1MORE SonoFlow Pro Review – Must Buy Budget Headphones

Hey, welcome to the review of the 1More SonoFlow Pro noise-cancelling (model: HQ51) headphones. In this review I’ll compare the SonoFlow Pro with the previous SonoFlow model, highlighting the improvements and if it’s worth the upgrade.

The Pro supports dual connectivity, allowing you to connect to two devices simultaneously. If one device is a cell phone, it’ll pause music on your computer to let you answer calls. To activate dual connectivity, enable it in the app under the experimental feature section. Despite being labelled experimental, it performed solidly in my tests.

As for device memory, there’s no official information from 1More, but I managed to connect three devices without needing to pair them again, which should suffice for most users.

Accessories

Included accessories are a hard travel case, which is a pleasant surprise at this price point since some mid-tier headphones only offer a soft case. You’ll also find the auxiliary cable and a USB-A to USB-C cable measuring about seven inches. Unfortunately, it’s not pure USB-C.

The accessories included with the Pro are similar to the previous SonoFlow version.

Design & Comfort

The Pro’s design is simple but sleek. I’m a fan of the original SonoFlow design, and since the Pro looks identical, I’ve no complaints. The 1More logo contrasts nicely, except on the grey model where it blends in with the headphone colour. Speaking of colours, the Pro is available in three: denim blue (which I have), black, and grey.

The Pro supports a folding design just like the previous version and weighs a decent 246g.

The body is firm and well-constructed, enduring significant abuse during testing. No expense spared on materials.

The Pro is likely not dust or water-resistant, with no mention on 1More’s website or documentation. Avoid getting them wet.

In my testing, I wore the headphones for three hours with and without glasses—no discomfort, sweaty ears, or irritation. However, I don’t recommend them for workouts as they can cause excessive sweating.

The headband flexes well and doesn’t squeeze too tightly. The ear cups’ cushioning is soft and thick, adding to comfort. The headband cushioning is generous, comparable to premium devices over $400 CAD, making it great for those with little to no hair.

The headband adjusts in notches, and the ear cups rotate excellently in all directions. Replacing ear pads can be done via third-party retailers like Amazon, eBay, and AliExpress. Interestingly enough those 3^rd party retailers list the original SonoFlow and SonoFlow Pro earpads as compatible.

When resting on the neck, the ear cups can be a bit large, making it slightly uncomfortable to look down. However, folding them down alleviates this, providing a comfortable experience.

The overall design and comfort are nearly identical to the original SonoFlow.

Controls

All controls are on the right ear cup. The front multi-action button powers the headphones on/off and enters Bluetooth pairing mode when held. A single tap plays/pauses content or answers/hangs up calls. Double tapping activates your smart assistant. Testing with Android and Google Assistant showed it worked well, though it lacked the chime sound present in the original SonoFlow. The chime indicating to let you know when Google is listening for a command.

On the back of the right ear cup, the volume down button at the bottom skips to the next track when held, and the volume up button above it returns to the previous track when held. This layout is opposite to most headphones where holding the volume up button skips to the next track and holding volume down returns to the previous track. This logical flow is missed in both the original and Pro models, requiring a learning curve to get accustomed to the commands. It’s frustrating because they had the opportunity to fix this with the Pro but didn’t.

The ANC button cycles through ANC, transparency mode, and regular mode.

There’s no passive play/pause mode, meaning if you take the headphones off while content is playing, it won’t automatically pause and resume when you put them back on. This feature isn’t expected in budget-friendly headphones, but it’s worth mentioning.

Noise Cancelling

Active noise cancelling mode works well for plane travel. Despite its low price, it effectively cancels out noise, allowing you to enjoy music or podcasts. You might need to increase the volume to 60-70% to hear podcasts clearly, but this doesn’t cause discomfort. The Pro performs slightly better than the original SonoFlow in cancelling low pitch, high volume sounds like plane engines. This is impressive considering it’s low price.

