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Big thank you to EKSA for sending the H16 to review!

Full disclosure: This is a paid review but I made it clear to them that I do not guarantee positive reviews or recommendations – I make in-depth, honest evaluations based on my impressions and the ultimate value that the product may or may not provide.

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Stuart Charles here, HomeStudioBasics.com helping YOU make sound decisions leading to a beautiful audio experience that will make you fall in love with music (NOT gear) all over again, so…

EKSA H16

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In The Box

EKSA Telecom H16 Wireless Headset

EKSA USB-A Bluetooth Adapter

Type-C Charging Cable

User Manual

Antique cars and globe not included.

Specifications

Product Name: H16
Bluetooth Version: 5.2
Driver Diameter: 40mm
Impedance: 32Ω ± 15%
Sensitivity: 115 ± 3dB
Frequency Response: 20Hz – 20kHz
Battery: 400mAh / 3.7V
Charging Time: 2 hours
Talk Time: 35 Hours
Effective Wireless Range: 15m
Net Weight: 150g

Introduction

EKSA’s H16 represents a marked difference from the previous models I demoed: namely the H1, H1 Plus, and H6.

But… is the H16 an improvement over those? How does it sound? What about build quality? Features? Ease of Use?

We’ll answer all of these questions and more.

By the end of this article, you’ll know if the H16 is right for you.

Build

The build seems more compact, but it isn’t necessarily better or worse.

This time around, the earcups are Supra-Aural (On-Ear) rather than Circumaural, but I’m not quite sure how I feel about it.

Related: Circumaural vs. Supra-Aural Headphones: Which Is Right For You?

The headband adjustments are solid enough, but the padding reminds me of my old Skull Candy Uproar Wireless.

In fact, it looks to be the exact same material, and the holes where the sound comes out are positioned identically.

The problem?

They broke down over time and had to be replaced.

That may or may not happen here, but it’s something to keep in mind.

The padding on the underside of the headband feels pretty great and seems to be conducive for longer listening sessions.

Comfort

Speaking of, comfort is decent but you’ll start to feel the pads digging into your ears after about an hour or so.

Not a deal breaker, but go into it knowing you’ll be making adjustments.

To relieve my ears, I’m essentially pulling the cups on and off a few times before returning them to their seat on my lobes.

Speaking of, the R and L indicators are in medium-sized font on the inside of the headband.

Profile

Everything is smaller on the H16, and I’m pretty sure that was an intentional design decision on the part of EKSA in an attempt to make it more streamlined and less bulky.

I do like the H16’s profile, so I’m not really complaining much.

The back of the left cup contains your USB Type-C Charging port, in addition to both the power button and skip track buttons (+ and -).

They are placed rather oddly though. The + is on the front of the left cup which I found a bit strange. The – button is on the back.

Hold to skip or go back to the previous track, and short press them to raise or lower the volume.

Hold the power button to turn the unit on.

Short press the power button to play and pause music.

EKSA H16 Review

The Headset will shut down automatically in 10 minutes when there is no connection.

Connecting with your device is simple.

Just go to the Bluetooth settings on your phone and it should pop up immediately as “EKSA-H16”.

The blue and red light flash alternately and the headset enters the pairing state.

If no connection is successful after powering on, it will automatically enter the pairing state.

When the headset is disconnected, it will automatically enter the pairing state.

After the connection is successful, you’ll hear a voice that says “Connected”, and the blue light will flash once every 10 seconds.

The device displays that the Bluetooth headset is connected.

Rounding out the controls are the Microphone Mute Button which is conveniently placed on the microphone, the LED status indicator, the long boom microphone (rotatable) that we just touched on, the microphone hole, a USB adapter, removable ear shell, and USB-A to Type-C Charging Cable.

USB Adapter Connection

PC:

Insert the USB adapter into the computer.

The adapter will automatically start up and display “EKSA PC Adapter” on the computer, and the blue LED will slowly flash into the pairing state.

