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JLab Go Air Pop review: ridiculously good wireless earbuds for under $25/£25

5:08 pm | June 23, 2022

Editor's Note

• Original review date: June 2022
• Launch price: $20 / £20 / AU$49
• Official price now: $25 / £25 / AU$49

Updated: January 2024. As you can see, the JLab Go Air Pop have actually risen in their official price over time, and there are more cheap earbuds than ever – but the these remain a favorite with us because their mix of price, sound, reliability and build quality hasn't been clearly beaten. Their use of an integrated USB Type-A charger (ie, the old style of USB) has become more of an issue in a USB-C world, but JLab will have new earbuds that include USB-C in the future if you can wait. But not everyone will mind this anyway – especially because we've seen these drop by another 25% or more around sales season (over Black Friday, they fell to $9 in the US, £18 in the UK), so you can find them even cheaper. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

JLab Go Air Pop: one-minute review

Let's cut to the chase of what's thrilling about the JLab Go Air Pop: since February of this year it has been possible to buy a pair of known-brand true wireless earbuds for $20 / $20, a fee that even three years ago was unimaginable. And, they're not from someone down a dark back alley, and they're not knock-off AirPods.

The known brand is JLab, and its raison d'etre is providing durable listening gear at rock-bottom prices; staples on our list of the best budget wireless earbuds guide, with the outgoing JLab Go Air as a prime example. They're also our top budget pick in our best wireless earbuds guide.

Regular readers will know that TechRadar penned initial thoughts about the remarkably affordable new JLab Go Air Pop soon after their release, but – even though this is a very wallet-friendly product – we want you to know about them in a fully-fledged review. Isn't your curiosity piqued? Can earbuds this budget-conscious actually do a job?

We've all been burned by buying cheap – buy cheap, buy twice, right? Not here. If you're thinking that one bud would cease to pair after a week, or the case lid would snap off within a day, or a glancing blow from a wet jacket sleeve would kill them, or a speck of dust would put paid to the case registering anything inside it worth charging… well, you're wrong.

What you need to know is that JLab Go Air Pop (try to see past the name, in the same way we're able to see past Sony's collection of capital letters, dashes and numbers to find a class-leading product) are actually pretty good generally – and emphatically unbeatable for this money, although it's important to note that there's little out there to challenge them at the level. If this is where your budget maxes out for non-essentials such as true wireless earbuds, you will find a reliable product here.

These earbuds belie their lowly price-point. They are not junk. They sound far better than is reasonable. And wouldn’t life be better if more of us could afford portable wireless music, rather than no music at all?

JLab Go Air Pop in a hand with green background — JLab's earbuds and charging case will absolutely survive your commute unscathed. (Image credit: TechRadar)

JLab Go Air Pop review: Price & release date

$20 / £20 / AU$49.95
Released: February 2022

At $20, £20 or five cents under $50 in Australia, saying JLab's latest true wireless earbuds are aggressively priced is quite the understatement. Remember, JLab is a known audio brand, founded in 2005 and respected among the audio press.

Competition and profit margins at JLab’s ultra-affordable end of the market are brutal. The race to shrink reliable connectivity, decent stamina and on-device controls into ever-more amenable price-points, while still somehow turning a profit, never ends.

The truth is that JLab has fashioned a unique pair of new earbuds that do this for $20 (£20) and I'm still not sure how. Did someone on JLab’s payroll sell their soul to the devil in a Faustian, Robert Johnson-style pact? Hope not. But one can’t be sure…

JLab Go Air Pop underneath of the box revealing charging cable — Go Air Pop's charging cable actually snaps into the underside of the box (Image credit: TechRadar)

JLab Go Air Pop: features

JLab Go Air Pop review: Features

Bluetooth 5.1 and wearer-detection
Three effective EQ profiles
On-ear volume control

First off, these Bluetooth 5.1 earbuds connected to my phone at the first time of asking, and as basic a statement as it may seem, the fact that a product powers up simply, shows up in the Bluetooth menu of my phone and pairs – without the 15 minutes of head scratching, a third read of the Quick Start Guide and a full factory reset – already puts them streets ahead of certain buds we’ve tested at up to 10 times the price.

The earbuds are also sweat-resistant but even more importantly, you’re getting eight hours from the earbuds and a whopping 32 hours from the entire proposition when you include the case – and having spent a week with them, I can confirm that the claim is genuine.

Upon placing the buds back into your ears following charging, they pair instantly to their last-known device too, calmly announcing “Bluetooth connected, battery full”. These are small and incremental checks in favor of the JLabs, but they do add up. Functioning without issue might seem the bare minimum, but JLab is beating competition much higher up the food chain just by passing these rudimentary tests.

Oh, and on-device volume control? Big check. I have knocked several premium pairs of earbuds for not offering what is such a natural thing to want from your headphones (AirPods Pro, I'm looking at you), but here, a simple tap of either earpiece sends the volume up (right) or down (left) a notch. It’s almost too easy. Double tap the left one for Siri or Google, double tap the right to play or pause your music. Hold your finger on either earpiece for over a second and it’ll skip forward or back a track. Cake.

There's a mic in each earbud for call-handling, and don’t for a second think that no app means no EQ profiles – triple tap either earpiece and you’ll hear the soothing voice say “balanced’, “bass boost” or “JLab signature”. Across the course of my time with these little units, they never misunderstand my index finger’s morse code once, either.

Features score: 5/5

JLab Go Air Pop detail of charging cable — The JLab Go Air Pop's charging cable is slightly strange. But since it's attached, you'll never forget it! (Image credit: TechRadar)

JLab Go Air Pop review: Sound quality

Good bass weight and textured vocals
Treble crackles at higher volumes

These earbuds are very capable of playing music and really, it is churlish to expect too much more. If you were hoping JLab just nailed sonic brilliance for the princely sum of $20, you will have to think again – you’re getting SBC vanilla Bluetooth delivered at rock-bottom prices, not aptX HD, LDAC or hifalutin higher-res codecs.

The name hardly screams audio excellence anyway – ‘air’ and ‘pop’ are not words we’d recommend using in the same sentence as 6mm drivers and Bluetooth connectivity – but remember, Sony once released a limited-edition ‘silent white’ colourway for the WH-1000XM4 and silence doesn't suggest great-sounding cans either. Which firm had the bigger budget to perhaps run that name by a focus group? Correct.

Any meaningful sound comparison between these $20 in-ears and class-leading products from the likes of Sony, Apple or Sennheiser is more than a little unfair – and there are no current class-leaders at $20 because there simply isn't much serious competition at that price.

What you should know is that JLab’s solution beats anything in its price range for sound, hands down. It can even stand toe to toe with the more expensive Sony WF-C500 – which it actually beats for battery life and design, if not audio quality.

Okay, the treble needs refinement and dynamically they're a little flat (stream Tinie Tempah's Frisky and the foreboding intro is ever-present, rather than building and brooding), but I maintain that JLab’s Go Air Pop are a pleasant listen overall, especially for this money. Vocals are relatively well handled through the mids, and the bass weight is sensibly handled, although I admit that the timing here lacks a modicum of cohesion.

Stream Hootie & the Blowfish's Let Her Cry and the different guitars present themselves to each ear in a relatively expansive, open soundstage too. Listen to Prince's Kiss and while you'll get all of the bass funk in the intro, the artist's inimitable vocal comes off a little harsh. Sonically, it is difficult to rave about the sound quality, chiefly because of this treble, which does distort even in relatively easy passages, but that's not really the point here.

The point is budget-conscious, solid sound. And you get that here – for up to 32 hours.

Sound quality score: 3.5/5

JLab Go Air Pop packaging on black background — It's hard to believe the earbuds, case, charger, extra eartips and quick-start guide are all in here. But they are you know… (Image credit: TechRadar)

JLab Go Air Pop review: Design

Available in five glorious colorways
Just 3.7g per earbud
Odd tadpole-like charging cable

Refreshingly, JLab Go Air Pop arrive in a plastic-free, 100% recycled paper box roughly the size of a deck of cards. It’s hard to imagine a set of headphones, their charging case, a quick-start guide and extra gel cushion tips can actually fit inside it, honestly, but they're certainly there – and they're worth shouting about.

Let's start with the teardrop-shaped ergonomic earbuds. The marketing spiel is that they’re 15 per cent smaller than JLabs’ previous offerings. The point is, they weigh just 3.7g per earpiece (which is over a gram lighter than the bijou Sony LinkBuds S, which come in at 4.8g per bud) and will suit practically all human ears. When it comes to true wireless earbuds, small is beautiful and JLab's Go Air Pop truly are beautifully small.

You get three sets of eartips in the same color as everything else for a sleek aesthetic (our sample is turquoise) and the case is easily as small and light as a box of dental floss, despite the fact that its USB charging plug and short cable snaps out from a recess in the base.

This diddy case is able to stand on its base (why can’t more brands do this?) so that you can flip open the magnetised lid with one hand to access the headphones. I spent a week slinging this case into my bag, near my keys. There are no metallic embellishments to be scratched off on the design and no discernible weak points in the hinge. This thing wants to survive a commute unscathed.

Okay, the strange little charging cable is physically attached to the JLab Go Air Pop’s case (can it still be called a wireless charger if there’s always a wire?) and when charging it does look embryonic or juvenile compared to more premium cases, as tadpole is to fully-grown frog perhaps. That said, it does charge the earbuds and means you’ll never have to search in the semi-darkness for your USB-C charger – or get caught short because you forgot to pack one.

Design score: 4.5/5

JLab Go Air Pop earbuds and case in a hand — JLab Go Air Pop's case really is as light as a box of dental floss – so much so, we often had to check our pocket to make sure it was still there. (Image credit: TechRadar)

JLab Go Air Pop review: Value

Reliable battery, connectivity and supreme comfort for $20
Easily betters anything else at this price for sound and features
No app

Did we mention that these earbuds are just $20? All things considered, the JLab Go Air Pop represent exceptionally good value, and, despite the lack of a companion app, you get an impressive set of features all handled by the reliable on-ear controls.

In terms of build, battery life and feature set, JLab is irrefutably top of the class for value – but remember, it is a very small class.

These earbuds are not the flaky-breaky kit one might expect for $20, and if it's a question of no music on the commute or JLab's Go Air Pop earbuds, I'll bite your hand off for these every day of the week.

Value score: 5/5

Should I buy the JLab Go Air Pop?

Buy it if…

Don't buy it if…

JLab Go Air Pop review: Also consider

Think the Go Air Pop might not be the true wireless earbuds for you? That's cool, here are three alternatives that could offer just the design, feature-set and sound quality you're looking for.

First reviewed: June 2022
How we test: explore TechRadar's review guarantee

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII review

7:47 pm | June 16, 2022

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

Editor's Note

• Original review date: June 2022
• Launch price: $749 / £699 / AU$1,099
• Target price: still $749 / £699 / AU$1,099

Update: February 2024. The Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII is still the revered hi-res audio specialist's most entry-level player – and emphatically still one of the best MP3 players in existence – but it's important to note that in November 2023 it was superseded by A&K's newer (and slightly more expensive) Astell & Kern A&norma SR35. The nitty gritty of it is this: the SR35 is now billed as A&K's entry-level option and under intense review the newer player edges it (just), but you'll need to pay a $50 / £100 / AU$200 surcharge for that newness. Now, one could argue that if you're prepared to shell out $700 for a dedicated hi-res audio player, you may as well throw another $50 or so down, but I'm not so sure. Honestly, if this is where your budget maxes out, A&K's second-generation November 2021-issue SR25 remains an excellent option. Deals owing to its relative age? Unlikely, this is Astell & Kern, not Amazon. That said, it's not unheard of…
The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII: two-minute review

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and one man's trash is another's treasure. Anyone invested in portable hi-res audio, for instance, will surely view the Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII as a thing of beauty both sonically and visually; the very sight of an A&K player emerging from its owner's pocket signifies their ascension to a very select group of music lovers.

