Above: Brand rivals, Apple AirPods Max Pro and Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro 3. Photos courtesy Apple and Samsung.

BitDepth#1478 for September 30, 2024

At work or at home, there’s often need for audio sequestering or risk a crowdsourced din of conflicting speaker output.

It’s just polite to keep your audio output to yourself out of respect for co-workers or family who don’t share your taste in music or care to hear your conversation as a broadcast.

The choice comes down to four options. Wired or wireless? Headphones or earbuds?

My preference is for wireless headphones, though I fall back on an excellent wired AudioTechnica headset when I need the best audio quality possible in a head-mounted microphone pickup.

But doh mind me. Earbuds are a growth market, moving tens of millions of units in each quarter.

My dislike of earbuds boils down to one particularly sensitive and oddly shaped ear canal that’s prone to water retention and infection.

The tenderness associated with that part of my anatomy makes me hesitant to shove a bit of plastic into it, no matter how clever and thoughtfully crafted it might be.
That said, good earbuds will ship with multiple rubber tips to accommodate different ear canals.

The pitch for earbuds is persuasive though. They are lightweight and compact, even when accompanied by easily tangled cables. That makes them easy to carry. I usually have at least one around for temporary or emergency use.

Wired versions are quite affordable, though wireless earbuds can easily test budgets.

When shopping for any wireless audio accessory, there’s no reason to settle for less than Bluetooth 5 as a connection and until version 6 of the standard becomes commonplace, look for version 5.4 as a target specification.

Audio connections using Bluetooth 5.4, when connected to a compatible device, offer excellent range and the best possible penetration of walls, which can dramatically reduce signal strength.

A wireless headphone with active noise cancellation (ANC) with an option for cabled connection is my sweet spot, but even here, there are challenges.

Prices range from US$25 to US$500 and generally, you get what you pay for at the extremes. Cheap headsets are usually functional but poorly made and the pleather used for the trim will flake quickly.

At the top end, features abound. ANC tends to be more sophisticated on upscale models, damping annoying repetitive sounds while allowing useful audio to be heard.

Budget headsets will effectively dampen ambient sounds, but tend to be an all or nothing solution. When these cheaper devices have ANC active, it isn’t unusual to see people speaking and not be able to hear a word they are saying. They are a very bad idea for walking in the street.

More effective folding for travel, more extensive use of metal at stress points and robust construction along with larger, full-range speakers are other characteristics of expensive headsets.

The soundstage and audio detail on such headsets, which will use specially tuned speakers covering most of the human audible frequency range, is deeply immersive and the reproduction of subtle sounds can be revelatory.

Audio decoding support for Dolby Atmos will further enhance audio reproduction, particularly for gamers.

When wear and tear inevitably comes to visit your posh headset, you’ll probably be able to by replacement ear pads and parts, though expect to pay almost as much as you might for a cheap pair of headphones.

Mid-range, mid-budget ear gear, combines utility, adequate sound reproduction and good build quality into a product that’s not a complete embarrassment to an audiophile.

For earbuds, which are likely to be used outdoors or during exercise, look for their water resistance rating and reject anything that’s rated less than IPX4. No rating at all should be taken as water vulnerable and yes, sweat is water and it’s acidic.

Be guided by physical specifications, independent reviews and audio professional references over brand. AirPods, Beats and Bose all have their cheerleaders, but drift a bit further down the alphabet and there are gems to be found.

If the device is going to be used by a child, look for one that has a volume limiter, sometimes described as a hearing safeguard.

Adults should have the good sense not to play music too loud but children generally and teens specifically aren’t always so wise.

Play music loud with a standard speaker system and you can feel the pressure of the air around the speakers. Doing the same thing with a headphone or worse, earbuds, puts an air-pressure knife against your ear drum.

If you get wired audio, be sure to get units with tangle-free cables. These are usually reinforced with a braided wrapper.

For wireless audio gear, battery life is a factor to consider. It’s rare to find wireless headphones that won’t last at least 20 hours on a full charge and 40-60 hours is typical of even midrange units. Using noise cancellation cuts usable times by as much as a third.

Wireless earbuds tend to run between five to six hours on a charge, though some brands claim longer runtimes. You can extend their utility by getting units with an efficient charging case with its own battery.

Here’s a big wireless audio downside.

The batteries in your wireless device will die. Expect three to four years of useful life before they can’t hold a proper charge anymore.

It’s just physics, sorry. Wireless earbuds are also a recycler’s nightmare and often end up in the rubbish heap where their tiny batteries are a chemical hazard.