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Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII review – lots of promise, squandered

2:30 pm | January 14, 2024

AK UW100MKII Two-minute review

The new AK UW100MKII are a hair’s breadth from being some of the best wireless earbuds on the market right now, but one major issue – and another problem that’d be a major one if the other didn’t exist – stop the right in their tracks.

The latest buds from South Korean premium audio company Astell & Kern, the buds sit alongside other audiophile-friendly products from the company, including DAPs, big-budget speakers and four-figure-price wired headphones. That should give you an impression of where A&K's latest proposition is targeted: these are top-end wireless earbuds.

You can tell when you listen to the AK UW100MKII – they sound absolutely fantastic. Audio is incredibly high-quality, detailed and balanced, enough to automatically place the AK amongst the best. So why only 2.5 out of 5?

The main issue (and it's a big one) comes from the UW100MKII’s design, as the bulky buds simply refuse to stay in the ear for long periods. That’s true even when you’re sitting still in a seat, but it can be dangerous when you’re out and about, with one ill-timed head turn or jump over a puddle causing these premium buds to fall into the drink or down a street grate, out of view.

I can’t overstate how annoying it was to have the buds constantly plummeting to the ground when I was trying to enjoy music; A&K offers five different silicon tips of different sizes in the box, yet none fixes the issue that these giant earbuds provide.

Even when the earbuds aren’t escaping and sliding to earth, they seem to think that they are. The errant wearer detection would constantly pause music, thinking that the earbuds were no longer in my ear, even when I hadn’t even touched them. The AK UW100MKII really don’t want you to listen to music, apparently!

It’s a great shame, because without those two issues, the AK UW100MKII could be best-in-class contenders. The feature set is rounded out by a fantastic EQ app that lets you fiddle with audio to your pleasure, incredibly responsive touch controls that’ll have your AirPod- or Samsung-bud-toting friends jealous, and an impressive battery life that beats many rivals.

That could all bring the score up to 3 stars, but what stops the AK UW100MKII from getting that round figure is the price of the buds. They’re priced at a level that’d be justifiable for the audio quality you’re getting, but that just seems galling if you can’t listen to music for more than 15 minutes at a time.

I can begrudgingly recommend the UW100MKII if you’re only going to listen at home, and have the money to spend on this pricey home-only pair. But if that’s not you, there are countless preferable rivals.

AK UW100MKII review: Price and release date

The Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII's charging case held in the palm of a hand. — The case isn't the smallest, but we've seen far bigger (Image credit: Future)

Released in October 2023
Officially priced at $280 / £269 (roughly AU$340)

The AK UW100MKII are certainly not cheap earbuds. They cost $280 / £269 (roughly AU$340) when they were released in October 2023, and while you can find small discounts from third-party retailers occasionally, that’s generally the price you’ll pay for them.

At that price, the AK buds cost more than the Apple AirPods Pro 2, Sony WF-1000XM4 and, in the UK at least, the Technics EAH-AZ80, which we call the best premium earbuds in our round-up of the best wireless headphones.

AK UW100MKII review: Specs

AK UW100MKII review: Features

The Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII's bud, being held up to the camera. — It's a unique design, but it doesn't lend itself to comfort or security (Image credit: Future)

Useful tie-in app
Responsive touch controls
Inaccurate wearer detection feature

The AK UW100MKII use Bluetooth 5.2, which isn’t quite the top standard, with 5.3 offering slightly reduced power consumption and lower latency, but the honestly the difference is largely negligible. Not once in our testing period with the AK did they lose connection or drop without reason. Initially the pairing process was a little fiddly, with my phone not recognizing the buds until I restarted both it and them, but afterwards it all worked peachy.

Of course, you can choose to set up the A&K app to gain a few extra features. Using this means you get to change what the touch controls do, play with EQ including creating your own custom set-up, and change the strength of ‘ambient mode’, a transparency mode letting you hear your surroundings.

There’s no active noise cancellation (ANC) here, with Astell & Kern instead opting for traditional passive noise isolation (PNI), which is arguably better at removing high-frequency noises but therefore struggles at the low end and with the constant thrum of everyday life.

The UW100MKII have a feature common in true wireless earbuds: automatic wearer detection, so they can pause music when you remove them and resume it when you put the buds back in your ear.

Screenshots from the Astell & Kern control app. — The Astell & Kern app opens up a lot of features (Image credit: Future)

That’s how the feature works in theory, but in practice it often erroneously thought I’d removed the buds when I hadn’t. I had to keep manually restarting my music; it only happened every hour or so, but it was still annoying enough that it’s imposible not to flag or to not affect the overall star-rating. I’d suggest it was only an issue with my review unit, however other reviewers have also raised the problem. Thankfully, you can toggle wearer detection off in the app – and I’d strongly advise you do so straight away.

Another common feature in buds is touch controls, but far from it not working well here, these could actually be some of the best-in-class headphones for on-ear touch functionality. You can tap on most parts of the earbuds to pause or resume your music, and not once in testing did they fail to recognize a press. The command is carried out quickly, with a gentle chime to let you know that it’s happening and you don’t need to press so hard that you shove the bud further into your ear. I often avoid earbud touch controls but these had me gleefully using them.

A&K cites a battery life for the buds of 9.5 hours, and in our testing this seemed roughly right. Using the charging case you can boost this up to 29 hours, and overall that figure matches or exceeds quite a few premium rivals in the market. For context, the AirPods Pro 2 have a 6-hour bud life and 30-hour case life.

The USB-C port in the charging case lets you power up the buds quickly, but you can also use wireless charging to power up these buds too. That can be especially useful if you have a smartphone with reverse wireless powering, which means you can turn the phone into a powering pad to boost other tech.

Features score: 3/5

AK UW100MKII review: Design

Large buds are prone to falling out
Unique appearance for buds and case
Fairly large charging case

The Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII's two earbuds. — A futuristic aesthetic for sure (Image credit: Future)

The UW100MKII just look a little different from other earbuds on the market (well, except the inaugural Astell & Kern AK UW100 buds).

This starts with the case: it has a hexagonal body that makes it resemble a futuristic-looking treasure chest more than somewhere you’re meant to store headphones. That’s doubly the case when you lift up the lid, which turns on the cyan LED strip. Weighing in at 65g, it’s a little on the large side, but we’ve seen cases that are a lot bigger too.

The earbuds themselves continue this unique design: they’re large and pentagonal, with a tapered, pointed end that continues the sci-fi theme. If you want earbuds that make it look like you’re living in a cyberpunk future, these fit the brief. However, this large housing contributes to the UW100MKII’s deal-breaking issue.

The Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII bud in an ear. — They're just a little too big to stay in (Image credit: Future)

In my testing time with the A&K buds, they would frequently fall out of my ears. Most frequently this was when I was walking, bobbing up and down, but they’d even tumble out if I was sitting still or simply moving my head. In an attempt to remedy the issue, I tested each of the five differently-sized replaceable tips that come with the headphones, but none fixed the matter.

If I were to speculate on why the UW100MKII were so keen to test the pull of gravity, I’d say that it’s the fault of the giant earbuds. Despite only weighing 7g, the large size drags the buds down and makes a secure fit impossible.

Given the tech packed into these second-gen. A&S earbuds, their large size is perhaps justifiable, but it’s hard to enjoy top-quality audio when they are constantly falling out.

Design score: 2.5/5

AK UW100MKII review: Sound quality

The Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII's charging case, with the buds inside. — As a home-only set of earbuds, they may yet work for you (Image credit: Future)

Fantastic audio quality
Customization options
Max volume could be higher

Finally, we can move into ‘praise’ territory for the AK UW100MKII – and it’s well-deserved praise because they sound absolutely great.

The spec sheet is a veritable who’s who of audio-improving features and tools. There’s A&K’s home-brewed AK4332ECB DAC for improved conversion of digital information into music; multiple Bluetooth codecs including AptX Adaptive and AAC, a Qualcomm-made Bluetoooth chipset, a driver made by Knowles and more.

You don’t need to know what any of these individual entries mean, other than the fact that many different companies have contributed their expertise to the buds. And it shows.

The UW100MKII have a surprising level of sound quality for wire-free earbuds. You can hear the squeaks of guitars as players move their hands, individual notes in chords, different parts of harmonies, instruments as they fade instead of just dropping out. It’s really easy to enjoy music when you can hear all of the components separated and celebrated like this.

The bass sounds crisp and impactful, even when you haven’t boosted it using the app's EQ tab, but it never overpowers the treble in music. The soundstage is also impeccable – if you close your eyes, you can almost imagine a live band performing the music in front of you.

The ability to fiddle with, and customize, the EQ may appeal to particular audiophiles. I didn’t use it to augment my testing other than to test the efficacy of the feature itself, but was impressed by what I heard – some headphone EQs barely affect the music, but there was a palpable change when I fiddled with the bass or treble.

If I’ve one note – and it’s a fairly minor one – it’s that the maximum volume could have been a little higher. It’s fine for when you’re listening in a quiet room – I generally listened one tier below maximum in this setting – but if you’re out in public or somewhere noisy, it’d be nice to be able to bump up the volume a little more, especially with the lack of ANC.

Sound quality: 4.5/5

Should you buy the AK UW100MKII?

The Astell & Kern AK UW100MKII's empty charging case. — A thing of beauty, but sadly not good for the commute (Image credit: Future)

Buy it if…

Don’t buy it if…

AK UW100MKII review: Also consider

How I tested the AK UW100MKII

Tested for two weeks
Largely tested at home, though with some excursions

The overall testing period for the AK UW100MKII was two weeks, not including writing time for the review itself.

After first setting up the earbuds, it quickly became apparent that they wouldn't reliably stay in my ear, even after I tried every single one of the other sized silicon tips included with them. For this reason I conducted most of the testing from home, for fear of the buds falling out somewhere – and me not being able to retrieve them. I did take the AK UW100MKII on a few trips around my neighborhood, just to be able to test the passive isolation out in the wild though.

I mainly tested the buds by streaming music from Spotify, but also watched TV shows on Netflix, played a few mobile games and conducted calls through the buds, in order to test them in a variety of circumstances.

I've been testing tech for TechRadar for nearly five years now including earbuds, headphones, smartphones, tablets, ereaders, speakers, smartwatches, even electric scooters; I've got plenty of experience reviewing and comparing products.

First reviewed in January 2024

Montblanc MTB 03 review: divine looking wireless earbuds, marred only by OK ANC

1:00 pm | December 27, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Earbuds & Airpods Gadgets Headphones | Tags: Sony Xperia | Comments: Off

Aren't they beautiful? Don't you want to produce them from your Aspinal Mini Paris bag, as you sit down to a Café Allongé in Montmartre, where you'll write your memoirs (in German, for now) in a leather-bound notebook using your also Montblanc Meisterstück fountain pen?

Even next to the very best noise cancelling earbuds in the business, the luxury goods purveyor's inaugural earbuds are easily the prettiest of the lot (for clarity: they supersede the firm's debut Montblanc MB 01 Smart Headphones, an over-ear proposition released in 2020). The new MTB 03 are also gloriously small and comfortable to wear. You get aptX Adaptive support for higher-resolution audio, IPX4 water resistance, plus an app that – while relatively basic (compared to the Sony Headphones Connect app, for example) – still offers a five band EQ tab, interesting noise cancellation and ambient features, auto-off wearer detection and a lovely visual representation of the remaining battery life in each bud.

If you're happy to pay a premium for the quality build, finish and iconic snowcap emblem within earbuds that sound good, I support you – yes, sonically they are very good for depth and neutrality when listening to higher-resolution music files. Even layered, multi-faceted songs within Apple Music's Lossless oeuvre such as Nine Inch Nails' Head Like a Hole are celebrated with energy and alacrity by the MTB 03.

