Enacfire A9 review: Noise-cancelling earbuds for less
For
- Warm sound profile
- Acceptable ANC for the price
- Waterproof
- Decent call quality
Against
- Lack of extra features
- Impact controls don't operate as intended
- Mediocre blueprint
- Transparency style is useless
Pros
- +
Warm audio profile
- +
Acceptable ANC for the price
- +
Waterproof
- +
Decent telephone call quality
Cons
- -
Lack of extra features
- -
Touch controls don't operate as intended
- -
Mediocre pattern
- -
Transparency mode is useless
The Enacfire A9 is the newest release from the Amazon darling. This set of wireless earbuds has bass-forrad sound, an ambient-listening mode, and upwardly to 32 hours of battery life via charging case. Virtually chiefly, it offers active racket counterfoil (ANC) at a super-affordable price.
While the A9 presents a legitimate case for making our best noise-cancelling earbuds list, it also bears flaws similar to those found on other inexpensive wireless earbuds. The touch on controls require some experimentation to get functioning properly. Furthermore, the uninspiring pattern and lack of actress features go far less appealing compared to other sub-$100 models.
Enacfire A9 specs
Color: Black
Battery life (rated): 4.five hours (ANC on), 5.5 hours (ANC off) , 32 hours (with charging case)
Connectivity: Bluetooth v.0
Processor: BES2300IU
Size: 1.3 ten i x 0.8 inches (per bud)
Weight: 0.two ounces (per bud)
Nonetheless, if you want inexpensive buds that become the chore done and provide some noise neutralization, our Enacfire A9 review breaks downwards why this budget pair is worth a look.
- The best headphones overall
- More of the best wireless earbuds
Enacfire A9 review: Price and availability
- Enacfire A9 on Amazon for $49.99
The Enacfire A9 can exist purchased for $69 from Enacfire, though Amazon has it on auction for $49. It is only sold in blackness. Arranged with the purchase are a charging case, brusk USB-C charging cablevision, instruction manual, two-twelvemonth warranty, and three pairs of ear tips.
Factoring in sale price, the A9 is one-5th of the cost of the AirPods Pro ($249). Should you seek something under $100 with longer battery life and more features, there'due south the EarFun Gratuitous Pro ($59) that comes with vii hours playtime (on a single accuse) and wireless charging. There'due south also the JLab Ballsy Air Sport ANC ($98) with 11 hours playtime and a customizable EQ.
For all of the latest sales, bookmark our best cheap AirPods deals and best headphones deals pages.
Enacfire A9 review: Design and comfort
Enacfire isn't known for its design pedigree. The company'south wireless earbuds are as minimalist as you lot'll find on the market and prioritize function over fashion. That being said, don't expect the A9 to enamor you with its bland, copycat appearance.
The buds avowal the aforementioned long-stem silhouette equally the standard AirPods, but with an all-black exterior and thicker casing, which makes them stick out more. To my eyes the AirPods Pro as well has a more distinctive pattern than the A9, cheers to uncomplicated details like black vents and shorter stems. 1 positive is that the A9 comes with an IPX7 waterproof rating, a stronger IP rating than the AirPods Pro (IPX4). That means the buds tin survive rain, sweat, and submersion in 1 meter of water for 30 minutes.
The charging instance isn't Red Dot Award material, but fine for portability and storage. You tin toss it in any shirt pocket or gym bag and not experience weighed down. The matte finish and logo on the front give it some flair every bit well. Despite the flimsy lid, this instance has a strong magnet that shuts it tightly, preventing the buds from spilling out if ever dropped to the ground. On the within are left and right indicators to remind you which bud goes in which charging slot, a thoughtful gesture that shouldn't go unnoticed.
Initially, I guessed the large cavity wouldn't brand these buds a comfortable wearable, and I was right. Its jutting class takes up a lot of inner ear space and presses upwards confronting the concha, causing soreness the longer you keep them on. A 45-infinitesimal listening session had me pulling the buds out for some pain relief.
