See Audio Bravery

Specification:

MODEL: See Audio Bravery
IMPEDANCE: 18Ω
SENSITIVITY: 110dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20H-20KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M
PIN TYPE: 0.78MM 2-PIN CONNECTOR
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm /2.5mm/4.4mm
DRIVER UNITS: 4 Balanced Armature Drivers ( Knowles and Sonion).
DISTORTION RATE: < 1% (1KHz)

Source Used:
Acoustic Research AR-M200
XDuoo X3 (CS4398)
Realme 6 paired with externa DAC ( Avani, Abigail, JCally JA21)
Foobar2000
Tidal, Spotify, Qobuz, & Apple Music
(MP3 320kbps, FLAC 16bit,FLAC 24bit,WAV,DSD256)


Build: The SeeAudio Bravery provides a nice looking design made of resin. The right faceplate has the Bravery model design while the left faceplate has the SeeAudio brand logo. It has a smooth texture that may feel bulky due to its 4BA configuration depending on the users’ size of ear. The nozzle is made of metal, then the upper part has the 2-pin socket and has a small bass vent on the top.

Sound Quality;

Lows: The lows has a rich-textured quality of bass and sub-bass rumble, it doesn’t get muddy and doesn’t sound lacking even it is just a BA set-up which amazed me since BA drivers has the least bass in my experience, but in this IEM, I haven’t experience the lacking of bass which lets me enjoy my favorite electronic music. It has a pretty good extension on the lows and can also provides the rumble if the track is calling for it. The bass is Clean, Textured and has no bass bleed which I like.

Mids: Midrange has a warmish tonality and has a smooth or lush presentation, Vocals and instrument has a clear, accurate and natural presentation. Midbass has a good slam and not muddy. The SeeAudio Bravery can handle the the Hard Synths, Electric guitars and other harsh instruments without getting harsh and offensive to my ear. in my observation, the Bravery is best to pair with a clean yet powerful sounding DAC to elevate its mid a little bit if you prefer it that way.

Treble:

The treble has enough shimmer and sparkles and doesn’t sound sibilant at all, It also has a above average airiness and extension which makes it a wide sounding iem and doesn’t sound narrow on the highs. Hi-hats and other details sounds perfectly fine and non-peircing which makes this iem a great all-arounder since it has a controlled yet powerful sound from the lows to highs.

Soundstage & Imaging: SeeAudio Bravery is one of the well extended IEM that I ever tries in my whole audio journey. It has a nice depth which can provides a good, well textures lows and it also provides a clean non-fatiguing highs. The staging is also above average which provides accurate vocals and instrument placement, other elements and extra details of the tracks can be also identified easily where does it come from.


Conclusion: In my opinion, the SeeAudio Bravery is one of the best all BA IEM I’ve tried. It has a Dynamic Driver sounding bass which makes it a good all arounder at its price range. It can deliver the music in a natural or musical in the most enjoyable way without getting colored or artificial sounding which makes it a great IEM. The lows up to the highs sounds perfect. Bassheads, Midcentric Guys or even Trebleheads will surely love this IEM.

Test Tracks
Getting Older - Billie Eilish
Foxey Lady- Jimi Hendrix
First of the Year - Skrillex
The Husk - Rings of Saturn
Airplane Mode - Cory Wong
The Crying Machine - Steve Vai
Take the "A" Train - Nikki Yanofsky
A Little Piece of Heaven - Avenged Sevenfold
PLUR POLICE (Jauz Remix) - Knife Party
It's Oh So Quiet – Björk
My playlist:

INTRODUCTION AND DISCLAIMER:​

The SeeAudio Bravery is an in-ear monitor (IEM) using four balanced armatures (BAs) per housing. The SeeAudio Bravery retails for $279 at HiFiGo. I received the Bravery from HiFiGo in exchange for my impressions.

SOURCES:​

I have used the SeeAudio Bravery with the following sources:

• Qudelix 5K
• Hidizs S9
• Reiyin DA-PLUS

MUSIC:​

I have tested these headphones with local FLAC and Spotify Premium. Visit my last.fm page to get an idea of what I listen to:
XenosBroodLord’s Library | Last.fm

PACKAGING AND ACCESSORIES:​

The SeeAudio Bravery comes in a large rectangular black cardboard box with a cardstock slipcover. The front of the slipcover is illustrated with Rinko, SeeAudio’s anime mascot. Technical specifications for the Bravery are provided in English and Chinese on the back of the slipcover. The slipcover also features a frequency response graph for the Bravery.



The unboxing experience is appropriate for a product of this price, as is the accessory selection. The Bravery includes three pairs of foam eartips (S, M, L), three pairs of Azla SednaEarfit Xelastec eartips (S, M, L), a bespoke Hakugei cable, and two pairs of replacement nozzle covers. The Bravery also includes a sticker pack, a pair of postcards, a user manual, and a contact card. My review package also included a two-dimensional Rinko figurine.

BUILD QUALITY AND DESIGN:​

The SeeAudio Bravery has translucent dark grey acrylic shells with a pseudo-custom fit. The teardrop-shaped faceplates have a black-and-white marbled pattern into which the SeeAudio and Bravery logos are inlaid with gold filigree. The gap between the faceplate and shell is visibly seamless. There is a single metal-rimmed circular vent adjacent to the 2-pin connector, which is flush with the shell. The nozzles are metal with mesh nozzle filters and have substantial rims to secure eartips.


The 2-strand paracord-wrapped cable is curled in a double helix pattern below the Y-split. The cable uses dark anodized grey metal hardware for the 3.5mm jack housing, Y-split, chin-adjustment choker, and 2-pin connectors. There is strain relief above the 3.5mm jack, but none at the Y-split. The cable has pre-formed plastic earguides without memory wire. The cable is moderately microphonic even with the use of the chin-adjustment slider.

COMFORT, FIT, AND ISOLATION:​

The SeeAudio Bravery is intended to be worn cable-up. The earpieces have a moderate-to-deep insertion depth. Secureness of fit is average. The shells are on the larger side and the nozzle angle is not ideal for my ears. I frequently had to push the earpieces back into my ear canals. Isolation is average. While there is no driver flex due to the all-BA design, it is possible to induce an uncomfortable suction-like effect with the Xelastec tips if the nozzles are too deeply inserted into the ears. The foam eartips are of poor quality and irritate my ears more than the Xelastecs.

MEASUREMENTS:​

My measurements of the SeeAudio Bravery can be found on my expanding squig.link database:
SeeAudio Bravery — Squiglink by Bedrock Reviews
My measurements are conducted with a Dayton iMM-6 microphone using a vinyl tubing coupler and a calibrated USB sound interface. The measurements use a compensation file derived from relating my raw measurements to published measurements from Crinacle and Antdroid. These measurements should not be directly compared to IEC-compliant measurements.

SOUND:​

The SeeAudio Bravery has a mostly neutral tuning, with slightly elevated bass relative to textbook neutrality.
Instead of a pronounced sub-bass shelf, the Bravery’s sub-bass and mid-bass are emphasized to roughly the same degree. Sub-bass extension is good but not great. There is some sub-bass rumble and some mid-bass impact, but the result is mostly to provide the IEM with a sense of warmth and body rather than an overt physicality. The bass tuning will not satisfy bassheads but translates well to a wide variety of musical genres. Bass articulation is excellent. Bass dynamics and texture are both respectable for the price point, especially for an all-BA unit.
The Bravery opts for a more restrained midrange than either the SeeAudio Neo or the more explicitly Harman-ish SeeAudio Yume. The Bravery has minimal pinna gain in comparison to its siblings. While vocal intelligibility is good, both male and female vocals are much less prominent than one would expect given the tunings of SeeAudio’s other products. Female vocals do sound slightly more vibrant than male vocals. The presence region is slightly more prominent than the pinna gain region, which creates a leaner, more clarity-focused midrange presentation. I do not find the Bravery to be sibilant. Timbre is natural-sounding if on the thin side.
The Bravery’s treble response is engaging, with ample sizzle to cymbal hits. That said, I do not find the Bravery’s treble to be harsh or discomforting. While the lower treble is most prominent, upper treble extension is excellent, especially with the included Xelastec eartips. There is plenty of both sparkle and air. Transient delivery is overly metallic, at least with the Xelastec eartips. Even with other aftermarket eartips, transient delivery is somewhat shimmery. Detail retrieval is adequate. Instrument separation and imaging are very good, but the soundstage is average in size.

AMPLIFICATION REQUIREMENTS AND SOURCE PAIRING:​

The SeeAudio Bravery is readily driven with modest sources. I did not notice hiss with any of my sources.

CLOSING WORDS:​

The SeeAudio Bravery is a versatile IEM with no deal-breaking flaws at its price point.
The SeeAudio Bravery can be purchased below:
SeeAudio Bravery 4BA In-Ear Monitors — HiFiGo
If you enjoyed this review, please consider checking out my blog: https://medium.com/bedrock-reviews

See Audio is a relatively new name in the Audiophile game. The Yume, Kaguya, and Neo from them turned out to be excellent items. The following review is to assess where Bravery stands.

The Unit has been graciously sent by See Audio, in exchange for my honest thoughts and review.

Technical Specs:

• Specially designed four balanced armature driver configuration.
• Premium range of Knowles and Sonion BA drivers.
• Clean, accurate, and smooth sound reproduction.
• Electronic frequency crossover for smooth distortion-free performance.
• Specially customized 6N OCC Hakugei cable.
• Premium Azla Xelastec Sednafit ear tips.

Build:

Bravery is made of Resin material. This gives them a lightweight feel, yet the iem is very sturdy in nature. The Right shell has the Bravery Logo on it and the Left Shell has See Audio’s logo imprinted on it. This is a 2-pin based iem and the connectors are very snug fit. You will also see an air-vent on the iem. Good Job See Audio on the build.



Source:

• ifi Nano BL
• Avani Dongle dac
• Abigail Dongle dac
• Samsung Dongle Dac
• Samsung Galaxy S10
• Sony Discman

Sound Impressions:

Lows:

Test Tracks:

• Rabba Rabba from Aks (https://open.qobuz.com/track/80327957)
• Saaki From Musafir (
  )
• Zara Zara Touch Me from Race (
  )
• Cash By Vishal-Shekar (
  )
• Raavan By Amit Trivedi (
  )

The Lows are excellent driven by Bravery. Track 5 is my go-to track for assessing the bass and I was not disappointed at all. Although Bravery does miss the sub-bass rumbles but then it does so much more in the lows that it compensates for it. The bass has a good texture to it and that allows quality presentation. The bass is coherent and controlled and no Bass bleed at all.



Mids:

Test Tracks:

• Dil Ko Tumse Pyar Hua from RHTDM (
  )
• Haule Haule from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (
  )
• Piya From Tanu Weds Manu (
  )
• Khamosh Raat From Takshak (
  )
• Rishtey From Life in a Metro (
  )
• Saathiya From Saathiya (
  )
• Dil Gira Dafatan From Delhi-6 (
  )

Bravery as intimate mids, with natural timbre elevating the experience by multiple folds. Vocals are Lush and the overall tone is warmish. The upper mids have an energy to them and that lends the overall note a good output. Dynamics were excellent with Nano BL, although I felt, Bravery Missed a few macro-details but the whole mid-frequency body gives it a U-shaped presentation. Also... the vocals are not recessed and they are not smacked in the front as well. They are positioned just perfect for my taste

Highs:

Test Tracks:

• The Funeral By band of Horses (
  )
• No One’s Gonna Love You by Band of Horses (
  )
• Simple Song by The Shins (
  )
• Chasing Cars By Snow Patrols (
  )
• This Modern Love By Bloc Party (
  )

The Highs are energetic yet smooth and non-fatiguing. No sibilance was observed at all with Bravery. The Upper treble has enough extension to give Bravery a nice coherent setup. There is enough detailing in the resulting output and ample air is present, still, the stage is somewhat intimate but they do not sound restricted at all. The busy tracks are taken care of, with an ease of a TOTL item and that left me impressed.



Soundstage and Imaging:

As stated earlier, the stage is somewhat intimate, which means the width is average however the height and the depth are good enough, at least what I could feel with my gear. The overall presentation is decent with a few in-your-face vocals.

The imaging is decent as well. It is precise and the details are excellent. Layering is excellent but since it misses those macro details, you may feel like it misses being the ‘fun” iem. But I don’t think, the goal was to be the fun-sounding iem, it rather wants to be the natural-sounding iem.



Conclusion:

With a U-shaped signature, Bravery offers you a world of relaxation and smooth transitions. The natural timbre and the lush vocal experience will ensure that your playlist is going to fed with good layers, details, and timbre. So can we go for it? The answer is…absolutely…I purchased a unit of my own and I am going to enjoy this.

FOREWORD​

It is best to understand that my reviews are entirely subjective from my point of view and heavily influenced by my own sonic preferences – I am a longtime zealot of Diffused Field Neutral sound (Etymotic DF Neutral). Additionally, I have also developed deeper appreciation for Neutral Balanced sound which offers a bit more of weight in the lower registers rendering organic, warm-ish sonic characteristics.

THE BUILD​

Bravery came in a beautiful package (if I ignore the immature Waifu theme). However, I will just say this one out loud. I wished SeeAudio could have forgo the need to use the Anime “Waifu” theme that has been going rampart among so many Chi-Fi audio gear manufacturers now. I just can’t understand how this would add value to an already beautiful and elegant looking IEM like the Bravery. In fact, had I not been looking at the IEM itself I would have been massively discouraged by the external packaging. The Waifu there just made the whole thing looked so immature and borderline hideous. Please stop doing this, please – it does not do justice to the product itself by a longshot. Stick to something simple and that alone is an understated elegance.

Okay enough rant. As noted above, Bravery is a very beautiful and elegant unit. Constructed of resin shells that’s somewhat on the larger side of things. In fact, Bravery is the largest IEM I have ever owned. Even slightly bigger than Etymotic EVO. Thankfully being resin means that it is not as heavy as the look suggests.

Click to expand...

Bravery came paired with a beautiful Hakugei 6N OCC cable that is quite impressive looking. I am totally digging the cable construction. Additionally there’s two sets of premium tips, of which one of them being azla Xelastec and the other being slow rebound memory foams (which I liked a lot).

THE WEAR​

SeeAudio Bravery as noted earlier is rather a large IEM. But once worn I did not find any discomfort or difficulties to wear it even up to 7 hours (yes, I spent 6-9 hours per day listening to music). The Hakugei cable is well designed with very useful ear hooks and solidly latched chin slider (to combat microphonics)

THE SOUND​

BURN-IN ASSESSMENT​

First time out of the box, I found the Bravery to be rather dark and warm sounding. Almost underwhelming. The good thing is, I was already attuned to liking warm sounding IEMs especially after Moondrop Aria and Yuan Li. So instead of dismissing the Bravery right away I decided to hold any judgement until the IEMs will have proper burn-in. True enough, throughout the next 12 hours when I listened to my Bravery it sounded better. Gone are the darkness and veil. Still on the warm-ish signature but it is as clear as I can hope for. Now we are talking.

The sound impressions described afterwards are after 100 hours of burn-in with the following equipment:

Click to expand...

