Introduction to the Oriveti Dynabird Review
This was a big year, we reviewed many high-end headphones here at ear-fidelity, Paweł did update the Battle of the Flagships and I know we all love them and we all would like to have some of the stuff on our desks. In our audiophile world sooner or later everyone chases down the rabbit hole to find their holy grail of sound. But not everyone wants to spend 5-digit numbers on their gear just to enter the world of HiFidelity sound. Fortunately, every important manufacturer now produces some entry-level gear. Even though I now have a high-end setup including Meze Elite, Felix Euforia, or Fiio M15s on my desk, I still remember how a couple of years ago Audio Technica M50x plugged into SMSL M3 made me re-discover the music I thought I knew. That sub $150 setup has opened the gate to a completely new world of sound and sensations. That’s why today I want to review an IEM that can be an entry to the hobby that almost everyone can afford: a sub $100 Oriveti bleqk Dynabird.
The first thing I want to clarify is what hawk tuah bleqk means. It stands for Basic Line Exquisite Quality Kept and it’s an entry-level line name in the Oriveti lineup. In the next parts of the review, I will extensively investigate if these claims are true. But before this let’s stop for a moment to get familiar with Oriveti as a company. They showed up on the market some time ago, but they have already shown that they can do the stuff. Their earphones are like good German cars, you pay and you get what you’ve paid for. You shouldn’t expect fireworks, but the IEM does what it should. Some would say it’s boring. It’s great to have multiple options for different genres and situations, but if you want to have one IEM to use daily that’s what you’re looking for.
Packaging
The package of reviewed Oriveti bleqk Dynabird is neat and simple. I think that’s what you can expect from $100 headphones. The cardboard the earphones arrive in isn’t extraordinarily big or small. It’s rigid enough to survive a rough trip from the warehouse to your hands even if delivered by the worst courier company. I like that they didn’t use cheap plastic to keep the contents of the package inside. There is some precisely cut and folded cardboard you can put in a recycling bin. When we’re at the contents of the box, it’s probably worth mentioning that apart from the cardboard inside there are headphones, very well-made cable, a carrying case, and some silicone tips in multiple shapes and sizes, so you can easily pick the one that fits your ear canals perfectly.
Back to cable. There are plenty more expensive earphones that feature an OEM cable which is rubbish. Here we get a well-made cable. For the price, it looks very good and it’s comfortable. 2-pin connectors keep earpieces tight, so you don’t have to worry you will lose them when taking them off your ears in the street. In that price range, you shouldn’t expect too much, but the cable actually fulfills all your needs. It won’t be the first upgrade you will do in your setup after buying Oriveti Dynabird, that we review today, so you can save for a better source.
Design, Build and Comfort of reviewed Oriveti Dynabird
Let’s start this part with the design. The modern and sharp design of shells concerns me, because I love how it looks, but from my experience, the sharp edges can cause fatigue after some time. Apart from this dark grey anodized aluminum and the texture of the faceplates cause the earphones to look more expensive than they are.
In terms of the build quality, it’s just great the shells are CNC-milled from a block of aluminum alloy. The coating seems very scratch-resistant. The only issue is the structure of the faceplates. I’ve already mentioned – it looks great, but it catches a lot of dirt. That’s a tradeoff. But to be honest from time to time you need to clean nozzles and during the earphone care moment, you can also wipe the faceplates.
And the last thing, but certainly not the least is the comfort. I’ve mentioned that design concerns me because it can cause some issues. But I was so not right. The comfort is great. The shells are pretty small, so sharp edges don’t touch my ears. The earpieces are light as well, so it doesn’t cause any discomfort even during long listening sessions. I’m a fan of bigger IEMs made of resin, but the shape and materials of the tested Oriveti Dynabird make it very comfortable and give a premium feel.
Overall in terms of design, build quality, and design reviewed Oriveti Dynabird keeps exquisite quality in the entry-level price bracket.