The Pro handles high-pitched sounds like vocals and general noisy environments similarly to the original SonoFlow. At a bus station with lots of chatter, you can listen to news or podcasts at about 50% volume, which is impressive given their price.

The Pro ANC performance rivals headphones at almost double the price.

Transparency mode, as mentioned earlier, allows you to hear your surroundings but isn’t as effective as ANC. Sounds are muffled, like listening to someone behind a partially open door. Oddly, using transparency mode makes my voice sound extremely muffled, but it’s not a big deal.

Passive noise cancelling is decent with a good seal, but the exceptional battery life makes regular headphone mode unnecessary.

There’s no sidetone mode, which lets you hear your own voice and surroundings during calls. This feature is rare in low to mid-tier headphones, so it’s not expected here.

Battery

The battery is spectacular. 1More claims 65 hours of ANC playback at 50% volume; my tests at 60% volume matched this. Even more impressive, regular mode without ANC or transparency mode claims 100 hours; I achieved 111 hours at 60% volume! This outstanding performance far surpasses the original SonoFlow, which managed 78 hours in regular mode compared to the claimed 70.

The Pro’s battery life is a major selling point, along with its upgraded Bluetooth technology.

To recharge the headphones, it takes about an hour and 20 minutes, which matched my testing. This fast, rapid recharging is impressive. The USB-C charging port is located on the bottom of the left ear cup.

Microphone Quality

When using the microphone in a quiet place, the quality is slightly lower than that of a laptop microphone. While everything is understandable, there’s a faint robotic static after each word. Nothing to ruin it but is expected performance for this price.

In a noisy environment, the microphone does a decent job of cancelling most surrounding noise. Some minor noise comes through as mumbling, which is expected at this price point.

In a windy setting, the microphones performed poorly. Although I appreciate the affordability of the headphones, it’s important to note that wind is their Achilles’ heel. Some minor wind noise comes through, but most of it is blocked out. However, in doing so, the technology seems to cut out parts of my own voice.

Audio Quality

The headphones support SBC, AAC, and LDAC codecs. Most of my audio testing was done with LDAC. Straight out of the box, the sound quality was better than expected for this price point, with balanced bass, mids, and highs.

The equalizer in the app allows for better performance adjustment than the original SonoFlow, with bass packing a slightly bigger punch. While it won’t deliver thumping bass like some mid-tier headphones, it performs well without distorting the audio, even at high volumes. Vocals come through nicely, even in songs with heavy bass.

Vocals are clearer when you lower the bass and increase the vocals. Although not magical, the Pro does a good job of highlighting vocals without sacrificing other audio elements.

Increasing the highs is where the original SonoFlow lacked, but the Pro makes them more energetic and emphasized. It’s not a game-changer but adds liveliness and richness to your music.

For glasses wearers, audio is similar to other over-ear headphones—perfectly fine except for bass, which leaks due to the glasses. To get full bass performance, you’ll need earbuds.

Software

Diving into the app, you can switch between ANC modes and the equalizer. Key functions like LDAC mode, latency mode, and spatial audio should be on the home page but are under a shortcuts section. Spatial audio mimics listening to speakers when you turn your head but doesn’t work well. Navigation issues in the app make it cumbersome.

Settings in the app are limited, mainly for firmware upgrades and disabling ads (yes, you read that correctly so just disable ads). I performed a firmware upgrade right out of the box.

The app is basic, which may bother some, but as long as it covers key functions, it’s fine. My main issue is the occasional unresponsiveness. Sometimes the app wouldn’t register my tap commands.

Conclusion

Not many people know about the 1More brand, but they should. The Pro version is spectacular, with a lower price and slightly better performance in some areas compared to the original SonoFlow. The battery life is vastly superior, with ANC and audio quality being marginally better. If you already own the original SonoFlow, there’s no need to upgrade. However, if you’re looking for affordable headphones, these are a top choice, excelling in many areas.

Overall, the Pro is one of the best budget headphones available. Hands down. Absolutely worth checking out. I highly recommend it.