Serious audio enthusiasts and audiophiles know of the premium audio hardware company Klipsch. Like many manufacturers entering the land of true wireless audio devices, Klipsch offers a few unique features to differentiate the T5 II ANC from the pack. A wise partnership between Klipsch and Dirac Sound improves your listening experience and puts Klipsch ahead of the game. Let’s check out what the Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC excels at and what could use refinement. We tested the Klipsch T5 II ANC for over three weeks to get a real sense of how it performs.

Editor’s note: this post was updated on August 11, 2023, to add the Sony WF-1000XM5 to Alternatives, and to update formatting.

The Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC operates much like other true wireless earbuds and has a kind of retro-futurism design. From the hefty case to the chunky, brightly lit earbuds, this headset weds the convenience of true wireless tech with the romanticized design from bygone eras, like the Klipsch logo models. In contrast, the oversized lights on each bud shine red or blue, reminding me of the 1980s movie Tron and the synthesizers of that era. I like it, however, the design language comes off sort of confused.

Klipsch provides six differently sized oval-shaped ear tips, so almost anyone should find a size that fits. The medium fits me best and even then, it never feels secure enough and the left earbud is prone to falling from my ear. No matter how much I experiment with testing different ear tips, I surrender to a third-party pair. Even after all this trial and error, issues still crop up, and due to the buds’ chunkier size, things feel weighty after 90 minutes. Since so much of the weight sits outside the ear, this likely contributes to the T5 II ANC’s precarious fit. People with small ears may want to skip it.

The IPX4 rating assures you that a bit of sweat will not harm the T5 II True Wireless ANC, but the fit issues aren’t confidence-inspiring. Earbuds are too expensive to risk losing or dropping, and you have far better options for working out anyway.

Your new favorite case

If one could buy battery cases separately that worked with other earbuds, I’d want the T5 II ANC battery case. The gunmetal case borrows design elements from the iconic Zippo lighter, with a smooth poly-like coating that resists dings. Thoughtful details include a rubber mat on the bottom prevents the case from scratching and sliding across various surfaces. Unlike other metal cases (e.g., Master & Dynamic MW08), this one continues to look good after continuous use. As evidence, the photos in this article are after three weeks of use — not day one.

The lid flips easily with a flick of the thumb. It snaps shut again with a satisfying magnetic snap. Three square white LED indicate the battery life, and a USB-C input rests on the back. It also supports wireless charging for those who own charging mats.

The case feels a bit heavy, but at least you won’t lose track of it. A mixture of rounded, slightly squared-off corners prevents it from catching on the inside of a pocket. When empty, the case continues to stand even with the lid open, so you can replace the buds with one hand.

How do you control Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC?

Below is the default command configuration on the buds. You can customize the left earbud, but not the right. Buttons on the T5 II ANC buds are easy to find and a tactile click assures you that the headset registered your command. The pleasant, non-robotic voice relays things like, “noise canceling on,” which is helpful because you have to cycle through ANC, standard mode, and transparency mode if you don’t download the app. You don’t hear this voice when you trigger basic music playback controls.

More on this in the app section, but Klipsch also has a suite of command customizations that all work well except for the head gesture commands, think nods and head shakes similar to the Mobvoi Earbuds Gesture. At the moment, its functionality is limited and unreliable.

To access most of the T5 II ANC features, you’ll want to download Klipsch Connect. Even the most technophobic will want it just for firmware updates. In fact, on some devices, Klipsch all but forces you to download the app. On a HUAWEI P30, it works without the app, but with a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G, the buds won’t finish pairing until you configure the app too. Customization runs pretty deep in the app: you can tick off settings like “activate ANC” when you listen to music or during phone calls.

Tinkerers will like that there’s a six-band equalizer to play around with, and visual learners will better understand how the changes affect the frequency response. You only get one custom setting, and six presets. Unfortunately, if you try to adjust a preset it overrides your previous custom setting.

Also worth testing out is Dirac HD Sound, a sort of mini version of the Swedish DSP processor included in the Klipsch Connect app.

The Bluetooth 5.0 connection remains stable on Android and iOS. You get your choice between the AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs, no aptX here. Interestingly, the non-ANC T5 II version supports the higher quality aptX codec. This is an odd omission considering that folks who choose to get ANC often also care about sound quality.

Pairing happens quickly. Blue lights flash on the buds and a voice will tell you that you’ve paired, dispelling any ambiguity. Sometimes the app will say it can’t connect to the earbuds, but then it does anyway. This varies from device to device, and when streaming YouTube over AAC on Android yields some slight latency. iPhone users will probably experience less latency because AAC cooperates with iPhone better than with Android.

Under our standard battery test, a constant output of music peaking at 75dB(SPL) until battery depletion, the Klipsch T5 II ANC lasts 3 hours, 20 minutes with ANC on. This is notably less playtime than competing ANC wireless earbuds supply, but the case supplies an additional 15 to 21 hours of battery life, depending on whether you’ve activated ANC. That battery life is a real mark against the T5 II ANC at this price.

competing ANC wireless earbuds and isolation performance sit well above average with the T5 II ANC. For the most part, I find isolation does its job so well that I scarcely need to turn on the noise canceling, even on the bus. When set to high, ANC reduces low frequency noise handily and then decently through the mids and up to 1kHz. The ANC seems most useful below 100Hz, if uneven in application.

