The Swiss company has recently expanded into consumer audio electronics. Do these high-end earphones excel in sound?
Product on Review: ARCTIC COOLING Arctic Sound E361-WM EarphonesManufacturer and Sponsor: ARCTIC COOLING
MSRP: 41,45€ / US$ 60.95
Street Price: Unknown
ARCTIC COOLING has become known for their computer hardware that balances performance and quiet-operation. To my recollection, ARCTIC COOLING made their mark in the market with their Freezer series, value-priced CPU coolers that offered quiet-operation and good cooling capabilities to the average consumer’s PC. As time passed, ARCTIC COOLING has added many CPU coolers, fans and GPU coolers to their line-up. Again, with their Accelero S1 GPU coolers, ARCTIC COOLING filled the niche of value passively cooled GPU cooling. Without a doubt, optimizing products to reduce noise has been a focal point in ARCTIC COOLING’s vision.
Recently, ARCTIC COOLING has expanded to another market of noise-related products: consumer audio electronics. In particular, a dynamic line of earphones has been announced by the Swiss company (see Press Release). These several new earphones seek to offer excellent sound and features at great value. Today, Vortez Hardware will review one of ARCTIC COOLING’s top earphones, the white Arctic Sound E361 (E361-WM) with microphone.
About ARCTIC COOLING:
| Who we are? ARCTIC COOLING is a privately owned company founded in 2001 with headquarters in Switzerland, offices in Hong Kong and the USA and production facilities in Asia. The ARCTIC COOLING team consists of international highly educated people with business, technical and communicational skills. The attitude to work is based on Swiss principles of innovative spirit and high standards of workmanship for which it is recognized internationally. This striving for excellence is integrated in all processes as a matter of course. ARCTIC COOLING´s core competencies are multifarious including systematic noise reduction,copper and aluminum heatsink development, customization of thermal solutions, as well as designing quiet fans. More recently quiet and cool PC Cases and Power Supplies have been developed. |
Features and Specifications
ARCTIC COOLING’s current line of earphones range from as low as US$ 1.95 to US$ 69.95 and the E-series includes 6 different earphones, each with features that mark one from another. The ARCTIC COOLING E361-WM is part of ARTIC COOLING’s high end E-series. Other than the prices, differentiating the standard, mid-range and high-end classes of the company’s line-up would normally be difficult for the average consumer. Thankfully, ARTIC COOLING has made a chart that shows each earphone’s score over 10 on the following aspects: bass, highs, clarity, noise isolation and comfort. This should give anyone a good idea on which ARCTIC COOLING earphones to pick for their needs. It would have been interesting, however, if the company gave some information regarding their testing methodology.The Arctic Sound E361 headphones come in either black or white and with a microphone or not. The microphone is compatible with either a PC or a mobile phone, such as an iPhone. It uses a special TRRS plug that combines stereo sound and microphone on a single plug. In terms of price, the E361-WM is on the slight expensive side at 41,45€ / US$ 60.95. Nevertheless, high-end earphones can cost much more than that and do not include a microphone. The price might well be justified if the E361-WM perform as well as ARCTIC COOLING says it does.
Link: Arctic Cooling
Features
| Its unique aluminium chassis and large drivers deliver deep bass and precise highs right into your ear canals. The ultra-soft silicone caps in multiple sizes block most outside noise, giving you comfort fit and undisturbed audio experience. * Large driver coil leads to ultimate bass performance * The precisely milled aluminium chassis transmits a perfect balance of high and low frequencies * 3 sets of silicone caps (S, M, L) minimize ambient noise and enrich bass response * Ultra-soft material fits gently in your ears providing hours of wearing comfort * Gold-plated stereo plug for uncompromised signal transmission |
Specifications
Packaging and Contents
The ARCTIC COOLING E361-WM comes in very stylish silver, black and white packaging. These colours are those that the company typically uses, such as on their logo, and they match the product very well. Albeit slightly large for such a small product, the front of the package is very inviting with its clear plastic window. The earphones, the microphone, the 3.5 mm stereo plug and the earphones’ case can be easily spotted.
The front of the packaging
The back of the packaging shows a thorough list of the features and specifications that can be read from ARCTIC COOLING’s product webpage. Languages used here are English, German, French and Spanish.
The back of the packaging
The box can either be opened from the top of the bottom. Once opened, a plastic shell can be pulled out.
The plastic shell with the product inside
The earphones and its accessories are easily taken out of the plastic shell. I did find that the earphones’ cables were too tightly held in place by some plastic tabs, however, to the point that I felt that the thin cable would snap. Some tape is used to hold the earphone case in place. With everything taken out of the packaging, we see that various things are included with the product: the Arctic Sound E361-WM, an ARCTIC COOLING sticker, a cable clip for attaching the earphones’ cable to your clothes, a manual, an adapter cable for the sound and microphone usage on a PC, and three sets of silicone caps (small, medium and large). Without a doubt, a very nice bundle is included with these earphones.
