Customer Reviews

Creative Aurvana In-Ear Headphones

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I have now purchased and listened to the two most expensive Shure Earbuds. They are great, but very costly and kind of big. I have the Denon 700, the Sennheiser CX 300(also an unparalleled bargain), the Audio Technica CK7, Ultimate Ear (as of yet, not listened to), and the Bose earbuds(I hate them. They are uncomfortable with muddy base and indistinct sound).

I think that I enjoy the Creative Zen the best over all with the possible exception of the Shure 4c. The Creative has a very clear sound that allows you to hear instruments with incredible clarity and presence. The upper end is sparkling and fun. The bass is very clear and a little punchy. These phones will never have the full bass of an excellent over the ear headphone. The sound seems richer than the Sennheiser 300. The sound might be ever so slightly colored compared to the Denon which seem very nuetral. The Audio Technica also seems to have a very neutral presentation.

I have to agree with what many of the reviewers have said when they express great disappointment that the sound is tinny or small sounding. It really is all in the fit. When I first bought the Shure 4c, I spent $300.00. I purchased them from an audiophile stereo shop. I paid full price. When I purchased them, I think that I got caught up with the thought that I was buying "the best" because they were so expensive. The salesman really did not explain how to use them properly and he used these foam rings around them to test them. I suspect that it was for hygene reasons and that they would throw out the foam rings. At home, I did not spend the time necessary to establish a good fit on the Shures. At the time, I thought that I had made a bad choice. Now that I know what I am doing putting them in, I do so much better. I think the Shures are wonderful.

The reason that I believe the Creative Zen Arvana's are so good really is the fit. Like the Shures, they are slightly angled,i.e the body is at an angle from the portion that extends into the ear canal. This allows you to really put the earphones deep into your ears and for the earphone to hang out of your ear in a comfortable manner. I have also found that they work better if you put the earphone in your hear by wrapping the cord over the back of your ear and inserting them from the top of the ear rather that just to stick them directly in your ear canal with the wire simply hanging down. It allows you to adjust the sliding piece so as to make the whole apparatus to fit reasonable snugly which is good if you are using them in the gym.

Lastly, unlike the Denon, Audio Technica, or Sennheiser earphones, they come with a little case that allows you to protect the earphones so that you might get year out of them without breaking them (if you do not lose them first). I have been using old cufflink boxes to put the Denon, Audio Technica, and Sennheiser earbuds into to protect them.

I've had these headphones for about six months and I didn't realize how good they were till a couple of days ago. I bought them for my forth deployment to Iraq/Afganistan and now they are history. Of all things do do them in, a field mouse. The little furball chewed them up and ruined them forever. Since I have very little choice but to buy something here(which is next to nothing), I got a $10 pair of Sony cheapies and now i know what I paid for. Yes the Creative had their quirks but based on what I have now, they were more than worth the extra money. solid bass(when fitted properly, you really need to do this), clear mids and highs. It did take a little to get use to them being in my ear, but after that everything was fine. Durability was not a problem. After a couple of training exercises and around three months in this less than perfect area to live in, they held up very well. If you are a little more serious about what you listen to and how you listen to it, these are a good starting point before entering the world of $200.00 to $500.00 sets of earphones.

These are very comfortable, small and light, and they block the ambient noise very well. There are a couple of major problems however. One is that the chord is microphonic. It transmits a loud scraping sound to the earpieces when it rubs on your face or clothing. The other is the response. The only other earphones I have to compare it against are the Ultimate Ears Super.fi 3, (a.k.a. Altec Lansing UHP336). The Zen suffers very badly by comparison. It has an uneven frequency response with a bump in the mid treble range around 3kHz to 5kHz that makes it sound shouty. Another nit is that there is no room in the supplied carrying case for the airplane connection adapter.

I bought these as a replacement for my Creative EP-630's after the left earbud stopped producing sound. I decided to spring for a more expensive pair of Creative earphones, since I liked the EP-630's sound and wanted to hear what a expensive Creative earphones would sound like. So far, I've been disappointed by their sound and overall quality- they sound no better than the EP-630's, but cost twice as much. Also, the cord is made out of the material Creative uses for its basic headphones, which is not as reliable as the other cord material.
On the bright side, the headphones do offer better insulation than the EP-630's, and they don't sound bad, but certainly should sound better considering their price.

Creative ZEN AURVANA In-Ear Earphones - Headphones ( ear-bud ) - noise canceling - glossy blackDo not purchase.This is my third pair.The left channel has gone out on all three.The last set I sent back to creative and they sent me back someones broken earbuds.Their India technical support is useless.Good luck If you decide to purchase.I bought the first pair in November 2007.

I like to consider myself an audiophile on a medium budget. I bought the V-MODA Bass Boost earbuds a few months ago (and they were fantastic), but on a trip to Italy over Spring Break they were utterly destroyed over nearly a month's ownership. The Creative Aurvanas had withstood 3 months of tireless use and have shown no damage or crackling since I bought them. Because they are so light, these headphones are almost impossible to find: when you are wearing them! The bass is a little underwelming, but you EQ should be able to fix that. The highs are stunning and listening to a pianist play is almost breath-taking.

Looks: 5
Bass: 4
Weight: 5
Shape: 3
+ 3.5" jack
+ Gold-plated connectors, oxygen-free copper wire
+ The shiny black casing is vey shexy!

5 is an understatement!

The earphones are a snug fit, easy to insert and sound marvelous. Great choice and well worth the money.

I purchased these at a airport, so returning them to the store is next to impossible, they worked for about 10 minutes, after contacting the store they pawned me off on the company and after contacting Creative they tried to pawn me off on the store, after finally contacting Creative by email the only way to contact them, they expect me to pay to return them to their service department and pay a fee to look at them. I should have stuck with Shure great customer service and they actually work.

When I first tried these, I thought they were "tinny" as the first reviewer indicates. However, that is because they were not put in properly. For in-ear headphones like these, there has to be a good seal between the earbud and your ear. Once I inserted them properly, they sounded terrific.

The carrying case for it is nice. The headphones fit well and it is hard for better protection. My only complaint with it is that the travel adapter that comes with the headphones doesn't fit inside it.

My only other complaint is that there are no finger grips for inserting/removing the jack. The finger hold is very small and smooth (no grip pattern) and it can be difficult to insert or remove from some jacks.

I've had these since December 9th, and my first impression was that it's near perfect. However, as time went on, the flaws became more apparent.

First of all, the ear buds are very small. That may sound like a good thing, but putting it on requires delicacy. I've often bend the wires because the ear buds are too small for my hands (and my hands are small already).

Secondly, the wires misshape itself. This sounds weird, but the wires do become crookedly and there's nothing you can do to reshape it.

Sound quality wise, it fairs little better than the V-Moda.