Ausdom ANC7 Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Bluetooth Headphone

 
I was contacted by Ausdom to ask if I was interested in reviewing their ANC7 wireless Bluetooth headphones. I'd been asked a few times to review these headphones, especially after I reviewed the Sony h.ear model, so the timing couldn't have been better
 
 
Like the M05s, the AN7s were initially attractive out of the box -- lightweight and seemingly fairly well-built with most of the outside surfaces having a rubberised texture. This texture should last a few years before it deteriorates which I think is OK on a pair of headphones at this price. The controls are fairly straight-forward, the buttons have bumps on them making it easy to feel for the control you want. Thankfully unlike the M05 the USB charging port is un-covered. The battery charge is supposed to last 10 hours and they can be left switched off for weeks without the battery going flat.
 
 
For comfort, they are reasonable, with sufficient padding on the headband and earpads, enhanced by the lack of weight. The cups adjust in the common way, with metal pieces in the headband sliding in and out. They are somewhat stiff and don't slide smoothly, but hold in place well. Finally, the cups rotate through about 100 degrees (flat through to angled) allowing for both comfort adjustment as well as easy packing.
 
Pairing them up with my computer and phone was straight-forward. 
 
With the noise cancelling off, there is some harshness through the mid-range and treble, most noticeable playing back piano, but it doesn't come through so strongly on a lot of music, such as vocals. The bass is quite weak, very noticeable with "club" music and similar. However when the noise cancelling is turned on, the treble drops down, the soundstage become smaller and the bass becomes quite a bit stronger, a bit too much with some music, overall somewhat muffled-sounding, but is not unlistenable. 
 
 
Most troubling was that without music playing, the noise cancelling mode seems to reduce low-frequency sounds a bit from the outside, but I was still able to clearly hear a lot of sounds around me when anything less than fairly complex music was playing. Experimentally I put music on my speakers and listened to a variety of music through the headphones with the noise cancelling on. With a regular pop-music track, the music playing through the speakers was blocked well enough, but with quieter music, such as a piano solo, I could clearly here the music playing in the background.
 
 
After seeing someone post a modification guide for the M05, I pulled the earpads off and had a quick look inside the cups. I found a block of white sound dampening material inside, but no other sound deadening material at all. This makes me wonder if it wouldn't have been better, given the sound quality drop when activated, if a better effort at making the actual headphones isolate passively was made, before noise cancelling was implemented to begin with.
 
Overall given the poor performance of the noise cancelling, I'd recommend just getting a regular pair of wireless headphones, like the Noontec, for the same price instead. If noise cancelling is desired, saving money for the Sony 100-ABN, which have excellent sound quality, or the Bose, which have excellent isolation. 
 

Introduction
Ausdom makes a variety of products, from webcams, wireless speakers to headphones. Their previous Bluetooth headphone M05 made a splash in Head-Fi, in the relatively uncharted terrain of wireless headphones. The new ANC7 on-ears already hint at the new function of Active Noise Cancelling, targeted at busy people on-the-go. It reduces background noise to barely noticeable levels. Mainly for plane, train or bus use, or for people with really talky mothers-in-law. I would like to thank Grace from Ausdom for the review sample.

Equipment Used:
Ausdom ANC7
Honor 6
 
Songs Listened:
A selection of 320kbps MP3s and lossless FLACs from my cellphone, including:
Katherine McPhee – Terrified (female vocals)
Fall Out Boy – The Phoenix (bass speed, slam)
James Bay – Hold Back the River (male vocals)
Sheppard – Geronimo (soundstage)
Nirvana – About a Girl (imaging, immersion)
Radiohead – Creep (treble, balance)
Adele – When We Were Young (female vocals, mids)
Smashing Pumpkins – Tonight, Tonight (midbass, separation)
Pink Floyd – High Hopes (treble, soundstage)
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Road Trippin’ (male vocals, mids)
And many others.





Packaging and Accessories
In an unassuming beige box the Ausdom ANC7 comes. Minimalist and understated, with black and silver text. The front of the box is straight-up two lines of text! You don’t see packaging like this anywhere. Open that up, and you get an attractive carbon fibre design case, which houses the headphones and its accessories. Included with the headphones are a manual, charge cable, and 3.5mm cable for wired listening. A clean, handy and appealing package.