The package contents
Overall Look
The Arctic Sound E361 earphones that Vortez Hardware is reviewing today are the white one, which should nicely complement any white portable device or mobile phone. Notice that black E361 headphones are also available. These earphones feature a beautiful silver aluminum chassis and they have a slight angle to them. Their V-like shape should ensure that they fit into the ear canal tighter and more comfortably. As with any other in-ear earphones, a good ear canal seal is essential to get proper sound performance, especially for the bass. The silicone caps can be easily taken off the earphones to be washed, if wished. These caps are much softer than my other in-ear headphones, the Creative Labs 630. The earphones have a very generous length: 1.30m. For usage with a portable device, this is more than enough.
The Arctic Sound E361 earphones
The silicone cap removed
The microphone is located on the left earphone’s cable at about half way from the cable’s bifurcation. Using my body as reference, the microphone is at the level of the laryngeal prominence, commonly known as Adam’s apple, which should be a pretty good level for the microphone to pick up your voice. The cable’s bifurcation is located at about 30 cm away from the earphones. It is an acceptable distance, but those that would like to modify it are out of luck. A plastic piece with AC written over it is held in place.
The microphone
The earphones’ bifurcation
The Arctic Sound E361-WM features a TRRS connector, which is basically a 3.5mm stereo-plus-mic jack. In other words, stereo sound and microphone run across the single connector, and depending on which mobile device you use, this eliminates the need of an adapter. Devices that do not support it will need to use the included adapter that splits the TRRS connector into two 3.5mm jacks: one for stereo and another for the microphone. Such an adapter will be needed if you want to use both the earphones and the microphone on a PC. The plug that ARCTIC COOLING opted for is a 90° design and it is fairly bulky. At times, I felt that the plug interfered with the handling of my portable media device.
The 3.5mm TRRS connector with a 90° design
Closer Look: Accessories
As mentioned earlier, the Arctic Sound E361-WM comes with various accessories: a case, a TRRS adapter, two extra pairs of silicone caps, a cable clip and a neat ARCTIC COOLING sticker. The latter is a nice addition, but it is quite peculiar to include such a sticker with earphones. A sticker included with computer hardware is usually a case badge. I suppose this sticker can be used as a case badge as well, though you might decide to use it on your mobile phone or portable media player.
The included accessories: an adapter, a case, silicone caps, a cable clip and a sticker
The included earphone case is very strong. It has a very tight zipper and, inside, the earphones can be wrapped around the center. Given the fact that these earphones have an MSRP of 41,45€ / US$ 60.95, protecting your investment is a must. Nevertheless, I feel that most users will not be using this case if they are going to use the earphones with a portable device. Carrying and using the case would be too tedious in such a situation.
The sturdy case
Again, the Arctic Sound E361-WM comes with a microphone that can be used thanks to its TRRS connector. For devices that do not support TRRS connectors, an adapter that splits it into two 3.5mm connectors (stereo and microphone) will have to be used. Unlike the TRRS plug, the adapter uses much smaller plugs that are straight and not 90°. I feel that ARCTIC COOLING should have opted for a similar and smaller design for the TRRS plug.
The adapter installed
Three different pairs of silicone caps are included with the earphones. The medium-sized ones are pre-installed onto the earphones and they should give a comfortable fit into most users’ ear canals. If it does not, the small or large caps can be easily installed onto the E361-WM. Like any other in-ear earphones, a good ear canal seal is essential for good sound (through isolation) and comfort.
Three pairs of silicone caps: small, medium and large
Installation and Usage
Like most earphones, the Arctic Sound E361-WM uses a 3.5mm connector. Mobiles devices that support TRRS plugs may use the earphones and the microphone without the adapter. For mobile phones that use a special connector, ARCTIC COOLING writes the following:| For using the headphones with Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Samsung and LG mobile phones, you can purchase an adapter cable at headphones.arctic-cooling.com for US$4.95 (incl. worldwide shipping). |
Strangely enough, the supplied URL does not seem to be working. Accessing ARCTIC COOLING’s webshop (Link: Webshop) and searching through it was unfruitful as well.
For PC users, the Arctic Sound E361-WM can be plugged directly to an audio port. If you are looking to use the microphone as well as the earphones, you will need to use the supplied adapter and plug each ends to its proper port.
