With the incoming wave of truly wireless earbuds in the market, the competition is becoming tougher each day. As manufacturers continue to make wireless earbuds cheaper and more accessible every day, more and more people are making the switch.
I’ve been using the Sennheiser CX-275s for the last two years, before that, I was using the Sennheiser CX-180 Street II. Both these earphones had an amazing build quality, comfort and of course, great sound.
I had always wanted to try wireless earbuds and now was my chance. An initial search revealed a bunch of really promising earbuds all for under INR 5K, which is a very reasonable price for wireless earbuds because the offerings by companies like Apple, Bose or Samsung start at about 12K.
As I started browsing through the options, I made this mental checklist of the things that the earbuds should satisfy. My main concerns were sound quality, battery life and grips (wouldn’t want to drop one while riding my scooter)
After scouring through a bunch of really lovely offerings by Noise, I found the Boult Audio Tru5ive. They had good reviews, had earloops which would prevent them from falling out and were just about INR 3K.
I’ve been using the tru5ive for the last week now, and while most of the comparison is derived using them, it should stand for pretty much all offerings in the same price segment.
So here’s my comparison of the Sennheiser CX-275s and Boult Audio Tru5ive
Also read: Was removing the 3.5mm headphone jack a step in the right direction?
Price
The CX-275s sells on Amazon for around INR 1.7k. The Tru5ive retail for about 2.9k, I got them for 2.7k on a lightning deal though.
Both earphones are prices adequately for their performance. You’ll be happy with either one.
Comfort and fit
While this is highly subjective, I found the Sennheiser to be a bit more comfortable. The earbuds themselves are really tiny and fit in your ears well. On the other side, Tru5ive are also really comfy. The earbuds are slightly bigger, for obvious reasons, but it’s not at all uncomfortable.
The only difference I felt was because of the slightly added bulk and the earhooks, which brings me to my next point; these earbuds are not going anywhere, period. Once they’re in, they’re in for good. Even the CX-275s fell out at times, but these guys don’t also move.
Sound quality
As for wired earbuds, the CX-275s sound great. They have a wide soundstage, good bass, clear highs and balanced mids. Also, a lot of the earphones’ performance depends on the device you’re using them with — the better the DAAC, the better the audio.
Tru5ive has a different story. While the audio straight of the bat is just fine, if not great, the deep end could have been better. However, after playing around within the equaliser, I was able to get them to sound the way I wanted.
Pro tip: If the bass on the earbuds that you’re using is not as much as you’d like, try using bigger ear tips. They close down any open gaps and give somewhat of a better deep end.
The soundstage on the Sennheiser was a bit wider than on the Tru5ive, and hence they sound slightly better. However, considering that the Tru5ive are Bluetooth and keeping their price in mind, it’s hard to complain about the sound quality.
Also read: USB vs Analog headsets: Which one should you buy?
Battery life
The Tru5ive lasts about 3 hours on a single charge. The carrying case can charge the earbuds up to 10 times more. All in all, I’m pretty happy with the battery on this thing.
As far as the CX-275s is considered, it’s wired so, no battery problems.
Build quality
Both the Tru5ive and Cx-275s are made of plastic and rubber/silicone. The Tru5ive boasts of an IP7X rating as well. While any such scores are missing from the 275s, they still stood through heavy rains a couple of times for me.
Which one should you buy?
At this point, I can easily suggest Tru5ive. They work great, sound great and won’t fall out of your ears. The best part? They’re just INR 3K.
On the other hand, if you’re extremely tight on budget and are looking for a nice sounding and comfortable pair of earphones that will last you years, the CX-275s is an excellent choice.
Also read: Apple AirPods 2: Are they worth it?