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What do you picture when you read the words “planar magnetic”? If you’re a regular reader of this site, I would guess images of big, over-the-ear headphones like the Audeze LCD-5s and HiFiMan Sundaras come to mind. I’m going to assume what doesn’t come to mind is a pair of true wireless earbuds, and noise-canceling ones at that. And yet, that’s exactly what the Edifier Stax Spirit S10s are: planar magnetic, true wireless, noise-canceling earphones.
Squeezed inside each earbud is a 12mm planar-magnetic driver that has a 2μm polymer substrate. They’re IP54-rated, so they can get a little wet and keep working. Specified battery life is 18 hours with noise canceling on and 28 with NC off. In addition to noise canceling, they have Bluetooth 5.4, multipoint connection capability, aptX Adaptive and LDAC, and a bunch of other features. Then again, for $299 (all prices USD), you’d hope they have all the latest tech. Of course, the most important thing is how they sound.
In the box
Regular readers will know I love it when manufacturers include a wide variety of eartips, and Edifier has gone above and beyond here. Ten color-coded tips from XS to XL should ensure that just about everyone can get a good fit. In fairness, though, there are two pairs each of large, medium, and small, so really there are five sizes with some extras. Still, that’s better than most companies provide. I got a tight and comfortable seal with the small tips.
Also in the box are a USB-A-to-USB-C charging cable and a small carrying pouch.
Use
The Edifier Connex app loads quickly and has an easy-to-navigate interface. The main controls are for the noise canceling, “sound effects” as in EQ, and a game mode that reduces latency. The noise-canceling settings are just various amounts of NC, including an adaptive mode and a transparency mode that also has an adaptive setting. There are three preset EQ options: Original, Dynamic, and Electrostatic. Dynamic mostly adds some low bass. The description of Electrostatic says, “Wider treble sound stage and relatively flat sound that reproduces more detail suitable for classical music, light music, etc.” Coincidentally, America’s “Ventura Highway” started when I checked Electrostatic, and that certainly classifies as “light music.” There’s also an elaborate Customized option, which has a four-band EQ that lets you adjust the corner frequency and Q for each band. You can even save multiple customized EQs. More on the EQ differences later.
Digging a little deeper in the app, you can adjust a variety of other settings, including what the on-bud controls do—changing volume, switching tracks, etc. You can also fine-tune the LDAC and LHDC sampling rates for better fidelity or better connectivity—assuming your phone supports them, of course (sorry, iPhone fans).
Sound
Overall, the Stax Spirit S10 earphones have strong, clear treble, decent but slightly subdued midrange, and enough bass that they don’t sound hollow. Treble is definitely the star of the show, and I ended up using the app’s EQ more than usual to play around with the sound.
When it came on serendipitously early in my testing, America’s “Ventura Highway” (Homecoming, 24-bit/192kHz FLAC, Rhino Entertainment / Qobuz) sounded great, so I figured I’d start there. The S10s threw a beautifully wide soundstage, with the dueling acoustic guitars extending well out over my shoulders. Each pluck of the strings was smooth and clear. Switching from the Original EQ mode to Electrostatic, there was a bit more openness, at the expense of mids and bass. Not better and not worse, just different.
The delicate plucks of Mansa Sissoko’s kora and Jayme Stone’s banjo on “Bibi” (Africa to Appalachia, 16/44.1 FLAC, Jayme Stone / Qobuz) had brilliant detail and fidelity. I hesitate to ascribe certain aspects of sound to a specific technology, but planar-magnetic drivers often have a high level of realism, likely thanks to their excellent ability to reproduce fast transients. That was certainly evident on this track. It’s filled with stringed instruments and a variety of percussive clicks and drum hits, and it definitely showed off the S10s’ strengths with acoustic instruments.
With “We Found Love” from Rihanna’s Talk That Talk album (16/44.1 FLAC, Def Jam / Qobuz), using the Original EQ mode, the synths and Rihanna’s voice all had excellent clarity without tipping over the edge into uncomfortable brittleness. I’m not a huge fan of treble, but the S10s toed the line for me by being detailed without being harsh. The bass was present, but definitely a step back from the treble. The Dynamic mode added a bit more low-end oomph, extending quite deep. I think most people would find they have plenty of bass. However, there did seem to be a dip in the lower midrange. To be honest, if electropop is your jam, these aren’t the earphones for you. They’re fine, but for this genre, there are more suitable options (two are mentioned below, as a matter of fact).
