[PixelSquish]

The volume issue happens for me with the Melomania 1+ on an iPhone. Every time I put them in the case to charge, then open to reuse them, the volume is back at 50%. Annoying. No other buds I own do this.

It's definitely a weird quirk. The MTW2, JBL Club Pro + or Technics buds don't do this ever. The MT do it every time. It's not a dealbreaker it's just a bit of a nuisance, especially since I have the volume controls disabled on the MT because the touch controls are overly sensitive. They really are a fun sounding pair of buds.

 

[Canabuc]

Not sure why freebuds pro don't get more love. Maybe Huawei hate but they really are great.
Sound is dynamic but a bit warm. Soundstage was surprisingly great as was separation. Tiny tweak at sub bass and treble end in wavelet and the sound really comes alive. Anyone who can EQ these and they are definitely great sounding and fully featured. Multipair is amazing and the ANC is as good or better than the Sony wf-1000xm3.

 

[TK33]

Yes, those are the ones. The seal isn't good for my problem ears, and the accessories for fit look identical to MW07. I bought them for Mrs. DeepSouth for xmas.

Have you tried different tips? I use Spinfits on my MW07 Go and found them way better than the stock tips. You will see alot of discussion here about tip rolling if you look through the thread (even the last few days). For me personally, I have found that sometimes different tips (or even sizes) work better for me for different true wireless earbuds/IEMs.

 

[Canabuc]

Am I the only one that doesn't like spinfits? They feel flimsy and crinkly in my ear and have yet to get a better fit with them....
I got strange ears I guess

 

[Womaz]

They're not going to hold a candle to the 64Audios, though, so I hope he's ready to take a major step backwards in resolution in order to have that wireless convenience.

The TWS game, as it stands right now, is still heavily steeped in compromise. There have been a couple pairs that wowed me for how many of the boxes they can check given their price point, but I don't know if they're going to really fall within your sonic requirements. If it's purely a gym-based set, try to find pairs that favor a secure/comfortable fit; something like the Jabra Elite Active 75t (once you've swapped out the tips) or Ultimate Ears' UE FITS would be my suggested starting points, depending on which price to entry you're comfortable with.

The UEs will probably be the most CIEM-like, both in terms of relative fit and overall sound signature, even though they're only using a single dynamic driver. If you need a multi-driver setup, the options list gets narrower. Those choices include:

• Noble Falcon Pro - 1 DD, 2 Knowles BAs per ear; battery life is good, fit is wonky and driver flex becomes a real issue if pressure across both sides isn't neutral. Since there's no vent to help with this, I don't know if I'd consider them a good gym pair
• Status Between Pro - Can't speak on them any more than they're a multi-driver set like the Noble. I'll find out in April if they're worth anything
• Galaxy Buds Pro - Can't speak on these either, though seems they're mostly favorable here. Based on the shape, I'm not sure how secure they'd be long-term

It'll also depend on what you're listening to, primarily. While I can advocate for the EA75t, it's only on a limited set of genres.

For what it's worth, by the way, coming in and saying you're going to ignore 2,000 pages of time and energy people spent already answering your questions in favor of being spoon-fed is really bad practice. Take a chunk at a time if you have to, read only the last 20 pages...do whatever, but don't be rude. Meh, it's water under the bridge

I think this is a great post for anyone browsing this particular thread as I did before I bought.
I believe there is still a big difference between wired and TW, so a simple answer to the thread question about is TW there yet? My findings are no they are not. There is still a sacrifice for the convenience of wireless. You have to accept a drop in sound quality.
What I would also say is it depends what you want them for. Mine is for walking or maybe a fitness session so sound quality can be compromised here as its not critical listening for me. I wont ever use my Cambridge MT to just listen to music so for me they are very adequate. I also must add that a decent EQ can also get you closer to the sound you want. For me on the move I have realised I prefer more thumping bass and I have adjusted accordingly.

 

[tinyman392]

I think this is a great post for anyone browsing this particular thread as I did before I bought.
I believe there is still a big difference between wired and TW, so a simple answer to the thread question about is TW there yet? My findings are no they are not. There is still a sacrifice for the convenience of wireless. You have to accept a drop in sound quality.
What I would also say is it depends what you want them for. Mine is for walking or maybe a fitness session so sound quality can be compromised here as its not critical listening for me. I wont ever use my Cambridge MT to just listen to music so for me they are very adequate. I also must add that a decent EQ can also get you closer to the sound you want. For me on the move I have realised I prefer more thumping bass and I have adjusted accordingly.

Kind of disagree here. They won’t beat a dedicated DAC/amp designed for portable use. But will easily match the quality you can get from one of the included Lightning adapters Apple provides.