Klipsch provides a slider in the Klipsch Connect app, allowing users to adjust the noise canceling intensity. The slider also adjusts transparency mode for when you want to remain aware of street sounds. Good isolation and ANC mean you can keep your volume at a reasonable level to save your hearing, and the T5 II ANC does it well.

The Klipsch T5 II ANC’s frequency response boosts bass notes a bit more than what our preferred curve posits as the platonic ideal but remains consumer-friendly.

There’s a 10-12dB difference between the loudest sub-bass and quietest midrange notes, making it hard to hear vocals and string instruments. Treble notes will sound relatively quiet, with the treble response under-emphasized around 3kHz before it’s boosted back around 10kHz only to drop off again. The above chart shows the default frequency response when you first listen to the Klipsch T5 II ANC, which is the Flat EQ setting and Dirac HD Sound on.

With the default settings, Girl by Girl Ray has a good amount of bassy oomph on the kick drum. When the bass section starts up, it propels the tempo. While this might be a touch too much bass, the Beats market has taught us that a lot of Best bass earbuds, and this emphasis seems in the ballpark of reasonable. Clean electric rhythm guitar comes through, though it gets a bit masked by the (arguably, mixed slightly too loud) high midrange synth lead.

Poppy Hankin’s vocals are unfortunately lost due to the relatively quiet highs. This is most obvious in the outro around 3:10 when all the instruments play in a kind of crescendo. The frequency response bump at 10kHz does lend perceived clarity to her vocals, yet even in the sparse verses, I just want to turn her up a little. Again, this is why Klipsch gives you some tools to sort out the sound to your liking.

Can you use the Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC for phone calls?

Absolutely, you can use the Klipsch T5 II ANC for phone calls. High-pitched voices may sound a bit quieter than normal; on the whole, this transmits voices well and clearly enough for casual calls. Most impressive is the ability of the T5 II ANC to reject noise. In the microphone demo, you can hear how the fan noise gets picked up but as soon as a voice comes through, the mics filter out the noise and leave the voice virtually unaltered.

Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC microphone demo (Non-standardized):

Should you buy Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC?

Well, if you can get a good fit the Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC experience is pretty likable, albeit, quirky. The buttons work predictably, but head gestures are a mixed bag. Bluetooth pairs easily and stays connected. Meanwhile, ANC and isolation perform very well, and the charging case ought to win some kind of award.

You get the sense that the T5 II ANC is the product of three different design teams: one excelled with the case, one did an alright job with the app — save for the off-beat organization and the weird Bluetooth connection pop-up, and another team did okay with the buds. The quality of the case just doesn’t jive with the sort of bulky fit of the buds. Adorning both with the same vintage logo doesn’t marry the awkward couple either.

Like a cheerleader, you want the T5 II ANC to secure a win, but unfortunately, it stands as evidence that a proper fit trumps pretty much everything else. The T5 II ANC might not work for you unless you have historically easy-to-fit ears. Anyone who has smaller ears should purchase this from a retailer with a forgiving return policy, just in case. Battery life is low for true wireless earbuds these days too. For the person who the T5 II ANC fits, it’s a fun set of buds, but too expensive.

What should you get instead of the Klipsch T5 II ANC?

The Klipsch T5 II True Wireless ANC is not cheap and likely doesn’t bode well for most peoples’ budgets. If you like everything else about the T5 II ANC but don’t need noise cancelation, try the non-ANC Klipsch T5 II on the product’s website. You can sometimes find it for about half the price. It comes with a better aptX codec, and while we haven’t had a chance to test it, the housing shape appears the same, so the isolation likely works very well. In other words, you don’t get ANC, but you still get really good isolation.

Perhaps the price of Klipsch’s earbuds doesn’t bother you, and you just want the best; in that case, spring for the Sony WF-1000XM5. The WF-1000XM5 ($298 at Amazon) offers a suite of different codecs, Sony’s own DSP, DSEE Extreme to upscale your low-quality audio files, and of course, you get Sony 360 Reality Audio. In addition, ANC performs admirably well. By virtue of everyone’s individual anatomy, comfort is a subjective measurement, and still, the WF-1000XM5 rates higher for comfort. Plus, a battery life that roughly triples the Klipsch buds makes for a far better pick. Still, if that price is too dear the Sony WF-1000XM4 remains an excellent choice for $278 at Amazon, even if the buds are chunkier than the XM5.

For a slightly different look with very good ANC, turn to the Sennheiser MOMENTUM True Wireless 3 ($169 at Amazon). This set of noise canceling earbuds is a bit sportier than Klipsch’s or Sony’s due to the inclusion of removable ear wings. These wings are great for stabilizing the IPX4-rated buds. You can get a highly customized ANC and EQ experience through “Sound Zones,” a feature in the free Smart Control app. This detects where you are on a map and automatically enables your preferred ANC settings for that location (and when you exit it).