[helmutcheese]

A touch stingy on the Codecs, AAC/SBC only.

 

[tan1415]

Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in.

Damn my needs.it has been literally years since I was on Headfi.

I have been a headfi junkie. But since I got married I tend not to use headphones anymore.

So lately my go to headphones are the Sony WH-1000XM4. Ever since the first one…I fell in one with Sony headphones and have kept buying them. The combination of sound, ANC and convenience BT…blew me away. I also really used to its sound signature.
At home I use the Qjays as my go to IEM and the Shure 940 when I listen to music.

But this headphone has 1 drawback. It’s to big and not as convenient to carry around. Also ANC in the street can be rather scary.

So now because of Black Friday i wanted to buy myself some cheap TWS . Wow I am surprised how cheap I can go to find a decent TWS earphones. This will be used on my IPhone 13 Pro along with Spotify.

I want good sound, safe for sweat and rain(minimum ip4) and comfortable with solid battery life. ANC is not a must.

The basis was the wf-1000xm4. Leading in class with sound and ANC. But as ANC is not important to me it’s definite out of my budget.

After reading reviews I knew that with the discounts offered on Black Friday I was looking at around 50€.

My shortlist is as follows:

1) CA Melomania 1plus at €50,00.
Been listening to it. Sound is good, but ear buds is not as comfortable in my ears. Also have had some issues with the first pair so that I had to return it.

2) Sony WF C 500 at €50,00 a stripped down WF 1000xm4 according to reviews and quite highly regarded.
With a sound signature close to my Sony XM4 it interest me.

3) JBL tune tws 230 NC at € 45 is quite interesting. Not sure about the JBL sound signature though. To Bassey?

4) Jabra elite 4 active at 69€.
At my budget this is to expensive for what imam getting. Also as I use Apple this doesn’t have AAC. So I think this will be a pass.

Edit: 5) after reading Scarbor Review I bought the Samsung Buds Live has been reduced to 49€.
I am afraid that it’s only IP2.
But imam interested because it’s not an IEM.
I forgot to add that I stopped with headfi due to my ears getting easily irritated. I used to use headphones in one form or another formate than 14 hours a day. Definitely not healthy for my ears.

I read Scabir list and I am surprised so many unknown TWS are tops on his list. Only Melomania is a known for me.

With my choices and current budget…which would you recommend?
I am interested to other suggestions within my budget or higher…

Thank you for reading and aI appreciate your feedback.

Hi All,

So Far have received the Melomania and the Buds live.

Melomania was an early favorite.
Sound is great. But the bass and mid bass is lacking compared with the Live. Also more closed in sound. The Melomania is really easy in use. From the case, the app to the buttons on the earbuds. Updates all working perfectly.
Downside was fit and feel when I wear the buds. When wearing a long time it starts to hurt.
Also initial connection was pretty crappy experience.
Basically which ever bud you take out from the case is the one to connect with your phone. The other will connect through the other bud. But when you take out the other one..you need to connect that to with your phone.
Furthermore in the beginning had to reset because it kept switching connections and as consequence turned itself off.

The Samsung Buds live was a late addition after reading Scabir reviews. It really intrigued me and the special offer from Samsung at 49€ made it fit my price range.
It was fiddly at first. The sound was horrendous with bloated bass. After reading and watching videos and experimenting with attachments and fit. The Lives blew me away.
I was shocked how much bass, mid bass it was able to produce. Much more then the Melomania. Also the sound is much more expansive.
But what really makes me fall in love is the design. It’s a pure earbud. Nothing to fit into my ear canal. Also it’s ultra comfy when you got it right. Don’t feel wearing it at all. Amazing.

Now the downside…the app doesn’t work. I can’t seem to download any updates. That sucks. I am returning this and getting a replacement… but if it doesn’t work with my iPhone it’s not for me. Also once you use the Melomania app the Samsung Buds app really is crappy for such a big name company. Also the buds are so fit sensitive, when moved out of sync has direct impact on sound.
No equalizer like in melomania. The choice of eq settings is not really useful.
Also the buds are touch and not a clickable button. What a hassle to get it to work. Also it just has 3 possible settings. The Melomania has at least double the options.
The ANC is a total joke. Didn’t notice anything.

Tbh this is a HUGE pass if it was still retailed at 169z but at 49€ it’s quite amazing. The sound and the comfinesss are really too notch.

Waiting on the Sony WF c500 and the JBl tune 230.

The jabra elite 4 will be returned. 69€ is just to much for me right now.

 

[DigDub]

Bose quiet comfort earbuds 2. Superb nosie cancelling and very natural ambient mode. Very comfortable. Sound quality is very enjoyable as well, with a consumer friendly sculpted sound signature that puts out a good amount of sub bass and bright highs without sounding muddy or sibilant. The touch controls works very well, full playback and volume controls are available on each bud. Hope Bose can make the single bud use of the left bud more seamless.

