No matter what genre of music you love the most, having a quality pair of wireless headphones is essential if you want the best possible experience. Over the last few years we’ve seen the prices of Bluetooth headphones come down dramatically. There are now several manufacturers that offer budget-friendly options for those who want excellent sound quality, durability and comfort but don’t necessarily want to pay the exorbitant prices of a name brand like Panasonic, Beats by Dre or Sony.
If you’ve taken it upon yourself to select a new pair of Bluetooth headphones, you may have come across the new SoundPEATS Q12. We’ve had the pleasure of reviewing several of SoundPEATS’ products in the past, including the Q9, Q8 and Qy7’s – all have exceeded our expectations. As their newest release, the Q12’s are something that we were really excited to get our hands on and finally try for ourselves.
Unboxing
Right when you un-box the headphones you’ll notice that there are a few things included – a USB charging cable, six interchangeable ear tips and hooks (3 pairs), two line buckles, a line clamp, carrying case and user manual. First and foremost, the most important thing you’ll need to do is achieve a proper fit. Take note that each ear piece is specific to either the left or right side, as indicated by the small “L” or “R” on each.
With a little bit of effort, you can remove the ear hooks and tips and swap them out with the correct pair that seems to fit the best. You don’t want them to be too lose or they’ll naturally fall out, but if they’re too tight they won’t securely fit. You’ll want a snug but cozy fit – if you feel any discomfort, try a different size or arrangement. After a few minutes of adjusting the size to fit your ears properly so that the ear tip seals in your ear canal, you’ll need to cinch down the sliding cable so there’s no excess in the way.
Upon unboxing, we were pleased with the overall build quality and design that they’ve used. What’s unique to the Q12’s is that each ear piece is equipped with a magnetic backing so that they can be clasped together and worn in a secure and unobtrusive fashion when not in use. This is a really cool feature that diminishes the need to store them every single time you stop using them for a few minutes. Although the included carrying case is a great place to keep them while not in use, wearing them around your neck is very convenient in some scenarios.
Pairing
Pairing them is a piece of cake. They’re compatible with either Android or iOS powered smartphones/tablets so you can use them with virtually any modern device that has Bluetooth activated. First, turn on the headphones by holding the middle button on the inline control for about 3 seconds. Once you do that, you should see the headphones appear under the available Bluetooth connections that your smartphone or tablet can connect to. Once you’ve done that, you’re good to go and ready to use them as you please. Each time you turn them on after you initially pair them, the Q12’s will automatically remember the connection profile and pair without any manual adjustment.
A useful and quite anticipated feature that SoundPEATS included with the Q12’s that they’ve failed to include with previous versions is the Multi-point Connection feature. It lets you pair two different devices at the same time so you can listen to music from different sources instead of just one.
Comfort and Fit
When placed in the ears with the proper fitting ear tips and hooks, there’s plenty of comfort that’ll provide hours of use without irritation. The material that the buds are made out of is a soft, silicone-like material that’s incredible soft and supple to the touch. Through a few workout sessions, we found that it stood up well to moisture and natural sweat build up over time. Although depending on how much you sweat and the specific activities you’re involved in, we feel confident in saying that they withstand moisture quite well.
Sound and Bass
As one of the most crucial elements to any pair of high-quality headphones, the sound and bass is essentially the most important feature for many music lovers. After all, if your headphones fit nice and look nice but don’t actually perform well, there’s no point in using them.
To our pleasure, we found that the SoundPEATS Q12’s provided excellent sound clarity with excellent high, mid and low tones. With the inclusion of APT-X technology, the headphones achieve lossless sound quality as long as your music source is of good quality (high bit-rate). Although sound is quite difficult to describe in words, we think that everyone would agree that they’re definitely suitable, especially given the budget-friendly price point that they retail for. We’ve reviewed $100 headphones in the past that don’t compare to the sound quality that the Q12’s can emit.
The bass is deep, provides smooth rumbles and never seems to be overpowered or too dramatic. Although you cannot manually adjust the bass level, it’s set to an appropriate level that works well with virtually any genre of music. We tested them on hip hop, pop, country and trance music and loved how all of the songs sounded.
The sound quality is totally dependent on a proper fit, but once you have that established, they naturally block out unwanted background noise.
Wireless Range
Since they operate with the latest Bluetooth 4.1 version, you can expect the best wireless range that current technology can offer. Advertised as a 10 meter or 30 foot wireless range, we found that only to be true under ideal conditions (ie. line of sight). Whenever there are any objects, walls or physical obstructions in the way, the communication between the music source and the headphones is diminished.
