OPPO Enco X2 Earbuds Review
The second generation of the Enco X series was launched this summer and got very good reactions from many reviewers. I was checking the online reviews before I got the Enco X2 in my hands, there are so many. Understandable, mainstream consumers love wireless earbuds more, compared to us, I mean audiophiles, who always seek the best possible sound quality when listening to music. So this review will mainly focus more on the sound analysis and the sound performance of the OPPO Enco X2. Here we go.
Build
The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds come in two colors, white and black. The integrated body design hides neat lines in a round shape. The industry-leading paint technology used for the black version gives a ceramic-like texture, making it a joy to both use and behold.
The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds have gone through nearly 100 rounds of modifications based on OPPO’s professional database of human ears and surveys from more than 1,000 users. Thanks to a new ergonomic design, each OPPO Enco X2 earbud only weighs 4.7g and is the perfect fit for everyone.
The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds adopt an antibacterial design with earwax prevention. Their wax guard layers can prevent earwax from blocking the speaker outlets, making the earbuds easier to clean. Meanwhile, the inorganic ion antibacterial coatings can inhibit bacteria growth, making them comfortable and clean to wear over long periods.
Thanks to IP54 dust and water resistance, you can enjoy clear sounds with the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds while exercising without fear of sweat and rain damage.
Audio
OPPO Enco X2 comes with a brand-new SuperDBEE coaxial dual-driver system developed by OPPO and Dynaudio. Equipped with an integrated dynamic driver and an exclusive quad-magnet planar tweeter driver, the OPPO Enco X2 delivers better performance than its previous generation. OPPO has improved the frequency response with many music producers for a sound balance seldom achieved by wireless earbuds.
A lightweight diaphragm that is only 0.0095 mm thick, supplemented by a DCCA voice coil with a diameter of only 0.033 mm, the diaphragm makes the vibration system 31% lighter than the previous Enco X counterparts. The Ultra-light liquid crystal molecular diaphragms instantly can respond and can handle even the busiest and fast music tracks.
OPPO’s classic balanced planar diaphragm technology use magnets as the key driver of the diaphragms. OPPO has created the all-new “Sandwich” quadruple-magnet structure which dramatically improves diaphragm performance. Compared with the previous generation, the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds see a 100% improvement in high-frequency extension, all the way to 40 kHz, and feature higher resolution.
OPPO has re-optimized the internal circuit structure of the DAC chip in the SoC and selected a better-quality audio inductor for the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds. Compared with the previous generation, the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds see a 25% improvement in sound output, allowing you to stay immersed in your music and feel the amazing sound quality.
The all-new LHDC 4.0 technology significantly increases the wireless audio transmission rate to a higher degree – up to 900 kbps/24 bits/96 kHz, (For LDAC and LHDC codecs). Compared with the previous generation, the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds’ Bluetooth connection is on average three times more stable when in LHDC mode.
As the world’s first TWS headsets equipped with the Dolby binaural recording feature, the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds can record what you hear and retain crystal clear, natural, and crisp audio.
The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds support a single squeeze for play or pause, double squeeze for the next track, squeeze and hold to turn noise cancellation on or off, etc. You may also slide your finger up or down on the earbuds to adjust the volume without taking out your phone. The Golden sound feature includes an ear canal scan and hearing test to optimize the best sound profile for your ears.
ANC (Noise-canceling)
Each OPPO Enco X2 earbud features two noise-canceling microphones with a high signal-to-noise ratio, which is rarely used in the industry, as well as a triple-core chip with a 50% performance boost. The noise cancellation frequency can reach up to 4,000 Hz to reduce human voices at a frequency range that traditional noise-canceling earbuds can’t reach.
OPPO has re-programmed the noise cancellation algorithm for the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds. Coupled with lightweight diaphragms, the earbuds support a noise cancellation depth of 45 dB, The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds can effectively cut out stubborn noises from airplanes, cars, and streets, allowing you to find peace in a noisy world.
The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds can automatically identify your surroundings, offering the most suitable noise-canceling model. Built on the triple-microphone system commonly found in high-end TWS headsets, the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds are equipped with all-new bone conduction sensors for voice pickup. The built-in sensors can accurately capture your sound vibrations and better pick up your voice in noisy surroundings.
The OPPO Enco X2 earbuds use steel mesh designed for wind noise protection. Its reversed and diagonal wire arrangement lowers the wind resistance coefficient by blocking air intake. Thanks to the anti-wind noise duct design and a smart anti-wind noise algorithm, wind noise worries no more.
Battery
OPPO has extended the battery life of the OPPO Enco X2 earbuds by reducing their overall power consumption. Therefore, the earbuds can last for up to 40 hours after a full charge of the charging case. With two fast charging methods, you can enjoy up to 2 hours of music playback on a 5-minute charge.
- LHDC, Default setting, 50% volume: Max Noise Cancellation: 5 h – Noise Cancellation Off: 6.5 h
- AAC, Default setting, 50% volume: Max Noise Cancellation: 5.5 h – Noise Cancellation Off: 9.5 h
What’s in the box & APP
For a walkthrough on the Android and HeyMelody App, you can watch the video.
OPPO Enco X2 Full Specs
I would like to thank OPPO for providing me with the review sample of Enco X2.
Sound
OPPO Enco X2 comes with four EQ Presets as you can see.
Also comes with both LDAC and LHDC Hi-Res codecs which support up to 900 kbps/24 bits/96 kHz. The Hi-Res mode in the settings menu triggers the 96kHz mode.
