Image credit: Josh Kirschner/Techlicious
I have a saying. “Headphones are like shoes: you can’t only have one pair.” And I think I found the next pair I want to add to my collection. Meet the Beyerdynamic Aventho Y, a $149.99 pair of over-ear active noise-canceling headphones with a whopping 90 hours of battery life or 60 hours with the ANC enabled. That's already impressive, but Beyerdynamic decided to throw some sprinkles on this win sundae with a replaceable battery, swappable ear pads, and a few optional gaming accessories.
First things first, I'm a fan of the foldable over-ear closed-back design. The cans look sleek and modern with the matte design and a glossy embellishment. They're available in four colors (Liquid Black, Soft Jade, Peach Blush, and Blue Fusion), all of which would complement my wardrobe. Weighing 11.1 ounces, they seem light enough for all-day wear, but I'd have to get my hands on a pair to be sure.
The swappable ear cups are attached magnetically, making them easy to replace with velour ear pads when the time comes. And the cups hide a secret. There's are hidden compartments that hold the replaceable battery and an optional low-latency USB-C wireless dongle. The other optional accessory is a detachable boom microphone.
Image credit: Josh Kirschner/Techlicious
The Aventho Y has active noise canceling and a Transparency Mode. The headphones also have two integrated microphones with environmental noise cancellation for calls. As far as listening to music goes, there are 45mm dynamic drivers. All of which sounds good on paper, but needs comprehensive testing to know for sure. While there are codecs for SBC and AAC, there's no mention of Lossless audio codecs like aptX Adaptive, aptX Lossless, and LDAC. But that might be a trade-off for the price point.
The free Beyerdynamic app enhances your listening experience with a five-band equalizer, a suite of genre-based presets, and a series of customizable controls.
The Aventho Y has Bluetooth 6.0 with multipoint connectivity, so you can connect to two devices simultaneously.
But the battery life is the star attraction here. Even the 60 hours of battery life with ANC enabled that's still double the time of some of the leading brands including the Sony WH-1000XM6 ($398.00, usually $459.99) and the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones ($399.99, usually $449.00). But the Aventho Y has an estimated battery life of 90 hours sans ANC, which is almost unheard of. And when it's time to finally recharge, the headphones can get six hours of playback from a five-minute charge. A full charge only takes an hour.
Beyerdynamic makes a powerful case for what would be considered mid-tier headphones. For under $150, you get a pair of stylish-looking headphones with some clever accessories and replacements. The battery life puts the competition to shame. The only variables are comfort, audio quality, and ANC. If they're up to snuff, the Aventho Y might dethrone a lot of your favs.
Read next: Bose's new QuietComfort headphones get flagship tech for less
