Expert’s Rating
Pros
Cons
Best Prices Today: ATH-CKS550XBT Solid Bass Wireless In-Ear Headphones
It ’s possible to receive surprisingly comely Bluetooth earphones for well under $ 100 . Aukey ’s EP - B40 Latitude Wireless Earphones are proof positive of this . However , for every pair of bang-up , cheap earbuds you ’ll run across , you ’re sure to discover 50 brace that are n’t worth their request price .
Audio - Technica’sATH - CKS550XBT square Bass Wireless In - Ear Headphonesfall into this latter category . At $ 79 , they hail with far too many quirk and compromises to recommend .
Design
The first thing I noticed while unboxing the ATH - CKS550XBT phone was how punk they felt . Their in - line of descent controls and battery pod are all sheathed in the same sort of downmarket charge plate that toy caller have been using to make mid - range Barbie and G.I. Joe playsets since the 1980s . That ’s fine for toy that baby will probably outgrow within a class . It ’s not okay for a product that full - turn adult are considering for a fine addition to their everyday carry .
Returning to the example set by Aukey , the feel and feeling of the EP - B40s provide a hint of tone despite their steal - cellar price . That ’s not something you get with the ATH - CKS550XBTs . I was able to get a fingernail in between the seams where one piece of charge plate joins with another , and the headset ’s plastic earbuds feel as though they weigh nothing at all .
That ’s a problem , considering the fit of these earphones . While this headset ship with four sets of silicone polymer earbuds , none of them could keep the earpiece sufficiently anchored in my head while walking around . The ATH - CKS550XBTs ’ electronics pod and electric battery pack / in - business remote werejustheavy enough that I could always find them pull on the earbuds as I run about my day .
Poor build quality and questionable audio makes these earbuds hard to reccomend.
inadequate build up quality and questionable sound recording makes these earbuds severely to reccomend .
As accessories like this place upright a in high spirits chance of coming into touch with rain or stew , a piece of liquid resistance seem like a fair expectation . But these ? No liquid resistance at all . Even the arctic flap that embrace their Micro - USB charging port refused to sit down flush , leaving the phone more loose to encroachment by liquid and dirt than they should be .
Like V - Moda ’s Forza Metallo , the ATH - CKS550XBTs are designed to be worn like a neckband , with their electronics pod resting on the back of the cervix . Unlike the Metallo , though , these boast no curved , ergonomic design . As such , the seedpod sways back and off .
Poor build quality and questionable audio makes these earbuds hard to reccomend.
This leads me to another subject : microphonics . The cables for these earpiece are very thin : a decision based more on fashion than reasoned design , I ’m sure . As I walk around , turn my top dog , or shifted my weighting while sitting , I could clearly try each and every time the ATH - CKS550XBT cablegram brush against me . It ’s an unwished addition on an already longsighted tilt of charge .
The ATH - CKS550XBTs are range to deliver six hours of playtime from a single charge . I found that , even while hear at a moderate volume , the headset ’s rechargeable battery provide around an hour less than this . That ’s subpar when compared to the majority of the wireless earphones that I ’ve used and reviewed over the past five years and , considering that Aukey ’s $ 28 EP - B40 finagle the same runtime at tight to one - third of the cost , it ’s kind of mortifying .
Sound
The first thing I mark when I popped the ATH - CKS550XBT in my ear was that their volume controls would n’t affect the loudness of my audio source . So whenever I want to turn whatever I was mind to up to its maximum book , I was forced to pull my iPhone out of my pocket , increase its volume , slip it away once again , and then increase the book of the headphone themselves . That ’s frustrative .
More thwarting is the fact that every time you touch the mass on the ATH - CKS550XBT , your euphony gets muted by a small percentage so that you’re able to hear what I can only acquire is avery of import bleep . Up or down , it does n’t matter — you’re choke to get bleep and you ’ll just have to read to live with it .
Once you ’re finished fishing your smartphone in and out of your air pocket and there are no more beeps , the these earphones do n’t sound all that unsound , provided you take heed to them at their maximal intensity . They ’re not even all that tawdry , so I would n’t reckon this a bang against them — just another quirk .
At their flash , these earphone farm some vindicated mid- and high - absolute frequency sound along with some pretty substantive bass . Unfortunately , as the decibels of what you ’re listening to decrease , the soprano you were enjoying when they were turned up to 11 evaporate in a swampland of low - frequency audio . With their bass overwhelming all else , I find it difficult to relish any of the music I played through them at a lower loudness .
earpiece shout made or received using the ATH - CKS550XBT proved less than cleared , aside from the annoying microphonics create by the headset ’s cables . Those fall through loud and clear .
The bottom line
Because of their confutative figure quality , plan , and lackluster audio recording performance , we can not recommend Audio - Technica ’s ATH - CKS550XBT earpiece . you could get far well Bluetooth earphones for far less money .
