highlightshadow
500+ Head-Fier
Well, pleasant surprise -- they arrived with the postman not Amazon.
First up -- for £99 these are lovely. I'd pitch them against the MTW3's interm of overal "out of the box" sound.
ANC is very strong. I'd say easily on par with DPP/MTW3 with the Bose QCU being another step-up
Was able to crank up the airplane noise video above pretty high and while i could still hear it 55-65% volume on the buds was pleasant hearing volume. They are capable of getting VERY loud. I'm listening at maybe 65-70% but i cannot turn these above maybe 90% before it's unbearable. I didn't want to put them to 100
The buds come in the now obligatory plastic free packaging.
Items included:
Just a small light on front to indicate charge status.
The case is glossy/smooth white (even though buds are graphite colour), i thought i'd got the wrong buds when i saw case
The included ear-tips are meshed and tall. The stem on the buds is short with a small retention lip but circular.
You only get the option of the retention fins as either yes or no. The replacement option in the case is smooth with no raised parts.
Typical 3 sizes of ear tips in grey silicone. I found them too tall for me though and immediately replaced with Spinfit CP1025's for TWS which are my go-to tips as they make the buds size much more comfortably in my ears (both canals and concha gets much less fatigue)
Pairing/Sync
I have a Samsung S23 so the buds are much more deeply integrated into the phone OS than for any other device.
Opening up the case immediately does an Apple-esque popup showing a picture of the buds and a simple connect/cancel button.
It then downloaded the plug-in for the buds to integrate fully. You have 3 options to see various levels of info/controls:
1. Home screen widget gives you battery level of the buds and 2 buttons to toggle ANC/Ambient/off and a second button to enable/disable the touch controls on the buds
2. Bluetooth section gives battery life, options to divert calls/audio and enable or disable multipoint but this seems tied to Samsung devices. The page also gives ANC controls and a button to open Samsung Wearable App
3. Samsung Wearable gives you the whole entire control suite
In the Wearables app you have options to customise the touch controls but only enable or disable predefined functions -- cannot change what the taps do
You get find-my-buds option and then settings.
In that you get EQ (select from pre-defined options no custom EQ), an earbuds fit-test (simple tone thing), then ususal smart assistant and other basic options
There is a labs gaming mode too available which i assume lowers latency
Ok - with a quick tip reroll, for me the buds are some of the most comfortable i've got with a caveat. They sit nestled nicely and don't put any pressure on anywhere.
They don't feel quite as secure as my MTW3, they do with stock tips but that ends up pressuring my concha too much. But i know i'm really hard to sort out for some reason with my ears
Onto the sound...
This is where they're a surprise. Out of the box they're really nice. I'd put them very very close to the MTW3's.
In terms of bass i enjoy the depth and feeling of a good sub-bass even if it's not particularly elevated, just like the extension into sub-bass.
I would rank the 4 buds i've listened to recently in this order:
Bose QCU 4th
MTW3 tied 3rd
Samsung Buds FE 2nd
Denon Perl Pro 1st (they just have bass for days)
One thing though they don't have any background hiss present when music isn't playing. This is definitely something the MTW3 have.
But for the rest of the spectrum i'd probably put them all very similar bracket. Some have slight benefits here and there but it's hard to pinpoint.
I'd say the one thing the Samsung Buds lack is EQ possibility since you simply have the "bass boost", "Treble", "Vocals", "Dynamic" type presets but you cannot tweak an EQ, nor do they do any kind of personal tuning.
So that puts them in last place for that but the default sound isn't far off how i like it anyway. The dynamic option gives the classic V type of adjustment lifting the bass and treble with a small dip at 2-4k but overall that's the "fun mode" option.
Buds touch feedback - they do have beep audio signal on touch press but where with the MTW3/DPP it's a live immediate response to each touch, the Samsung beeps the number of times it thought you pressed after you stop pressing. So just after your double tap you get a very light double-beep.
Still better than Bose which has no beep feedback which i find irritating.
Codec is hard to know -- they support AAC/SBC but the SSC (Samsung Seamless Codec) which can support 24/96 -- but nowhere can i see in the app / settings where i can confirm my S23 is using that with these except when i checked in Developer Options i could see it was the active codec.
The signal strength though is RIGHT up there. With my phone on my desk in my office i could go to the other end of the house (back of kitchen) and it didn't even flicker in sound. Most buds start to break up around the sink (when i'm getting myself a drink i tend to have my buds in and often it starts to give an odd drop with most)
I think we're really in a rapidly evolving time with this stuff but it feels like we're creeping towards that point of diminishing returns.
The quality you can get for £99 is staggering. Given i've tried the DPP's twice, the MTW3 (own now) and the Bose QCU
I cannot see the DPP's or Bose being worth 3x the price. Yes they all have their own twist on things, with DPP's Nura acquired tech, Bose ANC prowess etc
But the Bose are not worth the money for me -- the "Ultra" moniker has been used too soon by them to justify it as more than a QC2.5 and for me the music side was lacking.
DPP's are nice (actually bought them again to give them another chance) and if you want screaming bass then yeah -- they can pack a huge punch. The MTW3's are the premium "come good" option with their new personalised sound option which seems to have transformed them.
I think the issue with "premium" TWS is longevity. The codec's are not unified yet, the tech is getting mature but it is not yet consistent, especially with non-apple products on iPhone still being limited to AAC.
Even on Android where LDAC/AptX Adaptive is available most phones still don't have it.
So paying so much for a battery depedent item which has non-user service construction means that premium has to be something amazing given a shorter lifespan.
At least wired IEM's can be made wireless, or can have a life ranging to many years without issues.
