EDIFIER HECATE GX05 Gaming TWS Earbuds in test – fun, out of this world or both?

Subjective sound check: Microphone

The GX05s are not only ideal for use on a PC, console or smartphone, but also for listening to music (if you exclude some U-music or use your own EQ) and even for making phone calls. Although the microphones are not directly in front of my mouth (how could they be?), the voice quality can be described as acceptable to good. Disturbing background noise is even eliminated to a certain extent, even if there is no special sound solution for this. What is somewhat annoying, however, is a certain background noise that is always present.

Subjective sound check: headphones

After all the technical details, let’s finally get to the most important thing: how does the device actually sound? Let’s continue where it hurts a little more: the individual listening test. The headphones have been in use for almost 3 months and have therefore been diligently recorded, so this argument no longer applies. My Tidal playlist is used, this time alternating in a loop with stuttering techno, Güttler’s Bach trumpet and chamber music.

Bass range

The GX05s offer an emphasis in the bass range below 40 Hz, which gives the buds a subjectively more “voluminous” sound. Although the bass range delivers the necessary punch, it is not overemphasized. However, if you only test mainstream tracks, you will hardly notice the bass boom because everything below 50 Hz is cut anyway due to the usual loudness war. I wouldn’t want to use the GX05 for classical music as soon as it goes into the subcontraoctave.

This range appears confident and is perfectly fine. The male vocals are modeled quite voluminously and are slightly above a purely neutral fundamental. The instruments are also very cleanly connected, which doesn’t sound completely mass-compatible per se, but still sufficiently neutral. You certainly have to get used to it first if you’re not used to it, but I definitely like it. However, the bathtub orientation is bearable, although male voices are given a rather strong foundation.

Midrange

Now it’s almost as cool as at night in the Sahara, because the mids recede a little more into the background. Nevertheless, many details of the fundamental frequencies remain quite close to the original, so it is still quite acceptable. You might even like it, because this style of play radiates coolness, if you like that sort of thing. Female vocals still sound reasonably confident in the foundation, but somewhat more restrained than the male vocals. The resolution of the drivers is still good enough to reproduce everything accurately. You can confidently leave it that way.

You first fall into a small valley, only to see an enormous increase again from 2.5 KHz, which is minimally detrimental to the differentiated reproduction in this range and results in a picture of misunderstood neutrality. Despite everything, the stage is quite wide and the subjectively perceived quality of the spatial resolution here is above average. High levels with many sources playing together are not a problem despite the 2.5 KHz peak, but localization gains immensely if the range around 1 to 1.5 KHz is raised slightly and the 3 KHz is reduced somewhat (bell filter is sufficient). In gaming, the level is not quite as critical and it is much as a certain group of gamers would like it to be. However, the localization of the sound sources is significantly better after the aforementioned intervention with the equalizer, although it is already well above average even without help.

 

High frequency range

The quality of the reproduction is good, but it is a little too treble-heavy. It is based on the sometimes restrained mid-range and the concise upper mid-range, which balances the whole thing out somewhat, but calls for EQ. The speech intelligibility and the quality of the vocals in terms of recognition, on the other hand, are really good and it always gets much better, right up to the edge of perfection, if you reduce this area a little on the EQ. A matter of taste, as always. Exactly the same applies to gaming, so the result is completely acceptable for gaming too. However, some peaks are annoying. Well, that’s what the EQ is for.

The treble is brilliant and can be left as it is or improved further. Sibilants and blow-out noises are extremely present, a little too superficial and it occasionally slips slightly into the metallic and sharp. Some icy treble air forms above this, but you can adjust it. In terms of sound, the headphones are right on trend, even if I personally don’t like it that much.

Battery life and charging

With the volume set to a good 50%, I was able to achieve a battery life of just under 3 hours via the Bluetooth connection on my smartphone, and around 4.5 hours at 25%. With the separate 2.4 GHz connection, which is established between the headphones and the USB-C dongle supplied, the runtime was around 10 to 15% lower. The charging case, which is included, at least makes it possible to fully charge the headphones three more times without a power bank or PC, so that you can get by for a total of 12 to 16 hours without an external power source.

The charging case can be charged via the integrated USB Type C port on any USB charger, a power bank or a PC or notebook. It takes up to two hours to fully charge the case. However, the case battery cannot be charged quickly The in-ear headphones themselves need around an hour to be fully recharged in the charging case. However, thanks to the fast-charging function of the headphones, a charging time of around 5 minutes is enough to provide up to 30 minutes of additional battery life in Bluetooth mode.

Summary and conclusion

Where should I classify the whole thing now? For a street price of currently 99 to 109 euros, the HECATE GX05 from Edifier are first of all an extremely cheeky challenge to the so-called “established” brands, because the price for such a haptically and electrically high-quality product, including the charging cradle, is perfectly acceptable. In terms of sound, the parts are quite ok and they were finally buds that worked with my ears again, because most of the plugs were either too loose or too tight. Even the medium-sized version was the best here, amazing.

Whether you like the advertised gaming mode or not, everyone has to decide for themselves. The latency issue is already there, as it is subjectively much more synchronous than the Bluetooth connection. Of course, it’s not latency-free either, but it’s pretty close. The battery life is debatable, I would have appreciated 1-2 hours more. If you really turn it up to the max (and gamers usually do), you have at least included the necessary forced break. Smart, but of course unintentional.

Yes, you can do that with the GX05 if you are aware of the small limitations. But in return you get quite durable buds and a nice charging cradle made of high-quality metal. Spacy? Yes! Fun too, by the way. Which brings us full circle in the end.