To others, the off-kilter screen may seem a hindrance, the name long-winded, the edges a little sharp, the unmarked buttons somewhat unhelpful and the pricing prohibitive – even though for Astell & Kern, this is budget territory.

Whatever your opinion on the above, the level of features, connectivity, file support and sound quality incorporated here is, as the dynamic '80s cartoon heroin Jem once said, truly truly truly outrageous.

What you need to know is that the music you've been playing from your phone or laptop is going to sound constricted, muddied, compressed and altogether beige after you've heard music on this. And even if the original (and very talented) SR25 is well-known to you, this model sounds that little bit better – and as such, it just became one of the best MP3 players on the market.

The A&K A&norma SR25 MKII digital audio player takes and celebrates virtually any digital audio file size or type, and it will now happily accept balanced headphones with 4.4 or 2.5mm headphone jacks as well as 'regular' 3.5mm unbalanced models.

Elsewhere, the touch-screen is bright and responsive and the battery life, at 20 hours, walks all over the company's A&ultima SP2000T at only 9 hours. And did we mention how expressive, detailed, regimented and faithfully neutral it sounds?

The A&norma SR25 MKII is a gifted digital audio player and it will reignite your love of music. And unlike many of the company's more pricey players, this one is small enough to put in a pocket and will keep you streaming, pinging or downloading once-treasured songs to it, just to see what it makes of them.

If the current financial climate still facilitates your consideration of such a purchase, you won't be disappointed with this talented little player.

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII on black background — The A&K's rotary volume dial is a thing of beauty (Image credit: TechRadar)

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII review: Price and release date

Released in November 2021
$749 / £699 / AU$1,099

The Astell & Kern A&norma SR 25 MKII comes with asking price that may have some moving swiftly on given the current cost of living challenges. Others may still pause to hear more though – because unlike the majority of Astell & Kern's ouevre, it doesn't actually cost thousands.

In the United Kingdom it sells for a pound short of £700. American customers hoping to snag one will need to put seven hundred-dollar bills and one fifty aside, while in Australia you’re looking at over a grand.

Can such a product make a case for itself outside of the niche audiophile world when good-quality music streaming and downloading capabilities are so readily available on contract smartphones? If you ask us, yes.

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII detail of headphone ports on black background — A&K has added a 4.4 balanced headphone jack for extra connectivity (Image credit: TechRadar)

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII review: Features

Supports both 24-bit Bluetooth wireless codecs LDAC and aptXHD
Comprehensive wired hi-res chops to DSD256 and 32-bit/384KHz PCM
Replay Gain automatically adjusts volume playback from sound sources up to 24-bit/192kHz

The features we need to get through here give even the best MP3 players a run for their money, so strap in.

Astell & Kern states that every aspect its customers admired in the original SR25 is retained here, but that this new model improves on the audio performance even further. How? With its latest audio architecture, that's how, which promises more detail, clearly defined upper and lower ranges, and a deeper, more rounded sound. (More on this later.)

What is not new is the implementation of two Cirrus Logic CS43198 DACs, because it is the same dual DAC chip setup as the previous SR15, which is a few years old now. Then again, that player was excellent sonically and if it ain't broke, etc…

As well as a new 4.4mm headphone jack, the MKII unit also boasts a new Replay Gain function to uniformly adjust volume playback from sound sources up to 24-bit/192 kHz. You're also getting AK File Drop (first introduced in the pricier A&futura SE180 player) for easier wireless file transfers; BT Sink function for simpler connection of the SR25 MKII to an external Bluetooth device (essentially, music from an external device such as a smartphone can be played back in high-quality on the SR25 MKII using it) and extra internal silver-plated shielding to protect from electromagnetic interference, first seen in the thrice-the-price A&ultima SP2000T.

Although it hasn't been shouted about, upon going through the settings of the SR25 MKII, four new, interesting and quite different-sounding DAC filters also present themselves, which will work if listening in 24-bit/192kHz or less PCM (although they won't work in MQA and DSD formats) and they certainly add value and scope for customization at the level.

As with the first-generation model, the SR25 MKII easily handles a huge array of high-resolution music formats and sample rates, including support for native playback of DSD256 and 32-bit/384KHz PCM high-resolution audio.

And should you want to listen to your favourite hi-res music over a wireless connection (and why shouldn't you, given the excellent wireless headphones available in this day and age?), the SR25 MKII features the high-quality LDAC and aptX HD Bluetooth wireless codecs too, plus wi-fi for access to streaming services including Tidal, which is happily waiting to be discovered in the 'services' tab.

I tried the SR25 MKII using several true wireless price-compatible earbuds, including the NuraTrue and Cambridge Audio's Melomania 1+ (both of which support aptX) and found the Bluetooth connection rock-solid.

In terms of wired connections, the power output here is standard rather than exceptional, although the SR25 MKII drove my hefty Austrian Audio Hi-X55 over-ears over a (regular 3.5mm) unbalanced connection admirably.

Features score: 5/5

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII review: Design

Bright and responsive touch-screen
Angular but nicely pocketable
Glorious trademark A&K rotary volume dial

Astell & Kern is known for its trademark brutalist aesthetic and it’s not about to switch tack any time soon. So the A&norma SR 25 MKII is all angles and pointy bits – some of them glassy. Look at it and you know it's made by A&K.

The slanted screen may be slightly jarring for some (yes, if the display simply fit the measurements, it could've been bigger) but it does allow for the inclusion of a lovely clicking rotary volume dial in the top right corner, for which all Astell & Kern players are now known. This one is bigger than that sported by its predecessor and it looks even more like a blown up Swiss chronograph watch dial – but we mean that in the best possible way.

There are four unmarked pill-shaped buttons along the top left edge of the player as you look at the screen, which handle (from top to bottom) power, track skips backwards, play/pausing and forwarding to the next track. While unmarked, they are intuitive and once you know, you know – again, if you don't like it, A&K does not care.

In terms of dimensions it's a fair bit deeper than your smartphone but thinner and shorter and, at 178g it actually weighs 26g less than the iPhone 13 Pro (and 62g less than the iPhone 13 Pro Max).

The touch-screen may be a tad fiddly for those with larger fingers – it may take a few goes to key in your Tidal password, for example – but it's more than worth persisting because the trade off is a nippy, happy and talented little player that you can actually put in your pocket without feeling like you're listing to one side.

The slightly moodier new 'Mercury Dark Silver' colorway is another improvement on the older model, which is lighter in terms of finish. Our only slight gripe with the build is the glass panel on the back of the unit; even though it's supposed to resist fingerprints, we find it collects ours.

Design score: 4.5/5

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII playback button detail — Unmarked, brutalist buttons. But once you know, you know (Image credit: TechRadar)

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII review: Audio performance

Open, spacious soundstage
Assured timing and oodles of detail
Zealous, fun presentation

Give the A&K your music, sit back and relax. It takes only a cursory listen to Radiohead's OK Computer (in 24-bit FLAC) to understand that this is a gifted little belter of a DAP. Throughout Airbag, the SR25 MKII seems to separate and celebrate each sonic article and inflection, but never to the detriment of the track as a whole. Bass passages other players cannot reach are offered like musical treats on a shelf to be enjoyed in passing, while synths and jingles soar through the upper registers.

Switching to Tidal, Coheed and Cambria's Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness brims with detail thanks to an incredibly open and three-dimensional soundstage, from the initial strings coming in all around us to the child playing quietly over by our right earlobe as the guitar joins centrally.

Lower frequencies are deep, snappy and held resolutely in a cohesive and controlled mix. Mids come alive as we listen to Melissa Etheridge's No Souvenirs, realizing as we do so that rarely has her textured, emotive, belted vocal sounded so expressive and present.

Timing and dynamic build here are both poised and secure; the SR25 MKII takes every recording you give it, relays it faithfully, dutifully and with an extra ounce of detail both rhythmically and across the frequencies but – and this part is where other such players often fall down – it manages to keep the overall sonic experience zealous, energetic and fun rather than analytical to a fault.

Any negatives? Really, no – although if you scale up to A&K's A&futura line you'll see a step up in terms of power and detail yet again. But for this money, the A&norma SR25 MKII cannot be beaten sonically.

Audio performance score: 5/5

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII with Radiohead playing, on white background — The angled screen may not suit larger fingers (Image credit: TechRadar)

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII: Value

A&K's entry-level player – if $749/£699 is 'entry-level' to you
Tech from models thrice the price
For a premium player, this is the least you'll pay

This is a tricky one, because you can pick up a portable audio player made by Sony for a tenth of the price of this hi-res player. That said, this is upper echelon territory; Astell & Kern's top-tier Ultima model sells for $2,399 / £1,999 / AU$3,599.

Astell & Kern actually calls the SR 25 MKII a "true mass premium product", which just about sums it up. To clarify, for this money you're still getting A&K's core (and frankly, 'cor!) values: exceptional audio performance for a diverse range of musical tastes and that trademark brutalist build, plus tech such as AK File Drop, access to streaming platforms, DAC filters and the BT Sink function trickled down from the company's flagship players, but without the four-figure price tag.

Will most of us still need to pass on "mass premium" players given the cost of living crisis? Perhaps. But that is a shame, since this one really does represent value for money – if you have it, and expressly want to spend it on a dedicated, talented, hi-res digital audio player.

Value: 4.5/5

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII: Should you buy it?

Astell & Kern A&Norma SR25 MKII USB-C port and SD-card slot detail — It's all angles and edges, but with its SD card slot (and supplied cover) you can level up the storage, too (Image credit: TechRadar)

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII: Also consider

First reviewed June 2022

Read TechRadar's reviews guarantee

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 review

7:15 pm |

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

Editor's Note

• Original review date: June 2022
• Launch price: $1,999 / £1,699 / AU$3,699
• Target price: As above

Update: February 2024. In the turntable arena, a May 2022-issue product is a babe in arms – this isn't the smartphone space, where fresh iterations are expected (nay, demanded!) annually. News that the Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 is still one of the best turntables around will come as little surprise to anyone who read our Cambridge Audio Alva TT review, upon which it is built. This particular turntable has an ace up its sleeve too: onboard hi-res 24bit/48kHz aptX HD Bluetooth transmission (not to be confused with the swathe of recent decks that have a Bluetooth speaker inbuilt, to receive music from your phone; the Lenco LS-410 is a good budget example) which means whatever's spinning on the platter can be sent to your wireless headphones and Bluetooth speakers around the house. Other decks can do similar (the Victrola Stream Carbon will even work with your Sonos system, if you want that) but very few turntables can do it in hi-res, or this well… and that's before we mention how good it is when listening the old-fashioned way, via its inbuilt switchable phono stage… The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable: One-minute review

The Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 is the updated version of a turntable that caused a bit of a stir when it launched – here, at last, was a premium turntable that wanted to offer more convenience than is normal. Specifically, wireless streaming – and hi-res wireless streaming at that. Acclaim was immediate and more-or-less universal.

So Cambridge is back with a new, more expensive and mildly updated Alva TT: the V2. Its integrated phono stage is now switchable. It has a new tonearm and cartridge. The price has risen a little. But V2 retains the original’s bank-vault build quality, aptX HD hi-res wireless streaming smarts, and overall air of profound solidity that made it one of the best turntables around.

It also retains a lot of the original’s sonic emphases. The Alva TT V2 is a deft, smooth and insightful listen, a little short of dynamic headroom but very long indeed on detail retrieval, tonal balance and generously engaging sound.

Yes, this sort of money can buy a more rigorous sonic attitude and more dynamic headroom at the same time. What it won’t buy is better build quality, greater midrange fidelity, anything like as much convenience, or the ability to listen directly on the best wireless headphones. So, even more so than is usual on these pages, you need to make a value judgement.

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable: Price and release date

$1,999 / £1,699 / AU$3,699
Release in May 2022

The Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable was released in spring 2022, and it's officially priced at $1,999 / £1,699 / AU$3,699. Don't expect to find it with much of a discount, either.

