sometimes it could feel as being pushed more forward, it would be more accurate to refer to it as 'not recessed' or 'balanced'. Actually, it is less warm and thick compared to real mid-centered sets. There's some reminiscence to certain BA based in-ears, such as the old HSA BA100 with its slightly thin and cool tonality, but the S3 doesn't lack the traditional dynamic driver sense of warmth. Vocals are just a tad more prominent with some dry tonality. There's no hint of sibilance on upper vocals, but the S3 is not exactly free of certain graininess. Detail and overall midrange clarity are quite decent, just nothing outstanding and do lack some refinement and texture. The S3 is not a Fidue A63's competitor in terms of sweetness, and won't match the E80 with its excellent transparency. Even an Ostry KC06A could make a better option for a more natural midrange presentation.


The high-end is well rounded and pretty much neutral quantity-wise, not too bright and not smooth either; something in the middle ground. The amount of sparkle and crispiness is well suited for most genres without any notable peak (unlike the S1 or S5), although the highest freq. are rolled-off a bit, lacking in some extension. The main complaint would be the treble unnatural timbre which could be rather annoying and sometimes manages to ruin the whole listening experience. Imaging is about slightly below average at best. Overall detail is not missing but stage dimensions are dynamics could be still better for the asking price.
 
 
 
 
 
Conclusion & Value:
 
While this last iteration of the S-series offers a quite different and more pleasant and accurate sound from the previous ones, overall it is still not the best that Brainwavz can offer. As always, the package and build quality is nice, but the design and fit could be considered as a downgrade for some. In terms of SQ alone it is just decent for the retail ~$80 price, and even taken as whole package, including the 2-yrs warranty, there's still room for improvement considering the many other options nowadays.
 
Thanks to Brainwavz for the S3 review unit.

Brainwavz S3 Review

First I’d like to thank Pandora from Brainwavz for sending me a review sample of the S3. By now, I’m sure that members of the Head-Fi community will be quite familiar with Brainwavz. They have really established themselves and are on the way to becoming one of the major brands that people look to when considering headphones. Their products have become increasingly popular and I was curious as to see what they had to offer with their latest IEM, the S3.
 
The S3 is a budget IEM by all means and the price it comes in at is a mere $80 and at the price, the main question is whether they are able to compete with the RE-400 and other top budget IEMs. This end of the market is perhaps the most competitive, with many companies coming out with good sounding IEMs at reasonable prices.
 
 **Disclaimer** These were given to me by Brainwavz in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
 
 

Unboxing & Accessories

The S3 doesn’t some with a whole lot, and given the price, it would be unrealistic to ask for more. The packaging is rather protective and did a fine job of getting the IEMs to me unharmed. The S3 comes with a few sets of tips and this includes a pair of complys. It also comes with a shirt clip, which I found to be very useful to reduce microphonics. There is also the clamshell case, which is rather protective and very practical.
 
 

Design

The S3 housing is made primarily of metal and they feel very solid, much more than the price would suggest. It is very well finished and looks great. Personally I’m not a fan of flat cables, because cable noise is terrible in every IEM with a flat cable I’ve tried. The S3 is no different. However, the flat design makes them “tangle free”. The strain reliefs work very well with just enough bend on them. The remote seems to work like intended, I had no issues with it whatsoever. A good product from Brainwavz.
 
 

Sound

For my sonic tests, I ran them out of an iPhone 6. While it did improve a little with amplification, the target audience of these will likely be using these with their phones, iPods and the like. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the S3 as far as sound went, not having really enjoyed the S5 a lot, but the S3 really surprised me and is one of my favourite Brainwavz releases to date.
 
 

Bass

The bass is just right on the S3, and the mainstream target audience will appreciate the slightly boosted, yet punchy bass. The bass sounds rather neutral, there certainly isn’t a whole lot of colouration there, but to me, it does sounds just a little boosted. There is no bloat and the bass remains relatively quick however. Detail is quite good and the bass extends well. There is some bass roll off towards the sub-bass, but there is still an adequate amount of rumble. I did not detect any bass bleed into the midrange and the bass was quite clean on a whole. Overall, the bass is very impressive on the S3 and it has one of the best lower ends of any budget IEM I have tried.
 
