Going fully Wireless IEMs. Too soon? Or are we there yet?

[mainguy]

For people who have the nothing buds, how are they for calls in a noisy place?

aaron wireless on youtube did some good tests of this! I've not had issues, but havent called much out, just by a road, and it seemed good, no complaints yet.

 

[xSDMx]

Don't recommend the gpbp2 for running. They stayed in my ears but definitely felt like they were going to fall out and I had to twist them in a few times. Anc and transparency mode are both 100% useless when running, because they amplify the pounding sound and also the sq takes a huge hit as the algorithm struggles. Sweat detection / control lockout is way too aggressive. As soon as I barely started sweating the controls locked and I ultimately ended up taking them out on my 4th mile and tossing them in my pocket.

 

[highlightshadow]

I'll say one thing for the Nothing ear too. It's the app. It's slick. It feels like someone actually cared about it

For me the Denon and Sennheiser apps feel clunky. They lag a bit even on flagship phones but the nothing app feels fluid and really well connected. It flows and doesn't feel like an after thought
The gestures like play pause or transparency on the buds play subtle playful tones

Feels the same with nothing phones.

They really get industrial design in a way that feels super modern and fresh without being intrusive. They're like apple used to be

The charging case feels tactile and efficient
Really like the whole aesthetic

 

[mainguy]

I'll say one thing for the Nothing ear too. It's the app. It's slick. It feels like someone actually cared about it

For me the Denon and Sennheiser apps feel clunky. They lag a bit even on flagship phones but the nothing app feels fluid and really well connected. It flows and doesn't feel like an after thought
The gestures like play pause or transparency on the buds play subtle playful tones

Feels the same with nothing phones.

They really get industrial design in a way that feels super modern and fresh without being intrusive. They're like apple used to be

The charging case feels tactile and efficient
Really like the whole aesthetic

I have the same feeling. There was a period around 2019/2020 where Apple just felt ahead of the curve, but now their audio products just feel and look dated. Airpods and Airpods Max feel like they're stuck in another time...

The Nothing Ear feel next gen. The app, the case, the look, it just screams the next gen of tws to me. Having dozens of EQs at the touch of a button is like owning multiple tws in one, just awesome.

In a way they've made me reflect on how dissapointed i am with other brands charging such huge amounts but having such weak software. 6 band EQs on the £350 PI8. Like you say even the Sennheiser app feels dumbed down.

Interesting to see a brand moving forwards. I'd be a day one buyer if they launched an ANC headphone. Imagine these EQ settings and the app with some over ear wireless cans. Damn.

 

[SilverEars]

Don't recommend the gpbp2 for running. They stayed in my ears but definitely felt like they were going to fall out and I had to twist them in a few times. Anc and transparency mode are both 100% useless when running, because they amplify the pounding sound and also the sq takes a huge hit as the algorithm struggles. Sweat detection / control lockout is way too aggressive. As soon as I barely started sweating the controls locked and I ultimately ended up taking them out on my 4th mile and tossing them in my pocket.

I've noticed majority of top ANC TWS does this. FYI, Freebuds pro 3 has no noise what so ever like that. Even wind sounds are not even prominent. It just cancels any noise like a champ. lol

Two things that matter that most for phone usage it excels at:

1. ANC, practical for travelers. For me, at the gym, and anywhere noisy.
2. Calls: Voice pickup quality, probably the best at the moment due to it's AI. Especially in noisy environments.

What it's not good at:

SQ, it's mid.

 

[Quaz1]

nope

Dang

(Thanks )

 

[highlightshadow]

I have the same feeling. There was a period around 2019/2020 where Apple just felt ahead of the curve, but now their audio products just feel and look dated. Airpods and Airpods Max feel like they're stuck in another time...

The Nothing Ear feel next gen. The app, the case, the look, it just screams the next gen of tws to me. Having dozens of EQs at the touch of a button is like owning multiple tws in one, just awesome.

In a way they've made me reflect on how dissapointed i am with other brands charging such huge amounts but having such weak software. 6 band EQs on the £350 PI8. Like you say even the Sennheiser app feels dumbed down.

Interesting to see a brand moving forwards. I'd be a day one buyer if they launched an ANC headphone. Imagine these EQ settings and the app with some over ear wireless cans. Damn.

I think LHDC v5 is maybe a bit of a battery killer -- might switch to LDAC and compare. Seems to be dropping battery pretty quick on that codec -- sounds lovely though.
Yeah -- the app on the Edifier buds was annoying -- they took the time to implement more advanced EQ then limited it to +/-2dB and 4 bands
Both the Sennheiser and Denon apps take several seconds to connect to the buds and touches lag.