That’s serious money for a record player – and it’s the sort of money that brings quite a few high-profile alternatives into view. Everyone from Clearaudio and Rega in Europe, Technics in Japan and VPI in the United States will happily sell you a turntable for this sort of money with high-end audio credentials – although they won’t be quite so extensively specified, admittedly. In fact, let's take a look at the features now.

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 on wooden surface — Naturally, you can use the Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 with dust cover or without. (Image credit: Future)

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable: Design and features

24bit/48kHz aptX HD wireless streaming
Integrated, switchable phono stage
Direct-drive operation

As far as true ‘design’ is concerned, nothing about the Cambridge Audio Alva TT v2 is going to surprise or startle you. This turntable is designed to look like a turntable, albeit a nicely constructed and finished one, and as such is never going to be an interior decorator’s favourite item.

That’s not to say it doesn’t look good, or a lot like the outgoing Alva TT, though. A hefty, smoothly finished chassis is topped by a tactile aluminium plinth with the ‘Cambridge’ logo punched into one corner and three buttons (‘power on/off’, ‘33.3’ and ‘45’) nicely recessed into another. The whole thing is covered by a hinged, smoked-plastic dust-cover.

On top of the plinth there’s an extremely hefty polyoxymethylene platter, and off to one side an entirely fresh design of tonearm. For this V2 model, the tonearm now features anti-skate as well as counter-weight adjustment and has a detachable headshell for ease of cartridge-replacement. It’s pre-fitted with a cartridge, of course – a high-output Cambridge Audio moving coil option with a replacement cost (according to the brand’s website) of £499.

On the inside, the Alva TT v2 uses a direct-drive mechanism to turn that chunky platter – but this is no DJ-centric turntable for hooking into a mixer. Cambridge Audio asserts the best way to guarantee rotational stability is to specify a medium-torque direct-drive motor in conjunction with a high-density platter. That’s what this turntable has, and while it takes a turn or two longer than you might be expecting to come up to speed, once it’s there it’s unshakeable.

On the rear of the chassis are a number of items of interest. There’s power input and a pair of stereo RCA analogue outputs for connection to an amplifier, which are both pretty much par for the course.

There’s also a switch for the integrated phono stage – this circuitry is based closely on the well-received Alva Duo stand-alone phono stage Cambridge Audio introduced a while back and, unlike the original Alva TT, it’s optional. Turn it on and the V2 outputs at a line-level any amplifier can handle; turn it off and the signal will need to be boosted by pre-amp circuitry on board an amplifier or by an external phono stage.

So if the owner’s system already includes sufficient amplification, it’s possible to compare the V2’s onboard amplification with that of the system into which it’s playing and make a decision based on perceived sound quality. This is an improvement on the original Alva TT, the ‘always on’ phono stage of which seemed a little unhelpful.

There’s also a switch to turn Bluetooth connectivity on or off, plus a button to initiate Bluetooth pairing. Unlike the majority of Bluetooth-equipped turntables, which are generally entry-level devices that prioritise convenience over all else, the Alva TT V2 is deadly serious about wireless streaming. So it’s specified to support the aptX HD Bluetooth codec, and can stream at an authentically high-resolution 24bit/48kHz.

Which means that if you want a turntable that can sit where you want it to, rather than where it insists on being, and deliver the audio goods wirelessly, well… Cambridge Audio continues to be the only game in town.

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 tonearm — You get a very high-quality (and pricey) cartridge included in the box with the Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2. (Image credit: Future)

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable: Audio performance

Articulate and impressive wireless performance
Very capable integrated phono stage
Lacks a little dynamism and positivity

Unlike the majority of turntables, there are three ways of listening to the Alva TT V2: Hard-wired to an amplifier with phono amplification turned on; the same but with the phono stage turned off; and wirelessly via Bluetooth.

And while there are pretty obvious differences in the way the Cambridge presents your vinyl, its fundamental attitude doesn’t alter no matter the way you decide to listen to it. In all circumstances, it’s a poised, perceptive and engaging listen – and as long as you (and your music) aren’t permanently in ‘party on!’ mode, it’s a satisfying listen.

That it sounds better when hard-wired than when streaming wirelessly shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. What is quite startling, though, is just how accomplished the Alva TT V2 sounds when streaming via Bluetooth.

With a heavy reissue of Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue spinning and the turntable streaming to a Naim Uniti Star streamer/amplifier while physically connected only to power, the Cambridge sounds full, detailed and quite eloquent. There is more than enough detail retained to make the nuances of the musicians’ techniques apparent, and sufficient control of the entire frequency range to make the recording sound authentically like a performance. Bass is deep and agile, the top end is acceptably crisp, and the midrange communicates in unambiguous fashion.

The soundstage is reasonably well organised and quite expansive, and there’s never any possibility of one element of the recording intruding into the space of another. Low-level dynamic insight is good too – a recording like this is alive with minor harmonic variations, and the Alva TT V2 is pretty alert to them.

It’s not quite as successful where the broader dynamic peaks and troughs of a recording are concerned, though – it’s not as if the Cambridge sounds flat or operates at a single level, but the dynamic ebb and flow of a recording isn’t expressed as fully as it might be.

Our Naim doesn’t have any phono amplification, so the Cambridge is first hard-wired with its internal amplification switched on, and then via a Chord Huei stand-alone phono stage with the Alva TT V2’s amplification switched off. The differences in performance, it has to be said, are quite predictable.

Using its own on-board amplification, the Cambridge gains a degree of positivity compared to its wireless sound. It’s still a smooth and detailed listen, but low frequencies gain a little alacrity where attack and decay are concerned while the top end is a little more assertive too. It’s just a more businesslike way to listen, even though the overall TT V2 sonic signature is much the same. When hard-wired, it’s just slightly snappier.

The internal amplification is indeed comparable to the Alva Duo phono stage on which it’s closely based, which is unequivocally a good thing. Unsurprisingly, though, it’s no match for the pricier Chord Huei phono stage – and while the Chord is disproportionately expensive in the context of the rest of this system, it does allow the Cambridge to fully demonstrate both what it’s capable of and what its limitations are.

The shaping of low frequencies steps up again when listening this way. Rhythmic expression becomes more certain, transient detail retrieval improves and the unity, the togetherness of the individual elements of a recording seems more natural and instinctive than before. Even an over-specified phono stage can’t help the Alva TT V2’s slight lack of dynamic potency, though, nor coax greater directness from its overall performance.

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 connections — The Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2's connection labelling is upside down, for when you're leaning over the top, see? (Image credit: Future)

Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable: Should you buy it?

Buy it if…

Don't buy it if…

Also consider

First reviewed: June 2022

Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Headphones review

7:00 pm | May 12, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Headphones Wireless Headphones | Tags: Australia, LDAC, UK, US | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: May 2022
• Still Sony's flagship headphones
• Launch price: $399 / £380 / AU$649
• Regular price now: $329 / £319 / AU$549

Update: February 2024. The Sony WH-1000XM5 remain as Sony's best-ever headphones in terms of what they can do: rich and detailed sound, superb active noise cancellation, great smart features and a comfortable fit. However, their competition has grown more fierce over time, and while they've had a general price cut that helps keep them competitive, they're no longer our absolute first choice among the best noise-cancelling headphones in their range. The Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless offer better sound quality, double the battery life, great noise cancellation, some some even smarter app-based features, usually for a cheaper price than the Sony. If noise cancellation is your priority, spend a little more on the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, which are the best in class for this, and also sound clearly better than the Sony. To be clear, we love the Sony WH-1000XM5, and if you like to stick with Sony cans, as many do, we recommend them – but they've been pipped in the headphones race. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

The Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones have one of the most revered family trees in modern audio history. Following two best-in-class over ear noise cancelling predecessors, the WH-1000XM5 land with a level of anticipation that is unusual in the world of personal audio.

TechRadar deservedly awarded the Sony WH-1000XM3 and Sony WH-1000XM4 top marks in their respective reviews, and so the expectation is that the WH-1000XM5 will follow in those perfect audio footsteps.

In terms of specs and performance, they mostly do follow in their predecessors' footsteps (a little too closely) but in terms of design, the Sony WH-1000XM5 cans represent the biggest departure that the line has seen since its conception. Still, we enjoyed reviewing them, which is why they're one of our top picks in our best wireless headphones guide.

So are the differences in design enough to raise the already-high bar Sony has set for itself? Read on for our full Sony WH-1000XM5 review.

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Price and release date

Price: $399 in the US
Price: £380 in the UK
Price: AU$649 in Australia
Released in May 2022

On sale now, the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones will begin to ship from May 20, 2022, priced at £380 / $399 / AU$649 – a significant step up above the £350 / $349 / AU$549 asking price of the previous-generation Sony WH-1000XM4.

At launch, you’re looking at around a £30 / $50 savings by choosing the older – and still very good – Sony WH-1000XM4. It’s a sizable chunk of change and, more importantly, it’s a gap that could widen as the year goes on and we drift towards the big shopping holidays like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. At some point in the future, we’re likely to see the Sony WH-1000XM4 dip below the $300 mark before plummeting to half-price – and, at that price, the Sony WH-1000XM4 is a no-brainer.

They're still a fair sight cheaper than Apple’s alternative though, with the AirPods Max still commanding a $549 / £549 / AU$899 price tag when bought direct from Apple.

The noise-cancelling Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones — (Image credit: Future)

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Design

All-new design
Comfortable for long listening sessions
Design prevents wind distortion – but no longer folds into a compact shape
Still no water resistance

After two generations of largely-identical over-ear headphone designs, the WH-1000XM5 headphones are a significant departure from their predecessors.

The best way to quickly describe the WH-1000XM5 headphones is that they’re a bit curvier than their predecessors. It’s all a bit tidier, a bit sleeker – there are fewer visible points of articulation, more discreet noise-cancelling mic ports, and a slimmer headband with additional leather-look covering to hide away its joins and extension points. The cavity for your ears to sit in is a slightly different shape too – a more squat ovoid than the oval of the WH-1000XM3 and WH-1000XM4. Though we’ve not stress tested them to their absolute limits, the slide-out extension points feel sturdier than earlier designs too, with fewer pressure points that could snap away – a complaint of well-used previous models.

But there are some changes that may not be so welcome. Frustratingly, there’s still no water resistance of any kind featured here. As the headphones can no longer fold in on themselves, they’re not quite as portable as they once were. And while the headband is better hidden and integrated into the overall design aesthetic, it feels as if it has less padding than previous Sony headphones in the line.

That may be a slightly moot point though – in our experience, they’re no less comfortable as a result, and will happily sit on your head for long listening sessions. There’s ample padding around the ears, and the cups twist and pivot to suit all sizes, with just the right amount of clamp pressure exerted from the band to keep them in place without squeezing your brain out through your ears. That headband now smoothly extends too, rather than using the stepped extension of earlier versions.

Controls are largely the same as the 1000XM4 headphones. Smart context-aware auto controls aside (which we’ll discuss in the ‘Features’ section of this review), there are two physical buttons on the left ear cup edge. The first cycles between noise cancelling and ambient awareness settings, and you can now use a couple or trio of taps of the ANC button to activate Spotify Tap, letting you fire up and play from the music streamer without getting your phone out of your pocket. The second is the power button, which you can keep held down to activate Bluetooth pairing mode. You’ll also find the exterior to the right ear cup is touch sensitive: swipe up and down on it to change the volume, double tap it to pause audio and answer calls, and cover it with your palm to instantly jump to an ambient awareness mode that funnels in exterior sound. There’s also still a USB-C charging port on the right cup, and a 3.5mm headphone jack on the left cup.

So, of the obvious exterior changes and additions, what’s going on and why?

First up, that curvier design is intended to reduce wind-drag across the headphones, which can cause that annoying distortion in noise-cancelling performance when out and about on a windy day. A more aerodynamic design here should help reduce that effect, and while we’ve not run head on into the path of a hurricane, that claim held up on a breezy London day exploring Greenwich park.