Enacfire claims the A9 provides an ergonomic fit, though that isn't the case. The tips fail to create a tight seal; I tried all 3 sizes and noticed zip improvement. Yous'll demand to adjust the buds for proper stabilization, and fifty-fifty then, the slightest movement to them results in serious slippage. For example, I scratched my left ear and hit the bud past accident, which so caused it to fall out when turning my caput. This happened often.
Enacfire A9 review: Touch on controls and digital banana
The bear on controls don't exactly work every bit Enacfire intended. Functions are divvied up betwixt the 2 buds, which are activated through hold and tap gestures, but the buds barely recognize the latter. Seriously, I couldn't get tap functions working at all. What I figured out is that the bear on sensors as well take slide gestures, and these delivered much better input accuracy.
Enacfire also programmed these buds with a comprehensive suite of media controls. Depending on how you tap and/or agree the sensors, you lot can play and pause music, skip frontwards and back, raise and lower volume, bicycle between the dissimilar listening modes and even activate your phone'south digital assistant.
The A9 supports both Google Assistant and Siri, and they role well for the near part. There is some slight lag when enabling the feature, only once turned on, you can burn down off commands and receive results in quick fashion. Speech recognition is surprisingly expert, which can exist attributed to the A9'south 4 external mics that pick upwards every spoken word. To have Apple and Google's AI bots sympathise and execute most commands was all I could ask for.
Enacfire A9 review: Active noise cancellation
The A9 can't compete with what the AirPods Pro and Bose QuietComfort Earbuds are doing on the ANC front, and to expect that of any pair of $69 earbuds would be foolish. What you lot get is capable noise neutralization that can challenge other low-tier options similar the Epic Air Sport.
I found the A9's dissonance counterfoil performed better indoors. In my dwelling office, the buds managed to block out nigh distractions, from family chatter to loud TVs. My true cat'due south meows even went unnoticed as he tried clawing his way into the room. The A9 also minimized high-frequency sounds noticeably well, though more often than not from a altitude. It was good enough to mute my newborn'south cries from the opposite room, so that made me happy.
Withal, not all noise went silent. My babe boy's fussing was articulate when getting him to perform tummy time exercises, plus I could hear doors opening and closing as guests entered the room. External sounds were much more than transparent when stepping outside. Heading towards the mailbox, I was bombarded by the level of noise produced by the landscapers who were about 30 feet away from me; the leafage bravado and weed trimming sounded similar information technology was taking place in front of me. Wind also made its presence felt when listening to music on walks.
Enacfire went the actress mile of creating a transparency fashion for listeners to hear what'southward happening effectually them. Just this too needs work, equally the poor clarity made information technology difficult to distinguish sounds or accept face-to-face conversations.
Enacfire A9 review: Audio quality
These aren't critical-listening earbuds, so don't purchase them thinking you're going to hear the subtle nuances in complex recordings. The A9 has a sound profile that leans primarily towards the warm end of the audio spectrum. Underneath the hood are 10mm drivers that don't skimp on bass and go along distortion to a minimum.
I thought boom-heavy tracks like Method Man & Redman'due south "Da Rockwilder" would have made for a regrettable listen, merely the terminate issue was noteworthy. The 808 effects and propulsive lows knocked hard. Besides, the fuzzy bass tones were handled well, granted they sounded crisper on the AirPods Pro and QuietComfort Earbuds. Still, the fact that these buds could reproduce such sounds without bloating upwards the entire soundstage speaks to the A9'due south sonic capabilities.
The percussion on Earth, Wind & Fire'due south "Boogie Wonderland" was striking. Bass drums and conga stimulated rhythmic toe taps, while harmonies had great resolution to distinguish between individual voices over the up-tempo production.
