This is a review of Brainwavz R3 dual driver headphones. BRAINWAVZ R3 - an updated version of R3 model originally released about 8-9 months ago.
Usually when I look for in-ear headphones I try to stay away from oddly shaped "objects" that will affect the fitment and create discomfort. I'm more used to a traditional cylindrical shape design with a wire down config or a fancier bean shape design with a wire up behind the ear fitment. When I was offered an opportunity to review Brainwavz dual dynamic driver R3 headphones and looked through some of the pictures, I was intrigued by their shape because I wasn't sure if it could fit my ears. Shaped like something you put on a X-mas tree, these actually contain two drivers in a very unique configuration facing each other inside of an acoustic chamber resembling a shape of a scaled down soda bottle. Let's see what I found.
Very consistent with my previous review of Brainwavz S5, I can confirm this company takes a lot of pride in their products and in showcasing of their design details. They were definitely very proud of the unique shape of these headphones and decided to have a clear display from both sides of the box to show the actual earpieces without a need for pictures. You even get a detailed design description with a diagram of how drivers are placed inside of the chamber, a comprehensive list of accessories, and all the specifications. Among included accessories you get two sets of S/M/L single flange silicon eartips, a pair of bi-flange eartips, a pair of triple-flange eartips, a pair of genuine Comply Foam eartips, 1/4" adapter, and their premium headphone case. I noticed that airplane adapter is no longer included and in my opinion not really necessary.
When it comes to R3 headphones itself, they will definitely going to stand out from the crowd, though you will have to be a judge if it's going to be in a positive or a negative way. R3 wires have a very thick shielding which is great for durability purpose, but not so great when you have to wrap and to store the headphones. Luckily, Brainwavz included their premium in-ear headphone case which is roomy enough to fit these in. Starting with 3.5mm plug, you have a gold plated 270deg connector with a nice strain relief. Going up the cable, you have a heavy duty y-splitter with another set of very durable strain relieves on each side of the wire connection. There is also a chin slider (cable cinch), but due to a friction with a thick cable shielding I had a little bit of hard time keeping it sliding evenly and ended up pulling one or the other cable to even it out. Unfortunately, a cinch in this setup was a must have option for me. Original R3 had a rather long memory wire that received a lot of criticism; I have seen pictures and it was definitely too long. To mitigate this problem, updated R3 design replaced memory wire with just a thinner and more flexible shielding joint to the original thicker shielding. The new shielding piece doesn't have any memory wire, and I guess the idea is that it will stay behind the ears weighted down by the cable. In my case, I had to raise chin slider to keep the wires together and still felt it being a little bit loose behind my ears. Not sure if Brainwavz going to have another update or a similar cable will be used in a future releases, but I suggest to bring back memory wire and to keep it as short as behind-the-ear piece used right now.
Now, this brings us to headphones themselves. It took me a few minutes to figure out what is the best way to put these in, until I realized I have to slide them in a little bit angled. I was actually surprised these went in smoothly and stayed in without a problem using the largest included silicone tips. The seal was not bad, and I actually felt better than average sound isolation. The bottom of R3 vertically aligned shells were actually resting inside of my ear opening. I think that helped with an extra support, so YMMV if you have larger or smaller ears where this could be a problem. All metal shell design was smooth and felt very solid. Closer examination revealed a vertical groove with 2 hidden wires, assuming connection between the top and the bottom drivers since you can't have wires running inside of the acoustic chamber. That could be a little bit of a concern if you are planning to use these headphones a lot outdoors, especially in high humidity.
So how do these sound? Overall R3 headphones have a nicely balanced smooth laid back sound signature. I was actually very impressed with a separation of lows and mids/treble, and it kind of reminded me of dual chamber headphone designs I tested in the past. Low frequency had a good extension down to sub-bass (though you will need a good seal to appreciate that), and mid-bass was not as aggressive, a little slower in attack and sounded somewhat hollow, but still clear. Upper mids were clear, but not too bright which took away some details. The same with treble where I actually felt the roll off was a bit earlier than I expected. All this adds up to a smooth musical sound characteristics which is good for extended listening period without ear fatigue. If you are looking for a faster, brighter, and more detailed sound - these will not suite you. A big surprise was a wide soundstage, both in width and in depth. Another observation, because of the smooth warm sound signature, I felt my lower quality mp3s sounded not as good, so R3 is not very forgiving when it comes to lower quality music compression.
Overall, there is no doubt these are very unique in-ear headphones, both in the way how they look and driver configuration arrangement/design. You will definitely going to make a statement wearing these outside, and I'm sure some people will come up asking you about it. They have a specific sound signature which might not be everyone's cup of tea, but others will find it unique and desirable. Also, comfort of wearing might be an issue for some since I don't see R3 having a truly universal fitment. Personally, I'm still flip-flopping if I like them or not because I think the design and fitment is very polarizing. But with all that, you can't take away how well these headphones are built, the amount of included accessories, and a great sound quality relative to their sound signature. So if you are up for an adventure, you gotta check them out!