The second obvious addition is a doubling of the amount of microphone points housed on the headphones. This provides the onboard noise cancelling processors (yes, there's two inside the headphones) more audio data to to anaylze and improve active noise cancelling performance with, as well as doubling the amount of beamforming mics near a user’s mouth for calls up from two on the WH-1000XM4s to four on the WH-1000XM5s. Call quality, according to our critical buddies, was crystal clear.

Despite these additions, the headphones are actually lighter than the previous model, weighing just 250g – 4 grams lighter than the last version. On top of this, they use ABS plastics in their construction (as does the packaging), made of recycled car parts to up their green credentials.

Again, there’s a much-welcome included carry case with these latest Sony over-ears. Made of a grey fabric, it’s somewhat collapsible, offering a little more bag space when you’re using your headphones. Just don’t expect it to flatten down to a paper-thin size, as an inner pocket for cable storage keeps it a little beefier. It’s not a like-for-like assessment, but the surface area of the new case is larger than that of the earlier models, even if you can squeeze its cubic area down.

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Features

The best active noise-cancelling in the business
Smart ambient awareness options
Allows a connection to two devices at once
App has features to protect your hearing

Active noise-cancellation features have long been the hallmark of the Sony WH range, and the WH-1000XM5 headphones continue in that fine tradition. It must have been difficult to top the superb performance of previous generations and, admittedly, it’s not a world apart from the WH-1000XM4 model. But there is a definite, if slight, improvement.

The WH-1000XM4 already effectively wiped out low-frequency sounds (the din of public transport, or a plane’s rumbling engines), but the XM5s work harder at the higher frequency zone. That’s in part thanks to the new 30mm driver design that, while smaller than the 40mm design of old, makes use of a high rigidity dome and soft edge to take some of the bite off of higher-pitched sounds. Indeed, walking through London’s Paddington Station, a hive of scum and villainy (and sounds of all kinds), I could barely hear a thing, even with the volume of my music dialled back to a minimum. It was very impressive.

Active noise cancellation is the headline act among a whole bunch of smart features Sony includes with the WH-1000XM5 headphones, many of which automatically kick in without you needing to do anything, improving the overall listening experience without you having to lift a finger.

First up is location awareness. By pairing with your smartphone, the WH-1000XM5 headphones can learn your daily routine, and adjust Ambient Sound Control settings according to your location. If the headphones spot that you’re sat still at home, they might jump to a less intense level of noise cancellation compared to while you’re sat in the office, based on your preferences. And if you’re out for a walk, it may pipe in more exterior audio to keep you safe while crossing the street.

Speak-to-Chat is another handy feature. As its name suggests, if you begin talking while listening to the headphones, they’ll halt playback and pump in ambient sound so you can have a conversation without taking the cans off. But like the WH-1000XM4s before them, they come with an unfortunate side effect – it’ll stop playback if you begin singing when the feature is switched on. Thankfully, it’s an optional feature, so if you too are a wannabe Pavarotti, you’ll still be able to stretch those lungs when listening.

A more immediately useful and intuitive feature is the fact the WH-1000XM5s will automatically pause audio when removed from your head, thanks to a hidden sensor in the ear cup. Leave them off for a little longer, and they’ll automatically switch off completely, saving your battery life. You’ve also got the option of connecting to two devices at once, switching between the two depending on what’s happening on each, such as to prioritise a notification.

Finally, there’s better support for voice assistants and their wake words. Alexa and Google Assistant can be activated hands-free by their respective trigger commands, and can then be used to do everything from place and answer calls to reading incoming text messages and notifications, as well as controlling music.

Lots of these features can be tweaked an customised by the accompanying app, which is far more useful than similar supporting software of this ilk. There’s a responsive EQ, with a bass boosting function, that makes a genuine impact on the sound profile of the headphones (though we were very happy with the default tuning), an ear analyzer for optimising the effect of Sony’s proprietary 360 reality audio spatial sound format), and lots of options when it comes to customising noise cancelling levels and the location-aware settings that the app can be set to automatically configure based on your usage and surroundings.

A nice touch which I never realised I’d appreciate before having it presented to me was the “Safe Listening” section of the app. The headphones are constantly logging the decibel level and sound pressure of your listening sessions and lets you know how close you’re coming to the recommended weekly loud noises allowance as defined by WHO. For someone who regularly enjoys drowning out the world at ear-blistering levels, it was a wake up call to have the potential damage I was doing to my ears visualised. The app also tracks the amount of time you’ve spent listening to the headphones too, which is a nice touch for life-loggers, and awards gamified for badges for using the different features of the headphones over time. It’s a shame then that it seems only possible to log time used when connected to a device with the app running, rather than keeping this data onboard the headphones – you won’t get a log of time spent listening to a connected laptop, for instance.

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Audio quality

Spacious soundstage
Spatial audio support
LDAC and DSEE Extreme perform well
Well balanced, with powerful bass and eye-opening detail

The jump from a 40mm driver in the WH-1000XM4 headphones to the new 30mm driver in the latest WH-1000XM5 headphones had us initially raise our eyebrows – would the signature dynamism and space of the WH line be lost with the smaller driver? Thankfully those fears were unfounded – they sound pretty much just as good as the exemplary XM4s, though we must admit they don’t sound dramatically better, either.

Sony’s again leaning on a one-two punch of both LDAC codec and DSEE Extreme support here to offer the best possible sound quality from your connected devices. LDAC is your hi-resolution audio option, compressing and decompressing tracks on the fly to deliver much greater wireless bandwidth than a standard Bluetooth connection could conjure. But even if you’re on a lowly standard-resolution streaming service over Bluetooth, DSEE Extreme ekes out a little more detail by using AI upscaling techniques to restore some of the audio data which would otherwise be lost. Both do a great job.

Even with the driver change, the soundstage remains spacious and capable of giving all elements of a mix room to breathe and shine. Take the mighty solo section of Metallica’s classic One, for instance – all thrash metal riffing and double bass drum madness, but Kirk Hammett’s blistering high-register finger tapping cuts through and shines. In a more sedate but layered tune like Jeff Buckley’s Grace, the acoustic strum percussively rattles below the harmonised vocals and chorus-pedal guitar line, but there’s room for a walking bassline to sit alongside soaring strings too. Everything finds its place with the Sony WH-1000XM5s, and the effect is a wonderful enveloping of sound, even outside of the 360 Reality Audio spatial settings.

If you’re looking for a test of the tightness of the bass, there’s little better than Rage Against the Machine’s Bullet in the Head, where the bass work of Tim Commerford runs like a… well a piston-powered machine through the track. The WH-1000XM5s let the bassline kick behind the trebley guitar riff with real power without flattening everything else. If you want to see how low the cans can go without losing definition, Massive Attack’s brooding Angel sees the WH-1000XM5s retain musicality and detail at even the lowest frequencies.

At the other end of the mood spectrum, jumping into Prince’s joyous Raspberry Beret revealed details previously missed. It’s Prince’s 80s “more-is-more” production at its pomp, with snapping snares and hand claps piercing the wizard-like mix of synths, strings and guitars. I may be mistaken, but is that a harpsichord sitting beneath it all? If it is, it’s the first time I’ve noticed it in my 35 years of listening to the song.

And, if you want to listen to the clarity of a wonderfully realised vocal performance while having a good cry, pop on the Prince-penned, Sinead O’Connor-performed Nothing Compares 2 U – she might as well be in the room with you, from forceful chorus to trembling bridge, O’Connor runs the gamut from anger to heartbreak, with the Sony cans picking up each inflection and sibilant cry with wondrous effect.

There’s very little sound leakage too. Sat in the office next to a colleague, they didn’t register any sound even with the volume ramped up to its highest setting, which is an improvement over last year’s version based on what those around me said at the time.

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Battery life

There weren’t many areas that the Sony WH-1000XM5s could have improved over their 1000XM4 predecessors, so many had hoped that one area that could have seen a jump in performance was battery life. Sony is claiming a slight improvement here – while the 30 hours with noise cancelling activated matches the predecessor, 40 hours with noise cancelling switched off is a two hour improvement over the WH-1000XM4s. That may be a little disappointing for some readers, as competitors are beginning to squeeze out more battery life per charge. But the quality of the other features offset any loss to the competition here, particularly in terms of noise-cancelling abilities, and 30-40 hours of playback is more than respectable enough regardless.

Do Sony’s playback estimates hold true? From our experience, we’d say they’re broadly true – we appeared not to quite reach the advertised 30 hours with ANC switched on, but also tend to crank the volume up louder than the average person would (or the recommended safe level is, even), and thus would expect to see the battery drain faster in line with the high volume.

Sony’s definitely put effort into the charging experience generally though – using the USB-PD standard, you’ll get three hours of playback from just a three minute charge of the headphones, getting you out the door and into your tunes as quickly as possible.

Should I buy the Sony WH-1000XM5?

Buy them if…

Don’t buy them if…

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Also consider

First reviewed: May 2022

How we test

We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.

Editor's Note

• Original review date: May 2022
• Launch price: $259 / £219 (about AU$360)
• Target price: $230 / £200 (approx. AU$300)

Update: February 2024. The Lenco LS-410 is still one of the best turntables on the market owing to its particular mix of usefulness and wallet-friendly appeal. The ace up its sleeve is a surprisingly beefy four-driver speaker array (it's actually under the platter, but you knew that), which will also accept music sent over Bluetooth, making it a viable option for anyone dipping into vinyl without losing their beloved music streaming services. Although it was released in March 2022, this is the world of analog audio and the physical music product, so technological advancements are… incremental. That said, in January 2024 a Victrola record turntable with a repeat function made its debut, while the 2023 Victrola Stream Carbon will also work with your Sonos wireless speaker setup, so there is competition when it comes to marrying old with new in record players these days. Our advice? It's still a good gateway vinyl spinner, as long as top notch audio quality isn't top of your list. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Lenco LS-410: two-minute review

The Lenco LS-410 combines the retro joys of vinyl with up-to-the-minute wireless streaming technology, adds a loudspeaker array and plenty of amplification, and packages it all in a box that looks and feels nicer than it really has any right to at the price.

Jump to

Price and release date

Design and features

Audio performance

Should I buy it?

It’s painless to set up, can be connected to an external system and has an input for yet another source of music. And it has a dust-cover too. Really what more could you ask for from a record player?

It would be churlish to ask for more where Bluetooth sound is concerned. The Lenco sounds quite expansive, muscular and detailed when streaming wirelessly - it’s not the most practical $260 / £220 Bluetooth speaker around, but it’s far from the least enjoyable.

a closeup of the lenco ls-410 turntable — (Image credit: TechRadar)

But it all falls to pieces when playing vinyl. The tonearm and its associated controls feel insubstantial - and that’s the way the Lenco sounds when it’s playing records, too. And it’s further undermined by a slight, but undeniable, tendency to wander a little bit where rotational speed is concerned.

It’s a great pity, because in principle the Lenco LS-410 is a fine idea. We would have happily accepted a higher priced device if the engineering was more robust - that would make the LS-410 a genuine contender. Read on for our full Lenco LS-410 review.

the lenco ls-410 record player — (Image credit: TechRadar)

Lenco LS-410 review: Price and release date

Available now
$259 / £219 (about AU$360)

The Lenco LS-410 is on sale now for $259 / £219 - while there’s no official Australian price just yet, that works out at about AU$360.

There’s an awful lot of tech packed into the LS-410 for that modest price - if you’ve got access to an outlet, a smartphone and a vinyl record, you’ve a multi-source all-in-one system ready to go. But, of course, offering features and functionality is only half the battle…

the lenco ls-410 record player control buttons — (Image credit: TechRadar)

Lenco LS-410 review: Design and features

33.3 and 45rpm for vinyl
Bluetooth 5 for wireless streaming
50 watts powering four speaker drivers

The Lenco LS-410 is functional rather than luxurious where materials are concerned, but the combination of metal, plastic and wood is nicely constructed and properly finished. There’s really nothing to find fault with where build quality is concerned, certainly not as far as the cabinet goes.

