BQEYZ WIND: Dynamic Velocity
In climatology definition, Wind is a natural phenomena where movement of air across the Earth's surface plays a significant factor in controlling and determining the weather and even climate in a certain region. The reason for the occurrences of different scale wind movement or atmospheric pressure are due to the variable thermal heat on both vertical (poles) and horizontal (equator) parts of earth's surface and also an inertial movement and rotation of earth also known as Coriolis effect. Gusts, squalls, breezes, storms, hurricanes, monsoons and typhoons are connected with the strength and speed of the wind.
After the end of BQEYZ's Season Series as We all know that this was the line-up section for their flagships, They decided to introduce their latest flagship line-up range, The Weather Series. This unit that I have here right now is the first model of its class, The BQEYZ WIND.
The BQEYZ WIND like most of its Season Series predecessors (with the exception of The Autumn) is also a hybrid driver set-up and we also know that BQEYZ are one of the few audio companies that striving to be innovative as possible with their R&D department constantly experimenting and improving some existing audio technology and a new generation of bone conduction driver was their technological achievement from their almost a year long effort on developing this one alone.
BQEYZ WIND has a hybrid driver configuration consisting of a newly-developed 10mm voice coil-type copper bone conduction driver and a dynamic driver of similar size with LCP (Liquid Crystal Polymer) composite diaphragm as its supporting driver to handle other parts of the frequency range. The voice coil-type copper bone conduction driver is quite different from the other bone conduction driver that was implemented on both Winter and Winter Ultra as the previous one is based on a piezoelectric mechanism that is almost similar with typical air conduction process which handles midrange to ultra high frequencies. On the other hand, the newly-developed copper bone conduction which has a vibrating reed made of steel and it was suspended in part of its cavity base shell that truly transmit a low and midrange frequency waves directly to the ear cartilage (yeah, cartilages are soft bone connective tissues after all) then transmit those vibration through the skull and somehow skin to give that immersive and ambient feel. So in principle, this type of bone conduction driver really works like a bone conduction system from other hearing aids with better transmission and material that really benefit the quality of its sound. The supporting LCP dynamic driver has a dense, quite responsive vibration for better clarity, detail retrieval and brighter treble that this driver solely handles some parts of midrange up to the ultra-high frequency.
The dual hybrid drivers were enclosed in a CNC-milled aluminium alloy shell chassis and then it underwent a sandblasting and anodising process to give an even texture and smooth surface. On its faceplate, there are some laser-cut hollow slits that remind me of a Chinese script (it means "Wind" according to BQEYZ's ad). The cavity base part area of the shell is where the bone conduction driver is situated to contact the anti-helix or concha part of our ear with vibrations and also there are vent holes for an outlet of excess air pressure generated from high performance drivers. BQEYZ offers two colour options to choose from, an ultramarine blue and silver grey. Overall, the shell design of the WIND is somewhat a semi-open back one, but surprisingly it has a good sound isolation for that particular type of shell design. Like all BQEYZ sets, it has a 0.78mm 2-pin connector as its interlocking mechanism which is known to be a more stable and proven detachable mechanism.
All BQEYZ flagships were known to have a high quality stock cable and BQEYZ WIND is no exception in that regard. The stock cable of this set is actually a new one as it has bi-colour combination of white and grey. It has 2-core, mono crystalline silver-plated copper wirings that were insulated with PVC coating. It has metal alloy on its termination plug and upon ordering this set, you can choose three types of plugs; 3.5mm SE, 2.5mm Balanced and 4.4mm Balanced. Altogether, the stock cable is soft, well-balanced on its texture and yet durable for long term usage.
Also, another cable from BQEYZ that I will insert here and it's a variant of their LIME/RIME cable. This RIME cable has 4-core strands of crystalline silver-plated copper filled with an insulation layer which makes it supple, more flexible and quite durable too. It also noted that the RIME cable is a modular one where you can interchange its termination plug based on the availability of the output jack(s) that your device has. There are three included termination plugs to choose from and they are gold-plated to ensure better conductivity, these are 3.5mm SE, 2.5mm balanced and 4.4mm balanced.
