MOONDROP ULTRASONIC REVIEW

>>I am brazilian and I speak portuguese, so forgive my english, I’ll use translation tools to help<<

INTRO:

Here is the well spoken Moondrop Ultrasonic, which many have been saying is an upgrade to the Moondrop Space Travel… Well, I decided to demystify this situation and check if it really is better or if it is just a Space Travel 2.0. Remember that the Space Travel is an entry-level TWS, while the Ultrasonic is much more expensive, which is why many are afraid of switching from the cheaper one to the more sophisticated one. Let’s find out!

Price: $74.99 USD
Color: White

Moondrop reviews: Space Travel, Dawn Pro

MOONDROP LINKS:

https://amzn.to/3PoYVB2

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_oEIIKIL (Official Store)

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_omg4SX9 (ShenzhenAudio)

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_ooZxHHV (HiFiGO)

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_okGZCcl (Natures Audio)

SPECIFICATIONS:

• (1) 13mm Sapphire-coated Dynamic Driver (DD)
• (1) FRA Lithium-Magnesium Alloy BA Tweeter

– Effective frequency: 20Hz – 20kHz
– THD: ≤0.1%
– SNR: 106dB
– Touch Controls
– Bluetooth 5.3
– Profile: A2DP / AVRCP / HFP / HSP
– Codecs: LDAC/ LC3/AAC/ SBC
– Signal range: 10 meters
– ANC and Ambient sound
– Moondrop LINK App – presets & customization
– Low Latency Mode 55ms
– Battery life of earphone: about 6h
– Total battery time: 6+18h
– Earphones battery: 37mAh
– Charging case battery: 380mAh
– Earphone charging time: about 1h
– Charging time of the charging case: about 1.5h
– Earphones material: plastic
– Case material: plastic
– Case size: 4.8cm [H] × 5.3cm [W] × 2.5cm [D]
– Weight: 3.9g (one side)(without tips)
– Case weight: 33.5g (without earphones)
– Total weight (box, earphones, etc): 271g
– Packaging size 9cm [H] x 22.5cm [W] x 4.8cm [D]

UNBOXING:

PHYSICAL ASPECTS:

Construction: If you have or had the Space Travel, it will be much easier to understand this part, because it is exactly the same in terms of construction. It is undeniable that the look of the charging case – and the earphones – is a very strong attractive of the product, the design is a mix between something retro and something modern.

The charging case and the earphones are very light, both are made entirely of plastic. Note the plastic on the top of the charging case (colored part), it’s a plastic that scratches very easily, that is, it’s a plastic of not very resistant quality.

A recurring issue, both in this Ultrasonic case and in the Space Travel case, is that, whenever I go to store the earphones, the stems don’t fit in the exact place, so I need to fix the fitting so that the stems don’t stick out of the case. There’s no way around it, it is a problem in the engineering of the case… let’s say that out of 10 times that I store the earphones, 8 works and 2 don’t.

Since the charging case doesn’t have a lid, if you force it to shake too hard, the earphones can fall out, but you need to use a lot of force for that to happen. This time, the company has gotten around this by including a protective cover in the product kit – more on that in the accessories section.

Eartips: As usual, we have another TWS with only 1 eartip kit, in sizes XS/S/M/L. They are basic eartips, nothing fancy, but at least they worked with the earphones. I didn’t even need to exchange them for third-party eartips, I used the stock size L to evaluate the earphones (I usually use size M). Unfortunately, another TWS earphones with an oval nozzle… there’s no way around it, it’s the “trend”, practically all TWS on the market have adopted the oval nozzle… I’ll reiterate once again, a cylindrical nozzle is better (in my opinion).

Bluetooth signal connectivity: Pairing is very fast (after the first manual pairing). Just remove the earphones from the charging case and they pair. The signal range was very good, reaching the 10 meters recommended by the company without any interruptions in the music. The signal stability is also very good, I didn’t experience any signal failures or interruptions during use.

