Jaybird Vista 2 Review – Can They Really Survive Submersion?

Vista 2 are a top-notch choice for rugged workout earbuds that survive the harshest conditions. But they’re not without problems…

Welcome to my in-depth review of the Jaybird Vista 2 true wireless earbuds.

As a seasoned reviewer with a passion for high-quality sound, I’ve put these earbuds through our rigorous 9-category testing to bring you a comprehensive analysis.

In this review, you’ll discover not only the technical specifications but also how these earbuds fare in everyday use. Wondering if they are the right pick for your active lifestyle or daily commute?

Read on to find out how the Jaybird Vista 2 stands out in the crowded market of wireless earbuds.

Highlights:

• Earbuds sport an IP68 rating and MIL-STD-810G shock resistance.
• The new charging case can now survive light splashes of water thanks to the IP54 protection.
• Support for wireless charging, proximity sensor, active noise cancellation, and ambient mode.

Of course, nothing is perfect, and there are some annoying problems with Bluetooth connection and firmware updates.

Find out the good and the bad in the review below.

Pros & Cons

Quick Verdict

Are the Jaybird Vista 2 worth the buy?

After thoroughly testing the Jaybird Vista 2, I can confidently say they are a fantastic choice for anyone seeking high-quality sound and robust sports features in wireless earbuds. Their exceptional sound quality, effective ANC, and durability make them stand out.

While the occasional Bluetooth stutters might give some pause, the overall performance and build quality justify the investment. These are not just earbuds; they are a premium audio experience for your daily life.

How Have Jaybird Vista 2 Evolved From Previous 1st Gen. Model?

• Jaybird Vista 2 start at $200, which is $20 more than the MSRP of 1st generation Vistas. A price rise is probably due to added features.
• You get active noise cancelling and Surround Sense (Ambient mode). Though it’s quite basic the older model doesn’t have it at all.
• The battery life has slightly improved. From previous 6 hour per charge, the new model gives 8h per charge without ANC (6h with ANC on). The case also includes 16h compared to older 10h-capacity.

You can read more in the Jaybird Vista review.

Sound

Right out of the box, earbuds sound smooth yet punchy, with great control and good detail. Playing with EQ can make earbuds shine even more.

First, check the A/B sound test:

Learn how we make and how to understand sound comparisons.

Original Vista have a pretty harsh stock sound, which made equalization a necessity.

In contrast, Jaybird Vista 2 are a more balanced version of Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 in terms of frequency response.

That makes their sound slightly V-shaped and considerably smoother in the mids and treble. With the addition of great comfort, you can listen to them for hours and enjoy every minute.

Bass

There is a slight elevation in the bass to add warmth. Thankfully, it never goes boomy or muddy. Instead, it’s controlled and punchy. Just the way most people like it.

Midrange

The midrange is recessed and feels a bit small in scale. Due to its smoothness, it’s also very easy to listen to.

Instruments and vocals are nicely detailed without being sibilant (at least on well-produced songs), although they can be pushed slightly too far in the background.

Treble

Treble is also quite smooth and has shimmery characteristics. Cymbals could use a bit more sparkle to sound more natural, but at least they aren’t tinny or artificial.

The soundstage is about average compared to other true wireless earbuds. It has more depth than width.

The imaging is pretty accurate, without noticeable blind spots.

When applying custom EQ, lowering down the bass and bringing up the upper midrange helps tremendously.

Sound quality becomes more dynamic and detailed, especially cymbals. Even soundstage gets slightly more prominent.

Comfort & Fit

The Vista 2 have excellent comfort and secure fit even after prolonged listening. The only annoying thing is using physical controls.

Their size isn’t all that different from the previous generation. Housing is still relatively big and protrudes slightly out of your ears.

You gently place earbuds in your ears and twist them upward—that way, the nozzle is facing directly into your ears while the ear fin locks into the earlobe.

Since ear gels (ear tip and fin combo) are slightly bigger than your ear canal, they rest in front of it. Don’t try and push them too far since that can result in pain.

There are 3 sets of gels, marked by numbers (1, 2, 3). Between them, only the fin’s length changes, whereas the tip stays the same.

Regardless of you sitting, walking, or running, earbuds feel comfortable and secure. You can take them to the gym and perform fast movements without them flying off your head.

Though, physical controls can be annoying. Thankfully, when pressing the buttons, you don’t push earbuds directly into the ear canal, like with many other models.

Instead, earbuds press against the pinna, which makes the experience less painful.

All in all, workout buds have to be comfortable and secure, and Jaybird Vista 2 deliver, regardless of your ear shape.

Noise Isolation

Even without active noise cancellation, earbuds can passively block significant amounts of outside noise.

Despite having ear tips that rest in front of ear canals, the earbud’s passive isolation is excellent.