Here are the pictures.
Usually when I look for in-ear headphones I try to stay away from oddly shaped "objects" that will affect the fitment and create discomfort. I'm more used to a traditional cylindrical shape design with a wire down config or a fancier bean shape design with a wire up behind the ear fitment. When I was offered an opportunity to review Brainwavz dual dynamic driver R3 headphones and looked through some of the pictures, I was intrigued by their shape because I wasn't sure if it could fit my ears. Shaped like something you put on a X-mas tree, these actually contain two drivers in a very unique configuration facing each other inside of an acoustic chamber resembling a shape of a scaled down soda bottle. Let's see what I found.
Very consistent with my previous review of Brainwavz S5, I can confirm this company takes a lot of pride in their products and in showcasing of their design details. They were definitely very proud of the unique shape of these headphones and decided to have a clear display from both sides of the box to show the actual earpieces without a need for pictures. You even get a detailed design description with a diagram of how drivers are placed inside of the chamber, a comprehensive list of accessories, and all the specifications. Among included accessories you get two sets of S/M/L single flange silicon eartips, a pair of bi-flange eartips, a pair of triple-flange eartips, a pair of genuine Comply Foam eartips, 1/4" adapter, and their premium headphone case. I noticed that airplane adapter is no longer included and in my opinion not really necessary.
When it comes to R3 headphones itself, they will definitely going to stand out from the crowd, though you will have to be a judge if it's going to be in a positive or a negative way. R3 wires have a very thick shielding which is great for durability purpose, but not so great when you have to wrap and to store the headphones. Luckily, Brainwavz included their premium in-ear headphone case which is roomy enough to fit these in. Starting with 3.5mm plug, you have a gold plated 270deg connector with a nice strain relief. Going up the cable, you have a heavy duty y-splitter with another set of very durable strain relieves on each side of the wire connection. There is also a chin slider (cable cinch), but due to a friction with a thick cable shielding I had a little bit of hard time keeping it sliding evenly and ended up pulling one or the other cable to even it out. Unfortunately, a cinch in this setup was a must have option for me. Original R3 had a rather long memory wire that received a lot of criticism; I have seen pictures and it was definitely too long. To mitigate this problem, updated R3 design replaced memory wire with just a thinner and more flexible shielding joint to the original thicker shielding. The new shielding piece doesn't have any memory wire, and I guess the idea is that it will stay behind the ears weighted down by the cable. In my case, I had to raise chin slider to keep the wires together and still felt it being a little bit loose behind my ears. Not sure if Brainwavz going to have another update or a similar cable will be used in a future releases, but I suggest to bring back memory wire and to keep it as short as behind-the-ear piece used right now.
Now, this brings us to headphones themselves. It took me a few minutes to figure out what is the best way to put these in, until I realized I have to slide them in a little bit angled. I was actually surprised these went in smoothly and stayed in without a problem using the largest included silicone tips. The seal was not bad, and I actually felt better than average sound isolation. The bottom of R3 vertically aligned shells were actually resting inside of my ear opening. I think that helped with an extra support, so YMMV if you have larger or smaller ears where this could be a problem. All metal shell design was smooth and felt very solid. Closer examination revealed a vertical groove with 2 hidden wires, assuming connection between the top and the bottom drivers since you can't have wires running inside of the acoustic chamber. That could be a little bit of a concern if you are planning to use these headphones a lot outdoors, especially in high humidity.
So how do these sound? Overall R3 headphones have a nicely balanced smooth laid back sound signature. I was actually very impressed with a separation of lows and mids/treble, and it kind of reminded me of dual chamber headphone designs I tested in the past. Low frequency had a good extension down to sub-bass (though you will need a good seal to appreciate that), and mid-bass was not as aggressive, a little slower in attack and sounded somewhat hollow, but still clear. Upper mids were clear, but not too bright which took away some details. The same with treble where I actually felt the roll off was a bit earlier than I expected. All this adds up to a smooth musical sound characteristics which is good for extended listening period without ear fatigue. If you are looking for a faster, brighter, and more detailed sound - these will not suite you. A big surprise was a wide soundstage, both in width and in depth. Another observation, because of the smooth warm sound signature, I felt my lower quality mp3s sounded not as good, so R3 is not very forgiving when it comes to lower quality music compression.
Overall, there is no doubt these are very unique in-ear headphones, both in the way how they look and driver configuration arrangement/design. You will definitely going to make a statement wearing these outside, and I'm sure some people will come up asking you about it. They have a specific sound signature which might not be everyone's cup of tea, but others will find it unique and desirable. Also, comfort of wearing might be an issue for some since I don't see R3 having a truly universal fitment. Personally, I'm still flip-flopping if I like them or not because I think the design and fitment is very polarizing. But with all that, you can't take away how well these headphones are built, the amount of included accessories, and a great sound quality relative to their sound signature. So if you are up for an adventure, you gotta check them out!
Here are the pictures.
