Technics EAH-AZ100 review: Your move, Sony

The Technics EAH-AZ100 are the latest in a range of true wireless earbuds with award-winning pedigree. Their predecessors the Technics EAH-AZ80 were great all-round performers, class-leading in two key areas (microphone quality and Bluetooth multipoint provision), and we crowned them our wireless earbuds of the year in 2023.

Although the EAH-AZ100 are among the first earbuds I’ve reviewed in 2025, they have a real chance of emulating that success. They improve on their predecessors in several ways – a more compact design and enhanced audio are particular highlights – and have a fantastic suite of features and customisation options.

While noise cancellation could be better, the Technics EAH-AZ100 make a compelling package and are my new favourite flagship true wireless all-rounders.

Technics EAH-AZ100 review: What do you get for the money?

The Technics EAH-AZ100 retain the same £260 price tag as the EAH-AZ80, which is a nice surprise given the upgrades the product has received. The biggest of these upgrades is to the drivers. Technics has stuck with 10mm aluminium units, but they use the brand’s magnetic fluid driver technology to enhance performance here.

Technics claims filling the space between the magnet and voice coil with magnetic fluid instead of a traditional damper results in more consistent vertical driver motion, reduced horizontal driver motion and less distortion. It’s the same tech used by the Technics EAH-TZ700 in-ear monitors, which cost £700, but the first time it’s been incorporated into a pair of wireless earbuds.

The noise-cancelling system has been overhauled too, with the combination of feed-forward and feedback microphones now capable of automatically adapting to your surroundings. LC3 has been added to this list of supported Bluetooth codecs alongside LDAC, SBC and AAC, and the EAH-AZ100 also support spatial audio courtesy of Dolby Atmos with Head Tracking. Simultaneous pairing with three devices continues to give Technics the edge over its competitors in terms of Bluetooth multipoint.

The EAH-AZ100 also bring AI smarts to the table in the form of a new “Voice Focus AI” mode that seeks to reduce the amount of background noise picked up while making and receiving calls. This is a welcome step up from the EAH-AZ80, which were only able to mitigate external distractions on outgoing calls.

Other positive changes see the IPX4-rated EAH-AZ100 shed over a gram in weight and, despite being more compact, they last significantly longer than their predecessors. In-ear battery life has been increased from seven hours to ten hours, while total playtime, including the charging case, rises from 24 hours to 28 hours. The charging case supports both wired and wireless charging.

The only backwards step the EAH-AZ100 take is with the selection of eartips included in the box. The EAH-AZ80 came with seven different sizes; here, you only get five, all made from silicone rubber.

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Technics EAH-AZ100 review: What do they do well?

There’s only one place to start: the Technics EAH-AZ100’s sound quality. I’m always wary when headphone manufacturers purport to have introduced a game-changing new technology, but Technics’ magnetic fluid drivers deliver in a big way.

Tappan Zee by Bob James is a wonderful track for assessing headphones’ ability to articulate a range of frequencies and the EAH-AZ100 handled it beautifully. Every instrument, from the bass guitar to the delightfully playful piano, bold brass and whimsical woodwind, had room to shine and was wonderfully well-defined. Better still, the various components were knitted together with mesmeric elegance.

That level of precision and detail was demonstrable regardless of the quality of the source material and device I was using. The EAH-AZ100 proved equally adept at tackling 16bit/44.1kHz tracks on my old iPhone XR and 24bit/96kHz files over LDAC on the Nothing Phone (2) across a wide range of genres.

The rolling bassline on the Calibre remix of High Contrast’s Global Love was sublimely controlled, yet powerful and punchy, while the filthy sub-bass tones on SpectraSoul’s Dark Hour were free of any hint of bloat.

Most impressively, the EAH-AZ100 manage to strike a masterful balance between this beefy low-end and their vocal and treble presentation. Doechii’s rapping on Nissan Altima came through crystal clear over the throbbing backing track, while the disparate elements of Steely Dan’s Do It Again and Jungle’s Back on 74 were layered so cohesively that no part of either track sounded overplayed.

I also want to commend Technics on the EQ controls in the Audio Connect app. The above observations were made using the default Direct tuning but there are also Bass+, Super Bass+, Vocal, Treble+ and Dynamic options in addition to three custom EQs. The latter can be tweaked using an eight-band graphic equaliser that provides more flexibility than you’ll find on many of the EAH-AZ100’s rivals.

