One of the many things I love about being an audio editor is that I spend a lot of my time listening to the latest audio products. From headphones and earphones to Bluetooth speakers and amplifiers, it is an exciting and rewarding role that constantly pushes my expectations for better audio standards.
Active noise canceling (ANC) earbuds are one of the most popular segments of audio right now, and 2022 saw a slew of model launches with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, Google Pixel Buds Pro, Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2, and of course, the Apple AirPods Pro. 2 the Great, to name a few.
I enjoyed listening to them all. They all offer an amazing balance of noise canceling capabilities and audio quality performance, and I was impressed with all of the above models and how they consistently managed to push ANC performance forward. But, there was one set that stood out above all other noise canceling earphones.
But it’s not just better ANC performance that’s been driving audio developments over the past few months. One of the most exciting audio developments this year was the introduction of Qualcomm’s aptX Lossless Audio codec. Originally announced in 2021, the new codec promises CD-quality sound over Bluetooth wireless connectivity, which for audio nuts like me seems like the holy grail for codecs to free us from the lossy compression techniques used to transmit audio data over a bandwidth-limited wireless connection.
So I’ve been listening to the NuraTrue Pro earbuds with my ears craving ($329 through NuraSound (Opens in a new tab)), the first model available to me with support for the new aptX Lossless codec. Interestingly though, it’s the higher quality audio support that impressed me the most, although it was most welcome and sets the stage for audiophile sound quality for the next generation of earphones.
Personal voice
The NuraTrue Pro earbuds have been an inspiration for me ever since I first got to know them prior to their launch earlier this year. In terms of external levels of sound sharing, these are the best earphones I’ve heard this year, thanks to the exceptional capabilities of Nura’s custom sound tuning technology that worked perfectly for my ears.
I’ve tried similar kinds of enhanced tuning technology before, but nothing quite like the Nura app. In fact, the custom setup really surprised me, and it was far more powerful and effective than I could have imagined. By comparison, the powerful Apple AirPods Pro 2 are constantly adapting to optimize their audio output for individual ears, but they just don’t quite manage to hit the levels of balance and engagement that Nura’s custom audio technology manages to achieve in my ears.
No other earbuds are capable of making this sound so captivating and melodious to my ears.
Once the setup process was complete, it was like listening to a pair of speakers as part of setting up a hi-fi music system at home. The sound from Nura was big across the board and reached to the heart of the music in a way I’ve only experienced with my home hi-fi. No other earbuds are capable of making this sound so captivating and melodious to my ear. They just voted right.
Several elements make the sound performance very appealing to my ears. First, the levels of presence and insight they bring to the vocal performances are phenomenal. Vocals are incredibly clear, and the balance of frequencies that make the human voice sound natural and convincing on the Nura is pitch perfect.
My NuraTrue Pro review highlighted a couple of tracks that shocked me as they sounded better than I expected during listening sessions, including “Sunshine on Leith” by the Proclaimers and Wham’s Club Tropicana, but literally all I heard were Christine Fleetwood Mac singing McVie’s “Everywhere.” ‘ to Cry Me a River (Hollywood Version) by Michel Bublé and ‘River’ by Joni Mitchell is amazing and it sounds nothing short of amazing. The voices seem to hang in the air surrounded by their own sonic space to make me feel like I just sat in a front row seat at an intimate performance.
All the elements of my favorite records are there, but in a much more captivating way. The bass is the true strength of Nora’s sound signature. There’s more power and weight to the tracks when listening to the same tracks through Apple’s AirPods Pro 2, for example. It digs deep and packs bags of power and control in the same way you’d expect from a subwoofer dedicated to handling bass frequencies in a home hi-fi setup.
These are my favorite headphones of the year
It’s sometimes hard to say what makes a great sound, but with Nura’s customization technology enabled on its latest headphones, it’s hard to find a pair of earphones with more attractive and dynamic sound right now. I don’t know snippets of the drivers used inside the Nura headphones, but whatever they are, the result is accurate and it’s a perfectly rhythmic performance that never fails to impress.
These earbuds got me close to the kind of sound I’d expect to hear from a pair of standalone speakers, and achieved a level of musical connection I’d normally associate with a home hi-fi setup. Listening to the NuraTrue Pro is like having a pair of hi-fi speakers in your ears, which is why they’re my favorite earbuds of the year, without a doubt.
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