Marshall Major III Foldable Headphones - White

Product Information

Unfortunately, there are a few downsides from a sound quality perspective too. For instance, you don’t get any active noise cancellation included. What’s more, passive noise cancellation isn’t as great as it could be – which is often the case with on-ear headphones. Such guitars sound more pronounced through these headphones than rivals such as the AKG Y50BT or Urbanista Seattle Wireless. Overall, the audio quality is fine, if not a bit dull; there’s no sparkle at the top end to give your music a sense of liveliness, while the warm presentation sometimes makes the bass feel weak in comparison to the other frequencies. The first pair of Major IIIs that Marshall sent in actually had an issue with the headband, resulting in deformations. It was likely a one-off, but is a pitfall of a weaker structure as opposed to a single continuous piece of metal, as seen in the MID headphones. For one, the Major IV offer super stamina. Thirty hours is usually the benchmark, but the Major IV go beyond with a quoted 80+ hour figure, so there’s little reason to manage battery life with this set of headphones.

The look of the Major IV differs little from the Major III in a wider sense – but that hasn’t stopped Marshall from claiming a few tweaks. They only connect to one device at any one time, but can be paired with multiple phones, tablets and computers There’s a detachable wire included, so you can connect your headphones to your device when you run out of battery. This wire comes with a single button remote control that you can use to adapt the functionality of the headphones. The Bluetooth mic offers decent intelligibility. Using the Voice Memos app on an iPhone 6s, we could understand every word we recorded, though the mic sounded slightly distant and there were some minor audio artifacts, which is typical with Bluetooth headphone mics. The cable's inline mic delivers excellent clarity, with even a little added bass response.Unlike many Bluetooth headphones on the market today, Marshall offers an excellent combination of stylish design, exceptional performance, and affordability. The area where it’s most evident is with the ear-cups. Marshall says it’s used softer padding that moulds itself to the ear for increased comfort. Without the previous model to hand, I can’t speak to whether that’s a merited change – but, nevertheless, the Major IV headphones are very comfortable to wear. The Major IV deliver few surprises if you’ve ever listened to a pair of Marshall headphones before. Outputting through their 40mm dynamic drivers, the mid-range is fairly crisp in tone, high notes are well defined and sharp, while bass is surprisingly big for an on-ear pair. Another great thing about the Marshal Major III Bluetooth headphones is that they have a very decent battery life. You can enjoy up to 30 hours of audio without recharging. New to this generation of the Marshall Major III headphones is support for Google Assistant – simply press a dedicated button on the outer right earcup to summon the voice assistant on your device.

Wireless connectivity is fairly up to date with Bluetooth 5.0, and over testing the connection has been reliably solid. The only issue was walking through Waterloo train station, where the signal didn’t drop completely, but there was a sense of music phasing in and out as the connection tried to stabilise itself. SoundIn terms of design, the Marshall Major III Voice headphones haven’t changed dramatically since their wireless predecessor was released in 2018. They sport the same compact on-ear design, which is fully collapsible so you can easily stow them away in your bag when not in use. They are made in the image of Marshall’s guitar amplifiers and they are fairly comfortable, inexpensive, sounds good and all Marshall products are vegan-friendly and that’s all we need for comfort on our ears and we can enjoy great music or a movie with a gratified experience and they provide a reasonable degree of protection and it also help you to get a quality sound experience Sound quality Unfortunately, connecting the cable doesn't power down the headphones automatically. That only occurs when the other end of the cable connects to your mobile device, and in that case, it's the mobile device ending the connection. If you're paired with a phone and connect one end of the cable to the headphones and leave the other loose, audio will still stream to your headphones from your paired device. It's not a huge issue, but you'll have to be certain your headphones are powered down, or you can easily drain your battery without realizing it. On the positive side, we didn't detect a major difference in audio performance between active wired and passive wired listening.

These Marshall headphones will be a little tighter on the head than some others. There’s also the slight issue that these headphones are on-ear, which means that they sit on the lobe, rather than embracing the area around your ears. First, there’s a lot of synthetic leather. Marshall amps use a vinyl wrap rather than real leather, but it has a distinct rough texture. These headphones use a much softer style, but the leather sections do have a much more defined, chunky grain than rivals. Another attractive feature is the ability to share your audio using the included 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable. Plug the cable into the Major IV, connect it to any pair of headphones with a 3.5mm port and whatever you’re listening to will be played through the other device as well. A section of the cable stretches so you don’t have to worry about pulling the headphones off your head if one of you moves, which is a nice touch. Opportunities to take advantage of such a feature may not present themselves too often – particularly at the moment – but it’s a thoughtful and useful inclusion nonetheless. With a straight band and heavily padded on-ear cushions, the headphones are designed to be comfortable for long periods of time, although we did experience a little discomfort from the pressure on ears after a long listening session. If you also have this problem with on-ear headphones, we’d recommend opting for over-ear headphones, which are usually more comfy, surrounding your ears rather than being placed on top of them. The headband produces enough pressure for the Major IV headphones to stay glued to the head. Once a good fit has been found, the Major IV’s natural noise isolation is decent enough to at least mask the footsteps of someone behind you while keeping the wearer aware of what’s around such as traffic. In environments where there’s lots of noise, there is a struggle to hear audio.Though it’s not always easy to tell, the Marshall Major III are slimmer and sleeker than their older counterparts, though they maintain the classic aesthetic. The new headphones are also significantly lighter and come with softer ear-pads to allow for a more comfortable long-term wear.

If you love the Marshall-inspired design then go ahead. However, if the priority is the best sound quality for your money, then look elsewhere. Verdict The classic Marshall styling has been slimmed down and updated for 2018. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian Battery life is exceptional, with 60 hours of wireless playtime on a single charge; that should be more than enough to get you through your weekly commute, and it leaves many of the best wireless headphones in the dust.The Marshall Major III Bluetooth are another brilliant pair of wireless on-ear headphones from the British audio brand that bring great sound, very long battery life and classic styling. The fourth-generation Major IV possess all of the style we’ve come to expect from Marshall, while more than doubling the battery life of their predecessor. They’ve also undergone a few smart design tweaks, making them an attractive option for those seeking eye-catching, on-ear cans. That being said, that overall warm tone is very forgiving, and it does make for an enjoyable listening experience.