Cable pair-up.

I’m aware that some people are skeptical about cable’s contribution to the audio chain. It’s not my intent to start an argument here. Instead, I would like to share what I hear during my testing. What makes sense to me is that a metal wire is a material with physical properties of resistivity, conductivity, and purity, all of which act as a filter between your source and earphones. Variations in these physical properties can affect the conductivity of an analog signal, resulting in a change in sound ranging from subtle to noticeable. If discussing cables bothers you, feel free to skip this section.

Most of my cables are 2pin, so it was a bit of a challenge switching to P-ears. I used a PlusSound 2pin to P-ear micro series connector adapter, which did a fantastic job, and I highly recommend it, especially for a pair under $50. As mentioned in the design section of the review, I was using these regular 2pin cables with a typical pre-shaped earhook over the ears, not the best look, but it works.

Beat Audio Orbit Saga – the soundstage wraps a bit more behind your head, creating a more holographic feeling. Bass impact and rumble are similar, mids are a little more transparent, less coloring, and treble is crisper, but not harsher. The overall sound difference is more noticeable in the mids, which are slightly less colored.

HanSound Kunpeng – very similar sound to stock cable, just slightly wider soundstage expansion.

EA Centurion 2 – similar to stock sound, just the mids are a little more revealing, and the treble has more crunch/zing.

LL Venom – the soundstage got a little narrower, the mids became more revealing, and the treble has more crunch. I didn’t like this pair-up at all.

PWA FT – very similar sound to stock cable, with just a touch more sparkle in treble.

Based on a handful of cables I tried with IBUKI, I still preferred to go back to the stock premium copper cable. After all, Brise Audio is a cable company, so I’m sure they put a lot of thought into this pair-up, which was actually customized for these IEMs. But, as I always say, it never hurts to try different cables, experiment, and see what you do or don’t like. In my opinion, you don’t need to invest more money in the cable upgrade for IBUKI, but it doesn’t hurt to experiment with what you already have.

Source pair-up.

Similar to BEP-001, the IBUKI driven directly from DAPs yields different results compared to pairing up through Wata. The Wata extracts higher-resolution, max-detail retrieval, gives the mids more transparency, and keeps the treble more natural. With DAPs and dongles, you get a more portable setup without the need to carry a source and a separate portable amp, one of the big advantages of IBUKI over Fu. But each source also required some tweaking to find the best pair-up synergy. Also, please keep in mind that IBUKI is not easy to drive; it requires more power to reach its full potential. The following impressions were collected while comparing the IBUKI sound tuning between SP4000/Wata and a direct connection to the PO of the following DAPs.

A&K SP4000 – needs HDM (high-driving mode enabled) to inject more dynamic expansion into the sound. Adds a faint layer of coloring in the mids and smooths out the lower treble a bit. Also, the bass is a bit more laid-back, with a slightly slower attack and a slightly longer decay; it doesn’t bleed into the lower mids or muddy the sound, and it has a slightly more laid-back presentation. Overall, this pair-up yielded a more organic sound presentation with a slightly reduced soundstage width, even with Advanced DAR enabled, extending more in height/depth than width. It was an OK direct pair-up.

iBasso DX320Max Ti – the bass here is as fast, powerful, and articulate as with Wata, especially with a very strong, punchy mid-bass impact. Mids are a little smoother, more organic, and musical. The treble’s rendition depends on the Gain setting: there was a bit more zing at 4, and it became noticeably smoother at 2. I preferred the balance of the treble at Gain 3, where it had more clarity than at Gain 2 without being as analytical as at Gain 4. The soundstage expansion was similar to WATA. Great pair-up, as long as you keep it at Gain 3.

Hiby RS8ii – I preferred the tuning here with Turbo boost on and either Class A or Adaptive amp mode setting. The bass is very powerful, physical, and visceral. Mids have a bit more musicality, clear and detailed, but a little smoother. The treble is clear and detailed, but it gets more revealing in Class AB, while it gains more control and becomes a bit less intense in Class A or Adaptive amp mode. I was on the fence regarding the latter, leaning more toward the Adaptive “hybrid” amp mode, which injects a bit more airiness into the treble, like AB, but with less intensity, like A. The soundstage expansion was similar to Wata. Nice pair-up as well.

L&P P6 Pro – this pair-up sounded very similar to RS8ii in Turbo/Class A, with a powerful physical, maybe a little more rounded bass, smooth, musical, detailed mids, and natural, detailed, extended treble. Especially with treble, it sounded more like the Class A than the Adaptive amp on the RS8ii. The soundstage expansion was also similar to Wata, maybe just a touch more expanded in height/depth than width. I like this pair-up as well.

