TWS true wireless earphones - $75 to $100
FOUR STARS - The Moondrop Golden Ages are the first affordable true wireless earbuds to boast a planar driver. They sound impressive - but Moondrop has a lot to improve on other aspects than sound.
Moondrop Golden Ages specs and features:
Bluetooth 5.3 with AAC and LDAC codec
No waterproof rating
5 - 7 hours listening on a single charge (ANC on/ off)
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 3 times
Comes with 4 sets of ear tips, USB-C cable, English manual, big box
$80 - Buy on Amazon US, Amazon UK, other Amazon countries or AliExpress
In and underneath this audiophile Moondrop Golden Ages review, you will find comparisons of the Moondrop Golden Ages vs Moondrop Space Travel, OnePlus Buds 3, Samsung Galaxy Buds FE, and Edifier TWS1 Pro 2.
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Design, comfort and battery life
Moondrop has to be one of the most unique brand of wireless earbuds on the market. The brand that gained fame in the audiophile world by price-to-performance wired earbuds, doesn't follow any of the conventions of other brands. Anonymous designs? Matte black finishes? Attempts to look as much as Apple's AirPods as possible? These are things Moondrop doesn't do.
And so, after the bright pink Moondrop Sparks, the cat-paw struck Moondrop Nekocake, and the clumsy yet wonderful Moondrop Space Travel, we now have another sub-$100 earphone with an anime girl on its big packaging.
From left to right: Moondrop Space Travel, Nekocake, Moondrop Golden Ages, Sparks
The Moondrop Golden Ages 1979 differentiates itself from its siblings and every other earbud out there by its hint to cassette tapes of a few decennia ago. The dark blue-grey case comes with a cassette pattern on the side, and the bright grey earbuds hint to Volume Unit meters of yesteryear. They don't light up, sadly. Or happily.
While the paint job may be outspoken, Moondrop is actually traditional in its form factor. The Golden Ages has the same chunky and not too sturdy charging case as the Nekocake from 2021, and the earbuds itself have the same stem design as the Nekocake and Space Travel released last year. That's no shame: the combination of the square stem with an oval earpiece feels safe and comfortable in your ears for a few hours in a row - although it looks cheap with the orange top end on the stem.
The Golden Ages last up to 7 hours on a single charge, reduced to 5 hours when you manually activate the Active Noise Cancelling. The case can recharge the buds three times fully before needing a new charge via USB-C. Wireless charging isn't supported. The Golden Ages also lacks an official waterproof rating - which can both be considered misses for the 80 dollars asking price.
This is a pair of earphones people comment on - ranging from ‘Ooh, this one is nice’ to ‘Bit of a lame attempt at retro’ in my case. It's great to see a brand doing something unsafe, something original, something people talk about - but a waterproof rating would have been very welcome.
Oh and one more thing: Moondrop throws in a rubber protection sleeve for the case in the package, which adds even more visual cassette hints. It gives the case a sturdier feel, but it also makes the scratch-proof case bigger and it almost doesn't come off anymore - be warned!
Controls, connectivity and app
The Moondrop Golden Ages doesn't push any boundaries when it comes to controls. You can pause/play (single tap) and skip a track (double tap right), return a song (double-tap left) and change between Active Noise Cancelling modes by long-touching the stems, but it won't let you adjust volume from the earbuds.
Music doesn't automatically pause when you take an earbud out, and there's no multipoint connectivity, meaning you can only connect it to one device at a time. Happily, standard connectivity it good - with a strong Bluetooth connection up to 10 meters away from your connected device.
Now, Moondrop offers app support for the Golden Ages, but it's… well, tacky.
The Moondrop Link iPhone app is outdated and doesn't support the Golden Ages. On Android, you can't find an app in the Google Play Store. You can only download the Moondrop Link 2.0 app here, but it doesn't seem to work on all phones - definitely try it out before you consider buying the Golden Ages.
When the app works, it lets you customize the controls in a inconvenient manner: you have to select the input instead of the desired outcome. It still doesn't let you add volume controls.
The app also gives access to firmware updates for the earbuds - newer and older ones (!) - but it doesn't show you on what version you are, making things much more complicated then they should be. Another thing to note is that you have to give the app access to read and write all files on your phone. Wait, what?
