Introduction (Does It Do What It Should)

We are doing a lot of headphone and earbud reviews, and one of the more classy companies that I have reviewed is Master and Dynamic. This time, we are reviewing a pair of in-ear earbuds with the MW09, and the earmuff-style over the ear headphones with the MW75.

Our Review of the Master and Dynamic MW09 Active Noise-Cancelling True Wireless Earphones

Personally, I like using some cool earbuds, and I have to admire anyone that has this great sense of aesthetic design. I think they are made with materials like anodized aluminum that is housed in a case crafted with Kevlar fiber or aluminum.

But hey, it is really about the sound, right? Well, the MW09 has 11mm beryllium drivers in order to create what is described as “lossless audio” for a “detailed, expansive sound experience”.

You can see from my unboxing (if you’re willing to ignore some audio issues) that it has several sizes of ear tips. I’ve heard that the MW09 has A.I. Enhanced Talk with a 6 microphone array, which gives proprietary win reduction.

So let’s talk about battery life. I am told that you can have 2 hours of listening on just 5 minutes of charge time. Well, it has 16 hours of music in a single charge, and there is an extra 32 hours in that battery case. I think I spotlighted the charging case in the video, and I was pretty impressed that it has Kevlar fiber or aluminum.

Speaking of the video, I mentioned that as soon as I unpacked these earbuds, it immediately wanted to pair with my nearby phones. I say phones because I was trying to film and the video cut out on my to show how to download the app that really helps adjust the sound.

If you want to get in on this, head on over to the Master and Dynamic site and pay $349.00 for it.

Our Review of the Master and Dynamic MW75 Active Noise-Cancelling Wireless Headphones

Okay, this particular pair of headphones are really awesome, and they are made of anodized aluminum, tempered glass, and lambskin leather. The MW75 also comes in this very cool felted hard shell travel case with a lot of additional accessories.

Now we really need to talk about the sound, as these headphones have 40 mm beryllium drivers. They have some serious acoustics and some custom-tailored sound as well as Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation. Now, I mentioned in the video that the app allows some control of the sound, and I really couldn’t believe how much it was able to block out the outside world. Apparently, this has Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation to automatically adjust the level of noise cancellation to match your surroundings.

As far as the playtime is concerned, the MW75 is good for 32 hours. I should probably mention that the MW75 features 4 beamforming microphones that can reject wind sounds and can filter out environmental noise.

Like the MW09, I was able to really easily pair these. In fact, I was able to shift from one audio device to the other quite easily. Hey, I should talk about what it comes with: USB-C to USB-C cable, USB-C to USB-A Adapter, USB-C to 3.5mm Audio Cable, 3.5mm to 1/4-inch adapter, and a flight adapter.

I also noticed this thing on the MW75 had this thing inside one of the earcups. I found out that is a proximity sensor, so if you happen to take off the headphones, your audio/video file will pause. I learned that from the CEO himself, Mr. Jonathan Levine, and you can read the article that I have written about him below.

If you want to get in on this, head to the Master and Dynamic site and pay $599.00 for it, and it comes in a lot of cool colors and styles.

Interview with Jonathan Levine, CEO of Master and Dynamic

Like I said in the video, I was experiencing some technical difficulties. I was hoping that I would have some live video footage talking to Jonathan Levine, the CEO of Master and Dynamic, possibly making a third video to this article in addition to the ones about the MW09 and MW75. Unfortunately, my video equipment that I was using for film, my mic and my webcam, just petered out during the interview. So any chance of me getting the footage that I wanted was lost, but I still got the audio.

Jonathan confirmed his companies origins, that you can read about in the next section: “Facts About the Company”. He did start the company with his sons, which means it is a family business.

However, I want to address a certain company value at Master and Dynamic that greatly interested me. Here’s how it works.

In Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell interviews Bill Gates and focuses on the opportunities given to him throughout his life that have led to his success. A common theme that appears throughout Outliers is the “10,000-Hour Rule”, based on a study by Anders Ericsson.

The “10 000-hour rule,” asserting that the key to achieving true expertise in any skill is simply a matter of practicing, albeit in the correct way, for at least 10 000 hours. Like Bruce Lee has stated: “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times”

So, basically, if you do something for a long enough time, you will master it completely. I can see a lot of hours going into making Master and Dynamic headphones, and I really enjoy that WWII aesthetic, as it reminds me of The Rocketeer.

As far as the headphones being for audiophiles, Jonathan has stated that his company “doesn’t position themselves as an audiophile brand…Audiophiles gets to focused on frequency range, and bass, and this and that…they don’t necessarily experience the overall experience…if that makes sense”. You know what, Jonathan, it makes perfect sense. Jonathan also said that many audiophiles do love his products, from producers to recording artists.

Facts About The Company

Master and Dynamic is definitely in the sound business, and so they make headphones, earphones, and speakers. I found out this is a family business, and the Founder and CEO, Jonathan, had this music recording studio in support of his sons’ passions for music and tech.

