Technics EAH-AZ80 True Wireless Headphones Review

The Technics EAH-AZ80 have a beveled teardrop design that's similar to other premium wireless in-ears like the Sony WF-1000XM5 Truly Wireless or the Sennheiser MOMENTUM True Wireless 4. They're made of smooth plastic and aluminum, with a shiny finish on the exterior plate that tapers to matte on the other side and a gold Technics logo embossed on the front. They're available in 'Black' and 'Silver' color variants.

The Technics EAH-AZ80 have a comfortable in-ear fit. They come with seven pairs of different silicone ear tips, making it easy to find a pair that's well suited to your ear canal shape. Once inserted, they apply minimal pressure to the inside of your ear canal, so inputting controls via the external surface doesn't hurt your ear. The result is a very secure fit and seal. The downside is that they often require a bit of maneuvering to remove from your ear as there's not a lot of purchase to be found on their sleek body.

These in-ears have great controls. They're mostly intuitive, although there's a learning curve at first to memorize the different functions. You can also further customize them via the app. There's audio feedback in the form of a chime every time you register a press or reach maximum/minimum volume. There are additional audio prompts to indicate when you've cycled through ANC and Ambient Sound modes and a melody that plays while in Bluetooth pairing mode. Ambient Sound uses the onboard mics to filter in some external sound so you can stay more aware of your surroundings. The touch-sensitive surface on the exterior of each bud is very responsive, though (although you can adjust this in the companion app). This can lead to accidentally inputting commands while you try to adjust the fit. So you'll want to be careful when adjusting them using the area around the touch surface. It can also be time-consuming to go from minimum to max volume, as you'll need to space out your presses to avoid the wrong command being registered.

On either earbud:

• Single tap: Plays/pauses audio and accepts an incoming call.
• Double tap: Mutes mic while on a call.
• Tap and hold: Cycles between ANC and Ambient Sound modes (you can also adjust this in the app). Ends call when on a call.

On the right earbud:

• Double tap: Skips to the next track.
• Triple tap: Skips back to the previous track.

On the left earbud:

• Double tap: Increases the volume.
• Triple tap: Decreases the volume.

These buds are very lightweight and portable, and they take up very little space in a bag or a pocket. You can also stow them in their charging case for hassle-free transportation.

The Technics AZ80 come with a great carrying case. It's small and practical, constructed from solid and sturdy plastic. The lid is sturdy and magnetically latched, so your buds won't spill out if you drop the case. While there's a battery level indicator inside your case, there's no immediate way to check the battery level without opening the case.

The Technics AZ80 have a great build quality. The seven pairs of provided ear tips are made of high-quality silicone that feels sturdier than most. The buds themselves are made of high-quality plastic that feels very solid to the touch. The same goes for the all-plastic construction of the case. The only negative point is that the IPX4 rating for protection against water splashes applies only to the buds and not the case. This still makes them a great choice for outdoor activities, though, where you won't be bringing the case anyway.

These buds provide a very stable fit. Once you achieve a solid fit, they'll stay in place through even more intense workouts without loosening or popping out your ear canal.

• Technics EAH-AZ80 True Wireless earbuds
• 7x silicone ear tips
• Charging case
• USB-C to USB-A charging cable
• Quick-start guide and warranty papers

The Technics EAH-AZ80 have a warm default sound profile. They're well-suited to a variety of genres, especially considering that you can adjust the sound profile via the presets and graphic EQ in the companion app. You can see how the different presets affect the sound profile here. They have a mostly balanced bass range, with a touch of emphasis in the high bass that adds warmth to mixes. The mid-range is pretty balanced, too, meaning vocals and lead instruments are rendered with plenty of presence and detail. A slight dip in the low-treble can lessen some of the richness of the upper harmonics of vocals, though, and a spike in the mid-treble response can cause sibilants to sound harsh. As with other ANC-equipped earbuds, like the Sony WF-1000XM5 Truly Wireless, their sound profile is slightly different with the ANC enabled, with a slightly boosted bass response audible when the ANC is off compared to on. The sound is also altered when the mic is engaged, for example, when you're on a call. You can see a graph of how this affects the frequency response in Recording Quality.