The app does come with three sound equalizer presets which you otherwise wouldn't have though, making it worth it alone. The entire app experience, however, just feels too amateurish for an $80 earphone.
Phone and video calls
Do not buy the Moondrop Golden Ages for phone or video calls. They're absolutely terrible at it, making your voice overly full and dark up to the point you sound like you're mumbling.
It's hard to hear what you're saying for the other end of the line, and it only gets worse once the noise around you increases.
Video and games playback
The Moondrop Golden Ages has flawless synchronization when watching videos on iPhone or Android phones, no matter if it's YouTube or another streaming service.
Four taps on the earbuds activate the Game mode, which is, for a chance, announced with an actual voice prompt. It synchronizes sound effects in demanding games like Call of Duty mobile wonderfully with the action on your screen. Don't expect to precisely locate footsteps or gunshots around you, however.
ANC quality on Moondrop Golden Ages
The Moondrop Golden Ages has decent Active Noise Cancelling, even when you're not listening to music. You should activate it manually each time, by holding down on the earbuds twice. The first press activates the Transparency mode (‘Ey!’), the second time gets you the ANC mode, announced by ‘Ssssh’.
The app says you can change the order of ANC modes, but ANC is always off by default
Active Noise Cancellation on the Golden Ages reduces the volume of all sound frequencies around you and does this in a fairly natural way: everything feels equally dampened. That's rather uncommon. While most ANC's directly attack the lower frequencies and filter these out greatly, you may still hear some basses, lower voices, and even some electronic humming while you use the function here. Middle and higher sounds like keyboard clicks, laughter and a radio playing in the background are filtered out nicely, however.
The ANC strength doesn't give you the same rest as the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC and Samsung Galaxy Buds FE. Noise reduction is stronger than on the OnePlus Buds 3, however, and also than the $25 Moondrop Space Travel.
The Transparency mode is convincing, and passes conversations through clearly when you need it. Sound effects aren't filtered, however, so other sounds effects like keyboard clicks and door slams also come through - but that's not big of a deal. The Golden Ages also is great at leaving out wind noise when you use these functions.
Also read: The very best sounding earbuds under $150
Sound quality of Moondrop Golden Ages
So how do the first wireless earbuds with a planar driver under 100 dollars sound? The short answer is: clear and fluent. There's more to it, of course.
Like the brands earlier models, the Moondrop Golden Ages presents its music with heaps of clarity and a vivid treble. Don't mistake that for easily elevated treble that's metallic, borders on harshness or reaches annoying peaks on higher volumes, because everything is treated with care here.
Female and higher male vocals are lifted and sound crisp, but in a smooth way. Higher male vocals, like Nils Lofgren in Keith Don't Go, are prominent yet presented in a clean manner. You could miss a little bit of raw edge or some dips into the lower-mids, but there's a very inoffensive smoothness to higher voices.
Especially female vocals are presented sweetly; light and soothing, but not too thin. The same applies to higher instruments. The violins in The Cinematic Orchestra's Transformation aren't the most textured and nuanced in the world, but they are out there and feel fluent. The claps in Michael Jackson's Stranger in Moscow? As smooth as his voice. Cymbals are controlled well too: no splashiness, no sibilance.
The clarity also takes on center-mids like guitars and piano play, which have the same appealing combination of lightness, smoothness, a subtle warm undertone, and accentuation. You can easily pick up individual instruments and details as the Golden Ages provides enough room, plenty of air for them. That said, there isn't a very particular sense of soundstage, and it can be hard to locate instruments precisely around you as well.
Where the Golden Ages starts to show another side, is in music genres or songs where you expect power from the lows. Modern genres like hiphop or electronic dance music reveal not only the cleanliness of the bass, but also how limited the bass can be. The mid-bass fires rapidly and has a clean thump, but misses a bit of fulness that can make electronic basses so joyful. The sub-bass is capable of a controlled rumble, but it stays on the surface - doesn't sound full, doesn't dive deep. It's wonderfully depicted by Leonard Cohen's lower-mids-to-sub-bass-vibrating voice in In My Secret Life; it doesn't touch those magnificent depths.
It doesn't always go right either. In Béla Flecks bass test track Flight of the Cosmic Hippo, multiple mid-bass strikes fail and show a thwop instead, a feeling as if a part inside the earbuds shook instead of delivering the punch.