In terms of noise canceling, the S10s were OK. Not great, but their NC did remove some of the low-end rumble typical in airplanes. If you travel a lot and want serious noise canceling to endure long flights, the S10s aren’t for you. They’re fine, but NC is more an additional feature than a headline one.
Comparison
There’s a lot of serious competition in and around $300, including mainstream heavy hitters from Sony and Bose. I didn’t bother comparing the Edifiers to the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds. The Edifiers sound better, but Bose’s noise canceling is more effective. I did compare the S10s to the Sony WF-1000XM4 earphones, which are a personal favorite. When new, they were just under the price of the Edifiers. I didn’t have their replacement, the WF-1000XM5s, on hand, but generally speaking, those have a little less bass and a little more treble than the XM4s. I also compared the Edifiers to the Bowers & Wilkins Pi7 S2s. I loved those, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the newer Pi8 earphones. More importantly, the Pi7 S2s are still available, and for slightly less than the Spirit S10s.
The XM4s did a far better job with electropop, a genre where the S10s didn’t excel. With Chappell Roan’s “After Midnight” (The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, 24/44.1 FLAC, Island Records / Qobuz), the Sonys had a much stronger beat and a warmer sound overall. There was still plenty of treble for the percussion. The Edifiers had far more snap to the synth percussion, verging on the point of sizzle, but not quite crossing that line. In the Original EQ mode, the bassline was more than strong enough to keep the song moving, but it was less strong than the Sonys. Dynamic Mode added a bit more punch, but not enough to fully balance out the treble. I ended up preferring the Edifiers’ Dynamic setting for most music, but only slightly.
The reason I wanted to compare the S10s to the B&W Pi7 S2s was not the latter’s bass output—I think I’ve described that aspect of the S10s’ sound plenty. Unlike their replacements, the Pi7s use a balanced armature for the treble, a technology that often has a delicacy that I figured would give the planars in the S10s a run for their money. The Tragically Hip’s “Wheat Kings” (Fully Completely, 24/44.1 FLAC, Universal Music Group / Qobuz) is a multi-layered acoustic track. After some outdoorsy sound effects, it begins with guitars. Then the bass and percussion join, followed by Gord Downie’s vocals. No surprise—the Pi7s were a lot warmer. Their treble was still detailed, but not as open and airy as the S10s’. The S10s delivered more of the strum of the strings, the tambourine was more noticeable, and there was a touch more sibilance, though neither was bad in that regard. The S10s can definitely be described as “more detailed,” but in this case a lot of that is just because they have a more treble-heavy balance, especially high treble.
Conclusion
It’s a bit of a challenge to come to a firm conclusion about the S10 earphones. I liked them, but I didn’t love them. They sounded good, especially with music that benefits from a little extra treble, but I didn’t find their most important feature, the planar-magnetic drivers, to be particularly revelatory or revolutionary. The treble was good, sure, but not significantly better than you’d get from a pair of earphones with balanced-armature or well-designed dynamic drivers. Maybe it’s just because I found the tuning to be a bit off, and given how much I was bouncing around the EQ settings (not something I usually do, at least not to this extent), that’s likely. I spent some time trying to customize an EQ setting I liked. I eventually got something I liked better than the presets, but only just.
The $300 price band is very competitive—there are so many great options. It’s not that the S10s don’t hold their own. They do, but there are a lot of alternatives. If you’re the type of person who likes some extra treble, specifically a lovely layer of detail and realism to fast transients, that’s the S10 earphones’ best attribute, and they do it well.
. . . Geoffrey Morrison
Associated Equipment
- Smartphone: Google Pixel 9 Pro
- Portable media player: Sony NW-A306
Edifier Stax Spirit S10 true wireless earphones
Price: $299.99
Warranty: One year
Edifier USA
428 Hemphill St.
Fort Worth, TX 76104
Phone: (877) 334-3437
Website: www.edifier.com
