Going fully Wireless IEMs. Too soon? Or are we there yet?
Feb 14, 2021 at 6:03 PM Post #29,236 of 61,381
Yes technology is always evolving, but at current state, I think ANC on TWS is more of a gimmick than a useful feature. At least on the ones i've tested, they don't do much in noise cancelling and are no where near effective as the ANC on fullsize headphones like Sony XM4s and Bose QC35s. And latency is still very much an issue if you're into mobile gaming, which fortunately I am not.

I would rather have a set of TWS that actually sounds good than having tons of gimmicky features that only drains the batter life.
I get what you're saying, I think that the ANC on the Technics AZ70 is pretty mediocre, I think they sound good but the extra feature set there is not very impressive. The 85t's ANC is really good though. It's so good that I feel like it's changed the way I will evaluate new TWS purchases for sure, with ANC being a pretty major factor.
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 6:12 PM Post #29,237 of 61,381
It's all subjective. You just have to hear for yourself. I've had three pairs of MTW2 since they've come out, but I always wind up returning them or selling them. I love ANC and Pass through, but my ears much prefer the Grado's. I'm not giving the Grado's higher marks for volume. For me, it's the sound. Don't get me wrong, I do like the Sennies, but the fit and muddy bass didn't do it for me. But what's muddy to me, might be clear as rain to another. My old ears may not work as good as some. Too much metal.
Have you tried the Fiil T1pro? Can't believe how good these sound once I EQ'd them. So good I might just hold off on a fancier pair for now until Devialet or someone else gets their s#it together.
They are spacious and the bass and treble are great. Plenty loud and the poorly rated ANC is not had once you get a good seal.
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 6:29 PM Post #29,238 of 61,381
Have you tried the Fiil T1pro? Can't believe how good these sound once I EQ'd them. So good I might just hold off on a fancier pair for now until Devialet or someone else gets their s#it together.
They are spacious and the bass and treble are great. Plenty loud and the poorly rated ANC is not had once you get a good seal.
Can you share your in-app EQ config for the FIIL?
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 6:32 PM Post #29,239 of 61,381
Hey I was thinking of getting the Grado's actually. Pretty good? What kind of music do you listen to?

I listen to mostly rock and pop, a bit of hip-hop, and occasionally some opera and showtunes. As others have said, the Grado sound is really nice and clean and I haven’t noticed it being weak in any genres.

I’m surprised people are describing the Grado as V-shaped. I disagree with that. I associate V-shaped signature with recessed mids/vocals and that is definitely not the case on the GT220. There is a bass boost (which I like - it’s fun) but mids and highs feel very balanced to me.

The Grado doesn’t have ANC but it sits deep in the ear canal and passive isolation is excellent. If I had one nitpick, it’s that the blue “G” flashes constantly. Annoying when I’m listening to them in bed.
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 6:42 PM Post #29,240 of 61,381
The Fiil t1 pro ranks at the top of my tws pile now for sound quality, with the buds pro close behind. T1 pro has clear and natural highs and mids. The bass hits deep and is very fluid.
They said they wanted to focus on sound and battery life. Originally had transparency mode but removed it for some reason. They felt since the headphones can do mono mode it was unnecessary. While I would enjoy those other features like anc, transparency, multipoint, etc. I am kinda glad they focused on sound. I enjoy the sound of these more than the 75t, APP, MTW 2, 1000xm3, etc. Just ticks my boxes sound wise. When I need ANC or transparency mode I just switch to one of those other devices.
Where can one purchase a set of these? I looked on amazon and found a search but only other models.
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 6:52 PM Post #29,242 of 61,381

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Feb 14, 2021 at 7:07 PM Post #29,243 of 61,381
Yes technology is always evolving, but at current state, I think ANC on TWS is more of a gimmick than a useful feature. At least on the ones i've tested, they don't do much in noise cancelling and are no where near effective as the ANC on fullsize headphones like Sony XM4s and Bose QC35s. And latency is still very much an issue if you're into mobile gaming, which fortunately I am not.

I would rather have a set of TWS that actually sounds good than having tons of gimmicky features that only drains the batter life.
Definitely not a gimmick form me. I use my tws exercising regularly and the ANC on the Bose and Devialet absolutely kills the fan I keep running and lets me lower the volume. I could not go back to no ANC at least in my workout room.
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 7:09 PM Post #29,244 of 61,381
I forgot the Audio-technica CKR70TW had both the button for play/pause, track control, volume and the touch for ANC, voice assistant, and ambient. I like the form factor so I ordered one. Was 5% off and a few points. They have both "hear through" and "ambient" as well. Interesting to see how they do and if I think ANC is something I need. :)
 
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Feb 14, 2021 at 7:09 PM Post #29,245 of 61,381
Great post. It is also why I am considering returning the MTW2 and getting the cx400bt. I would be saving 150$ USD and taxes which can then be applied to the next great earbud to come out later this year but will still get that great Sennheiser sound for my late night listening when ambient and ANC modes are not required.
Unless fit is an issue absolutely return them. The ANC is worthless on the MTW2. The hi res mode is nice but not 150 nice.
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 7:30 PM Post #29,246 of 61,381
That is tough question to clarify.
I still find U W M and V shaped description thrown around all the time even by so called you tube experts and they don't agree on the sound profile of a given headphone....

I like strong bass that goes low. But not so strong that the mids or vocals are impacted. I enjoy detail clarity in the upper regions where you can feel the resolution of the instrument rather than just the tone.