Key specs

Dimensions: 192 x 425 x 360mm
Motor: Belt drive
Platter: Aluminum
Phono preamp: Yes
USB: No
Speeds: 33 ⅓, 45rpm
Stylus: Audio-Technica moving magnet

Beneath the aluminum platter (which comes with a felt mat) there’s a fairly substantial box in which the record player keeps 50 watts of amplification, a four-strong speaker driver array (each firing out through the criss-cross metal grille at the front), a switchable phono stage and Bluetooth reception-related circuitry. It stands on four pliant feet that are designed to isolate the cabinet from vibration and ook a lot like the classic ‘half a squash ball’ isolation solution so beloved of hi-fi tweekers.

On top, there’s a sturdy plastic dust-cover. Lift it up and you’ve got access to the turntable itself. This is a belt-drive design, and there’s a straight tonearm pre-fitted with an Audio-Technica cartridge - all you need to do to set it up is fit and adjust the counter-weight. Beneath the tonearm, there’s a little control-panel: an on/off/input selection button, play/pause, a 33.3 or 45rpm speed control and a dial to regulate volume.

the tonearm on the lenco ls-410 record player — (Image credit: TechRadar)

As much as we like the way the cabinet is constructed and finished, we have to be a fair bit more qualified about some of the fixtures and fittings. The tonearm itself doesn’t feel all that substantial, the mechanical lift that raises or lowers it feels flimsier still, and the clip to keep it secure in its cradle feels flimsiest of all.

The rubbery control buttons move around beneath your finger more than we’d like. The entire tonearm mechanism and drive motor are attached to a suspended plate that has a (perfectly acceptable) degree of movement in it, but there’s more movement in the tonearm assembly itself than is either expected or sensible.

the connectivity options on the lenco ls-410 turntable — (Image credit: TechRadar)

At the back of the cabinet there’s an input for mains power, a switch to turn the integrated phono stage on or off, and stereo RCA outputs - the LS-410 is a self-contained system, but if you want to run it into a bigger system or more powerful amplifier, the option is there. There’s also a 3.5mm analogue input for auxiliary equipment.

As we said, your $259 / £219 buys plenty. Good luck finding many other self-contained vinyl/Bluetooth system with speakers at this sort of money.

the speaker grille on the lenco ls-410 turntable — (Image credit: TechRadar)

Lenco LS-410 review: audio performance

Spirited, enjoyable Bluetooth sound
Vinyl sounds bland and uncertain by comparison
Rotational speed isn’t consistent

You’re not short of choice for wireless speakers at this price, but the Lenco LS-410 is among the better ones. Admittedly the fact that it’s outlet-powered and fitted with a turntable make it a lot less portable than most other Bluetooth speakers at this sort of money, but the fact remains: give the LS-410 a half-decent digital audio stream to deal with and it does very decent work.

Bluetooth 5 proves more than capable of getting a nice big hi-res TIDAL Masters file of Robert Wyatt’s Old Rottenhat on board, and once it’s there the Lenco gives a full account of it. It has impressive low frequency presence, but doesn’t let bass sounds get carried away or overstay their welcome. Instead they’re properly controlled, reasonably detailed and give the midrange plenty of space to do its thing.

‘Its thing’ in this instance turns out to be a communicative and detailed delivery of the characterful vocals. The voice is nicely isolated but nevertheless integrated into the rest of the performance, and the LS-410 creates a big enough soundstage for a singer to stretch out a little. At the top end things are played pretty safe, with treble sounding just slightly blunt when compared to the rest of the frequency range - which, while not ideal, is preferable to overt hardness or harshness.

a closeup of the lenco ls-410 record player — (Image credit: TechRadar)

This isn’t the most dynamic sound you ever heard, for sure, but neither is it the most inhibited. And when it’s put into proper context, the LS-410 is a perfectly likable and periodically quite impressive Bluetooth speaker.

Unfortunately, that’s not quite the case when listening to vinyl. The solidity of its low-end presence is undermined when listening to a copy of Devo’s Are We Not Men? and is replaced by a less positive and less detailed version. The midrange is still quite spacious, but it sounds slightly phasey - and that’s the case at the top of the frequency range too. Much of the certainty the LS-410 exhibits as a Bluetooth speaker falls away, and the result is a sound that’s undemonstrative and rather pedestrian.

Most unhappily, though, is the relative lack of rotational stability the turntable exhibits. Even tiny discrepancies in what should be 33.3rpm are audible, and once you’ve heard them they’re impossible to un-hear. For whatever reason, the Lenco doesn’t maintain speed perfectly - and the sonic results are deeply off-putting.

Lenco LS-410 review: should you buy it?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Lenco LS-410 review: Also consider

Not convinced by our Lenco Ls-410 review? Here are three more record players we think you should consider.

First reviewed: May 2022

Read our guide on how to set up a turntable

Lenco LS-410 review

1:37 pm |

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

Editor's Note

• Original review date: May 2022
• Launch price: $259 / £219 (about AU$360)
• Target price: $230 / £200 (approx. AU$300)

Lenco LS-410: two-minute review

Jump to

Price and release date

Design and features

Audio performance

Should I buy it?

Lenco LS-410 review: Price and release date

Available now
$259 / £219 (about AU$360)

The Lenco LS-410 is on sale now for $259 / £219 - while there’s no official Australian price just yet, that works out at about AU$360.

Lenco LS-410 review: Design and features

33.3 and 45rpm for vinyl
Bluetooth 5 for wireless streaming
50 watts powering four speaker drivers

Key specs

Dimensions: 192 x 425 x 360mm
Motor: Belt drive
Platter: Aluminum
Phono preamp: Yes
USB: No
Speeds: 33 ⅓, 45rpm
Stylus: Audio-Technica moving magnet

As we said, your $259 / £219 buys plenty. Good luck finding many other self-contained vinyl/Bluetooth system with speakers at this sort of money.

Lenco LS-410 review: audio performance

Spirited, enjoyable Bluetooth sound
Vinyl sounds bland and uncertain by comparison
Rotational speed isn’t consistent

Lenco LS-410 review: should you buy it?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Lenco LS-410 review: Also consider

Not convinced by our Lenco Ls-410 review? Here are three more record players we think you should consider.

First reviewed: May 2022

Read our guide on how to set up a turntable

JBL Flip 6 review

8:41 pm | March 21, 2022

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

Editor's Note

• Original review date: March 2022
• Launch price: $129.95 / £129.99 (about AU$175)
• Target price now: $109 / £99 / AU$169

Update: February 2024. The JBL Flip 6 is still the best Bluetooth speaker at a mid-range price for our money – partly thanks to a small price drop officially since its launch, and some good discounts during sales events. It puts out a lot of power from a small and easily portable package, and has a very durable design that doesn't need any delicate handling, which is always good for an outdoor speaker. It's still JBL's latest Flip speaker, and still get a big thumbs-up from us. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

JBL Flip 6: One-minute review

JBL’s Flip series of Bluetooth speakers have held a place in our guide to the best portable speaker for a long time, and the company’s latest model continues in that tradition.

The JBL Flip 6 is an easy-to-use, rugged, and well-connected speaker that sounds great and is easily capable of filling a room with your favorite music - or soundtracking outdoor parties or poolside get-togethers.

An IP67 dust and water resistance rating means you can happily take the Flip 6 to the beach, while its dual passive radiators ensure that the speaker has enough low-end oomph to deliver powerful bass when you’re outside and there are no walls for the soundwaves to bounce from.

Compared to its predecessor, the JBL Flip 5, the Flip 6 is a subtle improvement upon an already excellent Bluetooth speaker. It’s more robust and better suited to the outdoors, it uses the most recent Bluetooth version, and there’s a solid step up in sound quality; otherwise, these speakers are very similar, and we’d recommend looking out for great deals on the Flip 5 if you want to save some money.

That’s not to say that we don’t think the JBL Flip 6 is worth buying. Quite the contrary; it’s an ideal Bluetooth speaker for first-time users thanks to its simple controls, impeccable connectivity, and straightforward accompanying app. Simplicity is the name of the game with the JBL Flip 6, and as such you won’t find any built-in mics for voice assistants and phone calls, no charging port for your phone, no AUX-in for wired listening, and no Wi-Fi connectivity. This speaker simply plays your music, and it plays it well.

the controls on the jbl flip 6 bluetooth speaker — (Image credit: TechRadar)

JBL Flip 6 review: Price & release date

Released in December 2021
$129.95 / £129.99 (about AU$175)

The JBL Flip 6 was released in December 2021 and is available to buy now for $129.95 / £129.99 - that works out at around AU$175, though Australian pricing is yet to be confirmed.

That’s slightly more expensive than its predecessors, the JBL Flip 5, which cost $119.95 / £119.99 /AU$149.95 when it launched in August 2019 - but not by much.

JBL’s latest speaker is a lot cheaper than our favorite Bluetooth speaker, the Sonos Roam - though the Flip 6 doesn’t come with extra features like Wi-Fi connectivity that will have bumped up the price of the Roam.

There are cheaper Bluetooth speakers on the market; if you’re on a strict budget, check out models like the Anker Soundcore Flare 2 or the 1More Portable BT Speaker.

JBL Flip 6 review: Design

550g
Rubberized end caps
IP67 dust and water resistance rating

At first glance, the JBL Flip 6 looks almost identical to the Flip 5, with a cylindrical build, wraparound grille, and bass radiators on each side that pulse as you play your music. Our model came in a striking red shade, but it’s also available in black, blue, and gray. The Flip 5 comes in quite a few more color options - including a camo pattern - but we wouldn’t be surprised if JBL introduced more shades for the Flip 6 down the line.

Small enough to carry in one hand and weighing 550g, the Flip 6 is easily portable, and comes with a sporty strap that you slip over your wrist.

The metallic-looking grille is flanked by rubberized end caps that give the bass radiators on each side of the speaker a bit of protection from bumps and scrapes, while a rubber foot at the bottom of the speaker stops it from rolling off whatever surface you place it on.

the jbl flip 6 bluetooth speaker — (Image credit: TechRadar)

In the middle of the grille is the JBL logo in big, bold letters - just above this you’ll find all your controls; PartyBoost, volume down, volume up, and play. We like the fact that these controls are raised and tactile - it’s easy to find them in low lighting or just feel for them if you can’t be bothered to look.

On the bottom of the speaker is where you’ll find the power and Bluetooth pairing buttons, which light up when you press them, along with a USB-C charging port. Unlike the JBL Charge 4, there’s no port to charge your phone from, so you’ll need to make sure your device is topped up before you leave home.

The Flip 6 feels just as rugged as the Flip 5, but this time JBL has introduced dust resistance alongside water resistance, for an IP67 rating. That means you can happily take the Flip 6 to the beach without needing to worry about a little sand or a splash of seawater breaking it.

the jbl flip 6 portable speaker — (Image credit: TechRadar)

JBL Flip 6 review: Audio performance

Racetrack-shaped woofer and separate tweeter
Powerful bass
Can be harsh at high volumes

If you’re looking for a great-sounding Bluetooth speaker that can fill a room just as well as it can soundtrack an outdoor picnic, the JBL Flip 6 is an excellent choice.

A racetrack-shaped woofer delivers powerful bass and rich mid frequencies, while a separate tweeter provides high levels of clarity from treble tones. Those passive radiators on each end of the speaker extend the low end even further for satisfying, chest-thumping bass lines that never sound bloated or muddy.

Listening to Little Simz’ Woman, and the radiators pulse pleasingly as the vampy bass lines bounce around the mix. Simz’ relaxed rap delivery sounds clear amid the jazzy piano chords, while Cleo Soul’s lacelike vocal boasts a rich, lush quality as it floats above the rest of instrumentation.

a hand holding the jbl flip 6 outdoor speaker — (Image credit: TechRadar)

In spite of its small size, the JBL Flip 6 easily reaches loud volumes, and sound doesn’t distort as you crank it up, with a good handle of complex rhythms and time signatures.