As for fitting and comfort, BQEYZ WIND shells appear to be lightweight for its all-metal alloy construction that I can wear it into my lugholes for a long listening session. Once again, I will mention regarding its semi-open back design, The WIND was able to block some external noises from the outside environs as I usually do some brisk walking daily.
For its product packaging; BQEYZ is one of the audio companies that present their product presentation in a very organised and appealing as it includes many accessories in particular to be utilised.
Here are the contents inside of BQEYZ WIND:
■ Pair of BQEYZ WIND IEMs.
■ Stock cable.
■ a zippered PU-leathered IEM case.
■ Three (3) pairs of vocal/reference ear tips in different standard sizes.
■ Three (3) pairs of balanced ear tips in different standard sizes.
■ Three (3) pairs of bass/atmospheric ear tips in different standard sizes.
■ Pair of memory foam eartips
■ Ear tips plate.
■ Cleaning tool.
■ Paperworks like instruction manual, Q.C. stub and warranty card.
On required power efficiency, BQEYZ WIND can be driven decently with sufficient power output from multimedia devices like smartphones, laptop and tablet. But should be noted that this set will definitely scale well on sources with medium and high gain mode output as it will truly show its full potential to have a full and vivid sound quality.
As for tonal profile, It is quite a norm that almost all BQEYZ flaghip models are known to have a balanced-neutral tuning on them but this time, they take another variety of a neutral sound. BQEYZ WIND has a warmish-neutral sound signature as it has more emphasis on both low and midrange frequencies with a tad boost on the upper midrange up to presence part and the rest are neutral and linear presentation on high frequencies. Some listeners might perceive the BQEYZ WIND as an L-shaped, bass boost neutral sound.
LOWS/BASS:
With the bone conduction that handles the low frequencies, it gives a different experience on listeners on how BC (Bone Conduction) bass would sound like. The bass response of The WIND is quite tactile, punchy with consistent rumble on its sub bass presence to give that ambience-like dynamic vibe within my aural sense that few sets with BC drivers able to deliver it. I'm quite familiar on this kind of experience as I was able to to test some TOTL sets with almost similar tech namely the "Kinetic Bass" of some Fir Audio sets, the Weapon X Bone Conduction technology of Empire Ears Legend Evo and the much vaunted bone conduction driver technology on some Unique Melody sets like from MEST II & III and Mason Fu Sang.
As I mentioned a while ago about the quality of its sub bass, it has a good depth and noticeable reverberations that I perceived it clearly from sub-bass focus tracks with low tone bass guitars, octabasses, synthesisers and drum machines. Meanwhile, on mid bass, it has a well-textured note weight to give a more body and darker tone on some bass instruments and male vocals. Let me describe some tonal characteristics of each instrument that I will mention here. Bass kick drums do have a full, resonant and thudding sound that is able to sync with double bass kicks from rock and metal tracks. Bass guitars have a rather broad and sombre sound and it should pay heed to its well-detailed string notation of bassist's plucking techniques, either its basic strumming, slapping or fretless. Bass-baritones vocals should sound thick, dusky and with a dark tone, and this set is able to deliver it in almost tonally precise manner as it has a good depth and guttural sound that these vocal types should have.
Tracks tested:
Sub-Bass
● Kraftwerk - Das Model
● The Prodigy - Breathe
● C.C.C.P. - American Soviets
● New Order - True Faith
Bass Kick Drums
● Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks
● Marduk - The Blond Beast
● Fleshgod Apocalypse - The Betrayal
● The Romantics - Talking In Your Sleep
● Pizzacato Five - Sweet Soul Revue
Bass Guitars
● Primus - My Name Is Mud
● Queen - Another One Bites The Dust
● Metallica - Motorbreath
● Sister of Mercy - Lucretia My Reflection
Bass-Baritones
● Peter Steele/Type O Negative - Black No.1
● Andrew Eldritch/Sister of Mercy - Lucretia My Reflection
● Barry White - Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up
● Bryn Terfel - Mussorgsky's Boris Gudanov Coronation
MIDRANGE:
This is BQEYZ WIND's strongest part and it was its midrange presentation. It has a forward presentation with well-textured, smooth, organic, properly balanced of its warmth and quite detailed sounding. This kind of tuning will be versatile and comprehensible to all types of vocals, either male or female and most instruments will sound very natural and engaging sounding.
