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Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7
As the mid-range offering in its wireless earbud lineup, the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 aim to deliver all the key performance functionality you need. While these earbuds may not offer the extensive feature set of its more expensive siblings the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX9, they are by no means cheap. In our Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 review, we’re putting the earbuds through our testing to find out if they are in the ideal Goldilocks zone between price and performance.
Editor’s note: this is the first version of the article. Updates will follow as the market changes.
If you regularly work out, you’ll likely enjoy the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 for the earbuds secure fit, good ANC, and bass-heavy sound.
What’s it like to use the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7?
Unlike most earbuds that are made from slippery plastic, the earbuds and charging case of the ATH-TWX7 are wrapped in a soft matte finish. The material is soft in the hands and ears, and provides enough grip to prevent the case from slipping out of my pocket and the earbuds from slipping out of my ears. Because of this, I’m a big fan of the design of the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7.
Audio-Technica didn’t skimp on the little details with the design. The charging case has a unique tapered design that fits nicely in the same pocket as my wallet and keys. An included cloth pouch makes it easy to keep the earbuds, charging cable, and extra ear tips together. Speaking of those ear tips, Audio-Technica includes a whopping eight ear tip options to choose from. You can choose from soft or firmer silicone ear tips in four different sizing options each. The differences between the two different materials are minimal (I would rather see a foam ear tips option), but it’s still more fit options than you get with most earbuds.
An IPX4 water-resistance rating means you don’t have to worry about sweat, rain, or accidental splashes of water with these earbuds. Combined with the grippy earbud coating, lightweight design, and ear tip options, I found the ATH-TWX7 makes for a great gym companion.
How do you control the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7?
The Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 have both physical button controls and tap sensors on each earbud. The physical buttons are used to answer calls, adjust volume, and control music playback. On the other hand, you can use the tap controls to switch between listening modes and activate your voice assistant.
| Left earbud tap | Right earbud tap | Left earbud button | Right earbud button | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Single tap | Left earbud tap Unassigned | Right earbud tap Unassigned | Left earbud button Increase volume, answer call | Right earbud button Play/pause, answer call |
Double tap | Left earbud tap Talk-Through | Right earbud tap Talk-Through | Left earbud button Decrease volume | Right earbud button Next track, mute microphone |
Press and hold | Left earbud tap ANC, Hear-Through modes | Right earbud tap Voice assistant | Left earbud button End call | Right earbud button End call |
Triple tap | Left earbud tap | Right earbud tap | Left earbud button | Right earbud button Previous track |
Should you use the A-T Connect app for the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7?
You should use the A-T Connect app to get the most from your Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 earbuds. It has all the features you would expect from a companion app including a custom equalizer, ambience control, and firmware updates. In terms of unique features, Audio-Technica includes timer functionality for the earbuds, soundscapes, and a music player. There’s nothing too special going on with the app, but I am a big fan of its minimalist design.
How do the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 connect?
The Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 connect to devices using Bluetooth 5.1. Seeing as this is an outdated version of Bluetooth, you don’t get support for features like Auracast. On the positive side, the earbuds support the LDAC codec, in addition to the standard AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs. LDAC is capable of Hi-Res streaming at up to 24-bit/96kHz. With Bluetooth multipoint support, you can pair to multiple devices at the same time.
If the earbuds do not automatically enter pairing mode when you open the charging case, you can force pairing mode following these steps:
- Place both earbuds inside the charging case.
- Touch and hold the touch sensors of each earbud for 4 seconds.
- When the light on both earbuds turns orange, release your fingers and remove the earbuds from the charging case.
- You can now pair the earbuds to your device.
How long does the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 battery last?
In our battery testing, the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 last 4 hours and 29 minutes of playback on a single charge. This is poor battery life for wireless earbuds. Not only does the small battery limit your initial use, it means battery degradation will render the earbuds all but useless within a few years.
The charging case provides a few extra charges, with Audio Technica saying it’s possible to get up to 20 hours of total battery life. You can power up the case on a wireless charging pad, or use USB-C for faster charging.
Audio-Technica says that the ATH-TWX7 earbuds take 1.5 hours to fully charge, while the case takes 3 hours to fully charge. This is a pretty slow charging time.
How well do the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 cancel noise?
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The Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 do a good job of blocking out environmental noise. Even without noise canceling enabled, the secure fit from the ear tips passively isolate a noticeable amount of high-frequency noise. Enabling ANC provides about 15dB of additional attenuation up to 3kHz. This means the earbuds do a great job of blocking out sounds such as an airplane engine and people talking.
For staying aware of your surroundings, the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 have a Hear-Through mode that amplifies surrounding noise. I find it easy to hold a conversation with another person while the Hear-Through mode is enabled, even if it doesn’t sound quite as natural as without the earbuds in the ears.
How do the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 sound?
The Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 have mediocre sound quality. Out of the box, the earbuds have a focus on bass, but it is easy to adjust the sound using the app equalizer.
Multi-Dimensional Audio Quality Scores (MDAQS)
The chart below shows how the sound of the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 was assessed by the Multi-Dimensional Audio Quality Score (MDAQS) algorithm from HEAD acoustics.
A simulated panel of listeners rates the default sound of the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 fairly well. On a scale from 1-5, the ATH-TWX7 receive an Overall score of 4.5, which means that most people will enjoy the way that these earbuds sound.
Timbre (MOS-T) represents how faithfully the earbuds reproduce the frequency spectrum and temporal resolution (timing information).
Distortion (MOS-D) represents non-linearities and added noise: higher scores mean cleaner reproduction.
Immersiveness (MOS-I) represents perceived source width and positioning: how well virtual sound sources are defined in three-dimensional space.
See here for an explanation of MDAQS, how it works, and how it was developed.
Reviewer’s notes
Editor’s note: this review uses a hover-enabled glossary to describe sound quality based on a consensus vocabulary. You can read about it here.
Objective Measurements
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The chart above compares the default frequency response of the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 to our headphone preference curve. As you can see, the earbuds emphasize low-frequencies below 300Hz by about 5dB more than our preference curve. On the other hand, the earbuds under-emphasize frequencies around 500Hz and 3kHz compared to our target. This means that on any song that has a lot going on in the low-end such as “Just Let Go” by Kirel, the vocals sound too quiet.
There are five different equalizer presets for the ATH-TWX7, or you can make your own. Below, we’ve outlined a couple of the EQ presets.
Bass Boost EQ Preset
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The Bass Boost EQ amplifies bass frequencies by up to 10dB more than our preference curve. This makes bass elements sound twice as loud.
Clear Vocal EQ Preset
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Enabling the Clear Vocal EQ preset slightly reduces the bass and boosts the mid frequencies. This amplifies the most common frequencies in the human voice.
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ANC has a significant impact on the sound of the ATH-TWX7. Disabling ANC results in less emphasis on low frequencies.
Can you use the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 for phone calls?
The Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 work well for phone calls. The microphones do an excellent job of reproducing the voice. Within the app you can select from either a Natural Mode or Noise-Reduction Mode for the microphone. The Natural Mode reproduces your voice accurately but requires a quiet environment. On the other hand, the Noise-Reduction Mode is optimal for taking calls outdoors in noisy environments. Our microphone demonstrations below were recorded using the Natural Mode, which is the default setting.
Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 microphone demo (Ideal conditions):
How does the microphone sound to you?
Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 microphone demo (Office conditions):
Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 microphone demo (Street conditions):
Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 microphone demo (Windy conditions):
Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 microphone demo (Reverberant space):
The Natural Mode struggles to attenuate background noise from an office or street. If you plan on taking calls in noisy environments, you’ll want to make sure you enable the Noise-Reduction Mode.
Should you buy the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7?
At a price of $199, the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 probably aren’t worth it for most people. The main problem with the ATH-TWX7 is that they aren’t built to last. The short battery life and older Bluetooth version means you’ll probably want new earbuds in a couple of years. Some of the best earbuds on the market are around this price, and they have more features without any notable drawbacks, so I recommend looking around before jumping on the ATH-TWX7.
That said, if you can find the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 on sale, or don’t care about longevity, you’ll be happy with these earbuds. Most people will enjoy the sound quality, the ANC is great, and the plethora of ear tip options ensures almost everyone will get a snug fit.
How do the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 compare to the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX9?
For $299 at Amazon, the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX9 offer more features. It comes with 12 different sizes of ear tips, multiple ANC modes, Bluetooth 5.2 with aptX Adaptive, and longer battery life. Some more unique features include deep-UV sterilization and Snapdragon Sound. If those features sound appealing, then the extra cost may be worth it to you. Otherwise, the sound quality and core functionality are the same.
What should you get instead of the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7?
My top recommendation within this budget are the Nothing Ear, $149 at Amazon. These earbuds sound great and are packed full of features. They are also some of the most comfortable earbuds on the market, and have nearly double the battery life of the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7.
Another great option are the Creative Aurvana Ace 2, $149.99 at Amazon. These earbuds have exceptional sound quality thanks to their xMEMS dual-driver system.
Frequently asked questions
You can use the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX& with both iPhone and Android. That said, you can only take advantage of the high streaming quality of LDAC with a supported Android device.
Yes, since the earbuds have a secure fit, sweat-resistance, and lots of bass, I found the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 are great for working out.
The Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 are very comfortable. They come with eight different sizes and types of ear tips to ensure a secure fit.
The earbuds are IPX4 rated, which means they are resistant to accidental splashes of water, but you should not submerge them in water.
Yes, the Audio-Technica ATH-TWX7 support Bluetooth multipoint to connect to multiple devices.