Anyway -- enjoy your music
First up -- for £99 these are lovely. I'd pitch them against the MTW3's interm of overal "out of the box" sound.
ANC is very strong. I'd say easily on par with DPP/MTW3 with the Bose QCU being another step-up
Was able to crank up the airplane noise video above pretty high and while i could still hear it 55-65% volume on the buds was pleasant hearing volume. They are capable of getting VERY loud. I'm listening at maybe 65-70% but i cannot turn these above maybe 90% before it's unbearable. I didn't want to put them to 100
The buds come in the now obligatory plastic free packaging.
Items included:
- User Guide
- 3x sets of tips (very tall ones)
- 1x no ridge wings (normal fins fitted)
- USB C cable
Just a small light on front to indicate charge status.
The case is glossy/smooth white (even though buds are graphite colour), i thought i'd got the wrong buds when i saw case
The included ear-tips are meshed and tall. The stem on the buds is short with a small retention lip but circular.
You only get the option of the retention fins as either yes or no. The replacement option in the case is smooth with no raised parts.
Typical 3 sizes of ear tips in grey silicone. I found them too tall for me though and immediately replaced with Spinfit CP1025's for TWS which are my go-to tips as they make the buds size much more comfortably in my ears (both canals and concha gets much less fatigue)
Pairing/Sync
I have a Samsung S23 so the buds are much more deeply integrated into the phone OS than for any other device.
Opening up the case immediately does an Apple-esque popup showing a picture of the buds and a simple connect/cancel button.
It then downloaded the plug-in for the buds to integrate fully. You have 3 options to see various levels of info/controls:
1. Home screen widget gives you battery level of the buds and 2 buttons to toggle ANC/Ambient/off and a second button to enable/disable the touch controls on the buds
2. Bluetooth section gives battery life, options to divert calls/audio and enable or disable multipoint but this seems tied to Samsung devices. The page also gives ANC controls and a button to open Samsung Wearable App
3. Samsung Wearable gives you the whole entire control suite
In the Wearables app you have options to customise the touch controls but only enable or disable predefined functions -- cannot change what the taps do
You get find-my-buds option and then settings.
In that you get EQ (select from pre-defined options no custom EQ), an earbuds fit-test (simple tone thing), then ususal smart assistant and other basic options
There is a labs gaming mode too available which i assume lowers latency
Ok - with a quick tip reroll, for me the buds are some of the most comfortable i've got with a caveat. They sit nestled nicely and don't put any pressure on anywhere.
They don't feel quite as secure as my MTW3, they do with stock tips but that ends up pressuring my concha too much. But i know i'm really hard to sort out for some reason with my ears
Onto the sound...
This is where they're a surprise. Out of the box they're really nice. I'd put them very very close to the MTW3's.
In terms of bass i enjoy the depth and feeling of a good sub-bass even if it's not particularly elevated, just like the extension into sub-bass.
I would rank the 4 buds i've listened to recently in this order:
Bose QCU 4th
MTW3 tied 3rd
Samsung Buds FE 2nd
Denon Perl Pro 1st (they just have bass for days)
One thing though they don't have any background hiss present when music isn't playing. This is definitely something the MTW3 have.
But for the rest of the spectrum i'd probably put them all very similar bracket. Some have slight benefits here and there but it's hard to pinpoint.
I'd say the one thing the Samsung Buds lack is EQ possibility since you simply have the "bass boost", "Treble", "Vocals", "Dynamic" type presets but you cannot tweak an EQ, nor do they do any kind of personal tuning.
So that puts them in last place for that but the default sound isn't far off how i like it anyway. The dynamic option gives the classic V type of adjustment lifting the bass and treble with a small dip at 2-4k but overall that's the "fun mode" option.
Buds touch feedback - they do have beep audio signal on touch press but where with the MTW3/DPP it's a live immediate response to each touch, the Samsung beeps the number of times it thought you pressed after you stop pressing. So just after your double tap you get a very light double-beep.
Still better than Bose which has no beep feedback which i find irritating.
Codec is hard to know -- they support AAC/SBC but the SSC (Samsung Seamless Codec) which can support 24/96 -- but nowhere can i see in the app / settings where i can confirm my S23 is using that with these except when i checked in Developer Options i could see it was the active codec.
The signal strength though is RIGHT up there. With my phone on my desk in my office i could go to the other end of the house (back of kitchen) and it didn't even flicker in sound. Most buds start to break up around the sink (when i'm getting myself a drink i tend to have my buds in and often it starts to give an odd drop with most)
I think we're really in a rapidly evolving time with this stuff but it feels like we're creeping towards that point of diminishing returns.
The quality you can get for £99 is staggering. Given i've tried the DPP's twice, the MTW3 (own now) and the Bose QCU
I cannot see the DPP's or Bose being worth 3x the price. Yes they all have their own twist on things, with DPP's Nura acquired tech, Bose ANC prowess etc
But the Bose are not worth the money for me -- the "Ultra" moniker has been used too soon by them to justify it as more than a QC2.5 and for me the music side was lacking.
DPP's are nice (actually bought them again to give them another chance) and if you want screaming bass then yeah -- they can pack a huge punch. The MTW3's are the premium "come good" option with their new personalised sound option which seems to have transformed them.
I think the issue with "premium" TWS is longevity. The codec's are not unified yet, the tech is getting mature but it is not yet consistent, especially with non-apple products on iPhone still being limited to AAC.
Even on Android where LDAC/AptX Adaptive is available most phones still don't have it.
So paying so much for a battery depedent item which has non-user service construction means that premium has to be something amazing given a shorter lifespan.
At least wired IEM's can be made wireless, or can have a life ranging to many years without issues.
Anyway -- enjoy your music
