JBL Live 780NC - Approaching Premium

As I've commented many times before, no other audio brand floods the market with as many different headphone and earbud options as JBL.

Not only does there always seem to be a model to suit most budgets, JBL often "out-choices" its competitors when it comes to colour and style alternatives too.

The problem with this approach is, they're all pretty damn good. That's not a problem for us as customers but for JBL, it must make it harder to sell its top-of-the-line products when the more mid-range offerings come so close to that level of performance.

The Live 780NC is one such example.

When comparing the bare-bone specs with the "more premium" JBL Tour One M3 - minus its physical added extras - it's quite a challenge to separate the two headsets.

They both feature 40mm drivers, both use the same True Adaptive Noise Cancelling 2.0 algorithm and both charge quickly with exceptional battery life.

In fact, with the Live 780NC providing up to 80 hours playback on a single charge, you might even be outlasting the more expensive cans.

Admittedly, you don't get a nice, hard-shell case, or a charging cable and the headband is a little more narrow.

You still get a 1.2-metre AUX cable with a 3.5mm jack at one end and a USB-C at the other (the Live 780NC doesn't have a mini-jack input). You get a soft carry-pouch to fold the headset into (with an internal pocket for the AUX cable). And who doesn't already own about a hundred USB-C charging leads?

Although the headband may be thinner than on some other headsets, it's still nicely padded, as are the earpads. I've tried using the Live 780NC to monitor the three-hour breakfast show I panel for, and I've found the headset both comfy and secure. In fact, although I can't think of anything worse than wearing over-ear headphones while exercising, I know that's some people's preference and I'm pretty confident these ones will stay firmly in place, even when running.

In fact, I'm very impressed with the build quality here. It all feels sturdy and solid - no plasticky creaks when putting on or taking off. The arm extensions click reassuringly from one step to the next and the hinges that allow you to rotate and fold the headset flat seem totally reliable.

The onboard controls are a combination of physical buttons, rockers, slide-switches and capacitive taps - so a bit of a mishmash but at least they're easy to find when you're wearing the headset and there's no chance of accidentally pausing the track when you meant to turn up the volume or take a call.

There's an element of customisation with the controls too. This is accessed via the JBL Headphones app where there are so many tweaks and settings available, they're actually divided into three different sections.

As you'd expect, you can personalise the EQ and also the way the Active Noise Cancelling works, adjusting how much of the outside world you let in, or letting it automatically ramp up or down depending on the environment. Personally, I like my ANC wound all the way up and everything else completely silenced. The Live 780NC does as good a job of this as any other set of headphones I've tried.

And that's despite having a couple less mics than its significantly more expensive sibling, the Tour One M3.

Call quality is first rate too - and using the app you can specifically boost both your and your caller's voice, as you'll see (or hear) me demonstrate in the video below.

These headphones are Auracast compatible, so although they don't come with a pre-paired Smart TX transmitter in the box, they will still work with the one JBL sells separately, or indeed with any other of the growing number of Auracast devices now available. If you're not familiar, Auracast is simply another form of wireless connection that allows multiple devices from different brands to all "listen" to the same source simultaneously.

In fact, there's quite the variety of wireless connection protocols to choose from; plain old Bluetooth 6.0, the more energy-efficient and super-stable LE Audio and if you toggle on LDAC you'll be treated to high resolution, spatial or 360° audio from compatible sources and apps.

I've been testing a selection of lossless tracks re-mixed for spatial audio on Apple Music, and I haven't been disappointed.

"Whatever You Like" by Dove Cameron is a pretty boring, formulaic pop song but the Live 780NC headphones make it sound more interesting. Suddenly, the contrast between the thin, "radio" EQ effect on her voice at the beginning of the track and the less toppy vocals later on is more stark. And while the riffs and instrumentation are kind of repetitive, the other, added-in effects in the background are given plenty of space to add colour to an otherwise dull sonic palette.

Alessi Rose gives us a lot more to work with on "Dependent." Dynamically, the song is much more of a rollercoaster, ranging from vocals over acoustic guitar, right through to a genuine "drop the beat" moment. Whether acoustic or electronic, quiet or loud, high or bassy, each element pushes through in its own place, somewhere in the spatial aural chamber the Live 780NC creates inside my head.

If I really wanted to, I could get super picky about JBL's overemphasis on bass response with the Live 780NC, but that seems churlish, given most people (me included) prefer to pump up the bass when they can. If the bass dominates the EQ too much, it does mean some of the busier tracks can sound a little muddy, although it's easy enough to fine-tune such trivialities away using the JBL Headphones app.

Make no mistake, this is a quality headset and I think it punches above its price-range in terms of features, build-quality and battery life.

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the JBL Live 780NC.