More xMEMS solid state driver earbuds have officially landed – and these are hand-painted

Noble FoKus Triumph earbuds on a white surface

(Image credit: Noble)

You'll likely have spotted the tech that's set to change portable audio, xMEMS solid state drivers before now. It's that tiny speaker you saw in the promo shots – the one you have to squint to see when it's sitting pretty on the tip of a finger.

Now, there's a new kid on the block looking to leverage it. As we noted at CES 2024 in January, Creative Labs' Aurvana Ace 2 wowed us for being both affordable and toting this new game-changing new audio hardware. Sometimes, though, you want to see what a bigger budget (and wider margins) can bring to a true wireless earbuds proposition, right?

That's what you get with the new Noble FoKus Triumph, a hand-painted set of premium earbuds (not a 1970s car), which has now finally hit shelves with a price that, while undeniably high-end, isn't ridiculously so.

In case you're not familiar with Noble, (that's fine, we're all friends here) the IEMs specialist's FoKus Triumph is its third product made in conjunction with xMEMS, following the Falcon Max and XM1 earbuds, which can be yours for around $270 / £200 / AU$380 or $599 / £499 / AU$965 respectively.

FoKus Triumph is driven by a custom 6.5mm dynamic driver coupled with Cowell, an all-silicon xMEMS-based speaker, rather than the company's Montara, Montara Plus, or Cypress options. To clarify that driver configuration, Noble tells us its latest fully wireless earbuds use that 6.5mm custom dynamic driver to handle the bass and midrange frequencies, with xMEMS’ Cowell solid state driver "serving as a tweeter".

Pre-production units toting this hybrid design were tested by visitors at xMEMS’ CES suite in January, including us. While we praised the sound, we assumed their Alcantara covered charging case, ergonomic design and hand-painted faceplates would make their pricing a little rich for our blood. But, we've been pleasantly surprised…

Noble FoKus Triumph are expensive, yes, but not outrageously so

xMEMS Cowell solid state driver on the tip of a finger, on white background — There's the tiny xMEMS Cowell driver we want to see! (Image credit: xMEMS)

Elsewhere, FoKus Triumph supports Bluetooth 5.3, LDAC, Snapdragon Sound and aptX Adaptive, so the hi-res game is strong. The build quality delivers as well with an Alcantara covered charging case, ergonomic shells, and hand painted faceplates.

To cap it all, FoKus Triumph's sound signature was professionally tuned by a revered Noble Audio acoustic designer known only as The Wizard, an individual with years of expertise (and some stonking hits in IEMs) under their belt. You also get Qualcomm's cVc noise cancelling tech for phone calls, multi-point connectivity, a hear-through mode, on-ear controls, wireless charging, and Noble's FoKus companion app.

And that pricing? They're available now in black only (although the inside of the case is a refreshing orange shade), for $369 / £339, which is around AU$655. At this price, they're certainly in the premium sector, yes, but then again it's the same arena as you'll find the likes of Astell & Kern – and the Bowers & Wilkins Pi7 S2 are actually a little more expensive.

Might they join our selection of the best wireless earbuds you can currently buy? Time will tell.

Becky is a senior staff writer at TechRadar (which she has been assured refers to expertise rather than age) focusing on all things audio. Before joining the team, she spent three years at What Hi-Fi? testing and reviewing everything from wallet-friendly wireless earbuds to huge high-end sound systems. Prior to gaining her MA in Journalism in 2018, Becky freelanced as an arts critic alongside a 22-year career as a professional dancer and aerialist – any love of dance starts with a love of music. Becky has previously contributed to Stuff, FourFourTwo and The Stage. When not writing, she can still be found throwing shapes in a dance studio, these days with varying degrees of success.