{"id":1203117,"date":"2023-11-15T08:25:22","date_gmt":"2023-11-15T13:25:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1203117"},"modified":"2023-11-15T08:25:22","modified_gmt":"2023-11-15T13:25:22","slug":"master-dynamic-mw09-review-premium-materials-impeccable-clarity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1203117","title":{"rendered":"Master & Dynamic MW09 review: Premium materials, impeccable clarity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Master & Dynamic didn\u2019t get off to a good start<\/a> with its true wireless earbuds, but the company\u2019s last two efforts were much-improved<\/a>. After rounding into form with the MW08 Sport<\/a>, M&D has returned with the MW09<\/a> ($349 or $399<\/a>): earbuds with a familiar design but enhancements to sound quality, active noise cancellation (ANC) and call performance. As always with the company\u2019s audio gear, high-end materials are on display, although the starting price is higher than most of the competition.<\/p>\n

Design<\/h2>\n

Master & Dynamic didn\u2019t make too many changes to its design. The same basic D-shaped housing remains for the outer portion of each bud. The company did add a circular element on the outer panel where its trademark \u201cM\u201d branding resides, but this is purely aesthetic. There\u2019s no additional touch panel or physical button there. Controls are still on the top edge with a volume rocker on the left and a multi-function button for playback and calls on the right. The volume controls also enable\/disable ambient sound and ANC with a long press on either end, but it\u2019s just an on\/off function that recalls your last preset choice. It doesn\u2019t cycle through all of the MW09\u2019s available options.<\/p>\n

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One of M&D\u2019s calling cards is its use of premium materials. Usually a mix of leather and metal, but those don\u2019t translate well to earbuds. Like the MW08 Sport, the company opted for a mix of aluminum and sapphire glass with a shiny aluminum charging case. There\u2019s also a Kevlar option for the case, and certain colors are only available with it, but that material will cost you an extra $50. Even with the high-end details, the MW09 is IP54 rated against dust and moisture while the case is IPX4. Master & Dynamic offers more fit options than most headphone companies as well, including five sizes of silicone tips and and two sizes of foam tips in the box.<\/p>\n

Software and features<\/h2>\n

Every setting and customization that\u2019s available on the MW09 is done through the M&D Connect app. The software shows battery life for the earbuds (one number for both) and the case on the main screen after you choose the connected device. A gear icon in the top right gives you access to sound presets, a fully customizable EQ and ambient sound \u2014 all of which appear under the Sound menu. Sidetone, the ability to hear your voice on calls, and the option to disable audio prompts are also available here.<\/p>\n

Deeper in the Settings menu, Master & Dynamic allows you to disable in-ear detection and set the auto-off timer. There\u2019s an acoustic earbud seal test and the option to manage Bluetooth connections. Multipoint is supported here, and it works well. The company doesn\u2019t overload you with options, and none of them are particularly nifty, but all the basics are covered and there\u2019s a solid degree of customization available. For example, there are three settings each for active noise cancellation and ambient mode, so even with those you aren\u2019t stuck with one default configuration.<\/p>\n

Sound quality and noise cancelation<\/h2>\n
\"Master
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Photo by Billy Steele\/Engadget<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

The one thing I enjoy most about the Master & Dynamic\u2019s consistent tuning is its affinity for balanced, natural sound. They\u2019ve always had great clarity too, so it\u2019s easy to listen to them for long periods of time.<\/p>\n

That knack for detail returns on the MW09 and it\u2019s on full display for albums like Chris Stapleton\u2019s Higher. <\/em>You can hear every bit of texture in the singer\u2019s bluesy rock riffs and things like the subtle decay in the snare drum rattle are easily lost on other earbuds. The MW09 really shines with genres like Stapleton\u2019s country rock, Nickel Creek\u2019s bluegrass and classic jazz. Even more bombastic styles like metal are thick and layered rather than seeming flat and compressed. Drain\u2019s Living Proof<\/em>, for instance, is just as angry, gritty and loud as it is on a set of over-ear cans. The stock tuning is fine but I personally preferred the Audiophile sound preset, which emphasizes treble and mids.<\/p>\n

Master & Dynamic says it \u201coptimized\u201d the microphone and sensor placement of its ANC setup on the MW09, with new adaptive noise-blocking algorithms for improved performance. The company offers three presets \u2014 Max ANC, All Day ANC and Adaptive ANC \u2014 with two designed for high- and low-noise settings with the third built to automatically adjust to environmental changes. I found the Max option the best at combating distractions overall, but the company has been clear that it impacts battery life. What\u2019s more, all three struggle to keep up at volumes below 50 percent, with things like white noise machines and human voices are ever present below 50 percent.<\/p>\n

