IKKO, a well-established Chinese brand, is highly regarded among audiophiles. Their OH10 IEM has revolutionized bass frequency and gained significant popularity. Despite having a limited product range, every offering from IKKO receives an exceptional consumer response. Renowned for their craftsmanship and value, IKKO ensures premium quality in materials and product delivery. They have recently introduced the innovative Breezy IT01 to the market. In this review, we will assess its uniqueness and how it stands out among competitors.
SPECIFICATIONS:
>Latest Bluetooth V5.3 connectivity.
>Bone conduction sound driver.
>Directional sound transmission.
> IPX6 waterproof rating.
>Dual operating modes, Game & Music.
>Standby time: >30 Hours.
>Battery life: up to 6.5Hours.
>Charging time: ≤2H.
>Charging dock: 350mAh, adds up to 10 hours of battery life
Table of Contents
DESIGN:
The product stands out in terms of design, distinct from others in the market. While ChiFi typically focuses on in-ear designs, Ikko presents an intriguing aspect with their zero isolation open-back design. However, when it comes to the pure sound experience, they fall short.
Constructed entirely from CNC aluminum, the product’s non-adjustable headband is disappointing. The oval-shaped earpieces feature a single multifunction button on each side, accompanied by light indicators to display the status. The earpieces’ sides house the speaker grills.
The inner aspect of the earpiece incorporates a bone conduction system, delivering a pleasant tickling sensation. The ear hook side is made of rubberized material for optimal comfort.
SOUND:
The Breezy’s sound profile leans towards natural, with neutral midrange, smooth treble, and a slightly accentuated bass. In essence, it delivers a balanced sound. Initially skeptical due to the zero isolation design, I was pleasantly surprised by the above-average sound quality produced by these small open earbuds. Although certain aspects could be improved, I hope future models will address them for an even better sound response. Let’s delve into the sound in the following sections for a detailed analysis.
BASS:
Considering the design it adopts, I definitely thought that the bass is the first thing that this Breezy is going to get lost on the track but surprisingly the bass here is above average. Even though they don’t compete with that of the complete in ear design bass, still the response here is very good. That added Bone Conduction system tickles your ear ossicles whenever the bass drops get lower giving that nice satisfying subtle vibrations in the ears.
When coming to the frequency response, the sub bass here is pretty great when compared to the mid bass section. The sub bass reach is good providing some nice rumble even though they are not that bass head level since the design it adopts is the culprit here. The mid bass section is good too but it’s more on the lighter side thus providing more details over the quantity. The slam and the attack gets missed out while the separation, clarity and control in the bass section is preserved.
Overall the bass here is good but it can be even better if the design has been improved. The headband here is non adjustable hence the earpiece area doesn’t get settled comfortably in the desired position thus the sound response varies. In stock it has a cleaner, controlled, well separated bass response with adequate sub bass presence which is great considering its zero isolation design but it could have been better if the headband was adjustable which would definitely improve the overall sound out of it.
MID RANGE:
The Breezy’s midrange exhibits a pleasing neutral character, emphasizing rich vocals and offering a laidback presentation due to its open-back design. The overall tonality is neutral with a subtle warmth. Instruments possess a slightly brighter timbre, contributing to a rich overall sensation.
The vocals, with their laidback quality, create a spacious stage for the presentation. Both male and female vocals sound natural and engaging, showcasing a rich tonal quality. Background instruments are reproduced with excellent separation and tone. Piano notes and kick drums have a pleasing tone, though their attack could benefit from design improvements discussed earlier.
Layering and imaging perform above average, aided by the larger staging. Technical difficulties are minimal, and the midrange excels in neutral response, spacious staging, improved separation, and pleasing upper mid section. However, the lower mid section feels somewhat thin due to the relaxed mid-bass response, which is a drawback in this range.
TREBLE:
Treble feels it has been tuned on the safer side with a very pleasing listen. The extension is good but definitely not the best when compared to that of the in ear designs. The detail retrieval from the treble section is above average and the overall presentation feels a bit brighter. The cymbal crashes and the trumpets do sound slightly brighter and it may be due to that zero isolation.