In all reality, we found that the wireless range varied between 20 to 30 feet, but it didn’t cause any issues with using them since most people don’t need to be that far away from their smartphone or tablet. Either way, there seems to be plenty of available range for most any realistic situation that we could think of.
Battery Life
Since they’re completely wireless, the Q12’s require battery operation, but it’s much less of a hassle than you might expect. With an integrated lithium ion battery, you’ll never need to swap the battery out for a new one – simple recharge with the included USB cable.
Depending on a few factors, you can expect around 5 to 6 hours of playtime on a full charge. Some of these factors include the volume level, distance between the headphones/music source and environmental conditions like cold temperatures.
Making Calls
When you have the Q12 headphones synced to your smartphone and you’re receiving an incoming call, you don’t need to stop everything you’re doing and take them out of your ears. The call will automatically come through the headphones and you can accept or reject it with the inline controller by pressing the middle button for just a second.
The call clarity is excellent, just the same that you’d expect for listening to music, the incoming call sounds great. Additionally, speaking through the integrated microphone seems to work really well. With the inclusion of CVC 6.0 noise reduction technology, you get the same noise cancellation benefit that’s included in all of other SoundPEATS headphones that exist. While this isn’t necessarily a new feature, it’s good to see that they didn’t go away with it as it makes a noticeable improvement for talking in public settings like on the bus or in a
Specifications
- Bluetooth Version: 4.1
- Wireless Range: 25-30 feet
- Battery Life: 5-6 hours
- Battery Standby Time: 180 hours
- Battery Type: Lithium Ion
- Weight: 15 grams
- Length of Cable Between Earbuds: 22 inches
- Maximum Paired Connections: 2
Overall Thoughts
Although priced considerably less than what you’d expect them to cost, the new SoundPEATS Q12 Bluetooth Headphones seem to provide a fabulous listening experience with exceptional comfort, paired with surprisingly high quality sound and bass. Easy to use, built to last, and designed for music-lovers alike, they’re a great choice for anyone looking for high-end features at an affordable price point.
The magnetic feature is a nice addition, and the cable between the two earbuds is smooth and flattened so it avoids becoming tangled and twisted on its own – a common issue with many wireless headphones. There are plenty of accessories included and available in both black and red color schemes. We can say confidently that the sleek and ergonomic design will surely satisfy anyone looking for a superb fit that’s matched with pleasing audio quality.
Meet Ry, “TechGuru,” a 36-year-old technology enthusiast with a deep passion for tech innovations. With extensive experience, he specializes in gaming hardware and software, and has expertise in gadgets, custom PCs, and audio.
Besides writing about tech and reviewing new products, he enjoys traveling, hiking, and photography. Committed to keeping up with the latest industry trends, he aims to guide readers in making informed tech decisions.
What is the mAh capacity of the battery in this device?
Hello, the Q12’s have an 80 mAh battery. It lasts for around 5 to 6 hours on a full charge.
Have you compared the Soundpeats Q12 to the Q22? I’m looking for my first pair of Bluetooth earphones but with all the different range of products that Soundpeats has on offer, I’m unsure of which ones to choose.
The Q12’s are better 🙂
Would you say the Q12s are better than the Qy7s? I’m trying to decide between the two, and digging the magnetic feature.
Very similar but yes I would say the Q12’s are an improvement over the Qy7’s
Q12 ya q9A which one 2 choose
Sorry to ask, but what is a line buckle for? I bought this exact in ear speaker and don’t know what these are for 🙂
Thank you
Thanks for stopping by Ahmad! You can connect it to the line and clip it onto your clothing or basically anywhere. Not really too useful, but hey, it comes with the headphones for free!
Ahmad was referring to the buckle – not the clamp –
What are the two line buckles for?
The line buckles are to shorten the length of the cable. You can slide the cable into the buckle and shorten the length, to provide a tighter, snug fit around the back of your head. Hope this helps. 🙂
Which is better soundpeats q12 or Taotronics TT-BH07U?
Is it an IEM earphone?? And how much db it produces?
I have these earbuds, and when wearing them, they block out like 85% of the surrounding noise at the lowest volume setting. This can be a good or bad thing. You definitely can’t have a conversation without taking out an earbud. They also don’t hurt your ears at full volume, just block out more sound.
Are they sweatproof ? On Amazon they advertise them as sport headphones but i cant find if there sweat proof
Yes, they are IPX Level 4, meaning they can withstand dripping sweat.
Can you pair multiple devices to these?
