Technics EAH-AZ100 review: true hi-fi wireless earbuds

Osaka, Japan-based Technics is an enigma throughout the audio world. On the one hand, its turntables take pleasure in legendary standing, significantly among the many DJ, membership, and EDM crowds. A lot so, that when Technics’ guardian, Panasonic, put the model on hiatus in 2010, the vinyl neighborhood pushed hardest to deliver it again from the grave (in 2014, they bought their want).

However, Technics stays comparatively unknown to most consumers — particularly these too younger to recollect the corporate’s heyday within the late Seventies and ’80s, when a turntable was simply one of many many Technics parts a music lover would personal.

I feel, nevertheless, that may be about to alter. It’s been a decade since Technics’ rebirth, and it has used that point to steadily develop (and refine) its product lineup. Turntables rightfully stay the celebrities of the present, however they’re now joined by high-end floor-standing audio system, CD gamers, amps, and a slick new set of wi-fi bookshelf audio system. Nevertheless it’s the corporate’s wi-fi earbuds which might be more likely to be the best way most individuals have their first Technics expertise. If that have is curated by the brand new EAH-AZ100, chances are you’ll surprise why Technics isn’t on everybody’s quick checklist of high audio firms.

The EAH-AZ100, which I’ll merely name the AZ100 from right here, are the fourth main technology of wi-fi earbuds from Technics. They observe on the heels of the wonderful EAH-AZ80, which provided higher consolation, ANC, and sound high quality than their predecessors.

With the AZ100, Technics has doubled down on all the AZ80’s strengths and launched a slew of latest upgrades like spatial audio, LE Audio with Auracast assist, caller-side noise suppression, and an modern new driver design. Right here’s a fast take a look at the highlights:

Technics EAH-AZ100 specs

Design and luxury

Excessive-end wi-fi earbuds that use a stemless design are sometimes huge and sort of cumbersome, particularly when in comparison with their stem-sporting cousins (like Apple’s AirPods). Sony’s WF-1000XM4 had been gigantic, and the EAH-AZ80 weren’t precisely svelte.

By eliminating the AZ80’s exterior calling mic and repositioning one of many inner mics, Technics was capable of make the AZ100 10% smaller. Their lowered measurement additionally interprets right into a smaller and lighter charging case. Technics has saved the aluminum lid with its elegant brushed-metal end, and you continue to get wi-fi/USB-C charging — however it’s now a bit extra pocketable and compares intently to the Sony WF-1000XM5.

Technics says the brand new smaller measurement and form ought to make them much more comfy than the AZ80, and I belief that their person knowledge backs this up. Sadly, this wasn’t the case for me.

Whereas the earbuds themselves are smaller general, the portion that sits in your concha (the cavity that results in your ear canal) is a bit greater. To be clear, the AZ100 are very cozy — I had no downside carrying them for 3 hours with out pause. I may not have seen a distinction if I hadn’t swapped forwards and backwards between the AZ100 and AZ80. However I did and the AZ80 are a greater match for my ears.

Not like the AZ80, which shipped with seven sizes of eartips, the AZ100 solely has 5. In keeping with the model, the smaller form of the earbud reduces the necessity for further sizes. In sensible phrases, I doubt this may make a lot of a distinction for most people, however in case you’ve had bother with sizes up to now, it’s one thing to remember, significantly in case you’re a contented AZ80 proprietor contemplating an improve. And since Technics has modified the design of the eartips (it says the brand new ones are higher at stopping sound leaks), you gained’t be capable to use your previous ones on the AZ100.

The AZ100 preserve the IPX4 score from their predecessors, which needs to be loads of safety from sweat and rain so long as you clear and dry them earlier than placing them again within the case (which doesn’t have any water or mud safety).

Bluetooth, codecs, and Multipoint

Getting the AZ100 related is a breeze on Android units because of Google Quick Pair assist (which additionally enables you to find lacking earbuds utilizing Google’s Discover My service). Apple units merely require the additional step of opening the Bluetooth gadget checklist to search for the earbuds.

As with their predecessors, the AZ100 provide the choice to make use of Sony’s LDAC codec with appropriate Android telephones, which might present noticeably higher sound high quality when paired with a lossless supply of music. I’m additionally actually comfortable to see that Technics is providing Bluetooth LE Audio on these earbuds, together with assist for Auracast.

That is nice information for Android house owners — the AZ100 will leverage Android 15’s built-in Auracast administration — however iPhone house owners are disregarded. With no native assist for Auracast in iOS and no assist within the Technics Audio Join app, you gained’t be capable to eavesdrop on Auracast broadcasts. I attempted it out utilizing a Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely (one of many first smartphones with OS-level Auracast assist) and it labored completely.

