Hifiman Svanar Wireless LE's Review

 

General/Build/Comfort/Packaging

I have reviewed the Svanar Wireless previously and I have the Wireless LE with me today. Most of the features are similar to the Svanar Wireless except for some changes, first will be the colour of the case, it is brown in colour instead of black, build quality is more or less similar except they have removed the carbon fibre from the earpiece and went with full plastic, the purpose of this is to lower down the price, also, LDAC support is removed and the only available bluetooth codec is AAC and SBC, also not present is the wireless charging capability.

The build quality of Svanar wireless LE, although it's plastic, it definitely doesn’t look cheap. I have mentioned several times, for the fit, do take the time to choose the right ear tips as this will either make or break the seal for a good sound as well as fit. The packaging is rather straightforward and minimal, with various types of eartips. Let’s take a look at the specs below:

Specifications

Frequency Response: : 10Hz-35kHz  

Bluetooth Version: : Bluetooth 5.2 

HIFI Mode: : up to 5 hrs 

ANC Mode: : up to 6 hrs 

Transparency Mode: : up to 7 hrs 

ANC Spec: : up to 35dB 

Waterproof: : IPX5 

Single Head Weight: : 8g 

Charging Case Weight: : 83.7g 

Transmission Distance: : up to 15m (barrier-free transmission) 

Codecs: AAC, SBC

Gears used for this review

• iPhone 15 with Tidal/Apple Music (AAC)

• Hifiman Svanar Wireless LE AAC

Foreword

My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far

*An important note prior going into the sound impression, Svanar Wireless LE’s sound is very tip dependent, in fact it can make or break the sound, so please take your time to tip roll and get a good seal. I took quite a bit of time to look for one that’s suitable for me, because the bundled ones don't fit my ears at all.

General Features

Touch Control

• Works well, fairly sensitive and doesn’t require a lot of effort to use it

Proximity Sensor

• Auto pause when the sensor detects the earpiece is taken out and resume playback when the sensor detects the earpiece is in ear again

Connectivity/Range

• The connectivity is stable and it doesn’t break, mainly because it doesn’t have the LDAC codec support

• Range is quite good based on my personal experience, leaving my phone on the table in my living room, with the Svanar Wireless LE, i walked to my balcony which is about 6-7m away and it remained connected without breaking

ANC/Transparency Mode

• The ANC and Transparency mode, based on my observation and side by side A/B testing, both sounded the same in terms of the performance between Svanar Wireless and Svanar Wireless LE

• Both noise cancellation and transparency mode’s performance is average at best, similar to its bigger brother as well as the entry level (Svanar Wireless JR)

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Battery Life

• Battery life is fair with the Hi Fidelity mode coming in around 4 hours ish for my usage with AAC and at 40% listening volume

• ANC and Transparency mode does have a lot longer playtime ranging from 6-7 hours based on my observation when leaving it to loop through the songs

• The claim on the battery life is quite inline with Hifiman’s and i honestly have no issue with the shorter battery life on Hi Fidelity mode simply because of its sonic performance

Sound Impression with Hi Fidelity Mode (Tested with AAC)

This is the default mode on every startup, also my preferred tuning/mode that I use most of the time. The Svanar Wireless LE shares the same driver tech as well as R2R DAC embedded within the earpiece, however, limited to only AAC and SBC bluetooth codec, the sonic performance has definitely taken a toll due to the limitation of the codec. Timbre sounds very natural to my ears overall. Bass has a very good punch and speed. Sub bass does rumble when the track calls for it, however it is not basshead kind of bass, sounds clean and good quality rumble. Good seal from the eartips is very important here. The mids are slightly forward yet not overly recessed, vocal positioning is quite center, but not very “in your face”, male vocal sounds a little lacking in terms of body, certain artist’s vocal can sound a little “brittle” especially for Zhao Peng, where his voice is supposed to sound deep and full, however, this can be alleviated by tip rolling, swapping it to Final Type E, the mids has more body but the trade off is slightly darker sound. Female vocals on the other hand sounds good with decent texture and body. Treble has a good amount of air and presence, this makes the whole music presentation sounds very airy. It is energetic but never offensive nor harsh. Detail retrieval is good but not excellent. Soundstage and imaging is good for a wireless earphone, slightly out of your head, good height perception but depth is lacking.

Instruments can be pinpointed easily where it’s coming from with good accuracy. The absence of LDAC code does make the treble sound less dynamic and compressed at times, especially during busy tracks, but other than that, i would say you’re getting approximately 70-80% of sonic performance from the bigger brother, Svanar Wireless, which is 200$ more expensive than the Svanar Wireless LE.

Sound Comparison with ANC and Transparency Mode

ANC Mode

• The difference between ANC mode vs Hi-Fidelity mode is very noticeable, i would even go as far as saying its day and night difference in terms of sound

• Bass is not as punchy on ANC but still with decent quality and control

• Sub bass rumble more or less similar to Hi Fidelity mode

• Mids are slightly recessed compared to Hi Fidelity mode

• Treble doesn’t sound as airy nor extended as on Hi Fidelity Mode, indirectly also affecting detail retrieval

• Soundstage also doesn’t sound that holographic compared to Hi Fidelity Mode

Transparency Mode

• Transparency mode to my ears is slightly better than ANC mode, but of course when compared to Hi Fidelity mode, obviously the latter is far superior in terms of sonic performance

• Bass and mids are more or less similar sounding with ANC mode

• Treble is slightly better offering a little bit more air compared to ANC mode

• Better width,depth and height perception on the soundstage

Final Thoughts

All in all, the Svanar Wireless LE is a more “affordable” Svanar Wireless. In terms of features, you are not losing alot with the exception of LDAC codec, but if you are an iPhone user to begin with, i think the Svanar Wireless LE will be a better choice compared to the bigger brother Svanar Wireless because you will not be able to use LDAC on the iPhone, also, wireless charging is not available, but other than that, you are saving 200$ more as the Svanar Wireless cost 499$. Sound quality is definitely much better compared to numerous TWS in the market which are generally focusing more on features rather than sound quality. Recommended if you are looking solely at the sonic performance!

*Svanar Wireless LE is sent over by Hifiman for the purpose of this review. I thank them for the opportunity as always

If you are interested in getting one, head over to their official webstore

Hifiman Svanar Wireless LE Store Link - Non affiliated