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August EP636 Bluetooth NFC Headphones Review

Dustin Abbott

April 13th, 2016

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Style and Sound on a Budget

Design:

The moment I pulled the EP636s out my whole family (from age 8 to 42) instantly wanted a pair. My nearly-teenage daughter announced that she was going to win the contest for the giveaway of the second pair (might be a conflict of interest there, Sweetheart!) They are very sleek and modern looking, and the satin metallic finish on my test pair (in a rich burgundy color) looks really great. The fit and finish (at least while new) is very attractive and belies the price point. Besides the red they also come in black, silver, and white.

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August EP636 Bluetooth + NFC Headph...
August EP636 Bluetooth + NFC Headphones Review and Giveaway

On the right side there is nice four way rocker/play button center that will be instantly familiar to anyone who has ever used a remote for a TV or media device…or an early generation iPod. In this case the center button is the play/pause/power/receive/end call multipurpose button while the rockers in the up/down positions control volume. Rockers to the left and right allow you to go back or forward in tracks as you would expect. There is a slight lag when depressing the pause/play button before the appropriate response registers on my iDevices. Volume changes didn’t seem to have the same lag.  I really like this interface because its familiarity means that you when you are reaching for it by touch alone (which is most of the time), it is easy to find what you’re looking for by tactile response.

The EP636s do include a call function and microphone, which is always a welcome addition. I could hear people calling me very clearly, and heard no complaints from those to whom I was speaking. I read some user complaints about this function, so your mileage may vary.  The microphone is the tiny dot next to the charge port here.

One thing I noted in my review of the August MS515 stereo Bluetooth speakers is that I found the Bluetooth range very, very good. I had few cutouts of signal even at slightly further extremes than most of my other Bluetooth devices. I was very happy to find the same true of these EP636s. The sound didn’t start cutting out until long after the point I expected it to. This has a very important application to me that I will address in a moment. Another nice Bluetooth bonus is that the battery level does show up on either my iPhone or iPad next to the Bluetooth icon at the top of the screen. I’ve found this inclusion to be hit and miss with the various devices that I’ve reviewed or owned.

Power Indicator

Here are the raw specs from August:

Bluetooth Specification: Bluetooth v 4.0 + NFC

Operating Range: Up to 10m

Frequency Response: 80Hz – 20KHz

DSP: CVC6.0 Noise and Echo reduction

Speaker Output: 20mW

SNR: ≥90dB

Distortion: ≤1.0%

Battery: 195 mAh Built-in Li-ion Battery

Working Time: 14 hours

Charging Time: 2.5 hours

Standby Time: 480 hours

Charge port: Micro USB

Weight: 4.5oz

Dimensions: 165.7 x 161.5 x 50mm

There are few ingredients in the box: the phones themselves, a small User Manual, and the Micro USB charge cord. I’m very happy to see the Micro USB charging port as opposed to some proprietary port; it seems like everything not made by Apple has gone to that standard. You are more likely to have a Micro USB cord around should you happen to forget to bring a charge cord along. The 14 hour battery life and 480 hour standby time certainly helps with that!

I have a smallish head, so I have found the Augusts to be a nice fit. Tight enough to be secure but not uncomfortable. The padding isn’t as soft as the sheepskin covers on my Senal SMH-1200 studio monitors (they are awesome!), but I’ve worn them for hours at a time without my ears getting sore. If you have a larger head, however, that may not be the case. There is a fair amount of adjustment in length but the pressure might be more uncomfortable if you have a larger head. Bear that in mind if purchasing.

At 4.5oz/135g they are very lightweight and you certainly won’t find them a burden to wear even while exercising (see more on this in the Sport section below).

One final nice touch is that these headphones also support NFC, so if you have a device that supports NFC (an Android phone or tablet, for example), a tap while in pairing mode is all it takes to establish communication.

Sound Observations:

The EP636 definitely pack a punch. They pump out far more bass than I expected, thick, strong, and with a lot of kick. They also have a LOT of volume. Through my iPhone 6 turning the volume a third of the way up was as loud as I’d be interested in playing them when listening to music. The same was true when using an iPod Nano. The quality is very warm and surprisingly analog. For some musical styles they sounded fantastic, but I didn’t like the sound quality as much with other styles of music. The tone curve is a little strong in the 80-125Hz range (perhaps to make up for the lack of bass response below 80hz), which accounts for the warmth but also for a sound that can be a little “thick” with some musical styles. There is also a little less high clarity than what I might like, but that’s also part of what creates the nice, warm sound. To use a musical analogy, I sometimes felt like the sound lacked dynamics. To be fair, however, my typical studio monitor headphones (Senal SMH 1200) that I use primarily for my video edits and sometimes for music cost 5+ times as much. For the price these phones have a great sound and I was actually surprised to hear that the low end only went down to 80Hz as the bass response is so rich.

