Established for some years as a valid low-cost alternative for anyone looking for cheap over-ear headphones (and not only) but with an excellent quality / price ratio, MySound brings among its products what it is, in fact, its new flagship product, in some ways in line with the tradition of the house but with an eye for those looking for the performance and performance of a pair of microphone and wireless headphones.
We are talking about the MySound Speak Quiet, arrived just a few months on the market and distinguished itself in the brand's offer for a price a little higher than the price standards to which MySound had accustomed us: in fact we are talking about € 89,99, against - for example - what is the price of another highly appreciated product of the house, or the cheaper ones Speak Free, sold € 34,99. The point then is: will it be worth it?
How they are made
Conceptually very similar in shape and size to Speak Free, the Speak Quiet are built from a solid hard plastic body, with the internal support arch provided with a solid metal reinforcement which, moreover, makes them pleasant to see if you need to extend the length of the support to adapt them to your head. The same arch, moreover, it is covered in the central part with a soft insert in black imitation leather, which combined with the total lightness of the headphones (about 250 g), make them pleasant to wear and very comfortable. The same material is then used for the lining of the pavilions, with the same firmly anchored to the arch by a rotating head with a metal structure a form di Y. Basically larch is extendable, the heads rotate to fit your head, and the overall feeling is very positive. Wearing them, in fact, is almost surprising because, being a product of the medium-low range of the market, the somewhat plasticky appearance it just doesn't make them the best either to see or touch. Yet a minimum attention to detail makes these headphones comfortable and very functional, especially net of certain technical precautions.
The pavilions, for example, although covered externally with the same leatherette covering the upper arch, they are lined internally in a perforated and breathable fabric, which prevents the annoying and frequent problem of heat that affects the performance of many other similar products. The same pavilions, padded in what it probably is memory foam, they rest comfortably on the ears, and while not very thick, they give back one good feeling in terms of wearability.
Being wireless headphones, they have the now typical control directly on the headset, to be precise on the rear side of the left pavilion, where we find the classic power key (which also acts as a connector for Bluetooth), two keys for volume and one for activating noise canceling. The keys are well placed, easy to find even blindly but, unfortunately, a little noisy at the click. A pity that there is also no track control, a system that is delegated to the volume control keys. Basically, a long press of one of the keys (+/-, forward / backward) will suffice for scroll through the songs. Not exactly an elegant solution, but still practical and functional. Finally, thanks to the power button you can both answer calls and ask the smartphone to call the last number in the call list even if, it must be said, we have never been able to activate this function, even with just one device connected.
An entrance completes the picture stereo jack from 3,5 mm, and an entrance micro-USB for charging. Both cables, moreover, are included in the package even if a real charger is missing, a problem that can be easily circumvented with any USB socket at home or, why not, by connecting the headphones directly to the PC.
Experience of use
Net of a somewhat sparse presentation and a tactile feeling of the plastics that seems to herald a "cheap" experience, the MySound Speak Quiet, in reality, isthey do very well and they behave very well not only during the common music reproduction, but also in case of phone calls or, why not, when used in a work video chat. The presence of a system Bluetooth 5.0 multipoint (which, in fact, justifies the above average price for the remaining MySound offer, together with the ANC system), also allows you to keep the headphones simultaneously connected to two devices so that, for example, you can perceive cell phone notifications while you are engaged in a job call or, why not, switch from a video chat on your pc to a call on your mobile.
This system works very well even if, it must be said, in our test we had several problems as regards the connection of the headphones with the PC. Sometimes it has happened that, despite being correctly configured with the PC (in our case an HP Specter notebook updated to the latest version of Win 10), the latter could not connect quickly with the headphones, requesting a direct re-configuration from us. Something not exactly pleasant which, unfortunately, has also reappeared with two other notebooks with which we tried to interface. Different situation with the smartphone: our test with the Huawei P20 Pro is indeed smooth as oil.
Only, true, in fact, which perhaps depends purely on the tastes of the writer, is that the Sound Quiet do not offer a system that allows you to fold them in on themselves. While it is true that foldable structures are easily subject to wear and tear, today, having over-ear headphones that cannot easily be stored in a bag, or at least in the pocket of a jacket, is a must. take into account.