Hey TechGuru,
I wanted a quick clarification on something. Could you tell me whether wearing these buds, looping OVER the ear (similar to Jaybird X3) is comfortable or not? I couldn’t find any info anywhere regarding that. Thanks
Which is better? This one or Sony MDR XB70BT
I bought these for work, operating loud turf machines on a Golf Course. I’ve always worn ear-muff style ear protection over my previous wired earbuds because the earbuds generally don’t block out a lot of noise.
At first, I was disappointed that I could not wear my ear protection over top of the Q12’s because they stick out too far. They are very large ear buds. However, since I was forced to go without my ear protection, I quickly learned how well the Q12’s block outside noise. Every machine I’ve operated so far has nearly been silenced.
I am, however, disappointed with the performance of the Bluetooth. The 25-30 foot range really only works well if you are in line-of-sight of your device. I have to keep my phone in my upper chest pocket in order to have no pops/crackles/skips in my media. Keeping my phone in my pants pockets, about 3 feet away from the Q12’s, I still have bad audio skipping. Other headphones/buds I’ve tested to not have an issue with my hardware.
For the price, the Q12’s are definitely worth it. And they sound really good.
Q12 vs. Q25? Which has better sound and is more comfortable to wear?
Hi.. So I can get calls once connected, but can’t play any audio, bluetooth settings show a tick for playing media, can anyone please help
Hi there, I’m having trouble connecting to the iWatch 2nd Gen. It connects to the iPhone fine.
I’m having trouble connecting to my Ipod Nano. I keep getting the message “Make sure Q12 is turned on and in range.”
are they better thann sennheiser cx275s ???
I have a problem with my Q9 headset.. It was working fine when i first got it but i stopped using for about one mouth and then i started using it again but it is not visible to any Bluetooth device again. I really love This headset,what can i do?
Charge them and try to go through the pairing procedure again.
I am having the same problem. My Iphone won’t recognize the q12’s.
Aft it says power on… Press the middle button for 10 seconds… Then it says pairing..make sure your phone bluetooth setting is on…. I hope I help you with this information
Noise reduction from microphone not working do we need to make any settings for that as well?
What about cable noise … I returned BeatsX & JayBird because any slight movement of the cable just caused that banging tone
Can you please tell me which one is better…. Tagg inferno or Soundpeat Q12 ….
For the love of God…does anyone know how to pair two devices to the q12’s? Ive looked on google, reddit, soundpeats.com, youtube, but no one seems to be addressing this issue?
Can I connect q12 with my laptop .
What about sound bass and treble quality of soundpeats q12??
I am facing problem while pairing it with my phone Le 2…
Kindly tell me how to pair it with my phone.
Hey Techguru
What is the difference between Taotronics ttbh07 and Soundpeats Q12 ?
You have reviewed both of them. I am really confused in choosing one of them. While Q12 comes with a box and a clamp the taotronics is known for its good customer service. Don’t know about soundpeats customer service.
I really want to buy one of them but don’t know which one is better. There has to be some differences right ?
Can’t pair my q12 with Iphone, what can I do? Do I need to turn something off ?
I can’t pair mine either.
I am able to pair it with my iPhone SE, but having difficulty to pair it with my windows laptop.
Q12 or Q900 which one is better
I am looking for windows 7 driver for my Q12.
I am confused between these and the Treblab J1. J1 has more battery life whereas these have more button controls. Is there any other major difference ?
I love these headphones. However I just got a new phone and already connected my old phone and laptop to the headset. Is there a way to restart the headset so it will connect to my new phone and forget my old phone?
correction: cannot remove charger from charger port. please help
I’ve been using my Q12s for a few days now. I think they out perform the qy7s by far. My only issue is that sometimes there is a beeping noise for no reason. It happens when I’m right next to my phone and they are fully charged. Any idea what this is from?
Having trouble to connect with my iPhone 6.
I have had several Q12 and SoundBeats. I loved them, but have found after 3-4 months that they shut down and I can’t get them to connect to my IPhone 6. Typically when this happens I have only static when I put it in my ear.
I have tried
-restarting my IPhone
-Trying to repair it again after I delete the original Q12 device on my blue tooth
None of these things have been successful.
Does anyone else have an idea for me? Like I say, I do like the Q12s, but I would like them to last longer than 3-4 months.
I can’t connect in iphone 7 plus
Last Two days back bought Q12 , Unable to connect any of the devices. Ex: Android, iPhone and my computer, Both the end Bluetooth status was on only even though not getting pairing option for Q12, Could you please help on this.
Am not getting any support from Customer care dropped several emails but no reply.
From India and leaving in Bangalore location, not able to find any off the service center also.
Satish- are you able to get the help from customer service, issue fixed? Iam planning to buy this earphone
how to change replace battery q12 is that possible or not