Shure Aonic Free Review

Recently, Shure released two new wireless products, the Aonic 40 over-ear headphones, and the Aonic Free true wireless. Shure has released true wireless adapters in the past, but never their own set of true wireless earbuds. The Aonic Free is available now for $199, with discounts down to $179. With the Aonic Free now sharing a space with the Sony WF-1000XM4 and the Sennheiser CX true wireless, this is now a competitive field for wireless earbuds. Does the Aonic Free stand out?

What You Get

• AONIC FREE True Wireless Sound Isolating Earphones
• Charging case
• Micro-USB-C Charging Cable
• Comply Foam Sleeves (S, M, L)

Look and Feel

My first impression of the Aonic Free was purely based on their bulky appearance. They take on the look of past popular true wireless builds from the likes of Bose and Sony, and Sony has already upgraded this design with this WF-1000XM4. Not everyone is a fan of that type of style, but it didn’t bother me here much. Once you have the Aonic Free in your ears it doesn’t really matter what size they are, since they sit so comfortably. The housing might have this bulky design, but the cavity piece that actually goes in your ear fits naturally and secures quite well with the Comply foam tips. My only major gripe is the charging case, which is also bulky, taking up a good amount of space in your pocket.

Design and Functionality

Like Shure’s other wireless products, the Aonic Free has a good amount of features stored within the PlayPlus smartphone app. You get most of your main features carried over from other Aonic products, like environmental mode, EQ, and customizable button controls. Notably missing from the Aonic Free is noise-canceling. That’s because the Aonic Free has opted for a non-compromising sound isolation technology that will naturally block out distractions. Of course, this isn’t as effective as ANC technology, but in terms of natural isolation that focuses more on sonic fidelity, I would say the Aonic Free does a good job. Lastly, the onboard buttons are an intuitive way to access all of the earphone’s features seamlessly. The buttons are immediacy responsive and can be used for playback, voice assistant, and phone calls.

Bluetooth

The Aonic Free supports Bluetooth 5.0, offering up to 30 feet of range and high bandwidth. CODECS used here are SBC, AAC, and Qualcomm aptX.

Battery Life

Off of a single charge, the Aonic Free should last 7 hours. With the changing case, you get two additional charges, for a total of 21 hours.

Soundstage 

I’ve been plenty impressed with how spacious some true wireless earbuds can get in their soundstages. Even in this price range, we have some pretty good contenders, and the Aonic Free happily joins their ranks. The first track I used to test its effectiveness was Ben Salisbury’s score for the film “Annihilation,” specifically “The Alien.” Here, their soundstage grows in width, presenting left and right stereo information with some spacious characteristics. The imaging performs the output with a good sense of localization, placing each element where it feels like it is supposed to be. It gains some added depth with some impressive separation, layering instrumentals over each other with grace and precision. It was always easy to get a sense of what the mix was communicating spatially, and while it is still pretty linear, the imaging goes above and beyond for true wireless.

Low End 

At first, the bass frequencies don’t exactly push out a ton of energy, but using EQ I got the Aonic Free to a point where the lows sustained great agility and texture. It never goes overboard with its resonance no matter where you adjust the Q, but you’ll always obtain clarity and detail from their timbre. The tone can be snappy and persistent, especially in the mid-bass. You won’t find much warmth here, just a clean and precise response that feels more gratifying the more you play with the EQ.

Mids

Shure’s impressive midrange abilities are on full display here, offering a transparent and accurate response that offers a sense of fullness. In its natural state, the mids operate with smoothness, producing detail in a relaxing style without feeling underpowered. Of course, using EQ can help expand some of these details further. For instance, I reduced some of the more resonant lower mids and boosted the region around 2-4kHz for a more forward vocal response. These moves don’t feel artificial at all, as the Aonic Free responds naturally to wherever you set the timbre.

Highs

The highs without EQ are set pretty neutrally. It is probably the region of this sound signature that benefits most from your own customization. In its main form, the treble lays mostly flat, without much shine from cymbals or other instruments. Boosting some of the highs in the app and that texture is accomplishable, but in a mostly even form without any significant accentuation.

Summary

As a true wireless earphone, the Aonic Free is very satisfying. Its controls are user-friendly, and its features within the PlayPlus app are vast even without ANC. Their size might not sell you on them, but once you have your first track playing, it is hard to deny their quality. In terms of sound signature, the Aonic Free lays out a smooth and enjoyable listen, with spaciousness and detail that you can adjust to your choosing with EQ. As a package, the Aonic Free gives you all that you need with a true wireless system, and at a good price too.

The Shure Aonic Free is available at Audio46.