Preamble
Brainwavz is a young and dynamic company established in Honk Kong since 2008. From a couple of years, they have been international distributors. Their main products are earphones, headphones and portable amps.
A mistake you should avoid is judging the electromagnetic transducers as soon as you have unpacked them. Terrible mistake! The Brainwavz HM5 have started to perform musically only after twenty hours of run-in, but I was able to judge them only after forty hours. Hence, the run-in is paramount!
Description of the product
We are talking of on-ear headphones, 64-ohm impedance and a very good look. Ergonomically, the Brainwavz HM5 are satisfying: light, easy to wear and positioning, comfortable also for “big heads”! The pressure is firm but not annoying, without any sense of oppression. The pads are in leatherette, soft and well refined. There are two spares in the package. The detachable cable is in double length, 1,3 and 3 m, so to better adapt to your needs of portability. To 3,5 mm jacks assure a quick switch. The connectors are of good quality. The weight, cable excluded, is 280 grams.
The case is nice and comfy. Hard-textured so to avoid any accidental crushing, with a zipped pouch for the accessories.
The sound
The Brainwavz HM5 headphones need a long run-in, as I said before. It is fundamental for judging.
The first thing I want to stress is the great acoustic isolation towards the outside. At high volume if the pads adhere, also without a strong pressure, the sound is low. Very useful, though, if you do not want to disturb the person at your side.
The general tone is what complies with the use stated by the manufacturer: studio monitor headphones with a linear response and without being euphonic as many “fashionable” headphones do. Suitable for IPods, IPhones, IPads, and MP3 players.
The driving is not difficult. With few milliwatts they can reach good sound pressures but, as always, if matched to an amp that has no problem of current, things improve.
The musical stage is a bit “closed”, a feature that is typical of this kind of headphones. This is something that lowers the listening pleasure, although, at the same time, it allows to focus on the details.
The extremes of the low and high ranges are well reproduced, although a bit limited from the linear character of the frequency response. The vocals, male and female, are well focused. However, they do not inspire much emotion and sometimes are “boxed”.
The level of sound pressure without distortion is quite high, I must say.
Musical genres
Thanks to the characteristics of linearity, the Brainwavz HM5 headphones do not seem having particular preferences of musical genre. They “behave” well with classic, rock and acoustic music.
Conclusions
Interesting headphones, mostly for ergonomics, aesthetic and accessories. The price is quite competitive, around one hundred euro. The sound at first is not exciting, but you have to take into account, as I said, their elective use, that is "studio monitor".
Official technical specifications:
Drivers: dynamic, 42mm
Rated impedance: 64ohm
Frequency range: 10Hz-26,5kHz
Sensitivity: 105dB @ 1mW
Rated input power: 100mW
Cable: 1,3 and 3m, detachable
Plug: 3,5mm gold plated
Official Italian dealer: to Brainwavz website
Official current price in Italy: 100.00 EUR
International sales channel: Amazon
Associated equipment: to Mauro Cittadini’s system