Technics stays the one firm that enables as much as three related units at a time when utilizing Bluetooth Multipoint — a powerful accomplishment. For the AZ100, it has improved the characteristic additional, letting you management how Multipoint behaves.

With most Multipoint connections, it’s worthwhile to halt playback on gadget A earlier than you may start playback on gadget B. With the Audio Join app, you may preserve that default conduct, or units can interrupt one another when you hit play on the non-playing gadget. With interruptions allowed, the swap of audio supply is prompt. You possibly can set the identical preferences for incoming calls.

Controls, lively noise cancellation, and transparency

The contact controls are responsive and straightforward to make use of — all the outer floor is tappable, making it arduous to mess up. They’re additionally absolutely customizable throughout the Audio Join app. With 4 gestures (single-tap, double-tap, triple-tap, plus tap-and-hold) per earbud, you may management virtually any setting — aside from turning spatial audio on/off or switching EQ presets. You possibly can entry your telephone’s assistant, however this time round, there’s no elective Amazon Alexa integration as on the AZ80. I requested why and Technics informed me that simply 0.04% of all AZ80 house owners used it each day.

The AZ80’s lively noise cancellation wowed me, and the AZ100 ship a small, however noticeable enchancment, particularly within the greater frequencies. On a latest flight, I in contrast them to the AirPods Professional 2 and the Bose QuietComfort Extremely Earbuds (QCUE). Whereas each the Bose and Apple buds carried out barely higher than the AZ100, I wouldn’t hesitate to suggest all three for flights. Maybe extra importantly for each day use, I couldn’t detect any distinction between these fashions in different conditions like working from house, strolling alongside busy streets, or understanding on the health club.

Transparency mode is superb, rivaling each the AirPods Professional and QCUE when it comes to letting you hear the world clearly. It’s much less efficient at passing via your voice, however that’s common — Bose and Apple are alone on the high of that functionality.

Technics presents two variations of transparency: common and “consideration.” Consideration mode behaves just a little in a different way. When it’s in use, your music routinely pauses, however it additionally sounds completely different. Whereas common transparency lets within the exterior world, consideration mode tries to boost voices. This may be useful in busy/noisy environments, however at different occasions, it appears like persons are chatting with you thru a cardboard tube.

I’d want if the music auto-pause had been a selection on each modes since that’s a really handy choice. Curiously, Technics stated it thought-about including an computerized consideration mode that may set off when it detected speech, however in the end rejected it as a result of its analysis confirmed that folks don’t like this characteristic, which does tend to activate when it hears some non-speech sounds.

Sound high quality

Technics says that conventional dynamic drivers in wi-fi earbuds can undergo from distortion because of the voice coil’s small lateral “tumbling” actions because it responds to electromagnetic impulses. Usually, a thicker and wider diaphragm assist construction is used to assist reduce this undesirable motion, however this may result in muddier bass efficiency, and it doesn’t eradicate distortion.

For the EAH-AZ100, Technics has tailored its magnetic fluid driver know-how, which surrounds the voice coil with an oil ring loaded with magnetic particles. Doing so makes any lateral motion troublesome, if not unimaginable. With that sort of management exerted on the voice coil, the diaphragm assist may be made thinner and extra versatile, which supplies the diaphragm better up/down (pistonic) freedom — and in the end creates extra correct and distortion-free sound.

That’s the idea. What issues is the truth, and I’ve to say, I feel the AZ100 sound stellar. Listening to them facet by facet with my favourite fashions — e.g. the Sony WF-1000XM5, Grasp & Dynamic MW09, Bose QCUE, Sennheiser Momentum True Wi-fi 4, and the AZ80 — revealed simply how a lot progress Technics has made.

Needless to say we’re speaking about refinements to what was already glorious sound high quality. I doubt you’ll discover a lot distinction in case you’re centered on getting via reps on the health club or battling a each day commute. However in case you discover a quiet spot the place you may sit again and fireplace up your favourite tracks (ideally from a lossless supply like Amazon Music, Tidal, or Qobuz), I feel you’ll hear a sound signature that’s each open and pure whereas additionally providing excellent readability, precision, and punchy bass.

I can’t consider a greater set of wi-fi earbuds for essential listening.

In Direct mode (no EQ utilized), I couldn’t detect a lot in the best way of enhance. All 5 EQ presets (dynamic, treble+, vocal, bass+, and tremendous bass+) present noticeable frequency kicks, with out going overboard. Tremendous bass+ will fulfill even the most important of bass heads, whereas dynamic does job of boosting general power — on this mode, the AZ100 begin to sound loads just like the WF-1000XM5.

