With the holidays in full swing and every honey trying to get the Dungeon Master all up under the mistletoe, I’m ready to dive into another review. Today’s subject? The economically priced Mebuyz S2, retailing for a wallet-friendly $49. While I won’t even begin to pick apart that brand name, this earphone still offers some nice bells and whistles. With an IPX5 water -resistance rating and some whopping battery life, this earphone definitely has casual listeners in mind. But how does it sound?
Mebuyz S2 True Wireless Review
The Mebuyz S2 comes in a fairly plain cardboard box. In addition to the earphones, you also get a charging case, three pairs of eartips, and a micro-USB charging cable.
The case can double as a power bank, featuring a USB port on the back for connecting another device. While the earpieces have a standard 4 hours of battery life, the case offers 18-20 recharge cycles. However, the trade-off here is a thick, less portable case. One thing worth noting here is that the earphones DON’T automatically power off once you put them back in the case.
Fit comes across decent – the small earpieces easily fit in my ears. In addition to the small size, the S2 also features small protrusions that gently make contact with the contours of the ear, holding them in place.
Mebuyz rates this earphone as being IPX5 sweat- and water-resistant. In addition to this level of durability, the earphones also boast some pretty decent isolation. Even when I took this earphone out to the streets, it performed admirably in blocking out excessive surrounding noise.
Connection strength also feels pretty decent; during my tests, I only experienced one instance of sound dropping out. This can be mostly attributed to the use of Bluetooth 5.0 tech, and this earphone will handle A2DP, HFP, HSP, and AVRCP codecs.
Like most other true wireless earphones, call quality could be a little better, as I find myself having to enunciate and project a little bit more when taking calls.
Low End
Lacking oomph and chutzpah, the S2 still plays home to some okay detail. The sound thus feels acceptable for most genres, like rock, hip hop, and electronica. All in all, this is a fairly accurate and lifelike low end, though for some tracks it feels less fun than I would prefer. As such, this earphone’s low end could use a little green eggs and SLAM.
Midrange
Here the Mebuyz S2 sounds fairly on point. I’m even left with the impression of some fidelity to the sound. Vocals appear intimate but still mostly accurate. Warm and present in general, the S2 offers good presentation overall. Instrumentation feels clean as well, and not at all bad for jazz and classical tracks. Not exactly mid-centric in sound, the S2 still feels relatively full in this part of the frequency range.
High End
Smooth but fun, the highs on the Mebuyz S2 offer just enough sparkle and zazz to excel at pop and electronica. TWICE jams like Happy Happy Happy and How U Doin feel infectiously engaging, but this sound still works well with other genres. Indeed, rock and classical both benefit from the slightly-smooth (but still detailed) sound. Still, I can’t help but feel like the S2 largely phones it in for the high end.
Soundstage
Laboring under the twin curses of an in-ear design and a true wireless connection, the Mebuyz S2 feels a little closed in and claustrophobic. There’s more than a little overlap, and as a result, the sense of space feels very hit or miss (but mostly miss). Still, the slight amount of depth allows for a somewhat passable sense of soundstage. This works with simpler tracks, but will suck out loud for more intricate recordings.
Summary
While it’s not a total failure. the Mebuyz S2 still feels like it’s missing something integral to a good pair of earphones. The sound isn’t terrible, but it’s not particularly engaging either. While the fit, battery life, and IPX rating all come across as decent, the sound quality and the size of that charging case still leave something to be desired. If you’re looking for the best possible true wireless earphone at this price, I still recommend my usual go-to pair of buds, the Strauss and Wagner SW-TW401. Not so much larger in size, they offer a much more engaging and musical sound.
Headphone Dungeon Score
Due to the slow-burn sound and honking big case, I had to dock the Mebuyz S2 at least one skull. But the overall sour taste this earphone leaves in the mouth (or ears) ended up costing it another skull. Oscar Wilde once said “To be popular one must be a mediocrity.” I almost wish this earphone were more polarizing, instead of constituting a giant heaping spoonful of bland. That being said, if you prefer a flat, relatively emotionless sound, this earphone could still razz your berries.
Get the Mebuyz S2 for the best price here:
HeadphoneDungeon may receive commission through retail offers.
About Author
