If you want high-quality, high-fidelity true wireless earbuds, this Technics EAH-AZ60 review is the right place to be. Some of the best true wireless earbuds you can buy right now, Technics certainly knows its stuff when it comes to sound quality.
Technics is the Hi-Fi audio arm of tech giant Panasonic, so long story short, you can rely on them to produce products with fantastic sound, and the Technics EAH-AZ60 earbuds are no different.
With its main rivals being the likes of Sony and Bose, the competition is fierce right now, but can the Technics EAH-AZ60 do enough to outshine the competition? The answer is both yes and no - here’s why.
Technics EAH-AZ60 review: price and availability
You can buy the Technics EAH-AZ60 now starting from $230 in the US and £200 in the UK, which places them towards the more affordable end of premium. The Technics EAH-AZ60 aren’t currently available in Australia.
Take a look at the widgets on this page to find out where you can pick up a pair right now.
Technics EAH-AZ60 review: design and fit
From the outside, the Technics EAH-AZ60 don’t look like anything special because they come slotted into a shiny plastic charging case with ‘Technics’ imprinted across the top. Thankfully, the earbuds inside are a little more flashy, made from a combination of aluminium and smooth matte plastic. Each earbud weighs about 7g which is on the weightier side of things but that also means they feel sturdy and durable.
I found them to be quite bulky and they stuck out my ears quite a lot, they aren’t the best-looking buds ever and there’s nothing discreet about them. Luckily not everyone will be as concerned about aesthetics as I am because despite that these are very comfortable. That’s mostly down to the fact that they come with seven different sizes of silicone ear tips included in the box, that’s four more than you get with the majority of true wireless earbuds.
You can wear these for just about anything, partly because they’re IPX4 water-resistant so will survive sudden downpours of rain and lots of sweat, and partly because the weightiness means they stay securely in your ear. To fit them into your ears you need to push them in and twist which means they’re much less likely to fall out than those you just slot into your ears.
Controlling the music is easy by using the touch sensors on the outside of each earbud. They’re quick to get to grips with, I didn’t find any problems with them once I’d learnt what was what. You tap once to pause or play the song, twice on the left to turn the volume down, twice on the right to skip to the next track or three times on the left to increase the volume and three times on the right to skip to the last track.
The touch sensors will also let you manage your phone calls, summon your smartphone’s voice assistant which can include Amazon Alexa as well as switch between noise-cancelling modes.
With the ANC switched on, you can expect to get about 7 hours of music at a time, with the charging case providing a total of 24 hours - that’s perfectly fine, sitting in the middle-ground of what you can get.
To charge the earbuds back up again, you can expect it to take about 2 hours, the charging case will take about 2 and a half hours. Not got much time? A quick 15-minute charge should give you about 70 minutes of use with noise-cancelling. It’s a shame there’s no wireless charging, you would almost expect that at this pricepoint.
Technics EAH-AZ60 review: performance and features
Thanks to their 8mm drivers, the Technics EAH-AZ60 sound excellent and will translate well to every genre. The default tuning is full of life, there’s nothing dull or laid back about these earbuds. A wide soundstage means you feel immersed in the whole track, and the detail means you can really appreciate every moment.
When I listened to Another Day in Paradise by Phil Collins, I felt this really shone through. I could hear each instrument well, but no single one overpowered the track so you get the impression that these earbuds do your tunes justice. Other tracks, like Location by Dave and Burna Boy, demonstrate the balance of the audio well, with plenty of richness and depth to it. The bass feels punchy without being over the top so you can still hear every word clearly.
The Technics smartphone app is available for both iOS and Android, it’s one of the most in-depth adjoining apps for a pair of true wireless earbuds I've tried out, giving you tonnes of control over the sound, noise-cancelling and even call quality.
You get a detailed 5-band equaliser to make the audio your own, or you can choose between 4 preset sound modes like Bass+, Vocal, Treble+ and Dynamic. I enjoyed listening to the Bass+ and Dynamic modes the most because both added extra oomph and energy to my playlists.
To delve even deeper into your music, the Technics EAH-AZ60 have adjustable noise cancelling that you can dial up from 1 to 100. It definitely dulled out the noise happening around me, the traffic outside wasn’t as prominent while office chatter became less distracting, but there are definitely headphones with more effective ANC. Take a look at the best noise-cancelling headphones for more of those.
For when you do want to know what’s going on around you, there’s also a transparent mode with an extra 'attention' toggle for when you want voices around you to be emphasised, it's helpful when you need to be able to hear the conversations happening around you. The transparent mode did a great job at letting the sound in so you stay aware of your surroundings, in fact, it was so good that my own keyboard taps started to get really annoying because they cut through the music quite forcefully.
Using the JustMyVoice test on the app you can change how your voice will be heard by others. It will help to reduce surrounding noise, increasing the amount of delay between you and your voice being heard giving it more time to filter the sounds.
I made a few calls using the Technics EAH-AZ60 and they did a decent job at isolating my voice, for the most part. The person on the other end could hear me loud and clear so while the call quality isn’t best-in-class, it is perfectly fine.
Packing Bluetooth 5.2, the connection between your phone and the earbuds is very reliable and they’ll stay connected even when you wander away. You get SBC and AAC codec support as well as LDAC support to listen to lossless audio where possible.
Technics EAH-AZ60 review: verdict
If you want some top-quality true wireless earbuds, the Technics EAH-AZ60 could very well be what you’re looking for. Their obvious competition is equivalent earphones from Sony and Bose, which admittedly do win in most areas, but these aren’t far off and they’re a touch cheaper.
The Technics EAH-AZ60 sound excellent and that’s the most important thing. The noise-cancelling is good as well even if it’s not the absolute best on the market. Everything about these headphones encourages you to get fully engaged with your music whatever it is or wherever you are.
Technics EAH-AZ60 review: also consider
For better noise-cancelling, I’d recommend the Sony WH-1000XM4. They’re a fair amount more expensive than these but they combine incredible sound with insanely good ANC, and a whole host of smart features too. They’re over-ear headphones but if you want to cut the world out then you won’t find a better pair.
If you’re set on buying some in-ear headphones then the best for most people will still be the Sony WF-1000XM4. They’re only slightly more expensive than these but they’re better looking with impressive call quality, fantastic sound and the battery life is an hour longer.