The complicated time signatures, dynamic shifts and delicate acoustic-guitar-meets-in-your-face-yelling within System of a Down's Chop Suey! are also handled with relative ease across the frequencies in a sensibly-refined mix.

Montblanc MTB 03 earbuds in their case, held in a hand on white background — It's not the smallest case on the market, but it's pocketable (Image credit: Future)

Will you need to make compromises to get the Montblanc look? Yes: the active noise cancellation (ANC) can be beaten for efficacy, you don't get multipoint connectivity (if there's also an iPad mini in that Aspinal bag for instance, you won't be able to chop and change between the two source devices with ease), there's no spatial audio processing or fit-fest whistles and bells, and the on-ear controls are not for tailoring – you get what you get. For the most part that's OK because I like what you get here, but it's my job to nitpick and crunch the numbers.

The thing is, this truly is aspirational territory. At this price, the iconic Hamburg institution (and Axel Grell, the revered audio engineer who put his name to the sound) invites my pickiest criticism and given the premium cost of these high-end earbuds, I have three issues.

First off, while the sound times very well indeed and is musically cohesive, it can lack the extra im Kopf expanse you'll find in the presentation of the Technics EAH-AZ80 –the kind of super-spacious mix that might allow the leading edges of notes within my reference tracks to reveal themselves anew.

Don't get me wrong, I like the MTB 03's sound; the presentation is perfectly pleasing when you give them something good to work with. Lossy files will be divulged as such, (Spotify Free or MP3 listener? You won't like these – I found Ogg Vorbis tracks at 256kbps a little tinny) but this is Montblanc, if you're on the market for the opulent brand's earbuds, you'll probably also be able to spring for a paid-for music subscription.

Secondly, regular readers may remember that the aforementioned Technics May 2023 flagship earbuds offer multipoint connectivity to three devices. How many sources can the inaugural Montblanc earbuds connect to simultaneously? Just the one.

Montblanc MTB 03 companion app, three screens showing the ANC and Live profiles — The immersive audio and modes are great fun to experiment with, but note that not all can't be used at the same time, in some Modes (Image credit: Future)

Finally, the noise cancellation profiles are fine rather than fantastic. Deploy ANC within the Sound Mode tab and you can pick from Sports, Office or Travel profiles. In the office (here, I select Office – well, you would), I find the audio playback is amplified somewhat, but the low-level background chat behind me still creeps in more so than with my reference Technics earbuds or the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (although admittedly those are best-in-class, where noise-nixing is concerned).

The 'Live Mode' tab below it offers Environment, Voice Focus or Attention options, all of which Montblanc suggests are useful in situations such as airports or listening for train announcements. My favourite of these is Voice Focus, which uses the MTB 03's three mics per bud to do what the profile promises without coloring or sweetening your music. Call quality is also good and the case can charge wirelessly as well as via USB-C.

The true wireless earbuds market is full to bursting and the Montblanc MTB 03's USP is bijou beauty, rather than spatial audio wizardry, supremely tailored audio or bubble-of-silence noise cancellation. That said, to assume it's a case of style over substance would be wrong; the sound is better than that.

What makes most sense to you when selecting a set of earbuds is of course a deeply personal matter. Yet Montblanc's proposition is at the very top end of the market and it would be wrong of me not to mention that for similar money you can buy extra features and marginally better sound, if you want that.

Montblanc MTB 03 review: Price & release date

Officially priced $395 / £345 / AU$640
Launched July 1, 2023

At the risk of stating the blindingly obvious, by pricing them at $395 / £345 / AU$640, Montblanc expects you to pay a $95 / £45 premium over most of the MTB 03's direct rivals.

Want to compare by way of a quick rundown of top-tier options from the heavy-hitters? Of course: Bose's QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds will set you back $299 / £299 / AU$449, Sony's 2023 flagship WF-1000XM5 are around $299.99 / £259 / AU$499 and the excellent Technics EAH-AZ80 (which boast triple-device connectivity and some of the best call quality I've ever experienced), also come in at $299 / £259 / AU$499).

See what I mean? Then again, it has ever been thus in the designer fashion industry. Want the label? You have to pay for it. But hold on! That's not all you're paying for here. The build quality – simply cradle the small metallic case in your palm to feel it – does feel that little bit, well… more expensive.

Montblanc MTB 03 earbud held in a hand — (Image credit: Future)

Montblanc MTB 03 review: Specs

Should you buy the Montblanc MTB 03?

Buy them if...

You want the look – and the feel
I mean, just look at them. Also that case is metal, not plastic, and the feel is cool and oh-so expensive.

Your ears are on the delicately small side
The Montblanc MTB 03 are some of the smallest and most comfortable earbuds I've worn – and the little depression on each bud to show you where to tap is a lovely touch.

You pay for a top-tier music subscription
With aptX Adaptive onboard, you're going to want to make use of it with a Tidal, Qobuz or Apple Music subscription. The Montblanc MTB 03 don't take kindly to your lowlier Ogg Vorbis 256kbps files.

Don't buy them if...

You like fit tests and otoacoustic listening profiles
There's a lovely five-band EQ tab and options for ANC, but if you want to undergo the pips and pops of hearing-test software, you need to look to something like the Denon PerL Pro or even the Nothing Ear (2).

You love multipoint connectivity
No dice here, friend

You need buubble-of-silence ANC
Montblanc's noise-nixing profiles do help to quash extraneous noise, but for this money you can do better –look to the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds.

Montblanc MTB 03 on white background, held in a hand — (Image credit: Future)

Montblanc MTB 03 review: Also consider

Montblanc MTB 03 earbuds worn by TechRadar's Becky Scarrott — (Image credit: Future)

How I tested the Montblanc MTB 03

Tested for 10 days, listened against the Technics EAH-AZ80, Sony WF-1000XM5 and Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds
Used at work (train commute; in the office; walking through London) and on the wild Dorset coast
Listened to Tidal Masters, Apple Music Lossless tracks and Spotify on an iPhone 12 Pro, Sony Xperia 1 IV and a MacBook Pro

When testing earbuds or headphones, time and attention is key – as is switching off and letting them surprize you. The Montblanc MTB 03 have been my musical companions for nine days solid – after a thorough 48-hour run-in period.

And I've certainly felt pride of ownership during this time. To wear a designer earbud is to receive compliments and nods of approval, but it is made all the easier when they're as comfortable and easy to fit as these.

To better test those comfort levels (and battery life claims), I wore them throughout the working day in a busy office and on the noisy London Underground network. I also wore them while pole training, to check the fit and security. They fared well.

The Montblanc MTB 03 accompanied me to work on weekdays (walking brusquely to the station; boarding a train and the London Underground; at the office) and on a particularly stormy day stomping on a secret Dorset beach – a great way to test any wind-interference from mics during calls.

When testing the audio quality across the frequencies, I listen to myriad playlists (spanning everything from traditional Celtic songs to thrash metal and on to shoegaze) on Apple Music and Tidal, but also to podcasts and albums on Spotify – and TikTok videos on my MacBook Pro.

I’ve been testing audio products for five years now. As a classical dancer, aerialist, and musical theater performer in another life, sound quality, fit, and user experience have always taken priority for me personally – and having heard how wonderful ANC can sound when done well, I know where the bar is there.

First reviewed December 2023
Read more about how we test

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: a high-end hi-res digital audio player

6:00 pm | December 24, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Portable Media Players | Tags: LDAC | Comments: Off

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000: One-minute review

The Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 is the most expensive digital audio player in a product portfolio full of expensive digital audio players. It’s specified without compromise (full independent balanced and unbalanced audio circuits? Half a dozen DACs taking care of business? These are just a couple of highlights) and it’s finished to the sort of standard that wouldn’t shame any of the world’s leading couture jewellery companies.

Best of all, though, is the way it sounds. It’s remarkably agnostic about the stuff you like to listen to, the sort of standard of digital file in which it’s contained, and the headphones you use too – and when you give it the best stuff to work with, the sound it’s capable of producing is almost humbling in its fidelity. Be in no doubt, this is the best digital audio player – aka best MP3 player – when it comes to sound quality you can currently buy. Which, when you look again at how much it costs, is about the least it needs to be.

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: Price and release date

Priced at $3,699 / £3,799 / AU$5,499

The Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 (which I think we should agree to call ‘SP3000’ from here on out) is on sale now, and in the United Kingdom it costs a not-inconsiderable £3799. In the United States, it’s a barely-more-acceptable $3699, and in Australia you’ll have to part with AU$5499.

Need I say with undue emphasis that this is quite a lot of money for a digital audio player? I’ve reviewed very decent digital audio players (DAP) from the likes of Sony for TechRadar that cost about 10% of this asking price – so why on Earth would you spend ‘Holiday of a Lifetime’ money on something that doesn’t do anything your smartphone can’t do?

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: Features

Bluetooth 5.0 with aptX HD and LDAC
Native 32bit/784kHz and DSD512 playback
Discrete balanced and unbalanced audio circuits

Admittedly, when Astell & Kern says the SP3000 is “the pinnacle of audio players”, that seems a rather subjective statement. When it says this is “the world’s first DAP with independent audio circuitry”, that’s simply a statement of fact.

That independent audio circuitry keeps the signal path for the balanced and unbalanced outputs entirely separated, and it also includes independent digital and analogue signal processing. Astell & Kern calls the overall arrangement ‘HEXA-Audio’ – and it includes four of the new, top-of-the-shop AKM AK4499EX DAC chipsets along with a couple of the very-nearly-top-of-the-shop AK4191EQ DACs from the same company. When you add in a single system-on-chip to take care of CPU, memory and wireless connectivity, it becomes apparent Astell & Kern has chosen not to compromise where technical specification is concerned. And that’s before we get to ‘Teraton X’... this is a bespoke A&K-designed processor that minimises noise derived from both the power supply and the numerous DACs, and provides amplification that’s as clean and efficient as any digital audio player has ever enjoyed.

The upshot is a player that supports every worthwhile digital audio format, can handle sample rates of up to 32bit/784kHz and DSD512 natively, and has Bluetooth 5.0 wireless connectivity with SBC, AAC, aptX HD and LDAC codec compatibility. A player that features half-a-dozen DAC filters for you to investigate, and that can upsample the rate of any given digital audio file in an effort to deliver optimal sound quality. And if you want to enjoy the sound as if it originates from a pair of loudspeakers rather than headphones, the SP3000 has a ‘Crossfeed’ feature that mixes part of the signal from one channel into the other (with time-adjustment to centre the audio image) in an effort to do just that.

Features score: 5 / 5

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: Sound quality

Insightful, engaging and convincing sound
Not too fussy about file sizes
Only slightly fussy about headphones

Some digital audio players are quite picky about what goes into them and how it comes out again - but happily, the SP3000 is not among them. Obviously it performs to its fullest when given big, information-rich digital audio files to work with and is connected to appropriately talented headphones – but it’s not about to have a hissy fit if that’s not the case.

So no matter if you listen to a big 24bit/192kHz FLAC file of Old Man by Neil Young or a bog-standard 320kbps MP3 file of Cool About It by boygenius, the SP3000 is unflappable. It doesn’t matter if you connect £50-worth of Final Audio E3000 via the 3.5mm socket or a pair of £1299 Sennheiser IE900 into the 4.4mm socket, the Astell & Kern will make the best of the situation.

In each and every circumstance, the SP3000 is an uncomplicated pleasure to listen to. Its overall presentation is almost instinctively correct, positive without being pushy, and utterly convincing. 10 hours of battery life looks perfectly adequate when written down, but in practice it’s nothing like long enough. I could listen to this Astell & Kern almost indefinitely.