Tech
Reviewed Oriveti bleqk Dynabird features a single dynamic driver and it’s hard to figure out something new since it’s just a membrane, a coil, and a magnet. But actually, you can play with that a lot. The membrane is coated with beryllium which is known for its exceptional rigidity and low mass. The manufacturer claims that this enables superior transient response and extended high-frequency reproduction. We will figure out if it’s true in the upcoming part about the sound.
When we’re discussing the drivers, let me refer to the specs. The earphones have a low impedance of 16 ohm and a high sensitivity of 105 db/mW. That means the earphones are easy to drive. But at the same time, it handles the background noise of the source pretty well. Reviewed Oriveti Dynabird isn’t a very source-demanding headphones.
Another quirky thing is the double chamber design. When you don’t have much place to play with acoustics, you need to do your best. Oriveti uses these multiple acoustic chambers to deliver sound that is both powerful and nuanced.
The last thing I want to mention is the tested Dynabird exclusively designed sound filter. Oriveti claims that they ‘precisely sculpt the audio output to their exacting standards”. That’s a lot of marketing BS, but what I care about is the look of the nozzles is so sexy. I wish every manufacturer paid so much attention to the details. Let me emphasize it once more, I love the look of the filters inside the nozzles.
Sound of the reviewed Oriveti Dynabird
Now it’s time for the most important part and the final exam of the statements claimed by Oriveti – the sound. It’s hard to find a single place where Dynabird shines, okay, maybe apart from dynamics. I think at this point it’s a bit easier to guess the origins of the Dynabird’s name.
Bass
The bass isn’t the most important part of the reviewed Oriveti Dynabird’s sound, but I need to start from something. I’ve already done it, but let me do this again, the lows of the Dynabird is like a gray Volkswagen Golf. Maybe it doesn’t arouse many emotions, but it’s reliable, safe, and gets the job done. Oriveti Dynabird does the same thing, it reproduces the bass. If you know a song, the reviewed earphones will reproduce it in exactly the same way. It won’t introduce any additional emotions, but if the bass will sound in places where it should sound it will be quiet where it should be quiet.
Kick drums in BIRDS OF A FEATHER by Billie Eilish are just on point. It doesn’t overwhelm the rest of the sound, but the punch is noticeable. Houdini by Dua Lipa is another good benchmark for bass speed and separation. There are plenty of headphones that can’t handle the bass line in the song and flood the vocal with the bass. Fortunately Dynabird’s low-end is crispy and well-controlled, so you can hear how well-produced the song is.
Midrange
The midrange is also very neutral, with good texture and separation. The instruments sound authentic. Maybe I wouldn’t take a guess which pickups are used in guitars in the recordings, but the Dynabird reproduces the instruments well. In some cases, the vocals are a bit dry, but that’s a common thing in affordable, good-sounding headphones. You can’t have everything for $100. Producers of more expensive earphones usually do some magic with the tuning, so the vocals sound more natural, with more breathing space and reverberation. Again, there’s everything that is expected in the song, but there is no eye-opener there.
In Slow Dancing in a Burning Room, John Mayer’s Stratocaster keeps having that iconic quacky sound. I sink into the song from the initial notes and a couple of minutes of the song passes in the blink of an eye. (I know, ackchyually John plays on PRS so it should be called an S-type guitar, but let’s hope Fender police won’t arrest me this time).
Unfortunately, the vocals aren’t as magical as the guitar. Matt Berninger’s vocal in Paul Is Alive by EL VY isn’t as engaging as I know it can be. But here I need to emphasize that it’s my nitpicking. First of all, I had to find some flaws and I finally found a thing I can roast a bit, And secondly, before reviewing Oriveti Dynabird I used to listen to that song with Meze Elite, so the bar has been set very high.
The last song I want to mention here is Chan Chan by Buena Vista Social Club. It has a high dynamic range, especially the first few strummings. But reviewed Oriveti Dynabird just blew my mind. I didn’t expect that cheap earphones to be able to reproduce the dynamics that well. I’m incredibly impressed at this point.
