Black Shark Lucifer T1 Wireless Earbuds Review – Gaming with Lights

Black Shark wireless earbuds review

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Current testing methodology is v1.2

Release Date
July 30, 2021
Price
$39.99
Model:
BS-T1-US-N
Weight
3.52 oz
Size
3.15 x 3.15 x 1.42 in
Waterproof
Yes

Black Shark is under the larger Xiaomi brand and is focused on Gaming. They have a range of gaming phones and accessories like coolers so when you’re playing those really processor intense games you can keep your Black Shark gaming device/phone cooler. 

Budget Pick

Black Shark Lucifer T1 Wireless Earbuds for Gaming

Nice fit and form with lots of lights for a nice price

4/5
Price Range: $
Brand: Black Shark
Black Shark Wireless Gaming Earphones on a wood table with the case open and green lights lit up

TL:DR;

There are a few things that stand out about the Black Shark Lucifer T1 that highlight why it makes for a solid gaming partner.

1. The first is that it has Ultra-low Latency. At 55ms this is fast to ensure that when you are in Game Mode you get the very best speed and syncronisation between what you’re seeing and what your hearing. There is nothing worse than delays in the on-screen experiene and the audio you hear. Ultra-low latency of 55ms ensures the Black Shark Lucifer T1 Wireless Earbuds keep everything tight.

2. Activating Music mode enables a precision tuned audio experience. Deep bass and high frequencies benefit from this greatly. The 10mm drivers are plenty to provide a rich dynamic drive experience.

3. 35-Hour Play Time: The case provides up to 10 additional charges (35 Hours). Each single charge gives you 3.5 hour gaming or listening time. Plenty of battery life for what you need and no requirement to stay close to a power souce. Drop them in your pocket and off you go.

4. It is surprising that such well designed an comfortable earbuds house a full 10mm driver: The Lucifer T1 Bluetooth earphones’ 10mm dynamic drivers provide great sound that is quick and fastthat is both great for music and especially satisfying for Gaming.

5. Bluetooth 5.2: With Bluetooth 5.2 the Lucifer T1 Bluetooth earphones give a very solid connection even when you might be surrounded by competiting fequencies. This means your connection to your device is solid and won’t break or drop, even when you’re in busy cafes, trains, gaming halls or planes.

Black Shark Lucifer T1 Earbuds are a really great looking, comfortable and easy to pair wireless Bluetooth earbud set. With a focus on gaming; The bottom lends itself to large explosions and heavy gunfire.

Musically they are more than up to task considering the lower price point. You can choose between the dual modes for gaming or music with a triple tap on the earbuds.

The way the case lights up is so impressive and it certainly adds to the excitement of the experience using them, even if it adds nothing to the audio quality.

While the highs and mids don’t present as well as the bass, these are a good buy at this price and adds another good piece of hardware to the Black Shark (Xiomi backed) collection of products.

The Specs

  • Latency:  55ms Ultra-low Latency
  • Bluetooth:  Bluetooth 5.2
  • Playback Time:  3.5 Hours
  • Case Charging:  Up to 35 Hours
  • IPX Rating:  IPX4 Waterproof
  • Built-in Mic:  Yes
  • Touch Controls:  Yes
  • Drivers:  10mm Dynamic Driver
  • Microphones:  4 microphones (2 in each Bluetooth earbud)
  • Compatibility:  Most all Bluetooth audio devices including iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac OS
  • Charging Plug type:  USB-C

What’s in the Box?

  • Black Shark Earbuds
  • Charging + Storage Case
  • Silicon Eartips – Small / Medium / Large (one comes fitted)
  • USB-C charing cable
  • User Manual
  • Info card with who to register for Warranty

Stuff I like

  • Price is great
  • Looks amazing with all the bright lights and LEDS
  • Fast and Easy Pairing
  • Solid Bass response

Stuff I like less

  • Audio good but mids and highs could be better

Overall, it’s pretty smart stuff.

We now have the Black Shark Lucifer T1 TWS earbuds (different to the JoyBuds) which are the newest addition to the range. So, how do the Black Shark wireless earphones sound and how are they in terms of value for money?

Black Shark wireless earbuds with all included accessories from retail box laid out on table including charger, case, earbuds, retail box, instruction manual and replacement silicon tips
Black Shark included accessories with case

Hardware

First impressions on the hardware is good. They are well made, the case is well designed and everything about this thing screams GAMING!!

The case is light(which is good if you’re throwing it in your pockets) and while it will charge the wireless earbuds it won’t charge as much as some true wireless cases.

The earbuds have a reported 35 hours of playback but I have not the patience to test it to it’s limit. Not as many as something like the Xfyro offer but if you can’t get to a charger then you must be lost. I apologise if you were expecting more from me…there are just somethings I won’t do for a $35 set of wireless earbuds.

