Great sound. That is what we are all after when we buy a pair of headphones. The problem is that what I consider to be great sound may be something entirely different than what you consider to be great sound. The sound engineer who designed the headphones may be 20 years older or younger than his customers and have better or worse hearing. So if we all hear things differently and have different preferences in sound, what is to be done? beyerdynamic hope they have a solution with their Aventho wireless headphones and the accompanying sound personalization app. But is it possible to get good, custom sound from an app? Read on to find out in the full review of the beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones.
Specifications
- Drivers: Dynamic Tesla high-end drivers
- Controls: TouchPad on headphone can
- Bluetooth: 4.2
- Frequency Response: 10-40,000 Hz
- Frequency Range: 2.4 – 2.4835 GHz
- Cable Length/Connector: 1.2m / 3.5 mm jack
- Battery Capacity: 1050 mAh
- Battery Life: 30+ hours
- Charge Time: 2 hours
- Weight without cable: 238g
What’s In The Box
- Aventho wireless headphones
- 3.5 mm audio cable
- Charging cable, USB-A to USB-C
- Soft carrying bag
- Warranty
- Quick Start Guide
Design
I can best describe the look of the beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones as industrial. From the sliders that look like hose clamps to the arms that connect those same sliders to the cans. There is also quite a bit of exposed aluminum on the Aventho wireless headphones adding to the industrial look. Around the top, the headband cushion is rather thin looking and makes for a narrower headband than is typically seen on headphones. Despite the fact that the cushion is thin, the Aventho wireless headphones are very comfortable as they sit on your head.
Touch controls situated on the outer surface of the right can are used to control music and calls. I think having touch controls on headphones is a great idea. It is aesthetically more pleasing, and there is less fumbling around for small buttons when using the control surface. The problem I had is that sometimes the touchpad didn’t seem to register the command that I gave it. At one point I was trying to raise the volume, but it didn’t seem to be going up. It took probably five tries before the volume started going up. Perhaps it was user error, not moving my finger in the proper manner or something like that. Regardless, I still think I prefer just old fashion buttons.
The cans are on ear, and the right can houses a charging port, led light, power button, touch controls and the audio cable jack. The left can only has the mic on it. I usually don’t like on-ear headphones, they just never feel comfortable to me. The Aventho wireless headphones are the exception though, they were very comfortable and fit snuggly against my ear. There is no active noise cancelation, the foam around the ears does a good job of blocking out most unwanted sounds, but noise does creep in at times.
One issue I had with the Aventho wireless headphones was that adjusting the sliders was not easy. I couldn’t make the adjustments with just one hand, I had to use both hands to adjust the cans to where they were comfortable. Also, I had problems with my hair getting caught in the notches on the slider. I have short hair, but since the sliders rest right up against your hair, it got caught rather easily. I would suggest making adjustments to the sliders before putting the headphones on.
Ease Of Use
Pairing the beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones is as simple as holding the power button until it goes into pairing mode. Once in pairing mode, you can select the Aventho wireless headphones from the Bluetooth list on your device, and you are ready to go. You can also connect via NFC if your device supports it. You may pair The Aventho wireless headphones with up to eight Bluetooth enabled devices. They also have the ability to connect up to two active connections at once.
Sound
I can best describe the sound of the beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones as full and rich. Everything seems to be balanced out perfectly, but I would stop short of calling it a neutral sound because of how rich and deep the bass sounds. The bass on the Aventho headphones is big and deep without being bothersome. You can feel the bass, but not to the point of rattling your brain loose and giving you a headache.
The highs are bright and vibrant, but the star here seems to be the mids. Vocals on the Aventho headphones come through with astounding clarity. Everything is clear, and there is no muddiness to be found in the music. I have found that most headphones are best with a mix of certain genres of music. The Aventho headphones seem to be able to handle all genres equally well. I tested classical, metal, EDM, rock, jazz, and many other genres. I didn’t run across one genre that sounded bad coming through the Aventho headphones. All the music I tested was standard mp3 files. Listening to lossless files and using a DAC would be the way to go when purchasing a premium set of headphones such as the beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones.
Software/App
The beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones come with what beyerdynamic calls their MIY or Make It Yours app. This app takes you through a sound test to determine how best to customize the Aventho headphones for your personal needs. This app will theoretically take the Aventho headphones from a one size fits all approach to music, to a custom designed soundstage created for the individual. Before I begin discussing the app, just let me note that I first listened to the Aventho headphones without setting them up with the MIY app. The description of the sound in the previous section was my impression of the Aventho headphones as they came out of the box.
The MIY app takes about five or six minutes to complete and entails sitting in a quiet environment while listening, and responding to, a series of sounds. Once finished with the test, your profile is saved in the headphones themselves. This means you don’t have to use the app to use the sound profile while listening to music. When I used the app to set up a sound profile, the sound of the headphones was markedly dialed back. The sound was so subdued that I had to turn the volume all the way up to hear the music. I found this to be unsatisfactory and reset the headphones back to factory defaults.
I also had my 18-year old daughter set up a profile, and her results were quite the opposite of mine. After going through customization, the sound was turned up almost to the point of being too loud. Custom sound does seem like it would be the smart choice, and maybe someday we will each have our own personal sound profile that makes music sound perfect. For now, both my daughter and I agree that factory settings are the best way to go.
Reception/Call Quality
Bluetooth reception was good on the beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones; I was able to get approximately 60 feet away before the signal started to drop. Call quality was fine on my end of the call, although the person that I called did say that I sounded a bit distant. This seems to happen because the mic is located on the can, and not near the user’s mouth. This results in having to speak loudly for the person on the other end of the call to hear properly.
Battery Life
beyerdynamic states that the Aventho wireless headphones have a battery life of more than 30 hours. I tested them with the volume set at 50% and the source never further than five feet away and was able to get 31 1/2 hours of play before the battery gave out. An impressive battery life I do have to say, although your results may vary depending on use.
Price/Value
The beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones have a price of $449USD. Even though the sound of the Aventho headphones is very good, this may be a bit more than some are willing to pay to get that premium sound. There is no active noise cancelation on the Aventho headphones. If you plan to take them mobile, you will likely run into some noisy situations that will interfere with your listening experience.
Wrap Up
The beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones have great sound there is no doubt about that. The bass booms just enough, the highs are bright, and the mids are rich. They are a lightweight, comfortable over the ear headphone that are great for going mobile. Calls are not perfect, but if you plan to use the Aventho for calls, they will do the job. Battery life was indeed exemplary, but these headphones do have their flaws.
The MIY app didn’t work for me; I preferred the sound of the headphones without going through the customization process. The Aventho headphones do not have active noise cancelation, this could be a problem out in public where it gets noisy. There is no such thing as a perfect product; everything has positives and negatives. In the end, it all comes to personal preference. You pick the headphones you like, and you enjoy the sounds they reproduce. The beyerdynamic Aventho wireless headphones won’t let you down in that regard.
