I’ve been on the hunt for a pair of headphones that can deliver solid Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) without making my wallet weep. The market is flooded with options, but Edifier has thrown their hat in the ring with the Edifier ES850NB, aiming to give big names like Sony and JBL a run for their money, but at a much friendlier price.
I was super eager to get my hands on these and see if they could actually deliver. So, I’ve spent some quality time with the ES850NB, and I’m ready to share my thoughts.
Design and Comfort
I have the cream-colored version, and it looks quite premium. It’s a bit more of a muted, almost rose-gold tint in person compared to what you might see on the box, which I actually prefer. The headband and side arms are made of decent quality plastic, and there’s a good amount of faux leather, especially on the top of the headband and the earcup pads.
Comfort-wise, the headband is heavily padded. Even though it’s not memory foam on the band itself, it’s very comfortable, and I never felt the plastic structure underneath, which can be an issue with some headphones. They stretch pretty wide, but as I noted, when they do, you can see some gaps opening up near the arms, which doesn’t inspire maximum confidence in the structural integrity.
The earcups swivel, rotate, and fold, which is great for stowing them away in the included case. About those pesky L/R indicators: I hunted for them inside the earcups (the usual spot) to no avail. They’re actually tiny little engravings on the arms, the same color as the headphone body, making them very difficult to see. Pro tip: the side with the controls is always the right side.
The earcup pads themselves are made of a soft protein leather with memory foam. They feel nice and plush against the ears but can get a little warm after extended listening sessions, which is pretty common with over-ear designs. Most of the controls, the Type-C charging port, and the microphones are conveniently located on the right earcup and are easy to use.
I did notice a nice little design detail: inside the hinge where the earcup tilts, there’s a small black rubber bumper. This prevents the earcup from hitting and potentially damaging the headband when it’s tilted. A very thoughtful touch! Weighing in at 265 grams, they don’t feel heavy on the head, making them suitable for longer listening periods without causing fatigue.
My main gripe is with the build quality. While generally decent, the plastic used, especially around the openings when you stretch the headband, looks a bit… well, “janky” is the word that came to mind. It made me a little nervous about long-term durability. The extension arms also have a very old-school design. Most modern headphones have a sleeker, internal extension mechanism, and these exposed, clicky arms feel a bit dated. Considering the retail price, I expected a bit more polish here.
I also found the left and right indicators surprisingly hard to spot. They’re tiny and blend in with the headphone color. A small thing, but initially frustrating. The touch to chat feature, while great, takes about 4 seconds to fully activate transparency mode. It’s not instant, so you need to anticipate needing it.
There’s also no official water resistance rating. I suspect they’d handle a light drizzle or some sweat, but I wouldn’t want to get caught in a downpour with them. Be careful with these around water.
Sound Experience
Under the hood, these headphones are packing a modern Bluetooth 5.4 chipset, and they support LDAC, AAC, and SBC codecs. LDAC support is a big plus for Android users looking for higher-fidelity wireless audio. Another neat trick is that when you plug them in via the USBC cable for wired listening, you still get some controls like volume, track skipping, and play/pause. Plus, the microphone works in wired mode, which is great for conference calls if you prefer a wired connection.
I can confidently say that most people will really enjoy the sound coming out of the ES850NB. Edifier has tuned these to be balanced, with a clear intention to perform well across the entire frequency spectrum – bass, mids, and highs.
Let’s talk bass. The quality here is very defined and, I’d say, high-resolution. You’re not getting an overwhelmingly thick, boomy bass. Instead, it’s a more subtle, rumbling presence, especially in the mid-bass. When I threw tracks with pronounced sub-bass at them, the headphones handled it very well, with no hint of distortion even with the deepest rumbles. It’s more of a high-definition bass than a thick, thumping one.
The mid-vocals sit in a nice middle ground – they’re not recessed, nor are they pushed too far forward. Clarity is excellent. I had a cool experience listening to “Falling Into You” by Celine Dion. Around the 2:58 mark, there’s a deeper backup singer that I’d never really noticed with other headphones. With the ES850NB, that voice just came alive. It was quite a liberating listening experience to discover new details in familiar tracks.
