When it comes to active noise canceling headphones, the first two brands that people usually remember are Sony and Bose. Sophisticated users may call B&W, B&O, JBL or Jabra. In fact, almost all well-known audio brands now make headphones with ANC, but their products are usually very expensive and remain inaccessible to ordinary music lovers.
Fortunately, there are also young companies in this niche that produce decent budget noise-canceling headphones. Mixcder is one such brand. I have been using their flagship model E10 for about three weeks, and although initially the expectations were not too high, in fact the headphones turned out to be very good. They look, play and work better than can be expected from their price. Does the E10 have flaws? Read this review and you'll find out.
Price and specifications Mixcder E10
- form factor: full-size headphones;
- dynamic emitters Ø 40 mm;
- supported codecs: SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX Low Latency;
- connection: Bluetooth 5.0;
- autonomy up to 30 hours (battery 500 mAh), charging via MicroUSB;
- frequency range: 20 Hz - 20 kHz
- headphone weight: 304 grams;
Equipment with Mixcder E10 Headphones:
- case;
- MicroUSB cable for charging;
- AUX cable
- adapter for the plane;
- instruction and warranty card;
The E10 comes with a very decent shipping case. It is made of tough, scratch-resistant eco-leather, there is a fabric eyelet on the outside, and an elastic band to fix the headphones inside.
But at the same time it is not clear why the case is so huge. The headphones themselves fold down to really small sizes, and if desired, the manufacturer could make the case much more compact.
Appearance and build quality of Mixcder E10 Headphones :
There is nothing flashy in the design of the Mixcder E10, everything is simple, but tasteful. This gives them a visual resemblance to premium models like the B&O Beoplay H8. Most of the friends I showed E10 could not believe that these headphones cost less than $ 100.
An exceptionally positive impression is made by the build quality of the E10. The design has small inclusions of plastic, but the chassis and bowl locks are made of aluminum. There should be no problems with the reliability of the headphones.
Headband and ear cups are covered in soft-touch artificial leather with soft padding
The Chinese did not regret the foam rubber, it is very soft, which provides excellent comfort for the head and ears.
Due to the use of metal, the Mixcder E10 turned out to be quite heavy (304 g), but these are one of the few full-sizes in which I can sit without discomfort for several hours in a row. All thanks to the moderate pressing pressure, which at the same time is enough to prevent the headphones from moving during active movement. You are unlikely to run in them, but sharp tilts and turns of the head do not affect the position of the headphones.
With the adjustment of the headband, there is also a complete order: the departure is enough, the hinge does not play, but elastically opens with a characteristic mechanical click. Since the bowls rotate in any direction, the E10 should fit normally on any size head.
As for the controls, they are all mechanical and are located on the right bowl. The audio connector for wired connection is located in the same place, and the Micro-USB port is located on the left side.
I have no answer to the question of why the E10 are charged via Micro-USB and not the Type-C port. This is inconvenient, and few people want to fool around with a separate headphone cable. In general, a strange solution for both the flagship model of the brand.
Management and connection with a smartphone:
Connecting to an E10 smartphone is very simple, you need to press and hold the power button for several seconds until the LED starts flashing, then the headphones become available in the search menu of Bluetooth devices. Subsequent synchronization will be performed automatically when the device is turned on.
I had no problems with the stability of connecting these headphones to the OnePlus 7T, a laptop, and also a PC with a nouveau Bluetooth receiver. They keep the connection at a distance of 15-20 meters, this is not a record figure, but for normal use, more is not needed. Unfortunately, there is no multi-point here, you can’t connect the headphones to two devices at the same time, and also the E10 can’t work in headset mode with a wired connection.
Everything is standard for control: the power button turns on the headphones, pauses playback or accepts / ends an incoming call. The forward and backward keys adjust the volume with a single press and switch the tracks with a long press. It will take a little time to get used to before you can easily determine the desired key blindly.
Active sound insulation
Mixcder E10 is a closed headphone, the design of which does not allow sound to go outside and well cuts off unwanted external sounds, even when active noise reduction is turned off. They can comfortably listen to music in the middle of a busy street at medium volume without using noise reduction.
But when you go on the subway or go near the roadway, where passive isolation is not enough, the noise canceler helps out a lot. Here ANC can only be turned on or off, there are no pre-set intensity levels, like the more expensive models, the E10 does not.
You should understand that active noise cancellation does not eliminate ambient sounds in principle, but effectively muffles the lion's share of low-frequency noise, such as the hum of cars, buses and trains, impacts of construction equipment, etc. If you use noise reduction in a room where music plays loudly, it will seem that it sounds somewhere far away from you, and the voices of people around you will become less legible and intrusive.
There are a lot of scenarios for using ANC, and it’s worth to thank Mixcder that they implemented it not for show - the function is really working. But there are a couple of negative points. Firstly, the noise reduction is activated automatically when the headphones are turned on, which is not very convenient, you have to disconnect it once again.
Also, I didn’t like the lack of voice notification about enabling / disabling ANC. You can determine its operation only by the LED indicator or by the nature of the sound of the headphones, which is noticeably changing, and not for the better.
Sound Quality
Mixcder E10 supports SBC, AAC, aptX and AptX Low Latency codecs, that is, theoretically with Android devices they should sound best. However, I did not notice a particular decrease in sound quality when they connected them via Bluetooth to a laptop without aptX.
As for the sound, playing the E10 is very pleasant and comfortable. The main emphasis is on low frequencies, the bass is powerful and at the same time soft, with a vintage character. Surround bass, where you need to feel the punch, there is even a hint of texture, which is rare for the wireless full-size of this price segment.
But there is one point. When you turn on the ANC, the headphones noticeably amplify the already abundant low frequencies, which makes the sound booming and dull. Therefore, I prefer to listen to music without noise, and use it when absolutely necessary, for example when watching movies, where this effect is not so noticeable.
Mid frequencies in the E10 are neutral, with good detail and separation of instruments. Live music sounds natural, but in heavy genres you may feel that the bass is a little climb on the midrange. The high frequencies of the E10 are soft and clear, even at high volume they never sound harsh. Vocals, especially women, transmit headphones without major simplifications.
I also noticed that the E10s sound an order of magnitude better when wired. Better bass control appears, the scene improves markedly, the vocals become more natural and elaborate. E10 really makes sense to listen by cable when such an opportunity exists.
As for the quality of the microphones, the E10 does not have any noise canceling system in headset mode, and therefore it will not work normally to talk through them outdoors in windy weather. In a quiet environment, the voice is legible. I used them as a gaming headset when communicating with teammates in Discord - there were no complaints about audibility.
Autonomy
In terms of autonomy, Mixcder was very pleased. The manufacturer promises 30 hours of operation without ANC on a single charge, which is confirmed in practice. I actively used the headphones for several hours daily, and the first time I put them on charge a week and a half after unpacking.
It takes about an hour to charge the headphones. It supports fast charging technology, which gives 3 hours of playback after 10 minutes at the outlet. In general, the battery life of the E10 is one of the best wireless headphones in this price segment.
Should I buy a Mixcder E10?
I definitely liked the Mixcder E10, they give almost everything that an ordinary user needs. These headphones have an obvious drawback - this is the MicroUSB port. The distortions introduced by the ANC sound were also a little disappointing, and the E10's noise reduction itself is not as advanced as the flagship A-brand models.
But for music lovers with a limited budget, this is more than a solid alternative. Headphones have a cool design, excellent build quality and materials, impressive autonomy, good sound and a working ANC. In terms of price and quality, this is one of the best budget models that I have seen, so I can safely recommend it for purchase.
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