• SeeAudio Bravery slow rebound memory foam tips
• Samsung Galaxy S20 (USB 3.0 Power Delivery)
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact (USB 2.0 & 3.5mm Out)
• HiBy Audio Player (USB Exclusive mode)
• Traditional FLAC Files (CD Rips or Bandcamp)
• TempoTec Sonata E44 Dongle
• Ovidius B1 (3.5 Single Ended) Dongle
• CEntrance DACportHD Dongle
• Abigail CX31993 Dongle
• VE Run About Plus 5 (18v Amplifier)

TIMBRE AND TONALITY​

The Bravery is decidedly an organic sounding unit. Very analogue tonality and close to balanced neutral timbre. I would not say that the Bravery is neutral, simply because the lower frequencies does sound a bit more muscular and denser that what I am used to. In lay man’s term the Bravery is a warm sounding IEM. Warm but not necessarily dark like what I have heard from the likes of Moondrop Aria. In contrast TForce Yuan Li is more accurate in presenting neutral balanced sound. All in all, this sound signature came as a surprise to me as I didn’t expect balanced armatures to sound this organic. Being so long with the likes of Etymotic Knowles based BA, I know how metallic and bright sounding they can be in native tuning. Bravery is definitely NOT bright sounding despite using Knowles BA as the dedicated High Frequency driver. Well, do I like it? Hell yes I do. I have been tuning my Etys here and there to get that analogue-organic balanced sound that I appreciate more than anything else now. SeeAudio Bravery came ready with all these. Overall tonality sounds proper to my ears, there’s no odd out of place to the nuances of each tones.

DYNAMICS​

The tuning for Bravery is very matured, polished, and smooth. I am genuinely impressed with the level of coherence achieved by these four different balanced armature drivers to stage dynamic range that is expansive and hygienically harmonious. The funny part is, had I been doing a blind test on the Bravery, I would have assumed this being a magnetic planar instead – much akin to what I heard from a properly powered TIN HiFi P1 and FOSTEX T40RP MK3. The richness and density of the dynamic transients are practically TOTL like (depends on the source). There’s never a moment I felt that the body of notes being lean or dry. Always wholesome and with proper level of vibrancy to keep it realistic.

MIDS​

Bravery Mids are tuned towards being slightly intimate and warm. In fact I believe the overall warm-ish signature for Bravery starts here in the Mids with the Sonion single BA. Deftly tuned to emit rich realistic analogue tone with commendable textures and depth. Depending on the source characteristics, I am pleased that the Bravery is able to scale with the nature of sources Mids staging. For example on the already Mids intimate Ovidius B1, the presentation is outright forward focused – as if Alison Krauss is singing her peaky Soprano vocals right into my face at one step distance. When paired with something less intimate like the TempoTec Sonata E44 or Abigail, Alison now takes additional two steps back. This behavior is consistent with other vocalists (Sinne Eeg, Diana Krall, Nick Cave etc.). The Bravery remained faithful to the mastering depth as exhibited in the original recordings.
Instruments wise, Bravery offers yet again very analogue but precise sound – instead of being sharp and bitey edged, the tones are more rounded and with lots of polished smoothness. Natural length instrument decays with realistic reverbs. Suffice to say the sound attunement is geared more towards “Unplugged Sessions” type of presentation instead of “Studio Reference” – unplugged sessions being more focused on reliving the moment of live acoustical performances rather than outright precision as emphasized by studio recordings – if that makes any sense. All in all I am enjoying this rich, musical yet detailed Mids presentation quite a lot. The warmth is expertly balanced to remain realistic and not overly colored.

TREBLE​

The Bravery Treble is very subtle. As a matter of saying it will not jump into my face and takes precedence over anything. Treble staging remained in check, harmonizing perfectly with the rest of the spectrum. However I do wish it could have a bit more pronounced presence. I am so used to the sparkly dominating Highs of Etymotic ER4SR and VE Duke. The approach for Bravery Treble is similar to Shure KSE1500, except that of course KSE1500 being a lot more airy, surgically detailed, and realistically pristine to the last aeons (practically perfect). The Bravery offered ample subtle shimmer and sparkle to keep things exciting. Treble details largely depends on the capabilities of the source. When plugged to the venerable VE Run About Plus 5 amplifier + TempoTec Sonata E44, healthy amount of air and details revealed, still subtle and polished but a bit more pronounced and with richer density. Extensions wise, I would say that the Bravery fell short of the extremes as exhibited by VE Duke, perhaps the Bravery Treble extensions are on par with Etymotic ER2XR or even HZSOUND Heart Mirror (with the HM being less refined and brighter). The Bravery Treble decays are the airy soft and smooth type, not crispy or snappy as compared to the likes of KBEAR Aurora or ER4SR. Being smooth and polished, there’s zero chance of getting Treble fatigue.

BASS​

Perhaps the highlight of the Bravery, Bass performances. I have said this many times before, I hate bassy IEMs. Good thing is the Bravery does not qualify as a Basshead IEM, which is perfectly fine by me. What the Bravery offers is a richly muscled Bass elevation that is as smooth, disciplined, coherent and expertly controlled. Not a single moment I have heard any sort of Bass bleeding into anything – overshadowing any other neighboring frequencies. Sub-Bass performance is nothing short of amazing, very realistic with appropriate seismic sensations that is more felt than heard – the decays are kept sensible without being overdone. Mid-Bass punchy and tidy, yet still moderate enough not to make things rumbling unrealistically. As I said earlier, The Bravery is not exactly a balanced neutral IEM. This thing has bass amount more than any of my regular IEMs. Compared to VE Duke, it is like there’s no life there in the lower registers for the Duke, hahahahaha. What I love about the Bravery is, despite having seemingly more Bass than I am normally accustomed to, the projection and execution of sound enrich the lower frequencies rather than commanding it. That is the threshold of acceptance that I can tolerate, one hair beyond that and I will find myself not liking it at all. The Bravery Bass is what makes it special, twin Knowles BA that worked seamlessly to put most dynamic drivers blushing. There’s depth and textures akin to what one can expect from TOTL IEMs (when powered properly).

DETAILS & TRANSPARENCY​

Despite being on the warmer side, the Bravery did great at keeping believable transparency level. Again depending on the prowess of the sources, transparency is scaled appropriately. Plug it onto an already warm sounding unit like the VE Odyssey HD and there’s slight loss of transparency with the added warmth. The Bravery will need something more neutral to shine the best. Something like Ovidius B1, CEntrance DACportHD or at minimum, Abigail. With Ovidius B1 and DACportHD, I get lots of Macro and Micro details retrieval. Smooth and well rounded. Pairing with TempoTec Sonata E44 offered something a bit more euphonic and slightly colored in the lower registers, since E44 has some emphasis on Bass region. This non overly clinical transparency also means that the Bravery is very forgiving to Lo-Fi and poor sources much similar to TForce Yuan Li. I can listen to very shouty recordings from the likes of Burzum, Cult of Fire etc. without getting my eardrums ice spiked to oblivion.
Sensitivity wise, The Bravery exhibited the same symptoms to my other highly sensitive IEMs. I can hear background noises emitted from the crazily powerful Ovidius B1. However these are only observed on silent passages and are completely gone when the actual music plays. Similar observation with VE Odyssey HD.

SPEED & TRANSIENTS​

Make or break, this is where I ultimately decide if I am liking this Bravery or not. Happy to say that I am impressed with the speed. Nothing less from a set of well-tuned Balanced Armatures working in cohesion to achieve exemplary coherence. Dynamics transients are deftly handled without any hint of compression or congestion. Notes exchange and transitions between layers are well separated in their own spaces, with all four BA drivers responding with great agility to rhyme with each other’s and providing accurate responses that emit the final sound. Be it complex or outright speedy, the Bravery can handle them all with great finesse.

SOUNDSTAGE & IMAGING​

The Bravery soundstage seems to be largely dependent on the sources. It is outright narrow (but tall) on the likes of VE Odyssey HD and direct phone out. When paired with proper partners, the staging size expand appropriately with commendable depth. I am not a soundstage junkie and less critical on this segment. So, any sense of added space is something I consider as a bonus. What I do like the most is how clean the layers are separated despite being a warm-ish sounding unit. There’s no blurring of lines and this in turn help to keep spatial imaging and positioning sharp. It is as holographic as it can be when the sources demands for it.

ADAPTABILITY AND SCALABILITY​

SeeAudio Bravery is a very efficient sounding IEM. At 18 Ohm and 105db of sensitivity it will sound great even with direct output from most phones. However the best can yet be squeezed out by smashing it with more driving power. At which in these conditions, I only need low volume loudness to experience richer dynamics and larger headstage. In fact the best way to enjoy the Bravery is to run in on approx. 1-2 clicks lower volume than I would normally use. Feed it more than necessary power and there’s a tendency to become a bit glaringly loud. At this subtle level of volume, the refinement will be most evident to my hearing. This is especially useful as I would be able to train my ears getting used to lower volume which in turn will keep hearing health in check. Another element that I should have mentioned earlier, the Bravery has great sealing ability especially with the foam tips. With great seal, comes great isolation to enjoy focused sound output.
Cable swapping seems to work great with the Bravery too. The stock cable is already tuned to provide the “safest” tuning at which things are a bit more balanced. Swapping in a pure Black Litz OCC, I observed that the overall timbre losses some of the warmth, gained a bit more clarity and pronounced highs – at the expense of sounding leaner than stock. With Kinera Leyding, it is very similar to the stock Hakugei cable, except that Kinera Leyding has a hair better transparency and with better sense of airy space between notes. I also tried with TACables Obsidian OCC/Litz hybrid and getting some results that are in between the Kinera Leyding and the Hakugei 6n OCC.

VERDICT​

SeeAudio Bravery. The Bravery marked the end of my search for multi drivers BA (at least for this year ). Almost a month ago I decided to take a break from #donglemadness to focus on acquiring new IEMs. I already have gotten my Magnetic Planar, DD, Piezo and even Titanium DD, The Bravery completed my collection to serve as normal rotation for my daily listening. I spent approximately 6-8 hours a day having something plugged to my ears, having varieties to choose from is what I needed to keep things exciting.
For a multiple BA, SeeAudio did a stellar job with The Bravery. It was not an immediate WOW for me from the first listen. But as I spent more time using it, I began to develop a fondness for the rich sonic presentation that always remained smooth and technically competent. I personally believe that the Bravery is delivering values above the asking price. I have heard similar sonic performances from IEMs that are priced double than this one. SeeAudio Bravery is a keeper for sure.

PS: As always, I would like to thank HiFiGo (https://hifigo.com/) for the ever-excellent customer service provided facilitating my purchase of this SeeAudio Bravery. #bravery

Introduction:

IMPEDANCE: 18Ω

SENSITIVITY: 110dB

PIN TYPE: 0.78MM 2-PIN CONNECTOR

DRIVER UNITS: 4 Balanced Armature Drivers (Knowles and Sonion).

See Audio made a huge splash in the audiophile circuit with the YUME. Hence, I was obviously excited when I got a chance to review the See Audio Bravery. The Bravery is the latest offering from See Audio, in collaboration with Azla for the Xelastec tips and Hakugei for the cable. The See Audio bravery comes with 4 BA drivers, 2 Knowles BA drivers handle lows, 1 Sonion BA for the mids, and another Knowles for the highs.



Disclaimer:

The See Audio Bravery was sent to me as part of a review tour in my country organized by the brand. I’m not affiliated with the brand in any way and have no incentive what so ever, to write anything positive or negative about the unit. The views expressed in this write-up are my own and are based on the week or so that I spent trying out the IEM.

The See Audio Bravery can be purchased from Hifigo.com using the following link:

https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-bravery

Gear used for this review:

• Sony NW-ZX507
• FiiO M11 Plus LTD
• FiiO BTR5 (As a BT dacamp with a phone)
• Xduoo XD-05 BAL (As a BT dacamp with a phone and as an amp with NW-ZX507)
• Helm DB-12 (As an amp with NW-ZX507 or M11Plus LTD)
• FiiO LC-BT2 (As a BT neckband with a phone or NW-ZX507)

Aesthetics, Build and Fit:

The unit I received was an unboxed one, hence I will not be able to talk about the retail packaging and unboxing experience. However, I’d like to highlight that the stock cable is one of the best cables I’ve seen in a while. I’m a huge fan of cables with fabric sleeves and this is one trend I’d like to see more IEMs pick up. The 6N OCC cable is smooth and supple, thanks to the aforementioned sleeve. The metal plugs, y-split, and chin slider definitely give it a premium look and feel. The lack of memory wires or polarity indicators makes it somewhat difficult to figure out the right orientation of the cable. Another aspect I really loved about the Bravery’s build is that the 2pin connectors on the IEM merge seamlessly with the IEM’s body, this gives it a very premium look and feel, akin to something from the likes of 64Audio.

The IEM has a semi-transparent resin shell that provides a glimpse of the drivers inside. The faceplate has some really good artwork with the SeeAudio logo prominently displayed on one side and a lotus-like pattern on the other. The black fabric sleeve and greyish metal plugs complement the IEM’s looks. Overall, the IEM looks premium and worthy of the 279 USD price tag. In terms of fit, I didn’t have any issues as my ears are huge, but I would definitely recommend people with smaller ears to try this out first, as the shell is somewhat huge and may not be an easy fit for everyone.

Tip-rolling:

Although the XELASTEC tips are good, I’m not a fan of the “sticky” nature of these tips and find them rather uncomfortable. Also, the XELASTEC tips tend to make the IEM sound a tad bit too bright for my taste. Hence, I tried rolling a few different tips and chose to proceed with Flare Audio Universal Memory Foam tips for the purpose of this review. These tips seemed to provide the best tonal balance as they tend to boost the bass slightly while dampening the highs by a very small margin. However, if one wants to retain the same sound as the XELASTEC tips albeit with something more comfortable, I’d recommend trying the JVC Spiral Dots ++ and/or Flare Audio Everyday silicon tips.



Sound:

Lows:

This is perhaps the weakest section of Bravery. Not that it lacks bass, but the bass is neither too deep nor too detailed. Perhaps, this is a limitation of all BA setup, but I have come across other all BA IEMs that handle the bass better than the Bravery. I for one couldn’t feel the punch in a track like “Tonic – Midival Punditz”. But if you’re not a “rumble head” like me, the bravery has good attack and speed, especially in the mid-bass region. Personally, I felt like the Bravery was releasing the beats too early. This was especially noticeable in a track like “Sirens of the Sea (Sonorous Mix)” where the grinding beat seemed to be too thin. However, I assume others (aka non-bass heads) would find the bass on the bravery to be natural sounding for the most part.


Mids:

This is definitely the highlight of the Bravery. Natural sounding, clean and detailed, the mids of the Bravery are excellent. In terms of overall placement though, I felt the mids were slightly recessed, not to the extent of a V-shaped signature, leaning more towards a balanced sound signature. There is no bass bleed and notes have good weight in this region. Both Male and Female vocals sound amazing, not sounding the least bit shouty. Listening to “Snow Desert – Speechless Project” or “Tangerine Thumri – Prem Joshua” on the bravery is nothing short of ecstatic.



Highs:

The highs are again very clean and well detailed and complement the mids very well. There is plenty of detail here and treble extensions are well covered. I felt like the treble was tastefully done with ample sparkle without getting too bright or fatiguing at any point. I’d like to highlight that the IEM did tend to sound slightly brighter with the stock Azla XELASTEC tips. However, as mentioned earlier, I chose to tip-roll as I’m not a fan of the XELASTEC tips and find them to be uncomfortable.



