review – In late 2020, I reviewed Edifier Edifier TWS NB2 Wireless Earbuds. I said at the time they looked as good as they sounded. Well, it’s 2022 and Edifier has unveiled the NeoBuds Pro true wireless stereo earbuds. The Edifier has wisely inherited the handsome look of the TWS buds while upgrading pretty much everything else. The result is a very good and affordable pair of wireless earbuds – unfortunately – an annoying feature.
What is it?
The Edifier NeoBuds Pro earbuds are the latest in Edifier’s line of true wireless earbuds. They feature integration with the Edifier Connect app, certified Hi-Res Audio, Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), LHDC and LDAC audio decoding, and speaker mixing (explained later in this review).
They come in a hard plastic case and can recharge the buds 3 times before needing 24 hours of charging. The buds snap securely into the case magnetically. Includes a nylon pouch and six sizes of anti-bacterial ear tips. Available in two colors: black or white.
Glasses
- Bluetooth: 5.0
- Audio codec: LDAC, LHDC, AAC, SBC
- Driver: Balanced armature driver + dynamic driver
- Playtime: ANC on – 5 hours (headphones) + 15 hours (charging case); ANC off – 6 hours (headphones) + 18 hours (charging case)
- Charging time: 1 hour
- Frequency Response: 20Hz-40kHz
- USB-C
in the box
- earplugs
- charging case
- 7 pairs of earplugs
- storage bag
- Charging Cable
- User Manual
Design and Features
When deciding which earbuds to buy, there are usually three categories: price, audio features, and convenience. Pick any two – if you want price and convenience, the audio will suffer. Choose audio and convenience, and the price will be high. you understood. Edifier’s NeoBuds Pro headphones may break that rule. At least they’ve stretched it out a bit.
Let’s start with the box. Like the TWS earphones, the NeoBuds Pro look elegant when unboxing. The case is housed in a removable piece of foam. Inside, the earbuds are held tightly in place by strong magnets. They don’t accidentally fall out. Beneath the foam is a box containing a nylon pouch and six additional, color-coded pairs of ear tips. The tips are said to be sterile and 99.8% hygienic over the life of the tip. I don’t know how to rate this, but at least Edifier is trying to keep the buds cleaner.
The nylon bag feels great in the hand and is lined with scratch-free microfiber. If it’s a bit big, I’ll use it to carry my reading glasses.
Then there are the buds. The comfort is the best I have ever tried. I can easily wear these all day, or until the battery needs to be recharged. If you can’t find earbuds that fit the vast selection the Edifier has to offer, you have an ear problem.
Setting up the NeoBuds Pro earbuds is simple. My iPhone saw them immediately. Once paired, they reconnected instantly every time I opened the case and pulled them out – no extra steps required. That is convenient.
The hard plastic case uses USB-C for fast charging (cable included). Its magnetic lid snaps on and stays closed until opened. When the case is opened, the red horizontal LED lights up and flashes in different ways depending on its function.
As I said, the NeoBuds Pro earbuds have a hybrid speaker setup. Earbuds/headphones have dynamic or armature speakers. A dynamic speaker looks like a tiny speaker — we’ve all seen it. Armature speakers come from the hearing aid industry and don’t look like loudspeakers. Dynamic speakers are (usually) more bass friendly and less expensive to produce. The armature is (again, usually) tuned to a higher frequency and is considered a more accurate sound, but at the cost of a warmer, more listener-friendly sound. NeoBuds Pros use both or a hybrid setup. With a hybrid, you theoretically get the advantages of each.
This speaker method works with NeoBuds Pros. They sound noticeably fuller than the TWS buds I’ve reviewed before, while maintaining sparkle in higher frequencies when needed. This is especially useful for the latest digital recordings used in electronic music. Orchestral Play in the Dark (OMD) albums (later albums) are always bright with the bottom end of “Straight to the Gut”. NeoBuds Pros deliver the required oomph without overwhelming the mids and highs. A perfect example is the song “Isotype” from the “Punishment of Luxury” album.
Along with hybrid speakers, NeoBuds Pros use ANC to great effect. Edifier claims that ANC can block up to 42dB of noise when activated. I couldn’t measure it myself, but with activation, all background noise dropped to almost zero. It was almost dead silence. There’s also an ambient setting that uses the built-in microphone to allow for background noise. This is useful when you want to be aware of your surroundings or have a conversation while wearing NeoBud Pros. Note that ambient settings can be adjusted in the Connect app, depending on how much background noise you want to allow.
The NeoBuds Pro earbuds are certified Hi-Res Audio with a Gold Certified Seal. They also support LDAC and LHDC – Audio Bluetooth Improvements for Wireless Hi-Res Audio –if You use android as your smartphone. Apple iPhone users do not need to apply (wake up, Apple!).
Like the TWS earphones we’ve reviewed before, the NeoBuds Pros sounded better with ANC on than with the Ambient setting — which sounds a little mechanical. However, while not as bad as it used to be, it’s still noticeable.
When testing the phone, I always ask people how my voice is. I always compare the earphones to my Apple AirPods Pro earphones. Apple is the best when it comes to call quality – period. The Edifier NeoBuds Pros sound good on calls, but not as good as Apple’s — which isn’t surprising. During calls, I can’t hear myself with the NeoBuds Pros, so my voice is louder than I would otherwise.
The Edifier Connect app gives you many settings to fine-tune your NeoBuds Pro earbuds. It has two choices of preset built-in equalizers – “Dynamic” or “Classic” – as well as customizable options with on-screen sliders. Ignore presets – they make audio worse. I played with the sliders and found a setting I liked, so I saved it. You can also turn off all EQ if you wish.
Inside the EQ, there are settings such as gain Q factor and frequency. I won’t discuss them here, but the app does a good job of explaining what these settings do. There’s also a low-latency game mode on/off button. I don’t play games, but if I did I would appreciate the setup.
The app contains a lot of information: manual, Bluetooth re-pairing, factory settings, and even tap sensitivity. Yes, about the tapping…
Tapping is where the NeoBuds Pro earbuds fall short. I always complain that some earbuds are so sensitive that adjusting them triggers various settings. Except the ramblers go in the opposite direction. I set the buds to switch from ANC to ambient, double tap to either bud and triple tap to pause/play (I like to keep it simple). I have two problems: It’s harder to tap than any other earbuds I’ve tested. A lot of times, I’ll click and nothing happens, so I need to click harder. It’s a pain. Yes, you can set the tap sensitivity to low, medium or high, but it didn’t help in my case.
Also, why is there no click mode?Not only does the rambler not include a click setting, but I can’t either choose It’s just a tap away. It’s not available at all!
what do I like
- comfortable
- price
- audio quality
- ANC
- useful application
what would i change
- Allow click functionality
- Tapping pressure
- EQ presets are useless
final thoughts
With the Edifier NeoBuds Pro true wireless stereo earbuds, Edifier has done a great job of upgrading earbuds that already sound great and offer top-notch comfort. (please fix click omit). Edifier keeps the good parts and improves the rest. and They keep prices reasonable. This is no small feat.
price: $129.99
Where to buy: Amazon
source: Samples of this product are provided by rambler.