On male vocals, it gives a good depth, volume and definition on baritones, tenors and countertenors to sound natural and tonally accurate. Baritones of all types will sound plush, velvety and rich. Tenors that have a distinguished full and energetic sound will have those brassy and dazzling characteristics that both leggero and lyric types will have their bright and flexible vocalisations on hitting their respective ranges. I really like how the countertenors sound on this set, they have smooth, tender and light falsetto voices yet with good vocal density. Female vocals are also quite remarkable here too as it has sufficient energy and brightness to project even with vocals with highest range and register. Contraltos sound excellent on this one as they have those lush, rich and strong vocals. And then, Mezzo-sopranos seem to have musky, smooth and velvety sound characteristics that I really want as they sound very mesmerising and comforting to my ears. Soprano sounds quite bright and spacious as they have a good depth and sufficiently rich tone although there are some matters that you might want more energetic and vocal flexibility on some lyric and coloratura-types of sopranists in which BQEYZ WIND might be a little bit lacking but it able to deliver a natural and detail sound.
When it comes to instruments, they all quiet sound natural, evocative and faithful to its tonal colour. On string instruments, guitars have these overtones and balanced sound on every pluck and strumming in its string notations on which ideally they should sound crisp and bright in my opinion. Violins have vibrant, lustrous and full sound on their strings on every movement of their bow stroke. On brass instruments, trombones have a brassy and solid sound, while trumpets have that stately, full and vivid sound from them. Horns and tubas have these warm, full and ponderous characteristics as they have those deep resounding sounds. Woodwinds instruments like concert flutes, piccolos, clarinets and saxophones, it has mellow and rich sound or concert flutes, a graceful and clear of piccolos, a rich and warm sound of clarinets and although saxophones have similar sound characteristics with the clarinets but in some tracks they sounds more "dramatic" and sombre. And last but not the least, the percussive instruments, snare drums have hard and clear sound in every stroke, field drums have that venerable and hard sound. And then on kettledrums, they have a deep and resonant sound and while tom drums have similar timbre with it. The pianos sound very even and balanced here with enough warm and sufficient bright tone on it while harpsichord have soft, metallic and silvery sound from them.
Tracks tested on this category:
Male Vocals
● Dmitri Hvorostovsky (Kavalier Baritone) - Handel - Ombra Mai Fu
● Robert Merrill (Verdi Baritone) - Rossini - Largo al factotum
● Billy Idol (Baritone) - Eyes Without A Face
● Scott Weidland (Baritone) - Stone Temple Pilots - Still Remains
● Luciano Pavarotti (Spinto Tenor) - La Donna E Mobile
● Placido Domingo (Lyric Tenor) - Nessun Dorma
● Elton John (Tenor) - Candle In The Wind
● Freddie Mercury (Tenor) - Killer Queen
● Justin Timberlake (Tenor) - Cry Me A River
● King Diamond (Countertenor) - Mercyful Fate - A Dangerous Meeting
● Andreas Schol (Countertenor) - Ombra Mai Fu
● Robert Gift (Countertenor) - Fine Young Cannibals - She Drives Me Crazy
Female Vocals
● Nina Simone (Contralto) - Love Me or Leave Me
● Tracy Chapman (Contralto) - Fast Cars
● Annie Lennox (Contralto) - Why
● Sade (Contralto) - Smooth Operator
● Cecilia Bartoli (Mezzo-soprano) - Handel - Ombra Mai Fu
● Dolores O'Riordan (Mezzo-soprano) - The Cranberries - You and Me
● Sharon Den Adel (Mezzo-soprano) - Within Temptation - The Cross
● Nadja Michael (Mezzo-soprano) - Bizet - Carmen
● Allison Krauss (Lyric Soprano?) - A Living Prayer
● Tarja Turunen (Dramatic Soprano) - Nightwish - Sleeping Sun (first version)
● Olga Peretyatko (Coloratura Soprano) - Mozart - Or sai chi l'onore
● Diana Damrau (Coloratura Soprano) - Mozart - Die Zauberflöte: Der Hölle Rache
Instruments
● The Eagles (Strings/Guitars) - Hotel California
● Dire Straits (Strings/Guitars) - Sultan Of Swings
● Jimi Hendrix Experience (Strings/Guitars)-
● Scorpions (Strings/Guitars) - When The Smoke Is Going Down
● Felix Ayo (Strings/Violin) - Vivaldi - Summer III. Presto: Tempo impetuoso d'Estate.
