Sound performance
My main sources were: FiiO M3 Pro / NuPrime Hi-mDAC / ddHiFi TC35i. Trusted sources from trusted brands that I used extensively for the past months.
As usual, files were played from either Qobuz / Spotify or my own music library. Some tracks will be highlighted, just so you can try them home too!
Overall signature
“Deceptively cheap”
Frankly, I didn’t expect much from the Kinera BD005 Pro, and the IEM simply took me by surprise. If nice to look at, those ears are also very pleasant to listen to. The sounds is clear, with clean mids, powerful lows, and pure highs. There are better ones of course, but none able to output this level of performance at such a low price.
I listened to ambient tracks like In Mexico from Trashlagoon, Parra For Cuva, or Looped from Kiasmos, and each time, the BD005 Pro gave a very cohesive sound, with a wide soundstage and excellent layering. Something you’d never expect for a 1BA/1DD IEM.
Kinera’s BD005 Pro doesn’t reach deep into the sub-bass. Thankfully, low mids are pretty powerful, and the overall result remains deeply addictive, the IEM displaying a very low level of distortion even at high volume.
Driven by NuPrime’s Hi-mDAC, the result is particularly impressive, with excellent articulation, fast transients, and the right amount of force to bring life onto every track. On the same note, the dynamic level is remarkable and I’ve been able to easily retrieve small nuances in my test-track, even at low volume.
Again, for the price, it’s nothing short of amazing to get so much sound, for so little money. Listening to Speaking of the End from Lapsley, was the “coup de grâce”, and if I could still hear a few tonal inaccuracies, that song erased the few drawbacks I could object with.
Out of curiosity, I plugged the Kinera BD005 Pro into my FiiO M15, so I could see what a TOTL DAP could push out of the IEM. If lows appeared tighter and deeper, the overall signature remained the same, and the most obvious difference appeared to be the soundstage, now twice as wide than the Eagle or Hi-mDAC. Yet, if I had to choose one DAP for this IEM, this would be the M3 Pro. Not only does it match Kinera’s in terms of price, but it also does so sonically.
Tonality
Highs: good separation and clean trebles. The Kinera BD005 Pro is mostly V-Shaped, and but you won’t feel any harshness, nor fatigue over long listening. Everything sounds sharp and fast, even with a small DAP like the FiiO M3 Pro.
Good test-track: Doctor Doctor – Just Jack
Mediums: spaciousness but slightly recessed. The sound stage is surprisingly vast, even if the voices seemed a bit laid-back. Thankfully dynamic is excellent, and the right amount of warmth gives outstanding results.
Good test-track: Bassicaly – Acoustic – Tei Shi
Bass: strong low-mids. Bass is there, well-defined, impactful and it never takes over the mids and highs. You don’t get the same rumble heard with ears like the AudioSensed DT200, but it’s the kind of sound that grows on you, or so it did on me.
Good test-track : Peur des filles – L’impératrice
Conclusion
The Kinera BD005 Pro is a very, very, pleasant surprise.
Build quality is superb, comfort is excellent and, If I didn’t expect much from those ears at first, I became immediately hooked the moment I put them in my ears. The BD005 Pro sounds and feels like a mid-tier IEM – clean mids, sharp highs, good bass – for a quarter of the price.
If you’re a newcomer to the audiophile world, just seeking a good IEM to follows you on the go, or just on a tight budget, the Kinera BD005 Pro should be on top of your list. It’s as good as it’s cheap, and that says it all.