The way Bose enables the left earbud use is weird. Put both buds in the case, without closing the lid, take out the left earbud and it will connect to the phone. The right bud will always act as the master even when it is charging in the case with the lid closed, the left bud will always be the slave. I found this out by chance when I had the left bud in use and walked away from the case with the right bud charging inside. The signal broke up even though I had my phone with me, this means the right bud is still acting as a master transmitting signal to the left bud even though it's charging inside the case.

 

[Juturna]

Hi All,

So Far have received the Melomania and the Buds live.

Melomania was an early favorite.
Sound is great. But the bass and mid bass is lacking compared with the Live. Also more closed in sound. The Melomania is really easy in use. From the case, the app to the buttons on the earbuds. Updates all working perfectly.
Downside was fit and feel when I wear the buds. When wearing a long time it starts to hurt.
Also initial connection was pretty crappy experience.
Basically which ever bud you take out from the case is the one to connect with your phone. The other will connect through the other bud. But when you take out the other one..you need to connect that to with your phone.
Furthermore in the beginning had to reset because it kept switching connections and as consequence turned itself off.

The Samsung Buds live was a late addition after reading Scabir reviews. It really intrigued me and the special offer from Samsung at 49€ made it fit my price range.
It was fiddly at first. The sound was horrendous with bloated bass. After reading and watching videos and experimenting with attachments and fit. The Lives blew me away.
I was shocked how much bass, mid bass it was able to produce. Much more then the Melomania. Also the sound is much more expansive.
But what really makes me fall in love is the design. It’s a pure earbud. Nothing to fit into my ear canal. Also it’s ultra comfy when you got it right. Don’t feel wearing it at all. Amazing.

Now the downside…the app doesn’t work. I can’t seem to download any updates. That sucks. I am returning this and getting a replacement… but if it doesn’t work with my iPhone it’s not for me. Also once you use the Melomania app the Samsung Buds app really is crappy for such a big name company. Also the buds are so fit sensitive, when moved out of sync has direct impact on sound.
No equalizer like in melomania. The choice of eq settings is not really useful.
Also the buds are touch and not a clickable button. What a hassle to get it to work. Also it just has 3 possible settings. The Melomania has at least double the options.
The ANC is a total joke. Didn’t notice anything.

Tbh this is a HUGE pass if it was still retailed at 169z but at 49€ it’s quite amazing. The sound and the comfinesss are really too notch.

Waiting on the Sony WF c500 and the JBl tune 230.

The jabra elite 4 will be returned. 69€ is just to much for me right now.

Basically almost none of the newer Galaxy Buds that came out in the last 2-3 years work with the iPhone app at all, but I think the Live is supposed to b Kinda blows that they did that... But yeah, I also bought the Buds Live quite recently, and I feel like they sound pretty good, but not great. Like 5/10 for sound, but would still rate them higher than that because of the fit and overall experience with them. They're not exactly the buds you buy to get the best sound possible either, at least in my opinion.
I disagree that the EQ settings aren't useful, they change the sound by quite a bit. It helps that I'm on Android and can use Wavelet too for that matter, so that makes it easier to make them sound good. But a true graphic eq in the app or something would be good.

 

[regancipher]

Not sure as the LDAC licence used to have the highest price tag, like most it is a larger lump sum then a small amount per device.

Assume (as not stated) that the 7 hour is AAC @50% Vol so not great if you use LDAC and no doubt a higher volume may be needed outside (esp as the look partly open/vented) depending how loud these are overall.

Even SoundPeats are using LDAC now so it may have come down in price due to aptX adaptive and just be the latest "in fashion" thing.

I think for Soundpeats it's the opportunity to use a good value chipset and appeal to a wider market, since they have both the Deluxe and HS in their current portfolio.

Pixel owners, for example, can't even enjoy the benefit of aptx-adaptive, and I'm sure it's the same for some Mediatek device owners. With one very small modification they can appeal to both the Qualcomm and non-Qualcomm owners simultaneously (with the Deluxe and Deluxe HS respectively) so it's another opportunity for more sales with relatively low sunk costs.

For Aviot and some of the others that aren't running the two simultaneous chipsets, who knows

 

[tan1415]

Basically almost none of the newer Galaxy Buds that came out in the last 2-3 years work with the iPhone app at all, but I think the Live is supposed to b Kinda blows that they did that... But yeah, I also bought the Buds Live quite recently, and I feel like they sound pretty good, but not great. Like 5/10 for sound, but would still rate them higher than that because of the fit and overall experience with them. They're not exactly the buds you buy to get the best sound possible either, at least in my opinion.
I disagree that the EQ settings aren't useful, they change the sound by quite a bit. It helps that I'm on Android and can use Wavelet too for that matter, so that makes it easier to make them sound good. But a true graphic eq in the app or something would be good.

Thanks for the info. Let’s hope the next Buds live will be able to update properly.

I am looking at 50€ price range specifically and don’t want to really deviate from it to keep it fair. I know once I start heading to higher prices everything will be better. For my usage 50€ is the sweet spot for my budget it seems.

