NuraTrue Pro Review: CD Quality Without The Wires

Price When Reviewed

$319

Best Prices Today: NuraTrue Pro

Nura has a name within the audio business for providing spectacular customized audio that actually complements song playback – however whilst it’s spectacular, it hasn’t been actually top quality, missing the facility to fortify lossless audio by the use of Bluetooth. That is, till now.

The NuraTrue Pro, in conjunction with providing the corporate’s signature private sound profiles, are the primary consumer-grade wi-fi earbuds to supply complete fortify for 16-bit/44.1kHz lossless audio – higher referred to as CD high quality.

It’s a in fact thrilling step ahead for the business as a complete, however there’s a catch.

Design & Build

• Near-identical design to the usual NuraTrue buds
• Up to 8 shortcuts by the use of touch-capacitive buttons on buds
• Several units of guidelines and fins within the field to supply an ideal match

The NuraTrue Pro sports activities a design virtually just like that of the usual NuraTrue buds, however that’s no dangerous factor.

The iconic round earbuds glance top class, carrying an all-black design that gives an understated but sublime glance. That’s additional enhanced by means of the creation of ceramic with the Pro fashion, discovered at the outer rim of every bud and the Nura branding at the case lid too.

It’s a small exchange to an in a different way similar design, however one who makes the buds really feel extra top class – particularly as you have a tendency to grip the round buds by means of the ceramic outer rim.

As with its predecessor, the Nura brand on every bud doubles up as a capacitive contact keep watch over that permits fast get entry to to a variety of options like disabling social mode and pausing song.

There are moderately a couple of purposes to be had, with unmarried, double, triple-tap and tap-and-hold shortcuts on each buds. That’s as much as 8 purposes, beating maximum opponents, they usually’re smartly carried out, and not using a unintentional activations or mis-taps throughout my time with the buds.

Though the round design of the buds would possibly not glance supreme for match and luxury, the combo of swappable eartips and earfins – in conjunction with a seal take a look at within the Nura app – supplies an ideal match and not using a actual wish to readjust the buds throughout longer listening periods.

There are a number of units of eartips and fins within the field too, which means it shouldn’t be exhausting to discover a mixture that works for you.

When no longer in use, the NuraTrue buds reside within the accompanying all-black charging case. The buds magnetically snap into position to supply a safe fee, and small (typically hidden) LEDs at the entrance glow inexperienced and purple to suggest the battery lifetime of the buds and the case itself.

The case is taller and wider than opponents just like the AirPods Pro, however that’s basically right down to the design of the buds saved inside of.

Smart Features

• Able to connect with two Bluetooth units directly
• Much progressed name high quality
• 8-hour battery lifestyles, with 24 extra within the case
• Wireless charging for the primary time

The NuraTrue Pro be offering the usual good options we’ve come to be expecting from high-end wi-fi buds, together with automated play/pause generation and a transparency mode, however there’s masses extra to them than that.

Premium options come with the facility to connect with two assets directly for simple hand-off between the 2, with the technique to pause song at the first supply prior to switching to the second one to keep away from playback problems.

There also are extra microphones on every bud this time round, no longer handiest making improvements to the ANC functions – extra on that during slightly – but in addition massively bettering the mic high quality in calls.

While the ones at the phone would bitch about muffled, unclear sound when the use of the usual NuraTrue buds, there have been a long way fewer court cases when the use of the NuraTrue Pro. That’s to not say they carry out in addition to the likes of the AirPods, however there’s undoubtedly an growth.

There also are new options to be had by the use of the Nura better half app for iOS and Android, introducing a customized EQ for the primary time. It’s no longer moderately as consumer pleasant as some opponents, and not using a presets, however it’s a pleasant contact for audiophiles that need to tweak the output to fit their tastes with 5 frequency bands.

When it involves battery lifestyles, the NuraTrue Pro buds boast an excellent 8 hours of fee on their very own, with an additional 24 hours of fee within the accompanying case.

That’s a complete of 32 hours, which might be additional prolonged for those who have been to disable options like spatial audio and ANC. Though with the ones options being highlights of the Pro fashion, it’s most probably you gained’t.

Qi-enabled wi-fi charging is a brand new addition to the NuraTrue Pro, offering a extra handy charging enjoy than a stressed USB-C connection. However, for those who do go for stressed charging, sooner charging speeds imply it’ll cross from flat to complete in round an hour – part the time of the usual NuraTrue buds.

That’s all relatively spectacular, however it’s within the audio division that the NuraTrue Pro in point of fact shines.

Sound Quality

• Nura’s signature customized sound continues to be unbelievable
• Warm, balanced, wealthy sound
• Lossless audio fortify – however handiest with choose smartphones

When it involves Nura merchandise, customized audio is the headline characteristic, tailoring the output in your ears to reinforce total efficiency.

When you first arrange the NuraTrue Pro buds at the Nura app, you’ll undergo a handy guide a rough take a look at to decide the frequency reaction suited in your ears, and the buds will then modify the output to compare it. There’s a at hand demo throughout setup that showcases simply how a lot of an growth there’s, in conjunction with the technique to building up the immersion.

It’s an excellent characteristic that makes Nura merchandise shine a few of the pageant, offering added element in long-time favorite tracks, with wealthy, complete, detailed sound and a lot of bass too. You’ve additionally were given the EQ to be had in-app if it’s no longer moderately in your style, as discussed previous, however I by no means felt the wish to.

