Luxury tech Loewe recently teamed up with high-end jeweller Jacob & Co. to produce what it called “the world’s best over ear headphones”.
The trouble was that at €100,000 a diamond-encrusted pair they were rather beyond the wallet of most people. As the German brand said at the time, there would be a version at a more palatable price point – and those headphones are now here costing £1299/€1299.
Called Loewe Leo, these headphones are designed for top audio quality in mind, with 50mm drivers using an OCE (Olefin Composite Elastomer) diaphragm. They’re still costly compared to rivals such as the recently-announced Bowers & Wilkins PX8 S2, but promise top-tier sound quality – I’m looking forward to hearing what they perform like in the real world, although I have heard them at an event where there was a lot of background noise.
Loewe clearly believes it can make an impression in what is a very crowded market because it has employed two titans to promote them in footballer Kylian Mbappé and producer David Guetta.
Leo has adaptive noise cancellation (ANC) with transparency mode as you’d expect plus support for Hi-Res Audio Wireless, Spatial Audio/Dolby Atmos, multipoint pairing plus Bluetooth LE Audio. And from the right source, you can experience 96kHz/24-bit quality.
As with many other high-end wireless headphones, you can also adjust the EQ and other settings in-app. Loewe’s Mimi Sound Personalisation can tailor the sound to your own hearing profile. There’s even Leo Assistant, offering the carrot of real-time translation plus other voice assistant features. It’ll be really interesting to see what this is like – the first year is free, after which it is a subscription for €7.99 per month.
Battery life is set at a very respectable 65 hours but that is with the ANC turned off.
Leo is deigned to be repairable, with some parts replaceable. The headphones have an. aluminum frame and genuine leather ear cushions. They’re available in midnight blue and moonlight beige. They come with a hard case but also an additional leather bag.
Loewe Leo AI headphones key specs
- 50mm drivers with precision tuning
- High-end amplifier by Texas Instruments
- Built-in voice assistant
- Adaptive Noise Cancellation (ANC) with transparency mode
- Hi-Res Audio Wireless with LC3+ codec at 96 kHz / 24-bit
- Mimi Sound Personalisation via Loewe app
- Up to 65 hours of battery life, USB-C fast charging
- Multipoint connection for multiple devices
- Voice control and real-time translation
- Fold-flat design with protective 2-in-1 hard case and additional leather lamb bag
Also read: I wish I could buy these gorgeous limited-edition Loewe speakers
