SoundStage! Solo | SoundStageSolo.com

Details: Written by: Geoffrey Morrison; Created: 20 September 2022

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A million years ago, in the before times, I worked at Circuit City. It was the golden age of Dolby Pro Logic and the dawn of the Dolby Digital era. Receiver manufacturers far and wide had decided, as if in exquisite concord, that what consumers really wanted was sound modes. Hall, Stadium, Big Room, Small Room, Bucket—the list was endless and somehow also growing. Every new model had yet more of these modes; nearly all just added reverb and ridiculous EQ. And yet, customers asked about them. Asked if they should get the genuine Panaphonics with 18 sound modes, or the Sorny with 20. Surely the uber-expensive and “overpriced” Harman Kardons and Onkyos were inferior with their minuscule sound-mode offerings.

Details: Written by: Geoffrey Morrison; Created: 01 September 2022

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I’m not much of a sports person. Sort of the opposite of that. Too opposite. I’m pushing maximum density here. But I’m getting better at getting moving. Part of that is traveling, which I do a lot. Well, did a lot. A bit of a break for the last few years for obvious reasons, but I’m back at it. So Geoff, I can’t hear you asking, why are you reviewing earphones that literally have “sport” in the name? Well, dear reader, they’re not just sports earphones, they also have noise canceling. Noise canceling is the bread-and-butter of any tech-savvy traveler. So for that, and for reasons I’ll get into, I’m always on the lookout for well-fitting and comfortable true-wireless earphones. Spoiler: these are those.

Details: Written by: Brent Butterworth; Created: 01 August 2022

Sound: 1/2
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Reviewers' Choice I feel bad for the old guard of the headphone biz. They spent decades honing their expertise in acoustical tuning of headphones and earphones, only to find themselves competing with mega-companies that can afford to hire dozens, maybe hundreds, of code-slinging engineers to work their magic through digital signal processing. But Beyerdynamic is definitely not throwing in the towel—the Free Byrd true wireless earphones ($249, all prices USD) are a full-on assault on the Apples, Amazons, Sonys, and Samsungs of the world.

Details: Written by: Brent Butterworth; Created: 10 July 2022

Sound:
Value: 1/2
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Measurements can be found by clicking this link.

Periodic Audio makes one of the most unusual lines of earphones in the audio biz. They all look basically the same; what distinguishes them—and provides the names for the products—is the material used in the diaphragms of the dynamic drivers. The company just released the third version of its earphone line, keeping the designations and the basic concepts, but employing a new material for the enclosure of the Mgv3 earphones ($199, all prices USD) and the other models in its line.

Details: Written by: Brent Butterworth; Created: 20 June 2022

Sound: 1/2
Value: 1/2
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Measurements can be found by clicking this link.

I get pitches to review new true wireless earphones almost every day. Most seem like perfectly fine products, but there’s nothing special enough about them to warrant a review. The AXS Audio Professional Earbuds ($149, all prices USD) don’t look any different from most other true wireless earphones, but their pedigree got me interested. They’re made by a team who formerly led Riva Audio, which built some of the best Bluetooth speakers yet made.

Details: Written by: Brent Butterworth; Created: 10 June 2022

Sound:
Value: 1/2
(Read about our ratings)

Measurements can be found by clicking this link.

Reviewers' Choice The TinHiFi T3 Plus earphones will be the last of the “Chi-Fi” models I’ll review for a while—and they’re in many ways the most interesting, because they’re the priciest of the bunch (typically $79.99 USD) and also the simplest, with just one 10mm dynamic driver per earpiece. This bare-bones design sets the T3 Pluses in stark contrast to earphones such as the CCA C10s, KZ x Crinacle CRNs, and NiceHCK DB3s, which are $30 to $50 less expensive yet have far more drivers—three per earpiece for the latter two, and five per earpiece for the C10s.