Whether listening to your favorite music or watching an action-packed movie, everyone wants the highest quality sound they can get. Sound that is crisp and clear. Sound that is so immersive it washes over you. And sound that, when necessary, is booming and can be heard by everyone around you. Here are just a few of the latest devices that can help deliver the sound you crave.
Headphones: A Different Beats
ne of the most popular brands of noise-cancelling headphones has released its first new flagship model since 2017. Beats Studio Pro ($349.99) was designed to reduce audio distortion by up to 80% compared to its predecessor and utilizes 25% stronger magnets to deliver richer and more balanced sound. Plus, personalized spatial audio with dynamic head tracking helps you get lost in theater-like surround sound from content that is recorded in Dolby Atmos. And its fully adaptive Active Noise Cancelling technology can cancel noise at 48,000 times per second.
Earbuds: Just Hear the Music
Sony claims its latest earbuds, the WF-1000XM5 ($299.99), offer the best noise-cancelling technology on the market. The earbuds can reduce external noise over a wide bandwidth, from low to high frequencies, thanks to two proprietary processors that cancel more external noise than ever, a new high-performance Dynamic Driver X, dual feedback microphones, and Noise-Isolation Earbud Tips for a more stable fit. The earbuds also support High-Resolution Audio Wireless with Sony’s LDAC technology, which results in low distortion and clearer audio quality.
Portable Speaker: Deep Bass in a Small Package
According to Hoffman’s Iron Law, for a speaker to produce deep bass it must be either large or draw a tremendous amount of electrical power. Brane Audio aims to break that rule with its soon to be released Brane X ($599). Built with a new invention—Repel-Attract Driver (R.A.D.)—the 7.7-pound speaker can produce new levels of deep bass by using a combination of moving and stationary magnets. Ultimately, the company says Brane X can produce 10x the deep base of comparably sized speakers while only burning one-tenth of the power.
Turntable: High-Quality Wireless Sound
The HARMAN Luxury Audio Group claims that its JBL SPINNER BT turntable, which is expected to become available in Q3 for $399, will allow listeners to enjoy their vinyl records over Bluetooth without sacrificing audio quality. By using aptX HD encoding, the company says the authentic sound of records isn’t compromised over wireless playback. Of course, the turntable still has analog output for wired connections. Another boast by the company: a speed sensor that locks in records to play in perfect time to guarantee perfect pitch from the belt-driven aluminum platter.
Earplugs: Clear Sound with Long-term Protection
Listening to live music is certainly enjoyable in the moment, but at loud enough volumes it can be damaging to your long-term hearing. The Sennheiser SoundProtex ($39.95) and SoundProtex Plus ($79.95) are multi-use earplugs designed with patented membrane filter technology that reduces the sound pressure on your ear but still allows clear, balanced sound to pass through. It even retains enough of the higher frequencies to preserve ambient awareness to allow you to have normal conversations. The Plus version adds two additional acoustic filters to cover other situations, such as a noisy office.
