JBL Tour One: A Sophisticated Contender in the Wireless Headphone Arena

Опубликовано: 31 марта, 2025

JBL is widely recognized in India for its wireless speakers and automotive audio solutions, but the brand’s headphones and earphones have also gained significant popularity. With an extensive selection of products ranging from below Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 25,000, catering to various needs and preferences, JBL offers options for nearly every budget. In this review, I will focus on the premium model in JBL’s personal audio range, the Tour One over-ear wireless headphones equipped with active noise cancellation.

Retailing at Rs. 24,999, the JBL Tour One provides substantial value with its appealing design, practical features like active noise cancellation, touch controls, and application support. It claims to deliver impressive sound performance and battery longevity. Does the JBL Tour One stand up against the reigning champion in this category, the Sony WH-1000XM4? Discover the answer in this review.

At its price point, the JBL Tour One faces competition from brands like Sony and Bose.

Controls on the JBL Tour One: Physical and Touch

Premium over-ear headphones are generally designed to be sizeable, enveloping the ears completely while providing a snug fit for effective noise isolation. Nevertheless, it’s important that they aren’t excessively bulky to maintain comfort during extended use. The JBL Tour One strikes a good balance, presenting a noticeably sleeker design compared to JBL’s previous flagship model, the Club One headphones.

Only available in black, the JBL Tour One exudes sophistication. The ear cups and headband feature a matte black finish, accented with reflective black strips along the ear cups and beneath the headband. Both the JBL and ‘Tour One’ logos are prominently displayed, while the underside of the leatherette headband provides comfortable padding. Weighing light, the headset proved comfortable over lengthy listening sessions; however, I had to adjust my glasses to maintain an effective noise-isolating seal.

The power and pairing features are operated via a sliding switch located on the right earcup of the JBL Tour One. Moving this switch to the center powers on the headphones, while holding it in the lowest position for several seconds activates pairing mode. Additionally, there are dedicated buttons for volume control on the right earcup, along with a customizable button on the left. A 2.5mm port is available for connecting the included stereo cable for wired use, along with a USB Type-C port for charging.

The JBL Tour One incorporates a four-microphone system for voice capture and active noise cancellation, with two microphones facing forward, the third positioned laterally, and the fourth located inside one ear cup. The outer surface of the right earcup is touch-responsive, allowing you to tap it for playback control and to answer or end calls.

I found the touch controls somewhat sensitive. They were prone to accidental activation and sometimes failed to recognize double or triple taps. There is a wear detection feature that automatically pauses music when the headphones are removed, or resumes playback when they are worn again, which functioned effectively for me.

The JBL Tour One is compatible with the JBL Headphones app, which can be downloaded for iOS and Android. This app shows the current battery level and allows users to customize and adjust various settings such as active noise cancellation, ambient sound mode, and talk-through mode. Additional features include a ‘smart audio mode’ for optimizing audio quality, stability, and latency, equalizer settings, touch controls, customizable button options, and voice assistant configurations, among others.

The programmable button on the JBL Tour One can control ANC and transparency modes or activate your smartphone’s voice assistant.

The customizable button on the JBL Tour One can either switch between ANC and ambient sound modes or activate the voice assistant on your smartphone with a long press. Support is available for Siri on iOS, Google Assistant on Android, and Amazon Alexa. A long press on the touch-sensitive area can also be set to manage ANC and transparency modes or activate the talk-through feature, which swiftly lowers volume to facilitate conversations.

This app is quite functional, allowing you to personalize the JBL Tour One as desired and update its firmware as necessary. Notably, you can quickly adjust the active noise cancellation and transparency settings based on your environment, and I frequently found myself tweaking the equalizer to optimize the sound for different music genres.

