FIVE STARS - The Soundcore Space A40 has terrific Active Noise Cancelling, great battery life, and comes with multipoint connectivity. It's even comfortable enough to sleep on your side with.
Soundcore Space A40 specs and features:
Bluetooth 5.2 with AAC and LDAC codec
IPX4 waterproof rating (splash proof)
5 - 8 - 10 hours listening on a single charge (LDAC mode/ ANC on/ ANC off)
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 5 times
Comes with 5 sets of ear tips, USB-C cable, English manual
$100 - Buy on Amazon US, Amazon UK, Amazon Germany, or other Amazon countries
Below this Soundcore Space A40 review, you will find comparisons of the Soundcore Space A40 vs Earfun Air S, 1more Evo, 1more ComfoBuds Pro, Nothing Ear 1, Soundcore Life A3i, Soundcore Life P3, and Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro.
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More impressively, the earbuds provide up to 8 hours of listening time with ANC on, stretching up to 10 hours with the function turned off. Running empty? Not a problem - as the case has insanely quick charging. Put the earbuds in for 10 minutes, and you get another 4 hours of listening time. These are everyday, nights sleeps AND holiday proof specs - very impressive.
The charging case is powerful in more aspects. It can recharge the earbuds five times fully before needing new power itself, after which it can be recharged via USB-C or wirelessly. In line with all Soundcore products, the finish is marvellous. Also available in black and blue, the white case looks clean, feels polished and has a sturdy build, with a soft-closing lid. The white panel on the front houses three hidden LED-lights to indicate the charging status and remaining battery, and the case is compact enough to easily slide into any jeans pocket.
The earbuds themselves look a little less robust with shiny plastics used on the inside and outside, yet the silver metallic touch panels do a great job of preventing a cheap look.
It doesn't switch as easily when calls aren't involved. You need to pause your music or video first to switch to a video or music on your other device. Not a big issue, but the Earfun Air S' instant switching is even more convenient. This is great as well, however. You don't need a separate headphone for your laptop anymore.
There are so many convenient and even unmissable features from the app, that it gives it an added bonus over its many competitors. Especially since it doesn't drain battery in the background, comes with a widget to quickly switch ANC functions, doesn't require an account, and works very simply. Brilliant stuff.
ANC Noise cancelling of Soundcore Space A40
The Soundcore Space A40 comes with multiple options for Active Noise Cancelling, but these are just minor bonuses.
Active Noise Cancelling is among the strongest you can get around this price point and (thus) on wireless earbuds in general. It's activated as soon as you put the earbuds in, and immediately filters out most background noise.
Constant electronic and stating humming are gone instantly, and distant traffic or wind noise are nearly eliminated too. Higher outbursts, like the brakes of a train, can come through - but chances are you won't hear anything else of the same train. Nearby sound effects like keyboard clicks, chatter, or a radio playing are still a bit audible, but have the highest tones cut off and you only need to take out the earbuds again to notice how much noise was there around you to begin with.
This ANC strength is achieved without playing music (which can completely silence your surroundings) and the out-of-the-box ‘Manual ANC’ strong setting. You can manually set it to Medium or Low, or activate an Adaptive ANC setting, which scans how much noise it needs to block. When there's only soft background noise, it will revert to a lower setting to relieve your ears a bit more.
Overall, this is one of the strongest ANC options under $100, right up there with the 1more ComfoBuds Pro and Soundcore Life P3, just a little under the SoundPEATS Air3 Pro.
What gives it an advantage over the competitors, is how it handles wind noise. The Wind Noise Reduction setting in the app does a great job of reducing wind noise when you're walking or cycling with these buds with ANC on, while not giving in too much on the ANC strength.
The Transparency mode is a big step up to previous Soundcore models. It's a wonderfully usable function that passes through traffic and chatter on moments you need it. While other lighter sounds can also be quite loud - like a toilet flushing - it even makes you hear and locate cars around you while you're listening to music. Along with the Nothing Ear 1, this is one of the best implementations under $100 - a splendid job.
To remove wind noise completely, there's also an option to turn ANC off from the earbuds. Neat. Soundcore sticks to its beeps to confirm the switching between functions, which you have to get used to. To give you a head start: the darker single tone = ANC on, the double-tone = Transparency mode, the lighter single tone = ANC off.
When it comes to ANC and Transparency mode, this are the best wireless earbuds under $100.
The Soundcore Space A40 breaks with the brands tradition to put bass and treble front and center. It has a more serious approach to music - and whoah, it delivers.
Rather than bass and treble, the Space A40 puts the lower mid-tones in front. Drums and darker electronic tones, lower guitar chords and the left side of the piano are boosted - and then some. They can sound impressively detailed and textured - with plenty of room in between the different parts. Center-mids join the party, with guitars and piano play sounding less recessed than other Soundcore earphones. These (lower) mids can compete with vocals for the main role in music however.
