Creative Zen Hybrid 2 (White, Bluetooth, USB-C, ANC)

I struggle to find headphones that are comfortable to wear with glasses these are so nice to wear. They are easy to use. The quality of sound is good for what I need them for

I found these headphones a good, comfortable fit, look nice and feel nice. The sound seems pretty good to me, and the active noise cancelling does a reasonable job of dampening out background noise. However, my only disappointment is the ANC cannot be used without the headphones being connected. Not a major problem, but if you like to relax and cut out the background noise without having to connect to a device, then these may not be the best set for you. 👍

Comfortable - yes!. I’ve worn them for a couple of hours straight and still no problems. I can’t say how they’d be for all-day use, but for my typical hour-or-two at a time, they’re great. Sound quality is at least good, maybe very good. Certainly better than the other Bluetooth pair I own, which are at least pretty good. Disclaimer - I’m not a “golden ears” listener, but still, they sound good to me. Easy to use…hmmm, we’ll, I will probably not use all of the features, but the controls are at least OK. Noise cancellation - seems to work well enough to nullify the air purifier, which is running non-stop about ten feet from where I sit. SXFI - well, I’m glad it has it, but I can’t say that it makes a lot of difference in what I am listening to. Still, nice to have it to play with. Mostly I listen to classical, instrumental, and classic rock, and these headphones work well for that, at a price which isn’t alarming.

The Creative Zen Hybrid 2 (White) is a fantastic pair of headphones. The Bluetooth connectivity is seamless, and the USB-C charging is convenient and fast. The Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) works impressively, blocking out most ambient sounds, making it ideal for travel or work. The sound quality is clear with balanced bass, and the build is sleek and comfortable for extended wear. Overall, excellent value for money!

OK, let's get the good things out of the way..They are comfortable, the pads are nice and soft, and conform to your ears in a soft leather memory foam kinda way.Build quality is good for this price point, bit there were a lot of plastic creaks when you yawn or move your jaw.Cream colour looks nice and refined.Noise cancelling is great at removing low frequencies, but let's the upper mids flow in.. They would be good for the plane as they would remove that low frequency rumble.Right, now that's over let's get onto the issues.No Case... Really Creative, do you think that's OK for mid priced headphones that fold up..even cheapo headphones come with a case!Sound:The upper bass/lower mids are absolutely terrible, they are probably the worst I've heard on an over ear headphone. It can only be described as dull and boxey. It's as if all of the lower mid frequencies have been sent through a reverb and then through a cushion before they hit your ears.High frequencies are soft but defined, but far from sparkling.Bass is a bit boomy, and dull.Soundstage is... Well it's kinda central.In a nutshell, they are dull and lifeless.So, I thought, why not install the app and try to sort all that out in the supplied EQ, I mean there is an EQ, or at least presets in there right... Wrong!The app let's you change the noise cancelling mode and that's about it..something you can do on the headphones. Why even bother with an app?Controls: You get three buttons, no touch controls, if others can do this at this price point, then why can't Creative?Oluvs favorite budget ANC headphones were used as a comparison, as they are slightly cheaper than these, but offer better performance and in my opinion far better value, OK the Zen hybrids have better ANC, but you buy headphones to enjoy music right?I was honestly looking forward to testing these, but they were a disappointment.This section of the headphone market has a lot of competition, and if this is all Creative have brought to the table, then it's a shame, especially as these are a version 2.I have a few £30 - £50 earbuds that blow these out of the water.