I just tested these wireless earbuds and they have the best sound quality I’ve ever experienced

Before I start talking about anything else when it comes to the Noble Fokus Rex5, I think it’s important to talk about the price. Go on, sit down and relax — because you might faint. The Rex5 are some of the most expensive wireless earbuds that I’ve ever tested at $449. That’s more than the WH-1000XM5, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones, and only $100 less than the AirPods Max — and those are all over ears, rather than something akin to the best noise canceling earbuds.

So the Fokus Rex5 aren’t for the faint of heart — but you get the finest pair of earbuds that you’ll ever put in your ears. They sound amazing, have a finish like the dashboard in a custom supercar, and pack in a rap sheet of features that would see even the most hardened headphone user raise an eyebrow. So yes, they are more expensive than any other pair of wireless earbuds (beyond the weird designer ones that focus on looks over performance), but let’s find out why they are more than worth their lofty price tag.

Noble Fokus Rex5 review: Cheat Sheet

• What is it? Super premium in-ears that cost more than most flagship over-ears
• Who is it for? Audiophiles who want some earbuds for on-the-go listening
• What does it cost? $449/£419/AU$699
• What we like: Their incredible sound quality, their stunning looks, good ANC
• What we don’t like: 5 hours of battery isn’t amazing, and they’re very expensive

Noble Fokus Rex5 review: Price and Availability

I know of only one pair of easily attainable earbuds that cost more than the FoKus Rex, and that’s the $550 Devialet Gemini II. We’re yet to test that particular pair of earbuds, but we have tested the nearest rivals on the other side of the price spectrum. The Sony WF-1000XM5 and the QuietComfort Ultra earbuds cost $150 less than the Noble, and they’re both some of the best wireless earbuds that you can buy.

So the price point pervades any discussion about the Rex5. That’s a lot of money to ask for something that you’re expected to use on the bus, in the office, or on the train. After all, if you’re using your headphones at home, you’re more likely to use a more bulky set of over-ears that are more comfortable for longer periods, or that might have increased battery life. But I equally can’t see a way that the Rex5 might cost less. They’re made out of premium materials, pack in 5 drivers, and sound better than any other pair of wireless earbuds I’ve tried — if you’ve got the cash and don’t mind the risk of dropping them on the bus and losing a bud forever, then the Rex5 should be very close to the top of your purchase list.

Getting ahold of a pair is slightly more annoying than most of the competition, although stock is usually fairly stable. You’re not going to be able to pick up a pair from Amazon, but you can head to the Noble website or more niche headphone stores and pick some up from there.

Noble Fokus Rex5 review: Design and Build

• Lovely green, metal charging case
• Stunning buds enclosures
• Comfortable, all-day fit

Noble cut its teeth making premium wired audiophile earbuds, and it’s brought some of that expertise to bear with the Fokus Rex5. The inner side of the buds is wrapped in a smooth, emerald metal, while the outer features an acrylic panel with a 3D green wood effect. They look excellent, and the gold accents just add to the sumptuous look and feel of the buds. I love it.

There are some lovely small touches as well. The logo on the outer is clear and crisp, and there’s a gold metal panel in the earpiece engraved with the Noble Crown. The only real complaint you could level at the buds is their size, but once you’ve got the right ear tips attached, they’re comfortable enough that you don’t notice. Their connection LEDs are bright and clear, giving you a good idea of whether you’re in pairing mode or if the battery is low while they’re in the case.

The case itself is a more simple affair, but no less nice to hold and look at. It’s smothered in green aluminum, charges via USB-C, and has a plastic bottom. It’s a bit chunky so carrying it in my skinny jeans was slightly tighter than some of the other options, but pop it in a bag and there are fewer issues. The hinge feels strong, and it clicks shut with a satisfying snap. The buds themselves nestle inside and stay in place with some relatively strong magnets, and there’s a very welcome physical button inside to initiate the pairing mode.

All in all, the Rex5 feel like they’re worth the $449 you’ll be putting down, thanks to their handsome looks, premium materials and top-notch build quality. They feel a whole lot more premium than the slightly flimsy case you get with the QuietComfort Ultra, and the metal makes them feel nicer than the all-plastic Sony WF-1000XM5.

Noble FoKus Rex5 review: Controls

• Solid touch controls
• Physical pairing button
• Some customization options

Touch controls — often my nemesis, never my friend and rarely tolerable. Thankfully, they’re begrudgingly fine on the Rex5, although I still don’t like them. Touch either earbud to pause, and then you can change the multi-tap function with the Noble app. Out of the box, you touch the right earbud twice to go to the next track, and three times for the previous track, while two or three taps on the left bud turn the volume up or down.

