BQEYZ Autumn is the latest model after Summer which was very lively and bass friendly. The brand must have reached their maturity after -still valid tho – starting with budget offerings (most notable was KS2) to +$99 segment Spring – Spring 2 – Summer – Autumn. I had looked for a reference to “Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring” by Kim Ki-Duk but sadly couldn’t find any..
Pros
Wide and immersive soundstage
Slightly bright timbre
Resolution is high
Good layering
Great tonality
You can shake your head with the bass at proper live performances.
Neutral charactered and 3 selectable sound characters. I didn’t dare to try other filters than balanced.
Cons
Treble and slightly bright timbre is fatiguing in extended listens at studio recordings. Jazz at the Pawnshop was somehow smooth and definitely dark
Box is just like its name as previous Summer had a huge palm and blue (sky) background. I expect a snow white and 50 Shades of gray themed Winter this time 🙂 Besides the looks, contents are enough + 3 seperate tuning filters that can be changed with the pen like tool within the box.
Amp preferring nature
BOX AND AUTUMN AND THE CABLE
Looks are metallic, sleek and 3 venting holed. And a tiny circular part that enhances the tuning between bass neutral and treble. I used balanced filters only but each filter is adding said frequencies to the sound by like %25.
Cable is a somewhat thin and braided with silver + black lines. And this color scheme os adding up to the dark grayish drivers. Furthermore all the accessories on the cable are from the same metal which is consistency and color wise consistency is good.
Eartips: Full black tips
Bold and dark timbre with very nice extensions. Background is completely silent like Final e1k. Presentation is somehow laid back. Resolution and speed is high. I can even hear the surface tension of the drums. Stage is like what I hear at an open back. Although the wide stage, drivers’ sizes are speaking for themselves. This ain’t a Grado. But layering is good. Fun factor is high at this config yet the sound is smooth. No ear piercing or splashy treble. This is limiting the fun IMO. But at electronic basses of Pendulum, what I get is a fast rough and slightly explosive basses.
Eartips: Black Bored Gray Tips.
With eartip change first I observed a higher and sharper tonality. This is the sign of its clarity and the longer eartips seem to block it. Timbre is neutral to cold. Basses are less in size. Thus their slams are weakened too at electronic tracks. But still have some weight. Layering is almost the same. Presentation is truly closer to me as if I am in the front chair. Instrument separation is sharper with these tips yet the vocal isn’t still shouty. Soundstage at studio recordings seemed larger. Extensions roll off faster. Now I am having the best results of the Jim Hall Trio. Every piece is well separated and details are so high and the drummer’s and the pianist’s energy at Jim Hall Trio is admirable at My Heart Sings, almost like a boogie woogie song. And percussions and bell rhymes are in HD on the other songs. Bass guitar is slightly boomy and atmosphere is dark maybe because of the records age and quality. But Jazz at the Pawnshop is so alive and lively and Autumn is good transmitter 🙂 I am feeling like I am in the venue of the performance.
This tip tryout made me love the Jim Hall Trio – Circles album once more. And Jazz at the Pawnshop. And Pendulum Fasten Your Seatbelts (Live at Brixton Academy) This album of Jim Hall is one of the highest DR (dynamic range) albums available and miss Autumn is handling it pretty well even though unburnt in and fed up with V30 High Impedance Mode. And Jazz at the Pawnshop is a very nice recorded live show. Fasten Your Seatbelts put an amazed and impressed smiling at my face.
Amped BQEYZ Autumn
TRI TK-2 and LG V30
Volume is near 11 o’ clock. And it’s sounding like %80 to my ears. The soundstage expanded at studio recordings. Basses pack a punch now. But still retaining the control thus not bleeding. Layering improved greatly. Vocal is at its clearest level.
Power opened it up to be more (still not reaching insane level of Etymotic) resolving and compatible with live music. The soundstage is almost immersive now and it’s a new thing for the Autumn. Positioning on the stage is perfect. Everybody is just in the spot you have seen where they are.
Power helped it’s smoothness mix up with sharpness and greatly enhanced the 3d imaging while keeping the transparency. So lovely to hear the bell ring and the bell ringer’s movements while you are in the center. And adding the audience’s own rhythm together is eargasm. I am now hearing all the folks at the Pawnshop with separation and their different instruments with their own textures.
Recabled BQEYZ Autumn
6N Pure Copper Cable
First changes with the pure cable is the clarity and rise of mid frequency. Bass isn’t as impressive as it was at the Pendulum Live. But I can’t say the same for Limehouse Blues. The live recording returned from the 70s with the increased clarity.
BQEYZ Autumn Review
CONCLUSIONS
Long story short if 2+2 is 4, Autumn needs power to shine. However it is giving a comfortable listening. But cable, ear tip and filter selection is up to your personal taste on the music. You know they say “don’t fix if it ain’t broken”. This means you should stick to the OG cable of Autumn:)
