Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Klipsch is an amazing audio company that produces world class speakers. Their first foray into true wireless buds was a hit or miss affair. Great sound but lots of compromises including a quirky fit. For an encore, Klipsch corrected the prior problems and really went all in on sport including partnering with the McLaren race team for their top of the line package. So, are they good? Are they worth the price? Will they fit your needs for a set of wireless ear buds? Here is the breakdown: The good: -Sound: I always like to start here. If the sound is no good the rest of the review doesn't matter much. If you are spending $250 on wireless earbuds they better sound good and these do. I would call the sound exceptional actually. There is real depth offered here. Great highs, well defined mids, and rich but not overwhelming bass. They also get quite loud with no change in audio quality. While watching video on Netflix, there is a very good sense of direction coming from these buds. For instance, a car driving by will start on one side and move to the other as its passing. Obviously, these have nice Codecs built in. Both aptX and AAC are here. There is also no discernible voice lag while watching video. All and all, the sound these buds generate is wonderful. -Connectivity: Bluetooth 5 is onboard which means easy fast connection and great range. 30 or so feet through walls. In my time with these I have had no drops or and kind of connection issues. Everything is stable and rock solid. -Battery life / Charging: You get 8 hours on bud with another 3 full charges in the case. In real world use, I am getting close to those figures though I usually use them at higher volumes. Not best in class but very good. These do support wireless charging. The McLaren model does come with its own charging pad and it is slick. The pad is a very nice mesh fabric with a rubber tire tread like design on top where your buds sit. As you can see in the picture I included, the pad lights up with a very cool glow on the bottom when the buds are charging correctly. This is important as the exterior of the case is void of any kind of LED to indicate charging status or battery life. You can also charge via USBC, however, the input is located inside the case so you will need to charge with the case open. I don't love this design at all but the inclusion of handy wireless charging just means that I will only cable charge these in a pinch. -Bud design and fit: Klipsch significantly reduced the size of these this year. They are light in the ear and extremely comfortable. With sport in mind, these include 6 sets of Klipsch proprietary silicone tips (which really are amazing), a set of Comply foam tips, and three extra wings. There is no way you won't get a good and, more importantly, secure fit here. The buds themselves are controlled using physical buttons. You can control volume, call up an assistant, fire up transparency mode, and all the other things a good set of buds can do. I put a screen shot of the button configuration in the photos. Transparency mode uses the mics to let background noise in. Klipsch did a nice job with the technology here. The buds can be used independently of one another. Oddly, there is no auto pause when you pull one out of your ear. Overall, these are very well designed ear buds. Not the smallest I own but comfortable for long term wear and a perfect companion for any kind of rigorous exercise. The App: The Klipsch Connect app is not the best app I have used but its here and it works. You can control EQ settings, get firmware updates, and more. There are many apps more robust than this but this one is effective and I am glad its available. It amazes me that some buds still don't have companion apps. -Waterproofing: Klipsch went full waterproof with these buds even certifying the case to an IP67 rating. They also include a silica infused cartridge in the case they call a moisture removal system. It is ingenious and, with the way I sweat, it makes me feel better about running with buds this expensive. -Call quality: I was on the phone with these a few times today. All parties reported that I sounded good. Sound on my end was great. Klipsch includes 4 exterior beam forming mics on these and they work well. You will be happy with your calls on these. The bad: -No ANC: Wait what? $250 for headphones or buds with no Active Noise Cancellation? Yes, that is what these are. I think the thought process was that these are made for sport and don't need ANC. It allowed Klipsch to make the buds smaller and lighter. It certainly makes for better battery life. With a good seal, these buds definitely isolate you just fine so I am OK with this omission but, even with everything else these give you, with a starting price of $229 for the non-McLaren sport edition, this will be a tough buy for many. I will leave you with this on the ANC issue. Both my Technics and Sony buds have ANC and it is good in both. However, both are significantly