New Truly Wireless Ear Buds, suggestions?

Headphone are so overpriced. Beats stated this - lifestyle chic brand thing like Nike so any fair to middling name brand is 100-300 bucks
and many are made in Taiwan with about 17 dollars worth of parts that include labour and injection mold tooling.

My wired Samson SR-850 Studio HP provide easily 95% of what a good Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic or AKG or Shure
and got 'em from a music center for way under $50.
I have some stupendous sounding, early vintage wired metal body LG earbuds. But getting a good seal and not having issues with the cord is a pain. And I don't think they are vented, so If you get a good seal when you jam them in , you will collapse the micro diaphram.
So they sit in their box, waiting for my next cross country flight to be employed yet again.

Good luck have fun and dont crank it too much. My hearing is going but I still have fairly flat hearing at moderate-high DB levels.

-Ken
 
Headphone are so overpriced. Beats stated this - lifestyle chic brand thing like Nike so any fair to middling name brand is 100-300 bucks
and many are made in Taiwan with about 17 dollars worth of parts that include labour and injection mold tooling.

My wired Samson SR-850 Studio HP provide easily 95% of what a good Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic or AKG or Shure
and got 'em from a music center for way under $50.
I have some stupendous sounding, early vintage wired metal body LG earbuds. But getting a good seal and not having issues with the cord is a pain. And I don't think they are vented, so If you get a good seal when you jam them in , you will collapse the micro diaphram.
So they sit in their box, waiting for my next cross country flight to be employed yet again.

Good luck have fun and dont crank it too much. My hearing is going but I still have fairly flat hearing at moderate-high DB levels.

-Ken

I used to use Sennheiser (just some cheap ones), before those had some Panasonic and Sony ones. I've never been happy with ear buds, I just don't like them. Currently using a set of B&W PX-5's, which I picked up a couple of years ago now. Batteries seem to be holding up extremely well, there's been one update for them through the app so far, and you can pair multiple devices, so I have them paired both to my Mac Pro and my iPhone.

They weren't cheap, but seem to be a very high quality product, that's why I linked to their ear buds in this thread, in case they weren't on the OP's radar.
 
Headphone are so overpriced. Beats stated this - lifestyle chic brand thing like Nike so any fair to middling name brand is 100-300 bucks
and many are made in Taiwan with about 17 dollars worth of parts that include labour and injection mold tooling.

My wired Samson SR-850 Studio HP provide easily 95% of what a good Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic or AKG or Shure
and got 'em from a music center for way under $50.
I have some stupendous sounding, early vintage wired metal body LG earbuds. But getting a good seal and not having issues with the cord is a pain. And I don't think they are vented, so If you get a good seal when you jam them in , you will collapse the micro diaphram.
So they sit in their box, waiting for my next cross country flight to be employed yet again.

Good luck have fun and dont crank it too much. My hearing is going but I still have fairly flat hearing at moderate-high DB levels.

-Ken
No pun intended but think it would be extremely hard to beat Powerbeats in staying power during any physical activity/workout, comfort, battery and overall build quality plus phone call quality.
Same goes for Bose sport buds though you won’t get the long battery between charging.
Sound quality is a subjective quality personal experience in any earbud.

We all buy what works for us in what we spend, not just earbuds. Though in this case we aren’t talking wired headphones.
Thread was about bluetooth earbuds and it would be impossible to find anything close to Powerbeats Pro or Bose Sport Buds workout earbuds under $50
 
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Headphone are so overpriced. Beats stated this - lifestyle chic brand thing like Nike so any fair to middling name brand is 100-300 bucks
and many are made in Taiwan with about 17 dollars worth of parts that include labour and injection mold tooling.

My wired Samson SR-850 Studio HP provide easily 95% of what a good Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic or AKG or Shure
and got 'em from a music center for way under $50.
I have some stupendous sounding, early vintage wired metal body LG earbuds. But getting a good seal and not having issues with the cord is a pain. And I don't think they are vented, so If you get a good seal when you jam them in , you will collapse the micro diaphram.
So they sit in their box, waiting for my next cross country flight to be employed yet again.

Good luck have fun and dont crank it too much. My hearing is going but I still have fairly flat hearing at moderate-high DB levels.

-Ken
Sorry but what item like that isn’t a cobbling of $25 worth of parts found in some a Chinese catalog?

I think the value added is integration and software. The greatest (In theory) parts might not come together well and get the best solution in the hands of a novice or counterfeiter.
 
No pun intended but think it would be extremely hard to beat Powerbeats in staying power during any physical activity/workout, comfort, battery and overall build quality plus phone call quality.
Same goes for Bose sport buds though you won’t get the long battery between charging.
Sound quality is a subjective quality personal experience in any earbud.

We all buy what works for us in what we spend, not just earbuds. Though in this case we aren’t talking wired headphones.
Thread was about bluetooth earbuds and it would be impossible to find anything close to Powerbeats Pro or Bose Sport Buds workout earbuds under $50
I appreciate the story and path you’ve shared. Of course the next person could have a drastically different ear shape and things work differently.

I am curious if between these and the Apple products, is the H1 chip the H1 chip, or do other design attributes figure in more?
 
I appreciate the story and path you’ve shared. Of course the next person could have a drastically different ear shape and things work differently.

I am curious if between these and the Apple products, is the H1 chip the H1 chip, or do other design attributes figure in more?
Oh yes, ear shapes! I know all about that, actually is why I am on the "path"
Im a (for lack of better words*LOL*) normal almost 6 foot guy.
My ears look perfectly normal *L* When earbud makers design a product made to fit perfectly in the ear or ear canal they are taking a whole population or world population and lumping everyone into one group and choosing a design that will be a good TO PERFECT fit for most people, but NOT at all everyone.
Its impossible. (gosh I learned so much in the last month alone on this subject) as even in your own head, many if not most people have a variation from one ear to the other. If the earbud maker doesn't do a best guess correctly, the earbud sales will fail, they need to be comfortable for the target customer and need to fit right for good sound, the manufacturers even need to take into account the general population will not even take the time to learn how to rotate the bud into their ear for a good sealed fit and good sound.
The reviews are a joke when it comes to sound, like in the Amazon reviews, if you see comments like "no bass" ya da ya da... its just that person didnt properly put it in his/her ear correctly.

Ear Canal Buds are tricky, which I have found out. Even your ear canal can be slightly closer to your jaw bone then other people, or even on your head from one ear to the other. This is why when some people chew gum, eat, or yawn and ear bud can come loose.
Keep in mind I am intensely researching this because I dont sit around wearing ear buds, I wear them to do things around the house and why I specifically choose "work out" earbuds/gym ear buds. There are many good ones on the market if your just sitting on a sofa but whole other ball game if you are moving around.
I have my issues in my left ear, with ear canal earbuds, working around the house, fast walking the community ect, the left ear bud will ALWAYS work itself loose.
I tired EVERYTHING. However, I found the ultimate solution ... read on ..

Earbud makers aware of this, they all know, earbuds are modeled for the general population as best they can but then there are the significant others they know their earbuds will not work with. Its why I guess its so easy to try these things out and return them. Ill do a final count, but think I have my EIGHTH earbud coming to the house in tomorrows delivery. I order only workout earbuds and wow, Im thrilled that I got it figured out.
Like I said most all earbuds will sit perfect in my right ear but my left ear they always work loose. This was most evident with the Jabra's and why I am down on this whole B.S. reviews sites, not just consumers reviews, but so called review sites.
Jabras are praised in all of them, how great they are at not falling out, coming loose ect. That is B.S. they may mean well, but just look at some consumer reviews. Go down to the 2 or 3 star reviews on Amazon. Jabra touts itself as a "workout earbud" and they are good, sound good, killer app for your phone. But that is where it ends. They are ear canal earbuds, they have no support structure such as wings or over the ear hooks so they do work loose and for me as much as I tried two of their models, all I did was hurt my ear canals cramming them in, my wife also returned hers, was hurting her ears, making them sore. This was the Jabra Eilite 75t and Jabra Active Elite 75t. We had THREE tried of them, all returned.
(gosh I type to much)

Anyway, true workout buds have wing tips or over the ear hooks and this solution will work with anyone and a godsend to people who have buds falling out all the time. I am about to send a pair of JBL Reflect Mini NC back to JBL, not working for me, in the ear canal ear bud, stays in better then the JABRAs for sure, has a great killer app for the phone too, I REALLY LIKED the sound too, amazing how small they are as well.
But I have the same issue I had with the Jabras but not as bad. My right ear stays perfect, over time, working around the house or fast walking the community, left ear starts to tilt up and lift, stays in the ear way better then Jabra but looks silly as it kind of is tilted up.

So far, to my surprise, Bose, as far as I am concerned is one of two of the best of the best, Bose Sport Buds.
So perfected they are just AMAZING, super cushy and comfortable. Even my petite wife with small ears loves the comfort. Best of all for me, they NEVER work loose. Its really genius, they aren't small either. They work by using big ear tips that cover the ear canal instead of go in it, super soft no irritation ever. Since its not in your canal, they dont work loose by chewing or moving your jaw and have super soft wing tips to keep them in place. The sound is great, lets get this part out of the way = the Bose app is horrible. Im shocked at, for Bose of all companies their app is so lame.
SO what I did was I used the App to get up the earbuds all set up the way I wanted AND updated the earbud firmware. Then deleted the app from my iPhone. I can use the iPhone equalizer to control the Bose, they are so good, I just leave it in the "Flat" setting.
So this Bose is #2 on my list of keepers, only a newcomer can possibly knock it off the list. They really sound great, never, ever come loose and super comfortable. I suspect they will stay as my #2 keeper but Thursday will be interesting..
What I am saying is anyone can use the Bose Sport Buds and better then most will have a perfect fit which equals perfect sound compared to a regular earbud. Really amazing and these are most likely one of my two keepers. (keep in mind I still have another being delivered tomorrow (JayBird)

Which brings me to #1 mentioning it last because I can address the H1 chip at the same time. Ok, one thing for sure, as stated I am looking for a total of two earbuds for me personally and actually my wife will be also buying a new one in the coming weeks.
This one is a keeper for sure and has been since the day it arrived. Its no secret in here that I have become an Apple person, I used to hate the company for over 20 years until I started using their products 3 years ago *LOL* I found out, they work well.

Which takes me to the PowerBeats Pro (apple owned), WOW, its an over the ear earbud that works perfect for me, super design, class act, hugs the head, super comfortable, super secure feeling too. Sound is great to amazing, keeping in mind these are Bluetooth devices.
Its a no brainer, killer construction, works flawlessly, brainless set up. Looks like it is custom built for your head shape.
Its my #1 and I am keeping it and OMG I NEVER imagined I would want to use earbuds for phone calls. I mean, to me its about the music but wow, phone calls are amazing on the Powerbeats, I dont need to hold the phone anymore, can walk around and do whatever I want.
People other end dont even know I am using them.
However with that said, remember, the fit? Well, being the Powerbeats is almost custom molded to your head, gosh almost like a work of art the fit will not work for everyone. It will depend on your head but if it does wow, it is great, you will never return them, if it doesn't, no loss, just return them. They dont work for my wife, petite and smaller head I guess, the way its molded makes them to large for her.

Best all around for all heads would be the Bose Sport Buds as long as you dont mind them looking so large. Again, if you don't have any issues with earbuds in your ear canals you can use anything and with that said I would put the JBL Reflect Mini NC at the top of the list if only looking to spend around $100. Gosh I love the sound and the app. Once in a while I would get a little bluetooth stutter or all of a sudden one earbud cut out but always simple to get back, it was rare but was on my mind as a possible issue.

Ok, now the H1 chip in it. I HAVE NO CLUE what all the fuss is about. Ill have to read up on it, I was so focused on fit. All I keep reading is H1, H1, H1, blah, blah, blah. This is where the so called "Professional" review sites show their true colors, many, not all by any means have no idea what they are talking about, al you need is a website and people flock to it like they are an authority, not true.
I see reviews where the Apple product is touted as seamless to learn into your phone and when compared to a non H1 chip they say it takes extra "effort" Do you know what that "extra" effort is? It means you have to open up your bluetooth settings on your phone and tap to install.
Wow, geez, dont get me wrong, its cool that an apple product just pops up on your main screen, but "extra" effort? Ummm .. no as far as I am concerned.
Ok, so what else about this H1 I have to learn, haven't had time but that time is coming now. I do understand the sound should be better though in real life I haven't noticed better. Apple is/has come out with cool audio stuff though, HD and most all earbuds have ACC something Andriod has issues with but not Apple. Plus they came out with this Spacial Audio for their Apple branded earbud, not sure if that includes their Beats branded stuff ... but I haven't read up on it so in the dark, fit was most important right now.
Like I say, #1 on my list and I am keeping is the PowerBeats Pros so that is a positive statement for Apple. There is to me, one big negative to Apple and Beats earbuds. There is no App for their products on Apple devices because its already all integrated with the phone, sounds great right? Yeah, maybe so and I am ok with it but to me its truly stupid that Apple does not have a quality "slide" built in equalizer. I guess they assume the public is too stupid to use one, so you have a set selection of like what must be 20 different preset EQ settings. Like I said, I keep it turned off anyway but is a bit of a turn off for me.

(omg did it take me a long time to write this, no time to proof) *L*
 
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Apple does have an equalizer of sorts, but it only works with Apple Music as far as I can tell. So Amazon prime music doesn’t seem to get equalized.
 
Sorry but what item like that isn’t a cobbling of $25 worth of parts found in some a Chinese catalog?

I think the value added is integration and software. The greatest (In theory) parts might not come together well and get the best solution in the hands of a novice or counterfeiter.
I am an audiophile, have been for over 55 years. I was listening to electrostatic HP in the 70's run by a 10 watt class A power amp. I am comparing the sound to high standard vintage Austrian and German HP. But these are just workaday units used on my PC.
The Company that makes the Samson has major research labs and manufacturing capabilities and is purportedly OEM HP manufacturer for high dollar European brands. The basic HP form is modeled after the Classic AKG 240M monitors of the 70's and 80's though these have more extended bass, are easier to drive with low power amps, and have a more extended treble.

There are only a handful of really great, affordable HP, and yes, some may have come together by accident. But for under 50 bucks, these are VG indeed.
For a better build and less unflagging, more liquid sound for 25 bucks more, the Phillips SHP 9500 are worth a try.

 
Apple does have an equalizer of sorts, but it only works with Apple Music as far as I can tell. So Amazon prime music doesn’t seem to get equalized.
Correct, only works with Apple Music which I have. Love Apple Music but the equalizer is preset categories (jazz, rock, ect) you can't adjust individual frequencies/bands.
Spotify premium which my wife has comes with an equalizer in its app. that is adjustable. This is our next test. I dont know yet but sound quality doesnt seem to be on par with Apple Music. I shouldn't say it yet it was my first impression, but will test that out once this earbud thing is settled.
 
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For a better build and less unflagging, more liquid sound for 25 bucks more, the Phillips SHP 9500 are worth a try.
Personal preference obviously, but to me the SHP9500 severely lack bass. I sent them back and got the X2HR which have a sound signature that is a lot more to my liking, but again, just a personal preference. They were only $110 at the time.

 
Personal preference obviously, but to me the SHP9500 severely lack bass. I sent them back and got the X2HR which have a sound signature that is a lot more to my liking, but again, just a personal preference. They were only $110 at the time.

If I could still hear upper treble, the uneven response in the treble of the X2HR might be more troublesome over time than
some bass rolloff with the 9500. Though I do agree that having "your cake" of a flat bass response in HP is quite an attractive proposition. Especially to someone like me who had gravitated towards mid-sized, stand-mount speakers with no bottom octave.

It is great there are excellent headphone choices in the the sub 100 price range, and the new generation have been digging it.


treble-14-graph-small_x2h.jpg


X2HR (above)

treble-14-graph-small_9500.jpg

SHP-9500 (above)
 
Heading to UPS right now, sending back the Bose Sportbuds, I LOVED THE FIT and construction, but there is an issue with them, it happened when I first got them, thought it was a fluke.
They sounded great first day I got them, then I did a firmware update at the prompting of the Bose app and all of a sudden they became so bass heavy it extended well into the midrange and colored even the treble. Just HORRIBLE, Then after doing some funky messing around, they returned to their normal brilliant self so thought that was the end of it and worked great since the first day ... but yesterday it happened all over again, tried defaulting ect, no good, sending them back.
I MAY order another set, I did like them a lot until this issue came up again, I guess by getting another is the only way I will know which was the correct sound Bose wanted me to hear. But I suspect it was the good sound *LOL*

Also sending back the JBL Reflect Mini NC. I really wanted these to work, GREAT JBL app, loved the sound. Just couldn't get the right fit, left ear kept pushing it up. I would recommend to anyone to give these a try for $100 on sale, they are tiny too. Im not saying they are the greatest, but I am saying for $100 if they fit you right I think you could do far worse. I really would have kept them for a second pair to have around. They worked well, sounded awesome, think for the most part, for the money, they would have been hard to beat.

Of course, so far, the PowerBeats Pro from Apple is a keeper. SUPER Secure and super Comfort, Construction is a thing of beauty too. Sound clean and crisp, bass where you need it. Wish it had an app for Apple products but not really needed I dont do any adjustments in the iPhone equalizer, sound is that good I leave the EQ off. Of course like any Apple product, performance is flawless in everything its supposed to do like connecting to and holding Bluetooth signal ect, ect I guess the H1 chip is a big help here too.
Using these earbuds, you will "see" the value of the words, you get what you pay for and I didnt pay all that much for them on sale.

Oops, didnt even get out of the house to drop off the Bose and JBL at UPS and the JayBird Vista 2 SE arrived from FedEx, so far they look pretty cool. We will see. Firmware is updating, hate this part. *L*
 
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it's funny actually i got these $5.99 tzumi probuds v1 as a giggle and they sound surprisingly good but still not as good compared to real airpods but lasted longer and were strangely a bit more comfortable in my ears than the real deals.

i used an old phone and ran than at about 65% volume on a long yt video. Got to about 5 hours and 7 minutes until the vid paused from them running out of juice. i like how they have little buttons and not dumb touch sensors like the real airpods which annoy me. Can also use either one with the other in the case. I may buy a few more to give away next time i go there but they may be sold out since they were on sale.

They were the recently discontinued v1 and you can get the v2 at Walmart for about $20 which look like the airpods pros and i may buy them just out of curiosity. They cost nothing and the v1's aren't bad at all so the v2 couldn't be worse. Probably not as good as my real airpods either but then again a snippet of the price so who cares.
 
it's funny actually i got these $5.99 tzumi probuds v1 as a giggle and they sound surprisingly good but still not as good compared to real airpods but lasted longer and were strangely a bit more comfortable in my ears than the real deals.

i used an old phone and ran than at about 65% volume on a long yt video. Got to about 5 hours and 7 minutes until the vid paused from them running out of juice. i like how they have little buttons and not dumb touch sensors like the real airpods which annoy me. Can also use either one with the other in the case. I may buy a few more to give away next time i go there but they may be sold out since they were on sale.

They were the recently discontinued v1 and you can get the v2 at Walmart for about $20 which look like the airpods pros and i may buy them just out of curiosity. They cost nothing and the v1's aren't bad at all so the v2 couldn't be worse. Probably not as good as my real airpods either but then again a snippet of the price so who cares.
Yeah, to some degree its almost like oil, sound will be acceptable, sometimes more so then an expensive product. Its about features, quality construction, feel and yes performance too but there are good performing inexpensive units for sure that may not have all the other features.
There are also expensive units that are a complete failure.

Marketing, research, shareholders and profit margins I think the average (pulling numbers out of the air) $150/$180 retail name brand earbud cost about $34 to make (actual production costs) Take some knock off products who can successfully copy or get the same factory to produce something similar and it will be a fairly good product. One just has to google highest rated cheap earbuds, quite a few of them.
Its not for me personally and why I want but I can see the value in it for many people. Like you for fun, yeah, I get tempted to buy one for fun and most likely will someday to compare.
Almost like cars, luxury brands and economy brands that do very well, its the experience.
 
Yeah, to some degree its almost like oil, sound will be acceptable, sometimes more so then an expensive product. Its about features, quality construction, feel and yes performance too but there are good performing inexpensive units for sure that may not have all the other features.
There are also expensive units that are a complete failure.

Marketing, research, shareholders and profit margins I think the average (pulling numbers out of the air) $150/$180 retail name brand earbud cost about $34 to make (actual production costs) Take some knock off products who can successfully copy or get the same factory to produce something similar and it will be a fairly good product. One just has to google highest rated cheap earbuds, quite a few of them.
Its not for me personally and why I want but I can see the value in it for many people. Like you for fun, yeah, I get tempted to buy one for fun and most likely will someday to compare.
Almost like cars, luxury brands and economy brands that do very well, its the experience.
yeah that's true a lot of cheap earbuds just steal the r&d and you also have to take into consideration the production costs tooling and methodology. Apple and Samsung had to take the blunt of the force when paying for the companies that make them to tool and design the machines but once that's been done it can be done cheaper for the after brands to reduce costs. Same as the US designing new advanced medicine and medical equipment then denmark basically takes them and makes a cheaper generic and claim superiority when it was us who took the hardest financial punch.

I have a pair of near $200 AKG n400's and wow they suck azz for what they cost even the real airpods are a better value considering theyre like $120 in store at walmart. the AKG's are quiet and are very flat and have almost no bass no matter what custom EQ i put on them, The noise canceling on them sucks compared to a pair of pros I've used.
 
Update - As previously posted I received the Jaybird Vista 2 SE. (yesterday 10/14/21) Jaybird Vista 2 is the same unit except comes in Black and a light gray. The SE comes in a dark gray.
I bought the Jaybird Vista 2 SE on sale in Sams Club. I hear (not confirmed) the SE was made for Sams Club. Meaning a slight difference in colors and the SE makes it so it can't be price compared with other retailers like Best Buy and Target.

The Vista 2 is $169 on sale at the retailers and Sams Club has the Vista 2 SE on sale for $149 with list price of $199 which Best Buy and Amazon had just last week I think.

Ok, now that is out of the way, Jaybird wasnt even on my radar. I know nothing about the company but am a quick learner. Seems it is well known in the jogging/fitness world. Anyway, unboxed it yesterday, this is a brand new 2021 model, still a bug here and there, most addressed already with firmware updates.
Here are my first impressions.
First Jaybird in its marketing touts that it meets certain military specifications for toughness plus a water resistance rating of IP68 which is amazing.
(Keep in mind when I compare now. I am comparing with roughly SIX different sets of earbuds I have already returned for various reasons AND my one keeper which is an Apple Powerbeats Pro) Also keep in mind I am only testing "Sport Buds" made to stay in your ear during work outs or simply working around the house.

Ok, out of the box, wow, they look big online but really not that big, much smaller then the Bose Sport Buds which really stick out of your ears.
1. I love the fit of the Jaybirds, amazingly perfect for my ears and I mean perfect, rock solid staying power. Excellent well made ear tips and wings, one piece units made it easy to change out (5 stars)

2. Out of the box experience, very good, everything went as planned as well as a relatively long firmware update as soon as I installed it on my phone. (5 stars)

3. Construction quality (4 stars) I love the construction and the stealthy dark gray color which is surprising because I normally choose in your face colors, this is a nice change and my only choice anyway. Im not a fan of the "fabric" cloth covering at the ends, it looks great but wonder how long it will last. I guess it only needs to last as long as the batteries. It does look different and "classy"

4. Operation (3.5 stars) under the fabric of the ends is a button that you push to select different functions, such as pause/repeat/volume ect. They work perfect but they are under the fabric and you will learn quickly exactly where to push. I am a little surprised how much force you need to push with, its definitely more then the other earbuds I tested that had a button instead of touch. I do prefer buttons though and it is more accurate then the Bose touch that adjusts volume in rather large increments. The Jaybird is much finer volume adjustments.

5. The phone App !!! WOW~!~ (5 Stars)
FANTASTIC! Best of them all, well done, bug free, killer Equalizer features like no other. People who like to tinker with the sound will love this.I typically do not, I leave things in the "Flat" "Off" setting because a quality unit should not need it. (more on that in #6) Plus these SPORT Earbuds have Noise Cancellation, and Hear Through. Hear through works best I ever heard, noise cancellation I will test out when I cut the lawn today but I want to be honest here, these are sport buds, I dont care about noise cancellation and I always leave it off if its available, only time I would use it, is cutting the lawn. Most Sport Buds do not have NC as you have to be aware of your surroundings. It will be a nice feature at this price point if it works good, most NC units in this price point in a Sport Bud barely do anything and that is ok, I could care less but will be fun, since its "there" on the rare occasions I would use it would be fun but otherwise leave off, when turned on it does use battery power in any unit at any price.

6. Sound (3 stars after equalizer 4 Stars)
Sound is subjective, even as we age, we hear some frequencies better then others, so it is REALLY an individual thing with an earbud pumping music right into your ear canal. KEEP IN MIND I HAVE ONLY PLAYED THESE THINGS A FEW HOURS.
Ok, Sound out of the box wasnt really to my liking but many will like it, it was colorful, it was crisp, it was good, just because I gave it 3 stars doesnt mean bad but it sounded "sterile" to me. Too clean, too crisp, clean deep bass, super crisp highs kind of over shadowed the upper bass to the midrange. SO this is where the EXCELLENT equalizer came into play. I think I got it to where I want it. Keep in mind, my reference is my Powerbeats Pro that I am comparing with which is also a bit bright and crisp with detailed bass. My favorite sound was from the Bose Sport Buds but that didnt work out as previously stated.
Anyway, the sound is great, a little downward adjust to the REAL low end, a small bump in the lower to middle midrange and lower high with a downward adjust at the very highest. I think I got it to where I want but need days to check it out.

7. Bluetooth performance (3 stars)
Nothing I can do about this, it has Bluetooth 5.0 which is all the others I tested at 5.0 to 5.1 but this bluetooth is about 25% less powerful then the Powerbeats Pros, Bose, Jabra. Its not as bad as it sounds yet, I need to test it out more. 5.0 should get about 30 feet open air outdoors but the Jaybird doesnt get that, more like 22 feet which is acceptable. But I also had a few instances of sound flutter while walking my dog last night with my phone in my back pocket. I will need to test this out more, if it was too often it will be a return.

With that said, this MAY be typical as the JBL and Beats Studio Buds did this too and I think I know why. Your body (water) absorbs radio waves/blutooth. Both the JBL and the Jaybirds look very good in your ear, compact, clean look, however being mostly in your ear they are surrounded by tissue that helps kill the signal, same way bluetooth wont work under water. SO this will be something to see if I can play around with it, it wasnt severe at all just some stuttering once in a while.

Wow... another long post.
 
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Sound is subjective, even as we age, we hear some frequencies better then others, so it is REALLY an individual thing with an earbud pumping music right into your ear canal.
Yup, and for that reason I'm a big fan of TWS with apps that allow you to adjust the EQ to your preference. This allows the product to appeal to a much larger audience.

Kind of gimmicky, but the Soundcore app has an option to give you a hearing test, and based on the results, it will then suggest an appropriate EQ curve. Still, I prefer a certain sound signature, so I set my own EQ.

The great thing is that there are so many good TWS options out there these days. The bad thing is that you have to test them in your own ears to decide what works for you, so you'll be potentially doing lots of trials and returns, but oh well.
 
Speaking of getting a good fit, has anyone used aftermarket foam (memory foam?) replacement tips? The kind that replace the soft silicone ones that usually come with buds, that is. I'd *think* those could give a better, more secure fit (I'm one of those with one easy to fit ear and one that never seems right).
 
Yup, and for that reason I'm a big fan of TWS with apps that allow you to adjust the EQ to your preference. This allows the product to appeal to a much larger audience.

Kind of gimmicky, but the Soundcore app has an option to give you a hearing test, and based on the results, it will then suggest an appropriate EQ curve. Still, I prefer a certain sound signature, so I set my own EQ.

The great thing is that there are so many good TWS options out there these days. The bad thing is that you have to test them in your own ears to decide what works for you, so you'll be potentially doing lots of trials and returns, but oh well.
Yes, Jabra has the hearing test too, I liked the idea of it.
I don’t know OR just nit thinking right niw but what do you mean by TWS?

BTW- I was impressed by the noise cancellation when cutting the lawn just now. It cut down noise significantly, much better then the JBLs I just tried.
Anyway not bad considering the price, perfect by no means but these Jaybirds already have good passive NC and turning on the electronic NC was very noticeable.
I’m kind of liking them and of course the main reason is they are staying in my ear securely

I have to make a decision if I want to try another pair of Bose Sportbuds, save ends tonight, will see but these Jaybirds might be the perfect second pair of buds
 
I don’t know OR just nit thinking right niw but what do you mean by TWS?
TWS stands for Truly Wireless Stereo. Just means separate BT connection to each earphone (left and right) so that there is no need for a physical cable between left and right earphone.

Basically all the ones we are talking about here. :)
 
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