We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-09-24 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
If you want a purpose-built low-latency Bluetooth headphone that plugs straight into a Minelab Equinox 600 or 800 metal detector and keeps the audio lag to a minimum, choose MINELAB ML 80; if you need an open-ear wearable neckband speaker for calls, movies, cycling and all-day listening that still keeps you aware of traffic and people around you, choose Monster Boomerang Petite Neck.
• MINELAB ML 80 — biggest strength: It pairs regular Bluetooth with apt-X Low Latency, and it also has a 3.5 mm (1/8") jack so you can run it wired through the included aux cable with effectively no delay at all.
• MINELAB ML 80 — biggest trade-off: It's a closed, over-ear, on-ear black headphone with no noise control and push-button controls only, and it's really aimed at the Equinox 600/800 ecosystem rather than general everyday listening.
• Monster Boomerang Petite Neck — biggest strength: A 15-hour battery, IPX5 waterproofing, a built-in mic for hands-free calls, and an aptX Low Latency chain on Bluetooth 5.0 — plus it never seals your ear canal, so you stay aware of your surroundings.
• Monster Boomerang Petite Neck — biggest trade-off: It's a neckband speaker, not a headphone. Sound goes up toward your ears rather than into them, so it can't give you the same isolation as an over-ear design.
• Who each pick is for: MINELAB ML 80 → Equinox detector users who want clean, low-delay audio on the hunt. Monster Boomerang Petite Neck → people who want wearable, open-ear audio for calls, media and outdoor activity.
The ML 80 is a specialist tool, and it's honest about that. It's built around two things: apt-X Low Latency Bluetooth, and a physical 3.5 mm jack. On paper that's a smart combination for anyone who has ever watched wireless audio drift a fraction of a second behind the picture — or, in a detecting context, behind the beep.
The spec sheet tells you what kind of listener this is for. Over-ear placement with an on-ear earpiece shape, a metal enclosure, a dynamic driver rated 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, 8-ohm impedance, and Bluetooth version 4. It weighs 3.04 ounces. Controls are push-button, and there's no active noise control. You get the headphones, a black carrying case, a 1/8" aux cable and a charging cable in the box.
If you run a Minelab Equinox 600 or Equinox 800, the fit is obvious. Wireless when you want to move freely, wired through the included aux cable when you want the tightest possible connection and zero concern about latency or battery. Push buttons are also the right call for a gloved hand in the field — you can feel your way to the control without looking.
Who should skip it? Anyone shopping for a general-purpose headphone for commuting, gym work or taking calls. There's no microphone listed, no noise cancellation, and the Bluetooth version is older than what you'll find on current consumer models. It's a detector companion first and a music headphone second. If you don't own an Equinox, the main reason to buy it disappears.
This is a very different product wearing a very similar "low latency" label. The Boomerang Petite is a neckband speaker: it sits around your neck and fires sound upward toward your ears. Nothing enters your ear canal. That one design decision shapes everything else about it.
The spec sheet is generous. Bluetooth 5.0 with a 10-metre range. Up to 15 hours of battery life from a 1.5-hour charge, with Type-C fast charging. A 3-watt speaker system with two bass diaphragms, a dynamic driver and 5.1 channels of surround output. IPX5 water resistance, so sweat and sudden rain aren't a disaster. One built-in microphone with voice pickup tuned for hands-free calls. Touch and button controls. It weighs 0.46 lb (216 g) and comes in black and silver.
The aptX Low Latency support is the headline for the comparison angle here. Monster pairs it with Bluetooth 5.0 and claims twice the transmission speed of older Bluetooth, with no signal loss or interruption. In practice, that's the combination you want if you're watching video on a phone, tablet or TV and you don't want lip-sync drift.
The open-ear approach is the real selling point, though, and it cuts both ways. You can take a call, listen to a podcast on a bike, or follow a conference while still hearing cars, pedestrians and doorbells. Monster also markets it for cycling and conferencing specifically. The trade-off is that a neckband speaker can't isolate you from a noisy environment, and it will leak some sound to people nearby — less than a regular speaker, more than a sealed headphone.
