Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Specifications
Price: $219 / £169 / (approx. AU$335)
Colors: Black
Battery life (rated): 10 hours (ANC on); 16 hours (ANC off); 36 hours (charging case with ANC off)
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.3 with SBC, AAC, aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive Audio, Bluetooth LE Audio, LC3
Durability: IPX4 rated
Size: Not specified
Weight: Not specified
When Cambridge Audio told me that it would be introducing the Melomania M100 as its first pair of noise-canceling wireless earbuds, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on them. I am a big fan of the British audio specialist’s approach and the way it majors on audiophile sound quality. Plus, we loved the company’s Melomania 1 Plus wireless buds when they launched in March 2021, which despite the lack of noise canceling and transparency features ranked among the best wireless earbuds thanks to their stellar sound quality and strong battery life.
The Melomania 1 Plus have been out of production for a while now, so you can imagine my excitement when the Melomania M100 noise-canceling wireless earbuds arrived on my desk. They look very different from the bullet-shaped design of their predecessor. But just like their forerunner, the all-new flagship model has been set at a price that undercuts the competition by some margin.
Although the M100 buds arrived ahead of today’s official on-sale date (March 27), the refreshed Melomania app wasn’t available for trial until just one day before the launch. With just a few hours of use under my belt though, I’m already blown away by the sound quality from the company’s first noise-canceling earbuds and am excited to be among the first to share my experience. I will be updating my hands-on experience to a full review once I’ve carried out further tests. In the meantime, here’s my first impressions of the new Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 wireless earbuds.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Cheat sheet
- Flagship features and audiophile sound for less than rivals.
- 10mm driver and Class AB amplification derived from Cambridge Audio’s CX Series Hi-Fi amplifiers.
- Bluetooth 5.3 with aptX Lossless and aptX Adaptive support.
- 10-hour battery life with ANC, and Qi wireless charging compatible.
- Google Fast Pair, Microsoft Swift Pair, and manual pairing via a button on charging case.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Price and availability
- On sale March 27 costing $219 / £169 / (approx. AU$335)
- Available in black only
The Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 wireless earbuds go on sale today (March 27) priced at $219 / £169 (approx. AU$335). They’re available to buy at cambridgeaudio.com. Online retailers are expected to include Amazon, but at the time of writing the retailer didn’t have the M100 listed. The M100 is expected to be available in black only.
Although the price tag has increased compared to the Melomania 1 Plus ($139), the all-new M100 includes noise-canceling and lossless audio. The inclusion of these flagship features at the price makes them look like a bargain compared to rival models with a similarly solid range of features. For example, the Sony WF-1000XM5 — the best wireless earbuds overall — have an MSRP of $299 / £259 / AU$499, as do the recently introduced Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4. While Apple’s ubiquitous AirPods Pro 2 USB-C cost $249 / £229 / AU$399.
With a price tag of $219 / £169, the Melomania M100 are great value and look like a sweet deal compared to most top-tier noise-canceling rivals. Only the recently introduced OnePlus Buds 3 Pro ($99 / £78 / AU$150) ANC flagship undercuts them.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Design and fit
- Discreet design and comfortable design for long-term wear
- Supplied with three sizes of silicone tips and two sizes of memory foam tips
The Melomania M100 wireless earbuds are a much smaller design than their bullet-shaped predecessor. Although there are no dimensions or weights specified at the time of writing, they’re approximately the same size and weight as Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 4. The Cambridge Audio’s have a more rounded design though, and feel a lot less bulky than the new Sennheiser flagship.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Features
- Supports aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive and Bluetooth LE Audio
- Active noise-canceling with three levels
The Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 wireless earbuds are the company’s first noise-canceling design, and as such they come with a considerable feature set. They’re built on the Qualcomm Snapdragon Sound with support for Active ANC tech that works with Android and iOS devices. Bluetooth connectivity runs on version 5.4 and for audiophile listeners there’s aptX Lossless audio support along with aptX Adaptive Audio and Bluetooth LE Audio from compatible Android devices. Much like the similarly-specified Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4, the M100 will be able to integrate with Auracast audio sharing via a future firmware update, and there’s no LDAC support. Additionally, it’s important to remember that iOS devices won’t be able to take advantage of aptX or LE Audio codecs.