I can sooner tell you what I like and don't like in the sound of a given earbud or headphone.

For instance my first overeat that I bought and returned a few years back were the Sennheiser momentum 2. Found the sound too warm and dull. Subsequently got the B&W P7W. Absolutely love them!
Are they natural flat sounding? No.
Treble is bright compared to flat but never harsh and gives a nice sparkle and bite when called for. Bass is powerful but never get in way of mid range tones.

I also have M&D mw50 on ears. They have a warmer sound signature more rolled off highs yet I still really like how they sound especially for acoustic indy and rock.

New buds pro have amazing clarity that I love with great Bass. Feel like the upper treble range needs to be dropped a bit to sound perfect but the stock EQ presets don't quote achieve that.

JBL,Sony,Fiil all have great equalizers and so I can get them to sound great for me.
Jabra 85t the bass is great but hurts mids a bit and the treble is a bit rolled off. As such some songs sound great and others sound a bit congested and not as resolved.

MTW2 have a really nice bass and overall sound without needing EQ. They need to get 1-2 notches louder though.

Does this make sense?
It does make sense. I like similar sound signature. I like as much (good) bass as they will take without intruding on anything else. I DO have to mention I have come to like a bit mid forwards, but not at the expense of the detail retrieval up top. They have to be revealing without being sibilant (which can be tricky for some). I hardly ever like a warm treble sound on headphones. Even on my OG Momentums I EQ up the treble for clarity (which they DO take pretty well).

I haven't heard the B&W P7, but I do own the P5, and they were alot like the Momentum 2, which your description was pretty accurate in saying "warm" (too warm for me).

When looking for headphones (for me), I pick something that is neutral to begin with, but I actually like them on the more "fun" side of neutral, so I pretty much EQ everything to my taste. The Tinhifi P1 (for instance) are probably the best sounding IEMs I have heard, but not without a tad of EQ (boost in bass, and reduction in 2k).

Have you heard anything from Hifiman headphones? That seems to get me closest to my desired signature, but I don't rule any others out per se'. What sorts of music do you tend to gravitate towards? I like a ton of different genres, but I would have to say I tend to come back to metal, rock, classic rock, that sort of sound. It sounds like we have similar sound desires at least. I will have to go back and see what you have tested so far and what you liked best, etc...

I don't really care about features in TWS, except passthrough. Matter of fact, I prefer physical buttons over touch also. To me it is all about sound, fit, and connection stability (and to a lesser degree battery life).
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 7:32 PM Post #29,247 of 61,381
Where can one purchase a set of these? I looked on amazon and found a search but only other models.
The Fiil t1pro are Chinese market only at moment. Got mine on Ali express. Took 3 weeks to come to Canada. Cost me 60$US all in.
The app is in Chinese but there are guides out there how to use it and once set you don't need app again as all the setting stick to the buds.
Volume control ,track control ambient ANC and voice assistant all can work directly from the buds.

Ear fun free pro are the same earbud on Amazon but English. However there is no app. The tuning is more bass less treble and can't be adjusted as with the original Fiil. Also no option to skip back a song on the buds and no option to update firmware down the road. That said they are 60$ on Amazon and often on sale for 50$
 
Feb 14, 2021 at 7:37 PM Post #29,248 of 61,381
The Fiil t1pro are Chinese market only at moment. Got mine on Ali express. Took 3 weeks to come to Canada. Cost me 60$US all in.
The app is in Chinese but there are guides out there how to use it and once set you don't need app again as all the setting stick to the buds.
Volume control ,track control ambient ANC and voice assistant all can work directly from the buds.

Ear fun free pro are the same earbud on Amazon but English. However there is no app. The tuning is more bass less treble and can't be adjusted as with the original Fiil. Also no option to skip back a song on the buds and no option to update firmware down the road. That said they are 60$ on Amazon and often on sale for 50$

Well there is the remove the filter screen option that seems to bring the Earfun sound closer to the Pro. :)

Some might find this interesting...

Soundpeats seems to win on a few fronts but maybe not there yet. They might just pull out in front with the next ANC model.
 
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Feb 14, 2021 at 7:40 PM Post #29,249 of 61,381
Unless fit is an issue absolutely return them. The ANC is worthless on the MTW2. The hi res mode is nice but not 150 nice.
I thought so too at first with the bathroom fan test. Was worse than even the Fiil. Then adjust the buds to where I felt the seal was better in my ears and boom. The noise cancelling blocked it out 100% as good as galaxy buds pro.
I think people who have complaints about ANC on MTW2 likely don't have as a good a seal in ear as they think. It's good enough even with a not perfect seal so as not to affect sound and the bass so most wouldn't notice it.
With buds pro you can really tell when seal is poor as all the bass goes away in music. The deeper fit of MTW2 can mask that.
Problem is my right ear has trouble with most ear buds and despite going up a size from medium to large the seal on right is not perfect. Same ear gives me issues with the buds pro....
 
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Feb 14, 2021 at 7:45 PM Post #29,250 of 61,381
Well there is the remove the filter screen option that seems to bring the Earfun sound closer to the Pro. :)
? Fiil have the screen in place so not sure that affects the sound or tuning. I think they just set the EQ in firmware to more consumer friendly sound and gave no app which would be expensive to convert to English to make further adjustments given the low cost of the product.
I feel the Fiil have a ton of bass as is in the stock setting ,more than any bud except the Jabra 75and 85t. Would worry the earfun might be too bass heavy.
 

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