Design & Construction

Can the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC700BT prove themselves in today's competitive noise-cancelling headphone market. Let's find out today. The ATH-ANC700BT is designed to target consumers of today's modern and minmalist world. The headphone have a very neutral look, matte greyish black and a metallic headband extention. The left earcup has the (From Back-Front): Micro-USB port, Power switch, 3.5mm input, Bluetooth indicator and ANC indicator. Pushing the Power button powers it on or off and puts it in pairing mode. Controlling the rest of the playback functions are on the touchpad of left earcup itself. Single tap to play/pause, tap and hold to activate Google Assistant or Siri, press the top to increase volume and bottom to decrease volume. Swiping up will skip forward and swiping down will reduce volume. The touchpad controls are very difficult to operate and I eventually got frustrated with the bad layout to the point I never used them. Pairing via Bluetooth is simple and quick although no NFC is available. Both sides of the headband bear the Audio-Technica logo. The headphones have thick cushions which is meant for providing a comfortable experience. The headband is very plush and will not cause discomfort to those who wear spectacles. On the headband, there is also cushioned headrest which provides a decent amount of comfort. The exterior of the headphones gives off this matte understated colour scheme but it resists fingerprints smudges very well. On the top, the headband holding the structure is made of metal and the earcups pivot left and right and folds flat for easy storage. The earcups are a little cramped, hence it does not encases your ears but rather sits on them and causes wearing fatigue after few hours of usage. Overall, the ATH-ANC700BT sticks out considerably when wearing and doesn't contour nicely against various head shapes.

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Sound Quality

The 40mm headphone drivers sounds decent. They produce a decent sound. Highs sound bright and the treble is sometimes ear-piercing when emphasised using an equaliser. The mids do a pretty good job of staying clear and precise. The lows, on the other hand, are quite disappointment. The bass is severally lacking and when emphasised using a equaliser, it bottoms out and bleeds into the mid range. In the end, it sounds muddy. With the lack of a wide soundstage and proper instrument separation, the sound quality of the ANC700BT isn't on par with its competitors. The noise-cancelling is however, comparable to other headphones in this price point. I could not really hear my surroundings when there was no music on. However, voices and high frequencies do leak in but it is considerably muffled. Call quality was okay but the caller manage to hear me on the other end but feedback that I sound muffled.

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Connectivity & Portability

The headphone operates both passively and wirelessly. The mic and controls on the earcups are still work in wired mode. The battery life peaks at 25 hours with noise-cancelling and Bluetooth on, 30 hours in wireless mode without noise-cancellation and 45 hours in wired noise-cancellation mode. The headphones folds flat and up into a more compact profile and comes with a micro USB cable for charging, a 3.5mm cable for wired use and a soft carrying pouch to protect the headphone from scratches.

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PROS​

• Long Battery Life

• Decent Noise-Cancellation

• Folds Flat into a Smaller Profile

• Carrying Pouch

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CONS​

• Plastic Build

• Uncomfortable Fit

• No Quick Charging

• Lacking Sound Quality

• Difficult to Use Playback Controls

• Single Colour Available

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The Bottom Line

The Audio-Technica ATH-ANC700BT is a noise-cancelling headphone housing a 25 hour battery life and decent noise-cancelling. However, Audio-Technica didn't get the sound, controls and fit right which makes them unworthy in today's competitive noise-cancelling headphone market. There are many other alternatives with the same price tag that prove themselves to be better.