Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 review

Summary

I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the Melomania M100 when Cambridge Audio informed me that it will be releasing its first pair of noise-cancelling wireless earbuds. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on them.

The method used by the British audio expert, which places a strong emphasis on audiophile sound quality, is something that I much admire.

Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 review

In addition, we were a huge fan of the Melomania 1 Plus wireless buds that were released by the firm in March 2021. Despite the fact that they did not have any noise cancellation or transparency capabilities, they were listed among the best wireless earbuds due to their exceptional sound quality and long battery life.

You can imagine how excited I was when the Melomania M100 noise-cancelling wireless earphones came on my desk. The Melomania 1 Plus has been out of production for quite some time now, so you can understand how excited I was. When compared to its predecessor, which had a bullet-shaped form, they had a drastically distinct appearance. On the other hand, much like its predecessor, the brand-new flagship model has been priced at a level that is significantly lower than the prices of the other models on the market.

When it comes to the pricing, the new wireless earbuds actually do contain a lot of features. In the following paragraphs, you will learn about the performance of the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 wireless earbuds.

This is a cheat sheet for the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 review

A flagship product with audiophile sound quality at a lower price than competitors.

10mm driver and Class AB amplification, both of which are taken from the CX Series Hi-Fi amplifiers manufactured by Cambridge Audio.

The Bluetooth 5.3 standard includes compatibility for both aptX Lossless and aptX Adaptive.

The battery life is ten hours, and it is compatible with Qi wireless charging.

On the charging case, there is a button that allows for manual pairing, as well as Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair.

REVIEW OF THE CAMBRIDGE AUDIO MELOMANIA M100: AVAILABILITY AND PRICE

The price has been reduced to $219 or £169.

There is a limited edition of the M100 Hikerdelic How High Edition that is also available to purchasers in the United Kingdom. The color option is black.

At this time, the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 wireless earbuds are available for purchase at a price of $219 or £169 (about AU$335 in Australia, but I hear that they are not currently available for purchase in that country). The website cambridgeaudio.com is where you may get them now. Amazon is one of the online merchants that sells the M100, however as of the time this article was written, I have not seen any other retailers who have the M100 listed for sale. Only the color black is offered for purchase.

Those of you who are located in the United Kingdom may also be interested in the M100 Hikerdelic How High Edition, which is a limited edition and can be purchased at cambridgeaudio.com. The ordinary M100 is priced the same as this special colorway, which has the same specifications as the standard M100.

The noise-cancelling and lossless audio capabilities of the brand-new M100 are included, despite the fact that the price tag is more than that of the Melomania 1 Plus ($139). The combination of these flagship features at the pricing makes them seem to be a bargain in comparison to competing models that have a variety of features that are comparable to those of the flagship offerings.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 earbuds, for instance, have a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $299, which is equivalent to £259 or $499 in Australia. Find out how the flagship models from Sony and Cambridge Audio stack up against one another in our comparison of the Sony WF-1000XM5 and the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100. However, the price of Apple’s omnipresent AirPods Pro 2 USB-C is $249, £229, or $399 in Australia.

When compared to the majority of top-tier noise-cancelling competitors, the Melomania M100 seems to be an excellent bargain and a sweet deal. Its price tag is $219, which is equivalent to £169. They are only surpassed in price by the ANC flagship OnePlus Buds 3 Pro, which was only recently released and costs $99, £78, or AU$150.

CAMBRIDGE AUDIO MELOMANIA M100 REVIEW: DESIGN AND FIT DESIGN AND MATCHING

Design that is both inconspicuous and comfy, suitable for long-term use

Four different sizes of silicone tips and two different sizes of memory foam tips are included in the package.
The Melomania M100 wireless earbuds have a design that is far more compact than its predecessor, which was fashioned like a bullet. At the time of this writing, there is no information on the dimensions or weights of these headphones; nevertheless, they are somewhat comparable in size and weight to Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 4. In contrast to the new Sennheiser flagship, the Cambridge Audio headphones feature a shape that is more rounded and have a far less hefty feel about them.

Recommendations for the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100: Features

Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) Audio, aptX Lossless, and aptX Adaptive are all supported.

Active noise cancellation with three different settings

As a result of the fact that they are the first noise-cancelling design produced by Cambridge Audio, the Melomania M100 wireless earbuds come with a significant number of features. They are constructed on the Qualcomm Snapdragon Sound platform and have support for Active ANC technology, which is compatible with both iOS and Android smartphones. 5.4 is the version that is used for Bluetooth connection.

Support for aptX Lossless audio, aptX Adaptive Audio, and Bluetooth LE Audio from Android devices that are compatible is available for audiophiles that are interested in listening to music professionally. The M100 will be able to interact with Auracast audio sharing with a future firmware update, much as the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4, which has specifications that are comparable to those of the M100. However, the M100 does not support LDAC. To add insult to injury, it is essential to keep in mind that iOS playback devices will not be able to make use of aptX or LE Audio codecs.

A new Melomania app has been released. The new application brought the firmware of the M100 to version 2.0.37 after it had been downloaded into my Sony Xperia 1 IV smartphone, which I use only for the purpose of listening to music recordings. The Melomania app has been given a new appearance, which includes a new icon and a clever layout that makes use of a color scheme that is white, black, and orange. This color scheme makes the app easier to read and navigate.