 

Midrange

I thought that the S3 would be sound somewhat similar to the BLU-100 in the midrange and it kind of does, but not entirely. The midrange is definitely warm, but not in a way that it sounds veiled. The thing I hate most in headphones is an overly warm midrange that masks details, but the S3’s tuning isn’t that. While it is warm, it isn’t overly so, and it is still quite detailed. While it isn’t exactly a detailed IEM, the midrange stays smooth and retains more detail than I expected. Vocals sound clear with no sibilance whatsoever. The midrange will appeal to those who prefer a more relaxed and laid back presentation.
 
 

Treble

The treble is the area where I feel the S3 could improve the most. The midrange and treble are all slightly warm, but the treble seems a little too rolled off. While the pulled back treble doesn’t make the S3 dull sounding, it certainly takes away a bit of the treble sparkle. It was, however, very smooth and people who prefer a warmer sound will like this. There was no sibilance at all. However, personally I’m not a fan of the treble, it’s just too rolled off for me. Cymbals lack sparkle and the upper end detail just isn’t as good as other offerings in the same price range.
 
 

Soundstage & Imaging

The dynamic drivers were better than I expected and the soundstage was rather expansive, with good width. With budget IEMs, the soundstage is usually the area where they fall short, but this is not the case with the S3. It does lack depth, but it would be unrealistic to expect a 3d soundstage from an IEM of this price range. The imaging is also rather strong. It is on par with the RE-400 and it is generally quite accurate, but in congested tracks it struggles a little.
 
 

Separation & Detail

The tuning of the S3 is smooth and not detail oriented, but it does reasonably well as far as detail goes. It is more detailed than your average budget IEM but it doesn’t come close to the RE-400. The separation is quite impressive, for the price it really does sound very good.
 
 

Conclusion

The Brainwavz S3 is a solid choice for someone who favours a warmer sound over a more analytical sound. The microphone and controls for iPhone are good and they make a very nice replacement for the stock earpods.  

Many thanks to Brainwavz for the Brainwavz S3 review sample! There are already some other reviews about Brainwavz S3, so I will make this review concise.
 

 

Brainwavz S3 utilizes single 8 mm dynamic driver with 16 ohms nominal impedance, in full metal housing for over the ear design. But I find that the design can also be worn straight down without any problem. The metal housing though pretty light but feels solid with good build quality. Left and Right markings are clearly printed on the earphone metal housing. The 4.5 mm nozzle size ensures compatibility with many generic eartips. From the housing design perspective my only concern is some edges on the metal housing. The edges around the housing near the nozzle always mildly scratch my ears when inserting S3 into my ear canal. While edges at the back of the housing might potentially scratch my DAP or other items when I put them together in my bag. So my advice is to always keep the S3 in the provided carry case. The smooth, no edges design of S0 and S5 is, IMHO, a safer design approach.

 
 


Brainwavz S3 share similar flat cable design as Brainwavz S0, S1, and S5 that seems to be the trademark for Brainwavz S series. Though flat cable is more tangle proof, but it also increases the thickness of the cable. The cable is equipped with Clearwavz remote that supports Apple iOS Products. For Android devices, the microphone in the remote can be used for phone call, as well as the middle button to play/stop and skip tracks. But the volume buttons don't work for Android. 

 
 
 
 
Pros:
Good detail and clarity, with good midrange and treble response.
Generous accessories with plenty of eartips and a very nice carry case.
 
Cons:
Lean bass. Bass level is moderately lacking.
Edgy metal housing.
 
Suggestions for improvements:
To improve bass response without sacrificing the detail and clarity.
Avoid edges on the earphone housing.
Slimmer cable.
Remote that fully compatible for both iOS and Android devices.
 
