Page 3 - Subjective Audio Analysis
Reviewing audio devices require extensively trained ears, lots of experience, and sufficient technical knowledge. Even for the experienced auditioner, it may prove challenging at times to obtain an accurate evaluation of a product without a thoroughly familiar product to use as a simultaneous reference. Furthermore, many self-proclaimed audiophiles are susceptible to biased write-ups due to placebo effects from false advertising. While I am not going to even try to claim that I am the only trustworthy or best evaluator for sound, it is fact that most computer review sites have editors who are insufficiently trained in reviewing audio equipment. Give them anything and all you will read about goes along with the line of "good bass, nice midrange, impressive treble, really clear sound, 10/10". While there are many knowledgeable audio reviewers at various respected online media outlets, they are by far the minority.
As I have mentioned in my past audio reviews, there are no true objective measurements for sound quality. As the evaluator, however, I will put it through a series of subjective tests to try to produce the most objective rating possible. Yes, it sounds like a paradox. After using the UU2 for upwards of 50 hours of break-in time, I conducted the audio tests with the earphones connected to a REDMAGIC 9S Pro over Bluetooth 5.2. All audio files were sourced from Spotify with audio streaming quality set to lossless 24-bit 44.1 kHz. All settings were left in the default state.
Starting with our low end, it was not very surprising that the lack of an in-ear seal noticeably hindered the bass performance of the UU2s. The sub-bass felt entirely absent, leaving some low-bass-heavy tracks feeling hollow. The mid-bass fared better, although it also sat slightly diminished. It was still present and delivered some pleasant bass where you would expect it.
Covering midrange, I found the SOUNDPEATS UU2 did much better. Most vocals were clear, natural-sounding, and sit unobscured by any bass bleed. That said, there was some blunting of certain vocal performances as vocals moved closer to treble territory. Instruments in this range were solid and felt natural, even if slightly overrepresented over the bass.
I found the treble to be satisfactory for everyday listening. Instruments such as flutes were largely clear and not piercing. I noticed that if there was a lot of activity in the treble range, some instruments would mildly overlap and slightly impact overall clarity. I was only able to observe this in some full orchestra tracks though. Moving on to vocals and spoken word, I encountered the occasional harsh ‘S’ or hiss. It is important to note, though, after comparing side-by-side to other audio devices with known sibilance issues, I would not consider this a true sibilance issue and more a vulnerability to audio that has not been properly de-essed.
In balancing the three ranges, the SOUNDPEATS UU2 leaves the impression of a mound with a slight depression in the center. The raised points of the mid-bass and high midrange, low treble are separated by a slightly indented midrange. Both sub-bass and high treble fall off significantly. I tried the same tracks with DynamicEQ enabled and found that the overall sound felt more fleshed out, but at the expense of an unfortunate underwater-like listening experience. Personally, I opted to leave DynamicEQ off for most of my daily listening.
Next, turning our attention to soundstaging and imaging, this is where I find the SOUNDPEATS UU2 used its open-ear design to the fullest. Directional audio felt very well done and separated for earphones of this size. I found myself able to visualize where sounds were in relation to each other with a degree of accuracy. One application where I found this feature to be especially enjoyable was in watching video content, where the UU2s punched above their weight in directional audio compared to my other earbuds.
The SOUNDPEATS UU2 earbuds were capable of handling most tracks I threw at them. Heavily layered music, such as large orchestral pieces, revealed cracks in the abilities of the UU2s with some loss of definition and clarity. In these more complex passages, individual instruments occasionally blended together rather than remaining distinct, particularly during crescendos where strings, brass, and percussion were all competing for space. Simpler arrangements, such as acoustic or small-ensemble tracks, did not present this issue and came through with each instrument clearly separated.
While using these earphones in my day-to-day, the UU2s were extremely comfortable, easily the most comfortable piece of personal audio equipment I own. There have been multiple occasions where I would forget that I am wearing them. I have even worn them for approximately 8 hours in a single sitting without feeling discomfort. In terms of sound isolation, these earphones do not perform well, as expected from the design. However, at standard listening volumes, your music or calls should stay largely unnoticed by all but those directly next to you. With any level of ambient noise and with privacy mode enabled, those next to you are unlikely to notice.
To test the microphone, I recorded two audio samples, one indoors and one outdoors. This will provide some information on how the UU2 earphones perform in different settings, ideal and otherwise. Inside, the microphone was able to pick up my voice, and all words I spoke were intelligible. The outside test was recorded at night, with the only sound to speak of being distant road noise. My voice remains distinguishable, but if you listen closely, you can hear the slight noise of traffic. While the audio quality is not outstanding, I would consider these earphones to be up to the task for phone calls or voice messaging.
For wireless capabilities, the UU2 met my expectations. During testing, I was able to extract about 9.5 hours of playback at 50% volume before a recharge was required. This is very close to the advertised battery life of 10 hours per charge. The case provided about 3.3 additional charges, which lands my use very close to the advertised 40-hour total battery life. You should keep in mind that using features like special audio, LDAC, low-latency, or different volume levels will impact this. Charging the UU2 was also slightly faster than advertised. Charging just the earphones from 0%-100% took 84 minutes, which was slightly faster than the advertised 90 miutes. Charging the case with earphones inside took 110 minutes, which was slightly faster than the advertised 120. Wireless range was very good. The stated maximum working distance is 10m, but In testing I was able to maintain a line-of-sight connection to my phone from 35m. Latency on the UU2s was fine. I did not encounter any latency in day-to-day use, but for fast-paced gaming, it may become noticeable for some users. SOUNDPEATS has included a low-latency gaming mode that may assist here.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
3. Subjective Audio Analysis
4. Conclusion