● Malice Mizer (Strings/Violin) - Au Revoir
● Jethro Tull (Woodwind/Flute) - Living In The Past
● Men At Work (Woodwind/Flute) - Down Under
● Bundeswehr Staff Band (Brasses) - Preußischer Präsentiermarsch
● Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (Brass/Trumpets) - Wagner - Die Walkürenritt
● The Specials (Brasses/Trumpet/Trombone) - A Message To You, Rudy
● Ottoman Mehter (Brasses) - Plevne Marsi
● Top Secret Drum Corps
● Rush (Percussive/Drum) - Tom Sawyer
● Riot (Percussive/Drum) - Warrior
● Yuja Wang (Piano) - Rachmaninoff: Prelude in G Minor, Op. 23, No.5
● Yiruma (Piano) - Rivers Flows In You
● Maksim Mrvica (Piano) - Flight of the Bumble Bee
● Barry Lyndon OST (Hapsichord) - Handel - Sarabande
HIGHS/TREBLE:
The treble quality of this set is relatively balanced as it has a sufficient shimmer and smoother response. I noticed that it has a mild boost on the upper mids to give a solid attack of instruments especially on percussions and even rhythmic ones and also, vocals are more expressive and well-articulated. In the presence part of its high frequency seems quite crisp, clear and detailed sound and I don't encounter any jarring, stridency and sibilance at all even on my preferred testing tracks which are known to be sibilant-laden.
As I observed, cymbals have a rather lustrous with ample shimmer and sizzle sound. The hi-hats have a shortened buzzing sound that this set is able to reproduce faithfully. Celestas have those "heavenly" tones as they sound so ethereal, bell-like and sweet to my ears and glockenspiels seem to have that brilliant and lustrous sound. The brilliance part of The Wind has a substantial amount of harmonics as it has a good sparkle with moderate treble air extension in which I wish for more quantity on this one.
Tracks tested in this category:
Instruments
● Celtic Frost (Cymbals) - Visual Aggression
● Riot (Cymbals) - Fight Or Fall
● Cologne New Philharmonic Orchestra (Celesta) - Tchaikovsky - Dance of the Sugar Plum
● James Levine (Celesta) - Bartok: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta - Sz. 106 -3. Adagio
● Zebrowski Music School Orchestra (Glockenspiel) - Saint-Saëns - Danse Macabre, Op. 40
SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING AND OTHER TECHNICALITIES:
As all BQEYZ sets that I've tested so far, they are all quite technically competent and this set is no different from its predecessors when it comes to technical performance. Sound/speaker stage of this one is quite roomy as I perceived the expanse of its sound width, a good height reach and immersive depth between front and rear. In general, it really gives my aural perception a spacious head room along with some quirks from its bone conduction driver.
On imaging presentation, BQEYZ WIND projects a three dimensional, atmospheric kind of spatiality where I can even accurately locate the positioning of instruments and vocals especially on a live band performance and full orchestra ensemble. It has an excellent separation and layering as I was able to perceive those spacing and gaps of sections of instruments and vocals with well-defined stacking of layers of each instrument and vocal tonal frequencies. With the added capabilities of a bone conduction driver, it gives that unique experience as it definitely gives that lingering, bloomy and resounding effect that envelopes within the ends of its sound field.
