Disclaimer: The Brainwavz M100 universal IEM was sent to us free of charge in exchange for our honest opinion about their latest M100 inear. It does not need to be returned and Brainvavz is no site advertiser at this time.
Intro
Happy 2017 everybody! First, I want to apologize to Headfonia, and especially to Brainwavz for the delay in this review. I have one of those jobs that becomes an absolute nightmare from Thanksgiving to early January. I barely wrote a word during that period, and, as a result, the review is late. Brainwavz in particular was very understanding to my plight. Although this is my first exposure to Brainwavz, we have covered them before here on Headfonia. L was quite taken with the Brainwavz M2, in particular but we’ve reviewed several of their units like the Hooka and the Brainwavz S5. We also received a sample of their latest B200 double BA driver IEM and that review will be up over the next weeks. Now, let’s more forward to the topic of this review, Brainwavz and their latest M100.
Brainwavz
Brainwavz provides high-end earphones specifically designed for high-quality sound and tailor-made to provide the user with a solution that can be used across a wide range of audio genres and styles. Brainwavz believes in the idea that sound is a deeply personal experience, and strives to provide users with earphones that match their personal inclinations, to inspire with intensity. At Brainwavz we have a simple mission, to produce innovative, high quality audio products with a dedicated focus on high-end sound. We give real users real sound quality.
Goodies
Let’s see what goodies come inside the box, shall we? Well, first we find the Brainwavz M100 earphone, but that was kind of a given, and this review would have been rather short if that was missing. Moving past that is a very nice hard shell case. I think the red and black looks very spiffy. They also gift us with 7 different sizes of silicone tips and one pair of comply t-400 isolation tips, so no matter your ear’s preference, you are bound to find a pair of tips to suit your fancy. Also packed inside the case is a shirt clip and strip of Velcro for the cable should you want one. All-in-all, for the retail price of €83 / $89.50, that is a really solid accessories package. Now, on to the M100 itself.
Accessories:
- Earphone Hard case
- 6 sets of Silicone Ear Tips (S M L)
- 1 set of Comply Foam Tips T-400
- 1 Shirt Clip
- Velcro Cable Tie
- Instruction Manual & Warranty Card (24 month warranty)
Brainwavz M100
Brainwavz say that the M100 is made out of aircraft grade metal and the body of the unit feels solid enough where I don’t doubt it. It is also feels pretty light (5 ounces) and I found it to sit comfortably in my ear. I never had an issue getting a good seal, but I know that is a personal thing. Still, with all of the tips, I am betting you can find something to work for you. All metal housing in an in-ear earphone design with special finish to give a smooth, slick feel. Designed to be noise isolating, passively blocking most outside ambient sound.
The cable also feels strong. Brainwavz opted for a twisted cable design for less tangle and easy wearing. The cables are made with high purity OFC copper wiring at its core. I don’t have any issues with the cord tangling, or crazy microphonics. There is a 3-button microphone and remote/volume control built into the cable for use with iPhone and Android. Connected to my iPad, it worked like gangbusters (I am assuming gangbusters were very successful at what they did). For those of you looking to take this earphone on the go, and that should be the primary audience (see below), this should have all your bases covered.
The Brainwavz M100, according to Brainwavz, has special crafted drivers with high purity copper and a feather light diaphragm. In short, this feels like an IEM that is built to last. It comes with a 2 year warranty, but I would doubt you will be invoking it based on what I see here.
Before we move onto the sound, there is one issue I have to mention. While I had no issues connecting this to my iPad, computer, or any other amp, DAC/amp in my possession, it had a strange issue with my sublime sounding Cayin N6. When the M100 and N6 were connected, it would automatically pause the track I was trying to listen to, and any time I un-paused the music, it would pause again. I don’t have this issue with any other headphones on the N6, and the M100 didn’t do this with anything else, so maybe they are just bad bedfellows. I talked to Brainwavz about it, and they had not heard of this issue before. They thought this issue might be due to “our Mic being able to auto detect Android or iOS devices”. They also told me to make sure I made a note of it in my review, which I appreciate. I like a company that operates honestly. Just make sure you give the M100 a good listen on your player when you buy to make my issue is just a one off anomaly.
The Brainwavz M100 specs are as follows:
- Drivers : Dynamic, 8 mm
- Rated Impedance : 32 Ω
- Frequency Range : 12 Hz ~ 22 kHz
- Sensitivity : 110 dB @ 1 mW
- Plug : 3.5 mm, Gold-Plated
- Cable : Braided 1.3 m OFC Copper
- Remote & Mic: 3 Button, Apple & most Android phones compatible
The part on Sound can be found on Page 2, right after the jump below or the click HERE
Jay Sanders
That was a good read. Thank you for sharing this article, it was helpful. It’s really important to select a right pair of earphones that are cheap and good in quality. I have a colleague who is always busy listening music and is a geek, he always talks about the electronics that excite him. He talks about the affordable noise isolating earphones which are good in quality that he recently got from http://www.soundmagic.us/ for the love of his music and always appreciates them. He is really happy using them.
JeroenW
I’ve also had a pair of these for review. What I noticed was muddy sound from the lows all the way to the mid range.
Fit is difficult because these things are long and not very light.
Build quality.. these feel good but I had one of the buds actually split on me.