Hello!
Finally, headphones fell into my hands, about which most of the Runet has been buzzing over the past year. What they just didn’t talk about, and how they didn’t extol them. It's time to figure out how true the praises and rave reviews are.
Since enough time has passed since the release of Bluedio, I decided to start right away with the more expensive version – T3. There is also a T3 + version (the difference is in the built-in player and memory card slot).
Packaging and equipment
Headphones, or rather a headset, and this is a headset, came to me in a large black dense box. The box has a cardboard cover with a picture of the device itself and brief characteristics in several languages.
In addition, the case has a QR code leading to the company's website, as well as a sticker with an erasable layer under which there is a verification code. The code must be entered on the site. This way you can check the authenticity of the headset.
The box itself is black without any inscriptions or drawings. Only embossed in a small uneven cell.
The box adjusts to the fact that there is an expensive thing inside.
Everything inside is Spartan. The headset itself is folded in a black velvet-like tray. In a separate compartment there is an instruction manual, as well as a box with cables and a cloth bag for carrying the headset. All this is covered with a transparent plastic cover molded to fit the contents.
The bag is made of solid, dense fabric that vaguely resembles suede. There are two compartments inside. Conveniently. Cables to one compartment, headset to another.
Design and materials
The very first impression I got after taking the headset in my hands – oh, how heavy. Weighing showed – 379 grams. Very weighty.
The second impression is a rattle. At the first meeting, there is a feeling that everything is fixed anyhow and is about to fall apart. If you shake it, then it rattles with all the moving parts.
After that, I thought I bought a fake. However, this impression arises due to the fact that the main material used in the construction is metal. Looking ahead, I will say that nothing rattles or rattles on the head.
When unfolded, the headset does not give the impression of an expensive item. The chrome parts that at first glance look like plastic are striking.
But it's metal. It may not be steel, but just silumin, but it is better than plastic (the previous Bluedio models made of plastic had many complaints about broken headbands).
There are metal hinges, rings holding the speakers, headband end switches and a sliding mechanism for adjusting the size. In fact, the headband inside is also metal, consisting of two metal plates.
The ring separating the ear pads from the speakers is chrome-plated plastic. Why it was necessary to insert colored plastic into this realm of metal and pseudo-leather, I do not understand. Spoils the impression a little.
Attention is drawn to the unusual design of the hinges. The design seems very bulky, but looks good on the head. There is no sense of foreignness.
At the ends of the loops there are areas with a pattern in the form of concentric circles, on which letters are embossed indicating the sides of the headset. Under certain lighting conditions, in order to clearly see the letter, you have to look for a comfortable angle.
The headband is soft, fully covered with eco-leather. Note the uneven seam. At first it seemed to me that it was sewn crookedly, however, then I realized that the seam inside just got out from under the plate and climbed up.
Slightly pulling the material towards himself, tucked the seam where necessary, and here we have an even headband, without defects.
On the upper part are glued silver letters that fold into the name of the Turbine model.
There is a 3.5 jack on the bottom of the left speaker. The headset can work even when completely discharged.
As we found out earlier, the cable is included. The cable is lightweight, silicone, with memory effect. It takes a long time to straighten. In addition to the audio cable, there is a noodle cable for charging the headset.
At the same time, when the audio cable is connected, T3 becomes just headphones, since the microphone remains in the electronic part, and does not work without power. Moreover, even if you connect the cable to the included headset, the control buttons are locked.
At the bottom of the right earpiece there is a microUSB connector for charging the headset, as well as a microphone hole. He's the only one here, so how noise cancellation is implemented during calls remains a mystery to me.
Control
Since this is a headset, there should be controls. They are there, but you won't be able to see them from the outside. The entire side on the right earpiece is the control. A long press on the center metal dial turns the headset on and off, and accepts or ends a call. Double tap – dial the last call.
There is a larger black plastic disc around the central metal disc. A short press on the right and left part of it – increase / decrease the volume, respectively. Long press – next / previous track. Pressing the bottom – start / stop playback.
The buttons have a very short stroke and a very simple, dry, sharp, clattering sound that evokes associations with Chinese toys. I would like more pleasant, softer button press sounds.
The right center disc has a transparent bezel in which LEDs are embedded. When the headset is turned on, the bezel periodically flickers blue. Flashes purple for a moment during switching on and off. Flashes red when the headset is low. Lights up red when charging.
There is one interesting point – if you hold the center button for a long time in the on state, a long beep will sound, which I took for a shutdown signal, it turned out that this is a signal to start Google voice dialing / control. But if you hold the button for a couple of seconds after the signal, the headset will turn off, voicing this action in English. In general, the headset voices the main actions in a pleasant female voice in English. There is an ISSC program with which you can customize Bluedio headsets and headphones, however, this program does not work with T3 and T3 +. It's a shame.