Detail levels are high in the same way that The Shard is tall. No element of a recording is too minor, too peripheral or too transient to elude the SP3000 - it extracts every scrap of information from a digital audio file and organises it confidently. There’s nothing uptight or fussy about the way this player puts you in the picture, though – everything is contextualised and serves only to ensure you’re fully informed.

Control, from the top of the frequency range to the bottom, is unarguable. The attack and decay of bass sounds, in particular, is so well-managed that rhythmic expression is completely natural and momentum is maintained in all circumstances, despite the considerable weight and substance of the low end. There’s similarly well-supervised attack at the top of the frequency range, and in between the Astell & Kern communicates eloquently through the midrange.

Dynamic headroom is extensive, so big shifts in intensity and/or volume are made plain. Lower-key dynamic variations in voices or harmonics are made absolutely plain, too. Tonality is never anything but balanced and naturalistic, and the SP3000 knits the whole frequency range together smoothly. The soundstage it’s capable of generating is well-defined and expansive – even dense or complex recordings have more than enough elbow-room to let every element express itself without hindrance. And the SP3000 achieves this without losing sight of the fact that it’s presenting a performance – the unity and togetherness of its presentation is direct and unequivocal.

You can fiddle around the edges of the way the Astell & Kern performs by investigating your DAC filter options, sure - but in broad terms, its methodology doesn’t really change. It’s precise and meticulous, but it's no dry tool of analysis. It hits very hard through the low frequencies, but it never gets bogged down under its own weight. It’s spacious and open, but it’s seamlessly unified.

Sound quality score: 5 / 5

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: Design

904L stainless steel chassis
493g; 139 x 82 x 18mm (HxWxD)
1080 x 1920 touchscreen

‘Portable’, of course, is a relative term. The SP3000 is not the most portable product of its type around – it weighs very nearly half a kilo and is 139 x 82 x 18mm (HxWxD) – but if you can slip it into a bag then I guess it must count as ‘portable’. Its pointy corners count against it too, though – and while it comes with a protective case sourced from French tanners ALRA, the fact it’s made of goatskin is not going to appeal to everyone.

To be fair, the body of the SP3000 isn’t as aggressively angular as some A&K designs. And the fact that it’s built from 904L stainless steel goes a long way to establishing the SP3000’s credentials as a luxury ‘accessory’ (in the manner of a watch or some other jewellery) as well as a functional device. 904L stainless steel resists corrosion like nobody’s business, and it can also accept a very high polish - which is why the likes of Rolex make use of it. I’m confident you’ve never seen such a shiny digital audio player.

The front and rear faces of the SP3000 are glass - and on the front it makes up a 5.4in 1080 x 1920 touch-screen. The Snapdragon octa-core CPU that’s in charge means it’s an extremely responsive touch-screen, too.

On the top right edge of the chassis there’s the familiar ‘crown’ control wheel - which is another design feature that ups the SP3000’s desirability. It feels as good as it looks, and the circular light that sits behind it glows in one of a number of different colours to indicate the size of the digital audio file that’s playing. The opposite edge has three small, much less exciting, control buttons that work perfectly well but have none of the control wheel’s visual drama or tactile appeal.

The top of the SP3000 is home to three headphone sockets. There’s a 3.5mm unbalanced output, and two balanced alternatives – 2.5mm (which works with four-pole connections) and 4.4mm (which supports five-pole connections). On the bottom edge, meanwhile, there’s a USB-C socket for charging the internal battery - battery life is around 10 hours in normal circumstances, and a full charge from ‘flat’ takes around three hours. There’s also a micro-SD card slot down here, which can be used to boost the player’s 256GB of memory by up to 1TB.

Design score: 5 / 5

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: Value

In absolute terms, of course, $3,699 / £3,799 / AU$5,499 for a digital audio player is nonsense. The law of diminishing returns is at work here as surely as it is anywhere else - and you can get a big serving of the SP3000’s talents by spending less than half of its asking price (mostly, but not exclusively, by spending it with Astell & Kern itself). But if you want absolutely, positively the best-sounding DAP around, and you are fortunate enough to be able to justify the cost to yourself, well, this player is currently number one in a field of one.

Should I buy the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 review: Also consider

How I tested the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000

Tested for over a week
Tested indoors and out
Tested with wired and wireless headphones

I loaded the internal memory of the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 with quite a lot of high-resolution digital audio files, and I also installed the Tidal app – so ultimately I was able to lot of different types of music via a lot of different audio file types and sizes.

I listened to the player in my home and while out and about (listening outdoors made me quite anxious at first, I don’t mind admitting – it’s an expensive device, after all). And I listened to it using a selection of wired and wireless headphones – generally, headphones able to do some justice to the SP3000’s unarguable quality. I mostly used the Sennheiser IE900 via the 4.4mm balanced input and the Bowers & Wilkins’ Px8 via Bluetooth.

First reviewed in December 2023

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Philips Fidelio L4 review: rich and crisp audio quality with some strange bugs

1:00 pm | December 23, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Headphones | Tags: Apple Music | Comments: Off

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Two-minute review

I absolutely want to love the Philips Fidelio L4. In many ways, they undercut the Sony WH-1000XM5 perfectly ensuring you get something for less while still benefiting from all the features you’d want from one of the best headphones.

The problem lies in the execution. The Philips Fidelio L4 suffers from a few too many disconnection issues. When playing, it sounds fantastic. Audio is rich, vibrant, and with just the right amount of bass to ensure you don’t miss out on crisp mids and trebles. The problem is that sometimes it simply drops out and I can’t figure out why. Instinctively, it seems like wear detection could be a problem but even when disabled, the Philips Fidelio L4 would sometimes just switch off, acting like it was doing you a favor.

It’s frustrating because the Philips Fidelio L4 are good enough that they still deserve a high rating. Besides the exceptional sound quality, there’s also up to 50 hours of battery life which easily beats the competition. A 15 minute charge gives back 14 hours which is ridiculously good going.

For $349 / £300, the Philips Fidelio L4 are well-priced among strong competition even if they’re not the most exciting looking. You’ll love how great it sounds until it cuts out and you’re left wondering just what you did while you restart the headphones. Still, weirdly, they sound so good, it’s a little easier to forgive than maybe it should be.

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Price and release date

Philips Fidelio L4 earcup — (Image credit: Future)

Released in December 2023
Officially priced at $349 / £300

The Philips Fidelio L4 was released in December 2023 for £300. Currently available in the UK, the Philips Fidelio L4 is also set for release in the US for $349 although, at the time of writing, isn’t currently available to buy.

The headphones are available solely in black – a fairly traditional color for headphones – so don’t go looking for fancy colorways.

At this price point, the Philips Fidelio L4’s biggest rivals are the Sony WH-1000XM5 and the Bose QuietComfort 45, which offer very similar features but more brand recognition and as we’ll see later – more reliability too. There’s always the Apple AirPods Max if you want to spend more too.

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Specs

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Features

Philips Fidelio L4 button features — (Image credit: Future)

Wear detection
Simple to use app
Adjustable EQ

The Philips Fidelio L4 packs all the key features you could need. At least when they’re working nicely. The Philips headphones app guides you through the essentials. There’s wear detection, auto on/off and an adjustable EQ. The latter comes with four presets but it’s always good to be able to adjust things for yourself too.

Other useful features include LDAC support, voice assistant functionality, spatial audio (although no head tracking), and touch controls too. Multipoint support means it’s easy to hook the cans up to multiple devices at once too – a feature that’s fast becoming an essential given how many devices I switch between on a daily basis. There’s also Bluetooth 5.3 support and a 3.5mm jack for listening to music more crisply.

Sounds perfect, right? Yes and no. While using the Philips Fidelio L4, I found it very prone to random disconnections. I could be idly listening to a song and then suddenly, the headphones would make a couple of shutting down style sounds and do exactly that. At first, it seemed like a battery issue but I found turning off wear detection and touch controls seemed to help matters. It’s a weird one to pin down as it doesn’t seem to be entirely down to wear detection but it’s an irritant on what we’ll soon see is an otherwise exceptional pair of cans and definitely a dealbreaker.

Features score: 3/5

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Battery life

Philips Fidelio L4 earcup close up — (Image credit: Future)

Up to 50 hours
Great quick charge function

The Philips Fidelio L4 blows the competition out of the water with up to 50 hours with ANC off promised or 40 hours with it enabled. In real world use, that dips a tiny bit but not by much making these cans one of the longer lasting headphones around.

Full recharging takes about two hours but 15 minutes worth returns 14 hours. You read that right. It’s quite remarkable.

Battery life score: 5/5

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Sound quality

Philips Fidelio L4 app screen — (Image credit: Future)

Strong ANC
Super crisp and rich audio
Adjustable EQ

If I were to point out one stand out feature about the Philips Fidelio L4, it’s how great it sounds. We’re talking best over-ear headphones level with them sounding on a par with the Sony WH-1000XM5 and all those that compete with it.

Out of the box, I was impressed by how vibrant everything sounded. My random playlist came out with Black Eyed Peas’ I Gotta Feeling and it instantly feels punchy and ridiculously enthusiastic. Switch over to something calmer like The Beach Boys’ God Only Knows and the mids sound beautifully smooth and detailed with the treble offering a hint of sparkly magic. It’s all just a bit delightful.

Something like Erasure’s A Little Respect demonstrates how well the bass mixes in with the mids so that it never overwhelms the sound, right before diving into something far punchier like Muse’s You Make Me Feel Like Halloween.

Out of the box, the Philips Fidelio L4 sound good but dipping into the app means the chance to tweak the EQ or choose one of the four presets. Bass ended up my favorite but that differed depending on the song with Treble also standing out nicely for vibrancy. Crucially, unlike some inferior headphones, you can genuinely hear the differences here.

Add on some solidly dependable ANC and the Philips Fidelio L4 are the headphones to wear on your walk or in a busy office to guarantee you won’t be distracted by environmental noises while you take in your favorites.

Sound quality score: 5/5

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Design

Philips Fidelio L4 design — (Image credit: Future)

Comfy
Doesn’t fold
Touch controls

In your hands, the Philips Fidelio L4 feel a little cheaper than their actual price tag. They don’t feel as high-end as the competition for instance, but they are fairly light on your head. The foam ear cups feel comfy while fully covering your ears aiding the ANC. The headband adjusts in a fairly sleek fashion so there’s no risk of that perilous crunch you can get with others.

However, the Philips Fidelio L4 doesn’t fold which instantly makes it feel less portable than others. You’re tossing them into your bag as they are on your head which feels a little unsafe. On the other hand, they do feel reasonably robust in your hands so hopefully I’m just being overly anxious.

On the left ear cup is the power button and USB-C port, while the right hand side has the 3.5mm port, along with controls for the mic and ANC. The bulk of the controls come from the touch sensitive surface on the right ear cup. Gestures work well here with accidental taps rarely an issue.

Design score: 4/5

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Value

Premium features
Middling build

The Philips Fidelio L4 don’t feel as high-end in your hands as the Sony WH-1000XM5 or Bose 700s but they are slightly cheaper. For features, the Philips Fidelio L4 are definitely on a par providing they work reliably.

If those temperamental issues are sorted, the Philips Fidelio L4 will be a bit of a bargain undercutting its main rivals but as it stands, it’s a more uncertain proposition.

Value score: 3/5

Should I buy the Philips Fidelio L4?

Buy them if...

Don’t buy them if...

Philips Fidelio L4 review: Also consider

How I tested the Philips Fidelio L4

Tested over 10 days in a variety of situations
Listened against the Sony WH-1000XM4, Apple AirPods Pro 2, and Beats Studio Pro
Listened to Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube videos, and Twitch

The Philips Fidelio L4 replaced my usual daily combo of headphones – the Apple AirPods Pro 2 and Sony WH-1000XM4 – over a period of just over a week.

