After some time, Creative Labs is back in the Philippines and brought in a slew of speakers and headphones. Among them is this Creative Aurvana Ace 2 which up for review.
These are one of the world’s first widely available wireless earbuds with xMEMS technology. To put it simply, these buds promise great sound quality across a wide range of frequencies.
In detail, it pairs two drivers to deliver noticeable leaps in clarity in detail. The drivers include a 10mm dynamic driver for low-mid frequencies and an xMEMS silicon-based driver for high frequencies.
Now that we’ve established that we should expect great sound quality from the buds, what else does it offer? Well, let’s dive right in to find out!
Table of Contents
Design and Feel
The Aurvana Ace 2 looks impressive right out of the box. The first thing users will notice is its translucent charging case made with polycarbonate material.
Not sure how they pulled this off, but it sports a premium feel with the case’s copper accents. With how it’s made, users can even see its circuit board on the bottom of the case.
Speaking of, you’ll find a status LED light, USB Type-C port, and a button on the bottom as well. The button can be used for two things. Press it to either check on the case’s battery or to pair the buds with a device manually via Bluetooth.
After popping the case open, users will find the interior has a glossy, copper-like finish. Since it doesn’t feel like copper, I want to assume it’s made of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) thermoplastic.
It fits the bill seeing that it’s glossy and should be impact resistant. Overall, we like how the design and build are so far for the case. I like how Creative Labs didn’t skimp on the buds’ presentation.
Now then, for the buds’ design and feel. The Aurvana Ace 2 uses a stem design, reminiscent of classic earphones. As seen above, the top of the stem has a surface with holes in it.
I assume that these are used to allow sound to get into the buds’ microphones. Of course, this is for its ambient sound mode or active noise cancellation (ANC), but we’ll get to that later.
Just like the case, the earphones are made with semi-transparent polycarbonate material. However, the part that faces the ear is made with different plastic material.
Weighing about 4.7 grams each, the buds are pretty light. Users will only get three sizes of ear tips with the box inclusive of the ones already equipped. For comparison’s sake, it’s eerily similar to Apple’s AirPods Pro 2.
The buds themselves are a snug yet comfortable fit. I didn’t find them fatiguing in any circumstance whatsoever. I managed to use them for about nine (9) hours during work with breaks in between.
My consensus for the buds’ build quality is that it’s pretty high. Plus, the buds feature IPX5 water resistance. This means it should be good for use in the rain, gym, etc. Just don’t go too crazy and submerge these out of a whim.
Features and App
The buds feature Bluetooth 5.3 for connectivity, with an effective working radius that caps at 10 meters. For reference, this should be roughly half a tennis court.
Keep in mind though, things like thick walls may also affect your connection. Additionally, your music doesn’t pause automatically when you take the buds off.
The earbuds also offers support for Auracast, multi-point connection, and a handful of codecs we’ll leave on the spec sheet below.
As for features, the buds offer Adaptive Hybrid ANC, Ambient Mode, and Customizable Touch Controls via the Creative app. Users can switch between ANC and Ambient Mode with either the app or touch controls.
Frankly, the buds aren’t the best noise canceling earbuds. It’s above average at best, as it’s still able to control noise around the user with a snug ear tip fit. Surprisingly, the Ambient Mode works as a great redeeming feature.
It works by reducing high-frequency noise through passive isolation and the existing adaptive ANC. Since it’s ‘adaptive’, I found that it either increases or decreases ANC levels depending on the user’s environment.
Turning on Ambient Mode should be great for when the user needs to pay attention. Instead of taking your buds off or having to pause your song, you can definitely rely on this feature.
Funnily enough, I realized how good it was when I could hear myself talk with music blasting on the buds. The feature also doesn’t make me speak louder than usual, contrary to most users who use earbuds or headphones.
For calls, the buds use three microphones per bud. Users will get quality calls on-the-go. The mics work pretty well to isolate the user’s voice from external noise.
I can vouch that the buds will never be at fault should the other person fail to understand you.
The buds also provide support for Siri and Google Assistant. Personally, I’m not a fan of using these. I just think talking to yourself to get your device to work is crazy.
Anyway, the Creative Aurvana Ace 2 is also compatible with the Creative app. Upon pairing, the app immediately asked me to get the latest firmware update, which was appreciated.
