General Evaluation
Bang & Olufsen is a Danish company with many speaker and headphone models.
Bang & Olufsen was founded in 1925 by Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen. At that time, these two brothers were working on radio transmission technologies. Almost 100 years later, today, the company has become one of the brands that produce the most striking speakers, the most original designed headphones and the highest quality television systems in the world. I don’t know if Peter and Svend gave much importance to “design”, but when you say Bang & Olufsen today, original design, eye-catching design and superior material quality come to mind.
The brand currently offers 3 different fully wireless in-ear headphone models for sale.
These:
- E8 Sport
- EQ
- and EX
You can view the relevant reviews by clicking on the names of the models.
EQ was a super headphone that we really liked and is still on our top 3 tws list. EQ proved to us that a Bang & Olufsen headphone can compete with a headphone that is shown with fingers when it comes to sound quality, such as the Sennheiser Momentum 2.
EX is a brand new model that aims to improve the tonal color, comfort and microphone performance of this monument of sonic performance (EQ) with its neck design concept that we will see for the first time in the brand.
EX, which is at least as good as its sibling EQ in terms of connection performance, ANC performance and microphone quality, also offers some improvements in these areas.
In terms of sound character, the headset takes a completely different approach this time, now having a brighter, more detail-oriented and more transparent presentation.
Let’s take a closer look!
10
EX has a unique design.
Since the E8 3rd Generation, new models have come in smaller and smaller boxes. The EX comes with a premium presentation in a box that is almost half the size of the previous EQ model.
Presentation
What’s Inside the Box:
- EX
- Charging Box
- USB – A to USB – C Charging Cable | 0.5m
- 4 Different Sizes of Spare Silicone Tips
- 1 Pair Medium Comply Foam Tips
- Quick Start Guide
Bang & Olufsen has reduced the size of the case thanks to its Airpods Pro-like stem design, and is now more comfortable and stays more stable in the ear.
Similarly, not having to accidentally touch the touchpad while trying to secure the earphones in your ear is another small advantage.
The EX cabins feature a shiny B&O logo on their exterior. This impact-resistant glass-covered area is also a touch-sensitive control center.
The glass coating gives the headphones a premium look. While we often see Wood, Aluminum, Leather and Plastic among the materials of Bang & Olufsen products, we don’t remember seeing a headphone with a glass coating surface at B&O before.
Like the EX’s cabin, the charging box design is different from what we saw on the EQ. It’s a first-class aluminum box with a wider depth and a slightly larger volume.
10
The EX, like its sibling the EQ, is a portable tank.
Manufactured using first-class aluminum, glass and plastic, EX is as durable as it feels luxurious.
It would take a lifetime to find another pair of truly wireless headphones in any price range with the same meticulously selected and assembled materials as those in Bang & Olufsen’s flagships.
Our only concern when it comes to the EX’s impact resistance is, naturally, the glass-covered touchpad. While this has the potential to break in a collision, the higher aluminum ring surrounding it looks like it could prevent any unfortunate accidents.
9
Bang & Olufsen has reduced the size of the case thanks to its Airpods Pro-like stem design, and is now more comfortable and stays more stable in the ear.
Similarly, not having to accidentally touch the touchpad while trying to secure the earphones in your ear is another small advantage.
The weight of the cabinet is only 6 grams, and the physics that distributes the weight very well, along with the memorable stem design aesthetics, help these headphones reach an unforgettable level of comfort in the ear.
Bang & Olufsen EX offers a comfortable experience that can stay in your ears all day long.
You can increase the comfort even further with the Comply Foams included in the box to ensure that the headphones remain more stable in the ear.
9
Isolation criteria can be evaluated under two subheadings: Passive Isolation and Active Isolation.
Passive isolation actually results from many parameters, such as how little space the earphones leave inside your ear canal, the thickness and material of the silicone or foam tips, and so on.
