The spec sheet of Cleer Enduro ANC is bold, however they ship nicely on almost all fronts. Sound high quality is superb at occasions, noise cancellation is stable, and the battery life is epic. Design and luxury are its weakest features, however for £149 these headphones acquit themselves nicely.
Execs
- Clear, detailed and impartial sound
- Stable noise cancellation
- Mammoth battery life
- Simple-to-use app
Cons
- Plasticky building
- Some consolation points
Key Options
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Ironless driversThe Enduro ANC use Cleer’s patented Ironless drivers to provide audio
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Audio qualityThe headphones help aptX, aptX Adaptive Bluetooth codecs
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Battery life60 hours’ battery life with noise cancellation is class-leading (to this point)
Introduction
US audio model Cleer is one we’ve saved a watch on because it first landed within the UK a couple of years again. The Enduro ANC are one among their newest efforts: an inexpensive ANC pair with long-lasting battery life.
That stamina is round 60 hours, beating the Urbanista Miami’s 40 hours. The Enduro ANC aren’t even Cleer’s longest-lasting pair – the Enduro 100 hit a century of battery life.
At £149, the Enduro ANC are propositioned in the direction of the worth finish for ANC headphones. Noise cancellation at this worth can usually be a shadow of pricier efforts, however after giving these headphones a shakedown, there are causes to consider the Enduro ANC buck that development.
Availability
- UKRRP: £149
- USARRP: $149
Design
- Arduous plastic design
- Simple to make use of
- Distinctive appears to be like
In the case of appears to be like, Cleer undoubtedly has a selected ‘style’, and that’s assuredly an excellent factor. In a market the place headphones can usually be indistinguishable from each other, the Cleer aesthetic stands out.
The look is dialled down from the Move II in some respects. The decal design on the earcup is extra restrained, it’s slimmer in profile, weighs much less and isn’t as cumbersome – all of which contributes to a type that’s extra accommodating to put on than the Move II was.
However some points stay, notably within the nature of the development. Whereas using laborious plastic brings rigidness, I may hear creaks within the body, which isn’t notably reassuring. They’re not essentially the most snug to put on over extended use both; the plastic casing tends to chew into the earpads and pinch round my ears.
The buttons are a bit plasticky however are simple to find, responsive and provide tactility, too. It’s simple to differentiate between each (quantity, multi-function and ANC toggle), a design side some manufacturers can surprisingly fumble.
The multi-function button niftily covers all playback choices (play, pause, skips ahead and backwards), whereas a double-tap on the ANC button brings up a digital assistant. A protracted press (about a few seconds) on that very same button enters Dialog mode, which is Cleer’s model of Sony’s Fast Consideration mode, pausing music and letting sound in so you may have a chat.
Obtainable in white and navy blue (which I reasonably like), the Enduro ANC are a chic and trendy-looking pair general. There’s no laborious carry case, however there’s a delicate drawstring pouch with a USB-C/USB-A charging cable, USB-C to three.5mm cable and airplane adapter tucked in. There’s no USB-C cable to attach straight to a cellular machine that lacks a 3.5mm jack, however I can’t consider a full-sized pair of of the highest of my head that carry such a cable anyway.
Options
- Lengthy battery life
- Efficient noise cancellation
- Cleer+ companion app
The Enduro ANC’s headline characteristic is its mammoth battery life. It’s the mix of ANC and as much as sixty (60!) hours of battery that units eyebrows elevating and heads tilting.
What witchcraft Cleer has summoned to attain that is made specific by the inclusion of Qualcomm’s QCC5124 chipset. The quantity of energy it makes use of is extraordinarily low, permitting it to handle energy higher to ship what’s – at the moment – a class-leading consequence at any worth for any ANC pair of headphones. Nevertheless, word that the extra you turn between modes and hear at greater volumes, consumption of the battery will probably be a bit faster. Fast charging – when you ever want it – is 10 minutes for 2 extra hours (three hours for a full cost).
The presence of lively noise cancellation is changing into much less of a draw back and extra of an attraction at this worth. So that you don’t want to interrupt open the piggy financial institution to fund a pair of AirPods Max, Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 or Sony WH-1000XM4, except what you search is the most effective noise-cancelling efficiency available on the market.
Should you accept the Enduro ANC’s noise cancellation you then’re getting a stable efficiency. Cleer claims it reduces noises by round 25dB, and it’ll clear up a good quantity – specifically, low-frequency noises – to make for a smoother stroll or commute. I discovered it struggled with close by voices, which made their presence felt above the amount of audio.