Design, Build Quality and Cables
The headphones look good. The earcups and headband have the same carbon fibre design as the case, while the black and red design is a head-turner. The matte plastic at the slider and housing has a nice feel to it. I have no qualms at all about the design. Will I wear it out? Definitely. Is it a chick magnet? Err… no, unless they have a thing for carbon fibre designs. Build quality is average, no complaints other than one side of the slider having more pull resistance than the other. I would love some metal parts or anything that suggests durability because as far as I can see, this is all plastic. The 3.5mm cable seems like an afterthought rather than a main feature. They come in handy when the battery runs out, but it’s thin, tangly and does not inspire confidence. Wearing the headphones out in wired mode will negate any chick-magnet effect the ANC7 has, unless you’re Dwayne Johnson.

Fit, Isolation and Comfort
Having only tried over-ears at this point, I’m quite surprised at the level of comfort the ANC7 on-ears brings. I have a ginormous head (that likely houses an industrial-sized brain), and feared the worst. But fully stretched, the ANC7 feels light and comfy, the feeling is just short of strapping pillows onto my ears. As expected isolation is poor without ANC. Environmental noises leak in and you can only drown them by turning the music up. Unless you love visiting the audiologist (or the ENT surgeon) you’ll need a backup plan. The ANC switch decreases background noise significantly, the din caused by engines, fans, wheels and whatnot are muted. It doesn’t isolate as completely as say, CIEMs, but it’s definitely an improvement. In wired mode the isolation switch works similarly.

Pairing and Battery Life
No problem with pairing. Easy-peasy, no-hassle connecting. Signal strength is excellent, with sound quality maintained for up to 30 feet. Battery life is INSANE in the membrane! On one full charge since I got it two weeks ago, with 1-2 hours daily listening, it’s still nowhere near finished. What is this, nuclear-powered?



 

Overall Signature
The ANC7 has two distinct sound signatures, owing to the ANC switch. With ANC off, it’s a mid-forward, neutralish signature with boosted mids and low treble, and flat bass. The bass takes a big hit in this setting. Midbass is audible and detailed, but lacks any impact whatsoever. Subbass is practically missing. With ANC on, it takes on a more balanced, smoother signature. The bass has come out to play, but in exchange of that, the mids and treble are veiled to a degree. The ANC does its job well, cancelling out at least half of the background noise. I would say ANC off is great for vocals and acoustic-driven tracks with simpler arrangements, while ANC on is more suited for modern, mainstream music. Switching back and forth I preferred the sound quality of ANC-off mode, but have learnt to appreciate the usefulness of ANC-on as well.

Bass
ANC off: You get a level (maybe even less than that), detailed midbass with very good note articulation. Bass detail is definitely up there. However, slam, impact, rumble, decay, basically anything that makes a bass a BASS, isn’t there. Subbass is inaudible to my ears, the roll-off might have ended too early.
ANC on: This is better! Subbass rumble is light but definitely an improvement. Midbass detail is sacrificed for thicker notes, longer decay, and good slam and impact. A good bass with no bleed, if generic and slightly muddy. Proves you can’t have it all.

Mids
ANC off: For the price, the mids are beautiful and clear. Just as detailed as the bass but sounding more prominent, natural and resolved. Vocals are a treat and come alive, as do acoustic guitars and piano. They are even a tinge exciting and vibrant, striking a good balance between technicality and smoothness.
ANC on: You can’t question it, since a/b-ing is just a flick of a switch away. There is a veil. It envelops the mids with a smoothness that nearly becomes a smear in between notes. It is consistent with the note thickness of the bass however, but lacking detail and clarity in exchange for some warmth. Sounds dull compared to ANC off, but more coherent with the rest of the signature. For my taste I prefer a brighter presentation.

Treble
Treble on the whole is gentle, smooth and inoffensive, good for prolonged listening. The only difference I can tell between both trebles is that the lower treble is brighter, thinner and more prominent for ANC-off. Meaning the detail and clarity-oriented signature for ANC-off is consistent. Likewise, the smoother, darker ANC-on signature is also continued. Those looking for sparkle will be disappointed, they are quite subdued. Great news for treble-sensitive people however, harshness and sibilance are not an issue at all here. The treble rolls off quite early for both modes. It plays safe to the point that it takes no risks at all, rendering it… offensively inoffensive?



 

Soundstage and Imaging
ANC off: Without any bass enhancement to weigh down the sound, the signature is predictably airy. It’s pleasant, expansive and wide, with a bit of depth as well. There’s quite an impressive headspace too, I hear sounds inches in front of, and around my head. Owing to the thinner notes, separation between notes and instruments are excellent for the asking price. Listening to classical or jazz will surprise you as to what the ANC7 is capable of.
ANC on: So for a better-balanced sound signature, the soundstage suffers. It’s narrower and shallower than the staging of ANC-off and sounds congested in complicated passages. The thicker, smooth-ended notes muddle the separation as well. Owing to the fact that ANC functions more to cancel out background noise, I do understand the functionally smaller stage of this mode. In other words, in a crowded place, the last thing you’ll appreciate is how clean and airy your music is anyway.