 
 

 
 
 

Sound Signature
Sound signature observation was using the stock translucent grey eartips, after over 100 hours of burn-in. I didn’t notice any significant improvement before and after burn-in, so I would say burn-in is not necessary for S3.
 
Clarity is the main sonic signature of S3. It is not a warm sounding IEM, and leans slightly, just a slightly, towards analytic in a good way. Bass is lean, but has decent speed and texture. To my sonic preference, the bass is moderately lacking, and IMHO the main weakness of S3. I find the bass is lacking around 6 dB for most of my test tracks. The lack of bass makes S3 fail to deliver sense of musical engagement. Midrange has good clarity with some mild emphasize around the upper mid that makes midrange presentation quite forward. Treble has mild emphasize on the lower treble, but overall midrange to treble frequency response is pretty good, quite balance with good detail, clarity, and texture, without touching sibilant. I observed there is no annoying peak and dip beside the slight upper mid hum. One good thing is, It doesn't have midrange muffledness that I often found in many IEMs in this price range; detail and clarity are basically S3 main strength. The good clarity of S3 makes it a good communication earphone for smartphone, for better speech intelligibility. If only Brainwavz tuned S3 to have more bass, it could be a very close competitor to S5.
 
I did some simple frequency response measurement using USB measurement microphone MiniDSP UMIK-1 and a DIY acoustic coupler that I made using heat shrink tube. As for the software, I use REW. Brainwavz S3 connected to LH Geek Out 450 headphone output (0.47 ohms), and the earphone side coupled to the measurement microphone as shown in the following pictures. 
 

 
 
 
 
I’ve been experimenting on IEM measurement lately, and I found it to be very complicated. I observed the following:
1. The length and volume of the acoustic coupler greatly affecting the treble response. Longer acoustic coupler will create unnecessary treble peaks.
2. Room temperature greatly affecting the bass response. Similar measurement done in 25 degree Celsius and 31 degree Celsius room temperature consistently showing around 6 dB differences in bass response. Bass response is higher in lower room temperature.
3. Loudness level affecting the smoothness of the overall frequency response. Generally measurement done in louder volume showing smoother frequency response.
 
From my experiments so far, I suggest to always read IEM frequency response measurement result in the context of the measurement environment, as they are mostly useful only as comparison to other IEMs that are measured in the same measurement environment. So please take note that this is not a standard measurement, therefore cannot be used as comparison with other measurement. This measurement is only to show the rough estimation of the frequency response, especially to show the lacking of the bass response in comparison to S0 and S5. 
 
I used short acoustic coupler to avoid unnecessary treble peaks. Measurement is done in room temperature around 31 degree Celsius (non air-con room in Singapore). Loudness reference is 105 dB at 500 Hz. 105 dB seems high, but it is due to the distant of the earphone that was placed very close to the microphone. The volume level is actually around 90 dB listening level when used on ears. All measurement were done 3 times, by plugging, unplugging, and re-fitting the earphone to the acoustic coupler, and then averaging the result from the 3 measurements. Psycho acoustic smoothing was applied to all measurement.
 
Besides comparisons with Brainwavz S0 and S5, I also compared S3 with DUNU DN-2000. DN-2000 is so far what I perceived as the flattest sounding IEM that I've ever tried. We might have different preferences for what we call flat / balanced tonality, but for me so far DUNU DN-2000 is what my ears perceived as relatively flat tonality; therefore I use it as my reference for comparison.
 
Measurement result of Left (Blue) and Right (Red) drivers of Brainwavz S3:

 
Averaged frequency response of Brainwavz S3 Left and Right drivers:

 
Frequency response in comparison to Brainwavz S0 (Blue) and S5 (Green):

 
 
Frequency response in comparison to DUNU DN-2000 (Green):

 
 
 

Comparisons with Brainwavz S0 and S5
 

 
Comparisons were done using the stock translucent grey eartips.
 
