The ENACFIRE E90 are affordable wireless earbuds carrying all the features a listener could hope for, including “deep bass” 10mm drivers, touch controls, a long battery life and Bluetooth 5.0. William Lobley test and reviews for What’s The Best.
The Review
The white gloss finish of the ENACFIRE E90 is crisp, making a nice change from the mostly black or gunmetal grey competition. It’s also a brave choice, given how fast white shows up any grime. The storage case is a good size, with a flip-top lid and clear LED displays denoting battery and charging. The earbuds themselves are nice and small, and appear to be built well. The light weight, small size and shape of the earbuds help them sit comfortably in the ear. They hold position well, and the low-profile and short stem prevent them from catching on coat collars, scarfs and beanie hats.
The E90’s audio is really mellow, with a warm sound revealing the drivers’ bias towards the low and low-mid frequencies. This warmth does dial back the high-end details, muffling the splash and glisten of some genres. I had high hopes going to Too Bad by Rival Sons, but immediately noticed a distinct forwarding of the vocals, bass guitar and kick drum at the detriment to the lead guitars and snare. These effects are more pronounced with MEIN TEIL by Rammstein, where the usual industrial cacophony reduces to a murky sludge.
Despite this, there’s a rounded thump to the low end that is kind to certain genres, in particular house and hip-hop. The recent collaboration between Gorgon City and DRAMA on You’ve Done Enough is lent silky power by the E90s. The mid representation does some good work here, with the vocals wrapping around with intimacy and comfort. While they fall short with rock and metal, the E90s can get rowdy with the likes of Public Enemy’s Harder Than You Think and Kendrick Lemar’s HUMBLE, both of which remain powerful and huge, with clear vocal lines.
I found the best of the E90s when listening to podcasts and audiobooks. Dialogue carries through pristinely, with the earbud’s in-ear seal blocking out any distraction from the outside world. Naturally, phone calls benefit from these powers, and, according to those I chatted to, the microphones picked up my voice well, too.
The ENACFIRE E90’s Bluetooth connection has never been an issue, from the first device pairing through to daily use. The earbuds have always had a strong connection with my devices, even when stepping away from the desk or moving across the room.
They support single-bud listening, though a little quirk of the earbuds does reveal itself when doing so. When at home, I like to listen to podcasts with just one earbud in - preferably the left. When the right earbud is removed from the case for some stereo listening, a little bit of Bluetooth gymnastics takes place. As the right earbud reconnects, the left earbud will disconnect, followed by the right once again, before they both reconnect. As the right earbud is the designated master, this doesn’t happen when listening to the right earbud solo before connecting the left. It never causes any more than a five-second wait, but it may irk those who regularly switch between earbud configurations. Such things are handled far more smoothly on the EarFun Free Pro and Air Pro.
As for everything else, the E90s perform as well as anyone could hope. The battery life is plentiful, and the case quickly recharges the earbuds for when you next need them. The touch controls are all well implemented and easy to remember - plus, the controls aren’t too sensitive, so the E90s do a pretty good job of discerning between an accidental brush and an intentional command.
The ENACFIRE E90 are a decent set of budget wireless earbuds, with some caveats. The connectivity, operation and build-quality of the earbuds are excellent, especially given the price. However, the E90’s warmth does mean that certain genres are stricken with murky, muddy audio - anyone with rock-leaning tastes are ill-advised to pick these up. Yet, for fans of house and hip-hop, podcasts and long phone calls, the E90s are going to do well - and not break the bank.
Pros: Great dialogue performance, reliable functions and battery
Cons: Muffled performance on certain genres