The Naztech i9 over-ear headphones prove that finding a good pair of wireless noise-cancelling headphones that don’t cost an arm and a leg doesn’t have to be a chore. Naztech is a trusted American brand that stands behinds its products, offering an extended 24-month warranty to Amazon customers. Their i9 over-ear headphones are affordable and perform well enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with Bose and other high-end manufacturers.

Build and Design

Judging solely by the exterior of the headphones, one might easily be misled into thinking that they are called “Noisehush”—after all, that’s what it says on both earcups. We have no idea why Naztech felt the need to advertise their noise-cancelling technology so much, instead of their own name, but we are glad that they didn’t make any other design blunders.

The silver and black combination looks great everywhere, and the shiny silver accents give the headphones a decidedly premium look. Similarly premium is also the level of comfort the i9 provide. The memory foam earpads are covered with genuine leather, and the soft headband puts just the right amount of pressure on your ears and head. Because the earcups can freely swivel in all directions, they can comfortably fit anyone from small children to grown men.

Unfortunately, the build quality of the Naztech i9 wasn’t nearly as convincing. The headphones tend to squeak every time you adjust them, which got on our nerves rather quickly. Some say that the squeaking stops after a few days of use, but we were unable to confirm this.

If you don’t want to listen wirelessly, you can plug the included 3.5mm cable into the standard 3.5mm jack on the left side. The cable is braided and tangle-free.

Most playback controls are located on the left earcup. This includes controls for playback, call management, track navigation, and volume. The play/pause button also work as the power button. Also on the left earcup is the microUSB port for charging. What’s confusing is the presence of another volume knob on the right earcup. This knob works only in Bluetooth mode, while the other one works in other listening modes.

The headphones are powered by a Lithium-ion battery that provides enough power for up to 15 hours of active noise cancellation and up to 30 hours of regular play time. Charging takes just 3 hours.

Sound Quality

The headphones use Bluetooth version 4.1 to deliver fantastic wireless sound over long distances. We’ve noticed that the operating range of the i9 has a tendency to drop as the battery starts to wane. The less juice you have, the closer to the sound source you have to be.

Some say that the headphones provide the same sound quality as the Bose headphones, but we are not so sure about that. The thing is, they do sound pretty good with the active noise canceling turned on, but turn it off and the sound quality gets much worse—treble almost disappears, and the midrange becomes muffled.

As such, you are forced to have the noise canceling on all the time, which cuts your listening time in half, robbing you of 15 hours of play time. Fortunately, the Noisehush technology works well, and it can effectively make all low-frequency noise disappear.

What’s in the Box

All premium products should come with a premium set of accessories, and the i9 from Naztech are an excellent example of how it should be done. Included in the box is a hard-shell case with an inner pouch, in which you can store the included 3.5mm and USB cables, the 3.5mm stereo jack to 1/4″ stereo adapter, and the two-prong airplane adapter. All accessories are of the highest quality and should serve you for a long time.