I am a firm believer in having a pair of headphones for every situation. I have headphones for: walking around, running outdoors, running indoors, weights, cycling (different ones for wet and dry weather), long haul flights, short haul flights, blue outfits, outfits that would not look good with blue, Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Switch, swimming, fancy listening, trash listening, etc, etc. You get it. So, when I test a new pair of headphones, I’m always trying to work out what their true purpose is. Being an all-rounder is great, but what’s the specific use case the designers had in mind for this pair. When it comes to the SkullCandy Crusher ANC 2, the use case is people who have been asked not to put their ear directly to the subwoofer anymore, but still want the same experience and have $449 to spend.
What are the SkullCandy Crusher ANC 2 Sensory Bass Headphones?
OK, so you know how controllers vibrate to give you extra feedback? The SkullCandy Crusher ANC 2 earns the “sensory bass headphones” tag because it, too, has a rumble pak-like experience, vibrating with the force of the bass.
It really has the vibe of being at a big festival, where the bass is giving you a mild concussion and rearranging your heartbeat, but you’re not really sure what anyone’s saying between the songs. (Though, I will say that the other tones sound much clearer after the recent firmware update.)
There is also an active noise-cancelling setting, as the name implies. However, given that I was able to have a full conversation with my wife while having ANC turned on, I wouldn’t recommend wearing them anywhere you want the noise to be cancelled. I have worn them on a flight from Melbourne to Sydney and was displeased.
Do the SkullCandy Crusher ANC 2 headphones sound good?
Good is such a relative term, but I’m shocked to say yes. When I did my initial assessment of the Crusher ANC 2, they were among the worst headphones I had ever used. I don’t expect SkullCandy headphones to excel at high or mid-tones, but even the bass sucked. However, recently, there was another firmware update that really improved the whole experience, elevating it above what I would normally expect from novelty headphones like these. While I do hate having to download apps for every pair of headphones, it really is worth grabbing the app for these to run that update.
Turning down the Crusher experience to half so I can actually hear all the different bits of a song, I’m shocked by how full and well-rounded Maybe You Saved Me by Black Suns and Pvris sounds. It’s smooth. Perhaps not as fully detailed as usual, but while the bass is certainly doing most of the heavy lifting, it’s not as overwhelming as I feared.
Going for a folkier/countrier vibe, Loney Moon by The Verses also works well. Ella Hooper’s voice sounds smooth, but with her signature growl/rasp coming through clearly. The electric guitars come through crisp and clear, though the acoustic guitar gets a bit lost under the bass guitar. Even the more snare/hi-hat dominant drums get a bit lost under the bass guitar.
Better Now (feat Maro) by Odesza is underpinned by a little pool of bass, but it’s mostly a chill track focusing on the mid-tones. Those mid-tones are there, but they’re a bit hidden. However, the effect of the song comes through nicely still, albeit differently to how I’m used to hearing the song. It’s not as the artists intended, but it’s also not bad, it’s just different.
Simmer by Hayley Williams is usually my headphone-testing song of choice when I want to test something delicate, but not go full classical. Her drummer is a wizard with spectacular stick control. His drum patterns sound like they’d have to be recorded on two tracks, if I hadn’t seen him play it live. It’s a song best enjoyed on good headphones in a quiet place so you can marvel at all the layers. The SkullCandy Crusher ANC 2 is not a pair of headphones designed for delicate layers. It is a hammer. And yet, while the bass guitar is overwhelming at times, I can still make out most of the details in the snare (though the hi-hat sticking is largely lost).
Going to a classical track, just because I can, Georgiana by Dario Marianelli sounds surprisingly good. Yeah, it’s missing some of the clarity of the higher notes, but I was expecting it to sound like a mess. It still maintains some (absolutely not all) of the emotional resonance.
But, onto some music that these headphones were actually designed for, Atonement by Conquer Divide sounds heavy and divine. Yes, it’s a song that has delicate elements that are lost, but it has all the impact you’d want from a metal band. It’s a fantastic experience with this much bass.
Same with a punk song like Call The Doctor by Sleater-Kinney. This is a song of pure frustrated rage, and that comes across so clearly. The way all the instruments seem to be fighting against each other works well with the extra bass. Same with A Real Man by Sleater-Kinney, the frenetic pushback against expectations can sometimes get lost listening to it on audiophile headphones. This isn’t a song of refinement, it’s to be screamed along to while feeling every drumbeat, the Crusher ANC 2 is kinda perfect for it.
If drum and bass is more your thing, Kill The Lights by [Ivy] sounds superb. This is what these headphones were for. Dance and/or rage. If those are the styles you listen to, you’ll be happy.
Is the ‘Crusher’ experience… good?
Surprisingly, yes. I really like the thudding concussive bass on certain genres. Santa Baby by Conquer Divide goes off with the Crusher effect. It’s like the aural equivalent of seeing the ripples on the glass of water in Jurassic Park.
But, as a drummer, the thing that takes the Crusher experience from incredible to mildly annoying is that it’s just ever so slightly off the beat. I hear the kick drum a split second before feeling the vibration. They should both hit at once. If you’re just listening while moving around and not paying close attention to the details, it’s fantastic. But the moment you start to look too close, the effect falls apart a little.
SkullCandy Crusher ANC 2 Verdict
I have to admit that when I first started this review, I expected the verdict to be that you should avoid at all costs. But after that firmware update, I actually see that there is a use case for these and the target audience will love them.
The ANC sucks, so if that’s important to you, then you should move on. But if you want to feel the bass more than you want to get lost in the delicate details of a song, these headphones are excellent. It’s a weird novelty to be sure, but as a 15 year old I would have loved these. The Crusher ANC 2 is going to enter my headphone rotation as my ‘angsty listening’ headphones, which is frankly an important category I can’t believe I previously ignored.
Would I use them for everyday listening? No. I like too much of a range of genres, and these headphones are too specific. But if bass-heavy songs are your bread and butter, then you could probably get away with these as your daily driver.