Sudio is always known to make stylish audio products. We’ve first looked at the Sudio Vasa Bla early this year – and damn that thing looks beautiful. Now, we’re collaborating with Sudio again to bring you the review of the Sudio TRE – yet another pair of wireless earphones, but this time it’s targeting a very niche market.
Before we begin, we have to tell you something. We collaborated with Sudio Sweden to bring you guys an exclusive deal for this Christmas!
SUDIO Sweden is having a 2017 Christmas and Year End promotion now and they’re giving away free gift box for every purchase and free delivery to Malaysia. Do not forget to put the hashtag #sudio, #sudiosweden, and #sudiomoments too.
Also, use discount code NasiLemakTech at checkout to get 15% off of all products from Sudio Sweden!
Let’s take a deep dive into what the Sudio TRE is all about. But first, take a look at our video review of the Sudio TRE to get a better idea of what the Sudio TRE is all about!
Arrival
As a part the collaboration, Sudio sent us a total of 2 pairs of Sudio TRE with our color choices. I chose the Classic Blue and White colors, just because. They also sent us the gift box like last year’s collaboration on the Sudio Vasa Bla. Thanks, Sudio!
Delivery was really quick as it was shipped to me via DHL. It was first picked up by DHL on 14th November 2017, and it arrived on my doorstep on the 16th of November. Sudio Sweden actually told me that “shipping time is estimated to be around 5 days”. Maybe when it’s near Christmas, so better order your pair of Sudio audio earphones or headphones quick!
When the package arrived, all I have to say is this – Sudio is really classy when it comes to their packaging presentation.
The gift box can actually fit in the entire box of the Sudio TRE with some extra space on both sides and a little more at the top. It’s technically the same tight fit as the Sudio Vasa Bla that we reviewed early this year.
Opening up the gift box reveals a little to-and-from tag with the Sudio logo printed on the other side. Tie this up onto your gift box before gifting it to your loved ones for that extra effort to show that you care. 🙂
Unboxing
Behind the box of the Sudio TRE describes all of the features and accessories that you’ll be getting inside the box itself.
Opening up the box reveals that they’ve finally revamped the entire packaging design. The Vasa Bla had a pretty underwhelming unboxing experience once the outermost shell was opened.
This time around, it has a hard plastic window that opens and reveals the Sudio TRE on the top side, and all the other accessories in a box right below it. It’s a simple yet clean packaging design.
Digging everything out reveals that the Sudio TRE comes with a user manual, a warranty card, 2 extra pairs of wingtip sizes, a leather pouch, and a clothes clip. Of course, the pair of earphones themselves too.
[nextpage title=”Design”]
The Sudio TRE takes on a very simple and sleek design, yet stylishly classy. Sudio definitely knows what they’re doing as their design language is always like this – whatever color variant you choose, there must be some chromed bits on their products. The Sudio TRE has chromed gold accents near both the eartips, whereas the white color version has chromed rose gold near both the eartips.
The Sudio TRE takes one a similar weight distribution system to the Vasa Bla too, as there are a total of two different “blocks”. Presumably, one is for the battery and the other one is for the controls. Either way, it’s a brilliant design as every gram of a pair of wireless earphones is noticeable.
Speaking of the weight, the Sudio TRE weighs in at old 16 grams. Pretty lightweight, actually. Though, for me, I didn’t feel anything while I wore it for hours while I was cleaning the Nasi Lemak Tech lab. Why? Well, it’s thanks to the wingtip design that the Sudio TRE has.
The wingtip design is ironically simple – it’s a hook design that latches onto the natural shape of the ear pinna’s bones. It’s quite similar to how Jaybird’s earphones will latch onto the ears.
[nextpage title=”Features”]
When it comes to features of the Sudio TRE, it gets the basics covered. It has 3 in-line buttons accented in gold and has concentrated circle texture like the ASUS ZenBook’s lid. Again, rather stylish.
These 3 buttons are not labelled, but you can pretty much tell what button performs what function by the feel of it. Pressing the top-most button (nearest to the right earbud) pumps up the volume, while holding it will seek to the next track. The bottom-most button does the exact opposite – where it lowers down the volume and goes to the previous track when held.
The buttons are sunken in a little deeper than I’d like into the enclosure, but they’re very tactile. That means the buttons though a little difficult to press, they can be easily felt instead. Also, the charging port is at the side of the right side’s “box”. Hidden very well, actually.
