Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro and Pro Max: Bass monsters with top noise cancelling
6/7/2026
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Florian Bodoky
With the Liberty 5 Pro and Pro Max, Soundcore wants to be more than just the price-performance alternative. It succeeds - for ANC fetishists and bass lovers. The Pro Max deliver an extra portion of AI functions, but are more expensive.
Since 2018, Anker's sub-brand has been trying to establish itself in the market with speakers and headphones. So far, it has mainly attracted attention with high performance for little money. Now, with the Liberty 5 Pro and Liberty 5 Pro Max, it wants to break out of this rut. On the one hand, Soundcore is trying to establish the charging case as an independent tech category with advantages. On the other hand, the company has developed the AI chip "Thus", which is supposed to enable more computing power on the headphones – for example, to decompress music. Will the Liberty 5 Pro series become a serious competitor as a result, or is this just marketing bluster?
Bulky cases and fiddly insertion
The first thing I notice in the test is the weight and size of the charging cases. Especially the Pro Max's bulky 1.78-inch AMOLED touchscreen and 85 grams of weight noticeably pull on my pocket. The Pro weighs 69 grams. Soundcore uses a horizontal sliding mechanism for both models to access the earbuds. However, putting the buds back into the charging cradle is sometimes fiddly millimeter work.
Because the cutouts in the case are tight, especially on the Pro, and the magnets don't always pull the headphones into the correct position, I initially have to twist and turn the plugs until the charging contact engages. The case, including the sliding lid, and the headphones themselves are robustly built and stable.
Unshakeable hold
In terms of design, Soundcore moves away from the classic stem design and opts for a rounded bean shape, strongly reminiscent of Bose's competition. What I personally like extremely much: Despite the unusual shape, the plugs slide really deep into my ear canal. I really like this deep, firm fit. It is supported by additional silicone fins that clamp into the auricle. This has functional advantages: The headphones sit absolutely unshakeably in the ear, withstand any sprint or workout, and seal the ear canal mechanically extremely well. However, those with narrow ear canals may feel pressure after some time due to this intensive hold. Here, uncompromising hold was prioritized.
This makes the Liberty 5 Pro a good gym companion. All the more so as they have an IP55 certification and thus good resistance to dust and water.
The touch control is inconsistently reliable. Swiping across the surface to adjust the volume works well, but the touch operation for start, stop, or song change suffers from the small sensor area. In my test, commands were regularly not registered or only executed with a delay. It helps if the housing sits stably, otherwise there would probably be even more problems. The offline voice control is cool. Because commands like "Volume Up" or "Next Song" are processed directly on the device thanks to the new Thus chip, the system reacts lightning fast and flawlessly. This works much better in my everyday life when cooking or exercising.
The sound: very bass-heavy music at the expense of naturalness
While the Liberty 4 still used a dual-driver system (6mm tweeter, 11mm woofer), the hardware here shrinks to a single 9.2-millimeter driver. The music is tuned to be very bass-heavy. The deep bass is massively boosted below 200 Hertz and constantly pushes dominantly to the foreground. With already bass-heavy electronic or hip-hop tracks, this provides a good punch, but leads to a distorted sound image with more complex, delicate recordings. The mids sound clean and present, and voices are reproduced clearly. However, the very highest frequencies above 12 kilohertz noticeably run out of steam. Cymbals and hi-hats therefore sound less brilliant, but rather closed. However, I can adjust this with the EQ in the app. Only when I manually tame the bass and boost the highs am I satisfied with the balance and detail resolution. However, I would neglect the "AI sound enhancement": The signal gets louder, otherwise little changes. The sound sounds more artificial than without this feature.
The microphone wonder and an insanely good ANC
The built-in noise cancelling performs abnormally well. It reliably eliminates low-frequency hum in trains or on streets. In combination with the deep fit in the ear, the buds seal off the environment so vehemently that almost no disturbing noise penetrates. That's a statement to the competition. The transparency mode fulfills its purpose but struggles with an audible background hiss.
The built-in microphone system also works strongly. Soundcore combines eight classic microphones with two bone conduction sensors that detect jaw vibrations when speaking. The result is background noise filtering that is second to none. I can stand next to a construction site or on a windy train platform – yet the person on the other end hears almost exclusively your voice. The price for this is a slightly artificial, compressed sound. But: The intelligibility is excellent.
The Liberty 5 Pro Max are a codec and battery powerhouse
Charging is done via USB-C or wirelessly via Qi-pad. Bluetooth 6.1 ensures a stable range, and the device supports not only SBC and AAC but also the high-resolution LDAC codec. With the multipoint feature, I can pair the headphones with up to three devices simultaneously. But: As soon as I activate the triple connection, the system refuses high-resolution LDAC operation and forces you back to standard codecs. If I want maximum audio quality, I have to limit myself to two simultaneously paired devices. The battery is also convincing; with adaptive noise cancelling activated, the earbuds last a solid 6.5 hours. If I switch off noise cancellation, the runtime climbs to an excellent 12 hours. The charging case charges the buds three more times fully, which ideally means up to 50 hours of total runtime. The fast charging function is also convincing. Five minutes in the box are enough for almost four hours of music enjoyment with ANC deactivated.
Case with display and AI functions: Is it necessary?
The regular Liberty 5 Pro has a slim 1-inch display on the front. I can read the battery level on it or switch the ANC mode with a swipe gesture. I find this practical in everyday life because I don't have to unlock my smartphone for every little thing. The Liberty 5 Pro Max, on the other hand, boasts a 1.78-inch AMOLED touchscreen that occupies the entire top of the sliding lid. Here I get menus for equalizer, camera remote controls, and wallpapers. The display looks chic, but in my everyday life, it often reacts sluggishly and requires emphatic swipe gestures. Above all, one should ask: Why scroll through equalizer profiles on a case screen when the smartphone is usually in hand anyway? The Max version is also supposed to score with AI functions, first and foremost the AI Note-Taker. The case can record meetings or lectures in the room via its own microphone. An integrated AI chip processes the data, and the Soundcore app then provides you with a written transcript including an automatic summary.
This works well – but not with Swiss German. The catch with the dictation function is hidden in the small print. The whole thing is linked to a subscription model. Soundcore gives you 120 transcription minutes per month for free. If you want to seriously use the function in your professional or university life, you have to pay monthly for additional minutes.
Conclusion: Is the surcharge for the Max worth it?
The Liberty 5 is available as Pro and Pro Max versions. Both models are bass-heavy by default. However, this can be remedied with the EQ. In terms of wearing comfort, call quality, and especially noise cancelling, the headphones are at the forefront. They are also on par in terms of battery life. The big difference lies in the display and AI functions. In my opinion, these are still cool and work well, but in everyday life, few users will really need them. The Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro Max is therefore only worthwhile for a few. For this, you have to accept a bulky, heavy charging case – and the higher price, including monthly subscription fees for AI transcription. The Max variant is only really useful if you want to record interviews or lectures. Otherwise, I would buy the Pro – the battery indicator is sufficient.
Header image: Florian Bodoky
I've been tinkering with digital networks ever since I found out how to activate both telephone channels on the ISDN card for greater bandwidth. As for the analogue variety, I've been doing that since I learned to talk. Though Winterthur is my adoptive home city, my heart still bleeds red and blue.
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