M&O MOOH-BE00BT
Disclaimer: This is a review unit from Tom Wang from M&O Electronics, thank you.
This review is over the Beryllium Acoustic Bluetooth Headphone from M&O, also known as the M&O MOOH-BE00BT. This is my first review of a headphone with wireless capabilities, so this review will have a wireless/portability section added to it that I don't normally do.
These headphones have actually quite surprised me, they sound better than their price suggests and their extra fuctionality as a bluetooth headphone makes it even more impressive considering the price of these headphones which is $130. Actually they sound great, much better than I actually expected. First things first, let's go over the accessories, build, portability, and comfort of the headphone. These are similar to the RBH HP-2, but have been told they use a newer version of the beryllium-coated driver and some dampening changes, so technically these actually seem to be the better headphones. I haven't heard the RBH HP-2 so I can't comment on how they sound in direct comparison other than other peoples impressions are that they are very similar with the M&O being a bit smoother and more even.
*Note: Most of my impressions are based on the bluetooth via iPhone 7, I used wired very little on the headphone.
Accessories:
The M&O Berylllium Acoustic headphone comes with a hard shell carrying case to hold and contain the headphone and the cables. The headphone comes with an USB charging cable for the built in battery and a 3.5 to 3.5 cable for wired listening on the M&O headphone. The headphone cable isn't anything special as the focus of this headphone appears to be wireless listening. Upgrade cables are very easy to find as it's a very common type of cable and the connector is flush on the left earcup meaning any 3.5mm to 3.5mm can be used on this headphone.
Build/Comfort:
The build of this headphone is pretty good overall, the hinges and adjustment mechanisms are flush and move smoothly with no looseness, when it's adjusted it stays in place. There is some minor creaking with the headphone at times. The plastics used on the earcups do feel a bit on the cheaper side. The headband actually feels quite nice and the padding and padding material is nice. The earcups are soft and plush and seem of pretty good quality, the interior foam could be a bit denser but I have no comfort issues with the pads. The earcups do lay flat, but I do find you can only turn the cups only so much the other direction. The earcups have a metal finish with three little vents on the buttom of the metal plate on the earcups which works as a bass port, covering some or all of these will affect the sound. The wired connection is on the left earcup of the headphone, while the charging port and bluetooth buttons is on the right earcup. The earpads are easy to remove, though putting them back on can be a little bit of a challenge as you have to slowly feed the lip of the earpad into the groove. All in all build quality is on the good side and the headphone is well put together.
Comfort wise, I find the clamp slight on the strong side, not as strong as say the HD 6xx family and the pads are soft and plush and fairly deep with a nicely padded headband. The pads may be a little shallow as some people I know with ears that stick out a lot had minor gripes about, but the earpads are replaceable, so pad rolling may be in order for people with bigger ears. Overall I found the headphone very comfortable and easily wearable for hours, they don't seem to create any hot spots, there is a little bit of stuffiness but that's the norm for closed-backs with pleather earpads.
Portability/Wireless:
This headphone is not active noise-cancelling, any noise cancelling is passive from the headphone from being closed. These are the first wireless headphone I've ever had in my possession, so I can't comment on how the wireless connectivity compares to others in the market. The headphone uses a Qualcomm CSR8645 chipset and supports Bluetooth 4.0 and aptX. Sadly was only able to test out Bluetooth as none of my devices supported aptX as I am an Apple iPhone 7 user. Batter life is rated at 32 hours and my own testing has shown this figure to be accurate, I usually got a week without having to charge the headphone again as I use both wireless and wired. I have used the wireless functionality on this headphone more than wired. The headphone can be used both wired or wireless when it is being charged and the headphone can be used wired without any charge. When the headphone is charging a red indicater light comes on and it charges via a USB to USB Micro port in the right ear-cup. To turn on the wireless on the headphone, you press and hold the Play/Pause button on the right earcup until a blue light comes on and it will beep. To connect to the device you go to bluetooth settings on the device your using and look for MOOH-BE00BT and connect to that and the headphone will make an indication noise it's connect. The other two buttons on the right earcup are for volume control. Isolation of these headphones is about average for a closed-headphone.
The built in microphone for making calls, I found wasn't very good quality on my iphone, I don't know if it's because of bluetooth and lack of aptX or not. I found the range to be pretty good and I didn't have many problems with drop outs on my iPhone 7 when walking around while listening to the headphone. Portability gets an overall high rating for me. Sound quality on bluetooth is actually excellent, it has a lot of depth and sound very pleasing, I was satisfied with what I heard even with my rather picky ears. Compared to wired, there is a little bit of compression, but nothing bothersome in my ears.
