Article by Jeremy Marie
RIPT Ultra (249.99$/235€) RIPT Lite (99.99$/94€)
Available now
Pros
Huge battery life (RIPT Ultra)
Comfortable for hours
Choice of ear cushion (Sweatproof silicon for sports and soft faux-leather for daily usage) (RIPT Ultra)
100% sweatproof
Very good sound, clear, no exaggerated bass (RIPT Ultra)
Tiny, solid and useful charging case, shows battery left (RIPT Lite)
Touch controls need a little practice but works well (RIPT Lite)
Killer prices for the features/performances (RIPT Lite especially)
Cons
RIPT Lite, as do other earbuds, might have lesser hold depending on your ears
RIPT Lite ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) is a bit diminished by the open earbud design
Touch controls work nicely, but be careful when repositioning the earbuds…
RIPT Ultra is a bit heavy for very dynamic sports
Voice prompts are too loud.
Introduction
H2O Audio is upping its game recently, with the release of the updated Tri 2 bone conduction headphones (RTR Review) and also releasing at the same time the RIPT Ultra over-ear headphones and the RIPT Lite earbuds, covering both ends of the spectrum.
The Ultra is a big over-the-ear headphone with comfort, battery life and maximum isolation in mind, the Lite is a lightweight pair of earbuds still targeting sports but extending to everyday life usage, light and still sweatproof.
They both share in-house RIPT (Real Isolation Performance Tech) noise-cancellation tech, and are primarily designed with sports in mind.
H2O has been kind enough to send me both for review, and I’ve been able to put both pairs through their paces on the run, in the gym on the turbo trainer and during day-to-day usage.
Specs
RIPT Ultra
299g
up to 50h battery life (ANC off)
BT 5.4 connectivity (dual connection)
USB-C charging port
Jack port for airplane use
washable silicone ear cushions for sports and leather ones for comfort
ANC (-30dB) and transparency modes
full button control
RIPT Lite
3.7g per earbud
5h battery life, 30h with charging case
LCD display on charging case to check battery level
Full touch control
ANC
BT 5.4 connectivity
IPX5 and sweatproof
In use
RIPT Lite (249.99$/235€)
Let's start with the more accessible offering, the RIPT Lite. At 99$, they offer a nice spec sheet with ANC, a useful charging case and a design aiming at comfort for sports and everyday usage.
I usually have an issue with earbuds, as almost none wants to stay put in my ears.
Unfortunately, no miracle happened with the RIPT Lite, but they’re clearly amongst the best I had experienced. As a comparison with the standard Apple Airpods, the RIPT Lite stays more securely in my ears. This is typically a “me” issue, but wanted to surface it from the start. If you usually have issues with earbuds not staying put, try them first to validate if they work for you.
What I typically experience here is that they give me a sense of falling out, but they don’t. They just get a little bit out of the ear canal, but ultimately stay in.
H2O audio includes some silicon hooks that clearly enhance the hold for delicate cases as I am, but they’re not really part of the design and won’t fit in the case.
Actually, the shiny plastic material they’re made off tends to grip more once you begin sweating, despite this sounding counter-intuitive, enhancing the grip.
After this “disclaimer”, let’s dive into RIPT Lite in use
First the sound. H2O Audio engineers clearly know their job.
I already had a very nice experience with the Tri 2 bone conduction, which made me revise my judgment about bone conduction technology not being able to deliver good sound.
The RIPT Lite sounds really good, with good emphasis on bass without getting mushy. The sound is well-balanced for me and I find it really adapted to the tunes I usually listen to (almost any sort of Metal - which can get dirty really quick when using lower end earphones).
Of course, in-ear earphones costing double the price (and above) will get you a better sound or clarity, but for less than 100$, the RIPT lite sounds really good.
The controls exclusively rely on touch, which can rapidly become a hit or miss. H2OAudio tried to keep things simple and the control scheme is easy: one touch on the right for play/pause/calls, double touch for volume control, long touch to skip.
A single touch on the left bud switches ANC on/off. Within one use I had the controle memorized.
Where things can get a bit messy is when repositioning the RIPTLite in the ears, as you’ll inevitably touch them and then trigger a command.
You really need to grab them avoiding the touch surface to avoid this shortcoming. In the end I’m just moderately satisfied by the control scheme due to this.
ANC in an open ear design. On one hand, it will minimize external noise, but don’t expect it to be totally cut off as with over-ears or in-ears as Airpods Pro. What you miss with RIPT Lite (and identical designs) is the physical isolation brought by blocking the ear canal.
On the other hand, this can be considered as an advantage; you’re not totally isolated from your surroundings, hence increasing security when running in the city, or even when just walking.
This is something to keep in mind when choosing such a device. In the end, you get some of the advantages of bone conduction, albeit not as “free ear” of course, but I find this middle of the road result really pleasing.
