The BQEYZ Summer is a tribrid driver universal IEM featuring a 13mm dynamic driver, a single BA, and a single piezoelectric driver. It is priced at $129.
Disclaimer: The BQEYZ Summer was sent to us as a sample in exchange for our honest opinion in this review. We thank the team at BQEYZ for giving us this opportunity.
To read more about insert HiFiGo products we reviewed on Headfonics click here.
Note, this review follows our new scoring guidelines for 2020 which you can read up on here.
After the recent success of Spring 2, BQEYZ is back with a new refreshing universal in-ear monitor, the BQEYZ Summer. It features their latest triple hybrid driver which is composed of a powerful dynamic driver, second-generation balanced armature, and a patented 5-layer piezoelectric unit.
It is positioned to be in the sub $150 price point, aiming to compete aggressively with a lower price point than the previous BQEYZ Spring 2 offering, which was in the sub $200 category.
Tech Highlights
Similar to their previous BQEYZ Spring 2, the BQEYZ Summer features a triple driver IEM which has a combination of a 13mm dynamic driver for the bass, a balanced armature driver for the mid-range, and a piezoelectric driver for the highs.
This is a coaxial dynamic driver with its diaphragm coated with PU, (polyurethane) and LCP, (Liquid Crystal Polymer), which is used to create an in-depth bass with low levels of distortion. BQEYZ packs in a new second-generation custom BA and a new 5-layer piezoelectric unit that improves on the higher frequency and response time.
With the previous success of BQEYZ’s implementation of the tri-bid driver design with Spring 2, it is interesting to see how a similar technology and implementation can be applied at a lower price point.
Design
The acrylic shell is a beautiful translucent blue color that will “transport you to the divine view of the sea during the summertime”. That’s one way to describe the shell of the BQEYZ Summer.
Grooves on the faceplate are like beautiful seashells that you see as you walk through the seashore. Its design matches its name, as it is light and fresh, just as you would expect during the summer.
And yet, it is anything but modest, you can see the beautiful sophisticated structure with its translucent shell on display. With only a 4.2g weight body and great ergonomic design, surely it will be light enough to make it a very comfortable fit.
Comfort & Isolation
Wearing the BQEYZ Summer has been a delight, thanks to its 4.2g body weight. As you immerse yourself in music, it feels like you’re not wearing anything at all. On top of that, it stays firmly in the ears because of the ergonomic shape of the shell.
Interestingly, the cables hooks are also perfect, it just runs behind the ears as it should be. The fit is excellent, it will not fall even if you shake or whip your head back and forth.
Stock ear tips offer a decent amount of isolation. Outside noise is filtered out, making it easy to focus on listening. At the same time, you can easily hear notifications from your phone or workstation. Material is nothing out of the ordinary, each included pair are dome-shaped single flanged ear tips.
Stock Cable
This monitor comes with a surprisingly high-quality cable. This is an 18 core copper silver-plated cable (SPC) with a standard length of 1.2 meters. Externally, it is an elegantly braided 8 strand silver-white color with a standard adjustable chin slider to help with cable control.
Termination on the IEM side is a universal 0.78mm dual-pin interface that will offer plenty of compatibility for cable upgrades. It is also good to note that different termination plugs are offered with the BQEYZ Summer. You can check out with a flexible choice of plugs such as 2.5mm, 3.5mm, and 4.4mm which are common phone input plugs for a wide range of music players.
Packaging & Accessories
The retail packaging is an attractive minimalist lavender box. The unboxing experience was a delight as the first thing you see upon opening the box is the beautiful, blue-colored Summer IEM.
Underneath, 2 sets of small, medium and large single flange ear tips are seen: one in plain grey and another one in white with a blue accent. The inclusion of 2 colors of the same ear tips is interesting as it offers an additional choice in the overall look of the IEM.
Below the ear tips, it was surprising to see a high-quality textured grey leather hard-shell carrying case, with enough space to carry the Summer. Inside, you can see the high-quality cables and to my surprise, a nozzle cleaner. I must say that BQEYZ does not skimp on accessories.
Sound Impressions
Bass
BQEYZ Summer has adequate lows. Although the sub-bass is rolled off, it is still present and felt. The mid-bass is thick, clean, yet not bloated. It does not bleed towards the lower mid-range.