Sound Quality:
Now to the section most people will be curious about, how do these headphones sound. To put simply very good with a warm tilt and a low-end emphasis compared to most headphones. The headphone manages to have very impressive bass without it bleeding into the mids and without any muffling to the sound, the sound is always clear and defined and the midrange is present. Overall the sound is well-balanced with a slight U-shape curve.
Soundstage, Imaging, and Detail:
The soundstage on the M&O is on the intimate side, largely due to the closed-back nature of the headphone, everything within the stage is well placed and clearly defined. The imaging is where I find is one of the aspects where this headphone shines, the image is very defined and there is a lack of a blur around the image, this renders the vocals and instruments to have a very pleasing depth to them that most headphones seem to struggle with, wasn't expecting such good imaging in this price range. The headphone also has a very black background and this makes the image pop out more and helps the depth of sound more. It's not going to have the same sense of scale as say an open-headphone but I don't find this headphone lacking in this area at all, it sounds natural here and doesn't give much of a closed-back effect soundwise, there is a slight closed-back effect but it's mild, it's better than the Sony MDR-1A and both Meze 99 headphones in terms of imaging. Since this headphone had proper depth to the sound, it took me a little longer than normal to analyze it.
In terms of detail, this headphone punches above it's weight, it has plenty of detail and it articulates both macro and micro dynamics with ease, it easily holds up to more expensive headphones in this aspect.
I have not tested the headphone on higher end gear much, I am unsure of how well this headphone scales up. But on portable devices and on wireless it sounds fantastic.
Speed, Dynamics, and Tonality:
This headphone is actually fast even compared to many headphones upwards to $300-500 range, I can't really get this headphone muddled or confused, this tells me this headphone is on the fast side with a very good transient response. The decay of this headphone is on the quick side. The entire sound range has excellent dynamics and plenty of body, this is not a thin sounding headphone by any stretch of the imagination, it's very much on the full-bodied side, especially due to that deep reaching and powerful bass response. Tonally, these headphones sound natural and don't sound artificial at all. There isn't really any notable tonal offness/off-pitchness going on as say in the Sony MDR-1A a headphone I also own. The tonality is more akin to what I'm used to in Beyerdynamics and nicer Sennheisers, which means it's very good. The sound on the M&O is also very addicting and has this subtle sweetness to the sound I find quite addicting. This is a very easy headphone for me to like. I'm a very tonally and musicality oriented person audio wise, outside of fatigue that's what I focus on the most at first. This headphone is neither dry or what I consider wet/fluid, it sits in-between.
Bass:
Now let's talk about the bass on this headphone. No need to hide this, this headphone packs a punch. The bass slam on this headphone is incredible and it does have a bit of a bass emphasis, the interesting thing is it doesn't really bleed into the mids at all, this isn't a mushy bloomy bass, this is a tight, clean, and impactful bass. This headphone definitely satisfies my inner bass-head. I started this hobby as a bit of a bass-head, some of that still remains. EDM listeners will love this headphone. Some people may find the bass a bit too much though.
Midrange:
Now let's talk about the midrange, how does it fare? The midrange is actually quite good, it has good dynamics and is present enough where I don't feel anything is missing or recessed, more akin to the subtle u-shaped curve you find in many Beyerdynamics where everything is clearly audible but it takes a slight step back. The mids are pretty much where they need to be. Vocals come off as clean and clear to my ears and are pleasantly full and present. The headphone is a bit sweet and musical sounding in the vocals and mids to my ears.
Treble:
This is where most headphones struggle in my experience, especially at lower price ranges. Does this headphone manage to do treble well? Yes I would say it does, it's clean and non-fatiguing and isn't what I would call too bright. There does seem to be a slight edge and brightness in the treble but nothing that is bothersome to me personally. The treble is clear, articulate, and seems to extend quite well, I don't find myself wanting for more or less treble and the treble has good dynamics to it. This is the first headphone I've heard below the $200 mark other than the HD 6XX that I found the treble or upper mids wasn't an issue in regards to fatigue.
Summary:
Overall I rate these headphones very highly, I don't give 5 star reviews lightly, but this headphone gets one from me due to it's excellent sound, good comfort, and value plus the added benefit of wireless functionality with excellent battery life. To my ears this is the best sounding closed-back that can be had for under $200 and honestly competes with more expensive headphones. Tuning wise this headphone will be better suited for people who like a punchy and strong bass and lively dynamics. Regardless of the tuning the actual quality of sound is excellent, I see a lot of pad rolling potential with these. In conclusion, I highly recommend these headphones on their sound quality alone, the wireless is just the icing on the cake. If your looking for a good portable and wireless headphone under $200, I'd say look no further.