I still could not switch the voice prompts to Russian. I had to be content with English. It's good that it's not Chinese. ?
The headset also claims support for 3D sound mode. It turns on simply – at any time you need to simultaneously press the center button and the volume up button. After that, you will hear a melodic signal indicating that the mode is on. It also turns off. I will say right away that I did not notice the difference in sounding with the on and off mode. Absolutely.
Ease of use
The headset is quite tight and has a significant weight. Because of this, I can't wear it for a very long time. Two or three hours, and I want to shoot – it starts to press, but I can't say that I have a big head. I can imagine what it would be like to wear the T3 for people with a big head. At the same time, the headband does not press on the crown at all. Pressure only on the ears, from which they begin to ache. Considering that the headband consists of two metal plates sewn into eco-leather, most likely, you can simply straighten them harder.
The ear cushions are quite large and soft, completely covering the ear, creating the effect of a sealed space.
Therefore, when you press the buttons in the right ear, excess pressure is created, which is not very pleasant. But, thanks to the tightness of the headband and the tightness of the ear cushions, good noise isolation is obtained. The downside is that the ears sweat quickly. You have to periodically remove the headphones or raise one bowl or the other for airing.
Headset function and operating time
As a headset, the T3 is unlikely to please you. Despite the loud words of the manufacturer about noise cancellation and other technologies, talking through the headset will not be comfortable for your interlocutors. Everyone complained about the quiet, muffled sound and often asked me again during the conversation. Almost everyone asked the question – do you speak through the headset? Therefore, one microphone, which, moreover, is not located in the most successful way (holding the bowl behind the arc, next to the charging connector), quite expectedly does not cope with the task.
It's even worse in a noisy, windy place. So the headset gets a minus on this point.
The T3 has a 1100mAh battery. According to the manufacturer, this should be enough for 20 hours of playback. The experiment showed that at 65% volume level, the headphones worked for 21 hours. But 100% only 17 hours. The operating time should be calculated based on the volume at which you plan to listen to music.
Sound
For starters, the characteristics:
- Bluetooth version: 4.1
- Supported profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, HSP, HFR
- Bluetoth working frequency: 2.4-2.48 GHz
- Speaker diameter: 57mm
- Resistance: 16ohm
- SPL: 116dB
- Frequency range: 15Hz – 25000Hz
- Harmonic distortion (TDH): <0.1
The source was Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and iPhone 6S smartphones. As content – Prime Test CD # 1.
The first thing you notice after switching on is how much bass.
Low frequencies are abundant. Moreover, the lows sound hollow, stubborn and all-consuming. It seems that the Bluedio engineers (supposedly the same ones who used to make the 'bits') set out to squeeze out the maximum low frequencies. There is a lot of bass, too much.
The middle is clearly failed. Maybe for the sake of bass, maybe it just happened, but the fact remains – there are not enough averages.
The high frequencies are heard better than the mids, but are still slightly suffocated. The impression is created, which is then confirmed that the headphones are capable of more.
In general, thanks to the twisted bass, the sound is very dark and boomy.
And if, when listening to electronic or dance music, this is more or less appropriate, then listening to instrumental music is completely impossible – a continuous buzz. Moreover, this is typical for a wireless connection and a cable.
However, despite such an imbalance in the frequency settings, the sound is quite clear, with good detail and depth.
If you use the equalizer, then by reducing the number of lows and twisting the middle and highs, you can achieve a very, very good result.
Compared to out-of-the-box settings, the 10-band EQ can do wonders for the T3, dramatically changing the sound of your headphones. After experimenting with the equalizer, the sound of the T3 can be enjoyed.
The volume reserve is large – more than enough. The safety margin is no less – even at maximum volume, the headphones do not rattle and do not “poke”, the sound does not crumble.
Apparently, when tuning the T3, Bluedio engineers became hostages of stereotypes, and were guided by marketing slogans: more bass – better sound.
Conclusion
And here is the time to remember the positioning of the brand – we will do the same as Beats, only much cheaper.
Whether the Chinese succeeded or not is difficult to judge. However, the fact remains – for this money (and T3 costs from 2 to 3 thousand rubles) Bluedio managed to create a very, very interesting product. They definitely cost their money. Can I recommend them to buy? I'd like to say yes. But this will be more of an emotional response.
If you approach the issue more pragmatically, then you need to remember about the tight headband, and about the clicking buttons, and also not forget about the twisted bass. And here it will be more difficult to answer unequivocally. But still, I'm much more inclined to answer 'yes' than to 'no'.
Now I want to test other products of this Chinese manufacturer with a not very euphonious name for the Russian one. I will definitely try several models before making my final choice.