The implementation of two types of driver here in BQEYZ WIND is quite excellent as both drivers perform in a homogenous and cohesion manner with fast transient speed and in tandem with its bone conduction, it gives a resounding and even darker tonal pitch on some instruments.
BQEYZ WIND is also excellent on resolution capabilities especially for a set that doesn't have any BA (balanced armature) driver at all for more precise and better detail. It has remarkable macro-dynamics due to its textured note weight and well-precise musical notation attacks, then a balanced sharp detail definition as it extracts some nuances and detail infos from an audio track.
PEER COMPARISONS:
BQEYZ WINTER
● This is the WIND's predecessor model and also has a similar hybrid driver configuration but its functionality for handling specific frequency response is quite different. It has a larger dynamic driver for low frequencies and a piezoelectric based bone conduction driver for mids and high frequencies. Like its successor, WINTER's shell chassis is made of metal alloy.
● The WINTER's tuning is leaning towards being balanced-neutral sounding. It has a tighter bass response, more vivid and engaging midrange and a bit brighter treble with more air on it.
● Both have similar technical performance with the exception that WINTER has a tad sharper definition on its micro-dynamic resolution.
FIR AUDIO NEON 4 (DEMO)
● Like the WIND, NEON 4 has an all-metal build shell chassis and also a hybrid driver configuration. But the big difference between them were that NEON 4 is considered as a TOTL flagship IEM which cost over two grand (either in US dollar or in pound sterling), second one is that its shells are a bit heftier and more chunky with sapphire glass on its faceplate and the last one was that its multi-driver set-up were consists of a proprietary hybrid dynamic driver which also has a bone conduction capability and three custom balanced armatures drivers.
● As for its tonality, NEON 4 has a more mild U-shaped sound profile in my lugholes. It has more robust and haptic bass response and a similar texture on it midrange, while it has a natural tone and timbre on it, it's a tad colouration on it to make it more engaging, Treble response on this one is rather smooth, linear and only has a moderate treble air.
● On technical capabilities, NEON 4 has similar soundstage dimension with the WIND but its stereo imaging projects a more concave presentation and for a TOTL set, its separation and layering capabilities were rather average to above average given that I've tested a fairly substantial units of TOTL sets with better technical performance.
UNIQUE MELODY MEST III
● Another TOTL set with a bone conduction driver on its internals, MEST III has a more chunky shell chassis made of composite materials, majority of its materials particularly its base cavity is a solid carbon-fibre. With its large shell chassis, it has an array of four types of driver aside from its proprietary bone conduction technology, it has dynamic driver, four (4) balanced armature drivers and a quad Sonion Electret/"Electrostatic" drivers. It also has a more premium fibre-sheathed stock cable but unwieldy and less flexible compared to WIND's stock cable.
● When it comes to tonality, MEST III has a more balanced-neutral tuning that UM envisioned on its latest generation of their MEST series model. It has more balanced bass response but it has very clear sub bass rumble along with more ambient and reactive bone conduction to give that unique experience ( UM claims that its BC driver starting point response is at lower midrange area), a more transparent, detailed and a tad cleaner midrange and a tad brighter treble response with excellent sparkle and well-extended airy treble.
● On technical capabilities, MEST III easily outmatched the WIND in any category. From a cavernous sound/speaker stage proportion, superb separation and layering as it really dissects each instrument section and tonal and frequency layering and resolution capability. WIND technical performance is impressive in its price but MEST III is a different beast to deal with.
In summary of my assessment regarding this set, BQEYZ WIND is a hybrid set with a new generation of bone conduction technology that BQEYZ painstakingly developed for months. And with a different approach to its tuning and new sets of its inclusions. BQEYZ WIND tries to differentiate itself from its predecessor models.