Vocals are less pronounced than on earlier Soundcores, meaning they dominate the higher frequencies less than before. Darker male vocals benefit from the lower-mid emphasis, although they can compete with darker instruments now and then. Regular or ligher vocals, either male and female, sound both natural and full - and reach into the highs as easy as the lows.
It's easy to see what Soundcore wanted with this new, more balanced, less trebly sound. Upper-mids and highs are cut off before they can become sharp, resulting in a less fatiguing and bright sound than the Soundcore Life P3 and Soundcore Life A3i, not to mention the Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro. Both female vocals and higher-pitched male vocals are less prominent and crisp, but also less metallic. They're fuller.
When it comes to higher instruments, brighter piano play, violins, and trumpets have a thick rather than vivid performance, and piercing and splashy cymbals and claps are a thing of the past. Thank goodness!
The bass has changed too. The mid-bass delivers strong but non-overpowering thumps, way less excessive, deep, and articulated than on the Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro, and less punchy than on the Life A3i. Yet, there’s still a solid amount of mid-bass, with plenty of pumping power to make some dance and techno genres thrive. The darkest bass area - the sub-bass - is more controlled than before. It doesn’t rumble even remotely as loosely as on the Liberty 3 Pro, but things are tighter in the lows, while still providing enough depth. The A40 may service bass lovers enough, but this is not primarily a bass-focused earphone like previous Soundcores.
With the app support including various equalizers and the clever HearID-function that lifts frequencies your ears don’t pick up so easily, the sound is of course highly adjustable. There are EQ’s like Bass Booster to further inject a bit of bass in songs, or the Acoustic EQ that helps vocals and treble become more crisp. But those feel like changes to the previous, echo-induced slightly weird basis, and don't really increase sound quality . The LDAC-codec support for Android phones does improve the sound. Once activated, the earbuds battery life halves and you'll lose the the option to connect to two devices at the same time, but it makes music fuller, increases separation between vocals and instruments and puts its seemingly more around you - a recommended setting.
The Soundcore Space A40 sounds thicker and more serious than its predecessors: these are Soundcore's most balanced wireless earbuds, and they're a pleasure to listen to.
The 1more ComfoBuds Pro has been Scarbir.com's top recommendation for affordable ANC earbuds for about a year now, but the Soundcore Space A40 noise cancelling is just as strong… AND more capable of reducing and blocking wind noise. The A40's Transparency mode works better when playing music up to loud levels, and its battery life is 3 hours longer than the 1more. The Soundcore feels more comfortable to wear, has more extensive app support with more sound options, and lets you connect to two devices instead of one.
The 1more has a brighter sound, with more vibrant higher vocals and more forward upper-mids, a more airy treble. The Space has a thicker sound with more recessed vocals. Less engaging, but also less fatiguing. If multipoint is important, go for the Soundcore, if call quality is important, the ComfoBuds Pro still is a better option as it keeps your voice clearer with noise around you.
1more ComfoBuds Pro review ($70)
Soundcore Space A40 vs Nothing Ear 1
The Active Noise Cancelling strength on the Soundcore Space A40 is comparable to its more expensive sibling, the much-praised Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro. The cheaper newcomer has a more natural and more usable Transparency mode, letting you locate traffic easier when listening to music. The Space A40 has around 2 hours longer battery life, while the Liberty 3 Pro is better for phone and video calls: your voice sounds clearer and louder, also when there's noise around you.
The biggest difference is in the sound. The Liberty 3 Pro has much more extended treble; more prominent and forward higher vocals and instruments. It's airier and more energetic on top, but also brighter and more metallic. L3P's mid-bass is much stronger, while the sub-bass rumbles much easier and looser. It's a more involving sound than the Space A40 provides, but also more fatiguing.
Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro review ($130)
Soundcore Space A40 vs 1more Evo: Which ANC multipoint earbuds are better?
At around $160, the 1more Evo is a more expensive combination of multipoint connectivity, ANC and LDAC codec support, which only works when you turn the multipoint connection off. There are more similarities: both have good call clarity that starts to suffer in challenging conditions - the reason why both earbuds receive 4.5 instead of 5 stars overall. The Soundcore Space A40 has slimmer ear tips and feels more comfortable to wear than the 1more, and its battery life is noticeably stronger - 8 vs 5,5 hours with ANC on. Active Noise Cancelling itself is even stronger on the Evo, but it shows more pink noise to counter it. Transparency is more effective in the Soundcore.
When it comes to sound quality, the 1more Evo has more forward, vibrant vocals and bumps upper-mids more - although the app equalizers let you make vocals more laidback if you so desire. The EQ's make the Evo sound more versatile; even after tweaking the sound, the Space A40 sounds more closed-in and more lower- and center-mid focused - more balanced as well. Once again, the Evo sounds more engaging, the Soundcore less fatiguing.
1more Evo review ($160)
