Wireless V-Moda Crossfade 2: great sound, no extra features

I recently wrote that there is no perfect Bluetooth headset, and now the manufacturer V-Moda gets a chance to prove itself. The American brand has long been producing attractive headphones, and in this review we will find out if the sound is impressive.

Rating

pros

Cons

The price is definitely huge

Bose QC35 and Sony WH-1000XM2. Codex Edition costs $ 350 and also supports the three main audio codecs in aptX, AAC, and SBC.

If you want to design the hardware to suit your personal tastes, you should check out the V-Moda website. The metal plates that are attached to the sides of both ear cups can be adjusted in different ways. You can not only choose an engraving from the finished graphics, but also upload your photo. But that's not all: you can also choose the material of the plates, but be careful, as some materials will drive the price to unaffordable heights. The price can go up to $ 27.

V-Moda includes a very well-made case with headphones of an appropriate design. In addition, you will also find an audio cable and a charging cable (unfortunately still micro-USB) in the package.

A clear, independent design language

It is unlikely that any other headphone manufacturer pays more attention to design and charm, like the V-Moda. Design is a matter of debate, but one thing is certain: the V-Moda Crossfade 2 Wireless certainly stands out from the crowd. Hexagonal metal plates on the outside, which are attached with attractive screws, give the headphones their own style. As already mentioned, the design impressed me at first sight, and it looked great in person.

Headphones are very well made. Unlike some other manufacturers, V-Moda uses a lot of metal, but also a lot of plastic. The large V-Moda lettering is covered with faux leather and a strip of fabric is on the underside.

Headphones provide excellent control: to the right of the headphones are three buttons on top: one for play / pause and another two for increase and decrease volume. The buttons are made of plastic and do not seem particularly durable. It looks pretty cheap and does not have pleasant pressure, so you have to remove the headphones to work with them smoothly.

There is also a fader that rotates the headphones or puts them into pairing mode. I like to use the faders to turn the headphones on and off, and it does its job reliably. This is barely noticeable and does not violate the design.

A short word about comfort: headphones are not as comfortable as models from Sony, Bose or Sennheiser. They are not uncomfortable to wear, but the ear cushions are too small, at least for my ears. After widespread use, it became a bit unpleasant.

The sound is pretty nice.

Ultimately, this audio quality matters. And in this regard, Crossfade 2 wireless headphones are absolutely convincing. The sound is well balanced, with crisp bass and rich mid-range frequencies. The sound reminded me very much of my Sony WH-1000MX2, and both sound pretty similar, which is good.

V-Moda still does not offer noise reduction. It's a shame, but that means the sound is cleaner. But do not get me wrong, I enjoy the benefits of noise reduction, especially living in a big, noisy city.

Crossfade 2 Wireless sends a clear message, and it makes sense that V-Moda does not include active noise reduction. Again, the brand just wants to focus on sound, and it works for them. There are no apps or other trinkets that other modern headphones bring with them. It's just a bluetooth headset that wants to impress by completing its job: providing quality sound.

Of course, nowadays headphones can look a bit old-fashioned. With a pretty high price, you might expect more. But I prefer gadgets that focus on essentials. So many devices are trying to do everything, but not doing them well.

V-Moda Crossfade Wireless 2 supports aptX, but only with a pink gold version. The new model with the addition of Codex Edition supports the AAC and SBC codec. The manufacturer lists all this information about various codecs on a special website.

No wonder with battery

V-Moda claims that the headphones provide 14 hours of battery life. This figure is not particularly outstanding, but it is more than enough. Based on my experience, this seems reasonable. Some competitors offer headphones that can run on battery power for 20 hours, but I can only live 14 hours.

There is one small point of criticism with these headphones. There is a small LED on the fader, but it does not turn on until the battery is almost empty and needs to be charged, and then it flashes red. Unfortunately, it is impossible to determine how much battery is left before this time. Other manufacturers have found better solutions for this, either using LED displays or some kind of notification system.

Good earphones, but probably not worth buying

In the end, the V-Moda Crossfade 2 wireless headphones leave me with mixed feelings. No doubt I love them and will use them again and again. But, nevertheless, I must admit that they do not withstand direct competition. They are just too expensive. As I said above, I am glad that V-Moda concentrates on the most important things and does not bother with too many functions.

At the same time, the headphones really do not offer anything that competitors do not have, and they lack interesting features. First of all, in the end, I miss active noise reduction, because the external noise is too loud during my trips to and from work.

I am very curious to see how the Crossfade headphone trajectory continues. One thing is clear: V-Moda will continue to develop its headphones and add more features. But I can’t name Crossfade 2 wireless headphones as my favorite right now, since this name belongs to Sony WH-1000MX2.

What are your favorite headphones? Let us know in the comments!