If you don’t particularly care to have the most premium pair of headphones on the market (or care to spend several hundred dollars on them), the JLab JBuds Lux ANC headphones more than get the job done. They have functional ANC, decent comfort, great sound balance, and a killer battery life, all with a design that doesn’t feel overtly budget-friendly.
At their regular sale price of around $50, these are about a ninth the price of the latest Sony headphones, and a seventh of the price of the Bose QuietComfort headphones, which feel like these headphones’ premium analogue.
With budget headphones, it’s good to understand what you’re trading off from the jump. In the case of these JLab headphones, the ANC will dampen a good amount of environmental sound, from talking coworkers to loud fans, but it won’t completely silence the world around you. The app can lag some (we had to exit out of it a few times during testing when it froze), and the fit of these headphones might not be for everyone. For one of our testers, these headphones squeezed their head more than usual (though some users on Reddit called these the most comfortable headphones they’ve tried). Regardless of the fit, you’re likely to hear some creaking from time to time when you move your head around.
At $80, these are all cons that may not be ideal, but are fair for the price point. At these headphones’ frequent sale prices that hover in the $50 to $55 range, these cons are even easier to swallow, especially when you consider how these headphones actually sound.
To be clear, you’ll likely need to play around with the EQ some to find your perfect settings — we found the first preset to be on the bass-heavy end. Once you do, it’s impressive the way these headphones can balance a song. Every part of Panic! At The Disco’s “Northern Downpour” shone through, from the vocals, lead guitar, bass, and piano. For budget headphones, we might expect some muddying through these elements, but the JLab JBuds held up great. If we’re being nitpicky, The Beatles’ “In My Life” came through somewhat dimmer sounding than expected, but not necessarily muddy.
Beyond the sound signature, these headphones have a reasonable amount of customization with the app, especially for their price point. You can adjust the button commands on one of the three on-ear buttons, adjust the ANC intensity with a slider in the app, and create your own custom EQ settings. Multipoint pairing is available, as are spatial audio, music, and movie modes.
