Miiego Boom ANC

Unpacked and reviewed

Matt black plastic determines the look of the Miiego Boom ANC and they make a stylish impression. The ear cups are not attached to the headband with U-shaped brackets (as is the case with the Bose Quiet Comfort), rather, on the Boom ANC, the headband and driver housing are formed of a single piece. This makes for a rather elegant design that won the Red Dot Award in 2019. For size adjustment, the Boom has a smooth yet defined ratchet, allowing the right size to be quickly set. For transport in the case, which comes as part of the package, the ear cups can be folded away, the hinges are made of metal and look gratifyingly durable.

Technology

Miiego are a bit stingy with technical details, but a look under the hood reveals a dynamic driver with a diameter of about 40 mm. The frequency response is stated as 20 Hz to 20.000 Hz; there’s no information about the impedance, but it should be low for a Smartphone. With a weight of 300 grams, Boom ANC is in the mid-range of wireless Bluetooth headphones with noise cancelling. One could also say Boom ANC is in the Welterweight class. Bluetooth 5.0 provides wireless connectivity and, in addition to listening to music, you can, of course, use your Booms to make, receive and end calls. Initially, I found the power management a bit confusing: The on/off switch seems only to switch the Bluetooth receiver on or off; an extra slide switch activates the active noise cancelling. This means that the ANC works even when the headphones are actually switched off, something you should keep in mind when you put the headphones away! Accordingly, the running times vary: Cordless and with ANC the battery lasts about 22 hours, cordless with ANC switched off about 36 hours and in cable mode with ANC activated even 80 hours.

Headphones with interchangeable covers

Intensive training involves sweating, and since Miiego is a manufacturer of sports headphones, they are aware of this problem. The solution: The Boom ANC comes with two pairs of ear pads. One is the standard imitation leather earpad and the other is a pair of fabric earpads, which are washable. The pads can be changed very easily thanks to the bayonet lock, and many other pads in various colours and designs are available from the Miiego shop. A feature that is as practical as it is hygienic, in my opinion! And because sweat is also a form of liquid, the Miiego designers have gone one step further: the Boom ANC is rainproof and even IP-certified.

Headphones with protection certification

The Miiego Boom ANC has IPX5 certification, IP stands for “International Protection” and the IP codes show how well a technical device is protected against external environmental influences. The IP code of the Miiego Boom ANC (IPX5) means that the Miiego headphones are protected against “water spray”. Translated from standard DIN-German into practice, this means that the headphones are rainproof. The next higher protection class, IPX6, would, by the way, allow a short immersion in water. So with Boom headphones, there is nothing to stop you training in the rain. IP codes are assigned by the International Electrical Commission (IEC), the devices are subjected to strict tests, so having an IP certification is quite significant.

Sound

Products with “Boom” in their name raise expectations and the Miiego Boom ANC powerfully fulfils them: The bass hits like a boxer giving you a jab in the twelfth round. But it’s not only the sheer force that is fun, almost more so is the precision with which the bass is reproduced! No booming and no mud in the lowest frequencies, instead you get crisp and clean peaks that allow the bass drums and bass-lines of some well-known songs to shine in a new light. The other aspect that the Miiego Boom ANC emphasises is the high frequencies, and electronic drum loops and percussion elements above 3 kHz radiate out of the sound image.

But where there is light, we also find shadow: Between powerful basses and radiant highs there are other frequencies and in the range of 800 Hz to 2 kHz, I didn’t feel that the tuning of the Boom was as precise and clean. In other words: The Boom ANC is not a musical all-rounder. These headphones are fans of electronic music, but the sound of electric guitars are not as well favoured.

For stereo imaging, again it’s a double thumbs-up: The individual instruments and voices are precisely distributed on the stereo stage, and in spatial recordings you can literally hear into the depths of the sound stage.

Everyday test

The Miiego Boom ANC press perceptively on your head, but they should stay on even during intensive workouts. On the running track, the Boom ANC was just too big and too heavy for me. They sat firmly on my head, but I couldn’t really get used to wearing over-ears while doing this exercise. Especially since the shape of the Miiego earpads and the shape of my ears don’t really match, a few millimetres make the difference between “comfortable” and “tight”. It’s always the same with over-ear headphones: There is no standard-sized ear and therefore no ear cup that will always fit. This is, of course, no criticism of the Miiego Boom, it just brings up an important point: You buy your headphones like you buy your running shoes by going to the store and trying them on!

ANC combats noise with noise

The Active Noise Cancelling of the Boom ANC leaves me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, the headphones feel about 2 dB quieter, on the other hand, the bass range (which I liked so much a moment ago) loses pressure and precision. As usual, you can hear a hissing sound when ANC is activated. With Boom ANC this was louder than normal when compared to my other NC headphones. And depending on the player, there was an additional high frequency buzzing… I can’t judge to what extent this is due to the ANC or to the outdated version of Bluetooth in the player.