[Arr6]

I recently picked up the new Montblanc smart headphones The purpose of these is mainly for travel and commute. My current rotation is the BW Px7 and Bose QC35 and wanted to try out something new. Cant help but feel disappointed with these. Maybe I expected more from the brand and cost. I think the build is great but the sound and interface is lacking. Being marketed for 'today's traveler' the soft pouch is a letdown over a nice hard shell or leather case. There is no app to mange and marketing talks about a proximity sensor that does not exist. I have had these for only a couple days and MB has a 14 day return window I'll have to decide soon if I will keep.

Has anyone else tried these?

edit: https://www.montblanc.com/en-us/col...1-smart-travel-over-ear-headphones-black.html

 

[Arr6]

Picture next to my current favorite

 

[JayF]

Mine arrived yesterday afternoon. I think my initial impressions are a bit more positive than yours despite the nonexistent app and proximity sensor at this point. I've read the app is due for release in April (who knows) and perhaps the proximity sensor will get activated within the app? Build quality is very nice although I'm not a fan of the silicon or whatever it is covering the exterior of the earpieces... seems like it will smudge easily. Comfort is excellent which is very important for me as most headphones create too much pressure on the top of my head.

Sound-wise I find their signature to be similar to a Master & Dynamic headphone. Soundstage is very nice and bass is there but not overpowering. I've been on quite a journey recently trying to find a BT headphone for travel and the office and my initial thoughts are that I'll keep it. My other current "keeper" is the Momentum 3 and I believe these two compliment each other nicely - Momentum more laid back whereas the Montblanc definitely livelier. I'd say the Momentum is slightly more comfortable to wear.

Others that I've had and moved on from include the M&D mw65 (liked the sound but painful to use if trying to walk), Sony xm3 (too muddy sounding), B&O h9 (sounded veiled, overpowering bass & headband not comfortable). Haven't owned the PX7 but it's not at all comfortable for me after just a few minutes in a store and I didn't care for its sound signature.

 

[Arr6]

I agree with the comfort on these and it is light despite the 'heavier' materials, very little plastic. An app to customize sound would definitely be a plus and if this can support 2 devices at a time like the PX7 I will switch over (band pressure is a negative for pX7) As for positives for MB, it does fold nicely and prefer buttons over touch control. Still have to test out call quality, if it is good I will keep it as all others have poor call sound.

edit: The headphones do connect to 2 devices at a time. It has the QCC5124 chip https://www.qualcomm.com/products/qcc5124

 

[alpha421]

Wow. A headphone to match my pens.

They look very, very similar to the Porsche Designs headphone.

 

[JayF]

The proximity sensor is there after all. To engage auto pause: press and hold the ANC and volume down buttons at the same time for 8 seconds. You'll hear a beep when it engages. There's about a two second delay for the pause after removing the headset when playing music.

 

[Infoseeker]

edit: The headphones do connect to 2 devices at a time. It has the QCC5124 chip https://www.qualcomm.com/products/qcc5124

So the same chip as the upcoming Panda headphone. So there should be more codec options covered by the Montblanc 1. But the advertising doesn't mention it.

 

[Arr6]

The proximity sensor is there after all. To engage auto pause: press and hold the ANC and volume down buttons at the same time for 8 seconds. You'll hear a beep when it engages. There's about a two second delay for the pause after removing the headset when playing music.

Thanks for that, it actually works. The issue I have now is I get random beeps while listening to music. When lowering or raising the volume its constantly beeps. Had to turn it off by repeating the steps.

 

[Arr6]

So the same chip as the upcoming Panda headphone. So there should be more codec options covered by the Montblanc 1. But the advertising doesn't mention it.

I would be curious to know who is managing the tech for MB, after all this is a new market for them.

 

[Infoseeker]

Any updates from owners? Any convenience issues?

 

[Infoseeker]

Just got to try these on the mall quickly.

COMFORT. These are probably the most comfortable portable headphones you can try. They fit similar to Bose 700, with a deep ear cup with plush foam.... But these ear cups are made of real leather that is very soft. The passive isolation on these is good even without the noise cancelation.

Headband is normal. No suspension system. It also has a very good amount of padding like the earcups.


Headphones fold into themselves fully for portable use; to quickly throw them into a bag.

The drivers inside of the cup are really nicely mounted and angled into the ear. So seems to be acoustically tuned and not dependent on the built-in DSP.

 

[Infoseeker]

Bass is pretty flat, or better worded subbass doesn't compete with the midbass, but has a low shelf emphasis. bass has good impact (but high volume).

Lower mids are a little warmr; I personally like extra slam to rock music drums.

Upper mids and lower treble get a small elevation. Not harman boost, but voices always stand out in the music (without being shouty). The pinna gain is definitely less than harman target.

Late treble, I don't trust my ears to evaluate these fairly. But it doesn't roll off, gets a representation without being harsh or being neglected. No metallic sound emphasis from a spike.

Black background with no treble spikes but still some air.
So nuetral non-metallic treble with little etch & little detail bite. Possibly too little bite
So overall less lower treble, but perfect higher last octave airy treble.


Using my phone to EQ the Bluetooth, they sound much better without anything clipping. I did not even need to setup a lower pregain. So pretty stable drivers. You want to EQ the pinna regions. Or since this is bluetooth with no extra power headroom, then better to lower everything else but the pinna region.

The original tuning, it isn't as intimate sounding as harman and gives a flat feeling all around.

The have a neutral to warm sound. There is no spikes anywhere that give a false sense of (painful) resolution.
Lower Mids are the focus. Treble is airy but not metallic.


This headphone is all about perfect tonality over technicalities. But it still has a good treble presentation. No "extra resolution" like from a V signature in the bass or treble.


No other bluetooth headphone in the market can manage this without being metallic if it has treble. Their treble will be having bad spikes that make things sound metallic and painful for long sessions. And you can raise the volume without the treble or bass becoming a bother to you.


The noise canceling is not lacking either.

 

[lawshredpower]

Hey,

I’ve tried this at an airport store thinking it would be just another gimmick but I was quite impressed by the sound! Features apart, I quite like the signature and I’m kinda of a sucker for the brand.

wonder if anyone compared them against the Shure Aonic 50. I’m torn between both. Thanks.

 

[Infoseeker]

I own these. They have bass and impact with good macro-details. Only is missing some extra emphasis in the treble compared to my flagship items Sony ier-z1r. They are more close to neutral than a dedicated warm sound.

They have great separation of instruments and voices. And they don't get convoluted.

It is pretty flat in terms of the contrast of its highest peak and its lowest point. No frequency response spikes anywhere that will create a false sense of resolution.

The headphones are seriously fun with no deal breaker problems.

 

[plakat]

I currently own the Aonic 50, which I'm very fond of,r rally good comfort and sound quality. Nevertheless the MB-01 tickles me... it looks quite nice and feedback so far seems to indicate a quite competent implementation. What I'm most interested in is the quality and reach of the bass: I like it clear, with a slight emphasis, and deep reaching... I hate boosted midbass and one-note bass that drowns out everything else. Smooth mids and detailed treble is nice and should be there, especially in this price range. I nowadays enjoy a more relaxed treble like with many Shure models (e.g. SE946).