They were with me during my morning daily walks as the perfect test of how comfy they are on the move. I also wore them during more chilled listening sessions in the evenings to see how well they worked when relaxed in a living room environment.

I gave the ANC a good challenge by walking alongside busy rush hour traffic, along with wearing them during loud housework and my neighbours’ never-ending construction work. In typical Welsh fashion, they also had to face up against some very loud stormy weather too.

During the day, I’d wear them in my home office while working. For the most part, I’d listen to Spotify or Twitch streams. In the evenings, I’d listen to YouTube videos while any walks were handled by Apple Music.

Genres were pretty varied from classical to rock, cheesy recent pop, and some jazz too. Twitch streams and YouTube videos were predominantly gaming related.

I’ve been reviewing audio products for about 10 years and know what sounds good and what doesn’t. I also appreciate there’s not much point in having great sounding headphones that feel awful on your head.

First reviewed in December 2023

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PSB Alpha iQ speakers review: an all-in-one wireless hi-fi wonder

11:00 pm | December 17, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Speakers | Tags: HDMI | Comments: Off

PSB Alpha iQ: One-minute review

The Alpha iQ from Canada’s PSB Speakers is the company’s first active-streaming model: a very compact bookshelf design that nevertheless produces superb sound with surprising dynamic and bass abilities. Like other examples of the best wireless speakers, On-board Wi-Fi, USB, and aptx HD Bluetooth give users plenty of streaming options, and it uses the BluOS ecosystem for multiroom playback and control.

The BluOS Controller iOS/Android app (MacOS and Windows versions are also available) used by the Alpha iQ is highly capable but occasionally quirky to navigate, though AirPlay and Roon (the Alpha iQ is “Roon Ready”) provide further streaming options. The iQ also has a turntable-ready phono input and an HDMI eARC port for the best TVs, so connection flexibility here is excellent.

Listeners who value accurate, true-to-life musical sound will be well pleased, though those seeking maximum head-bang-per-buck may be disappointed. Nonetheless, the Alpha iQs are more than ready to fill any up to solidly medium-sized room with convincing levels of lifelike musical sound.

PSB Alpha iQ wireless speakers — (Image credit: Future)

PSB Alpha iQ review: Price & release date

Released September 2022
Priced at $1,299 / £1,099

The PSB Alpha iQ was released in September 2022 and is available in the US, UK, Europe and directly from the PSB Speakers website. At the time this review posted, the price for the Alpha iQ had dropped to $999 in the US.

PSB Alpha iQ review: Specs

PSB Alpha iQ wireless speakers back views — Hardwired connection options include HDMI eARC, MM phono, 3.5mm analog and a subwoofer output (Image credit: Future)

PSB Alpha iQ review: Features

Powered speaker pair
HDMI eARC and phono inputs
BluOS app used for setup and control

The Alpha iQ’s two speakers are not identical, though each builds in a pair of amplifiers, of 30 and 60 watts respectively, for the tweeter and woofer. But the “secondary” speaker has no rear-panel features at all beyond an IEC power-cord socket and a pinhole reset-button access. All connections are on the main speaker, which can be assigned left or right status at setup, while the secondary speaker receives a digital signal wirelessly from its mate. (I could not find official word on the Alpha iQ’s internal or inter-speaker resolution, but believe it to be 24-bit/192 kHz.) The crossovers, driver EQ, and smart limiting are DSP-based.

Inputs on the main speaker include HDMI eARC, phono (moving-magnet cartridges only), an optical digital audio port, and a 3.5-inch stereo minijack input. Other connections include a subwoofer output, Ethernet network port, a USB port, and an AC power input.

A small play/pause/skip touch-panel is handsomely set into the main speaker’s top panel. No remote control is provided, as it is presumed that the BluOS app will serve as the primary user interface. This puts the BluOS app, which bakes in access to every major streaming service (and quite a few more) and is also required for installation and setup, front and center.

The new BluOS 4.0 app that’s used for streaming and control of the Alpha iQs proved a very worthwhile update – really, an overall re-design. Where I found the previous BluOS version to be occasionally confusing, and needlessly (I thought) complicated, 4.0 proved simpler, smoother, and altogether more logically laid out and organized.

That said, this is a review of the Alpha iQ speakers not of the BluOS app, so I’ll be brief. The new BluOS app’s Home Screen shows your most-used sources or services, recent stations, and a quintet of icons across the bottom to select Favorites, Music (streaming services, inputs, or network “shares”), Players (you might have multiple BluSound speakers or components in different rooms), and a Search panel.

Navigation is fairly straightforward – much more so, in my view, than the earlier versions of the app. A “now playing” bar across the bottom, which shows the current player, track and scrolling title data, a mini album-art panel, and play/pause and volume buttons. This last is a two-step process; you must first touch the Volume icon, which switches to a volume slider that you can then adjust.

Features score: 5/5

PSB Alpha iQ wireless speakers app screens — Screenshots of the BluOS app used to control streaming and speaker setup (Image credit: Future)

PSB Alpha iQ review: Sound quality

Natural sound balance
Stable and precise stereo imaging
Finite level and bass extension

The PSB Alpha iQs scored highly when it came to sound quality. Both male and female vocals were consistently natural and projected well out into the listening space. The little Alphas also went to about 45 Hz or so with honest tonality and definition. For example, on a track like Bonnie Bramlett’s rendition of the standard “Cry Me a River,” the low “F” in the bass guitar (about 44 Hz) was solid, but the low “C” below it was audibly a bit lighter when compared directly to a much larger, fuller-range speaker.

Classical chamber music and small-combo jazz were unmitigated delights, and even orchestral recordings (Stravinsky) and reference-grade rock (Steely Dan) sounded suitably big, balanced, and impressively detailed and defined, with tight, stable stereo imaging, and plenty of output. Volume, however, was finite: when asked for more, the Alpha iQs simply failed to increase loudness, while their onboard “smart” limiting and equalization forestalled any audible distortion.

Connecting a powered subwoofer to the Alpha iQ's sub output automatically applies a high-pass filter at 80 Hz, which achieves two advantages. First, it extends system response downwards to the capability of the sub; second, it removes the burden of reproducing deep bass from the little Alpha iQs, yielding a significant gain in overall clean level.

With my everyday subwoofer connected, the Alpha iQs became the crux of a full-range, full-level system, one that proved entirely capable of delivering a big, demanding recording like Charles Ives’ “A Concord Symphony” (the “Concord” piano sonata brilliantly orchestrated by the late Henry Brant) with visceral impact, breadth, and deep, reverberant, symphonic-bass-drum thwacks.

Imaging was fairly “tight.” By that I mean it didn’t expand much beyond the speakers or deliver an exaggerated illusion of front-to-back depth, but it was very precise in locating instruments and voices on the soundstage, and in projecting centered voices or soloists well out into the room.

Partly inspired by this trait, I tried the Alpha iQs for a bit as desktop speakers. Despite the fact that they’re a little big for such deployment, they sounded terrific up close this way, with generally fine accuracy and a more dramatic, close-in stereo effect. But the PSBs suffered a bit from a more blousy mid-bass and slightly congested vocal range, likely due to sonic reflections from the desk and computer monitor screen surfaces. The lack of any DSP equalization for such placement, as many similar designs incorporate, was a missed opportunity here.

I briefly used the HDMI eARC input to confirm operation with my Sony OLED TV, which worked as expected. I also spun a few LPs from my classic Rega Planar turntable with its equally classic Shure V-15III moving magnet cartridge doing the honors, and this sounded as excellent as I expected. And as already mentioned, connecting my compact sub to the Alpha iQ’s subwoofer output transformed the little PSBs into a full-blown, full-range, high-end experience.

Sound quality score: 5/5

PSB Alpha iQ wireless speakers close up of top surface — Top panel controls for volume adjustment (Image credit: Future)

PSB Alpha iQ review: Design

Compact bookshelf design
Blue, orange, yellow, black or white matte lacquer finishes
2-way “tweeter under” configuration

The PSB Alpha iQ speakers are compact-bookshelf size and borderline small enough for desktop use. They are available in blue, orange, yellow, black or white matte lacquer finishes. My black pair showed first-rate fit and finish and attention to detail.

The Alpha iQs have an unusual, “tweeter-under” design, meant to be located “upside-down” with the 4-inch woofer above the 0,75-inch tweeter to direct the “in-phase lobe” (i.e. the best-balanced sound) to the listener’s ears. With a multi-color LED integrated into the tweeter, and slim bright-work accent rings around each driver, it’s a very handsome rig. The cabinets are vented by rear-panel ports (the rear panel and front baffle are aluminum, while speaker’s top, bottom, and sides are the usual MDF wood-composite).

Design score: 4/5

PSB Alpha iQ review: Value

Pricier than similar options
Can accommodate both analog and streamed sources
Added value if already in BluOS ecosystem

The PSB Alpha iQs are relatively pricey compared to similar options such as the SVS Prime Wireless Pro ($899.99) and Elac Debut ConneX ($399.98). Both the PSB and SVS feature an array of digital and analog inputs for connecting external sources, including HDMI ARC for a TV connection, and the SVS also features DTS Play-Fi for high-res multiroom streaming.

Where the PSB shows its value is in its excellent BluOS streaming and control app, wide-ranging connectivity, and great overall sound quality. The compact wireless streaming speakers category is a competitive one, however, with basic streaming-only options from brands like Sonos and Apple eating up much of the pie, so the ultimate value of the Alpha iQs will primarily lie in how sold you are on the BluOS app and ecosystem.

Value score: 3.5/5

PSB Alpha iQ wireless speakers on table with turntable — (Image credit: PSB)

Should you buy the PSB Alpha iQ?

Buy it if…

Don't buy it if…

PSB Alpha iQ review: Also consider

PSB Alpha iQ review: How I tested

Tested with music streamed via BluOS app from Qobuz, Tidal and other services
Auditioned in same studio as several compared speakers and in “desktop audio” setup
Tested over several weeks, listened to for more than 20 hours hours total

I had the PSB iQ pair for well over a month, and used them for casual music and TV audio for a week-plus before critical auditions. I played music via BluOS from Qobuz, Tidal, Apple Music/Classical, and my own local music file library, including both high-resolution and standard-rez/lossless sources. I also (briefly) streamed via Bluetooth from my iPhone XS and (also briefly) LPs from a decades-old but still-capable Rega Planar turntable.

I had several active and passive speakers, including my long-term Energy Veritas 2.2 monitors, SVS Prime Wireless, and KEF LS-60 in the same studio for direct comparison.

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First reviewed: December 2023

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 review: a luxury high-end speaker with a premium price to match

8:00 pm | December 16, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Wireless & Bluetooth Speakers | Comments: Off

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8: Two-minute review

The Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 is, in many ways, about as Bang & Olufsen a product as it’s possible to imagine. As far as its broad functionality is concerned, it’s ‘just’ a wireless speaker with a fairly unremarkable specification (if you ignore the ‘Mozart’ platform that offers a degree of technological future-proofing). It doesn’t do anything that any number of more affordable alternatives can do.

What very few alternatives can do, though, is look quite so decorative, so elegant and, yes, so expensive while they’re doing, though – in fact, I can really only think of Devialet’s ‘Phantom’ range of speakers that have anything like the visual drama of the Beolab 8. So if you want a speaker that looks, as well as sounds, the part, stick with me…

Play to its strengths and the Beolab 8 is an energetic and energising listen, able to balance considerable attack against deft detail resolution with real skill. Where the most visceral aspects of music-making are concerned, this Bang & Olufsen is one of the best wireless speakers around. If you try to lumber it with some more soothing, less lively content, though, you’ll find it’s rather intolerant. And no matter what you listen to, don’t listen to it at big volumes – that can skew the speaker’s sonic balance a little.