The app lets you change them, although there aren’t any extra features — you just swap functions around. You can hold the touch panels down too, though, although this can’t be customized. Hold the left to cycle ANC modes, and the right to conjure the connected devices smart assistant. The touch controls are good. They’re easy to activate, and don’t need too much pressing for them to do what you want them to.

But then come my general foibles with touch controls. Popping an earbud out of your ear or moving one slightly to adjust the fit can often lead to accidental inputs. Want to make sure your earbuds are at their most comfortable? Congratulations, you just skipped three tracks and changed the ANC mode. I can see why touch controls are so popular for buds, but I still prefer a physical button instead. Your mileage, of course, may vary.

Noble FoKus Rex5 review: Features

• Customizable EQ
• Audiodo personalized audio
• Loads of sound modes

Customization is the name of the game here, with the idea to make sure that you can hear your music exactly the way that the artists intended. The biggest is the personalized EQ that comes courtesy of Audiodo, and it works a treat. It comes in the app, and it works as most of these systems tend to. It plays you a series of beeps and boops, and asks you if you can hear them. From there, it creates a personalized EQ for each ear, so that you can hear your music better.

My ears are weird. My left ear can’t hear as well as my right, so I’m often left with wonky-sounding audio unless I play around with things (as I often do). This didn’t just deal with the volume difference, but also the specific frequencies my ears can hear. The difference was astounding — the earbuds sounded good already, but then after the customization, they sounded stunning. There was greater definition to the cymbals in the left, and the soundstage widened. All without the normal work I have to put in to dial the sound in.

The Noble Fokus Rex5's personalized EQ worked better than any system I’ve ever used before, and while that might be down to the top-notch audio internals that the buds house, I think the system is one of the better ones. Even better? My profile is stored in the buds, so it sticks around when I connect them to other devices.

There are more customization options in the app as well. There’s an easy EQ changer called ‘EQ curve’, which has a slider that lets you choose whether the sound is ‘heavier’ (warmer) or ‘brighter’. It’s a great way to quickly get a sound profile that you like, and it’s easily reset with a button should you go too far and want to start again. Want even more control? Step into the excellent ten-band EQ, which lets you really get the sound you want. Too much work? Select one of the presets, sit back and relax. This might be one of the most easily customized pairs of buds I’ve used, and it’s loads of fun to try out different sound profiles to see which one works for different genres.

It makes for a more interactive musical experience, and I think brings you closer to your favorite tracks. No, you’ll never be able to listen to lossless audio over your Bluetooth earbuds, but it's still a great way to hear more than you might’ve heard before. If you don’t want to dabble, it’s not going to ruin the experience if you ignore the features — but I’d very much encourage you to give them a try.

There are a couple of things that some might find missing, like Spatial Audio and more customizable ANC modes. Personally, I never found myself missing Dolby Atmos, and the ANC and transparency modes never left me wishing for more to play with, but I still need to mention them in case they are deal breakers — and at this price, even the smallest thing could be the difference between an instant order and a more considered purchase.

Noble FoKus Rex5 review: ANC

• Solid noise-blocking ability
• Natural-sounding Transparency mode

ANC from smaller brands can be hit and miss, especially when you compare it to the more established options. Now, while it's obvious that most of the attention in the Rex5 has been paid to the sound of the buds, I’m super pleased that the ANC also seems to have received some love fromNoble. It equals the performance of the Sony WF-1000XM5, only really losing out to the all-conquering ANC of the QuietComfort Ultra earbuds.

As with many ANC systems, it focuses mostly on low-end noises, like bus engines and the most disturbing noises of a metro system. It does remarkably well with higher range frequencies as well though, silencing office chatter and bus conversations with ease. As you might expect, they need audio to be playing to be at their best, but this is true of all ANC earbuds.

Noble FoKus Rex5 review: Connectivity

• Bluetooth 5.4
• Multipoint

While most of the competition still relies on a Bluetooth 5.3 connection, the Rex5 feature Bluetooth 5.4. That gives you a lag-free connection, and brings them bang up to date with the Bluetooth standard.

They do get multipoint support, and it works well. Just connect the buds to another device with the Bluetooth pairing button in the case, and they switch over when they detect audio coming from the alternate device. Simple.

