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- Lively, detailed and expressive sound
- Specified beyond the asking price
- Good noise cancellation
- Low frequencies could be better integrated
- Lots of strong alternatives at the price point
Apart from a notably slim and discreet charging case, not a huge amount differentiates the Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 from other stem-shaped wireless earbuds in their price bracket. Or, at least, not until you’ve given them a proper look and listen.
The A100 are specified beyond their asking price; just consider Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity with aptX Lossless and LDAC codec compatibility. Good luck finding a cost-comparable alternative from a similarly credible brand that matches this level of specification. At every turn, from build quality to battery life, the A100 exceed expectations.
Nowhere is that more apparent than with sound quality. The Melomania A100 are a detailed, entertaining and engrossing listen, and have the powers of resolution to create a convincing soundstage and brilliantly neutral tonality. They have a stack of dynamic headroom, can tease out the finest details in a recording, and have the sort of direct, articulate presentation that makes them one of the best pairs of earbuds around.
What do you get for the money?
In exchange for £119, Cambridge Audio will provide you with a pair of stem-style wireless earbuds in a compact charging case measuring 61 x 25 x 45mm (WDH).
That money buys a good standard of build and finish, and at very nearly 40 hours all-in, some very competitive battery life too. It also buys a high comfort quotient that’s helped by a carefully ergonomic design, 4.7g per earbud weight, and a choice of eartip sizes. It gets you a total of six mics to handle ANC, telephony and interactions with your source player’s native voice assistant. And it buys an IPX5 water resistance rating (for the earbuds), which means you should be fine in any realistic environment.
You get nicely implemented capacitive touch controls on each earbud, and you get the ability to define what a touch means in the Melomania control app that’s free for iOS and Android. The app has plenty of other adjustability too, from a seven-band EQ (with presets) to the level of ANC intensity you’d like. It also features an entirely gratuitous and utterly delightful Easter egg that I’ll come to in the ‘What did we like?’ section.
Most of all, though, you get specifications out of proportion to the asking price. Bluetooth 5.4 with LDAC and aptX Lossless codec compatibility, for instance, is a premium suite of wireless connectivity, and you can read about why that’s so desirable in our What are Bluetooth codecs? explainer. Add Class AB amplification and 10mm Neodymium dynamic drivers to that, and you’re getting incredible bang for your buck.
What did we like about them?
The standard of build and finish is well up to par, and the control options are well implemented, but it’s the Melomania A100’s sound quality that lets you know you’re dealing with a very serious product.
Unlike quite a few price-comparable alternatives, the A100 have not confused bass with excitement. They’re a balanced and even-handed listen, and all the better for it. Leave the EQ settings in the app flat, and the A100 prove to be neutral where tonality is concerned and equally nicely poised when it comes to frequency response.
The pounding low frequencies during a listen to James Holden’s Common Land are detailed and textured, and there’s sufficient control to ensure the rhythm is expressed confidently. The same tune reveals the high frequencies to have a very pleasant balance of substance and brilliance, so there’s bite without edginess.
Switch to a copy of Lay This Burden Down by Mary Love, and the A100’s midrange reproduction is sweet and articulate; they can reveal a voice’s attitude and emotion most positively and unequivocally. Just as everywhere else in the frequency range, detail levels are high, and there’s real confidence in the way the earbuds tie the whole frequency range together.
The soundstage the A100 can create is spacious and quite carefully controlled, so even recordings packed with competing elements sound open and coherently laid out. There’s breathing space for every individual on the stage, and a quite explicit description of their on-stage positions relative to one another.
Dynamic headroom is considerable, so big shifts in volume or intensity during a recording are described fully, and the dynamics of harmonic variation aren’t ignored either. Their transient response is good, too. When you add all of this together, it sounds very much like you’re getting a complete and unadulterated account of the music you’re listening to.
Complete isn’t quite the word to describe the active noise cancellation here, but it’s very acceptable nevertheless. The A100 can deal with the vast majority of external distractions without impacting sound quality, leaving Cambridge Audio as one of numerous brands in the “very good but not quite Bose” category of ANC.
Now onto that Easter egg I mentioned earlier. Within the Audible Feedback section of the control app, there are 11 options. One is ‘Off’, one is ‘Tones’, and eight are different languages. The eleventh is ‘Southwark’, and this option means your audible feedback is delivered by Matt Berry in unmistakably chewy and vivid fashion. It was an option that provided much mirth on both the Melomania M100 and Melomania P100 last year, and continues to do that here.
What could be improved?
If you’ve read this far, you’ll know that almost everything about the Melomania A100 is, when kept in context of the asking price, enjoyable. Nevertheless, there is always room for improvement.
Sonically, though, it’s only fair to say that the lowest frequencies can sound just slightly estranged from the lower midrange and everything above it. There’s not a huge disconnect by any means, but there’s a slight step. The commonality of the overall tonality, from the top of the frequency range to the bottom, goes a long way to mitigating this, though.
What else? To be honest, I’m struggling to think of anything significant. It would be nice if the app allowed you to integrate your music streaming services, and the slimness of the charging case means it’s trickier to get the earbuds out than it otherwise would be. These are very minor grumbles in the grand scheme of things, though.
Should you buy the Cambridge Audio Melomania A100?
If you’ve got £119 or so to spend on some wireless earbuds, you absolutely must make sure the Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 are on your shortlist. You have a lot of choice from brands as credible as Sony and Technics – the Sony WF-C710N are fantastic performers for under £100 – but as of right now, the Melomania A100 might be the best value buy of the lot.
