Campfire Audio Alien Brain Review: The Final Word

I like Campfire Audio — their products, their people, but also their vision. Bland is a word not known at their Portland HQ (though, Portland might not know it on the whole), and the Alien Brain is the personification of that core principle. This IEM might look a little odd, but it’s actually the most accessible IEM in their lineup, sound-wise. If you can tolerate its Portlandian styling, there’s a swath of sonic appeal within. I actually bought this IEM for my “normie” wife and her tiny ears, and even she loves it. Let’s get into what makes this IEM so special for discerning audiophiles and regular folks alike.

The Alien Brain can purchased directly from Campfire Audio for $999, here.

About My Preferences: This review is a subjective assessment and is therefore tinged by my personal preferences. While I try to mitigate this as much as possible during my review process, I’d be lying if I said my biases are completely erased. So for you, my readers, keep this in mind:

• My ideal sound signature would be one with competent sub-bass, a textured mid-bass, a slightly warm midrange, and an extended treble.
• I have mild treble sensitivity.

Testing equipment and standards can be found here.

The Big Picture

Pros:

• Well-executed V-shaped sound signature
• Strong technical capabilities
• Transparent tonality with natural timbre
• Premium accessory package
• USB-C dongle in the box
• Compatible with small ears

Cons:

• Foam eartips are too stiff
• Odd styling
• USB-C DAC is too loud and requires pre-amp volume reduction
• Somewhat lacking in rumble for electronic genres
• Nozzles too short form comfort

Tech Specs

• Drivers: 1x dynamic, 4x balanced-armature
• Impedance: 7.8Ω
• Sensitivity — 8.97 mVrms
• Cable: MMCX w/ 3.5mm, MMCX w/ 4.4mm

Sound Signature

The Alien Brain has a generous V-shaped sound signature. Many of Campfire Audio’s IEMs feature uncommon or non-standard tuning choices, but the Alien Brain is actually quite sonically accessible. It has emphasized sub-bass, punchy mid-bass, clean and transparent mids, and lifted treble. Its upper-treble carries out well into the 20KHz range and maintains a strong sense of resolution and extension throughout.

The Alien Brain’s treble is bright and energetic, but not sharp nor overbearing. Its upper-treble is thoughtfully tuned with subtle dips and peaks to imbue a little sparkle and air into the upper-register, a tactic that pays off in spades on Rock and Alternative tracks. The somber and spacious ballad of Summertime Voodoo; Highly Suspect leverages this spacious and pristine presentation to great effect, echoing and fading out high-hats and cymbals with ease.

The gritty and weighty drop-D electric guitars in Silversun Pickup’s There’s No Secrets This Year demonstrate formidable amounts of body and simply ooze texture. The Alien Brain’s perfect balance of warmth and transparency allows it to immerse listeners in an organic, but highly-technical, experience. Swapping to a much lighter and leaner track, like Welcome Home Son; Radical Face, reveals the Alien Brain’s immense capacity for layering and staging. Its broad and airy sound-stage makes for a dynamic and engaging experience, especially when paired with its propensity for capturing detail and vocal nuance. Testing the Alien Brain against vocal-heavy tracks like Bohemian Rhapsody; Queen illustrate its skill well: layers of distinct voices, each with independent timbres and inflection, wash over the listener. The track’s harmonies play off the drivers with clarity and precision — not with intensity and haste. The difference here is key; some IEMs “fake” their detail by artificially boosting this part of the midrange, but the Alien Brain simply doesn’t need to. It has plenty of innate resolution as a consequence of skillful design and thoughtful tuning.

The Alien Brain’s bass is tight, well-controlled, and punchy. Its sub-bass is well-extended and capable. I was particularly captivated by the depth and breadth of the massive drum slams during the intro of Perfect Life by Red. The Alien Brain popped them into existence with authority, then voraciously captured their entire fade-outs. This particular segment of the track is also fairly sound-stage intensive, drawing out a variety of subtle placements across a wide and layered sound-stage. The Alien Brain handles these demands nicely and with precision. Breaking out electronic tracks like Timestretch; Bassnectar or Lights (Bassnectar Remix); Ellie Goulding makes me want to crank the volume up — both because those songs absolutely slap and because the Alien Brain doesn’t rumble as much as I’d like at my normal listening volumes. While not every electronic song requires upping the volume, it’s common-enough an occurrence for me to notice during casual listening.