These buds have good frequency response consistency. We encountered issues achieving a solid seal in the right ear, but we don't anticipate this to be an issue with human ears. This causes a larger level of deviation between left and right than expected. Our results indicate a degree of inconsistency in the treble range between different listening sessions. Still, you'll likely achieve more consistent audio delivery when using these buds regularly.

These buds have excellent bass accuracy. The low bass is practically flat and well-aligned with our target curve, so kicks and subby 808s have just the right amount of boom. There's also a touch of extra warmth from the elevated high bass, which helps bring out the fundamental frequencies of bass guitars. However, as this emphasis extends into the low-mids, it can clutter already warm mixes. For example, on songs like Sons of Mischief's 93 'Til Infinity, the lo-fi production treatment means that the bassline and breakbeat occupy similar sonic territory, and these buds struggle to provide clarity and separation between them in the mix.

The mid accuracy is excellent. The low-mids are somewhat over-emphasized, adding substance to snares and toms, but when combined with the boosted high-bass, this can clutter the mix. The rest of the range is well-balanced, so vocals and lead instruments sound clear and present.

The treble accuracy is great. The lower part of this range is slightly underemphasized, which can thin out the upper harmonics and richness of vocals. However, a bump into the mid-treble response adds a slightly harsh quality to sibilants, like hi-hats and cymbals.

The Technics AZ80 have a good peaks and dips performance, meaning they generally follow their own sound profile well. There's a slight dip in the low bass, which mostly isn't noticeable given we struggle to hear frequencies this low anyway. A small peak between the high-bass and low-mids adds extra warmth to the mix, followed by a dip in the mid-mid that decreases the presence of lead instruments. There's a larger dip in the low treble that robs the upper harmonics of vocals of some of their richness. This is followed by a sharp peak in the mid-treble that can make sibilants, like S and T sounds, sound harsh and excessively bright.

The imaging performance is outstanding. While this is the first Technics product we've tested, the brand has developed a reputation for great quality control and ergonomics through its other audio products, like turntables. These buds are certainly indicative of this dedication to quality, as their L/R drivers are very well-matched, and the resulting performance features tight bass and transparent highs. Our unit is also well-matched regarding amplitude, phase response, and frequency, resulting in accurate localization of objects within the stereo field. While there's a very slight mismatch visible on the graph in the mid-mid region, it's not audible in real-life content or sweeps.

As with other wireless in-ears, these buds have a bad passive soundstage performance. Audio bypasses your outer ear by virtue of their design, so they struggle to create a wide, immersive-sounding soundstage. The soundstage, therefore, sounds closed-off and unnatural compared to open-back over-ears which can make it seem like audio is coming from different angles around your head.

The weighted harmonic distortion performance is very good. All frequencies fall within good limits, and although there's slightly more distortion in the high-mid and low-treble range, it's not audible in real-life content. It's worth noting, however, that these buds struggle to reach 100dB of output via our testing rig, though this was more easily achievable when connected to a mobile device.

These are the settings used to test the Technics EAH-AZ80 True Wireless. Our results are only valid when used in this configuration.

The Technics AZ80 have a great full-range noise isolation performance. While they don't have the foam tips and excellent passive isolation of the Sony WF-1000XM5 Truly Wireless, they have an active noise cancelling (ANC) system that does a solid job of blocking out noise across the entire frequency range. With the maximum ANC level, they attenuate more bass range noise than the Sony. However, this could be because the Technics' ANC system isn't adaptive and isn't constantly adjusting to environmental audio. As a result, they do an excellent job of blocking out noises like rumbling bus engines. This extends to the mid-range, too, so background conversations are effectively blocked out, and these headphones provide a considerable amount of attenuation against treble-range noises, too. However, this is more down to the passive isolation provided by their in-ear fit.