Disclaimer: The 8K peak on the graph is measurement-coupler related, it’s not to be heard in real-life listening. Also, the graphs here are to show and tell the sound character of an earphone, not the sound quality.
I measured all 4 EQ modes first thing. To see what level of differences there are. I liked the fine-tuning between the presets. There is around a 5dB difference between the bass-heavy Punchy and bass-light Dynaudio Real presets. Other than that there are some minor changes around 1-4dB both on the mids and treble regions to give you the desired sound possible. None of the presets leave the main curve, that’s a good thing.
And after listening to all 4 presets I liked the Classic mode the most. As it suits better for my taste with a not too much-nice bump on the Mid-bass region which highly affects instruments like bass guitar or drums. After that, as you can see from the graph, a smooth line on the Lower-mid and the Upper-mids frequencies. Where vocals and instruments take place mostly. This kind of tuning I find the most natural and balanced sounding for my taste, and also for many genres. The Treble region starts with a nice and polite elevation, mind the 8K peak. Which gives you a good level of detail-retrieval like macro details, a wider soundstage, and a natural tone on high-octave vocals. Let’s dive deeper.
Lows
The Enco X2 has an elevated, impactful, and full-bodied bass reproduction. The sub-bass is slightly more prominent than the rest of the bass range, however, the bass feels abundant altogether. The textured, powerful bass contributes to the fun factor of the IEM. It’s tuned in a way (close to Harman 2019 V2) to prevent the bass from bleeding into the lower midsection. The detail level is also good. The Enco X2 performs well in this regard, the bass is controlled, very powerful, and quite exciting to listen to.
Bass is one of the best qualities of this earphone. There is a definite bass boost with this set, and the frequency response graph makes clear, the big bump to around 200Hz. The placement of this bump makes low-frequency sounds come across as big and full. It extends deep into the sub-bass, which makes bass almost rumble in your ear. This makes it a great fit for gaming and movies, as well as music.
Mids
Starting with the lower mids, Enco X2 follows a recipe of linearity here. I would easily say that this smart move ensures that the signature stays airy and a general sense of air is present. The overall signature feels quite spacious, as well as the stage and the space between the instruments. The midrange has a linear tonality and features a note weight that is rather on the lighter side of the scale. However, the body of the instruments and the body of the vocals do not feel particularly thin and insufficient. The vocals feel breathy with plenty of details and they are quite engaging to listen to. The resolution and detail retrieval are really good here, you can hear and track micro-details and individual instruments on the stage, easily. The slightly recessed midrange does not stick out at all, it feels quite alright, following the rest of the spectrum effortlessly. The Enco X2 has an elevated upper midrange with a crisper tone.
Highs
The treble range of the Enco X2 follows the bass line, they are a little more pronounced compared to the lower midrange. The new planar driver does a great job of reproducing detailed, articulate, and clean treble. The resolution and detail level are certainly impressive for this price and the extension is quite satisfactory. The dispersion of extended highs of the Enco X2 helps stereo imaging and enhances the perception of stage height and width.
Technical
The soundstage is definitely one of the strong suits. The instruments have accurate positioning with ample space between them and you can easily track individual instruments on the stage. The Enco X2 also handles congestion quite well thanks to its well-tuned signature and technical prowess.
Graph Comparison with Airpods Pro 2 and Galaxy Buds2 Pro
For Airpods Pro 2 and Galaxy Buds2 Pro graphs credit goes to crinacle.com. All measurements are done in ANC-off mode.
Developed by Harman International (which is bought by Samsung in 2017), this tuning curve/target is based on a series of blind listening tests to determine the most popular sound signature for modern headphones. It’s a common tuning because of its reliable popularity, emphasizing the bass and upper-middle registers, making it a good fit for mainstream music genres and listening tastes.
As you can see from the graph the Buds2 Pro perfectly follows this target. A few decibels elevation on lows and mids, reaching the target around 3K region, very close altogether. You also see the Enco X2 also wander around this target, but with some changes on the bass and treble regions, but closely aligned on the mids.
Surprisingly AirPods Pro 2 seems to have a flatter and leaner bass performance compared to the other two. But after around 120Hz Pro 2’s and Enco x2’s sound characters seem alike with minor differences around 300Hz and after 3KHz.
Let’s look at them all together. We can easily say all 3 earbuds have good tunings for the start. Samsung goes for the more mainstream tuning with the most elevated bass and treble. Apple’s approach is more on the balanced-sounding side across the frequency spectrum with less coloring. OPPO, in my opinion, has done all the sweet spot fine tunings on the Enco X2. A sweet amount of mid-bass hump and the level of the extension on the treble. I think this is not an easy task, to compete with the bests in the market. X2’s tuning matches my taste the most, I wasn’t expecting this to be honest.
Sum-Up
The Enco X2 proved that all your needs are covered at a very competitive price ($125 – $150). One of the best-sounding wireless earbuds on the market if you like this kind of tuning. One of the best software support on the Android side, only lacking the custom EQ preset. One of the best ANC performances out there rivaling the flagship models from other brands. The only downside for me is the design, I think the time has come to be more unique in design language like OPPO did with their phone designs.
It’s a fact that with every passing year TWS users increase big in numbers globally, as wireless earbuds are getting better and better with every following model, Bluetooth being the most important handicap as it does not have the necessary bandwidth for a full lossless audio solution yet. Meaning you don’t get to hear all the zeros and ones in wireless mode from a high-res audio file. But OPPO seems to have a solution for this in the upcoming days, did you hear about the new ‘MariSilicon Y‘ flagship Bluetooth audio SOC with 24-bit/192kHz support? 2023 will come with some serious improvements in wireless audio for sure.