A lot of your dedicated IEMs can be adapted to TWS. The Fiio adapter actually is very good. I didn’t have much luck with the TRN as it seemed to create a strong bass body but sacrificed details throughout. Both were connected to my Audeze Euclid.

 

[miserybeforethemusic]

They won’t beat a dedicated DAC/amp designed for portable use. But will easily match the quality you can get from one of the included Lightning adapters Apple provides.

Exactly how I feel on the matter as well. Most of the $150+ dynamic-only TWS, at least in my opinion, aren't that sonically different from the vast majority of DD-only wired headsets out there. At least, in my opinion, the TWS market still has plenty of value given its sound quality and potential feature sets. Doesn't mean they're always in the same product, but they're there.

Also, in full disclosure, I'm tabling the Nobles for now. I just can't seem to find the right fit for these without causing the drivers to bind up, so instead of being perpetually frustrated, I'm just moving on to another set. I might reattempt further down the road with foam tips, but I know that'll have an effect on the sound sig. Did ask the question in the dedicated product thread, too, but guess my question isn't important enough for them to answer...especially concerning because this is the second Noble product I've bought that has had some sort of quirk that needed to be looked into and the second one I seem to not get an answer for. Don't think I'm willing to wait around for a third strike, so unfortunately, I'm going to have to shoot it down in contention until I can share some answers and positive experiences. To be honest, it's a bit of a Devialet-level of letdown for me.

Good news is the new UE tips should arrive today, so I will be able to reevaluate those a little more fairly.

So maybe I'll just leave it up to everybody here. Is there a particular pair you'd like to see me do a little more of a deep-dive on?

 

[tinyman392]

Exactly how I feel on the matter as well. Most of the $150+ dynamic-only TWS, at least in my opinion, aren't that sonically different from the vast majority of DD-only wired headsets out there. At least, in my opinion, the TWS market still has plenty of value given its sound quality and potential feature sets. Doesn't mean they're always in the same product, but they're there.

Also, in full disclosure, I'm tabling the Nobles for now. I just can't seem to find the right fit for these without causing the drivers to bind up, so instead of being perpetually frustrated, I'm just moving on to another set. I might reattempt further down the road with foam tips, but I know that'll have an effect on the sound sig. Did ask the question in the dedicated product thread, too, but guess my question isn't important enough for them to answer...especially concerning because this is the second Noble product I've bought that has had some sort of quirk that needed to be looked into and the second one I seem to not get an answer for. Don't think I'm willing to wait around for a third strike, so unfortunately, I'm going to have to shoot it down in contention until I can share some answers and positive experiences. To be honest, it's a bit of a Devialet-level of letdown for me.

Good news is the new UE tips should arrive today, so I will be able to reevaluate those a little more fairly.

So maybe I'll just leave it up to everybody here. Is there a particular pair you'd like to see me do a little more of a deep-dive on?

To be honest, all tips tend to change sound signature. A lot of things end up influencing it... The material, subclasses of material (thickness/type of silicone, density of foam, etc.), nozzle size, etc. Even with the Euclid, the included SpinFit will darken the sound quite a bit over the other included silicone tips (which helps the overall signature of the headphones). Comply was also included with those which would darken them quite a bit. I don't have the Noble Falcon Pro, just the Falcon, I found that SpinFits did help them, as did these generic dual-flange tips I found. By they do have an issue with driver flex with them too. The HiFiMan TWS800 I have is another IEM with major driver flex issues unfortunately as well.

Hope the new UE tips help out. Did you go up in size or did the fit fail the first time around?

 

[Canabuc]

Cansomeone explain driver flex?
If the housing of the earbud is solid plastic how is it that the driver inside can flexform how it is inserted?

 

[miserybeforethemusic]

To be honest, all tips tend to change sound signature. A lot of things end up influencing it... The material, subclasses of material (thickness/type of silicone, density of foam, etc.), nozzle size, etc. Even with the Euclid, the included SpinFit will darken the sound quite a bit over the other included silicone tips (which helps the overall signature of the headphones). Comply was also included with those which would darken them quite a bit. I don't have the Noble Falcon Pro, just the Falcon, I found that SpinFits did help them, as did these generic dual-flange tips I found. By they do have an issue with driver flex with them too. The HiFiMan TWS800 I have is another IEM with major driver flex issues unfortunately as well.

Hope the new UE tips help out. Did you go up in size or did the fit fail the first time around?

Thanks for the tip-rolling advice. I'll have to give it another go with the SpinFits in a day or two and see if that doesn't help. With the stock tips or Finals, though, it's practically impossible to get fit right the first time because of those pesky drivers. Good to know I'm not the only one experiencing this on a pair of high-buck TWS.

