Zelda
Headphoneus Supremus
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- Jul 12, 2012
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Brainwavz M5 Review
The last of the M series (for now)
Build & Design
Starting from the housing, it's made of metal. It feels sturdy and looks well glued. Not a special design, just a typical straight barrel. Size is average, so no complaints. The housing at the rear gets narrower which helps with fit and comfort.
Fortunately, there's no driver flex. From what it looks, there are 2 vents, one at the front, next to the nozzle and another at the back of the housing. The strain relief is about 1cm.
As for the cable, it is exactly the same as the SoundMagic PL50, from the right angled jack up to the housing entry. Thick from the jack to the Y-split with the Brainwavz logo, and thin from there to the earpiece.
And there is the chin slider with the M5 on it.
The cable it's very microphonic, but the included shirt clip helps, and using it over the ear, helps even further.
Comfort , fit and isolation
It is quite comfortable even for the long use. The earpieces, even made of metal, are not heavy at all. If anything, the back of the housing can become a bit annoying.
As for the fit, it's one of the easiest to fit IEM I had, and with just the stock wide-bore ear tips. They also provide a great seal. Still the isolation is just average. The included Comply foam tips didn't help much, but again those never worked for me.
Accessories
Well, I didn't receive the original package, but I guess I got everything.
There are 4 pairs of wide-bore ear tips, 1 small, 2 medium and 1 large. These ones are thin and flimsy, but provide an instant seal.
1 pair of bi-flanges
3 pairs of narrow-bore ear tips, 3 sizes, which are thicker and stiffer than the wide ones.
1 pair of comply foam (in gray color)
A shirt clip
And finally, the best, the carry case. It's just great! Not a round clamshell as the one that came with the B2, but a rectangular one.
Sound
The M5 are very warm. The bass is strong and powerful without sounding muddy at all, controlled and detailed. The sub-bass can get deep, but the most noticeable is the mid-bass, big and surrounding. One thing that must be mentioned is that there's the mid/up bass punch (or ´hump´) which you either `love it or hate it´.
As expected there's some midrange bleed which adds weight to the lower mids. Vocals are a bit recessed and overshadowed by the lower end. Male vocals sound chesty and less effortless. But overall, very detailed, for this price.
As for the upper frequencies, it's not the M5 strength as the lows, but for a bassy earphone it's more than enough.
Soundstage is wide due to the bit recessed mids, and instrument separation pretty good, while still lacking air.
All in all, for the sub $50 price it's a great buy. It is well compared to the Xears TD III and Hisound PoPo, if not better, and definitely better built. I wish I had the M4 to compare, though.
The last of the M series (for now)
Build & Design
Starting from the housing, it's made of metal. It feels sturdy and looks well glued. Not a special design, just a typical straight barrel. Size is average, so no complaints. The housing at the rear gets narrower which helps with fit and comfort.
Fortunately, there's no driver flex. From what it looks, there are 2 vents, one at the front, next to the nozzle and another at the back of the housing. The strain relief is about 1cm.
As for the cable, it is exactly the same as the SoundMagic PL50, from the right angled jack up to the housing entry. Thick from the jack to the Y-split with the Brainwavz logo, and thin from there to the earpiece.
And there is the chin slider with the M5 on it.
The cable it's very microphonic, but the included shirt clip helps, and using it over the ear, helps even further.
Comfort , fit and isolation
It is quite comfortable even for the long use. The earpieces, even made of metal, are not heavy at all. If anything, the back of the housing can become a bit annoying.
As for the fit, it's one of the easiest to fit IEM I had, and with just the stock wide-bore ear tips. They also provide a great seal. Still the isolation is just average. The included Comply foam tips didn't help much, but again those never worked for me.
Accessories
Well, I didn't receive the original package, but I guess I got everything.
There are 4 pairs of wide-bore ear tips, 1 small, 2 medium and 1 large. These ones are thin and flimsy, but provide an instant seal.
1 pair of bi-flanges
3 pairs of narrow-bore ear tips, 3 sizes, which are thicker and stiffer than the wide ones.
1 pair of comply foam (in gray color)
A shirt clip
And finally, the best, the carry case. It's just great! Not a round clamshell as the one that came with the B2, but a rectangular one.
Sound
The M5 are very warm. The bass is strong and powerful without sounding muddy at all, controlled and detailed. The sub-bass can get deep, but the most noticeable is the mid-bass, big and surrounding. One thing that must be mentioned is that there's the mid/up bass punch (or ´hump´) which you either `love it or hate it´.
As expected there's some midrange bleed which adds weight to the lower mids. Vocals are a bit recessed and overshadowed by the lower end. Male vocals sound chesty and less effortless. But overall, very detailed, for this price.
As for the upper frequencies, it's not the M5 strength as the lows, but for a bassy earphone it's more than enough.
Soundstage is wide due to the bit recessed mids, and instrument separation pretty good, while still lacking air.
All in all, for the sub $50 price it's a great buy. It is well compared to the Xears TD III and Hisound PoPo, if not better, and definitely better built. I wish I had the M4 to compare, though.