However, it has a slow attack and slow decay that is noticeable on certain tracks with fast bass lines. With fewer bass busy tracks, it does just fine. Overall, the lows are sufficient and are a perfect amount for non-bass heads. It presents the sub-bass well without smearing into the higher frequencies.
Midrange
The midrange on the Summer is noticeably more forward compared to the lows. It is smooth and detailed. Particularly, both male and female vocals are clear, transparent, natural-sounding, with the male vocals standing out to be more detailed and well textured.
It is a delight to listen to good vocals with the Summer as the vocals indeed shine. Mind you, very impossible to miss. Overall, the summer’s mid-range is clean sounding but not overly emphasized to the point that it feels shouty.
Treble
Thanks to the piezoelectric drivers, the treble on the Summer is fast and detailed. Compared to the mid-range and bass, the treble sits just a bit below the midrange in terms of presentation.
The highs are energetic, with plenty of treble extension. Cymbal crashes are splashy and overall pleasing. Although the Summer has a slight treble uptick, there was no harshness felt in higher frequencies. In fact, the Summer did a good job in delivering a just-right crisp and clear-sounding treble region.
Soundstage
For an IEM, staging on the BQEYZ Summer is spacious. It is open with good depth. Listening to different genres the sound stage never felt cramped.
The imaging on the Summer is impressive. It is accurate and has above-average layering wherein instruments are clearly distinct from each other. Even with multiple instruments, it did not sound unidirectional and compressed.
Synergy
Efficiency
With an impedance of 32Ω and a sensitivity of 107dB, the Summer is not hard to drive. Since the demo BQEYZ Summer came in with a 2.5mm termination plug, it was used with the Ibasso DX150. It was more than enough to drive the Summer.
In fact, at only 35% volume level, the Summer is already at a good listening range. There was also no unwanted noise observed.
Pairings
Since Summer has a balanced sound signature leaning slightly on the bright side, it is flexible with different DAP sound signatures. However, to balance the treble uptick of Summer, a warm DAP would best pair with the Summer.
The Ibasso DX150 was a good pair as it is known to have a neutral sound signature with a warm tonality. Pairing the Summer with the Ibasso DX150 gave a good balanced-sounding experience with good dynamic range and instrumental separation.
Select Comparisons
BQEYZ SPRING 2
$169.00
Technical
The BQEYZ Spring 2 is a triple driver IEM, composed of 1 13mm Dynamic Driver, 1 BA Driver, and a 9 layer piezoelectric driver. Spring 2 and Summer’s key difference is the new BA Driver and the new 5 layers piezoelectric driver found in the Summer.
Design
Spring 2 comes in a premium midnight black base metal shell and red accent colorway. On the other hand, the Summer comes in a translucent ultra-light blue shell which highlights the sophisticated internal composition of the IEM.
Although the Spring 2 has a more premium feel, the ultra-light shell material of the Summer makes it more comfortable to wear over long periods. The contour of the Summer also gave a better fit as the ear placement of the Spring 2 made the cable move out of my ears from time to time.
Both IEMs have an ear-hook design with a universal 0.78mm 2 pin termination. Externally, the cables look very similar. Upon further inspection, Spring 2 has a 4 strand 224 core single crystal copper cable while Summer has an 8 strand, 18 core copper silver-plated cable.
Performance
Although Spring 2 also has rolled-off sub-bass, it has more sub-bass compared to Summer. Spring 2 also has a faster attack on the mid-bass. This is particularly more noticeable on tracks that have bass-heavy riffs.
The mid-range on both IEMs are nearly identical. Both male and female vocals are clear and transparent, with a forward presentation. But I noticed Summer to sound a bit dull compared to Spring 2. The Spring 2 is smoother and has more shimmer.
Spring 2 also has a more pronounced treble. Although both have good treble extensions, Spring 2 felt harsh on certain bright tracks. Summer has a better treble tuning that is more pleasing overall.
Both have above-average imaging, instruments are natural and crisp. But, the Summer has a wider sound stage compared to Spring 2. It feels more spacious which makes the instrumental separation slightly more pronounced.
Our Verdict
The Summer is a fascinating new offering from BQEYZ at a significantly lower price point. Using the same technology from their previous models, this is a triple hybrid in-ear monitor that looks good and sounds good.
With its W-shaped sound signature, spacious sound stage, and above-average imaging, Summer is a bargain at $129. Given its price point, it offers an interesting value proposition worth checking out.
BQEYZ Summer Technical 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