Moving on to Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Soft Shock, and the driving rhythm section with trebly drums, pulsating synths, and hammering bass lines sounds tight and accurate, while Karen O’s floaty voice has a convincingly natural presence. Bumping this track up to the highest volumes did lead to some harsh treble sounds, but generally the audio performance is warm and well-balanced with an excellent sense of clarity.

If you want to boost the sound even further, you can use the PartyBoost feature to pair two compatible JBL speakers in stereo, or multiple speakers (up to 100, in fact) in mono for a wall of sound. It’s a shame you can only stereo pair it with other Flip 6 speakers (so the Flip 5 you have at home will only pair in mono), but that’s a small drawback in the grand scheme of things.

the passive bass radiator on the jbl flip 6 — (Image credit: TechRadar)

JBL Flip 6 review: Battery life & connectivity

12-hour battery life
Bluetooth 5.1
Accompanying app

JBL says the Flip 6 should last for 12 hours of playback, which we found to be accurate in our tests. You can top up the battery within two-and-a-half hours with a USB-C cable.

Connectivity comes courtesy of Bluetooth 5.1, and pairing the speaker with our iPhone 13 mini was super quick and easy. We didn’t experience any annoying connectivity dropouts while we were using the Flip 6, and it’s possible to pair it with two devices at once, so you can take turns DJing with your friends.

The speaker is supported by the JBL Portable app, which allows you to check for software updates, adjust the equalizer settings with sliders for bass, mid, and treble frequencies, turn the feedback tone on and off, and read the user guide. You can also enable the PartyBoost feature via this app.

Should I buy the JBL Flip 6?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Looking for more? Read our guide to the best waterproof speakers

Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Headphones review

7:37 pm | February 16, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Headphones Wireless Headphones | Tags: AAC, Australia, UK, US | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: August 2020
• Newer Sony WH-1000XM5 now out
• Launch price: $349 / £349 / AU$549
• Target price now: $249 / £199 / AU$399

Update: February 2024. The Sony WH-1000XM4 might be getting on these days, but because you can regularly find them for so much cheaper than their launch, we think these still rule the roost in terms of bang for your buck. The 'target' price above is what you should aim to pay for these headphones, and we've seen them for cheaper than those prices, so they're not unrealistic at all. The Sony WH-1000XM5 have now been launched, but with a much higher price than the XM4 and without feeling like a huge leap in terms of sound or noise cancellation. So the WH-1000XM4 really hit the sweet spot if you can get them for our recommended prices, which isn't hard. We still rate them as the best headphones for most people – they've been bettered in many ways, don't get us wrong… but not for this kind of price. Plus the new version doesn't have the handy folding design for traveling! The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Sony WH-1000XM5: One-minute review

The Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Headphones are a wonderful pair of wireless noise-cancelling headphones in every way. That's why they're still up there among our pick of the best headphones of 2022, even though they were released in 2020 – and even though they've recently been superseded by the new WH-1000XM5.

We love that they deliver exactly what they promise and then some, thanks to their exceptional noise cancellation and cutting-edge codec support.

Granted, they haven’t seen a massive overhaul aesthetically from the Sony WH-1000XM3 that were released back in 2018. However, the WH-1000XM4 headphones pack in a number of new improvements, including DSEE Extreme audio upscaling and multipoint pairing.

The Sony WH-1000XM4 support Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format, which enables spatial audio on stereo headphones, plus the LDAC codec that can send a bitrate of up to 990 kbps. The unfortunate bit there, though, is that it no longer supports aptX or aptX HD, so your hi-res audio support mileage may vary.

Thanks to their extremely comfortable fit and great noise cancellation, we highly recommend the Sony WH-1000XM4 as the best headphones and the best over-ear headphones for most people, but particularly travelers or those with long commutes. However, they’re not great for workout enthusiasts who need a secure fit and water-resistance – or business people who require a best-in-class microphone for phone calls. For nearly everyone else, however, these are some of the best wireless headphones you can buy from a brand with an excellent track record in audio devices.

Since their release in August 2020, the Sony WH-1000XM4 have been given a few updates. For starters, Sony released a limited edition white colorway with a gold finish. The company also releases a firmware update to improve Bluetooth stability when the headphones are paired to multiple devices and to fix a bug which saw users struggle to connect the Sony WH-1000XM4 to Windows computers.

Read on for our full Sony WH-1000XM4 review, with everything you need to know about the best noise-cancelling headphones you can buy today.

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Price & release date

Price: $349 in the US
Price: £349 in the UK
Price: AU$549 in Australia
Released in August 2020

The Sony WH-1000XM4 were announced on August 6, 2020 and while they come from Sony's flagship line, they are no longer Sony’s top-tier go to proposition simply because they've now got a younger XM5 sibling. These over-ear cans sit above the mid-range Sony WH-CH710N and true wireless Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds.

In terms of price, you’re looking at $350 / £349 / AU$549 or thereabouts – which is exactly what the Sony WH-1000XM3 launched in 2018 in the US, and £50 more expensive in the UK.

That puts the Sony WH-1000XM4 in the same price range as the Bose Noise-Cancelling 700 Headphones that come in at $339.99 / £349.95 / AU$599.95, and slightly less than the more upscale Bowers and Wilkins PX7 that cost $399.99 / £349 / AU$600 – but let's not forget, that model has now been superseded too, thanks to the arrival of the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S2, which can be yours for a cool $399 / £379 / approx. AU$575.

They're also far cheaper than the Apple AirPods Max, which cost $549 / £549 / AU$899 – and since the Sony XM4s are now a slightly older model, we wouldn't be surprised if there are some tasty deals to be had soon…

the Sony WH-1000XM4 headband — (Image credit: Future)

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Design

Imperceptible design changes since the 1000XM3
Sturdy build and comfortable padding
New SoC for improved noise cancellation
Lack any sort of water-resistance

Though the Sony WH-100XM4 have a slew of new components inside the headphones themselves, there’s not a major difference between them and their predecessors in terms of aesthetics. In fact, put them next to each other and you’d have a hard time telling the 1000XM3 apart from the 1000XM4.

That’s not the end of the world, though, as the design of the 1000XM3 is refined and subtle, allowing it to blend in on subway stations, planes and offices without drawing any attention.

In terms of materials, you’re mostly looking at a high-quality plastic build with supple pleather padding. The result is a product that feels mostly durable while remaining extremely comfortable to wear for an extended period of time.

Around the outside of the earcups you’ll find two physical control buttons for power/pairing and a button that cycles through noise-cancelling modes, as well as a 3.5mm aux. jack and a USB-C port for charging. The outer part of the earcups act as a touch-capacitive control panel that can be used to play, pause or skip music, and raise or lower the volume.

Inside the headphones is where the magic happens, though. Sony has swapped out the old system-on-a-chip (SoC) for a new one that promises better noise cancellation. Key to that, of course, is the Sony QNe1 Processor that constantly samples ambient audio to reactively adjust the level of noise cancellation. It’s an ingenious setup and design that separates it from the one-size-fits-all noise cancelling algorithm from other manufacturers.

The bad news here, however, is that the Sony WH-1000XM4 aren’t water-friendly - they’re not splash-proof, water-proof or even very water-resistant. Sony recommends keeping them dry and far away from any source of water that might damage them. That sounds like common sense - and fairly easy to achieve - but that does limit the places you can bring them: if you’re looking for a pair of running headphones, these aren’t them.

a closeup of the Sony WH-1000XM4 earcup — (Image credit: Future)

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Features

Class-leading noise cancellation
Situational and conversational awareness
Multi-point pairing to connect to two devices
May pause the music if it hears you singing along

The Sony WH-1000XM3 were feature-rich upon release, full of inventive control schemes and intelligent applications of their noise cancellation technology. All that was great about the WH-1000XM3 headphones has carried over to the WH-1000XM4 successors, and with some all-new tricks, too. These aren’t just gimmicks either – they’re useful additions that actually work as advertised.

So let’s kick off with the brand-new stuff. First, and perhaps most importantly, Sony has refined its wireless noise-cancelling approach. Like all good design, it’s subtle to the point where you may not notice it at first (such was the strength of the previous system, anyway).

Key specs

Acoustic design: Closed

Weight: 253g

Frequency response: 4Hz to 40kHz

Drivers: 1.57-inch dome-type

Battery life: 30 hours

Active noise cancellation? Yes

Extra features: Speak to Chat, DSEE Extreme, 360 Reality Audio

But with the WH-1000XM4, you’re getting a much greater sense of noise cancellation in the mid-ranges – those sorts of areas where you get a low-level humming kind of sound that you could attribute to a fan, or air conditioning unit, or engine noise. It’s never fully silenced, but it’s remarkably quiet, and as soon as you have actual audio playing through the cans, you can’t hear the outside world at all.

Though high wind can still cause a bit of extraneous noise to come through, it’s otherwise among the best (if not, the best) noise-cancelling system we’ve heard from a pair of wireless headphones.

These noise-cancelling modes are intelligent, too – with your permission, the WH-1000XM4 headphones can learn where you are using geo-location access, and apply your preferred level of noise-cancellation or ambient sound passthrough depending on where you are. So, at home you may prefer a fully cancelled noise mode, while in the office you may want voices to come through.

With the feature activated, the Sony headphones play a small chiming tone when it’s reached one of your set locations, and dials the noise-cancellation up or back appropriately. Though GPS requirements mean it won’t be able to work during a subterranean commute, you can preset your station or travel hub in the accompanying Headphones Connect app, and have it activate your preferred noise cancelling settings whilst above ground before descending.

The best of the WH-1000XM4 features though are those that pander to convenience. They’re simple and effective additions. A sensor in the earcups will recognize when you take the headphones off, and pause music accordingly, resuming playback automatically when you replace them. If they’re paused for a few minutes (at a delay of your choosing), they’ll automatically switch off to save battery life. A new multipoint connection lets the headphones connect to two devices at once, intelligently switching between both as the requirement of each device dictates – say, to deliver a notification or answering a call.

Most impressive is a new Speak-to-Chat feature. With this option switched on, the headphones’ microphone will intelligently recognize when you’ve started talking, and pause your music while ramping up ambient noise being funneled into the cans. It’ll let you have a chat naturally without taking your headphones off, with a short pause occurring after you stop chatting before resuming music playback.

However, it’s a double edged sword, as it’s almost too effective – if you decide to break into song and sing along with your tunes with the feature activated, it’ll pause your track, ending your karaoke session. Convenient then – so long as you’re restrained with your vocal gymnastics.

a man wearing the Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless headphones — (Image credit: Future)

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Audio quality

Circumaural 40mm drivers
Warm and balanced, clear and powerful bass
Support for 360 Reality Audio for spatial audio
LDAC and AAC but not aptX or aptX HD

Sony’s using the same 40mm drivers in the WH-1000XM4 as it had in the WH-1000XM3, so tonally and in terms of mix, there’s not much to separate the WH-1000XM4 from the WH-1000XM3 headphones that preceded them. It’s a warm and balanced sound that does well to offer a wide soundstage when required and detail that can pierce through a powerful bass performance.

On the noise-cancelling front, Sony’s using its Dual Noise Sensor tech, making use of two mics in each earcup to suck in sound and analyse it with the QN1 noise cancelling processor. This allows the headphones to adjust its noise cancellation response imperceptibly quickly, at more than 700 times a second. It’s fantastically powerful, and never gets in the way of your tunes.

While aptX HD support would have been welcome, the Sony’s LDAC codec, present here, does a good job with devices that support it, pushing lots of detail through wirelessly. The introduction of DSEE Extreme, an AI-driven process that looks to restore detail from lossy compressed formats, does well to bring clarity to even the lower quality formats and files you may throw at the WH-1000XM4.