Packaging / Unboxing

Build

The Alien Brain certainly looks… unique. This IEM is a major departure from Campfire Audio’s usual design language, and a polarizing one at that. Its shells are constructed from PVD stainless steel and feature stylized transparent faceplates. The underlying construction techniques are similar to the Fathom and its siblings, though it may not be obvious at first glance.

Campfire Audio went with MMCX for this IEM. Their implementation is excellent, and may be among the best in the business. There’s zero wiggle or looseness on my unit, nor is there on any of my other CFA IEMs.

The Alien Brain’s cables are standard Timestream, coming in 3.5mm and 4.4mm flavors. It also comes with a USB-C -> 3.5mm dongle. These basic Timestream cables aren’t as nice in the hand as their Timestream Metal counterparts (found on IEMs like the Cascara Achromatic and Astrolith), which is shame considering the Alien Brain’s substantial price tag. Comparison aside, the standard Timestream cables remain lightweight, ergonomic, and microphonic-free. They’re really easy to coil, which is a big plus when trying to store them in tight cases (and the stock case is tight).

The Alien Brain’s dongle performs well and has plenty of power, but isn’t configured optimally for use on Android devices. Even at the lowest possible volume setting on my Pixel 10, the Alien Brain with its USB-C dongle was uncomfortably loud. I tend to listen at quieter volumes, on account of my tinnitus, so this might be a “me-problem”. That said, I was able to resolve my issue by slapping a -10dB reduction on my music player (AIMP)’s pre-amp setting to wrangle the Alien Brain back into listenable volume ranges. Windows 10/11 devices were less affected, though still on the louder side.

Comfort

Comfort is a metric that relies heavily on factors influenced by your individual ear anatomy. Mileage will vary.

I found the Alien Brain to be of average comfort. It isn’t particularly light, which makes sense given its metal shells and driver-count. I was able to get over two consecutive hours of comfort before I took a break to rest my eardrums. My wife’s tiny, tiny ears can actually manage the Alien Brain, which is nice, and she is able to get about an hour of comfortable use before needing to take a break. Note that those with smaller ears will have better luck using a cable without ear guides, such as the Smokey Litz XL or Time Link if you’re trying to stay in-house.

Accessories

Inside the box, you’ll find:

• 1x 3.5mm Timestream cable
• 1x 4.4mm Timestream cable
• 1x USB-C DAC
• 1x Semi-hard carrying case
• 1x Breezy Bag Micro
• 3x Pairs foam eartips
• 3x Pairs standard silicone eartips
• 3x Pairs “High and Clear” silicone eartips
• 1x IEM cleaning tool

This is a solid accessory package. The Alien Brain’s case actually fits the IEM, even when stored in the Breezy Bag Jr. There’s enough space for the USB-C dongle, which is a major plus for those who use phone’s without a 3.5mm jack. The stock eartips aren’t bad at all, especially the High and Clear silicone eartips. They’re often my go-to’s, even on non-Campfire IEMs, along side Plussound Hybrid and Comply foam eartips. I tried to use the included “Marshmallow” foam eartips but find them to be too stiff for comfort.

Comparisons

Comparisons are selected solely based on what I think is interesting. If you would like me to add more comparisons, feel free to make a request in the comments below!

EarAcoustic Audio VSA-PM

The VSA-PM is a V-shaped planar IEM coming in at around $850. It has a lighter, less-intense lower-register and punches with a little less weight. Its sub-bass is similarly-well-extended as the Alien Brain’s, but rolls off a little harder below 50Hz. The VSA-PM’s treble is brighter across the board, allowing it pull out upper-treble textures a little easier. The Alien Brain’s midrange is warmer, making it better-suited to organically capturing male vocals and bass guitars. Both IEMs have cohesive sound and timbre, though I’m partial towards the Alien Brain’s dynamic-driver-based sonic profile.

The VSA-PM features a single bespoke 4.4mm cable, versus the Alien Brain’s two discrete Timestream cables. The VSA-PM’s cable feels more-premium in the hand, but is less ergonomic thanks to its increased weight. The VSA-PM also lacks the Alien Brain’s USB-C termination, though the $150 gap between the two IEMs leaves plenty of budget to pick one up if necessary. The Alien Brain’s eartips selection is much, much better, but again, the lower price-point for the VSA-PM means you could pick up Comply, Plussound Hybrid, Spinfits, or whatever suites your fancy and have cash to spare.

Both IEMs are phenomenal performers, so it’s difficult to pick an outright winner. If I were to travel, I’d probably pick the Alien Brain, on account of its lighter shells, smaller footprint, and increased bass response. But, if I were taking a nap or sitting down to focus on a programming project, I could absolutely see myself drifting towards the VSA-PM and its profoundly smooth-and-detailed treble.