Also, take a look at the box itself – the Sudio TRE supports Qualcomm’s aptX too. It’s starting to appear in more and more audio devices these days, and for all I can say – it’s a good thing to have. Though, you need to have a compatible device that supports aptX to pair with the Sudio TRE to take advantage this feature.
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room – the wingtips. This design is meant to slot into and hook onto the ear pinna’s natural shape. The Sudio TRE comes with a total of 3 sizes – S, M (preinstalled), and L. Swapping them out is pretty simple, as shown in our review video.
After that, we’re off to our usual tests for earphones!
[nextpage title=”Using the Sudio TRE & Listening test”]” data-mce-resize=”false” data-mce-placeholder=”1″ />
Turning it on is simple – just hold the center in-line button and the LED lights up. Controls are the same as any other wireless earphones that we’ve played with thus far, so it’s natural for us to dive in without consulting the user manual.
Once the Sudio TRE is paired with the ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom that we’ve reviewed here, the Qualcomm aptX logo appears – because the ZenFone 3 Zoom and the Sudio TRE supports this feature. Again, you can learn more about Qualcomm aptX here.
The in-line buttons work instantaneously, and music played when I pressed the middle button.
My complaint about the Vasa Bla was simple – the cables were a little too rigid, and the LED light is way too bright. Sudio fixed both of these issues! The cable is now a little more flexible, and the LED is way more subtle than before.
The Sudio TRE is… indeed a pair of earphones that is not meant for those who purely enjoy music. Because of the wingtip design that the Sudio TRE uses and how the silicon housing is shaped, it’ll never get a good seal around the ear canal. With that said, it’s not actually a bad thing – as I actually love my personal pair of Apple Earpods just because it doesn’t have a seal around my ear canal.
Hear me out here – I can’t wear in-ear monitors for long. It causes me to get a headache over some time, even when I don’t listen to any music. However, with the Apple Earpods, I can wear it for hours and still feel perfectly fine. That’s the beauty of these categories of earphones – they don’t create a seal around your ear canal. That means you can hear the surrounding, too.
Just don’t bother using the leather pouch. It’s difficult to stuff the Sudio TRE inside and to close the clasp. There’s no width on the pouch, so there’s not much leeway to accommodate the thickness of the Sudio TRE.
Listening test
Which points me to my next point – the Sudio TRE is a pair of earphones that do not create a seal around the ear canal, and yet can hang on the ears without falling thanks to the wingtips. They latch onto the natural shape of the ear pinna, and 16 grams of weight feels like it’s nothing. The Sudio TRE also enables me to listen to everything that’s happening around me while listening to music, too. Which means I can literally walk around the sweets and listen to everything that’s happening around me.
That brings me to the next point – the audio quality. The Sudio TRE sounds okay when it comes to mids and highs, but vocals are a little muffled and sway towards the bassy part. As for the bass, since the Sudio TRE can’t create a seal around the ear canals, the bass is just… unable to be recreated.
I actually like how the Sudio TRE works, actually. I for one would like to listen to the environment when I wear earphones. It’s dangerous if you can’t hear the surrounding while enjoying some tunes in the middle of a busy street.
[nextpage title=”Wrapping up the Sudio TRE review”]
Like I’ve mentioned earlier in this review – the Sudio TRE is definitely stylish. It’s beautiful. It’s elegant. In terms of features, it gets all of the basics done properly. When it comes to the sound quality, the Sudio TRE is aimed towards a very specific type of user – those who want to wear a pair of earphones and enjoy music, but still able to listen to the surrounding.
In terms of sound quality, the Sudio TRE does well when it comes to mids and highs – especially orchestral music, but falls short when it comes to vocals. If you’re buying the Sudio TRE and expect great bassy music, then you’ll be disappointed. We here at Nasi Lemak Tech would recommend you to go for the Sudio Vasa Bla that we’ve reviewed here, or the more expensive Beyerdynamic Byron BT.
For RM409, the Sudio TRE is definitely not meant for everyone. Make sure you know what you’re getting into before purchasing it.
Also, we shall remind you that SUDIO Sweden is having a 2017 Christmas and Year End promotion now and they’re giving away free gift box for every purchase and free delivery to Malaysia. Do not forget to put the hashtag #sudio, #sudiosweden, and #sudiomoments too.
Use discount code NasiLemakTech at checkout to get 15% off of all products from Sudio Sweeden!
- Pros
- Able to listen to the surrounding
- Long-lasting battery life
- Comfortable wingtip design
- Supports Qualcomm aptX
- Comes in multiple colors
- Cons
- Not meant for everyone
- Such design inherently lacks bass
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