Review: Marshall Major IV On-Ear Headphones

The Major headphones has been a long staple in Marshall’s headphone lineup and the new Marshall Major IV offers the reliable performance that all we’ve come to expect from a Marshall product. The Marshall Major IV retails at S$269.

Unboxing

Inside the box, you will find the following items:

• Marshall Major IV on-ear headphones
• 3.5mm audio cable
• USB-C to USB-A cable
• User manual

Tech specs

Build quality and features

The Marshall Major IV rocks its classic Marshall iconic design, with rounded square shape as its ear cups style and has the ‘Marshall’ branding plastered across each cup. The ear cups and joined to the headband via an industrial-looking metal frame that extend and retract rather smoothly. The headband is flexible as shown in the video below and the entire headphone is foldable as well.

Once folded down, the Marshall Major IV is becomes pretty small and compact to bring it along. For size comparisons, you can see that the folded headphones can fit the palm of my hand.

Controls

Marshall Major IV uses a control knob found on the right earcup for controlling power, Bluetooth, media such as play/pause, skipping of tracks, and also call handling. I found the control knob to be easy to use, and the placement of the knob is well positioned. Refer to the video below below for a clearer understanding.

Marshall Major IV also features a 3.5mm audio jack, so those who prefer to listen to your songs via the wired option – you’ll be glad to know that the good old 3.5mm jack still exists!

Battery life

Marshall Major IV is rated to last an incredible 80+ hours on a single charge. And if you ever find yourself needing to revive it on a dead battery, charging it for just 15 minutes will give you 15 hours of music play time. Charging is done via USB-C. Alternatively, you can also charge the Marshall Major IV wirelessly using a wireless charger as shown below, on the right ear cup.

I found that found that folding down the left ear cup first then placing the right ear cup on the wireless charger makes the process less cumbersome.

Fit and comfort

I’m usually not a big fan of on-ear headphones because ear cups resting directly on my ear gets uncomfortable after a while. But the Marshall Major IV is starting to change my opinion. The new Marshall Major IV now comes with softer ear cushions and they indeed make wearing the headphones more comfortable. Check out the cushioning in the video below:

Apart from the soft cushioning, what makes the Marshall Major IV comfortable to wear for long periods of time is the clamping pressure. The pressure applied on my ears is just right so that I do not feel it pressing against my ears. Despite the headband not having much cushioning, I do not feel much pressure on the top of my head. Also, the lightweight nature of the Marshall Major IV at just 165g helps with the overall comfort.

Pairing, connectivity, and latency

Marshall Major IV is equipped with Bluetooth 5.0 and pairing with mu iPhone 11 is almost instantaneous upon powering it on. When watching YouTube videos from the YouTube app on my iPhone 11, I did not notice any audio video latency/lag.

Sound quality

The Marshall Major IV sound great, with an audio tuning that I personally like – enough emphasis on bass, bright highs, and a wide soundstage. Bass on Marshall Major IV is punchy, rich, and well controlled. It doesn’t stray too deep to provide overwhelming booming sub-bass reverb. Personally, I like how the bass is produced as it keeps the low end sounding clean and not invading into the mids.

Midrange is crisp – vocals and instruments have great clarity and detail. Instrument separation on the Marshall Major IV is very good. On songs like Boogie Wonderland by Earth, Wind & Fire, you can clearly discern the different layers of the song. Soundstage is also wide, giving you an enjoyable open sound. As for highs, they sound bright without being overly sibilant.

As good as the audio sound, I do find that noise isolation isn’t the best for on-ear headphones so if you’re using it in the bus or noisy trains, the external noise will likely creep into your music. It’s kinda like an open-fit earbud experience. ANC would have been a nice option to have.

Microphone quality

The microphone quality of the Marshall Major IV is pretty good and should be reliable to use for Zoom calls when you’re at home. There is a good amount of clarity in my voice even though it doesn’t capture much of the bass in my voice like what the Huawei FreeBuds Studio can do. When background noise is introduced, the microphone is able to snuff a fair amount of the noise and keep my noise largely forward and undistorted.

Conclusion

If you’re someone who prefers on-ear headphones, the Marshall Major IV is a great option. It is comfortable to wear and has a really long battery life. They sound fantastic as well with well-controlled bass and an enjoyable soundstage to complement to detailed mids and highs. Its foldable nature and compact size makes it easy to bring around wherever you go.