Campfire Audio Cascara

The Cascara is a midrange single dynamic-driver IEM from Campfire Audio. It runs between $499 and $699, depending on which accessory package you go with. All versions sound exactly the same.

The Cascara is a more V-shaped IEM with much-more pronounced bass response. Its mid-bass, in particular, is more forward. The Cascara’s midrange is comparatively-recessed, and its treble isn’t as forward-sounding across the board. The Cascara has a little bit of graininess in its treble that the Alien Brain does not. The Alien Brain’s midrange is cooler and less-recessed, allowing it to more-freely stage layers of vocals and ultra-fine instrumental textures. The Cascara is certainly performant for a single dynamic driver, but its limitations are easier to spot when A/B comparing it to the Alien Brain, especially in the lower-midrange and upper-treble.

That said, there’s a sense of irresponsible fun that the Cascara’s lower-mids and bass portray that the Alien Brain misses out on. The build-up in No Idea (Crank Dat Remix); Don Toliver is more visceral on the Cascara. The Alien Brain also punches and rumbles, but does so with less enthusiasm. And, aside from price, I think that’s the biggest point of difference between these two IEMs. The Alien Brain is organic, cohesive, and technically competent, making it very flexible across a variety of genres and “bands of preference”. The Cascara, on the other hand, will better-please those who want bass-first, weighty, and warm presentations and don’t mind the mess. Between the two, I find myself reaching for the Alien Brain more often for casual listening. When I’m in the mood for Flux Pavilion or Crypto’s filthy bass drops, I do, admittedly, find the Cascara calling my name like the Green Goblin mask — and that’s gotta be worth something, at least.

Xenns Mangird Tea Pro

The Tea Pro is a $359 hybrid IEM that sound like a more-exaggerated Alien Brain. It has a bit brighter treble, slightly cooler lower-midrange, and bigger bass response. It isn’t that much bassier, but has enough of an increase in mid and sub-bass response to be a little more engaging in electronic genres. In Skrillex’s Rock and Roll (Will Take You To The Mountain), the Tea Pro punched and rumbled a bit harder, but missed a few of the subtle mid-bass textures that the Alien Brain was able to capture. The Tea Pro’s brighter treble response and more-dramatic upper-midrange spike make it place vocals further forward in the mix than the Alien Brain — which works well for surfacing details, but sacrifices a bit of cohesion and tonality. It also means that the Tea Pro is more-tiring to listen to at higher volumes or over extended periods of time.

The Alien Brain mixes the sound-stage more-evenly. Its discretion allows it to operate on a wider and more-dynamic sound stage — a trait that’s more-obvious on tracks like M83’s Midnight City and the aforementioned Welcome Home Son; Radical Face. This increased sense of space and presence, combined with the Alien Brain’s outstandingly-organic timbre, is a stark contrast to the cold and exaggerated nature of the Tea Pro’s deeper V-shaped frequency response.

Honestly, this comparison was just to give owners of the Tea Pro a point of reference when deciding whether or not to upgrade to the Alien Brain. The comparison isn’t exactly fair, given the massive difference in price point, but does illustrate two points:

• The Tea Pro remains a solid choice in terms of price-to-performance and overall value, even when compared to more-expensive options.
• The Alien Brain possesses a demonstrable increase in refinement over its cheaper competitors.

If you’re in the market for a high-end V-shaped IEM, the Alien Brain is the more compelling IEM, both in terms of tone and performance. If you’re trying to maximize value-per-dollar, go with the Tea Pro as it’s still one of the best V-shaped IEMs on the market.

Conclusion

The Alien Brain is an incredible, but odd-looking, V-shaped IEM. It toes the line between fun and technical with finesse. Its accessory package is strong, as its construction and warranty. The Alien Brain is therefore well-suited for both critical and casual listening for its target audience, assuming you can swallow its steep $1000 price point. There’s not many other IEMs out there, even in this segment, that deliver as robust and enjoyable of a V-shaped experience, so I highly recommend my premium-oriented readers to give it a shot.

Who This is For

• V-shaped sound lovers
• Those looking to maximize technical capabilities without sacrificing casual listenability
• Those sensitive to midrange coloration
• Buyers who want a flexible, premium, “one-and-done” IEM

Who This isn’t For

• Those seeking reference sound
• Bassheads
• Buyers seeking maximum price-to-performance
• EDM enthusiasts

As always, happy listening!