Pros: Spatial Positioning and Layering
Neutral Sound Profile
Fast and Clean Bass
Build and Design

Cons: Upper Midrange Emphasis
Brighter in Tonality
Not the "Be" Low End
Lacks the texture in Sound
Sticky Cable

INTRODUCTION:

The BGVP is a well known and established audio manufacturing brand in the ChiFi Market. They have manufactured a lot of highly praised audio gears like the DM series. The DN2 is their previous iteration of the DN3 and it got a lot of controversies due to the driver material even though they sounded very nice. Hence they discontinued it and introduced the DN3 as the successor to claim its place in the market. In this review let’s see can the DN3 take the place of the DN2 and still retain the DN series in the market.

 

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS:

>10mm Dynamic driver with Beryllium-coated diaphragm.

>Custom HEVK Balanced Armature Driver

>Impedance: 19 ohm.

>Sensitivity: 109dB/mW.

>Frequency response range: 10Hz-40kHz.

>THD+N: <0.5%.

>Channel difference: <1dB.

>Rated power: 8mW.

>Weight: 5.0grams(each unit excluding cable).

Creedits: HiFiGo

DISCLAIMER:

The DN3 is lended by my friend who received it from the BGVP for review purposes and thanks to the man! This review is completely based on my experience and listening sessions with this unit and this may vary from person to person. This also depends upon the type of source you use to playback. I have not been influenced by anyone to manipulate this review and by no means have I been paid by BGVP.

PACKAGE:

The box in which the DN3 came is very nice and compact. The outer sleeve had the DN3 image and the specifications on the back. Upon removing the sleeve there is the golden yellow coloured box with the BGVP logo and upon opening the lid you are welcomed with all the accessories, documentation and the pouch. The earpieces are placed in the center foam tray and the eartips are arranged up. The cable is separately included in the box. The pouch is of average quality which is like a normal velvet cloth.

The interesting thing is that BGVP used some kind of perfume to give that premium feel which I liked a lot. Even after keeping the box open for a long time the smell persisted for a long time too. A nice touch by BGVP!

 

 

BUILD AND DESIGN:

The DN3 is built very well where it is fully made out of CNC machined Aluminium and magnesium alloy. The matt finish texture in a grey coloured shell is very minimalistic and subtle to look at. The feel of the earpieces are extremely nice and fits very well in the ears. The cold touch due to that alloy finish is really good and the MMCX connectors are colour coded to avoid the confusion. The nozzle area has a nice lip area hence the eatips placements now feels even more secure and has a nice width of the nozzle. The nozzle has a metal mesh and looks neat.

The Faceplate looks neat and clean. The fake vent plate design gives a look of open back design and the BGVP logo on the right earpiece is very subtle. They feel very lightweight and one of the most comfortable iem around. The eartips selection is really great and one can easily find a good fit along with this.

The cable is the horrendous part here where it's an unbraided single rubbery cable! This cable looks cheap and feels cheap in my hands. The sticky nature of the cable made the cable to tangel very easily. The good thing about this cable is the Mic availability! Now you can take calls via this mic but if you need a premium feel then an upgrade cable is necessary.

 

 

SOUND:

The whole sound signature of the DN3 is more of a neutral sound. The bass, mids and the highs are pretty neutral with more of a mid focused sound. The treble roll off is seen but overall the sound signature is quite energetic in the upper midrange. It reminds of the Harman Tuned sound since the Upper midrange is boosted but let's see in depth of how this performs in each frequency.

TIPS USED: Bass tips inside the Box

Source: iPhone + Zorloo Ztella MQA + FiiO Q3
 

 

LOW END:

The low end of the DN3 is fine and average in my testing. The team quotes that they have used the Beryllium coated Dynamic Driver but for me the bass is just average. After a lot of controversies in the DN2 the company claims that they have used a legit Beryllium coated driver but still the bass feels average to me.

The bass is faster and cleaner and in that regard I should appreciate the BGVP since beryllium is known for that. The bass is very fast and very clean hence the detail and the resolution is above average. The separation is done well too with nice space in between the bass guitar strings. The spaciousness is very nice and feels nice and wide.

The sub bass has very subtle reverb and the sub bass rumble only strikes when the track calls upon. The mid bass body is lacking hence the bass sounds very much weightless and bodiless. The fullness to the track is missing hence they sound very lean and also clean.

The weight and the body is what lacking mostly during my listening. The rumble in the low end is also very subtle. Since the driver is very fast and clean they sound well separated and resolved in the low end. The texture in the low is just average. The graininess in the low end can be felt in most of the tracks thus it's one of the negatives to mention in this review.

