Intro
Prior to this, I have no knowledge about this brand at all other than their recent model which garnered a lot of attention which is Spring 2. According to the manufacturer, BQEYZ stands for Best Quality Earphone for You. BQEYZ Summer is the latest triple hybrid driver pair of in-ear monitors featuring ultra-light Resin ear cavities, a 13mm powerful DD unit, a second-generation BA unit, and a 5-layer piezoelectric unit.
Specifications
Drivers Configuration
13mm Dynamic Driver x1;
5-Layer Piezoelectric DD x1 ;
Balanced Armature Driver x1
Impedance
32Ω
Sensitivity
107 dB
Frequency Response Range
7-40khz
Frequency response range
20-20000HZ
Pin Type
0.78mm-2 Pin
Plug Options
2.5mm/3.5mm/4.4mm
Cable Length
1.2m
Package Content
-BQEYZ Summer IEM x1 Pair
-Cable x1
-Carrying case x1
-Brush x1
-Silicone ear tips x6 Pairs(Including S/M/L -2 Pair Per Size)
Packaging
The packaging is quite minimalistic in my opinion, and doesn't bother me. Once you open it up and you’re greeted with the IEM itself and a storage case, good quality cable and two different types of ear tips.
*Spinfit CP145 ear tip installed for illustration purpose only
* Throughout the review i am using the stock ear tip which is the grey colored one.
Build Quality and Comfort
The housing which houses the DD,BA and Piezo is a plastic housing. It is lightweight and comfortable to wear for long hours. However, I would advise to handle the IEM with care as the shell looks like it will break if it’s dropped at a certain height.
I wore it straight for 3 hours+ without feeling discomfort. Though I can't say the same for the cable’s earhook. It is annoying in the sense it did not properly hook onto your ears, thus giving it the sense of doesn’t fit well even with the cable’s earhook. There’s a small fin as you can see from the picture, it does help with securing Summer on your ear. I did not notice any discomfort from the fin even after a prolonged listening session.
Source
Here’s the setup that i used throughout this review:
Tidal (MQA/HiFi) Windows 10 -> iFi Zen Dac (7.2c Firmware GTO Filter) -> BQEYZ Summer (3.5SE)
Tidal (MQA/HiFi) Iphone 11 -> Apple’s Lightning Dongle -> BQEYZ Summer (To test it’s drivability)
Sound
The reason why I opt for single ended instead of using it with 4.4 Bal is because I find that on 4.4 it exhibited slight sibilant and it made it slightly brighter and it’s fatiguing to listen for a long period. I put on the 4.4 female to 3.5 male adapter to run it on SE. I guess Summer doesn’t benefit from all that extra power after all. However, YMMV, this review is done based entirely on my setup hence i am writing the review based on what i heard from my own setup.
Bass
The 13mm DD used in Summer definitely helped to bring out high quality and quantity bass.
During the opening on The Weeknd’s Starboy, the sub bass rumble came alive, it is controlled and tight, not bloated at all. Mid bass is also well controlled to not make it feel too boomy. Not a basshead’s IEM for sure. Overall presentation is snappy.
Mids
Fairly detailed with moderate amount of texture. Female vocal sounded a little forward and thin as what i heard from Nina Simone’s Suzzane, male vocal has got more texture and less forward in Jeff Buckley’s Hallelujah. Despite the minor shortcoming, the overall presentation is quite detailed. Though, I would prefer it if it's more bodied.
Treble
As for the treble, it is impressive and the extension is good which is to be expected from the Piezo housed within. It is also fast and controlled. However, I am not sure if this is some issue with my setup, i had to resort to using 3.5 instead of 4.4 because on balance, the high exhibited slight sibilant and the sparkles are too much to handle, 3.5 solved all the issues mentioned. Trebles are now sparky and smooth with a fair bit of airiness in it. It also exhibited a good amount of details.
Soundstage and Imaging
The soundstage has got average depth and width. Nothing much to shout out about. However, the imaging is above average and impressive. Radiohead’s Creep for example, instruments can be pinpointed accurately and also Marvin Gaye’s Sexual Healing, the sense of progression between left and right channel is impressive during the opening of the song.
Driveability
Summer is quite efficient and not hard to drive. I have tested it on Iphone 11 with Apple’s Lightning Dongle and suffice to say, it is able to offer a similar experience as iFi’s Zen Dac, but it does offer better performance out of Zen Dac of course.
Final Thoughts
BQEYZ Summer is decent enough for what it is. A well priced Tri-brid setup, pleasant tuning which is suitable for wide range of audience. The cost of a tri-brid setup often comes in the form of coherency and timbre’s naturality. The plastic shell’s durability is also doubtful in my opinion, however the choice is made in order for the IEM to feel light and comfortable. At this price point for such a setup, I believe the compromise is acceptable and throughout the time that i spent with the IEM, i enjoyed them.
*Above written review is solely based on my listening experience and I wrote based on what I heard. I do not have access nor do I have any knowledge in operating and measuring the FR of this unit. I still believe that FR only tells part of the story about the IEM unless you really listen to it.
*Thanks to Elle from BQEYZ for this opportunity to review Summer. The review will be based on my honest opinion and unbiased view despite the fact that I was given this unit without having to return them.
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