Now just turn on the headset and the adapter will automatically connect successfully.

Note: a computer with Bluetooth function can have a Bluetooth connection and USB adapter connection at the same time.

Select one of the connection methods by switching the audio driver.

Select the audio driver with the name EKSA-H16 for Bluetooth connection, and select the audio driver with the name EKSA PC Adapter for USB adapter connection.

After a successful connection, the headset’s blue light flashes once every 10 seconds, and the adapter’s blue light remains on.

One to Two Bluetooth Connection

The headset supports the simultaneous connection of two devices via Bluetooth.

The steps are as follows:

First, connect the headset to device A through Bluetooth pairing, and then turn off device A.

Now the headset is disconnected and enters pairing mode.

Step 2

Open device B and successfully connect with the headset through Bluetooth search pairing.

Step 3

Turn on device A again and connect the headset through device A.

After a successful connection, the headset will be connected to device A and device B at the same time.

Note: The headset is connected to two devices at the same time.

Only one of the devices works when using it. When the other device needs to be used, the currently working device needs to be suspended.

Call Functions

Call Handling

1x Click: Answer Call > Click the power button 1x to hang up > Click the mic button once to mute on or off.
Press 2 seconds to reject a call.

Double-click the power button to redial your last call.

Triple-click the power button for voice dialing.

Three-Way Calling

Click the power button once to answer a new call and hang up the current call.

Double-click the power button to answer a new call and keep the current call.

During a 3-way call, double-click the power button to switch between the 2 calls.

Press the power button for 1 second to keep your current call and reject a new call.

Charging

When the headset battery is low, a voice reminder will be given every 3 minutes: “Low battery please charge”, and the red light will flash once every 5 seconds.

Plug in the USB Type-C charging cable for charging. Turn the unit off to enter the charging state.

The red light is always on when charging, and the blue light is always on when fully charged.

Sound

As always, I wouldn’t purchase these to listen to music but it’s pretty obvious that’s not their primary purpose.

Even so, the music doesn’t sound terrible. It’s just not what I would call a balanced sound.

It’s a bit muddy and boxy, and the bass is overdone like your mom’s meatloaf.

The other issue is that the music has a weird metallic, tinny quality to it that I can’t quite reconcile.

Again, this is a headset meant for those needing to take calls, so music listening becomes secondary although I’d like to see EKSA improve this aspect in the future.

Speaking of the mic, it sounds fine and similar to the other headsets in the lineup.

Voices come through clear and crisp, and the headset itself is very reliable.

Before we give a final verdict, let’s recap what I liked and some things that can be improved.

What I liked:

The headset is smaller and more compact. Its stature is much more conducive to portable use and travel.
Mic call clarity is great and the overall build seems robust even despite being made of plastic.

What can be improved:

I’m not a huge fan of the comfort level here. The pads tend to dig into your lobes and you’ll be making frequent adjustments. They also hurt my ears quite considerably.
The music quality is meh. I’d like to see them improve this aspect of these headsets.
If EKSA is going to make a headset this compact, I’d like to see it fold up.
The controls are oddly placed. You’ll likely press the wrong button many times as you’re getting used to where they are. I think the power button should be on the back right with the + and – right above and below. This is how the Skull Candy Uproar was situated and it’s a perfect setup.
Because these are on-ear, you’re not getting any noise cancellation which is a big deal for people in work environments.

Final Verdict

The H16 doesn’t tick enough boxes for me to recommend, so I’m not going to.

I think EKSA’s attempt at making some changes is admirable, but ultimately they don’t quite work for me.

Fortunately for us, ESKA did improve on some things that I complained about in this article, and went in a completely different direction which I think is admirable and also necessary.

Learn More:

NEXT: A MONUMENTAL IMPROVEMENT?!

Well, that’s about it for today folks! I hope you’ve enjoyed this EKSA H16 review and came away with some valuable insight.

Questions? Comments? Requests? Did I miss the mark on something? Please let me know down below or Contact me!!

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