When moving to video I found a lot of similar truths. The excellent volume and bass response makes for a lot of kick. Comparing the EP636 to my benchmark Senals revealed that the Senals had more liveliness in the high end that resulted in a bit more clarity in the sound effects and thus a slightly more engaging soundstage. The August phones needed far less gain to achieve similar volume (a third less), had a bit more kick, and of course were more convenient because of having no cord to mess with.

Bluetooth headphones always have a bit of lag, and this can be a real issue when watching video content as the brain can only tolerate a certain amount of disconnect between the movement of the lips and the sound before it becomes distracting/annoying. I watched carefully for this lag issue, and, while it does exist, the lag is small enough that everything seemed natural to me when I wasn’t concentrating on it.

Sports Performance:

I’ve been on a bit of journey searching for a good pair of Bluetooth buds for running, cycling, and cross country skiing. I’ve gone through at least three pair in the past year and haven’t been really satisfied with any of them. The current pair I have are jLab Epics. There are things I like about the Epics, but I’m not at all happy with them for running or skiing. At first I found the connecting cord flopped around and the battery/control hub would get caught on a collar or even my hair. I devised a way to tighten them up a bit, but it wasn’t perfect. The bigger issue was that if I slipped either my iPhone or (preferably) my Nano into a pocket (pants or jacket) I have a huge issue with the sound cutting out when I’m moving fast. In an out, in and out. Annoying! To solve the problem, I’ve got to hold the device in my hand, and even then I sometimes have the issue. I don’t WANT to hold the device in my hand, though. As your hand begins to sweat (because you are holding something) you increase the chances of the expensive phone or media player slipping out of your hand.

I hadn’t considered a banded pair of headphones because I assumed they would be either bulky or prone to bouncing around. But when I saw how sleek the EP636 were and how tightly they fit I decided to give them a test run. If nothing else, I was convinced that they would receive the signal more consistently.

I was right. I think I may have found my new running headphones.

Over the course of my run I did not lose signal once despite having the Nano slipped down in the pocket of my jogging pants. Furthermore, the headphones did not slip or move at all over the course of my run, and when I saw some friends along the route it was refreshing to be able to just slip the headband off and around my neck while I said a quick hello and equally easy to pull them back up in place while in motion afterward. I’ve always had an issue with earbuds slowly jarring out a bit as I run whether the buds were wired or wireless. You begin to realize that the volume in one ear or another is slowly fading because the bud is no longer firmly seated in the ear canal. It was nice to have consistent sound throughout the whole run, and I found the firm bass response great for running music. I enjoyed my running playlist more than ever before. My one question for exercise will be how the ear covers hold up over the long haul dealing with sweat. I worked up a sweat today despite the 45 degree weather; I suspect that summer may bring a bit more, ahem, moisture into the equation. I wiped them down and all is well, but we’ll see how they hold up over long term (ab)use. Sweat can be a killer to headphones, and these aren’t specifically designed for sports use. Considering how good these are for sports, however, it might be in August’s interest to design a sports version.

Price and Conclusion:

I’ve saved perhaps the best for last: the August EP636 Bluetooth headphones are a true value. Here is Canada they retail for $39.95, while in the US the price tag is only only $29.95. That is a LOT of value for the money, and I really feel like these headphones are checking a lot of the right boxes for that kind of price point. They aren’t perfect, but they do pack a lot of punch in both their sound and options. The EP636 come with a one year warranty, which does give a bit of peace of mind. I’ve found them to be quite versatile and easy to use, and the fact that they function so well for sports means that I’ll be wearing this pair out. I’ve used a lot of headphones over the years, but I like these as well or more than any I’ve previously used.

And, in the meantime, I’ve got a pair to give away to a lucky winner. Check out how to enter the competition here:
August EP636 Bluetooth Headphones Giveaway

Pros:

  • Great price, great value
  • Stylish and functional look
  • Strong bass response
  • A lot of volume
  • Ticks a lot of technology boxes, from NFC to hands free calling
  • Good battery life
  • Strong Bluetooth signal
  • Micro USB charge port
  • Lag within acceptable tolerances
  • Secure fit for running or sports

Cons:

  • Soundstage lacks a bit of clarity
  • Users with larger heads may find them a little tight over long periods
  • Chief complaint from users is that their ears start to hurt after extended use (I didn’t notice this)
  • Some users report poor mic quality for phones (no one complained on my own calls)

DISCLAIMER: This article and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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