Audio-Technica has dished out a few true wireless earbuds last year and it’s about time they launched one with Active Noise-Cancelling (ANC). ATH-ANC300TW is Audio-Technica’s newest true wireless earbuds with ANC capabilities. It retails for S$348.
Unboxing
In the box, you will get the following items:
- ATH-ANC300TW earbuds
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- 4 pair of silicon ear tips (XS, S, M, L)
- 1 pair of Comply foam ear tips
- User manual
Tech specs
| Driver | 5.8 mm Dynamic driver |
| Frequency Response | 20 – 25,000 Hz |
| Sensitivity | 106 dB/mW |
| Impedance | 14 ohms (unit impedance) |
| Battery Life | Max. approx. 4.5 hours* (headphones); Max. approx. 18 hours* (headphones + charging case) Charging time: Approx. 1 hours* (headphones); Approx. 2.5 hours* (charging case) |
| Weight | Headphones: ~7g each Charging case: ~50g |
| Accessories Included | 30 cm (1.0′) USB-A/USB-C charging cable, Eartips (XS, S, M, L), Complyâ„¢ foam eartips (M) |
| Microphone Type | MEMS type; -32 dB (1 V/Pa at 1 kHz) |
| Frequency Response (Microphone) | 100 – 10,000 Hz |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.0 |
| Supported Codecs | aptX, AAC, SBC |
| Water Resistance | IPX2 |
Build quality and features
The charging case is reminiscent of the ATH-CK3TW, just that it is little bigger and has more flat edges. The case has a plastic base combined with a nice matte lid, and can be opened easily with one hand. There are three LED indicators on the case to display charging status.
As for the buds, they are a little large and chunky especially on the body. They are made of plastic but have a somewhat grippy rubberised coating on them which feels good to touch. There is a single physical button on the top of each earbud, which in my opinion is great placement.
Each earbud weights about 7 grams each and have a IPX2 water-resistance rating. They should be good enough to take some drops of rain but you have to be more cautious using them on heavy workouts. For audio codec, they support up to aptX so that’s great to have if your Android phone supports it.
Controls
The controls of the ATH-ANC300TW earbuds are well positioned at the top so you won’t be jamming the buttons into your ears. You will be able to change volume, skip tracks or receive/end calls with the physical buttons.
App
There is an accompanying app called Audio-Technica Connect. The app gives you some flexibility to change audio codecs, and modify ANC/HearThrough. You can also switch the controls of the button from the left to the right, or vice-versa.
There is no equaliser on the app, and the experience of the app is a little buggy at times. Sometimes I am required to re-connect the earbuds to the app even though I have connected to the app before.
By default, the left button cycles through the ANC and the Quick Hear-through mode. The Quick HearThrough mode is different from the HearThrough mode. The Quick HearThrough mode reduces the volume of the song significantly and allow outside sounds to come in. The HearThrough mode provides a nice balance of letting the outside sound sin while still hearing your music, something like using an open-ear earbuds.
You can only modify it to switch between ANC off or Hear-through mode, but I have no idea why would you want to do that.
Hear-Through
There is a Hear-Through mode which allows the outside noise or sounds to come in. There are 3 settings (Low, Medium, High) for you to choose from. Personally, I found the ‘Medium’ setting to strike a good balance between still hearing your music and being aware of the outside environment.
ATH-ANC300TW’s Hear-Through mode is very natural and does not sound overly processed.
Battery life
Battery life by 2020’s standard is not its best suit. It lasts up to 4.5 hours on a single charge. This is probably due to ANC technology in place. The charging case provides another 13.5 hours. There is no mention about any quick charging. The charging case is charged via USB-C which is great, but it would have been nice to have wireless charging capabilities on a premium priced earbuds.
Fit
Despite the chunky size of the ATH-ANC300TW earbuds, the fit in my ears is actually pretty good. As the nozzle of the earbuds are contoured like the Sudio Fem and Creative Outlier Air, they sit comfortably snug in my ears.
