The KEF Mju7 wireless headphones have that signature British sound

It took me a while to get my hands on a pair of KEF Mju7s. Somehow this pair of wireless ANC headphones slipped under my review radar, but I thought I’d give them a look, having recently been covered by Cambridge Audio’s Melomania P100 headphones, I wondered how the Hi-Res Mju7 would compare .

KEF is one of the oldest and most traditional British loudspeaker brands and comes from a time when the UK led the world in audio technology. Founded in the county of Kent, England, in 1961, KEF has gone on to build an enviable reputation for producing amazing loudspeakers. Now, the brand is flourishing and has even opened stunning showrooms all over the world.

As with other speaker brands such as B+W, KEF entered the headphone space with the launch of the Mju7 a year or so ago. These wireless Bluetooth headphones are designed by Ross Lovegrove, the designer who has collaborated with KEF on products such as the Muon floorstanding speakers and KEF’s first wireless headphones, the Mju3.

As you would expect from a KEF product, the build quality of the Mju7 headphones is exemplary. Lovegrove’s design has earcups with a beautiful teardrop shape. The generously padded ear cups are covered in soft leather and filled with memory foam. The earbuds can be rotated 90 degrees so that they can be placed in their hard zipper case. The headphone jack doesn’t fold in on itself, which isn’t a bad thing in my opinion, and means less chance of frame cracking.

The comfort level of the Mju7 is excellent. The clamping pressure isn’t as gentle as Sony’s WH-1000XM5, but they feel secure when worn. Weighing in at 309g, the Mju7 doesn’t feel too heavy, thanks to the padded headband and adjustable arms that make for a comfortable and secure fit. The earmuffs seem to wick away any sweat and the listener’s ears stay cool. Finally, there is a choice of silver gray or charcoal gray colors.

It’s fair to say that the Mju7 headphones aren’t exactly feature-packed, but most of what you need is there. For starters, the Mju7 is built around a Qualcomm chipset that supports SBC, AAC and aptX HD. No support for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Sound platform with the new aptX Lossless codec.

The Mju7 are good for Hi-Res listening on Android and for use with iOS thanks to AAC support. However, if you want Snapdragon Sound support, there are now some great headphones available like the Edifier Stax Spirit S5 and Cambridge Audio’s Melomania P100.

In each earcup, there are custom 40mm drivers. A built-in battery provides up to 40 hours of playtime on a single charge. While this isn’t exactly “best in class,” it’s good enough for a long-haul return flight. Using Bluetooth 5.1 means you also get support for Multipoint connectivity, enabling two devices to be connected at the same time, so you can listen to music from one device while taking calls from, say, your smartphone. your company.

Because the Mju7 headphones use Qualcomm technology, you also get cVc noise-canceling microphone technology which means quieter and more intelligible speech when making calls or participating in video conferences.

The built-in microphones in the earphones are also used for sound sampling for the active noise cancellation functions. Pressing the ANC button toggles the function on and off, with most unwanted sounds being adequately filtered out. The Smart ANC function adapts to the external noise level on the fly and does a great job. Is it as good as Bose or Sony ANC? Well, not quite, but it’s not bad at all.

Surprisingly, there’s no listening or transparency mode, but that’s not a problem for me as I rarely use it, but for someone who wants to be aware of their surroundings when running or working out, it might be an issue. One useful feature I liked is the auto-pause function when you pick up a headset. It’s helpful when someone talks to you; just lift a headphone and the music stops.

The controls for the Mju7 are all located on the right-hand earcup. It has a power switch and a Bluetooth pairing button to connect to your smartphone or audio player. There’s also an ANC button for turning noise cancellation on and off, plus a USB-C charging and data port.

You can use the USB port to recharge the Mju7’s rechargeable battery, as well as connect the headset to a computer via a USB data cable so you can experience a Hi-Res wired connection. For legacy connections, there’s a 3.5mm AUX socket, which accepts a cable that can connect the headphones to a hi-fi system or digital audio player.

Next, we move on to the surface of the right earpiece. It has a textured surface that is sensitive to touch and laid out in the shape of a cross. The touch device lets you slide forward to the next track or slide back to repeat the last track. You can pause and play music with one touch and raise or lower the volume levels. It works well and is one of the few touch controls on the headset that I enjoyed using.

One big omission with the Mju7 is the lack of a smartphone app for customizing things like EQ and controls. There is also no way to update the firmware. It’s a strange release, and a well-designed app can add value to a pair of wireless headphones. I think KEF has missed a trick here.

Now we come to the most important part of the review: how does the KEF Mju7 sound? KEF makes some great speakers and their over 60 years of audio experience can certainly be heard in these headphones. The sound is muscular and well defined. If these headphones were human, they’d have a six-pack. To audition the Mju7, I streamed from TIDAL using aptX HD over Bluetooth.

Rhiannon Giddens is always a great artist to test a pair of headphones with. Her clear voice can give any driver a proper workout. The song “At The Purchaser’s Option” by Giddens’ Freedom Highway the album was a good place to start. The Mju7 headphones took the first step in real style. It’s an exciting sound even though the overall presentation of the song seemed a bit quiet. This isn’t necessarily a criticism, but these aren’t headphones that will bang in your ears and give you a headache, but they have enough power and resolution to produce a convincing, if not particularly expansive, soundstage. .

There’s plenty of bass on offer with the Mju7s, but things never get out of hand. Restrained in places, the sound has plenty of forward midrange definition, which presents vocals well. It’s probably in the crossover between bass and lower mids where things can get a little muddy, but it depends on the source. If you feed the KEF Mju7 a well-recorded song and play it on a good source, you’ll be rewarded with excellent sound. If you like the signature KEF sound, you’ll know what I mean.

Verdict: The market for wireless ANC headphones is brutal right now. It’s a competitive space, and that’s largely due to Qualcomm’s excellent chips and the help they give audio companies when designing headphones and earphones. As a result, there are many headphones out there with high prices. KEF has never been a cheap brand, but it has its loyal following. If you like the KEF sound and appreciate the Ross Lovegrove style, you’ll appreciate the Mju7. There are a few quirks such as transparency mode and the lack of an app, but if you can see your way past that then these comfortable, clean-sounding headphones are worth a listen even if they’re a little pricey.

Price and availability: The KEF Mju7 Wireless ANC Headphones are available now and cost $399.99 / £349 / €399.

Technical characteristics:

• Driver: 40 mm.
• Maximum output power: 15 mW.
• Bluetooth version: 5.1.
• Codecs: SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD
• Bluetooth Power: Class 2.
• Bluetooth range: 10 m.
• Battery: 1100 mAh.
• Battery life: 40 hours (BT + ANC on).
• Fast charging: 15 minutes = 8 hours.
• Dimensions (H x W x D): 199 x 153 x 89 mm.
• Weight: 309g.