There’s an elephant in the room, though – and just because it was introduced early on, that doesn't make it any less elephant-like. The Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 is stunningly expensive compared to the best wireless speakers, which means you’ll have to do some negotiating with yourself before any of the other stuff becomes a consideration…

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 review: Price and release date

The Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 on a table — (Image credit: Future, Simon Lucas)

Release date: November 2023
Price: $2,749 / £2,199 / AU$4,499

The Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 is on sale now, and it sells for a minimum of $2,749 in the US, £2,199 in the UK and AU$4,499 in Australia. That’s for the ‘natural’ aluminium chassis with grey ‘mélange’ grille and table-stand though.

Things being what they are at Bang & Olufsen, of course, it’s possible to spend plenty more than this if the fancy takes you. The version I’m testing, for instance, is in ‘natural’ aluminium with slatted natural oak cover and table-stand – and it sells for £2,699 in the UK.

It’s worth noting that the Beolab 8 has very little price-comparable competition, even at its most affordable. It’s really only Devialet (a company just as distinctive as Bang & Olufsen, at least in some ways) and its bonkers Phantom wireless speaker that competes in anything like the same area of the market.

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 review: Features

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 app screenshots — (Image credit: Future, Simon Lucas)

300 watts of Class D power
24bit/192kHz DAC
Wired and wireless connectivity

As seems only reasonable, given the asking price, the Beolab 8 is a sensibly and thoroughly specified device. Your options for getting audio content on board, for instance, are numerous. There are wired and wireless options available, naturally. Dual-band wi-fi and Bluetooth 5.3 (with SBC and AAC codec compatibility) take care of the wireless stuff, and you also get the option of Apple AirPlay 2, Chromecast and the ‘Connect’ versions of both Spotify and Tidal.

On top of this, the control app features access to Bang & Olufsen Radio, which brings a huge number of broadcasts from around the world into the Beolab 8’s orbit. There’s DLNA compatibility too, so any content on a local server is available too. Wired connectivity runs to a couple of Ethernet sockets and a USB-C input, all of which are just slightly fiddly to access at the rear of the cabinet.

No matter how you access your content, though, it’s pored over by a DAC chipset of 24bit/192kHz resolution and compatibility with most worthwhile file formats. It’s then delivered by a 15mm tweeter, 76mm midrange driver and 136mm bass unit – the Bang & Olufsen has a total of 300 watts of Class D power available, with the bass driver taking 200 watts of that and the remaining 100 watts divided equally between the other two drivers.

Before you get to the point of actually listening to music, though, the Beolab 8 would like to optimise its performance to your specific environment. There’s an ‘advanced room compensation’ routine available in the control app - it takes next-to-no time to maximise the output of the speaker. ‘Adaptive bass linearization’ [sic] does something similar, but with greater emphasis on the possibly problematic low frequencies. After that, it’s simply a question of deciding which of the ‘beam width control’ options (‘wide’ or ‘narrow’) you prefer – and then you’re in business.

During the early part of 2024 Bang & Olufsen will introduce a feature of interest to those who are running a couple of Beolab 8 as a stereo pair. ‘Fluid sweet spot’ intends to use the position of your smartphone to optimise the stereo image to suit, which sounds like an intriguing idea.

The Beolab 8 is built on Bang & Olufsen’s increasingly ubiquitous ‘Mozart’ platform, which gives it compatibility both forwards and backwards. Because the platform is adaptable and modular, the Beolab 8 has been proactively designed to be easily upgradable to take account of new technologies not currently on the radar. And because ‘Powerlink’ is part of the ‘Mozart’ platform, the Beolab 8 is compatible with Bang & Olufsen audio and video products dating back three decades and more.

Controlling the Beolab 8 can be done in a couple of (well-implemented, reliable) ways. The glass top-plate is home to some illuminated capacitive touch controls – they’re woken by a proximity sensor. Here you can take care of ‘play/pause’, ‘volume up/down’, and ‘skip forwards/backwards’ - and it’s also where you can access your four presets, and where you can initiate Bluetooth pairing.

The real action, though, lies with the Bang & Olufsen control app that’s free for iOS and Android. It remains one of the more useful and better-looking examples of its – and it covers every eventuality. For instance, EQ adjustment is available both via ‘bass’ and ‘treble’ sliders and via the lovely ‘target’ graphic alternative. Playback controls, software updates, forming a stereo pair or creating a multiroom system, running the ‘room compensation’ calibration routine, accessing presets, switching between ‘wide’ and ‘narrow’ sound dispersal characteristics… you name it, the app has it covered.

There’s no voice control available here, though. Given how effective the control app and the touch controls are, it’s not a massive miss - but then again, I can’t help but think that All This Money ought to buy as many niceties as are available…

Features score: 4.5 / 5

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 review: Design

A close-up of the Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 — (Image credit: Future, Simon Lucas)

290 x 189 x 165mm (HxWxD)
4.1kg (without stand)
Several stand options

Obviously, whether or not you enjoy the design of the Beolab 8 is very much a matter of taste. But there are some aspects of ‘design’ I feel able to discuss without fear of contradiction.

For instance, there’s no arguing with the impeccable nature of the way this speaker is built and finished. It’s hard for a piece of audio equipment of this sort of size to justify its asking price where the look (and, for that matter, the feel) is concerned, but Bang & Olufsen has nevertheless given it a shot. At 290 x 189 x 165mm (HxWxD) the Beolab 8 is big enough to look purposeful, but small enough to be either decorative or discreet depending on your preference.

As mentioned, the £2,199 I quoted at the outset buys you a speaker in ‘natural’ aluminium with a grey ‘mélange’ grille, sitting on a table-stand. Of course, you may prefer the slatted oak grille of my sample (it’s a finish that features on quite a few Beolab models) - this can be yours along with the ‘natural’ aluminium finish for £2,699. This is also the price that ‘gold tone’ with light oak grille or ‘black anthracite’ with dark oak grille will set you back.

There are also options where stands are concerned. A wall bracket and a floor stand are both available - and both make a lot of sense if you’re running a stereo pair of Beolab 8 or (for the extraordinarily well-heeled) using them as rear speakers in a surround-sound set-up. The wall bracket (which can also be a ceiling bracket) adds £100 to the price, the floor stand is an extra £200.

Design score: 4.5 / 5

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 review: Sound quality

Close up of speaker in the Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 — (Image credit: Future, Simon Lucas)

Detailed, energetic sound
Good low-frequency presence and control
Can get a little toppy at volume

Has your Beolab 8 calibrated itself to your specific environment? Have you experimented with ‘wide’ and ‘narrow’ beam width? Investigated your B&O Radio preferences and given the control app access to all the music you have stored on a common network? Well then, you’re good to go.

A 24bit/96kHz FLAC file of Los Campesinos’ You! Me! Dancing! gives the Beolab 8 ample opportunity to explain a fair bit about the way it goes about things, and the news is almost entirely positive. From the get-go, the Bang & Olufsen strikes a balance between ‘forcefulness’ and ‘deftness’ that brings the song vividly to life.

It summons impressive low-frequency presence, for example. Bass sounds are deep, properly shaped and textured, and carry plenty of fine detail regarding tone and timbre along with a serving of straight-ahead punch. Control of the bottom end is good, which means rhythmic expression is confident, and the speaker maintains the momentum of the recording in fine style. Bass sounds stay carefully in their lane, and leave the midrange alone to get on with doing its thing without sticking their oar in.

‘Its thing’ turns out to be communicating in a pretty direct and eloquent style. There’s an absolute stack of character and attitude in the tune’s vocal line, as well as some endearingly approximate technique, and the Beolab 8 makes it plain without sounding in any way analytical or judgemental - it’s an engaged and engaging listen where singers are concerned, and it allows a stack of detail to emerge. There’s an articulacy to the way the Bang & Olufsen handles the midrange that’s by no means a given in any speaker – even one as optimistically priced as this one.

The story is similar at the top of the frequency range, at least where detail levels, control and insight are concerned. The top end attacks with crisp determination - there’s about as much brightness to treble sounds as is acceptable, but unless you’re really pressing on in terms of volume everything remains disciplined. If you enjoy bigger volumes, though, the top-end reproduction here gains quite a lot of ill-deserved confidence, and the result is a skewing of the frequency balance towards the top - and there’s hardness and edginess there as a result.

The entirety of the frequency range is quite smoothly integrated, with scant suggestion of handover at any of the crossover points. The Beolab 8 is a quite spacious and well-defined listen, able to describe space between the competing elements of a recording while maintaining focus at the same time. Dynamic headroom is considerable, and the distance it’s capable of putting between the quietest and the loudest moments in a recording is considerable. It’s similarly attentive to the more minor, but no less significant, dynamic and harmonic variations apparent when listening to an unaccompanied voice or solo instrument.

There’s a definite sensation of directness and positivity to the sound the Beolab 8 makes, no matter the attitude of the music it’s playing. In most circumstances, this works just fine - it’s not as if the speaker is feral in its delivery, but it most certainly knows how to attack. On occasion, though, its determination to impose its ‘up-and-at-’em’ attitude bumps up against recordings that require a gentler, less forthright touch - something like a 24bit/96kHz FLAC file of Arooj Aftab’s Last Night, for instance - and the result is a compromise that doesn’t really suit either party.

Sound quality score: 4 / 5

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 review: Value

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8 from above — (Image credit: Future, Simon Lucas)

Priced beyond its performance...
...but Bang & Olufsen customers tend not to mind
Looks as distinctive as it sounds

Obviously you can buy comparable sound quality for a fair bit less than this. So the question of ‘value’ really rests on how much you enjoy the Beolab 8 aesthetic, and how much you admire Bang & Olufsen’s commitment to premium materials and individualistic design (as well as its determination to make its products both future-proof and compatible with its older models).

Value score: 3.5 / 5

Should I buy the Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8: Also consider

How I tested the Bang & Olufsen Beolab 8

Tested in different positions in my home
Tested with a variety of digital audio file types…
…and with a variety of genres of music

I used the Beolab 8 for well over a week, and it occupied quite a few different positions in my home during that time - always on its table stand, of course. As the review makes plain, this speaker has its preferences as regards the type of music you ask it to play - but it turns out to be admirably unfussy about the quality, or resolution, of the digital audio information you feed it. And as long as you don’t position it on a shelf with another shelf directly above, it’s not all that bothered about where you place it, either.

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Three-minute review

Edifier might not be a household name but if the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are anything to go by, then the firm really needs to garner more attention. Available for £129.99 / $129.99 / AU$229.99, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are deceptively cheap for a feature set that includes active noise cancellation, hi-res audio support, Bluetooth 5.3, and a snazzy looking app and case. They must be fairly poor, right? Wrong.

While the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 struggle with some very middling battery life that's bordering on not good enough, everything else about them is impressive. When it comes to ANC quality, I don't even mean impressive for the price, I mean good for any of the best noise cancelling earbuds.

Walking along a busy road and barely hearing a thing is the dream. It's possible to hear that there is traffic flying past, but it's entirely background noise and doesn't detract from what you're listening to in the slightest.

Alongside that, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 sound great with the 10mm dynamic driver paired with a balanced armature driver ensuring they sound balanced. Crisp sounds as you listen to the latest from Taylor Swift right back to some soothing classical music all ensures the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are a delight.

App support means you can adjust things via the EQ which is nice but not necessary for anyone other than the most avid of audiophiles. If you want a little more punchiness though, you can't go wrong with the Dynamic Mode which worked well with Muse's back catalogue.

With ANC enabled, even with the charging case, you'll only be able to listen for about 16 hours at the absolute most which isn't great but that's a small bugbear for most people and one that I'm willing to accept at this price point.

