Verdict

Pros

• Very secure, after experimentation
• Solid sound
• Sweat-resistant

Cons

• Parts of the mids are recessed
• Bass can pull focus a little
• Not the most comfortable fit

What are the House of Marley Uprise?

The House of Marley Uprise are wireless sports earphones. They’re sweatproof, and offer several methods by which to keep them snug in your ears as you work out or run.

At £59.99 (£79.99 RRP) the House of Marley Uprise are sensibly priced, and they sound decent too. Simply play around with the various rubber additions to ensure you get the most comfortable fit.

Related: Best headphones for running

House of Marley Uprise – Design and comfort

House of Marley headphones promote their use of natural and recycled materials. The latter, in particular, earn them some ethical brownie points.

The House of Marley Uprise’s earpieces and remote control are made of a wood fibre and recycled polypropylene composite. It feels like soft-touch plastic and has a pleasant speckled finish. These earpieces are also pretty large, and capsule-shaped.

Little bits of aluminium join the earpieces to the cable, for a more rigid connection point.

Like almost all Marley earphones, the cable is fabric-braided. It looks a little like a shoelace or rucksack cord. The design incorporates a little fastener, which is similar to a bag’s pull-cord.

This part cuts down the slack in the wire around your neck, which is important if you want to wear the House of Marley Uprise while running.

Marley has tried its best to ensure these units stick fast in your ears. There are the usual silicone tips, ‘hanger’ hooks that sit over your ears, and fins that further secure the earphones in the cartilage folds of your ear.

Sure enough, they sit firm. But for the first few days of use, I found the fit annoying. They would either hover in my ears or be stuck in so hard that my ears felt bunged up. And in this latter position they caused discomfort  and some ear soreness.

The problem is the fins. They weren’t the wrong size, but that the ring of silicone that sits in your ear canal opening is quite thick. I find the House of Marley Uprise far more comfortable without these fins in place, although they remain fiddly and invasive.

I’ve used the earphones both with and without fins for running, and they stay in my ears just fine. However, the Marley Uprise are a much less easy fit than the Optoma BE Sport4.

The Marley earphones are water-resistant to IPX5 (IPX4 accord to some parts of their website), which means they can handle water jets. Sweat won’t be a problem.

You get a little drawstring bag, too. It feels cheap, but does the job if you want to sling these earphones into a bag.

Don’t like the finish of our pair? The House of Marley Uprise are also available in brass, black and teal options highlights.

House of Marley Uprise – Features and battery life

Every technical element of the Marley Uprise is solid. They last for around eight hours off a charge, and use a rubber-covered micro-USB port to replenish the battery.

Wireless stability is good, too. I didn’t experience any interference, nor any blips.

The three-button remote is a little large, but it’s very light and so doesn’t jangle around too much when you wearing the earphones whilst running. Two quick taps on the central button brings up your phone’s digital assistant, in addition to the usual volume and music controls.

House of Marley Uprise – Sound quality

Around this price, I tend to recommend two wireless earphones: the SoundMagic E10BT and Skullcandy Method Wireless. The Skullcandy pair has a neckband and the SoundMagics trade sport-ready design for better battery life. However, they’re a good guide on sound quality among affordable wireless pairs.

The House of Marley Uprise are in the same league as these solid picks, but there are a few niggling issues.

First, there’s a slight noise bed, a light hiss. It isn’t too glaring, but you may notice it if you’re listening in a quiet room.

And while the Uprise have a similar tonal makeup to the Skullcandy Method Wireless, the Skullcandy earphones pull off this style a little better. Both earphones have quite strong, bouncy bass presence.

However, since the mids in the Marley are a little more recessed in this pair, the bass can seem to dominate vocals on occasion. Like most affordable earphones with some extra bass, the low-end isn’t perfectly taut and controlled.

These limitations aside, the Marley Uprise are enjoyable, and have a sound that’s well suited to exercise. Some extra definition in the upper-mids and lower treble teams up with the bass to give these earphones extra energy.

The SoundMagic E10BT are more tonally consistent, a little “warmer” in the right places, but these are solid everyday earphones. Just make sure the earpieces are in place properly. If they’re not inserted deep into your ear canals, you’ll lose out on all the bass weight, making the Uprise sound both weaker and harder.

Why buy the House of Marley Uprise?

The House of Marley Uprise are good exercise earphones, as long as you get on with their fit. They need to be inserted deep, and if using all the fit aids, they’re real ear canal cloggers.

There are more comfortable options in this price band. At their £79 RRP, the Uprise are slightly more expensive than the OnePlus Bullets Wireless, which are a far easier fit.

And while the cheaper Skullcandy Method Wireless are flimsier, they get you similar sound quality for less money.

Verdict

Solid sport headphones, but the invasive fit won’t be for everyone.

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