The app is pretty straightforward, which is a good thing. Apps should be easy to digest and manage, after all. The main tool users can play around with is the in-app equalizer controls.
For those that don’t want to think too hard on the perfect EQ blend, presets are available on the top left.
Aside from this, users can switch between ANC or Ambient Mode from the app. Users may also opt to customize the touch controls for the buds or even toggle to enable low latency mode.
For those who didn’t know yet, low latency mode is a trade-off. While you reduce the latency between the device and buds, this comes with the expense of audio quality. The only other pro of this mode is syncing audio with video playback.
Sound Quality
Listening to music with the Creative Aurvana Ace 2 was a great experience that improved with time spent. Personally, it stood out to me through a couple of tracks and I had to run it back.
The high-frequency performance of the xMEMS drivers were evident when I listened to Selfless by The Strokes. I started to notice exceptional, localized clarity and quality from the guitars alone around the 1:03 mark.
Next, I noticed something when I played Mr. Rager by Kid Cudi. Even after tinkering with the EQ presets and manual adjustments, I feel like the bass needed some work.
From these, I inferred the buds offer emphasis, detail, and immersion for mids and highs. Likewise, I also noticed balancing low frequencies could be troublesome.
To elaborate, it’s not that the bass isn’t there. You either get too much or too little. I did some research, and I found that the magnitude of the bass varies on the fit of the earbuds.
For this to improve, users may have to consider sacrificing the perfect fit for your ears. As a point of preference, I chose to stick to what felt comfortable. It didn’t totally take away from the listening experience entirely.
Of course, users may opt for the alternative. I chose to just stick to tinkering with the EQ levels that the Creative app offers. Either way, I was subject to great mids and highs from the earbuds.
Battery Life
The case packs a 470mAh battery, with the buds having 52mAh each. Again, the case charges via USB Type-C. However, I think it is worth to note that it also supports Qi wireless power transfers.
Creative Labs rate the buds’ usage is good for up to 6 hours on a single full charge. The case provides up to three charges, which should equal a full day of regular use.
But of course, I’m here to share my experience with the buds. Long story short, the battery life isn’t exceptional. Either way, it still pumps good numbers, all things considered.
Having spent a week with the buds, I’ve only ever had to charge the case twice. It’s a bit surprising, seeing as I’m often listening to music in between day-to-day errands and work.
The case and buds were low on power when I got them out of the box. Charging them for about 30 minutes granted me a good 3-4 hours of playback time off the bat.
I had to charge it again to full power after a day, and it’s still holding up after four days. I have to note that results may vary on user behavior, but it’s pretty good under this department overall.
If users need to use the buds on-the-go, all you need is 10 minutes of charging. From here, the buds should be good for an hour of playback. This should be great for users rushing to get to school, work, or quick errands.
Final Thoughts
Wrapping up, we found that the Creative Aurvana Ace 2 has a handful of strengths. The buds offer a unique design, superb ambient mode, and provide users with great mids and highs.
We also unpacked that it needs some adjustments to make the lows work for the user. Aside from this, we believe that it doesn’t pack the best ANC technology around.
Everything considered, I think that it could compete under the weight class of better known flagship wireless earbuds.
If users just want quality wireless earbuds that perform well, you should definitely look into these buds. This iteration of the Aurvana Ace certainly improved, but we feel as though it could’ve offered more.
What do you guys think of the Creative Aurvana Ace 2? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.
What we liked:
* Unique design and build
* Superb ambient mode
* Great mids and highs
* Comfortable fit
What we didn’t like:
* Inconsistent lows
* ANC needs work to optimize
Creative Aurvana Ace 2 specs:
Adaptive Hybrid Active Noise Cancellation
Ambient Mode
10mm dynamic driver
xMEMS solid-state driver
LC3, AptX Lossless, AptX Adaptive, AptX, AAC, SBC (audio codec)
3x microphones (per bud)
USB Type-C charging port
Bluetooth 5.3
Up to 10m (33 ft.) wireless operating range
IPX5 rating for water resistance (earbuds only)
Customizable Touch Controls (via Creative App)
Siri & Google Assistant support
470mAh battery (charging case)
52mAh battery (per bud)
Up to 24 hours (battery life)
Up to 6 hours (per charge)
64.7 x 49.1 x 26.9mm (2.55 x 1.93 x 1.06 inches)
46.6 grams (weight)
Translucent Black & Copper