I hope the new UE tips work out as well. Looks like they are sending a larger size, which was probably based on the photos I sent in. The biggest problem I had with them was that I could feel one of the rough edges for the driver shell through the rubbery bits.

Cansomeone explain driver flex?
If the housing of the earbud is solid plastic how is it that the driver inside can flexform how it is inserted?

Mentioned it earlier, but driver flex is a mechanical movement of the drivers inside the shell without the introduction of an electrical current. Basically, the air pressure inside your ear forces the driver into an extended position and it has to continue overcoming that air pressure the whole time it's operating. Sometimes it just sounds like metal crinkling when you put them on, but in extreme cases (like the ones I'm encountering), it can result in a full mechanical binding of the driver...which means no sound will come out. Continued use with driver flex can result in driver failure, but is usually avoidable as long as you don't keep pushing on it.

You definitely don't want that sort of thing happening in a multi-driver arrangement. Does all sorts of weird things to the sound signature.

 

[tinyman392]

Cansomeone explain driver flex?
If the housing of the earbud is solid plastic how is it that the driver inside can flexform how it is inserted?

When you insert the headphones into your ear, you're essentially compressing the air in your ear. If this force exerted by this compression is higher than the resistance of the spring of the driver, then the driver will flex back. This can end up with the driver producing no sound or having big influences on the way the driver sounds. Porting the housing either on the front side or rear side can help equalize the air pressure. There are also ways of inserting the IEM into your ear that can help it as well. For example, pulling the top of your ear up while pulling the IEM body down to break the seal (let all the pressure out) then resealing it. With smaller-bodied IEMs this can be very useful. With something larger (like the TWS800) it's harder to do since breaking the seal is harder. The tip selected also makes a difference too when using this method (larger tips are harder to break seals with).

Driver flex can also happen with movement as well (when the IEMs move it compresses and decompresses the air in your ear canal). This is what can make the distinctive clicking that driver flex can make when inserting or walking around. Driver flex can happen on a set of closed-back cans as well (either on or over ear); they were a pretty big problem with my Audeze Sine (closed back). I actually needed to find another set of pads that breathed better on the front end to help with this, otherwise the headphone would make an audible click every time I moved my head (turning to the side for example); you could really forget about walking around.

Thanks for the tip-rolling advice. I'll have to give it another go with the SpinFits in a day or two and see if that doesn't help. With the stock tips or Finals, though, it's practically impossible to get fit right the first time because of those pesky drivers. Good to know I'm not the only one experiencing this on a pair of high-buck TWS.

I hope the new UE tips work out as well. Looks like they are sending a larger size, which was probably based on the photos I sent in. The biggest problem I had with them was that I could feel one of the rough edges for the driver shell through the rubbery bits.

I'd probably agree with UE, the tip isn't large enough so the housing is sitting too close to your ear.

 

[erockg]

Exactly how I feel on the matter as well. Most of the $150+ dynamic-only TWS, at least in my opinion, aren't that sonically different from the vast majority of DD-only wired headsets out there. At least, in my opinion, the TWS market still has plenty of value given its sound quality and potential feature sets. Doesn't mean they're always in the same product, but they're there.

Also, in full disclosure, I'm tabling the Nobles for now. I just can't seem to find the right fit for these without causing the drivers to bind up, so instead of being perpetually frustrated, I'm just moving on to another set. I might reattempt further down the road with foam tips, but I know that'll have an effect on the sound sig. Did ask the question in the dedicated product thread, too, but guess my question isn't important enough for them to answer...especially concerning because this is the second Noble product I've bought that has had some sort of quirk that needed to be looked into and the second one I seem to not get an answer for. Don't think I'm willing to wait around for a third strike, so unfortunately, I'm going to have to shoot it down in contention until I can share some answers and positive experiences. To be honest, it's a bit of a Devialet-level of letdown for me.

Good news is the new UE tips should arrive today, so I will be able to reevaluate those a little more fairly.

So maybe I'll just leave it up to everybody here. Is there a particular pair you'd like to see me do a little more of a deep-dive on?

What worked for me with the UE Fits, keep your jaw slightly open and push them in, leave your jaw open while they form. The seal usually feels better afterwards. I had this issue with my old Bragi Dash Starkey edition. The audiologist did the fit but didn't tell me to open my jaw. Every time I wore them the just never felt sealed. So I was going to have them redone and another audiologist said that was the issue, I needed to have my molds made with my jaw/mouth open slightly. Anyway, passing along for what it's worth.

