Standing out in the busy noise-cancelling headphones market is no mean feat, particularly when it is dominated by a couple of big brands and a number of go-to recommendations.
That hasn't fazed Philips. The brand's Fidelio range has been releasing good headphones for years, quietly confident that people are looking for alternatives away from the path most travelled-and the Philips Fidelio L4 are its latest over-ears to do just that.
The Fidelio L4's launch price of £299 puts them squarely up against the Sony WH-1000XM5, which launched at £380 but are now widely available for £299 in the UK.
The Fidelio L4's all-black design isn't eye-catching, but they do set themselves apart from a lot of their competitors by opting for a circular earcup, instead of oval.
The earcups themselves sit within circular brushed aluminium yokes and are hinged to give the earcup freedom of movement up and down for comfort. They also swivel flat to make them easier to travel with.
Vegan leather covers the earpads, which feel suitably squishy to the touch, while the slimmer, redesigned headband gets sturdy Muirhead leather. The curved metal arms that attach to the earcups extend out smoothly from underneath the covered headband to give you a larger fit if you need it, though even at their smallest, the fit is on the loose side and this is only added to by a reduced clamping force when compared with their predecessors, the L3.
While this makes for a comfortable fit for long listening periods, they don't always feel the most stable when you are moving around. The cans won't make a leap for freedom if you make a sudden dive forwards to pick something up from the floor, but they will shift. As a result, and since they also don't have an official IP rating, these may not be the best for running and exercising.
Bu hikaye What Hi-Fi UK dergisinin August 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye What Hi-Fi UK dergisinin August 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
YG Acoustics Carmel 3
\"These speakers thump out low notes with real venom and a scarcely believable amount of muscle\"
SME Model 20 Mk 2/Series V
EXPENSIVE, YES. BUT YOU KNOW YOU WANT THEM
STARRING PARTNERS
Each of the elements in our selection of AV systems puts in a performance worthy of top billing
MATCH FIT
Our ten recommended hi-fi systems are guaranteed to play together beautifully
CAN MINI LED BEAT OLED IN 2024?
2024 was meant to be a big year for Mini LED TVs, but all the signs suggest OLED's dominance isn't going anywhere
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
Samsung's latest foldable smartphone is a portable AV delight
JBL Live Beam 3
Fancy some buds with a difference? Try these
Triangle Capella
Neat and talented but not quite a rounded package
Anker Nebula Mars 3 Air
Sometimes little goes a long, long way
Hisense U8N (65U8N)
Hisense's latest premium Mini LED TV takes the fight to OLED with mixed results