When I heard about SOUL’s new gamer-focused earbuds, I knew they had to be tested. We’d recently tested out SOUL’s EMOTION PRO earbuds and were generally mixed on them. On one hand, the audio and fit were amazing but on the other hand, the touch controls and the Bluetooth connection were spotty. With their new S-PLAY gaming earbuds, however, it seems that the script has been flipped entirely, improving in some areas whilst failing in others.

What’s in the Box

Similar to the EMOTION PROs, the S-PLAY comes with the bare necessities needed for use. You have the earbuds themselves, their charging case, a USB Type-C charging cable, a detachable karabiner, and 6 pairs of ear tips ranging from small to large.

Aesthetics and Build Quality

When it comes to its looks, the S-PLAY has got it down pat. The various colorways that it comes in are great to look at and are pretty unique. Not only is the metallic detailing of their bright colors pretty, but there’s also a fair amount of texture to them as well. The case has a brushed look and each earbud sports a shapely textured design that feels nice and grippy when changing settings.

For build quality though, this whole ensemble leaves much to be desired. I found the case itself to feel extremely cheap, mostly due to its clasping lid. It’s soft, bulky, and doesn’t always give that satisfying magnetic click indicating that it’s tightly closed. Being something that was made to dangle from a backpack or purse, I don’t see it lasting for more than a few trips outside.

While the earbuds look nice in their coloring, you’ll find that they too feel somewhat cheap. Though their lightness is a positive, the overall feel of them is of low-end plastics. It’s only further illustrated by the plastic seams that meet up on the earbuds, giving a look that doesn’t shout “premium”. It’s a shame because, from afar, they look really good.

Specs and Audio Quality

For their MSRP price of only $69.99, these earbuds really do offer a lot of great options that their competitors don’t.

Industry-leading 40ms low latency setting reducing lag time so that sound matches your screen.
Latest Bluetooth v5 2 technology.
Environment noise cancellation.
Tri-Mode: Switch between Entertainment Mode, Audio Transparency Mode, and Normal Mode.
7 hours of playtime per charge and up to 28 total playtime hours.
Wireless charging enabled.
Universally portable and compatible – equipped with a carabiner for the gamer that’s on the go.

Having used these earbuds for quite some time now, I can say that a lot of these features are really great. Connecting to devices whether it’d be a smartphone or a Nintendo Switch is really quick and I never had issues with connection dropping. The battery life is also very good, as expected.

When it came to touch controls this time around, I found the S-PLAYs to be extremely responsive to my commands, making usage very easy overall. There’s an entire host of touch features that you’d expect in earbuds such as these, making adjusting to situations seamless.

The audio overall is very clear and the sounds are just as great as I would have expected by SOUL. It isn’t anything spectacular but you know that the sounds are going to be perfectly balanced throughout. Whether you’re gaming or listening to music, these are the versatility you need. As for its audio features themselves, these are also very good in some areas but lacking in others.

Their low-latency Entertainment Mode does show significant response time, even when just watching a YouTube video. These will definitely suit players well no matter what the platform to create a fluid sense of surroundings as I had a great experience using them myself. The area where I felt like these were lacking though was in their Transparancy Mode because you really don’t hear your outside surroundings much more than when it isn’t on at all.

What It Could Have Done Better

Aside from their lackluster ANC feature, these earbuds are also just very uncomfortable. As I had said earlier, they have a seam on the part that goes into your ear. This seam causes a lot of irritation during short and long usage. I would constantly have to take these things out and itch my ears. The uncomfortable nature of these earbuds alone is a dealbreaker for me. No matter how great your earbuds are if you can’t wear them, what good are they anyway?

Verdict

SOUL’s S-PLAY earbuds are a truly great offering for gamers when looking solely at their price tag and the features included. Boasting the quickest response time and the newest technology for connectivity, these are a force to be reckoned with. But when you actually have these in your hands and ears, they just don’t offer the quality or comfort that can be found elsewhere, and that’s what truly matters.