The lights on the case and the earbuds are awesome. They light up when you open the case and flash and pulse with great enthusiasm. It honestly adds something very cool to the theatre of using them.

via GIPHY

Controls

The Black Shark T1 can be controlled by tapping the left and right earbud. The touch controls operate fine. 

Side view of man wearing black shark earbuds with close up on his ear
Tap the outside of the Black Shark earbuds to control them.
  • Dual Mode Switching: Triple tap the R/L touch control. This works with a short pause between each tap – maybe just under half a second.
  • Play / Pause: Single tap the R/L touch control in Music mode
  • Previous Track: Just hold the Left touch control in music mode for 2 seconds
  • Next Track: Hold the right touch control in music mode for 2 second
  • Answer / End A Call: If you’re on a call just Single tap either of the left or right earbuds
  • Activate Siri on iPhone: Hold the R/L touch control for 2 seconds while any music is paused. This surprised be but it can tell when it’s playing music and when it’s not. So a quick tap to pause and then tap and long hold for Siri activation worked OK.

The bluetooth range was decent. A good walk out the door and back. In fact I tried to leave the office to take a call, leaving he earbuds on my desk, and they kept reconnecting even at a decent distance as I had forgotten to disconnect them.

Dual Modes

These are dual mode earbuds with both a music mode and a gaming mode. A triple touch to the left or right earbud will change it from Music to Gaming mode. There is a lovely lady who will tell you when you’ve moved from music to gaming mode.

I tried this more than once mid song to see how the frequencies and sound signature changed. The music mode definitely sounded less woody. I always describe the wooly sound some earbuds produce like your sitting in front of a speaker and there is sheet of cardboard between you and the speaker.

Black Shark T1 earbuds case with retail box

The music mode feels a little more V shaped as the vocals tend to move back in the sound signature a little. The bass comes forward and the high end feels tweaked up a little.

I personally liked the game mode mode for audio as well as gaming. The good news is you have both to choose from and you get to choose.

What is clear is that Bass you can feel was the first thing they briefed the audio technicians on for this build.

Sound

The bottom end is round and deep – definitely sculpted to be present. Easily matches the AirPods Pro for feeling in the lower frequencies but you have to make sure you get them deeply seated in your ear. If there is even a small leak in the seal you’ll lose the deep and fat bass frequencies.

Mids in my opinion sounded better on the gaming audio setting, they were a little more forward in the sound signature.

Treble is fine. Anything more might become a little fatiguing over longer gaming and music listening sessions. It’s not overly edgy. It does stand out over the bottom end though so there is decent separation for that at least.

The overall tone is warm. Quite warm.

The sound stage is relatively level, not a huge amount of space between all the elements but more than I expected for the price. Vocals sat quite centred with bass and drums sitting just behind with left and right panned channels like guitar floating around as they should.

I tried all my HiFi testing tracks and more to see how it all went. Again, the bass stood out full, not incredibly fast or tight but nonetheless it was nice to feel.

Comfort

Black Shark earbuds on a table with a ruler next to them showing the size of around 3cm long

The design on these had me questioning at first but the bulbous top end actually fits really comfortably in the ear. They are also light. Again, you need to seat these well so play with the different tips. 

The length of the buds is really nice and I’d say while not as comfortable as my AirPod Pros they are super light and will be comfortable for long listening sessions or gaming sessions.

I’d love to see someone do an aftermarket ear foam tip but the silicon to seal and provide some passive noise isolation.

What are they missing?

Well at this price they really aren’t missing a lot. They don’t auto pause when you remove the earbuds is something I wouldn’t expect at this price anyway.

FAQ

Do the Black Shark T1 earbuds have active noise cancelling ANC?

No. They have good noise isolation but it’s not active noise-cancellation

How long does the battery last?

A single charge give the Black Shark earbuds a 3.5 hour playback time

How many charges does the case hold?

The case can charge up to 35 hours, so about 10 charges.

Summary

Black Shark wireless earbuds review

If I was to choose I’d probably pick these for gaming, which is really what they are developed for. While their use for phone/zoom calls is fine and the music quality is OK, I think they stand out as tuned and sculpted for a great gaming experience.

They’re not bad for music, and that’s a real bonus but if you’re keen on earphones for gaming, these are a great choice.

Any questions? Fire away in the comments below.

Lucifer T1

Black Shark Lucifer T1 earbuds case with retail box
Black Shark Lucifer T1 Wireless Earbuds
Low Latency Performance
Price
Performance
Sound Quality
Comfort
4.6

Endless hours of experimentation, professional work, and personal investment in Home Theatre, Hi-Fi, Smart Home Automation and Headphones have come to this.

Former owner of Headphones Canada, a high-end headphone specialty retailer.

This post was last updated on 2024-03-28 / Some images from Amazon Product API & some links may be affiliate links which may earn us a commission from purchases.


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