Using the controls, you can switch between the ANC and ambient sound mode, which uses the mic to feed in external audio and keep you aware of your surroundings. While these modes are toggleable by the physical controls, you can blend the two via the companion app to find a balance that works best for you.

In common scenarios, these buds perform great across the board. They attenuate very well against the rumble of airplane engines, so you can nod off in peace while on a long flight. They do an even better job of blocking street noise, like onrushing cars and the accompanying honks, and insulate you well from the hustle and bustle of a busy office.

Wind noise is a unique feature for ANC systems to deal with as it interacts directly with the microphones used, which can cause the mics to create a loud, annoying tone from a noise that doesn't even reach your ear.

These buds don't have a wind reduction feature. However, they have a background noise reduction feature so that if you're taking a call, the person on the other end of the line hears your voice more clearly. As a result, we didn't use this feature for this test. Unfortunately, this feature won't do much to mitigate wind noise, so you'll want to avoid using the ANC feature in windy conditions.

The Technics AZ80 have an excellent leakage performance. Audio leakage is mostly concentrated in the treble range, so it sounds thin. That said, even if you're blasting your tunes in a quiet office environment, it's unlikely that anyone around can hear your audio.

The mic's recording quality is passable. However, much of the treble response is shelved, so your voice will sound muffled. It also struggled to pick up lower frequencies, so the recorded audio sounds thin, too. For those who plan on using these buds for online meetings, you can check out a pass done with the integrated microphone activated here. Using the built-in mic can bring about a drop in audio quality due to having to switch to a different Bluetooth profile to transmit (and receive) audio. However, this is a limitation of Bluetooth rather than the buds themselves.

These buds do a middling job of separating your voice against moderately loud environments, so if you need to make a call in a busy street, you'll still be understandable even though there's some background noise present. It struggles more with louder levels of background noise, though, so your voice will drowned out by the sound of an incoming train, for example.

The Technics AZ80 have a decent battery life performance. They last a little over seven hours on a single charge, which aligns with the seven hours the manufacturer advertises. Plus, there are two additional charges contained in the case. However, this battery performance will decrease if you're using LDAC. There's an auto-off power-saving feature to help preserve battery life, and you can adjust the time before this kicks in in the app. The manufacturer also advertises a quick charge feature that gives you 70 mins of playtime with just a fifteen-minute charge.

The Technics app is great, with a host of features available and some deep customization possibilities if you're willing to spend some time with it. You can see the battery level of the buds and the case, access the 'find my headphones' feature, and change the voice prompt language and tone. There are a slew of customization options, too, as you can access custom EQ and presets, modify ANC/ambient sound levels, and alter the controls to your liking. You can also access the multipoint settings, change the auto-off timer time, and even use a tool that helps you find the right size tips. You can see a video of the app in action here.

You can't use the Technics AZ80 with a wired connection, but they come with a USB-A to USB-C cable for charging the case.

The Technics AZ80 have great Bluetooth connectivity. They stand out against the competition thanks to the inclusion of three-way Bluetooth multipoint connectivity and their LDAC compatibility for high-resolution audio streaming. However, you can't use these features to the fullest of their abilities, as you can't stream audio via LDAC while connected to three devices. The manual advises only connecting to one device while using LDAC, and connecting to two devices changes the playback quality to 'Best Effort.' These buds are compatible with AAC and SBC codecs, resulting in longer battery life performance than with LDAC. Latency with both LDAC and SBC is on the higher side, though, which can create lip sync issues when streaming video content from a device. Some apps and devices compensate for latency differently, so your experience may vary.

The Technics AZ80 can connect to Bluetooth-enabled PCs for full audio and mic compatibility. However, you can't connect them to your PC in any other way.

The included charging case can carry an additional three charges. You can charge the case using the supplied USB-C to USB-A cable; it also supports Qi wireless charging.