Now that you have a better understanding of what active noise cancellation is and how it works, we can summarize this criterion by saying that the ANC performance of these headphones is quite good.
While it may not be as spectacular as the Sony WF-1000XM4, the Bang & Olufsen EX can isolate you from the outside world and have you daydreaming with nothing between you and your music.
Additionally, the passive isolation of the headphones can be quite effective, especially when used with Comply Foam foam tips.
9
The new B&O EX has smart features that can accompany you at every moment of your daily life.
This is an ANC headphone that the brand has designed with a stem design by changing its style after beoplay EQ.
With mobile application support, you can update the software wirelessly, and with its friendly interface, you can easily evolve the EX to the sound character you want with the help of an equalizer.
The IP57 certification proves that the EX is a more advanced outdoor headphone than the EQ.
The EX is so well protected that it can stay underwater for half an hour under 1 meter of water, which is something we will not see easily. You may have found yourself a pair of headphones to use in the shower.
The EX, which has a battery life of 6 hours on the body and 20 hours with the charging case, does not please much this time. It is possible to find better ones easily, and the EX’s case has dimensions that can accommodate a larger battery.
The box, which supports fast charging via the USB-C port, can also be powered wirelessly.
In summary, it deserves to be a daily use star with its EX proximity sensor, extreme resistance to water and dust, superior material quality, mobile application support, sound character that will not tire you all day long, comfort and more.
9
Although the EX’s microphone layout is similar to its sibling EQ, the stemmed design here positions these capsules closer to the sound source, your mouth.
Thus, the new system focuses on your voice better, takes on a more full and satisfying character, and preserves the sharpness and high-resolution sonic performance of the EQ.
With the EX, it is also possible to make phone calls or attend meetings in noisy environments.
9
Connection Quality
Bang & Olufsen EX fully wireless Bluetooth headphones offer a very stable, reliable and high-quality connection with Bluetooth 5.2 infrastructure and super premium codecs.
SBC, AAC, aptX and aptX Adaptive are the main codecs that this premium music beast has.
10
We reviewed the Beoplay EQ as one of the best truly wireless in-ear headphones we’ve ever experienced in terms of sound quality.
The EX is a model with a similar sound quality but a completely changed tone color.
Taking a completely different approach in terms of sound character, the headset now has a brighter, more detail-oriented and more transparent presentation.
In the new headphones, the 6.8mm dynamic driver we saw in the EQ is now replaced by a much larger 9.2mm dynamic driver.
It can produce between 20 Hz and 22 kHz on both sides.
We have stated many times before that you should question the truth of the saying that bigger drivers bring better sound quality. Because there are dozens of factors that determine the fate of sound quality. Cabin size and interior acoustics are one of them.
The EX is a slightly brighter headphone compared to the EQ.
While the sub-bass region of both headphones is actually similarly accented, with an average of 5 dB up to 100 Hz, the EQ’s air frequency region, that is, the 7 kHz area near the top and beyond, undergoes a serious roll-off, resulting in a headphone that can produce more full-bodied and authoritative bass than the EX.
EX can be said to have an unusual density in the region of approximately 10 kHz compared to the old model. You can be sure that you will hear sources that produce high-pitched notes such as cymbals, trumpets and thin-stringed instruments with a much more lively and energetic character in this headphone. Each of the headphones, which generally have a similar mid-range character, produce vocals that are close to natural, comfortable and somewhat in the background, and instruments that remain in a similar range. The most basic point where Momentum 2 stands out with its lifelike character is here, after its huge stage width.
As might be expected, the EX, which has a wider stage, lags behind the EQ in terms of stage depth. You can blame the acoustic superiority provided by the physical depth of the EQ cabinet.
In summary, we have a fully wireless headphone with a very high-quality sound performance. Although we still prefer the tonal character similar to the Astell & Kern Diana, and the EQ that is especially easier to listen to when you get used to it, it cannot be said that the EX has any shortcomings.