Disclaimer: This is a review unit from Tom Wang from M&O Electronics, thank you.
This review is over the Beryllium Acoustic Bluetooth Headphone from M&O, also known as the M&O MOOH-BE00BT. This is my first review of a headphone with wireless capabilities, so this review will have a wireless/portability section added to it that I don't normally do.
These headphones have actually quite surprised me, they sound better than their price suggests and their extra fuctionality as a bluetooth headphone makes it even more impressive considering the price of these headphones which is $130. Actually they sound great, much better than I actually expected. First things first, let's go over the accessories, build, portability, and comfort of the headphone. These are similar to the RBH HP-2, but have been told they use a newer version of the beryllium-coated driver and some dampening changes, so technically these actually seem to be the better headphones. I haven't heard the RBH HP-2 so I can't comment on how they sound in direct comparison other than other peoples impressions are that they are very similar with the M&O being a bit smoother and more even.
*Note: Most of my impressions are based on the bluetooth via iPhone 7, I used wired very little on the headphone.
Accessories:
The M&O Berylllium Acoustic headphone comes with a hard shell carrying case to hold and contain the headphone and the cables. The headphone comes with an USB charging cable for the built in battery and a 3.5 to 3.5 cable for wired listening on the M&O headphone. The headphone cable isn't anything special as the focus of this headphone appears to be wireless listening. Upgrade cables are very easy to find as it's a very common type of cable and the connector is flush on the left earcup meaning any 3.5mm to 3.5mm can be used on this headphone.
Build/Comfort:
The build of this headphone is pretty good overall, the hinges and adjustment mechanisms are flush and move smoothly with no looseness, when it's adjusted it stays in place. There is some minor creaking with the headphone at times. The plastics used on the earcups do feel a bit on the cheaper side. The headband actually feels quite nice and the padding and padding material is nice. The earcups are soft and plush and seem of pretty good quality, the interior foam could be a bit denser but I have no comfort issues with the pads. The earcups do lay flat, but I do find you can only turn the cups only so much the other direction. The earcups have a metal finish with three little vents on the buttom of the metal plate on the earcups which works as a bass port, covering some or all of these will affect the sound. The wired connection is on the left earcup of the headphone, while the charging port and bluetooth buttons is on the right earcup. The earpads are easy to remove, though putting them back on can be a little bit of a challenge as you have to slowly feed the lip of the earpad into the groove. All in all build quality is on the good side and the headphone is well put together.
Comfort wise, I find the clamp slight on the strong side, not as strong as say the HD 6xx family and the pads are soft and plush and fairly deep with a nicely padded headband. The pads may be a little shallow as some people I know with ears that stick out a lot had minor gripes about, but the earpads are replaceable, so pad rolling may be in order for people with bigger ears. Overall I found the headphone very comfortable and easily wearable for hours, they don't seem to create any hot spots, there is a little bit of stuffiness but that's the norm for closed-backs with pleather earpads.
Portability/Wireless:
This headphone is not active noise-cancelling, any noise cancelling is passive from the headphone from being closed. These are the first wireless headphone I've ever had in my possession, so I can't comment on how the wireless connectivity compares to others in the market. The headphone uses a Qualcomm CSR8645 chipset and supports Bluetooth 4.0 and aptX. Sadly was only able to test out Bluetooth as none of my devices supported aptX as I am an Apple iPhone 7 user. Batter life is rated at 32 hours and my own testing has shown this figure to be accurate, I usually got a week without having to charge the headphone again as I use both wireless and wired. I have used the wireless functionality on this headphone more than wired. The headphone can be used both wired or wireless when it is being charged and the headphone can be used wired without any charge. When the headphone is charging a red indicater light comes on and it charges via a USB to USB Micro port in the right ear-cup. To turn on the wireless on the headphone, you press and hold the Play/Pause button on the right earcup until a blue light comes on and it will beep. To connect to the device you go to bluetooth settings on the device your using and look for MOOH-BE00BT and connect to that and the headphone will make an indication noise it's connect. The other two buttons on the right earcup are for volume control. Isolation of these headphones is about average for a closed-headphone.
The built in microphone for making calls, I found wasn't very good quality on my iphone, I don't know if it's because of bluetooth and lack of aptX or not. I found the range to be pretty good and I didn't have many problems with drop outs on my iPhone 7 when walking around while listening to the headphone. Portability gets an overall high rating for me. Sound quality on bluetooth is actually excellent, it has a lot of depth and sound very pleasing, I was satisfied with what I heard even with my rather picky ears. Compared to wired, there is a little bit of compression, but nothing bothersome in my ears.
