BB1 - problem

[J Rathbone]

I started a recent thread “BB1 - is it for me?” asking various questions as “due diligence” and I received several detailed responses from forum members which helped me decide to buy.  

But I have a problem. Due to family circumstances I have not been able focus my attention on the BB1 as I had intended and I find that today is the last day to email Brennan for a money back return (it was delivered 9 Nov)  

Why am I doing this? This is what I emailed Brennan earlier today:  

“Sadly, I wish to return my “BB1” for the “30 day no quibble money back” refund guarantee. However, before I do so, I would like to ask one question: the Tone Presets do not work (there is no difference in sound whichever preset is selected) so is this because the Tone Preset function is not activated or is there a problem with my BB1? 

I have tested the tone presets extensively using all audio sources (radio, YouTube, CDs) and a variety of audio (classical and pop music, speech etc) and I can say that there is no difference in the sound whichever preset is selected. 

Please note that my BB1 was delivered 9 November so I need an answer today - 7 December - in order to cancel my purchase and get a refund under your terms.” 

In my earlier thread Paul kindly responded re my question about tone control:

“I would describe the sound from the BB1 as middle and top predominant, a little lacking in low end and not at all 'boomy' - this may be due to the small speakers and overall size of the case.  There are 'Tone Presets' rather than tone controls and these provide a reasonable range of settings.  I have tried listening to Radio 4 and find the speech very clear.”

Regrettably, the sound on my BB1 is not as described by Paul and I cannot tell which of the five Tone Presets my BB1 is using as listed in the menu (Normal, Flat, High, Loudness, Hilo) because whichever is selected there is no discernible change in sound. 

Please trust me, I have tested this in every way possible including “blind testing” - literally. I have closed my eyes and pressed and twiddled the knob to select each and every preset using all audio sources (radio, YouTube and CDs) and every kind of music and speech and there was no change in tone. 

Just to be sure, I videoed the entire test process on my iPad and watched it back to confirm the test had indeed been carried out.

Test result

Whichever Preset my BB1 is using (and there is no means of telling as explained above) the sound is bass heavy with much less emphasis on higher frequencies. On higher volumes, if you hold the BB1 you can feel the bass pulsing through the unit. 

As well as the high frequency response being very limited, it is also very directional - you must have the unit directly in front of you in order to hear speech sibilants. If you move your head to the side then the higher frequencies (what there are) drop of significantly.

This is not just a problem with speech but music also, especially “classical” music where the tone of instruments like violins and flutes is mostly in the higher range. Even with keyboard instruments (acoustic piano and pipe organ especially) that have a large frequency range, much of the “action” - and enjoyment - happens in the higher frequencies with the bass notes generally providing the accompaniment. So, as a musician myself, I feel very let down that the treble response is so poor.

My iPad 6 and a tiny Pure Move 400D, despite their small speakers, both reproduce very clear high frequencies even if I am moving around. Even though the iPad volume is low it reproduces the sound of acoustic instruments with remarkable fidelity due to its excellent high frequency response.

So what I need to know is whether there may be a fault with my unit or the Tone Presets have simply not been activated and, if the latter, what are Brennan’s intentions?

So far I have had no response to my email to Brennan. What should I do?

Thanks

Jim

[Rearwing]

Hi Jim, I think that I responded to your first post, if not I apologise; I think that you should return the unit for your refund. The BB1 is a useful addition to many peoples listening needs, but I don’t think that it will answer the issues that you first identified. I use mine when I am “on the road” as a portable radio/dap for use in hotel rooms (mainly to shut out extraneous noises), and as such the fidelity/tone/volume is not overly important as I listen via headphones. I would not have it as a sole listening unit as it is too small and lacking in power without connecting to an external DAC/Amplifier.

[J Rathbone]

Thanks for your input, Rearwing.

Sound volume is certainly not an issue for me especially for its small size which I like because of its portability, which you mention.

I do not want to reject the BB1 if I haven’t been able to properly assess its sound capabilities, and I can see no reason why a unit of this size should not be able to produce excellent sound at higher frequencies - my iPad and “pocket” Pure radio both prove this is perfectly possible..

So I really do want to “get to the bottom” of the Tone Presets issue and not just give up without settling the matter

Thanks

Jim

[Ian Voce]

I’ve never used the Tone Presets on my BB1 but your message has prompted me to try.

As I scroll through the 5 presets, I can definitely hear a difference. Initially I was picking one and pressing the control knob but I found I did not have to do that, just scrolling through them one by one I can definitely notice a change. I’m not saying it’s dramatic but there is a marked difference between them.

Actually I’m back to using Normal.

(For better stereo sound I always use an external Bluetooth Speaker, in my case a Denon one).

 

Regards 

[PMB]

Hi Jim,

I did reply to you via email yesterday as follow -

Firstly do not worry about the 30 day returns policy, you have reported this within the 30 days so we will honor it. This should give you time to sort out the sound settings.

The Tone Presets are active all of the time and do make differences to the sound but due to the limitations of the BB1 speakers you may not necessarily hear big changes.

Do you realise that you only have to highlight the setting - you do not have to press any buttons to activate the new setting? Just checking.

When changing the tone presets do you hear a difference in volume between the settings? I hear a big change between 'HiLo' (last option) and 'Normal' (first option) - also 'Normal' sounds quite bright to me and 'HiLo' is a lower volume and sounds muted -  please try this and let me know what you hear as this may not be working on your unit. You only have to highlight the setting, you do not have to press the control knob to select.

Paul

Brennan Support.