1. Home
  2. Audio / Video
  3. News

Marshall Major IV headphones boast an absurd 80 hours of battery

By

The best pairs of headphones make you never want to take them off. With the kind of battery Marshall’s new set is packing, you may never have to.

Marshall has announced the Major IV, a $150 pair of wireless headphones that claim to deliver 80-plus hours of playback. The new cans will be immediately available for pre-order, with an official release date of October 14.

Here’s what we know about the Major IV.

Marshall

Design

The Major IV are built with 40mm dynamic drivers and weigh 5.82 ounces, which makes them far lighter than some of the recent headphones we’ve tested, like the 11-ounce Skullcandy Crusher Evo. The Jabra Elite 45H, which may be a better comparison to the Major IV as it’s one of the lightest headsets we have tested this year, weigh just 5 grams less than the Marshall.

Recommended Videos

Marshall boasts that the Major IV have softer ear cushions than previous iterations, creating a more comfortable wear for longer periods of time. You’ll have to take Marshall’s word on this for now, of course, but we’ll be sure to evaluate just how comfortable these headphones are when we bring them in for review.

The Major IV also have a fold clip to produce a more compact configuration, as well as a multidirectional control knob to switch between tracks and adjust volume. The headphones have a 3.5mm socket to listen to music wired, as well as a unique feature that lets wearer’s easily share music with a friend. You can plug another headset into the Marshall and send whatever music you are listening to their way.

Features

Like most capable wireless listening devices these days, the Major IV will come with Bluetooth 5 connectivity. The far more intriguing claim, however, is that these headphones will have at least 80 hours of portable playtime. For comparison, the Elite 45h have roughly 50 hours of runtime, and while they cost $50 less than Marshall’s new headphones, we’re talking about over a day’s worth of additional battery life from the Marshall. If true, that’s a huge deal.

The Major IV also support wireless charging and have a quick-charging capability that nets you 15 hours of listening after only 15 minutes of charging, which is a very impressive fast charge.

Sound quality

We don’t have a lot of statistics to analyze regarding the Major IV. We do know they’ll have a frequency response range of 20 to 20,000 Hz, and we have Marshall’s boastful description that the dynamic drivers in the Major IV “deliver roaring bass, smooth mids, and brilliant treble.”

We’d expect Marshall – or any other audio brand, for that matter – to say nothing less about its new product, so those glowing words should be taken with a grain or two of salt. However, Marshall does have a respectable track record of making great-sounding products, which both gives us hope and sets the bar fairly high for the Major IV. We’re looking forward to reviewing a pair of these new headphones, and we’ll have plenty of time to test them out: At least 80 hours, apparently.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Nick Woodard
Former Digital Trends Contributor
  As an A/V Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Nick Woodard covers topics that include 4K HDR TVs, headphones…
New Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones could have 40-hour battery life

Sony's WH-1000XM3 wireless noise-canceling headphones are a bestseller, but they're due for an update. Now, we have some clues about what to expect from the next version of the headphones. A filing with the Brazilian telecommunications agency, Anatel, appears to show photos of the new XM4 headphones -- which look extremely similar, if not identical, to the previous version, as well as giving some information about what new features could be expected in the highly anticipated XM4s.

The filing was identified by Everton Favretto, a Brazilian tech enthusiast who first tweeted the information that Anatel had approved the headphones:

Read more
Marshall updates its Major III wireless headphones with Google Assistant

Don't mess with the classics. That is unless you're going to make them significantly better. That's the concept behind Marshall's update of its Major III wireless Bluetooth headphones, the $169 Major III Voice. Virtually identical to the previous version, the new cans now include one-button access to Google Assistant and have a vastly improved battery life. They're available today on Marshall's website, as well as selected retailers.

Adding Google Assistant to the Major III makes what was already an easy-to-use set of headphones even easier. Press and hold the dedicated voice button and you can summon Google Assistant for all of your music-related needs, from artists and albums to playlists and podcasts. It will also read your text messages, give you turn-by-turn directions as you wander, and answer your most pressing questions. Android users should already have Google Assistant on their phones, but iOS users will need to download the free Google Assistant app.

Read more
Beats Solo 4: the latest on-ear headphones get spatial and lossless audio

After a nearly eight-year gap, Beats finally has an updated version of its Solo wireless on-ear headphones: the Beats Solo 4. The fourth-gen cans look nearly identical to their predecessors and they sport the same $200 price tag. Under that familiar exterior, however, lies a series of upgrades, including support for spatial and lossless audio, that Beats hopes will keep the Solo 4 as its most popular product. The Solo 4 can be ordered starting April 30 in Matte Black, Slate Blue, and Cloud Pink, with shipping beginning May 2. Beats also debuted its latest wireless earbuds, the Solo Buds.

Physically, very little has changed since the Solo3 Wireless debuted in 2016. The Solo 4 preserves the now-classic Beats lines, with the same folding hinges and a low-profile headband that transitions seamlessly into the earcups. Some of the chrome-finish accents have been retired, but the distinctive lowercase "b" Beats logo is still front and center.

Read more