There’s a new Melomania app, which once downloaded to my Sony Xperia 1 IV device updated the M100 firmware to version 2.0.37. The new app has been given a refresh compared to its predecessor, with a new app icon and a smart layout with a white/black/orange colorway that’s easy to read and navigate. The Equalizer has been updated to seven bands (it was five bands on the 1 Plus), along with custom sound profiles tuned to your preferences and six presets including Flat (default), Blues, Electronic, Natural, Rock, and Voice. While I’ve stuck with the Flat setting throughout my tests so far, there’s plenty of flexibility for different kinds of content.
The M100 also supports Gaming Mode, which claims to reduce screen/sound sync issues to just 80ms.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Controls
- Full suite of touch controls but commands can be flaky
- Wear detection unreliable
The Melomania M100 Plus have touch controls, but I found my commands unreliable, at least to begin with. The responses to my finger taps felt slow and delayed, resulting in a high level of uncertainty about when a command had been registered. Sadly, there’s no audible feedback to acknowledge that a command has been received to give the wearer reassurance.
Once I got the hang of it though, I discovered a full suite of media controls via hold and single/double-press gestures. I was able to pause playback, skip tracks, control volume, answer/end calls, and activate voice assistance.
Wear detection is on board but during my short test, it appeared that this is only detected when both earbuds are removed.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Sound quality
I’ve been connected to my Sony Xperia 1 IV smartphone via aptX Adaptive streaming tracks from my Tidal playlist. Although I’m constantly adding new content, I’ve heard many of the tracks hundreds of times, yet I’ve reveled at the way these Cambridge Audio buds make my music sound. The custom 10mm drivers matched with Class AB amplification derived from audio specialist’s CX Series Hi-Fi amplifiers sound like a triumph. The larger-sized drivers reap sonic dividends with deep bass that feels perfectly tuned, and are some of the largest I’ve encountered in a pair of wireless earbuds.
I love how Cambridge Audio has managed to bring its audiophile sound signature to these new wireless earbuds.
I’ve only managed a few hours of listening so far, but in that short time, the Melomania M100 wireless earbuds have demonstrated a remarkable Hi-Fi pedigree. The M100s have a powerful yet well-balanced sound with deep, controlled bass, natural vocals, and impressive treble clarity. From my very first listen, the M100s showcased their engaging sound signature and got right to the heart of my music. I love how Cambridge Audio has managed to bring its audiophile sound signature to these new wireless earbuds.
So far I’ve been enjoying the M100 at least as much as Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 4 earbuds, which means the best wireless earbuds buying guide could be about to get a shake-up.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Active Noise Canceling
These are Cambridge Audio’s first set of noise-canceling wireless earbuds. There are three noise canceling levels: High, Medium, Low, and I like the graphic that displays on the app screen to show the relative level of noise canceling selected. In terms of noise-canceling performance while sat at my desk, I’d say that it’s good rather than great. Sounds from the radio blaring away in the background were certainly reduced, but high-frequency sounds managed to break through. I could also occasionally hear the low-frequency sound of machinery in the background from my neighbors working in their yard.
Transparency mode felt effective, but I’ll need to do a thorough road test before commenting further.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Battery life
The Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 earbuds hold more battery life than their predecessor and give one of the longest ANC playback times among elite models. They claim up to 10 hours of playback from just a single charge with ANC activated, or 16 hours with ANC switched off, which makes them more powerful than the Sony WF-1000XM5. Cambridge Audio says that users will get more than two full charges from the case. That seems reasonable, but I’ll report back once I’ve fully tested the claim out.
Fast charging means that just 10 minutes of charge time offers another 2 hours of ANC-enabled playback, which is stronger than the claims for the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4. The M100 charging case has a USB port at the back and is Qi wireless support. A short charging cable is supplied.
Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Outlook
From what I’ve experienced so far, the new Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 are shaping up to be among the best-sounding noise-canceling wireless earbuds around. Their stunning Hi-Fi sound signature and lossless audio support look like setting the wireless earbuds standard for audiophiles. They’re a sweet deal at the price and could be about to shake up the wireless earbuds market for the better. Check back for my fully-rated review coming shortly.
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