1More Sonoflow Pro review

Budget headphones aren’t easy to get right. While the criteria for ‘good’ are slightly looser than those costing four times the price, budgets are tighter and profit margins narrower, which leads to products that may excel in one area, but completely fall apart elsewhere.

1More has done an admirable job in the past when it comes to budget cans, making some of the best cheap headphones around. The Sonoflow Pro are the latest update to its flagship Sonoflow cans, and they do a very fine job of vying for cash over the Sony, Jlab and JVC competition — all for less than $100.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Cheat Sheet

• What is it? Budget headphones that boast great sound and solid ANC
• Who is it for? Those looking for solid headphones to throw in a bag
• What does it cost? $89/£99/AU$130
• What we like: Good sound, helpful carrying case, comfortable fit
• What we don’t like: There are some creaky parts here and there

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Price and Availability

The Sonoflow Pro sit very comfortably within the ‘budget’ category of ANC, over-ear headphones. A pair will set you back $89, making them around the same price as the Jlab Jbuds Lux — a four-star pair of headphones. The 1More alternative offers more for the price though, with a hard case in the box and potentially more exciting design for many.

Compare them to the Sony WH-CH720N, another similarly priced pair of headphones, and they come out on top as well. It’s mostly down to the included hard case, but there are wins in sound and comfort as well. For the price, the Sonoflow Pro present a very good value proposition.

Getting hold of a pair is easy enough as well. Just head over to Amazon, where you’ll find all three color options. There are blue, black, and silver colorways; we tested the black option.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Design and Build

• A very plush, comfortable fit
• Slightly squeaky build
• Solid, if bare bones protective case

At $89 you can’t expect exotic materials or rock solid build — but for the price, the Sonoflow Pro are perfectly fine. They’re made out of nice feeling plastic, and for the most part they feel well made. Despite their light weight, there is still some satisfying heft to the headphones, making you feel like you’re getting your dollars worth.

There are a couple of fit and finish foibles though, as you might expect at this price. There’s some rattling when you shake the headphones, the control buttons, while positive and clicky, are also wobbly, and there’s some creak to the headset as you manipulate the earcups into place. It’s nothing to make you say ‘oh these feel awful’ however, and I certainly didn’t notice any untoward structural noise when I was playing music and listening to audiobooks.

Comfort of the Sonoflow Pro is a highlight of the headphones. They’re padded to the nth degree, with some excellent padding across the top of the headband that cushions the headphones well on the top of your head. The earcups are suitably well adorned as well, with some lovely deep cushioning that wraps around your ears for a comfortable, all day fit. Their relatively light weight makes sure they don’t get too cumbersome while they're on your head.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Controls

• Physical buttons
• Not the most flexible
• But they do what you need

I’m always excited when I see that a pair of headphones features physical controls instead of touch. It’s much easier to find and use a button than it is to remember a mad combination of taps and holds to control ANC and playback. The controls on the Sonoflow are simple, but effective. There’s an ANC button to control the noise canceling mode between on, off, and transparency, a pair of volume controls that double as skip and reverse, and a power button that also acts as a play/pause control. They’re well set out, and while slightly wobbly, they’re positive and clicky.

They’re not the most flexible — you can’t customize what each button can do, unfortunately, although there’s not much else you could ask of them. There’s just one issue that’s more a minor complaint than a massive problem. Holding the power button always takes a second or so more to turn the headphones off, than with other cans I've tested; I sometimes wondered if something had gone wrong, or I’d been pressing the wrong button. They soon enough played their power down sound, but just shortening that hold length would go a long way in some ‘are these off?’ confidence.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Features

• Solid app
• Customizable EQ
• So-so Spatial Audio

It’s hard to find a pair of headphones that doesn’t work with some form of app nowadays, and that means a phoneful of headphone applications for reviewers like me. The app at the core of the experience here, the aptly named 1More app, works well enough, with plenty of options to keep everything ticking along nicely. Most notable is the customizable 5-band EQ, and the pre-made custom EQ modes for different genres. Given the solid core sound of the headphones, you won’t need to play with them all that much, but it’s nice they’re there.

You can access the LDAC HD mode, gaming mode, and Spatial Audio from here as well, under the confusingly titled ‘Shortcut’ menu. The low latency mode is great for watching videos and playing games on your phone while connected to the headphones, and worked well enough. The LDAC is a must use as far as I’m concerned, given the excellent quality it’s capable of.

The Spatial Audio setting is best turned to the permanently ‘off’ position. It doesn’t do enough to the soundstage to justify the hit to audio quality you’ll take. Some might like it, and it’s cool that budget cans are getting the feature, but I remain skeptical to its inclusion in cheaper headsets when it's very rarely done well. It doesn’t put a blemish on the headset given there’s a helpful off button, but I’m not entirely sure why its there.

