There's a lot of me-too hardware unveiled among the best wireless headphones, and that makes the genuinely new products all the more exciting – products such as the new Noble FoKus Apollo headphones, which have a world-first combination of dynamic and planar magnetic drivers. According to Noble, they're "remarkable", "powerful" and "precise".
Noble is well known for its high-end earbuds, and founder John Moulton has been expressing his frustration with the lack of high-quality drivers in the market for many years now. That's presumably why it's taken until now for Noble to make over-ear headphones, and to create its own innovative driver designs. According to Noble the combination "results in audio like no other wireless headphone that has come before, utilizing the accuracy and top-end clarity of planar with the power and body achieved by dynamic drivers."
Noble FoKus Apollo ANC headphones: key features and pricing
The hybrid driver combines a patented 40mm dynamic driver with a 14.5mm planar magnetic driver. The combination should deliver the best of both worlds: the bass of dynamic drivers and the accuracy and clarity of planar magnetic drivers. The frequency response is 10Hz to 40kHz.
The headphones include hybrid active noise cancellation with transparency mode, powered by three microphones per side, reducing audio by up to 35dB according to Noble. That doesn't sound like it'll beat the best noise cancelling headphones for sheer blocking power, but as with many things, it can be about how you use it.
The Bluetooth is 5.3 with multipoint, and there's support for both LDAC and aptX HD so your audio source can deliver hi-res streaming. We're promised 80 hours of listening time with ANC off and an impressive 60 hours with ANC on, and the companion app controls the hybrid ANC as well as offering personalized EQ. There's also a removable boom mic for calls or gaming.
These are aimed at luxury buyers and are made from an anodized aluminum frame, Alcantara headband, and replaceable premium protein leather earpads. And yet the price is less than you might expect for such a unique product: $649 / £599 (about AU$1,150). That's only a little more than the AirPods Max, and right in line with the fantastic Bowers & Wilkins PX8. The Noble FoKus Apollo are available from 3 September, 2024.
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