Kinera BD005pro

disclaimer:  the Kinera BD005 Pro was provided for this review by HifiGO.   I have no financial interest in either Kinera or HifiGo, nor have I received any remuneration for this review.  I accept no input from either vendor or manufacturer when reviewing a product, nor do they get advanced notice of the content of my reviews.    If you have an interest in the BD005 Pro, please see Kinera’s website or Facebook or contact Hifigo to purchase your own BD005.    HiFiGo now also has the Bd005 Pro on their Amazon Store with prime for those who want quicker delivery in areas where it is available.

 

Unboxing / Packaging:

The Bd005 comes in a now familiar package but at the same time one that is unique to Kinera.  The Hexagon box has sort of become a trademark with earlier models like the Sif arriving in similar fashion.   This time the box is black with the gold writing and the earpieces depicted on the front and the specs on the reverse.  Inside the cover a hexagonal card advertising for the Kinera website and forum rests on top with a clamshell case hiding underneath.  The case contains the earpieces, cable, and 3 sets of tips.  A manual rest beneath the case and rounds out the kit.   Tips are silicones in small medium and large and are shallower than standard although they do use a standard 4mm bore size.

 

Build/Fit:

Shells are 3d printed resin with an aluminum alloy vent insert at the rear, and alloy nozzles as well.   Shells are available in red, dark blue and grey and feature the now standard semi-custom shaping that allows for fairly deep seating in the ear.   Fit and polish between the gold speckled faceplate and the solid grey body is very good and hard to feel with a fingernail.  bi-pin connectors are also well fitted with no gaps, raised edges, or fit issues.   Nozzles sit forward of the main body and have little or no rake so allow for fairly deep insertion which is partially mitigated by the very shallow stock tips.  When tip rolling the BD005p, that is a consideration as a standard height tip will increase insertion depth markedly.   Also worth noting is the BD005 uses a size smaller tips than many and standard tips from other models may dislodge as they don’t retain enough grip on the nozzles.  Comfort was good for long wear as the BD005p retains its smaller than average size and has little weight.

 

Internals:

The BD005p uses a 9.2 mm dynamic driver with Beryllium coating and a single custom tuned 30095 balanced armature driver handling the upper frequencies.   This seems to be the norm of late as the 30095 got a reputation in the budget segment for being a hot treble so now most makers are quick to point out some deviation from the standard 30095 in their press releases.  How much they differ from the standard 30095 varies from maker to maker and model to model.    Nominal impedance is listed as 16Ω with a sensitivity of 108 dB/mW.  This suggests the BD005p should be easy to drive from lower powered sources and indeed I found it easy to drive from a smartphone or tablet and while it scales some with better sources those using a smartphone are getting most of what the BD005p is capable of and certainly are not missing out.

 

Cable:

The supplied cable is about average for budget class in-ears.  It is listed as four core silver-plated copper  in 4 wire twist from the 90° jack to the splitter.    The Jack is a 3.5mm TRRS type with a nice strain relief at the exit.   Unlike the jack, the barrel splitter has no strain reliefs on either side.  No chin slider is provided as the remote/mic would obstruct it.   Above the splitter the cables exit as two wire twists with a single button remote/mic on the right side  and pre-formed hooks and .78mm bi-pin connectors on both sides.  L/R are clearly marked for easy indexing as well.

 

Sound:

Bass:

Sub-bass has some rumble with roll-off only evident below about the mid-40Hz range but is not a focal point and likely won’t please bassheads.  Mid-bass is a bit more forward giving the BD005P a warmer flavor than the original, but the mid-bass is also cleaner and faster than its namesake which is a nice improvement.   This is not to say the mid-bass is super quick as it still has a bit slower decay than I expected in a Be driver that lends a bit of weight, warmth, but also bleed to the mix.    Those looking for big bass will probably prefer something like the IT00 while those looking for controlled, extremely textured bass will prefer one of the all balanced armature models.    What the BD005p offers is a nice middle ground with detail being improved compared to its parent, but still retaining some warmth and musicality rather than getting overly technical.

 

Mids:

Because of the mid-bass bleed I previously mentioned, lower mids are somewhat thickened and blurred a bit. I’d stop short of calling it obstruction, but between the recess and the bleed, lower mids definitely are not the focal point of the signature.   Male vocals have good weight but are a step behind higher voices and can sound a touch distant.  Guitar growl lacks a little edge as well as the BD005p seems to choose smooth over detail as a design choice.  True mids have a little more texturing or maybe its just on display more and upper-mids are pushed forward some and give female vocals and upper strings a bit more energy.  Strings are well voiced but not as detailed as could be and lose a little realism due to that.

 

Treble:

The lower treble continues the climb of the upper-mids before dropping back as we reach the true treble and finally rolling off above 13kHz.  There is a marked decrease in the 8-10kHz range that many will appreciated as it keeps the BD005p from being overly aggressive and limits sibilance and stridency.   Snare rattle is good but again slightly smoothed, cymbals are not overly metallic either which is nice, but the trade-off here is a lack of sparkle at the top.  The Bd005p could use a bit more air at the top, but this is a tough line to walk too as bringing in more air invites a hotter treble along with it.

 

Soundstage / Imaging:

Soundstage is good but a bit wider than deep and not as good as its cousin the SIF in that respect.   Seating the orchestra is fairly straight forward with good instrument separation and placements being consistent with actual stage locations.  Imaging is good with movements easy to track and positions being fairly tightly defined in space.    Layering is reasonably good but some tendency to thicken and slur a bit is present as tracks get particularly complex.

 

Thoughts / Conclusion:

The last 2 products I have reviewed made by Kinera have both been responses to criticisms leveled against earlier models.  I reviewed the SIF which is arguably an udpated SEED, and now the BD005 Pro which is the successor to the BD005.   I much prefer the shell shape on the pro compared to the original as it is more comfortable and looks considerably better made to boot.  Signature wise, the Pro is much improved as well with less thickening of the mid-bass and more detail than its parent.    I think it speaks volumes that Kinera put a Beryllium driver in a budget model to try to improve it while others are charging a hefty surcharge for their Be models.    The BD005 Pro takes its own road as it isn’t the cookie cutter budget model we’ve all come to expect.  This is a warm, mild V with polite treble and solid detail and imaging in the budget price range.  As I write this retail is $49 which puts its price tag below the IT00 which is probably the closest comparison in recent memory.  The IT00 had more bass but otherwise was quite similar.    That says a lot for the little Kinera as the IT00 was one of my favorites of last year’s crop.