Brainwavs S0
In short, S0 has more bass with less clarity than S3. S3 wins on clarity and resolution. S0 has some mid bass emphasize that bleeds a little to the midrange, bass is a little bloated and less textured as compared to S3 lean and faster bass. Midrange on S0 is mildly muffled and less textured, and treble is softer and less transparent. S0 is more forgiving and fun sounding, better option for those who prefer smooth and warm sounding signature. While S3 has better clarity, more linear midrange and treble, but lacking the fun part due to the lean bass. S3 might be preferable for those who prefer clarity.
 
Brainwavz S5
S5 has some treble emphasize and sounds brighter and more transparent than S3. S5 has wider frequency range, more extended bass and treble and overall sounds livelier with better detail and dynamic. Beside the slightly smoother treble, S3 is still a level below S5 in almost every aspect. S5 has better resolution and sounds more transparent than S3, with much better bass. Dynamic and speed is also better on S5, faster and more realistic. Though S5 is the better IEM here, but S5 might be a little too bright for the treble sensitive users.
Between S0, S3, and S5, the older and more expensive S5 is clearly the winner for me. With the right eartips such as the triple flange, S5 treble is tamed resulting an excellent lively and balanced sound signature. S0 and S3 serve different category of audience as mentioned above.
 

 
 
 
 
Eartips rolling
S3 comes with plenty of eartips for some degree of sonic tuning. Sonic impression of S3 above was using the stock translucent grey (red core) eartips. The following are comparisons of other eartips with the stock translucent grey eartips.
 

 
 
Black small bore with coloured core ('Sony Hybrid' look alike)
The black small bore eartips is in my opinion the best sounding eartips for S3. It helps to improve the bass response a little, and preferable in comparison to the default larger bore translucent grey red core eartips. Treble also sounds smoother and less peaky using the black small bore eartips. But still, the bass response is less than what I called proper bass level.
 

 

Double Flange
Sounds more or less about the same as the default translucent grey red core eartips. The only improvement I felt was not in the sound department, but in comfort. The double flange covers the edges near the nozzle that usually scratches my ears a little during insertion, therefore more comfortable during insertion to ear canals.
 
Triple Flange
I observed triple flange eartips usually has the largest degree of treble smoothing among other silicone eartips. It could be that it is actually shifted up the treble peak, therefore treble sounds less peaky than other eartips. Treble is a tad smoother than eartips and holographic imaging also improves a little. But unfortunately bass response is the lowest, a tad less from the default translucent grey eartips, therefore the least preferable.
 
Foam - Comply T400
The foam eartips performs quite well, and more or less comparable to the default translucent grey eartips, a tad more linear on the treble region, probably more comfortable to some, but no significant differences in sound quality.
 
 
 
 
Competition in this price range is tough and crowded with a lot of options, and S3 sits in the category around average to good. For sub $100, some of my most favorite IEMs are LZ-A2, Puro Sound Labs IEM500, Alpha & Delta AD01, and Narmoo S1. I hope in the near future Brainwavz would come up with some giant killer IEMs that would compete well with those IEMs.
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 

Specifications:

1. Drivers: Dynamic, 8 mm
2. Rated Impedance: 16 Ω
3. Frequency Range: 16 Hz ~ 22 kHz
4. Sensitivity: 96 dB at 1 mW
5. Rated Input Power: 10 mW
6. Cable: 1.3 m Y-Cord, Copper
7. Plug: 3.5 mm, Gold Plated

 

Included Accessories:

1. Earphone Hardcase
2. 3 sets of Silicone Ear Tips (S M L)
3. 1 set of Comply™ Foam Tips T-400
4. 1 Shirt Clip
5. 1 set of Silicone Bi-Flange Eartips
6. 1 set of Silicone Tri-Flange Eartips
7. Velcro Cable Tie
8. Instruction Manual & Warranty Card (24 month warranty)

 
 
 
Equipment Used In This Review:
 
Earphones / IEMs:
Brainwavz S0
Brainwavz S5
DUNU DN-2000
 
DACs, DAPs & Headphone Amplifiers:
LH Geek Out 450
Fiio X3ii
Onkyo DP-X1
Superlux HA3D
Some recordings used in this review:

 
 
 

Some recordings used in this review: