Master & Dynamics MW08 Review: Premium on all fronts

The Primary & Dynamics MW08s are the most expensive truly wireless earbuds I've e'er used, and unsurprisingly, they're probably the best.

These buds characteristic satisfying sound quality, vivid battery life and a premium retro-futuristic design that'south grown on me over the last ii weeks. While they likely won't take the crown for my number one recommended earbuds since they price roughly $375 in Canada, they're yet the best earbuds I've used and are better than the Beats Studio Buds, Senhessier CX 400s and more.

The active racket-cancellation is surprisingly robust for a gear up of wireless earbuds, and if you care about blocking out a lot of outside sounds and don't similar over-ear headphones, these might be your best bet.

Premium, please

From the packaging down to the actual earbuds themselves, the MW08s scream premium at every turn. Each bud is capped in a ceramic end piece that comes in iv colours and six combinations with unlike metal-clad charging cases.

I opted for the flashy 'Blue Ceramic' with 'Polished Graphite Case,' simply other options, notably the 'Brown Ceramic/Stainless Steel Case,' too await incredibly precipitous.

The stainless steel charging case weighs a lot more than than competing plastic cases, but that heft helps information technology experience more substantial and high-quality. Even though it opens from the top, the instance feels like a metal Cypher lighter when you concur it sideways. Its premium stainless steel build makes up for the weight and size of the case, too. With that in listen, it's not huge, though if the MW08s example were a little slimmer, that would accept been welcome.

On the right side of the case, there'southward a single USB-C port for charging, and on the forepart, there are three lights that represent the battery life of the earbuds and the case. Light-green lights hateful the Buds are by and large charged, yellowish indicates medium and red is depression. Master & Dynamics says that the MW08s and the case can both charge to fifty pct in 15 minutes. The earbuds can accuse to 100 percent in 45 minutes, and the case takes an hr.

Each earbud runs for about 12 hours, an incredible amount of time for a small set up of earbuds, and the case offers another thirty hours for a total of 42 hours of listening fourth dimension. This is a staggering corporeality of battery in a world where near wireless earbuds last for five-8 hours with two extra charges in the case. If you actually want wireless earbuds and intermittent charging is an consequence for you, the MW08s are a solid option.

"The M&D MW08s could stand to improve their bass reproduction."

The pattern of the earbud itself is nice likewise, with the bud sitting comfortably in my ears for hours. Equally a nice touch, the visitor includes five different silicone ear tips.

While they are slightly heavier than the 5g Beats Studio Buds, the 9g MW08s are equally as comfortable and feel solid enough in my ear that I could run or do light activities without being worried that they'll autumn out. I should too mention that the Buds are IPX5 h2o-resistant, and so they should be fine to utilize in the rain and while working out.

A solid sound profile

What surprised me the almost about the Master & Dynamics MW08s is that they sound fantastic, especially for a pair of wireless earbuds. There's decent depth in the sound space, and while the bass can be a scrap overpowering at times, the overall profile is full-bodied, well-baked and clear.

They also feature 11mm drivers, the aforementioned size that OnePlus is targeting for the high-end earbuds it plans to release later on this autumn. Every bit I alluded to before, the K&D MW08s could stand up to improve their bass reproduction. Information technology's not overpowering, but it does overcrowd the mids slightly. For day-to-twenty-four hours listening, they still sound fantastic, but at this price, I'd like more dialed-in sound, or at least an option to adjust the EQ in the companion app.

For the near part, the wide sound space and decent noise-cancelling implementation help the experience feel pleasing to the ear. There's an intense sound profile that really makes the earbuds feel as if they're filling up a space with sound, instead of merely pumping it into your ears.

Compared to the cheaper wireless earbuds I oft review, the MW08s have slightly better audio quality. That said, the departure is subtle, and I'thousand not sure the upgrade is worth paying the premium for unless you're a picky audiophile that is however fine with listening to music over Bluetooth.

The noise-cancelling comes in two flavours, including 'All Twenty-four hour period ANC' and ' Max ANC.' I used the all-twenty-four hours choice primarily since I establish it blocked out nigh major sounds while however offer a hint at background noise. If I was working in an office infinite, maybe I would have used the maximum option more, but in my tranquillity home office, All Day ANC was fine. Both worked surprisingly well for ANC earbuds and fifty-fifty blocked out more sound than I was comfy with in some cases.

In terms of codecs, the earbuds support aptX, ACC and SBC. This is a small number of audio codecs, but these are the major codecs supported by iOS and Android.