If the Moondrop Link apps works on your phone, the Basshead equalizer preset can add minor bass strength at the cost of the warmer treble underlining, while the Monitor EQ leaves the bass untouched and also changes the warmer undertone into a more natural (and actually less appealing) one. The changes are so subtle, however, that it's questionable if the equalizers always work…
The Moondrop Golden Ages lacks a bit of strength in the lows to be the most versatile pair of earbuds. The way it handles vocals and instruments with so much clarity and ease, however, is astonishing. When it's good, it's great.
Moondrop golden Ages comparisons
Moondrop Golden Ages vs Space Travel
Do you remember the headline ‘So unique, so familiair’ above this review? That familiarity comes from the $25 Moondrop Space Travel the brand released last year. Not only does it have the same earbud stem designs… the sound is remarkably close too. The planar driver drives the upper-mids of the Golden Ages (even) more forward, extends highs a bit further and provides more air to the treble than the Space Travel - but the difference isn't big. In fact, the Space Travel throws in that fuller mid-bass the Golden Ages misses.
Unless you definitely need 6 hours of battery life instead of 4, or slightly stronger Active Noise Cancelling, you could save yourself 50 dollars here.
Moondrop Golden Ages vs Samsung Galaxy Buds FE
A comparison with the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE, that currently holds the crown as my best-sounding wireless earbuds under $100, shows there's something to choose between sound characters. Both sound excellent in their own way, and both have their shortcomings. The Galaxy Buds FE has a deeper sub-bass and stronger mid-bass, while the bass on the Moondrop Golden Ages is cleaner and tighter. The Moondrop pushes treble further and sounds more open, giving more space to higher instruments, while the Samsung reveals more instrumental texture in its intimate sound. Higher vocals are more fluent on the Golden Ages, more nuanced and impactful on the Buds FE.
Looking at everyday usability, the Samsung outperforms the Moondrop, with better call quality, better app support, and stronger Active Noise Cancelling.
Around $80 on Amazon US, Amazon UK or other Amazon countries
Moondrop Golden Ages vs Oneplus Buds 3
If you also want or need wireless earbuds for practical purposes, the OnePlus Buds 3 is about the opposite of the Moondrop Golden Ages. Okay, the latter actually has slightly stronger ANC, but the OnePlus offers at least 1,5 hours of battery life more, has outstanding call clarity both inside and outdoors, can be used on two devices at the same time, and enjoys excellent app support on Android and iPhone.
The Moondrop has a cleaner and tighter sound than the OnePlus. While the OnePlus puts a lot of effort in its treble, vocals sound smoother on the Moondrop - and there's more air surrounding them too. The OnePlus has a more entertaining bass, however, with stronger mid-bass thumps and more sound options to elevate the lower-mids and bass depth.
Around $100 on Amazon US or other Amazon countries
Moondrop Golden Ages vs Edifier TWS1 Pro 2
Finally, let's take a pair of earbuds that's $20 cheaper than the Moondrop Golden Ages. The Edifier TWS1 Pro 2's battery is drained an hour earlier than the Moondrop, but it comes back with an IP54 waterproof rating, better call clarity, and much stronger Active Noise Cancelling that can actually bring some rest to your head.
Why this model? Because it's also great in vocal clarity and pronouncement. The Moondrop shows its refinement in comparison, though. Vocals are slightly fuller and warmer. The treble is more a part of the music instead of mostly a counterweight to the strong bass, as is more the case on the Edifier. The TWS1 Pro hits heavily and dives deep in the lows, the Moondrop is cleaner and more fluent.
Around $50 on Amazon US, Amazon UK, other Amazon countries or AliExpress
Verdict
The Moondrop Golden Ages is not a practical pair of earphones for everyday use. It lacks in connectivity, Active Noise Cancelling strength, call clarity and decent app support.
It's also not ‘everyday’ when it comes to sound, as the lack of fulness and depth in the lows makes them less suitable for modern and electronic genres. However - when it's good, it's great. The Golden Ages can shine with its exceptionally clean treble.
Buy Moondrop Golden Ages/ check price:
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Buy on other Amazon countries
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I received the Moondrop Golden Ages from the manufacturer to test and review. My reviews are 100% independent and non-commercial - read about it here.
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