Technicalities:

As with most of the IEMs in this price range, the soundstage is limited to the “within the head” region. The soundstage isn’t too wide nor is it too deep. There is good separation between notes and imaging is quite good too. Due to the narrow soundstage, set pieces may sound congested, but I was able to distinguish between instruments quite easily, even in a layered track like “Besame Mucho – Don Air”. All in all, I think the Bravery does a fairly good job in terms of technical aspects considering the price point.


Conclusion:

The SeeAudio Bravery is a natural-sounding pair that has a lot going in its favor. The aesthetics are top-notch and the cable is amazing. In terms of SQ, I think SeeAudio has done a good job. Personally, I felt the bass was on the lighter side, however, it may sound natural to most people. The overall signature is non-fatiguing with excellent mids and well-detailed highs. Perhaps a wider and deeper soundstage would be better, but given the tonality, separation, and imaging, I felt the Bravery was very coherent for the most part. I’d definitely recommend the SeeAudio Bravery to anyone looking for a non-fatiguing, laid-back, and natural-sounding IEM in the sub 300 USD price bracket.

Intro

Disclaimer: This review set was graciously lent to me by a friend from his personal collection and the review is written of my own accord. For more reviews like this, do check out our website.

The Seeaudio Bravery adopted a frequency response that was voted for by the community, seeking to develop a ground-up approach tuning to this IEM. The faceplate design was also voted for by the community. The result is a pair of gorgeous 4BA IEMs at a price of US$279. Let’s take a look at how it measures up.

Accessories and Build Quality (Score: 9/10)​

The Bravery went all out in this aspect. It was a brave adopter of the SednaEarfit Xelastec Eartips. These tips from AZLA have been quite polarizing in the community, either you love them or hate them. They are made of a thermoplastic material that changes its shape slightly through the heat from your body. However, the material is slightly sticky and you can imagine the tips getting a little gross after a while. A set of S/M/L foam tips are also provided should you not be a fan of the Xelastec tips. The Xelastec tips fit me well but I’m not really a fan of them for long term use.

On top of that, the stock cable included is a boutique cable from Hakugei. It was a cloth sleeved OCC cable that is quite thick yet flexible, making it very easy to handle. However, I wasn’t really a fan of this cable while using it despite its aesthetics. The cable is rather heavy and gives quite a lot of microphonics. The cloth sleeving can also fray over time.

I have no qualms with the build quality of the shells. They look beautifully crafted and feel great in the hand. Nothing about it feels cheap and it just shows Seeaudio’s experience in design. It was great that they involved the community in the final faceplate design as well.

Fit (Score: 7.5/10)​

However, I had some issues with the fit and comfort of these. The vacuum effect caused by the build-up of pressure is quite evident in the Bravery. I find myself having to constantly readjust the IEMs, proving to be a hassle over time. The shells themselves are also on the larger side and not as ergonomically shaped as I would have liked. They don’t sit as snugly in the concha as their Yume IEMs. However, fit is a personal issue so YMMV.

Sound (Score: 8.3/10)​

Sources

• Lotoo Paw S1
• Hiby R5
• SMSL M200/Schiit Magnius

Music listened to

• Chicago Symphony Orchestra – Beethoven Symphony 7
• Boston Symphony Orchestra – The Nutcracker Suite
• The Vamps – Cherry Blossom
• Paul Kim
• NEEDTOBREATHE
• McFly
• Vivaldi’s Bassoon Concertos
• Greenday
• Joscho Stephan

Bass
The bass supports the sound well but is rather tame and sounds more laid back in terms of presentation. I would've liked a little more punch, and attacks are a little blunted. The bass decays away relatively quickly, so the bass doesn't get muddy. I like the level of bass in the sound and I found it quite relaxing and controlled but not overdone. Alas, the Bravery reminds you of its pure BA set up here and the bass lacks the texture and dimensions that you would get with a good dynamic driver. The Bravery presents a clean lower end that doesn't colour the overall sound too much.

Mids
The mids are certainly the star of the show on the Bravery. They were an absolute job to listen to. The mids were speedy and very clean, handling complicated melodic lines and instrumental parts very well. These can be a little on the dryer side, but not in a bad way. Vocals stand out without being overly shouty when contrasted with the rest of the music. Everything seems lively and yet well balanced. I especially enjoyed listening to the gipsy guitar and violin from Joscho Stephan's albums. The guitars and violins had a very crisp texture, precise with an accurate amount of decay, and a good tonality to boot.

I wouldn't dare classify the Bravery as analytical, because ultimately, their bottleneck seems to be its detail retrieval and layering of music, especially at this price point. This becomes a little more apparent when listening to rock genres and more intensive and layered upper mid-heavy tracks. The Bravery seems to hit a wall and struggle to perform as well in certain genres.

Treble
Treble timbre didn’t really impress. The cymbals come in a little hot at times and don't have the most natural timbre. Listening to Fall Out Boy, the cymbals and high hats are really prominent and can get a little fatiguing. I found myself having to turn the volume way down to listen comfortably. For people fans of a brighter tuning, this may be up your alley, however, I'm a little sensitive to the higher frequencies and the Bravery seems to accentuate them a little too much for my liking.

Despite the forward treble, the micro details don't seem to be superb. I found myself wishing a little more from these at times and releasing itself from its bottleneck.

Overall
Separation was quite decent, and decay is relatively fast, which I liked. However, the layering seemed mediocre. The overall sound does well to ensure everything comes out pleasantly, but doesn’t really impress in any way, and doesn’t really excel in any region at all. It gives you a feeling of ‘hmm this is fine”.

Comparison​

VS Audio Lokahi

They have almost the same level of detail retrieval as the Lokahi, with the Lokahi having the edge with the better treble extension and timbre. Overall, I enjoyed the timbre, especially the treble, on the Lokahi more.

The Bravery has a slightly wider presentation with more breadth than the Lokahi which was nice. The Lokahi had a very intimate presentation which wasn’t really in line with my preferences. Lokahi has a better bass timbre, though I liked what the Bravery did with the bass, tame, laid back, and controlled.

Overall, I find the Lokahi sits at a much better price point than the Bravery. However, take note the Lokahi comes with a terrible cable and non-existent accessories/unboxing experience, so pick your poison. Personally? Less is more.

Conclusion​

The Bravery come with a premium price tag, but offers its fair share of premiums as well, in terms of the build, aesthetics, stock cable. All of these go toward the price tag of $279. It comes up to me as a little pricey, considering I am not personally a fan of the cable, which can seem like a waste.

Sonically, the Bravery almost does enough. I quite like the pleasant tonality and clean presentation it has. It does seem to lack the extra control in the highs and threatens to get slightly sibilant on certain tracks. Moreover detail retrieval, especially in the bass, and layering can prove to be a bottleneck.

Overall Grade: B



Click HERE for our grading list for earphones

INTRODUCTION:

See Audio is a rising audio brand based out of China and got a rave response from the consumers for their already existing products in the market. Their previous model YUME is a very good IEM in terms of botht he design and the sound and the expectations for the bravery are of no short. In this review let’s see how bravery performs against the competitors.



DISCLAIMER:

This unit has been provided to me as a part of a review circle in our country organised by the Sea Audio Team and a big thanks to them for considering me in their circle. I'm not influenced by anyone to manipulate this review by any means. This whole review is completely based on my experience with this product and this may vary from person to person depending on the source and the gears they use to test out the product.

SPECIFICATIONS:

>Driver Configuration: Quad BA.

>Driver Arrangement: 2 BA Low+ 1 BA Mid+ 1 BA Highs.

>Impedance: 18ohm.

>Frequency response range: 20Hz-20kHz.

>Sensitivity: 110dB/mW.

>THD+N: <1%.

>2-pin 0.78mm connectors

DESIGN AND FIT:

The earpieces are made of clear and transparent resins. The faceplate is seamlessly continued along with the rest of the body. The design is printed and the See Audio logo is imprinted on the faceplate. The 2 pin connector area is nicely tucked in the body itself. The surprising thing is that they have a vent despite being all BA products, this shows that they have used the vented BA to give that natural low end response.

The nozzle is of good length and has the lip to properly seat the ear tips. The fit is really good and creates some decent seal isolating from most of the background noises. The eartips provided are also good in terms of quality.



The cable provided is very good in terms of build which is cloth braided. The other welcoming feature is that they don’t have the ear guides hence the fit is even better. The connector, splitter and the termination area are metal hence the durability would not be an issue. See Audio has partnered with Hakugei, a premium IEM upgrade cable brand based in China. They have designed a customized 6N OCC cable that perfectly matches the synergy of Bravery delivering an impeccable acoustic experience for the users. The cable here has cloth sleeved with 0.78mm 2-pin connectors and a 3.5mm termination plug for easy connectivity



The given case is of very premium in looks and build. Made out of aluminium and the protection it gives to the earphone is excellent. The case is waterproof and shockproof where the locking area is covered with rubber gaskets to prevent the entry of external materials. The inner case is properly lined hence scratches will not happen to the earpieces.

SOUND:

The overall sound signature of the See Audio Bravery is a U shaped profile with boosted bass especially mid bass and the treble while the midrange is slightly recessed. They have a pretty neutral and relaxing tonality and the timbre is impressive being an All BA IEM. In this review let’s see in detail about the sound of this product.



LOW END:

Being a U shaped sound i thought that bass is going to be a string point for this but in the end this is a mid bass focused IEM which i'm not a big fan of. The sub bass presence is too subtle and can be felt only in the tracks which have noticeable sub bass boost. The mid bass is however tuned nice and tight having great technicalities like the texture, control and the tightness. The sub bass is pretty weak thus i cant able to enjoy the OST’s and theme musics.

The resolution is good and the technicalities in the low end are impressive but the lacking thing is the sub bass. The low end is pretty fast in decay hence they sound very cleaner and no muddy or boomy sound. The separation and the timbre in the low end is pretty impressive for an all BA iem. This IEM could have excelled in this department if only the sub bass and the decay could have been better and I hope in the next iteration they improve this. The bravery has been tuned to have more quality over the quantity

In the track “WHY DO WE FALL – HANS ZIMMER”, at the end of the track the sub bass backdrop is very subtle in the Bravery but overall the separation and the control in these regions are very good.

In the other track “JETLAG CORPORATION – AES DANA”, the bass presence is very well portrayed in Bravery. The thump and the weight of the low end is very good and the control, tightness are very impressive. The separation is impeccable due to that faster bass decay and that clean resolution.

MIDRANGE:

The mid range in the Bravery is smooth and clean. They are slightly recessed though but the placement of the vocal is very good. The vocal is placed right in front of you but the instruments are pushed back creating that laidback presentation but im very much ok with the forward vocal presentation.

Due to that laidback instrument placement some percussion instruments don’t sound quite clear hence you need to raise the volume. The vocal has that neutral to natural tonality and the timbre here is quite exceptional considering its an all BA iem! The instruments do sound pretty realistic and the tonality is quite natural. It has that slight BA timbre but not to that extent.

The lower mids sound fine with some fullness due to that mid bass presence but the upper mids need some emphasis since here they sound slightly thinner. The female vocals especially have that thin note and the piano notes don't have that bite overall. The detail retrieval is also however sub par and can't expect that much level of detail retrieval like other BA IEM’s.

The track separation, layering and the imaging are pretty good in this Bravery. Technicality wise it's very good in the midrange. In the track “BETTY – TAYLOR SWIFT”, the taylor’s voice is portrayed very well with nice track separation and the layering of the instruments. The piano notes however and the guitar strings sound slightly thinner but as a whole presentation they are very impressive considering the technicalities aspect.

In another track “ME LOVE – SEAN KINGSTON”, his voice has that fullness and the strings have that nice tonality and timbre. The kick drums however lack that attack due to that sub bass absence. The piano notes sound fine and overall they have very good layering capability.

TREBLE:

The treble in the Bravery is smooth and organic. No sibilance or exaggeration but they are tuned to give that natural smoother sound output overall. The extension is not that good considering it's an all BA IEM but considering the overall coherency between all the BA’s and the sound they deliver is really impressive. The highs have a good amount of detail retrieval and the amount of air it moves in this region is pretty good. The resolution is average and the track separation is very impressive which is not a big surprise being an all BA.

The sparkle and the splashiness in the treble section is missing and that makes the whole listening experience very much laidback thus it lacks the energy in this area. Especially in the track “JACK OF SPEED – STEELY DAN”, those cymbal crashes and the trumpets sound very much relaxed and don't have that energy in them. But as an overall output they have nice coherency and smooth sound.

In the other track “SWEET DREAM – EURYTHMICS”, those piano notes are nicely rendered but need some bite in them. The track separation is very good and the clarity, layering are exceptionally done. The treble has a lot of air to breathe but the issue is again the sparkle where they sound slightly relaxed and smooth instead of having some energy and aggressiveness.



TECHNICALITIES:

SOUNDSTAGE: The staging of the Bravery is well rounded but not the biggest. The width is pretty average which is quite disappointing in this price range but the height and the depth are good enough. The height is pretty nice, giving a nice sense of space in between the instruments. The staging is neither claustrophobic nor widest , the singer seems to be standing just right in front of you. The vocals are slightly straight to the face but as an overall instrument presentation they are very good in terms of placement and the staging is quite nice.

IMAGING: The imaging is very good here. No fuzziness is seen due to that controlled low end. Since the staging is not the widest the instruments don’t have that enough space to be well separated. However the imaging is clean and precise here, where the listener can easily spot out the instruments placement without issues. The transient response is pretty smooth giving a nice sense of instruments sweeping from one channel to the other.

The detail retrieval and the resolution are quite good but not the best. The layering and the imaging are the biggest strength of the Bravery. The dynamism is not the best and they sound pretty much lacklustre and not fun.

Tracks Used:

1. Hideaway – Jacob Collier
2. Crossing – Yosi Horikawa
3. Global Gear (Instrumental) – Punya Srinivas
4. Themyscira – Hans Zimmer

VERDICT:

Bravery, the latest and the mid-tier offering from the SEE AUDIO is a very nice package and has brought some nice improvements over their previous model YUME. As usual when it comes to SEE AUDIO their accessories and the offering will always be premium and from that point of view the provided accessories and the build of the earpiece are very premium and excellent.

When it comes to the sound SEE AUDIO always pursue towards the balanced and smooth sound and the same they did with the Bravery too. Although it's a slight U shaped sound the midrange is not that recessed giving the vocals and instruments a life. The low end here is nicely tuned especially the mid bass, the sub bass is very subtle and they should have boosted a bit to give that dynamism and the fun factor which is lacking in the bravery. When it comes to technicalities these are very good in terms of imaging and layering. The staging is not the biggest but does the job.

So overall, the bravery is a very good package From the brand and is a very good versatile IEM. The whole point of the SEE AUDIO is to provide the QUALITY OVER THE QUANTITY and that's what they did in the sound too which is a thumbs up from my side.

