1More Sonoflow HQ51 Wireless ANC Over-Ear Headphones Review – From Donetsk With Love
Amidst the rest of the dystopian chaos of our once-mighty nation it didn’t garner a lot of attention, but Trump proclaimed this week that his promise to end the Ukrainian war in 24 hours was just him being “a bit sarcastic”. Because, of course, nothing lends itself to levity and sarcasm like a genocidal war, and we are blessed to have a dictator who really knows how to keep us rolling in the aisles. Fun stuff.
In any case, the very diligent Timothy from 1More USA reached out to us to review its new HQ51, an update of the original Sonoflow (review here), which I consider an awful lot of headphone for the sub-$100 price. The HQ51 aspires to improve on its predecessor at an even cheaper price ($87 SRP; currently $70 on Amazon) and, for the most part, it succeeds.
Very solidly built, though generic-looking (1More should consider adding some design flourishes, colors or other eye candy to give these a little pop). At 246g, these are lighter than the original, but I found them a tad less comfortable—clamping pressure seems greater and the thicker pleather ear cushions get a bit sweaty.
ANC, however, is greatly improved—these block out external noise virtually as well as the Sony XM4, though you will hear some white noise in the background. Reliable but awkwardly-placed control buttons carryover from the prior design. The 1More Music app is useful mostly for its custom EQ (the “Grammy winner”-tuned presets are still skippable). Promised battery life of 100 hrs. (65 with ANC on) is ridiculously good.
OOTB the HQ51 presents a warm V-shaped signature with enhanced, deep-but-controlled subbass and a somewhat rounded treble. Soundstage is well-rounded but fairly narrow and shallow to my ears; much pricier Sennheiser and Sony have more expansive stages and more space between performers. There’s some rounding off at the high-end (these lack the detail retrieval of the aforesaid name brands), though the HQ51 does surprisingly well with drums and percussion; cymbals retain a nice snap. Especially after EQ to enhance midrange, coherence is better on the HQ51 than on its predecessor.
As with the original, the HQ51’s strength is its tonal quality, which is very vinyl-like and smooth; it’s more laid-back and less crisp and forceful than the Sony XM4 or Sennheiser Momentum, but also less bluetoothy and edgy. These sound much more natural than the $100ish Sony WH-CH720N (review here); they also present more information and sound less boomy than price peer Anker Soundcore Q30.
Ultimately, both because of the inherent limitations of TWS and the lack of high-end extension/resolution these are not audiophile-grade; you can certainly spend a lot more to get a bolder, bigger sounding can. However, within their own terms they do little wrong sonically; add to the mix the bottomless battery, excellent ANC and unfathomably low price and these have the feel of a daily driver. The original Sonoflow were a legit giant killer, and this new HQ51 even more so.
Disclaimer: got mine for free; you can pay for yours here: https://usa.1more.com/collections/over-ear-headphones
Specifications 1More Sonoflow HQ51
| Headset weight: 246 grams Communication distance: 10 meters (in an open environment) Headset dimensions: 170 x 192 x 82 mm Bluetooth specification: Bluetooth 5.4 Battery capacity: 720 mAh Bluetooth protocol: HFP/A2DP/AVRCP Charging time: 80 minutes Input: 5V=1.1A Full power playback (noise reduction off): 100 hours Maximum power: 20 mW Full power playback (noise reduction on): 65 hours Operating temperature: 0°C-45°C Speaker impedance: 32 ohms Frequency band: 2.400GHz-2.4835GHz |
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