Shanling MTW300 Review
Shanling MTW300 True Wireless Earphone Review
Introduction:
Shanling was founded in 1988 in China and began to develop audio products and launched their first Hi-Fi stereo amplifier in the same year. Shanling is a high-tech company combining R&D, production, processing and sales of products, including Hi-Res portable music players, portable amplifiers, Hi-Fi headphones/In-Ear Monitors, SACD/CD players, Hi-Fi amplifiers, power conditioners and many other Hi-Fi products.
- Shanling Webpage: https://en.shanling.com/
Shanling MTW300 is flagship TWS earphone of the company that features a 6mm Diameter Dynamic Driver with Carbon Nanotube Diaphragm, Qualcomm’s latest QCC3040 BT Chipset with Bluetooth 5.2 and aptX, AAC & SBC codec support, IPX7 Weather Resistance and touch controls.
Disclaimer:
I would like to thank Shanling for providing me the MTW300 True Wireless earphone as review sample. I am not affiliated with Shanling beyond this review and these words reflect my true and unaltered, opinions about the product.
Price & Availability:
The actual price for the Shanling MTW300 is about $129,00 USD without silicone case and $132,90 USD with a silicone case that can be purchased separately. More information’s can be found under the link below;
Package and Accessories:
The Sahnling MTW300 came in a pretty small cardboard box with the illustration of the product on the top and some product related technical details at the bottom.
Inside the box are the following items/accessories;
- 1 pair x Shanling MTW300 True Wireless Earphones
- 1 pcs x charging case
- 7 pairs x Silicone Ear Tips (1 pair came pre-installed)
- 1 pcs x USB Type-C cable
- 1 pcs x Print Material (Quick User Guide)
The Design, Build Quality, Fit & Comfort:
The Shanling MTW300 is a very solid looking True Wireless earphone with a premium look and feel that will immediately get your attention. Both the earpieces and the charging case shows a high quality craftsmanship that can rarely found on similar or even much higher priced products.
The MTW300 is the flagship model of the company features a 10mm diameter Dynamic Driver with a Composite Diaphragm and is equipped with Qualcomm’s New QCC 3040 BT Chipset that offers the latest BT 5.2 and aptX, AAC & SBC support. The earpieces do have also a water resistance of IPX7. A device with a level 7 water resistance rating can survive (without any damage) immersion in water of up to 1m (approx. 3ft) for 30min. source
The earpieces are pretty lightweight with about 4.8grams per earpiece and do offers a nice ergonomic/comfortable fit, which makes them ideal for longer listening periods. The monitor shells are made of plastic material; however the faceplate has a nice metallic finish in dark grey color with the Shanling brand logo on the top.
Here are 3 opening, one for the microphone that supports Qualcomm’s 8th gen CVC (Clear Voice Capture) technology, the second one is for the LED status indicator, while the last one is a vent for the 6mm Diameter Dynamic Driver.
One of the openings is for the microphone that supports Qualcomm’s 8th gen CVC (Clear Voice Capture) technology, the second one is for the LED status indicator, while the last one is a vent for the 6mm Diameter Dynamic Driver.
On the rear side of each earpiece are the left or right markings, the slightly angled sound nozzle and the charging ports.
Each sound nozzle has a fine metal woven mesh on the top to prevent the insertion unwanted particles such like dust or earwax.
Charging Case & Battery Life:
Charging case of the Shanling MTW300 offers a premium look and feel thanks to its outer shell that is made of zinc alloy material with a dark grey finish, the same color like the faceplate of the earpieces. The size of the case is pretty small with dimensions of about 56*30* 56mm and has a total weight of about 89 grams.
On the top of the case is the Shanling brand logo.
At the bottom of the case are some product related specifications and certifications.
On the rear surface is the USB Type-C female charging port and a small opening where you can see the LED status indicator.
When you open the case you will see the left and right indicators and the seats for the earphones.
These seats have a magnetic surface to ensure the right connection for the charging process and to avoid that the earphones drop out.
The charging chase has a built-in battery that adds the MTW300 a total battery life up to 35 hours. The built-in batteries of each earpiece do offer an average battery life of approx. 9 – 9.5 hours when you set the volume to 55 -60% and use it with the SBC or AAC codec, while the playback time drops to about 7 hours when you use the aptX codec/volume under same volume conditions.
