Engadget review: Technics EAH-A1000 pairs tight sound with strong ANC at $450

Technics has emphasized the A1000's Magnetic Fluid driver technology, which the review notes also appears in the AZ100 true wireless earbuds; the A1000 is Technics' first over-ear model to include it. The design is intended to reduce unwanted vibrations in the driver and lower distortion. The A1000 also supports three-device multipoint Bluetooth, though the review says LDAC playback limits the connection to two devices. Other features include adaptive ANC, a beamforming microphone for calls, Dolby Atmos with head tracking, wear detection, EQ and app control, 45-hour battery life with ANC on, and lossless playback through included USB-C and 3.5mm cables. The review describes the design as smooth, stylish and understated, with a look that could be mistaken for a Sony or Bose model.

The review's audio assessment was strong. The reviewer, whose music tastes lean electronic, called the A1000's low frequencies some of the tightest they had heard: bass is present and felt, but does not vibrate the eardrums, and kick drums in dance music provide a gentle thwack with a good sense of space and dynamic range. Pop and rock tracks expose the mids and highs well, the review says. BTS's Dynamite sounded more robust and balanced than in a car, and the reviewer heard bassline details they barely knew existed. The main criticism was at the high end: guitars on AC/DC and Arctic Monkeys tracks sounded authentic, but the reviewer wanted a little more sizzle. Compared with the Sennheiser HDB 630, which the reviewer regularly uses, the A1000 offered a slightly bigger sense of space and soundstage. The review called the tight balance and well-rounded bass some of the strongest it had tried in a long time.

Noise cancellation also drew praise. The review says the adaptive ANC handles steady sounds such as fans and is adaptive enough to block people talking when the reviewer was working while guests were in the home. The reviewer preferred it to the ANC on the Sennheiser HDB 630 and said it was good enough to be in the same room as Sony and Bose. The Technics Connect app was also judged easy to navigate. It offers settings including choosing LDAC-compatible multipoint Bluetooth or turning multipoint off, EQ adjustments, auto-off timing and a toggle to disable wear detection.

The review also described trouble with multipoint. The reviewer said they had never really had a good experience with multipoint on any headphones, with a Mac usually connecting via the hands-free profile, and that was their experience with the A1000 as well.