While that’s spectacular, the NuraTrue Pro take issues a step additional with fortify for lossless CD high quality audio over Bluetooth – a primary for wi-fi earbuds.

Nura labored with Qualcomm to combine its QCC5171 BT audio SoC chipset into the buds, which lets you circulate 16-bit/44.1kHz at an excellent 1.2Mbps by the use of Qualcomm’s new aptX Lossless codec with none hooked up cables. Nura manufacturers it as CD high quality, however it technically simply falls shy of true 1.4Mpbs CD Quality – although it’s nonetheless a lot nearer than you’ll get from any rival, knocking Sony’s 990kbps LDAC codec from the top-spot.

You’ll nonetheless want get entry to to high-res audio in your smartphone, to be had from the likes of Apple Music, Tidal and Amazon Music, however it’s an enormous deal for audiophiles.

However, there’s a catch to the lossless audio fortify; there aren’t any telephones in the marketplace at this time that fortify it.

Nura says that you just’ll desire a smartphone with a top-end (and no longer but readily to be had) Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and Bluetooth 5.3 to use lossless audio. Given the NuraTrue Pro’s slated October 2022 unlock, this shouldn’t be as a lot of a subject at release, however you’ll nonetheless want probably the most newest Android smartphones to realize actually lossless audio.

It’s additionally dangerous information for iPhone customers, and not using a fortify for lossless playback now or someday because of a loss of compatibility with Qualcomm’s aptX Lossless audio codec. There might be a USB dongle to be had at release to permit for high-res playback from a PC or Mac, however that gained’t be a lot lend a hand to iOS customers.

So, whilst it’s an exhilarating step ahead for lossless audio over Bluetooth, there are a couple of hoops to leap via to actually recognize it.

Spatial Audio & ANC

• Spatial audio upscales stereo tracks routinely
• No head-tracking like with AirPods
• Adaptive ANC is a notable growth over its predecessor

A brand new characteristic that isn’t unique to a handful of yet-to-be-released smartphones is spatial audio fortify. Unlike opponents, Nura doesn’t employ multichannel audio to procedure its spatial sound, as an alternative upscaling stereo sound to supply a extra herbal listening enjoy.

It’s no longer moderately as immersive because the enjoy on Apple’s AirPods, arguably the most productive spatial audio enjoy round entire with head-tracking, however the sound is particularly extra herbal – particularly when blended with the personalized audio.

It’s exhausting to provide an explanation for to these but to enjoy it, however it necessarily brings the audio from inside of your ears to the distance round your head for a speaker-like listening enjoy. Considering maximum recording studios use audio system as an alternative of headphones for audio mastering, it’s arguably nearer to the artist’s supposed sound.

The lively noise cancelling has additionally noticed a spice up this time round, upgraded to Adaptive ANC that’ll modify the noise-cancelling frequencies relying at the noise to your surroundings.

This method the NuraTrue Pro does a particularly higher process at tacking explicit seems like chatter and the push of vehicles going by means of as you stroll down the road than its predecessor, although it nonetheless plays higher with low-frequency tones than upper ones.

Price & Availability

The NuraTrue Pro are to be had to again on Kickstarter at this time – a hat-tilt to the OG marketing campaign that kickstarted the corporate again in 2017 – with unlock set for “later this 12 months”. According to the Kickstarter marketing campaign, that’ll most probably be round October 2022.

With such top class options, it will have to come as no marvel that the buds are with ease top class with a $329/£299 price ticket, striking them up in opposition to the likes of the Sony WF-1000XM4 (recently our peak select for wi-fi earbuds) and the Bose QC Earbuds.

The excellent information is if making a decision to again the Kickstarter marketing campaign, you’ll get a bargain – however be fast if you’re tempted, as there’s handiest restricted inventory to be had.

If you’ll be able to’t wait that lengthy, check out our hand-picked choice of the most productive Bluetooth headphones.

Verdict

The NuraTrue Pro are a in fact thrilling subsequent step in Nura’s adventure, providing no longer handiest customized audio that’s wealthy and whole, however for the primary time ever, (virtually) CD-quality lossless audio fortify by the use of Bluetooth. The factor is, on the time of writing, there aren’t any smartphones with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 to profit from it – although that’ll be much less of an issue at release later this 12 months.

Still, lossless audio apart, there’s so much to like in regards to the NuraTrue Pro. It has a light-weight but sublime design with ceramic highlights, forged battery lifestyles each within the buds and the accompanying case, and new touches like wi-fi charging, spatial audio fortify and upgraded adaptive ANC make the excessive price ticket a little bit more straightforward to swallow.

Specs

• Earbuds: 8.6g
• Charging case: 51.2g
• IPX4 water resistance
• 44.1kHz, 16-bit lossless audio at 1.2Mbps by the use of aptX Lossless codec
• Personalised sound output
• Spatial audio fortify
• 10mm dynamic drivers
• Frequency vary: 20Hz – 40,000Hz
• Adaptive lively noise cancellation
• Bluetooth 5.3 with multi-device connectivity
• 5x ear guidelines, 2x secure-fit wings
• Touch controls (4 in keeping with earbud, 8 in general)
• Fit detection
• Immersion mode
• Social (transparency) mode
• 32-hour battery: 8 hours of battery on buds, 24 hours in case
• Qi wi-fi charging
• USB-C port for charging
• 8 microphones (inc. 2 bone-conduction microphones)