SHURE AONIC FREE

£155 / shure.com

The deal with the Shure Aonic Free buds is a bit like the deal with the Grado GT220S. Shure doesn’t make you go without a companion app, but there’s no ANC here and battery life is on the miserly side. The buds are unfashionably large too. But, like the Grados, they have the sort of fidelity, control and positivity that makes every listen an event.

Stuff says ★★★★★