Something else you won’t find in many other headphones is support for Dolby Atmos with Head Tracking. Bose has Immersive Audio, Sony has 360 Reality Audio and there’s Apple Spatial Audio, but Technics has decided against a proprietary form of spatial audio in favour of optimising its new buds for Atmos.

The head-tracking component works well and I found the 3D virtualisation reasonably convincing when watching films and shows with Atmos soundtracks. Atmos-mastered songs also benefit, though it’s worth noting spatial audio can’t be engaged if you’re using LDAC.

I’m a big fan of the EAH-AZ100’s design. The black and silver colourways have a premium air and score highly for ergonomics. The main housings didn’t protrude too far out of my ears, and I experienced no discomfort wearing them for long periods.

Touch controls are implemented smartly. You have full control over music playback, volume, noise cancellation and voice-assistant engagement. It’s possible to customise the single tap, double tap, triple tap and touch-and-hold gestures to a pleasing degree. The EAH-Z100’s touch zones are sizeable, too, with perfectly judged sensitivity that ensures gestures are picked up consistently.

Like the EAH-AZ80, the Technics EAH-AZ100 are great earbuds for making or taking phone calls and attending virtual meetings. Their microphones picked up my voice successfully in a wide range of noisy environments and the new Voice Mode AI did a good job of keeping background noise to a minimum.

Over the course of an hour-long conversation with a friend, during which I walked along a busy street, entered a shop, chopped up vegetables and boiled the kettle, he didn’t once ask me to repeat anything I said. That’s as strong an endorsement as I’ve been able to give any earbuds I’ve tested.

Finally, the EAH-AZ100 are industry-leading when it comes to Bluetooth multipoint pairing. Simultaneous connection with two devices is the norm, but the EAH-AZ100 can be connected to three devices at once.

Plus, there’s an option within the app that lets you choose whether you want the connection to switch as soon as audio starts playing on any of the three paired devices. This process is seamless and makes the earbuds a great choice for those working across multiple devices.

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Technics EAH-AZ100 review: What could be improved?

While I’m pleased to see the EAH-AZ100 embrace adaptive noise cancellation, which changes the level of attenuation based on what’s going on around you, the noise cancellation itself isn’t their strongest feature.

Even with noise cancelling cranked up to 100% (you can choose to bypass auto-optimisation and instead select your own level of attenuation) they weren’t as effective as the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds – the yardstick I currently use to judge the ANC of any new headphones I test.

The amount of sound that makes its way into your ears isn’t heinous – these buds block out low frequencies well enough – but I was disappointed by how much conversation I could hear when trying to enjoy some low-volume listening in the office. 

This may in part be because I was unable to create a perfect in-ear seal in my left ear using the eartips provided. My left ear canal is slightly larger than my right, so I often find myself using different-sized tips on each bud. The largest of the five tip sizes was ideal for my right ear and created an effective passive seal, but the left one didn’t feel as snug, and I was left wishing Technics had included the XL tips that came with the EAH-AZ80.

Five pairs of eartips is still generous by wireless earbuds standards – many make do with just three – but knowing my experience may have been better had Technics not taken away a couple of the options found on the EAH-AZ100’s predecessors is a little frustrating. That’s a very specific and personal gripe, however, and I imagine most people will be able to achieve a great seal in both ears using what is supplied.

Technics EAH-AZ100 review: Should you buy them?

The Technics EAH-AZ100 perform superbly in every area except noise cancellation, where they’re good enough rather than truly impressive. Their multipoint and voice call capabilities are the best around and the innovative magnetic fluid driver system delivers a level of sound quality that will have other brands quaking in their boots.

Dolby Atmos support is a welcome addition, there’s an abundance of customisability and all the convenience features you could reasonably ask for. Make no mistake about it, the Technics EAH-AZ100 are elite wireless earbuds.

If you’re primarily concerned about ANC, buy the Bose QuietComfort Ultra. Those wanting a cheaper option that scores very highly in all areas will still be tempted by the Sony WF-1000XM5, which can now be picked up for under £200. But were the latter still at their RRP of £259, I’d forgo my love of their super-smart Adaptive Sound Control for the most stylish aesthetic and sweet sounds of the Technics EAH-AZ100. Your move, Sony.