Which buds has better sound? I mean the apple pods 3 are 170€ and people say Live is betetrbsoundingz

 

[TK33]

Thanks for the info. Let’s hope the next Buds live will be able to update properly.

I am looking at 50€ price range specifically and don’t want to really deviate from it to keep it fair. I know once I start heading to higher prices everything will be better. For my usage 50€ is the sweet spot for my budget it seems.

Which buds has better sound? I mean the apple pods 3 are 170€ and people say Live is betetrbsoundingz

Regarding updates, I have had two sets of Bud Live since launch (just traded one in for the Buds2 Pro) and I have not had any issues updating firmware on both, even when I did not have a Samsun phone. As @Juturna said, this may be an IOS specific issue. I dont have any IOS devices so probably not helpful here. Perhaps you can borrow an android phone from someone and try? If not, I would consider exchanging or contacting Samsung. Their warranty process was pretty easy.

 

[bladefd]

I think for Soundpeats it's the opportunity to use a good value chipset and appeal to a wider market, since they have both the Deluxe and HS in their current portfolio.

Pixel owners, for example, can't even enjoy the benefit of aptx-adaptive, and I'm sure it's the same for some Mediatek device owners. With one very small modification they can appeal to both the Qualcomm and non-Qualcomm owners simultaneously (with the Deluxe and Deluxe HS respectively) so it's another opportunity for more sales with relatively low sunk costs.

For Aviot and some of the others that aren't running the two simultaneous chipsets, who knows

I don't think I'm going to ever buy another pixel due to the limitations. It has the hardware/chipset capabilities for audio but for some reason they are limiting things like aptx on the phone. I don't even know if Google has customer service you can just call for support. There seems to be no link between the customer and Google so you are at their mercy for additions.

 

[Ghisy]

What is this Pixel nonsense? I have a Pixel 7 Pro and I can see aptx and aptx HD for Bluetooth audio. No adaptive though.

Personally, I don't care because I don't use my phone for music.

 

[bladefd]

Google pixel does not support tws mode either.. At least my pixel 3 does not. I don't know about latest pixels.

With pixel, you get the left side. No simultaneous connection like on the right side even though the hardware supports it.

 

[cresny]

I don't think I'm going to ever buy another pixel due to the limitations. It has the hardware/chipset capabilities for audio but for some reason they are limiting things like aptx on the phone. I don't even know if Google has customer service you can just call for support. There seems to be no link between the customer and Google so you are at their mercy for additions.

I use both Aptx HD and LDAC on my Pixel 7 Pro. As for Bluetooth connectivity, I do know that I can use either left or right ATH-TWX9 with the other in the case. When I put both on I get each saying headphone connected nearly simultaneously.

 

[regancipher]

Pixel doesn't support aptx-adaptive, but that's the same for all non-Qualcomm phones. Only reason I mentioned Pixel specifically is because the other brands with high market share or fast growth do at least have some Qualcomm-based models in their portfolio (excluding Apple, obviously), so for the likes of Soundpeats it might make sense to offer both Qualcomm (aptX-adaptive) and Smartlink/Wuqi (LDAC) variants (like with the HS & Deluxe models) to appeal to a wider audience

 

[bladefd]

I use both Aptx HD and LDAC on my Pixel 7 Pro. As for Bluetooth connectivity, I do know that I can use either left or right ATH-TWX9 with the other in the case. When I put both on I get each saying headphone connected nearly simultaneously.

On Pixel 3, it's not a simultaneous connection AFAIK. Phone connects to either the left or right but not both at the same time. One earbud piggybacks off the other, and it switches back and forth to maintain battery life.

 

[dweaver]

OK, I. All the time in this thread I rarely see JBL products discussed and don't remember seeing the Tune130NC. Did I just miss it?

Anyway at the risk of having my wife having me committed I picked up a pair these up since they were only $75 and holy crap, they do not sound like a $75 TWS or IEM for that matter!

They have huge bass out of the box but the EQ can tame it very well if desired. I am enjoying the hell out how natural they sound and how expansive and holographic the sound stage is. Piano's, Cello's, and guitars sound just amazing. I am also really happy how they produce drum kit sounds.

Jazz from artist like Patricia Barber sound sublime as does sound tracks from Hans Zimmer. Classic rock like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd sound good as well. The song Zombie by Nellie Mckay which has alot of 3D vocals and instruments that wow when they are properly represented are handled very well by this TWS. Anything that can go really deep is sub wooferish that can be felt and yet mids and highs can be present without being overwhelmed.

If a person's main requirement is sound quality these are amazing for $75 and the EQ actually seems very responsive and effective and highly customizable.

The ANC and Ambient are not super effective but quite serviceable.

Battery life is rated at 10 hours with 30 hours in the case which seem very reasonable.

The control scheme for the touch controls is their only real Achilles heel being very much like the Samsung Galaxy buds minus the experimental features. In other words I can have volume and music controls or I can switch one of those for ambient controls but I can't have all of them at once.

 

[getclikinagas]

Is there a consensus on the best half-in-ear TWS for calls? Specifically outbound audio in noisy environments.