 

[Canabuc]

When you insert the headphones into your ear, you're essentially compressing the air in your ear. If this force exerted by this compression is higher than the resistance of the spring of the driver, then the driver will flex back. This can end up with the driver producing no sound or having big influences on the way the driver sounds. Porting the housing either on the front side or rear side can help equalize the air pressure. There are also ways of inserting the IEM into your ear that can help it as well. For example, pulling the top of your ear up while pulling the IEM body down to break the seal (let all the pressure out) then resealing it. With smaller-bodied IEMs this can be very useful. With something larger (like the TWS800) it's harder to do since breaking the seal is harder. The tip selected also makes a difference too when using this method (larger tips are harder to break seals with).

Driver flex can also happen with movement as well (when the IEMs move it compresses and decompresses the air in your ear canal). This is what can make the distinctive clicking that driver flex can make when inserting or walking around. Driver flex can happen on a set of closed-back cans as well (either on or over ear); they were a pretty big problem with my Audeze Sine (closed back). I actually needed to find another set of pads that breathed better on the front end to help with this, otherwise the headphone would make an audible click every time I moved my head (turning to the side for example); you could really forget about walking around.

I'd probably agree with UE, the tip isn't large enough so the housing is sitting too close to your ear.

Interesting. Think when I walk with large tips on the freebuds pro I can hear a crinkling sound.thouggt it was just noise from silicon and it is inaudible when music playing.
Seemed to go away when I downsized the tips. Wonder if this may have been driver flex.

 

[bladefd]

Exactly how I feel on the matter as well. Most of the $150+ dynamic-only TWS, at least in my opinion, aren't that sonically different from the vast majority of DD-only wired headsets out there. At least, in my opinion, the TWS market still has plenty of value given its sound quality and potential feature sets. Doesn't mean they're always in the same product, but they're there.

Also, in full disclosure, I'm tabling the Nobles for now. I just can't seem to find the right fit for these without causing the drivers to bind up, so instead of being perpetually frustrated, I'm just moving on to another set. I might reattempt further down the road with foam tips, but I know that'll have an effect on the sound sig. Did ask the question in the dedicated product thread, too, but guess my question isn't important enough for them to answer...especially concerning because this is the second Noble product I've bought that has had some sort of quirk that needed to be looked into and the second one I seem to not get an answer for. Don't think I'm willing to wait around for a third strike, so unfortunately, I'm going to have to shoot it down in contention until I can share some answers and positive experiences. To be honest, it's a bit of a Devialet-level of letdown for me.

Good news is the new UE tips should arrive today, so I will be able to reevaluate those a little more fairly.

So maybe I'll just leave it up to everybody here. Is there a particular pair you'd like to see me do a little more of a deep-dive on?

I think the tips are much more important than people realize. In not just fitting & comfort but very much sound quality too. I searched hard to see if anyone compared different tws eartips, but it seems to be something not done unfortunately. I guess the problem is tws is such a new area and traditional tips don't work. Tws-specific tips market is fairly new so nobody has gotten around to comparing tws-specific tips.

 

[miserybeforethemusic]

What worked for me with the UE Fits, keep your jaw slightly open and push them in, leave your jaw open while they form. The seal usually feels better afterwards. I had this issue with my old Bragi Dash Starkey edition. The audiologist did the fit but didn't tell me to open my jaw. Every time I wore them the just never felt sealed. So I was going to have them redone and another audiologist said that was the issue, I needed to have my molds made with my jaw/mouth open slightly. Anyway, passing along for what it's worth.

*smacks head* open. mouth. mold. You're a genius. Now excuse me while I fervently refresh my tracking so I know the exact moment it's in the mailbox...Wonder if I have something I can use as a bite block around here, now that you mention it.

Interesting. Think when I walk with large tips on the freebuds pro I can hear a crinkling sound.thouggt it was just noise from silicon and it is inaudible when music playing.
Seemed to go away when I downsized the tips. Wonder if this may have been driver flex.

Sounds like driver flex to me. You can really pick it up on some of the cheaper sealed Dynamic Driver sets out there. Was pretty easy for me to do it with a lot of the KZs before they were utilizing shell vents (sigh...still miss my ES4). Weirdly out-of-place to find it on a $300+ set, but as you can see from @tinyman392, even the Hifiman weren't immune. Just unfortunate that no other set I have has an issue with it.

I think the tips are much more important than people realize. In not just fitting & comfort but very much sound quality too. I searched hard to see if anyone compared different tws eartips, but it seems to be something not done unfortunately. I guess the problem is tws is such a new area and traditional tips don't work. Tws-specific tips market is fairly new so nobody has gotten around to comparing tws-specific tips.

I think there were enough of us that tip-rolled like crazy during the rise of Chi-Fi that we at least understood the concept. It's one of the reasons I have a higher level in confidence that foamies might help with the NFP's flex issues, but I've spent enough on tips and various TWS at this point (not to mention the ER4XR and Etymotion BT cable I also snagged). Think I can hold off a paycheck or two for getting the foams.