Jazz classics sounded bittersweet, as the depression end was overemphasized, diminishing the depth on certain songs. While I got a sense of taste of mids and highs on Miles Davis' "Freddie Freeloader," with the steady hi-hat play sounding sharp, the double bass came on too potent and dominated the soundscape. The AirPods Pro did a better task of capturing the record's warmth and melodic tones.
I noticed sound quality was meliorate when the listening modes were disabled, producing slightly better bass and clarity. These are pocket-sized details that many listeners won't pick upwards on, just those with perceptive hearing might catch them. Volume doesn't reach blasting levels and won't put your hearing at adventure. Although, if you lot do decide to mind at max volume, know that the buds bleed out audio, and so others around you will also hear what's playing.
Enacfire A9 review: Battery life and charging case
Enacfire hasn't shared the playtimes, but my testing had them lasting well-nigh iv to iv.5 hours with ANC on. This places the A9 in the aforementioned company every bit the AirPods Pro (4.5 hours), though Apple's battery management is far superior and gets you ameliorate general operation on such curt battery life. Volume and ANC/transparency mode are battery drainers also. Listening with ANC off volition extend playtime to about five.5 hours. That should suffice for iii to 4 days of moderate use before recharging.
The charging case does help deal with low-battery anxiety, generating up to 32 hours in total, and 24 hours with ANC on. Information technology'south the same every bit the AirPods Pro case (24 hours) when factoring in noise counterfoil. There are no quick-charging stats for the A9, only my experience saw bombardment life increase by l% on a 15-minute accuse. Apple'due south quick charging is faster , with 5 minutes producing 1 hour of playback. Wireless charging didn't make the cut either.
Enacfire A9 review: Call quality and connectivity
Call quality is satisfactory on the A9. When taking my married woman'southward calls outside, she heard every sentence, though my voice was slightly muffled. More feedback she shared was that wind was audible, but wasn't distracting, which shows the power of Enacfire'southward 4-mic array. Other background noises like wheel bells and speeding cars were transparent and loud, so be mindful of this if you lot determine to answer calls on a busy street.
Video calls didn't perform as well. My clients sounded very distorted during Skype chats. I idea maybe it was the service, only the problem occurred on Zoom and Google Meet equally well.
The A9 does accept speedy wireless performance. Taking the buds out of the example automatically enables Pairing Fashion, which fabricated connecting them to my Google Pixel three Xl and MacBook Pro a breeze; y'all'll notice "ENACFIRE A9" pop up immediately on the bachelor devices list.
Unfortunately, the A9'due south range is shorter than advertised (33 feet), hitting a summit of 25 anxiety earlier stuttering occurs. Information technology would accept been cool if Google Fast Pair was bachelor to expedite the pairing procedure on Android devices. Multipoint applied science is MIA from the spec sheet likewise, meaning you tin can't connect the buds to ii devices simultaneously.
Enacfire A9 review: Verdict
The Enacfire A9 offers plenty of operation for the price, highlighted by its stiff audio. Where most brands cheap out on the internals in favor of aesthetics or features, Enacfire focused on hardware, stuffing 10mm drivers and noise cancellation circuitry into these buds. Waterproof protection well-nigh makes upward for the unflattering design, plus the battery life, while not the lengthiest with ANC on, can exist extended past turning off the listening modes and keeping the charging case on hand.
For all the skilful these buds present, there is too the bad. I would strongly urge Enacfire to change the copy on their product folio to inform users of the affect controls; swipe gestures are the best style to operate these buds versus taps. The transparency mode seems like something that was added last minute for variety, and information technology requires a lot of work. And then in that location is the lack of extra features (eastward.g., customizable EQ, multipoint technology, wireless charging) that competitors are offering at a similar price point.
If you can live with the shortcomings, then the A9 is a decent AirPods Pro alternative that can be had for inexpensive. Just don't await top-tier performance from any of the categories.
- More than:The best Apple AirPods alternatives — similar styling at lower price
Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/enacfire-a9
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