As I end my review here, BQEYZ WIND is a testament of BQEYZ's persistent on its pursuing innovation and takes some time to be refined product and primed for portable audio market which became more competitive at constant rate. If you want a midrange performance for less, then BQEYZ WIND is definitely one of them and I will definitely recommend this one without a doubt.
BQEYZ WIND is now available at BQEYZ Official Store in ALIEXPRESS, you can check it out at the unaffiliated link down below.
Also check out my previous reviews on other BQEYZ products.
SPECIFICATION:
MODEL: BQEYZ WIND
IMPEDANCE: 38Ω
SENSITIVITY: 113dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 5Hz – 40KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M
PIN TYPE: 2-PIN CONNECTOR (0.78MM)
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm, 4.4mm, 2.5mm
DRIVER UNIT(S): (1) DYNAMIC DRIVER + (1) BONE CONDUCTION DRIVER
PROS:
△ Lightweight yet solid metal alloy shell chassis.
△ Two colour options to choose from
△ High quality stock cable.
△ Faux leather IEM case for storage.
△ Plentiful amount of ear tips to choose.
△ A "warmish-neutral" tuning that will be suited to almost all types of music genre
△ Balanced and punchy bass response.
△ Surprisingly, a well-separated bass from other frequencies
△ Bone conduction drivers on this one will truly give that distinctive ambience and resonance in our aural sense.
△ Excellent depth, volume and texture on vocals.
△ Quite natural and almost tonally correct instruments.
△ Balanced and smooth treble response
△ Fairly crisp, resolving and well-detailed sound for a dynamic driver.
△ Roomy sound/speaker stage proportion, 3D presentation on its stereo imaging.
CONS:
▽ Airy extension on this one is a bit inadequate in my opinion.
▽ Acoustic guitars and coloratura sopranos needs at bit more energy and brightness to have the expressive and vibrant sound.(subjective)
▽ The placement of some prints on its faceplate were somehow "out of place" in my perspective as a minimalist and utilitarian bloke.
▽ Still need some ear tip rolling for better sealing.
Some Tracks Tested: ( * = 16-bit FLAC, ** = 24-bit FLAC, *'* = MQA, '*' = DSD, *'= .WAV)
Alison Krauss -When You Say Nothing At All *
Jade Wiedlin - Blue Kiss**
Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks **
Mountain - Mississippi Queen *
Queen - Killer Queen **
Guns N' Roses - Patience *'*
Eric Clapton - Tears in Heaven '*'
Sergio Mendes- Never Gonna Let You Go '*'
Pearl Jam - Daughter **
Roselia - Hidamari Rhodonite *
Assassin - Fight (To Stop The Tyranny)*
Celtic Frost- Visual Aggression *
New Order - Blue Monday *
The Corrs- What Can I do (unplugged version) *
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child *
The Madness- Buggy Trousers *
Metallica - Motorbreath **
Mariah Carey- Always Be My Baby *
Destiny's Child - Say My Name *
Malice Mizer- Au Revoir *
Mozart - Lacrimosa *
New York Philharmonic Orchestra - Dvorak- Symphony 9 " From the New World." *
Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold (Sting cover)*
Michael Jackson - Give In To Me *
Exciter - Violence and Force *
Diana Krall - Stop This World **
Debbie Gibson - Foolish Beat *'*
The Sisters of Mercy – Lucretia My Reflection**
Suzanne Vega – Luka **
Lauren Christy – Steep *
Ottoman Mehter - Hucum Marsi *
Diana Damrau - Mozart: Die Zauberflöte*
Type O Negative - Black No.1 *
Felix Ayo - Vivaldi: Presto **
Three Tenors - Nessum Dorma *
Mercyful Fate - Witches' Dance *
P.S.
I am not affiliated to BQEYZ nor receive monetary incentives and financial gains as they provide me a review unit for an exchange of factual and sincere feedback from yours truly.
Once again, I would like to send my gratitude to ELLE ZHOU of BQEYZ for providing this review unit as a loaner unit. I truly appreciate her generosity and trust towards me and other reviewers.
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