It is interesting that I prefer the sound of the AT to the Bose but I absolutely love the Bose ANC. I couldn’t live without the Bose.
But I can’t disagree with your list. I haven’t dusted off my Gemini in a while but maybe I’ll charge them up and give them a whirl. I have an APP2 coming tomorrow for a second run.
Looking forward to your impressions on the Nuras.
When will Apple give us hi res? Will we even notice the difference?
Bose just have stellar ANC. Those APP2 are my go to when I need something easy to pocket, something that switches flawlessly for work zooms et al, or if my wife and I need to share audio watching a movie on the Apple TV. The others are just gravy! I've had the EX since day one and the latest update added auto-pause. Finally.
Picked up Apple Powerbeats pro for $149 at Target.. I'll need to read some reviews before I open them.. Apparently they have H1 chips in each side, and are independent..
Amongst all the TWS buds I've personally tried, this would be my ranking list:
1. B&O Beoplay EX - Great sound (not the absolute best), comfy & secure fit, IP57. Only complaints I have are - price is seriously steep, controls aren't customisable (though they are fine), and ANC/transparency mode are weak by nature of them being very shallow in the ear canal (which is why they are so comfy in the first place). Bear in mind you don't have a conventional EQ, rather you have B&O's "circle" - don't know how to explain this succinctly so if you google this or look up some reviews you'll see what I mean.
2. Noble Fokus Pro - Absolute best sounding TWS buds I've tried by way of being the most technically capable. Fits much deeper than most other TWS, so even though no ANC, the passive noise isolation is seriously good (think on par with Sennheiser MTW2's ANC). However I can't put this on #1 on my list because I had too much connectivity issues with mine sadly, not sure if that was a reflection of my unit or the product itself.
3. Audio Technica ATH-TWX9 - Bit more fun than the EX, much more luxurious unboxing experience for a much more palatable pricetag, but IMO loses out to the EX slightly on the sound quality front. Customisable controls, can be EQ'd.
3. Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro - Not much I need to say here, just super slippery to the touch so hard to pick up from the case. Also please switch out the tips, the stock tips that come with this absolutely suck.
4. AirPods 2 Pro - Not much I need to say here either, just note that on certain genres of music (I Prevail - Body Bag) I noted the bass bleeding into the mids, locking into a power struggle before finally overwhelming the mids. ANC and transparency are great. More difficult to swap eartips here compared to other buds.
5. LG tone free FP9 - Pretty good deal for that pricetag (also perhaps owing to the fact it was heavily discounted in Singapore when I got to try it out, not sure what the usual retail price is).
Sennheiser's MTW3, B&W Pi7, Noble Fokus H-ANC I tried and do not recommend. The MTW3 were great to audition, but I have never seen the Sennheiser subreddit so incensed and furious with a product before - seems like they've had a bunch of issues with a botched firmware update amongst other issues. The Pi7 sounds good with things like classical music, but for me was not so great with modern genres like pop/trance/etc that needed more energy. H-ANC I did not enjoy at all.
Anything I did not mention, I either didn't try (Victor, Bose, Soundcore I will hopefully soon try) or didn't feel like it was worth mentioning.
The Beoplay EX's new firmware update is now pushed!
B&O have implemented auto pause when one earbud is removed - media is very slow to react to me pulling a bud out on iOS. There's also a windnoise reduction mode but I am not convinced it is very effective...
Overall the real + factor here is we can now have transparency mode with just one bud, great feature to have but the transparency mode on these buds are not great to begin with so if you haven't bought the EXs yet this won't push you over the line.
For those considering the ATH-TWX9's, I want to share with you my experience.
I purchased them from Amazon Japan on October 18. They arrived quickly, and worked right out of the box. I bought them to wear in the gym, and for the past three weeks they performed nearly flawlessly (the ANC touch button on the left earbud can be wonky). This past Thursday I removed them from the charging case and started to experience issues.
