Moondrop Space Travel Review – Straight to the Moon

Disclaimer:

Moondrop provided me with a review sample of Moondrop Space Travel, for which I am grateful!

I’m going to be as objective as possible, and being a common audio enthusiast, I will use simple words in this review.

I will highlight what I liked and what I didn’t without any fear. 

This is an extremely affordable TWS, and for anyone interested in purchasing it, I hope my review will help them with their choice.

So I’m not going to use super-technical words to review it, but I will do my best to describe it.

My review won’t be the most technical you will find online, but I hope you like it.

Moondrop Space Travel Tech Specs:

• Bluetooth version: 5.3
• Supported protocols: A2DP/AVRCP/HFP/HSP/SBC/AAC
• Charging port: Type-C
• Working distance: 10m (barrier-free open environment)
• Support systems: Bluetooth devices and mobile phones
• Earphone charging time: About 1 Hour
• Charging time of charging case: about 1.5 Hours
• Earphone battery capacity: 3.7V/37mAh
• Battery capacity of charging case: 3.7V/380mAh
• Battery life of earphone: About 4 Hours
• Battery life of charging case: About 12 Hours

More information here: Moondrop Official Site

Moondrop Space Travel Packaging:

The packaging is simple, space-saving to keep costs as low as possible, but completely perfect for the product category, indeed proportionally better than many other products.

Inside we find the TWS, manuals, warranty, and some accessories:

• 4 pairs of tips with an oval shape
• Standard Type C Charging cable
• Manual and warranty 

As mentioned before, the tips are different, but you can easily use the classic ones.

Moondrop Space Travel Design/Build Quality:

The design, considering the cost, is decidedly interesting. Especially the transparent-looking charging case. We can see the magnets that hold the TWS while charging, but in terms of comfort, it is not the most comfortable case.

Removing the TWS from the case is not always quick and immediate (sometimes they risk slipping from your hands, and dirt from your pocket penetrates everywhere, making everything impractical). As for the design of the TWS, it is very standard, as you can see from my detailed photos. The shell is made of slightly rough or frosted plastic of good quality for the price.

Voice Prompts:

What surprised me the most was hearing that the voice prompts were customized with the voice of an anime girl (Mitsuki Yuki’s voice). Much more expensive products have the classic robotic voice of a Bluetooth connection.

Moondrop Space Travel Built-in Technology & App:

They don’t have any particular technology; in fact, I would say they are quite basic. Unfortunately, they only support AAC and SBC codecs; there are no better or superior formats, but we have Bluetooth 5.3 with low latency. 

The stability of the connection is absolute; I have never experienced interruptions or drops in bitrate.

The implementation of the Moondrop LINK app helps overall to have a tune for every need. In the application, we can choose between 3 preset tunings:

• Reference (my favorite)
• Bassheads
• Monitor

Moondrop Space Travel Fit and Comfort:

The Moondrop Space Travel is extremely light and comfortable due to its classic design. The oval nozzle, having quite normal dimensions, adapts to different tips, guaranteeing greater comfort compared to other TWS, which make it really hard to change the tips.

Functionality and Features:

The ANC mode really works perfectly, definitely better than I would have expected on an entry-level product.

By holding down one of the two headphones for a few seconds, you switch from one mode to the other.

• In Transparency mode, you will hear a “Hey.”
• ANC mode to hear a “Shh”
• ANC mode off (classic), you will hear an “Umm”

I must admit that despite the differences in the different modes, the sound does not suffer from as many differences in quality as I had experienced, for example, on the HiFiman  Svanar Wireless. On Moondrop Space Travel, the ANC mode even seems better implemented.

Gestures for Calls and Music:

The external part of the TWS is touch-sensitive, so you can perform most operations without touching the phone. All gestures are customizable, as with the app it is possible to assign the task to be performed to each gesture.

• Answer call: Single press
• End call: While in a call, long press for 2 seconds 
• Reject call: Press and hold either earbud for 3 seconds 
• Voice assistant: Press 3 times on the right earbud 
• Game/music mode: Press three times on the right earbud with app open on the smartphone.
• To Play/Pause: Touch the right or left earbud to pause the track, and touch it again to continue playing.
• To rewind to the previous track With earbuds in operation, double-click the right earbud or left earbud.
• To Skip to the Next Track With earbuds in operation, triple-click the right earbud or left earbud.

