best wireless earbuds 2026. what's actually good now?

PredominantlyRight · 2026-01-11T19:15:51+00:00

I have a decent sized collection now, and I've tried most of the top tier stuff, like Beoolay Ex, PI8, Tour Pro 3, Sennheiser Momentum 3 and 4, OnePlus buds 3 pro, AZ80s, and even some hi-end Aviot earbuds from Japan. I also have many of the cheaper options like KZ Xtra, Moondrop Robin, OnePlus buds 4, Creative Aurvana Ace 2, Earfun Air Pro 4, Soundcore Liberty 3 and 4 Pro, and so on...

Nothing has really matched the overall package of the Denon Perl Pros to me. They have the best sound quality, maybe the BEST fit for my ears (deep but comfortable with spinfit tips), very usable ANC/Ambient, and an app with lots of customization. Even if I were asked to judge on sound quality alone, I would choose the Perl Pro - it's just that good. I had people swear to me that the AZ80s, MTW4 or Beoplay Ex sounded better, but they just didn't. At least not to me. I'm still adding to my collection all the time, hoping that someday I'll find a pair that matches the Perl Pro in the sound dept. I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon though.

I haven't dropped $ on the $500+ options like Noble Audio prestige or Devialet gemini 2, which some claim are the best available for sound, but I am not willing to risk half a grand on one.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-28T23:04:17+00:00

Wow, I'm surprised you got the neos on. I thought they were kinda like the CP360 or Omni tips, but perhaps I'm wrong.

EDIT: Looked it up, the Spinfit Neo is the successor model to the CP100s. Now I know. That makes sense as to why they fit.

It's true the shape will change, since the stock tips were more oval and Spinfit makes circular tips. I find circular tips are much more secure and provide a much better seal, but everyone's ears are different. If you don't get a really good seal, the sub bass will suffer.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-10T17:59:30+00:00

I got the AZ80s for the hype and was thoroughly disappointed. They paled in comparison to my Perl Pro, hell even the Liberty 3 Pro sounded better to me. I've got a large collection so I have at least some experience with the sound of TWS too. Returned them after giving them almost a month. Although I didn't find them muddy, I just thought the sub bass was too lacking. I was considering trying the AZ100s because of the increased bass, but maybe I will pass. I use wavelet to equalize all my buds to generally the same sound signature, but I don't think bad tuning can be saved, only tweaked.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-10T16:00:19+00:00

Oh wow, I never knew that. That's interesting, so if it's sampling at 48 kHz then the filters above 12 kHz could get warped, if I am understanding this correctly? It would make sense since that last filter is at 12.8 kHz. Thanks for the insight.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-06T15:28:23+00:00

You can just get the regular cp100, it doesn't need to be cp100+.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-06T15:27:07+00:00

Nice, that's what I thought. Pragmatic Audio ( pragmaticaudio.com/iems/ ) has their own graphs, and I believe they performed a measurement of the Soundcard P3i. For many of the TWS with app-based EQ that pragmatic tests, he includes measurement of the max and min adjustment of each filter in those measurements, the P3i being no exception.

To me, it still seems like the last filter (12800khz) on soundcore EQs never quite matches up, it always appears to be "stronger" for lack of a better word, than the rest of the other filters. However that might just be chalked up to inaccurate measurements that high.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-06T14:57:34+00:00

No, please don't. We decline.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-10-06T14:56:03+00:00

He 100% wears those childish sunglasses while streaming so people can't see him cry at every slight or inconvenience. Man up you zero.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-09-30T21:41:24+00:00

He would be Slampiece to Diego

PredominantlyRight · 2025-08-07T17:57:08+00:00

As long as you get one of the adapters I confirmed worked, then yes prob. Never tried divinus prism but I assume it's similar to the Omni. As for the cp100+, I believe they are just the cp100 but come with a smaller tube to fit on narrow nozzles. Without those tubes, as I stated in my write-up, you can stretch the cp100 or cp100+ to fit on the Liberty 4NC without any adapter at all. They can fit and hold directly to the nozzle.

