Noise Master Buds Max review

Let's start with the good. The Max looks sharp. The ‘signature vinyl disc design’ on the earcups is a bit retro, a bit modern, and works a treat. They also come in three suitably moody colours: Titanium, Silver, and Onyx.

More importantly, the comfort is, frankly, spectacular. They are built for longer listening hours and are notably lightweight at 262g. The soft breathable vegan leather cushions and memory foam headband are sublime. You can wear these all day and forget they're there.

While these are comfy with comfortable cushions and the soft fabric between your ears and the driver, they’re not very premium to hold. The plasticky body feels a bit low budget and I think it won’t be able to take a few hits in the bag. Best go for the hardcase which Noise sells separately. Our unit came with a soft cloth bag for the headphones.

 The Sound by Bose partnership is what lets Noise creep up the price ladder. The 40mm drivers are tuned by Bose but it’s nothing compared to the more premium Bose QuietComfort headphones. These are tuned to be enjoyable for everyday listening and catering to a wider audience with warm and bottom heavy sound.

It’s not Skullcandy-like bass by any measure but the audio is surprisingly flatter in the bottom end compared to Sony's ULT headphones. Das Spiegel by The Chemical Brothers, has plenty of tonal consistency but the bass doesn’t have the attack and drive which makes the song entertaining. It’s a little muddy in the lower frequencies for instrumentals; you can spot the shortcoming clearly midway through Wish You Were Here by Seguridad Social.

Honestly, I was expecting these to be more bassy in the most unnecessary way but they’re not and I am so glad. The Master Buds Max can sound entertaining when you’re listening to rap and bollywood. I only wish they had more drive and energy across the frequencies. Dil Se Re by A. R Rahman sounds boring here which should not be the case.

Switching to LHDC 5.0 codec on a compatible Android phone delivers a higher high-bitrate, detailed listening experience which is a better fit for any over-the-ear headphones. However, the app doesn’t come with a proper EQ to tune the headphones according to your taste and that’s a huge miss. Noise says they’re using their own Dynamic EQ which automatically adjusts the sound based on volume. It boosts bass and treble at low volumes for richness , flattening it at normal levels, and cutting it when you crank it to prevent harshness. It does work but it can be a bit too aggressive and can tend to cut out the rhythm and energy from the track.

Active Noise Cancellation is where the Bose DNA should shine. Noise says these are capable of doing up to 40dB of cancellation. It uses five optimally placed mics to read the environment and make it go away, from the low hum of engines to the buzz of a cafe. It’s genuinely good at eliminating noise (oh, the irony) around you but not enough to cancel midrange frequencies. Voices from chatty people around you still seep through.

And then there's the battery. Oh, the battery. 60 hours with ANC Off and 48 hours with ANC On is really insane. Let's put that in perspective. 48 hours is not a weekend. It's a work week. You could fly from Mumbai to Spain, watch all the inflight movies, fly back, and still have juice left for the taxi home. It’s bananas.

And if you somehow manage to drain them, the fast charging with 10 minutes on the charger gives you 10 hours of playback. The battery anxiety is, like the noise, cancelled.

The rest of the checklist is ticked with authority. You get Dual Pairing , Google Fast Pair , and Wear Detection  to pause your music when you take them off. There’s even Spatial Audio but it’s not as great as some of the other headsets we’ve tested.

The Noise Master Buds Max (that’s a mouthful) is not the flagship killer it might pretend to be. The Sound by Bose partnership delivers decent audio chops, but it's nothing compared to the more premium Bose QuietComfort headphones and can lack the drive and energy that makes music truly entertaining. This isn't helped by the baffling huge miss of not including a proper EQ in the app.

While the comfort is frankly spectacular, the plasticky body feels a bit low budget and you don't even get a hard case for your troubles, that's sold separately. So, what's the real story? The battery. It's insane. With 48 hours of playback with ANC on, this is the battery marathoner to buy if you value stamina above all else. It's just a shame the audio performance feels more like a light jog.