Alien Sound Tech – SoundPeats AIR5 PRO True Wireless TWS IEMS
SoundPeats Air5 PRO is a $79 USD pair of TWS Bluetooth Earphones or IEMS with Adaptive ANC, hi-Res support, LDAC support and aptX Lossless support. Today we review the Air5 PRO and broadly explore how they compare to the market.
Introduction
Soundpeats has a history of launching entry-level IEMS with Bluetooth support, which have historically been very good. While not necessarily perfect, they usually delivered a fair performance for their price, and the wide availability on platforms like Amazon made them a good choice for the casual listener.
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Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4mO9Y5v
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_okaklVF
Build Quality – Design
SoundPeats designed their Air5 PRO IEMS with aptX Lossless, having support for up to 1.2Mbps data rate, and they made them with aptX Adaptive, LDAC, and other mainstream codecs for hi-Res bluetooth transmission. They also equipped those with the flagship QCC3091 chip, and AIr-Powered Adaptive ANC, achieving a promised up to 55 dB of passive noise isolation.
For call quality, Soundpeats uses 6 microphones, with AI-Enhanced ENC, and they even have a PeastsAudio App. I personally dislike both having to install an app on my phone to use something, and I also am strongly opposed to anything AI, as through the whole marketing materials, the company avoids talking about what drivers they use and technical performance, instead promoting the AI buzzword marketing.
With that out of the system, we see a good battery life of 7.5 hours of playtime, which is around 5 hours for loud volumes and LDAC / aptX Lossless, and we also see a sleek and ergonomic design with just 4.8 grams of weight per earpiece. Bluetooth support reached Bluetooth 5.4, and we have IPX5 ingress protection. The case has 37 hours of battery life, or around 5 extra charges, and it takes 10 minutes to charge the IEMS and the case for 2 hours of usage. The dynamic driver at the heart is a 10mm Composite Bio-Diaphragm Driver with PU-PEEK design.
Fit – Subjective Usage
Air5 Pro feels rather comfortable in my ears, they have those apple earbuds design which I am not a big fan of, but the silicone tips used by the company are of a good quality, and my overall comfort is great. Not only this, but ANC is mildly effective, yet even without it, they offer around 20 dB of passive noise isolation, and with ANC, around 22 dB of passive noise isolation. Pass-through mode is also effective, but like all IEMs that use it, they also register your hair brushing against the IEMs, so not an ideal combo for someone with longer hair
With my Samsung S24 Ultra smartphone, connection is stable, but S24 does not see LDAC as available for the Soundpeats air5 pro, and instead it does see aptX. Regardless, sound is great, and they have a fair battery life, around 3-4 hours realistically speaking, if you pump the volume and use aptX instead of SBC or AAC. Enabling ANC will reduce the battery life slightly. There is no driver flex or void, and touch control is fairly good, not very prone to accidental touches.
For the software part, SoundPeats app requires an account and I don’t have the time for that. No app for a pair of earphones should require an account, not installed, not tested, review continues without it. Volume control is the same as smartphone volume control, no internal volume control for the air5 pro.
Sound Quality
Pairings – Please explore my in-depth review exploring Bluetooth sources for more details, but I usually just rely on my Samsung S23 Ultra or S24 Ultra for powering Bluetooth IEMS as those provide the best balance of sonic quality and convenience.
Overall Signature – Soundpeats was never known for sonic quality, but air 5 pro sounds incredibly good, natural, detailed, vivid, and musically smooth / euphonic in the midrange. This pair of Bluetooth IEMs can easily be a fierce competition for Chifi IEMS in the same price range, which usually don’t have this level of refinement and richness.
Bass – Low End reaches around 35 Hz, but most punch and power is around 50 Hz. This creates a bloomy bass, with a warm and big impact, the kind of signature that sounds best for most music, just a bit slow and not very technical. Most of the time bass is in the drums, not bass guitar, this means impact, but not necessarily deep end rumble or thunderous bass.
Midrange – With a super detailed midrange, rich and euphonic, Air 5 PrO reminds me far more of entry-level HiFi systems than TWS Bluetooth IEMS. They produce a vocal sound, natural midrange that emphasizes both male and female voices equally. This signature pushes the vocals a bit more to the front, allowing guitars, pianos and most instruments to shine nicely in the process. In fact, out of most TWS IEMS tested, it has likely the nicest midrange out there, especially below 100 USD.
Treble – Soundpeats always has a smoother treble, but with a good extension, and this is true for the air5 pro too. This pair of TWS IEMs extends well, up to 16 kHz, but most treble energy is around 10 kHz, with a smooth and gentle roll-off above. This creates the feeling of air, extension and space without making the sound hot or fatiguing. This happy – open treble presentation also gives music a bit of brilliance without making it harsh and fatiguing.
Dynamic Range And Textures – With a less technical and more musical euphonic approach, Air5 PRO sounds rich, detailed, but not harsh or edgy. It has almost a tube simulated sound, somewhat too rich, slightly high in THD sound, but it all rounds to a pleasing, natural sound that’s a bit warm, and ever so fuzzy. Especially because it brings forward guitars and pianos, voices and other mid centric instruments, sound is very natural to the ear, like listening in an open space. Dynamic range is compressed, in line with other TWS Bluetooth IEMs, but this brings forward details that are lost otherwise, so it all sounds good.
Loudness Saturation Gradient – Air5PRO gets insanely loud, up to 110 dB at max with very low distortion. This being said, they sound better at low and medium volumes, they have a better overall smoothness, more natural sound, and things get compressed louder, resulting in a more shouty presentation if you go very loud.
Soundstage And Instrument Separation – Soundpeats air5 PRO can render a wide, holographic sound, they have a weak instrument separation, being the kind of earphones that blend more than they separate and cut away, and this results in a rounded presentation in general.
Value and Conclusion
At the price tag of less than 100 USD, it is very easy to be beaten by other IEMs, but Soundpeats air 5 pro is very detailed, yet mature, refined and musically rich. I consider them to be a rather excellent deal right now, and nothing gets the midrange so detailed, rich, bass full, such a high maximum volume, and good comfort, for this price of 79 USD.
At the end of the day, if you’re looking for a high-quality pair of bluetooth IEMS with the earbuds design, but silicone eartips, effective ANC that does not damage sonic quality, and a natural, musically rich sound with strong detail and resolution, SoundPeats Air5 PRO is an excellent choice and a fully recommended purchase today on Audiophile-Heaven.
PROs
- Rich and euphonic
- Smooth and warm
- Comfortable, light and reliable for bluetooth
- Wide soundstage with a natural instrument separation and layering
- Superb overall performance for the price
- Touch controls reject mishandling well
- Microphone quality is ok, but still quite a bit below the S24 Mic quality
Cons
- App is needed to take full advantage of the Air5 PRO, and a lot of the marketing is centered around AI powered or AI enhanced, without a strong explanation of what that even means
- Short battery life
- Earbuds design not my top choice for running and gym, but comfortable otherwise
- LDAC is supported on the package, but not visible to my phone, only aptX
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4mO9Y5v
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_okaklVF
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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