Call quality and ambient sound<\/h2>\n

The company touts a new \u201cAI-enhanced\u201d voice setup for calls that employs six microphones and offers wind reduction to keep you sounding your best. Every earbud maker claims to provide pristine performance and almost all of them fall short. The MW09 does a great job cutting down on background noise, but the overall clarity isn\u2019t as natural as M&D brags. It\u2019s fine for casual chats, but you\u2019ll want something better for your voice and video calls at work.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll want to switch to one of the MW09\u2019s three ambient sound modes to keep yourself from getting overly shouty. The company\u2019s app does include the ability to pipe in your voice here via Sidetone, but you don\u2019t get the full effect if you stay in ANC mode. I found the Voice preset the best of the three ambient modes for both calls and keeping tabs on my surroundings, but there\u2019s a more general Natural option as well as an \u201cenhanced\u201d Awareness tuning. M&D\u2019s transparency mode isn\u2019t as natural sounding as on Apple\u2019s AirPods Pro, but it\u2019s above average.<\/p>\n

Battery life<\/h2>\n
\"Master
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Photo by Billy Steele\/Engadget<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Master & Dynamic has extended the battery life on the MW09 by two hours over the MW08 Sport when you have ANC on. With noise cancelation turned off, you\u2019ll get four more hours than that model. That\u2019s 12 and 16 hours compared to 10 and 12 hours. There\u2019s also an additional two hours in the charging case, up to 32 hours as opposed to the MW08 Sport\u2019s 30. Thanks to a quick charge feature, the MW09 can give you two hours of use in just five minutes, hitting 50 percent in 20 minutes.<\/p>\n

During my test with the All Day noise canceling setting enabled and volume at around 85 percent, the MW09 only lasted 10 hours. That\u2019s a higher volume level than I\u2019d typically run, but these earbuds are also quieter than most of the competition. You have to listen to them cranked up. M&D says the 12 hour figure is an average of run times in various scenarios and codecs at a volume just over 50 percent. That level just wasn’t loud enough for me. While it\u2019s disappointing to not hit the stated number, 10 hours is still at the top end of most premium earbuds these days. Sony manages eight out of its flagship model while Bose gets six, both are with ANC on.<\/p>\n

The competition<\/h2>\n

Sony\u2019s WF-1000XM5<\/a> remain our top pick for best wireless earbuds<\/a>. You can find better ANC performance from Bose and slightly better sound quality from Sennheiser, but Sony is a close second in both. What gives the 1000XM5 the edge is Sony\u2019s continued ability to put a ton of useful features on its earbuds, the sum of which no other company does. Things like Speak-to-Chat automatic pausing for conversations, automatic sound adjustments based on activity or location and DSEE Extreme upscaling that keeps Sony\u2019s audio chops near the best you can buy. They\u2019re Sony\u2019s most expensive earbuds yet, but they\u2019re still $49 less than the MW09.<\/p>\n

Bose\u2019s new QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds<\/a> are also worth a look. They\u2019re cheaper than the MW09 at $299 and support Bose\u2019s unique take on spatial audio that doesn\u2019t require specially-created content. The design is nearly identical to the QuietComfort Earbuds II, but that\u2019s okay since that shape is a lot more comfy than the previous iteration. Plus, the company\u2019s stellar noise-canceling setup is on the QC Ultra model, which is really the star of the show.<\/p>\n

Wrap-up<\/h2>\n

With the MW09<\/a>, Master & Dynamic makes tweaks to a familiar formula with the most significant changes coming the sound profile and customization options. Ambient sound mode is improved and the convenience of multipoint Bluetooth that works well can\u2019t be overstated. However, ANC performance is just okay and overall call quality is average. Lovers of a more natural sound profile and premium materials will be happy with these, but you can get more for less money elsewhere if those are your primary concerns.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https:\/\/www.engadget.com\/master–dynamic-mw09-review-premium-materials-impeccable-clarity-132522028.html?src=rss
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\nSource: Engadget – Master & Dynamic MW09 review: Premium materials, impeccable clarity<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Master & Dynamic didn\u2019t get off to a good start with its true wireless earbuds, but the company\u2019s last two efforts were much-improved. After rounding into form with the MW08 Sport, M&D has returned with the MW09 ($349 or $399): … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99,110],"tags":[98],"class_list":["post-1203117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-engadget","category-unfiltered-rss","tag-engadget"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1203117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1203117"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1203117\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1203117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1203117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1203117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}