The noise-cancelling subdues reasonably than absolutely diminishes sounds – the dimensions of automobiles are made smaller, the tone extra of ‘whoosh’ as they go by. Journeys on trains are much less intrusive, and carrying them inside buildings – Waterloo, for instance – does calm issues down. It isn’t as thorough as the highest pairs, however it’s efficient.
A press on the noise-cancelling button flits between totally different modes: ANC, Ambient Sound and Off. Ambient Sound is clear sufficient to listen to what’s round you with out it changing into too synthetic, though it produces a hiss that turns into barely louder because the ambient settings are tweaked to filter by extra sound.
That tweaking is finished by the Cleer+ companion app (Android / iOS), and that provides 10 ranges of Ambient Sound adjustment, the chance to play with the headphones’ EQ settings (64Hz – 8kHz), playback controls, firmware updates and an Auto Energy-Off characteristic. Easy and intuitive, I’ve bought few qualms about its performance. It additionally appears to be like slick with its ‘darkish mode’ aesthetic.
A roundup of the remainder of the options sees Bluetooth 5.0 included (naturally) with, SBC, aptX and aptX Adaptive, which is especially fascinating at this finish of the market given the aptX’s adaptive compatibility with higher-quality audio. Wi-fi connectivity has fared fairly nicely: I’ve skilled no drop-outs or stutters when strolling by probably busy areas similar to Waterloo. Google Quick Pair 2.0 is current when you have a appropriate Android smartphone.
Sound high quality
- Composed, organised sound high quality
- Impartial presentation
- Good at decrease volumes
Cleer makes use of its proprietary Ironless Driver expertise for almost all of its headphones (right here in its 40mm type). I reasonably loved the tech within the Move II for the reason that Ironless Drivers produce a clear, detailed sound with little to no sign distortion, and that’s a lot the case with the Enduro ANC.
The Ironless Driver expertise does carry with it a barely chilly and brittle really feel to the mid-range space. Should you’re after heat in your music you then gained’t discover it right here. The Enduro ANC offers in neutrality, and that may be reasonably chilly to hearken to at occasions.
In comparison with, say, the Sony WH-H910N (now right down to round £180) and the strategy to vocals on lower-quality audio streams is obvious by the Enduro ANC being not as clean because the Sony. Jill Scott’s voice on Golden sounds barely strained and her intonations aren’t as emotive as they’re on the Sonys. It’s a case of Sony’s smoothness versus Cleer’s sharpness.
Hearken to higher-quality tracks on Qobuz, and the Cleer fare higher. The Cleers described Jorja Smith’s album Be Proper Again with extra deftness – it isn’t as upfront or as energetic because the Sonys – however vocals are tighter and higher organised throughout the soundstage.
The chilly tone feels much less of a problem, and better high quality tracks make extra evident that the Enduro ANC sound fairly good at decrease volumes. An adjustment to greater volumes brings about extra vitality and boosts the headphones’ sense of dynamism (successfully in Christian Scott’s The Emancipation Procrastination), whereas retaining readability and element.
The Enduro ANC sound higher and extra composed than the Urbanista Miami (£129) with tighter bass dealing with and higher organisation of the soundstage in Daft Punk’s Give Life Again to Music. The piano notes in Inside from the identical album are detailed and tonally conveyed nicely. Excessive-frequency notes could lack a semblance of chew and shine in Gogo Penguin’s Raven, however they’re outlined nonetheless.
In the case of noise cancellation and Ambient Sound modes, playback with noise cancellation positively wins out. Audio is barely thinner and distant with Ambient mode on and ANC fills out the sound extra and produces firmer bass, too.
In mild of the value, the Cleer Enduro ANC provide great worth. They sound higher – constantly so – than cheaper options. Their impartial, mature strategy ought to win them loads of followers. They’re barely chilly in tone and that may have an effect on how emotive they arrive throughout, particularly with vocals. However their talent with higher-quality audio places them excessive and above price-related rivals. The Enduro ANC are a gifted pair of inexpensive ANC headphones from Cleer.
Must you purchase it?
In order for you achieved sound at an inexpensive worth Cheaper headphones don’t at all times promise essentially the most disciplined audio, however Cleer has delivered a measured, impartial and detailed sound that’s fairly entertaining for essentially the most half, particularly with higher-quality audio.
If consolation is a precedence: The laborious plastic high quality of the headphones provides rigidity to the design however does imply they’re not essentially the most versatile. Creaking sounds will be heard from the chassis and the plastic on the earcups can pinch across the ear.
Verdict
The spec sheet of Cleer Enduro ANC is bold, however they ship nicely on almost all fronts. Sound high quality is superb, noise cancellation is stable, and the battery life is epic. The design and luxury ranges are its weakest side, however for £149 these headphones acquit themselves nicely.
Trusted Rating