Interestingly, there’s a smart burn-in mode as well. Now, the argument of burn-in is a contentious one that I simply refuse to be dragged into, but for those that reckon many hours of mid-volume white noise will improve the sound of their headphones, it’s there. I used it — and found no sound quality bonuses after the process. Mayhaps my ears are not as finely attuned as others.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: ANC

• It’s fine
• But it’s not going to win any awards

ANC in low-cost headphones is never going to be world-changing in its ability to keep the outside world at bay, but the Sonoflow Pro do their best. They’re good at blocking out the noises of engines and tires, but they struggle slightly more with chatter and more high-range noise. It’s going to make your commute a whole lot more tolerable, but you won’t find Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones' levels of noise cocooning here. As you should probably expect.

The transparency mode though is very good, allowing for a great passthrough should you want to chat to the bus driver or the guy selling you a hot dog. I managed to have a great talk with the clerk scanning my groceries, completely forgetting I was wearing the headphones at all. That’s pretty good for any pair of headphones, let alone ones at this price.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Connectivity

• Bluetooth 5.0
• Multipoint
• Headphone jack

As you would expect, there’s Bluetooth 5.0 for a reasonably up-to-date but not cutting-edge wireless connection. That means you can expect multipoint connection; I connected them to my laptop and phone without any worries about having to dive into a settings menu should I want to switch from my music on my phone to a call on my MacBook.

There’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack should the headphones run out of battery, so as long as you’ve got a headphone connector on your music playing device, you’re good to go. Hope you still have an adapter, oh iPhone faithful.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Call Quality

• Solid mic quality
• Decent calling ability

A call to my sister sounded great over the Sonoflow Pro. She came through to me clearly, and even when walking through busy suburbia I was easily legible on the other side. There was perhaps a little sibilance on my end of the call, but it was nothing I wouldn’t expect from a budget pair of headphones.

Work calls at my desk sounded fine too, so you’ll be well served for a pair of ANC office headphones.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Sound Quality

• Bass forward signature
• Clear highs
• Big, fat mids

I wasn’t expecting incredible sound quality from the Sonoflow Pro, but they got treacherously close to some of their more expensive rivals. Make no bones about it, these are a warm pair of headphones with plenty of bass, but there’s at least some effort to keep things neutral with some reasonable clarity in the highs. The mids are forward, as you might expect, but nothing suffers in the overall sound signature. If you’re not a fan of their bassy sound you can always dial it back in the EQ — but where’s the fun in that?

Giving me some bassy wallop is Pendulum’s Blood Sugar. That synth opening is calm, collected, and tight — and then the bass hits you like a freight train. Is it like being at the front row of a sweaty rave? Not quite, but it’s loads of fun. There’s some sub-bass missing, but the mid-bass gives a heavy performance. The signature synth line makes sure you know what you’re in for, and then the cacophony begins. Is it the tightest, most controlled performance? No, but it’s a barrel of laughs and more than adequate to get your head moving.

My Flame from Bobby Caldwell slows things down, and brings a smooth, relaxed performance. The bass guitar bounces with soulful groove, and the hi-hats keep some jangle in the top end. Bobby’s soft crooning is buttery, and the whole affair is gloriously smooth. The soundstage is wide too, with plenty of space for the instruments to breathe. Instrument separation is good, although the bass can muddy the kick drum occasionally. Overall though, a satisfying, comforting experience.

Sylosis and The Blackest Skyline bring the heavy, and there’s a lot to enjoy from the Sonoflow Pro. The distorted guitars make full use of the mid-heavy tuning, while the bass gives great body to proceedings. The higher picked solos are crisp and clean. There’s a little wobble down low to remind you that these aren’t the most expensive, but you’d be forgiven for thinking they’re a whole lot more expensive than they actually are.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Battery Life

• 100 hours ANC off
• 40 hours ANC on

Battery life is a strange discussion with the Sonoflow Pro. With the ANC turned off, they are exemplary, with class-leading 100 hours of playback. Thats over four days of continuous listening — impressive. Somewhere along the line though, when you turn the ANC on, you lose 60 hours of battery, as they ‘only’ last 40 hours with ANC turned on. Don’t get me wrong, that’s still excellent, but I do wonder how the ANC saps 60 hours of battery life.

1More Sonoflow Pro review: Verdict

Among the best cheap noise-cancelling headphones, there are a whole host of other options that cost around the same. They don’t provide the complete package like the Sonoflow Pro, however. The carrying protective case, the comfortable fit, and the excellent sound quality all make for one of the best pairs of budget ANC headphones that you can buy today.

They’re so good in fact that they even out perform other headphones that cost more than them. You’d really have to go all the way to the $149 Sennhesier Accentum before you find something that sounds better, or gives you a superior headphone experience. Good work Sonoflow.

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