H2O Audio puts a lot of emphasis on the comfort of the RIPT Lite and I admit that I’ve been able to wear them for +2h indoor rides without discomfort, something I cannot say for Apple standard Airpods.
Battery life is advertised at 5h, which is a bit on the lower end by today’s standards. The tiny case boosts this to a whooping 30h and has a nice LCD display of the remaining juice. You can easily get a whole week of sports/music/calls without charging the case with an USB-C.
Voice clarity is also totally acceptable for calls, making those earphones adapted to everyday usage. It’s not amongst the best, most clear sounding earphones for this but they’ll do the job pretty well for the impromptu call.
Putting the price in the balance, the RIPT Lite is a solid offering.
RIPT Ultra (99.99$/94€)
Let’s now dive into the big (very big !) brother: the RIPT Ultra headphones.
Those are in a totally different league, sporting 45mm drivers, interchangeable ear cushions, 50h battery life and exclusive button-controls to manage playback, calls and ANC.
Weighing 290g, I find it a bit too heavy for my tastes for sports with lots of dynamic movements such as running.
Yet it was perfect for gym/weight lifting (and it gives a definite “serious gym guy” look !) and for indoor rides on my Kickr bike, which is easily 50% of my active time per week.
Indoor rides allowed me to test the sweat proof silicone ear cushions, specifically designed for sports, where sweat might rapidly destroy more standard cushionst.
Here, the silicone ones are grippy, with large holes in front of the drivers and stay comfortable, at least up to 3h, the longest indoor session I’ve used them for.
Swapping cushions is a breeze, just a quarter-turn and you’re done.
The “Lounge” cushions are comparable with more lifestyle oriented headphones as the Sony WH series, and are definitely softer than the silicone ones.
The other advantage of having removable cushions: you can easily clean the sporty ones using a damp cloth.
Both ear cups proved to be comfy, so is the padded headband. It has a grippy covering which, combined with the firm, extendable metal mechanism, leads to a perfect hold no matter the movement. Those did not slide the slightest and stay firmly put: perfectly adequate for the job.
Comfort was also really good, I felt no pressure point nor the weight of the RIPT Ultra.
The balance between durability and weight is also really good in my opinion. The device does not feel cheap at all, and feels even more solid that my Sony XM4.
Controls are all based on buttons. On the left, the sole buttons cycle through ANC modes (On/off/transparency). On the right speaker, you got the multi-function button (power, play/pause..) and volume control. They all stick out of the surface so you easily feel and identify them. Simple and effective.
The sound is really good, especially when ANC is activated. Actually I really recommend always activating the 30dB ANC in any situation. The sound is hands down better, more “open”, more lively, with nicely percussive bass. I wouldn’t compare it to my Sony XM4, but I would never use these for sports, especially not for long indoor rides.
Noise cancellation is far from being as effective as on higher end devices. It makes a nice job cutting out the majority of sounds, but you’ll still be able to slightly hear some conversation bits, which almost disappear once you add music in the mix.
Transparency mode does what it’s supposed to: let in external sound in bringing more situational awareness when exercising outside.
H20 Audio provides a very decent package with the two ear cups pairs, USB-C charging cable, protective case and a mini-jack cable that’ll be useful during flights.
Conclusion
Once again, H20 Audio delivers really nice devices with its RIPT line.
The Lite is a nice addition to the sub 100$ category,with good specs and some water protection to stick to the brand’s sports background.
Still, I lean more towards either bone conduction devices, or in-ear design as in AirPOds Pro or Powerbeats when I really want to get immersed by what I chose to listen to, but this is a personal preference.
The RIPT Ultra is the star of the duo for me. Gigantic battery life, comfortable, very good sound and totally sweatproof, it ticks all the boxes I look for in sport headphones. The price of $250is reasonable given the overall quality.
H2O Audio now covers a wide range with bone conduction devices, light and affordable earbuds and a solid over the ears headphone, and are sticking to delivering devices with a solid sound quality, and well-thought out features. Maybe we'll see a sporty challenger to Airpods Pro later in the year to cover all the use cases
Shop for the Ript Series
H20 Audio HERE
AMAZON HERE
Jeremy MARIE, French, 44y/o. Running since 2013 and quickly transitioned to trails, focused on ultras since 2015 : TDS, Maxi-Race, “100 miles du Sud”, 90 kms du Mt Blanc, GRP 120 kms, Some shorter more mellow races (Saintelyon 45 kms, Ecotrail Paris 45 kms…) with always in the mix road and flat running, but not many road races. Also active cyclist and 70.3 Ironman. Recovery/easy runs ~4’45/km - 4’30/km. He has an un-official marathon PR of 2h54 (solo) and 10K PR of 36’25. He does few timed road races.]
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