Meet the world's first wireless headphones with a built-in DAC and valve preamp
The Écoute TH1 pack some pretty impressive hi-fi tech
by Joe Svetlik · What Hi-Fi?
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These Bluetooth headphones promise to be the first in the world to feature a valve-based preamp stage, a DAC and dual-mono amplification – tech you would usually find in a proper hi-fi setup.
Newcomer Écoute Audio claims that the TH1 design is closer to a high-end hi-fi system than a pair of premium Bluetooth headphones. They feature discrete electronic elements, "each engineered to maximise sonic performance and deliver a true dual-mono signal path."
This makes them different to most wireless headphones, which use System on a Chip (SoC) technology from manufacturers like Qualcomm. SoC is very efficient, but it's also used as the brains of a smartphone, and so it isn't engineered primarily for sound quality.
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A new type of valve
Key to the TH1 is the Nutube 6P1 dual-triode valve, which acts as a stereo preamp. This shapes the sound with "harmonic richness and dimensionality" before passing it on to a pair of Class A/B analogue amplifiers.
It adds voltage gain while keeping the left and right channels separate. It also eliminates crosstalk and preserves imaging.
The Nutube 6P1 was developed in Japan by Korg and Noritake Itron. It was used due to its tiny size, cool running and low power consumption. You can actually see the valve through a small window in the left ear cup, glowing turquoise.
Valves make for a warmer, more natural sound than transistors. It has been possible to listen to headphones with valve technology before, but only by plugging them into a desktop or portable valve amp.
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Weighing it up
There is a downside to this tech: the weight. The headphones weigh 424g – that might not sound too much, considering what they pack. But it is significantly heavier than the AirPods Max 2, which tip the scales at a hefty 386.2g.
As well as Bluetooth 5.3, you can listen wired via the USB-C or 3.5mm ports. The TH1 support Sony's LDAC codec for higher-quality wireless listening, alongside the standard AAC. Listening wired gives you a resolution of up to 32-bit/384kHz.
When using the 3.5mm jack, you can select 'active mode' to use the TH1's built-in valve preamp and dual-mono power amp, or 'passive mode' to power them with an external amp, like normal wired headphones.
They also pack active noise cancellation (ANC) with a Transparency Mode to allow in some outside sounds. The aluminium body has replaceable memory foam earpads, and they come in a choice of Gunmetal or Satin Aluminium. The battery lasts for a quoted 20-plus hours – for reference, the AirPods Max 2 only last a disappointing 20 hours, though they don't have a valve preamp built in.
The TH1 also have an app: the Écoute Tuning App for iOS and Android modifies parameters within the headphones' Digital Signal Processing (DSP) at the digital source level before it's converted to analogue. This should preserve the signal's integrity and resolution, and should make for a more authentic sound than that altered by an app-based equaliser that applies a digital filter before the signal leaves your device.
Écoute makes some bold claims, but if they hold up, these could be a landmark pair of headphones. They're available now in the UK via distributor Electromod for £900 (around $1200 / AU$1700).
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