[cyberden]

Just got the answer from MP4 Nation :
 
 
Quote:

Hi
The holes are meant to be open. You might want to check that you are getting a good seal with the eartips, if you don't then this will affect the bass.
Thanks

 
However I don't agree with them. On my set, If I let the holes opened, I can't get a good seal and thus I have virtually no bass (compared to closed holes).
 
I guess I should just return them but I'm quite lazy

 

[Calroth]

Just got the answer from MP4 Nation :



However I don't agree with them. On my set, If I let the holes opened, I can't get a good seal and thus I have virtually no bass (compared to closed holes).

I guess I should just return them but I'm quite lazy

Yah. I suspect (but we need more samples) that there are actually 2 or more revisions in the wild. One where they're designed to be open, and one where they're not.

Just go with what sounds good.

 

[jonmp]

Hi, I feel the same with my M5. They are weirdly harsh around the 5KHz band. I can fix it partially with the EQ on my Cowon i9, reducing the 4.1KHz band, but overall I'm quite disappointed with these ones (I had got previously some Soundmagic PL50 and by reading the reviews of Clieos and Joker I expected a big improvement SQ wise).
 
At first, listening the samples in that link provided by zephyr90 I thought that commented reversed polarity could be the problem, but later I've listened the same samples with other earphones and they sound the same as my Brainwavz...
 
Have anyone finally got a replacement from mp4nation?

 

[shryock]

Hi. Im new here.

Got my very first sonic diamond IEM. Brainwavz M5.

I checked the polarity of this unit after 50 hours of burn in. I used the link given pages before, my unit seems normal.
No indication of reverse polarity.

 

[Disconnekt]

Quote:

 
I have compared several M1s, and all of them sounded very different (I'm not talking about comparisons by memory, but A-B blind comparisons). The same with the M2 and M3 models (my M2, for example, are almost analytical-souding compared to other bazooka-like M2 I've tried). 

 
My assessment of the M2 was the same... I was expecting a bass monster, but ended up with almost no bass (but a very clear, clean, and fun signature through the rest of the spectrum, very forward sounding).  I mean, I love the way it sounds, but I was completely missing the lowest octave of the frequency spectrum and the second octave was pretty weak, which is why I got the M5 to supplement them (which I have since returned for being unlistenable).
 
Quote:

Edit : I tried to sealed the front facing pinholes again to try and I find the M5 VERY bass heavy like that. As already mentioned, the sound is definitely not as clear as when the holes are opened.

 
While I was playing around with the M5, I figured out how messing with the ports changes a bunch of the resonant peaks within the case.  Front port sealed meant much more bass, but much more nasty 4-5 kHz shrillness.  Rear port open meant much more bass as well, but also huge bloat in the midbass to lower-mid region.  The fact that I couldn't get the shrillness to go away no matter what I did led me to believe mine were defective beyond how the ports were set up.
 
Quote:

Hi, I feel the same with my M5. They are weirdly harsh around the 5KHz band. I can fix it partially with the EQ on my Cowon i9, reducing the 4.1KHz band, but overall I'm quite disappointed with these ones (I had got previously some Soundmagic PL50 and by reading the reviews of Clieos and Joker I expected a big improvement SQ wise).
 
At first, listening the samples in that link provided by zephyr90 I thought that commented reversed polarity could be the problem, but later I've listened the same samples with other earphones and they sound the same as my Brainwavz...
 
Have anyone finally got a replacement from mp4nation?

 
Yeah, that sounds a lot like mine.  I would also like to know if there are better recent manufacture examples out there than what we got.
 
I'm also starting to wonder if it's just a peculiarity of my ears, though... out of all the IEMs I've tried, some have it worse than others, but the MH1C is the only one that didn't have any audible resonant peak in that area.  The worst offenders were the M5 and the JVC HA-FX3X (the latter is painful, even after trying to burn it in... it's about to be returned).  The TDK MT-300 has one too (although I could move the peak higher or lower in pitch and amplitude by changing tips).  The R1 has one, but it's not as bad, and the M2 sounds to me like it's more broadly EQed slightly up in that area but doesn't have that icepick-in-the-ear sound.

 

[madmarty]

My front holes have been sealed and I tried to open them. I wasn't satisfied with them because they sounded a bit boring to me and after opening the holes they are just useless for me. There is no bass anymore. What??? I didn't want a analytic headphone but something that is fun to hear. Why do mp4nation say the holes should be open. All the tiny bit of fun is now gone.

 

[FSNDET]

Quote:

My front holes have been sealed and I tried to open them. I wasn't satisfied with them because they sounded a bit boring to me and after opening the holes they are just useless for me. There is no bass anymore. What??? I didn't want a analytic headphone but something that is fun to hear. Why do mp4nation say the holes should be open. All the tiny bit of fun is now gone.

 
I opened up the front holes on my M5 and I can't tell much of a difference if any in the amount of bass to be honest.. There's still plenty of bass there and unplugging the front holes improved the sound of the M5 for me by seemingly taking away the dullness in the M5's sound.. Why not put a dab of glue or something on the front holes to plug them again?

 

[madmarty]

I closed the holes again with a small drop of glue. Now they are completely different. The bass is back and they have also more substance and are so much more fun to hear.
For me the opposite is the case. With open hole they are dull and boring.
 
Edit: i think I will send them back. Somehow I don't like the highs. I don't know how to describe it as I'm noob in this stuff. If I would describe it exaggerated, they sound a bit tinny and sometimes I get the feeling like there is a kind of a slightly echo.
My LG in-ears which came with my smartphone aren't very good and only have much bass which seems to swallow the higher area and they have a much worse resolution but they are more comfortable to hear somehow. I guess I prefer weak highs to very present and higher resoluted but kind of weird highs? In general for me the M5 are to bright/high. I don't have a problem with highs in general  as my Superlux HD681 do have a lot of them and I love those headphones. It's just how it sounds with the M5.

 

[Nawawa]

Hey there, I think may have the same issue with you regarding the Brainwavz M5. Currently I went back to using my Brainwavz M2, to me these sound the best. Articulate, clear, perfect for metal and rock. The M5s however, just dont feel on par. Sure, they may have the same detail more bass but **** son, they sound like **** compared to M2s. I do not know how these can get Sonic Diamonds but these sound like cheap IEMs except more bass. All the tracks I've listen, made it seem like the M5s couldn't handle it but M2s handle it with ease. If you like the M2s, stick to it. Most of my IEMs are already dead, surprisingly M2s were the first ones i bought when i first came to headfi. Granted I used them sparingly, i think i found a gem in terms of price, build and sound quality in the M2s. Seriously, my M5s are just collecting dust and in my honest opinion, avoid these like the plague.

 

[murphythecat]

lol at the build quality.
Both my pairs has a channel gone.
Tried to contact the company, no response so far. I do not recommend M5's to NOBODY.