Marshall major 2 on ear review năm 2024

Several friends have been asking me what Bluetooth headphones they should get, especially those who buy phones with missing headphone jacks, and I always point towards the Marshall Major II Bluetooth headphones.

I don't usually pay as much attention to a headphone's aesthetics, but I wouldn't be doing justice to Marshall if I didn't give it credit for the incredible attention to detail on its Major II Bluetooth headphones.

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Marshall headphones have a pretty distinctive style, referencing the amplifier stacks for which the company is famed: square, black ear cups with Marshall’s textured pattern, white logo and a basic, retro look. I think they’re quite attractive as headphones go, and are much more slim and subtle than most others, but the vintage feel won’t suit everyone.

The ear cups are held in place by thin wire arms and a flexible padded headband, covered with more fake leather texture. There are a few nice brass accents here and there.

They are on-ear, rather than over-ear headphones. The small square pads press on your ear rather than cover them, sitting quite tightly on your head. The phones feel relatively light when on and don’t move around when you go about your day.

The Major IIs fold up for travel. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian

Like any on-ear headphone they start to pinch a little for extended listening sessions, but they’re more comfortable than many I have tried. The band is also much more comfortable than some on-ear competitors, with a nice soft-touch covered foam padded strip sitting on your head.

When not in use they can fold up to be quite compact, but don’t fold flat for travel. They feel pretty robust too, which means they should last well. Some lighter headphones feel a bit flimsy.

Controls and connectivity

The brass joystick is great for skipping tracks, changing the volume or pausing or playing the music. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian

There are only two buttons on the headphones. One is the power button on the right ear cup that also puts the headphones into pairing mode when pressed twice while on. The other is a button-cum-joystick on the corner of the left ear cup.

The small metal nub can be pressed in to pause or play a track, up or down to adjust volume or side to side for skipping tracks. It’s a very satisfying way to control your music with a reassuring click and works better than most other single-button controls I’ve seen on Bluetooth headphones.

Like most other Bluetooth headphones, the Major IIs also take a standard headphones cable, should the battery run out or you want to easily listen to something on a computer. But more interestingly, you can use that cable to play music to something else, using the headphones as a Bluetooth receiver.

The power button, Bluetooth indicator, 3.5mm port and microUSB charging socket. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian

It means you can share whatever you’re listening to with a friend using a standard headphones cable, as you might want to on a plane, train or in the office.

The headphones support apt-X for higher quality Bluetooth connections, if your smartphone supports it, but the standard Bluetooth connection was solid throughout my testing.

Isolation and sound

The ear cups isolate both your music from the outside world and the outside world from your music. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian

The closed cups manage to block out a reasonable amount of background noise, despite being on-ear, and keep it from leaking out for all but the loudest listening, which is good because the Marshalls are tuned to be loud. They focus on bass and the mid-range, with quite a deep and direct sound for relatively small on-ear headphones.

They suit rock music best, making listening quite a heavy experience, perfectly suited to tracks such as Eric Clapton’s Layla, Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit or Deep Purple’s Smoke on the water. On something like Alicia Keys Fallin’ they tend to accentuate the double bass and drums to the detriment of the vocals. Having said that, they take a good stab at something like Blue Sky Black Death’s Can’t Take it With Me or even Luciano Pavarotti’s Nessun Dorma, making them decent all-rounders for their size.

Battery

The detachable cable means the music doesn’t stop when the battery runs out, but also makes it easy to connect to a computer or share your music with a friend. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian

Marshall reckons the Major IIs will last 30 hours between charges, and I think they might be slightly underestimating that. I charged them and ran them for at least three hours in a working day for three weeks and they’re still going, which I reckon puts it well over 30 hours.

That makes them a set of wireless headphones you can simply charge and forget. If the battery does run out you have the cable to connect with as a backup.

Price

The Marshall Major II Bluetooth headphones cost £130, which puts them at the low end of premium wireless headphones. Plantronic’s BackBeat Sense on-ear headphones cost £130, while other headphones with similar battery life and sound quality cost upwards of £150. Bowers & Wilkins P5 Wireless cost £330, for instance.

Verdict

Marshall’s first attempt at Bluetooth headphones are very good. They’ve got a loud and proud sound signature, which won’t suit every musical taste, but they sound great when fed driving music and even sound pretty good with ambient music.

The battery life is truly great too, with well over 30 hours between charges making them very easy to live with. Most Bluetooth headphones that sound as good and last as long as these usually cost a lot more, making the Major IIs excellent. The only downside is they pinch a bit for long listening, which pretty much all on-ear headphones do.

Pros: great sound, very loud, good isolation, excellent battery life, easy to connect, great controls, fold up for transport, relatively compact, sturdy

Cons: won’t suit all music genres, on-ear design pinches after a couple of hours, vintage design with fake leather texture won’t be for everyone

Is Marshall better than Beats?

The Beats have a noticeably better ANC feature that blocks out more noise and have longer battery life on a single charge. On the other hand, the Marshall have a more comfortable fit, and you can use them wired, even if the battery is dead.

Does Marshall Major 2 have Bluetooth?

The Major II is the perfect travel companion. Its collapsible design makes it easy to store when not in use. A detachable 3.5mm cord and USB charging cable comes with the Major II Bluetooth.

Is Marshall Major 2 wired?

Original Marshall Major II Wired On Ear Headphones HiFi Headset with Built-in Microphone | Lazada PH.

Which Marshall Major headphones are the best?

Marshall Major IV Wireless Bluetooth headphones Offering an astounding 80 hours of battery life, with a super-quick charging option for when you do run low, they'll always be good to go. Bluetooth is of the v5. 0 variety, which largely explains their stamina. Just as well that they're comfy, with a good on-ear fit.