JBL Endurance Race is a proposition of in-ear headphones for people who like an active lifestyle. How do they work in practice and is it worth buying? About this in today’s review.
JBL Endurance RACE are wireless in-ear headphones designed for active users who like to listen to music while training. They are characterized by durability, water resistance and ease of use. There are buttons on the housing that allow you to easily change songs, adjust the volume, answer calls or turn on and off. In addition, the headphones are equipped with a microphone, which allows you to make calls. An interesting fact is Twistlock, i.e. a special mount that hides in our ear to protect the headphones from falling out.
JBL Endurance RACE – first impressions
Headphones cost about PLN 350 and we receive them in a special box, which also serves as a powerbank. The set also includes a power cord and replaceable silicone inserts of different diameters. This allows you to adjust the headphones to our ears. 10 minutes of quick charging of the headphones allows for an hour of uninterrupted work. In two hours we will fully charge the battery, which will give 10 hours of listening, and the case will additionally extend this time three times. This is a good solution, because when we are on the go and we do not have access to a power source, just put the headphones in the case and they will immediately start charging.
Twistlock wings are designed to eliminate the discomfort of pressure points, provide better tightness and stability, and ensure that the headphones will not fall out of our ears. I have to admit that I had the biggest problem with this element. It was this special tab that made the headphones not secure in my ears. Because of this, I had the feeling that in a moment I would lose one of them somewhere.
Waterproofing is a very good solution. The IP67 class makes it safe to use them in the pool. They can withstand full immersion up to one meter.
JBL Endurance RACE – technology
Mentioning the interesting solutions used in these headphones, a few of them cannot be omitted. Ambient Aware can be activated by touch, which immediately allows more sounds from the environment to us. TalkThru activation, on the other hand, is useful during a call – it allows the microphones to pick up and transmit the sound of your voice to the headphones, so there is no need to remove the headphones from your ears. VoiceAware gives you the ability to control the amount of input signal passed through the headphones. Thanks to this, we can choose how much of our own voice and how clearly we can hear it during conversations.
JBL Endurance Race – sound quality
I really miss the ANC function in these headphones. Personally, I really like to completely cut myself off from the environment, not only when traveling, but also for short walks, or even in sports. In addition, ANC also allows you to listen to quieter music. Unfortunately, this technology is not available here, but the manufacturer promises that the special design of the wings with Twistlock improves not only wearing comfort, but also tightness and soundproofing.
I tested these headphones during running, normal walks, or the usual rhythm of the day without taking them out most of the time. I have to admit I didn’t like them. I would even write that they were quite uncomfortable for me and I felt constantly expanding and delicate pressure inside the ear. I tried many times to correct the twistlock wings, but they would not get along with my conchae for nothing. This meant that the headphones simply slipped out and fell out while running.
JBL Endurance Race let through quite a lot of ambient sound, and the sound quality itself is simply satisfactory, but without fireworks. I admit that I expected much better results here, and it is just correct. The sound is quite flat with hissy highs. This can be slightly corrected using the equalizer in the JBL Headphones application, just like the operation of the buttons on the housing. However, the effect is only correct.