Overall the low end is fast, clean, resolved but lacks in the Body, weight and in the texture.

Tracks Used:
 

1. Why Do We Fall – Hans Zimmer
2. Let’s Go – Jaxson Gamble
3. Royals – Lorde

 

MID RANGE:

The midrange is the star performer here. It’s very neat and clean. The compromising factor is that they sound very lean and dry. The midrange is not at all fuller and sounds very lean. The leanness thus provides that clean and detailed sound.

The acoustic guitar strings and the piano notes are very much audible and very detailed. The timbre is overall organic and natural. The drum hits are quite natural but sometimes they also appear slightly brighter.

The upper midrange emphasis might affect some sensitive listeners but for me this is not a big issue. This is kind of the usual tuning of the Harman which most of the people are not a big fan of but that upper mid emphasis made the details shine here. Due to this emphasis they sound very clear and brought out a lot of details and never reached the state of sibilance during my listening.

The male vocals are slightly distant while the female vocals sound very nice with a nice forward presentation. The female vocal also sounds slightly sharper in the upper end but that's not at all an issue for me since that helped in bringing out the details in the midrange. The instruments in the background are well separated and have a nice layering effect. The separation is done well and thus provides a nice sense of wide staging.

The coherency between the BA and the Dynamic Driver is average hence its not the smoothest transition i have ever seen. The tonality is quite natural and slightly brighter in some tracks.

Overall the midrange is quite spacious with nice separation and layering having a nice forward female vocal presentation also having a neutral to bright tonality.

Tracks Used:
 

1. Shape Of You – Ed Sheeran
2. Blank Space – Taylor Swift
3. Into the Deep Blue – Yanni

 

TREBLE:

The high end of the DN3 is quite good which is nothing bad in my opinion. The treble of course is not as extended as an all BA iem but this is really good for a hybrid pair. The upper midrange emphasis do meakes trouble in the lower treble region causing some slight harshness but even then this is not very uncomfortable. The hiss sounds are not that troublesome and sounds mostly pleasant to me. The airiness is good and the spaciousness is very much appreciable.

The texture and the separation in the upper treble region is where the DN3 lacks where the instruments are not that separated well in that area and the texture is slightly grainier. The overall tonality appears brighter to me but the listening experience was not harsh.

The cymbal strikes are quite natural and splashy. That slight splashiness in the cymbals might make you think slightly metallic but overall it's very good in this aspect too.

The electric guitar strings sound fine too but sometimes they appear too bright and not natural. As per the other instrument goes they sound fine and quite natural and this issue only pertains to the high hat instruments.

Tracks Used:
 

1. Move Your Body – Sia
2. You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift

 

TECHNICALITIES:

SOUNDSTAGE: The soundstage is pretty good here, having nice wideness. The depth and the height are pretty much average since the bass is not the deepest. The spatial positioning of the DN3 is represented very well with a nice sense of spaciousness.

IMAGING: The imaging is pretty good too since the bass is not that overpowering or impactful. The imaging is pretty clear and not hazy where the precise pointing of the instruments is possible and the transient response is above average. The transition of the instruments from one channel to the other is quite smooth and has no stutter or anything.

The layering is exceptionally done here combined with that spatial positioning is very pleasant to hear. The detail retrieval is above average but not the best. The separation and texture of the instruments are average too.

VERDICT:

DN3, the latest offering from the BGVP and a successor to the highly controversial product DN2 is worth it in my opinion. The overall sound signature is pretty neutral with brighter tonality. The bass is good with nice clean and well separated bass with that upper mid emphasized vocals and the airy and brighter treble. The soundstage is good, the imaging and the layering is done exceptionally well. The lacking aspects are the texture, resolution and a very bright tonality but as an overall package this sounds very good. The lean mids are not my taste too hence for my taste this would never suit me. The fullness in the midrange is lacking and the bass and the treble are not textured. The spatial positioning is really done well here and it's my most liked aspect here.

Overall if you like a brighter sound with very clean bass and the upper midrange, straight up vocal placement sound then the DN3 is the pair you need cause it's the one that can give you the CLEAN AND LEAN SOUND!

PROS AND CONS:

Pros:
 

1. Spatial Positioning and Layering
2. Neutral Sound Profile
3. Fast and Clean Bass
4. Build and Design

Cons:
 

1. Upper Midrange Emphasis
2. Brighter in Tonality
3. Not the Be Low End
4. Lacks the texture in Sound
5. Sticky Cable