The separation and the clarity in the treble section is very good since the space and the air available here is on the bigger side. No sorts of noticeable congestion are seen around hence the overall presentation felt much grandeur. The tone in the treble section feels brighter thus giving that splash and shimmer on the top end. The sibilance is kept under control and even during the prolonged listening the treble never felt harsh or unlistenable.
Overall the treble section has been tuned pleasingly with above average detail presence, clarity rich and smoother presentation. The treble section is rich enough in terms of tone and engaging factor and if the fit was better the sound could have been even better.
TECHNICALITIES:
STAGING: It’s pretty big in the Breezy where both in terms of width and height they feel big enough. The whole presentation felt nice and big where the laidback presentation helped in the bigger stage presence. Due to this bigger staging the whole separation and clarity aspect felt much improved and better.
IMAGING AND LAYERING: These aspects do sound better in the Breezy. The instruments are placed at a precise position while even the transitioning from one instrument to the other felt pretty smooth. The complex tracks are replayed out well too without any noticeable constriction.
The detail retrieval and the track separation felt pretty neat and clean and above average considering the design aspect that it accommodated.
CHARGING AND BLUETOOTH:
The earphones are charged via a provided dock which will give the battery life of 6.5 hrs and along with the dock the usage hours gets improved to 10 hours.
The Bluetooth version they have used here is the 5.3 hence the connection speed and the stability pretty much feels improved over the previous versions.
It’s IPX6 water resistant hence it can easily survive from the water splashes and the sweats that you get out of your gym sessions.
There is no app for configuring the controls or adjusting the settings hence the stock option sound is the only way to use them.
The mics are pretty good enough indoors and do struggle a bit in the noisy surroundings and that’s the case with most of the budget oriented Bluetooth earphones.
VERDICT:
The Breezy ITG01, IKKO’s latest offering, introduces innovative features such as bone conduction and open-back design, resulting in versatile and practical usage.
With its bone conduction coil and directional vocal technology, the Breezy provides a unique, open sound experience for users accustomed to in-ear designs. Its standout feature is the highly versatile design, where the earpieces sit near the ear without entering the ear canal. Supported by a metal headband, the design offers practicality. However, the fixed headband affects the fit negatively. The earpiece features a small opening for sound delivery, accompanied by the bone conduction system near the speaker, providing a delightful tickling sensation.
The overall sound signature is neutral, with a notable emphasis on vocals. The bass is relatively weaker but maintains above-average quality over quantity, considering the design approach. The midrange leans towards neutrality, while the tone exhibits a pleasant warmth and a pleasing upper mid section. The treble section is smooth yet detailed, displaying brilliance in the higher frequencies. The staging is superior, enhanced by the laidback presentation, and technical aspects like imaging and layering perform well.
Overall, the Breezy IT01 is a thoughtfully designed product with good sound quality. However, improvements could have been made in the execution of the design, particularly the non-adjustable headband, which limits its universal fit. While it offers a new and distinct experience among the crowded market, clearer positioning could have been achieved with better execution.
PROS AND CONS:
Pros:
- Bone Conduction (Unique Tech)
- Neutral Midrange and Vocals
- Bigger Stage Presence
- Richer Treble
Cons:
- Weaker Bass
- Poor Fit
This Review is Written By KATHIRAVAN.C
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I’m Kathiravan from Tamilnadu. A budding audiophile here with high love towards music and audio equipment. My first experience of enjoying the hifi audio came when I started to use budget chi-fi gears and now it came all along the way of reviewing the gears with high end stuffs. I love reviewing audio products.
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Shubham Garg (Editor Shubz.in) is an engineer with a specialization in Mechanical Engineering from AKTU, Uttar Pradesh. Being a mechanical engineer he has always loved to learn the inner working of various machines and consumer electronics. He regularly tests various audio, home appliances, and daily use products, to provide the best advice to readers. He is a wizard that can make your shopping easy, saving you time and stress of figuring out what to buy.
