Edifier W830NB Noise Cancelling Wireless Headphone Review

[amirm]

This is a review, listening tests, EQ and detailed measurements of the Edifier 830NB wireless Bluetooth NC headphone. It was kindly drop shipped by a member and costs US $79 (15% off coupon available on Amazon).

The W830NB has look and feel of a much more expensive headphone. The cups are too small for me to be comfortable but others will probably like the supple pads. The headband is adjustable which is nice.

Despite its low cost, the headphone has a companion app that provides somewhat restrictive, 4-band PEQ and usual settings for noise reduction and such. Alas, no matter what I did, I could not get the unit to power on let alone pair and talk to the app on my phone. Plugging in the USB-C cable though, brought it back to life and after short period indicated it was fully charged. But still would not power on. So I focused my testing on USB cable which nicely shows the unit as a DAC in the OS. Volume buttons let you adjust levels in Windows which is nice and are easy to use. The power button did activate different modes as far as noise cancelling, pass-through, etc.

EDIT: I was pushing the mode button instead of center of the volume control to power the unit on. I used the proper method and it did power on.

Edifier W830NB Headphone Measurements
Due to smallish cups, getting a proper fit on my GRAS 45CA measurement fixture was quite hard, especially in bass. Eventually I got there but within some degree of error. Here is our headphone frequency response:

I was quite surprised by the large peaks and dips in treble region. Searching online, I find that others have measured similarly (although much more smoothed due to their lower resolution). So I think they are representative. What this means is that tonality will be highly content dependent. If a note hits a peak, it will sound bright, if a dip, muffled. Maybe they boosted the treble as without it, the dips could have made it have too little treble in their view. There is also some peaking in bass and 1 to 2 kHz.

With EQ being necessary, this is the job in front of us:

At max volume, I could only get 104 dBSPL so nothing for 114:

We see issues again where the frequency response errors are.

Impedance and sensitivity do not apply to powered headphones so let's go to listening tests.

Edifier W830NB Headphone Listening Tests and Equalization
I expected brightness but first listen actually sounded wooly due to factor I mentioned in the previous section. It wasn't under I played content that had a lot of treble energy that I realized it does sound a bit bright. Again, the combination of dips reduces the total energy there. So I created a set of quick filters:

Without the bass filter, the sound was still not right at times. Once I also corrected that, the treble was much more balanced but importantly, clarify improved. The sound now was quite enjoyable and reasonably accurate. Some, but not all of this you can implement using their EQ (they restrict filters to different parts of audio spectrum).

Conclusions
With on sale prices less than $70, the W803NB is an incredible bargain. Yes, something is wrong in treble region but we are given a full meal in bass which we often do not get. With its EQ, you might be able to get close enough tonality to make this a good headphone if it fits you well.

I should note again that something is wrong with my sample since it doesn't work in wireless mode.

I can't recommend the Edifier W803NB. I wish they had used their filters in default mode to have proper response.
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As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/

 

[amirm]

Reserved for @RickS to kindly post the specs.

Specification

Bluetooth® Specification:​

Bluetooth Protocol: A2DP, AVRCP, HFP

Battery:​

Charging Port: USB-C (Type-C)

Input: 5V ⎓ 1A

Charging Time: Approx. 1.5 hours

General Features:​

Frequency Response: 20Hz - 40kHz

Bluetooth: V5.4
Playtime:

ANC ON: Approx. 54 hours
ANC OFF: Approx. 94 hours

Audio Codecs: LDAC, AAC, SBC

Driver: Φ40 mm Dynamic Driver
Sound Pressure Level: 91 ± 3 dB(A)

Net Weight: 267g

Dimension (L x W x H mm): 170.99 x 78.88 x 194.01 mm

 

[kemmler3D]

For $70, a functioning set of ANC headphones is not a bad deal, almost regardless of how they sound. Too bad the treble is so jacked up. I wonder if this response isn't already corrected with the internal global EQ... it's typical to do that, but it's also typical for cheap headphone designs to have more issues than free EQ bands...

