-
"Very pleased with these" on by sidewinder
Pros: Good fit (for me) good sound balance and clairity and great audio isolation
Cons: May not be comfortable for some
Summary: I had these on pre-order from J&R last week and was quite happy to have them at my front door in time for a flight I had last Friday. Since then I have been to busy places (Eaton Center in Toronto on Canada Day) On air planes, on LRTs and mowed the lawn with these small gems.
I found them quite comfortable and the mediums were a perfect fit for my ears. The plugs are rounded to help make them a little more comfortable than other Silicon canalphones that I have used.
The sound on these is quite good. My one worry with these was that the midrange would be lacking, as I have bought many other earphones in this pricerange that lacked in that range. The bass is also quite nice, not overpowering, and not too week. Finaly, the highs were crisp and clear.
The sound isolation is also quite good, I was isolated on the airplane, at Eaton Center and while mowing the lawn to such a degree that my volume setting never passed 13 (out of 25 on a Zen Vision:M) whereas the stock earbuds for the Zen required me to go up to 23 while mowing the lawn.
The cleaning utensil was very handy when I forgot to clean my ear one day, but a Q-Tip does a better job faster.
I feel that I have gotten great value out of my purchase and would highly recommed these, so long as your ears can accomodate them. -
"Not Durable" on by elyas2007
Pros: Good sound quality
Cons: Poorly Made
Summary: Creative Zen Aurvana is not durable. After using it careful for 5 months it stopped working. This reason is loose wiring inside the protective coat. The sound comes and goes when I wiggle the cable. This is not covered by the warranty as they call it "normal wear and tear". When I checked Creative forum, I found out that I was not alone as some people have the problem.
-
"Excellent, but not for the retail price tag." on by TNHD
Pros: nice design, fits well, great sound
Cons: Could be better at low sounds. A bit overpriced.
Summary: I compared these with stock ipod, my big Sennheissers, Koss Porta Pro, Sony gym headphones and Creatives EP-630.
For in ear headphones, they sound great, but not as good as my full ear headphones. Much better than stock ipod. Cleaner and crisper than the Creative EP-630's. (BTW, the EP-630's are amazing for the money they cost)Updated
You really have to try and see what you prefer. At first I couldn't believe the horrible sound these types of headphones were producing, but after fiddling a bit and twisting while putting them in, the sound was excellent. Bass is much better if they are a bit deeper in your ear canal. -
"Good sound (while it lasts)" on by scotton30
Pros: Well-balanced sound, comfortable and secure fit, light weight.
Cons: Sound becomes muffled and then almost cuts out completely in either/both sides after approx. three hours continuous use.
Summary: I wanted a more flat-respone IEM from the Sennheiser CX 300 that didn't cost significantly more. I tried the Shure E2c but found them to be bulky and challenging to fit. The Aurvanas do meet those needs. Unfortunately after trying two pairs I can say that they are not a good choice for prolonged listening. With both products, the sound became muffled and then almost silent in either or both sides after a few hours. They will recover after being left in the open for a half hour or longer, only to conk out again after the next thre-hour listening binge. A sales associate at Best Buy thinks the wiring in the earpieces expands from body heat, leading to a drop in the audio signal.
Updated
After spending more time with the earphones I have found that I can wear them for a long period of time without any problems. It seems that the problem occurs if I eat a meal while wearing them. Shortly after eating is when the sound starts to diminish. I imagine vibration/jaw movement causes this. I would now rate the Aurvanas at 8.3. -
"Good sound quality" on by dkehoe17
Pros: good sound quality, decent noise cancellation
Cons: cord is short and thin, seems likely to break in the future, included ear buds are smallish
Summary: I purchased these because my pair of Shure E2C's stopped working. The Zen Aurvana earbuds compare favorably in my opinion.
What I like: I listen to primarily rock music, and the sound quality is excellent. They fit relatively comfortably in my ear, although the largest ear buds included are still a bit small for my apparently oversized ear canal. While the cord is thinner than the E2C's it still does not tangle easily, which is a plus.
Negatives: Besides the aforementioned smallishness of the ear buds, the aurvana's cord seems like it is prone to breaking down easily in the future after months of heavy usage, although that's still speculation at this point. The cord could have been a few inches longer as well.
All in all, for the money I paid I'm very pleased with the quality of these earbuds and I would recommend them for someone looking for very good sound at a reasonable price. (I paid $15 for a replacement plan in case they break down, which I'm betting these will).
Creative Zen Aurvana user reviews
