Bluedio U (UFO) PPS 8 Drivers Over-ear Bluetooth Wireless Headphone with Mic (Silver and Black)

Peddler

1000+ Head-Fier
Pros: Metal construction. Punchy sound.Good battery life. Solid Bluetooth connection. Good peripherals.
Cons: Slightly uncomfortable if you have big ears (like me). Benefits from a subtle eq boost in treble. Can get hot.
Bluedio kindly sent me their 8-driver UFO bluetooth headphones in red for review - and boy I’m glad they did.
 
Packaging
 
Like all of their higher priced bluetooth models, the UFO’s come supplied in some excellent packaging - the outer sleeve has illustrations and information on four sides showing the specifications and a blow-up dissection of the headphones showing the different drivers.
 
Opening up the impressively stiff magnetically held cardboard box reveals a rigid zippered headphone case and the instruction manuals are contained in a sleeve inside the lid. This is a really nice touch and something that other headphone manufacturers should consider offering by default.
 
Opening up the case reveals the headphones. Bluedio supplied me with the red versions and I think they look stunning. Bluedio also supplies a conventional headphone cable for wired use and a USB charging cable. These are held in a net bag inside the headphone case.
 
Build
 
The red version looks stunning. Easily as well made as Sony or Sennheiser in my opinion - and at a fraction of the price. They are constructed mostly of a titanium alloy which gives them significant solidity and weight. The earcups and headband have a nice amount of padding to them and the fit isn’t too tight. On the metal parts of the headphones the red has a glossy metallic look like you might find on a car - the vinyl/pleather parts have a more matte-like finish. I haven’t tried scratching them to see what would happen but no-doubt time will tell.
 
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The earpads are removable and you can see how the multiple drivers have been configured. I don’t think they have used memory foam for the padding but it’s quite soft and you can wear the headphones for several hours without fatigue. One earpad features the Micro USB connector whilst the other side has the 3.5mm socket for wired use. Five way controls are on the right and are push button rather than touch button. I personally prefer this because there is less chance of accidentally activating the controls when simply adjusting the headphones or picking them up. Luckily the buttons don’t rattle when moving around.
 
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For many headphones the weak points are the hinges where the headphones fold. Good news here is that they have used all metal and I’m confident that they will survive a lot of abuse. I shall be wearing these at work so time will tell on this as well.
 
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These are an extremely solid looking and great feeling pair of headphones and should last for a very long time, even under demanding conditions. I shall be wearing these at work.
 
Sound Quality
 
This is what it’s all about as far as I’m concerned. I can tolerate a slight level of discomfort if the sound quality is up to scratch but I really cannot tolerate poor sound quality - even if the headphones are the most comfortable in the world. The good news is that these sound pretty good - very very good in fact.  I’ve been reviewing several bluetooth headphones over the past few weeks - both in ear monitor types and on/over ear models. One thing they appear to have in common is that they are all orientated towards bass. The bass on these headphones is also solid and punchy but not to the point of overpowering the other frequencies.
 
The 50mm driver pushes the bass out hard and deep. At first listening there’s a bit of culture shock with these. I tend to listen to music at high-ish volumes and, without some EQ being applied. With many of the bluetooth headphones I have tried I have had to apply some EQ in order to tame the bass down somewhat, but with these the sound balance is just about right. The bass is still dominant but that’s kinda nice in moderation. The mids offer detail and the upper frequencies are not intense at all - no worries about listening fatigue with these.
 
One thing I did notice was details in recordings I thought I was familiar with - especially some of the older rock recordings from the likes of Yes, Supertramp, Pink Floyd and Queen. In fact, using these headphones to listen to the older stuff is an absolute joy. It’s almost like hearing them for the first time. I’ve just listened to ‘Time’ by Pink Floyd - when all the bells go off I didn’t feel I needed to pull the headphones off my head like I do with some of the others in my collection.
 
The bluetooth and amplification side of things is also superb. There’s no significant noise floor - it’s fair to say that any hiss you hear in your music will have been on the original recording. Bluetooth pairs well and offers a pretty good range (far better than what you typically experience when using bluetooth earbuds anyway) and the connection remains solid and skip-free right up to the point where you go out of range.
 
The wired connection works well and these headphones are nice and efficient. Even connected to my iPod Nano I could get very loud, quite satisfying volume levels. I couldn’t particularly hear any differences in quality between wired and wireless connections and it’s a nice touch to have this feature for use on non-bluetooth electronics or when your battery runs down.
 