Treble
I need to write it once again, I’m impressed with how balanced the treble is in the Oriveti Dynabird. They manage to pack a lot of detail into the higher frequencies without ever sounding too harsh or tiring. This is particularly noticeable when listening to Garden Dog Barbeque by GoGo Penguin. The cymbals, although prominent, are toned down just enough to keep them from overwhelming the song. This slight muting of the treble is a clever choice. It makes the overall track much more enjoyable and easier on the ears.
By keeping the treble in check, these headphones ensure that all the subtle high-frequency details are there without the risk of fatigue after long listening sessions. This approach not only makes for comfortable listening but also means that you can enjoy music without any harshness in the sound. The high notes have just the right sparkle to them, making every listening session with the Oriveti Dynabird headphones a delight.
Soundstage
The soundstage of the tested Oriveti Dynabird is quite impressive in its width, yet it unexpectedly lacks a bit of depth. Usually, I use To Be by Your Side by Nick Cave as a benchmark because the song is excellently recorded with an immersive soundstage. However, when listening with the Dynabird, the lack of depth was somewhat confusing. I’m used to more expensive headphones that provide a more balanced soundstage in every direction. The width of the Dynabird’s soundstage is indeed incredible. Unfortunately, the depth isn’t as pronounced, which was a thing I had to get used to.
Luckily, the positioning and separation of sounds within this wide area are well-managed. Each instrument and voice is clear and distinct. This makes it easier to adjust to the unusual soundstage presentation of the Dynabird. Overall, while the depth may be limited, the broad soundstage and good separation make the sound very immersive.
Oriveti Dynabird vs. Oriveti Lowmaster
That’s a fratricidal duel or is it? Lowmaster is a bass-focused headphone and it’s priced at about $150. Does it mean that when buying Lowmaster we are getting 150% of Dynabird? Well, when comparing the number of drivers, in Lowmaster we’re getting 300% of Dynabird – WHAT A BARGAIN! Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that well, the number of drivers means nothing. Some manufacturers produced IEMs with multiple drivers, but some Redditors spotted that part of the drivers in these IEMs weren’t even soldered to the input. But back to the headphones. The philosophy behind the design of the compared headphones is completely different. The body of Dynabird is CNC drilled, whilst Lowmaster is 3D printed. They have completely different shapes, but For me, both are very comfortable.
In terms of the sound it’s the same case as in terms of the design. The Lowmaster as you could have guessed is low-end focused, while Dynabird is more balanced and the dynamics are the most important. The focus on the bass in Lowmaster doesn’t mean that the rest of the frequency range is forgotten, it’s just a more specialized earphone. I don’t want to write much about the sound of the Lowmaster, because you can read more about it in Mat’s review.
What I want to do is highlight that the Lowmaster isn’t a higher tier than the Dynabird, it’s just a different headphone. Depending on what you’re looking for you can go for a more universal and cheaper Dynabird. On the other hand, if you’re kinda basshead, or you’re looking for a headphone dedicated to music where the low-end is important, then you need to save some extra money. But no matter what you’ll choose, I think both bleqk line representants will be a good choice.
Oriveti Dynabird review – Summary
For me, Oriveti Dynabird keeps the exquisite quality in the basic line. It’s a balanced, neutral-sounding headphone, great as a first step in the audiophile world. For me, the Dynabird delivers sound that a couple of years ago was available only in much, much more expensive IEMs. It’s great to see how the market of high-quality earphones grows and evolves becoming more accessible for everyone.
If you’re starting your journey in the IEM world, I highly recommend you try Oriveti Dynabird. However, I’m not sure if it’s a good pick if you already have a collection of headphones. In that case, I would consider models from the Oriveti OH lineup, because there you will find more sophisticated designs and more specialized sound.
Big thanks to Olivetti for providing us with the Dynabird for this review. I wasn’t paid or asked to say anything good or bad about this product, all of the above is just my personal, unbiased opinion.
I’m a 24 years old software engineer, but also coffee, wine, and audio gear freak based in Cracow, Poland. I like to get lost in the city, but I hate getting lost while reading pompous audio reviews. My goal is to provide simple and informative reviews that I hope will help you to find your way around the rabbit hole.