The JBL Tour One is equipped with 40mm dynamic drivers and utilizes Bluetooth 5 for connectivity, supporting both SBC and AAC Bluetooth codecs. The absence of advanced codec support is somewhat disappointing given the pricing. The frequency response range is 10-40,000Hz (when utilized in passive mode with the stereo cable) and 10-22,000Hz with Bluetooth. The packaging includes a hard case, a stereo cable for wired connectivity, an airliner adapter, and a charging cable.

Battery performance on the JBL Tour One was excellent. It operated for approximately 30 hours per full charge with active noise cancellation activated and at average volume levels, though usage may lead to slight variations. Charging was also fairly swift, with the headphones reaching a full charge in around two hours using the included cable and a 10W adapter.

Sound Quality of the JBL Tour One: Clarity and Balance

For my testing, I used the JBL Tour One with music, calls, and video content, primarily paired with an iPhone 13. On occasion, I also connected these headphones to an Android device and a MacBook Air for comparison. The app allows sound optimization for different activities, such as music listening or video watching, which appeared to enhance the experience for each use case.

My initial impressions of the JBL Tour One’s sound quality were generally neutral; however, as I listened across diverse music genres, I began to appreciate its balanced audio. For example, during «Wherever You Go» by The Avalanches, I liked how well the headphones adapted to the track’s changing tempo. The gradual vocal buildup sounded smooth and delicate, while the headphones transitioned seamlessly into the faster, rhythmic portions of the song.

The balanced and clean audio experience is refreshing and engaging, but advanced Bluetooth codecs would have improved the JBL Tour One.

Low frequencies were relaxed yet delivered adequate punch and drive to complement the robust mid-range and high frequencies. This flexible sound profile was evident even in quicker tracks, such as «Yeke Yeke» by Stylo and Space Motion, where the strong beat was well balanced with the engaging traditional African vocals of Guinean artist Mory Kante.

To maximize the sound quality, keeping active noise cancellation on and maintaining volume levels near 80% certainly made a difference in revealing the headphones’ nuanced character.

While the detail level was commendable, the overall drive and punch lacked slightly compared to similar-priced competitors like the Sony WH-1000XM4. The Tour One strives to deliver a fun listening experience, and those who appreciate a balanced sound without excess coloration will find its audio signature appealing, even though it feels like something is lacking in terms of high-end performance.

The active noise cancellation feature on the JBL Tour One performed well, as is expected from a high-end model. It was particularly effective against typical outdoor noise but did not perform as well in indoor settings. Although it noticeably reduced common household sounds such as the hum of ceiling fans, it didn’t completely eliminate these distractions as efficiently as some competing products. Voices and other activities were somewhat muted.

When used outdoors, particularly while walking in busy areas, the JBL Tour One successfully diminished noise levels, enabling clear listening to music and audiobooks. I also found it easy to hold conversations during phone calls. The ambient and talk-through modes allow you to remain aware of your surroundings without removing the headphones, but the sound quality felt slightly artificial and overly amplified in noisy environments. The Bluetooth connection remained stable at distances of up to 4 meters.

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Conclusion

The premium wireless headphone market is predominantly ruled by a select few brands like Sony, Apple, and Bose. As a well-established name in the headphones sector, JBL had been missing an impressive contender in this price bracket until now. The JBL Tour One, in my view, is a competent pair of wireless active noise-canceling headphones priced at Rs. 25,000. It boasts a clear, balanced sound profile, commendable outdoor noise cancellation, outstanding battery life, and excellent features, including an impressive companion application that allows for extensive customization.

Moreover, it is aesthetically pleasing and comfortable, although it has some noticeable drawbacks like the absence of advanced Bluetooth codec support, somewhat tricky controls, and a lack of detail and punch in its sound. While the active noise cancellation is decent, it doesn’t quite meet the top-tier standards of other models. Priced approximately Rs. 5,000 lower than the Sony WH-1000XM4, JBL Tour One still remains a worthy consideration.

If you’re thinking of purchasing headphones, check out the insights from Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is accessible on platforms like Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and on all podcast platforms.

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