Latency test: I didn’t experience any delay, but I confess that I got the impression that it was 99.99% accurate. I watched some videos on YouTube and got that impression. It may be a nitpick on my part. If you’re going to use it for music, this won’t interfere at all.

Touch controls: The controls are very responsive. The touch area is great, since it’s a flat surface, it’s very easy to perform the commands. I didn’t have any problems in this area. Positive point.

Moondrop LINK 2.0 App: The app is available for Android and iOS. The screenshots below are pretty self-explanatory, so I’ll only comment on what’s necessary.

(Screenshots do S22U Android 14).

The app is very simple, I think it’s weak, and surprisingly, it’s improved a lot since the last time I used it… But still, for the price of the product, I expected something more… other apps I’ve tested have a parametric equalizer, battery indicator, more EQ presets, etc. So, I think this app still needs to improve.

ANC and Ambient Sound:

• ANC or Noise Reduction: I found the Ultrasonic’s ANC to be pretty average/ok, nothing impressive… As I always say, it’s more of a sound softening than a block. Another thing, there’s a wind noise pickup if you walk through a current of air. An interesting fact: You can activate the ANC even if you’re only using one side of the earphones… most earphones only work when both sides are connected (of course, it makes more sense).

• Ambient Sound or Transparent: This is the mode in which the microphones open to capture sounds around you. This feature works well, like almost all the TWSs I’ve tested so far.

Fit and comfort: In this regard, the Ultrasonic performed very well, I really liked it… except for the oval nozzle that I mentioned in the paragraph about the eartips. Otherwise, I found them to be very good earphones for long listening sessions, at times I even spent more than 2-3 hours with earphones inserted in my ears, and I didn’t feel any discomfort. I think they might not be very good earphones for physical activity, as the company didn’t disclose the IP certification level of the product. I found the insertion to be between average and shallow, and the isolation to be good/ok.

Microphone: Unfortunately, I didn’t find the microphone’s performance satisfactory. In a quiet environment, the audio quality was average, and with a fan simulating wind, it was horrible, I simply couldn’t hear anything other than the noise of the wind.

Accessories: The product comes with a USB-A to USB-C cable, and a protective cover for the charging case. The positive point is that the company already provided the protective case along with the product. The negative point is that the quality of the protective case is quite questionable… especially the lid part.

Attention: as you saw in the unboxing video, I put the charging case inside the protective cover, but then I had to take the charging case off to take the photos… well, it was a Herculean task to get this case off the cover… it’s very tight… so, that’s my observation.

SOUND ASPECTS:

I found the Moondrop Ultrasonic’s sound to be neutral with a slight bass boost, or we could say that it is the sound compensation curve developed by Moondrop, the VDSF. In short, you have bass with a boost, mids with a slight emphasis, and linear treble.

>>I evaluated the Ultrasonic with the equalization preset in CLUB mode and the LDAC codec<<

Before I start, I should say that I no longer have the Space Travel with me, so everything I compare will be based on memory. I can already say that the Space Travel was a TWS that didn’t catch my attention… in terms of tonality, it really does a good job (if we compare it to other TWSs on the market), however, in terms of technicalities, I found it to be very weak. It’s okay, it’s a cheap TWS, you can’t expect much.

I understand that the Ultrasonic is indeed an upgrade from the Space Travel, more precisely in terms of technicalities, because in terms of tonality, the proposals are very similar. So, if you really liked the sound of the Space Travel but thought it could have had a touch more definition, detail, and imaging, the Ultrasonic – in my opinion – can give that extra touch. If you really liked the Space Travel, then there’s a 99% chance you’ll like the Ultrasonic too.

Now, a very personal opinion… I thought the price of the Ultrasonic could have been a little lower, it costs 4x more than the Space Travel… I understand that it does have more features than the entry-level model, but if it had cost around $59 USD (which would drop to around $49 USD on sale), it might have had the same hype as the Space Travel. But anyway, I’m not the one who sets the price of products, am I? Life goes on.