Part of the design is based on aviator headphones from World War II, and it took me looking up that fact on the “About Us” site to realize how true that is. So yeah, there are like some serious leather and stainless in their designs, which might come to you as a surprise if you don’t know their prime products.

What Does This Company Make?

Like I said before, I have reviewed so many of these. Here are the ones that we have done in the past:

Our Review of the Master and Dynamic MG20 Wireless Gaming Headphones

Master and Dynamic Review: The MH40 Headphones and MW01 Bluetooth Transmitter/Adapter

Our Review of the Master and Dynamic MW08 Sport and the MC100 Wireless Charging Pad

Our Review of the Master and Dynamic MW08 Active Noise-Cancelling True Wireless Earphones

Master and Dynamic MW50+ 2-in-1 Wireless On-Ear + Over-Ear Headphones and ME05 Earphones Review

Our Review of the Master and Dynamic MW65 and MW07+, with help from Kevin Durant!

MW07 Go and MW07 Plus True Wireless Earphones from Master and Dynamic

The Master and Dynamic ME01 Earphones Review

Master and Dynamic ME05 Wired Headphones Review

Just the Specs, Man

If you’re the type that needs this info, this section is for you!

Specs of the Master and Dynamic MW09 Active Noise-Cancelling True Wireless Earphones

Tech Specs

Materials and Design

Model
MW09 Active Noise-Cancelling True Wireless Earphones
Materials
Aluminum and sapphire glass earphones, charging case made with Kevlar® fiber or aluminum
Dimensions
Charging case – 45.5 x 64.5 x 25.6 mm (H x W x D), Earphones – 20.3 x 21.5 x 21 mm (H x W x D)
Weight
Earphones – 8.1g each, charging case (Kevlar®) – 50.5g, charging case (Aluminum) – 62.5g
Dust and Waterproof Rating
Earphones are IP54, charging case is IPX4

Sound and Features

Active Noise-Cancelling
3 modes of Hybrid ANC including Adaptive ANC, All Day ANC, and Max ANC
Drivers
11mm beryllium
Audio Format
Supports AAC, LC3, SBC, AptX Lossless up to 16-bit / 44.1 kHz, AptX Adaptive up to 24-bit / 96 kHz, and AptX Adaptive low latency gaming mode. Auracast Ready.
Microphone Type
6-microphone talk solution with proprietary wind reduction, 3 microphones in each earphone
Ambient Listening Modes
Awareness Mode, Voice Mode, Natural Mode

Connectivity and Charging

Earphone Battery Life
Up to 16 hours playtime
Earphone and Case Charging Time
50% in 20 minutes, 100% in 60 minutes via cable, 100% in 185 minutes via wireless charging
Charging Case Battery Life
32 additional hours of charge, Up to 48 hours total playtime
Case Charge Time
50% in 20 minutes, 100% in 60 minutes via cable, 50% in 70 minutes, 100% in 160 minutes via wireless charger
Bluetooth Profile
Bluetooth® 5.4
Connectivity Distance
100ft/30m

Specs of the Master and Dynamic MW75 Active Noise-Cancelling Wireless Headphones

Materials and Design

Materials
Lambskin leather headband and ear pads / aluminum and tempered glass ear cups / anodized aluminum controls
Dimensions
160.75mm x 197.83mm x 83.57mm
Weight
338g
Ear Coupling
Over-ear
Ear Pads
Replaceable magnetic lambskin-wrapped memory foam

Sound and Features

Drivers
40mm beryllium
Impedance
32 ohms
Talk Microphones
4 microphone talk solution with wind protection
ANC Microphones
4 microphone ANC solution
Voice Assistant
Compatible with native voice assistants

Connectivity and Charging

Battery Life
Up to 32 hours of battery life or up to 28 hours with ANC enabled
Bluetooth Profile
Bluetooth® 5.1 range of 100ft/30m with AAC, aptX™ Adaptive up to 24 bit/ 48kHz, and SBC. Hi-res requires a compatible source device and streaming service
Wired Digital Headphone Connection
Supports hi-res audio up to 24-bit / 96kHz using provided USB-C to USB-C cable with supported devices
Analog Headphone Connection
USB-C to 3.5mm cable for optional analog audio connection
Cables
USB-C to 3.5mm audio cable, USB-C to USB-C charging cable
Antenna
Internal antenna

If there is something on this that I didn’t cover, please let me know.

Okay, Get To The Unboxing Already!

Maybe I Want It, But Is There Anything Else Like It? Maybe For A Lower Price? Please?

I’m going to be honest when it comes to earbuds and headphones. Most of them are put out to be the highest quality, but as far as the aesthetic is concerned, not much design is put into that. I think of companies such as Beyerdynamic, and they have a kind of commitment to the acoustics that matches the aesthetic, but I’m having a hard time thinking of other examples. Are they really all the same? Well, Master and Dynamic does a lot of things different.