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Conclusion
 
In case you haven’t guessed it, I absolutely love these headphones. Had I have purchased them I wouldn’t have been disappointed at all. They are comfortable, extremely well made and look good to boot. I think they represent excellent value for money and give the big boys like Sony, Sennheiser and Bose a definite run for their money. Whilst they don’t feature active noise cancelling, NFC or touch controls, they do definitely have what matters - good quality sound, good build quality and excellent value for money.  A clear and definite 5 stars.
 
I would like to thank Bluedio - especially Jasmine for their customer service. They are the perfect example of a company who puts the needs of their customers first.
 
Additional Observations after a few days solid usage.
 
Firstly the headphones appear to respond well to 'burn in'. I've noticed the bass has become slightly less dominant and the top end coming through a little clearer. These are not 'audiophile' headphones but rather designed for portable convenience but I have to say that I suspect that many 'audiophiles' would actually enjoy the experience of using these - especially will a little subtle eq changes here and there. They are fun but definitely show some details in the music. They are definitely not a bright headphone but I personally like a slightly 'darker' tone to my music. 
 
In the past when I have tended to focus on just one headphone for a while, I've noticed that when I go back to my Triple Fi's the shift in tone takes a little getting used to again. Strangely whilst the Bluedio's sound absolutely nothing like the Triple Fi's in tone, changing from one to the other isn't as much of a shock to my ears as it should be. I can't particularly explain it but one thing for sure, these headphones really do have a quality to them and shine with the right settings.  
 
One last observation. I've always found that 'portable' full sized headphones normally have a somewhat 'fragile' feel to them a I tend to not push them as hard as ones used for home listening but with these I'm happy to 'turn the wick up' and rock out with them. They can push a refreshing amount of volume out. Far more than you would normally get using a wired connection to a portable player.
 
Normally when I'm sent a free pair of headphones I tend to offer a favourable review - or at least try to highlight their positives out of a sense of duty but with these I am totally comfortable in recommending them to experienced headphone freaks like myself - can't really say fairer than that.
 
I only knocked half a star off because it would have been nice to have slightly larger earpads.


Bluedio Amazon Page

http://www.amazon.co.uk/shops/A1VFP8YF5XT3U8

Bluedio UFO Amazon Page

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00UZ3LGHS
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Pros: Bass. Bass. Bass. Great colour variety.
Cons: Bass is way over present and abundant for purists.
Bluedio U (UFO) Quick Review by mark2410
 
Thanks to Bluedio for the sample.
 
Full review here http://www.head-fi.org/t/813550/bluedio-u-ufo-review-by-mark2410
 
Price:  £125 or between US$150 and US$100 depending on colour.
 
Specification:  Bluetooth version: Bluetooth 4.1, Supported profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, HSP, HFP, Drivers: 50mm x 2 ; 20mm x 6, Impedance: 32Ω, SPL: 120 dB, Frequency response: 5Hz -25000Hz, Wireless range: 30ft (no obstructions), Music time: about 25hours, Charging time: 3 hours for full charge.
 
Accessories:  Case, micro USB charging cable and two 3.5mm male to 3.5mm male cables for wired use, one short and one long.
 
Build Quality:  Rather nice.  Time is the real test but there is plenty of metal used in their construction and the finish on them is likewise rather nice too.  Everything is smooth, tidy and neat.
 
Isolation:  So so, not bad but you know they are an on ear so they never get perfect seals.  They are okay to use out and about and probably for on a bus use too.  Flight and Tube commutes I would tend to skip though clearly much better than nothing.  As always they block enough out that if you don’t look where you’re going your get yourself run over.
 
Comfort/Fit:  Pretty good, like all on ears they get a bit wearing after a while you know like stretching your legs after not moving for a while.  My ears like having them removed after a bit and get that feeling of relief the same as with all on ears for me.
 
Aesthetics:  Naturally no matter what colour I pick I instantly wished I’d picked my second choice, lol.  I got the red and black but they come in whopping 10 options, the Gun Silver look great, as do the Black and Silver however if you want brighter they have a Purple, Blue and even a Gold.  Yes and even the pads are coloured.  So you should be able to pick what you like best and I think they look pretty damn good.  Well some do, that Gold, err not so much.
 
