I’m pretty excited to do Brainwavz B400 review :)? This little gem price seems to be in a sweet price bracket and technically features 4 Balanced Armature Drivers. B400 has 5 exciting colors for you to choose from Frosty, Aqua, Black, Cosmic and Crimson.
Brainwavz B400 uses a 4 Driver system, with each driver focused on its?s own specific range of the sound spectrum. Each B400 is handcrafted in-house by Brainwavz from components produced in the USA and Europe. you can read more about it at their website www.brainwavzaudio.com
B400 has a wide frequency range from 10Hz – 40 kHz. It’s an easy to drive earphone (even with your mobile phone) with 30 Ohms impedance. When I received B400 and placed it under my hand, the B400 with an aqua color does shine like a topaz and really looks like a little gem in my hand.
Brainwavz B400 Unboxing
The box comes with a professional look, it’s clean and simple. I believe that Brainwaz does take pride in the quality of their product with a written 24 months warranty on the front page!
The unboxing experience feels similar to Westone product. it has a grey box with a magnetic opening mechanism with a sturdy material. Once you open it up, you’ll see their mission statement
At Brainwavz we have a simple mission, to produce innovative, high-quality audio products with a dedicated focus on high-end sound. Our strength, success and product range is built on the unique relationship with our customers. A relationship that has produced a simple and obvious result, we give real users real sound quality.
The hard case is placed between a colorful exploding background, I like it, it does fit very well and it enhances the experience.
Again, there’s a 24 months warranty logo, this really gives confidence when buying B400.? $200 for quad drivers is really affordable for me, but for newcomers in the audio world, it can look very expensive and the 2 years warranty does give extra physiological assurance.
What’s inside the box?
- The little gem (Aqua color)
- MMCX 3.5mm cable with In-Line Microphone and Remote.
- MMCX 3.5mm Cable
- Hard case
- 6x Sets of Silicone Ear Tips (S M L)
- Set of Comply? Foam Tips T-100
- Shirt Clip
- Velcro Cable Tie
- 2x Cleaning wipe
- Instruction Manual & Warranty Card (24 month warranty)
Brainwavz B400 Accessories
B400 Cable
B400 provides 2 cables, MMCX 3.5mm cable with In-Line Microphone and Remote and MMCX 3.5mm Cable. This is generous! two cables, unlikely you’ll swap the cable from time to time, it’s good to have an extra cable for backup.
the 3.5mm cable with In-Line Microphone provides a basic function to answer, end or reject a call. the control located at the right side, near the right earphone. it’s light and I don’t feel that the cable is heavier on the right side.
The 3 buttons have a volume and music control. it’s working perfectly well with the iPhone audio dongle/adapter.
The 3.5mm cable with In-Line Microphone has a metal Y splitter and straight 3.5mm jack.
The normal MMCX 3.5mm cable has a different Y splitter compared to the in-line microphone cable. the termination is also an L shaped (at 45 degrees) instead of straight.
Apart from the small difference, both cable has similar material. twisted cable with a matte feeling plastic.
I don’t hear any difference in term of sound between both cables. I feel that the quality of the cable could be further improved (both the material and the sound). For the material, I feel that the connector plastic is not really well made. I did switch the cable for testing (with four braids copper wire) and it does sound better.
From their website, it seems that they have a better cable. listed under “optional cable upgrade” – both 2.5 mm termination and Frosty / Onxy stereo cable. From the description: The Brainwavz Frosty braided premium cable has been made with high purity OFC copper cabling which has been designed to help preserve the purity of your audio signal from its source.
I prefer that I’ve got one great quality cable instead of two at the end of the day. perhaps Brainwavz could consider putting this option.
B400 Tips
The ear tips are spot on for me, the medium size provides a good seal. the material feels soft and doesn’t irritate my ear even after hours of usage.
Each size comes with two pair (L, M and S) so total you’ve 6 pairs of tips.
The Comply T-100 is great, it has the best seal as expected. Too bad that it only comes with one size. inserting the Comply to the nozzle is a little bit difficult, I was afraid that I will break the nozzle during the process.
B400 Hard Case
This hard case is much better when you see it directly. it is quite sturdy and superior quality compared to those case provided by budget earphone.
It’s not really hard, it’s semi-hard I would say (hard will be plastic) with a dual zipper. it’s slim and long with interior mesh pockets to put your extra tips. Because of the slim casing, I need to adjust on how I warp the cables, normally I would warp it in a small circle. (there’s some guide in the manual they’ve one section on how to warp the earphone with your hand).
Overall the accessories have a great value: a Comply tips, 2 MMXC cables, and usable hard case. As I mentioned above, my preference would be a higher quality of cable included and I don’t mind if this means that I would get only one cable instead of two. For your information Brainwavz giving you the option to add a better cable (additional $30) when you purchase B400 from their official website.
B400 Build and Design.
The B400 in Aqua color does look like Shure 215, but B400 has a slimmer profile than Shure. The frosty transparent design is nice, you can see how the 4 drivers are placed.
B400 has a smooth surface even though it looks like it has a frosty texture. there are no sharp edges and it has a beautiful contour. Brainwavz mentioned that the main shells are printed using state-of-the-art liquid Resin 3D printers, enabling a shape not possible by normal manufacturing methods.
