Final Tonalite True-Wireless Earphones
FINAL TONALITE EARPHONES REVIEW
Final Tonalite are an interesting set of erphones that have a unique way of tailoring their sound to your ears, body, and timbral preferences. They cost $329, and in this review, Oscar Stewart goes through the whole personalised setup procedure and gives them a thorough listening to.
Final is a name familiar to many, hailing from Japan, they have a history of making headphones and earphones that are a little different to the usual offerings. This brings us to the Tonalite, the latest true-wireless earphone from Final that incorporates their new DTAS system for personalised timbre.
This system aims to correct the timbre of the earphones to your body and ear shape, giving you a more realistic sound compared to an out of the box model. It’s an intriguing bit of tech that I will be delving into in this review, so read on to find out more.
BUILD AND FEATURES OF THE FINAL TONALITE
Pronounced toʊ.nəˈliː.teɪ and inspired by the French word Tonalité, these true wireless earphones are well made and follow a similar build quality to other Final models. They have their signature textured finish and the case and earphones feel well put together, with nicely placed battery indicator on the case and a USB-C charging port.
In the box you will find a range of eartips. To ensure the best fit, these are called Fusion-G tri-brid tips and are unlike the previous Final tips – these have a softer feel and are extremely comfortable in use, as well as providing a secure fit. You’ll also find the DTAS kit, which includes a headband and stickers, replacement wax filters (often a common cause of sound issues with in-ears after a while), and some additional adjustment rings that help keep the earphones secure in your ears. 
Tech-wise, these support LDAC, AAC and SBC, they are IPX4 rated, have a battery life of around 9 hours, ANC, Ambient mode, 10-band EQ, multipoint connection, and volume step optimisation in the app. They use a proprietary 10mm f-CORE driver designed specifically by Final for the DTAS software, and the app leads you through the DTAS procedure with clearly defined steps.
On to DTAS, which is the most intriguing thing about these. Final is not looking to adopt the usual “sound personalisation” other brands offer, which are designed to correct minor hearing imbalances. Instead, they are looking to correct the timbre by using a scan of your face and torso, and measuring your ears, to create an acoustic avatar which represents your body’s unique acoustic characteristics. You then get to fine-tune the timbre by using acoustic coefficients, and choosing (whilst listening to your own music) the one that sounds most natural to you. After choosing these, DTAS creates a full acoustic profile tailored to your body shape, ear shape, and listening preference. It’s a different approach to personalised sound in earphones, and there is a lot more detail on how this all works on the Kickstarter page – it’s worth having a read through: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/final-audio-usa/final-tonalite-build-your-sound-with-your-digital-self
I found the DTAS setup to be intuitive and easy to follow, just set aside a good 30 minutes to do it properly from start to finish. Once done, you have your own profile in the app, which you can activate or deactivate. You can also change your timbre coefficients in that section of the app or reset them.
It’s worth noting that all of this is done quite securely; any data is deleted from Final’s servers after 30 days, and no identifying info is collected at the time you do the head scan.
There is a great deal of flexibility built into the Final Tonalite; they are offering something different, and that is interesting to me. They are not the smallest or most discreet of earphones, yet I never found them to be cumbersome in use, and they managed to fit and stay in my ears perfectly.
SETUP AND USE
I have been using these with my Pixel 8 phone, which should default to LDAC with these. I ran DTAS and listened to them with their standard profile and my personalised one, more on that in the next section. I found the included eartips to provide a comfortable and secure fit. 
SOUND QUALITY
Let’s start with these out of the box, in their standard tuning without personalisation, and We’re Gonna Have Us A Champagne Jam by Chiodos came on as I was writing this. A mid 2000’s track with poor recording quality, the Tonalite render it with great punch and energy, making them quite forgiving, yet detailed when you need them to be. They seem to excel in separation, soundstaging, and clarity, allowing you to pick apart each segment of the recording yet presenting it in a wholly coherent way. The transient response is excellent, snares are snappy, and there isn’t a hint of harshness anywhere. The standard tuning is universally enjoyable, with a well-balanced tuning that errs slightly on the smoother, warmer side of neutral, allowing them to master most genres and music you throw at them.
Now, after going through the DTAS setup, we can listen to the personalised sound profile, that is based on both physical and psychological analysis. I must admit, I’m not one to usually use personalised sound in earphones, yet the sound here is superb once you have run the setup. It becomes more alive, natural, spacious, and engaging.
Listening to the same song as above, with my profile enabled, gives everything a little more breathing space, allowing for a more natural presentation. It’s interesting, as nothing seems to have shifted hugely in terms of frequency response, yet the midrange sounds clearer, the bass a bit more articulate, and the treble has a little more sparkle without becoming distracting. I found them to sound a little more dynamic and engaging with my personalised profile activated. 
