I'm looking for some new ear buds for running and other purposes, but finding anything suited for a mediocre active lifestyle seems hard.
Now I have a pair of Sennheiser sport true wireless. What works is the audio quality and reliable charging. What doesn't work is the very clunky charging case, and any trace of rain will adjust the volume, change the song or pause the track. A stable 3/5 product. Wearing a hood just amplifies the problem as a tiny amount of moisture will interfere.
I'm not trusting Sennheiser for a new pair right now as their Momentum True Wireless 3 buds had a faulty charging tech. Both me and my partner had to send them in and receive new ones. Bad for us, bad for the environment.
Any recommendations for a pair with a nice balanced sound quality, good case, and reliable controls in all conditions?
Tbh, this is a time when sound quality takes a back seat to design.
Now, a caveat, I'm not a runner, I'm disabled. So I do strength training upper body work, and water based exercise. There's not as much impact, so I can't promise that won't be a factor.
But I've tried a handful of Bluetooth buds because of the sweating and pool use. JBL makes or made a model called "reflect flow".
The controls are built so that it takes a firm push to activate them, so no issues with sweat or other water triggering them. They're even functional with a device in a protective baggie, and my head under water a good bit. Not deep, but submerged, or while swimming. It's one of those ymmv things though, as Bluetooth in general isn't great at penetrating water of any depth.
Sound is what I'd call acceptable. Not great, but vocals are clear enough to pick out words with no issues while moving through water, or in a gym full of people clanking weights. Can't match wired IEMs, but I doubt that's the goal. They run a tad bass heavy, and the highs can get dampened more than I'd like, but not unexpectedly so.
But the controls have never, ever triggered unless I pushed them. The case is solid, and keeps a charge well even after about five years of use (iirc, could be off by a year either way since I was borrowing before buying, and can't recall which brands I tried when). They aren't expensive either, which considering that Bluetooth earbuds are essentially unrepairable is a good thing.
I'd give them an overall 7/10 for sound, 10/10 for waterproofing, and 10/10 for both battery lives. My standard for a 10/10 sound is my beyerdynamic 770s though, which isn't everyone's preference. Tin t2s are a solid 9/10 for sound to my ears. Just for a sense of how I judge sound on fairly common budget choices in wired audio.