Noble Audio’s new premium wireless earbuds pack three different drivers into their design

Noble Audio Astrid earbuds in case in woman's hands — (Image credit: Noble Audio)

American manufacturer Noble Audio has unveiled a new pair of wireless earbuds. The Astrid brings the hybrid driver designs of the company’s in-ear monitors to a wireless earbud.

Noble has taken pains to ensure the Astrid, with a name that means “divinely beautiful”, meets the brief, with their glass-fibre face plates featuring a frost-like pattern over a glossy black ABS housing. The earbuds also have touch controls and are IPX4 water resistant.

Inside each earbud, an 8.3mm dynamic driver, a 6mm planar driver and a balanced armature take care of sound. The addition of a planar driver takes the design one step further than Noble’s Osprey earbuds, launched earlier this year, which use a dual-driver design.

Latest Videos FromWhat Hi-Fi?

Watch full video here:

The Astrid supports Bluetooth 6.0, featuring the high-quality LDAC and aptX Adaptive alongside SBC, AAC and aptX codecs. The earbuds also come with Active Noise Cancellation to help block out background noise, while Transparency Mode lets outside sounds in, so you can stay aware of your surroundings. To keep voice calls clear, Noble has included microphone noise and wind reduction.

Noble Audio Astrid with case on black background — (Image credit: Noble Audio)

The earbuds have multipoint connectivity, for easy switching between two connected devices, and can be used with Audiodo Personal Sound software, which runs a short listening test to create a “personalised” hearing profile. Audiodo’s built-in equaliser also allows you to “adjust the balance to suit your taste”.

The Astrid offers 11 hours of playback on a single charge, with the case bringing the total listening time up to 40 hours while using optimal, charge-saving settings. When the battery eventually depletes, the earbuds can be recharged wirelessly or via USB-C.

The Noble Audio Astrid are available now for a price of £499 / $539. This is not cheap for a pair of ANC-equipped wireless earbuds, so we look forward to seeing how to the Astrid compare with our current ANC favourites, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) (£299 / $299).

MORE

Read our full Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) review

I traded my Award-winning wireless earbuds for a pair of “trendy” wired earbuds – is being stylish worth the sonic sacrifices?

Stay up to date with our pick of the best wireless earbuds tested by our expert reviewers

Ioan Hazell is a staff writer at What Hi-Fi?. He has previously written for The Sunday Times Culture Magazine, Museum's Journal, and a number of arts and culture publications. Outside of work, he is generally found cycling, writing, or gigging.