It successfully reduces outdoor noise around you. In conjunction with the music, you don’t hear any surrounding sounds.

Of course, you can get better passive isolation on earbuds with deeper insertion. If you seek hearing protection, then look elsewhere.

Earbuds can also boost the ambient noise with what Jaybird calls the SurroundSense feature. It amplifies some frequencies more than the other, which makes the experience a bit unnatural.

It’s still a helpful feature if you want to stay spatially aware. Especially if you have to reply to someone and don’t want to take off your buds.

Is There a Wind Noise?

Even though Jaybird Vista 2 protrude out of your ears, wind noise is minimal. Even when you take the wireless earbuds for a run, it shouldn’t be too distracting.

Noise Cancelling

Active noise canceling (ANC) on Vista 2 successfully combats lower frequencies but struggles with higher ones.

Hear the Jaybird Vista 2 ANC test:

Active noise cancelling is slowly coming to workout earbuds, and this is its best implementation yet. At least in this category.

Jaybird headphones do a great job at reducing lower frequencies to an almost non-audible level.

However, they don’t even try to reduce higher frequencies. As a result, you can still understand people’s speech since the highest part of the spectrum remains intact.

Regardless, Jaybird Vista 2 can make real-world situations like long flights more bearable by blocking things like airplane engines.

Bluetooth

Earbuds occasionally stutter when you grab your phone from a pocket. The range is also shorter compared to the competition.

The wireless range on Jaybird Vista 2 doesn’t reach as far as with other true wireless earbuds.

Audio starts cutting off even before passing the second brick wall. Usually, headphones with Bluetooth 5.0 pass the second wall and only then begin stuttering.

Vista 2 also suffer from random drop outs. When walking outdoors with a phone in my pocket, earbuds distorted at least two times in 2 hours.

It seems like when you grab your phone at a specific angle, the connection breaks for a split second.

Your mileage may vary, but it’s still something you don’t want in a pair of earbuds that cost $200.

The pairing process requires a Jaybird app. There were some problems with the app not recognizing earbuds, despite being already connected via Bluetooth.

However, other users don’t report the same issue, so your experience might be different.

Mono mode is also supported, if you want to use only one bud at a time.

Multipoint?

Jaybird Vista 2 doesn’t support multipoint.

That means you can’t connect them to multiple devices at the same time and skip between them seamlessly (watch a movie on a laptop and answer a phone call from a smartphone).

What Bluetooth Codecs They Use?

They use SBC and AAC. That’s more than enough for sport-oriented earbuds where high-end audio quality isn’t a priority.

Is There an Audio Lag?

Watching video shows no visible lag whatsoever. On the other hand, mobile games can lag slightly.

It’s okay for games like Candy Crush or Angry Birds, but the difference is pretty noticeable in fast-paced Call of Duty or Fortnite.

Battery

With up to eight hours per charge (around 6 hours with noise cancellation) and 16 hours in the case, you’re good for a couple of days. The addition of quick- and Qi-charging makes the deal even better.

You get a slightly longer battery life than the original Jaybird Vista. Vista 2 are promising 8 hours of play time per charge.

Though, in our test, with active noise cancellation enabled, we got 5 hours and 57 minutes. The charging case holds another 16 hours of juice.

While that isn’t class-leading, it’s still enough for 2-3 days of music.

Fast charging comes in handy when you’re in a hurry.

• A 5-minute charge gives an hour of battery life.

And, if you have a Qi wireless charging pad, Jaybird Vista 2 also charge wirelessly.

When paired with your Android phone, you can see the battery percentage of both earbuds and the case in the notification bar.

Strangely, I couldn’t see the battery percentage in notifications when I paired Jaybird Vista 2 to my iPad.

Durability

These are probably the toughest true wireless earbuds out there, with waterproof and shock-resistant housing. Even the charging case is water-resistant.

These earbuds are built like a tank. If you care about durability, then look no further.

When you look at the buds, they don’t show any visible weaknesses. Silicone ear tips cover most of the plastic body, which prevents scuffs and scratches.

Underneath the Jaybird logo, you find physical controls. They’re covered in fabric mesh, which is a nice touch. Although, over time, it might attract some dirt or get torn apart.

Much like the previous version, Jaybird Vista 2 carry IP68 water and dust resistance rating.

They also meet the same MIL-STD-810G military durability standard of the previous model. This reassures you they can survive a drop on the floor.

This time around, the charging case also gets water resistance. With an IP54 rating, it can endure light splashes of water, as well as deflect dust.

A splashproof charging case is a nice touch since they are usually left unprotected.

UPDATE: Our review unit’s case started acting strange, stopped charging earbuds, and failed to initiate pairing mode.

Interestingly, we managed to initiate the pairing process when the case was charging. However, the case still wasn’t charging wireless earbuds, even after the factory reset.