There are four sizes of silicon tips to choose from XS to L. I’m glad that Audio-Technica also added in a pair of Comply foam tips to provide you with the best seal and comfort while wearing the ATH-ANC300TW. I highly recommend the use of the included Comply Foam tips as it is more comfortable and provides a better seal, allowing the ANC to be more effective.
If you want ever need a replacement for the comply foam tips, you can get the Comply Foam TrueGrip Pro. I have tested it on the ATH-ANC300TW and it fits well.
Pairing, connectivity, and latency
Like the Creative Outlier Air, the ATH-ANC300TW is powered by Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo Plus. This means that when pairing, the left and right earbuds appear as independent earbuds on your Bluetooth list.
Bluetooth 5.0 and Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo Plus really made the connection super stable and I barely experienced any audio dropouts. If you want to use just one earbud, you can use either but you have remove both earbuds first, then putting back one side into the case. A little bit troublesome, but it works.
As expected from Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo Plus, there is zero latency or lag from watching YouTube videos from the YouTube app on my iPhone 11.
Sound quality
First off, you’ll be glad that the ATH-ANC300TW supports up to aptX audio codec. ANC is turned on by default, so I will review the sound quality based on ANC turned on. To start, the base volume on the earbuds is does not get very loud. For most earbuds I usually listen at about 50% of max volume. But on the ATH-ANC300TW, I realised I have to crank it up to about 70%-80% to get the same volume.
Bass on the ATH-ANC300TW is tight and punchy. It is a clean, and light bodied bass experience, so do not expect thumping sub-bass response. On songs like Billie Eillish’s Bad Guy for example, the low bass beats do not feel as thick and deep. Instead, they feel clean with just enough rumble to accompany the mids. However, if you are used to earbuds which packs big boomy bass, then the ATH-ANC300TW may leave you wanting more on the sub-bass response.
Speaking of midrange, vocals have great amount of detail and clarity. The ATH-ANC300TW also has distinct track separation. Vocals and instruments are discerned easily. The soundstage on the ATH-ANC300TW is fairly wide and spacious. As for highs, the treble is also clear and snappy, and is the most forward frequency of the lot. It can get sibilant on some tracks.
The last thing to note is that the transition from ANC to Quick HearThrough takes almost 2-3 seconds to fully kick in. It’s a little slow which kind of defeats the purpose of the Quick HearThrough.
ANC performance
The ANC on the ATH-ANC300TW is quite impressive. The app gives you three modes of ANC to choose from – Airplane, On the Go, Office/Study. I can’t really tell much difference between the ‘Airplane’ and ‘On the Go’ mode, but once you add in some airplane noise, the ‘Airplane’ mode is much better at getting rid of the low rumbling noises. The low rumbling engine sound on buses is reduced by a fair bit with ‘Airplane’ mode turned on.
Television drama, vacuum cleaner, hairdryer – the ATH-ANC300TW managed to effectively snuff out most of the noise. High pitch sounds like hairdryer or keyboard clacks usually seep through the ANC as with my experience with Sudio Ett and 1More EHD9001TA. However, for the ATH-ANC300TW the high pitch noises were reduced more effectively. There is also no cabin pressure effect. Of course, do note that the ANC on true wireless earbuds is no match for the ANC you experience on headphones.
Microphone quality
During phone calls, the ATH-ANC300TW seems to allow in a fair bit of ambient noise. However, it doesn’t seem to kick in the HearThrough mode completely. It would have been nice to see the HearThrough mode turn on automatically.
The microphone does a pretty good job in picking up my voice during conversations despite being in noisy environment. The microphone does not try to isolate my voice and snuff out the background noise, but my voice still stands out as it is the nearest to the microphone. There is sufficient clarity to rely on this for calls.
Conclusion
Audio-Technica has done a brilliant job on the ATH-ANC300TW. It has great sound quality especially if you appreciate midrange clarity and the expansive soundstage. The ANC performance is also effective and one of the better ones in the market. It is priced at S$348, which is still on the expensive side but that’s what you generally pay for ANC capable earbuds.
If you’re looking to snag it below S$348, you can always buy it from Audio-Technica’s official Qoo10 store, as you can apply and stack coupons to lower the price.