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SoundMagic adds USB-C to its budget earbuds

SoundMagic adds USB-C to its budget earbuds

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The same aluminum construction, now with a built-in DAC

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Image: SoundMagic

SoundMagic is one of the best headphone brands to go to when stepping away from the earbuds that came bundled with your phone, and now the company is adding a USB-C model to its lineup. The SoundMagic E11D are a $60 pair of earbuds with the brand’s classic solid aluminum construction and are perfect for anyone who’s bought one of the numerous Android flagship phones that have dropped the headphone jack over the the past two years.

Although SoundMagic has produced some great headphones in the past, switching from an analogue headphone jack to a digital USB-C port could have a huge impact on how the headphones sound compared to their 3.5mm equivalents. Having this connector means the headphones need to contain their own DAC, or digital to analogue converter, rather than relying on the chip inside the phone. SoundMagic says that the headphone’s DAC is able to handle music up to a hi-res 96kHz / 24-bit, but these raw specs are only part of the story when it comes to sound quality.

They cost $59.99 and are available to order now

Along with the USB-C E11D, the company said that it will soon announce its first pair of true wireless earbuds, the Soundmagic E11TW, as well as an updated pair of wireless earbuds, the SoundMagic E11BT. SoundMagic introduced its first pair of wireless headphones last year.

The SoundMagic E11D USB-C headphones, which cost $59.99 (£59.99 / €64.99) and are available to order now directly from the company, will face some stiff competition from the likes of the OnePlus Type-C Bullets, which we consider to be the essential pair of USB-C earbuds thanks to their unbelievable price-to-performance ratio. At three times the price, the SoundMagic E11D will have to beat them by a comfortable margin to win our approval.