Sound Quality:
Now to the section most people will be curious about, how do these headphones sound. To put simply very good with a warm tilt and a low-end emphasis compared to most headphones. The headphone manages to have very impressive bass without it bleeding into the mids and without any muffling to the sound, the sound is always clear and defined and the midrange is present. Overall the sound is well-balanced with a slight U-shape curve.
Soundstage, Imaging, and Detail:
The soundstage on the M&O is on the intimate side, largely due to the closed-back nature of the headphone, everything within the stage is well placed and clearly defined. The imaging is where I find is one of the aspects where this headphone shines, the image is very defined and there is a lack of a blur around the image, this renders the vocals and instruments to have a very pleasing depth to them that most headphones seem to struggle with, wasn't expecting such good imaging in this price range. The headphone also has a very black background and this makes the image pop out more and helps the depth of sound more. It's not going to have the same sense of scale as say an open-headphone but I don't find this headphone lacking in this area at all, it sounds natural here and doesn't give much of a closed-back effect soundwise, there is a slight closed-back effect but it's mild, it's better than the Sony MDR-1A and both Meze 99 headphones in terms of imaging. Since this headphone had proper depth to the sound, it took me a little longer than normal to analyze it.
In terms of detail, this headphone punches above it's weight, it has plenty of detail and it articulates both macro and micro dynamics with ease, it easily holds up to more expensive headphones in this aspect.
I have not tested the headphone on higher end gear much, I am unsure of how well this headphone scales up. But on portable devices and on wireless it sounds fantastic.
Speed, Dynamics, and Tonality:
This headphone is actually fast even compared to many headphones upwards to $300-500 range, I can't really get this headphone muddled or confused, this tells me this headphone is on the fast side with a very good transient response. The decay of this headphone is on the quick side. The entire sound range has excellent dynamics and plenty of body, this is not a thin sounding headphone by any stretch of the imagination, it's very much on the full-bodied side, especially due to that deep reaching and powerful bass response. Tonally, these headphones sound natural and don't sound artificial at all. There isn't really any notable tonal offness/off-pitchness going on as say in the Sony MDR-1A a headphone I also own. The tonality is more akin to what I'm used to in Beyerdynamics and nicer Sennheisers, which means it's very good. The sound on the M&O is also very addicting and has this subtle sweetness to the sound I find quite addicting. This is a very easy headphone for me to like. I'm a very tonally and musicality oriented person audio wise, outside of fatigue that's what I focus on the most at first. This headphone is neither dry or what I consider wet/fluid, it sits in-between.
Bass:
Now let's talk about the bass on this headphone. No need to hide this, this headphone packs a punch. The bass slam on this headphone is incredible and it does have a bit of a bass emphasis, the interesting thing is it doesn't really bleed into the mids at all, this isn't a mushy bloomy bass, this is a tight, clean, and impactful bass. This headphone definitely satisfies my inner bass-head. I started this hobby as a bit of a bass-head, some of that still remains. EDM listeners will love this headphone. Some people may find the bass a bit too much though.
Midrange:
Now let's talk about the midrange, how does it fare? The midrange is actually quite good, it has good dynamics and is present enough where I don't feel anything is missing or recessed, more akin to the subtle u-shaped curve you find in many Beyerdynamics where everything is clearly audible but it takes a slight step back. The mids are pretty much where they need to be. Vocals come off as clean and clear to my ears and are pleasantly full and present. The headphone is a bit sweet and musical sounding in the vocals and mids to my ears.
Treble:
This is where most headphones struggle in my experience, especially at lower price ranges. Does this headphone manage to do treble well? Yes I would say it does, it's clean and non-fatiguing and isn't what I would call too bright. There does seem to be a slight edge and brightness in the treble but nothing that is bothersome to me personally. The treble is clear, articulate, and seems to extend quite well, I don't find myself wanting for more or less treble and the treble has good dynamics to it. This is the first headphone I've heard below the $200 mark other than the HD 6XX that I found the treble or upper mids wasn't an issue in regards to fatigue.
Summary:
Overall I rate these headphones very highly, I don't give 5 star reviews lightly, but this headphone gets one from me due to it's excellent sound, good comfort, and value plus the added benefit of wireless functionality with excellent battery life. To my ears this is the best sounding closed-back that can be had for under $200 and honestly competes with more expensive headphones. Tuning wise this headphone will be better suited for people who like a punchy and strong bass and lively dynamics. Regardless of the tuning the actual quality of sound is excellent, I see a lot of pad rolling potential with these. In conclusion, I highly recommend these headphones on their sound quality alone, the wireless is just the icing on the cake. If your looking for a good portable and wireless headphone under $200, I'd say look no further.