Noble Audio has a lot of new products on the market, and one of their latest comes in a completely new design they’ve not tackled before. The on-ear earphone is a design choice that not many companies make, and Noble Audio has decided to take the challenge and see how they can bring their signature sound to the table. Coming in at $129, the FoKus Kama is the latest on the market.
What Comes In The Box
- Noble FoKus KAMA Earphones
- Charging Case
- Charging Cable
- Quickstart guide
Aesthetics and Functionality
Noble Audio never disappoints when it comes to aesthetics. The deep blue color that Noble is known for is on full display, making up the entire body of the device and charging case. The body of the earphone is a solid piece, hooking around your ear like you would wear a pair of IEMs. Unlike similar models like the beyerdynamic Verio 200, there is no adjusting this earphone. However it lines up with your ear is how it will fit. The fit was comfortable regardless, and the metal was lightweight so it didn’t feel heavy during use. If it weren’t for my glasses pressing against them, I probably would not have noticed wearing them for so long. People looking for athletic wear will want to test out this design for its sweat-resistant design.
The case lays relatively flat and is great for taking on-the-go. The earphones paired to Bluetooth almost immediately, and it was easy to access the added features in the app. Listening began with no issue. The Kama has touch controls on the sides of the earphones, but I found it difficult to access them and get them to work. I could chalk it up to my hair and glasses in the way, and the earphones weren’t easily accessible being hooked around the ear. However, I find that even if they were easy to access, the sensitivity was not great and it was better to just use my device.
Tech Specs
- On-ear design
- Bluetooth 5.3
- IPX4 Waterproof
- 15mm x 10mm dual dynamic drivers
- Frequency Response: 20Hz – 20kHz
- 8.5 hours of playtime on single charge
- 13 hours additional playtime with charging case
Listening Review
Soundstage
Due to the on-ear design, the soundstage of the Kama earphones is very wide. The sound blends into your environment quite well and immerses tracks like they are playing in the same room as you. Noise cancellation isn’t a feature included on these, though the power coming from these can do a lot to isolate you in your listening. The sound signature definitely leans on the brighter side, and the low gets a bit shortchanged. Be careful: just because you can’t hear your ambient noise does not mean your surroundings can’t hear you! The open design allows for a lot of sound bleed to occur while listening.
Low Frequencies
I’m someone who likes a heavy bass in earphones, so the Kama disappointed me upon a first listen. All that being said: the range isn’t lost completely during listening. It does fade to the background comparative to other earphones, but it can be seen as a positive for people who prefer treble. It’s a very tightly compressed low end, coming up in pops and snaps rather than booms and thuds. Any low hits lose a lot of substance and feel like they have significantly less body. Even after EQing the low end to be more prominent, there was little depth and low quality sound reproduction coming from these. If you’re someone who loves the low end and a driving force behind your songs, this may not be the pair of earphones for you. Still, you must give credit how the low end is exceptionally clear. Despite not having the tone you’d expect, the instruments that live in this range were not excluded from any of my favorite tracks.
Mid-Range Frequencies
The mid range is the star of these earphones. It highlights the vocals exceptionally well, with great clarity and accurate reproduction to make them sound like they are next to me in the room. Listening to pop hits and YouTube technical videos, I could see how they focused on the voice and built everything else around it. Other instruments in that range were good backing layers and full of color. They still had good clarity and definition, and even as the profile got crowded with a lot of elements, the sounds still came through quite well.
High Frequencies
The high end was definitely accentuated, and it offered a lot of natural dissipation into your surrounding environment. This range allows for the entire sound of the headphones to blend seamlessly into your surroundings. Because of the lack of low end, the highs are a bit overpowering and overtake the sound signature completely. Initially, I wasn’t a fan of how synthetic these highs sounded; I took down the high end in order to get a better balance that best suited me. It’s a tuning that I slowly adjusted to, and eventually I came to enjoy it.
Summary
Noble Audio has always impressed with their products, and the FoKus Kama does follow suit. Despite my relatively negative feedback initially, the more time I spent with the product the more I came to appreciate the detail behind it. I am not a frequent user of on-ear earphones, so my opinion may be slightly skewed. The Kama delivers some high quality detail and comfort that you won’t find in other earphones. Granted, I believe this product isn’t going to please everyone. People who like strong bass and sound isolation might not want to add the Kama to their gear pack.
For the people that appreciate an immersive listen with high quality detail, the Kama is an excellent choice to consider. I would strongly recommend trying these out before purchasing and hearing the sound for yourself. Even if you aren’t a fan, the earphones are certainly a creative piece of technology that you can applaud.
The FoKus Kama is available for purchase at Audio46.
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