Nothing have just brought this right up to 2024 and makes me remember what goods apps can be. Subtle animations, Clear UI prompts, a simple EQ that actually works, a complex EQ for when you wanna tinker

These buds are the first ones i've heard in a which which pretty much out of the box made me enjoy what i was hearing. MTW4's are the other ones -- just something about their signature works so well and these at 35% of the price give me that same feeling.

This is one of the few products of late where within about 30 minutes of using them i chucked the box away.

 

[JoshG1217]

Alright, so ordered the nothing ear tws based on thoughts here. Edifier s10 also on the way, and went ahead and ordered the Pi8 as well. Realistically, I imagine they will all go back, but would like to compare to my aviot and H ANC. If I have time, I will do a more formal write up this weekend.

 

[JML]

I decided to give the Edifier STAX Spirit S10 True Wireless a try; Amazon points made it easy. I'll report back on what I hear... Impressive specs:
https://www.edifier.com/global/p/true-wireless-earbuds/s10

Cancelled. The app’s equalizer seems pathetic. And the reports of a low level of bass response are accumulating.

 

[Jozurr]

I've noticed majority of top ANC TWS does this. FYI, Freebuds pro 3 has no noise what so ever like that. Even wind sounds are not even prominent. It just cancels any noise like a champ. lol

Two things that matter that most for phone usage it excels at:

1. ANC, practical for travelers. For me, at the gym, and anywhere noisy.
2. Calls: Voice pickup quality, probably the best at the moment due to it's AI. Especially in noisy environments.

What it's not good at:

SQ, it's mid.

I wonder how the SQ compares to the APP2 - if the mic/ANC is better than APP2 and so is the SQ, then they definitely come out ahead!

 

[Jozurr]

Alright, so ordered the nothing ear tws based on thoughts here. Edifier s10 also on the way, and went ahead and ordered the Pi8 as well. Realistically, I imagine they will all go back, but would like to compare to my aviot and H ANC. If I have time, I will do a more formal write up this weekend.

Looking forward to your impressions!

 

[SilverEars]

I wonder how the SQ compares to the APP2 - if the mic/ANC is better than APP2 and so is the SQ, then they definitely come out ahead!

I don't consider APP2 sound to be good. IMO, it might be slightly better than the FBP3, but I think both of them are mid compared to the avg wired iems. I don't think either of them are particularly resolving or have good separation. Lots of TWS sounds 'blended.'

I'm not going to chase after sound for TWS as long as they don't sound horrible like some random cheap Amazon earphone. I just prioritize call quality and ANC mainly for phone usage for practical reasons. I just want to be assured what I say comes out comprehensible in noisy environments mainly. That's what inline mic wired iems were good for. The issue with avg TWS is the call quality in noisy situations since the mic is near the ear.

I use TWS with my phone, and mainly use for podcasts and calls, so really don't consider SQ to be high on my list of important factors.

If one goes for jogging, the 'thud' interfering with what one hears is a big issue. There is no 'thud' with FBP3. Also, mic making weird sounds on windy situations doesn't really happen. Those are some important factors that I prize, so helps me appreciate the FBP3 despite the lower SQ. Since it's for using when I'm out and about, not sitting around listening to music.

 

[mainguy]

I don't consider APP2 sound to be good. IMO, it might be slightly better than the FBP3, but I think both of them are mid compared to the avg wired iems. I don't think either of them are particularly resolving or have good separation. Lots of TWS sounds 'blended.'

I'm not going to chase after sound for TWS as long as they don't sound horrible like some random cheap Amazon earphone.

Yeah I agree. Honestly testing my £60 moondrop may side by side with App2 the May are in another league. I was hopeful when some reviewers said they match £100 wired iems....lol no, they are miles off that. Im guessing theyre a bit below an EW200, which is a £40 wired model. Wired iems have just gotten too good.

So like you ive dropped the vain hope of tws = wired sound, as long as I enjoy my tws, thats all that counts.

 

[helmutcheese]

 

[absolutnie]

The personal profile in Nothing Ears 2024 creates really bad artificial noise/compression for certain frequencies and instruments for me. While listening to 'I love you but I don't know what to say' by Ryan Adams the quiet snare simmering in a background turns into a real mess rendering that profile unusable. On the other hand PEQ works well and sharing option is awesome but you don't have full freedom in selecting any multiple frequencies at once. If You'd like to EQ all e.g. 1k, 1,5k and 2k in the same preset you can't do it as you got 8 ranges you can EQ but they can't be so close to eachother. Difficult to explain
You are also limited to +-6db per range.