Marshall Minor IV review

Marshall is known for its range of premium speakers, and if you’re even remotely involved in the rock music industry, you’d know that their guitar amplifiers mean some serious business. However, speakers and amps aren’t all that the brand makes, and its audio portfolio extends to headphones and earphones as well.

What we have today is the latter – the Marshall Minor IV. The fourth generation in Marshall’s range of TWS earbuds that offer the Marshall signature sound, in addition to an eye-catching design. However, this premium sound also comes at a premium price. But is that price justified? Let’s find out in our Marshall Minor IV review.

Marshall Minor IV design

The Marshall Minor IV’s design is one of its standout aspects. Both the earbuds and the case, come with a crocodile leather-like finish that is unique to look at, but also serves a practical purpose. The Minor IV is easy to find in a pocket or a bag full of other items. Once it’s in your hand, it’s also next to impossible for these to slip out thanks to some top-notch grip.

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Except for the sizeable white branding on the front, the entire case sports the signature Marshall black and gold colour scheme, something that extends to the earbuds inside. On the bottom of the case, we have a pairing button and the Type-C charging port, while the back has some certification information.

I’m not a big fan of the two-stage opening hinge of the Marshall Minor IV, and opening the case up doesn’t have that satisfying flick-snap that some other earbuds have. Thankfully, this isn’t the case with the closing of the case, which returns a loud, satisfying snap.

The earbuds feature a stem, and some more white branding on the outer face. There are no silicone tips here, and an open-ear design is present. This is great for the gold mesh inside, which adds to the look of the earbuds, but we shall talk about how this affects the comfort and other aspects in later sections.

Most of the stem also has a textured surface, which makes the earbuds easy to grab, especially with sweaty or wet hands. The gold also extends to the bottom of the stems, which is really nice because it screams attention to details, and gives the buds that little bit extra when it comes to its premium design.

Marshall Minor IV sound quality

My experience with the Marshall Minor IV in terms of sound was mixed. There were aspects I really liked, and others that left me wanting more. Let’s begin with the former.

The Minor IV features some generous depth in its sound output and has some of the best instrument separation I have experienced of late on a pair of wireless earbuds. Now, this is great if you listen to acoustically complex genres with lots of layers.

Classic rock is where Marshall’s products are mainly aimed at, and as a big fan of the genre myself, listening to some iconic tracks by Scorpions, AC/DC, Bon Jovi, and Guns & Roses was very enjoyable. I love electric guitar solos, and I could enjoy them to their fullest with the Minor IV.

The bass output is not as generous as many would like, and while that’s not a concern if all you listen to is rock and other vocal-heavy genres, it can feel low for hip-hop or a Bollywood-filled library.

However, the obvious drawback is the lack of silicone tips. Every positive aspect I mentioned above, were aspects I could only enjoy from the comfort of my room at home. Everywhere else, from public transport to a noisy floor on the office, unwanted noises leaking in were a frequent annoyance.

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If you’re someone used to how silicone tips simply block out outside noise, the design could be a major deal-breaker here. Silicone tips would have also helped these earbuds fit more securely.

While I myself had no issues in this department (even when cycling with the earbuds) the same may not hold true for everyone’s ear shapes and sizes – a common concern with open-ear designs.

Marshall Minor IV features

The Marshall Minor IV comes with gesture controls which are very accurate and easy to trigger. Quickly changing the songs, or pausing playback is not a problem at all here. However, there might be a learning curve if you’re coming from pinch gesture controls, which have pros and cons of their own.

The Marshall Bluetooth app (which could use a better name) is also fairly easy to use and carries on the colour scheme to my phone. It has options for equaliser settings, turning off the gesture sounds, and a toggle for wear detection. All of this is neatly tucked into menus and is really easy to figure out your way around.

Marshall Minor IV battery life

The Marshall Minor IV comes with good battery life, and I have never really run out of juice in the middle of a day. Topping up the earbuds (and case) once a week worked just fine for me, as it should for most people.

A surprise highlight here was some handy battery preservation options in the companion app. These let you limit the charging percentage to extend the life of the earbuds. I sincerely wish more earbuds add a similar implementation, as it can be ridiculously easy to chew through the battery life of TWS earbuds.

Unboxed Take: Who should get the Marshall Minor IV?

The Marshall Minor IV is the latest in a line of niche audio products that are developed for enjoying select genres that revolve around rock and metal, and may not be the best fit for those who listen to genres like hip hop or EDM which would lie on the other end of the spectrum.

Now, if you are looking for a pair of earbuds that do classic rock and roll some justice, the Marshall Minor IV is the product you can easily consider.

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It is also a pretty great pair of earbuds for anyone who is looking to stay away from the silicone tips that most of the TWS industry is heading towards. However, the lack of any form of noise cancellation at a price point of Rs 11,999 does take away from the otherwise premium experience.

For this reason, we rate the Marshall Minor IV 3.5/5. Stay tuned to Unboxed by Croma for more in-depth reviews of audio products and more.