Similarly, the look of the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 is a little Star Trek: The Next Generation ish rather than as sleek as some competitors like the Apple AirPods Pro 2, but these are still a bargain that richly deserve a place among the best wireless earbuds.

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Price and release date

Edifier Neobuds Pro 2 in case — (Image credit: Future)

Released in August 2023
Officially priced at £129.99 / $129.99 / AU$229.99

The Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 was released in August 2023 for $129.99 in the US, £129.99 in the UK and AU$229.99 in Australia. The earbuds are currently available in the US, UK and Europe.

Two color choices are available – either black or ivory. Fairly ordinary colors, either could end up discounted at some point but the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are very shrewdly priced already.

Outside of sales, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are roughly similarly priced to the Sony WF-C700N at $119 / £99 / AU$199 and the standard Apple AirPods with a wired charging case (although these are often discounted). Notably, the standard AirPods lack ANC although the Sony earbuds still offer it.

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Specs

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Features

Edifier Neobuds Pro 2 case — (Image credit: Future)

Wear detection
Great app
No multipoint support

The Edifier app is one of the best around with all the features you could want. That includes adjusting different levels of ANC to your liking, setting up head-tracking and tweaking the EQ. You can even change the color of the LED on the charging case which is a cute touch.

The Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 also offer wear detection which is mostly very accurate. Once in a while, I found it not detect me removing the buds from my ears but for the most part, it was a delight to put them in and have music kick straight back in.

There isn't multipoint support so you can't connect two devices at once but the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 remain ideal for your commute or keeping permanently hooked up to your phone. There's also Bluetooth 5.3 support to ensure no dropouts.

Features score: 4/5

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Battery life

Up to 22 hours with ANC off/up to 16 hours with ANC on
15 minute quick-charge gives back 2 hours

The Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are fine when it comes to battery life but a little weaker than some of the competition. There's up to 22 hours including the case when ANC is disabled led but you'll likely want it switched on. Enabled and with Hi-res audio kicking in, you can see just two to three hours of playback with four hours usually experienced with ANC on.

Mileage will vary here and I didn't find it a dealbreaker as a pair of earbuds for the daily commute, but if you need to use them for extended periods, you may be disappointed by the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2's performance.

Battery life score: 3/5

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Sound quality

Edifier Neobuds Pro 2 charging port — (Image credit: Future)

Crisp audio
Great ANC
Adjustable EQ

The most exceptional thing about the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 is how good the ANC is. Wireless earbuds are rarely competing with the best noise-cancelling headphones given their design but I'd go so far as to say the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 felt class leading. Walking along a busy road, noise was easily cancelled out and reduced to being quiet background noise ensuring I could hear every moment of Taylor Swift belting out Bad Blood.

Via the app, there are plenty of noise cancellation modes to choose from depending on the situation. I mostly lived with them on the strongest setting but it was useful to be able to switch to milder levels or an ambient mode to hear the key details going on around you. A wind reduction mode was particularly useful in this part of the country where the wind seems to never calm down.

Similarly, out of the box, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 sound good. The mids are crisp and the highs detailed with little issue here. Bass isn't booming but it feels smooth and punchy nonetheless. While bassheads may prefer an even louder response, it's a pretty balanced result here. Tracks like the reworking of Welcome to New York by Taylor Swift feel as exciting as it's meant to sound, making even the gloomiest of days feel a little livelier. Classics like God Only Knows have just the right amount of sparkle while feeling bright throughout.

There are adjustments that can be made via the app and they work well, particularly if you want to add more punchiness to your listening but mostly, there's no need to make any tweaks unless you truly feel in the mood.

The only minor issue comes from a soundstage that could maybe be a little wider but as detailed as it is, I'm not complaining. Add on the Hi-Res audio support with the latest LHDC 5.0 HD codec, and the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are packing some hefty weight for the price.

Sound quality score: 5/5

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Design

Angular case
Dated version of the future
Touch sensitive controls

Despite lacking the battery life of some earbuds, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 have a fairly sizeable case. Angular in design, it'll take up more room in your pocket than other earbuds like the Apple AirPods. Despite all that room, there's no wireless charging with charging solely via the USB-C port.

There's also room for an LED light bar on the front with the app allowing you to choose from eight different colors. It's a little gimmicky but it pumps out more light than you'd expect, as I discovered while going for a dawn walk. Otherwise, the case isn't exactly good looking.

The earbuds themselves are fairly hefty too but that's beneficial as the tips ensure a balanced design that mean they fit snugly in your ears without ever feeling like they could drop out of your ears any time soon, even when running. It's not the most attractive of designs but it's certainly practical.

On the earbuds are a touch area for light touches and long presses. Thanks to the effective wear detection, you may find you don't need these very often but they're great for taking calls.

Design score: 4/5

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Value

Edifier Neobuds Pro 2 design — (Image credit: Future)

Very competitively priced
Premium features for less

The Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 are very shrewdly priced. The ANC is better than most along with other key features. Competition arises from the standard Apple AirPods which lack ANC or the Sony WF-C700N which are slightly cheaper.

Ultimately, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 is punching above its weight making it great value if you don't mind slightly lesser battery life and other minor issues.

Value score: 4/5

Should I buy the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2?

Buy them if...

Don't buy them if...

Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 review: Also consider

How I tested the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2

Edifier Neobuds Pro 2 in charging case — (Image credit: Future)

Tested over 10 days in many different situations
Listened against the Apple AirPods 3, Apple AirPods Pro 2, and Marshall Motif II
Listened to Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube videos and Twitch

The Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 were my trusty companion over 10 days or so, replacing my usual earbuds.

That meant they were with me during each of my morning walks amongst the busy rush hour commute. They were also used walking around even busier areas where, normally, I wouldn't have been able to hear what I was listening to. To make matters noisier, I also dealt with some fairly strong winds and storms so it was a strong test of the earbuds' ANC.

Besides being worn for walks, I also used the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 on a couple of runs to check they fit snugly and securely.

During my evenings, I used them to watch Twitch streams and YouTube videos, while the daytime was mostly spent with Apple Music and Spotify to try out different types of music. Genres ranged from pop, jazz, classical, soundtracks, to a friend's album which wasn't as heavily processed as others.

I've been reviewing audio products for about 10 years now and am pretty picky with what sounds good as well as what feels right in my ears. It's always good to feel like you're rediscovering a favorite thanks to the earbuds you're using.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed in December 2023.

iFi hip-dac 3 review: delicious audio and features in a beautiful portable DAC

8:00 pm | December 9, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi | Tags: DAC | Comments: Off

iFi hip-dac 3: Two-minute review

USB-C ports and Titanium finishes are just so hot right now – and nothing is more desirable than this cheeky little audio accessory next to your shiny new iPhone 15. Even if you don't have Apple's freshest-baked iPhone (or a smartphone toting a USB-C port) your music al-desko from your laptop or tablet is about to get a whole lot better.

iFi hip-dac 3's bid to enter our best portable DACs buying guide is a strong one: no sooner had Apple's quartet of iPhone 15 handsets rolled out in late September 2023 – a clutch of devices that finally ditched Apple's proprietary Lightning port in favor of USB-C as you doubtless know – a range of some of the best USB-C-toting DACs also arrived, wanting to turn your new iPhone into a hi-res audio music player.

But none of those looks more resplendent next to your iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max in Natural Titanium than iFi's hip flask-esque hip-dac 3. If Apple were ever to make a DAC, I wager Tim Cook's engineers would seek to deviate from the ice-white AirPods aesthetic in favor of this gorgeous hue. It is referred to by its UK makers as 'Titanium Shadow', because it was purported to "change tone in different lights, with hints of bronze and vintage gold." And this is true, reader; while photographing the thing I struggled to capture its occasionally buttery hues, but these are quite beautiful.

And it's not all TikTok-able looks! Merely a trifle it is not, this thing comes from strong stock. Allow your eyes to feast upon original 2019 hip-dac in 'Petrol Blue', plus the hip-dac 2 (which I helped review for TechRadar's sister publication, What Hi-Fi?) the color of which looks for all the world like a good single malt but is actually called 'Sunset Orange'. As the name suggests, hip-dac 3 is the third in a lineup of excellent hip-prefixed DACs. And this iteration is by far the best.

iFi hip-dac 3 held in hand on white background — Yes, it does look like a fine single malt should be involved (Image credit: Future)

What are you getting for the 2023 update, aside from my favorite finish yet? There are now two USB-C ports in its base; the right-hand side for charging (it glows different colors to denote current onboard battery capacity), and the other for audio, thus maintaining a dedicated audio input for the purest signal path, which also means you can use the hip-dac 3 while connected to the mains – and that is rare against the competition. For clarity, the previous two hip-dac generations used USB-A for audio, and in the first-gen model, it was quite a deeply recessed male USB so not all spare cables played nice with it.

There is an additional switch on the back of hip-dac 3’s casework now too, which grants you iFi’s IEMatch technology. It's a proprietary circuit designed to optimize the amp’s output to better suit high-sensitivity 3.5mm or 4.4 mm-ended headphones and earphones. Simply plug in your pickier 3.5mm or 4.4mm IEMs, flick the switch to 3.5mm or 4.4mm and you're away – particularly useful for some of the best wired headphones we've tested.

Ultimately, a standalone portable DAC's viability lies in whether it can make its supplementary presence worth it; you don't expressly need it (your iPhone has a tiny DAC in it, after all) but oh, once you've heard it, you'll struggle to go back to listening without it for detail, neutrality and clarity…

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Price and release date

Released October 6, 2023
Priced: $199 / £199 / AU$349

The iFi hip-dac 3 is selling for $199 in the US (thus making it the same price as the Helm Audio Bolt) which means it slips into iFi's considerable DAC lineup somewhere above the cheaper iFi Uno (yours for around $79 / £79 / AU$119) and below the flagship iFi xDSD Gryphon ($599 / £599 / AU$899).

It's worth mentioning that the inaugural February 2020 hip-dac retailed for $149 / £149 / AU$249 at launch, (and the hip-dac 2 cost $189 / £189 /AU$279) so there is an ongoing increase at play here – although it's a more palatable $20 / £20 hike rather than the $40 / £40 surcharge between the first and second iterations.

Now, in 2023 the market does not want for reasonably affordable USB DAC/headphone amps – everyone from Chord to Astell & Kern has something for you. None are built quite like this though and honestly, few sound like it either.

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Features

iFi hip-dac 3 detail of USB-C charging port, on black table — The dedicated USB-C charging port that also gives battery life is game-changing (Image credit: Future)

Dual USB-C ports plus 3.5mm and 4.4mm balanced headphone outs
384kHz PCM, DSD256 and MQA compatibility
IEMatch vastly reduces background hiss

Let's get granular (gran-u-lar! I wanna get granular…): hi-res PCM and DXD audio data is supported at sample rates up to 384kHz here, alongside DSD from 2.8MHz to 12.4MHz (DSD64, 128 and 256, aka a sample rate that's 256 times as high as a regular CD). Full decoding of MQA is also supported by the iFi hip-dac 3, performing the full ‘three unfold’ decoding process (as opposed to just the final unfold in the manner of an MQA ‘renderer’ – and yes, there is still plenty of MQA content available on Tidal).

While my pick of the 3 best wireless DACs can level up the quality of music from your phone, they cannot support these kinds of hi-res figures over Bluetooth.

On either side of the hip-dac 3's rotary volume control you'll find a pair of LEDs that change color to indicate the format and sample rate of the incoming audio, with seven different colors: yellow for PCM 44.1/48kHz, white for higher-res PCM files up to 3384kHz, teal for DSD 64/128, red for DSD 256, lime green for MQA, blue for MQA Studio, purple for original sample rate files (MQB).