As for the highs, they are generally great – sharp, sparkly, and beautifully “clingy” as the reviewer in the source material put it. However, as I mentioned, they can lean towards being a bit too sharp for some, especially at higher volumes. If you enjoy a bright, sparkly sound, you’ll likely appreciate what these offer. Paired with a good audio source and using the LDAC codec, these headphones truly shine across all three major sound frequencies.
The volume range on these headphones is excellent. I found a comfortable listening level starting at just 20%, where the audio is soft but still retains detail in the highs and mid-bass. Moving up to around 55% volume, things start to get loud, and this seems to be the sweet spot for the most dynamic sound signature. Pushing it to 80-90% was too loud for my comfort but still usable without distortion. There’s a very wide range here to suit most people’s listening preferences.
Active Noise Cancellation
For the price, I think the ANC on the Edifier ES850NB does a pretty good job. It excels at cancelling out lower-pitched, consistent noises. I tested it against simulated road noise and airplane cabin noise, and it reduced those sounds substantially, especially when I had some music playing, even softly.
However, it’s not as effective with higher-pitched, more erratic sounds. In a noisy cafe environment, for instance, voices, especially if someone is talking directly to you, still come through quite clearly. I always tend to use ANC on its highest setting, and with these headphones, I’d definitely recommend keeping it at maximum for the best effect. I’d rate the ANC performance a solid 8.3 out of 10, considering its price point. It’s not going to beat the premium flagships, but it’s certainly effective.
The Edifier Connect App
You get a decent set of features with the Edifier Connect app. The homepage shows your connected headphones (though sadly, not color-coded to your specific model) and the battery percentage. On the first page, you can adjust ANC levels. There are four options to choose from (like High, Low, Wind Reduction, and Off), and you can customize which modes you cycle through using the headphone buttons. I pretty much left it on “High ANC” all the time.
Below that, you have three preset EQ modes and a customizable four-band EQ. This custom EQ is quite powerful, offering adjustments for Q factor and frequency, allowing you to fine-tune the sound across the entire range. Under “Sound Mode,” you can choose between Music, Game, or Spatial Sound. It’s important to note that “Game Mode” here isn’t a low-latency mode; it’s an EQ preset designed to give a more dynamic sound for gaming.
In the settings menu, you can toggle the touch to chat feature, remap some controls (including how you cycle through ANC modes), toggle multi-point connection (which is a great feature to have!), and even use a “find my headphones” feature.
Call Quality and Latency Check
For making phone calls, the Edifier ES850NB performs adequately. In a relatively quiet environment, my voice came through clearly. With simulated background noise (like a busy cafe), the microphones did a decent job of isolating my voice, but some noise inevitably crept in. It’s perfectly usable for calls.
Regarding latency, even though the app’s “Game Mode” is just an EQ, the actual latency performance is pretty solid. I played some PUBG, and while there was still a tiny, almost imperceptible lag, it was very playable. For watching movies and videos, I experienced no noticeable sync issues at all, which was great.
Battery Life
Then there’s the battery life. Seriously, this is where the Edifier ES850NB shines. Without ANC, Edifier claims a whopping 92 hours of playback. That’s massive! Even with ANC switched on, you’re looking at a very respectable 53 hours. I used them for days without even thinking about charging. And when you do need to juice them up, the quick charging feature is a lifesaver. A mere 15-minute charge gives you around 11.5 hours of use (ANC off). That’s fantastic for those times you’re in a rush.
Price Point and My Final Verdict
The Edifier ES850NB officially retails for around $160. I think these headphones offer excellent value. The ANC might not be on par with the absolute top-tier offerings from Sony or Bose, but the sound quality is genuinely impressive for this category, the battery life is phenomenal, and they come with a good set of features like LDAC support, multi-point, and the handy touch-to-chat. The build quality, particularly the plastic articulation points and the old-style arms, is my main reservation.
If you can snag the Edifier ES850NB at that lower price point and you’re looking for a pair of “almost premium” ANC headphones that deliver great sound and incredible battery life without emptying your bank account, then these are definitely worth checking out. They punch well above their discounted weight!
