The EDIFIER W820NB Plus are cheap ANC over-ear headphones for around 60€. Where does EDIFIER save and is it worth it compared to a Soundcore Life Q30 ?
- EDIFIER W820NB Plus ANC Over-Ear Headphones
EDIFIER W820NB Plus Review, Specs & Price
- Scope of delivery & packaging
The EDIFIER W820NB Plus come in a fairly plain silver printed box. Inside is a large plastic molded insert that houses the headphones and accessories. A user manual and a long USB-A to USB-C charging cable are included . A jack cable was saved along with the corresponding connection on the headphones, just like a transport bag.
Design & Processing
The over-ear is pretty unspectacular in terms of design. It is completely in matt black , there are no big color accents here. The only non-black thing about the W820NB Plus is the EDIFIER logo on the headband, just above the ear cups.
The ear cups and the headband are equipped with a pad that is covered with a thin synthetic leather. In the case of the EDIFIER W820NB Plus, the upholstery is neatly glued and doesn’t wrinkle. In addition, the headphones can be turned inwards by 90° and the headband can be pulled out by around 2.5 cm on each side.
Here, for the first time in a very long time, I see that the extendable part of the headband is not reinforced with a metal bar, which gives me serious concerns about the durability of the headphones. If you have a relatively small head, no problem, but you need the maximum length of the headband, the lever is correspondingly larger and the plastic is subjected to greater stress. At this point I seriously doubt whether it will last that long.
For the moment, however, the headphones are stable and have a clean finish. Even if it doesn’t leave a very high-quality impression on me as a pure plastic bomber. After all, it is pleasantly light with a weight of 220 grams.
Sound of the EDIFIER W820NB Plus
Dynamic drivers with a membrane diameter of 40 mm are responsible for the sound. I like the sound of the EDIFIER W820NB Plus in the test !
The tuning is more balanced compared to the Soundcore Life Q30 . The bass is less emphasized here, which is not necessarily a bad thing. I also like the EDIFIER W820NB Plus better in the upper midrange. In my opinion, the Soundcore Life Q30 has a frequency hole here and is more focused on the highs instead. These seem to me to be less pronounced with the EDIFIER W820NB Plus, but in my opinion they fit a little better into the overall sound.
Thanks to the more powerful bass, the Soundcore Life Q30 sounds better to me for electronic or other bass-heavy music, such as trap or hip-hop. For live music recordings, pop or rock, I like the tuning of the EDIFIER W820NB Plus better.
Active noise cancellation
The active noise cancellation of the EDIFIER W820NB over-ear headphones made a solid impression in the test. Especially monotonous, low-frequency ambient noises are noticeably quieter, so that a lower music volume is necessary to completely block them out.
The EDIFIER W820NB clearly have a harder time with high noises that fluctuate in frequency. These noises are also sometimes quieter, but less strong than low-frequency noises. For a headphone of around €60, the performance of the ANC is satisfactory, you shouldn’t expect more here.
Wearing Comfort
In addition to ANC, the EDIFIER W820NB also offer good natural isolation. The headphones sit quite tight on my head, but the ear pads make it all comfortable despite my glasses. They don’t slip and still don’t become uncomfortable even when worn for a long time. However, the tight fit on the head gives me something to think about as far as the long-term durability of the plastic is concerned.
Operation & App
The over-ear is equipped with a total of four control buttons on the right earpiece, which are assigned several functions.
- Functions of the buttons:
| gesture | press once | press twice | hold |
| volume up | increase volume | – | next title |
| Quieter | Decrease volume | – | previous title |
| On off | play/pause; Answer/end call | voice assistant | On off; Bluetooth pairing |
| M button | ANC/Transparent mode | Low latency mode | – |
The headphones are also integrated into the EDIFIER Connect app. There are the following functions:
- Switch ANC modes
- Choose from 4 equalizer presets
- Activate/deactivate gaming mode
- Set maximum volume
- Enable/disable LDAC
- Set “sleep timer”.
- install updates
This means that some functions can already be executed using the buttons on the handset. The remaining functions are pretty standard, which can be expected in 2023 even with a 60€ over-ear. Two years ago, an app integration in this price range was still something special.
Connectivity
The over-ear headphones are equipped with a Bluetooth 5.2 module that supports the high-resolution LDAC codec in addition to the SBC and AAC standard codecs . EDIFIER has also had the W820NB certified Hi-Res wireless and Hi-Res. Unfortunately, the headphones can only be used wired via USB-C to jack cable, since there is no jack connection on the handset. Unfortunately, a corresponding cable is not included in the scope of delivery.
The Bluetooth connection range is average in the test at around 15 meters in an open area. Indoors, it’s slightly less depending on the obstacles to be overcome, such as concrete walls. However, there are no difficulties within a room.
Battery Life
In the technical data, EDIFIER advertises a running time of up to 49 hours . This is the specification without ANC switched on , with SBC/AAC codec. With the ANC switched on, it’s still 33 hours. In the test, I was able to achieve a runtime of around 27 hours at mixed volume with the iPhone, ANC on and the AAC codec. In the test with the LDAC codec, there are still a good 18 hours of runtime before the headphones have to be recharged via USB-C.
Conclusion – basically solid, but with skepticism
In terms of sound, I like the EDIFIER W820NB for headphones in this price range. The active noise cancellation is also completely fine for the price. There is also app integration and a high-resolution LDAC codec.
The material worries me. The headphones now look wonderful, hold tight on the head. For my test period I have nothing to complain about here. However, I am afraid that the material, especially around the extendable brackets, could tire relatively quickly. The fact that no metal is used for reinforcement here makes me think.
Pros
- solid sound & ANC
- mobile app
- LDAC codec & Hi-Res wireless
Cons
- Longevity questionable
- no jack connection
- No USB-C to jack included
- no transport box included
However, similar problems regarding longevity also occurred with the Soundcore Life Q30 and were brought to us by you in the comments section. Soundcore has learned from this with the Q45 and uses solid metal in the important places. The question you have to answer is how often/regularly do I want to use the headphones and how big is my head? When in doubt, it’s worth spending more money instead of buying cheap and twice, in my opinion!
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