 

[amirm]

I wonder if this response isn't already corrected with the internal global EQ...

I badly wanted to verify that but could not. As I said, other measurements show the same wavey response so it is very likely that this is the response:

 

[Gitfiddle]

Looks like the roller coaster designer got lost on the way to work and everyone just ran with it.

 

[kyuu]

Are there any better options in the <$100 bracket? I've been using a Bose QC45 at work that I randomly won in a raffle a while back, but I'm continually annoyed by Bluetooth pairing issues, random sound quality issues (due again to flaky Bluetooth I suspect), and I can't find any reliable measurements to use for EQ. I tested just now, and they don't appear to be able to connect via USB as the Edifier can which is a feature I'd greatly appreciate.

After applying the EQ (which I can easily do with Equalizer APO), would you recommend these headphones @amirm? I think the earcups are pretty similar to the Bose QC45, which is fine enough for me.

 

[amirm]

After applying the EQ (which I can easily do with Equalizer APO), would you recommend these headphones @amirm?

Yes, if the comfort and reliability is there.

 

[SoundsGood2Me]

TY Amirm -
You're burning it up lately!
Thanks Much for all the new measurements, they're MANY people's Gold Standards at this point.

"If you can measure it, you can improve it" - Unknown

Pic not related

 

[mlsstl]

I've had this headphone for about 9 months and find them good for the price. They are very comfortable to wear and the Bluetooth feature works fine with a variety of gear. Battery life is amazing and the built-in microphone is a nice addition if you have a phone call to make or online conference to attend. The control app for your phone is also a nice feature. I don't find the treble problematic. However, for my "serious" headphone listening I have a set of wired Hifiman Sundara headphones. So, while not perfect, in my book they are a solid choice at a good price if you need a wireless headphone.

 

[kemmler3D]

I badly wanted to verify that but could not. As I said, other measurements show the same wavey response so it is very likely that this is the response:

If there's no analog input that doesn't go through an ADC it's impossible to say. Some headphones will do both (analog pass-through) and the difference will be obvious, but many will digitize and process everything so the sound is consistent regardless of input. If that's the case with these, this probably IS the corrected response.

 

[kyuu]

Probably going to go ahead and pick these up. Looks a lot better to me than the UGreen Max5c that people seemed a lot more enthusiastic about. Granted, that one was even cheaper.

 

[Maiky76]

Here are some thoughts about the EQ.
Please report your findings, positive or negative!

Notes about the EQ design:

• The average L/R is used to calculate the score.
• The resolution is 12 points per octave interpolated from the raw data (provided by @amirm)
• A Genetic Algorithm is used to optimize the EQ.
• The EQ Score is designed to MAXIMIZE the Score WHILE fitting the Harman target curve (and other constraints) with a fixed complexity.
  This will avoid weird results if one only optimizes for the Score, start your journey here or there.
  There is a presentation by S. Olive here.
  It will probably flatten the Error regression doing so, the tonal balance should be therefore more neutral.
• The EQs are starting point and may require tuning (certainly at LF and maybe at HF).
• The range around and above 10kHz is usually not EQed unless smooth enough to do so.
• I am using PEQ (PK) as from my experience the definition is more consistent across different DSP/platform implementations than shelves.
• With some HP/amp combo, the boosts and preamp gain (loss of Dynamic range) need to be carefully considered to avoid issues with, amongst other things, too low a Max SPL or damaging your device. You have beed warned.
• Not all units of the same product are made equal. The EQ is based on the measurements of a single unit. YMMV with regard to the very unit you are trying this EQ on.
• I sometimes use variations of the Harman curve for some reasons. See rational here and here
• NOTE: the score then calculated is not comparable to the scores derived from the default Harman target curve if not otherwise noted.

Fair L/R match.

I have generated two EQs, the APO config files are attached.