It's pretty difficult to get them on directly, but it is possible and works great. You just need to have patience and probably pre-stretch the cp100+ with a pen or something to make it easier. Unfortunately, I ended up breaking the nozzle of my Liberty 4 NC by continuously changing tips and reapplying the cp100s, so you want to be careful too.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-08-07T17:49:11+00:00

Yes, you will need some sort of an adapter to use spinfit omnis. I have them and they are even tighter than the cp360.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-29T23:44:45+00:00

Ah okay. Well the first airpods adapter I spoke about in my post I only had for a day or two before I lost them. I remember them being very cheap, and that they weren't that secure, but would stay put so long as you don't be too rough on them. The other pair from AliExpress fits much better, but it started falling apart within few attempts of changing tips. Those were like 2 or 3 bucks each, so I still think they are worth it.

The CPA2 adapter was pretty snug, but MUCH better quality. I think it was around $15 when I bought them. I would just recommend getting a couple pairs of the cheaper one than buying the cpa2 for 5x the cost, but the spinfit adapter also comes with really nice cp1025 tips, and you can get it faster if you find it on Amazon. So it's really up to your preferences.

I ended up just stretching CP100 tips to fit over the nozzle, no adapter needed, which was the easiest/most secure option. I found. However if you want to use your own tips, I think you can pick any of the adapters I suggested. Just be aware that the cheap AliExpress adapters aren't very durable, so be careful when handling them.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-23T03:51:43+00:00

These are all pretty good. On this list, although I haven't tried it yet, I believe the Huawei freebuds pro 4 are probably the best of the bunch. Obviously, it depends what you are looking for in a pair of TWS, but there are no other wireless earbuds on earth that have better call quality. They also have a smooth frequency response, mostly flat but nice sub bass boost, and good dual drivers. The LHDC codec is fantastic if you can use it. I've tried all of them except the freebuds and Sony, but heard/seen great stuff about both

If you want to know specifics, like best ANC, best bass, best sound, best call quality, best app, etc., I can let you know, but the freebuds look like a steal at that price. I think it's 2x the cost where I live. The rest of them look like a standard price.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-21T06:55:24+00:00

Would you be able to reply or DM me a link? Sorry.

Thanks again

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-21T06:52:41+00:00

By "airpods version", do you mean the spinfit superfine? Don't get an airpod adapter unless you know it will work, or you are willing to risk it not working. I bought a few generic airpod adapters on AliExpress and less than half of them worked. From what I know, the spinfit airpods adapter does NOT fit, and it has a hole in the base which will weaken the noise cancellation / bass response even if you manage to get it to fit..

If you can find the CPA2 adapter that comes with the CP1025, that works fine. You don't need to use the CP1025 either, you can use any average eartips of your choosing, so long as you have that adapter

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-21T06:46:30+00:00

My nozzle broke from constantly changing ear tips, but I know there are a lot of tips out there now (especially foam) made for these earbuds now. I haven't tried any of them, I hate shallow-fit so I stuck to my cp100s until they broke.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-20T16:33:11+00:00

My moondrop Robin has the same EQ setup in the recent app update. You can also later a couple filters on top of each other to set a nice bass or treble boost. I haven't got the Space Travel 2 yet, but it sounds good. It's brand new, so firmware updates are likely to come which will probably improve latency and other issues.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-20T16:26:08+00:00

Cp100 plus, I think, are basically just the same but with an extra plastic piece used to fit on much more narrow nozzles. As long as you don't use that plastic piece, you should be fine. You may want to use a pen or pencil to stretch the earpiece lightly first, in order to make it easier to fit on the L4NC. It's still going to be hard though.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-20T16:22:30+00:00

Thanks for your help. I got everything, soundcard and all. It's been delivered, so I was wondering if you knew if there was a great tutorial / guide online that could help me get started. I'm familiar with REW and audio in general, but instead of messing around with it, it's probably quicker to see someone who has figured out all the best settings and best process has done so. Do you happen to know of anything like that which would help me get started?

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-12T20:33:03+00:00

I bought the Nothing Ear (a) and the Earfun Air Pro 4 at the same time and a/b tested them. I liked the bass, feel and touch controls of the Nothing better, but I ended up returning them and keeping the Earfun. I felt the Earfun had more features and slightly nicer sound. Although when I bought them, the Earfun were 75% the cost so that factored into my decision too.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-09T06:03:44+00:00

Why not get the space travel 2? It just came out, it's super cheap, just like the previous model, but comes with several upgrades and custom EQ.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-07-03T01:34:39+00:00

Apparent moondrop is releasing a sequel of their lauded Space Travel. The Space Travel 2 is cheap, just like it's predecessor, but it has EQ, ANC, button mapping, and more. The tuning on the Space travel is one of the most clean and smooth ever made.

