Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC vs Liberty 4 Review
I have written a detailed review of the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC and how they compare to the Liberty 4 on the main Mighty Gadget website.
This article focuses on the specific differences and provides a brief overview of how much difference they make in the performance (based on my subjective opinion).
Soundcore Liberty 4 NC Review vs Liberty 4 Specification
Soundcore Liberty 4 NC Review vs Liberty 4 Differences
The Soundcore Liberty 4 NC earbuds boast an impressive feature set that sets them apart from the competition. One of their standout qualities is their Adaptive ANC 2.0, which intelligently adapts to both your surroundings and the unique characteristics of your ears. By analyzing external and internal sounds through in-ear and external sensors, coupled with a powerful 512-order FIR filter, the Liberty 4 NC achieves exceptional real-time noise cancellation, effectively reducing unwanted noise by up to 98.5%.
In addition to their cutting-edge noise cancellation, the Liberty 4 NC also boasts an improved battery life, a common advantage often found in affordable earbuds. This could be attributed to the optimized power consumption resulting from the efficient ANC implementation and the overall design of the drivers.
While the Liberty 4 NC may lack the fitness features present in the Liberty 4 model, the absence of these features is not a significant loss. Although the concept of fitness tracking is appealing, the HR tracking function does not integrate with any other apps, limiting its usefulness. However, there is potential for improvement in future iterations as the technology evolves. After thoroughly reviewing the earbuds, the fitness tracking features were rarely utilized.
The primary distinguishing factor between the Liberty 4 NC and the Liberty 4 lies in their driver designs. The Liberty 4 NC features a custom 11mm driver, whereas the Liberty 4 claims to deliver premium sound quality through the implementation of ACAA 3.0 and a dual dynamic driver design, complemented by an additional treble tube for direct ear delivery. This combination enables the Liberty 4 to extend Hi-Res sound reproduction up to an impressive 40kHz.
Moreover, the Liberty 4 incorporates Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking, providing a captivating experience that immerses you in the centre of the soundstage, tailored to your personal preferences. On the other hand, the Liberty 4 NC features 3D sound, which, although distinct, should not be confused with the spatial audio technology found in the Liberty 4.
Soundcore Liberty 4 NC Review vs Liberty 4 Differences
I won’t go into detail about the performance differences in this post, you will want to read my full review.
Active Noise Cancelling Differences
The standout feature of the Liberty 4 NC is its innovative environment detection mode. When activated, this mode allows the earbuds to temporarily mute audio for 2 seconds, during which they intelligently analyze and adapt to the external environment. By utilising both external and in-ear sound inputs in real-time, the earbuds adjust their noise reduction settings for optimal performance and personalized noise cancellation.
In terms of actual performance, the differences are subtle. I think for general day to day use when you are walking around, Liberty 4 NC do adapt better than the Liberty 4.
I also tested the ANC using a more intense synthetic test, playing airplane cabin noise on my Edifier S3000 Pro speakers at 80% volume. At this volume, you can physically feel the low end and hear the cabin noise throughout my house, so it is annoyingly loud.
With this test, both were good, but different. The Liberty 4 NC seemed to leave a little bit of the low-end/sub-bass, it wasn't loads, but it was noticeable, whereas the Liberty 4 did a better job at removing that.
However, the Liberty 4 NC did a better job at removing some of the upper-end hiss. Not many earbuds do this very well, and it could be that the isolation was a bit better, though the overall fit felt identical.
Sound Quality Differences
The sound quality is an interesting one, and I think it may have some divisive opinions when buyers review them.
The Liberty 4 are technically better from a hardware point of view with the dual driver design and treble tube.
However, quite a few people have criticised them for being overly bright and being piercing. I personally hadn't noticed it THAT much, it was only when I was switching between the two did I start to understand where those comments came from.
The Liberty 4 definitely has a sharper high end, I don't normally like this, but I have been listening to them consistently since February, so I don't think they are that harsh to listen to. While they are sharper than the Liberty 4 NC, I’d argue they have more detail.
The Liberty 4 NC, with the single 11mm driver, have less elevated highs, and I find them a bit smoother to listen to with a nice warm sound.
Apart from that difference in the highs, the overall sound, using the signature Soundcore tuning is very similar, with a V-shaped sound profile.
Overall
The important thing to remember is that the Liberty 4 NC launched at £80 vs £140, that’s 42% lower than the original Liberty 4.
The price point is so different, these two earbuds shouldn't really be compared in the first place.
That being said, I think the Liberty 4 NC hold up well compared to the Liberty 4.
They may not have fancy features like Spatial Audio or fitness tracking, but most people wanting affordable earbuds don't need these features.
As for the sound quality, I think many people may prefer the Liberty 4 NC. They may not have quite the range, but they lack the sharpness of the Liberty 4 and give the listening a smoother and warmer sound. As always with Soundcore, I wouldn't really class these as audiophile earbuds, but they will work well for the majority of people.
Soundcore stated that these are the best noise-cancelling earbuds they do. This may be technically true, but it isn't orders of magnitude better than the existing Liberty 4. I found the Liberty 4 were better at removing loud low-end drone, which you will likely find on airplanes, which is the thing I like ANC for the most and the benchmark I use to review earbuds. The Liberty 4 NC perform better with removing high-end frequencies, and the environmental adaption should make these better for general day-to-day use.
Overall, considering the price, I think the Liberty 4 NC are superb.