Yes, this DAC wants to get overtly specific about your file (more specific than most rivals), although teal and lime are pretty similar, and of course, it's tough to keep that information in your noggin at all times.

Another point of note is that hip-dac 3’s USB-C audio input is asynchronous, meaning the data rate is regulated solely by the hip-dac 3’s specialized audio clock circuitry for accurate, jitter-free data transfer from the source device.

Including a separate USB-C port (I mentioned above but just to reiterate: you get two USB-C ports here) for charging maintains a dedicated audio input – ergo, you can still use the hip-dac 3 while charging it.

Why is the Southport UK firm's IEMatch tech a great feature? It reduces background hiss and enhances detail and dynamic range while increasing the useable range of the volume control, that's why.

You still get the fan-favorite XBass button too. All in all, it's hard to know what else iFi could've been thrown into the hip-dac 3 to make me like it more.

Features score: 5 / 5

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Sound quality

iFi hip-dac 3 held in a hand — (Image credit: Future)

Excellent detail and insight
Extra clarity through the leading edges of notes
Spacious and refined across the frequencies

If you're considering this DAC, I urge you to subscribe to one of the best music streaming services. Then, simply by plugging the iFi hip-dac 3 into your phone and tapping up the service’s app (I might nudge you to Qobuz or Apple Music – and away from Spotify here) means you'll hear that hi-res file as fully as possible.

And you're in for a treat at this level. A 24bit/96kHz FLAC file of Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer has oodles of funk and showcases Gabriel's textured and smiling vocal with surgical skill, which is nonetheless given extra space to shine in an expansive mix. The playlist continues to Solsbury Hill where guitars, strings, shakers and the driving beat are beautifully relayed with admirable timing and cohesion, but never losing focus – that is, never losing the brilliance of Peter Gabriel.

The age-old debate of refinement, detail and clarity over oomph, zealousness and fun once again comes into play here – an argument I like to call 'hi-fi, or fun?' although that's the issue at its most simplistic and something we could all muse on at length. What you need to know is that the iFi hip-dac 3 falls into the former camp, but I do not mention it to do this DAC down – it'll depend on what you prioritize. I favor the detail and extra insight here. I like that in Stormzy's Angel in the Marble the intentionally heavy bassline is held back just enough to allow me to detect a trilling female vocalist sample in the mix. I like that I hear everything, in its place, at the right time, even if I sacrifice an iota of dynamic oomph.

Supplementary vocals, gunshots and the fizzing of sparkling liquid being poured are expertly layered and accurately placed throughout Freddie Gibbs' Toe Tag – and despite my observation, this is a rousing performance and one that can go loud even with my multi-driver Campfire Audio IEMs.

Do I like this DAC for this money? I do. I really do.

Sound quality score: 5 / 5

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Design

iFi hip-dac 3 detail, IEMatch switch on the reverse of the unit — iFi's new IEMatch switch is another excellent addition (Image credit: Future)

Dedicated USB-C charging port provides battery life info
Short USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to USB-A cables provided, no Lightning adapter
Exposed volume knob can mean accidental tweaks

The hip-dac 3 is a well-made little thing – which is hardly surprising considering the quality of its older siblings. Several important but less headline-grabbing changes have been made to this update's innards too, including circuitry enhancements and new metal film capacitors. In addition, the DAC section features an upgraded version of iFi’s GMT (Global Master Timing) circuitry, including a new crystal oscillator to further reduce phase noise, all contributing to its purer, crisper sound.

Other than these changes, the hip-dac 3 retains all the features that made the hip-dac 2 a winning portable USB DAC/headphone amp and one I still love.

The hip-dac 3's sleek, robust aluminum enclosure measures just 10.2 x 7x 1.4cm so it'll slip easily into a pocket or bag – but do accept that it'll probably have your colleagues thinking you're not averse to a wee dram at your desk.

According to iFi, the hip-dac 3’s battery will extend to 10 hours of playing time, but this will depend on your listening volume level and how demanding your headphones are; I got just over 8 hours from it, from full to red-flashing-light flat. A lovely touch here is the LED under the USB-C charging port, which changes color depending on battery status: glowing white for more than 75 percent, green for more than 25 percent, red for over 10 percent, and flashing red when you’re in dire need of juice.

Any gripes? A tiny one: I love the exposed power/volume knob, which rotates silently and like a warm knife through butter, but it is very easy to whack the volume up inadvertently in my pocket – and there's no way to set the volume and hold it there. It's more an observation rather than a complaint, really… especially because its amp stage is capable of offering up to 400mW into a 32-ohm load for compatibility with a wide array of headphones, while the balanced output's 6.3V into 600 ohms basically means even high-impedance options can be used without issue.

In summary, the iFi hip-dac 3 is a thing of beauty and a musical companion I soon never left behind.

Design score: 5 / 5

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Usability and setup

iFi hip-dac 3 on a black table, next to a smartphone — It does look good next to a smartphone, no? (Image credit: Future)

Make sure it's charged. Switch it on
Plug one end into your smartphone or laptop
Plug some headphones into the other end
Consider Power Match, IEMatch and XBass. Enjoy

I charged the hip-dac 3 for around two hours upon receiving it, by plugging a cable into its dedicated USB-C (5V only) charging port. Then, I switched it on by turning its rotary power and volume knob clockwise. The lights come on, the DAC is home.

Now, connect to a sound source by USB-C – the one on the adjacent to the charging port. Next, go to the top end of the hip-dac 3 and hook up some 4.4mm balanced or 3.5mm unbalanced headphones using the correct port.

Now, you can play music, noting the LED indicator silently judging your file choices and their resolution. As well as adjusting the volume, you can now deploy the XBass and/or PowerMatch buttons next to the LEDs (the latter increases gain for larger cans, or reduces it for IEMs) and finally, head to the back of the unit to consider IEMatch, selecting 3.5mm or 4.4mm if your listening gear is of the more delicate in-ear variety.

That's all folks. It's more whistles and bells than you'll get with a dongle DAC and all in all, it's a lovely little proposition for the money.

Usability and setup score: 5 / 5

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Value

Affordable considering the features
Excellent sound-per-pound value

Considering the build quality and extra features plus the fact that it's still a fair chunk of aluminum, despite its pocketable dimensions, you're getting a lot of product for the money here. And the sound is as detailed as this money can buy, by quite a margin.

Of course, iFi can sell you something cheaper still if you'd prefer, see the iFi Uno. Given this cheaper DAC's five-star review, that could put the cat among the pigeons somewhat. The entry-level unit boasts different connectivity options and even 'EQ' filters for different content, including ‘game’, ‘movie’ and ‘music’. For me, the iFi hip-dac 3 outdoes it easily when hooked up to my MacBook Pro, but at more than double the price, so that was to be expected.

Value score: 5 / 5

Should you buy the iFi hip-dac 3?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

iFi hip-dac 3 review: Also consider

How I tested the iFi hip-dac 3

iFi hip-dac 3 on a table, next to a smartphone — It was a Peter Gabriel kind of day (Image credit: Future)

Used for over two weeks
Connected to an Apple MacBook Pro and an iPhone 12 Pro smartphone
Wired to Sennheiser IE600 (with custom Sennheiser ear tips), Campfire Audio Solaris Stellar Horizon and Audeze Euclid IEMs

OK: the more your source of music has to work in order to reach your ears, the less effective it is – I don’t make the rules, it is what it is. Thus, when unplugging headphones as capable as those listed above from the headphone socket of my laptop (or the Lightning port of my iPhone 12 Pro, where an additional adaptor purchase is required) and listening again using the iFi hip-dac 3's simple setup, the differences in quality are night and day – like removing a muffling veil from your music, or liberating a track from a tunnel.

And I challenged my listening with the Edifier Stax Spirit S3 wireless headphones too – as an aural challenge only loosely related to this review. Even these detailed planar magnetic cans (emphatically some of the best wireless headphones in their category) struggle to match the performance of good wired headphones when the iFi hip-dac 3 is also plugged into my MacBook Pro as a music source.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed in December 2023

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Great ANC and app but limited to Android devotees

3:00 pm |

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Earbuds & Airpods Gadgets Headphones | Tags: ANC | Comments: Off

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Two-minute review

Think of the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE as the Samsung equivalent of the Apple AirPods and you're not far off. Keenly priced, they're immediately no good for iPhone owners due to the lack of iOS app. However, if you have a Samsung or other Android phone, things get more tempting for those on a budget.

The earbuds themselves are small and comfy to wear, albeit lacking potent protection from water or dust. While small, they have respectable battery life of up to nine hours with active noise cancellation switched off or about six with it switched on. Throw in the 21 hours from the charging case and these are some buds that won't need charging too often throughout the week, no matter how busy things get. That's fortunate given the lack of wireless charging is one that bothers you just a tiny bit more than it probably should.

Still, at $99 / £99, concessions need to be made and that's not a bad loss. Elsewhere, the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE sound reasonably good for the price. They're able to rival the best budget wireless earbuds, thanks to their reasonably clear sound. There are occasional wobbles – for instance, they're not great for bass fans – but for a standard listening experience, you can't fault them.

The highlight is the ANC, which is great. Switch it on and the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE will block out all those pesky surrounding noises like a dehumidifier, neighbours doing construction work and so forth. Skip the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE if you're an Apple user but for everyone else, there's a decent amount of value to them. They look good, feel good, and they're simple to use.

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Price and release date

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE case — (Image credit: Future)

Released in September 2023
Price: $99 / £99 / AU$149

The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE was released in September 2023 in the US, UK and Australia. Priced at $99 / £99 / AU$149, they've already seen price drops around Black Friday, bringing them down to $70 / £75 / AU$135. There's also no difference in price between the two colors available – white and graphite, with graphite being a fancy name for black.

Such a price puts them alongside earbuds like the Sony WF-C700N in terms of value and slightly pricier than something like the EarFun Air Pro 3 – both of which we rate among the best noise cancelling earbuds. It's a busy field with many budget earbuds available around this price range.

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Specs

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Features

Samsung Wearables App — (Image credit: Future)

Patchy wear detection
Useful Lost mode
No iOS app

The amount of features you get from the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE truly depends on your phone or tablet choice. There's no iOS app so iPhone and iPad owners need to give these a miss, no question about it. Without the app, there's no way to adjust the ANC, the equalizer, or benefit from voice assistant support. The ideal scenario is you having a Samsung Galaxy phone or tablet.

Have the right hardware and you'll be happy with the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE for the price. They lack some finer details. For instance, there's no true Multipoint. Also, wear detection is there but it's pretty patchy and temperamental. I never felt entirely confident when pulling the buds out that my music would pause.

However, the app is easy to use and allows you to switch between ANC, transparency and disabled. There are EQ options too although you can't adjust things to a custom setting.

Another neat feature is the Lost mode that helps you track down your earbuds if they happen to go missing, as well as setting off an alarm if you make the mistake of wandering off without them.

Features score: 3/5

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Design

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE ear bud close up — (Image credit: Future)

Snug fit
Touch controls on earbud
Small case

The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE are pretty small in every way. With my small ears, they provided a neat and snug fit, never feeling like they'd fall out too easily. That goes for when I wore them while working out too seeing if a plethora of half-hearted burpees would ruin everything. It didn't.

Similarly, the case is lovely and neat. It isn't as small as the JLab JBuds Mini (is anything?) but it's easily dainty enough for putting in your pocket without really noticing.

There's no wireless charging support, frustratingly, so you're dependent on the USB-C port on the pack. Also, the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE have a barely worth mentioning IPX2 rating meaning you may get nervous during a rainy day.

Still, they look and feel good with touch controls being easily accessible at all times.