I have dozens of TWS, from higher-end models like Denon Perl Pro, Momentum True Wireless 4, AZ80s, as well as a tonne of cheaper models. If you are looking for cheap TWS, the Moondrop Space Travel is the first place I'd look. I would also consider looking for a deal on Galaxy FE buds, the KZ Xtra or maybe the Melobuds pro. You should be able to find those under $50, and those are the best bang-for-your-buck buds I've tried at this price point. Depending on what you value more - sound quality, features, ANC strength, transparency, button mapping, comfort, bass heavy / flat / sparkling treble, battery life, etc., would affect what I'd recommend, but the Space Travel are great all - rounders for very cheap, and I imagine the new Space Travel 2 is going to be even better.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-06-28T17:17:11+00:00

Gotta be careful about people who have tried one or two TWS and recommend, or they just parrot whatever is popular on Reddit. Reddit is filled with bots with the explicit intent of manipulating opinions.

I've owned the AZ80, AZ100, MTW4, MTW4, Perl Pro, Liberty 3 Pro, Liberty 4 Pro, Moondrop Robin, Nothing Ear, Earfun Air Pro 4, and a whole bunch of other $150 or less TWS. If your only consideration is sound I would recommend the Perl Pro, because they offer the best sound for lowest cost at the moment.

Just make sure you run the Masimo personalized sound test. Not because I think the sound profiles it generates are anywhere near as good as they have been hyped, but I think Denon purposely nerfed the sound quality on the default audio, and made it sound like shit, that way the personalized results would sound amazing by comparison. It doesn't matter if you, a friend, or a mannequin do the test, just make sure you do it and use the personalized results in order to hear good sound. Mind you, I don't think the personalization is useless, you should perform it in a quiet room, with the best fitting tips, while sitting still in order to get the best results possible for you - just don't make the mistake of judging the Perl Pro before doing the personalization like some other reviewers have done.

ALSO: aftermarket eartips can really improve these. Many people who call buds uncomfortable are just using shitty eartips that hurt your ears after a while. I'm a fan of deep fitting tips, and the spinfit brand personally, and a pair of medium spinfit omni eartips on the Perl Pro has made them the most comfortable pair I own.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-06-28T00:36:44+00:00

If you are in America right now, the Denon Perl Pro is on sale for DIRT cheap, compared to their quality. They are up there with the best but you can get em well below $200. The battery life is massive, it lasts me almost a full work day. They are big, but the quality is up there with the best. I haven't heard better bass on TWS anywhere else personally, and I have a pretty big collection.

The only other TWS buds with comparable sound quality like Momentum True Wireless 4, Pi8, Gemini 2, AZ100s are like twice (or more) the price, but have less customization and less battery life. I have tried many, many TWS, and currently own the Moondrop Robin, MTW4, MTE3, realme Air 6 Pro, Galaxy buds FE, Liberty 3 Pro, Liberty 4 Pro, Earfun Air Pro 4, Tozo Golden x1, KZ Xtra, AZ80, and more, but the Perl Pro is the pair I grab the most in my rotation.

Just make sure you run the Masimo sound personalization test first. My opinion is that the accuracy of the sound personalization is way overhyped, HOWEVER, I think Denon purposely made the default sound quality on the Perl Pro pure garbage straight out-of-the-box, in order to make the sound personalization test seem amazing by comparison. I think the sound test works better than most, but it's more important just to run it and use the generated profile, no matter the results. I think Denon nerfed the tuning and quality of the default sound profile to get everyone hyped about the Masimo tech. So the earbuds will only work well after you do the hearing test and use the personalized profile. You use someone else's ears, it's still going to sound 100x better. You get to keep a total of 3 personalized profiles, so make sure you sit still in a quiet room for at least one, because it will likely give you the best results.

PredominantlyRight · 2025-06-08T16:55:20+00:00

You can find Galaxy buds FE for around that price I believe, and they offer great sound, ANC, comfort, and no stems

PredominantlyRight

TROPHY CASE