Link: Download “User Manual”
The adapter installed
Test System and Testing Methodology
Testing Methodology
Music will be played on a desktop and a portable media player to evaluate the sound quality of the Arctic Sound E361-WM. The microphone will be tested with a few calls through Skype and with the Sound Recorder bundled with Windows 7
Benchmarks
– Sound Quality: Music in foobar2000 1.00 and on a portable media device
– Microphone Quality: Skype 4.1.0.179 and Microsoft Windows Sound Recorder 6.1
Test Setup: Portable Media Device
– Samsung YP-K3 2GB Black
Test Setup: Computer
– CPU: AMD Athlon X2 5000+ Black Edition @ 2.6 GHz 1.15V (Bios undervolted)
– Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H 780G (Bios F4)
– RAM: Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X4096-6400C5 PC2-6400 2x2GB
– Case: Antec NSK3480 mATX
– Power supply: Antec” rel=”nofollow”>Antec – EA 380 EarthWatts 380W
– CPU cooler: Noctua NH-U12P with Noctua NF-P12 @ 5V
– Case fan: Noctua NF-P12 @ 5V
– Hard drive 1: Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB
– Hard drive 2: Hitachi DeskStar T7K500 HDT725025VLAT80 250GB
– DVD Drive: LG GH22NS30 DVD Writer
– OS: Windows 7 Ultimate (x64)
– Mouse pad: QPAD|UC Large
– Monitor: Dell E207WFP 20” TN
Test Results: Sound Quality and Microphone
Sound QualityThe first song that was played was “Ulaid” by E.S. Posthumus. Ulaid was released with E.S. Posthumus’ first album entitled “Unearthed”, back in 2001. This independent music group’s genre is orchestral with a cinematic style. Ulaid has a celtic tone due to its usage of bagpipes. The track has rhythmic high and lows and an overall ambient feel. The Arctic Cooling E361-WM produced superb sound throughout the song.
The second song that was played was “M.A.D” by Hadouken!. The song was recently released on the band’s second album entitled “For the Masses”. It has a very heavy usage of bass that can easily mask the highs in the song. Nevertheless, the Arctic Cooling E361-WM kept good balance between the highs and bass, and the clarity was top notch.
The third and final song, or piece, that was played was “ Grande Polonaise brillante in E-flat major” composed by Chopin. The version of this piece that I had was from the soundtrack of The Pianist. Like most classical music, every note contributes to the overall enjoyment of the music, and clarity is a must. Without a doubt, the E361-WM excelled in this aspect.
Unfortunately, like most in-ear headphones, you can hear the cables tap your shirt, which could be problematic and annoying if you are planning to use these earphones while running. Unlike the Creative Labs EP-630, however, the Arctic Sound E361-WM did not make at scratching sounds when the cable ran across my shirt. This makes using these headphones bearable for jogging.
Overall, the Arctic Sound earphones have superb bass compared to my Creative Labs EP-630. I was surprised that earphones could pack as much bass as this one did. I’ve always thought that only full-sized headphones could deliver in such aspect. Furthermore, the E361-WM’s bass was not enough to muffle out the highs and clarity was not sacrificed.
The Arctic Sound E361-WM with the Samsung YP-K3
Microphone Sound Quality
A few calls to my friends were made through Skype. Microphone sound quality, as indicated by my friends, was good and they did not notice any difference between the microphone of the E361-WM’s and that of my usual Logitech Quickcam Fusion.
I recited a few sentences and recorded it using the Sound Recorder of Windows 7. To my surprise, sound quality was loud and clear. Although I do not have a mobile phone on hand to test the E361-WM’s microphone with, I am sure that it will sound good.
Comfort
The Arctic Sound E361-WM come with very soft silicone caps that fit snugly into your ears. Given the fact that it comes with three different pairs of silicone caps, you can pick the size that will fit your ear canal the most. In my situation, the medium-sized ones were perfect. Initially, I found it difficult to hook the earphones onto my ears because of its unconventional shape. A bit of practice was only needed.
While jogging, the headphones did not fall out of my ears and stayed on tightly. After using these headphones for a continuous 2 hours, my ear canals did not feel sore or humid. In other words, these ARCTIC COOLING earphones excelled in comfort.
Conclusion
ARTIC COOLING’s expertise in fan design and computer hardware cooling has been acclaimed and well received by many consumers. Given the Swiss company’s vision on optimizing quiet-operation, their transition to consumer audio electronics would seem natural. Among the several earphones now in their product line-up, the Arctic Sound E361-WM belongs to the high-end class by providing great bass, highs, clarity, noise isolation and comfort, according to the company.Through a dozen hours of usage, it was evident that the Arctic Sound E361-WM excelled in all aspects of sound quality. Although it did pack a nice punch in bass, the earphones did not sacrifice highs. Music, as played on a portable media player, was as clear as it should be. Comfort, even after prolong use, was not changed. Indeed, my ears were neither sore nor humid. Aside from that, the included microphone’s quality was just good as you would expect.
With a price tag hovering at 41,45€ / US$ 60.95, expectations on these earphones were high. ARCTIC COOLING delivered in all aspects by providing great sound and a quality microphone. The included accessories were also quite nice, with the cable clip, the extra pairs of silicone caps and the case.
The Arctic Cooling E361-WM
By excelling in both sound and microphone sound quality, ARCTIC COOLING’s Arctic Sound E361-WM earphones are ideal for both PC and mobile device usage. It is awarded Vortez Hardware’s Gold Award.
Pros
+ Beautiful aluminum and silver chassis
+ Long-lasting comfort
+ Quality microphone
+ Superb sound quality
+ TRRS connector
+ Very good bass
Cons
– Bulky 90 degree 3.5mm plug
– Slightly large packaging
Vortez Hardware would like to thank ARCTIC COOLING for supplying this product sample. We hope to see more ARCTIC COOLING reviews on our website soon.
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