Cayin N6iii w/R202 – the question here will be whether to go with an R2R or a 1bit DAC setting? Without hesitation, 1bit DAC setting scaled up IBUKI performance, while R2R brought it down. I wouldn’t have predicted that, based on my RS8ii and P6Pro testing, but that is how it was. R2R made the sound too smooth, laidback, less articulate, and narrower in the soundstage width. Once I switched to 1bit, it was like listening to a different pair of IBUKI IEMs, with fast, punchy, physical bass, nice sub-bass texture, natural, detailed, forward mids, and well-controlled, crystal-clear, airy treble. And on top of that, the soundstage widened, creating a more holographic sound. This was probably one of my favorite direct DAP pair-ups.

NiPO A100 – this pair up reminded me a lot of N6iii w/R202-1bit, having a big holographic soundstage expansion, punchy physical bass with textured elevated rumble, clear, detailed, natural mids, and well controlled sparkly treble, maybe with a bit more sparkle than in N6iii/R202, but still very well done, for a portable use with IBUKI, considering these are not easy to drive IEMs.

L&P W4 – Actually, this pair-up sounded very similar to the P6 Pro, warmer, smoother, more musical, very detailed, organic mids, and smoother treble. The bass here is a little more laidback, more “rounded” in the attack and decay of notes. Also, the soundstage shrank a bit, with more height/depth than width. This pair-up was a little too smooth for my taste and reminded me of BEP-001 tuning.

iBasso DC Elite – this was a mini-me 320Max Ti pair up, with a wide soundstage expansion, slightly elevated, very strong, physical, visceral bass, a bit more revealing, very detailed, layered mids, and crisp, airy, non-fatigued, but a bit more energetic treble (similar to the Gain 3 setting of 320Max).

Overall, pairing with Wata had the best synergy, especially for mid-resolution and detail retrieval. Still, unlike my testing of Fugaku, where the LO of some sources made the treble a bit too spicy and the upper mids a bit more revealing, here with IBUKI, most sources paired up well, either connected directly to IEMs or through LO to Wata.

Conclusion.

While attending the CanJam NYC show, many were eager to hear the BEP-001 prototype, even calling it an “amp-less” Fugaku. Of course, the intent of this prototype was not to be an amp-less Fugaku, but rather a new high-end earphone from Brise Audio that doesn’t require a dedicated amp, and allows for a universal detachable cable replacement. But you can’t help but notice its connection to Fugaku. The idea behind the Fugaku design was quite innovative, as an all-in-one, transportable, compact audio system. Still, it didn’t allow for easy cable rolling, trying the amp with different IEMs, or listening to the IEM on its own. With Fugaku, Brise Audio fine-tuned the system by mixing and matching their carefully designed and selected components. The release of Watatsumi unleashed the Dragon and gave audiophiles the taste of Fugaku’s amp tech. Their new high-end IEM, IBUKI, should also give audiophiles a taste of Fugaku’s tuning, with the final IBUKI tuning being closer in mids and treble to Fugaku than BEP-001 was, although it is still unique in its own way. Also, keep in mind that IBUKI, with its premium Brise Audio stock cable and Wata amp, will be cheaper than Fugaku.

I can definitely hear IBUKI w/Wata and Fugaku sharing the same DNA, with slightly different tuning flavors. They both have a balanced sound signature, where I found IBUKI to be more W-shaped, emphasizing deep, visceral bass, natural, detailed mids, and crystal-clear, extended treble. Fu mids are less colored and slightly more revealing, with more energetic treble. In contrast, IBUKI mids sound more natural, with a bit more coloring, added note weight, and a more natural treble response. However, this will be heavily dependent on synergy with eartips and sources. What still amazes me about either of these IEMs is how effortlessly and realistically they make everything sound. However, the BEP-001 prototype had a slightly more forgiving, smoother treble response, while IBUKI and Fugaku can be pickier with synthesized instruments in EDM tracks, for example. Based on my personal sound preferences, I have to give the edge to IBUKI, especially because I can use it directly with many of my sources, make the setup more portable on the go, and find its treble a bit less intense than Fu’s. Even using other DAPs’ LO with IBUKI and Wata wasn’t as picky as I found it with Fu, where, with some, it made the sound even more revealing up top.

As I already mentioned in my earlier BEP-001 review, Brise Audio is on the right track, with a solid record of well-recognized cables, amps, and now IEMs. Not sure how they are going to top this off, although I wouldn’t mind seeing a dongle DAC/amp from them next. Cause, why not?!