I do not assume there’s a lot of a finer instance of a ‘heritage model’ than Cambridge Audio. Based in 1968, they have been making unbelievable audio equipment together with amps, document decks and headphones for such a very long time, and as such, are a model I’ve admired from afar. Their P100s are their first run at wi-fi, over-ear headphones with noise cancelling, which is as aggressive of a market because it will get for audio.
Permit me to elucidate a bit additional – the state of play for wi-fi noise cancelling headphones within the £200 to £300 value vary that Cambridge Audio has focused has been taken up by the likes of Sony and Bose for a number of years, with different choices from the likes of Sennheiser and Bowers and Wilkins sitting round, too. We’ve got seen extra specialist manufacturers and fashions such because the Focal Bathys and the Mark Levinson No. 5909s enter the fray lately, though they have been priced method over what the established order has been. What the P100s characterize due to this fact is a little bit of an anomaly – a specialist hifi model making a set of extra ‘inexpensive’ cans to actually take it to Bose and Sony alike.
Issues are definitely optimistic as quickly as you are taking the P100s out of their black packaging with a beautiful woven material onerous case for transport that includes a neat compartment for braided USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to three.5mm cables. The case includes a small indented Cambridge Audio brand, and little else stylistically. In any case, it’s only a case.
With the cans themselves, they carry the identical trendy, clear traces as lots of different Cambridge Audio equipment does, which appears to be like nice. The primary arms, yokes and outer portion of the earcups are all aluminium, whereas the plush earpads are reminiscence foam and vegan leather-based. It is all very thoughtfully assembled, and helps to make the P100s splendidly snug. A 330g weight is not irregular both, whereas their Goldilocks clamping pressure makes the P100s a pair of cans that you possibly can put on all day with out a lot bother. I undoubtedly had no points in my weeks of use, for journey, or normal listening.
One small however pretty element with these cans is the addition of correct, bodily controls. For me, having tactile buttons I can click on and use is miles higher than the myriad of contact controls that the market has change into awash with. The left hand earcup comprises an influence and Bluetooth pairing change, in addition to one for toggling between ANC being on, or off. The proper earcup has quantity controls, play/pause and skip forwards/backwards. There are voice prompts at any time when the left hand buttons are pressed, and within the related Melomania Join app, you may change the language of mentioned prompts, together with to ‘Southwark’, which provides within the dulcet tones of Matt Berry. I did not know I wanted Douglas Reynholm telling me about ANC modes, however right here we’re, and the P100s are all of the richer for it. As well as, there may be additionally a proximity sensor contained in the P100s that stops no matter you are listening to whenever you take them off – it is a small element, however prevents the cans enjoying to themselves for too lengthy.
Connectivity is dealt with with bang-up-to-date Bluetooth 5.3 LE, and the P100s additionally help a beautiful amount of codecs. To be particular, it is the same old suspects of SBC, AAC and aptX Adaptive, though there’s additionally aptX Lossless, too. Help for LDAC is absent, although. Pairing over Bluetooth to both my Samsung Galaxy S21 Extremely for some primary Spotify consumption or my FiiO M11S DAP for extra important listening was a doddle. They will also be used wired with the included USB-C to three.5mm jack, though do not work passively, so you will want to make sure there’s sufficient juice earlier than you get pleasure from some wired listening.
Ensuring there’s sufficient go-juice contained in the P100 is a doddle although, given their unbelievable endurance. With out the enjoyable of ANC, they’re capable of final for a outstanding 100 hours earlier than conking out, whereas utilizing noise cancellation means you will be right down to zero in 60 hours. With this in thoughts, that is nonetheless a number of the finest endurance I’ve seen on a set of wi-fi cans and takes it to choices that price a good bit extra.
There may be lively noise cancellation, or ANC, on-board, and whereas it is not class-leading in the way in which that Bose’s is, it is greater than serviceable for most individuals. The P100s are capable of block out many of the noise from round you, whereas its transparency mode is pleasingly pure. It blocked out many of the horrible noise of the Northern line on a current London journey, and their Bluetooth sign held up effectively as I made my method by way of St Pancras station. Regardless of how onerous the P100s strive although, they merely cannot beat Bose, however then once more, it looks like nobody can.
Typically it is fairly onerous to quantify how a pair of headphones sounds, as lots of them have their very own character and profile that may skew music a technique or one other. The primary phrases that involves thoughts with the P100s is ‘inoffensive’. That is not say they are not a enjoyable, or participating pay attention, as a result of they completely are. It is somewhat to say that they work splendidly with all kinds of music, and will definitely please generalist people like myself.
All the things from the gritty rock on Rush’s Working Man to the deep groove on Earth, Wind & Hearth’s Let’s Groove is offered cleanly. The underside finish on each tracks is prevalent, however not overpowering, and dealt with splendidly. There may be additionally lots of respiration room lended to recordings, as I discovered when listening to the Bee Gees’ Nights On Broadway. The monitor’s clavichord and electrical piano work was far off within the distance, however might nonetheless be heard with the utmost readability alongside the superb vocals and synth bass line.
Nights On Broadway additionally demonstrated a top-end that lacked harshness, with its outstanding cymbal work earlier than Barry Gibb’s mellow vocal on the bridge. The P100s dealt with it splendidly, as they did the fixed bell hits on Ralph MacDonald’s Calypso Breakdown, which felt exact and crisp.
The mid-range presentation that the P100 is slick, as demonstrated on tracks resembling By no means Recognized from Jack Johnson and Gordon Lightfoot’s Wet Day Individuals. Vocals are dealt with with panache and are available throughout with great consistency. As well as, James Taylor’s September Grass was offered with an exquisite heat to his fingerstyle guitar and a easy, clear vocal. It is simply pretty.
An incredible part of music I’ve usually used for testing headphones is the ‘Discovery’ part of Rush’s epic 20-minute 2112 suite, given its gradual construct from restricted electrical guitar components with ambient water noise into intermittent vocals and even tougher rock when shifting into the ‘Presentation’ and ‘Oracle: The Dream’ sections. The P100s served up a end result that was vast and well-balanced, with a sturdy low finish, punchy drums and glorious vocals.
This well-balanced audio additionally helps the P100s to be an honest set of headphones for gaming, particularly with a soundstage of affordable width serving to for immersion in all the things from Grand Theft Auto to CS2. There may be additionally a low-latency gaming mode out there, as selectable within the Melomania Join app, though there may be nonetheless some delay when put next towards comparably priced top-class gaming headsets.
The Cambridge Audio Melomania P100s make for fairly a straightforward advice due to this fact for those who’re on the lookout for a set of succesful wi-fi noise cancelling cans with participating audio, a snug match, and versatile connectivity. They hit all the precise notes in my eyes.