Sony’s still pushing its 360 Reality Audio offering too, which is its homegrown immersive audio format, putting you in the middle of a surround-sound mix, and it’s still impressive – even if actually accessing its library is limited to just a few streaming services, and the catalogue’s growth has been slow.

As ever, we put the headphones through their paces with a mixture of streaming services, file formats and spoken word clips, and the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones impressed across the board.

Jeff Buckley’s elegiac Last Goodbye shimmers into action, its slide guitar giving way to a warm bass groove and layers of acoustic guitars, jangling electrics and orchestral strings. It’s a complicated mix, but the WH-1000XM4 headphones do it justice, soaring with Buckley’s falsetto comfortably sitting at the fore.

Putting the bass to the test by jumping over to Bjork’s Army of Me, you can hear the can’s masterful management of bass frequencies, with the arpeggiated bass line walking through the song as the machine-like snare snaps through.

For something a little softer, Bright Eyes’ First Day of My Life has a great warmth – great vocal clarity is paired with sparkly finger picked guitars and a comforting, guiding double bass that never sounds flabby.

At the other end of the spectrum, Janelle Monae’s absolute banger Make Me Feel sounds supremely powerful on the WH-1000XM4 headphones. From the bop of the percussion to the wall of sound that accompanies the pre-chorus, it sees the Sony WH-1000XM4s firing on all cylinders, with expressive dynamics and clear and distinct separation between each instrument. It’s a pleasure at the best of times, and Sony’s cans bring out the best of the track.

From the perspective of a work-at-home, share-the-kitchen-table-with-a-flatmate user scenario, those around us did notice a substantial amount of noise leakage from the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones – enough to distract at even half their maximum volume level. You may not be able to hear the outside world, but it can hear what you’re listening to, so keep that in mind if you’re planning on taking these to a quiet office or library.

the Sony WH-1000XM4 with their case — (Image credit: Future)

Sony WH-1000XM5 review: Battery life

No improvement on battery life compared to predecessors
30 hours with noise cancelling on / 38 hours with it off
Quick charging (five hours of charge after just 10 minutes)
Last just as long or longer than the competition

While the Sony WH-1000XM4 didn’t get a boost in battery life compared to their predecessors, you're getting a substantial 30 hours with noise cancelling turned on and around 38 hours with noise cancelling turned off.

At first, that number somewhat disappointed us – how could a product not improve battery life year-on-year? But then it dawned on us that now the headphones have speech detection, a new SoC and algorithm, plus new sensors, too. The fact that it remained the same in spite of adding a host of new features is actually kind of impressive.

Although the Sony WH-1000XM4 don't come with a battery life improvement compared to their predecessors, they do stretch their playback time as far as possible thanks to the new auto-on/off and play/pause sensor inside the earcup that can tell when you’ve taken the headphones off. It’s a huge boon to folks who might forget to turn off their headphones at the end of the day only to find that they’re dead 24 hours later.

The 30 hours should be enough to get you through multiple international flights or a few days to the office, but it’s also good to know that the headphones can be charged in a matter of minutes thanks to fast-charging. According to Sony, you can get about five hours of charge from 10 minutes of power and a full charge after about three hours.

So how do the Sony WH-1000XM4 compare to the competition? Quite favorably. The Bose Noise-Cancelling 700 only clocked in at around 20 hours of battery life with noise cancelling turned on, while the Bowers and Wilkins PX7 matches the Sony at 30.

Should I buy the Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Headphones?

the Sony WH-1000XM4 in their carrying case — (Image credit: Future)

Buy them if...

Don't buy them if...

Sony WH-1000XM4 review: Also consider

First reviewed: August 2020

Apple Music review

2:10 pm | February 11, 2022

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

Apple Music: Two-minute review

Apple Music is the tech giant's music streaming service and our top choice if you love Apple products. Since its debut in 2015, Apple Music has rapidly expanded its catalogue to boast over 100 million tracks, aligning its library size with that of Spotify. Despite a smaller subscriber base than its streaming rival, Apple Music is a worthy competitor, brimming with features catering to music lovers.

Apple Music is geared toward helping you discover new tracks and artists, whether that’s through recommendations, curated playlists, music videos or its 24/7 digital radio stations. Granted, its playlists and social features aren't as fun to use as Spotify's, but suggested tracks and artists always hit the spot. Apple Music's advantage is its ability to integrate locally owned music with its streaming content, providing a unified listening experience.

Apple Music's offering includes Spatial Audio with support for Dolby Atmos. Its catalogue is now also available to subscribers in Lossless Audio at no extra cost, and it sounds great as long as you have the right kit to listen to it. This commitment to high-quality sound positions Apple Music as a strong competitor against other services like Deezer, Amazon Music Unlimited, and Tidal, giving it a leg up over Spotify.

These days, many of the best music streaming services increasingly resemble each other. However, Apple Music still carves out its niche with unique features that affirm its status as an excellent Spotify alternative, especially for those deeply integrated into the Apple ecosystem. While you can use Apple Music on most devices, it's optimized for a seamless experience across all Apple devices and further enhanced by Siri’s compatibility, offering convenience and ease for Apple users.

Apple Music review: Pricing and subscription

$10.99 / £10.99 / AU$12.99 a month
One-month free trial
No free ad-based tier

There's no free ad-based tier for Apple Music like there is with Spotify. Instead, a subscription costs $10.99 / £10.99 / AU$12.99 per month for a standard user. However, this does come with a one month free trial to determine if it's right for you. This makes Apple Music the same price as Spotify Premium with access to the same amount of tracks.

Apple also offers a reduced student subscription for $5.99 / £5.99 / AU$6.99 and a family subscription for $16.99 / £16.99 / AU$19.99, which gives up to six people unlimited access and their own personalized music library and music recommendations.

Whichever type of subscription you choose, you'll also get free access to Apple Music Classical, a separate app dedicated solely to classical music.

Apple Music review: Specs

Two iPhones on a red background showing the Apple Music Classical app — (Image credit: Future)

Apple Music review: Music library and content

An Apple Music promo image of the app on a smartphone and Mac showing lyrics. — (Image credit: Apple)

100 million tracks
Integrated with iTunes purchases
Separate app for podcasts

There are more than 100 million tracks available to stream on Apple Music at the time of writing. This is the same amount as most major rivals, including Spotify and Tidal. You’ll also find three radio stations with actual DJs playing music, Apple Music 1, Apple Music Hits, and Apple Music Country.

There are no podcasts on offer within Apple Music – you’ll need the separate Apple Podcasts app for those – but there are thousands of music videos. There’s also a 24/7 music video channel called Apple Music TV. It’s ad-free and mostly plays videos along with some interviews and live performances, think of it as MTV in your pocket.

One thing I didn’t know you could get on Apple Music until I was digging around in my most recent testing was standup comedy. You won’t find an exhaustive selection of comedians here, but some well-known ones have audio-only standup work on the platform, my favorite being Maria Bamford.

What sets the streaming service apart from some rivals is that Apple Music combines the music you already have locally and in iTunes, whether that's what you've bought or ripped from a CD. This is great for bringing all your music together in one place. There's similar functionality on offer from rivals, but it doesn’t work as seamlessly and some require a third-party app.

In 2023 Apple launched Apple Music Classical. This is a separate app, but it’s worth mentioning here considering it’s free for all Apple Music subscribers. Apple says that Apple Music Classical has more than five million tracks, making it “the world’s largest classical music catalog”. I like that search functionality is detailed, catering to different versions and recordings, but there are plenty of ways in for classical beginners, like playlists, guides and even biographies of composers.

Apple Music review: Apps and compatibility

Apple HomePod 2 with iPhone held nearby — (Image credit: Apple)

Great integration with Apple devices
Siri support
Minimal app design

I enjoy using the Apple Music app, especially on my iPhone, it looks good and much less cluttered than Spotify’s with a clean and simple UI. Album artwork is big and takes center stage and I also like that you can choose between light and dark modes.

The Mac app is similar and looks nice with that extra screen real estate to make the artwork shine. You can use it on non-Apple devices, like a PC or Android phone. As you might expect, the experience feels a little less intuitive, but still works well.

Apple is constantly updating the app to make it more user-friendly. For example, you can now favorite tracks, which are added to a new Favorite Songs playlist in your Library.

There are also several features that you won’t find in competing music streaming apps, like Apple Music Sing, which is more commonly known as Apple Music’s karaoke feature. This allows you to see lyrics for songs and adjust the volume of the vocals, meaning you can sing along while watching the lyrics as they’re highlighted.

You can use Siri to operate the Apple Music app. This is why it’s a no-brainer for those who like Apple products and Apple’s smart assistant. You can ask Siri to play anything on Apple Music, which is great if you’re already used to using voice commands in your home.

A Listen Now section on the app – which works pretty much the same across all devices – is like a personalized dashboard filled with recommendations based on your tastes and listening history.

Browse is where you can find updated playlists, new releases, radio stations and trending songs. This feels somewhat personalized, but is more of a hub for all the fresh, new content you might miss if you only follow recommendations. Within Browse the service highlights its Spatial Audio tracks that also support Dolby Atmos, this is good news if you’re listening with headphones or speakers that’ll make the most of it, like the Airpods Pro.

There’s also a tab dedicated Radio, which is where you’ll find the Apple Music 1, Apple Music Hits, and Apple Music Country stations.

Next, you’ll find your Library. This is where all of the music you’ve downloaded and saved to your device is kept, as well as everything you’ve saved, added to a playlist and played. It’s all divided up by Playlists, Artists, Albums, Songs, Music Videos, Genres, Compilations, Composers and what you have Downloaded.

The search bar works well for locating everything on Apple Music, as well as your own tracks. You can even type lyrics in here if that's all you remember.

Apple Music review: Playlists and recommendations

Apple Music Replay on a MacBook and iPhone — (Image credit: Apple)

Big focus on curation and recommendations
You can download tracks for offline listening
Spotify has the edge with discovery playlists

When you first sign up, Apple Music encourages you to select your favorite genres so it can better recommend music, and it gets started straight away. There’s a big focus on curation and recommendations. According to Apple, although an algorithm powers these recommendations, playlists are sometimes curated by a team of experts.

Top Picks For You sit at the top of your Listen Now homepage. This is a good recommendation source, featuring your Station, think of this as your own radio show based on artists you love, a Discovery Station, for only new music you haven’t listened to but Apple Music assumes you’ll like, and a Heavy Rotation Mix. There are also new releases here that the streaming service things you might like. You’ll find these mixes and stations will feature tracks from an artist, as well as similar artists and tracks you might not have listened to before.

apple music review — Sign up for Apple Music via the desktop app and you’ll be asked to choose your favorite genres to get started. (Image credit: TechRadar / Apple)

Spotify might still have the edge with its super popular customized playlists – we love Daylist and Spotify Wrapped – but there’s a lot to love about Apple Music’s recommendations too. There’s also a Favorites Mix, which is always guaranteed to be packed with artists I love, as well as a Get Up! Mix, which I put on whenever I head to the gym.

You can download tracks and playlists for offline listening. According to Apple Music you can download up to 10,000 songs, but obviously that will depend on how much storage space you have left on your device too.

Apple Music review: Sound quality

An image of Apple Music being controlled with Siri — (Image credit: Apple)

Spatial Audio and Lossless Audio
Crisp and clear sound

Apple Music added lossless streaming and Spatial Audio a few years ago, as well as support for Dolby Atmos. Apple Music’s lossless music streams will top out at 24-bit/48KHz. The hi-res, lossless streams on offer top out at 24-bit/192KHz. It says that it streams at the highest quality by default and reduces it if you’re streaming on the move.

Apple didn't charge for this uplift in quality and now matches rivals like Amazon Music Unlimited, Qobuz, and Tidal with their hi-res audio offerings. So it enters the space of Spotify alternative streaming services for those who are sick of waiting around for Spotify to launch its HiFi service, which has been promised for years.

We've always been impressed with the sound quality on offer at Apple Music. More recent tests show that to still be true with crisp, clear and reliable audio.

