Teufel Supreme On: these headphones are on
“These are great headphones without any fuss” is the very first thing that came to mind when testing the Teufel Supreme On. We can of course leave it at that, but a further explanation may be necessary. Because it’s not like Teufel at it these headphones skimped on features. On the contrary, these are only so well applied that they do not come across as unnecessary bells and whistles.
Light and comfortable
The Supreme On is presented as over-ear headphones. While it’s true that it covers your entire ears, the thick cushions make it feel more like an on-ear. It gently clamps around your ears and rests comfortably on your head thanks to its light weight of 165 grams. Long listening sessions are no problem, even for spectacle wearers.
You don’t see it yourself when you wear it, but the design of the Supreme On exudes luxury. A thread – which looks a bit like a shoelace – emerges from each ear cup and disappears into the headband. This also gives the Supreme a tough and playful appearance. The headphones are available in six trendy colors, so there is something for everyone.
Included in the box, we also find a protective cover, a cleaning cloth, a charging cable (USB to USB-C) and a jack cable to physically connect the headphones. The latter is made of the same material as the wires coming out of the ear cups: very robust and stylish.
Ultimately, you will mainly use the Supreme On wirelessly. The headphones have nfc, but this connection method does not work on the iPhone. However, pairing via the familiar Bluetooth menu on your iPhone or Mac is a small effort. The Supreme On can even be connected to two devices at the same time. If you and your partner both have a Supreme On, you can also link it to one and the same device. Ideal for listening to music or watching Netflix together undisturbed.
Good sound, even better handling
Okay, the headphones are paired. The first thing you do is of course assess the sound. As we are used to from Teufel, that is of very high quality. At a common volume, the sound spectrum is well represented in all areas. The highs add the clarity the mids need to really shine, and the low is propelled by deep and defined bass. At a low volume, the sound mix can become a bit woolly, because the middle and highs then weaken more than the low. But how often do you put your headphones on a whisper? You can always play with the equalizer via the Teufel Headphone app, but we personally did not think that was necessary.
The second thing that always stands out is the operation. Many manufacturers nowadays opt for touch control. Swipe and tap to scroll through your music, adjust the volume, and turn on Siri. It always takes getting used to and in some cases touches are registered so poorly that we grab our iPhone for the smallest adjustment.
Teufel has a great solution with the Supreme On: a small joystick at the bottom of the right ear cup. Remember those mouse buttons that were used in the keyboard of laptops? The controls of these headphones are very similar to this – and it works really well. With a small turn forwards or backward you adjust the volume, to the left or right you scroll through your music. You can pause by pressing the joystick. Or by taking off the headphones. Because it also has an excellent working ear detection.
This makes the Supreme On a very nice pair of headphones. If you still wonder whether it has noise canceling: no, that’s missing. Although “missing” may have too negative a resonance. We don’t miss noise canceling at all. Headphones have always muted better than earplugs, with the Supreme On this is because it is a kind of hybrid between over-ear and on-ear. The lack of noise reduction also ensures that the headphones have a good price tag. We are extremely enthusiastic.
Conclusion
The Teufel Supreme On is an excellent pair of headphones. The design, the sound and the price are good. And the operating method? It is pure gold.