The comfort is great, it shaped pretty well with a slim profile. it’s light even though it has quad drivers on each side and it’s comfortable for prolonged usage. I easily get a good seal as well with B400, even with the stock tips.
Spatial
soundstage both in width and hight extend slightly above average. listening to Limehouse Blues – Arne Domnerus give the sense of space but doesn’t really give you the wow feeling.
Bass
the Bass is surprisingly good for a full BA, it doesn’t have the same impact as a dynamic driver but it still goes deep. Listening to Fantasy – the XX, you’ll find that BA400 deliver quite a punchy and tight bass starting at 1:20 not only that but the bass has a good extension and texture.
Listening to Orinoco Flow – Enya, once again proofing that the low bass is well defined, clean and natural.
Mid
Vocals sound natural, with a forward presentation. Say Something – a great big world feat Christina Aguilera, Lucky – Jason Mraz, Believer – Imagine Dragons reveal a good vocal presentation and balanced tonal.
one thing that I’m surprised is the separation and layering, it’s really good. you can hear the details for every musical instrumental pretty clear with a clear separation with the vocal. there’s a couple of time when hearing the same old song I’m questioning myself why I never heard piano (or other instruments) so clear before. Listen to We Will Rock, the stomping, clapping and the guitar and you’ll understand.
Treble
I found the treble is not that prominent and lack of the brightness sometimes. Do it again – Steely Dan, the cymbal should be more prominent. Perhaps this because it has more driver towards the mid (and… I’m right, after confirming with Brainzwaz directly, the configuration of the BA is one bass, two mid and one treble)
Because of the well-controlled highs, sibilance is undetected even at prone sibilance music like ??????????????? by BENI. Attack and decay are performing pretty well, it has a good momentum while listening to Miles Davis by Concierto de Aranjeuz.
Brainwavz B400 Review Summary
Brainwavz B400 sounds pretty warm, with a forward vocal and outstanding layering. I’m impressed with this little gem Brainwavz B400, it has the right price with an outstanding performance. It’s performing really well in a wide range of music from classical, pop to rock.
The housing has an ergonomic design, light and very comfortable even after long hours of usage. The cable quality could be improved. While i’m pretty happy with the tips, I just wish that it has more variety. The case has a good quality even though I’ve difficulty every time using it because it’s slim.
Brainwavz B400 will be my solid recommendation for now for anyone looking at balanced armature drivers IEM at $200 price bracket.
There’s a Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal for their Brainwavz B400 and other product. please head to their blog post for more information. click here
B400 vs 1More Quad Drivers
1More Quad Drivers is the direct competitor with B400, it has the same amount of drivers and price bracket.
Comfort, B400 wins. I had a slight issue with 1More Quad Drivers because of the big nozzle. With B400 over the ear design and good design, it’s performing better than 1More Quad Drivers.
Sound, overall B400 wins. B400 has much more authority from in the mids and treble. 1More Quad’s bass has more punch to it because of the dynamic driver but B400 is quick and has a better texture. Tonality 1More Quad Drivers is a little bit warmer and the vocal is not as direct as B400.
1More Quad Drives has a great design with a futuristic and professional look. The housing could leave a scratch mark over time even when you use it carefully. 1More Quad Drivers has a beautiful cable (much better than B400) but too bad it’s a non-replaceable cable.
My suggestion, If you need to decide on either one please go and audition both. You may like the bass in 1More and think that the B400 is a little bit too thin. My pick, I’d go with B400.
B400 vs Westone W40
I know, that’s a different price bracket all together but they do have the same quad drivers design.
Westone W40 has a better comfort, more refined and balanced sound. details and soundstage are much better than B400. in terms of separation, B400 could match W40. Accessories are much better than B400.
For all the above you need to fork out another USD 250. that’s a big gap in terms of pricing. One thing that is wrong with Westone W40 is the price.
B400 outperforms its price at USD 199, it’s the sweet spot between the price and performance. In my opinion looking at the diminishing returns W40 perform very poorly on value.
Brainwavz B400 Quad Drivers Earphone
Product Name: Brainwavz B400
Product Description: The Brainwavz B400 professional earbuds use a 4 speaker system in each ear piece, with each driver focused on its own specific range of the sound spectrum, resulting in a true audiophile grade sound. Each B400 is hand crafted in house by Brainwavz from components produced in the USA and Europe.
Price: 199.50
Currency: USD
Availability: InStock
Overall
-
ACCESSORIES - 7.6/10
7.6/10
-
BUILD & QUALITY - 8.5/10
8.5/10
-
BASS - 8.5/10
8.5/10
-
MID - 9/10
9/10
-
TREBLE - 8/10
8/10
-
SOUNDSTAGE & SEPERATION - 8/10
8/10
Summary
Brainwavz B400 sounds pretty warm, with a forward vocal and outstanding layering. I’m impressed with this little gem Brainwavz B400, it has the right price with an outstanding performance. It’s performing really well in a wide range of music from classical, pop to rock.
The housing has an ergonomic design, light and very comfortable even after long hours of usage. The cable quality could be improved. While i’m pretty happy with the tips, I just wish that it has more variety. The case has a good quality even though I’ve difficulty every time using it because it’s slim.