Tonality: 5.6/9
Technicalities: 5.6/9
(this is useless, but to give an idea - star rating is price to performance)

my preferred signature is neutral with or without bass boost, with an exception for a little warm-tilted, or mild V-shaped but honestly, I'm a "signature agnostic" because anything can work. I listen to mostly everything but currently lusting more on the modern sub-genres of Jazz, Progressive Rock & Metal, Drone, Noise Rock, No Wave, Minimalism, Totalism, modern recording of Chamber, Orchestra, Concerto, or Modern Classical at large. I’m a musician myself and very passionate about music & music reproduction.

Click to expand...

(total 6 mins read)

Intro
SeeAudio released the infamous Yume earlier this year and I had my chance to experience the hype within the community first-hand. I kind of liked the tuning yet it felt rather strange for most of the time when I’m listening to it, but I’m not here to talk about that (maybe a little). when Bryan put me on the tour list, I was expecting the tribrid SeeAudio Miu but things went against the company’s plan and Miu was replaced with Bravery. I didn’t bother with the changes as I was really looking forward to any releases by SeeAudio since the Yume. with its sonic offering & a handsome price tag at $169, Yume & SeeAudio are hard to be ignored when purchasing an IEM.

you see, SeeAudio is kind of ‘new’ in the ChiFi scene but the people behind it aren’t. with the fast-paced crowded market, they already have 4 models on their shelf including the newest full-BA design, the Bravery which is selling at $280. it's a dangerous game they're in for the sub $300 IEM market the way I see it. perhaps that's the reason for the name.

*this review unit is provided by SeeAudio as part of their SeeAudio Bravery review tour and I thank Bryan and SeeAudio for including me in the tour. all words are mine and I’m not compensated by any party.

**please bear in mind that I’m trying my best to impartially write my thoughts, even with the usage of some unusual audio terms. I might sound like nitpicking hard on this one but seriously this is more like a preferential complaint so please take it with a grain of salt, as always. spoiler: Bravery is practically good.


Signature
the sound signature of Bravery can be described as a warm or mild U-shape that emphasizes its bass up to 200Hz and the upper treble, with slight recessed mids. it's an inoffensive all-rounder that seems to pave its way to many ChiFi enthusiasts’ collections really quick.





FR & Tonality
to be honest, the Bravery has a weird spot in my mind just like the Yume, except that Yume is more focused on the mid-range reproduction that’s well-executed and loved by many. while not being bloated or muddy, the bass quality should be one of the highlights of Bravery where I think it betters the Yume’s.

the bass kicks a good clean thump considering coming from a set of 2 Knowles balanced armature drivers yet it feels not quite natural. the texture is decent enough though on good recordings it may sound artificial with the usual BA timbre. the sub-bass lacks extension and perhaps a deep physical rumble that’s achievable with a dynamic driver woofer. it's definitely fast but more on that later.

the quality and quantity of the mid-range are tolerable & adequate, although, a little laid back. from the upper-mids to the lower-treble, it’s depressed onward. on casual listening, there's nothing wrong with the mids and the treble response at a glance. it is all fine and subtle until it hits some quick change in dynamics or some sudden peaks where it throws a short mini burst of energy that can get pretty intense at times. yes, it can be harsh sometimes though considerably a safe tuning. it is perhaps the forceful-compressed character or the typical complication of balanced armatures that’s not well-addressed.

the consequence; not quite natural timbre on the treble as it may sound a bit metallic to plasticky especially on the hi-hats, cymbals & vocals. it's still enjoyable on a small scale, yet a bit thin and lean on the notes at large. I don’t find it as ‘airy’ nor spacious as its lofty upper-treble response might suggest but it’s sparkly enough. in general, the tonality to my ears is not great but not bad at all.





Technicalities+
while I like the tuning of Yume, the Bravery is a better technical performer in terms of transients, detail retrieval, separation & layering. the whole presentation is not as mushy or smeared as the Yume’s and that makes Bravery a clear winner. however, it’s not technically excellent either.

despite the fact that it boasts a quick attack, I believe it could use a tad more decays on the bass & treble for a better sense of a more natural reproduction but perhaps that's a bit too much to ask from a quad-BAs set? I honestly think it could be better. any good drum recordings by Steve Albini can illustrate that.

while having an above-average separation & layering, the depth is somewhat ‘shallow’. with an average sound stage width, it’s comparatively intimate than other IEMs in my collection. in a quick-critical comparison, its thin 2D imaging is not as sharp or precise as the Dusk’s. the micro details are cluttered with the imbalance of loudness from both mid & high BAs that should be resulted from the imprecise crossover design. I think that is the biggest problem of Bravery. it has good clarity but not a good resolution.

as expected from a full-BA IEM, it's flat and compressed. the micro dynamics are lacking with some of the nuances but a decent range of macrodynamic can clearly be heard. a cheaper option, ThieAudio Legacy 3 seems to have a more balanced presentation across the frequency spectrums with better dynamics, though not as detailed and in the same level of clarity as to the Bravery.

it is hard at first, to continuously listen to Bravery for an album-long without constantly swapping to other different folders or IEMs, but a foundation is established after some time. while being ‘not good’ to decent, within half of my metal, classical & jazz library, it’s sonically good enough for most of the modern glittery pop recordings.







of unimportance
this review unit comes in a round black metal case with SeeAudio bunny headband logo on it. a rich set of accessories consisting of 3 pairs of Azla Xelastic ear tips and a custom Hakugei 6N OCC cable that looks like Hakugei Little Harmony, with “SeeAudio” printed on the termination jack are all included as stock. good involvement of Hakugei and I think the accessories are pretty neat and well-thought.

Bravery has a bulky-sized clear resin shell, bigger but not as thick as the Dusk’s however I find the Dusk is more comfortable. the faceplate is nicely made with a random black & white swirl motif that looks marble-ish. it has a metal nozzle with a lip and a metal filter.

the combination of Xelastic & the nature of Bravery’s airflow system doesn’t work well for me. there is a vent but it feels like it has none. I need to make adjustments to get a correct fit EVERY TIME and it’s uncomfortable especially during inserting and any jaw movement. although the fit is not great for me, the isolation is very good. your mileage may vary.

Conclusion
objectively speaking, the Bravery is a decent-good pair of IEMs that performs quite well. the tuning is good enough but it needs a little bit more fine-tuning to be really good. if you’re looking for a highly dynamic, detailed, or accurate monitor, look somewhere else. Bravery is clean, fast, and fun but for the asking price, I’m expecting a little bit more. just a little bit.

despite all the complaints, SeeAudio Bravery definitely has the tone, technicalities, and most importantly, “the potential” to be one of the best monitors in the price bracket ($250-300) and I definitely had some nice moments.

Click to expand...

purchase Bravery here: https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-bravery
(non-affiliated)


key tracks:
Será Una Noche – Taquito Militar
Avishai Cohen & Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra – Arab Medley
Patricia Petibon - Mozart: Der Zauberflöte – Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen

Zu – Carbon
Scott Walker – Corps De Blah
King Crimson - Elektrik
My Disco – Always Measure Wait
The Chariot – And Shot Each Other
Shining – In the Kingdom of Kitsch You Will Be a Monster

Jean Frye Sidwell – I Left My Heart In San Francisco
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Tin Pan Alley
Nancy Ajram – Ah W Noss
St. Vincent - Cruel
Spellling – Little Deer

tools: Tidal & FLACs via foobar2000/UAPP
Topping EX5
Aune X7s
LG G7
Ovidius B1

Review unit sent by SeeAudio.


Bravery was a bit bright on the first listen and I realized that I need to change the tips to be smaller and hence deeper fit. That solved a lot of issues I had in the first place. Now, all the listening has been done with the small xelastec. Being a brighter through apple dongle and darker through SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK2 + iFi xCan. Bravery I could describe it as a neutral with bass boost. Probably an easy one of the recommendations at this price range.



Source: SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK2 + iFi xCan

Signature: Neutral with bass boost

Bass: B+
A hint of boomy and has a slight bleed to the spectrum when the subbass rumble and bass hitting. Very good timbre for the bass which is surprising even though it is a bit wooly. It slams with density but with a slight boomyness. Nothing to worry that it is still a clean execution. Overall resolution for the bass is a bit lackluster if it is being compared with its mids and highs. In short, excellent timbre for the BA bass but lack cleanliness and resolution.

Mid: A+
Resolving mids with smooth transition between the lows hence it gives a perfect weight and meat to the overall mids. Probably has a hint of plastic timbre but really this is really good. It is on the top tier of the BA timbre if you ask me. The details appears on the front. Something like shoving the details though it doesn't sound offensive at all. This perhaps due to the cramp staging that it has.

Vocals: S-
Neutral. Note weight of the vocal is about 1. Being 3 is thickest and -3 is the thinnest.The vocals seems has excellent texture and very resolving. I don't have much to complaint at this section but probably not euphoric enough for me to give a solid S. Since it is not offensive and sounds right to my ears, it deserves S-.

Highs: A-
Very well extended and it is unoffended. This set is quite sparkle with that regard without being sibilant or over the board. This has been tested with various kpop tracks that usually can be sibilant on certain bad sets. Well done with decent resolution though it is a bit on the dry side.

Staging and Imaging: B
Staging is on the cramp side. It appears less width that I would like to though the transients of the mids and highs are quick so it doesn't sound congested. Except the bass region which appears boomy. Imaging is OK ish and the instruments are well placed. The vocals are dead center and the layering is great.

Conclusion:
A solid set that is tuned toward neutral with bass boost. The whole spectrum appears inoffensive and very well priced. The only complaint is about the dryness of BA timbre especially on the highs sections. However, the bass appears great in terms of timbre. A great set from SeeAudio which I think quite apart from Yume. Technicalities wise, Bravery won for me but Yume has better tonality for the whole package but bottlenecked by its technicalities.

Gallery:

DISCLAIMER

This unit is part of a HIFIGO review tour. This unit will be passed on to another audiophile in Singapore for the tour, after this review.

The See Audio Bravery can be gotten here: https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-bravery.




EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The See Audio Bravery is a 4 BA IEM with a relatively non fatiguing U shaped tuning While the tonality and timbre (for a pure BA setup) is good, the technicalities are not classleading, and there are some limitations such as a BA bass.


SPECIFICATIONS

• Driver configuration: 4 x Balanced Armature (two Knowles BA drivers for the bass, one Sonion BA for the midrange, and one Knowles BA driver for the treble)
• Frequency response: 20 Hz – 20kHz
• Impedance: 18 Ω
• Sensitivity: 110 dB/mW
• Cable: 2 Pin (0.78mm), 6N OCC Hakugei cable.
• Tested at $289 USD

ACCESSORIES

The Bravery comes in an anime girl packaging. This could very well be the reason for buying this set, it is one for our otaku and weeb friends!



Included are:
1) Specially customized 6N OCC Hakugei cable - very premium looking and well braided with a cloth sleeve. They do not tangle, but unfortunately there are some microphonics present. The Hakugei brand of cables is quite well known in audio circles and adds some elegance to the packaging. I won't comment on whether cables change the sound signature (that usually ends up in flamewars haha), but See Audio didn't skimp on the cables at least.
2) Azla Xelastec Sednafit eartips - they also didn't skimp on this portion, these tips are expensive! The Xelastec eartips provide good grip and boost vocals in general with other IEMs, but some may find these tips to be a lint and dirt magnet, and they are rather sticky. Ironically, the Xelastec tips may cause the vocals to be nasal with the Bravery, which we will talk about later.
3) Foam tips - S/M/L - they tend to tame the treble and increase isolation.
4) Round hard case - is that a playboy bunny logo on it? For our otaku anime friends?



The accessories provided are okay for a close to $300 USD set. As discussed above, the cable and eartips are "branded" and will have added to the costs.

I liked that See Audio provided a cable with a 2 pin connector, I had my fair share of mishaps with MMCX type connectors after switching cables once too often, they ended up like spinning windvanes.

For the purposes of this review, the stock Xelastec tips and stock cables were used, so as not to change the sound signature with aftermarket gear.


BUILD/COMFORT

Build wise, the Bravery is made of resin and feels very solid. In fact they look like semi customs. They are quite beautiful too, but of course we are more interested in how it sounds!

Comfort wise, it is a mixed bag. While the shells themselves are comfortable, some might find that the provided Xelastec tips can create a suction effect in the ear, this may be uncomfortable for some.

I didn't have driver flex on my set, but this is partially related to ear anatomy an types of tips used, so YMMV.


ISOLATION

I usually use pure BA setups for travelling or stage monitoring, as they tend to be unvented and provide better isolation than vented DD type sets (in general).

Disappointingly, the isolation on the Bravery is poor, due to the vented bass design. This set didn't pass my subway test, and I wouldn't recommend them for use in a noisy environment - to protect hearing health and also cause one will lose details and the bass frequencies in a noisy place.


DRIVABILITY

I tested the Bravery with a Khadas Tone Board -> Schiit Asgard 3 amp, Khadas Tone Board -> Topping L30 amp, Sony NW A-55 DAP (Walkman One Plus v2 Mr Walkman Mod), smartphone, Shanling Q1 DAP, Tempotec Sonata HD Pro, E1DA 9038D, and a Khadas Tone Board -> Fiio A3 Amp.

The Bravery are easy to drive, amping doesn't really give much value add.


SOUND & TECHNICALITIES

The See Audio Bravery is a U shaped set, with a relatively non fatiguing tuning. In the department of tonality, the Bravery is actually quite good, with no major flaws, perhaps only having poor subbass extension.

Timbral accuracy on the Bravery is good for a pure BA set. It won't beat some pure single DD setups in terms of timbre, but most acoustic instruments sounded quite organic here. Vocals however may sound a bit thin and nasal with the provided stock Xelastec tips, but this can perhaps be mitigated to some extent with other eartips.


Graph courtesy of KopiOKaya from Audioreviews (IEC711 compliant coupler).


The bass of the Bravery is midbass focused, it is north of neutral but far from true basshead levels. Subbass extension is lacking, movement of air and bass decay are not that natural sounding though, as per most BA bass sets (even though this is a vented BA bass).

The bass has rather good quality though, texturing is decent, and the bass is fast and tight. So the Bravery goes for quality over quantity in terms of the bass, although the BA bass may be a dealbreaker for some.

Mids on the Bravery are pretty well balanced, in keeping with the good tonality of this set. The provided Xelastec tips however, may give vocals a nasal tinge, and also cause a lack of note weight in voices. Layering and imaging in the midrange is good though, and is a standout on this set.

The upper mids on the Bravery are rather subdued, it doesn't have the usual shouty banshee upper mids that plague a lot of CHIFI, so this set is rather non fatiguing.



Treble extension on the Bravery is okay, but not the best considering it is a pure BA setup. Sibilance is mild, so this is a good set for our treble sensitive brethren. Those that want more sparkle and air and micro-details and clarity might need to consider alternatives though.

In technicalities, the Bravery have below average soundstage for a close to $300 USD set (in height, depth and width), especially when the stock Xelastec eartips are used. Imaging and layering are good, though clarity, instrument separation and micro-details are not class-leading at this price range. Dynamics sound a bit subdued on this set, even with amping, so that's one area that can be improved on.


COMPARISONS

Well if anime and weeb packaging matter to you, then only the See Audio Bravery has the anime girl packaging, among the competitors below. (This may be a dealbreaker for some!!!)

Single DD types were left out of the comparisons as they have different pros and cons among the different transducer types. Most of the comparisons were with pure BA IEMs, only the LZ A7 (tribid) is the exception, but it is in a similar price bracket to the Bravery.


