BGVP DM8 : A Hi-Tech Mid-Fi

DM8 is the latest flagship IEM by BGVP, a Chinese company mainly involved with customizing and producing high end Hifi earbuds, earphones and other electronic products.

DM8 spreads its charm right from its unboxing. It comes packed in a beautiful double box. The outer box has shiny surface with DM8 written over a colourful background along with other information about the IEM.

The inside box is of matte black finish with all in-box items meticulously placed.

In the box you would find a set of 10 ear-tips, an 8 stranded braided copper coloured stock cable, a round black box to keep the earphones safe and finally the earpieces. The box also has a cleaning brush, a 4.4mm balanced and a 3.5mm single-ended connector set along with a small white envelop that carries warranty card, manual and other essential documents.

The main connector of the wire is a rich looking chunky metallic cylinder with similar texture as that of end plug barrels and Y-split piece.

The IEM are available in 3 colour variation- Blue-Pink, Woodcarving and transparent, I have received a transparent unit with a silver faceplate with BGVP logo printed on one and DM8 printed on the other as a part of review circle.

The Earpieces are bulky, 3D printed resin unit with a short nozzle. They are handcrafted, fully transparent body giving a glimpse of the technology they encapsulate. There is a tiny air-ventilation hole beneath the units.

All in-box items are premium looking and gets one excited as one opens it.

Package Contents:

·         One pair of BGVP DM8 IEMs.
·         One UPOCC 6N 8-strand single crystal copper 24awg MMCX cable with 2.5mm termination.
·         2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter.
·         2.5mm to 4.4mm adapter.
·         One pair of Memory Foam ear tips.
·         Nine pairs of silicone ear tips (3 pairs vocal, 3 pairs balanced, 3 pairs bass ear tips).
·         Hard carry case.

Disclaimer:

I have received BGVP DM-8 as part of review circle sent from the brand itself in exchange of honest reviews. All impressions of sound are subjective to my own listening and my sources and is based on my experience with IEMs of similar hardware configurations and price range.

Sources:

For this review the unit has been paired to A&K SE100 (ES9038 Pro) and Fiio Q5 (AK4490), mostly using the balanced out without any other amplification.

 

Pros:

1. Great Micro detailing and timber
2. Musical yet Balanced Presentation
3. Amazing Bass for an all BA setup
4. Very well accessorized

Cons:

1. Average soundstage
2. Bulky shells, can cause fit issues (Not in my case)

Highs:

Listening to the “Shape of My Heart by Sting” was the first experience I had on it, and it immediately made me fell in love with DM8, The way it filled complete headroom with all the airiness and microdetails was something heart touching.

DM8 has the perfect sparkling highs which one notices straight out of the box. There is no sibilance or harsh tones at any point of time. Treble response is well extended, and airiness is all around the headroom with crisp details and overall gives a balanced tuning at this spectrum range.

Mids:

The mid spectrum reproduction is very uniform and is one of the best tuned IEMs. The vocal presentation is amazing and natural. There is uniformity throughput the mids section, be it the lower mids or the upper mid-range spectrum. There is no bass bleed into mids and thus the detailing and timber is amazing. There is a feel of airiness and presence factor specially when listening to guitars, cymbals and trumpets.

I felt bit inclination towards warm tonality, the male vocals sound perfect while female vocals are sharp and overall results are crisp and upfront notes which fill the entire headroom and best example of this was felt while listening to “A million Dreams” cover by Peter Hollens.

Or be it the original “Beauty and the Best” soundtrack by Celine Dion, Peabo Bryson it literally connects one to the soul I must say. Not to forget my initial experience with “Shape of My Heart by Sting”.

Lows:

DM8 has an amazing bass response for a full BA architecture, the Bass response is punchy and has a nice slam to it. It is full bodied and have a nice texture. Even sub-bass region is not shy at all and easily reminds of any dynamic driver. The Bass is the third best thing about DM8 after micro-detailing and mids.

I enjoyed listening to my favourite bass-oriented track - “Tokyo Drift” by KVSH, the bass was tight and precise. I must say DM8 can bring any IEM with typical dynamic driver to shame by its bass response. A job well done in implementation of BA drivers. Kudos BGVP for this!!

Soundstage:

The only shortcoming so far, I have seen is soundstage which one looks in an IEM of this price range. The soundstage felt lack of width whereas it is only above average in terms of verticality. The depth is also average. But to me it is not much of a deal breaker because of the other aspects it offers.

Tested tracks like “Hello” by Neelix , “Dream Catcher” by Bassnectar, and on all of them the verticality and depth was average and soundstage felt very much congested but the IEM did shine out on other parameters like detailing, imaging and presentation of bass and treble and overall experience despite of lack of soundstage felt very much engaging.

Detailing/Imaging:

BGVP has done a marvelous job in placement and tuning of DM8, it offers brilliant micro details. To me the best part of DM8 is the way it brings out all the technicalities. Although, in some tracks the micro details do become overwhelming sometimes but overall sound output of DM8 is very enjoyable.

It was a nice experience I must say while listening to “Reaching Out by Bassnectar” and “Draft Punk’s Giorgio by Moroder” with great bass response along with the micro detailing and the dynamics.

Final Verdict:

As BGVP says in their tagline that 'Music is the monologue of Soul', DM8 does a near perfect job of connecting you to your soul through music. It is a very well-tuned all BA packed beast that brings out ultra-micro-detailing with a very good timber throughout spectrum with a slight warm presentation. The Bass response it very good for a BA setup and overall signature is towards warm side. This is a gem of an IEM in mid-fi range I must say with a pack full of accessories of practical use.