Lypertek SoundFree S20

The housing, which is made of black plastic, is pleasantly light. The ergonomically shaped pods for the dynamic neodymium-driven drivers fit securely in the ear canal using a choice of six silicone fittings (three of which are double-bladed). For the wireless link, Lypertek uses Bluetooth 5.0 with support for the SBC and AAC codecs.

Practice

In fact, for the price range, the wearing comfort is secure and suitable even for longer listening sessions. The device is designed for both mobile and sports use and comes with the IPX5 protection rating. Pairing is quick. Existing connections are automatically re-established soon after opening the charging case. The connection with an iPhone 8 proved to be permanently stable and covered an area of several rooms in a flat.

The charging case is compact and lightweight and has an LED charge indicator. In terms of runtime, Lypertek claims a realistic, volume-dependent listening time of eight hours for these in-ears. This runtime can be extended by an additional 40 hours via the battery in the charging case before the case itself has to be recharged via the USB-C interface. Intermediate recharging in the case also works well thanks to the fast charging function. Finally, the case can also be charged wirelessly via compatible charging stations.

An app has deliberately been omitted. In fact, all controls are done directly on the earphones. Lypertek has gone its own way: instead of modern touch surfaces, which regularly annoy the user with accidentally triggered functions, each earpiece has a mechanical multifunction button placed on the side. This is an impressive idea because it also eliminates the annoying noise that can occur in the ear canal while operating devices. The following functions can be controlled: start/pause, track selection, volume, handling telephone calls, calling voice assistants and an ambient sound mode (triple click), in which ambient sounds with a pre-set, but unfortunately non-adjustable, average level are transmitted to the drivers via the microphones for improved communication. This was the only function that caused me to wish for touch operation. Otherwise, I absolutely loved Lypertek’s mechanical solution.

Sound

The construction offers good, passive noise isolation and does not disturb the person sitting next to you, even at the higher volumes achieved here. The basic sound is balanced, powerful and has a good level of detail. The general tuning is aimed at mobile use and a listening experience with a fun factor. Technically, this model is based on the more expensive PurePlay Z3 model, according to the manufacturer, but is more sonically tuned to the consumer market.

Audiophile neutrality is not so much to be expected. Instead, you get an additional boost in the bass, which is definitely an advantage outdoors. Fortunately, there are no annoying booming or prominent effects. The sound is tight and contoured down to the lower registers, as well as tonally comprehensible.

At the other end of the frequency range, the SoundFree S20 is open and vital. Unattractive harshness is avoided. The good detail resolution also has a positive effect on the reproduction of the stereo stage and the comprehensibility of the associated panning effects.

The SoundFree S20 also master the mid-range well: depending on the recording, voices and individual instruments in different genres are presented intimately, and rock is full-bodied or just uncluttered as with Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky”. Even if you’re listening to jazz and classical music, these headphones deliver a coherent and dynamic sound image – assuming you have a quiet listening situation. At a retail price of 79 Euros, this is an entirely decent performance. In this context, the lack of higher-resolution codecs can be overlooked. Points are lost for the voice quality of phone calls on the receiver’s side, which, unlike for the speaker, was not satisfactory.