Audiosense T800 ($298 USD)
The Audiosense T800 is an 8 Knowles BA setup. The T800 is more V shaped. The T800 has much better isolation and fit.

The T800 is brighter (some may find it fatiguing) but it has better air and treble extension. Subbass extension on the T800 is also better, and even though both sets have vented BA bass, the T800's bass sounds quite close to a DD bass in terms of decay and movement of air.

In terms of timbral accuracy, the Bravery is better, but the T800 has better technicalities and soundstage. The T800 is more in your face with the music, whereas the Bravery is more laid back and subdued.

The T800 is more fussy when it comes to sources, as the very low impedance of 9ish ohms requires a source with output impedance < 1 ohm, otherwise this may skew the sound signature. Whereas, the Bravery is more source agnostic.


LZ A7 ($338 USD)
The LZ A7 has 10 tuning options in view of various tuning switches and nozzles, and it is more versatile as such. It can be tuned to be V shaped to U shaped to neutralish.

The LZ A7 has better accessories, better isolation and better fit. The LZ A7 also has better technicalities though it looks uglier (there's some fairy tale story emblazzoned on the shell haha). The LZ A7 has more more air and faster transients in view of it incorporating a piezo driver for the high frequencies.


QDC Anole VX (from $2556 USD, depends on custom versus universal shell)
The QDC Anole VX is a summitFI 10 BA set which, like the above LZ A7, is more versatile in view of it having 3 switches; this offers 8 different potential sound signatures.

Well it may not be a fair comparison due to their different selling prices, some folks mention that the Bravery and Anole VX graph similarly (on some switch settings for the Anole VX). Well, graphs only tell half the story at best, and the Anole VX is one of the most technical sets I've ever heard. It is seriously no contest: the Anole VX eats the Bravery in technicalities for breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper on A/B testing, though of course diminishing returns are par for the course, when one dabbles in summitFI TOTL pricing.


Audiosense DT200 ($149 USD)
The DT200 is a 2 knowles BA warm neutral set that has better timbral accuracy than the Bravery. Bass quality and technicalities are better on the Bravery, but the Bravery is around 2x the price of the DT200. The DT200 sounds more smooth and laid back compared to the Bravery.

Isolation and comfort is better on the DT200.


CONCLUSIONS

The See Audio Bravery is a 4 BA IEM that features a relatively non fatiguing U shaped tonality. While the tonality and timbre (for a pure BA setup) is good, the technicalities are not class-leading. The Bravery is easy to drive, but as per most other pure BA setups, this set is likewise limited by BA bass extension and naturalness. Comfort is also hit or miss, but this is a YMMV situation as we have different ear anatomies.

See Audio definitely didn't skimp on the accessories, and the provided accessories are quite premium - Azla Xelastec eartips and a Hakugei cable. Unfortunately, the Xelastec eartips may not have the best synergy with the Bravery, as it causes a narrower soundstage and nasal vocals. These Xelastec tips are also a dirt and lint magnet.

The See Audio Bravery are decent in my book, but at this price range, the competition against other big boys is huge and there are admittedly other competitors with better technical performance.

SeeAudio is a Chinese brand fairly new to the international market. But they have a couple of great products under their belt namely, Anou(aka Yume) , Neo, Kaguya. My first experience with SeeAudio was when I reviewed Anou. It was an absolute delight and fun IEM, although the bravery is quite different in terms of technology and price. The Yume was a hybrid design and costed around 180USD whereas the latest entry in the market is the much awaited Bravery is a pure BA IEM and cost around 280USD.

Bravery has quite an eye catchy design. See Audio has made sure to include Bravery with a premium set of accessories. It comes with a customized 6N OCC Hakugei cable with 2-pin 0.78mm connectors; comes bundled with three pairs of Azla Sednafit XELASTEC ear tips(S, M, L) and a nice carry case similar to Yume. The driver arrangement is as 2 BA Low+ 1 BA Mid+ 1 BA Highs and based on the Knowles and Sonion BA drivers and has a nice vented design.



Disclaimer:
I have received as part of review circle sent from brand itself in exchange of honest reviews. All impressions of sound are subjective to my own listening and my sources and is based on my experience with IEMs of similar hardware configurations and price range.

Sources:
For this review the unit has been paired to A&K SE100 (ES9038 Pro) and Shanling M6 (AK4495EQ).



Highs:
The treble is bit on bright side, and helps cutting through the thickness in the mid-range adding the appropriate air. The extension is very good balancing the warmness giving the required energy to it. The details and resolution is above average. The treble does feel bit sharp and aggressive at times but compliments the overall signature.

Mids:
The mids have nice BA texture to them and overall nice tonality. Both male and female vocals sounds full of emotions. The lower mids have a natural feel to them and have nice texture whereas the upper mids are bit forward and relaxed. There is nice presence feel to the notes of all the instruments. The only thing I don’t like about the mids is that Bravery tend to throw vocals at your face.

Lows:
The bass feels bit elevated, the sub bass extends to mid bass gives a nice presentation of flowing bass. The sub-bass architecture is kind of missing as of all BA setup; instruments like bass drums feel hollow although the sub bass extension is good but its missing the strength.

Technicalities:
Bravery excels very much in terms of technical capabilities, It has very good implementation of imaging and separation. The soundstage is just average in terms on width and height. It has very good layering capabilities. During my testing it has never faced any difficulties rendering busy tracks with precision. Micro dynamic on the other hand felt bit lacking along with the depth.



Final Verdict:
In my opinion SeeAudio Bravery is very capable IEM. It has a nice warm and mildly V-shaped tuning with above average technical performance. The looks and accessories are very much premium. Although peaks in treble can be observed but it does complements the thickness in the mids as well as the bass performance. If you are looking for a relaxing all BA driver IEM under 300$ range then I would say this is good option out there to consider.

DISCLAIMER:

I did not buy this product. It was provided as a review unit for the Philippines reviewer circle tour. Much thanks to See Audio for providing us one. We are not compensated in any way. My thoughts and opinion here are not influenced by any form of incentive.



Manage your expectations as what works for me, might not work for you. We all have different perception when it comes to sound. My setup and gears may not be the same as yours, and that plays a big role in what I hear. I have learned lately that source plays a big role in this as I have been exploring different music streaming platforms. So, as we reviewers always say, take this as a grain of salt.



INTRODUCTION



See Audio has been around for some time now. They have their line up Kaguya, Neo, and Yume and has quite made a statement in the audio community.



I am a professional gigging musician, mainly keys, sax and drums player. Worked in 5 star hotels, played for local artists here in Philippines, and studio work for indie artist too. I listen mostly to almost any genre, but minimal rock and almost to none metal. My personal preference is mostly jazz and fusion and contemporary pop.



SPECIFICATIONS:



Driver: 4 BA configuration (2 Knowles and 2 Sonion)

Impedance: 18 ohms

Sensitivity: 110db

FR range: 20hz-20khz





INCLUSIONS and PACKAGING:

As a review unit, we did not receive the official packaging on this one. It came with a metal case, a circular one, with a bunny-like logo. A premium cable from Hakugei, and 3 pairs of Azla Xelastec tips.



THE TIPS:

I have not yet dived in the vast world of ear tips, but Azla has been around. It is such a treat to try them at last, together with Bravery. More on this as we move on.



THE CABLE:



Hakugei is a premium cable maker, and yet again, I am not a cable guru, but this one feels premium and pristine. I am sure that the outcome of what I hear from Bravery, the cable contributes a significant role. It is a 6N OCC cable on nylon fabric sleeves. It has a decent thickness that gives you that confidence that it will not give up on you anytime soon. It has a decent weight that pulls down Bravery when worn. It does not have an ear hook though that most of us are accustomed to, and it gave me a bit of adjustment on how it sits on the curves of my ear. Nonetheless, this is another sweet treat packaged with Bravery.





THE SHELL:

The design and build of Bravery is particular. It is 3d printed as they claim and transparent. Though not transparent white, I like that black-ish transparency. They are chunky and bigger than the average IEM and it will not be a surprise if some minorities will somewhat grumble on this. It has that swirl vanilla design that is really cool and See Audio’s logo on the left unit, and an odd-looking star on the right. (sorry I don’t know what it is exactly but it looks cool). The logos became my reference of which is the left and the right. There is a single air flow/vent on each unit to cater for long listening pleasure.





Now on to how it sounds…



TREBLE – 5/5



I can say that this is one of Bravery’s strong point. The trebles here is on point for my preference. Not harsh, no sibilance yet open, has shimmer and has a very nice extension. I’m a detail freak and some micro details sits on this department. I am not a rock head and my threshold for treble is present, but Bravery gave that shimmer that sits perfectly for my hearing.



Conclusively, I just loved how treble was presented here. Hence the perfect score.



BASS - 5/5



Another strong point of Bravery here. I was captivated on how lows are presented. Very commendable extension too just like the trebles. Enjoyable thump, punchiness and weight. Which I think bass heads will start to put a smile on their faces. Rumble on the sub bass department is present and it is such a treat to hear that on tracks like from Billie Eilish.



Conclusively, I loved the weight of lows here. It gave me a nice feeling that Bravery is ready to gratify lows if the track calls for it. Another perfect score from me.



MIDS - 4/5



I’m a mid-centric guy and if we are to base our hearing on what we see on the FR graph, we can see Bravery has a dip on the mids. But it never felt short of satisfying me on details. Instruments are a bit pushed back yet details, timbre and tonality were not compromised. Acoustic instruments sounded natural. Synths are crunchy and snappy. Just a tad bit shy at the back of the vocals which I think where it should be.



Conclusively, I gave this score because I prefer my mids a bit forward. But that is just me. Nonetheless, the mids never felt lacking. Lush and rich sounding.



VOCALS - 4.5/5



Vocals, both male and female, are intimate. Very decent reproduction and natural. Sam Smith, Adele, Whitney Houston, Michael Buble and many more sounded like they were singing in front of you and you are the VIP that paid that costly ticket on their concert. Vocal harmonies have that clarity that made me just close my eyes and enjoy the music even more on vocal tracks.



SOUNDSTAGE AND IMAGING



Notice the score is blank? It is because here, I will be purely subjective.



Imaging here is decent. Panning of instruments are nicely placed. Depth is present but on the lighter side.



The stage is quite intimate here. And this falls to our own preference. Though I enjoy a wide sound stage, like my review on ADV TOTL line up particularly the M5-6d, it does not benefit me that much if I am studying songs as a musician. Bravery’s stage is quite small for me but not in a bad way. This contributes a big part on how I perceived the vocals above. For me, intimate soundstage is also a joy to listen to. So, if you’re into that big stage, you might want to consider this department. But I can safely say, the intimate stage will not bother you in any way. Instead, it will give you that position that you are in a studio with the artist and musicians, behind that massive console, playing music just for you.



FITTING/ISOLATION



I’ll leave this one blank too on the scoring. You might want to tip roll if you have hard time with Azla as some claim. As for me, it is my first time trying out Azla tips and I must say it was… a peculiar experience. Let me share my thoughts.

• Isolation is above average with the Azla’s.
• Fitting is good but I have to find the right angle for a snug fit.
• If I pull it out, setting it again and finding the desirable angle can be quite cumbersome.
• I didn’t mind the sticky feeling.
• Never fell of my ears when properly inserted.

Conclusively, the Azla’s are a good fit for me. except for that no. 3 thing that I mentioned above. Once set, pray that no one will disturb you that will make you pull out that fitting.



Here are some TRACKS that I used for reference. Allow me to share you some notes I’ve taken.



1. Hermosa Skyline – David Benoit – 16/44.1 online FLAC Tidal x UAPP

• Pianos is distinctive and as a pianist, I knew the piano is KAWAI.
• Alto sax is sweet and organic.
• Bass guitar falls in the mid bass section. Punchy and well textured.
• Imaging of instruments changes throughout the song.
• Drum kicks is on the lighter side yet has that thump ever so subtle.
• String section is well placed behind the main instruments.
• Snares are snappy and airy on hits that reverb was implied.
• Synth brasses are well placed as a supporting instrument.

2. Sweetest Taboo – SADE – 16/44.1 online FLAC Tidal x UAPP

• Drum kicks have the ample amount on bass department. On the punchy side.
• Bass guitar sits nicely in the mid bass.
• Jazz guitars and muted guitars has that nice imaging and placement.
• The 80’s electric piano most likely to be a Yamaha DX7 sits nicely behind the vocals but in front of the guitars.
• Percussions are snappy and open.
• Sade’s voice sweet and warm. Well placed in front.
• Instruments are highlighted in this track showing Bravery’s mid and trebles prowess.
• 3. May I Ask – Luke Chiang feat. Alexis Kim – 16/44.1 online FLAC Tidal x UAPP
• Acoustic guitar so damn natural, organic and airy. Well textured.
• Male and female vocals decently intimate.
• Piano is warm and airy. Presentation of reverb is magical.
• Drum kick is on the light side yet still have that punch.
• Bass guitar entering the sub bass department here. Smooth and warm.
• Pads at the beginning is airy and shimmery.
• 
  
• (Thanks to Berry White for this test track.)

4. P.Y.T (Pretty Young Thing) – Michael Jackson – 24bit/96khz online FLAC Tidal x UAPP

• Synth bass has nice weight, thump, and full rich sound.
• Main vocals and backing vocals well presented. Open and airy.
• Muted guitars are snappy and well placed.
• Drum kicks sits nicely in the mid bass section. Punchy.
• All instruments are separated very nicely.
• Hi hats produced micro details.
• Rhodes sits nicely as a supporting instrument.

There are so much more tracks I’ve tested but this 4 will do.





SOURCES AND GEARS

• LG v30 Quad Dac as my main player (high impedance mode on)
• Tidal Master subscription
• Offline Flacs and DSD
• UAPP app
• Hiby Music Player app

VERDICT



Bravery, it was hard to let go of this honestly, and send it to the next guy who will review this. This will be a bold claim, but I find the Bravery an end-game worthy for me. The margin between mid-range and TOTL, the Bravery made it closer. From snappy and open trebles, thump and weighted lows, lush and rich mids, I find it almost impossible for anybody to go wrong if they choose to purchase. As a bonus, you will find yourself packed with a premium cable and ear tips. A versatile player amongst the IEMS around, I never felt a sense of lack in every track that I listened to. Not to sound defensive, I may sound I’m hyping but honestly, I am not. Bravery suits my preference in every aspect but then again, it is my preference against yours. If I have the means, and I plan to save up, I will definitely purchase one for myself and enjoy a long time of end-game nirvana. Kudos See Audio! Looking forward for more quality audio gears!

Disclaimer: I received this review unit for free from HifiGO. Thank you very much.

Price: 280 usd

Specifications:

IMPEDANCE: 18Ω

SENSITIVITY: 110dB

FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20H-20KHz

DRIVER UNITS: 4 Balanced Armature Drivers (Knowles and Sonion).

DISTORTION RATE: < 1% (1KHz)



Accessories:

Azla Xelastec tips S/M/L

Foam tips S/M/L

Carry case

Weeb bait


Cable: 2-core 6N OCC cable from Hakugei. Measures at 0.42 ohms, so its not that good but works. Although the chin-slider is barely working and the 2pin connector is the forward type and doesn’t sit flush with the Bravery. Not really an impressive cable considering how expensive Hakugei cables usually are.