Bass:

Quantitative: The bass is at a moderate level. This means that it will have enough bass to accompany the presentation without you feeling like it’s missing out. If you want an earphone with a lot of bass, the so-called bassheads, the Ultrasonic is not for you. The bass is more emphasized in the sub-bass region, while the mid-bass is a little recessed in relation to the subs. I think that this type of bass is very favorable for genres such as EDM, modern POP, modern Rock, Metal, etc. However, it may not be the best choice for genres such as Jazz, classical music, acoustic music, Bossa Nova, etc., because these genres benefit a lot from the mid-bass region (in my opinion).

Qualitative: Here we have bass that has good definition, they are more concise bass, that doesn’t invade the mids and doesn’t sound thick or bloated. The idea of ​​not having emphasis on the mid-bass brings this benefit of a cleaner presentation, so the bass can have great articulation with the other frequencies, the sound of the earphone as a whole is more audible. Even though the bass is focused on the subs, it doesn’t sound boomy. The impact is moderate. The bass extension is good. As I said in the previous paragraph, in my opinion, the Ultrasonic’s bass will perform well with electric instruments or more modern electronic beat effects.

Mids:

Quantitative and qualitative: In theory, the Ultrasonic’s mids aren’t forward, but they ended up standing out a bit more in the presentation precisely because the bass and treble aren’t so prominent. So, I would say that these aren’t earphones that have “forward” mids or highlighted pinna gain, no… I think that the other frequencies are what didn’t stand out, so the mids region had a very interesting emphasis, at the right point, without being too aggressive or soft.

I vaguely remember that the Space Travel had more highlighted mids, although the Ultrasonic’s seem to me to be qualitatively better, with more definition. I believe that this improvement was precisely because Moondrop added a balanced armature to the Ultrasonic, and then you can have greater transparency and detail.

Voices: Honestly, I think that the Ultrasonic is one of those earphones that is good with both types of voices (male/bass or female/high), but it is not excellent for either type. The bass is not a masterpiece in terms of texture, and the treble is not the best in terms of vitality, and this directly influences the result of the mids.

Treble:

Quantitative: The treble of the Ultrasonic is the part that I think has the least presence, the level is moderate to low. For some people who don’t like treble, they will find it good, but for people who enjoy something more balanced or above that, they will certainly find that it could have a touch more in this region.

Qualitative: Even though the treble isn’t a very prominent frequency in the earphones, in terms of quality, I found them to be very good. If you compare it to the treble of the Space Travel, then, I think there’s a significant gain, there’s more definition, more detail, and more airy (although the latter is also not very prominent in the Ultrasonic). The sparkle is smooth, and will often present itself as something very close to natural. I didn’t feel any coloration, peaks, shrillness or harshness. These are earphones that are unlikely to cause any fatigue due to treble. I think the gain in quality was because the company added a balanced armature for the treble, and I think it really worked, to the point that it even improved the imaging of the earphones.

Soundstage and Imaging: I found the soundstage to be average, which means it is good but it will not be a feature that will give you a “wow effect”. As for the imaging, I found it to be better, in fact it is an improvement in relation to the Space Travel, you can have more definition and cut in the positioning of the instruments, and this contributes to the presentation having more resolution.

EQ Presets: There are 5 EQ presets available: Club, Monitor, Reference, 89xx, 336xx. The Club preset was the one described in the sound of the review. The Monitor and Reference presets (to my ears) are basically the same, both reduce the bass a little. The 89xx preset is similar to the Club, the difference is that the sound is colder, the overall presentation is “dry”. And the 336xx preset is the worst, the sound is very unbalanced, it sounds like a battery-powered radio from the 90s. In my opinion, the only preset that really worked was the Club preset, which has the most balanced and coherent sound among the others.

Driver flex test: I didn’t hear any driver flex sound when I inserted the earphones into my ears.

Amplification: Unlike wired earphones, this is just to talk about the volume level of the product. I found that the Ultrasonic has a good volume level, I usually stayed at 80% or lower, but I think that anything above 80% is too loud for my ears. So, from 80% or higher, it can be at a level that will satisfy those who listen to music at a higher volume.