ANC quality
Presenting itself as the MySound offer equipped with ANC system, it is obvious that much of the user experience useful for this review has concentrated on testing the noise cancellation system which, according to the specifications of the parent company, should be able to "block" the frequencies around i 15~20 dB e tra 50-500Hz. The result is that, by activating the appropriate function, you have a clear perception of a sharper and cleaner sound, something that is not clearly perceived while participating in a call but which makes a difference, albeit minimal, in terms of listening. of music. Mind you: Noise cancellation won't stop you from hearing a horn on the street, or eliminating the sound of a clap, but it will erase that background buzz in which one is often immersed even during a day in the office, immersing yourself in a pleasant way in listening to your music.
Obviously, we're talking about a couple of mid-range headphones, which is why do not expect miracles, but given their very affordable price and the result when listening, we would say that the Speak Quiet are good value for money. Only note: the noise cancellation offered by the Speak Quiet is functional as long as you are actually listening to something. Wearing them “in silence”, but with active noise cancellation, will give you a strange sensation of vibrato, annoying of course, but perfectly plausible.
Audio quality
From an acoustic point of view, MySound stays true to yours 40mm neodymium driver with an impedance of 30 ohms. Features perfectly in line with the market segment in which the Speak Quiet are positioned and more than valid if it is a use that involves association with notebooks, smartphones or tablets. The audio performance, on the whole, is very good and the design of the pavilions contributes to the return of a immersive and clean sound. Whether it's hall music, a rock piece, or a bass-only strum, the Speak Quiet perform surprisingly well even if, for the sake of clarity, you can get similar performances even with the much cheaper Speak Free from the same company. The variable that will make you tend to buy, in essence, is all in the noise cancellation system and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, with the latter that - nowadays - does not yet represent a real difference on the market compared to the more common 4.2 although it is true that, in situations of overcrowding, the headphones remain firmly connected to your device.
Microphone quality
We used the Speak Quiet both in league with Google Meet, and with the common calls via smartphone and in both cases the headphones performed very well. We did not spend ourselves in irrefutable tests from a scientific point of view but, already only from the feedback of our interlocutors (all of Tom's colleagues, by the way) the judgment was positive. THEThe microphone delivers clean sound even on the road. Our test during the first, cold, mid-October days returned appreciable and perhaps even results slightly higher than products in direct competition on the market.
Autonomy
MySound has not released precise specifications regarding the autonomy of its Speak Quiet, but our test has revealed that it is necessary about 5 or 6 hours of continuous autonomy. A figure that has had fluctuations mostly due to the number of connected devices and the activation of the noise cancellation system. The headphones, on the other hand, take about 1,5 hours to charge even if they proved to be "hard to die" even with only half an hour of recharging on their backs. A result, all in all, good that could be amplified by a simple system of automatic shutdown, unfortunately not present.
Verdict
Considering the specific market segment in which MySound is placed, and the products proposed to date, whose rapporto qualità / prezzo has always represented a good compromise for those looking for a cheap wireless choice, the MySound Speak Quiet sound almost like a jarring, sold as they are at the price of 89,99 € (for more about € 10 more than MySound TRUE PODS 5.0, or the brand's true wireless proposal). The variable, as mentioned, it's all about active noise cancellation which, for many, could represent a crucial element in orienting towards purchasing.
It is clear that we are not at the level of products like Sony's excellent XM4, for what they offer the Speak Quiet are proposed with a good quality / price ratio, and as a sensible choice for those looking for an ANC system that is minimally invasive, very simple to be activated (in fact, it does not require configuration) and within reach of all budgets.
If we then want to nitpick we could say that the packaging is very thin, or that plastics have a very "cheap" and uninviting tactile feeling but, frankly, these would be considerations that find little sense in this segment of the market, especially considering that - if you overcome the first impact - the general construction and resistance of the arch that supports the pavilions, like the pavilions themselves, is nonetheless far above the average of other products in the same market segment.