Normally, after removing the earbuds from the charging case, they would show as a single Bluetooth device. My phone would auto connect to them, and audio could then be played through both earbuds. However, the left and right earbuds are now showing as two separate devices, and connecting to one means audio only plays through one earbud. I tried restarting my phone thinking it was the problem. I then tried resetting the earbuds as outlined in the owners' manual. I also tried connecting the earbuds to another phone and my computer. I installed the AT Connect app and a firmware update is available, but both earbuds must be connected together to update. Tonight I completely drained the batteries and then recharged them, but the issue continues.
Some newer phones allow playing to multiple Bluetooth devices at once (sometimes called Multipoint or Dual Audio), but my phone does not allow for this. I am now stuck with audio playing from one side only. Additionally, since the earbuds need to communicate with each other for ANC to work, this feature is inoperable. Correspondence with Audio Technica support did not resolve the issue, and I now have to return them to Amazon Japan for a refund.
Needless to say I am pretty disappointed. These are my fourth pair of AT IEM's (first pair of TWS), and I have encountered issues with two of the pairs so my track record with AT is not great. I also regret buying from Amazon Japan, as the returns process is more difficult. At the time of purchase the TWX9's were not available in the US, so it was my only option. They are now available from multiple US vendors. It is cheaper to buy from Japan ($212 vs $299), but the returns process is not as consumer friendly.
I understand TWS is still an imperfect technology, and all brands have their issues. I just expected better quality for the price.
Cyberblade arrived! Very very good packaging, now to see how these sound like..... so far, these have REALLY solid bass, but I feel the mid is thin and the treble seems lacking. Great for gaming, but not so much for music? I'll keep listening in on them. Fun design with the LEDs though
Now that you can order the ATH-TWX9 in the US I am close to making purchase. I have 2 questions if you don't mind that I cannot find our get different results in a search
Do they support regular Aptx? I have Samsung s22 phone so it does not support the higher versions
How customizable are the controls in the app? Any possibility of changing ANC/Ambient through to a single tap/click? I find the touch and hold on my GB2 hard to use. Or maybe change the quick hear through to less than three clicks would work as well
Yes. samsung mobiles only have aptx, aac, sbc and ldac while twx9 only got sbc, aac and aptx (upto adaptive). i'm using zfold4 and the two automatically connects by aptx in my case.
How customizable are the controls in the app? Any possibility of changing ANC/Ambient through to a single tap/click? I find the touch and hold on my GB2 hard to use. Or maybe change the quick hear through to less than three clicks would work as well
key assignments can be configured in the connect app. but i think it's limited to several preset options. i found the default hardware L button was assigned to cycle through anc-ambient sound-off for single click already (i cant change the function to assign to single, double and triple clicks in the app though). hope this help.
Now that you can order the ATH-TWX9 in the US I am close to making purchase. I have 2 questions if you don't mind that I cannot find our get different results in a search
Do they support regular Aptx? I have Samsung s22 phone so it does not support the higher versions
How customizable are the controls in the app? Any possibility of changing ANC/Ambient through to a single tap/click? I find the touch and hold on my GB2 hard to use. Or maybe change the quick hear through to less than three clicks would work as well
Hey! They do support aptX, they don't support LDAC though. Not too bad in my opinion, but might be a deal breaker for some. The controls aren't very customizable. The level of customization is limited to only certain presets. The one you want on my device is set to double tap on the touch - not entirely sure if this can be changed, but it looks pretty locked to me. However, I haven't had any issues with the controls and I find the TWX9 to be the easiest earphones to tap away to my preference, especially when coupled with the side actual clickable button.
More thoughts on the Cyberblade now that I have some time to sit with them. First thing is the thinness is due to the "booster" system they are using when their "main hub" is connected via USB. Once I switch to Bluetooth, these sound so much better.
Now onto some proper thoughts, some mini review for it! Of course, it has been ages since I wrote any sort of audio review, so be gentle with me on it...
