Samsung Galaxy Buds Live: How Good Do Beans Sound To Your Ears?

The Samsung Galaxy Buds Live are very idiosyncratic bean-shaped wireless ANC earphones. Can something so strange sit and sound good? ntv.de has tried it.

Wireless earbuds are one of the few exciting devices where a lot is still going on. The competition is fierce, many companies want to get involved, there are constant improvements and innovations. Samsung is particularly brave and eager to experiment with its Galaxy Buds Live. They look like broad beans, do not have a rubber stopper, but offer active noise suppression (ANV). ntv.de has tried out whether it is a good idea to stick beans in your ears.

You have to sit right

Before using the Galaxy Buds Live, you really have to look at the instructions first. Because you wear them completely differently than other earphones. At first you think it won't work, but after a few tries the sound beans are in place and you are amazed how loosely and comfortably, but still securely, they sit. A lot depends on whether one of the two supplied pairs of silicone stabilizers fits.

The fact that this does not work with all ear shapes and sizes can be seen from the very different assessments of the sound of the Galaxy Buds Live. Ntv.de finds the bass very powerful, almost too dominant. Others judge the depths to be too weak. You can read something similar about highs or mids. For Samsung's Galaxy Beans, the same applies to almost all earphones: They only sound good when they are properly seated.

Good sound, weak ANC

If you can do that, the buds offer an overall very nice, warm sound with powerful bass and clear, detailed highs. The mids sometimes struggle to assert themselves in between, but are generally present enough. Because that is also a matter of taste, Samsung's Galaxy Wear app offers an equalizer with several presets. The buds can also get very noisy, but be careful with this. Not only because this can fundamentally damage the hearing, the earphones become somewhat unbalanced at very high volumes.

The Galaxy Wear app has an equalizer with different sound alternatives.

(Photo: kwe)

In the application, you can also customize the touch controls. But that only applies to long touches, where you can choose between ANC on / off and volume control. Otherwise it is clear what happens to one or two tipsters. The controls on the left and right are basically the same, which is why the earphones can also be used individually.

The touch controls respond well, but occasionally annoying when you want to adjust the beans – you can't do that without pausing playback, switching ANC on or off or changing the volume. Another downside is that the buds don't automatically pause when you take them out.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Live SM-R180 Mystic Black

*Data protection

While the sound of the Galaxy Buds Live is pleasantly surprising, the active noise cancellation is more of a disappointment. You can hear a certain attenuation of uniform disturbances such as traffic noise in front of the office window. The effect is only weak and practically negligible, even if you only listen to soft music. On the other hand, you can hear a clear background noise with activated ANC when no song is playing.

Afraid of water, but persistent

In the open air, wind disturbs the enjoyment of music, regardless of whether the ANC is on or off. Just like the weak noise suppression, this is probably due to the open design without a rubber stopper. Outside you should also be careful not to get into a heavy downpour with the buds. They are only protected against dripping water in accordance with IPX2.

The endurance of the Galaxy Buds Live, on the other hand, is really good. With activated ANC they last around six hours, together with the charging box you get almost 24 hours. The compact case refills the buds quickly, ten minutes are enough for around two hours of music enjoyment. If you want, you can charge the box inductively.

Good value for money

The bottom line is that the Samsung Galaxy Buds Live are a successful experiment, but that depends very much on the ears in which the beans are. They sit very comfortably and securely in compatible listeners, the sound can really be heard and you get used to the operation. The somewhat measly ANC is not that important for earphones, the lack of passive shielding in a noisy environment is more likely. A big plus point of the Galaxy Buds Live is its price: You can get it online from 135 euros – you can forgive a few weaknesses.