Soundcore Life 2 by Anker

These over-ears are primarily made of plastic, yet are impeccably finished down the most minor detail. They certain give off a robust appearance, which is only further reinforced by the smooth joints found throughout this foldable model. Hints of metallic reinforcement add another layer of confidence in the durability of these over-ears. These headphones have tilt and rotate adjustments, providing the user with plenty of adaptability. What’s more, the oval-shaped earpieces are slightly slanted in their suspension housing, ensuring the ears themselves are enclosed by soft and yielding artificial leather with generous padding. Wearing comfort is unsurprisingly rather good, with no significant contact pressure to worry about. However, the wireless headphones themselves are on the large side, meaning they might cause problems for younger users or adults with a narrower head shape. There’s also a fair amount of heat generated by these headphones due to the materials used in the construction, so bear that in mind if you plan on lengthy listening sessions as a regular occurrence.

When it comes to power and running time, you’ll be glad to know these headphones deliver a respectable 30 hours of operation with active noise control enabled. Disable ANC and you can expect to add a further two hours onto that overall running time. If the battery runs empty, a complete charging via the supplied USB cable takes a total of three hours. As an alternative to Bluetooth operation, these headphones can be utilised with 3.5mm audio input connections. According to the manufacturer of these headphones, you can enjoy 60 hours of ANC functionality when you’re using these headphones with a conventional wired operation. A corresponding mini jack cable with gold-plated plugs and a 1-button remote control, complete with integrated microphone, are all included in the bundle of accessories packaged along with the main product itself.

Device Control

The Soundcore Life 2 supports Bluetooth 4.1, offering reliable ranges of up to 12 metres in my practical tests carried out with a range of iOS and Android devices. Pairing commences by simply holding down the power button at the left headphone earpiece, which not only switches the system on, but also activates pairing mode immediately. A 3-button remote on the right-hand side is designated for device control functions. You’ll find a central multifunctional button to control Play/Stop functionality, which also serves to receive and end calls. Volume, on the other hand, is controlled by the individual plus and minus buttons. You can also use these buttons to skip backwards and forwards within playlists. Device response time is instantaneous, with the controls generally proving user-friendly. It’s also pleasing to note that the microphone noise cancellation enables quality speech intelligibility, even when you’re speaking in busy environments.

Sound

The balanced tuning of these over-ears provides a clear sound with no marked exaggerations, with plenty of coverage to the whole musical spectrum. One criticism to single out is that high frequencies in the upper tiers fall off. More well-defined basses on the other hand reach into the lower ranges. If you like listening to music with the bass significantly stressed, you also have the luxury of switching to BassUp mode with these headphones. Simply double-click the central remote button to fire it up. This setting offers a denser sound with more fullness and a solid supporting bass foundation. The end result is a sound that harmonises well with productions from genres including hip-hop and electro. Since the overall sound quality is not affected, this handy feature represents some significant added value from my point of view.

In comparison to the convincing bass boost function, the Active Noise Cancellation proves a weaker addition. This feature can be activated via a separate switch on the left headphone earpiece. Noise can of course be reduced, but the intensity of the suppression is ultimately rather minor. At the same time, the well-structured stage that conveys plenty of dimension to audio, moves into deeper territory when ANC mode is activated. Playback volume also decreases, but this can be easily adjusted as the system has no low output, ensuring sufficient volume reserves.