They sound REALLY good. I think they are actually technically very solid with decent soundstage and instrument separations. Very W sound signature with the Cyberblade. Very strong punchy bass with sparkly trebles and relatively forward mids. The bass is seriously rumbly and got a big oomph but it doesn't bleed to the mids. Of course, knowing that these earphones are designed to be Gamer-First and Audiophile-Second, that's not surprising at all. Overall, it's a very energetic and bright earphone to meet the sort of sounds that gamers usually hear.
Unfortunately, these technical abilities are shot by the fact they don't support LDAC or AptX. So your hi-res music isn't going to get its fullest potential with these.
Fit and design
Very comfortable in my books. Of course, as inspired by Horizon Zero Dawn's focus, the embedded LED in them will turn heads. thankfully you can turn the LEDs off if you don't want to come off as pretentious
I do love the design of it though, it just looks really special in comparison to your usual bud-and-stem approach nowadays.
The packaging is REALLY nice unsurprisingly if you know Angry Miao from the keyboard world, but the accessories are what you'd expect from any earphones. Comes with four silicon tips and three foam tips of different sizes.
ANC performance and noise
There's something interesting about Cyberblade's ANC. This is the first TWS that have listened to that doesn't sound like your ear canals get muffled with ANC. However, I can tell they are working when I am playing music because I can barely hear anything while out on my walk. The wind noise was also very barely noticeable. Didn't even have any stomping sound when walking! I suspect these will do well with running. According to them, it is because it is mixed with environmental feedback and cancellation as well:
Fully immerse yourself with Hybrid ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) and AI ENC (Environmental Noise Cancellation). Six microphones⑧ with a high signal-to-noise ratio ready to detect excess noise. Filters out over 35dB⑨.
Advanced algorithms for more applicable scenarios. Transparency mode for when you need to know what's happening around you.
One of the hiccups however is that the mic is quite big and nested on top of the earbuds. As a result, when you move the earpiece or if your ears itself brush against the mic, it can create a bit of a warble effect because of the ANC trying to remove that sound. Turning off fixes this, but a TWS earphone without ANC is just sad. Not entirely sure if this is something they can fix. Because otherwise, this ANC is REALLY solid.
Usability:
Some notes about misc. items relating to these earphones. Pros:
Amazing battery life -- 6 hours of straight listening with the earbuds alone. Don't know about the case battery just yet, but considering the size of the case, it should be quite a bit. Their website says that it has 24 hours of listening time in total. Have yet to put that to test though!
Cons:
Cyberblade's touch buttons are limited to only ANC, pause/play, previous/next track, and LED. No volume control on it, I find that a little bit annoying. They currently don't have button customization either. I hope they will change that with future firmware
Don't have multipoint
App still in development, limited as discussed above
Case is BIG, very not pocket-friendly
Have I mentioned the volume control? There have been way too many times I find myself unable to tweak the volume because I've walked too far from my phone and can't adjust my volume at all.
Vs. TWX9 Comparison:
They are actually technically superior to the TWX9. Of course, these are also an extra $60 with my Kickstarter price compared to how much I paid for my TWX9 in Japanese price. For official price, we seem to be looking at a $50 difference at Cyberblade's retail price ($329) and TWX9 US price ($279). In terms of value per buck, TWX9 is still an excellent choice for its cost. TWX9 is more laidback in comparison to the Cyberblade and that is not necessarily a bad thing! It is more musical and makes for a more enjoyable listen when you want to relax.
Outside of sound, there are also some things I like about TWX9 in terms of usability:
More buttons and abilities to control via your earpiece
Quick hear through is... just REALLY good. More Bluetooth earphones need this function! I find myself missing this a lot when I am without my TWX9.
Pretty much any cons that the Cyberblade has, TWX9 got me covered
Summary
I do like these earphones a lot! These earphones will likely stay in my reservoir and be in my rotation because I have such fun listening to that W-signature. But it is very clear that they made these earphones with gamers in mind instead of audiophiles. Some of the most common functionalities we normally expect a TWS earphone will have at that $329 price point, Cyberblade is clearly missing them. Here's hoping that they will make some updates to the firmware to fix some of those little issues because they are really good actually.
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