Noble FoKus Rex5 review: Call Quality

• Solid microphones
• Good receiving audio

A few different calls to the same person sufficed for testing out the call quality of the Rex5. Taking them out and about didn’t make them trip up, with solid microphone quality, and mostly imperceptible background noise for the person on the other side of my call. The audio came through to me with no issues as well, and even sounded better than some of the alternatives thanks to, presumably, the excellent audio internals of the buds.

Noble FoKus Rex5 review: Sound Quality

• Immaculate throughout the frequency range
• Particularly tight bass
• Intimate sound stage

As you might expect from a pair of buds that focus on sound quality, the Noble Fokus Rex5 sound extremely impressive. They’re packed full of audio goodies, with 5 drivers to give you some of the best sound around. There’s a 10mm dynamic driver, a 6mm planar magnetic driver, and three balanced armature drivers. The result? Incredibly tight bass that goes all the way down, crystal clear highs, and dynamic, effortless mids. Noble’s over ear hybrid-drivered Fokus Apollo headphones got me moving, and the Rex5 have a similar effect.

All of these samples have been dialed in with the personalized audio, although I’ve left the EQ as it would be out of the box. Bass notes hit with stunning weight and definition, bringing a wonderful warmth to the proceedings. The mids, where you’ll find most of your music, are wide, and smoothly present, while the top end brings a splash of brightness and detail. I’ve tested wired buds that can play lossless audio and thus bring slightly better resolution in some of the frequency range, but wireless? These might be the best things I’ve put in my ears.

Nine Inch Nails’ Hurt brings its signature attitude and bite, Reznor’s disturbed crooning unnerving and uncomfortable. The bizarre bass line brings a solid foundation for the jumping synths, while the drums bring a kind of effervescence and delicacy thanks to the bud’s relatively pronounced high end. For such a messy track, the instrument separation is very good, each member of the ensemble placeable in the mix.

Allegaeon’s Bastards of Earth introduces itself with a crisp and clear acoustic guitar line, and the Rex5 would make you believe you were in the same room. The distorted, tremolo-picked guitar line soon kicks things up a gear, and the Rex5 don’t miss a beat. Usually, earbuds would struggle with a track with so much going on, blending the growled vocal lines with the guitars and the kick drums, but thanks (presumably) to their multi-driver setup, there is little issue here. Each part is clearly defined, and engaging in reproduction.

Finally, We’ve Only Just Begun courtesy of The Carpenters shows a more delicate approach. The bass line dances thanks to the bud's excellent bass reproduction, while Karen’s smooth vocals are clear and precise. The soundstage is more what I’d describe as ‘intimate’, but spatially it's excellent, with instruments like the clarinet coming from just the right spot, and the piano sitting off to the left.

Noble Fokus Rex5 review: Battery Life

• Epic case battery life of 40 hours
• 7 hours no ANC
• 5 hours with ANC

The battery life of the Rex5 is perhaps their greatest weakness, although only in one key way. When you’ve got ANC enabled and you’re listening at mid-volume, you get around 5 hours from the buds. While my testing showed that figure to be pretty much spot on, it’s not quite up to scratch with the likes of the Sony WF-1000XM5 or the QuietComfort Ultra earbuds. The former get 7 hours with ANC, and the latter 6 hours — that’s more than the Rex5. Turn the ANC off and things get a little better with 7 hours on tap, but I’d like to see more for my $449.

The case, however, is excellent. There’s 40 hours of battery on board, which is more than most other earbuds. That’ll charge the buds eight times if you listen with ANC on, so you won’t need to plug the case in as much as the competition and their 20-ish hour case batteries. Even better, 15 minutes in the case gives the buds another 2 hours of battery, so you won’t wait long to be listening to your tunes again.

Noble Fokus Rex5 review: Verdict

There’s not much I’d change about the Noble Rex5, although their battery life does leave something to be desired for the $449 price. But here’s the thing. They’re akin to the in-ear bud equivalent of a Porsche — while they have their luxury elements, like their exotic materials and slick, sporty looks, they are all about performance. Where the Porsche wants to get around a track as quickly as possible, the Rex5 want to give you the best sonic performance, and they’ve got all the tools to make it happen.

And happen it does — there’s nothing I’ve placed in my ears that’s wireless that comes close sonically to the Rex5. They’re brash, they’re expensive, and they scream ‘I cost a lot of money’, but the Rex5 manage to pack an incredible amount of features into a small package. I love them.

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