COMPARATIVE: MOONDROP ULTRASONIC X ROSESELSA i5

Moondrop Ultrasonic and Roseselsa Earfree i5. Here are the two TWSs with the best sound on the market today (that I tested). I could also include the Rose i3, but I won’t make any more comparisons with it because the i5 is already kind of an upgrade from the i3.

In terms of price, the i5 is cheaper than the Ultrasonic… The Ultrasonic on sale is still more expensive than the regular price of the i5, so the i5 on sale is very good.

The i5’s charging case is much better than the Ultrasonic’s, there’s no discussion about it. The i5’s case is thinner and made of metal (aluminum). The Ultrasonic’s case is made of plastic, and the colored part is a plastic that scratches very easily. It justifies what I say when the company sends a protective cover along with the earphones (Ultrasonic).

In terms of earphone material, the Ultrasonic wins by a small margin… the quality of the earphone’s plastic is indeed a little better than that of the i5. I think the difference here will really be in the product’s durability and/or aesthetics.

In terms of comfort, the Ultrasonic has a body that, to my ears, generated more comfort… although the i5 was also comfortable (subjective paragraph).

Both have oval nozzles, but I think the fit with the Ultrasonic – in my ears – was a little better, although the insertion in both could be a little deeper (in my opinion). I can use the i5 with the stock eartips, but maybe someone else needs to find an eartip that provides a little more insertion (it’s subjective).

In terms of Bluetooth connectivity, both are very good, the only difference is that the Ultrasonic had a better connection – pairing – response with my Computer/Windows10 (because Windows usually makes automatic pairing difficult with some TWSs). As for connectivity with the smartphone, both were the same, perfect, without any problems.

ANC: Unfortunately, both aren’t the best in terms of ANC, but I think the i5 has a slight advantage over the Ultrasonic, because it has a “wind noise” mode, which was a mode that really didn’t pick up wind noise, which in my opinion was a welcome addition.

I think the i5 App is better than the Ultrasonic’s. The i5 app shows the exact amount of battery left – both on the earphones and in the case. I prefer the layout of the Rose App too, although the Moondrop App is actually similar to the Rose App after the update. It’s true that both have few preset options and neither have a parametric equalizer.

The i5’s battery is excellent, it lasts a long time when you use it and recharge it in the case. The Ultrasonic’s battery is also very good, but from the specifications, we can see that the numbers are lower than those of the i5.

Microphone: I thought the i5’s mic sounded a little better than the Ultrasonic’s, in a quiet environment, because in a windy environment, both were poor.

Sound: The Ultrasonic’s sound is neutral with bassboost, and the i5’s sound is more V-Shape. It’s possible to think that the i5 can deliver a louder sound than the Ultrasonic, but both have practically the same level (based on what I heard). The V-Shape sound may give the impression of being louder.

The i5’s bass is well balanced between subs and mid-bass, and the Ultrasonic has bass that has a little more presence in the subs region. The i5’s bass has a little more physicality and texture, while the Ultrasonic’s bass is clean and controlled.

The Ultrasonic’s mids are slightly more “forward” compared to the i5’s, which in turn have more recessed mids (compared to the Ultrasonic). The differences are small. The i5’s mids are warmer and more engaging, while the Utrasonic’s are more direct and detailed.

The Ultrasonic’s treble are a little more defined than the i5’s, although the i5’s treble tuning is more coherent and achieves better tonal balance (to my ears). In a way, the i5’s treble stand out more, making the presentation more energetic.

The i5’s soundstage is much larger than the Ultrasonic’s, but the Ultrasonic’s imaging is already better.

In the final analysis, the i5 achieved some very interesting points, such as: being cheaper, having a better charging case, having more battery life (earphones + case), having remaining battery information in the App, and lastly, having a tuning that to my ears was more “all-rounder”, and that’s where subjectivity comes in.

PROS AND CONS:

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