Listening Care enhances audio to enable listeners to hear the full frequency range at low volumes. Usually, listening to music at low volumes reduces certain frequencies, affecting the audio experience. This causes users to increase the volume levels and, sometimes, to dangerous sound levels that could result in hearing loss after prolonged use. Yamaha’s TW-E3B TWS earbuds aim to address this problem.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), nearly 2.5 billion people could have “some degree of hearing loss” by 2050. More than a billion young adults are said to be at risk of permanent, but avoidable hearing loss “due to unsafe listening practices.” Safe listening practices, i.e. listening to music at lower volume levels, can reduce that risk. There have been attempts at addressing this problem in the past. The European Union had reportedly “introduced a directive to limit the volume output of devices that use earphones.” Yamaha is now projecting its new TWS offerings as a proper solution to the problem. By enabling users to listen to the full sound range even at low volumes by intelligently adjusting the frequencies, the Yamaha TW-E3B buds protect their hearing. At the same time, they ensure that the audio experience isn’t affected.
Yamaha TW-E3B specifications
The new Yamaha TW-E3B earbuds feature a 6mm dynamic driver and come with an in-ear design. The devices are IPX5 rated for water resistance, meaning they can withstand low-pressure water jets from any direction. However, they are not safe to use while swimming. The wearables connect over Bluetooth 5.0 and support Qualcomm’s aptX lossless audio codec, along with SBC and AAC codecs. Yamaha has reduced the size by 25 percent compared to the previous model (TW-E3A). The company has also redesigned the function buttons on the buds for improved controls. Each bud weighs around 5 grams. Yamaha doesn’t provide details about battery capacity but says the buds offer up to six hours of continuous playback time on a single charge. The charging case can store enough battery juice to fully charge the buds three times. So you get a total of 24 hours of continuous playback time with the Yamaha TW-E3B earbuds. The buds take two hours to charge fully over a USB Type-C cable. There’s no wireless charging here. The Yamaha TW-E3B earbuds also lack Ambient Sound mode and Active Noise Cancelling (ANC). The company is offering Siri and Google Assistant for voice controls. The buds come in six color variants: black, pink, green, blue, purple, and gray. The retail box includes the buds, charging case, a USB Type-C cable, and four ear tips (XS/S/M/L). Yamaha is reportedly already selling its latest TWS buds in its home country Japan. They will be available elsewhere in September for a retail price of £119/$139/€139.
