[BadhairCut]

Quick review of the R1's.
 
Just returned my pair of R1's. I was back and forth between purchasing the R1's and the M5's. Both seemed like good bang-for-your-buck IEM's with a neutral (v shaped) sound signature, but the intrigue of dual drivers broke the tie and I used the R1's for a week before returning them.
 
I read many posts on this thread and expected to love them or hate them, but I found them to be pretty good (but not spectacular) IEM's. I already have a pair of cheap $20 Yamaha IEM's, and unfortunately they are quite comparable. I didn't hear the benefit of the dual drivers because no part of the sound spectrum really stood out to me as being better than the others. The highs, mids, and lows were ok.
 
I would rather have IEM's that I didn't have to wrap around my ear for this level of sound quality. It was difficult to get a good seal this way in the beginning and it just added to my frustration as I tried all the earbuds multiple times.
 
What I'm guilty of is expecting a $40 pair of IEM's to sound twice their cost, which they did not.

 

[egosumlux]

My GR04 pro (50 Ohms version with the GR07 removable filters and plenty of tips) costed me about USD 80  in the same local store in Chile www.mediaplayer.cl where I got my Brainwavz R1 which costs about USD 68 so they are not so close. In the same store the M3 is sold at USD 85. So it is correct that the Gr04 pro is almost as expensive as the M3.

 

[mattmatt]

sorry for a really delayed reply. thanks for the curiosity about my pair. HAHA here
 
i used mmcx connectors found in shure iems, you can source them in different online stores

 


first, i opened them with a cutter. it's really easy, no pain in opening them. I cut down the cable in a length where i leave the right amount of wire to solder the mmcx.

soldered the mmcx 

here you go

put the cover and re enforce it with epoxy clay for steel. the one you knead and shape it the way you like. the total cost will not exceed 15usd i guess. not sure with the currency conversion I hope i don't violate any rules in posting my method

 

[PsychicPickle]

Quote:

 
i used mmcx connectors found in shure iems, you can source them in different online stores

Thank you for the pics/comments, nicely (& bravely) done!
 
I'm also curious about any changes in the sound, especially since the sites on which I found the connectors list them as having a 50Ω impedance, which seems somewhat improbable, considering the other IEMs I've seen that use mmcx connectors don't have have an impedance that high. And what did you use for your cable?

 

[mattmatt]

To be honest, I haven't heard subtle changes in the sound hahaha, switching cables maybe would make a little difference i guess. I used Nobelle Japan Mic cable

 

[soundsignal]

hi guys, 
 
i have been using this iem 3+ months and i see today the part that whic cable is connected to black part of iem is started to cut because of friction. so i  think that my earphones cannot survive more than one month. i want to ask :
 
am i the only one who faced with this problem?
when it gets broken, if i talk with the customer service, how can their react? can they send replacement or they can say its your fault.
 
sorry for my poor english and thanks for help

 

[C0rnholio]

Just got the R1 myself about 1 hour ago, and although it's never a good idea to get an opinion this fast I will post my first impressions. Please pardon the non-audiophile terms

First off the package is impressive, the case is superb and OMG - soooo many earbuds. The build quality on the IEMs is not bad at all.

Ok quickly moving to the sound impressions.

Overall they sound a bit too dark to be honest. Not much though but dark. As everybody noticed, the mids are recessed ... very recessed but also I have a problem with the highs. Although they are there, the sound is a bid muddy, is not crisp/sharp. Is not something drastic but they require quite a bit of highs adjustment in the EQ in Foobar. The bass is there, and quite obvious. I like bass, I am not a bass-head but on my Fiio E10 I keep the BASS ON all the time. The R1 are the first headphones/IEMs that forced me to take it off However the BASS is their main thing. Whoever says they don't have enough, should get their ears checked.

I tried them on the Fiio E10 and also my iPhone 4. Same impression, a bit dark, pretty big on BASS but lack on the mids and also the highs don't feel clear and crisp. Sure if I pump up a bit on the 10-20Khz in the EQ - they start to come to life. As I said I have only used them for about 1 hour, but I doubt the sound will change very much with the burn-in.

I compared them to my old Brainwavz ProAlphas - and although just by looking at the specs, the R1 would have to be a much higher-end IEM - but the price is pretty much the same on them, around $45 - although the ProAlphas are not available anymore . First off ... the fit is just perfect ( for my ears ) with the stock buds. I haven't played a lot with the rest, just tried the ceramic ones ... couldn't get a decent isolation and returned to stock which are perfect for me. Sound wise, the ProAlphas sound a bit sharper and crispy on the high end, have a much more present voice but they lack the bass and also separation and stage. The R1 is visibly better in these regards.

Although I am not all that crazy about the mids, and also the highs are just not where I'd want them, giving the Bass quality, build quality, package and overall sound airness, soundstage and separation - I consider them to be better than the ProAlphas. And I can always use a EQ to get some more highs in there... so no biggie. You can't get airness, and separation with an EQ - so the R1 is a better IEM although far from being perfect.

Then again, I have them for about 1 hour - usually takes a lot more for me to make  a fair head2head between 2 headphones. I really hope, with burn-in - the highs would rise up a bit but I strongly doubt there will be a noticeable difference.

Later Edit - also a very annoying problem - when I press on the IEMs I get a cracking noise from the driver on the left one. I know it's a issue a lot of you noticed. The ProAlphas have it but I have to press really hard to become noticeable, the R1 just take a bit of pressing and its there. Any idea if this would do any damage in time ? Are there any R1 out there without this problem ?

 

[fwepable]

Can these IEM's be worn down?

 

[kahaluu]

You can wear them down, but you might experience some discomfort. They're made to be worn over the ears.  

 

[skyler]

Quote:

You can wear them down, but you might experience some discomfort. They're made to be worn over the ears.  

 
Especially with the newer versions, which have memory wire.

 

[krisjackson86]

I am looking at the Proalpha and the R1 and there are so many different reviews every where and I am needing help to figure out which ones would be better fit me. I listen a lilttle bit of everthing and I really like live music. I also play the bass in a band and use IEM on stage for my monitors and I am just trying to figure out what would be the better chose. I use Sennheiser CX 300 II right now. Just looking for a new sound. Thanks.

 

[marko93101]

Well mine just bit the dust, had them since the very first batch. Brainwavz said to ship them back, but cost of postage could be too high. Such a shame ;__;

 

[Lifted Andreas]

Well mine just bit the dust, had them since the very first batch. Brainwavz said to ship them back, but cost of postage could be too high. Such a shame ;__;

They said the same to me about the Beta's, I was like what's the point... I'd pay more for shipping than I paid for the actual earphones lol

 

[BenF]

Quote:

Well mine just bit the dust, had them since the very first batch. Brainwavz said to ship them back, but cost of postage could be too high. Such a shame ;__;

They used to ask for a photo of destroyed earphones before sending a replacement...
Sorry to hear they changed that policy.

 

[marko93101]

They used to ask for a photo of destroyed earphones before sending a replacement...
Sorry to hear they changed that policy.

I'm a little disappointed because I've read of that method to be asked then to ship them back. Will email and see of its possible to do it that way