Review – Edifier W860NB Active Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headphones
7 min read
Edifier W860NB
RM 499
Pros
- Good build quality & comfortable to wear
- Good accessories
- Good sound quality
- ANC performing well
- Touch gesture control
- Great battery life
- Excellent value for money
Cons
- Muddy bass
- Slight hiss with ANC enabled (unnoticeable with music)
Headphones with Active Noice Cancelling (ANC) have been around for quite some time but there aren’t a lot of choices out there especially due to its higher price tag than the regular headphones. Today what we have here is Edifier’s latest Bluetooth wireless headphones with ANC – the Edifier W860NB. Priced at RM 499, this is probably the most affordable option out there in the market and we are certainly very interested to learn more about it.
Edifier W860NB Specifications
| Edifier W830BT | |
| Driver Unit | 40 mm |
| Impedance | 24 Ohms |
| Frequency Response | 20 Hz – 20 kHz (±12 dB) |
| Supported Profiles | A2DP, AVRCP, HSP, HFP |
| Bluetooth version | 4.1 |
| Battery | 1500 mAh |
Unboxing
Edifier’s naming scheme is pretty straightforward. The W860NB pretty much spells everything in its name, W stands for wireless, N stands for noise cancelling and B stands for Bluetooth.
The package comes with a hardshell travelling case.
What comes in the box:
- Edifier W860NB Bluetooth wireless noise cancelling headphone
- Hardshell travelling case
- USB-A to Micro USB charging cable
- 3.5mm AUX cable
- Flight adapter
- User manual
Build Quality & Design
The first thing we noticed when we unboxed the headphone is the design. It looks identical to the W830BT except that the W860NB is missing the volume and media control buttons. More about the controls later.
I like W830BT’s design and I’m really happy that Edifier has decided to bring it to W860NB as well. The earcup cushion is soft and comfortable for long hours of listening. Then again, if you sweat easily, maybe you have to take note as the ear pads are PU leather which is not as breathable as cloth earpads.
If you don’t want to carry around the hardshell case, the headphone also comes with a folding mechanism so that you can at least fold it up and keep it in the bag. The hinges are sturdy and offer additional fitting adjustment for different head sizes.
The headband extension feels robust, meanwhile, the top cushion is soft and comfortable.
Bass reflex channels at the top to improve the bass performance.
User Experience
Pairing the headphones is very easy. If you have a phone with NFC sensor, tap the phone to the NFC logo and your phone will prompt for pairing. Just make sure that the headphone is turned on before you start the pairing process.
Micro USB port for charging and there’s even a 3.5mm audio jack in case you plan to use the headphone on other devices that don’t support Bluetooth. Edifier also included a flight 3.5mm audio jack adaptor so that you could use the headphone in flight.
The power button and active noise cancellation toggle switch. The ANC and Bluetooth work independently, which means you can even use the ANC function without connecting to any phone. The problem, however, lies in the lack of a LED indicator for ANC switch itself. There are times where I disconnect the Bluetooth but forgotten that I left ANC turned on, ends up draining the battery unnecessarily. Many other similar products have either LED indicator or with a sound prompt. Some brands even have a dedicated mobile app to control their headphones.
What makes the W860NB special is the right ear cup is touch sensitive, which means you can use the touch gesture to control the volume and skipping tracks. Just like most of the other flagship headphones in the market.
- Double tap middle
- Swipe up – increase the volume
- Swipe down- decrease the volume
- Swipe to front – skip next
- Swipe to back – skip back
Active/Adaptive Noise Cancelling (ANC)
If you’re new to ANC, it is basically a technology that is used to reduce the surrounding noise. How it actually works?
The sound is a pressure wave, therefore ANC headphones would have one or more microphones that pick up the surrounding noise. The ANC module analyses the sound wave and produces an inverted phase to the original noise. This destructive interference would effectively cancel out each another, hence achieving the noise cancelling.
However, don’t expect it would cancel out every single external noise. Each and every pair of ANC headphone has different characteristics when it comes to reducing the noise. What it does best is reducing those consistent noises. That’s why ANC headphones are extremely popular with travellers and frequent flyers. Some of you might not notice that the humming noise coming from the aeroplane engine can be annoying especially when you’re having a long flight.
In my case, as my apartment is near to the main road, hence street noise is a common thing during the daytime even if I kept all the doors and window closed. ANC headphones are amazing in this aspect as well, the W860NB manage to “silent” the humming noise so that I could focus on writing this review. Based on my past experience with a Sony MDR-1000X, I am really surprised that the Edifier W860NB manage to keep up with something that is almost 3 times more expensive. Then again, as I said earlier, it is not a magical tool that makes you deaf, so I could still hear the honking sound as it falls on the different spectrum of frequency.
Sound Signature
That brings us to the sound signature of the Edifier W860NB. The W860NB puts a lot of emphasis in the bass department. It is perfect for movies and games but it lacks differentiation with the mids. I mean, the bass is sticking to the mids which indirectly affects the vocals and results in slightly muddier speeches. Mids and highs have better contrast, hence the treble separation from the mid vocals is clearer.
With ANC turned on, I do notice a slight change in the sound signature, especially in the bass department. The sticky bass is less pronounced, which allows the mids and vocals to stand out. So our best guess is this headphone is designed so that it sounds better with ANC on, which is perfectly understandable.
Besides, just like many other high-performance headphones, the W860NB also supports Qualcomm aptX high definition wireless audio technology. What it does is make sure the headphone receives the highest quality audio stream from the compatible player.
Battery Life
Edifier claims that the battery could last for 25 hours (ANC on) and 45 hours (ANC off) respectively. Now I have not really played music non-stop for that long. However from my personal daily 1~2 hours use for almost 2 weeks (mix ANC on/off), the headphone is still running strong.
One thing to take note is that always remember to turn off the ANC switch when you stop using the headphone. The headphone is designed to have the Bluetooth and ANC function separated. Some user prefers to use ANC without needing to connect to any device. So if you left the headphone’s ANC turned on, it will just continuously drain the battery. This is not a design flaw as there are many other ANC headphones also has this feature.
Final Words
Edifier Malaysia has officially priced the Edifier W860NB at RM 499. The headphone has performed exceptionally well throughout our review period and it has changed our view of having a good pair of ANC headphones doesn’t always mean you have to sacrifice an arm and a leg.
While it may not be the perfect pair of headphones, for instance, the sound quality is not ground-breaking and it lacks the innovation in the bundled technology. However, what Edifier has put their focus on is the comfort and extremely competitive price per performance.
I know some of you would point out certain unknown brands offering cheaper ANC headphones on Lazada, but would you be willing to get your hands onto something sketchy as that?