Thankfully, Jaybird kindly replaced our malfunctioned Vista 2. If you experience the same problems, don’t hesitate to contact Jaybird support.

Features

Jaybird Vista 2 have it all: ANC, Surround Sense, customizable EQ and controls, “find my earbuds,” and double-tap feature. And you control them through the Jaybird app.

The app provides everything you need to fully personalize your new Jaybird Vista 2’s.

With a customizable equalizer, you can tweak the sound to your liking or choose from presets made by famous sportspeople and other users.

Hear the differences of the Jaybird Vista 2 EQ presets:

Just like with last year’s model, there are EQ presets made by other Jaybird users, which is a nice feature.

The app also lets you make your personal EQ. It plays different sounds, and you pick at what volume you hear them.

Controls are also customizable and offer a wide range of commands.

Apart from pressing button controls, you can also double-tap on the exterior. Buds feature the accelerometer to register a command. By default, you use it to switch between active noise cancellation, ambient mode, or turning both features off.

Of course, the app also helps you with firmware updates. However, sometimes updates don’t work, displaying an error message.

If you fail to update, even after multiple attempts, try to follow these steps (for Android phones):

• Go into Settings and click on Applications.

• Find the Jaybird app and click on it.

• Scroll down and open Storage.

• Select Clear data down below.

This will clear all data from the app, which means you’ll have to pair your earbuds again. However, at least in my case, firmware updates started working again.

This seems to be the problem with all Jaybird products.

Nonetheless, you have to give Jaybird credit for adding small details for blind users. On the box, it says “Jaybird” in Morse code, and the left and right indicators on the buds are written in Braille. This makes them blind-friendly.

Microphone Quality

Two microphones on each side ensure your voice remains understandable in all situations.

Sometimes, mic quality does get slightly muffled for no apparent reason, and earbuds don’t even try to cancel out background noise.

However, the effect isn’t that severe, so it shouldn’t be too distracting to the person on the other side of the line.

Should You Buy Jaybird Vista 2?

If you want durable workout earbuds with the latest features and high sound quality, Vista 2 are currently among the best choices (July 2021).

Jaybird outdid themselves and delivered improvements in all categories.

These earbuds are still built like a tank, with a charging case that can withstand wet conditions itself.

They still have an excellent sound quality and come with a companion app that can make the audio quality even better.

Features like active noise cancelation and ambient mode does a good enough job if you plan to use them for travel.

Sure, there are some Bluetooth problems, but that shouldn’t sour the whole experience.

Overall, these ear buds are a good value for an active user.

How Jaybird Vista 2 compare to its competition?

Vista 2 price is average for the category: MSRP of $200 is in between the price of Jabra Elite Active 75t and Beats PowerBeats Pro. So they’re similarly priced.

The first big difference is sound quality. While the competitors offer no or limited equalization (EQ), Vista 2 come with a feature-rich EQ app that’s simple to use. So, you’ll find your favorite sound signature in no time.

More features: And when it comes to other differences, Vista 2s offer more flexibility with features like ANC. Though future competitor models will probably also come with basic ANC. Right now, they don’t.

Better protection: Fully waterproof true wireeless earbuds are standard, but Vista 2s also come with water-resistant charging case. If you’re clumsy, it could tip your decision in their favor.

Jaybird Vista 2 Alternatives

Beats PowerBeats Pro

PowerBeats Pro are slightly more stable due to ear hooks but not as comfortable. They’re only splashproof and lack charging case protection.

Beats Pro lack ambient mode and active noise cancellation, as well as an app with customizable controls or EQ. They also use a Lightning connector instead of USB-C and can’t charge wirelessly.

However, thanks to the H1 chip, PowerBeats Pro support multipoint connection (at least with Apple devices). The battery life is higher at 11 hours of runtime (Vista 2 can only do 8 hours).

Both produce great sound suitable for sports, but Jaybird Vista 2 lets you tweak it inside their companion app.

Beats PowerBeats Pro review

Jabra Elite Active 75t

Similar in many ways, both earbuds have an ergonomic design and are very comfortable. Vista 2 have a slight edge with stability thanks to ear fins.

You get feature-rich apps and ambient mode on both. However, Vista 2 have added active noise cancelling.

Durability and water-resistance are also similar, but Vistas 2 protect their charging case as well (splashproof protection).

Battery life is longer on Jaybird Vista 2, with 8 hours per charge (without ANC) compared to Elite Active 75t’s 7 hours.

Jabra Elite Active 75t are bassier out of the box compared to a more relaxed sound signature from Vista 2. You can tweak the sound on both using their companion apps.

Jabra Elite Active 75t review

What’s in the Box?

• Jaybird Vista 2 true wireless earbuds
• Charging case
• USB-C cable for charging
• 3 pairs of silicone ear gels (size 1, 2, 3)
• User guide

Specifications