Score no EQ: 83.1
Score Amirm: 88.8
Score with EQ: 95.0
Score 2 with EQ: 96.5 -> for those who want to try to fully compensate for the trough @4000Hz

Edifier W830NB APO EQ Score Flat@HF 96000Hz
July242025-115037

Preamp: -2.80 dB

Filter 1: ON PK Fc 52.6 Hz Gain -3.51 dB Q 1.08
Filter 2: ON PK Fc 238.4 Hz Gain -1.78 dB Q 1.57
Filter 3: ON PK Fc 1155.2 Hz Gain -3.69 dB Q 2.58
Filter 4: ON PK Fc 2896.2 Hz Gain -5.72 dB Q 3.69
Filter 5: ON PK Fc 3739.6 Hz Gain 5.64 dB Q 3.71
Filter 6: ON PK Fc 5121.1 Hz Gain -8.47 dB Q 4.98
Filter 7: ON PK Fc 11980.1 Hz Gain -7.38 dB Q 3.96
Filter 8: ON PK Fc 8524.2 Hz Gain -8.23 dB Q 4.97



Edifier W830NB APO EQ Score 2 Flat@HF 96000Hz
July242025-114912

Preamp: -5.40 dB

Filter 1: ON PK Fc 52.1 Hz Gain -3.51 dB Q 1.07
Filter 2: ON PK Fc 242.9 Hz Gain -1.78 dB Q 1.42
Filter 3: ON PK Fc 1167.2 Hz Gain -3.69 dB Q 2.53
Filter 4: ON PK Fc 2893.2 Hz Gain -5.85 dB Q 4.07
Filter 5: ON PK Fc 3809.2 Hz Gain 8.33 dB Q 5.00
Filter 6: ON PK Fc 5097.6 Hz Gain -8.89 dB Q 4.84
Filter 7: ON PK Fc 11977.6 Hz Gain -7.38 dB Q 3.96
Filter 8: ON PK Fc 8509.4 Hz Gain -8.23 dB Q 4.99

Score:

Score 2

 

[EeeGee]

Thank you Amir. Interesting review for well priced gear.
I find it hard to form opinion about the HPs without knowing/measuring the quality of the NC and if they can play in the league of the Boses and Sonys.

 

[amirm]

I find it hard to form opinion about the HPs without knowing/measuring the quality of the NC and if they can play in the league of the Boses and Sonys.

I did a quick subjective evaluation of this. The mechanical blocking is already very good, filtering out most of the noise from my analyzer. Turning on the NC resulted in about halving the amount of noise that was left to nearly inaudible.

 

[thewas]

Are there any better options in the <$100 bracket?

The JBL Tune 770NC are quite decent in that price range, I bought them for a travel based on the Rtings review:

JBL Tune 770NC Review

The JBL Tune 770NC Wireless belong to the brand's entry-level Tune line and challenge expectations of what 'entry-level' means with an expansive selection of fea...

www.rtings.com

 

[RHO]

Voted "Poor". Didn't even look at the measurements.
A wireless headphone, that doesn't seem to work without a wire, is broken. No matter how good it could potentially sound.

 

[zeropoint]

@amirm, maybe I'm pointing out the obvious, but you note "The power button did activate different modes as far as noise cancelling, pass-through, etc." suggesting you assume the mode button is also the power button. However, the small separate mode button is not the power button. Power is turned on/off by pressing between the volume buttons for 1s. Also, press and hold both volume buttons simultaneously for ~5s to reset. Press the mode button ~3s to enter Bluetooth pairing.

 

[amirm]

Power is turned on/off by pressing between the volume buttons for 1s.

Bgood grief. You must be right! Could swear the manual said otherwise. Will check tomorrow.?..

 

[Multicore]

Probably going to go ahead and pick these up.

I hope yours turn on because ragged treble FR seems inconsequential compared to...

no matter what I did, I could not get the unit to power on let alone pair and talk to the app on my phone.

 

[zeropoint]

I hope yours turn on because ragged treble FR seems inconsequential compared to...

Mine turn on and play LDAC with no problem. Very comfortable and good value at ~£60.