Conclusion:
The Ausdom ANC7 presents itself as a value-for-money package with a good active noise cancelling function, and as a bonus, two distinct sound signatures. It’s like getting two headphones for the price of one, so long as you know which mode suits which music the best, you have a veritable all-rounder in your hands. Of course, signature-wise I’d love the mids, treble and soundstage of the ANC-off mode coupled with the bass and isolation of ANC-on, but we don’t live in a perfect world. The stellar battery life and attractive form-fitting case means this will get a lot of outdoor time as well. All-in-all, it is a worthy package to consider, and definitely a good alternative to the ANC stable currently dominated by Bose.

The ANC7 arrived very quickly and was well packaged. An inner cardboard sleeve as well as a bag and then the case. The headphone folds flat and fits easily into the case, making it a good travelling companion. It's a good looker with its red trim and so looks pretty good if worn in public.









The use of Bluetooth means that of course, no wires are necessary but should you run out of power, then a wire is provided so that you can continue to listen as you would a normal headphone. The Bluetooth uses aptx which means lag is less than normal Bluetooth if you have an aptx sending device and also, the sound is slightly improved via this technology. The range of Bluetooth receive is extremely good. I was able to mow the lawn with the sending device up on the decking and it was reliable with no drop out. Of course, with Bluetooth, there is often a compromise as far as sound goes. The technology hasn't been able to properly match a wired headphone sound yet, but then again, you have the convenience and mobility offered by having no wires.




Sound via Bluetooth with NC off is pretty balanced. It's not a typical 'boombox' sound and it's pretty even throughout. This is a step up in sound from the m04s for sure since the bass no longer dominates the rest of the spectrum. It's very good with podcast and speech since there is very little 'booming' with mens' voices.

Turn the noise cancellation on and there is yet more likelihood of noise via the NC circuit, let alone Bluetooth. The potential for high levels of noise is more likely. A small amount of hiss is introduced with the circuit switched in and as with many NC headphones, the timbre of the ANC7 changes. This is a common thing even with more expensive options such as the Sony mdr100abn (which I also use) and the Bose QC25. With these two, we're talking a lot more money than the Ausdom headphone and still, with the NC circuits switched in, there is a 'hissing' noise introduced. Also, the timbre of both change, just like the ANC7, although the Sony changes less.




With NC switched on, the ANC7 develops a deeper bass and mids become more recessed. It's perhaps a little 'boomer'. With some music, this is an advantage but then, you also have to think about when you are likely to use noise cancellation. I switch mine in on the Sony or the Ausdom when the TV is on or obviously, if you're on a bus, train or whatever. The effect of the NC just takes out mostly bass sounds. High sounds are managed by the pads. So with it switched in, you can hear people talking, but with low noises taken out, it in effect sounds like you're in another room. Talking is not distracting.

I get a better seal with the Sony headphone, so for me, talking sounds are taken out more than with the Ausdom, but there is quite a large price difference between them. The Ausdom does well up against the Sony.



Since the NC is being used in noisy situations, it is often a good idea to boost the bass and that hiss becomes irrelevant. It's kind of false to be testing NC in a quite room so that you can hear the circuit because in real life situations, you wouldn't hear it.

I think that we need to remember that Bluetooth and noise cancellation is a compromise that allows you freedom and the ability to listen in a noisy environment without turning up too loud.

So in a quiet situation, I turn the NC off and in a noisy situation, it goes on. No problem then with hearing circuit hiss. It is at a very low level. As a test, I mowed the lawn with NC on and it worked superbly. The noise of the mower went down to a background whir and I had no need to turn up mu music loud at all. Sitting in the garden is a quiet activity, until some neighbour decides to mow or perhaps an airplane goes overhead. With NC on, this is wiped out.

I've given this headphone five stars because of its price and listening options. It is less than half the price of the Bose or Sony and does a good job. You have choices to listen with or without wire, NC on or off or even as a passive headphone. It's convenient and yes, there is a compromise in sound, but that is to be expected with this technology. The same goes for its more expensive rivals. It depends whether you'd like to spend another £100+ than the Ausdom, so I feel that there is good value for money here and the sound is reasonable and to be honest, pretty balanced.