Headphones — Yamaha TW-E5B

Yamaha's TW-E5B is a cable-free in-ear set, positioned in the brand's earbud range between the entry TW-E3B and the TW-E7B, which carries active noise cancelling. Yamaha lists it at an MSRP of USD 149.95, against USD 99.95 for the TW-E3B and USD 279.95 for the TW-E7B. It has no noise cancelling of its own, and instead offers an Ambient Sound mode, a gaming mode and call processing from Qualcomm.

Key specs that matter

Each earbud holds a 7 mm dynamic driver and weighs about 6.5 g, which Yamaha states applies to either the left or right side. The quoted frequency response runs from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. The wireless link uses Bluetooth 5.2 and the TW-E5B handles SBC, AAC and Qualcomm aptX Adaptive streams, with A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP profiles listed. Maximum range is 10 m without interference. Battery life is rated at about 8.5 hours from the earbuds on one charge plus 21.5 hours from three recharges in the case, for up to 30 hours in total, and talk time reaches 6.5 hours. Ten minutes on the charger restore about an hour of music. Charging takes about 1.5 hours for the earbuds and 2.5 hours for the case, and the housings carry an IPX5 rating against water and sweat.

Engineering and use context

Yamaha says the driver, nozzle, airflow and internal acoustic volume of each housing were optimised together, and the shell follows a curved shape meant to conform to the ear for a proper seal and a secure hold. Listening Care is an automatic equalisation that compensates for the way human hearing loses parts of the frequency range at low volume, so the user can listen more quietly. Voice pickup relies on a specially shaped mic channel paired with Qualcomm cVc processing for noise suppression and echo cancelling. Qualcomm TrueWireless Mirroring lets the two earbuds swap roles, which Yamaha states keeps the connection stable and saves power. Gaming mode shortens the delay between audio and video, and Siri or Google Assistant can be triggered with a button press. Settings and EQ are handled through the Yamaha Headphone Control app, and the box contains a 30 cm Type-A to Type-C charging cord and eartips in XS, S, M and L sizes.

Pairing

Source duty falls to whatever handset, tablet or notebook the owner already carries, and the conversion and amplification all happen inside each earpiece. The aptX Adaptive codec is useful with Android phones built on Qualcomm Snapdragon platforms that support it, while iPhone owners will connect over AAC. Water resistance makes them suitable for training sessions and commuting in rain.

Alternatives

The Yamaha TW-E3B is the cheaper true wireless model in the same range, with a 6 mm driver, Bluetooth 5.0 and up to 24 hours of total playback.