Sony WH-CH720N – affordable and practical
21/3/2023
Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson
A pair of headphones with state-of-the-art noise cancelling needn’t cost you an arm and a leg. Yes, the WH-CH720N comes with some trade-offs compared to more high-end models, but it’s good value for money.
The most popular noise-cancelling headphones have one thing in common: they’re expensive. The Sony WH-1000XM5 cost a solid 449 francs when they were launched in May 2022. Although the price has dropped in the meantime, this still begs the question if a cheaper model will do. The new Sony WH-CH720N have a recommended retail price of 149 francs at launch. At the moment, you’re even looking at under 100 francs for them.
First impressions
As I unbox the headphones, they feel a bit flimsy. That’s mainly because they’re very lightweight. I put them on and can hardly tell I’m wearing 190 grammes. The headphones cup my ears very well, already blocking out some ambient noise. Admittedly, this could make for sweaty ears in the summer. What’s more, they’re on the small side if you have large ears.
The design is unremarkably average. Definitely not as elegant as the XM5 with its seamless surface. The WH-CH720N don’t have a touch surface, but are operated via buttons. I prefer buttons to touch gestures anyway, even if it makes the headphones look a little less fancy.
Source: David Lee
What bothers me about the design is that you can’t fold the headphones for transport. This was a point I criticised in my review of the WH-1000XM5. But at least that model comes with a carry case. Not this model, though.
Noise cancelling and ambient mode
I guess the concept with these headphones is that you can keep them on all the time. There’s a button to switch between noise cancelling and ambient mode. Ambient mode is the opposite of noise cancelling. When you’re in ambient mode, microphones relay ambient sounds through your headphones. This means you can hear what’s going on around you and understand everything clearly. The sound quality is good and there’s no audible lag.
The V1 processor used for noise cancelling is the same as the one in the expensive XM5. Therefore, noise cancelling should kick in just as quick.
However, noise cancelling isn’t the same as in the XM5. It’s nowhere near as good at eliminating high tones in particular. On the other hand, it’s pretty effective at erasing low frequencies. The subtle rushing sound caused by the noise cancelling itself is clearly audible when you’re in quiet surroundings. Again, more expensive headphones often fare better in that department.
Impressive sound
The WH-CH720N works with Bluetooth 5.2 and the SBC and AAC codecs. These days, that almost always boils down to AAC, as it’s supported by every source device that’s at least halfway modern.
Sound quality for the headphones is surprisingly good. They deliver clear and detailed sound with a fairly balanced distribution of highs, mids and lows. It can also be easily tweaked in the app’s equaliser.
Measuring the frequency response with miniDSP and REW reveals that mids around 1,500 and 3,500 Hertz are on the quiet side. The headphones slightly overemphasise bass and treble, which probably suits the average user very well.
Source: David Lee
Alternatively, you can also operate the headphones via the included 3.5 mm audio cable. This works both actively and passively, i.e. when they’re switched on or off. As is usually the case, the headphones sound pretty flat and mid-heavy when they’re switched off. This mode is only recommended when the headphones are out of battery. When the amp’s switched on, however, things sound great when you use the cable. The quality’s more precise and therefore more pleasant than via Bluetooth.
Phone calls
The sound quality of phone calls is a weak point of this device. The person on the other end can make out what you’re saying, but that’s about it. The following video was recorded in perfect conditions, which means quiet surroundings. Multipoint, a simultaneous connection with two devices, is disabled. Why? Because multipoint sometimes has a negative effect on voice quality. For comparison, this is the much better voice quality of Sony’s WH-1000XM5.
The difference to the more expensive Sony headphones is less evident in loud surroundings. Ambient noise is audible with both headphones. With the WH-CH720N, noise is a bit more prominent, but you can still understand what I’m saying pretty well.
Cable and battery
The audio cable’s 1.2 metres long and looks solid. The USB-C cable, on the other hand, is very short at 20 centimetres. It’s only used for charging; digital audio transfer isn’t possible via USB.
Sony specifies 35 hours as the battery runtime – even 50 hours without active noise cancelling. That’s excellent and likely to be pretty accurate. After seven hours of listening to music, my battery was still at 80 per cent.
According to Sony, charging takes 3.5 hours. I wasn’t able to check this, as I didn’t drain the battery during my test.
So what else is in the box? Nothing. You need to charge the headphones via your computer or with your own power adapter.
Source: David Lee
App and features
The «headphones» app is the same one as for the more expensive Sony headphones. The WH-CH720N works fine without the app, but gives you a few extra options. These include multipoint, equaliser and other sound optimisations, firmware updates, and oddly, the option to disable noise cancelling. By default, the switch on the headphones can only flip between noise cancelling and ambient mode. In the app, you can customise which modes you want it to switch between.
The headphones don’t pause automatically when you take them off. They lack the sensors to do that. Nor do they turn off automatically when inactive. The only time they do is when there’s no Bluetooth connection.
The verdict: good sound quality, few flaws
The WH-CH720N impress despite their low price. The sound is clear and balanced; particularly when it’s switched and used with a cable. Its battery keeps on going for an extremely long time, and I’d rate its noise cancelling as satisfactory. However, it doesn’t even come close to that of the XM5, in spite of the fact that they use the same processor.
The headphones aren’t foldable nor do they come with a carry case. That and the poor voice quality during calls are the only two weak points, in my opinion. All things considered, the WH-CH720N are everyday headphones that are good value for money.
Header image: Samuel Buchmann
David Lee
Senior Editor
David.Lee@digitecgalaxus.chMy interest in IT and writing landed me in tech journalism early on (2000). I want to know how we can use technology without being used. Outside of the office, I’m a keen musician who makes up for lacking talent with excessive enthusiasm.