Build: Resin build with a metal nozzle that has a lip and a metal mesh. It is on the larger side.

Fit: Not that well for me due to the shape and size. But it does work at least.

Comfort: Not good due to the size being slightly too big (and not shaped in a good way for me) so it makes my ears hurt after a while and pressure build-up (looks like there is a small “vent” near the 2pin connector, but it doesn’t seem to do anything for the pressure-build up) as well.

Isolation: Very good due to the ventless shell.

Setup: Schiit Asgard 3 (low-gain, volume around 8 o´clock), Elecom EHP-CAP20, stock cable 3.5mm

Lows: Sub and mid-bass is elevated, although not that much but it is sub-bass focused. Texture is decent for a BA and timbre is pretty good. The speed and tightness aren’t as tight/fast as BA´s usually are though but sounds more natural to me.

Mid-bass: Metallica – fight fire with fire (01:11-01:52), clean because of the fast and tight bass, quantity is pretty low as well and is lacking texture. The (02:55-03:01) section with the chopper is hearable but not very clean.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Pretenders (01:18-01:47), decent texture for a BA, quantity is lacking though but it is clean due to the speed/tightness.

Sub-bass: Djuro – Drop that bass (01:15-01:30), extension is poor and lacks a lot of rumble (expected from a BA). Punch quantity and texture are lacking but it is tight and fast.

Will Sparks – Sick like that (03:08-03:22), lacking quantity but texture is pretty decent for a BA. Tight and fast so it is clean, although not as fast as most BA´s.

Mids: Both male/female vocals are well balanced, but both are recessed as well. Timbre is good for a BA iem and detail is good. Female vocals are a bit better than male vocals, due to the male vocals lacking warmth, although the female vocals can lack some clarity. Not really for vocal lovers, but they are tuned in a laid-back way.

Female-vocals: Hiroyuki Sawano – OldToday (01:25-01:52), Vocal tonality is good, although it needs to be brighter, timbre is pretty good for a BA, vocals need to be more forward though. Instrument tonality is very good and timbre is good. Detail is good and it is clean, but lacking in clarity.

Yuki Hayashi – MightU (01:58-02:55), vocal tonality needs to be brighter and more forward, timbre is pretty good. Instrument tonality needs to be brighter but timbre is pretty good. Detail is good but lacking in clarity.

Evanescence – Bring me to life (01:18-01:35), not shouty or fatiguing.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Crescent (02:07-02:26), a bit peaky and fatiguing.

Male-vocals: Hiroyuki Sawano – Pretenders (00:57-01:17), vocal and instrument tonality/timbre are pretty good, but vocal needs to be more forward (recessed) and overall clarity is lacking.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Scapegoat (00:57-01:17), vocal and instrument tonality needs to be warmer and vocals are recessed. Timbre and detail are pretty good but lacking in clarity.

Treble: Linkin Park – Shadow of the Day (03:24-03:42), electric guitars aren’t sharp but lacking in texture and clarity. Tonality is pretty good but timbre can be better.

Deuce – America (03:03-03:16), a bit chaotic, separation and imaging could be better and it’s a bit fatiguing due to the tonality.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Lose (string version) (01:22-01:59), Cello tonality and timbre are pretty good, but texture, clarity and detail could be better. Violin tonality needs to be brighter; timbre is decent, good treble-extension and detail but lacking clarity.

Hiroyuki Sawano &Z (02:18-02:57), tonality is decent as well as the timbre, but lacking clarity.

Soundstage: Below average, it’s not that wide or deep.

Tonality: Mildly V-shaped, pretty balanced between warmth and brightness, but does make it into a jack of all trades master of none type. Good timbre for a BA iem.

Details: Pretty good.

Instrument Separation: Imaging and separation are pretty good.

Songs that highlight the IEM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uj5DRn7Y4ok https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7rOS9rd4sY

Good genres: Jack of all genres

Bad genres: Master of none



Comparisons:

IEM: Audiosense DT200, Sony EP-EX11 tips L, cable A6 4.4mm

Bass: Djuro – Drop that bass (01:15-01:30), extends a bit lower and rumbles a bit more on the DT200. Punch quantity is similar but more textured on the DT200 while it is a bit tighter and faster on the Bravery. More tonally correct and better timbre on the DT200.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Pretenders (01:18-01:47), more quantity and texture on the DT200 but tighter and faster with more detail and cleaner on the Bravery. More tonally correct with better timbre on the DT200.

Metallica – fight fire with fire (01:11-01:52), cleaner, more detailed and more clarity on the Bravery due to the tighter and faster bass, along with more texture.

Mids: Hiroyuki Sawano – OldToday (01:25-01:52), vocal tonality is a bit better on the Bravery, cleaner and more detailed but timbre is better on the DT200. Instrument tonality and timbre are better on the DT200, but cleaner and more detailed with more clarity on the Bravery.

Evanescence – Bring me to life (01:18-01:35), peakier and more fatiguing on the Bravery,

Hiroyuki Sawano – Scapegoat (00:57-01:17), vocal and instrument tonality/timbre are a lot better on the DT200 but cleaner, more detailed and more clarity on the Bravery.

Treble: Linkin Park – Shadow of the Day (03:24-03:42), electric guitars are a bit sharper and more fatiguing on the Bravery, but better tonality on it. Timbre is better on the DT200.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Lose (string version) (01:22-01:59), Cello tonality, timbre and texture are better on the DT200 but cleaner, more detailed and clarity on the Bravery. Violin tonality, treble-extension, detail and clarity are better on the Bravery but better timbre and texture on the DT200.

Hiroyuki Sawano &Z (02:18-02:57), better tonality and timbre on the DT200 but cleaner, more detailed and more clarity on the Bravery.

Technicalities: Shiro Sagisu – Hundred years war (02:24-02:57), a bit wider on the Bravery but deeper and more holographic on the DT200. Detail, imaging and separation are better on the Bravery. Better timbre and coherency on the DT200.

Overall: The DT200 has better tonality for my library and also a more natural timbre. But the Bravery is more technical. DT200 is better if you want a more relaxing and natural set, while the Bravery will be better if you want more technicalities while also still being relaxed (not as much as the DT200 though).



IEM: Aiderlot M5, Elecom EHP-CAP20, stock cable 3.5mm

Bass: Djuro – Drop that bass (01:15-01:30), extends and rumbles more on the Bravery. Punch quantity is also higher and more textured on the Bravery, faster and tighter on the M5. More tonally correct and better timbre on the Bravery.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Pretenders (01:18-01:47), more bass quantity and more textured on the Bravery. Faster and tighter on the M5. More tonally correct and better timbre on the Bravery.

Metallica – fight fire with fire (01:11-01:52), more quantity and texture on the Bravery, with better tonality and timbre. But more clarity and cleaner on the M5.

Mids: Hiroyuki Sawano – OldToday (01:25-01:52), vocal tonality is better and more forward vocals on the M5 with more clarity and macro-detail while timbre is better on the Bravery. Instrument tonality, timbre and micro-detail are better on the Bravery but more clarity, cleaner and more macro-details on the M5.

Evanescence – Bring me to life (01:18-01:35), shoutier and more fatiguing on the M5.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Scapegoat (00:57-01:17), instrument and vocal tonality/timbre are better on the Bravery. But cleaner and more forward vocals on the M5.

Treble: Linkin Park – Shadow of the Day (03:24-03:42), electric guitars have similar timbre but tonality is more correct on the M5.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Lose (string version) (01:22-01:59), Cello tonality, texture and timbre are better on the Bravery but cleaner and more detailed on the M5. Violin tonality, texture, detail and clarity are better on the M5 but better treble-extension and timbre on the Bravery.

Hiroyuki Sawano &Z (02:18-02:57), better tonality and timbre on the Bravery but cleaner and more detailed on the M5 with more clarity as well.

Technicalities: Shiro Sagisu – Hundred years war (02:24-02:57), a lot wider soundstage on the M5 but deeper on the Bravery. Macro-details and instrument separation are better on the M5 but better timbre/coherency and imaging on the Bravery.

Overall: Tonality wise they are quite different, the Bravery is the warmer, fun and more relaxed iem with more natural timbre. While the M5 is more energetic, brighter and more of a reference tuned set. Technicalities are similar.





IEM: GS Audio GD3A, Elecom EHP-CAP20, Cable A6 4.4mm

Bass: Djuro – Drop that bass (01:15-01:30), extends lower and rumbles more on the GD3A. Punch quantity is higher, more textured as well as tighter while speed is similar. More tonally correct and better timbre on the GD3A.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Pretenders (01:18-01:47), more mid-bass and texture on the GD3A as well as tighter, but speed is similar. More tonally correct with better timbre on the GD3A.

Metallica – fight fire with fire (01:11-01:52), cleaner on the GD3A with tighter bass and more distinct bass strikes. (Although the treble is peakier on it.)

Mids: Hiroyuki Sawano – OldToday (01:25-01:52), vocal tonality, clarity and timbre are better on the GD3A and is a bit more forward as well. Instrument tonality is better (warmer) on the Bravery but cleaner and more clarity on the GD3A as well as more natural timbre.

Evanescence – Bring me to life (01:18-01:35), peakier and more fatiguing on the GD3A.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Scapegoat (00:57-01:17), vocal tonality, timbre, detail and clarity are better on the GD3A as well as a bit more forward. Instrument tonality is better on the Bravery but cleaner, more detailed, more clarity and better timbre on the GD3A.

Treble: Linkin Park – Shadow of the Day (03:24-03:42), electric guitars are sharper and more fatiguing on the GD3A but better timbre/tonality on it.

Hiroyuki Sawano – Lose (string version) (01:22-01:59), Cello tonality is similar, but more textured, cleaner and more detailed on the GD3A with better timbre. Violin tonality, timbre, texture, clarity and detail are better on the GD3A but better treble-extension on the Bravery.

Hiroyuki Sawano &Z (02:18-02:57), better tonality, detail and clarity on the GD3A and slightly better timbre.

Technicalities: Shiro Sagisu – Hundred years war (02:24-02:57), soundstage is a lot wider on the GD3A but a bit deeper on the Bravery. Macro-details, timbre and separation are better on the GD3A while micro-detail is better on the Bravery but similar imaging.

Overall: The GD3A is clearly the better value, as the technicalities is slightly better and more natural timbre/coherency on the GD3A. Tonality wise, the GD3A is more energetic and brighter while the Bravery is more relaxing/laid-back.





Conclusion: While the Bravery is well tuned, technical and has good timbre for a BA iem. I just don’t see it competing with the iems near the 300 usd range when it can’t even beat the GD3A (which you might as well consider a BA iem, due to its vented shell and BA-like bass). So frankly, this is an overpriced iem. I cannot recommend this. Thank you for reading.


Graph:

Cable source:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...zTm4ei7HEfP8AI1zxswrMw2ho/edit#gid=1801072063

Reference/test songs:

Bravery is a sub 300$ IEM made by SeeAudio. It is a 4BA ( 2 Knowles and 2 Sonion Drivers ) SeeAudio is known for providing great price to performance value in their IEMs and Bravery is no exception! It performs amazingly for the price you pay!




Specifications

Driver Configuration: Quad BA.
>Driver Arrangement: 2 BA Low+ 1 BA Mid+ 1 BA Highs.
>Impedance: 18ohm.
>Frequency response range: 20Hz-20kHz.
>Sensitivity: 110dB/mW.
>THD+N: <1%.
>2-pin 0.78mm connectors.

Packaging :
What I have here is a review unit without its complete packaging, so I can't comment much about it. I got a metal carrying case consisting the IEM itself, a HAKUGEI cable and Azla Sednafit XELASTEC eartips.

Build Quality:
The build quality is excellent! The IEMs got a beautiful swirl design and metal logos on the faceplates! They look absolutely gorgeous! The included Hakugei cable is amazing! It is supple, nicely braided and produces no microphonic noise.






Sound Quality:


Tonality and Imaging :
The tonality of bravery is lovely! It sounds pretty organic for an all BA IEM. It sounds pretty warm, laidback and nice. The Tuning is excellent. It doesn;t sound harsh at all. The imaging is great, separation could have been better though!

Bass:
The bass here is great! Got some serious punch to it, got lovely depth and kick. And the response is pretty fast and agile as well. I wish the texture of the bass was a little bit better though!

Mids:
The mids here is great! Both male and female vocal sounds lovely, got some nice tonality as well. Mids sound rich and smooth. It is well textured and clean. Everything sounds sweet and natural.

Highs:
The treble here is great! Sounds well textured and sweet and sparkly. The only thing missing in my opinion is some airyness to the treble! There is no annoying peaks or shoutiness to it. Sounds pretty sweet and natural.


Conclusion:
The Bravery is a very capable IEM for 279$, the performance exceeds many other IEMs in the same price bracket, the included Azla tips and Hakugei cable makes it an even better value for money option! It easily earns my recommendation if you are in a hunt for a great sounding IEM under 300$!

SEEAUDIO BRAVERY
See Audio is a new chifi player in this big audiophile world. Their recent iem like SeeAudio YUME created a good name for their price to performance ratio. I could not be a part of last review tour for YUME (I was late haha!!!), but this time I got in time for a SEEAUDIO BRAVERY review tour.

DISCLAIMER- The IEM SEEAUDIO BRAVERY is a part of a review tour in INDIA organized by See Audio and all opinions, positive or negative are my own. No benefit, except being able to try this iem is being provided, in exchange for my honest, subjective impressions… You can find the link to their FB site here.

SPECIFICATIONS-

• Impedance: 18Ω
• Sensitivity: 110dB
• Frequency response: 20H-20KHz
• Cable length: 1.2M, HAKUGEI CABLE 6N OCC
• Pin type: 0.78MM 2-PIN CONNECTOR
• Plug type: 3.5mm /2.5mm/4.4mm (depends on your choice no adapters)
• Driver units: 4 Balanced Armature Drivers (Knowles and Sonion); two Knowles BA drivers for the lower end, one Sonion BA driver for mid-range, and one Knowles BA driver for the high-frequency response.

PRICE- 279$

UNBOXING-
Since this is a review unit, it came only with the matted metal case with kind of bunny ears printed on top (kinda Playboy type too ) and opening it seems like it had some sort of thick foam padding inside. The two beautiful looking iems are seen next one with a See Audio logo (seems more like illuminati) and the other have a beautiful lotus logo. Inside were 3 pairs of white S, M and L tips, no Azla xelastic tips though (But I have mine, hehe!!! and in this pandemic, a good decision by the tour organizer as AZLA tips tend to like a lot of ear dirt and cleaning them isn’t much easy either).


BUILD AND FIT-
It seems like the iem is made of a semi opaque or semitransparent (half glass full; LOL concept), containing all the drivers with beautiful looking faceplates that have wonderful logos. The build is heft and looks like it can take a beating but that only time will tell. The fit is great in my ears with the AZLA Xelastic tips no complaints in that even for long time use.

CABLE-
The cable is an excellent. It’s an Hakugei 6N OCC cable with 2pins and feels great too. They have an excellent sleeving of nylon cloth and feels great. No microphonics and real good cable slider, only thing is the one which came for review is just 3.5mm termination. But don’t be sad, it seems like you can order them with 4.4 or 2.5 balanced termination.