Noise Isolation:
The Shanling MTW300 is not equipped with an Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) feature, while the passive noise isolation of each earpiece is on a sufficient level, which is quite enough for the use in fairly noisy environments such like a bus, metro or train.
Technical Specifications:
- Model : MTW300
- Driver Type : 6mm Diameter Dynamic Driver with Carbon Nanotube Diaphragm
- Bluetooth Chipset : Qualcomm QCC 3040
- Bluetooth version : BT5.2
- Bluetooth Codec’s : aptX/SBC/AAC
- Bluetooth protocol : HSP / HFP/ A2/AVRCP /SPP/PBAP
- Bluetooth distance : approx. 10 meters
- Microphone : supports Qualcomm’s 8th gen CVC (Clear Voice Capture) technology
- Battery Life : fully charged + charging box fully charged: 34 -35 hours
- Continues Playtime : up to 9.5 – 10 Hours (volume set to %60 with AAC/SBC codec)
- Control : touch operation
- Weight : 4.8g (single earphone) / charging case: 89.5g / total weight: 91g
Pairing & Controls:
The pairing process of the Shanling MTW300 is quite simple, just like with any other TWS earphones these days!
You only need to push the pairing button that is located inside the charging case near between the seats. After you put them out your player, phone or tablet, etc. with shows the earphones so that you can pair it with your device.
After you have done the pairing for the first time, you only need to push the pair button whenever you put the out of the case, your device will automatically recognized the MTW300 earphones.
When it comes to the touch controls, I can say that it works pretty well. The multifunctional touch surface is very responsive and fairly sensitive.
Here is a complete list of the control options:
- Play & Pause Music : Double Tap L or R
- Skip / Next Track : Tap R for three times
- Previous Track : Tap L for three times
- Increase the volume : Single Tap R
- Decrease volume : Single Tap L
Connectivity, Call Quality, Latency:
The stable operating distance of the Shanling MTW300 is about 10 meters, which works fine if you don’t have a wall brick wall between the earphones and your source. However, the signal strength starts to drop after about 6 meters.
The MTW300 is equipped with the latest QCC3040 BT Chipset that offers Qualcomm’s 8th gen Clear Voice Capture (in short CVC) technology that supports both Android and iOS devices; however the call quality of the microphone is on an average level.
The MTW300 is a successful TWS earphone when it comes to BT latency performance. I didn’t have notice any remarkable lip sync issue for a TWS earphone at this price range.
Equipment’s used for this review:
- IEM’s : Shanling MTW300, HiFiMAN TWS600
- Source : FiiO M11 Pro, Samsung Galaxy Note10+, Apple iPad Air2
Albums & tracks used for this review:
- Lunatic Soul – The Passage
- Metallica – Sad but True
- Megadeth – Sweating Bullets
- Rush’s – Leave That Thing Alone
- Slayer – Angel of Death
- Liquid Tension Experiment 2 – Acid Rain
- Lorde – Royal Massive Attack – Angel
- Toutant – Rebirth
- Really Slow Motion – Deadwood
- Massive Attack – Angel
- Muse – The Handler
- Twerl – Lishu
- U2 – Sunday Bloody Sunday
- Edith Piaf – Non Je Ne Regrette Rien
- Diana Krall – So Wonderful (DSF)
- Aretha Franklin – I Say a Little Prayer
- Hayley Westenra – Odyssey Album
- Dionne Warwick – Walk On By
- Sarah McLachlan – Angel
- Sting – Englishman in New York
- Barry White – Just The Way You Are
- Isaac Hayes – Walk On
- Elton John – Rocket Man
- Eric Clapton – Wonderful Tonight
- Sting – Englishman in New York
- Casey Abrams – Robot Lovers
- Fazıl Say – Nazım Oratoryosu (Live)
- Chopin – Nocturn No. 20 In C-Sharp Minor
- Vivaldi – Le QuarttroStagioni “The Four Seasons”
- Otto Liebert & Luna Negra – The River
- Gogo Penguin – Raven
The Sound:
The Shanling MTW300 has a tad warmer than neutral tonality along with a mildly V shaped sound signature. The bass is pretty fast, controlled and pronounced; the midrange is slightly recessed but shows a fairly good sense of transparency and airiness, while the treble region is nicely highlighted and energetic.
