SoundPeats Engine 4 True Wireless In-Ears in the test – evolution instead of revolution! But in favorable.

Practice test

In the practical test, I go into the most important features (and peculiarities) of the headphones. I divide the test into several categories and summarize everything in the conclusion on the last page.

Haptics and wearing comfort

The Engine 4 feel much more premium than the previously tested models from SoundPeats due to their higher weight, the appealing look and the use of different materials.

Due to the bulky shape and the further outward center of gravity, I had to resort to the largest of the enclosed ear tips for the Engine 4, because otherwise the Earbuds fell out of my ears relatively quickly during movements. With the large ear tips, however, the Engine 4 sit well and withstand normal walks without problems – unfortunately, I have not yet been able to try out the headphones while cycling. Due to the tight fit, the Earbuds shield ambient noise quite well even without ANC, but you might also hear your own breathing noises and there is no “transparency mode” in the actual sense.

 

Operation and multipoint connection

Compared to the other models, practically nothing has changed in the operating principle. All settings are realized via touch control, which works quite well after a short familiarization phase (depending on the learning curve). Due to the larger back surface of the Engine 4, the accuracy is significantly better than, for example, the Life Classic.

Of course, I also tested the Multi-Point function. To use this feature, it has to be enabled in the smartphone app, which automatically disables LDAC mode. I had the Engine 4 connected to the PC (MSI B550 Unify Board) and listening to music, at the same time my smartphone (Pixel 7) was connected to the headphones. When a call came in, the music was immediately muted and the ringtone from the phone played. The call could be accepted via touch without any problems.

 

Battery life

The Earbuds’ battery lasted almost 10 hours at a moderate volume before it stopped working. Of course, we can only speculate about the battery life, and since I never wear in-ears for so long that the battery is completely used up, I can’t judge whether the battery life of the other SoundPeats in-ears has already decreased without measuring the time. Activating the LDAC mode, which provides a quite audible sound improvement, reduces the battery life by almost three hours to then about seven hours!

 

Smartphone app

The app, which is mandatory for activating some functions, turned out to be a small annoyance besides the basically acceptable usability, because you can’t even use it without registering! Personally, I find the registration requirement just as annoying as the online requirement for offline games, completely nonsensical. Functionally, I liked the app quite a bit. The “listening test” for the generation of my personal equalizer I found very innovative, even if the setting made on the basis of the result sounded somehow wrong and I did not like accordingly. There the Sound.ID solution of Corsair achieved nevertheless somewhat more meaningful results. I’ll attach a few more screenshots of the app, but won’t go into it in detail.

 

Sound impressions

Sound-wise, the Engine 4 are at least on par with the other tested models from this manufacturer. The high frequencies are clearer and better resolved in the Engine 4s, and the low frequencies are just as pronounced, although heavy bass hits do not upset the Engine 4s even at maximum volume and do not produce any noise. Overall, the concept with the two drivers obviously works. As usual, I have to mention regarding the assessment of the “sound” that these are always also based on personal listening habits. Taste is basically a personal thing and therefore such assessments can never be seen as an objective and generally valid evaluation. However, it always impresses me that the inexpensive in-ears from this Chinese manufacturer even outperform “gaming headsets” (from well-known manufacturers) by a factor of two or three in terms of sound quality. The Engine 4 sound less like a tin can, have a richer bass and clearer high tones than the majority of the large headsets I recently tested. By the way, the “game mode” has to be activated again when watching videos, otherwise the lip movements are no longer synchronized with the sound due to the high latency.

 

Mic check

Finally, the obligatory mic check should not be missing. As with all in-ear headphones in this price range that I know of, the microphone of the Engine 4 is more of a makeshift solution and only suitable for short phone calls. An audio book will probably not be recorded with them.