ACCESSORIES-

• Rinko stand (limited I guess to 250 units)
• Azla tips 3 pairs
• 3 pairs of normal white tips
• 1 hakugei cable
• A small pocketable iem case made of metal I guess with matte coating on it

NOTE- MY SOURCE IS-

• PORTABLE -N6II with T01 MODULE, BTR5 and LG G8X
• DESKTOP- DAC- N6II with T01 LINEOUT
• AMP- TOPPING A30 MODDED with BURSON V5I D or TOPPING L30 or XDUOO MT602(not used here for review but hey it does help to add a bit of tube touch and also is a really good pairing for this iem)
• Would like to add that my DAP N6ii ran it on high gain at 20-35 on volume.
• The tips used are AZLA Xelastic M size since they fit my ears (these are included and intended to be used by the manufacturer so will use this!!!)

SOUND SIGNATURE (P.S-This is subjective and may not match with yours)

BASS AND SUBBASS-
Bass is pretty good for an all-BA setup. Its has more mid-bass energy compared to other all BA setups and with that warm tonality, really complements the entire musicality of the iem. The body of the bass is great with some amount of timbre which makes it feel a little more natural. The decay is slightly faster than I would like but sufficient enough to leave a bit of timbre and nuances all over. The projection is still not enough to have a grander theater or projection feel to it, but it does have that to an average amount. The bass texture is really good, but the separation between them is still much more desired. Inter-notes separation is okayish and slightly a little too close to each other to my liking.

Sub-bass on the other is decent with it not going too deep but enough to leave a good feel in sub-bassy tracks. The sub-bass has average rumble but a slightly slower decay helps to make it feel like an overall roomy experience. The energy on the sub-bass is less compared to the mid-bass and texture is on par with the mid-bass. A little more energetic feel might be needed, given some synth tracks felt like they are missing out on the energy.

MIDS-
The lower mids are very good, with good enough timbre to make them feel natural. The tonality is slightly on the warmer side with more emphasis on the upper mids presence. The decay is good enough to leave a small presence but the ending notes are not that much defined. The body and beginning of the notes are well defined though and really are the best part of this iem. The upper mids have a boost all together making the acoustic guitars have the desired edge without making them too sharp. The macro-dynamics are not that great though, they individual instruments lacks the height and width difference it should present, to create a better contrast. The dynamics are slightly compressed in my opinion. The details are okayish with transients being fast like the slight easter eggs in Marvel movies . With fast tracks, this lacks the separation between instruments and notes but they don’t mix up but rather the presentation is more compressed feeling type. There is no air in the instrument’s notes. The whole presentation is slightly ‘U’ shaped for me with vocals being forward enough to not make them feel recessed. The background is completely pitch black though.

Male vocals have the thick feeling but a slightly thicker note is preferred in my book. The female vocals are great just lacking a bit in extension, but they don’t sound boxy as some other iems that I have tried. They have an overall balanced and well forward presentation than the rest and hence create a sense of W shaped signature. I am really confused though, haha!!! whether its ‘U’ or ‘W’ overall. This requires a bit more understanding as per notes height its ‘U’ but as per vocals and rest of instruments in mids it seems ‘W’. I will let you be the judge of this.

TREBLE-
The lower treble lacks a lot, seems like the presence is lost of electronic guitars and trumpets, they kinda sounded dull and unimpressive. The cymbals on the other hand have a more enhanced presence with slightly spicy BA metallic timbre and too spicy sometimes, when everything’s going on. Tambourines, bells and other instruments have good presence overall. The dynamics, still is lacking and there is certain congestion which can be felt on busy tracks. There is no air present, but this has a lot of treble sparkle and energy and does have good extension. The micro details are okay and transparency is good, but with not much particular spatial orientation to them. The decay is fast but does leave a presence in trumpets and flutes to make them feel slightly natural.

HEADSTAGE, IMAGING, SEPARATION AND RESOLUTION-
Head-stage is pretty intimate and more of an in-head experience. There is neither proper height or depth in the instruments to make its stand distinct. The stage depth feels lacking a lot. There is too much in the mids with either edge lacking a bit, for my taste.
Separation is average at best. The notes separation (same instrument notes) is good overall but lacks the edge definition and presence. There is congestion in inter-instrumental notes separation and congested tracks make this feel way too closed in. But the best thing is because of a slightly faster decay there is still no bleed into one another, still there is no proper separation either.
Imaging is good and every instrument has a decent sense of position in the head stage. The imaging is diffuse though and with no proper staging, this is a blessing for this iem.
Resolution or transparency is decent. Transients and slight nuances are missing but overall, the resolution of instrumental notes is pretty good.

COMPARISONS-
PROS BRAVERY-
Musical and coherent
Good midbass for an all-BA setup
Good female vocals
Great treble extension
Enough timbre
Sparkly and energetic upper treble

PROS DM8-
Great micro-details
Better separation
Edge definition better of notes
Imaging and transparency were great
Great treble extension with air
Good midbass
Great vocals
Better dynamics

SUMMARY-
For the price of 279$, this has got the musicality part correct with all BA setup with good vocals and great treble extension. But lacks in other technical aspects hard, so would I recommend it? I guess yes, you can use it with some tubes and all (ahmm!!! warm sources would fare better, I used XDUOO MT602 ) to give more staging and sweeter, lush mids and make it more musical all together. If you are into coherency and good treble performance and can sacrifice technicalities and handle a little bright snare and cymbals, then this iem is for sure yours.

Introduction​

My first run-in with SeeAudio consisted of their entry-level Yume IEM. The Yume sported a remarkable tonal balance, quite possibly the best I'd heard for its respective price point. But it came with one glaring flaw: technicalities. Notes on it were quite blunted; ultimately, I found that the Yume fell out of favor with my ears. But presently, SeeAudio has released the Bravery, a humble 4BA configuration. The question that is no doubt at hand is whether SeeAudio can maintain the excellent tonal balance that characterized the Yume and bring the technicalities of the Bravery within parameters commensurate with its price of $280. Read on to find out.

This unit was sent to me for review by HiFiGo. As usual, what follows are my honest thoughts and opinions to the best of my ability.

Tangibles​

Does jamming in a bunch of waifu goodies supplement for accessories? Debatable, but I'll give the Bravery a pass here. You have the same friction-fit, hockey puck case that comes with the Yume. Not the greatest quality case, but it'll get the job done. SeeAudio has also opted to include Azla Xelastec ear tips which is a solid step in the right direction.



I want to love the included Hakugei cable because the tactility of the para-cord and the hardware feels quite premium. Unfortunately, a cable that looks pretty and feels well-built is no substitute for one that actually works in practice. To this end, the Hakugei cable is quite microphonic and the ear hooks themselves loop awkwardly around the ears. I ended up just swapping it off for my Dunu DUW-02 cable after listening for a couple hours.



The Bravery sports a black-and-white, marble finish with each of the brand and IEM logo's inscribed in gold. The nozzles have lips to secure the tips, and the 0.78mm connectors are exposed. Overall build quality here is solid with no marring to the surface finish and a seamless conjoining between the acrylic shell and faceplate. I'd say this is a medium-sized IEM; personally, I had no issues with fit or comfort but your mileage might vary of course.

Sound Analysis​

The frequency response graph below was taken off of an IEC-711 coupler. There is a resonance peak at roughly 8kHz and, as such, measurements after this point should not be considered entirely accurate. Please follow the link below if you'd like to compare the Bravery to the other IEMs that I have graphed.




The overall tonality of the Bravery is clearly inspired by the (in)famous qdc Anole VX. One can consider it a warmer, more mid-bassy interpretation of that IEM which, for me, means a slightly south of neutral signature. But one could probably get away with using a number of other descriptors, as I've seen U-shaped, V-shaped, and W-shaped used too. Anyways - the qdc Anole VX is distinctive to me as being remarkably solid for it tuning and, simultaneously, for being just as boring. I do feel that the Bravery mitigates this impression to some extent with the presence of some extra mid-bass. This smoothens the transition into the midrange which is remarkably solid and sports a slight lean toward the upper-midrange.

I'm not going to explore the bass or the midrange too closely otherwise because they don't need much comment. The only thing that really matters to me is that the Bravery hasn't escaped what I like to call the "VX curse". Treble on the Bravery sports something of a lower-treble recession followed by strong amounts of presence at 7kHz. This lends to a loss of stick impact and an overly strong emphasis on the crash and sparkle of percussive instruments that can come off as slightly fatiguing - especially on more treble-intensive tracks. That said, the Bravery definitely has some pretty commendable treble extension for this price point. Generally, it's also by no means gritty in decay; instead, it mostly suffers from the plasticky, weightless quality that characterizes most BA IEMs.

Technical Performance​

The Bravery's technicalities are good, but they're also not great. So the good: It's certainly no Yume. Transients are relatively sharp on the Bravery, and I do find it to have a decent sense of layering. By this, I mean that instruments have a good sense of distinction without smearing into one another on more complex tracks. Where the Bravery excels most, though, is in a "whole is greater than the sum of its parts" sense. It really makes no glaring mistakes in terms of what I would index for on cursory listen, and it's pretty coherent for a 4BA setup.

But to reiterate, the Bravery's not great for technicalities; this becomes readily apparent in A/B with my $300 benchmark, the Moondrop Blessing 2. The dynamic ability of the Bravery is unremarkable, succumbing to the flat, upwards-compressed quality that plagues most BA setups. Listening to the cadence of Sawano Hiroyuki's "Tranquility," for example, abrupt shifts in loudness sound noticeably more distinct and impactful on the Blessing 2. I also don't find the Bravery to be a particularly detailed IEM; it sounds like a lot of nuance is missing that makes me gravitate toward the Blessing 2 despite that IEM's flaws. What I'm getting at is that the Bravery puts on a strong showing on cursory listen, but ultimately comes up more empty-handed when pressed for more latent intangibles. Really, that's to be expected for an IEM of this price point.

The Verdict​

And that in mind, the Bravery is a pretty easy recommendation. It doesn't do a whole lot wrong and it gets a whole lot more right. But for an IEM called the Bravery, ironically, it's also a really safe IEM - almost too safe. I want to see more. I want to see SeeAudio step out of their comfort zone and take their game to the next level. Sure, they've nailed the fundamentals of a good IEM, but there's a lack of character to stuff like the Yume and Bravery that keeps these IEMs from touching established greats like their Moondrop contemporaries. Then again? Maybe asking for more in the sea of mediocrity is being unfair.

You can purchase the Bravery here from HiFiGo: https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-bravery

Hello , I'm Ah Hui aka Mr Wong. I'm a K-pop fan and audiophile from Malaysia.

First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Seeaudio for lending me this review unit and giving me the opportunity to review the Seeaudio Bravery.

This is my second time review a Seeaudio product. I have tried Seeaudio Yume before and I really like the Yume. Hopefully I can own the Yume one day. Seeaudio Bravery is an IEM with a 2 Knowles and 2 Sonion BA drivers driver configuration. It retails for $280usd .

Specifications (from Hifigo):
Driver Configuration: Quad BA.
>Driver Arrangement: 2 BA Low+ 1 BA Mid+ 1 BA Highs.
>Impedance: 18ohm.
>Frequency response range: 20Hz-20kHz.
>Sensitivity: 110dB/mW.
>THD+N: <1%.
>2-pin 0.78mm connectors.

Disclaimer: This review is done by using BGVP A08 eartips because as I couldn't get a good seal with the included XELASTEC eartips. Your mileage may vary.

PACKAGING :
What I have here is a review unit without its complete packaging, so I can't comment much on it. What I got here is a metal casing. Inside consists of the IEM itself, a HAKUGEI cable and 3 different sizes of SednaEarfit XELASTEC eartips.

Comfort: fit and isolation are great for me

Build :
It is substantial with beautiful faceplate design.

PRO:
smooth sound signature, good present of vocals, tall and deep soundstage

CONS:
narrower soundstage, fitment not good for me with stock eartips

BASS: fast response bass, deep sub-bass. When I listened to Weki - Meki - Crush , I really enjoyed the sub-bass rumble, punchy mid bass you can feel the bass response is fast, well-layered and tight. However I think it needs more body.

MIDS : Forward mids with good presentation on female voca. It's crisp back lacks presence. When i listen Weki-Meki - Dear. I really enjoyed the female vocal. You can feel the vocal is sweeter with vocal details on the songs. However, I think adds more body to vocal will be better. Male vocal also feel crisp without midbass bleed. Tuning is decent.

HIGH : treble feels smooth with good clarity. When I listened to IZ*ONE - Memory, you can feel Yena singing the high note part it's well extended, which I truly enjoy.

SOUNDSTAGE : it is tall and deep but narrow. When I listened to IZ*ONE - As we dream, I can feel the background is deeper and taller soundstage. However, I think the soundstage can be wider.

IMAGING : stereo positioning is good. I can pinpoint every instrument and singer within the sound scape.

Details : it's decent details when I listen some track I could hear micro-details on the track .

Overall I find this IEM suitable for listening to K-POP or J-POP songs it's more vocal focused and good presentation of vocal. This is my first time trying 2 Knowles and 2 sonion BA driver IEM I feel it's very premium for me. Highly recommended.

insteresting to order ?link below :
https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudi...Osdrt6FZpOVU1K1H2-UwroqREY⁠&sscid=91k5_l0r1z&

Introduction:
See Audio is a new name in the portable audio industry, although the people behind it have been in the game for quite some time now. They are from China and they have launched multiple IEMs recently including their current flagship Kaguya, Neo, Yume which is currently their most affordable one, and the Bravery which currently retails for 279 USD. The Philippine circle of reviewers received one unit of the Bravery provided by See Audio as a part of their international tour.

International purchase link

Specifications:
Driver units: 4 balanced armature (2 from Knowles and 2 from Sonion)
Impedance: 18 ohms
Sensitivity: 110 dB
Frequency response range: 20 Hz - 20 kHz

Source:
Poco X3 paired with iBasso DC03 and Shanling UA1

Test tracks:
Africano - Earth Wind and Fire
Dark Necessities - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Gurenge - Lisa
The Chain - Fleetwood Mac
Monsters - All Time Low
Ours - Taylor Swift
Stay - Mayday Parade
Snuff - Slipknot
Yesterday Once More - Carpenters
So Slow - Freestyle
Aurora Sunrise - Franco
Attention - Pentatonix
Blue Bird - Ikimono-gakari
You're Still The One - Shania Twain
Anyone Who Knows What Love Is(Will Understand) - Irma Thomas
Salamin - Slapshock
AOV - Slipknot
Hey Jude - The Beatles
The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson
...and a lot more.

Unboxing and Accessories:
The Bravery that we received does not come with the retail box. It only comes with the circular metal case and 3 pairs of Azla Xelastec eartips.

Build:
The shell is made of 3D printed resin that is hollow, which makes it a bit lighter compared to shells that are filled and solid inside. The shells are slightly bigger than average so there could be comfort issues here for people with small ears. The faceplates have this kind of like a swirl paint design, with the right faceplate having the See Audio logo, and an 8-point star on the left. There is a single vent near the female pins and nothing much on the rear side except for the nozzle which is made of metal.

