Master & Dynamic MW07 review: wireless earphones with great sound and design

The latest product out of New York-based audio company, Master & Dynamic, is the MW07 wireless earphones, a pair of truly wireless earphones that come in several stylish color options and offer the best sound I’ve heard to date from a pair of truly wireless earphones. I’ve reviewed other Master & Dynamic products in the past, including the MH30s, ME03s, and MW60s and have always been impressed with their warm signature sound, design, and comfort. So how do the MW07s stack up?

Design + Comfort

The MW07s come in four different colors: “grey terrazzo” (seen above), “tortoiseshell,” “matte black,” and “steel blue.” As you can see I received a pair of the Grey Terrazzo–which wouldn’t be my first choice if I were to buy these but the design is actually growing on me. It’s a nice polished finish and you can tell the team at Master & Dynamic spent time coming up with unique color options which is nice to see being that most earphones these days are simply black or white.

Aside from the color choices, the MW07s are really well designed from an every day use perspective as well. In my usage so far, they haven’t fallen out of my ears while walking, going up stairs, running around the city, or simply sitting at my desk (something I can’t say is true for AirPods, at least for me). However, in an effort to ensure the best fit for people, the MW07s also ship with ear fins (or as M&D calls them, “fit wings”) and different sizes of silicon tips to help keep them in your ear, no matter your ear shape. I, personally, didn’t find a need to use the ear fins, but they are there if you need them. 

Master & Dynamic advertises an IPX4 rating for the MW07, meaning they are splash resistant, and can withstand sweat, but you will want to stop short of jumping into the pool with them. Also worth noting is that they’re lightweight: each one weighs 9 grams.

I found wearing the MW07 earphones to be very comfortable, more so than other earphones on the market. This is because the part that rests up against your ear is soft and flexible, leading to essentially no wear fatigue.

The one design choice I have to question with the MW07s is the company’s choice to use a shiny stainless steel case which as you might imagine is a fingerprint magnet. And also a potential scuff-mark magnet. That being said, the MW07s do ship with a nice felt bag which you can place the case inside of for travel. Whether that’s practical for you… well that’s up to you to decide. It’s probably also worth noting that the charging case is bigger than others I’ve seen from competitors. It still fits in my jeans pocket but it’s definitely bigger and I worry about my keys scratching up the case every time I put them in my pocket.

Lastly, the charging case is rated IPX3 which means it only makes it resilient to water sprays instead of splashes like the earphones. Just something to keep in mind.

Sound

As I mentioned earlier, I found myself to be extremely impressed with the audio quality of these little earphones. The MW07 feature 10mm Beryllium drivers and two patent-pending technologies ensure best-in-class Bluetooth 4.2 connectivity. As a side note: the implementation of Bluetooth 4.2 has certainly been a nice addition to the MW07s–in the past, I’ve had issues using Master & Dynamic wireless headphones with my Mac (they would cut in and out)–that hasn’t been the case with the MW07s and I have to attribute the improvement to the newer version of Bluetooth. 

The audio quality is crisp in the mids, has punchy bass at medium to high volumes, and is clear at the highs. As you would expect from a Master & Dynamic headphone, the MW07s delivered a warm sound that’s comfortable to listen to at all volumes.

I found an enjoyable listening experience regardless of the media format, in other words, they sound equally balanced when delivering audio from music, podcasts, and even videos. I also didn’t have any audio syncing issues when watching videos.

The audio experience with the MW07s is similar to on-ear headphones because they have a snug, noise-isolating fit that makes it more difficult to hear outside ambient noises and conversation. This is a good thing if you commute on the subway, for example, but not if you want to have a conversation without needing to remove one of the buds.

Battery Life

The battery life for the MW07s is about 3.5 hours, which isn’t too great, but to be fair, it didn’t really impede my usage which consisted mostly of commutes and walking around the city. However, the charging case holds up to three additional full charges, for a total usage time of 14 hours. I’ve found these numbers to be accurate in my tests. 

Fully charging the MW07s in their case also takes 1.5 hours, while the case itself charges to 100 percent in 40 minutes via USB-C. One additional thing of note here: the Master & Dynamic MW07 earphones are the first wireless headphones that I’ve seen ship with a USB-C cable (they also include a USB-A adapter if you need it). I like the future. 

Pricing

Master & Dynamic’s MW07 earphones will set you back [quite] a bit more than competitors though, with a retail price of $299. By comparison, Apple’s AirPods cost $159, the Jabra Elite 65ts retail for $169, and the Jaybird RUN earphones go for $179.

The Verdict

The move to a truly wireless future is happening and headphones are definitely among one of the first major product categories to be making the shift. The push for truly wireless earphones has likely been accelerated by Apple and its decision to remove the headphone jack in the iPhone as well as the company’s introduction of AirPods. Nonetheless, Master & Dynamic has built a solid pair of truly wireless earphones here with the MW07s. 

With the MW07 earphones by Master & Dynamic you know what to expect: great sound, great design, and comfort. They certainly deliver in all three categories. As to whether or not they are worth the $299 price tag, that’s a tougher call. If you are a bit of an audio quality enthusiast, then you will likely be happy if you spend the extra money on a pair of the MW07s–otherwise, you may want to consider cheaper alternatives.

You can buy the Master & Dynamic MW07 True Wireless earphones today.