Design score: 4/5

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Sound quality

Strong ANC
Reasonable quality
Limited EQ options

For tiny earbuds, the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE offer some impressively good ANC, especially at this price. They fit snugly so that's sure to help matters but it's a relief to don them and feel the world vanish into the background. You might hear the odd sound but it's far more dampened down than with other earbuds in this price range and all the richer for it.

Through the app, you can pick between transparency, ANC, or turning it off. Transparency mode isn't as ideal as some competitors like the Apple AirPods Pro 2 but remember the price? Exactly.

Listening to music is also reasonably good for the price. Working my way through a lively playlist, the Katy Perry back catalogue was vibrant enough before switching over to Rage Against the Machine's Killing in the Name Of and feeling a reasonable amount of punchiness. At times, there's a hint of distortion and not just at high volumes, but it's workable in this price range.

Frustratingly, there's an EQ within the app but one that doesn't allow for custom setups but it's worth experimenting and checking out modes like Bass Boost to find what suits your music taste.

Ultimately, it's all about tempering your expectations at the $99 / £99 / AU$149 price point with the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE offering better ANC than most.

Sound quality score: 4/5

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Battery life

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE charging port — (Image credit: Future)

Up to 9 hours with ANC off or 6 hours with ANC on
Extra 21 hours from the charging case

The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE has respectable battery life. It's right in the middle of what's expected of ANC-based earbuds these days. Not too little and not so much that I'm excited at never needing to find a cable again.

With mixed usage, I found they lasted about the length of time that Samsung states and there's the usual advantage of bunging them in the charging case to do their thing before you grab them once more.

The only true downside is the lack of wireless charging which is understandable at this price but it's always good to not need to dig a cable out.

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Value

Reasonably priced
Discounted already

The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE are relatively new but there are already discounts around, so we can only see these getting cheaper over time and potentially becoming part of our pick of the best cheap headphone sales.

They're already cheaper than many rivals. When you consider these are basically the earbuds for Samsung owners, they're far more competitively priced than anything AirPods flavored for Apple users.

Value score: 4/5

Should I buy the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE?

Buy it if...

Don't buy them if...

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE review: Also consider

How I tested the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE

Tested for nine days
With a Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ and iPhone 14 Pro

Used in home office, on regular walks, while working out and running, and near busy traffic. Mostly tested with YouTube Music and Spotify on Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ with brief time on iPhone 14 Pro.

I swapped out my usual earbuds for the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE for nearly 10 days. I used them throughout the day via the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ listening to music as I worked. It wasn't quiet during these times with never ending construction work by my neighbours along with a loud dehumidifier running in the background. At other points, I'd listen to music while doing HIIT workouts to test their fit. At other times, I took them with me on walks and while hanging around waiting for someone amongst busy traffic.

Mostly, I discovered that the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE can be worn for long periods without any issues. I mostly listened to energetic playlists on Spotify and YouTube Music but also switched to watching some YouTube videos and watching some Twitch streams too. There was a bit of gaming too with the latest Asphalt game for Android.

I've been testing audio products for over 10 years. I love using them during my workouts and walks, but also for blocking out distracting noises.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed in December 2023.

iFi Uno review: a small, but big way to boost your audio

6:00 pm | December 3, 2023

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi | Comments: Off

iFi Uno: Two-minute review

The iFi Uno DAC/headphone amplifier may have a small price tag but the improvements to your sound experience are massive. After all, at some point we’ve all been tempted to plug a pair of headphones into that headphone socket on our laptop, haven't we? But, as we all know, no good can come of it. Oh, sound comes out – of course it does. But it’s far from satisfactory.

A quite modest sum put iFi’s way for its Uno DAC/headphone amplifier changes all that. As long as you don’t intend to listen at either miniscule or massive volume levels, the sound of your laptop once the Uno is involved is improved dramatically – you don’t need to be any kind of golden-eared audio savant to recognise that it's up there with the best portable DACs.

Where detail retrieval, low-frequency extension, sound staging, transient response, stereo focus and all the minutiae that go towards delivering enjoyable and convincing sound reproduction is concerned, the iFi Uno is a battleship and your laptop is a pedalo.

iFi Uno review: Price and release date

Released in December 2022
Price: $79 / £79 / AU$119

The iFi Uno has been on sale for around a year. While it sells for £79 in the UK, it’s even more of a bargain at $79 in the US. In Australia, you’re looking at AU$119 or something quite like it.

The world’s not short of USB DACs ready to put a rocket up the sound of your laptop – brands as credible as Astell & Kern, Audiolab and Audioquest are all in the market, and that’s just the ‘A’ section. So while iFi has a reputation as solid as any of those rivals, the Uno is hardly operating in isolation…

iFi Uno review: Features

ESS Sabre Hyperstream DAC
Three EQ presets
3.5mm and stereo RCA outputs

The Uno may be tiny, but that hasn’t prevented iFi from squeezing in an impressively thorough specification. For desktop use in particular, the little Uno has everything you might realistically require.

On the front panel, there’s an ‘EQ’ button that scrolls through the digital filters iFi considers most appropriate for ‘game’, ‘movie’ and ‘music’ – a corresponding light on the top of the device indicates which one you’ve selected. Or, at least, it does if you squint – the icons are pretty indistinct.

Next to this is a ‘power match’ button - there are two positions, designed to align with the broad power requirements of various headphones and features what iFi describes as ‘dynamic range enhancement’. Let's call them ‘high’ and ‘low’. In the centre there’s a (relatively) large dial that functions both as a ‘power on/off’ switch and volume control. A little light above the dial glows in one of five different colours to indicate the file type and size that’s being processed. iFi being iFi, of course, at least two of these colours are really quite similar.

On the right-hand side there’s a 3.5mm analogue headphone socket. It incorporates iFi’s ‘S-balanced’ circuitry to keep crosstalk and noise to a minimum, and is gold-plated for superior conductivity.

On the rear there’s a USB-C socket that's used for both power and data transfer. A pair of gold-plated stereo RCA outputs complete the Uno’s external features.

On the inside, iFi has deployed hugely (and possibly disproportionately) capable ESS Sabre Hyperstream digital-to-analogue conversion circuitry. It’s able to deal with PCM files of up to 32bit/384kHz resolution and DSD256 – and it’s able to function as an MQA renderer too. Given the use the Uno is likely to be put to, this would seem to be ample. It’s similarly over specified where the less glamorous bits and pieces are concerned, too – muRata and TDK capacitors, for instance, tend to show up in rather less affordable devices than this.

Features score: 5 / 5

iFi Uno review: Sound quality

The iFi Uno on top of a laptop — (Image credit: Future)

Detailed and eloquent
Good organisation and focus
Slight treble overemphasis at bigger volumes

First things first: if you’ve been plugging headphones directly into the headphone socket of your laptop, introducing the iFi Uno into the chain will be little short of a revelation. Laptops, almost by default, don’t sound any good – but with the crucial digital-to-analogue conversion processing being dealt with by the Uno, suddenly your computer can become a valid source of music.

Mind you, the Uno is far from the only little DAC-cum-headphone amp that can put a rocket up the performance of your laptop. What makes it so compelling is just how accomplished a listen it is when you keep its asking price uppermost in your mind.

During the course of this test it’s almost exclusively fed via its USB-C socket by an Apple MacBook Pro loaded with both the Tidal app and some Colibri software that allows the machine to play properly high-resolution content from its internal memory. Headphones including (but not restricted to) Sennheiser IE900 in-ear monitors and FiiO FT3 over-ears are plugged into the 3.5mm socket on the fascia. Music includes MQA files of Maps by Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Stoned at the Nail Salon by Lorde, a 24bit/96kHz FLAC file of While My Guitar Gently Weeps by The Beatles, and a DSD64 file of Stevie Wonder’s He’s Misstra Know-It-All.

And as long as you’re judicious with your volume levels, the effect the Uno has is nothing but positive. In every meaningful respect, it – how best to put this? – wipes the floor with the unassisted sound of the MacBook. Detail levels are far higher. The iFi is able to identify even the most fleeting, most minor occurrences in a recording and integrate them into the overall presentation with real confidence. The frequency range, from bottom to top, is smoothly integrated and evenly realised – no area is underplayed or given undue prominence. And the soundstage the Uno creates is far more focused, better separated and more coherent than the laptop is anywhere near capable of mustering.

Low frequency sounds are deep and solid, but properly controlled to the point that the Uno can express rhythms with real positivity. At the opposite end of the frequency range there’s a similar level of detail revealed, plenty of the attack necessary to give treble sounds some bite but sufficient substance to keep everything composed and coherent. In between, the iFi communicates through the midrange with absolute conviction – it gives a vocalist every opportunity to express their character, their technique and their commitment.

Really, it’s only possible to put the iFi Uno off its stride by setting volume levels to ‘very quiet’ or ‘very loud’. When listened to quietly, the ‘left/right’ presentation goes awry somewhat, there’s more activity apparent through the right channel than the left. Nudge the volume up just a touch, though, and things even themselves out. At big volumes, meanwhile, the sound gets just a little toothy – treble sounds, previously so well judged, get just fractionally edgy and hard, and the overall presentation hardens up somewhat as a result.

These are extremes I’m talking about, you understand. ‘Extremely quiet’ or ‘very loud indeed’ are states that don’t especially suit the iFi Uno, everything in between is as good as gold.

Sound quality score: 5 / 5

iFi Uno review: Design

Small (26 x 88 x 81mm : HxWxD)
Light (92g)
Vaguely ovoid

There’s not an awful lot of it, but what there is of the Uno is a) perfectly well constructed, and b) recognisably an iFi product. This isn’t the first time iFi has deployed the mildly ovoid, slightly ruby ball-shaped chassis for one of its products, and I very much doubt it will be the last.

There’s absolutely nothing special about the quality of the plastics iFi has deployed here. But then again, the Uno is one of the more affordable examples of its type around.

The dimensions are usefully small, ideal for a desktop device, but not so small that all the controls and outputs are crammed too close together. And iFi has done very good work with the Uno’s feet – they keep the unit secure on the surface it’s standing on, and prevent it being towed around by the headphone cable you’re using.

Design score: 4.5 / 5

iFi Uno review: Usability and setup

Connects via USB-C
Outputs from either front or rear
…and that’s about it

This really won’t take long. As far as setup and usability are concerned, it’s a question of making three connections, maximum: the USB-C input is where the Uno gets its power and from where it receives the digital audio information you want it to deal with.

Then you either plug in headphones at the front or stereo RCA connections at the rear - or both, if that suits your purposes. Then turn the dial to power the unit up, set your volume level and decide on your preferred digital filter – and that’s everything. You’re up and running.

Usability and setup score: 5 / 5

iFi Uno review: Value

One of the most affordable around
Priced competitively

As an affordable way of making a big improvement to your desktop audio system, it’s hard to lay a glove on the iFi Uno. If you judge a product on the amount of stuff your money buys you, then I’ll concede that this looks like $79 / £79 / AU$119 spent on next-to-nothing. But the difference it can make to your workstation audio enjoyment is, frankly, out of all proportion to both the outlay involved and the product’s, um, proportions.

Value score: 5 / 5

Should you buy the iFi Uno?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

iFi Uno review: Also consider

How I tested the iFi Uno

A close up of the iFi Uno — (Image credit: Future)

Used for over a week
Connected to an Apple MacBook Pro and Samsung S21 Ultra
Wired to Sennheiser IE900 and FiiO FT3 headphones

The real beauty of the iFi Uno, of course, is how much better sounding it can make those devices you’d use anyway for audio playback. The Samsung has no headphone socket, of course, and listening to it using decent hard-wired headphones rather than the wireless equivalent is approaching revelatory. Much more so than listening to the MacBook Pro, anyway – because I’ve known for as long as I’ve owned it that the Apple is a truly rotten-sounding music player.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed in December 2023

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