Last year, I reviewed OneOdio's Studio Max 1 headphones and came away genuinely impressed. They were inexpensive, comfortable, and included a low-latency wireless dongle that allowed me to mix up some stuff on the DAW without being tethered for the first time ever. And did I mention battery life? Because I could listen to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon about 168 times in a row between charges.
The Studio Max 1 became my preferred set of cans around the house. When OneOdio asked if I'd like to review the Studio Max 2 ... well, here I am now. I gave my Max 1 pair to some random kid I saw riding his bike down the street. I ever so slightly regret that decision now ...
Right off the bat, the Studio Max 2 comes in a proper molded EVA hard case, unlike the soft bag on the 1. And it's a good case too – one I can actually chuck into my backpack and not be afraid I might accidentally break my cans. First impressions started off great.
When I cracked open the fancy new case, I briefly wondered if they accidentally sent me the Max 1 instead of the new 2. At a glance, they're exactly the same on the outside. Right away, I saw the new toggle switch – the old one was a silly press-button switch – for Bluetooth or ultra-low-latency (ULL) mode ... but ... uh ... not a whole lot else visually.
Even when I donned 'em for the first time, it also felt exactly the same as the 1 ... which isn't bad, per se. They're fluffy and soft and comfy, but don't hug my head particularly well. If I snap my head around, there's a high probability I'll end up with a cup over my face and the other on the back of my head. These are all things I was fine with while using the Studio Max 1, and I'm still fine with on the Studio Max 2, to be honest.
I never wear them outside (too hot), I don't take them jogging (I don't run), I don't use them when I'm lifting weights (JK, I don't lift weights). If you have an XXXL head, you could probably do those things without issue. I use them exclusively at my desk while I'm working, and in the music room when I'm banging on my keyboard, so no one can hear how terrible I am as a pianist.
Most of the changes from the Max 1 to the Max 2 are inside, to what essentially ends up being a completely different set of headphones than the previous gen. For one, the RapidWill+ 3.0 wireless system cuts latency from the Max 1's already excellent 20 milliseconds down to just 9 ms. That's about half a flap from a ruby-throated hummingbird. I.e., that's REAL fast.
The Max 2 also made a jump from 50-mm drivers @ 32 ohms to 45-mm drivers @ 34 ohms. Bigger isn't always necessarily better, they say ... but in this case, I'm not so sure that smaller was the right call. The Studio Max 1 had a very neutral sound profile to my discerning ears ... it legitimately sounded more like I'd expect a studio monitor to sound like: flat, until you start tweaking EQs. The Max 2 sounds a little bit muddy across the range and falls pretty flat on the high end of the EQ, even after tweaking. No sparkle, just tin. No rich bass or sweeping midrange. It doesn't sound BAD. I've absolutely heard much, much worse ... but when I close my eyes with the track cranked, it's not taking me away from where I am in the moment and transporting me to the first row by any means ...
... These are only a $200 pair of headphones, though ... that happen to have "studio" in the name. Now that I'm thinking about it, I think "studio" is doing the expectations a disservice, perhaps. If they were called OneOdio Garbage Can 2, I think I'd be blown away by how great they sound.
I listen to pretty much everything except country music (though, old-school Garth Brooks is a bit of a guilty pleasure, sue me). I listen to death metal, gangsta rap, ZEF, classical piano, punk rock, electronica, opera, and literally almost everything in between. My most preferred genre being industrial – Trent Reznor is my hero, but I also love Joy Division, My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult, KMFDM, Skinny Puppy and all that good stuff ... So I'm basing my muddy-sound-thoughts on not just a single genre of tunes. Even rocking the cans in ULL mode with some Call of Duty or Red Dead Redemption 2, yeah, wireless ULL is totally awesome, but the soundtracks and SFX just don't really do it for me with the Max 2.
Yes, there's a basic app that's so easy even a caveman could do it (sorry, Geico guy), but I don't want yet another app for something that is supposed to just pass through the sound as designed in the first place. No engineer likes EQ on EQ.
This is why I have a modicum of regerts giving away the last pair. If I see him again, I'll prolly ask to trade back ... but I'm keeping the hard case.
On the plus side, the Max 2 has Bluetooth 6, if you're keeping tally. I don't know about you, but it seems like every month is a new version of Bluetooth. And probably to your dismay, new versions don't mean it sounds better or has a higher TX rate or ... BUT!, and totally an aside, Version 6 is actually kind of neat, because it adds Channel Sounding for precise distance measuring, meaning "Find My Phone" apps and the like will be much better at finding phones, like down to the centimeter. The Max 2 doesn't have that.
What the Max 2 does have, however, is LDAC at 990 kbps via BT, just like the previous version. The real magic is the ULL dongle that can be plugged into any analog device with a 3.5-mm or 1/4-inch jack, then magically send that low-latency signal wirelessly to your headphones. Bitrate on the Max 1 was 160 kbps, but OneOdio has bumped that up to 400 kbps. I can hear the difference in quality from 160 to 400 kbps, just like when hopping from wired to BT. The ULL dongle really sets these headphones apart, and I like that.
Also, like I mentioned, the Max 2 shaves 11 ms off latency from the previous gen while in OneOdio's 2.4 GHz ULL mode, from 20 ms down to 9 ms. I'm not even going to pretend I can hear that difference ... But I can see it in the DAW.
The Max 2 is slightly heavier than the previous version, sitting at about 350 gr. Basically, like having a can of Pepsi (or Coke if you prefer) atop your noggin. I wear the cans all day long while I'm working and never feel any type of fatigue.
Speaking of all day, the battery is still every bit as insane as the gen 1 with 120 hours of listening in Bluetooth mode. That's five straight days. That's 15 eight-hour workdays. That's 1,800 four-minute songs between charging. *That's a flight from Barbados to New York to Singapore to London, to Perth, then BACK the way you came except taking a detour to Auckland instead of Barbados, all while having forgotten your charger at home ... but the downside is that no, the Max 2 does not have ANC (active noise-canceling) capabilities, so you're listening to the sweet, sweet hum of the cabin and engines the whole time. That was a ridiculous example, I know. After all, who doesn't have a USB-C cable laying around?
In nearly every practical aspect of these headphones, the Max 2 is more polished than the Max 1.
But the Max 1 sounded more like studio headphones. That being said, the Max 2 is still my daily driver. Until I get my Max 1 back.
Product page: OneOdio Studio Max 2
*Assuming no layover purgatory.
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