Creative Aurvana X-Fi Headphones Review
By Mark Brezinski
Reviewed.com Editorial Staff
July 24, 2008
The Aurvana X-Fi headphones are a set of noise-cancelling over-ear from Creative. The X-Fis are priced at $300, which puts them in the price range of other noise-cancellers. Though they have a similar price, the X-Fis have more features than the typical pair of noise-cancellers. For example, most noise-cancelling headphones integrate music playback with their cancellation feature: you the headphones on to get noise cancellation and music, you switch them off, and the music turns off along with cancellation. Unfortunately, this also means dead batteries kill your music playback. The X-Fis, on the other hand, keep noise cancellation separate from music playback. You can switch cancellation on and off, and dead batteries just means you have to listen to your music without cancellation. If you're low on batteries, it's nice to be able to switch off cancellation so you can listen to music all day at work and still have juice to noise-cancel out the noisy train ride home. Of course, since the X-Fis take AAA batteries, a dead battery also means you have to go out and buy some more. The X-Fis also have a few playback features that alter the way your music sounds, such as a "movie mode," and a mode that restores quality to compressed music.
On the downside, the X-Fi headphones aren't particularly comfortable when worn for long periods of time, such as stretches of three hours or more. If you're just planning on watching a movie, it's not bad -- additionally, the X-Fis' long cord makes them ideal for connecting to a home theater setup. If you want to bring these to the office for a music-filled day, or if you want to take them on a long flight, however, you might feel uncomfortable after a few hours.
Performance (read the full lab performance results at HeadphoneInfo.com)
The Creative Aurvana X-Fis, like most other noise-cancelling headphones we've tested, didn't have the best audio quality. Relative to other noise-cancellers the X-Fis showcased a weak frequency response (so you'll have to boost the volume up a bit), but also had low distortion. Compared to regular headphones, the X-Fis audio quality was, on the whole, below average.
One thing to keep in mind is that, even though you have active noise cancellation turned on, your music playback will still leak out of the headphones. The X-Fis tended to leak more than other noise-cancellers we've reviewed as well. If you take these to the library, thinking the active cancellation effectively puts you in a sound bubble, you'll end up annoying everyone in the room with your music playback.
Also, even though active noise cancellation is great for improving isolation on over-ear headphones, none of the active cancellers available can out-isolate a good pair of in-ear headphones.
Even on our isolation test, where we score how well the active cancellation blocks out sound, They scored either average or below average on every test but isolation. They actually out-performed all the other active noise-cancellers in terms of the total decibels blocked out over the frequency spectrum. This being said, a good pair of in-ears will still block out more noise than any current active noise-cancelling headphone. The noise cancelling features takes AAA batteries, which carry their own set of pros and cons: they keep costing money, but don't require an outlet or have charge-up down time.
Comparisons (read more in-depth comparisons at HeadphoneInfo.com)
The Creative Aurvana X-Fi headphones are an interesting option for a pair of active noise-cancelling headphones. The problem with headphones like the X-Fi, the Bose QuietComfort series, or the Sony NC500D, is that their main feature, noise cancellation, is really the only thing separating them from a mediocre pair of headphones. Their main ability is they can deliver isolation to users who don't like using in-ear headphones. A good pair of in-ears can deliver more isolation and, even in mid-range models, better audio quality.
This being said, the X-Fi and its ilk have more versatility. Sure, they might not have the raw audio quality of the Sennheiser HD 555s, but with active noise cancellation and the optional extension cord, the X-Fis can travel with you without a cumbersome cord or ambient noise ruining your playback. Likewise, while the X-Fi is larger, bulker, and all-around less portable than Etymotic Research's 6isolator in-ear headphones, the X-Fis' extension cord can let it hook up to a home theater setup and the over-ear design provides users with a larger soundstage that's better for watching movies.
If you're considering buying a pair of active noise-cancelling headphones like the Bose headphones, you should check out the X-Fis as well. Although they might not be as comfortable over a long period of time (which obviously won't affect all users the same way), the ability to still function as headphones when the batteries die makes them far more user-friendly.
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