Without a good set of headphones or speakers it can be hard to tell the difference between Apple Music and a rival like Spotify, especially when you're listening via Bluetooth. But with wired and lossless, Apple Music is noticeably better – this highlights the importance of high-end equipment. You have to have a wired connection (for headphones or speakers) or be streaming over Wi-Fi for lossless, and the hi-res lossless tracks require an external DAC than can support 24-bit/192 kHz.

Which is the best music streaming service for you?

Spotify review

2:06 pm | February 1, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Audio Audio Streaming Computers Gadgets Spotify | Comments: Off

Spotify: Two-minute review

Spotify is our favorite music streaming service. First launched in 2008, it has a library of more than 100 million tracks, 5 million podcasts and, thanks to a recent new update, more than 200,000 audiobooks. This extensive range of content has propelled Spotify to over 602 million users worldwide, including 236 million paying subscribers.

But Spotify's appeal extends beyond its vast library. The platform has an intuitive interface and an exceptional recommendation engine that tailors playlists to individual tastes. It's also constantly evolving, with new and innovative features being introduced regularly, alongside social tools that simplify content sharing. Plus, its compatibility across a broad range of devices ensures that users can enjoy Spotify virtually anywhere.

Despite its dominance, Spotify faces serious competition from the best music streaming services, particularly for those seeking audiophile-grade sound quality. Services like Tidal and Apple Music offer superior, lossless audio tracks, with Apple Music presenting a solid ecosystem for Apple lovers. Other contenders include Deezer, YouTube Music and Amazon Music Unlimited, as well as artist-centric platforms like Bandcamp and SoundCloud that give artists more control over their music.

But Spotify still stands out as one of the most popular streamers around. Its unique value proposition lies in its expansion into podcasts and audiobooks, continual platform enhancements, and personalized playlists that resonate deeply with users, affirming the Spotify’s knack for understanding user preferences. This evolution from a streaming service to a highly personalized entertainment hub makes Spotify an unmatched choice for most people.

Spotify review: Pricing and subscription

A promo shot for Spotify showing lots of smartphones displaying different Spotify pages and features. — Spotify is constantly adding new features to its offering, like DJ, which knows your music tastes better than you do. (Image credit: Spotify)

Free plan has ads
Premium tier costs $10.99 / £10.99 / AU$12.99 a month
Specialized plans for families

Spotify has two main subscription offerings: Free or Premium. Spotify’s Free plan doesn’t cost you anything, but serves up ads between tracks as a trade-off. Users with the Free plan also have access to less features and restrictions on what they can play. For example, a Free subscription means you can only shuffle songs in an album, playlist or radio station when you’re using the Spotify app on your phone. You can’t pick a specific song and play it. You also won’t be able to save tracks to listen to offline.

Spotify’s Premium subscription comes with a one month free trial. After that, it costs $10.99 / £10.99 / AU$12.99 per month. Premium subscribers enjoy unrestricted access to any song, album, playlist or radio station, in addition to the ability to add music to their library, create personalized playlists and download music for offline listening – all ad-free. Premium also upgrades the audio quality to 320Kbps, enhancing your listening experience.

Spotify offers several specialized Premium subscriptions, like Premium Duo ($14.99 / £14.99 / AU$17.99), which gives you two Premium accounts as long as you both live at the same address. There’s also Premium Family ($16.99 / £16.99 / AU$20.99), accommodating up to six Premium accounts with features tailored for family use, like kid-friendly content options.

Spotify review: Specs

A Spotify promo shot showing what Spotify Kids looks like. — Spotify Kids looks like Spotify, but is simpler, more fun, and colorful. (Image credit: Spotify )

Spotify review: Music library and content

A promo shot of Spotify's audiobooks displayed on three smartphones. — One of the most recent new additions to Spotify has been audiobooks – there are currently 350,000 audiobooks on the platform. (Image credit: Spotify)

100 million tracks, it's rare anything is missing
5 million podcasts
200,000 audiobooks

Spotify often updates its library size, and as of the latest count, it has over 100 million tracks. Despite a history of some artists pulling their music from the platform over various concerns – including dissatisfaction with compensation – the major have returned. It’s rare to search for a song on Spotify and not find it.

Reasons for removing their music have varied over the years, but criticism has often centered on the ways Spotify has unfairly compensated creators. Some make the argument that Spotify steers listeners away from piracy and towards legal music consumption, fostering new music and artist discovery in the process. But we get why people might prefer purchasing music directly or using platforms, like Tidal and Bandcamp, which are known for granting more control and higher royalties to artists.

In its quest to be the ultimate audio application, Spotify introduced podcasts in 2015 and has expanded that offering to host an impressive selection of over five million podcasts, which have become a central feature of the app. Unlike the traditional 'subscribe' model, Spotify users 'follow' podcasts, with new episodes appearing on your home screen. Spotify might be known for curating personalized music playlists, but it applies similar algorithmic ingenuity to suggest podcasts, too.

Spotify added audiobooks in late 2022 and now Premium subscribers have access to 200,000 titles through a dedicated section of the app, mirroring the music section's layout. Users can explore new and trending books, browse by genre or popular authors, and find selections suited to activities, like commuting. While dedicated book apps have their loyal users, Spotify's foray into podcasts has proven that it can successfully capture and satisfy audience preferences in new content domains, suggesting a promising future for audiobooks on Spotify.

Spotify review: Apps and compatibility

Easy-to-use apps
Interface looks a little dated
Spotify Connect for seamless streaming

You can use Spotify through its apps on desktops, mobile phones, and tablets, as well as via a web player. Although the web player offers a decent experience, it lacks the polished feel of the apps, making some actions, like playlist creation, feel clunky.

Within the Spotify apps, users navigate through three primary sections: Home, Search, and Your Library. While there are slight variations across different platforms, the core experience is the same. The Home section primarily features personalized playlists and recently played tracks, alongside occasional podcast and audiobook suggestions and trending music.

The Search function allows users to explore the vast Spotify catalogue, including tracks, albums, artists, playlists, podcasts, and audiobooks, with the option to filter by genre or activity, such as Chill or Workout. Your Library houses all saved content, including playlists, podcasts, audiobooks, albums, and artists, with sorting options like recent additions, listens, alphabetical order, or creator.

Spotify's apps on iOS, Android, and Windows Phone are known for their stability, user-friendliness, and regular updates aimed at enhancing intuitiveness. The interface, which is a grid-like design similar to other streaming platforms like Netflix, facilitates easy navigation amidst an extensive selection of media.

However, Spotify's design has remained unchanged for years, and may feel a little outdated to some users. I also find that sometimes I’ll log in and love the overwhelming amount of options at my fingertips and other times it all feels too cluttered.

A significant advantage of Spotify over most of its rivals is in its broad compatibility with a range of devices and platforms, including sound systems, TVs, car stereos, game consoles, and wearables like the Apple Watch.

Spotify Connect provides a seamless user experience by enabling streaming to speakers and other devices over Wi-Fi directly from the cloud. This feature is accessible by tapping the speaker icon within the app and allows playback on Spotify Connect-compatible devices, such as speakers and soundbars. Spotify's integration with smart assistants, like Alexa and Google Assistant, also works really well and more often than not delivers precise and efficient voice-controlled navigation.

Spotify review: Playlists and recommendations

Screenshots of Spotify Wrapped on three smartphones. — All Spotify users look forward to Spotify Wrapped at the end of each year, a social sharing event that's always fun. (Image credit: Spotify)

Incredibly fun and accurate playlists
Packed full of recommendations
Top social features to share personalized content

One of the biggest draws of Spotify is its personalized playlists and recommendations. You can easily make your own playlists but, interestingly, the playlists generated by Spotify dominate my listening habits. This speaks volumes about the platform's precise and engaging recommendation system.

Spotify curates many playlists that it then distributes to users based on their individual listening patterns. For instance, a playlist titled My Life is a Movie is currently featured in my Home section and has been recommended to me and shared with more than two million other users.

However, beyond these broader recommended playlists, Spotify offers uniquely personalized compilations that are for your eyes only. For example, Discover Weekly presents a new assortment of tracks every Monday, tailored to your tastes yet unexplored by you. The Daily Mix series adapts to your varying moods, and Your Time Capsule nostalgically predicts tracks you might have cherished during your teenage years. And there are so many more.

A recent addition that has captured my interest in a major way is Daylist. This dynamic playlist changes every few hours and is personalized to reflect your listening habits throughout the day, adding a layer of excitement to each login. Spotify also generates whimsical titles for these playlists based on the included tracks. For instance, my 'Sensational Rhythmic Tuesday Morning' playlist perfectly aligns with my usual gym routine, embracing party tunes, techno, and vibrant hip-hop. Daylist never fails to match my musical needs, meaning most of the times I open Spotify these days I’ll head right there.

A promo shot of Spotify's new DJ feature. — Spotify's DJ is a personalized AI guide that knows you and your music tastes better than you do. (Image credit: Spotify)

Finally, another new recommendation feature I think is worth mentioning is Spotify's AI DJ. Rather than a curated playlist, Spotify says it's best to think of it as your own AI DJ, which you start playing and it picks out tracks based on the time of day and listening habits, but shakes things up to keep the listening experience fun and exciting. For example, it'll play fresh new tunes you might like, old songs you haven't listened to in a while and much more, announcing its choices as it goes.

These personalized playlists have revolutionized music listening for many, encouraging exploration within Spotify's recommendations rather than seeking out specific tracks or artists. While there's a risk of becoming trapped in a particular music genre, by including new songs and creators in these playlists it keeps the experience fresh.

Spotify's vibrant graphics and tailored playlists are designed to encourage social sharing. The platform simplifies the process of sharing playlists on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Telegram, or directly with friends via WhatsApp or SMS.

When Spotify lifts the lid on a big social campaign, like Spotify Wrapped (the details of all the tracks and genres you listened to over the past year), it even creates a personalized web experience that animates your listening stats and creates really great-looking social graphics for you to share and celebrate your musical journey over the past year.

Spotify review: Sound quality

Better quality with premium
No lossless or high-res
Spotify HiFi promised but years late

Spotify Premium subscribers listening on desktop, mobile or tablet apps can choose between five sound quality levels: automatic (depends on your network connection), low, normal, high and very high. At the low setting, music streams at 24kbps. At the normal setting, music streams at 96kbps, which sounds a lot better than MP3 at 129kbps. Switch to the high-quality setting and the bit-rate bumps up to 160kbps. Most users will be happy at this level, since any compression trade-offs aren't obvious.

The very high setting uses 320kbps, which is perceptually close to lossless. Spotify doesn't offer any lossless or hi-res streaming, which is one reason that audiophiles might want to look elsewhere. Deezer and Tidal are two other options for those who want the best quality available. Deezer's Premium hi-fi subscription costs $11.99 / £11.99 / AU$11.99 a month and lets you stream lossless 16-bit FLAC files.

If you want more, go with Tidal. With a $9.99 / £9.99 / AU$11.99, Tidal HiFi subscription you can stream lossless 16-bit FLAC and ALAC audio, but there are also thousands (but not millions) of Tidal Masters files that stream at 24-bit. Tidal HiFi Plus is even better and for $19.99 / £19.99 / AU$23.99 a month you can stream up to 24-bit, including HiRes FLAC, Dolby Atmos, and more.

Spotify has clearly realized that in order to keep up with the competition, it needs to offer a way for people to upgrade their sound quality, which is the reason it’s been promising to launch Spotify HiFi for years now. This is Spotify’s answer to Deezer and Tidal’s high-quality offerings.

It’s difficult to predict what Spotify HiFi will be like, how much it will cost or if it'll ever materialize as it's been promised for more than three years. Spotify initially said that HiFi would be available as an upgrade for premium subscribers and would offer CD-quality, lossless audio at upwards of 1411kbps. This is more than four times the amount of data you currently hear when streaming a song.

Which is the best music streaming service for you?

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