Bass / Midrange / Treble / Soundstage & Imaging:
The Shanling MTW300 is not a bass heavy TWS earphone like many other products on the market, while its true strength is the control, depth and resolution in this area. The subbass region shows a fairly good level of rumble in songs like Lorde’s Royals or Massive Attack’s “Angel” with moderate sense of depth and intensity.
The midbass region of the MTW300 is slightly more highlighted compared to the subbass area that is pretty impactful, fast and accurate, especially for a TWS earphone at this price level, thanks to its well implemented 6mm Dynamic Driver with Carbon Nanotube Diaphragm. The midbass don’t bleed in to the midrange and shows a fairly realistic performs when I do listen to percussion instrument snare and bass drums or to bass guitars and violas.
The midrange of the Shanling MTW300 is slightly recessed due to the lightly V shaped sound signature. The level of transparency, airiness and overall resolution is on a sufficient level but not outstanding. The lower midrange adds male vocals and instruments like acoustic guitars a fairly good level of depth, body and warmth. The upper midrange is fairly pronounced and offers a sufficient level of resolution when I do listen to female voices or to instruments such like a piano or violin that are reproduced with a transparent but somewhat dry timbre.
The MTW300 has a pronounced and energetic treble tuning that shows a good sense of clarity in the lower treble region, while upper treble area is able to produce a nice level of airiness and sparkle. Instruments like hi-hats pretty upfront, while crash cymbal do sound pretty fast and controlled in this area. Moreover, the MTW300 has a treble range that has a good level of extension and resolution for a TWS earphone with a relative small 6mm Diameter Dynamic Driver.
When it comes to the soundstage performance of the MTW300 I can say that it is pretty good for TWS earphone standards, which is in general fairly spacious and airy, with good sense of widens and moderate level of depth.
Comparison:
Shanling MTW300 versus HiFiMAN TWS600:
The HiFiMAN TWS600 shows brighter and somewhat dryer tonality compared to the Shanling MTW300 that has a relative warmer tonality and fuller overall presentation.
The bass of the TWS600 has a more linear character both in then subbass and the midbass region, with less sense of depth, intensity and impact. The MTW300 offers more subbas rumble and extension, while the TW600 has the slightly edge when it comes to the decay in this area. The midbass region of both In-Ear Monitors is quite successful in terms of control and speed, while the MTW300 is superior in terms of impact and general intensity.
The midrange of the HiFiMAN TWS600 is more upfront and intimate compared to the Shanling MTW300 that is mildly recessed in this area. The TWS600 shows a more sterile, neutral and relative dry tonality compared to the warmer and fuller of the MTW300.
The lower midrange of the MTW300 shows more depth and intensity which makes it more successful with both male vocals and instruments like acoustic or electro guitars and toms, while the upper midrange performance of both earphones is pretty good. However, the MTW300 offers a slightly better sense of musicality.
The treble range of the both the Shanling MTW300 and the HiFiMAN TWS600 is nicely highlighted and do offer a good sense of airiness and extension in TWS standards. The tonality of the MTW300 is a bit more natural and realistic compared to the TWS600, which sounds a bit thin and dry in this area.
The soundstage of the MTW300 offers a slightly better level of depth due, while the TWS600 has the upper hand when it comes to the wideness of the stage.
Conclusion:
The Shanling MTW300 is a True Wireless Earphone that offers a pretty successful combination of esthetics, build quality, comfort and overall sound performance. Both the earphones and the charging case do have a beautiful premium look and feel, while the sound is pretty good in TWS standards, with its pretty fast and impactful bass response, slightly recessed but airy & transparent midrange character, and finally a treble range that is nicely highlighted and energetic, without to sound overlay sharp or ear-pricing.
Pros & Cons:
- + Bass Response (Especially Impact & Control)
- + Airy and Nicely Energetic Treble Tuning
- + Premium Build Quality & Great Comfort
- + Good Battery Life
- + IPX7 Water Resistance
- – Average Voice Transmission Quality
- – No Active Noise Cancellation
Thank you for the Read!
