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Final UX3000 Review Rating
generalize
The Final UX3000 is an excellent pair of budget Bluetooth ANC headphones. The sound quality is excellent, the bass is slightly prominent, and the ANC performance is compatible with other premium ANC headphones in the same price range.
advantage
- great sound
- ANC performance comparable to other excellent sub-£150 headphones
- attractive pricing
shortcoming
- Plastic Manufacturing Quality
- It’s uncomfortable to wear big ears for a long time
This Ultimate UX3000 Launched a few days ago and I’ve been using them for the past week. This is the first production Bluetooth ANC headset, and it’s also very affordable.
However, the market is becoming more and more saturated with Bluetooth ANC headphones, so can Final do enough to stand out?
Compare
After getting them for free with mine pixel 6, I now use Bose 700 headphones as my ANC benchmark. These have a suggested retail price of £349.95 and are currently £290 on Amazon, but can usually be bought for around £200. They’re classed as one of the best options on the market, with the Sony WH-1000XM4 being the main pick.
I also target Anker Soundcore Life Q35.
Specification
- Driver: Dynamic
- Frequency Response: 20 Hz – 20 KHz
- Finish: Premium SHIBO Coating – Black
- Controls: Button/Volume, Play/Pause, ANC, Power
- Bluetooth version: 5.0
- Codec Support: AAC, SBC, aptX, aptX LL codec support
- Microphone: Built-in, omnidirectional
- Music Play Time: 25 hours with ANC ON / 35 hours with ANC OFF
- Charging time: 2.5 hours
Design and Fit
I’d say the overall design and fit are the worst parts of the final UX3000. Not so much that they’re bad, they’re a little cheap to pack and a little malleable to the overall build.
As for the fit, they are not bad, but I have huge ears. They didn’t sit on them, but I did notice that my ears were quicker and sore than other headphones, which have roomier ear cups.
Those minor complaints aside, they’re a well-designed pair of black earphones with a sensible button layout, USB-C charging, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
sound quality
It’s no surprise that a pair of Final headphones sounds good.
I wouldn’t say these are neutral, but they have a lot less bass emphasis than many ANC headphones I’ve used.
Again, the highs seem to roll off before they get too bright.
This overall sound profile works well for me, I’m not too keen on neutrals, but I don’t want the bass to drown out everything, and I found that the highs quickly became harsh after wearing the headphones for short periods of time.
The mids can be a little sag, but I didn’t have many problems.
Out of the box, the sound quality is better than the Soundcore Life Q35, which is a little too bassy by default. It’s hard to make an accurate comparison with my Bose 700 headphones, and I’d say the Bose sounded a little better, with the mids seeming to have better separation and clarity, especially the low end. I wouldn’t say the Bose headphones sound 2 to 3 times better than the price suggests.
Active Noise Cancellation
My standard test is to crank up the volume on my computer and listen to the noise in the cabin. The final UX3000 did a great job, they cut out most of the annoying low-end, leaving some high-end hiss.
I would say the Soundcore Life Q35 is a little better, and the Bose 700 is a little better. This level of performance has become quite common recently. Many ANC headphones these days offer good levels of noise cancellation, but not the flagship levels you get from Sony/Bose.
By contrast, the Bose 700 eliminated nearly all of the high-end hiss, but they left a slight bass that I suspect I felt more than I heard. While I didn’t notice this bass on the Final UX3000 or the Soundcore, I think it’s just because the high end overwhelms it.
For more complex noises, such as speech, the volume drops significantly, but you can still tell that someone is speaking. I can also hear myself typing on the mechanical keyboard, but subjectively I’d say about 70% less clicks.
Considering these only cost £120, the performance is very good, and I can happily use them in real life airplanes or other noisy environments.
Battery
25 hours of playback with Active Noise Cancellation on and 35 hours off, with extremely long battery life. I didn’t time them, but it took me a few days to bother charging them. The official rating is higher than the Bose 700 and only slightly lower than the Sony WH-1000XM4.
Price and Alternatives
Final has some very expensive products, but these are only £120, which is cheap for Final as well as ANC headphones.
The final UX3000 is Available on Amazon and Hi-Fi Headphones
The Soundcore Life Q35 is £130, but it’s as low as £90. ANC could be a little better, but they’re bass-heavy, and if you want something more natural, you’ll probably have to spend a lot of time tweaking the EQ.
At £200-£300, the Bose 700 is significantly better with ANC.I wouldn’t say the sound quality is noticeably better, they have different sound profiles, but I’m having a hard time finding
In other recent ANC headphone reviews, the Cleer Enduro ANC sounded great, but the ANC wasn’t amazing. The Cleer Flow IIs sound great and have great ANC too, but they’re a bit more expensive at £200.
comprehensive
For £120, this is an excellent pair of ANC headphones. Active noise cancellation matches many other premium ANC headphones in the £100-£200 price range, and overall sound quality is excellent.
The small problem is that they feel a little malleable, and they’re not as comfortable as other earphones, but I have big ears.
Last updated on February 19, 2022 / Affiliate Links / Image from Amazon Product Advertising API