Who should skip it? Anyone who wants deep isolation on a plane, in an open office, or on a loud train. Also anyone who wants the tightest possible wired connection — there's no aux cable here, so Bluetooth is your only path.
• Best for metal detecting with an Equinox 600 or 800 → MINELAB ML 80. It's the only one of the two that's explicitly built for those detectors, and it's the only one with a 3.5 mm wired option.
• Best for zero-latency-critical work → MINELAB ML 80 in wired mode. Plug the included 1/8" aux cable in and Bluetooth delay stops being a variable entirely.
• Best for battery life → Monster Boomerang Petite Neck. Up to 15 hours, with a 1.5-hour charge and Type-C.
• Best for hands-free calls → Monster Boomerang Petite Neck. It has a built-in mic with voice pickup; the ML 80 has no microphone listed.
• Best for staying aware of your surroundings → Monster Boomerang Petite Neck. Nothing touches or seals the ear canal, so ambient sound gets through by design.
• Best for sweat, rain and outdoor workouts → Monster Boomerang Petite Neck. IPX5 water resistance versus no water-resistance rating listed for the ML 80.
• Best for a private, contained listening bubble → MINELAB ML 80. Over-ear, on-ear, closed design versus an upward-firing open speaker.
• Best for wireless generation and range → Monster Boomerang Petite Neck. Bluetooth 5.0 with a 10-metre range, against Bluetooth 4 on the ML 80.
These two products share the words "low latency" and almost nothing else, so my recommendation splits cleanly. If you swing an Equinox 600 or 800, I'd buy the MINELAB ML 80 — the apt-X Low Latency Bluetooth plus the wired 3.5 mm fallback is exactly the right toolkit for that job, and the push-button controls and 3.04-ounce weight suit field use. If you want one wearable for calls, video, cycling and all-day listening while still hearing the world around you, I'd buy the Monster Boomerang Petite Neck — 15 hours of playtime, IPX5, a built-in mic and Bluetooth 5.0 make it the more versatile everyday device. In my opinion, neither replaces the other.
how to make bluetooth headphones low latency
The most reliable way is to use a codec both ends support. Both of these products list aptX Low Latency: the ML 80 pairs it with Bluetooth 4, the Monster Boomerang Petite with Bluetooth 5.0. Your phone, tablet or TV also has to support aptX Low Latency for the benefit to actually apply. If your source doesn't, the ML 80 gives you a second option — plug in the included 1/8" aux cable and run wired, which removes Bluetooth delay entirely.
how to get low latency on bluetooth headphones windows 11
On Windows 11 the latency you get depends on the Bluetooth radio in your PC and the codec it negotiates. If your adapter supports aptX Low Latency and the headphones do too, Windows can use it; otherwise you're on the standard SBC path with more delay. The Monster Boomerang Petite Neck connects to computers over Bluetooth 5.0 with aptX Low Latency, and the ML 80 offers the wired 3.5 mm route as a guaranteed-delay-free fallback. Check your PC's Bluetooth codec support before assuming you'll get the low-latency mode.
how to get low latency on bluetooth headphones
Three levers: a low-latency codec on both ends, a newer Bluetooth version, and a wired connection if you have the option. The Monster Boomerang Petite Neck covers the first two with aptX Low Latency over Bluetooth 5.0. The ML 80 covers the codec with aptX Low Latency over Bluetooth 4, and goes one better by including a 1/8" aux cable so you can bypass Bluetooth completely. For anything where sync matters — detecting tones, video, gaming — wired is still the safest answer.
do bluetooth headphones have latency
Yes, all Bluetooth audio has some latency; the question is how much. Standard Bluetooth codecs introduce a delay you can notice on video and on any real-time audio cue. That's exactly why aptX Low Latency exists, and it's what both of these products list. It reduces the gap rather than eliminating it. If you need it gone entirely, the MINELAB ML 80's 3.5 mm jack and included aux cable let you switch to a wired connection — the Monster Boomerang Petite Neck has no wired option, so it stays wireless-only.
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