Sound:  Bass, bass, bass and then some more bass.  These are very much about the bass, there is loads of it and it dominates.  Despite the fact there are 4 drivers in each side the rest of the spectrum is over shadowed.  The mids do a pretty credible job of getting through in just the sort of way you want for mainstream pop.  The highs tough they are really quite muted.  Even in treble heavy tracks the treble is very tame in comparison.  The mids too are relatively lacking in abundance but the treble especially so.  These are all about producing a prolific quantity of bass that while not super agile, it’s got power.  A massive amount of power, a slightly diffuse initial impact but the follow through is vast.  So much power, so much weight and volume.
 
Value:  They seem to have a wide price variation but even at their max price at £125 (about US$162) they are still much cheaper than their aimed at competition, Beats.  Plus you get the added bonus of their being both Bluetooth and wired capable.
 
Pro’s:  Bass. Bass.  Bass.  Great colour variety.
 
Con’s:  Bass is way over present and abundant for purists.

Rob80b

Headphoneus Supremus
Pros: Bluetooth mobility with fairly good sound quality for all types of music, long battery life and no OCD with aftermarket cables.
Cons: Bit clunky when not on ones head, chrome is definitly a magnet for finger prints
Wireless headphones…bluetooth even…last time I tried anything wireless was my cordless phone and before that was probably back in the “70’s” with an "all in one headphone with FM/AM radio" ,
 
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anyway I was asked to possibly do a review on a pair of Bluedio UFO’s, of course... I was intrigued, they asked what color I’d like…I mentioned black or silver…they sent me chrome….ok..
 
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Now any other color may have come across more contemporary…for me the chrome were very reminiscent of something I remember from the “70s” and sure enough came across these. : )
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Wasn't planning on doing a review this soon after receiving them but being July 1st and Canada Day what else is one to do.
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Currently my residential home phones are a pair of Sennheiser HD800S’s and Audeze LCD2.2s so in another league all together along with their intended purposes…

the UFOs are to be compared to my portables, Chinese made DIY ie800s, Sennheiser Momentums in –ear and a pair of Senn Urbanites.

 
Regarding construction, manner of use and supplied accessories…check here…
https://www.amazon.com/Bluedio-UFO-Over-ear-Bluetooth-Headphone/product-reviews
there are a gazillion reviews on Amazon...305 to be exact as of this writing.
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 So what to me was an unknown entity is fairly well known amongst the “blueTooth” crowd, suffice to say there is a fair amount metal in the construction, does that make them more durable, only time will tell…had some HD580/600s that were all plastic and looked none the worst for wear after 10 years of use.
There are 4 drivers per side, the larger centered drive and 3 smaller units which are put to use when the phones are engaged in a pseudo surround mode which unfortunately is only available when using Bluetooth and not wired directly to an amp, so unable to try that out off my Bryston BHA-1 when watching the big screen…note they actually sounded better with their built in amplification or direct tethered off my iMac or ipod.
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Anyway I do diverge...needless to say for their intended purpose the UFOs are actually not bad, I quite enjoyed not being tethered while walking around my home or working in the shop, from my previous experience with lower budget Bluetooth phones these are rather a few notches up. If you’re into EDM the Bluedio’s have a fair amount of heft in the lower regions but does not override the music, obvious when listening to classical, jazz or non heavy base music although cellos do get an added oomph when called for…
Overall they do have a warmer character and with Bluetooth being a few notches below mp3s they’re not intended to pull out every bit of detail but do fairly well into that department while never being analytical.
While seated using some iMacs or being mobile with my iPod nano I swapped out the UFO with the Urbanites, their closest rivals on hand, both being on ear. The UFOs appeared to hold their own, while wireless or cabled, going a little deeper and louder with less distortion or grain and have the added benefit of being wireless.
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Comfort wise with long term listening I do find the pleather can get a little clammy in warmer weather but the overall comfort level is quite good considering their weight at 346 grams, almost a 3rd more than the Senns at 246grams, but not to forget they’re housing extra electronics and amplification.
So overall I enjoyed the UFOs but for completely different reasons than when critically listening to music with my HD800S’; being mobile and wireless added quite a different perspective while out and about or doing mundane household chores and with their rather warm character and forgiving nature long term listening just may be their forte, be it heavy base induced dance music or chilling out with a Bach quartet …
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Finally a note on looks....being chrome this pair needless to say are fingerprint magnets and maybe not my first choice in color…but while I was wearing them in my shop I did by chance ask the casual customer what they thought…nothing but positive comments.
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Product specs and Company Info
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/New-Bluedio-UFO-High-End-Bluetooth-headphones-headset-8-Tracks-3D-Sound-Effect-/162084348798?
 
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