There are now seven bands available on the Equalizer, which was previously just five bands on the 1 Plus. Additionally, you can now create unique sound profiles that are tailored to your tastes, and there are six presets available, including Flat (the default), Blues, Electronic, Natural, Rock, and Voice. Despite the fact that I have remained consistent with the Flat configuration throughout all of my experiments up to this point, there is a great deal of flexibility for a variety of content types.

In addition, the M100 has a Gaming Mode that, according to the manufacturer, reduces screen/sound sync difficulties to only 80 milliseconds.

An Examination of the Controls of the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100

There is a complete set of touch controllers, however the instructions may be erratic.

The detection of wear is unreliable

In spite of the fact that the Melomania M100 Plus wireless earbuds were equipped with touch controls, I discovered that my instructions were unreliable even from the beginning. I received the impression that the replies to my finger taps were sluggish and delayed, which led to a degree of doubt over whether or not a command had been recorded. Regrettably, there is no auditory feedback during playback navigation to recognize the skip back or skip forward instruction, or to indicate that volume controls via hold and single/double-press gestures have been accepted.

However, there are voice commands that are associated with gaming modes, transparency, and noise-cancelling for the device. A variety of auditory feedback languages, including tones, are available for users to choose from. Additionally, voiceovers provided by the British actor and comedian Matt Berry are also available.

Although there is a wear detecting feature, I found that it only functioned well when both of my earphones were removed.

A REVIEW OF THE CAMBRIDGE AUDIO MELOMANIA M100: ON THE QUALITY OF THE SOUND

During the course of my listening testing, the Melomania M100 wireless earbuds have shown their outstanding high-fidelity lineage via their performance. Deep, controlled bass, lifelike voices, and remarkable treble clarity are some of the characteristics that contribute to the M100s’ strong but well-balanced sound.

My Tidal playlist has been streamed to my Sony Xperia 1 IV smartphone with aptX Adaptive streaming, which has allowed me to connect to the device. Despite the fact that I am always uploading new material, I have not only listened to many of the tunes hundreds of times, but I have also taken great pleasure in the way that these Cambridge Audio buds make my music sound.

A triumphant sound is produced by the combination of the bespoke 10mm drivers and the Class AB amplification that is taken from the CX Series Hi-Fi amplifiers manufactured by audio specialists. The larger-sized speakers provide sonic benefits, including deep bass that has the sensation of being precisely tuned. These drivers are among the biggest I’ve come across in a set of wireless earbuds from my experience.

When I listened to some of my favorite songs as an audiophile, such as “Tinseltown in the Rain” by The Blue Nile, I was captivated by the amount of space that was created around the instruments and the broad soundstage that these headphones produced between my ears. I notice that throughout my testing, I find myself listening until the conclusion of the track rather than skipping to the next test track after a minute or two. This is because the music is so dynamic and fascinating that it dances between my ears.
Higher frequencies provide a sound that is highly defined without being too harsh or abrasive, which is something that may often occur with lower-quality earbuds. Even recordings that include a significant amount of treble information are able to sound detailed and just on the edge of polished without being too taxing on the ears.

As soon as I listened to them for the first time, the M100s immediately demonstrated their captivating sound character and went straight to the core of my music. The fact that Cambridge Audio has been able to incorporate its unique sound signature into these new wireless earphones is something that I really like.

Reviews of the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100, which has active noise cancellation

These are the first pair of noise-cancelling wireless earphones that Cambridge Audio has ever produced. The visual that appears on the screen of the application to represent the relative amount of noise canceling that is set is something that I find really appealing. There are three noise canceling levels: high, medium, and low. When it comes to the functionality of noise cancellation when I am seated at my desk, I would say that it is satisfactory rather than outstanding. It is true that the noises coming from the radio that was playing in the background were diminished, but the sounds that were of a higher frequency were still able to penetrate. While my neighbors were working in their yard, I could also periodically hear the low-frequency sound of equipment in the background. This was a source of distraction for me.

Transparency mode had a satisfactory experience, although it was probably not nearly as successful as the most effective transparency models now available.

The battery life of the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 is reviewed here

The battery life of the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 earbuds is longer than that of its predecessor, and they provide one of the longest playing lengths for active noise cancellation devices among premium brands. They are more powerful than the Sony WF-1000XM5 since they claim to be able to play back for up to ten hours on a single charge with active noise cancellation (ANC) and that they can play back for sixteen hours with ANC turned off. According to Cambridge Audio, consumers would get more than two full charges from the case during their usage of it. That makes sense, and after using it for about a week, it seems that the claim being made is correct.

With fast charging, a mere ten minutes of charging time may provide an additional two hours of playing with active noise cancellation (ANC). In addition to supporting Qi wireless charging, the M100 charging case has a USB-C connector located on the back of the device. In addition, a brief charging cord is included.

Concluding Remarks Regarding the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100
Some of the noise-cancelling wireless earbuds that I’ve tried, the Cambridge Audio Melomania M100, provide some of the greatest sound quality I’ve ever experienced. With their remarkable high-fidelity sound signature and compatibility for lossless music, these wireless earbuds have established a new benchmark for audiophiles at an affordable price. A few of the most renowned headphones for audiophiles are put to the test by these headphones, which are a fantastic price.

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Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 review: SPECIFICATIONS

Price: $219 / £169 / (approx. AU$335)
Colors: Black
Battery life (rated): 10 hours (ANC on); 16 hours (ANC off); 36 hours (charging case with ANC off)
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.3 with SBC, AAC, aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive Audio, Bluetooth LE Audio, LC3
Durability: IPX4 rated
Size: Not specified
Weight: Not specified