Master & Dynamic MW07 review: audiophile and luxury converge

• Dima Aryeh
• 6 years ago

With the MW07, Master & Dynamic is trying its hand at true wireless earphones in its classic fashion: amazing materials and top-of-the-line hardware. Yes, it’ll be expensive, but if it’s anything like the company’s other products, it’ll be worth it.

Overview

• Drivers: 10mm Beryllium
• Bluetooth version: 4.2 with aptX
• Distance: 20+ meters
• Water resistance: IPX4
• Battery life: 3.5 hours, 14 hours total
• Size: Earphones: 25 x 22.2 x 28.3mm, case: 64.6 x 26.8 x 45.1mm
• Weight: 9g each, 76g case
• Price: $299 (Master & Dynamic, Amazon)

The Master & Dynamic MW07 come in a case that’s shaped for easy carry. It’s on the bigger side but still fairly compact. On the front are three status LEDs: the two outside LEDs show the earphone charge while the center shows the case charge. Showing individual charge for the earbuds is uncommon and appreciated for one-eared listeners like me!

On the back is the USB-C charging port. Props to M&D for offering USB-C while some companies are still sticking with the antiquated microUSB port. There’s a unique serial number above the port.

The nice part about the case is that the earbuds inside are oriented perfectly. You grab an earbud and put it directly into your ear without orienting it, flipping it, or messing with it at all. This may not seem like a big deal but it’s a smooth experience, unlike some other brands.

Included in the box are the earphones, ear tips, fit wings, a pouch, and the USB cable. M&D thought ahead and catered to the enthusiasts here. The cable is USB-C to USB-C to support all future devices, but the company also included a really nice metal adapter from USB-C to A, allowing the use of any USB port. The cable itself is soft rubber and not fabric, but the ends are metal and made very nicely.

Build quality

You can’t have Master & Dynamic without insane build quality. The case is coated in stainless steel polished to a mirror shine. Inside is plastic to hold in the two earbuds with contacts below. The door is held closed magnetically and shuts with a nice click. Unfortunately, this surface can scratch easily if you don’t take care of it. The company includes a fabric pouch to keep the case pristine when you throw it into your bag. Yes, it’s a bit of a hassle, but this is a luxury product.

The earphones themselves feature stainless steel bodies with handcrafted acetate shells (this is what fancy eyeglasses are made from). The acetate is beautiful and each one will be unique. It’s also transparent so the status LED hidden under the acetate lights it up with a unique pattern. And because it’s polished, it feels really nice.

Even the buttons are stainless steel. The right earbud has a single button for play/pause, skipping tracks, and summoning your virtual assistant. The left earbud has two volume buttons. The buttons feel great, click nicely, and are easy to use and access.

Comfort

To my surprise, these earphones come with five different sizes of ear tips. They’re all basic silicone tips (no foam here) but five sizes is a great variety. There are also two sizes of the fit wings that sit in the inside of your outer ear. This ensures a solid fit without being too obvious, like the amazingly comfortable but large Bose wings.

The Master & Dynamic MW07 sit in my ears surprisingly tightly. They may not be sports earbuds, but they sit tight even during jogs. They’re also very comfortable and don’t build pressure like some in-ears do. This is one of the most comfortable sets of in-ear earphones that I’ve ever used and I can wear them for hours with no discomfort. They’re not quite Galaxy Buds comfortable, but those weigh almost nothing.

Sound quality

These earphones feature 10mm beryllium drivers in stainless steel housings. Metal drivers generally make for a bright sound but have tons of detail, and these are huge drivers for such small earphones.

The sound signature is similar to the wired ME05: very bright. The highs are definitely boosted but ridiculously clear and detailed. You can turn them up all the way without any distortion until the very loudest setting, and they get very loud!

Though they skew bright, the mids and lows are well represented. The thumping bass is a bit weak at quiet volumes but really comes alive when the volume is cranked up. However, songs that aren’t tuned for bass tend not to have too much impact. Overall, the lows sound really nice and smooth, but they may not impress a basshead.

Acoustic music sounds delightful, rich and full of detail. “Sultans of Swing” by Dire Straits sounds sharp and thumping. Pink Floyd is smooth and punchy, with a nice rumble in “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. II”. Gotye’s song “Somebody That I Used to Know” is encapsulating, while “State of the Art”‘s wild sounds put the drivers through their full range. That song does a great job of getting the lows to show off what they can do. Lastly, “Time to Say Goodbye” by Mr. Fijiwiji displays the MW07′s wonderful highs and smooth lows. Frankly, for such compact earphones, they sound phenomenal and get super loud.

Some reviews call the sound signature “warm” but that’s the last word I’d use to describe them. They’re actually a little too bright for my taste (at high volumes they get a little sharp and grating), but it’s a sound signature that will definitely appeal to most people. The general consensus is that brightness is well-received, and it really does bring out the details in music. Songs with lots of highs sound very dreamy.

There are also optical proximity sensors that will pause the currently playing song when one earbud is removed. It works reliably but cannot be disabled. However, I really like this feature.

The microphone sounds decent to other people, but not great. This is expected with such small earphones without an external mic hanging off a wire, but people had no trouble hearing me.

Connection

One of the biggest problems with true wireless Bluetooth earphones is connection quality. Rocking the older Bluetooth 4.2, the MW07 earphones hold a fantastic connection. This is no surprise considering the excellent antenna design on the bigger MW60s. Many earphones cut out even when my phone is in my (sometimes tight) jeans but the connection on these never once flickered on the go.

I also had no issues leaving my phone at my desk and moving around the house or office. The connection even works well through walls, which is a surprise.

Because of the way M&D set up the near field magnetic induction (NFMI) connection between the two earbuds, you can only use the right earbud by itself. The left earbud connects to the right one, so you can’t use just the left earbud.

I had no trouble pairing the MW07s with my phone. This is often a pain (thanks, Bluetooth) but the MW07s have no issues there.

Battery life

Here is where the MW07s fall behind the competition. The earphones have a claimed battery life of 3.5 hours. That’s not bad, but it’s not great either. The case can fully charge them three times, so total listening time is 14 hours. However, the earphones take 1.5 hours to fully recharge from the case, a long time compared to the competition. If you use your earphones all day, there will be interruptions. The case can charge in only 40 minutes which isn’t quick but is respectable.

The battery life I got is about what Master & Dynamic advertises when listening at low volumes. Raising the volume drains them a bit faster. Overall it’s decent, but considering the price, it could be a lot better. This might be the consequence of the beefy 10mm drivers, though. Jabra boasts 5 hours of battery life on the Elite 65t, but the MW07 drivers are almost double the size.