- Orange ‘O’ Edition MK II ANC Headphones advertised
- 40 mm drivers, 50-hour battery life, customized ANC and 10-band EQ
- $ 229 / £ 169 / Around AU $ 352
Orange has announced new headphones and I think it’s missed out on a central trick again: Although they turn out to be the best headphones ever made, they don’t look much orange.
What I mean by that is that orange is one of the most recognizable brands in sound thanks to a very consistent visual style. Whether it’s a Thunderbird 50 guitar amplifier or orange box bluetooth speaker, if it’s orange, it’s orange.
But the new orange ‘O’ edition MK II ANC headphones are not. And its former headphones were not either.
I think it’s a shame because orange has generally been very true to its decades long history of iconic, orange-colored amplifiers.
Marshall has always absolutely spiced this, so for example, its latest Bluetooth speakers look like small Marshall amplifiers, and its Bluetooth headphones look like someone that is locked Tiny Marshall speakers to your ears.
But in my eyes, these new orange headphones look like they might as well just be Sony headphones in a custom McLaren Colorway. Marshall’s stuff is cool because it causes Rock and Roll in a way that indelibly tied to the design of guitar equipment – is that the mood you get here?
Orange ‘O’ Edition MKII: Key Functions and Pricing
Looks aside, the specification here appears to be decent: 40 mm close voting riders, ANC with three preset modes and adjustment in the app, a 10-band customizable EQ and touch checks on the right headphone.
There is Bluetooth 5.2, an included 3.5 mm AUX cable for wired connections and up to 50 hours of battery life-with a 15-minute quick charge that delivers an alleged seven hour playing time.
And the price is also competitive: $ 229 / £ 169 / Around AU $ 352. It puts it in line with Sennheiser Accentum Plus or Sony Ult headphones-good middle-class products, and more good-sounding players in this region among the best noise-reducing headphones are possible.
The orange ‘O’ edition MK II ANC headphones can be purchased now.
I understand why these are not light orange in a world where headphones tend to be black or beige. But I still think it’s a bit like Nike sneakers without swoosh, adidas without the stripes, Netflix without Tu-Dum: The whole reason why orange amps are orange was to make them stand out from their non-more-black rivals.