Moving on to C.A.N.C.E.R by Architects, once again the personalised tuning gave such an enjoyable presentation, with a solid centre image and all the rest swirling around a more 3D-like soundstage (compared to the slightly narrower stock sound). It really does sound more “around you” with the personalised timbre, the double bass kicks have weight to them, heavily distorted guitars have energy and crunch, and Sam’s cathartic vocals cut through with excellent presence. Once again, snares are snappy and the treble crisp without ever sounding overbearing or fatiguing. This is a heavy song, and these allow that to shine through, being transparent to let the song shine through with energy, emotion, and weight.
On to Let Her Go (live) by Passenger. The audience is placed wide in the soundstage, giving you the perception that you are in the front row at the concert. The highlight here, though, is how natural these sound. Vocals are pitch-perfect with excellent weight and clarity, the acoustic guitar sounds fantastic, and it is all delivered in an effortless way. As it is a live recording, you can also pick up on subtle adjustments by Passenger, especially when he is speaking at the end of the track; you can hear when he is closer to the mic and moves further back. Overall, they are both revealing and natural with this kind of music.
I found myself enjoying track after track with these in, and with my personalised profile, I didn’t experience any fatigue or additional sibilance; I just found the Tonalite to sound more evolving and accurate. From All Sides by Lights has a great sub-bass beat, with clear female vocals, and plenty of electronic elements layered around the soundstage. These never lose track of the detail, nor do they become congested; they simply place everything where it should be.
One last track, Practise Makes Perfect by Cute Is What We Aim For, an upbeat pop-punk track, and these earphones handle the music with ease. The bass line is articulate and full, the vocals are well separated and clear throughout, and the treble is crisp yet controlled. These earphones are such an interesting concept, and listen, it’s not like listening to conventional true-wireless models where you are at the mercy of the company’s specific tuning. Yes, they still follow a similar curve to the standard tuning that Final have built in (based on the A10000), yet the subtle corrections make these sound effortless, in a way that makes you forget you are wearing them. I think there is a lot to be said about timbre, and how we perceive sound based on natural timbre vs absolute frequency response.
Anyway, these are truly impressive in a way that is quite difficult to articulate, they have a correctness about their sound that makes them an easy listen and one that is perfect for daily use. 
QUIBBLES
The size and shape of the earphones are a bit odd, though I didn’t have any specific comfort issues.
CONCLUSION
Final decided to do something a little different with the Tonalite, correcting for timbre rather than frequency deficiencies, and aiming for a natural sound based on your anatomy. Does it work? In short, yes. I found the personalised sound profile to give me a much more natural presentation in terms of both the soundstaging and tonality, and presentation. This isn’t something I could replicate using EQ, and the personalised profile is something I would leave enabled (something I don’t normally do when earphones have this kind of functionality).
These are easy earphones to like if you take the time to do the DTAS setup. Out of the box, they have a good sound signature, but it leaps forward once the personalised setup is done. They are also comfortable, have good battery life, and offer a highly enjoyable sound.
AT A GLANCE
Build Quality And Features:
Quality materials and solid build
Unique features, that work well
Sound Quality:
Effortless and natural once the setup has been done
Slightly u-shaped out of the box
Value For Money:
If you look at the package, with the unique personalisation tools, these represent good value for money
We Loved:
The fit, and the sound
We Didn’t Love So Much:
The shape might not be the most ergonomic for all users
Elevator Pitch Review:
The Final Tonalite bring something new to the table! The way their sound personalisation works is different to others, and you end up with an earphone that suits your preference in timbre. This leads to a sound signature that aligns with how you prefer to listen, rendering them quite natural, whilst retaining a deep and wide soundstage. These are worth a listen as they are unique.
Price: $329
Oscar Stewart
SUPPLIED SPECIFICATIONS
Basic Information
- Model: TONALITE (Pronunciation: /ˌtoʊ.nəˈliː.teɪ/)
- Type: True Wireless Stereo (TWS) Earphones
- Bluetooth Version: Bluetooth 6.0
- Supported Codecs: SBC, AAC, LDAC
- Supported Profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP
- Water Resistance: IPX4
- Country of Origin: Made in China
Hardware
- Driver: 10mm f-CORE for DTAS Dynamic Driver
- Microphones per Side: 3 × Infineon IM73A135 MEMS Microphones, 1 × Talk Microphone
- ANC Processor: Sony Semiconductor CXD3784
- Chipset: Airoha AB1585
Battery and Charging
- Earphone Battery Capacity: 100 mAh
- Charging Case Battery Capacity: 700 mAh
- Earphone Playback Time: Up to 9 hours
- Total Playback Time with Case: Up to 27 hours
- Charging Port: USB-C / Wireless Charging
- Charging Time: Earphones: approx. 1.5 hours / Case: approx. 1.5 hours (USB-C), approx. 2.5 hours (wireless charging)