Initial sound impressions:

The latest TWS I reviewed are Hifiman Svanar Wireless, which are definitely very expensive TWS, but I must say that the transition was not as traumatic as I would have imagined! By now, the quality of TWS has grown significantly.

Obviously, the sound quality is superior on the Hifiman, but if we consider the cost of the Moondrop Space Travel, the quality/price ratio is absolutely in their favor. They’re cheap, you don’t feel guilty mishandling them, they sound really good, and they have app support.

Equipment used for testing above:

Device:

• Redmi Note 7
• Poco M4 Pro 
• Hotwav Pad 8

Software:

• Amazon music UHD 24bit 96khz 

I’m not listing all the tracks because there are too many, but the Space Travel is pretty versatile in all genres.

• Raven – Kelela
• Happier Than Ever – Billie Eilish
• Energie – Schrotthagen 
• Ultimate Headphone Demonstration disc – Dr. Chesky’s
• Miramundo – MiraMundo

The original tips were more than good, but I wanted to test the Nicehck 07, and I must say that they seal out external noise better.

Moondrop Space Travel Sound impressions:

First of all, I start by saying that they are V-shaped, natural, and quite warm. The low frequencies are really good for my taste, but sometimes they lack a bit of body. But for the price, they are truly amazing! You can’t ask for more, and above all, if they aren’t enough, you can put them on the Bassheads preset, but my advice is to change thetips,s and you will have more bass. 

The mids are slightly recessed, and the voices are slightly light and without silkiness but still pleasant. The high frequencies are harmless and the details are very good; you can perceive a bit of airiness and sparkles.

In summary, for 25 USD, we have a fairly consistent pair of TWS with good resolution and soundstage, very good separation, and a reasonably precise image.

Fast (and probably no sense) Comparison:

I do not have many TWS, and the ones I do have are not up to par with these, so comparing them to the Hifiman Svanar Wireless is pointless.

Vs Tronsmart Onyx Neo

They are the oldest and cheapest set I own. They support APTX, so they are theoretically superior. I have always liked their sound quality; they are V-shaped, and the bass is much more powerful and present. There is no app to change EQ or gestures. Very basic, but I still use them today. For comfort and sound quality, I prefer Moondrop Space Travel.

VS 1More Triple Driver BT E1001BT

I will not compare their designs because they are completely different. Above all, for a 2018 product, the packaging is outstanding; the box is super premium and packed with quality tips and accessories. Excellent product representation. If I think I only paid 20 USD during the sales (Retail price over 100 USD), They are two different technical solutions, but this got LDAC. 1More has a decidedly warmer sound, full of deep bass, fairly natural mids but more recesses, and decidedly soft highs, different throughout but still extremely pleasant. Despite the triple driver (1DD + 2BA), we are on another level of definition, image, and soundstage. We don’t have different modes and no touch controls; we have all physical keys.

Vs Hifiman Svanar Wireless

If we start with the cost of 499 USD, it doesn’t even make sense to compare them, but since I’m crazy, I’ll tell you my opinion anyway. TWS should be designed to be listened to without worry while walking, running, or being transported to your destination. Personally, carrying such an expensive TWS with me is an extra worry. If we consider that the quality gap in the end is not so absurd, I find these Moondrop Travel Space much more sensible. No problems with codes with unstable transmissions; app support; low cost.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, Moondrop, with its Space Travel, has nailed the winning formula.

They are entry-level TWS, but they are well built and designed. The charging case is the only real problem in terms of “design” and practicality in everyday use. Their sound can satisfy practically anyone, as they adapt well to every musical genre. Costing so little, they give you exactly that sense of freedom and carefreeness that a similar product should convey to you! With 500 USD TWS, I miss this sense of freedom! What if they fall to the floor? Panic! If you are looking for TWS to spend little on, these are the ones that currently represent an excellent choice; just the personalized command voice is worth their $25.

7.5/10

Pros: 

• Really affordable
• Build quality and materials are good
• Fancy charging case
• 4 sets of tips
• Mild V – shape
• ANC works pretty well 
• Good tonality
• Crazy app support with EQ
• Nice Bass 
• Game mode for low latency
• 3 different modes: Normal/ANC/Transparency 
• Customized prompt voices (anime girl voice)

Cons: 

• Tricky charging case
• Not the best tips
• Battery life (average for the price)
• Just AAC and SBC (no APTX)
• No IPX certification