I’m not wild concerning the vocal preset’s midrange steadiness (it doesn’t sound pure to me), however even when none of those presets do it for you, it can save you as much as three of your personal variations utilizing the 8-band equalizer.

I ended up spending most of my time in Direct mode, and couldn’t have been happier with the outcomes.

Spatial audio

All stereo headphones and earbuds allow you to hear spatial audio when it’s processed by a streaming app, e.g. Dolby Atmos Music tracks from Apple Music, Tidal, or Amazon Music.  However when spatial audio processing is added to your headphones/earbuds, they will do two extra issues: make common stereo tracks sound extra immersive, and (if they’ve onboard sensors) allow head monitoring, which controls whether or not the sound strikes with you or stays mounted in area as you flip your head.

There’s usually an audible worth to be paid for artificially increasing the soundstage: vocals develop into skinny and distant, and there’s an general lack of constancy. I usually breathe a sigh of aid when turning spatial audio off, and by no means flip it again on once more.

And but, Technics has created a spatial audio impact that I don’t hate. Utilizing it on stereo tracks doesn’t sound pretty much as good as listening to native Dolby Atmos or Sony 360 Actuality Audio variations, however it completely delivers an considerable improve in width and depth. This impact is extra pronounced when stereo tracks have already got sturdy left/proper placement of sounds. On Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean, the rhythmic shh-shh feels prefer it’s coming from simply behind your shoulders, and his echoed response, “Don’t assume twice,” drifts in from a number of toes away.

Technics says its spatial audio is optimized for Dolby Atmos — that means, it’s speculated to make Atmos sources sound much more immersive. Jabra made the identical declare for its spatial audio implementation on its now-discontinued Elite 10 earbuds. The issue with this declare is that Dolby Atmos is combined within the studio to sound finest when rendered into two channels by streaming apps (or when performed on discrete 7.1.4 house theater techniques). Any further processing alters that blend. You could like what that further processing does (I’m not an enormous fan), however it’s not what the creators heard once they created these tracks.

I’ll say this: The pinnacle monitoring is seamless. Regardless of how briskly I moved my head backward and forward, the phantasm of getting a sound supply immediately in entrance of me was completely preserved.

Name high quality and battery life

Producers are more and more seeking to AI to assist them enhance noise suppression, significantly on telephone calls. Usually, that is centered on the wi-fi earbuds’ facet of the decision, however with its Voice Focus AI characteristic, Technics has utilized the know-how to the opposite finish too. Contained in the app, you allow/disable noise suppression on either side independently.

On the floor, that is actually cool. Switching it on whereas I used to be in a loud atmosphere immediately minimize all sounds however my voice, and rather more successfully than on the AZ80.  It was much less noticeable on my caller’s facet, however that would merely be as a result of their earbuds/telephone combo was already doing job at noise suppression.

The issue, in case you can name it that, is the balancing act. With out noise suppression, my voice sounded very clear, however so did all the background noise. With noise suppression, my voice turned muffled. The louder the background noise, the extra muffled it could get.

A very clever AI system would know when to interact and when to change itself off.

Not that I’m dissing the outcomes — the AZ100 are nice for calls — I simply want I didn’t have to consider noise suppression settings in any respect.

Battery life is one other spotlight. The AZ80 had been already very succesful, with a claimed 4.5 to 7 hours of playtime relying on which options you turned on, with a most of 24 hours if you included the case’s capability. The AZ100 bump this up loads, with a spread of seven to 12 hours on the earbuds and as much as 29 hours with the case.

These numbers simply trump the AirPods Professional 2 (5.5/24 hours) and put the AZ100 virtually on par with Sony’s glorious WF-1000XM5 (12/36 hours).

With top-notch sound, excellent noise cancellation, a really comfy match, and a wealth of different significant enhancements, the Technics EAH-AZ100 are a strong improve over the AZ80. Should you’re an audiophile searching on your subsequent wi-fi earbuds (and you’ve got room in your finances for his or her $300 worth), they need to be in your quick checklist.

Not that I need to make that call more durable, however there’s one thing else it is best to know: With the introduction of the EAH-AZ100, Technics has determined to maintain the AZ80 within the lineup with a brand new worth: $200. Whichever means you go, you actually can’t lose.

Editor’s be aware: Technics offered journey and lodging in Kyoto, Japan, for the creator to attend the official announcement of the EAH-AZ100. Technics didn’t obtain copy approval and didn’t affect the protection.