Now for the cables, See Audio collaborated with Hakugei, a premium cable maker that is also from China. The material used was not specified, but this is a 6N OCC cable with nylon fabric sleeves. It is very soft, supple and has a bit of a weight to it. The male 2 pin connector, splitter, chin slider, and the 3.5mm gold plated plug are all made of metal.

Now let's get to the sound.

Lows:
The lows are what you would expect from an IEM with an all-BA setup. It is on the light side of things but doesn't lack body at all. Subbass has a slightly above average reach accompanied by an adequate amount of rumble and an average level of decay. Midbass is positioned neutrally, it is well controlled and has good thickness.

Overall, while the midbass doesn't have much weight in its attack, the subbass slightly makes up for it. The lows of the Bravery give a lot of room for the other frequencies to shine, especially the mids.

Mids:
The mids are presented in a forward and intimate manner. It feels a bit "in your face". Vocals are a little thin but have great transparency, making the female vocals more forward and livelier than male vocals, although the latter still have substantial weight. Despite having that boost in the upper mids region and its forwardness, the mids never sounded shouty or aggressive.

Overall, the mids are what I consider to be the main strength of the Bravery. The mids are reproduced vividly, and that slight boost in the upper mids really adds shimmer and fun factor to the vocals and instruments.

Highs:
The highs have a small boost in its reproduction. It is well extended yet controlled. Both the treble reach and its extension are just above average, with the treble providing a great amount of sparkle and clarity in each track. That being said, sibilance is non-existent in this region.

Overall, the highs have that nice elevation that is preferred by many without painfully harassing your ears. Small details are noticeably well preserved even in complex tracks.

Soundstage and Imaging:
The stage expands naturally, with its size being slightly above average. It adds a very open and spacious feeling to the music, although the width definitely has more expansion than the height. Imaging, alongside the separation and layering of the instruments are simply excellent. There is a great amount of air in the stage and different instruments can be distinguished from each other with little effort.

Conclusion:
The Bravery is a capable IEM, showcasing an overall technical performance that far exceeds many other IEMs in the same price bracket, and my expectations as well. Aside from the sound, it is pretty evident that See Audio really aims to upgrade the customer experience by partnering with brands like Hakugei and Azla, and the results are obviously satisfying.

Many manufacturers in the past have tried to make an IEM using nothing but balanced armatures. One can easily see the attraction, the attack speed and fast decay of notes created by BA drivers eliminate bloated sounds and muddiness of bass. The issue has been, for a long time, budget to mid-tier multi-BA IEMs have never quite hit the mark when it came to sound tuning. I will be candid here, when I first picked up the Bravery, I did not have high hopes. I was aware that this model has been heavily influenced by the audiophile community’s inputs, but old experiences had left me a cynic.

Build and accessories:

The inclusion of Hakugei cable and Azla tips were an excellent move by SeeAudio. The tips ensure great fit and isolation, and the wider bore allows for a more neutral sound. The cable really surprised me, no pre-formed hooks means it is a bit hard to keep behind the ears when moving about but the quality of materials and comfort is top notch. All tests done with supplied cable and tips.

Testing equipment:

iFi Hipdac, Topping NX4s DAC/Amps
PC/Mobile phone both as source

Songs/Albums (All 24bit, 96khz FLAC unless otherwise mentioned):

Refused - The shape of punk to come
Led Zeppelin - IV
Dr Dre - The Chronic
Madonna - Confessions on a dance floor (44.1/16)
Michael Jackson - Thriller
Daft Punk - Random access memories
Deep Purple - Who do we think we are (DSD)
Manowar - Warriors of the world (DSD)
Slayer - Reign in blood



Analysis of sonic experience:

The clarity of notes was the first thing I noticed. The song being played was Stairway to heaven, whose original recording is notoriously hard to provide accurate layering, tonality and imaging to by my experience. The Bravery did a magnificent job, with a very tight and fast bassline and great vocal separation, something many IEMs struggled with in this track. Moving on to a more recent album, Refused’s the shape of punk to come really stretched out the legs of the IEM. The album contains tracks that are wildly varied in tone, style and instrumentation, and in almost every track the sound came out neutral, with adequate snare drum punch and proper layering of bass guitar over the drums - clearly showing the BAs fastness of bass response. However, it is in the track New Noise I discovered that pushing too much power makes this IEM a bit shouty. Not an issue, considering it really does not need the power. It produces adequate levels of sound without it. Moving away from rock and alternative/punk, I moved on to rap. Dr Dre’s The Chronic is an album I knew by heart, and it is also where my heart sank somewhat. All BA construction did a marvelous job of producing a perfectly neutral sound out of the gangsta tracks, however the rumble of sub-bass is not something they are good at and it showed. This was carried over into random access memories as well, and also here I discovered, electronic music is best enjoyed with a IEM that delivers notes with a little slower decay and softness of notes - this album too sounded better to me on dynamic driver or planar setups. The sound was a touch metallic - not at all overly, but it was there - which made the already digital music sound more artificial. However, a mix of completely electronic and analog sounds, such as Confessions on a dance floor sounded marvelous. Female vocals sounded extremely sharp and accurate in my ears.

Going back to older classics, playing tracks from Thriller I noticed higher volumes hinted at some sibilance from hi-hats and cymbals used in songs by MJ. This was however the case with a lot of other IEMs, something I have come to accept as a flaw of the mix from back when the album was released. Finally, more mellow rockers like like Deep Purple or Manowar sounded just right.

Slayer’s fast paced drumming, busy guitar tracks and Tom Araya’s vocals make Stage, Separation, Decay, Imaging and any muddiness very easy to grade and spot. The multiple BAs held their ends very well, more importantly the overlaps of frequency response of each BA merged beautifully into each other, and the stage is one of the best in the bracket. However, the slight artificial glassiness of notes are still there.

Bass:

Punchy, fast, surprisingly deep for BA. Rumble is very faint though, not for many genres of EDM and older style of rumbling bass hip-hop or Rap. However in tracks with tons of drum hits and bass guitars, the fast and accurate bass response really shines over the rumbling bass of others in the price range. Solid 4.5/5 for most genre, 3/5 for EDM/Hip-Hop

Mids:

Mids absolutely shine on the Bravery. The tune is one the slightly brighter side, bringing air to guitars, vocals and other musical instruments that happen to share these busy frequencies. It is however, here the slight glassy or metallic tonality is most evident, but you will get used to it, not a deal breaker. 4.5/5

Treble:

The best part of the treble from SeeAudio Bravery is how well tamed it is. The accuracy of high pitched notes is really special in this price segment, but in taming the BA treble, some of the sparkle and airiness has been lost. 4/5.



Stage, Imaging and Separation:

For a closed back, vented IEM setup with all BA drivers, the soundstage of SeeAudio Bravery is fairly wide and more importantly, accurate in positioning of different audio sources. Listening to a Jazz record like Take Five, you can point out where the artists are playing from in the sound field, that is to say the imaging is more than fair. The separation of instruments is exceptional in the mids, however the bass instruments can get a bit congested especially in the low end. Treble too lacks some refinement in the very top end, so separation of say hi-hats and cymbals may not be as sharp as it can be. However, in this compromise the manufacturer did tune out sibilance so kudos there. Rating for these three categories: 4/5

Tonality and Signature:

Bravery has a very neutral to slightly U shaped, with the mids being slightly recessed, especially in the midbass section. The tonality is slightly on the thicker and warmer side of BA IEMs, so the metallic tones of a BA are almost gone but some glassiness remains, especially apparent with brighter sources. A good neutral to warm source pair nicely.

Summary:

Someone looking for a pair of IEMs to use on the daily, for most mainstream genres spanning from Rock to Acoustic/Vocal to Pop and Jazz will be very well served by the Bravery in this price segment of sub-300 USD. However, Hip-Hop and EDM enthusiasts might want to try something with a DD in it.

Introduction:
I have reviewed one other See Audio iem, the Yume. And while I was much surprised at their impressive tuning, the low end remained wanting. However, I still loved its unique clarity. hence, when the chance to review the Project Bravery came about, I did not think twice before jumping on it.



Disclaimer: I was provided the See Audio Bravery for an honest review. My opinions recorded here are completely of my own and are not influenced by any form of incentive.

Specification:
MODEL: See Audio Bravery
IMPEDANCE: 18Ω
SENSITIVITY: 110dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20H-20KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M
PIN TYPE: 0.78MM 2-PIN CONNECTOR
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm /2.5mm/4.4mm
DRIVER UNITS: 4 Balanced Armature Drivers ( Knowles and Sonion).
DISTORTION RATE: < 1% (1KHz)

Accessories:
Being a review sample, there wasn't much except a metal hockey puck case, 3 pairs of transparent wide bore eartips, and, the best of the bunch, the cloth braided, extremely supple and light, Hakugei cable. The cable is amazing and deserves a special mention because of how significant an effect it has on the ultimate sound.



Build and Fit:
The build is solid and sexy. The black resin body does not feel flimsy at all, despite being light. The jet black faceplate with white fluidic treaks looks very mysterious and beautiful, as if milk is strewn over a mysterious black liquid. The added chrome artworks are a treat to the eyes. The semi-transparent dark shell adds to the presentation by providing a peek at the drivers inside while maintaining the overall tone.
Fit is very good - snug, absolutely no discomfort. The iem shells are very lightweight, which makes it easier to wear for a long period of time and enjoy music.



Source:
Shanling M3X

Sound:
One point to be made clear first - At least 40% goodness of Braver’s sound is derived from its Hakugei cable. That cable really did amaze me even while running from the single end of M3X! I wonder how much the cable costs standalone, I might have gone for one.

Anyway, to put it in short, Bravery has a brilliant sense of balance with four balanced armature drivers...get it? Get it? In fact, I found almost nothing to complain about the sound output of Bravery - it played almost everything, very safely. And that is its fourte!

The general sound signature is V shaped, however, I did not find the midrange to be very recessed. Instead, it seems a bit w shaped or U shaped.

Low:
Low end has moderate emphasis, despite the very large bump in the official FR curve. However, that may be precisely why the bass seems to have such a great balance between impact and control. Midbass thumps are effortlessly produced, but they are kept at bay. Thumps are quite full and have a nice body, however, they are not emphasised enough to sound fun. Low end is tuned here with the idea to assist the overall music experience without drawing attention to itself, which will be quite suitable for folks preferring a neutral signature. Very nicely curated note body and weight that almost gives them a sense of naturalness. Subbass extends deep, but also decays fast. In fact, this fast decay is what prevents the Bravery to attain a DD level bass impact. However, this only becomes evident when big bass drums are played. Otherwise, you won’t be able to differ between a very well tuned DD bass and Bravery 2 BA bass.

In Metallica - The Four Horsemen, the double pedal kick drums can be heard clearly within the mix, with natural impacts and body. However, they do not grab attention.

In Steven Wilson - Pariah, the bassline is produced nicely, and does not feel lacking.

However, in Battlestar Galactica Season 2 OST - Prelude To War, the big drums sound noticeably lacking and incomplete when they come into play. They just seem a bit too controlled and finishing earlier than expected. Similar event occurs during The Dark Knight OST - Why So Serious?, 03:25 onwards, the subbass is not produced with the pressure that can be heard from a good DD.



Mid:
Crisp and clean with a high degree of refinement is how the mids of Bravery can be termed. The tonality is somewhat neutral-bright here, with very fine edges to the notes. Bravery bravely boasts a high level of clarity with a clean and dark background. Male vocals sound...fine. The weight is there, but the body is very slightly leaner than my preference, and because of the bright-leaning tonality, the emotional aspect of male vocals takes a hit. Not totally unnatural, though.
Leonard Cohen in Hallelujah sounds very clean and forward with just enough weight not to sound unnatural.

Female vocals are another story here - well extended, emotional, brilliant. Female vocals have a slight edge, but it does not transpire into being sibilant or uncomfortable.
Yao Si Ting sounds brilliant with the silky sizzles in her voice in Scarborough Fair

Both male and female vocals never becomes shouty as well.

From the overall description above, I think it is now pretty evident that the midrange is very transparent - and it benefits the instrument section a great deal. Instrument notes are crunchy and clean, very slightly on the leaner side. Notes are very well reproduced, with a well defined body. Details were sufficient for the price as well.
The snare drums in Battlestar Galactica Season 2 OST - Prelude To War sounds cleanly defined, well separated and easily identified in its own position.



High:
The transparency and energy is carried forward to the high frequency as well. Plenty of sparkles in the high frequencies. Lower treble has slight peaks that can be picked up on occasions. Cymbal crashes sound a bit more spicy than what I like, but it's never uncomfortable or piercing in an unrefined way. The energy extends well into the upper treble region, and shimmers are very well reproduced. Ride cymbal rolls are reproduced cleanly. However, the tuning of highs are carefully done so that it never gets overly thin, piercing, or uncomfortable, and yet have silikiness that enhances the overall sound. It’s a nice tuning...yeah, it is a nice tuning.



Technicalities:
This is where things take a south turn. While the separation is very good, and layering is distinct, the space between different notes is not as much as I would have preferred at this price range. The soundstage does not extend much beyond the head, and lacks air a bit. The background is clean, but the instruments seem more focused to the center than spreaded out. It may prove to be the deal-maker or deal-breaker depending upon individual preferrences: intimate sound vs. spreaded out sound. The achilles's hill is the slight lack of air and space in the presentation despite the neutral bright tonality and crisp notes.
Details are well reproduced, notes have good dimensionalities. No complaints there.

Comparison:
Vs. Yanyin Aladdin (Review pending): I bought the Aladdin based on the recommendations here, a blind gamble, and it played off right! However, the stock cable of Aladdin, despite being good, is not as good as Bravery stock cable, and hence I swapped it with a Hisenior Silver and Copper Alloy cable for the sake of fairness in the comparison.
Well, to start with, Aladdin has a DD to take care of the low end, 2 BA for mid-high, and 1 BA for ultra-high. Because of the DD, Aladdin has a much fuller and stronger low end than Bravery. Aladdin has a subbass focused sound, hence the subbass rumble and reverbs are more natural than Bravery, with a stronger midbass thumps.
However, apart from that, the rest of the sound signature is pretty much similar except one aspect, but more on that later. Aladdin has a slightly warmer tonality, but the notes are equally crispy and well defined. The high range has got slightly less peaks than Bravery, so cymbal hits sound more natural to my ears. Detail-wise, both iems are equally competent.
The one field where Aladdin pulls ahead of Bravery most is soundstage. Aladdin projects its sound over a more widespread stage, with much better space within notes, better width and depth, similar height, better layering. The overall presentation becomes much more grand to my ears, and hence, I felt myself clearly more biased towards it over the Bravery.



Conclusion:
See Audio has tuned Bravery in a brilliant way, where balance meets engagement factor very well. It does not sound boring to the least, rather quite lively and engaging. The low end is a remarkable improvement over Yume, as it boasts more impact and yet maintains a control over it. The precision of its balanced tuning can be easily detected over the whole frequency spectrum, as no unevenness or harshness can be foudn there. See Audio really know how to tune, and it shows. The impressive cable enhances the overall performance even more, eliminating the need to search for an aftermarket cable (unless one is looking for balanced terminations, the stock cable is 3.5 mm single end.) I would very much looking forward to how See Audio is going to improve upon the issue of the spaciousness, if they decide to, because then that will become a very good bargain if the price is kept as competitive as this one.