larger and I wouldn't exercise with either. Neither of them sound any better. So, while I would love to see Klipsch do ANC here, my guess is that the finished product would have looked a lot different if they had included it. -The case: This one is tough for me. I love the case in so many ways. Its made of carbon fiber with papaya orange trim. It just looks really high end. The hinge and folding clasp is great as well. Even the metal rods they use in the hinge are blue. It is subtle but super slick. You also get the moisture removal, the waterproofing, and wireless charging. All of that is great. What isn't great is the size. The case is massive. It won't be easy to carry in a pocket. Further, as noted earlier, I don't care for the charging input inside the case nor do I like the LED indicator for the battery inside the case. The case has enough functionality and more than enough "wow factor" to offset these drawbacks but, at least to me, these issue aren't insignificant. I keep asking myself who Klipsch is targeting with these. No ANC and a super size albeit very cool case make these a hard sell as everyday ear buds. On the other hand, with great sound, call quality, and comfort they most certainly could be. They are definitely targeting folks that exercise. If you are a runner, biker, or someone that just gets crazy sweaty working out, these are a superb option. Maybe the best I have used and I have owned a lot of them. I will say this though; I think Klipsch has made an outstanding set of true wireless earbuds here. For the $20 bump in price from the regular Sport model, buy these. The look is amazing and the charging pad upgrade is absolutely worth it. I will update as I go with these but if great looking waterproof earbuds with amazing sound are on your shopping list and you can do without ANC, these are pretty close to perfection. Well done Klipsch. You guys have outdone yourselves here. ***Update*** There has been some rumbling about wings that don't stay put and slide down the bud. I am beginning to experience this as well. I moved to the smallest wing and it is better. I am not worried about them falling out but, if the wing is not seated properly, it interferes with the magnetic connection of the buds to the case which causes the buds to not turn off automatically when dropped in. I have sent a message to Klipsch Support and will follow up with what I hear. In the meantime, this is an annoyance but not enough for me to ding a star. They are just too good at everything else. I added a photo to show the issue. That said, without a remedy, I may have to rethink my recommendation long term, at least at this price point. Stand by. ***Update 2.0***Heard back from Klipsch but nothing definitive on the wing slippage yet. That said, if and when you can get these, you have to. Just heard about Eddie VanHalen's passing and got these out for the occasion. There are just not better sounding buds available. Period. Klipsch just smashed it with these. Cheers to Klipsch here. In the meantime, RIP EVH. ***Update 3.0***Heard back from Klipsch regarding the wings. They are aware of the issue and are getting a remedy ready. They took my address so they could get the order together. I will have one last update when I receive and test them. In the meantime, the wing issue still isn't enough for me to change my thought process. Among the best in the business without question. ***New Wings Update***I added some photos that show the new wings that arrived from Klipsch today. If you look closely, you can see that they added a ridge that comes around the edge of the bud just a bit that secures the wing nicely. While this problem shouldn't have occurred, what separates great companies is how they handle their mistakes. When I contacted Klipsch they were slow to respond but, once they did, I received regular communication from them and, as promised, received the new and improved wings today. Since buying these, I also grabbed the new Bose and Jabra buds as well. Both have ANC and are pretty darn amazing. That said, again, I cranked these up with the new wings on and they are just perfect. If you want some buds that will really stand out from the crowd, deliver exceptional sound, and now secure in your ears perfectly, I am still recommending these highly. 05/31/2021 Update: So I have upped my ear buds game the last few months. I have been using the latest Master and Dynamic MW08's and the Bowers and Wilkins PI7's. Both are quite a bit more expensive than these at $299 and $399 respectively. They both have ANC, better everyday use cases (especially the M&D's) and many more features. That said, after a couple of months buried in my drawer, I broke these bad boys out for a Memorial Day run and some yard work and, I have to say, that these are just so good. If you can live without ANC at less than $200 now, these are amazing. The B&W's are the first buds that stand alone for me sound wise in some time but these compare nicely all and all and cost less than half. So good.