Technics EAH-AZ60 True Wireless Earbuds Pros and Cons

The Technics EAH-AZ60 True Wireless earbuds deserve any audiophiles’ attention for their industry-leading design and were launched in Oct 2021.

The Technics EAH-AZ60 True Wireless earbuds have interesting new features such as 4-microphones on each earbud for the clear sound transmission and a unique sound driver design for audio quality. However, some drawbacks may or may not affect every user.

Pros and Cons

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What is a Harmonizer?

This is the issue when manufacturers try to create hype using a less-used term, and we are left guessing what on earth it is all about. From the dictionary, the harmonizer is a device that electronically duplicates a signal at a different pitch or pitch. 

Then according to Wikipedia, the harmonizer is a type of pitch shifter that combines the pitch-shifted signal with the original to create two or more notes in harmony. In digital recording, the same function is achieved through digital sound processing.

So then, what is the difference between the Harmonizer and Equalizer?[tie_index]What is the difference between the Harmonizer and Equalizer?[/tie_index]

The equalizer adjusts the volume of different frequency bands in an audio signal.

Then the next question we may ask is whether frequency and pitch are the same concepts. They are different terms but are strongly related.

Pitch refers to a perception property of sound measured by frequency. So a high pitch sound will mean that the sound has a high frequency, and vice versa for low pitch sounds.

It is like saying a fast car travels at high speed, where the perception of “fast” is quantified by “speed”. For example, we feel that the car is moving very fast, and the speed is 220 km/h.

In conclusion, the harmonizer works like a hardware equalizer combining different frequency bands.

Codecs[tie_index]Codecs[/tie_index]

So far the other earbuds we reviewed that has the LDAC are the Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds, which makes sense because Sony developed LDAC.

What makes LDAC codec unique is that it is high-resolution audio that combines lossy and lossless audio technology and supports up to 990 kbps bitrate and 32 bits audio. The downside is a higher power consumption for Bluetooth earbuds as shown in the Tech Specs below.

Technics EAH-AZ60 supports LDAC but not Qualcomm aptX, which is being supported by Android smartphones using the Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile platform. For most users, the universal SBC or the AAC should suffice; hence, the presence of LDAC or the absence of aptX should not be a showstopper or significant drawback. We accept that audiophiles and technologists would disagree as some would feel more is better.

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Attention Mode vs Ambient Mode[tie_index]Attention Mode vs Ambient Mode[/tie_index]

The website indicates Attention Mode and Ambient mode, but only the “Ambient” mode is in the operating manual.

The “Ambient” mode is essentially the “Hear through” mode found on all earbuds, while the Attention Mode should refer to the Noise Cancellation mode. This is quite a standard implementation for most earbuds; the only difference is how manufacturers call them.

However, the Technics EAH-AZ60 has an advantage because they have a voice detector that amplifies the voice spoken instead of the surrounding sound. This is achieved through a 4th microphone on each earbud, and the technology is called JustMyVoice. There is no setting to activate this function, as it works automatically.

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Operating Modes[tie_index]Operating Modes[/tie_index]

One of the items we are comparing is the touch sensor operations because when the earbuds are used in mono mode, they can only perform functions available on the side used. This means the left side is required if you need to raise or lower the volume, while the right side controls the forward or back track. Some operations are available on both earbuds (see below).

Compared to button options, we feel that touch operations like triple-tap rapidly to raise the volume or back a track could require some getting used to. Eventually, the natural action could be “continuous quick tapping” instead of just a “triple” tap to speed up the volume.

We are used to using button operations Jabra and Klipsch earbuds, where the maximum is double button press instead of tapping.

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Battery Life and Power[tie_index]Battery Life and Power[/tie_index]

The battery life of the Technics EAH-AZ60 True Wireless earbuds is on par with the other brands in general. For example, it has the same 85mAh battery capacity as the latest sports flagship JBL Reflect Flow Pro.

In terms of power management, we feel that they are missing some critical functions:

• No autopause when earbuds are removed from ears
• No sleep mode and auto-off
• There is no way to power off the earbuds by themselves.

The only way to turn off the earbud’s power is to put it back into the charging case.

However, one thing we like about Technics is the clarity of the battery life based on the different audio codecs. Based on the specifications, AAC has the lowest power consumption while LDAC has the highest. This would apply to other earbuds brands because most only specify the maximum battery life.

Thanks to Technics, we now know why we do not always get the maximum battery life, as stated by earbud manufacturers.

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Final Thoughts

The Technics EAH-AZ60 True Wireless earbuds may not have all the features compared to other earbuds. However, there is a strong focus on audio quality and noise handling, which are the primary functions for earbuds. The design could set a new example for other brands, especially for the sound driver and microphone design.

Detailed Specifications (including extracts from operating manual)